second Adam, and so made alive again, and may be said to be written in the book of life of the Lamb, slain from the foundation of the world.

It is said from the foundation of the world, with relation to righteous Abel being slain. So that whoever is of Adam's seed, is of Abel's seed; and whoever is of Abel's seed, he may be said to have his name written in the book of life of the Lamb, slain from the foundation of the world; for the seed of faith doth go no further to find his name written in the book of life, than to righteous Abel. For whoever goeth further to find his eternal life, he will come short of it, and never find it.

I give this hint to the seed of faith, only to let them see where the book of life is, and where they may find their names written, and not to go as rovers beyond the foundation of the world; but go to the first Adam as Moses speaketh of, and not as the imagination of reason doth. For whoever goeth beyond Adam to find his name written in the book of life, he will never find it. So much for the interpretation of the eighth verse.

I

Shall

CHAP. XXXVII.

pass by the two following verses, there being nothing in them but what is commonly known; therefore in the next place I shall come to verse 11, where it is said, And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth, and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragón.

This beast is said to come out of the earth, because his power and dominion was most upon dry land; therefore said to come up out of the earth, as the other beast did arise out of the sea; but this beast had the same spirit of reason in a high nature, as the other beast had, and as the dragon had, and walked in the same steps, or worse, than the other beast did, and exercised the same authority or worse than the dragon did; yet he had two horns like a Lamb. That is, he did appear at his first coming into his seat, more lamb-like than the other beast whose deadly wound was healed, did. That is, he made a shew at his first appearance, as if he would have been more meek and merciful to the saints that worshiped Jesus, than the other beast was. So that

the saints had some little hopes that he would have let them exercise their worship, buy and sell, and trade, without taking the mark of the beast in their foreheads, or in their hands. And it is very like they had some little space of time at his first coming in, to worship, buy and sell, and trade; for it is not to be understood, that the saints were always persecuted and put to death; if they had, they would have been all extirpated out of the world before three hundred years were expired; so that there was sometimes more liberty than at others, as there hath been in all ages. So that the two horns of his power did seem to be like a lamb, as if they would do but little hurt; for no man doth so much fear the horns of a lamb, as they do the horns of a bull; for the horns signify power.

Now these two horns like a Lamb, they did signify quietness

quietness in religion, and peace in the civil state. So that this beast appearing with two horns like a lamb, it gave great hopes to the saints that they should have liberty of conscience to worship Jesus, and peace in the natural or temporal state, to buy and sell, and trade freely one with the other; as these two powers did signify the spiritual power, and the temporal power, they being the two horns like a lamb.

But this beast he spake as a dragon. And in verse 12, He exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth, and them that dwell therein, to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

do

Now what the power of the first beast was I have shewed before. But in verse 13, And he doth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth, in the sight of men. Now these wonders that were done by this beast who had two horns like a lamb, they were but counterfeit wonders, and no real thing; for the imagination of man may seemingly great things to the sight of the dark mind of man; there may be wonderful strange things produced by the imagination of reason, when the mind is exercised upon a religious score, they may do seeming wonders and miracles, as they do by their imagination upon a natural account.

Did not the magicians and southsayers in Egypt, by their imagination do many seeming miracles, as Moses did? Did not they cause frogs seemingly to appear before Pharoah, as Moses did, and many other things as Moses did? But this the reader may understand,

understand, that the frogs that Moses brought upon Pharoah, they were real substances alive; but the magicians frogs which they brought up in the sight of Pharoah, they were but shadows like frogs, without substance; but the mind of Pharoah and his people being ignorant and dark, took the shadow for substance.

But if men's minds be not dark as pitch, they may know that the Egyptians miracles were nothing else but shadows presented to the dark phantasie of man, by the imagination of natural art and figure; for if the things the magicians did before Pharoah, and the people, had been any thing but shadows, the people of the land, and the king would have been as much troubled to get away the frogs, and other things that the magicians brought upon Egypt, as they were with those frogs, and other things that Moses brought upon Egypt.

But it may be clear to those that are not as dark as pitch, that all those things which the magicians of Egypt did, were nothing else but shadows, meerly produced by natural magick; for when the thing was over, the shadow was vanished also, so that the people heard, nor saw any more of the magicians frogs.

So likewise when the imagination of reason is exercised upon a religious account, though it be in the way of idolatry, many strange things may be atchieved and attained unto where the imagination of reason is religiously bent; for these two horns like a lamb did signify zeal in religion, though in an idolatrous way. So that this beast being studious of religion, did by the strength of his imagination, and

his

his diabolical holiness; he exercising his mind more upon idolatry and worshiping of images, than the other beast did before him. So that this beast with two horns like a lamb, could go farther in his religious imagination than the other beast did, and deceive the people more by a way of lying signs and wonders, so that the people took this beast to be more god-like than the other; for this beast did seem to make fire come down from heaven on the earth, in the sight of men. He did this upon a religious account to deceive the people, as the Egyptians did upon a temporal account, as I said before. That is, he went to imitate the prophet Elijah to bring fire from heaven in the sight of men, as Elijah did, even as the magicians of Egypt did imitate Moses. But this fire the beast brought from heaven, it was no real thing, but only a shadow or likeness of fire, as the Egyptians was.

For this fire that he brought from heaven, it did no body any hurt, only dazzled the phantasies of them that saw it with a shadow of fire, but no substance; even as the Egyptians did in the temporal.

But the fire Elijah brought from heaven, it burnt up two captains and their fifties, because the fire that came from heaven it was a real substance, and did execution; but a shadow doth nothing but deceive the phantasie of man for the present, as in verse 14. And deceived them that dwelt on the earth, by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast, saying to them that dwelt on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had a wound by a sword, and did live.