Col. 2. 8, heed that no man deceive you. 18. Mark faith, chap. 13. 3. And as he ſate upon the Mount of Olives, 2 Thefl. 2. over again the Temple, Peter, and Fames and Fohn, and Andrew 3+ ahed him privately, Tell us when ſhall theſe things be, and what 1 Joh, 4. 1. fhau be the Sign when all theſe things ſhall be. fulfilled ? And Jeſus anſwering them, began to ſay, Take heed let any Man deceive you, Lube ſaith, chap. 21. 79. And they ashed him ſaying, Maſter ! but when ſh.ull theſe things be ? and what Sign will there be, when theſe things ſhall come to paſs ? And he ſaid, Take heed that you be not deceived, Mark names the Diſciples which came to our Saviour privately, Peter, James, Fohm, and Andrew. They ſeem to pro- pound Three Queſtions tro him: 1, What ſhould be the Sign "of the Deſtratio of Jeruſalem? 2. Of his Coming * 3. O the End of the World 2 It is probable they might ſend theſe Four to propound theſe Queſtions ro our Saviour, Three of them be- ing ſuch to whom Chriſt had ſhewed Signal, and ſpecial Favour before. Some doubt whether the Queſtions propounded were three or two; if but two, the Coming of Chri muſt either be the fame with the ff, or with the /a#, Thoſe who underſtand Chriſt's Coming as a diſtin& Period from the other two, think that the Diſciples refer to that Secular Kingdom , which they fancied that the Meſſiah ſhould Exerciſe in the World. They defire to know the Signs of theſe Times, that is, Prognoſtick Signs, which might before-hand inſtru& them that the Time was nigh even at hand. They name two things here which Time hath rold us were to be at more than fixteen hundred years diſtance one from the other; for Hiſtorians tell us that Feruſalem was de- ſtroyed within ſeventy or ſeventy-one years after our Saviour's Birth, within lefs than torty years after this Diſcourſe ; bur ir is probable, that they put them together, as believing that Feru- ſalem ſhould nor be deſtroyed , till che Day when Chriſt ſhould come to Fudge the World, and that the Erd of the World, and of che Jewiſh Srate ſhould come together. And as we all are na- rurally curious ro know things that are to oome, ſo theſe Diſci- ples were in this thing particularly curious, having ſome particular Apprehenſions of the Coming and Kingdom of Chriſt, accord- ing to the miſtaken Notion which a5 gene had of that Kingdom which their expeted Meſſiah ſhould Exerciſe in the World. i Our bleſſed Lord at another time , As 1.7. told them, 7t was mt for them to know the Times and Seaſons, which the Father hath put in his own Power : he therefore giveth them no ſuch certain Signs of theſe rhings as they could from them certainly conclude che particular Time; bur yet gives them ſome Signs from whence they might conclude, when they ſaw them, thar che Time was haſtening;, which Signs, tho' fome have diſtin- guiſhed, appropriating thoſe in the tormer part of the Chapter to rhe Deſtrufticn of Jeiuſalelr, and thoſe in the latter parr ro the Day of Judgment, yer they rather ſeem in our Saviour's Dit- courſe mixed rogerher. And Time which is the beſt Interpreter of Prophefies, muſt expound them te us. The Deſtru&ion of Feruſalem is a thing paſt many hundreds of years ſince, fo as by thoſe Hiſtories which we have partly in Holy Writ, partly in other Authors, it will not be hard to pick out what our Saviour
St M ATTH E W.
which were common Signs both of chat Deftrution rhe End of the World ; and 1t 1s agreed by Divines tt Deſtruttion of Jeruſalem was a Type of the Deſtruction World, and therefore moſt of the Signs are common « Paul was brought ro: Rome in the beginning of the Reizn © Ads 27. Other Hiſtorians tell us he and Peter were put to Doy;!: abour the end of his Reign, , within a year or tw S502 was deſtroyed. Our Saviour pretaceth his Di Signs with an uſual Cation ro his Diſciples. Man deceive you.] 5 For * many ſhall come in my name, ſaying, + I am Chriſt, and ſhall deceive many. "14k Mark hath the ſame, chap. 13.6. Luke, chap.21.8. faith Var 5, ſhall come in my. Name, ſaying, I am Chri#, and the time & ..... ; near ; go ye not after them. Our Saviour ſeemeth to haye this as a Sign common both to the Deſtruction of aud the End of the World; tho' poſſibly before the Deſt Feruſalem, while the Fews were in Ex a Temporal Prince or Deliverer, there afrerward ; for every one who could g
f _ ſake, for a Teflimony again them. Luke faith, chap, 21.1! But before all theſe, they ſhall lay their Hands on you, and jeiſau
things muſt come to paſs, but the end is not yet.
and peſtilences, and earthquakes in divers places, 8 All theſe are the beginning of ſorrows.
from our Saviour's Death to that time, was full of Seditions and Inſurre&ions, both in Judea, and elſewhere. The Truth of cr Saviour's Words as to this, is atteſted by Zoſephus largely fron Chap. 11. of his ſecond Book of the Wars of the Jews, to the end of the fourth Book. Beſides that there was great Wars te: rween Ortho, and Vitellius, and Veſpaſian, the Roman Emperor ho ſucceeded Nero. We read of one Famine, As 11. 28, which Azgabus there Propheſied ſhould be in the rime of ClaudiniCz:, Of Earthquakes in ſeveral places, mention is made in diver iſ ries. Our Sayiour tells them, thar theſe things ſhould be, but the End ſhould nor be preſently ; which any one that will read 7 phus his Hiſtory of the Wars of the Fews, will ſee abundant) vr fied upon the Taking of Feruſalem þy the Roman Armies,
and ſhall kill you, and ye {hall be hated rations for my names ſake.
for they ſhall deliver you up to Councils, and in the Synagzi ji ſhall be beaten, and you ſhall be brought before Rulers and King i