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.

As it is very untrue that you have had nothing from us of the felicity of the Nations in the day of the Jewes deliverance, for wee have brought you many unaccomplished prophecies out of Gods word to confirme it; so it is very true, that the reader hath had no∣thing from you of this felicity, seeing you have wholly conceal'd from him those prophecies in which it is reveal'd. And these en∣suing prophecies doe speake of the restauration of the creatures both sensible and insensible at that time, for which purpose they were alledged, and not to shew the felicity of the Nations; which yet may well be gathered from the large mercy which God keepes in store even for the dumbe and insensible creatures in that Day; in that day, I say, so frequently foretold by God, and not falsely imagined by us. But to prove that these prophecies doe not con∣cerne the restoring of the sensible creatures to their primitive inno∣cency at the redemption of the Iewes, you bring foure raw and trifling reasons. For reciting the 10. verse, In that day there shall be a roote of Iesse, which shall stand for an ensigne of the people, to him shall the Gentiles seeke. You bid us, [Marke first, that be saith in that day, so be conjoynes the preceding and following things to the same time.] And wee say that the restoring of these creatures to their originall per∣fection; the comming in of the fulnesse of the Gentiles; and the redemption of the Iewes are all to be performed in that day. [Second∣ly (you say) that he speakes expressely of the calling of the Gentiles, as it is cited Ront. 15.12.] And wee say, that as some Nations of the Gentiles were for long agoe cal'd to the knowledge and obedience of the Gospel; so at our Saviour's next appearing, all other Nations of the Gentiles shall be cal'd unto it. [Thirdly, you say, that in the 1. ver. he speakes of the first comming of Christ, A rod shall come forth out of the stemme of Iesse, and a branch shall grow out of his rootes.] And this wee say too, and yet wee say with all, that as the foure verses immediately following may as well, if not rather, be understood

of his actions at his second comming, then at his first: so all that follows in the 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. 12, 13. ver. &c. is to be fulfilled onely at his second comming, which the first part of the 10. ver. speakes of. And you may not thinke it strange, that both the first and second comming of our Saviour are revealed in the same chap. when∣as wee finde them elswhere revealed within the compasse of two or three verses, as Isa. 9.6, 7. and chap. 52.13, 14, 15. and in other pro∣phecies. Yea you doe seeme to me to acknowledge it, in that you forsake the 10. verse (out of which you gather your two former observations, and) in which the roote of Jesse is expressely menti∣oned, and fall backe to the first verse, as the onely place in this chap. that shewes the first comming of our Saviour. And [fourthly, you say, that in the words following that testimony, he speakes of the calling of the Jewes and Gentiles together, as was exponed before.] And wee have before shewed this exposition to be notoriously false: and that from the 11. ver. to the end of the chap. nought but the wonderfull redemption of the Jewes is foretold. As then you have not yet dis∣proved the proper senfe of these prophecies; so doubtlesse you can∣not fit them with an allegoricall paraphrase. For first, as here are many severall kinds of beasts mention'd, so you must finde out as many severall degrees, or dispositions of men to expound them by And secondly, seeing in an allegoricall sense these prophecies are apply'd to the conversion of men, you must tel us, why after their conversion some are cal'd, Wolves, Leopards, Lyons, Beares, and Cocka∣trices: and others, Lambs, Kids, calves and oxen. I say after their conversion, for these names they are distinguished by, when they are said, to lie downe together, and to feed together, and to doe no hurt. And thirdly, you must give us the meaning of these phrases. The sucking childe shall play on the hole of the aspe, and the weaned child s••••l put his hand on the cockatrice den. The Lyon shall eate straw like the 〈◊〉〈◊〉 And dust shall be the Serpents meate. And fourthly, seeing here is mention, not onely of irrationall creatures, but of rationall also of mankind, as well as of beastes, you must tel us first what Convert are alluded unto under the names of these severall sorts of beastes, and what Converts are meant by the little child, the sucking ch•••••• and the weaned child: and secondly, why the names of these bea•••••• are not to be taken properly for the beastes themselves, wh•••••• the things here rehearst doe so well agree with them, and they are

plainely distinguished from mankind too. And unlesse you can give us reasonable satisfaction in all this, you doe but vainely say, [that these words may be better exponed allegorically, then properly.] Yea the proper sense of these Prophecies is further confirmed by the food which God created for every beast of the earth, and every fowle of the aire, and every thing that creepeth on the earth to live by, to wit, the green herb, Gen. 1. ver. 30. and by restraint of the wilde beasts and fowles, both from their ravenous disposition and feeding, the whole time of their being in the Arke: for seeing Noah was to pro∣vide foode for them as well as for himselfe and his Family, Gen. 6. ver. 21. it must needs be granted, that as the Wolfe, the Lamb, and the Leopard; the cow, the Lyon and the Beare &c. did then lie downe together, so they did feed together too: and that the Lyon did eate straw, (or hay) like the Oxe: this, I say, must needs be granted, unlesse we can imagine that Noah did take in flesh into the Arke for the ravenous creatures to live by at that time.