IN the beginning of this Chapter, There is a great wonder spoken of which appeared to John, and which he saw, (a door being opened in heaven to him.) The wonder is as followeth, A woman clothed with the Sun, and the Moon under her feet, and upon her head a Crown of twelve stars, This woman is the Church of Christ, his Spouse, the Lambs bride, as appears by many [Page 2] places of Scripture, as Ephes. 5. 32. Revel, 31. 9. The Sun wherewith she is cloathed, is that light and glory which shines forth in the Gospel, which is Christ the Son of Righteous­ness, for so he is called in Malac. 4. 2. but unto you that fear my Name shall the Sun of Righteousness appear with healing in his wings. The Moon is a light below the Sun, and borroweth its light from the Sun; and is nothing but that light and glory which shined and doth now shine forth in the Law: The terme under her feet, is nothing else but beneath her; the Crown of twelve stars which is upon her head, holds forth that Roy­all and Kingly glory wherewith the Church of Christ is cloathed, so that the meaning of the wonder is this, It holds forth that multiplicity of glory which the Church of Christ is in and under, for there is a glory of the Sun, a glory of the Moon, and a glory of the stars; a crown of twelve stars above her, the Sun of righte­ousness in the midst of her, and the Moon un­der her feet; so that there is glory above her, glory in the midst of her, and glory beneath her, insomuch that she is hem'd in with glory; or it holds forth that variety of glory under which the Church is, for there is one glory of the Sun, another of the Moon, & another of [Page 3] the stars, for one star differeth from another in glory, 1 Cor. 5. 41. This woman so cloath­ed with glory being with child, and cryed travelling in birth and pain to be deliver­ed, there appears presently another wonder in heaven, which is that which I intend now to speak to:

And there appeared another wonder in hea­ven, and behold a great red Dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven Crowns upon his heads, &c. The words are one of the Wonders which John saw, being taken up by the Spirit into heaven, there being a door opened to him: It is said, in heaven it appeared to him, from whence we may draw this conclusion, That there is no seeing of a Wonder but in heaven, & there is no seeing of heaven without being taken up by the Spirit into it, unless a door be opened in heaven to us; If we have a desire (friends) to see a Wonder, we must desire God to take us up into heaven, and there to open the door of heaven to us, for so Iohn was taken up into heaven, see Revel. 1. 10. and there a door was opened to him, see Revel. 4. 1. This Wonder is a Wonder indeed; What, That a great Red Dragon should be seen in heaven: Stand astonished and be amazed, ô ye heavens! [Page 4] was there ever such a thing heard of! If you could but see it you would stand astonished and admire! But to come neerer to the words, Behold, it is a word of Speculation; See, take notice of, what, a great Red Dragon, where may you say, in heaven: O Wonderfull! this is a strange thing indeed, how can this be? To make it plain, we shall enquire what this word Wonder is, it is somewhat seen which causeth admiration; It signifies a sign; what this Wonder or sign is, It is a great Red Dra­gon in heaven, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven Crowns upon his heads: But you will aske me, what is this great Red Dragon in heaven? I shall shew you what it is by and by, but first we shall enquire into,

• 1. What heaven is, in which this great Red Dragon appeared.
• 2. What the appearing of the great Red Dragon in heaven is.
• 3. Wherefore it is called another Wonder?
• 4. What the great Red Dragon is.
• 5. What those Epithites are which are gi­ven unto him.
• 6. The place where he is.
• 7. His seven heads.
• 8. His ten horns.
• 9. His seven Crowns upon his heads.
• [Page 5] 10. What his Taile is.
• 11. What the third part of the Stats of heaven are, which by the taile of the great red Dragon are drawn out of heaven, and cast in­to the earth.
• 12. What the earth is, into which the great Red Dragon casteth the third part of the stars of heaven.
• 13. What the meaning of the great Red Dragon's standing before the woman, which was ready to be delivered, is.
• 14. What the meaning of that saying is, For to devour her child as soon as it was born.

The first thing to be enquired into is, what heaven is, in which this great red Dragon ap­peared: Heaven is taken variously in Scripture, sometimes it is taken for the materiall heaven, the Firmament, Gen. 1. 8. Sometimes it is ta­ken for things that are or may be shaken; yet once more I shake not only earth but hea­ven it self; and this word yet once more, sig­nifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain, Heb. 12. 26, 27. Now those things that are or may be shaken are Prophesies, Tongues, and Knowledge, see 1 Cor. 13. 8. But heaven in [Page 6] this place is taken for the glory and light of God, which Stephen saw when he was praying.

The second thing to be inquired into, is, what the appearing of the great Red Dragon in heaven, is:

It is this, there was seen a great Red Dragon in heaven by John, it was such an appearance as was accompanyed with seeing, so that Iohn could say, I saw it; and it was no lying won­der that he saw, but a true one: what an ex­cellent thing it is for a man to declare nothing but what he hath seen; what hath appeared in­deed to him, by a door being opened in heaven to him, as Iohn did, or by being taken up in the Spirit as he was.

The third thing to be enquired into, is, Why it is called another Wonder; That is, be­cause of the Wonder going before, in the first verse of this Chapter; And there appeared a great wonder in heaven, a woman cloathed with the Sun, &c.

The fourth thing to be enquired into, is, What this great Red Dragon or Wonder is; It is the old Serpent, called the Devill and Sa­than, which deceiveth the old world, Revel. 12. 9. Revel. 20. 2. And he laid hold on the Dragon, that old Serpent, which is the Devil [Page 7] and Sathan, and bound him a thousand years; So that if any enquire what the great Red Dragon is that Iohn saw, It is the old Serpent called the Devill and Sathan: but what is the old Serpent the Devill and Sathan? He is call­ed the Devil and Sathan, and he is the Devil and Sathan. The Wonder is the Dragon in heaven, the Dragon is the old Serpent; the old Serpent is the Devil and Sathan: I pray mind it, for there are some now adayes that hold neither Dragon, old Serpent, Devill not Sathan; you see that there are such, and that from Scripture (if you do not deny Scripture) and I my self, by woful experience have found that there are such.

Quest. But may some say, What is the cause why the Dragon is the old Serpent, and the Serpent is called the Devill and Sathan.

Answ. The Dragon is the old Serpent, be­cause the Serpent was from the begining; he it was that craftily and subtilly insinuated in­to Adam and Eve, and prevailed with them for to eate that, the fruit whereof was death: and he is called the Serpent because of his subtiltie, and because of those windings and turnings that are in him, as I shal shew here­after: and the Serpent is called the Devill, be­cause of his accusing the Saints day and night [Page 8] before God; for the word devill signifies an Accuser: and he is called Sathan because of that aversness that is in him against the Saints, for Sathan signifies an Adversary: the Serpent, Devill and Sathan are nothing but the Dra­gon multiplyed, the Dragon come forth into variety, the Dragon made known under three denominations; for as I said before, the Dra­gon is the Serpent, and the Serpent is called the Devill, and Sathan, and he is the Devil and Sathan.

The fifth thing to be enquired into, is, what those Epethites are, which are given to the great Red Dragon, they are two:

• First, he is Great.
• Secondly, he is Red.

First, he is Great; that is, he is a hughe Dragon, very large and big, his greatness doth many times affright a Saint; it was not a lit­tle one that Iohn saw, but a great one, such a one as did beget admiration: a Saints adver­sary is a great Devil, a mighty one, not a small one; that is the reason many times that Saints are faint to take to themselves the whole Ar­mour of God, to withstand strong and great Goliah.

Secondly, He is Red, That is another Epe­thite which is given to the Dragon; as great­ness [Page 9] holds forth bigness and mightiness, so redness betokens bloudiness, cruelty: O! he is a bloudy and cruel Dragon; no less than the bloud of Saints will content him: If he can but draw bloud of a Saint, he is satisfied: Saints, see what an enemy you have to wrestle with; but let not his great­ness and bloudiness affright you, for he is a chained Dragon. Jude v. 6.

The sixt thing to be enquired into, is, the place where he is, that is in Heaven: John saw this wonder in Heaven. Heaven, as I said before, was the glory of God; It is not a local place, which some fancie to be in the Firmament; neither consisteth it in meats and drinks, but in Righteousness, Peace, and Joy. Rom. 14. 17.

The seventh thing to be enquired into is, what the great red Dragons seven heads are: Seven you know is a perfect number; and the head holds forth Wisdom, Policy, and Craftiness; for in the head are all these: We use to say, such a one hath a wise, crafty, politique head: So that the meaning is this, That there is a perfection of Wisdom, Poli­cy, and Craftiness in the great red Dragon, to tempt, deceive, devour, and the like. O friends, look about you; he hath not only a [Page 10] politique crafty head, for to tempt, deceive, devour, and the like; but he hath a perfecti­on of heads, and they are full of policy and craftiness; which policy and craftiness, he makes use of against the Saints, to perplex and rouble them on every side, night and day.

The eighth thing to be enquired into is, what those ten Horns of the great red Dra­gon are: His Horns hold forth his power and strength: We use to say, there is strength in Horns; The number ten being joyn'd to them, it holds forth this, That multiplicity of strength and power that is in the great red Dragon to bring about his Designs: He hath not only Wisdom, Policy, and Crafti­ness in him for the acting of his Designs, but he hath a multiplicity of strength and power likewise to bring about his Designs: If a man had never so much wisdom and policy to act his Designs yet if he wanted strength, his wisdom and policy would stand him in little steed▪ Wisdom without strength avail­eth little: But the Dragon hath both, and a multiplicity of both, as I said before, and therefore O Saints beware of him.

The ninth thing to be enquired into is, What the seven Crowns upon the great red [Page 11] Dragons head are: Seven (as I said before) is a perfect number; Crowns hold forth this to us, Dignity, Rule, and Royalty; So that the meaning of it is this, There is a perfection of Dignity, Rule, and Royalty, wherewith the Dragon is invested; His Crowns upon his heads, speak him to be a perfect King and Ruler; he delights to be King, and to reigne in the whole world; but especially in Saints; he would fain be King there, he would fain wear the Crown in a Saint: O that Saints would therefore take heed of him, and not suffer him to use his scepter in their hearts; but let Jesus Christ use his scepter, whose right it is.

The tenth thing to be enquired into is, what the tail of the great red Dragon is: It is those windings and turnings that are in the great red Dragon: The tail of the Dragon it turns this way, and that way, and if it can­not prevail, it will turn every way; see how the tail of the great red Dragon several waies winded and turned towards Jesus Christ, when he was had by the Spirit into the Wilderness to be tempted, in Mat. 4. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11. First, the Tempter came to Christ, and said; If thou be the Son of God, command these stones to be [Page 12] made Bread: Here the Divel would make Christ question his Son-ship; Jesus Christ he had heard a voice from the most excel­lent glory, that he was Gods beloved Son; now the Divel he endeavours to make Christ question that he was Gods Son; he saith unto him, If thou beest the Son of God, turn these stones into Bread; As if he should have said, Thou a Son of God, and cannot turn these stones into Bread? A Son of God can do it; it bespeaks thee not to be a Son of God, if thou dost not turn these stones into Bread; He endeavours to make him question his Son-ship from his not turning stones into bread: just so he deals with a poor soul, Thou a son of God and not do this; that is to say, subdue corruption, and withstand sin? When the Divel hath gotten a poor soul into the wilderness, as he did Christ, so that the poor soul is ready to fa­vnish for bread from heaven, then the Divel saith unto him, to make him question his son-ship, If thou be a son of God, relieve thy self, succour thy self, for a son of God can turn stones into bread: But Christ said unto him, It is written; What is written? This; That man shall not live by Bread alone, but by every Word that proceeds out of the mouth [Page 13] of God. When the Divel could not prevail this way, see how his tail winds another way; Then the Divel takes him up into the holy City, and setteth him on a Pinacle of the Temple, and saith unto him; If thou be the Son of God, cast thy self down; for it is written, He shall give his Angels charge concerning thee, and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. Here he tempts him to destroy himself, moving this to Christ as an Argument to do it; that is to say, if thou beest the Son of God, thou may'st cast thy self down, thou needest not fear; for he shall give his Angels charge over his Son, and they shall bear thee up in their hands, they shall hold thee up, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone: As if he should have said, Thou needest not fear doing of it, God hath given a charge to Angels to keep thee from hurt; so that if thou dost it, Angels will bear thee up and keep thee; they have a charge to do it, and they must perform that to God: just so the Divel sets upon poor souls, when he tempts them to make away themselves; O (saith Satan) thou may'st de­stroy thy self, Angels will bear thee up and keep thee, lest any hurt befal thee; thou [Page 14] mayest do this, and that, for thou art under the protection of Angels: This Satan tempts them to when poor souls are in the wilder­ness, that is in a bewildred condition; But Christ said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. When the Divel could not prevail this way, see how the Dragon winds his tail another way: Again, the Divel takes him up into an exceeding high Mountain, and sheweth him all the Kingdoms of the World, and the glory of them; and saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. Here the Divel sets Jesus Christ on high, and sheweth him all the glory of the world, promising Christ it all, if he would be a worshipper of him: As if he should have said, Do but turn a worship­er of me, thou shalt have all the glory of all the Kingdoms of this world: He seeks here to make Christ worship him, by shewing and promising him the worlds glory. Thus he seeks to prevail upon poor souls, to make them worshippers of him, he presents the glory of this world before them; as profit, credit, esteem, honour, repute, and the like, and promiseth them they shall have all of it, if they will worship him: How many poor [Page 16] souls have bin caught in this snare? But Jesus said unto Satan, Get thee hence Satan, for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him only shalt thou serve. Then the Divel leaves him &c. So that you see what the tail of the great red Dragon is, that is to say those windings and turnings that are in the great red Dragon; and how Jesus Christ answereth the Divel in all these three temptations; which may teach us how to answer him when the Divel tempts us: for as the windings of his tail are against Jesus Christ, so they are against us; He tempts us (as I said before) somtimes to question our son-ship and somtimes to destroy our selves; and someimes to fall down and worship him, by his set [...]ing before us the glo­ry of the world; as he did before Christ.

The eleventh thing to be enquired into, is, What the third part of the stars of Heaven are which by the tail of the great red Dra­gon are drawn out of heaven, and cast into the earth; The third part of the stars of heaven, are those that are unstable, infirm, unsetled, not built upon the s [...]re foundation, that in appearance have shined like stars in heaven; they are not to be understood the material stars, but it is a Metaphorical kind [Page 16] of expression, borrowed from the stars; they shined as the stars: As there hath bin some in our days, that have shined so in shew, but are now cast down out of heaven into the earth, so that now their lights are put out, they themselves are become earthly, worldly, carnal, and the like.

The twelfth thing to be be enquired into is, What the earth is into which the great red Dragon casteth the third part of the stars of heaven: The earth somtimes is put for the men of the earth; As, O earth hear the word of the Lord: sometimes it is put for the material earth, as Gen. 1. 20. but here it is to be taken for that which the first man is off; the first man is of the earth, earthly: so that it is taken for that earthly mindedness, worldliness, wickedness, wretchedness, and filthiness which was in Adam after his fall.

The thirteenth thing to be enquired into, is, What the meaning of the great red Dra­gons standing before the woman which was ready to be delivered is; standing is a po­sture of readiness to devour; so that it holds forth this, the readiness that the Dragon is in to devour the man-child; and that term before her, that is, before the womans face, [Page 17] facing of the woman; the womans readi­ness to be delivered, signifies her being nigh at hand to bring forth: Now what a sad thing it would be for a woman to have one that seeks her life, and the life of her child, stand facing of her when she is ready to bring forth; it will endanger both the woman and child: so it is here; O what a sad thing it is to the Church of Christ, to have the great red Dragon stand facing of her when she is ready to be delivered of Jesus Christ; it is the only way to make the Church of Christ miscarry. Thus you see that the meaning of the Dragons standing before the woman holds forth, That there is a readiness in the Dragon to devour the Babe, either by facing of the woman, and so making of her miscarry by reason of fear, or by devouting of the Babe when he is born.

The fourteenth thing to be enquired into is, what the meaning of that saying is, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. To devour is to eat up quite, to make an end of; as soon as it was born; that is, so soon as it was brought forth. So soon as ever the Saints of God are in a readiness to bring forth Christ in them, the great red Dragon stands before their face for to devour him; he can­not [Page 18] endure Christ should be in them, or brought forth in them, but seeks to destroy him [...] just as Herod, and the Scribes and Pharisees after Christ was born did seek to devour Christ without us so the Dragon seeks to devour him within us and for this purpose she stands before us and faceth us, that he might be the more ready to catch and lay hold of Christ and quash the appearing of him in us▪ You know what a sad thing it would be for a woman, to have her child as soon as it was brought forth snatcht from her, and devoured and eaten up before her face: O how it would trouble her! So for a soul to have Jesus Christ so soon as he is brought forth in it snatcht from it, and devoured and eaten up before its face; O what a sad case that soul will be in! O how it will cry out for is Jesus is Jesus; as the woman would for her child▪ O my child, my child!

The terms in the words being thus explain­ed, the first Thesis or Basis upon which I shall build my discourse, is this;

It is cleer from the words, and it is cleer from other Scriptures as that Scripture in Luke 10. 18. saith Christ to his Disciples, I [Page 19] beheld Satan fall as lightning from heaven: he was in heaven, and Christ saw him fall from his seat.

Question. But you will ask me, What? Is Satan in heaven?

To that I answer as followeth:

• First, Satan in heaven, is Satan in a Priest­ly shape.
• Secondly, Satan in heaven, is Satan in a Prophetical shape.
• Thirdly, Satan in heaven, is Satan in a Kingly shape.

First of all, Satan in heaven, is Satan in a Priestly shape; appearing as the Priest Christ Jesus, acting his Priesthood, doing the very office and work of Christ as offering sacrifice to God, putting up petitions to him, praying, and the like.

Secondly, Satan in heaven, is Satan in a Prophetical shape; as the Prophet Christ, acting him as a Prophet, prophesie as he did, that is to say, speak to edification, exhortati­on, reproof, and of things to come: O how Satan hath bin in heaven in some in this re­spect in our days! In what a Prophetical shape he hath appeared, who have prophesied out of their own hearts, who have follow­ed their own spirits, and have seen nothing but [Page 20] vanity and lying Divination; saying, The Lord saith, and the Lord hath not sent them; and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word, and they have with their lyes made the heart of the righteous sad, when God hath not made sad: Ezek. 13. All which we cannot but see fulfilled in our days.

Thirdly, Satan in heaven, is Satan in a Kingly shape; acting the Kingly Office of Christ, reigning, ruling, and commanding, within the heart and without, as Christ.

But to make things more plain, the Dragon in heaven, is the Dragon on high.

Secondly, The Dragon in glory.

Thirdly, The Dragon at rest. For heaven presents us with all these three things, Height, Glory, and Rest.

First of all, The Dragon in heaven, is the Dragon on High; that is to say, in the Chair, Seat, and Temple of God, shew­ing himself that he is God, and saying that he is God; 2 Thes. 2. 4. He it is that exalts himself as the Eagle, that sets his nest among the stars: Obad. 1. 4. He is that Lucifier that ascends into heaven, and that exalts his Throne above the stars, that sits upon the mount of the Congregation in the sides of the [Page 21] North: Isa. 14. 13. He is that Capernaum, which is exalted unto heaven, and which shall be brought down unto hell. Matth. 11. 23.

Secondly, The Dragon in heaven, is the Dragon in Glory; which is nothing else, but the Dragon in an Angel of Light: 2 Cor. 11. 14. Gal. 1. 8. And no marvel, for Satan himself is changed into an Angel of Light. And Satan was changed into an An­gel of Light in those false Apostles in this respect, in preaching another Jesus, Spirit, and Gospel, that was not preached, received, and accepted: and truly we may see the Dragon changed into an Angel of Light in our days, in this respect; There is another Jesus preached, that was not preached; not that Jesus which dyed at Jerusalem, but one which is within us, say some; when as he that dyed at Jerusalem, and he within us, is all one Jesus; or another Jesus, that is, they preach salvation by works; another Spirit, which is a Spirit of freedom to do any man­ner of wickedness; and another Gospel, which is justification by Works; not that Gospel which Paul preached; That Christ dyed at Jerusalem for our sins, according to the Scripture; and that he was buried, and [Page 22] that he rose again: 1 Cor. 15. 3, 4. In which saying lies hid more glory than we dream of, and is more hard to be believed than many think it is.

Thirdly, The Dragon in heaven, is the Dragon at rest; for Heaven notes rest: See Revel. 18. 7. She saith in her heart, I sit a Queen, and am no Widdow, and shall see no sorrow: She sits a Queen; sitting notes rest; she sits a Queen, that is, as one in State and Honour; and no Widdow, that is, she is in no Widdows state, which is a sorrowful state; she sits a Queen, there is the great red Dragons being at rest in her, which is the Dragons being in heaven.

I shall further illustrate it by these four following things; that is to say,

The Dragon in Heaven, is the Dragon in and under things that seem to savour of Piety, Zeal, Holiness, and Righteousness: The Dragon in Heaven, is the Dragon (I say) covered over with a seeming savour of Piety, Zeal, and Holiness; He pretends much Piety, Zeal, and Holiness in Professors; much Prayer, much Fasting, much keeping of the Sabbath, much giving of Alms; as in the Scribes and Pharisees he did; When the Sons of God came to present themselves be­fore [Page 23] God, He came with them: Job. 1. 6. which was to shew how religious he was: but under these his specious shews lies subtilty, mingled with bloudyness and cruelty.

Secondly, The Dragon in Heaven is the Dragon in Peace; for Heaven notes Peace: that is, at quiet with a Professor, that he doth not disturb nor molest him night nor day; so that the poor soul knows not what to do. Now the Dragon is then in Peace, when he sees all is so in the soul as he would have it, he will never trouble that soul; but if it be not so in the soul as he would have it, (as it is not in Saints.) O then he is never at Peace and Quiet▪ but is always tempting and troubling it, so that the soul hath no quiet in its Spirit; the Dra­gon thinking thereby to bring about his De­signes.

Thirdly, The Dragon in Heaven▪ is the Dragon in joy; Now then, the Dragon is in joy (if I may so say) when by his tempting and troubling of a Saint, he hath gotten the best of him, then he rejoyceth; O how merry and joyful he would be indeed, if he could quite ruine a Saint; The Dragons joyfulness, lies in the Saints sadness, trouble, and over­throw; [Page 24] The more or less sad, troubled, or overcome they are, the more or less is his joy.

Lastly, The Dragon in Heaven, is the Dragon in a pretended, perfect, immediate, and high enjoyments of God in the Spirit, Allegorizing the Scripture, and so denying the letter thereof: Those whose eys God hath opened, cannot but subscribe to this, for this is to be seen now a days in Professors: O how have they pretended perfect immedi­ate enjoyments of God in the Spirit, under pretence whereof denying the Scripture; O how they have vaunted and said, we enjoy God immediately, that is without the Scri­pture: Alas what is the Scripture say they, how scornfully they have spoken of it, though it be profitable for Instruction, that the man of God be throughly perfect to salvation; as Paul saith, Some there are that Allegorize the Scripture, and under pretence of that, make void the Letter: which allegorizing the Scripture, they call the spiritual interpre­tation of the Letter; when as the spiritual interpretation of the letter, is that interpreta­tion which the Spirit of God gives of the Letter; It is true, there are some things in Scripture which are to be taken otherwise [Page 25] then they are set down in the letter, that is, when they are allegorically, parabolically, and symbolically spoken: But they allegorize eve­ry place of Scripture almost, which I know no warrant for, and so deny the letter: I will name but one place of Scripture, and that is in 1 John 4. 2. Every spirit that confesseth Je­sus Christ come in the flesh is of God; that is, come within us, say they: And so under pre­tence of this deny Jesus Christ in manifestati­on in the flesh, and suffering at Jerusalem, &c. and so utterly overthrow what Christ hath done for us, and so they become the greatest Antichrists in the world. There are two sorts of Professors in the world that deny Jesus Christ come in the flesh.

One sort of Professors are those that alto­gether look at Jesus Christ within them, and deny him without them; and these are those that deny Jesus Christ come in the flesh, and so are the Antichrist.

There is a second sort of Professors, that look at Jesus Christ altogether without them, as one suffering at Jerusalem, and being rai­sed, &c. but never look at him as within them, they never find the Life, Power and Spirit of him within them; and so they are Antichrist as well as the other: Now that Professor [Page 26] which acknowledgeth Christ come in the flesh, and Christ come in his flesh, and whose faith is fixed on Christ as one in the Heavens, and in every place, and as one that is in his heart, as well as he is in the Heavens and in every place, is not Antichrist.

If it be so, that there is such a thing as the great red Dragon in Heaven, then beg of God a sight of him in Heaven, for you cannot see him till a door be opened in Heaven to you, as there was to John: He may stand at your right hand and left hand, and you see him not: Till you be taken up by the Spirit into Heaven, you cannot discern his seven heads, ten horns, and seven crowns; that is to say those multiplicities of subtilties, policies and glory wherewith he deceives poor Souls; and till you know his tricks you cannot beware of them, but he will set upon you on every side, and you shall see it not; he will blind your eyes, that the light of the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ shall not shine into your Souls, he will have you one way or another, and if he cannot prevail one way, he wil another; he will endevor to catch you by the inclination of your mind and nature, he will watch which way they are carried, & so set a trap for your spirit.

Secondly, If it be so, That there is such a thing as the great red Dragon in Heaven, then [Page 27] Friends, take heed of him, for he stands at Jo­shuah's right hand; he will appear in his white rayment to you, because you are Saints; he will put on his most beautiful robes when he appears to Saints, thereby to deceive them: Take heed of his Heads, lamb-like Horns, and glorious Crowns, lest by his subtilty, strength and glory he fetch you down from your pro­fessions; and though he appear in never so much glory, stoop not at all, and do not obey­sance to him, O noble Saints, no not a jot, notwithstanding his crowns of glory.

Thirdly, If it be so, That there is such a thing as the great red Dragon in Heaven, having seven heads, ten horns, and seven crowns up­on his heads, be not afraid of him, let not his monstrousness trouble you, do not fear, lest he should by his policy and strength set upon you; fear not his strength nor policy, your God will strengthen you with strength in your Souls by the Spirit against him; never think that you shall not be able to deal or grapple with him, seeing God will make perfect his strength in your weaknesses: Do not cry out, O surely, surely I shall be overcome by his temptations; but rather fill your mouths as Christ did his against him, with It is writ­ten, It is written, It is written, and bring no [Page 28] railing accusation against him, as Moses durst not; but cry, The Lord, even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem, rebuke him: then you shall see him go from you, and leave you, as he did Christ.

Fourthly, If there be such a thing as the great red Dragon in Heaven, and that this Dragon is the old Serpent, and the Serpent is the Devil and Satan; then this may serve to inform some that deny the Dragon, old Ser­pent, Devil and Satan, that say there is none such; I say, this may serve to inform them of the truth of it, that there are such.

Quest. But may some say, If there be such, from whence is the Dragons rise? otherwise the Serpent, Devil and Satan. 2. What was his fall? And 3. where is this Dragon, otherwise the Serpent, Devil and Satan?

Answ. Without question, his rise with o­ther Angels was from God; but his not keep­his first state, but falling away from it, was from himself, and in himself.

Secondly, What was his fall?

It was this; He being at first a good and holy Angel himself, and partaking of the brightness of the angelical Glory, living and dwelling in the same with the rest of his Bre­thren the Angels, fell from his first estate or [Page 29] principality, and lost his own former habita­tion or beginning, and God hath reserved him in everlasting chains under darkness, unto the Judgment of the great Day, Jude v. 6. The forsaking of the Society of his fellow good Angels (if I may so say,) and forsaking of his first estate of Glory, leaving his former habitation, was his fall; like Adam and us, who left our first estate and habitation which was in God, and fell to the eating of that which was forbidden.

3. Where is this Dragon? He is in the Ayr: 2. He is in the children of disobedience, Eph. 2. 2. wherein in times past ye walked accord­ing to the course of this world, according to the Prince of the power of the Ayr, the Spirit that now works in the children of disobedi­ence.

The second Thesis or Basis upon which I shall build my Discourse is this, That the Tail of the great red Dragon is that by which the Dragon draws the third part of the stars of Heaven out of Heaven into Earth. This is clear from the words, what the Dragon, and the Tail of the Dragon is, and what Heaven and Earth is, I have at large shewed before, and therefore I will not unfold the terms again, but make some Application of the words.

[Page 30] First, This may serve to inform us of the truth of this, how that the great red Dragon by his tail draws the third part of the stars of Heaven out of Heaven, and casteth them into the Earth: This we may see fulfilled in our days; how many shining stars hath the tail of the great red Dragon drawn out of Heaven, and cast into the Earth? So that though they shined as stars in Heaven before, now they are become earthly, worldly, carnal and wicked, and do not stick to commit all manner of wickedness with greediness.

Quest. But may some say, How doth the Dragon with his tail draw the third part of the stars of Heaven out of Heaven, and cast them to the Earth? These manner of ways following; That is to say:

First, He deals with them as with Adam and Eve; just as he drew Adam and Eve to eat of that which is forbidden, so he draws the stars of Heaven out of Heaven, and casteth them into the Earth. See how he drew them to eat of that which was forbidden, Gen. 3. Yea, saith the Serpent unto the woman, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? No, saith the woman, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the [Page 31] garden we may not eat of it, nor touch it, for God hath said it, lest we dye. Yea hath he said it? is it indeed so? are you not mistaken? are you sure God spoke it? See how the Ser­pent sets upon her, and endeavors to make her question the authority of Gods Word: And hath God said, Ye shall surely dye, that is cer­tainly dye? If you eat, ye shall not certainly dye: Here the Serpent makes himself to have more power then God; Ye may eat safely, ye shall not, though God hath said it, dye; For God doth know, that in the day ye eat thereof your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. As if the Serpent should say, Let God say what he will, you shall not dye; for instead of dying, if you eat, your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be as gods in the knowing of good and evil: Come, saith the Serpent, eat, do not fear, you shall not dye, for you shall know good and evil, and ye shall know good and evil as gods know it, even that very day you eat it shall be so, ye shall no sooner eat but it shall be so. These things he gives as Reasons that the woman should not dye if she did eat, because her eyes should be opened, and they shal know good and evil as God that very day they did eat. Now when the woman saw that the tree [Page 32] was good for food, and pleasant to the eyes, and that it was a tree to be desired to make one wise, the woman takes of the fruit thereof, and presently falls upon eating. See, when the Serpent had made her question the autho­rity of Gods Word, and told her that she should not certainly dye if she did eat, but her eyes should be opened, and she should be as God in the knowing of good and evil; and likewise had perswaded her that the tree was good in respect of food, and pleasantness to the eye, and that it was a tree to be desired, because it makes one wise, the woman toge­ther with the man presently takes of the fruit of it, and eats, as I said before. The man and the woman had a desire to have their eyes o­pened, they had a desire to see, but not in the light of God; they thirsted after knowledg, they coveted to be as God in knowing good and evil, they coveted to be that which God would not have them, they coveted to satisfie their eyes and their pallates, they coveted wis­dom that was not the wisdom of God; and this was their fall: So that though they shi­ned like stars of Heaven before, now they are cast down from thence into Earth, and are be­come now earthly, worldly, carnal and sinful. So that this is one way that the Dragon draws [Page 33] stars out of Heaven into Earth, by making Souls question the Authority of Gods Word, whether or no it be true.

The second way or manner, how the great red Dragon draws with his Tail the third part of the stars of Heaven out of Heaven, and casteth them to the Earth, is, by taking of them up into an exceeding high mountain, that is, by lifting them up on high, and so shewing of them the glory of this world, & by promising them it, if they will fall down and worship him. Thus he hath dealt with many in our days, he hath exalted them on high, and given them a sight of his glory, as credit, honour, repute, esteem in the world, which are the Devils glory. Now those that have been like shi­ning stars in Heaven, in the appearance of o­thers the great red Dragon, by the presenting of this his glory before them, hath by his Tail drawn them out of Heaven, and cast them in­the Earth. So that this is another way the Dra­gon takes to draw the third part of the stars of Heaven out of Heaven, and cast them into the Earth, he shews them the glory of this world, and by that draws them out of Heaven into Earth, as he hath done many in our days, who are turned from their shining like stars in Hea­ven to the Devils glory; that is, they seek [Page 34] after credit, honour, repute and esteem in the world, of which thing we have had woful experience in our days.

The third way and manner how the great red Dragon draws with his Tail the third part of the stars of Heaven out of Heaven, and cast­eth them to the Earth, is by his false applica­tion of Scripture to Professors, as that place of Scripture, 1 Cor. 6. 12. All things are lawful. And if all things be lawful, then say they, all manner of wickedness is lawful, and so we may commit it: The Apostle saith not there, that all manner of wickedness is lawful, as for­nication, idolatry, adultery, and the like; for saith the Apostle in Vers. 13. The body is not for fornication, but for the Lord. And besides if we look in the beginning of that 13 Verse, he speaks of meats for the belly: And in 1 Cor. 10. 23. he speaks not there neither, that all manner of wickedness is lawful, though many say it is confirmed from these places of Scripture; for he speaks against that in the beginning of the Chapter; and besides he speaks there of going to feasts, and eating of meats: and in Vers. 19. he speaks of his liber­ty to do those things, which the weak could not. And then that of Rom. 14. 14. the Dra­gon makes a false application of to poor Souls: [Page 35] I know and am perswaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of it self, but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean. Say some, nothing is un­clean to us, no not sin; we can commit any sin, for we esteem not any thing to be unclean, but those that do, to those it is sin. O subtle Devil! He speaks in the Chapter of observ­ing days, and eating herbs; he doth not there speak that sin in it self is not unclean; whe­ther they esteemed it not to be unclean, or whether they esteemed it to be unclean, sin is unclean. And then that place of Scripture the Devil makes application of to Professors, Tit. 1. 15. Ʋnto the pure all things are pure, but unto them that are defiled and unbeleev­ing, is nothing pure, but even their minds and consciences are defiled. We are pure, say they, and so all things are pure to us, adul­tery, fornication, &c. we are not defiled, but beleeving, and so all things are pure to us, but those that beleeve not their minds and consci­ences are defiled. O poor creatures, where are you? who hath bewitched you? The meaning of that place is not, that sin is pure to those that are pure and beleeving, that is a delusion of Satan; for those words all things are meant days and meats: See in Rom. 14. 20. [Page 36] All things, saith he, indeed are pure, but it is evil for that man who eateth with offence. In which Chapter he speaks of meats and days, as I said before, which are now pure to him, seeing the Ceremonial Law is abolished by Christ, which put a difference between meats. Thus you see how the Devil beguiles them, thereby leading them to all manner of wicked­ness. So that this is another way the Dragon takes to cast shining stars out of Heaven into Earth, he makes false application of Scripture to them, and so draws them out of Heaven in­to Earth.

The fourth way and manner, how the great red Dragon draws with his Tail the third part of the stars of Heaven out of Heaven, and cast­eth them to the Earth, is by ushering in Errors with these six glorious Truths following; that is to say,

• God doth all things.
• Is all things.
• All things are in God.
• All things are of God.
• All things are through God.
• And all things are to God.

First of all, God doth all things; and it is clear from Scripture, 1 Cor. 12. 6. He worketh all in all: But yet it is to be taken, that he doth [Page 37] all things in his Son, nothing out of his Son; by him and in him he made the world, and he upholds it by him. But with and under this glorious Truth the Devil ushereth in some­what that is not truth, thereby to draw those that are like shining stars in Heaven out of Heaven into the Earth; that which he usher­eth in in this saying, God doth all things, is this; If he doth all things, then he doth sin, he acts sin, there is not any thing that is but he doth it, wickedness is that he doth: With this snare the Dragon catcheth many Souls.

Secondly, God is all things; and it is dear likewise from Scripture, 1 Cor. 15. 28. That God may be all in all. He is all things in and to Saints, he is Righteousness, Peace, Joy, strength against sin, and he is all out of them, abroad in the world, he rules and he raigns. God is all, that is, he is the Substance of all things, he goes beyond all, he is all in this re­spect likewise, because he brings about all things; so that this is a glorious Truth, God is all things: Now the Dragon he ushereth in with this Truth this Error, If God be all things, then he is sin and wickedness; and if he be all things, then he is this Dog, this To­bacco-pipe, he is me, and I am him, as I have heard some say.

[Page 38] Thirdly, All things are in God; this is a glorious Truth likewise from Scripture; All creatures, all created things are in him: But yet it is not to be taken, that they are materi­ally in him, but vertually, radically. Now this great red Dragon ushereth in with this glori­ous Truth another Error, thereby, as I said be­fore, to draw shining stars out of Heaven into Earth, which Error is, If all things be in God, then surely sin is in him, and I am in him, though I walk never so wretchedly. But stay a little, you run too fast: There is a two-fold Being in God.

First, There is a Being in him so as to live, move, and have our Being.

Secondly, There is Being in him, by vertue of being born again. So that here you are caught.

Fourthly, All things are of God; this is cleer from Scripture likewise, Rom. 11. ult. for of him are all things, and that in 1 Cor. 8. But to us there is but one God the Father, of whom are all things: all creatures all created things which belong to the old Creation and to the new Creation, are of him though in a different sence they are of him, but yet be­cause they are of him, yet this doth not follow that these creatures and created things are [Page 39] himself, as some say, then were every created thing and creature a God, and so make an infinite number of Gods: all things are of God, say they, if all things be of him, then sin is of him and not of the Devill; and we are of him, and if we be of him, then we are himself, for whatsoever is of him is him­self. Stay a little, that will not follow, for as I said before, if that were a truth, what a ma­ny Gods would you make! And besides that will not follow, that sin is of him because all things are of him, for the Scripture saith, sin is of the Devil, and therefore not of him, he is not the cause of it; These are those Errors which the great Red Dragon ushereth in with this truth, All things are of him.

Fifthly, All things are through God; This is a glorious truth suitable to Scripture, see Rom. 11. ult. For of him and through him are all things; It is through him that such a thing comes to pass, and that such a thing is, and that we are alive: it was through him that the Jews were cut off, and the Gentiles ingraffed into a good Olive tree; it is through him, that is, it was Gods doings: here the great red Dragon ushereth in an Error with this glorious Truth, Are all things through him? then sin is through him, all that wicked­ness [Page 40] that I commit is through him, that is, by his means; it is through Gods means that I am an adulterer, fornicator, &c. he is the Au­thor of it. O thou deceived creature, the De­vil hath thee fast; sin is through your corrupt nature, and the Devil, and not through God.

Sixthly, All things are to him; that is a a Truth likewise from Scripture, Rom. 11. ult. And to him are all things, to whom be praise, &c. All things are to him, that is, to his praise, to set forth his praise: And here the great red Dragon ushereth in this Error, If all things be to his praise, then sin is, and there­fore I will sin, for all my sins that I commit shall be to his praise, and the more I sin the more it shall be to his praise. These are the six manner of ways by which the Dragon ushereth in Error with Truth, thereby to draw the stars of Heaven out of Heaven, and cast them to the Earth.

The fift way and manner how the great red Dragon draweth with his Tall the stars of Heaven out of Heaven, and casteth them to the Earth, is by the Dragons winding with his Tail into Professors rotten and unsound Prin­ciples. But you will ask me, What are they? These following: that is to say;

That they are very God, and infinite and Al­mighty [Page 41] as the very God is; That they are in Honour, Excellency, Majesty and Power e­q [...]ally and the same with the true God; That the eternal Majesty dwells in them, and no where else; That there is no such thing as the Holiness and Righteousness of God; That unrighteousness in them, and the acts of un­cleanness, prophane swearing, drunkenness, and the like filthiness and bruitishness, are not unholy and forbidden in the Word; That these acts in them and others are approved of by God, and that such acts, and the persons that commit them, are like God: That the acts of denying and blaspheming God, or the Holiness and Righteousness of God; That the acts of cursing God, swearing prophanely and falsly by his Name, and the acts of lying, stealing, cozening and defrauding others; the acts of murther, adultery, incest, fornication, unclean Sodomy drunkenness, filthy and las­cizious speaking, are not things in themselves shameful, wicked, sinful, impious, abominable and detestable in any person: That the acts of adultery, drunkenness, swearing, and the like open wickedness, are in their own nature as holy and righteous as the duties of prayer, and giving of thanks; That whatsoever is acted by them, whether whoredom, adultery, drunkenness, and the like, may be committed [Page 42] without sin; and that such acts are acted by the true God, or by the Majesty of God, and by the Eternity that is in them: That Heaven and all happiness consist in the acting of those things which are sin and wickedness; That those are most perfect, and like to God and Eternity, which do commit the greatest sins without least remorse or sense; That there is no such thing really and truly as unrighteous­ness and sin, but as a man or a woman judgeth thereof; and that there is neither Heaven nor Hell, neither Salvation nor Damnation, and that these are one and the same thing, and that there is not any distinction between them, or between light and darkness; That Reason is God: That we shall not have peace and qui­etness in our spirits, till we come into this li­berty of whoring, swearing, and the like: That man is deified; That the spirit after a man is dead goes into a Dog or Cat; That God be­leeves in God: That all the women in the world are but one mans wife in unity, and all the men in the world are but one womans husband in unity; so that one man may lie with all the women in the world, for they are his wife in unity, and one woman may lie with all men in the world, for they are her husband in unity: That there is no act that is sinful be­fore God; That the holy Spirit is not God: [Page 43] That Jesus Christ hath no other then a hu­mane nature. These and many others are the Principles that the great red Dragon with his Tail windes into Professors, thereby to cast them out of Heaven into Earth. And there­fore Friends take heed of him, he is very subtle, his Tail is full of windings and turnings; if it were possible he would deceive the very E­lect: If you be Professors in shew, and not in deed, he will drag you down from Heaven into Earth; that is, he will drag you down from your glorious profession into Earth; that is, into such an estate of earthly-minded­ness and wickedness, that all that see you, and behold you, shall say of you, as it shall be said of Babylon when she is destroyed; Alas, alas, that great City that was clothed with fine linnen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls, for in one hour so great riches is come to nought, Revel. 18. 16, 17. So shall they say of you, O glorious Professors, that have been as stars shining in Heaven, clothed with fine linnen, purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls, which are nothing but the parts, and gifts, and righteousness of men; Alas, alas, those glorious Professors, for in one hour, as it were, are they come to nought. So that you see how the Dragon [Page 44] draws Professors out of Heaven into Earth, by winding with his Tail false and unsound prin­ciples into them.

Quest. But may some say, You hold a fall­ing away from grace, do you not?

Answ. No; but I hold a falling away which is now fulfilled before the day of Christ come, spoken of in 2 Thes. 2. 3. And besides I hold a falling away from the end of the Com­mandment, which is Charity out of a pure heart, and a good Conscience, and of faith un­feigned, from which some having swerved, have turned aside to vain jangling, which was Hymeneus and Alexander, 1 Tim. 1. 5, 6, 20. And also a falling away from the heavenly gifts of those that are inlightened, and are made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good Word of God, and of the powers of the world to come, Hebr. 6. 4, 5. If Pro­fessors have reached no further then Charity, though it be out of a pure heart, and of a good Conscience, and of Faith unfeigned, and no further then a being enlightened, and a tasting of the heavenly gifts, and a being made par­takers of the Holy Ghost, and a tasting of the good Word of God, and of the powers of the World to come, they are liable to be by the Tail of this great red Dragon drawn out of Heaven, that is, drawn from these into Earth; [Page 45] so that they will become earthly, filthy, vain, and the like.

The third Basis or Thesis upon which I shall build my Discourse is this, That there is mul­tiplicity of subtilty, strength and glory in the great red Dragon to deceive, accuse, set upon, tempt and destroy. This is clear from the words; and it will appear to be so from o­ther places of Scripture: see Gen. 3. 1. Now the Serpent was more subtle then any beast of the field which the Lord God had made: That sheweth that there is a multiplicity of subtil­ty in him. We wrestle not only with flesh and blood, but with principalities and powers, Ephes. ult. Chap. That place of Scripture sheweth, that there is a multiplicity of power in him. If thou wilt fall down and worship me, saith the Serpent to Christ, I will give you all the glory of the world: That speaks a mul­tiplicity of glory in the Dragon.

We shall a little hold forth his subtilty, power and glory.

First we shall speak of his subtilty; see Job 1. 6. When the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, Satan he came among them. See his subtilty in it, under pre­tence in coming to pray with the sons of God, he came to accuse and set upon Job, as you shall see by and by; And the Lord said unto [Page 46] him, From whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the Lord, From going to and fro in the Earth, and from walking up and down in it: See his subtilty here, in leaving out like a roaring Lyon, seeking whom he may devour. And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered, or hast thou set thy heart, on my servant Job, that there is none like him in the Earth, a perfect and upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? Then an­swered Satan the Lord, and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast thou not made a bedg about him, and about his house, and a­bout all that he hath on every side? Behold his subtilty again in accusing Job: As if Satan should have said, Thou hast made a fence a­gainst all that he hath, and he serves thee for that, it is not for nought that he serves thee; thou hast encreased his substance, and blessed the work of his hand, and he serves thee for that; but put forth thy hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will fall acursing of thee, and that to thy face. And the Lord said unto him, Behold all that he hath is in thy power, only upon himself put not forth thy hand. So Satan goes forth from the presence of the Lord. After he had Gods Job, away he went, it was for Job that Satan presented him­self before the Lord. Now in Cap. 2. they came [Page 47] the second time to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan came with them: And the Lord said unto him, from whence comest thou? And Satan gave him the like answer as before: And the Lord said unto him, Hast thou consi­der'd my servant Job, a perfect & upright man, that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou mo­vedst me against him, to destroy him without cause. The subtilty of the Serpent in present­ing himself before the Lord, was not only to accuse Job, but likewise to move God against Job for to destroy him without cause. And Satan answered the Lord, Skin for skin, yea all that a man hath will he give for his life: But put forth thy hand now, and touch his bone and flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face. See how he further accuseth Job before God, that so God might destroy him, or that he might have him to destroy: As if Satan should have said to the Lord thus; All that a man hath, before he will lose his life, he will part with all, yea skin for skin; but do but touch his bone and flesh, and he will fall acur­sing of thee to thy face, even before thy face. Satan cannot endure a Job, but he is always accusing and setting upon him. And the Lord said unto him, Behold he is in thy hand, but save his life. Though God delivers us with [Page 48] Job into the hands of Satan, yet he will not have Satan take away our life: As Satan pre­sented himself before the Lord with the sons of God, so he doth now present himself with the Saints before God, but it is to accuse us to God, that he might have a commission from God to set upon us, to afflict us, not only in our goods, but in our body: He speaks of us to God as he did of Job, It is not for nought that yo serve God, saith Satan to poor Souls; you fear him for this and for that, he hath thus and thus blessed you, and made a hedg about you; and if God should put forth his hand, and touch you, you would curse him. See his subtilty in Zech. 3. 1. There is Satan standing at the right hand of Joshua the high Priest, who stood before the Angel of the Lord. His subtilty in standing at Joshuahs right hand was to resist and withstand Joshuah: Satan he had espyed Ioshuahs filthy rayments that were upon him, as he stood before the Angel: Now his subtilty in standing there was to withstand Joshuah: Thou hast filthy gar­ments, and standest thou before the Angel? what dost thou here with these filthy gar­ments on thee? But afterwards he was clo­thed with change of rayment. So he speaks to a poor Soul many times when he presents himself before God, What dost thou here [Page 49] with these sinful garments upon thee? how dar'st thou come before God with these? thereby to keep it from God; this is his sub­tilty. And we may see his subtilty in the words; he stands before the woman, but it was to devour the man-child.

Secondly, We shall a little consider the Dra­gons power. But you wil ask me what is it.

• First, The power of the Dragon is expressi­ons of Scripture.
• Secondly, Sin.
• Thirdly, Darkness.

First, The power of the Dragon is expressi­on of Scripture. I pray bear with me a little: In this expression my meaning is, he makes use of Scripture whereby to strengthen him­self against a Saint, as he did against Christ; see how he did it against Christ, in Mat. 4. 6. saith the Devil to Christ, Cast thy self down, for he hath given his Angels charge over thee, to bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against the stones. So he saith to a poor Soul, Thou mayst kill thy self, God hath given his Angels charge over thee to keep thee. As the strength of sin is the Law, so the strength of Satan is Scripture, (as I may so say.)

Secondly, Sin: The power of the Dragon is sin; that is, the Dragon makes use of sin, whereby to strengthen himself against a Soul, [Page 50] 1 John 3. 6. Whosoever abideth in him, sinneth not: Whosoever sinneth, hath not seen nor known him. Now saith the Dragon to the Soul, You do not abide in God because you sin; you have sinned, saith the Devil, and you cannot deny it, and therefore you have not seen nor known God; when as the Soul hath not only sinned, but only the Law in the flesh, sin in the Soul, not the mind hath sinned. Now for want of distinction between the spiritual part and the fleshly part of the Soul, the Soul is so troubled by Satan, that it knows not what to do.

Thirdly, Darkness: The power of the Dra­gon is darkness; that is, he makes use of dark­ness, whereby to strengthen himself against the Soul: If we say we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lye, 1 Joh. 1. 6. Now saith the Dragon, You are in the dark, and you walk in darkness, and the Soul knows it is in darkness, therefore you have no fellowship with God and Christ: And the poor Soul is troubled, that it knows not what to do; when as that darkness is called there a hating our brother, 1 Ioh. 2. 11.

Thirdly, We shall a little speak of the Dra­gons glory: His glory is honor, repute, esteem, preferment; his crowns which are upon his heads are his glory, which hold forth royalty [Page 51] and rule, as I said before; That angelical light into which he is changed, is his glory; that heavenly light in which he appears to Saints is his glory, his lamb-like horns are his glory, his seeming savor of piety, zeal and holiness is his glory, as I said before.

If it be so, That there is a multiplicy of sub­tilty, strength and glory in the red Dragon to accuse, set upon, tempt and destroy, then take heed of his subtilty, power & glory, lest you be ensnared in either: if he cannot catch you by his subtilty, he will have you by his power; and if he cannot have you by his power, then he will catch you by his glory: Be you therefore wise as Serpents, and consider what you have to deal withall; watch and pray, lest ye enter into temptation, and let your eyes be always opened, for this Dragon goes up and down like a roaring Lyon, seeking whom he may devour.

The fourth Basis or Thesis upon which I shall build my Discourse, is this, That no soon­er is the Church of Christ ready to bring forth Christ in her, but the Dragon stands ready, before her face, to devour him. This is clear from the words: The Dragons aim is not so much to devour the Church of Christ, though he stands before it, but Christ in the Church of Christ; his enmity is more at Christ, then the woman; he cannot endure Christ should be [Page 52] in the Church, he will labor as much as possi­ble he can to devour him, and the reason of it, is, because he is to rule with a rod of Iron the Nations: Now the Dragon he would rule, and therefore the Dragon hath great wrath against the Lamb, knowing his time to be short. When he was seen by Iohn to be cast out of Heaven into Earth, he falls a perse­cuting the woman that brought forth Christ: When the Dragon could do nothing to Christ he sets upon the woman, when she was flying into the wilderness, which is her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the Serpent. The Dragon casteth out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away therewith. And when the Dragon could do no good with the wo­man, he was wroth with her, and went to make War with the remnant of her seed. First he seeks to destroy Christ in us; if he cannot prevail that way, then he will seek to devour the woman that brings forth Christ; when he cannot do that, then he will seek to devour her seed.

First, If it be so, That no sooner is the Church of Christ ready to bring forth Jesus Christ, but the Dragon stands ready to devour him, then let the woman and her seed beware [Page] of him, let her seed especially: And as for the woman, she hath a place prepared for her in the Wilderness, from the face of the Serpent, Revel. 12. 14. A great blessedness it is, though it be in the wilderness, that is, in a bewilded state, for there the child Jesus is kept from the Dragons mouth. O ye remnant of the wo­mans seed! therefore the Dragon went to make war with you; and therefore I will di­rect my speech to you: It is you the Dragon aims at, it is you the Dragon will have about with, it is you that he will make war with; stand to your arms therefore, be not without your weapons always in your hands; be al­ways girt about with truth, and having on the brest-plate of Righteousness, and your feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of Peace; and above all, take the shield of Faith, wherewith you shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the Devil: And take the hel­met of Salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all persever­ance, lest you be conquered, and your Jesus de­voured before your face. Above all take the shield of Faith: The best weapon to fight a­gainst the Dragon is Faith.

Quest. But you will ask me, What is it? and how shall we use it? I shall according to [Page] my light shew you that, because Faith is little spoken of now adays, and so make an end.

Ans. First, I shall shew you what Faith is; It is the fixing of the heart on Christ, Ps. 57. 7. It is the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen, Hebr. 1. 1.

First of all, Faith is the substance of things hoped for by us; that is, it is the ground or confidence of things hoped for; it gives us ground and confidence of things that are ho­ped for by us.

Secondly, It is the evidence of, or it is that which evidenceth to our spirits, things not seen; that is, things we do not see, it is that which evidenceth to us things not seen, or it is the conviction of things not seen by us, it convinceth us of things not seen.

The next thing is, how faith is to be used a­gainst the Dragon; just as Iacob used it when he wrestled with the Angel: But how was that? See Gen. 32. 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29. And Iacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him, until the breaking of the day: And when he saw that he prevailed not a­gainst him, he touched the hollow of Iacobs thigh, and the hollow of Iacobs thigh was out of joynt. Here is Iacob and an Angel wrest­ling together till break of day; here is the Angel not prevailing: when the Angel saw he prevailed not against Iacob, he put Iacobs [Page] thigh out of joynt as he wrestled with him, which was to try Iacobs faith. See here the hollow of Iacobs thigh out of joynt: After the doing of which by the Angel, he saith, Let me go, Iacob: The Angel would have been gone, had not Iacobs faith kept him from go­ing: Saith Iacob, I will not let thee go with­out a blessing: As if he should have said, Bless me, and then thou shalt go; I must be blessed, and I am resolved to be blessed, notwithstand­ing the hollow of my thigh is out of joynt: Here is Iacobs faith, he would not let go, but he would hang upon the Angel still. Just as if two were wrestling together, and the one should put out the hollow of the thigh of the other, and that other, though he could not wrestle, should hang upon the other, and hold him with his hands: So it is here; Iacob, though he cannot wrestle, yet he hangs upon and holds with his hands the Angel, and is re­solved he will hang there, and if the Angel went he would go with him, hanging upon him, unless the Angel blessed him: Behold, what faith is here? When the Angel saw he would not let him go unless he blessed him, the Angel asked him his name; and he said his name was Iacob: And the Angel said, Thou shalt no more be called Iacob, but Israel; which signifies a prevailer and conqueror: There is the blessing. So that let your hearts [Page] be fixed on Christ, as one that is not only a­bove you, that is to say, in the Heavens, but also within you; and do not mind the Dra­gon so much as faith in Christ: We fight a­gainst the Dragon and sin many times, and never think of Christ; but let your eyes be set upon him, and do not wrestle with the Dragon, but with Christ against the Dragon, and then you wrestle aright. We wrestle with the Dragon, and not with Christ against the Dragon, we never think of him, and that is the reason we do not prevail: Wrestle with Christ against the Dragon, and let your eyes be placed on him, and though he touch the hollow of your thigh, & put it out of joynt, as I may so say, that is, take away your strength, so that you cannot wrestle with Christ, as many times he doth take away our power, to see whether we, though we cannot wrestle, yet will depend and hang upon him; tell Christ, if he attempts to go away from you, that though you cannot wrestle with him, yet you will depend and hang upon him, that if he go away, it shall be with you hang­ing upon him; though he say to you, Let me go, yet do you reply again to him, and say, We will not let thee go, except thou bless us: Then he will enquire of your names, and give you other names, and call you Israelites, that is, Prevailers over the Dragon.