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by receiving it, hundreds of passages have an easy and satisfactory interpretation, which if it be denied, must be tortured and abused, or else, which is frequently the case, wholly neglected. * A few favourite texts are reiterated by preachers and hearers, a system is constructed, and the rest of the Bible little alluded to. This is one grand reason of the rejection of the doctrine of Christ's premillennial advent and kingdom. This doctrine runs like a vein from Genesis to Revelation. Reject it, and the Bible becomes misunderstood. This holds particularly true of the Book of Psalms, and the writings of the prophets. You may cull out a text here and there, but the design of God is not traced by those who reject this doctrine." Neither will this neglect be found accordant with the motives whereby God stimulates our faith and practice, the greater portion of which should be undoubtedly derived from passages describing the victorious and triumphant state of the church during the reign of the Redeemer with his saints, when "he shall come to judge the world in righteousness," or dispense justice throughout the earth. These blessed hopes, which are necessarily founded on the atonement of the Redeemer, constitute the highest topics of the sacred writers. They are frequently expressed in rapturous bursts of inspiration, as the principal and conclusory theme of all their predictions; and this with such extraordinary grandeur and sublimity, as are wholly unequalled: moreover, as Bishop Horsley justly observes: "The hyperbole is a figure which can never be admitted in the divine promises: on the contrary, it is always to be presumed that more is meant than the highest figures can express adequately."

It is a melancholy reflection, then, that so many should shut the eyes of their understanding, and close the door

of their hearts, against these manifest declarations of God's designs. But independent of the express manner in which the Millennial doctrines, together with the preceding and correlative events, are revealed, the present condition of the world, as compared with what is foretold of their future accomplishment, is altogether in accordance with them. For example:-the sincere and discerning followers of Christ will acknowledge with what sorrow of heart, if not misgivings and dismay, they have contemplated the active advances of sin and apostacy, under all their hideous forms, notwithstanding the combined energies of the Christian world,—the vast and persevering efforts of missionary zeal, and the extensive circulation of the Scriptures. They will perceive that the efforts of the Destroyer keep more than pace with their efforts; and, following the views which Scripture and experience unitedly unfold, they will perceive that the grand enemy of mankind can never be gradually repressed under the ordinary providence of God; nor "the blindness, with which he has blinded the eyes of them who believe not," fully removed; nor "the rulers of the darkness of this world, the wicked spirits in high places" be cast down; nor "the principalities and powers of the air” be completely subdued, until "the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with (Gr.) the angels of his power, in flaming fire, yielding vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ." They will perceive that Satan must be "bound" with "a chain" of darkness before he can be dislodged from his "stronghold," and disrobed of his mantle of "an angel of light," before mankind will cease to be enamoured of his illusions. Then, and then only, shall "the glorious gospel" prove triumphant throughout the world, and the

wide-spreading force of temptation be withdrawn. Simultaneous must be the entire deliverance of the children of God from the oppression of the wicked, and their introduction to "the joy of their Lord," whose "rest shall be glorious."

If we inquire what may be the probable design of God in appointing a Millennial dispensation, we have no sufficient authority to declare; but we can perceive that it is every way consistent with his goodness; and that there is nothing inconsistent in the supposition, that as this earth has been so long the seat of misery and alienation from the life of God, so long the empire of Satan, it should become at length a glorious theatre of Divine power and grace, and the seat of bliss and reward to the suffering and oppressed. The souls of the righteous who depart this life are, we doubt not, translated to mansions of joy; but when they shall be united to their glorified bodies at the first resurrection, they will experience a new exercise of Almighty power and goodness, glorious and endless in its nature, in "the new heavens and new earth, according to his promise;" and "shall shine, as the sun, for ever in the kingdom of their Father."

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Many have supposed, that views of the premillennial advent of Christ, and the first resurrection of his glorified saints, are necessarily connected with their constant, personal, and visible residence on our earth, and being thus intermingled with men living in the flesh, during the Millennium. It will be seen that whatever may be the manifestation of the sons of God, (Rom. vIII. 19,) the view here taken of that reign does not require this; it being here considered that its nature has not been so revealed as to justify us in coming to" any positive

"conclusions. We cannot go one word beyond what is written."

We doubt not but that the select arrangements of Scripture made in this work will become more acceptable and edifying to the generality of readers, by a previous and careful perusal of a passage from Sir Isaac Newton's "Observations upon the Prophecies of Daniel and the Apocalypse," which we have placed in the Supplement, No. I.

We have only to add, that it would ill accord with the plan of this work to occupy the attention of the reader with too tedious and unprofitable a refutation of the many objections which have been raised against the examination of the Scripture prophecies, because satisfactory replies have been made by preceding writers. We prefer, for the most part, the task of placing the most prominent of them in one connected view, according to the measure of grace vouchsafed us. They will abundantly speak for themselves to every unbiassed mind; and will be less liable to misinterpretation or neglect. At least, all will have an opportunity afforded of judging for themselves in this matter, and be better able to distinguish the literal and symbolical passages as they occur. It should be carefully kept in mind, that where the interpretation is ambiguous, there is nothing to be gained, in some cases, by a literal construction: nothing advantageous to the elucidation of the truth; but in which the figurative sense completely adapts itself to every rational expectation.

*Bickersteth.

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CHAPTER II.

SUMMARY OF THE JUDGMENTS PREDICTED AGAINST THE ENEMIES OF CHRIST, SOME OF WHICH MORE IMMEDIATELY PRECEDE HIS SECOND ADVENT.

THE Saviour of mankind came not only "to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord," but the day of vengeance of our God. And if, as appears unquestionable, from the plain declarations of Scripture, the whole world, and particularly the nations of Europe, are destined to undergo an overwhelming judgment of God's wrath, which he will inflict on obdurate sinners for the accumulated and increasing guilt of ages; and if the series of divine chastisements already fulfilled, imply that the more dreadful and awful completion of them is near,-what can more importantly and profitably employ our attention than thence to acquire a knowledge of the vices, errors, and follies of the past and present periods, and distinctly to mark the Scripture condemnation of those principles and practices to which so many attach themselves; and which, as a vortex, embrace those of all ages and conditions in the circle of their destructive influence?

The sincere adherents of the simple truths of Scripture, during the whole period of the history of the church, have uniformly separated themselves from mere professors, on account of the rise of apostacies and heresies; and this

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