as a i Te THE ‘Sthylhne Oracles ''Tranflated from the weft Greex Copies, And compar’d with the Sacred PROPHESIES, Efpecially with Damiel and the Revelations, AND With fo muchH sro ry as plainly fhews, That many of the Sisyus Pre- ditions are exa€tly fulfill’d. WITH AnswerstotheOsyecTIons ufually made againit them. fed cuntlis denigq; fattis Tum recoletis me, neq, dixerit amplius ullusy Infanam, magnam fed vatem numinis alti. Sibyl. Orac. Jib. 3. By Sir Joun FLovenr, Knight. —— LONDON, Printed by R. Bruges, for J. Nrc HOLSONs at the Kings-Arms in Little-Britain. 1713. ett ee: . ce oemRETR ROR, ceuw Or-s- 447 TO THE Right Reverend Father in Go p, Lord Bifhop of Litchfield and Coventry. My Lorp, . Exo ce your Lordfhip was pleas"d a) to lend me the Editions of the . aL Sibylline Oracles by Opfo- Kcr] pxus and Galleus, I think my Jelf oblig’d to acknowledge that Favour by this Dedication, and to beg your Fudgwent in this great Controver[y betwixt the modern Critics and the learned Fathers of the Chriftian Charch, whofé Opinion I have here undertaken to defend, That the Sibylline Oracles are true Pro« phefies ; but the C gies call them the For- geries of the Gnoftics in the fecond Cen- 5 A 2 taryeDEDICATION. - gury. Te appears by thofe C riticsCommeénts, they did not ander ftand the Subjett of thefe Prophefies 5 and it was impoffible that they could, fo long as they apply’d them to the-Ht- tories before the Jecond Century, whereas moft of them belong to the changes in the Chriftian Charch and Roman Empire, which happen’ after the fecond Century. My Lord, [here prefent to you in thefe Oracles the old Antediluvian Religion, and, all the Moral Precepts communtcated "tu Japhet’s Family, which alfo contain many Prophefies concerning the Changes which would happen in the Kingdoms of Japhet’s Pofterity ; fo that we do not wholly derive all our Religion and Learning from. the Jews, who conversa formerly very rarely with the Gentiles, among whom they were but little known before thety Captivity. ‘When the Chaldeans, Egyptians ad Greeks had corrupted the Noachic Tradé- tions of Religion, by applying their Sacri- ces and Prayers to the Sun, Moon, and ‘Heroes, which were appointed for Gods Service, it pleas’d God to infpire the Si- byls, ‘shat they might reftore the true an- cient Worfbip to God alone, and. correct all ‘the Errors from the old moral Precepts by “thefe Oracles: The Jefvith Men-Prophets, ‘near the fame time, reform’ d the Corrupti- a , onsb DEDICATION. ons. which Idolatry had introduc’d among them; but Women-Propheteffes were fent to the Gentiles, becaufe they ufed Women i at Heathen Oracles 4 and. they could e leaft fufpected. by them for fetting up a new Sect 2 Philofophy, Pion pen My Lord, J bave given you a fhort. Scheme of the Defign of thefe Oracles: and that I may obtain your Lord{bip’s better Opinion of them, I will add a few Obfer- vations concerning the Ufe that may be made of them. . / . In thefe Oracles we have a clear Proof of the Chriftian Religion ; and both the Greek: and Latin Fathers, in all their Difputes with the Gentiles, and their Apologies for the Chriftian Religion for four San red Years, quoted thefe Oracles ; therefore I think the Critics have unjuftly rejected them in this Age. Since we believe. the fame Fathers Teftimony concerning the Ca- non of Scripture, we cannot disbelieve em, when they unanimoufly fay, that thefe Ora- cles had 4 divine [nfpiration, and fince : they particularly defcril’d the. Changes in ~ the Roman Empire, they could not omit the Coming of C, "ify and the Changes hie _Doétrin made in their Idolatrous orfbip. Bat I will give this farther Reafon of my good, Opinion. of thefe Oracles; the fame Pe : A3 ° H- t.DEDICATION. Hiftory will interpret both the Oracles and Revelations, for they plainly relate thofe things which St, John exprefs'd in Prophe- tic Figures. This is the old Key the Fa- thers ufed, by which they interpreted the Revelations, as far as they could carry it; but fince their Time Antichrift is come ix the Eaft, and the Chriftian Church is core rupted in the Weft, and both thefé will have . their Falls in that manner as is deferiDdin . thefe Oracles ; and this is the Subjett of them, which has hitherto not been under- ‘ood, Becaufe I am none of your Lardfbip’s Clergy, I will give you this Account how I was led into this Study of Prophefies: T had long confider’d the Chinefe Symbols, by which their Obfervations on the Pulfes are reprefented ; and this difpos'd my Thoughts to an ealy Apprehenfion of the Symbols us’d in the Revelations 22d Old Prophets ; und when I had compar’d St, John’s Sym- bols with the civil Hiftory of the Romans and. that of the Church, I found thofe E- - vents which the Vifions reprefented, and after Thad compara the fame Hiftory with thefe Oracles, that gave me a true notion of them, And the agreement of both the Revelations and Oracles in the fame Hi- Ytory, prove, that I am not miftaken in my Inter-DEDIcAsTION. Interpretation of them: But, without the help of thefe Oracles, we cannot fo certain- by find the Hiflories which we muft apply to the Prediitions iv the Revelations; 4nd all Foterpretations of the Revelations that are made without the help of theft Oracles, will be but uncertain Conjettures, Since both the Revelations and thefé Oracles came’ by: the Infpiration of the fame Spirit, they were defign’d to explain one another; and they muft needs agree, ben caufe both were ta reprefent the Civil and Beelofaftica State of the Roman Empire, - which muaft end in the Kingdom of Saints inthe Millennium, I have pere purfued the old Method of the firft Chriftians in comparing and inter. + preting the. Revelations, by the help of thefe Oracles ; and fo far as paft Events have direited » 2 I i endeavour’d ta improwe it, but becanfe many things are re come, they can only be andehfood: when future Events fhall explain them, The great defign of all Prophefies ts, to con- firm fome holy Dottrin, and to bear wit- nfs to its divine Infpiration, in thofe Ages when the Events ‘all come to pafs. If then the Oracles defcribe the Turks Con- “gach of Afia, Greece, and Egypt, and the Reformation, as I {ball plainly prove ; : A4 - theL sichfeld, O€tob. 16. * 47136 DEDICATION. the Worfbip of One Gov, the Hiftor; and Worlbip Curist, the Rowe of the Jews, the Dottrin of CHRIST'S. réign inthe Millennium, are divine Truths reveal d to us in thefe Oracles. And fince the Reformation is foretold in. thefe Prophe- fies, all Proteftants ought to endeavour to windicate the Credit of them, and to ad- here to the Doétrin of the Reform’d Chur- ches, here approv'd of by a Prophetic Spé- rit. Your Lordfbip’s Learning makes you ‘4 proper Fudge of this Subjetf, and {ince that is divine, it ought to be prefented by me to your Patronage, which I beg of your Lord{bip, who am a Your moft obedient . and humble Servant, Joun Froyer.5 ae THE PREFACE. : Think ’tis neceflary to premife fome , ’ Obfervations:concerning the number -. of the Sibyls, and the. time they’ liv’d F in, and the burning and collection of the Sibptline Oracles ; I will after- wards confider the ancient Teftimonies, to prove that there were many Infpired Wo- ‘men amongft the Gentiles, and that they publifh’d their Prophefies in fome Eafterit Languages and I will laftly explain the Symbolical Charaéters us’d in the Oracles, and conclude this Preface with fome Obferva-; tions:concerning the Ufefulne/s of thefe Pros phefes-in explaining the Revelations. — By. way of Poft{cript, I will add an Ex- tract out of the Fathers concerning the Re- turn of. the Fews, Antichrift, and the Millen- nium, which they took out of thefe Oracles, and make a large Parallel betwixt the Ora- ‘eles and Revelations, and fo conclude. with an Anfwer.to the Objections againft thefe Oracles, made by Opfopews, If. Voffins, and du Pin; adding fome Chronology about the Saracens, and ancient Hiftory oF the Turks, -by which both the Oracles and Revelations -will be better underftood. = _- - 1. Concerning the Number of the Sébyls the Critics difagree: Some will have but ee one,