through the midst of the palace of the king of old Babylon. The revenues of the Pope have been like the waters of a great river, coming into his palace, from innumerable fountains, and by innumerable branches and lesser streams, coming from many various and distant countries.

This prophecy represents to us two cities very contrary the one to the other; viz. New Babylon and the New Jerusalem, and a river running through the midst of each. The new Jerusalem, which signifies the church of Christ, especially in her best estate, is described as having a river running through the midst of it, Rev. xxii. 1, 2. This river, as might easily be made most evident, by comparing this with abundance of other scriptures, undoubtedly signifies the divine supplies, and rich and abundant spiritual incomes and provision of that holy city. Mr. Lowman, in his late exposition, says, It represente a constant provision for the comfortable and happy life of all the inhabitants of this city of God. And in his notes on the same place, observes as follows; "Water, (says he) as necessary to the support of life, and as it contributes in great cities, especially in hot eastern countries, to the ornament of the place, and delight of the inhabitants, is a very proper representation of the enjoyment of all things, both for the support and pleas ure of life." As the river that runs through the new Jerusalem, the church of Christ, that refreshes that holy spiritual society, signifies their spiritual supplies, to satisfy their spiritual thirst; so the river that runs through the new Babylon, the Antichristian church, that wicked carnal society, signifies, according to the opposite character of the city, her worldly, carnal supplies, to satisfy their carnal desires and thirstings.

This new Jerusalem is called in this book the paradise of God; and therefore is represented as having the tree of life growing in it, Chap. ii. 7, and xxii. 2. And it being described, as though a river ran through the midst of it, there seems to be some allusion to the ancient paradise in Eden, of which we are told that there ran a river through the midst of it to water it; Gen. ii. 10. i. e. to supply the plants of it with nourishment. And this river was this very same river Euphrates, that afterwards ran through Babylon. And in one and the others

It represented the divers supplies of two opposite cities: In Eden, it represented the spiritual supplies and wealth of the true Christian church, in her spiritual advancement and glory; and seems to be so made use of Rev. xxii. 1, 2. In the other it represented the outward carnal supplies of the false Antichristian church, in her worldly pomp and vain glory, chap. xvi. 12.

When the waters that supply this mystical Babylon, come to be dried up in this sense, it will prepare the way for the enemies of Antichristian corruption, that seek her overthrow. The wealth of the church of Rome, and of the powers that support it, is very much its defence. After the streams of her revenues and riches are dried up, or very greatly dimin ished, her walls will be as it were broken down, and she will become weak and defenceless, and exposed to easy ruin.

When Joab had taken that part of the city of Rabbah, that was called the city of waters, whence the city had its supply of water, the fountains of the brook Jabbok being probably there; and which was also called the royal city, probably because there the king had his palace and gardens, on the account of its peculiar pleasantness; I say, when he had taken this, the conquest of the rest of the city was easy; his message to David implies that the city now might be taken at pleasure, 2 Sam. xii. 27, 28. It is possible that by the pouring out of the sixth vial to dry up the river of the mystical Babylon, there may be something like the taking the city of waters in Rabbah; some one of the chief of the Popish powers, that has been the main strength and support of the Popish cause, or from whence that church has its chief supplies, may be destroyed, or converted, or greatly reduced.

events must determine.

But this,

In the prophecies of Egypt's destruction, it is signified, that when their rivers and waters should be dried up, in that sense, that the streams of their temporal supplies should be averted from them, their defence would be gone; Isa. xix. 4, &c. "The Egyptians will I give over into the hand of a cruel lord; and the waters shall fail from the sea, and the river shall be wasted and dried up, and the brooks of defence shall be emp,

tied and dried up, and the reeds and flags shall wither; every thing sown by the brooks shall wither: The fishers also shall mourn."

Those whose way was prepared to come in and destroy Babylon, by the drying up the river of Euphrates, were the army that was at war with Babylon, Cyrus, the king, and his host, that sought her overthrow: So there seems to be all reason to suppose, that those whose way will be prepared to come in and destroy mystical Babylon, by drying up the mys tical Euphrates, are that king and army that are in this book of Revelation represented as at war with Antichrist.. And what king and army that is, we may see in chap. xii. 7, and xix. 11, to the end: Michael the king of angels, and his angels; he whose name is called the word of God, and that has on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords; and the heavenly armies that follow him, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. Cyrus the chief of the kings of the east, that destroyed Babylon, and redeemed God's church from thence, and restored Jerusalem, seems in that particular affair very manifestly to be spoken of as a type of Christ; God calls him his shepherd, to perform his pleas ure, to say to Jerusalem, thou shalt be built, and to the temple, thy foundation shall be laid, Isa, xliv. 28. God calls him his Messiah; chap. xlv. 1. "Thus saith the Lord to his anointed (in the original, to his Messiah) to Cyrus." He is spoken of as one that God had raised up in righteousness, that he might build his city, and freely redeem his captives, or let them go without price or reward, chap. xlv. 13. He is said to be one whom God had loved, chap. xlviii. 14. In like manner as the Messiah is said to be God's elect, in whom his soul delighteth. As by Babylon, in the Revelation, is meant that Antichristian society that is typified by old Babylon; so by the kings of the east, that should destroy this Antichristian church, must be meant those enemies of it that were typified by Cyrus and other chieftains of the east, that destroyed old Babylon; viz. Christ, who was born, lived, died and rose in the east together with those spiritual princes that follow him, the principalities and powers in heavenly places, and those minis

ters and saints that are kings and priests, and shall reign on earth; especially those leaders and heads of God's people, those Christian ministers and magistrates, that shall be dis tinguished as public blessings to his church, and chief instru ments of the overthrow of Antichrist.

As the river Euphrates served the city of Babylon as a sup ply, so as it also was before observed, it served as an impediment or obstacle to hinder the access of its enemies: As there was a vast moat round the city, filled with the water of the river, which was left empty when Euphrates was dried up. And therefore we may suppose that another thing meant by the effect of the sixth vial, is the removal of those things which hitherto have been the chief obstacles in the way of the progress of the true religion, and the victory of the church of Christ over her enemies: Which have been the corrupt doctrines and practices that have prevailed in Protestant countries and the doubts and difficulties that attend many doctrines of the true religion, and the many divisions and conten tions that subsist among Protestants. The removal of those would wonderfully prepare the way for Christ and his armies, to go forward and prevail against their enemies, in a glorious propagation of true religion. So that this vial which is to prefor Christ and his people, seems to have respect pare the way to that remarkable preparing the way for Christ, by levelling mountains, exalting valleys, drying up rivers, and removing stumbling blocks, which is often spoken of in the prophecies, as what shall next precede the church's latter day glory; as Isa. xlii. 13, &c. "The Lord shall go forth as a mighty man; he shall stir up jealousy as a man of war; he shall prevail against his enemies. I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs; and I will make the rivers islands, and I will dry up the pools; and I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not, and I will lead them in paths that they have not known; I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight: These things will I do unto them and not forsake them." Chap. xl. 3, 4, 5. "Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert an highway for our God: Every valley shall be exalted, and

And chap. Ixii.

every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight and rough places plain; and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together." Chap. xi. 15, 16. " And the Lord shall utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea, and with his mighty wind shall he shake his hand over the river, and shall smite it in the seven streams thereof, and make men go over dry shod: And there shall be an high way for the remnant of his people which shall be left, from Assyria, like as it was to Israel, in the day that he came out of the land of Egypt." Chap. lvii. 14. "Cast ye up, cast ye up, prepare the way, take up the stumbling block out of the way of my people." 10. “Go through, go through the gates; prepare ye the way of the people; cast up, cast up the high way; gather out the stones; lift up a standard for the people." Zech. x. 10, 11, 42. "I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and place shall not be found for them. And he shall pass through the sea with affliction, and shall smite the waves of the sea; and all the deeps of the river shall dry up: And the pride of Assyria shall be brought down, and the sceptre of Egypt shall depart away: And I will strengthen them in the Lord, and they shall walk up and down in his name, saith the Lord." And it is worthy to be remarked that as Cyrus' destroying Babylon, and letting go God's captives from thence, and restoring Jerusalem, is cer tainly typical of Christ's destroying mystical Babylon, and delivering his people from her tyranny, and gloriously building up the spiritual Jerusalem in the latter days; so God's preparing Cyrus's way, by drying up the river Euphrates, is spoken of in terms like those that are used in those prophecies that have been mentioned, to signify the preparing Christ's way, when he shall come to accomplish the latter event. Thus God says concerning Cyrus, Isa. xlv. 2. “I will go before thee, and make crooked places straight." And ver. 13. "I will direct, or make straight (as it is in the mar gin) all his ways." This is like chap. xl. 2, 4. « Prepare ye the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert an highway