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.

Mr. Petrie's answer.

It is manifest, that he reigneth in us, seeing the faithfull can say with the Apostle, Gal. 2.20 The life which I now live, I live by faith in

the Sonne of God, and Christ lives in mee: but that the glory of an earthly Kingdome is the reward of his contempt and torment, we cannot thinke, seeing such a glory is not answerable to his sufferings, who being equall with God, made himselfe of no reputation, and humbled himselfe even to the death of the Crosse. Wherefore his reward is not deferred so long, but now God hath exalted him highly, and given him a came, which is above every name, Phil. 2. And he for the joy that was set before him endured the Crosse, and is set downe at the right hand of the Throne of God, Heb. 12.2. which is a greater honour then of an earthly threne.

Reply.

It is manifest, that the faithfull before Christs incarnation, could say also as well as we, The life which we now live, we live by faith in the Sonne of God, and Christ lives in us. For they were hap∣tized unto Moses in the cloud, and in the sea: and did eate the same spirituall meate, and drinke the same spirituall drinke which we doe, (for they dranke of the spirituall rocke that followed them, and that rocke was Christ) 1 Cor. chap. 10. ver. 2, 3, 4. So that if you will call the adoption, sanctification, regeneration, and justifi∣cation of the Saints [a reigning,] which the Apostle calls [a li∣ving,] Christ doth no otherwise reigne over them now, then he did from the beginning of the world, to wit, by his holy Spirit. But the reigne in question, is his reigning visibly in his humane nature on earth: In which sense it is, (and for which end it was) that he was borne a King, an heire apparant to the Throne of David. For unlesse he had been to reigne as man on earth, and as the Sonne of David over Israel, there had been no more neces∣sity of his being borne of that Tribe and Family of the Jewes, which had sole interest, and title to the Crowne of Israel; to qualifie him for the execution of his Kingly office in your spi∣rituall sense (for the distributing of his Spirit unto, and the gui∣ding of the Church therewith) then there was of his being born of the Tribe of Levi, to fit him for the execution of his Priestly office, in laying down his life for our sins, and making intercessi∣on for us now unto the Father. And as Herods destroying of the Infants of purpose to destroy our Saviour, that he might there∣by translate the Kingdome of Israel from the House of David, and fasten it to himselfe and his Posterity: had been a plot as

sottish, as it was savage, if he had not understood that the Scep∣ter did belong onely to our Saviour; So doubtlesse if he had not therein truely conceived what King Christ should be, the Evan∣ge••ists would as well have recorded, that Herods misapprehension of our Saviours Kingdome, was the occasion of his bloudy fact, as he hath related his malicious attempt, to defeate our Saviour of his right. And although we doe not say, that this Kingdome of our Saviour on earth, is all the reward of that contempt and torment which he hath endured for us: yet we say, that it is all the reward which he is to have here on earth. And we say also, that this reward is very agreeable, though not equall to his suf∣ferings: that, I say, God hath very righteously appointed, that our Saviour should by the Posterity of the same persons be there worshipped and obeyed, where by their Predecessours he had been so scornefully & despightfully handled: and that at the end of this reigne, he should there judge those persons also, who had formerly adjudged him to death. And the scriptures which you have brought, doe not gainesay this; for that Heb. 12.2. doth shew onely what reward he hath already in beaven; and so doth the 9 ver. of the 2 chap. to the Phil. but the 10. and 11. verses doe rather shew what reverence he shall have in the Day of his reigne on earth, then what he hath already.