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CHAP. III.
Some other Prophecies relative to the Subject under consideration.
SECTION I.
The Truths of the Church under the reign of Antichrist.
IN this section I shall remark upon some of the prophecies, which are thought to relate to the trials
of the people of God under the prevalence of Antichristian tyranny. As the scenes of this tyranny may continue for
some time, perhaps for half a century, and it may be more, some of the prophecies now to be noted may relate to that
period generally; some to one part of it; and some to another.
But before any prophecies relative to that period are considered, let it be remarked, that the great infidel Power
of the last days denominated Antichrist; being also represented as the old Roman beast revived, and
as the sixth, or Imperial head, recovered from its deadly wounds; these things alone portend solemn things
to the Church. Why is this Power called Antichrist? Why was his existence in the last days so long, and so
abundantly and solemnly predicted to the Church under this, and various other terrific appellations? Will he not
verify the hostility indicated in his very name? Can the appellation of Antichrist be unmeaning?
Why is he represented in addition to this, as the last head of the old Roman beast? And the sixth, the
most persecuting head, recovered from his deadly wound? The best expositors agree, that a beast, in the symbolic
language of prophecy, means a great power hostile to the Church of Christ. Powers ever so great, not hostile
to the Church are not symbolized by beasts. And when a great power, that has been hostile to the Church, and has been
symbolized by a beast, ceases to
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to be hostile to the Church, that Beast is represented as dying, or being wounded to death: As in the case of the old
Pagan Roman empire, when, in the revolution under Constantine, its government was changed from Pagan to Christian. And
when the same Beast is
represented as reviving, the indication can be nothing less, than that a similar Power equally hostile to the
Church, and mystically the same, has come into existence. If this trait of character be not verified by the hostility
of such a Power to the Church, there can be no meaning in the representation, that the old Beast is revived. That the
Antichrist should be raised up to inflict judgments only on Papal and Mohammedan nations, cannot by any means answer
to his appellations; for those Powers were hostile to Christ. But the appellations given to this great Power indicate
hostility to the friends of Christ.
And the representation of the sixth, the Imperial head of the old Beast being recovered from its deadly
wound, and this under the immediate agency of the devil, in his rage of the last days, because he knoweth
that he has but a short time, must indicate alarming hostility to the cause of Christ! This was the head,
which in ancient days was the most terrible of all the heads of the Roman Beast. Under this, Christ was crucified.
Under this, the Apostles were put to death. And under this, the greatest exertions were made, in ten bloody
persecutions, to eradicate primitive Christianity from the earth. If this head then, be symbolically represented
as rising out of the bottomless pit, being revived under the agency of the devil, in his last rage before
the Millennium, and all this under the additional name of Antichrist, who the Christians in the days of John
had heard was to come; we need not wonder, that solemn admonitions are given to the Church relative to the
event. And if amazing hostility be not exerted by this Power against the Church, why is Jesus Christ abundantly
represented as coming from heaven, with all his armies and equipage of a most mighty conqueror, to carry on a
war against him, and to vanquish him in the battle of that great day of God Almighty?
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Does not all this indicate the most violent hostilities to be undertaken by the terrible Power of the last days
against the true Church of Christ?
In Rev. xvii, 14, we read, concerning the horns of the last head of the Roman Beast, These shall make war with the
Lamb. Here we learn, that one real object of Antichrist is, War with the Lamb.
In Rev. xiii, 6, 7, 8, it is said of the healed head of the Roman Beast; (which is the same that is symbolized
by a new Beast in chap, xvii;) And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his
name, and his tabernacle (or church) and them, that dwell in heaven, (live in Gospel order.) And it was given
unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them, and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues,
and nations. And all, that dwell upon the earth, shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of
life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Here is the extent of his power. God grant it may
mean only the old Roman earth! Here is his object, as in chap, xvii, 14, just noted; war with the
saints. Here is his fatal success against the saints for a time; -- and to overcome them. But how does this
agree with the other prediction of the same event, chap, xvii, 14; These shall make war with the Lamb; and the
Lamb shall overcome them. Reply. These passages, which seem to contradict each other, relate to different parts of
the scene. Antichrist will prevail for a season; as did the Egyptian tyrant, when he had the tribes of the Lord shut
up in Pihahiroth; (the straits of Hiroth;) and every thing external indicated that they were given into his hands.
But at the close of the scene, the Lamb shall overcome; as in that case, when the people of God were by and
by safely standing on the eastern bank of the Red Sea; and the terrible enemy sunk like lead in the mighty waters.
This we may view as a prophetic miniature of the destruction of Antichrist. On the occasion of the latter, the saints
sing the song of Moses, and of the Lamb; which indicates, that the song of Israel on the eastern bank
of the Red sea, and its occasion, were a type of the victory
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and the song of the followers of the Lamb, at the close of the period of the vials.
In Rev. xii, we find the depression of the Church under the reign of Antichrist. After a long season of warfare
in the symbolic heaven of the corrupt Church of Rome, the dragon was, at the reformation, cast out unto the earth.
For a space of time the Church of Christ now rises, like the spouse coming up out of the wilderness, leaning on her
Beloved. She doubtless hopes her days of tribulation are at an end; and that she is going uninterruptedly to ascend
into her millennial glory.
But alas, it is there added, (verse 13,) And when the dragon saw that he was east out unto the earth, he
persecuted the woman, who brought forth the man child. And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle,
that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time. and times, and half
a time from the face of the serpent. And the serpent cast out of his month water, as a flood, after the woman,
that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. And the earth helped the woman; and the earth opened her
mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his month. And the dragon was wroth with the woman,
and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, who kept the commandments of God, and have the testimony of
Jesus Christ. Mr. Faber supposes, and I think it is very evident, that the casting out of the dragon from
heaven to earth, was fulfilled at the time of the reformation under Luther. Consequently, the new attack of the
dragon upon the Church must be sometime subsequent to the reformation; viz. after his prime instrument, the Imperial
head of the Roman Beast, is revived. But this new attack produces a second flight of the Church into the
wilderness. She had fled into the wilderness at the commencement of the war in heaven, verse 6; or upon her being
delivered into the hands of the Papal Power, for 1260 years. But after the reformation, and the devil was thus cast
out of the Papal heaven, by the discovery of the abominations of that system, and before he had prepared his new
engine of persecution, the Church had in some good degree
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returned from her wilderness state. The Lamb had appeared on mount Zion, or in the Protestant Church, and with him vast
multitudes, with their Father's names on their foreheads; worshipping God in the purity of the Protestant religion, in
opposition to the idolatries of Papal Rome. When lo! the woman is again driven into the wilderness, by the new attack of
the dragon in Antichrist, for a time, times and half a time; i. e. for the short residue of this noted term: It
cannot now mean for the whole of this term. For 1260 years were the
term of her depression, at the time of her first flight, many centuries before. Her being now to remain
in the wilderness 1260 years, must of course mean, the short remaining part of the 1260 years. And the days
of this remaining part, Christ will for the elect's sake cause to be short: Otherwise, no flush could be saved.
He will alleviate the distress, by causing the earth to help the woman. When they shall fall, they shall
be holpen with a little help. The extreme sufferings of the Church may not continue more than three days and
an half; i. e. three years and an half. The Captain of her salvation will interpose, and lighten the rest of the
way with the cloud of his gracious presence, the wonders of his Providence, till her deliverance shall be complete.
Floods of rage, mischief and violence, poured forth against the Church, as from the mouth of the old serpent, will
be providentially swallowed up. Unexpected events, probably from earthly, or political views, will counteract
the mischief aimed against the cause of Christ. And the Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against the flood
of the enemy. Upon this the dragon, in vexation and rage, goes to make war with the remnant of the woman's seed; or
with some distant branch of the Church. Some new and powerful attack is undertaken. Probably this will be fulfilled
in the furious coalition led by Antichrist against the converted Jews in the Holy Land; which will prepare the way
for the battle of the great day. Thus in the 12th chapter of Revelation, appear to be clearly predicted great trials
to the Church, under the reign of Antichrist.
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Do the preceding passages furnish a clew to the events in Rev. xi, 7, relative to the slaying of the two
witnesses? The striking coincidence, between the former and the latter, has forced a conviction on my mind,
which I cannot relate without sensible concern. Alas! I had long hoped, that the slaying of the witnesses was a
past event. I well knew that some good men are of opinion that it is still future. But others have in this differed
from them; and have indulged the pleasing hope, that all the peculiarly fiery trials of the Church are past; and
that she is henceforth to enjoy greater and greater degrees
of prosperity, till she reaches her millennial glory. I had fondly embraced this opinion; and was pleased when I
found arguments adduced in favor of it. May the king of Zion mercifully grant, (if it accord with his holy plan,)
that this may yet prove to be the case! But attention to the subject has constrained me to doubt of the correctness
of the sentiment, that the slaying of the witnesses is a past event. I have turned to the arguments of those, who
view it thus; and I cannot on the whole feel satisfied with them, or deem them conclusive. May the friends of Zion
examine the subject with devout attention!
And when they (the two witnesses) shall have finished their testimony, the Beast that ascendeth out of the
bottomless pit, shall make tear against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them. And their dead bodies shall
lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.
And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies, three days and an half,
and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. * And they, that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over
______
* The witnesses lie dead three days and an half, probably meaning three years and an half. Was not this event
prefigured by the abominable desolation made upon the Jewish Church by the typical Antiochus? Bp. Newton observes,
that "the desolation of the temple and the taking away of the daily sacrifice by Appollonius (the commissioner of
Antiochus) continued three years and an half." Vol. i, p. 310.
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them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwell on
the earth. And after three days and an half, the spirit of life from God entered into them; and they stood upon
their feet; and great fear fell upon them, who saw them. And they heard a great voice from heaven, saying unto them,
Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.
Upon the question, Who are the witnesses? much has been said. Some have supposed them to be the
two Testaments. This appears irrational. We find no other instance, in which either of the Testaments is personified,
or represented as God's witness. Bp. Newton thought the two witnesses to represent the few faithful followers of
Christ through the 1260 years. Mr. Faber thinks them to mean the twofold Church of the Old and New Testaments. Some
have supposed them to mean a Christian magistracy and ministry. Pool's continuators understood by them the faithful
Gospel ministry. They observe that Christ first sent out his ministers two and two; and note, that the
embassadors of Christ are called witnesses, in many sacred passages. And ye are witnesses of these things. *
And ye shall be witnesses unto me, both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, -- and unto the uttermost parts of the
earth. † These were the last words spoken by Christ on earth. Addressing his ministers, after having told them
before, Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world, he now, the moment he ascended, tells them,
they shall be his witnesses unto the uttermost parts of the earth. Accordingly we abundantly find them
afterward so denominated. One must be ordained to be a witness with us of the resurrection. ‡ This Jesus
hath God raised up, whereof we are all witnesses. § Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen
before of God, even to us. || Does not the clause, "I will give power
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* Luke xxiv, 48.
† Acts i, 8.
‡ Acts i, 22.
§ Acts ii, 32.
|| Acts x, 41. See also Acts iii, 15, and iv, 33, and v, 32, and x, 39, and xxii, 15, and xxvi, 16; I Peter v, 1.
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unto my two witnesses," imply that they are persons known by
this appellation? But who are so well known by this appellation, as the true ministers of Christ? The prophesying of
the witnesses, Dr. Lowman observes, "signifies persons full of the Spirit of God; preaching God's word, and bearing
witness to the truth." * The witnesses are called, the two prophets who tormented them that dwell on the
earth. † But who else answer so well to this description, as do the faithful preachers of the Gospel? "These
(says the Revelator) are the two olive trees." --
This relates to Zech. iv, 3, 11, 14. The two olive trees there (one on each side of the candlestick) are supposed
to have been Joshua and Zerubbabel, who unitedly prefigured Christ; and who Pool supposes prefigured also the
embassadors of Christ. These (said the angel to Zechariah) are the two anointed ones (sons of oil, Heb.)
that stand by the Lord of the whole earth. The gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit are represented by an
anointing with oil. And the ascension-gifts of Christ to his embassadors, for the work of the ministry, and for
the edifying of the body of Christ, render it fit for them to be called, olive trees, or sons of oil.
Thus reference appears to be had, in the witnesses, more immediately to the ministers of Christ.
But the witnesses are also the two candlesticks. A candlestick is a noted emblem of the Church. The seven
candlesticks which thou sawest, are the seven Churches. * Doubtless the true members of Christ are not to be
excluded from constituting the witnesses. They are cordially united in the same cause with their pastors. And though
special reference is had to the latter, in the description of the witnesses, yet all the true Church are to be
viewed as included.
But why are the witnesses said to be two? Reply. Two witnesses constitute a complete testimony. At the mouth
of two or three witnesses shall every word be established. Two were essential to the scriptural validity of a
testimony. See Deut. xix, 15; and Matt. xviii, 16. And God never left himself without
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* On Rev. p 109.
† Rev. xi, 10.
‡ Rev. i. 20.
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a competent testimony from his followers among men. In the darkest times his number of witnesses was indeed small, but
always competent. No doubt it is a fact, as Mr. Faber observes, that in this small number of the true followers of
Christ, was in a sense contained the essence of the Church of the Old and New Testaments. Whether some reference
be not had to this circumstance, in the dual number of the witnesses, I would not decide.
If the slaying of the witnesses be future, whether any circumstances may be found to exist at that time, of the Church
being found in two general local divisions, which may afford an additional illustration relative to the number two,
events will determine.
Concerning the slaying of the witnesses, authors have been much divided. It would be tedious, and needless
to hint their different schemes, and the proper objections to them.
I will mention the scheme of a late celebrated author upon the point, and my objections to it.
His scheme is this;
that the witnesses were slain in Germany, in 1547; when the two German princes, the Elector of Saxony, and the Landgrave
of Hesse, sometime after the commencement of the reformation, were overcome at Mulhberg, in a battle with the emperor
of Germany, and were forced to submit at discretion. Several years before this event, these German princes, and some
others, espoused the cause of the reformation. They by an association, called the league of Smalkalde, gave a kind of
political life to the Protestants in Germany; which at the defeat above noted, was taken from them; and the cause
of the reformation in Germany, seemed to be lost. But the reformers again stood upon their feet in 1550, by defeating
the duke of Mecklenburg; and in 1552 a peace was ratified at Passau, and confirmed at Augsburg, in 1555, by which the
Protestants in Germany were allowed the free exercise of their religion. And the Church, according to this author,
then ascended to her political heaven.
Against this scheme, the following objections appear to me of weight;
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1. Those events were inadequate to a fulfilment of the prediction; and in some things contrary to it.
One would think so much importance could not be attached to the political privileges obtained, and for some years
enjoyed by the Protestants in Germany, as that the interruption of those privileges, for several years should be
represented, in ancient prophecy, as the slaying of God's witnesses? The witnesses had lived and
prophesied, without those privileges, through all the preceding ages of their testimony, till within a few
years of their defeat at Mulhberg. And if they were alive before those privileges were obtained, why not equally
alive, alter they were taken from them? Indeed if the throwing of the Protestant Churches now, in the vast
Christian world, into a similar situation with that of the reformers in Germany, after the battle of Mulhberg, might
amply amount to what was designed in ancient prophecy by the slaying of the witnesses; it does not hence follow, that the
above event in Germany was adequate to a fulfilment of that prophecy.
It is evident that the slaying, the lying dead, and the resurrection, of the witnesses, are represented in the
prophecy as events of extensive and great moment. And they of the people, and kindreds, and tongues, and nations,
shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. And
they, that dwell upon the earth, shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another, because
these two prophets tormented them, that dwell on the earth. What kindreds, and tongues, and nations took so great
delight in the defeat of the German Protestants at Mulhberg? Wherein did they rejoice, and make merry, and send gifts one
to another? How long had the people, who dwelt on the earth, the kindreds, and nations and tongues,
been tormented by the German Protestants? What were the emotions in fact excited among the catholic nations on that
occasion? They were the very reverse of the joy and triumph indicated in the prophecy, upon the slaying of the
witnesses. * Upon the dispersion
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* See vol. iii, p. 368, of Robertson's Hist, of Charles V.
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of the army of the Protestants, combined under the Smalkalde
league, and the submission of all to the Emperor, except the Elector of Saxony, and the Landgrave of Hesse: and when
the prospect appeared certain, that these two princes would be overcome, as they afterward were; a general
spirit of jealousy arose among the Catholic powers, in fear of the unrestrained dominion about to be obtained
by Charles. He had professed, this his war against the confederate princes was not undertaken on account of their
religion; (though this was evidently the Pope's motive in aiding this war) but to vanquish a political combination.
The real motive of the Emperor no doubt was, the extension of his own power, at the expense of the liberties of Germany;
and the eventual re-establishment of the Catholic religion through Germany, as being more favorable to his ambitious
views. But in the terms of the submission of those Protestant states to Charles, not a word was said concerning any
abridgment of their religious rights, nor even concerning religion. But as the Smalkalde league had been viewed,
even by other Papal powers, as a salutary check to the thirst of the Emperor for universal power, and as the Catholic
nations dreaded his ambition; so upon the dispersion of the Protestant army, and the prospect that the Elector and the
Landgrave would soon be subdued, the Papal powers became alarmed. The Pope himself trembled for the fate of the Italian
states. And he immediately sent and recalled his troops from the Imperial army. This greatly perplexed the Emperor.
For he had depended on the aid of these troops, for the reduction of the two princes yet in arms. Charles entreated,
and threatened; but all in vain. The Pope was inflexible; and his armies were recalled to Italy.
The Pope also at the same time revoked the license, which he had given to Charles, of taking to himself certain
Church lands in Spain, as an inducement to suppress those, whom he called heretics. Francis also, the French monarch,
was distressed at the thought of the reduction of the Protestant German princes. Not that he favored the reformation;
but rejoiced in the check of his rival. He
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sent his embassadors, and labored to revive
the Smalkalde league; and to prevent the submission of the Elector and the Landgrave to Charles. And he sent them
large sums of money, to enable them to withstand the Emperor. The Pope expressed great joy upon hearing of the
total defeat of Albert, marquis of Brandenburg, whom Charles had sent forward with a detachment, to aid Maurice
against the Elector, but whom the Elector had intercepted, and cut off." And great exertions were made to form a
coalition, to consist of the Pope, the Italian states, France, England, and Denmark, against the Emperor on this
occasion. The Emperor, after he had subdued the two princes, published his system called the Interim, a kind of
bungling attempt to reconcile the Catholics and Protestants. This was disgusting to all parties. The Pope and the
Catholics execrated it. And the Protestants despised it. In short, the feeling and conduct of all, on that occasion,
formed a striking contrast with the events in the prophecy, of all nations, tongues and languages rejoicing,
and sending gifts one to another.
The compact obtained by the Protestants, in the peace of Augsburg, respected only the Protestants in Germany; and
those only, who adhered to the confession of Augsburg. The others, who thought this confession was too lenient
to the catholics, the followers of Calvin and Zuinglius, and all the Protestants in other countries, were left by
this peace unprotected.
2. A difficulty attends the scheme of this author, in point of chronology. The slaying of the witnesses is said
to be when they shall have finished their testimony. I am sensible that some critics are of opinion, that the
verb ______, being found in the first aorist, subjunctive, may admit the rendering, When they shall be about to
finish. If the word may bear this construction, it is not the most natural one. Had that been the
meaning of the writer, he might have adopted words to have expressed it precisely. But the literal rendering of
the words ____ ____, is when they shall finish. Even admitting the rendering in the criticism referred to; with
what propriety could the witnesses be
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said to have been even about to finish their testimony, at the time of the defeat at Mulhberg? That defeat was
in 1547; 319 years before they will actually have finished their testimony, according to the above author's calculations;
which calculations appear to me the most satisfactory that I have ever seen, making the 1260 years terminate in 1866.
Should they terminate at a later period, the difficulty would be proportionably increased. There was then,
according to this scheme, at the time of the slaying of the witnesses, more than one quarter of the whole long
time of their prophesying still before them. Surely they were not, at that time, even about to finish their
testimony.
3. We should conceive, from reading the account of the resurrection of the witnesses, and of their ascension to heaven,
that their days of sore trial were chiefly over. I cannot but think this idea, upon perusing that prediction, would
at first be impressed without a doubt upon every impartial reader. But some of the most dismal
persecutions ever experienced by the Church, under Papal tyranny, have taken place, in various Catholic countries,
since the peace of Augsburg. Recollect the massacre of the Protestants in France, on the evening of St Bartholomew,
in 1572 under Charles IX, when 30,000 were destroyed; the slaughter of them in Ireland, in the reign of Charles I;
and in Poland, in after days. Recollect the persecutions under Louis XIV, who repealed the edict of Nantz, in 1685,
and murdered and banished nearly two millions of his Protestant subjects in one year; the persecutions of the
Piedmontese by the duke of Savoy, toward the close of the seventeenth century; when one million in France were
murdered; and many other bloody scenes, experienced
by the followers of Christ, in Popish countries, since the aforementioned peace of Augsburg. And read the prophecies
of the trials, which the Church is to experience under the reign of Infidelity, just before the battle of the great
day, whether the witnesses be then to be slain, or not. These things do not appear to accord with the representation
given of the witnesses, after their resurrection, and their ascension to heaven.
4. In the same hour with the ascension of the witnesses to heaven, there was a great earthquake, in which
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a tenth part of the city fell. There was no event within a prophetical hour of the peace of Augsburg in 1555,
which can answer to this prediction. No event is by the aforementioned author supposed to have answered to it, till
the revolution in France, in 1789. But this was 234 years after the supposed resurrection of the witnesses. And to
say that two disconnected and different events, 234 years apart, may yet be said to take place in the same hour,
would be extraordinary indeed. It would be unprecedented in the Bible, and in all common conversation.
5. The agent, by whom the witnesses are said to be slain, was not in existence, till centuries after those events in
Germany. The first apocalyptic Beast rose (as did the same Beast in Dan. vii, 2, symbolizing the
heathen Roman Empire) from the sea. * The second apocalyptic Beast (answering to the little horn of
the Roman Beast in Daniel, and symbolizing the Romish hierarchy) rose from the earth. † The third
apocalyptic Beast (numerically the eighth, but specifically the sixth head of the old Roman Beast,
healed of his deadly wound, and at the same time symbolized by a new Beast, in Rev. xvii) rose from the
bottomless pit. This is expressly said to be the agent, that slays the witnesses. Twice in the description of
this Beast, in Rev. xvii, he is said to ascend out of the bottomless pit. And it is said of the witnesses,
And when they shall have finished their testimony, (or when their 1260 years shall be closing,) the Beast
that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit, shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.
The rise of this Beast is by far too recent, to have slain the witnesses in Germany in 1547. There can be no
plausible pretence, that Charles V. was this Beast, that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit. And it appears most
evident, that this last head of the Roman Beast did not rise in Charlemagne. ‡
Upon the event of the earthquake, subsequent to the ascension of the witnesses to heaven, § it is predicted
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* Rev. xiii, 1.
† Verse 13.
‡ See remarks upon this point in note, p. 63.
§ Rev. xi, 13
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And the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven. Did any thing take place in France, after
their revolution, which answered to this? Did they not rather blaspheme the God of heaven? I know not that any even
of the Catholic priests did any thing, which may be construed a giving of glory to the God of heaven.
For these reasons I am constrained to dissent from the aforementioned scheme, relative to the slaying of the witnesses;
and to admit the sentiment, that the event is still future. The remarks above stated go equally to refute all the
schemes of authors, who have placed the slaying of the witnesses in past centuries.
The dead bodies of the. witnesses are to lie three days and an half in the street (according to Mede and Pool,
in "the territories, and jurisdiction") of the great city? which spiritually, or mystically, is called Sodom
and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. Our Lord was crucified under the sixth head of the Roman Beast.
A governor of Imperial Rome, at the instigation of the Jews, condemned and crucified him. And under the same
head our Lord was crucified, in his members, in ten bloody persecutions, before that head received its deadly
wound in the year 320. Must it not then be in the city, or under the dominion, of this same head, healed of its
deadly wound, in order to be in the city where our Lord was crucified, that the witnesses are to lie slain and
unburied? It is to be in a city mystically called Sodom and Egypt. Sodom and Egypt were Pagan. How
much better the Atheism of Antichrist accords with their character, than did the sanctimonious professions
of Papal Rome? Our Lord was not literally crucified under Rome Papal; but he was under Rome Pagan.
And under the latter, revived in the last days, it is natural to look for the slaying of his witnesses.
What is to be particularly understood by the witnesses being slain, and lying unburied, the event will
determine. The predictions of the event may lead us to expect, that the rights of the Church, and of conscience, will
under some pretence be invaded. And the pretence probably will be, as it was in ancient times,
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against Christ, and against his persecuted followers; a pretence of their being bad and dangerous members of civil
society, detrimental to national interests; speaking against Cesar; moving seditions; weakening the hands of the men of
war; and, We have a law; and by our law he ought to die. *
Perhaps the process of the events of that period is hinted in Rev. xiv. Christ there appears on mount Zion; or comes
powerfully into his Church, in the reformation under Luther. The Church enjoys a sealing time, as she did after
the revolution under Constantine, Rev. vii, 1-8. Vast numbers, as at that period, are sealed to the day of
redemption. A description of the enlargement of the Protestant churches, and of their purity from the defilements of
the Papal harlot, follows. In process of time a missionary spirit is excited, and pervades the Church; the Angel,
having the everlasting Gospel to preach to heathen lands, begins his flight. This, he gives us to understand, is in the
same hour with the judgment of God on the Papal see. A second Angel announces, Babylon is fallen,
is fallen. The signs of the times become notorious. The fall of Papal Babylon, by the rise of Antichrist, is
ascertained. The warning flies through the Church. Upon this, a third Angel follows; warning of the sins of
God's enemies; and of the judgments of Heaven now just ready to fall
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* That great man, the late President Witherspoon, published a very able sermon entitled, "The Charge of Sedition a
nd Faction against good Men, especially faithful Ministers, considered and accounted for." The preacher concludes one
part of his subject by saying, "That worldly men have been always disposed first to oppress the children of God, and
then to complain of injury from them; that by slander they might vindicate their oppression. Their slander too hath
still run in the same strain; troublers of Israel, deceivers of the people, enemies to Cesar, and turners of the world
upside down, have been the opprobrious titles generally give to the most upright and most faithful men, in every age
and country."
In accounting for this fact, he says, "True religion docs indeed, give trouble and uneasiness to wicked men, while
they continue such; and it cannot be supposed, but they will deeply resent it."
See Witherspoon's Works, vol. ii, p. 415, Woodward's edition.
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upon all, who have the mark of the Beast, and plunge them into endless burnings. The trumpet is now blown
in Zion; the alarm is sounded in God's holy mountain. Warning is given concerning all, who worship the beast,
or receive his mark. This bold warning through the Church must be very offensive to
those who are implicated. Infidel powers, or Anti-Christian Babylon, and those, who partake of her sins, and
are now notified of it, and that they are about to receive of her plagues, will be far from taking this
in good part from the witnesses of Christ. And God only knows what the former will now be enraged to attempt against
the latter! The texts, which follow, are indicative of evil to the Church. Verses 12 and 13; Here is the patience
of the saints: here are they, that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. And I heard a voice from
heaven, saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead, who die in the Lord from henceforth; yea, saith the Spirit, that
they may rest from their labors, and their works do follow them. Here the patience of the saints is to be
tried. Now it is to be known, who keep the commands of God, and have the faith of Christ. Now the voice from
heaven announces, that from henceforth, and while the troubles then overwhelming the Church shall continue,
peculiarly blessed are the pious, who find rest ui their graves. The cruelties of the enemies of the Church, here
indicated, soon demand the presence of the Captain of her salvation. The next verse, accordingly, presents him
upon the white cloud, with his sharp sickle. The harvest of the earth is reaped; the vine of the earth,
with her grapes now fully ripe, is gathered; and the wine-press trodden: striking emblems of the judgments of the
last vial; or the destruction of Antichrist, and of all the contending enemies of the Church. In this striking
portrait of the affairs of the Church, from the days of Luther, till the close of the battle of the great day,
reference appears to be had to that depression of the Church, under consideration; and perhaps we find also, a hint of
the immediate occasion of it; the faithfulness of God's witnesses, in ascertaining the signs of the times;
warning of the wickedness of that day; and announcing
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the impending judgments of Heaven. But the particulars of the event, the day will unfold.
Our blessed Lord gave to his disciples a description of an awful coming of his in judgment against his enemies;
and of scenes, which should both indicate its approach, and prepare the way for it: See Matt. xxiv, Mark xiii, and
Luke xxi. These are parallel accounts of the same predictions. We are here presented with several instances of the
coming of Christ. Chronological predictions, Mr. Faber informs us, can receive but one accomplishment. But this
prediction of Christ is not of that description; but is to be ranked among those prophecies, which are constructed to
receive a twofold accomplishment; and involve both type and antitype. There are many predictions of this tenor, as
Dr. Hopkins, and other judicious writers on the prophecies, inform us. Mr. Faber upon this point observes, "But an
unchronological prophecy, -- instead of being incapable of a double fulfilment, we perpetually find such evidently
constructed with the express design of receiving a double accomplishment. They are at first fulfilled in an inchoate
manner; and afterward will be fulfilled more amply at a period, to which they ultimately and principally refer." * Many
of the predictions of the battle of the great day, in the Old Testament, are of this description. They had a primary
and literal fulfilment in ancient events; but are to receive their ultimate fulfilment in events still future. This
is the case with the above noted
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* Faber on the Jews, p. 46.
Mr. Faber quotes, in favor of this opinion, Archdeacon Woodhouse, Bp. Lowth, Jortin, Sir I. Newton, Bp. Hurd, Bp.
Sherlock, Bp. Warburton, Bp. Home, Jones, and Nares.
Bp. Hurd informs us, (Introduction to the Study of the Prophecies, p. 55,) "There is reason to believe that more than
one sense was purposely inclosed in some of the prophecies. And we find in fact that the writers of the New Testament
give to many of the old prophecies an interpretation very different and remote from that, which may be reasonably
thought the primary and immediate view of the prophets themselves. This is what divines call the double sense
of prophecy; by which they mean an accomplishment of it in more events than one; in the same system indeed; but at
distant intervals, and under different parts of that system."
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prediction of our Lord. It had a primary and typical fulfilment in the destruction of
Jerusalem. But it will receive a much more interesting fulfilment in the battle of the great day: And a still more
important fulfilment at the great judgment day. In relation to the former, Christ gave assurance, that it should take
place upon that generation. But in relation to the latter, he informed his disciples, that as a snare shall
it come on all them, that dwell on the face of the whole earth. This could not be said of the destruction of
Jerusalem. For that event came as a snare on but a very small part of the earth. It was predicted of our Savior,
that he should proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God. * But surely
if the copious and affecting predictions of Christ, recorded in Mat. xxiv, Mark xiii, and Luke xxi, related only to
the destruction of Jerusalem, he did but in a very partial sense indeed proclaim the day of vengeance of our God.
But Christ decides this point. Then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world
to this time, no, nor ever shall be. †
Compare this with Dan. xii, 1, which relates to the war between Antichrist, and the great head of the Church,
just before the Millennium. After having described the terrible infidel Power of the last days, and brought him
into Palestine against the Church there, the Angel says; And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great
Prince, who standeth for the children of thy people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was,
since there was a nation, even to that same time. Now if the words of Christ, in the former of these passages,
had exclusive reference to the destruction of Jerusalem, then the above passage in Daniel is untrue. For our Lord
declares there never shall be such trouble on earth again, as that, which he then predicts. Certainly both the
passages are not true, if they relate to different events. For each of two different scenes of distress cannot be
the greatest, that ever was, or ever shall be. This argument evinces, that the event predicted by Christ, is the
same with that in Dan. xii, 1.
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* Isa. lxi, 2.
† Mat. xxiv, 22, and Mark xiii, 10.
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And the words of Christ it is thought evidently allude to that very passage. But the latter is the battle of that great
day of God. Consequently these predictions of Christ must relate to the same. Although they received a primary fulfilment
in the days of the Apostles; yet they also related to events then far future.
Our Lord says; * And when ye shall hear of wars, and rumors of wars, see that ye be not troubled; for all these
things must come to pass; but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom,
and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes in divers places. All these are the beginning of
sorrows. Here I apprehend we have predicted the wars and commotions, which were to attend the rise of the
Antichristian Beast, and the formation of his horns. The latter events must of course occasion as great wars and
commotions, as are here predicted; as great as are indicated of the same period, in Rev. x, 3, by the seven thunders
uttering their voices. But as the Angel there affirms, that the time shall not be yet, as in the original,
verse 6; or the time shall not be prolonged; so our Lord informs, with respect to the wars and rumors of wars; But
the end is not yet. A season is to intervene, though not long, between the rise of Antichrist, and his overthrow.
And Christ proceeds to foretell some of the events of this intermediate space. Some of these predictions I will now
adduce, as they are collected in harmony from the evangelists, by Dr. Doddridge.
"And fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven. All these are the beginning of sorrows. But
take heed to yourselves. For they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, and shall deliver you up
to councils, and into prisons, to be beaten and afflicted, and shall kill you; and ye shall be hated of all
nations; and shall be brought before rulers and kings for my name's sake, for a testimony against them. And it
shall turn to you for a testimony. And the Gospel must be first published among all nations.
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* Matt. xxiv, 6,--.
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"But when they shall lead you, and deliver you up, settle it in your hearts not to meditate before what ye shall answer;
and take no thought beforehand what ye shall speak; but whatsoever shall be given yon in that hour, that speak ye. For
it is not ye that speak, but the Holy Ghost. For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries
shall not be able to gainsay, nor resist. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and
shall hate one another. Now the brother shall betray the brother to death; and the father the son; the children
shall rise up against the parents, and shall cause them to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men
for my name's sake. But there shall not an hair of your head perish. In your patience possess ye your souls. And
many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall
wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved -- In those days there shall be great
tribulation, and distress in the land, such as was not from the beginning of the creation unto this time; no, nor
ever shall be. And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved; but for the elect's
sake, whom he hath chosen, those days shall be shortened. -- And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon,
and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men's
hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming upon the earth. Immediately after
the tribulation of those days shall the sun
be darkened; and the moon shall not give her light; and the stars shall fall from heaven; and the powers of the
heavens shall be shaken. And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven; and then shall the tribes of
the earth mourn; and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And
when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh."
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No events of the Apostle's days are to be viewed as more than a primary and typical fulfilment of these sublime
and interesting predictions. The last clause, which seems to relate to much that precedes, Then look up. and lift
up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh, had no relation to the days of the Apostles. It can relate to
no period short of that which is connected with the dawn of the Millennium. Does not this clause then decide, that
these predictions relate to scenes, which shall just precede the Millennium? And do they not indicate most solemn
things to the Church, at this period?
The battle array of the last head of the Roman Beast, and his false prophet, and the kings of the earth, against Jesus
Christ and his armies. Rev. xix, 19, confirms the sentiment, that the Church is to be sorely tried under the reign of
Antichrist. For although this passage relates to the last attack, the expedition in Palestine against the church of
Judah and Israel, yet it shews, that war with Christ is the object of Antichrist. And such a Power will be able greatly
to afflict the people of God.
Our Lord gave his disciples a signal, when they should flee out of Jerusalem. * When ye therefore shall see the
abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth let him understand) then let them
who be in Judea flee into the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of his house:
neither let him who is in the field return back to take his clothes.
Daniel had spoken of the abomination of desolation in three passages, and in relation to three different
events. The first is Dan. ix, 27; And in the midst of the week, he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to
cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that
determined shall be poured upon the desolate. This related to the arm its of the Romans in array
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* Matt. xxiv. 15, and onward
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against Jerusalem, with their eagles and other images, which they worshipped; which were an abomination to the Jews; and
which (when seen around the walls) indicated the speedy destruction of Jerusalem. The second is Dan. xi, 31; And arms
shall stand on his part, and they sail pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and
they shall place the abomination, that maketh desolate. This relates to the invasions and garrisons of Antiochus, the
noted type of Antichrist, in order to compel the Jews to renounce their religion; to eat swine's flesh, and to violate
their consciences. Upon this occasion many of the Jews suffered martyrdom, and underwent the most cruel torments. *
This conduct is here predicted by the Angel, when he was preparing the way to give a prophetic description of Antichrist,
and was first presenting him by his type, Antiochus. The third passage, in which Daniel speaks of the
abomination of desolation, is in chap, xii, 11; And from the time the daily sacrifice shall be taken away,
and the abomination that maketh desolate, set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. This relates
to the impious establishment of Popery, or Mohammedism, or both, in the year 606, or whenever Popery was established.
The question then occurs; To which of these three passages in Daniel did our Lord refer, when he spoke of the abomination
of desolation, as the token to his people to flee into the mountains? Answer. As the direction applied to the Apostles
and Church at Jerusalem, we must conclude he referred to that which relates to the Roman eagles and idolatry, when the
Romans were besieging Jerusalem; Dan. ix, 27. As the direction applied to the Christian Church at the commencement of
Popery, or Mohammedism, the direction
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* The particulars of this persecution are given in the 5th» 6th, and 7th chapters of the second book of the Maccabees.
The material parts of the account are copied by Polybius and Josephus; and are found in Rollin's Ancient History.
Book xvii, Art. 2.
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must be viewed as referring to the passage, which relates to that period; Dan. xii, 11. And as
the direction respects the Church in the days of Antichrist, we must view our Lord as referring to that passage,
Dan. xi, 31, which relates to the type of Antichrist, or to Antiochus; and was given, when the Angel was
undertaking to give a description of the infidel Power of the last days. When that shall take place under Antichrist,
which was prefigured when his type Antiochus set up the abomination, that made desolate, in the holy place, then this
token to the Church at that period will be fulfilled. Violating the rights of the Church, making a direct attack upon
them, may prove to be this abomination, that maketh desolate. Setting up a desolating abomination, seems to be a
prophetic figure to express a violent attack upon the people of God. As the persecutions of Antiochus are noted by the
Angel, when his object was to predict the rise, character, and overthrow of Antichrist, this seems to indicate,
that events may be expected under the reign of Antichrist, corresponding with those cruel deeds of Antiochus. It becomes
interesting then, to examine those predictions concerning the cruelties of Antiochus, and their fulfilment. The Angel
says; * And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away
the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination, that maketh desolate. And such as do wickedly against the
covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries; i. e. hypocrites and apostates will be found to be fit tools of his
intrigue and malice against the Church; but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits. And
they that understand among the people, shall instruct many, yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity,
and by spoil, days. † This was a sore persecution under Antiochus. Now it was, that the events took place,
narrated in Heb. xi, 35-38: And others were tortured not accepting deliverance, (i. e. on wicked terms) that they
might obtain a better resurrection. And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings; yea, moreover of bonds and
imprisonments. They were stoned, they
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* Dan. xi, 31.
† See the Hebrew.
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were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about
in sheep-skins, and goat-skins, being destitute, abided, tormented; of whom the world was not worthy I they wandered
in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens, and caves of the earth. Antiochus at this time plundered and defiled
the temple at Jerusalem; calling it, The temple of Jupiter Olympus; and erecting there, upon the sacred altar,
the image of this heathen God. This, with the attendant evils, of defiling the Jewish altars, forbidding their
sacrifices, and compelling the Jews to conform to the rites and manners of the heathen, was the abomination of
desolation standing in the holy place. Upon this, multitudes of the pious Jews fled to the mountains, as is noted
in the above passage in Heb. xi, 35--; an event, to which probably our Lord alludes, when he gave the direction to his
disciples, to flee to the mountains, at the destruction of Jerusalem.
A powerful army was sent by Antiochus, with a
command to destroy Jerusalem; to put to death all the men, and to sell for slaves the women and children. The commander,
after arriving at Jerusalem, concealed his object; till on the sabbath, when the Jews were assembled for Divine worship,
he undertook to execute his orders. The massacres and horrible scenes, which followed, were dismal. The city was
plundered, set on fire, and some of the walls demolished. The temple was spared. But a fortress was built, to prevent
any worshipper approaching it. The impious monarch resolved utterly to extirpate the Jewish religion. He issued a decree,
enforced with the severest penalties, that no God should be worshipped, "The desolation of the temple, and the taking
away of the daily sacrifice under Antiochus, continued three years and a half;" * the very term given for
the slaughtered state of the witnesses! †
It is striking to observe the coincidence of the following events. When the tribes of Israel, just redeemed from Egypt,
fell under the Divine displeasure, they were doomed to wander forty years in the wilderness.
When Jezebel persecuted the prophets of the Lord, Elijah fled into the wilderness. When Antiochus was suffered to
invade the rights of the Jewish Church, and set up his abomination in the temple of Jerusalem; some of the pious Jews
fled into the wilderness, and wandered about in sheep-skins And goat-skins, -- in deserts, mountains, dens and caves
of the earth. When the Roman abomination of desolation was found in array against Jerusalem, the disciples were
directed to flee, in the utmost haste, over the tops of their flat-roofed houses, and from their fields, out of
Jerusalem, into the mountains. When Popery and Mohammedism were suffered to invade the rights of conscience, and thus
set up their abomination of
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* Newton on the Prophecies, vol. i, p. 310.
† Rev. xi, 9.
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desolation in the holy place, the true Church fled into the wilderness, (or into a situation
mystically so represented) for 1260 years. And when Antichrist appears, and the dragon commences his last furious attack
upon the woman, previous to her millennial glory, she is represented as again flying into the wilderness, the residue
of her 1200 years; * indicating, that she had previously in a measure come forth from her wilderness state; but is
again driven back to it. What particular kind of fulfilment this prediction of the woman's second flight into the
wilderness, will receive, time will disclose. But the predictions which relate to that event, give it a very interesting
complexion.
In Isa. xxvi, the introduction of the Millennium, and the tremendous events preceding it, are prophetically described.
And the chapter closes with the following address to the saints; Come my people, enter info thy chambers, and shut
thy doors about thee; hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold,
the Lord cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall
disclose her mood, and shall no longer cover her slain.
The former of these texts has been supposed to import only the flying of God's people to Him, in that day of
distress. And this, no doubt, is a blessed idea involved in the words. The name of the Lord is a strong tower;
the righteous runneth into it, and is safe. But in the light of the predictions already noted, relative to that
period, it appears natural to view this text as a brief description of the state of the Church, during the little
moment, or the three prophetic days and a half, of the severest trials of the witnesses; that for this short term,
they will, through the violence of the tempest, in some way resemble persons, who are driven from their business,
and hid in their inner chambers. This idea has countenance as has been noted, in Ezra iv. The return of the Jews from
Babylon, and the rebuilding of Jerusalem, were a type of the introduction of the Millennium. But the walls of
that new Jerusalem were built in troublous times. And the builders, through the falsehood and violence of
their enemies, were forced to discontinue the work, for a time. The antitype of this event may be experienced in a time
still future, through the instigation of vile Samaritans, and by persecuting authorities.
Is it not analogous with God's usual dispensations toward his people, that the Church should endure her
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* Rev. xii, 14.
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most severe conflict with her enemies, just before the dawn of her millennial glory? What has given rise to the well-known
maxim, The darkest time is just before day? No doubt this has abundantly been found to be true, in its figurative
import. The Church and individuals have often found it true in their trials. The severest struggle is often just
before relief comes. Recollect the oppressed state of the Church in Egypt; and in the subsequent captivities of
Israel. The truth of the above remark was there very manifest. The events, which have been supposed to be emblematical
of the relief of the Church, at the dawn of the Millennium, favor this idea; for instance, the scene at the Red Sea;
and the passing of Israel over Jordan, into the promised land, when that river was overflowing all its banks, in the
time of wheat harvest. * This idea has been found true in the greatest and in smaller events. When the devil found he was
about to be cast out of the youth brought to Christ, (Matt, ix, 20,) he exerted all his violence upon the unhappy
subject. He threw him down, cried out, tore him, yea rent him sore, and left him as dead. The reason is evident; it
was his last opportunity. And how natural is the import of the solemn notice from Heaven, Woe to the inhabiters
of the earth and of the sea; for the devil is come down unto you having great wrath, because he knoweth he hath but a
short time. Here Satan's rage increases, as his time to persecute diminishes. Docs not the above text
decide,
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* Gideon and his three hundred men wrought a great deliverance in Israel from the vast combined hosts of the Midianites,
Amalekites, and children of the east, whose camels and numbers were as the sand of the sea. (Judges vii, 12,--) This
deliverance was preceded by the breaking of the pitchers, which contained the lights, in the little army
of Gideon. How fit an emblem were those pitchers of the followers, particularly of the ministers of Christ!
Paul said to the Corinthians, But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be
of God, and not of us; alluding probably to that very passage in the history of Gideon. How far Christ's earthen
vessels are to be broken, before the armies of Antichrist shall be vanquished, God only knows. But the severest
trials often just precede the greatest deliverances.
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what analogy forcibly suggests, that the Church will see most trying scenes, just before her millennial salvation? Or
will the analogy of God's usual dealings with his people fail on that occasion? *
Scripture and analogy seem unitedly to teach, that it may be said of the Church general, at the opening of the
Millennium, These are they who came out of great tribulation. And the same thing is indicated in their song
of Moses and of the Lamb. The Church will just have been delivered, under the Captain of her salvation, from the
most violent assaults of the enemy; as were Israel on the eastern bank of the Red Sea, under the direction of Moses,
when they uttered their song of praise. †
It is not to be expected, that the Church will again see such depression, as she saw in the worst times in the
dark ages; such smallness of numbers; and involved in such clouds of ignorance! It does not seem probable that
she will be forced to return to this state. The present numbers of the Church, and the light which has dawned
upon her, seem to forbid it. Perhaps the numbers of true Christians, and the light enjoyed in the Church, will never
be less than at present; nay, will increase. But can we hope a majority of the people
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* Possibly all the predictions, which indicate the fiery trials of Christ's witnesses, may relate only to his
witnesses on the old Roman earth, or within the present compass of the Empire of the last head of the Beast. For that
seems to be the theatre of the events of many of the predictions of the Apocalypse. And
no doubt some of Christ's true witnesses are there, notwithstanding that those regions are so enveloped in Atheism.
Whether the predictions of the depressions of the people of God in the last days, under the reign of Antichrist,
will principally be fulfilled upon the few followers of Christ who may be found in the old Popish countries, the
event will decide. God in mercy grant, that the calamities may be no more extensive! But I do not feel satisfied, that
the prophecies do not give them a far wider extent. The Church of the restored Jews in Palestine is surely included in
the last struggle. And we have much reason to apprehend that the great body of the Christian Church will be involved
in trials under the reign of Antichrist.
† Exodus xv.
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of the Christian world
will become gracious, before the battle of that great day? No doubt a very great majority of them will continue
to reject Christ. This is gathered from the predictions, which relate to that period. What then may we expect this
very great majority of people, rejectors of Christ, will be found to be doing, under all the artful and powerful
attacks of Infidelity and licentiousness? and under the attack of that three-fold agency, of the dragon, of Antichrist,
and of false religion; * which if it were possible, would deceive even the very elect? They will be gathered
to the battle of that great day of God Almighty! They will be found rapidly filling up the measure of their sins.
Usual restraints will be taken off. Let us break their bands asunder; and cast away their cords from us. The
abounding of iniquity will cause the love of many to wax cold, and to indulge violent hatred. Their opposition
will rise in proportion to the evangelical light, which they reject; as did that of the crucifiers of Christ. This
principle of human depravity, of hating the more, the more clearly the light shines, will then be found operating
to an unprecedented degree; as restraints will be taken off, and things will be found ripening to an unprecedented
crisis. This may cause the Jordan of Antichristian violence to overflow all its banks; and to roll its turbid billows,
even in the time of wheat harvest, between the tribes of the Lord, and their millennial Canaan then in view!
In this way the impenitent under the Gospel will be prepared for the awful scenes of judgment, which will burst forth
upon them, and accomplish the designs of the battle of the great day. The slain of the Lord, at that period, are to be
many, from one end of the earth, even to the other end of the earth. And they will prove to be the slain of
the Lord, in consequence of being found in battle array against the Lord. And this their battle array will be
threatening, as the subsequent judgments will be decisive and awful.
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* Rev. xvi, 13, 14.
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Ye friends of the kingdom of Christ; how interesting are the times, into which it has been our lot to fall? We behold
the last head of the Pagan Roman Beast; the deadly wounded head healed; and the Beast, that ascendeth out of the
bottomless pit, presented before our eyes! This is mystically the head, that crucified our Lord; and in ten bloody
persecutions, endeavored to banish primitive Christianity from the world! And his eventual object now will be, war
with the Lamb;
(Rev. xvii, 14;) war with the saints; (Rev. xiii, 7;) persecution of the woman; (Rev. xii, 13;) to make
war against him who sitteth on the horse; (Rev. xix, 19;) to fulfil the deeds of the antitype of Antiochus;
(Dan. xi, 31-35;) to make war against the witnesses; (Rev. xi, 7;) and to fulfil the distressing things against the
Church, predicted by Christ in Matt, xxiv, Mark xiii, and Luke xxi, as noted in this section. This may not be
the present motive of Antichrist. While forming his vassal kingdoms, his object will appear to be more political. But
the above are objects predicted to be eventually accomplished by him, and by men of his spirit. These
things are interesting to us. We may have peace in our day; and we may see the reverse. Let us not
be greatly disappointed, if we are called to meet sore trials!
When these days are found opening upon us, are not the following sacred injunctions emphatically applicable?
"Watch ye; stand fast in the faith; quit you like men; be strong. Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of
his might. Put en the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. --
Take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day; and having done all,
to stand. Stand therefore having your loins girt about with truth; and having on the breastplate of
righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace. Above all, taking the shield
of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of
salvation, and the sword of the Spirit,
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"which is the word of God: Praying always, with all prayer and
supplication in the Spirit; and watching thereunto with all perseverance, and supplication for all saints.
Seek the Lord all ye meek of the earth, -- seek righteousness, seek meekness; it may be ye may be hid in
the day of the Lord's anger, for as a snare shall it come on all who dwell on the face of the earth. Ye are
not in darkness, that that day should overtake you unawares. Exhort one another, and so much the more as ye see
the day approaching. Take heed that no man deceive you. Watch ye therefore, and pray always; that ye may be
accounted worthy to escape all these things, that shall come to pass; and to stand before the Son of man."
What matter of gratitude and joy, that we are not left in darkness relative to the termination of the trials of the
Church under the tyranny of Antichrist! Though she may for a season be depressed; yet God will be near, and will
regard her as the apple of his eye. And she will eventually rise; and the enemy will sink. The first
reign of the Imperial head of the Roman Beast closed in his being wounded to death. And the second, his
present reign, will close in his going into perdition. This will be inconceivably more terrible and decisive,
than the first catastrophe. Concerning the first, in the revolution under Constantine, we read,
(Rev. vi, 12, to the end,) And I beheld, when he. had opened the sixth seal, and lo, there was a great earthquake;
and the gun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto the
earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heavens departed as
a scroll, when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. And the kings of
the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bond man, and
every free man, hid themselves in the dens, and in the rocks of the mountains; and said to the mountains and rocks,
Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath
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of the Lamb. For the great day of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand? This exhibition of divine
wrath, at the wounding to death of the Imperial head of the Roman Beast, was terrible. How much more terrible
will be the exhibition, when Antichrist, who is represented as this same head revived, and renewing his war with
Christ, shall be utterly destroyed under the most signal judgments of Heaven? This latter event will answer to that
description, in a far more extensive and terrible sense, than did the revolution in Rome, in the year 320, to which
the passage, in its chronological order relates.
Ye learn then, O Christians, who may live in the days of Antichristian violence, the happy termination of your
struggles with Antichrist. Your afflictions will for a time abound; and your consolations may also abound. Hear
the animating words of your Almighty Captain, when the terrors of the battle shall be perceived.
"Fear not, for I am with thee; be not dismayed, for I am thy God. When thou walkest through the waters, they shall
not overflow thee; and through the fire thou shalt not be burnt. I am with thee, to deliver thee, saith the Lord.
I, even I am he, that comforteth you. Who art thou, that thou shouldst be afraid of a man, that shall die, and of
the son of man, that shall be made as grass; and forgettest the Lord thy Maker, who hath stretched forth the heavens,
and laid the foundations of the earth; and hast feared continually every day, because of the fury of the oppressor,
as though he were ready to destroy? And where is the fury of the oppressor? When these things begin to come to pass,
then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh. Fear ye not the reproach of men, neither be
afraid of their revilings. Fear not them, who kill the body; and after that have no more that they can do. But fear
him, who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them
shall not fall to the ground, without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not
therefore, ye are of more
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value than many sparrows! Whosoever, therefore, shall confess me before men, him will I
confess also before my Father, who is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before
my Father, who is in heaven. Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the Lord; awake, as in the ancient days, in the
generations of old. Art thou not it, that hath cut Rahab, and wounded the dragon? Art thou not it, that hath dried the
sea, the waters of the great deep; that hath made the depth of the sea a way for the ransomed to pass over? Therefore
the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and come with singing unto Zion; and everlasting joy shall be upon their head:
they shall obtain gladness and joy; and sorrow and mourning shall flee away."
SECTION II.
Gog and his Bands: Or the final expedition and overthrow of Antichrist, in Palestine.
It may be fairly collected from various predictions, noted in the preceding pages, that Antichrist is the Power, who
is to lead the attack upon the ancient people of God, after their return from their long dispersion, to the land of
their fathers. The noted passage in Dan. xi, 36, to the end, clearly favors this opinion. Says the Angel, in his
preparatory remarks; Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days; for yet
the vision is for many days. * And the Power, whom he proceeds to predict, is found, at the time of the end, in the
Holy Land, and there meets his overthrow! The prediction, relative to the coalition and destruction at Armageddon;
Rev. xvi, 13--; that relative to the Beast from the bottomless pit; Rev. xvii; that relative to the last
battle of the Beast, and his vassal kings, with Christ; Rev. xix, 19--; and that relative to the Roman Beast, as
______
* Dan. x, 14.
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Gog and his Bands.
distinct from the Papal horn, being slain at the battle of the great day, and his body destroyed, and given to the
burning flame; Dan. vii, 11; all unite to evince, that Antichrist is to lead in this attack upon the Church of Judah
and Israel in Palestine.
We have then a clew, by which to understand the predictions in the 38th, and 39th, chapters of Ezekiel,
concerning Gog and his bands. The Angel said to Daniel, when about to predict Antichrist; † But
I wilt show thee that which is noted in the Scripture of truth. Antichrist then, was before noted in the
Scripture of truth. We may believe he here refers to these very chapters of Ezekiel. For in no other part of the
Old Testament had Antichrist been more clearly predicted.
In Ezekiel xxxvi and xxxvii, we have very express predictions of the return, re-union, and conversion of the house of
Israel; meaning not only the Jews, Levites and the tribe of Benjamin; but also the other ten tribes. In chapter xxxvi,
16--; God relates the criminal cause of their dispersion; the great dishonor they had done to his name among the heathen,
where they had resided; and that for his own name's sake he would gather them. * God says; For I will take you from
among the heathen, and will gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land: Then will I sprinkle
clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean; from all your filthiness, and from all your idols will I cleanse you. A
new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of
your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my
statutes; and ye shall keep my judgments and do them. And ye shall dwell in the land, that I gave to your fathers; and
ye shall be my people, and I will be your God. In chapter xxxvii, the subject is resumed; and their restoration
and conversion are predicted under a figure of the resurrection of a valley full of dry bones. The vision is applied,
verse 11;
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These bones are the whole house of Israel; i. e, the Jews, and all the other tribes. Therefore
prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God, Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to
come out of your graves, and bring you info the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened
your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, and shall put my Spirit in you, and ye shall live,
and I will place you in your own land. Then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it saith
the Lord.
A striking representation follows of the re-union of the Jews and the ten tribes. The prophet by Divine direction takes
two sticks. Upon the one he writes, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions; i. e. For the Jews,
and such of the other tribes, as returned with them from Babylon. On the other stick he writes, For Joseph, the stick
of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel, his companions; i. e. For the ten tribes of Israel, who revolted in
the days of Rehoboam, and have ever since been separate from the Jews. These two sticks miraculously become one in the
prophet's hand. And this miracle God explains, by the two nations, the Jews and Israel, becoming permanently united in
one nation, in the land of their fathers, and remaining holy and happy thenceforward under the reign of Christ, their
spiritual David.
And now, in the two following chapters, we have a description of a terrible event, which is to take place upon this
their re-union and re-settlement in the Holy Land. Lest Israel should expect to regain their ancient inheritance, and
enter upon their millennial bliss, without any signal danger; or lest, when they should find an extensive and furious
coalition formed against them, not long after their return, they should deem this event inconsistent with the promises
of God; and also that the Church of God might be forewarned of so signal an event, as what was now to follow; an
account is given of a most extensive and terrible combination against the Jews an |
