Birds, and by the Power of the perpetual Fire, where God was, as before obferved, a confuming Fire upon that typical Altar; the Ashes were to be esteemed facred, having undergone the Vengeance and Purification of Fire, and were to be deposited in a clean Place. Now in the Antitype, when Chrift who is a confuming and purifying Fire, as real as that was which burned on the Altar, though hidden, and of a bleffed Power; when he has confumed the Flefh of the outer Man; the Root and Caufe of all Sins and Trefpaffes, and made it to perifh daily, he renews the inner Man, and the immortal Body Day by Day, that is, continually : He reftores and quickens all that was dead; what he killeth in the Flesh, he makes alive in the Spirit, the fpiritual Body; for there is no Spirit (b) naked and unclothed, but clothed, that is, married and made one with his (i) proper Body, heavenly Flesh, and his incorruptible (k) Bride and Wife.---Now, in the continual Mi (b) Cudworth's intell. Syftem, Vol. II. 505. (i) I Cor. xv. 38. (*) Eph. v. 28-xxxii. 1 niftry of Chrift under the Gofpel, the figurative Rite of cleanfing the Altar has its full Senfe. For he is always deftroying the (Body of Death by a fecret Operation of his Water and Fire, the Powers of the new Creation or Regeneration from him; into this (m) Body of Sin, meaning what Adam's firft Sin brought forth, he enters with his almighty Rays; for these are the Sword and Fire of God in the true Senfe of the (2) Prophets, with which the Lord pleadeth with all Flesh; into our earthen Veffels is the Spirit, or new Seed of the incorruptible Word fown, and is the carneft of the Measure of the Stature of Chrift, because he will ripen it by his own Beams, and feed it with the Water of Life, till it grow up to the Fulnefs of his heavenly Form and Image. Of this we have the Figure in the fecret Spirit of Fire and Water in our prefent Generation, which carry us through an hidden Process of Changes beyond all human Knowledge to find out, into the Form of a living Soul, (1) Rom. vii. (m) Rom. vi. 6. (n) Ifai. lxvi. 16. Jerem. xxv. 31. or or earthly Man. The great Priest, who has an higher Water and Fire, another Laver of Regeneration and another Altar of perpetual Fire, in the End of his Power and Victory over all Things, will break to Pieces all Nations, flay the Flesh of all, Peoples and grind it to Powder by that all-powerful Fire, which is ever active and working upon all the Elements of our corruptible Creation, and will work, till they shall be burned and purified, and till the (o) new Heavens and new Earth of his creating fhall appear, wherein dwelleth Righteousness. For, Chrift will at laft (p) melt the Rocks and Hills as Wax, thresh the Mountains and make the Heathen * Ashes under his Feet; and when Cc 2 all (0) II. Pet. iii. 9.-vii. 13. Ifai. lxv. 17. Rev. (p) Pf. lxcvii. 5. xxi. I. ix. 13. Heb. iii. 12. Ifai. iii. 43. Amos. In + the Beginning God created the Heavens and the Earth. Heaven has three Principles, Lives and Powers in one Effence or Root, Fire, Light and Air, which co-operate as the active Caufe of all Life and Motion: + Gen. i. I. Earth all Things are destroyed from their prefent Form and Power, he will again, in the Fulness of Times and Ages, make all Things new, as they were before the Fall of Satan and Adam. Now, as the Chriftian Church ftands near to the Time of the Feast of Trumpets to be fulfilled in the Gospel-Difpenfation, which, as it was in the feventh Trumpet of the Law from the first Month, Abib, must be the Seventh Trumpet under the Gospel, anfwering to the founding of the (9) Seventh Angel in St. John's Revelation; for the Law and the Gospel are only to be confidered as Counterparts and Correlatives. And as the prophetical Numbers of Daniel and (2) Rev. x. 7.-xi. 15. Earth alfo contains thrce Principles, Spirit, Water and Blood from one Root; and thefe are the paffive Matter or Ground for all Bodies and Forms, the Mother of all external Manifeftation. They exift in all Creations, as the Images and Reprefentatives of that God in his three fold Effence, who cannot be known but by limited and bounded Manifeftations. In his abfolute Infinity, he remains an unknown Abyss; and is only revealed by creaturely Images, and out-births, which have their Centre and Circumference circumfcribed. 1 and John appear to be near their End, (r) See the Rev. Mr. Burton on the Numbers of The END. **** |