BOOK 10. THE JUDGEMENT.
CHAPTER 1.
10.1.1. Of Christ's preparing for Judgment.
Of Christ's preparing for Judgment.
I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth; whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold,
and not another..
Job 19:27
And is not yet all done! O the unwearied patience, love, mercy, and free grace of Christ in carrying on this mighty work! He begun it before the beginning of the world, since then he hath been labouring in and about six thousand years; and now the time of restoring being come, he will perfect what he hath begun, and bring on the other end of the golden chain, "Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them he also called, and whom he called, them he also justified; and whom he justified them he also glorified" Rom. viii. 30. In this piece also, as in the former, we shall first lay down the object, and then give directions how to look upon it.
The object is Jesus, carrying on the great work of our salvation in his coming again to earth, and taking up with him all his saints into heaven. In this work I shall set before you these particulars;
- Christ's preparing for judgment (this section).
and following sections:
- Christ's coming to judgment.
- Christ's summons of the elect to come under judgment.
- , Christ and his saints meeting at the judgment day.
- Christ's sentencing or judging the saints for eternal glory.
- Christ and the saints judging the rest of the world.
- Christ and his saints going up into heaven when shall be the end of this world.
- Christ surrendering and delivering up the kingdom to God, even the Father.
- Christ's subjection to the Father, that God may be all in all.
- Christ (notwithstanding this) being all in all to his blessed, saved, and redeemed saints to all eternity.
For his preparing for judgment. When once the number of all his elect shall be completed, and the work of his intercession shall be at an end, then immediately will follow these particulars. As, --
1. "A great voice comes out of the temple of heaven, saying, it is done," Rev. xvi. 17. It comes out of the temple of heaven, that we may understand it to be the voice of Christ. And if this speech be directed unto God, it is as if Christ had bespoke his Father thus, "and now, O my Father! I have done that office of the priesthood, which by agreement we erected, it is now at an end; here I have sat at thy right hand interceding for my saints, ever since my ascension; and of all that thou hast given me, by thine eternal election, I have not lost a saint," John xvii. 12. "In their several ages I produced them, and gave them a being, and in their times I remembered them, and presented their conditions and necessities before thee; and now [ have not a saint more in the book of life, there is not another name written to be born on earth; and to what purpose should I now continue the world? The saints are they for whom I made the world, the saints are they that hold forth the light of my glory in the world, the saints are they for whom my eternal counsels before the world did work, the saints are they for whom I was content to shed my precious blood when I was in that world below; and now their number is completed, I am resolved to unpin the fabric of the world, and to take it down; it stands but for their sakes, and therefore now let the seventh angel blow his trumpet, that the mystery, of God may be finished," Rev. x. 7. "I swear by him that lives forever and ever, that time shall be no longer," verse 6.
2. No sooner is this said, but the "seventh angel sounds," Rev. xi. 15. This seventh angel (saith Pareus) is the archangel that proclaims Christ's coming with a great and mighty shout, "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God," 1 Thess. iv. 16. The Lord shall descend with a shout, but before he descend, and I believe upon the very discovery of his coining down, there will be a shout in heaven; for so it follows, "And the seventh angel sounded, and there were great voices in heaven, if we believe commentaries, (Pareus in loc.) these are the voices of blessed souls, and blessed angels in heaven; no sooner Christ bids the angels (sound) q.d. Summon those blessed souls that were slain for the word of God, and therefore cried, "How long, Lord, holy and true?" Rev. vi. 10. Summon those blessed souls, that have cried so long, "Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly," Rev. xxii. 20. Summon all souls, and summon all angels, and bid them wait on me, now I resolve to go down and to judge the world; no sooner, I say, Christ bids the angel sound; but presently at the joy of this command, all the voices in heaven gave up a shout; why, this is the long-looked for day; the day of perfecting the number of the saints; the day of joining the souls and bodies of the saints together; the day of convening all the families both of saints and angels under one roof; the day of bringing up the bride unto the Lamb, and of completing the marriage into its highest solemnity; and therefore no wonder, if at this news great voices and cries (such as are used by mariners, or gatherers of the vintage) were made in heaven. Oh! What an addition of joy is this to heaven's joy itself. The spirits of the just, and the blessed angels that have lived together in heaven's bless; had never such an adventitious joy as this before; now they shout and sing a new and blessed song, "The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever," Rev. xi. 15. We may call this heaven's triumph for the finishing of God's mystery. Now it is that Christ will vindicate his kingdom, and overthrow the power of his enemies, they had long set themselves against the Lord, and against his anointed; the kings of the earth, and the rulers confederated, they ruled all, and as much as in them lay, excluded Christ; but now the kingdoms of the world will return to Christ, and he alone shall rule; and hence the winged choristers of heaven chant forth this anthem, "The kingdoms of the world are become the kingdoms of Christ."
3. After this shout, "The four and twenty elders which sit before God on their seats, fall upon their faces, and worship God, saying. We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come, because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned, and the nations were angry," etc. Rev. xi. 16, 17, 18. By these four and twenty elders, we understand all God's saints of the Old and New Testament, comprehended under the twelve patriarchs, and twelve apostles; others would have them to be only those saints of the Old Testament, and therefore called elders; whosoever they are, we find they are so glad at this news, that Christ will now judge the world, that presently they rise off their seats, and fall on their faces; and first they praise, and then they pray.
(a). They praise God for taking to himself his own power; Christ connived (as it were) till now at the power of his enemies; antichrist, and not Christ, seemed to rule, and to sit in the temple of God, but now Christ is resolved to rule himself, and to make all his enemies his footstool; and therefore now "we give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty."
(b). They pray Christ to go on to judgment.
(i). Because the nations were angry," Rev. xi. 18. q.d. They have been angry long enough, they have set themselves against Christ, and against his church; and therefore now it is time to bridle their wrath, and to break them with a rod of iron; "O let thy wrath come."
(ii). Because the time of judgment is now accomplished, which God hath decreed in his eternal counsel, and which the Father hath put in his own power; "This time was not for mortals to know, but now it was revealed to these celestial spirits by Christ; and therefore they beg, Go on Lord Jesus; reward now thy servants, prophets, and saints, and destroy them which destroy the earth."(Mortalibus ignotum, coelestibus vero nunc revelatum a Christo. Parens in loc.)
4. God the Father, is well pleased with Christ's purpose of judging the world. "The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool," Psal. cx. 1. I know these words were spoken to Christ at his ascension into heaven; yet that hinders not but that now God speaks them again to Christ; for "as yet (saith the apostle) we see not all things put under him," Heb. ii. 8. And God's purpose was that Christ should rule, until he had put all things in subjection under his feet. Nay, why not these words spoken now, rather than before? Christ indeed reigned as king, ever since his ascension; but now more especially he is to manifest his kingdom, for now is he to "judge among the heathen; now is he to wound the heads of many countries," Psal. cx. 6. Now is he to overthrow Pope, Turk, and all his enemies, and he alone, with the Father and the Spirit, is to reign in his elect saints and angels. Thus all agree, That Christ in the latter days shall be fully honoured in his kingly power; hitherto Christ hath been much honoured in his prophetical and priestly office; but not so much in his kingly office, but now he must be fully honoured in his kingly office, now, especially "The kingdoms of this world must become the kingdoms of the Lord, and his Christ, and so he shall reign forever and ever," Rev. xi. 15. Certainly there is a difference betwixt Christ's reign before, and his present reign at the day of judgment; Christ hath a double throne wherein he sits and reigns, "To him that overcomes will I give to sit with me in my throne, as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne," Rev. iii. 21. The kingly rule that Christ hath from his ascension is upon his Father's throne, but the kingdom that Christ shall have at the day of judgment, and ever after, it is the joint reign of him with the Father, he shall have a throne himself, and the saints shall sit with him in his own throne: and now, saith the Father, "Sit thou at my right hand," q.d. "Sit on my throne by me; go on to judge the nations; I will not judge them but only in thee, and by thee; Lo! I have committed all judgment unto the Son," John v. 22. "and do thou judge them, until thou hast rewarded thy friends, and made thine enemies thy footstool." Mark, "he hath committed all judgment to the Son;" the Father gives the Son a commission, wherein is written (as it were) these words. "My Son, now is the time and season which I had put in my own power, and my pleasure is that all the world shall be set on fire; these heavens under thee shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat; the earth also, and the works that are therein shall be burnt up," 2 Pet. iii. 10. "And I will have new heavens, and a new earth, wherein shall dwell righteousness," verse 13. Go to then, put on thy robes, appear in thy glory; empty this heaven of all those glorious spirits that are therein, and let them wait on thee to thy judgment-seat; go pass thy doom on all flesh; and send reprobates to hell, and bring up hither all thy saints, that they may live with thee, and here behold thy glory for over and ever. Lo! here is thy commission, be gone, and return no more hither until it be accomplished."
Use. Christians, I cannot but wonder at this joy and exultation in heaven, and that we have so little, or none of this on earth; we say with cold lips, and frozen hearts, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven;" but if our prayers were real and fervent, if we could but imitate those heavenly citizens, what longings would be in our hearts after Christ's coming? How should we rejoice at the very thoughts thereof; Christ comforting his disciples in respect hereof, he speaks these words, "When these things begin to come to pass, then look up, (said he) and lift up your heads, for your redemption draweth nigh," Luke xxi. 28. The fulness of our redemption is a ground of consolation; all the spirits above are sensible of this; God, and Christ, and the angels, and saints rejoice, and again rejoice, "The spirit and the bride say come," Rev. xxii. 17, and Christ himself saith, "Surely, I come quickly; O! Let us say Amen to it; "Even so come. Lord Jesus," verse 20.