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eve he may affert very truly, that "no other word, in my language whatever, can be found to exprefs both he fame number, and the fame thing."

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CHAP. XIV.

ND I looked, and lo, a Lamb ftood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty ad four thousand, having his Father's name written their foreheads.

2 And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: ad I heard the voice of harpers harping with their arps:

3 And they fung as it were a new fong before the rone, and before the four beafts, and the elders ad no man could learn that fong, but the hundred ad forty and four thoufand, which were redeemed om the earth.

4 These are they which were not defiled with woen; for they are virgins: thefe are they which folw the Lamb whitherfoever he goeth: thefe were deemed from among men, being the first-fruits to God, and to the Lamb,

5 And in their mouth was found no guile; for ey are without fault before the throne of God.

fter this melancholy account of the rife and reign of peaft, the Spirit of prophecy delineates, by way of sition, the itate of the true church during the fame d, it ftruggles and contefts with the beat, and the ments of God upon its enemies. Our Saviour is (ver. 1.) as the true Lamb of God, not only with s like a lamb, standing on the mount Sion, the place of 's true worship; and with him an hundred forty and four fand, the fame felect number that was mentioned be(VII. 4.) the genuin ofspring of the twelve apoftles colically multiplied, and therefore the number of the

have the name of God, and as fome copies add of Chrift, written in their foreheads, being his profeffed fervants, and the fame as the witneffes, only reprefented under different figures. The angels and heavenly quire (ver. 2, 3.) with loud voices and inftruments of mufic ting the fame new fong or Chriftian fong that they fung before: (Chap. V.) "and no man could learn that fong, but the hundred and forty and four thoufund; they alone are the worshippers of the one true God through the one true mediator Jefus Chrift; all the rest of mankind offer up their devotions to other objects, and through other mediators. Thefe are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins; (ver. 4) they are pure from all the ftains and pollutions of fpiritual whoredom or idolatry, with which the other parts of the world are miferably debauched and corrupted. These are they which follow the Lamb whitherfoever he goeth; they adhere conftantly to the religion of Chrift in all conditions and in all places, whether in adverfity or profperity, whether in conventicles and deferts, or in churches or cities. Thefe were redeemed from among men refcued from the corruptions of the world, and are confecrated as the firft fruits unto God and the Lamb, an earnest and affurance of a more plentiful harvest in fucceeding times. And in their mouth was found no guile; (ver. 5.) they handle not the word of God deceitfully, they preach the fincere doctrin of Chrift, they are as free from hypocrify as from idolatry; for they are without fault before the throne of God, they refemble their bleffed redeemer, who (1 Pet. II. 22.) did no fin, neither was guile found in his mouth; and are, as the apoftle requires Chriftians to be, (Philip. II. 15.) blameless and harmless, the fons of God without rebuke in the midst of a crooked and perverfe nation. But poffibly it may be afked, Where did fuch a church ever exift, efpecially before the Reformation: and it may be replied that it hath not exifted only in idea; hiftory demonftrates, as it hath been before evinced, that there have in every age been fome true worshippers of God, and faithful fervants of Jefus Chrift; and as Elijah did not know the feven thousand men who had never bowed the knee to Baal, fo there may have been more true Chriftians than were always vifible..

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6 And I faw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, ́. and kindred, and tongue, and people..

7. Saying with a loud voice Fear God, and give glory to him, for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven and earth, and the fea, and the fountains of waters.

Such is the nature and character of the true Chriftian church in oppofition to the wicked Antichristian kingdom; and three principal efforts have been made towards a reformation at three different times, reprefented by three angels appearing one after another. Another angel, (ver. 9.) befides thofe who were employed in finging, (ver. 3.) is feen flying in the midst of heaven, and having the everlafting gospel to preach unto every nation and people; fo that during this period the gofpel fhould still be preached, which is stiled the everlasting gospel, being like its divine author (Heb. XIII. 8.) the fame yesterday, and to day, and for ever, in oppofition to the novel doctrins of the beaft and the falfe prophet, which (Matt. XV. 13.) Should be rooted up as plants not of the heavenly Father's planting. This angel is farther represented (ver. 7.) faying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him, for the hour of his judgment is come. Prophecy mentions things as come, which will certainty come and fo our Saviour faid (John XII. 31.) Now is the judgment of this world; it is denounced with certainty now, and in due time will be fully executed. But what this angel more particularly recommends, is the worship of the great creator of the univerfe; Worthip him that made heaven and earth, and the fea, and the fountains of waters.

It is a folemn and emphatic exhortation to forfake the reigning idolatry and fuperftition, and fuch exhortations were 'made even in the firft and earliest times of the beaft. Befides feveral of the Greek emperors who ftrenuously oppofed the worthip of images, Charlemain himfelf (7)

(7) Fred. Spanhemii Hift. Chriftian Sc. 8. Cap. 7 et 9. Dupin. Bib.

Ecclefiaft. Tom. 6. paffim. Voltaire's
Annals of the Empire. Ann. 794.

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00 French, and German, and Italian, and Spad British bishops, who condemned all fort of nor worship of images, and rejected the fecond of Nice, which had authorized and established it. ame time the Carolin books, as they are called, ks written by Charles himself or by his authoving the worthip of images to be contrary to the and to the doctrin and practice of antiquity, proved by the council, and tranfmitted to the Lewis the pious, the fon and fucceffor of Charles, I a council at Paris in the year 824, which ratiacts of the council of Francfort and the Carolin nd affirmed that, according to the fcripture and ers, adoration was due to God alone. Several perfons alfo taught and afferted the fame fcripЄtrins. Claud, bithop of Turin, (9) declares e are not commanded to go to the creature, that y be made happy, but to the creator himself: herefore we fhould not worship dead men; they be imitated, not to be adored: let us together he angels worship one God.' Agobard, archbiLyons, (1) wrote a whole book againft images, s that angels or faints may be loved and hobut not be ferved and worthipped: let us not r truft in man, but in God, left that prophetic ciation fhould redound on us, Curfed is the man, ufteth in man.' Many other (2) bishops and of Britain, Spain, Italy, Germany, and France, the fame fentiments; and this public oppofition

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hem. ibid. Sec. 9. Cap. . et Hift. Imag. Reft. Sect. bid. Tom. 7. Chap. 1. jubemur ad creaturam teniamur beati, fed ap ipfum Et ideo non fit nobis res hominum mortuorum; funt propter imitationem, di propter religionem : angelis colamus Deum. hem. ibid. Sæc. 9. Cap. Vide etiam Dupin. ibid. ft. Litt. ad Ann. 820. geli, vel homines fancti,

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mperors and bifhops to the worship of faints and ges in the eighth and ninth centuries appears to be it particularly by the loud voice of this firft angel g aloft, and calling upon the world to worship God. other refpect too thefe emperors and bifhops rele this angel having the everlasting gospel to preach every nation; for in their time, and greatly by their s, (3) the Christian religion was propagated and lifhed among the Saxons, Danes, Swedes, and y other northern nations.

8. And there followed another angel, faying, bylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because e made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath her fornication.

the admonitions of the firft angel had not the proffect upon the kingdom of the beaft, the fecond ancommiffioned to proclaim the fall of the capital (ver. 8.) And there followed another angel, faying, lon is fallen, is fallen, that great city. By Babylon meant Rome, as all authors of all ages and countries

but it was not prudent to denounce the deftrucof Rome in open and direct terms: it was for many eafons done covertly under the name of Babylon, was the great idolatrefs of the earth, and enemy of eople of God in former, as Rome hath been in later

By the fame figure of speech, that the first angel that the hour of his judgment is come, this fecond anroclaims that Babylon is fallen; the fentence is as n, as if it was already executed. For greater certoo it is repeated twice Babylon is fallen, is fal en; eph faid (Gen. XLI. 32.) that the dream was doubled Pharaoh twice, because the thing is established by God, od will shortly bring it to pass. The reafon then is I of this fentence against Babylon, because he made tions drink of the wine of her wrath, or rather of the ing wine of her fornication. Here was a kind of a an cup with poifoned liquor to intoxicate and in

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