LIBRARY OF TJIK UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. OF" Mrs. SARAH P. WALS WORTH. Received October , 1894. Accessions No. / 1"" Clj^s No. B. WAISWORTH, ALBION, N *o PREMILLENNIAL ESSA PROPHETIC CONFERENCE, ^y^A. V* HELD IN THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, NEW YORK CITY. APPENDIX OF CRITICAL TESTIMONIES. NATHANIEL WEST. I! Nat lpxop.a.1 rax'v. A/j.qv, ' F. H. EEVELL, 148 AND 150 Publisher of Evangelical Literature, 1879. Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1879, by F. H. REVELL, In the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. B. WAiS WORTH, ALBUM COUSTTEISTTS. PAGE INTRODUCTION, 5 CALL FOR THE CONFERENCE, 11 POEM, 15 ESSAYS. I. OPENING ADDRESS. By the Rev. Stephen H. Tyng, Sr., D.D., 17 II. CHRIST'S COMING : PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. By the Rev. Stephen H. Tyng, Jr., D.D., Rector Church of the Holy Trinity, New York, .--./ ... 22 III. CHRIST'S COMING : Is IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. By the Rev. S. H. Kellogg, D.D., Presbyterian Seminary, Allegheny, Pa., - 47 IV. THE FIRST RESURRECTION. By the Rev. A. J. Gordon, Clarendon Street Baptist Church, -Boston, Mass., 78 V. THE REGENERATION. By the Rev. C. K. Imbrie, D.D., Jersey City, 108 VI. THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH. By Professor H. Lummis, Methodist, Monson, Mass., 174 VII. THE PRESENT AGE AND DEVELOPMENT OF ANTICHRIST. By the Rev. Henry M. Parsons, Pastor Lafayette Street Presby- terian Church, Buffalo, N. T., - 204 VIII. THE GATHERING OF ISRAEL. By Bishop W. R. Nicholson, of the Reformed Episcopal Church, Philadelphia, .... 222 IX. THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS. By the Rev. J. T. Cooper, D.D., United Presbyterian Semina.y, Allegheny, Pa., - 241 3 CONTENTS. X. PAGE THE COMING OP THE LORD IN ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOC- TRINE. By the Rev. James H. Brookes, D.D., Pastor Walnut Street Presbyterian Church, St. Louis, Mo., - - - 270 XL HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. By the Rev. Nathaniel West, D.D., Presbyterian, Cincinnati, Ohio, - 313 XII. A SUMMARY OP THE ARGUMENT IN DEFENCE OP PRE-MILLEN- ARIANISM. By the Rev. John T. Duffield, D.D., Professor of Mathematics in Princeton College, 405 XIII. HOPE OP CHRIST'S COMING AS A MOTIVE TO HOLY LIVING AND ACTIVE LABOR. By the Rev. Rufus W. Clark, D.D., Reformed Dutch Church, Albany, N. T., 429 ADDRESSES. I. THE RETURN OF CHRIST AND FOREIGN MISSIONS. By Dr. W. P. Mackay, of Hull, England, 456 II. THE COMING OP THE LORD IN ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOC- TRINE. By the Rev. E. R. Craven, D.D., Pastor Third Presbyterian Church, Newark, N. J., 462 III. THE THREE DAYS' FEAST WITH DAVID'S SON. By Dr. W. P. Mackay, of Hull, England, 470 CRITICAL APPENDIX. EXTRACTS FROM The Berlerberg Bibel Richter's ErklSrte Haus Bibel Starke's Synopsis, N cue's Testament Theurer'a Das Reich Gottes Stockmayer-Das Oelblatt Pfleiderer's Der Paulinismus EbrarcTs Chrietliche Dogmatik Schenkel's Christliche Dog- matik Van Oosterzee's Christian Dogmatics Chris>tlieb's Modern Doubt and Christian Belief Dorner's Person of Christ Luthardt's Lehre yon der Letzen Dingen Lange's Bremen Lecture Auberlen's Der Prophet Daniel Kliefpth's Offenbarung Johannis Rothe's Dogmatik Roos' Interpretation of Daniel - Schmid's Biblical Theology Koch's Das Tausendjahrige Reich Steffann's Das EndeMo-es Stuart on the Apocalypse Alford OB the Apocalypse Winthrop's Premium Essay Jamieson's, Faueett's and Brown's Critical Commentary The Parousia, Neander, Lechler, Gloag, Olshausen, Meyer, Baumgarten, Hackett, Da Costa, on Acts 3: 19-21 Rev. George Dtiffleld, D.D., Dissertations on the Proph- eciesRev. R. J. Breckenridge, D.D.. Knowledge of God Subjectively Considered DQsterdieck's Offenbarung Johannis. IlSTTIlODUCTIOlSr. AN anti-chilastic writer of great ability, in a volume of 560 pages, just issued from the London press, thus speaks : " No attentive reader of the New Testament can fail to be struck with the prominence given by the evangelists and apostles to the PAROUSIA, or ' Coming of the Lord.' That event is the great theme of New Testament Prophecy. There is scarcely a single book, from the Gospel of St. Matthew to the Apoc- alypse of St. John, in which it is not set forth as the glorious promise of God, and the Blessed Hope of the Church. It was frequently and solemnly predicted by our Lord ; it was incessantly kept before the eyes of the early Christians by the Apostles ; and it was firmly believed and eagerly expected by the churches of the primitive age. It can not be denied that there is a remarkable difference between the attitude of the first Christians, in relation to the Parousia, and that of Christians now. That glorious hope, to which all eyes and hearts in the apostolic age were eagerly turned, has almost disappeared from the view of modern believers. "Whatever may be the theoretical opinions, expressed in symbols and creeds, it must, in candor, be admitted that the * Second Coming of Christ ' has all but ceased to be a living and practical belief." Parousia. Preface, 1, 2. The solution by the writer is praeteristic, holding that the Second Coming occurred at the Destruction of Jerusa- lem, A.D. 70. Another praeteristic and anti-chiliastic writer, of still greater ability, in the Anglican Church, and, like the former, abandoning the "Whitby- ian theory, shows us to what lengths Praeterism is driven. Closing his comment on the Millennium, which he discards, and having shown, as he thinks, the "Unreality of the Second Advent," he thus speaks of the Apocalypse : " A book which deals in theological invective of a bitter kind ; which displays Jewish predilection, in an exclusive and unamia- ble light; which represents Jesus as a tyrannical and sanguinary Mes- siah, and the Almighty Himself as a vindictive and avenging Deity; which abounds in monstrous prodigies, and revels in incredible phenom- ena; which founds the millennial kingdom upon the defeat of the armies of Antichrist, and which connects the Coming of Christ at the end of the world with the calamity which came upon Jerusalem and 6 INTRODUCTION. the Destruction of Pagan Rome whatever its claim to apostolic authorship or canonical position can neither be valuable as a predic- tion, nor be regarded as a safe guide for the performance of the duties of this life, nor for the attainment of that which is to come." Desprez. Daniel and John, 317. Equally, with these two writers, abandoning the Whitbyian pre-advent Millennium, which rests upon the violation of grammatical exegesis, yet with a nobler purpose, and returning to the evangelical ground of the primitive Church and the Reformation, Canon Ryle, with marvelous simplicity and power, has given to the Church his expression of the true faith, in the following Pre-Millennian Creed, which he holds to be what the Scriptures require : 1. " I believe that the world will neVer be completely converted to Christianity, by any existing agency, before the end comes. In spite of all that can be done by ministers, members, and churches, the wheat and the tares will grow together until the Harvest ; and when the end comes, it will find the earth in much the same state that it was when the flood came in the days of Noah. Matt. 13 : 24, 30; 24 : 37, 39. 2. " I believe that the wide-spread unbelief, indifference, formalism, and wickedness, which are to be seen throughout Christendom, are only what we are taught to expect in God's word. Troublous times, depart- ures from the faith, evil men waxing worse and worse, love waxing cold, are things distinctly predicted. So far from making me doubt the truth of Christianity, they help to confirm my faith. Melancholy and sorrowful as the sight is, if I did not see it I should think the Bible was not true. Matt. 24 : 12; 1 Tim. 3 : 1, 4, 13. 3. " I believe that the grand purpose of the presentdispensation is to gather out of the world an elect people, and not to convert all mankind. It does not surprise me at all to hear that the heathen are not all con- verted when missionaries preach, and that believers are but a little flock in any congregation in my own land. It is precisely the state of things I expect to find. The Gospel is to be preached ' as a witness,' and then shall the end come. This is the dispensation of election, and not of universal conversion. Acts 15 : 14; Matt. 24 : 13. 4. " I believe that the Second Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ is the Great Event which will wind up the present dispensation, and for which we ought daily to long and pray. 4 Thy Kingdom come,' ' Come, Lord Jesus,' should be our daily prayer. We look backward, if we have faith, to Christ dying on the Cross, and we ought to look forward, no less, if we have hope, to Christ coming again. John 14 : 3; 2 Tim. 4 :8; 2 Peter 3 : 12. 5. u I believe that the Second Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ will INTRODUCTION. be a real, literal, personal, bodily coming; that as He went away in the clouds of heaven with His body, before the eyes of man, so, in like manner, will He return. Acts 1:11; Rev. 1 : 7. 6. " I believe that, after our Lord Jesus Christ comes again, the earth will be renewed, and the curse removed ; the devil shall be bound, the godly shall be rewarded, the wicked shall be punished ; and that, before He comes, there shall be neither resurrection, judgment, nor Millen- nium; and that not till after He comes shall the earth be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord. Acts 3 :21; Isa. 25 : 6, 9; 1 Thess. 4: 14,18; Rev. 20 : 1. 7. " I believe that the Jews shall be ultimately gathered again, as a separate nation, restored to their own land, and converted to the faith of Christ. Jer. 30 : 10, 11 ; 31 : 10; Rom. 11 : 25, 26. 8. " I believe that the literal sense of the Old Testament Prophecies has been far too much neglected by the churches, and is far too much neglected in the present day, and that, under the mistaken system of spiritualizing and accommodating Bible language, Christians have too often completely missed its meaning. Luke 24 : 25, 26. 9. " I believe that the Roman Catholic Church is the Great Predicted Apostasy from the faith and is Babylon, and the Pope Antichrist although I think it highly probable that a more complete development of Antichrist will yet be exhibited to the world. 2 Thess. 2 : 3, 11 ; 1 Tim. 4 : 1, 6; (Rev. 13 : 1, 8). " I believe, finally, that it is for the safety, happiness, and comfort, of all true Christians to expect as little as possible from churches, or gov- ernments, under the present dispensation, to hold themselves ready for tremendous conversions and changes of all things established, and to expect their good things only from Christ's Second Advent." Coming Events and Present Duties. Preface. The Essays, in the present volume, the fruit of the Prophetic Con- ference, held in the Church of the Holy Trinity, New York City, October 30, 31, and November 1, 1878, are given to the church and the world as a testimony in behalf of the same great and solemn truths repre- sented in the creed just quoted. For the views expressed in these pro- ductions their authors are severally responsible. Owing to the extended character and importance of these papers, only part of which, in some cases, were read, but upon whose entire publication the Committee hav- ing them in charge decided, as also to diminish the size of the present volume, most of the "Addresses" are reserved with the consent of the speakers. They are found in the New York Tribune Extra, No. 46, two editions of which, reaching 50,000, have already been issued. The Resolutions passed by the Conference the evening of its closing 8 INTRODUCTION. session, express in brief the views of the large body of ministers who participated in, or were present to sympathize with, its proceedings, and are as follows : Before closing this Conference, composed of brethren from so many different branches of the one Redeemed Church of our Lord, we desire to return devout thanks to the God and Father of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who is our Hope, for the presence of his Holy Spirit and the fellowship in Christ experienced during our sessions, so that we have been as in heavenly peace in Christ Jesus. We desire, also, disclaiming whatever doctrines have been or may be held in connection with the belief of the Pre-Millennial coming of the Lord, which conflict with the faith once delivered to the saints, and received by the Church Universal along the ages, to bear our united tes- timony to that which we believe to be the truth of the Gospel, in the par- ticulars which follow, viz. : I. We affirm our belief in the supreme and absolute authority of the written Word of God on all questions of doctrine and duty. II. The prophetic words of the Old Testament Scriptures, concerning the first coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, were literally fulfilled in His birth, life, death, resurrection and ascension; and so the prophetic words of both the Old and the New Testaments concerning His second coming will be literally fulfilled in His visible bodily return to this earth in like manner as He went up into Heaven ; and this glorious Epiphany of the great God, oar Saviour Jesus Christ, is the blessed hope of the believer and of the Church during this entire dispensation. III. This second coming of the Lord Jesus is everywhere in the Scriptures represented as imminent, and may occur at any moment ; yet the precise day and hour thereof is unknown to man, and known only to God. IV. The Scriptures nowhere teach that the whole world will be con- verted to God, and that there will be a reign of universal righteousness and peace before the return of our blessed Lord, but that only at and by His coming in power and glory will the prophecies concerning the progress of evil and the development of Antichrist, the times of the Gen- tiles, and the ingathering of Israel, the resurrection of the dead in Christ, and the transfiguration of His living saints, receive their fulfill- ment, and the period of millennial blessedness in its inauguration. V. The duty of the Church during the absence of the Bridegroom is to watch and pray, to work and wait, to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature, and thus hasten the coming of the day of God; and to His last promise, "Surely I come quickly," to- respond, in joyous hope, " Even so; come Lord Jesus." INTRODUCTION. 9 The following resolution was passed not only unanimously by the conference, but by the vast audience voluntarily rising en masse to its feet a magnificent spectacle not soon to be forgotten: " Resolved, That the doctrine of our Lord's pre-millennial advent, instead of paralyzing evangelistic and missionary effort, is one of the mightiest incentives to earnestness in preaching the Gospel to every creature, until He comes." I desire to express my acknowledgments to my beloved brethren, Rev. Dr. Nast, once a class-mate with Strauss, but now long a faithful servant of Christ, for his kindness in furnishing me with Starke's Synop- sis, and to the Rev. Mr. Krebhiel, both of Cincinnati, with both of whom precious hours have been had in discussing Romans, Chapters VII. and VIII. ; and also to the Rev. Dr. Tyng, Jr., of New York, Dr. Gordon, of Boston, and Dr. Brookes, of St. Louis, for their encourage- ment during the editorial supervision of this work. Battling, Suffering, Trusting, Praying, Hoping, Working, Watching, Waiting, "till He come," this volume is sent forth on its mission, with the supplication that God's blessing may attend it. NATHANIEL WEST. Cincinnati, 0., Feb. 28, 1879. CALL, FOB THE COSTFERE]S T CE. DEAR BRETHREN IN CHRIST : When from any cause some vital doc- trine of God's Word has fallen into neglect or suffered contradiction and reproach, it becomes the serious duty of those who hold it, not only strongly and constantly to re-affirm it, but to seek by all means in their power to bring back the Lord's people to its apprehension and accept- ance. The precious doctrine of Christ's second personal appearing has, we are constrained to believe, long lain under such neglect and misap- prehension. In the Word of God we find it holding a most conspicuous place. It is there strongly and constantly emphasized as a personal and imminent event, the great object of the Church's hope, the powerful motive to holy living and watchful service, the inspiring ground of confidence amid the sorrows and sins of the present evil world, and the event that is to end the reign of Death, cast down Satan from his throne, and establish the kingdom of God on earth. So vital, indeed, is this truth represented to be that the denial of it is pointed out as one of the con- spicuous signs of the apostacy of the last days. Now, while casting no word of reproach upon those who may differ from us, we can not be insensible to the fact that there has been a sad decline in our times from the clear, vivid, ardent faith of the early church in regard to this doctrine. Very many Christians have been taught to think of the coming of Christ as equivalent to their own death ; others regard it as synonymous with the gradual diffusion of Christianity. Many, satisfied with this present world, have little desire for the return of the absent Lord ; while here and there are those who boldly speak of such an event as only a " fascinating dream," destined never to be realized. But while we lament all this, and can but regard it as an alarming symptom of the present state of religion, it is an occa- sion for the profoundest gratitude that there has within the last few years been such a powerful and wide-spread revival of this ancient faith. Looking over the Church of God in all its branches, and listen- ing to the clear and decisive testimony to this truth that is coming up in such volume from teachers and pastors, expositors and lay workers evangelists and missionaries, it can but appear to us, that after the long 11 12 CALL FOR THE CONFERENCE. sleep of the Church, the wise are at last rising up, and trimming their lamps, in preparation for the coming of the Bridegroom. In view of these facts, it has seemed desirable that those who hold to the personal pre-Millennial advent of Jesus Christ, and who are " looking for tbat blessed hope," should meet together in conference, as our honored brethren in England have recently done, to set forth in clear terms the grounds of their hope, to give mutual encouragement in the rnaintainance of what they believe to be a most vital truth for the present times, and in response to our Lord's " Behold, I come quickly," to voice the answer by their prayers and hymns and testimony, " Even so, comCj Lord Jesus." We, the undersigned, therefore cordially invite you to meet with us at the Church of Holy Trinity, Madison Avenue and Forty-second Street (the Rev. S. H. Tyng, Jr., Rector), in the City of New York, on the 30th and 31st of October and 1st of November, 1878, to listen to a series of carefully prepared papers on the pre-Millennial advent of the Lord Jesus Christ and connected truths, and to participate in such discussions as the topics may suggest. JAMES H. BROOKS, A. J. GORDON, S. H. TYNG, JR., MAURICE BALDWIN, W. R. NICHOLSON, H. M. PARSONS, W. Y. MOOREHEAD, RUFUS W. CLARKE, Committee. The following-named Bishops, Professors, Ministers and Brethren, unite in indorsing the calling of the conference : T. H. Vail, Bishop Protestant Episcopal Church, Topeka, Kansas. Geo. C. Lorinier, Pastor Tremont Temple, Boston, Mass. S. H. Tyng, Rector Emeritus St. George's Episcopal Church, N. Y. S. H. Kellogg, Prof, of Theology, Alleghany Presbyterian Seminary. J. T. Cooper, Prof, of Theology, Alleghany United Seminary. Jos. A. Seiss, Pastor Lutheran Church, Philadelphia. Jos. Wild, Pastor Union Congregational Church, Brooklyn, N. Y. C. K. Imbrie, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Jersey City, N. J. J. Parker, Pastor South Second Street M. E. Church, Brooklyn, N. Y. L. W. Bancroft, Rector Christ Church, Brooklyn, N. Y. E. T. Perkins, Rector St. Paul's Episcopal Church, Louisville, Ky. J. D. Herr, Pastor Central Baptist Church, New York City. H. M. Saunders, Pastor Baptist Church, Yonkers, N. Y. C. M. Whittlesey, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Speucerport, N. Y. R. C. Matlack, Secretary Evangelical Educational Society, Phil. J. W. Bonham, Church Evangelist, New York City. George R. Kramer, Wilmington, Delaware. T. W. Hastings, Rector Holy Trinity Church, Swanton, Vt. J. P. Farrer, Pastor Baptist Church, Ludlow, Vt. Alfred Harris, Pastor Baptist Church, Westchestcr, Penn. Joseph Evans, Pastor Baptist Church, Goshen, Penn. GALL FOR THE CONFERENCE. 13 L. Osier, Pastor Advent Church, Providence, R. I. J. M. Orrock, Editor Messiah's Herald, Boston, Mass. Myron Adams, Pastor Congregational Church, Rochester, N. Y. L. B. Rogers, Albion, N. Y. F. W. Flint, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Kingston, Penn. R. C. Booth, Rector Episcopal Church of Our Saviour, Brooklyn, N. Y. H. Dana Ward, Episcopal Church, Philadelphia. J. E. Grammer, Rector St. Peter's Episcopal Church, Baltimore, Md. E. P. Adams, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Dunkirk. C. M. Morton, Pastor Chicago Avenue Independent Church, Chicago, 111. George W. Tew. Frank M. Rockwell, Evangelist, Chicago, 111. George F. Pentecost, Evangelist, Boston, Mass. J. M. Stifler, Pastor First Baptist Church, Hamilton, N. Y. Richard Norton, Lockport, N. Y. Nathaniel West, Presbyterian Church, Cincinnati, Ohio. Jesse L. Gilbert, Pastor Methodist Church, Newark, N. J. J. P. Sankey, Pastor United Presbyterian Church, Rochester, N. Y. J. S. Stewart, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Towanda, Penn. Almond Barrelle, Baptist Church, Melrose, Mass. J. B. Thompson, Pastor Dutch Reformed Church, Catskill, N. Y. D. E. Bierce, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Racine, Wis. C. C. Foote, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Detroit, Mich. G. R. Milton, Pastor First Congregational Church, Geneva, 111. E. R. Craven, Pastor Third Presbyterian Church, Newark, N. J. L. C. Baker, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Camden, N. J. E. P. Goodwin, Pastor First Congregational Church, Chicago. W. J. Gillespie, Pastor United Presbyterian Church, New York. W. B. Lee, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Portland, Conn. R. W. French, Pastor United Presbyterian Church, Peotone, 111. S. B. Reed, Pastor United Presbyterian Church, Knoxville, Tenn. Edwin R. Davis, Presbyterian Church, Chicago, 111. G. M. Peters, Pastor Cedar Street Baptist Church, Buffalo. S. R. Wilson, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Louisville, Ky. B. Dubois Wyckoff, Presbyterian Church, Olyphant, Penn. Abner Kingman, Congregational Church, Boston, Mass. George Hall, Methodist Church, Clifton Springs, N. Y. T. W. fJarvey, Methodist Church, Chicago, 111. R. F. Sample, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Minneapolis, Minn. T. W. Bancroft, Professor Brown University, Providence, R. I. E. P. Marvin, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Lockport, N. Y. R. A. McAycal, Pastor United Presbyterian Church, Oskaloosa, Iowa. H. P. Welton, Evangelist Presbyterian Church, Minneapolis, Minn. F. E. Towel, Pastor Brighton Avenue Baptist Church, Boston, Mass. Wm. Reynolds, Presbyterian Church, Peoria, 111. John Wanamaker, Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia. Jos. E. Jones, Baptist Church, West Chester, Penn. H. W. Brown, Evangelist Baptist Church, Oconomowoc, Wis. H. N. Burton, Pastor Congregational Church, Kalamazoo, Mich. Henry Foster, Methodist Church, Clifton Springs, N. Y. David JL Wallace, Pastor United Presbyterian Church, Wooster, Ohio. W. H. Clarke, Pastor Dutch Reformed Church, Palerson, N. J. R. Patterson, Pastor Presbyterian Church, San Francisco, Cal. 14 GALL FOR THE CONFERENCE. J. T. Beckley, Pastor Baptist Church, Newburyport, Mass. J. J. Miller, Pastor Baptist Church, Sonierville, Mass. W. J. Erdinan, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Jamestown, N. Y. R. C. Matthews, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Monmouth, 111. W. E. Blackstone, Methodist Church, Oak Park, 111. J. B. Galloway, Pastor United Presbyterian Church, Clarence, Iowa. George C. Needham, Evangelist, Philadelphia. D. W. Whittle, Evangelist, Chicago. Edward S. White, Baptist Church, Cambridge, Mass. A. Erdman, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Morristown, N. J. C. Cunningham, Pastor Evangelical Advent Church, Boston. B. F. Jacobs, Baptist Church, Chicago. C. Perren, Pastor Baptist Church, Chicago. F. L. Chappell, Pastor Baptist Church, Evanston, 111. J. Romeyn Berry, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Montclair, N. J. W. R. Gordon, Pastor Reformed Church, Schraalenberg, N. J. John T. Duffield, Professor Princetown College. Robert Cameron, Pastor Baptist Church. Brantford, Ont. Samuel J. Andrews, Hartford, Conn. J. S. McCulloch, Pastor United Presbyterian Church, Knoxville, Tenn. H. F. Titus, Pastor First Baptist Church, Ithaca, N. Y. Wm. V. Feltwell, Pastor Reformed, Episcopal Church. H. L. Hastings, Editor Christian, Boston, Mass. W. W. Barr, Pastor United Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia. R. D. Morris, Presbyterian Church, President Oxford Female College, Oxford, Ohio. F. W. Dobbs, Minister St. John's Church, Portsmouth, Ont. M. B. Smith, Reformed Episcopal Church, Passaic, N. J. R. Newton, Rector Church of the Epiphany, Philadelphia. H. A. Cordo, Pastor Baptist Church, Gloversville, N. Y. Geo. M. Stone, Pastor Baptist Church, Tarrytown, N. Y. G. Hayser, Pastor United Presbyterian Church, New Salem, 111. W. W. Clarke, Pastor Congregational Church, Painesville, Ohio. Samuel Ashurst, Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia. Francis -Russell, Pastor Congregational Church, Mansfield, Ohio. H. M. Bacon, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Toledo, Ohio. D. Mack, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Carthage, 111. David R Eddy, Pastor Presbyterian Church, Brockport, N. Y. " Wm. P. Paxon, Pastor Presbyterian Church, St. Louis, Mo. John Pearson, Advent Church, Newburyport, Mass. Josiah Litch, Advent Church, Philadelphia. WATCHING. It may be in the evening, When the work of the clay is done, And you have time to sit in the twilight And watch the sinking sun, While the long bright day dies slowly Over the sea, And the hour grows quiet and holy With thoughts of me ; Let the door be on the latch In your home, For it may be through the gloaming I will come. It may be when the midnight Is heavy upon the land, And the black waves lying humbly Along the sand ; When the moonless night draws close, And the lights are out in the house; When the fires burn low and red, And the watch is ticking loudly Be&ide the bed ; Though you sleep, tired out, on your couch, Still your heart must wake and watch In the dark room, For it may be that at midnight I will come. It may be at the cock-crow, When the night is dying slowly In the sky, And the sea looks calm and holy, Waiting for the dawn of the golden sun Which draweth nigh; In the chill before the dawning, Between the night and morning I may come. 15 16 WATCHING. It may be in the morning, When the sun is bright and strong, And the dew is glittering sharply Over the little lawn; With the long day's work before you, You rise up with the sun, And the neighbors come in to talk a little, Of all that must be done ; But remember that I may be the next To come in at the door, To call you from your busy work For evermore; As you work your heart must watch, For the door is on the latch In your room, And it may be in the morning I will come. So I am watching quietly Every day; Whenever the sun shines brightly I rise and say Surely it is the shining of His face ! And look unto the gates of His high place, Beyond the sea, For I know He is coming shortly To summon me. And when a shadow falls across the window Of my room, Where I am working my appointed task, I lift my head to watch the door, and ask If He is come ; And the angel answers sweetly, In my home " Only a few more shadows, And lie will come." SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. ESSAYS. OPENING ADDKESS. BY THE KEY. STEPHEN H. TYNG, SENIOR, D.D. DEAR BRETHREN: In the name of our common Lord, I salute you this day. We have met in the name of this exalted Eedeemer, as believers in His divinity, His incar- nation, His atoning death, His resurrection from the dead, His abiding intercession for those for whom He died, His future triumphant return to earth as the final judge of man, the glorified ruler, the everlasting portion of those whom He hath redeemed with His own death, clothed with His own righteousness and justified before the throne of His Father and their Father, of His God and their God, in the perfectness of His work of merit and by the glorious fullness of His acknowledged triumph and power. Our personal bond of union is our participation in this excellence and these attainments of man's Eedeemer. Accepting Him in all His offices, in this relation, we par- take together by His gift in all the blessings which He hath obtained by His willing humiliation and His triumphant sacrifice. Our security, our happiness, our fruitfulness, depend wholly upon our personal union with Him. We are saved not merely by believing facts about Him or truths which He has taught, but by our living participation in 18 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. Him and with Him through the power of the Spirit. He is the vine, we are the branches. The living connection which we must have with Him He has thus illustrated: As the branch can not bear fruit if severed from the vine, so- also must we be dead and helpless if separated from Jesus. Our whole spiritual heavenly life depends upon this vital connection with Him, and our participation in the blessings which He has obtained and which He alone can impart. Thus He presents His historic future to His disciples: "In my Father's house are many mansions; I go to pre- pare a place for you, and I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am there ye may be also." This future, glorious coming of Jesus is the very life of the hopes and the inheritance of His people. To the soul that really loves Him, where He is, is heaven r " and prisons would palaces prove if Jesus would dwell with us there." Our relation is to be wholly this personal one with Him, and our hope is always in the assured enjoyment of this. He is " the way, the truth, and the life." How much the Saviour dwelt upon this personal relation in His last inter- view with His disciples! and how little some portions of modern Christianity seem to realize it! It was laid at the foundation of all His last instructions and encourage- ments to His disciples. They are His disciples who, by the teaching and power of His Spirit dwelling within them, live and walk and act in Him, by His power, for His glory. True religion, under this dispensation, is this living, by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit, in unbroken, personal union with this glorious Saviour. Of this He says: "I will not leave you comfortless; I will come to you." "He that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love OPENING ADDRESS. 19 him, and will manifest myself to him." This living of our souls in Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit, and this living of Christ in us, by the same power, is the reality of true religion, and of this it is that our Lord says: "I will not leave you comfortless, I will come unto you;" "Because I live ye shall live also;" "At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you." This divine scheme of spiritual and heavenly relationship has been the history of the true church of Christ through all the succeeding ages of the Christian era. Union with Christ, living in Christ, following Christ, looking forward to the promised coming of Christ and to an everlasting dwelling with Christ, have made up the character, the joy, and the hope of true believers in every age. And these constitute their significant descrip- tion with equal certainty in our day. The lovers of a Saviour are looking for His appearing, longing with in- creasing desire to see Him as He is, to be with Him where He is. And thus He offers for them all the earnest sup- plication, " For all who shall believe on Him through His word." "That they all may be one, that they may be with Him, where He is." That they may behold His glory, which He had before the foundation of the world. Thus in the day of His ascending triumph they beheld His glory as a cloud received Him or.t of their sight; and while in wonder they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He ascended, angelic messengers addressed them, "This same Jesus, who is taken up from you info heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven." In the belief of this coming, the church of Jesus has been one in every age. In the thankful anticipation of this new manifestation of this glorious Saviour, His church on earth has always been in union, believing in His future advent, looking for His appearing, striving to seek the 20 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. things which are above, that when Christ, who is our life, shall appear, we may also appear with Him in glory. In this sure confidence in the reality of this personal advent of the Saviour to the earth, on which He died, in the cer- tainty of the confidence that the time of His glorious advent draweth near, we stand and wait. Many of its preliminary facts have been accomplished. Much that was necessarily antecedent in the history and condition of man has already passed, and every passing year brings this great fact in this history of earth still nearer and diminishes the number of earthly events which are to pre- cede its manifestation. Knowledge and interest in connec- tion with this great event on earth have vastly increased, and increasing multitudes are looking for the Lord's ap- pearing, with enlarged understanding, with new convic- tions, with constantly brightening hopes. For some of us, necessarily, the interval of hope must be short. Our earthly period of education has come near to its conclusion, and but little more can elapse before we shall see the Lord in His glory. As a fact in our personal history, it has become almost in sight. But some of us also believe that as a fact in the history of man, involving consequences of immense outspread extent, and of vast relative influence in the welfare of earth and in the eternal consequences which are to follow individual experience, this great manifestation standeth at the door, and while many sleep the Son of Man will come. In this solemn conviction we have assembled here, bringing together our several impressions, convictions and studies, that we may individually contribute to the general fund of knowledge, of observation, and of conviction, in reference to this great event in the history of earth The coming of man's Redeemer to assume the government which He hath pur- chased with His death, to restore the earth to His own OPENING ADDRESS. 21 dominion, and to gather into one redeemed fold the flock which has strayed upon all mountains, and has been scat- tered, wandering through all the moves of human igno- rance, waywardness, and moral and intellectual degrada- tion. And I close, with the expression of an earnest hope that infinite grace, almighty power, and everlasting love may bless the earth on which we dwell, the land which we inhabit, the nation of which we are part, and the whole race, for which the Son of God was content to die. The Spirit of God has been ready to teach, and the faithfulness of God has covenanted a future restoration and opened the hope of everlasting glory. SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. CHRIST'S COMING: PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. BY THE REV. S. H. TYNQ, JR., D.D., RECTOR OP THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY TRINITY, NEW YORK. open our defense of the doctrine of the personal and visible return of our Lord with the presumptive proof of its primitive authority. Whether justified by the language of the Holy Scriptures, or a delusion of man's enthusiasm, there will be no dispute that the earliest writings of the Christian Fathers recognized it as the current opinion of the post-Apostolic Church. The ancient creeds have crystallized it in confession. The oldest liturgies express it in devotion. The history of heroic achievements by martyrs and confessors claims it as of the highest and most imperative motive. Until the learned Origen, in the third century, introduced his method of allegory into exegesis there is no evidence of a dissent from the traditional expectation. Nor was his system sufficiently influential to resist the consensus of the church in the Nicene and Constantinopolitan councils, which affirmed: "He shall come again with glory to judge both the quick and the dead, whose kingdom shall have no end." The historian Gibbon is our authority that "the ancient Christians were animated by a contempt for their present existence and by a just confidence of immortality, of which the .doubtful and imperfect faith of modern ages can not give us any adequate notion. In the primitive church, the influence of truth was very powerfully strengthened by an opinion which, however it ma} 7 deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, has not been found agreeable to experience. It was universally believed that the end of the world and CHRISTS COMING : PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. 23 the kingdom of heaven (by which they meant Christ's reign on earth) were at hand." In the theological and moral darkness of the Middle Ages there were not lacking earnest souls who maintained and voiced this truth, which traced its paternity to Apostolic teachers. But our assump- tion is still further strengthened by the fact, which authentic history warrants, that the formulae of faith and the private testimonies of the fathers of the Protestant Reformation give this doctrine a foremost rank. It was primitive in the English, the Scotch, the Lutheran, the Congregational, the Baptist, the Moravian, and all other Christian bodies, which have passed through the fires of persecution. The burden of proof really rests with those who deny our hope. The probability in favor of those, who affirm it, is equal to the accumulated force of the argument that the men so marvelously raised up and qualified for the planting, and the reformation of the church, could not have been mis- taken in the tradition of the single century, that had elapsed since the death of St. John, nor misled in their diligent, delving study of the Bible, as compared with the comments ol ancient authors. If the assertion and rejection of this doctrine stand on equal ground before Scriptures^ which do not undoubtedly determine the question at issue, yet is the preponderance of probability a deciding factor in th'e discussion. Waiving this preliminary presumption, we pass to the consideration of three propositions, which are the common ground on which this Conference meets, and will be assumed in the discussion of all succeeding topics. Both for our present purpose, and for an intelligent reception of all after-instruction, it is of the first importance that these principles should be plainly stated and sustained. 1. The authority of Holy Scripture is the basis of all knowledge that the Lord Jesus will in any wise return to 24 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. this earth. To His life in the flesh there are a few allusions in classic authors. History endorses sufficiently the story of the Gospels. The philosophy of history demands, aa the solution of the problem presented by organized and social Christianity, the fact of His human existence. But no other voice than that of God can absolutely foretell. His hand alone can draw the veil, which hides the things to come. Speculation has no place in this discussion. Philosophy has no permission to deal with the unrevealed future. It may outline the possible outcome of present tendencies, but catastrophes in all ages have rebuked its presumption. Whether, therefore, probable or improbable to the reason of man, the certain knowledge of a fact that is to be depends upon the sole and unsupported Word of God. If He is silent, we must remain in ignorance. When He speaks, every doubt dies. At the foundation of our faith is a reverent recognition of the Holy Bible as a revelation from God. Outside of its lids we decline to follow our disputants. They must be brought to this crucial test in connection with the promise of our Lord's coming. It is a more severe criterion than that presented by miracles, for these may be accepted on human and contemporaneous testimony. But predictions depend upon God's declaration. If we are mistaken in our Bible, then our doctrine may be a delusion. If these sacred books be "received not as the word of man, but, as they are in truth r the word of .God," then is our confidence rational. 2. The language of Scripture is the source of all information concerning both the matter and the manner of the return of our Lord. Our revelation is clothed in words, " which the Holy Ghost teacheth." It contains an accurate, authentic and credible account of events, which have their place in the world's history. To this is added a series of didactic statements of truth, adapted to different difficulties CHRIST S COMING : PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. 25 and doubts in the current life of those, who submit to their teaching. Promise and precept are interwoven in the web of doctrine, and predictions glisten on every page, illumi- nated by glintings of glory from another world. But faith, hope and obedience turn with equal curiosity to the very words, " which holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." Whether to know " the things freely given us of God" in our Great Substitute, or " the things which God hath prepared for those who love Him," our search is purely exegetical. We approach, without partiality or prejudice, to learn from words, which express His thoughts, what the Lord God will say concerning us. This postulate implies the rejection of all authoritative interpretations in the assumed teaching office of any church. Every such claim must be tested by the word itself. Still more does it deny all supplementary visions or revelations, as either complements or expositions of our present Bible. The closing verses of Revelation are a solemn charge neither to add to nor take away from the words of the prophecy of this book. Whether they apply to the dog- matic portions of the whole New Testament or not, it i& clear that they do imperatively bind us in our reception of prophetic truth. They are God's seal upon that symbolical book, which by all students is admitted to be the chart of the future. Whatever be our hope, it must draw its reasons from the written word. 3. The laws of language are the instruments by which we are to construe the written words of God. But for the mystical, spiritualizing school of expositors, we should have no need to do more than state this proposition. It would seem to be involved in the popular character of our Bible. Not in cipher, hieroglyphic, or cabalistic signs, but in the language and dialect of living men, with which grammar, rhetoric, and logic can closely deal, has God made 26 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. known his purposes to us. There is no esoteric sense between the lines and beneath the letter. Spiritual dis- cernment is the knowledge by experience, and does not imply a superior intellectualism. Even the symbolic books have their glossary in other and plainer Scriptures. Similes, metaphors, and parables indeed abound, but these are all subject to the rules of interpretation, which control in secular literature. We affirm, then, the law of Bishop Newton, that a literal rendering is always to be given in the reading of Scripture, unless the context makes it absurd. To vindicate this law from all cavil and establish the proposition which it expresses, one need only appeal to the common sense of any casual stranger to scholastic theology. Is it honest to argue with infidels on the basis of the literal fulfillment of prophecies relating to our Lord's first coming, and allegorize the predictions connected with these in chapter, verse, and often clause, because they refer to His second appearing? What reason have we for holding, in opposition to the Jew, that it was foretold where Christ should be born, where He should begin to preach, how He should enter Jerusalem, what varied sufferings He should endure, that He should hang upon the tree, that not a bone of His body should be broken, that His garments should be parted and His vesture be transferred by lot, that with transgressors He should die, and yet with the rich make His grave what possible basis have we for asserting the historical fulfillment of all these prophecies, which the Jews spiritualize, if we, in our turn, spiritualize the plain and closely joined predictions of the glorious Messiah, which they interpret literally? Surely, as a key tied by a string close to the lock, are the scriptural interpretations of fulfilled prophecy. With these at hand, it is not difficult for the serious student to open the secret things of God. But to this consideration may be added, in our appeal to CHRIST 8 COMING : PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. 27 the common fairness of the church and world, the fact that, in every controversy with professed Christians, whose creed we hold to be defective, we insist upon a literal inter- pretation of Scripture. What Trinitarian would suffer a Soeinian to spiritualize the declarations of our Lord's supremacy and sovereignty? The whole controversy with Universalism pivots on this principle. Unless the word of God means what it says, the denier of future punishment may have the right. And on what conception of candor do men stand; who are strenuous for the principle of literal interpretation when it suits their theological system, and severe in its denunciation when they can not suborn the testimony in favor of their own dogma? Indeed, let this spiritualizing method be enforced, and all positive lines of division between truth and error are instantly obliterated. The Socinian, Calvinist, Arminian, Swedenborgian, and every other school of theological thought, will spiritualize in opposite ways to suit their several schemes. On this principle any book may be turned into a Bible. A recent reviewer has well written: "Truly quite enough of this sort of exegetical violence has been done to the New Testament. It is time that it should cease, and that a little more of the respect usually paid to authors called * profane ' should be rendered to books, which the mass of the Christian world is so well agreed to accept as ' sacred,' or as the very * word of God.' In other words, it is surely time that the language of these ancient books should be used in its own sense the sense which it is manifestly intended to convey and that modern expositors should cease their well-meant efforts to compel it into agreement with the ecclesiastical systems and theological creeds, which flourish so variously around us, from the so-called infalli- bility of Rome down, through many gradations, to that of an American revivalist." The German Rationalists, in 28 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. their efforts to naturalize the history, are not so untrue to revelation as those in the church, who spiritualize the prophecy of the Bible. These three propositions we affirm and assume as a Conference: The authority of Holy Scripture is the basis of all knowledge that the Lord Jesus will in anywise return to this earth; the language ol Holy Scripture is the source of all information concerning both the matter and manner of the return of our Lord; the laws of language are the instruments by which we are to construe the words of God, to ascertain the character and circumstances of His appearing. If either one of these can be disproved, our doctrine must fall into doubt. But whenever it is in question, the admission of these principles will instantly take it out of all question. I. It is evident to the superficial student of the Bible that very frequent reference is made by all the sacred writers to " the coming of the Lord." A careful compu- tation has shown that one verse in every twenty-five, or about three hundred verses of the New Testament, speak of this future event. So constant is the allusion to that, which is to be, at " the coming," " the appearing," " the revelation " of the Lord, that all expositors must needs have some theory of interpretation, which will harmonize and explain these passages. The topic of this paper gives the ke} r -note of the creed of our Conference. Whatever else we may hold as true in reference to the translation of* the church, the resurrection of the dead in Christ, the coming of the Lord with His saints, and the establishment of the millennial kingdom, this assertion of the personal and visible manner of His return is fundamental to all. Every detail of literally interpreted prophecy pre-supposes His presence in His glorified humanity, made perceptible to the sense of sight. And, indeed, in this definition of CHRISTS COMING : PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. 29 the doctrine we have no controversy with post-millenarians. Their champion, Dr. David Brown, is as explicit as any pre-millenarian in his affirmation of the ocular manifesta- tion of Christ at the last day. Whatever may be our differences among ourselves, or with those who postpone our Lord's appearing until the world's conversion, and a thousand years after that consummation, we are here banded in the defence of a common truth. But we have a strangely commingled multitude of antagonists. They have no coherence except their consenting denial of our doctrine. For the negative argument of our present discussion, we group them in five classes, and seek to show that neither one nor all satisfy or exhaust the testimonies, that they quote in support of their varying dogmas. It is held by some that 1. The coming of the Holy Ghost on the day of Pen- tecost is the sufficient fulfillment of our Lord's promise. Ten days after the ascension of Jesus the Holy Ghost came to the church. The manner of His appearing, the mode of His operation, the ministry of His presence, all combine to mark Him as " another Comforter. 1 ' The condition of His gift by the Father was the departure of the Christ. He was to be the Yicar of Christ on the earth and in the church. As such He has controlled in this dispensation of grace. His office- work, as defined by Jesus, has been ever fulfilled. It was promised: ""When He is come, He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment." "He shall glorify me: for He shall receive of mine and shall show it unto you." " And He will show you things to come." Surely these passages on their very face demand that a distinction of some sort be drawn be- tween the Spirit and the Son, and at the same time indi- cate their relative offices in the development of the divine purpose. The entire ministry of the Holy Ghost is sup- 30 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST plementary to the redemption, and preparatory to the reign, of Christ. How then can they be confounded in their comings? But what warrant is given in Scripture for this strange view? The only text ever quoted in its support is a sufficient answer to the theory. Our Lord said, " If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself." But the time and style of reception is contained in the succeeding clause,. " that where I am, there ye may be also." Is it not too plain even for comment that the coming of the Holy Ghost did not and could not accomplish this last result? It will not do to evade this answer by urging men to look for " larger outpourings " of the Spirit, for the Holy Ghost as a person has come. In His descent were the prophe- cies of the Old Testament as literally fulfilled as in the birth of Jesus. A more reliant recognition of His pres- ence and power will doubtless result in a deeper realiza- tion of His grace and comfort. But this is not another coming. He is -here and will remain until the end of the age. One of the serious charges we have to present against this school of spiritualizing expositors is that they diminish the dignity of the dispensation of the Holy Gh'ost. In seeking to avoid the doctrine of the personal coming of our Lord, they do despite unto the Third Per- son of the Blessed Trinity, who is the Spirit of Grace. 2. Again, there are expositors, who hold that the catas- trophe of the fall of Jerusalem, A.D. TO, and the entrance of Titus the Eoman, are the facts to which certain predictions of the coming of the Lord referred. This can only be affirmed in connection with the twenty-fourth chapter of St. Matthew and the parallel passages in St. Mark's and St. Luke's gospels. Epistles written to Gen- tile churches and the Kevelation to St. John on Patmos can not be supposed to take cognizance of this local event. CHRISTS COMING : PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. 31 If the chronology of the books, written at least twenty years after Titus' coming, did not determine their refer- ence to somewhat subsequent to the fall of the Holy City, surely their scope of argument would negative such a nar- row construction. We are limited, therefore, to the exam- ination of a solitary passage as the locus classicus of this second view. Our Lord was seated on the Mount of Olives with four of His disciples. He had pronounced the prophecy of Jerusalem's overthrow: " See ye not all these things [the buildings of the temple]? Verily I say unto you, There shall not be left here one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down." The disciples privately asked Him three questions, which had most naturally been suggested by His words, saying (Matt. 24:8): "Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the age?" Each of these queries was answered by Him in its logical order. A few sentences sufficed to sketch the outline of all events between His ascension and His corning again. And then He added the words found in Matt. 24:30: "And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven : and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven : with power and great glory. And he shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet : and they shall gather His elect from the four winds." It is scarcely conceivable that the Lord would represent the leader of the Roman army, clothed with such a form as this. But the manifest reference in the words to the prophecy of Daniel increases this improbability. Be- sides, at the coming of Titus it is not true that all the tribes of earth did mourn. To put such a false exaggera- tion in the mouth of Jesus is to reduce Him from the rank of a prophet to the ravings of an enthusiast. And 32 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. by what subtle exegesis can the scattering of the Chris- tians, and their escape to little Pella in the mountains, be made the correspondent fact to the promised gathering of the elect? When not only contradictory words but irre- concilable events become identical these expositors may be trusted. The misinterpretation, which we now contro- vert, is made impossible by the remembrance that, only two days after these words were used on the Mount of Olives, they were repeated by Jesus in the High Priest's palace. In Matt. 26: 64 we read: "Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven." The point at issue was His Messiahship. His claim to stand in this relation was the cause of the wrath of the Sanhedrim. And now, with prophetic words and an emphasis incapa- ble of misapprehension, He foretells His future manifest- ation in glory. Did He speak of Titus to the High Priest? If not, by what principle of interpretation can the same words, uttered forty-eight hours before His arraign- ment, be tortured into such a reference? That the Jews well understood His meaning is made evident by the action of the High Priest. He " rent his clothes, saying, He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy." Many witnesses had before been called, but their testi- mony did not agree. Thus far the evidence was too con- flicting to warrant a judgment. But as soon as Jesus spake of His "coming in the clouds of heaven," the case was closed. He was found guilty of blasphemy, and con- demned to death because He foretold His second coming. 3. A third theory, that we antagonize, resolves many passages of the Epistles into what is styled a spiritual com- ing and presence. The supporters of this most mystical CHRISTS COMING : PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. 33 interpretation make much of His title, as " the Coming One," and speak of Him as ever holding this relation to the church. But do they forget that the Coming One u came unto His own and His own received Him not?" that when the Baptist sent messengers to ask, u Art thou the Coming One, or do we look for another?" Jesus an- swered by directing attention to the correspondence be- tween His miracles and the marvels predicted by Isaiah, and that it was in this character that the multitudes wel- comed Him, crying, "Blessed is the Coming One in the name of the Lord ? " It casts a strange shadow on His earthly life to ignore the fulfillment of this title in His days of obedience and suffering. The Coming One was materialized. With a form like unto ours He passed into the heavens. Surely now His promise that He will come again can not imply an annihilation of that perfected man- hood. He must return in His Glorified Body, whether visible or invisible to us, unless His humanity be a myth. But how can these Scriptures of the Apostles refer to a spiritual coming, whatever that may mean, in the face of the Lord's own assurances : u Where two or three are gath- ered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them." "Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the age ? " Spiritually the Son of God has never been, and can never be absent from the world or the church. The omnipresence of God is through the redemption a part of our heritage. u The Lord of Hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our refuge." And in a peculiar manner does the Holy Ghost make real to the believer the Christ of the past on Golgotha, in the Garden of the Sepulchre, and on the Mount of Ascension as a present Saviour. But as the Mediatorial Priest and King it is distinctly stated that His session is still in the heavenly places: " Whom the heavens must receive until the time of restitution of 34 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began." It surely is mani- fest that those times of restoration have not yet dawned. There must be, therefore, something in store for the church beyond the spiritual influences of her absent Lord. 4. It is held by some writers that the progress of the gospel and the church is the concrete fact, in which the promises of our Lord's coming combine. There is a vagueness about this view, which makes it most difficult to controvert. If definite passages were quoted in its sup- port, we might dispute the exegesis. But when one is referred generally, and with a wave of the hand, to all the prophecies and promises, it argues distrust of the position in those who affirm it, and it proposes an endless task to those who are its opponents. Let us meet general asser- tions with specific suggestions. In only one text of the New Testament is the church called Christ. St. Paul wrote to the Corinthians (1 Cor., 12: 13), " As the body is one and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ." "With this solitary exception, the church throughout the epistles is represented as the body, of which Christ is the head. Undoubtedly the text quoted is in the line of this uniform teaching, but the language identifies the body and its head under the one name of Christ. For the most part, by the apostle the body is represented as visible, and the head as invisible. The growth is upward " into Him in all things, which is the Head, even Christ." And the Head is represented as "in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in that which is to come." As a visible fact, the church is now headless. It waits for His coming, who shall crown it with His own glorified humanity. From a single par- CHRIST 8 COMING: PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. 35 ticular do they attempt to generalize, who hold this fourth theory, whilst the burden of passages bearing on this very illustration is contrary to them. But the second coming of Christ is manifestly somewhat exterior to the church itself. The law of obedience given to the church is, " Occupy till I come." The symbols of sacramental com- munion are to be used " until He come." The attitude of spiritual desire is to "wait for His Son from heaven." In the midst of sloth and sin, it is commanded to "watch, for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come." The sub- stance of its supplication and song is: "Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly." The coronation of the church is an event separate from its struggle. All its discouragements are cheered by the blessed hope of His appearing. Thus, then, there, shall the church be glorified. The Bridegroom will claim the Bride. 5. To these varying interpretations of our Lord's com- ing must be added one more, which identifies it with the death of believers. This definition results in a destructive dislocation of Scripture, and an annihilation of all true hope in the Christian life. That which the law of self- preservation teaches us to dread can not be the substance of our Lord's most joyous promise or of the church's puri- fying hope. The saintly Baxter expressed the universal experience of the church, when he wrote: " Death appear- eth to me as an enemy, and my nature doth abhor and fear it; but the thoughts of the coming of the Lord are most sweet and precious. Christ's servants can submit to death, but His coming they love and long for." What a perversion is it to reduce all the glad expectancy of His appearing, who " will change our bodies of humiliation that they may be fashioned like unto His own glorious body," into the dull thought that disease may at some moment seize us, and death assert its sovereignty over us! 36 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. The presumption against such a reading of promise is so strong as almost to discharge us from argument. But to strengthen our defense, let us remember that the vocabu- lary of the Bible always classes death as an enemy. From the first to the last book of the sacred canon this is its uni- form representation. Our Lord Jesus is said to have abolished death, but its physical accidents still remain in all their hideous self-assertion. The sting of death has been extracted, but the serpent survives. It will not be until His coming that dead bodies shall be raised, and the battle-cry, "O death! where is thy sting? O grave! where is thy victory?" be sung without a challenge. Then the last enemy, even death, shall have been destroyed. In the lack of a single passage, which plainly associates death with the coming of the Lord, how dare men, instructed by this exceptionless usage, misread God's word? The departing believer hastes to be absent from the body that he may be present with the Lord to be with Christ in Paradise to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. Time would fail to quote a tithe of the passages which present Jesus as He appeared to Ste- phen, waiting for His saints, and the dying believer as carried by angels into His presence. Never is there a reversal of this relation in the language of God's word. Moreover, whenever death is represented in imagery the figure is the contrast of the person of Christ. He who rides upon the pale horse can not be the same as He who cometh in the clouds of heaven. Violence is done to every principle of personification by such an attempted identity. Not to prolong our negative argument, we have only to add our Lord's own discrimination between death and His own second coming, as a final answer to the assump- tions of this theory. When Peter over-curiously demanded in reference to John, " Lord, and what shall this man do?" CHRIST S COMING : PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. 37 Jesus saith unto him, "If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me. Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that this disciple should not die." They were beguiled into the very confu- sion of thought, which we have been controverting. "Yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but if I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?" The Lord leaves no doubt about the difference between these two future facts. It is only an exploded tradition to con- nect them. And the heat of controversialists, who make this attempt, is far less pardonable than the mistake of the disciples, since subsequent to this interview so much instruction in reference to the Lord's coming has been given by the apostles. This much is certain : " We shall not all sleep " (in death), but we shall all be summoned before the judgment-seat of Christ. There will be at least one generation to whom death shall not be the com- ing of the Lord. These five theories do neither satisfy nor exhaust the teaching of the Scriptures in reference to the second com- ing of our Lord. Though it be admitted that, analogically, the facts, which they relate, may be anticipations of His appearing, yet there is somewhat in all the passages quoted, which refuses to be cramped and confined by these inter- pretations. It may be that these incidents stand in the foreground of the unveiled picture of the future, and are foreshortened into a practical prominence, but there is a sublime event looming up in the background, which far transcends them in significance and interest. To the scrip- tural authority of this reserved revelation of our Lord, we have a remarkable testimony from a rationalistic critic in a recent number of the Nineteenth Century Review. Though regarding the Messianic kingdom as " unreal and untrue," he frankly admits that "the men of the first Christian 38 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. generation, including the Apostles and the writers of the New Testament, lived in the almost daily expectation of the Lord and the end of the world. ;) This witness of Dr. Yance Smith is valuable as that of one coldly unprejudiced in his examination of the sacred text, and avowedly hostile to this truth. That it is justified by exact exegesis, it is now our purpose to demonstrate as the positive argument of this paper. We hope to be able to show that there is a very numerous class of passages, which can not by any expository skill be connected with one or all of the professed fulfillments already disputed, but which imperatively demand, and will brook no denial of, the personal, in the sense of visible, coming of our Lord. To these we turn with undoubting confidence. 1. The nouns substantive used to signify the Advent are first in this line of proof. They are incapable of other definition than a real, personal, and corporeal as opposed to a figurative, spiritual, and incorporeal coming of our Lord. So definite is the usage of the terms that we may be thus explicit in our statement. The first of these words is Apokalypsis. It occurs in nineteen passages of the ^S T ew Testament, and is translated in our version, "revela- tion," " manifestation, 5 ' " appearing," " coming," and " to lighten." It will be recognized in the texts: (1 Cor. 1 : 7), " Waiting for the revelation of Jesus Christ;" (2 Thess. 1 : 7), " At the revelation of Jesus Christ with His mighty angels;" (1 Peter 1:7), "At the appearing of Jesus Christ;" (1 Peter 4 : 13), "When His glory shall be revealed." Whenever used in reference to objects or per- sons, which can be recognized by sight, this word requires visibility as a necessary quality. It is introduced to express the discovery of spiritual truth to the mind, but never for the spiritual discernment of Christ. The only instance apparently doubtful is Galatians 1 : 16, " To reveal His CHRIST 8 COMING : PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. 39 Son in (to) me;" but the three recitals of his conversion in the Book of Acts assert that St. Paul heard the voice and imply that he saw the form of Christ. Indeed, it was this personal revelation to him it was which gave him all his rights in the apostolate. The use of the word in Matt. 11 : 27, ''Neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and He to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him," is no exception to our rule, since the person of the Father is ever invisible and can only be spiritually perceived. Indeed, it is only necessary to recall the fact that the last book of the Bible is called the Apocalypse to establish our rule of interpretation. By whatsoever process rendered perceptible, it is evident that this Revelation to St. John was objective, for he distinctly, in the preface to the book, asserts that "he saw" the things which he is about to relate. The second noun employed in this same connection by the sacred writers is Epiphaneia. Together with the verb, from which it is derived, it is found in ten passages of the New Testament. The lexicographer Schleusner gives as its classic definition, " The appearance of a thing corporal and resplendent." He adds that " it was particularly employed by the Greeks to denote the appearance of their gods, with circumstances of external splendor." In accord with this usage, St. Paul introduces the word (2 Tim. 1:10) to describe our Lord's incarnation at His first advent. He speaks of the grace that " is now made manifest by the epiphany of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel." Again, when describing Paul's shipwreck, Luke wrote (Acts 27 : 20), " Neither sun nor stars in many days epiphanized." Every other text in which this word is met has reference to the second coming; as, for example, (1 Tim. 6 : M), " Keep this commandment without spot, 40 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. unrebukable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ: which in His time He shall show, who is the blessed and only Potentate;" (2 Tim. 4 : 1), "The Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and dead at His appearing and His kingdom;" (Titus 2 : 13), "Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearance of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us." The unvarying usage of this word in the New Testament sustains the classical defini- tion. The context of every passage makes any other an impossibility, if not an absurdity. The third and last word, to which we ask attention is Parousia. It will be found in twenty-four texts of the New Testament, with the two meanings of " coming " and " presence." Seventeen of these passages refer to the com- ing of our Lord. As examples we quote (Matt. 24 : 3): " What shall be the sign of Thy coming;" (1 Cor. 15 : 23), "They that are Christ's at His coming;" (1 Thess. 2:19), "Are not even ye at the coming of our Lord;" (James 5 : 8), " The coming of the Lord draweth nigh." Once the word is used in connection with the manifestation of the Man of Sin. In all other passages it is employed to describe the coming of individuals; as (1 Cor. 16 : 17), " the coming of Stephanas;" (2 Cor. 7 : 6), " the coming of Titus;" and (Phil. 1 : 26), the "coming " of Paul. The lit- eral rendering of this term is u the becoming present." It marks the moment when absence ceases, and presence begins. It excludes all idea of a prolonged period, as they who seek to identify the coming of the Lord with death vainly fancy. How contrary to common sense is such a definition will instantly appear on attempting to adjust it to the prophecy, (Matt. 24 : 27), " As the lightning cometh out of the east and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be." There is nothing in nature so instantaneous as this. It is now, and in the CHJRIST'S COMING : PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. 41 twinkling of an eye it is gone. So shall also the Parousia of the Son of Man be. The word is equally intolerant of the theory of a spiritual coming. It implies personality, and in several passages suggests physical visibility. If the coming of the Lord, to which it refers, be spiritual or figura- tive, so must also the coming of Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus, who certainly brought substantial help to the Apostle Paul, and must, therefore, have been more than phantoms. These three words, singly and in combination, bear an exclusive testimony to the future real and personal coming of the Lord. 2. We pass from them to consider the pronouns and adverbs, which control and qualify the various promises of our Lord's appearing. These not only consent to the inter- pretation, which we are now presenting, but greatly strengthen its proof. To attenuate the Second Advent into a figurative or spiritual fact is to oppose Scripture, which seems, in its very texture, to have been arranged for just such an emergency of doubt. Whilst looking up into the clouds, which had shut off from their gaze the ascended Christ, two angelic men recalled the thoughts of the dis- ciples to earth, and with words of promise opened to them a most glorious hope. They said, " This same Jesus who is taken "up from you. into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go." What a combination of carefully chosen words is this text ! It is a mosaic of promises. In opposition to all allegorizers and spiritual- izers, it presents " this same Jesus" not His influences, but Himself. In contradiction of all theories, that would degrade His coming by identifying it with death, the pass- age presents descent after translation as the outline of His coming, u in like manner as ye have seen Him go." On every side is this assurance guarded by these qualifying 42 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. parts of speech. It is impossible to wrest such a Scripture from its natural and literal rendering. But the Apostle Paul is not less careful in his collocation of words. The change of living saints and the resurrection of the dead in Christ are works of omnipotence. They can not certainly be separated from a personal act. In foretelling them as the events that shall especially mark His coming, the apostle traces them to our Lord's personal presence and power, "because the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven." Surely this pronoun decides the issue. Only one other illustration shall be added to these, though they might be indefinitely extended. The apostle to the Hebrews (9 : 28) contrasts His former sin -bearing with the Lord's future glory: " Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time without sin unto salvation." There is a plain antithesis between " once " and " second time." The resemblance between the two appearings is asserted to be personality. The difference is equally defined by their contrasted relation to sin and offering for sin. Even the smallest particles of scriptural language protest against the perversions of our doctrine, 3. But to these sources of proof we add the offices and actions, which are connected with His coming, and to which the Scriptures command our reverence. These are all intensely personal, both in their conception and in the mode of their accomplishment. Our Lord warned His disciples against the pretensions of anti-christs. These impostors were clearly to be persons. Their peculiar dogma was to be that they (2 John 7) " confess not that Jesus Christ is coining in the flesh," and the substitution of themselves in the stead of Christ as the object of hope. If His competi- tors were to be personal and visible, surely the language of warning implies more than a spiritual manifestation on our CHRIST 8 COMING: PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. 43 Lord's part. The contrast between Christ and Anti-christ involves the personal coming of the Lord. But all are agreed that the judgment of the saints and the world will be a chief feature in the Advent. How is this office presented in Scripture? Will the law of the survival of the fittest produce the final judgment, irrespective of a glorious Person? Are the discriminating influences the Gospel all that is meant by this phrase? Are the "judgment-seat of Christ " and " the great white throne " fictions of fancy, which have no corresponding reality? These glosses of philosophy, and spiritaalizers, must be brought to the test of the word itself. St. Paul taught in skeptical Athens the truth in words, which anticipate all later criticisms (Acts 17:30, 31): "God hath appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world by that man, whom He hath ordained, whereof He hath given assurance unto all men, in that He hath raised him from the dead." If " that man " is a personal designation, then the Judge will be a person. If the resurrection of Christ was visibly demonstrated, equally so will be His coming again. This is a demonstration of the surface of the passage. Another character, in which our Lord is represented in the day of His advent, is as the JRaiser of the Dead. This office He performed in His life of substitution. Again, at His death-cry (Matt. 27:52), "The graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept, arose, and came out of the graves after His resurrection, and went into the holy city and appeared unto many." Once more is this action traced to Him (1 Thess. 4:16), "For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first ... to meet the Lord in the air." To refer this future fact to a spiritual change is condemned as the error of Hymeneus and Philetus (2 Tim. 44 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. 2: 18), which in the apostle's day overthrew the faith of some. The passages which prove its physical character will doubtless be presented in a succeeding essay of the Conference. It is sufficient for our present purpose to show that the resurrection of the body has always been and will hereafter be personal and visible. And from this we have a right to argue that " the Lord in the air " will be equally personal and visible. Our conviction is strength- ened by the use of the Greek word, translated " to meet." In every other passage of the New Testament, in which it occurs, it has the uniform meaning of a personal encounter. The very term introduced by the Evangelists to describe the meeting of Christ with His disciples in His mortal and risen life is projected as the outline of promise and prophecy for His reception of His church in the day of His appearing. 'To these offices and actions might be added His relation to the world as the Eestorer of Creation, of which His miracles were the earnests, His relations to the Jews as the Shiloh of Israel, and to the Gentiles as the Desire of all Nations, in connection with which designation every prophecy and all philosophy of government demand personality, and His relation to the church as the Bride- groom of the Bride (2 Thess. 1: 10), " When He shall come to be glorified in His saints, and to be admired in all them that believe in that day." Every term used in connection with these varied functions of His mediatorial sovereignty requires somewhat more than a spiritual manifestation. The token of His real personality and visibility was His risen and glorified body. In this He must come again. Our eyes may be holden that we may not recognize Him, but the difficulty will be in our sight, not in His reality: " We see not yet all things put under Him. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor." (Heb. CHRIST 8 COMING: PERSONAL AND VISIBLE. 45 2:8, 0.) Finally, to affirm that His appearing will be that of a spirit only is to fall into the very error from which in His risen life our Lord delivered His disciples. We look for our King clothed in glorified flesh. Great confusion has been caused in this discussion by the scholastic associations of the word "person." We have seen that all the Greek nouns, pronouns, and adverbs, which are employed by the sacred writers in this connection, necessarily imply both a full, real, and individual appearing of our Lord, and that this will be a proper object of sight. But the force of these terms has been clouded by the prominence given to the Latin word " persona." The dream of a personal as distinct from a visible demonstra- tion of our Lord's presence is not warranted by the classic use of the word, but is a sequence of the controversy over the distinctions in the Blessed Trinity. Theologians writing in Latin chose this word " persona," divested it of visibility among other ideas, and employed it in its modified definition to express the separate relations of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. So in theology the word has come to have a narrow and peculiar meaning, quite distinct from that of its derivation. It is with this battle- axe of an ended conflict that men are found armed in the controversy concerning the Lord's coming. Let " persona " have its Ciceronian meaning, and the title of this essay will be seen to be tautological. The appearing of our Lord because personal must be visible. To this cumulative argument we simply add, in closing, the unmistakable testimony that Christ's personal coming will be visible. Thus saith the Lord: (Matt. 26:64), " Hereafter shall ye see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power;" (John 16:16), "A little while, and ye shall not see Me, and again, a little while, and ye shall see Me, because I go to the Father;" (Kev. 1:7), " Behold He 46 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him." To such assurances Christian faith and hope impel the Lord's people to respond in mutual congratulation: (1 John 3:3), "Beloved, now are we the sons of God; and it doth not appear what we shall be; but we know that when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is." The Christ as He was is the object of faith. The record of His finished work is so realized to holy fancy by the Holy Ghost, as to justify the expression of St. Paul to the Galatians, (3: 1) " before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you." So actual was Christ, so very real to Paul's faith, as to be almost visible. The Christ as He is is the object of hope. The history of His risen life and ascension gives the outline of the (Titus 2: 12) " blessed hope " that we are (2 Peter 3: 11) "looking for" and (1 Thess. 1:9, 10) " waiting for." In holy con- templation, the Man from the Glory comes often within the closest circle of our communion. But when hope shall find its divine and human object in the personal and visible Lord from heaven, then in its fulness shall be understood that saying, " He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father." CHRIST'S COMING: IS IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. 47 CUEIST'S COMING IS IT FEE-MILLENNIAL? BY THE KEY. S. H. KELLOGG, D.D., PROFESSOR OF THEOLOGY IN THE PRESBYTERIAN SEMINARY, ALLEGHENY, PA. THAT the Lord Jesus Christ, in his glorified human nature, is yet to return to this earth, is and always has been the faith and hope of the Church. In this article of faith, Protestant and Eomanist, Greek and Oriental Christians, are all agreed. That same Jesus which was taken up from us into heaven, shall so come in like man- ner as He was seen to go. The so-called Millennarian controversy has never involved any doubt as to the fact that there is to be a literal bodily return of the risen Jesus in the clouds of heaven to this very earth which witnessed His humiliation and rejection. The undivided Church joins with one accord in those words of the Te Deum, "We believe that Thou shalt come to be our Judge." Nor is the question before us whether this world shall become subject to Christ. The earth shall'be filled with the knowl- edge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. " All nations shall serve and obey Him." On this subject Scripture is so explicit that no body of Christians has ever rejected the doctrine. This is the eternal decree of the Father: "Ask of Me, and I will give thee the heathen for thine inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession." Nor is there any question as to whether the preaching of the Gospel shall be a success. There may be, and indeed is, among good men, a question as to what the present preaching of the Gospel is intended to accomplish. But whatever that may be, there can be 4:8 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. no doubt that the purpose of God in this proclamation of the Gospel shall be accomplished to the very letter. "My word shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." If, therefore, it be the purpose of God that it shall issue in the conversion of the whole world, then, without doubt, whatever be the difficulties in the way, these instrumentalities now in operation shall yet bring about that glorious result. There is, most assuredly, no lack of power in God, the Holy Spirit, nor of inherent virtue in the Gospel to this end. And if, on the other hand, it be the purpose of God that, in this present dis- pensation, the preaching of the Gospel shall only issue in the gathering out of an election from all nations, then also that purpose of God shall be accomplished, and no more. But it is plain that, in this case as well as the former, the preaching of the Gospel will have been a success. In either case, it will have accomplished all that it was intended to accomplish, and that is what we call success. It should be scarcely necessary to remark that the ques- tion before us does not concern the absolute time of the coming of the Lord. Concerning that, the testimony of the word of God is most emphatic. " Of that day and hour knoweth no man no, not the Son, but only my Father which is in Heaven." It is a matter of the greatest regret that so many have forgotten the explicit teachings of the Scriptures upon this subject, and suffered themselves to be led aside' into deliverances upon this matter, which, as a matter of course, being falsified by the event, have served to bring the most precious hope of the Church into disre- pute, and deterred many good and earnest men from even entering on the consideration of a subject which, to their minds, seemed so fraught with evil consequences to the sobriety of Christian life. We, one and all, can not do CHRIST 8 COMING : IS IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. 49 better in this matter than stand firm on the words of one of the great historical confessions: "As Christ would have us certainly persuaded that there shall be a day of judgment, so will He have that day unknown to men, that they may shake off all carnal security, and be always watchful, because they know not what hour the Lord will come." Nor is there any question between Millennarians and others as to the essential nature of that resurrection life upon which all agree that all believers shall enter at the coming of the Lord. Millennarians have sometimes been charged with holding that those who shall rise and reign with Christ when He shall appear will enter upon an earthly life, after the fashion of the life which we now lead in the flesh. Thus an eminent theologian argues against the doctrine of the Pre-Millenialists, that it is inconsistent with what the Scriptures uniformly teach as to the nature of the resurrection body; that it is to be spiritual, and not natural, or flesh and blood. "Whereas, according to the writer quoted, " it is an essential part of the doctrine ot the Pre-Millennialists that the saints are to rise and reign a thousand years in the flesh." This passage rests upon a strange misapprehension of what Pre-Millennialists under- stand the Scriptures to teach upon this subject. It is safe to say that no Millennarian of any repute holds to a res- urrection of the sort suggested in the passage cited. A life of the risen saints in some special connection with this earth, even as it is at present constituted, no more implies that their resurrection bodies will not be in the sense of the Apostle, " spiritual," or that their' resurrection life is to be a life in the flesh, after the manner of this present life, than the undoubted fact that the Lord Jesus Himself, during the forty days after His resurrection, appeared in a body of flesh and bones upon this earth, to men in the flesh, implies that His life was at that time, in the sense of 4 50 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. our author, a life in the flesh. As was the body, and as was the resurrection life of our Lord, so, beyond all doubt, according to the abundant testimony of the word of God, shall be the resurrection bodies and the resurrection life of this people. Still further, in order to reach the truth upon the sub- ject before us, it is important to separate this question from others closely connected therewith. For example, the question before us is not whether or not the kingdom of Christ be as yet, in any sense, present in the world, a question to which, in passing, we may remark the parables in Matt. 13 seem to give an affirmative answer. Neither is the question before us in this paper whether there shall be a first and second resurrection, nor whether Christ shall yet reign personally upon this earth. These questions, indeed, have been and are closely connected with the question of a Pre-Millennial advent, but they are not so closely connected but that, in instances, not a few men have rejected the doc- trine of a converted world previous to the coming of the Lord, while yet not affirming the doctrine of a first and a second resurrection, nor that of a personal reign of the Lord upon the earth. Such, indeed, appears to have been the position of most of the reformers. In order to clear- ness of discussion, it is important, for the present, to waive all reference to these or any other related questions, and confine our attention strictly to the precise point before us, which we may state as follows : " Does the word of God teach that, prior to the advent of the Lord Jesus Christ, we are to look for the conversion of the world to Him, and a prolonged season of universal peace and prevailing right- eousness, or does it teach the contrary?" According to the opinion of the P?e-Millennialists, which prevails most widely in the present century, and more especially in our own country, the conversion of the world, both Jew and CHRISTS COMING : IS IT P RE -MILLENNIAL. 51 Gentile, and the consequent establishment of the King- dom of . Christ, is to precede the personal return of the Lord Jesus. By the use of means at present employed, accompanied by unprecedented operations of the Holy Spirit, it is supposed that the world is to be totally trans- formed, and in some sense converted. The Spirit is to be poured out so abundantly that, as the result, righteousness will prevail throughout the whole earth. As to how extensively men shall be individually renewed and con- verted, in the Gospel sense of those words, there seems to be a great difference of opinion. Some have even sup- posed that the expected conversion shall be literally univer- sal. A greater number, probably, seem to think that very many, in the aggregate, may remain inwardly unrenewed, but that, on the whole, the great majority will be truly converted unto God; and that, as the result of this, sin, where it still remains, will be universally restrained, so that " nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall men learn war any more." Others, again, seem to expect little more than a merely nominal and outward pro- fession of Christianity by the nations of the world, as such, and the practical recognition of the principles of the moral law in social and political life. As to how far such an issue could, in the Scriptural sense of words, be called a conversion of the world to God, we leave to others to judge. The happy state of things to be brought about, sooner or later, by the preaching of the Gospel, of what- ever sort it be, it is believed, will continue for a very long time, which is called the Millennium. Its duration it is commonly argued from Rev. 20, will not be less than a thousand years. After that it is understood" that the Bible Caches that there will be a general apostasy from the faith, ^hich will be shortly and finally brought to an end by the return of the Lord to judgment, when the present order of 52 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. things will pass away forever. If this is the teaching of the Scriptures, then it is plain that the coming of the Lord is not even possible for more than a thousand years to come, and how much longer no one can tell. As opposed to all this, Pre-Millennialists, believing, indeed, with the Post-Millennialist, that righteousness shall yet prevail over all the earth, understand the Scriptures to teach that this is not to be expected before the Lord Jesus shall return. That although the Gospel shall, indeed, be ever more and more widely spread abroad, yet the word of God gives us no reason to look for any radical and real spir- itual change in the condition of the world till the glorious appearing of the Lord. This, then, in a word, is the ques- tion: "Do the Scriptures teach, or do they not, that the world is to be, in any true sense of the word, converted before the return of the Son of Man?" Before entering upon the investigation of this question, it is well that we bear in mind the following two considerations: It is of the greatest importance, in dealing with this subject, as, indeed, with any other question regarding the teaching of the word of God, that we allow no preconceptions of our own, whether derived from the natural reason or from any traditional interpretation of the Scripture which we may have received, even from good and devout men, to deter- mine our judgment in the decision of the matter. The question before us is purely and simply a question as to the teaching of the word of God. Let us, therefore, beware of determining, a priori, what, as regards the gov- ernment of this world, God may or may not be expected to do. The words of the Lord are ever to be borne in mind: " My thoughts are not as your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways." And, in the second place, it is to be remembered that we can not, in this matter, any more than in many other teachings of the ScriptureSi CHRISFS COMING : IS IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. 53 demand that all difficulties shall be removed. To insist that every difficulty shall be removed, and every possible ques- tion answered before we shall give our assent to a doctrine of the Bible, is not the part of a wise Christian. In how many matters, even more central and vital than that which is before us to-day, are we shut up to a choice of difficulties. Let us remember well that, although we may not be able to answer every question or difficulty that may be urged against a doctrine, it by no means follows that we are justi- fied in rejecting it. On this principle, we should be justi- fied in rejecting the doctrine of the Atonement itself. So, in the present question especially, as it seems to me, are we shut up to a choice of difficulties, which ever side we take. We have simply to take that side which is encum- bered with the fewest and least serious difficulties. What, then, does the word of God teach as to the question of a conversion of the world before the coming of the Lord? It is oftea charged that the arguments of the Pre-Mil- lennialists, on this subject, rest chiefly, if not entirely, upon the more obscure and symbolical portions of the Scriptures. It is even said by some that their case rests chiefly, if not entirely, upon a certain interpretation of Rev. 20, touching the first and second resurrection. It is proposed, therefore, in the present inquiry, to waive refer- ence to the prophecies of the Old Testament, and the sym- bolical portions of the Bible generally. "We shall all agree that in our interpretation of the Bible, the interpretation of that which is obscure or symbolical is to be determined by that of those portions which are evidently to be taken in a literal and didactic sense. Especially must the New Testament be ever allowed to determine the interpretation of the Old, and not the reverse. On these principles, all wise 54 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. interpreters of every school must agree. What, then, saith the Scripture on the subject before us? 1. The first notable fact bearing on the decision of the question before us is the utter absence of any statement in the New Testament that any such period of universal con- version and long-prevailing righteousness is to be witnessed previous to the Coming of the Lord. This fact is pecu- liarly notable and significant in the case of the Apostle Paul. In our day the expected conversion of the world is constantly held up as the great motive and incentive to missionary labor. We are even told by many who ought to be able to judge, that if through the prevalence of the contrary view people shall come to doubt this, a sad decline in missionary activity of the Church must be expected as the inevitable result. But here is the very Chief and Prince of all Missionaries, holding His commission direct from the Master, taught, as He tells, not by any fallible or even inspired man, but directly by the Lord Himself and His Spirit. More than once He tells us of the motives that urged Him on, and filled Him with a zeal for the sal- vation of men which has been rarely equaled and never excelled, but never does He state that His motive was found in the expectation that the world was to be con- verted by His preaching or that of any other man. He speaks, indeed, of a time when all Israel shall be saved. But that does not affect the precise fact which we now urge, that nowhere does He represent the subjugation of the world to Christ as the motive which was the inspiration of His unequaled labors and sufferings. On the contrary, when He states His motives, He does it in language like the following: u Knowing the terror of the Lord, we per- suade men; the love of Christ constraineth us." 2 Cor. 5 : 11, 14. " Endure all things for the elect's sakes, that they may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus CUBIST'S COMING : IS IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. 55 with eternal glory." 2 Tim. 1: 10. "I am made all things to all men that I might by all means save some." 1 Cor. 9: 23. Nor does it appear as if He expected the conversion of the world as the final result of such labors by His successors in the future. " The last times," He tells, shall differ from the times before only in that they shall be "perilous times." 2 Tim. 3:1. On one occasion in particular the Apostle had very special reason, if he expected a millennium of peace and holiness before the Coming of the Lord, to refer to the fact. When the Thes- salonian Christians on one occasion were greatly troubled because they had been led to believe that the day of the Lord had already come, Paul quieted their apprehensions how? By telling them, as was most natural if the modern doctrine were true, " that the day of the Lord would not come except the world should first be converted unto God?" If this were the truth, it was the very thing to say. It were, indeed, simply inconceivable that the Apostle, if he knew anything about this coming conversion of the world as the necessary antecedent of the Lord, should not have said so. But the fact, simply unaccount- able upon the truth of the modern theory, is that he did not. Nay, so far from this, he told them the exact reverse; not that the Millennium must come first, the world be converted, but that "the man of sin" must first be revealed, whom the Lord would "destroy with the bright- ness of His coining." 2. But we may go yet further. Not only does the New Testament nowhere state that the intended result of the preaching of the Gospel in this dispensation is the conversion of the world to God, but when that object is formally stated, as it is in two places, it is stated in terms which imply the exact reverse of this. The first passage we may note is in Acts 15: 14. The Jewish Christians 56 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. were greatly scandalized that Peter should have preached the Gospel to the Gentiles, or heathen as we should call them, and received them into the Church along with the circumcision. Peter, it appears, felt it necessary to justify himself for this before the council of the Church in Jeru- salem. How natural it were, again, if that preaching of the Gospel to the Gentiles were for the conversion of the whole of the Gentiles to God, that Peter should have said so. But here again we have no hint from him of such an issue, though, if he knew about it, it was evidently the very thing to say. His language, on the contrary, seems rather to exclude any general conversion. For we read: " God did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for His name." But some one may ask, is it not possible that the preaching should go on until all mankind, in an age to come, should be numbered among the people of God? This question is explicitly answered in the other passage, where, according to the usual understanding, the object of the present ministration of the Gospel is formally stated, viz.: Matt. 24: 14, where we read: "This Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world," not for its conversion. Why did not the Lord say so if that were indeed the object? "but for a witness unto all nations, and then " without waiting for a general conver- sion of the nations " then shall the end come, all nations must hear, and then shall the*end come." To sum up this argument, we may safely say that in the whole Bible among the formal statements of the object of the preach- ing of the Gospel by Christ's ministers, there is not a single one which states that object to be the conversion of the world to God. If we are to expect a Millennium of righteousness before the Lord's return, how is this fact to be accounted for? 3. Again, any theory which, like the modern Post- CHRIST 8 COMING: IS IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. 57 Millennial doctrine, interposes a period before the Advent so long that it should be known as impossible within the lifetime of any individual generation of believers is irreconcilable with the repeated statements of the Scripture that we know not the day " when the Master will return from the far country" whither He has gone; whether His coming will be " in the first watch or in the second watch, or at the cock crowing, or in the morning." According to these words, it was far from being certain that He would not come until almost the morning watch; that it was represented as likely enough, for anything that His people knew to the contrary, that He might come even in the first watch of the night. So far from there being any revelation which should warrant any generation of believers in assuming that the Coming of the Lord was a thousand years or more away, this postponement, as it were, of the Coming of the Lord, is in utter opposition to all those state- ments of the word of God that we know not the day of Christ's appearing. On this subject Archbishop Trench has well and truly said, " It is a necessary element of the doctrine concerning the Second Coming of Christ, that it should be possible at any time, that no generation of believers should regard it as impossible in theirs." Those, therefore, who fix a time in the distant future before which Christ can not come, equally with those who fix a time in the near present by which He must come, place themselves in conflict with this word of the Lord. 4. And this argument becomes even more forcible when we consider the duty which, in view of this utter uncer- tainty of the time of the Advent, is everywhere urged upon the disciples of Christ in all ages to watch continually, (Matt. 24:42, etc.) We can not refer these words to death, as is sometimes done, because in no place where these words occur is there the slightest reference to death in the SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. whole context, but only to the return of the Lord Jesus. Not an instance can be adduced in the whole Bible where the phrase " the coming of the Son of Man " can be proven to refer to death. Nor can we accept that exegesis which, in certain places at least, refers the phrase to the destruction of Jerusalem. For although undoubtedly the chapter in Matthew's gospel, to which reference has been made, does contain a prophecy of that event, yet that coming of the Son of Man for which Christ bids His dis- ciples to watch can not possibly be understood of the destruction of Jerusalem, for the simple reason that the coming in question is expressly said to take place " after " that event, and therefore can not be the same thing. It can only be that glorious coming of the risen Jesus in the clouds of Heaven, which the universal Church expects sooner or later, of which, in the passage cited, we are told that no man knows the time, and for which all believers in all ages are therefore bidden to watch until He shall come. Now, on the common hypothesis that the entire world is to be converted and continue in that happy state for centuries before the Lord can come, how is it possible for any genera- tion of believers receiving that theory as certain truth to watch for the coming of the Lord . till that expected Millennium shall have come and gone? It is too often forgotten that theories as to the interpretation of prophecy should never be allowed to affect our attendance to plain precepts. It is quite safe to say that any interpretation of prophecy which makes obedience to any command a moral impossibility is ipso facto proven to be erroneous. But is it a possibility for a believer who is assured that the Coming of the Lord is at least a thousand years away, to watch for that coming in his lifetime? If, for example, I take a journey to another country, and on departing tell my son that I shall not return for ten years, or for any other fixed CHRIST S COMING : 18 IT FEE-MILLENNIAL. 50 and definite time, and then tell him to watch for me every day, would I not seem to him utterly inconsistent? If, on the one hand, he believes my assurance that I will not return before a certain appointed time, will it not for that very reason become impossible for him to watch for me till that time is up? And, on the other, would not my charge to watch for me every month and year inevitably suggest to him a doubt whether after all I am sure that I will not return much sooner than I had said? For it is plain that the mental state or act of watching for a person implies not only a general expectancy that the person will come sometime, but, beyond a doubt, involves as a necessary condition the belief that the person may come at any time. Inasmuch, therefore, as no candid person will deny that the Lord does command His disciples in all ages to watch for His coming, it follows irresistibly that the Lord intended that we should think of His advent as always possible, and forbids us to interpose any such fixed period of time between us and His coming as shall make it impossible for us to believe that He may come in our own day. The ablest work that has been written in defence of the current theory on this subject is probably that of the Rev. David Brown, on the Second Advent. He devotes several pages to the consideration of the weighty argument derived from this command of the Lord to watch for His appearing. His argument is, in brief, after this manner: That the New Testament is full of intimations, as of a predicted apostasy in the church, a universal proclamation of the Gospel, etc., which he says must have compelled the early Christians to believe that the Lord's Coming was not to be expected in their day because all these developments required much time; nay, he reminds us of what no one 60 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST, can deny that the Lord Himself, while telling the disci- ples to watch, gave them distinct intimations that His coming would be delayed. To all which we answer, that although without doubt we do have such intimations of a delay, yet it by no means follows that the Christians of the first century were able to see all this. For there is not a single one of the passages adduced which contains within itself the slightest chronological note which might have guided the early Christians to such a conclusion. Who among them, any more than among ourselves, knew, for example, how much time might be covered by the phrase, "the times of the Gentiles," in the passage in Luke 21:24, which Dr. Brown quotes as illustrating his position? Those predicted times, for all we absolutely know to the contrary, may have centuries yet to run before they shall have expired; on the other hand, we know not but that they may even now be closing. And certainly the words could have conveyed no more hint of the time involved to the Christians of the first century than to ourselves. Even the phrase, u a long time" (Matt. 25 : 19), which is much pressed, has no bearing on the question, which is, not whether an intimation of centuries was conveyed in these words, but whether the words necessarily conveyed that meaning to those who first heard them. The phrase " a long time " is evidently a purely relative term, and may mean either days, years, or centuries, according to the scale of time before the mind. As a matter of fact, in the parable in question, the phrase could not denote a period equal to the ordinary lifetime of a man. "After a long time the Lord of those servants cometh and reckorieth with them." The whole story of the parable was comprehended in the lifetime of the nobleman who went on the far journey, leaving his servants in charge. But it is still more to the point, in replying to this CHRISFS COMING : 18 IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. 61 evasion of the argument for an Advent to be regarded as ever imminent, as derived from the command to watch, that as a matter of confessed historical fact, of which Gibbon, for example, assures us, the primitive Christians did not understand any of these words of our Lord as precluding the possibility of His return in their lifetime. On the contrary, so widely prevalent was the expectation of the speedy return of the Lord in the glory of His Kingdom in the first ages of the Church, that that historian assigns this as -one of the various causes which, in his opinion, serve to explain the astonishing progress of Christianity in the first centuries. But the most plausible argument against the statement that the New Testament represents the Advent as ever imminent, and, therefore, to be regarded as possible in any and every generation, is derived from 2 Thess. 2 : 2, where the apostle exhorts the Thessalonian Christians, according to our version, "not to be troubled * * * as though the day of Christ were at hand." Here, we are told, the apostle expressly warns the Thessalonians against regard- ing the Coming of the Lord as imminent; so that in His mind, as he had already charged the Thessalonians to watch for the Coming of the Lord, watching did not necessarily imply that the Advent was possible in the lifetime of that generation. On this objection we may remark first of all, that it is certain that Paul did not mean to contradict himself or weaken in the least the force of the exhortations in the previous epistle in which he had reminded the Thessalonians that " the day of the Lord so corneth as a thief in the night." Nor can these words, by anyone who believes in the inspiration of the Scriptures, be understood really to contradict the many passages of the New Testa- ment in which the Coming of the Lord is spoken of as imminent. Nor can these words, however they may be 02 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. explained, touch the fact that, according to the common use of the word, no man can be said to watch, except he regard the event for which he watches as at least possible at any time. In the second place, if the rendering of our version be correct, it assumes a state of mind among the Thessalo- nians in regard to the advent of the Lord of which we have no example in the Primitive Church, and which in partic- ular is entirely exclusive of that eager desire to have a share in the coming glories of the Advent which is revealed in the first Epistle. For, according to our ver- sion, it would appear that the apprehended nearness of the coming of the Lord was an occasion not of joy but of trouble to the Thessalonians. But there is not the slight- est evidence that until the defection of the Church from primitive apostolic truth Christ's coming was ever any- thing but an object of intense desire and longing to His people. When we regard these historical facts, we may safely say that the apprehended nearness of the Advent could by no means have been an occasion of trouble and distress to the Christians of Thessalonica. So far from this, it appears from the previous Epistle that so desirable did the coming of the Lord seem to them that they were in great concern of mind least any of their number who had died might by their death be excluded from participation in the glories of that day. Again, we have from the lips of our Saviour and His Apostles numerous statements as to the condition of the Church between the Ascension and the Second Advent which utterly preclude the common modern expectation in the interim. The entire New Testament uniformly repre- sents the condition of the Church on earth during this period as one not of peace and prosperity, but on the con- trary of sorrow and humiliation. First of all in this con- CHRIST S COMING: IS IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. 03 nection we may note those words of our Lord in Matt. 9: 1-i. The disciples of John had complained that the dis- ciples of Christ did not fast. Christ answers to the effect that fasting, being an expression of sorrow, was as much out of place while He, the Heavenly Bridegroom, was with His disciples, as a piece of new cloth on an old gar- ment; but that days were coming when He, as to His bodily presence, should be taken from them, and those should indeed be for the children of the Bridegroom days of fasting. Here indisputably the entire period of the personal absence of the Lord from His Church is repre- sented as a time in which for them fasting shall be suitable and proper, and therefore, by fair implication, as a time of grief and sorrow for His people. But is a millennium of universal peace of righteousness likely to have been included in this representation of the period in question as one of unbroken sorrow? But in perfect accord with the intimation of this passage are all the statements of the New Testament which refer indisputably to the state of the Church in the present dispensation. In the very beginning Christ sends forth His missionaries, not with the grand promise that their ministry should at last issue in the conversion of all nations of the world to Him, but with the assurance that they have to expect the same treatment from the world that He Himself had; that if they had called the master of the house Beelzebub they would even more surely call His servants the same. He accordingly speaks of His people, most tenderly, as a little flock; He tells them that in this world they shall have tribulation; that is, as the whole context shows, tribula- tion, not from causes common to all men alike, as sickness, poverty and death, but tribulation at the hands of the world, and because of their personal relation to Him; that as the world had persecuted Him, so it would also, in one 64 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. way or another, persecute them, and be no more ready to keep their saying than it had been to keep His. Indeed, in Romans 8:17, and elsewhere, this fellowship in the sufferings of a rejected Christ is declared to be the insep- arable condition of sharing in His glory. The ministry of the Church to the world has been, and still is, a ministry of rejection and sorrow. Where in the New Testament is there any intimation that in this present order of things and before the coming of the Lord, there is to come a time when all such representations as these si i all be no longer true? We do indeed read much of a time when the Church shall be delivered from her sorrows and tribula- tions, but in perfect accord with that intimation of our Lord with which we began, the promise is always and only placed in connection with the return of the Absent Lord, the Bridegroom of the Church. Rest is indeed to be recompensed to the troubled Church, but only, says the Apostle Paul, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from Heaven with His mighty angels. 2 Thess. 1:7. It is only, according to the intimation of the parable, when the Son of Man cometh, the cry of the widowed Church so long apparently neglected, shall at last be heard. Luke 18: 1-8. How are such passages as these, to the general tenor of which no exception can be found, to be reconciled with the modern theory of a Church of the future in the flesh on arth, victorious over the world before her Lord's return? Y. Again, as the state of the Church is uniformly described in the New Testament as one of rejection and humiliation until her Lord shall come, so also do the same Scriptures describe the state of the world during the same period, in terms which are simply exclusive of any general conversion of the world to the true faith prior to the Ad- vent. This gospel of the Kingdom, saith the Saviour, shall indeed be preached in all the world but why ? For the con CHRIST 8 COMING : IS IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. 65 version of the world ? That is not what He says, but " for a witness." And may not that witnessing go on until all the ends of the earth shall hear and also obey Him? That again is not what He says, but rather when this witness shall have reached all nations, " then shall the end come." Matt. 24:14. Thus also in the parable of the sower, which sets forth the various results of the preached word as historically experienced until the present time, we have not the slightest hint of a time when this parable shall no longer be a correct description of the various results of the ministration of the Gospel. Of a time when the seed shall all come up, when birds shall no more pick up the seed, nor thorns spring up and choke it, nor the heat of persecution burn it, the parable does not contain the slightest intimation. If any one will say that this is merely a negative argument, we have only to read further on the parable of the tares and wheat. In this latter parable, as expounded for us by the Saviour Himself, we are explicitly taught that the tares, or children of the wicked one, are to exist in the world along with the wheat, or children of the Kingdom: that the two are to grow and develop together, each after its own peculiar manner until the end of the aio or age. The Lord indeed represents the servants of the landholder as proposing to do away with this unsatisfactory state of things; but they are answered at once in terms which one would think had been quite sufficient to preclude forever any hope of any radical spiritual change in the condition of the world before the Lord's return. Let both grow together till the harvest. And the harvest, we are told, is the end of the world or age. Where does this parable leave any place for the interposition of centuries of a universal conversion of the world to God before the Lord shall come? It tells us indeed of a growth of the wheat progressing until the har- 5 66 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. vest; it therefore, in perfect consistence with the foregoing parable of the leaven (if that be taken to represent a contin- uous growth of the Church in the world), suggests the expectation of a fuller and fuller growth in the true and invisible Church as the centuries roll on, until the Lord shall come; it therefore forbids us to join in those incon- siderate and mistaken representations which one some- times hears, as if the Saviour taught that there was nothing in the future of the history of the world but a development of sin. But at the same time, if the parable forbids us to deny a continuous growth of the spiritual Church into fuller and fuller fruit bearing, just as distinctly does it for- bid us to expect that the wheat shall so grow and increase as to choke out the tares. Just as clearly as the words of the Lord point to a spiritual development in the Church, just so clearly do they teach us to expect along with this a continuous development of sin in the world, reaching its final culmination at the same time as .the other. The wheat and the tares are both to "grow together till the harvest," the end of the ^Eon and the appearing of the Son of Man. How, with an ever increasing growth of evil in antagonism to a growing Church, we are to find any place for a Millennium of universal righteousness and peace, we must leave to others to explain. In entire agreement with the teaching of this parable as to the matter before us is the parable of the nobleman who went into a far country, as recorded in Luke 19:12-27. In that parable the Lord represents Himself, soon to depart from this world to the Father, as a nobleman who went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. During his absence, we are told there is a great difference in the con- duct even of his servants; some are more faithful, some are less so; some are grossly neglectful of their duty; out- side of his own household, his citizens, we are told, hated CHRIST'S COMING : IS IT PEE MILLENNIAL. 67 him, and angrily repudiated his dominion. After a while he returns, rewards his servants according to their several works, and visits the rebel citizens, who would none of his rule, with a fearful punishment. The time of the noble- man's return, by universal consent, refers to the second coming of the Son of Man for the great work of judgment. This is plain because it is the time when the loyal and the rebellious alike receive their reward. Here, then, we are to observe again that the parable does not give us the slight- est hint that there was any change in the attitude of the rebellious citizens during the whole period of the absence of the king. But is it not plain that if the modern theory of a universal turning of the nations unto God before the coming of the Lord were true, we must needs have had, in this parable, a very different picture? "We should have rather read that at last through the earnest labors of the servants of the nobleman, the most, at least, of the rebel- lious citizens were led to submit to that rule which at first they had rejected, and become loyal subjects of the coming king? But that is not what the parable teaches. And if not, then the question is at once forced upon us How with the mass of men remaining as in the imagery of the parable, at enmity to the Lord and His Christ, we are to find time or place for a thousand years of millennial peace? THE PERIOD BEFORE THE SECOND ADVENT. But we may advance yet further. Not only do the Scrip- tures of the New Testament give these representations of the general state of things in the world during the period between the first and second coming of the Lord; not only do they speak of no general improvement to be expected before the Lord shall come, as the time of His second appearing approaches, but in several passages we have the most formal and didactic statements that " the last times " 68 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. shall not be good, but evil times. To this fact we have no exception. Thus in 1 Timothy we read as follows: " The Spirit speaketh expressly that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils." In 2 Timothy 3 : 1, 5, we read again: " This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covet- ous, boasters, proud blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce-break- ers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God ; having a form of god- liness but denying the power thereof." To the same effect writes also the Apostle Peter, (2 Peter 3 : 2, 5), wherein he charges the Christians of that day that they " be mind- ful " of the words of the prophets on this subject, who had so warned the Church that in the last days there should come " scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, where is the promise of His coming?" So, also, the Apostle John declares, in so many words (1 John 2 : 18), that the prevalence of many Anti-christs was a sign of the last time. If it be the truth of God that the latter days before the Advent are to be distinguished by a period of universally prevailing holiness, such as is described in the glowing language of the Old Testament Prophets, how are we to account for it that the writers of the New Testa- ment, in all their description of the last times, never once describe them in such, terms, but always as times in the last degree perilous to souls? And in view of the expecta- tions which so generally prevail in our day as to the com- ing of a golden age of peace on earth before the coming of the Lord, there is a most solemn significance in the very peculiar emphasis of such phrases as introduce these im- pressive descriptions of the state of the world in the last CHKISTS COMING : 18 IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. 69 days. The Spirit speaketh expressly : " This know, that in the last days perilous times shall come; I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance, that ye may be mind- ful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandments of us, the apostles of our Lord and Saviour." And can we forget that the Apostle warns the Church that, when at at last the Lord should corne, He would find men not expecting Him, but looking forward to years of peace and safety? (1 Thess. 5:3.) Nor can the argument derived from these descrip- tions of the character of the last times be evaded by refer- ring them to that short period after the so-called Millen- nium, when, according to the Scriptures, Satan is to be loosed for a little season, for more than one of these descriptions of the latter days represent evil as continuing to rule throughout all time until the Advent of the Lord. Thus, for example, John, when declaring that the prevalence of many Anti-christs was a sign of the last time, tells us, also, that that sign had already begun to be fulfilled in his own day. Of especial importance, in this connection, is the account which the Apostle Paul gives, in 2 Thess. 2 : 1-8, of the rise, development, and final destruction of the apos- tasy and the Man of Sin, as covering the whole time from the date of that epistle to the appearing of the Lord. In that notable passage, he tells the Thessalonians that the mystery of iniquity was already working, even in their day; that something, which he does not precisely indicate, was at that time hindering the full manifestation of the apostasy ; that when that hindrance should be taken out of the way, then the Man of Sin would be revealed, and con- tinue his blaspheming and God-defying career until destroyed by the brightness of the coming of the Lord. It will be very clear to all that, if by the phrase, " the coming of the Lord," in this chapter, we are to understand His TO SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. personal appearing which the whole Church expect as certainly in the future then beyond all doubt, as the rise, development, and culmination of the apostasy cover the whole time from the date of that epistle to the coming of the Lord, it is perfectly certain that, during that period, there can be no conversion of the world. Does Paul, then, in this passage certainly refer to the personal appearing of the Lord? In determining the answer to this question, observe first of all that the Greek word parousia, here rendered " coming," in every other of the twenty-four places in' which it occurs confessedly denotes a real, literal, and not a figurative presence of the person referred to. Thus, for example, in 1 Cor. 16:17, Paul writes that he was " glad of the coming of Stephanas." In 2 Cor. 7:7, we read that " some said that the apostle was in bodily presence (parousia) weak. So also it is con- fessedly the word which is elsewhere used to denote the personal return of the Lord to this world, in passages where no one has ever claimed that there was the slightest ambig- uity. Thus we read in 1 Cor. 15:23, that "the dead in Christ shall rise from the dead at His coming." In the first epistle to the Thessalonians the word occurs four times, and in each instance it is admitted to refer to the personal advent of the Lord. In 1 Thess. 4: 15 and 23, it is used in connection with the apostle's statements as to the resur- rection of the righteous and the translation of the living at the Coming of the Lord. In the face of such facts as these, to affirm that the word only refers to a so-called presence or coming of the Lord by the power of His Spirit, is simply to set at naught every rule of sound exegesis. Of this alleged meaning of the word it is safe to say that not a single example can be shown in the whole New Testament. Hence, again, all agree that there can be no Millennium CHRIST'S COMING : IS IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. 71 of holiness so long as the Jewish Nation remains cast out in unbelief. Do the Scriptures say anything upon that subject which may throw any light upon the question before us? In Matt. 24:15-20, all agree that we have a prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, and the consequent scattering of the . Jews among all nations, which has been historically fulfilled. And it is important to bear in mind that the prediction in question, which our Lord calls the " great tribulation," comprised not only the destruction of the Jewish capital, as is often a&sumed, but, according to Luke's account of the same discourse (Luke 21:24), was to continue, and is, in fact, still continuing in the "Treading down of Jerusalem by the Gentiles, till the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." Keeping this in mind, we are now prepared to understand the words in Matthew's gospel, which tell us in so many words that " Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory." That the coming of the Son of Man here referred to can not be the so-called providential coming of the Son of Man in the destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman armies, as some have maintained, is plain, from the simple fact that the coming here spoken of is expressly said to be after the destruction of Jerusalem, and, indeed, after the whole long tribulation of the centuries, and, therefore, can not be the same thing. Nay, it follows from the very terms of the prophecy, that this Coming, of whatsoever sort it be, must still be in the future. In fact, it were easy to show that this phrase, the Coming of the Son of Man in the clouds of heaven, first used in the book of Daniel, has a meaning perfectly definite and fixed. It is by com- mon consent the phrase which is everywhere used to denote SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. the future personal advent of the Lord for judgment. And hence it seems unavoidably to follow that whenever the long captivity of Israel shall end as to the time of which the passage gives us not the slightest hint immediately after that shall appear the solemn signs which at last announce the near appearing of the Son of Man. Where, then, according to this passage, does this prophecy leave any room for centuries of universal righteousness after Israel's conversion, and before the appearing of the Son of Man? Once again, instead of representing the Kingdom of Christ as triumphant in the earth before the Coming of the Lord, in several places the word of God explicitly sets forth the triumph of that Kingdom as synchronous with the glorious appearing. We may refer to one notable example. No words of the Scripture are more frequently referred to as precisely expressing the object which every Christian heart desires than these " the Kingdoms of this world are become the Kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ." But when we look at the context in which these words occur, we find that this glorious event, instead of taking place centuries before the Coming of the Lord, is- expressly said to be synchronous with that event. For we read, Kev. 11:15-18, that it was on the sounding of the seventh trumpet, in which we are elsewhere told that the mystery of God should be finished, that great voices in heaven cried " the Kingdoms of the world are become the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ." Immediately the four and twenty elders gave thanks to God that He had " taken to Himself His great power and reigned," and then say " the nations were angry, and Thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that Thou shouldst give reward unto Thy servants, the prophets, and to them that fear Thy name, small and great ;. and shouldst destroy them that destroy the earth." CHRIST'S COMING: IS IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. 73- DOCTRINE OF THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH. But the limits of this paper will not permit anything like an exhaustive exhibition of the Scripture testimony upon this subject. As the history of this doctrine is to be presented in another paper, we need only to remark on this occasion that the doctrine which has been argued in this paper, according to the uniform testimony of the best church historians, was the doctrine of the primitive Church. In the first two centuries of the Church's history, cen- turies distinguished above all others for their record of evangelistic zeal and activity, there is not the slightest hint that the Church was expecting any general conversion of the world to follow as the result of her glorious labors and sufferings. A careful comparison of Scripture with Scrip- ture brings us out in accord with the practical belief of the whole primitive Church. Ought not this, whatever difficulties, through our ignorance of the future, may still remain, to lead us to accept the results of that exegesis? Are we not, therefore, bound to conclude that the Advent of the Lord is to be regarded by us always as immediately impending, and, therefore, that we are not at liberty to interpose between the present and that event any period of time which shall make the coming of the Lord in our own day a thing impossible? And if this be not a popular doctrine, in the boasting and self-sufficient age in which we live; if, which is still harder, in taking this posi- tion we are compelled to differ with many Christian breth- ren and profound students of the word of God, who are by us, none the less for this difference of opinion, honored and beloved in Christ Jesus, yet it may help us to remem- ber that, on this point, we stand with such men in the Church as Martin Luther, Rutherford, Latimer, with a large part of the divines of the venerable Westminster assembly, and SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. many others of equal standing in the Church of Christ. And, if we may be permitted to refer to those who, in our own day, hold to what seems to us to be the primitive and apostolic faith upon this subject, we shall find them not by any means among the ignorant and superficial, but most notably among those who, by common consent, hold the very highest place as learned and devout expositors and preachers of God's word. "We shall find ourselves in such company, for example, as Stier, Auberien, Luthardt and Lange, among the Germans; Professor Godet, of Lausanne, among the French; Bishops Trench and Ellicott, Dean Alford, Mr. Spurgeon, and others, among the English; the brothers Andrew and Horatius Bonar, among the Scotch; Yan Oosterzee, Professor of Theology in the Uni- versity of Utrecht, among the Dutch not to speak at this time of well-known names among the living and the dead in our own country. With this we might leave the subject, but perhaps it may not be amiss to refer to two or three of the more com- mon and plausible objections to the doctrine which we have argued. A very common and somewhat influential objection to the doctrine before us is that it " disparages the Gospel," in that the doctrine of the Pre-Millennial Advent makes the subjection of the world to Christ to be brought about by a stupendous display of the Divine wrath on the ungodly. On which has been remarked: " Wrath never converted a single soul, and never will." To this it may be remarked in the first place, that the objection rests on a misapprehension. Beyond all question the Gospel heard and received by faith is the only way of a sinner's salvation, whether in this present dispensation or in any other. Nor, to go further, will any son of man ever receive the Gospel except as he is thereunto disposed and CHRIST'S COMING: IS IT FEE-MILLENNIAL. 75 enabled by the Holy Spirit. But the real question is not upon these matters at all. Here we are all at one. "We shall all agree that " wrath never converted a single soul." The real question is as to the special means which God intends to employ to introduce the Kingdom of His Son. While neither wrath nor the Gospel itself, apart from the energy of the Holy Spirit, can save a man, yet as a matter of fact see that God often makes use of wrath and various sorrows to awaken men and dispose them under the influ- ences of the Spirit to receive the Gospel in true faith. Xow, the Pre-Millennialist simply understands that He intends to bring about the final subjection of the world to the Lord Jesus instrumentally by unprecedented displays of His wrath, and most notably by the revelation of the Lord in flaming fire, taking vengeance on His adversaries. As to what may be the Divine intention in the matter, it is plain that we are not competent to determine this a priori. This is simply a question as to what the word of God reveals on this subject. It will be, for the present, suf- ficient to remark that there is an awful uniformity and emphasis in the numerous representations of the word of God upon this topic. But, it is again urged by many good and earnest Christian men, that it must be admitted that the greatest extrava- gancies and many very grievous errors in doctrine and practice have historically connected themselves with this doctrine of an advent ever possibly imminent. Thus there are many, who, rightly jealous for the integrity of the faith, think that they can see in the train of this doctrine annihilationalism, restorationism, separatism, and a name- less motley brood of such-like hurtful heresies pressing in to disturb the peace and purity of the Church of Christ. They accordingly argue that whatever a man may hold upon this subject, if he is prudent he will hold it in quiet- 76 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. ness. All admit that the reception of the doctrine as argued at this time is not essential to salvation. Why, then, not prudently leave the whole question alone? To which we answer Just because of the extravagancies of which complaint has so justly been made. Had the Church been more faithful of late years in preaching the ascertained truth of the Scriptures concerning this subject, we should have probably had less to mourn over in this matter. As it is, all the more need is there that trained students of the Scriptures, well balanced and settled in the doctrine of the Scriptures and disciplined in the interpretation of the Scriptures, should not leave this most momentous doctrine to be preached only by ignorant, ill-instructed, and fanatical men. For what are the ministers of the word appointed but for the defence of the truth of God from error and misinterpretation? Is it defending the truth, under a mistaken prudence to leave difficult doctrines to be discussed and preached by incompetent men? Because many, for example, pervert the precious doctrine of justifi- cation by faith alone into antinomian licentiousness, are we therefore to be cautious about preaching a free justifica- tion? Is there not all fhe more need that we preach the truth which is most often and mischievously misunder- stood and thus labor against the abuse of the doctrines of the word of God at the hands of ignorant and fanatical men? How are the most of men who have little leisure to study the Bible for themselves, to learn to distinguish the truth of the word of God from the caricatures of that truth, except from the lips of any who, set apart by the Church to study and teach the word, by the grace of God may be enabled to state and hold that truth free from the distortions and perversions of ignorance? With this we conclude our consideration of this most momentous question. In holding the doctrine which we CHRIST'S COMING : IS IT PRE-MILLENNIAL. 77 have argued we admit that many things remain obscure, that many questions may be put which in the present state of our knowledge w.e may not be able to answer. But, in general, we may urge that this fact does not prove the doctrine not to be taught in the Scriptures. It is of the greatest importance to bear in mind the principle which is laid down by the late venerable Dr. Hodge, p. 527, vol. II, of his Theology: "The only legitimate method of controverting a doctrine which purports to be founded on the Scripture is the exegetical." Thus in regard to the doctrine of the Pre-Millennial Advent, as every doctrine is affirmed to be taught in the Bible, objectors are bound not merely to make objections and ask hard questions, but in particular to show by the acknowl- edged canons of interpretation, that the passages which have been cited as directly or indirectly forbidding the expectation of an era of universal peace and righteousness before the coming of the Lord, have been misunderstood and misinterpreted. Otherwise they have to show for example how a millennium is possible with an apostasy steadily developing from the days of the Apostles until the " Brightness of the Lord's coming." Or again they have to show how a millennium is possible with the great Jewish Tribulation still continuing, of which we are told that " immediately after its completion the Son of Man is to be seen coming in the clouds of heaven to gather together His Elect." They have to show how it is possible, if it be really certain that at least a thousand years of universal peace still lies between us and the Advent, for believers to watch for the coming of the Lord. But finally, let us remember that whatsoever our views may be, it must cer- tainly be safe to obey Him who again and again has charged us to " Watch, because we know not the day nor the hour when the Son of Man cometh." To this may the Lord give us all His grace. 78 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. THE FIEST KESURKEOTIOK BY THE REV. DR. A. J. GORDON, OF THE CLARENDON STREET BAPTIST CHURCH, BOSTON, MASS. THERE are two distinct and radically opposite theories concerning the order of the resurrection, viz.: the theory which maintains that all the dead, the righteous and the unrighteous, will be raised at. the same time; and secondly, the theory which holds that the faithful dead only will rise at the coining of Christ, those who have died in unbelief remaining under the power of death for a thousand years longer, at the expiration of which time they in turn will be raised up and brought to judgment. In brief, the first theory is that of one resurrection, embracing as its subjects all who have died from the beginning of the world to the hour of the sounding of the last trumpet; and the second, that of two resurrections, distinctly separated in time, and totally different, both in respect to their subjects and their issues. It will be the aim of this paper to show the ground on which the latter view rests, and to defend with what ability we may be able to command, the theory which it presents. It being purely a question of interpretation, we shall make our appeal solely to the word of God, though we might commend the doctrine very strongly by showing its anti- quity and arraying the great names from all ages and branches of the Church who have lent to it the sanction of their scholarship. The first passage which we shall con- sider is that in Rev. 20 : 4-6 : And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and / saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not wor- THE FIRST RESURRECTION. shipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. Now, it would seem on the face of it that here is an unmistakable statement of two distinct resurrections of the dead, with a thousand years between, in which risen saints reign with Christ. But by a large class of inter- preters this is denied. It belongs to a book that is highly figurative, it is said, and, therefore, the statement must be taken in a strictly figurative sense. Hence the whole scene has been spiritualized, the death, the resurrection and the reign with Christ, and the representation made to apply not to bodily resurrection at all, but to the quicken- ing from the death of sin. Not for the sake of controversy, but in order to present in the fairest and most candid way the view of the passage most commonly held by the believers in one resurrection,. I transcribe the comment of Bishop Wordsworth on the text as given in his Lectures on the Apocalypse. If we shall succeed in answering him we shall have answered the largest and best class of anti-literal interpreters.* He say& on the passage: First let us observe that the words are not spoken of the bodies of the saints but of their souls. " I saw the souls of them who have been , beheaded for the witness of Jesus." This must be carefully borne in rnind, because the error of the Millennarians is mainly due to a neglect of this distinction. They imagine a bodily resurrection, whereas St. John speaks of a spiritual one. Secondly, it is not said in the original that their souls lived again^ut that they lived and reigned with Christ. * He quotes Bishop Andrews, Archbishop Leighton, Lightfoot, and others as holding the same view. $0 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. It is clear, then, that what is here said is spoken not of a corporeal, but of a spiritual resurrection. Thirdly, it is not said that Christ reigns with his saints, but that they reign with Him. He is in heaven and will there remain till He comes to judge, when all true believers will be caught up to meet Him in the air. Therefore, what is here said is spoken not of an earthly but of a heavenly resurrection. And what now is the spiritual resurrection of the Christian? Our natural condition is one of death. By nature we are spiritually dead; but Christ, who is the prince of life, hath quickened us who are dead in trespasses and sins. Therefore, our first or spiritual resurrection is our death to sin and new birth into righteousness it is our engrafting into the true vine, our incorporation into the body of Christ." Lec- tures on the Apocalypse, pp. 58-9. We wish, against this interpretation, to show why, in our view, the first resurrection, as here described, must be lit- eral and corporeal, and not spiritual. And in doing so we would emphasize just the points that Dr. Wordsworth -emphasizes. First John saw "the souls of them who had been beheaded." As the word, irenefoiua/uvw beheaded, unhappily can not be spiritualized, we clearly have men literally -dead as the subjects of the quickening. And, therefore, we infer at once that the quickening is a literal quickening. When, as in the Epistle to the Ephesians, we have men described as " dead in trespasses and sins," and then are told that these have been " quickened together with Christ," we infer immediately and rightly that a spiritual revivifica- tion has taken place, because the condition on which the change took effect was spiritual. And so here, the condi- tion of literal death having been so unmistakably pointed out, the inference is immediate and inevitable that the quickening is a literal and corporeal quickening. Secondly It is agreed that we have disembodied spirits as the subject of the vision, and we are told that these lived. We infer this meant that they lived literally in reunion with their bodies; because this word %wm> is THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 81 never applied, in any instance that we can discover in the New Testament, to the soul in its disembodied state, while it is constantly used to describe that reanimation by which the soul is united again to its tabernacle of flesh. In say- ing that the word is not used of the spirit disembodied, we do not mean to intimate the Scriptures teach the non-exist- ence of souls in the intermediate state, or their cessation from consciousness. But the truth would seem to be that the words " life " and " live," as employed in the Scrip- tures, belong to man in his complex condition as possessed of spirit and body united in one, and are not applied to him in his imperfect dissevered state. We have a striking illus- tration of this idea, in our Lord's discussion with the Sad- ducees in regard to the Resurrection. They held that there is no resurrection of the body. He replies: u If this were so, God could not be called the God of Abraham, of Isaac and of Jacob. For He is not a God of the dead but of the living." Abraham's soul continued indeed in a con- scious existence, but as Stier puts it, " Abraham's soul is not the entire Abraham, and without the body Abraham is not entirely living. Abraham must be raised, therefore, before he can be strictly said to live. So that as we have said the word i^cav can not, according to Scripture usage, be ap- plied to man while dispossessed of the body. That the word is employed to denote physical reanimation in contrast from death, a multitude of passages show, e. g., Acts 25-27. And, moreover, the cognate verb ZCJOTTOUV, is the word that runs all through 1 Cor. 15 to signify resurrec- tion from the dead. So we affirm that, if there were noth- ing else to determine the meaning of the passage, the usus loquendi of this verb of itself would fix it as teaching a literal resurrection. Thirdly Suppose, however, that there were still such obscurity in the statement as to render it impossible clearly 6 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. to determine its meaning. We find immediately following an explanatory clause, which defines and fixes this mean- ing "afi7 T] avaoraaic TJ Kpurq." " This is Resurrection, the First." Here is one of the few instances found in the Apocalypse where the Spirit interprets His own words, tell- ing us explicitly what they are meant to convey. For cer- tainly no word is more definite in its signification than this word avaaraais. It occurs forty-two times in the New Testament, and, with one exception, where it is used in its strictly etymological sense [" This child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel," Luke 2: 34], it always signifies the resurrection of the body. It is not a little strange that Bishop Wordsworth should have overlooked this fact when so confidently identifying this passage with those in Colossians and Ephesians where a spiritual quick- ening is spoken of. The term avaaraatf is used in none of those instances, nor in any other instance in the New Test- ament to denote spiritual quickening. Hence we affirm that the use of the word here, as defining the previous clause, fixes the meaning of the passage beyond question a& teaching a literal corporeal resurrection. ' Fourthly It will be noted that we have in the text two resurrections contrasted. In a passage closely connected, a distinction is drawn between one class, who live at first, and another class who do not live till a thousand years sub- sequent. In the latter case, from the immediate connec- tion of the statement with the judgment scene, the opened books, the sea giving up its dead, and the dead, small and great, standing before God, the conclusion is inevitable that the reference is to a literal resurrection. Bishop Words- worth admits this, as do all the authorities whom he quotes in defence of his view. And maintaining that the first resurrection is spiritual, therefore he has the difficult task before him of showing how two things which differ entirely THE FIRST RESURRECTION. in their meaning, can be described in the same connection by identical language; so that in interpreting the passage we must pass from the spiritual to the literal and from the literal back to the spiritual again, with nothing in the terms to indicate or even suggest the transition. This we believe is too adventurous a feat of exegesis for any one to succeed in. It does such extreme violence to the natural and most obvious uses of language, that we believe it were far easier to run the spiritual interpretation entirely through the chapter, than to attempt to use words in such a flexible and double sense. The two resurrections are so distinctly contrasted and their descriptions so intimately blended and interlaced, that we believe it is well nigh im- possible to take them in such opposite senses. The meaning of the one fixes the meaning of the other. And to impose a directly opposite meaning on them, can hardly fail to awaken a suspicion of arbitrariness against the interpreter, or of a divided allegiance between the obvious sense of the language and a certain required sense. Fifthly We call especial attention to the manner in which this whole Apocalyptic scene is introduced: "I saw an angel come down from heaven having the key of the bottomless pit," etc. So generally has this been taken as referring to Christ that Bishop "Wordsworth says too strongly, "This angel, it is confessed by all, is none other than Jesus Christ, the angel of God's presence, the angel of the covenant." But when does Christ come down from heaven? Put this passage with that in Thessalo- nians 4:16, the prediction of Christ's return to raise His saints, "The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven," says Paul. "I saw an angel descending from heaven," says the revelator, the words in the Greek being precisely the same. And if you say that the angel does not refer to Christ, but is to be taken as a literal angel, which we are 84 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. inclined to admit, then remember that in Thessalonians an angel is represented as accompanying Christ in His descent to earth. " The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and the trump of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise first." In either case the coincidence of language is so striking as to identify the two scenes almost beyond a question. We have thus given five arguments for the literal interpreta- tion of the passage, any one of which, it would seem, ought to be sufficient to establish the point. And if we have answered Bishop Wordsworth's theory we answered all others of the same class; for to prove that the two resurrections are literal is to prove that they can not be spiritual whether in the sense which we have been con- sidering or in any other sense. It only remains now for us to identify in a word the subjects of these resurrections respectively, and then we shall pass on to consider other texts. The words " blessed and holy " applied to those first raised from the dead, and the words " the second death " as described by the doom of those afterward raised, would appear to fix beyond question the two parties as embracing the righteous dead on the one hand and the wicked dead on the other. But it has been said that, admitting the first resurrection to be literal, it only proves the awaking of the martyrs from their tombs, since it is predicted only of those who have been "beheaded for the witness of Jesus." To which we reply, that if we have identified the "first resurrection" here mentioned, with " the resurrection of the just," men- tioned in other Scriptures, we know outside of this passage and independently of it who its subjects are. " The dead in Christ," whom the Apostle names as rising first at the appearing of the Lord ; and " they that are Christ's at His coming," whom he elsewhere- names as the subjects of the THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 85 same resurrection, every one, we suppose, concedes to mean all the sainted dead who shall be in the grave when the Lord comes. So that if " the first resurrection," described in the Apocalypse, is the same as the resurrection of the saints at the Parousia which is elsewhere described, the subjects must be the same, viz.: all the faithful dead. And thus by supplementing Scripture with Scripture, we supply whatever knowledge our text fails to give in regard to the participants in the resurrection scene. Summing up the whole passage, then, and bringing it into connection with the twelfth verse of the same chapter, when the " rest of the dead " appear in judgment " I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God," we see how distinctly the dead are separated in their rising and destiny. There are the dead who live, and the dead who do not live till a thousand years later. There are the dead who sit with Christ on His throne, and reign with Him; there are the dead who stand before the throne to be judged. There are the dead who have immortal bodies ; since upon them " the second death hath no power." There are the dead who have mortal bodies, since they are cast into the lake of fire, which is the second death. And, as clearly as we discern these two distinct classes, so clearly do we see a thousand years stretching between their resurrections, and putting them as wide apart, in the time of their rising, as in the character and destiny of that rising. The next passage which we shall consider is found in 1 Cor. 15:21-25. u For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order; Christ the first fruit, afterward they that are Christ's at His coming. Then cometh the end, when He shall have delivered up the Kingdom to God even the Father; when He shall have put down all rule and all authority and power." 86 SECOND COMING OF Here is, in the first place, the statement of the universality of the resurrection, "As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." Then the assertion is qualified eKoarof 6e h ru 161^ ray/Mri " but every man in his own order " ra///a meaning bai:d, cohort or division. The word is a military term, and is applied for example to a brigade or division of an army. So we have the figure of a resurrection host, coming forth in solemn arid stately march from the grave, the head of the column having already appeared, and every one of the dead to follow, each marshalled in the corps or grand division to which by his character and works he belongs. Then besides this intima- tion that there will be different bands in the army of the quickened, there follows a statement of their order and sequence J An-ap^ x/wardf " Christ the beginning. 'A-rrapxy corresponding evidently to the rdy^i. This is his rank, " who is the beginning the first born from the dead, that in all things he might have the pre-eminence." He is alone; the captain of our salvation, leading the van, in himself a Host. Then comes the next division i ol TOV Xpiarw " Afterward, they that are Christ's at His coming." These are unquestionably identical with those mentioned in the epistle to the Thessalonians. " Ihe dead in Christ shall rise first," and the same we believe as those in Revelation, who receive the benediction. JN"ow, the question may be asked concerning this passage, how do we know that this enumeration of the companies and classes embraced in the resurrection does not refer simply to the consecutive order, without indicating any necessary separation in the time of the resurrection ? In reply to this question we would call attention to the par- ticles of sequence here employed ^n-emz and hra. We think that after having, by the use of rdy//a, pointed out the fact that there would be divisions in the resurrection THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 87 host by the use of these particles the Scripture points out also the fact that there would be considerable spaces of time between the respective divisions: " Every man in his own order: Christ the first fruits 'A-napx?) afterward, e^eira u they that are Christ's at His coming " then or next elra " Cometh the end." Now, since i-xura marks a period, as we know, of at least nearly two thousand years, the time between the Lord's resurrection and that of His Disciples, is it not natural to infer simply on etymological grounds that its correlative dra marks a considerable period. Also compare the uses of these particles in other passages. Take the instance found in five verses of the same chapter: " He was seen of Cephas then elra of the twelve: after that emcra He was seen of above five hundred brethren at once: after that ETreira He was seen of James, then elra of all the Apostles." We know that in all these cases, particles mark distinct and separate occurrences with considerable intervals of time between; and we judge as a rule such intervals will be somewhat proportionate to each other according to the scale on which they are measured. And since in the instance in question the first interval is known to be a long one, it is fair to presume that the second will be, also. But is there any thing in this passage, which, by com- parison with other passages, will enable us to infer a dis- tinct period between the resurrection of those that are Christ's at His coming and that of others who come forth afterward ? We reply: We can not find a solution of the matter in the words dra TO retoc when taken by themselves, because they might mean the end of the present age, or the end of the mil- lennial age, according to the theory which we hold of the dispensations. But these words are defined and limited. "Then cometh the end when He delivers up the Kingdom to the Father." We are told distinctly, in the Revelation, 88 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. that the saints will " live and reign with Christ." It would be most extraordinary if they should reign with Him after He has delivered up the Kingdom. And yet we must accept this conclusion if we take the end here referred to to be the end of the present dispensation as the deniers of two resurrections hold ; or else we must take it that this reign of the saints has already begun, which certainly can not be, since they are risen saints that share in it. If we accept the exposition as correct which we have given of Rev. 20, all is clear. The faithful dead rise at the Coming of the Lord; this is the first resurrection. "And they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years." The rest of the dead live not till the thousand years were finished. Then death and hell gave up the dead that were in them, and they were judged every man according to his works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. " Then cometh the end, when He shall deliver up the Kingdom to the Father; when He shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign till He hath put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death." Thus not only does the Apocalypse harmonize exactly with the Epistle to the Corinthians, but supplements and explains it. In its revelation of a thousand years between the first and second resurrection, it gives us the time marked by the eira, in the 15th chap, of Corinthians, or the space between the second and third divisions of the resurrection host. And thus we find the end to be synchronous with the period of the living again of "the rest of the dead." We wish now to call attention to a class of passages which are marked by this peculiarity, that they seem to represent the resurrection of believers as eclectic and special. It is plain, if the doctrine which we have drawn from the texts already considered is correct, that the subjects of THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 89" the first resurrection are called out from the general mass of the dead, or, in other words, that the idea of priority in the rising of the righteous involves necessarily the idea of their being gathered out from among the great company of those who have died. And certainly there is nothing in this conception at variance with the general tenor of God's dealings.* The doctrine of election, which we pro- fess to hold, should not be a mere abstraction of theology; an article of faith which we find it necessary to adopt in order to insure a consistent and scriptural body of Divinity, while we ignore and deny its practical applica- tion. It is perhaps the most solemn and awful of all Scrip- tural revelations. It certainly can only be discussed and preached effectively by us in those rare states of mind when the exquisite balance has been reached between ten- der adoration of the sovereignty and holiness of God, and pathetic sympathy with the helplessness and sinfulness of man. " Who has not known passion, cross and travail of death," says Luther, " can not treat of this theme without injury to man or enmity to God." "While, therefore, it ia the instinct of the truest piety to leave God to carry out what belongs wholly to the domain of His will, it should be equally the care of an exact and loyal theology to note the application of this principle at the various stages of redemption and to speak accordingly. Thus we speak very constantly of our missionary enterprises as destined to con- vert the heathen nations to Christ. The Holy Spirit says that God hath visited the Gentiles " to take out of them a. people for His name ^j3eiv ki- tdv&v fabv (Acts 15: 14.) *" To grant a particular resurrection, before the general, is against no article of faith ; for the Gospel tells us that at our Saviour's resurrec- tion ' the graves were opened and many bodies of saints which slept arose and went into the Holy City, and- appeared to many.' And how it doth more impeach any article of our faith to think that may be true of martyrs which we believe of patriarchs I yet see not." [Mede, p. 770.J $0 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. We speak about the world being converted and brought to Christ. The Lord said to His first disciples what he says to us, and what we will say we believe to the last that shall be converted under this dispensation. " Ye are not of this world, but I have chosen you out of the world, et-efogdiufv i/Mf K rov n6afiov (John 15: 19.) We speak of Christ as coming at the last day to a race that has been redeemed and saved under the preaching of its Gospel. Christ, in speaking of that event, says: *' That the Son of Man will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet to gather together His elect from the four winds, " significantly adding that, of two living together side by side on the earth at the same time, " the one shall be taken and the other left." We speak of all men being raised up together, at the appearing of the Lord, to be judged. Christ speaks of those who shall be " accounted worthy to obtain that age and the resurrection out from among the dead." (Luke 20, 35.) [rJ7C avaardaeos rife EK ve/cpwv.] TilUS throughout the whole extent of God's dispensations we find this solemn law abiding, and learn that, from the first stage of redemp- tion, the justification of the soul, to the last, the redemption of the body, there is a " calling," and an " election," which we are to strive to make " sure." In connection with the passage just quoted, take the words of Paul, Phil. 3: 11 "I count all things but loss and * * * if by any means I might attain unto the resurrec- tion OUt fl'Oin among the dead." \rfji> it-avdoraotv TJJV ka vc/cpwv.] The words are very strong in the Greek. We do not see how they can possibly refer to anything else than an eclectic resurrection, a separation and quickening to life out from among the dead. Especially would this seem to be so, when, in addition to the very emphatic language describing the resurrection itself, there is the expression of intense desire and vehement striving to attain it. Why should one THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 91 strive to attain what is inevitable, as Paul's resurrection must have certainly appeared to be had he held that all men will be raised together ? And what can our Lord's words "They which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that age, and the resurrection from the dead " mean on any other view than that which we are defending ? the view, viz.: that there is a prior age in which the rising of the saints will take place, and a distinct and special and privileged dispensation of bodily redemption which belongs to them.* And this phase of our argument is set in very strong light by the additional fact that this expression, avaarwnc k venp&v, is so inva- riable throughout the New Testament in its application to Christ as well as to His saints. There is only one instance where the other phrase, OV&OTCUHQ venptiv the general expression for the resurrection of the dead is applied to our Lord, and that seems to be on account of a special require- ment of the context. He, coming forth from the dead and opening the doors for all believers to come forth with him in the resurrection unto life, is described just as they are, as rising eK venp&v. Hence, very significantly, we find it said in the Acts that the apostles preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead, not the resurrection of the dead. Now we will not dwell on the question whether the eclectic conception is contained in the words to the extent that we have claimed. We find it admitted even by some who oppose the doctrine we are advocating. Olshausen even goes so far as to declare that the " phrase *" What special meaning," asks Prof. Stuart, " can this have unless it implies that there is a resurrection where the just only, and not the unjust, shall be raised ?" This expression, as well as the " every man in his own order " and the evident " plain prose " character of the pas- sage in Rev. 20, compells the learned man, though a strong post-mille- narian, to concede most fully the doctrine of the first resurrection. Stuart on Apocalypse, I. p. 175-178, 409-379, and II. 356-362, 474. 92 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. would be inexplicable if it were not derived from the idea that out of the mass of the dead some would rise first." And what if it be affirmed that even in the Old Testa- ment we rind distinct traces of the idea of an eclectic and precedent resurrection of the just? The passage in Daniel 12: 2, translated in our common version, "And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting con- tempt," is undoubtedly a Messianic prediction concerning the time of the end. This all admit. Some deny, indeed, the application of the passage to a literal bodily resurrec- tion. But we believe with Pusey and Tregelles that the words " sleep " and " dust of the earth " and " wake" and " everlasting life " connect the passage too closely with the New Testament phraseology to leave much question of that point. Now Tregelles translates the passage as fol- lows, giving us not only the authority of his own accurate scholarship for the rendering, but that of two eminent Rabbis, Saadia Haggion and Eben Ezra, whose explana- tions are quoted at length. " And many from among the sleepers of the dust of the earth shall awake, these (that awake) shall be unto everlasting life; but those (the rest of the sleepers who do not awake at this time) shall be unto shame and everlasting contempt." Here again, if our authorities are correct, we have the idea of the first resur- rection, with its eclectic and separative character, and its distinct issue in life, most emphatically set forth. And how solemnly applicable to the literal as well as to the spiritual quickening of men are the words of our Lord : " The dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall live." One event awaits mankind: "Like sheep they are laid in the grave; Death shall feed upon them." But all will not hear the great first resurrection call. As now, so then, the words of Jesus will be true, " My sheep hear my THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 93 voice." As now, so then", only those that have received the spirit of adoption will cry "Abba Father" as the great God shall call to the dead by the mouth of His Son. " If the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall quicken your mortal bodies by His Spirit that dwelleth in you." That Spirit is the bond of life between Christ and all that sleep in Him and the pledge of their redemption from the grave. The witness, now, of our sonship He is the witness that then we shall be children of the resurrection ; responding and waking instantly at the sound of the trumpet. " Thou shalt call and I will answer," while in " that silence that terrifies thought " the rest of the dead shall sleep on, waiting only in their conscious loss for the Day of Judgment to consummate and manifest their doom. Had we time to take up all the texts bearing on the question, we should wish to notice some passages which represent the resurrection as directly conditioned on faith and regeneration and union with Christ, all which would go to show that the redemption of the body is a distinct inheritance of believers in some sense, and certainly not unlikely in the sense we are claiming. We wish, now, to refer to two texts which have been cited as distinctly and unquestionably contradicting the theory we have advocated. The first is in 2 Timothy, 4:1, reading according to the common version: "I charge thee, therefore, before God and the Lord Jesus Christ who shall judge the quick and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom." It is said that we have here the living and the dead without distinction or separation, brought together at the coming of Christ. All that need be said in regard to this passage is that, according to the latest text, we have not, mra T%V eirujtaveiav " at the appearing," etc. but ml. [This is Scholz's and Tischendorfs reading, adopted SECOND COMING OF CUEIST. by Alford.] And the words are translated, therefore, according to Alford: " I charge thee before God and Jesu& Christ who is about to judge the quick and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom," etc. This change not only relieves the passage of any seeming contradiction of the doctrine which we are advocating, but makes it bear emphatic support to it. The other text is John 5: 28. "Marvel not at this; for the hour is coming in which all that are in their graves shall hear His voice, and shall come forth, they that have done good unto the resurrection of life ; and they that have done evil unto the resurrection of damnation." This, it is said, teaches a simultaneous resurrection, since it declares that in the hour that is coining both classes will come forth to- their respective rewards. We answer that, in the first place, we think it is clear that the word hour (fy a ) as here employed, refers to an era or lengthened period of time. This, we know, is not an unusual meaning of the word, a? appears by referring to such examples as 1 John 2: 18 Horn. 13: 11; and, what is more directly to the point, oui Lord had just used the term in this sense in verse twenty fifth: "Verily, verily, I say unto you, the hour is coming and now is when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall live." This is generally taken to refer to that spiritual quickening under the preach- ing of the Gospel, which began with the time of Christ, and is going on to-day. Therefore, the hour referred to must have continued for at least nearly two thousand years. This is the time for the quickening of the living who are dead in sins. It is evidently synchronous with 1 John 2: 18 "It is the last time" [& ? a] ; and covers the whole Gospel dispensation. Next follows, in our Lord's discourse, a statement in regard to the time of the dead. The two periods are set in contrast, as it would seem. The first, the THE FIRST RESURRECTION. 95 hour of spiritual quickening, had already begun. Hence it is described thus : " The hour is corning and now is." The second had not yet begun, hence only the words : "The hour is coming" are used with reference to it. Is it not fair to presume that the second era like the first is a prolonged one ? We think no one can reasonabh^ deny this. This is the way we take it : At the appearing of the Lord from heaven, the age will open in which all that are in their graves will come forth; but some at the begin- ning and some at the end of the age. If it be said that it is a strained and unnatural construction, to bring events which are so far apart, into such immediate juxtaposition, with no intimation of any time lying between them, we reply that it is not at all uncommon in prophecy. Who, for instance, in reading Isaiah's words concerning the Messiah " to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord and the day of the vengeance of our Lord " would have imagined that in this single sentence two grand and dis- tinct eras were brought together and spoken of in a breath the era of grace and the era of judgment ? But our Lord by His penetrating exegesis, cleft the passage asunder, we remember, as He expounds it in the synagogue, and, break- ing off in the middle of the sentence u to preach the accept- able year of the Lord" He closed the book and sat down, saying : " This day is this Scripture fulfilled in your ears." We take it, that, in this prophetic passage of His own, there is a similar conjoining of distant and widely separated acts of the same resurrection drama. And we are confirmed in this impression by noting how exactly this passage, with its expressions "resurrection of life," and the "resurrection of judgment," corresponds to the passage in the Revelation, these being common points in the two texts the latter seeming to fill out in detail what is here presented in outline. And this leads us to remark "96 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. that there is perhaps no doctrine of Scripture the references to which are at once so fragmentary and so complemental of each other as this doctrine of two resurrections. Except in the passage in the Revelation it is nowhere presented in a formal and complete statement. But what is very strik- ing is, that almost every scattered allusion to it fits into this passage at some point, confirming its literal signifi- cance, and being itself confirmed by it. Like the famous trilingual inscription on the Rossetta stone, which from having one known language, though it had two unknown ones, gave the clew and interpretation to the Egyptian hieroglyphics, so these scattered texts, from containing some known and unquestioned allusion to the literal resur- rection of the body, furnish a key and confirmation to this much-disputed and, as some say, enigmatical passage of the Apocalypse. For example : All are agreed that John 5: 28, 29, and Luke 20: 36, have reference to the literal rising of the body from the grave. Apply these to Rev. 20 : 1-6, and note how perfectly they fit it : " They that have done good unto the resurrection of life" (Gospel of St. John.) " They lived and reigned with Christ; this is resurrection the first." (Apoc.) " They that shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world and the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are joined in marriage, neither can they die any more" (Luke.) " On such the second death hath no power" (Apoc.) " They that shall be accounted worthy to obtain the resurrection from the dead." (Luke.) " Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resur- rection." " They that have done evil to the resurrection of judgment" |>) the godly out of trial, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished." (2 Pet. 2:4-10.) 164 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. 7. That after the desolating judgments with which the returning Lord and King will visit the nations, there will still be some left when the storm has passed by, who will doubtless form the source from which the nations will spring who shall dwell on the earth during the Millennial era. For so Isaiah testifies as to this spared remnant in the midst of the wide-spread destruction on the earth. (Ch. 24: 5, 6, 13, 16, 21, 22.) And so Zechariah declares, also, that some shall escape of the nations destroyed of the Lord when they come against Jerusalem, and that these shall afterward serve Him. (Ch. 14:16.) And so John declares in the Revelation: That, after the desolating judgments foretold in chap. 19: 13, 21, there will nevertheless be nations living during the Millennial era, who are not deceived by Satan then bound. (Rev. 20:3.) 8. That this Regeneration shall be attended by the national repentance and conversion of the Jewish people, their gathering to their own laud, and their perpetual resi- dence there, exalted as a people to be a blessing in all the earth. This, many passages already quoted, declare. (See Isaiah 61: 7-9; 60:9-14.) 9. That in the " Regeneration," therefore, there will be living men in the flesh, distinct from the glorified saints who rule with Christ, and these men will be organized as nations. For so Isaiah speaks of the remnant who are escaped of the nations after the Lord's judgment of the ungodly. So John speaks of the nations of the earth (after the curse is gone) as walking in the light of the New Jeru- salem. So the prophets speak of Israel as being a gathered nation from generation to generation; u their seed and their seed's seed dwelling in the land forever." So they tell us of the nations ever rejoicing in Israel's joy. (Ezek.chap. 36, chap. 37; Is. 61: 9.) So they speak of the King Messiah reigning " as long as the sun and moon THE REGENERATION. endure;" all kings meantime bowing before Him " through- out all generations;" and "all nations calling Him blessed." (Psalm 72: 5-11-17.) 10. That to bring about this blessed condition of things the Spirit shall be poured out in an unprecedented manner on all flesh. So the Prophet Joel declares (chap. 2: 28-32) pointing, by his predicted signs to the end of this dispen- sation of the Spirit, and to the conversion of the Gentiles (that are spared) most probably by Jewish instrumental^ a pregnant prophecy that takes in the whole Messianic time, as one vast period, the beginning and end of which, are foreshortened into one and the same picture. And so Isaiah intimates, as to the times of the new heavens and new earth. " I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations to Tarshish, Pul and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory ; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles." (Is. 66: 18-20.) And so the Apostle James intimates: " And to this agree the words of the prophets ; as it is written. After this I will return and will build again the tabernacle of David which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up ; that the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things ; known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world." (Acts 15 : 15-18.) 11. That Satan, the Arch Enemy, will be then bound so as to deceive the nations no more until the thousand years are past. So the Apostle John declares explicitly. (Kev. 20:1-7.) 12. That all the nations shall then be holy. So Isaiah says to Israel: "All thy children shall be taught of God." "None shall say to another, know the- Lord, for all shall know Him." " They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of 166 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea." "All nations shall come and worship before Thee." (Is. 54: 13; Jer. 31: 34; Is. 11: 9; Rev. 15: 4.) 13. That the race, on earth then made holy, will continue on the earth, in perpetual generations. For so Psalm 72d intimates, as already quoted, (vv. 5, 7, 8, IT.) So God declares that the earth will abide safe from destruction by flood under His everlasting covenant, throughout "perpetual generations." (Gen. 9: 12-17.) So Psalm 145: 13, testifies, that the Lord's Kingdom continues, as an everlasting Kingdom (Heb. Kingdom of the Ages) "throughout all generations" And thus generations continue as long as the Kingdom continues. So Psalm 135: 13, tells us that God's memorial is like His name, forever, even from generation to generation." So Isaiah testifies, that of the increase of Christ's Kingdom on the throne of David there will be no end. (Is. 9: 6, 7.) And as His Kingdom is to embrace all the nations of Israel, and all the nations of the earth, its increase must, in accord with these other Scriptures, be by the never- ending generations which shall come under its beneficent sway. So also Isaiah testifies (59: 31), and Joel with him (3: 20), that Israel shall continue " from genera- tion to generation, forever." So Daniel also declares (chap. 7: 13, 14, 18, 27) that Christ's Kingdom on earth is to be a Kingdom wherein " all peoples, nations and languages shall serve Him," and that this Kingdom, embracing all nations and languages, " shall not pass away nor be destroyed forever." Paul also speaks of " glory being given to God by the church in Christ, unto all the generations of the Age of Ages" The rendering of our version, " through- out all ages world without end, "-is a paraphrase and not a translation. The words are, '?v TJJ 'vtKb/oip ev xptoru 'irjaov etc yeveaf TOV aiuvoq ruv aiuvuv. (Eph. 3*. 21.) TllC u church" THE REGENERATION. 167 is the one body of believers of Jews and Gentiles, fellow- heirs in Christ, of which Paul had just been speaking. They are to be raised from the dead and glorified together as Christ's bride reigning with Him over the nations. And Paul tells us that praise shall be rendered to God by this glorified church, throughout all the perpetual generations of men dwelling on the earth. And so, finally, the Apostle John, in the Apocalypse, gives not the slightest intimation of any cessation of the nations on the earth. On the contrary, even after the second resurrection is passed, and Satan cast out, and after the Kingdom is established in its glory, these nations are represented as still walking in the light of the heavenly rule of Christ and His saints symbolized by the New Jerusalem come down out of heaven to earth. (Rev. 21: 22-27; 22: 1-5.) 14. That the curse shall be removed from the earth itself, and inanimate creation made to participate in the joy of the " sons of God." So testify the prophets. The waste places are to be made like Eden, and the deserts like the gar- den of the Lord. (Ez. 34: 27; 36: 11,29, 30, 34-36. Is. 51: 3. Ps. 67: 4-6.) And so the Apostle Paul represents the case in his account of the Palingenesia, towards which the creature, "made subject to vanity for man's sake," looks forward with ardent expectation. (Rom. 8: 18-23.) Thus the Regeneration will be a blessed change affecting the whole earth and the race living upon it. The long "Winter has indeed stripped off the foliage and made it for a long time look like waste and barren. But the reviving Spring is soon to come and bring forth a "Summer" of glory, forever. (Luke 21: 30.) The centuries of earth's curse and earth's disorders and sins will indeed have been among men endured. That fact must remain forever true. And they " who knew not God, and obeyed not the gospel " 168 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. and died in their sins, must indeed be cast out from God forever. But the race, as a race, is redeemed, and sees at length all nations of the earth walking with God. Christ's blood avails to the uttermost generation. "None need say to another Know the Lord, for all shall know Him from the least to the greatest." "All thy children shall be taught of God and great shall be the peace of thy chil- dren." " From generation to generation they shall come up to Jerusalem to serve the Lord." "For all the ends of the world shall worship God." So testify Isaiah and all the prophets. Doubtless, time will be needed, after the Lord comes to introduce the Millennial reign, before His glory is com- pleted. God's word declares so. Peter speaks, not merely of the Restitution, but of the " times " of the Restitution, a vast period. And the Apostle Paul testifies " He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet," and that " the last enemy which shall be destroyed is Death." (ICor. 15:25, 26.) It would seem from this that during the Millennial reign which is, indeed, a far brighter and more blessed era, and immeasurably more glorious than the present; and while all sorrow and care shall then be gone; and, as Isaiah declares, the longevity of God's elect shall be " as the days of a tree," (Isa. 65 : 22) yet Satan is not completely overthrown until its close, and while other enemies are not destroyed Death must still continue. For, as Paul declares, Death i& the last enemy to be destroyed. At the close comes Satan's final effort, his overthrow, the general judgment, the banish- ment of the wicked dead to hell, and last of all, Death and Hades are destroyed. And then the Kingdom is seen in its final form of perennial blessedness the Regeneration is completed. Thus the Seed of the woman will have entirely destroyed THE REGENERATION. 169* all the works of the Devil, and the curse, uttered in Eden, is wiped away. At the fall, there hung in hideous darkness over man, alienation from God, a cursed earth, pains and labors and tears, death, the grave and Hades. Now at last all are gone even the last enemy, Death, gone- forever and so the triumphant voice of gladness from heaven at last announces its arrival. " I heard* a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold the taber- nacle of God is with men and He will dwell with them ; and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes, and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain. For the former things are passed away. And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold I make all things new." (Rev. 21 : l-5.> It is the glorious word of victory uttered by the Son, {nrarerdKrai ! all things " subjected!' ykyovs \ " it is done!" the regenesis is accomplished t Glory! Glory! Eternal Glory ! " One song employs all nations; " Worthy the Lamb for He was slain for us. " The dwellers in the vales and on the rocks " Shout to each other; and the mountain tops " From distant mountains catch the flying joy, " Till nation after nation taught the strain, " Earth rolls the rapturous hosannah round. "Thus heavenward all things tend. For all once were " Perfect, and all must be at length restored. " Come, then, and added to Thy many crowns " Receive yet one, the crown of all the earth ; " Thou who alone art worthy ! It was Thine " By ancient covenant ere nature's birth ; " And Thou hast made it Thine by purchase since " And overpaid its value by Thy Blood. " Come, then, and added to Thy many crowns, "Receive yet one as radiant as the rest, " Due to Thy last and most effectual work, 44 Thy word fulfilled the conquest of a world." What a joy does it bring to the heart to contemplate the blessedness which this earth, so long the abode of sin and sorrow, shall one day see forever; True, indeed, many shall 170 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. never lift their eyes on that day of peace and blessing. They are given up to this present world. Christ says, " Except a man be born again he shall never see the King- dom of God." How sad to have seen this earth only in its sorrows and never in its bridal day of joy and gladness! But to the holy nations dwelling on the earth in that time of perfected glory, what words can describe the joy which the scenes of that day will yield! What a contrast between the earth at its best estate now and the redeemed earth then! It is true, indeed, that even now, while the curse still hangs as a blight upon us, God's mercy does soften the curse. Like a bright star hung on the horizon, when clouds cover the sky, still giving token of the glories of the concealed heaven, so God's mercy-drops sweeten the bitter cup even of the present. But what will it be when the light fills all the heavens! Think of the households, for example, of the earth redeemed. Ye mothers of the present world, tried and anxious, think of them. There will be then no fear for that lovely circle around the mother's knee, for the inhabi- tants of that world shall never say, " I am sick;" no fear of evil passions springing up within those young hearts, for all temptation and sin will be gone; no doubt of their future character, for " all their children shall be taught of God;" no days of watching or nights of anxiety and weak- ness. All the earth filled with homes of holiness and peace! Oh, glorious day begin! Think of the intercourse of the nations in that day Even now, indeed, we have Christian civilization, and this has meliorated the condition and the intercourse of the world. We go to a foreign shore, and we are sure of restraining laws and of mercy for strangers. We are sure of a guard for our persons and the means of health, and yet how every street and every abode, high and low, tells of sore needs, and of poverty, and crime, and sorrow, and THE REGENERATION. 171 sin. But what a brotherhood will the holy nations of that day present! The wanderer from his own home will only exchange one home and welcome for another. From North to South, from East to West, all nations sing the same song of redeeming love. All bow in fealty to the same glorious King; all show the same fruits of the Spirit. Every appoint- ment of government shall be in conformity with the right- eous rule, to do honor to the King of all the earth and to bless all under its sway. For, "A King shall reign in righteousness and princes shall rule in judgment; and a Man shall be as a hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." It is a blessedness to us now to know that God's holy angels watch over us, " ministers to the heirs of salvation." But in that day, when the Lord is here, shall not angels visit men as they did in Eden? But even more than this; what must be the blessedness of men to behold their own flesh and blood raised to honor and glory with Christ, and ruling and watching over angels! Nay, even more still; to see God's own Son in their own nature, King of Kings and Lord of Lords, ruling in the whole earth? And to the Lord Himself, will that day of earth's Regen- eration bring no special joy? Will He not see in it of the travail of His soul, and be satisfied ? Will it be no joy to behold this earth where Satan so long ruled as Prince of this world, and Christ's fellow men were ruined, and where His own blessed feet trod the thorny path of sorrow, and where His heart was weighed down with grief for man's sins, and where He hung on the cross, and where He lay in the grave, become the place of His triumph and the scene of His glory ? And what of that precious blood shed upon Calvary ? Will its virtue be expended in redeeming only a part of the 172 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. race; then to see that race cut short and no further appli- cations of that precious blood? That would be but a partial triumph indeed. Satan would, in this view, have led cap- tive still the great multitude of men in all ages; and death would still reign down to the very last generation. But to see the end of sin on the earth come to see the blood made availing before God for countless generations, never to lose its power of adding new trophies to God's grace! That will magnify Christ's blood and Christ's righteousness indeed. Men look back to Eden sometimes, and sigh to think that by Adam's fall the race lost the happiness they might have enjoyed if Adam had stood. But what, at the best, would this have been? A world standing in its own righteousness, and hence probably exposed in every genera- tion to fall. But the redeemed earth will see its millions saved forever, beyond all fear of falling, for Christ's blood and Christ's righteousness " perfects forever." (Heb. 10 :14.) What God will do with this earth, regenerated, and with its saved race, we know not. One thing we know: He who will sit as King over all in human nature, our Brother, is appointed of the Father, Head over all things the Head of creation. We know, too, as the apostle tells us, that it is God's design " to show in the ages to come the exceeding riches of His grace, in His kindness towards us in Christ Jesus." (Eph. 2-7.) But who may be the students of these marvels of mercy we know not. God's word reveals no more. Only let us be sure that a world redeemed by the blood of God's own Son, and bound to Him, through the requirements of the covenant of mercy in everlasting fel- lowship, is not saved without some object worthy of God who redeems it. Let us then, brethren, hear the voice which comes to us through all God's holy prophets. Amidst the temptations, and the vain show, and the sorrows of this world, let us THE REGENERATION. 173 cheer our hearts with a believing view of the coming glory, when all the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, and men shall say: "Behold, this land which was desolate is become like the garden of Eden." Let us pray for Israel, that the Lord may pardon his iniquities and bring in the day of his deliverance. Let us diligently spread the Lord's glorious " Gospel of the Kingdom " to all lands under heaven, and by His aid gather out of every nation a people to His praise. Let us keep our garments white, that we walk not naked in the day of His coming, and men see our shame. Let us beware of having " our hearts surcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness and the cares of this life, and so that day which shall come as a snare upon all the earth," come upon us, too, unawares. Let us rejoice over our dying ones, that they are soon to come again with the Lord and see the glory of the Regeneration. And let us never cease to pray, as our only hope for the approach of that day of glory, "Come, Lord Jesus; come quickly 1 " 174 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. THE KINGDOM AND THE CHUECH. BY PROFESSOR H. LUMMIS, METUODIST, MONSON, MASS. THERE are, doubtless, words in the Sacred Scriptures that are very imperfectly understood, some that are not under- stood at all. The meaning given in our version, for example, may be the best that is known, and yet no careful student of the Bible can safely accept these temporary substitutes as the strict equivalents of the original words. The words which name the theme now presented are not of this obscure class. They are used so often and in so many different connections that it is not a little surprising to find such divergencies of opinion as to their real meaning. And yet no more so perhaps than in a score of kindred cases where differences depend less on the data than on the point of observation, and on the wishes that fashion results. I do not believe that differing views are both right where they antagonize, but I think I do see why differences and antagonisms exist, and also that they have a ground less iu truth itself, than in circumstances. If the Spirit of truth direct us, there is no good reason why we should not arrive at substantial agreement. The word basileia, uniformly rendered kingdom in our version (with but a single exception, Rev. 17: 18,) occurs in the New Testament 159 times in the received text. Two of these, Matthew 6: 33, and Mark 1: 14, are wanting in the critical texts, while two, Rev. 1: 6, (instead of basileia, kings), and Rev. 5:10, are added by the critical texts. This uniformity of rendering is almost remarkable in a word occurring so often, especially when we remember that THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH. 17 5- our translators so often varied a rendering for rhetorical effect. Another point worthy of passing notice is, that no word is rendered kingdom in the ^&w Testament. Basileia occurs in the Septuagint version of the Old Testament 248 times as the rendering of some derivative of the root malak of the verb itself. Such a multitude of occurrences under so great a variety of circumstances gives so complete a key to the idea, that any ordinarily bright child of ten years old, if all verses in which the word kingdom occurs were given to it, with this word obliterated, the child's wisdom would be able to supply the proper sign for the idea. The word as to its root-idea was one of the every-day words of Hebrew life, and one of the common words to the Hellen- izing Jew. That this is true is recognized by the foremost scholars of the age. I quote but one, Dr. E. B. Pusey, one of the very first Hebrew scholars of the English Church. I give an estimate of his scholarship by Dr. J. J. Stewart Perowne, the very able translator and annotator of the Psalms, himself regarded as one of the most competent exegetes in England. Dr. Perowne says of Dr. Pusey, in regard to his Commentary on Daniel: "He has brought to bear on this point (the genuineness of Daniel) a perfect encyclopaedia of learning. It is by far the most complete work which has yet appeared, no continental writer having handled the subject with any thing like the same fulness or breadth of treatment." Dr. Pusey thus speaks concerning the expressions, "Kingdom of God," "Kingdom of Heaven." These phrases occur in the gospels as words as well known to the whole Jewish people as faith, hope, charity, worship or any other religious term. They are not explained, but are assumed to be understood. Of these equivalent terms, the Kingdom of Heaven is especially suggested by Daniel's words: "The God of Heaven shall set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed, as also 176 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. by the contract with those kingdoms of man which should arise from the earth," pp. 84-85. " Daniel foretold, not a kingdom in Israel only, not a conversion of the heathen only, but that He who sat above, in form like a son of man, should be worshipped by all peoples, nations and languages, and that this kingdom should not pass away." Ib., p. 87. It is generally admitted that the Jews of the time of Christ, and for a time preceding, had been expecting, eagerly, the coming of the Messiah, the establishment of a kingdom on the earth and a sway over the nations. "Why should they not? Had there been anything in the prophecies already fulfilled that would lead them to expect a mystical application of those glowing words that prom- ised a deliverer and a king? Look over the pages of prophecy. Ponder the historical record which relates to the fulfillment of some of these. Remember, too, that Israel as a Nation had been witness to many of the most remarkable of them. I quote a passage from Isaiah, 13:17-22. Take another passage from Jeremiah, 34:2, 3; also 24: 4, 5. Again, God speaks thus through Jeremiah: " Behold I will send and take all the families of the North, saith the Lord, and Nebuchadnezzar, the King of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land, and against the inhabitants thereof. . . . And this whole land shall be a desolation and an astonishment, and these nations shall serve the King of Babylon seventy years." (Jer. 25: 9-11.) ACCURACY OF THE PROPHECIES. My limits forbid me to quote at length, as I might, the foretold return; the declaration that Cyrus should perform the Lord's pleasure in the restoration of Israel ; that Jeru- salem should be rebuilt and the foundation of the temple relaid. I note these striking predictions to show that the THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH. 177 Jews had full warrant to expect a King as literally such as was David or Solomon, and a kingdom as literally such as was theirs. I am amazed when men talk about the obscurity of unfulfilled prophecy. If in the Book of Daniel and in Revelation there be a difficulty and obscurity, it grows out of the symbols used, and not out of the prophecy. History recorded in symbols would be just as dark and hard to understand without the key to the symbols. If any man is familiar with the history that gives the facts that followed these prophecies, and, as believers in the Bible as a reliable record hold, in fulfillment of these prophecies, he must see the marvellous correspondence with the literal statements of the prophecy and the simple facts that followed. God, through the prophet, declares that He will stir up the Medes against Babylon, and the Medes are actors in the taking of Babylon and the slaughters that follow. The desolations of the laud harmonize so fully with the prophecy that one needs only to change the tenses to have the history. This the undersigned testimony of iniidel writers fully confirms. The prophecy to Zedekiah that he should see the eyes of the King of Babylon, and yet that he should not see Babylon though he should die there, that he should not die by violence, but that he should die in peace, are literally in striking harmony with the facts of history. To declare as some do that the prophecies are designed in a general way to give consolation and hope to believers under trial by a bright picture of future good, shows an extraordinary ignorance of the prophetic Scrip- tures, which are crowded with minatory as really as with consolatory predictions. The Jews had experienced in detail so literal a fulfillment of the woes and bitterness of long-threatened captivity in case they forgot God, that it would be astounding if they did not read the prophecies as foreseen history. 12 178 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. If it be said that they evidently did misunderstand the prophecies that referred to Christ, it will be fair to ask,. " did they misunderstand the prophecy that spoke of the place of His birth ? " When anxious Herod heard that one had been born King of the Jews he evidently dreaded inter- ference with his own claim on the crown of Palestine. But when he asked where the Messiah should be born, unhesi- tatingly the Scribes, conversant with the prophets, replied : In Bethlehem, of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: " And thou Bethlehem in the land of Judea, are not the least among the princes of Judea, for out of thee shall come forth a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel." This place was Bethlehem, the very birthplace of David, literal Bethlehem ; the birth was not mystical, but literal ; was Israel to be mystical Israel, and the rule mys- tical rule? Later in the history of the King Jesus, they might have read, and some of them doubtless did: u He made His grave with the wicked and with the rich in His death." Was the grave a figurative one, was the death figurative? (Isa. 53:9.) Were not all the terms of the prophecy wicked, rich, grave, death to be taken in the strictest natural meaning? There was one respect in which the willful and wicked Jews went wrong, but it was not in taking the prophecies that spoke of Christ literally, as lit- erally as if they had been simply written history. They did not clearly apprehend, as they would have done if they had sat at the feet of Jesus in a teachable spirit, and had listened to His unfolding of the plan of His mission, that the glory of the King was not to appear before He should come to His Kingdom. They were right, entirely right, in associating with the Messiah power and great glory, power exerted, glory displayed; but they were wrong in expecting royal dignity in the surroundings of His cradle, and royal splendor in the associations of His boyhood. They over- THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH. 179 looked the foretold lowliness in the foretold glory. Had they received Him meek and lowly, as it was foretold He should be, they might have seen the King in His beauty, as they will see Him at His return, after judicial blindness and eclipse of their faith for almost twenty centuries. Is it presuming to suppose that if the people of Israel had received their King when He came, and just as He was, in the spirit of good old Simeon, that the world would have waited through this long night of wretchedness? Might not the Messiah with His sympathetic, energetic subjects have wrought speedily the work that has been done, so far as it has been done so feebly, so apathetically, so inefficiently, by the Church? Israel delayed, as Chris- tians have delayed, and are still delaying, instead of hasten- ing, the coming of the day of God. No " hastening unto the day of God," as our version unfortunately reads. It was right that the Jews should expect in tfie Kingdom of the Messiah prosperity. Stretch that word to its utmost limit let it comprise all good it means, it can mean no more than the prophecies implicitly or explicitly foretell. No more than Israel might anticipate under their King, the literal descendant of David, the lineal heirto his throne. Do not let me be annoyed by the suggestions that all bless- ings to the eye, to the ear, to the taste, that Paradise restored on earth must be inconsistent with the spiritual good higher good certainly God designs to bring to men through His Son. The tithe of mint, and cummin, and anise was a little thing; that it should take the place of judgment, and mercy, and faith was a shameful thing. But the perfect teacher put each in its proper place. " These," He says, "ye ought to have done, and not to leave the other undone." (Matt. 23: 23.) The Messianic Kingdom would be incomplete if that good which the pious Jew anticipated, 180 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. a glorious kingdom on earth, were left out, as, thank God, it will not be. The lofty eyes that overlook all physical good are less broad in their scope than the eyes that look above and below and around, beholding all. Not that seeing part is seeing falsely it is seeing partially. Arraigning one that sees other parts is judging falsely. Many a visitor has ascended the slope of Mt. Washington, drawn by the snorting iron horse whose neighings echoed back from cliff and ravine, and has seen that rugged, rock-crowned summit gray with the mosses and lichens of unnumbered centuries, as the misty robe that draped the giant peak was lifted by the careering winds. He has a right to speak of the sub- lime view which he has seen. But he has made only one ascent; he has looked from one position only, although a favored spot it may be, and one that affords the finest view of the monarch of New England hills. But if he forgets or ignores the farriage road up from the Glen House; if he overlooks the bridle-path that winds up through the wooded hills and bending valleys and steep, precipitous acclivities from the Crawford ; if he counts not the devious foot-way of the lone pedestrian who, by some hitherto untrodden course, has clambered to the crown of the moun- tain king, he has not a complete picture of the loftiest of the White Hills. The modern theologian who, conceiving the Kingdom of Jesus, looks upward and views the blue sky and gold and crimson clouds, and the brightness of the resplendent sun, has a charming picture, even if it be a little etherial. But to complete its beauty he needs the hills and valleys, flowing as of old in the land of Canaan, with milk and honey, the palace towers of Jerusalem the golden, the white-robed company marching with crowns on their heads and with palms in their hands to strains of celestial music, the opening doors of the royal mansion and the broad table THE KFXGDOM AND THE CHURCH. 181 spread with ambrosial viands, fit for the children and the brothers and sisters of a king, and the seated guests, the patriarchs and prophets, and all the godly race. No timid- ity induced by skepticism within the nominal Church of God, or without, shall make me minish aught of what my Father's legacy warrants me to expect. I shall see the King in His glory, and be fellow heir with Abraham. In com- pany with the meek I shall possess the earth. An humble and unworthy brother of Jesus Christ, I am to have the body of my humiliation made like the body of His glory. A KINGDOM OF THIS WORLD. If there were but a single Old Testament prophecy of this kingdom, one made definite by passing from its picture form in which it was at first given to the great King of Babylon, and afterward to that prince among the seers, Daniel, of the Children of the Captivity, it would establish on a foundation, not to be shaken, the doctrine of the king- dom, a kingdom in this world, a kingdom embracing the globe and to be possessed by the saints. A king, a realm, a multitude of subjects are requisite to a kingdom in the strict sense. I give the outline. Nebuchadnezzar dreams a dream. It troubles him. He wishes to know its signifi- cation, but before he can state it to his magicians and astrologers and sorcerers, and to the Chaldeans, it escapes his memory. He requires these men to tell the dream and its interpretation. With good reason they reply to this strange demand, that the requirement is beyond human power. In anoer the monarch gives orders that all the wise men of the kingdom be slain. As one of them, Daniel is threat- ened by the decree. H seeks the King and asks time, giving assurance that both dream and interpretation will be given. God reveals the dream to the prophet, and he, acknowledging the Most High as the source of his wisdom, 182 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. states before the King the dream and its signification. In the dream is seen a great image of gold and silver and copper and iron and clay. A stone cut out of a moun- tain without hands smites the image upon the feet. The shock pulverizes the image, and the dust is carried away by the wind, like chaff blown from the summer threshing- floor. The stone becomes a mountain and fills the earth. In telling the meaning of the dream Daniel declares that the different parts of the image represent successive king- doms, the four metals and the clay signifying the strength, and at the same time the weakness of the last of the four sovereignties. Daniel closes his interpretation with these remarkable words: "And in the days of these kings, shall the God of Heaven set up a Kingdom which shall never (to eternity shall not) be destroyed, and the Kingdom shall not be left (transferred) to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume (grind up and make an end of) all these Kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the copper, the clay, the silver and the gold ; the great God hath made known what shall come to pass hereafter, and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure," or trustworthy, rendered " faithful " in Dan. 6 : 4. The prophet declares to the king that God has made known to him (not that something shall come to pass, but) what shall come to pass. A parallel to this dream picture and its simple prophetic meaning is given us in the first book of the Bible. Pharaoh dreams of seven fat and of seven very lean kine that come up out of the great river of Egypt. The lean kine, after devouring the fat kine, are still as lean as before. In his perplexity Pharaoh summons Joseph, the Jewish captive, who at once interprets the dream. The seven fat kine mean seven years of great plenty. The seven lean kine, seven following years of very grievous famine, which shall exhaust the abundance of the years of plenty, and leave the people greatly straitened THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH. 183 by want. One advantage is found here. The history in which the prophecy is fulfilled is recorded, and no com- pleter evidence could be given that the prophetic meaning given to the dream was in the strictest and most literal sense of the words realized. Any intelligent grammar- school-boy could understand Joseph's interpretation, and could understand that the succeeding history records the fulfillment of what Joseph foretold, what Pharaoh under- stood; and therefore appointed Joseph to superintend the storing of the abundance of the years of plenty to provide for the corning famine. Just so the interpretation given by Daniel to Nebuchad- nezzar. It avails not to say the passage occurs in a confess- edly obscure and difficult book this part of the book is no more obscure than the following chapter which tells of the image of gold set up on the Plain of Dura, and of the .three Hebrew children thrown into the fiery furnace. Nebuchadnezzar's dream, like that of Pharoah, was a pic- ture prophecy, and without a key could not be understood, could not be explained. The God of Heaven gives the dream and the key to its meaning to Daniel, and Daniel gives them to the King. If the King understood what kingdom meant when applied to his own empire and sov- ereignty, he understood what it meant when applied to the Kingdom that the God of Heaven should set up. To maintain that Kingdom, as used in the latter case, meant an entirely different thing, is as worthy the charge of ter- giversation, as assigning different meanings to aionios in the last verse of the 25th chapter of Matthew is, " These shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the right- eous into life eternal." It has been pressed with great force that the word must be parallel in duration in each case. Let those who denounce the denial of this claim .abide by their own rule in this second chapter of Daniel, 184 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. The implication in the interpretation, and this has been generally admitted by commentators, is, that these great empires represent universal world empires, each successive one merging its predecessor in its own sovereignty. With even greater force, the explanation of Daniel implies the forcible reduction of all other political power to nothing, and the occupation of absolutely universal world dominion. Albert Barnes, in his notes on Daniel, remarks, here: "The language would seem to imply some violent action; some positive crushing force, something like that which occurs in conquests when nations are subdued." This is evident, even in a close translation. Adam Clarke uses even stronger language. " Here He (Christ) is repre- sented under the notion of a stone projected from a cata- pult, or some military engine, which smote the image on its feet, that is, it smote the then existing government at its foundation, or principles of support, and by destroying these, brought the whole into ruin." It is true that, with astonishing incongruity, the stone from the catapult is made to smite Constantine into a Christian. (The dust ha& surely blown away very slowly.) It is still smiting by the circulation of the Bible and by missionary societies. Gen- tle crushing this! Exceedingly gradual pulverizing! Most tender breaking in pieces, consuming slower than the con- suming of iron rust! " Britain," writes the venerable, charming, but most inconsequent commentator, " is Chris- tian without the altering of her Magna Charta or her Con- stitution," and I might add (if it did not shade on sacri- lege in such a connection) without diminishing aught of her rapacity in the expansion of her vast domain, without lift- ing her heavy heel from the necks of subject or intimidated nations. Alas for my ideal, if even England, in this year of grace, 1878, is, or typin'es, the Kingdom of God! It can not be! There is to be it has not yet come THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH. breaking with a rod of iron shivering to pieces as a pot- ter's vessel is shivered. The clang of the stone striking the feet of the huge image has not yet been heard ; the crumbling of dynasties and the sweeping away of their debris as with the breath of a tempest has not yet been seen. But it approacheth! When the history, whether it be seen but not written, or seen and then written, shall transpire, there* will not be need of 1,550 years to know whether the crushing stroke from the catapult missile has smitten temporal thrones out of existence. He who witnesses the downward sweep of that stone cut out of the mountain, will hear the last cry of human woe under human oppression before its shivering shock takes place, and see every shackle that human greed has forged and locked on the limbs of cringing slaves shattered forever under the earthquake convulsion of that approaching hour. Thereafter, under the sway of the Son of God, will the gates of commerce be forced by the enginery of war to thrust into a resisting nation's throat and against a monarch's loud protest a drug that dwarfs and poisons the body and degrades the soul? Will liquor- leagues control legislators and bribe judges, after a mightier bolt than Yulcan ever forged or Jove ever brandished shall have been hurled ? Reason answers No ; and prophecy, from the shores of the Euphrates, thunders down along the cen- turies, over crumbling dynasties and regal dust, an author- itative No. Christ's Kingdom established, iniquity can not triumph ! Objections have been filed against this view of the Kingdom. Some are entitled to consideration more from the position and real ability of those who offer them, than for any Bible support that has ever been found or even offered for them. SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. HAS CHRIST'S KINGDOM COME? It is maintained that Christ's visible Kingdom has come, that it is already established. " The Christian Church is the kingdom of God on earth viewed in its objective or institu- tional form. God's Kingdom among men is as old as human history." Dr. William F. Warren, President of Boston University. If this bold statement be true, was John the Baptist mistaken when he declared to the thronging multi- tudes, from Judea and Jerusalem and the region around about Jordan, " The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand?" Was Joseph, of Arimathea, wrong in waiting for the King- dom of God? He was a good man, and doubtless shared in the common earnest looking for and expecting of the Kingdom. Had no Apostle, had no word from the Son of Man, enlightened his darkness? When the robber on the cross with some apparent apprehension of Christ and His character, cried: " Lord, remember me when thou comest in Thy kingdom" was he altogether mistaken in deeming that, a time to come, instead of a time gone by? And He who was addressed by the penitent man knew the fact, if the Kingdom of God on earth was already four thousand years old and commencing on the fifth, might we not sup- pose He would have thrown a ray of light along with the word of comfort, and have said: " We are in my Kingdom now, but I can Bay even a better thing to thee; to-day shalt thou be with me in Paradise" Doubtless, it would have seemed strange to this man, who unquestionably knew the -conditions of authority and rule among men, to hear Christ speak as a King in His own established Kingdom, while He hung upon the cross as a malefactor with these two acknowl- edged law-breakers. Was Paul wrong when lie declared, " Flesh and blood can not inherit the kingdom of God, neither doth corruption inherit incorruption?" He spoke THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH. 17 as if the Kingdom of God was immutable, and as if the mortal and perishable could not enter into it. Even against Dr. AVarren, I judge, that John and Joseph and the robber on the cross and Paul were right, and that the Kingdom of God in the New Testament sense had not then, at least, come. Even a higher than Paul had taught his disciples to pray; u Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is done in Reaven. " Thy Kingdom " was God's Kingdom. If the Kingdom was as old as the race the prayer seems .a paradox more striking than any Paul ever uttered. If the Doctor should say, " God is a Uni- versal Sovereign and is ruler over the earth/' and confirm the utterance by the sublime declaration of the Psalmist, " the Lord hath prepared His throne in the heavens and His Kingdom ruleth overall," (Ps. 103: 19) or " Thy King- dom is an everlasting Kingdom, and Thy dominion through- out all generations,''' (Ps. 145: 13) it would be legitimate to inquire, is the kingdom of which the Psalmist speaks and the dominion associated with it, the Church? to which I trow, the answer must be "Nay." The dominion of the everlasting God and His Kingdom in the sense of the Psalmist is not merely as old as human history, but as old as creation itself, and antedates the day when "the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy." Is the Christian Church, or the Kingdom of God in its objective form as old as human history? Dr. Charles Hodge, clerum et venerabile nomen, seems to range with the Boston theologian. In his magnificent work he writes: " The Church under the new dispensation is identical with that under the old. It is not a new church but one and the same " (as the old). Speculative philosophy and theology build slightly and lofty structures, but the artillery of the word of God like a mighty Krupp gun turned against the 188 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. marble walls of some imposing palace built for beauty rather than for strength at one discharge levels the lofty walls and leaves the building a ruin. Christ addresses the fisherman Simon thus : " Thou art Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it." At that moment in the ministry of Christ His Church was a thing of the future. The " 1 will build " is in the same tense as " shall not prevail." We can as easily imagine the latter a retrospective declaration as the former. " I will build." How the fragments of massive theories rat- tle before this divine artillery. Good, and wise, and learned men concur in a better exegesis that the church was yet future, when Christ spoke; Dr. Philip Schaff (we thank the Fatherland for such a gift) in his catechism puts and answers this question: " Who founded the Christian Church? Our exalted Saviour, on the fiftieth day after His resurrection, by the out-pouring of the Holy Spirit upon His Disciples in Jerusalem" References: Matt. 16: 13; 1 Cor. 3: 11; Eph. 2: 20; Acts 2: 1-11. See p. 52. In his exposition on Matt. 18: 17, Richard Watson says: " The apostles who followed Christ may be considered as the elements of His church at the time, but it could scarce be considered as constituted until after the day of Pentecost when regular assemblies under Apostolic direction were formed, the worship of God arranged, the Supper of the Lord administered, and the terms of communion mutually acknowledged. Christ must, therefore, be understood as speaking prospectively." In harmony with these state- ments of representative men, has been the general language of the Christian world, always excepting the cases where controversy springs up and a new vocabulary is made to suit the emergency. Wo speak of the early Christian Church. What do we mean? Who goes back to th times of Abraham, to THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH. 189 the times of Moses, to the times of David, or to the times of Malachi? I challenge the production of a case free from the bias of controlling theories where men- tion of the early Christian Church requires to be referred to the Mosaic period or earlier. What have Christian men in the Christian Church meant by it? The church of the days of the apostles that nothing earlier. As reasonably may we call the prophets the apostles, or the great Jewish Lawgiver the founder of the Church of Christ. The position that the visible Kingdom of God is already established and is the Christian Church, is so prevalent to-day that I shall be pardoned, I am sure, if I submit the claim to a sharp scrutiny. I say, then, that no more absolute separation of kingdom and church could be made, without labored effort, than is already made in the New Testament by the terms employed in representing each. The word used by Christ to indicate the origination of His church is olitodofilo as follows: oiKtrfoufao pav rrfv e/ocA^'av. This word, although it is found twenty-four times in the New Testament, is never once joined with paaifaia a word occurring about ninety times in the Gospels alone, in connection with the expressions, " the Kingdom of God," " The Kingdom of Heaven." If the visible kingdom is built at all, its building is not indicated by the word that indicates the building of the church. The word used in the Septuagint to express the origin or establishment of this kingdom mentioned by Daniel is dvaar^, from avfaniw we ll rendered by "set up," or "raise up." On the other hand, this word, applied to the kingdom, is never used of either the rise or progress of the church, or of the church at all. It is worthy of notice in this connection that the majority of the modern words and phrases used to harmonize the idea of the identity of the church and the kingdom do not dovetail at all with 190 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. the Scripture words and phrases. I quote the following from a New York contributor to a New England periodical, the Ziorts Herald: "To all who love the Kingdom of Christ, and pray for its world-wide extension, the progress of the resurgent Greek Nation is full of interest." Praying for the world-wide extension of Christ's Kingdom, or for its extension in a less degree, is altogether foreign to the lan- guage and thought of the Scriptures. The stone was cut out of the mountain without human influence, it rolled down from the mountain without human assistance and it filled the earth so far as the symbolism gives us any light, without human aid, and purely by an invisible and resistless power. The Rev. Jas. Freeman Clarke, a cultivated and vigorous thinker, embodies a kindred thought in this fragment: " All who desire to work with us in advancing the Kingdom of God." If I had the ear of the distinguished divine, I should feel as free to say to him as to the Herald corres- pondent, "Dear sir, your language does not tally with Bible thought." I pronounce these words, and all like them, exotic both in thought and expression to the New Testa- ment language and ideas. The recognized relationship in the New Testament of godly men and women of the church is altogether different from their relationship to the king- dom. " Phoebe, a servant of the church at Cenchrea." (Kom. 16: 1.) " The messengers of the churches." (2 Cor. 8: 23.) "The elders of the church." (Jas. 5: 14.) No such classes or individuals under such names are ever mentioned as engaged in the kingdom. On the other hand we have mention made of heirs of the kingdom, but no apostle ever penned, no evangelist ever suggested " heirs of the church?' The mode of becoming a member of a church would seem nowadays, at least, to allow the expression, "enter into the church." But not a solitary instance can be found in the THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH. 191 New Testament where this familiar modern phrase is so employed, although the word church occurs in our English version 112 times, and its Greek equivalent about 115 times. But in the Gospels "Enter into the Kingdom" is found ten times, half of them future, as shown by the tense of the verb, and the rest indefinite; not one case occurring in which any one is mentioned as having entered into the Kingdom of God. CONTRASTS BETWEEN CHURCH AND KINGDOM. To " see the Kingdom of God " is spoken of as a privilege in the Gospel. But an important prerequisite to the privi- lege is named by Christ himself: "Except a man be born from above he can not see the Kingdom of God." (John* chap. 3.) Ananias and Sapphira found their way into the early Christian Church, as we have every reason to believe, without a spiritual regeneration. Not born from above, they saw the church. To one who for the first time carefully examines, in a good Concordance, the contrasts and the correspondence between the Church and Kingdom, I venture to predict some feeling of surprise, and a convic- tion that these words are further separated there than in ordinary parlance. The Kingdom a unit; the Church an aggregate of churches; the Kingdom of God, the Kingdom of Christ, is never once used in the plural. Wherever " Kingdoms " is found reference is made to the Kingdoms of this World, always recognized as transient. The churches is a common New Testament expression. Luke writes: " Then had the churches rest." (Acts 9: 31.) Paul sends thanks to u all the churches of the Gentiles." (Rom. 16: 4), and writes to the brethren at Rome, " The churches of Christ salute you." (Rom. 16: 16.) He refers in his letter to the Cor- inthians to "the church of Asia." (1 Cor. 16:19, and also to "the churches of Macedonia." (2 Cor. 8: 1.) In the epistle to the Galatians he mentions the churches of 192 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. Galatia, and also of Judea. (Gal. 1: 2-22), and in one of his earliest letters speaks of " the churches of God." (2 Thesss., 1:4.) The Kevelator designates the church of Ephesus, the church in Smyrna, in Pergamos, in Sardis, in Thyatira, showing that churches were local. The Kingdom embraces the whole earth, and hence so far as the world or man is concerned, is universal. Common usage here accords with Scripture usage. We are wont to say: The Episcopal Church; the Lutheran Church; the Presbyterian Church; the Keformed Church; the Greek Church; the Catholic Church; and I suppose we properly say Congre- gational Churches, and Baptist Churches and Unitarian Churches. But does any one venture to speak of the Methodist Kingdom, or the Lutheran Kingdom. Do we ever say Kingdoms of Christ, Kingdoms of God? Many of the best thinkers and profoundest scholars of the age incline to the position that the radical meaning of kKKhioia, limits it to a single thing, and that the comprehensive sense is a figurative one. Dr. Christian Frederic Kling, in his commentary on Corinthians, which is a part of Lange's great work, gives us what is requisite to constitute a true church thus: 1. " An assemblage before God and for God." 2. " It consists of those who are consecrated to God in Jesus Christ." 3. " It is thus consecrated through the mighty creative will of God." 4. " Its members are such as call upon the name of Jesus Christ." "These things may exist in connection with many glaring faults in true professing believers, and with many false professions (articles?) of faith, which yet do not necessarily vitiate the claim to be called a true church of God." Many among the masses escape some at least of the errors of clerical theorizers. Few, perhaps, of the common people identify the Church and the King- dom. They speak of their becoming united with the church THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH. 193 as a thing of the past, but they talk about their entrance into the Kingdom as a thing of the future. I recall in my ministry an excellent English brother, an unlettered man, hardly able to read, but a man whose good sense and fluent, admirable use of quaint Anglo-Saxon, always interested and often amazed me. Many a time have I been astonished at his marvellous combinations of strong expressive monosyllables, from ten to twenty in number, with scarcely a dissyllable among them, perhaps not a single one. He used to say: " I mean by the grace of God to find a home in the Kingdom." He was right. To him it is a thing of the future. I sincerely trust that he will at least realize his aim and join the ransomed host in the Kingdom of our God. But he had been in the church forty years. The Kingdom is everlasting, the church tem- porary. If, as has been maintained and we think proved, the Kingdom is an end, as such it is to the everlasting. On the other hand, the church, as means to an end, can not be supposed to continue when it has accomplished its design. Gabriel declared to Mary in reference to her Son: " He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest, and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His Father David ; and He shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His Kingdom there shall be no end." (Luke 1 : 32-33.) Every Christian believer admits that the first part of the prediction is literally true. He is great. He has been, and is now, throughout Christendom, called the Son of the Highest by all who accept the testimony of the Scriptures as trustworthy. It is conceded, also, that of His King- dom, in the strictest and most literal sense, there shall be no end. Is it legitimate to pare the prophecy all around, and insist that the part thus taken off is strictly literal, and then demand that the very heart of the prediction be made figurative, or rather mystical, or, if figurative, in a 13 194 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. figure refusing analysis and leaving one utterly at loss for its real meaning? Not quite 1 Language has rights that intelligent men are bound to respect. Thomas Huxley never threw out a more biting satire than when he took Milton's idea of the creation as unfolded in Paradise Lost. He did not take the statement of Mo&es, because he well knew that there would be a dozen modifications of the lan- guage of Moses to prepare it for the exigency. The hit at this protean flexibility of Genesis and the recognized inflex- ibility of the Paradise Lost was a severe thrust with a sharp rapier. When we render the laws of language in the Bible as we do in Virgil or in Horace or in Plato or in Homer, there will be a reasonable ground for anticipating some- thing like unanimity on the interpretation of the Scrip- tures. While we abuse the Hebrew of the Old and the Greek of the New Testament, there ought to be, and I trust there will be, differences. Peter confirms the words of Gabriel in regard to the duration of the Kingdom: " The everlasting Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ/' 2 Pet. 1:11. The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews, in like manner, speaks of the promise of eternal inheritance. Heb. 9:15. That figures do not enter at all into these precious promises could probably not be claimed by any. But many figures do not change the general direction of a statement A throne is often used by metonomy to represent regal authority and dominion. But if the throne of England be named, it can not be the regal authority and dominion of Russia that is signified thereby; it must be the authority and dominion of England. The throne of David may be a metonomy denoting the royal rule and domain of David, but it can not mean empire on which mortal eye never gazed, or be in some remote world of which human imagination has but dimly conceived. When God prom- ised to deliver Judah into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH. 1 the terrors of the great day. They are identical with the THE GATHERING OF ISRAEL. " hundred and forty and four thousand sealed " ones of the seventh of the Kevelation. For those sealed ones are all Israelites, it being expressly said that they are taken from among " the tribes of the children of Israel," and, besides, the twelve tribes being all enumerated by their names, as " the tribe of Judah," " the tribe of Keuben," " the tribe of Gad," etc. If that is not a description of the literal Israel, then is there no way of certainly identifying them at all? I stop not to discuss whether the number of the sealed is to be interpreted literally or symbolically, but,, however interpreted, that there are only twelve thousand out of each tribe presents the idea of a remnant. And, as it is said they are sealed, in whatever way the sealing may be done, on purpose that they shall be discriminated from others, and so be preserved through the judgments of the awful day; be brought to the end of, and beyond those fiery sufferings of their people and themselves on the occa- sion of the Lord's Advent. Thus they are precisely the elect remnant of whom the Old Testament so often speaks. And preserved they will have been, when the dread grand- eurs of that Epiphany from heaven shall have passed. There they stand in their Divine deliverance, God's chosen Israel, a wondrous company. 6. And now comes to pass their conversion to God. " They will have witnessed the terrors of the reign of Anti- christ, will have seen the plagues of the Kevelation poured out upon the nations under his control, will have beheld the heavens darkened, the Lord descend in glory, the graves open, the saints taken, the Day of the Lord come upon Jerusalem, the heavens and the earth shaken. They will see, and yet find themselves protected through all these things." [B. W. Newton.] " They will look on Him whom they have pierced." God will pour upon them " the spirit of grace and supplications; " they shall mourn for their sins; 234 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. and " there shall be a fountain opened to them for sin and for uncleanness." They will believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and they shall be forgiven; and not forgiven only, but accepted in all the preciousness of that Name which they and their nation had rejected and abhorred. IV. Particulars of the gathering subsequent to the Advent: 1. It will be effected by both human and divine agency. Partly by human. (Isa. 49: 22, 23; 66: 19, 20.) Partly by Divine. (Isa. 11:15, 16.) In this latter circumstance it will contrast with the first gathering, for it is the unvarying implication of Scripture that Israel's recovery before the Advent will come about in a natural and ordinary way. As has been said by a late writer (Molyneux), " India will be parceled out of the world's map, by common consent, for the occupation of its ancient possessors. The conviction of its expediency, and the stroke of a pen, on the part of one or two of the leading Continental powers, and the deed would be done." Even now we may almost speak of England's pro- tectorate of the Holy Land. God's providence is moving apace, and evidently is rapidly nearing the crisis of Israel's first recovery. But their second restoration will be effected as well by miracle as by human agency. 2. In this second gathering, as in the first, returning Israel will as yet be unconverted. (Ezek. 36: 24-38.) 3. Immediately upon their restoration, however, they will be converted. See Ezekiel as above. Also the Better Covenant. (Jer. 31:31-34.) "And so," exclaims Paul, 46 all Israel shall be saved." Then it is that that glorious anthem, the twelfth of Isaiah, will peal from the lips of an entirely converted nation. 4. And Israel's land in that day shall answer back to the gospel holiness of its inhabitants. In extent it will be according to the covenant with Abraham (Gen. 15 : 18), THE GATHERING OF ISRAEL. 235 wherein the Lord said, " Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates." As to fertility and beauty, " The wilder- ness and solitary place shall be glad for them, and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose. It shall blos- som abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing. In the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert." (Isa. 35.) "Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree." (Isa. 55.) " The mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the Lord, and shall water the Valley of Shittim." (Joel 3: 18.) "The plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed." (Amos 9: 13.) As to universal harmony: " The wolf, also, shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf, and the young lion, and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed, their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice's den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth (land?) shall be full of the knowl- edge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea." (Isa. 11: 6-9.) And as to duration, God said to Abraham, " 1 will give to thee and to thy seed after thee all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession." (Gen. IT: 8.) "Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken," says God to the holy inhab- itants, " neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate; but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah; for the Lord delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married." (Isa. 62: A.) 236 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST, 5. The spiritual blessings of millennial Israel will be the same as are ours now. They will be sons of God (Hosea 1: 10); so are all Christians now. They will be under the mediatorship sacrifice and priesthood of the New Cov- enant (Jer. 31:31; Heb. 8:6); so are we. They will please God, and therefore must have been brought into living union with Christ, through the Spirit, even as we, for " they that are in the flesh (unregenerate) can not please God." (Horn. 8: 8.) They will say to Him, " The Lord our right- eousness " (Jer. 23: 6); so do we. They will be raised in His likeness, at the last resurrection, in virtue of being in Him; we shall similarly be raised at the first resurrection, in virtue of being in Him. (1 Cor. 15.) At the same time, however, the imprisonment of Satan and his angels, the presence of the visible glory of Christ and His saints, His investiture with the sovereignty of earth, the release of creation from its groan, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon all flesh, these and other like things will give to the millennial age a glorious difference and superiority, as con- trasted with our present age. 6. Great and exalted will be millennial Israel's position and influence in the earth. " And thou, O tower of the flock, the strong hold of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, even the first dominion ; . the Kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem." (Micah 4: 8.) u Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God." (Isa. 62:3.) " At that time they shall call Jerusalem the Throne of the Lord, and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem." (Jer. 3:17.) u Out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem." (Isa. 2:3.) "He shall cause them that come of Jacob to take root: Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the lace of the world with fruit." (Isa. 27:6.) The THE GATHERING OF ISRAEL. 237 children of Jerusalem shall be made princes in all the earth (Ps. 45:16), and the nations shall at last be regulated according to God. I have said nothing of the relations of millennial Israel to the Church of the glorified. But I must close. "What a vast subject we have been surveying, yet only as by light- ning glances! How strong the proof, from God's Holy "Word, of these gatherings of Israel! And have we not confirmation superabounding, in the miraculous preserva- tion of that people through well nigh a score of centuries of transcendent sufferings? Can the world show anything like it? Twice 1,800 years old, they saw the proud Egyptian perish in the waters of the Red Sea; they heard the fall of great Babylon's power; they witnessed the ruins of the Syro-Macedonian conquests. And now they have outlived the Csesars, and outlived the dark ages. They have been through all civilizations, shared in all convulsions, and have kept pace with the entire progress of discovery and art. And here they stand to-day, as dis- tinct as ever, occupying no country of their own, scattered through all countries, identical in their immemorial phys- iognomy, earth's men of destiny, before the venerableness of whose pedigree the proudest scutcheons of mankind are but as trifles of yesterday. But have they suffered severely ? One convulsive groan of agony breathing through eighteen centuries, and heard in every land but our own. At the siege of Jerusalem by Titus, besides the tens of thousands led into captivity, it was as if in a single action of a great war the slain on one side should amount to 1,300,000; and when, the remaining Jews having been expelled from their country, they attempted, sixty years afterward, to return, a half million more were slaughtered. For centuries they were forbidden, on pain of death, even to set foot in Jerusalem. Under King John of England, 1,500 were massacred at 238 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. York in one day. Under Ferdinand and Isabella 800,000, by a single decree, were forced out to sea in boats, and the most of them perished in the waves. They have been fined and fleeced by almost every government known to history. They have been banished from place to place; banished and recalled, and banished again. By the Code of Justinian, they were incapable of executing wills, of testifying in courts of justice, of having social and public worship. The Koran of Mahomet stigmatized them as wild dogs; the Romish Church excommunicated any one who held inter- course with them; the Greek Church uttered anathemas still more severe. They have been forced to dissemble to save their lives, and in Spain and Portugal have even become bishops, and have governed in convents. In the prophetic words of the Old Testament, they have been " a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse;" they have been " taken up in the lips of talkers," and have been " an infamy of the people;" and the general estimate of them has ripened into the intense contempt of that dramatic con- ception Shy lock, the Jew of Yen ice. And now in this nineteenth century they are a suffering people still, but still as indissoluble as ever. But now all this is not according to the established course of nations. The northern tribes came into Southern Europe, and are now not at all distinguishable. No Englishman can say that he derives from the Britons and not from the Romans, or from the Saxons and not from the Normans. On the contrary, the Jew is a Jew still. Even our own all-appropriating country, which denationalizes Germans, Irish, French, Spaniards, Finns, Swedes, has left untouched this wondrous people. Here they are, holding fast to that one tell-tale face, keeping up the sacred learning of their traditions, self-conscious in their isolation, irre- pressible in their love of Jerusalem, sublime in their sin- THE GATHERING OF ISRAEL. 239 guJar patriotism, evermore looking and longing for their Messiah, the same intense individuality as when, lord of the soil, he plucked his olives from the trees of Judea. And, what is more, these world wanderers of the centuries, these tribes of the weary foot, have not only survived, but have now risen again as an element of power among mankind. The Jew is the banker of the world ; he is among the fore- most, whether in science, or literature, or government. In witchery of song unsurpassed, he enchants the world with some of the sweetest music it ever heard. Surely he is the standing miracle of the world's current history; the bush of Moses, ever burning, yet never consumed; an ocular demonstration of how God may energize the secret springs of a people's life, yet without disturbing individual freedom or social characteristics; an unanswerable refutation of that godless philosophy which would turn the Almighty out of His own universe. And for what have they thus been borne in the hands of God, all along the ages? Beyond a peradven- ture, if so literally have been fulfilled the prophecies which foretold their sufferings and their preservation, equally sure are the predicted grandeurs of their future. But let us not take leave of our subject without making application of these two thoughts. First, it will be, as we have seen, their own true faith in the cleansing blood of Christ that shall open to them the golden gates of their millennial nationality. On what a flood of illustration i& thus brought to our own hearts the exact truth of that Scrip- ture, "He that believeth shall be saved, he that believeth not shall be damned." Have we now that faith? Secondly, pray for the peace of Jerusalem. "For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be but life from the dead?" (Horn. 11: 15); life from the dead in the resurrection bodies of the saints, since then shall occur the first resurrection 240 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. (Isa. 25: 8, and 1 Cor. 15: 54), and life from the dead in the spiritual quickening of the nations. Oh, this restoration of Israel is the very centre of God's gracious purposes concerning the world. "For Zion's sake will He not hold His peace, and for. Jerusalem's sake He will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth." Therefore, "Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep not silence, and give Him no rest till He establisheth, and till He make Jerusa- lem a praise in the earth " (Isa. 62: 1, 6, 7). " THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS. THE JUDGMENT, OK JUDGMENTS." BY THE REV. DR. J. T. COOPER, OP THE UNITED PRESBYTERIAN SEM- INARY, ALLEGHENY, PENN. I HAVE been requested to give expression to my views on a topic the very mention of which ought to awaken in the heart a most profound feeling of awe, namely: The Judg- ment, or Judgments. The importance and solemnity of the subject have almost deterred me from engaging in its discussion, yet I attempt it with the conviction that it is our duty, with diligence and reverence, to study and to confer with each other on the events of unfulfilled proph- ecy; for, in the words of Dr. Yan Oosterzee, Professor of Theology in the University of Utrecht, " the stammering language of faith is preferable to the powerless silence of unbelief." In my inquiries on this subject I have sought to be guided by the Word of God and by that alone. Isaac Tay- lor has well said, in his "Natural History of Enthusiasm," u Christianity being, as it is, a religion of documents and interpretation, must utterly exclude from its precincts the adventurous spirit of innovation." If this be true of every subject embraced in the Christian religion, how pre-emi- nently true is it of the one before us for examination ? Here, surely, it becomes reason to step aside and give place to faith. She may, indeed, give us some hints of a judgment to come, as she does of the awful fact that we live under a retributive government, and that cognizance is taken of our actions by an invisible and ever-present being, whose attri- butes render Him the determined foe of vice and the stead- fast upholder of righteousness. Experience and observation 16 242 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. show that there is no accurate proportion at present main- tained between conduct and condition that the wicked often triumph in their iniquity, while virtue is despised; her humble votaries borne down by the gloom of adversity, or reared in the midst of sorrows and tears. These facts, taken in connection with the foregoing suggestions of rea- son, seem to justify the conclusion that a crisis is before our world in which there will be a glorious vindication of the justice of the moral Governor of the Universe, or, in other words, a last judgment. But, while it becomes us thus far to listen to the voice of reason, she has nothing to say as to the mode of God's procedure in this judgment, the time of its occurrence and the circumstances or events connected with it. For information on these topics, as well as for a confirmation of the fact itself, we must look to the Word of God, and to that word alone. Let us, then, with reverence, open this word and hear what it has to say on this all-im- portant theme. I. What do the Scriptures teach us in relation to the import of the word judgment or judgments, viewed as an act or series of acts performed by the God of Heaven ? It is a matter of importance that we have Scriptural" ideas on this subject. In answer to the question just propounded, the following facts are clearly indicated: 1. The word is sometimes used where the prominent idea is that of rule or government. Thus we speak of the "Judges of Israel" as Gideon, Sampson, Jephtha, Samuel, etc. Of each of these persons it is said " he judged Israel." Here the idea of rule or government must be regarded as prominent, with, perhaps, a special reference to the condition of those judged as exposed to enemies. When Israel wanted a king they said: "We will have a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us and fight our battles." In Acts " THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS." 243 10:4-2; 2 Tim. 4:1, and 1 Pet. 4:5, Christ is said to be " Judge of quick and dead." Compare these with Kom. 14: 0, where He is called "the Lord both -of the dead and the living." In Psalms 72:1-4, the Messiah is spoken of as one who should "judge Thy people with righteousness, and Thy poor with judgments." And again, " He shall judge the poor of the people, He shall save the children of the needy, and shall break in pieces the oppressor." These passages, and they are only specimens of what might be adduced, clearly show that the word judgment is employed in the Scriptures not simply to denote a single act in which a sentence is passed upon a culprit, either in the way of acquittal or condemnation, but a series of acts in which are involved the exercise of lordship in the way of ruling, gov- erning, saving, vindicating, protecting and taking ven- geance. These ideas are doubtless included in such expressions as the following in the Psalms: 41 Arise, O God, judge the earth ; for Thou shalt inherit the nations." (Psalms 72 : 8.) " For He cometh, for He cometh to judge the earth: He shall judge the world with righteousness and the people with His truth." (Psalms 96 : 13.) 2. In harmony with the foregoing, the term judgment is sometimes employed to express those dealings of God with the children of men in which there will be a revelation of their fixed character and a determination of their everlast- ing destiny. In the language of the author of Christian Dogmatics, we may say: "That the history of the world is a continued judgment of the world," is acknowledged by all who attentively and believingly observe it. But it is equally manifest, that it can by no means yet be termed a final judgment, although it is unceasingly preparing the way for this last. This awfully momentous fact has been made the subject of repeated prophetic announcements. Jude, ver. 14, by the spirit of inspiration, lets us know 244 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. that " Enoch, the seventh from Adam prophesied. Behold the Lord cometh with ten thousand of His saints to execute judgment upon all."' Here we have at least the culmina- tion of all past judgments. The Apostle Peter in Acts 10 : 42, speaks of the judgment not only of the "quick" or living, but of the " dead," language which carries us for- ward to a final day of reckoning. The Apostle Paul, in Acts 17:31, speaks of "a day in which God will judge the world " (ten oikoumenen, the inhabited world). To this day, doubtless, he refers, in Acts 24: 25, as " the judgment to come." This day of judgment to come is no doubt to be identified with that which, in almost all the prophetic writings, is spoken of as "the day of the Lord." Not, indeed, that judgment is the only scene which that day is to disclose; but it will doubtless constitute one of its char- acteristic features. The impression must be made upon the mind of every reader of the foregoing passages that this "day of judgment " is to be final to the party or parties judged. There are two passages, at least, which unmistak- ably indicate this awful fact. One of these is Matt. 25: 31-46, in which such sentences are pronounced by " the King," who sits upon His throne, as fix the eternal destiny of the two great parties there referred to under the name of " sheep " and " goat." That scene ends the matter for- ever with each of these classes, exalting the one to the possession of a kingdom, and dooming the other to " ever- lasting fire, prepared for the Devil and his angels." The other passage is Eev. 20:11-15, where the "dead, small and great," are said to " stand before God," and " the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works." We are further told that << whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire " a lake from which the Word of God tells us of no recovery. Here the scene ends. "THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS: 1 245 This final judgment involves, to use the language of Dr. Yan Oosterzee, u the manifestation of that which has been done for ages concealed, and jet could not fail ultimately to become manifest; the separation of that which was here, for wise reasons, combined for a time, but which was never inwardly united, and therefore can not always remain together; the final retribution both of the greatest and the least thing which was done or left undone here on earth, with an impartial justice, which in itself leaves no room for the thought of an appeal to a higher tribunal." II. To whom does the work of judgment belong? I answer, it is to none other than the Lord Jesus Christ, the God-man Redeemer. This matter is indisputably settled by the Spirit of God, in the fifth chapter of the Gospel according to John. Two actions in that chapter are ascribed to our Lord. One of these, namely, that of raising the dead, He is said to perform in conjunction with the Father. Thus it is said in verse twenty-first: "As the Father raiseth up the dead and quickeneth them, even so the Son quickeneth whom He will." The other action, ascribed to Him in the next verse, is that of judging; but this is declared to be His work to the exclusion of the Father. See how explicit is the statement there: " For the Father judge th no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son." The rea- sons for this are given in verses 23 and 27. It is a matter of special importance to mark the carefulness with which the Scriptures keep this fact before us. See Matt. 25 : 31-46 ; Acts 17:31; 2 Cor. 5: 10, etc. III. How long shall the work of judgment last? I shall give the answer to this question in the words of James Glasgow, D.D., " Irish General Assembly's Professor of Oriental Languages; late Fellow of the University of Bombay, and late member of the Royal Asiatic Society, Bombay." Being a decided post-millennarian, he can not 246 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. be supposed to be influenced by any leading toward pre- millenniarianisra in the remarks which I am about to quote. In " The Apocalypse Translated and Expounded" he thus expresses himself on page 511: "Various views of the final judgment are presented in the Bible as to time and circumstances. It is a day (John 6 : 39) ; a time (1 Cor. 4 : 5 ; 1 Peter 1:5); a personal inspection of a flock (Matt. 25:31); a harvest (Matt. 13: 39, 11, 12); and in this vision a census, according to the sta- tistic evidence of books. The 'hour' of the Lord's coming is also repeatedly mentioned. Now in the text there is nothing said whatever as to the length of time to be occupied ; but popular thinkers, with a presumption equal to their ignorance a sinful presumption fix it down to a human day of twenty-four or twelve hours. Learned theologians, expositors, and enlightened preachers are more cautious. Of these I can not find one (and I have searched libraries) makingthe time a human day or any brief human period. In various other places of Scripture besides prophetic visions, a day means, according to the radical sense of the word, a period, as when Paul calls the Gospel age a day of salvation. (2 Cor. 6 : 2.) The other terms a season, a harvest, etc., render a human day impossible; and it appears equally impossible when we consider the work and the means. Angels are employed to sever the righteous from among the wicked. (Matt. 13: 41.) While Jesus could do it all in a moment, and without any instruments, such is not the divine arrange- ment. But the angels, or saints, honored as instruments, could not do their work without adequate time. To separate the righteous from the wicked, which Christ informs us He will seud forth His messengers to do, they must see and know all men, and be made acquainted with their characters individually, recognizing those who have the image of Christ, and removing those who want it. To do this, they will receive divine guidance ; but their doing of it must be to them a work of what in human affairs would be reckoned a long time. And if we rightly con- sider what is here said of the books, it can not fail to bring us to the same conclusion." Again, on page 514, he says: "There seems much more rationality in the interpretation given by Mode, that the time of judgment is a thousand human years, than in that of those who, without a shred of Scriptural authority, restrict it to a human day, or some such little span of secular time. * One day,' says Peter, ' is with the Lord as a thousand years.' Whitby quibbles idly about the word ' as.' The very minimum of meaning that can be taken from this is, that a day in God's reckon, ing of His own works is as a thousand years of human reckoning." " THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS." 247 I accord with the view expressed in the foregoing extract from the commentary of this distinguished professor of the Presbyterian Church of Ireland. It seems to me that it is in perfect accord with the Scriptures to represent the whole of the millennial dispensation as " the last day," " the day of the Lord," and " the day of judgment," just as the present dispensation is called "the day of salvation." (1 Cor. 6:6.) One of the distinguishing features of " that day " is judgment. It opens with judgment, it has judg- ment running through it and it closes with the judgment of the great white throne. The Parousia or coming of the Lord introduces that day, but there is no authority for confounding it with it, and it should by no means be done. IY. Who, according to the Scriptures, are the persons or parties judged? These 1 shall proceed to specify. We have the judgment of Christians or true believers. To this the Apostle refers in 2 Cor. 5: 10: " For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." This pas- sage has been regarded by both pre-millenriarians and post- millennarians as indicating simply a general judgment without reference to any particular class of persons. My opinion is that the Apostle here has an exclusive reference to believers. The following are my reasons: 1. The use of the personal pronouns in this chapter. See the verses preceding the one before us. It is utterly impossible to find other than believers in those verses. There is such a thing (and is it not a precious thought?) as the family pronouns of believers. They are " We," " Us " and " Our." Rarely does the Spirit use these pronouns in a larger sense as including unbelievers. When this is done the reference is so plain that there is no danger of mistak- ing it. 248 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. 2. Nothing is said expressly in this passage of judgment, but simply of their manifestation before the seat of Christ. (j>avepcjd?]vai 6ei eftirpocBev rov fifaaToc rov Xptorov, 1. ., ' We must all be made manifest before the seat of Christ." Hence there is in the passage nothing which requires us to understand the reference of the Apostle to be to others than believers. A passage very similar to the one we have been consid- ering is found in Rom. 14: 10 "We shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ." This passage, however, is no stronger than the other. They both imply nothing more than that the conduct of believers will be brought under review at the last day " that every one of us shall give an account of himself to God." There is then to be a judgment of believers. As to the nature of this judgment, it can not, con- sistently with the Scriptures, be regarded as involving a judicial trial or investigation of their claim or title to eternal life. That question was forever settled for the believers at the cross, and, actually and formally determined by the Judge of all when he believed on the Lord Jesns Christ. Eternal life was not held out to the believer as something to be realized in the future, but as a blessing of which he became possessed the moment his faith rested upon the Lord Jesus Christ. It was the solemn declara- tion of the Master " He that believeth on Me hath ever- lasting life." (John 6: 47.) Nor is this all. We find Him saying in John 5: 24: " Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth My word and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation (or judgment, as the world means), but is passed from death unto life." The word $piaif in our version, here ren- dered " condemnation," occurs forty-eight times in the New Testament, and is rendered judgment in forty-one of these instances. It is so rendered in the 27th and 30th verses of THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS. this same chapter. No good reason, we are persuaded, can be given for translating it in this verse condemnation and in the 29th verse " damnation." The Scriptures, however,, clearly teach us that there is to be a judgment of believers in relation to their faithfulness. Paul, the Apostle, says in 1 Cor. 3: 14: "The day shall declare " the work of Gos- pel ministers, and that " the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. The same apostle, in Korn. 14: 10, .dis- suades the Christian from "judging his brother, or setting at naught his brother," by the consideration that " we must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ," and that " every one of us shall give account of himself to God, n clearly showing that our conduct is to be brought under review. The same important truth is most impressively brought before us in the parable of the talents. In the language of the professor of Theology in the University of Utrecht, I may remark: " Nor need we feel surprised that, according to the constant representation of the New Tes- tament, even the chosen and believing ones shall appear before the judgment seat of Christ, although the Lord has said in another place that His people are already in sub- stance judged here on earth. They come not into the judg- ment of condemnation, but yet appear in the presence of the Judge, before whom they have boldness, and by whom they are now made manifest, in order to receive before the eyes of all a gracious reward of tried fidelity." 2. There is a crisis or hour of judgment awaiting both the houses of Israel in the latter days. The ten tribes are at present hidden from view, but under the judicial wrath of God. The awful extent of this wrath, as it hath rested and still continues to rest upon the house of Judah, ha& been the theme of historians without number. In Hos. 3: 4, 5, we are told that " the children of Israel shall abide many days without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and 250 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. without an image, and without an ephod, and without tera- phim." For " image," "ephod," and " teraphim," the Seventy have altar, priesthood and manifestations. What a remarkable description of their present condition! The next verse shows us that " afterward shall the children of Israel return and seek the Lord their God, and David their king; and shall fear the Lord and His goodness in the latter days." In harmony with this prophecy of liosea, Jesus, to whom all judgment had been committed, utters in the midst of His tears the following judgment: "Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord." The probability is that this return will be made by them principally in an unconverted state. The Gentile nations are to besiege them and make a terrific assault upon them. In Jer. 30 : 7, the prophet looks forward to that time and exclaims: "Alas! For that day is great, so that none is like it; it is even the time of Jacob's trouble, but he shall be saved out of it." In Dan. 12: 1, we have these words: "At that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth forth for Thy people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as there never was since there was a nation , even to that same time; and at that time Thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book." In Zech. 12: 8, 9, the prophet thus speaks: " It shall (Some to pass that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die, but the third part shall be let therein, and I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried; they shall call on my name, and I will hear them; I will say, It is my people, and they shall say, The Lord is my God." In Isaiah 4:3, 4, it is said: " It shall come to pass that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in "THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS." 25: Jerusalem, shall b3 called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem; when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning." How this deliverance will be effected for the Jews after they have been thus terribly judged may be seen in Zech. 14: 1-4: " Behold the day of the Lord cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women rav- ished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the Lord go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fought in the day of battle. And His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives." The spirit of repentance shall come upon them with great power. In proof of this read Zech. 12: 9-12: "And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the House of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplications; and they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for Him as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for Him, as one that is in bitterness for his first born." Ah, brethren, will not the tearful prophecy of the pierced and crucified Galilean have its fulfillment then? But what about the house of Israel? To what extent they shall share in the judgments of which we have been speaking I am not prepared to say. It is clear, however, that a day of fearful reckoning is before them, also, though the scene of this judgment will most probably not be their own land. In proof of this read Ezek. 20: 32-38. Here, after assuring them that He would rule over them "with a 252 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out," Jehovah solemnly declares to them, " and I will bring you into the wilderness of the people, and there will I plead with you face to face. Like as I pleaded with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so will I plead with you, saith the Lord God." 3. The Scriptures speak of a judgment of the nations. A description of that judgment we have in Matt. 25: 31-46. It is there said u When the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory; and before Him shall be gathered all nations, and He shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats. And He shall set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left." Our Lord has been giving a series of parables, that of the fig tree, the ten virgins and the talents. Some have, therefore, thought that this might with propriety be called the parable of the sheep and the goats. However that may be, it would be certainly improper to subject the imagery here imployed to a rigidly literal exegesis. The whole scene is doubtless designed to set before us the sol- emn fact that there is a day of reckoning before the nations of the earth, and that that day is the time of our Lord's glorious advent. The separation which is here represented as being made by the King, the words addressed by Him to the two parties before Him, and the replies which they respectively make, are each designed to set before us the characteristics and the issues of that judgment scene which is here so impressively described. How sublime, how majestic the scene! The popular and prevalent idea attached to this scene is that it is descriptive of a grand assize in which not only those who shall be alive at the time, but all who have died and will yet die, shall be judged, they, of course, having " THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS." 253 been raised to life. It is, therefore, in their belief, a judg- ment of the quick and the dead. This view can not be maintained. The following considerations are sufficient to show that the judgment scene does not embrace any of the resurrec- tion, but only those who are alive at that epoch: 1. The passage contains no reference whatever to a res- urrection. The presumption is that an event so important and calculated to add so much interest to the scene would have been mentioned had our Lord intended to include the dead as well as the living. We have here, then, a mere assumption and that, too, against a strong presumption. 2. The fact that these here judged are called " nations," is conclusive against the admission of any others but the living. There is no instance in all the Scriptures in which the word WVOG nation, is employed with any reference, direct or indirect, to those who have died. There are upward of 150 texts in which this word occurs in the New Testament, and among all these there is not one instance of its denoting any who were not or are not to be the inhabitants of the earth at the time to which the passage refers. 3. There are other places in the Scriptures in which similar expressions are employed in connection with the infliction of terrible judgments, and which probably point to the same events, which are universally admitted to have no reference to a judgment of any but those who are alive. We shall quote a few out of many passages which might be adduced. Isa. 34: 1, 2; "Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people; let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come forth of it. For the indignation of the Lord is upon all nations (the Sept. KavTd ra 0w?), and His fury upon all their armies. He hath utterly destroyed them ; He hath delivered them to the slaughter." Joel 3:2: "I will also gather all nations 254 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. (Sept. <7wd Trdvra ra lOvrj and will bring them down into the Yalley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there." And again in verse 11: "Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen (n&vra ra Wvri) and gather yourselves together roundabout; thither cause Thy mighty ones to come down, O Lord!" Terse 12: "Let the heathen (Sept. Trdvra ra Mhtj) be wakened and come up to the Yal- ley of Jehoshaphat ; for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about." Auutpivai Trdvra ra edvrj KVidddev. In Ezek. 39, after calling upon every beast, etc., to come and eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, we have these words in verse 21 " And I will set My glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see My judgment that I have executed, and My hand that I have laid upon them." Read Zech. 14: 1, 2: "Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle," etc. And then in the 5th verse it is said : " The Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with Thee." Now, I ask, if these passages where Jehovah is represented as coming with all His saints, and gathering all the nations and sitting to judge them, and where it is said He shall set His glory among the nations and they shall see His glory if, I say, these passages are regarded by no one as having any reference to a judgment of any but the living, on what ground can it be alleged that "the nations" mentioned in the 25th chapter of Matthew, include not only all the living, but all, both old and young, who have died ? 4. Another consideration which shows that the persons here judged are not all the dead, as well as those who may be alive at that time, is the reasons given by the Judge for His decision in relation to the two respective classes into which He has arranged them, namely, the sheep and the "THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS." 255 goats. These reasons were the kindness shown by the one class and the kindness not shown by the other class to His brethren, even to the least of them. It requires no words to show that, not to mention infants, there are millions upon millions who have died, to whom these reasons would have been wholly inapplicable. What multitudes, in the ages of the past, have passed away who never heard of the name of Jesus or his brethren! 5. The form in which this judgment is presented seems to be altogether distinct from the one contained in Rev. 20: 11-15. Here there is no mention, as in that case, of a formal trial no opening of books and judging out of those things that were written in the books, according to their works. We have here a " King " sitting upon " the throne of His glory," and calling up rebellious or obedient subjects, upon whom a sentence of reward or punishment is passed. They are divided into classes in a way which presupposes their previous guilt or innocence, and then the sentence is pronounced with a declaration of the ground on which it is based. The foregoing considerations, it is humbly thought, demonstrate that, whatever may or may not be the refer- ence in that solemn scene brought before us in this chapter, that reference can not be to a universal judgment both of the living and the dead. I now proceed to remark that there is a strong probability that Jesus by all the nations (x&vra rd tdvjj) refers simply to all Gentile nations, that is, to all those among the Gentiles who had shown kindness or had failed to show kindness to the brethren of Christ. 1. In favor of this view may be urged the following considerations: This is the most general reference of the original word here rendered " nation." This word, with the article, as in the passage before us, occurs, we think, not 256 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. less than one hundred and thirty-two times in the New Testament. It is rendered u the Gentiles " ninety-two times; " the nations " ten times; " the heathen " live times, arid simply u nations" twenty-five times only, in this sense it is employed in Matt. 6:31: "Take no thought, therefore, saying, what shall we eat, or what shall we drink, or wherewithal shall we be clothed. For after all these things do the Gentiles seek." In the parallel passage in Luke 12: 31, the word is rendered " nations." In the following pas- sages the word is rendered "Gentiles," Acts 11: 1; 13: 46, 48; Acts 14:2, 5; 18:6. As instances in which as used by our Lord, it is rendered " Gentiles," refer to Matt. 20: 25: "Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles," etc.; Luke 21: 24: "Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles till the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." These are merely given as specimens. If now we attach this idea to Matt. 25 : 42, we have simply a declaration on the part of Jesus that He will come to sit in judgment upon the Gentiles. Had the passage been rendered, " And before Him all the Gentiles shall be gathered," does any one believe that the idea which is now generally attached to these words would have taken such a hold upon the popular mind? The fact that the Gospel according to Matthew is universally admitted to have been designed primarily and specially for the Jews, gives no little weight to this con- sideration. 2. In favor of this view, may be urged the fact that it brings this passage into striking harmony with numerous other prophecies. Some of these have already been quoted, and, therefore, need not be restated. In them we are assured that there would be a day, spoken of repeatedly as " that day," and as " the day of the Lord," in which He would " gather all nations and bring them down into the Valley Jehoshaphat, and plead with them there for My people and " THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS." 257 My heritage, Israel;" and that he would there "sit and judge all the heathen round about." What have we here in Matthew, but another solemn warning, and that in the same words, from u the Shepherd and Judge of Israel " as to this " day of vengeance " that was before the nations. If we read the 25tli chapter of Jeremiah we shall find a descrip- tion of desolating judgments under the figure of a "wine cup," which the prophet is directed to present to the nations in succession. In the 25th verse it is said: "And all the Kings of the North, far and near, one with another, and all the Kingdoms of the world, which are upon the face of the earth " shall drink of this cup. In verses 30 and 33 we have these solemn words : " Therefore prophecy against them all these words, and say unto them, The Lord shall roar from on high, and utter his voice from His Holy habi- tation; He shall mightily roar upon His habitation; He shall give a shout as they that tread the grapes against all the inhabitants of the earth. A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth ; for the Lord hath a controversy with the nations; He will plead with all flesh; He will give them that are wicked to the sword, saith the Lord. Thus said the Lord of Hosts, Behold evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised from the coasts of the earth, and the slain of the Lord shall be at that day from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth; they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried ; they shall be dung upon the ground." In con- nection with these passages let Daniel 2: 31-45 be considered. Here we have the four successive Kingdoms of the earth represented as being broken in pieces and consumed by that Kingdom which the God of Heaven shall set up. So also in the Tth chapter the world-powers, including the kings of the earth and their adherents, are symbolized by four beasts. The last of these makes war with the -saints and prevails 17 258 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. against them " until the Ancient of Days came and judgment was given to the saints of the Most High,'' when it is said, verse 26, " the judgment shall sit and they shall take away his dominion to consume and destroy it unto the end." In correspondence with these Old Testament prophecies we have in Rev. 19: 11-21, a vivid- representation of the same terrible scene of judgment upon the nations, where we are told that " The beast was taken and with him the false prophet, etc., and cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone," a punishment similar to that to which those who are on the left hand of the King are doomed. In connection with these passages it would be well carefully to point 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Jude 14-15; 2 Thess. 2:8. In view, therefore, of the fact that the scene described in the 25th chapter of Matthew, if understood to be a prophecy of a judgment to which the Gentiles are to be subjected at the coming of the Lord, harmonizes with numerous other prophecies, both of the Old and New Testament Scriptures, it is, with deference, submitted that is most probably the idea that is to be attached to it. There appear to be three distinct classes referred to the "sheep," the " goats," and, as distinguished from both these, the " brethren of Christ." Some have thought that by his brethren, as distinguished from the others, we are to under- stand his brethren according to the flesh the Jews. Consult Horn. 9: 5, where the apostle tells us that Christ, as concerning the flesh, came of the fathers, referring to the Jewish patri- archs. In Rom. 11: 16, Paul speaks of the Jews as, though cast off, being a "holy," that is, a consecrated, "lump," and in verse 28 as " beloved for the fathers' sakes." Balaam, in Numb. 24:19, is forced to exclaim in relation to the Jewish nation, " Blessed is he that blesseth thee, and cursed is he that curseth thee." These and other similar passages seem to afford sufficient ground for the application by " THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS." 259 Christ to the covenant people of the endearing name of brethren. This view, we have no disposition to press, especially when we recall the words of Jesus: "My brethren are these who hear the word of God and keep it." But though this, is a judgment of Gentiles, and is to take place here on earth, it does not follow that the punishment inflicted or the reward conferred is merely of temporal character. The issues of the judgment are final in the case of both those on the right hand and the left hand of the Judge. The last verse declares : " These shall go away into everlasting punishment; but the righteous into life eternal." The former are made the heirs of a kingdom, while the latter are banished into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels. Some have doubtless been led by a superficial view of the language employed by the king in this sentence to identify this judgment with that of the great white throne which takes place after the millennium, when the " dead, small and great," are said to appear before God. If, however, we refer to Jude 7, we shall find that " Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them " are said to be " set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire." If these cities could suffer eternal fire many ages before the millennium, why could not the unrighteous be sent into everlasting fire? A similar punishment is (Rev. 14 : 10) inflicted and confessedly, too, before the millennium, upon those who " worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in their foreheads, or in their right hands." If they could be u tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the Holy Angels and in the presence of the Lamb," why not those who have persecuted the brethren of Christ? And if the beast and the false prophet can be, as all agree will be the case, cast " alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone" before the millennium, why 200 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. should there be any hesitation in admitting that this awful doom may be inflicted upon the enemies of Christ and His suffering brethren ? (Rev. 19 : 20.) Notwithstanding the most fearful judgments shall thus be visited upon the nations of the earth, the result, it would appear, is not a total destruction. On the contrary, we are told in Isa. 66: 18, 19, that " it shall come that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and see my glory, and I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them (mark the words) unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul and Lud that draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory among the Gentiles." Thus there is a remnant both of Jews and Gentiles. In the destruction of those nations that shall then be found in rebellion against the Lord and against His Christ are brought to a final consummation the overthrow of every wicked organization, whether of a religious or civil char- acter. Then, too, will come to end all those Christless associations that have been begotten and nurtured by the dark spirit of secrecy. Oh, yes, they will vanish amid the blazing fives of that " great and terrible day of the Lord." The dragon, the beast, and the false prophet, with the unclean spirits that went forth from their mouths, have met their final doom. 4. The Scriptures speak of a judgment of the dead. An account of this we have in Rev. 20: 11-15. This judgment takes place after the thousand years are expired. The apostle tells us that he " saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works." Here you will notice that the dead are twice specifically mentioned. But that " THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS." 261 is not all. In the very next verse it is said: "And the sea gave up the dead which are in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them; and they were judged every man according to their works." Those who introduce the dead among " all the nations," in Matt. 25, do not hesitate to introduce the living as among the number that are to be judged on this occasion.* The one is as unauthorized as the other. This results from an identification of these two judgments. As before shown, however, they are clearly distinct as well as separated from each other by a thousand years. A t all events, whether separated by such a period or not, they are not the same. The very place of the judgment here is altogether different from that in the Gospel. There the judgment is on the earth; for, according to the universal belief of Christians, " when the Son of Man shall come in His glory," it shall be from heaven to earth. Here, however, " the earth and the heaven " are said to have "fled away; and there was no place found for them." The great White Throne, therefore, is not on the earth at all. As expressly predicted by the Apostle Peter, they have been " dissolved, and their ele- ments have melted with fervent heat." We have here symbolically set before us an assize in which there is a strict judicial trial made and a sentence given according to the law and the evidence. The design of the whole scene is evidently to bring before us in an impressive manner the idea that the claims of justice will at last be vindicated. The question here presents itself: Are there any believers among those who are judged on this occasion? We do not *Let it not be inferred that the ''nations " here mentioned are treated simply in their collective or corporate capacity. Whatever may, or may not be the true interpretation of this difficult passage, it must be admit- ted that those who "go away into everlasting punishment," and those who enter " into eternal life" are individual persons. The separation which the Shepherd is exhibited as making seems evidently to imply this. 262 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. wish to dogmatize on this point; yet, to us, the presump- tion appears to be against the admission of this idea. This opinion is based on the following reasons: 1. There is no reference to any as having been rewarded, while there is express mention of the dreadful doom that fall upon such as " were not found written in the Book of Life." How account for such a remarkable omission? 2. The analogy of faith, the union of believers with Christ, the fact that they are exhibited in this Apocalypse as " the Bride, the Lamb's wife," their acknowledged state of freedom from the law as a covenant of life, and above all the express declaration of Jesus Himself in John 5 : 24, would seem to indicate that they would not appear in such a judgment as the one here described, that is, a judgment to eternal life or death. The fact that the " Book of Life " is represented as being consulted, led me for some time to entertain the idea that believers are to be included among "the dead" who were judged. The following statement, however, has had the effect of lessening, if not entirely removing, the difficulty founded on the reference here to the Book of Life: " We need scarcely say," observes the writer, " that previous to all investigation, God knows that the names of the wicked are not there, even as without any trial He knows the character of their works. But according to His gracious dealings with men, none are necessarily con- demned for evil works, pardon being offered to the guilty. For this reason, there are two solemn stages in this judgment. First, a reference to the 4 other books,' to show that the works of the wicked deserve death. Secondly, the opening of ' the Book of Life,' to show that by unbelief they have rejected life. And then, their names not being there, the execution of the sentence follows which is ' the second death.' " Prior to this we have an account of the casting of the devil, at the close of the thousand years, into the " lake of fire and brimstone." This appears to be that final judg- ment that is in reserve for " Diabolos," the leader of those THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS." " angels that kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation," and who are said to be " reserved in everlasting chains, under darkness, unto the judgment of the great day." Into this " lake of fire, burning with brimstone," the beast and the false prophet are said, before the thousand years begin, to be both cast alive. This was consequent upon the descent of Him " who hath on His vesture and on His thigh the name written, KING- OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LOKDS," and who was followed by " the armies which were in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean." That scene may, therefore, be identified with the judgment of the " nations " depicted in the 25tb chapter of Matthew. It is worthy of notice that the everlasting fire into which those on the left hand of " the King" are sent is said to be " pre- pared for the devil and his angels." Here it is said " the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever." How striking: the harmony here ! We have thus specified several distinct judgments. These judgments, however, may all be regarded as one^ the whole period being called the Day of Judgment. Those which we have been considering may be viewed as different acts or scenes in that one judgment. Y. 'What is the order of these judgments? Here, breth- ren, it becomes me to speak with the greatest deference and caution. A spirit of dogmatism is especially unbecoming here. I have no sympathy with it in others, and I would devoutly desire to avoid it myself. I believe, with that distinguished Professor of Theology in the University of Utrecht from whom I have previously quoted, that " while the path of eschatology is traced over the highest moun- tain heights, the loftiest peaks are bordered by the deepest chasms." Into these chasms I shall deem it the part of 264 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. wisdom not to enter. Questions may be started touching not only " the times and the seasons which the Father hath put in His own power," but touching the exact character and extent of the events of unfulfilled prophecy, and espe- cially their relation to each other, to which the only proper answer is, " ignorantiam fateri optima scientia to con- fess ignorance is the choicest wisdom." Impressed deeply with the difficulties attending the sub- ject, and my own inability to solve them to the satisfaction of myself or others, I shall try to bring before you the order of these judgments and the relation they sustain to each other. 1 . The judgment of the nations is expressly declared to be at the Coming of the Son of Man. It is then " that He sits upon the throne of His glory and gathers all nations before Him." 2. Before proceeding to the work of judgment the Lord Jesus exalts to thrones and associates with Himself in the judgment those who had fallen asleep in Him and those who are alive and waiting for Him, but who are changed by the same power as that by whom the dead are raised, 1 Thess. 4: 17. Hence He is presented as " coming with them. 19 The passages in which the saints are exhibited as- associated with Christ in judgment are very explicit. Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, say- ing: " Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousand of His saints, to execute judgment upon all," etc. (Jude 14.) " The Lord my God shall come and all the saints with Thee." (Zech. 14:5.) David says (Ps. 149:5-8), that to execute the judgment written is an honor which all the saints are to have. In the vision of Daniel (ch. 8), a judgment scene is presented; the thrones or seats are set, and "judgment," we are told, " was given to the saints of the Most High." The Apostle declares that " the saints shall judge the " THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS." 265- world," and he tells the Corinthian believers that they " shall judge angels." Our Lord gives this solemn assur- ance to His disciples (Matt. 19:28) : " In the regeneration,, when the Son of Man shall sit on the throne of His glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel." The judgment so repeatedly ascribed to the saints includes the idea of rule and authority according to the promise of the Master in Luke 19: 17-19, in which one of the faithful servants is declared to be a ruler over ten cities, and another over five cities, etc. It is with a view to this exalted position of judges and rulers with Christ, that they 'are caught up to " meet " their returning Lord in the air. This is unmistakably shown in Rev. 19 r where the King of kings and Lord of lords " is represented as riding upon a " white horse." " Out of His mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations; and He shall rule them with a rod of iron; and He treadeth the wine press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God." But let it be noticed that He does not come alone; for it is said: "The armies which were in heaven followed Him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. This accords with His gracious promise in Rev. 2:26 : " He that overcometh and keepeth My works unto the end, to him will I give power over the- nations; and he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to pieces." In the 20th chapter of Revelation we have exhibited to us the formal investiture of the risen saints with judicial powers. It is there said that "judgment was given unto them," that is, as Alford expresses it, " They were consti- tuted judges." I can not consent, after a most careful con- sideration of the passage, to regard this in any other light than a literal resurrection. My opinion is of little account* I will, therefore, introduce to you the testimony of that dis- 266 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST, tinguished critic, Dean Alford. Here is his testimony on Revelation 20:6 ("This is the first resurrection "): " It will have been long ago anticipated by the readers of this commentary that I can not consent to distort words from their plain sense and chronological place in the prophecy, on account of any considerations of difficulty, or any risk of abuses which the doctrine of the Millennium may bring with it. Those who lived next to the Apostles, .and the whole Church for 300 years, understood them in the plain literal sense; and it is a strange sight in these days to see expositors who are among the first in reverence of antiquity, complacently casting aside 'the most cogent instances of consensus which primitive antiquity presents. As regards the text, no legitimate treatment of it will extort what is known as the spiritual interpretation of it now in fashion. If, in a passage where two resurrections are mentioned, where certain ^v X at %aav at the first, and the rest of the vexpbt e&aav only at the end of a specified period after that first if in such a passage the first resur- rection may be understood to mean spiritual rising with Christ, while the second means literal rising from the grave then there is an end to all significance in language, and Scripture is wiped out as a definite testimony to anything." What part the risen saints will take in the judgments with which they are associated with Christ we do not. know. The fact a fact most clearly revealed in the Scriptures is all with which we have at present to do. 3. By means of those that pass through these great tribulations that will overtake both Jews and Gentiles, the Lord Jesus Christ will form his Millennial Kingdom on the -earth, over which Christ and His risen saints shall reign. The kingdom will be on the earth, but it does not follow that those who reign will be there. Queen Victoria reigns over India and the Canadas, but she has never seen, and " THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS." 267 probably never will see, these countries. The discussion of this subject does not, however, fall within our range. What we affirm is that there are to be nations on the earth during the Millennial period. These terrific judgments of which we have been speaking have not resulted in a total destruc- tion of its population. It is true that " the Lord will come with fire and with His chariots, like a whirlwind, to render His anger with fury and His rebuke with flames of fire. For by fire and by His sword will the Lord plead with all flesh; and the slain of the Lord shall be many." This is true; but the same chapter that records this solemn truth assures that there are those who escape these judgments and who are to be employed as missionaries to those who had not heard His fame nor seen His glory, and who will assist in the restoration of the Israelites to their own land. (Isa. 66: 15-24. Consult, also, Isa. 59: 20, 21; 65: 17-25.) As for the Jews, though they shall be fearfully wasted and subjected to the most appalling sufferings, yet a " third part " even of those in the land shall escape, as we have seen, and will doubtless herald forth the glory of the Lord. The question may be asked after the saints are caught up to meet the Lord in the air, and the judgment is given to them, are there any degenerate persons left on the earth? Here is a question, brethren, which I can not satisfactorily answer. It has been to me the most serious difficulty in the way of accepting the Pre-Millennarian system. It would greatly stumble me were there not on the other side difficulties incomparably more serious. I wait for light on this, as on many other subjects, if it please the Lord to give it. How long the interval may be between the rapture of the saints and the judgment of the nations we are not informed. It will doubtless be long enough for many souls to be converted and called out into active testimony. The matter of this testimony will be of such a character and 268 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. the work of the Spirit of God upon the heart so powerful that it may not be long before the whole earth is vocal with the praises of Jehovah. Thus, that bright and glorious state of things so often depicted in the Word of God will be maintained for one thousand years. 4. At the expiration of the thousand years, a sad apos- tacy takes place. If our first parents, though made in the image of God, fell by transgression, shall this last apostacy be thought incredible, especially when we take into consid- eration the fact that man, though greatly advanced in holi- ness, will still be but imperfectly sanctiiied. We have only to suppose that anew generation has come into existence; that the Spirit of God has been withdrawn; and that Satan, the deceiver, has been let loose, to find a solution of this awful fact which stands recorded in the page of prophecy. 5. This is followed by the infliction of an awful judgment upon the revolters and their leader. Fire descends from heaven upon them, while Satan is cast into the lake of fire, to be forever tormented. 6. Then we have the judgment of the dead, small and great, the nature, character and issues of which we have already considered. Here the work of judgment ends, and with it must end the discussion of this solemn subject. Dear brethren in the Lord, some of you have perhaps read that most interesting work entitled "John Knox and ike Church of England* by Dr. Lorimer, Professor of Theology in the English Presbyterian Church." Among the many deeply interesting letters of this illustrious Scottish reformer which that work contains, there is one written by him in 1554, in one of the darkest hours of his wonderful career. It is addressed " to the faithful in Lon- don, New-Castle and Berwick, and to all others within the realm of England that love the coining of our Lord Jesus Christ." Hear how this valiant soldier of Christ draws "THE JUDGMENT, OR JUDGMENTS." 269 courage and comfort as lie anticipates, by faith, the coming of our Lord as a judge to vindicate the cause of His oppressed people. He says, in those burning words which he knew so well how to use: " Has not the Lord Jesus, in despite of Satan's malice, carried up our flesh into heaven? And shall He not return? We know that He shall return, and with expedition. Flee from idolatry and stand with Christ Jesus in this day of His battle, which shall be short and the victory everlasting, for the Lord Himself shall come in our defence with His mighty power. He shall give us the victory when the battle is maist strong; and He shall turn our tears into everlasting joy. He shall consume our enemies with the breath of His mouth, and He shall let us see the destruction of them that are now maist proud, and that maist pretendeth to molest us. From God alone we abide redemption." Surely a faith and hope that could thus inspire the heart of this brave old reformer in the day of battle may be of use to you and me. Can I more appropriately close this address than by repeating the very last section of the last chapter of that venerable symbol to which some of us have declared our adherence? I refer to the Westminster Confession of Faith. These are its closing words: " As Christ would have us to be certainly persuaded that there shaM be a day of judg- ment, both to deter all men from sin, and for the greater consolation of the godly in their adversity; so will He- have that day unknown to men, that they may shake off all eternal security, and be always watchful, because they know not at what hour the Lord will come; and may be ever pre- pared to say, Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly. Amen." 270 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. THE COMING OF THE LORD IN ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. BY THE BBV. DR. JAMES H. BROOKES, PASTOR OF THE WALNUT STREET PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, ST. LOUIS. DR. DA.VID BROWN, in his well-known book against Pre-Mil- lennialism, truly says, " It is a school of Scripture inter- pretation, it impinges upon and affects some of the most commanding points of the Christian faith ; and, when suf- fered to work its unimpeded way, it stops not till it has pervaded with its own genius the entire system of one's theology, and the whole tone of his spiritual character, con- structing, I had almost said, a world of its own; so that holding the same faith, and cherishing the same funda- mental hopes as other Christians, he yet sees things through a medium of his own, and finds everything instinct with the life which this doctrine has generated within him." (P. 6.) Again, he remarks of the opposite doctrine: "Are there no Anti-Premillennial tendencies, which require to be guarded against? I think there are. Under the influence of such tendencies, the inspired text, as such, presents no rich and exhaustless field of prayerful and delighted inves- tigation; exegetical inquiries and discoveries are an uncon- genial element; and whatever Scripture intimations regard- ing the future destinies of the Church and of the world involve events out of the usual range of human occurrences, or exceeding the anticipations of enlightened Christian sagacity, are almost instinctively overlooked or softened down." (P. 9.) Again, he declares that " Pre-Millennialists have done the Church a real service, by calling attention to the place ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 271 which the Second Advent holds in the Word of God and the scheme of Divine truth. If the controversy which they have raised should issue in a fresh and impartial inquiry into this branch of it, I, for one, instead of regretting, shall rejoice in the agitation of it. When they dilate upon the prominence given to this doctrine in Scripture, and the practical uses which are made of it, they touch a chord in the heart of every simple lover of his Lord, and carry con- viction to all who tremble at His word; so much so, that I am persuaded that nine tenths of all who have embraced the Pre-Millennial view of the Second Advent, have done so on the supposition that no other view of it will admit of an unfettered and unmodified use of the Scripture language on the subject that it has its proper interpretation and full force only on this theory. * * * With them we affirm that the REDEEMER'S SECOND APPEARING is THE VERY POLE- STAR OF THE CHURCH. That it is so held forth in the New Testament is beyond dispute. Let any one do himself the justice to collect and arrange the evidence on the subject, and he will be surprised if the study be new to him at once at the copiousness, the variety and the collusiveness of it." (Pp. 12, 13.) Once more, at the close of his elaborate argument he beautifully writes: " Nor is it in regard to the personal appearing of the Saviour only that Pre- Millennial! sts will and ought to prevail against all who keep it out of sight. There is a range of truth connected with it which neces- sarily sinks out of its Scriptural position and influence whenever the coming of Christ is put out" of its due place. I refer to the RESURRECTION as a co-ordinate object of the Church's hope, and to all the truths which circle around it, in which there is power to stir and to elevate, which nothing else, substituted for it, can ever possess. The resurrection life of the Head as now animating all His members, and at 272 SECOND COMING OF CHfilST. length quickening them from the tomb, to be forever with Him these, and such like, are truths in the presentation of which Pre-Milleunialists are cast in the mould of Scrip- ture, from which it is as vain, as it were undesirable, to dis- lodge them." (P. 488.) It is somewhat singular that one who made admissions so candid and so creditable alike to his head and his heart, could at the same time labor with so much ability and zeal to divert the thoughts of God's people from a doctrine which, according to his own confession, " is THE VERY POLE- STAR OF THE CHURCH." It ID ay be confidently asserted that those who read and receive as satisfactory the reasonings of his book, either entirely dismiss the subject of our Lord's coming from their attention, or remand it so far to the background of their contemplation, that it utterly fails to exert any direct influence on their character and conduct. If they believe that it is fanatical and foolish to expect the Saviour's personal appearing before the conversion of the world, or until the close of a period more than a thousand years in the future, obviously they will not dwell upon it as immediately affecting themselves, or as an event possessing any conceivable interest for the generation now living. Hence, however frequently they may speak of Death, or the Judgment, or Heaven, they never allude to Christ's return as a hope animating them amid the vicissitudes of their own experience, and both in their public and private dis- course they maintain a silence about it as profound as though it were never mentioned in the Sacred Scriptures. Yet Dr. Brown acknowledges that " it impinges upon and affects some of the most commanding points of the Chris- tian faith;" that in its rejection, " the inspired text, as such, presents no rich and exhatistless field of prayerful and de- lighted investigation;" that when Pre-Millennialists " dilate upon the prominence given to this doctrine in Scripture, ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 273 and the practical uses which are made of it, they touch a chord in the heart of every simple lover of his Lord;" and that " there is a range of truth connected with it, * * from which it is as vain, as it were undesirable, to dislodge them." Such an acknowledgment from such a source may seem strange, but that it was demanded will be apparent, when it is remembered that, apart from the book of Revela- tion, more than one twentieth of the New Testament is occupied with the doctrine of our Lord's second coming. If the last book of the Bible is included, as all bearing upon the last days, of course the proportion is much larger. In the Old Testament certainly more than one hundred verses announce His second coming to every one verse that proclaims His first coming; and while the second is often mentioned without any allusion to the first, the first is never revealed without ample reference to the second, as if the Holy Ghost wished to hasten over the humiliation and sufferings of the former, and rejoiced to dwell upon the glory and grandeur of the latter. I. RELATION TO THE TEACHINGS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. It is impossible, within a brief hour, even to notice the important connections in which the Second Advent of our Lord is presented in the Old Testament, and only a glance can be given at its relation to the general teachings of the New Testament. But only a glance is needed to convince the attentive reader that no other truth whatever is so largely and so variously used to strengthen the faith and quicken the interest of God's dear children in all that He has been pleased to make known to them of doctrine and of duty. It may almost be said to form the basis of every argument, to give direction to every appeal, to fill out every exhortation, to terminate every warning ; so that it is to other truth as a foundation to the building, as a feather to 18 274 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. the arrow, as ripened fruit to the bud and blossom, as eter- nity to time. 1. Are ministers reminded that they must present some- thing more than professions and brilliant achievements to- commend them to the Master's favor? "Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy name ? And in Thy name have cast out devils ? and in Thy name done many wonderful works ? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you; depart from Me, ye that work iniquity." (Matt. 7: 22, 23.) 2. Are the disciples, when they resume their special mis- sion to Israel, cheered amid the trials to which thy shall be exposed? "When they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another; for verily I say unto you, ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel till the Son of Man be come." (Matt. 10: 23.) 3. Are His servants put on their guard against the pleas- ing delusion of expecting the triumph of His cause during the interval of His absence in the heavens? " But a fourth part of the scattered seed takes effect, and this in various degrees of fruitfulness; the tares grow with the wheat until the harvest, at the end of the age; the birds of the air, which He Himself explains as meaning the Wicked One, lodge in the branches of the great tree ; a Woman conceals that which is incipient putrefaction in three measures of meal, until the whole is leavened ; and not until the coming of Christ will the wicked be severed from the just." (Matt. 13.) 4. Is the gain of the whole world worse than worthless if purchased at the price of losing the soul? "What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul ? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul ? The Son of Man shall come in the glory of His Father, with His angels, and then He shall reward every man according to his works." (Matt. 16: 26,27.) ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 275 5. Are the Apostles told of the dignity that awaits them? " Yerily, I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the Regeneration when the Son of Man shall sit in the throne of His glory, ye shall sit upon twelve thrones, judg- ing the twelve tribes of Israel." (Matt. 19: 28.) 6. Is Israel meanwhile to be forsaken for the rejection of the Messiah ? " Behold your house is left unto you deso- late. For I say unto you, Ye shall not see Me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord." (Matt. 23: 38, 39.) 7. Is the close of Israel's troubled history in unparalleled tribulation the speedy precursor of another and far more momentous event? "Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken, and then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven; and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory." ( Matt. 24: 29, 30.) 8. Is the moral condition of the world at His coming described? "As the days of NOG were, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days that were before the flood, they were eating and drinking, mar- rying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be." (Matt. 24: 37-39.) 9. Is a warning uttered against the error, now so com- mon in the Church, of saying, " My Lord delayeth His coming," with its consequent worldliness? " The Lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for Him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, and shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypo- crites." (Matt. 24: 50, 51.) 276 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. 10. Is the spiritual state of the Church at the second Ad- vent portrayed? "Then shall the Kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise and five were foolish. * * * While the bridegroom tarried they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet Him." (Matt. 25: 1-13.) 11. Is an account to be rendered of all the talents re T ceived by the followers of Christ? "After a long time, the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them." (Matt. 25: 19.) 12. Is judgment in store for the nations, as the result of their conduct toward those designated as the brethren of Christ? " When the Son of Man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory; and before Him shall be gathered all nations. " (Matt. 25: 31-36.) 13. Does Jesus, before the high priest, and in the face of death, assert His claims as the Christ, the Son of God? "Hereafter shall ye see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of Power, and coming in the clouds of heaven." (Matt. 26: 64.) 14. Does He warn men of the danger of being ashamed of Himself and of His words, including, of course, His words about His second Advent?' "Whosoever, therefore, shall be ashamed of Me, and of My words, in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of Man be ashamed when He cometh in the glory of His Father, with the holy angels." (Mark 8: 38.) 15. Does He urge the necessity of unwearying watchful- ness? "Take ye heed, watch and pray; for ye know not when the time is. For the Son of Man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house and gave authority to his ITS RELATION TO CHRIST TAN DOCTRINE. 277 servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch. Watch ye, therefore, for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at mid- night, or at the cock-crowing, or in the morning; lest corning suddenly, he find you sleeping. And what I say unto you, I say unto all Watch/' (Mark 13: 33, 37.) 16. Does He enjoin upon His servants to stand with girded loins, and burning lights, and hands upon the door? " Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; and ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their Lord, when He will return from the wedding; that, when He cometh and knocketh, they may open unto Him immedi- ately." (Luke 12: 35,36*.) 17. Does He promise high honor to those who keep the posture of constant watching? "Blessed are those servants whom the Lord, when He cometh, shall find watching; verily I say unto you, that He shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them. And if He shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those ser- vants." (Luke 12: 37, 38.) 18. Does He press the need of continual readiness for His personal advent? " Be ye therefore ready also; for the Son of Man cometh at an hour when ye think not." (Luke 12:40.) 19. Does He teach the universal prevalence of worldli- ness at His appearing? "As it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded ; but the same day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed." (Luke 17: 28-30.) 20. Does He foretell the sad and sudden separations that shall then occur? " I tell you that in that night there 278 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken and the other shall be left. Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken and the other left. Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken and the other left.'' (Luke IT: 34-36.) 21. Does He predict universal apostacy as the conse- quence of the failure of the Church to watch for Him, according to His repeated commands? "When the Son of Man cometh, shall He find [the] faith on the earth?" (Luke 18: 8.) 22. Does He charge us to be occupied with Himself, and for Himself till He come? "A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come." (Luke 19: 12-27.) 23. Does He distinctly inform us of the events that shall follow, when the times -of the Gentiles are fulfilled? " There shall be signs in the sun and in the moon and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations with perplex- ity; the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth; for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of Man coming in a cloud, with power and great glory. And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh." (Luke 21: 25- 28.) 24. Does He beseech us in view of all this to keep our hearts " with all diligence," or, as it is in the margin, " above all keeping?" (Prov. 4: 23.) "Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with sur'eiting and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 279 them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye, therefore, arid praj always that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man. (Luke 21:34-36.) 25. Does He exult in the anticipation of the time when the rebellious province of earth shall be brought back into communion with heaven, and His own royal person shall be the link of restored fellowship? " Yerily, verily, I say unto you, hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man." (John 1: 51.) 26. Does He reveal Himself as the resurrection of His people who die, and as the deliverance from death of His people who shall be living at His advent? " I am the res- urrection and the life; he that belie veth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live; and whosoever hveth and be- Keveth in Me shall never die." (John 11:25, 26.) 27. Does He cheer the hearts of His disciples, saddened by the announcement of His departure? "In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." (John 14: 2, 3.) 28. Does He set forth the offer of the Holy Spirit in re- lation to Himself and His second appearing? "Howbeit, when He, the Spirit of Truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth ; for He shall not speak of Himself; but what- soever He shall hear, that shall He speak; and He will shew you things to come. He shall glorify me; for He shall re- ceive of mine, and shall shew it unto you." (John 16: 13, 14.) 29. Does He seek to impress the Apostles with the im- portance of looking for Him constantly by His remarkable 280 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. statement concerning John? " If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me. Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?" (John 21: 22-23.) 30. Does He give an intimation, as a powerful stimulus to what is called missionary effort, when the age of conflict and cross-bearing, so dark without the light of his mani- fested presence, shall close? " This Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all na- tions; and then shall the end come." (Matt. 24: 14.) 31. Meanwhile, were the disciples to be animated in the midst of their toil by an assurance that would gladden their hearts, and nerve their energies? "While they looked steadfastly toward heaven, as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; which also said. Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven ? This same Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven. ' r (Acts 1: 10, 11.) 32. Did they hail the day of Pentecost as a type and pledge of the mightier outpouring of the Spirit, that like a sea of glory shall spread from pole to pole, when Jesus comes? " This is that which wag spoken by the prophet Joel: And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophecy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; and on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out, in those days, of rny Spirit; and they shall prophecy; and I will show wonders in heaven above and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; the sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood,. ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 281 before that great and notable day of the Lord come." (Acts 2: 16-20.) 33. Did they seek under the guidance of the Spirit for the most searching and arousing motive to induce men to turn unto God? "Repent ye, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when [in order that] the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; and He (the Father) shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began." (Acts 3: 19-21.) 34. Did they tell believers what to expect from an un- friendly world? It is their testimony, not for that day only,, but for the entire age in which we live, " that we must through much tribulation enter into the Kingdom of God." (Acts 14: 22); and there is not a hint that it will be other- wise till Jesus comes. 35. Did the whole college of Apostles announce the divine purpose with respect to the times of the Gentiles, and the order of His procedure in the conversion of the world? " God, at the first, did visit the Gentiles, to takeout of them a people for His name. [This is all He intends to do in the present dispensation.] And to this agree the words of the prophets, as it is written, After this I will return [that is, after He has taken out of the Gentiles a people for His name], and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up. [So He takes Israel again into national and covenant relations to Himself after His personal return; and then the grand and ultimate pur- pose is stated:] That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom My name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things." (Acts 15: 14-17.) 282 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. 36. Is the curse hat is eating like a cancer into the bosom of the lower creation to be removed? " The earnest expec- tation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God [at the second coming of Christ; see Col. 3: 4; 1 John 3: 2]. Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to-wit: the re- demption of the body," at the second coming of Christ. [See 1 Thess. 4: 16, 17; 1 Cor. 15: 33] (Rom. 8: 19-23). 37. Is the curse to be lifted from Israel, of whom it is eaid, " even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart?" (2 Cor. 3: 15.) "Blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob." (Rom. 11: 25, 26.) 38. Do we desire to reach the climax and crown of Chris- tian attainments in grace and in knowledge? It is declared by the Holy Ghost to be "waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ; who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Cor. 1: 4-8.) 39. Are we forbidden to judge one another, and com- manded to be indifferent to the decision of man's day? " Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come." (1 Cor. 4: 5.) 40. Are we raised above the ways of the world by the assurance of association with Him in the judgment at His coming? u Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? * * * Know ye not that we shall judge angels?" <1 Cor. 6: 2, 3.) ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 283 41. Is it the privilege of believers to come to the Lord's table, and are all believers there at least the witnesses, con- sciously or unconsciously, willingly or unwillingly, to the truth of His second coming? "As often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till He conies." (ICor. 11:26.) 42. Is the resurrection of the body a cardinal article of their belief? " Every man in his own order; Christ the first fruits; afterward they that are Christ's at His coming." (1 Cor. 15:23.) 43. Does a tremendous curse await those who withhold their affections from the Son of God? " If any man love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be anathema maranatha." [the Lord cometh.] (1 Cor. 16: 22.) 44. Is there to be mutual joy between faithful ministers and their people in His presence?" " Ye have acknowl- edged us in part, that we are your rejoicing, even as ye also are ours in the day of the Lord Jesus." (2 Cor. 1 : 14.) 45. Should it be the aim, ambition, point of honor, with believers to be well pleasing unto Him? " For we must all appear [be made manifest] before the judgment seat of Christ." (2 Cor. 5: 10.) 46. Are they confidently expecting the complete fulfill- ment of God's promise to His children? u We through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith;" (Gal. 5: 5) the hope of the New Testament being always associated with the second coming of Christ. See Acts 23: 6; 26: 6, 7; 28: 20; Romans 5:2; 8: 24; Col.l: 5; Tit., 2: 13; 1 Pet. 1: 3; 1 John 3: 2, 3. 47. Has God marked us as His own by sealing us with the Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest of our in- heritance, and so gives us the enjoyment of His love. It is " until the redemption of the purchased possession," at the second coming of Christ. (Eph. 1 : 14.) 284 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. 48. Does this make it the more incumbent upon us to walk in unhindered communion with our abiding Comforter? " Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.' (Eph. 4: 30.) 49. Will the purpose of the Saviour in His atoning work be accomplished? " Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the waghing of water by the word, that He might present it to Himself [at His coming] a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish." (Eph. 5: 25-27.) 50. Can we depend upon the perseverance of theLordin the work of Salvation? "Being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you, will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ." (Phil. 1: 6.) 51. Does His persevering love demand the response from us of lofty aims and truthfulness and blamelessness? " That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ." (Phil. 1:10.) 52. Is the thought of His coming an incentive to minis- terial fidelity and zeal? " Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither labored in vain." (Phil. 2: 16.) 53. Is the government to which our allegiance is due clearly defined? " Our conversation [citizenship, or coun- try, or commonwealth] is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ; who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto His glori- ous body." (Phil. 3: 20,21.) 54. Is it becoming in us to exhibit gentleness and patience of spirit? " Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand." (Phil. 4: 5.) 55. Are we called to put to death our fleshy appetites? ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. " When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory. Mortify, THEREFORE, your members which are upon the earth." (Col. 3: 4, 5.) 56. Are believers, converted from heathenism, described by the Holy Ghost? "Ye turned to God from idols, to serve the living and true God: and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come." (1 Thess. 1: 9, 10.) 57. Will there be a glad recognition of those who have been led by our testimony and service to trust in the Saviour of sinners? " What is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoic- ing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming?" (1 Thess. 2: 19.) 58. Should brotherly love increase and abound? It is " to the end He may establish your hearts uublameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints." (1 Thess. 3: 13.) 59. Is the dark cloud of sorrow hanging over the grave that hides our precious dead tinged with the golden light of hope? "If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with Him." (1 Thess. 4: 14.) 60. Have we the assurance of being with them again in a bright and happy day? " The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we which are alive and remain, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words." (1 Thess. 4: 16-18.) 61. Were recently converted heathens taught by the in- spired apostle, during his brief visit among them, what to 286 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. expect? "Of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know per- fectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day; we are not of the night, nor of dark- ness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others ; but let us watch and be sober." (1 Thess. 5: 1-6.) 62. Is practical and entire holiness to be sought with unceasing diligence? "The very God of peace sanctify you whol/y ; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Thess. 5: 23.) 63. Is a terrible punishment awaiting the despisers and neglecters of God's grace and God's Son? "The Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance upon them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ; who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of His power; when He shall come to be glorified in His saints, and to be admired in all them that believed (because our testimony among you was believed ) in that day." (2 Thess. 1: 7-10.) 64. Are Christians distinctly told of the course of events from the apostles' times to the personal appearing of the Lord? " Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter, as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand," literally, is present, has come, has set in. That day can not come except that there ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 287 first comes the apostacy, for the mystery of iniquity already working then like leaven shall spread more and more, until the Antichrist is developed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit [or breath] of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness [everywhere else translated appearing] of His coming," or presence. (2 Thess. 2: 1-8.) 65. In the knowledge of this do we need to stay our minds upon Him who can never fail? " The Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient wait- ing for Christ." ( 2 Thess. 3: 5.) 66. Is the note of warning again sounded against the error of expecting the triumph of good till He comes? " Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their conscience seared witli a hot iron. * * * If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ." (1 Tim. 4 : 1-6.) 67. Is steadfast obedience enforced by the most solemn considerations? " I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and before Jesus Christ, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession; that thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Tim. 6: 13, 14.) 68. Are the characteristic features of the last days as un- like the common anticipation of the progress of truth and righteousness, as darkness is unlike light? "This kn>\v also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, un- holy, without natural affection, true breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, 288 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. heady, high minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof * * * But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived." (2 Tim. 3: 1-5.) 69. Because of these abounding evils in the Church are ministers to be doubly on their guard against the tempta- tion to preach sensational and unscriptural sermons? "I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead, and by his appear- ing and kingdom [so Alford on the authority of all the oldest MSS.] preach the Word." (2 Tim. 4: 1, 2.) 70. Is there something left to cheer the heart of the faithful witness for Christ, even when the people will no longer "endure sound doctrine, but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears, and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables? I have fought a good fight; I have finished my course;" "I have kept the faith; henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day; and not to me only, but unto them also that love his appearing." (2 Tim. 4: 7, 8.) 71. Are ministers told what to preach? "The grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world, looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious ap- pearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ. * * * These things speak." (Tit. 2: 11-15.) 72. Does God intend that His son shall be crowned with glory and honor on the very theatre of His humiliation and death? " But when he again hath introduced the first begotten into the world, he saith. and let all the angels of God worship him." (Heb. 1: 6.) Alford's translation. ITS DELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 289 73. Is faith in the second Advent essential to salvation? "Christ was offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time, without sin, unto salvation." (Heb. 9: 28.) 74. Has it pleased the Comforter to console His people in the midst of reproaches and afflictions, and despised com- panionships and the spoiling of their goods? "Yet a little while, and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry." (Heb. 10:37.) 75. Is a spirit of resolute endurance required under the pressure of temptation? " Blessed is the man that endureth temptation; for when he is tried [everywhere else rendered approved], he shall receive the crown of life (at Christ's second coming; see Tim. 4: 18, Rev. 2: 10), which the Lord has promised to them that love Him." (Jas. 1: 12.) 76. Is the heart burdened by the crimes and cruelties that meet the eye, and by the cries of the oppressed that reach the ear every day? " Be patient, therefore, brethren, unto the coining of the Lord. Behold the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts; for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh." (Jas. 5: 7-8.) 77. Is murmuring against one another unseemly while the world's destruction lowers, and glory is dawning for believ- ers? "Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned; behold the Judge standeth before the door." (Jas. 5: 9.) 78. Is there cause for great rejoicing even when in heavi- ness through manifold temptations? "That the trial of your faith, being more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ." (1 Pet, 1: 7.) 19 290 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. 79. Was the completed salvation, to be brought at our Lord's appearing, the subject of diligent inquiry by the holy men of old, who spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost? "Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in the^n did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow." ( 1 Pet. 1: 11.) 80. Is this completed salvation an object set before us in the Gospel to arouse and to strengthen? ""Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ." (1 Pet. 1: 13.) . 81. Are we to live with His promised revelation con- stantly in view? "The end of all things is at hand; be therefore sober, and watch unto prayer." (1 Pet. 4: 7.) 82. Does His expected revelation turn the sufferings to which we are exposed as Christains into an occasion of re- joicing? " Rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy." ( 1 Pet. 4: 13.) 83. Are pastors urged to fidelity and self-denying labor, and conduct forming an example to the flock? "When the Chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away." (1 Pet. 5: 4.) 84:. Have we more sure the prophetic word by the signifi- cant and typical scene on the Mount of Transfiguration? " We have not followed cunningly devised fables when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eye witnesses of His majesty." (2 Pet. 1: 16.) 85. Are Christians warned that there shall be false teachers among them, and that a sign of the final apostacy will be the denial of Christ's coming? "Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days, scoffers walking ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 291 after their own lusts, and saying, where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things con- tinue as they were from the beginning of the creation." (2 Pet. 3 : 3-i.) 86. Is the reason given for the tarrying of the Lord at the right hand of God? " The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is long snifering to us-ward, but not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." (2 Pet. 3: 9.) 87. Should the certainty and the suddenness of His coming keep us ever on the alert, armed against sin? " The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, * * what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness; looking for and hasting the coming of the day of God." (2 Pet. 3: 10-12.) 88. Is the only safeguard to remain in unclouded com- munion with Christ? "And now, little children, abide in Him; that, when He shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before Him at His coming." (1 John 2 : 28.) 89. Do we wait for the manifestation of our high call- ing and dignity, as those who have been through grace made partakers of the divine nature? "Beloved, now are we the sons of God; and it doth not yet appear what we shall be;, but we know that when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. (1 John 3: 2.) 90. Would we know the spirit of deceivers and of Anti- christ? " For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come (coming) in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an Antichrist." (2 John 7.) 91. Would we know the testimony and preaching of a man who walked with God, and pleased God? "Enoch, also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, " Be- hold, the Lord cometh with ten thousand of His saints, to execute judgment upon all." (Jude 14: 15.) 292 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. 92. Would we strike the key-note of the last book of the Bible? "Behold, He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him; and all kin- dreds of the earth shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen." (Rev. 1:7.) 93. Amid increasing perils are we to keep the attain- ments hitherto made in grace? "That which ye have already, hold fast till I come." (Kev. 2: 25.) 94. If in the midst of these perils we have slipped, are we to return to Him from whom we have wandered? " He in ember therefore how thou hast received and heard; and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee." (Rev. 3: 3.) 95. Is there danger of growing disheartened by the sore conflict, and thus of losing His approval? "Behold, I come quickly; hold that fast which thou hast that no man take thy crown." (Rev. 3: 11.) 96. Would we walk in shining raiment with the redeemed? "Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame." (Rev. 16: 15.) 97. Does the Lord, for whom the weary Church has long waited, and for whom suffering creation has groaned, at last come forth in glory and majesty? "I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and He that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteous- ness He doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns; and He had a name written that no man knew but He Himself, And He was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood; and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in Heaven followed Him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. * * * * And ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 293 He hatli on His vesture and on His thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LOKD OF LORDS." (EeV. 19 I 11-16.) 98. Is it most important that we give heed to the prom- ises and threatenings and teachings of God's final reve- lation to man? "Behold, I come quickly; blessed is lie that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book." (Eev. 22:7.) 99. Do we desire the reward which our returning Lord will delight to bestow upon His faithful servants? " Be- hold, I come quickly; and my reward is with Me to give every man according as his work shall be." (Rev. 22: 12.) 100. Above all, do we desire Himself? u Surely I come quickly; Amen." And surely He expects to hear from every heart that is true to Him the eager response, even so, come Lord Jesus." (Rev. 22:20.) With these sweet words of promise falling from His lips, His voice is heard no more on earth, and the Sacred Scriptures are sealed as complete. ADMISSIONS OF POST-MILLENNIALISTS. Very many similar texts might be quoted, but enough has been said to show that this great truth runs like a golden cord through the entire New Testament from beginning to end, touching every doctrine, binding every duty, arousing, consoling, directing, guarding, inspiring the believer at every step of his pilgrimage. As a motive, an incentive and an end, it has a prominence assigned to no other thought. Wherever we turn it arrests the eye; whatever the subject of inquiry, it engages the attention by its commanding presence. In the fine language of the Rev. John Ker, it is "in the New Testament the great event that towers above every other. The heaven, that gives back Christ, gives back all that we have loved and lost, solves all doubts and ends all sorrows. His coming looks in upon the whole life SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. of His Church, as a lofty mountain peak looks in upon every little valley and sequestered home around its base, and be- longs to them all alike. Every generation lies under the shadow of it, for whatever is transcendently great is con- stantly near, and in moments of high conviction it absorbs petty interests and annihilates intervals. It may surely be for us to consider whether our removal of Christ's coming further from us in feeling does not arise from a less vivid impression of its reality and surpassing moment." (Ser- mons, p. 176.) It is one purpose of this Conference, with His blessing, to change these " moments of high conviction " into the life-time posture of the soul; and, as far as He may be pleased, to own our testimony for the good of other Chris- tians, in the words oi Professor Hackett, to " bring both their conduct and their style of religious instruction into nearer correspondence with the lives and teaching of the primitive examples of our faith." Again he says, referring to the return of Christ at the end of the age, u that event was always near to the feelings and consciousness of the first believers. It was the great consummation on which the strongest desires of their souls were fixed, to which their thoughts and hopes were habitually turned. They lived in expectation of it; they labored to be prepared for it; they were constantly, in the expressive language of Peter, ' look- ing for and hastening unto it.' The Apostles, the first Christians in general, comprehended the grandeur of that occasion; it filled their circle of view, stood forth to their contemplations as the point of culminating interest in their own and the world's history; threw into comparative in- significance the present time, death, all intermediate events, and made them feel that the manifestation of Christ, with its consequences of indescribable moment to all true be- lievers, was the grand object which they were to keep in ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 295 view as the end of their toils, the commencement and per- fection of their glorious immortality. In such a state of intimate sympathy with an event so habitually present to their thoughts, they derived, they must have derived, their chief incentives to action from the prospect of that future glory; they hold it up to the people of God to encourage them in affliction, to awaken them to fidelity, zeal, and per- severance, and appeal to it to warn the wicked and impress upon them the necessity of preparation for' the revelations of that day." [Hackett on Acts, pp. 63, 64.] That it was indeed " always near to the feelings and con- sciousness of the first believers" is admitted and proved by all post-millennial expositors and writers, as Drs. Hodge, Barnes, Brown and others; that the Lord Jesus and the Holy Ghost presented it as an object of hope to those who lived in the days of the Apostles must also be apparent to the careful reader of the New Testament; and this is the fact that sets forth in the clearest and strongest light the relation of Christ's coming to Christian doctrine. It is a profound remark of Trench, speaking of the tarrying of the bridegroom, that u we may number this among the many hints, which were given by our Lord, that it was pos- sible the time of His return might be delayed beyond the expectation of His first disciples. It was a hint, and no more;, if more had been given, if the Lord had said plainly that He would not come for many centuries, then the first ages of the Church would have been placed in a disadvan- tageous position, being deprived of that powerful motive to holiness and diligence supplied to each generation of the faithful by the possibility of the Lord's return in their time. It is not that He desires each succeeding generation to believe that He will certainly return in their time, for He does not desire our faith and our practice to be founded on an error, as, in that case, the faith and practice of all gener- 296 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. ations would be. But it is a necessary element of the doc- trine concerning the second coming of Christ that it should be possible at any time, that no. generation should consider it improbable in theirs." (Notes on the Parables, pp. 207, 208.) ITS RELATION TO THE UNITY OF THE CHUKOH. First, then, it illustrates and manifests the unity of the Church with a distinctness to which the Post-Millennial theory can lay no claim. It is not our province to make this unity, but we are responsible to keep and to exhibit it amid the distractions and divisions of the world. But of what does the Church on earth consist? Not simply of the number in any one generation who have been linked by the Holy Ghost to the risen Christ, but of the entire number of believers between the ascension and return of our Lord; " for as the body is one and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body; so also is [the] Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit." (1 Cor. 12: 12, 13.) Christ is exalted to be " the head over all things to the Church, which is his body, the fulness of Him that tilleth all in all " (Eph. 1: 22,23); and if His second coming is the hope of one member ot that body, it is the hope of all the members. It did not please God to reveal the time of His coming, because lie would set it as a beautiful bow in the dark cloud, over- shadowing the entire interval of His Son's absence from the earth, that from one end to the other of the dispensa- tion all faces might be turned up in faith and expectation. Hence our Saviour could bid His immediate followers watch for Him, and Paul could say, " Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together " with the risen dead, ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 297 and all of the Apostles could represent the Advent as nigh* for its nearness to one believer is the measure of its near- ness to the entire body, viewed in its unity. Moreo'ver, the conviction of its nearness necessarily sinks out of sight the minor differences that separate Christians, and as Saul of Tarsus, dazzled by the brightness that flashed upon him on the road to Damascus, declares, " I could not see for the glory of that light," so we can not see the motes in the eyes of our brethren while gazing upon the splendor of that ap- proaching Advent. The Assembly now convened furnishes striking evidence of its power to bring believers together on a common ground, to bear a common testimony to the blessedness of a common hope, RELATION TO THE DIVINE PURPOSE. Second The Pre-Millennial coming of our Lord alone vindicates the Divine honor and sovereignty. Those who reject the doctrine constantly affirm that it disparages the Gospel by representing it as a failure, and the work of the Holy Spirit by intimating that it is inadequate to the con- version of the world. But a moment's reflection is sufficient to show that it exalts the Gospel by proving that it accom- plishes all it was designed to effect, and the work of the Holy Spirit by demonstrating that He saves all He intended to save during the present dispensation. It is not a ques- tion of what God might do, but of what He proposes to do, as revealed in His word. It has already been seen, as an- nounced by the Apostles, that God's purpose is not to con- vert all the Gentiles before the return of Christ, but to take out of them a people for His name; and if one verse of the Scripture from the first of Genesis to the last of Revelation can be found to assert the conversion of the world previous to that return, pre-millennialists will agree to hold their peace forever after. On the other hand, the post-millennial 298 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. heresy disparages the Gospel and the work of the Spirit by forcing the conclusion that they are unable to reach the end they were ordained to attain. If it was God's purpose to bring in the millennium by agencies now employed, the most careless observer can see that it has been signally de- feated for more than eighteen hundred years, and, judging the future by the past, the only way of judging apart from prophetic testimony, there is little prospect of achieving greater success in the time to come. Where are the churches planted by apostolic hands and watered with the blood of martyrs? They have long since perished. Where are the countries over which the disciples of Jesus, in the first and second centuries, swept as an army with banners? Under the black pall of spiritual death. Where is the city or town or village in the most highly favored portion of Christendom, all of whose inhabitants even profess to believe in the Son of God? According to Professor Hitchcock's statistics in his Analysis of the Holy Bible, of the earth's population, there are 195,000,000 Ro- man Catholics, 160,000,000 Mohammedans, 310,000,000 Buddhists, 460,000,000 Pagans and other heathen religion- ists, and 97,139,000 Protestants in name. Of these last, so few comparatively, what a "little flock" follow the Good Shepherd; what an overwhelming majority remain utterly indifferent to His voice, or fiercely oppose His claims? Wars and rumors of wars, famines and pestilences, anxiety and unrest everywhere, scientific men burning incense to their own vanity, the masses upheaving with mad efforts to destroy the foundations of all governments, appalling crimes and shocking villianies loading the columns of our daily journals, infidelity garrisoned within the Church, the world blaspheming in its rage and pain, the virgins asleep such is the picture our Lord Himself drew of the course of the present age, " till He come." It is a picture true to the ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 299 facts of human experience and observation, and it is submit- ted to the consideration of the candid inquirer, whether the hope of His coming to quiet this confusion and to quell this turbulence does not glorify Him more than the boast of a religious progress, which even ungodly men can see is a delusion and a snare, and a mirage of the desert. RELATION TO THE CURSE, Third This leads us to glance at His coming in relation to the promised removal of the curse from the face and bosom of suffering creation. " By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned." Rom. 5: 12.) To fallen Adam it was said: " Cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee." (Gen. 3: 17, 18.) From that day to this the curse has smitten the old and the young, the rich and the poor, the king and the peasant, the philosopher and the savage alike, and diffused its virulent poison through the whole system of nature. The winds with their ominous moan, the lower animals that once crouched lovingly at man's feet, the dumb earth reluctantly yielding her riches to his toil, and the waves with their resistless might, seem to have conspired against the destroyer of their peace, as if they would hurry him into the grave. But the word of God that liveth and abideth forever tells of a time, and that, too, while nations exist, when " there shall be no more curse" (Rev. 22 : 30) ; when a the wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf, and the young lion, and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them." (Isaiah 11: 6.) It is obvious that the spread of Christianity, however widely extended ; personal devotedness to the Saviour, how- 300 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. ever fervent; the suppression ot moral evils, however thor- ough, can never arrest disease and decay and death, nor extract malaria from the soil, nor cause the fir tree to grow instead of the thorn, and the myrtle tree in place of the brier, if, however, post-millennialists insist that the cow and the bear feeding together, the lion eating straw like an ox, the sucking child playing unharmed on the hole of the asp, the desert rejoicing and blossoming as the rose, and the thirsty land becoming springs of water, are to be under- stood spiritually, being nothing more than poetical meta- phors to show the transforming power of the Gospel, they are forced to conclude that the curse will rush onward in its desolating career through the entire period of their anticipated millennium. Storms will continue to burst in unsparing fury upon earth and sea; creation will continue to groan in her travailing throes; plague and pestilence will continue their work of destruction; sickness and pain will continue to invade every household; death will continue to lay his ruffian grasp on every quivering form, hard labor, corroding care, bitter poverty, darkened homes, blighted hopes, "The heart-ache, and the thousand natural shocks That flesh is heir to," will continue to harass, and waste and kill, as the thousand years roll on, until a great cry would ascend to God to bring such a millennium to a speedy end. But He is better than men think, for " He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all the holy prophets since the world began." It is reserved for the Second Man in person, and on the very earth that held His cross, to remove the curse inflicted by the first man; and it is strange that one loyal to Him can wish it to be ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 301 otherwise. When the expectation of His personal coming dropped out of the faith and hope of the Church after three hundred years of blessed testimony and successful service, she did little through the dark ages to bear His name to the perishing millions; and this was dishonoring to Him as the Prophet and Priest of His people. But since the era of modern missions, she boasts that she can and will repair the ruins of the fall, and reign on the earth, while He has gone into a far country to receive for Himself a Kingdom, and to return; and this is no less dishonoring to Him as the Anointed King of the nations. Some, at least, thank God, do not desire her coronation until His own royal hand shall seat her beside Him on the throne, for they are singing day by day, with full intelligence of its meaning, " Bring forth the royal diadem. And crown HIM Lord of all!" RELATION TO JUSTIFICATION. Fourth His pre-millennial coming sustains a relation to the doctrine of Justification equally direct and impor- tant. Owing to the prevalence of the unscriptural theory that by the combined efforts of civilization and religion the world grows better as it grows older, not only is the sover- eignty of God in the bestowal of His grace banished from the emasculated theology of the day, but men are thrown upon their own resources for salvation. According to the preaching too frequently heard, even where there is no bold denial of the plain statements of Scripture concerning the future punishment of the wicked, conversion is regarded as a long and laborious process, a result of culture under self- imposed restraints, or a conformity to ecclesiastical rules and regulations, with a vague and indefinite hope that all this may purchase a title to heaven. According to the 302 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. Gospel, "He that believeth on the Son HATH everlasting life." (John 3: 3.) " By Him all that believe ARE justi- fied from all things." (Acts 13: 39.) " To him that work- eth not, but believed on Him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counteth for righteousness/' (Romans 4:5,) and "Being justified by faith we HAVE peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." (Romans 5:1.) All is simple, clear and pressing, &8 if there were urgent need of haste in delivering the message, and of haste no less urgent on the part of those who listen to receive it, and straight- way rejoice. Those who spoke knew that Christ might come while they were speaking, and they would have those who heard to know it likewise, that they might lay hold of eternal life without a moment's delay. They must be like the dying thief, who had no time to make himself better, but was shut up to the necessity of believing the promise of Jesus; they must be like multitudes of Christians on a dying bed, of whom it is said they received dying grace, because at last they are forced to turn from the trying to trusting, when it ought to have been living grace all along; they must have been like those of whom the Master spoke in view of His coming. "He which shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff in the house, let him not come down to take it away; and he that is in the field, let him likewise not return back." (Luke 17: 31.) No one can really look for His Advent as possible every day, as not improbable any day, without being cast upon His finished work alone for justification, and upon His faithful word alone for assurance. Nor will it answer to substitute death for His personal coming, because death is not mentioned in Scripture as that which is set before believers, and because it is notoriously the most powerless and the most fruitless argument that can be addressed to men. It is something ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 303 far more impressive than a solitary death that demands immediate attention, and that sends out the stirring words, "Come; for all things are NOW ready (Luke 14: 17); "Be- hold NOW is the accepted time; behold, NOW is the day of salvation " (2 Cor. 6: 2); "There is therefore NOW no con- demnation to them which are in Christ Jesus " (Rom. 8:1); "NOW, in Christ Jesus, ye who sometimes were far off, are made nigh by the blood of Christ" (Eph. 2: 13;) "Beloved, NOW are we the Sons of God; and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is" (1 John 3: 2). RELATION TO SANOTIFICATION. Fifth His second coming has a bearing, that can be scarcely noticed, upon the doctrine of Sanctification, not only in its power, when heartily received, to separate us from a doomed world, to make us watchful over our own hearts, and to consecrate us with sustained energy and enthusiasm to Christ, but as indicating the point at which sanctification is completed. There is a sense in which believers are already sanctified, for we read, " To them that ARE sanctified in Christ Jesus" (1 Cor. 1:2); "Who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteouness, and sanctification, and redemp- tion," (1 Cor. 1: 31); "But ye are washed, but ye ARE sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the spirit of our Lord" (1 Cor. 7: 11); "By the which will we ARE sanctified, through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all " (Heb. 10: 10); " For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that ARE sancti- fied " (Heb. 10: 14). But using the term at present in its commonly accepted sense, as implying progressive holiness, or the increasing ascendency of the new man over the old man, of the spirit over the flesh, what thoughts cluster 304 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. about it in the light of our Lord's second Advent! Post- millennialists invariably make it end at death, and thus turn our attention to that which is the curse, the conse- quence and the conquest of sin, to the clammy sweat, the glazing eye, the labored breathing, the coffin, the grave, the worm and corruption, as the goal to which the Holy Spirit's discipline and teachings conduct the believer. It is need- less to say that no such view is presented in -Scripture. There, a far higher and nobler object is set before us : " To the end He may stablish your hearts unblameable in holi- ness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints" (1 Thess. 3: 13); u And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ " ( 1 Thess. 5: 23); "And now, little children, abide in Him; that when he shall appear, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coining" (1 John 2: 28). This, and not death, is the appropriate and glorious termination of our growth in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ; and that coming accounts for the two-fold form in which sanctification, and other doctrines of God's word, are revealed. We are sanctified now through the cleansing blood, should He come to-day ; should He be pleased to tarry yet a little longer we will have larger and still larger experiences of His sustaining and sanctifying grace amid trials and conflicts here below. RELATION TO INSPIRATION. Sixth the relation of the Second Coming to the inspi- ration of the Sacred Scriptures must not be entirely over- looked, even in so imperfect an outline of the connection in which the great truth stands in the New Testament. Those who witness for this truth have fought the battle with its ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 305 enemies on the ground of ecclesiastical history, and on the ground of Biblical exegesis, and have triumphantly carried both points, proving that the early disciples looked for the Advent of Christ, and that this Advent was nothing but His literal and personal return to the earth. Forced to abandon their former position, Post-Millennial ministers and writers are now taking a new stand, far more dangerous to the souls of men, and far more dishonoring to the Lord. They are boldly asserting that holy men of old, who spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost, were mistaken when they taught the people to look for His coming. Thus in a recent and popular work it is said: " This expectation is expressed by all the Apostles in terms which fairly admit of no other interpretation. It is found in Paul (Horn. 13: 11, 12; 1 Cor. 7: 29-31; 10: 11; Phil. 4: 5; 1 Tirn. 6: 14). * The same expectation is expressed in the Epistle to the Hebrews (10: 25, 37); in the Epistle of James (5: 3, 8); in the Epistles of Peter '(1 Peter 4: 7; 2 Peter 3:3); in the First Epistle of John (2: 18); and in the Apocalypse (1: 1; 2: 11; 22: 7, 22, 20). To put any other construction on these passages, as if the Parousia to which they refer was anything else than the Second Advent of the Lord to Judgment, would introduce a dangerous license in interpre- tation, and one which might be employed to subvert the principal doctrines of the Christian system. Under the general expectations of the Apostles, mistaken though it might prove to be in the one particular of time, there lay a fundamental truth. * * * It is not strange that this expectation, which appears so distinctly arid frequently in the Epistles, should tinge the phraseology in which the Evangelists record the prophetic utterances of Jesus. That a verbal exactitude belongs always to these reports of the Saviour's teachings is claimed by no intelligent person who has compared the Gospels with one another. Jesus taught 20 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. in the Aramaic dialect; His teaching was transmitted orally^ for a time, before it was embodied in a written form; His sayings are often condensed by the Evangelists, and given in an order not corresponding precisely to that in which they were uttered." (The Beginning of Christianity, pp. 366-9.) Is it possible that those who oppose the truth of our Lord's pre-millennial coming are pushed to an extreme BO frightful as this?* Was Jesus incorrectly reported? But where meanwhile was the Holy Ghost? It is astonishing that the distinguished author' says the Apostles were mistaken in the one particular of time, when in the very next paragraph, referring to the teachings of Christ, it is stated, " that the time of the Second Advent and consummation of the kingdom, he declares to be not a subject of revelation." How could they be mistaken in that which was not a subject of revelation? They were not taught that He would, or would not, come at any fixed time, but they were taught to look for Him continually, and, should they die before His Advent, to hand down their believing expectation of it as the most precious legacy they could bequeath their successors, that so His coming might lie the one radiant star of hope in the firmament of revealed truth for the entire Church. But if it " would introduce a dangerous license in interpretation, and one which might be employed to subvert the principal doctrines of the Christian system," to refer the numerous statements of Scripture on this subject to anything else than the Second Advent of the Lord, it is a much more dangerous license to say that the Apostles were mistaken in their teachings. If hey were mistaken on this point, they may have been mistaken on other points, and infidelity is the logical and inevitable result of affirming either the one or the other. It is becoming quite the fashion to treat lightly and irreverently * So Marteiisen, Christian Dogmatics, p. 468. ITS DELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOGTRINE. 307 the authority of the Bible, whenever it runs counter to some popular theory, or scientific assertion, or humanitarian scheme; and to one who knows that the very words of Scripture were given by the Holy Ghost the tendency of the pulpit in this direction is exceedingly alarming. It is sad to see the author just quoted fostering such a tendency by declaring that the Apostles were mistaken in their expec- tation, though he admits that it was "an expectation that was not extinguished by the disappointment of it in the first age of Christianity, but is expressed in most of the Fathers in the second century; for Origen, who died A. D. 254, seems to have been the first to suggest that the Gospel, by its new moral power, through the Spirit, would overcome heathenism in the Koman Empire." (9. 369.) RELATION TO THE RESURRECTION. Seventh The relation of our Lord's second coming to the doctrine of the resurrection is too' well known to require ex- tended remark, even if time permitted. The two are inti- mately and indissolubly associated in the Scriptures, though the fatal habit of spiritualizing away the one has, to a fear- ful extent, led to the denial of the literality of the other. Nor is this result surprising, painful as it is to see the abandonment of a doctrine so prominent in the word of God, and so peculiar to Christian faith. If the frequent allusions to the Advent of Christ, running all through the New Testament, can be perverted to mean a thousand dif- ferent things, it is not strange that those who are perplexed by scientific arguments against the reality of the resurrec- tion should seek to explain it as referring only to some spiritual change at death. But one is as literal as the other, and both stand or fall together: "Christ the first fruits; afterward, they that are Christ's, at his coming." (1 Cor. 15: 23.) "The Lord himself shall descend from heaven 308 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord." (1 Thess. 4: 16, 17.) Hence in His sublime announcement to Martha, " I am the Resurrection and the Life." He includes the whole dispen- sation within the sweep of the statement that follows: " He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live;" then reaching on to the time of His advent, He adds: " and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die." (John 11: 25, 26.) Hence, too, there is nothing, and in the very nature of the scheme of redemption there can be nothing, between believers and that promised Advent, with its attendant resurrection of the righteous dead. The first step is to be in Christ, of whom it is said, "Ye are complete in Him " (Col. 2: 10); the next step is to be with Christ in the glory; for " whom he justified, them he also glorified." (Rom. 8: 30.) The first step is to receive Christ by faith, the next step is to wait for Christ from heaven. There is no need of delay, either to secure additional title to the incorruptible inheritance, or to acquire fitness for its possession, since that cry which shook earth and hell was heard ascending from the dying Saviour, "It is finished." (John 19: 30.) The atoning work is done; the debt is paid; the law is satis- fied; the vindicated justice of God demands no more; " and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin." (1 John IT.) Judgments are in store for Israel and for the world; but there is no judgment for those who are already in a risen and ascended Christ. " God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins HATH quick- ened us together with Christ (by grace ye are [vyere] saved); ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 309 and HATH raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Eph. 2:4-6). " Giving thanks unto the Father, which HATH made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light; who HATH delivered us from the power of darkness, and HATH translated us into the Kingdom of His dear Son; in whom we have redemption through His blood" (Col. 1: 12-14). " He that heareth my word, and believeth on Him that sent me HATH everlasting life, and shall not come into condem- nation [judgment] but is passed from death unto life " (John 5: 24). "He that believeth on Him is not condemned," or judged (John 3: 18). " Herein is love with us made per- fect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment, because as He is, so are we in this world" (1 John 4: 17). It was to be expected, therefore, that even the first pagan converts having turned to God from idols, to serve the Liv- ing and True God, would be taught " to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come" (1 Thess. 1: 10). There was nothing else, there could have been noth- ing else, set before them as the hope of the Gospel; for, if the grave intervened, it was only in the touching words of the inscription on Dean Alford's tomb, "The inn of a trav- eler on his way to the New Jerusalem." Should the objection be raised that they waited in vain, and that their hope met with a cruel disappointment, the reply is, their bodies are waiting still in the assurance of a glorious resurrection in His coming. They laid their dead to rest, comforted with the thought that before they left the place of burial the Lord Himself might descend from Heaven with a kingly and conquering shout to His own sleeping and living saints to awaken the former and to change the latter, " in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye;" for had He not in the last chapter of the Bible three 310 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. times repeated the promise, "I come quickly? " There is no revolution of the earth upon its axis in that bright world of which it is said, "there shall be no night there" (Rev. 21: 25); and ages fly swiftly where all is glory and gladness. When the voice sounds from the celestial city, " Surely, I come quickly, "it is counting time as it is reckoned by Him with whom a thousand years are as one day (2 Peter 3: 8), and, according to the chronology of heaven, not two days have yet passed since the risen Jesus, with uplifted hands in the act of priestly blessing, ascended from the Mount of Olives. The evident purpose of the constant representa- tions in the New Testament of the nearness of His advent is to keep His Church in the attitude of eager expectation and unceasing watchfulness, like Rebekah under the wise guidance of Eliezar, who was a type of the Holy Spirit. Charmed with the story and with the proof he gave of the bridegroom's love and wealth, she left her father and mother, and brother and childhood's home for a distant land. But no account is placed on record of the long journey. "The servant took Rebekah and went his way;" and the very next statement is " and Isaac came " (Gen. 24: 61, 62). Brethren in the Lord, we are not prophets, we are only humble students of the prophetic word; and, while it is not for us "to know the times or the seasons which the Father hath put in His power " (Acts 1: 7), it certainly becomes us, after the lapse of more than eighteen hundred years, to shout with increased earnestness and urgency the midnight cry, " Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him." "This gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness to all nations; and then shall the end come." (Matt. 24: 14.) When the times of the Gen- tiles shall have been fulfilled " there shall be upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking ITS RELATION TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 311 -after those things which are coming on the earth; for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. And when these things begin to come to pass, then, look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draw- eth nigh." (Luke 21: 25-28.) The long and perilous jour- ney is almost finished; the conflict of centuries will soon close in songs of victory. Xenophon relates that the Greeks, after the death of Cyrus, were exposed to innumerable hard- ships in their retreat through hostile countries. They were forced to face the bitter blasts of Winter, and marched through snows, and were scorched by the burning sun, and crossed pestilential marshes, and scaled steep mountains, and stormed forts and citadels, and were harrassed at every step by their wary and relentless foes. At last the van- guard ascended a mountain and gave a great shout, which, when Xenophon, and those in the rear, heard, they concluded that some other enemies attacked them in front. * * * The noise still increasing as they came nearer, and the men, as fast as they came up, running to those who still contin- ued shouting, their cries swelled with their numbers so that Xenophon, thinking that something more than ordinary had happened, mounted on horseback, and taking with him Lycius and his horse, rode up to their assistance, and pres- ently they heard all the soldiers calling out, "Sea! Sea!" and cheering one another. At this they all set a running, the rear-guard as well as the rest, and the beasts of burden and horses were driven forward. When they were all come up to the top of the mountain they embraced one another, and also their generals and captains, with tears in their eyes." (Expedition of Cyrus, p. 250.) Courage, fellow-soldiers, for we shall soon behold the sea, with its placid bosom kept in millennial repose by the divine "Peace, be still" of Jesus; and upon its "shining 312 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. shore" we shall ever be with the Lord. "We must expect reproach and ridicule, for no great truth of God's word that had sunk into obscurity has ever been restored to its appro- priate prominence except at the cost of suffering and strug- gling to its witnesses. We must expect that some who advance with us to the battle, discouraged by difficulties and intimidated by dangers, will throw away their arms, or desert to the enemy. But supported as we are by the authority and example of the Captain of our Salvation, and of all His inspired apostles, by the faith of the Church for three hundred years, by the teaching of men eminent for their piety and learning through the centuries that are past, by the felt power of "looking for that blessel hope" to raise our thoughts above the world, let us press on, cheered by the assurance that, if we gain not the applause of men, we receive the approval of the Master, arid at a our gather- ing together unto Him" (2 Thess. 2: 1), we shall hear Him say, "Well done, good and faithful servant." (Matt. 35: 22.) "The night is far spent, the day is at hand" (Rom. 13: 12). It is not for us who are gazing through the gloom for the appearing of the Morning Star to take counsel of our fears, or to be governed by a time-serving policy in our testimony, "For yet a little while, and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry." (Heb. 10: 37.) "Brother, up to the breach, For Christ's coming and truth, Let us act as we teach, With the wisdom of age, and the vigor of youth, Heed not their cannon balls; Ask not who stands or falls ; Grasp x the sword Of the Lord, And forward !" HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 313 HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLEJST JSTI AL DOCTRINE. BY THE REV. NATHANIEL WEST, D.D., PRESBYTERIAN, CINCINNATI, OHIO. CHRISTIAN Chiliasm, or Pre-Millennarianism, is the doc- trine of the personal reign of Christ, on earth, 1,000 years after the Beast, False Prophet, and Apostate Christendom have been judged and perished in a common doom. (Rev. 5: 10; 11:15; 19:20, 21; 20:1-6.) It is the doctine of a visible and external sovereignty of Christ, upon earth, as the outcome of history, the redeemed Church of all ages rejoicing in the fullness of a resurrection-life in the actual presence of Him who is the u Only Potentate " and " Prince of the Kings of the Earth " a kingdom of outward glory, established upon the ruin of the polities of all nations, wide as the canopy of heaven. It is a kingdom spiritual, though of outward form, in which carnal beatitudes have no place, the beggarly elements of Judaism no honor; a kingdom terrestrial yet celestial, not of this world but of heaven; one in which Jew and Gentile, incorporated together, share the victory, blessedness, holiness, dominion, and communion of their Lord. Redeemed humanity has another goal than that of common zoology, and that goal is the kingdom of the resurrection. As Dorner has beautifully said, " Com- plete victor Christianity never can be, until Xature has become an organ of its service, a willing instrument of the perfect man, that is of the righteous who are raised from the dead." (Person of Christ I. 412.) " Man and the creature," says Ellicott, " bound together in one common feeling of longing and expectancy, are awaiting that redemption of the body which shall be the immediate 314 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST precursor of the restitution of the world, and the consum- mation of all things in Christ." (Destiny of the Earth, p. 18.) So Lange. " The expectation of the future trans- formation of the earth into a heavenly establishment, of the conjunction of the spiritual kingdom in the other world with that in this, nay, of the reuniting of that world itseli and this, is to many a mere fancy, but to every earnest Christian a great hope, an assurance of faith, a certain pre- diction." (Bremen Lectures, p. 251.) Even Dr. Fairbairn avers the same belief. " The internal links itself with the external, . . . the bodies of the saints shall be trans- formed, and the whole material creation shall become a fit habitation for redeemed and glorified saints." (Hermeneu- tics, p. 367.) Lechler is as clearly right when saying, " To an earthly kingdom of glory, a mass of utterances refer in the letters of the Apostle (Paul), if we have an open eye for them, and this is, at the same time, that eschatological point in which all his letters harmonize." (Apostt, und Nachap. Zeit. p. 141.) Tholuck was only right when say- ing, " The idea that the perfected Kingdom of Christ is to be transferred to heaven, is properly a modern notion. According to Paul, and the Revelation of John, the King- dom of God is to be placed upon the earth, in so far as this itself has part in the universal transformation." (Quoted by Lee. Eschatology, p. 247.) Pre-millennialism, there- fore, looks upon the old genesis as an apocalypse of the past given to Moses, the new genesis as an apocalypse of the future given to John, crowned with redemption. Its eye sweeps the whole field of development from Paradise lost to Paradise restored. The relation of the dispensation of Promise to that of the Law is the analogue of the rela- tion of the Present dispensation to that of the Millennium, after which is the consummation and Eternal Glory, when Christ shall have surrendered the Kingdom to the Father, HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 315 that God may be All in all." Thus does pre-millennialism become a protest against the doctrine of the unbroken evolution of the Kingdom of God to absolute perfection on earth, apart from the visible and miraculous intervention of Christ. And equally is it a protest against that vapid idealism which volatilizes the perfect kingdom into a spir- itual abstraction, apart from the regenesis of the earth. It asserts that the literal is always the last and highest fulfill- ment of prophecy. It adopts the deep truth, expressed by Oetinger, that glorified " corporeity is the end of the ways of God," working from within outward, from the spirit to the body of the believer, and from both to the renovation of the planet. The millennium is the transition-stage ia this process of "the Regeneration," succeeded by the everlasting state. The evolution and history of the doctrine run parallel with the development and progress of all revelation. It does not rest upon an isolated passage in the Apocalypse, as many suppose, but upon the whole covenant of God in Christ for the redemption of man and earth from sin and its curse, and is the central point of eschatology. "Were but one verse all that announced its existence, it would still be equally valid as that other solitary verse, in all the Bible, which announces the surrender of the jurisdiction of the Kingdom, by Christ, to the Father, that God may be All in all (1 Cor. 15:24). But six consecutive times, in six consecutive verses, John emphasizes the Kingdom as the reign of 1,000 years, to make it sure to our understanding. Above even this six-fold repetition, it was, in connection with the sufferings of Christ, a chief part in the burden of " all that God had spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began." (Acts 3:21.) The cir- cumstance that some, who in ancient, as in modern, times, have abused the doctrine to a carnal sense, were called 316 SECOND OOMINO OF CHRIST. " Chiliasts" or " Millennarians," no matter how perverse their doctrine might be, vacates not the fact that a true Christian Chiliasm was the orthodox faith of the primitive church in its purest days. " Christian Chiliasm showed no favor to the fleshly Israel, nor even to its Holy City." (Robertson, Chh. Hist. I., p. 116.) "Christian Chiliasm," says Dorner, " so far from being derivable from, may in part be more justly regarded as a polemic against, Judaism, on the part of Christianity. This is, in particular, its charac- ter, where it has apparently borrowed most features from Judaism." (Person of Christ, I., 408.) It was no device of " later Jews " sighing for temporal deliverance from a Syrian or Roman yoke. They never admitted a " Second Advent " in any case. They knew no millennium save a kingdom of Solomonic and carnal splendor, under a tem- poral prince, with the Levitical cultus revived. Their motto was " Moses forever." They believed in a resurrec- tion of " gross and corruptible bodies, as are here upon earth, to eat, drink, marry, and be given in marriage, and afterward to die again." (Cud worth, Intel. Syst., II., 606.) Of such were the Ebionite Christians teaching a gross Apoc- ryphal view of the 1,000 years, "alter the resurrection, in an earthly Kingdom of Christ, according to the carnal desires and lusts of the flesh." (August. De Hceres, ad Quod vult, etc., cap. 8. De Civit Dei XX. 7.) Unfor- tunately, for the holders of the truth, their doctrine not yet wholly free from the sensuous images of that age, the name " Chiliasts" derived from the 1,000 years, com- mon to both, was indiscriminately applied to both. But Christian Chiliasm is not carnal. It is no " materializing interpretation" of spiritual prophecies by which Jewish Christians were naturally "infected," as with some plague- spot of sensuality. It is no convenient heretical comfort, graciously permitted for a " distressed condition " of the HISTORY OF THE FEE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 317 church. It is no Gnostic conceit, nor Patristic invention. Not Cerinthus nor Papias were its authors, but John the Apostle. Not John alone, but Peter and Paul, Isaiah and Ezekiel, Daniel and Zechariah, Moses and David and Enoch, " holy men of God who spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." (2 Pet. 1 : 21.) That it has an inspired Jewish origin, so far being a prejudice against it, only entitles it to universal acceptance, for "Salvation is of the Jews." That it should be denied because traduced or perverted, or grossly and, in some cases, willfully misrepre- sented by its enemies, or that it should be held responsible for the indiscretion of its friends, is a method of estimation that files us, at once, in funeral procession to the grave of all Christian doctrine. That it is beset with difficulties and suggestive of questions none may resolve, and productive, at times, of seemingly irreconcilable contradictions, is only what is common to all the doctrines of grace, cherished by the whole church as the inspired word of God. The ques- tion "How can these things be? 5> is not of faith, but of puny reason, baffled by a mystery of glory no less than by a mystery of grace. Nicodemus would have been an Anti- Pre-Millennarian! As the doctrine stands in the Scripture, it is the flower of the Protevangel in Eden, the glorious outcome when the veil that is spread over all nations is destroyed, and death is swallowed up in victory; the Future Age, after Patriarchal, Jewish, Pagan, and Christian, ages, muffled in their gray mantles, with shadowy faces, have flitted forever away. It is a Symposium with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Bridegroom's Wedding, the Angels' Delight, the Overcomers' Keward, the Martyr's Joy. It is the doctrine of the " Day-Dawn" and "Phosphor" of Eternal Glory, more sure than the vision on Tabor's height, or audible voice from heaven; part of the "Sabbatisrn" that remains for the people of God; the earthly bloom of a 318 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST, " kingdom that can not be moved " when the Yoice that once shook the earth shall shake once more, " not the earth only but also heaven." (Heb. 12: 26.) H. THE DOCTRINE IN THE APOCALYPSES OF DANIEL AND JOHN. The history of the Pre-Millennial Doctrine grounds itself eminently in the visions of Daniel, and so far as inspired record of it goes, completes itself in the visions of John. The visible Kingdom of God on earth, apostate from the dynasty of promise, was blotted out under the third raid of Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian king, upon Jerusalem. Tributary, at first, to the Gentile power, like a Danubian principality to the Turkish Empire, then the walls of the Holy City demolished, and towers of Zion dismantled like the fortress of Shumla, it existed as an independent external polity no more. Shall God have a visible kingdom, an ex- ternal sovereignty no more, forever, on earth ? While the exiles weep, it is given their conqueror to see a proud Col- ossus, in vision, the symbol of his own glory and that of his successors. It is given Daniel to interpret the vain splen- dor, the time of its duration, the catastrophe that shall signalize its fall, and the new kingdom that shall rise on its ruins. (Dan. 2: 31-46; 7: 1-27.) By the same Spirit it is given the beloved John, 600 years after, to portray the steps by which that catastrophe is reached, and that new king- dom established a kingdom no more bounded by the sea and the river, but extensive as that which David sang when resigning the ensigns of sovereignty to Solomon, the type of his greater son. (Ps. 72, Apoc. 5: 9, 10; 11: 15-18; 12: 10; 15:4; 19:11-21; 20:1-6. On such foundations, supported by instruction from our Lord and His Apostles, did the Church of the Apostolic Age rear its doctrine of the Millennial Kingdom, and the Pre-Millennial Advent of Christ to inaugurate the same. HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 319 (Acts 3 : 19-21; Kom. 8: 23; Kom. 11 : 26.) The prophetic page of Daniel was regarded as a sacred calendar of the future, measuring the range of successive Gentile empires from the captivity date to the finishing of the mystery of God under the seventh trumpet, embracing the conversion of the Jews or recall of Israel to the covenant, the over- throw of Antichrist, the first Resurrection, and the Millen- nial Reign and Final Judgment. (Rev. 10:7; 11:15; Rom. 11 :26; Rev. 19: 20; 20 : 1-7) a course of history spanning 490 years of the later Jewish dispensation, all the Christian dispensation closing with the overthrow of the Beast and Little Horn, and the erection of Daniel's fifth and everlasting Kingdom as an external polity, upon the extinct polities of all nations. The whole time thus covered, by this scope, was the long period of Israel's expectation, run- ning parallel with the Captivity, Restoration, Rejection, the times of the Antichristian Apostacy all this the "Times of the Gentiles," together with the " Time of the End," and of the 1 ,000 years. The prophetic page of John, too, was regarded by the early Church as a compend, not of the details, but of the chief events and results of history in their relation to the coming Kingdom, a further develop- ment of the vision of Daniel, depicting the rise and prog- ress of Antichrist, the final over throw of the Roman Empire, and the judgment on Antichrist at the end of the 1,260 days the Great Image no longer standing on its feet, Beast and False Prophet no longer existing, the Millennial Kingdom coming with One who comes in the clouds of Heaven. With such a view it was impossible for the early Church not to be Pre-Millennarian, for the visions of Daniel (chap. 7) and John (Apoc. chaps. 4-22) were one. The carnal hope of a Jewish Kingdom having perished with the death of Christ, the Apostolic Church addressed itself to the work of winning souls to Christ, in a present spiritual 320 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. kingdom of inward hidden virtue, a life with Christ in God, vet destined hereafter to bloom into glorious visible domin- ion, at the manifestation of the sons of God. (Rom. 8 : 18- 2; 1 Pet. 1:3-8; Acts 3 : 3-19, 21.) The certainty of the " Appearing and Kingdom " coming both together, in out- ward splendor on earth, was never doubted by any save such as Hymeneus and Philetus, who denied the resurection. The whole dispute in the early Church gathered around the order and relation of certain events and the time of their occurrence a dispute terminated by the declarations of Paul and the visions of John. The early Church saw a complete identification between the vision of Daniel (7 : 7- 27) and the Apocalypse of John (chaps. 6-21). It was impossible to avoid the conclusion that Daniel 7 : 9-15, 18, 22, 26, 27, described the scenes attending the Second Advent, .and was parallel with Apoc. 19 : 11-21; 20 : 1-7, the apostle simply introducing the 1,000 years, and separating certain events according to their relations, in the remainder of the chapter events which, in Daniel's vision, are crowded together irrespective of these relations, both ends of John's vision being pressed together into one plane in Daniel. This is manifest if we compare the parallel expressions of the two visions parallelisms which have attracted the attention of so many critics. DANIEL SAYS: 1. As to the Cloud Corner: u I went on gazing in the night's visions, and behold! One like a Son of Man came in the clouds of heaven," etc. Dan. 7: 13. 2. As to the Persecuting Anti- Christian Beast : " I went on gaz- ing, and the .same Horn made war with the saints and prevailed against them until the Ancient of Days came," etc. Dan. 7 : 21, 22. JOHN SAYS: 1. As to the Cloud Comer: " Be- hold! He cometh in clouds, and every eye shall see Him; they also that pierced Him." Rev. 1 : 7. 2. As to the Persecuting Anti- christian Beast: " The Beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against th'-m, and shall overcome them, and kill them.'' " War with the saints and overcome them." Rev. 11 : 7 ; 13 : 7 ; 17:14. HISTORY OF THE PEE -MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 321 3. As to the time of the Domi- nancy of the Beast : '' They shall be given into Ins hands for a time, times, and the dividing of a time." Dan 7 : 25. 4. As to the Judgment on the Anti Christian Beast: " I went on gazing till the thrones were placed and the Ancient of Days did sit," etc. " The judgment was set and the books were opened." "And judgment was given to the saints of the Most High." "The judg- ment shall sit," etc. " I went on gazing till the Beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame." Dan. 7:9, 10, 22, 26, 11. 5. As to the Kingdom and Reign of the triumphant paints: " The time came that the saints possessed the Kingdom." "The saints of the. Most High shall take the King- dom forever, even for ever and ever."^ "And the Kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the Kingdom under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose Kingdom is an everlasting King- dom," etc. Dan. 7 : 18, 22, 27. 6. As to the Blessedness of the Millennial Reign: " Blessed is he that waiteth and cometh to the thousand, three hundred and five and thirty days." "Thou shalt rest and stand in thy lot at the end of the days." Dan. 12: 12, 13. 3. As to the time of the Domi- nancy of the B ast: "For a time, times, and half a time." u Forty and two months." "A thousand, two hundred and threescore days." Rev. 12:14; 11:2,3. 4. As to the Judgment on the Antichristian Beast: " I saw heav- en opened, and behold a white horse," etc. " I saw thrones and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them." "And I saw a great white throne, and the books were opened." " And I saw the Beast," etc. " And the Beast was taken, and with him the False Prophet that wrought miracles before them," etc. "These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. And the remnant were slain with the sword of Him that sat on the horse," etc. Rev. 19:11; 20:4,12; 19:20,21. 5. As to the Kingdom and Reign of the triumphant saints: " We shall reign with thee on the earth." " The Kingdoms of this world are become the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever, and ever." " And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the Word of God," etc. " And they lived and reigned a thousand years. This is the first resurrection." Rev. 5 : 10 ; 11 : 15 ; 20:4,5. 6. 'As to the Blessedness of the Millennial Reign: " Blessed and holy is He that hath part in the first resurrection; on such the second death hath no power. But they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years." Bev. 20 : 6. Nothing is clearer to the scholar than that the Apoca- lypse of John is but the expansion of the Apocalypse of Daniel, and that all the seals, vials and trumpets of John are included in the time of the " Chazeh Haveith" the U I was 21 322 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. gazing," or " I went on gazing " of Daniel ; his imperfect tense. Nothing is clearer than that the announcement of one like the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven relates to His " Second Advent," and not to His First, and that the early church was not in error when identifying these visions as one the latter only an expression of the former, developed under the light of a later eschatology. It was the view of Justin, saying : " He shall come as the Son of Man, on the clouds, even as Daniel hath showed." Of Tertullian, saying : " Concerning the Second Coming, the same prophet writes : And, behold, One like the Son of Man came with the clouds of heaven." Of Chrysostom, Cyril, and all the fathers before Constantino's day. Alle- gorical coming in the clouds was unknown to the ancients. " I challenge," says Cunninghame, of Laiushaw, " the oppo- nents of these views to produce a single passage from any writer of authority in the three or four iirst centuries, in favor of the modern figurative interpretation of the words of Dan. 7: 13, and of our Lord in Matt. 24: 30, and Luke 21: 27. The prophecy describes the same events." (Polit- ical Destiny of the Earth, p. 35.) So all the best exposi- tors, ancient and modern. " I shall never believe," exclaims Mede, " but that all those places of the Son of Man's com- ing and appearing in the clouds of heaven, mentioned in the Gospels and in the Apocalypse, are the same with the Coming in the clouds prophesied by Daniel." (Works IV., Epist. X.) So Keil, who is one instance among the great host of later interpreters of this period : " This passage forms the foundation for the declaration of Christ regard- ing His future Coming, which is described after Dan. 7: 13." (Keil on Daniel, 236.) The early church was right. Cer- tain events, combined in one and the same scene in Daniel, it saw, sundered 1,000 years apart, by the same revealing Spirit, in the vision of John. A new vista is opened in HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 323 the bosom of the later Apocalypse. Daniel's vision embraces all at both ends of the 1,000 years in John's vision. It is the very vision to which Christ referred a vision familiar to the Sanhedrin when, April 7, A. D. 33, the morning of His crucifixion, He said to the High-Priest: " Hereafter ye shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven." Matt. 26:64. Another Sanhedrin of the Holy Ones should sit, God, the Father, not Caiaphas, presiding, the Son of Man coming with the saints to receive the Kingdom. It settles the question forever, that the vision of the " Beclouded One," in Daniel, refers to the " Second Advent," and that the earthly Kingdom set up * 4 under the whole heaven," or over the whole earth, and "given to the people of the saints of the Most High," and received by Christ, is a Kingdom not given Him at His Ascension to heaven, but upon His return from heaven to earth ; a Kingdom received at the Judgment upon the Antichristian Beast and False Prophet, after the 1,260 days are expired ; in other words, the Mil- lennial Kingdom described by John. I may add, in vindi- cation of this identity seen by the early church, that if, as Dr. David Brown holds, in his work on the " Second Advent," the vision of Daniel, in chapter 7:9-27, " has nothing to do with the Second Advent of Christ" then the vision of John (Rev. 19: 11-21; 20: 1-6,) has nothing to do- with that Advent, for both are confessed to be the same vision, alike by himself and Dr. Fairbairn (Brown, Sec. Adv., p. 349; Fairbairn on Prophecy, p. 303.) But, if the vision of Daniel does relate to the Second Advent, as Christ's words to Caiaphas clearly show, then the vision of John relates to the same Advent, and, by consequence, the outward Kingdom described by both is the same ; erected at the same time the time of the smiting of the Image on the Toes; the time of the Judicial Yerdict executed on SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. Beast and False Prophet; the time of the Second Coming of the Son of Man in the clouds of heaven. The " Blow " and the " Yerdict " fall together. The " Stone of Israel " coming in power and grinding to powder, or scattering as chaff, is the " Judge," the " Shepherd," too, of the little flock, to whom it is the Father's good pleasure to give " the Kingdom." (Luke 12: 32; Matt. 9A: 31-46.) These Apocalypses were not, to the eye of the early church, mere scenic exhibitions; "high ideal and poetical delineations " of what Drs. Brown and Fairbairn call " the agency of second causes," clothed in judicial drapery, hav- ing no reference to the personal advent of the Heaven- Descending Stone, to Judgment. Pre-Millennarianism could have flourished in no such soil. They were symbols of the judicial appearing of Christ to set up His Kingdom. From the vision of Daniel the Jewish Church derived its assurance of the outward establishment of the Kingdom of God, at the visible "Appearing" of the Messiah. His coming on a cloudy throne with flame, and pouring a stream of wrath from its fire-scattering wheels upon the guilty nations, was not to annihilate their existence, but abolish their dominion, subjecting them to the visible sov- ereignty of His own scepter, and to the dominion of His saints. Expecting but one advent, and contemplating the external form of the Kingdom alone, the Jew lost sight of the spiritual internal form, and rejected Christ and all salva- tion. The opposite error to that, they indulge, who, con- scious of two advents, yet reject the coming and visible earthly Kingdom, because receiving now the inward, invis- ible and spiritual. Not so did the primitive church. From Daniel it learned the source of our Lord's title, the " Son of Man," and of Christ's language as to His coming " in the clouds of heaven," and as to this future " King- dom." Here, Paul learned that " the saints shall judge the HISTORY OP THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 325 world." Here, too, lie learned how to correct the Thessa- lonian error, by expounding the " Little Horn " as the " Man of Sin," the persecutor of God's saints, sitting in " the Temple of God." Here it was he saw that the " Day of the Lord " began with the Judgment on Antichrist, whom the Lord would destroy, at His Second Advent, by the " breath of His mouth," or a sentence of judgment from His lips, and consume with the " brightness of His Coin- ing," or the shining of His personal presence a gleam of which he had once seen on his way to Damascus! The vision of Daniel is the effulgent torch that blazes over the whole Pre-Millennial eschatology of Paul, John, and Christ Himself. It flames through the whole New Tes- tament. Nor was the early church in error when regarding the 1,000 years of John, though symbolical, as a measure of time, dividing the great events of a vast transition period a Future Age or World to come, between the close of the present dispensation and the Age that is endless. Clearly, it noted the contrast between the four great events marking the opening, and the contrasted four marking the close, of the 1,000 years. These events are : AT THE OPENING. 1. Satan bound, shut up and sealed in the Abyss for 1,000 years. 2. The nations deceived no more till the 1,000 years are lulfilled. 8. Thrones and Judgment given to the saints living and reign- ing with Christ 1,000 years. 4. The first resurrection of the blessed and holy dead, who are priests of God and of Christ, AT THE CLOSE. 1. Satan loosed out of his prison when the 1,000 years are ex- pired. 2. The nations deceived, which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog. 3. The camp of the saints and the Beloved City compassed about. 4. The resurrection of the rest of the dead after the 1,000 years are finished. 326 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. III. NO CONTRADICTION IN THE DIFFERENT REPRESENTATIONS. The antithesis is perfect. It is not possible to escape the conviction that these years express actual duration. The apparent contradiction arising from the interca- lation of the 1,000 years created between the representa- tions of the Apocalypse concerning the " Last Things," and the earlier representations of the same things, thus dividing events in the later view, which, in the earlier one, are bound together, or seemingly so bound, or spoken together in the same breath, or combined in one and the same picture, and tied to the same hour of fulfillment, all circling round the Parousia, presented no difficulty either to the faith or the understanding of the early Church. They knew that Daniel beheld, as a single act, in a single point of time, while he " went on gaz- ing," what required centuries for historical fulfillment. Only the high points of the distant landscape are seen in the prophetic or symbolic picture, when the Seer beholds it in a right line, or in front; not the intervening valleys, or spaces between. It is what critics call the " apotelesmatic character " of prophecy and symbolism. It was given to John, who beheld these same events, sidewise, as they passed in panorama before him, to supplement the earlier eschatol- ogy, by the seals, trumpets, vials, and the 1,000 years, so describing the special events and distances involved, but unseen, by Daniel as he " went on gazing." The whole Apocalypse of John, from chapter 4th to the end, is but a development of Daniel's imperfect tense. For the early Church, well knowing that " one day with the Lord is as a thousand years," the Millennial Day was olamic time, an seonian period (Taylor Lewis, Six Days, p. 372), including all the judgments and mercies embraced in the " times of the restitution," that day in which both the judgments, the one on the Beast and False Prophet, the other on Gog and HISTORY OF THE FEE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 327 Magog, and also both resurrections, occurred, the one in the 41 morning " for the dominion of the righteous, the other in the u evening" for the final doom of the wicked. The apparent contradiction vanished at once, in view of that prophetic glance which, in earlier and less developed repre- sentations, swept the whole field of the future in a moment, and combined in the same picture, without distinction of time, events historically separate. The variations between the representations of the later Apocalypse and the other earlier Scriptures, so perplexing to many, received a satis- factory explanation, inasmuch as they were seen to arise from the fact that, while, on the one hand, the other Scrip- tures contemplated the great events of the " End," or " Last Day," in mass, foreshortened in perspective, compressed and unsundored by time, and uttered in one breath, the Apocalypse, on the other hand, divided the same and dis- posed them according to their successive temporal relations and order, under the light of a higher illumination and the angle of a new beholding. This rule of interpretation simply recognizes what Yan Oosterzee calls " the grouping together of that which shall, inreality,be realized, not side by side, but in succession," and is abundantly vindicated by the ablest scholars. (Van Oosterzee, Dogmatics II, 786; Stuart, Hints on Prophecy, p. 131; Auberlen, Daniel, pp. 74, 75, 225-229; Keil, Daniel, pp.226, 227; Kliefoth, Offenbar, Joh. Ill, 273; Zockler, Hofmann, and Delitzsch, in Lange on Daniel, p. 164; Dor- ner, Person of Christ, I. p. 407.) Thus did a true Chris- tian Chiliasm root itself in the consciousness of the early Church, the Millennial Kingdom being ever regarded as beyond the Second Advent, and on earth. Such was the basis of primitive Chiliasm. The beloved disciple bequeathed to the martyr-church a proposition which, interpret it as it might, still remained, viz. : that 328 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. after the seals, trumpets and vials are fulfilled, Satan shall be imprisoned 1,000 years, during which the risen saints shall reign with Christ on the very scene of their suffering an event signalized by the resurrection of the just, which other Scriptures taught them could only occur at the Appearing of Christ. But one interpretation was possible the corning of Christ before the 1,000 years. And all the more tenaciously was it held because given the strug- gling Church by one who was a " brother and companion in tribulation and in the Kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ." (Rev. 1:9.) " In the midst of persecution," says Neander, " it was a. solace and support to the Christians to anticipate that even here on earth, the scene of their sufferings, the Church was destined to triumph in its perfected and glorified state. They framed to themselves a spiritual idea of the happiness of this period perfectly corresponding with the essence of the Gospel, conceiving under it nothing else than the dominion of the divine will, .the undisturbed and blissful reunion of the whole community of saints, and the restora- tion of harmony between a sanctified humanity, and all nature transfigured to its primitive innocence." (Hist. Chr. Rel. I, 650.) Frequently marred, as was unavoid- able, in that age, by the radiant coloring of an Asiatic im- agination, as also by sensuous images under which, at times, it was presented, and by the fanatical extravagance of heretical men, it nevertheless lost none of its divine authority and power. " Christian Chiliusm," says Dr. Schaff, " if we leave out of sight the sensuous and fanatical extravagance into which it has frequently run, both in ancient and in modern times, is based on the unfulfilled promises of the Lord, and particularly on the Apocalyptic figure of His 1,000 years' reign upon earth, after the first resurrection, in connection with numerous passages respect- HISTORY OF THE PRE -MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 3 ing His glorious return which declare it to be near, and yet uncertain and unascer tamable as to its day and hour, that believers may always be ready for it. This precious hope r through the whole Age of Persecution, was a copious foun- tain of encouragement and comfort under the pains of that martyrdom which sowed in blood the seed of a glorious- harvest for the Church." (Hist. Chr. Chh. I, 299). IV. THE TESTIMONY OF THE APOSTOLIC FATHERS. Consentient, is the voice of the Apostolic Fathers, for the pre-millennial advent, as also the earliest literary Chris- tian monuments that remain to us wherever they have spoken on the subject. Everywhere, in their view, the stages of development of the Kingdom of God are the stages of the Parousia of Him who ever is, as He ever was, the Coming One, until the development culminates in the visible Second " Appearing and Kingdom " together. Everywhere the future Parousia is the visible appearing of Christ, for in the Sacred Scriptures, the term " appearing " is only affirmed of the Second Person of the Trinity, incarnate, never of the Spirit, never of the Father, never of Providence, never of Death. For the Fathers, and the Christian writers of the Apostolic Age, the Appear- ing and Kingdom were the object of their hope, and next to the cross, the greatest motive for their work. The intermediate state was for them but a span ; the interval between death and the Second Advent but a moment; the grave a slumber, how brief, if so be that the Bridegroom tarried and their flesh might rest in hope. Already Paul had told them that the Gospel had " gone into all the earth^ even unto the ends of the world." (Rom. 10:18.) The "Mystery of Iniquity " already worked, and for aught they knew, the " let " might be removed in their day, Anti- christ appear and Christ come. (2 Thess. 2:1-12.) Their 330 SECOND COMING OF CHItlST. eyes and hopes were fixed on the coming Kingdom on earth. The words of the Lord in Matt. 12:32, 6 al&v OVTOC, they understood as meaning this present Age, or world, and 6 a!v fi&faw the future Age or world, both on the earth, the viKovftev, or inhabited place, the former the Kingdom in its present mixed state, the latter the Kingdom of the resur- rection, in its purity, when all things that offend are taken out. Many of them had Apostolic instructors, at whose feet they daily sat listening to their inspired words. Barnabas teaches that the " Sabbath Rest will come when the Son of God shall appear and destroy the Lawless One. The true Sabbath is the Sabbath of the 1,000 years. Then all will be sanctified completely, when we shall have become perfectly righteous, that is, when Christ comes back to reign." The Jewish carnal hope, he declares to be u utterly vain." " The righteous man waits for the Holy Age, rdi> a-ytov 1dwo. He who does God's commandments shall be glorified in the Kingdom of God. He shall rise from the dead." (Donaldson Apost. Fath. 230, 240. Dressel, Patr. Opp. 24, 34.) These words are meaningless, if they do not teach a Kingdom of the resurrection, on this e*-,rth, introduced by the Second Advent. So Clement of Rome, whose " name is in the Book of Life," (Philip 4: 3), believing, as all did in the speedy coining of Christ to set up His Kingdom. Clement, the companion of Paul and John, declares that the apostles, assured by the resurrection of Christ, and con- firmed by their converse with Him, " all went forch pro- claiming the good news that the Kingdom of God was about to come, ptJfatv ipxeaOat, the righteous be made manifest in the Kingdom, and martyrs received their reward from Him who is the Fashioner and Father of the Ages, rwv humn>" (Don. Apost. Fath. 143, 150. Dressel 86, 88.) Polycarp, pupil of John, and who told Irenseus what familiar inter- course he had with the beloved disciple, contended with HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 331 the Marcionite Gnostics who denied the resurrection, the return of Christ, and the judgment, and affirmed that who- ever so held was the "First born of Satan." " If we obey Christ and please Him in this Age, T& vvv alun, we shall receive the Age to come, rbv ptzfovra. He will .raise us from the dead, and we shall live and reign with Him. The saints shall judge the world." (Don. Apost. Fath. 183, 192. Dressel 382.) In the absence of any literature from Ignatius on the subject, yet who can doubt that his faith was that of his fellow-martyrs? Papias, too, the com- panion of both John and Polycarp, and of whose lost five books but one extract has survived, that not his own, a man whom the Antichiliast Eusebius first applauds as of com- manding influence, " wellskilled in all manner of learning, and well acquainted with the Scriptures," (Euseb. Eccl. Hist. 3:36), then, afterwards invidiously describes as " limited in comprehension," because he was a pre-millen- narian and taught the common martyr doctrine, holding that " there will be a millennium after the resurrection of the dead, when the personal reign of Christ will be established on this earth." (Eccl. Hist. 3:39.) Among the traditions, he collected, of what Christ is reported to have said, one is preserved, fanciful enough, concerning the fertility of the Yine in a renovated earth, and which Irenseus repeats, adding another concerning the Sheaf ol Wheat, and so, enlarging in Oriental style, upon the possi- bilities of nature when the curse is removed. Pastor llermas, too, looked forward to a renovated earth, the Age to come, following the resurrection of the just. "The elect of God," he says, "will dwell in the future Age, 6 aibv epxb/usvoc, and remain pure and unstained. They will be all joyful then. All things will be smooth to them if they keep His commandments. They shall obtain victory and reward, but the world that now is shall be 332 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. destroyed by fire. This Age is winter to the just, the future or coming Age is Summer." (Don. Apost. Fath. 305. Dressel 586.) Thus, do all these men speak in concert. It is a fact of no mean significance, that the very men who lived next the apostles, some of whom conversed with them every day, felt the pulse-beat of their inspiration and shared their martyrdom, should have left so much, in the scanty materials that survive, to attest their common faith in the pre-millennial return of Christ to earth. If, while holding this great truth, the tincture of their Jewish times colored some of their expressions and illustrations, still their testi- mony is not thereby impaired. Better proof we could not have of what was the belief of the Apostolic Church in reference to this matter; better we could not desire. No higher eccle- siastical authority, none more impressive than that of holy men standing as they did, in the front rank with Stephen, Peter, James, Paul, John, and their companions. " They shine with the evening red of the Apostolic Day, and breathe an enthusiasm of simple faith and fervent love and fidelity to the Lord which proved its power in suffering and martyrdom." (Schaff. Chh. Hist. 1:457.) "All were at one," says Dorner, " men of the Johannine school, like Polycarp and Papias; of the Pauline, like Ignatius and Clement of Rome; of the Petrine, like Barnabas; of that of James, like Hennas and Hegesippus," (Dorner, Person of Christ, 1:143.) Chiliasm was the common inheritance of both Jewish and Gentile Christians, and passed from the Jewish Christian to the Gentile Christian Church precisely in the way the Gospel passed. It was fragrant at Antioch as at Jerusalem, at Rome as at Ephesus. History has no consensus more unanimous for any doctrine than is the consensus of the Apostolic Fathers for the pre-millennial advent of Christ. HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 333 V. THE TESTIMONY OF THE APOLOGISTS. Consentient, too, is tlie testimony of all the early Chris- tian Apologists who have spoken on the subject. Some, like Tatian, Athenageras, and others, devoted to the special field of polemics against pagan mythology and philosophy, or some special feature of apologetics, have recorded no word as to the millennium. Any " inference," from the mere circumstance of silence, and in absence of proof, that they were opposed to Chiliasm, or had a different eschatol- ogy from their contemporaries who asserted the Chiliastic doctrine to be universal among the orthodox, is so transpa- rently fallacious as to effect its own refutation. Otherwise, some of them would stand convicted of unbelief in the way of salvation, for, on this subject, one of them is absolutely, and several are well nigh absolutely, mute. But wherever they have spoken on the subject, prior to the time of Con- stan tine's victory, their voice has been harmonious in favor of Chiliasm, save Origen and his transcendental school. The very school that turned the symbols of the Apocalypse into mere metaphors, impugned its divine authority, attributed it to another John, invented every one of the rationalistic arguments repeated, ad nauseam, in modern times against its canonicity, indirectly encouraged Gnosticism, and, at one time, well nigh wrecked the doctrine of the resurrection. Justin Martyr, renowned in learning and in the knowledge of the Scriptures, testified to Trypho the Jew, the faith of the orthodox church in his day. To the question of the Jew, u Do you confess that this place, Jerusalem, shall be rebuilt, and your people be congregated, and rejoice together with Christ and the Patriarchs, and Prophets?" etc., etc., Justin answers, " I confessed to you, before, that I, and many others, besides, do believe, as you well know, this shall be. But, on the other hand, I have also signified to 334 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. you that many, who are not of the pure and pious faith of the Christians, do not acknowledge this; they are called Christians, indeed, but are godless, impious heretics, because they teach doctrines that, in every respect, are blasphemous, atheistic, foolish, etc. They do not confess this, but dare to blaspheme the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and say there is no resurrection of the dead, but that at death, their souls are received up into the heaven. Do not imagine that these are Christians. But, I, and others who are right- minded Christians on all points, know there will be aresur- rection of the dead, and a 1,000 years in Jerusalem, built, adorned, broadened, as the prophets Ezekiel, Isaiah, and others, declare." (Dial. cap. 80.) " A certain man among us, of the name of John, one of the Apostles of Christ, in a Revelation which he had, prophesied that they who were faithful to our Christ, would accomplish 1,000 years in Jerusalem, and, after that, the general and, to speak concise- ly, the final (eternal) resurrection and judgment of all would take place. Just as our Lord also said, They shall neither marry nor be given in marriage, but shall be equal to the angels, the children of the God of the resurrection." (Dial, cap. 81.) Such is the testimony of Justin, than which none could be more strong. In Justin's Millennium, says Donaldson, " there is not a syllable to intimate a single enjoyment that is not consistent with the utmost holiness." (Hist. Chris. Lit. II. 263.) The force of Justin's testi- mony is sought to be evaded by the statement that he is merely narrating to Trypho a view he does not expressly affirm as his own. This is met by the counter statement that he is narrating the faith of the orthodox, and the grounds of it, he himself being one of " the right-minded, on all points." It is a puerile argument to plead that Irenseus and Tertullian (whose Chiliastic Book is lost) do not "say " that Justin was a Chiliast, or that he is not HISTORY OF THE FEE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 335 named as one by Eusebius and Jerome, the judgment of crit- ics being that this omission by the anti-Chiliasts of the fourth century was caused by the dread of his great name. More plausible, yet equally powerless, is the argument that Justin does not treat of Chiliasm in his "Apologies," but repre- sents the u Last things " as combined in one picture around the Parousia, and tied to the same hour of fulfillment. This is only what is done in the Sacred Volume itself. It treats of the 1,000 years only in the Apocalypse, there separa- ting events which in other Scriptures are spoken of as one. It is a treatment justified by inspired men, and practiced by the church in all ages.* The last and boldest effort to break the testimony of Justin was to corrupt the Greek text of the first quotation, a corruption on which anti- chiliasts mainly rely, but which has signally failed. The testimony is conclusive, showing that Chiliasm was the orthodox faith of the age succeeding that of the Apostolic Fathers. The Gnostics alone rejected it, because denying the doctrine of the resurrection, and well versed in Greek, and well aware that *' Anastasis " in the mouth of Christ and John meant a literal resurrection of the body, rejected both the Gospel and the Apocalypse. While Justin was inconsistent with himself in limiting the covenant inheritance of earth to the possession of Canaan alone, and, perhaps, applied too literally some of the imagery of the prophets, he yet truly represented the two main points of the Church's faith in his day, the Pre-millennial Advent, and the literal " First Resurrection." Melito, of Sardis, famed for his "sanctity and learning," shared the views of Justin, and wrote a work on the Apocalypse, now lost. u Irenseus the Great," a disciple of both Papias and Polycarp, rich in experience of spiritual * Still more, Neander has justly observed that the " spiritual ideas " of Justin in his Apologies "stand in no manner of contradiction with this doctrine Chiliasm." (Hist. Chr. Kel. I. 669.) 336 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. life and knowledge, defended (in his fifth Book on Her- esies) the pre-millennarian doctrine against the Platonizing Gnostics, quoting in its support the third Beatitude of our Lord (Matt. 5:5) as the Nicene Bishops did afterward, " Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth," and the promise iu Psalm. 37: 11, "The meek shall inherit the earth, and delight themselves in the abundance of- peace." He appeals with prodigious power, equalled only by the massive eloquence of Hippolytus, to the prophecies of Daniel, John, and Christ. " Christ," says he, " is the Stone cut out without hands, who shall destroy temporal kingdoms, and introduce an eternal one, which is the resur- rection of the Just " a comment of gold, for it dates the blow from the Heaven-Descending Stone in judgment strik- ing the Monarchy -Image in the time of the toes, and as contemporaneous with the verdict on antichrist. " When antichrist shall have devastated all things in this world he will reign for three years and six months, aaid sit in the temple at Jerusalem, and then the Lord will come from heaven in the clouds, in the glory of the Father, sending this man to the lake of fire, but bringing in for the right- eous the times of the kingdom, the rest, the hallowed seventh-day, and restoring to Abraham the promised inheritance." " Christ will Himself renew the inheritance of the earth, and reorganize the mystery of the glory of His sons." "In the times of the Kingdom, the righteous shall bear rule upon their rising from the dead, when the creation, having been renovated, and set free, shall fructify with abundance of every kind, from the dew of heaven, and from the fertility of the earth." (Here the tradition Papias recorded concerning the Grapes is repeated, and another added as to the Wheat.) " In the times of the Kingdom, the earth shall be called by Christ to its pristine condition, and Jerusalem rebuilt, after the pattern of the Jerusalem which is HISTORY OF THE PRE -MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 337 the mother of us all. John saw this new Jerusalem descend- ing upon the earth. After the times of the Kingdom, he says, u I saw a Great "White Throne, and Him who sat upon it." " Man rises, not allegorically, from the dead, as I have shown repeatedly. And as he rises actually, so shall he bo actually disciplined before-hand for incorruption, and shall go forward, and flourish in the times of the Kingdom." John, therefore, did distinctly foresee the first resurrection of the Just, and the inheritance in the Kingdom on earth." (Iren. Adv. Hseres. V. caps. 26, 30, 33, 35.) Such was the testimony of this great man against the Gnostics. What- ever criticism we may make upon some fanciful and sensuous notions and images found in his writings, and mingling with his faith, it is certain he is expressing, on this subject, not merely his individual " opinion," but the general faith of the Church. And antichiliasts who are wont to assail the type of religion in the martyr-age as k ' gross " and " Jewish," may do well to remember the words of Meander, " He who knows anything about the hidden depths of the spiritual life in which religion has its seat and laboratory, will be cautious how he pronounces judgment from such appear- ances as these on the surface against the entire religion of a certain period, in which disturbing mixtures of a sensuous element were still to be found, when, in such a man as Irenreus we find vital Christianity and an exalted idea of the blessedness of fellowship with God, united with these subordinate notions." (Hist. I. 651.) Equally strong is the testimony of Lactantius, the <; Christian Cicero," a contemporary of the Nicene Council, and preceptor of Constantine's son. "It is ordained bj? the disposal of God Most High that the present unjust Age, a space of time having been accomplished, shall have an end, when all wickedness becoming extinct, and the souls of the godly called back to a blessed life, there shall flour- 22 338 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. ish a quiet, tranquil, peaceable and golden Age, the Lord Himself then reigning. The righteous King will institute a great judgment on the earth respecting the living and the dead, and will deliver all the nations in subjection to the righteous who are alive; will raise the righteous dead to eternal life, and will Himself reign with them on the earth, and will build the Holy City, and this Kingdom of the righteous shall be for 1,000 years. Then, the last judg- ment of God will come to pass against the nations. Then,, also, shall the wicked arise, not to life, but to punishment. The second resurrection shall take place. This is the doc- trine of the holy prophets which we Christians follow" (Div. Inst.. Lib. IY., cap. 2, and YIL, cap. 26.) Time and space forbid to quote the remaining Fathers of the Anti-Nicene and Nicene Ages. Only the brief- est reference. Tertullian, "the Master," as Cyprian was wont to call him, renouncing his Montanistic error, still adhered to his Pre-Millennial faith, and wrote a book in its defence, now lost, "The Hope of Believ- ers." Champion against the Marcionites, he battled for this truth as did Irenseus, Justin and Polycarp, asserting a post-resurrection Kingdom on earth, of spiritual blessings, " ~bona spiritalia" Hippolytus, the martyr, most accom- plished of men in his day, astronomer, theologian, bishop, eloquent as Massilon, the disciple, too, of Irenseus, also identified the vision of Daniel YIL, with that of John, Apoc. XIX, XX, and refers both to the * Sec- ond Advent," after which comes the " Everlasting Domin- ion." Cyprian, "the proto-martyr of Carthage," once a splendid legal advocate, high in social life, then a noble confessor of Jesus, eminent, too, as an ecclesiastic, was a Pre-Millennarian. Commodian, "the genius of virtue," Nepos, " the learned bishop, and poet of Arsinoe," Methodius, the martyr, whose last battle was against the HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 339 destructive school of Origen, and in defence of the resur- rection, Yictorinus, the martyr, whose work Jerome has so shamefully mutilated, Gregory, of Nyssa, Sulpicius, Sev- erus, old Paulinus, the friend and stay of Athanasius all shining names held the Chiliastic faith. Such, then, is only a part of the witness furnished by an age Dorner has well styled " predominantly eschatological." Save Origen and his school, of emasculating damage to the Word of God, all the Apostolic Fathers, and all the Apol- ogists in the age succeeding, and, as Elliott assures us, " all primitive expositors, except Origen, and the few who rejected the Apocalypse, were Pre-Millennarians, and con- strued the First Resurrection literally." (Hor86 Apoc.. 1Y., 306.) " In all the writings of these centuries," says Gies- eler, a most accurate historian, " Chiliasm is so distinctly and prominently mentioned that we can not hesitate in regarding it as the general belief of that age." (Eccl. Hist., I., 166.) "Chiliasm," says Mede, "was the general belief of all orthodox Christians in the age imme- diately following the Apostles, and none were known to deny it but the heretics, who denied the resurrection." (Works,. pp. 602, 771.) Hase declares: "It was the old and popular faith." (Hist., Chh., p. 688.) " The stream of all the best approved antiquity before Jerome Hebrews, Greeks, Latins ran that way." (Homes, Res. Rev., p. 370.) "It. was universally received by almost all teachers," says- Muencher (Chh. Hist., II., p. 415.) Chillingworth, argu- ing against Rome's abandonment of the doctrine, says: "The doctrine that, before the world's end Christ should reign upon earth 1,000 years, and that saints should live under Him in all holiness and happiness, etc., is, by the present Roman Church, held false and heretical," but, " it was the doctrine believed and taught by the most eminent Fathers of the Age, next after the Apostles, and by none of 340 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. that Age opposed or condemned. Burton, of Oxford, in his Bampton Lectures for 1829, and Bishop Russel, both Anti- chiliasts, assert that the matter is beyond successful denial. The latter, in his History of the Scotch Episcopal Church (p. 84), affirms that " down to the beginning of the fourth century, the sure and certain hope entertained by the Chris- tian world, that the Redeemer would appear on earth and exercise authority during 1,000 years, was universal.'' Desprez, Vicar of Alvediston, Wiltz, in -his recent serni- infidel prseteristic book on Daniel and John, confesses " that the writer of the Apocalypse meant to assert a lit- eral reign of Christ and His saints upon earth, for 1,000 years," and that this receives confirmation from the fact that the Church of the first three centuries was essentially chiliastic." (Dan. and John, p. 309.) Alfbrd to the same purpose: "The whole Church, for 300 years, understood Apoc. 20: J -6 in a plain, literal sense," and, "it is the most cogent instance of unanimity which primitive antiquity presents." (N. T., Yol. II., part 2, 1,088.) The effort to deny this unshakable position, is the futile work of those who first seek to show that Christian Chiliasm was derived from Jewish apocryphal books, and next, that only a few enthusiasts believed it. It is the controversial device of Origen, Eusebius, Jerome and Dionysi us, followed painfully by Whitby, whose crowning reason for opposition to the martyr faith should exclude him from the consideration of all impartial men, viz.: that Chiliasm "shakes the founda- tions of Episcopacy, the translation of the Sabbath to the Lord's day, and other Constitutions derived from the Apos- tles." (Treat. Mill., I., VI., 1.) The truth is this " pre- cious hope," as Dr. Schaff calls it, or " pearl of true doc- trine," as Lange names it, was a gift to the martyrs from one who \va.s their " brother and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom ' and patience of Jesus Christ" the HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 341 consolation of the martyr church, which held it fast in life and death. VI. CRITICISM OF THE CENSURERS OF THE DOCTRINE. I shall be spared the necessity of any protracted criticism of the assaults made upon Christian Chiliasm by those who, having first misrepresented it, then opposed it; or of showing how the objections to a false Chiliasm have been perpetuated in history as alleged against the true; or of the various devices by which a doctrine once so dear to the whole church was sought to be disparaged; or of the means by which it was corrupted, and then discrowned. The fact that Montanus and his sect, ejected from the church, adhered to a false Chiliasm, and that the Alogi, another heretical sect, repudiated the true; the alleged assertion of Justin, and alleged admission of Irenaens used to support it, that Chiliasm was not the general faith of the primitive Church; the controversial device set afloat by Eusebius, court-flatterer of Constantine, and hostile to Athanasius, that a certain Caius of Rome denying the pre-millennial advent of Christ, ascribed the paternity of Chiliasm to Cerinthus, as others did to Papias; the paraded victory of Dionysius the disciple of Origen over Coracion the dis- ciple of Nepos; the ridicule made, of the Grapes of Papias and the Wheat-Sheaf of Irenseus, of the descending city of Tertullian, of the continuity of the human race during the millennium affirmed by Lactantius, the improper charge made by Jerome that the orthodox church asserted an Ebionite Chiliasm with the revival of Mosaic rites and sensual indulgence, and the authority of Augustine's great name; all these, as means of bringing the doctrine into dis- repute, are well known. Suffice it to say that Chiliasm was perverted by Montanus to the doctrine of a Phrygian principality with Pepuza as its metropolis, and that the 342 SECOND COMING OF CHBIST. Alogi denied the inspiration and canoiiicity of both the Gospel and Apocalypse of John. As to the alleged asser- tion of Justin (Dial. 80,) that Chiliasm was not the general belief of the primitive Church, it rests alone upon an inter- polated and corrupted text, the true and contrary import of which has been triumphantly vindicated by Daille, Mcde, Newton, Yint, Chilli ngworth, Homes, Brooks, Donaldson, and others. And as to the alleged admission by Irenseus, interpreted so as to make Irenseus say there were opposers of Chiliasm among the orthodox who agreed only with the Gnostics in this one thing, it rests upon an entire misap- plication of the words of Irenseus, who simply states that " certain persons," who were " reckoned " among the orthodox, had become infected by the Gnostic heresy, deny- ing the doctrine of the " resurrection of the body," and that there were those who differed as to the meaning of Isa. 11:6-9, the "wolf and the lamb," whether it should receive a literal fulfillment in the millennium, or be taken merely as figurative of "coming to the harmony of the faith." Iren. Adv. Hanres. Y. cap. 31, 32: 1, 33 end. Shedd Hist. Doct. II. 394. The question was not as to the belief of the primitive Church in the millennium itself. The story of Eusebius is not supported by a single line of contemporary authority, and the evidence is complete among all critics, that the so-called Caius, if such a man ever existed to dispute with Proclus, belonged to the sect of the Alogi who held the Apocalypse to be a forgery. Mosheim and Neander repel the charge that the Chiliasm of the Church came from Cerinthus, and Mansel confirms their judgment. (Gnostic Heresies 114.) And though Neander, following Eusebius, seems to think that the Chiliasm of the fathers flowed from Papias (Hist. Chr. Rel. I. 651,) yet Mosheim declares " Eusebius is not to be trusted." (Three Centuries II. 245.) Moses Stuart, more- HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 343 over, appealing to Andreas and Arethas, repels the charge that Papias built his Chiliasm on fables (Stuart Apoc. I. 303-307,) and Donaldson rebukes the meanness of Eusebius saying, " he spoke at first of Papias as he ought, but, in coming suddenly on a doctrine he disliked, he rashly pro- nounced the propounder of it as a man of small capacity " (Hist. Chr. Lit. I. 313,) and Hase reproves Eusebius once more, and vindicates Papias, saying, "he took peculiar pleasure in the living word, and it was only when he was judged by an age whose spirit had become essentially dif- ferent that he was accused of possessing a very contracted mind." (Chh. Hist. 73.) As to the lauded victory of Dionysius over Coracion and early Chiliasm, it was won only after Nepos, a man of acknowledged piety and ability, was dead, and by means of the allegorizing principles of Origen, the public denial of the canonicity of the Apocalypse, the use of all those arguments that crowd the pages of modern rationalistic " Intro- ductions" to that inspired book, the plea for peace and reunion in a shattered diocese, together with the ironic smile, and pleasing art, of an accomplished Christian bishop. As to the antichiliastic vintage pressed from the grapes of Papias so many quaff to stimulate their zeal, and the Wheat Sheaf of Irenseus so many love to thrash, in order to garner a harvest of objections against the pre-millennial return of Christ, I can only concur with Dorner, who remarks, when chastising what he calls " the self-conceited mockery of Corrodi," that they who stumble at such things are of an " unpoetical nature, and of mental incapacity sympathetically to enter into these matters." (Person of Christ, 1, p. 408.) And what if Irenaeus and Tertullian took as literal the carbuncle, sapphire, crystal bulwarks, and pearly gates, of New Jerusalem let down from heaven, not -discriminating between metaphor and symbol combined in 344 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. one picture, arid the latter appealed to a phenomenon seen in the Parthian war, more beautiful than the mirage of the desert, is a matter so easily condoned, an argument against the power of Him, who, by the simple laws of refraction, can irradiate the sky with glowing colors, or by the laws of chemistry enrich the earth with gems and gold? Is it an argument that New Jerusalem, descending from God out of heaven, shall not have " the brightest glories earth can yield, and brighter bliss of heaven,' 1 or that Christ will not come till the close of the 1,000 years? What if some of the early fathers blended, hastily, the millennial state with that of Eternal Glory? The splendors of the latter are reflected in the bosom of the former, in the Apocalyptic page itself. And what if Lactantius taught, as multitudes believe to-day, that the human race will be perpetuated during the millennium among the nations that escape the Judgment on Antichrist? Is it righteous to charge that he taught the propagation of risen saints; or, that, because he celebrated the abundance and joy of a renovated earth, he therefore taught " gluttony?" I shall answer Jerome from the word? of the illustrious Joseph Mede. "O Jerome! who, with thy Dionysius of Alexandria, dost fasten upon the opinion of tliemillennarians the injury of circumcision, the blood of sacrifices and all legal ceremonies, the things that Jews and Heretics have dreamed of as belonging to their millennium, and dost dash them on the Christians, hath this become your candor? Thou dost bewray thy crimination, for thou thyself writest, " Which things, although we follow not, yet we can not condemn, because many ecclesiastical men, and martyrs, too, have said the same. Prythee! tell me, did those ecclesiastical men and holy martyrs ever say that circumcision and sacrifices should be restored in Christ's Kingdom?" etc., etc. (Works pp. 807, 899.) Well has the learned Cliillingwurth said HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 345- that the early Ghiliasts were " overborne by imputing to them that which they held not, by abrogating the authority of St. John's Revelation as some did, or by derogating from it as did others." (Works p. 734.) As to Augustine, he held the martyr doctrine until swerved from it by adopting the " Recapitulation and Repetition " theory of interpreting the Apocalypse in connection with a spiritualizing and idealizing exegesis, borrowed from Origen, and the Donatist Tichonius,. who, sitting with open Apocalypse before his pupils, sweet- ened to the work, saying: " Fratres charissimi, Apoca- lypse explanare curabimus, secundum Anagogen! Dearest brethren, we* shall take good care to explain the Apocalypsin anagogically !" i. e., convert symbols into metaphors by an act of will, and hold that the figurations of the book being all metaphor, have no relation to literal events in world and church history, but only to abstract spiritual truths! Yet,. even after his adoption of this false theory and method, Augustine only excepted to the false Chiliasm which allowed " immoderate carnal banquets," and not to the true, in which " spiritual delights were believed to be present to the saints by means of the presence of the Lord." (De CiviL Dei. 20: 7.) This throws light on the whole controversy. Two factors, as Ebrard has observed, were included in the Chiliastic doctrine. " On the one side the knowledge that O the Church can not, in the present world-aeon, come to per- fection except by the return of Christ and resurrection of the dead.. On the other, that this telluric world, though destroyed by sin is, in its original substance, good, and must once more attain perfection." Origen and his school repudiated these ideas, holding that, matter being bad, the earth must be annihilated, and that " the future glory of the saints is not connected with the glorification of their earthly bodies interpenetrated by the resurrection-life of Christ. The Chiliasts took opposite ground." (Kirch-und Dograen 346 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST gesch. L, p. 115, 116.) When we look at the gross materializ- ing and Judaistic conceptions of the Kingdom advocated by false Chiliasm on the one side, and the purely spiritual and idealistic conceptions of it advocated by Alexandrianism on the other side, asserting that " the Divine promises pertain to nothing earthly," we see at once, how the true Chiliasm meditated both extremes, and, as Dorner says, " atoned the contradiction between them, removed the dualism," and maintained its ground as the common faith. " The faith- ful," says Hase, " who died, were consoled that they should be raised again to participate in the glories of the King- dom. Such was the faith of the whole church, until the common ecclesiastical doctrine became suspected by the extravagance of a party (Montanist), and was opposed by a school (Alexandrian) which contended that none but spirit- ual blessings were of any importance." (Hist. Chr. Chh. p. 689.) VII. TESTIMONY OF THE NICENE AGE. And yet how vain was such opposition we learn from the testimony of Gelasius Cyzicus, a Greek historian of the fifth century, A.D. 476, who, collecting the records of the Council of Nice, scattered in the Arian war, an til scarce an authentic copy of the full proceedings could be found, .gives us the explanation of the Nicene faith concerning the resurrection state. We may judge how strong was the martyr doctrine when, notwithstanding fifty years of oppo- sition from Alexandrian and Gnostic schools, the Apoca- lypse was still held to be canonical, and Nicene bishops .and pastors prepared the following " Diatyposis," or Ecclesi- astical Form, to be confessed and taught by the church, as the genuine doctrine: "We expect a new heaven and earth, according to the Scriptures, when the Appearing and Kingdom of the great God and our Saviour, Jesus HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 347 Christ, shall have shone forth. Then, as Daniel says, the saints of the Most High shall receive the Kingdom. And the earth shall be pure and holy, a land of the living and not of the dead, which David, foreseeing, exclaimed: ossuet, gave to the world his celebrated work on " The Coming of the Messiah in Glory and Majesty," which so fired the soul of Edward Irving (erratic in some things, but still a noble soul) that he translated it into English for the benefit of Protestant England and Scotland. These are remarkable signs. By the side of his illustrious protege stood the great Chalmers, beaming with the expres- sion, "Of this I am satisfied, that the next Coming of Christ will be a coming, not to final judgment, but a com- ing to usher in the Millennium. I utterly despair of the universal prevalence of Christianity as the result of a missionary process. I look for its conclusive establishment through a widening passage of desolations and judgments, with the demolition of our civil and ecclesiastical structures. Overturn, Overturn, Overturn, is the watchword of our approaching Lord." (Quoted by Bonar.) " I desire to cherish a more habitual and practical faith than heretofore in that coming which even the first Christians were called to hope for with all earnestness, even though many centu- ries were to elapse ere the hope could be realized; and how much more we who are so much nearer this great fulfillment than at the time when they believed! " (Sabbath Readings I, 311.) In the same hope stood Drs. Candlish and Guthrie and many others gone to meet the Bridegroom already, and accompany Him at His return. (Life in a Eisen Saviour, 273, 274, 386. Gospel in Ezekiel, 375.) So spoke the 390 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. "Northern Star," while Robert Hall, the "Southern Sun," set behind the clouds, beautiful, indeed, in his declining splendor, but lamenting to Mr. Thorpe that "he had not preached the pre-millennarian views he entertained." (Duffield on the Prophecies, 259.) It is simply impossible to catalogue all the names, in the present century, that cluster around the doctrine to give it support. I can mention but a few. Among Presbyterians abroad, we find the names of Chalmers, Irving, Candlish, Hewitson, Anderson, Begg, the three Bonars, McCheyne, Burns, Gilfillan, McDonald, Stewart, Cnmmings, Mackay, Frazer, Jamieson, Faussett, Cochrane, Adolph Saphir, who are but specimens of more of the same character for piety, scholarship, and Christian zeal. In the United States, such names as Drs. Geo. Duffield, T. E. Thomas, R. T. Breckenridge, Joel Parker, Krebs, Lillie, Shimeall all gone to their reward, and followed by living witnesses for the truth, Duffield of Princeton, Willis Lord, Yan Doren, Brookes, Craven, Poor, Blauvelt, R. D. Morris, Kellogg, S. R. Wilson, Laird, Parsons, Wyckoff, Congden, Lee, Whit- tlesy, Cooper, Morehead, Flint, Adams, Bierce, F. T. Brown, Bittinger, Sankey, Stewart, Foote, Baker, Gillespie, Lichtenstein, Spence, French, Reed, R. Patterson, Erdman, Matthews, Galloway, Bar, Ashurst, Bacon, Mack, Eddy, Paxon, Pitzer, Dinwiddie, Marquis, Nevin, Allen, Riley, Reed, Sample, Davis, Marvin, Reynolds, Wanamaker, Wallace ministers, pastors, presidents, and professors in colleges and theological seminaries. The Church of England, abroad, is like Joseph, a fruitful vine, whose branches run over the wall. Elliott and the two Maitlands, Birks, Yan Mildert, Home, Bickersteth, Auriol, Girdlestone, Melville, and Freemantle, Ryle, Iloare, Wood, Rainsford, Moleneaux, Cox, Kelley, Wilson, Noel, Brock, Smith, Woodward, McNeile, Dallas, Grimshawe, Raikes, Otild, HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 391 Tattershall, Trotter, Stevenson, Niven, Shephard, Newton, Ellicott, French, Alford, Tregelles, Brooks, Pym, Dalton, Gresswell, Burgh, Todd men of the first culture and posi- tion, are only instances of a multitude more among the Anglican Bishops, Deans, Prebenderys, Canons, and .Rectors, who hold thepre-millennial advent of Christ, and the literal " First Resurrection." Noble names, in the Episcopal Church of the United States, stand by their side, Mclllvaine, Henshaw, Niles, the two Tyngs, Winthrop, Morgan, John- son, Nicholson, Vail, Bancroft, Perkins, Hastings, Farrer, Booth, Ward, Grammer, Feltwell, Dobbs, Smith, Newton and Trenwith. Among the Congregationalists, who hold the same faith, are Lorimer, Wild, Bancroft, Litch, Adams, Morton, Milton, Goodwin, Kingman, Burton, Andrews, Clarke, Russell, Cunningham, Osier, Pierce, Thayer. Among the Baptists, Gordon, Herr, Saunders, Harris, Evans, Stifler, Barralle, Peters, Tower, Jones, Brown, Beck- ley, Miller, White, Jacobs, Cameron, Titus, Cordo, Stone. Among the Methodists, Durbin, Parker, Gilbert, Hall, Harvey, Foster, Blackstone, Lummiss, Krehbiel, Nast. In the Reformed Dutch Church, Thompson, Demarest, Gordon, R. F. Clarke, W. H. Clarke, Merritt, Ballagh, Bishop, Brown. Among the Lutherans, Seiss, and others. All these are unanimous on the two main positions of the pre- millennial doctrine, viz.: thepre-millennial advent and the literal " First Resurrection." The names of Gaussen and Godet, also adorn the catalogue of Pre-Millennarians. Hol- land gives us Da Costa, Capadose, Roorda, and Yan Oosterzee. Germany's ranks are majestic with men who defend the martyr doctrine. Schlegel, Auberlen, Baumgarten, Krum- macher, Starke, Stier, Delitzsch, Zunz, Fiirst, Ebrard, Hofmann, Guers, Luthardt, Christiani, Rinck, Hebart, Stockmayer, Koch, Lechler, Kling, Moll, Pfleiderer, Lange, Rothe, Schenkel, Ritzsch, Sander, Riggenbach, Olshausen, 392 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. De Wette, Theurer, Gerlach, Thiersch, Zimpel, Nitzsch, Schneider, Graber, Riemann, Steffarm where shall we end? the great body of the South German divines, and large numbers in the North. With deep philosophic and theological insight, has Christlieb, sympathizing with Oetinger, set in their true relations the first and second resurrections. (Modern Doubt, p. 452.) If we search ancient or modern literature, we shall find no defence of primitive Chiliasm more profound, scholarly, or biblical, than the argument given us by the celebrated Dorner, in the first volume of his unrivalled work on the Person of Christ. (Person of Christ I. 407-415.) For a generation, the famous u Haus-Bibel," of Richter, following in the Chiliastic steps of the yet more celebrated Berlerberg Bible, the fruit of German Pietism, has been in the homes of evangelical Germany, a salt against its rationalism, teaching the pre-millennial doctrine, and the Commentaries of Meyer, Olshausen, and Stier, and the Synopsis of Starke, have only contributed immensely to the same result. In the same Chiliastic path treads the valuable critical labors of Jamieson and Faussett, in the Commen- tary which, in company with Dr. David Brown, they have given to the world. The "Bibel-Werk" of Lange and his collaborators, spread throughout Germany, and put into English dress by Dr. Schaif and his able assistants a work in which Lange, VanOosterzee, Kling, Lechler, Moll, Auber- len, Riggenbach, Craven, Lillie, Poor, and many others referred to in the text and notes, stand forth in the front line of Chiliasts and the edition of Van Oosterzee's Dog- matics by Drs. II. B. Smith and Schaff, Union Theological Seminary, New York, the most pronounced Chiliastic system of Dogmatics extant, have done more to indoctrin- ate the American ministry withpre-millennarianism, than all the works published on the subject, in the United States, HISTORY OF THE P RE -MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 39$ for the last fifty years. In the same line are the truly evangelical and valuable Commentaries of Canon Ryle on* the Gospels. Nor has it been the least noticeable fact that,, in this century, eminent laymen like Cunningham of Lainshaw, Sabine, Hugh Miller, the Duke of Manchester, Lord, Jones, Habershon, Thorp, Alexander, Charles the Landgrave of Hesse, Boudinot, and others, like Sir Isaac Newton, Tycho Brahe, and Lord Napier, before them, have not disdained to study, or write upon, the prophecies, and declare themselves convinced of the pre-millennarian doc- trine. Bishop Newton's word is true. " The doctrine sprang up at the Reformation, and will flourish, together with the study of Revelation." (Diss. on Proph. 592.) Nor is it possible to enumerate all the various agencies by which, in the present century, as bulwarks of support,. Chiliasm is defended in the various nations of Christen- dom ; public lectures, critical works, the mere titles of which would fill a volume, magazines, reviews, discourses, tracts,, pamphlets and newspapers, dissertations and elaborate critical expositions and commentaries, all on the absorbing theme. Never, since the martyr-age, has Christian Chil- iasm attained such distinction. Ere long, the early faith will be such that it will need no creed or council to tell the world that it is ecumenical. Singular circumstance! The Free Italian Church, under the very shadow of the toppling Tiara that once sat so proudly on the Pontiffs head, while its feet crushed the martyr-faith to the earth, has adopted the pre-millennial view. At Milan, A.D. 1870, and again at Florence A. D. 1876, it published to the world its official "Declaration" of faith, announcing two resurrections, one at the beginning when " the dead in Christ shall rise first," the other at the end, " after the Kingdom," when " all the rest shall arise to be judged in judgment" a Declaration which, to any one who studies it, will be discovered to be 394 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. only a development of the 13th and 14th Articles of the Evangelical Free Church Confession of Geneva. It is in the Creed of the Keformed Episcopal Church, United States. {Schaff. Creeds of Christendom. III. 787, 784, 785, 814.) The augury is blessed ! " Manet, Mansurum" Intelligent textual criticism is on its side, resting alone on a grammat- ical and historical basis. The structure of the Apocalypse is on its side. The " Recapitulation " theory is doomed. " Secundum Anagogen^ has failed. Tichonius is tired. Augustine's " former opinion " asks for re-installation. Ori- _gen and Plato must part forever. The laws of prophetic interpretation, better understood, are on its side, as are the laws of symbolism and apocalyptic. The comprehension of history in its scope, progress, relations, unity, converging to one end, is on its side. Even natural science begins to shake hands with the Bible and recognize but one objective in the destiny of the Planet, something beyond "stunted bushes magnified into goodly trees," a "kingdom of the future," which "Faith, undeceived by the mirage of the midway desert," holds up to view a " terminal dynasty " only to be entered upon, " at return Of Him the woman's Seed, Last in the clouds, from heaven to be revealed In glory of the Father, to dissolve Satan, with this perverted world." (Hugh Miller. Footprints, 307.) XV. SYNOPTICAL VIEW. OBJECTIONS. Thus have I sketched, in an imperfect way, an outline of the history of the doctrine of the Pro-Millennial Advent of our Lord, from the time of the vision of the Babylonian King to the present day. It is but a marginal note at the side of the great theme. The fortunes of the doctrine have been various. By some it has been unrighteously called a Jewish conceit, by others a Gnostic invention, by others a HISTORY OF THE PRE-MILLENNIAL DOCTRINE. 395 Christian delusion, by others an ecclesiastical heresy. Like every other doctrine, it has often been misapprehended by its friends, perverted and assailed by its enemies, ridiculed, traduced, condemned. A study of its history, however, reveals that orthodox Chiliasm is one thing; heretical another. A Pre-advent Millennium, or Post-Millennium, locating the 1,000 years before the resurrection is one thing; Pre-Millennarianism, locating the 1,000 years after the resurrection, is another. I. Under Pre-advent Millen- narianisin are included all the false forms of Chiliasm; (1) the carnal Jewish, denying Jesus as Messiah and setting up the kingdom of the 1,000 years by fire and sword " before the resurrection; " (2) the carnal Anabaptist, confessing Jesus as Messiah, and setting up the Kingdom of the 1,000 years by fire and sword " before the resurrec- tion" So also the Fifth Monarchy men; (3) the spiritual and ecclesiastical Chiliasm (a] of the Constantinian, (b) of the Papal, Church, (" " the world to come"^and "the Prince," and " the God " of Ms world, is not Christ^ but Satan. " We see not yet all things put under Christ." It is " the world to come " that is to be in subjection to Him. Now, the Christian life is a warfare, and the world and Satan, as well as the flesh, are enemies. We are exhorted to " clothe ourselves in the armor of God, that we may be able to withstand the wiles of the devil." Is there any intimation in God's word, that at any period of the present dispensation, this and similar representations with which the New Testament abounds, are to become obsolete? And yet, will not this be so, if for a thousand years before the Advent, Satan is to be " bound and cast into the bottomless pit, that he go not forth to deceive the nations?" Is there any intimation in the New Testament that at any period of this dispensation, the commission to "teach all nations," is to become obsolete? And yet, will not this be so, if, before the Advent, there is to be an era when "they shall not teach every nlan his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for all shall know Him, from the least to the greatest?" In the sec- ond Epistle to the Thessalonians, 2d chapter, Paul foretells what would occur before the Advent, and he mentions, not the Millennium, but an apostasy. " That day shall not come except there be a falling away first, and the man of sin be revealed;" and as if to exclude the idea of the Mil lennium intervening, he adds: "Whom the Lord shall 412 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. destroy with the brightness of His coming" the Epiphany of His Parouisa terms which, throughout the New Test- ament, are specially appropriated to designate the personal Advent of the Lord, when He shall come again " in His glory." These references to the positive teaching of the New Testament respecting the present dispensation might be entended indefinitely. But it is needless. If the question at issue is to be determined by the authority of God's word, do not the passages above referred to furnish a dem- onstration of the pre-millennarian faith, which can not be successfully gainsaid or resisted? 3. Whilst the New Testament makes no allusion to a universal reign of righteousness before the Advent, the Advent itself is repeatedly, prominently referred to, and as an event ever imminent the great object of the Chris- tian's desire and expectation. As Christ's " appearing and His Kingdom " are in the New Testament conjoined, He has made the desire for His "appearing" part of the first petition of our daily prayer. That His followers might have it ever in view, He reminds them of it in every administration of that Holy Sacrament in which we " do show the Lord's death until He comes" u Paul in all his Epistles speaketh of these things." (2 Peter 3:16.) Peter speaks of it again and again in his first Epistle, and then makes it the one theme of a second Epis- tle. James and John, and even Jude in his brief Epistle, holds it prominently forth. The Apocalypse opens with the announcement, " Behold He Cometh;" and closes with the declaration of Christ Himself, " Surely I come quickly -," and the responsive prayer of the beloved disciple, the last utterance of the breath of inspiration, " Amen. Even so, come Lqrd Jesus. Not only is " this blessed hope " thus prominent, but no DEFENCE OF PRE-MILLENNARIANISM. 413 other truth of our holy religion is more frequently urged as an incentive .to holiness, to patience under suffering, to steadfastness in the faith, to vigilance and fidelity in Christ's service. "The day is at hand, let us, therefore, cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light." (Rom. 13:12.) "Be patient, brethren, the coming of the Lord draweth nigh." ( Jas. 5 : 7.) *' The end of all things is at hand, Be ye therefore sober and watch unto prayer." (1 Pet. 4: 7.) " The day of the Lord cometh as a thief in the night, there- fore, let us watch and be sober." (1 Thess. 5: 2, 6.) It should be observed that the point of these inspired exhortations, and of other similar passages that might be quoted, is not the mere fact or certainty of the Advent, but its possible nearness, that for aught that was revealed, it might occur in their day. Now, is this the language of men who believed that a millennium was to intervene before the Advent? Had such been their faith, could they have uttered such exhortations? Pre-millennarians express their distinctive faith in the very language of the inspired Apostles. Could they do so if the inspired Apostles were not pre-millennarians? And here, without subjecting ourselves to the charge of uncharitableness, may we not be permitted to ask, do our post-millennarian brethren treat the doctrine of the Advent as the Apostles treated it? Are they heard proclaiming, with the emphasis, and frequency, and urgency, with which the Apostles proclaimed it: " The coming of the Lord draweth nigh!" "The day of the Lord is at handf" Does " the glorious appearing," and the possible nearness of it, occupy that prominent place in the teaching and the experience of the church at the present day, which, beyond all question, those precious truths do occupy in the inspired word? Or has not the expectation of the conversion of the world and the millennium before the Advent, thrust 414 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. into the back ground, and crowded almost entirely out of view, and of influence, the Apostolic doctrine and Apostolic exhortations respecting " the glorious appearing?" In probably the ablest work which has been written in defence of the common opinion, Dr. Brown, with com- mendable candor, says, "Pre-millennialists have done the Church a service by calling attention to the place which the Second Advent holds in the Word of God and the scheme of divine truth. When they dilate upon the prominence given to this doctrine in the Scriptures, and the practical uses which are there made of it, they touch a chord in the heart of every lover of the Lord, and carry conviction to all who tremble at His word. With them we affirm, that THE REDEEMER'S SECOND APPEARING is THE VERY POLE-STAR OF THE CHURCH. That it is so set forth in the New Testa- ment is beyond all dispute." He subsequently adds, " If Christ's Second Appearing, instead of being full in the view of the Church, is shifted into the background, while other anticipations are advanced into its room, which, though themselves Scriptural, do not occupy in the Scrip- tures the place which we assign them, are we trembling at the authority and wisdom of God in His Word, or are we not rather leaning on our own understanding? In view of such declarations by one of the most eminent defenders of the common doctrine whose Biblical scholar- ship none will call in question are we not justified in saying, that when any presume to denounce pre-millennarianism, as many do, as a wholly unscriptural and hurtful delusion, they but make manifest that they have never given to the subject, calm, dispassionate, and unprejudiced consideration? 4. The doctrine of a millennium before the Advent is inconsistent with the Saviour's solemn injunction, five times repeated in the Gospel record, and illustrated and enforced again and again by parable, " Watch, for in such an hour DEFENCE OF PREMILLENNARIANISM. 415 as ye think not the Son of Man cometh" (Matt. 24:42; 25:13. Mark 13:33, 35. Luke 21:36.) "And what 1 say unto you I say unto all, watch" (Mark 13: 37.) The coming here referred to is described in the context as " the coming of the Son of Man in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory" Now, the point to which we would direct attention is, that the duty here enjoined is not simply that of believing that the Lord will certainly come again at some time in the distant future it is that of watching for His coming as an event ever imminent. Watching for the occurrence of an expected event, and believing that an event will occur after a long interval of time, are two entirely different states of mind. Now, can we believe that when the Lord enjoined the former, He intended to enjoin the latter? Further, the reason annexed to the injunction determines its meaning beyond the possibility of excusable misappre- hension. We are to do what is here commanded because we " Know not the hour when the Son of Man cometh." The duty has respect, not to the certainty of the event, but to the uncertainty as to the time of its occurrence. If watching with expectation as for an imminent event be the duty enjoined, the force of the reason annexed is evident. On the other hand, if believing in the certainty of the event is what is intended, is not the reason annexed wholly irrelevant? Is it credible that the Saviour meant to enjoin, " Believe that I shall certainly come again in the distant future, after the conversion of the world and one of universal righteousness on earth, for ye know not the hour when the Son of Man cometh?" So also would the accompanying parables be wholly irrelevant, if the Coming of the Lord is not to be regarded as an event ever imminent. " If the good man of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would 416 SECOND COMING OF C HEIST. have watched.'' We are to be expecting the Lord's Coming as the virgins the coming of the bridegroom, as servants the return of their master, not knowing whether he would come at " even, or at midnight, or at cock-crowing, or in the morning." The offence of " the evil servant " was not that he denied or doubted the certainty of the Master's return that he acknowledges in the very language attrib- uted to him. His offence was " saying in his heart " what many of the Lord's servants nowadays say with their lips, and even insist on as an article of faith "My lord delayeth his coming." In view of the unequivocal language in which the injunc- tion is expressed, the reason annexed to it, and the parables which accompany it, is any other interpretation possible, than that given in our Westminster Confession, Chap. XXXIII., Sec. 3" Christ will have that day unknown to men that they may shake off all carnal security, and be always watchful because they know not at what hour the Lord will come?" And if this be its meaning, is it not inconsistent with the doctrine that the millennium is to intervene before the Advent? 5. The doctrine is also inconsistent with the repeated and explicit teaching of the New Testament, that the manifest- ation of the Messianic Kingdom and the Second Advent are to be synchronous events. (Luke 19:12-27.) "He spake a parable because they were nigh unto Jerusalem, and because they thought that the Kingdom of God should immediately appear. He said, therefore, A certain noble- man went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. And when he was returned, having received the kingdom," etc. We are here taught two things first, that the disciples were not in error in expecting a kingdom to be manifested here on the earth^ under the personal reign of the Messiah. Their error was DEFENCE OF PRE-MILLENNAEIANISM. 417 as to the time of the manifestation. The correction of their error as to the time, is an implied acknowledgment that their expectation was correct as to the fact. Secondly, we are expressly taught that the Kingdom which Christ has gone into the heavens to receive of the Father, is to be manifested at, and not before, His return again to this earth. Luke 21:24-31 The Saviour here predicts events that are to immediately precede the Advent " signs in the sun and moon and in the stars, and upon the earth distress of nations with perplexity and then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. And He spake a parable, Behold the fig tree and all the trees, when they now shoot forth ye see and know that Summer is nigh at hand. So likewise when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the Kingdom of God is nigh at hand." The coming of the Son of man, and the King- dom of God, are here assumed to be synchronous events with respect to the time of their occurrence, the ono is referred to as identical with the other. Again, Acts 3:19-21 "Repent and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; and He shall send Jesus Christ, whom the heavens must receive UNTIL the time of restitution of all things which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began." That the expressions, " the times of refreshing," " the times of restitution of all things, refer to the Messianic kingdom predicted by all the Old Testament prophets is not, so far as we are aware, -called in question. We have here, then, an inspired declaration upon the very point at issue, so explicit that we might have supposed it would have been regarded as decisive. Yet, to avoid its force, the advocates of the common theory (see Dr. Brown, Dr. Alex- ander, Mr. Barnes, and others) maintain that by the words 27 418 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. " until the times of restitution," we are to understand until the times of restitution are fulfilled or ended. That is, if the apostle had declared that Christ should not come until the nineteenth century! he would have meant until the nineteenth century had been " completed " that is, until the twentieth century. For an interpretation so unnatural what other reason can be assigned than the exigency of an erroneous theory? In the passage quoted above from Luke 21, when the Saviour wished to teach that Jerusalem should be trodden down until the times of the Gentiles were fulfilled, he said so. Why should not Peter have said so- here if he had intended to express the same idea? Again, 2 Tim. 4: 1 " I charge thee before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom." Again, Kev. 11: 15-18 "And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in the heaven saying, The kingdoms of this world are become (the kingdoms) of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever. And the nations were angry, and Thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead that they should be judged, and that Thou shouldst give reward unto Thy servants the prophets, and to Thy saints, and to them that fear Thy name, small and great, and shouldst destroy them which destroy the earth." Now, there are undoubtedly many things in the Apocalypse, as in the other Scriptures, " hard to be understood," but unless the title of this book be altogether a misnomer, we are here taught that when Christ shall come to judge the. world, then, and not before, " the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ." 6. That we have not misapprehended the New Testa- ment doctrine respecting the Millennium is confirmed were confirmation necessary by the fact that the Apostolic DEFENCE OF PRE-MILLENNARIANISM. 419 Church understood the Apostles to teach that the Second Coming of the Lord was an event ever imminent. They accordingly "looked for" the Advent with longing desire and expectation not (as many misapprehend and misrepresent the doctrine of the Apostolic Church on this subject) with expectation that the Advent would certainly occur in their day, but, that for aught that was revealed, it might occur in their day. The Corinthian Christians are commended by Paul, in that they "came behind in no gift, waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Cor. 1:5.) The conversion of the Thessalonians from heathenism to Christianity is described as " turning from idols to serve the living and the true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven." (1 Thess. 1 : 10.) So common was this expectation in the Apostolic Church, that Christians were designated by this characteristic of their piety. " Unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time without sin unto salvation." (Heb. 9:28.) "There is laid up for me a crown of righteousness which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me in that day; and not to me only, but unto all them that love His appearing" (2 Tim.*4:8.) See also Kom. 8:19-23; Phil. 3:20; 1 Thess. 4:15; 5:10; Titus 2:13; 2 Peter 3:11-13. In his commentary on 1 Cor. 1 : 7, Dr. Hodge remarks: " The second advent of Christ, so clearly predicted by Himself and His Apostles, was the object of longing expectation to all the early Christians. So general was this expectation, that Christians were characterized as those 4 who love His appearing' as those ' who wait for Him.' " Mr. Barnes, on the same passage, remarks: "The earnest expectation of the Lord Jesus became one of the marks of early Christian piety." In Lange's commentary on the same passage it is said: "This constant expectation of our Lord's Second Coming is one of the 420 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. of primitive Christianity; hence the clause has been taken as a simple paraphrase of the word Christians." In Cony- beare and Howson's Life of St. Paul, (Yol. I, p. 401, Amer. ed.) it is said: " The early Church, and even the Apostles themselves, expected the Lord to come again in that very generation. St. Paul himself shared in that expectation." In his recent work on u The Beginning of Christianity," Professor Fisher who is not a Pre-Millennarian says: " This expectation (of the personal Coming of the Lord) is expressed by all the Apostles in terms which fairly admit of no other interpretation. It is found in Paul, Rom. 13:11,12; 1 Cor. 7:29, 31; 10: 11; Phil. 4: 5; 1 Tim. 6:14. The same expectation is expressed in Heb. 10:25; Jas. 5:3,8; 1 Pet. 4:7; 2 Pet. 3:3; Jude, verse 18; 1 John 2:18; and in the Apocalypse 1 : 1 ; 3:11; 22:7,22,20. To put any other construction on these passages, as if the Parousia, to which they refer were anything else than the Second Advent of the Lord to judgment, would introduce a dangerous license in interpretation, and one which might be employed to subvert the principal doctrines of the Christian system." Without extending these references to authorities as we might it may be regarded as an acknowledged historical fact that, on the main point at issue between Pre-Millenna- rians and their brethren, the Apostolic Church was Pre- Millennarian. The question under discussion, therefore, resolves itself into this: Was the Apostolic Church in error on this subject? If the question were as to the meaning of some obscure and comparatively unimportant passage of the New Testament, the interpretation of the Apostolic Church might not be regarded as authoritative and final. But when the question has reference to a doctrine repeatedly and prominently presented by both Christ and the Apostles presented, too, as a matter of the highest practical moment DEFENCE OF PRE-MILLENNARIANISM. 421 and in terms, moreover, which imply that the subject was familiarly known and well understood is it not simply incredible, that after all, not merely here and there an ignorant believer, but that the whole body of believers the Church in which dwells the promised Spirit as a guide to truth should have entirely misapprehended the meaning of their inspired teachers, and have been, not merely in doubt, but in positive error, as to the duty to which they were exhorted? Is it credible that a doctrine which unin- spired men at the present day have no difficulty in stating in terms that can not be misunderstood, those holy men, who spake and wrote "as they were moved by the Holy Ghost," not only failed to teach intelligibly, but even com- mended the misapprehension of those who were led into error by their teaching? Or, if we accept the inevitable conclusion that the inspired Apostles did not teach this doctrine, by what authority do any teach it now? 7. The doctrine of the Pre-Millennial Advent con- tinued to be the unquestioned faith of the Church until near the dose of the third century that is, until the time of Origen. He taught that " the Scriptures are of little use if we understand them as they are written;" and, with reference to his allegorizing now called spiritualizing method of interpretation, Milner says: "No man, not altogether unsound and hypocritical, ever injured the Church more than Origen did." In proof of our main statement above, the following authorities may suffice: Mosheim says: " The prevailing opinion that Christ was to come and reign a thousand years among men before the final dissolution of the world, had met with no opposition previous to the time of Origen." Gieseler says : " In all the works of this period (the first two centuries) Millenarianism is so prominent that we can SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. not hesitate to consider it as universal." Hagenbach qualifies this statement of Gieseler by mentioning certain Fathers of this period whose writings contain no reference to the Millennium, but neither Hagenbach or any other Church historian refers to any expression opposed to Mil- Jennarianism in the writings of any, of the Fathers before Origen. Ohillingworth, with his characteristic invulnerable logic, argues : " Whatever doctrine is believed and taught by the most eminent Fathers of any age of the Church, and by none of their cotemporaries opposed or condemned, that is to be esteemed the catholic doctrine of the Church of those times. But the doctrine of the Millennaries was believed and taught by the most eminent Fathers of the age next after the Apostles, and by none of that age opposed or condemned; therefore, it was the catholic doc- trine of those times." Stackhouse, in his " Complete Body of Divinity," says: " It can not be denied but that this doctrine (millennarian- ism) has its antiquity, and was once the general opinion of all orthodox Christians" Bishop Newton says: " The doctrine of the Millennium (as held by Millennarians) was generally believed in the three first and purest ages." Bishop Russell, though an anti - Millennarian, says: " Down to the beginning of the fourth century, the belief was universal and undisputed." Gibbon, who is at least an unprejudiced witness, says: "The ancient and popular doctrine of the Millennium was carefully inculcated by a succe&sion of Fathers from Justin Martyr and Irenseus, who conversed with the immediate disciples of the Apostles, down to Lactantius, who was the preceptor of the son of Constantine. It appears to have been the reigning sentiment of orthodox believers" He IWF3NCJB OF PRBWLLBNirJLRIANISM* adds : - A - long as this error (as he calls it) was permitted to subsist in die Church, it was productive of the most A7,V7"y f jv. ?>< on I ho faith and practice of Christians." x >t to needlessly extend this list of authorities, we would add the testimony of NY hitby, the father of the modern nillennariau theory. In his " Treatise on Tradition " he candidly acknowledges, i% The doctrine of die millennium passed among the best of Christians, for two hundred and years, as a tradition apostolical, and as such is delivered by iriany fathers of the second and third centuries, who speak of it as a tniditwn of our Lord and ffis J#o$tk$, lived otfbr* them, who tell us the very words in which it was delivered, the Scriptures iterpreted, and say that it wot KM by all Christian* Mot toer* mc#y ortAodox." 8, -The common doctrine respecting the Millennium is notWty in th* history of th* okwrek It is not to be found in the standards of any of the churches of the Refor- mation by several it is impliedly repudiated. The same he said of the writings of the Reformers. The doctrine was first proposed by Whitby, but little more than 150 years ago, and avowedly as ** a New Hypothesis." Ki>;.-iv:in the Millennium, the prevalent doctrine in the churches of the Reformation though by no means univer- sally accepted was that held by die Romish Church, that M* Jfittwnium had already occurred some dating its commencement from the birth of Christ, others from the day of Pentecost, others from the destruction of .lornsalein. others from the conversion of Constantino. Th held this opinion differed from the Pre-millennarians on the comparatively unimportant question respecting the events to occur subsequent to the Ad\ cut, but on the main question the only question of immediate practical imports: that now under discussion they were in entire accord with the Pre-millennarians. 424 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. The language in which several of the Confessions condemn the Anabaptist heresy, is inconsistent with the idea of a Millennial era before the Advent. The Augsburg Confes- sion condemns those " who spread abroad Jewish opinions,, that before the resurrection of the dead, the godly shall get the sovereignty of the world and the wicked be brought under in every place." The later Confession of Helvetia " condemns the Jewish dreams that before the judgment there shall be a golden world in the earth, and that the godly shall possess the kingdoms of the world, their wicked enemies being trodden under foot." As to the Westminster Confession, a recent writer in defence of the common doctrine says, " the only recogni- tion we find anywhere in the Standards (of the Presbyterian Church) is that in the Answer of the Larger Catechism to the Question, ' What do we pray for in the second petition of the Lord's prayer?' It is said among other things that we pray, that ' the Gospel may be propagated throughout the world, the Jews called, and the fullness of the Gentiles brought in.' " Now, is there anything in this language inconsistent with Pre-millennarianism? Taken in connec- tion with the language quoted above from the Westminster Confession that " Christ will have the day of His coming unknown to men that they may be ever watchful " is it not just such a recognition of a Millennium before the- Advent, as we should expect to find in Standards framed by an Assembly, of which Baillie,,one of the Commission- ers from Scotland, and an Anti-Millennarian, writes, " The most of the chief divines here, not only Independents, but others, such as Twisse (the Moderator), Marshall, Palmer y and others, are express Chiliasts." As the question haa recently been gravely we can scarcely say, seriously raised, whether Pre-millennarians shall be tolerated in the- Presbyterian Church? we may be permitted to suggest that DEFENCE OF PRE-MILLENNARIANISM. 425 the discussion may be materially abridged by stating the question in the following form: Shall a doctrine which was held by most of the eminent divines of the Westminster Assembly, including the Moderator, be tolerated in the Presbyterian Church? As to the views of the Reformers: Luther, in his commentary on John 10: 16, says: " Some say that before the latter day the whole world shall become Christians. This is a falsehood forged by Satan, that he might darken sound doctrine. Beware of the delusion." Again he says : " I believe that all the signs which are to precede the last day have already happened," "Let u& not think that the Coming of Christ is far off; let us look up with heads lifted up; let us expect our Redeemer'& coming with a longing and cheerful mind. Melancthon, as quoted by Elliott, savs: "This aged world is not far from its end." Calvin, in his Institutes, Book III, chap. 25, says: " Scripture uniformly enjoins us to look with expectation for the Advent of Christ." Again, Commentary on 1 Thess. 1: 10: " Whoever would persevere in the course of 'a holy life, let him apply his whole mind to the hope of the Advent of Christ." Commentary on 1 Thess. 4:17 ("we which are alive," etc.) " By speaking in the first person, making himself, as it were, one of the number of those who would live until the last day, he would arouse the Thessalonians to wait for it nay more, to hold all believers- in suspense." John Knox, in his treatise on fasting, says: " The Lord Jesus shall return, and that with expedition. What were this else but to reform the face of the whole earth, which never was, nor yet shall be, till that righteous King and Judge appear for the restoration of all things." Again: " Our Heavenly Father, to hold us in remembrance that in SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. this wretched world there is no rest, suffereth us to be tried, that with an unfeigned heart we may desire not only an end of our own troubles for that shall come to us by death but also of all troubles of the Church of God, which shall not be before the Coming of the Lord Jesus." Again: "By the signs forespoken by our Master, which for the most part are now present (fulfilled), consider the end of this most corrupt world to be short." Without further particular quotation, the following testi- mony of the martyr Latimer, as to the faith of the Reformers, may suffice: "All those excellent and learned men whom, without doubt, God hath sent into the world in these latter days to give the world warning, do gather out of Scripture that the last day can not be far off." (Third Sermon on the Lord's Prayer.) Again, he says: *' Peradventure it may come in my days, old as I am, or in my children's days." After carefully investigating the subject, Dr. Henshaw, the late Bishop of Rhode Island, in his treatise on the Second Advent, says: "We may safely challenge its advo- cates (the advocates of the common doctrine) to produce one distinguished writer in its favor who lived before the commencement of the eighteenth century." Now, we respectfully submit: Can that be an article of the Christian faith which not only was not believed, but is inconsistent with what was believed by the Apostolic Church, by the Church for the two succeeding centuries, and by the Church of the Reformation? Ought not such consent in favor of the Pre-Millennial Advent to be regarded as decisive? Our reasons, then, for rejecting the doctrine of a millen- nial era of universal righteousness and peace on earth before the Advent, are summarily as follows: 1. The doctrine is not taught by either Christ or His Apostles. DEFENCE OF PRE-MILLENNARIANISM. 42? 2. The uniform teaching of the New Testament respect- ing the condition of the Church and of the world during the present dispensation, forbids the expectation of such a millennium. 3. The Advent itself, not the millennium, is prominently presented in the New Testament as " the blessed hope " of the Church, and is uniformly presented as an event ever imminent. 4. The Saviour's repeated command to " watch " for His coming, because we " know not the hour," is inconsistent with the idea of a millennium intervening. 5. The New Testament teaches that the manifestation of the Messianic Kingdom is to occur at, and not before, the Advent. 6. The Apostolic Church was pre-millennarian. 7. The Church for two centuries immediately succeeding the Apostles, was pre-millennarian. 8. The doctrine of a millennial era before the Advent is a novelty in the history of the Church proposed but little more that 150 years ago, and avowedly as " a New Hypothesis." We have given a summary of the argument in defence of pre-millennarianism. Permit me in closing, to direct attention to the summary of Christian faith and practice given by an inspired Apostle. " The grace of God which bringeth salvation hath appeared unto all men, teaching us tJtat denying ungodliness and worldly lusts we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world, LOOK- ING FOR THAT BLESSED HOl'E, EVEN THE GLORIOUS APPEARING OF THE GREAT GOD AND OUR SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST." ""These things" said Paul to Titus and through him to all who labor in the ministry of the world " These things teach and exhort" In obedience to the Apostolic injunction, let me exhort you who hear us this day, to " watch " for the 428 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. glorious appearing, as servants for the return of the master, "for ye know not the hour when the Lord cometh" Let scoffers ask, " "Where is the promise of His coming?" Let believers ask, " Why think ye that His coming is immi- nent?" Brethren, u Ye are not in darkness that that day should overtake you unawares, ye yourselves know per- fectly that the day of the Lord shall come," that it shall come " as a thief in the night," " in an hour when men think not," when the world is saying " peace and safety," when even the vigil virgins are slumbering and sleeping, as the flood in the days of JNoah, as the lightning from heaven on Sodom, unexpected, unsuspected, " So, shall the coming of the Son of Man be." " Let us, then, who are of the day watch and be sober." With trimmed lamps and loins girded, let us watch and wait with longing desire and expectation for the coming of the Master, for " Blessed is that servant whom the Lord when He cometh shall find watching" HOPE OF CHRISTS COMING. 429 HOPE OF CHRIST'S COMING AS A MOTIVE TO HOLY LIVING AND ACTIVE LABOR. BY THE REV. DR. RUFTJS W. CLARK, REFORMED CHURCH, ALBANY, N. Y. ST. PAUL, in his Epistle to Titus, says (2: 11-13): " For the grace of God, that bringeth salvation, hath appeared to all men, teaching (or training) us, that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we shall live soberly, righteously and godly in this present world, looking for (or waiting with joy for) that blessed hope and glorious appearing of the great God, and our Saviour Jesus Christ." We have here set forth the attitude and blessed hope of the Church, in expectation of Christ's coming. First, the grace of God, that is the source and foundation of the work of redemption, has already appeared or been manifested, in the incarnation and atoning sacrifice of Christ for the sins of mankind. This grace and its manifestations are to teach, train, or discipline us (the Greek admitting of either rendering), that we deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, and should live soberly, justly and godly in the present world: soberly, comprising faithfulness to ourselves; justly, in our dealings with our fellow-men; and godly, embracing our duties to God. Having received divine grace to our hearts, and laboring to conform our lives to the will of God and the requirements of the Gospel, Christians are required to be in the attitude of looking and joyfully expecting that blessed hope, and the manifestation of the glory of the great God and of our Saviour Jesus Christ. The phrase " blessed hope" here is not to be taken subjectively as desig- nating the state or act of hoping, but as referring to the object hoped for; namely, the appearing or coming of our 430 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. Saviour Jesus Christ in glory. The saving grace in God, that has already appeared, forms the basis of the Christian faith, love and righteousness. But the work that has been thus begun is to be carried forward to its consummation and perfection, by looking for the Saviour's return to the earth; by an habitual and joyful expectation of His coming in the clouds of heaven with all the holy angels; by patiently waiting in firm faith and glowing hope, for the shout or word of command, for the voice of the archangel and the trump of God, that will announce the opening scene of the grand drama of the Second Advent. This passage from the Epistle to Titus, may be regarded as an epitome of the exhortations, doctrines, duties and hopes, that abound in the Holy Scriptures, in connection with the coming of our blessed Lord. There is not a doc- trine of Christianity, upon which the light of this great truth does not shine, and render more important and luminous by its radiance. There is not a duty pertaining to the Christian life, that is not quickened and rendered more imperative by its power. There is not a virtue that it does not call into the highest exercise; not a motive in the human heart that it does not purify and strengthen; not a hope for the future that it does not kindle with a new and celestial fire. We may begin with the duty of repent- ance, with which the coming Kingdom of Heaven was heralded at the time of the First Advent,' and trace along in their natural or logical order, the various duties and obligations that are pressed upon the followers of Christ, up to that presented in Kev. 3:11: " Behold I come quickly ; hold that fast that thou hast, that no man take thy crown,'* and we shall find them enforced and rendered if possible more sacred and binding by the truth that bursts upon us from so many pages of the New Testament, that "The Lord cometh." HOPE OF CHRIST'S COMING. % 431 In Acts 3:19-21 we find the call, " Repent ye, there- fore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; and He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you; whom the Heavens must receive, until the times of the restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began." The word translated "when" in the 19th verse, should, according to eminent commentators, Dr. Lange, Dean Alford, Dr. J. A. Alexander, and others, be rendered " in order that," or, "so that." It can have no other meaning. The call, therefore, of the Apostles upon the Jews to repent, and have their sins blotted out, was " in order that the times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord." He looked forward to the happy period, at the close of the present dispensation, when the Lord would again appear, and He desired to have it hastened by the repentance of the people. At the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Heavens had received Him, and He would remain there until the times of restitution of all things- times wherein all things will be restored, of which all God's holy prophets had spoken since the world began. When those times begin, " Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you," or rather " the Messiah Jesus, who was before appointed unto you," will be sent from heaven, and in view of this blessed truth, and to hasten the coming of the Lord, the summons goes forth to the Jews, and with more emphasis now to all mankind, as we " see the day approach- ing," to repent, and be converted and have their sins blot- ted out. In Revelation 3: 3, the Church at Sardis is thus exhorted and warned by the Holy Spirit: "Remember, therefore, how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast and repent. 432 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. If, therefore, thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee." The Church at Sardis had become greatly secularized. It had a name to live. In its creed and out- ward observance, it occupied a right position, but spiritu- ally it was dead. A few members had not defiled their garments by falling into sin. They have the promise that they shall walk in white robes, with the King in His glory. But the others are exhorted to hold fast what of true religion remains to them, and to repent of their depart- ures from God and failures in Christian duty. To how many churches in our day is this language applicable ? To how many spiritual sleepers are the startling words of Christ addressed? " If, therefore, thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee." NECESSITY OF REPENTANCE AND CONVERSION. Repentance and conversion are urged, in these passages we have quoted, that we may hasten the times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord, who is coming to restore all things; and that we may watch and patiently wait for His appearing. The first end relates to His Kingdom, and the benefits we are the means of conferring upon others. The second end pertains to ourselves, to our spiritual life, to our steadfastness in the faith, to our growth in grace, and in the knowledge of the Lord. The author of Christianity saw the necessity, growing out of our mental and moral constitution, of having placed before the eye of the believer, at the outset of his Christian life, and object of hope, to comfort him in hours of despondency; to sustain him in the midst of trials and difficulties, to warm his affections and kindle his ardor in fai thful services for the Master, who might return at any moment. The day and hour of His HOPE OF CHRISFS COMING. 433 coming were not revealed, that the whole Church, from generation to generation, might feel the power of the doc- trine, and every believer stand in the attitude of patient watching and ardent longing for His appearing. Having repented of sin, and entered upon the Christian life, our Lord thus exhorts His followers: " And He said to them all, if any man will come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. * * * For whosoever shall be ashamed of Me and of My words, of him shall the Son of Man be ashamed when He shall come in His own glory, and in His Father's, and of the holy angels." (Luke 9:23,26.) You observe that in this pas- sage, as well as in others, where much severer language is used, as in Matt. 7:21-23 and 25:31-41, our Lord brings His coming in glory to bear with an immense pressure upon the primary and fundamental duties of the Christian life. The scene is the most impressive because He will appear surrounded by a three-fold glory, His own, His Father's, and that of the holy angels, who will all be wit- nesses of the shame and confusion that will come upon the unfaithful disciple. To add force to the warning, and to the announcement of His coming, He concludes by saying: "But I tell you of a truth, there be some standing here which shall not taste of death till they have seen the King- dom of God," referring to the transfiguration, that is imme- diately afterward described. Thus He furnishes them with a preliminary fulfillment of His prophecy. And from the illuminated summit of Mount Tabor, from the heavenly brightness of our Lord's countenance, and His pure white raiment; from the glorious forms of Moses and Elias, representing the hosts that will yet appear in the clouds with the returning Messiah, there come influences that prompt us to deny ourselves to take up our cross daily and follow Christ, and never be ashamed of Him in His humil- 434 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. iation and suffering; that He may not be ashamed of us " when He shall come in His own glory, and in His Father's and of the holy angels." The eminent Dr. J. J. Yan Oosterzee, in his comments on this passage in Lange, says, "The manifestations on Tabor deserve to be called a striking revelation of the future state in this. We see here the spirits of just men made perfect, live unto God, even though centuries have already flown over their dust. In a glorified body they are active for the concerns of the Kingdom of God, in which they take the holiest interest. Although separated by wide dis- tances of time and space beneath, Moses and Elijah have met and recognized each other in higher regions. The cen- tre of their fellowship is the suffering and glorified Jesus, and so blessed is their state that even their transient appearance causes the light of the most glorious joy to beam into the child of earth. * * * Thus do they appear before us as types of that which the pious departed are even now, in their condition of separation from the body, and as prophets of that which the redeemed of the Lord shall be, in yet higher measure, at His coming." Our Lord, also, in connection with the warnings just cited, directs His coming against the spirit of worldliness, that pervaded the carnal Messianic hopes of the Jews. He said: " What is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? Or, what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? * * * For the Son of Man shall come in the glory of His Father, with His angels, and then He shall reward every man according to his works." (Matt. 16:26, 27.) The most terrible of all cal- amities, the loss of the soul, and with it necessarily the loss of the whole world, were it possible to gain it for both must go down together, if the former perishes this loss, I say, is thrown, as it were, into the light of Christ's Second HOPE OF CHRISTS COMING. 435 Advent, that we may see the magnitude of the calamity; connected as it is with being shut out from the splendors and raptures of that day, and from the precious and eternal rewards that will be bestowed upon the faithful. In the preceding verse (v. 25) where Christ says: "Whosoever shall lose his life for My sake shall find it." He doubtless refers to His Second Advent, when the lives that have been sacrificed for Him shall re-appear in new and imperish- able forms, and in bodies like unto His glorious body. In the light of these passages from Divine lips, we can see how much more it will profit us to suffer holy death for Christ's sake than to gain all the treasures, honors, and pleasures that the whole world can bestow. We pass next to consider the inward Christian virtues that are enveloped in the atmosphere and light and quick- ening power of the day of the Lord. In Phillipians 1 : 9, 10 : St. Paul says, " And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment, that ye may approve things that are excellent, that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ," or more correctly, " against, the day of Christ." Love having been planted in the heart of the believer, and sincerity and purity being elements of the new life, these are to be culti- vated and made to abound more and more, for the day of the Lord, when a character thus formed will be made man- ifest. The passage is thus clearly and beautifully unfolded by Dr. Karl Braune in his commentary on this epistle, in Lange's series: Love combined with an active faith is the central force which penetrates the inmost personality, directs the life, and goes forward step by step towards its perfec- tion. This progress shows itself in a two-fold way: (or) internally, the Christian becomes intellectually more inti- mate with God and with His thoughts. Love thus becomes clearer, deeper, stronger. It increases in knowledge, grows 436 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. in that and with that, as an ethical effect; also, the love per- ceives, experiences, feels the power of the Kingdom of God with its manifold ordinances and richly endowed member- ship. It thus becomes stronger, fuller, riper. It increases in experience, grows in that and with that. Thus Christians come to a surer judgment respecting the things which are about them, and concern them within and without, good and bad. The result is purity. (5.) Externally love acts spontaneously, without calcula- tion, with nice moral tact, with tender conscientiousness, giving no offence. The eye ever directed to the end " the Coming of the Lord," annunciates this love, thus progres- sive to the final day of Christ. PATIENCE AND ENDURANCE REQUIRED. Next, this doctrine calls for the exercise of patience and endurance. " Be patient, therefore, brethren, unto the com- ing of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receives the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; establish your hearts; for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh." (James 5:7,8.) Long-suffering patience is a virtue that enters so largely into the Christian life and character; that is so vitally connected with all the other virtues, love, faith, steadfastness and hope; and is so inti- mately associated with present and final success, in every department of Christian service, that it needs to be con- stantly nourished and strengthened. Especially should it be maintained and exercised to the highest degree in refer- ence to the coming of the Lord. And, let me ask, what is there better calculated to promote in a Christian soul patient endurance than the thought that " the coming of Lord draweth nigh." With our eyes steadily fixed upon the fact; with an intense love of His appearing; with an HOPE OF GHRISTS COMING. 437 abiding faith in the exceeding great and precious promises that cluster around this doctrine; arid with those promises already taking root and germinating in our spiritual nature, we shall find it easy to practice Christian patience; and to look to the Lord to establish our " hearts unblamable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the corning of oar Lord Jesus Christ, with all His saints." (1 Thess. 3:13.) It is not necessary that we should know the precise day or hour of His coming. It is not essential that we should be infallible in discerning the signs of the times of His near approach; though it is our privilege and duty to study these signs, and gather from them all the light we can bear- ing upon the period of His probable appearance. But it is essential that we should be patient, and that we should listen to every injunction, and obey every command that our Lord has given in connection with the event in His his- tory, that, in His estimation, at least, towers above all others. It is essential that we keep our eyes open to what is transpiring around us, as possibly prophetic of stupend- ous changes near at hand in the divine administration of the Kingdom of Christ on the earth. By doing thus, we shall meet all the solemn obligations that the Second Com- ing imposes upon us; and if we die before the heavens are lighted up with the splendors of His appearing, we shall reap all the benefits in the first resurrection, that will accrue to those who are alive, and remain to hear the shout, the voice of the Archangel, and the trump of God. The beautiful lesson that the Apostle James draws from the kingdom of nature and applies to the kingdom of grace should be treasured up in our hearts. The husbandman, representing believers, confides his seed to the earth, where it is invisible, and apparently subject to decay. He sees the precious fruit in expectation, and this gives him his long-enduring patience. He is cheered by the early and 438 SECOND COMLNG OF CHRIST. latter rain, that give promise of the coming harvest. So the richer harvests of eternity wave in expectation before our vision, and our weary hearts are refreshed by the show- ers of grace that come to us from our risen and ascended Lord. St. Paul thus urges the exercise of this virtue in Heb. 10: 35, 37. " Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. For yet a little while, and He that shall come, will come and will not tarry." Believ- ers are here encouraged to cling to their faith, and exercise patience, because the recompense of reward is as sure as the Lord's return, who is, as it were, already on the way. His coming is emphasized by the repetition, " yet a little while and He that shall come, will come and will not tarry." Here Christ appears as the subject of the vision prophesied by Habakkuk 2:3: " For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak and not lie; though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry." The coming of Christ is the grand and ultimate consummation of all prophetical vision, and He will not lie, nor deceive those who put their confidence in Him. He will surely come and will not tarry. This truth is used as a motive to sobriety. St. Paul says (1 Thess. v. 1, 2, 6): " Of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. . . . Therefore let us not sleep as do others, but let us watch and be sober." As to the precise time of Christ's coming, there was no need that the Apostle should discuss that, for it could not be deter- mined, though we are required to notice the signs of the time. The great fact ever to be kept in view is that the day of the Lord will come suddenly, unexpectedly, as a HOPE OF CHRISTS COMING. 439 thief in the night. It is possible for Him to come at any hour, hence the children of the light should watch and be sober. Sobriety is frequently joined with watchfulness, as in 1 Peter 4:7. " But the end of all things is at hand; be ye therefore sober and watch unto prayer." Upon this passage Calvin remarks: "The end he speaks of is not merely that of each several individual, but the entire renovation of the world: as if he had said that Christ will shortly come, and put an end to all things. It is not strange, therefore, it we are overwhelmed by worldly cares, and held in slumber, or if the sight of present things dazzles our eyes; because we do all commonly promise ourselves an eternity in this world; never, at least, does the end come into the mind. "Whereas did the trump of God sound in our ears, it would keenly smite all our senses, nor suffer them to be thus torpid. It might be objected, however, that a long series of ages has elapsed since Peter wrote this, and still the end is not yet seen. I answer that to us the time seems long for this reason, that we measure its length by the spaces of the present life, but that, could we have respect to the perpetuity of the life to come, many generations would be for us as it were a moment (2 Pet. 3 : 8). Moreover it must be held as a first principle, that ever since the appearing of Christ there is nothing left to the faithful but with wakeful minds to be always intent on His Second Advent." SUBDUING THE LUSTS OF THE FLESH. In view of our appearing with Christ in glory, we are required to mortify or put to death the lusts of the flesh. " For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory. Mortify, therefore, your members which are upon the earth, fornication, uncleanli- 440 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. ness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetous- ness, which is idolatry." (Col. 3:3-5.) More literally and freely rendered : For ye died to this world, and your life, the resurrection and eternal life, is hidden, is at present con- cealed with Christ in God, with Christ who is in the bosom of the Father. When Christ who is our life, the essence and impersonation of our life, is manifested, then shall ye also with Him be manifested in glory. Though we now appear to be dead, yet then our true and real life will bloom out in its wondrous spiritual elements, its heavenly beauty and its likeness to Christ. Animated by this sublime hope, favored by Heaven with such a glorious destiny, the Apostle exhorts the believer to put to death the members which are upon the earth, which are earthly and sensual, and such as belong to the old nature; and preparatory to meeting Christ and sharing the splendors and honors of His second com- ing, to put on, as God-elect, kindness, meekness, long-suf- fering and love, which is the bond of perfection. We are required to cultivate and practice the virtues that Christ manifested in His earthly career, that we may share in the glories of His heavenly appearing. The Apostle John inculcates this purity in language most sublime and thrilling. His words have for years rung through my soul with an eloquence and power that I can not express. <4 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that hath this hope in Him (the hope of seeing Christ and of being like Him at His appearing), pnrih'eth himself, even as He, that is Christ, is pure." (1 John 3, 2-3.) We are now at this moment the sons or children of God, just as truly as we ever shall be, although the full blessedness and glory of our sonship is still concealed. Literally, " it never yet was HOPE OF CHRISTS COMING. 441 manifested what we shall be; we know that when it shall be manifested, we shall be like Him; because we shall see Him as He is." There will be such a seeing of the nature, character and glory of Christ, that our own being will be penetrated by His, and so developed and enriched and illu- minated, as to resemble the Divine and Holy One. And every one that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself even as Christ is pure. This moral likeness to Christ must begin here; and we know of nothing better calculated to produce it, than keeping the eye steadily fixed upon our coming Lord; and the heart warm with the love of His appearing. This doctrine is presented by the Apostle Peter as the great support under trials and persecution. " Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing had happened unto you; but rejoice inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy." (1 Peter 4: 12, 13.) In the opening chapter of this epistle, the Apostle indulges in the same strain of warm sympathy and exulting hope, directing the thoughts of his suffering fellow Christians to the appearing of the Lord, as the event of transcendent interest and inconceivable splendor, which " in the last time," at the close of the present dispensation, is to burst upon the Church, bringing unspeakable joy and rapture. It is, as though he saw nothing else; thought of nothing else; cared for nothing else. For this he lived, toiled, suf- fered, and was willing to die. The return of his Lord, with whom he had been so intimately associated in His first advent, was the polar star that ever shone upon his path. The splendor of His coming that seemed already to flash before his vision, relieved the darkness of the tempestuous ocean upon which he was now tossed. So penetrating and 442 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. absorbing was the power of this event, that he was led as he desired his brethren to be led, to rejoice in being made partakers of Christ's sufferings. It mattered not how great or long-continued those sufferings were, he would have them cheerfully endured. He would have them welcome them and rejoice in them as the greatest advantages they could possibly receive, as far more to them than all the treasures and honors and pleasures of earth. And for this reason, " That when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceed- ing joy." The joy now in partaking of His suffering is the germ of an exultant and boundless joy that will be experienced at the moment of His appearing. The passage in the first chapter brings out the object for which Christians are kept, and the preciousness of their faith that is now severely tried ; who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. " Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through mani- fold temptations. That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise, and honor, and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ." (1 Peter 1: 5-7.) Here the Apostle identifies our Lord's Second Coming with the present Christian life in two most important aspects, and draws from it encouragement and a sustaining power that can be derived from no other source; and that, we may add, can be received only by those who believe in 'Christ's return to His people. Those whom God hath begotten " unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Christ from the dead " are kept (a mili- tary phrase expressive of a guard, or a strong garrison) by the power of God. They have nothing to fear from the -enemies of their salvation, for they are surrounded by a HOPE OF CHRIST'S COMING. 443 strong bodyguard, by God Himself and His Holy Angels. The same military term is used in Phil. 4: 7. "And the peace of God that passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Thus believers are kept by the Divine Omnipotence, through faith, unto a full and complete salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time. Peter, sharing with the other Apostles in the expectation that Christ's Second Advent was near at hand, thus speaks of this salvation upon which his heart is fixed, as ready to be revealed, or fully disclosed in the last time, the period that will begin with Christ's return. This nearness is spoken of inKom. 13:11, 12; Phil. 4: 5; Heb. 10:25, 37; James5:7, 8; Rev. 1:3; 22: 10, 20. and in many other passages. In the words of Luther, " The inheritance to which you are ordained, has been acquired long since, and prepared from the beginning of the world, but lies as yet concealed, covered and sealed; but in a short time it will be opened in a moment, and disclosed so that we may see it." In this fact, that great treasures are reserved for believers, soon to be revealed, they should greatly rejoice. But there is another aspect of the subject of vital moment expressed in the words: "That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold, that perisheth though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ." Faith under all circum- stances is a valuable principle. But faith tested, proved and purified in the furnace of persecution, is more precious than gold, the most precious of the metals. For as the fire separates the dross from the gold, so a willingness to suffer for Christ, and the patient endurance of " manifold tempt- ations," separates from faith all alloy, all selfishness and self-reliance; and for this distinct purpose, that it " might be found unto praise arid honor and glory at the appearing 444 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. of Jesus Christ." The possessor of this faith will be praised for his fidelity; for his power of endurance for Christ's sake, and for his faithfulness unto death. He will receive the honor promised by Christ to His faithful servants, a& expressed in John 12: 26. " If any man serve Me, him will My Father honor." He will share in the glory which the Father hath given to His Son, and which He will commu- nicate to all that are His. " To them who, by patient con- tinuance in well-doing, seek for glory, honor and immortality, He will give eternal life." (Horn. 2:7.) The preciousness of this faith and the splendor of its fruits, will also appear in the praise and honor and glory it will bring to the blessed Trinity; praise to the Father for so loving the world as to give His only begotten Son to die for it; honor to the Lord Jesus Christ for His great redemption; and glory to the Holy Ghost for the completion of the work of grace in the hearts of believers. A FUNDAMENTAL ARTICLE OF FAITH. The Rev. G. F. C. Fronmuller, in his comments upon this passage in Lange, says, " Our Lord's return has been one of the fundamental articles of the faith of universal Christendom in every age of the Church history. To hide this important doctrine under a bushel is at once a defect of teaching, and in opposition to the mind of Christ and His Apostles. It is to be noticed that the return of Christ shall be preceded not only by several ages, but also by several ends of ages, with typical final judgments, as St. Paul speaks of TO. rtfy v awewv. The flood, the dispersion of the ten tribes, the judgment of Jadah, but especially the des- truction of Jerusalem and the conquest of Palestine, were in a certain sense such final judgments." (1 Cor. 10: 11.) The Apostle Paul, in exhorting the Christians atPhillipi to follow his example, and avoid the enemies of the Cross HOPE OF CHRISrS COMING. 445 of Christ, who mind earthly things, thus sets forth their high privileges and hopes. For, as Dean Alford renders this passage, " our country is in the heavens; from whence also we look for a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall change the body of our humiliation, that it may be con- formed unto the body of His glory, according to the work- ing of His power, whereby He is able even to subdue all things unto Him." (Phil. 3:20, 21.) The influence of this blessed truth upon his own soul, and the ardent desires it awakened, are thus expressed: "That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to the likeness of His death; if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection from the dead (that blessed resurrection of the dead in Christ, who will rise at His coming), Brethren,! count not myself to have apprehended (or laid hold), but one thing I do, for- getting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God, in Christ Jesus." (Phil. 3: 10, 11, 13.) He then adds, u Let us then, as many as be perfect, be thus minded " (v. 15), and for this reason we are citizens of the Kingdom of God, the Heavenly Jerusalem. We already belong to that blessed country whence we look for the Lord Jesus Christ, expecting Him till the event arrives. Upon this our eyes and hearts and hopes should be fixed. For He will come to transform the body of our humiliation, that is, this body that has been humiliated by suffering and reproach, as Christ's body on earth was humiliated, and fashion it like unto His present glorious body. The change we conceive is to affect our whole being, body and soul. We are to be transformed into His spiritual and heavenly image, as well as reflect in our bodies the brightness of His glory. Neander gays, " Paul's meaning is that Christians as to SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. their life, their walk, belong even now to Heaven: in the whole direction of their life existing there already. This he deduces from their relation to Christ, their fellowship with Him to whom they are inseparably united, so that where He is, there are they also. While here they are sustained by the consciousness that Christ now lives in Heaven manifested to believers though hidden from the world. Thither is their gaze directed, as their longings rise toward a Saviour who will come again from thence, to make them wholly like Himself, to fashion them wholly after His own glorious pattern, to transform them wholly into the Heavenly. There is not presented here a resur- rection, as a restoration merely of the same earthly body in the same earthly form, but, on the contrary, a glorious transformation, proceeding from the divine, the all-sub- duing power of Christ; so that believers free from the defects of the earthly existence, released from all its bar- riers, may reflect the full image of the Heavenly Christ in their whole glorified personality, in the soul pervaded by the divine life, and its now perfectly assimilated glori- fied organ." (Dr. Hackett in Lange, p. 62.) What a prospect does this open to the Church of the Living God; to believers now upon the earth, who stand nearer to this event than any who have preceded them; to whom the words of the Apostle James come with a power greater than ever had before! "The coming of the Lord draweth nigh." With what faith, with what eagerness, with what ardent longing? should we look for His appear- ing, who may come at any moment, and who will come to affect the glorious change that has been described in all whose citizenship or country is in Heaven! In Paul's first Epistle to the Thessalonians, that was writ- ten under the glorious enthusiasm awakened by this truth, besides the announcement that the Lord will descend from HOPE OF CUEISTS COMING. Heaven with a shout or word of command, to meet His Saints in the air, and the accompanying exhortation, "Wherefore comfort one another with these words," we have this great event placed before believers, as one for which they should constantly wait; as a motive to increase in brotherly love, and as a reason for their entire eanctiti- cation. In the first chapter the Apostle commends the Thessalonians for their strong faith and their readiness to turn from idols, to serve the living and true God, and tc wait for His Son from Heaven." (I, 10.) He thus pre- sents, in these two particulars, the life-aim of converts to Christianity, the service of God and waiting for the return of His Son from Heaven. Bengel says on this passage: "To wait for the Son of God is the most appropriate mark of a true Christian." Calvin says: "In the service of God, which in the corruption of our nature is a more than difficult matter, we are kept and established by the expect- ation of Christ; otherwise the world drags us back to itself, and we grow weary." Yaughan says : "A summary of the Christian life at all times: service and expectation. The loss or disparagement of either has been at all times the cause of injury to the Church. The one by itself degenerates into a dry routine of duty; the other into excitement, dreaminess and indolent sentiment. The two together make up that life of practical piety which is the true end and chief glory of the Gospel." In the third chapter, twelfth and thirteenth verses, the Apostle writes, "And the Lord make you to increase arid abound in love one toward the other, and toward all men, even as we do toward you; to the end lie may establish your hearts, unblamable in holiness, before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints." The aim and end of increasing and abounding in broth- 448 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. erly love, and in affectionate interest in all mankind, is, as here set forth, the establishment of our hearts in holiness, that when we pass under the scrutinizing gaze of God, at the coming of our Lord, we may be found unblamable in holiness before Him. The tendency of love is to promote holiness and give to the heart a steadfastness in obeying the will of God, for love is the fulfilling of the law." (Horns. 13: 10.) Thus we see how brotherly love, like every other Christian virtue, points to the second coming, and is stimulated by it and made tributary to that " holi- ness, without which no man shall see the Lord." (Heb. 12: 14.) In the closing chapter of the Epistle, believers are exhorted to " rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in every thing give thanks, to quench not the spirit; hold fast that which is good and abstain from every form of evil." Then follows a prayer that that may be done which God alone can do: "But may the God of Peace Himself sanc- tify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit, and soul and body, be presented blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." (v. 23.) This prayer answered, and the climax of spiritual growth and blessedness is reached, and who is there that rightly apprehends the doctrine we are considering and is alive to its importance; whose heart is open to the exhorta- tions and appeals that the Holy Ghost makes to us, in view of our Lord's declaration, "Behold, I come quickly;" who will not offer for himself the prayer that the Peace of God, the author and source of peace, may sanctify him wholly; and that His Spirit, the higher principle of intelligence that renders us capable of partaking of the Divine nature; and soul, the seat of animal life, with its powers and interests; and the body, that is the whole being, may be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ? " Our doctrine is a powerful incentive to fidelity in the HOPE OF CHRIST'S COMING. 449 outward activities of the Christian life. It is thus presented in several of the parables of our Lord. While some of His parables present the inward and contemplative side of the Christian life, others set forth the active side. In the 25th chapter of Matthew we have the parables of the ten virgins and of the talents distributed by the Lord to His servants. The first represents those who are waiting for the Lord, and the second those who are working for Him. The disappointment of the foolish virgins is a warning against the absence or decay of the inward spiritual life, while the forms of religion are observed. The talents refer to the capacities and gifts given to us, with the means and opportunities afforded for increase and usefulness in the Kingdom of God. The rewards held out are to stimulate us to diligence and fidelity in laboring for the Master, and the doom of the wicked and slothful servant is a warning against sluggishness and the neglect of the outward work committed to us. The Lord Jesus Christ has gone into a far country. Previous to His departure, or ascension, He delivered to His servants, His Apostles, whom He particularly addressed, and to all His followers His goods. He made over to them the interests of His Kingdom, and furnished them with the means for carrying forward the good work which He had begun. " Unto one He gave five talents, to another two, and to another one: to every man according to his several (or his own) ability," according to his capacity to use the gifts, spiritual or material, given to him. Every one has his endowments and gifts, and a sacred mission to fulfill, during the Lord's absence. The fact that gives sacredness to our work, and is calculated to stimulate us to the greatest fidelity in the use of our power, acquisitions, time, wealth, influences, and opportunities, is the certainty that our Lord will return and reckon with us. As expressed 29 450 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. in the parable, " After a long time, the Lord of those ser- vants cometh and reckoneth with them. And so he that had received five talents brought other five talents saying, Lord, thou deliverest unto me five talents: behold I have gained beside them five talents more. His Lord said unto him, Well done thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord." (Matt. 25:19-21.) This we must regard as the judgment of the Pre-Mil- lennial Advent, when the saints will be judged and rewarded according to their works. The parable recorded in Luke 19:12, 13, is similar in many points to this. "He said, therefore, a certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom and to return. And he called his ten servants and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come." "This parable of the Pounds," says Lange, "places visibly before our eyes not only the life calling of the Apostles, but also that of all believers. From the fact that here ten servants appear who all receive the same, the diversity recedes before the unity. As bondservants for their Lord they are called to wait for his return, and that not in inactive rest, but in jealous activity. They have not to contend with carnal weapons against His enemies, but in the midst of all opposition, quietly to proceed with their labors. In the humble position of witnesses to the faith, they must seek, with word and deed to spread abroad God's Kingdom, and expect their share in the government of the world, not before, but only after the personal return of the Lord. The success of their endeavors is differently modi- fied, according to the diversity of time, talents, and energies; but the reward is suited to the different deserts. In every case it is in proportion to that which is demanded and HOPE OF CHRISTS COMING. 451 accomplished. For the ten pounds, which the best one gained, he would scarcely have been able to buy a horse, and he is placed over ten cities; but never does a reward fall to the portion of the slothful one, who has contented merely with this that he did no positive harm. To gain nothing is the way to lose all, and the injury one prepares for himself by his own unfaithfulness appears as irrevocable." We pass next to consider a duty, in connection with our Lord's coming, which He Himself presents to His Churchy in various forms, calculated to awaken attention, in lan- guage indicating the deepest earnestness and solicitude; and in appeals that should sweep over Christendom and arouse the most indifferent to the startling and stupendous events that at any moment, in the twinkling of an eye, may burst upon us. Our Lord Jesus Christ, as recorded in Matt. 24: 42-44-, said : " Watch, therefore; for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the good man of the house had known in what watch the thief would come he would not have suifered his house to be broken up. Therefore, be ye also ready ; for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of Man cometh." At the close of the parable of the ten virgins, Christ -adds, " Watch, therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of Man cometh." (Matt. 25:13.) The elements of Christian watchfulness are wakefulness, alertness, activ- ity and circumspection. The motives for it are the cer- tainty of Christ's coming; the suddenness of His coming and its decisive character in determining the destiny of the whole human family. What is required of the watchers and their reward, are thus set forth by our Lord: "Let your loins be girded about (so as to be ready for instant active service), and your lights burning (prepared for the midnight cry); and ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their Lord, when He shall return from the wedding; 452 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. that when He cometh and knocketh, they may open to Him immediately (thus showing that they have not fallen asleep). Blessed are those servants whom the Lord when He cometh shall find watching; verily, I say unto you that He shall gird Himself, and make them to set down to meat, and will come forth and serve them. And if He shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants." (Luke 12: 35, 38.) He says nothing about coming in the first or fourth watches of the night, but refers to those that are nearest midnight, when the tendency to fall asleep is the greatest, and therefore must be vigorously resisted. But whether He comes sooner or later, all who are found fully awake to His coming and faithful at their posts will be rewarded, and such a reward! He in turn will gird Himself, and will open to His servants a splendid banquet, furnished with the most costly viands, in imitation of the ancient Hebrews who gave their servants a share in the sacred feasts. " And He will come forth and serve them ! " What honors are implied and promised here to those whom He shall find watching. Majus says: "There is an instant on which eternity hangs; in an instant all may be squandered and lost; therefore must we ever watch all should watch, especially ministers, whose business is to quicken others to watchfulness." The closing words of the Westminster Confession of Faith are clear and emphatic in regard to this duty. "As Christ would have us to be certainly persuaded that there shall be a day of judgment, both to deter all men from sin and for the greater consolation of the godly in their advers- ity, so will He have that day unknown to men, that they may shake off all carnal security, and be always watchful, because they know not at what hour the Lord will come; and may be ever prepared to say, Come, Lord Jesus; come quickly. Amen." HOPE OF CHRISTS COMING. 453 St. Paul thus addresses his brethren on this point: " Ye brethren are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day; we are not of the night, nor of dark- ness. Therefore, let us not sleep as do others; but let us watch and be sober." (1 Thess. 5:4, 6.) Children of the light should not sleep, that is, be in a dull, sluggish state, unsusceptible to the influence of spiritual things, and especially of those pertaining to the day of the Lord. They should be awake, and thoroughly alive to what is transpiring around them. They are not called to be proph- ets, but diligent students of the prophecies. They are not called to curiously inquire unto the day and hour of the coming of the Lord, but to notice the signs of His appear- ing, and be prepared for the grand event. They are to listen to every sound, every bugle note that heralds the approach of the Great King. They are to watch the march of providential events, and carefully weighing their import, are not to be carried away by delusive spectacles. Children of the light occupy the heights of observation, and see afar beyond the pomp and pride of ecclesiastical formalism; beyond the camps of the enemy, to the distant, wide hori- zon that at any moment may be lighted up with the splen- dors of Him who is coming to take His great power and rule among the nations. The commotions and evils in society do not alarm them, for they have been told "that in the last days perilous times shall come;" and for their own safety they have the assurance given to the redeemed, " He shall dwell on high; His place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks. * * Thine eyes shall see the King in His beauty; they shall behold the land that is very far off." The Apostle Paul, after obeying himself every injunction of his Lord relating to His second coming, and after 454 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. unfolding this truth with clearness and power that divine inspiration alone could give him, associated it with the shout of victory with which he greets the hour of his departure from earth, and sends forth a promise to cheer all those who " love His appearing." While solemnly exhorting the beloved Timothy to fidelity in his ministerial work, he says : " For I am now ready to be offered up, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith; henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of right- eousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me at that day; and not to me only, but unto all them, also, that love His appearing. (II. Tim. 4., 6-8.) " That day," the day of the personal coming of the Lord, is still the theme upmost in his mind. It sheds its lustre over the last hours of his earthly career. It pours its brightness upon the valley of the shadow of death. It fills him with the spirit of exultation and triumph. It holds for him a crown of righteousness, not indeed merited, but his, as a full partaker of the righteousness which is by faith in Christ. He has fought the good fight and obtained the victory, and the prize is laid up for him. It is there already, to be publicly given him by the Lord, the righteous Judge, at that day. "And not to me only, but unto all them, also, that love His appearing." To all who look forward with affectionate longing to His coming, who anticipate the event with delight, a crown of righteousness will be given in the pres- ence of saints and angels by the glorious Lord Himself. This state of mind presupposes obedience to all the injunc- tions arid exhortations from Christ and His Apostles that we have considered; and through these the highest degree of spiritual life. And on the other hand to love His appearing is fitted more than anything else to pro- mote Christian activity, brotherly love and holy living, to HOPE OF CHRIST'S COMING. 455 the end He may establish our hearts unblamable in holi- ness before God, even our Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints." (1 Thess. 3: 13.) Hear, in conclusion, the words of the King of Kings, who is already on His way with the heavenly hosts : " Behold, I come quickly, hold fast that which thou hast, that no man take thy crown. Him that overcometh or conquereth, will I make a pillar in the temple of My God, an honored, permanent and eternally consecrated priest, or inmate of the heavenly temple; and he shall never more go out; and I will write upon him the name of My God," signifying His complete righteousness and oneness with the Father, " and the name of the city of My God." When upon the earth his citizenship was in Heaven. But then it was latent, now it is manifested, and He is known as an inhabitant of the city of the Living God, and is free to enter it according to the promise in Rev. 22: 12-14: " Behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me to give to every man according as his work shall be. Blessed are they that keep His commandments, that they have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city." "And I will write upon him My new name ;" that wonderful, mysterious name, that at present is uncommunicable. It is referred to in that most sublime vision of the coming King in the 19th chapter of Revelations, " and He had a name written, that no man knew but Himself." It was none of the names or titles by which He was known on earth. He calls it " My new name," a name, doubtless, indicative of His final triumph and complete union with His saints, who henceforth are to share with Him the glory of His Kingdom. Twice, in the closing chapter of the Bible does Christ say, "Behold, I come quickly." The third time he says, "Surely I come quickly." Even so, come, Lord Jesus. 456 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. ADDRESSES. THE RETURN OF CHRIST AND FOREIGN MISSIONS. BY THE REV. W. P. MACKAY, D.D., PRESBYT2RTAN, HULL, ENGLAND. IN Acts 1 : 6 we find the disciples asking our Lord after His resurrection, and before His ascension, " How wilt Thou at this time restore again the Kingdom of Israel." And His answer is remarkable, taken in connection with what He said to the same men in Matt. 24: 33, where he indicates that they were to look for signs, etc. In Acts, however, He says, " It is not for you to know the times or the seasons which the Father hath put in His own power, but ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you, and ye shall be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." Signs, times and seasons, as we find from Daniel, are for the Jewish people. He addressed the twelve in Matthew when He is the King of the Jews. As represent- ative Jews. Here He speaks to them as those who are to be the nucleus of His Church and witnesses to Him till His return. The Holy Ghost was given for power in Jeru- salem (Acts 2:4) and in Samaria (Acts 8: IT), and among the Gentiles (Acts 10: 44), so that the promise of the Father was fulfilled and the power from heaven bestowed. They began well, as the record of the day of Pentecost shows, but while they faithfully began at Jerusalem they delayed going to Samaria and the ends of the earth, and we find that God sent a persecution to scatter them (Acts 8:1), RETURN OF CHRIST AND FOREIGN MISSIONS. 457 "and at that time there was a great persecution against the Church which was at Jerusalem, and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judaea and Samaria " but mark the exception " except the Apostles" the very men to whom Christ gave the commission thus gave it up very quickly, and a new Apostle is called out to perform the work. Paul, who up to this time had been a persecutor, is- called to the apostalate in a miraculous and heavenly man- ner, so that he was not an Apostle by education and the training of the Lord on the earth, as Matthew had been chosen, but as he says in Rom 1:1: " An Apostle by call." 1 And the Lord's purpose with regard to him was (Acts 9:15), " He is a chosen vessel unto Me, to bear My name before the Gentiles and Kings, and the children of Israel/' This he aimed at, as He Himself writes in Rom. 15: 19, "From Jerusalem and round about unto Illyricum I have fully preached the Gospel of Christ. . . . Whensoever I take my journey into Spain I will come to you (at Rome)." And to a great extent he was successful, as we read in Colos- sians 1: 23: " Be not moved away from the hope of the Gospel which ye have heard and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven, whereof I, Paul, am made a minister." That could be said in no sense in the present day. And Paul was the man, above all men, who inculcated the waiting for God's Son from heaven. Was it a spiritual Christ that Paul saw on his way to Damascus? Nay, it was a Man in the glory that he saw, and he never forgot it. It was no spirit, no angel. And in this Man he believed, for this Man he wrought and witnessed, and for this Man he waited ; turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven. This witnessing of the Christian to the absent Lord is his true and highest function, whether we look at the end of a poor lost world, the nature of the Christian's life, or the com- 458 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. mand of his absent Lord. The world is needy. Human- ity is a failure. The Bible is the history of it. From Eden to the Great White Throne man has failed. Even at the end of the millennium, unregenerate man shows the most lamentable of all failures. There is no hope for him but in the grace of God, the work of Christ, and the power of the Holy Ghost, and the Christian carries these to lost human- ity, a light to a dark world, salt in a needy earth. " No man hath seen God at any time," we find twice stated in Scripture. (John 1:18 and 1 John 4: 12.) The only begot- ten Son declares Him in the Gospel according to John. But since He has been rejected, believers now manifest God, as seen in the Epistle. " Which thing is true in Him and in you; because the darkness is past and the true light now shineth." (1 John 2:8.) The child of God is not only born of water, and has within him a well of living water, but from him rivers of living water are to flow, carrying the life of God to a dead world. " God hath given to us the min- istry of reconciliation, to wit, that God was in Christ (when He was on earth) reconciling the world unto Himself, and hath committed (in His absence) unto us the word of recon- ciliation." (2 Cor. 5: 18, 19.) If the government of Great Britain set apart all its army, fleet and exchequer to send forth a message to every nation on the earth it would not take eighteen hundred years to do it. And our Master said, " All power is given to Me in heaven and earth, go ye therefore" We are to go because He has all power. It still lies there for faith to pick up and appropriate. And how comes it that we are further from obedience to this commission than the Apostle Paul was? Simply because we have not kept on in the line of His example in his work of faith, labors of love and patience of faith. The Church has been farming high-patches, and leaving the great mass of men untouched settling at Jerusalem RETURN OF CHRIST AND FOREIGN MISSIONS. 459 and forgetting Samaria and the uttermost ends of the earth. There are 30,000 evangelical preachers in Great Britain alone; 50,000 and more on this continent; 80,000 men on the two hands of the body, and the rest of the body uncared for, close upon a thousand millions of people who never heard that there was a Christ. Some would persuade us that we should not go to Africa till all New York was converted. They will never get to Africa. We maintain that every man, woman, and child, in Great Britain and the United States, could hear of Christ if they desired, and it is now time for battalions of missionaries to move off to foreign lands. General Yon Moltke, at the battle of Gravelotte, sent in regiment after regiment to certain destruction, but he turned the left flank of his enemy. We require regiments of willing brothers faithful unto death. We have failed simply because we have been aiming at universal conversion and not at universal evangelisation. We have been trying to convert patches and not evangelize the whole. This is not the age of universal conversion ; that is the age that is to come. Let us hearken to one of the Apostles: "Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles .to take out of them a people for His name." Here there is no indication whatever that the Gentiles were to be totally brought to God, and no man has need to say to his neighbor, "Know the Lord." So Christ taught His disciples that during His absence they were to act like fishermen with a drag net, and go over the sea and catch a netful of fishes, not the fullness of the seas. Instead of this, the Church has been abiding by one or two favorite pools and endeavoring to catch every fish in- stead of passing along though the whole sea. The not under- standing the character of the present dispensation, linked 460 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. to that innate selfishness that still adheres to us all, is at the root of all this disgraceful disobedience. I trust that one great outcome from this Conference will be a deeper intelligence concerning the revealed purposes of our Lord, greater faithfulness to His parting Commission, and closer sympathy with His heart of love for a perishing world. When He gave His marching orders, He did not say: "And lo, nations shall be born at once." He did not say, " All will be converted before you." No such thought is ever found in the New Testament, but as witnesses to a rejected Christ, we are to go to all the world, while He says, " Lo, I am with you always." He knew how much we would require His presence. He knew that the messenger would be rejected as the Messiah had been. His presence, not our success, was to be our comfort. He is a poor servant who goes merely by success. At the day of reward the word will not be, Well done, good and successful servant, but, " Well done, good and faithful servant." We can not command success. We can all aim at faithfulness. " Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life," the Master said to those who were to be His witnesses, not to be received, but to be murdered. Faithful in the little, we shall be rewarded with the crown that He will give, for "if we suffer with Him we shall also reign with Him we shall be glorified together." To-day is the day of the Cross, and our witnessing to Him to the uttermost ends of the earth. The glory, the crown, the reward will soon be here, and, above all, He Himself the Man of Cal- vary the Man that Stephen saw at the right hand, tluit aul saw on his way to Damascus, will appear in royal glory, to put down all the wrong and exalt all the right; to put down all rule and authority opposed to God, and reign in righteousness over a sin-blighted world. RETURN OF CHRIST AND FOREIGN MISSIONS. 461 Then weep no more, 'tis all thine own, His Cross and Crown divine; But better far than all beside, Himself, the Lord, is thine. The Bride eyes not her garment But her dear Bridegroom's face. I will not gaze on glory, But on my King of grace ; Not on the crown He giveth, But on His pierced hand. The Lamb is all the glory Of Immanuel's land SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. THE COMING OF THE LORD IN ITS RELATIONS TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. BY THE KEY. DR. B. R. CRAVEN, PASTOR THIRD PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, NEWARK, N. J. I HAVE heard that it has been said that Pre-Millennarians constitute the " infant class " in Theology. Most willingly, gladly, do I take the place thus assigned me, for I have not now to learn that the Master often hides the great things of His Kingdom " from the wise and prudent and reveals them unto babes." I can conceive of no higher honor, no greater blessedness on earth or in heaven, than to sit as a child at the feet of Jesus and drink in the words of instruc- tion as they fall from His lips. God grant that with the simplicity of a child I may learn the truth from Him to-day, and that with like simplicity I may recite it. 1 have been requested, not to read a formal paper, but to deliver an address on the Relations of the Coming of Christ to Christian Doctrine. It can not, of course, be expected or desired that I should retraverse the subject so fully and ably presented last night. I shall, therefore, confine my remarks to a brief discussion of the relation of the Pre- Millennial Advent to the Catholic doctrine concerning the Office of the Spirit in Regeneration, and one cognate sub- ject. The central doctrine of Pre - Millennarianism is this : That an Advent of Christ, in His glorified body, is ever imminent for the establishment of what is generally known as the Millennium. We believe that when the Gospel of the Kingdom has been preached as a witness in every land (as it has already been) that when the elect number (the ITS RELATIONS TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. pleroma, the fulness) of the Gentiles has been gathered in (which may be, for aught we know, before the sun sets, which rnay not be for centuries; we who stand on this platform are no calculators of the secret things which God reserves in His own knowledge) we believe that then the O J Redeemer shall come to Zion; that then He shall destroy Antichrist by the brightness of His Appearing; that then He shall gather now-blinded Israel to His side; that then " the kingdom and dominion and greatness of the king- dom under the whole heavens shall be given to the people of the Saints of the Most High." The Catholic doctrine, which this is said to contravene, is, that it is the office of the Spirit to apply the redemption purchased by Christ that the Spirit is the Renewer. This doctrine we believe and proclaim as completely, we think, as any class of men. It may be said, however, that what- ever our thoughts may be, the doctrine of a Pre-Millennial Advent is logically inconsistent therewith inconsistent either with the continuance of the Spirit's office after the appearance of Christ, or with His dignity in the exercise thereof. That our doctrine is not, in Jehovah's esteem, inconsist- ent with the idea of the continuance of the Spirit's office in a glorious and miraculous Appearing of Jesus is man- ifest from the declarations of the Scriptures. The Apostle Paul was called and converted in such an Appearing. (Acts 9: 3-10.) And yet he writes to Titus (3: 5): " Accord- ing to His mercy He saved us (not you, but us, includ- ing Himself) by the washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost." The Apostle, be it remem- bered, was "as one born out of due time" (1 Cor. 15: 8), not late, but early. He was born, not as a lagging mem- ber of a brotherhood already called, but as the elder brother of blinded, persecuting Israel, " the pattern of them that 464 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. should afterward believe " when the Lord should rend the veil from their hearts. He was the type of those to be in like manner effectually called in the day when the promise spoken by Zech^riah (12: 10) shall be fulfilled " I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabi- tants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplications; and they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced." The glorious Appearing unto Paul was but the harbinger the morning star of the day which shall yet be; the work of the Spirit wrought in him was but the earnest of that which shall then be wrought in now benighted Israel. It may be said, however, that whilst our doctrine is not inconsistent with the continuance of the Spirit's work, it is inconsistent with His dignity in that continuance. This objection can proceed on only one of two foundations, both of which I will briefly consider. The first is that our doctrine implies that the Spirit can not renew the world by existing instrumentalities that the Spirit is unable to renew it without the presence of Jesus. We hold no such heresy as this, nor is it logically connected with our doctrine. That the Spirit will not thus act with- out the presence of our Lord we believe and affirm that He can not, we deny. We believe, I believe, that the Spirit could have converted Paul, even as he converted Titus, without the intervention of a glorious Epiphany. We believe that under the simple preaching of the Gospel, by a babe, He could bring every sinner that now walks the earth to the knowledge and confession of the truth. The question we are considering is one of purpose, not of nat- ural ability. Do our opponents measure what the Spirit can do by what He does? Do they hold that the fact, that the Spirit has not converted the world by the preaching of the Gospel during eighteen centuries, manifests His inabil- ITS DELATIONS TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 465 ity to do it? This is the logical sequence of the objection. I repeat it, the question we are considering is one of pur- pose, not of ability, and I insist upon it. There is indeed a secondary, a subordinate sense, in which it is necessary Christ should appear in glory before the Spirit performs His great work of renewing the Nations a necessity arising from what is essential to the fulfill- ment of prophecy from what is essential to the realization of declared purposes. Thus, for instance, it was necessary that Christ should be born in Bethlehem and that He should be sacrificed in Jerusalem. Not necessary in the nature of things another town than Bethlehem, another city than Jerusalem, might have been chosen. Not necessary as a matter of ability that He should have been born at all, or that He should have been sacrificed at all. He could have destroyed His murderers. But necessary in order to the fulfillment of prophecies concerning Him, necessary to the carrying out of the declared purposes of Jehovah. This use of the term is often confounded witli the former, and hence,*! suspect, the objection. In this secondary sense, and in this only, is it affirmed by any that it is necessary Christ should come before the general renewal of the world by the Spirit. A second foundation on which it has been alleged that our doctrine is inconsistent with the dignity of the Spirit, is that it implies subordination in working on His part. I answer, it implies precisely the same subordination that is implied in the present dispensation the same, neither more nor less. It is the Catholic doctrine that, among the co-eternal, co-almighty, co-equal persons of the adorable Trinity there is not inequality that is heresy not inequal- ity, but subordination. The Father is of none neither begotten nor proceed ing; the Son is of the Father, begotten; the Spirit is of the Father and the Son, proceeding. And 30 466 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. so, in the economy of grace, there is like subordination. The Father sends the Son to redeem ; the Father and the Son send the Spirit to renew. The Spirit is styled the Spirit of Christ. He is given in answer to the intercession of Christ; He is poured forth by the power of Christ; He acts as the agent of Christ; He takes of the things of Christ either the personally absent or the present Christ and shows them unto us. Thus hath it been from the beginning; thus is it now; thus shall it be when Christ shall come again in glory. The doctrine of the Pre- Millennial Advent is naught opposed to, but is in all points at one with, the Christian faith concerning the office of the Spirit. Cognate with the general objection we have been con- sidering is another, viz., that our doctrine is inconsistent with the doctrine that the Spirit is to convert the world simply through the instrumentality of the preaching of the Gospel by a militant Church. We admit the inconsistency, nay, we proclaim it affirming that the doctrine with which ours is inconsistent is neither Scriptural nor Cath- olic. It is, I admit, the now prevalent doctrine of the Protestant Church; that it is neither Catholic nor Scrip- tural has been abundantly demonstrated on this platform. It forms no part of the work assigned me to controvert it. It is in place, however, for me to endeavor to disintegrate from it, and thus bring more clearly to light, the true Scriptural doctrine that lies at its foundation a doctrine held by the primitive Church; a doctrine that everywhere, in all ages, has had its adherents. Every prevalent error, I may remind you in passing, has its basis in truth. It is a truth that the Church was commanded to go forth and preach the Gospel among all nations it is a truth that during the absence of her head, by such labor under the influences of the Spirit, she propagates herself, gathering ITS RELATIONS TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 467 from among all nations the pleroma, the elect number of the Gentiles the bride preparing for the bridegroom. Now, it is manifest that this gathering is in order to the Coming of the Redeemer which Coming is in order to the infringing of the Millennium. We therefore say, and the Church has ever said, that in laboring to spread the Gospel we are laboring to bring in the latter day of prom- ised glory. And here is the confusion. On our platform we are striving in order to that end, but not directly thereto. The distinction I contemplate between striving in order to an end, and striving directly thereto^ may be made clear by a simple illustration: In the dominion of some earthly king there stands a granite mountain, that retards the march of improvement. Broken into fragments, it would not only cease to retard progress, but its particles disinte- grated would themselves become the instruments of blessing. The monarch commands his servants to labor to break in pieces that mountain. In obedience to his commands they go forth with pick and shovel and barrow to attack that which resists and to utilize that which they gather. They labor in every part, and from every part they gather with toil that which is useful. Now, there are two objects of labor conceivable the one is that laboring in every part they, shall dig down the mountain this is labor directly to the end; the other object is that laboring in every part and gathering that which is useful, as do the others, they may prepare shafts and chambers in which some skillful engin- eer shall pour his dynamite, and in a moment, when the right time comes, blast that which hindereth unto useful- ness this is labor in order to the end. Now, our belief is that the latter is the form of labor assigned to the Church, which in these modern days has been by multitudes inter- preted as the former. Our belief is that when the Church lias accomplished her appointed work when the right 468 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. time shall arrive the Master shall come with the mighty outpourings of his spirit; and that the mountain of ignor- ance and sin shall flow down at his presence; or, to change the figure, when the Bride shall have been gathered out of every land, then the Redeemer shall come to her, and she shall arise and shine, her light being come, and the Glory of the Lord being risen upon her, and that then nations shall come to her light and kings to the brightness of her rising. Such, we believe, is the doctrine of the "Word of God. Does it, as is alleged by some, cut the nerve of missionary effort. It was by the hope begotten and fostered by this doctrine, that the Apostolic Church was energized; the hope that they might see the King in His beauty ere their eyes closed in death that their tongues might swell the glad hosannahs that should welcome His approach that they, by labor wrought by their redeemed hands, might hasten even unto their own day the coining of the time when. He, the Redeemer, might see in fullness, the fruit of the travail of His sou), and be satisfied. This was the hope that filled the Martyr Church with more than Roman courage and Roman enthusiasm; that enabled them to pen- etrate into lands where Roman eagles never flew and Caesars never won a triumph, there to struggle to the death with the powers of darkness, leading captivity captive, gath- ering to themselves, and into one, the scattered members of the Bride of Christ. This is the hope that ener- gizes the great Missionary Church of modern times the Moravian that for more than a century has poured itself out on the Altar of the Lord, living only for this end to preach the gospel to the heathen. This was the hope that inspired Heber, the great missionary bishop of the English Church, who gave us that glorious missionary hymn, "From Greenland's Icy Mountains," and who spent his JTS RELATIONS TO CHRISTIAN DOCTRINE. 469 strength and rested from his labors on "India's coral strand. " This was the hope that energized Gutzlaff, the opener of China, and Bettleheim, the opener of Japan. Tliis was the hope that inspired and cheered and overjoyed McCheyne and our own noble Poor, and Lowrie, and Ran- kin, and Lowenthal, and hosts of others whom time would fail me to mention. Oh! glorious doctrine; Oh! glorious hope sprung from its bosom ! Wonder you if those into whose hearts it has entered have been the pioneers, the foremost laborers in missionary effort? I charge not those who disagree with me with being the slothful servants who say Our Lord delayeth His Coming. That would be slander. Well do I know that amongst them are found many noble workers in the cause of human- ity in the Master's cause. But of this I am assured that that faithful servant in whose ears is ever sounding the midnight warning Behold, I come quickly, can not in labor be behind his brethren. With heart and with voice and with work that hastes the Coming, he must ever answer back the cry of him who once leaned on Jesus' breast, and longed for His reappearing; " Even so, Come, Lord Jesus Come quickly." 470 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. THE THREE DAYS' FEAST WITH DAYID'S SON. BY DR. W. P. MACKAY. NOTHING could more appropriately finish our Conference than a meditation upon David, and his companions, when as yet David was a fugitive and had not readied the throne, though he had been anointed as king. You will find this recorded in 1 Chron. 12. Here we find, firstly, the feast; secondly, the warriors; and thirdly, their purpose. THE FEAST. (1 Chron. 12:39.) "And there they were with David three days eating and drinking: for their brethren had prepared for them." Have our brethren in New York, as they have summoned us from North, South, East and West, not prepared for us such a feast of spiritual food, such draughts of living water as have filled our whole being, head, heart and conscience? And has it not been above all with our David? David's son and David's Lord. Has this not been the name that has been above every name? Who are Presbyterians I can not tell, and who are Episcopalians, or Baptists, or Congre- gationalists, I know not. But I know that every speaker's deepest thought was, li let us exalt His name together." And is it not because of His presence that we have found our- selves so near to each other? Love comes not by effort. I do not try to work up affection for you, sir, the Chairman of this Conference, nor for my friends Tyng and Brookes, and others, but just as each approaches Christ, so each approaches the otner who is near to Christ. The easiest and surest way to make a number of lights approximate, each to each, all placed in the circumference of a circle, is THE THREE DAYS 1 FEAST. 471 to draw them, not nearer to each other, but nearer to the centre, and thus as we are drawn closer to Christ, our great centre, we shall find ourselves shoulder to shoulder with all those who are drawn nearer to Him. Have we not been feasting on His precious truth as on the very bread of life? Have we not been drinking with Him out of the river of His good pleasure? Were it merely a doctrine or a discussion, or a set of theories, or crotchets or ideas, or sen- timentalities, it would not be worth coming a yard to meet each other. But we have met to eat of food the world knows not of, to partake of joys beyond the reach of earth, and to cultivate intimacy with Him who alone is our rallying centre and theme of attraction. 2. Let us now look shortly at the characters of those war- riors who thus met in David's day. We find them described in this chapter, and that they are as varied as we are ourselves. They "came to David to Ziklag, while he yet kept himself close, because of Saul, the son of Kish: and they were among the mighty men, helpers of the wars." Our King is on high, on His Father's throne, waiting till His enemies are made His footstool, when He shall take His own throne. He has gone to the Father, and thus the world is shown that the Father is righteous in giving a righteous throne to the Righteous One when they have cast Him out, and so to him that overcometh He will give to sit on His own throne, even as He overcame, and is set down now on His Father's throne. We rejoice to suffer shame and rejection for His name. Better it is to be alone with David in the cave, with the frugal fare and handful of water, than with Saul in the sumptuous palace and feasting at a royal board. "They were armed with bows, and could use both right hand and the left in hurling stones and shooting arrows out of a bow." We require to have both our feet planted firmly for the battle. And I know that as long as I saw merely 472 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. the truth concerning the Cross I felt like a man fighting on one foot, but when the glory of the Crown appeared I felt sure-footed. We require also those who are ambi- dexter, who can fight on the right hand with Infidelity, and on the left hand with Superstition ; some who can hurl the heavy and effectual, if rather clumsy-looking stone, and others who can shoot the sharp, swift and sure arrow in the interests of David. We find that these were "even of Saul's brethren of Benjamin." Were we not once on Saul's side, u children of wrath, even as others?" "And of the Gadites there separated themselves unto David, into the holds of the wilderness, men of might, and men of war fit for the battle, that could handle shield and buckler, whose faces were like the faces of lions, and were as swift as the roes upon the mountain." Here we have men consecrated, skilled, bold, and active. In this war, all must present their bodies living sacrifices, holy and accept- able to God, which is our reasonable service. We must have men skilled in the use of sword and shield, not merely knowing the letter of the word but rightly dividing the word of truth able to use it for doctrine or reproof, correction or instruction in righteousness. We require that courage which comes from above, the faces like lions, conscious of the strength of the fortress we are in. Not BO much fighting for the truth as letting the truth fight for us fearing neither man, nor devil, but strong in the strength of the Lord and in the power of His might. Activity is to be ours in this evil day. All around is active, and with our feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace, it is our blessed privilege to be as the roes on the mountains, carrying the proclamation of His grace and glory over vale and hill, in the energy of His Divine Spirit, undaunted and unchecked even by the overflowing of the bunks of the rivers that cross our faith (1 Chron. 12:15), standing together, as we do THE THREE DAYS' FEAST. this night, in the company of Amasai, Chief of the Cap- tains of the Benjamites, and saying: " Thine are we, David, and on thy side, thou Son of Jesse; peace, peace be unto thee, and peace be to thine helpers, for thy God helpeth thee." Besides these bold and devoted warriors, we find mention made of others in verse 32: "And of the children of- Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times to know what Israel ought to do." We require an intelligence department in our campaign. In our feasting these three days, we have been studying in the intelligence department. We require more of the men of Issachar r who have understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do. This conference is drawing to a close. The speeches have been spoken and heard. But the work has now to be done. Our intelligence is not to be kept locked up in a fire-proof safe, but is to be used in our doing. What the conference has taught is now to be done in Europe, in the United States, throughout the world. The work is to be done in faithfulness to our Master, with intelligence of His mind. The work is to be done in increased prayers for missions, in increased givings of money to missions, in an increase of men for the mission field. Down at our lonely standpoints, deep in the shade it may be, the work is now to be done. But it is by being in the current of God's thoughts we can have intelli- gence and comfort in this work. I am sometimes asked : " Are you thus at all times just thinking that the Lord may return at any minute?" And many such conscientious questioners think that all we are talking about is merely to get people into a sort of star-gazing, and ecstatic frame of mind, suited for dreamers and theorizers. We study these questions to know what we ought to do. We wish not to be dreamers, but doers, and also intelligent doers true sons- 474 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. of Issachar. First, we wish to know what the Church of God should do. And we find that a serious mistake has been committed for want of this intelligence. Instead of gathering out a people for the Lord, the Church has been trying to gather all the people. Instead of going with the drag-net through all the sea, the Church has been attempting, as I said before, to catch all the fish in a few favorite pools. Instead of sowing the seed the wide world over, men have been high farming little corners and leaving the greatest part of the land untouched. We have 30,000 ministers in England, and the bulk of heathenism none. Thirty thousand men gathered on my finger, and none to the rest of the body. The failure to evangelize the world lies at the door of those who have been aiming at converting patch after patch. The Saviour's command, " Preach the Gospel to every creature," can only be done as we enter into His intelligence concerning the present age, namely, that we are to be witnesses to Him to the uttermost ends of the earth. Then, as to the government of this world we are to have intelligence. Jew and Gentile have united in refusing the Sufferer King. Man has thus been left to himself the Gen- tile to Caesar, and the Jew to Barrabbas. He has tried every form of government and failed, from the Csesarism of des- potic government to the wildest Communism. But the intelligent sons of Issachar are calm through all, and wait for a King to reign in righteousness a King who can justly say: I know the best thing to do in judgment, and I can do what I know; in other words, who has perfect wis- dom and perfect power. Christ the wisdom and the power of God. This is our God; we have waited for Him. Before, through God's grace, I saw these blessed truths, my reading of Scripture was "considerably mixed up." Awkward texts, ever and anon, would come up, for which THE THREE DAYS' FEAST. 475 I could make no place. My hearers, I advise you, have no theology, past, or present, or future, that has not room for all God's texts. When I bought a dissected map of the world for my boys, it took them considerable time to put it together, and one or two attempts were failures. One day Fred -got it nearly square, but with rather suspicious intervals, and he said, ( " Will this do?" " Not quite, my boy," I said, as I saw he had something like this put up a bit of America stuck North of Hindoostan, Australia doing its best to find a home on the Atlantic, and Lake Superior adding to the volume of the Pacific! I looked around and found the cause of all the confusion in a country that had fallen underneath the table. " Look here, Fred, where is the place for this?" Fred did not like that country, he could have joyfully borne its loss or seen it burned, but that would not do, so we had to take down all his upmaking and find room for the left out country, and then the map was correct. Thus it is with much of our ordinary eschatology. Text after text is found for which there is no place. Entire dispensa- tions are lost sight of. Jewish truth gets hopelessly mixed up with Gentile truth, and the Church's hope gets sadly crushed out by both. Friend, look over your theological map and try to make room for all God's texts. Whether they were soldiers, sentinels or scholars, we find, in verse 38, what was characteristic of them all. k ' They could keep rank, and came with a perfect heart to Hebron to make David King." The unfaithful servant who says, " my Lord delayeth His coming," begins to "smite his fellow servant and to eat and drink with the drunken." He keeps company with those he ought to shun, and quarrels with those he ought to love. David's loyal ones are men that keep rank, men who march in line, because they take step from their Captain, and their hearts are set upon obeying Him only. 476 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. They had not two objects before them. They were not of double heart. David only fitted their thoughts. 3. What was the one purpose that filled the hearts of those warriors during that three days' feast? " To make David King over all Israel." What has been our purpose in gathering from all quarters to these three days' confer- ence? To assert the crown rights of David's Son to put in our protest against the reign of the prince of this world and to stimulate loyalty to our rejected Lord. We meet to exalt the person of Christ, to proclaim a personal Christ, to wait for a personal Christ. Men talk about dying and going to heaven. There is no such hope before the Christian. This " going to heaven " is a mere sentimental phrase invented by man's mind. " To be with Christ " is too personal, too Scriptural, and has too much of God in it, to be popular with world Christianity. So the " going to heaven " phrase- ology has taken its place as being sufficient to look holy in talk, but not too far to commit one to a Person. How dif- ferent is Scripture. It knows of no heaven but u with Christ." The saved thief knew of no Paradise, but a to-day thon shalt be with Me." We are to be '"absent from the body and present with the Lord " if we die, and Paul had a desire to k< depart and be with Christ, which was far better." The Lamb is all the glory Of Immanuel's land. We shall never rest till our David is King over His own possessions, over His own nations, King over all nations. King of Kings, King in Zion, King of glory. The true Melchizedeck, the Priest on the Throne, with heaven and earth under one reign of righteousness. Meantime, we are content to suffer with Him, and we work, not for success, but are determined to be faithful. I repeat it. He does not say : Well done, good and success- ful, but faithful servant. In a heavy storm, the captain THE THREE DAYS' FEAST. 477 of a vessel, if he wishes some important rope to be watched and tightened or slackened at the word of command, does not employ some boy, lately shipped, but the veteran, trust- worthy, tar, who answers to all commands with the ready " Aye, aye, sir." "Jack," says he, " let go, or hold on just as I tell you." " Aye, aye, sir." A mate comes along the deck, and says to Jack: "Why do you hold on there?" "Because I'm told," is all his answer. "But you don't see results; you don't see where that rope goes over there to that you hold on by." "No; but I know obedience. The captain will run the ship. I have only to do what I'm told. Clear out, and let me mind my work." Fellow Watcher! "Hold fast that which thou hast; let no man take thy crown." The Son of David shall yet sit on David's throne. God, in Matthew, chapter 1st, has proved it genealogically, and He will fulfill it genealogically, and not allegorically. The Son of God is yet to sit enthroned with His royal bride. The Son of Man is yet to sit on the throne of this world with all nations blessed in Him and calling Him blessed. The Usurper is to be cast into the bottomless pit, and then the Prince of Peace will reign. Now, we find God disowned, the Spirit despised, Christ rejected, the Church broken up and corrupted by the cravers of worldliness, infidelity, and hypocrisy, the Jew in darkest unbelief, the nations in heathen darkness, the creature groaning under the curse, the devil in gloating power, the flesh in unhindered activity, the world in direct and active opposition to the Father, man amelio- rating his condition and making himself more comfort- able, but getting further from God, Babylon, the apostasy, advancing, and infidelity with brazen face. And why we meet thus to confer, and to feast, and to cheer each other, is not to advance " views," nor add to " sentiments," but for the glory of our God, to work for, to hasten on, to wait for, the 478 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. time when Great Babylon shall be judged and burned, Antichrist consumed with the gleam of Christ's coming, Infidelity destroyed, Beast and False Prophet cast into the lake of fire, Creation's curse removed, the Church of the living God presented spotless to the Father as the married wife of the Lamb, the Jewish nation gathered, united, and converted, Satan bound, all the nations brought under the sway of righteousness, God glorified, the Spirit honored, and the crown rights of David's Son established in the sight of all the universe. The day of the Lord it cometh, It cometh like a thief in the night, It comes when the world is dreaming Of safety and peace and light; It cometh, the day of sackcloth, With darkness, and storm, and fire, The day of the Great Avenger, The day of the burning ire. The day of the Lord it cometh, When the virgins are all asleep, And the drunken world is lying In a slumber yet more deep ; Like a sudden lurch of the vessel, By night on the sunken rock, All earth in a moment reeleth, And goeth down with the shock. The flash of the sword of havoc Foretelleth the day of blood, Revealing the Judge's progress, The downward marcti of God ; The fire which no mortal kindles, Quick seizes the quaking earth, And labors the groaning creation In the pangs of its second birth. Then the day of the evil endeth, And the righteous reign comes in, Like a cloud of sorrow evanish, '1 he ages of human sin ; The light of the morning gleameth Adown, without cloud or gloom, In chains lies the ruler of darkness, And the Prince of Light has come! CRITICAL APPENDIX. 479 CRITICAL APPENDIX. The following extracts are added, in confirmation of the doctrine of the pre-millennial advent and literal first resurrection. They are chiefly critical because, even conceding a high value to antiquity and unanimity, as marks of truth, and a proper respect to what is venerable and well- approved, yet the truth of a doctrine depends neither on its history nor traditions, nor on creeds, councils, or cecumenicity, as Romanists and as some anti-Chiliasts seem to argue, but upon its exegetical foundations and the analogy of faith a principle consecrated by Protestantism. In some cases, where no translations exist, I have turned the original into English for the benefit of the reader, condensing the matter, here and there, because of its exuberant treatment in the text. The authori- ties cited need no introduction. Their fame is universal. If any intelligent scholarship, more competent, in learning or piety, to pro- nounce upon a theme so great, resides anywhere in Christendom, I am unconscious of its locality. Excepting one or two instances, flowing from preceding generations of biblical students, the extracts here given are only waves of the vast incoming tide of evangelical exegesis in the present age. ".What efforts," says Charlotte Elizabeth, "has Satan made to stifle this doctrine! But the word of God is not .bound ! " N.W. FROM THE BERLERBERG BIBEL. (Tom. VI., pp. 397-399.) "The rest of the dead lived not till the 1,000 years were finished." Here, a distinction is made in the resurrection, whereby it is to be noted that the l^jjoav of the foregoing verse is to be understood of a particular resurrection in which all shall not share, but wherein there is a pre-eminence. The opinion, therefore, that all the dead shall be raised at one and the same time, is groundless; for a particular resur- rection precedes, whereunto none others attain save those who come with Christ to reign. That, moreover, a bodily resurrection is spoken of, is to be recognized from the Antithesis; for precisely as the fact of resur- rection is interpreted of the one class, so must it be interpreted of the other. Some of the dead will rise before the 1,000 years, to reign with 480 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. Christ; the rest of the dead rise not. The former, indeed, truly rise from the dead, the rest, however, still remain unawaked. Accordingly, before the general and final resurrection of the dead ensues, a peculiarly separate resurrection must first take place, and, therefore, the correct understanding of the passage gives us a resurrection of two different kinds, one of which occurs before, the other after, the 1,000 years. So Paul lays down the order of the resurrection in 1 Cor. 15:23, etc.: Blessed and holy is he who is already truly and spiritually awakened, turned from a death in sin to the life that is from God, by a genuine conversion, and takes no part with unbelievers, nor in the worship of the Beast, nor receives his mark. By so much the more is he sure to come to the marriage supper of the Lamb a feast to which, however, no one comes save him who has also part in the ' First Resurrection,' and is a member of the Church of the First Born." Heb. 12: 23, whereto also, they who remain over shall come by means of their transforma- tion. 1 Cor. 15:51-52. They are those who shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and that resurrection which is out from among the dead (aus den Todtei) as the Saviour Himself expresses it. Luke 20:35. What need have they to become worthy of the general resurrection which happens to all without distinction? From which we see, again, that a particular resurrection of pre-eminence, which is called the " Resurrec- tion of the Just" Luke 14:14, is determined upon before the other. That is, the " Better Resurrection." Heb. 11 : 35. This is that celebrated "Millennium," the object of so much mockery, and yet which stands so clearly expressed in the sacred text. The priestly function is named first to indicate that no earthly or carnal kingdom is spoken of, but one that is sacerdotal, heavenly, and spiritual. A mere carnal world-king- dom is justly rejected. Augsburg Confession, Art. 17. The dignity of the royal priesthood shall now first fully come in clearness, so that, while a kingly it shall yet be a priestly, holy dignity. This follows from chapter 22:3, and from Isa. 61:6-10. John has no other style than what is found everywhere in the sacred Scripture. The co-regents who are described in Rev. 20:4, shall reign even with Christ, who Him- self says, " My Kingdom is not of this world." Now, indeed, in the present time, all believers are spiritual kings and priests, but yet there are degrees and special pre-eminences of blessedness which we may not disregard except at the expense of their loss. The 1,000 year num- ber is constantly repeated in clear words. To deviate from the literal, here, is to make war upon, and do violence to, the Sacred Text. That a great time-period is indicated is without doubt. A golden, blessed time is there found, such as never has been, when God will do well to those who love Him, even to the thousandth generation. That, however, this golden time has not yet come, but, with all its promises, is yet CRITICAL APPENDIX. 481 future and to be expected by us, is clearly and incontrovertibly proved from this, that the Judgment upon the Beast and False Prophet is not yet complete, but that they rather still continue to rule over all. FROM RICHTER'S ERKLARTE HAUS BIBEL. (Tom. vi., p. 1134.) " The doctrine of the 1,000 years' Kingdom, or Flower and Golden Time of the Church upon this present earth which the prophets have so amply pictured is thoroughly in accordance with the Evangel- ical Church doctrine, for in the 17th Article of the Augsburg Confession there is not a syllable (steht kein wort) about the 1,000 years, nor about the 1,000 years' Kingdom. The doctrine of the true Christian Church of the first three centuries is no Jewish one, for the Jews have never been Chiliasts, and are not now. Moreover, when all the Kingdoms of this world are become the Kingdom of God and His Christ, they will, nevertheless, not all be absolutely holy as in the new earth after the last resurrection. Also, when all shall be one flock under one Shepherd, still the Kingdom of Christ shall be no mere worldly Kingdom, and the destruction of Anti-Christ and his godless adherents is no work of the pretendedly pious, but solely a work of Christ Himself. (2 Thess. 2 : 8. Apoc. 19:11-21.) It is just as censurable to omit and abolish these great prophecies as it is arbitrarily to put something else in their place. They ought to be believed precisely as they are written in Holy Scrip- ture. (Apoc. 22 : 18, 19.) Calvin is zealous against the heretical teachers, (Anabaptists) who circle off and restrict the duration of Christ's King- dom of glory to 1,000 years, and deny its much greater and everlasting duration after the 1,000 years are expired. He remarks that " the 1,000 years are not spoken of as the eternal blessedness of the Church, but of the various agitations alone which await the militant church upon the present earth." * (Inst. III. 25; 5.) The Apostle distinguishes various classes of saints who judge the world according to divine right. (1 Cor. 6:2.) The Twelve Apostles shall then find fulfilled (Matt. 19 : 28 and Luke 22 : 30.) The Universal Judgment begins with the return of Christ, and continues during the 1,000 years, until the Lord proclaims the final decision. (Apoc. 20: 11-15.) There are, therefore, not two Universal Judgments, one before, and one after, the 1,000 years' Kingdom, but the whole is one Universal Judgment. So it is with the Resurrection. *Calvin was right in the first member of the clause quoted, and fairly met the Jew- ish Chiliasts, so-called, and the Anabaptists, but wrong in making the 1,000 years contemporate with the militant church, struggling against Anti-Christ, during the 1,260 years. He was still confused by the blinding influence of the medieval or Constantinian date of the millennium; or rather, he erroneously makes the 1,000 years cover the whole Christian dispensation, as Augustine did. 31 482 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. There are not two different general resurrections, but only one, yet divided into two parts. They who first have been spiritually awakened, and made perfect, shall also be bodily awakened before the rest. (Rom. 8 : 11 ; 1 Cor. 15 : 23, 24.) The early Christians bel ieved the First Resur- rection to be literal, and this faith gave them courage for martyrdom. Because the martyrs were first to lose their lives for Christ, so shall they first attain to the resurrection of life. Besides the martyrs, many others shall attain to the blessed and holy companionship of the First Resur- rection. (Dan. 12 : 13.) On them, too, the second death, the fearful contrast to the First Resurrection, shall have no power. They shall, thereby, at the same time, rule as kings with Christ, according to divine right. But where do they dwell, and where do they exercise their office ? Not, indeed, any "more secluded in heaven, and hid in God, but openly manifested, because then, for them, already heaven is upon earth, and earth is heaven. They are like the Risen and Glorified Saviour, with a spiritual body, no more bound to the limits of space. They reign and minister with Christ, because Christ Himself shall then be openly the King-Priest over the whole earth. (1 Cor. 15: 24; Ps. 47; Ps. 72; Isa. 65 : 19.) As certainly as Christ, the Risen One, was among the not yet risen, during forty days, so certainly shall the many who are risen with Him be, like Him, among those who are not raised. Jerusalem shall again be the central city of the Kingdom of Christ, during the 1,000 >ears, as it is so often promised in the Old Testament. The Apocalypse presupposes the prophecies of the Old Testament concerning the glory of Israel and Jerusalem in the last time. FROM STARKE'S SYNOPSIS. NEUES TESTAMENT. (Bund X., pp. 179-183.) The 1,000 years of the Binding of the Dragon and the reign of Christ and His saints are properly years. There is no reason why we should deviate from a literal interpretation. If we explain them of the Past we shall involve ourselves in inextricable difficulties. Still less can they be referred to eternity, because verses seven and eight indicate their completion and show what will occur after the 1,000 years are expired. On the contrary, there are weighty reasons for abiding by the literal interpretation ; (1) because it carries with it nothing absurd or incorrect; (2) because the circumstances demand it, inasmuch as these 1,000 years are not merely mentioned twice, in verses 2 and 5, but four times with the article prefixed, verses 3, 4, 5, 7, years to which nothing must be added, and from which nothing must be subtracted ; (3) because the literal best agrees with the first chief work of the divine creation and the course of all times, for who does not see therein God's special wisdom in that He might, by His power, have created all things in a CRITICAL APPENDIX. 483 moment, yet took six days in which to do it, and rested on the seventh ; and, as Peter says, "One day with the Lord is as a thousand years." Matt. 24:22 certainly places before us the (Summer-time) great 1,000 years' World-Sabbath. (Matt. 10: 7; 11: 15; 6: 17; 8:1. 1 John 2:18. Roms. 11 : 25.) The 1,000 years of the Binding of Satan, verses 2 and 7, and the reign of Christ and His saints, verses 4 and 6, are not to be taken as two distinct periods, to be distinguished from each other, but as one and the ^ame period. These 1,000 years are not Past, but still Future. If we date them from the Birth of Christ, or from the Resurrection of Christ, or from the Transition of the Gospel to the Gentiles, or from the Destruc- tion of Jerusalem, or from Constantino, etc., we are involved in inextricable difficulties. For (1) the order and connection of the 20th with the 19th chapter is totally destroyed; (2) what belongs to the 7th seal, to the 7th trumpet, and also to the end, is retracted to the beginning; (3) It can not be said that Satan, during the first ten centuries was so bound as his Binding, Casting into, Shutting up, in the Abyss is described, since he raged wickedly enough through the instrumentality of Pagan Emperors and Roman Popes; (4) by this interpretation, the Beast would be destroyed, or the martyrs declared slain, before the Beast, in as far as it is distinguished from the Harlot, ever had an exist- ence; (5) in the 1,000 years, Satan was to be securely bound and Christ to reign with His saints, but Satan, during the fore-mentioned periods effected one deception, persecution, and devastation after another, and what could be more agreeable to the Papacy than to have the period when it raged the most, and shed so much blood, regarded as the Blessed Time of the bound and vanquished Satan! Neither do the 1,000 years begin with A. D. 720. as some think who imagine that the four words, " Seized," " Cast," " Shut up," " Sealed," indicate four different acts not performed contemporaneously, but in four successive centuries, from A. D. 320 to A. D. 720, for it is clear that the saints did not reign with Christ during such a 1,000 years, but rather that Anti-christ reigned and grew the mightier. Neither do the 1,000 years begin with Luther's Reformation, for the Smalcald and Thirty Years' war and the persecu- tion in which many millions of evangelical confessors in France, Eng. land, Spain, the Netherlands, etc., were executed with unspeakable cruelty, prove the contrary. But the 1,000 years are still Future, for in them Satan is to be bound, no longer to deceive the nations ; for no period can be shown in which the Church was thus free from the persecution and deception of Satan, and enjoyed such distinction as the reign of the saints for 1,000 years demands. The Fall of Babylon and Anti-christ which immediately precedes this Rev. 19 : 21 has not yet occurred. The witnesses of the 484 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. truth are not yet raised to the dignity of reigning with Christ, but are still under the yoke. After the 1,000 years, the Devil will be cast into the lake of fire, where the Beast and False Prophet already are. This shows* clearly, that the Judgment of the Beast, chapter 19 : 20, will then have been a long time accomplished, and that the deception of the nations which follows the 1,00 years' binding of Satan, chapter 20:7, 8. is certainly different from the oppression of the church under Anti-christ. According to the concurrent passages of Daniel, chapter 2 : 33, 34, 43, 44; chapter 7 : 8, 9, 17, 18, 21, 22, 25-27, out of which our vision is taken, the period can not be Past, but must be still future. Therefore does it stand firmly settled that this 1,000 years, still future, is to be reckoned from, and after, the Casting of the Beast into the lake of fire, and from the Binding and Casting of Satan into the Abyss, unto the expedition of Gog and Magog against tJie camp of the saints. The Praeterists understand a spiritual resurrection as here spoken of. But opposed to this is (1) the fact that the discourse here is not of such a resurrection as that to which the martyrs attained before their martyr- dom in which they were already the children of God, but of such a resurrection as that to which they attained after their martyrdom; other- wise we would be obliged to say that the spiritually raised were raised spiritually (" die geistlich auferstanden stunden geistlich auf ! ") t". e., the martyrs who died for Jesus were ultimately converted an idea impos- sible! (2) The discourse here is not of such a resurrection as is con- stantly occurring in conversion, but of that special resurrection which begins with the 1,000 years ; (3) it would follow that the " Rest of the dead " who, at the beginning of the 1,000 years, did not live, became converted and spiritually raised at the end of the 1,000 years, when, in fact, the wicked, after they have been dead in sin 1,000 years, can not be spiritually raised at the end of that period. The Allegorists, or Spiritualists, understand a figurative resurrection as here spoken of, and regard their view as founded (1) in the Prophet Ezekiel 37 : 1-14, the valley-vision of dry bones ; and in the circumstance that there as here, the war with Gog and Magog comes after; (2) in the example of the Two Witnesses, Rev. 11 : 7-11, who were slain, but made alive at the end of the three and one half days, their death being the hin- dering of their testimony, their resurrection its re-utterance ; (3) in the counter-proposition, that the witnesses were not slain, as to the spirit, but pre-eminently as to their office and honors, their death being a civil death, and their resurrection a civil one, also; (4) in the connection with the preceding, for this resurrection refers to the antecedent sad condition of the church, crushed down by the Beast, as if they were dead, but now, the Beast slain, they rise to life again. But opposed to all this is (1) the words of verse 5 prove that, in the whole of the 20th chapter, the CRITICAL APPENDIX. 485 discourse is of only one class, viz. : those who are dead bodily, for John does not say other dead from which we might conclude that previously such dead persons as indeed yet live on the earth (and are only compared to the bodily dead on account of their miserable condition), will be raised, but he says the " Rest of the dead " who are of the same class with the former, in the same fact of their bodily death ; (2) although all the elect and blessed in heaven will share in the " First Resurrection,' yet not a single passage can be found in the Scriptures in which a figur- ative or symbolical resurrection is appropriated to them. The Literal ists understand a literal resurrection as here spoken of. This resurrection is shown (1) by the,text, Rev. 20: 6, for although John saw only souls, yet this was for the reason that the souls, which hitherto had been in a certain degree of heavenly joy, now united with their bodies, are, by such union, to be transplanted into still greater joy and glory. He does not say ipvxai or avrat efycav, the souls lived and reigned, but he speaks of the whole person. They became alive by union of the soul with the body, and reigned with Christ 1,000 years. That the s^Tjaav means they came to life is clearly seen from chapter 2 .- 8, 13, 14, John 5 : 25, Rom. 8 : 13 ; (2) by what follows the text, for, it is not said, verse 6, "Blessed and holy is the soul that has part in the First Resurrection," but speaks of the wliole person, consisting of soul and body, which has part therein. A.nd if the First Resurrection and Reign- ing with Christ were to be understood of the soul alone, then John must have said, verse 5, " The Rest of the souls lived not again." As, more- over, he here speaks of the whole person, in like manner the Rest of the dead lived not again until the 1,000 years were expired. Therefore, we must explain the living and reigning with Christ, verse 4, of the whole person (3), by other passages of Scripture, for in Luke 14: 14, Christ does not say : " It shall be recompensed in the resurrection of the dead, but in the resurrection of the just." In John 5 : 24, Jesus speaks of the spiritual resurrection, or regeneration, and in verse 25 of the bodily, and especially of the First Resurrection ; for He does not here employ the word " all " as in verse 28, neither does He merely say, " They shall be raised," but only that, "They who hear the voice of Son of God shall live," because, at that time, not all shall hear that voice and be raised to life in a general resurrection, but the mass shall be raised to condemna- tion. The words, " The hour is coming and now is," are not to be under- stood alone of the then present time, but according to John's style, 1 John 2: 18, of the whole New Testament period, John 8: 1. Then fol- lows, in verse 27, the Judgment, and after the 1,000 years the general resurrection of the dead, verse 28. In John 6 : 39-40, 44, 54, Jesus prom- ises to raise believers at the last day. Inasmuch as this is a special grace to the elect, He can not mean the general resurrection, because the lost 486 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. participate in this ; and although He mentions the Day of Judgment, or Last Day, yet He has in His mind the last time of this present wicked world, Gal. 1 : 4, upon which the future glorious and righteous world shall follow, Luke 20 : 35 ; 2 Pet. 3 : 13. In 1 Cor. 15 : 23-26, Paul marks three orders in the resurrection of the dead ; firstly, Christ the First Fruits; afterwards they that are Christ's at His coming; finally, the End after that Christ has surrendered the Kingdom to the Father, when the last enemy shall be totally destroyed. As, now, according to the first order, more than seventeen centuries have passed away, so also will the second order be separated from the third by the 1,000 years, 1 Cor. 15: 23; 1 Thess. 4: 16. The dead in Christ will be raised first. If, now, at the coming of Christ all the dead without distinction are to be raised, the Apostle would not speak only of the dead in Christ ; (4) by the exposition of the oldest church fathers who lived nearest the time of the Apostles, which makes it a bodily resurrection to a Kingdom of glory, though not to this present earthly life, viz. : Papias, Justin, Ireneeus, Tertullian, Victorinus, Lactantius orthodox men who, according to the testimony of ^Justin, understood this passage, to refer to a proper bodily resurrection. Not only Piscator, Alsted, Brightman, Grotius, Mede, etc., of the Reformed, among the later teachers, understand it thus, but also the justly esteemed Dannhauer, among the Lutherans, regards it as highly probable in his Hodosophia, p. 1,445, and Selneccer goes still further in his comment on Daniel 12:2. The objections urged to the foregoing, by Prseterists and Allegorists, are (1) during the 1,000 years the souls of the martyrs live and reign; therefore, this can not occur first after the resurrection, because the souls are in heaven; (2) if 1,000 years still remain, after 6,000 for the world, and a Judgment Day after that, then the Judgment is not so near as the Apostles testified it to be ; (3) if the raised saints are taken to heaven, then Satan loosed and Gog and Magog, can not assault them; (4) if there is a special, and afterwards a general, resurrection, then the special includes all, or only some, believers. If all, then none will be left to be rewarded in the last resurrection, which is contrary to John 5: 29, Daniel 12 : 2, Matt. 25 : 31, and Rev. 20 : 12-15. 1 Cor. 4 : 5, 2 Cor. 5 : 10, Rom. 14:11, 12, where the reward of works refers to both the good and the bad. If some only, then this is contrary to Luke 14: 14, where all the righteous appear in the resurrection of the just, and with Matt., chapter 25, and 1 Cor. 15: 25, which include all believers, ancl with Rev. 20:4, which speaks not only of the martyrs, but of all who have not worshipped the Beast Thus, the reader has the various expositions, with the reasons pro and con. He who thinks he can compare the first or second of these three views with the text and parallel passages, it is to be hoped, will have CRITICAL APPENDIX. 487 Christian modesty enough, at least, so that, if any one prefers the third solution, viz.: that of the church-fathers, of the bodily resurrection of the martyrs to the Kingdom of Glory, lie will not rashly accuse him as guilty of heresy in doctrine! FROM THEURER'S DAS REICH GOTTES. (Pp. 36-39.) It is worthy of observation that during the life of Christ, He, evermore unveiled, in words and deeds, the Spirit of glory and sanctity that was in Him ; yet, at the same time, evermore became veiled, according to His body, before the world, through shame and suffering, until, at last, as the Crucified One on Golgotha, with fear and trembling of soul, and yet iu His highest spiritual beauty, and at the same time in most terrible bodily humiliation, His members torn asunder, He surrendered Himself to the Gentiles, enrobed in darkness. So, also, does the Kingdom of God, as Christendom in its humiliation, make its course through the world. Ever more, the nearer it approaches the end, it reveals the power of its indwelling spirit by testimony and energy, while at the same time weakness and death press more and more into outward Christendom. At last, especially in its midnight-time, although under fear and trembling, and with the lights gone out, as in Gethsernane and on Calvary, still in its greatest spiritual beauty, a persevering and over- coming community, and yet in its deepest shame and humiliation, it is betrayed and denied by its own friends, condemned by Caiaphas, given over by Pilate, surrendered to the clamorous mob, and nailed to the cross by the heathenish " Spirit of the Age." As Christ, at last, laid aside His body in death, so also shall the Kingdom of God lay aside, in the last tribulation, everything that belongs to mere State-Church- dom, Constitution, Ordinances, Laws, and external Christianity. And as Christ, at the death of His body, went, in His spirit, to Paradise, so shall the believing Church, in the destruction of all external churchli- ness, press through, with the power of the martyrs, to the church above. And as Christ, in the resurrection, received again His body in glorified form, and appeared in that exalted condition on earth, so shall the Kingdom of Heaven at the Second Coming of its King, and at the First Resurrection of those who sleep in Him, and with those who are changed, and at the destruction of Anti-christ and Binding of Satan, receive an outward glorious form, and enter upon this earth in an exalted condition. This shall take place when the dechristianized World- Kingdom, under full development of Satanic energy, shall have won an apparently complete victory over the Kingdom of Christ. Then shall the Kingdom of Christ, as a Kingdom of Joy, lift itself high over the ruins of Satan's empire, and become the one and only World- 488 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. Kingdom on Earth. Jesus shall be King, surrounded by His Bride, who, in a high-priestly way, shall, with Him, rule the earth. Whether Christ, with His Church, during this Kingdom of Joy, shall remain constantly visible, or whether, after His visible appear- ing, He shall again become invisible, or sometimes one and then the other, as in the time of His resurrection, or whether the central seat of His dominion shall be Mount Zion, or whether this shall be literally exalted above all mountains, or whether the higher Pavillion-Cloud in the air shall, after banishment of all wicked spirits, be the place where Christ shall celebrate, with His Church, the marriage-supper of the Lamb, or whether the upper Jerusalem and Mount Zion shall be united in closest connection for the glorified church these are questions on which believing investigators of Scripture have returned various answers. It is not always true that what is most conceivable is most probable. The fulfillment alone will bring us the surprising solution. Heaven will be nearer earth though not yet united. It will be the light-evening, the still Sabbath of the earth, not yet its Sunday, or still greater Easter- morn. The earth remains earth, though under a higher power of devel- opment and an altogether new blessing from above. The physical life of man advances, but under the dominion of the Spirit. Among the nations, shall stand pre-eminent the now scattered, but then gathered, people of Israel. For, from Zion and Jerusalem, the clear gleam of God shall break forth, and from there shall proceed the law. At the end of the 1,000 years, the separation between heaven and earth shall be abolished. Earth and Humanity shall have passed through the grave to their eternal Easter-morn. And then shall be brought to glorious completion what was begun in the Incarnation of Jesus. FROM STOCKMAYER-DAS OELBLATT. (Pp. 161, 162. Nov. 1878.) The coming of the Lord brings the breaking of that great Day of which the Apostle speaks. (2 Pet. 3 : 8.) " One day is with the Lord as a thousand years." This day of the Lord which follows upon the sixth weary work-day of the world, commences with His advent to set up his visible Kingdom on earth, and closes with the universal judgment and regenesis of heaven and earth. We have to expect the Lord, how- ever, not only as King, for the erection of His visible dominion, but also as Bridegroom for the bringing home of His Bride. When Paul speaks of the return of Christ he connects, therewith, "our gathering together unto Him," (2Thes. 2:1,) which indeed precedes the erection of the Kingdom, for to this last named end the Lord appears attended by His chosen saints, (Kev. 17: 14,19: 14; 1 Thes. 3: 13; Zech. 14: 5,) whom He CRITICAL APPENDIX. 489 gathers round Himself. Before John sees the Conqueror coming from heaven on the white horse (Rev. 19:11-16), he hears the voices of a great multitude from above, exclaiming, " Let us be glad and rejoice and give honor to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready." (Rev. 19 : 7.) It follows, therefore, that the Church of Christ has there reached the point where the most glorious promises of God are fulfilled. To see Jesus, to behold Him face to face, this is the longing of all believing souls who have already learned here below to behold Him by faith. A day is coming when this longing shall be stilled in a way surpassing all human thought the day of the marriage-supper of the Lamb, the ceremonial day of the heavenly Bride- groom with His chosen Bride. They who have stood nearest to Him here below shall stand nearest to Him then, in that day of honor, clad in holy garments, more precious than gold, and reflecting the splendor of His glorious majesty. Blessed are all they who are called to this marriage-supper. (Rev. 19 : 9.) The attainment of this end has, for its pre-supposition, the glorification of the Bride through the resurrection from the dead, and the transforma- tion of the living saints. (1 Thess. 4 : 6 ; 1 Cor. 15 : 23, 52 ; Phil. 3 : 20.) But the Lord comes not only as a Bridegroom but as the King of Kings to overthrow the whole anti-christian power of the world, to hurl the princes of the world into the abyss and establish His visible Kingdom on earth, in which the risen saints shall reign with Him 1,000 years, as priests of God and of Christ. (Rev. 20 : 6 ; Dan. 7 : 27.) The end circles back to the beginning. The dominion of God as it was in Paradise must, at last, attain to the same eminence on earth, precisely when the dominion of Satan will have reached its highest development. As Paradise was the central point from which the dominion of God spread first over Eden, next over the whole earth, so, in the Millennial King, dom, the risen church, the Bride, in the enjoyment of the Bridegroom the second Adam shall be the central point from which the life-stream of the glory of Jesus shall gush forth over the beloved land, the King- dom restored to Israel, and next over all surrounding nations of the world. FROM PFLEIDERER'S DER PAULINISMUS. (Pp. 264, 265.) Tne resurrection of believers, and judgment, are acts immediately connected with the Parousia, but in no way constitute the absolute " end." With the Parousia, rather, the epoch of the Messianic dominion of Christ upon earth, begins that period whose duration is given by John as 1,000 years, and which we designate by the technical term " Chiliasm," even though it is indefinitely described by Paul. That Paul, also, as 490 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. well as John, assumes an intermediate period of indefinite duration between the Parousia and the end of the world, during which Christ exercises the government of the world in visible Messianic glory, and afterwards surrenders the Kingdom to God, is expressly taught in 1 Cor. 15 : 23. Verse 23 speaks of an " Order " of the resurrection, Christ the First Fruits going before; next they who are Christ's at His coming, then the end of the world-period, which coincides with the surrender of the Kingdom to God. Utterly destroyed would be this clear conception of an " Order" of events running on in various articulations and time- sections, did we hold the expression, "then the end," to be contempora- neous with the preceding " afterwards" which designates the Parousia; for then, indeed, except the resurrection of Christ, only one resurrection were to be expected, viz., that of believers, in consequence of which the Pauline discourse could, clearly, not be a succession of events, and still more, the destiny of the whole non-Christian world would be passed over in inconceivable silence. The time-point of the " end" is that where Christ surrenders the Kingdom to God, after He has put down all hostile power, for until this He must continue to reign. According to the New Testament view it is undeniable that the Parousia is the time- point when Christ enters upon the Kingdom. For what should He appear in visible glory on earth if not even for this, to enter on His imperial dignity and exercise His imperial office in the place of God ? A visible appearing upon earth to not enter, first of all, visibly upon the dominion which hitherto He had invisibly exercised by the power of the Holy Spirit, but only, and immediately to visibly surrender the same, is a contradiction in thought. Therefore, does it incontroverti- bly follow that the "end," where Christ surrenders the outward royalty to God must be conceived of as essentially different from the Parousia where He enters upon it, and separated from it even by the whole period in which He exercises it, i. e. y by the period of the so-called Apocalyptic 1,000 years. FROM EBRARD'S CHRISTLICHE DOGMATIK. (Zweiter Bund, pp, 747, 749, 736 ) The development of the Church forms a conspicuous parallel with the history of Christ upon earth. Its persecutions until Constantine, corres- pond to His persecution by Herod; its labor among the nations during the three and a-half mystic years to the three and a-half years of His ministry; its last three and a-half days of tribulation at the end-time of the Anti-christian Kingdom to His passion and burial, the resurrection of believers at His return corresponds to His own resurrection. And just as after His resurrection He remained forty days upon earth the Glorified among the unglorified, so shall the Church triumphant, con- CRITICAL APPENDIX. 491 sisting of the resurrected saints, united with their Head rule over the earth throughout the long period designated by the mystic number 1,000 years the glorified over the unglorified. And then shall the Old Tes- tament prophecies of the re-creation of the Kingdom of Israel attain their fulfillment, for, within the unglorified humanity upon earth, con- verted Israel shall form the middle point of the Kingdom of Christ. The Church of the resurrection shall then first rightly exercise with power its office over the nations, being fully developed into the King- dom of Christ, for it still has nations at its side. Only the subjects of the Kingdom of Anti-Christ are destroyed at the Parousia. The remain- ing world of nations lives on in an unglorified state. The first resurrec- tion, that of those who have not received the mark of the beast is to be distinguished from the later resurrection of the whole remaining human- ity at the final judgment. The latter will be separated from the Parousia by a long period, during which the risen ones caught up to meet the Lord, shall live with Christ and share in His dominion over the earth. FROM SCHENKEL'S CHRISTLICHE DOGMATIK. (Zweite Abtheilung. pp. 1195, 1196.) That the doctrine of the 1,000 years' Kingdom, or Chiliasm, enclosed in itself an important dogmatical truth was a fact that should have been recognized by the older modern dogmatists. The earlv degeneration of this truth into sensuous and carnal representations haa brought, only so much the more, the doctrine into the disrepute of heresy, in the Hie- rarchical Church, since the Chiliasts (Jewish) haughtily appropriated to themselves the glory and blessedness of the 1,000 years' Kingdom before the time. In the early period of the reformation they, who, upon the ground of the Holy Scripture, undertook, partly by unfortunate, partly by criminal, attempts, to transfer the symbolic idea of that kingdom into the outer field of fact, hindered even the recognition of its ideal doctrine content. And yet what a thought, rich in comfort, that, after the severe and decisive conflicts in which the false Churchdoin and God-opposed Statedom have been overcome by the body of believers, and the universal power of wickedness has been broken, there shall finally follow a time of gathering together and of peace for the Church of the Lord in which Christ in her, and she in Christ, shall both be manifested unhindered for the first time! Only there is no justification for bringing this glorious manifestation of the victorious Church of peace into any connection with enhanced sensuous enjoyments or acquired worldly honor. On the contrary, the victory over evil shall have as its consequence the trans- figuration of the physical basis in man into the glory of the Spirit-life, aud with the victory of the Spirit-life upon earth, a metamorphosis of the life of nature shall go hand in hand. 492 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. FROM VAN OOSTERZEE'S CHRISTIAN DOGMATICS. (Vol. II. pp. 786, 798, 799.) Scripture, in the dim distance, opens up the prospect of more than one resurrection; first, a partial one, and then an absolute universal one. Of the former, not only does the Apocalypse seem to speak, (20 : 4-6,) but also the Lord, (Luke 14: 14,) and Paul, 1 Thess. 4: 16, as also 1 Cor. 15: 23, as compared with verse 26 ; without, however, its connection with, and difference from, the other resurrection being more nearly indicated. That the return of the Lord will not be simply a momentarily becoming visible from heaven, but a return to earth is according to the Scriptures beyond doubt. Simultaneously with the coming of Christ, takes place the " First Resurrection." The term Millennial Kingdom has in many an ear so unpleasant a sound that even from a believing standpoint some courage is required to range one's self with the defenders of Chiliasm. If we do so, nevertheless, in obedience to faith in the word, without which we know nothing of the future, we must begin with repudiating the Jewish form in which this prospect is represented by some in a manner which furnished a ready occasion to the reformers to speak of "Judaica somnia" For us, also, is the hope here treated of ' a real pearl of Christian truth and knowledge " (Lange), but only so, after we have separated the pearl from the variegated shell in which it is so often proffered to us. The fulfillment of the prophetic word can not lead to its entire annulling, and when we enquire as lo the indestruct- ible reality which underlies alike the prospect of prophets and apostles, we believe that this prospect authorizes us to hope for nothing less than a glorious manifestation of the triumphant Kingdom of God on earth, even before the entire running out of the course of the world's history. Such a manifestation we may not expect before the return of the Lord, but after this return we regard it even apart from the letter of Scrip- tureas on internal grounds, and, moreover, as in the highest degree, worthy of God. FROM CHRISTLIEB'S MODERN DOUBT AND CHRISTIAN BELIEF. (P. 452. 1 ) The resurrection-power coming from Christ, through the medium of His word and sacraments, tends mainly to the renewing and sanctifica- tion of the sinner, Rom. 5 : 10, Eph. 2:5,6, 1 Pet. 1:3, and thus inter- penetrates, first, the spiritual nature of man, planting within those who are regenerate a germ for the resurrection of the body, Rom. 8:11. Then, the spiritual life of Christ breaks forth into a manifestation in the visible world, by revivifying the bodies of those who are sanctified, in CRITICAL APPENDIX. 493 the " First Resurrection," 1 Cor. 15 : 23, John 5 : 25-29, Rev. 20 : 5, 6. In the succeeding general resurrection, an act of Christ's power which extends to the whole of the corporeal world, and introduces the great mundane catastrophe, Rev. 20: 11-13, as well as in the formation of a new heaven and earth, this grand and gradually-progressive process of the world's renewal has its fitting consummation. It is God's will that His glory should dwell in the whole creation, that He may be All in All, 1 Cor. 15 : 28, Rev. 21 : 3, etc. In this respect we must indorse the sentiment of Oetinger, that " Corporeity is the end of the ways of God." FROM DORNER'S PERSON OF CHRIST. (Vol. I., pp. 408-415.) Christian Chiliasm, so far from being derivable from, may in part be more justly regarded as a polemic against, Judaism, on the part of Chris- tianity. This, in particular, is its character, where it has apparently borrowed most features from Judaism." "It is false to say that any one of the church writers conceived the 1,000 years' kingdom to be the last. On the contrary, they represent it as a stage of transition to eternal life. For this reason, also, it is unjustifiable to say that Chiliasm degrades faith and sanctity in this life, to the rank of mere means whose end lies outside of themselves. They continue to be ends themselves, though at the same time regarded as preparing the way for a new and more per- fect stadium. The present world is a period of suffering, especially for the members of the 1,000 years' kingdom." " Chiliasm, therefore, was the form in which Christianity first gave conscious expression to the conviction of its destiny to rule the world. Chiliasm was the assertion of the fact, that Christianity is related, positively as well as negatively, to the world. Chiliasm declared that Christianity, by renouncing, was called to glorify the world, Chiliasm was the fruit and sign of the advance of Christendom to the conviction that Nature is destined, by its inmost essence and idea, to stand in a positive relation to spirit. The truth which it asserted justly claimed a realization by Christendom at every stage of its existence in even higher forms and increasing measure." FROM LUTHARDT'S LEHRE VON DER LETZTEN DIEGEN. (Pp. 35, 129.) The earth, not heaven, is the abode of the glorified church. There shall not be one part of the church, the Gentile-Christian part, glorified in heaven, and another part, the Jewish, glorified on earth. The church shall be one, and have in its midst the Lord returned to earth, as the Sun and Temple in the new heavenly glorified Jerusalem. They who suffer with Christ shall reign with Him. But over whom ? The dis- 494 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. tinction still obtains between the glorified church gathered round its Lord, in its glorified place on earth., and the outer unglorified humanity still liable to sin and death, yet freed from Satanic dominion and sub- ject to the dominion of Christ and His Church. Into such a contrast the Old Testament prophecy runs out, the contrast between Israel, the ruling people of God, and the nations of the earth brought into sub- mission to its divine government. The true Israel in spirit, gathered from among all nations, is the Church of Christ. Before it, the nations bow in obedient recognition of the authority of Christ, 1,000 years long. One of the great World-Days, a World-Time, belongs to this Kingdom of God. It is future, not past, and not even present, for it begins with the resurrection of believers. This resurrection, Rev. 20: 4-6, is not a spirit- ual regeneration, for what is here spoken of is not that sinners, spiritually dead, shall be spiritually quickened to faith, but that the martyrs and other believers, bodily dead, shall be bodily raised to the life of glory and dominion. To make a representation of this condition is, for us, as impossible as it was for the disciples to conceive the bodily resurrection and glorification of their Lord, before their actual experi- ence of these things. Enough, that it is promised to us." " Is the object of Christ's coming to surrender the Kingdom to the Father, or does He come, first of all, to rightly enter upon it? Undoubtedly the latter. The Appearing of Christ is, at the same time, the Appearing of His Kingdom. Then shall believers eat and drink in His Kingdom, and, since they have borne with Him the Cross, shall share with Him the glory. This, unquestioned, then it is clear that the return of Christ is rather for the purpose of assuming than assigning the Kingdom, and, therefore, the Parousia of Christ and the End of the World do not coin- cide, but, on the contrary, are separated from each other." FROM LANGE'S BREMEN LECTURE. (Bremen Lectures, p. 244.) The order of events in the consummation of the Kingdom of God, Paul has critically indicated. The Resurrection of Christ is the con- summation of this kingdom in principle, 1 Cor. 15 : 23, Eph. 1 : 19. The ontological truth that spirit has absolute power over nature, the personal spirit over its corporeal sphere, has there been realized as a truth of history. With this fact, the Spirit of Glory, as a resurrection-germ in believers corresponds, Rom. 8: 11, 1 Pet. 4: 14. This resurrection-seed will become the harvest in the "First Resurrection," 1 Cor. 15:23, which belongs to the beginning of the cosmical consummation. The " End," then, is the conclusion of the One Day which is as great as 1,000 years. In this altogether organic period of transition, from time CRITICAL APPENDIX. 495 to eternity, Christ will destroy all powers of sin and of the old world, 1 Cor. 15 : 24, 25, then, as the last enemy, Death, the essence of all evil. Finally, there appears yet a wonderful change of things. The official work of Christ in redeeming and renewing has been accomplished, and His antecedent mediatorial reign now passes over into the consummated theocracy, the immediate rule of God in the glorified world by virtue of the omnipresence of the Spirit. The Scriptures speak in the sublimest figures of the future in which the Kingdom, the heavenly Jerusalem, shall descend to earth, and the hope of residence in this magnificent city, still more of its appearance, has always most profoundly moved, waked, purified, comforted, cheered all Christian hearts. In a thou- sand songs, winged words, and similitudes, it has poured itself forth. FROM AUBERLEN'S DER PROPHET DANIEL. (P. 372.) Daniel and John both describe the Millennial Kingdom, but in dif- ferent manner, because from different points of view. As we have already seen, both Apocalypses are consummations of the entire proph- ecy of their Testaments, containing, Dan. 2 : 35, 44 ; 7 : 13-27, a brief sum- mary of the whole Old Testament, and, Rev. 20 : 4-6 a brief summary of all the New Testament prophecy, concerning the Kingdom of Glory upon earth. A great mass of prophetic passages, and many beautiful ones in the Gospels and Epistles, serve to fill up, more richly, these gen- eral outlines. Nor does the New Testament lack in such expressions as form the connecting links between the earthly and super-earthly side of the contemplation. The view of the subject, generally taken, is that Jesus preached a purely internal, moral, and spiritual Kingdom of God, in opposition to the external, carnal, Messianic expectations of the Jewish people. This, however, is only the other and spiritualistic extreme to the materialistic conception of the Jews at the time of our Saviour. It is admitted that our Lord was obliged to press with double emphasis, over against the carnal ideas of His people, the spiritual internal conditions necessary to a participation in His Kingdom, viz. : repentance and faith. But He, thereby, does not allow the Kingdom to be dissolved into mere inwardness; it is only for Him "the divine order of things, which is realized through Him, the Messiah a develop- ment from within outwardly. (Chr. F. Schmid, Bib. Theol. N. T. I. 325.) Thus, the Kingdom of God has different periods. It has appeared in Christ, Matt. 12:28; it spreads in the world by inward, hidden, spiritual processes, Matt. 13 : 33 ; but, properly, as a kingdom in royal glory, it comes only at the Parousia, Luke 19: 11, 12, 15, even as the Lord Himself has taught us to pray, day by day, " Thy kingdom come," Matt. 6:10. And this kingdom is not that of everlasting 496 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. blessedness after the last judgment, which, indeed, consummates the ultimate perfection of the kingdom, but it is already, anterior to that event, an earthly, Israelitish, but by no means carnal, kingdom of glory, precisely as the prophets have pictured it, and whom Jesus contradicts in no part, but whose prophecy, connecting Himself therewith, He ever presupposes, Matt. 19: 28; Acts 1 : 6-8. Jesus was, consequently, as all the prophets and apostles were, a Chiliast. FROM KLIEFOTH'S OFFENBARUNG JOHANNIS. (Dritte Abtheilung. pp. 266, 267.^ Hengstenberg thinks that the idea of l^aav (Rev. 20 : 4-6) is not to be explained from the idea of avacraais, but the contrary. This is, indeed, an inversion and preposterous. The avaaraakg must not be explained from t&aav but the latter is to be explained from the former, which is added by way of exposition, and the idea of the i&aav is so to be con- ceived that it will include, not exclude, the idea of the resurrection, to be taken in its proper sense, according to verse 5. But, we would again go wrong if, with Ewald and De Wette, we take the i&oav as equivalent to bvefyoav or " lived again," resuscitati sunt without anything further. The indefinite expression l&oav is intentionally chosen with respect to the two classes named in the text, viz. : the dead blood-witnesses of Christ or the martyrs, and the unmartyred living confessors. Of both it is said, "they lived." Applied to the first class, the bodily dead, it certainly means their return to life by a bodily resurrection. It is true of them that t&aav t precisely as it was true, in chapter 2:8, of Christ Himself, the Great Martyr, that He e&oev, came to life again. Applied to the second class, however, it means, as we know from 1 Thess. 4 : 17, 1 Cor. 15:51-53, that they shall "be changed" by transformation, into that condition to which the blessed dead come through resurrection. It is this attraction of the corruptible into incorruption, and of the swal- lowing up of mortality by life, that is unquestionably indicated, for both classes, by the one verb &aav, " they lived." Excellently has Bengel explained it He says, "They became alive in that part in which they were dead already, or were mortal, consequently in their body. The dead, through the resurrection of their dead body, the living through the transformation of their mortal body, came to the condition of life, . ., immortality and incorruption." FROM ROTHE'S DOGMATIK. (Zweiter Theil pp. 57-77.) Extraordinary changes in the whole visible world shall immediately precede the Coming of the Lord. With the return of the Redeemer full redemption comes for His believing people. His kingdom now enters CRITICAL APPENDIX. 497 upon earth, the proper Basileia, the Chiliastic Kingdom, into which, immediately at His appearing, the angels, with the sound of the trumpet, gather the elect from under the whole heaven. This Kingdom the Redeemer has defined as the Kingdom of God, the Kingdom of His Father, His own Kingdom and assigned and secured to Him by the Father's will, the Kingdom prepared for the righteous, and the " Regener- ation." This Kingdom which He sets up immediately after His Parousia, He designates under manifold images. He pictures it especially as a Marriage-Supper, as a Festive-Banquet, as the Joy of the Lord. Especially is it set forth as a Feast of Joy to be celebrated with patriarchs and prophets, precisely as the Jewish writers describe the blessedness of the Messianic Kingdom under the same figure. That this picture is iden- tical with the Kingdom of God, at the appearing of Christ, is evident from a comparison of Matt. 8:11 with Luke 13:28,29. The twelve Apostles shall sit with Him upon the twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. A narrower or wider circle of activity shall be accorded to each one, in proportion to His fidelity to the Lord in the present age. He, moreover, designates the blessedness of this Kingdom as an inherit- ing of the earth, for, to this Chiliastic Kingdom, the passage Mat. 5:5 must be referred. During the existence of this Kingdom, many, never- theless, still find themselves excluded, and in the place of punishment and death." " The Apostles, unanimously expected the return of Christ, to enter upon this Kingdom, on earth. In general terms, they designate this return as His "Parousia," His "Apocalypse," His " Phanerosis," His "Epiphany," and fix it at the "Day of the Lord," or absolutely "The Day." Then, the Lord returns from heaven in like manner as He went up into heaven. He appears again, as sent of God, in glory, at the trumpet's sound, descending from heaven, surrounded by angels and saints, coming to those who look and long for him, to an oppressed church in whom He will be glorified, for its final deliverance from all evil, and for vengeance upon all who obey not His Gospel. At His return all true believers shall be gathered together to Him, and remain with Him forever a return unexpected by the world, and sudden like lightning, but not unexpected by believers a return, fixed by Apostles, as in the " last time," but still regarded as impending, a thing psycholog- ically most natural, since His Parousia was blended with the prophecy of judgment on Jerusalem. They believed it probable in their own day. But, still, they announced certain signs that must precede the Parousia, and that at the Parousia the Old Testament prophecies will receive their fulfillment. (Acts 3 : 21.) Before the Parousia, the gospel should be proclaimed to all the nations, Rom. 11 : 25, then " hard times " x a tel Kfiipol should come, 2 Tim. 3: 1, the deep moral and religious corruption of men, the great apostasy, antichrist, 2 Thess. 1 : 12. " At the Parousia, 32 498 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. Beast and False Prophet are cast into the lake of fire, Rev. 19 : 20, 21, and all antichristian power is annihilated, 2 Thess. 2 : 8. The Apostles describe the Chiliastic Kingdom. Paul, in his letter to the Hebrews, calls it " a Sabbatism " for the people of God. James calls it the "Basileia" which God has promised to them that love Him, the poor in this age, but rich in faith. Especially does Paul describe it as a reigning of believers " together with Christ." The Apocalypse exhibits this co-regency as the chief element of blessedness in the Chiliastic Kingdom. The redeemed reign with Christ, sit on His throne, have power over the nations, aud participate in the destruction of the enemies of their Lord. Priests and Kings, they receive white robes, garments of light, and in these walk about with the Redeemer. They obtain the hidden manna, eat of the Tree of Life, wear the crown, and possess the white stone, with the new name, which none know but they who have it. They are pillars in the Temple of God to go-out no more, and over them the second death has no power. The Apocalypse fixes the duration of this Kingdom at 1,000 years, during which Satan is bound, and after which Satan is let loose to array Gog and Magog against the camp of the saints, when fire from heaven descends to destroy the enemies of the Kingdom, and Satan and they together are cast into the sulphurous pool where Beast and False Prophet already are, to be tormented forever and ever." (Rev. 20: 11-15.) "The Redeemer asserts distinctly the future resurrection of the body. And still His utterances so sound as to separate that of the righteous from that of the wicked, both as to fact and time. So in Luke 20 : 35, where the discourse is not of the resur- rection in general, but distinctly of a resurrection to the earthly Kingdom of the Redeemer, the so-called " First Resurrection." So it sounds (es klingf) when He calls Himself the " Resurrection and the Life; " when He says, "All that the Father gives Him shall come to Him, and He will raise them up at the last day ; " " all who believe in Him ; " " all who eat His flesh and blood," where the clear implication is that the rest of the dead awake not at the same time. Such a distinction He makes in Luke 14 : 14, a resurrection for the pious, a resurrection for the wicked., So the Apostle Paul, 1 Cor. 15 : 23, compared with Rom. 8 : 10, contemplates, not a general resurrection, but that of believers " they who are Christ's," " the sons of God." The Apocalypse distinguishes a first and second resurrection. The first resurrection, which ensues at the same time with the Advent, Rev. 19:11-21, is expressly described as the "First," Rev. 20 : 4-6. In it, only the martyrs and they who have remained pure from the contamination of the world-power, have a share. These, and only these, reign with Christ 1,000 years, while the " Rest of the dead " awake not to life. After the expiration of these years, and victory over Satan let loose, then the rest of the dead arise for judgment, Rev. 20: 11-15. In CRITICAL APPENDIX. 499 consequence of the complete separation of antichrislian men, by means of the appearing of Christ, the development of His people perfects itself in the completed Kingdom of God. This perfect earthly dominion of the returned Redeemer, as Head of the perfect Christian Kingdom, is His earthly Kingdom of glory the Chiliastic Kingdom identical with the marriage-supper of the Lamb. FROM RODS' INTERPRETATION OF DANIEL. (In Aubcrlen's Daniel, p. 451.) The Revelation of John, or rather the Revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ, resembles, in many ways, the prophecies of Daniel, embracing, as it does, a great part of the same period described by Daniel; but the two books differ in several respects. Daniel begins with a period earlier than the Revelation, for the latter does not speak of Babylonian, Persian, and Greek kingdoms, which at the time of John belonged to the past- Whereas the Apocalypse extends into more remote times than Daniel, and also contains a description of the last 1,000 years of the world, the beginning and character of which were revealed to Daniel, as also the final judgment, the New Jerusalem, etc. The prophecies of Daniel refer, in the first place, to Christ and the Roman destruction of Jerusalem, Dan. 9. They then describe the last Antichrist, 11 : 36. But the great intermediate period, from the destruction of Jerusalem to Antichrist is filled up by the Revelations of St. John, which extend to the times of Antichrist. With regard to the fourth period of the world, or the last 1,000 years of the world, there is no book of the Bible which treats of them exclusively; but the promises referring to that blessed time are scattered throughout the Scriptures, and added, as a source of consolation and hope, to the prophecies concerning the dangers and afflictions of the Church. And let this suffice. In this order we must speak and write about it. It is revealed, not to satisfy curiosity, but to strengthen our faith and to quicken our hope. It is easy for us to bear good and joyful events whenever they come, though they were not circumstantially foretold. But it consoles a Christian, who is often grieved and distressed, in these dark times, and who has a zeal for the honor of Jesus Christ and His Kingdom, to look forward to the golden times, when all pia desideria will be fulfilled and realized, and to see them, even now, in the mirror of the divine word. FROM SCHMID'S BIBLICAL THEOLOGY OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. (Pp. 245-269.) According to the practical idea of it, the Kingdom of God, in the teaching of the Lord, is a divine order of things realized through Christ 500 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. the Redeemer as one developing itself from within. This development is opposed to the view of an outward realization which is not based on any spiritual life. This merely material view is resisted by the Lord in the case of the Jews, especially in Luke 17 : 20, 21. Together with this stress, laid on its invisible nature, the Lord also depicts, in verse 24, this same Kingdom as appearing visibly. As the Kingdom of God on earth, it is, in the first place, a fellowship of men. It also embraces humanity as a whole without limitation to any particular part thereof in contrast to the choice of the Jewish people. The Gospel will be preached to the whole world. It also comprises heaven and earth, and likewise the com- ing periods of the world, both before and after the judgment. The stages of the development of the Kingdom of God are the stages and various modes of His Parousia. There are, therefore, two chief periods of God's Kingdom, which are separated by the epoch of 'judgment. The Lord describes them as ^Eons, the present as " this Age," the other as the "Age to come." The epoch which forms the point of division between the two periods may be perceived from Matt. 24:3, etc. By it the characters of the two periods are described. Just as, under the Old Testament dispensation, a divine prophecy was given in respect to the gradual development and final shape of the divine Kingdom, so Jesus also predicted the future course of God's Kingdom. The chief epochs brought forward are the first and last periods which are inwardly allied with one another, and the interval lying between these two points. The first epoch is the destruction of the Jewish State and Church. This epoch bears a twofold character as a judgment and a deliverance. And this is what it has in common with the last epoch. The coloring of the representation is therefore somewhat similar in both. On the old theocracy a judgment came, and as regards the Christian Church, a similar judgment is impending in the end of the present Age. In the interval between these two epochs lies the period of the spread of Christianity among all nations. This period, 'therefore, may be more protracted than seemed likely at the beginning when the consummation of the first epoch was alone looked to. The last epoch is the end of this Age, the entire cessation of the present temporal period. This epoch is spoken of as the day of judgment, the last day, the deci- sive hour. Supposing that the word " immediately " (Matt. 24 : 29) is taken in its proper meaning and not as equivalent to suddenly (which is evidently impossible), and that verses 29-31 are interpreted in the most natural way as referring to the latest future, still an explanation may be found of this conjunction of events by assigning it to the nature of prophecy, which, in a far-reaching prospective delineation, can depict distant objects as close at hand, and, in spite of a preparatory interval, can comprehend in one glance, even as regards time, events which are CRITICAL APPENDIX. 501 ideally allied. The whole course of development, as regards its chief epochs, is conditional on the Advent of the Lord, and the judgment com- ing on the earth. The Parousia of Christ is spoken of in Matt. 24: 27, 39 ; Luke 17 : 24, 30. This coming of the Lord affects, however, the first as well as the last epoch of God's Kingdom. We have this coming described, sometimes as close at hand, sometimes distant, sometimes as determinate, and sometimes as indeterminate. From all this we may gather that it is not one single fact which is in question, but something comprehensive and continuous. His constant presence must, therefore, be distinguished from the special moments of His extraordinary mani- festations in which, indeed, the former is outwardly produced. They form a Parousia of Christ, and on them the development of the Church, or Kingdom of God, is dependent. With the Parousia a continuous judgment is united. The Lord speaks of the judgment as present, as future. The final judgment follows at the end of time in the end of the Age. The judgment in the Church is distinguished from the universal judgment, and is thus represented in the parables of the ten virgins, and of the talents. The former judgment has to do with faithful conduct in Christ's Kingdom. By the completion of this judgment the " Regen- eration " is also brought about, which coincides with the commence- ment of the " Age to come." This relates to the whole world, and is therefore a regeneration of the whole world in general, and consequently a renovation of nature in the sense of Rom. 8: 18-23. For the faithful, in particular, it is also the "Resurrection of Life" (Luke 14:14), the shining forth of the righteous (Matt. 13:43), and this is a glorification of the body and not of the spirit only. (Matt. 22:23-33.) FROM KOCH'S DAS TAUSENDJAHRIGE REICH. (Pp. 1-29, 195-197.) Whatever obscurity may rest upon various parts of the Apocalypse, one thing is perfectly clear to every reader, and that is the train of thought in the section from Chapter 19 to the end of the whole book. After the triumph song pre-celebrated by the heavenly dwellers, in chapter 19:5-7, the verses 11-21 treat of the return of Christ, the judg- ment upon the Beast, the False Prophet, and their armies ; chapter 20 : 1-6 of the 1,000 years' kingdom after the destruction of the Beast; verses 7-9 of the last assault of Gog and Magog at the end of the 1,000 years; verses 10-15 of the judgment upon Satan, and upon men, which follows the annihilation of Gog and Magog and coincides with the final world catastrophe; and, lastly, the closing section of the book, chapter 22:6-21 follows the section, chapter 21 : 1 to 22:5, which treats of the glory of the New World that enters in the place of the Old. Antichrist summons the nations to a grand march against the people of God. His 502 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. armies cover the holy land and besiege the " Beloved City." All hope of human deliverance is gone. Then heaven opens and the Lord Jesus, accompanied by myriads of His saints, steps forth from His conceal- ment. Beast and False Prophet are cast into the lake of fire. Satan is bound and shut up in the abyss. The " First Resurrection " and the 1,000 years' Kingdom ensue. After the 1,000 years, Gog and Magog are vanquished, and Satan is judged. The final judgment of mankind takes place, followed by the New Heavens and Earth, the Tabernacle of God being with men. This is the clear order of events in Chapters 19 to 22. We see how firm and uninterrupted is the connection. Nothing can be taken out, nothing substituted in one place for another. It is impossible to sunder Chapter 20:1-6, which treats of the 1,000 years' Kingdom from what both precedes and follows it. The dominion of believers awaked to life by Christ, can not, in any way, be transferred to a church- historical period, concerning whose beginning and end we are left to dispute, to and fro. Rather it begins first of all, after the destruction of the Beast, the Antichrist, for it is the reward of fidelity which the mar- tyrs have shown during the time of Antichrist, in not worshipping the Beast nor his image, not receiving his mark in their forehead or hand, of which the whole discourse speaks in the preceding chapters. Com- pare Chapter 13: 14-17. In like manner, it is utterly impossible to put the assault of Gog and Magog before the 1,000 years, for it is expressly said that " when the 1,000 years are expired " Satan shall go out to deceive the nations that are in the four quarters of the earth. (20 : 7, 8.) How exactly everything is linked together, like the links of a chain, is evident, if we but closely observe what is said of Satan in the preceding section. Before the 1,000 years, Satan is found upon the earth to which he had been cast down from heaven, Chapter 12 : 2, and where he gave to Antichrist his power, 13: 2. At the beginning of the 1,000 years he is cast down from earth into the abyss in order that he may deceive the nations no more, as he had formerly done, 20: 3. When the 1,000 years are ended he is let loose again for a short season, and once more deceives the nations upon earth, 20: 8. Finally, he is cast into the lake of fire where he finds the Beast and False Prophet already before him and who had been brought there at the time he himself was shut up, 19: 20. Heaven, Earth, the Abyss, Earth, the Lake of Fire, these are the five stations in Satan's downfall. There are three different conceptions of Apoc. 20 : 1-6. Some interpret it of a timeless spiritual condition, others interpret it of the past, others of the future. The first or spiritualistic method of interpretation comes fatally into contradiction with the Apocalypse, in all imaginable points. If the 1,000 years begin with the Day of Pentecost, it is certain that Christians, and consequently, also, spiritual priests and kings to God, have existed CRITICAL APPENDIX. 503 since the outpourings of the Holy Ghost. On the contrary, the Apoca- lypse begins these years first after the j udgment upon the Beast of the returning Lord; so that if the spiritual kingdom of believers is what was predicted in chapter 20th. we are obliged to conclude that this same spiritual kingdom shall first commence after the destruction oi the Beast at the second coming of Christ! If the 1,000 years end with the return of Christ to the last and universal judgment, it is certain there will be true believers up to that time, spiritual Priests and Kings who, therefore, shall pass over from the Church militant to the Church tri- umphant. On the contrary, the Apocalypse ends the 1,000 years with the insurrection of Gog and Magog, so that, if the spiritualistic view is taken, we are obliged to conclude that the dominion of the spiritual kings over Sin, Death, and Satan, is not a very secure one, but wanes away before the assault of Gog and Magog! This view regards the first resurrection as the spiritual quickening of all from Pentecost to the final Judgment. On the contrary, the Apocalypse speaks of the bodily- slain martyrs, and those who, in the time of Antichrist, have not wor- shipped the Beast, nor his Image, nor received his mark in their fore- heads and hands, so that if the discourse were here of regeneration, it would follow that this is to be looked for, first, after the destruction of the Beast at the second coming of Christ in glory! It regards the bind- ing of Satan as effected in the reconciling Death of Christ, who has spoiled him of his power. On the contrary, the Apocalypse represents this power as taken away, first, after the destruction of the Beast by Christ returned to earth. As a result of this view, Satan having once been spiritually bound by the Death of Christ, can never come forth again from his prison, since Christ, not merely for a time, but forever, has crushed spiritually the head of the Old Serpent. On the contrary, according to the Apocalypse, Satan is let loose from his prison after the 1,000 years are expired, so that if the discourse here were of the victory of Christ in his Death, over Satan, then that victory has, indeed, not been an enduring one ! Again, as a result of this view, the dominion of the Beast continues with all its pictured abominations, throughout the same period as that in which believers reign triumphantly with Christ, a period regarded as timeless for whatever be the Beast (the Papacy), it is located in a time of church history, the time in which there is a com- munity of believers, and consequently the dominion of believers has also continued throughout this period while yet that dominion, according to chapter 20 : 4, is first given after this period is closed as a reward to those who, during this period, have not worshipped the Beast! Still more, as a result of this view, not merely the dominion of the Beast fal]s within the 1,003 years, but also the insurrection of Gog and Magog, for whatever be Gog and Magog (the Turk, they say), 504 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. the appearing of the same is ever put in a period of Church history, in which, at the same time, there is a community of believers, and conse- quently the government by such, as Priests and Kings, victorious over Sin, Death and Satan, has been in full activity. And yet the Apocalypse says expressly that Gog and Magog first rise up in revolt after the 1,000 years' reign of Christ and His saints are expired! Thus does this con- ception happily effect the miracle that the kingdom of the Beast (the Papacy), the 1,000 years' kingdom of priestly and royal dominion (the Millennium), and Gog and Magog (the Turk), are all mutually accom- modated in one and the same period ! The rise of such a conception was only possible by a violent sundering of chapter 20th from its con- nection with what precedes and follows. The second method of interpretation conceives the 1,000 years as a measure of time, but locates the same, either in whole or in part, in the past. More correct than the former view, it regards the 1,000 years as a definite historical period. But what period? In the old Church many supposed the commencing date of these years to be coincident with the Birth of Christ, the great turning-point in history, when the power was taken from Satan, and the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand. On the contrary, suffice it say, that, as already seen, the 1,000 years do not begin with the First Advent of Christ, but with His Second, for the destruction of Antichrist. Others fixed the commencing date at the time of Constantine's victory and the establishment of Christianity as the Roman State-Religion. In modern times, Hengstenberg, regarding the Beast as the Heathen State, and the 1,000 years' reign of Christ with His risen saints as the supremacy of its successor, the modern Christian State, consequent, however, only upon the conversion of the Germans to Christianity (the White-Horse Vision, 19:11), and the "First Res- urrection," as this blessed condition, together with the ascension of souls to glory at death, dates the 1,000 years from Christmas eve, A. D. 800, the time of the erection of the " Holy Roman Empire " and cor- onation of Charlemagne by Pope Leo III. The end of the millennium, therefore, was A.D. 1800, the time of the French Revolution, when Satan was let loose " for a little season," our present time being that of "Gog and Magog," or "Modern Infidelity," with the last judgment at the door. This view has found 'but few supporters. It is superior to the former, however, in this, that it recognizes the 1,000 years as a measure of time, and maintains the temporal sequence of chapter 20th upon chapter 19th, and so the true order of events, viz., (1) the Kingdom of the Beast, (2) the overthrow of the Beast, (3) the Millennium, (4) the invasion of Gog and Magog, (5) the Universal Judgment, (6) the New Heavens and Kurth. The great and fatal objection to Hengstenberg's interpretation is that the history of the Church and world, from A.D. CRITICAL APPENDIX. 505 800 to 1800, is utterly at variance with the elevated words of John con- cerning the Millennial reign. The third method of interpretation conceives the 1,000 years as still future, and subsequent to the Second Advent. Here, first of all, the false Chiliasm advocated in the time of the Reformation, by the fanat- ical Anabaptists, is to be mentioned. They taught a future glorious Kingdom of Christ on earth, but imagined that the immediate erection of this kingdom was a matter of the first importance to the Christian Church. By her own might, sword in hand, it must be established, just as it was attempted by Thomas Miinzer to overthrow the Christ- opposed powers of this world (even as Israel overthrew the Canaan- ites formerly), in order to proclaim the Kingdom of Christ as the Fifth Monarchy which was to succeed the four universal monarchies described by Daniel. Against this conception of the 1,000 years' kingdom, and only against this, was the 17th Article of the Augsberg Confession directed, which rejected the Jewish opinion that believers should enjoy on earth, before the Resurrection, a worldly kingdom after a general crush- ing out of the wicked. But not merely by the Augustana, but also by the Scriptures, is this false Chiliasm condemned, because, as already shown, the erection ot the Millennial Kingdom, according to the prophet's words, is not the result of any such Church action, but comes only by means of the returning Lord, an event which the Church awaits with patience, and which at last, it can only realize, not by works, but by suffering. Kindred with this false Chiliasm, is a conception of modern theology, according to which the Kingdom of Christ is to be realized by means of Church action, not, indeed, violently, but gradually and in a peaceful way. The sanctifying influence of Christianity is to- ever more powerfully extend itself, in ever widening circles, the power of sin evermore retreating before it, until, finally at the close of its historical development, all humanity shall be glorified into a Kingdom of God. Even this finer form of Chiliasm,* like the coarse form advo- cated by the Anabaptists, is condemned by the Apocalypse of John. According to this, wickedness does not decline in the course of history, but rather ascends to its most fearful antichristian height, while on the other hand, also, the Church is purified by means of her tribulations, in the last time. Not the preaching of the gospel, the moral influence of Christianity, puts an end to Antichristianity, but the Judgment of the returning Lord, with which the glorious Kingdom of God on earth makes its entrance. From what has been said, it is clear what is the correct conception of Apoc. 20: 1-6. The 1,000 years' kingdom does not embrace the periods * That is the pre-advent Chiliasm of Whitby, Glasgow, and Martensen. 506 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. of New Testament Church history. It does not lie in the past, but in the future, and yet it is not erected by means of the action of the Church, but, on the contrary, onty by means of her returning Lord Himself, after the Judgment upon the kingdom of Antichrist. With the content of this proposition must every conception agree, which does not seek arbitrarily to circumvent the manifest sense of Apoc. 20 : 1-6, as it offers itself in connection with what precedes and follows. Even they who understand by the Beast, not a secular, but a spiritual, power, the Papacy, are obliged to concur herein. If they would not do vio- lence to the Apocalypse, then they are obliged to admit, with Bengel, who advocates this exposition of the Beast, that the destruction of the Papacy culminating finally in a definite person Antichrist ensues by means of the Judgment on the Beast from the returning Lord, who then establishes on earth His 1,000 years' kingdom of glory.* From all this, Dr. Keil seeks to make a very easy method of escape. He pursues here a tactic we frequently meet with among antichiliasts. With the simple remark that the Apocalypse announces events of the future not in chronological succession they deem themselves able to break up the strict connection between these chapters, and so hold, in a free-handed way, the 1,000 years as arbitrarily to put them wherever it may suit their pleasure. But, herein, they confound two things essen- tially different. The question, does the Apocalypse divide itself into 41 groups " of visions, each one steadily progressing lo the consummation ? is a question altogether different from this one, viz.: Can we so sunder chapter 20 from chapter 19, that the content of the latter shall not fol- low, in temporal succession, the content of the former? Dr. Keil him- self remarks that " the last group begins with chapter 19." Therefore, chapter 20 belongs to the same group with chapter 19. Does he really imagine that, in one and the same group, there is no chronological suc- cession: that we are at liberty to transpose, at will, the events here prophesied, putting the last first, and the first last? This would throw everything into confusion from which no one could find his way out. It would fling the gate wide open to all arbitrariness, and make all study of the Apocalypse a fruitless toil. But the case does not so stand. The seven seal, seven trumpets, seven vials form separate groups, each running on to the end. Does Dr. Keil really think that, in each of these groups, we are at liberty to transpose the events so that we may put the sixth seal in the place of the first, or the first trumpet or vial in the place of the seventh? Everyone knows this is impossible. The strictest chronological order dominates in each of these groups, chap- *A complete demonstration, from an independent source, of thePre-Millennariau- ism of the Westminster Standards. CRITICAL APPENDIX. 507 ters 19-22. The events follow one another, exactly, in temporal suc- cession; the judgment on the Beast; the 1,000 years' kingdom; Gog and Magog; the Last Judgment; the New World. Vainly does Dr. Keil try to rattle asunder the links of this chain. He involves himself in enormous monstrosities and self-contradictions. Think of the follow- ing! He denies the temporal sequence of chapter 20: 1-6 upon what precedes, and affirms that both coincide! So then, we are to hold the prodigies that, at the very time when the Beast and Satan dominate, with all their abominations on earth, believers dominate on earth also with Christ; that at the time when they who have not worshipped the B'jast arc actually beheaded, they receive, as actually risen ones, the reward of their fidelity; that at the very time when Satan is bound *. e., from A.D. 311 to wfanfthsA he no further should deceive the nations he just then deceives them in highest measure, namely, by means of his instruments the Beast and False Prophet; that at the time when he is shut up in the abyss, he is yet loose upon earth, where he gives to the Beast his power! What, then, means the declaration that he is to be loosed from his prison, first, after the 1,000 years are expired? He is evermore loose! Or, since Dr. Keil denies that Satan is cast 1,000 years into the lake of fire, first after the destruction of the Beast, what does it signify that Satan is bound 1,000 years in the abyss while yet his instrument, the Beast, has power on earth during the very time Satan himself is bound ? Or, has Dr. Keil been misunderstood? It could almost seem so. If, with Hengstenberg, he regards the 1,000 years' kingdom as the Christian state, then we might conclude from this that he understands the Beast to mean the Heathen state. But, if that is the case, then the 1,000 years follow the destruction of the Beast, and as certainly as the Christian state in Europe was only possible after the destruction of the Heathen state, so certainly has Dr. Keil involved himself in a self-contradiction, when he denies the temporal sequence of chapter 20 upon chapter 19. The 1,000 years' dominion of believers on earth can never begin, so long as the Beast lives. The contempo- raneousness of the Beast and the 1,000 years, or even the contempo- raneousness of the existence and dominion of the Beast, with the imprisonment of Satan in the abyss, is a monstrosity. In every refer- ence, chapter 20 goes back to chapter 19 as to its necessary presupposi- tion. Upon this indissolvable connection between these two chapter*, all antichiiiastic expositions are forever shattered. FROM STEFFANN'S DAS ENDE. (Pp. 296, 298, 305.) The vision of the White Horse. (Rev. 19: 11-21.) Scarcely any proof is needed to show that this vision, notwithstanding its similarity to the 508 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. one in Chapter 6 : 2, is of a different character. That represents the victori- ous progress of the word of God, the preaching of the Gospel through- out the whole world. This, on the contrary, represents that fact as accomplished, and the great event that shall supervene in connection therewith. Beyond doubt, in both, the efficient Personality is the Lord Himself. In the former, as shown in the opening of the first seal, He is veiled in the preaching of His word. In the latter, or seen in the pres- ent vision, He makes a visible appearance before all eyes, revealed in the fulness of His divine, human Personality, when the Gospel of the Kingdom has been actually preached for a witness to all nations in the world, as He Himself has said. (Matt. 24: 14.) The symbolical dress in the two visions marks this distinction. In both, the White Horse is the sign of victory, as we have already seen, but while in the former a far- smiting bow is found in the hand of the Rider for a sign, that, according to Psalm 45, the nations shall be smitten with the arrows of the word of God, here a sword cutting near at hand proceeds from the mouth of the Conqueror for a witness that the day of judgment has come for all those who, though smitten by His arrows already, have yet not yielded to the Lord in willing submission. And while, there, " a crown " is given to the Rider, here, He wears on His head " many crowns " for a witness that the hour of the completion of His Kingdom, whose histori- cal development is indicated by that offered crown, has now come. Again, while it is said of the Rider, in the former vision, " He went forth conquering and to conquer," here he enters the scene as one who already has conquered, and, as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, has impressed upon His victory , already won, the bloody seal, only, however, in the over- throw of all His enemies. It is unmistakable, according to the whole succession of visions in this Book, and the import of this vision itself, that herein was shown to the Seer that visible Second Coming of Christ after whose sign the disciples once questioned their Lord (Matt. 24:3), and of which the Apostle Paul apprised the Thessalonian and Corinth- ian Churches in his letters. We stand, here, upon the threshold of a great truth which, for the most part, has been well nigh lost to the Christian Church, because it has been wont to confound this return of the Lord, which, according to the Greek text, is designated by the word Parousia, with the final and universal judgment of the world. The Scriptures, indeed, speak only of One Day of the Lord, but they distin- guish, most clearly, the Appearing of the Lord, which we have before us in the present vision, from His Appearing at the general judgment of the world. Already the disciples, in the question above referred to (M.tt. 24: ), had made the distinction between the Parousia and the end of the world. The Lord did the same in His answer. The Apostle Paul makes the same distinction. In all the utterances wherein he CRITICAL APPENDIX. 509 speaks of the return of the Lord (1 Thess. 2:19, 3:13, 4: 15, 5:23, as also in 2 Thess. 2: 1, 8; 1 Cor. 1:7, 15: 23), he makes use of the expres- sion Parousia, and intends what is here pictured in the present vision. In the last quoted passage he expressly distinguishes between the Par- ousia and the end. He says, when speaking of the resurrection, " Every man in his own order ; Christ the First Fruit ; after that, they who belong to Christ at His Parousia ; then, after that the End, when He shall have surrendered the Kingdom to the Father." That this clear doctrine of the Scriptures, the distinction between the " Parousia" and the " End," has been almost lost to the Church, has its ground in the fact that, since Augustine's time, the Scripture doctrine of the 1,000 years has been put in abeyance. Naturally enough, since, according to the view of that otherwise so great man, the 1,000 years' Kingdom must belong to the past, all those passages which treat of the visible return of the Lord are referred to the end, and the judgment which the Lord fulfills at His Parousia is confounded with the final universal judgment of the end. But, does not the " Day of the Lord " since Scripture knows only One Great Day comprehend both the Parousia and the last universal judg- ment ? Does not even the same Scripture say that " a Day with the Lord is as a thousand years ?" Yea, does not John call the last time itself, the "last hour?" What hinders us to believe that the " Day of the Lord " begins with the Parousia, and ends with the universal and consummate judgment ?" As to the 1,000 years' Kingdom, we have already shown that the visions of Chapter 19: 11 to Chapter 21: 8 stand in indissolvable progressive con- nection. As Christian! has proved, the primitive Church recognized the following order of events: (1.) The return of the Lord, His Parousia. (2.) The overthrow and removal of the Antichrist and False Prophet. (3.) The binding of Satan a thousand years. (4.) The 1,000 years' King- dom. (5.) The liberation of Satan for a short time, and the Last Judg. ment upon the same after the days of Gog and Magog. (6.) The final judgment. (7.) The New Heaven and Earth, with the descending New Jerusalem. From the time, however, when the Roman Christian Empire acquired a secure and dominating status and they began to confound that status with the glory here predicted, they rejected, according to Augus- tine's view, the future 1,000 years' Kingdom and referred the predicted glory (Rev. 20 : 4-6) to the whole historical course of Christianity. Thus, it came to pass that they sundered the connection of this vision with the preceding, and saw in it only a kind of " Recapitulation " and summing up of all that had gone before. It is the glory of Bengel, never to be sufficiently praised, that he annihilated that view, running counter, as it did, to all sound exegesis, and restored the indicated connection to its right. All standard expositors of modern times follow in the foot- 510 SECOND COMING OP CHRIST. steps of Bengel, and only those theologians who see in the rejection of Chiliasni, as the doctrine of the 1,000 years' Kingdom is called, a mark of genuine orthodoxy, hold fast the Augustinian interpretation. The Church, before Constantino, with few exceptions, asserted the Chili- astic view, because, as Ebrard says, " they believed the holy word of Christ and His Apostles, f His return for the erection of His Kingdom." "The Apostolic tradition," says Hase, " was so decided that the Chili- astic faith was the dominating faith of the first three hundred years." Faith in the return of Christ for the erection of His Kingdom upon earth, in glory, formed among the people and Christians of the first three centuries, the substantial object and anchor of their hope. After Constantine, the opposite view predominated. Blinded by the outwardly prosperous and glittering condition which this Caesar, after his victory over Maxentius, had preserved to the Church, they beheld, in their present form, the fulfillment of this prophecy of the 1,000 years. They began to laugh at the Scriptural doctrine of Papias, and after Augustine, the renowned bishop of Hippo, had inserted his own erroneous view, in place of the other, in his work on the " City of God," remained, during the whole middle age, and even after the Reformation, in the opinion that the Church historical time was the period of the 1,000 years. It has been the general view that, only in the Apocalypse, not in other Scriptures, the doctrine of the millennium is found. It is incorrect. It belongs to the Apocalypse, as the last book of holy Scripture, to illu- minate what, in other books, rests in obscurity, and briefly to put together what other Scriptures have shown in various places. As, when some one has already spoken much and long of any matter and gathers together in a brief word, for conclusion, all that was said, so does the Apocalypse relate itself to the other testimonies of the holy Scripture concerning the 1,000 years' Kingdom. All the Scriptures proclaim the golden time. The Church of the 1,000 years, as it walks in the truth, shall be free from whatever detracts from the honor of its Lord and Saviour, and in glory shall display a reality radiant with light, when, impelled by the love of a Mary Magdalen, it pours forth the ointment of a beautiful worship, full of odor, in presence of its King. FROM MOSES STUART ON THE APOCALYPSE. (Vol. I. pp. 176, 178, 397. Vol. II. pp. 360, 475-477.) After investigating this subject, I have doubts whether the assertion is correct that such a doctrine as that of the first resurrection is nowhere else to be found in the Scriptures. What can Paul mean, Phil. 3: 8-11, when he represents himself as readily submitting to every kind of self- denial and suffering " if by any means he might attain unto the resur- rection from the dead?" Of a figurative resurrection, or regeneration, CRITICAL APPENDIX. Paul can not be speaking, for he had already attained to that on the plains of Damascus. Of the like tenor with the text, moreover, seems to be the implication in Luke 14:14 "Thou shalt be recompensed in the resurrection of the Just." Why the resurrection of the "Just?" This would agree entirely with the view in Rev. 20 : 5. There is the more reason to believe that such is the simple meaning of the words in Luke 14: 14, inasmuch as two recent antipodes in theology, Olshausen and De Wette, both agree in this exegesis. That it has not been made more prominent in the New Testament is no decisive objection against it. Where, but in 1 Cor. 15 : 24-28, have we any account of Christ's resignation of His kingly power? Where, but in 1 Cor. 6: 2, 3, are we told that " saints shall judge the world and angels ? " " The Apocalypse teaches a two-fold resurrection; the first, of the saints at the beginning of the Millennium; the second, of all men at the final consummation and general judgment." "They lived" means they revived, came to- life, *. e., returned to a life like the former one, viz.: a union of soul and body. So does the word mean in Rev. 1 : 8, and in many other passages. Any other exegesis here would seem to be incongruous. The e&aav must mean here, reviving, or rising from the dead. Thus, the Saviour speaks of Himself in Rev. 2:8 as being He who was dead and e&aev, had revived, lived again, after the death of the body. Thus, too, it is said of the Beast, Rev. 13 : 14, that had the deadly wound of the sword, that /j.aev, revived. Thus, in our context, also, it is said, " The rest of the dead lived not, ow e&aav. The point of antithesis which seems to decide the whole case, is the distinction of order, or succession, not of kind. The express contrast here made between the partial and the general resurrection, and the manner in which this contrast is presented, shows that the design is not to compare a spiritual with a physical resurrection, but to contrast the partial extent of the latter, at the begin- ning of the Millennium, with its general or universal extent at the end of the world. Putting all these considerations together, I do not see how we can, on the ground of exegesis, fairly avoid the conclusion that John bas taught, in the passage before us, that there will be a resurrec- tion of the martyr-saints, at the commencement of the period after Satan shall have been shut up in the dungeon of the great abyss. Vitringa's principal objection is drawn from the alleged fact that the word of God reveals but one resurrection both of the just and the unjust. This he takes for granted, and others have affirmed, as Vitringa does, that we are by no means to admit such a doctrine, on the doubtful ground or meaning of a single passage. " Doubtful" however, philologically considered, I think we can not well name it. Indeed, if this be not a position, in the interpretation of Scripture, which is f^lly and fairly made out by philology, I should confess myself at a loss to designate SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. one which is, from among the many difficult passages of the Scriptures. Vitringa does not call in question the doctrine that the mediatorial Kingdom of Christ will be given up, " when the end cometh;" nor that Christ, " the Son Himself will be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all," 1 Cor. 15 : 24-28, because these doctrines are taught but once in the Scriptures. But, it seems to me that the passage before us is not the " only one " in the Scriptures which teaches or intimates that there will be a first and a second resurrection. I need not discuss this subject again here. I refer the reader to Phil. 3: 8-11, Luke 14:14, Isa. 26:19, 1 Cor. 15:23,24,1 Thess. 4:16. In partic- ular does Paul seem, by his airapxfi .... lustra .... hra, in 1 Cor. 15 : 23, 24, to have adverted to a first and second resurrection. FROM ALFORD ON THE APOCALYPSE. (New Test. Vol.11. Part II., pp. 1088, 1089.) The Millennial reign. "I saw thrones;" combine Dan. 7:9, and Matt. 19 : 28. " And they sat upon them "who ? The Apostles, Matt. 19:28, the saints, 1 Cor. 6:2, 3. "And judgment was given to them;" so in Dan. 7 : 22, i. 6., they were constituted judges. "And I saw the souls, etc. This is the First Resurrection." I can not consent to dis- tort these words from their plain sense and chronological place in the prophecy, on account of any considerations of difficulty, or any risk of abuses which the doctrine of the Millennium may bring with it. Those who lived next to the Apostles and the whole Church for 300 years understood them in the plain literal sense; and it is a strange sight, in these days, to see expositors who are among the first, in reverence of antiquity, complacently casting aside the most cogent instance of unanimity which primitive antiquity presents. As regards the text itself, no legitimate treatment of it will extort what is known as the spiritual interpretation now in fashion. If, in a passage where two resurrections are mentioned, where certain souls lived, at first, and the Rest of the rest of the dead lived only at the end of a specified period after that first if, in any such a passage, the first resurrection may be understood to mean spiritual rising with Christ, while the second means literal rising from the grave ; then there is an end of all significance in language, and Scripture is wiped out as a definite testimony to any- thing. If the first resurrection is spiritual, then so is the second which, I suppose, none will be hardy enough to maintain. But, if the second is literal, then so is the first, which, in common with the whole primi- tive Church and many of the best modern expositors, I do maintain, and receive as an article of faith and hope. " There will be nations on earth, besides the saints reigning with Christ, which, during the binding of Satan, have been quiet and willing subjects of the kingdom, but who, CRITICAL APPENDIX. 513 on his being let loose, are again subjected to his temptations, which stir them into rebellion against God. The Beloved City, v. 9, is Jerusalem, Psal. 78 : 68 ; 87 : 2, not the " New Jerusalem," but the earthly city of that name, which is destined to play so glorious a part in the latter days. FROM WINTHROP'S PREMIUM ESSAY ON PROPHETIC SYMBOLS. (Pp. 66, 67.) The beloved disciple speaks of the souls of those who had been beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and says " they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years," or, rather, according to the reading of the best editions, ra xttta r?, " the thousand years," i. e., those which had been mentioned in verse 3 as indicating the period of Satan's con- finement in the abyss. He calls them souk, to identify them as those who, having been departed spirits, were to have their portion, at the epoch denoted by the vision, in the resurrection to immortal glory. This is evident from the fact mentioned that this class of the dead, the blessed and holy " lived " at the beginning of the thousand years, and reigned with Christ during that whole period, whereas " the rest of the dead," i. ., those who at that epoch had already died without being in the number of the " blessed and holy " lived not again until the thou- sand years were finished. The one class were raised previous to the thousand years, the other not till after the expiration of that period. Both classes were disembodied souls and dead persons before the resur- rection, not after it ; and hence, as these epithets are used as marks of identity in the two cases, the word souls presents no more objection to the real literal resurrection of the one class than the word dead does to that of the other class. When it is said that the souls of the martyrs " lived " at the epoch referred to, the meaning can not be that their dis- embodied spirits had no conscious existence during the previous period which had elapsed since the death of their bodies, for that is contrary to the syinbolization under the fifth seal, Rev. 6:9-11, where they are represented as having such an existence, and are enjoined to wait patiently, until their number should be complete, when they were to be avenged upon their enemies. It can not mean that these departed souls were then to have a spiritual resurrection from a death in trespasses and sins, for no such change takes place after death; neither was it anymore necessary in their case, for they were " blessed and holy," and hence had been already regenerated. It can not denote that the martyr-spirit was to revive during the Millennium, for living, agents denote living agents, and not mere acts and states either of body or mind. Besides, the martyr-spirit is an enduring, patient disposition in the midst of trials and persecution ; but there will be no opportunity for the exercise 514: SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. of any such spirit during the Millennium. It is conceded that men, in general, if not universally, will, at that epoch, be holy. Public opinion will then be as strong against persecution for righteousness sake as it ever was in its favor. The persecuting civil and ecclesiastical rulers denoted by the wild beast, and the false prophet, will have been cast into the place of punishment symbolized by the lake of fire, Rev. 19 : 20. The organized confederacy against Christ will have been completely overthrown. Rev. 19:11-21. The fallen angels symbolized by Satan their chief, Rev. 20: 2, 3, will have been shut up in the place denoted by "the bottomless pit;" that they should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years are fulfilled, Rev. 20 : 3. Neither men, nor devils can disturb the saints during the period foreshown. It is a time of triumph and rejoicing, not of endurance and suffering. How, then, can there be any room for the exercise of the martyr-spirit ? There is but one other meaning the word " lived " can have, as here used, and that is that the souls of the righteous lived again in union with their bodies. The whole collective mass of the dead are divided into two parts, the " blessed and holy," whose portion is in the first resurrection. These are one part. The other part have their portion in the last resur- rection. As the latter is real, so must the former be real, also. As the resurrection at the end of the thousand years is a literal resurrection, so is also that at the beginning of the thousand years. FROM JAMIESON'S, FAUSSETT'S, AND BROWN'S, CRITICAL COMMENTARY. (Vol. VI., pp. 329, 476, 512, 721.) Every man in his own order. The Greek is not abstract but con- crete; image from troops, each in his own regiment. Though all shall rise, not all shall be saved, nay, each shall have his proper place. Christ first, after Him the godly who die in Christ, in a separate band from the ungodly. Then the " End," i. e., the resurrection of the " rest of the dead." Christian churches, ministers, and individuals, seem about to be judged first " at His coming," (Matt. 25 :1-30) ; then " all the nations" (Matt. 25:31-46). Christ's own flock shall share His glory "at His coming," which is not to be confounded with the "End," or General Judgment (Rev. 20:11-15). The latter is not here discussed, but only the " First Resurrection." Christ's second coming is not a mere point of time, but a period beginning with the resurrection of the just, and ending with the general judgment. Again: "The mere manifestation of Christ's coming vntfyavtiq, rfc irapoaatacis enough to consume An- tichrist. He is cast alive into a lake of fire (Rev. 19 : 20). So the world- kingdom of the Beast gives place to that of the Son of Man and His saints." Again: "Christ's Kingdom" is to be manifested at His CRITICAL APPENDIX. 515 "Appearing," when the saints shall reign with Him. His Kingdom is real, now, but not visible. It shall then be visible, also. Now, he rules in the midst of His enemies, expecting till they shall be overthrown. Then He shall reign with his adversaries prostrate. Again: "Satan's binding is the necessary consequence of the events (Rev. 19 : 20), just as Satan's being cast out of heaven where he was previously the accuser of the brethren, was the legitimate judgment passed on him through the death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ (Rev. 12 : 7-10). As before, he ceased, by Christ's ascension, to be accuser in heaven, so during the Millennium, he ceases to be seducer and persecutor on earth. He will not be, as now, the god of the world, nor will the world lie in the wicked one. The flesh will become evermore overcome. Christ will reign, with His transfigured saints, over men in the flesh. The nations in the Millennium will be prepared for a higher state, as Adam in Par- aclise, supposing he had lived in an unfallen state. * * The Millen- nial reign on earth does not rest on an isolated passage, but all Old Testament prophecy goes upon the same view. The " First Resurrec- tion " is the resurrection of the just. THE PAHOUSIA, NZANDER, LECHLER, GLOAG, OLSHAUSEN, MEYER, BAUMGARTEN, HACKETT, DA COSTA. (On Acts 3:19-21.) " What are we to understand by the u times " of refreshing and restor- ation ? Are they the same, or are they different things ? Doubtless, virtually the same; and the one phrase will help us understand the other. The restitution, or rather the restoration, of all things is said to be the theme of all prophecy. Then, it can only refer to the " Kingdom of God," the end and purpose of all God's dealings with Israel. It was a phrase well understood by the Jews of that period, who looked forward to the days of the Messiah, the Kingdom of God, as the fulfillment of all their hopes and aspirations. It was the coming Age aiuv 6 //f/l/lw, when all wrongs were to be redressed, and truth and righteousness were to reign." " Nothing can be more clear than the connection and coinci- dence of these events, the coming of Christ, the times of refreshing, and the times of restoration of all things." " The regeneration, TTO/UV- yeveaia, of Matthew, is the precise equivalent of the restituting, aKOK.aTa.a- Tacic, of the Acts. What is meant by "the Regeneration" is clear beyond the shadow of a doubt, for it is the time when " the Son of Man shall sit upon the throne of His glory." Parousia, pp. 150, 151: Lon- don, 1878 So even Neander is obliged to confess. " When the time arrives for the completing of all things, that Great Period to which all the prophecies of the Old Testament point from the beginning, then Christ will appear again on earth to effect the completion. Planting 516 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. and Training, p. 39. So Lechler : " This restitution commences with the return of Christ whom the heaven receives during the interval, but whom God will personally send." In Lange on Acts. So Gloag: " The sending of Christ is to be considered either as contemporaneous with the times of refreshing, or as immediately following them. The refer- ence is evidently to an objective, and not a subjective, advent. So long as the unbelief of Israel continues, Christ will remain in heaven; but their repentance and conversion will bring about the times of refreshing and of the restoration of all things which will either pre- cede or coincide with the Second Advent. Comment, on Acts, Vol. I., pp. 133-135. So Olshausen: "The grammatical connection requires us to consider both expressions as the same, and as not referring to the present time. The Corning of Christ, accordingly, i. e., the Parousia, is to be conceived of as coinciding with the times of refreshing, and His sojourn in the heavenly world closes with His return to earth for the completing of his -work." Comment., Vol. IV., p. 402. So Meyer: " Peter has the idea that the times of refreshing and the Parousia enter so soon as the Jewish nation recognizes Jesus as the Messiah. These seasons of refreshing are the times in which, by means of Messiah's appearing in His Kingdom for the poor oppressed people of God, quickening and happiness shall rind place." Kommentar. III., p. 89. So Baumgarten : "The miracle wrought upon the lame man, Acts 3 : 1-11, 19, was a sign for Israel. It contains an allusion to that external power which Jesus shall one day reveal in the case of Israel, and on the Holy Mountain. The times of refreshing, it is easily seen, can not be regarded as yet present. The coming of these times is, according to verse 20, to be coincident with the mission of Jesus Christ. The "send- ing" is explained by the words the angels addressed to the Apostles on Mount Olivet, at the time of the ascension. It could hardly hnve escaped the Apostles at the time, that this return of Jesus would be coincident with the period of the restoration of the Kingdom to Israel. Now it is a matter of certainty with them." ** The devices by which the promises concerning the Kingdom and the people are explained away, as referring to a merely spiritual kingdom, and community of saints, were entirely unknown to the Apostles." Apost. Hist., pp. 19, 87, 91. SoHackett: " Nearly all critics understand this passage as referring to the return of Christ at the end of the world." Comment, on Acts, p. 63. So Da Costa: "Who has given us the right, while contemplating the literal fulfillment of the judgments on the Hebrews, to alter sud- denly the principle of interpretation, where the curse is changed into a blessing? Who gives us the right, by arbitrary exegesis, to apply the promises of the Christian Church to the Gentiles, when the judgments evidently could not have been intended for them ? There is then a CRITICAL APPENDIX. 517 future for Israel ; for the long-degraded outcasts, an approaching glory. Israel and the regenerate nations will triumph together over the Gen- tiles who have forgotten God, and who oppose the Kingdom of Christ. Israel's King will be the King of all Nations." Israel and the Gentiles, p. 624. See also Doddridge, Bloomfield, and Calvin, on Acts 3: 19-21. FROM REV. GEO. DUFFIELD, D.D., DISSERTATIONS ON THE PROPHECIES. (P. 186.) Not one word, or hint, is heard from Christ or His Apostles about the enjoying a thousand years' prosperity before His coming. Not the slightest trace of such a Millennium as the Spiritualists describe, con- sisting in the universal prevalence of the gospel, is to be found in the New Testament, excepting the disputed passage in Revelations. From the Saviour's lips there never dropped the most remote hint on the sub- ject. On the contrary, He said that in the world His disciples should have tribulation. He forewarned them of persecutions and trials as their uniform lot, and of such nature as to be totally incompatible with the idea of a temporal Millennium, of the character expected by the Spiritualists. Nay, more : He expressly predicted that, down to the very time of the end, His followers would have to guard against decep- tion, and the imposition of false Christs and pretenders ; that wars and rumors of wars should prevail, and instead of a thousand years of universal peace, under the preaching of the gospel, nation would rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there should be famines and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places, and other things wholly inconsistent with the Spiritualists' notions of the Millen- nium. We defy any man to produce a single passage on the subject from the lips of Christ, of such a Millennium as the Spiritualists expect. And is it at all likely that, if the prophets had predicted such a Millen- nium, and sung so nobly and sweetly, and in such exalted and extrav- agant strains about it, He would never have referred to it during the whole period of His ministry, especially when He undertook expressly to expound one of the most important predictions of Daniel, and to answer explicitly His disciples' question, what should be the sign of His coming and the end of the world? FROM REV. R. J. BRECKENRIDGE, D.D., KNOWLEDGE OF GOD, SUBJECTIVELY CONSIDERED. (Pp. 668-670.) Concerning the glory of the Church, and the Consummation of the Covenant of Grace with respect to her, the Scriptures appear to me to reveal, as yet future, two states very distinct from each other, namely, 518 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. her Millennial, and her Eternal state. The former I judge to be upon, and connected with, this earth, delivered from the bondage of corrup- tion into the glorious liberty of the children of God, as the Apostle expresses it, explaining at the same time that we ought to hope with confidence, and wait with patience, for that glorious " manifestation of the sons of God." That Millennial glory seems to me to be a Dispen- sation of the Covenant ot Grace as distinct and as real as any preceding Dispensation under that Covenant, and that it can no more be considered merely the perfection of the Gospel Church than that Church can be con- sidered merely the perfection of the Jewish Dispensation. I do not, how- ever, understand that the Millennial state is the final state of the kingdom of God. * * Its Eternal state is still higher, still more glorious. It is the Second Coming of the Son of Man which initiates the Millennial glory of His Kingdom. It is at the delivering up of the Kingdom by the Son to the Father, upon the Lamb's Book of Life, after He shall have put down all rule and authority and power, all His enemies under His feet, and Death, the last of them, destroyed, that the Eternal Glory of the Church begins. * * I speak with great hesitation upon topics so sublime, so remote from human thinking, and upon which the mind of this generation of God's true children seems to be at once so anxious and so unsettled. What I insist on is, the Consummation of the Covenant of Grace with reference to the Kingdom of God, first in Millennial Glory, and then in the Eternal state of immediate fruition of God, both which await the Church of Christ. FROM DUSTERDIECK'S OFFENBARUNG JOHANNIS. (Pp. 554-551.) As to what is said (Apoc. 20: 1-10), the unprejudiced establishment of the excgetical result of the passage, and the theological judgment put upon what is found according to the analogy of Scripture, are to be distinguished, and only by means of the first are we to arrive at the second. The exegetical understanding of Apoc. 20 : 1-10, in whole, or in parts, has its most essential condition in the recognition of the fact that what is here pictured immediately precedes the universal j udgment proper, v. 11, and follows those judicial acts of the whole catastrophe pictured, 19 : 19-21 : in other words, every exposition is wrong which regards v. 1-10 as a "Recapitulation," which is only possible by means of an alle- gorical interpretation. This false method of exposition was made avail- able by Augustine expressly in a polemical interest against the Chiliasts. The exegetical principle leading to this result has been followed by all those who, like Hengstenberg, have found in v. 1-10 prophecies whose fulfillment could be recognized, somehow or other, in events and con- ditions of the church or the world, falling within the current period of CRITICAL APPENDIX. 519 time. This method of exposition is obliged to resort to an allegorizing of the passage which necessarily becomes the most arbitrary precisely where, in the clearest manner, an utterly different explanation is required. Augustine, for example, in order to fix the 1,000 years during the present continuance of the Church, is compelled to find their com- mencing date, i.e., the Binding of Satan, in the earthly life of Christ, and to interpret the Casting out of Satan into the Abyss as meaning his expulsion from Christendom into the hearts of the wicked, or non- Christian nations. The first Kesurrection he explains spiritually, as in Col. 3 : 1, and remarks, v. 5, that we are not to suppose by the " Thrones" and "Judgment," that the last Judgment is referred to, but simply the present spiritual government of the Church by the Apostles. Agreeably with this, he expounds verse 8, which speaks of Gog and Magog, as meaning, by Gog, a " Roof," or " Cover," (tectuna), and by Magog, " From under the Roof," or " Cover," (de tecto.) Thus, Gog, the " Cover," is the non-Christian nations, the "muUitudo innumerdbilis impiorum" in whose hearts Satan is shut up and bound for 1,000 years, while Ma- gog, " from under the cover,*' is Satan himself coming out from these hearts or nations, for a little season, after the 1,000 years are expired "procedens; illce nut tectum, ipse de tecto!" Similar misconceptions are found in Victorinus, who explains the number 1,000 from 10, which indicates the Decalogue, and from the number 100 which indicates the crown of virginity, "because whoever has preserved his virginity intact has fulfilled the Decalogue and guarded against impure manners, and impure thoughts within the bed of his heart, lest they might rule there. Such a one is truly a priest of Christ, and having accomplished the millennary number, reigns with Christ, etc., etc; "* also, by Bede who, for example, refers the First Resurrection to Baptism; by Hammond, Grotius, and others, who fix the time of Satan's Binding in the time of Constantino, and by Gog and Magog understand the Turk ; by Wet- stein, who regards the 1,000 years as the times of Messiah reduced to the period of only 40 years onward from the death of Domitian, Gog and Magog being Barcochba ; and by Hengstenberg and others, who fix the beginning of the 1,000 years at the coronation of Charlemagne, A.D. 800. *NOTE. Diisterdieck is wrong in quoting these words as those of Victorinus. They are nothing more or less than Jerome's shameful and criminal mutilation of the work of that noble man. See Moses Stuart, Apoc. I. ,491, 495. Stuart asks, with just criticism, " Could Jerome write such stuff as this, and expect any one to respect his opinions?" But it is the style of many Auti-Chihasts, even in our own day. Man- Bel has noted the fact that " both Mosheim and Neander consider the accounts of the sensual Chiliasm of Cerinthus to be misrepresentations.' 1 '' Mansel. Gnostic Heresies*, 114. To this hour, many Anti-Chiliasts persist in attributing "gross sen- sualism " to the Chiliasm of even the martyrs, and their only authority is the mis- representation of those holy men by the enemies of their doctrine. One would think after the censures administered by scholars like Mede, Homes, Newton, Corner, Hebart, Mansel, and others, more modesty would become some who assail the mar- tyr-faith with equal injustice in our day. H. W. 520 SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. Far more correctly than all these Allegorists, have the Chiliasts interpreted the passage, in so far as to reject the fond and favorite Reca- pitulation theory, and allow the 1,000 years' Kingdom to remain in the place where it is found in the apocalyptic picture of the whole end. Besides, all who, on the ground of the Apocalypse, have sincerely believed in the future entrance of the 1,000 years' kingdom, like Justin, Irenseus, etc., have not indulged in such sensuous and imaginative colorings of the apocalyptic picture as were peculiar to Cerinthus and other Chiliasts who were regarded as heretics. Conformably with the text, Justin and Irenseus, in particular, held fast the fact that the 1,000 years' kingdom follows the " First Resurrection," that of the righteous, and that this kingdom is upon the earth, correctly regarding the "Beloved City " of verse 9 to be Jerusalem. Both these fathers take the 1,000 years in their proper sense. And more correctly do they interpret than Auberlen who, from the assumption that the not yet glorified earth can not be the abode of the glorified church, concludes that believers, who come forth with Christ from their invisibility in heaven, shall be clothed with glorified bodies and then return with Christ to heaven, from there to rule over the earth thus utterly disregarding the contradiction of this view in verse 9. More correctly, too, have the old Chiliasts viewed the chronological matter of the 1,000 years, than Bengel, who thought he discovered two periods of 1,000 years each, the first of these beginning A.D. 1836, with the destruction of the Beast and Binding of Satan, the other with the letting loose of Satan, and terminating immediately before the end of the world. The biblico-theological discussion of Apoc. 20: 6, which Gerhard (Loci theol. T. XX. 134) directs against the Chiliasts, he opens with the reminder that the sayings of the Apocalypse are to be explained, more certainly, from the Analogy of the Holy Scripture, because the Apoc- alypse is itself a deutero-canonical Book. * He holds that, from this Analogy, it is clearly established, first, that the Kingdom of Christ will never be an outward royalty on earth, not even at the end of the days; then, that all the dead shall rise in one day; then, that there shall be but one universal resurrection of the dead, at the Parousia of the Lord. Consequently (so Gerhard turns around, for he also falsely *So Dledrich, saying, "We take the Apocalypse, however, as a canonical Book, yet we see nothing else therein than what we see in the pictures and parables of the Old and New Testaments. What the Scripture elsewhere teaches must explain the Apocalypse," upon which Hebart justly remarks, ll To what end, then, is the Apoca- lypseif not altogether superfluous if nothing new is given therein? If there is no progress in knowledge and understanding? What of the promise of the Lord to His Apoj-tles, that the Spirit should guide them into the full truth, and show them things to come? If the d-sign of the Apocal.vp-e a thing not controverted was to give Something new, it is a false principle to say that it must be explained only by what appears in other Scriptures. Far more correct is the principle of exposition, that the explanation of the Apocalypse must not contradict the other Scriptures." (Hebart. Fur. ChiliasniUB. 7. K. \V.) CRITICAL APPENDIX. interprets what is written Apoc. 20: 1-10), the commencing date of the 1,000 years is probably to be recognized as the time of Constantine, and the Turk is to be regarded as Gog and Magog ! It is, however, rather to be judged that neither the distinction, made by the Apocalyptist, of a first and second resurrection, nor the insertion of the 1,000 years' kingdom, nor the Binding and Loosing of Satan, nor the assault of Gog and Magog, agree with the eschatological expressions of the canonical Scriptures, in such manner as that this apocalyptic picture can be accepted seriously as matter of doctrinal instruction.* Rather the text itself is to be under- " stood as an ideal representation whose individual features can only harmonize when we rightly estimate the ideal character of the whole prophetic portrait. What, according to the really doctrinal prophecy of the Scripture, falls upon the one day of the Coming of the Lord, viz., the resurrection of all the dead in which believers, however, have the precedence and the universal judgment, appears, in the Apocalyptic picture, as distributed throughout a long succession of special yet con- nected acts, but not in the sense as if a special period of time, like that of the 1,000 years' kingdom, had any place between the resurrection of believers and that of other persons. Hereupon rests the vital beauty of the apocalyptic Drama. This poetic beauty, however, is not only destroyed, but reversed in Chiliastic want of understanding, if we regard this ideal representation as an impartation of doctrinal instruction. The ideal character of the whole representation reveals itself unambiguously herein, that the Risen Saints have their camp in the earthly Jerusalem and are assaulted by earthly heathen nations ; moreover, also, the exist- ence of heathen enemies, after that all the dwellers on the earth are slain, 19:21, only then becomes a harmless inconsequence when the matter has no reference whatever, either here or there, to real things," (*'. ., to save the Apocalypse from the charge of a harmful inconsequence,. caused by misinterpretation, we must resort to the ideal theory ! N. W.) *I render this sentence, and what follows, simply to show how completely Diister- dieck, who is a specimen Prseterist, breaks down in his otherwise admirable exegesis, because of his utter blindness to the apotelesmatic law of prophecy and symbolism, here, and consequent inability to reconcile the later eschatology of John with that of earlier less developed representations in other Scriptures (See Einleit, p. 43, and Lange on Apoc. p. 352), for the same observation. He concludes upon the identical grounds Diouysius of Alexandria did, that the Apocalypse is not an Apostolic Book and is entitled only to a deutero-canonical place. (Eiuleit p. 95.) In face of his own literal interpretation of the Parousia (Apoc. 19:11), literal resurrec- tion and judgment, he suddenly resorts to the ideal theory of exposition, and gives us an ideal 1,000 years, dissolving the element of time altogether, the 1,000 years being a symbol of ideal totality, perfection, or eternity Whence it would follow, according to verse 7, that, after totality, perfection of eternity is u expired " or "ecumenicity," or as others say, the Devil shall be loosed for a "little season," when totality, perfection, eternity, and ecumenicity will begin again! How can Du'ster- dieck consistently protest against the Allegorists, and yet adhere to his " poetic drapery theory?" His "hoc volo sic jubeo" is no better than theirs. Symbols are neither metaphors nor flounces. N. W. TEXTUAL ISTDEX. Showing where scripture passages which relate more particularly to pre-millennial subjects may be found, as either quoted, cited or treated upon in this volume. For sake of brevity we have grouped several con secutive verses though only one may sometimes be referred to. PAGE. Genesis.... 13: 15 118 15: 18 234 " 17: 8 118 Isaiah 11: 139,163, 230,234,235 24 and 27:. ...163 25:6-9 7 40:..-. 129 43: 131,132 44: 132 49: 133,134 59:21 135 " 60: 136,164 61:... 136,164,480 65:17-25 111,129 66: Ill, 129, 163, 230, 260 Jeremiah ..21: 141 23: 141 30:10-11 7 31:10 ,7 31:31 135,142,234 33: 140 Ezekiel... .20: 32-38 251 36:21-36 143, 164, 167, 222, 234 37:15-22 224 Daniel 2: 257, 318 " 6:4... -.182 7: 166,215,318,320,321,512 8: 216 9: 216 11: 215,216 12:1 250 " 12:2 92 523 524 TEXTUAL INDEX. PAGE. Daniel 12: 12-13 321, 482 Micah 143 Habakkuk .2:3 438 Zepiianiah .3 : 8-21 144 Zechariah._12:10 464 12 and 14 145, 146, 147, 163, 228, 231, 250, 251, 488 Matthew... 3: 2 186, 199 " 6:10 495 7:21-23 433 10:23 274 12:32 330 13 65, 274, 411, 495 13:24-30 6,209 16: 18 188 16:26-27 274,434 19 : 28 110, 156, 227, 265, 275, 481, 496, 512: 22:31-32 81 24:3 31,40,500,508 24:12 6 24:13 6 " 24 : 14 56, 65, 280, 310, 409, 463, 508 24:15-20 71 24:21-22 232 24:27 40,501 24:30 31,275 24:31-39 6,275 24:36 48 24:42 35,57,415,451 24:46 202 24:50-51 275 25: 1-13 276, 415, 449, 451 25:14-30 60,276,449 25 : 31-46 244, 246, 252, 433 25:46 183 26:64 32,45,276,323 Mark 8:38 276 13:32 48 13:33-37 277,415 Luke 1:31-33 119, 193 9:23-26 433 12:32 324 12:35-38... ..277,452 TEXTUAL INDEX. 525 PAGE. Luke 12: 38-40 57, 277 " 14:14. 480,492,511 *' 17:21 196,500 17:28-30 277 17:31 302 17:34-36 278 18:1-8 64,278 19 : 12 57, 66, 278, 416, 450, 495 19:13 35,199 20: 34-38 91, 96, 107, 113, 480, 498 21: 157 21. 2431 60, 71, 227, 256, 417 21:25-28 278,311 21:34-36 278 " 23:42 186 John 1:51 279 5:24 248 5:28 94,96 5:43 217 6:39-40 101 " 11:24-26 100,308 14:3 618,30,279 M 14, 15 and 16.. 18, 207, 279 18,36 199 21:21-23 36,200,280 Acts 1:7-8 206, 310, 410, 496 " 1:11 7,19,41,280 3: 17-21 7, 33, 110, 124,142,281, 315, 319, a72, 397,417, 431, 515 " 10:42 243,244 14:22 281 15: 14-18 6, 89, 165, 208, 281, 410 17:30-31 43,244 24:25 244 Romans ...8: 11 482,492,494 " 8:19-23 282 " 8:22 106,110 " 23: 167,319 ' 11:1 227 11:5 232 11:12-15 123,239 11:25-26 7,209,282 526 TEXTUAL INDEX, PAGE. Romans ...13: 12 106, 200, 202, 221, 305, 312, 413, 420, 443 14:10 248 " 14: 17 195 1 Corinth'ns 1:7 38, 419 1:4-8 282,419 4:5 282 6:2-3 282,511 11:26 283,412 15: 81,315,496 15 : 23 40, 70, 85, 102, 283, 307, 396, 480, 482, 486, 490 r 494, 512, 514 15:25-26 168,511 15:50 186 15:54 104 16:22 283,401 2 Corinth'ns 1 : 14 283 5:1-8 99 5:10 247,283 Galatians ..1: 4_ 411 4:25-26 135 Ephesians..3: 21 166 5:25-27 284 Philippians 1 : 6-10 284, 435 1:23.. 99 2:16 284 3:11 90,510 3:20-21 284,419,445 4: 5 284, 305, 420, 443 4:7 443 Colossians.l:23 457 3:4-5 285,440 1 Thessal'ns 1 : 9-10 35, 46, 285, 309, 419, 425, 447, 457 2:19 40,285 3 : 13 285, 304, 437, 447, 455, 488 4: 14-18 7, 42, 43, 70, 83, 84, 99, 102, 104, 285, 308, 372 419, 425, 486, 496 5: 69,413,438,453 5:23 286,304,448 2 Thessal'ns 1: 7 38, 64, 258, 286, 372 1:10 44 2: 1-8 61, 69, 1G3, 216, 219, 258, 287, 312, 329, 357, 372, 375, 398, 411, 481, 488 TEXTUAL INDEX. 527 PAGE. 2Tkessal'ns3:5 287 1 Timothy.. 4: 1-3 211,287 6:14 39,287,305,420 2Timothy._3: 1 55,68,211,288 4: 1 ..40, 93, 243, 288, 418 4:8 6,288,419,454 Titus 2: 11-15 40, 46, 283, 288, 419, 427, 429 Hebrews... 9: 28 42,289,419 10:25 305,420,443 10 : 35-37 289, 305, 312, 438 James 5: 7-8 40, 289, 305, 413, 420, 436, 443 1 Peter 1:3-5 283,442 1:7 38,289,443 " 1: 11 105, 290 1: 13 290 4:5 243 4: 7 201, 290, 305, 413, 420, 439 4:13 38,290,441 5:4 290 2 Peter.... 1 .!: 16 290 1:21 317 2:4-10 163 3: 68, 291, 305, 310, 420, 439, 488 3:11 46,419 3:12 6 3:13 Ill 3:18 246 1 John 2:18 68, 215, 305, 420 2:22 357 2:28 291 3: 2, 3 46, 291, 303, 440 4:3 215,357 2John :7 .42,291 Jude : 14-15 117, 162, 243, 258, 264, 291 Revelations 1:3 443 1 : 7 7, 45, 292, 320, 412 " 2:25 292 3: 8-11 292, 430, 431, 455 11: 15-18 ....72, 320,418 " 13: 215,357,372 16:13-14 218 16:15.. ..292 528 TEXTUAL INDEX. Revelations 19: 163, 258, 292, 313, 318, 321, 357, 372, 375, 385, 481, 489, 501, 507, 514 20: 1-6 7, 51, 83, 88, 96, 265, 313, 318, 340, 898, 518 20: 4-6 78, 479, 481, 482, 489, 491, 492, 496, 498, 509, 512, 513 20:6 107,321 20 : 11-15 244, 255, 260, 498, 501 21:1-5 111,501 " 21:21-27 167 22:1-5 167 22:7 293,305,501 " 22:12 293,455 22 : 20 293, 305, 412, 443, 469 UNIVERSITY A SELECTION FROM THE CATALOGUE OF F. H. REVELL, OHIOAG-O. * # * Our Full Catalogue of Evangelical Literature will be mailed post free to any address on application. Brookes, D.D. (J. H.) Present Truth ; being the testimony of the Holy Ghost on the Second Coming of the Lord, The Divinity of Christ, and the Personality of the Holy Ghost. By JAMES H. BROOKES. Introduction by H. Morehouse, C. M. Whittlesey and Geo. C. Needham. 250 pp., fine cloth, 75 cents ; cheap edition, paper cover, 25 cents. Marantha; or, The Lord Cometh. 545 pp., half morocco, $1.75; cloth, $1.25. 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CONTENTS The Heavenly Hope Approaching Judgments The Coming Crisis and Its Results The Doom of Christendom Christ and the Church Israel in the Past and Present Israel's Future Restoration Israel's Restoration Introductory to Millennial Blessed- ness The Great Prophetic Question Waiting for Christ Ecclesi- astical Corruption and Apostasy The Last Days of Gentile Supremacy Israel in the Approaching Crisis The Spared Remnant The Martyred Remnant Apocalyptic Interpretation The First Resurrection The Millennium. RECAPITULATION Outline of Prophetic Truth ; Objections Answered. We commend this volume to any desiring a most clear exposition of Scripture Prophecy. Pre-Millennial Essays of the Prophetic Conference. The full and authorized edition of the essays and addresses of the late Prophetic Conference held in New York City. 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