A commentary upon the book of the Revelation Wherein the text is explained, the…A commentarie upon the book of the Revelation Wherein the text is explained, the…

The second Verse hath the third thing whereby He is described, He had in his hand a little book open, some way like Him that sat upon the Throne, Chap. 5. only with this difference, that there it was in the Fathers hand, here in Christs; there it is called simply a book, here a little book that was sealed, this is open: what is meant by His appearing with the book in his hand, will appear from the end of the Chapter. It holdeth forth here our Lord Jesus Christ to be the sender of the Gospel through the earth, and the having of it, as it were, in His hand to send in a manifest and clear manner, even then when it is most obscured and darkened in the world; for which cause, this book is open in His hand, when the Temple and Ordinances were shut up amongst men as we may gather from the last vers. of the 11. Chap.

The second Verse hath the third thing whereby He is described, He had in his hand a little book open, some way like Him that sat upon the Throne, Chap. 5. only with this difference, that there it was in the Fathers hand, here in Christs; there it is called simply a book, here a little book that was sealed, this is open: what is meaned by His appearing with the book in his hand, will appear from the end of the Chapter. It holdeth forth here our Lord Jesus Christ to be the sender of the Gospel through the earth, and the having of it, as it were, in His hand to send in a manifest and clear manner, even then when it is most obscured and darkened in the world; for which cause, this book is open in His hand, when the Temple and Ordinances were shut up amongst men as we may gather from the last vers. of the 11. Chap.

It is much debated what this little book is; whether it be the same, mentioned, Chap. 5. or, any distinct book, containing distinct prophesies from what was in that book, as if what followeth in this prophecy were revealed to John by his eating of this last book, as being contained in it. It is not necessary much to debate this, considering, that it is represented to John in vision, and for another scope than the present furnishing of John for completing of this prophecy. It will therefore be more suitable to say, that this book is the same mentioned, Chap. 5. as now in the hand of the Mediator, and opened by Him, and now called little, because so much only may be accounted, as hath not been by the former prophesies discovered; or, we may take the type of the open book to signify the preserving of the Doctrine of the Gospel, as if it were written on record, and kept in the hand of the Mediator, and therefore can neither of it self be vitiate nor destroyed by Antichrist or Mahomet. This, the scope, and the commanding of John to eat it, seem to favour; but, that it should contain prophesies, different from what was contained in the former book, Chap. 5. so that the former prophesies belong to that book, and what followeth this Chapter, to this book, mentioned here, we cannot assent to, 1. Because all the trumpets belonged to the first book, as being comprehended under the seventh seal of that book, Chap. 8. but the seventh trumpet followeth in the close of the eleventh, and is further explicated to the end of the book: Therefore all these prophesies are contained in the first book, mentioned Chap. 5. 2. This Chapter and the next, unto the 15. vers. do belong to the second woe; and therefore must be supposed to be contained in the same book with the first part, Chap. 9. Again, 3. if that series laid down in the preface to the 6. Chap. hold, that the seventh seal comprehendeth the seven trumpets; and again, the seventh trumpet, the seven vials, Then the seven vials are comprehended under the seventh trumpet, and so both vials and trumpets under the seventh seal. Beside, if this following part of the prophecy were compared