"countries fhall be overthrown: But Thefe fhall efcape out of his hand, even Edom and Moab " and the chief of the children of Ammon. He Shall stretch forth his hand also upon the coun"tries, and the land of Egypt fhall not escapè. "But he fhall have power over the treasures of “ gold and of filver, and over all the precious things of Egypt ; and the Libyans and Ethiopians fhall be at his fteps.

4

"When Daniel, in the (2) vifion of Nebu"chadnezzar's image, foretold four great fuc"ceffive monarchies; was this written after the "event? or can the congruity of his defcrip"tion with the things themfelves, reasonably be "afcribed to mere chance?

"When the fame Daniel foretels a tyrannical ་ power, which should wear out the faints of "the moft High, and they shall be given into " his hand, until a time, and times, and the di

viding of time; and again for (3) a time, "times, and a half: (Which can be no way applied to the fort perfecution of Antiochus, "because these prophecies are exprefly declared

"cret, that they can hide from "thee."

(3) "Three years and a "half, or 1260 days, is, ac

<< to

"cording to the analogy of all "the forementioned numbers, "1260 years."

E e 4

(4) There

"to be for many days; concerning what shall befall thy people in the latter days; for yet the vifion is for many days; concerning the time of the end; what shall be in the last end of the "indignation; concerning those who fall fall by "the fword and by flame, by captivity and by "Spoil, many days; to try them, even to the time

of the end, because it is yet for a time appointed; concerning a time of trouble, fuch as never was fince there was a nation; the time "sehen God fhall have accomplished to Scatter the power of the holy people; the time of the end, till which the words are clofed up and fealed; "to which the prophet is commanded to fut up his words and feal the book, for many shall run to and fro, and knowlege shall be increased; " even the end, till which Daniel was to reft, and then ftand in his lot at the end of the days.) When Daniel, I fay, foretels fuch a tyrannical power, to continue fuch a deter"mined

"mined period of time: And St. John prophe

c

fies, that the Gentiles fhould tread the holy

city under foot, forty and two months; which "is exactly the fame period of time with that "of Daniel And again, that two witnesses, "clothed in fackcloth, should prophely a thousand two hundred and threefcore days; which is again "exactly the very fame period of time: And again, that the woman which fled into the wil"derness from perfecution, fhould continue "there a thousand two hundred and threescore

days: And again that the fhould fly into the wilderness, for a time, and times, and half a "time; which is ftill the very fame period:

And again, that a wild beast, a tyrannical power, to whom it was given to make war "with the faints, and to overcome them, was to (4) continue forty and two months, (till the fame period of time) and to have power over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations, fo

t

very

"that all that dwell upon the earth should wor

Ship him: Is it credible or poffible that igno"rant and enthufiaftical writers should by mere "chance hit upon fuch coincidencies of [oc"cult] numbers? efpecially fince St. John "could not poffibly take the numbers from "Daniel, if he understood Daniel to mean "nothing more than the fhort perfecution of "Antiochus. And if he did understand. Da"niel to mean a much longer and greater and "more remote tyranny, which John himself prophesied of as in his time fill future "then the wonder is ftill infinitely greater, "that in thofe early times, when there was not the least footstep in the world of any "fuch power as St. John distinctly describes, (but which now is very conspicuous, as I fhall presently observe more particularly) it should cr ever enter into the heart of man to conceive fo "much as the poffibility of fuch a power, fit

ting not upon the pavilion of heathen per"fecutors, but exprefly (2 Thef. II. 4.) in the ❝ temple and upon the feat of God himself."

"But these prophecies, which either relate "to particular places, or depend upon the com "putation of particular periods of time, are

(as I faid) of fuch a nature, as that they cannot be judged of, but by persons skilled in

history.

« history. There are some others more general, running thro' the whole fcripture, and obvious to the confideration of the whole world.

"For inftance: It was foretold by Mofes, " that when the Jews forfook the true God, "they fhould be removed into all the kingdoms

of the earth; fhould be scattered among the "Heathen, among the nations, among all people "from the one end of the earth even unto the other;

fhould there be left few in number among the "Heathen, and pine away in their iniquity in " their enemies lands; and fhould become an aftċ"nishment, a proverb, and a by-word, among "all nations; and that among these nations they "fhould find no eafe, neither should the fole of "their foot have reft; but the Lord should give

them a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, " and forrow of mind; and fend a faintnefs into "their hearts, in the lands of their enemies; fo "that the found of a fhaken leaf should chafe "them. Had any thing like this, in Mofes's "time, ever happened to any nation? Or was "there in nature any probability, that any fuch

thing should ever happen to any people? "that, when they were conquered by their "enemies, and led into captivity, they should "neither continue in the place of their capti

vity, nor be fwallowed up and loft among