Imatges de pàgina
PDF
EPUB

2. The wisdom of embracing the gospel salvation

[They who trust in the word of God are sure of never being disappointed. However high their expectations are raised, they shall never be ashamed. The stronger their faith, the more abiding will be their comfort. Besides, their enjoyments, instead of cloying, will become more and more de lightful; and, instead of bringing with them many inseparable ills, will produce nothing but good to their souls. But that which most of all must endear the gospel to them is, that their happiness will then be consummated, when they, whose comforts were of an earthly nature, will want even a drop of water to cool their tongue. Let the word of God then be precious to our souls. Let Christ, as revealed in it, be the object of our faith, and hope and love. Let us embrace the promises, assured that they shall all be fulfilled; and let us tremble at the threatenings, knowing that they shall all be executed. Thus shall we be proof against the temptations of the world, and shall possess an eternity of glory, when the lovers of this present world will lie down in everlasting burnings.]

CCXVI. THE DESTRUCTION OF POPERY.

Dan. vii. 9, 10. I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued, and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.

WHILE God exercises his sovereignty, he displays also his wisdom, in revealing his mind to man-As we may trace on many occasions a peculiar propriety in the time and manner of making known his will, so we may observe a kind of suitableness in the revelations them. selves to those to whom they were made-The succession of four great empires had been made known to Nebuchadnezzar under the figure of a colossal image composed of various metals; and the same is revealed to Daniel by a vision of four dreadful beasts: the propriety of

[blocks in formation]

these different representations is evident; for the mind of that haughty monarch was engrossed with the love of earthly grandeur; whereas the humbler mind of Daniel would view great conquerors rather in the light of ferocious beasts, cager to desolate the human race-In Daniel's vision also many things were added relative to the church of God, which, though of infinite importance in his eyes, would have been of small moment to the king of Babylon

It is to the church of Christ, and not to the general judgment, that the words which we have read, referWe shall

I. Explain them

The terms themselves scarcely admit of elucidation or enlargement

[Nothing can be more majestic than this description of God's coming to judgment-First "the thrones are set down,” and "the Ancient of days," the eternal incomprehensible Jehovah, with Christ as his assessor, takes his seat-The august appearance of the Judge, clothed in a garment white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool," denotes his unsearchable wisdom that penetrates the deepest secrets, and his unsullied integrity as discoverable in all his decisions -His throne is compared to a triumphal chariot, whose seat and wheels are of fire, and from which issues a stream of fire to destroy those whom his justice shall condemn-" Myriads of angels minister to him" as the willing executioners of his decrees, and "innumerable multitudes stand before him" to receive their sentence from his mouth-" The judgment being thus set, the books are opened;" as well the book of his remembrance, wherein the actions of all were written, as the book of his law, whereby they are to be judged-]

That which more particularly needs to be explained is, the ends for which this judgment is instituted

[The destruction of antichrist is the first event to which this description refers-The prophet directs our attention, not to the general judgment, but to a particular judgment which shall be instituted for the punishment of a blasphemous, persecuting, and presumptuous power-Who that power is we cannot reasonably doubt-The little horn spoken of in the context will appear evidently to be the Papal Hierachy, if we consider how exactly the characters of that antichristian

b So the words "cast down" should rather be rendered.

power are described by the prophet-It rose after that the Roman empire had been divided into ten smaller kingdoms; it reduced under its dominion three of those kingdoms; and from the time that it had gained this ascendency, has never ceased to persecute the saints, and to assume to itself the unalienable prerogatives of the most high Godd-St. Paul's account also of the man of sin corresponds exactly with this, and confirms this application of the prophecy in the strongest

mannere

The enlargement of Christ's kingdom is another event, to which the judgment before us has respect-The connexion between this and the destruction of popery is very strongly marked by the prophet: repeatedly in this chapter does he unite the two events;f teaching us thereby to expect assuredly, that as they are united in God's purpose, so shall they be also in their accomplishment

As to the time when these things shall come to pass, we know that it shall be 1260 years from the time of Antichrist; but we must wait for the event, before we can positively say from what precise period the numeration of those years must commence-Partial checks has popery already received-Indeed, at the reformation, and more especially in recent events, has its throne been shaken to the very foundations; and, as at the reformation, so at this time also, is there, (though in a less degree) a correspondent increase of zeal to spread the knowledge of Christ But when that idolatrous power shall be destroyed, then shall "the kingdoms of the world speedi, ly become the kingdoms of the Lord and his Christ"]

Not to rest in a mere historical account of these prophecies, we shall

II. Deduce from them some important observations

We might not unprofitably make some remarks on the sublimity of the prophetic writings: but waving these we would observe

e The Exarchate of Ravenna, the kingdom of the Lombards, and the state of Rome.

d Who is ignorant of their claims to infallibility, and of power to dispense both pardons and indulgences? Who knows not how they have set up their authority above that of God himself, changed the institutions of his sacramental supper, prohibited to their clergy the very first ordinance of God and nature, and dispensed with every obligation human and divine?

e 2 Thess. ii. 3, 4, 8, 9.

f Ver. 11-14. and ver. 26, 27. This alludes to the number of missionaries lately sent out to the

islands in the South Sea.

1. Men are only the executioners of divine justice

[There are various ways in which God punishes sinThe crimes of individuals are brought into a court of judicature, and animadverted upon by the civil magistrate, who, in that view, is the minister, yea, the representative of God himself When whole communities offend, God commissions the sword, or pestilence, or famine to chastise them-He puts the cup of his wrath into their hands, and makes them drink it to the very dregs-As the blasphemies of Antichrist will in due season bring down the vengeance of God upon the papal hierarchy, so whatever nation abandons itself to sin, it shall surely be visited for its iniquity: God will send forth their enemies, who, as "the rod of his anger and the staff of his indignation," shall avenge his righteous cause-Let us then view our enemies as his sword, and we shall see the surest way of obtaining its restoration to the scabbard-].

2. The judgments which now desolate the earth, will, in all probability, tend in the issue to the advancement of Christ's kingdom

[We have seen how strongly the connexion between the destruction of popery, and the establishment of Christ's kingdom is marked in the prophecy before us-Nor is it difficult to shew how the one event naturally tends to accelerate the other-That idolatrous church has fettered the minds of her votaries, and shut up all the avenues to truth: she keeps the scriptures locked up in an unknown tongue, and imposes the dogmas of men as of more weight than the declarations of God-But when her authority shall cease, men shall think for themselves, and, by "searching the scriptures daily," be brought to the knowledge and enjoyment of Christ—

We are not however to imagine that the end sanctifies the means: for, as the Assyrians, while executing the divine judgments on the Jews, sought nothing but the gratification of their own pride and ambition, for which God afterwards punished them severely, so nothing is further from the mind of our enemies than to accomplish the will of heaven: and, no doubt, when they shall have finished the work which God has determined to execute by them, he will reckon with them for their pride and blasphemy, their cruelty and rapacity-Nor ought we to suspend our exertions in opposing our enemies under the idea that we are fighting against God: for, it is the revealed will, and not the secret intentions of the Deity, that we are to regard as the rule of our conduct; and our duty both to God and our country evidently requires that we should defend all that is dear to us as men and Christians-As it would be

h Rom. xiii. 4.

1

our duty to exert ourselves to the utmost to alleviate the pressure of famine, pestilence, or any other judgment, so, without presuming to pry into the decrees of heaven, we should withstand to the utmost the avowed enemies of all civil order and religious liberty

Nevertheless, while we groan under the evils which God is inflicting on us, we may derive some consolation from the thought, that God can bring good out of evil, and overrule our distresses for the extension of Christ's kingdom throughout the world-]

3. Present judgments, by whomsoever inflicted, should lead our thoughts to the judgment of the great day

[Do we behold a criminal standing at the bar to receive a sentence of condemnation or acquittal from an earthly judge? Let it bring to our minds, that we ourselves shall shortly stand before the tribunal of our God, whose award shall fix our state in endless happiness or irremidiable misery-Do we survey the desolations which are spread throughout the world? Let them teach us, that sinners will not be spared because they are many, but be adjudged to that particular state for which they are severally meet-There is indeed this difference observable, that here the righteous are involved in the same judgments as the wicked; whereas hereafter they will be selected from among them, and receive the portion allotted to them by their heavenly Father: but the wicked, how numerous soever they may be, will have the vials of God's wrath poured out upon them to the uttermost-Even now we see whole cities and kingdoms desolated, and myriads swept away by the besom of destruction: how much more then will this be the case in that day which is expressly appointed for the display of God's righteous judgment! Surely if but a Noah or a Lot be faithful to their God, only a Noah or a Lot shall be saved: but "they who forget God," even though they should consist of whole nations, yea, of " all the nations" upon earth, "shall be turned into hell," and be overwhelmed in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone-May we all be led seriously to" consider this, lest God pluck us away, and there be none to deliver us!"—]

i Ps. ix 17.

CCXVII. THE CONVERSION OF THE GENTILES. Zech. viii. 20-23. Thus saith the Lord of hosts, It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come people, and the inhabitants of many cities: and the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord,

« AnteriorContinua »