Generation-work, or, A brief and seasonable word offered to the view and consideration of the saints and people of God in this generation, relating to the work of the present age, or generation we live in wherein is shewed, I. What generation-work is, and how it differs from other works, II. That saints in the several generations they have lived in, have had the proper and peculiar works of their generations, III. That it is a thing of very great concernment for a saint to attend to and be industrious in, the work of his generation, IV. Wherein doth the work of the present generation lye, V. How each one in particular may find out that part or parcel of it, that is properly his work in his generation, VI. How generation-work may be so carried on, as that God may be served in the generation / by John Tillinghast ...

THESIS I.

THere is a certain definite and determined time, that God in his Word hath set, how long the Captivity and Sufferings of the Church of the New Testament shall con∣tinue, beyond which they shall not be ex∣tended. That such a determined time should be, is a thing of special use, both for the comfort of Gods Church un∣der suffering, the firengthning of their faith, and the helping them in prayer; and it cannot be thought that God who was so careful to measure out the time of his Churches sufferings under the Old Testament, and that to a yeer, yea a day seventy yeers in Babylon, 430 in Egypt, and in the self-same day the determined time was expired, God brings them out, Exod. 12.41, 51. should be altogether careless (as if his grace in Gospel-times were less) of measuring out, and determining the time of the Captivity and Sufferings of the Church of the New Testament.

THESIS II.

The knowledge of this time, is a thing attainable, or otherwise there could be no advantage arising hence;

Yea the former ends should be fruitless, and of no use; yea otherwise why is there a promise left us of attaining knowledge as to this thing, by running to and fro, Dan. 12.4. if by running to and fro knowledge were not attain∣able? Yea to what end are the mystical Numbers in the time of the end to be unsealed, Dan. 12.9. if notwith∣standing their unsealing no certain conclusion, as to the things they hold forth, were deducible?

THESIS III.

This knowledge, though attainable, is not a discovery in∣tended for al Ages but for the last only, or those Saints which shall live immediately before the expiration of this time. Therefore is the revealing time alwayes particulatly noted by this express Character, The time of the end. Dan. 12.4. But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the Book, even to the time of the end. Vers 9. Go thy way Daniel, for the words are closed up, and sealed till the time of the end. Chap. 8.17. Ʋnderstand, O Son of man, for at the time of the end shall be the Vision; which last words can∣not respect the time of the Vision, which was many Ages since, in the third yeer of Belshazzar, vers. 1. nor the matter of the Vision, as if the same did relate only to things done in the time of the end; for the matter of the Vision is a Prophecie of the three last Monarchies, First, Medes and Persians. Secondly, Grecians. Thirdly, Romans (the Babylonian Monatchy being omitted, because it was in the expiration of that Daniel had the Vision) and there∣fore the matter of it runs through all of them, and may not be limited to the time of the end; but they respect the revelation of the Vision, which Daniel himself hath light into at present, but with this Proviso, that he shut it up, Vers. 26. Shut thou up the Vision; for others must wait for the understanding of these things until the time of the end.

THESIS IV.

The Persons in a capacity, and that when the Book is opened, to attain this knowledge, are such only as make inquiry after it. Therefore the determinative answer con∣cerning the times is given forth to the inquiring Saints, Dan. 8.13, 14. Then I heard one Saint speaking, and another Sain: said unto that certain Saint which spake; How long shall be the Vision concerning the daily Sacri∣fice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the Sanctuary, and the host to be trodden underfoot? And he said unto me, Ʋnto 2300 dayes, then shall the Sanctuary be cleansed And also the promise of increase of this know∣ledge, and that in the time when the Book is to be un∣sealed, is not to all (though persons otherwise qualified with abundance of grace and knowledge) but to such onely as are runners to and fro, Dan. 12.4. But thou, O Da∣niel, shut up the words and seal the Book, even to the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.

THESIS V.

The time it self is held forth in those Mystical Num∣bers that we find in the Prophecie of Daniel, and the Book of the Revelation; which must be, because no deter∣mination of the time can be found in all the Scripture, in case it bee not in those Numbers.

THESIS VI.

That interpretation of these Numbers is doubtless to be sought for, and, when found, followed, that brings them to an Harmony within themselves, for truth is never found but in a Harmony. No Prophecie is of a private inter∣pretation. Out of the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.

THESIS VII.

The best way to attain this Harmony, is to consult with the naked testimony of Scripture, History, and Chronology.

THESIS VIII.

The voyce of Scripture is to be attended in the first place, History and Chronology in the second. The reason is, because the reports of Historians being various and perplexed, oftentimes as to actions themselves, oftentimes as to the time of them, they will but confound the En∣quirer, if in dubitable principles and conclusions from Scrip∣ture be not first laid as a foundation.

THESIS IX.

If it may be supposed (which must, or otherwise no cer∣tain determination of the time is attainable, and so this, and every enquiry is but a running in vain, and labouring in vain) that indubitable principles, which may serve us as a basis for such an undertaking, are left us in the word; and also if it be a thing supposable, that amongst the va∣riety of Historians, any one of them, in recording such Acts, which are to be as Heads to this, or that Mystical Number, hath neither given false reports of the Acts them∣selves, nor missed the time; it is a thing then not im∣possible by vertue of the light first received from the most certain principles of holy Scripture, to pass a definitive Sentence upon the reports of Historians; And to con∣clude this, in this or that particular report, to be in the truth, these in the error.

THESIS X.

If among many, any one, or more Historians be found in the truth, as touching such and such acts, and their time,

then also by the indubitable principles of Scripture, and their reports laid together, a certain determination of the time may be made.

THESIS XI.

The Numbers themselves which point us to the end of the Churches Captivity and sufferings in New Testa∣ment-times, are 2300 dayes, Dan. 8.14. 1290, and 1335 dayes, Chap. 12.11, 12. 1260 dayes, Rev. 11.3, Chap. 12.6. and 42. months, Rev. 11.2. Chap. 13.5. both which last I have before proved, Chap. 1. Sect. 2. to be one and the same.

THESIS XII.

A day put for a yeer, is a Scriptural, and a Prophetical way of speaking, Num. 14.33, 34. And your children shall wander in the Wilderness forty years, after the number of the dayes in which ye searched the Land, even forty dayes, each day for a year, Ezek 4 4 5 6-Thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty dayes; I have appointed thee each day for a year. Thus we are to interpret dayes in the fore-going Numbers, of other∣wise the Numbers will be of no use at all, as to measure out the time of the Captivity, and sufferings of Gods people under the New Testament; for how little time, should we understand these dayes of natural dayes, doth the greatest of these Numbers contain?

THESIS XIII.

As Daniel wrote in Old Testament-times, when the Jews were the only people of God, and John in New Testament times, when the Jews were a people rejected, and the Gentiles Gods chosen people; so are we to look upon the thing principally pointed at in the fore-going Numbers of Daniel, to be the time of the Jews delivery

from their long Captivity; the thing chiefly intended in Johns to be the utmost period of the Gentile Churches Bondage, and Captivity under Antichrist.

THESIS XIV.

Now because the Gentile-Churches deliverance from Antichristian Bondage, which began with the beginning of the Vials, shall be compleat at the end of the 1260 days, or the two and forty Months, i.e. Antichrist, this time ex∣pired, shall never so far prevail against them more, as to bring them into bondage to him again; therefore the utmost period of the Churches sufferings, that we have in John, is the end of the 1260 days, the forty two months, nofarther number beyond this being assigned. But now because the de∣livery of the Jews is to be begun at the time of their com∣ing up to their Land, and not compleated till forty five years after, therefore have we in Daniel, Chap. 12. two numbers laid down, the one 1290 days, the other 1335. which carry us forty five years farther than the other.

THESIS XV.

All the aforesaid Prophetical and Apocalyptical numbers may be divided into two Ranks; those of the first Rank point us to the time of the Jews first stirring, the rise of the Christian Witnesses, the end of the Beasts reign, and treading under foot the Holy City. Those of the se∣cond, to the time of Christs second coming, the final destruction of the Beast, the full deliverance of the Jews.

Here it is a thing most necessary, that we mind, and diligently observe this distinction; for the not distinguish∣ing betwixt the ending time of Antichrists reign and Ty∣ranny, and his final destruction, which is in the destructi∣on of the Fourth Monarchy; the beginning time of the Jews delivery, and their compleat deliverance; the standing up of Christ in his Witnesses, i.e. by a more glo∣rious

manifestation of his power and presence, with, and among his people, and his standing up in person, is a fun∣damental mistake in an enquiry of this nature; yea, confounds and darkens the whole truth (in a manner) of Daniel and the Revelations; and indeed is the very reason why some contend for a Spiritual appearance of Christ onely, viz. an appearance with his in a way of power, and others contrariwise for a Personal; whereas in both there is a glorious truth, and a set and an appointed time for both; onely the first falls so many years sooner, and so is nearer to us; the second so many later, and so is farther off; and possibly this may be one reason, why good people at this day harp so much upon the first, be∣cause it is nearest to them, and so most upon their hearts. Now by observing this distinction, and carrying it with us through the Prophets, either, and the time of either, will be clear.