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A Summary of the prominent Events contained in the Apocalypfe.

BEFORE I proceed to the awful tafk I have undertaken in the title-page, it feems not improper to lay before the reader a fummary view of the contents of the Apocalypfe. It will difclofe to him a series of wonderful events, foretold in the first century, and which have come to pafs fince that time, during the courfe of one thoufand feven hundred years; and in the exact chronological order in which they were foretold. It will enable him to judge of the unity, the fublimity, and excellence of this facred record of the providence of God, and convince him that power, fave a God of infinite wisdom, can be the Author of it. It will, moreover, affift him in his judgment upon the propriety of my explication of the marks and figns contained in it, which refer to the present times, and upon my application of them to their proper evenis.

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The Apocalypfe, then, is the most important, fublime, and awful theme, that ever employed the mind of man. It contains the PROPHETICAL HISTORY OF ALL THE PROMINENT EVENTS, IN WHICH THE CHURCH OF CHRIST WAS TO BE CONCERNED, FROM HER RISE TO HER FINAL CONQUEST AND TRIUMPH OVER ALL HER OPPONENTS AND ENEMIES, IN THE STRENGTH AND BLESSING OF HER GLORIFIED REDEEMER, THE SON OF GOD; AND TO THE CON

SUMMATION OF ALL THINGS. In this grand and facred theme the principal characters are

1. The I AM that I AM*, "The Alpha and "Omega, the beginning and the ending, and which ❝is, and which was, and which is to come;" the one, fupreme, uncreated, felf-exifting GOD; the Creator and Ruler of all things.

2. JESUS CHRIST, the ever bleffed Son of GOD, and Redeemer of a fallen world.

3. The Two WITNESSES of GOD §.

4. SATAN, the fallen fpirit, and the origin of all evil, the great enemy, the tempter, and deceiver of the whole world.

5. The DRAGON, or the powers of paganism, the agents and minifters of Satan, and the oppofers and perfecutors of the church of Chrift.

6. The great fenfual apoftate **, MOHAMED, in the Eaft, and the great idolatrous apoftate, the Pope,

Exod. iii. 14. Matth. xvii. 5. Rev. xii. 9. XX. 2. **Rev. ix, 1, 2.

+ Rev. i. 11. xxi. 5, 6.

§ Rev. xi. 3...

Ezek. xxviii. 3. Rev. xii. 9.
Rev. xiii. 1.

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in the Weft, the contemporary deftructive enemies of the church.

7. THE "BEAST OF THE BOTTOMLESS PIT *, or the Beast of the earth," or the powers of atheism, eftablished by revolutionary France; another agent of Satan, and yet greater enemy of God and man.

8. BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS, AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH†; a mighty power to be formed hereafter by Satan, to confift of a confederacy of all the before-mentioned enemies of the word of God, and church of Chrift.

9. GOG AND MAGOG +, another mighty power, which is to be formed under the banners of Satan, by a combination of all the wicked and ungodly upon the earth; with defign to make one great effort to deftroy the church and kingdom of Chrift, preparatory to the laft judgment, and the confummation of all things.

This fubject the prophet begins, by declaring his authority to treat of it: and this authority is given by a power no less than God himself, through Jefus Chrift. In ftrict conformity to his inftructions, received from time to time in his several vifions, he begins his narration* of future events, with those which were in a peculiar manner to attend the seven primitive churches; because their establishment, by. the Apoftles, was the foundation of the general church of Chrift; the first great and most important event which fucceeded his crucifixion and afcenfion.

Rev. xi. 7. § Chap. i. ii. iii.

† Rev. xvi. 13. xvii. 5.

Rev. xx. 8.

Ile then proceeds to the general history of the church. confifting of the feven churches united : and this he reprefents as contained in "a book

fealed with feven feals," which, in his vifion," he "faw in the right hand of GoD, fitting upon his "throne:" a book which" no man in heaven, nor "in the earth,, neither under the earth, was found, "worthy, or able, to loofe the feals thereof, neither. "to read or look thereon." That is, a book which neither the departed patriarchs nor prophets who were in heaven, nor the inof just and perfect mortals then living on the earth, nor any of those who were not rifen from the dead, were found worthy to look upon, and much lefs to open the feals, to read and understand it. Yet there was found one, who had been a man, worthy not only to look upon, but to loofe the feals of the book, to read and to communicate the contents thereof to the pro-phet and this was "the lion of the tribe of Judah, "the root of David, the Lamb of God :" the revealer of his word, and the Redeemer of mankind. To. this Lamb of God the book is delivered, and by him the feals are opened, and the contents thereof made known to the prophet, in fundry vifions, and in the fame order of time in which they were afterwards to be fulfilled, in regular fucceffion.

Having thus declared his authority, and the divine fource whence he received his knowledge of futurity, the prophet divides his fubject into three great parts, or fucceffive periods of events, under the allegory of feals, trumpets, and vials. Each of thefe

* Rev. v.

+ It being the will of the Divine Author of prophecy, that the events foretold fhould not be forefeen nor perfectly known until they should come to pafs, they are figuratively reprefented, as contained in a book fealed with feven feals: a feal being an inftru ment commonly used to conceal, from the fight and knowledge of

men,

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