ON the 17th of Decemb●● 1680 between 4 and 5 a Clock in the Evening , at 〈…〉 〈…〉 ward of Exon ; I , and many more vewing this amazi●● on a sudden in a clear Sky , there appeared Two great Armies , on● coming out of the North , whose Leader had a Coronet on his head : the other from the South ; and , as it seemed furiously joyned Battel and 〈◊〉 little retreating , vigorously charged again and thus continued almost an Hour , till at last there comes in a Reserve , and joyning with the Southern Army , forces the Northern back in Disorder , and so Vanished . Several were so terrified with this Sight , that they swooned away : This is as true as terrible , else I would not have troubled you with it .

This Account came from a Reverend Divine , who , with many more , was an Ex-witness of it . And , in all parts of England , Scotland , Ireland , France , Holland , Spain , Germany and Sweeden ; nay , all over Christendom , this Comet has been visible : the like never since the Creation , as far as can be gathered by the best Historians ancient and m●dern ; being plac'd in Mercury's Sphere , above the Moon .

T Will be therefore very necessary that I remind you of the two latest Exemplifications of Comets , the one in 1664 and the other in 1677. That in 1664. was a forerunner of most dreadf●●●●●pensations , as the Sweeping Pestilence in 65. and the Swallowing Fire in 166● . The one falls fowl on persons , t'other on Habitations . The last in 1677. foreruns the most Damnable Plot ( the Quintessence of all Plots ) that ever Hell invented : Now God hath lighted up another Torch to give us a new Warning , that being forewarned we might be forearmed also , especially with those Arms of the Church , to wit , Prayers and Tears ( our Desperate Malady hath not yet met with an Effectual Remedy ) lest those Matchless Mischiefs which are Imminent over us may not also be Incumbent on us . There is certainly something more than ordinary God hath upon the Wheel , to lighten up such a Blaze as this in the very , depth of Winter , which is a time Diametrically contrary to the very Nature of Comets , for Cold and Moist Weather is altogether unapt to produce those dry Vapours , whereof a Comet consisteth . A Winter Comet is therefore like Winter Thunder , which is commonly call'd the Worlds Wonder : the proper time of engendring those Meteors is Autumn , for in Spring-time there is supposed to be too much Moisture and too little Heat to congregate those Vapours , and in Summer-time there is so much heat as plainly Segregates and Disperses those Exhalations , but Winter time is wholly opposite to their existency and quite contrary to the constituting of them ; Therefore this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and pr●●●ernatural sign must needs signify some Extraordinary and supernatural 〈◊〉 even s●me Sweeping , Swinging or Scourging , yea some cutting or killing Dispensation for the ( 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ) or Apparition extraordinary had a threefold Resemblance : 1 Of 〈◊〉 Broom , 2. Of a Rod. 3. Of a Sword , ● . Of a large Broom or Besom , yet dread●●l to behold , by its sparkling Aspect , as if God were coming to Sweep ●abylon ●●d destroy its B●ats , with his dreadful Besom of Destruction , as he hath promised Isa. 1. 14. 22. 23. 'T is true , God hath his [ Scopas purgatorias , as well as perdi●ias ] his Brushing as well as Crushing Besoms . The former is for S 〈…〉 whic● God brushes only for its Ornament the latter is for Babylon , which God Crus●●s also for its O●●rthrow . God grant this Unclean Spirit of Babylon may be Swep● but of our Land . Zach. 13.2 . Even by his powerful Besom .