The holy city, or, The new-Jerusalem wherein its goodly light walls, gates, angels, and…The holy citie, or, The new-Jerusalem wherein its goodly light walls, gates, angels, and…

But secondly, The Twelve Foundations that here you read of, they are the ⟨p. 164⟩^†same with those twelve Stones that long before were set in the Breastplate of Judgment, in which were engraven the Names of the twelve Tribes of the children of Israel, the names of which Tribes did comprehend the whole body of the house of their fathers, Exod. 28. 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, 29. Exod. 39. 14. Now then, seeing these Twelve are the same with those on the Breastplate of Judgement; and seeing also, that those on the Breastplate did comprehend the whole of the twelve Tribes: I conclude that for these Foundations to be garnished with all manner of precious Stones, it is as much as to say, they shall be garnished with abundance of Converts; Multitudes, and that of all sorts both of Jews and Gentiles, Moors, Tartars, Turks, and those in the utmost parts of the World, shall now be entangled with the Light and Truth, with the Glory and Goodness of the Doctrine² of the Twelve. And I the rather take it thus, 1. Because, as the Foundations themselves are said to be precious Stones: so also the Saints in general, they go under the same names too. As Jeremiah ³saith, The precious Stones of the Sanctuary, are the precious Sons of Zion: As ⟨p. 165⟩Peter also saith, in alluding to the precious⁴ Stones of the Temple: The Saints, are lively, or living precious stones, built up a spiritual house, &c. and the foundations ⁵of the Wall were garnished with all manner of precious stones; That is, the Doctrine of the Twelve was garnished with all manner of precious souls; that is, converted by it, by which they become a glory and a garnishing to it.