Isaac Newton, Observations Upon The Prophecies Of Daniel and The Apocalypse Of St. John

Swarms of locusts often arise in Arabia faelix, and from thence infest the neighboring nations: and so are a very fit type of the numerous armies of Arabians invading the Romans. They began to invade them A.C. 634, and to reign at Damascus A.C. 637. They built Bagdad A.C. 766, and reigned over Persia, Syria, Arabia, Egypt, Africa and Spain. They afterwards lost Africa to Mahades, A.C. 910; Media, Hircania, Chorasan, and all Persia, to the Dailamites, between the years 927 and 935; Mesopotamia and Miafarekin to Nasiruddaulas, A.C. 930; Syria and Egypt to Achsjid, A.C.

935; and now being in great distress, the Caliph of Bagdad, A.C. 936, surrendered all the rest of his temporal power to Mahomet the son of Rajici, King of Wasit in Chaldea, and made him Emperor of Emperors. But Mahomet within two years lost Bagdad to the Turks; and thenceforward Bagdad was sometimes in the hands of the Turks, and sometimes in the hands of the Saracens, till Togrul-beig, called also Togra, Dogrissa, Tangrolipix, and Sadoc, conquered Chorasan and Persia; and A.C. 1055, added Bagdad to his Empire, making it the seat thereof. His successors Olub-Arslan and Melechschah, conquered the regions upon Euphrates; and these conquests, after the death of Melechschah, brake into the kingdoms of Armenia, Mesopotamia, Syria, and Cappadocia. The whole time that the Caliphs of the Saracens reigned with a temporal dominion at Damascus and Bagdad together was 300 years, viz. from the year 637 to the year 936 inclusive. Now locusts live but five months; and therefore, for the decorum of the type, these locusts are said to hurt men five months and five months, as if they had lived about five months at Damascus, and again about five months at Bagdad; in all ten months, or 300 prophetic days, which are years.

The sixth trumpet sounded to the wars, which Daniel’s King of the North made against the King above-mentioned, who did according to his will. In these wars the King of the North, according to Daniel, conquered the Empire of the Greeks, and also Judea, Egypt, Lybia, and Ethiopia: and by these conquests the Empire of the Turks was set up, as may be known by the extent thereof. These wars commenced A.C. 1258, when the four kingdoms of the Turks seated upon Euphrates, that of Armenia major seated at Miyapharekin, Megarkin or Martyropolis, that of Mesopotamia seated at Mosul, that of all Syria seated at Aleppo, and that of Cappadocia seated at Iconium, were invaded by the Tartars under Hulacu, and driven into the western parts of Asia minor, where they made war upon the Greeks, and began to erect the present Empire of the Turks. Upon the sounding of the sixth trumpet, John heard a voice from the four horns of the golden Altar which is before God, saying to the sixth Angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four Angels which are bound at the great river Euphrates. And the four Angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour and a day, and a month and a year, for to slay the third part of men.

By the four horns of the golden Altar, is signified the situation of the head cities of the said four kingdoms, Miyapharekin, Mosul, Aleppo, and Iconium, which were in a quadrangle. They slew the third part of men, when they conquered the Greek Empire, and took Constantinople, A.C.

1453; and they began to be prepared for this purpose, when Olub-Arslan began to conquer the nations upon Euphrates, A.C. 1063. The interval is called an hour and a day, and a month and a year, or 391 prophetic days, which are years. In the first thirty years, Olub-Arslan and Melechschah conquered the nations upon Euphrates, and reigned over the whole.