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"To the law and to the testimony : if they speak not according to this * word, it ia because there is no light in them."— Isaiah viii. 20. ■i "iiHill j"m , fc REVIEW OP THE DOCTRINES AND PROPHETICAL CHRONOIOGY or MR. WILLIAM MILLER. BY AN ISRAELITE. •' To the law and to the testimony : if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. "—Isaiah viii. 20. \ 1' TORONTO: PRINTED FOR THE AUTHOR, AT THE CHRISTIAN GUARDIAN OFFICE, No. 9, WELLINGTON BUILDINGS, KING STREET. 1844. \ LTK0 5 ^.cf>- P'f^ *S>£3 1 /{) i^i> J II. LAWRENCE, I'KINTER. R F. VIEW. ^^^<^MMM^»^^^^^ Having been requested by numerous individuals of diiferent sects to examine the doctrines promulgated by- Mr. William Miller, and to give my views of the Pro- pheticfil numljers and interpretations of that gentleman, and also the view of the Jewish church, with respect to the approaching kingdom of the Messiah— I would much rather that some one more competent than myself would handle the subject. The excitement which has arisen throughout the whole country has consequently brought out many able writers both for and against the gentleman's predictions ; but, whilst individuals are afraid of not being considered 'orthodox' sectarian theo- ries will prevail, and ' truth' be hidden from sight— This must be my apology as an Israelite, in presenting myself before the public. ^ Before commencing this review^ I shall lay down the following principles and rules to be governed by : — 1st. All prophecies, when written in plain language, to be literally understood, and in no case a second or double meaning to be given to them. 2d. Metaphors to be governed by the explanations given, and the context. 3d. ParaboUcal and metaphysical language to be con- strued according to reason and common sense, and no force applications to be understood. We shall now proceed to examine Mr. Miller's theory. He commences with stating that the year 1843 is the six thousandth year from the creation, and consequently, we are now to commence the Millennium Sabbath, which he pretends to ])rove from the Bible chronology: — this he fails in cnm\)\eto\y . He makes it 621 years from the Children of Israel coming out of Egypt to the commencement of the roign ol Solomon. The only argument I shall use to upset ihifi cliroiiology is the I Kings vi. 1 : — ' And it came to pass iu the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solo- mon's reign over Israel, in the month Zif, which is the second month, that he began to build the liouse of the Lord ;' consequently, as the gentleman has full faith in the holy writings, this must suffice on that point. In this I am fully borne out by Sir Isaac Newton's chro- nology, supported by astronomy. His second calculation is founded altogether on a mistake. He has taken it from Leviticus xxvi. 18. 21, and 24. The word ' times' is not hi the Hebrew text, but is a word introduced by the translator in each verse. The word is V2\i; shava (seven), and may be correctly translated sevenfold, according to the sense of the con- text: but, however, the word 'times' not being in the original, which every Hebrewist well knows, the gen- tleman's calculation of 2520 years, from the captivity of Menassah, king of Judah, and the captivity of the Ten Tribes, to the year 1843, falls to the ground. You will thus perceive how necessary it is for an individual who wishes to establish any subject from the Scriptures to be well acquainted with the original language. We are now arrived at his ' Sanctum Sanctorum,' the main pillar of his whole system or theory. I allude to the celebrated vision of the 2300 days ; Daniel viii. 14. The Hebrew version is 2300 evenings and morn- ings! however I shall not quibble on words, but for the present shall take the Bible translation. The reader will please recollect that my first rule states that ' all prophecies, when written in plain language, to be literally understood ;' consequently, ' days ' cannot be 'years:' and I defy the gentleman in any instance in T Vlillennium I the Bible [e makes it linjT out of f Solomon. I'Jirouology ill the four n of Israel 3ar of Solo- hich is the 3use of the full faith in point. In ,' ton's chro- ether on a xvi. la 21, ebrew text, each verse. le correctly of the con- eing in the ^s, the gen- ie captivity Lvity of the 3un(l. You 1 individual 3 Scriptures uage. 3torum,' the r. I allude Daniel viii. and morn- , but for the The reader es that * all ao"f> to be ' cannot be instance in the Old Testament, to prove that 'day* meant 'year,' without its being *so stated in the context.' I will refer the reader to several passages in the Scriptures, where the text carries me out. Ezekiel iv. 4, 5, 6, God says, to him, * I have appointed thee a day for a year.' A second passage in Numbers xiv. 24. — ' After the number of the days in which ye search the land, even forty days (each day for a year) ;' this is an his- torical fact — the Israelites did wander in the wilder- ness 40 years. There are many passages which refer to ' many days,' and if there are enough of them to form 'years,' I have no objections, but cannot admit a 'day' to be a 'year.' This passage has generally been admitted, by Jews and Christians, to have been fulfilled HI the person of Antiochus Epiphanes, who really did persecute the Jews, desecrate their temple, and stopped the daily sacrifice, and ' set up the abomi- nation which maketh desolate.' These events, accord- ing to Josephus and Rollin, were very nearly 6 years and 4 months accomplishing, which is about 2300 days. Maccabees makes it only 6 years and 3 months, which is but little short of this period. I refer the reader to the following texts in the 1st book of Macabees, i. 10, 20, 54; iv. 36, 58; vi. 15, which fully elucidates the prophecy. Mr. Miller and many other commentators have ex- plained this prophecy or vision as alluding to the Roman Empire. Let us examine the grounds upon which they arrive at this conclusion. Daniel viii. — In the third year of the reign of king Balshazzar, Daniel being anxious for the fate of his people who were in captivity, the Lord granted him this vision. The ram with two horns is acknowledged by all parties to be the kingdom of the Medes and Persians. The he goat from the west is also acknowledged to represent Greece : and the ' notable horn between his eyes' to be Alexander the Great. I shall now quote the 8th and 9th verses, as on them the w^hole matter stands : Verse 8. Therefore ' became ex- ceeding great : and when he was strong, the great horn I was broken ; and for it came up four notable ones toward the four winds of heav(m.' Verse 9. * And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the pleasant land.' Now the reader must apply my second and third rules to the above (quotations, and' the sense immediately becomes apparent, * no forced applications to be understood-' I will now ap])eal to the common sense and reason of my readers, if a descendant (the little horn) coming out of one of the Grecian horns can, by any possibility, represent the Roman Empire, for Rome was not even a Grecian colony, but said to have been built by the descendants of the Trojans, the ancient and most bitter enemies of the Greeks. What has led the gentleman to be positive and enthusiastic on this visi i ? Why, merely a small mistake in the translation of the 9th verse. Mr. Miller founds his whole argument in this passage, on the words ' waxed exceed- ing great' which is entirely a mistake. The words, in the Hebrev, are "in> hlir^^ (vatigdal yater) 'with a remnant of residue of greatness toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the 'glorious ]r'i<].' This, you will perceive, gives a different view altogether, thereby brings forth the little horn succeeding his predecessors with diminished power to rule over his southern and eastern dominions and the pleasant land (Palestine). Alexander is described, in the original, to have * become exceeding great.' It thus appears evident that Mr. Miller could not have been searching after the truth, or he would not have made such egregious errors. What I have already written, would be sufficient to point out the gentleman's position : but as I do not wish him to have any ground to stand on, I shall endeavour to knock away his last support. It is founded on the 25th verse of the 7th chapter of Daniel, 'And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to cliange times and laws : and they shall be given into his hands until a time ana ' times' and the dividing of time.' We must now appeal otablc ones J. * And out ^hicli waxed ard the east, reader must 3 (quotations, t, ' no forced p])eal to the L descendant *ecian horns lan Empire, but said to Trojans, the eks. What enthusiastic ;take in the ds his whole xed excecd- vords, in the I remnant of I toward the lis, you will ereby brings jessors with and eastern Alexander le exceedin^^ Miller could le would not lave already gentleman's any ground ^ay his last ! of the 7th great words the saints of 5 and laws : il a time and : now appeal ! to the rules laid down at the commencement: *AU prophecies to be literally understood, and in no case a second or double meaning to be given to them.' Mr. Miller maintains that this is metaphorical language, and that •time' means 3G4 years, or avcar of years, and Uime,' times, and a dividing of time, means 1260 years. This he is not supported in, either by the text or context, neither docs he bring any other passage in Scripture to support this vagary. But luckily we have Daniel's understand- ing of "the word times from himself in chapter iv. 16: * Let his heart be changed from man's, and let ' beast's heart be given unto him; and let seven times pass over him.' This was predicted against Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and fulfilled in the 35th verse: conse- quently, according to Mr. Miller's understanding of the word 'time,' seven times must be 2,520 years, and Nebuchadnezzar, becoming distracted in the 569th year before the Christian era, is now alive! and is not to be restored to his senses until the year 1951 ! ! By this time it will appear evident that this gentleman's theory and calculations are founded on a perversion of the holy writings ; and that the most High has not declared to men the period of the commencement of the Messiah's kingdom, for when Daniel inquired of the Lord (ch. xii. 9), ' he said, Go thy way, Daniel : for the w^ords are closed up and sealed until the time of the end.' With respect to Mr. Miller's views of Messiah s king- dom, I shall not touch upon them in this communication, but in my next shall endeavour to give a correct under- standing of the visions and prophecies on that subject, and will prove that many important events are yet to be fulfilled previous to the^glorious reign of the Messiah. May the Lord hasten it in its day ! In going into the investigation of this important sub-^ ject, it will be necessary to quote many passages of Scripture, to give literal translation (when not correct), and to comment on the same : I vviU endeavour to oe as brief as the subject-matter will admit. Before com- \Z Il i 1 8 mencing, I shall lay down a proposition, without which we are liable to misunderstand many of the prophecies. The prophets of the Old Testament were all Israelites, and were appointed for special purpose of declaring the word of the Lord to their brethren, sometimes threaten- ing, other times reasoning, and frequently confronting and giving their brethren glorious view c; of their resto- ration and resurrection, with glowing descriptions of the Messiah's kingdom and universal happiness. We must therefore, as a general rule, locate the prophets at Jeru- salem, and from thence view the world, as it were, in a panorama: and we are also to understand that Jewish prophets, in alluding to the names, Israel, Jacob, Ephraim, saints, and holy people, and my servant or servants, have no other allusion than to their own people and brethren, the descendants of the ancient children of Israel. My plan in pursuing this investigation will be to commence with the 18th chapter of Isaiah : it being considered by the learned of both ^-eligions as a message to the American nation ! and in my progress shall intro- duce the most important visions and prophecies. There are several mistranslations in this chapter, which I take the liberty of rendenng literally. This chapter alone ought to satisfy the Millerites of the necessity of its fulfilment, with many other prophecies previous to the commencement of Messiah's kingdom. Isaiah xviii. 1. — 'Ho! to the land shadowing with wings, beyond the rivers of Cush' (Africa). Here the great Spirit is calling aloud on the American nation, which is first described as receiving all under the shadow of her wings, both metaphorically and literally, who, without understanding this prophecy, chose the eagle with expanded wings for her national ensign ; not like the ancient and modern nations, who have the eagle in a warlike position for their ensign, — but the American eagle, without one unfriendly feature, extends her wings for the protection of her own nation, and offers a shelter for the persecuted of all nations of the earth : — ' beyond ^ bout which prophecies. .1 Israelites, 3claring the as threaten- confronting their resto- )tions of the We must Lets at Jeru- as it were, jrstand that jrael, Jacob, ' servant or own people Bnt children will be to h: it being s a message \ shall intro- 3ies. There v^hich I take apter alone essity of its i^ious to the owing with . Here the [can nation, r the shadow 3rally, who, e the eagle ^n ; not like the eagle in e American is her wings iers a shelter L : — ' beyond the rivers of Cush' (Africa). The word ' Cush,' among the Hebrews, was the general name for Africa, conse- quently the country designated must be beyond Africa. The prophet is located at Jerusalem, and a ship sailing from the nearest port (Joppa) would steer down the Mediterranean Sea, pass beyond all the rivers of Africa, through the Straits of Gibraltar into the Atlantic Ocean, and c^ontinue west to the American shores. Verse 2 — ' Which sendeth ambassadors by sea, and in vessels impressing on the face of the water.'' America cannot send her ambassadors to any civilized or com- mercial nation but by sea. The fourth or last descrip- tion is the most extraordinary. The Prophet does not designate ships, but vessels which he saw in his prophetic view, propelled through the water different from ships sailing. He therefore calls them vessels of ' GomeyJ translated in the Bible ' bulrushes.' Now this word has three meanings ; the first is to drink or swallow in hurry and profusion, like the rushing of water over a waterfall ; the second meaning is to impress, a poAverful stroiig impression, made for the purpose of forcing onward in a forward direction, such as is made by the fiery war- horse, with his hoofs on the earth, in his hurry and rage to get to the battle. Job xxxix. 24.—' With fierceness and rage he impresseth the ground: Here the word ' impresseth' is 'YEGOMEY.' The Bible translates this word ' he swalloweth.' Now no horse ever swal- lowed the ground. The third meaning is ' bulrushes.' Now we may not expect vessels fitted for the navigation of the Atlantic ocean will ever be made of ' bulrushes.' I would rather look for an appropriate and lucid descrip- tion by the Prophet of the kind of vessels which should carry those messengers. Whatever power may cause the motion of wheels of boats, whether steam, or high or low pressure horse-power, or otherwise, such vessel is aptly described by the words used by the Prophet. Having given a full description of the country and its location, and the manner of its communication with foreign nations, the Prophet now fully opens the scene, ;( ) 10 ' Go ye swift messengers to a nation scattered and peeled, to a people terrible (or wonderful) from that day forward.' There can be no controversy but here the Prophet intends the Jews, who are a scattered people, a people who have been plucked or peeled — plundered by all nations — but who are to become terrible from the coming of [the Messiah and ever after. This is the obvious literal translation and meaning, and is consonant with all the prophecies. Numbers xxiv. 17. — ' A Star shall come forth from Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, which shall smite the corners of Moab, and overturn the govern- ments of all the children of Seth.' Balaam, in his prophecy, informs Balak, king of Moab, of the entire subjection of Moab to the Israelites, and not only Moab, but the whole world — for all mankind are included in the general form— ' the children of Seth;' for the pos- terity of Cain, and all Adam's other sons perished in the Deluge, so that the Hne of Seth was only preserved in Noah and his family. A nation strong in faith, though trodden down, ' whose land the rivers have spoiled.' It is well known how strong the Jews have always been in their faith since their dispersion, continually hoping, trusting, and expecting enlargement, but still have been trodden upon by all. ' Rivers' is figuratively put in Scripture for rulers and conquerors. — Vide Isa. viii. 6, 7. It appears evident, that, so far as we have proceeded, a partial gathering of the Israelites to the Holy Land will take place, previously to the great war of Gog and Magog, and that a nation described as the United States of America will be the first to acknowledge their inde- pendence, and probably to bring them assistance, such as arms, ammunition, and provisions, they being verv hardly pushed and overrun by their great enemy ' the Prince of Rush, Mesheck and Tubal.'— Vide Ezekiel xxxviii. and xxxix. This will lead me to digress from the main subject to investigate a few of the prophecies and prophetical visions, respecting the rise, conquest, xi \x\j w iiLaii. yji uiia mi^uLy uiiu lasi uespor, uesignaied I on. . it I and peeled, lay forward.' the Prophet :)le, a people lered by all nthe coining the obvious isonant with 3 forth from srael, ^vhich Q the govern- aam, in his >f the entire t only Moab, ! included in for the pos- rished in the preserved in aith, though spoiled.' It ^ays been in ally hoping, II have been vely put in ^sa. viii. 6, 7. 3 proceeded, ly Land will of Gog and ^lited States J their inde- stance, such being very enemy * the ide Ezekiel iigress from 3 prophecies e, conquest, , designated 11 in the Scripture's as ' Gog' and ' Prince of Rush' in Ezekiel ; in Joel, 'the great Northern Army ;' in Zecliariah and Micah, as a gathering of ' all nations ;' in the xi. Daniel 40, * King of the North :' but more especially he is pointed out by Daniel, in his vision of the ' four great beasts,' viz. the little horn, having eyes like a man, and a mouth ' speaking great things.' As this passage of Scripture has drawn forth numer- ous commentaries in all ages, I shall quote a portion of the chapter, and endeavour to prove that both Catholics and Protestants (including Mr. Miller) are all wTong in their expositions. The Protestants have been anxious to prove the ' little horn' to be the Pope, and, as the Antichrist, throw him at the Catholics. They, on the contrary, (although acknowledging it to be the power designated Antichrist) declare it (the ' little horn') to be the Mohammedan power. We, as Jews, being divested of this prejudice, deny that it alludes either to the Pope or Mohammed : Daniel vii. 23-27, ' Thus he said, the fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall tread it down and break it to pieces. And the ten horns partitioning this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise, and another shall arise behind them, and he shall be diverse from the former, and he shall subdue three kings. And he shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and think to change their appointed times and laws : and they shall be given into his hands until a time and times and a division of time. But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take aw^ay his dominion, to consume and destroy it unto the end. And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, ^\\'A\ be given to the holy people of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.' (I shall give a literal translation of these verses in commenting upon them.) It is acknowledged on all sides that the fourth beast represents the Roman Empire, - And the I! ; ii , Mi! 12 ten horns out of that kingdom.' Out of is wrongly translated : the Hebrew is ' Monah,' to partition, to por- tion or share, and consequently the Roman empire must be (both the Eastern as well as the Western empire) partitioned among the ten horns or kings, previous to the appearance of the little horn, and the same horns repre- senting the same kingdoms are destroyed with the beast and little horn — the beast represents the religious gov- ernment, and the ten horns the civil government. The little horn represents the despotic king or emperor who, in the latter days (1290) of the * indignation,' when ' the daily sacrifice is to be taken away, and the abomin- ation that maketh desolate set up,' — Dan. xii. 2 — shall be at the head of both the civil and religious government of the beast. Now this little horn cannot be the Pope, as it is not to appear until some time after the partition of the Roman empire, and he — the little horn — is to be a mighty conqueror, ' whose look was more stout than his fellows,' Daniel vii. 20. He is to be a warlike power, and to conquer three of the ten divisions or king- doms of the whole Roman dominion, in addition to his own immense empire, which was no part of the Roman empire, being diverse from the first,' (or former horns.) Mr. Miller dates the rise of the little horn in 538, when the Pope of Rome had certain privileges granted him by Justinian I., Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, who, about this period, under his great general Belisarius, had driven the Barbarians from Rome, and established the Roman power over its ancient dominions in Africa, Italy, and Thrace — it not having lost any portion of its Eastern dominions, but on the contrary Belisarius had given the Parthians (or Persians) an immense defeat on its Eastern frontier, and had defeated or driven from its empire the Vandals, Ostrogoths, Huns, Heruli, and Alemani, — consequently none of these barbarous tribes could be the ' ten kingdoms.' And we find, also, that it was not until the year 754 that Pepin, King of France, made the Pope a temporal Prince ; and that he has never since increased in temporal power, and that at present I ' is wrongly tition, to por- empire must tern empire) evioustothe horns repre- ith the beast ehgious gov- iment. The mperor who, ation,' when the abomin- xii. 2 — shall government be the Pope, the partition )rn — is to be re stout than e a warlike ions or king- Idition to his f the Roman rmer horns.) n 538, when granted him man Empire, alBelisarius, i established >ns in Africa, portion of its elisarius had ise defeat on riven from its Heruli, and barous tribes 1, also, that it ig of France, he has never lat at present 13 his dominions are not of as much consequence in Europe i as little Rhode Island is in the United States — we must, then, search for some other power which has or is to conquer and overthrow three-tenths of the ancient Roman empire. The next that draws our attention is Mohammed, whose power commenced with the Hegira, 622. Here, if the gentleman would add his 1260 years, making 1882, he might have some little reasoning in his calculations ; for I have no doubt before that period the Turkish or Mo- hammedan power at Constantinople will be destroyed ; but I cannot even allow the gentleman this little privi- lege if he should wish to change his ground, for I shall presently prove that Mohammed is no more the ' little Horn' than the Pope. For more than 800 years from the commencement of the Mohammedan power, the Empire of the East was the bulwark of Christendom, and consequently the Roman empire was not dissolved nor partitioned ; and until that took place it is of little use for us to look for the ' ten horns.' During that time continual changes were going on among the semi-bar- barous nations of Europe; and, within twenty years after the death of Mohammed, the Saracens were driven into caliphets, or separate independent governments ; and in 761 we find five separate independent Moham- medan governments ; four of them within the bounds of the ancient Roman empire, viz., at Bagdad, Cairo, Morocco, Cordova, and m Persia without the bounds of the empire. About the year 1293 Othrnan began the Turkish em- pire in Bithynia; its commencem^-nt was small, but gradually incorporated into its dominions many other Mohammedan powers, dividing before it the remains of the Roman government. In 1352 the Turks first en- tered Europe ; and, 1453, by their conquest of Constan- tinople, the Roman empire became extinct ; and from that period we are enabled to designate the ten king- doms who had partitioned the dominions of ancient Rome, viz., Turkey, Morocco, Great Britain, Spain, i rtll • (1 14 France, Germany, Italy, Hungary, Poland, Holland (or Netherlands.) We have now the 'ten horns' fully developed, with scarcely any preponderance among them, the balance of power being nearly equalised ; consequently the 'little horn,' with its immense despotic power, 'eyes like a man, and a mouth speaking great things,' had not yet appeared. In 1479 Russia freed itself from the Tartar yoke, and a series of barbarous princes ruled over it. Its history is filled with civil wars, commotions, and conquests among the barbarous tribes of the northern parts of Europe and Asia. It was considered of no account amongst the civilised powers of the world until the commencement of the eighteenth century. In 1700, for the first time, the attention of Europe was drawn to the North, where two potent warriors appeared on the stage struggling for pre-eminence — Charles the Twelfth of Sweden and Peter the Great of Russia. In 1704 St. Petersburg was founded on the shores of the Baltic ; in 1709 the great struggle was decided. Charles of Sweden was totally defeated at Pultowa by Czar Peter, ' Prince of Rush,Mesheck, and Tubal.' The Swedes being deprived by Russia of nearly a moiety of their territory, were driven across the Baltic ; from which time we have ' that horn, whose look was more stout than his fellows,' with its immense empire and despotic ruler fully developed, — its un- changeable nature having been tested by the downfall of Napoleon Buonaparte, the greatest general of the age. What has become of Poland ? and what is in the course of progress with Turkey.'^ The third power which this great northern conqueror is to subdue we shall produce when examining the 38th chapter of Ezekiel. We have now no difficulty before ns; — the 'little horn' has become apparent ; he has subdued Poland, and in a fair wav of plantino* ' the Tabernacle, HebrefV -n£3x (of his Ephod) of his palace between the seas.' Daniel xii. 45, at Constantinople. I , Holland (or horns' fully :ance among y equalised; ense despotic )eaking great tar yoke, and Its history id conquests hern parts of f no account Drld until the on of Europe tent warriors 3-eminence — • the Great of iinded on the struggle was y defeated at VIesheck, and y Russia of driven across ; horn, whose a its immense ped, — its un- the downfall ralof the age. hat is in the third power to subdue we th chapter of s;— the kittle dued Poland, riacle, Hebrew jen the seas.' 15 Having digressed so long from my original text, it is i now time to return to it, and after having brought the subject again to bear on the ' little horn,' will pay him another visit, and endeavour to elucidate the passage of * until a time, times and dividing of time.' We shall, therefore, in our next communication, commence with the 3rd verse of the 18th chapter of Isaiah. Isaiah xviii. 3, — ' All ye that inhabit the world, and that dwell upon the earth, when the standard is lifted upon the mountains, behold ! and when the trumpet is sounded, hear!' Here the subject is continued, and a new scene breaks upon us. The United States, being no part of the * beast,' shall first see their true interest and throw off the thraldom of error, and acknowledge the independence of the Jews, — sending them ambassa- dors even previous to the war of Gog. All the rest of the world will do the same after the battle ; so that this verse informs us when the great battle of the Lord has taken place. All the inhabitants of the world and dwel- lers upon the earth will see when the ensign of the mountains (combined Catholic and Greek Churches) is raised, and they will hear the sounding of the tocsin of alarm, (against the governments and thrones,) and perform their part of duty, together with the distant nation of the * overshadowing wings,' as mentioned in verse 7. The next two verses are quite mistranslated — I will endeavour to give a correct version. Verse 4, For thus the Lord said unto me, when I have rested, then I shall consider my prepared, like a clear heat upon the herbage, and as a cloud of de?v in the heat of harvest. This is the true, the literal translation, meaning when the Lord shall have rewarded the Gentiles for their enmity and I persecution of the Jews, then I will attend to the great, the glorious reward of my people for their unparalleled I sufferings in my cause. The Hebrew word means 1 'rested from war :' for example we have the same word in Joshua xi. 23, * And the Lord rested from war.' Again, ' Like a clear heat upon the herbage,' — As the "^1 vi 16 clear heat forwards the ripening of herbs, so will my attention have a like effect to mature the happy state of my prepared people Israel. *As a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.' As moisture and warmth cause a quick flourishing growth of the herbage, so will I cause the nation of Israel, my prepared, to come to its acme suddenly. Verse 5. — ' For before the harvest, when the bud is perfect, and the sour grape shall be striving to ripen, he will cut off the sprigs with pruning hooks, and the branches he will cut away and remove.' Explanation : for before Gog and his allies have ripened the execution of their plans, but still when they are perfectly formed, as the grape is before harvest, large, full, but not ripe ; that is before they have executed their purpose, their intention of destroy- ing the Jews, v/hen their views will be perfectly appa- rent, ' he will cut off,' he will execute judgment on Gog and all his hosts : he will destroy Gog and his immediate army on the spot: and even the outspreading branches, the supporters or luxuriant lords, spiritual and temporal, will also be put down, ' cut away' from the stock of the vine. I would notice here, that the vine itself is not molested; only the sprigs and branches are to be destroyed : the stock is to be left to produce bet- ter fruit. The vine is only left bare ; the bad growth is taken from it and destroyed — given up to the raven- ous birds of the air and beasts of the field to prey upon. The rulers and clergy, either those who stay near home, or those who spread out on missions, teaching false doctrines, and armies drawing their support from the vine, — those alone are doomed to . destruction ; but the stalk, the vine itself, the nations of the world, are not otherwise threatened. Verse 6. — ' They shall be left together to the rapaci- ous birds of the mountains, and to the wild beasts upon the earth, and the rapacious birds shall abhor it ! and every wild beast of the earth shall despise it.' By this figure of the two last verses are combined the represen- tation of the entire destruction of the wicked, both high I ip^ 3S, SO will my le happy state cloud of dew and warmth e herbage, so Y prepared, to — ' For before the sour grape off the sprigs will cut away Gog and his plans, but still rrape is before is before they on of destroy- >erfectly appa- judgment on Gog and his 3 outspreading ;, spiritual and w'ay' from the that the vine I branches are ) produce bet- ) bad growth I to the raven- '. to prey upon, ay near home, caching false ^ort from the tioi. ; but the vorld, are not to the rapaci- d beasts upon ibhor it ! and 3 it.' By this the represen- ed, both high 17 and low, rich and poor, so that their power and govern- ment will be totally annihilated, and they be left to the rapacious birds and beasts, who will also loathe them, so they will be cast abroad upon the face of the e;^rth, agreeable to what the Prophet hath declared. Isaiah Ixvi. 24 — * And they shall go forth and see the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me : for their worms shall not die, and their fire shall not be quenched ; and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.' Thus will all the birds and beasts, on account of the extraordinary stench and corruption, fly from and loathe them, so that the Israelites will have to turn out en masse to bury them. Vide Ezekiel xxx. 9, 11, 12, 13. — ' And it shall come to pass on that day that I will give unto Gog there a place in Israel, the valley of the passengers of the east of the sea ; and I will stop the noses of the passengers, and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude, and they shall call it the valley of Hamon- Gog : And seven months shall the House of Israel be burying of them that they may cleanse the land. Yea, all the people of the land shall bury them, and it shall be to them a name of renown, the day that I shall be glorified, saith the Lord God ;' and as the resurrection will take place at or near the restoration of the nation, the prophet says, verse 7, * At that time shall a gift be brought to the Lord of Hosts,' for this refers to the * Land shadowing with wings,' (the United States of America) mentioned verse 1 ; for it is with their steam- ships from thence, and many other parts of the world, that the present is to be brought : and he further informs us what the present is that is to be brought, — ' A nation scattered and peeled ; and of a nation terrible from that day forward ; a natio'^ ^trong in faith though trodden down, whose land the rivers have spoiled — to the place of the name of the Lord of hosts — ^the Mount Zion.' For it is there that the glory of the Lord of Hosts will be manifested ; as the prophet says, chap. xi. 4-5, ' And it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord's House shall be established on the top of B I' I I'i *:i I'lii 18 the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and that all nations shall flee unto it. And many people shall go and say. Come ye and let me go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacobs and he will teach us his ways, and we will walk in his paths ;' for out of Zion shall go forth the Law and the Word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people ; and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.' In the course of the review, I shall refer to several such prophecies as above. The reader must be satisfied by this time that the very illiberal terms by which Mr. MillcT designates the Jewish nation, does not show a Christian feeling. He styles them 'carnal-minded, obstinate, and stubborn Jews,' and calls those Ministers who understand the prophecies as they are written, * Judaising Christians ;' and he more than insinuates that the world — except his own peculiar saints, will be condemned, and not par- take of the glorious happiness of the Messiah's king- dom, — contrary to the whole blessed Scriptures. . May we not suspect that the 5th verse of the 65th chapter of Isaiah refers to such characters as Mr. Miller, which says, * Stand by thyself, come not near to me, for I am holie?' than thou,' — being, according to his own belief, one of the few saints ' to be caught up in the clouds.^' But how does the Lord regard them ? ' These i])rete7ided saints) are as smoke in niy nostrils, a fire that burneth all the day.' With this passing notice I shall leave the gentleman, and proceed with my review. Having completed my exposition of the 18th chapter of Isaiah, I shall now return to the 7th chap, of Daniel, and shall endeavour to prove the * little horn' of the fourth beast is to be cotemporary with the ' king of the north' ' at the time of the end,' (Dan. xi. 40,) and also with ' Gog,' * Prince of Rush, Meshech, and Tubal,' (Ezek. xxxviii. ;) and if I shall prove to my readers that I he hills, and nany people up to the od of Jacoby [ walk in his Law and the e shall judge people ; and res, and their lift up sword ir any more.' ?r to several me that the 3sio:nates the feeling. He nd stubborn derstand the Christians ;' — except his and not par- issiah's king- >tures. of the 65th IS Mr. Miller, 3ar to me, for to his own rht up in the em? 'These ils, a fire that notice I shall ^ review. 18th chapter ip. of Daniel, horn' of the ' king of the to,) and also and Tubal,' y readers that 19 these three kingdoms or empires thus personified, are one and the same, and that * time, times, and dividing of time j^ is three years and above ; and * a thousand two hundred and ninety days' are literal days, and yet to be accomplished, — what then becomes of the Millerite doctrine, and of his spiritual saints to be manufactured duiing the year 1843 ? Verse 25. — ' lie shall scornfully murmur against the Most High' — that is, he shall per- vert the Scriptures, and scornfully designate the Jews * carnal-minded,' thereby murmuring against the decrees of Providence ; ' And shall decree terror against the holy people of the Most High, and attf mpt to change their appointed times and laws ; and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times, and a dividing of time.' I have rendered this verse literally from the original. It thus appears that this prince or despot is to arise after the present ten kingdoms should be partition- ed out of the ruins of the Roman empire ; he is then to subdue three of those ten kingdoms, and having captured Constantinople, he will then unite the Catholic and the Greek Churches, and establish the 'tabernacle of his Ephod.' Dan. xi. 45. The word * Ephod' is rendered ' Pavilion' in the Bible, but it is wrong. He will estab- lish his false religion * between the seas,' and set up the same (' abomination which maketh desolate') * to the glorious holy mountain.' This is the decree of terrors against the holy people, and the * attempt to change their appointed times and laws.' I have already proved, in reviewing the 18th chapter of Isaiah, that the Israelites would gradually return and resume the government of the Holy Land and Jerusa- lem, re-establish their worship and sacrifices previous to the war of Gog, and that their independence would first be acknowledged by the United States of America. I shall now proceed to prove that Russia is the ' little horn' of Daniel's fourth beast ; that Russia will subdue three of the nowers of Eurone. andbvconauest estab- I'll* ■*■ ■*' *■' ■*■ lish his power and religion over nearly the whole world. The only power that attempts to stop his progress is I \ 20 designated in the Scriptures * Tarsish/ which I intend to prove is Great Britain. Having tyrannized over the Jews about three years and a half, England forms a coalition against him in the * North,' and brings on her forces from the 'East,' (India,) — when, in consequence of insurrections amongst the inhabitants of Asia, with the assistance of Great Britain, the Russians are obliged to leave Jerusalem, which is again taken possession of by the Jews and their allies ; but the Russians having overcome the coalition, and united all their forces to his own, meets his retreating forces from Jerusalem, and commences the last campaign of this tremendous war, which finishes in forty-five days by the total defeat of Gog and an immense army composed of* all the nations.' The destruction will be caused by the Almighty, ' By pestilence, overflowing rain, great hail-stones, fire, and brimstone, and a tumult from the Lord,' by which they shall slay each other. The glory of the Lord will then return to Israel, and the Messiah King will ride into Jerusalem upon an ass in triumph. The resurrection of the Jews will take place througl out the world, and their restoration to the Holy Land as a * present to the Lord of Hosts.' Then will con. '^iice the golden asre or time of blessedness, which is t't V., ," >• ever iiud ever. The earth is to be renovated, tne sting of death destroyed, diseases annihilated, man's life extended to near a thousand years, no more wars or bloodshed, * the wicks^d I :; be destroyed by the breath of his mouth,' and all ^Viii be peace and harmony throughout the world. Thui, aiid a great deal more, I will prove by the Pro- phecies, if my readers will have only patience with me. I shall now bring forward Daniel's epitome, or Pro- phetical History, giving the literal translation and ex- plaining each verse. In chap. X. 14, the angel Gabriel being sent to Dan- iel informs him, * Now I am come to make thee under- yet the vision is for many days.' Explanation : — This was to be DanieVs people^ * thy i ( hich I intend ized over the rland forms a brings on her consequence )f Asia, with IS are obliged possession of ssians having r forces to his rusalem, and aendous war, Dtal defeat of 1 the nations.' Imighty, ' By mes, fire, and y which they iord will then will ride into 3 resurrection it the world, as a * present ice the golden " ever nud sting of death e extended to oodshed, 'the s mouth,' and Lit the world. 3 by the Pro- 3nce with me. tome, or Pro- lation and ex- 1^ sent to Dan- :e thee under- J people J * thy I 21 people,' and in the Matter days;' consequently, this being considered by all parties as the * latter days,' it cannot mean Mr. Miller and his saints, but is clearly understood to be Daniel's people, the ' holy nation,' the people of the Jews. The subject is continued through the 10th and 11th chapters, his historical epitome of the Medes and Persians, their conquest by Alexander the Great, and the reign of his successors, to the death of Antiochus Epiphanes. I will refer the reader to Rollin's Ancient History, who completely elucidates this prophecy to Antiochus's death. Further I cannot go with him than the 32nd verse. Rollin being a Catholic, he will not permit his prejudices to allow the wilful king to be the Roman * beast,' but carries the history of Antiochus Epiphanes through the chapter, making confusion of the whole prophecy. I must again refer to what I have stated respecting the Jewish Prophets — that they were prophesying con- cerning the Israelites, and only touched upon other nations when their history was connected with that of the Jews : Daniel therefore breaks off immediately after the persecution of Antiochus, and commences with the Roman wars against the Jews. Verse 33. — * And they that understand among the people shall instruct many : yet they shall fall by the sword and flame, by captivity and by spoil, many days.' Explanation : — * Howbeit many will understand and be righteous, yet the greater part of nations will not be so ; and consequently they shall be delivered over to their enemies, the Romans, by whom they shall fall by the sword diXid Jlame, by captivity and by spoil, many days.' This has been literally fulfilled, as the reader will be satisfied by reading Josephus and Basnage. Verse 34. — * Now whilst they are fallen, they shall be holpen with a little help : and many shall cleave to them with flatteries." Explanation : — ^In the course of the war, they will be encouraged by some little success against the Romans, and although the righteous Jews will endeavour to stop ^i Am iii'iiii liir '1'^ 22 the bloodshed, and compromise with the Romans, yet tho multitude will be led away by ambitious wicked men, through their insinuating flatteries. Verse 35. — * And some of understanding shall fall, to purity them, to cleanse out and make them white, unto the time of the end : because it is yet for a time appointed.^ Explanation : — ^Many of the wise and righteous will be slain, fighting as patriots, for their beloved and holy city : but the Lord has declared they were suffered to fall with the wicked, which was a means of purifying them and making them white, by which they are pre- pared for their reward, being their resurrection and restoration * at the time of the end.' Verse 36. — ' And the king will do according to his will, and he will exalt himself and magnify himself above every god : and concerning the God of gods, then will be spoken marvellous things, and it will pros- per until the indignation shall be accomplished, for what is determined shall be done.' Explanation: — The emperors of Rome will exalt and magnify themselves above all their pagan gods : but at length a new religion will spring up in the empire, of which marvellous things will be spoken of the God of gods, who is above all; and this new religion shall prosper until the Messiah shall come, or until God's indignation against the Jews shall have been ended. Verse 37. — ' And upon all the gods of his fathers he will have no regard ; and all desire of women, and upon all other gods, he will have no regard : i"or it shall be extolled above all.' Explanation : — They will give up the gods of their pagan fathers, and their desire of women : for the Priests and Monks of this new rehgion will not be permitted to' marry ! they will not regard any other religion, but be opposed to them all : but will endeavour, by means of Missionaries, to spread their religion and extol it above all others. Verse 38. — * But he will honour his strong gods, with the highest flattermg titles ; and unto a god which his Romans, yet fcious wicked shall fall, to (I white, tinto ne appointed.'* ighteous will ved and holy e suffered to of purifying ;hey are pre- irrection and )rding to his rnify himself jod of gods, 1 it will pros- led, for what vill exalt and ^ods : but at le empire, of f the God of eligion shall r until God's en ended, lis fathers he len, and upon )r it shall be yods of their or the Priests i permitted to' igion, but be by means of jxtol it above ig gods, with )d which his I 23 father knew not, shall he honour with gold and silver, and with precious stones, and desirable things.' I Explanation : — This new religion will teach to honour the true God as a plural ; and also a new god, who had not before been considered a god at all, shall be worship- ped with religious reverence in peculiar grandeur. Verse 39. — ' Thus shall he do, enclosing himself in strong holds, with a strange god whom he shall acknow- ledge and increase with glory, and shall cause them to rule over many, and apportion the earth for a price.' Explanation : — Convents will be established for those who accept celibacy, in honour of this religion, who will rule the populace, and tithe all the lands. Verse 40. — ' And towards the time of the end, the king of the south will push at him, and the king of the north will storm over him with chariots, and with horse- men, and with many ships, and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.' i Explanation : — Near the time the redemption of Israel is to take place, the king of the south (the Sultan of Turkey and head of the Mohammedans) will weakly push against the king of the north, the Emperor of Russia, (little horn of the fourth beast, the head of the Christians,) who will war against and conquer all Turkey ! for he will come with a large army, with artil- lery and cavalry, and strong naval force, and will invade and conquer. * Verse 41. — ' He shall enter also in the glorious land, and many shall be overthrown, but these shall escape out of his land, Edom and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.' Explanation : — He shall conquer Palestine and Jeru- salem, and overthrow many of the Jews, but numbers of them shall escape into Edom, Moab, and Ammon ; and ' he shall scatter the powers of the holy people for a time, times, and a half ' (three years and a half) : and having conquered al) these southern countries, accord- ing to the 42d and 43d verses, even as far as Egypt and Barbaiy. < 'f! Ml'' i! i!' if' 24 Verse 44.— * But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him, therefore he shall go forth with fury to destroy and utterly make away many.' Explanation: — This tidings out of the east and north we are not able exactly to state » but according toEzekiel, we are led to believe the British will bring on their armies from the East Indies, and form a coalition against him towards the north of Europe ; but it appears he utterly destroys and makes away with many, — which agrees with Ezekiel, Zechariah, and Joel. The text now goes backward, and informs you what he does previous to his last campaign, and then goes forward and informs you of his end. Verse 45. — 'And he shall plant the tabernacles of his Ephod between the seas, to the glorious holy mountain : yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him.' Explanation : — ^We can now perceive, by referring to the six last verses (12th chapter of Daniel), why the commencement of the 45th verse is set out of its rota- tion. Daniel, not understanding clearly, inquires of the angel what shall be the end of these things. He is first informed that the ' words are closed up and sealed until the time of the end' — ' Many shall be purified and made white, and tried ; but the wicked shall do wickedly, and none of the wicked shall understand : but the wise shall understand' — * And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up' (by the little horn, king of the north. Prince of Rush, Meshech, and Tubixl) : that is, ' the tabernacle of his Ephod,' 'to the glorious holy mountain,' 'shall be (literally) a thousand two hundred and ninety days.' The angel first generalizes : he informs him the persecution will last three years and a half, from the time this despot shall have scattered the power of the holy people : but from the time he stops the daily sacri- fice and the worship of the one only God, and * sets up abomination which maketh desolate,' ' shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days.' This will be a horrid and bloody persecution, and the punishment of liH i St and out of shall go forth ay many.' last ai]d north ingtoEzekiel, )n their armies 1 against him ars he utterly which agrees text now goes s previous to i and informs rnacles of his oly mountain : lall help him.' ly referring to iel), why the ut of its rota- nquires of the ^s. He is first id sealed until fied and made wickedly, and the wise shall daily sacrifice 1 that maketh of the north, that is, ' the Dly mountain,' ed and ninety forms him the lalf, from the power of the le daily sacri- od, and * sets ' shall be one This will be Dunishment of 25 the tyrant and his abettors will be consummate. Daniel informs us that* ' there will be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that time.' And verse 12, he says, 'Blessed is he that waiteth and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days.' — Explanation: Those that hold fast to their faith during the persecution, will be blessed and happy forty- iive days .after it ends : for this period will include the downfall of 'Gog,' the 'little horn,' with all his false doctrines, pomp and power, the blessed resurrection, the commencement of the second ' restoration,' and the glorious kingdom of Messiah. Many of my readers by this time will be of opinion that I have pretty well proved that Daniel's little horn of the fourth beast, is the same with the great conquering king of the North, the Russian empire ; and the * time, times, and dividing of times 1' chap, xxvii. 25, being the persecution by the ' little horn' of the holy people of the Most High, ' coincides with the period of " Time, times, and a half," and 1290 days :' consequently, the whole doctrine of the Millerites is false, and founded upon a perversion of the Scriptures. In my next communication I shall investigate the 38th chapter of Ezekiel, and having brought it down to my present position, shall again return to Daniel, and give my views of the "Resurrection, Restoration, and the ' blessed kingdom of the Stone' of Israel, ' which shall never be destroyed,' Daniel ii. 44 The prophecy I shall now investigate commences Ezekiel xxxviii. 1, and is continued to the end of the last verse of chapter xxxix. The purpose of this prophecy is the vengeance which God will take in the latter days of the enemies of the Jews, for the cruelties exercised against them. Verses 1-3 : The word of the Lord came also unto me, saying. Son of man, set thy face against Gog (of) the land Magog, Prince of Rush, Meshech, and Tubal^and prophesy against him and say. Thus said the Lord iiod ; 26 Behold, I am against thee, Gog, Prince of l(ush, Meshech, and Tubal.' Explanation : — Magog, we know, was the second son of Japheth, and, by the consent of all writers on the subject, placed north of Tubal and esteemed the father of the Scythians, who dwelt on the north-east of the Euxine Sea.— Their chiefs were designated Kak or Chack. As to ' Rush,' I must observe, that is not an appellative, as in the common translation of the Bible, but is a proper name, and denotes the people called Rhossi; and it is more than probable that the Muscovites of Europe were a colony originally of Meshech, called by the Greeks Moschi, not only on account of the like- ness of names, but also of the respective situations of the Moschi and Rhossi ; being neighbours in Asia, it is highly probable their colonies kept together in Europe, those of the Moschi seating themselves in the parts about the city of Moscow, and those of the Rhossi in the parts adjoining on the South. I'here is very little doubt that the Muscovites and Russians in Europe were colonies of Meshech and Tubal jointly. Verses 4-6 : * And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thy army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed in gorgeous apparel, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handhng swords : Persia, Ethi- opia, (Gush) and Libya with them ; all of them with shields and helmets : Gomer, and all his bands ; the house of Togarmah from the north quarters, and all his bands; even manv people with thee.' Explanation .-—The Prophet, in strong sublime language, shows that God will allure Gog first, after his conquest in the East, (according to Daniel xi. 40-43) being alarmed by tidings from the North of coalitions against him by the European powers. * I will turn thee back.' He turns back ' with great fury to destroy and utterly to make away many.' Secondly, God then turns him round, as it were, with a hook in his jaws, ana brings him forth again into Asia, with much larger force, of itusb, second son ers on the the father ast of the 3d Kak or : is not an the Bible, ople called Muscovites ech, called of the like- tuations of I Asia, it is in Europe, I the parts i Rhossi in 1 very little urope were i put hooks tnd all thy clothed in th bucklers ersia, Ethi- them vt^ith bands ; the , and all his g sublime • first, after I xi. 40-43) f coalitions II turn thee lestroy and :1 then turns ; jaws, and arger force, 27 bringing with him all the nations which he had conquer- ed in his first campaign, and in addition nearly all the nations of Europe, some conquered and others in alHance with him. We are now enabled to designate the three 'horns,' or nations which Gog (being the * little horn' of Daniel's fourth beast,) is to subdue ; we there find the first that is mentioned is * Gomer, and all his bands,' Gomer was the son of Japheth : and the sons of Gomer ; Ashchenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah. ' Gen. X. 3. Ashchenaz is designated by all the ancient writers as the father of all the German tribes : and in fact they are called Ashchenazem to this day. Riphath was the father of all the Sclavonian and Sarmatian nations: these are all christians, and are designated * Gomer and all his bands,' and are separated from their brethren, ' Togarmah and all his bands,' because they were Mohammedan nations— Togarmah being the father of all the Turks and Tartars. We now find Gog as the Sovereign and General over Ashchenaz, (Germany) Riphath, (Poland) Togarmah, (Turkey)— the 'little horn :' That ' horn' which had eyes and a mouth that spake great things, whose look was more stout than his I fellows, fully developed, with his conquests, ' three of '' the first horns,' 'plucked by the roots.'. The Prophet goes on, then, and desired him to prepare for the war ; I verse 7 : ' Prepare, even prepare thyself, thou and all ? thy company.' Verse 8 : ' After many days thou shalt be visited : in the latter years thou shalt come into the I land brought back from the sword, and gathered out of I many people, unto the mountains of Israel, which have ' been continually desolate.' Here again it is made mani- fest that a partial gathering of the Jews is to take place previous to the war of Gog. Verse 9 : ' Thou shalt go up, as a storm cometh, thou shalt be as a cloud that covereth the land, thou and all thy bands, and many : people with thee.' Verse 10 : ' Thus saith the Lord 1 God; it shall come to pass at that time, things shall arise in thine heart, and thou shalt think an evil thought.* Verse 11 : 'And shalt say, I will go up to the land of I _j 9J 28 unwalled villages ; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates.'— Verse 1 2 : * To take a spoil and divide a prey ; to turn my hand against the desolate places that are become inhabited, and against a people gathered out of the nations which have got cattle and goods dwelling in the middle of the earth.' Verse 13 : * Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto them, art thou come to take a spoil ? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to divide a great spoil/ But this will not be ; for they shall all fall as dung upon the face of the field. We shall endeavour to discover who these nations are who are endcrvouring to negotiate with Gog. In the 25th chapter of Genesis we find that Sheba and Dedan are two grandsons of Abraham, by his second wife, Keturah, and that in his lifetime he gave them presents and sent them into the east country: it is highly probable, with their brethren, they peopled the East Indies, and they may probably compose a portion of the army of Tarshish, who appear to be the protectors or allies of the Jews. — ^We shall endeavour to discover what nation is meant by the ' Merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof:' They must evidently be a considerable mercantile people. Upon investiga- tion I find Ezekiel himself informs us who this nation is, in chapter xxvii. 12 : * Tarshish was thy merchant by reason of the multitude of all kinds of riches ; with silver, iron, TIN, and lead, they traded in thy fairs.' Now we all know, until within a short period, that Tin was not to be procured from any place or country but England. This would be sufficient to establish the identity of Tarshish and Great Britain ; but we have another strong proof: 'All the young lions thereof* The Lion is the ensign of England, and is borne aloft on their standards; consequently the * young lions* must be their colonies. We have another proof in Isaiah Ix. 8 : * Who are these that fly like a cloud, and ! at rest, that t walls, and o take a spoil the desolate nst a people )t cattle and Verse 13 : arshish, with lem, art thou and gold, to it spoil/ But mg upon the hese nations th Gog. In Sheba and y his second e gave them )untry : it is peopled the 3se a portion he protectors r to discover of Tarshish, ust evidently m investiga- .0 this nation merchant by riches; with in thy fairs.' iod, that Tin * country but establish the but we have Lons thereof* is borne aloft young lions* her proof in a cloud, and I i as the doves to their windows V Verse 9 : * Verily the distant coasts shall wait for me ; and the ships of Tar- shish among the first, to bring thy sons from afar, their silver and their gold with them, because of the name of the Lord thy God, and of the Holy One of Israel : for he hath glorified thee.' I have now proved that the only allies the Jews will have are Great Britain and her allies: but it was of no use : they were not to be defended by the arm of flesh, for they were defeated and obUged to fly. * The city of Jerusalem was stormed, the houses rifled, and the women ravished, and half the city shall go forth into captivity,' Zech. xiv. 2. Verse 3 : * Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought on the day of battle.' I will refer the reader to the whole chapter, which will fully explain my subject. In the book of Joel, also, is a full description of this dreadful war : Chapter ii. 1-8, is descriptive of Gog's army ; verse 9 describes the storming of Jerusalem ; verse 10, the mighty power of Gog's army ; verses 1 1-19, the Jews are called upon to fast and pray, and to call upon the Lord for assistance ; verse 20 describes the destruction of the great Northern army. The 3rd chap- ter of Joel is fully descriptive of this tremendous war. I now return to Ezekiel xxxviii. 14 : * Therefore, son of man, prophesy, and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord God ; In that day when my people of Israel shall not dwell securely, thou wilt know it.' Verse 15 : * And thou shalt come from thy place out of the North parts, thou and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company and a mighty army.' Explanation : — The Lord informs Gog that he knows the cause of the invasion. The Jews were gradually re- turned to the Promised Land, many of them with riches, and were dwelling in security ' without the walls, and having neither gates nor bars.' He then tells him he shall come from the north, (Russia) with many people -:j;^~ ,,^^^ 'Ur^^c.rto /'^'/^l3C!or>l^c^ * n nrrpnt nnmnanv-' The word in Hebrew is congregatioUy and probably means a ,.,i. ips 30 great assemblage of Monks and Pilgrims going up to the Holy City, 'and a mighty army,' composed of the disciplined troops of nearly all the nations of Europe and Asia. Verse 16 : * And thou shalt come up against my people Israel as a cloud to cover the land. It shall be in the latter days that I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.' Explanation : — The Lord himself caused Gog, in the latter days, to bring this immense army of all nations, that his unity may be sanctified in Gog, the chief of the Trinitarians, before the eyes of all the heathen, that they may know him to be the only true God. Verse 17. ' Art thou he of whom I spake in old times by the hand of my servants, the prophets of Israel, who prophesied in those days, many years past, that I would bring thee because of them-' Explanation : — I, the Lord, would bring thee here to take vengeance on thee, not only for thy persecution of the Jews at this time, but also for what all the nations, Christians and Mohammedans, did aforetime to Israel : then indeed will his name be sanctified. The Prophet, therefore, in grand, sublime, and indignant language, with magnificent and terrific imagery, foretells his de- struction. Verses 12-23 : * And it shall come to pass in that day, even on the day when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord God, that my fury shall rise up in my face, for in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath I have spoken. Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel, so that the fishes of the sea shall shake at my presence, and the fowls of the heavens, and the beasts of the field, and every creep- ing thing that creepeth upon the ground, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fail to the ground.' Explanation . This is a sublime description of the tremendous earthquake s going up to nposed of the ns of Europe nst my people hall be in the my land, that e sanctified in 5d Gog, in the f all nations, le chief of the hen, that they 3 in old times f Israel, who , that I would thee here to lersecution of 1 the nations, me to Israel : rhe Prophet, -nt language, etells his de- s in that day, linst the land iiry shall rise he fire of my here shall be lat the fishes d the fowls of [ every creep- id all the men le mountains shall fall, and mation : This s earthquake I 31 which is to renovate the world, render it a perpetual spring, and restore the days of the antediluvians: where, as we find in Zech. xii., when the Lord is described as standing on the * Mount of Olives,* which is cloven in twain, forming * a very great valley »' two rivers of living waters are to burst forth from the neighbourhood of Jerusalem : one directing its course to the Mediterra- nean, the other taking its course to the Jordan, through the valiey where the- Dead Sea was (but now over- whelmed by the earthquake), causing the * desert (of Arcebia) to blossom as the rose,' ' every valley to be exalted.' Verse 10 : * All the land shall be changed as a plain, from Gebo to Remmom, south of Jerusalem :* this is a very mountainous rocky country, which is to be levelled ' as a plain,' and the river continuing its course, will flow into the Red Sea. Ezekiel xlvii. 8, 12: 'Then said he unto me, These waters issue out towards the east country, and go down into the desert, and go into the sea: which being brought forth into the sea, the waters shall be healed.' The 9th verse describes the multitude of fish, and wherever the river came every thing should live and flour- ish. 10th verse describes the fishermen with their nets at 'Engeddi, even unto En-eglaim:' which at this day is a barren, rocky soil, near the Dead Sea. 11th verse : * But the miry places thereof shall not be healed : they shall be given to salt.' I2th verse describes all kinds of trees on the banks, not only for meat and fruit, but the leaves for medicine. We shall now return to the 38th chapter, verse 21: 'And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord God: every man's sword shall be against his brother.' Not nation against nation, for this might be natural enmity, but brother against brother in the same band or nation. Verse 22 : ' And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood, and with an over- flowing shower and great hail-stones, and fire and brimstone, and I will rain upon him and upon his lands, and upon the many people that are with him.' Verse f ( , I 32 23 : ' Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself, and I will be known in the sight of many nations, and they shall know that I am the Lord.' For when God shall take vengeance on the nations for what they did to his people, they will stand in awe of him ; his parti- cular Providence will then be acknowledged, and he will be magnified as a just Juc^ge. The Prophet goes on in the 39th chapter to exemplify more at large, which I shall refer to the reader to examine for himself — having already gone deeper into the subject than I calculated ; but shall give the last five verses and close the subject of the Restoration. Verses 25-30: 'Therefore, thus saith the Lord God, Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and be jealous for mine holy name. Verse 26 : And they shall forget their reproach, and all their trespasses, whereby they trespassed against me, when they shall dwell securely in their land, and none shall make them afraid. Verse 27 : When I bring tliem back from the people, and gather them from the land of their enemies, and are sanciified through them, in the sight of many nations. Verse 28 : And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who caused them to be carried captive among the nations, and afterwards collected them into their own land, and none of them will I leave any more. Verse 29 : Neither will I hide my face any more from them, when I have poured out my spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord God.' It must be apparent to all unprejudiced minds, that these prophecies all allude to the future restoration of and reward of Israel for all their sufferings and perse- cutions, notwithstanding the railings of the Millerites and their prejudices against the seed of Abraham. I shall conclude this part of the subject with one more quotation from the Prophets, and in my next shall com- mence with my views of the Resurrection. Jeremiah xxiii. 7, 8 : * Therefore, behold the days come, said the Lord, that they shall no more say. The Lord liveth, which brought up the children of Israel out of the i LTictify myself, f nations, and 'or when God ^vhat they did lim ; his parti- jdged, and he rophet goes on large, which I nself — having I calculated ; se the subject bre, thus saith le captivity of Duse of Israel, erse 26 : And Bir trespasses, len they shall ill make them Jack from the their enemies, ight of many that I am the irried captive ted them into Lve any more, ay more from 3on the house minds, that restoration of gs and perse- the Millerites Abraham. I dth one more ;xt shall com- n. Jeremiah Dme, said the Lord liveth, I out of the 33 land of Egypt ; but the Lord liveth which brought up and led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land.' Before commencing on the Resurrection, it will be necessary to make a few remarks on the Judgment scene, so sublimely described by Daniel. Commentators on this passage have generally misled their readers, by rendering it as literally to take place on earth, or in the clouds hovering over the earth! and on this supposition Mr. Miller (in apamphlet written by him, now before me,) has erected a magnificent scene of the Last Day, in which he destroys the world, sets forth the Resurrec- tion, ' And then those few {saints on earth) who had looked on the scene with 'patient hope, were suddenly transformed from age to youth, from mortal to immortal; and thus they stood a bright and shining band, all clothed in white, like the bright throne which yet appeared in heaven.' The next moment they are described as clap- ping their wings to * meet the Saviour in the middle air.' This is all a mistake, from not investigating and under- standing the prophetical writings. I will quote the passage and give an explanation of the same. Daniel vii. 11 : * I beheld till the thrones were set up, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool : his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels ^^ burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him : thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him : the judgment was set, and the books were opened. I beheld then, because of the voice of the mul- titude of words which the horn uttered (or decreed) • I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroy- ed, and given to the burning flame.' Explanation:— Darnel is here favoured with a glorious vision of the Throne of God and the Heavenly Host,— much in the same manner as Ezekiel i. and Isaiah 'vi. Accordmg to the belief of the Jewish Church, the judcr. ., # 34 ment is always set and tJie hooks open, especially the hook of life, into which we Jews are continually praying to be inscribed; and 'Daniel, a man greatly beloved,' was favoured with this heavenly vision. Mr. Miller attempts to prove that this is a description of the last Judgment Day, and the destruction of this world, — whilst the text itself disproves it; for the judgment decrees that the 'beast be slain,' and his body destroyed, and given to the burn- ing flame : and that judgment shall set, and they shall 'decree' to take away his dominion ('the little horn'), to consume and destroy until it perishes. Consequently, the judgment here described is over and finished, before * the great and terrible day of the Lord,' the defeat of Gog and all his multitudes. The ' little horn,' and the 'beast' are to be destroyed after this judgment, and destruction is to take place immediately after the decree from the Judgment Seat, because we perceive the ' Son of Man' (the Messiah) is immediately thereupon installed into the universal kingdom, * whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.' And in chapter xii. 1-4, we have a further description and account of what is to follow the destruction of the ' king of the north,' ' who is to come to his end, and none shall help him.' ' And at that time shall Michael stand up, the captain of the Lord's hosts, (vide Joshua v. 13, 14, 15,) the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people : and there shall be a time of trouble, since as never was since there was a nation, even to that time (the persecutions and wars of Gog, king of the north): and at that time thy people shall be delivered (Daniel's people, the children of Israel), every one that shall be found written in the book'-— that is, the book of life, the rame as described at the judgment. Verse 2: 'And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting^ contempt.' This you * 'Everlasting. »— The Hebrew word is 'world,' meaning forever, aa connected With this world. I I i ally the hook )raying to be uloved,' was 31 attempts to Jgment Day, be text itself at the * beast I to the burn- id they shall ttle horn'), to onsequently, ished, before the defeat of )rn,' and the Jgment, and iy after the we perceive jly thereupon ose kingdom s shall serve we have a to follow the 10 is to come 1 at that time Lord's hosts, rince which 1 there shall ice there was ms and wars le thy people children of fitton in the as described ) in the dust ting life, and .' This you ever, aa connected 35 will perceive is not to be a general resurrection. Ezekiel xxxvii. 1-8, contains the resurrection of dry bones Verse 10 : ' So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came nito them, and they lived, and stood up on their teet, an exceeding very great army.' Verse 1 1 • * Then he said unto me. Son of man, these bones are the who e house of Israel : behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts ' Verse 12 : 'Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus said the Lord God ; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.' By this we are to understand, that if the Jews are to obtain a special reward for having kept to the true faith, they are to rise out of their graves in all the countries of the world : so that this will act as a standing miracle by which the whole world will be converted in one day and the unity of God proclaimed throughout the universe Zech. viii. 20-23 : ' Thus said the Lord of hosts. The time shall be, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities: and the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying. Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek the Lord of hosts : I I will go also. Yea, many people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before the Lord. Thus said the Lord of hosts. In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying. We will ffo with you: for we have heard that God is with you ' Thus you will perceive the benefit of Resurrection in a moral and a religious point of view,~Atheism and infidelity will be instantaneously driven from the world Again, Isaiah xxvi,, in the first part of the chapter the prophet IS rejoicmg over the glorious prospects of his people Israel, in the latter days. In the 3d verse he exhibits his complaint to the Supreme Being, and as it were, to intercede in behalf nf tlio«P wVin a\c.a a..^^^^ax.^ long captivity, especially those who were massacred and destroyed by fire and sword for the sake of his Holy name. S I Ill' i fi il.ll 36 He therefore begins his complaint thus: *The way of the righteous is perfectly straight.' It is proper that the righteous should act with perfect rectitude, he goes on through the 7th and 8th verses. Verse 9, he proceeds as speaking in his own person : 'With my soul have I desired thee in the night ; yea, with my inmost spirit in the morn have I sought thee.' He then shows the utility of this investigation : ' For when the judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants thereof show righteousness.' Having thus expressed himself in this prefatory manner, he now proceeds: 'Though mercy be shown to the wretched, yet he will not learn righteousness : in the very land of rectitude he will deal justly, and will not regard the majesty of the Lord ;' and therefore, * Lord, when thy hand is lifted up, they will not see.' ' It there- fore is not just that the wicked should be favoured : but cause them to see with confusion, thy zeal for thy people : yea, the fire shall burn up thine adversaries.' The Prophet was not satisfied with the future restoration of the nation, and states his reasons in the following verses : * Lord, thou wilt ordain peace for us : forever all our great works hath thou wrought for us.' But still he says, I have a great objection to make, and that is, * O Lord our God ! other lords beside thee have had domi- nion over us.' Therefore, says the Prophet, what wilt thou do for those righteous and pious persons, who have been put to death and suffered martyrdom for thy holy name ? of what benefit therefore will the future restora- tion be to them? seeing they are dead, and of course have not experienced any of its blessings, as he observes, verse 14 : * They are dead, they cannot live ; they are deceased, they cannot rise : because thou hast visited and destroyed them, and all memorial of them hast thou abolished.' Thus said the Prophet hast thou acted by thy chosen people ! whilst thou hast been bountiful to the wicked and idolatrous nations : but this hath not redounded to thy glory ; as he says, verse 15 : ' Thou hast increased the Gentile nation, O Lord, thou hast increased the nation ; but art thou glorified f though 1 ' I 1 w. I The way proper that e, he goes 3 proceeds 3ul have I st spirit in the utiHty 3nts are in :eousness.' •y manner, wn to the ss : in the id will not )re, 'Lord, 'Itthere- oured : but ;hy people : ies.' The jtoration of ing verses : ver all our 3ut still he that is, * O had domi- , what wilt I, who have Dr thy holy ire restora- l of course le observes, J ; they are last visited m hast thou »u acted by )ountiful to is hath not 15: 'Thou , thou hast 3d? though I 87 thou extended the borders of their land.' This verse agrees with the tenth, and tends to show that nations do not ascribe their prosperity to the providence of God, but to their own sagacity, wisdom, and industry. But as this charge might appear to arraign the conduct of the Supreme Being, the Prophet exculpates himself therefrom by showing that all which he had endeavoured was only to apologise for, and vindicate the conduct of the nation during the captivity ; as may be plainly per- ceived by the explanation of verses 16, 18 : * O Lord, in affliction have they sought thee ; their humble suppli- cation was poured out, when thy chastisement was upon them.' This was not a murmuring or repining, or a denial of the Divinity : but only * as a woman that hath con- ceived, when her delivery approacheth, is in anguish, crieth out aloud in her travail : thus have we been before thee, O Lord.' For although their dreadful afflictions cause them to cry aloud, and utter their complaints, yet have they never swerved from their love and allegiance to God, or entertained the least doubt of the accom- plishment of those glorious promises delivered to them by the prophets in his name. Therefore the Prophet very justly calls them a ' nation strong in faith,' as already observed in chap, xviii. But still we are different as a nation, from the woman on delivery ; she quickly forgets her pains, by the joy and delight of embracing her dear offspring : but not so with us, for 'We have conceived, we have been in anguish, we have as it were brought forth wind ; salvation is not wrought in the land ; neither have the inhabitants of the world fallen' — neither have our enemies been punished for their great cruelties to us. The Prophet having thus exhibited his complaint, immediately received a most benign and consolatory answer — Verse 19 : ' Thy dead men shall live, my deceased shall rise? The case, says God, is not as you have conceived or represented : for you imagine, that as they are dead, they never will see the Lord's salvation. No, says he, it is not so ; those of thy people who have died ii f 4 iV m 38 a natural death, and *my deceased,' they shall rise; those who have suffered death for my sake, shall all of them arise and live. And therefore he says, ' Awake ye, and sing, that dwell in the dust.' For they ave not only to be brought to life, which the Prophet calls awaking, but are to sing and shout for joy on account of beholding the salvatiou and redemption of the nation. But as it is extremely difficult for man to form an idea of the Resurrection, the Prophet, by a most beautiful image, informs us how it is to be effected : ' For thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead.' For as the dew lights on the earth, and fertilizes it, so will the soul alight on the original stamen, and reanimate it. As this chapter is somewhat difficult to understand, I have been more diffuse than on any other subject. I shall bring forward one more passage on the Resur- rection, and close this part of the subject. It is from Isaiah Ixvi., commencing from the 7th verse. The Prophet having spoken in the previous part of the chap- ter, on the vengeance which God will take of his enemies for the sins they had committed, proceeded to speak in figurative language of the Resurrection, which is to take place about nearly the same time : ' Before she was in travail, she brought forth; before her pangs came, she was delivered of a male child.' Before the city, men- tioned in the 6th verse, (i. e. Jerusalem,) shall travail, she shall have brought forth ; before her pangs came, she will have brought forth ; that is, she will bring forth without the pangs of child-birth; — which image the Prophet made use of to show the manner of the Resur- rection : that it will not be as is the rational birth, which he calls the pains of travail, that always precede it; but that the bodies of those that shall rise at the Resurrec- tion, will in a supernatural manner appear, all at once, suddenly ! which he calls deUvered before her pangs came. And as this will be a most astonishing and stupendous act, the Prophet says, verse 8 : * Who hath heard such a thing ? and who hath seen the like of these m I I shall rise ; shall all of ^s, 'Awake hey ave not •ophet calls on account f the nation. )rm an idea st beautiful Fov thy dew cast out the md fertilizes stamen, and t difficult to )n any other a the Resur- It is from verse. The of the chap- ■ his enemies to speak in ch is to take ) she was in ;s came, she le city, men- shall travail, pangs came, 1 bring forth 1 image the )f the Resur- birth, which ecede it ; but he Resurrec- •, all at once, re her pangs inishing and ; * Who hath like of these 9^ things ? shall the earth be made to bring forth - in one day ? is a nation bom in an instant?' — ' For no sooner was Zion in travail, than she brought forth her children.' By a nation being born in an instant, at once, the Pro- phet shows that they will be exceeding numerous ; that they will all rise instantaneously. But as it is extremely difficult for the mind of man to form an idea of the Resurrection, so as to be able to comprehend it, and which therefore may be the cause of his doubting the truth of the prediction, the Most High argues in support of it, verse 9 : ' Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth .'^ said the Lord. Shall I, who begat,' restrain the birth ? said thy God. Shall I, who was able to create man, and every thing else at the beginning, from nothing, not be able to raise him again at the Re- surrection?' This no one can doubt; but as I have been able to effect the one ! I shall certainly be able to effect the other. The Prophet then proceeds to show the cause and* end of the Resurrection, verse 10: 'Rejoice with Jeru- salem, and exult on her account, all ye that love her ; be exceedingly joyful with her, all ye that mourn over her.' Those who have been persecuted, slain, and massacred during this long and dreadful captivity, for their adherence to the true ifaith, and who died mourning and lamenting for Jerusalem, may then rejoice and exult with her in her salvation. It is but justice that they should partake of her happiness ; as tho Prophet says, verse 11: 'That ye may seek and be satisfied from the breast of her consolation ; that ye may squeeze out and be delighted with the splendor of her glory.' The first denotes their temporal happiness, and the second their spiritual happiness. Verse 12: ' For thus said the Lord, Behold, I will spread prosperity over her like a river; and like an overflowing stream the wealth of nations, which ye shall suck : ye shall be carried at the side, and on the knees shall ye be dandled. As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and in Jerusalem shall ye receive consolation.' i 40 |] i\l j'\ ,1' ! '\W Here it is manifest that the promise solely relates to the redemption of the Jewish nation. In verse 14 the Prophet addresses himself particu- larly to those that shall rise at the Resurrection : * And ye shall see it and shall flourish like the green herb ; and by this means the hand of the Lord :shall be mani- fested to his servants.' All will then know that there is a God in Israel who will take vengeance on the nations, thv y being his enemies, as in the latter part of the verse : 'And he will be moved with indignation against his enemies.' Verse 15 : 'For by fire shall the Lord exe- cute judgment, and by his sword against all flesh ; and many shall be the slain of the Lord,' agreeably to what the Prophet Ezekiel says, chap, xxxvii. 21, 22, already commented on. The Prophet next proceeds to point out the particular nations and religions on whom God will take vengeance. Verse 17 : ' They who sanctify themselves in the gar- dens, but after with one within.' This denotes the Mohammedans, who, by their frequent ablutions and seeming devotions, wish to appear pure and sanctified ; but this is all hypocrisy, says the Prophet, for presently after that they have performed their ablutions in the baths, and their prayers in the mosque, they are w^ith 07ie within ; are wallowing in pollution. In the latter part of the verse he speaks of the Christians, &c., who ' eat swine's flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse: together shall they perish, saith the Lord.' In verse 18 : ' For I know their deeds and their thoughts : it shall come, that I will gather all the nations and tongues together ; and they shall come and see my glory.' And as a number of them will then be suffered to escape, with all their wounds and blemishes upon them ; agree- ably to what the Prophet Zechariah says : 'And this shall be the calamity with which the Lord shall smite all the people who warred against Jerusalem. Their flesh shall consume away while they stand on their feet; and their eyes shall consume away in their sockets ; and their tongue shall consume away in their mouths.' relates to If particu- ion: 'And een herb ; 1 be mani- lat there is he nations, the verse : ,gainst his Lord exe- flesh; and )ly to what 12, already ! particular ireiigeance. n the gar- enotes the utions and sanctified ; r presently ons in the y are with (I the latter , &c., who the mouse : n verse 18: ts : it shall [id tongues lory.' And to escape, em; agree- *And this shall smite Bm. Their 1 their feet; 3ir sockets ; nr mouths.' 41 Of those the Prophet says in verse 19 : * And I will set a mark upon them; and I will send them that escape of them to the nations, to Tarshish, Phul, and Lud, who draw the bow ; Tubal and Javan, the far distant Isles^ that have not heard my fame, nor have they seen my glory ; and they shall declare my glory amongst the nations,' — when those escape in their wounded and miserable state, and thus declare the glory of God, the consequence will be that all nations will be in haste to bring those Jews that remain in different parts and have not yet returned to their own country ; as in verse 20 : ' And they shall bring all your brethren, from all the nations, for an oblation to the Lord, on horses, and in chariots, and in swift covered carriages, on mules, and on dromedaries, to thy holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the Lord : like as the children of Israel brought oblation in pure vessels to the house of the Lord ; and of these will I also take for Priests, and for Levites, saith the Lord.' Then the tribe of Levi will be distinguished in a particular manner, as the Prophet Malachi said, iii. 3 : ' And he shall set a refiner and purifier of silver; and shall purify the sons of Levi, and shall refine them as gold and silver : and they shall offer an offering to the Lord in righteousness. Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the Lord, and in days of old, as in former years.' And which is a manifest proof that none will then officiate as Priests and Levites, but those that really belong to the families of this tribe. Verse 23 : * He, as like the new heavens and the new earth which I make, stand continually before me, saith the Lord ; so shall continue your seed, and your name.' The remainder of this chapter I have commented on in a former number. In my next I shall conclude this review with the genealogy, birth, and glory of the Mes- siah, with a description of the universal peace, har- mony, righteousness, and happiness of his Kingdom, when God, in his great mercy, may be pleased to send speedily to redeem his chosen people. This number will commence with the genealogy and t m r 11^::: mw fir Mt m birth of the glorious Messiah, Ben David, who is desig* nated by several names in the Scriptures ; such as ' the Brarch,' * David Ben David,' 'the Root of Jesse.' It is not denied by any commentator but what these names belong to the Messiah. The first passage which Cc . my aquation is in the iv. and v. chapters of Micah. The three first verses are precisely the same as 2d, 3d, and 4th of Isaiah xi., and which I have already commented on. The remainder of the chapter gives an account of the firmness of the Israelites in the belief of the unity of God for ever after their first captivity, and for reason God delivered them from the Babylonish captivity; and in verse 11, * And now many nations are gathered against thee ; who say, Let her be defiled, and let our eyes see (their desire) on Zion.' This is said of the numerous hosts which came with the Romans and Titus. And because God will judge them for this in the latter days, and inflict exemplary punishment on them, the Prophet says, verse 12, * But they know not the thoughts of the Lord, neith- er understand they his counsel ; for he shall gather them as the sheaves in the thrashing floor.' And then Israel shall thrash them, as in verse 13: 'Arise, and thrash, daughter of Zion ; for I will make their horn iron, (alluding to the thrashing,) and their hoofs will I make brass ; and thou shalt beat in pieces many people, and 1 will devote their gain unto the Lord of the whole earth.' So that in the latter day« the nation are to be punished in a most exemplary manner on the mountains of Israel. In chap. V. verse 1, the Prophet continues to speak of the nations in the latter days: 'Now assemble thyself in troops, O daughter of a troop; he had laid siege against us ; they have smitten the Judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek.' This certainly means the as- sembling of the troops or army of Gog, as mentioned in Ezekiel xxxviii. and Zechariah xi= verse 2. which, in the latter days, are to besiege Jerusalem, capture it ; * And half the city shall go forth in captivity.' At that ho is desig* uch as ' the esse.' It is hese names Dn is in the st verses are liah xi., and s remainder ness of the id for ever )d delivered n verse 11, t thee ; v^ho their desire) hosts which ecause God , and inflict : says, verse Lord, neith- gather them I then Israel and thrash, r horn iron, will I make people, and the whole in are to be 3 mountains es to speak nble thyself laid siege ' Israel with ans the as- lentioned in I J which, in capture it ; y: At that 4'3 time the judge of Israel will be smitten or slain. The Bible translation says, ' daughter of troops,' but the Hebrew is in the singular, * a troop.' This is somewhat remarkable, as in scripture phrase a nation designated by the feminine gender, for some peculiarity ; for in- stance, the laws were frequently personified, as 'daugh- ter of Zion ;' which alludes to their being worshippers and followers of the God of Mount Zion: We are told in the 11th verse that 'many nations are gathered against thee, that say. Let her be dcjiled, and let out eyes look upon Zion.' In the 13th verse, then, the Pro- phet might well designate Gog's army as ' daughter of a troop,' in contradistinction to the Jews worshipping the God of Zion as a Unit, and the daughter of a troop determined to set up the ' abomination which maketh desolate' as a Triiiity, — more especially as the Catholic and Greek Churches, of which Gog is the chief, have also images of the Virgin Mary and a troop of saints in their churches. And as the Prophet in the last verse of the previous chapter spoke of the destruction of that combination of 'many people' (designated 'daughter of a troop') in the latter days, he now proceeds to speak of the Messiah who is the Prince that is to reign over Israel, and shows that he is to be the descendant of David, a^ in verse 2. * And thou Belhlehem-Ephrathan, though thou be Httle among the thousands of Judah, yet one of thee shall come forth unto me, he who is to be the ruler in Israel, and his going forth has been from of old from ancient times ;' that is, we are not to suppose that the place of his birth is to be Bethlehem, but his going forth, i. e. his descent, was from thence, and that from a very ancient progenitor, and which shows that the Messiah is to be a lineal descendant of David, from the ancient stock and stem of Jesse, of Bethlehem Judah. And as the Prophet had mentioned (iv. 13, 14) that it was God's council that nations should be gathered as sheaves into the thrashing floor, and that Israel should thrash them, he now informs us that they are to remain in captivity m 44 till then ; for that there is a certain and determined period (Deut. xxxii. 34-36) for their redemption, as there is a certain time for the child-bearing woman to bring forth ; and at that time they will be in great trouble, (Jeremiah xxx. and Daniel xii. 1) even as a woman in travail, as in verse 3, — * Therefore will he give them up until the time that she who travaileth hath brought forth; then the remnant of his (the Messiah's) brethren shall return unto the children of Israel.' That is, they shall join their brethren who have endured this terrible * time of trouble.' And when this is effected, then the ruler above mentioned shall arise, and feed them all in the name, strength, and majesty of his God ! And then Israel shall abide in peace and safety, because the name of the Messiah will be great unto the ends of the earth; as in the latter member of the verse, * And they shall dwell (in peace,) for now shall he be great unto the ends of the earth.' I would willingly quote and comment on the remainder of this chapter, but the subject and my limits will not permit me. The reader will now follow me to Jeremiah xxxiii. 14 : ' Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will perform that good thing which I have spoken con- cerning the House of Judah.' Ver. 15 : *In those days and at that time will I cause to grow up to David, a branch of righteousness, and he shall execute judgment and justice in the land.' Verse 16 : * In those days Judah shall be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell in safety, and this is that the Lord shall call it, our righteousness.' Jerusalem will then be so called. And in like manner the prophet Ezekiel says, xlviii. 35: * And the name of the city from that day shall be. The Lord is here.' He also informs us that at the future redemption the Messiah, son of David, will reign over the house of Israel, as well as over the house of Judah. 17 : * For thus saith the Lord, there shall not be a failure in the line of David of one sitting upon the throne of the house of Israel.' And in verse 8 he speaks of the line of the Priesthood: 'Neither shall there be a failure in the Mil W % determined on, as there an to bring jat trouble, '. woman in ve them up ath brought 's) brethren lat is, they ;his terrible i, then the them all in And then je the name fthe earth; they shall ito the ends } remainder its will not o Jeremiah } Lord, that ipoken con- those days David, a ;e judgment days Judah safety, and iteousness.' ike manner [le name of here.' mption the 3 house of 17: *For lure in the f the house line of the lure in the I I 5.5 45 line of the Priests, the Levites, of one offering before me burnt offerings, and to burn meat offerings, and to perform sacrifice continually.' And in order to give force to this prophecy, the Prophet received the follow- ing vision : — 19. * The word of the Lord came also to Jeremiah, saying, — 20 : Thus saith the Lord ; if ye can make void my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, so that they be not daily and nightly in their season; verse 21 : Then also shall my covenant be made void with David my servant, that he shall not have a son reigning upon his throne ; and with the Levites the priests, my ministers.' God here informs the Israelites, and the world in general, that there is no possibility of a failure in the seed of David, or the sons of Levi. And although they have been greatly dimin- ished, yet will God cause them to multiply exceedingly. 22 : 'As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, nor the sand of the sea measured, so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, and the Levites that minister unto me.' The 9th chapter of Zechariah enters fully into the restoration of the Jews, and the universality of their religion in the latter days. And the first seven verses allude to all the enemies of Israel, and that their country shall be a portion of Judah ; and in verse the 8th the Lord says, — ' And I will encamp about my house, be- cause of the army, because of him that passeth by, and because of him that returneth : and no oppressor shall pass through there any more, for now have I seen with mine eyes.' The Lord here promises that he will watch over and defend his House (that is, Jerusalem and the Temple) against all armies and enemies, and that the Jews shall nevermore be oppressed. And now irnme- diately following, the Prophet breaks out in rejoicing for what he perceives in his vision. — Verse 9 : ' Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion ; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem : behold, thy King cometh unto thee : he is just, and having salvation ; lowly, and riding upon an ass, even upon a colt the foal of an ass.' It thus appears that the prophecies being all fulfilled, and the people 46 isly looking being all of full expectation, and anxious for his arrival, although he is to come thus lowly and meekly into Jerusalem, he is immediately to be recog- nized for the Schechinak ; the presence and the glory of the Lord of Hosts will be with him ; and the whole nation, with one accord, will receive him with shouts and acclamations of joy. Who is there that would not wish to be present — either amongst Jew or Gentile — to have the first sight of the Son of David, and to view the salvation and glory (Schechinah) of the God of Israel forever restored to this, now indeed, holy people. For the Lord says, verse 10 : * I will cut the chariot from Ephraim, and the horso from Jerusalem, and the battle- bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace to the nations : and his dominions shall be from sea to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.' There will be no more wars nor rumours of wars. Daniel ii. 44 : ' And in the days of those kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroy- ed : and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but shall break in pieces, and shall break all those king- doms, and shall stand forever.' I have now to prove the happy and blessed period of the Messiah's kingdom, which I shall do by quoting Isaiah xi. 1. : ' But there shall spring forth a rod from the stem of Jesse, and a scion from his roots shall be- come fruitful.' — By which we are informed that Messiah is to be the lineal descendant of David, the son of Jesse : for as God had made choice of David, and had promised him that his throne should be established forever, it is necessary he should be his lineal descendant, that the regal state may be restored to the house of David, and the promise fully accomplished; for, after the coming of the Messiah, the nation will no more go into captivity, so that his throne will be fully established forever. Verse 2 : ' And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.' The Prophet informs us that the oking out owly and be recog- e glory of he whole th shouts would not Gentile — d to view } God of [y people, ariot from :he battle- ce to the 3 sea, and ; There Daniel ii. e God of e destroy- 3r people, lose king- period of y quoting rod from I shall be- ,t Messiah of Jesse: promised sver, it is that the avid, and joming of captivity, Bver. rest upon the spirit re and the that the 47 excellent endowment of the Messiah will be super- natural : he, of course, will not be subject to any of the defects incidental to other men. For which reason he observes, first, that he will be endowed with wisdom ; and at the same time possessed of understanding that is both speculative and practical. Second ; that being en- dowed with the spirit of counsel, he will also be possessed of that of strength and courage, so as to be able to execute whatever he counsels or plans. Third ; that he wnll never exercise that knowledge but in the fear of the Lord, and not in the promulgation of skeptical opinion derogatory to the revealed will of God. Hence it is manifest that the wisdom of the Messiah is to be of the most exalted kind, and free from all the defects and blemishes incident to the rest of mankind. But the promise of this perfect and exalted degree of wisdom, united with as extraordinary power and strength, was never accomplished, neither in the endowment of any person at their return from Babylon, or during the con- tinuance of the second temple. Fourth ; that the extra- ordinary piety of the Messiah will be so eminent and opposite to that of other princes, that he wall abstain from every corporeal pleasure, as will be shown pre- sently from the language of the Prophet. The most gross and palpable of the five senses is that of feeling ; hence the admonition against unlawful lusts, &c. The next in degree is the sense of tasting, which is also a species of feeling — ^hence also the admonition concern- ing prohibited meats, &c. — For which reason these two senses are never, in Scripture, attributed to the Supreme Being. As to the sense of smelling, it is a more refined and spiritual nature ; hence it is attributed to the Creator. But the other two senses, hearing and seeing, are yet of a more spiritual nature, and efiect their purposes at a distance, and are particularly appropriate to attainment of wisdom. The Prophet, therefore, observes, that the Messiah will be so far from having any propensity to- wards an immoderate use of the two gross senses, that even the sense of smelling — which is more refined and Itl :■ « 11 48 spiritual — will not be employed by him, as it is by others, to minister to their voluptuousness, but in the service of the Lord, for which reason the Prophet makes use of the following clear and graphical expression : — Verse 3 : * And he shall scent in the fear of the Lord.' For that is the only real sense of the Hebrew word, (vaahrechou,) and of which it is scarcely possible to convey an adequate meaning by a literal translation, but by which figurative expression the Prophet gave us to understand that the Messiah, instead of using the sense of smelling in a voluptuous manner, as other per- sons, he would on the contrary employ all his sagacity in the fear of the Lord. And he further informs us, that the two most fine and spiritual senses would not be used by him as by the rest of mankind : for * that not according to the sight of his eyes shall he judge ; neither according to the hearing of his ears shall he reprove ;' which leads us to the fifth condition, viz. : the exalted degree of the Messiah's justice, both to the rich and poor, great and small, that his decisions will be acknow- ledged by all to be truly Godlike. That he is to be a * great temporal judge', is manifest from the several expressions of this Prophet; for in chap. ii. 4, he says, 'He shall judge among the nations,* &c. Chap. xlii. 1 : * I have made my spirit rest upon him, and he shall bring forth judgment to the nations.' Verse 3 : * He shall pronounce judgment unto truth.' Verse 4 : * Until he hath firmly ceased judgment on the earth ; for the distant nations shall earnestly wait for his law.' From all which it is clear the Messiah is not only to judge his own nation, but all the nations of the earth. He will be perfectly acquainted with the true state of all things, by means of the exalted spirit of prophecy with which he will be gifted. The sixth con- dition is the miraculous power which the Messiah is to be endowed with, agreeably to what the Prophet says : * And he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouthy and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.' He will not be under the necessity of raising an army y others, I 5 service \ makes ssion : — e Lord.' w word, ssible to nslation, gave us sing the ther per- sagacity brms us, d not be that not ; neither eprove ;' exalted rich and acknow- manifest ;; for in nations,* jst upon nations.' o truth.' it on the wait for ih is not is of the the true spirit of xth con- liah is to let says : s mouthj wicked.' an army 49 his to punish a nation that may bo guiity of disobeymg commands or the laws of God. He will be able to com- mand the elements, and furnish them with fire, pesti- lence, famine, &c. Neither will there be any occasion for executioners to put guilty individuals to death ; so that, strictly speaking, the rod with whicu he will punish will be his mouth, for he will need no other weapon than the ' breath of his lips.' The seventh considera- tion is, the universal peace that is to tnke place m the world in the days of the Messiah, as mentioned in verses 6-9 : * And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the cincture of his reins. Then sh^ll the wolf take up his abode with the lamb ; and the leopard shall lie down with the kid ; and the calf, and the young lion, and the fatling, shall come together ; and a little child shall lead them. And the heifer and the she-bear shall feed together ; together shall their youno- ones lie down: and the lion shall eat straw like an ox. And the suckling child shall play upon '^h« Jiole of the asp, and upon the den of the cockatrice shall the new-weaned child lay his hand. They shall not li"rt or destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters that cover the depths of the sea.' ■ In these verses the Prophet, by a variety of the most animated, beautiful, and eloquent imagery, has finely expressed the peace, harmony, and happmess that is to exist in the days of the Messiah ; in addition to which, in chapter Ixv. 19-22. Verse 19 : 'There shull not be heard any more therein (Jerusalem) the voice of Nveep- ing, or the voice of distressful cry.' Nay, even the weeping and mourning that is usually made for the dead will not be heard among them ; for, verse 20 : ' No moro shall be thence an infant short-lived; nor an old man who hath not fulfilled his days : for he that dieth at an hundred years, shall die a child : and the sinner (that dieth) at an hundred years shall be (deemed) accursed.' Verse 21: 'And they shall build houses, and shall inhabit them ; and they shall plant vineyards, and s=;liall e:it the m I 50 fruit thereof.' Verse 22 : * They shall not build, and another inhabit ; they shall not plant, and another eat : for, as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of my people.' The Prophet's idea seems to be that they shall then live to the age of the antediluvians ; for an oak tree will last a thousand years. ' And my children shall wear out the works of their own hands.' They shall not labour in vain ; neither shall they generate a short-lived race : ' for they shall be a seed blessed of the Lord, and their offspring with them.' The eighth consideration is, that the nations will all repair to the Messiah, in order to submit to his authority, and be instructed by him, agreeably to what the Prophet says, verse 10 : * And it shall come to pass in that day, the root of Jesse shall stand for an ensign to the people ; to him shall the na- tions seek, and his rest shall be glorious.' His glory will not proceed from being a warrior, and performing great feats in battle ; but in consequence of his great and peaceable disposition, and which will be diffused all over the world ; will be the cause of his glory. The remainder of the chapter gives a full and glowing account of the restoration of all the tribes of Israel, and of the great additions to be made to their former territory, which I refer to the reader. I trust that what I have already advanced will have the tendency to satisfy every unbiased and intelligent mind of its correctness ; and let me further add, that it is admitted both by Jews and Christians, that prophecy stretches over the whole period of the world's duration. It is therefore important to keep in view the fact, that the beginning of any prophecy being accomplished is the best of all evidence of its complete filling up in future. In the succeeding communication I shall en- deavour to illustrate and prove a few more events con- nected with, and which are to precede, the coming of the Redeemer, namely, the extension of his kingdom in the world. The promises upon the subject are very rrunierous on wiiicu CYOrj believer m the Bible fuliy iiild, and :her eat : 7S of my lall then tree will all wear jhall not lort-lived iord, and ideration , in order by him, * And it sse shall 1 the na- ^lory will ing great re at and fused all 7. The y account id of the territory, vill have itelligent d, that it prophecy duration, fact, that ilished is ig up in shall en- ents con- oming of ngdom in are very LUit; lUii} 51 confides, yet Mr. Miller tells us that all is now done that can be expected. * All the great and precious promises' * of the knowledge of the Lord covering the earth' are set aside by the assertion that the word of God has been preached to all the world. And this, we are further told, is all that is implied previous io' the end coming.'' They have maintained it by a series of assertions with- out evidence, and it might have been supposed that it must have condemned itself wherever the light of the Bible shone upon it. Let us, therefore, turn to Psalms xxii. 27 : * All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the Lord, and all the kindred of nations shall worship before thee.' Chap. Ixxxvi. 9 : 'All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord ; and shall glorify thy name.' Mark this language : they shall not only Aear— God's ' w^ay' alone shall not be known among all nations — ^but they shall all remember, all turn, and all worship before hina. Nay, as if on purpose to build up his people's faith in refer- ence to those ' glorious things spoken of Zion,' and pre- clude all possibility of mistake by any general accom- plishment merely of the ' things spoken,' God even specifies by name some of those places, otherwise the most unhkely ever to be blessed by the joyful sound.— The Lord shall be known to Egypt, and the Egyptian shall know the Lord in that day, and shall do sacrifice and oblation ; yea, they shall vow a vow unto the Lord, and shall perform it,' &c. Again, in that day Israel, Egypt, and Assyria, shall be a blessing in the midst of the land ; which the Lord of Hosts shall bless, saying, blessed be Egypt, my people ; and Assyria, the work of my hands ; and Israel, my inheritance. And again we are told that the kingdom of the Messiah shall reach 'from sea to sea;' — from the Mediterranean, that is, to the Indian Ocean,—* and from the river (Euphrates) to the ends of the earth ;' or to China and the Isles of Japan * known of old as the ends of the earth.' I can quote a great many more passages which all prove that the Knowiecif^e 01 vjuuis lu ci^-iciiu \>\j ^vi wiC tTv/*ix^^ «..«%* .-v» w ii 52 only to a portion of it, as they the Millerites assert. Do they mean to tell us that the knowledge of God is merely to run through a country, or continent, and then disappear ? And even should we take their affirmation for granted — that the word of God has been preached to all the world — let me ask with what confidence can they prove to us such doctrine, when the darkened tribes of North American Indians, or the equally benighted tribes of Central and Southern America, the great mass of the New Zealanders, the inhabitants of Central Africa, Ethiopia, Independent Tartary, China and Japan, the numerous Isles of the Pacific and Southern Oceans, the various castes and hindreds of the Hindoos, and the AfFghans, are all strangers to the word of God. Surely their assertions, so destitute of all evidence, must have a tendency to infidelity ; for in this case it is belief in that which is not only unsupported hj fact, but which gives the lie to the promises of God ; for the hiowledge of God has not yet half covered the earth, and is so be- lieved by both Jews and Christians, except by the Millerites. They further tell us, ' That there is not in the Bible a single promise held out to Israel as a nation ; and that all the prophetic intimations respecting Israel, refer to spiritual Israel only.' Of the agreement of such asser- tions with the word of God, I shall further produce such evidence as may enable every one to judge. Evidence; when I speak this word I allude to documentary evi- dence, and not hy my opinion, which I value nothing, except when it is borne out by God''s Law and Testimony ; and that this strange ne7v Millerite doctrine, unsupported again by Law and Testimony, has no other foundations save their own sectarian fabrication. No one who has full reliance in the Holy Law and Testimony denies, that those portions of prophecy which have already been fulfilled, in the history of the Jewish nation, are to be taken as the surest guidt; for ascertaining the meaning of those portions \/hich yet remain to be accomplished. So if in the one part the fulfilment be literal, we must the assert God is ad then rmatioa reached ice can d tribes nighted tat mass Central 1 Japan, Oceans, and the Surely t have a f in that ch gives fledge of ; so be- by the be Bible and that refer to )h asser- uce such vidence ; tary evi- nothing, stimony ; upported mdations who has y denies, ady been ire to be meaning nplished. we must ^ 53 look for a literal fulfilment in the other also. To sup- pose that one part of a prediction is to be taken literally y and the other part of it converted into an allegory, would be to make the Bible the most inexplicable of all writ- ings, and, indeed, would confound all language. Upon the same principle, the different parts of a figure must have an uniformity of interpretation instead of referring the first part to one object and the rest of it to another. Now then, if, on reading prophecy, when we find it predicted, in most express terms, that we were to be cast off from being God's peculiar people, torn from our be- loved land, scattered among all nations, yet separated from all, treated with scorn and loaded with reproach ; and if, on opening the page of history, we find the whole verified with surprising minuteness — can any who have full faith i?i the word of God hesitate to believe that what remains of our prophetic history, as sketched by the seers of old, when it is declared in the same explicit manner that God wdll gather us again from the four corners of the earth, and reinstate us again as a nation, and invest \is with an honour and glory which had no parallel even in the days of our by-gone magnificence? Can it be doubted that which we see, ' that God has magnified his faithfulness in giving the dark side of our prospective history so complete a verification — could any true believer in God think so harshly of his char- acter, or so meanly of the prophetic word, as to sup- pose that he will not verify to the letter the other also?' I will no./ assert, and further proceed to prove, our National restoration as a peopl,. chosen by the Lord. Amos ix. 9-15: *For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as com is sifted in a sieve ; yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth. All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, which say, The evil shall not overtake nor prevent us. In that day will I raise up the taber- nacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it ^-'Unf fUrt-. 54 nant of Edom, and of all the heathen, which are called by my name, saith the Lord that doeth this. Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the ploughman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wme, and all the hills shall melt. And I will bring agam the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their land, and tlieij shall no more he pulled out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God:"" Turn to Isaiah xi. 11 : 'It shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah, from the four corners of the earth.' Now this cannot be twisted to apply to the deliverance from the Babylonish Captivity, or to any event in our past history. The return from Babylon was confined, with few exceptions, to the house of Judah; and even in reference to this house, it was so far from extending to the lands here specified, that it scarcely reached beyond Assyria. Nothing then can be more certain, than that this glorious national restora- tion is yet undeveloped history, and that ancient promise to Abraham, in thy seed ' all nations shall be blessed, has never yet been fully verified. The words spoken byHos. i. 10, 11, that the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered ; and when it shall come to pass that in the place where it was said unto them, ' Ye^are not my people,' there it shall be said unto them, *Ye # Sf, mv.ph for the Millerites aBsertlng that the Holy Land (Palestine) is not the country of the Jews. called ehold, 1 shall Qi that wine, I in the ild the plant ill also ; I will lore be I, saith t shall s hand of his d from 1 from om the iorn for Israel, )m the twisted ptivity, n from J house was so that it en can -estora- )romise lessed,' spoken Jren of [inot be to pass Ye are m, 'Ye ) is not the 65 are the sons of the living God,' &c. Again, we are told, ' For the Lord shall have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land : and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the\ouse of Jacob. And the people shall take them, and bring them to their place : and the House of Israel shall possess them in the land of the Lord, for servants and handmaids; and they shall take them captives, whose captives they were ; and they shall rule their oppressors. And it shall come to pass in the day that the Lord shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage wherem thou wast made to serve.'— Isaiah xiv. 1-3. Turn next to Isaiah Ix. 1-22 : ' Arise, shine ; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people : but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brio-htness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see ; all they gather themselves together they come to thee ! thy sons shall come from far and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side, then thou shalt see and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged : because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah ; all they from Sheba shall come : they shall bring gold and incense ; and they shall show forth the praises of the Lord. All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee : they shall come up with acceptance on my altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory. Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows ? Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the Lord thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because 4W 56 he hath glorified thee. And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee : for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee. Therefore thy gates shall be open continually : they shall not be shut day nor night ; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought. For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish ; yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted. The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary ; and I will make the place of my feet glorious. The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee ; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet ; and they shall call thee, The city of the Lord, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel. Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations. Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breasts of kings : and thou shalt know that I the Lord am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron ; I will also make thy officers peace, and thine exactors righteousness. Violence shall no more be heard in thy land, wasting nor destruction within thy borders ; but thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise : The sun shall be no more thy light by day ; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee ; but the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down ; neither shall thy moon withdraw itself: for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended. Thy people also shall be righteous : they shall inherit the land for ever, the branch of my planting, the work of my V ""- a i.\jij.t.i\j\*. j,x. xxvvx\j ^ii\j £r-i.xi»iA sh^" i*Xi, 67 become a thousand, and a small one a strong nation : I tht3 Lord will hasten it in his time.' — Can any unbiased mquirer doubt who are the subjects of these prophecies but national Israel and Jerusalem, our inheritance. But surely it is unnecessary to multiply evidence in a case so plain and universally admitted both by Jews and Christians, except by Mr. Miller and his saints. Of the preqise and particular time, ' we are not informed ;' — nor are we informed of the specific * means.'— That the Jews will be a blessing to the conversion of the remaining heathens, and that it will be a blessing in no ordinary way, we learn from Micah v. 7 : * The remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as a dew from the Lord ;' — and that this illustrious event, then, namely, our national restoration, is what may be relied on with confidence, we have fully and satisfactorily proven by God's law and testimony. May God grant it soon! It becomes us, in the meantime, to wait in silent awe, but with assured expectation, for the deter- mination of His infinite wisdom, appointed by Him in his divine counsels, as regards the time and 'signs of the times.' That the Millerites are promulgating theories unsup- ported by the holy lajv and testimony is evident ; for, surely, whatever is so opposed to the most express declaration of the word of God, must be untrue. And wherever they could not establish their assertions, they even went so far in many instances as to turn and twist the Scriptures, — confounding one vision with another, connecting and subtracting numbers large and small, where the one was revealed to Daniel fifteen years before the other, and upon different matters. Where is the foundation of such doctrine ? as also for the extra- ordinary discovery of Miller, that Daniel, meditating upon the former vision, had fallen into a mistake upon the subject, and that Gabriel was sent for the express purpose of putting him right? Very plausible indeed ! and might be satisfactory enough if we had any evi- /lA-o/ta of ifo Irufh ivVihoh "wrp. hnvp nnt. iiiiilf>SS "Wfi miist 68 take Miller to be wiser than Daniel, and that he has better means of judging respecting the pious exercises oi the ' man greatly beloved !' There are a great many more arguments before me referring both to time and the national restoration of Israel ; but it is unnecessary to multiply these subjects, more particularly the former, as all his predictions and conjectures on them have turned out to be incorrect. His doctrine and theory are refuted out of his 6wn mouth, for they are the events he so confidently expect- ed in '40 and '41, and have not even happened in '42 and '43, although he now confounds the Jev^^ish reckon- ing to make it correspond with 1843, and to which he is an entire stranger, as he has not supported it by proof It is, therefore, difficult to conceive how, with this failure in view, the consummation of all things can be looked for at his now stipulated period. One thing is most likely, that when the day shall declare the error of this scheme, ''as speedily it will do, the scoffers will be armed with another weapon against the truth, which they may employ with peculiar force, and boldly main- tain, as they now do, ' their theory is Bible.' And as infidelity will not have the candour to examine the sacred book, nor discriminate between the real messen- ger of God and those who run unsent, it will boldly conclude that all are alike false : that, since this has failed, the Bible is a ' cunningly devised fable ;' for can reverence for the Word of God be found when its plainest language is thus set aside, or made to bend to every crook in this devious scheme } I myself have heard it declared publicly, that if the Millerites' pro- phecy is not verified as they have declared it, they will no longer believe the Bible ! — but this is aside from my main argument, and I shall therefore close the subject. Haying already proved, and I hope satisfactory to my readers, the erroneous constructions and interpretations of Miller and his saints, upon the Holy Scriptures, I cannnt nnrf. witVi tVifim ■withnnf nnntino- a fftAV Tnnrft 59 passages concerning the identity of Israel, ' Jacoh^s children, lineal descendants^ of whom the Patriarch pro- phesied on his dying bed. Surely no one can mistake, or even has any voluntary wish to pervert Scripture to that degree which Mr. Miller and his saints have done. When the Patriarch, in the midst of his general blessmgs to the children of Israel, his own hegotten sons, ^x\ii their lineal posterity, every one of them, who have full faith m his (Jacob's) only true and living God, exclaimed, •\T^v'h T ^n^ip 'I have waited for thy salvation, O Lord.' Can we behold such sublimity, without being impressed with the strongest belief and the fact, that the dying Father alluded to his own offspring and their posterity, and tho coming of their Redeemer? or is it necessary for us to turn back and refer the gentleman and his saints to the identity of the words spoken by Jehovah, at the time when the Angel of the Lord spoke for the second time to Abraham, and said. Gen. xxii. 16 : ' By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thino-, and hast not withheld thy son,* thine only son, Verse 17 : That in blessing I will bless thee, and in mul- tiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore ; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies ; Verse 18 : And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed ; because thou hast obeyed my voice. Do, Mr. Miller, tell us to whom Jehovah, the only God said this ? It cannot be to you and yours, when you disclaim and disown every share in it by your own promulgations. Before concluding my Review, I beg to observe, that I have received considerable assistance in my remarks from the Rabbinical Commentaries, and also from the modern Jewish writers. I have endeavoured to do the subject justice ; and in very many instances have been obliged to give new translations, the present English version being very faulty. * Isaac. ! ^ 60 I now appeal to the public, if the doctrines set forth by Mr. Miller are in accordance with the Scriptures? if he has not perverted their meaning, and violated common sens 3 ? Have I not proved that the promises in the latter days, through the Je/m/i Messiah's kingdom, are full oC prosperity, peace, happiness, and blessedness to all the righteous, virtuous, and moral portion of the community, of all sects and religions, in contradistinc- tion to the damnation and destruction of nearly the whole human race, as set forth in the doctrines of the MiLLERITES ? It is perfectly apparent by the Scriptures, that all Nations are to worship at Jerusalem. Zech. xiv. 16-18 : * And it shall come to pass that every' one that is left of all the Nations which came against Jerusalem, shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of Hosts, and to keep the feast of Tabernacles. And it shall be, that whoso will not come up of all the famihes of the earth unto Jerusalem, to worship the King, the Lord of Hosts, even upon them there shall be no rain. And jf the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, that have no rain ; there shall be the plague, wherewith the Lord will smite the Gentiles that come not up to keep the feast of the Tabernacles.' We find also in the xli. of Ezekiel, that preparation is made for this great multitude of people to enjoy the splendour of the presence of the great I AM, and his blessed Messiah. For the last and most magnificent temple at or near Jerusalem, with its immense courts of Israel and the Gentiles, is to be at least ten times as large as Solomon's Temple, which held two millions of Israelites ; conse- quently this one will hold twenty millions, and being a gradual ascent rising to the Holy of HoHes on every side, will be a most glorious sight, with the beautiful harmony of at least fifty thousand Levites, raising their voices to the glorious Psalms of David, with every instrument of music known in the world, and the whole house filled with the ineflfable glory of the Supreme Being, and with the immense multitude passing in from 61 every city and country. Zecli. viii. 21 : ' And the inhab- itants of" one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord, and to seek the Lord of Hosts : I will go al^.o.' Verse 22 : * Yea, mai.y people and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of Hosts in Jerusalf^m, and to pray before the Lord.' Verse 23 : ' And of out all the languages of the nations even, shall take hold of the skirt of liim that is a Jew, saying. We will go with you : for we have heard that God is with you.' In conclusion, permit me to call upon you my friends of all religions, to join with me in Isaiah's be autiful song • of thanksgiving for the redemption and restoration of Israel, xii. 1-6: 'And in that day thou shalt say, Lord, I will praise thee : though thou wast angry with me, thine anger is turned away, and thou comfortedst me. Behold, God is my salvation : I will trust, and not be afraid : for the Lord JEHOVAH is my strength and mij son