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.

Reply.

Whether St. James meant Peter, or old Simeon, I left it as doubt∣full; and your maine reason touching the [difference twixt Simon and Simeon,] is of no force to decide the Question. Seeing Peter is (in his 2. Epist. 1. chap. at the 1. ver.) according to divers readings in the originall, call'd both Simon and Simeon; as you may see in the editi'on of the New Testament with Stephanus, Scaliger's and Casaubons notes, printed London 1622. And Casaubon, who was as confident that he Apostle meant Peter, as you are, that he meant old Simeons feared not to say, in his note on the 14. ver. of this chap. of the Acts, that your opinion in this matter, is an ancient error grounded on the diversity of writing this Name. His words are, Simeon hic voca tur, qui alibi Simon dicitur, quae diversitas 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 fecit, ut magno errore existimarint quidam êveteribus non

Petrum hic intelligi, sed Simeonem—verum errasse eos qui ita senserunt, notius est, quàm ut longà refutatione opus habeat. And doubtlesse if the Apostle had meant old Simeon, he would not have said, Sime∣on hath declared how God at first did visit the Gentiles. But that God would first visit the Gentiles. For Simeon shewed onely, that they should be cal'd, and not that they were cal'd, and therefore the Apostle's words [how God at first did visit the Gentiles] having re∣lation onely to the actuall performance of it by Peter, who had told in what manner God had by him begun to visit them, must needs be understood of Peter, and not of Simeon, who onely pro∣phecied, that it shou'd be done. And yet if it had been meant of old Simeon, it would have made the more with me: seeing the word [first] alone compared with the order of Simeons words, [a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel] had plain∣ly shewed, that a substituted part of the Gentiles should be cal'd, before the Nationall conversion of the Jewes. From this you pro∣ceed to shew, that Simeon spake by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, which no Christian can doubt of: and then repeating the prophecy, you say. [Wee may see that he declares there the fulfilling (at that time) of the prophecy, Isa. 49. ver. 6. and chap. 52. ver. 9. and chap. 60. ver. 1.3.19. and chap. 62. ver. 1, 2.11.] How? at that time? certainly amongst prophecies touching the same thing, one may be more plainly delivered then another, and so may give some light for the true understanding of the other. But to say that one prophecy doth shew the fulfilling of another, is a ridiculous un∣truth: seeing it is not the prophecying of the same thing, but the actuall performance of it, that shews the fulfilling thereof. And therefore Simeon who prophecied of the calling of the Gentiles, and restoring of the Jews, as well as Isaiah, could not herein declare the fulfilling (at that time) of Isaiah's prophecies; unlesse you can prove, that to foretel what should be done, is to declare what was done. And thus Simeon's words which you have alledged to prove that Isaiah's prophecies were then fulfilled, doe indeed most evident∣ly shew, that they were not fulfilled. And the reasons which you bring to confirme your doctrine, are as meane, as the doctrine is maimed. For [the faithfull (say you) are bidden to rejoyce at the com∣ming of Christ; and so did Simeon when he saw him.] No doubt but the faithfull, that saw Christ when he was come, did rejoyce that

he was come, and so did the faithfull too before Christ's comming, and before Isa. prophecied, rejoyce that he should come: for Abra∣ham, saith our Saviour, saw my day and rejoyced. Yea this was a thing ever performed by the Saints from the beginning of the world. But yet it is not exprest in the text, that Simeon rejoyced; neither doth the Prophet in any of these texts which you have cited bid the faith∣full rejoyce at the comming of Christ, but chap. 52. at the 9. ver. he calis to the waste places of Jerusalem to breake forth into joy—for the Lord, saith he, hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem: Where the Prophet useth the like forme of speech, as Zacharias doth in his prophecy, Luke. 1. ver. 68. &c. And therefore Zacharias spea∣king in the preter perfect tense. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel. for he hath visited and redeemed his people, doth no more prove that Israel was then redeemed (for which purpose you have before alledged it page. 8.) then this prophecy of Isaiah doth, that it was redeemed when Isaiah prophecied. And in confessing, that this prophecy of Isaiah (which agrees so well both in matter and forme with the first words of Zacharias) was not fulfilled before Christ's first comming, you doe as good as confesse, that it is not to be fulfilled til his next comming. For seeing the Prophet cals to the waste places of Ierusa∣salem to rejoyce, and speakes of God's redeeming Jerusalem, as well as of comforting his people; it is manifest, that this prophecy can∣not be fulfilled, til the city it selfe be againe restored, as is implyed in our Saviour's prophecy, Luk. 1. ver. 24. and exprest, Jer. 31. ver. 38. and Isa. chap. 60. and 62. and in many other places. This is your first parallell, for which you had no ground in the text. The rest are these. [Christ is called the salvation of the Lord; and Simeon saith, My eyes have seene thy salvation. The Messiah is called a light un∣to the Gentiles: and Simeon saith, a light to lighten the Gentiles; Christ is called the glory of Sion, and Jerusalem; and Simeon saith, the glory of thy people Iseael.] And will it follow from this, that Isaiah's prophe∣cies were at that time fulfilled? surely no more then it will, that they were fulfilled when Isaiah spake the same words, but this will follow, that these texts of Isaiah and Simeon's prophecy are one in their contents; and that thefore Simeon's words doe no more shew, that Isaiah's prophecies were fulfilled at Christ's first comming, then Isaiah's doe, that Simeon's prophecy was then fulfilled. Which doe Indeed shew that Christ is to be [the glory of his people Israel] at

his next appealing, and not before. For seeing to be the glory of his people, implies a greater happines to belong to the Iews of whom the Redeemer came; then to the Gentiles, to whom he is said to be a light; is it likely that this should be fulfilled, when now and then a Jew should seeke God amongst the Gentiles, or rather when the Gentiles in generall should seeke God amidst the whole Nation of the Jewes? or rather I say when (as Isaiah speakes) the Tribes of Iacob shall be raysed up, and the preserved of Israel restored; when they shall come from the North, and from the West, and from the land of Sinim. When the waste and desolate places, and the land of their destruction shall be even now too narrow by reason of the inhabitants, and they that swallowed them up shall be far away. When the Lord shall feed them that oppresse them with their owne flesh, and they shall be drunken with their owne blood, as with sweet wine, and all flesh shall know, that the Lord is their Saviour, and their Redeemer, the mighty one of Jacob. When the glory of the Lord is risen upon Sion, and the Gentiles shall come to their light, and Kings to the brightnes of her rising. When the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto her; and the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto her. When the multitude of Camels shall cover her, the Dro∣medaries of Midian and Ephah, and all they from Sheba shall come, and shall bring gold and incense, and shew forth the praise of the Lord. When all the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto her, and the Rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto her, when they shall come up with acxcep∣tance on God's altar, and God shall glorify the house of his glory. When the glory of Lebanon shall come unto her, the firre tree, the pine tree, and the boxe tree together, to beautify the place of God's Sanctuary; and when God shall make the place of his feet glorious. When the Nati••n and King∣dom that will not serve Sion shall perish, yea shall be utterly wasted. When violence shall no more be heard in her land, wasting nor distruction with∣in her borders, but she shall call her walls salvation, and her gates praise. When the Gentiles shall see her righteousnes, and all Kings her glory, when she shall be called Heph-Zibah' and her land Beulah. In a word, when the Jewes shall be cal'd, The holy people, The redeemed of the Lord: and Sion shall be called, Sought out, a City not forsaken. When the time comes wherein all this, and much more (which is revealed in the chapters of Isaiah cited by you) shall come to pass•••• them and not til then shall our Saviour declare himselfe, to be the glory of his people Israel, as Simeon hath foretold. And so by the testimony of these

prophecies, that part of Simeon's prophecy, which concernes the glory of the Jewes, is to be referred wholly to our Saviour's second comming; when as well [the residue of men] the Gentiles, that are yet uncal'd, as the Gentiles [on whom God's Name is already cal'd] shall all goe up to worship the Lord at Ierusalem: shall all seeke salvation amongst the Iewes, and not the Iewes amongst the Gentiles: And therefore when the Iewes and Gentiles shall be so united, as these and many other prophecies doe foreshew; there is to be no disagree∣ment at all betwixt the Iewes, or betwixt them and any other nation in the practise of religious duties. Which thing too this marginall note doth so clearely prove out of the prophecy of Amos alledged by S••. Iames, that you could make no better reply to it, then to call it a long tailed note, and a frivolous discourse. And whereas, you say [that there was an unanimous consent in the true worship of God, be∣twixt the Jewes and other Nations, when they did conveen in the gene∣rall Synode Act. 15.] Surely there was not one whole City, and much lesse was there any one Nation of the Gentiles, at that time converted. And if a few Turks should become Christians, you might as well infer from this, that there were an unanimous consent in the worship of God betwixt Christians and the Turkish Nations: as you can conclude from that meeting or from all that were then converted, that the Jewes and (any, much lesse all) other Nations were united in the true worship of God. And indeed the uniting of the Jewes and Gentiles into one Church, so often and so plainly foretold by the Prophers, and confirmed by our Saviour Ioh. 10. ver. 16. is not of some Jewes and Gentiles onely, as it was in the first dayes of the Gospel: nor of some Nations of the Gentiles and a few Jewes, as it hath been since the conversion of the substituted Nations of the Gentiles; nor of all the Jewes and some Gentiles, as it was un∣der the Law; nor of all the Jewes, and a part of the Gentile Na∣tions: but of all the Tribes of the Jewes, and all the Nations of the Gentiles.