Christs personall reigne on earth, one thousand yeares with his saints the manner, beginning, and continuation of his reigne clearly proved by many plain texts of Scripture, and the chiefe objections against it fully answered, explaining the 20 Revelations and all other Scripture-prophecies that treat of it : containing a full reply to Mr. Alexander Petrie ... who wrote against ... Israels redemption / by Robert Maton.

Preface.

Fourthly, And neverthelesse many Iewes sought righteousnesse by the workes of the Law, and not by faith, Rom. 9.32. and they look'd upon the promises with a bedily eye onely, as if the Messias were to erect an earthly Monarchy at Ierusalem. And looking thorow these spectacles they could not think that Jesus Christ is the Messias, and so they stumbled at his worldly basenesse, and being miscaried in their braines, they could not see his spiritual power and benefits. After their miserable example others acknowledging Jesus Christ to be the promised Messias, and not consider∣ing the difference of the promises, have not attained feely unto the truth of them, and so have erred in mistaking his natures and benefits. Thus Ebion thought him to be a man, and not God, as if all the promises could have been performed by a man endowed with singular grace. Cerinthus likewise held that Christ is onely a man, and because he saw him not sit∣ting on the throne of David, he held that Christ is not risen from the dead as yet, but shall rise and reigne in Jerusalem a thousand yeares, and all his Subjects shal be satisfied with all manner of pleasures, in meate, drinke, marriage, festival dayes, and offer oblations and sacrifices. Euseb. lib. 3. chap. 25.

Answer.

That the Jewes were in an error, which sought righteousnesse by the workes of the Law, we willingly acknowledge, but that they did erre, in taking the promises touching Christs Kingdom and their owne deliverance in a proper sense, wee cannot think. For wee know that the multitude would have made Christ a King, Joh. 6. verse 15. and that Nathaniel, that righteous Jsraelite, said unto our Saviour, Rabbi, thou art the sonne of God, thou art the of King Israel Job. 1 verse 49. and it were too in jurious to our Saviours innocency (who came into the world to beare witnesse unto the truth. Job. 18. verse 37.) to imagine that he would not upon these occasions have shewed them, that they were mistaken in his Kingdom, if he wa•• never to be such a King, as the Jewes thought he should be; and would then have made him, had he not avoided it, by hiding him∣selfe from them. And indeed by the parable Luke. 19. touching

the Noble-mans going into a farre countrey to receive for himself a Kingdom, and returne; which he put forth of purpose, because the Jewes did looke for the immediate appearing of his Kingdom; by that parable, I say, he did as good as tell them, that they did rightly conceive of the nature of his Kingdom, but not of the time when it should appeare: that they truely thought, he should raigne visibly over them on earth, though they were deceived in expecting the accomplishment of it, then at his first coming. For what was the Kingdom of God which the Jewes thought shuld immediately appeare? was it the glory that shall follow the Judgment of the dead? doubtlesse they thought not that the Judgment of the dead, should immediately ensue. Or was it the meanes of salvation that they lookt for? doubtlesse then they knew that they had long in∣joyed this even as their peculiar. The Kingdom of God then, which they so earnestly and so soone expected, must needs be the Kingdom which God had foretold, that Christ should govern per∣sonally on earth, when he should be set by him on the Throne of his Father David. For indeed Christ can bring with him no other Kingdom for himself, (that is, no other Kingdom to govern as man) but this, from that farre countrey, whither he is gone to re∣ceive for himself a Kingdom, and to returne. And therefore twas not their looking [through these spectacles] as you phrase the proper exposition of the prophecies, that made them to deny, that Jesus was the Christ, but rather stumbling at his meane condition onely, they did to him, what Gods hand and Counsell had determined before to be done. And as the Jewes were no example of misbeliefe, in looking for their deliverance from captivity, and for our Saviours person∣all raigne amongst them: so doubtlesse the proper acception of the prophecies concerning our Saviours raigne, did no more occa∣sion Ebion and Cerinthus to mistake his natures, and deny his divi∣nity; then the proper acceptions of the prophecies concerning his incarnation & suffering did: and therefore seeing it is not possible that the true understanding of one part of the Scripture, should thrust us into the misapprehension of another part thereof; we may well thinke, that it was the want of a due consideration of those texts, which doe demonstrate the divine nature of Christ; and not the truth they held touching his raigne, that drew them

into this error. For it is either through the want of a carefull sear∣ching into the Scriptures; or by reason of some sinister and by-re∣spects onely, that all errors have both their rise and continuance in the Church of God.