ift. In ver. 17. If children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Chrift; if fo be that we fuffer with him that we may be alfo glorified together with him. Which plainly fpe ks thus much, That we may be Sons of God, and co-heirs with Christ though we be fufferers with Christ; that is, for CHRIST, for any truth of CHRIST, either for his kingdom, as he is King, or for pure worship and difcipline, as he is our prophet; or for juftification by faith alone in his blood, as he is our Priest. And becaufe fous and fufferers with CHRIST, therefore as fure as CHRIST the Son of Gon fuffering, entered into glory, fo fure fhall all the fons and children of God, suffering with CHRIST, that is, for CHRIST, be glorified together with him, at the commencement of the refurrection, as our text intends. The condition of the members naturally fobo▼ the condition of the head in woe and weal. A great comfort to all true believers. For, All that will live gody in Christ Fefus, shall suffer perfecution, 2 Tim. iii. 12. viz. All that have learned CHRIST, have heard of him, and been taught by him, as the truth is in JESUS, Eph. iv. 20, 21. fall fo iuffer, more or lefs. If but mocked or fcoffed for religion's fake, as Ifaac was by Ishmael, Gen. xxi. 9. 'tis a perfecution, Gal iv. 29. Among the perfecutions of CHRIST himself, this is numbered as one, that they mocked him, Matt. xxvii. 29. And among the fore perfecutions mentioned of the Saints, Heb. xi. 36. it is faid, And others had trials of cruel mockings. Yea our SAVIOUR, Matt v. 11. reckons up among perfecu tions, wicked men's revilings, and fpeaking all manner of evil against believers, falfly, for his fake.

Now the confiderations of our comfort in this first particular, are, ift. Sufferers for CHRIST do fare here no worfe than our dear LORD JESUS did before in this world, yea far eafier. 2d. Still whilft we fuffer for him, we fuffer with him; and he with us. Excellent company! 3d. As the catastrophe of CHRIST's fuffering was entrance into glory, fo it shall be of ours, as fure as he hath gone before to take polfeffion, and make preparation for us, John xvi. 7. 4th. At the time of our meeting CHRIST in glory at the resurrection, there will be an unfpeakably joyful interview; CHRIST wel coming us, Come ye bleffed of my Father; and we fhall congra tulate him with Hallelujahs, faying, as Rev. xi. 15. The kingdoms of the earth are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Chrift.

The 2d. particular is in ver. 18. where, left flesh and blood fhould fhrink at the mention of fufferings, the Apoftle adds,

the fufferings of this life are not worthy to be compared with the glory that fhall be revealed in us. One would think at first fight, that the Apostle fpake very little comfort in these words; for who can doubt but the leaft glory is far better than all fuferings. But the Apoftle fpeaks great comfort, being rightly un-; derstood, viz. ft. That giory is fo tranfcendent, that the greatest forrow in fuffering is not fo great as the leaft joy in glory. 2d. That the reward of glory is fo incoinparable, that the greatest fufferings cannot deferve the leaft of it. They may fignify and manifeft we fhall be glorified, but cannot merit it; which appears in thefe three confiderations, in the Apoftle's words. 1. In regard of the depth. Our fufferings are on the outfide, on the outward man, but glory fhall not only environ the whole man, but it fhall be revealed in us. As our angelical fouls are more like GoD, fo capable of more communications of God. They can more apprehend that which is infinite; and intellectual joy is far beyond fenfitive or corporal. 2d. In regard of width. We are here vilified before a few; but then our glory fhall be revealed before all the Senate of Saints, the great affizes of the whole world. 3d. In refpect of the length. Our fufferings are but short, if for the whole-life time. But glory, effentially confidered, as 'tis the best eftate that can be, viz. the highest enjoyment of GOD's openeft and nearcft prefence, muft needs be like Gop, viz. eternal, as he is eternal. When the neceffary caufe is eternal, the neceffitated effect must needs be eternal. And therefore according to this, the Apoftle heightens the prelation of glory above fufferings, 2 Cor. iv. 17 Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.

The 3d. is in v. 26, 27. That believers have the help of the Spirit in prayer, with groanings that cannot be uttered; and God will accept the mind of his own jpirit. The Spirit is the earnest of glory, as we heard before largely. And prayer is a Laying bold on God, Gen. xxxii. 26. Ifa. Ixiv. 7. ftrengthened with advantageous promifes, as that, Luke xviii. 7. Prayer when preffing with groans, is a prefage, a prophefy that God hears, Pfalm x. 17. And the Spirit and prayer put together, viz. the Spirit acting our fouls in prayer, is God himself speaking in us, and must know and accept our mind, as he knows, and is pleafed with his own mind. Therefore undervalue not yours, and the prayers of God's people. The more prayer, in quantity and quality, the more fign of near deliverance. Our

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wrongs by our enemies, are carried up to GoD in our prayers; our prayers indited by GoD's fpirit, are carried up to God in the blood and intercefion of Christ, as his own fenfe, and meaning, and if either of these move GoD effectually to relieve us, how much more all conjoined for the fame great falvation and glorification.

Friendly. What may I apprehend by thofe myftical numbers, mentioned in Daniel and the Revelations?

Truth. I answer, GOD having given the Scriptures to his church, for her use and benefit here on earth; fo the times and numbers have, are, and will be of use to her: Therefore the angel, Daniel x. 21. tells him that he would fhew him what was noted in the Scriptures of truth. And although this part of the word hath been moft hard to be understood, yet the more particular knowledge of them as truly opened, must be of fpecial ufe and help to our faith, both to prepare for fuffering, and expect deliverance. With what diligence then fhould we with unbiaffed minds make our applications to him that is the revealer of fecrets? An effay towards which I fhall attempt in the following order, viz.

First, Ipremife, There is as fweet a harmony in this part of the word as in any other.

Secondly, That this harmony, and the right understanding of the times fet, is to be found out in the Scriptures themselves.

The firft number I fhall begin with, is that great number of 2500 days, (a day for a year, as is ufual in Scripture prophecy) Dan vii. 14. Which I conceive includes all the lef fer in Daniel and the Revelations, all of them being but parts of this; GoD in his wifdom, having fo divided this number, according to the several circumftances of providence the church was to come under,

I conceive this number of 2300 was headed, or doth take its beginning from the year GOD tranflated the Rabylonian Monarchy to the Medes and Perfians, which was the third and laft of Belshazzar's reign, who was alfo the laft of the Babylonian Kings.

1. Because I find no time fet in the Scripture to begin before they are given forth, though feveral a great while after.

2. The queftion, Daniel viii. 13. is, How long is the vifion to give both the fanctuary and the hoft to be trodden under foot? and the answer is, to 2300 days: So that time relates to the fuffering of the church then to come.

3. Daniel, chap. viii. 1. dates it in the third of Belsbazzar, in the year he faw the vifion; though when he faw it he was

in Shushan, a chief city in the province of Elam, which is in Perfia. Daniel was in Babylon, called to expound the handwriting, when the city was taken, chap. v. 13, 37. But when Darius the Median had taken Babylon, and had fo enlarged his dominions by the Kingdom of Babylon, he, for the better government of the whole (Dan. vi. 1, 2.) fet over the affairs of the kingdom 120 princes, and three prefidents over them, of whom he made Daniel chief; fo that there is great reason why he should be in the royal city Shufan. But this falling out in the third of Belshazzar's reign, that he loft his kingdom, Daniel dates the vifion that year though he was in Perfia when he law it. GOD (chap. vii. and in the first of Belshazzar's reign) fhewed in vifion unto Daniel, under the representation of four beafts, the four Monarchies which fhould rule in thofe parts of the world where his church then was, and was to be in after-times, during all her fuffering ftate, till Chrift's Kingdom on earth was to come, Dan. vii. 27, 28. GOD having before thewed by Jeremiah, chap. xxv. 11. the fufferings of his church under the first of there tor feventy years; the ending of that monarchy, and the feventy years was to be together which was alfo to fall out in the reign of in the self-fame year, Nebuchadnezzar's grandfon, fer. xxvii. 7. which was this Belshazzar. Now in the laft of this Belshazzar, and the first of the Medes and Perfians, GoD fhews to Daniel how long the church was to fuffer under the three that were to fucceed, and 'twas to be for 2300 years longer, before the church's de liverance was to be compleated, and peace and righteoufnels eftablished in the earth, under the blefied and glorious reign and government of Chrift and his Saints on earth, Dan. vii. 27, 28. with Pfal. Ixxii. Well might these heavy tidings cause his countenance to change by the trouble of his mind about this matter, as the repetition, after, Dan. viii. in the defcription of the three that were to reign the 2300 years yet to come, as ver. 19,-26. caufed him to faint, even to sickness, for certain days, ver. 27. I fay, well might these things be fo diftreffing to the mind and fpirit of the Prophet, when he was expecting deliverance to the church of GoD. For in this very year, the first of Darius, Dan. ix. 1, 2. he understood by the books of Jeremiah, the ending of the feventy years captivity in Babylon, together with GOD's providence in ending that first monarchy; Jer. xxvii. 7. they being at a lofs at which of the three goings into captivity to head that number before; for there were three goings into captivity, as 2 Chron. xxxvi. 6. and 10, 17.

The next thing is how to carry on this time of 2300 years, according to Scripture. And firft I fhall premife,

1. That it is not fo material to enquire what of this time is run out, in and under each of thefe monarchies, (there being fo much time allotted by divine appointment for the whole) if we can but find the time carried on in the Scripture, it is fuf ficient for as GOD fet the time then to come of the first mo narchy, in the feventy years of his church's fufferings under it, fo he fets the whole time of the three that were to fucceed in the 2300 years of his church's fufferings then to come.

2. That hiftories do greatly differ, both as to number of Perfons reigning, and the time that each reigned; that they rather confound than help in this matter; and is one reafon why expofitors have fo varied, each following him whom he liked beft, and endeavouring to reconcile the fcriptures to them, when indced we should reconcile them to the Scriptures; and if they fpeak not according to them, not to hear them. And therefore to profecute my defign, I find we may reckon up this account of 2300 years (fo many of them as were paft at CHRIST's death) by Scripture thus.

First, Twenty-one years after the feventy years expired in the ending of the Babylonian Monarchy, which was the time of Darius his reign, after he took Babylon, before Cyrus came to the throne, who was foretold by Ifaiah the Prophet, chap. xliv. 28. to be the perfon that should let go God's captives; who accordingly did, Ezra 1. Now the Scriptures give us this account,

1. That the Medes and Perfians were but one monarchy. 2. That the government was in the feed of the Medes & the time when Babylon was taken, Dan. v. 31. ix. 1.

3. That Darius was fixty-two years old when he took Babylon, Dan. v. 31. fo that he might well reign twenty-one years more, for that is but eighty-three; and many live to that age.

4. That he ordered over the affairs of the kingdom 120 princes, and three prefidents, &c.

5. He, by the motion of these princes, made that law, as firm as the laws of the Medes and Perfians, that Daniel was caft into the lions den by, Dan. vi. 7, 8, 9, 10.

6. Upon his miraculous deliverance he made a decree to own the God of Daniel, chap. vi. 25, 26. and publifhed it through all his dominions. All these things must take up time and Daniel is faid to profper all his reign.