think that God hath set forth us the Apostles, &c.
says, "Thus Enoch and Elias, that shall be

the Apostles of the last times, must suffer
many Persecutions and Afictions, for
they must be sent before to prepare the
People of God, and to strengthen the
Churches. St. Ferom t; We shall say no- + Ep. 148.
thing in this place concerning Enoch and ad Mar-
Elias, of whom St. John in his Revelation-
witnesseth, that they shall come again

upon Earth and die. The fame (in short)
is affirmed by St. Augustin, Lib. 9. de Gen.
Cap. 6. by Prosper, de dimid. Temp. Cap. 13. by
St. Gregory, in fob, Lib. 9. Cap. 4. by Damascen,
de fide Orthodoxå, Lib. 4. Cap.27. Aret as Cæsari-
enfis, in 11 Apoc. &c. And as for the Coming
of Elias, the Holy Scriptures themselves seem
plainly to assert it. For thus faith God by
the Prophet Malachy, Chap. 4.5. Behold I
will send you Elias the Prophet before the great
and terrible Day of the Lord come, he shall turn
the Heart of the Fathers to the Children, and the
Heart of the Children to the Fathers, left I come
and smite the Earth with a Curse. In which
Place the Exprefsions of the great and terris
ble Day of the Lord, and of Smiting the Earth
with a Curse,do I think, chiefly (if not only)
relate to his Second Coming; for that his
First Appearance, in the form of a Sera
vant, cannot with any tolerable Congruity
be called Great or Terrible ; and he came
not then to perform any Judicial Acts, but
what were purely Spiritual, the Judging of
the Earth being the grand Design of his
Second Coming. To this it is objected,

that our Blessed Lord expresly asserted, that Elias there meant was already come, Mat. 17. 12. To which I Answer, That our Lord meant no more than that John the Baptift, the Power and Spirit of Elias, or Elias in the Spirit was come, but not in the Body; in which that he was yet to appear before his Second Coming, our Saviour himself doth not deny, but rather plainly assert. For when the Disciples taking our Saviour's Words in too large a Sense, asked him, How then say, the Scribes that Elias must first come ? Our Lord answers, that Elias shall come, and shall restore all Things ; which Words being spoken in the future Tense, cannot be apply'd to Fohn the Baptist who was already come, but had not restored all Things, which is still reserved to the Coming of Elias in Person at the End of the World, or the times of Restitution of all Things, which God has Spoken by the Mouth of all his Prophets since the World began, Acts 3. 21. And the Author of the Book of Eccluf. 48. 10. seems plainly to understand the Prophecy of Malachy, concerning the Person of Elias, of whom he had been speaking, saying, that be was ordained for Reproofs in their times, to pacifie the Wrath of the Lord's Judgment, before it break

forth into Fury ; and to turn the Heart of the Father to the Son, and to restore the Tribes of Israel.---These then are the two Olive-Trees, and the two Candlesticks, standing before the God of the Earth, Rev. 11. 4. Zech. 4. 3. called Olive-Trees from the Divine Unction, as

being anointed Kings and Priests in Christ's Kingdom; and Candlesticks, as bearing in them the burning and shining Light of the Spirit of Truth, who is the Light of the World ; in which Sense the Seven Churches, Rev. 1. 20. are also called Candlesticks. And whereas Grotius upon the Place, has brought it as an Argument to prove, that hereby are not meant Two Persons, but Two Churches, because they are called Candlesticks, which the Angel interprets to be Churches, Rev. 1. 20. we have, I think, as good a Reason to conclude they are Pera sons, because they are called Olive-Trees, which Zech. 4. 14. are interpreted of Two Persons, Fofhuab and Zerubbabel. Many Scripture-Characters of particular Persons being applicable to Churches (as may be shewn at large) and vice versa. But to proceed, in St. John's Account of these Two Witneffes, If any Man will hurt these (Rev. 11.5.) i.e. make any Attempt upon their Persons, either by natural or magical Violence, Fire proceedeth out of their Mouth (a plain Allusion to what Elijah did, 2 Kings 1.) and devoureth their Enemies; and if any Man will hurt them, be must in this manner be killed. V.6. These bave power to shut Heaven that it rain not in the Days of their Prophecy ; (plainly alluding to what Elijah did, 1 Kings 17. I. 18. 1, 41. as in the following. Words to Moses's turning the Waters into Blood, Exod. 7.17.) and have Power over Waters to turn them into Blood, and to smite the Earth with all Plagues as often us they will. Which Words

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may, may, I think, fairly be understood in a literal Senfe, without any Violence to the Text or the Nature of Things.V.7. And when they shall have finished their Testimony, the Beast that afcends out of the bottomless Pit (i. e. Antichrist) Shall, make War against them (with more Violence than before) and shall overcóme them and kill them. V.8. And their dead Bodies ball fie in the Streets (i.e. in one of the Streets, by an usual Hebraism ) of the great City which spiritually is. called Sodom and Egypt, where alfa our Lord was crucified. This Great City is unquestionably Jerusalem, called Sodom, Isa. 1. 10. and may possibly be meant by Egypt in many places of Prophetical Scripture. But that which puts it beyond all doubt is, that distinguishing Character of being the place where our Lord was crucified, which has been most violentIy wrested by our Modern Expositors to fignifię Rome, or Christendom. V.9. And they of the People and Kindreds, and Tongikes and Na tions, shall see their dead Bodies three Days and half, and fball not fuffer their dead Bodies to be put in Graves. God in this respect making their Madness subservient to his Glory. For by being thus exposed in the open Street, their Resurrection and Ascension fhall be the more visible and conspicuous to all thar behold them. V. 10. And they that dwell upon the Earth (i. e. The Antichristian Company) shall rejoyce, over them, and fhall make merry and send Gifts to one another (as in time of Publick Joy, Hefter 9. 19, 22, Neh. 8. 10-----12.) because these two Prophets

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tormented them that dwell on the Earth ; ( as
the Prophets, and particularly Elijah, were
faid to trouble wicked Kings and People,
1 Kings 18. 17; 18. 21. 20.) V. 11. And af-
ter three Days and half, the Spirit of Life from
God entered into them, and they stood upon their
Feet, and great Fear fell upon all them that
Saw them. V. 12. And they beard a Voice from
Heaven, Saying unto them, Come up bither; and
they ascended up to Heaven in a Cloud, and their
Enemies beheld them. V. 13. And the fame Hour
was there a great Earthquake; and the tenth
part of the City fell; and in the Earthquake
were slain of Men Seven Thousands and the Rema
nant were afrighted, and gave Glory to God.
By Seven Thousand Names; as it in the Origi-
nal, may be meant Seven Thousand, or
perhaps an indefinite great Number, of the
* Chief or Principal Members of the Anti: * That is

Men of christian Kingdom, Gen. 6. 4. 7ob 30. 8. Name, or The second Woe is paft; the third cometh quickly, Renown; Rev. II. 14. But here it may be objected, opposid to If the Witnesses Prophecy 1260 Days, and Men of no the Times of the Beast" are 42 Months, Ing such as

Name, bewhich are the same space of time diffe- are not rently expressed, for that in 42 Months, known in or three Years and half, 1260 Days are the World comprehended ; then the Destruction of by their Antichrist must synchronize with the Death of the Witnesses, which cannot be, because the Death of the Witnesses is the End of the second Woe, and then what time shall we allot to the third Woe, or the pouring out of the Seven Vials, which is all trant acted within the times of Antichrift, since

he

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