x Their Bodies dead, in the ſenſe before-mentioned, ſhall con- tinue ſo for three days and an half (of which we ſhall ſpeak, v. 11.) But what is here meant, 1. by the great City? 2. By the Street of the great City ? Some, by the great City, would have Hieruſa- lem underſtood ; but that was now far from a great City, nor do the Addition of thoſe Words in the latter end of the . Verſe prove it ; for Chriſt was not crucified in that City, but without the Gates, Moſt judicious Interpreters, by the great City, here underſtand Rome, which is ſeven or eight times (under the Name of Babylon) ſo called in this Book, chap. 14. 8. and chap. I6, 19. and 18, Io, 16, 18, 19, 21, nor is any other City but that ſo called. This oreat City is here ſaid in a ſpiritual Senſe, to be Sodom and Egypt ; Sodom for Whoredom and Filthineſs, Egypt for Oppreſſion of the Lord's Iſrael. As to the ſecond Queſtion, what is here meant by the Street of the great City 2 Mr. Mede hath irrefragably proved, that it cannot be meant of any Pariſh or ſuch place in this City, 2s we call a Street. 1. Becauſe our Lord was crucified neither in any Street, or Pariſh, or any other Place within the-Walls of Zieruſa- lem. 2. Both Hieruſalem and Rome had many more than one Street. 3. Becauſe the Bodies being dead, doubtleſs lay in the place where they were ſlain; but Men do not uſe to fight in the Streets of Cities. 4 Nor was there a place for all People, Kindred, Tongues and Nations, to ſee them in. He therefore- rightly judg- eth, that the Greek, Word which we tranſlate a Street, ſignifies the Territories and Juriſdi&tion of this City. See what he ſays to ju- ſtifie this in his Clavis Apocal. 40. þ. 138. y And this makes the laft Clauſe plain; for though our Lord was not crucified within any City, or in the Street of any City, yet he was crucified in a place belonging to the Juriſdition of the Roman Emperor z and 1t 15 very likely that it is in Europe that the Witneſſes ſhall be ſlain, which, in this Senſe, was all of it Street belonging to the City of Rome.
9 And they of the people, and kindreds, and tongues, and nations 2, ſhall ſee their dead bodies three days
and an half a, and ſhall not ſuffer their dead bodies
to be put in graves b.
z That is, a Multitude of People of all ſorts ſhall take notice of this Suppreſſion of theſe two witneſſes in their bearing Witneſs for God, and all the cruel dealings with them. a There are great Diſputes what time theſe three Days and an half Denote; it cannot be underſtood of three natural, or artificial Days: for (as it 1s noted by the moſt judicious Interpreters) this is much tco ſhort a time for all People to ſee their dead Bodies; to rejoice over them, and to make merry, and to ſend preſents one to another in Teſhfication of the Satisfattion of their Luſts, upon the Victory got over them. 1 find ſome underſtand theſe three Days and an half, of the 12606 Years, wherein they propheſied in Sackeloth, ver. 3. which they thus make out ; they firſt conclude that theſe are prophetical Days, and ſo ſignifie three Years and an half ; then they reſolve each of thoſe Years into Days, and count 3 times 360 Days; (for in thoſe Coun-
tries they ſay the Year was counted to contain but 350 Days) to
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to which they add 180, the half of 360, for the half Day, which
make up 1260 Days, or 42 Months; which is the juſt time both of the Beaſts Reign, and of the Woman's abode in the Wilderneſs, and
of the Witneſſes propheſying in Sackcloth, and of the Gentiles treading down the outward Court ;, but it feems very hard; thus
firſt to make the three Days three Years in a prophetical Senſe, and
then again to reſolve thoſe three Years into Days, and make thoſe
Days ſo many more Years; this looks as much like Oppreſſion to
the Text, as the counting Intereſt upon Intereſt to a Debtor. 2. It
plainly confounds the time of the propheſying of the Witneſſes
in'Sackcloth, with the time of their lying dead. Now although the
time of their lying dead muſt be within the 1260 Days, in the lat-
ter end thereof, (for it muſt be within the Beaſts 42 Months, men-
tioned cap. 13. 5.) yet it ſeems hard to make it as long as the Beaſts
Reign. It certainly ſignifies a time towards the end of the Beaſts
Retgn, when there ſhall be a more eminent and univerſal Suppreſ-
f1on of the faithful Witneſſes of Chriſt, than ever was before, It
ſeemeth therefore rather to be underſtood more generally for a
ſhort time; as much ſuch a Phraſe or way of ſpeaking is uſed,
Hiſea 6.2. orelſe for a determinate time of ſuch three Years and
an half as we ordinarily count. I muſt confeſs the half day being
added, makes me more incline to the latter ; for though it be uſu-
al with us to expreſs a ſhort time by tw or three days, and this ſeems by that Text of AHo/ea to have been an ancient way of ſpeak- ing, yet we do not uſe to put in half days when we ſo ſpeak. I
do therefore agree with thoſe who think the time here ſpecified, is to be underſtood of three ordinary Years and an half; and the ra- ther, becauſe this is the very time that Chriſt was under the Pow- er of the Phariſees, As three Days (that is part of them) was the time of his being under the Power of Death ; ſo three years and an half was the juſt time of all the Indignity that he ſuffered from his manifeſtation to the World, to his Death. And \as we read in the 1 Machab.) it was the juſt time of Anticchus his opprefſinz of the Jews, whom Divines judge that Dante! in his 11th Chapter makes a Type of Antichriſt. 6 Divines are divided whether theſe Words be to be underſtood of Enemies or Fricnds, if it be to be un- derſtood of Friends, the Death being a civil Death, principally that was ſpoken of, it fignifieth the Providence of God ſo work- ing for his Witneſſes, by the -adherance of a party to them, that their Adverſaries the Popiſh Party ſhould not wholly extinguiſh them, which hath been feen all along the Story of the Church ; though their Adverfaries have been warring againſt them, overcome and killed them, yet they have not been able to bury them; nor ſhall they be able to do it at this laſt pinch, when they ſhall have 4 greater Vitory over them, than ever before, and bill them to a further Degree. But methinks the Phraſe rather ſignifies an a& of Enemies, who to ſhe their further Malice to them, and contempt and ſcorn cf them, are ſaid to be fo inhumane, as not to ſuffer their Dead Bodies to be buried,