of all wicked, persecuting, idolatrous men and women, by the apostles, prophets, and ministers chosen by them, it doth scorch their consciences with the fear of eternal death, which is the fire of hell, as in verse 9. And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues.

So that every true messenger of Christ hath power to scorch the consciences of men, and to kindle the fire of hell in all persecuting spirits, and false worshipers, who worship false Gods. And this fire, and heat was very much poured out by the apostles and those ministers, ordained by them in the primitive times, so called. For none know what those persecuting beasts, and false worshipers who received the beast's mark, did suffer, nor how their consciences were scorched with the fire of hell, even whilst they were in this world, which was but a taste of what shall be hereafter. But this taste it made them blaspheme against him that had power over these plagues. For the mind of man is so desperately wicked, that if he could destroy that God that hath power over these plagues, even as they did those his messengers, and the saints that believed them. But the saints may see, that there is a secret spiritual power in every true messenger of God, to scorch the souls of persecuting, and despising men and women, with the heat of hell fire; this I know to be true by experience. as well as by faith. For the doctrine of the true God, and his true worship, it doth torment the souls of the seed of the serpent inwardly, as the heat of the sun doth outwardly

wardly to a man's body; and men are more subject to blaspheme for the torment within, than they are for torments without, because the one is but for a time, but the other is for eternity.

So that the spiritual scorching with great heat, is that John chiefly intends in this chapter, in relation to the torment of mind that was upon those beasts that persecuted the saints, and all those that received his mark as aforesaid, in the time of the apostles commission, and with relation to the end of the world. Thus, in some measure, I have given the literal and spiritual meaning of the fourth angel, pouring out his vial upon the sun, and of verses 8 and 9.

CHAP. XLIX.

VERSE 10. And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast, and his kingdom was full of darkness, and they gnawed their tongues for pain. This fifth vial it hath a two-fold meaning; that is a literal and spiritual meaning. The literal meaning is in relation to the vial, or plague that Moses poured out upon Egypt, as you may see Exod. x. 22. And Moses stretched forth his hand towards heaven, and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. And in verse 23. They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days, &c.

Here the reader may see, that this vial was poured out in the natural, upon Egypt, and upon the seat of the king of Egypt, Pharoah being king. There

fore

fore called the beast; and the seat of the beast signifies the power and authority that Pharoah had over all the land of Egypt. And this vial being poured out upon the seat of the beast, it signifies upon all those that were under his government; that is, that were of his own people, so that there was thick darkness in the king's palace, and upon his servants, no place free, as there was upon the inhabitants of Egypt, so that darkness was all over the land of Egypt, no place free. For if any place had been free from darkness in the land of Egypt, then I say the vial had not been poured out upon the seat of the beast. So that this vial Moses poured out of thick darkness, it was upon the seat of the beast; that is, upon king Pharoah, in whom the power and authority of Egypt did stand.

So that when darkness was poured out upon the king, in whom the light of all the laws of Egypt did shine forth upon the people, if the seat in whom the law is placed be darkned, then the people which must obey, must needs be darkned also.

For where a king or head magistrate hath power given him either from God, or from man, to make laws for people to obey, that power and authority is called by the spirit, the seat of the beast. And when God doth pour out the vial of his wrath upon this authority, then I say the vial may be said to be poured out upon the seat of the beast; so that the reader may see what is meant by the seat of the beast.

Now I have opened a little what is the literal or natural meaning of the fifth angel pouring out his

vial or plague upon Egypt, and what the plague was, and what the seat of the beast is, I shall now also give you to understand the spiritual meaning of these things aforesaid. Observe, there were many Pharoahs that were kings of Egypt in those four hundred years that Israel was in bondage in Egypt; yet all these king Pharoahs are included in that one king Pharoah unto whom Moses was sent. So that all the kings of Egypt are counted by the spirit but one king Pharoah. And all those plagues which Moses poured out upon Egypt, it was upon this king Pharoah, even until God had utterly consumed him; as he did in the Red-sea: these things were fulfilled in the history, and in the natural, at the beginning of Moses's commission. And that beast Pharoah, king of Egypt, his actions of oppression to the Israelites, they were upon the temporal state of Israel. And so the vials and plagues that were poured out upon him, they were temporal plagues also. And there was a temporal darkness for three days all over Egypt; which darkness was but a shadow or type of that spiritual darkness upon the mind of man now, and the eternal darkness at the end of the world.

CHAP. L.

NOW I would have the reader to observe, that

this beast here spoken of by John, it was that beast that did rise out of the sea, having seven heads, as in chap. xiii. 1, to whom the dragon gave his power, seat, and authority: this was the first

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beast

beast that persecuted the saints after the apostles commission came to be published upon the earth; that is, this was the first beast that made war with the saints about worship; and so the same spirit, power, and authority that was in this beast, it did run through the loins of all other beasts that succeeded him all the time of the ten persecutions. And the same spirit hath, and doth run in the line of all wicked, persecuting idolaters, kings and head magistrates, they are called by the spirit but one beast.

And look what beast, or beasts, are alive at the end of the world, they shall be all counted but one beast, and shall all be overthrown with one overthrow, even as Pharoah king of Egypt was; for though there were many Pharoahs kings of Egypt, as aforesaid, yet in the destruction of that one king Pharoah, all wicked Pharoahs are destroyed in him.

So likewise Herod that did seek to kill Christ when he was born, in that he slew all the male children in Bethlehem, who were two years old or under. I declare this Herod was that dragon John speaks of in divers places in the book of the Revelation, who gave his power, seat, and authority unto this beast. And so successively the spirit of the dragon, it runs through the line of all wicked beasts to the world's end, even as the spirit of the dragon did run through the lines of many Herods, since Cain's birth; yet this Herod that persecuted Christ, as soon as he was born, is called by the spirit in John, that great red dragon. And his spirit of persecution it was given to all those wicked

beasts