with many of his Nobles, and the heathen Empire profeffed the Chriflian Faith; then was this Let removed; then way was made for Antichrift to come in apace: For Conftantine giving fuch large Gifts, and beftowing fuch great Dowries upon the Churches and Officers thereof, they had not only Peace and Freedom from Perfecutions, but abun dance of Outward Wealth and Profperity: The Glory and Purity; that is, her fpiritual Glory, which had been upon the Church in the Primitive Time, and did in fome meafure continue upon her, in her afflicted perfecutedState, was now decay'd and gone off: Now she was for Eafe, and fucking in the Sweetness of the Creature in Profperity, inftead of the Sweetness which before fhe had fucked out of the Crofs in her Adverfity: Now fhe was for appearing outwardly great, having an Outward Glo ry and Worldly Grandeur upon her: Now (he was for having the Precedency, and climbing up to great Pofts, and high Offices in the Church Now the began to fwell with Greatnefs, Pride, and Ambition: And tho' the Defign of Conftantine the Emperor was good in what he did, and without doubt in Love to Chrift and his People; yet his great Indulgence which he fhewed, and the great Dowries which he bestowed upon the Officers of the Church, proved a Step for Antichrift to get up: And therefore Hiftory gives us an account, That there was a Voice heard at that time, in the Air, This day is Poyfon poured into the Churches. Now the Let being removed, and every thing appearing in fuch a profperous way, Antichrift foon began to fhew his Head: Now he begins to climb up from one Step to another, from one Degree and Title to I 2

"

another:

another Now the Church of Rome must be declared to be the Mother, Chief, and Head of all other Churches; now the Bishop of Rome takes upon him to be Chrift's Vicar, the Title of UniverSal Bishop, and Head of the Churches upon Earth; whereas the true Church bas but one Head, and that is Jefus Chrift. Now Antichrift having climbed up fo high, as to pretend to be the Universal Head and Bishop of the Church under Chrift, to rule over the Confciences of Men, to give and to dispense of Laws, as he pleaseth He having, I fay, thus ftept up, and fettled himself a little time in the Saddle or Seat of his Antichriftian Government; this proud Monfter was not fatisfy'd yet, until at laft he claims not only the Ecclefiaftical, but the Civil Power; and makes Princes, Kings, and Emperors, bow at his Feet, and kifs his Toe, whilft he kicks their Crowns off their Heads, at his pleasure. Well! This fufficiently appears to be the Antichrift fpoken of, and points him out to us, in these Words, as it were by the Finger. Whatever Senfe other Expofitors are pleafed to give upon this Text,in applying of it toSyria and Egypt, poffeffed by theSeleucida andLagida, &c. matters little to me, becaufe I am fully fatisfy'd that the Roman or Fourth Monarchy is held forth unto us in thefe Words; and that it being thus diverfe from the reft, does but fhew that different Form of Government held by the Papal or Antichriftian Power, as being reared up out of the Ruin or Decay of the Roman Empire; which I take to be the fame with the little Horn coming up out of the TenHorns; which is explained by the Apostle John, in the 17th of Revelations, to be Ten Kings or Kingdoms; thefe having one

Mind, and being agreed in this Point, fhall give their Power and Strength unto the Beaft; that is, thefe ten Kingdoms or Nations having confented and agreed to give up their Power and Strength, for the holding up of this Antichriftian Beaf, give way and make room for another Horn to rife out of them; that is, a different and ftrange Form of Government, erected, held up, and maintained by the Pope and his Antichriftian Church, in his Pretence to the Civil as well as the Ecclefiaftical Power. This little Horn that is faid to rife up from or amongst the Ten, bad Eyes like the Eyes of a Man; and does fignifie what Wifdom, Cunning, and fubtil Craftinefs, they thould make ufe of in the framing of this Government. And it had a Mouth Speaking great things: That is, he fhall be exceeding high and haughty in his Words, pretending to great and extraordinary Matters, even to the blafpheming of God and his Tabernacle, Rev. xiii. 6.

But to return again to the Confideration of the 7th Verfe; This Fourth Beaft, or the Roman Em pire under its Papal Power, who had the Man of Sin, or the Antichrift spoken of, as its chief Head, is faid to be dreadful and terrible, and frong exceedingly Dreadful and terrible he has been to Nations and Kingdoms round about him, by fire, Sword, and bloody Maffacres. Dreadful and terrible he has been to the Church and People of God, by afflicting, wounding, and perfecuting of them even unto Death, by devifing of a thoufand Torments and Cruelties. Dreadful and terrible he has been to Princes, Kings, and Emperors, by his dreadful Bulls and Excommunications, that ufed to be terrible to Nations and Kingdoms, in curfing

them

them (if they difpleafed him) to the Devil, by Bell, Book, and Candle. And frong exceedingly; and well he might, whilft he had the Strength of Ten Horns or Kingdoms, to hold him up: Out of which he formed (as before) a Double Power; which Power he improv'd to the uttermoft, to make all ftand in fear of him, and to wonder after the Beaft. What dreadful and terrible Exploits has he done by this Power, when he was in his Heighth, that no earthly Monarch in the World could ever pretend unto!

Here is another thing that he had; and that was his great Iron Teeth. This further denotes his Cruelty; for with them he devoured and broke in pieces. Oh how terribly has he bitten the Church, and perfecuted the People of God, without Pity or human Bowels! He knew not how to fpare any that came within his Clutches: Thefe Iron Teeth (like those that eat Man's Flesh) were for devour ing all that came to hand, in deftroying, as far as poffibly he could, Soul and Body together. Woe be to them (with refpect to their Bodies or Outward Man, at least) that came betwixt the Teeth of this Beast; for they are very fharp. This is the Devil's Work; it is he that whets and sharpens these Teeth, to do his Drudgery: They cut thro' where they come, without making any bones of them. Many Thousands have felt the dreadful Sharpness of thefe Iron Teeth: It was from the Face of this ferpentine Beaf, that the Woman, the Church (who did retain the Doctrines of the Gofpel, in their Purity both of Faith and Order) was forced to flee into the Wilderness, where God had prepared a Place for her Safety; otherwife none could

have escaped his Cruelty. But this is not all What his barbarous Teeth could not come at he endeavours with his foul and hellish Feet to ftamp down), and to deftroy; which Feet are of the fame nature with the Iron Teeth. All this Cruelty is acted with one and the fame Power. The Words run thus; And ftamped the Refidue with the Feet of it. Thefe Feet have done a world of Mifchief. How has this monftrous Beast not only trampled upon the Necks of Kings and earthly Princes; but it has trampled upon the Necks of the Saints; it has trampled upon their Perfons, their Good Names, Eftates, and whatfoever was near and dear to them: It has trampled upon the Word of God, with the precious Truths of the Gofpel. What Mifchief this bloody Beat could not do with the Teeth of Cruelty, it has endeavoured to do with its Feet, by its Emiffaries, Cardinals, Doctors, Jefuits, Priefts, Monks, and Friars, with the whole Neft and Locust of Errors and Herefies, coming out of the Smoke of the Bot tomless Pit. Oh how has the Truth of Chrift been darken'd, and the clear Waters of the Sanctuary been muddied! Yea, hath not this Beaft fet its foul Feet into our Waters, fo that the Saints can not drink the clear Stream, as it comes from the Fountain Though, bleffed be God, we are deliver'd in fome measure from the Iron Teeth; it cannot bite us now, as it has done; the moft that it can do in this refpect, is only to grin and fet its Teeth at us, Yet we are not altogether free from its Feet; I mean in refpect to its mudding the pure Streams of the Grace of theGofpel. Wherever theGofpel is not preached in its Pureness, Freeness, Clear

nef's,