of Life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the Books, according to their works. And the Sea gave up the dead which were in it, and Death and Hades delivered Ир the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every man according to their works. And Death and Hades were caft into the Lake of Fire; this is the fecond death. And whosoever was not found written in the Book of Life, was cast into the Lake of Fire.

Corollary. Hence we may obferve the great Error of those who would apply all the Revelation to the moft early Ages of the Church; and of those who would apply it all to the latest Ages of it: and that commonly on both fides in order to the excufing the past and present Ages from being concern'd ; it being equally plain that both fides are alike mistaken, and are alike remote from the true meaning of this Book.

VII.

The general Partition of the Prophetick part of this Book of the Revelation, is into Two main Branches; the former contain'd in a Sealed Book, and the latter in an Open Codicil. The former including Seven Seals, or Sealed and hidden Prophecies; the latter containing several Open and clear ones.

This general Partition of the Book of the Revelation feems to me evident by the Comparison of the fifth and tenth Chapters together; fo far as they relate to this Matter: which therefore I fhall firft intirely fet down, and then endeavour to explain and illustrate more particularly.

Sealed

Sealed Book.

CHAP. V.

AND I Saw in the right hand of him that fat on the throne, a Book written within;and on the back-fide fealed with feven Seals. 2. And I saw a strong Angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the Book, and to loose the Seals thereof?

3. And no man in Heaven, nor in Earth, neither under the Earth, was able to open the Book, neither to look thereon.

4. And 1 wept much because no man was found worthy to open, and to read the Book, neither to look thereon.

5. And one of the Elders faith unto me, Weep not: behold the Lyon of the Tribe of Judah, and the root of David hath prevailed to open the Book, and to loofe the feven Seals thereof.

6. And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the Throne, and of the four Animals, and in the midst of the Elders ftood a Lamb, as it had been flain, having Seven Horns, and feven Eyes, which are the feven Spirits of God fent forth into all the Earth.

Open Codicil.

CHAP. X.

AND I saw another strong

Angel come down from Heaven, clothed with a Cloud, and a Rainbow was upon his Head, and his Face was as it were the Sun, and his Feet as Pillars of Fire.

2. And he had in his right hand a little Book open: and he fet his right foot upon the Sea, and his left foot on the Earth.

3. And cried with a loud Voice, as when a Lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven Thunders uttered their voices.

8. And the Voice which I heard from Heaven Spake unto me again, and faid, Go, and take the little Book that is open in the hand of the Angel which ftandeth upon the Sea, and upon the Earth.

9. And I went unto the Angel, and faid unto him, Give

7. And he came and took theme the little Book. And he said Book out of the right hand of unto me, Take it, and eat it up, him that fat upon the Throne: and it shall make thy Belly bit

8. And when he had taken ter, but it shall be in thy Mouth the Book, the four Animals, and fweet as honey. four and twenty Elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them Harps and golden Fials full of Odours, which are the Prayers of Saints.

9. And they sung a new Song, Saying, Thou art worthy to take the Book, and to open the Seals thereof: for thou waft flain, and haft redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every Kindred, and Tongue, and People, and Nation;

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10. And haft made us unto our God, Kings and Priests: and we shall reign on the Earth.

10. And I took the little Book out of the Angels hand, and ate it up; and it was in my Mouth fweet as honey, and affoon as I had eaten it, my Belly was bitter.

11. And he faid unto me, Thou must prophecy again before many People, and Nations, and Tongues, and Kings.

This general Partition of the Prophetick part of the Book of the Revelation has been in fome Degree distinguish'd and ftated by Mr. Mede, and it is commonly allow'd by the reft that follow him in general. But because they have not enough examin'd into the true Import of these two distinct Systems of Prophecy; nor, I think, rightly ftated their proper Limits, Object, and Difference in particular; I fhall attempt to fupply thofe Defects, and to fhew the exact bounds of each Syftem, the reafon of their diftinction, and the ob ject to which they relate, under the following Obfervations: which will particularly deferve the Readers careful Confideration; fince the miftakes hereto belonging feem to me to have. been a great occafion, why not a few Visions have been hitherto misunderstood by even Mr. Mede himself, and the best Commentators who have followed him.

1. The Sealed Book, Βιβλίον εσφραγισμένον σφαγίαν έπω, contains the feven Seals; and by confequence the feven Trumpets, which are the Contents of the feventh Seal; and the feven Vials, which (as fhall be prov'd hereafter) are the Contents of the feventh Trumpet; and feven Thunders alfo, which

may

may be call'd an Appendage to the fixth Trumpet. In fhort it contains all the Prophetick Vifions that go fucceffively by Sevens; the feven Seals, seven Trumpets, feven Thunders, and feven Vials. And collaterally with the feven Trumpets this Sealed Book contains withal a large account of the ftate of the undefiled Worshippers of God, during all that Period of the Trumpets; with the Expofition of the Prophecy concerning the Whore of Babylon. This I take to be-the Contents of the Sealed Book, whofe Apparatus is contain'd in the 4 and 5th, and it felf in the 6, 7, 8, 9th, part of the 10th, and in the 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19th Chapters of this Book. And tho' the remainder of the Prophecy may properly enough be reduc'd to the fame Sealed Book; yet because it is beyond the Period of the Seals, I would rather call it an Appendix to the Sealed Book, than any part of the Book it felf; and conclude the Sealed Book, in a ftrict Signification, at the end of the 19th Chapter which looks moft naturally like a Conclusion

of it.

2. The Open Codicil, or Little Book, Bißaweidior 'Avewy war, includes thefe feveral Prophecies or diftinct Vifions. (1.) That of the two Courts of the Temple. (2.) That of the two Witnesses; with a remarkable infertion concerning the general importance of the feventh Trumpet, and its fudden fucceeding to the afcenfion of the Witneffes, for the connexion of the Visions in this Open Codicil with thofe in the Sealed Book (3) That of the Woman, with Child, and after her delivery nourished in the Wilderness. (4.) That of the Beast with feven Heads and ten Horns. (5.) That of another twohorned Beast, like a Lamb. (6.) That of an Image of the Beaft. To all which is added a fort Account or Epitome of the State of the Undefiled, running parallel with the feveral Stages of this Codicil, and exactly correfponding with the larger Account of the fame in the Sealed Book, of which we have already made mention, as will appear hereafter. Thefe I take to be the only Contents of this Open Codicil, and to be contain'd wholly in' part of the 10th, which is its Apparatus, and in the 11, 12, 13, and 14th Chapters of this Prophecy.

See Juricu. 1. 1.

C. 4. & 8.

3. The general reafon of this Partition of the feveral Vifions into two fuch diftinct and collateral Branches or Systems, as the Sealed Book and Open Codicil are, feems to me like that of different Chronological Series, for the different Kingdoms of the World in a general View of that Science; or rather like the different Series of the Four Gofpels in the Harmonies of the Evangelifts. That fo collateral Prophecies which belong'd to the fame times, might more diftinctly and undifturbedly be continued down together, from the fame general Epocha, to the fame general Conclufion, i. e. from Chrift's first to his fecond coming: or, more exactly, from the feeing of these Visions by St. John, at the end of Domitian's Reign, till the general Judgment. And the fame is in good measure to be faid of the feveral kinds of the Vifions in the Open Codicil, which commonly relate to the fame times, but to different events and things therein; and are therefore represented in fo many different ways to prevent Confufion, and to distinguish carefully between contemporary States of Things, which are in themselves really different.

4. The reafon why the former is called BB, and the latter Bedor. The one a Book, or Codex; the other, a little Book, or Codicil; is plain in it felf: because the former is really near thrice as large as the latter, as we have already seen. And this certainly is a fufficient obvious and evident reason; and yet, by what unhappy fate I know not, it has not, I think, been taken notice of by any: No not by Mr. Mede himself, or his Followers. Nay, what is more ftrange, as we fhall fee hereafter, His and Others placing of the Vials, and their Interpretations of them alfo depends very much on the contrary Suppofition and imply that the Beide is larger than the B, or the fmall Codicil bigger than that Codex to which it is annex'd; which certainly is not a little unaccountable.

5.

The reason why the former is ftil'd a Sealed Book, and the other an Open Book, feems alfo pretty evident in the Contents of each of them. For as the Sealed Book has none of its ProApoc. ch. xvij. phecies explained to us, as the Open One has: So the Contents of the Sealed Book are much obfcurer, and more difficult than

thofe

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