Pathmos: or, A commentary on the Reuelation of Saint Iohn diuided into three seuerall prophecies. The first prophecie contained in the fourth, fift, sixt and seuenth chapters. By Mr. William Cowper, Bishop of Galloway.

VERSE. 1. After this I looked, and behold, a dore was opened in heauen, and the first Voice which I heard, was, as it were of a Trumpet talking with me, which said, Come vp hither, and I will shew thee things, which must be hereafter.

AFTER this.] This is to be referred to the order of the Visions, not to the interuall, or long distance of time; for all these Visions, S. Iohn saw them in one day: I was in the Spirit on the Lords Day, and I heard behind me a great Voice: and yet, Quaelibet visio suam habuit morulam, eue∣ry Vision had the owne space of time; by order, one after another, are they reuealed vnto him, yet so, that vpon one day, and in one trance he saw all; and this hee signifies in the entry.

As to the manner of his sight, what way S. Iohn saw these Visions, because frequent mention is

made of it in this Prophecie, it is expedient, that once for all we speake of it. There is a three-fold sight: 1. Naturall, 2. Propheticall. 3. Spirituall. The Naturall sight is common both to good and euill; this is that sight we haue by the eye of God seene in his workes: For the inuisible things of God, that is his eternall Power and God-head, are seene, and vnderstood by the things he hath made.

The second sight is Propheticall, yet common also both to good and euill; I meane not to all, but some of euery one of them, for Balaam had it: this is a sight of things to come, made by Re∣uelation, Representation, or both. A sight of things to come by Representation, was offered to Pharaoh, and to Nabuchadnezzar, but they wan∣ted the reuelation of it; they could tell what they saw, but could not tell what it signified, till it was declared; to the one, by Ioseph; to the other by Daniel. Sometime againe, there is a sight of things to come shewed to the seruants of God by Reue∣lation, without Representation: such a sight many of the Prophets had: But here, to Saint Iohn, things to come are shewed both the waies: first, by Repre∣sentation, next by Reuelation. In the manner of his Vision, three things must be obserued, that it was, Interna, Imaginaria, Intellectualis: It was first, Internall, by the minde; for his bodily senses were now asleepe, his spirit, for a time, hauing after a sort, derelinquished his body: Next, it was Imaginary, for by types, similitudes, resemblan∣ces, and figures of corporall, and materiall things,

formed in his minde, were they represented to him. Thirdly, it was Intellectuall; for by heauen∣ly illumination, S. Iohn was taught, and informed to vnderstand truely, what these Types, Simili∣tudes and Figures did represent and signifie; otherwise hee had not beene a Prophet, nor able to shew to the Church, that which hee vnder∣stood not himselfe. I marke this, to stop the blas∣phemous mouthes of some Atheists, who in disgrace of this Prophecie, haue beene bold to say, that S. Iohn vnderstood not what he wrote to the Churches.

The third sight is Spirituall, and singular, per∣taining to Saints onely, called and chosen: This is a sight of Gods fatherly and mercifull Face, shining vpon vs in Christ, bringing with it to our foules ioy vnspeakeable and glorious. And this sight we haue in this life, but in the least degree: for now wee see that glory of God, but in a mir∣rour, through a vaile, darkely; so that, in compa∣rison of that sight which we shall haue hereafter, the Spirit of God accounts this sight to be no sight: We walke not by sight, but by faith; And S. Peter affirmes, Wee haue not yet seene him; but S. Iohn saith, When hee shall appeare, wee shall see him as hee is; Yet euen the sight that now we haue by faith, sustaines vs, that wee faint not: yea, makes vs to reioyce in him with ioy vnspeakeable and glo∣rious.

The first sight is no comfort, without the third: For oh! How pittifull is the estate of that man,

who hath an eye to see the Sunne, and hath not an eye to see Him that made the Sunne? Yea, the second is not comfortable without the third. What auailes it to fore-see, and fore-tell things to come, and not to fore-see that Wrath which is to come, that thou maist eschew it? Balaam was a great Prophet, to point out Iesus Christ vnto others, in whom he had no part himselfe: Hee fore-saw that the death of righteous men was happy, and wished it to himselfe, but hee had not true Light to leade him in that life, which might bring him to a happy death. Thus, in the third sight onely, stands the comfort of Christians. Si∣meons sight maketh Simeons Song, and sendeth away Saints out of the body, reioycing in the middest of the dolours of death. All these three sights had Saint Iohn, but here hee sees these Visi∣ons by the second sight.

Now this sight is relatiue to the sight hee saw before, After this I looked; and it renders this les∣son: S. Iohn hauing vsed well the Reuelation hee receiued in the first Vision, and hauing deliuered it faithfully to the Church, as he was comman∣ded, gets now another Vision reueiled to him. Two things increase heauenly reuelations in a Preacher: First, if he vse well the talent recei∣ued already, Nec enim alimonia haec distribuendo minuitur, sed potius augetur ministrando: For hea∣uenly food is not diminished by the distribution thereof, but rather is augmented. Next, if hee looke vp to God by feruent prayer, and seek more;

as here S. Iohn doth, hee shall neuer want comfor∣table matter to deliuer, in God his Name, to the Church. But alack, where men come out, Promp∣t•…•… docere, quod non didicerunt, ready to teach that which they haue not learned; looking downe, to giue vnto people, not first looking vp, to seek from the Lord: what hope of a blessing is there to such a Ministerie?

And behold, a dore was opened.] By this Meta∣phoricall speech, S. Iohn will signifie vnto vs, that an entrance, and cleere sight of these heauenly Mysteries was made vnto him by the calling of God, which otherwise were hid, and locked vp from him, like excellent things in the Palace of a King, whereof no sight is gotten till the dore be opened, and men licensed to enter in. So S. Paul by the Opening of a dore of faith to the Gentiles, will expresse that entrance to the faith, which Gentiles had gotten by his Ministerie, and by the great doore, and effectuall opened to him at Ephesus, and at Troas, and by the opened doore of vtterance to speak the Mysterie of Christ; for which, hee willes the Colossians to pray, hee vnderstands that a cleere and easie entrance to these Mysteries may bee made to him by the Lord, and a ready way pre∣pared in the hearts of people, to conuay these Mysteries, as it were, in by a doore vnto them.

In Heauen.] Hugo, Carthusian, and others of that sort, by the Doore vnderstand Christ, and by heauen, the Church: it is a truth, that Christ and his Church sometime are so figured, but it is

not the truth of this place. I maruell what should haue moued Cotterius, a iudicious and lear∣ned Writer; to follow them; This Heauen (saith hee) is, Ecclesia in qua Deus habitat, the Church wherein God dwels, and the Voice which spake vnto S. Iohn, Verbum est quo vocamur in Ecclesiam▪ It is the Word, by which wee are called to the Church. All by purpose, for was S. Iohn now in Pathmos to bee called to the communion of the Church. But leauing this, when wee shall come (if the Lord please) to such places of this Prophe∣cie, where the Heauen is a type of the Church Militant, or Triumphant, we shall shew the reason thereof.

But here, that we may vnderstand with sobrie∣ty, let vs consider how Saint Iohn speakes, as hee saw: He saw not this Vision in the Earth, nor in the Aire, but in the heauen was it represented to him. It is true, most part of things prophesied here, were to be performed on the earth, but they are fore-shewed in the heauens, to tell vs, that the earth, and all things which fall out therein, are ruled by the Decree of Heauen. To make this yet more cleere, let vs be remembred that in holy Scripture, Heauen is sundry waies taken; First, for the Church Triumphant, their place, and their persons are both exprest by the name of Heauen; as, when it is said the two Witnesses were taken vp into heauen. Next, for the Church Mi∣litant, in the Gospell, & in this Reuelation, cōmon∣ly called Heauen: But in this, and many other pla∣ces

of this Prophecie, Heauen is taken for that ty∣picall representation of heauen made to him in this Prophecie. For it is to bee noted, and obser∣ued, as a necessary rule, that in these Visions S. Iohn speakes of things according as hee saw them represented in types (as we haue spoken be∣fore) yet so, that euery type hath a truth corre∣spondent to it, and it requires great discretion to accommodate euery Type to the owne truth.

Which is not done by them, who in this place expound heauen to be the Church Militant: for S. Iohn saw not, nor learned not these Mysteries in the Church, nor yet from the Church, hee saw them represented to him in heauen, to be reuea∣led to the Church. In a word, he got it indeed for the Church Militant, but not from it. Neither is there any more reason to say that heauen here is the Church Militant, then to say that these things which S. Paul saw, when hee was rauished to the third heauen, hee saw them in the Church: for at this time also, was S. Iohn rauished and transpor∣ted in Spirit.

Alway we learne here, that wee can haue no knowledge of heauenly things, vnlesse the Lord open the doore, and discouer them vnto vs. The Iewes euery Saturday, read in their Synagogues a part of Moses, and the Prophets; these point with the finger vnto Christ, but they cannot see him, for a Vaile couereth their mindes, till the Lord illuminate them. Wee doe therefore pray the Lord our God, who opened the doore to S. Iohn,

through which hee saw these Visions, to open a doore to vs also, by which we may haue entrance to vnderstand them, for the glory of his name, and comfort of his Church.

And the first Voice which I heard, &c.] Vpon this place Victorinus obserues, that it was one Spirit which spake in the Prophets of old, and in the Apostles now. Cotterius, in the first Vision (saith hee) Iohn heard a Voice speaking onely, but here, a Voice speaking with S. Iohn, quo non obscu∣rè innuitur verbi (quod personam suam habet) & nostri communio; whereby the communion of the Word with vs is not obscurely declared. Both these are good points of Diuinity, but too hardly picked out of this place. The more soberly wee handle the Prophecie, we shall vnderstand it the better.

S. Iohn heere tels vs no more, but that by a Voice sounding lowdly in his hearing, hee was prepared to behold these things which God was to shew him. How God did vtter this Voice to him, it were but curiosity for vs to enquire; Deo nam{que} qui nostris loquendi legibus astrictus non est, liberum est loqui quomodocun{que} voluerit: The Lord is not bound to our manner of speaking, as Cotte∣rius hath well obserued, it is free to the Lord to speake what manner of way hee will. This we may be sure of, and it should content vs that his ser∣uant vnderstood very well what the Voice said to him, which we may perceiue by his owne decla∣ring of it vnto vs. And now out of this, the lesson ariseth; The Apostle looked vp to God in the

beginning of this Verse, desirous to see more, and now the Lord offers not onely new sight to his eye, but new information to his care: Wee neuer turne our hearts truely to the Lord, but hee is readie to meete vs; All his children finde this in experience. Certainely, if wee would be more homely with our God, we should soone finde him more familiar with vs. But alas, our sinne is, we wait not vpon him, and intertaine not a spirituall fellowship with him. How shall wee see, that de∣light not in the light? And how shall we bee re∣plenished with that grace which ouerflowes in him, so long as we are carelesse, and negligent to come to him? This is the ground of all our euill, neglect of the spirituall worship, neglect to waite vpon the Lord. God giue vs eyes to see it, and hearts to mend it.

As it were of a Trumpet.] The Voice soundeth (said one) like a Trumpet; Quia inuitabat Ioan∣nem ad praelium contra diaboli temptamenta, contra mundi blandimenta, contra carnis oblectamenta: because it inuites S. Iohn to battell against the ten∣tations of the deuill, the allurements of the world, the pleasures of the flesh. No question, S. Iohn was a good Souldier of Iesus, and had fought these battels couragiously; but this goes further, hee is stirred vp by this Trumpet to heare a Proclamation made in heauen of such battels, as his Saints had to fight vpon earth to the worlds end, that hee might fore-warne the Church of them.

The lesson here arising is, that the Voice where∣by God speakes to his owne, is loud, liuely and powerfull, to waken them out of the dead sleepe of their sinne. That same Word of the Lord prea∣ched, which to a naturall man is but foolishnesse, and a dead letter which he vnderstands not, to the childe of God, is the power of God; it is liuely, and mighty in operation. The houre shall come, and now is, when the dead shall heare the voice of the Sonne of God, and they that heare it shall liue.

O how miserable are they, to whom this Voice sounds and they heare it not, and the Trumpet of the liuely Word wakneth them not! For if they continue in this estate, and their sleepe bee vnto death, what remaines, but a fearefull Trumpet of doome, which whether they will or not, they shall be forced to heare, denouncing to them the iudgement of endlesse condemnation. But to returne, our ground is, God in his mercifull dea∣ling with his seruants, what euer hee haue to doe with them, speakes to them in such sort, that hee causes them both to vnderstand, and also to obey him. This S. Iohn declares, when hee saith, the Voice was like the voice of a Trumpet, because by it hee was wakened, moued, and stirred vp to heare attentiuely and with reuerence.

Saying, Come vp hither.] Non corporis motu, sed mentis intuitu: Come vp, not by motion of the body, but attention of the mind. Here then Saint Iohn his calling is renewed to him againe: he must be a separate man, and after a sort, go out of him∣selfe,

and go vp vnto God to bee familiar with him, who would see the things of God. This is required of euery Christian, if hee would be the Spouse of Christ, ioyned in marriage with him: Forget thy owne people and thy fathers house, so shall the King haue pleasure in thy beauty: How much more then is it requisite in Christian Preachers? Did Moses see the patterne of the Tabernacle, till he went vp to the Mount? Or did the Lord talke familiarly with Ioshua and Moses, till first they put off their shooes? And shall any Preacher now thinke to be familiar with God, and powerfull with his people, vnlesse he learne this lesson first, that here first is giuen to S. Iohn, Come vp hither?

Againe, the voice of God, when he talkes to his people is, Come vp. Satans voice on the con∣trary, Fall downe. Cast thy selfe downe: That pre∣sumptuous Beast durst speake so to our Sauiour, what maruell then he dare speake so to his ser∣uants? The Lord would haue thee to come vp, and enioy all the good which hee hath to com∣municate to thee. Satan would haue thee to go downe, that thou mayst be partaker of his remedi∣lesse condemnation. He himselfe for his sinne was cast out of heauen, He is now reserued in chaines vnder darkenesse, to the iudgement of the great Day. And he knowes that when the time of his complete iudgement shall come, he will bee cast into vtter darkenesse, and all his care is to draw man downe-ward with him into the same condemnation. There is no restitution for him,

mercy neuer was, neuer will be preached to him; neither can he seeke it, neither will he get: The most that euer he craued, was a Supersedere: Why wilt thou torment vs before the time? he is condem∣ned in his own conscience, and knowes that intole∣rable, & ineuitable torment abides him. We reade that the Lord talked with Satan, but neuer called vpon him to come vp, since that first he fell down.

But blessed be the Lord, it is his voice to his owne, Come to me: notwithstanding yee haue fal∣len from me, yet Come to me; yee haue sinned, but if yee be weary of sinne, I will refresh you. It was the answer of Christ to the Disciples of Iohn Baptist, when they asked, Master, where dwellest thou? Come and see, said our Lord: and still hee speaketh vnto all his beloued, as here hee doth to one of his beloued, Come vp hither, not to get new reuelations to be shewed vnto others; but, Come vp hither, to get a new and a full sight of my promised glory to your selfe. Yea, such is the goodnesse of our God, that not onely hee cals vp∣on vs, and bids vs come, but causes vs to come: Blessed is the man whom thou chusest, and causest to come to thee. Now blessed bee the Lord who hath giuen vs mercy after wee had sinned, which hee hath denyed to reprobate Angels and men; and after we had fallen, hath raised vs vp againe to in∣herite heauenly places, where hee hath condem∣ned them vnto vtter darkenesse. And the Lord, who euery day cals vs to come to him, draw vs vpward, and cause vs to come according as he cals.

And I will shew thee things which must be, &c.] Prediction of things to come made by God, are vndoubted arguments, that they fall not out by hap, but as they are ruled by his Prouidence, who fore-tels them: therefore the Lord vendicates this praise to himselfe, that hee onely can tell things which are to come. Shew the things that are to come hereafter, that we may knew that yee are gods: thereby also declaring that none but the Lord can truely fore-tell things to come. As for Satans Pre∣dictions, they are either out of experience, which hath taught him by the collection of naturall causes, to fore-see the effects arising of them, or else he hath them by reuelation from God. It was easie for Satan to fore-tell the death of Achab in the battell against the Aramites; for he heard the decree of his destruction giuen out in the Court of heauen, and himselfe was directed as a Burrio, to execute it.

They are miserably blinded, who consult with Satan to know things to come: from so cursed, and wicked a spirit as he is, good tydings came neuer vnto any, nor neuer shall. When his Responses are peremptory, then are they deadly, like that which he gaue vnto Saul, To morrow at this time thou shalt bee with mee. Otherwise they are de∣ceitfull, like that which he gaue Heraclius; Gentem circumcisam ipsius Imperium vastaturam, That a circumcised Nation should destroy his Empire. Wherupon Heraclius persecuted Iewes and Chri∣stians, but had no minde that Mahumetists were

circumcised also, who were indeed the destructi∣on of the Empire. But to returne, it is not so with the Lord, his knowledge is not acquired by ex∣perience, nor deriued from any other; For who was his counsellour? In the volume of his booke are all things written, that euer tooke fashion; hee knowes with one looke all his creatures, what and when they were, are, or will bee, what they can do, or what shall bee done with them. He is all Vnder∣standing, and of himselfe, and by himselfe; Hee sees all things as they are, hath beene, or shall bee.

Which must be done.] This is for our comfort, that the things prophecied in this Booke must bee done. Scornefull men thinke it impossible, the power of Antichrist, and his Confederates is so great, and they aske how it can be? But where the Lord sayes, that hee will do a thing, it sets not man to enquire, How shall it bee done? O but now, saith the mocking and faithlesse Papist, God workes no miracles; this was the word of one of that sort, when the Spanish Armado approached to our Coasts: not content to triumph ouer men, but ouer the very heauens, as though the Lords Arme were shortned. The Lord now a daies, said he, workes no miracles: But how then was that Armado destroyed? Inuincible, marrowlesse, matchlesse in their iudgement was it, in respect of man. Who did it then? Was it not the hand of God from heauen which ouerthrew them? Be si∣lent therefore, O yee blasphemous mouthes, aske

not, how can these things be done. It is suffici∣ent the Lord hath said, They must be done. None of the words of the Lord shall fall to the ground. As himselfe is vnchangeable, so are his decrees; figu∣red therefore to Zacharie by Mountaines of Brasse. Babylon assuredly shall fall, Rome shall bee ruined, the Whore shall be condemned; the Kings of the earth, which now giue their Kingdomes to the Beast, shall, ere it be long, hate the Whore, and strip her naked: God shall put it in their hearts to do so. This is fore-told in this Prophecie, and here the Lord saies, They must be done.

Here then we haue the generall matter of this Prophecie: it is a prediction from this fourth chapter, of things which shortly must bee done hereafter: here we haue Persecutiones, & tribu∣lationes Ecclesiae, & postea consolationes & remunera∣tiones maiores: first, the persecutions and tribula∣tions of the Church, afterward consolations, and large remunerations thereof. They are farre mis∣taken therefore, who expound this Prophecie of the foure Monarchies, and referre it to things done in the old Testament.

Notes

• The time wherein Saint Iohn saw this Vision.
• Reuel. 1.
• Carthus.
• A three-fold •…•…ight.
• 1 Naturall, com∣mon to the creature.
• Rom. 1. 10.
• 2 Supernaturall, or Propheti∣call; this is made by reue∣lation, repre∣sentation, or both.
• Numb. 24.
• Gen. 41. Dan. 2.
• Carthus.
• How the sight which S Ioh•…•… saw, was Inter∣nall, Imagina∣ry, Intellectu∣all.
• 3 Spirituall, pro∣per to Saints, chosen and called.
• 2. Cor. 3. 18.
• 2. Cor. 5. 7.
• 1. Pet. 1.
• 1. Iohn 3. 2.
• 1. Pet. 1. 8.
• The naturall sight can bee no comfort without the spirituall.
• Numb. 24.
• Two things increase grace in a Preacher.
• 1 Conscientious vsing of that which he hath.
• Ber. in Psal. qui habitat.
• 2 Carefull cra∣uing of that, which he hath not.
• No entrance can wee haue to things hea∣uenly, except God open the doore.
• Acts 14. 27.
• 2. Cor. 6. 9.
• 2. Cor. 2. 12.
• Heauen in this place can∣not signifie the Militant Church.
• Heauen three waies taken in holy Scripture.
• 1 For the Church Tri∣umphant.
• Reu. 11.
• 2 For the Church Mili∣tant.
• 3 For the Church repre∣sentatiue.
• S. Iohn learned not these my∣steries in the Church mili∣tant, nor from it, but for it.
• 2. Cor. 12. 2, 4.
• The Lord who taught him to know them, must also teach vs, or else wee cannot learne them.
• 2. Cor. 3.
• Of the voice which S. Iohn heard.
• How this voice was vt∣tered, we need not enquire.
• Sufficient is it for vs, that S. Iohn vnder∣stood it, and makes vs also to vnderstand it.
• If we wait on God, hee shall reueale him∣selfe vnto vs.
• How this voice is compared to the sound of a Trumpet.
• Manuscript.
• The voice of God is loud, & liuely.
• Rom. 1.
• Heb. 4. 12.
• Ioh. 5. 25.
• Miserable are they that can∣not heare it, nor yet bee wakened by it.
• A sweet voice, by which God speakes to his owne.
• Hee must go out of him∣selfe, that would go vp vnto God.
• Psal. 45. 10.
• Exod. 20.
• A warning to Preachers.
• The voice of God calleth men to come vp.
• Iude 6. 2. Pet. 2.
• Satans voice calleth them downe-ward.
• Math. 8. 22.
• Iob 1.
• God his voice to apostate man is, Come to mee.
• Math. 11. 28.
• Psal. 65. 4.
• This voice ne∣uer sounded to apostate An∣gels.
• God his pre∣dictions are arguments of his Proui∣dence.
• Esay 41. 23.
• Satan his pre∣dictiōs, where∣from come they.
• 2. Chro. 18. 19.
• Or Sargeant.
• Miserable are they who con∣sult with Sa∣tan about things to come.
• 1. Sam. 28. 19.
• Magdeburg. c•…•….
• Rom. 11.
• Psal. 40. 7.
• Things fore∣told in this Prophecie, must be done.
• An answer to prophane mockers, who thinke they shall not bee done.
• Zach. 6. 1.
• This Prophe∣cie is not to be vnderstood of things past, vnder the old Testament.
• Manuscript.