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Saviour himself (c. 19. 15.) who when he comes
to execute Divine Vengeance upon the Earth, gives
his orders in these words, Gather the clusters of the Vine
of the Earth, for her grapes are fully ripe. And thereupon
the Destroying Angel thrust in his sickle into the Earth,
and gathered the Vine of the Earth, and cast it into the
great Wine-press of the Wrath of God. And this made a
potion, compounded of several ingredients, but not diluted with water; (ch. 14. 10.) and was indeed a potion
of fire and brimstone and all burning materials mixt
together. The similitudes of Scripture are seldom
nice and exact, but rather bold, noble and great; and
according to the circumstances which we have observ'd, This Vineyard seems to be the Earth, and this
Vintage the end of the World; The pressing of the
Grapes into the cup or vessel that receives them, the
distillation of burning liquors from all parts of the
Earth into the trough of the Sea; and that lake of
red Fire, the bloud of those Grapes so flowing into it.
'Tis true, this judgment of the Vintage and Winepress, and the effects of it, seem to aim more especially at some particular region of the Earth, ch. 14.20.
And I am not against that, provided the substance of
the explication be still retained, and the universal Sea
of Fire be that which follows in the next Chapter,
under the name of a Sea of Glass, mingled with Fire;
This I think expresses the highest and compleat state
of the Conflagration; when the Mountains are fled
away, and not only so, but the exterior region of
the Earth quite dissolv'd, like wax before the Sun;
The Chanel of the Sea fill'd with a mass of fluid fire,
and the same fire overflowing all the Globe, and covering the whole Earth, as the Deluge, or the first
Abyss. Then will the Triumphal Songs and Hallelujah's be sung for the Victories of the Lamb over all
his Enemies and over Nature it self. Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty: Just and true
are thy ways thou King of Saints. Who shall not fear thee
O Lord, and glorifie thy name? for thou only art holy:
for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy
judgments are made manifest.
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