Ifaiah xlii. verf. 8.

V. 9.

chap. xli,

V. 21.

▼. 22.

Enquiry of Mankind, and when they are invited to be their own Judges, by thofe who instruct them: The Accomplishment of Prophecies is of this Kind, it is an Appeal to the World, and to this effect we find it infifted on by the Prophet Ifaiah, in the following Paffages, as a Convincing and Distinguishing Proof of the True God, in Opposition to Idols.

"I am the Lord, that is my Name, and my "Glory will I not give to another, neither my Praise to graven Images.

"Behold, the former Things are come to pass, "and New Things do I declare, before they "fpring forth I tell you of them.

Produce your Caufe, faith the Lord, bring "forth your strong Reasons, faith the King of "Jacob.

"Let them bring forth and shew us what shall "happen, let them shew the former Things what "they be, that we may confider them, and "know the latter End of them, or declare us * Things for to come.

«Shew

>

"Shew the Things that are to come hereafter "that we may know that ye are Gods; yea, do "Good or do Evil, that we may be Difmayed, and "behold it together.

"Behold, ye are of nothing, and your Work 24 "of nought, an Abomination is he that chooseth K you.

9.

"Let all Nations be gathered together, and chap. xliii. "let the People be affembled; Who among them " can declare this, and fhew us former Things? "let them bring forth their Witneffes, that they may be Justified, or let them hear and say, it

«

" is Truth.

23.

Ye are my Witneffes, faith the Lord, and 10 "my Servant whom I have chosen, that ye may "know and believe me, and understand that I "am He.

"I have declared, and have faved, and have fhew- 12. "ed when there was no ftrange God among you, "Therefore ye are my Witneffes, faith the Lord, "that I am God.

"I have declared the former Things from the ch. xlviii "beginning, and they went forth out of my 3.

A 2

Mouth,

v. 5.

6.

7.

"Mouth,and I fhewed them, I did then fuddainly, "and they came to pass.

"I have even from the beginning declared it Сс to thee, before it came pafs I fhewed it thee, "left thou shouldft fay, mine Idol has done them, "and my graven Image, and my molten Image "has commanded them.

"Thou hast heard, fee all this, and will not "ye declare it? I have fhewed thee new Things "from this time, even hidden Things, and thou "didft not know them.

"They are created now, and not from the beginning, even before the Day when thou "heardft them not, left thou shouldft fay, BeCC hold, I knew them.

Thus does the Prophet Isaiah employ the the strongest Terms to Recommend the Study of Prophecy, and the Obfervation of the Events which confirm the Truth of it, and St. Peter applies the Old Prophecies to the Times after Christ's Birth, in these words,

"Of which Salvation the Prophets have en-
.. 'quired

"quired and fearched diligently, who prophecy'd 1 Pet. i. "of the Grace that fhould come unto you.

10.

"Searching what, or what manner of Time "the Spirit of Chrift, which was in them, did "fignifie, when it teftified before-hand the Suffer"ings of Christ, and the Glory that should "follow.

"Unto whom it was Revealed, that not unto "themselves, but unto Us they did minister "the Things which are now Reported unto you "by them that have preached the Gospel unto you, with the holy Ghoft fent down from Hea"ven, which Things the Angels defire to look ❝into.

CC

11,

12.

And as the greatest Arguments made ufe of to the Jews, to prove that Christ was the Meffiah, were taken from their Prophets, so that the like Arguments might not be wanting through-out all the Times of the Chriftian Church, St. John has left us,

2.

"The Revelation of Jefus Chrift, which God

sc gave unto him, to fhew unto his Servants the Rev. i. 1.

L

"Things

Rev. v. I.

7.

"Things which must shortly come to pafs; and

"he sent and fignified it by his Angel unto his

"Servant John.

"Bleffed is he that Readeth, and they that

"Hear the Words of this Prophecy, and keep

thofe Things which are written therein, for the

"Time is at hand.

This Prophecy appears chiefly to be contain'd
within A Book written within, and on the back-
Side, Sealed with feven Seals, which the Lamb----

took out of the Right Hand of Him that fate upon

the Throne, and Opened the feveral Seals one after

ch. vi. 1, 2, another, whofe Contents compared with History,
will be found to defcribe all that was to come to
ch. viii. 1. pass in the Roman Empire, after the Time of St.
John's writing, which was about ninty five years

3, 5, 7, 9,

12.

after Chrifts Birth.

Dan. xii, 4.

This is, in all appearance, the fame Book, in
which Daniel is ordered To shut up the Words,

and Seal the Book, even to the Time of the End,

when it was to be further Explained by St. John,

and Unsealed, in order of Time, as the Events

were