A divine looking-glass, or, The third and last testament of Our Lord Jesus Christ whose personal residence is seated on his throne of eternal glory in another world : being the commission of the spirit, agreeing with, and explaining of the two former commissions of the law and Gospel, differing only in point of worship : set forth for the tryal of all sorts of supposed spiritual lights in the world, until the ever-lasting true Jesus, the onely high and mighty God, pesonally appear in the air with his saints and angels / by John Reeve and Lodowick Muggleton ...

CHAP. XL.

1 Concerning Christs coming to judgement. 2 The vanity of that opinion that be∣lieves Christs personal raign upon this earth.

BEcause of many opinions of Christ, and the ignorance of most men, concerning his coming to judge both the quick and dead, therefore in the next place I shall treat of this most needful point from certain sayings of himself in the 17. Chapter of Matth. the words are these; for as the lightning that lightneth out of the one part under heaven, shineth unto the other part under heaven, so shall the Son of Man be in his day, and as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the days of the Son of Man, they eat, they drink, they married wives, and gave in marriage, unto the day that Noah went into the Ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all; likewise also it was in the days of Lot, they eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built, but in the day that Lot went out of Sodom it raigned fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all; after these ensamples shall it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed.

2 My beloved spiritual brethren, you know there is a twofold appearing of Christ unto the sons of men, the one spiritual, and seen onely by the invisible eye in the soul, and the other is personal, and seen onely by the visible eye of the body.

3 Also you know Christ being the divine rock of all ages, he hath spiritually manifested himself unto his blessed Abels from the be∣ginning of the world, till now; but as for his visible appearing in a body of flesh, whereby men might be able to behold the face of their God in the similitude of a man and live, you know that he did but once so appear onely for a few years.

4 Again, in the 25. Chapter of Matthew it is written thus, And when the Son of Man cometh in his glory, and all the holy Angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory, and before him shall be gathered all nations, and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd separateth the sheep from the goats.

5 It is also written in the Thessalonians thus, when the Lord Jesus shall shew himself from heaven with his mighty Angels in flaming fire, rendring vengeance unto them that know not God, and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

6 If you that are spiritually sober, do but compare these three places of Scriptures together, then you may clearly see, what Christ meant by that day of his personal appearing;

7 After his suffering and glorification he shall appear like light∣ning from one part under heaven to the other, he shall appear in his glory with all his holy Angels;

8 Behold, ye blessed of the most high God, what kinde of ap∣pearing of Christ in his glory like lightning, or a flame of fire, is this? is it not the visible appearing of his fiery glorious person, with the glittering persons of his mighty Angels under the whole heavens, or in the air?

9 If it be not so, how shall all nations be gathered together be∣fore him, that he may make an eternal separation between them, according as he hath spoken?

10 It hath been long imagined by men of rare parts, in the ac∣count of many people, that before the general judgement day, Christ would come again personally to raign a thousand years on this earth with his Saints;

11 And their opinion is grounded partly upon the 20. Chapter of the Revelation, which was long since fulfilled, as I shall demonstrate in due season.

12 But first I shall prove by Scripture Record, the failing off this opinion in the 3. Chap. of the Acts it is thus written, when the time of refreshing shall come from the Lord, and he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you, whom the heaven must contain un∣til the time that all things be fulfilled, which the Prophets have fore∣told since the beginning of the world; what think you then of Christs personal raign on this earth a thousand years with his Saints? is it not point blank against the truth of this plain testimony of Holy Writ?

13 In the 14. Chapter by Saint John you may finde it thus writ∣ten; Let not your heart be troubled, ye believe in God, believe also in me: in my fathers house are many dwelling-places, if it were not so, I would have told you, I go to prepare a place for you, and if I go to pre∣pare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto my self, that where I am, there may ye be also.

14 In this place of Scripture you see that Christ did not speak in the least to his Apostles of his coming again personally to raign upon this earth a thousand years:

15 But of the contrary, he told his heavy-hearted Disciples that he was going to prepare a place for them, or he was going into the highest heavens, or prepared place of eternal glory, appointed for them with himself, after they had suffered with him on earth, and he would come again in his glory with his holy Angels, and receive them into his fathers house, or heavenly kingdom, where he now is, that they might with his mighty Angels Moses and Elias, everlast∣ingly behold his bright burning glory, even face to face.

16 What is this personal raign of Christ with his Saints a thousand years, that supposed wise men have so much talked of?

17 Is it any thing else but a temporal heaven at the best, if spi∣ritually examined?

18 Moreover, is it not a very unlikely matter that the infinite divinite Majesty should come again personally to remain upon this bloody earth a thousand years with his Saints, having suffered here already, and ascended upon the throne, or right hand of transcen∣dent glories, yea far above all heavens, as it is written, that he might fill all things.

19 Furthermore, do not all personal raign-mongers confess, that Christ was God and man in one person, and that that most blessed body of his is now glorified in the highest heavens?

20 Do you not also pretend to believe, that the divine person of this God-man glorified, is infinite immortal, unchangeable, and eternal?

21 Moreover, if there be any such divine light, or heavenly faith in your persons, I would fain know whether you think it possibly that this mortal world, or men, can bear the presence of a divine Majesty, whose body is become a consuming fire of immortal ever∣lasting burnings, without its being immediately consumed to ashes, or transmuted into his own glorious likeness?

22 O that all the elect did but know how suddenly this personal God will appear in his glory to consume this whole world!

23 Again, if you look in the 11. Chapter of the Hebrews, you may finde it thus written; All these died in faith, and received not the promises, but saw them afar off and believed them, and received them thankfully, and confessed that they were strangers and pelgrims on the earth, for they that saw such things, declare plainly that they seek a country; and if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they had leisure to have returned, but now they desire a

better, that is an heavenly, wherefore God is not ashamed of them to be called their God, for he hath prepared for them a city: here you may see that Abraham himself was so far from expecting a personal raign of Christ on this earth, though he believed that his seed should en∣joy the promises of God, both temporal and spiritual, in their ap∣pointed seasons;

24 Therefore he onely minded a personal ascending into the heavenly City of eternal glory, prepared for him and his elect seed, at the resurrection of the just;

25 So that Abraham looked upon the promises of God, that they were to enjoy in this world onely, as types or shadows of that hea∣venly City or Kingdom, with its ravishing excellencies, as aforesaid.

26 Moreover, if that glorious God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, had intended a personal raign on this earth a thousand years with his Saints, after his glorification in the highest heavens, can any sober man be so weak as to think he would have hid it from Abraham, whom he was pleased to call the father of the faithful, and friend of God? You know what is written, shall I hide this thing from A∣braham.

27 Furthermore, if the Lord in life, or death, had revealed any such thing unto Abraham, the thing being of so great concernment, can you possibly think that he would have hid it from his generation to come? you may be sure if there had been any such thing to be ac∣complished, he would have declared it to after ages.

28 Seeing neither Abraham, nor any of the Patriarks, or Pro∣phets, knew of Christs personal raign on this earth with his Saints, but spake as to the contrary altogether, what sufficient ground hath any man in this world to expect such a thing?

29 But how can it be otherwise, when men takes upon them to interpret the mysteries of the Scriptures, without an immediate Commission from the eternal spirit.

30 Again, the Scripture saith, That the day of Christs appearing shall be like unto that of Noah and Lot, now you know in the day that Noah entred into the Ark, the flood came, and by degrees destroyed them all.

31 Also in that day Lot departed out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.

32 If the whole world was drowned with water immediately af∣ter Noah entred into the Ark; and Sodom and Gomorrah was con∣sumed

by fire suddenly after Lot departed out of the City, and the day of Christs coming shall be in like maner, without controversie in stead of his personal raign on this earth with his Saints, at his next appearing, immediately after all his blessed Noahs and Lots are ascended into the Ark of his immortal glory, this firmamental created heaven and the lights thereof shall be all on fire;

33 And shall descend upon the face of the whole earth, and burn all the fruits and glory thereof unto ashes, but it shall not be so favorable as to consume the bloody minded men therein.

34 If the Lord of Glory had purposed to come personally to raign a thousand years amongst his Saints, before the general day of judgement, is any man so weak as to think he would have hid it from his chosen Apostles, whom he had promised to set upon twelve thrones, to judge the twelve Tribes of Israel, when he appeared a∣gain in his glory?

35 Is there any one place in Holy Writ that expresly speaketh of Christs personal raign in this world?

36 If there be no express record for any such thing, as I am sure there is not, doth not those men that hold forth such an opinion as this, imitate little children, or fools, that re••oyce in Rattles, or Counters, in stead of gold, or precious stones?

37 Thou that art confident of Christs personal raign on this earth, suppose such a thing should come to pass in thy days, and thou shouldst be one of those Saints, what condition dost thou think thy body shall be in?

38 Dost thou think it shall live upon carnal things, or shall it be immortalized and live upon spiritual things onely?

39 Or if thou thinkest thy soul shall be in a divine condition, and thy body shall feed upon natural things, as now it doth, and shall be in perfect health, and free from diseases;

40 I say, if thou hast imagined such an estate as this is, I would fain know of thee what condition thou thinkest that Christ will ap∣pear in?

41 Dost thou think that he will descend from the throne of his Glory upon this earth amongst the sons of men, again to eat and drink of carnal things with them, as formerly?

42 Or dost thou think that he will appear amongst them in a glo∣rious condition, to make them more happy in things that perish, then now they are?

43 If Christ should personally raign with his Saints, what union or communion could they enjoy with him, more then now they do, unless he was in a capacity of eating and drinking with them? or else they were delivered from feeding upon natural things them∣selves, through their transmutation into his own glorious likeness?

44 It is written in the 26. Chapter by St. Matth. I say unto you, that I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day, when I shall drink it new with you in my Fathers kingdom.

45 Here you that are spiritual may see, that Christ was so far from encouraging his Apostles to expect his coming to taste of the fruit of the natural vine, in a personal raign with his Saints, that he layeth it down as a positive rule, that he would drink no more of the natural vine in this earth, until he drank it in a new and spiritual way with them in his Fathers kingdom.

46 Where then is thy imaginary personal raign of Christ on this earth with his Saints a thousand years?