their ministry amongst us, and that therefore their case proves nothing as to the difficulty in question. To this I answer, how do we know that the saints in the coming age will be always visible? Can they not execute their kingly office without the ever visible pomp and glory of the present kings of earth? But besides, how is it that the visibility can alter the case or make the mixture less carnal ? It is the nearness, the closeness of contact, that makes it so degrading, and how will the invisibility of angels remedy this? The nearness is the same, and it is this which gives ground to the objection. If saints are to be in "the world to come," somewhat as angels are in this, only with a higher dignity and office, then what objection is there that can be raised against their intercourse with the inhabitants of earth in that new state of holy blessedness, which may not much more forcibly apply to the ministry of angels now as they attend us day and night, passing to and fro, amid the wretchedness and sin of this defiled earth.

I have thus endeavoured to notice the chief difficulties which have been supposed to lie in the way of the Millennarian system. In looking back upon these, I confess that I am astonished that there should be so few in our way. In a state of things

so new, so unlike the present,

so much at variance

with what the world has ever seen, we might well

have looked for perplexing knots and apparent contradictions. But how few are these! And these few, how trivial! Had they been tenfold stronger and more numerous, they could not have prevailed to shake the explicit revelations of God. But being so feeble and so few, I confess that I both rejoice and am amazed. And oh how soon may all these jarring elements in prophecy be reconciled! How soon may all apparent discord melt into blessed harmony! How speedily may the coming age evolve in unquestioned reality, and bring forth, in all the perfection of Divine symmetry, that very system which we have now to labour so hard to prove and expound to the objector,-that very system which some pronounce perplexed, incoherent, impossible, which others have not scrupled to deride as a misshapen fable, a wild and broken dream.*

66

* I am persuaded that a careful perusal of Butler's "Analogy of Religion," would tend greatly to the removal, not only of the above difficulties, but of the ground on which they rest. The things objected against (says the Bishop), how foolish soever they may appear to men, may be the very best means of accomplishing the very best ends."-Part ii., chap. iv., sect. 2.

CHAPTER IX.

OUTLINES OF PROPHETIC STUDY.

How are we to study prophecy? First of all, let us study the chronology of the subject. I do not mean to say that this can be done entirely apart from, and previous to, some amount of attention to the details; but still our first object should be to give most careful heed to the chronological parts, and to make our study of details bear upon this especially.

In studying prophecy, just as in studying history, we can make but inconsiderable progress without chronology, or, at least, without some kind of chronological method to keep us from confusion and entanglement. Many a foolish prophetical interpretation might have been avoided, had this been attended to. We may, perhaps, be able to strike out some ingenious and correct interpretations of particular passages or visions, and be able to say that such and such events are, some time or other, to fall out in the future, or have fallen out in the past history of our earth, but

how, or when, or in what order, we can with difficulty contrive even to guess. We read of a vast variety of events which future times are to witness; we read, for instance, of the restoration and conversion of the Jews, the coming of the Son of man, the destruction of the apostate nations of the Roman earth, the downfall of Antichrist, the first resurrection, the kingdom of the saints,of these we read, and perhaps have a tolerably correct idea of them as isolated events one day to be brought to pass. But without some sort of chronology, we can have no more. We cannot thoroughly and exactly interpret, without some system of arrangement. If we would construct our prophetic map with aught like correctness, we must be careful in sketching our outline, and laying down our latitudes and longitudes. Our telescope must be adjusted to its proper focus before we can expect to have a distinct and regular view of the scene to which it is directed.

The chronology of prophecy ought, then, to have a prominent place in our prophetical inquiries. In proportion to the correctness of our views on this point will be our success in dealing with the details of the subject, and hence those interpreters have succeeded best who have kept this in view. Witness Mede in former days, Faber and Frere in our own. Many, we are aware, deny this;

M

they look upon individual prophecies as dark, and upon their chronology as darker still; and hence they cannot conceive of that which is dark being illustrated by that which is darker. They seem to regard most prophecies, especially those which involve chronology, as little better than well-constructed riddles, affording a fair field for ingenious exposition and amusing arithmetical conjectures. They can see little in them but vague unclassified statements, capable of any meaning or order, according to the ingenuity or caprice of the expositor, and are disposed to think that the best that can be said of them is, that they were not intended to be understood or arranged; they read the Scriptures, but it is with no expectation of thoroughly understanding them, and are content to pick up here and there a few bright gems, while all the rest remains confused and shadowy.

But there is more system in the Bible than these suppose; not in one part of it only, but in allhistorical, doctrinal, prophetical. It is by no

means difficult to trace throughout them the existence of a plan most regular and well-constructed. It may astonish some to be told this; and to be told, moreover, that it would be difficult for a series of prophecies to be given in symbolical language more plain and systematic than those which the Spirit of God has conveyed to the