edness, with which you cause the land to sin; and all ye that dwell in cities, towns, and countries, must humble yourselves before my great and high majesty, whether high or low, young or old, rich or poor, learned or unlearned, for I the Lord am a jealous God."

And the Lord God said unto me, "Take up a lamentation for the Roman empire, and for their kings and princes, from the 32d chapter of Ezekiel, with an appendix, as I shall tell thee :—

"And it came to pass in the twelfth year, on the first day of the twelfth month, came the word of the Lord unto me, saying," ver. 2. "Son of man, take up a lamentation for the destroyer, that hath destroyed my chosen Israel, that I have named after the spirit, in the Roman land of oppression, and say unto him, Thou art like a lion of the nations, and as a whale in the seas; and thou comest forth with thy rivers, which are thy people, and troublest the waters of the people with thy feet, of kings, princes, mighty ones, judges, rulers, captains, counsellors, sheriffs, earls, noblemen, and such like, wherewith thou troublest the water of the people.

"Moreover, I will make many people's hearts afraid, when I cause the nations to see thy plagues, and many countries which thou dost not know; yea, many nations shall be affrighted at thee, and their kings shall be terrified, when I shall brandish my sword against thee, they shall stand alto

=gether amazed, and their hearts shall fail them by reason of thy fall."

And the Lord God showed me a horrible city, in a vision, that was full of cruelty and idolatry, I asked the Lord, what city that was, and what was the name thereof? And the Lord said unto me, "It is the capital city of Rome, and the whole land thereof; that greatest of whores, and the beginning of all abominations that have been committed in Christendom. O, woe unto thee, thou blood-thirsty, murderous city of Rome! I will send forth the sword, famine, and dreadful pestilence, as the messengers of my fierce wrath' upon you, murderers; for you of Rome, you, even you, have shed, and caused to be shed, so much blood of my faithful and true witnesses, that it is beyond all number and measure.

"Therefore, thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I will bring strangers upon thee." ver. 7. "The Turks and Swedes, and all manner of tyrants of the heathen nations, with all the kings in Christendom, and their people, these shall draw their swords against the beauty of wisdom, and they shall defile thy brightness, and they shall bring thee down to the pit; and thou shalt die as those that are slain in the midst of the sea.

"O Rome! O Rome! I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth, in the sight of the whole world. All they that know thee among the people shall. be astonished at thee, that thou art so suddenly

brought down, and canst never rise again, saith the Lord God."

These prophecies, out of the prophet Ezekiel, God commanded me to set down here; for he spake mouth to mouth unto my soul, and commanded me very earnestly to write, as he should tell it me. And now here it stands, as God did command me: whoever now shall despise it, and shall speak and judge evil of it, will bring a heavy judgment upon his own neck. This has God written by me his pen, John Maximilian, as a warning to every one; therefore let no man deceive himself, for God will not be mocked, and whatsoever he does is just and right.

It is seldom in predictions of this kind that they are fulfilled literally; but, if the effect is produced as foretold, we may almost consider the prediction as verified. In this instance, that which was to have been effected by plague, pestilence, and famine, has been brought about in a manner almost miraculous by the sword. Rome, which amongst the various convulsions of the christian world had been held in a sacred neutrality, was overturned, not it is true by Turks and Swedes, but by a nation considered catholic, and at the period of this vision so cruelly bigoted in the cause of that religion, as to butcher thousands of its own subjects under that vain pretext; but who, as if for the purpose of verifying this and other

similar predictions, lost all sense of religion, and became more heathenish than the most barbarous nations. By it, the triple crown of the Pope was hurled from his brow, his power both spiritual and temporal was overthrown, even his person made captive, and Rome, the mistress of the arts, as well as the head seat of religion, stripped of those choice collections of ages which had long been the admiration of the world; and so fallen from her power, as to become the seat only of a small military command. Looking to the relative situation of France and Rome, at the period of the vision, and the wonderful changes that had taken place to accomplish the fulfilment of it, joined to the subjugation of Vienna, and the dismemberment of the Germanic body at the same period, and by the same wonderful means we must look upon it as an astonishing prediction preternaturally verified.

Extracted from Dr. John Gill's Sermon, preached December 27, 1752.

Ps. lxxxvi. ver. 3. '

THE destruction of Antichrist will be by the spirit of Christ's mouth, and the brightness of his coming; that is, by his coming in a spiritual

way; or through the word of his mouth, his gos pel attended by his spirit and power; which will shine out with so much lustre, splendor, light, and glory, as will chase away the darkness of popery, and enlighten the minds of people, to see into all the fopperies, absurdities, and wickedness of that religion.

This work will be greatly effected by the pour ing out the seven vials of God's wrath, or the inflicting the seven last plagues upon the antichristian states, upon the western and eastern antichrist, the Pope and Turk; who must be both removed to make way for the spiritual reign of Christ.

The first five of these vials concern the western antichrist and his dominions; between which and the trumpets there is a great correspondence, though they respect different times and persons. The first vial will be poured out upon the earth, and designs those popish countries which are upon the continent, as France, &c.; and as the first trumpet brought the Goths into Germany, so the first vial will bring great distress upon the popish party, and issue in a reformation from popery. The second vial will be poured out upon the sea, and may intend the maritime powers be longing to the see of Rome, particularly Spain and Portugal; and as the second trumpet brought the Vandals' into these places, so this vial will effect the same, and bring wars and desolations