_A View of other Places of Scripture concerning the_ Millennium _or
future Kingdom of Christ. In what Sense all the Prophets have borne
Testimony concerning it._
The Wife of _Zebedee_ came to our Saviour, and begg’d of him, like a
fond Mother, that her two Sons might sit, one at his Right Hand, the
other at his Left, when he came into his Kingdom, _Matt._ xx. 21. Our
Saviour does not deny the Supposition, or general Ground of her Request,
that _he was to have a Kingdom_; but tells her, the Honours of that
Kingdom were not then in his Disposal. He had not drunk his Cup, nor
been baptiz’d with his last Baptism; which were Conditions, both to him
and others, of entring into that Kingdom. Yet, in another place,
(_Matt._ xix. 28.) our Saviour is so well assur’d of his Interest and
Authority there, by the Good-will of his Father, that he promises to his
Disciples and Followers, that for the Losses they should sustain here,
upon his Account, and for the Sake of his Gospel, they should receive
there an hundred-fold, and sit upon Thrones with him, judging the Tribes
of _Israel_. The Words are these: _And Jesus said unto them, Verily I
say unto you, that ye which have followed me_, in the Regeneration or
Renovation, _when the Son of Man shall sit in the Throne of his Glory,
ye also shall sit upon twelve Thrones, judging the twelve Tribes of_
Israel. These Thrones, in all Reason, must be understood to be the same
with those, which we mention’d in the foregoing Chapter out of _Daniel_
vii. 9. and _Apocal._ xx. 4. and therefore mark the same Time, and the
same State. And seeing, in those Places, they plainly signify the
Millennial State, or the Kingdom of Christ and of his Saints, they must
here signify the same, in this Promise of our Saviour to his suffering
Followers. And as to the Word _Palingenesia_, which is here translated
_Regeneration_, ’tis very well known, that both the _Greek_
Philosophers, and _Greek_ Fathers, use that very Word for the
_Renovation of the World_; which is to be, as we shall hereafter make
appear, at or before the Millennial State.
Our Saviour also, in his Divine Sermon upon the Mount, makes this one of
his _Beatitudes_, _Blessed are the Meek, for they shall inherit the
Earth_: But _how_, I pray, or _where_, or _when_, do the Meek inherit
the Earth? Neither at present, I am sure, nor in any past Ages. ’Tis the
great ones of the World, ambitious Princes and Tyrants, that slice the
Earth amongst them; and those that can flatter them best, or serve them
in their Interests or Pleasures, have the next best Shares: But a meek,
modest and humble Spirit, is the most unqualified Person that can be,
for a Court, or a Camp; to scramble for Preferment, or Plunder. Both he,
and his self denying Notions, are ridicul’d, as Things of no Use, and
proceeding from Meanness and Poorness of Spirit. _David_, who was a
Person of an admirable Devotion, but of an unequal Spirit; subject to
great Dejections, as well as Elevations of Mind; was so much affected
with the Prosperity of the Wicked in this World, that he could scarce
forbear charging Providence with Injustice. You may see several Touches
of a repining Spirit in his _Psalms_, and in the lxxiiid _Psalm_,
compos’d upon that Subject, you have both the Wound and the Cure. Now
this Beatitude pronounc’d here by our Saviour, was spoken before by
_David_, _Psal._ xxxvii. 11. the same _David_, that was always so
sensible of the hard Usage of the Just in this Life. Our Saviour also,
and his Apostles, preach’d the Doctrine of the Cross every where, and
foretell the Sufferings that shall attend the Righteous in this World.
Therefore neither _David_, nor our Saviour, could understand this
_Inheritance of the Earth_, otherwise than of some future State, or of a
State yet to come. But as it must be a future State, so it must be a
terrestrial State; for it could not be call’d the _Inheritance of the
Earth_, if it was not so. And ’tis to be a State of _Peace_, as well as
_Plenty_, according to the Words of the _Psalmist_, _But the Meek shall
inherit the Earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of
Peace_. It follows therefore from these Premisses, that both our
Saviour, and _David_, must understand some future State of the Earth,
wherein the _Meek_ will enjoy both Peace and Plenty; and this will
appear to be the future Kingdom of Christ, when, upon a fuller
Description, we shall have given you the Marks and Characters of it.
In the mean time, why should we not suppose this Earth, which the Meek
are to inherit, to be that _habitable Earth to come_, which St. _Paul_
mentions (_Heb._ ii. 6.) and represents as subject to our Saviour in a
peculiar Manner, at his Disposal, and under his Government, as his
Kingdom? Why should not that Earth be the Subject of this Beatitude, the
promis’d Land, the Lot of the Righteous? This I am sure of, that both
this Text and the former deserve our serious Thoughts; and tho’ they do
not expresly, and in Terms, prove the future Kingdom of our Saviour, yet
upon the fairest Interpretations they imply such a State. And it would
be very uneasy to give a satisfactory Account, either of the
_Regeneration_ or _Renovation_, when our Saviour and his Disciples shall
sit upon Thrones; or of that _Earth_ which the _Meek shall inherit_: Or,
lastly, of that _habitable World_, which is peculiarly subject to the
Dominion of Jesus Christ, without supposing, on this side Heaven, some
other Reign of Christ and his Saints, than what we see, or what they
enjoy, at present.
But to proceed in this Argument, it will be necessary, as I told you, to
set down some Notes and Characters of the Reign of Christ and of his
Saints, whereby it may be distinguish’d from the present State and
present Kingdoms of the World: And these Characters are chiefly three,
_Justice_, _Peace_, and _Divine Presence_ or Conduct, which uses to be
called _Theocracy_. By these Characters it is sufficiently distinguish’d
from the Kingdoms of this World; which are generally unjust in their
Titles or Exercise, stain’d with Blood, and so far from being under a
particular Divine Conduct, that Human Passions and Human Vices are the
Springs that commonly give Motion to their greatest Designs: But more
particularly and restrainedly, the Government of Christ is oppos’d to
the Kingdom and Government of Antichrist, whose Characters arc
diametrically opposite to these, being _Injustice_, _Cruelty_, and
_human or diabolical Artifices_.
Upon this short View of the Kingdom of Christ, let us make Enquiry after
it amongst the Prophets of the _Old Testament_; and we shall find, upon
Examination, that there is scarce any of them, greater or lesser, but
take notice of this mystical Kingdom, either expresly, or under the
Types of _Israel_, _Sion_, _Jerusalem_, and such-like. And therefore I
am apt to think, that when St. _Peter_, in his Sermon to the _Jews_,
_Acts_ iii. says, all the holy Prophets spoke of _the Restitution of all
Things_, he does not mean the Renovation of the World separately from
the Kingdom of Christ, but complexly, as it may imply both. For there
are not many of the old Prophets that have spoken of the Renovation of
the _natural_ World, but a great many have spoken of the Renovation of
the _moral_, in the Kingdom of Christ. These are St. _Peter_’s Words,
_Acts_ iii. 19, 20, 21. _Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that
your Sins may be blotted out, when the Times of refreshing shall come
from the Presence of the Lord. And he shall send Jesus Christ which
before was preached unto you; whom the Heavens must receive until the
Times of RESTITUTION OF ALL THINGS._ The Apostle here mentions three
Things, the _Times of refreshing_, the _second coming_ of our Saviour,
and the _Times of Restitution of all Things_: And to the last of these
he immediately subjoins, _which God hath spoken by the Mouth of all his
holy Prophets, since the World began_. This _Restitution of all Things_,
I say, must not be understood abstractly from the Reign of Christ, but
as in Conjunction with it; and in that Sense, and no other, it is the
general Subject of the Prophets.
To enter therefore into the Schools of the Prophets, and enquire their
Sense concerning this Mystery, let us first address our selves to the
Prophet _Isaiah_, and the royal Prophet _David_; who seem to have had
many noble Thoughts or Inspirations upon this Subject. _Isaiah_, in the
lxvth Chapter, from the xviith Verse to the End, treats upon this
Argument; and joins together the Renovation of the natural and moral
World, as St. _Peter_, in the Place fore-mentioned, seems to do: And
accordingly the Prophet, having set down several natural Characters of
that State, as Indolency and Joy, Longevity, Ease, and Plenty, from
_ver._ 18. to the 24th, he there begins the moral Characters of Divine
Favour, and such a particular Protection, that they are heard and
answer’d before they pray. And lastly, he represents it as a State of
universal Peace and Innocency, _ver._ 23. _The Wolf and the Lamb shall
feed together_, &c.
This last Character, which comprehends _Peace_, _Justice_ and
_Innocency_, is more fully display’d by the same Prophet, in the xith
Chapter, where he treats also of the Kingdom of Christ. Give me leave to
set down his Words, ver. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. _But with Righteousness shall
he judge the Poor, and reprove with Equity, for the Meek of the Earth:
and he shall smite the Earth with the Rod of his Mouth, and with the
Breath of his Lips shall he slay the Wicked. And Righteousness shall be
the Girdle of his Loins, and Faithfulness the Girdle of his Reins. The
Wolf also shall dwell with the Lamb, and the Leopard shall lie down with
the Kid; and the Calf and the young Lyon, and the Fatling together, and
a little Child shall lead them. And the Cow and the Bear shall feed, and
their young Ones shall lie down together; and the Lyon shall eat Straw
like the Ox. And the sucking Child shall play on the Hole of the Asp,
and the weaned Child shall put his Hand on the Cockatrice-Den. They
shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy Mountain; for the Earth shall
be full of the Knowledge of the Lord, as the Waters cover the Sea._ Thus
far the Prophet. Now if we join this to what we noted before, from his
lxvth Chapter, concerning the same State, ’twill be impossible to
understand it of any Order of Things, that is now, or hath been hitherto
in the World; And consequently it must be the Idea of some State to
come, and particularly of that which we call the future Kingdom of
Christ.
The same pacifick Temper, Innocency and Justice, are celebrated by this
Prophet, when the _Mountain of the Lord shall be established in the Top
of the Mountains_, Chap. ii. 2, 4. _And he shall judge amongst the
Nations, and shall rebuke many People; and they shall beat their Swords
into Plow-shares, and their Spears into Pruning-hooks. Nation shall not
lift up Sword against Nation, neither shall they learn War any more._
And as to Righteousness, he says, in the xxiiid Chapter, _Behold a King
shall reign in Righteousness, and Princes shall rule in Judgment_, &c.
These Places, I know, usually are apply’d to the first coming of our
Saviour; the Peaceableness of his Doctrine, and the Propagation of it
thro’ all the World. I willingly allow this to be a true Sense, so far
as it will go: But ’tis one thing to be a true Sense to such a Degree,
and another thing to be the final Sense and Accomplishment of a
Prophecy. The Affairs of the first and second coming of our Saviour are
often mingled together in the Prophecies of the _Old Testament_; but in
that Mixture there are some Characters whereby you may distinguish what
belongs to his first, and what to his second coming; what to the Time
when he came to suffer, and what to the Time when he shall come to
reign. For Instance, in these Prophecies recited, though there are many
Things very applicable to his first coming, yet that _Regality_ which is
often spoken of, and that universal Peace and Innocency that will
accompany it, cannot be verified of his coming in the Flesh, seeing it
is plain, that in his State of Humiliation he did not come as a King, to
rule over the Nations of the Earth, (_Matt._ xx. 21. _Luke_ xxiii. 42.)
And he says himself expresly, _That his Kingdom is not of this World_,
John xviii. 36. And the Prayer of _Salome_, and of the good Thief upon
the Cross, suppose it not then present, but to come. Then as to the
Establishment of _Peace_ in his Kingdom, it does not at all appear to me
that there is more Peace in the World now, than there was before our
Saviour came into it; or that the Christian Parts of the World are more
peaceable than the Unchristian. Therefore these great Promises of a
_pacifick Kingdom_, which are express’d in Terms as high and emphatical
as can be imagin’d, must belong to some other Days, and some other Ages,
than what we have seen hitherto.
You’ll say, it may be, ’Tis not the Fault of the Gospel that the World
is not peaceable, but of those that profess it, and do not practice it.
This is true, but it does not answer the Prophecy; for that makes no
Exception, and by such a Reserve as this, you may elude any Prophecy. So
the _Jews_ say, their _Messiah_ defers his coming beyond the Time
appointed by Prophecy, because of their Sins; but we do not allow this
for a good Reason. The _Israelites_ had their promised _Canaan_, tho’
they had render’d themselves unworthy of it; and by this Method of
interpreting Prophecies, all the Happiness and Glory promised in the
Millennial Kingdom of Christ may come to nothing, upon a pretended
Forfeiture. Threatnings indeed may have a tacit Condition; God may be
better than his Word, and, upon Repentance, divert his Judgments; but he
cannot be worse than his Word, or fail of Performance, when, without any
Condition express’d, he promises or prophecies good Things to come: This
would destroy all Assurance of Hope or Faith. Lastly, this Prophecy
concerning pacifick Times or a _pacifick Kingdom_, is in the lxvth
Chapter of _Isaiah_, subjoin’d to the _Renovation of the Heavens and the
Earth_, and several Marks of a Change in the natural World; which Things
we know did not come to pass at the first coming of our Saviour; there
was no Change of Nature then, nor has been ever since: And therefore
this happy Change, both in the natural and moral World, is yet to come.
But, as we said before, we do not speak this exclusively of the first
coming of our Saviour, as to other Parts of these Prophecies; for no
doubt that was one great Design of them. And in the Prophecies of the
Old Testament, there are often three Gradations, or gradual
Accomplishments; the first, in some King of _Israel_, or some Person or
Affair relating to _Israel_, as National only: The second, in the
Messiah at his first coming: And the last, in the Messiah, and his
Kingdom at his second coming. And that which we affirm and contend for,
is, that the Prophecies fore-mentioned have not a final and total
Accomplishment, either in the Nation of the _Jews_, or at the first
coming of our Saviour; and this we abide by.
The next Prophet that we mention’d as a Witness of the future Kingdom of
Christ, is _David_; who, in his _Psalms_, seems to be pleas’d with this
Subject above all others: And when he is most exalted in his Thoughts
and prophetical Raptures, the Spirit carries him into the Kingdom of the
Messiah, to contemplate its Glory, to sing Praises to its King, and
triumph over his Enemies, _Psal._ lxviii. _Let God arise, let his
Enemies be scattered; Let them also that hate him flee before him: As
Smoak is driven away, so drive them away; at Wax melteth before the
Fire, so let the Wicked perish at the Presence of God: But let the
Righteous be glad_, &c. The plain Ground he goes upon in this _Psalm_,
is the Deliverance out of _Ægypt_, and bringing the _Israelites_ into
the Land of _Canaan_; but when he is once upon the Wing, he soars to an
higher Pitch (_ver._ 18.) from the Type to the Antitype; to the Days of
the Messiah, the Ascension of our Saviour; and, at length, to his
Kingdom and Dominion over all the Earth, _ver._ 32, _&c._ The xlvth
_Psalm_ is an _Epithalamium_ to Christ and the Church, or to the _Lamb_
and his _Spouse_. And when that will be, and in what State, we may learn
from St. _John_, _Apoc._, xix. 7, 8. and _chap._ xix. 2, 9. Namely,
after the Destruction of _Babylon_, in the _New Jerusalem_’s Glory. The
Words and Matter of the two Prophets, answer to one another. Here, in
this _Psalm_, there is a Fight and Victory celebrated as well as a
Marriage; and so there is in that xixth Chapter of Saint _John_. Here
the Prophet says, _Gird thy Sword upon thy Thigh, O most Mighty, with
thy Glory and thy Majesty. And in thy Majesty ride prosperously because
of Truth and Meekness and Righteousness; and thy right Hand shall teach
thee terrible Things. Thy Throne, O God, is for ever and ever: The
Scepter of thy Kingdom is a right Scepter_, &c. _Psal._ xlv. 3, 4, 6.
There St. _John_ says, having describ’d a Conqueror on a white Horse,
_Out of his Mouth goeth a sharp Sword, that with it he should smite the
Nations, and he shall rule them with a Rod of Iron; and he treadeth the
Wine-press of the Fierceness and Wrath of Almighty God: And he hath on
his Vesture, and on his Thigh a Name written, KING of KINGS, and LORD of
LORDS_, Apoc. xix. 15, 16. This is the same glorious Conqueror and
Bridegroom in both Places; and this Victory is not gain’d, nor these
Nuptials compleated, till the second Coming of our Saviour.
In many other _Psalms_ there are Reflections upon this happy Kingdom,
and the Triumph of Christ over his Enemies, as _Psal._ ii. _Psal._ ix.
_Psal._ xxi. and xxiv. and xlvii. and lxxxv. and cx. and others. In
these, and such-like _Psalms_, there are Lineaments and Colours of a
fairer State than any we have yet seen upon Earth. Not but that in their
first Instances and Grounds they may sometimes respect the State of
_Israel_, or the Evangelical State; but the Eye of the Prophet goes
farther; this does not terminate his Sight: His Divine Enthusiasm
reaches into another World; a World of _Peace_, and _Justice_, and
_Holiness_; of Joy, and Victory, and Triumph over all the Wicked; and
consequently such a World, as neither we nor our Fathers, have yet seen.
This is an Account of two Prophets _David_, and _Isaiah_; and of what
they have more openly declar’d concerning the future Kingdom of Christ.
But to verify St. _Peter_’s Words, in that fore-mention’d Place, _Acts_
iii. 21. _viz._ That all of the _Holy Prophets since the World began_,
have spoken of the Restauration of all Things at the second coming of
Christ. I say, to verify this Assertion of St. _Peter_, we must suppose,
that, where the Prophets speak of the Restauration and future Glory of
_Judah_ and _Jerusalem_, they do, under those Types, represent to us the
Glory and Happiness of the Church in the future Kingdom of Christ: And
most of the Prophets, in this Sense, and under these Forms, have spoken
of this Kingdom; in foretelling the Restauration of _Jerusalem_ and
_Sion_; and happy Days, Peace, Plenty, and Prosperity to the People of
_Israel_.
Most of the Prophets, I say, from _Moses_ to _Malachi_, have spoken of
this _Restauration_. _Moses_, in the xxxth of _Deut._ ver. 4, 5, 9.
_David_ also in many of those _Psalms_ we have cited: _Isaiah_, besides
the Places fore-mentioned, treats amply of this Subject, _chap._ li. and
in several other Places. So likewise the Prophets _Ezekiel_, _Daniel_,
_Hosea_, _Joel_, _Amos_, _Obadiah_, _Micah_, _Zephaniah_, _Haggai_,
_Zachary_, _Malachi_: All these have, either expresly, or under the
Types of _Jerusalem_ and _Sion_, foretold happy Days, and a glorious
Triumph to the Church of God. And seeing in the New Testament, and in
the Prophecies of St. _John_, the Christian Church is still represented,
as under Persecution and Distress, till the Fall of Anti-christ, and the
millennial Kingdom; ’tis then, and not till then, that we must expect
the full Accomplishment of these Prophecies; the _Restauration_ that St.
_Peter_ says was spoken of, by _all the Prophets_; and the _Mystery_,
which St. _John_ says (_Apoc._ x. 7.) was _declared by his Servants the
Prophets, and_ would be finish’d under the _seventh Trumpet_, which
ushers in the Kingdom of Christ.
It would be too long to examine all these Places in the Prophets, which
you may consult at Leisure. However, it cannot seem strange that
_Jerusalem_ should be us’d in a typical or allegorical Sense, seeing we
often find such Applications of it in the New Testament; as _Gal._ iv.
26. _Heb._ xii. 22. _Apoc._ iii. 12. And ’tis very natural that
_Jerusalem restor’d_, should signify the same thing as _new Jerusalem_;
and therefore that St. _John_, by his _new Jerusalem_, intended the same
thing, or the same State, that the antient Prophets did by their
Restauration of _Jerusalem_. And it neither can be understood in a
literal Sense, which, I believe, you will not contend for, they must
both be interpreted of the future Happiness and Glory of the Church in
the Kingdom of Christ.
But to conclude this Point wholly as to Scripture; if we make Reflection
upon all the Passages alledged in this and the foregoing Chapter,
whether out of the Old or New Testament, we must at least acknowledge
thus much, that there are happy Days, at one time or other: Days of
Peace and Righteousness; of Joy and Triumph, of external Prosperity, and
internal Sanctity; when Virtue and Innocency shall be in the Throne, and
Vice and vicious Men out of Power or Credit. That there are such happy
Days prophesied of in Scripture, and promised to the Church of God.
Whether you call this the _Reign of Christ_ and of his Saints or by any
other Name, it is not material at present to determine; let the Title be
what you will, as to the Substance it cannot be denied to be a general
Doctrine of prophetical Scripture. And we must not imagine, that the
Prophets wrote like the Poets; feigned an Idea of a romantick State,
that never was, nor ever will be, only to please their own Fancies, or
the credulous People. Neither is it the State of Heaven and eternal Life
that is here meant or intended: For, besides that they had little or no
Light concerning those Notions, in the Old Testament, the Prophets
generally, in their Description of this Happiness, either express the
Earth, or at least give plain Marks of a terrestrial State. Wherefore,
the only Question that remains, is this, _Whether_ these happy Days are
past already, or to come? Whether this blessed State of the Church is
behind us, or before us? Whether our Predecessors have enjoyed it, or
our Posterity is to expect it? For we are very sure that it is not
present. The World is full of Wars, and Rumours of Wars; of Vice and
Knavery, of Oppression and Persecution: and these are things directly
contrary to the Genius and Characters of the State which we look after.
And if we look for it in Times past, we can go no farther back than the
beginning of Christianity. For St. _John_, the last of the Apostles,
prophesied of these Times, as to come; and plac’d them at the End of his
System of Prophecies; whereby one might conclude, that they are not only
within the Compass of the Christian Ages, but far advanc’d into them.
But however, not to insist upon that at present, where will you find a
thousand Years, from the Birth of Christianity to this present Age, that
deserves the Name, or answers to the Characters of this _pure_ and
_pacifick_ State of the Church? The first Ages of Christianity, as they
were the most pure, so likewise were they the least peaceable;
continually, more or less, under the Persecution of the Heathen
Emperors; and so far from being the Reign and Empire of Christ and his
Saints over the Nations, that Christians were then, every where, in
Subjection or Slavery; a poor, feeble, helpless People, thrust into
Prisons, or thrown to the Lions, at the Pleasure of their Princes or
Rulers. ’Tis true, when the Empire became Christian under _Constantine_,
in the fourth Century, there was, for a time, Peace and Prosperity in
the Church, and a good Degree of Purity and Piety; but that Peace was
soon disturb’d, and that Piety soon corrupted. The growing Pride and
Ambition of the Ecclesiasticks, and their easiness to admit or introduce
superstitious Practices, destroy’d the Purity of the Church. And as to
the Peace of it, their Contests about Opinions and Doctrines, tore the
Christians themselves into Pieces; and, soon after, an Inundation of
barbarous People fell into Christendom, and put it all into Flames and
Confusion. After this Eruption of the _Northern_ Nations, _Mahometanism_
rose in the _East_; and swarms of _Saracens_, like Armies of Locusts,
invaded, conquer’d, and planted their Religion in several Parts of the
_Roman_ Empire, and of the Christianiz’d World. And can we call such
Times the Reign of Christ, or the Imprisonment of Satan? In the
following Ages, the _Turks_ overran the _Eastern_ Empire and the _Greek_
Church, and still hold that miserable People in Slavery. Providence
seems to have so order’d Affairs, that the Christian World should be
never without a WOE upon it, lest it should fancy it self already in
those happy Days of Peace and Prosperity, which are reserv’d for future
Times. Lastly, whosoever is sensible of the Corruptions and Persecutions
of the Church of _Rome_, since she came to her Greatness; whosoever
allows her to be _Mystical Babylon_, which must fall before the Kingdom
of Christ comes on, will think that Kingdom duly plac’d by St. _John_ at
the End of his Prophecies, concerning the Christian Church; and that
there still _remains, according_ to the Words of St. _Paul_, (Heb. iv.
9.) _a Sabbatism to the People of God_.