Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB

A

Antioch! who must cease from being a City (the chief City in Syria), because of thy Folly, thou shalt again be taken by the Italian Armies; and then Scyrus fhall be destroy'd by a Plague and a cruel War.

Note, By these words, Then came into the West great Contention in a War, we muft understand the Invafions in the Weft by the Goths and other Northern People: And by these words, He that fled from Rome shall raife a great Army, and pafs Euphrates, is fignified the Turks, who came from Perfia into Syria,A. D. 1075, and fettl'd at Damafcus, and fome of 'em in Phenicia. These words, Antioch fhall fall thro' its foolishness, and there fhall be a Famine and a grievous Fight in Syria, relate to the Times of the Holy War. It was taken by the Chriftians, here call'd the Italian Armies, ann. 1098, and was betray'd by one Pyrrhus to them; and to this the Prophecy refers, and not to the taking of Antioch by Lucullus or Pompey, be cause this Prophecy fucceeds that of the Deftruction of the Jews. Saladine retook Antioch, an. 1 188, which ever declin'd afterwards; and there was a Plague in the Holy War.

Alas, alas! O miferable Cyprus! the Waves of the broad Sea fhall destroy thee, who art tofs'd by Winter Storms:

Note, That Richard King of England took Cy pris, after he had been long tofs'd in a Storm near it, as he went to the Holy War.

But great Riches fhall come into Afia,when
Rome fhall repay twice as much of the
H

Riches

1

1

Riches which she had laid up in her large Treafury. [This is the Expence of the Popes of Rome in the Holy War.]

The Cities of the Carians fhall be destroy'd, which are beautifully built, like Towers on the Banks of Meander, (a River in great Phrygia) by a grievous Plague, when Maander fhall hide its black Water.

But when Righteoufnefs, Faith, and Juftice are destroy'd, by Men who give themfelves to wicked Enterprizes, and they fhall be guilty of foul Injuries, and many other ill things, and none fhall vindicate or efteem the Juft, but, delighting in Injustice, they fhall destroy all of 'em in Rage and Madness, polluting their Hands with much Slaughter; then they fhall know God is not any longer patient, but in time will judge and destroy all the Generations of Mankind by a great Burning. [Thus the Turks must be destroy'd.]

Ah foolish Men! repent of these things, and do not provoke the Great God to Anger of all kinds, but lay afide your Weapons, your Torments, your Murders, and Injustice, and wash your Body in perpetually-flowing Rivers; and ftretching your Hands towards the Skies, ask Pardon for your Actions paft, and make amends for your Impiety, which has been great, by a righteous Life, and then God will repent, and not deftroy you, but cease from his Anger again, if you all will follow after an honourable Righteoufnefs in your Souls:

But

But if you will not be perfwaded by me, O Men of an evil Heart! but love Unrighteousness, and receive thefe Advices with a perverse Mind, Fire fhall come into the World, and thefe Signs fhall appear in it, Swords, and the found of a Trumpet when the Sun rifes, and all the World fhall hear a bellowing and vehement Noife; and the Earth fhall burn. And after the Fire hath destroy'd all Mankind, and all Cities, and Rivers, and Seas fhall be burnt up, then all things fhall become Soot and Afhes; but when all things fhall be Afhes, like burnt Minerals, and God fhall extinguish this immenfe Fire, which he had kindl'd out of the Bones and Ashes, God fhall again form Men; and when he hath made Men as they were before, then fhall the Judgment be, in which God fhall act juftly, judging the World again; and they who have liv'd wickedly, fhall again be cover'd by the Earth, but they who are righteous, shall live again on the Earth, the Spirit of God giving them Life and fufficient Provisions; and then all Men fhall know themselves. Happy is the Man who fhall live at that Timě.

Note, That this Book carries the Hiftory of the Romans as far as the Holy War, and there ftops, but concludes with the burning of the World. And the coming of the Turk over Euphrates, is defcrib'd by Nero; Tiberius had the Cognomen of Nero: And Suetonius obferves this of it, that it

H 2

fig

fignifies, forti et ftrenuus, in lingua Sabina. And upon the fame Account the Turk is call'd Nero. The defect in the Account of the Roman Affairs is fupply'd in the fifth and eighth Books. This Book keeps the Order of the Hiftory in the four Monarchies, till the time mention'd; and is a general Account of thofe things that will be more particularly defcrib'd hereafter.

THE

T.HE

FIFTH BOOK.

[ocr errors]

The CONTENT S.

The feems to be writ by the fame Sibyl as the fourth Book, and to contain a farther Account of the Roman Empire, beginning with the Cæfars, and ending with Adrian, and the number of each first Letter of the Emperor's Name is express'd after thofe Emperors; Three must reign, and the third fhall command all.

Nile, by its undation fpall deftroy Egypt, and Memphis become vile in the laft Times, when the morft Generation of Men fhall live, (that is, the Saracens.) All the Idolatry in Egypt fhall be destroy'd, and Alexandria alfo, and then a wicked Man fhall deftroy all the Earth, (that is Omar,) and the fame Perfon who conquer'd Perha fhall War with Egypt, and kill all Men, a third part remaining, (this is the Turks War with the Saracens.) Then a King fhall come from the Weft, and deftroy all the Land (in the Holy War,) but when the terrible Man (the Saracen Caliph) fhall prevail, and take Jerusalem, then a valiant King fent from Heaven fball.deftroy the great King the Saracens in Egypt;)

H 3

there

« AnteriorContinuar »