Extract from Untitled Treatise on Revelation (section 1.3)
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PROP. II.
The seven Vials of wrath described in Chap 15 & 16 are the same with ye Plagues or woes of the seven Trumpets in Chap 8, 9, 10, 11.
This will appear by the following comparison of each Vial with each Trumpet.
Here the hail & fire mingled with blood wch were cast upon the earth answers to ye Vial poured out upon ye earth. And the trees & grass wch were burnt up answer to ye men wch were infected with ye noysom & grievous sore. ffor trees & grass in visions are used to signify men of high & low degree. |Def | |Yet it is to be noted that notwithstanding this external resemblance of this Trumpet & Vial their interpretation is somthing different.|
The parallelism of ye second third & fourth Trumpet & Vial is manifest. And in this fift there is darkness in both cases; & the seat of ye beast corresponds to the men wch had not ye mark of God in their foreheads; & the pains & sores to ye stingings of Serpents wth wch men were exceedingly tormented but not killed.
VI. Ch. 9.13, 14, 16. And the sixt Angel sounded, & I heard a voicesaying – loos ye four Angels wch | Ch 16.12. And ye sixt Angel poured out his Vial upon the great River Eu |
Here the four Angels bound at Euphrates with their Army manifestly answers to ye kings of the East at ye same river.
Thus you see the agreement between the plagues of the seven Vials & the woes of ye seven Trumpets is throughout very punctual; so that I think there can be no doubting of their sameness, especially if it be further considered that the filling of the Censer with fire of ye Altar & casting it on ye Earth (Ch 8.5) might be a type of the pouring out of these Vials by the Angel wch came out of the Temple, & so introduced on purpose to insinuate the connexion of these severall parts of the Apocalyps by ye resemblance of the actions.
And as ye censer \may/ be a representative of ye Vials, so the sealed saints with which ye Prophesy of ye Trumpets is introduced (ch 7.3) corresponds to them that had gotten ye victory over the Beast {sic} & over his Image &c. wth which the other Prophesy of ye Vials is introduced, ch 15.2. ffor ye sealed Saints were contemporary with ye Beast (as shall be shewed hereafter) & consequently were the same with those that got the victory over him.
Object. The Plagues {sic} of the Vials are called the seven last Plagues, ch 15.1. And therefore they succede ye woes of the Trumpets.
Resp. It follows onely that they succeed the first six seales whose calamities of warr desolation & persecution were the first plagues prophesied of in this book, & these the calamities of the last seal. For with respect to that seale they may be properly called the last plagues, especiallly since there was to be none after them. |Or els it might be becaus they were to happen in those ages wch ye Apostels called ye last times.|
< insertion from p 8 >I have here put a parallelism between the falling of the tenth part of the city, & the falling of the cities of the nations, not as if they were ye same, but because I take ye former which concludes the sixt Trumpet to be an immediate prodromus \fore-runner/ of the latter wherewith the seventh Vial begins.
And thus you see the agreement between the plagues of the seven the seven vials & ye woes of the seven Trumpets is throughout very punctuall, so that I think there can be no doubting of their sameness | coincidence., especially if it be further considered \I may add that/ that their Introductions also very much resemble one another. For ye sealed saints wth wch ye Prophesy of the Trumpets is introduced (ch 7.3) correspond {sic} to them that had gotten \get/ the victory over the Beast & over his Image &c wth wch ye other Prophesy of ye Vials is introduced ch 15.2 ffor ye sealed saints were contemporary wth ye Beast as shall be shewed hereafter, & consequently were ye same wth those that got ye victory over him. Also ye Vision of offering incense at ye Altar before ye Angels began to sound, corresponds | has some resemblance to ye vision of ye Temple appearing opened in heaven & filled with smoke from ye glory of God, out of wch ye seven angels came to pour out ye Vials. Also It may be al And \perhaps/ ye filling of the Censer wth fire of the Altar & casting it on the Earth (ch 8.5) seems to be \may through ye resemblance of ye actions ~ ~ ~ may be conceived as it were/ a type of ye pouring out of these vials by the Angels wch came out of the Temple. & \is/ introduced on purpose to insinuate ye connexion of these severall parts of ye Apocalyps by the resemblance of the actions. And lastly in that ye Vials are called ye seven last Plagues they suit well wth ye Trumpets wch are ye plagues of the last Seale & inflicted on those wicked ages wch ye Prophets & Apostles considered as ye last times.