they will better understand the meaning of the fifth and fixth chapters. Firit it is to be understood that John faw these great and glorious things by way of vision. Now I would have the reader to understand, that vifions are hard to be interpreted by one that never faw them.

Yet as far as the revelation of faith can open them, I fhall do it, which I know is more than any man in the world can do at this day, or fhall hereafter, to the world's end.

Therefore if the reader doth but understand the spiritual fubftance, andmeaning of John's vifions, though not every particular circumftance, I fay, it will give full fatisfaction to the mind of man as to the fcriptures, and to their eternal falvation. The first thing that John faw in his vision, it was a door opened in heaven : Now I would have the feed of faith to understand that there is a door belonging to heaven, and a door belonging to hell.

Therefore called in fcripture the gates of heaven and of hell, as Christ said unto Peter, I have given thee the keys of heaven and of hell.

So likewise when the five foolish virgins came to the door where the bridegroom was, but the door was shut upon them, fo that they could not come into that eternal marriage.

So that there is a door belongs to heaven, alfo there must be fomebody to open this door. 30

It is much like unto a king's palace, where no inferior perfon can fee into it, except the door-keeper do open the door.

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There is no earthly king's palace but hath a door to it, neither can any man fee into it, except the door be opened.

Now as there is a door of earthly substance which may be feen and felt, belonging to every earthly king's palace, the palace being earthly alfo, though decked and fet forth very gloriously to the eye of fenfe and reafon, because it belongeth to reason's kingdom;

So likewise there is as real an heavenly palace above, and beyond the ftars, where Chrift the king of heaven doth fit upon his throne.

Alfo there is a door belonging to it of a fpiritual and heavenly fubftance, which may be feen, felt, and understood by the eye of faith, as the other is by the eye of reason.

Therefore it is faid in fcripture by the apoftles, we speak the things which we have feen, which we have heard, which we have tafted, which we bare handled, of the word of life.

So that there is as real a fpiritual fubftance to be feen, tafted, and handled by the feed of faith in the mind, as there are temporal things by the feed of reafon. Likewife Chrift is called a door himself, and he hath the key of David, who openeth and no man fhutteth.

And this is he that opened the door of John's understanding, and let him fee in a vifion the glory of heaven, and him that fate on the throne, as you may fee in verfe. 2. For as foon as ever John had heard the voice, that is, as foon as ever the door of his understanding was opened, the door of heaven was opened alfo.

And

And the door of heaven being opened, there was prefented, in a vifion, to his fight, few things that must be hereafter.

Now what thofe things which must be hereafter are, they are fignified in the vision in the chapters following;

For the voice which talked with John in the vifion, bad him come up hither,. and I will fhew the things which must be hereafter.

And immediately John was in the fpirit, that is, he was fo ravished and wrapt up in his fpirit with the fight of heaven, and the glory thereof in the vifion, the door of heaven being opened, that he was as Paul was, whether in the body, or out of the body, he could not tell.

For John did fee things unutterable, for indeed the things of God's becoming flesh, and fuffering death, and the glorious effects thereof, they are unutterable; that is, the tongue of man cannot explain it, not as it is in itself.

But men that have written the Scriptures, and have had vifions and revelations of these heavenly things, they have expreffed them to the capacity of man, as they could by words.

So that men might believe the things of God, which are fpiritual and eternal, by words of mortal men like themselves.

As men do understand one another in the things of this world.

And the gift of interpretation of fcriptures, which was written by revelation and vifion, I fay it is more profitable to man than the fcriptures themselves.

For what profit is it to a man to read another man's revelation or vision, and know nothing of it himself? Therefore interpretation of fcriptures the beft, and most profitable gift unto the feed of faith now a-days, to lead them unto their eternal reft.

Therefore to unfold fomething more of John's vifion in verfe, 2. And immediately he was in the fpirit, and behold a throne was fet in heaven, and one fate on the

throne.

And in verfe 3. he tells what he was like that fate on the throne; and in verfe, 4. he faith, And round about the throne were four and twenty feats, and and upon the feats John faw four and twenty elders fitting, cloathed in white raiment, and they had on their heads crowns of gold.

And in verfe 5. There were feven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the feven Spirits of God.

And in verfe, 6. And before the throne there was a fea of glass like unto chrystal, and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beafts full of eyes before and behind.

And in verfe 7. And the first beaft was like a lion, and the fecond beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face like a man, and the fourth beaft was like a flying eagle.

Verfe 8. And the four beasts had each of them fix wings about him, and they were full of eyes within, and they reft not day and night, faying, Holy, holy, boly, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

Verfe 9. And when thofe beafts gave glory, and honour, and thanks to him that fate on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever.

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I fhall give a fhort interpretation of these things afore-mentioned. In verse 2. John faw a throne in heaven, and him that fat thereon.

You may remember how I have fhewed before, that there are thrones in heaven, as there are here in earth, and there is a throne in fpecial for the king of heaven, as there is for a king here on earth.

And he which John faw to fit upon the throne in heaven, it was no other but the Lord Jefus Chrift, as aforefaid.

Though John doth fet him forth in verfe 3. That be was to look upon like a jafper, and a fardine ftone, with other glorious expreffions; which is only to fet forth the glory of him that fat upon the throne.

And in verfe 4. Round about the throne were four and twenty feats, and upon the feats were four and twenty elders fitting, cloathed in white raiment, and they bad on their beads crowns of gold.

It is much like unto the throne of an earthly king; for an earthly king hath many feats for his nobility to fit on round about the throne, where he feats himself. And the nobility do fit in thofe feats, according to their degree and place. Likewise the nobility have crowns of gold, upon their heads, though not fo abfolute crowns of gold as the king himself.

Yet they have a refemblance and likeness of crowns, fignifying that they are of the blood royal.

So is it in heaven, the four and twenty elders being of the blood royal, coheirs unto the kingdom of heaven, they have feats to fit upon round about the king's throne.

And as for the four and twenty elders what they are, I have opened at large in the Interpretation of the eleventh of Revelation.

Therefore I fhall not speak of them here: but as for their being cloathed in white raiment, the meaning of that is this:

They were cloathed in their minds, while they lived in this world, with the righteousness of faith, which purifies the heart; and not by the righteousness of the law; for by the deeds of the law fhall no flesh be justified; but by the righteousness of faith is every true believer juftified.

And thefe four and twenty elders being juftified by faith, in the blood of the Lamb, they may be faid to be cloathed in white raiment.

That is, they are pure and white in their fouls, by being washed in the blood of the Lamb, by faith, as aforefaid.

They have no guilt of fin upon them at all, &c.

And in verfe 5. it is faid, That there were feven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the feven Spirits of God.

The meaning of those seven lamps which burned before the throne, I declare they were the seven churches of Afia.

That is, the fouls of the true believers, which were of the feven churches of Afia, were those seven lamps which burned before the throne. :

And the seven spirits of God are those several gifts of grace, which he gave to the feven churches of Afia, as aforefaid.

And that grace of faith and love, which God gave to the feven churchs of

Afia

Afia, it burneth in the lamps of their fouls, before the throne of God to eternity. For every foul is a lamp for the fire of God's love to burn in, if there be but oyl in your lamp, that is, if there be but faith in the heart.

It will be a glorious place for the candle of the Lord, which is the fpirit of God, to burn in, and happy will that man be that hath his lamp burning before the throne of God, as thefe feven churches of Afia fhall.

For this I would have the feed of faith to understand, that John fpeaketh of thing's to come as if they were in present being.

For visions and revelations fpeaketh of things at a distance, as if they were in prefent fight.

Becaufe God and faith knows that time will be swallowed up into eternity. Therefore it is that John doth fay in his vifion, that he faw fuch and fuck things already, when as the things which he fpeaketh that he faw, were not accomplished at that time, nor many of them not as yet.

But however they will be accomplished, because God is truth, and will not fruftrate the faith of his prophets, apoftles, and faints.

But according to their faith it fhall be unto them.

So much concerning the feven lamps and the feven fpirits of God, I fuppofe the feed of faith may understand the true meaning of it.

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N verfe 6. John faith, And before the Throne there was a fea of glass like unto chrystal, and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beafts full of eyes before and behind.

Here you that have faith, may fee that there is in heaven, above the stars, a chrystal fea like unto glafs, or a fea of glass like unto chryftal; that is, the glorious water or fea above the ftars is set forth by thofe things which are most pure, and most efteemed of by the reafon of man here in the kingdom of this world, but as certain as there is a fea and waters in this world, else the creatures therein could not live.

So likewife there is a fea and waters above the stars, though of another nature, differing from this here below, yet they are real fubftances as these are.

But because mortal men cannot declare, nor make known the nature and fubstance of them, neither can mortal man understand it, if it could be declared.>> Therefore the Revelation of John calls it a fea of glass like unto chrystal, because chrystal is highly efteemed of by the reason of man.

But however, it is for certain that there is a fea and waters above the stars, let it be like what it will.

For this I would have the reader to understand, that the things which are, were not made of things which do appear, according to Paul's words, then of neceffity they must be made of things that do not appear, that is, of things above the ftars, from whence the original of all life came.,

But in what condition things were, and are in their heaven, no man can tell, but by faith.

There

Therefore if the revelation of the fpirit of faith will call the waters above the ftars A fea of glass like unto chrystal, who fhall gain fay it?

Neither is it to be looked upon as an allegory, as many do vainly imagine, but a real fpiritual substance.

For this must be understood by the reader, that God created or made all creatures of fomething; he had matter and substance to make every creature of.

He did not make living fubftances of an allegory, that is, as if we should fay God made all things of nothing;

For an allegory is nothing, and of nothing comes nothing.

Yet the vain imagination of wife and learned men have not been ashamed to fay, that God made this world of nothing; but I fhall let that pafs

Again, what should be the meaning of the four beafts full of eyes before and behind? These four beafts which John faw in his vifion in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, I declare they were four good beafts:

That is, they were four good kings; and if there were four thousand good kings, yet they are all reckoned but into four: all good kings are included in these four.

These four beafts do fignify the four monarchies, that is, all the good kings that acted well, and had faith in the true God, under the four monarchies, are called by the Revelation of John, the four beasts full of eyes before and behind. Now what particular perfons these four beasts were, the Revelation of John gives no light into:

But this I fay, that king David was one of these four beasts, he being the first beaft, that was like a lion, he being of the tribe of Judah, from whence the fcepter should not depart until Shiloh come.

This Shiloh being Chrift, the root of David, he is called The lion of the tribe of Judah, as may be read in Revlations v. 5. And David being of the tribe of Judah, and he being chosen king by the Lord Jefus the Almighty God, as he was the Creator.

Who afterwards became a child, as Ifaiah faith, and fo called The Son of David, of the tribe of Judah.

When as indeed he was David's lord; he was David's lord as he was the Creator: But as he took upon him the feed of the woman, which is the nature of man, he became a little child, and fo God became flesh;

And he being of the tribe and lineage of David, as he is a Redeemer, he may be, and is called the fon of David.

And what ever David did in point of war, it was juftified by Jefus Chrift, as he was his Lord;

For it is faid in fcripture, That David walked with a perfect heart before the Lord in all things, only in the matter of Uriah.

And David being the first king that wrought righteoufnefs before the Lord in all his war, and he being of the tribe of Judah, he is called by the Revelation of John the first beast that was like a lion

For he acted as in the perfon of Chrift, who is the lion himself of the tribe of Judah, as Jacob did prophefy when he bleffed his fons.

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