argument of a revelation from God : but when a
thing is foretold which is very unlikely ever to come
to pass, which is entirely contrary to the common
course of things, yet it comes to pass just as fore-
told, this is a strong argument that the prediction
was from God.

Thus the consideration of the manner of the pro-
pagation and success of the gospel, during the time
which has been spoken of, affords great evidence
that the scriptures are the word of God.

3. I am now to show how the success of Christ's
redemption is carried on from the time of the over-
throw of the heathen Roman empire by Constantino
the Great, till the fall of antichrist, and the destruc-
tion of Satan's visible kingdom on earth, which is
the third great dispensation that is in scripture com-
pared to Christ's coming to judgment. This period
contains many wonderful providences towards the
christian church, and the greater part of the book
of the Revelation is taken up in predicting these
events.

The success of Christ's purchase of redemption in
this period appears chiefly at the close of it, when
Antichrist comes to fall, when there will be a far
more glorious success of the gospel than ever yet
has been ; and the series ot events preceding, seems
to be only to prepare the way lor it. In order to a
clearer view of this period, I shall subdivide it into
these four parts : from the destruction of the heathen
empire to the rise of antichrist, from the rise of anti-
christ to the refoi^iiation in Luther's time, from



TO THE FALL OF ANTICHRIST. 275

thence to the present time, from the present time
till the fall of antichrist. But under this head I
shall consider only the former, reaching from the
destruction of the heathen empire to the rise of
antichrist. And here, (1) I would take notice of
the opposition Satan made in this space of time to
the church ; and, (2) the success that the gospel
had in it.

(1) The Opposition. Satan being cast out of his
old heathen empire, the great red dragon after so
sore a conflict with Michael and his angels for the
greater part of three hundred years, being at last
entirely routed and vanquished, so that no place was
found any more in heaven for him, but he was cast
down as it were from heaven to earth ; yet does not
give over his opposition to the woman, the church
of Christ, concerning which all this conflict had
been. But he is still in a great rage, renews his
attempts, and has recourse to fresh devices against
the church. The serpent, after he is cast out of hea-
ven to the earth, casts out of his mouth water as a
flood, to cause the woman to be carried away of the
flood. Rev. xii. 15. The opposition that he made
to the church of Christ before the rise of antichrist,
was principally of two sorts. It was either by cor-
rupting the church with heresies, or by new endea-
vours to restore paganism.

[1] After the destruction of the Heathen Roman
empire, Satan infested the church with heresies.
Though there had been so glorious a work of God in
delivering the church from her heathen persecutors,
and overthrowing the heathen empire ; yet the days
of the church's travail were not ended, and the set
time of her prosperity which the church enjoyed in
Constantine\s time was but very short. It was a
respite which gave the church a time of peace and
silence, as it were for half an hour, wherein the four
angels held the four winds from blowing, till the
servants of God should be sealed in their foreheads.
Rev. viii. 1. But the church soon began to be great-
ly infested with heresies ; the two principal ones



276 HISTORY OF REDEMPTION.

that most infested the church, were the Arian and
Pelagian heresies.

The Arians began soon after Constantine came to
the throne. They denied the doctrine of the Trinity,
ai)d the divinity of Christ and the Holy Ghost, and
maintained that they were but mere creatures.*
This heresy increased more and more in the church,
and prevailed like a flood, which threatened to over-
throw all, and entirely to carry away the church,
insomuch that before that age was out, that is, be-
fore the end of the fourth century, the greater part
of the christian church were become Arians. There
were some emperors, the successors of Constantine,
who were Arians ; so that the Arians being the pre-
vailing party, and having the civil authority on their
side, raised a great persecution against the true
church of Christ. This heresy might therefore v/ell
be compared to a flood, issuing out of the mouth of
the serpent, which threatened to carry away the
woman.

The Pelagian heresy arose in the beginning of the
next century. It began by one Pelagius, who was
born in Britain : his British name was Morgan.-f
He denied original sin, and the influence of the
Spirit of God in conversion, and held the power of
free will, and many other things of like tendency :
and this heresy for a while greatly infested the



* The Arians were so called from Arius, a priest of the church of
Alexariflria, and a native of Lybia. Afterwards they were split into a
jrreat number of sects, partly from the degree of refinement in which
the notions of Arius were received ; some approaching very near the
language of the orthodox, as they were called, and otliers degrading-
the Son of God far more than Arius had done ; and parlly from other
strange and erroneous opinions added to his, which bore the name of
some favourite leader. The grand champion of the orthodox was
Athanasius, who would better have defended their cause, had he ad-
hered to the simplicity of scripture, and not fettered Christianity with
his own additions and reiinements. To him we are indebted for the
Athanasian Creed, though few liberal minds think highly of the obli-
gation, and fewer can endure the curses he has introduced into the
religious worship of the greater part of Christendom.

t In Britain this system was supported not by the authors of it, but
by Agricola, a disciple of Pelagius. This produced as usual, an ex-
conununication ; for the ecclesiastical surgeons of those days seem to
have understood no part of their business so well as amputation.



TO THE FALL OF ANTICHRIST. 277

church. Pelagiiis's principal antagonist, who wrote
in defence of the orthodox faith, was St. Augus-
tine.

[2] The other kind of opposition which Satan
made against the church, was in his endeavours to
restore Paganism. And his first attempt to restore
it in the Roman empire, was by Julian the apostate.
Julian was nephew to Constantine the Great. When
Constantine died, he left his empire to his three
sons ; and when they were dead, Julian reigned in
their stead. He had been a professed christian,
but fell from Christianity, and turned Pagan ; and
therefore is called the apostate. When he came to
the throne, he used his utmost endeavours to over-
throw the christian church, and set up paganism
again in the empire. He put down the christian
magistrates, and placed heathens in their room : he
rebuilt the heathen temples, and became a most
notorious persecutor of the christians, and, as is
thought, against his own light. He used to call
Christ, by way of reproach, the Galilean. He was
killed with a lance in his wars with the Persians.
When he saw that he was mortally wounded, he
took a handful of his blood, and threw it up towards
heaven, crying out, ' Oh Galilean, thou hast con-
quered.'* And he is commonly thought by divines
to have committed the unpardonable sin.^

Another way that Satan attempted to restore pa-
ganism in the Roman empire, was by the invasions
and conquest of heathen nations. For in this period
the Goths and Vandals, and other heathen barbarous
nations that dwelt in the north of the Roman em-
pire, invaded it, and obtained great conquests, and



* Among the instances of Julian's opposition to Christianity, histori-
ans generally mention his attempt to rebuild Jerusalem and restore
Judaism, which was miraculously defeated, subterraneous fire repeat-
edly consuming both the work and workmen.

t The sin against the Holy Ghost is supposed to be a complication
of knowledge and inveterate malice. Had Peter denied his Master
with the malicious heart of Saul the persecutor, or Saul persecuted
Jesus with the light that Peter possessed, either of them would have
committed this sin. Matt. xii. 21 22.



278 HISTORY OF REDEMPTION.

even overran the empire. In the fifth century they
took the city of Rome, and finally subdued and took
possession of the western empire, as it v^as called,
and divided it into ten kingdoms, which were the ten
horns of the beast ; for we are told that the ten horns
are ten kings, who should rise in the latter part of
the Roman empire.* These are also represented
by the ten toes of Nebuchadnezzars's image. The
invasion and conquest of the heathen nations are
supposed to be foretold in the eighth chapter of Re-
velation, in what came to pass under the sounding
of the four first trumpets.t Now these nations were
chiefly heathens ; and by their means heathenism
was again for a while in part restored, after it had
been overthrown.

(2) I proceed to show what success there was of
the gospel in this space, notwithstanding this oppo-
sition.

[1] The opposition of Satan was bafiied. Though
the dragon cast out of his mouth such a flood after
the woman to carry her away, yet he could not
obtain his design ; but the earth helped the woman,
and opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood
which the dragon cast out of his mouth. Rev. xii.
16, These heresies which so much prevailed, yet
after a while dwindled away, and truth was again

* The ten horns of the beast are generally reckoned thus : 1 . The
Vandals and Alans in Spain and Africa ; 2. The Suevians in Spain ;
3. the Visigoths ; 4. the Allans in Gallia ; 5. the Burgundians ; 6. the
Franks ; 7. the Britons ; 8. the Hunns ; 9. the Lombards ; 10. the
kingdom of Ravenna.

t The four first trumpets.] The first trumpet produces a storm of
fire, of hail mingled with fire, and very fitly represents the Goths under
Alaric, who are compared to a storm of hail by Claudian. This pe-
riod was also remarkable for lightning and hail. — At the second trum-
pet a burning mountain is cast into the sea, which was Attali and his
Hunns, a few years after the former. He called himself the ' scourge
of God and the terror of men.'— At the sounding of the third trumpet
the star wormwood falls from heaven, supposed to predict Genseric, a
persecuting Arian, king of the Vandals.— By the fourth trumpet, the
political luminaries of the empire were terribly eclipsed, which was ef-
fected by Odoacer king of the Heruli, who put an end to the very name
of the western empire, and was proclaimed king of Italy ; but was soon
removed by Theodoric king of llie Ostrogoths, who resumed his place.
The bloodshed and other calamities, which attended these revolutions,
are beyond conception. [See Bp. Newton on the Prophecies, vol. iii.



TO THE FALL OF ANTICHRIST. 279

restored. As for Julians attempt, it was disap-
pointed by his death.

[2] The gospel, during this space of time, was
farther propagated among many barbarous heathen
nations in the confines of the heathen Ronran em-
pire. In the time of Constantine there was a con-
siderable propagation of the gospel in the East In-
dies, chiefly by the ministry of one Frumentius.
Great numbers of the Iberians, a pagan people,
were converted to Christianity by a christian woman
of eminent piety, whom they had taken captive.
And among several other barbarous nations who
were not within the Roman empire, great numbers
were brought to receive the gospel by the teaching
and example of captives whom they had taken in
war. After this, about the year of Christ 372, the
gospel was propagated in Arabia; as it was also
among some of the northern nations ; particularly a
prince of the country of the Goths about this time
became christian, and a great number of his people
with him. Towards the latter end of this century,
the gospel was preached among the Persians ; also
among the Scythians, a barbarous people, whom the
apostle mentions. Col. iii. 11. * Barbarian, Scythian,
bond or free.' About the year 430, there was a re-
markable conversion of the Burgundians to the chris-
tian faith. In this age Ireland, which till now had
been heathen, received Christianity. About the same
time it was farther propagated in Scotland and other
places. In the next century, one Zathus, king of
the Colchians, renounced heathenism, and embraced
the christian religion, as did several other barbarous
nations which I cannot particularize.*

* Early in the fifth century, France became nominally christian, on
the following^ occasion : Clovis i. a pa^an prince, fell in love with Clo-
tildo, a christian princess ; and in order to obtain her, promised to re-
ceive her reli<;ion. This however he had like to have forgotten, had
he not a few years after been in danger of losing an important battle ;
then he renewed his vow of turning christian, if he might gain the vic-
tory, which accordingly happening, he was baptized, with his sister,
and three thousand of his subjects. A few years after Pope Gregory,
m wonderful charity, sent Austin, and a tribe of other monks, to con-
vert our Saxon ancestors, (the natives having lied to Wales) and had



280 HISTORY OF up:dp:]mptiox.

Thus T have briefly considered the principal events
of providence w^hich concerns the success of the gos-
pel from Constantine to the rise of antichrist.

4. I come now to the second part of the time
from Constantine to the destruction of antichrist,
viz. that which reaches from the rise of antichrist to
the reformation by Luther and others. And this
is the darkest and most dismal day that ever the
christian church saw, and probably the darkest that
ever it will see. The time of the church's affliction,
as was observed before, is from Christ's resurrection
till the destruction of antichrist, excepting that the
day is as it were shortened by some intermissions
and times of respite, which God gives for the elect's
sake. Matt. xxiv. 22. But during this time, from
the rise of antichrist till the reformation, was a space
in which the christian church was in its depression
and darkness. For many hundred years it was in
a state of great obscurity, like the woman in the
wilderness, almost hidden from sight and observa-
tion. Rev. xii. 6. — In speaking of the events of this
period, I would, (1) Take notice of the machinations
of the devil against the kingdom of Christ in this
time ; (2) How the church of Christ was upheld
during it.

(1) Notice the machinations of the devil against
the kingdom of Christ during this period. Satan
had done great things against the christian church
before, but had been baffled again and again.
Michael and his angels had obtained a glorious vic-
tory. How terrible was his opposition during the
continuance of the heathen empire ; and how glo-
rious was Christ's victory and triumph over him in
the time of Constantine. It pleased God now to
prepare the way for a yet greater victory over him,

such success as to found the see of Canterbury, of which he was the
first archbishop. But it is to be feared, that the grand aim of the Ro-
man pontiff was to enlarge his power, and the zeal of Austin and his
fellow labourers to propagate the trumpery of popery, rather than the
doctrines of the gospel. There is no doubt but providence overruled
all these events for good, and amidst the superstition of the times,
tliere were always some who would not bow the knee to Baal.



TO THE FALL OF ANTICHRIST. 281

to suffer him to renew his strength, and to do the
utmost that his power and subtilty could do ; and
therefore he suffers him to have a long time to form
his schemes, and to establish his interest; and per-
mits him to carry his designs a great length, almost
to the swallowing up of his church ; and to exer-
cise a proud, and almost uncontrouled dominion, a
long time before Christ finally conquers, and utterly
ruins his visible kingdom on earth, as he will do in
the time of the destruction of antichrist, whence he
will show himself superior to all his power and sub-
tilty. The two grand works of the devil which he
wrought in this space against the kingdom of Christ,
are his Antichristian and Mahometan kingdoms,
which have been, and still are, of great extent and
strength, both together swallowing up the antient
Roman empire ; that of Antichrist the western, and
Mahomet's the eastern empire. It is in the destruc-
tion of these that the victory of Christ, at the intro-
duction of the glorious times of the church, will
chiefly consist. Here let us briefly observe how Sa-
tan has erected and still maintains these two great
kingdoms in opposition to that of Christ.

[1] With respect to the kingdom of Antichrist.
This seems to be the masterpiece of all the devil's
contrivances, and therefore antichrist is called em-
phatically the or that * man of sin,' 2 Tliess. ii. 3,
as though he were so by way of eminence. He is
also called antichrist, which signifies the adversary
of Christ. Not that he is the only opponent of
Christ ; for the apostle John observes, that in his
days there were many antichrists. 1 John ii. 18, 22.
But yet this is called the antichrist, as though there
were no otiier, because he was so eminently, and
above all others. So this contrivance of the devil
is called the mystery of iniquity, 2 Thess. ii. 7.
And we find n; enemy of Christ half so much spo-
ken of in the prophecies of the Revelation as this,
or his destruction spoken of as so happy for the
church. See also Dan. vii. 20, 21. I Tim. iv. 1.
1 John iv. 3.

2 o



282 HISTORY OF redemption.

This is a contrivance of the devil to turn the mi-
nistry of the christian church into his service, and
change these angels of the churches into fallen an-
gels. And in the tyranny, superstition, idolatry, and
persecution w^hich he sets up, he contrives to make
an image of ancient paganism, and more than to re-
store w^hat was lost in the empire by the overthrow
of heathenism in the time of Constantine ; so that
by these means the head of the beast, which was
wounded unto death in Constantine, has his deadly
wound healed in antichrist. Rev. xiii, 3. And the
dragon, that formerly reigned in the heathen Roman
empire, being cast out thence, after the beast with
seven heads and ten horns rises up out of the sea,
gives him his power, and seat, and great authority :
and all the world wonders after the beast.*



* T/ie Image of the Beast.
The Pagan Dragon. | His Popish Image.

Its Head.
The Roman Emperor, called the j The Pope, also called the sove-
high priest, attended with his j reign Pontif, with his college of
princes in royal purple. | cardinals clothed in purple.

Its Members.
The Roman provinces. | The Catholic states.

Its Gods.



Besides Jupiter the supreme,
Juno, and a multitude of deities
of dillerent ranks, mediators and
intercessors ; presiding over dif-
ferent countries, professions, dis-
eases, days, &c.

Places of
Temples built cast and west,
dedicated to their several gods ;
and one in particular to them all,
and therefore called the Pan-
Iheon.



Besides the blessed Trinity, the
Virgin Mary, mother of God and
queen of heaven, with innumerable
saints worshipped as mediators and
intercessors; presiding overvarious
countries, professions, diseases,
days, &c.
Worship.

The same temples, consecrated
anew, with others built upon the
same plan, and dedicated to their
difl'erent saints ; and the same
Pantheon dedicated to all saints.



Through the medium of
images, with great splendour and
innumerable ceremonies, magnifi-
cent garments, many musical in-
slnnnents, torches at noon day, &c.



Manner tf Worship.



By the same, or similar images,
with equal splendour, many of Ibc
same ceremonies,the like garments,
many musical instruments, torches
at noon day, iscC.



See l)e Laune's plea, where the parallel is pursued through several
other beads, and properly illustrated with particular instances. Also
Dr. Midilleton's Letter from Rome, who has carried the subject stil'
fiirtJur, and observes, when we see ' the present people of Rome wor-
shi|)|)ing at this day in the same temples, at the same altars, sometimes
tlie same ini;ii;<s and always with the same ceremonies, as the old



TO T n r-: i" a i. i, o v a \ 1 1 c i iii i s i . 283

I am far from pretending to determine the time
when the reign of antichrist began, which is a point
that has been so much controverted among divines
and expositors. It is certain that the 1260 days, or
years, which is so often mentioned in scripture as
the time of the continuance of antichrist's reign, did
not commence before the year of Christ 479 : be-
cause if they did, they would have ended, and anti-
christ would have fallen before now. But the rise
of antichrist was gradual.* The christian church
corrupted itself in many things presently after Con-
stantine's time, growing more and more superstitious
in its worship, by degrees bringing in many cere-
monies into the worship of God, till at length they
brought in the worship of saints, and set up images
in their churches, and the clergy in general, and es-
pecially the bishop of Rome, assumed more and
more authority to himself. In the primitive times
he was only a minister of a congregation ; then a
standing moderator of a presbytery, a diocesan bi-
shop, a metropolitan, which is equivalent to an arch-
bishop, a patriarch. Then he claimed the power of
universal bishop over the whole christian church,
wherein he was opposed for a while, but confirmed
in it by the civil power of the emperor in the year
606. After that he claimed the power of a temporal
prince ; and so was wont to carry two swords, to
signify both his temporal and spiritual power, and
assumed more and more authority, till at length he,
as Christ's vicegerent on earth, claimed the very
same power that Christ would have, if he was pre-
sent on earth, and reigned on his throne, or the same
power that belongs to God. He even used to be

Romans ; they must have more charity as well as skill iu distiiiguish-
inj?, than I pretend to, who can absolve them from the same crime of
superstition and idolatry with their pagan ancestors.'

* The best interpreters are pretty well agreed, that this reign is to
be dated from about the year 756, when the pope began to be a tem-
poral power, (that is, in prophetic language, a beast) by assuming
temporal dominion ; 1260 years from this period will bring us to about
the years 2000, and about the six thousandth year of the world, which
agrees with an ancient tradition. ' In six thousand years, shall all
things be accomplished.'



284 HISTORY OF REDEMPTIOM.

called God on earth, and was submitted to by all
the princes of Christendom. He claimed power to
crown princes, and to degrade them at his pleasure ;
and brought kings and emperors to kiss his feet.
Emperors were wont to receive their crowns at his
hands, and princes dreaded the displeasure of the
pope, as they would have done a thunderbolt from
heaven ; for if the pope was pleased to excommuni-
cate a prince, all his subjects were at once freed from
their allegiance, and even obliged to renounce it on
pain of excommunication ; and not only so, but any
man might kill him wherever he were found. Fur-
ther, the pope was believed to have power to damn
men at pleasure ; for whosoever died under his ex-
communication, was looked upon as certainly lost.
Several emperors were actually deposed, and died
miserably by his means ; and if the people of any
state or kingdom did not please him, he could lay
that state or kingdom under an interdict, whereby
all sacred administrations among them could have
no validity. There could be no valid sacraments,
prayers, preaching, or pardons till that interdict was
taken off ; so that people remained, in their appre-
hension, in a damnable state, and therefore dreaded
it as they would a storm of fire and brimstone from
heaven. And in order to execute his wrath on a
prince or people with whom the pope was dis-
pleased, other princes must be also put to a great
deal of trouble and expence. .

As the pope with his clergy robbed the people of
their ecclesiastical and civil liberties and privileges,
so he also robbed them of their estates, and drained
all Christendom of their money, ingrossing their
riches into his own coffers, by revenues of the
clergy, pardons, indulgencies, baptisms, and extreme
unctions, deliverance out of purgatory, and a hun-
dred other things.*— See how well this agrees with