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  WRITINGS OF T B BAINES
  by T.B. Baines
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A collection of theological writings, sermons, and essays by T.B. Baines,
compiled for study and devotional reading.

  Chapters: 32

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  TABLE OF CONTENTS
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    1. 01.0 The Hope of the Church.
    2. 01.1.     Direct teaching concerning the Lord's return
    3. 01.2.     Indirect references to the Lord's coming for
    4. 01.3.     The coming of the Lord with His saints.
    5. 01.4.     The teaching of our Lord's parables
    6. 01.5.     The return of Jesus for believers who have
    7. 01.6.     "The first resurrection."
    8. 01.7.     A general resurrection and judgment at the
    9. 02.0. The Lord's Coming, Israel; and the Church
   10. 02.1.     The Hope of the Church
   11. 02.2.     The Hope of Israel and Creation.
   12. 02.3.     The Church of God.
   13. 03.0. The Revelation of Jesus Christ
   14. 03.1.     "The Things Which Are"
   15. 03.2.     Preliminary Judgments.
   16. 03.3.     The Glorious Coming and Kingdom of Christ.
   17. S.   A Man in Christ
   18. S.   Behold, I Stand at the Door
   19. S.   Children of Light
   20. S.   Followers of God
   21. S.   Gift and Office.
   22. S.   Living Christ in the World.
   23. S.   Occupy till I come
   24. S.   The Christian at Home.
   25. S.   The Destruction of Jerusalem and the Abomination of Desolation
   26. S.   The Edification of the Body of Christ.
   27. S.   The First Thought of Christ in Resurrection.
   28. S.   The Gifts of an Ascended Christ.
   29. S.   The Lord's Prophecy concerning Jerusalem.
   30. S.   What is a Christian's Rule of Life, Christ or the Law?
   31. S.   Words of Man's Wisdom
   32. S.   Wrestling in the Heavenly Places

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  CHAPTER 1: 01.0 THE HOPE OF THE CHURCH.
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The Hope of the Church. by T. B. Baines.


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  CHAPTER 2: 01.1.     DIRECT TEACHING CONCERNING THE LORD'S RETURN
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Chapter 1.

Direct teaching concerning the Lord’s return for living believers. The point of
most immediate interest to the believer is the meaning to be attached to the
phrase, "The Coming of the Lord:" Does Scripture in these words speak of the
Christian’s death, or of Christ’s coming to raise and judge the dead at the end
of the world? Or do the words hold out a hope of a totally different nature? I
propose, in this first part, to examine what the Word of God says about the
Coming of the Lord, first as is affects the living saint and next as it affects
the dead. The Old Testament Scriptures are full of the coming of Messiah in
glory and power. Indeed the Jews were so occupied with these prophecies that
they overlooked these which foretold His coming in weakness and humiliation. His
coming in power is often spoken of by Jesus Himself and by His disciples in
their converse with one another.

They ask, "What shall be the sign of Thy coming?" (Mat 24:3); are told to watch,
"for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come" (Mat 24:42); and admonished by
the question — "When the Son of man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?"
(Luk 18:8). Christ’s second coming was, therefore, expected by the disciples,
and held a considerable place in His own teaching. But in the epistles there
appears another fact, a "mystery" hidden from the Old Testament prophets, and
only hinted at by Jesus himself. This is that the Lord’s coming is divided into
two different acts. The prophets, almost invariably, foretell only the coming of
the Messiah Himself, and though one of them declares — "The Lord my God shall
come, and all the saints with Thee" (Zec 14:5) — nothing here, or elsewhere in
the Old Testament, indicates who these saints are. The New Testament, however,
not only shows that in this glorious advent Christ will be accompanied by His
saints, but makes it plain that these saints are believers, displayed in
glorified bodies, and in the likeness of the risen Lord Himself. In order for
this, however, it is necessary that before Jesus comes to reign over the earth,
his saints should have been taken up to heaven. Accordingly the epistles make
known that the first act in the Lord’s coming will be to take believers to be
with Himself, and the second His return with them to the world. When our Lord
was on earth the time for revealing this mystery had not arrived, so that He
usually speaks of his coming in general terms, without distinguishing its two
different parts. Hence it is only from the epistles that we can fully understand
His teaching on this subject, though when seen in their light, its Divine
perfection becomes obvious. In the first three gospels especially, the two
parts, though both alluded to, are so blended, that it will be desirable to
postpone the examination of their teaching until we have discovered the key by
which its hidden treasures are unlocked. In the fourth gospel, however, though
the mystery is not distinctly revealed, the return of the Lord for His saints is
held out as a hope before the hearts of the disciples. On the night of His
betrayal, Jesus says, "Let not your heart be troubled; ye believe in God,
believe also in Me. 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 14:1-3). These words were spoken to comfort his
disciples on His departure. He tells them that while absent He will prepare a
place for them; and will presently return to take them to be with Himself. This
passage is often applied to the death of believers. Such an interpretation,
however, is unwarranted by other scriptures, and is open to serious objection.
The disciples knew, not only of a resurrection, but of the separate existence of
the spirit, whether in happiness, like Lazarus, or in torment, like the rich
man. If, therefore, Jesus was only telling them that after death their spirits
would be with Him in paradise, He merely told them what they knew. Concerning
death, moreover, it is said that the believer goes to be with Jesus, never that
Jesus comes for the believer. Nor would the hope given to the disciples, at such
a crisis, be that of entering into any imperfect state, such as the existence of
the spirit even in paradise. The passage implies completeness, that perfect
reunion which only takes place "when this corruptible shall have put on
incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality." Death is not the
believer’s hope, but the redemption of the body. "If our earthly house of this
tabernacle be dissolved," still the hope is the "house not made with hands,
eternal in the heavens." Paul is willing no doubt, "to be absent from the body
and to be present with the Lord," but his desire is, "not that we would be
unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life" (2Co
5:1-9). This, the perfect state, is the true Christian hope, and surely in the
parting words of comfort to his disciples, when promising to come again and take
them to Himself, nothing short of the fulfilment of this hope can have been in
the Lord’s mind. That these words disclose a new prospect, not the spirit’s
presence with Jesus after death, is clear from the closing verses of this
gospel. There our Lord first foretells Peter’s death; then, being asked what
should become of John, replies — "If I will that he tarry till I come, what is
that to thee?" (John 21:22). Now this could not mean that John might live till
the end of the world. But neither could it mean that John might go to be with
Jesus at his death. In this case, how would he have differed from Peter or any
of the other disciples? Moreover, such an interpretation would rob the words of
all meaning, making them equivalent to this — "If I will that he lives till he
dies, what is that to thee?" The coming referred to, therefore, is neither the
departure to be with Jesus at death, nor His appearing at the end of the world.
Its true character is not far to seek. It is here spoken of, not as one of an
indefinite number of similar events, like the deaths of individual believers,
but as a single transaction, of which the disciples had already heard. Such a
transaction Jesus had but lately named when He promised to come again for His
disciples. It is true He did not distinguish it from the other part of His
coming, but He brought it out as a special feature, and it was to this feature
that John’s heart would turn when he heard the words uttered. What can be
simpler? On a solemn occasion Jesus tells his disciples that He will come to
take them to Himself. Shortly afterwards He bids them not to be surprised if one
of them tarries till He comes. However little the disciples might yet be able to
distinguish between the two pasts of His coming, there can surely be no doubt
that these utterances were meant to bring before their minds the same blessed
hope. These two passages, then, teach us: First the return of Jesus for His
saints, not at death or the end of the world, but at some definite though
unrevealed period, when all shall be brought together to the place He has gone
to prepare for them; and secondly, that this coming again, though uncertain as
to time, might occur before the death of one, at least, of the apostles. So the
disciples understood it, for there "went this saying abroad among the brethren,
that that disciple should not die" (John 21:23), and though the Holy Ghost
corrects this error, we are never told that it consisted in believing that Jesus
might come in John’s lifetime; still less in believing that if He did come, John
would not die. Christ’s own words expressly authorised the former belief; and
other parts of Scripture make it clear that Christians living at the Lord’s
coming will be translated without seeing death. The disciples’ error, therefore,
did not consist in this understanding of the words of Jesus; but in adding to
those words, and thus converting a statement that John might tarry into a
prediction that he would tarry. Nor is anything said about unusual longevity on
the part of John. The time of the Lord’s coming is studiously kept out of sight.
The only event that must necessarily happen, according to these scriptures,
before the promised return of Jesus for his disciples, was the martyrdom of
Peter, a thing which, in an age of persecution, might have occurred at almost
any hour. When that had taken place, there was no reason to be deduced from
these passages why the return of Jesus should not be momentarily expected.

Let us look at the position of the early disciples, remembering that this was
almost all the light they yet had on the subject. Of the two whose future career
had been spoken of, one had been told that he must suffer death, the other that
he might tarry till Jesus came. Would it not be a perfectly natural and lawful
thing for John to be living in anticipation of the Lord’s coming? Would it not,
indeed, have shown sad unbelief if he had not looked for translation, but had
looked for death instead of translation? Would it not also have been lawful for
the other disciples, Peter excepted, to anticipate that the Lord might come in
their lifetime, and to have constantly before their souls the refreshing hope
that the One whom they loved, and who had departed from them, would soon return
to take them to Himself?

It is important to ascertain the legitimate effect which these words of our Lord
would have on the minds of the disciples, because they were the only clear light
on this subject which they yet possessed. It is true there were other prophecies
as to His coming uttered by Himself, but these were intentionally obscure as to
the great point here brought out namely, the coming of the Lord for His saints
apart from and before His coming in power and glory. In no other place had the
Lord Jesus held out the hope of His return for His disciples, without reference
to other events affecting His coming to the world. The hope, therefore, was
clearly expressed, in very few words, and of little capable of erroneous
interpretations. It is a serious thing to maintain that a hope so clearly and
definitely stated is a mistake; that the conclusion legitimately flowing from
our Lord’s own words was a conclusion which He did not mean His disciples to
draw; that the hope reasonably founded on His own promise was a hope which He
did not mean them to cherish. Rather, surely, should we infer that, though in
His wisdom God has seen fit to conceal the time, and though in His mercy He has
seen fit to delay that event, which, however blessed for believers, puts a
period to the grace in which He is now acting towards the world, yet His purpose
was to hold out this coming of His Son as a precious perennial hope for the
souls of those who are His. But though our Lord’s own language seems
sufficiently plain, it may be asked, whether it is in agreement with other
portions of God’s Word? Christ’s teaching, as we have said, only slightly
touched this special subject of His separate advent for His saints; and He left
its full significance to be brought to the hearts of His disciples by that
Spirit of Truth, who was to teach them all things, and bring all things to their
remembrance whatsoever He had said unto them. What, then, does this Holy Spirit
teach us concerning the wondrous theme we are here considering? The question is
not treated at length in the Acts, which, however, contains a passage clearly
announcing the Lord’s return, in some form or other, before the end of the
world. Immediately after His ascension, while the disciples still "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" (Acts 1:10-11). Now no time is
here mentioned, and if the passage stood by itself it might be supposed to refer
to the end of the world. But, comparing it with other passages, this
interpretation becomes impossible. For, in the first place, His coming again was
to be "in like manner" with His ascension, and nothing can be conceived more
unlike to this event than the appearance of the Judge upon the great white
throne. Secondly, when the Judge then appears, He does not come to the world,
for "the earth and the heaven flee away." It is the dead who are summoned before
the Judge, not the Judge who comes to them. (Rev 20:11-15.) But thirdly, our
Lord had Himself constantly spoken of His coming, and had only recently named
its effect upon the disciples as a special ground of consolation and hope, as
the one precious comfort to stay their hearts during His absence. What, then, is
more natural than that now, when He had just departed from His last earthly
communion with them, the promise of His coming should once more be presented to
their hearts? True, the two parts of the coming were not yet clearly made known,
nor was the special hope of His return for His saints, as distinct from the
other act, here revealed. Still the coming, of which this feature was now
taught, is presented as a general hope, to cheer and calm the souls of the
disciples. But it is in the epistles, where the Spirit has fully unfolded "all
that Jesus began both to do and teach" while here on earth, that this "mystery"
of the separate coming for the saints, hitherto hid in the counsels of God, is
first distinctly revealed. The earliest of these epistles, as nearly all
competent critics are agreed, is the first of those addressed to the
Thessalonians. Paul had spent at the outside three or four weeks in Thessalonica
— had only for "three Sabbath days reasoned with them out of the Scriptures"
(Acts 17:2) — and the whole of the instruction possessed by the believers was
derived from him during this brief visit, which was followed shortly by his
first epistle. It is interesting, therefore, to observe the truth they had
received, and to note its practical effect. On both these points the Holy Ghost
has given full information. The apostle rejoices in their "work of faith, and
labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ." They "were
ensamples to all that believe." Not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in
every place, people were relating how these Thessalonian converts had "turned to
God from idols, to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from
heaven" (1Th 1:9-10). These, then, were the two characteristics of the
Thessalonian Church. Can it be said that they are the distinguishing marks of
Christians at the present day? It may be answered that all believers expect
Jesus to come from heaven, and this is, no doubt, true. But surely no person,
looking at modern Christians, would seize upon this as a leading feature of
their faith The expression appears to imply, what the rest of the epistle
plainly shows, that there was among these Thessalonians something much more than
a distant expectation of the Lord’s coming at the end of the world; that it was
a present hope, influencing all their thoughts, their feelings, and their
practical life, a hope so vivid and powerful as to attract the attention of "all
that believe in Macedonia and Achaia."

If then, this was a delusion arising from imperfect knowledge, how is it that
the apostle, instead of putting them right, records this waiting attitude, side
by side with their turning to God, as a portion of the bright testimony they
were bearing? In the next chapter he again incidentally alludes to the hope, and
again without the slightest hint that the Thessalonians had fallen into error,
or were cherishing unfounded expectations. In the fourth chapter, to which we
shall presently have occasion more fully to refer, the apostle alludes to the
Lord’s coming in these remarkable terms — "For this we say unto you by the word
of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord
shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord Himself shall descend from
heaven with a shout. . . . 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" (1Th
4:15-18). Jesus had told His disciples, that one of them might tarry till His
return. Here the Holy Ghost intimates that believers then living might also
remain to that time. He contrasts the "we which are alive" with "them which are
asleep." What is the significance of the word "we" used in this manner? A
speaker might say to his audience — "We who live to the end of this century." It
would not mean that any of them must live till then, merely that they might. But
it would be senseless to say — "We who live to the end of the next century." So,
here, the Holy Ghost is not revealing the time of Christ’s return, but, while
leaving this indefinite, is urging the hope which God would have believers
cherish. If He did not mean them to be looking for the Lord’s coming during
their own lifetime, the use of the first person would be not only meaningless
but erroneous.

Compare this language with our Lord’s own words. Jesus says — "I will come
again;" Paul says — "The Lord Himself shell descend from heaven." Jesus says —
"I will receive you unto Myself;" Paul says that the believers still living
"shall be caught up to meet the Lord in the air." Jesus gives as His motive,
"That where I am, there ye may be also;" Paul declares — "So shall we ever be
with the Lord." Jesus gives His promise that the hearts of the disciples might
not be troubled; Paul exhorts sorrowing believers to "comfort one another with
these words." There can surely be no question that these passages, running so
closely parallel, relate to the same event. And what is the event? Not the end
of the world, for it might happen in the lifetime of the generation then on the
earth. Not death, for the living were to be caught up without seeing death. It
can be nothing else, then, but the coming of the Lord for His own, according to
the gracious promise He had, before His departure, given the disciples.

Very similar, and in some respects even stronger, is the language used by the
same apostle in addressing the Corinthian Church. "Behold," he says, "I show you
a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment in
the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the
dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed" (1Co 15:51-52).
Here, then, we are expressly told what in the other passage we might confidently
infer, that those living at the Lord’s coming for His saints shall not die, but
shall be changed. But is not this coming at the end of the world? Let us look
closely at the text. There is no mention here made of the resurrection of
unbelievers. The two classes put in contrast are, therefore, believers who will
be living at this advent and believers who are dead. Now, in which of these
classes does the apostle range himself and those to whom he was writing? Not
with the dead, but with the living. Had he meant that both he and they would be
in their graves, he would have said "The trumpet shall sound, and we shall be
raised incorruptible, and the living shall be changed." So modern theology puts
it. The Holy Ghost inverts it, classing the present generation as those who
might live to the Lord’s coming. If it be said that the Spirit, who searcheth
"the deep things of God" must have known that the Thessalonians would die before
the Lord’s return, and cannot, therefore, have meant them to look out for it as
a present hope, the answer is, that Christ Himself did so place it before John,
though, of course, He knew that it would not happen till after John’s death.
"The foolishness of God is wiser than men." These words were chosen, that the
hope of the Lord’s coming might be ever present to the believer’s heart. But
does not Scripture expressly say that "it is appointed unto men once to die"?
Let us examine the passage in which these words occur. Speaking of Christ’s one
offering, it says — "Now once, in the end of the world, hath He appeared to put
away sin by the sacrifice of Himself; and as it is appointed unto men once to
die, but after this the judgment Christ was once offered to bear the sins of
many; and unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time, apart
from sin, unto salvation" (Heb 9:26-28). This doubtless shows that, since sin
entered, it is the order of nature that man should die. But why is this stated
here? Simply to bring out the fact that Christ has taken man’s place, and
endured the death and judgment which were his due. The argument is, that as
these were appointed to man in consequence of sin, so, in like manner — Christ
suffered the same lot; and now, having on His first appearing borne death and
judgment as the believer’s substitute, He can appear to him a second time,
having nothing more to do with sin, for his salvation. This is in harmony with
the whole argument of the chapter, which contrasts the partial and temporary
result of the Levitical sacrifices with the perfect work of Christ, who "now
once, in the end of the world, hath appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of
Himself." Instead of proving, therefore, that death and judgment must
necessarily come upon man, the text shows that neither death nor judgment, as
the penalty for sin, remain to the believer. And this is obvious from another
consideration. The text declares that "it is appointed unto men once to die, but
after this the judgment." If it proves, then, that the believer must die, it
proves that he must be judged; and if it does not prove that he must be judged,
it does not prove that he must die. But our Lord Himself says — "He that heareth
My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not
come into judgment" (John 5:24). The word in the original is the same as in the
Hebrews, though our translation renders it "condemnation." The believer, then,
has passed out of the condition described in this text, and having escaped the
judgment, which is one penalty of sin, he cannot be liable to the death, which
is the other.

But, if so, why do believers die? Not as the penalty for sin, for if the
believer has to bear any part of the penalty of sin, the atonement of Christ is
not a perfect work. But though the penalty for sin has gone, the consequences of
sin have not yet been thoroughly effaced, nor will be until "the redemption of
the body." As connected with the "first man," the body is "of the earth,
earthy," and as such liable to natural decay. It is no longer judicially subject
to death, and therefore, should the Lord come before its powers are exhausted,
it will be changed at once, without tasting death, from "the image of the
earthy" into "the image of the heavenly." But it is naturally subject to decay,
and should the Lord tarry till its strength fails, it falls asleep and awaits
its own redemption and the Lord’s coming in the grave, instead of upon the
earth. Hence the death of the believer is spoken of in figures pointing to its
transitory nature and blessed termination — "falling asleep in Jesus," pulling
down a tabernacle, or "sowing in weakness" what is "raised in power."


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  CHAPTER 3: 01.2.     INDIRECT REFERENCES TO THE LORD'S COMING FOR
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Chapter 2.

Indirect references to the Lord’s coming for living believers.

We have looked at the direct teaching of Scripture concerning the Lord’s return
for His living saints. The language is clear, setting it forth as a present
hope, and, though avoiding dates, speaking of it as an event for which the
believer should be constantly waiting. God does not repeat Himself, and we have
not elsewhere the same full statement of the doctrine, but the epistles abound
in allusions to it from which we may gather much valuable truth.

Such incidental references prove the familiarity of the hope to the early
Christians, the large place it occupied in their thoughts and hearts, and the
various practical aspects in which it was regarded. It is in this last light
that it may be most convenient for us now to examine them.

I. The expectation of the Lord’s speedy return is constantly used as an
incentive to sobriety, moderation, and godliness of walk. Thus the apostle,
after various practical exhortations, writes — "And that, knowing the time, that
now it is high time to awake out of sleep, for now is our salvation nearer than
when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand; let us, therefore,
cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light" (Rom
13:11-12). Now "salvation" is here held out as a near prospect, and the question
is, what the salvation referred to means? It is not conversion or forgiveness of
sins, for these are not a hope, but a present portion; the believer being "in
Christ," and subject neither to condemnation nor separation. It is not death, at
least death is never elsewhere thus described. It is not the end of the world,
for that, as the Romans knew, was a distant event, to the near approach of which
any appeal would have been both fruitless and false.

What, then, is the "salvation" here spoken of? We have seen that in the Hebrews
"salvation" is connected with the Lord’s coming "the second time." Having put
away sin at His first coming, He will "appear the second time" — not to the
world, but — "unto them that look for Him," "apart from sin unto salvation." All
believers look for Jesus, and I doubt not that all are here included. Their
salvation, then, takes place at His second advent. If, therefore, "salvation" is
used in the same sense in the Romans as in the Hebrews, the "salvation" which is
said to be drawing near is that which is wrought by the coming of Jesus for His
saints. But as the character and object of the epistles are different, it may be
well to inquire whether any light as to the meaning of the word can be gathered
from the Romans itself. Let us take this passage — "We ourselves groan within
ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. For we
are saved by hope" (Rom 8:23-24). The salvation here spoken of then, is not
security, or freedom from condemnation, which the believer already enjoys; but a
hope for which, though having "the first-fruits of the Spirit," he waits and
even groans. Nor is it the death of the body, or the spirit going to be with
Jesus. Just the opposite; it is "the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our
body." Believers are "predestinated to be conformed to the image of God’s Son"
(Rom 8:29). They have already "received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry,
Abba, Father." But the body is not yet conformed to Christ’s image, and the work
of adoption is not completed until this also is redeemed. It is, then, for this
we wait. This is the salvation for which we hope. But this "redemption of the
body" is what Christ effects at His coming for His saints, when living believers
"shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye;" or, as stated in
Thessalonians, "we which are alive and remain, shall be caught up in the clouds
to meet the Lord in the air." Salvation, then, in the Romans, as in the Hebrews,
is the change wrought in believers when Jesus returns to take them to the place
He has gone to prepare for them. And how is this salvation spoken of? As a
distant hope, to be realised at some remote period? No; but as a living hope,
which might be realised at any moment, and in the near prospect of which
vigilance and sobriety are urged as befitting the Christian. It is regarded,
indeed, as already at hand, for in God’s thoughts one day is as a thousand
years, and a thousand years as one day. Times and seasons are in His power, and
the believer’s place is not to be calculating dates, but to be looking for the
Lord’s return. God in wisdom and grace may postpone the day; but to the Church
the hope should be ever present. The Lord’s coming is applied in the same
practical way in the Epistle to the Philippians. They are warned not to "mind
earthly things," and exhorted to follow the apostle: "For our conversation is in
heaven, from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who
shall change our body of humiliation, that it may be fashioned like unto His
body of glory" (Php 3:20-21). Here, again, the apostle is waiting, not for
death, but for the coming of Jesus, whom he expects as a Saviour, that is, one
who brings, salvation; and the salvation He brings is that same "redemption of
the body" named in Romans as the Christian’s hope; that same transformation
described in Corinthians as the expectation of the living believer; that same
rapture referred to in Thessalonians as awaiting us "who are alive and remain;"
that same salvation spoken of in Hebrews as the object of Christ’s second
appearing to his own redeemed ones. And here, again, it is a present hope; the
apostle says — "We are looking for the Saviour," that is, are now in the
attitude of expectation. Nor is it merely the present tense which shows this.
The immediate character of the hope is urged as a reason against their being
engrossed with earthly things, just as, in the next chapter, they are exhorted —
"Let your moderation (or yieldingness) be known unto all men. The Lord is at
hand" (1Th 4:5). The anticipation of the Lord’s speedy return was to check
self-assertion and self seeking. It is no general exhortation to yieldingness,
but an exhortation founded on the truth that the Lord is at hand, so real and
practical was this hope to the Philippian believers!

It is used with a similar object in the Epistle to Titus — "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 appearing of the
glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ" (Tit 2:11-13). Here are two
things looked for, "the appearing of the glory," and "that blessed hope." What
is meant by these last words? Not conversion, for that is a fact; nor death, for
that is never spoken of as a hope. In Romans the hope is "the redemption of the
body;" in Philippians the changing of the body into Christ’s likeness, which
would take place at his coming, and might be in the believer’s lifetime. This
hope, then, was familiar to Titus, and surely it can be to none other that the
apostle alludes in these terms. This will be still more evident when we see how
closely the other part of Christ’s coming, here called "the appearing of the
glory," is associated with the first act of His return for His saints. But apart
from this inference, the nature of the hope held out in the other epistles makes
it morally certain that the "blessed hope thus mentioned is the same to which
such frequent reference is elsewhere made. As a prospect exercising a
sanctifying power over the soul, it is further used by Paul in writing to the
Thessalonians. He desires that their "whole spirit and soul and body be
preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1Th 5:23). Now if
the Lord’s advent might be expected in their lifetime, this language is quite
natural. But how could it be used, if the Holy Ghost meant believers to regard
this coming as long after their own deaths? Where death is looked for the words
are — "I am ready to be offered up," or, "Be thou faithful unto death." Such
language is used by most Christians as of universal application. Why, then, does
the Spirit here speak so differently? Why does He bid them look for the Lord’s
coming instead of death? Surely because the Lord’s coming, and not death, is
that for which He would have believers waiting. This attitude of longing
expectation is what Jesus and the Holy Ghost alike enjoin. And so, in writing at
a later period to the same Church, the apostle prays that the Lord would direct
their hearts "into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ"
(2Th 3:5), or rather, "the patience of Christ," He waiting in heaven, and we, in
fellowship with Him, here on earth. Nor is this truth confined to Paul. Its
doctrinal exposition is not indeed, found elsewhere, but it is often alluded to
as a familiar truth, forming the basis of practical exhortations. Thus Peter
says — "The end of all things is at hand; be ye therefore sober, and watch unto
prayer" (1Pe 4:7). "The end of all things" is not death; and it cannot mean the
end of the world, for the end of the world was not at hand. It was an event of
the utmost magnitude, as the words import and at the same time one which might
be speedily anticipated. Only one such event is elsewhere spoken of. The Lord’s
coming is held out as a present expectation, as an incentive to sobriety and
watchfulness, and as a transaction of tremendous importance, closing God’s
present dealings, and bringing in an entirely new order of things. The coming,
indeed, is here viewed in its widest sense, including both its parts, but that
it is the coming there can be no doubt. And this event is said to be "at hand,"
and is used as a ground of exhortation to sobriety and prayerfulness.

So, too, the Apocalypse presents this hope in those closing verses where, after
the unfolding of the events about to happen on the earth, and of the glories of
"the Bride, the Lamb’s wife," the Lord once more turns to speak with His
servants as to the moral effect which this revelation should produce on the
hearts of those who received it. This He connects with the near prospect of His
Own return — "Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of
the prophecy of this book," adding, in connection with the responsibility of the
believer, "Behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man
according as his work shall be" (Rev 22:7; Rev 22:12). It is most deeply
interesting to see how, in the closing words of exhortation and warning to His
Church, His people’s affections are awakened and their consciences aroused by
the repeated references to His speedy return.

II. In the above quotations we have seen how this "blessed hope" is constantly
employed to enforce holiness and godliness in individual walk. In the same
spirit it is further used to enjoin faithfulness in the midst of ecclesiastical
corruption. It is the fence God has provided against the evils within the
Church, as well as against the evils of the surrounding world. Fearful
corruption and wickedness had shown themselves at Thyatira, and judgment was
threatened. But in the midst of the failure were some faithful ones, whom the
Lord thus addressed — "But unto you I say, even unto the rest in Thyatira, as
many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as
they speak, I will put upon you none other burden. But that which ye have, hold
fast till I come" (Rev 2:24-25). The Church at Philadelphia was weak, but was
maintaining the truth amidst opposition. To it the Lord writes — "Behold, I come
quickly; hold fast that which thou hast, that no man take thy crown" (Rev 3:11).
All around were weakness and wickedness, and the faithful are enjoined to "hold
fast" what they have. But till what time? In one case it is said — "Till I
come;" in the other it is implied, and the hope is given — "Behold, I come
quickly." Now why name the Lord’s coming, if the believers were to look for
death, and not the Lord’s coming? Where death is meant, it is mentioned. In
these very epistles the Lord writes — "Be thou faithful unto death;" just as
when on earth He had told His disciples — "Whosoever killeth you will think that
he doeth God service." Death, then, was not what the faithful brethren in
Thyatira and Philadelphia were to look for, but another event. And this other
event might happen in their lifetime, for how else could they be exhorted to
hold fast what they had until it occurred? Or why should they be told that the
Lord would come quickly, if it were not meant to cheer their hearts as a present
anticipation?

So, too, in the Epistle to the Hebrews. Some of those addressed were in danger
of being shaken in the faith. Persecution was at hand, and they had "not yet
resisted unto blood." The apostle trembled for the reality of the work in some
of their hearts, and warns them most solemnly against apostasy after receiving
so much truth and being made partakers of such outward privileges. He earnestly
beseeches them — "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" (Heb 10:35-37). A modern preacher
would say — "Yet a little while, and this scene will close; death will put an
end to your troubles, and you will depart to be with Jesus, which is far
better." But this is not the language of the Holy Ghost. Why? Because the Holy
Ghost, knowing the mind of God, always puts the Lord’s coming, and not death, as
the expectation of the Christian. This blessed hope was before the Hebrews, and
in its cheering light let them have patience, do the will of God, and look for
the certain promise. We are told, too, to consider one another, to provoke unto
love and to good works; not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as
the manner of some is; but exhorting one another, and so much the more as ye see
the day approaching" (Heb 10:24-25). Here "the day" is not exactly held out as a
hope, but rather as an incentive to faithfulness. It is the Lord’s coming viewed
in its whole scope, more than the special prospect of his advent to take the
believer to the Father’s house. Stilt this, as the first part of the coming,
was, of course, included, and we again find that this event is spoken of as
approaching, as near enough to give point to exhortations urging a line of
behaviour suited to the believer under such circumstances.

III. In these last cases the idea of trial and persecution was before the
apostle’s mind, and the Lord’s coming is named in order to strengthen the tried
ones against the evil around. But the same hope is also presented to stay the
heart against suffering arising from quite different causes. In such a practical
epistle as James, no matter of mere curious speculation would enter. Yet here
the hope of the Lord’s return is brought in to comfort the poor brethren, who
were groaning under oppression. "Be patient, therefore, brethren, unto the
coming of the Lord" (Jas 5:7). If James had meant "unto death," he would have
said so. It is manifest that he could not mean the end of the world. He
intended, therefore, to point to the Lord’s coming as an event that might happen
before death, and in the prospect of which they were to find their comfort. This
is obvious, also, from the way in which he continues — "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" (vv. 7, 8). Mark how accurate
and tender the words of comfort here spoken. The blessed hope is presented, not
once, but twice, for the healing of their wounded spirits, and yet they are
warned against impatience. Long waiting may be needed, but they are not to lose
the hope because of its delay; for, though in man’s estimate it might tarry,
according to God’s Word, it "draweth nigh."

IV. But this hope of Christ’s return, however it may be used for warning, for
exhortation, or for comfort, derives its chief power from the fact that it is
the expression of the true heart’s affectionate longing for an absent Lord. The
One, "whom, having not seen, we love," is the One for whose return and presence
our hearts should long. And it is, therefore, in this aspect that we have the
Lord’s coming once more placed before us. In the closing chapter of the
Apocalypse, "the Spirit and the Bride" — that is, the Church — say, "Come;" and
our Lord’s last words in this book are, "Surely I come quickly," to which the
response arises — "Amen; even so, come, Lord Jesus" (Rev 22:17-20). To what
coming, then, is it that the Lord here alludes? Surely to that which He left
behind Him as a legacy of hope to His disciples, when he told them that He went
to prepare a place for them, and would come again and take them to Himself; to
that with which He linked the writer of this book in those memorable words — "If
I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?" And here I would point
out that the language is not that of individual believers, but that of the
Church, the Bride, and also of the Spirit. In an individual Christian, it might
be urged that it meant a longing for death and to be with Jesus. But such an
interpretation is manifestly inadmissible if used by the Spirit and the Bride.
Still more forced and unmeaning would such language be in the mouth of the
Church, if the coming which it invites were the coming at the end of the world.
In this very book the most tremendous catastrophes are foretold, which had
certainly not taken place when the book was closed. Yet even then Jesus says,
"Behold, I come quickly," and even then the response goes up — "Amen; even so,
come, Lord Jesus." What can we infer but that the coming of the Lord might
legitimately be anticipated before these events occurred? No one, knowing the
predictions of Scripture, could have said, "Come, Lord Jesus," if this coming
were not to be till after these predictions were fulfilled. The words imply that
the event prayed for was one which might happen at any moment, not one which
could only follow at the close of a long train of unaccomplished prophecy.

V. "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh" and if the heart be
really full of this prospect, its expectation will make itself known in various
unforeseen and casual ways. This is another form in which the hope appears. Thus
it is used as a general basis for appeal. "Now, we beseech you, brethren," says
Paul to the Thessalonians, "by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our
gathering together unto Him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind" (2Th 2:1-2).
Again, in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper, which might seem simply a
retrospective act, the same thought of the Lord’s coming is presented: "For, as
often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord’s death till
He come" (1Co 11:26). These passages do not, indeed, like others, define the
character of the coming or its speedy occurrence. But they show how constantly
it was before the mind of the apostles and the early believers, how it entered
into and coloured all their thoughts, words, and actions. No dim general
expectation of His advent at the end of the of world would account for its
introduction in the way in which it is brought in here.

VI. But this coming of the Lord has yet another aspect which we solemnly urge on
those believers who are disposed to treat it as a curious and even frivolous
speculation. It is by the contempt and ridicule of this doctrine that the
decline of the last days will be especially marked. "There shall come in the
last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the
promise of His coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as
they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are
ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth
standing out of the water, and in the water; whereby the world that then was,
being overflowed with water, perished; but the heavens and the earth, which are
now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of
judgment and perdition of ungodly men. But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one
thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand is years, and a thousand
years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His premise, as some men
count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should
perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will
come as a thief in the night" (2Pe 3:3-10).

If the Lord’s coming is to believers a blessed hope, to professing Christendom
it is the end of hope. It shuts the door of grace, reserving those left behind
for the terrible ushering in of the day of the Lord, when He comes to take
"vengeance on them that know not God," and for the still darker hour when that
day shall close in the conflagration of the world and the judgment of the great
white throne. The apostle, speaking of professing Christendom, here foretells
that in the last days the Lord’s coming will be a subject of derision. Men will
point to the world around, declare everything to be prosperous, and discern no
sign of change. Alas! they are "willingly ignorant" that so it was before the
flood. Did the mockery excited by the long warning prevent the deluge coming and
sweeping the scoffers away? Nor will it stay the execution of judgment on the
world in whose stability men are trusting. The delay may seem long, for God’s
measure of time is not like man’s; but the Lord has not forgotten his promise.
If He has delayed its fulfilment, it is that the despisers of His grace might be
gathered in, not being willing that any should perish, but that all should come
to repentance. When the time is arrived, the promise will be fulfilled, and then
the terrible day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night for the
destruction of those who are left behind. Is not this scoffing what we see
around us? But there is something still sadder in beholding many of the Lord’s
true children swelling this cry of mocking incredulity, and both in their
religious systems, in their political calculations, and in their whole scheme of
worldly conduct asking with like unbelief, or putting aside with like
indifference, the solemn question — Where is the promise of His coming?


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  CHAPTER 4: 01.3.     THE COMING OF THE LORD WITH HIS SAINTS.
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Chapter 3. The coming of the Lord with His saints. The passages cited in the
preceding chapters either treat the Lord’s return in a general sense, without
distinguishing between its two acts, or, in the greater number of instances,
describe only the first act, the coming of Jesus for His saints. The second act,
the return of Jesus with His saints, is more frequently spoken of as the
"appearing," the "revelation," or the "manifestation" of the Lord, and is not,
like the other, a doctrine specially confined to the New Testament. On the
contrary, as we shall see more fully at a later stage, this return of Jesus to
the earth in glory and power is a theme which occupies a most prominent place in
Old Testament teaching, and the great point added in the New Testament is that,
when He thus returns, He will be accompanied by those who have previously been
caught up to meet Him in the air. Until the special New Testament hope, the
return of Jesus for His saints, had been revealed, their return with Him in
glory was a feature which could not be made known. My object in this chapter is
not to enter into the character or circumstances of this manifestation of Jesus
in glory to the earth, but simply to show that whenever and however it occurs,
the saints are manifested with Him, thus proving that they must have been taken
up to heaven at a still earlier period. In the second psalm the return of Jesus
is described. The Gentiles are raging, the people imagining a vain thing, the
kings and rulers of the earth conspiring against Jehovah and against His Christ.
Then it is that the Lord vexes them in Hi s sore displeasure, and declares that
in spite of their rage, He has set His king upon Zion, the hill of His holiness.
Christ then publishes the decree — "Jehovah hath said unto Me, Thou art My Son;
this day have I begotten Thee. Ask of Me, and I shall give Thee the gentiles for
Thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for Thy possession. Thou
shalt break them with a rod of iron; Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a
potter’s vessel" (Psa 2:7-9). No passage could on its face bear stronger
evidence of God’s purpose to establish Christ’s authority on earth by power and
judgments. Language less descriptive of the spread of Christian truth, or
language more descriptive of the forcible and violent establishment of dominion,
could hardly be devised. But we are not left to conjecture as to how the
prediction of this psalm receives its accomplishment. On the contrary, its
fulfilment is thus graphically narrated. "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a
white horse: and He that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in
righteousness 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 homes, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And 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 winepress of the fierceness and wrath of
Almighty God" (Rev 19:11-15). The passage then goes on to describe the gathering
of the armies of the beast and the false prophet, the capture and fearful doom
of the two leaders and the destruction of their followers, the binding and
imprisonment of Satan, and the reign of Christ together with His saints for a
thousand years. That the One here described is Christ cannot be questioned, and
that the work He accomplishes is the same work as that foretold in the second
psalm the identity of the language clearly proves. The forcible establishment of
Christ’s dominion, therefore, and the destructive judgment of his enemies, takes
place at least a thousand years before the end of the world. He then comes to
the earth in manifested glory and resistless strength to execute the judgments
of God and to reign in righteousness over the world. But there is a feature in
this description of His return which does not appear in the corresponding
passage in the Psalms. In the Revelation, we find that He is followed by the
armies of heaven, and the question arises — "What age are these armies of
heaven, and of whom do they consist?" By looking a little further back in the
same chapter, we discover something which casts light on this subject. We there
find mighty rejoicings going on in heaven — "the voice of a great multitude, and
as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying,
Alleluia; for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth" (Rev 19:6). But the song of joy
and thanksgiving does not stop here. This magnificent chorus goes on to praise
God, that "the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself
ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean
and white: for the fine linen is the righteousnesses of saints" (vv. 7, 8).

Now the Lamb’s wife is, we need hardly say, the Church, which, therefore, is
beheld in heaven previous to the sudden and terrible appearance of Christ to
execute judgment on the earth. But not only is the Church in heaven; it is also
clothed in fine linen, which is the same dress in which the armies of heaven,
who follow Jesus, make their appearance shortly afterwards. Nor is this mere
coincidence. The fine linen has a peculiar meaning; it is the righteousnesses of
saints. Those, therefore, who issue from heaven with Jesus are attired in
raiment which has just before been said to be emblematic of the saints’
righteousnesses, and surely none could be clothed in such vestures except the
saints themselves. The armies of heaven, then, which fellow Jesus, are
manifestly the saints, who must, therefore, have been previously caught up to be
with Him in heaven. This is shown by another passage, where, after describing
the powers that combine with the beast against Christ — the kings of the earth
who "take counsel together against the Lord and against His Anointed" the writer
adds, "These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them, for
He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and they that are with Him are called and
chosen and faithful" (Rev 17:14). Angels are faithful, and in one passage are
spoken of as "chosen;" but we never hear of angels being "called." "Calling,"
however, specially characterises believers. They are "called to be saints," or
saints by calling (Rom 1:7; 1Co 1:2). They are described as "sanctified by God
the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called" (Jude 1:1). They "are the
called according to God’s purpose," for "whom He did predestinate, them He also
called" (Rom 8:28-30). And so in many other well-known passages. The companions
of Christ, therefore, in this victory over the beast and false prophet, the
armies of heaven spoken of as coming forth with Him, are not angels, but saints,
believers called by God’s grace, and before this period taken to be "for ever
with the Lord."

There is another link, however, by which this chain of evidence is rendered
still more complete. What we see the saints actually doing in the chapter we
have just been considering, is the very thing which is promised to them in an
earlier part of the same prophetic book. In addressing the Church at Thyatira,
Christ had thus spoken — "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 shivers, even as I
received of my Father" (Rev 2:26-27). Thus those who overcome, that is, real
believers as distinguished from false professors, are here joined with Christ
Himself in that judgment of the nations foretold in the second psalm. The armies
of heaven, then, clothed in a dress emblematic of the righteousnesses of saints,
are no other than these overcomers, that is, the true saints, who were before
seen to be in heaven. So that believers are taken to heaven before Christ comes
to reign, and when He does come, they come with Him, and in His glory.

If it is urged that the Book of Revelation is a difficult one, and that its
language is highly figurative, I reply that a special blessing is attached to
its study, so that the Spirit meant it to be understood. Besides, while
admitting that the book contains difficult passages, there are some portions as
easy as any other parts of Scripture, and the texts above cited are plain enough
for the simplest reader to comprehend. But, to remove all doubt, it may be well
to show how fully its teaching harmonises with other portions of God’s Word. The
Epistle of Jude contains a very ancient prophecy uttered by the patriarch Enoch,
the seventh from Adam, in which he foretold, "saying, Behold the Lord cometh
with ten thousand of His saints, to execute judgment upon all" (Jude 1:14-15)
Now there are but two scenes named in Scripture to which this can refer. In one
of these, the judgment of the great white throne at the end of the world, there
is nothing said about the saints being present. In the other, the coming of
Christ to take His earthly dominion, we have already seen that the saints, as
the armies of heaven, issue forth with Him, clothed in His likeness, and are His
companions in executing judgment on His foes. There can, therefore, be no doubt
that this is the event to which Enoch’s prophecy relates. In writing to the
Thessalonians, Paul says — "The Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with
His mighty angels, in flaming fire, taking vengeance on 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 believe (because our testimony among you was believed)
in that day" (2Th 1:7-10). Here, again, the scene is not at the end of the
world, for then Jesus is seated as a judge, instead of coming forth as a
minister of vengeance: And though "His mighty angels" are here named as His
companions in executing judgment, the saints are also revealed with Him; for He
is glorified in His saints, and admired in those who believe — the Thessalonians
being thus recompensed for their sufferings and persecutions. In the former
letter Paul had spoken of Christ coming "with all His saints" (1Th 3:13). He now
adds that when He comes to take vengeance on the wicked, His saints will be
manifested with Him. The manifestation is referred to as a known event and could
only be what he had named in his first letter. The testimony of Thessalonians,
therefore, exactly agrees with that of Jude and Revelation.

Rom 8:18-23 shows that while the believer is "waiting for the adoption, to wit,
the redemption of the body," he has another hope; "for I reckon," says the
apostle, "that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared
with the glory which shall be revealed to us." And when is this glory revealed?
We are told in the next verse, "For the earnest expectation of the creature (or
creation) waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God," by which it will
"be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the liberty of the glory of
the children of God." Now this is just the very thing we see in the Apocalypse.
There we behold creation groaning under fearful woes, till Jesus and all the
other sons of God are manifested in their glory, coming from heaven for its
deliverance, destroying "them which destroy the earth," and reigning in peace
and happiness for a thousand years. In the Romans, as in the Revelation, the
manifestation of the sons of God is in glory, that is, it is not while the
believer is groaning in himself but after the redemption of the body. The first
thing to be anticipated, therefore, is the coming of Jesus for His saints, when
the redemption of the body will be accomplished; and the next His appearing with
His saints to destroy his enemies, to deliver creation from its bondage, and to
establish His dominion over the uttermost parts of the earth.

Again, in another epistle, Paul says, "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" (Col 3:3-4) And John writes in the same strain, "It
doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when He shall appear, we
shall be like Him" (1Jn 3:2). This is not in heaven, for how could Christ’s
appearing in heaven be spoken of as a future thing? Is it, then, at the end of
the world? There is no Scripture to show that the believer will appear with
Christ at that time. But there is Scripture for saying that Christ will be
manifested for the deliverance of creation at least a thousand years before the
end of the world. And there is Scripture for saying that when He is thus
manifested, believers will be manifested in the same glory. Why not, then, bow
to the authority of’ God’s Word, and accept the interpretation which lets
Scripture speak for itself, and in consistency with itself, instead of forcing
it to suit our own preconceived notions? Nothing is simpler to follow than the
truth of God, if allowed to flow in its own natural bed; nothing more difficult,
if diverted into the artificial channels of human theology and tradition.

We now see, then, that Jesus will come to reign before the end of the world, and
that when He does come, His saints, including the Church, will come with Him.
Thus, while the believer’s immediate hope — for which he should be constantly
waiting — is the coming of Jesus for His saints, another hope is also often
mentioned, namely, the coming of Jesus with His saints. The first event is
generally called the Lord’s "coming;" the second His "revelation,"
"manifestation," or "appearing." But these names are not invariable. Thus Christ
"appears" to those who look for Him when He "comes" to take them to Himself;
while He "comes" at the time when He "appears" to the world. In most cases,
indeed, the nature and object of his coming or appearing are seen by a glance at
the context, and do not depend for their proper interpretation on the use of any
particular word. My object, however, is not to look into the nature of this
latter act in the Lord’s coming, but merely to show that as it long precedes the
end of the world, the rapture of the saints, which is still earlier, must also
be before the end of the world; thus establishing by independent evidence, what
we have already gathered from other sources, that there is no formidable barrier
of unfulfilled prophecy lying between the believer and the consummation of the
hope he is so often bidden to cherish. Instead, therefore, of having the
expectation of the Lord’s return as a distant prospect, with a long series of
events intervening, we have it as a present hope, for the realisation of which
we may be instantly waiting.

Both of these aspects, or rather parts, of the Lord’s coming, are held out as
hopes, but there is a difference in the way in which the hope is put forward.
The earlier act is generally so named as to show its immediate character; the
later, though never regarded as distant and though expected to produce a present
effect, is not spoken of as an event to be momentarily looked for. Again, the
coming of the Lord for His saints is a hope addressed to the affections, and the
appeals founded upon it are rather to the heart than to the interests, as a wife
would wish so to order things during her husband’s absence, that his return
might be a source of unalloyed delight. The coming of the Lord with His saints,
on the other hand, is the time when faithfulness of walk and service will be
manifested in its result, and the appeals founded upon it partake largely of
this character, the reward being presented to the mind, as well as the delight
of the Lord’s own presence. As the period when the fruits of faithful service
will be gathered, it is often spoken of by the apostle Paul. Thus, looking
forward to the results of his labours among the Corinthians, he gives thanks
that they are "waiting for the revelation (see margin) 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" (1Co 1:7-8); and he is glad that they have acknowledged
him in part, "that we are your rejoicing, even as ye also are ours in the day of
the Lord Jesus" (2Co 1:14). Writing to the Philippians, he is confident "that He
which hath begun a good work in you, will perform it until the day of Jesus
Christ" (Php 1:6); he prays that they "may be sincere and without offence till
the day of Christ" (v. 10); and trusts "that I may rejoice in the day of Christ,
that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain" (Php 2:16). So Timothy is
charged to keep the commandments laid on him by the apostle, "without spot,
unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1Ti 6:14); and in
the second epistle, the writer, looking forward to his own approaching
martyrdom, says — "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 all them also that love His appearing" (2Ti 4:8). In like manner,
the apostle writes to the Thessalonians — "For what is our hope, or joy, or
crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at
His coming?" (1Th 2:19). Here the coming is referred to in a general way, but
the prominent feature is the joy which would be experienced by the workman in
the manifested results of his labours.

It is urged, however, not only as the reward of faithfulness in service, but as
an incentive to holiness and purity of walk. In this use, the object is so
closely analogous to the practical exhortations founded on the expectation of
the Lord’s coming for His saints, that the two are sometimes united together.
The Colossians being dead with Christ, and having a life "hid with Christ in
God," are exhorted to heavenly affections by the assurance that "when Christ who
is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory" (Col
3:4); and the apostle prays that the Thessalonians may have their hearts
stablished, "unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming
of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints" (1Th 3:13). In these cases only
the coming of Jesus with His saints is named, but in others, where the same
object is in view, the two parts of the coming are used together. Thus, in the
letter to Titus (2:13) besides the "blessed hope," the believer has set before
him "the appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ," as
an incentive to the denial of ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to a sober,
righteous, and godly life. So, too, in the writings of another apostle, the
exhortation to "abide in Him, that when He shall appear, we may have confidence
and not be ashamed before Him at His coming" (1Jn 2:28), is closely associated
with the assurance "that when He shall appear, we shall be like Him, for we
shall see Him as He is," followed by the practical moral effect which this truth
has on the walk, "every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself even as
He is pure" (1Jn 3:2-3).

Another use to which this second act in the Lord’s coming is applied, is to
encourage the believer in the midst of suffering and persecution, by the
contrast of the glory in which he will then be manifested. Thus in writing to
the Romans, Paul tells them that "the sufferings of this present time are not
worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed to us" (Rom 8:18),
and in another epistle he says — "If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him"
(2Ti 2:12). Peter also encourages those to whom he writes by showing them how
"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 honour, and glory
at the appearing of Jesus Christ;" and urges them to "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" (1Pe 1:7; 1Pe 1:13). In all these cases,
the hope, though different from that of the Lord’s immediate return for His
saints, is closely connected with it, and absolutely dependent upon it, for the
believer cannot be manifested with Christ when He comes to reign on earth,
unless he has first been caught up to be with Him in glory. It is only as
establishing this truth that we now refer to it, reserving its character and
results as regards the world and God’s purposes concerning it, for consideration
at a later stage.


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  CHAPTER 5: 01.4.     THE TEACHING OF OUR LORD'S PARABLES
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Chapter 4. The teaching of our Lord’s parables concerning His coming.

During our Lord’s ministry, the time for disclosing the mystery of His separate
advent for His saints was not arrived, and in this parable the two parts of the
coming are spoken of without distinction. His words were to be interpreted by
the Holy Ghost, sent after His departure, and it is in the light of the truth
thus given that His parables must be understood. In Matthew, we read of a
"servant whom his Lord made ruler over his household to give them meat in due
season." It is said, "Blessed is that servant, whom his Lord when he cometh
shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over
all his goods. But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My Lord
delayeth his coming, and shall begin to smite his fellow-servants, and to eat
and drink with the drunken; 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
off and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and
gnashing of teeth" (Mat 24:45-51). This is followed by the parable of the wise
and foolish virgins, the wise virgins who "took oil in their vessels with their
lamps" going in with the bridegroom to the marriage, while the foolish virgins,
who "took no oil with them," when they come, after the door is shut, and
entreat, "Lord, Lord, open to us," are told in answer, "Verily I say unto you, I
know you not" (Mat 25:1-12). This leads to the practical exhortation — "Watch,
therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour" (v. 13). The rest of the
verse given in our Bible is unauthorised. In Luke, the following exhortation is
given — "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 immediately.
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 servants"
(Luk 12:35-38). This is followed by the parable of the steward, the same in all
essential particulars as in the Gospel of Matthew. In Mark, the exhortations to
watch are most solemnly given, but the teaching on this subject does not add to
that of the two other synoptical gospels.

All the parables just named represent persons awaiting the arrival of another.
The One expected is Christ. But what is the time of the coming looked forward
to? it cannot be the end of the world, for all modes of prophetic interpretation
insert a period of a thousand years following our Lord’s ministry before that
time, and no exhortation could be given to watch for an event known to be a
thousand years off. A more usual and probable explanation is, that our Lord
speaks of the hour of death. But death is not elsewhere described in any such
terms. The good man goes to be with Jesus, or is seen in Abraham’s bosom. The
bad man’s soul is required of him, or he is found in hades. Each goes to his own
place; or if either is taken, he is "carried by angels," not by Christ coming
for him. But besides this, in these parables, the Lord always comes "in a day
when he looketh not for Him, and at an hour when he is not aware." Now this is
not usually the case with death, which, more frequently than not, advances with
full warning of its approach. Moreover, the whole tone of the parables implies a
great public event such as the coming of the Lord named in the epistles, not a
mere matter of private moment like the death of individuals. It is, then, the
Lord’s coming that is here spoken of, but its two parts are not distinguished.
They form portions of a whole, and are so represented, the different times at
which different events occur not being noted. Some receive reward, others
punishment, and whether these begin when the Lord comes for His saints, or when
He comes with them, is immaterial to the object of the parable. The moral
purpose of the parables is the same as the references to the Lord’s coming in
the epistles. While the steward watches he is vigilant and sober; when he says
in his heart "My Lord delayeth his coming," he begins to beat his
fellow-servants, and to eat and drink and be drunken. How like Paul’s teaching,
— "The night is far spent, the day is at hand; let us walk honestly as in the
day, not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, but put
ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh to fulfil the
lusts thereof" (Rom 13:12-14). In both cases, watching for the Lord is the
incentive to faithfulness, while unwatchfulness leads to carelessness of walk,
indulgence of lust, and worldliness of heart. In the parable of the virgins, we
have the same point, but the condition of welcoming the bridegroom is also
shown. Watching virgins should be awake and should have oil in their lamps. All
fail in the first; as the Church did for ages lose sight of the hope of the
Lord’s coming. But there is a difference in the other matter, the possession of
oil; some having the Spirit, that is, being real believers, others only false
professors. Before the cry is raised, these classes mingle together; but when it
is heard, they divide. This shows that the expectation of the Lord’s return is
not only the spring of individual purity of walk, but the source of holy
separateness, and care for the honour of Christ, in the assembly. In all ages
there have been Christians with oil in their vessels, but till the cry of the
bridegroom’s coming was raised, they slept carelessly in company with mere empty
professors, and it is the expectation of the bridegroom’s arrival which causes
them to part fellowship. In the parable of the servants waiting for their Lord’s
return from the wedding, the same general lesson of watchfulness is inculcated,
but another element of great importance is added, in the caution given as to the
uncertainty and possible distance of the time; "and if he shall come in the
second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those
servants." What is this but an intimation that while the watch ought to be
constant it might be protracted? As the intimation to John, and the language
addressed to the Thessalonians, required watchfulness from the first, this
parable warns us against relaxing our watchfulness, or growing careless because
the expected advent has not yet taken place. In the Epistle to James, though the
sufferers are exhorted to look for the Lord’s coming, they are told that the
watch may require "long patience." So here; but the blessing of faithfulness is
all the greater. Carelessness in watching is as earnestly deprecated, and the
reward of diligence as emphatically stated, in the third watch as in the first,
in the nineteenth century as in the apostolic days. The object of the parables,
then, is just the same as that of the teaching concerning the Lord’s coming
contained in the epistles. We shall see the same thing if we look at the
rewards. In the case of the steward who acts faithfully, he is made ruler over
all that his lord has. Here the joint-heirship is shadowed forth, "if we suffer,
we shall also reign with Him." In the parable of the virgins, the blessing is
different, the wise virgins entering in with the bridegroom to the marriage
feast; while in the case of the servants found watching for their master after
he returns from the wedding, they sit down to meat, and the lord comes forth and
serves them. The figure in the two parables differs, and the reward differs to
suit it. But the principle is the same, and agrees with the "blessed hope" of
the epistles, to be for ever with the Lord, in His presence, and partakers of
His joys, the objects of His watchful love and unfailing delight. How beautiful
the fitness of our Lord’s teaching down to the minutest detail! Where it is the
heart watching for the Lord’s return, the reward is the joy of the Lord’s
communion, the blessed society of the Father’s house. Where it is the service of
patient waiting, the Lord himself owns it in service to the faithful ones. Where
it is careful watching over the Lord’s interests, the suited response is, to be
made rulers in the kingdom.

Looking at the punishment, the same is seen. The unfaithful steward is cut off.
At the time of the Lord’s coming for His saints he is left behind, no longer as
a steward, but as one under judgment, which is executed when Christ comes with
His saints and the angels of His power, "taking vengeance on them that know not
God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ." In the case of the
virgins, all that is said is that they are shut out, that is, they are not taken
up to be with Christ when he comes for His own. In both the rewards and the
punishments, no note is made of the difference of time between the two acts of
the Lord’s coming, merely the results being stated, in exact accordance with
what the epistles teach, but without reference to the period of their
realisation.

There is one common feature to be noted in all these parables. The same servants
who are bidden to watch are those who welcome their lord: the same steward who
receives his master’s charge is found in possession and rewarded or punished.
There is nothing about a succession of servants, a succession of stewards, or a
succession of virgins. Surely there is a reason for this. Our Lord would have
our affections so occupied with Himself that the brightest hope of our hearts is
His return, and therefore, here, as in the epistles, He holds it out as a hope
which may be delayed, but which should always be present. Let us search our own
heart, and ask whether the reason why this hope is so dim and unreal to us, is
not the coldness of our love towards our absent Lord, leaving room in the heart
for worldly objects and worldly affections. And now, in this and preceding
chapters, we have heard the testimony of the Holy Ghost as contained in almost
every book of the New Testament. The few exceptions, in which no reference to
this subject is made, are the two smaller Epistles of John and the Epistle to
Philemon — all short personal letters on matters of immediate interest and not
in any way entering into the discussion or statement of doctrinal questions; and
the larger and more important Epistles of Paul to the Galatians and Ephesians.
It may be well to inquire the reason for the omission in these last letters. In
writing to the Galatians the apostle is occupied exclusively with vindicating
the sufficiency of the work of Christ against those who were seeking to bring in
Jewish ordinances. It is an argumentative epistle addressed solely to this
point, and no reference to higher truths was suitable to the low condition into
which the Galatian Churches had fallen. In the Epistle to the Ephesians the
reason is different. The believer is there regarded according to God’s purposes,
as having a common standing with Christ, quickened with Him, raised with Him,
accepted in Him, and seated in heavenly places in Him. In other words, he is
seen as having already attained the goal to which the coming of the Lord will
eventually bring him. It is not, therefore, presented as a doctrinal truth; and
when we come to the practical part of the epistle, we find that here, as
elsewhere, it flows out of the doctrinal, that is, the conduct is to be
conformed to the relationship in which the believer is set. This relationship is
that of union with Christ, membership of His body, part of "the fulness of Him
that filleth all in all." And it would manifestly mar the beautiful image thus
presented, if the coming of the Lord were brought in to complete that which
according to God’s purpose, as here unfolded, is complete already.

What, then, does the testimony of the Holy Ghost, thus largely scattered over
the New Testament Scriptures teach us? It teaches us that our Lord promised to
return for His disciples, and held this out as so real and present a hope, that
when asked about what should become of one of them, His only direction was, that
he should look for His coming. It teaches us that death, as the penalty for sin,
no longer exists for believers, and that the apostle in two places, where
speaking of saints being changed and taken to Jesus, uses the first person,
implying the possibility that those then upon the earth might be among the
number. It teaches us that the Lord’s return is constantly described as "drawing
nigh," as "at hand," as "coming quickly," or by other expressions which import
its speedy occurrence, possibly within the lifetime of those addressed; and that
believers, instead of being told to wait for death, are constantly exhorted to
wait for the Lord’s coming, in a way which would be wholly misleading were this
event not intended to be held before them as one always imminent. It teaches us
that delay is not to cause the disciple to relax his vigilance, and that the
attitude of constant expectation leads to faithfulness in service and
carefulness in walk. It teaches us that another event, also occupying a large
place in Scripture, and described as the appearing or revelation of Christ — an
event long preceding the destruction of the globe — will not take place till
after the saints have been caught up to be with Jesus in heaven, and that when
this event occurs the translated saints will be manifested with Him, the sharers
of His glory, and the companions of His rule. Finally, it teaches us that this
hope, instead of being regarded as a fanciful theory, was constantly before the
minds of the primitive disciples, and that in nearly all their writings the
inspired authors of the New Testament alluded to it as familiar to their
readers, and as exercising such an influence over them that it could be used as
the basis for appeals, for comfort, for exhortation, for purity of walk, for
separation from the world, and for heavenly affections.

We would ask believers whether their own hopes and expectations are based on
this foundation, and if not, we would solemnly and earnestly inquire, on what do
they rest? Does this "blessed hope," held out before the earliest believers, and
still given as the bright beacon for the Christian’s gaze, agree with the
expectation constantly cherished, of the gradual improvement and ultimate
conversion of the world by the preaching of Christ? How could believers be told
to be waiting in present expectation of an event which could not happen until
the world was converted? If they were to expect the taking up of all living
believers at any moment, they could not expect the previous conversion of the
world. And if they were to anticipate the previous conversion of the world, they
could not be in the waiting attitude befitting servants who looked for the
coming of their Lord. We shall presently see how utterly destitute of Scripture
foundation is the commonly received tradition of the world’s conversion to
Christianity by the preaching of the gospel. At present I only point out its
inconsistency with the immediate hope of the Lord’s return, which we have shown
to be the teaching of the Word of God, and the expectation of the early
believers.

Again I would ask, with all earnestness and affection, whence are your hopes
derived? If drawn from God’s Word, they may be postponed, but can never be
confounded. If from any other source — from reason, from desire, from
experience, from tradition — from anything, in fact, but the sure Word of the
living God — they are but delusions and snares, from which you can receive
nothing but miserable disappointment. God’s ways are not as our ways, and if we
seek to discover them by the light of our own wisdom, instead of from the
unfailing record of His Word, we shall only be "blind leaders of the blind,"
deceiving ourselves with flattering hopes, and unconsciously misleading others,
perhaps to their destruction.


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  CHAPTER 6: 01.5.     THE RETURN OF JESUS FOR BELIEVERS WHO HAVE
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Chapter 5. The return of Jesus for believers who have "fallen asleep."

We have now examined the testimony of Scripture with respect to the Lord’s
return, and have seen that it is held out as a present hope before the living
believer, who will, when it occurs, "be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of
an eye;" and be caught up "to meet the Lord in the air." But it may be objected
that already nearly sixty generations of Christians are in their graves, and
that a hope which could only disappoint so vast a majority of believers, could
never really have been held out by the Holy Ghost. To this objection there are,
however, two simple answers.

First, The delay, long as it is, has not mocked the hopes of believers. The
first generation of Christians doubtless cherished it, but were never authorised
by the language of the Holy Ghost to build upon its happening in their time.
They were to be waiting for it as a thing that might take place, not counting on
it as a thing that must take place. They were to be so living in hope of it,
that they would not be surprised if it occurred; not to be so confidently dating
it that they would be disappointed if it did not occur. This was the attitude in
which believers stood in apostolic days. After apostolic days. the decline in
all truth was fearfully rapid and among other things, the present expectation of
the Lord’s return was altogether lost. The Church became like the unfaithful
steward, and then the grace of God was shown in putting off this day, which,
from declining affection to the person of Christ, was no longer the object of
its hopes. When the hope was once lost, the deferring of its fulfilment was not
a disappointment. It would be treading on too sacred ground to speculate how far
the unfaithfulness of the Church contributed to the delay which has taken place.
But we can at all events see that, when such unfaithfulness has been shown, the
Church is not entitled to plead the delay as a reason for discrediting the
promise, but is rather bound to take the place of confession that she has so
long neglected it, and of thanksgiving that the Lord did not come while she was
slumbering in forgetfulness or unbelief.

Secondly, The objection above stated proceeds on the assumption that believers
who have fallen asleep have no part in this hope. But this is not the case. For
though the immediate character of the hope is most strikingly illustrated by the
fact that it is constantly presented to the living, yet the Lord has not left us
in ignorance of the blessed lot reserved for the believing dead. We shall find
that they have just as much interest and participation in this glorious event as
believers "who are alive and remain;" and surely this is another proof of the
Lord’s goodness, in having so long delayed his return. Being now absent from the
body and present with the Lord, the believing dead are doubtless sharers of his
hopes, and in the waiting condition which, from the loss of this precious truth,
they failed to assume here on earth. Thus, the wisdom of God has brought it
about that though the vast majority of believers have been unfaithful in this
matter, yet the Lord’s return, instead of coming as an unwelcome surprise, will
be in fulfilment of the cherished hopes, and in answer to the expectant attitude
of most, if not all, of those who have an interest in it. The most careless
observer must be aware how widely this "blessed hope" has revived among the
Lord’s people of late years. And so, whenever the shout is raised, the myriads
of believers whose spirits are already with the Lord, and many, perhaps all, of
those still on earth, will be longingly expecting His advent. The love of Jesus
beautifully shows itself in his desire to make His chosen ones participators in
his own hopes and delights. He loves to have our hearts. He would have us behold
the glories which we cannot share, for He counts upon and values our fellowship.
"Father, I will that they also whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am,
that they may behold My glory which Thou hast given Me" (John 17:24). So at the
Lord’s Supper, He desires believers, not to recall the blessings derived from
Him — but to "do this in remembrance of Me." In like manner as to His coming, He
has given it as a hope for their hearts, which He would have them cherish in
fellowship with Himself, and in grace and love He has delayed this event, until
not only the generations which lost it on earth, have regained it in heaven, but
also the hope has been revived in living power among the members of his body
still dwelling in the world.

We shall proceed, then, to examine the teaching of Scripture as to the effect of
the Lord’s coming on believers who have fallen asleep. "I would not have you
ignorant, brethren," says the apostle Paul, "concerning them which are asleep,
that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that
Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring
with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are
alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent (anticipate) them
which are asleep. 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; 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" (1Th
4:13-18). There is a peculiar significance in the expression, "This we say unto
you by the word of the Lord." The apostle Paul had received special revelations
given to no other man. Thus he says, in writing to the Corinthian Church about
the Lord’s Supper, not that he had learnt the mode of its observance from those
present at its institution, but "I have received of the Lord, that which also I
delivered unto you" (1Co 11:23.) Again, he writes to the Ephesians, speaking of
the mystery which God had entrusted to him, — "By revelation he made known unto
me the mystery which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men" (Eph
3:3-5). It is only on subjects of great importance, subjects worthy of a special
revelation of God’s mind, that such language is adopted. A passage, therefore,
thus prefaced, like the one we are now considering, is, so to speak, emphasised
by the Holy Ghost, as demanding more than usual consideration.

What, then, is the truth thus peculiarly commended to our notice? Our Lord’s own
words had already taught the disciples that He might return at any moment, and
that when He did so, living believers would be taken to be with Him. But they
were as yet ignorant of what would happen to those who had "fallen asleep in
Christ." They looked for a resurrection, and doubted not that believers dying in
the Lord would be saved. Like Martha, they thought that the believing dead would
"rise again in the resurrection at the last day," and, like her, failed to
apprehend the deep meaning hid in those words — "I am the resurrection and the
life." The key to these words was now to be furnished by the apostle Paul,
speaking in a special manner "by the word of the Lord." He found the
Thessalonians sorrowing over the dead as those "not having hope." This does not
mean that they had any doubt as to the ultimate salvation of their deceased
friends. But having no revelation as to what would become of dead believers at
the Lord’s return, they feared that by death they had lost the special hope of
being taken up by the Lord to be with Himself and to share the glories of his
appearing. This apprehension it was that filled the survivors with grief. The
yet unrevealed truth of what should happen to the dead saints at Christ’s coming
was, therefore, the important communication given "by the word of the Lord" to
the apostle Paul to make known to these mourners. It is the completion of the
hope held out by the Lord himself while here on earth. Its tenor was simple. The
Thessalonians had supposed that while they would be taken to be with Jesus at
His coming, their deceased relatives would be left in the grave till "the
resurrection at the last day." The apostle declares to them "by the word of the
Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord, shall not
prevent" (the old word for anticipate) "them which are asleep." On the contrary,
these dead should be raised first. "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: then we which are alive and remain
shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the
air" (1Th 4:16-17). The whole scene is momentary, but its order is, first the
raising of the sleeping believers, and next the catching up of the living and
the raised saints together to meet the Lord.

There is a very close correspondence between the truth here announced and the
mystery made known to the Corinthians. "Behold I show you a mystery; we shall
not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an
eye, at the last trump; for the trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised
incorruptible, and we shall be changed" (1Co 15:51-52). This is manifestly "the
redemption of the body," and the transformation "into the likeness of Christ’s
glorious body" of which we have already spoken as the hope of living believers.
It is also the same event as that described in the Epistle to the Thessalonians.
In both the trumpet sounds; in both the dead saints are raised; in both, at the
same moment, God’s power is manifested towards the living saints — in the
Corinthians fashioning them into the likeness of Christ, in the Thessalonians
catching them up to be with Christ. But these two actions are simultaneous — as
John says, "We shall be like him, for we shall see Him as he is" (1Jn 3:2).

These passages are usually understood as referring to a general resurrection at
the end of the world. Against this view there are, however, several conclusive
objections.

First, The resurrection here spoken of is at the same time as the coming of the
Lord for believers. The text in Thessalonians proves that the living saints are
to be caught up together with those who are raised; and the passage in 1
Corinthians shows that the changing of the living saints and the raising of the
dead will all be "in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye." But the Scriptures
set forth the return of the Lord for His living saints as a present hope, for
which they are bidden to be continually waiting. And here we see that the hope
is exactly the same for the dead. In order, then, that its present character
might not be lost sight of, even with respect to the dead, the Holy Ghost with
the accuracy always marking Scripture language, has taken care that in both
passages where the resurrection of the dead and the rapture of the living saints
are named together, the living saints should be spoken of in the first person,
so as to show that the event was one which might be looked for in their own day.

Secondly, The account given of this resurrection is quite different from the
resurrection at the end of the world,. which is thus depicted by the apostle
John — "And I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face
the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them, And I
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. And
the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hades delivered up the
dead which were in them; and they were judged, every man according to their
works. And death and hades were cast into the lake of fire; this is the second
death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the
lake of fire" (Rev 20:11-15). This solemn scene is at the end of the world, but
it is entirely different in every point from the resurrection previously spoken
of. In the one, the living are caught up; in the other, only the dead are
mentioned, and no living person could be there, for the earth has fled away.
Paul names no judgment whatever; John says that "they were judged every man
according to their works." The dead described in the epistles go to be "for ever
with the Lord;" the only doom spoken of with respect to the dead named in the
Apocalypse is, that they were "cast into the lake of fire." The two accounts,
then, are evidently not two different descriptions of the same scene, but
descriptions of two different scenes, bearing no resemblance either in character
or detail.

Thirdly, The Word of God never speaks of one general resurrection at the end of
the world, but expressly declares that there are two distinct resurrections, one
at the end of the world, and one a thousand years before it. The difference
already noted between the resurrection of believers mentioned by Paul, and the
resurrection at the final judgment described in the Revelation, will have
prepared the way for this statement. But as it is in opposition to traditional
creeds, and forms an important branch of the subject we are examining, it will
be well to inquire into the matter somewhat more fully in another chapter.


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  CHAPTER 7: 01.6.     "THE FIRST RESURRECTION."
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Chapter 6.

"The first resurrection."

We have seen that the saints will return with Jesus when He comes forth to
destroy His enemies. After judgment has been executed, and Satan cast into the
bottomless pit, the reign of Christ, and of certain others, begins. "And I saw
thrones;" says the apostle, "and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto
them; and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus
and for the word of God, and [of those] which had not worshipped 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" (Rev 20:4-6).

It seems incredible that the zeal for traditional belief should have led men so
far to pervert Scripture, as to maintain that this "first resurrection" is not a
resurrection of persons at all, but of principles — principles "beheaded for the
witness of Jesus!" — principles which refuse to worship the beast! — principles,
with foreheads and hands on which they decline to receive a mark! — principles,
on which "the second death hath no power," but which "shall be priests of God
and of Christ!" According to the same system, "the rest of the dead" must be
principles too; so that we have no resurrection of persons at all!

What, then, does this passage, intelligently looked at, teach us? First, it
shows a resurrection which takes place before the thousand years of Christ’s
reign; and next, it enables us to learn who are the persons then raised. Three
classes are named; the first are called "they" — "I saw thrones and they sat on
them." With the others we are not at present concerned. Who, then, are these in
this first class? They are "blessed and holy;" so they must be saints. But what
saints? The persons last named are the armies of heaven, who came forth with
Jesus to make war. They are the partners of His triumph, and as victors we
should expect to see them sharing His dominion. They are the only persons
mentioned in the context, moreover, to whom the description could refer. But
these armies of heaven are, as we saw, the saints who have before been taken to
be with Jesus. The Scriptures, before examined, have shown us, that the saints
living when the Lord comes, will be changed into His likeness and caught up into
His presence, after which they will issue forth with Him to judge the world.
This scripture shows us that the dead saints also, who are raised when the
living are translated, will come in Christ’s train and rule in His company. The
passages quoted in our former chapters fully bear out this conclusion. None of
these make the glory of the believer to depend on his living till the Lord’s
return. The apostles were to "sit upon twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes
of Israel;" yet Peter, whose question drew forth this announcement, was warned
that he himself should suffer death. Believers are made joint-heirs with Christ;
saints are told that they shall judge the world; sufferers with Christ are
promised that they shall reign with Him, irrespective of their being alive or in
the tomb at His return. The promise to the saints at Thyatira — "he that
overcometh, and keepeth My words unto the end, to him will I give power over the
nations" — could not be fulfilled to them, unless the dead shared this hope with
the living. Indeed the passage so often referred to, seems written to prove the
absolute identity between the lot of believers, whether quick or dead, when
Christ comes for His saints. "Them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with
Him" (1Th 4:14). Bring where, and for what? Bring forth as the sharers of His
glory; for which purpose He will first raise them from their sleep, and take
them, with the living believers, to be with Him in heaven. Our Lord names two
kinds of resurrection, though He says nothing of their being separate in time.
"The hour is coming in the which all that are in the 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 judgment" (John
5:28-29). Does not the resurrection of life correspond exactly with the
resurrection in which they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years? And
is not the resurrection of judgment the same as that in which the dead are
"judged out of those things which were written in the books"? If so — and surely
it would be impossible to call it in question — they are not only distinct in
character, but in time; the one being the resurrection of the "dead in Christ"
when He comes for His saints, the other the resurrection of "the rest of the
dead;" which takes place at the end of the world.

Paul, in his defence before Felix, declares "that there shall be a resurrection
of the dead, both of the just and unjust" (Acts 24:15). Why speak of the two
classes? If he had been disputing with one who admitted the resurrection of the
just, but denied that of the unjust, it could easily have been explained. But
this was not the case; and the division of the two classes, therefore, cannot be
readily accounted for, except that the apostle was regarding their resurrection,
not as parts of one event but as two separate transactions. Still less could we
understand our Lord’s declaration to the Pharisee, that he should "be
recompensed at the resurrection of the just" (Luk 14:24), if the just had not a
distinct resurrection from the unjust. The expression "resurrection of the just"
could scarcely have been used if the two rose together. But its force is at once
recognised if we bow to the truth of "the first resurrection" so plainly taught
in the book of Revelation.

Though it seems unnecessary to accumulate evidence upon a point so clear, we
would call in aid an expression of Scripture often heedlessly uttered. That a
"resurrection from the dead" differs from a "resurrection of the dead" is, owing
to our constant confusion of the phrases, little understood. Everybody would see
the difference between speaking of "the departure of a company" and the
"departure from a company." The first implies the departure of the whole
assembly; the second of one or more persons out of the assembly. This is just
the difference between a "resurrection of the dead," and a "resurrection from
the dead." "The dead" is the whole company of dead persons. A "resurrection of
the dead" simply means that dead persons are raised. But a "resurrection from
the dead" means that one or more persons are raised from amongst this company of
"the dead." So the phrase is invariably used in Scripture. Most frequently it is
applied to the resurrection of Jesus. It is used also, however, of the
resurrection of Lazarus (John 12:1; John 12:9) the suspected resurrection of
John the Baptist (Mark 6:16); the resurrection of the poor beggar, which the
rich man entreated for (Luk 16:31); and the resurrection of Isaac, which Abraham
believed that God was able to accomplish (Heb 11:19) — all resurrections of a
single person from among the mass of the dead. The phrase can grammatically mean
nothing but an exclusive resurrection. In nearly all cases where it is used, an
exclusive resurrection is evidently intended. Surely, then, we may infer that in
the one or two passages where this exclusiveness is not obvious from the
connection, the expression still has the same form. One of these passages is
Christ’s answer to the Sadducees when they sought to perplex Him about the
resurrection. He replies (the answer in Mark is similar), "They which shall be
accounted worthy to obtain that age (not world), and the resurrection from the
dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage; neither can they die any more,
for they are equal unto the angels, and are the children of God, being the
children of the resurrection" (Luk 20:35-36). Here the expression used is
resurrection from the dead, and does the passage imply a general or an exclusive
resurrection? It cannot be a general resurrection, for all those who have part
in it are like the angels, are the children of God, are counted worthy to obtain
it, and die no more. It must be an exclusive resurrection, then, and observe how
it corresponds morally with the "first resurrection," about which it is said
that those who have part in it are "blessed and holy," beyond the power of "the
second death," and priests of God and of Christ. What, then, is the "age" which
these "children of the resurrection" are counted worthy to obtain? Here, again,
we see the accuracy of Scripture, for surely this age can only be the period of
a thousand years during which they live and reign with Christ.

Again, we read that the Sadducees were grieved that the apostles "preached
through Jesus the resurrection from the dead" (Acts 4:2). The expression is "in
Jesus," and no doubt the resurrection of Jesus Himself was the great subject of
the apostles’ testimony. But the expression implies something more than the
resurrection of Jesus himself. The apostles preached "through (or in) Jesus the
resurrection from among the dead." A few weeks before, the Sadducees had asked
Jesus a question meant to turn the resurrection into ridicule, and had been
silenced by the answer we looked at in our last paragraph, an answer revealing
not only the fact of a resurrection, but also an exclusive resurrection of those
who should be counted worthy to obtain it. This is the doctrine which the
apostles were now proclaiming, with the further truth that this resurrection was
through, or in, that same Jesus whom these Sadducees had rejected. They might
have been grieved at their preaching "the resurrection of the dead," but could
hardly have laid hands on them, inasmuch as the Pharisees, a far more numerous
sect than themselves, held the same faith. It was the exclusive resurrection,
announced by Jesus, and now proclaimed through Him, that aroused their fury and
persecution. In like manner Paul speaks of Jesus as "the first-born from the
dead" (Col 1:8), that is, as the first of those who were taken from amongst the
dead. If the resurrection of all the other dead was to be simultaneous, he would
not be the first, but the only one, "born from among the dead," the rest having
no part in a resurrection "from the dead," but merely in a resurrection "of the
dead." Nor is this expression an isolated one. In speaking before Festus and
Agrippa, the apostle declares the testimony of the prophets to be, "that the
Christ should suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise from the
dead" (Acts 26:23). Of course the propriety of the phrase is easily seen as
respects Jesus Himself but here Jesus is declared to be only the earliest of a
number to whom the same description is applicable. It is, moreover, as "the
first-begotten of the dead," or rather as "the first-begotten from amongst the
dead" (Rev 1:5), that Jesus Christ is presented in the opening verses of the
Apocalypse.

Even the very heresies which arose during the apostles’ time testify to the fact
that an exclusive resurrection was then taught. How could the false teaching of
Hymenæus and Philetus have originated, "who concerning the truth have erred,
saying that the resurrection is passed already" (2Ti 2:18), or how could such
false teaching "overthrow the faith of some," if the apostle had taught, and the
early Christians had believed in, a general resurrection at the end of the
world? whereas, on the other hand, one can readily perceive how the truth of an
exclusive resurrection might be perversely wrested by the authors of the heresy,
and become a serious stumbling-block to the faith of the less-established
saints.

There is, however, another expression used by the apostle Paul still more
remarkable. He desires to be made conformable to Christ’s death, "If by any
means I might attain unto the resurrection from among the dead" (Php 3:11). Our
translators have merely given "of the dead," because, not knowing anything of
the first resurrection, they could not understand the word (exanastasis)
invented by the apostle to express his meaning. This word, however, is not the
word ordinarily used for resurrection, but a word coined for this passage, never
elsewhere found, and literally meaning "resurrection from the midst of." If it
merely implied a general resurrection, why should the apostle be at any pains to
attain to that to which good and bad alike must come? Or why should he coin a
special word to imply exclusiveness when no exclusiveness was meant? But if he
meant an exclusive resurrection of persons counted worthy to obtain it, both the
force of the expression and the object of the apostle become obvious.

It may be said — If this is the meaning of the phrase "resurrection from the
dead," why is it not used with reference to the dead spoken about in the long
argument on the resurrection contained in 1 Corinthians 15? The reason is very
plain. A "resurrection from among the dead" is also a "resurrection of the
dead," so that the latter expression may be employed with as much propriety of
the first resurrection as of the second. How, then, should we expect to have the
two phrases used? Why, surely we should expect that when the object in view was
to bring out the exclusive character of the resurrection, the first expression —
"resurrection from among the dead" — would be employed. But when the object was
to bring out, not the exclusive character of the resurrection, but merely the
fact, the latter expression — "resurrection of the dead" — would be more
natural. Now the whole argument in the chapter referred to is to show that
believers will rise again. This some of the Corinthians were denying. The
apostle replies by stating God’s plan, partly executed already, about the first
resurrection. His teaching has no reference whatever to the resurrection of
unbelievers, and the question of exclusive or general resurrection with respect
to believers is not, therefore, touched upon. Nothing save the order and
character of God’s designs concerning the first resurrection is treated of;
while these are very fully set forth. Christ is the first fruits; then, "they
that are Christ’s, at His coming" (v. 23), and at the same time even those
believers who have not slept will be changed, and death will be swallowed up in
victory (vv. 51-54).

Looked at in this light, the accuracy of the language is very striking. The only
dead named or contemplated in the chapter are Jesus Himself and believers in
Him. The raising of Jesus, then, being before the others, is described as a
"resurrection from among the dead" (vv. 12, 20). The raising of the believers,
who comprise the whole of the remaining dead under consideration, is not
described as a "resurrection from among the dead," but simply as a "resurrection
of the dead" (vv. 21, 42). For in this last case the use of the expression,
"resurrection of the dead," was quite sufficient to bring out the truth which
the Holy Ghost is teaching; while the other expression, "resurrection from among
the dead," would not only have added nothing to the doctrine unfolded, but would
have confused it by the introduction of a foreign and incongruous element. On
the other hand, if bad and good are raised together for judgment, how is it that
not a word is said about either the wicked dead or the judgment? The omission is
surely most powerfully suggestive. But it is not merely omission. Though the
chapter does not name the resurrection of the lost, it clearly shows when it
will take place. "Every man" shall rise "in his own order; Christ the
first-fruits, 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. For He must reign,
till He hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be
destroyed is Death" (1Co 15:23-26). After Christ’s own resurrection, then, the
order is — first, the resurrection of them "that are Christ’s at his coming;"
second, His reign, closing with the destruction of "the last enemy," Death;
third, "the end," when he shall have "put all enemies under his feet," and
"delivered up the kingdom to God." But when "the last enemy," Death, is
destroyed, "the rest of the dead" are raised and judged also. On the appearance
of the great white throne "the dead, small and great, stand before God," and are
"judged, every man according to their works, and death and hades" are "cast into
the lake of fire" (Rev 20:11-14). This is manifestly the destruction of death,
for immediately after are beheld "a new heaven and a new earth" in which "there
shall be no more death" (Rev 21:1; Rev 21:4). Comparing this, then, with the
chapter in Corinthians, we see that the order in the two is just the same —
first, the resurrection of the saved; then, the reign of Christ, ending with the
destruction of death, and the resurrection and judgment of the lost; and
finally, the perfect state, when "there shall be no more death." In a word, the
chapter teaches, in harmony with the rest of Scripture, that the resurrection of
the just and that of the unjust are two different events, the former preceding
Christ’s reign, the latter being one of its most solemn closing acts.


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  CHAPTER 8: 01.7.     A GENERAL RESURRECTION AND JUDGMENT AT THE
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Chapter 7. A general resurrection and judgment at the end of the world, not
taught in scripture.

Conclusive as the passages quoted in our last chapter may appear as to the
doctrine of a separate resurrection of believers before the end of the world, it
would be a source of confusion to many, so long as there are various other
portions of the Word of God which they have always understood as teaching the
doctrine which these scriptures seem to overthrow. There are certain passages
which have been commonly received as proving the fact of a general resurrection
and judgment at the close of the world, and should the ordinary interpretation
of these passages be correct it manifestly clashes with the doctrine we have
deduced in our last chapters with reference to an exclusive resurrection of the
"dead in Christ." I propose, then, to examine these portions in detail. For
there can be no real contradiction in Scripture, and if guided by the Spirit, we
shall see either that the passages already quoted have been misunderstood, or
that the texts taken to establish the opposite doctrine are in perfect harmony
with them.

I. One of these cited as proving a general resurrection is in the prophecies of
Daniel "At that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for
the children of thy people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as 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, And many
of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting
life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise shall
shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to
righteousness as the stars for ever and ever" (Dan 12:1-3). We need not here
discuss the meaning of this passage. It is sufficient to point out that, if it
refers to a resurrection of the dead at all, it cannot be a general
resurrection. The verses quoted are the conclusion of a communication made to
Daniel explaining the events which must happen before the restoration and glory
of Daniel’s people, that is, the Jews (Dan 10:19 to Dan 12:4). It relates simply
to the Jews, and the time named is not the end of the world, but the deliverance
of the nation. The resurrection spoken of therefore, whether literal or
figurative, is not at the end of the world, but long before it; is not general,
but confined to Daniel’s people; and is not applied even to the whole of
Daniel’s people, but only to "many of them." Anything more unlike a general
resurrection at the end of the world, it would be impossible to conceive.
Indeed, if accepted as meaning a literal resurrection of the dead at all, it
would be one of the most conclusive proofs that the resurrection was partial
instead of universal, before the end of the world instead of at the end of the
world.

II. Another passage thought to teach a general resurrection and judgment is the
parable of the wheat and the tares. The text supposed to contain this doctrine
is as follows: — "Let both (wheat and tares) grow together until the harvest;
and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first
the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my
barn" (Mat 13:30). The explanation follows. "He that soweth the good seed is the
Son of man; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the
kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed
them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age (not world), and the
reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the
fire, so shall it be in the end of this age. The Son of man shall send forth His
angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and
them which do iniquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire; there shall
be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the
sun in the kingdom of their Father" (vv. 37-43). That this passage has been
supposed to describe a general judgment at the end of the world, is partly the
cause and partly the consequence of the unfortunate mistranslation of the word
signifying "age," as if it meant "world." The completion of the age is, however,
a totally different event from the end of the world, and nothing but error can
arise from confounding things so entirely opposed in character. It was a phrase
well understood by the Jews, as describing the termination of their subjection
to the Gentiles and disowning of God — the time concerning which Daniel’s
inquiries had been made and his prophecies uttered. It is always so used by the
disciples, as when they inquire, "What shall be the sign of Thy coming and of
the end of the age?" Nor is there a single instance where it can be properly
understood as referring to the end of the world. On the contrary, it is the
beginning of another epoch, by far the most blessed and glorious in the world’s
history. But it is not merely the phrase used which forbids us to interpret the
event here described as happening at the end of the world. If this is the
general resurrection, why is nothing said about anybody rising? Surely the
omission of this most striking portion of the picture is proof enough that the
scene here presented is not the final resurrection and judgment, but some
altogether different event. What then, is the event? If we look at what we have
seen to be the effect of the Lord’s coming, we shall have no difficulty in
recognising the perfect agreement between this parable and the things which will
happen at that time. The moment had not yet arrived for making known the secret
of His coming for His saints before His manifestation to the world. Moreover,
the question here is one of outward display to the world, not of dwelling with
Christ in the Father’s house. Looked at in this light what have we learned about
the Lord’s coming? That, as far as the wicked are concerned, Christ will come in
flaming fire, taking vengeance, and accompanied by the angels of His power;
that, as far as believers are. concerned, they will be publicly manifested with
Him in glory, that He may be "glorified in His saints" and "admired in all them
that believe." In the parable, the angels are the ministers of judgment, the
righteous shine forth as the sun, and the wicked are cast into a furnace of
fire. Can any one fail to perceive the exact correspondence between the parable
and the doctrinal statement?

III. Another passage supposed to contain a description of a general resurrection
and judgment at the end of the world, is that comprised in the last two sections
of our Lord’s discourse with his disciples in Matthew 24, 25. The former (Mat
25:14-30) shows Jesus as the master who returns after being absent, and demands
an account from his servants of certain talents entrusted to them. The second
(vv. 31-46) represents Him seated on the throne of His glory, and judging the
nations. The question is, whether either or both of these scenes must be taken
as figures of a general judgment on those raised from their graves at the end of
the world. The first remark that occurs is, that the two scenes are so different
in their character that it is not easy to regard them as representations of the
same event. In the first parable, the persons spoken of are dealt with
individually; in the second, in two great masses. In the first, the question
tried is faithfulness to a certain trust; in the second, it is the conduct
pursued towards a set of persons called "these my brethren." But another remark
speedily suggests itself. Why should these events be supposed to happen at a
general resurrection and at the end of the world, when not so much as a passing
allusion is made either to the dead, or to a resurrection, or to the world
having come to its closing hour? The only answer that can be given to this
question is, that the ordinary interpretation of Scripture left the interpreters
no choice. Assuming that Christ only comes at the end of the world, and that all
will then be raised and judged, these scenes must happen at that period, for
there is no other time at which they could happen. But those who have already
learnt that Christ will come before the end of the world, will hesitate to add
so enormous a fact as a general resurrection to a narrative in which Scripture
has remained wholly silent about it, and will seek some other explanation
demanding no such outrage on the Word of God. The parable of the talents follows
those of the steward and of the virgins. The parable of the steward shows the
results of carefulness or carelessness in watching for the Lord’s return; that
of the virgins the necessity of having oil in the lamp, that is, true spiritual
life. The parable of the talents shows the responsibility of those called by the
name of Christ to be diligent in His service. As the unwatchful steward is cut
off, and the careless virgins are shut out, so here the unprofitable servant is
cast into outer darkness, while the diligent ones enter into the joy of their
lord. All three parables are fulfilled at the coming of Christ, looked at in
both its aspects. The watchful steward, the virgins with oil, and the diligent
servants, all receive their reward, while false professors are detected and left
behind, or consigned to the dreadful judgments that overtake the world when
Christ appears in His glory. While, then, this parable entirely fails as a
description of a general resurrection, it perfectly agrees with the rest of
Scripture as a picture of what takes place at Christ’s second coming.

There is another point of agreement that deserves notice. In Luke, the same
parable is related, but a difference is shown in the rewards. The servant who
has made ten talents becomes ruler over ten cities; he who has made five, over
five (Luk 19:12-27). Do we ever hear of saints being made rulers over cities in
heaven? No, but we do hear of saints reigning with Christ over the earth, and to
such a state of things the reward in the parable is exactly suited. The picture,
then, agrees with other portions of the Word in describing what will happen at
the Lord’s second coming, believers being first caught up, and afterwards
manifested with Christ in power, each rewarded according to the measure of his
faithfulness, and unbelievers being cast out and brought to judgment. It may be
asked whether, if this is the case, such a dialogue could occur as that related
in the parable? But a parable is not a history — only a fictitious narrative
meant to illustrate a principle. The dialogue is part of the figure, bringing
out man’s natural reasoning on one side and God’s thoughts on the other. Who
would understand literally the entreaty of the foolish virgins, or the reply of
the bridegroom? Who supposes it to be a real conversation between the Judge and
those on His right hand or those on His left, in the parable immediately
following? Who ever imagined that the words put into the mouth of the rich man
in torment, or of Abraham, were actually spoken? In the parable before us, as in
those to which we have just alluded, the thoughts and desires of the heart are
clothed in words, and the scene is not a description of any thing that really
takes place, but a story illustrating the principles on which God and man are
respectively acting. The last section of the twenty-fifth chapter relates the
judgment which Christ will execute on the nations of the earth, when He comes in
His kingdom glory, to "break them with a rod of iron, and dash them in pieces,
like a potter’s vessel." It represents Jesus coming as the minister of judgment.
But this judgment is divided into various acts. In the Revelation, we have
nothing described but the judgment executed on the beast and false prophet and
the armies that followed them. Other acts of judgment are, however, related
elsewhere. We read in the prophecies of Joel that the Lord will "bring again the
captivity of Judah and Jerusalem," and that He will then "gather all nations and
will bring them down unto the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them
there for My people and for My heritage, Israel, whom they have scattered among
the nations" (Joe 3:7; Joe 3:2). Without discussing how far this is to be
literally or figuratively understood, let us compare it with the scene described
in Matthew. "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 the nations" (Mat 25:31-32). The article here is
important, because it helps materially to determine the real character of the
scene enacted. The translators, believing the event to be a general and final
judgment, dropped it in order to give a more universal character to the
gathering. It is, however, in the original, and the question is, who are meant
by "all the nations"? The word "nations" means "Gentiles," and is ordinarily
used to describe them as distinguished from the Jews. Now, in this scene, there
are not two classes as generally supposed, but three — the sheep, the goats, and
"these my brethren." These persons called Christ’s brethren are neither sheep
nor goats, nor are they themselves brought into the judgment. It is for their
conduct to these "brethren," who have been hungry, thirsty, strangers, naked,
sick, and in prison — a persecuted, despised, forsaken people — that the
Gentiles are judged. How exactly this agrees, then, with the prediction of Joel,
and, indeed, with the general current of Old Testament prophecy! All Scripture
concurs in representing the Jews as forsaken of God for an indefinite period.
When this period has elapsed, the Lord will "bring again the captivity of Judah
and Jerusalem," and will judge the nations for the cruel oppression with which
they have, especially towards the close of this epoch, treated His people. It is
true that in this scene described in Matthew, the saints are not mentioned as
accompanying Jesus, but, as I have already shown, our Lord purposely left this
subject obscure throughout his whole teaching. On the other hand, the angels are
named, thus bringing the account into close accordance with the description of
Christ’s return in judgment given in 2Th 1:7-8. This judgment of the nations
then, foretold in Old Testament Scriptures, is the very judgment represented
figuratively, no doubt, but with striking vividness, in the passage before us.
"These my brethren" are the saved remnant of Israel, who, having received of the
Lord’s hand double for all their sins, are now delivered from their enemies, and
owned by Christ as his people. "All the nations" are the Gentiles, who are now
dealt with according to the favour or hostility they have shown to God’s chosen
race. The passage shows the simplicity of Scripture when its light is directly
received, instead of being refracted through the distorting medium of man’s
theological systems. As a judgment of the nations on Christ’s return for
Israel’s restoration, the narrative is free from difficulty, but describes a
striking fulfilment of Old Testament prophecy. As a picture of the traditional
resurrection and judgment, it is full of contradictions and absurdities, being
an account of a universal judgment in which some are not judged, and of a
universal resurrection in which nobody is raised!

IV. But there is another passage which will occur to the minds of some readers.
"We must all appear" (or be manifested), says Paul, "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" (2Co 5:10). And again, "We shall
all stand before the judgment seat of Christ" (Rom 14:10). These are deeply
solemn words, which our hearts would do well to ponder. The same Saviour who
makes Himself known as the loving friend gone to prepare a place for us, and
waiting to come again and receive us unto Himself, also reveals Himself as the
Judge walking among the candlesticks, with "His eyes as a flame of fire, and His
feet like unto fine brass." "Every one of us shall give account of himself to
God" (Rom 14:12) — the lost, when He comes to judge the dead out of the things
written in the books — and the saved also, when He reckons with His servants,
and dispenses rewards. But there is not a word about the two classes standing
together, or for the same purpose. In the parable of the talents, recorded in
Luke, besides the difference between the diligent and slothful servants, there
is also a difference between the diligent servants proportioned to their merit.
This shows that the saved are variously rewarded according to the measure of
their faithfulness. The same principle, of the manifestation of the saved
according to their works, is taught by Paul. Thus slaves are exhorted to do
their service with good-will, "as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that
whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord,
whether he be bond or free" (Eph 6:7-8). In another epistle the same class are
told "that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance; for ye
serve the Lord Christ; but he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which
he hath done" (Col 3:24-25). The fullest statement of this truth is, however,
that contained in the following passage: "Know if any man build upon this
foundation, gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble, every man’s work
shall be made manifest; for the day shall declare it, because it shall be
revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If
any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward;
if any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be
saved, yet so as by fire" (1Co 3:12-15). This is the manifestation of believers
according to their works, a solemn thing most assuredly, and a deep reality, as
true as the judgment of the lost, but at the same time altogether distinct from
it, both as to the time and the circumstances of its occurrence. The word
translated "judgment seat" means only a step or raised platform, such as a
person exercising any authority, or pronouncing a speech, might occupy. It will
include "the great white throne," before which the dead are summoned for their
final sentence, but it is a word of much wider import, and, by no means
necessarily, or indeed primarily, signifies the seat occupied by a judge on a
criminal trial. It is used of the dais on which Herod sat, when he received the
embassy from Tyre and Sidon (Acts 12:21), and is there rendered by our
translators, "throne." The word would be just as applicable to the seat occupied
by a judge in a civil suit or by an assessor awarding compensation, as to the
seat of a judge trying a case of life and death. And these are really the two
different actions described. The lost will appear before the tribunal to be
tried on the question of life and death, out of those things which were written
in the books (Rev 20:12). How is this possible with the believer? Can the
penitent thief be taken out of paradise to be put on his trial as to whether he
shall be saved or lost? Can Paul, after being with Jesus more than eighteen
centuries, be summoned before His bar to be tried for his life? Impossible! No,
the appearance before the judgment seat in the case of believers is of a
different kind, for a different purpose, and at a different season. It is before
the reign of Christ, instead of at the end of the world; and it is for the
purpose of determining, not whether they shall be saved or lost — a question
which can never be raised again for those whom God has justified — but to what
reward they are entitled by the measure of their faithfulness here below,
whether they have built the "gold, silver, and precious stones," which can
endure the searching fire of the Divine scrutiny, or the "wood, hay, and
stubble," which shall perish before the judicial test, and leave them to be
saved "so as by fire," — or again, whether in the apportionment of dominion
among the "fellow-heirs," they should be made rulers over ten cities or over
five. And here we would note, in confirmation of what has been already said, the
perfect and Divine accuracy of the language used by the Spirit of God. It is
said that all shall "appear" before the judgment seat [or throne] of Christ, the
real meaning being that all shall be manifested. In this all are included, saved
and lost. The word used, therefore, is merely that they shall "stand" or "be
manifested" — not that they shall be "judged." On the other hand, where it
speaks only of the unbelieving dead, raised before the great white throne, the
expression employed is that they shall be "judged." This is no fanciful or
refined distinction. Our Lord Himself, while here on earth, says: "He that
heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and
shall not come into judgment" (John 5:24). Almost immediately afterwards He
speaks of two resurrections, a "resurrection of life" and a "resurrection of
judgment" (v. 29). Surely two passages standing in such close juxtaposition show
that judgment, so far as the question of salvation is concerned, is a thing from
which the believer has already escaped. Being justified, it is impossible that
he shall be judged. Hence the very fact that all those raised in the last scene,
after the end of the world, are judged, is conclusive evidence, that the
believers in Jesus Christ are not there. When their deeds are inquired into, it
is not for the purpose of judging them, but that they may be manifested, and
rewarded according to the measure of their faithfulness on earth.

V. It is possible that some persons may be disposed to found an argument in
favour of a general resurrection at the end of the world upon the expression, "I
will raise him up at the last day" (John 6:40; John 6:44; John 6:54), and from
the phrase, "at the last trump" (1Co 15:52). But "the last" need not mean the
very last thing in the world’s history, merely the last event in the process
under consideration. In John vi Jesus is speaking of His care of those given Him
by the Father, and says that He will lose nothing, but will raise it up at the
last day. The work of guarding the charge committed to Him will then be at an
end, the task entrusted to him by the Father will be fully performed, the last
day of this class of responsibility will have arrived, and the believer whom He
has tended will be perfected. So "the last trump" is the last event of the kind
in the scene described. This chapter, as already pointed out, has nothing to do
with the resurrection of the lost. It simply relates what will become of the
saved. For a time some of them are in the grave, but this ends, and "the last
trump" calls them forth to life and glory. The expressions used, as above
understood, are familiar in daily talk. A barrister speaks of the last day,
meaning the last day of term or assizes — a soldier of the last bugle, meaning
the last call in the exercise he is going through. Nobody imagines they mean the
last day that will ever dawn, or the last bugle that will ever sound.

We have now examined the passages commonly cited, to prove a general
resurrection and judgment at the end of the world, and have found that none of
them sustain this theological dogma. Most of them have nothing to do with a
resurrection at all. None of them describe events happening to believers at the
end of the world. On the other hand, Scripture speaks of two resurrections. One
of these is when Christ comes for His saints, and is an event for which
believers, whether in the first or third watch, are bidden diligently to wait.
The other is at the end of the world. In "the first resurrection" all "those who
are Christ’s," whether living or dead, will be changed into His likeness, and
caught up to be "for ever with the Lord." They will come forth with Him when he
appears to break the nations with a rod of iron, and as His fellow-heirs will
"reign with him a thousand years." But now a very important question arises — a
question already often alluded to — How is it that a hope, for which believers
have from the first been instructed to wait, should have been so long delayed?
Is not a promise which has been withheld for so many generations either
altogether delusive, or at least so unlikely to receive its fulfilment in our
time, that it would be idle still to cherish it as a present hope? We have
already said much on this subject which need not now be repeated. But in
addition to what has been previously urged, we would reply, — First, that since
the Word of God has set the Lord’s return before us as a present hope, it is not
for us to question His truth because we cannot understand the principle of his
acting; secondly, that the hope is given to the heart, not to the head, and
where the heart is really true to Jesus and longs for His return, it will not
cease from its waiting attitude because of the delay which comes between it and
the object of its desire; thirdly, that Jesus expressly warns His disciples, a
warning which extends to all ages, against saying in their hearts, "My lord
delayeth his coming," and while intimating that several watches might pass
before the hour arrived, still declares that "blessed are those servants, whom
the lord, when he cometh, shall find" so waiting; fourthly, that the Holy Ghost
solemnly predicts and warns us against the spirit which asks, "Where is the
promise of his coming, for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as
they were from the beginning of the creation?" and reminds us that the word
which man disregarded when it foretold the deluge, has spoken of the more
fearful judgments yet to come (2Pe 3:4-7); and fifthly, that "one day is with
the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day," so that
notwithstanding the apparently long tarrying, "the Lord is not slack concerning
His promise as some men count slackness, but is long-suffering to usward, not
willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (vv. 8,
9). Is it not a deeply solemn thought that men are found, now as ever, to
contemn the riches of God’s goodness, and forbearance, and long-suffering, and
to make the very grace in which He is acting, the ground for mocking at His
promises and despising His commandments? Yet how many even of the Lord’s own
children can look into their hearts and say — I am guiltless in this matter?


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  CHAPTER 9: 02.0. THE LORD'S COMING, ISRAEL; AND THE CHURCH
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The Lord’s Coming, Israel; and the Church by

T.B. Baines


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  CHAPTER 10: 02.1.     THE HOPE OF THE CHURCH
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The Hope of the Church. by T. B. Baines.

Section 1 of: The Lord’s Coming, Israel, and the Church.

CHAPTER I.

DIRECT TEACHING CONCERNING THE LORD’S RETURN FOR LIVING BELIEVERS. The point of
most immediate interest to the believer is the meaning to be attached to the
phrase, "The Coming of the Lord:" Does Scripture in these words speak of the
Christian’s death, or of Christ’s coming to raise and judge the dead at the end
of the world? Or do the words hold out a hope of a totally different nature? I
propose, in this first part, to examine what the Word of God says about the
Coming of the Lord, first as is affects the living saint and next as it affects
the dead. The Old Testament Scriptures are full of the coming of Messiah in
glory and power. Indeed the Jews were so occupied with these prophecies that
they overlooked these which foretold His coming in weakness and humiliation. His
coming in power is often spoken of by Jesus Himself and by His disciples in
their converse with one another.

They ask, "What shall be the sign of Thy coming?" (Mat 24:3); are told to watch,
"for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come" (Mat 24:42); and admonished by
the question — "When the Son of man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?"
(Luk 18:8). Christ’s second coming was, therefore, expected by the disciples,
and held a considerable place in His own teaching. But in the epistles there
appears another fact, a "mystery" hidden from the Old Testament prophets, and
only hinted at by Jesus himself. This is that the Lord’s coming is divided into
two different acts. The prophets, almost invariably, foretell only the coming of
the Messiah Himself, and though one of them declares — "The Lord my God shall
come, and all the saints with Thee" (Zec 14:5) — nothing here, or elsewhere in
the Old Testament, indicates who these saints are. The New Testament, however,
not only shows that in this glorious advent Christ will be accompanied by His
saints, but makes it plain that these saints are believers, displayed in
glorified bodies, and in the likeness of the risen Lord Himself. In order for
this, however, it is necessary that before Jesus comes to reign over the earth,
his saints should have been taken up to heaven. Accordingly the epistles make
known that the first act in the Lord’s coming will be to take believers to be
with Himself, and the second His return with them to the world. When our Lord
was on earth the time for revealing this mystery had not arrived, so that He
usually speaks of his coming in general terms, without distinguishing its two
different parts. Hence it is only from the epistles that we can fully understand
His teaching on this subject, though when seen in their light, its Divine
perfection becomes obvious. In the first three gospels especially, the two
parts, though both alluded to, are so blended, that it will be desirable to
postpone the examination of their teaching until we have discovered the key by
which its hidden treasures are unlocked. In the fourth gospel, however, though
the mystery is not distinctly revealed, the return of the Lord for His saints is
held out as a hope before the hearts of the disciples. On the night of His
betrayal, Jesus says, "Let not your heart be troubled; ye believe in God,
believe also in Me. 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 14:1-3). These words were spoken to comfort his
disciples on His departure. He tells them that while absent He will prepare a
place for them; and will presently return to take them to be with Himself. This
passage is often applied to the death of believers. Such an interpretation,
however, is unwarranted by other scriptures, and is open to serious objection.
The disciples knew, not only of a resurrection, but of the separate existence of
the spirit, whether in happiness, like Lazarus, or in torment, like the rich
man. If, therefore, Jesus was only telling them that after death their spirits
would be with Him in paradise, He merely told them what they knew. Concerning
death, moreover, it is said that the believer goes to be with Jesus, never that
Jesus comes for the believer. Nor would the hope given to the disciples, at such
a crisis, be that of entering into any imperfect state, such as the existence of
the spirit even in paradise. The passage implies completeness, that perfect
reunion which only takes place "when this corruptible shall have put on
incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality." Death is not the
believer’s hope, but the redemption of the body. "If our earthly house of this
tabernacle be dissolved," still the hope is the "house not made with hands,
eternal in the heavens." Paul is willing no doubt, "to be absent from the body
and to be present with the Lord," but his desire is, "not that we would be
unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life" (2Co
5:1-9). This, the perfect state, is the true Christian hope, and surely in the
parting words of comfort to his disciples, when promising to come again and take
them to Himself, nothing short of the fulfilment of this hope can have been in
the Lord’s mind. That these words disclose a new prospect, not the spirit’s
presence with Jesus after death, is clear from the closing verses of this
gospel. There our Lord first foretells Peter’s death; then, being asked what
should become of John, replies — "If I will that he tarry till I come, what is
that to thee?" (John 21:22). Now this could not mean that John might live till
the end of the world. But neither could it mean that John might go to be with
Jesus at his death. In this case, how would he have differed from Peter or any
of the other disciples? Moreover, such an interpretation would rob the words of
all meaning, making them equivalent to this — "If I will that he lives till he
dies, what is that to thee?" The coming referred to, therefore, is neither the
departure to be with Jesus at death, nor His appearing at the end of the world.
Its true character is not far to seek. It is here spoken of, not as one of an
indefinite number of similar events, like the deaths of individual believers,
but as a single transaction, of which the disciples had already heard. Such a
transaction Jesus had but lately named when He promised to come again for His
disciples. It is true He did not distinguish it from the other part of His
coming, but He brought it out as a special feature, and it was to this feature
that John’s heart would turn when he heard the words uttered. What can be
simpler? On a solemn occasion Jesus tells his disciples that He will come to
take them to Himself. Shortly afterwards He bids them not to be surprised if one
of them tarries till He comes. However little the disciples might yet be able to
distinguish between the two pasts of His coming, there can surely be no doubt
that these utterances were meant to bring before their minds the same blessed
hope. These two passages, then, teach us: First the return of Jesus for His
saints, not at death or the end of the world, but at some definite though
unrevealed period, when all shall be brought together to the place He has gone
to prepare for them; and secondly, that this coming again, though uncertain as
to time, might occur before the death of one, at least, of the apostles. So the
disciples understood it, for there "went this saying abroad among the brethren,
that that disciple should not die" (John 21:23), and though the Holy Ghost
corrects this error, we are never told that it consisted in believing that Jesus
might come in John’s lifetime; still less in believing that if He did come, John
would not die. Christ’s own words expressly authorised the former belief; and
other parts of Scripture make it clear that Christians living at the Lord’s
coming will be translated without seeing death. The disciples’ error, therefore,
did not consist in this understanding of the words of Jesus; but in adding to
those words, and thus converting a statement that John might tarry into a
prediction that he would tarry. Nor is anything said about unusual longevity on
the part of John. The time of the Lord’s coming is studiously kept out of sight.
The only event that must necessarily happen, according to these scriptures,
before the promised return of Jesus for his disciples, was the martyrdom of
Peter, a thing which, in an age of persecution, might have occurred at almost
any hour. When that had taken place, there was no reason to be deduced from
these passages why the return of Jesus should not be momentarily expected.

Let us look at the position of the early disciples, remembering that this was
almost all the light they yet had on the subject. Of the two whose future career
had been spoken of, one had been told that he must suffer death, the other that
he might tarry till Jesus came. Would it not be a perfectly natural and lawful
thing for John to be living in anticipation of the Lord’s coming? Would it not,
indeed, have shown sad unbelief if he had not looked for translation, but had
looked for death instead of translation? Would it not also have been lawful for
the other disciples, Peter excepted, to anticipate that the Lord might come in
their lifetime, and to have constantly before their souls the refreshing hope
that the One whom they loved, and who had departed from them, would soon return
to take them to Himself?

It is important to ascertain the legitimate effect which these words of our Lord
would have on the minds of the disciples, because they were the only clear light
on this subject which they yet possessed. It is true there were other prophecies
as to His coming uttered by Himself, but these were intentionally obscure as to
the great point here brought out namely, the coming of the Lord for His saints
apart from and before His coming in power and glory. In no other place had the
Lord Jesus held out the hope of His return for His disciples, without reference
to other events affecting His coming to the world. The hope, therefore, was
clearly expressed, in very few words, and of little capable of erroneous
interpretations. It is a serious thing to maintain that a hope so clearly and
definitely stated is a mistake; that the conclusion legitimately flowing from
our Lord’s own words was a conclusion which He did not mean His disciples to
draw; that the hope reasonably founded on His own promise was a hope which He
did not mean them to cherish. Rather, surely, should we infer that, though in
His wisdom God has seen fit to conceal the time, and though in His mercy He has
seen fit to delay that event, which, however blessed for believers, puts a
period to the grace in which He is now acting towards the world, yet His purpose
was to hold out this coming of His Son as a precious perennial hope for the
souls of those who are His. But though our Lord’s own language seems
sufficiently plain, it may be asked, whether it is in agreement with other
portions of God’s Word? Christ’s teaching, as we have said, only slightly
touched this special subject of His separate advent for His saints; and He left
its full significance to be brought to the hearts of His disciples by that
Spirit of Truth, who was to teach them all things, and bring all things to their
remembrance whatsoever He had said unto them. What, then, does this Holy Spirit
teach us concerning the wondrous theme we are here considering? The question is
not treated at length in the Acts, which, however, contains a passage clearly
announcing the Lord’s return, in some form or other, before the end of the
world. Immediately after His ascension, while the disciples still "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" (Acts 1:10-11). Now no time is
here mentioned, and if the passage stood by itself it might be supposed to refer
to the end of the world. But, comparing it with other passages, this
interpretation becomes impossible. For, in the first place, His coming again was
to be "in like manner" with His ascension, and nothing can be conceived more
unlike to this event than the appearance of the Judge upon the great white
throne. Secondly, when the Judge then appears, He does not come to the world,
for "the earth and the heaven flee away." It is the dead who are summoned before
the Judge, not the Judge who comes to them. (Rev 20:11-15.) But thirdly, our
Lord had Himself constantly spoken of His coming, and had only recently named
its effect upon the disciples as a special ground of consolation and hope, as
the one precious comfort to stay their hearts during His absence. What, then, is
more natural than that now, when He had just departed from His last earthly
communion with them, the promise of His coming should once more be presented to
their hearts? True, the two parts of the coming were not yet clearly made known,
nor was the special hope of His return for His saints, as distinct from the
other act, here revealed. Still the coming, of which this feature was now
taught, is presented as a general hope, to cheer and calm the souls of the
disciples. But it is in the epistles, where the Spirit has fully unfolded "all
that Jesus began both to do and teach" while here on earth, that this "mystery"
of the separate coming for the saints, hitherto hid in the counsels of God, is
first distinctly revealed. The earliest of these epistles, as nearly all
competent critics are agreed, is the first of those addressed to the
Thessalonians. Paul had spent at the outside three or four weeks in Thessalonica
— had only for "three Sabbath days reasoned with them out of the Scriptures"
(Acts 17:2) — and the whole of the instruction possessed by the believers was
derived from him during this brief visit, which was followed shortly by his
first epistle. It is interesting, therefore, to observe the truth they had
received, and to note its practical effect. On both these points the Holy Ghost
has given full information. The apostle rejoices in their "work of faith, and
labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ." They "were
ensamples to all that believe." Not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in
every place, people were relating how these Thessalonian converts had "turned to
God from idols, to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from
heaven" (1Th 1:9-10). These, then, were the two characteristics of the
Thessalonian Church. Can it be said that they are the distinguishing marks of
Christians at the present day? It may be answered that all believers expect
Jesus to come from heaven, and this is, no doubt, true. But surely no person,
looking at modern Christians, would seize upon this as a leading feature of
their faith The expression appears to imply, what the rest of the epistle
plainly shows, that there was among these Thessalonians something much more than
a distant expectation of the Lord’s coming at the end of the world; that it was
a present hope, influencing all their thoughts, their feelings, and their
practical life, a hope so vivid and powerful as to attract the attention of "all
that believe in Macedonia and Achaia."

If then, this was a delusion arising from imperfect knowledge, how is it that
the apostle, instead of putting them right, records this waiting attitude, side
by side with their turning to God, as a portion of the bright testimony they
were bearing? In the next chapter he again incidentally alludes to the hope, and
again without the slightest hint that the Thessalonians had fallen into error,
or were cherishing unfounded expectations. In the fourth chapter, to which we
shall presently have occasion more fully to refer, the apostle alludes to the
Lord’s coming in these remarkable terms — "For this we say unto you by the word
of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord
shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord Himself shall descend from
heaven with a shout. . . . 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" (1Th
4:15-18). Jesus had told His disciples, that one of them might tarry till His
return. Here the Holy Ghost intimates that believers then living might also
remain to that time. He contrasts the "we which are alive" with "them which are
asleep." What is the significance of the word "we" used in this manner? A
speaker might say to his audience — "We who live to the end of this century." It
would not mean that any of them must live till then, merely that they might. But
it would be senseless to say — "We who live to the end of the next century." So,
here, the Holy Ghost is not revealing the time of Christ’s return, but, while
leaving this indefinite, is urging the hope which God would have believers
cherish. If He did not mean them to be looking for the Lord’s coming during
their own lifetime, the use of the first person would be not only meaningless
but erroneous.

Compare this language with our Lord’s own words. Jesus says — "I will come
again;" Paul says — "The Lord Himself shell descend from heaven." Jesus says —
"I will receive you unto Myself;" Paul says that the believers still living
"shall be caught up to meet the Lord in the air." Jesus gives as His motive,
"That where I am, there ye may be also;" Paul declares — "So shall we ever be
with the Lord." Jesus gives His promise that the hearts of the disciples might
not be troubled; Paul exhorts sorrowing believers to "comfort one another with
these words." There can surely be no question that these passages, running so
closely parallel, relate to the same event. And what is the event? Not the end
of the world, for it might happen in the lifetime of the generation then on the
earth. Not death, for the living were to be caught up without seeing death. It
can be nothing else, then, but the coming of the Lord for His own, according to
the gracious promise He had, before His departure, given the disciples.

Very similar, and in some respects even stronger, is the language used by the
same apostle in addressing the Corinthian Church. "Behold," he says, "I show you
a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment in
the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the
dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed" (1Co 15:51-52).
Here, then, we are expressly told what in the other passage we might confidently
infer, that those living at the Lord’s coming for His saints shall not die, but
shall be changed. But is not this coming at the end of the world? Let us look
closely at the text. There is no mention here made of the resurrection of
unbelievers. The two classes put in contrast are, therefore, believers who will
be living at this advent and believers who are dead. Now, in which of these
classes does the apostle range himself and those to whom he was writing? Not
with the dead, but with the living. Had he meant that both he and they would be
in their graves, he would have said "The trumpet shall sound, and we shall be
raised incorruptible, and the living shall be changed." So modern theology puts
it. The Holy Ghost inverts it, classing the present generation as those who
might live to the Lord’s coming. If it be said that the Spirit, who searcheth
"the deep things of God" must have known that the Thessalonians would die before
the Lord’s return, and cannot, therefore, have meant them to look out for it as
a present hope, the answer is, that Christ Himself did so place it before John,
though, of course, He knew that it would not happen till after John’s death.
"The foolishness of God is wiser than men." These words were chosen, that the
hope of the Lord’s coming might be ever present to the believer’s heart. But
does not Scripture expressly say that "it is appointed unto men once to die"?
Let us examine the passage in which these words occur. Speaking of Christ’s one
offering, it says — "Now once, in the end of the world, hath He appeared to put
away sin by the sacrifice of Himself; and as it is appointed unto men once to
die, but after this the judgment Christ was once offered to bear the sins of
many; and unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time, apart
from sin, unto salvation" (Heb 9:26-28). This doubtless shows that, since sin
entered, it is the order of nature that man should die. But why is this stated
here? Simply to bring out the fact that Christ has taken man’s place, and
endured the death and judgment which were his due. The argument is, that as
these were appointed to man in consequence of sin, so, in like manner — Christ
suffered the same lot; and now, having on His first appearing borne death and
judgment as the believer’s substitute, He can appear to him a second time,
having nothing more to do with sin, for his salvation. This is in harmony with
the whole argument of the chapter, which contrasts the partial and temporary
result of the Levitical sacrifices with the perfect work of Christ, who "now
once, in the end of the world, hath appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of
Himself." Instead of proving, therefore, that death and judgment must
necessarily come upon man, the text shows that neither death nor judgment, as
the penalty for sin, remain to the believer. And this is obvious from another
consideration. The text declares that "it is appointed unto men once to die, but
after this the judgment." If it proves, then, that the believer must die, it
proves that he must be judged; and if it does not prove that he must be judged,
it does not prove that he must die. But our Lord Himself says — "He that heareth
My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not
come into judgment" (John 5:24). The word in the original is the same as in the
Hebrews, though our translation renders it "condemnation." The believer, then,
has passed out of the condition described in this text, and having escaped the
judgment, which is one penalty of sin, he cannot be liable to the death, which
is the other.

But, if so, why do believers die? Not as the penalty for sin, for if the
believer has to bear any part of the penalty of sin, the atonement of Christ is
not a perfect work. But though the penalty for sin has gone, the consequences of
sin have not yet been thoroughly effaced, nor will be until "the redemption of
the body." As connected with the "first man," the body is "of the earth,
earthy," and as such liable to natural decay. It is no longer judicially subject
to death, and therefore, should the Lord come before its powers are exhausted,
it will be changed at once, without tasting death, from "the image of the
earthy" into "the image of the heavenly." But it is naturally subject to decay,
and should the Lord tarry till its strength fails, it falls asleep and awaits
its own redemption and the Lord’s coming in the grave, instead of upon the
earth. Hence the death of the believer is spoken of in figures pointing to its
transitory nature and blessed termination — "falling asleep in Jesus," pulling
down a tabernacle, or "sowing in weakness" what is "raised in power."

CHAPTER II.

INDIRECT REFERENCES TO THE LORD’S COMING FOR LIVING BELIEVERS

We have looked at the direct teaching of Scripture concerning the Lord’s return
for His living saints. The language is clear, setting it forth as a present
hope, and, though avoiding dates, speaking of it as an event for which the
believer should be constantly waiting. God does not repeat Himself, and we have
not elsewhere the same full statement of the doctrine, but the epistles abound
in allusions to it from which we may gather much valuable truth.

Such incidental references prove the familiarity of the hope to the early
Christians, the large place it occupied in their thoughts and hearts, and the
various practical aspects in which it was regarded. It is in this last light
that it may be most convenient for us now to examine them.

I. The expectation of the Lord’s speedy return is constantly used as an
incentive to sobriety, moderation, and godliness of walk. Thus the apostle,
after various practical exhortations, writes — "And that, knowing the time, that
now it is high time to awake out of sleep, for now is our salvation nearer than
when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand; let us, therefore,
cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light" (Rom
13:11-12). Now "salvation" is here held out as a near prospect, and the question
is, what the salvation referred to means? It is not conversion or forgiveness of
sins, for these are not a hope, but a present portion; the believer being "in
Christ," and subject neither to condemnation nor separation. It is not death, at
least death is never elsewhere thus described. It is not the end of the world,
for that, as the Romans knew, was a distant event, to the near approach of which
any appeal would have been both fruitless and false.

What, then, is the "salvation" here spoken of? We have seen that in the Hebrews
"salvation" is connected with the Lord’s coming "the second time." Having put
away sin at His first coming, He will "appear the second time" — not to the
world, but — "unto them that look for Him," "apart from sin unto salvation." All
believers look for Jesus, and I doubt not that all are here included. Their
salvation, then, takes place at His second advent. If, therefore, "salvation" is
used in the same sense in the Romans as in the Hebrews, the "salvation" which is
said to be drawing near is that which is wrought by the coming of Jesus for His
saints. But as the character and object of the epistles are different, it may be
well to inquire whether any light as to the meaning of the word can be gathered
from the Romans itself. Let us take this passage — "We ourselves groan within
ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. For we
are saved by hope" (Rom 8:23-24). The salvation here spoken of then, is not
security, or freedom from condemnation, which the believer already enjoys; but a
hope for which, though having "the first-fruits of the Spirit," he waits and
even groans. Nor is it the death of the body, or the spirit going to be with
Jesus. Just the opposite; it is "the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our
body." Believers are "predestinated to be conformed to the image of God’s Son"
(Rom 8:29). They have already "received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry,
Abba, Father." But the body is not yet conformed to Christ’s image, and the work
of adoption is not completed until this also is redeemed. It is, then, for this
we wait. This is the salvation for which we hope. But this "redemption of the
body" is what Christ effects at His coming for His saints, when living believers
"shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye;" or, as stated in
Thessalonians, "we which are alive and remain, shall be caught up in the clouds
to meet the Lord in the air." Salvation, then, in the Romans, as in the Hebrews,
is the change wrought in believers when Jesus returns to take them to the place
He has gone to prepare for them. And how is this salvation spoken of? As a
distant hope, to be realised at some remote period? No; but as a living hope,
which might be realised at any moment, and in the near prospect of which
vigilance and sobriety are urged as befitting the Christian. It is regarded,
indeed, as already at hand, for in God’s thoughts one day is as a thousand
years, and a thousand years as one day. Times and seasons are in His power, and
the believer’s place is not to be calculating dates, but to be looking for the
Lord’s return. God in wisdom and grace may postpone the day; but to the Church
the hope should be ever present. The Lord’s coming is applied in the same
practical way in the Epistle to the Philippians. They are warned not to "mind
earthly things," and exhorted to follow the apostle: "For our conversation is in
heaven, from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who
shall change our body of humiliation, that it may be fashioned like unto His
body of glory" (Php 3:20-21). Here, again, the apostle is waiting, not for
death, but for the coming of Jesus, whom he expects as a Saviour, that is, one
who brings, salvation; and the salvation He brings is that same "redemption of
the body" named in Romans as the Christian’s hope; that same transformation
described in Corinthians as the expectation of the living believer; that same
rapture referred to in Thessalonians as awaiting us "who are alive and remain;"
that same salvation spoken of in Hebrews as the object of Christ’s second
appearing to his own redeemed ones. And here, again, it is a present hope; the
apostle says — "We are looking for the Saviour," that is, are now in the
attitude of expectation. Nor is it merely the present tense which shows this.
The immediate character of the hope is urged as a reason against their being
engrossed with earthly things, just as, in the next chapter, they are exhorted —
"Let your moderation (or yieldingness) be known unto all men. The Lord is at
hand" (1Th 4:5). The anticipation of the Lord’s speedy return was to check
self-assertion and self seeking. It is no general exhortation to yieldingness,
but an exhortation founded on the truth that the Lord is at hand, so real and
practical was this hope to the Philippian believers!

It is used with a similar object in the Epistle to Titus — "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 appearing of the
glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ" (Tit 2:11-13). Here are two
things looked for, "the appearing of the glory," and "that blessed hope." What
is meant by these last words? Not conversion, for that is a fact; nor death, for
that is never spoken of as a hope. In Romans the hope is "the redemption of the
body;" in Philippians the changing of the body into Christ’s likeness, which
would take place at his coming, and might be in the believer’s lifetime. This
hope, then, was familiar to Titus, and surely it can be to none other that the
apostle alludes in these terms. This will be still more evident when we see how
closely the other part of Christ’s coming, here called "the appearing of the
glory," is associated with the first act of His return for His saints. But apart
from this inference, the nature of the hope held out in the other epistles makes
it morally certain that the "blessed hope thus mentioned is the same to which
such frequent reference is elsewhere made. As a prospect exercising a
sanctifying power over the soul, it is further used by Paul in writing to the
Thessalonians. He desires that their "whole spirit and soul and body be
preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1Th 5:23). Now if
the Lord’s advent might be expected in their lifetime, this language is quite
natural. But how could it be used, if the Holy Ghost meant believers to regard
this coming as long after their own deaths? Where death is looked for the words
are — "I am ready to be offered up," or, "Be thou faithful unto death." Such
language is used by most Christians as of universal application. Why, then, does
the Spirit here speak so differently? Why does He bid them look for the Lord’s
coming instead of death? Surely because the Lord’s coming, and not death, is
that for which He would have believers waiting. This attitude of longing
expectation is what Jesus and the Holy Ghost alike enjoin. And so, in writing at
a later period to the same Church, the apostle prays that the Lord would direct
their hearts "into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ"
(2Th 3:5), or rather, "the patience of Christ," He waiting in heaven, and we, in
fellowship with Him, here on earth. Nor is this truth confined to Paul. Its
doctrinal exposition is not indeed, found elsewhere, but it is often alluded to
as a familiar truth, forming the basis of practical exhortations. Thus Peter
says — "The end of all things is at hand; be ye therefore sober, and watch unto
prayer" (1Pe 4:7). "The end of all things" is not death; and it cannot mean the
end of the world, for the end of the world was not at hand. It was an event of
the utmost magnitude, as the words import and at the same time one which might
be speedily anticipated. Only one such event is elsewhere spoken of. The Lord’s
coming is held out as a present expectation, as an incentive to sobriety and
watchfulness, and as a transaction of tremendous importance, closing God’s
present dealings, and bringing in an entirely new order of things. The coming,
indeed, is here viewed in its widest sense, including both its parts, but that
it is the coming there can be no doubt. And this event is said to be "at hand,"
and is used as a ground of exhortation to sobriety and prayerfulness.

So, too, the Apocalypse presents this hope in those closing verses where, after
the unfolding of the events about to happen on the earth, and of the glories of
"the Bride, the Lamb’s wife," the Lord once more turns to speak with His
servants as to the moral effect which this revelation should produce on the
hearts of those who received it. This He connects with the near prospect of His
Own return — "Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of
the prophecy of this book," adding, in connection with the responsibility of the
believer, "Behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man
according as his work shall be" (Rev 22:7, Rev 22:12). It is most deeply
interesting to see how, in the closing words of exhortation and warning to His
Church, His people’s affections are awakened and their consciences aroused by
the repeated references to His speedy return.

II. In the above quotations we have seen how this "blessed hope" is constantly
employed to enforce holiness and godliness in individual walk. In the same
spirit it is further used to enjoin faithfulness in the midst of ecclesiastical
corruption. It is the fence God has provided against the evils within the
Church, as well as against the evils of the surrounding world. Fearful
corruption and wickedness had shown themselves at Thyatira, and judgment was
threatened. But in the midst of the failure were some faithful ones, whom the
Lord thus addressed — "But unto you I say, even unto the rest in Thyatira, as
many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as
they speak, I will put upon you none other burden. But that which ye have, hold
fast till I come" (Rev 2:24-25). The Church at Philadelphia was weak, but was
maintaining the truth amidst opposition. To it the Lord writes — "Behold, I come
quickly; hold fast that which thou hast, that no man take thy crown" (Rev 3:11).
All around were weakness and wickedness, and the faithful are enjoined to "hold
fast" what they have. But till what time? In one case it is said — "Till I
come;" in the other it is implied, and the hope is given — "Behold, I come
quickly." Now why name the Lord’s coming, if the believers were to look for
death, and not the Lord’s coming? Where death is meant, it is mentioned. In
these very epistles the Lord writes — "Be thou faithful unto death;" just as
when on earth He had told His disciples — "Whosoever killeth you will think that
he doeth God service." Death, then, was not what the faithful brethren in
Thyatira and Philadelphia were to look for, but another event. And this other
event might happen in their lifetime, for how else could they be exhorted to
hold fast what they had until it occurred? Or why should they be told that the
Lord would come quickly, if it were not meant to cheer their hearts as a present
anticipation?

So, too, in the Epistle to the Hebrews. Some of those addressed were in danger
of being shaken in the faith. Persecution was at hand, and they had "not yet
resisted unto blood." The apostle trembled for the reality of the work in some
of their hearts, and warns them most solemnly against apostasy after receiving
so much truth and being made partakers of such outward privileges. He earnestly
beseeches them — "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" (Heb 10:35-37). A modern preacher
would say — "Yet a little while, and this scene will close; death will put an
end to your troubles, and you will depart to be with Jesus, which is far
better." But this is not the language of the Holy Ghost. Why? Because the Holy
Ghost, knowing the mind of God, always puts the Lord’s coming, and not death, as
the expectation of the Christian. This blessed hope was before the Hebrews, and
in its cheering light let them have patience, do the will of God, and look for
the certain promise. We are told, too, to consider one another, to provoke unto
love and to good works; not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as
the manner of some is; but exhorting one another, and so much the more as ye see
the day approaching" (Heb 10:24-25). Here "the day" is not exactly held out as a
hope, but rather as an incentive to faithfulness. It is the Lord’s coming viewed
in its whole scope, more than the special prospect of his advent to take the
believer to the Father’s house. Stilt this, as the first part of the coming,
was, of course, included, and we again find that this event is spoken of as
approaching, as near enough to give point to exhortations urging a line of
behaviour suited to the believer under such circumstances.

III. In these last cases the idea of trial and persecution was before the
apostle’s mind, and the Lord’s coming is named in order to strengthen the tried
ones against the evil around. But the same hope is also presented to stay the
heart against suffering arising from quite different causes. In such a practical
epistle as James, no matter of mere curious speculation would enter. Yet here
the hope of the Lord’s return is brought in to comfort the poor brethren, who
were groaning under oppression. "Be patient, therefore, brethren, unto the
coming of the Lord" (Jas 5:7). If James had meant "unto death," he would have
said so. It is manifest that he could not mean the end of the world. He
intended, therefore, to point to the Lord’s coming as an event that might happen
before death, and in the prospect of which they were to find their comfort. This
is obvious, also, from the way in which he continues — "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). Mark how accurate
and tender the words of comfort here spoken. The blessed hope is presented, not
once, but twice, for the healing of their wounded spirits, and yet they are
warned against impatience. Long waiting may be needed, but they are not to lose
the hope because of its delay; for, though in man’s estimate it might tarry,
according to God’s Word, it "draweth nigh."

IV. But this hope of Christ’s return, however it may be used for warning, for
exhortation, or for comfort, derives its chief power from the fact that it is
the expression of the true heart’s affectionate longing for an absent Lord. The
One, "whom, having not seen, we love," is the One for whose return and presence
our hearts should long. And it is, therefore, in this aspect that we have the
Lord’s coming once more placed before us. In the closing chapter of the
Apocalypse, "the Spirit and the Bride" — that is, the Church — say, "Come;" and
our Lord’s last words in this book are, "Surely I come quickly," to which the
response arises — "Amen; even so, come, Lord Jesus" (Rev 22:17-20). To what
coming, then, is it that the Lord here alludes? Surely to that which He left
behind Him as a legacy of hope to His disciples, when he told them that He went
to prepare a place for them, and would come again and take them to Himself; to
that with which He linked the writer of this book in those memorable words — "If
I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?" And here I would point
out that the language is not that of individual believers, but that of the
Church, the Bride, and also of the Spirit. In an individual Christian, it might
be urged that it meant a longing for death and to be with Jesus. But such an
interpretation is manifestly inadmissible if used by the Spirit and the Bride.
Still more forced and unmeaning would such language be in the mouth of the
Church, if the coming which it invites were the coming at the end of the world.
In this very book the most tremendous catastrophes are foretold, which had
certainly not taken place when the book was closed. Yet even then Jesus says,
"Behold, I come quickly," and even then the response goes up — "Amen; even so,
come, Lord Jesus." What can we infer but that the coming of the Lord might
legitimately be anticipated before these events occurred? No one, knowing the
predictions of Scripture, could have said, "Come, Lord Jesus," if this coming
were not to be till after these predictions were fulfilled. The words imply that
the event prayed for was one which might happen at any moment, not one which
could only follow at the close of a long train of unaccomplished prophecy.

V. "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh" and if the heart be
really full of this prospect, its expectation will make itself known in various
unforeseen and casual ways. This is another form in which the hope appears. Thus
it is used as a general basis for appeal. "Now, we beseech you, brethren," says
Paul to the Thessalonians, "by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our
gathering together unto Him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind" (2Th 2:1-2).
Again, in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper, which might seem simply a
retrospective act, the same thought of the Lord’s coming is presented: "For, as
often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord’s death till
He come" (1Co 11:26). These passages do not, indeed, like others, define the
character of the coming or its speedy occurrence. But they show how constantly
it was before the mind of the apostles and the early believers, how it entered
into and coloured all their thoughts, words, and actions. No dim general
expectation of His advent at the end of the of world would account for its
introduction in the way in which it is brought in here.

VI. But this coming of the Lord has yet another aspect which we solemnly urge on
those believers who are disposed to treat it as a curious and even frivolous
speculation. It is by the contempt and ridicule of this doctrine that the
decline of the last days will be especially marked. "There shall come in the
last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the
promise of His coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as
they were from the beginning of the creation. For this they willingly are
ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth
standing out of the water, and in the water; whereby the world that then was,
being overflowed with water, perished; but the heavens and the earth, which are
now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of
judgment and perdition of ungodly men. But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one
thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand is years, and a thousand
years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His premise, as some men
count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should
perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will
come as a thief in the night" (2Pe 3:3-10).

If the Lord’s coming is to believers a blessed hope, to professing Christendom
it is the end of hope. It shuts the door of grace, reserving those left behind
for the terrible ushering in of the day of the Lord, when He comes to take
"vengeance on them that know not God," and for the still darker hour when that
day shall close in the conflagration of the world and the judgment of the great
white throne. The apostle, speaking of professing Christendom, here foretells
that in the last days the Lord’s coming will be a subject of derision. Men will
point to the world around, declare everything to be prosperous, and discern no
sign of change. Alas! they are "willingly ignorant" that so it was before the
flood. Did the mockery excited by the long warning prevent the deluge coming and
sweeping the scoffers away? Nor will it stay the execution of judgment on the
world in whose stability men are trusting. The delay may seem long, for God’s
measure of time is not like man’s; but the Lord has not forgotten his promise.
If He has delayed its fulfilment, it is that the despisers of His grace might be
gathered in, not being willing that any should perish, but that all should come
to repentance. When the time is arrived, the promise will be fulfilled, and then
the terrible day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night for the
destruction of those who are left behind. Is not this scoffing what we see
around us? But there is something still sadder in beholding many of the Lord’s
true children swelling this cry of mocking incredulity, and both in their
religious systems, in their political calculations, and in their whole scheme of
worldly conduct asking with like unbelief, or putting aside with like
indifference, the solemn question — Where is the promise of His coming?

CHAPTER III. THE COMING OF THE LORD WITH HIS SAINTS The passages cited in the
preceding chapters either treat the Lord’s return in a general sense, without
distinguishing between its two acts, or, in the greater number of instances,
describe only the first act, the coming of Jesus for His saints. The second act,
the return of Jesus with His saints, is more frequently spoken of as the
"appearing," the "revelation," or the "manifestation" of the Lord, and is not,
like the other, a doctrine specially confined to the New Testament. On the
contrary, as we shall see more fully at a later stage, this return of Jesus to
the earth in glory and power is a theme which occupies a most prominent place in
Old Testament teaching, and the great point added in the New Testament is that,
when He thus returns, He will be accompanied by those who have previously been
caught up to meet Him in the air. Until the special New Testament hope, the
return of Jesus for His saints, had been revealed, their return with Him in
glory was a feature which could not be made known. My object in this chapter is
not to enter into the character or circumstances of this manifestation of Jesus
in glory to the earth, but simply to show that whenever and however it occurs,
the saints are manifested with Him, thus proving that they must have been taken
up to heaven at a still earlier period. In Psa 2:1-12 the return of Jesus is
described. The Gentiles are raging, the people imagining a vain thing, the kings
and rulers of the earth conspiring against Jehovah and against His Christ. Then
it is that the Lord vexes them in Hi s sore displeasure, and declares that in
spite of their rage, He has set His king upon Zion, the hill of His holiness.
Christ then publishes the decree — "Jehovah hath said unto Me, Thou art My Son;
this day have I begotten Thee. Ask of Me, and I shall give Thee the gentiles for
Thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for Thy possession. Thou
shalt break them with a rod of iron; Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a
potter’s vessel" (Psa 2:7-9). No passage could on its face bear stronger
evidence of God’s purpose to establish Christ’s authority on earth by power and
judgments. Language less descriptive of the spread of Christian truth, or
language more descriptive of the forcible and violent establishment of dominion,
could hardly be devised. But we are not left to conjecture as to how the
prediction of this psalm receives its accomplishment. On the contrary, its
fulfilment is thus graphically narrated. "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a
white horse: and He that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in
righteousness 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 homes, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And 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 winepress of the fierceness and wrath of
Almighty God" (Rev 19:11-15). The passage then goes on to describe the gathering
of the armies of the beast and the false prophet, the capture and fearful doom
of the two leaders and the destruction of their followers, the binding and
imprisonment of Satan, and the reign of Christ together with His saints for a
thousand years. That the One here described is Christ cannot be questioned, and
that the work He accomplishes is the same work as that foretold in the second
psalm the identity of the language clearly proves. The forcible establishment of
Christ’s dominion, therefore, and the destructive judgment of his enemies, takes
place at least a thousand years before the end of the world. He then comes to
the earth in manifested glory and resistless strength to execute the judgments
of God and to reign in righteousness over the world. But there is a feature in
this description of His return which does not appear in the corresponding
passage in the Psalms. In the Revelation, we find that He is followed by the
armies of heaven, and the question arises — "What age are these armies of
heaven, and of whom do they consist?" By looking a little further back in the
same chapter, we discover something which casts light on this subject. We there
find mighty rejoicings going on in heaven — "the voice of a great multitude, and
as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying,
Alleluia; for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth" (Rev 19:6). But the song of joy
and thanksgiving does not stop here. This magnificent chorus goes on to praise
God, that "the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself
ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean
and white: for the fine linen is the righteousnesses of saints" (Rev 19:7-8).

Now the Lamb’s wife is, we need hardly say, the Church, which, therefore, is
beheld in heaven previous to the sudden and terrible appearance of Christ to
execute judgment on the earth. But not only is the Church in heaven; it is also
clothed in fine linen, which is the same dress in which the armies of heaven,
who follow Jesus, make their appearance shortly afterwards. Nor is this mere
coincidence. The fine linen has a peculiar meaning; it is the righteousnesses of
saints. Those, therefore, who issue from heaven with Jesus are attired in
raiment which has just before been said to be emblematic of the saints’
righteousnesses, and surely none could be clothed in such vestures except the
saints themselves. The armies of heaven, then, which fellow Jesus, are
manifestly the saints, who must, therefore, have been previously caught up to be
with Him in heaven. This is shown by another passage, where, after describing
the powers that combine with the beast against Christ — the kings of the earth
who "take counsel together against the Lord and against His Anointed" the writer
adds, "These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them, for
He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and they that are with Him are called and
chosen and faithful" (Rev 17:14). Angels are faithful, and in one passage are
spoken of as "chosen;" but we never hear of angels being "called." "Calling,"
however, specially characterises believers. They are "called to be saints," or
saints by calling (Rom 1:7; 1Co 1:2). They are described as "sanctified by God
the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called" (Jude 1:1). They "are the
called according to God’s purpose," for "whom He did predestinate, them He also
called" (Rom 8:28-30). And so in many other well-known passages. The companions
of Christ, therefore, in this victory over the beast and false prophet, the
armies of heaven spoken of as coming forth with Him, are not angels, but saints,
believers called by God’s grace, and before this period taken to be "for ever
with the Lord."

There is another link, however, by which this chain of evidence is rendered
still more complete. What we see the saints actually doing in the chapter we
have just been considering, is the very thing which is promised to them in an
earlier part of the same prophetic book. In addressing the Church at Thyatira,
Christ had thus spoken — "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 shivers, even as I
received of my Father" (Rev 2:26-27). Thus those who overcome, that is, real
believers as distinguished from false professors, are here joined with Christ
Himself in that judgment of the nations foretold in the second psalm. The armies
of heaven, then, clothed in a dress emblematic of the righteousnesses of saints,
are no other than these overcomers, that is, the true saints, who were before
seen to be in heaven. So that believers are taken to heaven before Christ comes
to reign, and when He does come, they come with Him, and in His glory.

If it is urged that the Book of Revelation is a difficult one, and that its
language is highly figurative, I reply that a special blessing is attached to
its study, so that the Spirit meant it to be understood. Besides, while
admitting that the book contains difficult passages, there are some portions as
easy as any other parts of Scripture, and the texts above cited are plain enough
for the simplest reader to comprehend. But, to remove all doubt, it may be well
to show how fully its teaching harmonises with other portions of God’s Word. The
Epistle of Jude contains a very ancient prophecy uttered by the patriarch Enoch,
the seventh from Adam, in which he foretold, "saying, Behold the Lord cometh
with ten thousand of His saints, to execute judgment upon all" (Jude 1:14-15)
Now there are but two scenes named in Scripture to which this can refer. In one
of these, the judgment of the great white throne at the end of the world, there
is nothing said about the saints being present. In the other, the coming of
Christ to take His earthly dominion, we have already seen that the saints, as
the armies of heaven, issue forth with Him, clothed in His likeness, and are His
companions in executing judgment on His foes. There can, therefore, be no doubt
that this is the event to which Enoch’s prophecy relates. In writing to the
Thessalonians, Paul says — "The Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with
His mighty angels, in flaming fire, taking vengeance on 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 believe (because our testimony among you was believed)
in that day" (2Th 1:7-10). Here, again, the scene is not at the end of the
world, for then Jesus is seated as a judge, instead of coming forth as a
minister of vengeance: And though "His mighty angels" are here named as His
companions in executing judgment, the saints are also revealed with Him; for He
is glorified in His saints, and admired in those who believe — the Thessalonians
being thus recompensed for their sufferings and persecutions. In the former
letter Paul had spoken of Christ coming "with all His saints" (1Th 3:13). He now
adds that when He comes to take vengeance on the wicked, His saints will be
manifested with Him. The manifestation is referred to as a known event and could
only be what he had named in his first letter. The testimony of Thessalonians,
therefore, exactly agrees with that of Jude and Revelation.

Rom 8:18-23 shows that while the believer is "waiting for the adoption, to wit,
the redemption of the body," he has another hope; "for I reckon," says the
apostle, "that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared
with the glory which shall be revealed to us." And when is this glory revealed?
We are told in the next verse, "For the earnest expectation of the creature (or
creation) waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God," by which it will
"be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the liberty of the glory of
the children of God." Now this is just the very thing we see in the Apocalypse.
There we behold creation groaning under fearful woes, till Jesus and all the
other sons of God are manifested in their glory, coming from heaven for its
deliverance, destroying "them which destroy the earth," and reigning in peace
and happiness for a thousand years. In the Romans, as in the Revelation, the
manifestation of the sons of God is in glory, that is, it is not while the
believer is groaning in himself but after the redemption of the body. The first
thing to be anticipated, therefore, is the coming of Jesus for His saints, when
the redemption of the body will be accomplished; and the next His appearing with
His saints to destroy his enemies, to deliver creation from its bondage, and to
establish His dominion over the uttermost parts of the earth.

Again, in another epistle, Paul says, "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" (Col 3:3-4) And John writes in the same strain, "It
doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when He shall appear, we
shall be like Him" (1Jn 3:2). This is not in heaven, for how could Christ’s
appearing in heaven be spoken of as a future thing? Is it, then, at the end of
the world? There is no Scripture to show that the believer will appear with
Christ at that time. But there is Scripture for saying that Christ will be
manifested for the deliverance of creation at least a thousand years before the
end of the world. And there is Scripture for saying that when He is thus
manifested, believers will be manifested in the same glory. Why not, then, bow
to the authority of’ God’s Word, and accept the interpretation which lets
Scripture speak for itself, and in consistency with itself, instead of forcing
it to suit our own preconceived notions? Nothing is simpler to follow than the
truth of God, if allowed to flow in its own natural bed; nothing more difficult,
if diverted into the artificial channels of human theology and tradition.

We now see, then, that Jesus will come to reign before the end of the world, and
that when He does come, His saints, including the Church, will come with Him.
Thus, while the believer’s immediate hope — for which he should be constantly
waiting — is the coming of Jesus for His saints, another hope is also often
mentioned, namely, the coming of Jesus with His saints. The first event is
generally called the Lord’s "coming;" the second His "revelation,"
"manifestation," or "appearing." But these names are not invariable. Thus Christ
"appears" to those who look for Him when He "comes" to take them to Himself;
while He "comes" at the time when He "appears" to the world. In most cases,
indeed, the nature and object of his coming or appearing are seen by a glance at
the context, and do not depend for their proper interpretation on the use of any
particular word. My object, however, is not to look into the nature of this
latter act in the Lord’s coming, but merely to show that as it long precedes the
end of the world, the rapture of the saints, which is still earlier, must also
be before the end of the world; thus establishing by independent evidence, what
we have already gathered from other sources, that there is no formidable barrier
of unfulfilled prophecy lying between the believer and the consummation of the
hope he is so often bidden to cherish. Instead, therefore, of having the
expectation of the Lord’s return as a distant prospect, with a long series of
events intervening, we have it as a present hope, for the realisation of which
we may be instantly waiting.

Both of these aspects, or rather parts, of the Lord’s coming, are held out as
hopes, but there is a difference in the way in which the hope is put forward.
The earlier act is generally so named as to show its immediate character; the
later, though never regarded as distant and though expected to produce a present
effect, is not spoken of as an event to be momentarily looked for. Again, the
coming of the Lord for His saints is a hope addressed to the affections, and the
appeals founded upon it are rather to the heart than to the interests, as a wife
would wish so to order things during her husband’s absence, that his return
might be a source of unalloyed delight. The coming of the Lord with His saints,
on the other hand, is the time when faithfulness of walk and service will be
manifested in its result, and the appeals founded upon it partake largely of
this character, the reward being presented to the mind, as well as the delight
of the Lord’s own presence. As the period when the fruits of faithful service
will be gathered, it is often spoken of by the apostle Paul. Thus, looking
forward to the results of his labours among the Corinthians, he gives thanks
that they are "waiting for the revelation (see margin) 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" (1Co 1:7-8); and he is glad that they have acknowledged
him in part, "that we are your rejoicing, even as ye also are ours in the day of
the Lord Jesus" (2Co 1:14). Writing to the Philippians, he is confident "that He
which hath begun a good work in you, will perform it until the day of Jesus
Christ" (Php 1:6); he prays that they "may be sincere and without offence till
the day of Christ" (Php 1:10); and trusts "that I may rejoice in the day of
Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain" (Php 2:16). So
Timothy is charged to keep the commandments laid on him by the apostle, "without
spot, unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1Ti 6:14);
and in the second epistle, the writer, looking forward to his own approaching
martyrdom, says — "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 all them also that love His appearing" (2Ti 4:8). In like manner,
the apostle writes to the Thessalonians — "For what is our hope, or joy, or
crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at
His coming?" (1Th 2:19). Here the coming is referred to in a general way, but
the prominent feature is the joy which would be experienced by the workman in
the manifested results of his labours.

It is urged, however, not only as the reward of faithfulness in service, but as
an incentive to holiness and purity of walk. In this use, the object is so
closely analogous to the practical exhortations founded on the expectation of
the Lord’s coming for His saints, that the two are sometimes united together.
The Colossians being dead with Christ, and having a life "hid with Christ in
God," are exhorted to heavenly affections by the assurance that "when Christ who
is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory" (Col
3:4); and the apostle prays that the Thessalonians may have their hearts
stablished, "unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming
of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints" (1Th 3:13). In these cases only
the coming of Jesus with His saints is named, but in others, where the same
object is in view, the two parts of the coming are used together. Thus, in the
letter to Titus (Tit 2:13) besides the "blessed hope," the believer has set
before him "the appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus
Christ," as an incentive to the denial of ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to
a sober, righteous, and godly life. So, too, in the writings of another apostle,
the exhortation to "abide in Him, that when He shall appear, we may have
confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming" (1Jn 2:28), is closely
associated with the assurance "that when He shall appear, we shall be like Him,
for we shall see Him as He is," followed by the practical moral effect which
this truth has on the walk, "every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth
himself even as He is pure" (1Jn 3:2-3).

Another use to which this second act in the Lord’s coming is applied, is to
encourage the believer in the midst of suffering and persecution, by the
contrast of the glory in which he will then be manifested. Thus in writing to
the Romans, Paul tells them that "the sufferings of this present time are not
worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed to us" (Rom 8:18),
and in another epistle he says — "If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him"
(2Ti 2:12). Peter also encourages those to whom he writes by showing them how
"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 honour, and glory
at the appearing of Jesus Christ;" and urges them to "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" (1Pe 1:7, 1Pe 1:13). In all these cases,
the hope, though different from that of the Lord’s immediate return for His
saints, is closely connected with it, and absolutely dependent upon it, for the
believer cannot be manifested with Christ when He comes to reign on earth,
unless he has first been caught up to be with Him in glory. It is only as
establishing this truth that we now refer to it, reserving its character and
results as regards the world and God’s purposes concerning it, for consideration
at a later stage.

CHAPTER IV. THE TEACHING OF OUR LORD’S PARABLES CONCERNING HIS COMING.

During our Lord’s ministry, the time for disclosing the mystery of His separate
advent for His saints was not arrived, and in this parable the two parts of the
coming are spoken of without distinction. His words were to be interpreted by
the Holy Ghost, sent after His departure, and it is in the light of the truth
thus given that His parables must be understood. In Matthew, we read of a
"servant whom his Lord made ruler over his household to give them meat in due
season." It is said, "Blessed is that servant, whom his Lord when he cometh
shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over
all his goods. But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My Lord
delayeth his coming, and shall begin to smite his fellow-servants, and to eat
and drink with the drunken; 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
off and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and
gnashing of teeth" (Mat 24:45-51). This is followed by the parable of the wise
and foolish virgins, the wise virgins who "took oil in their vessels with their
lamps" going in with the bridegroom to the marriage, while the foolish virgins,
who "took no oil with them," when they come, after the door is shut, and
entreat, "Lord, Lord, open to us," are told in answer, "Verily I say unto you, I
know you not" (Mat 25:1-12). This leads to the practical exhortation — "Watch,
therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour" (Mat 25:13). The rest of
the verse given in our Bible is unauthorised. In Luke, the following exhortation
is given — "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 immediately.
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 servants"
(Luk 12:35-38). This is followed by the parable of the steward, the same in all
essential particulars as in the Gospel of Matthew. In Mark, the exhortations to
watch are most solemnly given, but the teaching on this subject does not add to
that of the two other synoptical gospels.

All the parables just named represent persons awaiting the arrival of another.
The One expected is Christ. But what is the time of the coming looked forward
to? it cannot be the end of the world, for all modes of prophetic interpretation
insert a period of a thousand years following our Lord’s ministry before that
time, and no exhortation could be given to watch for an event known to be a
thousand years off. A more usual and probable explanation is, that our Lord
speaks of the hour of death. But death is not elsewhere described in any such
terms. The good man goes to be with Jesus, or is seen in Abraham’s bosom. The
bad man’s soul is required of him, or he is found in hades. Each goes to his own
place; or if either is taken, he is "carried by angels," not by Christ coming
for him. But besides this, in these parables, the Lord always comes "in a day
when he looketh not for Him, and at an hour when he is not aware." Now this is
not usually the case with death, which, more frequently than not, advances with
full warning of its approach. Moreover, the whole tone of the parables implies a
great public event such as the coming of the Lord named in the epistles, not a
mere matter of private moment like the death of individuals. It is, then, the
Lord’s coming that is here spoken of, but its two parts are not distinguished.
They form portions of a whole, and are so represented, the different times at
which different events occur not being noted. Some receive reward, others
punishment, and whether these begin when the Lord comes for His saints, or when
He comes with them, is immaterial to the object of the parable. The moral
purpose of the parables is the same as the references to the Lord’s coming in
the epistles. While the steward watches he is vigilant and sober; when he says
in his heart "My Lord delayeth his coming," he begins to beat his
fellow-servants, and to eat and drink and be drunken. How like Paul’s teaching,
— "The night is far spent, the day is at hand; let us walk honestly as in the
day, not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, but put
ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh to fulfil the
lusts thereof" (Rom 13:12-14). In both cases, watching for the Lord is the
incentive to faithfulness, while unwatchfulness leads to carelessness of walk,
indulgence of lust, and worldliness of heart. In the parable of the virgins, we
have the same point, but the condition of welcoming the bridegroom is also
shown. Watching virgins should be awake and should have oil in their lamps. All
fail in the first; as the Church did for ages lose sight of the hope of the
Lord’s coming. But there is a difference in the other matter, the possession of
oil; some having the Spirit, that is, being real believers, others only false
professors. Before the cry is raised, these classes mingle together; but when it
is heard, they divide. This shows that the expectation of the Lord’s return is
not only the spring of individual purity of walk, but the source of holy
separateness, and care for the honour of Christ, in the assembly. In all ages
there have been Christians with oil in their vessels, but till the cry of the
bridegroom’s coming was raised, they slept carelessly in company with mere empty
professors, and it is the expectation of the bridegroom’s arrival which causes
them to part fellowship. In the parable of the servants waiting for their Lord’s
return from the wedding, the same general lesson of watchfulness is inculcated,
but another element of great importance is added, in the caution given as to the
uncertainty and possible distance of the time; "and if he shall come in the
second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those
servants." What is this but an intimation that while the watch ought to be
constant it might be protracted? As the intimation to John, and the language
addressed to the Thessalonians, required watchfulness from the first, this
parable warns us against relaxing our watchfulness, or growing careless because
the expected advent has not yet taken place. In the Epistle to James, though the
sufferers are exhorted to look for the Lord’s coming, they are told that the
watch may require "long patience." So here; but the blessing of faithfulness is
all the greater. Carelessness in watching is as earnestly deprecated, and the
reward of diligence as emphatically stated, in the third watch as in the first,
in the nineteenth century as in the apostolic days. The object of the parables,
then, is just the same as that of the teaching concerning the Lord’s coming
contained in the epistles. We shall see the same thing if we look at the
rewards. In the case of the steward who acts faithfully, he is made ruler over
all that his lord hath. Here the joint-heirship is shadowed forth, "if we
suffer, we shall also reign with Him." In the parable of the virgins, the
blessing is different, the wise virgins entering in with the bridegroom to the
marriage feast; while in the case of the servants found watching for their
master after he returns from the wedding, they sit down to meat, and the lord
comes forth and serves them. The figure in the two parables differs, and the
reward differs to suit it. But the principle is the same, and agrees with the
"blessed hope" of the epistles, to be for ever with the Lord, in His presence,
and partakers of His joys, the objects of His watchful love and unfailing
delight. How beautiful the fitness of our Lord’s teaching down to the minutest
detail! Where it is the heart watching for the Lord’s return, the reward is the
joy of the Lord’s communion, the blessed society of the Father’s house. Where it
is the service of patient waiting, the Lord himself owns it in service to the
faithful ones. Where it is careful watching over the Lord’s interests, the
suited response is, to be made rulers in the kingdom.

Looking at the punishment, the same is seen. The unfaithful steward is cut off.
At the time of the Lord’s coming for His saints he is left behind, no longer as
a steward, but as one under judgment, which is executed when Christ comes with
His saints and the angels of His power, "taking vengeance on them that know not
God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ." In the case of the
virgins, all that is said is that they are shut out, that is, they are not taken
up to be with Christ when he comes for His own. In both the rewards and the
punishments, no note is made of the difference of time between the two acts of
the Lord’s coming, merely the results being stated, in exact accordance with
what the epistles teach, but without reference to the period of their
realisation.

There is one common feature to be noted in all these parables. The same servants
who are bidden to watch are those who welcome their lord: the same steward who
receives his master’s charge is found in possession and rewarded or punished.
There is nothing about a succession of servants, a succession of stewards, or a
succession of virgins. Surely there is a reason for this. Our Lord would have
our affections so occupied with Himself that the brightest hope of our hearts is
His return, and therefore, here, as in the epistles, He holds it out as a hope
which may be delayed, but which should always be present. Let us search our own
heart, and ask whether the reason why this hope is so dim and unreal to us, is
not the coldness of our love towards our absent Lord, leaving room in the heart
for worldly objects and worldly affections. And now, in this and preceding
chapters, we have heard the testimony of the Holy Ghost as contained in almost
every book of the New Testament. The few exceptions, in which no reference to
this subject is made, are the two smaller Epistles of John and the Epistle to
Philemon — all short personal letters on matters of immediate interest and not
in any way entering into the discussion or statement of doctrinal questions; and
the larger and more important Epistles of Paul to the Galatians and Ephesians.
It may be well to inquire the reason for the omission in these last letters. In
writing to the Galatians the apostle is occupied exclusively with vindicating
the sufficiency of the work of Christ against those who were seeking to bring in
Jewish ordinances. It is an argumentative epistle addressed solely to this
point, and no reference to higher truths was suitable to the low condition into
which the Galatian Churches had fallen. In the Epistle to the Ephesians the
reason is different. The believer is there regarded according to God’s purposes,
as having a common standing with Christ, quickened with Him, raised with Him,
accepted in Him, and seated in heavenly places in Him. In other words, he is
seen as having already attained the goal to which the coming of the Lord will
eventually bring him. It is not, therefore, presented as a doctrinal truth; and
when we come to the practical part of the epistle, we find that here, as
elsewhere, it flows out of the doctrinal, that is, the conduct is to be
conformed to the relationship in which the believer is set. This relationship is
that of union with Christ, membership of His body, part of "the fulness of Him
that filleth all in all." And it would manifestly mar the beautiful image thus
presented, if the coming of the Lord were brought in to complete that which
according to God’s purpose, as here unfolded, is complete already.

What, then, does the testimony of the Holy Ghost, thus largely scattered over
the New Testament Scriptures teach us? It teaches us that our Lord promised to
return for His disciples, and held this out as so real and present a hope, that
when asked about what should become of one of them, His only direction was, that
he should look for His coming. It teaches us that death, as the penalty for sin,
no longer exists for believers, and that the apostle in two places, where
speaking of saints being changed and taken to Jesus, uses the first person,
implying the possibility that those then upon the earth might be among the
number. It teaches us that the Lord’s return is constantly described as "drawing
nigh," as "at hand," as "coming quickly," or by other expressions which import
its speedy occurrence, possibly within the lifetime of those addressed; and that
believers, instead of being told to wait for death, are constantly exhorted to
wait for the Lord’s coming, in a way which would be wholly misleading were this
event not intended to be held before them as one always imminent. It teaches us
that delay is not to cause the disciple to relax his vigilance, and that the
attitude of constant expectation leads to faithfulness in service and
carefulness in walk. It teaches us that another event, also occupying a large
place in Scripture, and described as the appearing or revelation of Christ — an
event long preceding the destruction of the globe — will not take place till
after the saints have been caught up to be with Jesus in heaven, and that when
this event occurs the translated saints will be manifested with Him, the sharers
of His glory, and the companions of His rule. Finally, it teaches us that this
hope, instead of being regarded as a fanciful theory, was constantly before the
minds of the primitive disciples, and that in nearly all their writings the
inspired authors of the New Testament alluded to it as familiar to their
readers, and as exercising such an influence over them that it could be used as
the basis for appeals, for comfort, for exhortation, for purity of walk, for
separation from the world, and for heavenly affections.

We would ask believers whether their own hopes and expectations are based on
this foundation, and if not, we would solemnly and earnestly inquire, on what do
they rest? Does this "blessed hope," held out before the earliest believers, and
still given as the bright beacon for the Christian’s gaze, agree with the
expectation constantly cherished, of the gradual improvement and ultimate
conversion of the world by the preaching of Christ? How could believers be told
to be waiting in present expectation of an event which could not happen until
the world was converted? If they were to expect the taking up of all living
believers at any moment, they could not expect the previous conversion of the
world. And if they were to anticipate the previous conversion of the world, they
could not be in the waiting attitude befitting servants who looked for the
coming of their Lord. We shall presently see how utterly destitute of Scripture
foundation is the commonly received tradition of the world’s conversion to
Christianity by the preaching of the gospel. At present I only point out its
inconsistency with the immediate hope of the Lord’s return, which we have shown
to be the teaching of the Word of God, and the expectation of the early
believers.

Again I would ask, with all earnestness and affection, whence are your hopes
derived? If drawn from God’s Word, they may be postponed, but can never be
confounded. If from any other source — from reason, from desire, from
experience, from tradition — from anything, in fact, but the sure Word of the
living God — they are but delusions and snares, from which you can receive
nothing but miserable disappointment. God’s ways are not as our ways, and if we
seek to discover them by the light of our own wisdom, instead of from the
unfailing record of His Word, we shall only be "blind leaders of the blind,"
deceiving ourselves with flattering hopes, and unconsciously misleading others,
perhaps to their destruction.

CHAPTER V. THE RETURN OF JESUS FOR BELIEVERS WHO HAVE "FALLEN ASLEEP."

We have now examined the testimony of Scripture with respect to the Lord’s
return, and have seen that it is held out as a present hope before the living
believer, who will, when it occurs, "be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of
an eye;" and be caught up "to meet the Lord in the air." But it may be objected
that already nearly sixty generations of Christians are in their graves, and
that a hope which could only disappoint so vast a majority of believers, could
never really have been held out by the Holy Ghost. To this objection there are,
however, two simple answers.

First, The delay, long as it is, has not mocked the hopes of believers. The
first generation of Christians doubtless cherished it, but were never authorised
by the language of the Holy Ghost to build upon its happening in their time.
They were to be waiting for it as a thing that might take place, not counting on
it as a thing that must take place. They were to be so living in hope of it,
that they would not be surprised if it occurred; not to be so confidently dating
it that they would be disappointed if it did not occur. This was the attitude in
which believers stood in apostolic days. After apostolic days. the decline in
all truth was fearfully rapid and among other things, the present expectation of
the Lord’s return was altogether lost. The Church became like the unfaithful
steward, and then the grace of God was shown in putting off this day, which,
from declining affection to the person of Christ, was no longer the object of
its hopes. When the hope was once lost, the deferring of its fulfilment was not
a disappointment. It would be treading on too sacred ground to speculate how far
the unfaithfulness of the Church contributed to the delay which has taken place.
But we can at all events see that, when such unfaithfulness has been shown, the
Church is not entitled to plead the delay as a reason for discrediting the
promise, but is rather bound to take the place of confession that she has so
long neglected it, and of thanksgiving that the Lord did not come while she was
slumbering in forgetfulness or unbelief.

Secondly, The objection above stated proceeds on the assumption that believers
who have fallen asleep have no part in this hope. But this is not the case. For
though the immediate character of the hope is most strikingly illustrated by the
fact that it is constantly presented to the living, yet the Lord has not left us
in ignorance of the blessed lot reserved for the believing dead. We shall find
that they have just as much interest and participation in this glorious event as
believers "who are alive and remain;" and surely this is another proof of the
Lord’s goodness, in having so long delayed his return. Being now absent from the
body and present with the Lord, the believing dead are doubtless sharers of his
hopes, and in the waiting condition which, from the loss of this precious truth,
they failed to assume here on earth. Thus, the wisdom of God has brought it
about that though the vast majority of believers have been unfaithful in this
matter, yet the Lord’s return, instead of coming as an unwelcome surprise, will
be in fulfilment of the cherished hopes, and in answer to the expectant attitude
of most, if not all, of those who have an interest in it. The most careless
observer must be aware how widely this "blessed hope" has revived among the
Lord’s people of late years. And so, whenever the shout is raised, the myriads
of believers whose spirits are already with the Lord, and many, perhaps all, of
those still on earth, will be longingly expecting His advent. The love of Jesus
beautifully shows itself in his desire to make His chosen ones participators in
his own hopes and delights. He loves to have our hearts. He would have us behold
the glories which we cannot share, for He counts upon and values our fellowship.
"Father, I will that they also whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am,
that they may behold My glory which Thou hast given Me" (John 17:24). So at the
Lord’s Supper, He desires believers, not to recall the blessings derived from
Him — but to "do this in remembrance of Me." In like manner as to His coming, He
has given it as a hope for their hearts, which He would have them cherish in
fellowship with Himself, and in grace and love He has delayed this event, until
not only the generations which lost it on earth, have regained it in heaven, but
also the hope has been revived in living power among the members of his body
still dwelling in the world.

We shall proceed, then, to examine the teaching of Scripture as to the effect of
the Lord’s coming on believers who have fallen asleep. "I would not have you
ignorant, brethren," says the apostle Paul, "concerning them which are asleep,
that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that
Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring
with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are
alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent (anticipate) them
which are asleep. 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; 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" (1Th
4:13-18). There is a peculiar significance in the expression, "This we say unto
you by the word of the Lord." The apostle Paul had received special revelations
given to no other man. Thus he says, in writing to the Corinthian Church about
the Lord’s Supper, not that he had learnt the mode of its observance from those
present at its institution, but "I have received of the Lord, that which also I
delivered unto you" (1Co 11:23.) Again, he writes to the Ephesians, speaking of
the mystery which God had entrusted to him, — "By revelation he made known unto
me the mystery which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men" (Eph
3:3-5). It is only on subjects of great importance, subjects worthy of a special
revelation of God’s mind, that such language is adopted. A passage, therefore,
thus prefaced, like the one we are now considering, is, so to speak, emphasised
by the Holy Ghost, as demanding more than usual consideration.

What, then, is the truth thus peculiarly commended to our notice? Our Lord’s own
words had already taught the disciples that He might return at any moment, and
that when He did so, living believers would be taken to be with Him. But they
were as yet ignorant of what would happen to those who had "fallen asleep in
Christ." They looked for a resurrection, and doubted not that believers dying in
the Lord would be saved. Like Martha, they thought that the believing dead would
"rise again in the resurrection at the last day," and, like her, failed to
apprehend the deep meaning hid in those words — "I am the resurrection and the
life." The key to these words was now to be furnished by the apostle Paul,
speaking in a special manner "by the word of the Lord." He found the
Thessalonians sorrowing over the dead as those "not having hope." This does not
mean that they had any doubt as to the ultimate salvation of their deceased
friends. But having no revelation as to what would become of dead believers at
the Lord’s return, they feared that by death they had lost the special hope of
being taken up by the Lord to be with Himself and to share the glories of his
appearing. This apprehension it was that filled the survivors with grief. The
yet unrevealed truth of what should happen to the dead saints at Christ’s coming
was, therefore, the important communication given "by the word of the Lord" to
the apostle Paul to make known to these mourners. It is the completion of the
hope held out by the Lord himself while here on earth. Its tenor was simple. The
Thessalonians had supposed that while they would be taken to be with Jesus at
His coming, their deceased relatives would be left in the grave till "the
resurrection at the last day." The apostle declares to them "by the word of the
Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord, shall not
prevent" (the old word for anticipate) "them which are asleep." On the contrary,
these dead should be raised first. "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: then we which are alive and remain
shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the
air" (1Th 4:16-17). The whole scene is momentary, but its order is, first the
raising of the sleeping believers, and next the catching up of the living and
the raised saints together to meet the Lord.

There is a very close correspondence between the truth here announced and the
mystery made known to the Corinthians. "Behold I show you a mystery; we shall
not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an
eye, at the last trump; for the trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised
incorruptible, and we shall be changed" (1Co 15:51-52). This is manifestly "the
redemption of the body," and the transformation "into the likeness of Christ’s
glorious body" of which we have already spoken as the hope of living believers.
It is also the same event as that described in the Epistle to the Thessalonians.
In both the trumpet sounds; in both the dead saints are raised; in both, at the
same moment, God’s power is manifested towards the living saints — in the
Corinthians fashioning them into the likeness of Christ, in the Thessalonians
catching them up to be with Christ. But these two actions are simultaneous — as
John says, "We shall be like him, for we shall see Him as he is" (1Jn 3:2).

These passages are usually understood as referring to a general resurrection at
the end of the world. Against this view there are, however, several conclusive
objections.

First, The resurrection here spoken of is at the same time as the coming of the
Lord for believers. The text in Thessalonians proves that the living saints are
to be caught up together with those who are raised; and the passage in 1
Corinthians shows that the changing of the living saints and the raising of the
dead will all be "in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye." But the Scriptures
set forth the return of the Lord for His living saints as a present hope, for
which they are bidden to be continually waiting. And here we see that the hope
is exactly the same for the dead. In order, then, that its present character
might not be lost sight of, even with respect to the dead, the Holy Ghost with
the accuracy always marking Scripture language, has taken care that in both
passages where the resurrection of the dead and the rapture of the living saints
are named together, the living saints should be spoken of in the first person,
so as to show that the event was one which might be looked for in their own day.

Secondly, The account given of this resurrection is quite different from the
resurrection at the end of the world,. which is thus depicted by the apostle
John — "And I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face
the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them, And I
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. And
the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hades delivered up the
dead which were in them; and they were judged, every man according to their
works. And death and hades were cast into the lake of fire; this is the second
death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the
lake of fire" (Rev 20:11-15). This solemn scene is at the end of the world, but
it is entirely different in every point from the resurrection previously spoken
of. In the one, the living are caught up; in the other, only the dead are
mentioned, and no living person could be there, for the earth has fled away.
Paul names no judgment whatever; John says that "they were judged every man
according to their works." The dead described in the epistles go to be "for ever
with the Lord;" the only doom spoken of with respect to the dead named in the
Apocalypse is, that they were "cast into the lake of fire." The two accounts,
then, are evidently not two different descriptions of the same scene, but
descriptions of two different scenes, bearing no resemblance either in character
or detail.

Thirdly, The Word of God never speaks of one general resurrection at the end of
the world, but expressly declares that there are two distinct resurrections, one
at the end of the world, and one a thousand years before it. The difference
already noted between the resurrection of believers mentioned by Paul, and the
resurrection at the final judgment described in the Revelation, will have
prepared the way for this statement. But as it is in opposition to traditional
creeds, and forms an important branch of the subject we are examining, it will
be well to inquire into the matter somewhat more fully in another chapter.

CHAPTER VI.

"THE FIRST RESURRECTION."

We have seen that the saints will return with Jesus when He comes forth to
destroy His enemies. After judgment has been executed, and Satan cast into the
bottomless pit, the reign of Christ, and of certain others, begins. "And I saw
thrones;" says the apostle, "and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto
them; and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus
and for the word of God, and [of those] which had not worshipped 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" (Rev 20:4-6).

It seems incredible that the zeal for traditional belief should have led men so
far to pervert Scripture, as to maintain that this "first resurrection" is not a
resurrection of persons at all, but of principles — principles "beheaded for the
witness of Jesus!" — principles which refuse to worship the beast! — principles,
with foreheads and hands on which they decline to receive a mark! — principles,
on which "the second death hath no power," but which "shall be priests of God
and of Christ!" According to the same system, "the rest of the dead" must be
principles too; so that we have no resurrection of persons at all!

What, then, does this passage, intelligently looked at, teach us? First, it
shows a resurrection which takes place before the thousand years of Christ’s
reign; and next, it enables us to learn who are the persons then raised. Three
classes are named; the first are called "they" — "I saw thrones and they sat on
them." With the others we are not at present concerned. Who, then, are these in
this first class? They are "blessed and holy;" so they must be saints. But what
saints? The persons last named are the armies of heaven, who came forth with
Jesus to make war. They are the partners of His triumph, and as victors we
should expect to see them sharing His dominion. They are the only persons
mentioned in the context, moreover, to whom the description could refer. But
these armies of heaven are, as we saw, the saints who have before been taken to
be with Jesus. The Scriptures, before examined, have shown us, that the saints
living when the Lord comes, will be changed into His likeness and caught up into
His presence, after which they will issue forth with Him to judge the world.
This scripture shows us that the dead saints also, who are raised when the
living are translated, will come in Christ’s train and rule in His company. The
passages quoted in our former chapters fully bear out this conclusion. None of
these make the glory of the believer to depend on his living till the Lord’s
return. The apostles were to "sit upon twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes
of Israel;" yet Peter, whose question drew forth this announcement, was warned
that he himself should suffer death. Believers are made joint-heirs with Christ;
saints are told that they shall judge the world; sufferers with Christ are
promised that they shall reign with Him, irrespective of their being alive or in
the tomb at His return. The promise to the saints at Thyatira — "he that
overcometh, and keepeth My words unto the end, to him will I give power over the
nations" — could not be fulfilled to them, unless the dead shared this hope with
the living. Indeed the passage so often referred to, seems written to prove the
absolute identity between the lot of believers, whether quick or dead, when
Christ comes for His saints. "Them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with
Him" (1Th 4:14). Bring where, and for what? Bring forth as the sharers of His
glory; for which purpose He will first raise them from their sleep, and take
them, with the living believers, to be with Him in heaven. Our Lord names two
kinds of resurrection, though He says nothing of their being separate in time.
"The hour is coming in the which all that are in the 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 judgment" (John
5:28-29). Does not the resurrection of life correspond exactly with the
resurrection in which they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years? And
is not the resurrection of judgment the same as that in which the dead are
"judged out of those things which were written in the books"? If so — and surely
it would be impossible to call it in question — they are not only distinct in
character, but in time; the one being the resurrection of the "dead in Christ"
when He comes for His saints, the other the resurrection of "the rest of the
dead;" which takes place at the end of the world.

Paul, in his defence before Felix, declares "that there shall be a resurrection
of the dead, both of the just and unjust" (Acts 24:15). Why speak of the two
classes? If he had been disputing with one who admitted the resurrection of the
just, but denied that of the unjust, it could easily have been explained. But
this was not the case; and the division of the two classes, therefore, cannot be
readily accounted for, except that the apostle was regarding their resurrection,
not as parts of one event but as two separate transactions. Still less could we
understand our Lord’s declaration to the Pharisee, that he should "be
recompensed at the resurrection of the just" (Luk 14:24), if the just had not a
distinct resurrection from the unjust. The expression "resurrection of the just"
could scarcely have been used if the two rose together. But its force is at once
recognised if we bow to the truth of "the first resurrection" so plainly taught
in the book of Revelation.

Though it seems unnecessary to accumulate evidence upon a point so clear, we
would call in aid an expression of Scripture often heedlessly uttered. That a
"resurrection from the dead" differs from a "resurrection of the dead" is, owing
to our constant confusion of the phrases, little understood. Everybody would see
the difference between speaking of "the departure of a company" and the
"departure from a company." The first implies the departure of the whole
assembly; the second of one or more persons out of the assembly. This is just
the difference between a "resurrection of the dead," and a "resurrection from
the dead." "The dead" is the whole company of dead persons. A "resurrection of
the dead" simply means that dead persons are raised. But a "resurrection from
the dead" means that one or more persons are raised from amongst this company of
"the dead." So the phrase is invariably used in Scripture. Most frequently it is
applied to the resurrection of Jesus. It is used also, however, of the
resurrection of Lazarus (John 12:1, John 12:9) the suspected resurrection of
John the Baptist (Mark 6:16); the resurrection of the poor beggar, which the
rich man entreated for (Luk 16:31); and the resurrection of Isaac, which Abraham
believed that God was able to accomplish (Heb 11:19) — all resurrections of a
single person from among the mass of the dead. The phrase can grammatically mean
nothing but an exclusive resurrection. In nearly all cases where it is used, an
exclusive resurrection is evidently intended. Surely, then, we may infer that in
the one or two passages where this exclusiveness is not obvious from the
connection, the expression still has the same form. One of these passages is
Christ’s answer to the Sadducees when they sought to perplex Him about the
resurrection. He replies (the answer in Mark is similar), "They which shall be
accounted worthy to obtain that age (not world), and the resurrection from the
dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage; neither can they die any more,
for they are equal unto the angels, and are the children of God, being the
children of the resurrection" (Luk 20:35-36). Here the expression used is
resurrection from the dead, and does the passage imply a general or an exclusive
resurrection? It cannot be a general resurrection, for all those who have part
in it are like the angels, are the children of God, are counted worthy to obtain
it, and die no more. It must be an exclusive resurrection, then, and observe how
it corresponds morally with the "first resurrection," about which it is said
that those who have part in it are "blessed and holy," beyond the power of "the
second death," and priests of God and of Christ. What, then, is the "age" which
these "children of the resurrection" are counted worthy to obtain? Here, again,
we see the accuracy of Scripture, for surely this age can only be the period of
a thousand years during which they live and reign with Christ.

Again, we read that the Sadducees were grieved that the apostles "preached
through Jesus the resurrection from the dead" (Acts 4:2). The expression is "in
Jesus," and no doubt the resurrection of Jesus Himself was the great subject of
the apostles’ testimony. But the expression implies something more than the
resurrection of Jesus himself. The apostles preached "through (or in) Jesus the
resurrection from among the dead." A few weeks before, the Sadducees had asked
Jesus a question meant to turn the resurrection into ridicule, and had been
silenced by the answer we looked at in our last paragraph, an answer revealing
not only the fact of a resurrection, but also an exclusive resurrection of those
who should be counted worthy to obtain it. This is the doctrine which the
apostles were now proclaiming, with the further truth that this resurrection was
through, or in, that same Jesus whom these Sadducees had rejected. They might
have been grieved at their preaching "the resurrection of the dead," but could
hardly have laid hands on them, inasmuch as the Pharisees, a far more numerous
sect than themselves, held the same faith. It was the exclusive resurrection,
announced by Jesus, and now proclaimed through Him, that aroused their fury and
persecution. In like manner Paul speaks of Jesus as "the first-born from the
dead" (Col 1:8), that is, as the first of those who were taken from amongst the
dead. If the resurrection of all the other dead was to be simultaneous, he would
not be the first, but the only one, "born from among the dead," the rest having
no part in a resurrection "from the dead," but merely in a resurrection "of the
dead." Nor is this expression an isolated one. In speaking before Festus and
Agrippa, the apostle declares the testimony of the prophets to be, "that the
Christ should suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise from the
dead" (Acts 26:23). Of course the propriety of the phrase is easily seen as
respects Jesus Himself but here Jesus is declared to be only the earliest of a
number to whom the same description is applicable. It is, moreover, as "the
first-begotten of the dead," or rather as "the first-begotten from amongst the
dead" (Rev 1:5), that Jesus Christ is presented in the opening verses of the
Apocalypse.

Even the very heresies which arose during the apostles’ time testify to the fact
that an exclusive resurrection was then taught. How could the false teaching of
Hymenæus and Philetus have originated, "who concerning the truth have erred,
saying that the resurrection is passed already" (2Ti 2:18), or how could such
false teaching "overthrow the faith of some," if the apostle had taught, and the
early Christians had believed in, a general resurrection at the end of the
world? whereas, on the other hand, one can readily perceive how the truth of an
exclusive resurrection might be perversely wrested by the authors of the heresy,
and become a serious stumbling-block to the faith of the less-established
saints.

There is, however, another expression used by the apostle Paul still more
remarkable. He desires to be made conformable to Christ’s death, "If by any
means I might attain unto the resurrection from among the dead" (Php 3:11). Our
translators have merely given "of the dead," because, not knowing anything of
the first resurrection, they could not understand the word (exanastasis)
invented by the apostle to express his meaning. This word, however, is not the
word ordinarily used for resurrection, but a word coined for this passage, never
elsewhere found, and literally meaning "resurrection from the midst of." If it
merely implied a general resurrection, why should the apostle be at any pains to
attain to that to which good and bad alike must come? Or why should he coin a
special word to imply exclusiveness when no exclusiveness was meant? But if he
meant an exclusive resurrection of persons counted worthy to obtain it, both the
force of the expression and the object of the apostle become obvious.

It may be said — If this is the meaning of the phrase "resurrection from the
dead," why is it not used with reference to the dead spoken about in the long
argument on the resurrection contained in 1Co 15:1-58? The reason is very plain.
A "resurrection from among the dead" is also a "resurrection of the dead," so
that the latter expression may be employed with as much propriety of the first
resurrection as of the second. How, then, should we expect to have the two
phrases used? Why, surely we should expect that when the object in view was to
bring out the exclusive character of the resurrection, the first expression —
"resurrection from among the dead" — would be employed. But when the object was
to bring out, not the exclusive character of the resurrection, but merely the
fact, the latter expression — "resurrection of the dead" — would be more
natural. Now the whole argument in the chapter referred to is to show that
believers will rise again. This some of the Corinthians were denying. The
apostle replies by stating God’s plan, partly executed already, about the first
resurrection. His teaching has no reference whatever to the resurrection of
unbelievers, and the question of exclusive or general resurrection with respect
to believers is not, therefore, touched upon. Nothing save the order and
character of God’s designs concerning the first resurrection is treated of;
while these are very fully set forth. Christ is the first fruits; then, "they
that are Christ’s, at His coming" (1Co 15:23), and at the same time even those
believers who have not slept will be changed, and death will be swallowed up in
victory (1Co 15:51-54).

Looked at in this light, the accuracy of the language is very striking. The only
dead named or contemplated in the chapter are Jesus Himself and believers in
Him. The raising of Jesus, then, being before the others, is described as a
"resurrection from among the dead" (1Co 15:12, 1Co 15:20). The raising of the
believers, who comprise the whole of the remaining dead under consideration, is
not described as a "resurrection from among the dead," but simply as a
"resurrection of the dead" (1Co 15:21, 1Co 15:42). For in this last case the use
of the expression, "resurrection of the dead," was quite sufficient to bring out
the truth which the Holy Ghost is teaching; while the other expression,
"resurrection from among the dead," would not only have added nothing to the
doctrine unfolded, but would have confused it by the introduction of a foreign
and incongruous element. On the other hand, if bad and good are raised together
for judgment, how is it that not a word is said about either the wicked dead or
the judgment? The omission is surely most powerfully suggestive. But it is not
merely omission. Though the chapter does not name the resurrection of the lost,
it clearly shows when it will take place. "Every man" shall rise "in his own
order; Christ the first-fruits, 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.
For He must reign, till He hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy
that shall be destroyed is Death" (1Co 15:23-26). After Christ’s own
resurrection, then, the order is — first, the resurrection of them "that are
Christ’s at his coming;" second, His reign, closing with the destruction of "the
last enemy," Death; third, "the end," when he shall have "put all enemies under
his feet," and "delivered up the kingdom to God." But when "the last enemy,"
Death, is destroyed, "the rest of the dead" are raised and judged also. On the
appearance of the great white throne "the dead, small and great, stand before
God," and are "judged, every man according to their works, and death and hades"
are "cast into the lake of fire" (Rev 20:11-14). This is manifestly the
destruction of death, for immediately after are beheld "a new heaven and a new
earth" in which "there shall be no more death" (Rev 21:1, Rev 21:4). Comparing
this, then, with the chapter in Corinthians, we see that the order in the two is
just the same — first, the resurrection of the saved; then, the reign of Christ,
ending with the destruction of death, and the resurrection and judgment of the
lost; and finally, the perfect state, when "there shall be no more death." In a
word, the chapter teaches, in harmony with the rest of Scripture, that the
resurrection of the just and that of the unjust are two different events, the
former preceding Christ’s reign, the latter being one of its most solemn closing
acts.

CHAPTER VII. A GENERAL RESURRECTION AND JUDGMENT AT THE END OF THE WORLD, NOT
TAUGHT IN SCRIPTURE.

Conclusive as the passages quoted in our last chapter may appear as to the
doctrine of a separate resurrection of believers before the end of the world, it
would be a source of confusion to many, so long as there are various other
portions of the Word of God which they have always understood as teaching the
doctrine which these scriptures seem to overthrow. There are certain passages
which have been commonly received as proving the fact of a general resurrection
and judgment at the close of the world, and should the ordinary interpretation
of these passages be correct it manifestly clashes with the doctrine we have
deduced in our last chapters with reference to an exclusive resurrection of the
"dead in Christ." I propose, then, to examine these portions in detail. For
there can be no real contradiction in Scripture, and if guided by the Spirit, we
shall see either that the passages already quoted have been misunderstood, or
that the texts taken to establish the opposite doctrine are in perfect harmony
with them.

I. One of these cited as proving a general resurrection is in the prophecies of
Daniel "At that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for
the children of thy people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as 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, And many
of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting
life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise shall
shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to
righteousness as the stars for ever and ever" (Dan 12:1-3). We need not here
discuss the meaning of this passage. It is sufficient to point out that, if it
refers to a resurrection of the dead at all, it cannot be a general
resurrection. The verses quoted are the conclusion of a communication made to
Daniel explaining the events which must happen before the restoration and glory
of Daniel’s people, that is, the Jews (Dan 10:19-21; Dan 11:1-45; Dan 12:1-4).
It relates simply to the Jews, and the time named is not the end of the world,
but the deliverance of the nation. The resurrection spoken of therefore, whether
literal or figurative, is not at the end of the world, but long before it; is
not general, but confined to Daniel’s people; and is not applied even to the
whole of Daniel’s people, but only to "many of them." Anything more unlike a
general resurrection at the end of the world, it would be impossible to
conceive. Indeed, if accepted as meaning a literal resurrection of the dead at
all, it would be one of the most conclusive proofs that the resurrection was
partial instead of universal, before the end of the world instead of at the end
of the world.

II. Another passage thought to teach a general resurrection and judgment is the
parable of the wheat and the tares. The text supposed to contain this doctrine
is as follows: — "Let both (wheat and tares) grow together until the harvest;
and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first
the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my
barn" (Mat 13:30). The explanation follows. "He that soweth the good seed is the
Son of man; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the
kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed
them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age (not world), and the
reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the
fire, so shall it be in the end of this age. The Son of man shall send forth His
angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and
them which do iniquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire; there shall
be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the righteous shine forth as the
sun in the kingdom of their Father" (Mat 13:37-43). That this passage has been
supposed to describe a general judgment at the end of the world, is partly the
cause and partly the consequence of the unfortunate mistranslation of the word
signifying "age," as if it meant "world." The completion of the age is, however,
a totally different event from the end of the world, and nothing but error can
arise from confounding things so entirely opposed in character. It was a phrase
well understood by the Jews, as describing the termination of their subjection
to the Gentiles and disowning of God — the time concerning which Daniel’s
inquiries had been made and his prophecies uttered. It is always so used by the
disciples, as when they inquire, "What shall be the sign of Thy coming and of
the end of the age?" Nor is there a single instance where it can be properly
understood as referring to the end of the world. On the contrary, it is the
beginning of another epoch, by far the most blessed and glorious in the world’s
history. But it is not merely the phrase used which forbids us to interpret the
event here described as happening at the end of the world. If this is the
general resurrection, why is nothing said about anybody rising? Surely the
omission of this most striking portion of the picture is proof enough that the
scene here presented is not the final resurrection and judgment, but some
altogether different event. What then, is the event? If we look at what we have
seen to be the effect of the Lord’s coming, we shall have no difficulty in
recognising the perfect agreement between this parable and the things which will
happen at that time. The moment had not yet arrived for making known the secret
of His coming for His saints before His manifestation to the world. Moreover,
the question here is one of outward display to the world, not of dwelling with
Christ in the Father’s house. Looked at in this light what have we learned about
the Lord’s coming? That, as far as the wicked are concerned, Christ will come in
flaming fire, taking vengeance, and accompanied by the angels of His power;
that, as far as believers are. concerned, they will be publicly manifested with
Him in glory, that He may be "glorified in His saints" and "admired in all them
that believe." In the parable, the angels are the ministers of judgment, the
righteous shine forth as the sun, and the wicked are cast into a furnace of
fire. Can any one fail to perceive the exact correspondence between the parable
and the doctrinal statement?

III. Another passage supposed to contain a description of a general resurrection
and judgment at the end of the world, is that comprised in the last two sections
of our Lord’s discourse with his disciples in Mat 24:1-51 and Mat 25:1-46. The
former (Mat 25:14-30) shows Jesus as the master who returns after being absent,
and demands an account from his servants of certain talents entrusted to them.
The second (Mat 25:31-46) represents Him seated on the throne of His glory, and
judging the nations. The question is, whether either or both of these scenes
must be taken as figures of a general judgment on those raised from their graves
at the end of the world. The first remark that occurs is, that the two scenes
are so different in their character that it is not easy to regard them as
representations of the same event. In the first parable, the persons spoken of
are dealt with individually; in the second, in two great masses. In the first,
the question tried is faithfulness to a certain trust; in the second, it is the
conduct pursued towards a set of persons called "these my brethren." But another
remark speedily suggests itself. Why should these events be supposed to happen
at a general resurrection and at the end of the world, when not so much as a
passing allusion is made either to the dead, or to a resurrection, or to the
world having come to its closing hour? The only answer that can be given to this
question is, that the ordinary interpretation of Scripture left the interpreters
no choice. Assuming that Christ only comes at the end of the world, and that all
will then be raised and judged, these scenes must happen at that period, for
there is no other time at which they could happen. But those who have already
learnt that Christ will come before the end of the world, will hesitate to add
so enormous a fact as a general resurrection to a narrative in which Scripture
has remained wholly silent about it, and will seek some other explanation
demanding no such outrage on the Word of God. The parable of the talents follows
those of the steward and of the virgins. The parable of the steward shows the
results of carefulness or carelessness in watching for the Lord’s return; that
of the virgins the necessity of having oil in the lamp, that is, true spiritual
life. The parable of the talents shows the responsibility of those called by the
name of Christ to be diligent in His service. As the unwatchful steward is cut
off, and the careless virgins are shut out, so here the unprofitable servant is
cast into outer darkness, while the diligent ones enter into the joy of their
lord. All three parables are fulfilled at the coming of Christ, looked at in
both its aspects. The watchful steward, the virgins with oil, and the diligent
servants, all receive their reward, while false professors are detected and left
behind, or consigned to the dreadful judgments that overtake the world when
Christ appears in His glory. While, then, this parable entirely fails as a
description of a general resurrection, it perfectly agrees with the rest of
Scripture as a picture of what takes place at Christ’s second coming.

There is another point of agreement that deserves notice. In Luke, the same
parable is related, but a difference is shown in the rewards. The servant who
has made ten talents becomes ruler over ten cities; he who has made five, over
five (Luk 19:12-27). Do we ever hear of saints being made rulers over cities in
heaven? No, but we do hear of saints reigning with Christ over the earth, and to
such a state of things the reward in the parable is exactly suited. The picture,
then, agrees with other portions of the Word in describing what will happen at
the Lord’s second coming, believers being first caught up, and afterwards
manifested with Christ in power, each rewarded according to the measure of his
faithfulness, and unbelievers being cast out and brought to judgment. It may be
asked whether, if this is the case, such a dialogue could occur as that related
in the parable? But a parable is not a history — only a fictitious narrative
meant to illustrate a principle. The dialogue is part of the figure, bringing
out man’s natural reasoning on one side and God’s thoughts on the other. Who
would understand literally the entreaty of the foolish virgins, or the reply of
the bridegroom? Who supposes it to be a real conversation between the Judge and
those on His right hand or those on His left, in the parable immediately
following? Who ever imagined that the words put into the mouth of the rich man
in torment, or of Abraham, were actually spoken? In the parable before us, as in
those to which we have just alluded, the thoughts and desires of the heart are
clothed in words, and the scene is not a description of any thing that really
takes place, but a story illustrating the principles on which God and man are
respectively acting. The last section of Mat 25:1-46 relates the judgment which
Christ will execute on the nations of the earth, when He comes in His kingdom
glory, to "break them with a rod of iron, and dash them in pieces, like a
potter’s vessel." It represents Jesus coming as the minister of judgment. But
this judgment is divided into various acts. In the Revelation, we have nothing
described but the judgment executed on the beast and false prophet and the
armies that followed them. Other acts of judgment are, however, related
elsewhere. We read in the prophecies of Joel that the Lord will "bring again the
captivity of Judah and Jerusalem," and that He will then "gather all nations and
will bring them down unto the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them
there for My people and for My heritage, Israel, whom they have scattered among
the nations" (Joe 3:7, Joe 3:2). Without discussing how far this is to be
literally or figuratively understood, let us compare it with the scene described
in Matthew. "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 the nations" (Mat 25:31-32). The article here is
important, because it helps materially to determine the real character of the
scene enacted. The translators, believing the event to be a general and final
judgment, dropped it in order to give a more universal character to the
gathering. It is, however, in the original, and the question is, who are meant
by "all the nations"? The word "nations" means "Gentiles," and is ordinarily
used to describe them as distinguished from the Jews. Now, in this scene, there
are not two classes as generally supposed, but three — the sheep, the goats, and
"these my brethren." These persons called Christ’s brethren are neither sheep
nor goats, nor are they themselves brought into the judgment. It is for their
conduct to these "brethren," who have been hungry, thirsty, strangers, naked,
sick, and in prison — a persecuted, despised, forsaken people — that the
Gentiles are judged. How exactly this agrees, then, with the prediction of Joel,
and, indeed, with the general current of Old Testament prophecy! All Scripture
concurs in representing the Jews as forsaken of God for an indefinite period.
When this period has elapsed, the Lord will "bring again the captivity of Judah
and Jerusalem," and will judge the nations for the cruel oppression with which
they have, especially towards the close of this epoch, treated His people. It is
true that in this scene described in Matthew, the saints are not mentioned as
accompanying Jesus, but, as I have already shown, our Lord purposely left this
subject obscure throughout his whole teaching. On the other hand, the angels are
named, thus bringing the account into close accordance with the description of
Christ’s return in judgment given in 2Th 1:7-8. This judgment of the nations
then, foretold in Old Testament Scriptures, is the very judgment represented
figuratively, no doubt, but with striking vividness, in the passage before us.
"These my brethren" are the saved remnant of Israel, who, having received of the
Lord’s hand double for all their sins, are now delivered from their enemies, and
owned by Christ as his people. "All the nations" are the Gentiles, who are now
dealt with according to the favour or hostility they have shown to God’s chosen
race. The passage shows the simplicity of Scripture when its light is directly
received, instead of being refracted through the distorting medium of man’s
theological systems. As a judgment of the nations on Christ’s return for
Israel’s restoration, the narrative is free from difficulty, but describes a
striking fulfilment of Old Testament prophecy. As a picture of the traditional
resurrection and judgment, it is full of contradictions and absurdities, being
an account of a universal judgment in which some are not judged, and of a
universal resurrection in which nobody is raised!

IV. But there is another passage which will occur to the minds of some readers.
"We must all appear" (or be manifested), says Paul, "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" (2Co 5:10). And again, "We shall
all stand before the judgment seat of Christ" (Rom 14:10). These are deeply
solemn words, which our hearts would do well to ponder. The same Saviour who
makes Himself known as the loving friend gone to prepare a place for us, and
waiting to come again and receive us unto Himself, also reveals Himself as the
Judge walking among the candlesticks, with "His eyes as a flame of fire, and His
feet like unto fine brass." "Every one of us shall give account of himself to
God" (Rom 14:12) — the lost, when He comes to judge the dead out of the things
written in the books — and the saved also, when He reckons with His servants,
and dispenses rewards. But there is not a word about the two classes standing
together, or for the same purpose. In the parable of the talents, recorded in
Luke, besides the difference between the diligent and slothful servants, there
is also a difference between the diligent servants proportioned to their merit.
This shows that the saved are variously rewarded according to the measure of
their faithfulness. The same principle, of the manifestation of the saved
according to their works, is taught by Paul. Thus slaves are exhorted to do
their service with good-will, "as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that
whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord,
whether he be bond or free" (Eph 6:7-8). In another epistle the same class are
told "that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance; for ye
serve the Lord Christ; but he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which
he hath done" (Col 3:24-25). The fullest statement of this truth is, however,
that contained in the following passage: "Know if any man build upon this
foundation, gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble, every man’s work
shall be made manifest; for the day shall declare it, because it shall be
revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If
any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward;
if any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be
saved, yet so as by fire" (1Co 3:12-15). This is the manifestation of believers
according to their works, a solemn thing most assuredly, and a deep reality, as
true as the judgment of the lost, but at the same time altogether distinct from
it, both as to the time and the circumstances of its occurrence. The word
translated "judgment seat" means only a step or raised platform, such as a
person exercising any authority, or pronouncing a speech, might occupy. It will
include "the great white throne," before which the dead are summoned for their
final sentence, but it is a word of much wider import, and, by no means
necessarily, or indeed primarily, signifies the seat occupied by a judge on a
criminal trial. It is used of the dais on which Herod sat, when he received the
embassy from Tyre and Sidon (Acts 12:21), and is there rendered by our
translators, "throne." The word would be just as applicable to the seat occupied
by a judge in a civil suit or by an assessor awarding compensation, as to the
seat of a judge trying a case of life and death. And these are really the two
different actions described. The lost will appear before the tribunal to be
tried on the question of life and death, out of those things which were written
in the books (Rev 20:12). How is this possible with the believer? Can the
penitent thief be taken out of paradise to be put on his trial as to whether he
shall be saved or lost? Can Paul, after being with Jesus more than eighteen
centuries, be summoned before His bar to be tried for his life? Impossible! No,
the appearance before the judgment seat in the case of believers is of a
different kind, for a different purpose, and at a different season. It is before
the reign of Christ, instead of at the end of the world; and it is for the
purpose of determining, not whether they shall be saved or lost — a question
which can never be raised again for those whom God has justified — but to what
reward they are entitled by the measure of their faithfulness here below,
whether they have built the "gold, silver, and precious stones," which can
endure the searching fire of the Divine scrutiny, or the "wood, hay, and
stubble," which shall perish before the judicial test, and leave them to be
saved "so as by fire," — or again, whether in the apportionment of dominion
among the "fellow-heirs," they should be made rulers over ten cities or over
five. And here we would note, in confirmation of what has been already said, the
perfect and Divine accuracy of the language used by the Spirit of God. It is
said that all shall "appear" before the judgment seat [or throne] of Christ, the
real meaning being that all shall be manifested. In this all are included, saved
and lost. The word used, therefore, is merely that they shall "stand" or "be
manifested" — not that they shall be "judged." On the other hand, where it
speaks only of the unbelieving dead, raised before the great white throne, the
expression employed is that they shall be "judged." This is no fanciful or
refined distinction. Our Lord Himself, while here on earth, says: "He that
heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and
shall not come into judgment" (John 5:24). Almost immediately afterwards He
speaks of two resurrections, a "resurrection of life" and a "resurrection of
judgment" (John 5:29). Surely two passages standing in such close juxtaposition
show that judgment, so far as the question of salvation is concerned, is a thing
from which the believer has already escaped. Being justified, it is impossible
that he shall be judged. Hence the very fact that all those raised in the last
scene, after the end of the world, are judged, is conclusive evidence, that the
believers in Jesus Christ are not there. When their deeds are inquired into, it
is not for the purpose of judging them, but that they may be manifested, and
rewarded according to the measure of their faithfulness on earth.

V. It is possible that some persons may be disposed to found an argument in
favour of a general resurrection at the end of the world upon the expression, "I
will raise him up at the last day" (John 6:40, John 6:44, John 6:54), and from
the phrase, "at the last trump" (1Co 15:52). But "the last" need not mean the
very last thing in the world’s history, merely the last event in the process
under consideration. In John vi Jesus is speaking of His care of those given Him
by the Father, and says that He will lose nothing, but will raise it up at the
last day. The work of guarding the charge committed to Him will then be at an
end, the task entrusted to him by the Father will be fully performed, the last
day of this class of responsibility will have arrived, and the believer whom He
has tended will be perfected. So "the last trump" is the last event of the kind
in the scene described. This chapter, as already pointed out, has nothing to do
with the resurrection of the lost. It simply relates what will become of the
saved. For a time some of them are in the grave, but this ends, and "the last
trump" calls them forth to life and glory. The expressions used, as above
understood, are familiar in daily talk. A barrister speaks of the last day,
meaning the last day of term or assizes — a soldier of the last bugle, meaning
the last call in the exercise he is going through. Nobody imagines they mean the
last day that will ever dawn, or the last bugle that will ever sound.

We have now examined the passages commonly cited, to prove a general
resurrection and judgment at the end of the world, and have found that none of
them sustain this theological dogma. Most of them have nothing to do with a
resurrection at all. None of them describe events happening to believers at the
end of the world. On the other hand, Scripture speaks of two resurrections. One
of these is when Christ comes for His saints, and is an event for which
believers, whether in the first or third watch, are bidden diligently to wait.
The other is at the end of the world. In "the first resurrection" all "those who
are Christ’s," whether living or dead, will be changed into His likeness, and
caught up to be "for ever with the Lord." They will come forth with Him when he
appears to break the nations with a rod of iron, and as His fellow-heirs will
"reign with him a thousand years." But now a very important question arises — a
question already often alluded to — How is it that a hope, for which believers
have from the first been instructed to wait, should have been so long delayed?
Is not a promise which has been withheld for so many generations either
altogether delusive, or at least so unlikely to receive its fulfilment in our
time, that it would be idle still to cherish it as a present hope? We have
already said much on this subject which need not now be repeated. But in
addition to what has been previously urged, we would reply, — First, that since
the Word of God has set the Lord’s return before us as a present hope, it is not
for us to question His truth because we cannot understand the principle of his
acting; secondly, that the hope is given to the heart, not to the head, and
where the heart is really true to Jesus and longs for His return, it will not
cease from its waiting attitude because of the delay which comes between it and
the object of its desire; thirdly, that Jesus expressly warns His disciples, a
warning which extends to all ages, against saying in their hearts, "My lord
delayeth his coming," and while intimating that several watches might pass
before the hour arrived, still declares that "blessed are those servants, whom
the lord, when he cometh, shall find" so waiting; fourthly, that the Holy Ghost
solemnly predicts and warns us against the spirit which asks, "Where is the
promise of his coming, for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as
they were from the beginning of the creation?" and reminds us that the word
which man disregarded when it foretold the deluge, has spoken of the more
fearful judgments yet to come (2Pe 3:4-7); and fifthly, that "one day is with
the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day," so that
notwithstanding the apparently long tarrying, "the Lord is not slack concerning
His promise as some men count slackness, but is long-suffering to usward, not
willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (2Pe
3:8-9). Is it not a deeply solemn thought that men are found, now as ever, to
contemn the riches of God’s goodness, and forbearance, and long-suffering, and
to make the very grace in which He is acting, the ground for mocking at His
promises and despising His commandments? Yet how many even of the Lord’s own
children can look into their hearts and say — I am guiltless in this matter?


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  CHAPTER 11: 02.2.     THE HOPE OF ISRAEL AND CREATION.
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The Hope of Israel and Creation. by T. B. Baines.

Section 2 of: The Lord’s Coming, Israel, and the Church.

CHAPTER I.

GOD’S PROMISES CONCERNING THE EARTH. In our first part, we have seen two classes
of hope held out in Scripture — the hope of the believer, the redemption of the
body; and the hope of creation, deliverance "from the bondage of corruption into
the liberty of the glory of the children of God." This latter is the great
subject of the Old Testament prophets. It is effected by the return of Jesus
with His saints to execute judgment on the wicked and set up His throne in
righteousness. But why these different modes of acting? Why this long
concealment of the heavenly hope, and then, after its fulfilment, a return to
the earthly hope, so long announced and so long deferred? The question is one of
deepest interest, and, like all other subjects which bring out the counsels and
purposes of God, cannot fail, if rightly apprehended, to display in brighter
lustre the riches of His glory and the depths of His wisdom. All Scripture is
the history of two men, who are thus described — "The first man is of the earth,
earthy; the Second Man is the Lord from heaven" (1Co 15:47). The New Testament
unfolds the heavenly character and the heavenly work of the "Second Man." The
Old Testament treats of the relations of these two men with the earth. It
records the history of the first man, created in innocence, falling under the
power of sin, and ever manifesting in darker colours his ruin and his alienation
from God. It foretells the triumphs of the Second Man, who retrieves the ruin
brought in by the first, and glorifies God in the scene in which sin has
dishonoured Him. It was the entrance of sin and the ruin of the first creation,
that gave God the opportunity (if we may so speak) of bringing forth this Second
Man, in whom all the glories of His person are displayed and all the treasures
of His love unfolded. We shall see the character and extent of the ruin, and the
failure of the first man in every position in which God placed him; and we shall
see how the Second Man takes up the broken thread, and carries to perfection the
Divine purposes. This will appear very plainly if we look at the various
promises of blessing made to man on the earth. I shall show that none of these
promises have yet received their complete (some of them not even a partial)
fulfilment and that all await their perfect accomplishment in the "revelation"
of the Second Man, the Lord from heaven, according to the New Testament
prophecies at which we have already glanced. The promises might be classified in
various ways, but for our present purpose it will be sufficient to enumerate the
following leading features First — That the woman s seed should bruise the
serpent’s head;

Second — That in Abraham’s seed all the nations of the earth should be blessed;

Third — That Abraham’s seed should possess the laud of Canaan and should be head
of the nations;

Fourth — That David’s seed should reign over the earth, and that of his kingdom
there should be no end.

I. Man was created innocent. His state in innocence was one of dependence upon
God, subjection to Him, and communion with Him; of entire freedom from disease
and death; and of headship over a creation which God had blessed and pronounced
very good. But Satan, working on man’s self-will and unbelief, brought in sin,
and all was ruined. Man lost the sense of dependence upon God, and gained an
evil heart of unbelief. He exchanged subjection to God for subjection to Satan;
communion with God for alienation and a desire to hide from His presence. He
became the prey of disease and death. The physical world, the very ground, was
cursed for his sake, so that from that hour "the whole creation groaneth and
travaileth in pain together until now." But while the first man is thus ruined,
God speaks of One named "the woman’s seed," to whom the earliest promise is
given. Adam had been overcome by Satan; but the woman’s seed was to vanquish the
victor, and though Himself wounded in the conflict, was to crush the head of the
destroyer.

Two things are here noticeable. First, in the curse pronounced on Adam, not a
word is said about anything beyond death. God’s blessing on man had only set him
on the earth as its head and ruler; and, the curse goes no further than to
revoke the earthly blessing. This is important as defining the sphere of Old
Testament truth. From the New Testament we know that after death comes the
judgment, also that the patriarchs desired "a better country, that is, an
heavenly," but on these matters the Old Testament is silent. Hence it is clear
that the scope of the Old Testament is only God’s purposes about the earth. Its
silence as to anything after death does not imply that nothing was known; merely
that this class of truth is outside its proper sphere, and should not be looked
for in this portion of God’s Word. The second thing to be observed is, that
there is no promise of the removal or mitigation of the curse, no hint of moral
or spiritual improvement, given to the first Adam. A promise is given, but it
centres in another, the woman’s seed. The first man is driven from the garden
excluded from the tree of life, left helpless in the grasp of his conqueror.
Disease and death, a groaning creation and moral alienation from God, still
subsist, the badges of his servitude and the witnesses of his fall. But complete
triumph is premised to the Second Man. By Him alone can the enemy of God and the
destroyer of man be stripped of his dominion and trampled in the dust. From
these two fountain-heads — the fallen Adam and the woman’s seed — flow two
streams, the one dark as death, the other rich with the promise of blessing, and
ever broadening and deepening into fuller glory. The history of ruined man, the
first stream, rolls on in gathering gloom, till it issues in the rejection of
the Christ and the reception of the Anti-Christ. The unfolding of God’s purposes
in his Son, the second stream, also moves on without interruption, each
accession of human guilt only adding to its volume, and bringing out the glory
of God and His chosen one with more striking beauty. Man left to himself goes on
from bad to worse. Science and art flourish, cities are built, wealth
accumulates; but the earth was corrupt and filled with violence, and God said,
"I will destroy man whom I have created." The flood came, "the world that then
was" perished, and Noah issued forth into an earth cleansed from pollution. This
earth God blesses, because of the sweet savour, the type of Christ, which he
smelled; but man’s character remains unchanged. "And the Lord smelled a sweet
savour; and the Lord said in His heart, I will not again curse the ground any
more for man’s sake; for the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth;
neither will I again smite any more everything living as I have done. While the
earth remaineth, seed-time and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and
winter, and day and night, shall not cease" (Gen 8:21-22). But besides the
removal of the curse from the soil, God entrusts the sword of government to man,
ordaining that "Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed" (Gen
9:6). Thus man is placed on a renewed earth, and with civil institutions
directly sanctioned by God. All however, is of no avail. Noah, so far from
showing himself able to govern the earth, cannot even govern himself. Man uses
government for the purpose of godless self-exaltation, and it is confounded at
Babel. Before Abraham’s time the worship of God Himself had been given up for
the worship of devils. "Your fathers," says Joshua, "dwelt on the other side of
the flood (the river Euphrates) in old time: even Terab, the father of Abraham,
and the father of Nahor, and they served other gods" (Jos 24:2). That these
other gods were devils we learn elsewhere. "They sacrifice unto devils, not to
God," says Moses in his song (Deu 32:17). And again, "They sacrificed their sons
and their daughters unto devils" (Psa 106:37). So, too, the Apostle Paul writes,
"The things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils" (1Co 10:20).

II. But the increasing wickedness of man only serves to show forth more
conspicuously the boundless resources of God. He calls Abraham from the midst of
this idolatry, leads him forth into a distant land, and there makes to him and
to his seed two closely connected but distinct promises. One of these, often
repeated, and variously expressed, is thus first announced — "In thee shall all
families of the earth be blessed" (Gen 12:3). This is repeated in almost the
same words in Gen 18:18, but somewhat later, after the obedience shown in giving
up Isaac, it takes a different form — "And in thy seed shall all the nations of
the earth be blessed" (Gen 12:3). In this last shape it is renewed to Isaac (Gen
26:4). Again Jacob is told — "In thee and in thy seed shall all the families of
the earth be blessed" (Gen 28:14). Now here, though the blessing is said to be
in Abraham, it is clear that the seed, and not Abraham, was the object of God’s
thoughts. Abraham was the root of blessing only as he was the father of this
promised seed. This is obvious from the reference made to this promise in the
New Testament. "Now to Abraham, and his seed," writes Paul, "were the promises
made. He saith not And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed,
which is Christ" (Gal 3:16). And this is spoken with reference to the whole of
the promises, even those in which no mention of the seed was made (Gal 3:8). So
that the seed spoken of in these passages is not the nation of Israel, but
Christ. Here again, therefore, the promise is not in the first man, but in the
Second, that same seed of the woman who, according to the earliest promise, was
to crush the head of the serpent.

III. There is, however, another promise given to Abraham. "I will make of thee a
great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great, and thou shalt be
a blessing, and I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth
thee" (Gen 12:2-3). This promise was accompanied by another, "Unto thy seed will
I give this land" (Gen 12:7). Still later, Jehovah said to him, "Lift up now
thine eyes and look from the place where thou art, northward, and southward, and
eastward, and westward; for all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give
it, and to thy seed for ever" (Gen 13:14-15). The boundaries of the gift are
afterward stated "Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt
unto the great river, the river Euphrates" (Gen 15:8); and the perpetuity of the
possession is farther guaranteed — "I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after
thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an
everlasting possession" (Gen 17:8). Moreover their supremacy over other nations
is promised — "In blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply
thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the
sea-shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies" (Gen 22:17). The
promise is renewed, without material variation, to Isaac (Gen 26:3-4). But in
the prophetic blessing bestowed on Jacob by his father, we have the addition,
"Let people serve thee, and nations bow down to thee; be lord over thy brethren,
and let thy mother’s sons bow down to thee; cursed be every one that curseth
thee, and blessed be he that blesseth thee" (Gen 27:29). The same promise is
further given to Jacob at Bethel (Gen 28:13-14), and once more after his return
to the land (Gen 35:11-12). In the vision of Balaam, we have this strain again
renewed. "How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel! As
the valleys are they spread forth, as gardens by the river’s side, as the trees
of lign-aloes which Jehovah hath planted, and as cedar trees beside the waters.
He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and his seed shall be in many
waters, and his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be
exalted. God brought him forth out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of
an unicorn: he shall eat up the nations, his enemies, and shall break their
bones, and pierce them through with his arrows. He couched, he lay down as a
lion and as a great lion; who shall stir him up? Blessed is he that blesseth
thee, and cursed is he that curseth thee" (Num 24:5-9).

Now it is clear from the language spoken to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that the
seed referred to in these promises is not Christ but a multitude, like the sand
of the sea shore; and the words put by the Spirit of God into the mouth of
Balaam show that this multitude was the nation of Israel. This may seem at first
sight to be at variance with what I have before said — that all the promises
refer to Christ, and that all blessings come to the earth through Him. I shall
show, however, that the contradiction is only apparent, that these promises have
not yet had their fulfilment, but failed through the sin and corruption of the
first man, and will only receive their accomplishment when the Second Man is
brought forth, and by means of the work He performs. A short examination of the
promises compared with the history of Israel will make it clear that in this
history they receive only a very partial and imperfect fulfilment. In the first
place, the promises were given to the patriarchs absolutely without condition.
But the Israelites have never had an unconditional possession of the land of
Canaan. The terms on which they entered were these — "If ye will walk in My
statutes, and keep My commandments and do them, then I will give you rain," and
other promised blessings. "For I will have respect unto you, and make you
fruitful and multiply you, and establish My covenant with you" (Lev 26:3-9).
"But if ye will not hearken unto Me, and will not do all these commandments" . .
. "I will bring the land into desolation, and your enemies which dwell therein
shall be astonished at it; and I will scatter you among the Gentiles, and will
draw out a sword after you; and your land shall be desolate and your cities
waste" (Lev 26:14-33). The same thing is repeated in still stronger language in
Deu 28:1-68: The Israelites never had, therefore, anything more than a
conditional tenure of the land, and it is needless to say that a conditional
gift is no fulfilment of an unconditional promise. This is not left to our own
judgment, however, for we are plainly told in the language of Paul, "that the
covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four
hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise
of none effect, For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise,
but God gave it to Abraham by promise" (Gal 3:17-18).

Again, except for a short time in the latter part of David’s reign and the
beginning of Solomon’s, Israel did not possess the gates of her enemies, nor
were other nations blessed or cursed according as they blessed or cursed her. On
the contrary, her history is one of famine, of servitude, of defeat, ending in
complete overthrow and captivity.

Moreover, the boundaries of the land taken possession of by Israel, instead of
extending "from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates,"
comprised a mere fraction of this territory. And even within the limited portion
which they professedly occupied, no mean part was really in the hands of their
enemies.

Lastly, the land was given to the seed of Abraham "for ever," or as it is
elsewhere expressed, "for an everlasting possession." That this was not the case
with Israel’s possession of Canaan is certain. But has the Lord forgotten His
promise? Or are we to assume that the promise was not meant for Israel? So far
from it, we find that in the same prophecy in which the Lord speaks of the
conditional tenure, and foretells the casting out of Israel in case of
disobedience, He points forward to the time when the promise made to Abraham
will receive its true fulfilment. "When they be in the land of their enemies, I
will not cast them away, neither will I abhor them to destroy them utterly, and
to break My covenant with them" (Lev 26:44). He says also — "Then will I
remember My covenant with Jacob, and also my covenant with Isaac, and also My
covenant with Abraham will I remember; and I will remember the land" (Lev
26:44). And long afterwards the permanence of the covenant is again recalled.
"He hath remembered his covenant for ever, the word which He commanded to a
thousand generations; which covenant He made with Abraham, and His oath unto
Isaac, and confirmed the same unto Jacob for a law, and to Israel for an
everlasting covenant, saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan, the lot
of your inheritance" (Psa 105:8-11). The conditional and temporary possession
enjoyed by Israel is not, therefore, the fulfilment of the covenant with the
fathers.

We see, then, that Israel never received the promise. A partial fulfilment
doubtless took place, and this we still find to be God’s general mode of acting.
When a promise is given, the first man is tried to see whether he can inherit
it. This is the partial fulfilment, and the result invariably is to prove the
inability of man after the flesh to receive any blessings from God’s hands.
This, however, does not cause God to change His purpose, or the promise to
remain unfulfilled. He has in reserve, as the focus in which all the promises
centre, the Second Man, the man of His own right hand, whom He will bring forth
in His own time to receive all that the first man has failed to obtain, and to
do all that the first man has failed to accomplish. The Scripture evidence that
Israel’s national blessing and glory are fulfilled in the reign of Christ as
well as the character of that reign, will occupy us hereafter; though when we
look, immediately, at the fourth promise, we shall find enough to satisfy us on
this point in the present stage of our inquiry.

IV. The third promise awaits, as we have seen, its complete fulfilment. It had,
however, a partial and tentative fulfilment in the entrance of the Israelites
into Canaan and their subsequent chequered history in the land. At length God
called to their head a man after His own heart, and to him He gave the last of
the four leading promises above enumerated. The passage containing this promise
is remarkable. "I took thee," says the Lord, "from the sheep-cote, from
following the sheep, to be ruler over My people, over Israel: and I was with
thee whithersoever thou wentest, and have cut off all thine enemies out of thy
sight, and have made thee a great name, like unto the name of the great men that
are in the earth. Moreover, I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and
will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more;
neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as before-time,
and as since the time that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel. And
[I] have caused thee to rest from all thine enemies. Also Jehovah telleth thee
that He will make thee an house; and when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt
sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed
out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build an house for
My name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his
father, and he shall be My son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with
the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men. But My mercy shall
not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee.
And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy
throne shall be established for ever" (2Sa 7:8-16).

Now this promise evidently has a double application. It refers in part to
David’s immediate successors, who did commit iniquity and were chastened with
the rod of men. But it is manifest that the terms of the prophecy correspond
only in very small measure with the history of the Jewish sovereigns, and that
nothing has yet taken place at all resembling the permanent dominion here
described. There can be no doubt, then, that the prophecy has yet to receive its
fulfilment, and that this fulfilment is to be found in "the Second Man." Indeed,
the language of Hebrews makes this plain, for there a portion of this prophecy,
"I will be to him a father, and he shall be to Me a son," is expressly quoted as
referring to Christ. And that David himself so understood it, is clear from
Peter’s language on the day of Pentecost, when he speaks of David as "knowing
that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins according
to the flesh, He would raise up the christ to sit on his throne" (Acts 2:30).
But the prophecy brings out another thing, connected with the promise to Abraham
we were last considering. Though this prophecy was uttered at the moment of
Israel’s greatest glory, God speaks of their establishment in peace and security
as still future — "I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant
them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more;" and He
further connects this stable possession with the reign of the Son of David of
whom He said — "I will stablish the throne of His kingdom for ever." This
dominion of the seed of David is also associated in a prophecy closely
resembling the above, with the blessing of the whole earth, promised through the
seed of Abraham. Among the glories of the kingdom established by David’s Son, we
read, "His name shall endure for ever; His name shall be continued as long as
the sun; and men shall be blessed in him; all nations shall call Him blessed"
(Psa 72:17).

Thus we find the two promises to Abraham and the promise to David linked
together, all awaiting their fulfilment in that Second Man who will take up
God’s purposes of blessing concerning the earth, and carry them into execution
for His glory. Committed to the first man, they have utterly failed. Entrusted
to the Second Man, they will be triumphantly accomplished. He it is who will
crush the head of the deceiver of the world; He it is in whom all the nations of
the earth shall be blessed; He it is that shall deliver Israel out of the hand
of her enemies to serve Him without fear; He it is who shall have dominion from
sea to sea, and of whose kingdom there shall be no end. He alone, as the myriads
of angels declare, is "worthy to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and
strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing."

CHAPTER II. THE PROMISES NOT FULFILLED BY CHRIST’S FIRST COMING. The question
now arises, When and how do these promises receive their fulfilment? It is
agreed that so far as they are yet unaccomplished, they will receive it in the
person and work of Christ. But here the agreement ends. Most interpreters hold
that the promise as to the land has already been fulfilled, and that the other
promises either have been, or will be, fulfilled as the immediate or ultimate
result of the first coming of Christ. I have already shown that the former of
these views is a mistake. I shall now inquire whether there is any better
foundation for the latter. The interpretation which makes all the promises flow
out of Christ’s first coming, rests on two assumptions —

I. That the Church is the same seed of Abraham to which the promises are given;
and

II. That the universal reign of David’s seed, the blessing of the nations and
the bruising of the serpent’s head, will all be fulfilled by the conversion of
the world to Christianity.

Before examining these propositions, I will ask one question. Could any
thoughtful and spiritual Jew, before the time of Christ, reading his own
prophets and trusting God, have believed that God’s promises did not refer to
national blessing and restoration, but to blessing of a different kind and given
to a different people, blessing which must begin with the dispersion, and end
with the absorption, of his own nation? If not, the prophecies, as above
interpreted, could only deceive him. But let us examine these rules separately.

I. The first rule of interpretation is, that the Church is the seed of Abraham
to which the promises are given. Now that believers are the children of Abraham
is not disputed. The question is, whether they drain into themselves, and divert
from Israel, the promises given under this head. In one of the Abrahamic
promises, the seed named is Christ Himself; in the other it is a countless
multitude. To this innumerable seed was promised the perpetual possession of a
certain geographical area, together with national supremacy in the earth. Now
how can this be interpreted as the portion of the Church? But since it has not
yet been given to Israel, and since it is not the portion of the Church, the
promise still has to receive its fulfilment outside the Church. In other words,
the Church does not set aside Israel, or usurp the promise of national blessing
and glory. This is enough for our purpose, for if the Church does not embrace
all the unfulfilled promises, the common interpretation fails. It may be well,
however, for the sake of clearing up what to some is a real difficulty, to look
at the passages on which this interpretation rests. Rom 4:11-17 says that
Abraham "received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the
faith which he had, yet being uncircumcised; that he might be the father of all
them that believe though they be not circumcised; that righteousness might be
imputed unto them also; and the father of circumcision to them who are not of
the circumcision only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our
father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised. For the promise that he
should be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the
law, but through the righteousness of faith. (For if they which are of the law
be heirs, faith is made void, and the promise made of none effect; because the
law worketh wrath, for where no law is, there is no transgression.) Therefore it
is of faith that it might be by grace, to the end the promise might be sure to
all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of
the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, as it is written, I have made
thee a father of many nations." But the promise here is not the promise of the
land. It is a summary of God’s promises announcing his purpose to make Abraham
the root of blessing. Thus believers are morally Abraham’s children, as the
father of the faithful. This is all that the passage states as to relationship.
They will inherit the world as joint-heirs with Christ, and the promises to
Abraham are varied and extended in God’s grace to include them. This is all that
the passage says about the promises. The specific promise to the descendants of
Abraham is not transferred to the Church, and is altogether inapplicable to it.
And so far are the literal seed from being set aside by the spiritual seed, that
the promise is expressly stated to belong to the seed "which is of the law," as
well as to that "which is of the faith of Abraham." In Gal 3:7, we are told
"that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham." In Gal
3:27-29, we read, "As many of you as have been baptized unto Christ, have put on
Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is
neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be
Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise." Here
the promise is the blessing of all nations in the seed, that is, in Christ. Of
this promise believers are heirs as made one with Christ. The chapter does not
name the promise given to the multitudinous seed, much less show the Church as
taking this promise away from Israel. But again, it is written — "He is not a
Jew which is one outwardly, neither is that circumcision which is outward in the
flesh; but he is a Jew which is one inwardly, and circumcision is that of the
heart" (Rom 2:28-29). Also, "We are the circumcision, which worship God in the
Spirit" (Php 3:3). So too, — "As many as walk according to this rule, peace be
on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God" (Gal 6:16). Do not these
passages, it may be asked, show that Christians have now become the true Israel
and the true circumcision? The first passage, however, is not written about
Christians at all, but about Gentiles who fulfilled the law as compared with
Jews who broke it. The second simply warns believers against going back to
symbols, on the ground that they have that which these symbols only typified. In
the third, the expression, "Israel of God," is figuratively applied to those who
for the time had taken Israel’s place as the special object of God’s favour; if,
indeed, it is not confined to that "remnant according to the election of grace"
— that small portion of the nation which believed in Jesus, while "the rest were
blinded" (Rom 11:5-7). The collective testimony of these passages, then, is that
believers are spiritually the children of Abraham; that in Christ they are heirs
of the promises; that they have the thing which circumcision outwardly
signified; and that they possess the place of priority in God’s present dealings
which Israel once enjoyed. But that the specific promises made to Israel are
handed over to the Church is a notion which none of the passages even suggests,
and which one of them expressly refutes, by reserving the promise to the seed,
"which is of the law." In like manner the Apostle Paul, while fully disclosing
the counsels of God in setting aside Israel for a time, declares that still to
the Israelites "pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and
the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises" (Rom 9:4). Of
the positive side of this question. however, I shall speak more fully hereafter.
I merely quote this verse in passing as a direct refutation of the inference
that is often drawn from a hasty interpretation of the portions above cited.

II. The second rule of interpretation is, that the universal reign of David’s
seed, the universal blessing of the nations, and the bruising of the serpent’s
head, are all brought about by the conversion of the world to Christianity. Now
assuredly nobody denies the untold wealth of blessing flowing out to the nations
of the earth from Christianity. So magnificent is the believer’s portion that,
were we left to our own thoughts, we might well suppose these blessings to
fulfil all God’s purposes of grace. But Scripture teaches otherwise. Speaking of
Israel and their present rejection, it says, — "Now if the fall of them be the
riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles, how
much more their fulness?" (Rom 11:12). The world’s complete measure of blessing,
then, is only brought in by the "fulness" of Israel. But it may be asked, Does
not this mean the conversion of the Jews to Christianity? The Word of God does
not say so, and all the argument of the chapter leads to the contrary
conclusion. For, first, it is said that "as concerning the gospel they are
enemies for your sakes; but as touching the election they are beloved for the
fathers’ sakes" (Rom 11:28). Now, if they come into the same blessing, and in
the some way, as the Gentiles, where is the contrast? In this case how are the
Gentiles benefited by the Jews being enemies as concerning the gospel? Or where
is the election "for the fathers’ sakes" if the Jews only receive the same
portion as those who are not descended from the fathers? Secondly, the Gentile
is warned that he may be cut off, and this warning becomes a sad certainty, when
we find that his tenure of privilege depends on a faithfulness in which he has
entirely failed, for God’s promise of blessing to him is, "If thou continue in
his goodness; otherwise thou also shalt be cut off" (Rom 11:22). But thirdly,
Israel’s exclusion, "until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in" (Rom 11:25),
shows that the period of Gentile blessing will end, and that Jewish blessing
cannot go on at the same time as Gentile; in other words, that the blessings are
of a character incompatible with each other. Fourthly, the whole reasoning of
the chapter points to the cessation of Gentile, and the renewal of Jewish,
privilege as a great dispensational change marked by the "Deliverer" coming out
of Zion, and turning "away ungodliness from Jacob" (Rom 11:26), a description
wholly without meaning when applied to the conversion of Israel to Christianity.
Thus the reign of David’s seed and the blessing of the Gentiles, instead of
being brought about, as this rule of interpretation requires, by the
Christianising of the world, only begins in its largest sense after Christianity
has ceased, and Israel as a nation has been restored. But again, if this system
of interpretation is correct, if all the promises and prophecies of the Old
Testament receive their fulfilment in Christianity, how is it that the New
Testament is so silent about them? Why do the writers, inspired by the Holy
Ghost to unfold the truth of Christianity, make hardly any allusion to them? The
prophecies of Isaiah abound with glorious predictions of the exaltation of the
Lord’s mountain above the hills, of the beating of swords into ploughshares, of
the knowledge of Jehovah covering the earth as the waters do the sea. Preachers
constantly quote these prophecies as having their fulfilment in the triumphs of
the gospel. Did Jesus in His teaching ever do so? Did Paul ever do so? Why not?
Was Paul less keenly alive to the prophetic glories than these preachers? Why,
then, is his language so different from theirs? His silence on this inviting
theme would be inexplicable, unless he had been taught by the Spirit that the
Old Testament prophecies were not to be fulfilled in Christianity, but in quite
a different way. But it is not merely the silence of Scripture, however
suggestive, that clashes with this rule of interpretation. The New Testament
furnishes the strongest evidence that Christianity, instead of overspreading the
earth, and bringing in the final period of blessing foretold in ancient
prophecy, will have a sadly different history. We have already looked at a
passage in which the Gentile is told that God’s goodness is extended to him, "If
thou continue in His goodness; otherwise thou also shalt be cut off" (Rom
11:22). Thus the Gentiles are placed as a whole in the same position of
responsibility and trial as the Jews were of old. Will anybody say that the
Gentiles have been more faithful to the trust put in their hands than the Jews
were? Will anybody say that they have, as a body, continued in God’s goodness?
If not they must be cut off. And it God had intended to plant them securely as
He has promised to plant Israel, would He ever have spoken of their being cut
off? This passage, then, instead of predicting the universal spread of
Christianity, declares by implication that it will cease, and that God’s
purposes of blessing for the earth will be accomplished by other means.

We have, however, other indications of the future of Christianity as a
professing system in the world. Paul warns the Ephesian elders — "After my
departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also
of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away
disciples after them" (Acts 20:29-30). Here we have the seeds; let us look at
the plant. "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" (2Ti 4:1). Such are the "latter days" of Christendom as foretold by the
apostle. Now hear the "latter days" spoken of by the Hebrew prophet. "Afterward
shall the children of Israel return, and seek Jehovah their God, and David their
king; and shall fear Jehovah and His goodness in the latter days" (Hos 3:5). Are
the apostle and the prophet writing of the same thing? Impossible! But if not,
the Old Testament prophecies have not their fulfilment in the Church and
Christianity.

These, however, are only the "latter days." Does the Spirit, then, give us any
brighter picture of the "last days?" Listen to the words of Paul. "This know
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, unholy, without natural affection, truce-breakers,
false-accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors,
heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God; having a form of
godliness, but denying the power thereof" (2Ti 3:1-5). So, too, Peter speaks of
false teachers, "who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the
Lord that bought them," and through covetousness should, "with feigned words
make merchandise of you" (2Pe 2:1-3). Is this followed by improvement? On the
contrary — "Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers
walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise of His coming?"
(2Pe 3:3-4). Jude warns believers, "Remember ye the words which were spoken
before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, how that they told you there
should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after their own ungodly
lusts. These be they who separate themselves, sensual, having not the Spirit"
(Jude 1:7-19). John also writes-" Little children, it is the last time; and as
ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists;
whereby we know that it is the last time" (1Jn 2:18). This shows that one mark
of the "last time" is the appearance of antichrists, which in principle — so
early did corruption set in — had already begun.

Contrast all this with the "last days" spoken of by the prophet. "And it shall
come to pass in the last days that the mountain of Jehovah’s house shall be
established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills,
and all nations shall flow into it; and many people shall go and say, Come ye,
and let us go up to the mountain of Jehovah, to the house of the God of Jacob:
and He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths; for out of Zion
shall go forth the law, and the word of Jehovah from Jerusalem; and He shall
judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people; and they shall beat their
swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not
lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more" (Isa
2:2-4). Is it possible to conceive a greater contrast? And yet, according to the
interpretation we are examining, Isaiah is speaking of the same thing, and
describing the same epoch in its history, as Paul and John. But did not Jesus
Himself, in the parables of the mustard seed and the leaven, predict the
conversion of the world? Everybody knows that the parables are constantly so
interpreted. But is such an interpretation correct? They form part of a group of
three in which Jesus unfolds to His disciples, to whom it was given "to know the
mysteries of the kingdom of heaven," the mysterious form in which it was about
to be established. The first parable discloses that in this form of the kingdom,
the wheat and the tares would grow side by side till "the end of the age." It is
not, therefore, of true believers, but of Christendom, that Jesus speaks, and in
Christendom, instead of the universal triumph of the gospel, the wheat and the
tares grow side by side until the end. Now it is impossible that the two
parables immediately following this can contradict it. What, then, is their true
meaning? The first likens the kingdom of heaven — this mixture of wheat and
tares — to a grain of mustard seed, "which, indeed, is the least of all seeds,
but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so
that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof" (Mat 13:32).
What is there here about the conversion of the world? All that the parable shows
is that the kingdom of heaven, or Christendom, grows from a very small thing to
a tree, the symbol for a great earthly power, in which the birds of the air —
clean and unclean things — have their habitation. The other parable compares the
kingdom to "leaven which a woman took and hid in three measure of meal, till the
whole was leavened" (Mat 13:33). According to the received interpretation, the
meal is the world, the leaven the gospel, and the leavening of the mass the
universal spread of Christianity. But what is the authority for this
interpretation? According to all Scripture symbols, the meal signifies what is
good, whereas this interpretation makes it signify what is bad; according to all
Scripture symbols, the leaven signifies what is bad, whereas this interpretation
makes it signify what is good; according to all Scripture symbols, the leavening
of the meal signifies the corruption of what is pure, whereas this
interpretation makes it signify the purifying of what is corrupt. The connection
declares that the kingdom of heaven will be spoiled by Satan’s work, and that
the damage will endure to the end; the traditional interpretation would make
Satan’s work to be eradicated, and the damage not to endure to the end. Finally,
the parable, as ordinarily understood, derives no confirmation from fact,
whereas the parable, understood according to the usage of Scripture amid the
immediate context, is in painful accordance with the history of Christianity in
all ages.

There is only one other point on which it is necessary to touch. We have seen
that the hope of the believer, held out in Scripture, is the coming of Christ to
take the Church to Himself. The inconsistency of such a present hope, with the
supposed conversion of the world to Christianity, I need not again insist upon.
I only now allude to it as showing how perfectly harmonious the Word of God is
with itself, and how invariably opposed to the theological dogmas and
traditional interpretations which a corrupt Christendom has placed upon it.
Being ignorant of the mystery of God’s working, Christendom has become wise in
its own conceits; instead of fearing, it has been high-minded; it has boasted
itself against the branches, and laughed to scorn the solemn warning, "If God
spared not the natural branches, take heed lest He also spare not thee" (Rom
11:20-25). And what is the result? Instead of enjoying its own heavenly
blessings, it has appropriated the Jewish earthly blessings. It has run the
streams of prophecy into Church channels, through which they were never meant to
flow, and, on the strength of predictions which do not belong to it, has
forgotten that if it does not continue in God’s goodness, it also shall be cut
off. Judaism, confident in the promises. blind to the signs of the times, and
moving on presumptuously to unforeseen destruction, was a spectacle that moved
the soul of Jesus to tears. What are His thoughts as He gazes down upon
Christendom, equally confident and equally blind, boasting itself in its fancied
security, and ignorant of the terrible judgment towards which it is recklessly
hastening? And now let us look back for a moment at what we have found to be the
testimony of Scripture concerning the question whether the Old Testament
promises are fulfilled in Christianity. We have seen that though believers,
through God’s grace, are brought into the circle of Abraham’s seed, and so made
partakers of the promises, there is another class, the natural seed, to whom the
promises are still said to belong; that it is not till this class, Israelites
according to the flesh, receive their portion, that the full blessing to the
Gentiles will be secured; that there is no foundation for the belief that the
world will be converted through the preaching of the gospel, but the strongest
evidence to the contrary; and that the hope of the Lord’s coming is inconsistent
with this traditional expectation. We must still seek, therefore, what
information Scripture gives, as to the mode in which these mighty promises of
earthly blessing are to receive their fulfilment.

CHAPTER III.

GOD’S DEALINGS WITH ISRAEL AND THE WORLD. The Old Testament promises are, as we
have seen, earthly in their character. Their accomplishment is in the Second
Man, but not in Christianity, which has a heavenly and not an earthly portion.
The earth, however, was man’s original sphere, the scene for which he was
created, and God has not abandoned it to the dominion of sin and Satan, but will
carry out to the full all the purposes He has formed concerning it. Let us
endeavour, then, to see, from the Scriptures, what is God’s scheme with respect
to this earth and the man whom He has set upon it. In the world before the flood
man was left simply to his own guidance. The murderer was punished by God, but
no punishment by his fellow-man, as God’s instrument of righteous government,
was permitted. After the flood the sword of government was entrusted to man, and
Noah was commanded to execute the judgment of death on the murderer. In this way
civil government, as a direct trust from God, had its origin. At Babel the
compact organisation of mankind, leading to presumption and self-will, was
broken up, and thus nations were formed to be the instruments, in God’s hands,
for checking the arrogance and self-assertion which would otherwise have burst
through all restraints (Gen 11:6). But God had in His thoughts a special nation,
concerning which His purpose was long afterwards thus revealed. "When the Most
High divided to the nations their inheritance, when He separated the sons of
Adam, He set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of
israel, for Jehovah’s portion is his people, Jacob is the lot of His
inheritance" (Deu 32:8-9). Thus, long before Abraham was born, God had this
people in His thoughts. In process of time a country was assigned to them, from
the river Euphrates to the river of Egypt, which they were to hold "for an
everlasting possession;" there planted, they were to "possess the gates of their
enemies," those who blessed them were to be blessed and those who cursed them to
be cursed. God’s scheme of earthly government, then, as far as it was yet
unfolded, was to exalt one nation as the administrator of his righteous
judgments. This plan, which will be perfectly carried out under the Second Man,
was originally entrusted to the first, not fully indeed, but sufficiently to
prove his inability to accomplish God’s purposes. Israel entered on the land,
charged to execute God’s righteous judgment on the Canaanites, to keep His law,
and to hold the first place among the nations. The people were in these matters
God’s instrument for the righteous government of the earth. If they were to
destroy the Canaanites, it was as the ministers of God’s just judgments. If in
their law they were to exact "life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand
for hand, foot for foot, burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for
stripe" (Exo 21:23-25), it was as the executors of God’s governmental
righteousness. If their enemies were to flee before them, and they were to be
the head and not the tail, it was because they were the instruments of God to
maintain His authority on the earth. No intelligent Christian can look at this
trust committed to Israel, without seeing how completely contrasted it is with
the position in which the believer is now placed. Is this, as has been argued,
because the world has been educated to a higher point? Let us ask one question —
has God been educated? Has He discovered that things once thought to be right,
are really wrong, and therefore abandoned them? The very suggestion is shocking.
Whence, then, the difference? To an open eye it is plain at once. The Israelite
was the minister of God’s righteous government on earth; the Christian is the
exponent of God’s grace on earth. God’s people are called to be the living
manifestation of the principle on which God is acting. He is now acting in
forbearance and long-suffering, and His people must exhibit forbearance and
long-suffering also. In His dealings with the nations through Israel, He was
acting in righteousness and judgment, and His people were bound to carry out
righteousness and judgment as His instruments. In this, however, they failed,
and their failure brought out another portion of God’s plan. As Israel was to be
God’s instrument for maintaining righteousness among the nations, there must be
one able to maintain righteousness in Israel. Kingly authority, therefore, was
established, and perpetual dominion was promised to the seed of David. But here
again, the promise, put into the hands of the first roan, only proved his
inability to receive the blessing or to execute the purposes of God, and it is
not until the Second Man, the true Seed of David, appears, that this promise
will have its fulfilment.

God’s purposes of earthy government, then, are that the nations of the earth
shall be ruled by a righteous earthly people under a righteous earthly
sovereign. All this, entrusted to the first man, failed of accomplishment the
seed of David after the flesh, the seed of Abraham after the flesh, man after
the flesh in every form, having proved his unfitness to enter into or carry out
the thoughts of God. The Israelites "did not destroy the nations concerning whom
Jehovah commanded them; but were mingled among the heathen and learnt their
works; and they served their idols, which were a snare unto them" (Psa
106:34-36) The descendants of David did not carry on God’s righteous government
in Israel. The kingdom was divided, and became the prey, instead of the head, of
the surrounding nations. Instead of maintaining God’s glory in the earth,
through them His name was blasphemed among the Gentiles. Everything went to ruin
and confusion, and after a history marvellously illustrating the enmity of man
towards God, and the long-suffering of God towards man, they were at length cast
out. Israel was carried into captivity by the Assyrians, and Judah by the
Babylonians. The sceptre of earthly government, abused and abased by the kings
of Judah, was transferred to Nebuchadnezzar, and has ever since remained in the
hands of the Gentile powers. And here the history of Israel closes, until the
times of the Gentiles are ended, and the sceptre is once more brought back to
God’s chosen people, in the hands of the Second Man, the true Seed of Abraham
and of David, who alone is worthy or able to carry out the earthly purposes of
God. Not so, however, the history of Judah. They were brought back, after
seventy years’ captivity, to their own country, few in numbers and feeble in
strength, the servants of the Gentiles from whose dominion they were never
afterwards delivered. What, then, was God’s purpose in restoring this weak
remnant to their own country? He was going to try man, and especially the Jews,
by another test. The first man had been entrusted with God’s designs and had
failed. God was now bringing in the Second Man, and He was to be presented in
grace to His chosen people, as well as to the world, for their acceptance or
rejection. The result is well known. He in whom all God’s promises centred, He
by whom all God’s purposes are to be carried out the Maker of the world, the
rightful Lord of the Gentiles, and the predicted Messiah of the Jews, appeared
on earth attested by God as His beloved Son, and the world crucified him between
two thieves. "He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world
knew Him not, He came unto his own, and His own received Him not" (John
1:10-11). The world’s ignorance was culpable and deplorable enough, but the
guilt of the Jews was enormously greater. Already deprived for six centuries of
their proper position as a nation on account of their rebellion against God,
they had now added to their guilt the fearful crime of murdering God’s Son, and
the fearful folly of rejecting Him in whom all their own promises and blessings
were to be fulfilled. Mercy, indeed, still lingered, and the testimony of the
Holy Ghost was once more presented, but the nation remained deaf to His voice,
as it had done to the voice of the Messiah, and overwhelming judgment was the
inevitable result.

God’s plan of earthly administration, then, though revealed, has not been
carried out. The people which was to be its instrument has been divided, part of
it has been lost among the nations on account of its idolatry, and part of it
dispersed, though not lost, on account of its rejection of the Messiah. The
righteous ruler has been brought forth, but refused and crucified. But has God’s
purpose failed? It was not carried out by the Jews before their dispersion and
captivity. It cannot be carried out by the Gentiles, for this, instead of being
a fulfilment, would be a denial, of the promises to Abraham and David. It is not
in consistency with the design of the Church, whose sphere of action is
altogether different, whose portion is heavenly and not earthly, and in which,
as we have seen, the promises cannot have their complete fulfilment. What, then,
follows? Either God’s purposes concerning the earth and man upon the earth must
prove boastful failures, or they must be carried out by the restoration of Judah
and Israel as the centre of government, and the establishment of Christ’s
dominion as the ruler of the kings of the earth. Can any believer doubt which
alternative is true? I shall prove in the following chapters that all this
failure was foreseen of God, and that in spite of it all, His own purpose has
never changed, but that He has foretold the accomplishment of these schemes by
His own Son, when man’s wickedness and folly had reached their crowning height,
and the misery of His chosen people its lowest depth. To question that God will
do what He has said is the grossest unbelief, What are difficulties to Him? Man
talks of impossibilities, and rightly enough if he measures circumstances by his
own power. But the things which are impossible with men are possible with God,
for with God all things are possible. There may be some, however, disposed to
ask, why this long delay in the carrying out of God’s purposes? Simply because,
until the Second Man was brought in, God was putting the first man to the test,
and seeking to find some good in him. But when the Second Man was brought in,
why was not the scheme perfected at once? To those who put this question I would
ask — where would you have been, if this had taken place? If Christ had not been
rejected, how would you have stood now before God? Or if the Holy Ghost’s
testimony had been accepted after the resurrection of Jesus, and He had been
sent from heaven to restore Jewish dominion, where would have been the room for
the Church? What would have become of that marvellous interval in which we now
live, when God is gathering a people to a rejected Christ, and making known to
the principalities and powers in heavenly places, by the Church, His own
manifold wisdom? No, these delays are ordered in divine grace, as well as in
divine wisdom, and surely we, the most favoured objects of His love, can only
stand aside in adoring wonder as we gaze upon the unfolding of that mystery in
which the very heavens behold the wisdom of God.

CHAPTER IV. THE MESSIANIC KINGDOM ESTABLISHED ON EARTH. OLD TESTAMENT TEACHING.

I have shown that God has certain purposes concerning the earth, for the
fulfilment of which the appearance of the Second Man, the Lord from heaven, is
necessary. But the Second Man has been rejected, His earthly people scattered,
and a new thing introduced, which entirely fails to carry out the earthly
purposes and promises of God. What remains, then, but that God should recall the
nation, and bring back the ruler in whom these promises centre?

We have seen, also, that Christianity, instead of converting the world or
lasting to its close, will be both partial and temporary, leaving ample space,
after the translation of the Church, for the working out of God’s unaccomplished
earthly purposes.

I now propose to look at the positive teaching of the Scriptures as to the mode
in which these purposes will be carried into effect. In so doing, I shall show,

First, from the Old Testament writings, that the Lord will return, as God’s
anointed ruler, to set up his kingdom on the earth, and to execute judgment on
His enemies, having Israel as His chosen people, and Jerusalem as His centre of
government;

Second, from the same authority, that at this time, repentant Israel will be
delivered and blessed, and that peace and prosperity will flow out in rich
streams to the whole earth; and Third, that the New Testament fully confirms the
literal interpretation of the Old Testament prophecies.

I confine myself in this chapter to the first point, showing from Scripture that
Christ’s kingdom is an earthly dominion, and is brought in, not by grace, but by
judgment, executed by the Lord returning to the world in manifested glory.
Before the nation of Israel existed, Jacob, in blessing his sons, prophesied
that "the sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his
feet, until Shiloh come, and unto Him shall the gathering of the people be.
Binding His foal unto the vine, and His ass’s colt unto the choice vine, He
washed His garments in wine and His clothes in the blood of grapes" (Gen
49:10-11). Here, whatever the difficulties of the passage, it is clear that a
ruler is promised of the tribe of Judah, around whom the gathering of the people
shall be, and who shall inaugurate a period of peace and plenty. That this ruler
is the Christ is generally acknowledged, but how does the prediction agree with
His first appearance? He was then not the ruler, but the One who had not where
to lay His head. If the people gathered round Him, it was to cry out — "Crucify
Him, crucify Him." Instead of bringing peace, He brought a sword; and the
destruction, instead of the prosperity, of the people, was the result of His
appearance among them. All this, then, is yet to have its fulfilment when the
rejected Christ again comes to the earth for the salvation and blessing of the
chosen seed.

Another prophecy, long before the kingdom existed, before even the Israelites
had entered the land, shows that when Christ thus comes for the deliverance of
his people, He will execute judgment on the surrounding nations. Under the
direct constraint of the Spirit, the wicked Balaam is compelled to say — "There
shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and
shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth. And Edom
shall be a possession, Seir also shall be a possession for His enemies; and
Israel shall do valiantly. Out of Jacob shall come He that shall have dominion,
and shall destroy him that remaineth of the city" (Num 24:17-19). That this
points to the rule of Christ is obvious, but in what sense has it its fulfilment
in His first coming or in the Church? If words have any meaning, the dominion
here spoken of is not spiritual but earthly — not brought in by persuasion, but
by power. The final, but forcible, triumph of Jehovah over his adversaries, His
deliverance of His own people and destruction of the wicked, are predicted once
again, before the kingdom was established, in connection with the Christ. Hannah
prophesies — "The pillars of the earth are Jehovah’s, and He hath set the world
upon them. He will keep the feet of His saints, and the wicked shall be silent
in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail. The adversaries of Jehovah
shall be broken in pieces; out of heaven shall He thunder upon them; Jehovah
shall judge the ends of the earth, and He shall give strength unto His King, and
exalt the horn of His Anointed" (1Sa 2:8-10). In the promise to David already
quoted, God said, "I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant
them, that they may dwell in a place of their own, and move no more; neither
shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as beforetime." Again,
"Thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy
throne shall be established for ever" (2Sa 7:10, 2Sa 7:16). This promise has
never been fulfilled to Israel; and the, question is whether it is to have a
literal fulfilment in their history, or a spiritual fulfilment in the Church.
There is nothing in the prophecy that seems to point to the Church, nor anything
in the Church that seems to point to the prophecy. Naturally interpreted, the
promise is that Christ shall inherit the earthly power which David, as a mere
imperfect type, wielded; that His throne shall be permanent; and that under his
sway the security and blessing of Israel, only enjoyed in fading shadow before,
shall truly commence.

Certainly this hope pervades David’s own writings. In Psa 2:1-12 he describes
Jehovah as declaring that He has set His King on Zion, the hill of His holiness;
he calls Him His Son, and promises him the Gentiles for His inheritance, and the
uttermost parts of the. earth for His possession, adding, "Thou shall break them
with a rod of iron, Thou shalt dash thorn in pieces like a potter’s vessel."
That is, the psalm shows Christ receiving from God a kingdom whose centre is
Zion, the seat of earthly authority; whose sphere is the whole of the nations of
the world; and whose commencement is a terrible judgment executed upon the
kings, rulers, and people, who, as the early verses of the psalm show, have been
in rebellion against Him. In what way does this apply to the preaching of the
gospel? How does it suit the character of the Church? Whereas it exactly
coincides with the revealed purposes of God concerning Christ’s earthly rule.

Psa 18:1-50 makes known God’s goodness "to His anointed, to David and to his
seed for ever more." Though written as a hymn of praise for the deliverances
granted to the Psalmist himself, the triumphs and glories recorded are
evidently, in their full extent, those of David’s Seed, the promised Messiah;
and Psa 18:49 — "Therefore will I give thanks unto Thee, O Jehovah, among the
Gentiles, and sing praises unto Thy name" — is quoted by Paul as expressly
referring to Christ. (Rom 15:9.) How, then, does it describe the inauguration of
His glorious reign? "Thou hast given Me the necks of Mine enemies, that I might
destroy them that hate Me." — Is it the necks, or the hearts, of His enemies
that Christ is now seeking? Is it to save them, or to destroy them, that is His
present object? — "They cried, but there was none to save them even unto
Jehovah, but He answered them not." — The word now is, "Whosoever shall call on
the name of the Lord shall be saved." — The psalm goes on — "Then did I beat
them small as the dust before the wind; I did cast than out as the dirt of the
streets. Thou hast delivered Me from the strivings of the people; and Thou hast
made Me the Head of the Gentiles. A people whom I have not known shall serve Me.
As soon as they hear of Me they shall obey Me, the strangers shall submit
themselves unto Me. The strangers shall fade away; and be afraid out of their
close places" (Psa 18:40-45). How perfectly this agrees with what is elsewhere
told of the sudden establishment of Christ’s universal sway by the judgment and
desolation of His enemies! But how contrary to the grace in which He is now
acting, amid to the spirit enjoined on His people, who are to pray for their
persecutors and to love their enemies! The King is again named in Psa 21:1-13.
It is evidently Christ, for He has "length of days for ever and ever," and is
"most blessed for ever." How, then, is His reign described? "The King trusteth
in Jehovah, and through the mercy of the Most High He shall not be moved. Thine
hand shall find out all Thine enemies; Thy right hand shall find out those that
hate Thee. Thou shalt make them as a fiery oven in the time of Thine anger:
Jehovah shall swallow them up in His wrath, and the fire shall devour them" (Psa
21:7-9). Surely this can only be Christ, as the true seed of David, and God’s
righteous governor, taking the rule which the first man could not keep, and
beginning His reign by judgments upon His enemies.

Again — "My heart is inditing a good matter. I speak of the things which I have
made touching the King; my tongue is the pen of a ready writer. Thou art fairer
than the children of men; grace is poured into Thy lips, therefore God hath
blessed Thee for ever" (Psa 45:1-2). Here Christ’s grace and beauty are set
forth. But is it by grace that He obtains His earthly authority? "Gird thy sword
upon Thy thigh, O most Mighty, with Thy glory and Thy majesty. And in Thy
majesty ride prosperously because of truth, and meekness, and righteousness; and
Thy right hand shall teach Thee terrible things. Thine arrows are sharp in the
heart of the King’s enemies; whereby the people fall under Thee. Thy throne, O
God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of Thy kingdom is a right [or righteous]
sceptre" (Psa 45:3-6). Is this the gradual triumph of the kingdom of Gods grace?
Or is it what all Scripture foretells of the foundation of the kingdom of God’s
righteousness? Such is man that He who comes because of truth, and meekness, and
righteousness must first establish His sway by terrible things, and by making
the people fall under Him.

Psa 48:1-14 celebrates the glory of Mount Zion, which is "beautiful for
situation, the joy of the whole earth," also "the city of the great King," in
whose palaces God is known for a refuge. But how does this affect the kings of
the earth? They "were assembled, they passed by together; they saw it and so
they marvelled; they were troubled and hasted away. Fear took hold upon them
there, and pain as of a woman in travail" (Psa 48:4-6). Here, not only is the
dominion as different as possible from the spiritual power of Christ over the
heart, but its establishment, instead of being, like the spread of gospel truth,
the gentlest of operations, is brought about by dreadful and violent judgments.

There is a remarkable prophecy of David’s Son, which is only very partially
fulfilled in Solomon, and is still to be accomplished in the true Seed, the
Second Man. "He shall judge Thy people with righteousness, and Thy poor with
judgment. The mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the little hills,
by righteousness. He shall judge the poor of the people, He shall save the
children of the needy, and shall break in pieces the oppressor. They shall fear
thee as long as the sun and moon endure, throughout all generations. He shall
come down like rain upon the mown grass, as showers that water the earth. In His
days shall the righteous flourish, and abundance of peace so long as the moon
endureth. He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto
the ends of the earth. They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow down before
Him, and his enemies shall lick the dust. The kings of Tarshish and of the isles
shall bring presents; the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. Yea, all
kings shall fall down before Him, all nations shall serve Him" (Psa 72:2-11). In
no sense can the greater part of this language be applied to the Church. But as
a literal fulfilment of the promises given to Abraham and David concerning
earth, as a description of a kingdom introduced by judgment and bringing in
universal blessing, the delineation is divinely perfect. In Psa 101:1-8 we have
another description of this reign of righteousness — "Whoso privily slandereth
his neighbour, him will I cut off; him that hath an high look and a proud heart
will not I suffer. Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they
may dwell with Me; he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve Me. He that
worketh deceit shall not dwell within My house; he that telleth lies shall not
tarry in My sight. I will early destroy all the wicked of the land, that I may
cut off all wicked doers from the city of Jehovah" (Psa 101:5-8). This is not
God speaking, for it is a song addressed to God. Yet who can say that David or
Solomon thus carried out God’s righteous principles of earthly rule? There may
be things in their government which typified this reign of righteousness, but
assuredly, as a whole, they did not carry it out. On the other hand, what could
be more opposed to Christ’s present patience and long-suffering? It is the
picture of His righteous government on earth.

Once more — "Jehovah said unto my Lord, Sit Thou at My right hand, until I make
Thine enemies Thy footstool. Jehovah shall send the rod of Thy strength out of
Zion: rule Thou in the midst of Thine enemies. Thy people shall be willing in
the day of Thy power . . . The Lord at Thy right hand shall strike through kings
in the day of His wrath. He shall judge among the Gentiles; He shall fill the
places with the dead bodies; He shall wound the heads over many countries" (Psa
110:1-6). Is this the work of the Church? Or is it in perfect consistency with
all the other prophecies contained in the Psalms, the setting up of Christ’s
earthly kingdom in power and glory, and by means of devastating judgments? The
prophets continue the same strain. "Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is
given, and the government shall be upon His shoulder; and His name shall be
called Wonderful, Counsellor, the Mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince
of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end,
upon the throne of David and upon His kingdom, to order it and to establish it
with judgment and with justice, from henceforth even for ever" (Isa 9:6-7). It
is only by spiritualising the whole passage that this can be understood of the
Church, and when it is so understood, it contradicts all that is elsewhere said
about it. Understood of the literal kingdom, it fully harmonises with the whole
teaching of God’s Word. In Isa 11:1-9, a further description is given of this
Blessed One and His earthly reign. "There shall come forth a rod out of the stem
of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of His roots and the spirit of Jehovah
shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of
counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of Jehovah, and shall
make Him of quick understanding in the fear of Jehovah; and He shall not judge
after the sight of His eyes. neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: but
with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek
of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with
the breath of His lips shall He slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the
girdle of His loins, and faithfulness the girdle of His reins. The wolf also
shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, . . .
they shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain; for the earth [or land]
shall be full of the knowledge of Jehovah, as the waters cover the sea." In
these passages Christ has an earthly title, is seated on an earthly throne, is
in connection with an earthly people, administering earthly sovereignty,
executing earthly judgments, and bringing about earthly blessings. No passage
can be conceived, in every particular, more foreign to the character and object
of the Church, none more admirably descriptive of the sovereignty foretold as
that which is to accomplish God’s purposes of blessing towards the earth.

Isa 31:1-9 describes "Jehovah of hosts" coming "down to fight for Mount Zion and
for the hill thereof," and the destruction of the Assyrian. That this had an
accomplishment in the fate of Sennacherib’s army is not disputed, but the
salvation wrought is far larger, and followed by far more blessed consequences,
than this partial and temporary deliverance. The sequence of Jehovah’s
intervention is thus stated in the beginning of the following chapter. "Behold a
King shall reign in righteousness, and Princes shall rule in judgment. And a Man
shall to as an 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"
(Isa 32:1-2). Has this time come? Has Israel ever known such a King? His reign
here follows upon the Lord of Hosts’ interposition on behalf of Israel. Has such
an interposition yet taken place? Let us see how the Spirit speaks of this same
intervention of God elsewhere.

"Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? This that is
glorious in His apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength?" He
replies — "I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save." Again He is asked
"Wherefore art Thou red in Thine apparel, and Thy garments like him that
treadeth in the wine-fat?" To which He answers — "I have trodden the wine-press
alone; and of the people there was none with Me; for I will tread them in Mine
anger, and trample them in My fury, and their blood shall be sprinkled upon My
garments, and I will stain all my raiment. For the day of vengeance is in Mine
heart, and the year of My redeemed is come" (Isa 63:1-4). Is it thus that Christ
redeems His people now? Does this describe Him who was led as a Lamb to the
slaughter? Or is it the redemption of His earthly people by earthly judgments,
and the foundation of His earthly throne?

Jeremiah writes — "The days come, saith Jehovah, that I will raise up unto David
a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute
judgment and justice in the earth. In His days Judah shall be saved, and Israel
shall dwell safely; and this is His name whereby He shall be called — Jehovah
our righteousness" (Jer 23:5-6). And again — "It shall come to pass in that day,
saith Jehovah of Hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will
burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him; but they
shall serve their God and David their King, whom I will raise up unto them" (Jer
30:8-9) It is surely unnecessary to say that David their king, here raised up,
is none other than David’s greater Son, the Lord from heaven.

Thus also Ezekiel writes-" So shall they be My people, and I will be their God,
and David My servant shall be King over them; and they all shall have One
Shepherd; they shall also walk in My judgments, and observe My statutes, and do
them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob My servant,
wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they and
their children, and their children’s children for ever; and My servant David
shalt be their prince for ever" (Eze 37:23-25).

Daniel traces down the shifting stream of the Gentile monarchies, when, through
Judah’s sin, the dominion was handed over from her to Nebuchadnezzar. Four
empires, the Babylonian, Persian, Greek, avid Roman, hold sway successively in
the earth, The last becomes divided, iron mingling with clay, that is, several
kingdoms of diverse origin and character, standing side by side, as in modern
Europe. "And in the days of these kings, shall the God of heaven set up a
kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to
other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and
it shall stand for ever" (Dan 2:44). This corresponds with the promise of
perpetual dominion to David’s seed, as also with the threat of judgment on the
kings and nations of the earth. If we were to seek for a figure which did not
describe the spread of Christianity, but the very reverse, we could hardly find
one better suited to our purpose than the crushing power of the stone thus
interpreted. And that this does not refer to the first coming of Christ is
shown, not merely by the incongruity of the figure, but by the disagreement of
the time. For the kingdom is set up "in the days of these kings," that is, after
the division of the Roman Empire, whereas Christ both lived and died centuries
before the Roman Empire had lost a single province. The seventh chapter of the
same prophet gives still further particulars. The Gentile monarchies are there
presented under the image of four beasts. Out of the last of these four beasts
grows up a great power, which exalts itself not only against men, but against
the Most High, and wears out the saints of the Most High. In the midst of his
wicked career, the Ancient of days appears, and executes judgment, especially on
the great transgressor just named. After this, there is seen "one like the Son
of man," "and there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all
people, nations, and languages should serve Him: His dominion is an everlasting
dominion which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be
destroyed" (Dan 7:13-14). In perfect agreement with this is the prophet Hosea.
"For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a
prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and
without teraphim. Afterwards shall the children of Israel return, and seek
Jehovah their God, and David their King; and shall fear Jehovah and His goodness
in the latter days" (Hos 3:4-5). Does anybody suppose that in these various
passages David, their king, means any other than David’s Seed, the Lord Jesus
Christ? How utterly unmeaning to apply this title of Christ in speaking of the
Church. How perfectly and beautifully suggestive in predicting the establishment
of that kingdom which is the central thought in God’s scheme of earthly
administration.

Amos, too, foretells how the Lord will "raise up the tabernacle of David that is
fallen" (Amo 9:11), connecting this with the time of Israel’s restoration and
blessing. Micah describes Israel as "a woman in travail" waiting for the Lord’s
redemption. He then goes on to show by whom, and at what time, the deliverance
comes. "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands
of Judah, yet out of thee shall He come forth unto Me that is to be ruler in
Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. Therefore
will He give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought
forth; then the remnant of His brethren shall return unto the children of
Israel. And He shall stand and rule in the strength of Jehovah, in the majesty
of the name of Jehovah, His God; and they shall abide; for now shall He be great
unto the ends of the earth" (Mic 5:2-4). Here Christ is presented as the Eternal
One, and God’s chosen ruler. He is born in Bethlehem, but instead of at once
taking the dominion, He gives up the people "until the time that she which
travaileth hath brought forth," that is, until the time of Israel’s redemption.
Then "the remnant" are gathered, the nation "shall abide," and the glory and
majesty of Christ’s rule are beheld on the earth.

After the captivity, in connection with the rebuilding of the temple, "came the
word of Jehovah by the prophet Haggai, saying — I will shake the heavens, and
the earth, . . . . . and the sea, and the dry land; and I will shake all
nations, and the Desire of all nations shall come" (Hag 2:1-7). And two months
later the same prophet is commanded to "speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah,
saying, I will shake the heavens and the earth, and I will overthrow the throne
of kingdoms; and I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the Gentiles;
and I will overturn the chariots, and those that ride in them; and the horses
and their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his brother. In that
day, saith Jehovah of Hosts, will I take thee, O Zerubbabel, My servant, the son
of Shealtiel, saith Jehovah, and will make thee as a signet: for I have chosen
thee, saith Jehovah of Hosts" (Hag 2:21-23). Zerubbabel has been dead more than
twenty-three centuries, and yet this shaking of the nations has not come. What
can be clearer than that the great event here foretold is the overthrow of all
earthly thrones when the Messiah, Zerubbabel’s descendant, shall establish His
rule in righteousness over the nations of the world?

Zechariah speaks of the day when "the house of David shall be as God, as the
angel of Jehovah before them" (Zec 12:8), prophesying, at the same time, that
the Jews shall look on Him whom they pierced, and shall mourn for Him. In
another place, he says — "Behold, I will bring forth My servant the Branch," and
then promises that He "will remove the iniquity of that land in one day," adding
— "In that day, saith Jehovah of floats, shall ye call every man his neighbour
under the vine and under the fig-tree" (Zec 3:8-10). So, too, addressing
Jerusalem, he says, "Behold thy King cometh unto thee; He is just, and having
salvation; lowly and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass"
(Zec 9:9). The King, however, is rejected, till at length the people, as we have
seen, repent and mourn over Him whom they pierced. Then, in the worst strait, He
comes forth, as Jehovah for their deliverance, and His feet stand upon the Mount
of Olives. Afterwards the dominion is established, and the nations of the earth
come up to Jerusalem "to worship the King, Jehovah of Hosts" (Zec 14:4-16). Here
we find the same King, admitted to be Jesus when He comes riding on an ass,
afterwards spoken of as Jehovah of hosts, appearing for the deliverance of His
people at the hour of their direst need, and then becoming, in Jerusalem, the
object of homage to the whole earth. How perfectly this harmonises with all the
glories elsewhere unfolded of this great King, at once Jehovah of Hosts, and the
dependent man, with honour and majesty laid upon Him because of His perfect
trust in God! The last of the prophets, Malachi, writes as follows — "Behold I
will send My messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me: and the Lord,
whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the
covenant, whom ye delight in, behold He shall come, saith Jehovah of Hosts. But
who may abide the day of His coming? And who shall stand when He appeareth? For
He is like a refiner’s fire and like fuller’s soap; and He shall sit as a
refiner and purify the silver" (Mal 3:1-3). Is this the character of Christ’s
first coming? Is such language applicable to the attitude He is now assuming in
grace? Is it not precisely what we have found all through Scripture to be the
teaching of the Spirit with respect to his coming to establish His earthly
throne in righteousness and judgment?

Here, then, are a number of Old Testament prophecies, all of which are admitted
to refer to Christ. Both the nature of the dominion and the mode of its
establishment, described in these passages, are as different as possible from
anything seen or predicted under Christianity, while they are perfectly
consistent with the promises of earthly blessing made to the seed of Abraham and
David, and with the revealed purposes of God concerning the righteous government
of the world. Is it wiser and more reverent to bow to Scripture, to accept its
statements in the form in which God gives them, or to seek to twist them from
their natural shape into a forced harmony with that which is not only different,
but in many respects entirely opposed in its character and object? To do this
can only result in destroying Israel’s hope and obscuring the Church’s. To
accept them in simple faith leaves God’s earthly purposes still to be
accomplished, brings out in undimmed lustre the portion of the Church, and
displays in fuller brightness the manifold character of the pre-eminence of
Christ.

CHAPTER V.

ISRAEL’S RESTORATION AND BLESSING — OLD TESTAMENT TEACHING. The passages quoted
in the last chapter prove that Christ returns to reign in righteousness,
executing judgment on His enemies, and setting up His throne in Zion. But one of
the first texts at which we glanced showed that in connection with this enduring
and glorious reign of the Seed of David, the people of Israel are to be securely
planted "in a place of their own," where the children of wickedness shall
afflict them no more. Let us look, then, at the teaching of Scripture on this
point. We shall see how fully it confirms the literal interpretation of the
passages describing the Messianic reign.

God’s covenant with Abraham was — "Unto thy seed have I given this land, from
the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates" (Gen 15:18).
Again, God said to Abraham, "I will establish My covenant between Me and thee,
and thy seed after thee, in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to
be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and
to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of
Canaan for an everlasting possession" (Gen 17:7-8). When the Israelites entered
into the land, it was not in virtue of this covenant, but by another covenant,
according to which their possession, instead of depending on God’s unconditional
promise, was made to hinge on their own obedience. This was not a fulfilment of
God’s covenant with Abraham, and we shall see that God, instead of regarding it
as such, carefully reserves His covenant with the fathers, even while distinctly
foretelling the failure and dispersion of the nation under the subsequent
covenant made at Mount Sinai.

Lev 26:1-46 shows the results of Israel’s disobedience, bringing out all their
melancholy history until they "perish among the heathen" (Lev 26:38). But it
adds that if, in their dispersion, they shall confess their sins, — "If then
their uncircumcised hearts be humbled, and they then accept of the punishment of
their iniquity, then will I remember" — what? My covenant at Mount Sinai? — No,
but "My covenant with Jacob, and also My covenant with Isaac, and also My
covenant with Abraham will I remember, and I will remember the land" (Lev
26:41-42). Restoration, then, will be on the ground of the yet unfulfilled
covenant with the fathers. But it may be objected that even here the restoration
is only conditional on national repentance. This is true, but in the promise to
David, long afterwards, God declares that the nation shall be planted. This
implies an undertaking on God’s part that the condition shall be fulfilled. We
shall see presently that God Himself promises to bring them to the state of soul
necessary for their national restoration and blessing. In Deu 30:1-20 the
repentance of Israel is stated, not only as a condition of restoration, but as a
fact. "It shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the
blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them
to mind among all the nations whither Jehovah thy God hath driven thee, and
shalt return unto Jehovah thy God, and shalt obey His voice according to all
that I command thee this day . . . . that then Jehovah thy God will turn thy
captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from
all the nations. And Jehovah thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart
of thy seed, to love Jehovah thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy
soul, that thou mayest live. And Jehovah thy God will put all these curses upon
thine enemies, and on them that hate thee, which persecuted thee. And thou shalt
return and obey the voice of Jehovah, and do all His commandments which I
command thee this day. And Jehovah thy God will make thee plenteous in every
work of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle,
and in the fruit of thy land, for good; for Jehovah will again rejoice over thee
for good, as He rejoiced over thy fathers" (Deu 30:1-9).

These words were spoken to Israel as a nation, and can only be fulfilled to
Israel as a nation. It is the same people who are cast out that are to be
brought back to have their hearts circumcised, and to be again ruled over by the
Lord for good (Deu 30:6-9). Such is God’s distinct undertaking, not yet
fulfilled, concerning Israel. Does He ever recede from it? Or does He, on the
contrary, again and again, at various places and at various times, reiterate and
intensify these glorious promises? In the second Psalm, Zion is named as the
place where Christ’s throne will be established. In Psa 9:1-20 and Psa 10:1-18
we behold Israel groaning under grievous oppressions, and praise offered to the
Lord for deliverance. "Jehovah is King for ever and ever; the Gentiles are
perished out of His land. Jehovah, Thou hast heard the desire of the humble;
Thou wilt prepare their heart Thou wilt cause Thine ear to hear" (Psa 10:16-17).
What other country is ever spoken of as Jehovah’s land but Palestine, Israel’s
portion? This passage, then, shows the Lord’s perpetual kingdom, accompanied by
the deliverance of the land of Israel from Gentile rule, the humbling of the
people before God, and His preparation of their heart.

Psa 14:1-7 anticipates the time of Israel’s final liberation — "Oh that the
salvation of Israel were come out of Zion! When Jehovah bringeth back the
captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice and Israel shall be glad" (Psa
14:7). Such language is extravagant if applied to the feeble remnant who
returned from Babylon, and is wholly irrelevant if used about the Church. It
alludes to the time concerning which all the prophets speak, of Messiah’s reign
and Israel’s glory.

Psa 46:1-11 describes the hour of Israel’s trouble, the waters roaring, the
mountains shaking, the Gentiles raging, and the kingdoms in commotion. Still
they can exclaim — "Jehovah of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.
Selah. Come, behold the works of Jehovah, what desolations He hath made in the
earth. He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; He breaketh the bow
and cutteth the spear in sunder; He burneth the chariot in the fire." Here the
God of Jacob, a national name, is with "us" — Israel — bringing the wars and
commotions of the Gentiles to an end by desolating judgments and establishing
peace on the earth. "Be still," He adds, "and know that I am God; I will be
exalted among the Gentiles, I will be exalted in the earth." And once again
exultant Israel replies — "Jehovah of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our
refuge. Selah." But the song of triumph swells again, and in the beginning of
Psa 47:1-9, the result of God’s intervention is celebrated. "Oh clap your hands,
all ye people, shout unto God with the voice of triumph. For Jehovah most high
is terrible; He is a great King over all the earth. He shall subdue the people
under us, and the nations under our feet. He shall choose our inheritance for
us, the excellency of Jacob whom He loved." And again, in the following Psalm —
"Let Mount Zion rejoice, let the daughters of Judah be glad because of Thy
judgments. Walk about Zion, and go round about her: tell the towers thereof.
Mark ye well her bulwarks, consider her palaces, that ye may tell it to the
generation following" (Psa 48:1-13). Here, then, we have Israel’s latter
history. First, she is seen in terrible affliction and oppression, but looking
to God as her refuge. He comes in and stays the turmoil of the peoples by
judgment, subduing them under her, establishing His own dominion, and exalting
Zion and Jerusalem.

Psa 68:1-35 recounts the Lord’s doings with Israel after their dispersion and
national destruction. "I will bring again from Bashan: I will bring My people
again from the depth of the sea: that thy foot may be dipped in the blood of
thine enemies, and the tongue of thy dogs in the same." Is this the Church? Did
any such restoration ever take place in Israel’s past history? Benjamin and
Judah, Zabulon and Naphtali, are all included in this national re-establishment.
"Because of Thy temple at Jerusalem shall kings bring presents unto Thee . . . .
Princes shall come out of Egypt; Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto
God . . . . Ascribe ye strength unto God: His excellency is over Israel and his
strength is in the clouds. O God, Thou art terrible out of Thy holy places: the
God of Israel is He that giveth strength and power unto His people. Blessed be
God" (Psa 68:22-35). At the close of the following Psalm, it is said — "For God
will save Zion, and will build the cities of Judah; that they may dwell there
and have it in possession. The seed of The servants shall inherit it, and they
that love His name shall dwell therein" (Psa 119:35-36). Is this Israel’s past
history? Or what has it to do with the Church? That it is Israel’s future
history God’s Word and faithfulness require us to believe.

So, too, — "Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to favour
her, yea, the set time, is come. For Thy servants take pleasure in her stones,
and favour the dust thereof. So the Gentiles shall fear the name of Jehovah, and
all the kings of the earth Thy glory. When Jehovah shall build up Zion, He shall
appear in His glory" (Psa 102:13-16). What events in the history of Israel or of
the Church are described here? The spiritualising alchemy of Romish theology,
borrowed by modern evangelicalism, can transmute anything into anything else.
But if we are to believe what God says, instead of converting it into what we
think He ought to say, this passage means that Zion will be restored, that God’s
glory will then be manifested, and that so the nations and the kings of the
earth will fear Jehovah. The joy of Israel when this happens, is told in Psa
126:1-6, "When Jehovah turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them
that dream. Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with
singing; then said they among the Gentiles, Jehovah hath done great things for
them. Jehovah hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad" (Psa 126:1-3).
Then the people, favoured by Jehovah, are multiplied (Psa 127:1-5.); those that
fear Him are blessed "out of Zion," "see the good of Jerusalem all the days of
their life," beheld their "children’s children and peace upon Israel" (Psa
128:1-6.) Has this time come? or has it yet to be brought in by the power and
faithfulness of God?

What language, again, can be clearer than this? "Jehovah hath chosen Zion: he
hath desired it for His habitation. This is my rest for ever; here will I dwell;
for I have desired it. I will abundantly bless her provision, I will satisfy her
poor with bread. I will also clothe her priests with salvation, and her saints
shall shout aloud for joy. There will I make the horn of David to bud: I have
ordained a lamp for Mine Anointed: His enemies will I clothe with shame; but
upon Himself shall His crown flourish" (Psa 132:13-18). What could any godly Jew
of David’s time hay understood by this prophecy? If it did not predict national
blessing and glory under David’s seed, what promise of God is worth possessing,
or what word of His is capable of being understood?

Once more — "Let Israel rejoice in him that made him, let the children of Zion
be joyful in their King. Let them praise His name in the dance; let their sing
unto Him with the timbrel and harp. For Jehovah taketh pleasure in his people;
He will beautify the meek with salvation. Lot the saints be joyful in glory; let
them sing aloud upon their beds. Let the high praises of God be in their mouth,
and a two-edged sword in their hand, to execute vengeance upon the Gentiles, and
punishments upon the people; to bind their kings with chains, and their nobles
with fetters of iron; to execute upon them the judgment written. This honour
have all His saints. Praise ye the Lord" (Psa 149:2-9). These saints are
evidently a people on earth. Are they the Church? Are believers now "to execute
vengeance upon the Gentiles?" On the contrary, the word now is — "Dearly
beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath, for it is
written, Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, saith the Lord" (Rom 12:19). Instead
of inflicting "punishments upon the people," the servants are forbidden to pull
up the tares, and commanded to let them grow till the harvest. The binding of
kings and nobles is appropriate for a nation called to execute God’s righteous
judgments; utterly foreign to the ways of those who are to follow in the
footsteps of Christ — the meek and lowly One who, "when He was reviled, reviled
not again." This may suffice for extracts from the Psalms. But no extracts can
show the place which the purposes of God concerning Israel occupy in these
poems. It is the object of their prayers, the spring of their hopes, the
fountain of their praise. The whole book is the voice of the godly remnant of
Israel heard in confession, in entreaty, in denunciation, in rejoicing, often in
language most discordant with that in which the Spirit would lead the prayers
and praises of the Church, but exquisitely chiming in with the sketches
elsewhere furnished of God’s gracious purposes towards His forsaken, but not
forgotten — His blinded, but still chosen — people.

Let us now, however, turn to the words of the prophets. Isaiah’s vision was
"concerning Judah and Jerusalem." He is told to "make the heart of this people
fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes" (Isa 6:10) He inquired,
"Lord, how long? And He answered, Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant,
and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate, and Jehovah have
removed men far away, and there be a great forsaking in the midst of the land.
But yet in it shall be a tenth, and it shall return, and shall be eaten: as a
teil tree, and as an oak, whose substance is in them, when they cast their
leaves: so the itchy seed shall be the substance thereof" (Isa 6:11-13). Here,
then, is a prophecy which only receives its full accomplishment after Christ’s
rejection by the Jews. It foretells the total desolation of the land, the
scattering and destruction of the people. But still a remnant is left, who shall
return, and be the "holy seed," the real pith and substance of the nation.

About this remnant and its restoration the prophet gives us further particulars,
coupling the time of its blessing with the reign of Christ. "And in that day
there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people:
to it shall the Gentiles seek, and His rest shall be glorious. And it shall come
to pass in that day, that Jehovah will set His hand again the second time to
recover the remnant of His people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from
Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from
Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. And He shall set up an ensign for the
nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the
dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth. The envy also of Ephraim
shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not
envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim; but they shall fly upon the
shoulders of the Philistines toward the west; they shall spoil them of the east
together: they shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moab, and the children of
Ammon shall obey them" (Isa 11:10-14). Nobody will contend that this prophecy
has been fulfilled in Israel’s history; and to apply it to the Church is to
subject it to an amount of violence which would render all prophecy deceptive.
But apply it to the future of Israel, and we find the exact counterpart of the
promises and prophecies we have already seen. "The root of Jesse," the Jewish
title of Christ, comes in; and in connexion with His appearance the remnant,
which we saw was to be preserved after the desolation of the land, is gathered
back to Jerusalem and Palestine; the divisions of the people, brought in by
idolatry, are healed; and the neighbouring nations, who have oppressed and
despised them, are overthrown. We have all along seen that while the first man
would fail, the full blessings promised to Israel would be accomplished by the
coming in of the Second Man, the true Seed of David; and now we observe how His
appearance at once accomplishes the ancient promises of God concerning this
people. But we have also seen that Israel’s restoration is to be accompanied by
a mighty moral change. Here, then, is what the Lord tells us about the condition
of the people once more gathered back, "Therefore saith the Lord, Jehovah of
hosts, the mighty One of Israel, Al, I will ease Me of Mine adversaries, and
avenge Me of Mine enemies: and I will turn My hand upon thee, and purely purge
away thy dross, and take away all thy tin; and I will restore thy judges as at
the first and thy counsellors as at the beginning; afterward thou shalt be
called The city of righteousness, the faithful city"(Isa 1:24-26). Here we see
that the judgments of God are to visit the people, that the dross of the nation
is to be removed, that the rest are to learn righteousness, and that then
Jerusalem is to become what God designed that it should be, as the centre of
righteous government in the earth. If this portion is to be understood in its
natural sense, it is plain that the spiritualising interpretation usually
applied to the prophecies of Isaiah cannot stand. Is it, then, so to be
understood? In the first place, the prophecy in which it occurs is expressly
declared to be "concerning Judah and Jerusalem." In the next place, everybody
admits that the woes and judgments denounced in this same chapter refer to the
real Judah and Jerusalem. How, then, can we say that the promises, immediately
following and closely connected, refer to an allegorical Judah and Jerusalem?
Again, the titles of God used here are the titles by which He specially makes
Himself known to Israel, not the titles He assumes towards the Church. Lastly,
what have righteous judges and counsellors to do with the Church? Whereas the
unrighteousness of these officers was one great crime laid to the charge of
Jerusalem, while their purity is an essential condition to the carrying out of
God’s purposes of earthly government, of which Zion is the chosen centre.

There is another thing to notice here. The purification of Jerusalem is brought
about, not by grace but by power. Where is there a New Testament prophecy
intimating that after the corruption of the professing Church, God would come in
and restore purity by the unsparing judgments referred to in these verses?
Christianity is the period of God’s forbearance and long-suffering, the period
when Christ is waiting at God’s right hand for His foes to be made His
footstool. Judgment is what characterises God’s dealings with the earth. Nothing
is more suitable than such language as we have quoted when bringing back His
earthly people, and re-establishing His scheme of earthly government; nothing
more inconsistent with the whole spirit in which He is now acting. This
distinction is clearly shown in the Psalms. There we have Christ’s present
attitude thus described: "Jehovah said unto my Lord, Sit Thou at My right hand,
until I make Thine enemies Thy footstool (Psa 110:1). Then follows God’s
principle of action when this season of expectation is closed. "Jehovah shall
send the rod of Thy strength out of Zion; rule Thou in the midst of Thine
enemies. Thy people shall be willing in the day of Thy power" (Psa 110:2-3). How
exactly this agrees with what we have seen. During the day of God’s grace, "Thy
people," the Jews, are enemies. But when the day of Christ’s power comes, when
the rod of His strength goes out of Zion, His people are willing, and a remnant
is gathered in righteousness. Not by the preaching of the gospel, only "when Thy
judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will, learn
righteousness" (Isa 26:9). But this period of Jerusalem’s prosperity and
righteousness under the sceptre of the root of Jesse, is accompanied with
blessings to the nations. Hear "the word that Isaiah, the sun of Amoz, saw
concerning Judah and Jerusalem. And it shall come to pass in the last days, that
the mountain of Jehovah’s house shall be established in the top of the
mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow into
it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain
of Jehovah, to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us of His ways,
and we will walk in His paths; for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the
word of Jehovah from Jerusalem. And He shall judge among the nations, and shall
rebuke many people; and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and
their spears into pruning-hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more" (Isa 2:1-4). This passage is expressly
written concerning Judah and Jerusalem; it presents Christ, net pleading with
the nations to be reconciled to Him, but judging and rebuking them; it foretells
the blessings that will follow an earthly reign of peace and righteousness —
blessings which are never in the New Testament predicted as about to flow from
the spread of the gospel or Christianity; and it speaks, as I have before
pointed out of "last days" as different from the "last days" predicted for the
professing Church as light from darkness. It refers, therefore, to the literal
nation of Israel, and the literal city of Jerusalem, and declares that when the
sceptre of Christ’s strength has gone out of Zion, not merely shall the nation
be exalted above all others, but general blessing, and peace, and acknowledgment
of God, shall prevail in the earth. The rest of the chapter goes on to show how
this period of blessing will be brought in. Is it by grace proclaimed? No, but
by fearful judgments executed. "The day of Jehovah" comes, destroying the pride
of man, causing him to throw his idols to the moles and to the bats, and to "go
into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of
Jehovah, and for the glory of His majesty." The consequence of this terrible
shaking of the earth, and bringing down the pride of man, is, that "Jehovah
alone shall be exalted in that day" (Isa 2:12-22).

Isa 14:1-2, foretells that "Jehovah will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet
choose Israel, and set them in their own land; and the strangers shall be joined
with them . . . . and they shall take them captives, whose captives they were;
and they shall rule over their oppressors."

Again — "Comfort ye, comfort ye, My people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably
to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her
iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of Jehovah’s hand double for all her
sins. The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of
Jehovah, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall
be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low; and the crooked shall
be made straight, and the rough places plain; and the glory of Jehovah shall be
revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of Jehovah hath
spoken it" (Isa 40:1-5.) It is true that the cry here mentioned was raised by
John the Baptist, who preceded Christ’s first appearance. But John’s testimony
was to the kingdom, not to the Church, to the One who was to lay the axe to the
root of the tree, the One who was to burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.
He called upon the people to fulfil that condition of national repentance which,
as shown in Leviticus, was to precede national restoration. This appeal was
refused, the forerunner beheaded, the Messiah crucified. The kingdom of glory
and the restoration of Israel were therefore postponed and the land left
desolate. But this only delays the accomplishment of the purpose. The time will
come when the voice raised in the wilderness will be listened to, when God will
again comfort His people, when He will be satisfied with the punishment He has
laid upon them for their sins, and at that time His glory "shall be revealed,
and all flesh shell see it together." In like manner — "Fear not thou worm
Jacob, and ye men of Israel: I will help thee, saith Jehovah, and thy Redeemer,
the Holy One of Israel. Behold, I will make thee a new sharp threshing
instrument, having teeth: thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small,
and shalt make the hills as chaff" (Isa 41:14-15). And so too — "Thus saith
Jehovah that created thee, O Jacob, and He that formed thee, O Israel — Fear
not, for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art Mine.
When thou passest through the waters I will be with thee; and through the
rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou
shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee, For I am Jehovah
thy God, the Holy One of Israel thy Saviour; I gave Egypt for thy ransom,
Ethiopia and Seba for thee. Since thou wast precious in My sight, then hast been
honourable, and I have loved thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and
people for thy life. Fear not, for I am with thee. I will bring thy seed from
the east, and gather thee from the west. I will say to the north, Give up, and
to the south, Keep not back; bring My sons from far, and My daughters from the
ends of the earth" (Isa 43:1-6). And once more — "Remember these, O Jacob and
Israel; for thou art My servant: I have formed thee; thou art My servant; O
Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of Me. I have blotted out as a thick cloud
thy transgressions, and as a cloud thy sins: return unto Me, for I have redeemed
thee" (Isa 44:1-28). In the last foregoing passages, God, speaking by the
national name of Jehovah, has said thrice over concerning Israel as a nation
that He has redeemed it. Yet the accredited interpretation is, that He has
deceived Israel with false hopes, and that when He spoke of Israel, He really
meant something entirely different! Is it credible that Christians should dare
to impute such deception to the One "who cannot lie"? If God could so cruelly
deceive Israel, what reason have we to believe He is not equally deceiving us?
The bare suggestion is shocking, and yet it is the inevitable inference arising
cut of the Romish and evangelical interpretation. But again, in one of these
passages God speaks of making Israel a sharp threshing instrument, in another of
gathering her sons and daughters from the ends of the earth, and in the third of
her return to Him with her transgressions forgiven. All this exactly befits
Israel’s state. But is the Church a sharp threshing instrument? Has the Church
ever been scattered to the ends of the earth? Or is the Church ever spoken of as
having been estranged from God and coming back forgiven? Such are the
contradictions involved in the ordinary interpretation. Quotations might be
multiplied without end, but I select a few only. "The redeemed of Jehovah shall
return and come with singing unto Zion, and everlasting joy shall be upon their
head: they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and mourning shall flee
away" (Isa 2:1-4) When will the Church come to Zion? Or if Zion be spiritualised
into heaven, how can the Church "return" where it has never been? "Awake, awake,
stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk of the hand of Jehovah the cup of His
fury" (Isa 2:17). Israel has drunk the cup of Jehovah’s fury, but when has the
Church done so? "Thus saith thy Lord, Jehovah, and thy God that pleadeth the
cause of His people, Behold I have taken out of thy hand the cup of trembling,
even the dregs of the cup of My fury; thou shalt no more drink it again, but I
will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee" (Isa 2:22-22). Applied to
Israel, this is beautiful, consistent with other scripture, and adapted to her
circumstances. Applied to the Church, the passage is absolutely without meaning.

How exquisite, also, when addressed to Israel, but how false and preposterous,
if referred to the Church, is the following promise: "Thou shalt forget the
shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any
more. For thy Maker is thine husband, Jehovah of hosts is His name, and thy
redeemer the Holy One of Israel.......For a small moment have I forsaken thee"
[for what "small moment" has Christ forsaken the Church?]; but with great
mercies will I gather thee. In a little wrath I hid My face from thee for a
moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee" (Isa 54:4-8).

How sweet, too, the words of comfort directed to Israel in this passage. "Arise,
shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of Jehovah is risen upon thee. For
behold, the darkness shall cover the earth and gross darkness the people: but
Jehovah shall arise upon thee, and His glory shall be seen upon thee. And the
Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. . .
. Thy suns shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. .
. . The sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall
minister unto thee. Thy gates shall be open continually, they shall not be shut
day nor night, that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that
their kings may be brought. For the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee
shall perish. . . . The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending
unto thee, and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the
soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of Jehovah, The Zion of
the Holy One of Israel. Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no
man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many
generations" (Isa 60:1-15). The last portion of this prophet is so full of the
theme that selection is almost impossible, but the above extracts, voluminous in
themselves, though scanty in proportion to the matter out of which they are
taken, will suffice to show the teaching of God’s Word, as delivered by this
inspired writer. Let us look, then, very briefly at the words of the other
prophets. I begin with those who wrote before the fall of Jerusalem.

Hosea, after foretelling Israel’s rejection under the parable of Lo-ammi, not My
people, adds — "Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of
the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered" — the very promise given to
Abraham — "and it shall come to pass that in the place where it was said unto
them, Ye are not My people, there it shall be. said unto them, Ye are the sons
of the living God" (Hos 1:9-10). And in the closing chapter of his prophecy, he
thus writes — "I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely; for Mine
anger is turned away from him. I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow
as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon. His branches shall spread, and
his beauty shall be as the olive tree, and his smell as Lebanon. They that dwell
under his shadow shall return: they shall revive as the corn and grow as the
vine; the scent thereof shall be as the wine of Lebanon" (Hos 14:4-7)

Joel describes the time when the Lord will sit to judge all the heathen round
about. Then "Jehovah also shall roar out of Zion, and utter His voice from
Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake; but Jehovah will be. the
hope of His people, and the strength of the children of Israel. So shall ye know
that I am Jehovah your God dwelling in Zion, My holy mountain. Then shall
Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more" (Joe
3:16-17). When was this prophecy fulfilled?

Amos foretells that Jehovah "will sift the house of Israel among all nations,
like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the
earth." The sinners shall die, but God "will raise up the tabernacle of David
that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his
ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old: that they may possess the
remnant of Edom, and of all the nations." Moreover, "I will bring again the
captivity of My people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and
inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they
shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon
their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have
given them, saith Jehovah thy God" (Amo 9:9-15). It is clear that the blessings
predicted in this and the two preceding paragraphs did not receive their
fulfilment in the return of the captivity from Babylon. Each describes a
restoration under Jehovah’s blessing, with a permanent condition of happiness
and holiness; and this Israel has never yet enjoyed.

Obadiah announces the judgment awaiting Edom: "But upon Mount Zion shall be
deliverance, and there shall be holiness; and the house of Jacob shall possess
their possessions;" and the captivity of Israel "shall possess the cities of the
south, And saviours shall come up on Mount Zion to judge the Mount of Esau; and
the kingdom shall be Jehovah’s" (Obadiah 1:17-21). In the last stage of the
Jewish nation, before its complete absorption in the Roman Empire, instead of
saviours on Mount Zion judging Esau, a descendant of Esau reigned in Mount Zion.

Micah repeats the prophecy of Isaiah concerning the "last days," adding "In that
day, saith Jehovah, will I assemble her that halteth, and I will gather her that
is driven out, and her that I have afflicted; and I will make her that halted a
remnant, and her that was cast far off a strong nation; and Jehovah shall reign
over them in Mount Zion from henceforth, even for ever. And thou, O tower of the
flock, the stronghold of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, even the
first dominion; the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem" (Mic
4:6-8). It has not come yet. After foretelling the coming of Messiah to rule,
the prophet thus describes the people of Israel in His day, as the centre at
once of blessing and of judgment. "The remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of
many people, as a dew from Jehovah, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth
not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men; and the remnant of Jacob shall be
among the Gentiles, in the midst of many people, as a lion among the beasts of
the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep; who, if he goeth through,
both treadeth down, and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Thine hand
shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut
off" (Mic 4:7-9). Could any language be more inappropriate, if applied to the
Church? while, as we have seen, it exactly corresponds with the other
predictions as to the place reserved for Israel in the government of the earth.

"The burden of Nineveh." This is the subject of "the book of the vision of Nahum
the Elkoshite," and with this "burden" it is almost exclusively occupied.
Turning aside, however, parenthetically to Israel, the prophet says in the name
of the Lord — "Though I have afflicted thee, I will afflict thee no more: for
now will I break his yoke from off thee, and will burst thy bonds in sunder.
Behold upon the mountains the feet of Him that bringeth good tidings that
publisheth peace! O Judah, keep thy solemn feasts, perform thy vows; for the
wicked shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off" (Nah 1:12-15).

Zephaniah bids Israel wait till the Lord rises up to vengeance on her enemies,
"for then will I turn to the people a pure language." Then they shall be
gathered from Ethiopia, and "the remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity."
"Sing, O daughter of Zion," he adds; "shout, O Israel; be glad and rejoice with
all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem. Jehovah hath taken away thy judgments,
He hath cast out thine enemy: the King of Israel, even Jehovah, is in the midst
of thee; thou shalt not see evil any more" (Zep 3:8-15). Israel has seen evil
enough since her return from the Babylonish captivity. It is to something much
more than this, then, that the prophet refers. The prophets of the captivity
write in the same strain. "Turn, O backsliding children, saith Jehovah; for I am
married unto you; and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I
will bring you to Zion; and I will give you pastors according to Mine heart,
which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding . . . . At that time they
shall call Jerusalem the throne of Jehovah, and all the nations shall be
gathered unto it, to the name of Jehovah, to Jerusalem; neither shall they walk
any more after the imagination of their evil heart. In those days the house of
Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of
the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your
fathers" (Jer 3:14-18). Again, what can be clearer, as showing that Israel is
meant, and not the Church, than the following prophecy? "Hear the word of
Jehovah, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar of and say, He that
scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock.
For Jehovah hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of him that was
stronger than he. Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and
shall flow together to the goodness of Jehovah, for wheat, and for wine, and for
oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd; and their seal shall be on
a watered garden, and they shall not sorrow any more at all" (Jer 31:10-12).
"Moreover the word of Jehovah come to Jeremiah, saying, Considerest thou not
what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which Jehovah hath
chosen, He hath even cast them off? Thus they have despised My people, that they
should be no more a nation before them. Thus saith Jehovah, If My covenant be
not with day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and
earth, then will I cast away the seed of Jacob, and David My servant so that I
will not take any of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob; for I will cause their captivity to return, and have mercy on them" (Jer
33:23-26). What kind of fulfilment has this prophecy received, either in Israel
or in the Church? In like manner Ezekiel writes — "Thus saith the Lord Jehovah,
When I shall have gathered the house of Israel from the people among whom they
are scattered, and shall be sanctified in them in the sight of the Gentiles,
then shall they dwell in their land that I have given to My servant Jacob. And
they shall dwell safely therein, and shall build houses, and plant vineyards;
yea, they shall dwell with confidence, when I have executed judgments upon all
those that despise them round about them, and they shall know that I am Jehovah,
their God" (Eze 28:25-26). What simple blindness to apply this to the Church!
So, again, — "I will take you from among the Gentiles, and gather you out of all
countries, and will bring you into your own land. Then will I sprinkle clean
water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all
your idols, will I cleanse you" (Eze 36:24-25). The next chapter describes the
vision of the dry bones, concerning which the prophet is told that "these bones
are the whole house of Israel." But the Lord says — "Behold, O My people, I will
open your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel, and ye shall know that
I am Jehovah" (Eze 36:11-13). Then follows the vision signifying the union of
Judah and Israel, which is thus explained — "I will take the children of Israel
from among the Gentiles, whither they are gone, and will gather them on every
side, and bring them into their own land; and I will make them one nation in the
land upon the mountains of Israel; and one King shall be king to thorn all; and
they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two
kingdoms any more at all" (Eze 36:21-22).

Daniel foretells the history of Gentile rule, ending with the complete
destruction of their power, and the setting up of the kingdom of the Son of Man;
when "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" (Dan 7:27).
These are persons on earth, for they are described two verses before as
persecuted by the power symbolised in the "little horn." From this persecution
they are saved by the judgment of the blasphemer, and the establishment of
Messiah’s kingdom. This fearful trial and deliverance are described further on.
"There shall be a time of trouble, such as 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" (Dan 12:1).

There are three still later prophets, whose writings date from after the partial
restoration of the Jews under Zerubbabel. Of these, Haggai’s short prophecy is
more occupied with the present than the future. But he foretells a mighty event,
"Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, Yet once a little while, and I will shake the
heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; and I will shake all
nations, and the desire of nations shall come, and I will fill this house with
glory" (Hag 2:6-7). There was no such shaking at Christ’s first coming, and on
His coming at the end of the world, the temple, and the earth itself will have
fled away. At His second coming we have seen that there will be a mighty
shaking, fearful judgments, and a display in and from Jerusalem of His kingdom
glory.

Zechariah is more occupied with the future. He writes — "Jerusalem shall be
inhabited as towns without walls for the multitude of men and cattle therein:
for I, saith Jehovah, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be
the glory in the midst of her . . . . Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion; for,
lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith Jehovah; and many
nations shall be joined to Jehovah in that day . . . . and Jehovah shall inherit
Judah His portion in the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again" (Zec
2:4-12). So also — "I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the
house of Joseph, and I will bring them again to place them; for I have mercy
upon them; and they shall be as though I had not cast them off; for I am Jehovah
their God, and will hear them" (Zec 10:6). Again, how unlike anything that has
yet happened in Jewish history, and how utterly inapplicable to the Church, is
such a prophecy as the following — "In that day will I make the governors of
Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a
sheaf, and they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and
on the left, and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in
Jerusalem" (Zec 12:6). To apply this either to Israel’s past history or to the
Church is to turn prophecy into a mockery, and to deprive the Word of God of all
value. Yet what can be simpler when read in the light of God’s revealed purposes
concerning the kingdom of His Son, who will appear to execute judgment having
"on his vesture and on His thigh a name written — King of kings, and Lord of
lords" (Rev 19:16).

Malachi predicts, as we have seen, the Lord’s appearing, "like a refiner’s fire
and like fullers’ soap," so terrible that he asks — "Who may abide the day of
His coming?" The effect of His return is that He purifies the house of Levi, so
that they "offer unto Jehovah an offering in righteousness. Then shall the
offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto Jehovah, as in the days of old,
and as in former years. And I will come near to you to judgment. . . . . For I
am Jehovah, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed" (Mal
3:3-6).

Such is the unvarying testimony of the Hebrew prophets. Did God mean those to
wham it was given to understand it in its natural sense, or not to understand it
at all? Would it have boon possible for any Jew to have understood it in any
other sense than as a rnagnificent series of prophecies concerning his own
nation? And is it credible that any believer in the Lord Jesus can maintain,
that when God used language which could only arouse such hopes, He was mocking
them with hollow and delusive expectations?

Let us take a parallel, though of course impossible, case. Let us imagine that
the Lord sent a series of prophets who foretold the destruction of the British
monarchy, the dispersion of the people, and the foreign occupation of the land;
but, while announcing these woes, predicted in the same breath that, after a
long period of national degradation and desolation, a great prince of the royal
family would arise, the scattered people would be gathered, an era of untold
prosperity and glory would dawn upon the country, and signal judgments would be
inflicted on the foreign usurper. Supposing that the first part of this prophecy
were fulfilled, the monarchy destroyed, the people dispersed, the country given
over to foreign occupation, what would the British outcasts have to look forward
to? Would it. not be to the accomplishment of the other part of the same
prophecy foretelling their final deliverance and blessing? And what would be
said if a Russian priest, expounding these prophecies during the time of
Britain’s overthrow, were to explain the predictions of calamity as having had
their literal fulfilment in the disgrace and dispersion of the English people,
but to contend that the predictions of blessing had no reference to the nation
whatever, and simply foretold the prosperity and glory of the Oriental Church —
that when the prophets spoke of Britain they meant the Greek ecclesiastical
system, when they spoke of London they meant Constantinople, when they spoke of
the descendant of Queen Victoria they meant the Eastern patriarch? Would not
everybody call this solemn trifling? And yet this is just what Christendom has
done with the prophecies given to Israel. It has readily admitted that the
curses are the national inheritance of the Jewish race, but it has appropriated
to itself the blessings foretold by the same prophets, in the same breath, about
the same people, and it has applied their promises of national prosperity and
glory, dominion and vengeance, to a spiritual system which bears no more
resemblance to the nation of Israel than the Greek Church to the British Empire.

CHAPTER VI.

ISRAEL’S RESTORATION AND BLESSING — OLD TESTAMENT TEACHING — (continued).

I Propose now to notice a few special features connected with the Messiah’s
reign and Israel’s glory — again leaving Scripture to speak for itself.

I. This restoration is under a new covenant. "Behold, the days come, saith
Jehovah, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the
house of Judah; not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in
the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt;
which My covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith
Jehovah. But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of
Israel: After those days, saith Jehovah, I will put My law in their inward
parts, and write it in their hearts, and will be their God, and they shall be My
people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his
brother, saying, Know Jehovah; for all shall know Me, from the least of them
unto the greatest of them, saith Jehovah; for I will forgive their iniquity, and
I will remember their sin no more" (Jer 31:31-34).

Thus there are three covenants; the first, an unconditional one, with Abraham,
not yet fulfilled; the second, a conditional one, with Israel, which prevented
the accomplishment of the first, by making it contingent on the people’s
obedience; the third, an unconditional one, also with Israel, which sets aside
the second, and so renders possible the fulfilment of the first. But though the
condition of the Sinai covenant is to be removed, national restoration and the
fulfilment of the unconditional covenant with Abraham is not to take place until
the time of national repentance. Though the promise is absolute, yet the nation
must be in a fit state before it is fulfilled. God, then, engages to bring it
into a fit state. Instead of leaving Israel to keep the law in their own
strength, He undertakes to give them power to keep it. He makes a covenant with
Judah and Israel to bring them to a condition of heart in which his promise to
Abraham can be righteously carried out. He must have a righteous nation; He,
therefore, comes in Himself to make it righteous. That this covenant, which is
said to be an everlasting covenant, is connected with the returned remnant of
Israel, is also obvious; for we read — "Behold, I will gather them out of all
countries whither I have driven them in Mine anger, and in My fury, and in great
wrath; and I will bring them again into this place, and I will cause them to
dwell safely, and they shall be My people, and I will be their God; and I will
give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me for ever, for the good of
them, and of their children after them, and I will make an everlasting covenant
with them, that I will not turn away from them to do them good, but I will put
My fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from Me" (Jer 32:37-40). In
Isaiah, also, it is said — "I will make an everlasting covenant with them, and
their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the
people; all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which
Jehovah hath blessed" (Isa 61:8-9). And again, the same prophet exclaims — "The
Redeemer shall come to Zion and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob,
saith Jehovah. As for Me, this is My covenant with them, saith Jehovah; My
Spirit that is upon thee, and My words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not
depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth
of thy seed’s seed, saith Jehovah, from henceforth and for ever" (Isa 59:20-21).

Ezekiel also says, speaking of the nation as a whole, and of Judah and Israel as
her two children, "I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. Then thou
shalt remember thy ways, and be ashamed, when thou shalt receive thy sisters,
thine elder and thy younger; and I will give them unto thee for daughters, but
not by thy covenant. And I will establish My covenant with thee; and thou shalt
know that I am Jehovah" (Eze 16:60-62). Israel’s covenant, made at Sinai, could
effect no restoration, but God promises to make a covenant, to endure for ever,
in virtue of which national restoration and acknowledgment of Himself should be
brought about. In a later part of his prophecy he again says — "I will make a
covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; and
I will place them, and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in the midst of
them for evermore. And the Gentiles shall know that I, Jehovah, do sanctify
Israel, when My sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore" (Eze
37:26-28).

II. And if God engages to write His law in the heart of the people, He promises
them at the same time the outpouring of His Spirit. Isaiah foretells national
desolation "until the Spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness
be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted for a forest" (Isa
32:15). This is not the baptism of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost, for it is to put
an end to the desolation of Jerusalem, and to be followed by millennial
blessings. So, too, Jehovah says — "I will pour My Spirit upon thy seed, and My
blessing upon thine offspring" (Isa 44:3). But the most striking prophecy of
this marvellous national event is to be found in the writings of Joel. He speaks
of the restoration of the nation, and adds — "It shall come to pass afterwards,
that I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters
shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see
visions; and also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I
pour out My Spirit. And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth,
blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness,
and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of Jehovah come.
And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of Jehovah
shall be delivered; for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance"
(Joe 2:23-32).

Now this prophecy did not receive its fulfilment at Pentecost. Peter’s object in
quoting it on that occasion was not, to show that it was then fulfilled, but to
point out to the scoffing Jews that the miraculous power suddenly bestowed was
nothing more than their own prophets had foretold as the effect of the Spirit’s
outpouring. There were no wonders in heaven, no blood, or fire, or vapour of
smoke; so the apostle could not possibly mean that the prophecy was then really
fulfilled. Moreover, both the context and the language of the prophecy itself
show that its proper accomplishment was to be at the time of Israel’s
restoration; that it did not refer — though some parts of it might be applicable
— to the baptism of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost. That the giving of the Spirit
is accompanied with national blessings and return to the land is also shown by
the words of Ezekiel — "I will put My Spirit within you, and cause you to walk
in My statutes, and ye shall keep My judgments, and do them. And ye shall dwell
in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be My people, and I will
be your God. I will also save you from all your uncleannesses; and I will call
for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you" (Eze 36:27-29).
And once more — "Then shall they know that I am Jehovah their God, which caused
them to be led into captivity among the Gentiles but I have gathered them unto
their own laud, and have left none of them any more there; neither will I hide
My face any more from them: for I have poured out My Spirit upon the house of
Israel, saith the Lord God "(Eze 39:28-29).

III. And this brings us to the great physical effects of this reign of
righteousness. The world into which man was created was one in complete
subjection to himself, one in which disease and death were unknown, one in which
the earth brought forth all its fruits abundantly. Sin reversed this. The
headship of man was shaken; disease, death, and sterility introduced. From that
moment all creation has groaned and travailed in pain together. But the effect
of the cross is to lay a righteous foundation for God "to reconcile all things
unto Himself" (Col 1:20), and at the manifestation of the sons of God, "the
creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the
liberty of the glory of the children of God" (Rom 8:19-21). Now this
deliverance, this reversal of the condition of things brought in by sin, is
clearly predicted in the old prophets.

Thus the curse of sterility, though partially removed at the time of the flood,
still continued in large measure; for the abundant harvests promised to Israel
were merely conditional on their obedience, and like all other blessings held by
such a tenure, were lost through the nation’s unfaithfulness. Thorns and briers
were to be brought forth — the fruits of sin. But when the reign of
righteousness begins, "instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and
instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to Jehovah
for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off" (Isa 55:3). Again
— "I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of
wafer. I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the
myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine,
and the box tree together; that they may see, and know, and consider, and
understand together. that the hand of Jehovah hath done this, and the Holy One
of Israel hath created it" (Isa 41:18-20). So too, "the desert shall rejoice,
and blossom as the rose" (Isa 35:1).

Long before, when the Lord had foretold Israel’s dispersion, repentance, and
final return and blessing, He had said — "And Jehovah, thy God, will make thee
plenteous in every work of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body, and in the
fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy land, for good" (Deu 30:9). And so,
in the Psalms, speaking of Christ’s reign, when God shall "judge the people
righteously, and govern the nations upon earth," the writer exclaims — "Let the
people praise Thee, O God, let all the people praise Thee; then shall the earth
yield her increase, and God, even our own God, shall bless us" (Psa 67:4-6).

Ezekiel also foretells the time when they shall say, "This land that was
desolate is become like the garden of Eden" (Eze 36:35); and Amos speaks of the
days when "the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him
that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills
shall melt" (Amo 9:13). So too, Joel prophesies of the days when God "will cause
to come down for you the rain, the former rain and the latter rain in the first
month. And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the fats shall overflow with
wine and oil. And He will restore to you the years that the locusts hath eaten.
. . . And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of
Jehovah your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and My people shall never
be ashamed" (Joe 2:23-26). In another chapter he adds — "In that day 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 Jehovah, and shall water the valley of Shittim" (Joe 3:18).

Again, the ferocity of the wild beasts is restrained; and man’s supremacy
established. To the Son of man — the Second Man — all nature is made subject
"all sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field; the fowl of the air and
the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the sea" (Psa
8:7-8). Hence "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’ den" (Isa 11:6-8).

But, still further, longevity will be restored; if, indeed, death, save as the
judgment of sin, will not be abolished, and the age of man prolonged to the full
period of Christ’s reign. "For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth;
and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. But be ye glad and
rejoice for ever in that which I create; for, behold, I create Jerusalem a
rejoicing, and her people a joy. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in My
people; and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of
crying. There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that
hath not filled his days; for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the
sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed" (Isa 65:17-20). Now this is
not heaven, nor the new creation spoken of in the New Testament, for in neither
of those has sin or death any place. Indeed, before God makes all things new as
foretold in the Revelation, the last enemy, death, has been destroyed. (Rev
20:14.) The Old Testament never gets beyond the world, for that is its sphere,
and the reign of Christ is the type, the partial accomplishment, of that perfect
reconciliation, the full fruits of which will be seen only in the new heaven and
the new earth spoken of in the Revelation and the Epistle of Peter. In those new
heavens and new earth righteousness dwells; in the new heavens and new earth of
Isaiah righteousness only reigns, judging sin and repressing it, but not
bringing it entirely to an end. But though the results are only partial as
compared with the full accomplishment of God’s purposes revealed in the New
Testament, they are yet most blessed and most appropriate. It is true that they
are ordinarily understood as merely poetical figures of spiritual blessing, and
it is even thought by some unworthy of God, or impossible as a physical fact, to
bring in such results as those named. Are the evils introduced, however, the
punishment which God inflicted on account of sin? Are they the special scourges
by which He visited His chosen earthly people for their disobedience and
rebellion? If they are, the One who had power to bring them in has power to take
them away. If it was worthy of Him to bring them in, it is worthy of Him to take
them away. If the one was his righteous answer to sin, the other is His
righteous answer to the cross. When God is dealing with the earth, earthly
calamities have always marked His displeasure, and earthly blessings His
approval. We forget that what philosophers call the order of nature is really
its disorder; that this groaning creation came from the hand of God "very good;"
and that its present condition is the anarchy of sin, not the design of the
Creator. Now that the Lamb of God has borne the sin of the world, God can remove
the curse, and reconcile the disordered creation to Himself This He will do
perfectly in the new creation, but partially in the kingdom glory and
blessedness of His anointed Son.

IV. But, besides the general descriptions of the prosperity and glory of Israel
under the reign of the Messiah, we have somewhat fuller particulars of many
features of their national polity. The concluding chapters of Ezekiel’s prophecy
give the plan of the temple, down to the most minute details, describe the
sacrifices offered, the order of priests instituted, the return of the glory of
Jehovah to dwell in the sanctuary, the dimensions and divisions of the
reconstructed city, the fresh arrangement of the land among the tribes, and a
number of similar points, all perfectly intelligible if we let Scripture
interpret itself, but all mysterious and difficult to the last degree if treated
as an allegory descriptive of the blessings to be enjoyed under Christianity.

It is easy enough to understand a general description of the Church under the
figure of a temple, a city, or the people Israel. Indeed, all these figures are
applied to it in the New Testament. But in Ezekiel it is not such a general
description of a temple. All the details are arranged with an architectural
precision wholly unsuited to allegory, but most necessary in describing the plan
of a real building. The glory of Jehovah, as beheld in Eze 1:1-28 prophecy,
which was seen to quit the temple and Jerusalem in Eze 10:1-22, is again, after
long absence, seen to fill this reconstructed sanctuary. "And behold the glory
of the God of Israel came from the way of the east, and His voice was like a
noise of many waters, and the earth shined with His glory. And the glory of
Jehovah came into the house, by the way of the gate whose prospect is towards
the east. So the Spirit took me up, and brought me into the inner court, and
behold the glory of Jehovah filled the house" (Eze 43:2-5). His voice then gives
directions about the altar, and about the sin-offerings and burnt-offerings in
connection with its cleansing (Eze 43:19-27). In the following chapter He
ordains that certain of the Levites, whose fathers had fallen into idolatry,
should not come near to minister; while "the sons of Zadok, that kept the charge
of My sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from Me, they shall come
near to Me, to minister unto Me, and they shall stand before Me to offer unto Me
the fat and the blood" (Eze 44:10-15). The Lord also defines the garments which
these priests shall wear, the class of persons they shall marry, the judicial
functions they shall perform, and the portion of the offerings they shall
receive. Here, to accept God’s Word as meaning what it says, makes everything
simple, to attempt to allegorise it is to throw it into hopeless confusion. To
some minds it may present a difficulty that animal sacrifices should be again
spoken of But an animal sacrifice was never in itself of any value as an
offering. It was but a type of the true sacrifice, and such a type may be just
as suitable in remembrance of the sacrifice as in anticipation. We observe the
Lord’s Supper, showing His body given and His blood shed. In an earthly religion
the types are of a more earthly character, and the actual shedding of blood, not
in renewal, but in remembrance, of the sacrifice of Himself made by Jesus to
God, will be the divinely-appointed way of celebrating this event. Nor is this
the only difference. Our sphere of worship is in heaven itself, inside the veil,
where Christ has entered "by His own blood" (Heb 9:12), so that we have
"boldness to enter into the holiest," by "a new and living way which He hath
consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say, His flesh" (Heb 10:19-20).
Any "pattern," therefore, of the heavenly things, whether temple, altar,
sacrifice, or priest, would be inappropriate — in fact, a denial of the heavenly
character of our worship. But when God resumes His dealings with the earth, the
worship on earth will again be, what it ought to have been in Israel of old, a
"pattern" of the heavenly worship. There will, therefore, be again a holy city,
a holy temple, a holy altar, a holy sacrifice, and a holy priesthood — all
patterns of the heavenly things. For if patterns of heavenly worship are
restored, sacrifices must be restored too, inasmuch as it is "necessary that the
patterns of the things in the heavens should be purified with these, but the
heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these" (Heb 9:23). Here
the distinction is not between the times before Christ’s death and the times
after; but between worship in the heavenly places, which we now have, and
worship in an earthly temple — a figure of the heavenly — which Israel had in
old times, and will have again in the days spoken of by the prophet. Thus the
teaching of the Hebrews shows the reason, — indeed the necessity — for that
which Ezekiel predicts, and if we apprehend the difference between heavenly and
earthly worship, the beauty and significance of the return to these types will
not be difficult to discern.

Certain of the feasts also are reinstituted. "In the first month, in the
fourteenth day of the month, ye shall have the passover, a feast of seven days;
unleavened bread shall be eaten" (Eze 45:21). And "in the seventh month, in the
fifteenth day of the month, shall he do the like in the feast of seven days"
(Eze 45:25). This is the feast of tabernacles. Of old the command given to the
Israelite was, "Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before Jehovah
thy God in the place which He shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread,
and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles" (Deu 16:16). The
passages just quoted from Ezekiel show that two out of these three great feasts,
the feast of unleavened bread, and the feast of tabernacles, will be renewed.
But neither here nor elsewhere is any mention made of the third feast, "the
feast of weeks," or of Pentecost. Surely, however, if Ezekiel’s prophecy were
symbolical of the Church, the omitted feast would be most prominent. It was the
feast of first-fruits, and as such the Holy Ghost was given on that day to form
the Church, the first-fruits of the work of Christ. This, then, is the very
reason of its omission. The full significance of this beautiful type is
exhausted in the Church, and it no longer appears, therefore, after the Church’s
removal, among the institutions of the earthly people. Zechariah tells us a
still further detail. The passover will apparently be observed by the Jews
alone: but "every one that is left of all the nations which came against
Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, Jehovah of
hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles" (Zec 14:16). Should this homage be
omitted, the penalty is "no rain;" except in the case of Egypt, where, as there
is no rain, a plague is sent instead (Zec 14:17-19). How utterly inapplicable
all these minute and interesting details are to the Church of God; how
beautifully appropriate to the literal reign of the Messiah over restored
Israel.

Ezekiel goes on to describe the dimensions of the city and its various
divisions. Now in Rev 21:1-27 we have the Church, called also "the bride, the
Lamb’s wife," described under the figure of a city. The slightest examination of
that account will show that it is not the description of a place, but a mere
symbolical setting forth of the heavenly glories and blessedness of the Church.
Its dimensions, its cubical form, its position, its materials, its foundations,
its gates — its very definition, not as the dwelling-place of the Church, but as
the Church itself — plainly show that this dazzling vision was not a sight of
heaven, but a magnificent figure of the moral glories of the body of Christ, the
fulness of Him that filleth all in all. Compare this with the city described in
Ezekiel. The latter is large, but suited to the dimensions of the land;
splendid, but with nothing exceeding earthly splendour; it has a temple, while
the other has none. In every particular it presents a contrast rather than
suggests a comparison. How is this? Simply because they describe totally
different things. The one is the plan of a splendid earthly city; the other the
figure of a portion of the redeemed in heavenly glory.

Again Ezekiel gives the limits of the land occupied, and its division among the
various tribes. The land, instead of being the restricted portion taken
possession of by the Israelites of old, corresponds far more nearly with the
large promise given to Abraham. The distribution of the tribes over this
extended area is entirely different from that made by Joshua and his
fellow-assessors. What meaning has all this when applied to the Church?
Understand it literally, as every spiritual Israelite must have understood it,
and it presents no difficulty whatever, but simply furnishes interesting details
of that blessed period when Israel, delivered from her enemies, and restored to
Jehovah’s favour, shall enjoy under the Messiah’s rule the yet unfulfilled
promises made to Abraham and David.

CHAPTER VII.

CHRIST’S REIGN AND ISRAEL’S RESTORATION — NEW TESTAMENT TEACHING. The question
flow naturally arises, whether the New Testament confirms the Old Testament
prophecies as to Israel’s blessing and the Messianic kingdom, or whether it
diverts the blessings to the Church, and makes the kingdom a spiritual reign?
The birth of Jesus was thus announced: — "Behold, thou shalt conceive in thy
womb, and bring forth a Son, and shalt call his name Jesus. 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 for
ever; and of His kingdom there shall be no end" (Luk 1:31-33). In the same
strain Mary prophesies — "He hath holpen His servant Israel, in remembrance of
His mercy; as He spake to our fathers, to Abraham and to his seed for ever" (Luk
1:54-55). Shortly afterwards Zacharias says — "Blessed be the Lord God of
Israel, for He hath visited and redeemed His people, and hath raised up an horn
of salvation for us in the house of His servant David; as He spake by the mouth
of His holy prophets which have been since the world began: that we should be
saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us; to perform the
mercy promised to our fathers and to remember His holy covenant; the oath which
he sware to our father Abraham, that he would grant unto us that we, being
delivered out of the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, in
holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life" (Luk 1:68-75).
Again the angels, speaking to the shepherds, say, "Behold, I bring you good
tidings of great joy, which shall be to all the people (that is, Israel — not
"all people," as in our translation); for unto you is born this day in the city
of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord" (Luk 2:10-11). Here we have
Israel, an earthly people; the throne of David, an earthly throne; perpetual
dominion, the promise to David’s seed; in fact, throughout these prophecies, the
titles given, the offices described, and the blessings foretold, are altogether
of a national character. It is only by setting abide facts, or by adopting a
strained and highly unnatural system of interpretation, that the language can be
applied to Christ’s first coming or to the Church.

Before the birth of Jesus, the angel, addressing Joseph as the "son of David,"
says that Mary "shall bring forth a Son, and thou shalt call His name Jesus, for
He shall save His people from their sins" (Mat 1:21). Now here, Joseph is
accosted as of David’s lineage, and the name given to the child, Jehoshua, or
Jehovah the Saviour, is again the special name by which God had connected
Himself with Israel (Exo 6:2-4). Looked at in this light, the words "His people"
could have but one meaning in Joseph’s ears. The angel’s message was to him of a
national saviour, the promised seed of David, the Son and the anointed of God,
who should appear for the deliverance of His chosen people. The writer adds (Exo
6:22) "All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the
Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall
bring forth a Son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel; which being
interpreted is, God with us." In the passage here quoted (Isa 7:1-25), the birth
of Emmanuel is the sign given to the king of Judah of national deliverance, and
the destruction of national foes. In the next chapter the enemy comes up against
Judah — "He shall reach even to the neck, and the stretching out of his wings
shall fill the breadth of Thy land, O Emmanuel. Associate yourselves, O ye
people, and ye shall be broken in pieces" (Isa 8:8-9). Here again, then, in the
only other passage where the name occurs, it is suggestive of kingly dominion,
Israel’s deliverance, and Gentile judgments. The names of Christ in Scripture
are always significant, and the name here set as the frontispiece of Matthew’s
Gospel, spoke, to every Jewish ear, not of the Lamb led to the slaughter, but of
the Victor ruling in the midst of His enemies. The same Jewish line of thought
distinguishes the language of the aged and devout Simeon. What he was waiting
for was, not the Saviour of sinners, but "the consolation of Israel." What he
was to see before his death was, not the despised and rejected One, but
Jehovah’s anointed. When he beholds the child Jesus, he recognises in Him these
characters, and praises the Lord — "For mine eyes have seen Thy salvation." But
this salvation was national; it was to be displayed before all the people, was
"a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel." And
though the Spirit leads him on to foretell the rejection of Jesus, still even
here, the aspect in which he regards Him is as One "set for the fall and rising
again of many in Israel" (Luk 2:25-35). Here, then, all through, the words and
thoughts of Simeon are taken up with the promises of blessing to God’s earthly
people, and the national deliverance which was to be brought them by the
Messiah.

So, too, the mission of the wise men of the East is not to the meek and lowly
One, but to Him "that is born King of the Jews" — a foretaste of the homage of
the nations, when "the kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents,
the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts" (Psa 72:10). In the same spirit,
the chief priests and scribes, when asked about his birthplace, reply by quoting
Micah’s prophecy, where He is spoken of as "the governor" and the ruler of "My
people Israel" (Mat 2:1-6). Thus prominently are kingly lineage and dignity
brought out in the accounts of His birth and childhood.

Everything, then, in the names, the nativity, the first announcement, and the
early prophecies of Jesus, speak of Him as the One who was to carry out God’s
purposes revealed in the Old Testament, concerning Israel and the earth. Let us
now look at the testimony of John the Baptist. When yet a child, his father
prophesied that he should "be called the Prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt
go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways; to give knowledge of
salvation unto His people, by the remission of their sins, through the tender
mercy of our God, whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us, to give
light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet
into the way of peace" (Luk 1:76-79). Now this is part of a hymn of praise
addressed to "the Lord God of Israel," who "hath visited and redeemed His
people, and hath raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His
servant David." When, therefore, Zacharias speaks of "us," or of "God’s people,"
he means Israel. So that the salvation which John was to proclaim, the remission
of sins he was to announce, and the "dayspring" which had visited the people,
are all of a national kind. However God’s grace may have enlarged the sphere of
the prophecy, its terms and its meaning, in the mouth of Zacharias, were simply
Jewish. Did John himself assume a different character? He came, "saying, Repent
ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Mat 3:2). Was this, then, the kingdom
in its present form of grace and forbearance, or in the prophetic form of
righteousness and judgment? Two remarkable passages from the Old Testament are
quoted with respect to John. "This is he that was spoken of by the prophet
Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of
the Lord, make His paths straight" (Mat 3:3). But the passage here cited was
spoken for the comfort of Jerusalem, which is told "that her warfare is
accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned, for she hath received of Jehovah’s
hand double for all her sins." It has its fulfilment, moreover, at the time when
"the glory of Jehovah shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together"
(Isa 40:1-5). The other prophecy is quoted by the angel, in speaking to
Zacharias — "He shall go before Him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn
the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of
the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord" (Luk 1:17). This
prophecy is taken from Malachi, and connects John’s mission with "the coming of
the great and dreadful day of Jehovah," with the time when "the Sun of
righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings, and ye shall go forth, and
grow up as calves of the stall, and ye shall tread down the wicked, and they
shall be as ashes under the soles of your feet" (Mal 4:2-5). According to these
prophecies, then, John was to proclaim the kingdom in visible power and
judgment. Does John’s language bear this out? The kingdom, thus established,
was, according to Old Testament prophecies, to be preceded by repentance in a
remnant of the people. Now John demands repentance, and that they should "bring
forth fruits meet for repentance: And think not to say within yourselves, We
have Abraham to our father, for I say unto you that God is able of these stones
to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of
the trees; therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn
down, and cast into the fire. I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance,
but He that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to
bear; He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire; Whose fan is in
His hand, and He will throughly purge his floor, and gather His wheat into the
garner; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire" (Mat 3:8-12). How
exactly this agrees with what the prophets tell about the kingdom in its
manifested power and glory. It is a message to Israel calling on them for the
repentance which must precede the establishment of the kingdom, and declaring
that when the kingdom is established, the terrible baptism of fire will consume
the wicked, while the promised baptism of the Holy Ghost will come upon the
faithful and repentant remnant. It is true that Israel refused the call, and
that the kingdom in this form was therefore postponed; but are we, on this
account, to suppose that the words mean something different from what they say?
That the prophecy which, naturally interpreted, foretells the kingdom in outward
display and manifested righteousness, really predicts something, not only
different, but even antagonistic, in character? Surely it is wiser and more
reverent to bow to God’s Word, and to believe that the delay is long, "as some
men count slackness," His purpose is sure. We shall presently see how and why
the delay was brought in. Meanwhile, it is of importance to observe that the
testimony of John the Baptist, instead of toning down the language of the Old
Testament prophets, to make it harmonise with God’s present actings toward the
world in grace, fully concurs with them in speaking of the kingdom as the
theatre in which God’s judgments and righteousness should be fully displayed,
and in presenting Jesus as the Messiah by whom these judgments should be
executed and this righteousness established. The first appearance of Jesus in
the synagogue of Nazareth, shows the wide distinction between His grace, and the
righteousness in which He will execute judgment in the setting up of the visible
kingdom. "He found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is
upon Me, because He hath anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He hath
sent Me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and
recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to
preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And He closed the book, . . . . and He
began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears. And
all bare Him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of
His mouth" (Luk 4:17-22). But why did Jesus close the book at this point? In the
prophecy He was reading, the words with which He concluded stand in the middle
of a sentence. The language of Isaiah is, — "to proclaim the acceptable year of
the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to
appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the
oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness" (Isa
61:2-3). Why, then, did Jesus close the book so abruptly? If, as is ordinarily
contended, the whole of this prophecy is fulfilled in Christianity, if these
blessings and judgments are brought about by the preaching of the gospel, why is
the quotation so strangely broken off? On this theory it is wholly
unintelligible. But what, on the other hand, can be simpler to those who follow
Scripture instead of coaxing Scripture to follow them? The first part is quoted
because it has its fulfilment, or at least a fulfilment, under God’s present
dealings. The second part is omitted, because the time for the establishment of
the kingdom in outward display, with the execution of God’s vengeance, and the
blessing "to them that mourn in Zion," had not yet arrived. The abrupt closing
of the book shows that the remainder of the prophecy had no fulfilment in
Christ’s first coming. It awaits its accomplishment on His second advent in
power and glory. The Gospel of Matthew records God’s dispensational ways,
showing how the great national sin of Christ’s rejection led to the postponement
of Jewish hopes, and a temporary alteration in the form of the kingdom. Mat
12:1-50 describes the nation conspiring against Jesus, who pronounces their
doom, declaring the last state of the wicked generation to be worse than the
first. Hence, in the next chapter, He will only speak to the multitude in
parables, quoting against them the prophecy in which Isaiah foretells that their
eyes should be blinded and their hearts made gross. So far, however, is this
prophecy from predicting their permanent blindness and rejection, that it
expressly declares the term of their punishment and the restoration of a
remnant. But while thus turning from the multitude, and foretelling their
temporary rejection, He unfolds to His disciples, to whom it was "given to know
the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven," the new and mysterious form in which
this kingdom was about to be set up. Does this mystery then endure, like the
prophetic kingdom, to the end of the world? Is it, like that kingdom, brought in
by judgment, administered in righteousness, and resplendent in glory? On the
contrary, its duration is only to "the end of the age" — the period when the
prophetic kingdom will begin: it is introduced, not by judgment, but by the
quiet sowing of seed; it is administered, not in righteousness, but in
forbearance, the tares growing with the wheat; and instead of manifesting God’s
glory on earth, the whole mass becomes leavened with corruption. It is different
in form from the kingdom promised, and is limited in time till that kingdom is
introduced. Instead of superseding the prophetic kingdom, it merely fills up the
interval till the Jews are ready to receive it. In Mat 16:1-28 Jesus formally
abandons, as to public testimony, His Jewish character of Messiah, charging "His
disciples that they should tell no man that He was Jesus the Christ" (Mat
16:20). He fakes up, instead, the new title of "Son of the living God" (Mat
16:16). on which He says that He will build his Church. He foretells the kingdom
of heaven in a new form, not in glory but in weakness; not connected with the
crown of earthly power, but with the cross of earthly rejection. But is the
outward kingdom, therefore, abandoned? At the close of His discourse, Jesus adds
— "There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see
the Son of man coming in His kingdom" (Mat 16:28). Another evangelist says —
"Till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power" (Mark 9:1); and
another, "Till they see the kingdom of God" (Luk 9:27). Now in each case these
remarkable words are immediately followed by the story of the transfiguration.
Surely this suggests, that the transfiguration was a prophetic display of the
kingdom in power made to chosen witnesses, at the moment when it was for a time
to be set aside by the mysterious form in which the kingdom now appears. But
what the Gospels suggest, Peter expressly states. "We have not," he says,
"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. For He
received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to
Him from the excellent glory, This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the
holy mount" (2Pe 1:16-18). The transfiguration, therefore, was God’s witness to
the "power and coming" of Christ, the proof furnished that, notwithstanding the
postponement of the Jewish hope, the prophetic kingdom was still as sure in His
purposes as ever, and that Jesus, now rejected in His grace, would return in
power and glory to revive the kingdom in all its outward display. In Mat 19:28,
Jesus tells His disciples "In the regeneration, when the Son of man shall sit in
the throne of His glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the
twelve tribes of Israel." The Son of man sitting in the throne of His glory, is
the very thing shown to Daniel as about to happen after the destruction of the
Gentile powers (Dan 7:14). It is the very thing which, as we have seen, all the
promises and prophecies, all the revealed counsels of God as to earthly
government or blessing, led the disciples to anticipate. It is the very thing of
which Gabriel spoke to Mary, and of which Zechariah prophesied. It was to happen
at the "regeneration," the very "times of restitution of all things, which God
hath spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began" (Acts
3:21). It was to be connected with Israel, the invariable centre of God’s
purposes when He asserts his governmental authority upon the earth. Could words
more clearly indicate the establishment of the Messianic kingdom in visible
power and glory Indeed the name "Son of man" is, when applied to Christ in the
Old Testament, always used in connection with dominion and dignity. It is the
Son of man who has all things put under his feet (Psa 8:6); who, as the Man of
God’s right hand, delivers downcast Israel (Psa 80:17); and who receives the
kingdom from the Ancient of days (Dan 7:13-14). In the New Testament it is,
except in one instance, only used by Jesus in speaking of Himself. Taken in
connection with the passages named, it could convey to His hearers no other
thought than of Him whom God had appointed to exercise authority on earth; who,
though with no place to lay His head, though rejected, betrayed, and crucified,
was yet clothed with power to forgive sins, was Lord of the Sabbath, would
appear in the clouds of heaven with great glory, for the destruction of His
enemies and the deliverance of His people. In other words, it was a title
suggestive of the Jewish hopes; and "the coming of the Son of man" is always
spoken of in connection with His appearance to set up the Messianic kingdom. In
Mat 21:1-16, Jesus enters Jerusalem meek and lowly, riding on an ass. A portion
of the people respond, hailing him as King, as Son of David, and applying to Him
the language of Psa 118:1-29 — "Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the
Lord." This, as the psalm shows, is the language in which the Jews acknowledge
their crucified Messiah, when the stone which the builders rejected becomes the
head stone of the corner (Psa 118:22-26). At this time, however, it is used only
by babes and sucklings, the weak things of the world, while the nation as a
whole once more refuses Him. But this refusal is not final, as our Lord’s words
plainly show; for while declaring that, in consequence of their guilt, their
house would be left unto them desolate, He adds, — "I say unto you, ye shall not
see Me henceforth." For how long? Till the end of the world? No, but, "till ye
shall say, Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord" (Mat 23:38-39).
This language they had refused when uttered by babes and sucklings, but when
they adopt it, they will see Jesus again, and their house will no longer be left
desolate. In the same chapter (Mat 21:1-46) the Lord asks the Jews — "Did ye
never read in the Scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is
become the head of the corner; this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in
our eyes? Therefore, say I unto you, the kingdom of God shall be taken away from
you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof. And whosoever
shall fall on this stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it
will grind him to powder" (Mat 21:42-44). Here are three prophecies concerning
the stone, those who fall on it, and those on whom it falls. The first, from Psa
118:22-23, shows that the stone, though at first refused by Israel, afterwards
becomes the head of the corner. The second, from Isa 7:14, declares Christ to be
"for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of
Israel." But mark what follows. The testimony is bound up, the law sealed among
His disciples, and the prophet waits on the Lord who hides His face from Israel.
Then come deep anguish and darkness, from which the people emerge and joy before
the Lord, "as men rejoice when they divide the spoil;" "for unto us a child is
born, unto us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder"
(Isa 9:3, Isa 9:6). Thus Isaiah’s words coincide with our Lord’s — the nation
which stumbles on the stone is broken, not destroyed. The third prophecy is from
Dan 2:1-49, and foretells a very different fate for those on whom the stone
falls; for while Israel, stumbling on the stone, is broken, but afterwards
healed, the Gentile powers, which for a time have taken the dominion out of
Israel’s hands, are struck by the stone, "are broken to pieces together, and
become like the chaff of the summer threshing floors" (Dan 2:35). In Mat 23:1-39
Jesus says that the Jews shall not see Him again till they shall say — "Blessed
is He that cometh in the name of the Lord;" in other words, that they will see
Him, when their predicted repentance shall take place. The disciples then (Mat
24:3) ask — "What shall be the sign of Thy coming, and of the end of the age?"
This can only refer to the coming just before named, when the Jews should be
prepared to receive Him. Of His coming for His saints they as yet knew nothing.
And they manifestly are asking, not about the end of the world (though our
translation thus renders it), but about "the end of the age," when Jewish
rejection would terminate and Messiah’s reign begin. Nor does the Lord’s reply
point to the end of the world. It is a prediction of woes, partially
accomplished in the siege of Jerusalem by Titus, but awaiting a far more fearful
fulfilment when the "abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet,
stands in the holy place" (Mat 24:15); and during a period of "great
tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world, to this time, no,
nor ever shall be" (Mat 24:21). But in their darkest hour; there shall suddenly
"appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven; and then shall all the tribes of
the earth [or land] mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the
clouds of heaven with power and great glory" (Mat 24:30).

Now, that this is not the coming at the end of the world, is obvious from the
two Old Testament prophecies quoted. The great tribulation spoken of by Daniel
precedes Israel’s deliverance. "There shall be a time of trouble such as 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" (Dan
12:1) The time of national mourning for Him whom they had pierced, described by
Zechariah, is also, not at the end of the world, but when the Lord "shall defend
the inhabitants of Jerusalem," and shall "seek to destroy all the nations that
come against" her (Zec 12:8-12). So that this prophecy of our Lord’s does not
describe the end of the world, but Israel’s deliverance, or the end of the age.
And the following parables, of the steward, the virgins, the talents, and the
judgment of the nations, all describe events happening at the coming of Christ
either for His saints or to receive His earthly kingdom. The last parable makes
the character of this kingdom particularly clear. It portrays the time "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 the
nations." Over the nations thus assembled, He exercises authority as "King" (Mat
25:31-34). We saw in a former part that this is not the judgment day, and that
the nations gathered are the nations of the living, not of the dead. Christ,
therefore, comes in His glory, executes judgment, and reigns as king, before the
end of the world. But besides the proofs formerly given, the time when "the Son
of man shall sit on the throne of His glory" is, in a passage recently quoted,
said to be "the regeneration" (Mat 19:28). It will hardly be urged that the
regeneration is the judgment day! Nor can it mean the new heavens and the new
earth, for in them Christ is not "king," having "delivered up the kingdom to
God, even the Father" (1Co 15:24). Moreover, in the new heavens and the new
earth, neither death nor sin have any place, whereas both are present in this
solemn scene. But while the reign and glory here named can be neither at nor
after the end of the world, how fully they correspond with the descriptions
given in the Old Testament of the inauguration of the visible kingdom of Christ,
when "He cometh to judge the earth," when "He shall judge the world with
righteousness and the people with His truth" (Psa 96:13). The other Gospels are
not so distinctly dispensational in their teaching as Matthew’s. In the Gospel
of Luke, however, we get two remarkable expressions which help to throw light
upon the subject. There Jesus is asked when the predicted destruction of
Jerusalem and the temple will take place. In reply He details events which are
generally admitted to be those preceding and accompanying the sack of Jerusalem
by the Roman armies under Titus. The result is thus related — "They shall fall
by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations; and
Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles
be fulfilled" (Luk 21:7-24). He then foretells signs in heaven, distresses on
earth, and the appearance of the Son of man "with power and great glory;" adding
— "When these things begin to come to pass, then look up and lift up your heads;
for your redemption draweth nigh" (Luk 21:25-28). Now throughout this discourse,
which is related by all the three synoptic evangelists, though with very
important variations, the disciples are treated as Jews interested in and asking
about the future history of their people. Bearing this in mind, let us inquire
what the portions we have quoted mean. They say that Jerusalem is to be under
Gentile rule "until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled;" that then fearful
troubles arise, Christ appears "with power and great glory," and "your
redemption" — that is, Jewish deliverance — takes place. Compare this with the
two prophecies of Daniel. In both he traces "the times of the Gentiles," in both
he describes Christ’s appearance in power and glory, in both this appearance
ends in the destruction of Gentile rule, and the establishment of Messiah’s
kingdom; while in one of the visions, the saints who have been persecuted share
the dominion. In other words the redemption of the faithful remnant of Israel
takes place at the same time as the setting up of the Messiah’s rule. Can there
be a doubt that our Lord’s discourse here describes the same period and the same
event foretold by the Hebrew prophet? In Luke, too, we have the same difference
between the kingdom in its mysterious and in its manifested form, that we have
before noted in Matthew. In the former shape it was already come, in the latter
it was indefinitely postponed. Thus, when Jesus "was demanded of the Pharisees,
when the kingdom of God should come, He answered them and said, The kingdom of
God cometh not with outward show, neither shall they say, lo here! or lo there!
for behold, the kingdom of God is among you" [see margin] (Luk 17:20-21); and He
goes on to distinguish this from the glory that will be manifested, and the
judgment that will be executed, "in the day when the Son of man is revealed"
(Luk 17:24-30). Shortly afterwards, He "spake a parable because He was nigh to
Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately
appear." Thus the kingdom had already come, but the appearing, or manifestation,
was still future. In this parable He sought to remove their misapprehension by
tracing the course of events from His rejection till His return in power and
glory, that is, during the period when the kingdom exists, but in its
mysterious, or unmanifested, form. "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. But his
citizens hated him, and sent a message after him, saying, We will not have this
man to reign over us. And it came to pass, that when he was returned, having
received the kingdom, then he commanded these servants to be called unto him, to
whom he had given the money, that he might know how much every man had gained by
trading." He then reckons with the servants, rejecting the unfaithful, and
rewarding the faithful by giving them a share in his dominion proportioned to
their fidelity; after which he solemnly commands — "Those mine enemies which
would not that I should reign over them, bring hither and slay them before me"
(Luk 19:11-27). Here, in parabolic form, we have an accurate outline of God’s
ways. Jesus departs from the world, pursued by the hatred of His citizens, who
will not have His rule, to take the kingdom from the Father’s hand, and having
received it, to return. Meanwhile those who own His lordship, Christendom, are
left in charge of His interests down here. When He receives the kingdom, He will
come back, rejecting the unfaithful servants, but giving authority to the
faithful, and executing judgment on all His enemies. Thus perfectly do Luke and
Matthew agree with the Old Testament teaching.

Such, then, is the testimony of the Gospels. Instead of diverting the Old
Testament prophecies to the Church, it distinctly reserves them for Israel, thus
demonstrating the oneness of God’s purposes, vindicating the truth of His
promises, and overthrowing the false system of interpretation by which these
promises are obscured or nullified. In the Acts we read that just before our
Lord’s ascension His disciples ask Him a question — "Lord, wilt Thou at this
time restore again the kingdom to Israel?" Now surely if the disciples were
still cherishing a vain delusion — if the kingdom never was to be restored to
Israel, but Israel’s portion was to be spiritualised away into the Church’s
blessing — Jesus would at least have abstained from giving an answer to this
question which would tend to foster their fallacious hopes. Instead of hinting,
however, that these expectations were unfounded, He replies in a manner
distinctly calculated to confirm them. He says — "It is not for you to know the
times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in His own power" (Acts 1:6-7).
Both the New and the Old Testaments foreshadow a period of indefinite duration,
during which the Jews are deprived of their national blessings, and this text
tells us that it is not yet in God’s purposes to reveal the time of their
restoration; but so far from saying that this restoration should not take place,
the language used clearly implies that it will. The re-establishment and
deliverance of Israel have, however, been shown to be connected with the return
of the Messiah, and the chapter we are now looking at bears a distinct testimony
on this point likewise. No sooner is Jesus caught up it an two men stand by the
disciples "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" (Acts 1:10-11).
And while, in the next chapter, it is stated that God has raised Jesus to sit at
His own right hand, "until I make Thy foes Thy footstool;" it is as distinctly
stated that He shall occupy the earthly throne of David. For David, it says,
"being a prophet," knew "that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh"
God "would raise up Christ to sit on his throne" (Acts 2:30). These words were
spoken before a Jewish audience, and yet not a word or hint was uttered to show
that anything different was meant from what every Jew must necessarily have
understood. The personal return of Jesus for the restoration of Jewish
privileges, and at the time of national repentance, is still more strikingly
shown a little further on in the same apostolic history. We there find Peter
taught by the Holy Ghost, urging the nation to repentance by this very promise.
"Repent ye, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, in
order that" [I give the version admitted to be correct by all scholars] "the
times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may 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). What are "the
times of restitution of all things?" They cannot be the end of the world, for
that is the time of destruction of all things. Besides, which of the prophets
had spoken of this event? The prophets are full of "the sufferings of Christ,
and the glory that should follow." When Peter addressed the Jews, the sufferings
were past but the glory was to come. This glory, then, of which all the prophets
have spoken, is the "restitution of all things" mentioned by Peter — of the
temple, of the kingdom, of the throne of David — all which the Jews hoped for,
all which, at the time of their repentance, they will have fulfilled. And at
that time God will send Jesus Christ once more from heaven. He is not gone there
till the end of the world, but till these times come, and when they are come, He
will return to the earth, be seen by His people, and "restore again the kingdom
to Israel." In the Epistles comparatively little is said on this subject. We
find, however, that "the promises" are still spoken of as the portion of Paul’s
"kinsmen according to the flesh," and this in the very chapters which explain
God’s reason for their temporary excision. These words were penned after Israel
had been cut off, and could have no meaning at all except in prospect of her
national restoration. No refining can make the Israelites here to mean the
Church, for already the Church was in existence, and the Israelites, Paul’s
kinsmen according to the flesh, are spoken of in contrast with the Church. Yet
while thus speaking of them, and while mourning over their unbelief, he says
that to them "the promises" still pertain (Rom 9:4). But in a subsequent chapter
he goes further than this. He declares that the riches of the Gentiles, which
are partially realised by the diminishing of Israel, will be completely obtained
by their fulness (Rom 11:12); that "all Israel shall be saved, as it is written,
There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from
Jacob" (Rom 11:26); and that though, "as concerning the gospel, they are
enemies," yet "as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers’
sakes, for the gifts and calling of God are without repentance" (Rom 11:28-29).
It has been already shown that these passages cannot refer to the conversion of
the Jews to Christianity. I may now point out that the restoration spoken of is
national and local, is in fulfilment of God’s gift to the fathers and in
connection with national repentance, is accompanied by the return of the
Messiah, and results in blessings to all the nations of the earth. In a word, it
corresponds with all that the prophets foretell, and the Gospels and the Acts
confirm. The Epistle to the Hebrews says — "Unto the angels hath He not put in
subjection the world to come whereof we speak. But one in a certain place
testified, saying, What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? or the Son of man,
that Thou visitest him? Thou madest Him a Little lower than the angels; Thou
crownedst Him with glory and honour, and didst set Him over the works of Thy
hands; Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet" (Heb 2:5-8). The
Psalm quoted adds, "all sheep and oxen," and "whatsoever passeth through the
paths of the sea" (Psa 8:7-8), thus showing that this "world to come" does not
mean heaven, nor yet the "new earth" in which there is "no more sea" (Rev 21:1).
The word used for "world" is one, moreover, which always means the inhabited
earth. This world, then, is to be brought into complete and absolute subjection
to Christ, "for in that He put all in subjection under Him, He left nothing that
is not put under Him." May not this, however, be by the conversion of the world?
The language forbids it for where is the Church spoken of as put under Christ’s
feet? This implies the ascendency, not of love, but of power — enemies
conquered, not enemies reconciled. Besides, what meaning would attach, on such
an interpretation, to the dominion given over "sheep and oxen, yea, and the
beasts of the field"? But the character of the dominion is also shown by other
passages. "To which of the angels," asks the apostle, "said He at any time, Sit
on My right hand, until I make Thine enemies Thy footstool"? (Heb 1:13). And
again — "This Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins, for ever sat
down on the right hand of God, from henceforth expecting till His enemies be
made His footstool" (Heb 10:12-13). These are quotations from Psa 110:1-7.
Taking the passages together, they show Jesus undergoing death, seated at God’s
right hand, and waiting for the time when all things shall be put under His feet
and His enemies be made His footstool. Even if the former of these expressions
could mean gradual reconciliation, it is surely impossible so to understand the
latter. No stronger language could be used to express forcible subjugation; and
the whole Psalm, which speaks of striking through kings, filling places with
dead bodies, and wounding the heads over many countries, shows that such is the
proper interpretation. The thing described in the Hebrews is, therefore, real
earthly dominion, brought in by power and judgment; that is, the very same thing
constantly foretold by the Old Testament prophets.

Numerous other passages in the New Testament allude to Christ’s appearing to
take His dominion, adding, however, two features, about which the old prophets
are silent. These passages, already quoted, declare that "when Christ, who is
our life, shall appear, then shall ye" — believers — "also appear with Him in
glory" (Col 3:4); that it is this "manifestation of the sons of God" — Christ
and His fellow-heirs — for which "the earnest expectation of the creature
waiteth," and by which it is to be "delivered from the bondage of corruption"
(Rom 8:19-22); that when this manifestation takes place, "the Lord Jesus shall
be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire, taking
vengeance on them that know not God" (2Th 1:7-8); that in this appearance He
will be followed by the armies of heaven, believers previously caught up to be
with Him; and that with them, He will execute judgment on the beast and false
prophet, after which Satan will be bound, and the reign of Christ and His saints
established for a thousand years (Rev 19:1-21; Rev 20:1-15.) That this reign
will be earthly, moreover, though extending to heaven too, is part of the "good
pleasure which God hath purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the
fulness of times, He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both
which are in heaven and which are on earth, even in Him, in whom also we have
obtained an inheritance" (Eph 1:9-11). And that this sway is wielded by power is
also clear, "for He must reign till He hath put all enemies under His feet,"
giving up the dominion when the last enemy, death, has been destroyed (1Co
15:25-26). The saints, who are His fellow heirs, reign with Him, and thus it is
that "the saints shall judge the world," and even more, "shall judge angels"
(1Co 6:2-3) All these and other passages before referred to, show that Christ
returns to liberate creation from its bondage, to deliver Israel from her ruin,
and to reign over the earth in righteousness; adding, however, to the Old
Testament teaching, the two weighty facts, that in this reign the heavenly
saints will be His fellow-heirs, and that at its commencement, the earliest
promise will receive at least a partial fulfilment in the binding and
imprisonment of Satan. And here I may notice a phrase, frequently found in the
Old. and occasionally in the New. Testament — "the day of the Lord." In the Old
Testament the coming of the day of Jehovah or the Lord, though once or twice
used of some special national judgment, is generally employed to describe that
fearful time when "the loftiness of man shall be bowed down" (Isa 2:12-22); when
"the sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood" (Joe 2:31); when
Jehovah "will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle;" and will "go
forth and fight against those nations" (Zec 14:1-3). Now these and other
passages in the Old Testament sufficiently identify the coming of the day of the
Lord with the period described in the gospel, when "there shall be signs in the
sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations,
with perplexity;" when they shall "see the Son of man comma in a cloud with
power and great glory," and when Israel is bidden to lift up her head, for her
"redemption draweth nigh" (Luk 21:25-28). The coming of the day of the Lord is,
therefore, identical in point of time with the coming of the Sun of man. The
latter is always described as taking the world by surprise. "As in the days that
were before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in
marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and knew not until the
flood came and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man
be" (Mat 24:38-39). In like manner the day of the Lord is declared both. by Paul
and Peter to come "as a thief in the night" (1Th 5:2; 2Pe 3:10). This coming of
the day of the Lord, therefore, ushers in the fearful judgments and the national
deliverance wrought by Christ when He returns in power and great glory to reign
on the earth.

There is another link between the coming of the day of the Lord, and the coming
of the Son of man. We have seen that the day of the Lord is said by two apostles
to come as a thief in the night. The use of the same expression by each is
remarkable, and suggests that both writers were citing some saying well known to
their readers. Indeed the language of Paul implies this — "For yourselves know
perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night." And the
words of Peter — "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night," —
seem rather like the emphasising of a proverbial truth than the unfolding of
anything new. To what familiar words, then, were the writers here referring? Our
Lord had told His disciples "that if the goodman of the house had known in what
watch the thief would come, he would have watched and would not have suffered
his house to be broken up," adding — "therefore be ye also ready: for in such an
hour as ye think not, the Son of man cometh" (Mat 24:43-44). It is surely
evident that the apostles were referring to these memorable words. But how is it
possible that they should both have caught up the figure used by our Lord in
this passage, if they had not been speaking of the same thing that He was? The
coming of "the day of the Lord" is therefore the same event as the coming of
"the Son of man." But this is not all. The expression occurs once again. After
describing how the powers of the world gather their forces together, as
predicted in the second Psalm, to make war against Christ, He Himself solemnly
interjects, "Behold, I come as a thief; blessed is he that watcheth" (Rev
16:15). Now this is spoken in the immediate prospect of His coming in judgment
to destroy His enemies and set up his kingdom. The same remarkable expression,
therefore, is used, first with respect to the return of Christ in power to reign
over the earth; secondly, with respect to the coming of the day of the Lord; and
thirdly, with respect to the coming of the Son of man. We have before seen that
the three events here named exactly resemble each other in character and time.
What other inference, then, is possible but that they are really only different
names, or rather different aspects, of the same tremendous transaction? But
though this is the character of the coming of the day of the Lord, the day
itself goes much beyond this. In Isa 2:1-22, we see the fearful judgments with
which the day commences, but we read also that "the Lord alone shall be exalted
in that day." Now this indefinite phrase "that day," here manifestly meaning the
day of the Lord, or Jehovah, is constantly repeated, without anything in the
context to explain it, throughout the prophetic writings. "In that day shall
this song be sung in the land of Judah: We have a strong city; salvation will
God appoint for walls and bulwarks" (Isa 26:1). "In that day shall the deaf hear
the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity, and
out of darkness. The meek also shall increase their joy in Jehovah, and the poor
among men shall rejoice in the holy One of Israel" (Isa 29:18-19). "In that day
I will cause the horn of the house of Israel to bud forth, and I will give thee
the opening of the mouth in the midst of thee; and they shall know that I am
Jehovah" (Eze 29:21). "In that day will I make a covenant for them with the
beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven and with the creeping things
of the ground; and I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the
earth, and will make them to lie down safely" (Hos 2:18) "That day," then, is
obviously a well understood phrase, which, when used without special connection,
implies the period of Messiah’s reign and Israel’s blessing. It is the day that
commences with the coming of the day of the Lord, in other words, it is the day
of the Lord, looked at, not in the light of the judgments by which it is
inaugurated, but of the blessings which it introduces. This expression, then,
"the day of the Lord," instead of signifying a single event, like the Lord’s
coming, is the period extending from the appearance of Christ to execute
judgment on the earth all through His glorious reign. It is contrasted with the
day of man. Hitherto man has acted in defiance of God without any direct check.
In the day of the Lord, this will not be. Sin will be repressed, and the
consequences of sin in a great measure restrained; man’s lawlessness will be
curbed, his haughtiness "bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that
day." With this understanding of the phrase, the New Testament perfectly agrees,
for while Peter says that "the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the
night," he adds, "in [or during] the which the heavens shall pass away with a
great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat; the earth also, and
the works that are therein, shall be burned up" (2Pe 3:10). This day commences,
then, with the Lord’s standing up for the deliverance of Jerusalem, and lasts at
least till the end of the world. It doubtless includes also the final judgment
of the unsaved dead and the casting of death, "the last enemy," and hades into
the like of fire.

Thus this phrase, read in the light of Scripture, perfectly hears out what we
have found to be the unvarying testimony of the Old and the New Testament. It
describes the time when Jehovah’s rights are fully vindicated, when Jehovah’s
Anointed reigns in blessing on the earth — the time when the power of God in
dealing with evil is manifested, and His grace and faithfulness in the
fulfilment of all His promises concerning the world are displayed — the time
when the Woman’s seed crushes the serpent’s head, when Israel is exalted above
the nations, when the true Seed of Abraham dispenses blessing to all the
families of the earth, and the true Seed of David is seated in righteousness on
His throne in Zion.

CHAPTER VIII.

"THE TIMES AND THE SEASONS." The Scriptures examined in former chapters show
that God’s purposes concerning the blessing of the world are accomplished, not
mystically in Christianity, but literally, after the Church has been taken to
heaven, in the restoration of the chosen earthly people, and the reign and glory
of the Second Man. It may help still further to elucidate the distinction
between God’s present ways and His purposes with respect to the world, as well
as to clear up what to many is a fruitful source of perplexity, or even of
error, if we examine the teaching of the Word as to the time when this period of
earthly blessedness will commence, and the various signs that are to precede its
advent.

"It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put
in His own power" (Acts 1:7). Such was the Lord’s reply when asked whether He
would then restore the kingdom to Israel. No measure is given, therefore, for
calculating the time from Christ’s death to Israel’s restoration, This we should
expect, for Israel’s restoration follows the Lord’s coming for His saints, and
this, as we have seen, is left wholly undetermined as to time, so that believers
may be kept in the attitude of constant expectation. But if the Lord’s coming is
uncertain as to time, the restoration which follows it must be uncertain too. In
a word, the measures of time given do not apply to the present, or Church,
period.

Yet Daniel is prophetically told — "Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people
and upon thy holy city (the Jews and Jerusalem), to finish the transgression,
and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to
bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and
to anoint the Most Holy" (Dan 9:24). That is, after seventy weeks, or periods of
seven years, Jerusalem, having "received of Jehovah’s hand double for all her
sins," was to be restored, and to become henceforth "The city of righteousness."
Here, therefore, Scripture does fix the period of Israel’s restoration. The
prophecy just quoted will explain this apparent contradiction. After seventy
cycles of seven years Israel’s restoration was to take place. It is clear,
therefore, that the seventieth week has not yet closed. The prophecy, however,
continues — "From the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build
Jerusalem, unto the Messiah the Prince, shall be seven weeks and threescore and
two weeks; . . . and after the threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off
and shall have nothing" (Dan 9:25-26, see margin). Sixty-nine weeks had elapsed,
therefore, before Christ’s death. But if sixty-nine weeks had closed then, and
the seventieth week has not closed yet, what conclusion can we draw? Simply
this, that as these weeks relate only to the Jews, the time during which God’s
dealings with the Jews are suspended is not counted. Now, owing to their
rejection of Christ, the Jews are at present set entirely aside, and God is
engaged in bringing in "the fulness of the Gentiles." The clock of prophetic
time has, therefore, stopped with the cutting off of Messiah, and will not beat
out its last week until, the fulness of the Gentiles having come in, God resumes
his dealings with Israel. The Church period, our time, lies outside prophetic
history. Dates may be fixed before and after; but now "the times and the
seasons" are in God’s hands, the Church being bidden to look, not for the epoch
of earthly blessing, but for the return of the Lord to take up His saints.

It would be beside my purpose to enter into details respecting this week. The
great principle is that no part of it runs during the existence of the Church on
earth. This Period is a prophetic blank, the "many days" during which the
children of Israel abide "without a king, and without a prince, and without a
sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim"
(Hos 3:4). But while entering into no details, it may be well to glance at God’s
dealings with the Jews from their rejection to their restoration. After
foretelling the cutting off of Messiah, Daniel adds — "And the people of the
prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end
thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are
determined. And he shall confirm a covenant with the many for one week; and in
the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,
and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until
the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolator" (Dan
9:26-27). Thus Messiah is cut off, and does not receive the kingdom. Then the
Roman people destroy the city, and desolation reigns until the end of this great
national controversy. This is the only reference made to the interval between
the destruction of Jerusalem and the last week. Our Lord makes a like omission.
"Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles
be fulfilled. And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the
stars" (Luk 21:24-25). The whole space between the siege of Jerusalem by Titus
and the troubles preceding the coming of the Son of man is passed over in
silence. But to return to Daniel. For the last seven years before Israel’s
restoration, there is a person who confirms a covenant with "the many," or mass
of the Jewish people, for a week. This person must be "the prince that shall
come," named in the previous verse. But that prince is the prince of the people
that destroyed Jerusalem; he is, therefore, the head of the Roman Empire, which
thus appears once more upon the scene in these closing days of the times of the
Gentiles. A covenant for seven years is concluded between him and the mass of
the Jews, who have then returned to Jerusalem and revived their old sacrifices.
In the middle of that time he makes the sacrifice to cease, and an abomination
or idol is set up, causing desolation to the end of the epoch, when some
predetermined fate overtakes the desolator. This last half week, when wickedness
and misery culminate, is three and a half years, or "a time, times, and half a
time," or forty and two months, or one thousand two hundred and sixty days,
expressions which we shall find frequently recurring in the description of those
fearful events preceding the restoration of Israel, and the establishment of the
Messianic reign. But besides this monarch in league with the bulk of the Jews,
other scriptures tell us of a deadly foe ranged against them during the same
period of wretchedness. "Behold the day of Jehovah 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
ravished; 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 Jehovah 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, which is before Jerusalem
on the east" (Zec 14:1-4). There are, then two powers or great confederacies,
the one besieging the city, with partial success, the other headed by "the
prince," in league with the mass of its inhabitants, but both helping to
intensify its misery and to aggravate its judgment. This is the "time of trouble
such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time," at which the
Jews "shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the hook"
(Dan 12:1). It is the period, too, spoken of by Jeremiah, when all "faces are
turned into paleness. 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. For it
shall come to pass in that day, saith Jehovah of hosts, that I will break his
yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more
serve themselves of him; but they shall serve Jehovah their God, and David their
king, whom I will raise up unto them" (Jer 30:6-9). It is the time of "distress
of nations, with perplexity, men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking
after those things which are coming on the earth," when the faithful are told to
"lift up your heads, for your redemption draweth nigh" (Luk 21:25-28).

Daniel (Dan 7:1-28) symbolises the four great Gentile powers which were
successively to exercise dominion in the earth under the figure of four beasts.
The first, or Babylonian, "was like a lion, and had eagles’ wings." The second,
the Persian, was "like to a bear." The third, the Macedonian, was "like a
leopard," and had four wings and four heads. The last was "dreadful and
terrible, and strong exceedingly," "and it had ten horns." But it undergoes a
great change, a little horn rising up, with "eyes like the eyes of a man and a
mouth speaking great things" (Dan 7:3-8) This little horn exercises the power of
the beast and provokes its judgment. The beast is the Roman empire, whose latter
history is thus sketched; "The ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that
shall arise; and another shall rise after them, and he shall be diverse from the
first, and he shall subdue three kings. And he shall speak great words against
the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and think to
change times and laws; and they shah be given into his hand until a time, and
times, and the dividing of a time" (Dan 7:24-25). But he is cut off and his
kingdom "given to the people of the saints of the Most High" (Dan 7:27)

Let us now look at two other prophecies. "From the time that the daily sacrifice
shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there
shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. Blessed is he that waiteth, and
cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days" (Dan 12:11-12).
These days are often taken for years, but without ground. As sixty-nine weeks
passed before Messiah was cut off only one week has yet to run, and in the midst
of that week, the daily sacrifice ceases, so that from that time only three and
a half years, or according to the Jewish measure of three hundred and sixty days
to the year, one thousand two hundred and sixty days, remain until "that
determined shall be poured upon the desolator." But after this there are other
judgments to be executed and foes to be overthrown. The periods named in this
prophecy exceed the three and a half years by thirty and seventy-five days
respectively, seeming to show that between the judgment of the "prince" and the
full establishment of Israel’s blessing, an interval of seventy five days will
elapse, some signal event, perhaps the destruction of the besieging host,
happening after thirty days. The other prophecy is in Mat 24:15-31. "When ye,
therefore, shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the
prophet, stand in the holy place (whoso readeth, let him understand), then let
them which be in Judea, flee into the mountains . . . . Then shall be great
tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no,
nor ever shall be. And, except those days should be shortened, there should no
flesh be saved, but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened. Then, if
any man shall say unto you, lo, here is Christ, or there, believe it not. For
there shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and shall show great signs
and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very
elect . . . . 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 land
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 together His elect from the four winds, from one
end of heaven to the other."

Now all these prophecies refer to the same set of events. In three, either the
abomination of desolation, or the cessation of the daily sacrifice, with the
ensuing tribulation, is expressly mentioned. In the other, the vision of the
little horn, the identification is not difficult. He is the sovereign reigning
over the last phase of the Roman empire, and "the prince that shall come" is the
ruler of the Roman people. Each endures till Messiah’s kingdom, and is then cut
off. The little horn "thinks to change times and laws;" the prince makes the
daily sacrifice to cease, and sets up the abomination of desolation. The prince
by this act causes all the faithful to flee from Jerusalem; the little horn
"wears out the saints of the Most High." The prince’s great power for evil lasts
half a week; the little horn carries out his blasphemous purposes for a "time,
and times, and the dividing of a time." In nation, character, object, fate,
duration of power, and epoch in history, the prince that shall come and the
little horn are identical.

We can now form some faint picture of this dark era. At the beginning of the
last "week," the prince who governs the final phase of the revived Roman empire
makes a treaty with the mass of the Jews, who have then returned to Jerusalem,
rebuilt their temple, and reinstituted their sacrifices. A minority, however,
the saints or the elect refuse to join in this treaty, and are subjected,
therefore, to fierce persecution. After three and a half years the prince stops
the sacrifice, speaks blasphemies against God, and changes times and laws. False
Christs also arise, working great wonders, and deceiving all but the elect, The
crowning act of the prince’s wickedness is the setting up of some abomination,
or idol, which brings down desolating judgment. Then the saints flee, without a
moment’s delay, from the city. The hour of untold tribulation follows, a time
which, if prolonged, must end in the total destruction of the race. But for the
elect’s sake it is shortened. After a fearful shaking of the nations, the Son of
man appears, and the pre-appointed judgment overtakes the prince, "the
desolator." Then follow the other judgments on the Gentiles and the apostate
Jews, the gathering of the elect Israelites yet scattered over the earth, and
the final establishment of the Messianic kingdom, together with those elect, or
saints of the Most High, whom the prince had recently persecuted. A passage in
Paul’s epistles helps to throw still further light on this subject. We saw that
the day of the Lord was occasionally used in the Old Testament of periods of
great distress and judgment, which were sorts of shadows of the tribulation and
vengeance attending the real day. The Thessalonians, passing through a period of
severe trial, had been persuaded by a forged letter "that the day of the Lord
was come" (2Th 2:2). I give what is admitted to be the true rendering of the
passage, though widely differing from the authorised version. The apostle
assures them that "that day stall not come, except there come a falling away
first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, who opposeth and
exalteth himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped; so that he,
as God, sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. Remember
ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know
what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of
iniquity doth already work; only He who now letteth will let, until he be taken
out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall
consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of
his coming; even him whose coming is after the working of Satan, with all power,
and signs, and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in
them that perish: because they received not the love of the truth, that they
might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that
they should believe a lie; that they all might be damned who believed not the
truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness" (2Th 2:3-12). The person here
described bears a great resemblance to the little horn. He is like him in
wickedness and blasphemy, he lives at the same epoch, before the advent of the
day of the Lord, and is cut off at the same time, destroyed "with the brightness
of His coming." He sits in the temple of God, which, as already seen, is at this
period rebuilt in Jerusalem, and if not "the prince;" must, therefore, be in
confederacy with him. But he has powers never attributed to "the prince,"
especially the power of working miracles. He seems, therefore, rather to be one,
the chief, of those false Christs named by Matthew, whose miracles should
deceive all but the very elect. This deceiver is accepted by the mass of the
Jews, and is joined in that league with the prince, of which we have already
traced the history. During Paul’s time, though the seeds of this wickedness and
blasphemy were already sown, their growth was checked by some person, who would
continue to exercise the same restraining power until "taken out of the way"
This person can only be the Holy Ghost, acting here on earth for Christ. When
the Church is taken to heaven, this restraining action of the Spirit will cease.
He will "be taken out of the way, and then shall that wicked [one] be revealed"
in the full energy of his Satanic power and craft to draw away not only the mass
of the Jews, but apostate Christendom likewise, who, having refused the true
Christ, are now given over to "strong delusion that they should believe a lie."

It is in the Revelation, however, that the events of these gloomy days are most
fully detailed, especially with reference to the outbreak of blasphemous
rebellion against God on the part of the prince and the Man of Sin. This book,
to the study of which a special blessing is attached, presents Jesus Christ to
us in a very different character from that in which He stands before us in the
epistles. He is "the faithful witness, the first begotten from among the dead,
and the prince of the kings of the earth." He is not seen as the Head of the
Body, but as the judge "who walketh in the midst of the seven golden
candlesticks," and if this is His attitude even to the Church, His attitude
towards the world is still more markedly that of judgment. He is no longer
sitting at Jehovah’s right hand, waiting till His enemies be made His footstool,
but as the Son of man, to whom all judgment is committed, He is risen up to
break the nations with a rod of iron, and to dash them in pieces like a potter’s
vessel. The scope of the book is seen in the first words after the opening
salutation. It is the fulfilment of Zechariah’s prophecy about the manifestation
of Jesus to the world — "Behold, He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see
Him, and they also which pierced Him: and all kindreds of the land shall wail
because of Him" (Rev 1:7). This prophecy is fulfilled, as we have seen, not at
the end of the world, but at the time of Judah’s restoration and blessing. The
book is divided into three parts, "Write the things which thou bast seen, and
the things which are, and the things which shall be after these" (Rev 1:19). The
things which John had seen, were those recorded in the vision of the first
chapter; "the things which are" refer to the Church, and are found in the seven
epistles composing the second and third chapters; "the things which shall be
after these" (that is, after the end of "the things which are"), are the visions
and prophecies of the rest of the book. It may be that these have had a partial
fulfilment, but the question is, whether their true and perfect accomplishment
is past or future. The epistles in Rev 2:1-29 and Rev 3:1-22, though describing
seven Asiatic Churches, are meant for warning and instruction in all ages, and
the last four point to phases of the Church just preceding the Lord’s coming.
Thus to dead Sardis, the Lord says "I will come on thee as a thief" (Rev 3:3);
to faithful Philadelphia — "Behold, I come quickly" (Rev 3:11); to lukewarm
Laodicea — "I will spue thee out of My mouth" (Rev 3:16); to the false
professors in Thyatira, He threatens "great tribulation;" to the true, who
remain steadfast "till I come," He promises that they shall rule with Him (Rev
2:22, Rev 2:25-27). These frequent allusions to the effect of the Lord’s coming
on the professing Church, show that the Spirit here contemplates, not only the
assemblies in Asia, but the state of Christendom to the very end, in fact that
"the things which are" embrace the whole range of ecclesiastical history. If so,
"the things which shall be after these" must be the events which happen after
the Church is removed. But there is further evidence. We shall find that from
this time the Church is in heaven, that during the troubles afterwards recorded
it is never seen on earth, and that these troubles closely correspond with the
woes of the last week before Israel’s restoration and the Messiah’s reign. Rev
4:1-11 and Rev 5:1-14 open heaven, and show there four and twenty elders seated
on thrones, "clothed in white raiment," and "on their heads crowns of gold" (Rev
4:4). Now these are not characteristic of angels, but of saints. To the apostles
it was said that they should sit on thrones (Mat 19:28); and to the faithful in
Laodicea the promise is — "To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with Me in
My throne, even as I also overcame and am set down with My Father in His throne"
(Rev 3:21). Nothing like this is ever spoken of angels, who, on the contrary,
are always "ministering spirits." The faithful in Sardis, again, are told that
"they shall walk with Me in white," and that they "shall be clothed in white
raiment" (Rev 3:4-5). It is white raiment also which the lukewarm Laodiceans are
counselled to buy. "that the shame of their nakedness do not appear" (Rev 3:18);
and afterwards the Church is seen, "arrayed in fine linen, clean and white, for
the fine linen is the righteousness of saints" (Rev 19:8). Crowns, too, are
promised to saints; the exhortation to the Church at Smyrna was — "Be thou
faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life" (Rev 2:10); while a
golden crown specially befits those who are to rule with Christ. These elders,
moreover, are distinguished from angels by the song which they alone sing, in
which redemption is the loudest note. Their language is — "Thou wast slain, and
hast redeemed us to God by Thy blood, out of every kindred, and tongue, and
people, and nation, and hast made them unto our God kings and priests, and they
shall reign over the earth;" while in the song of the angels Christ’s worthiness
and glory are celebrated, but of redemption nothing is said (Rev 5:9-12). These
crowned elders, then, represent the redeemed in heavenly glory. Nor are they
merely souls in paradise with Jesus. The souls of saints afterwards slain for
the Word of God are presently seen, but their state is wholly different. The
Church, therefore, is taken to heaven before the earthly judgments, detailed in
the following chapters, commence.

These judgments are successively executed as a certain scroll is unsealed. The
scroll is taken from God by Christ. But it is noticeable that while Christ
appears in the presence of the elders as the Lamb that has been slain, when He
takes the scroll it is as "the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David"
(Rev 5:5). To the redeemed He appears as the Redeemer; when administering
earthly judgments, He is seen solely in His Jewish character. The present is the
time of Christ’s patience; the time here referred to is the day of His
vengeance, when He has risen from the Father’s throne, and when "the great day
of His wrath is come." The first four seals reveal one who goes forth
"conquering, and to conquer," followed by general war, peace taken from the
earth, and great slaughter, resulting in terrible famine, and still later in
widespread destruction and desolation, figured by the power given to Death and
Hades "over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger,
and with death, and with the beasts of the earth." The fifth seal shows the
souls of those who have been persecuted to death "for the word of God, and for
the testimony which they held." The sixth is followed by an earthquake, in which
"the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; and
the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig-tree casteth her untimely
figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind; and the heaven departed as a scroll
when it is rolled together," and kings and people hide themselves "in the dens
and in the rooks of the mountains," that they may escape "from the face of Him
that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of
His wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand?"(Rev 6:1-17.)

Now to what period in the world’s history can this description of misery be
referred? It is not, as might at first appear, the end of the world, for the
book goes on immediately to unfold a long catalogue of subsequent judgments.
Does Scripture, then, enable us to answer the question as to when the troubles
here related take place? It will be seen that the six woes brought out at the
opening of the first six seals strikingly resemble the picture drawn by our Lord
in Matthew’s Gospel of "the beginning of sorrows," which shall precede His
coming and the end of the age. "Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom
against kingdom, and there shall be famines and pestilences, and earthquakes, in
divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. Then shall they deliver
you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you, and ye shall be hated of all the
nations (Gentiles) for My name’s sake" (Mat 24:7-9). But besides this striking
general parallelism between the events prefigured in the Apocalypse and those
foretold by our Lord as preceding His appearing, there are other marks which
serve to show that this is the period referred to. We have already seen that the
Church is in heaven, so that the souls of those under the altar are not the
souls of Christian martyrs, but the souls of those put to death for their
faithfulness after the Church is taken — of believing Jews who have been killed,
and who were "hated of all the Gentiles" for the Messiah’s name’s sake. The
prayer of the Christian martyr is, "Lord, lay not this sin to their charge"
(Acts 7:60). The prayer of these martyrs is, "How long, O Lord, holy and true,
dost Thou not judge and avenge our blood on there that dwell on the earth?" (Rev
6:10). The former is consistent with Christ’s attitude during the Church period.
The latter is in harmony with His mind, as shown in the Psalms and Prophets,
"when He ariseth to shake terribly the earth," and to execute His righteous
judgments on the nations. But again, compare the judgments under the sixth seal
with the following passages in the prophets: — "I will show wonders in the
heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke; the sun shall
be turned into darkness and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible
day of Jehovah come" (Joe 2:30-31). Again, "All the hosts of heaven shall be
dissolved, and the heavens slid be rolled together as a scroll, and all their
hosts shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as the falling
fig from the fig-tree. . . . For it is the day of Jehovah’s vengeance, and the
year of recompences for the controversy of Zion" (Isa 34:4-8). And once more,
"The loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be
made low, and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day; . . . and they shall
go into the holes of the rocks and into the caves of the earth, for fear of
Jehovah and for the glory of His majesty" (Isa 2:17, Isa 2:19). In these
prophecies we have almost identically the language used in the Revelation. And
what is the period which each of these passages describes? The judgments
preceding and accompanying the coming of the day of the Lord, and the
deliverance of Israel. It is to this epoch, then, that the Apocalypse refers.
Jesus Himself, in alluding to the same period, uses similar language, — language
obviously intended to remind his disciples of the words of the prophet.
"Immediately," He says, "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 land
mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with
power and great glory" (Mat 24:29-30). I give this passage, though before
quoted, in order to show how strikingly the words used by our Lord and the
Apocalypse correspond with the prophetic writings of the Old Testament — an
agreement which would be deceptive, and. indeed incredible, did the language in
all cases not refer to the same event. The prophecies from the ancient writers
and words of our Lord relate obviously to the time immediately preceding the
glorious advent of the Messiah to execute judgment and establish righteousness,
to break the nations with a rod of iron and to deliver the godly remnant of his
people from their misery and oppression. Surely, then, it is impossible to doubt
that such also is the time described in the Revelation. And now comes a pause,
till the servants of God are sealed in their foreheads. Who are these servants
of God? Surely, if the Church is on earth, it will be named now. But not a word
about it; on the contrary, these servants are exclusively of the twelve tribes
of Israel. Then, together with them, appear a multitude of all nations; but
still Israel is the central figure, as in the millennial glory. Those who reach
this glory are described as having come "out of the great tribulation" (Rev
7:14). Now "the great tribulation" is that terrible time of trouble described by
Daniel, at the close of which "thy people shall be delivered, every one that
shall be found written in the book" (Dan 12:1), — that time named by our Lord as
preceding the appearance of "the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with
power and great glory" (Mat 24:29-30), — that time which is shortened "for the
elect’s sake," lest all flesh should be destroyed. They are brought out into a
state of wondrous blessing, when God "shall wipe away all tears from their
eyes." But when the "Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces, the rebuke of
His people shall He take away from off all the earth" (Isa 25:8). The event
described, therefore, is manifestly the bringing of Israel through her hour of
unparalleled affliction into the glory and blessing of the Messianic kingdom.
The Spirit, having thus given us a bright glimpse of the blessing awaiting those
who pass through this time of trial, returns to the yet unfulfilled judgments
hanging over the earth. Into these we need not enter, but in chapter 10 we have
an important indication of time given. A mighty angel, who stands "upon the sea
and upon the earth, lifted up his hand to heaven, and aware by Him that liveth
for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the
earth and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things that are
therein, that there should be time no longer" — that is, no longer delay — "but
in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the
mystery of God shall be finished, as He hath declared to his servants the
prophets" (ver. 5-7) Now this is the character in which God presents Himself to
Abraham and the Jews, not the relationship in which He stands to the Church.
Speaking in this character, then, God announces, through the angels, that the
time is close at hand for the accomplishment of the purposes which "He hath
declared to His servants the prophets." But the purposes which God had declared
to the prophets were not about the Church; they were about the re-establishment
of his chosen people, about the glorious reign of His Anointed on the earth, and
about the judgments which would previously be wrought in the world. It is of
this period, therefore, as indeed we have already seen, that the Revelation
treats. Of this period, however, — the close of "the times of the Gentiles," and
the seventieth week of Daniel’s prophecy, certain very distinct marks are given
us. We have before seen that then the Jews will have already returned to
Jerusalem; that there will be a "temple of God" in which an impostor sits
"showing himself that he is God;" that there will be a daily sacrifice which the
head of the Gentile powers will treacherously cause to cease; and that this same
ruler of the re-established Roman Empire will exercise dominion in Jerusalem,
acting in league with the mass of the Jewish people, but persecuting with
relentless cruelty the elect remnant who await the advent of the Messiah. Are
there, then, any signs of this period to be detected in the Revelation?
Immediately after the voice of the angel who announces the speedy fulfilment of
God’s purposes declared to the prophets, the apostle says, "There was given me a
reed like unto a rod, and the angel stood, saying, Rise and measure the temple
of God, and the altar and them that worship therein. But the court which is
without the temple leave out, and measure it not, for it is given unto the
Gentiles; and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.
And I will give power unto My two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand
two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. . . . These have power to
shut heaven that it rain not in the days of their prophecy, and have power over
waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all curses, as often
as they will. And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that
ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall
overcome them and kill them" (Rev 11:1-7). This will take place in the city
where "our Lord was crucified" (Rev 11:8). Here, then, are all the marks which
distinguish the last week in Daniel, — the Jews returned to Jerusalem, the
temple rebuilt, an altar and worshippers, showing that sacrifices are
reinstituted; at the same time Gentile dominion exercised over the city,
persecution against the faithful witnesses of God, and one described as a beast
who, like the little horn of the prophet, makes war with the saints and has
power given to prevail against them. Surely, too, the "forty and two months" and
the "thousand two hundred and threescore days," are not mere accidental
coincidences with the half week when "the prince that shall come" is in league
with the apostate Jews, and changes times and laws. The character of the two
witnesses, moreover, is Jewish, resembling that of Moses and Elijah, but totally
opposed to that of Christian preachers. The identification of the period here
described with that named by Daniel will appear still more strikingly when we
learn more of the "beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit." Meanwhile
God furnishes us with another indication of what His design is in the midst of
all these woes and judgments. As the seventh angel sounds there are "great
voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of
our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign for ever and ever" (Rev 11:15).
These are the judgments, then, preceding the dominion of Christ over the earth.
"The nations were angry and Thy wrath is come" (Rev 11:18); just what the second
Psalm predicts of the state of things before the Messiah’s reign. But if the
time here described is what we have supposed, there should be indications of a
godly and persecuted remnant, separated from the mass of the Jewish people, and
awaiting the Lord’s return for their deliverance. Are any indications of such a
remnant to be found? In Rev 12:1-17 is seen a "woman clothed with the sun, and
the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars. And she,
being with child, cried, travailing in birth and pained to be delivered. And
there appeared another wonder in heaven, and behold a great red dragon, having
seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. And his tail drew
the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth; and the
dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her
child as soon as it was born. And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule
all nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up unto God and to his
throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness where she hath a place prepared
of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore
days" (Rev 12:1-6). After this, the dragon, Satan, who had access to heaven as
the accuser, is cast out, and comes to the earth full of rage because his time
is short. His special object of hatred is the woman, who flees from him, and is
hidden under God’s care, "a time and times, and half a time." Now it is clear
that the man child who shalt rule all nations with a rod of iron is Christ. The
woman is obviously not His natural mother, but the nation out of which after the
flesh He came. But "they are not all Israel which are of Israel," and this woman
typifies, not the apostate nation as a whole, but the inner circle, the real
elect Israel of God. At first, Satan sought to destroy her Seed, the special
object of his malignity. But though at the cross the serpent bruised his heel,
though He went into death, it was not possible that He should be holden of it,
and He was taken up to heaven and declared both Lord and Christ. And now the
whole Church interval is passed over. Israel is, as it were, out of God’s
thoughts during that period. Her next appearance is in the thousand two hundred
and threescore days, when Satan, knowing his time to be short, uses all his
power to destroy her, while God specially intervenes to protect her. It will be
remembered that when the abomination of desolation is set up in the middle of
the week, the faithful are warned to flee at once from the city. How exactly
this corresponds in time and circumstances with the flight of the woman in this
chapter. But the agreement does not end here. Rev 13:1-18 shows the earthly
instruments used by Satan in this persecution. The first of these is "a beast"
which "rises up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his
horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. And the beast which
I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his
mouth as the mouth of a lion; and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat,
and great authority. And I saw one of his heads, as it were, wounded to death,
and his deadly wound was healed; and all the world wondered after the beast. . .
. And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies;
and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. And He opened his
mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, and His tabernacle, and
them that dwell in heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the
saints, and to overcome them" (Rev 13:1-7). This "beast," therefore, combines
the characteristics of all the beasts of Daniel — the lion, the bear, the
leopard, and the beast with ten horns — but especially resembles the last,
transformed, however, into a striking likeness of the great red dragon: that is,
it embodies the principal features of Gentile power, but on the whole is of the
Roman type, only so changed as to exhibit the most prominent lineaments of
Satanic authority. It differs from the fourth beast of Daniel in detail, certain
features appearing in Daniel which are wanting in the Revelation, and certain
features appearing in the Revelation which are wanting in Daniel. But that it is
the same power, though changed to display its Satanic character, is beyond
question. It is presented again in Rev 17:1-18, as a "scarlet-coloured beast,
full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns," and carrying a
woman who is "drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the
martyrs of Jesus." This woman is explained to be "that great city which reigneth
over the kings of the earth" (Rev 17:18). The seven heads have a double
signification — meaning, first, "seven mountains on which the woman sitteth,"
and, secondly, seven kings, or forms of government, five of which were past,
while the beast, as a whole, combines the character of the seven and forms the
eighth (Rev 17:9-11). The city, then, is Rome, the seven-hilled city reigning
over the kings of the earth. The beast is the Roman power revived, a power which
"was, and is not, and shall be present," for this is the true reading of Rev
17:8.

Turning to the description in Rev 13:1-18, we see how exactly it resembles in
moral character the last form of Roman power described in Daniel. In both cases
there are ten horns, which are explained to be ten kings, though in Revelation
their combination under the headship of the beast is more fully noted. Both
blaspheme God; both persecute the saints of the Most High. The one endures for a
"time, and times, and the dividing of a time;" the other for "forty and two
months;" that is, each of them lasts for three and a half years, or the
oft-named half week of Jewish tribulation and Gentile lawlessness. We now see by
what instrument it is that Satan, who gives his power to the beast, persecutes
the woman, driving her into the wilderness for a "time, and times, and half a
time." But Satan has another instrument, "another beast coming up out of the
earth, and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he
exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth
and them that dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was
healed; and he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven
on the earth in the sight of men, and deceiveth them that dwell on the earth, by
the means of those miracles which he had power to do" (Rev 13:1-14). Can any one
fail to recognise here the chief of the "false Christs," who should appear in
the last fearful tribulation, and by their miracles and wonders deceive all but
the very elect? Or can any one fail to see the close resemblance between this
false prophet, as he is afterwards called, and "the Man of Sin," whose coming
"is after the working of Satan, with all power and signs and lying wonders?" We
are not told in the Revelation that this false Christ is at Jerusalem, but it is
where the false Christ might be expected, and the Man of Sin does seat himself
in the temple of God. Moreover that the Roman beast at this time exercises
authority in Jerusalem appears from the history of the two witnesses whom he
puts to death in the city where "our Lord was crucified" (Rev 11:7-8). The false
prophet persuades "them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image
to the beast which had the wound by a sword and did live. And he had power to
give breath unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both
speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should
be killed" (Rev 13:14-15). Where this image is set up does not appear, but as
the Man of Sin sits in the temple of God, as he is a false Messiah, and
therefore in connection with the Jews, as the presence of Christ in his temple
at Jerusalem was what the Jews expected, and as the beginning of the beast’s
blasphemies and diabolical power is contemporaneous with the setting up of the
abomination of desolation in the holy place, it seems more than probable that
this miraculously speaking image is the abomination, or idol, foretold by the
prophet, at the erection of which all the saints were to make their escape from
the city. The judgment of Babylon, the corrupt ecclesiastical system still left
after all true believers have been taken to heaven, is outside our present
subject. In chapter 16 we see "three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the
mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of
the false prophet . . . . which go forth unto the kings of the earth, and of the
whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty"
(Rev 13:13-14). This is precisely what we read in Psa 2:1-12: "The kings of the
earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together against Jehovah, and
against His Anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder and cast away
their cords from us." Then it is that the Lord arises and gives the nations to
Christ for His inheritance, to break them with a rod of iron. Christ with the
armies of heaven, the Church, issues forth on a white horse, the symbol of
victorious power. "The beast and the kings of the earth, and their armies,
gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse and against his
army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought
miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of
the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a
lake of fire burning with brimstone" (Rev 19:19-20). Such is the fearful doom of
this "son of perdition," this wicked one "whom the Lord shall consume with the
spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming" (2Th
2:8). Such, too, is the fate "determined" which is "poured upon the desolator."
The Revelation does not enter into the judgment inflicted upon other enemies.
These are shown variously in Zechariah, Daniel, Isaiah, Joel, and the
twenty-fifth chapter of Matthew. The object of this book is to add to what the
Prophets had already told concerning this last, and truly diabolical, phase of
human lawlessness, and to bring to its issue the long rebellion of Satan against
God. The destruction of the beast and the false prophet completes one part, the
binding of Satan another. The Revelation also differs from the other prophecies
in giving the heavenly side of Christ’s rule. The Old Testament represents the
Messiah as ruling with his saints; but these are the earthly saints. The
Revelation adds the rule of the heavenly saints. Besides the saints raised or
caught up at Christ’s coming for believers, those who "were beheaded for the
witness of Jesus, and for the word of God," and those "which had not worshipped
the beast, neither his image," are raised in this last act of the first
resurrection, and live and reign with Christ a thousand years (Rev 20:4-5).

CHAPTER IX.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF GOD’S WAYS.

We have now seen that the Old Testament prophecies, though sometimes receiving a
striking application, have not their proper or perfect fulfilment, in the
Church, but after the Church is taken; that the Church interval is, as it has
been aptly styled, "a parenthesis" in God’s dealings with the earth; and that
when it is ended, and believers, whether living or dead, have been caught up to
meet the Lord in the air, the Divine purposes respecting the earth will be
resumed, the Jews, who are now "enemies" as concerning the gospel, will be taken
up again, according to election, as "beloved for the fathers’ sakes," and the
gifts and calling of God will be proved to be without repentance. Then God’s
promises of blessing to the world will have their accomplishment, not in the
first, but in the Second, man; the woman’s Seed will crush the serpent’s head;
the "one" Seed of Abraham will come to bless all the families of the earth; the
multitudinous seed, like the sand of the seashore innumerable, will inherit
their promised land "for an everlasting possession," and will occupy their
appointed place as the foremost of the nations; and the Seed of David will be
established on the throne of his kingdom for ever. The investigation of this
subject has led us over a wide space, and though I have, as far as possible,
avoided detail, it has been necessary, for the understanding of God’s ways, to
enter into some questions with considerable fulness. It may be helpful,
therefore, to pause for a moment, and cast our eye back, gathering up the
various truths which the Scriptures have unfolded to our gaze, and endeavouring
to condense them into a brief but comprehensive summary.

Man after the flesh failed in every position in which God placed him. He fell
under the power of Satan, and no seed of the woman arose to crush the one who
had brought in the ruin. He filled the earth with corruption and violence, so
that God repented He had made him, and destroyed "the world that then was" with
a flood. He failed in government, till at last God confounded his plans of
self-aggrandisement at Babel. Called out as a separate nation and entrusted with
God’s law, he failed again as signally as before, breaking the commandments ere
ever, in their written form, they had entered the camp. Tried as a nation which
should execute God’s judgments, and tried again under sovereigns who should be
the dispensers of God’s righteousness the same dreary story of failure,
rebellion, and ruin was once more repeated. The nation proved as bad as the
heathen by whom they were surrounded, and the descendants of David were the
corrupters, instead of the righteous governors, of the people. The first man,
therefore, had now been proved to the utmost as to his power to carry out God’s
governmental purposes. Then in the promised line, the seed of Abraham and David
had failed as disastrously as all others. It had been demonstrated that man in
the flesh whether in the line of promise or out of it, could not fulfil God’s
designs or bring in God’s promises of blessing to the earth. He was, therefore,
set aside, and the scheme of God’s earthly government postponed until the Second
Man, the One who gathers in His own person all the promises, and who alone is
worthy and able to administer God’s righteous government on the earth, is
brought forth. First, the chosen nation was divided; then the larger portion,
ten out of the twelve tribes, were carried into captivity, from which they have
never returned; and lastly, the two remaining tribes, with the royal line of
David, were taken prisoners to Babylon. As far as earthly government is
concerned, the Jews were now given up until the Second Man is brought in. With
this long abandonment of the Jews commenced "the times of the Gentiles," that
is, the period during which the sceptre of earthly dominion is entrusted to the
Gentiles, instead of Israel. These "times of the Gentiles" began with the
kingdom of Babylon, the head of gold, in Nebuchadnezzar’s prophetic dream. Then
came the kingdom of the Medes and Persians, symbolised by the breast and arms of
silver; the Greek monarchy set forth in the belly and thighs of brass; and
afterwards the stronger and more enduring dominion of Rome, represented by the
legs of iron. After this, "the times of the Gentiles" changed their nature; iron
and clay mingled together, or, the rule was divided among kingdoms of various
origin and character, though all connected with the dismembered Roman empire.
Another vision shows us that in this last stage, the Roman dominion will revive
in a federal form under the presidency of one specially energised by Satan. It
is when it has reached this phase that judgment will descend, a stone cut out
without hands falling on the Gentile powers and crushing them to pieces, after
which it grows into a mountain that fills the whole earth; or, as interpreted by
Daniel, "in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom
which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other
people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it
shall stand for ever" (Dan 2:44). Such is the history, prophetically traced, of
the yet uncompleted "times of the Gentiles."

While these are running their course, the Jews — that is the two tribes forming
the kingdom of Judah fulfilled the seventy years of captivity foretold by the
prophet Jeremiah. At the close of that period, the Babylonian kingdom having
been destroyed, and the Persian established on its ruins, Cyrus issued a decree
permitting the Jews of the captivity to return to Jerusalem, in virtue of which
a small band, without political power or position, found their way back to the
ruined city, and there rebuilt the temple. Nearly a century afterwards, the same
Gentile power gave a "commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem." From this
"commandment" dates Daniel’s prophecy of the seventy weeks. It is divided into
three parts of seven weeks, of sixty-two weeks, and of one week. During the
first part of seven weeks, the city was rebuilt. The second part, of sixty-two
weeks, comprehends the time from the completion of the city to the cutting off
of the Messiah. The third part, of one week, which yet awaits its
accomplishment, carries "the times of the Gentiles" to a close, "finishes the
transgression" of the Jews, and brings in "everlasting righteousness," the
desolator being destroyed, and the Messiah’s kingdom established. The Jews, as
we have seen, had been politically discarded till the Messiah should come. In
process of time He did come, heralded by John the Baptist, and the kingdom was
offered to the nation on condition of repentance. But man in the flesh proved no
less incompetent to repent, to receive the Messiah, or to obtain blessing
through Him presented as a sovereign, than he had before shown himself to carry
out God’s purposes in his own strength. God manifest in the flesh only drew out
the enmity of his heart in more fearful display. The Jews, instead of receiving
Him as their anointed King, crucified Him between two thieves. The effect of
this rejection was twofold. The blood they shed was designed, according to the
determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, to be the means by which He could
righteously reconcile all things to Himself by which He could blot out sin, and
thus lay the foundation of all true blessing to both Jew and Gentile. But the
immediate effect of the crime, so far as the Jews were concerned, was that their
house was left to them desolate until they should say — "Blessed is He that
cometh in the name of the Lord;" and that the kingdom, instead of taking the
manifested, prophetic shape in which the Jews should be the head of the nations,
assumed, until the time of Israel’s repentance, a mysterious hidden form
connected with Christ in heaven, and in which the Gentiles were the special
objects of God’s favour. The first summons, then, after Christ’s resurrection,
was addressed to the Jews, calling on them to repent, and thus to receive the
kingdom in manifested glory. On their refusal, the kingdom definitely assumed
the mysterious form, the natural branches being broken out of the olive tree,
and the "wild olive tree," or Gentiles, being graffed in. "Blindness in part
happened to Israel," which will continue "until the fulness of the Gentiles be
come in." There was, indeed, "a remnant according to the election of grace" even
out of partially blinded Israel, but the nation as a whole was cut off while the
Gentiles took for a time the place of pre-eminence in God’s thoughts. The
political displacement of the Jews brought in "the times of the Gentiles." The
moral or religious displacement of the Jews makes way for "the coming in of the
Gentiles." It was only when this took place that Israel really became "Lo-ammi,"
not My people, though they had long ceased to be the centre of God’s government
on earth. During the coming in of the Gentiles, God’s purposes of earthly
blessings are suspended. The stream of prophetic time ceases to run. It
stagnated, so to speak, after the sixty-ninth week, when Messiah was cut off,
and will not again begin to flow till after the fulness of the Gentiles has come
in, and God once more takes up the thread of His purposes concerning the earth.

Meanwhile, the Gentiles brought into the vacant place of privilege and
responsibility to God, under Christianity, have failed as signally as the Jews
did under the law. The greater part have never accepted Christ even in name;
Christendom, the portion of the world which has nominally owned Jesus as Lord,
has become a leavened mass, corrupt to its very core. The small handful of true
believers in its midst have themselves ceased to present any corporate
testimony, are rent into a hundred conflicting sects, have given up the "blessed
hope" of the Lord’s return for his saints, and as a consequence are often hardly
distinguishable from the world around them in their objects, their pursuits, and
the character of their walk. But though the Lord "is long-suffering to usward,
not willing that any should perish," He "is not slack concerning His promise,"
and in a little while "the trumpet shall sound, and the dead (believers) shall
be raised incorruptible, and we (the living believers) shall all be changed."
This is the undated, ever-present hope for the Church. When this "coming of the
Lord" for His saints has happened, Christendom, the remaining branches graffed
into the olive trees, having failed to continue in the goodness of God, will be
cut off. The fulness of the Gentiles having come in, the corrupt mass of false
professors left behind will be dealt with by God in righteous judgment. Judicial
blindness will overtake them, "because they received not the love of the truth,
that they might be saved; and for this cause, God shall send them strong
delusion that they should believe a lie, that they all might be damned who
believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness" (2Th 2:10-12). When
the Church has been taken, and the Gentiles, the olive branches graffed in
contrary to nature, have been cut off, the natural branches will be "graffed in,
for God is able to graff them in again." The Church interval being over, time
once more begins to run, and the unfulfilled week of Daniel’s prophecy is told
out to its completion. In this week commence the judgments which precede the
"day of the Lord," or the establishment of Messiah’s kingdom. These judgments
may be broadly divided into four different classes.

First, The Jews and the rest of the Israelites will be restored, but only after
fearful troubles, from which but a portion will escape. The Jews, who rejected
the Christ, will receive the Antichrist, will enter into league with "the prince
that shall come," the last phase of Gentile power, and will worship his image,
"the abomination of desolation" set up in the holy place. The remnant of
faithful ones who refuse to have part in these last scenes of wickedness and
lawlessness, will be persecuted with fearful persistency and malignity, many of
them killed, the rest driven into exile. The time will be one of untold
tribulation, so that, but for its shortness, no flesh could be saved. Then the
Lord Himself will appear in power and great glory, destroying with the sword out
of His mouth the followers of Antichrist, easing Him of His adversaries and
avenging Him of His enemies. The effect on the nation will be "like a refiner’s
fire and like fullers’ soap." Those who "abide the day of His coming," the
purged remnant who "come out of the great tribulation," having "washed their
robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb," shall be a holy people,
their dross purged away, their judges restored as at the first, and their
counsellors as at the beginning, and Jerusalem shall be "called The city of
righteousness, the faithful city." Thus shall Zion "be redeemed with judgment
and her converts with righteousness," while "the destruction of the
transgressors and of the sinners shall be together, and they that forsake
Jehovah shall be consumed." The elect remnant of Israel also will be brought
back, and made to inhabit the land.

Second, But besides the purging judgments referred to, there will be other acts
of righteous government and retribution reserved for that dreadful period.
Babylon, especially, the corrupt carcass of Christendom, will come into
remembrance. The blood shed and the crimes committed in the name of Christ will
then be righteously avenged. The beast and his confederates, themselves
following a still more fearful delusion, will hate the whore and make her
desolate; the very power which has supported her will turn against her; and the
cup which she hath filled shall be filled to her double.

Third, The fall of Babylon shows the doom of that soulless profession of Christ,
and that lifeless ecclesiastical organisation which will survive when all true
believers have been removed to the Father’s house. But by whom is this apostate,
corrupt system destroyed? By the beast and his coadjutors, that is, by that
wicked head of the Gentile powers whose pride and blasphemy will at length draw
down the lightnings of God’s avenging wrath — the impious chief of those kings
of the earth who shall "take counsel together against Jehovah, and against His
Anointed." This associated Gentile dominion is the third class dealt with in the
judgments of the last week. The confederacy, headed by the prince and energised
by Satan, will form a league with the mass of the Jews and their false Christ,
and will gather together their forces to battle; when Christ will appear in his
glory, followed by the armies of heaven, take the beast and the false prophet
and cast them alive into the lake of fire, and afterwards destroy their
followers with the sword that proecedeth out of His mouth. So end "the times of
the Gentiles," that period during which the sceptre of government was entrusted
to their hands because of the failure of Israel.

Fourth, But there is another class of judgments. The Gentiles who successively
held the reins of government as a trust from God do not include the whole body
of the peoples of the earth. This sceptre passed from the Babylonian to the
Persian, from the Persian to the Greek, from the Greek to the Roman, and at
length to the wicked king whose doom we have just seen. But the confederacy
between the Jews and the Roman dominion will be directed against a power which
at that time threatens Jerusalem with destruction. This power, which God uses,
like the Assyrian of old, as a scourge to the unfaithful Jews, will, when the
hour for judgment comes, itself also be visited. When half the city has been
carried off, Christ will appear for its deliverance, the besieging host will be
cut off, and the remnant of the people saved. This will close the preliminary
judgments. The nation having been purged, Babylon consumed, the last Satanic
form of Gentile dominion overthrown, and the enemies who sought to destroy
Jerusalem scattered, Christ’s kingdom will be established on earth. The saints,
who have come purged out of the great tribulation, will receive dominion under
him. Taking advantage of the quiet settlement of the people in the land, and
regarding them as an easy prey, a great enemy will then arise against them. This
enemy is named Gog, and is said to be from "the land of Magog, chief prince of
Meshech and Tubal," or as others read, "prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal." But
his invasion only leads to his disastrous overthrow (Eze 38:1-23 and Eze
39:1-29). The rest of the Gentiles will be divided into classes, and rewarded or
punished according to their treatment of "these My brethren," the feeble remnant
of saints harassed and wasted by the persecution of the beast and false prophet.
But the great feature will be the fulfilment of all God’s earthly counsels in
the person of the Second Man, the Lord from heaven, who alone is worthy to
receive the dominion, and who alone can exercise it for God’s glory, or for
man’s blessing. Satan will be cast into the bottomless pit, while the Bride, the
Lamb’s wife, seen in figure as the New Jerusalem, will reign with Christ a
thousand years.

It is a solemn thing to trace the incurable hatred of the human heart to God. A
thousand years’ experience of Christ’s righteous and blessed rule will not
suffice to change the nature of man. No sooner is Satan loosed from his
imprisonment than the nations rebel, but only to be at once destroyed with
devouring fire from heaven. This last outbreak of human wickedness brings the
world’s history to a close. The earth is burnt up, the elements melt with
fervent heat and no place is found for them. Then the dead, who had no part in
the first resurrection, are raised, are judged according to their works, and are
cast into the lake of fire. Satan, death, and hades are all similarly destroyed.
And now, the last enemy having been vanquished, the work of reconciliation,
founded on the blood of the cross, is completed; a new heaven and a new earth
are created, in which righteousness not only reigns, as during the thousand
years, but permanently dwells; Christ, having ruled "till He hath put all
enemies under His feet," delivers up the kingdom to God, even the Father; and
God, being now all in all and no longer estranged by human guilt, makes His
tabernacle with man.

Such, as traced out in the Word of the living God, is the prospect before the
world. Are these the things which Christians are looking for? Amidst all the
talk of modern progress, all the straining after improvement and education, all
the boast of the bright future in store for the world, have they grasped the
truth that God’s judgment is looming over the whole scene? In the intoxication
of this world-banquet do they heed the lingers of the hand tracing on the wall
the fateful words, "mene, mene, tekel, upharsin" — or are they blind to the
warning which God has given? Nay, are they not even fostering the false hopes of
the world against which they should be protesting, and eagerly floating along
the stream of modern progress, ignorant that it is sweeping them down its fatal
rapids to the crash and roar of impending judgment? Soon — we know not how soon
— the trumpet will sound, the shout will be heard, and all true believers will
be "for ever with the Lord." What will then become of modern progress? What will
then be the fruit of all the organisations and associations for making something
out of that nature which Scripture declares to be enmity against God, something
out of that world which has rejected and crucified its rightful Lord? The
boasted ecclesiastical organisation, bereft of believers, will be nothing save a
putrid corpse, hateful to the nations, which will burn it to ashes. The noisy
party of progress, turning from this ghastly mimicry of Christianity to the
latest novelty of the day, will be given up to "strong delusion that they should
believe a lie." Have we God’s thoughts about what is passing? Are we "minding
earthly things," as those "whose end is destruction," despising the warnings of
Scripture, and seeking to improve what God pronounces beyond remedy? Or have we
given up the first man, and sided with Him whom the world has rejected, waiting
with Him for the hour when the world’s real improvement shall be brought about
by Himself as the Second Man, the Lord from heaven, the only One who can carry
out God’s purposes of blessing or establish God’s rule of righteousness, on the
earth?


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  CHAPTER 12: 02.3.     THE CHURCH OF GOD.
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The Church of God. by T. B. Baines.

Section 3 of: The Lord’s Coming, Israel, and the Church.

CHAPTER I. THE KINGDOM AND THE CHURCH.

We have now briefly traced God’s dispensational ways. Up to the cross He was
unfolding His plan of earthly government, trying man, first alone, then with
Christ in his midst, to see whether he could carry out the Divine purposes of
blessing to the world. The result was disastrous failure. Man could neither
execute God’s schemes himself, nor receive — or even recognise — the Anointed
One by whom they are to be accomplished. The first man ruined all he touched;
the Second Man was despised, rejected, and crucified. This brought God’s plans
to a close until the people who refused their Messiah shall repent, and He shall
again appear for their deliverance and blessing. Meanwhile, even the count of
prophetic time stops, the space between Christ’s death and the resumption of
God’s earthly designs being treated as a blank.

How, then, is God filling up this interval? What purposes is He now carrying
out? Till the cross the first man was under trial. But there all was changed.
Man proved that, in his nature, he was hopelessly alienated from God, and could
not even receive blessing from Him in whom all God’s gracious promises and
purposes await their fulfilment. It was not enough, then, for the Second Man to
appear. The first man must receive a new nature, must be created anew, ere he
could take the blessings which the Second Man came to dispense. And how could
God effect this transformation? How could man be drawn out of this pit of ruin?
By the very thing which showed how hopeless his ruin was! The deed which proved
man’s ripeness for perdition brought out God’s power unto salvation. The cross
which demonstrated the irreconcilable hatred of man’s heart to God, revealed the
unquenchable love of God’s heart to man. That which sealed the doom of the old
creation opened the door for the new. The blood shed upon the cross laid the
righteous basis for the reconciliation of all things. In Christ’s death the old
creation was judicially set aside, while His resurrection brought in the Second
Man as the "last Adam," the first-born of a new creation, in each member of
which God could find the same delight as in its risen Head. Instead of the
single grain of wheat, He had fallen into the ground and died, so that now He
could produce much fruit, as it is written — "Behold I and the children which
God hath given Me."

All blessing, then, for the Church or the world, is based on the death and
resurrection of the Second Man. But the cross is regarded in Scripture from the
side of man’s guilt as well as from that of God’s grace. All admit the
punishment of the Jews for their rejection of Christ. But were the Gentiles
without guilt? The Holy Ghost teaches that Christ came as the Light; that "He
was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not"
(John 1:10). Jesus declares the world’s condemnation to be "that light is come
into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds
were evil" (John 3:19). The world, therefore, that is, man as a whole, is guilty
of refusing the One sent from God to effect its blessing, and this crime still
forms the subject of God’s judgment both on Jew and Gentile. By this judgment,
the Jews have been cast out, and the earthly blessings of the kingdom, whether
to Jew or Gentile, postponed. Creation is still left groaning for deliverance,
until the sceptre is given to Christ. And, in the meanwhile, God is carrying out
other purposes, quite apart from His designs of righteous government and
blessing for the earth.

These purposes may be looked at, first as regards the kingdom, and next as
regards the Church. The kingdom in its Jewish form is postponed. In outward
display, it cannot be set up till Israel shall say "Blessed is He that cometh in
the name of the Lord." But Jesus speaks of "the mysteries of the kingdom," and
it is in this mysterious or unrevealed form, that the kingdom now exists. During
this epoch, Christ, not having received His own throne, is seated on the
Father’s throne, waiting till God stall give him the nations for His
inheritance. It is the day of His "patience," not of his "power." He is not
taking vengeance on His enemies, but beseeching them to be reconciled. Satan is
allowed to sow tares in the field without provoking immediate judgment; the
leaven to work in the meal till all is corrupted. God still tarries in grace,
not willing that any should perish, and seeking to gather out a people from the
ruin and judgment which are impending. Such is the kingdom in its mysterious
form. On God’s side it is the display of perfect grace and matchless
forbearance; on man’s, it is but a sadder disclosure of his proneness to depart
from God, and to corrupt the best gifts entrusted to his hands. But while the
kingdom drifts to hopeless shipwreck under man’s pilotage, God has another
thought in His heart a mystery which, as Paul says, "in other ages was not made
known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto His holy apostles and
prophets by the Spirit." This mystery was disclosed "to the intent that now unto
the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known, by the church,
the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal purpose which He purposed
in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Eph 3:5, Eph 3:10-11). Here, then, is God’s present
work. His schemes of earthly blessing are suspended; the kingdom, in its
mysterious form, is filled with corruption and hurrying to judgment; but He is
carrying out purposes for Christ’s glory which He formed before the world was —
purposes which prophets had not heard, and angels desire to look into — purposes
in which, whatever our dulness, the principalities and powers in heavenly places
discern the manifold wisdom of God. And these purposes are fulfilled "by the
Church," which thus stands forth not only as the object of God’s most cherished
delight, but as the brightest display of His Divine wisdom. The void, then,
between the suspension and resumption of God’s earthly purposes is filled up by
the kingdom in its present form, and by the Church. According to God’s
institution, these were co-extensive, consisting of the same persons, though
viewed in a different way. Notwithstanding the divergence, therefore, which
man’s failure has introduced, the kingdom is still occasionally spoken of in
Scripture under its narrower, as well as under its wider aspect — according to
its institution by God as well as according to its administration by man. Both
views appear in the discourse in which our Lord specially treats of the kingdom
in its present form. (Mat 13:1-58.) When speaking to the multitude, He shows the
kingdom as man makes it, tares growing among the wheat, leaven corrupting the
pure meal. But afterwards He retires with His disciples into the house, and
unfolds the mysteries which it was given to them only to know. In explaining the
parable of the tares, He says — "The good seed are the children of the kingdom,
but the tares are the children of the wicked one." Here, then, the kingdom is
looked at in its narrower aspect as consisting only of the good seed. The two
parables which follow regard it in the same light. "The kingdom of heaven is
like unto treasure hid in a field, the which, when a man hath found, he hideth,
and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant-man seeking goodly pearls,
who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had,
and bought it" (Mat 13:44-46).

We need not notice the usual interpretation, according to which these parables
are regarded as describing man’s search after salvation. Such an explanation,
which clashes with the argument of the chapter no less than with the general
teaching of Scripture, could only have originated in complete blindness to the
unity of design which threads together the various parables. The purpose of the
discourse is to show, first, the means by which the kingdom, in its present
form, is spread — by the sowing of the word; next its history, viewed as an
outward profession — worldly admixture and corruption; lastly, the kernel of
reality which God sees through the gigantic shell of pretension in which it is
hidden from the sight of man. Outside, Jesus had told the people what the
kingdom would become in man’s hands. Inside, He unfolds to His disciples what
would remain, if viewed according to God’s thoughts. Man would make it a
leavened mass. But in its midst was a treasure on which the heart of Christ was
set, and for which He would "sell all that He had," lay down his very life. The
land was bought not for its own worth, but for the treasure it concealed. This
is the kingdom according to God’s institution, seen by His eye alone, amidst the
field of barren profession in which it is hidden. And as the kingdom is spoken
of in its wider and narrower aspect, so is the Church. The Church, as drawn
according to God’s thoughts in the Epistle to the Ephesians, and the Church as
seen in the second and third chapters of the Revelation, are sadly contrasted
pictures. In the first case, the real Church, consisting only of true believers,
and viewed in living connection with Christ, is the subject which the Spirit of
God presents for our contemplation. In the second case, the Church which bears
the name of Christ, and is responsible to God as connected with that name, is
the theme on which the solemn verdict is pronounced. In the first there can be
no failure, for it is all of God. In the second there is the same grievous
departure from the thoughts of God as in everything else entrusted to man’s
responsibility. Our inquiry at present is confined to the Church according to
God’s thoughts. Only two references to it are made in our Lord’s own teaching.
But though the Church is one of those subjects which were but partially revealed
during Christ’s lifetime, these references will help us to understand much that
God afterwards made known "unto His holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit."
The first occasion on which the "assembly" or "Church" is expressly named, is
that recorded in the sixteenth chapter of Matthew’s Gospel. In the thirteenth,
the kingdom has been spoken of in its mysterious form, first as to its
historical development in the hands of man, and next as to that hidden circle
which made it dear to Christ. The sixteenth takes up the kingdom again in its
administrative form, and names in connection with it, the new "assembly" which
Christ was about to build. Jesus asks His disciples, "Whom say ye that I am? And
Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona; for
flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but My Father which is in
heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter (petros, a stone); and
upon this rock (petra, a rock) I will build My Church, and the gates of hades
shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom
of heaven; and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and
whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Then charged He
His disciples that they should tell no man that He was Jesus the Christ. From
that time forth began Jesus to show unto His disciples how that He must go unto
Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes,
and be killed, and be raised again the third day. Then Peter took Him and began
to rebuke Him, saying, Be it far from Thee, Lord; this shall not be unto Thee.
But He turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind Me, Satan; thou art an
offence unto Me, for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those
that be of men. Then said Jesus unto His disciples, If any man will come after
Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me." (Mat 16:15-24).
This passage shows a great dispensational change, the presentation of Jesus in a
new character, and His abandonment, as to present testimony, of that which He
had hitherto borne. After John was cast into prison, Jesus had begun "to preach
and to say, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Mat 4:17). This
public proclamation of the kingdom to the Jews was now to cease. Henceforth,
instead of offering Himself to the nation as their Messiah or Christ, He charged
"His disciples that they should tell no man that He was Jesus the Christ."
Instead of pointing to national acceptance and an earthly crown, He speaks of
national rejection and an earthly cross. Instead of the old hope of the
prophetic kingdom, He mentions a new thing which He was about to establish: the
assembly or Church. And instead of the abandoned name of Messiah, which
connected Him with the throne of David, He assumes, in reference to the Church,
the newly proclaimed, and infinitely higher, title of the "Son of the living
God." The kingdom, then, in its prophetic and national shape was no longer the
object of testimony to the people, or the immediate purpose in the thoughts of
God. Though not, of course, abandoned, it was postponed, and in the meanwhile,
it was to be set up in quite a different form. In this form it was placed under
man’s administration, the keys being given to Peter, who also received authority
to bind and loose. These were not the keys of the Church, much less of heaven,
but "the keys of the kingdom of heaven." A key is that which gives admission. On
Peter, then, was laid the trust of admitting, not into the Church, but into the
kingdom. How he used it we see in the Acts. He it was who authoritatively
proclaimed Jesus as "both Lord and Christ," calling on the Jews to own His
rights and to be baptized in His name. Thus the Jewish door was opened, and
through it, in one day, three thousand souls entered the kingdom. But the Church
was never entrusted to man’s hands, and the account adds that "the Lord added to
the church daily such as should be saved" (Acts 2:47). Afterwards another door
to the kingdom was opened. Cornelius’s prayers were heard. One might have
supposed that the apostle of the Gentiles would be used to bring him in. But no;
Christ had given the keys to Peter, and the locked door of the Gentiles could
only be lawfully opened by him. Taught of God that in the new form of the
kingdom, the earthly distinctions of clean and unclean were abolished, he went
at the first summons, and seeing "that on the Gentiles also was poured out the
gift of the Holy Ghost, he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the
Lord" (Acts 10:44-48). The power of adding to the Church, then, belongs to "the
Lord" alone. The power of the keys, of admitting to the kingdom, was given to
Peter. And with this Peter’s history almost ceases. He had opened the door to
the Gentiles; another brought them in. After Cornelius had entered, Peter no
longer occupies the front rank, and Paul, the apostle of the Gentiles, becomes
the leading figure in the history of God’s future workings. There is another
fact to be noted in beautiful harmony with this. Peter, who is specially
entrusted with the keys of the kingdom, preaches the truth that "God hath made
that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ" (Acts 2:36), that
is, he proclaims the titles and glories of Jesus in connection with the kingdom.
Paul, on the contrary, to whom the "mystery" of the Church was committed, began
immediately after his conversion to preach "Christ in the synagogues, that He is
the Son of God" (Acts 9:20). This, as we have seen, is the special title which
He has taken for the foundation of the Church. The difference is all the more
remarkable because, up to the time when Paul thus preached in the synagogues,
Jesus is never spoken of in this character in the Acts of the Apostles, for the
words, "Thy holy child Jesus" (Acts 4:27, Acts 4:30), ought to be rendered "Thy
holy servant Jesus," and the confession of the eunuch "I believe that Jesus
Christ is the Son of God" (Acts 8:37), is rejected, by almost all competent
judges, as spurious. Peter’s sphere, then, as contrasted with Paul’s, is
especially the kingdom, and in connection with this, to him alone were committed
the keys. The power of binding and loosing, on the other hand, though in the
above quotation given to Peter, was afterwards extended to a much larger
company. But let us look at what is here taught about the Church. Jesus says —
"Upon this rock I will build My Church." This shows that the Church had not yet
been founded. There had been, of course, as there were then, saved persons, but
since the Church did not yet exist, it is clear that these saints formed no part
of it. Thus in the Epistle to the Hebrews, "the Church of the first-born" and
the "just men made perfect" are named as two quite different companies (Heb
12:23). So, too, in the Revelation, where the Church is seen in glory, we find
that besides "the bride, the Lamb’s wife," there are others of whom it is said,
"Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb" (Rev
19:7-9). Evidently, then, the Church which Jesus was about to build was not the
whole of the redeemed, but a particular class distinguished by certain definite
characteristics from the rest — from the Old Testament saints, whose spirits are
now in heaven, and also, as we shall see, from the saints who will enjoy the
blessings of Christ’s earthly rule. This will plainly appear from the fact that
the Church’s foundation was a new one, and, therefore, could not be that on
which the Old Testament saints had been set. Simon, who represents this class,
had waited for "the Lord’s Christ," and having seen Him could say, "Mine eyes
have seen Thy salvation" (Luk 2:30). And so when the kingdom is established in
its outward glory, the title of "the Christ" will again be the foundation of
blessing — the Anointed of God will be the salvation of His people and the light
of the Gentiles. But this title is now dropped, Jesus appears clothed in a new
dignity, and another foundation is laid for the building of the Church.

What is this foundation? The Church of Rome has interpreted the text to mean
Peter himself, and so far as the construction of the passage is concerned, the
choice is between Peter, and Jesus in the newly-revealed character of "Son of
the living God." Now Jesus does not say that the Church will be built on Peter
(petros, a stone), but on this petra (or rock) — "thou art Petros, and upon this
petra I will build My Church." The change in the word — both unnecessary and
incorrect if Petros, or Peter, had been the foundation — shows that not he, but
the thing he had mentioned, was the real petra, or rock on which the Church was
to be built. This play on the name Petros — a name which had been given long
before — is a common thing in Scripture, where names are often applied with
reference to some important event. Thus, when the ark was taken, the dying
Israelite mother named her child "I-chabod" (where is the glory?). So Jacob,
blessing his sons, says, "Judah (praise), thou art he whom thy brethren shall
praise." Esan, too, in his bitterness, exclaims concerning his brother — "Is not
he rightly named Jacob (supplanter)? For he hath supplanted me these two times."
So here, Peter having laid bare the rook on which the Lord was going to build,
Jesus says to him, in substance — "Thou art well named ’stone,’ for thou hast
showed the living stone, or rock, on which the Church will be founded." The
foundation, then, is not Peter but Jesus. This the passage itself proves, and
Peter elsewhere expressly states, for, speaking of Jesus, he says — "To whom
coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed, indeed, of men, but chosen of God,
and precious, ye also, as living stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy
priesthood" (1Pe 2:4-5). So, too, Paul writes that "other foundation can no man
lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ" (1Co 3:11) and again, he speaks of
the Church as "built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus
Christ Himself being the chief corner stone" (Eph 2:20). in all those cases,
though the exact figure somewhat varies, Jesus Christ is spoken of as that in
which the whole structure rests, and in none of them is Peter named as at all
distinguished from other believers. The foundation, however, is not simply
Jesus, but Jesus in the new character here brought to light. He drops the title
of Messiah, the foundation of Jewish hopes, and of God’s plans of earthly
government. But He takes up the title of "Son of the living God," and on this
declares that He will build His Church. Throughout Scripture the name by which
God reveals Himself describes the character of His present dealings. He is
Elohim in creation; God Almighty to the patriarchs; Jehovah to Israel; Father,
to those who now believe on His Son. So Christ is Lord (Adon) to David; Son of
man, as the executor of God’s righteous purposes; Messiah to Israel; and "Son of
the living God" to the Church.

There is deep significance in the word "living." When Jesus speaks of Himself as
"the living bread which came down from heaven," He adds, "If any man shall eat
of this bread, he shall live for ever" (John 6:51). Again He says — "The living
Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father" (John 6:57). In these cases the
word conveys the idea of imparting, as well as possessing, life. It is the
description of One who, having life in His own right and power, is beyond the
dominion of death, and can communicate life to others. Thus Jesus says that He
has life in Himself; that He has "power to lay it down," and "power to take it
again;" also that He is "the resurrection and the life," and that those who
believe in Him shall not die. The title "living God" is, then, most important
here. Jesus was just going to tell the disciples of His death, and that they
must take up their cross, and lay down their lives for His sake. What a stay,
then, to have to do with "the living God," to be built into a structure which
the gates of hades cannot touch, to be endowed with a life on which the second
death hath no power! And this leads us to another revelation. As soon as Jesus
drops the Messianic character, and takes up, as the foundation of the Church,
the title of "Son of the living God," He begins to speak of His death and
resurrection. It is quite true that this is the ground of blessing to the Jews
as well as to the Church. But there is a broad difference. Israel owes its
blessing to Christ’s death, but is associated, as to its calling, with His
earthly glory. The Church, on the contrary, is associated with His earthly
rejection. As far as the world is concerned, Israel will know Him as the wearer
of the crown; the Church knows Him as the bearer of the cross. Israel will own
him when "girded with strength;" the Church owns Him "crucified through
weakness." And so of His resurrection. His earthly power will doubtless be taken
as the risen One. Still this is not the fact mainly insisted upon in connection
with the kingdom glory; whereas it is always most prominent in connection with
the Church. He is "determined to be the Son of God with power, according to the
Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from among the dead" (Rom 1:4). He says
to John, "I am He that liveth and was dead, and behold I am alive for evermore"
(Rev 1:18). Believers are dead with Christ, and also quickened with him. They
are to yield themselves to God "as those that are alive from the dead" (Rom
6:13). Thus, while all are interested in Christ’s death and resurrection, the
Church is associated with them in a marked and peculiar manner.

How it is associated with them is seen in what follow a "If any man will come
after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross, and follow Me. For
whosoever will save his life shall lose it, and whosoever will lose his life for
My sake shall find it." How unlike the language of Jehovah to Israel! For the
Jews will know Jesus as their Messiah, seated on the throne of earthly power,
and wearing the crown of earthly glory. The Christian knows him as the Son,
"crucified through weakness," but living "by the power of God." How can the Jew
have anything but blessing on the earth where his Messiah is ruling as supreme?
How, on the other hand, can the Christian look for anything but rejection in the
world where his Lord had nothing but a felon’s cross? The Jew’s confidence is
the sceptre which will uphold his earthly rights. The Christian’s is association
in life with the One who has triumphed over death, and thus set him on a rock
where the gates of hades are powerless against him. This passage, then, shows
the postponement of the kingdom in its outward form, and its existence,
meanwhile, in another shape, under man’s administration. During this time Jesus
reveals Himself under a new name. On this He builds the new fabric of the
assembly or Church, which, being founded on His own Sonship and Godhead, is
beyond the power of hades. This Church is associated with Christ in death and
resurrection. Earth is not the sphere of its blessings, but of its trials; and
those who follow Christ must take up their cross. How admirably this character
of the Church harmonises with the special hope held out before it of the Lord’s
return for His saints! The world, subject to Gentile rule, can only drift to
more fearful judgment; the kingdom, entrusted to man, can only become a leavened
mass; the Church, left amidst the nipping blasts of a godless world, and the
stagnant gloom of a lifeless profession can look up to the mansions prepared in
the Father’s house, and await the hour when His shout shall be heard, and all
the redeemed, changed into the likeness of Christ, shall be caught up to be "for
ever with the Lord." When Christ takes his earthly dominion He will associate
with Himself an earthly people, the sharers of His earthly glory and the objects
of His earthly favour. But Christ is now the outcast of the earth and the joy of
heaven. He has, therefore, associated with Himself a heavenly people, the
partners of His earthly rejection but the objects of His heavenly delight. Down
here, they are in the world, but not of it; and He has given Himself at God’s
right hand as the object of their present affection, their present occupation
and their present hope. Are our souls up to this magnificent position?

Such, then, is our Lord’s teaching in this first mention of the new fabric He
was about to build. He afterwards further instructs His disciples on the same
subject, telling them how to act in case of injury by a fellow-believer. Should
all the means which grace can suggest prove ineffectual, they are to "tell it
unto the Church." The Lord then adds, "But if he neglect to hear the Church, let
him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. Verily, I say unto you,
whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever ye
shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again, I say unto you, that if
two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it
shall be done for them of My Father which is in heaven. For where two or three
are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them" (Mat
18:17-20).

Here, then, the power of binding and loosing, before conferred on Peter, is
given to all the disciples. The assembly is to act in cases of discipline, such
as that of one of its members injuring another, and refusing to acknowledge his
fault. The grace and gentleness of Christ are first to be shown. If these fail,
the dishonour done to His name must be thought of, and the assembly must purge
itself by putting away the evil-doer. This is the power of binding and loosing,
which is given, not to the apostles, but to the Church or assembly. It is the
authority to put away and to restore those who have sinned. Such, at least, is
the particular case given, though the language itself would include a wider
range, and doubtless does include the reception of believers into the assembly.
The narrower authority, with its accompanying responsibility of dealing with
questions of sin, is again bestowed after Christ’s resurrection, where He says
to His disciples, "Receive ye the holy Ghost; whose soever sins ye remit, they
are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained"
(John 20:22-23). This authority, conferred, not upon the apostles, but the
disciples — that is, on believers as a whole — is not the power of putting away
sins, which belongs to God only, but of exercising a divinely-guided judgment as
to what offences demand the excision of the wrong-doers or what measure of
repentance justifies his restoration. The power is given in connection with the
Holy Ghost. While guided by Him, their authority could not but be rightly used.
But the moment they ceased to be guided by Him, the sole ground of their
authority vanished.

So, too, in the Gospel of Matthew the authority to bind and loose, and the title
to ask that anything shall be done for them, rests simply on the presence of
Jesus in their midst, "For, where two or three are gathered together in My name,
there am I in the midst of them." Now, in the New Testament, the name stands for
the person acting in the character which the name indicates. Thus Jesus says, "I
have manifested Thy name (the Father’s) unto the men which Thou gavest Me" (John
17:6). Again, "He that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not
believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God" (John 3:18). So, the
Philadelphians are commended because they had "not denied My name" (Rev 3:8).
Being gathered in the name of Jesus then, is being gathered to His person,
owning His authority, and in accordance with His mind. If the meeting, though
called by His name, should really be to some other centre, should own some other
authority, or should be contrary to His directions, his presence is not
promised. Doubtless, even in this case, there may be the presence and working of
the Holy Ghost, blessing the preaching or teaching of the Word, and where there
is truth of heart, all allowance will be made for ignorance and failure. There
may, therefore, be much blessing where there is even wide departure from the
Lord’s mind, for we have to do with a God who knows our weakness and pities our
ignorance. Thus, in the days of Israel’s ruin, we read of those who through
ignorance "had not cleansed themselves, yet did they eat the passover otherwise
than it was written; but Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, The good Lord pardon
every one that prepareth his heart to seek God, the Lord God of his fathers,
though he be not cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary; and
the Lord hearkened to Hezekiah, and healed the people" (2Ch 30:18-20). Grace,
then, both can and will come in where failure is the result of ignorance, and
where there is a true heart towards God. But we may be sure that the Lord’s way
is better than man’s; nor can the grace, which blesses in spite of ignorance,
excuse indifference as to what the Lord’s mind really is. The Holy Ghost’s
action will not be granted to sanction the ignorance arising from culpable
neglect any more than to give approval to the wilfulness and disobedience of
those who use His name to carry out their own thoughts.

We are then responsible to learn what is meant by meeting in the Lord’s name.
And surely the matter is of the intensest interest to all believers. The power
to bind on earth so that it shall be bound in heaven is a trust of the deepest
solemnity; and to profess to exercise such a trust without divine sanction is a
fearful responsibility. "My glory will I not give to another," says the Lord;
and it is surely clear that Christ will not be robbed of His own glory and His
own rights in the assembly. Is it possible, then, that the solemn trust above
mentioned could be placed in the hands of a number of believers meeting together
in voluntary associations, and according to rules of their own devising? Where
Christ is present there must be room for all who are Christ’s — subject, of
course, to divinely-appointed discipline — to be present also; and His authority
must be supreme and exclusive, utterly setting aside all the systems and
constitutions, all the restrictions and regulations, of men. Only to those thus
assembled are given the presence of Jesus, power with God, and the authority to
bind and to loose. Nor, if we understand what it is to be gathered in that name,
will these magnificent promises and powers fill us with wonder. Let believers be
really assembled in obedience to the Lord’s directions, and with hearts bowed to
His authority, owning, in simple faith, His presence in their midst, and where
is the room for self-will? Where the possibility of mistake? How could anything
be bound or loosed but according to His guidance? — anything asked but according
to His mind? The neglect, whether wilful or ignorant, of these conditions, has
caused the wide divorce between the kingdom and the Church. Men have claimed to
bind and to loose, to remit and to retain, regardless of the terms on which this
authority was bestowed. In the passages which give this power, the Church and
the kingdom are viewed as one, according to God’s institution. So long as the
assembly was in such a state that it could enjoy the presence of Jesus and the
guidance of the Spirit, the kingdom, administered by man, remained co extensive
with the Church. The moment self-will, self-dependence, or self-interest crept
in, Christ’s presence and the Spirit’s guidance ceased to lend sanction to their
acts, and the decrees of the body on earth were no longer ratified in heaven.
The Church, and the kingdom as seen by God, became severed from the kingdom as
ordered, or disordered, by man; the door was flung open for self, the world, and
Satan to come in; the name of Christ was made to sanction every abomination and
blasphemy which human or diabolic wickedness could devise; and, though the
treasure still remained, dear as ever to the heart of God, Christendom, the
field in which it was hid, became that hateful thing whose annals the infidel
historian has justly described as "the annals of hell."

CHAPTER II. THE BODY AND THE BRIDE In our last chapter we learnt some important
truths about the Church from our Lord’s own teaching. Occupying the interval
between His rejection by man and His public manifestation in the glory of the
kingdom, it has an entirely exceptional position in God’s dealings. It is
associated with Jesus in the place He now holds as rejected by the world, so
that believers are promised no other earthly portion than the cross which He
bore. It is also associated with Him, however, in His acceptance as the risen
One; being founded, not on His earthly title as the Messiah, but on His heavenly
dignity as "Son of the living God;" and standing in the eternal security of that
life which He possesses as the One who was dead and is alive again, so that the
gates of hades cannot prevail against it. Even as to administration, while
subject to Christ’s authority, what it bound and loosed on earth was ratified in
heaven. But the character of the Church was only fully revealed after Christ’s
ascension. It may be asked, When did the Church come into existence? It was not
founded when Jesus first named it, for He spoke of it as a future thing; and
being associated with His death and resurrection, it could not exist till these
had taken place. There is no trace of it during Christ’s lifetime, nor till the
day of Pentecost. Then, however, an event occurred which we must now consider.
The Holy Spirit had worked in all ages. Souls were quickened by Him; "holy men
of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." Besides these ways of
acting, Joel had foretold the pouring out of the Spirit on all flesh, and John
the Baptist had pointed out Jesus as the one who should baptize with the Holy
Ghost. These predictions will have their complete fulfilment when Christ appears
in His glory. Jesus Himself, however, speaks of a coming of the Holy Ghost, in
connection, not with His return, but with His departure; not with His earthly
glory, but with His heavenly; as poured out, not upon all flesh, but upon His
own disciples. "If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink. He that
believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers
of living water. But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him
should receive, for the Holy Ghost was not yet; because that Jesus was not yet
glorified" (John 7:37-39). Here the Spirit was only to those who believe in
Jesus, and after He was glorified. So, before His departure, He says — "It is
expedient for you that I go away; for if I go not away, the Comforter will not
come unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you" (John 16:7).

There is, then, here brought out a new work of the Spirit, connected with
Christ’s absence and heavenly glory. In this new character, He was to abide with
the disciples for ever (John 14:16), to dwell with them and to be in them (ver.
17), to teach them all things, and bring all things to their remembrance
whatsoever Jesus had said unto them (John 14:26), to guide them into all truth
and show them things to come, glorifying Christ by receiving of the things that
are His, and showing them to His disciples (John 16:13-14). His presence was
also to "convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment." But
this coming of the Spirit has still another aspect. Before His ascension, Jesus
bids His disciples "wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith He, ye have
heard of Me. For John truly baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with
the Holy Ghost not many days hence. When they, therefore, were come together,
they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt Thou at this time restore again the
kingdom to Israel? And He said unto them, 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 has come upon you; and ye shall be witnesses
unto Me, both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the
uttermost part of the earth" (Acts 1:4-8). Here Jesus promises his disciples a
"baptism" of the Holy Ghost. This recalls the prophecies of Joel and John the
Baptist and as their prophecies are connected with national deliverance, they
ask whether He would then restore the kingdom to Israel. Jesus replies that the
time for this was hidden in the Father’s counsels, but that as the immediate
effect of the Spirit’s coming, they would receive power, and should be witnesses
for Him in all parts of the earth. There are, then, three things here named, the
baptism of the Holy Ghost, the giving of power to the disciples, and the fitting
of them to be witnesses for Christ. In the next chapter we read that "when the
day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place; and
suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it
filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them
cloven tongues like as of fire, and it [or they] sat upon each of them; and they
were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues as
the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts 2:1-4). This was, clearly, the fulfilment
of Christ’s recent words, that they should "be baptized with the Holy Ghost not
many days hence." It was also, no doubt, the coming of the Spirit spoken of in
the Gospel of John. Indeed the three things named by Christ in the previous
chapter — the "baptism" of the Spirit, the conferring of "power" on the
disciples (of which the miraculous gift of tongues was the first manifestation),
and the fitting of the disciples to witness for Jesus "unto the uttermost part
of the earth" — were all simultaneous in their performance, and were all results
of the same event, the sending of the Holy Ghost to take his abode in the world.
But though simultaneous, they must be carefully distinguished from each other.
The "power" received was shown in the gift of tongues. Joel had foretold certain
powers as the results of the Spirit’s outpouring in the age to come. The age to
come has not arrived, but the "powers of the age to come" were given, in a
measure, to the Church. Those outwardly connected with it are described as
persons who "were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good
word of God, and the powers of the age to come" (Heb 6:4-5). Joel’s prophecy
was, therefore, partially fulfilled at Pentecost, and hence it is quoted as
explaining the marvels noted by the multitude. This is the real force of our
Lord’s language also. When He had spoken of the baptism of the Spirit, the
disciples, connecting it with the age named by Joel, asked if that age had yet
come. Jesus replies that He cannot tell them about the commencement of that age,
for it is a secret, but that they should receive the "power" of which the
prophecy had spoken. This, then, is one of the things which were accomplished in
the next chapter.

Another thing foretold was, that they were to be fitted by the Spirit to act as
witnesses for Christ, and here again the Lord’s words were remarkably fulfilled.
The testimony borne by the disciples on that day when the Holy Ghost descended
upon them was owned to an extent without parallel in any other age. It was "in
demonstration of the Spirit and of power," so that three thousand persons were
pricked to the heart, and bowed down to own the authority of the crucified
Jesus, and to be baptized in His name. This qualification to bear witness to
Jesus, though in a manner derived from their own converse with Him, was always
connected with the sending of the Spirit, as Jesus had said — "When the
Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of
truth which proceedeth from the Father, He shall testify of Me, and ye also
shall bear witness, because ye have been with Me from the beginning" (John
15:26-27). The same association between the testimony of the Holy Ghost and that
of the apostles, is seen also in another passage, in which Peter testifies of
Jesus before the Jewish council, that "Him hath God exalted with His right hand
to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness
of sins; and we are His witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost
whom God hath given to them that obey Him" (Acts 5:31-32).

Here, then, are two results of this sending of the Spirit; the one, in partial
fulfilment of Joel’s prophecy, conferring miraculous gifts, "the powers of the
age to come," upon the disciples; the other, in fulfilment of our Lord’s words,
qualifying the disciples to be witnesses for Him in the world. But these are
accompaniments of the baptism of the Spirit, not the baptism itself. There are
only two events thus described. The one, the complete fulfilment of Joel’s
prophecy, is what happens with "blood and fire and vapour of smoke," before
"that great and notable day of the Lord come" — an outpouring, not of grace
only, but of judgment — a baptism, not merely of the Holy Ghost, but of fire.
The other, a partial fulfilment of Joel’s prophecy, though widely different in
character and consequences, is what took place on the day of Pentecost, and is
related in the passage above cited. Since, then, this is the only baptism of the
Spirit which has yet been, or which will be while the Church is on earth, it is
important that we should rightly appreciate its character. The Church, as
already shown, was not founded when Christ first spoke of it to His disciples,
nor is any trace of it seen before His death, or after His resurrection, until
this time. In Acts 1:1-26, the disciples are assembled, but merely as a number
of individual believers. Nothing as yet indicates that they were gathered in any
corporate character. At the close of the next chapter, however, which describes
the baptism of the Holy Ghost we read that the Church, till then spoken of only
as a future thing, was already in existence, for "the Lord added to the Church
daily such as should be saved" (Acts 2:47). The baptism of the Holy Ghost
foretold by Joel and John the Baptist is connected with the establishment of the
kingdom in power and righteousness. The baptism of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost
is connected with the establishment of the Church. As the kingdom in its
mysterious form is a partial fulfilment of the prophetic kingdom, so the baptism
of the Spirit at Pentecost is a partial fulfilment of the baptism of the Spirit
foretold by the prophets. The effect, then, of the baptism of the Holy Ghost was
to gather into one body or assembly those who, before this event, were nothing
more than individual believers. Up to this time they had been, like the Old
Testament saints, "just men," each having life, each quickened by the Spirit,
each the object of God’s favour and grace. Now, by the baptism of the Holy
Ghost, they are formed into God’s assembly or Church. Nor is this merely an
inference from the fact that the Church is first named immediately after this
baptism had taken place. The Apostle Paul speaking of the Church as the body of
Christ, expressly says that "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" (1Co 12:13). In whatever other ways, therefore,
the Spirit acts, the effect of the "baptism" of the Holy Ghost, promised by our
Lord just before His ascension, and fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, was to
form into one assembly the isolated, and even antagonistic, elements composing
the Church; so that, instead of merely being a number of individual believers,
they become, in Scripture language, members of the same body, as closely
connected with each other and with Christ, as limb with limb, or as all the
limbs with the head.

This, then, is the real character and effect of the "baptism" of the Holy Ghost.
To apply the name to a great work in the way of conversions is simply a mistake.
No doubt the two things happened together at Pentecost, and no doubt the
conversions then wrought were the result of that testimony which the coming of
the Spirit fitted the disciples to bear. But the coming of the Holy Ghost
promised in John’s Gospel, and the baptism of the Holy Ghost promised in the
first chapter of Acts, are quite different in character and object, though both
form parts of the same great transaction, the descent of the Spirit to abide on
earth as the representative of Christ during His absence. The coming of the
Spirit gave power for testimony; the baptism of the Spirit formed the disciples
into one body or assembly. The two things were quite distinct — simultaneous,
but not synonymous. And not only is it a mistake to ask for a "baptism of the
Spirit," which confounds the baptism with the coming, but it is equally a
mistake to pray for a descent, an outpouring, or a coming of the Spirit. Such
petitions as that contained in the hymn — "Come, Holy Spirit, heavenly Dove;"
and other kindred expressions often used by devout and godly men in prayer, are
not merely errors of language; they indicate how sadly Christians have lost the
sense of the Holy Ghost’s presence on earth. The Spirit has come and is already
here. All the three results of the Spirit’s descent at Pentecost were results
attained once for all. The powers were conferred once for all, the fitness to
bear testimony was bestowed once for all, the assembly was formed once for all.
It is true, of course, that persons individually receive the Spirit and
individually become members of the assembly, as they themselves believe in
Jesus. Thus when Peter went to Cornelius, "The Holy Ghost fell on all them which
heard the word" (Acts 10:44). This, however, is not the result of another
sending or baptism of the Holy Ghost, but of the individual being brought into
the sphere of the Spirit’s operations. A company may today be exercising the
powers conferred by a charter granted more than a couple of centuries ago. It is
not necessary to the validity of their acts that the charter should be renewed
with each generation of those who exercise the authority it bestows. So the
baptism of the Spirit forming and indwelling the Church, is an act performed
once for all; and every person who, by grace, believes on Jesus as his Saviour,
is as much baptized by that one act, as completely incorporated in the body of
Christ, as though he had been one of the hundred and twenty on whom the Spirit
sat, like cloven tongues of fire, on the day of Pentecost. By the baptism of the
Spirit, then, the Church has been formed into a body, consisting of many
members, but yet one, "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 Christ" (1Co
12:12). This is, perhaps, the most striking, and certainly the most frequent,
figure used in Scripture to describe the Church. In the passage just cited, the
length to which the metaphor is carried is very remarkable. Not merely is the
body said to be united with Christ but to be Christ Himself — "so also is
Christ." The limbs, so to speak, are regarded as being merely attached to the
Head, which gives motion, life, and character to the whole, so that it is all
spoken of under the name of the Head. It is not perhaps, easy to grasp the full
force of this remarkable language, which appears so to lose the Church in
Christ, that He alone is seen, and it is regarded merely as a part of Him. But
though our minds may fail to mount to the full height of blessing revealed in
the figure, it is at least manifest that a closeness and completeness of union
is here made known which may well fill the soul of the believer with wonder and
adoration. This closeness of union is used elsewhere in the same epistle, not
only to set forth the privileges, but also to define the responsibilities, of
the believer, and that even as to matters of the most ordinary morality. Amongst
those who had recently emerged from a licentious heathenism, considerable doubt
might still exist as to how far it was lawful to go in the gratification of
their lusts. The question is settled at once by recalling the relationship into
which the Christian is brought with Christ. "Know ye not," says the apostle,
"that your bodies are the members of Christ?" This determines the whole matter.
The unseemliness of using the body for the indulgence of the lusts, becomes
manifest the moment it is seen what the believer has become through the baptism
of the Holy Ghost, for "he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit" (1Co
6:15-17). Here the point is, not merely that we "have put off the old man with
his deeds, and have put on the new man." This is true, and deeply practical. It
implies new creation, a life, not drawn from the first man, but from the second,
life of the same order as that of the risen Christ. But the passage quoted from
the Corinthians goes beyond this. These believers not only have a new life, a
new nature in which Christ "is not ashamed to call them brethren," but they are
"joined unto the Lord," so that their very bodies, though not yet redeemed, "are
the members of Christ," so divinely perfect is the union into which the
Christian is brought with Christ by the baptism of the Holy Ghost. In the
Epistle to the Romans, which regards the believer in his individual rather than
in his corporate character, the same metaphor is used, not as a doctrinal
exposition of the nature of the Church, but as enforcing the obligation of every
Christian to act according to the gift bestowed upon him. This makes its use the
more striking, because it shows how familiar the idea was to the early converts,
even before the full unfolding which it received in the later Epistles to the
Ephesians and Colossians. The apostle says to the Romans, "For as we have many
members in one body, and all members have not the same office; so we, being
many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another" (Rom
12:4-5). In these passages it must be noted that the members are individual
believers, not different local assemblies, much less different voluntary
associations, self-styled "Churches," divided from each other on points of
doctrine, discipline, and order. The idea of different sects being the different
members, and forming the one body, is not found in these passages, and can only
have originated in a culpable negligence as to their real import. Whether this
division into sects and denominations is in harmony or in conflict with
Scripture, is honouring or grieving to the Spirit of God, we shall inquire
hereafter, but the slightest attention to the passages quoted will show that, at
all events, it is not the state of things to which allusion is here made. These
passages, on the contrary, teach that there is but one body; that this is the
body of Christ, or even, in the words written to the Corinthians, Christ
Himself; that each individual believer is a member of that single body; and that
all believers, being thus united, are members one of another. In the Epistle to
the Colossians the same figure is frequently used. Speaking of Christ, the
apostle writes — "And He is the Head of the body, the Church; who is the
beginning, the first-born from the dead, that in all things He might have the
pre-eminence" (Col 1:18). In the very first shadowing forth of the Church, Jesus
associates it with himself as the "Son of the living God," and as the One who
should die and rise again. This is in beautiful harmony with the text just
quoted. The passage from which that text is taken unfolds the varied glories of
Christ as at once "the image of the invisible God," and "the first-born of all
creation." But besides being the only One, who, while taking His place in
creation, ever was, or could be, "the image of the invisible God;" He is also
"the Head of the body, the Church," and, in association with his glory, He is
further entitled "the beginning, the first-born from among the dead." Thus we
again find His headship of the Church brought out in connection with His Divine
nature on the one hand, and His death and resurrection on the other.

Another passage in the same chapter presents the truth of the believer’s union
with Christ in a touching manner. The apostle speaks of himself as filling "up
that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for His body’s
sake, which is the Church" (Col 1:24). The first lesson which Saul of Tarsus,
the bitter persecutor, had been taught by Christ was in these words — "I am
Jesus whom thou persecutest" (Acts 9:5). The Lord was going afterwards to "show
him how great things he must suffer for My name’s sake" (Acts 9:16). Both these
lessons Paul had learnt. If "the excellency of the power" of God was to be
manifested in him, he must have the treasure in an earthen vessel; he must be
"always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life
also of Jesus might be made manifest" in his body (2Co 4:7, 2Co 4:10). The
working of the flesh needed to be kept down by these sufferings. But how does
Paul speak of them? He speaks of them, even as Jesus had spoken to him, as "the
afflictions of Christ." He had learnt on the way to Damascus how Christ the
Head, suffers with the feeblest of his members, and now, when called to suffer
for Christ’s sake, he delights to retrace that scene, and to remember how He on
whose behalf these afflictions were borne, felt them as though each pang were
inflicted upon Himself. No language could more beautifully show the living union
between the believer and Christ. Nor is it merely that Christ feels with the
members, but that the members are nourished by Christ. Thus the Colossians are
warned against the seductions of those who are "not holding the Head, from which
all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit
together, increaseth with the increase of God" (Col 2:19). The teaching of this
passage will come before us presently. I would only just notice, in passing, the
variety of forms in which the same figure is used, and the variety of purposes
to which it is applied. It is again employed in exhortation: "Let the peace of
Christ [not God] rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one
body" (Col 3:15). Why are the Colossian saints here reminded of this truth? To
give point to the preceding exhortations, in which they are entreated to put on
"bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering," to
forgive like Christ Himself, to show "love, which is the bond of perfectness,"
and to "let the peace of Christ rule" in their hearts. In like manner the
Ephesian believers are exhorted to put away lying, and "speak every man truth
with his neighbour, for we are members one of another" (Eph 4:25). This oneness
of the body was no theoretical creed, received as a doctrine, but rejected as a
fact; no visionary abstraction, to be realised in heaven, but unsuited for
earth. It was a practical thing, for the maintenance and display of which
believers were matte responsible down here, a living truth to be recognised and
acted upon in daily life. The Christian’s conduct is to be conformed to his
relationships. Why, than, is he to show kindness, forbearance, and love, to his
fellow believer? Why is he not to lie to him, but to speak the truth? Because
they are called into one body. So real was the oneness in and with Christ to the
hearts of the early disciples! In the Epistle to the Ephesians the figure again
appears. Speaking of the condition of the Gentiles, who had formerly been
"aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of
promise," he says — "But now, in Christ Jesus, ye who sometimes were far off,
are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For He is our peace, who hath made both
one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition, having abolished in His
flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances, for to
make in Himself, of twain, one new man" (Eph 2:12-15). What is this "new man"?
It is not a literal man, of course, for how could a literal man be composed of
two men, Jew and Gentile? Besides, this "one new man," made out of twain, is
formed "in himself," that is, in Christ. It can, then, be none other than that
"new man," or that "one body," spoken of in Corinthians as Christ, or the body
of Christ. It is the Church, in which all earthly distinctions, even those
instituted by God Himself, disappear. Here the Church and Christ are again
regarded as forming "one new man," a mystical unity which blends together the
most discordant materials, Jew and Gentile being made one in Him with whom they
were both joined and in whom they were both accepted. The complete effacing of
all natural and artificial distinctions, when believers are looked at as members
of this one body, is, moreover, strikingly illustrated by the language of Paul
to the Galatians, in which he declares that "there is neither Jew nor Greek,
there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female; for ye are all
one in Christ Jesus" (Gal 3:28). And in a similar strain he writes to the
Colossians that "there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor
uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free, but Christ is all, and in
all" (Col 3:11). When individual conduct is in question some of these
distinctions are not only recognised, but expressly provided for. But when
regarded simply as members of the body of Christ all differences merge, all
believers "are one in Christ Jesus," and Christ becomes "all and in all." Such
is the practical way in which Paul, in other epistles, applies the truth
concerning one body which is doctrinally unfolded in his letter to the
Ephesians.

Hence the exhortation is afterwards addressed to them, that they should
endeavour "to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace," for, adds the
apostle, "there is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope
of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all,
who is above all, and through all, and in you all" (Eph 4:3-6). Here, again, we
find the truth practically applied in a way which shows that this oneness of the
body was not regarded as an invisible, impalpable thing, never intended to be
discerned on earth save by the eye of God, but as the normal condition of the
Church, for the outward preservation of which believers were responsible. The
Holy Ghost teaches that there is but one body, and that for this reason we are
to endeavour "to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." How is this
to be done? By breaking the one body, as to its outward manifestation, into
fifty or a hundred different and rival bodies? If not, then Christendom has
failed, and this divided condition of the Church is in direct contradiction to
the express teaching of the Word of God. But the dignity and glory of this one
body are further unfolded in a striking manner in this epistle. It is said of
Christ that God "hath put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be the Head
over all things to the Church, which is His body, the fulness of Him that
filleth all in all" (Eph 1:22-23). Here it will be observed, we have two
headships of a very different character. That He is the Head of the Church is
obvious, because the Church is spoken of as His body. But, besides this, He is
presented to the Church as "Head over all," that is, as the One whom God, having
already exalted and set in the highest place at His own right hand, will make
Heir of all things, the acknowledged and undisputed Head of the whole universe,
reigning "till He hath put all enemies under His feet." In this character, as
Head over all things, He has associated with Him, not as part of the realm over
which He reigns, but as part, so to speak, of Himself, "the Church, which is His
body, the fulness of Him that filleth all in all." And this carries the mind
forward to another figure used to illustrate the same relationship, a figure
closely connected, and indeed inseparably intertwined, with the one we have just
been looking at. Among the practical exhortations at the close of the epistle,
the writer says — "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the
Church, and gave Himself for it; that He night sanctify and cleanse it with the
washing of water by the Word, that He might present it to Himself a glorious
Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be
holy and without blemish. So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies.
He that loveth his wife loveth himself. For no man ever yet hated his own flesh,
but nouisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the Church; for we are members
of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones" (Eph 5:25-30). What a wondrous
unfolding of the tender love of Christ to the Church! What a blessed revelation
of the nearness and sacredness of the union subsisting between them! Here we see
enacted in the last Adam that which is so beautifully typified in the first. The
first Adam was head of creation, but he was alone, with no help meet for him.
"And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make
him an help meet for him. . . . And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall
upon Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh
instead thereof; and the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made He a
woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone of my
bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called woman (Isha), because she was
taken out of man (Ish). Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother,
and shall cleave unto his wife; and they shall be one flesh" (Gen 2:18-24). The
last Adam has gone through all that is here divinely prefigured. He, too, was
alone; the Head, by God’s anointing, of everything; but as long as He lived, He
abode alone. The deep, deep sleep of death has passed by God’s ordinance upon
Him; and now, having fallen into the ground and died, He can bring forth much
fruit. But what is the first-fruit of this deep sleep? God has formed out of His
very self, bone of his bones and flesh of His flesh, the bride, the object to
which His heart can cleave, which He can take to be one with himself. Can He
hate it? Surely not, it is "His own flesh," and as such He "nourisheth and
cherisheth it," Truly He is the Head; but does He class His bride with the
subjects over whom He reigns by God’s anointing? Was Eve in the same
relationship with Adam as the creation over which he ruled? No more is the
Church in the same relationship with Christ as the other subjects of His
dominion. He is Head to the Church, and Head over all things. But to the Church
He is Head as the husband is head of the wife; to all things else He is Head as
a king is head over his subjects. Adam was head to Eve, but Eve was the partner
of Adam in his headship over creation. In like manner Christ is head to the
Church, but the Church is the partner of Christ in His headship over all things.
And this shows us the difference between millennial and Church blessings. The
millennial saints will enjoy every advantage that a redeemed earth can yield
under Christ’s government. The saint now is set in a groaning creation, in a
world lying in the wicked one, and is called to be a partaker of Christ’s
sufferings. But the millennial saint will only know Christ as a benign and
gracious sovereign, as the Anointed of God carrying out His thoughts of blessing
to the earth. The saint now knows Christ as His companion — he is at present the
sharer of His sufferings, and when He comes in His glory he will be the sharer
of His throne. Such is the faithful word. "If we suffer, we shall also reign
with him" (2Ti 2:12). "To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with Me in My
throne, even as I also overcame and am set down with My Father in His throne"
(Rev 3:21). Where is anything like this stated of the millennial saints? Take
the most favoured people during that blessed epoch, and mark what is said about
them. "He shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever" (Luk 1:33). Christ
reigns, then, over Israel as a king. The Church, on the other hand, reigns with
Christ. He is never called king of the Church, but of Israel. Reigning with Him
on the contrary, is never ascribed to Israel, but to the Church. The assembly of
God, then, the body and the bride of Christ, occupies a higher place than either
the Old Testament or the millennial saints. The "just men made perfect," however
blessed their lot, are not brought into that nearness of relationship which is
accorded to the "Church of the first-born," the first-fruits of His redemption
toil. The millennial saint, too, surrounded with all that ministers to delight
here below, with the law written in his heart, and rejoicing in all the
blessings of the new covenant, will never be in the same sacred intimacy, the
same hallowed oneness, with Christ, into which the feeblest member of His body
is now brought. In heavenly glory we see the bride, the Lamb’s wife, in all the
perfect beauty she will possess when Christ shall "present it to Himself a
glorious Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing," but "holy and
without blemish." "And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in line
linen, clean and white, for the fine linen is the righteousnesses of saints"
(Rev 19:8). But this heavenly bride is still more fully presented to us
afterwards under another figure. An angel addresses the apostle, "saying, Come
hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife. And he carried me away in
the spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me that great city, the holy
Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God: and her
light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper-stone, clear as
crystal" (Rev 19:9-11). Now this description is manifestly figurative. We have
already seen how different it is from the somewhat similar vision in Ezekiel’s
prophecies, where a real city is portrayed. The city in the Revelation is not a
place in which the Church dwells, but a symbolical presentation of the glory of
the Church itself. And as such, what are its leading characteristics? It shines
with "the glory of God." It is like "a stone most precious, even like a jasper
stone, clear as crystal" Now in the fourth chapter of the same book is seen "a
throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne, and He that sat was to look
upon like a jasper and a sardine stone" (Rev 19:2-3). It is in this glory, in
this likeness — the glory and likeness of God Himself — therefore, that the
bride shines in her heavenly brightness. Believers now "rejoice in hope of the
glory of God" (Rom 5:2); at the time described in this vision, the hope will
have become reality, and they themselves will be the display of that glory. And
the city "had a wall great and high," the symbol of security, "and had twelve
gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the
names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel; on the east three gates,
on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates"
(Rom 5:12-13). The Church shall judge the world; saints shall reign over the
earth with Christ. Here, then, in the vision, we have symbolised the connection
into which the Church is brought with Israel, as the chosen centre of God’s
earthly government. "And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in
them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb" (Rom 5:14). Believers are
said to be "built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ
Himself being the chief corner-stone; in whom all the building, fitly framed
together, groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord" (Eph 2:20-21). Here the
figure is somewhat different, for it represents not the building of a temple on
earth, but a complete city in heavenly glory. We have, however, the common
feature of the foundations. This city, which is the display of God’s glory, is
built on foundations, on which are engraved the names of the twelve apostles.
And here let us note the difference between the gates and the foundations. Both
have to do with administration, and therefore the perfect number of twelve
characterises each. But there is this distinction. Where it is a question of the
structure of the city itself the apostles are named. Israel has no part here.
But where, on the other hand, it is the going forth of activity and power from
the city, or of intercourse between the city and what is outside, the gates are
named after the tribes of Israel. The roads leading from a city are not called
after the city itself but after the place to which they lead, and often the
gates are named in the same manner. So it is here. The city is in communication
with Israel, as those who rule with Christ must be, but it is distinct from
Israel, and built on a foundation which exclusively characterises the Church.

"The city lieth four-square, and the length is as large as the breadth, And he
measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs: the length, and the
breadth, and the height of it are equal. And he measured the wall thereof, an
hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is,
of the angel" (Rom 5:16-17). Here we have divine symmetry, bringing out, in a
striking manner, the oneness of the Church, in which there is no rent and
schism, in which all is formed into harmony and order, in which everything is
set in its right place by God to contribute to the unity and perfection of the
whole. "And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure
gold, like unto clear glass. And the foundations of the wall of the city were
garnished with all manner of precious stones . . . and the twelve gates were
twelve pearls, every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city
was pure gold, as it were transparent glass." (Rom 5:18-21). Jasper as we have
seen, is a figure of divine glory; gold is a well known symbol of divine
righteousness. The pearl is always used in Scripture as a type of purity and
preciousness. The Church itself is the "one pearl of great price" which Christ
found, and for the purchase of which He sold all that He had. All these symbols,
then, signify the glory, the holiness, and the preciousness of the Church.

It is so united with Christ, that it receives constantly from His fulness, and
needs neither temple nor light. "I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God
Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. And the city had no need of the sun,
neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and
the Lamb is the light thereof" (ver. 22, 23). Not merely, moreover, is the
Church joined with Christ in judging the world. It is also his companion in
dispensing to the people of the millennial earth the blessings of His reign, and
in receiving the homage which they will then render to their acknowledged King.
"And the nations of them which am saved shall walk in the light of it: and the
kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour unto it. And the gates of it
shall not be shut at all by day; for there shall be no night there. And they
shall bring the glory and honour of the nations unto it. And there shall in no
wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh
abomination or maketh a lie; but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of
life" (ver. 24-27). How fitting for the bride of Him to whom "the kings of
Tarshish and of the Isles shall bring presents, the kings of Sheba and Seba
shall offer gifts, yea, all kings shall fall down before Him, all nations shall
serve him." But though the earth shall then "be full of the knowledge of the
Lord as the waters cover the sea," though the Lord shall then judge the world
with righteousness and the people with equity, though He will write His law in
the heart of Israel and all nations shall obey Him, man will still be a fallen
creature, and sin and suffering will still have a place in the world. Hence
towards the earth there must still go forth the stream of life, and healing
power. How striking to see that here again the bride is associated with Christ
in this blessed work. "And He showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as
crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of
the street of it and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life,
which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the
leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations" (Rev 22:1-2). But while
the Church, as the bride, is thus one with the bridegroom in the rule He
exercises, the blessings He bestows, and the healing He dispenses, it has no
need of life-giving or healing power itself; for to it "there shall be no more
curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and His servants
shall serve Him: and they shall see His face; and his name shalt be in their
foreheads. And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither
light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for
ever and ever" (Rev 3:3-5). It is of the overcomer that Christ says, "I will
write upon him My new name" (Rev 3:12), and again, "to him will I give power
over the nations" (Rev 2:26). Here, then, in this magnificent figure, we see the
Church, as it will be displayed in glory during the period of Christ’s reign.
Nor is its glory or blessing confined to this millennial period. When Christ’s
reign is ended, all enemies overcome, and the kingdom given up to God, even the
Father, the Church is still seen, the heavenly help meet for Christ, prepared as
a bride adorned for her husband "(Rev 21:2). Such, then, are God’s thoughts
concerning that marvellous thing, that "mystery which from the beginning of the
world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ, to the
intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be
known, by the Church, the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal
purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Eph 3:9-11). We now know
these as the purposes of God. In the vision in the Revelation we see them
gloriously typified in their reality, and the bride discovered in all her
beauty, in all her fitness for the heavenly bridegroom.

There will then be no need of cleansing, but now while still in the world,
liable to contract defilement, or to be led away into false paths by the subtle
craft of Satan, she requires the constant, tender watchfulness of her risen
Head, to cleanse and to guard her. And how does He meet this daily want? Should
she contract defilement by the way, He comes in to sanctify and cleanse with the
"washing of water by the word." Should she be in danger of wandering through the
false suggestions of Satan, He sends His faithful apostle to lift up the voice
of earnest and affectionate expostulation, recalling her to her blessed place of
privilege, and warning her against the snares of the deceiver. "For I am jealous
over you," says he, "with godly jealousy; for I have espoused you to one
husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear lest,
by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds
should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ" (2Co 11:2-3). How
exquisitely tender the love of Christ for His bride as brought out in these
passages! Not less beautiful is the figure in which Scripture describes His mode
of nourishing and cherishing her, exhorting believers to "grow up into him in
all things, which is the Head, even Christ: from whom the whole body fitly
joined together, and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to
the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body,
unto the edifying of itself in love" (Eph 4:15-16). Love is what builds it up,
love flowing from the Head, and causing it to grow up "into Him."

It may be urged that the language applied to the Church in the passages above
quoted is not literal, but figurative, and that it would be dangerous to build
conclusions on such a basis. It is quite true, that where figures are used,
great care should be taken to confine them to the subject immediately in hand,
and not to go one step beyond Scripture in the mode and extent of their
application. But figures are only used in the epistles to convey impressions
which could not be adequately conveyed by ordinary language. They are not meant
to obscure the sense, but to make it clearer, or at all events more vivid. And
surely in this case there can be no question as to what the meaning of these
figures is. if there is one figure which, more than any other, conveys the idea
of oneness; it is the connection of the head with the body. This figure is used,
then, because the Holy Ghost seeks to impress that truth in the most emphatic
manner in which it can be presented. If, again, there is one figure which
carries with it more than any other the thought of tender care and love, it is
the relationship between the husband and wife. This figure is used, then,
because the Holy Ghost would bring this care and love before the heart of
believers in the vividest and most attractive colours. As to the extent to which
the figures are applied, the first is used to show believers their oneness with
Christ, their oneness with each other, their mutual dependence, and their
responsibility as to walk: the second, to show the careful love of Christ to the
Church, and the willing subjection of the Church to Christ. These truths, at all
events, the figures set before us in the clearest and most emphatic manner.

Such, then, is the Church, as seen and known of God. Man was left responsible
for preserving it according to God’s thoughts, and in this, as in all else, he
has mournfully failed. But man’s failure, though it may shroud the true glory of
the Church here, can never veil it from "the principalities and powers in
heavenly places," or sink it to a lower level in the purposes of God and the
affections of Christ It still stands forth, and will to all eternity endure, the
brightest display of God’s wisdom and grace, the first and most glorious trophy
of redeeming love. In a world that has both seen and hated both Christ and the
Father, it remains to witness for Him in the scene of Satan’s power; and to
await his return to take it to the Father’s house. Called, not with an earthly,
but with a heavenly, calling; built upon Christ, not in His earthly, but in His
heavenly, character; associated with Him, not in His earthly, but in His
heavenly, acceptance; blessed in Him with all spiritual blessings not in
earthly, but in heavenly, places; made meet, as seen in Him, not for an earthly,
but for a heavenly, inheritance; and expecting His advent to bring it, not into
earthly, but into heavenly, delights; it is altogether heavenly in its
character, associations, and destiny, and the earth is to it only the place of
its wilderness pilgrimage. It is formed by a heavenly Person, united with a
heavenly Head, animated by a heavenly hope, and called upon for a heavenly walk.
Fellow-believers, "what manner of persons ought we to be in all holy
conversation and godliness!" And deeply conscious as we are, and must be, of our
own and the Church’s failure, is it not most blessed, in the scene of ruin and
shipwreck around us, to call to mind that God’s love can never weary and God’s
purposes can never change — that where our eye can detect nothing but chaos, his
can still find Divine order? Is it not most profitable too, to turn away our
gaze from the tangled web of man’s scheming to the clear and wondrous designs of
God; and to seek, amidst the bewildering jungle which has overgrown God’s
divinely-appointed road, for His guidance still to trace the path that He would
have us to follow? Certain we may be of this, that neither the failure of the
professing Church, nor the intrusion of a godless world, nor the devices of a
subtle enemy, can altogether obliterate — however sadly they may obscure — the
highway which God’s truth has traced for His children to walk in. And certain we
may be, also, that the more difficult the way is to trace, the more need we have
of diligent search in order that we may find it, and the richer will be the
blessing and reward of walking faithfully in it. With the living Word of God as
our rule, with the Spirit of God to unfold its wisdom to our hearts, and with a
single eye to walk in obedience to His Divine guidance, the path through all
this tangled labyrinth may still be found. We have long since exhausted our own
resources; but we have not, and we never shall have, exhausted God’s.

CHAPTER III THE MYSTERY. The Church is the body and bride of Christ. It occupies
an exceptional place in God’s dealings, being heavenly in character and calling,
and thus differing from everything related or foretold in the Old Testament as
to what preceded and will follow it on the earth. It did not exist till after
Christ’s resurrection, being associated with Him as the risen One at God’s right
hand. Not only, however, did the Church not exist in the Old Testament times,
but it was not foretold. Though God’s purposes about it were formed "before the
foundation of the world," they were hidden "from ages and from generations" till
His own time for revealing them.

These secret counsels of God are called in Scripture mysteries. We mean by a
mystery something inexplicable, beyond our understandings. In the language of
the New Testament, however, a mystery is simply a secret revealed only to
initiated persons — such, for example, as the secret sign of the "Freemasons."
God, then, had reserved a secret to be communicated to us — a secret which He
had not made known even to the most favoured recipient of His thoughts in past
ages. How sweet to see this! It is the privilege of the children to know the
secrets of the family — of the wife to share the innermost thoughts of her
husband’s heart. God has adopted us as His children; Christ has purchased us as
His bride; and the secrets, hidden even from the most honoured of his servants
and friends, are now breathed into the ear and heart of that Church which is
bone of His bones and flesh of His flesh.

These mysteries relate partly to the kingdom and partly to the Church. That
there would be a kingdom of the heavens, in which evil would be allowed, was a
secret unknown to the prophets. This is the mystery disclosed in the parable of
the wheat and the tares. But there is also a secret connected with the Church or
assembly. We read that God "did visit the Gentiles to take out of them a people
for His name" (Acts 15:14). This is said to be His present work, and the account
goes on to show that it was in accordance with His revealed purposes, for He had
announced by the prophets that His name would be called upon the Gentiles. But
the Scriptures are quoted here only to prove that God had never intended to
confine His blessings to Israel. On looking further into the Word, we find that
there is a "mystery," or secret connected with this subject, which the Old
Testament had not made known. Writing to the Romans, the apostle says — "I would
not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be
wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until
the fulness of the Gentiles be come in" (Rom 11:25). It had been revealed that
God would be merciful to the Gentiles; but that God was setting aside the Jews
for the very purpose of gathering a people out of the Gentiles, and that until
this was fully accomplished the blessing of Israel must be postponed, was a
"mystery" on which the Old Testament Scriptures were wholly silent. The Epistle
to the Romans is not, indeed, an epistle which treats of the Church, and
therefore neither the name nor the character of the Church is to be found in
this passage. But the people that God is gathering out of the Gentiles are
believers, and it is for the completion of these, or the Church, that Israel is
set aside as God’s immediate earthly object. The Old Testament, which unfolds
God’s plans concerning the world, shows the converse of this. There the Gentiles
fill up the interval in God’s dealings with His earthly people, Israel, and are
used to provoke them to jealousy. But the New Testament reveals God’s heavenly
purposes. Here, therefore, the gathering of the Church, instead of occupying a
mere gap in God’s earthly designs, is the grand object of all His counsels. In
the Old Testament, Gentile blessing is named, but as waiting upon God’s thoughts
about Israel. In the New Testament, Israel’s blessing is named, but as waiting
upon God’s thoughts about the Church. The Old Testament shows a people who were
the objects of God’s counsels "from the foundation of the world;" but the New
Testament shows a people who were the objects of God’s counsels "before the
foundation of the world" (Mat 25:34; Eph 1:4). In God’s earthly plans,
everything yields to the former; in His heavenly plans everything yields to the
latter. But as the heavenly people had the first and highest place in God’s
thoughts, the earthly people must stand aside until His purposes concerning
these are fully accomplished.

But, it may be asked, are not Jews now brought in also? Is not the Gospel as
free to them as to others? Why, then, is it said that Israel is blinded in part
"until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in?" It is because the apostle is
here speaking of the Church dispensationally, as the thing which came in through
Israel’s blindness, and is incompatible with her national blessing. In this
dispensational sense, the Church is Gentile, and does not cease to be so because
individual Israelites enter. In doing so, they take the same ground as the
Gentiles; as Peter says — "We (the Jews) shall be saved, even as they" (Acts
15:11); and become detached from the nation as here represented. Christianity,
thus viewed, is the bringing in of the fulness of the Gentiles in contrast with
God’s still future work of restoring and blessing Israel. This is the "mystery,"
as seen in the Epistle to the Romans. In writing to the Colossians, Paul speaks
of "the dispensation of God which is given to me for you to fulfil [complete]
the Word of God, even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from
generations, but now is made manifest to His saints; to whom God would make
known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which
is Christ in [or among] you, the hope of glory" (Col 1:25-27). The mystery was,
therefore, needed "to complete the Word of God." It was the presence of Christ
in or among believers, as the hope of glory. The word does not say, that the
mystery was the presence of Christ among the Gentiles, but "among you;" that is,
in the Church. Christ’s presence among the Jews was foretold; but now His
presence is revealed in an assembly outside Judaism, where Jew and Gentile were
unknown. This was a mystery, which was now revealed to the Gentiles. And not
only was Christ’s presence now vouchsafed to an assembly unknown to the
prophets. There was also another new thing. His presence, foretold by the
prophets, was not a hope of glory, but glory itself. When Christ reigns among
the Jews, He will be their glory — "a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the
glory of Thy people Israel" (Luk 2:32). Now, however, something altogether
different is seen. Instead of glorifying those among whom He has taken His
abode, He only gives them "the hope of glory." At present they are members of
His body. But the sufferings of that body are not yet filled up, and believers
are now called out to fellowship with His sufferings, though with the blessed
and assured hope of soon sharing His glory. This is a thing unknown to the old
prophets, another feature of the mystery now revealed to the saints.

We are here carried a step further than in the Romans. There the mystery is that
God has set aside Jewish blessing until He has performed a work among the
Gentiles, that is, in a sphere outside His earthly dealings. In the Epistle to
the Colossians it is added that among those whom God is gathering as the result
of His present work, Christ makes His abode, spiritually of course, and this,
not as the bestower of present but as the hope of future, glory. In Ephesians
the mystery is thus described — "that the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, and
of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ by the gospel" (Eph
3:6). This is called "the mystery of Christ." What, then, does it teach? It is
often understood as showing that the Gentiles are by the gospel brought into
Jewish blessings. But this is simply to deny the truth of prophecy. The
prophetic blessings of the Jews are essentially national, and would be
absolutely extinguished if the difference between Jew and Gentile were
abolished. Besides, the Word elsewhere expressly declares that the special
Jewish blessings are postponed until God’s present work, that is, the thing here
described, has been accomplished. This passage, then, does not, and cannot, mean
that the Gentile is brought into possession, through Christianity, of the
blessings prophetically foretold for the Jews.

Let us examine its language a little more closely. It asserts that the Gentiles
are "fellow-heirs and of the same body, and partakers of God’s promise in Christ
by the gospel." With whom are they fellow-heirs? They are, as we know from other
scriptures, fellow-heirs, and of the same body with Christ; but is this what is
meant here? Evidently not, for it could not be said that they are partakers with
Christ of God’s "promise in Christ by the gospel" In this last case it
manifestly means partakers with the Jews, and if one portion refers to the
common possession of Jew and Gentile, the others must do the same. The passage
says, then, that the Gentiles are fellow-heirs with the Jews, of the same body
with the Jews, and partakers with the Jews of God’s promise in Christ by the
gospel. But this might be either by the Gentile coming into Jewish blessing, or
by Jew and Gentile receiving some common blessing of quite a different kind. It
cannot as we have seen, be in the former way, for the nature of Jewish blessing
and the express teaching of God’s Word forbid the thought of the Gentile
sharing, on equal terms, the blessing foretold for the Jews, In this case,
however, we are not left to inference, even to inference so plain as that which
is thus thrust upon us. We learn from the immediate context what this body is,
in which Jew and Gentile are incorporated, and find that it is none other than
the body of Christ Himself. "He is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath
broken down the middle wall of partition, having abolished in His flesh the
enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances, for to make in
Himself of twain one new man" (Eph 2:14-15). Earlier in the epistle we road that
in Christ "also we have obtained an inheritance" (Eph 1:11).

What, then, is the apostle’s reasoning? What the mystery which he here unfolds?
Having spoken of an inheritance and of a body — the inheritance we have in
Christ, and the body in which we are incorporated with Christ — he goes on to
say, that in this inheritance, in this body, in the glorious promises unfolded
in the gospel, the Gentile is fellow-heir, of the same body, and partaker of the
promises, along with the Jew. It is not the Gentile coming into the Jewish hope,
but Jew and Gentile being brought into the same hope, quite different from that
of Israel. Where is the Jewish nation spoken of as being of the same body with
Christ? This is not a prophetic hope at all, but a mystery now first made known.
And how do any persons get into this same body? By those who are Gentiles
becoming Jews? So far from it, that the wall of partition broken down is the
special Jewish distinction, and if either could be said to approach the other,
it is the Jew who approximates to the Gentile condition rather than the Gentile
who approximates to the Jewish. But, in reality, there is no such approach on
either side. Both are taken out of their old condition, and brought into an
entirely new one. The two classes of Jew and Gentile still subsist in the world,
but God has taken a number out of each, and has formed a new class, the body of
Christ, in which all distinctions are done away. The three divisions which God
now owns are the Jew, the Gentile, and the Church of God (1Co 10:32).

Afterwards, in the same epistle, Paul writes — "We are members of His body, of
His flesh and of His bones. For this cause shall a man leave his father and
mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. This
is a great mystery; but I speak concerning Christ and the Church" (Eph 5:30-32).
Here, then, the mystery is expressly stated to be the union of Christ and the
Church, so that they are "one flesh," and so that believers are "members of His
body, of His flesh and of His bones." In whatever light, therefore, the Church
is regarded, it is spoken of as a mystery. Whether as the thing which God is now
doing among the Gentiles during the time of Israel’s rejection; as the place in
which Christ now makes His spiritual abode, the pledge of coming glory; as the
body in which Jew and Gentile are alike incorporated on an entirely new ground;
or as the bride, joined in one flesh with Christ Himself; it is a new thing, a
secret "hid from ages and from generations" — a mystery, outside the sphere of
God’s earthly dealings, and reserved for the ear of those whom God has brought
into relationship with His Son in heavenly glory — those to whom He has made
known by His Spirit the things which "eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither
have entered into the heart of man." But was this mystery really hidden from the
Old Testament prophets? Does not Paul speak of it as revealed to the prophets as
well as to the apostles? Does he not expressly say that it was made known "by
the scriptures of the prophets?" Let us look at his own words. He speaks of "the
revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, but now
is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets [properly, prophetic
writings], according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to
all nations for the obedience of faith" (Rom 16:25-26). So, too, he mentions his
"knowledge in the mystery of Christ, which in other ages was not made known unto
the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto His holy apostles and prophets by
the Spirit (Eph 3:4). Surely no person of ordinary intelligence can read these
passages without seeing that the prophetic writings, and the prophets here
spoken of, are not those of the Old Testament, in whose days the text plainly
shows that the mystery was not revealed, but prophets then living and the
prophetic writings then issued — in a word, the prophets and prophetic writings
of the New Testament.

Such, then, was the mystery now first revealed to the Church. Doubtless there
are other mysteries disclosed in the New Testament also. There is "the mystery
of iniquity," the present unrevealed form of that evil whose full and unhindered
display was prophesied of by Isaiah, Daniel, and other Old Testament writers.
There is "the mystery of godliness," the complete revelation of God in the
person of the Son, as contrasted with the partial revelations previously made;
God "manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached
unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory" (1Ti 3:16).
There is the mystery of Christ’s special and separate return for His saints —
"We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the
twinkling of an eye, at the last trump; for the trumpet shall sound, and the
dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed" (1Co 15:51-52). In
these as in other cases where the word is used, it is some new revelation suited
to the heavenly character of the Church, or to the present nature of God’s
dealings viewed as an interruption of the course of earthly events foretold in
the old prophets. But the special mystery committed to the apostle Paul is that
which we have just examined, the mystery of the Church as the body and the bride
of Christ, Why, it may be asked, was this kept a secret? Because it is a
heavenly thing, the subject of God’s heavenly counsels; whereas the purpose of
the Old Testament prophecies is to make known His earthly counsels. This is of
great importance as showing how completely the Church lies outside the world. It
has a different origin, it is revealed at a different time, it cherishes a
different hope, it belongs to a different sphere. Instead of inheriting the Old
Testament promises and fulfilling the Old Testament prophecies, it forms the
most absolute contrast with them that the mind can conceive. So different are
they that the two cannot exist together. While God’s purposes about the earth
were being unfolded, the mystery of the Church was hidden. When the mystery of
the Church was unfolded, the purposes about the earth were suspended. The Church
is associated with Christ in heaven; Israel is associated with Him on earth, The
Church knows Him in His sufferings and patience; Israel will know Him in His
exaltation and power, The Church rejoices in Him as the bride in her bridegroom;
Israel will rejoice in Him as a nation in her sovereign. The Church looks for
Him to take her to heaven; Israel looks for Him to establish her in the earth.
Such is our blessed lot such our heavenly portion in contrast with even the most
favoured of the earthly people. Alas, that our hearts fall so far short of this
wondrous position!

However we may slight it, the apostle Paul did not. Earnest as he was in seeking
souls, full as he was in setting forth the simple truth of grace to the sinner,
this magnificent subject of "the mystery of Christ" was never absent from his
thoughts or heart. If he prayed for the establishment of saints, it was
"according to the mystery." If be would have them "knit together in love, and
unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding," it is "to the
acknowledgment of the mystery." If he requests their prayers, it is "that God
would open unto us a door of utterance to speak the mystery." If he would have
the real character of the truth committed to him understood, it is that God had
by revelation "made known unto me the mystery." And this mystery is the Church,
as the body and the bride of Christ, already united with Him by the Holy Ghost
sent down to dwell on earth, and awaiting the time when this blessed oneness
will be publicly displayed; "when Christ, who is our life, shall appear," and we
also shall "appear with Him in glory." Surely if our hearts were more in tune
with the mind of God and with the affections of Christ, this wondrous theme
would fill us with never ceasing worship and delight!

CHAPTER IV. A CHRISTIAN NOT OF THE WORLD. The Epistle to the Ephesians, after
blessedly unfolding the mystery of the Church, continues — "I, therefore, the
prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith
ye are called" (Eph 4:1). Law made standing to depend on walk. Grace makes walk
to depend on standing. It sets us in heavenly places in Christ, and then demands
a walk worthy of the position. This is God’s present way, as remote from
legalism on the one hand as from antinomianism on the other; equally clear in
rejecting good works as the ground of acceptance, and in demanding them as the
result of acceptance; proclaiming with the same emphasis that there can be no
fruit except we abide in the vine, and that there must be fruit if we abide in
the vine. In an army each soldier is personally responsible to his sovereign. If
there is a mutiny, and each regiment, under a different leader, pursues its own
ends, pleading the sovereign’s commission, the course for one who would act
loyally is to learn, if possible, what the sovereign’s commands really are, and
to separate from all who are not faithfully obeying them. Such a divided and
mutinous army is Christendom, but happily the course which might be impossible
for the soldier, is possible for one who would walk in subjection to Christ. To
give ear to the jarring voices of man is to plunge into a whirlpool of confusion
and contradiction. To follow, with a single eye, the teaching of God’s Word is
to ensure safety at every step of our journey. The walk of the individual
Christian, then, must be suited to his calling in Christ. As a member of His
body, he must behave consistently. If the body is not of the world, he is not of
the world; if the body is heavenly, he is heavenly. As the whole body should
manifest its true character, so should each member. Now the Church is separate
from the world, united with Christ in heaven, incorporated with Christ and
indwelt by the Spirit. If, then, the believer is to walk worthy of his vocation,
such is the character which he is to exhibit in the world, Looking at the matter
from this point of view, what is the walk which would befit a Christian? Having
a heavenly calling, how could he mix himself with the pleasures, the politics,
the vanities, and the ambitions, of the world? The ball, the theatre, the
concert, would be avoided, not because natural conscience condemned them, but as
inconsistent with the believer’s vocation. Are such scenes, he would ask, suited
for one who is associated with Christ in death and resurrection, who belongs to
heaven, and is waiting the return of the Saviour to take him there? How can I
enjoy the pleasures and frivolities of a world from which I am severed by my
heavenly calling — a world which hates my heavenly Head and contemns my heavenly
hope — a world which is rushing on at express rate to the fearful judgments that
precede the day of the Lord? Would the honours, the applause, or the high places
of such a doomed world, attract his heart? Would he not say, like Daniel, as he
saw the judgment of Babylon traced by God’s finger on the wall — "Let thy gifts
be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another; yet I will read the writing unto
the king and make known to him the interpretation."? What would Belshazzar and
his lords have thought of Daniel’s interpretation, if they had seen him
clutching at power and place in the city whose overthrow he had foretold? And
what can the world think as it sees believers grasping at the empty distinctions
of a scene on which the shadow of approaching judgment already rests? Surely it
is for those who can read the handwriting to be solemnly warning the world,
instead of chasing its fleeting honours or bidding for its worthless applause.

There are, doubtless, believers who take part in the world’s concerns from
generous and philanthropic motives — simply with a desire to do good, to relieve
sufferings, or to check the aboundings of iniquity. We cannot question their
benevolence, their high principle, or their sincere wish to do God service. But
the purest motives will not lead a Christian right, if he fails to understand
the heavenly calling; and the question still remains whether these believers,
sincere and excellent as they are, have entered into God’s thoughts about what
He would have them to do.

If God were still carrying out His earthly purposes, if His design now were to
bless or to improve the world, such a course as that indicated might be the
right one for a believer to pursue. But this is not the case. The world is not
going on to blessing, but to judgment, and a Christian is called to walk in
separation from it. If he seeks to follow the guidance of Scripture alone, what
would he say, then, to the idea of attempting, by political and social means, to
improve the world? Would he not say God has reserved the blessing of the earth
till Christ comes; am I, then, to attempt it earlier? or can I, by going on
without God, answer any good purpose? Am I more conscious of the evil than He
is, or better able to redress it? If He has clearly foretold that the world is
hastening on to the judgment it has incurred by rejecting Christ, can I arrest
the judgment by my efforts, or shall I entangle myself in the system which is
thus awaiting its doom? I am called to fellowship with Christ, and if He has bid
Christ wait, shall not I, his fellow-heir, wait with Him? If God is now calling
a people outside the world, is not this my place, instead of plunging into the
thick of its affairs, hoping to bless where God is purposing to judge? I cannot,
by becoming responsible for the world’s government, hope to avert the sentence.
And as no man would paint and ornament a house whose foundations he knew to be
giving way, the mere attempt to improve the world shows that I am not expecting
its judgment, and helps to foster the delusion that peace and safety are ahead
instead of the sadden destruction which God’s Word announces. True benevolence
demand that I warn those inside of its impending fall, instead of lulling them
into security by joining in its decoration.

All this, however, it may be contended, is mere inference from the general
principle that the Church is heavenly in character. Is this inference supported
by the directions given in the Word as to the walk of individual Christians? It
is clear that the early disciples were called to share their Master’s rejection.
"If any man," says our Lord, "will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take
up his cross, and follow Me" (Mat 16:24). He Himself was giving up the place of
earthly power, and taking that of earthly rejection. So long as such is His
attitude towards the world, that is, until His kingdom is established in glory,
this is the fellowship into which He calls His disciples. It is no remote
inference, but a direct, express statement. The cross was the punishment of
felons and slaves, not only a cruel, but a shameful, death. To take up the cross
was to assume a position outside the world, the object of the world’s enmity and
contempt. This, then, is what Jesus calls His disciples to do. Nor did this
cease with His death. "If the world hate you," He said, "ye know that it hated
Me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own;
but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world,
therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The
servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted Me, they will also
persecute you; if they have kept My saying, they will keep yours also" (John
15:18-20). This shows what the early disciples were to expect. Will it be said
that the world has changed? that Christianity has so spread as to make such
language inapplicable now? In the first of the passages just quoted, Jesus joins
His followers with Himself in rejection. For how long? No time is named, but as
He utters these words in taking up the Church character and laying aside the
Messianic, it seems clear that the rejection of His followers lasts during this
state of things. In his Messiahship, He will be exalted and His followers with
Him. This conclusion is confirmed by the other passage cited, which contrasts
two classes, the world and those who are "not of the world." These are spoken of
as opposed, not for a time, but in character and principle, and therefore as
long as the age lasts. It is asserted generally that believers are "not of the
world," and are, therefore, the objects of the world’s hatred.

I admit that the outward marks of this antagonism are much effaced. Religion has
become worldly, and the world has become religious. Christians, forgetting their
heavenly calling, have struck hands with the world, bid for its favour and
places, plunged into its pleasures and pursuits, and earned its patronage and
rewards. But does this alter the Word of God, which says that the believer is
"not of the world," or that the world hates what is not of itself? Alas! we
measure God’s truth by our own failures, and because the world tolerates a
worldly Christianity, conclude that Christ and the world are reconciled! They
are not; and if there is a truce between the world and His followers, it proves
no change of the world toward Him, but the lukewarmness of those who profess His
name. Scripture, instead of teaching that the spread of Christian profession
would soften the distinction between true believers and the world, makes it one
of the heaviest charges against the professing Church, that it has committed
fornication with the kings of the earth. The commerce between the Church and the
world is infidelity to Christ. The enmity between them shows, not the conversion
of the world to Christianity, but the conformity of Christians to the world.

Indeed, when we look at the descriptions uniformly given of the world in the New
Testament, it is amazing that there can be any doubt upon the subject. What is
the world as there portrayed? It is presented under two different, but kindred,
aspects, as the place which has rejected Christ, and as an organised system of
things with Satan at its head. Everybody admits that Christ was rejected, but
that the guilt of His rejection still clings to, and characterises, the world,
is a truth almost entirely overlooked. We are so accustomed to regard Christ’s
death from the side of God’s grace, that we forget to regard it from the side of
His government. The cross stands before our minds simply as the means by which
sin was put away, and the rejection of Christ by the sinner is deemed nothing
more than his own individual rejection of salvation. But Jesus is set forth in
Scripture both as the author of salvation, and as God’s Anointed ruler, and in
each of these characters His rejection involves much more than the loss of
personal blessing. It has a positive as well as a negative, a collective as well
as an individual, aspect. It proclaims the world guilty before God and under His
righteous judgment. "This is the condemnation, that light is come into the
world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil"
(John 3:19). Such is our Lord’s own statement as to the condemnation into which
the world is brought by its rejection of Him. Afterwards He declares, in
immediate reference to His death — "Now is the judgment of this world" (John
12:31). The same death which brings salvation to the believer brings judgment
not only upon the individuals, but upon the world. So, also, Jesus says of the
Comforter, "When He is come He will reprove [or convict] the world of sin, and
of righteousness, and of judgment; of sin, because they believe not on Me; of
righteousness, because I go to My Father, and ye see Me no more" (John 16:8-10).
This is not, as often understood, the work of the Spirit in converting the
sinner, but the testimony borne by the presence of the Spirit against the world,
demonstrating on the one hand its sin in rejecting Christ, and on the other
God’s righteousness in setting Him at His own right hand, where He is seen no
more to the eye of flesh.

It is not only, however, for having rejected Jesus as a Saviour that the world
is under condemnation. God sent His Son into this world as the Anointed one, the
rightful ruler, and the world has cast him out. Can this be a matter of
indifference to God? On the contrary, it is a matter of deepest moment. What God
sees in the world, and what He expects the believer to see, is a place guilty of
having rejected His Son as its rightful Lord. On the day of Pentecost Peter
preached Jesus as the Son of David, concerning whom "God had sworn with an oath
to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, He would raise
up the Christ to sit on his throne." This Anointed of God the Jews had "taken
and by wicked hands had crucified and slain." "Therefore," concludes the
apostle, "let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God hath made that
same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ" (Acts 2:22-36). Here
the guilt urged home upon the Jews as a people was not that of refusing a
Saviour, to their own individual loss, but of rejecting God’s Anointed, to their
own national condemnation. This guilt, however, is not confined to the Jews. In
a subsequent chapter the Holy Ghost applies the language of the Second Psalm,
where the powers of the earth are seen "gathered together against the Lord and
against His Christ" to the conduct of both Jew and Gentile in condemning Jesus;
"for of a truth against Thy holy servant Jesus, whom Thou hast anointed, both
Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were
gathered together" (Acts 4:26-27). In both these passages the charge is, not of
rejecting a Saviour, the light that came into the world, but of rejecting God’s
Anointed. Can this, however, be alleged against the world now? Assuredly it can,
for although, in our days, Christ’s title is owned in name by millions of
so-called Christians it is recognised in fact by none but real believers. His
lordship is practically denied by the world as much as ever; in other words, the
world is just as guilty of rejecting the Christ now as on the day when Jew and
Gentile combined for His crucifixion.

What, then, is the Christian’s position? He owns the lordship of One whom God
has anointed as the world’s rightful ruler, but whom the world has cast out with
every mark of hatred and contempt. Can he, then, go on hand in hand with the
world in ruling that inheritance which belongs to his Lord, but from which his
Lord is excluded? "Can two walk together unless they be agreed?" Can there be
consent as to the world’s government between those who admit Christ’s rights and
those who deny them? Let us look at the matter in the light of a parable, which
defines with beautiful precision the present relationship between Christ and the
believer on the one hand, and Christ and the world on the other. Jesus is the
nobleman who has gone "into a far country to receive for Himself a kingdom and
to return." He has entrusted His interests down here to his servants, and said
unto them, "Occupy till I come." But His rightful subjects, the world, have
"hated Him, and sent a message after Him, saying, We will not have this man to
reign over us" (Luk 19:12-14). What is the condition of these citizens? They are
in rebellion, and they are reserved for judgment. What is the duty of the
servants? To occupy till their lord’s return, but surely not to join their
forces with the citizens in the government of the city, not to accept office and
power in the place which has rejected the one whose rights they are left here to
maintain and assert. But there is another aspect in which Scripture presents the
world. Besides being the place which has rejected its rightful Ruler, it is set
before us in the Word of God as an organised system of things, with Satan at its
head. When the devil took Jesus into a high mountain, and "showed unto Him all
the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time," his offer was — "All this power
will I give Thee, and the glory of them; for that is delivered unto me, and to
whomsoever I will I give it" (Luk 4:6). Of course the Son of God does not
acknowledge his right to this dominion, but at the same time He does not deny
the fact. On the contrary, He more than once acknowledges it. Thus, when
speaking of His death, He says — "Now is the judgment of this world, now shall
the prince of this world be cast out" (John 12:31). Here He is looking to the
results of His death, which are regarded as immediately following, though in
reality they have not yet been accomplished. Who, then, is "the prince of this
world"? It cannot be Himself, for He says soon afterwards — "The prince of this
world cometh and hath nothing in Me" (John 14:30). He also speaks of the Holy
Ghost as convicting the world "of judgment, because the prince of this world is
judged" (John 16:11). The prince of this world, then, here spoken of is not
Christ but one who has nothing in Christ, one who is judged and cast out by Him.
It can be none other than Satan, who had before made this claim without
contradiction in Christ’s presence. Nor did the work of the cross immediately
dispossess Satan of this usurped dominion, any more than it immediately brought
judgment on the world or drew all men to Christ. After His death, Satan’s power
is still recognised. Thus we are told, by the Apostle Paul, that "the god of
this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not" (2Co 4:4). Writing
to the Ephesians, he says — "In time past ye walked according to the course of
this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now
worketh in the children of disobedience" (Eph 2:2). Later in the epistle he
writes — "We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities,
against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against wicked
spirits in heavenly places" (Eph 6:12). What is the darkness of this world?
Christ is the light, and that which rejects Christ is blinded by "the god of
this world," and is in darkness. The world, then, as distinguished from
believers, who "are not of this world," has a ruler, and that ruler is Satan. In
writing to the Colossians (Col 1:13), the apostle says that God "hath delivered
us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of the
Son of His love." Who "the power of darkness" is, we see from the text last
quoted. It is from his dominion that grace has delivered us, and the world,
those who are not delivered, are still under him. John, too, in like manner,
declares that "we are of God, and the whole world lieth in the wicked one" (1Jn
5:19). This is very solemn, for it shows not only that Satan has great power of
evil in the world, but that the world is looked at in Scripture as an organised
system of which Satan is the head, the prince, and the god.

We need scarcely say that this power is not absolute, that it does not prevent
God working in His providence, or carrying out His great governmental purposes.
To what extent Satan’s power reaches, it would, perhaps, be very difficult to
say, and it is no part of our object to discuss. Two facts are, however, to be
noted — first, that his power is at present restrained by the presence of the
Holy Ghost down here, "for He who now letteth will let until He be taken out of
the way" (2Th 2:7) — next, that when this curb is removed, his boldness in
wickedness and his dominion over the world will for a time be unchecked, and he
will dispose of the dominion of the world, giving to the beast "his power, and
his seat, and great authority" (Rev 13:2). This will last but a short time, and
will end in his own discomfiture and captivity. But until that time, however
Satan’s dominion may be restrained, Scripture owns him as being, in fact, the
god and the prince of this world, the real instigating power in the hearts of
men, the one in obedience to whose direction man’s schemes are organised and his
affairs governed. True, this is only by sufferance — but whose sufferance? The
sufferance of God. And is it not a deeply solemn and significant fact that God
should be withholding the kingdom of the world from His Son, and allowing it to
be usurped by Satan? Is it not enough to warn every believer from taking part in
the world’s affairs, or seeking the world’s approval and support? What is God
opposing to the power of Satan? Simply the presence of His Spirit as the witness
for Christ. Do Christians think that they know better? Do they suppose that by
taking a different course, by setting the world to improve the world, by
appealing to its suffrages to set things straight, they can really alter its
character or deliver it from Satan’s dominion under which God has left it? Is it
wiser — is it more reverent — to attempt that which God is not concerned in,
that which His Word tells can only end in fearful failure; or to walk in
fellowship with Him, holding aloof from the world and its affairs, and in the
power of the Spirit, setting forth the Christ in whom alone deliverance from the
world and its judgment is to be found — gathering a people out of the world to
the One whom God has set at His own right hand in glory, and by whom in His time
the sceptre of the world will be righteously wielded, and the blessing of the
world surely accomplished? But did not Jesus, it may be asked, go about doing
good? And may not the possession of political power and interference in the
world’s concerns, be the means of doing great good? This, however, is man’s
reasoning, and the place of a believer is not to reason, but to obey. Looked at
broadly, in the light of God’s truth, a Christian cannot do good by political
action, for the end to which everything is working is plainly taught in the
Word, and that end is not good, but awfully bad. Leaving, however, the domain of
argument, and falling back on Scripture, what does the Word teach us?
Undoubtedly it tells us that Jesus went about doing good, and it tells us, too,
that believers are placed here for the same object for which He was here — "As
Thou hast sent Me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world"
(John 17:18). How, then, did Jesus do good? Was it by the exercise of political
power? Was it by worldly combinations and societies? Was it by seeking popular
support? Himself the only One who had a right to rule, or whose rule could bring
blessing, He absolutely declined to receive power. Offered by the devil, He at
once detected and denounced the deceiver. Asked to take the place of an arbiter,
he replied, "Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?" (Luk 12:14).
Perceiving that the people "would come, and take Him by force to make Him a
king, He departed again into a mountain Himself alone" (John 6:15). In private
none ever laboured as He to do good. But the time for public and governmental
blessing to the earth had not yet come. The sceptre was not yet put into His
hands by the only One who had a right to bestow it, and He would receive it from
no other. If the sceptre was not given by His Father, it must be taken either
from the "god of this world," or from man, and from neither of these would He
accept it. In what respect are things altered? Has God yet changed His mode of
dealing with the world? Can the Christian receive power from hands from which
Christ refused it? Or will God give it to the fellow-heirs, while He is yet
withholding it from the One whom He has made heir of all things? But are not the
powers that be ordained of God? Unquestionably they are. Civil government is a
direct trust from God, and the ruler is responsible to God for the way in which
He exercises it. The maintenance of peace and order is according to God’s
institution, and therefore Christians are commanded not only to render
obedience, but to yield suitable homage, and to remember those charged with
authority in their prayers. But though instituted by God, it is left to man, to
the world, and a world which lies in the wicked one, to administer. The time
when it can be administered according to God’s plans, the time when it will be
used to work out God’s purposes of blessing to the earth, has not yet arrived,
and will not arrive until the throne of Christ is established in Zion. The use
which man is making of this institution is to bring about the fearful state of
things preceding the judgments executed by Christ, and surely no Christian would
wish to have any hand in forwarding this gloomy catastrophe.

It is most significant, then, that while the New Testament Scriptures give ample
directions for the behaviour of the husband to the wife and the wife to the
husband, of the children to the parent and the parent to the children, of the
servant to the master and the master to the servant, and while they also lay
down the conduct proper from a subject to the powers that be, they give no
directions whatever as to the way of executing political trust. A Christian
under authority has ample directions how to act. A Christian wielding political
power has no directions at all. Why this omission? True, Christians at the time
when the New Testament was written, were not in a state to exercise political
power; but if God had meant them to be placed in this position of
responsibility, would He have withheld instructions as to the way in which they
were to fill it? Was He so short-sighted that He omitted to provide for a state
of things which would receive His sanction; or did He expressly withhold all
directions, because the position was one to which his sanction could not be
given? The character of believers as "not of the world," as associated with
Christ in His "patience," as fellow-heirs with Him whom God has not yet put in
possession of the inheritance, fully explains the omission — and nothing else
can. Strange, indeed, if He had authorised and instructed the fellow heirs of
Christ to take part in bringing about that state of things which they will
shortly be associated with Christ in judging and overturning! And this is all
the more striking from the contrast which it presents with the Old Testament
teaching. There God speaks to a people, who, instead of being outside the world,
are expressly promised the most favoured position, and the most abundant
blessing in the world. For their guidance the fullest political and legal
directions are provided. What treatment to give to captured cities, what
exemptions to make from military service, what number of witnesses to require in
criminal trials, what courts to establish for disputed, questions, what
punishments to inflict for particular offences, these and other kindred matters
are laid down with a precision suited to the worldly character of the subject
with which they deal. As might be expected, where the righteous regulation of
society was the object, strict assertion of right is the pervading principle;
"an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth," fairly summarises its spirit.
Indeed, such must be. the spirit of any code for the equitable government of man
on the earth. But is this the code laid down for the Christian to follow? No,
the Christian is "not of the world," and the directions given him are suited to
his heavenly character and his association with the "patience" of Christ. He is
a follower of Him who "was brought as a lamb to the slaughter," "who, when He
was reviled, reviled not again; when He suffered, He threatened not; but
committed Himself to Him that judgeth righteously." How, then, is the believer
to act? In just the same way. "If, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take
it patiently, this is acceptable with God; for even hereunto were ye called,
because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that ye should follow
His steps" (1Pe 2:20-23). Such, too, are our Lord’s own directions. Instead of
demanding "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth," as the Israelite was to
do, His instructions are — "Resist not evil, but whosoever shall smite thee on
thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any man will sue thee at the
law and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also. And whosoever shall
compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain" (Mat 5:39-41). And this, though
strongly put, is no figure of speech. Paul exclaims, as though the idea was
shocking to entertain — "Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to
law before the unjust, and not before the saints?" It is incredible that
"brother goeth to law with brother and that before the unbelievers. Now,
therefore, there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with
another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? Why do ye not rather suffer yourselves
to be defrauded?" (1Co 6:1-7). Imagine such language addressed to a Jew! It is
absolutely subversive of the whole principle on which the institutions of his
state were founded — absolutely ruinous to any scheme of righteous government on
earth. Why, then, is it urged, as an almost self-evident principle, on the
believer? Because the believer is not of the world. He belongs to Christ. True,
he will judge the world, and judge angels, but this will be with Christ; and if
Christ waits for this time, so must he. He is not even to assert his rights now,
but is called to suffer wrong as Christ did; not to render "evil for evil, or
railing for railing, but, contrariwise, blessing" — not to avenge himself, "but
rather give place unto wrath" (1Pe 3:9; Rom 12:19). Is it not a sad departure
from the lofty position and heavenly association into which the believer is
called, for him to step down to regulate the affairs of a world where Christ has
no place, and where Satan reigns as prince and god? "Our politics;" says the
apostle — for that is the tine meaning of the word — "are in heaven, from whence
also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ" (Php 3:20). On the night of
their deliverance from Egypt, the Israelites were told to keep the passover
beneath the shelter of the blood-sprinkled lintel. "And thus shall ye eat it:
with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand"
(Exo 12:11). Could a people thus waiting for the call to depart give their time
and attention to the affairs of Egypt? had they not heard that judgment was
coming? Did, they not believe what the Lord had said — "For I will pass through
the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the first born in the land of
Egypt, both man and beast, and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute
judgment: I am the Lord"? (Exo 12:12). Is our position less solemn, less
momentous? Are the commands to us less stringent? Is the judgment hanging over
the world less real, less awful, or less certain? The commands are identical. To
the faithful servants He says "Let your loins be girded about, and your lights
burning and ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their Lord" (Luk
12:35-36). The threatened judgment, on the unfaithful and on the world is
identical too — "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). If it
would have been unnatural for an Israelite to busy himself on that fatal night
with the concerns of the land over which the arm of the destroyer was already
upraised, is it less a departure from out true place, is it less inconsistent
with our heavenly calling, for us to be occupying ourselves about the affairs of
a world in which we are but strangers and sojourners, — a world from which we
may at any moment be summoned to depart — a world over which the black clouds of
impending judgment are already hanging? No wonder that the apostle should begin
his practical exhortation to the Romans — "Be not conformed to this world" (Rom
12:2). The word, indeed, is age, but "this age," as we have seen, means the
world during the present order of things, in contrast with "the age to come,"
the period of Christ’s blessed reign. While, therefore, it is important to
distinguish between "the end of this age;’ and "the end of the world" — two very
different epochs — it is not necessary to distinguish between the world and "the
age," when used to describe the state of things in which we now live. Thus
employed, the word kosmos, generally found in John, is practically synonymous
with the word aiôn generally found in the writings of Paul. Why, then, is the
Christian not to be conformed to the world? For two reasons; first, because it
is an evil world from which Jesus died that He might set us free — "who gave
Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil world,
according to the will of our God and Father" (Gal 1:4); and next, because, being
associated with Jesus in death and resurrection, our relationships with this
world are broken, and the ground of our glorying now is "the cross of our Lord
Jesus Christ, whereby the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world" (Gal
6:14). What was it that distinguished the past life of the Ephesian believers
from their present life? "In time past ye walked according to the course of this
world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now
worketh in the children of disobedience" (Eph 2:4). Surely there is something
most solemn and instructive in the way in which conformity to the world is here
set side by side with conformity to the will of Satan. Yet not more solemn, or
full of deeper significance, than the description of those "whose end is
destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame — who
mind earthly things" (Php 3:19). The believer is "risen with Christ," and to
him, therefore, the exhortation is addressed — "Set your affection on things
above, not on things on the earth" (Col 3:2).

Such, then, is the character of the world as gathered from the writings of Paul.
It is a thing to which we are not to be conformed; a thing from which Christ
died to deliver us; a thing to which we are crucified, and which is crucified to
us; a thing in the ways of which the godless walk; a thing by the minding of
which those are characterised "whose end is destruction;" a thing from which our
affections are to be transferred that they may be set on things above. In the
apostle to whom it was given in special manner to develop the truth of the
Church, this teaching is peculiarly striking, but it is not by Paul alone that
the world is held out as unsuited for the Christian. "Ye adulterers and
adulteresses," asks James, addressing himself to those who were holding commerce
with the world, "know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with
God? Whosoever, therefore, will be a friend of the world, is the enemy of God"
(Jas 4:4). And yet, what are Christians doing, on all hands, but bidding for
popularity, courting the applause of the multitude, seeking to be the friends of
the world where their Master received nothing but a cross? "Love not the world,
neither the things that are in the world," writes the beloved disciple. "If any
man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the
world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life,
is not of the Father, but is of the world" (1Jn 2:15-16). Alas! what a
commentary on this Divine lesson to behold Christians rushing with all the
eagerness of partisans into the strife of worldly factions, grasping at the
riches and the pleasures, the splendours and the emoluments, the powers and the
applause, of a sin-stricken, Satan-governed, death doomed world, from whose
defilement they are told to keep themselves unspotted, and from whose friendship
they are bidden to hold themselves aloof! And why is this? Simply because
Christians have lost the sense of the heavenly nature of their calling.
Believing that God is going to improve the world, they suppose themselves set
here to improve it, instead of to come out of it. They think they can make it
better by mingling with it, instead of seeing that the only blessing they can
confer upon it is to separate from it, and warn it of the wrath to come. They
yoke themselves unequally with unbelievers to drag along the car of "modern
progress," the Juggernaut of our day, forgetting that the world which is
harnessed with them is lying in the wicked one, and never asking "what
fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness, what communion hath light
with darkness, what concord hath Christ with Belial?" (2Co 6:14-15). Alas! if
they only knew that this modern progress was leading to all the horrors and
judgments which are even now ready to burst like a tempest upon the world. They
quote such texts as our Lord’s entreaty — "I pray not that Thou shouldest take
them out of the world, but that Thou shouldest keep them from the evil" (John
17:15) — as though this meant that they might go hand in hand with the world,
provided they avoided certain gross wickedness; as though the very next verse
did not expressly declare that "they are not of the world;" as though the whole
teaching of the New Testament did not show the world to be evil and at enmity
with Christ; and as though it were not obvious that a people who did not belong
to the world, but were left in it, would be most effectually preserved from its
evil by avoiding its associations, separating from its pursuits, and refusing
its friendships.

Let us take the text with its neighbouring verses, and see how the whole passage
reads. "And now," says our Lord, "come I to Thee, and these things I speak in
the world that they might have My joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them
Thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even
as I am not of the world. I pray not that Thou shouldest take them out of the
world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the
world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through Thy truth; Thy word
is truth. As Thou hast sent Me into the world, even so have I also sent them
into the world" (John 17:13-18). Our relationship with the world, then, is the
same as Christ’s is now. We are as much separated from it in character as He is.
We are, indeed, left in it, just as He was in it. But as He did not seek by
human efforts, by political organisations, by philanthropic societies, by any
fleshly or worldly means, to make it better, so that is not our object. He came
to testify of the Father, to manifest the Father; and as He witnessed for the
One who sent Him, so we are to witness for the One who has sent us. He has
pronounced the flesh to be hopelessly bad, and never sets the flesh to cure the
flesh. The attempt to do so only shows ignorance of God’s truth and God’s manner
of working, only proves that we have not yet learnt what man is, and that in us,
that is in our flesh, there dwells no good thing. True, we may make the world
more comfortable; we may have our Jubals to "handle the harp and organ," our
Tubal-Cains, "instructors of every artificer in brass and iron;" we may eat and
drink, buy and sell, plant and build; but what is the end of it all? Sudden
destruction! Is this the sort of thing to occupy the heart of a Christian who is
bidden to wait for the coming of his Lord? Is there not something unspeakably
melancholy in the stories one has read of condemned criminals dressing
themselves out in the full height of the fashion to go forth to the scaffold?
And is there not something incomparably more ghastly and appalling in the
spectacle of a world tricking itself out in all the finery of modern ideas, the
intellectualities, the refinements, the elevating pursuits and objects by which
it seeks to make to itself a name, and build a tower whose top shall reach to
heaven, when all the while the lightnings of God’s judgment are ready to
descend, and leave it a blackened mass of ruin and desolation? And why have we
gone thus at length into the teaching of Scripture upon this point? Simply to
show that the Church is, not figuratively, but literally, a thing separate from
and outside the world. The directions given to individual Christians correspond
in every respect with the inferences we should have drawn from the character of
the Church as traced in previous chapters, and bring out in clearer colours the
heavenly character of our present calling. That this heavenly character should
be exhibited in the world, and to the world, is what God requires at our hands;
it is what is involved in walking worthy of the vocation wherewith we are
called. But if these are shown forth according to Christ’s example, what will be
the result? Because these virtues "are not of the world," the world will hate
us. There is the widest possible difference between exhibiting the patience,
gentleness, love, mercy, and self-sacrifice of Christ, and striving, however
laboriously, to improve, elevate, and benefit mankind. The one excites the
world’s hatred; the other wins its applause. The one brings real blessing to man
by setting Christ before him; the other puffs him up with the idea of
self-improvement, and blinds his eyes to his true condition in God’s sight. The
one glorifies God by making Him the sole object before the heart; the other runs
in opposition to His thoughts, making man’s blessing the object, at a time when
Christ, the only source of blessing, has separated Himself from the world, and
is calling out a people to share his separation. The one looks the judgment
fairly in the face, and points man to the only refuge in which he can be
sheltered from the storm; the other shuts its eyes to the signs of the time,
stops its ears to the mutterings of the approaching tempest and bids man go on
with his own schemes, his own improvements, his own inventions, as though the
coming wrath were nothing but an idle tale.

CHAPTER V. THE CHURCH ON EARTH — ITS UNITY.

Though the Church is heavenly in calling, character, and connection, it is
outwardly still in the world, and, as thus placed, needs special guidance and
keeping. For this our Lord prays — "And now I am no more in the world, but these
are in the world, and I come to Thee. Holy Father, keep through Thine own name
those whom Thou hast given Me, that they may be one, as We are" (John 17:11).
The perfection of the Church as the body of Christ we have already seen; as also
how its heavenly character defines the walk suited to the believer. But the
believer has not only to walk as an individual; he is a member of Christ, and
this, besides putting him outside the world, puts him inside the assembly. He
has duties and relationships in connection with his fellow members, and the
whole body of believers have a corporate character to sustain in the world. The
Church has its Divine order, its Divine principles of governments and our
inquiry now is what the Word of God teaches us on this subject. But here it may
be asked — Is there any order laid down in Scripture? Is not the matter left to
the choice and judgment of individuals, according to the varying character of
their own minds? May it not be regulated on principles of convenience or
expediency, differing in different countries, different ages, and different
circumstances? To this I would reply that such a mode of leaving the Church
would be in accordance neither with God’s general principle of action, nor with
His special care of the assembly. It is not in accordance with God’s general
principle of action to leave anything to be settled by man’s wisdom. "The world
by wisdom knew not God." The effect of preaching even the truth of God with
"wisdom of words" is that "the cross of Christ" is "made of none effect." To
those who seek after wisdom, Christ crucified is only "foolishness." In a word,
man’s wisdom is set completely on one side by the cross, and the effect of
bringing in man’s thoughts and self-will in the things of God has always been
most disastrous. When David attempted to fetch up the ark to Jerusalem in his
own way instead of God’s way, the result was the "breach of Uzzah." He had taken
counsel with his captains instead of the Lord, and though he was doing a right
thing, he found how bitter were the fruits of following man’s wisdom as to the
way in which it was to be done. Man’s wisdom cannot be allowed, and can only
bring in mischief, when it is exercised in the things of God. God has His own
order, and the path of faith is not to reason, but to obey. And if this is the
general principle on which God acts — if it is the necessary consequence of the
alienation of the flesh from God, and His setting aside of the old man by the
cross — how unworthy would it have been of God to act on a different principle
with respect to the Church. As a heavenly people they are the peculiar object of
His delight; but as a heavenly people placed here on the earth, they stand in
special need of guidance how to conduct themselves in a scene where they are
only strangers and pilgrims. Would God, then, put His own chosen heavenly people
in the midst of a hostile world, without laying down the principles which should
regulate their collective action? If the assembly, as seen in Christ, is the
display of God’s manifold wisdom "unto the principalities and powers in heavenly
places," was the assembly, as seen on earth, not meant to exhibit God’s wisdom
also? Is it merely individually that we are to witness for Christ? Is the
wonderful work wrought at Pentecost by which all believers were baptized into
one body, to be wholly invisible to the world — wholly useless in the way of
testimony? God has given His own Word to direct our individual walk — "Sanctify
them through Thy truth, Thy Word is truth" (John 17:17) Has He left us without
guide, then, as to the order suitable for his assembly? Has He handed over to
that wisdom which knew not God, the completion of the work which He began in His
own wisdom? Surely the very thought is dishonouring to his name! To have shaped
us into the must wondrous union ever known, making us the very body and bride of
Christ in heaven, and then to have abandoned us to our own guidance, leaving us
to form ourselves in all sorts of associations according to our own "views" or"
tastes," instead of giving us a Divine pattern and Divine rules to govern all
our ways — surely this is not the mode in which our God deals with His children

True, He has given us the Spirit; but does the Spirit ever act independently of
the Word? In guiding individual conduct, the Spirit acts by unfolding the Word
to the understanding, and applying it to the conscience. The Word is the sole
standard, and any conduct which does not conform to the Word is, at once, by the
spiritually minded, judged as the working of the flesh, and not of the Holy
Ghost. If this is the standard for individual conduct, is it less so for the
action of the assembly? Does not the Holy Ghost guide there in the same way, and
if rules and appointments are made without the authority of the Word, should not
the spiritually minded set these down also as the working of the natural heart,
instead of receiving them as the acts of the Spirit of God? It is impossible
that a dozen different modes of Church government and order can all be in
accordance with the Word. How, then, can it be said that they are the work of
the Spirit of God? And if not, how can the Spirit’s guidance be looked for in
carrying them out? Not that I question for a moment the blessing of God on the
faithful preaching of His truth in any system. But this grace does not sanction
the system which is not according to His Word, or lessen the responsibility of
believers with respect to their connection with such a system. Either God has
laid down an order for His assembly, or He has left it to man’s will to do so.
If He has laid down an order, it is clearly obligatory upon all, and every
departure from that order is an act of disobedience. If He has left the order to
the will and wisdom of man, what but confusion and division could possibly
ensue?

We shall see, as we look into the Scriptures, that God, instead of leaving the
government of the assembly to the wisdom of man, has emphatically repudiated and
excluded any such intrusion; and that He has Himself undertaken to legislate for
that Church, which is the dearest object to His heart, the brightest display of
His wisdom, and the chosen bride of His beloved Son. What then, is His Divine
and perfect order? The conduct enjoined upon the individual saint corresponds
with the heavenly nature of his calling. In like manner the Church on earth is
to be, as it were, the mirror of God’s thoughts with respect to it. Now the
Church, when viewed according to the mind of God, is a unity, a single body —
the body of Christ — formed, and connected with its living Head, by the Holy
Ghost sent down to abide here on earth. Thus formed into oneness in and with
Christ, it is separate from the world, is heavenly in its character, and is to
have its place down here, as a witness for an absent Christ, and as waiting His
return to take it to glory. Its gatherings are to be "in the name of our Lord
Jesus Christ" only (1Co 5:4), and the smallest number thus gathered have His
presence and His administrative power in their midst. Such is the Church,
according to God’s institution, and all the directions for its government are in
Divine harmony with this general character. The first great principle is that it
is a unity, the body of Christ. This, no doubt, is a figure, but it is one which
the Holy Ghost constantly employs, and that to show the union of members with
one another as well as with Christ, their dependence upon one another as well as
upon Christ. If the Church is the body of Christ, believers are "one body in
Christ, and every one members one of another" (Rom 12:5). Therefore, "the eye
cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee; nor again the head to the
feet, I have no need of you" (1Co 12:21). Nay, more, if "one member suffer, all
the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice
with it" (1Co 12:26). The body, therefore, though a figure, is not a mere
fugitive metaphor, true to a certain point, and then failing in its application.
It is a figure constantly recurring, and used to show the closest possible union
among believers. Since, however, the Church is one body, the body of Christ,
part of the testimony which it is called upon to bear is the manifestation of
this oneness on earth. This much we may safely infer, for the Church down here,
as instituted by God, was the reflection to the world of what it was in His own
thoughts, and man’s responsibility was to keep it such. The Holy Ghost, however,
has not left us to inferences. Knowing the immense importance of the point, and
the effort which Satan would make to divert man from God’s thoughts, He has
given us the clearest instructions on the matter.

Thus Jesus prays the Father — "Keep through Thine own name those whom Thou hast
given Me, that they may be one, as We are" (John 17:11). Here oneness is asked,
and a most blessed character of oneness — a transcript of that transcendent
oneness of the Father and the Son. The oneness of nature is, indeed, a depth
which man’s intellect can never fathom, but the oneness of purpose and of love
has been divinely manifested. This oneness, then, at least, believers are to
exhibit to the world. True, the Lord is not here speaking of the Church; but He
is speaking of those whom the Holy Ghost was just about to form into the Church:
and this oneness was to be exhibited in those who constituted the Church. The
baptism of the Holy Ghost surely could not weaken the obligation, or lower the
character, of the oneness here prayed for.

It may be objected, however, that Jesus speaks only of the apostles; also that
this oneness was not to be outward and visible, but only in spirit, as seen by
God. Let us look, then, at another text. "Neither pray I for these alone, but
for them also which shall believe on Me through their word; that they all may be
one, as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us;
that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me. And the glory which Thou
gavest Me, I have given them, that they may be one even as We are one. I in
them, and Thou in Me, that they may be made perfect in one" (John 17:20-23).
Here Jesus prays for all them "which shall believe on Me through their word."
Surely each believer will eagerly claim his part in this. But if all believers
are included, the Lord’s request for them all is that they may be made one even
as He Himself was one with the Father. And so far was this oneness from being
invisible to the world, that it was to be the evidence to the world of the
Father’s having sent the Son. If God meant it to be a testimony to the world, He
must have meant it to be something which the world could see. If, therefore, the
oneness of believers is not visible to the world, the Church has failed in its
testimony. There may be abundant individual testimony that the Father has sent
the Son; but the testimony here named, the testimony which was to be borne by
the manifest oneness of believers, cannot come from a divided Church. Nor is
this all. This oneness, which, as we have seen, was to be manifested as a
testimony to the world, is linked by the Lord with the glory which He had
received from the Father, and given to believers. "The glory which Thou gavest
Me, I have given them, that they may be one even as We are one." Thus the
special glory bestowed upon believers, nay, the very glory given to Christ
Himself, is bound up, as to outward manifestation, with the visible unity of His
disciples. How grieving to His spirit then, how dishonouring to His name, the
present divided state of those to whom this wondrous charge was committed! No
doubt there is a wide difference between unity and uniformity; for the
uniformity which does not spring out of unity is a mere lifeless pretence. No
doubt, too, the unity here spoken of is unity of spirit But how will unity of
spirit show itself? In endless divisions? In splitting into innumerable
fragments? In presenting to the world the most perfect possible exhibition of
want of unity? Granted that the so-called Church which boasts loudest of unity
has nothing better than a hollow and soulless uniformity — does it follow,
because a counterfeit uniformity, which is not of God, has once existed, that a
true uniformity, the fruit of unity of spirit, was not God’s purpose? Real unity
of spirit would produce uniformity, and in the Church, as set up by God, we find
both. The figures used to describe this oneness, show its true character.
Believers were to be one even as the Father and Son are one. Could anything be
conceived more perfect, both as to its inward character and as to its outward
manifestation? Such, then, is the oneness which should bind together believers,
and bear testimony, here in the world, to the Father’s having sent the Son. Will
anybody say that modern Christendom, or the Church, presents such a testimony?
But in another figure believers are said to be one body. If the first presents
the most perfect picture of oneness to the heart, this presents the most perfect
image to the senses. A body cut in pieces may still be one to the mind of the
anatomist; but it is not one to the eye of the world. God doubtless discerns
amongst the scattered members the oneness of the body of Christ, but to the
world they are only disjointed limbs, with no union subsisting among them. Such
assuredly was not the thought of God. But whence comes this disruption of
outward, visible unity? The differences are on points of doctrine, discipline,
organisation and other similar matters. It may be said that on such subjects
there must always be difference from the various structure of the human mind. No
doubt if man’s will and judgment are allowed to work at all, such differences
must exist. But God opens no door for man’s thoughts to enter. He has not left
those matters to be settled by the human mind. Had the Church been faithful,
Christ’s presence in its midst would have decided all questions. With the Word
as the infallible guide, and the Holy Ghost as the infallible interpreter, no
diversity of judgment could have manifested itself. What brought in difference
of judgment was want of subjection to God’s thoughts. Man put his own wisdom in
the place of God’s. The Spirit’s guidance was no longer sufficient for him, and
he began exercising his own judgment, dragging in worldly philosophy, choosing
teachers according to his own tastes, and forming schools of doctrine to suit
his own inclinations. No doubt this arises from the constitution of’ man’s
nature. But does this excuse it? To the spiritual eye, it only proves more
conclusively how evil it is. "The natural man receiveth not the things of the
Spirit of God." To say, then, that it is natural, is only to say that it is
contrary to God’s mind. Does Scripture palliate these divisions because they are
natural? Nay, this is just the ground on which it condemns them. "And I,
brethren," writes the apostle. "could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but
as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. I have fed you with milk, and not
with meat; for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye
able. For ye are yet carnal; for whereas there is among you envying and strife,
and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men? For while one saith, I am of
Paul; and another, I am of Apollos, are ye not carnal?" (1Co 3:1-4). Here, then,
the Holy Ghost clearly teaches that sects and divisions are not of God, but of
man, that they are the results of unspirituality, carnality, and walking as men.
Yet Christians defend them as the result of man’s nature. "We are only walking
as men," they say. "If you are walking as men," replies the apostle, "you are
carnal, and I cannot speak to you as spiritual." What a fearful chasm between
the thoughts of Christians and the thoughts of Christ! The Holy Ghost has shown
in another portion of this same epistle the true origin of these divisions, and
God’s judgment concerning them. He says — "In this that I declare unto you I
praise you not, that ye come together, not for the better, but for the worse.
For, first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be
divisions (or schisms) among you; and I partly believe it. For there must be
also sects among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among
you" (1Co 11:17-19). Now here He names these divisions as matter for blame, and
declares their assembling to be for the worse, and not for the better, while
these exist. True, He says, they must be — but why? In order that the faithful
may be separated from the unfaithful. Does this, then, sanction the divisions?
Our Lord says "Woe unto the world because of offences! for it must needs be that
offences come; but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh!" (Mat 18:7). Here
Jesus distinctly declares that offences must come, but does He, therefore,
sanction or excuse the offence? He knew what was in man, and predicts the sad
result, but only to denounce judgment against him who brings it about. In like
manner the Holy Ghost, speaking through Paul in the passage above quoted,
foretells, what indeed was already partly visible, the divisions which man’s
will and infidelity to the truth would introduce into the Church, and the
sifting process through which the faithful would thus be called to pass. But He
no more sanctions those divisions than Christ sanctions the offences which He
declares to be necessary. On the contrary, although He foresaw them to be
inevitable from man’s nature, He distinctly declares thorn to be evil.

How does the apostle exhort them? Does he say — "These things are inevitable;
all men cannot see eye to eye; to run everybody into the same mould would
destroy originality, create a dull uniformity, and sap the emulation necessary
to religious growth and fervour"? Alas! such reasoning is the working of the
natural heart, which putting away God’s Word as the infallible guide, and the
Holy Ghost as the infallible interpreter, sets up human thoughts and
speculations in their place. How different the language of the apostle! "The
weapons of our warfare," he says, "are not carnal, but mighty through God to the
pulling down of strongholds, casting down imaginations (or reasonings) and every
high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into
captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ" (2Co 10:4-5). Man’s
reasonings, instead of being allowed, are the very things which the weapons of
Paul’s warfare were to overthrow. Instead of the reasonings of the natural
heart, he would bring every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.
And what does this obedience require? "I beseech you, brethren, by the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no
divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind
and in the same judgment" (1Co 1:10). Is this impracticable? Why, then, does the
Holy Ghost demand it? If man’s will has a place, then it is impracticable; but
not if every thought is brought into captivity to the obedience of Christ. The
apostle, however, goes further, and characterises these divisions in language
which should make the believer’s ears to tingle. "It hath been declared unto me
of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are
contentions among you. Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of
Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. Is Christ divided? Was
Paul crucified for you? Or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?" (1Co 1:11-13).
Now let us consider for a moment what it is that the apostle is here dealing
with. It was a tendency among the Corinthian saints to form themselves into
different schools of doctrine according to their preference for particular
teachers. Up to this time it had created no schism in the eyes of the world. One
party had not declined to meet at the Lord’s table with the other, and gone off
to form a separate gathering. In a word, the tendency had not yet produced any
of the fruit which is so plentiful in our days, and if evil, it was evil in a
much milder form than that with which we are familiar. But does this cause the
apostle to speak lightly of it? Does it make him describe it in gentle terms?
Mark his solemn language. "Is Christ divided?" he asks; "Was Paul crucified for
you?" The meaning of this is, that as the Church is the body of Christ, the
division of the Church, even in the mild form it had then taken, was the
division of Christ Himself. So completely was the Church down here to be the
pattern of God’s thoughts, that to one who was really in the mind of God, the
idea of its division was as monstrous as the idea of a divided Christ. Such was
the Church as established by God; such was His judgment of those divisions which
man now either glories in as a proof of his own freedom, or defends as the
inevitable, and therefore allowable, result of the working of his natural mind!

It may be said that all sects meet in the name of Christ; that the other titles
by which they distinguish themselves do not supersede the name of Christ, but
are only added to it; and that nobody proposes, in taking a badge, to put that
badge on an equality with the common badge of all believers, faith in the person
and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. I cheerfully admit the truth of such a
statement, but in this respect what difference is there between the various
sects of Christendom and the Corinthians? Whatever difference there is places
the Corinthians in the better light. They still maintained outward oneness. They
had their favourite teachers and doctrines, but never dreamed of putting these
teachers up as against Christ. All they did was to be occupied with the teachers
and doctrines so as to prevent their oneness in Christ having full and perfect
expression. Will anybody venture to say that the dishonour done to Christ by
their conduct would have been removed if, instead of having their preferences,
they had broken into various sects, met in different places, on conflicting
principles, and shown to the whole world, not the picture of oneness which the
apostle demands, but the picture of division and dispersion which we see in
modern Christendom? Is it not manifest that such a spectacle would have been
infinitely worse than that which the apostle here mourns over? Is it not certain
that the strong language in which he condemns the divisions that had already
shown themselves, would have been intensified a thousand-fold could he have
foreseen the present state of things? The unity of believers was to show to the
world Christ’s mission from the Father and His oneness with the Church. The
division of believers shows the contrary of all this. It exhibits, not the truth
of God, but the lie of man. Oh, that Christians would ponder over those solemn
words, "Is Christ divided?" and thus learn to judge, in the light of God’s
thoughts, the condition of affairs in which they now find so much cause for
congratulation.

Hence everything that indicated the slightest division is condemned. That
indifference to God’s Word, now called "charity" and "broadness," which says —
"you think your way and I mine" — was unknown to Paul. He must have every
thought in captivity to the obedience of Christ. To the world’s philosophy and
reasonings he opposes the cross. "If ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments
of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances .
. . after the commandments and doctrines of men?" (Col 2:20-22). Not that he
expected equal intelligence in all, but there is no hint that those with
different measures of intelligence were to separate from one another. "Him that
is weak in the faith," he says, "receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations"
(Rom 14:1), or again — "Whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the
same rule, let us mind the same thing" (Php 3:16).

Indeed in one who saw in the divisions of believers the division of Christ, how
could even the shadow of sectarianism fail to create alarm? No wonder he should
write — "Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and
offences, contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned, and avoid them. For
they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly" (Rom
16:17-18). In addressing the Ephesian elders he forewarns them that of their
"own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples
after them" (Acts 20:30). Here again, the formation of sects and parties is
ascribed by Paul to the perverse action of man’s will in opposition to the
teaching of the Holy Ghost. In the same spirit Jude writes, telling the
believers that "there should be mockers in the last time, who should walk after
their own ungodly lusts," adding — "These be they who separate themselves,
sensual, having not the Spirit" (Jude 1:19). Is it not a deeply solemn thing to
see how the Word speaks of the separation and division which were to creep into
the Church of God? Such, however, is the Lord’s estimate of the origin of sects.
Yet modern Christendom actually glories in them as a proof of intellectual life!
How different the apostle’s prayer — "Now the God of patience and consolation
grant you to be like-minded one towards another, according to Christ Jesus, that
ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ" (Rom 15:5-6). It is not divided worship that God seeks any more
than a divided Christ.

Nay, the very purpose for which God has "set the members every one of them in
the body, as it hath pleased Him," — the very reason for which He "hath tempered
the body together, having given more abundant honour to that part which lacked,"
is "that there should be no schism in the body" (1Co 12:18-25). In the Lord’s
supper, the touching memorial left behind Him by Christ of His dying love, the
same oneness is beautifully set forth — "For we, being many, are one bread (or
loaf) and one body; for we are all partakers of that one loaf" (1Co 10:17).

How earnestly the appeal is over and over again repeated to oneness of heart and
mind. "Be perfect," says the apostle to the Corinthians, "be of good comfort, be
of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you"
(2Co 13:11) He entreats the Ephesians to walk in love, "endeavouring to keep the
unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace," and adds, "there is one body and one
Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith,
one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and
in you all" (Eph 4:3-6). And multitudes of modern believers say, that the best
means of thus keeping the unity of the Spirit, of showing forth in ourselves
this sevenfold oneness into which we are called, is by dividing into as many
sects as the self-will and uncontrolled judgment of man can devise! In like
manner the gifts bestowed by our ascended Christ are distributed "for the
perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the
body of Christ, till we all come, in the unity of the faith, and of the
knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature
of the fulness of Christ" (Eph 4:12-13). Wherever we look, the oneness which
belongs to the Church in the mind of God is expected to find its manifestation
here on earth.

It is interesting and important, too, to note the place of priority which the
exhortations to unity possess in the teaching of God’s word. When Christ prays
for the disciples He was about to leave, the first request He makes for them is
"that they may be one, as We are." When He enlarges the circle, and embraces in
His petitions "them also which shall believe on Me through their word," the
first thing He asks for them is "that they all may be one." So, when believers
are, in the Ephesians, exhorted to walk worthy of their vocation, the first way
in which this walk is to manifest itself is by "endeavouring to keep the unity
of the Spirit in the bond of peace;" and where, as among the Corinthians, there
has been a want of that lowliness and meekness, that long-suffering and
forbearance in love, which are needful to the preservation of unity, the first
of the many errors which the apostle selects for rebuke and remonstrance is the
"division" which had appeared in their midst. So far was manifested oneness from
being a secondary or indifferent matter in the mind of Christ or in the teaching
of the Holy Ghost.

It was when the disciples "were all with one accord in one place" that they
received the Holy Ghost, and the first effect was that "all that believed were
together," and, "continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking
bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of
heart" (Acts 2:44, Acts 2:46). The Philippians are exhorted to "stand fast in
one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel" (Php
1:27), and to be "like minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one
mind" (Php 2:2), while two leading persons are especially addressed — "I beseech
Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that they be of the same mind in the Lord" (Php
4:2). The apostle prays for the Romans — "The God of patience and consolation
grant you to be like minded one toward another, according to (or after the
example of) Christ Jesus, that ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God"
(Rom 15:5-6). Writing to the Colossians, he says — "Let the peace of Christ rule
in your hearts, to which also ye are called in one body" (Col 3:15). So the
Ephesians are directed to "speak every man truth with his neighbour, for we are
members one of another" (Eph 4:25). Titus is told that "a man that is an heretic
(that is, a schismatic, or cause of divisions)," he should, "after the first and
second admonition, reject; knowing that he that is such is subverted, and
sinneth, being condemned of himself" (Tit 3:10-11). So Peter exhorts those to
whom he wrote to be "all of one mind" (1Pe 3:8). What a contrast do these
teachings form with the state of things around us!

Nowhere do we find the slightest trace of that modern philosophy which defends
sects as securing variety in unity, which says, "Let men have their own thoughts
on all matters but the great essential truths of salvation." Sects are utterly
condemned as the divisions of Christ, every thought is to be brought into
captivity to the obedience of Christ. Divisions are set down to carnality,
disobedience, self-will. Besides, "non-essential truths" are a human invention,
most dishonouring to God. What do men mean by the expression? Truths not
necessary to their own salvation. They may be most clearly taught in the Word,
most blessed unfoldings of God’s glory and grace, but why should we care for
them, if we can get to heaven without them? Alas, that such thoughts should
enter the minds of God’s children! No truth which God has revealed is
non-essential, none will be felt to be non-essential by those who care for His
glory.

Indeed the language often used by believers on this subject is most dangerous
and destructive. It is, in principle, that so long as enough truth is held to
ensure salvation, we may be indifferent as to whether we obey God or not. This
is direct antinomianism, and language which no Christian could or would
intelligently hold, though, alas, man’s failure and Satan’s subtlety have so
disguised its real character that many do practically use it without perceiving
what they are doing. Applied to private morality, the true nature of the
doctrine would be readily detected, but applied to the Church of God, the right
to form separate voluntary associations in disobedience to the Word is openly
maintained. The reason for this is, that believers have become so accustomed to
the divided condition of the Church, as seen in the world, that they have either
lost all sense of the departure from the truth of God which this state of things
involves, or have at length come to regard it as inevitable. Division and
sectarianism have, therefore, ceased to be looked upon as disobedience, and have
been quietly acquiesced in as either a positive good or a necessary evil. But if
God’s Word condemns it, as we have seen, it cannot certainly be good. Is it,
then, a necessary evil? In other words, are believers obliged to act in
disobedience to God’s directions? Surely the bare suggestion refutes itself To
suppose that God did not foresee the failure, or that He left His people without
resource in the failure, is a thought too dishonouring to be entertained for a
moment. If failure has come in — if the Church now, as beheld by man, is totally
different from the Church as instituted by God — if the Word enjoins unity and
man has brought in division — all this was surely foreseen. That believers would
disobey God’s command about the manifest oneness of the Church was as clearly
foreknown, and indeed as clearly foretold, as the failure and disobedience of
Israel. How monstrous, then, to imagine that God foresaw the disobedience of His
people, and yet left no course open to those who wished to honour Him, but to
take part in the disobedience! No, let us once see that the division prevailing
in the outward Church is contrary to God’s Word, and it must surely be
self-evident that God has marked out a way for His people to walk in obedience.
Our ignorance may fail to find it, but God’s faithfulness has not failed to
provide it.

Here, however, a grave question arises. Are believers, it may be asked, to hold
together whatever evil doctrine or practice is tolerated? Or, if not, how is
division to be avoided? The Word of God is perfectly clear. Division is
condemned, separation from evil enjoined. Where false doctrine or immorality has
shown itself, separation is to take place. Thus, when there was immoral conduct
at Corinth, the leaven was to be purged out (1Co 5:7); a heretic (or divider)
was, after the first and second admonition, to be rejected (Tit 3:10); if a
person preached another gospel than that Paul had taught the Galatians, "let him
be accursed" (Gal 1:8-9); and when Hymemeus and Alexander made shipwreck
concerning the faith, they were "delivered unto Satan, that they may learn not
to blaspheme" (1Ti 1:20). This, however, was not division. It was united action,
shown in separating from evil. Even if large numbers had supported Hymemeus and
Alexander, and had gone with them — nay, if all the assembly had upheld them,
except two or three, who in faithfulness to Christ withdrew from them — the act
of these latter would merely have been godly separation from evil, and the
division which had occurred would have been the act of those who followed the
false teachers, not of these who, in obedience to the Lord’s mind, separated
from them. As far as these were concerned, whether few or many, the principle of
the oneness of the Church would have been maintained, and no departure from the
divine order would have occurred. They would have remained on God’s ground, and
would have constituted His assembly or Church.

Suppose a teacher told his scholars that he did not wish them to be scattered,
and therefore they were all to remain in the playground, The playground then
becomes the place where their oneness is to be shown. If some wander away into
neighbouring fields, the manifested oneness is no doubt gone, but which of the
scholars maintain the principle of it — those who go abroad, or those who remain
where they were told? Even if those who remain are but two or three out of two
or three hundred, they have not caused the division, and their separation from
those who disobeyed the teacher by leaving the playground, so far from breaking
up the oneness, keeps them in the only place where the oneness which the teacher
desired could have been exhibited. Take Israel as an illustration. Their unity
of worship was established by ordinances of God. But the people departed from
God’s directions and substituted their own. What, then, were the faithful ones
to do? Not to "follow a multitude to do evil" (Exo 23:2), but to separate from
the evil-doers and act in obedience themselves. This was not division. It was
standing by God’s unity of worship; while the creators of division were those
who departed from it. We must shut our eyes to some of the clearest teachings of
God’s Word if we do not see that the same scriptures which condemn division
demand separation. Thus the "elect lady" is told, — "if there come any unto you,
and bring not this doctrine [the doctrine of Christ], receive him not into your
house, neither bid him God speed; for he that biddeth him God speed is partaker
of his evil deeds" (2Jn 1:10-11). Godly separation from evil, then, is not
division and sectarianism, for the truth of God cannot contradict itself.
Separation from evil never makes sects, and is a necessary step in delivering
ourselves from sects.

Sects, then, are entirely contrary to God’s Word. Does it make matters any
better that they are of centuries standing? "God is not a man, that He should
lie; neither the son of man, that He should repent." What He has once declared
evil cannot become good by long continuance. If the formation of sects was an
act of disobedience and disorder, of carnality and wilfulness, their
perpetuation cannot be exactly the opposite. What length of time converts
disobedience into obedience? disorder into order? carnality into spirituality?
or wilfulness into subjection? Granted that the guilt of those who inherit the
ruin is less than that of those who caused it, still the character of the thing
itself is unchanged. How the children of God are called upon to act when they
find themselves encumbered with this fatal inheritance, I shall ask presently.
What I want to point out now is, that it is a fatal inheritance — that the state
of things around us is absolutely contradictory and dishonouring to the Word of
God — and that no length of standing, above all, no arguments of expediency or
necessity, can change the character, or lighten the condemnation, which the Holy
Ghost has stamped upon it. If I find myself involved in that which God condemns,
I am bound to search His Word to learn how I can escape from it, and I am
entitled to reckon with the most absolute confidence that He has provided such a
way for those who faithfully seek it.

CHAPTER VI.

LOCAL ASSEMBLIES-OFFICES-GIFTS-WORSHIP. The Church on earth, as instituted by
God, displayed the unity of the Church as the body of Christ. But when the truth
became widely diffused, how was this unity to be maintained? Was it then to
become a mere imaginary unity, so far at least as outward manifestation was
concerned, or was it to be preserved by a system of organised government? Let us
see what light the Word throws on this subject.

I. In each city the believers formed one Church. Thus there was "the Church of
God which is at Corinth," and the "Church of the Thessalonians," each a single
assembly of all the believers in its own city, a sample, so to speak, of the
oneness of Christ in that place, and responsible for maintaining that oneness
visible to the world. The promise of Christ’s presence held good in each of
these local gatherings. If but two or three believers were assembled in his
name, He was in their midst. If the city were large, and the believers numerous,
there might be several places of meeting, but those assembling at these
different places would all constitute one Church. The numerous places would no
more infringe the Scripture principle of the oneness of the local assembly than
the various local assemblies in different cities infringed the principle of the
oneness of the body. The local assembly, then, in each city was one. We read of
the "Churches of Galatia," for Galatia was a province with several cities; but
we never read of the Churches at Ephesus or at Philadelphia, for in each of
these cities the believers formed only one Church. If in any city they had all
split into sects meeting on different principles, what would have been the local
testimony to the oneness of Christ? None; but on the contrary, a false testimony
— a testimony to a divided Christ. In that city the Church, as Christ’s body,
would have had no representative. There would have been no assembly meeting in
His name. Had He been the one centre, all would have met together. Instead of
Him, then, as the focus, each sect must have had its own ground of separate
gathering, which prevented it meeting with the rest. None of these assemblies,
therefore, could have claimed the promise of His presence in its midst. No
doubt, God in his grace might have blessed individual souls in spite of the
disorder. But let us put far from us the unworthy thought that God’s grace
justifies a departure from His Word.

Suppose, however, that in some city, while a number of the believers split into
sects, a few — it may be only two or three — had refused to disobey the Word by
dividing, and had steadfastly adhered to the principle of gathering laid down by
the apostles, surely it is clear that in this city there would still be an
assembly meeting on God’s ground, an assembly which was bearing a testimony, in
principle, if not in fact, to the oneness of Christ, while all the sects were
bearing testimony to a divided Christ. To the number, whether great or small,
thus assembled, the promise of Christ’s presence would still hold good. Though,
perhaps, in man’s eyes, the poorest and weakest of all the gatherings, it would
be the only gathering which the Lord could own, as being in His name, and as
representing His body. The other denominations, bodies, societies, or whatever
else they were called, would, in His eyes, and when tested by his Word, be only
self-constituted assemblies, schismatic in character, and owing their existence
to the will of man acting in opposition to the will of God. They might contain
many excellent and devoted people, some of whom were there simply because they
knew no better, others because they thought they could be more useful there than
among the despised and feeble few who still met in the old-fashioned way, some
because it gave them a higher position and standing before the world, and others
because they were attached to some favourite teacher or preacher in one of the
sects. All, who were really believers on the Lord Jesus, would be owned by Him
as members of his body, as belonging to the assembly of God; but so long as they
were meeting in their own way instead of His way, so long as they were gathering
to human organisations, rather than simply as members of Christ’s body, they
would be regarded by him as out of their place, and as "forsaking the assembling
of themselves together" (Heb 10:25), in accordance with His authority and
directions. Nor would the position be at all changed if the few who met in the
Lord’s name had themselves been at first drawn aside into the sects, and
afterwards, discovering the departure from God’s Word involved in this sectarian
attitude, had returned to the true ground, refusing all other authority for
meeting or centre of gathering than the teaching of Scripture and the person of
the Lord Jesus Christ. In this case, just as much as in the other, those
gathering only in the Lord’s name, and in subjection to the Word, would be the
persons who represented the true principle and oneness of the Church of God,
their assembly would be the true assembly, and those believers who refused to
take their place in it, though still owned by Christ as part of the assembly,
would, as to their walk, be members away from their proper place, members who,
whether ignorantly or wilfully, were walking in disorder and disobedience to the
Word of God. In every city, then, the Church or assembly was one, representing
there the oneness of the body. Was, then, each local assembly independent of the
rest, or was there any organisation to maintain the oneness of action and
discipline? As regards binding and loosing, that is, receiving into fellowship
and exercising discipline, each assembly acted in its own sphere. Thus when some
one was guilty of immorality at Corinth, the apostle directs, "in the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ (when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the
power of our Lord Jesus Christ), to deliver such an one unto Satan" (1Co 5:4-5).
The assembly was to act, and it acted "with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ,"
in whose name it was gathered, and whose presence gave it this authority. Had it
been a mere voluntary association of believers, agreeing together in certain
principles of Church government or doctrine, and separated from others by this
barrier, it could not have exercised the power here spoken of, for it could not
have had Christ’s presence. Such an assembly would have had no more scriptural
authority to bind and loose than a number of members of Parliament voluntarily
gathered in a public meeting have to enact laws. But though each assembly
meeting in Christ’s name had authority to bind and loose, this had a much wider
effect than putting out, or receiving into, that particular gathering. As each
assembly was only the localised expression of the whole body, so its action was
only the localised expression of the action of the whole body. Scripture never
speaks of a person as a member of a Church Though he was received by a local
assembly, he was received, not as a member of that assembly, but as a member of
the body of Christ. So, if one were put away, it was from participation in the
privileges, not of a particular gathering, but of the Church of God. It was
Christ’s own administrative act, as present in the assembly, and no assembly
could have received with Christ’s sanction one whom Christ had put away. Thus,
though outwardly the act only of a local assembly, it was really Christ’s acting
in the assembly, and became, therefore, the judgment of the whole Church. All
were responsible for it, and this responsibility did not cease, if in any case
the local assembly failed to act. If a local assembly would not put away one
who, according to Christ’s mind, ought to be put away, it would not only fail in
subjection, but would share the offender’s guilt (2Jn 1:10-11). The little
leaven, not being purged out, would leaven the whole local assembly, and if it
spread, the whole Church would be corrupted. Other assemblies, therefore, must
not only refuse the person who ought to have been put away, but must refuse
those who, by neglecting to put him away, resisted Christ’s authority and shared
the offender’s guilt. To urge love as a reason for not doing this, would be a
mistake. Christian love has Christ for its first object, and can sanction
nothing which dishonours him or disowns his authority.

There was, then, in the apostolic Church, nothing like "independency." This we
see from the "letters of commendation" carried by believers who removed from one
city to another. These letters were in common use, and were needed to show that
the persons bearing them were really believers in fellowship. Thus, when Apollos
"was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples
to receive him" (Acts 18:27). Paul also alludes to these letters, showing that
he did not require them, because the conversion of the Corinthians had made him
known all round, "Need we," he says. "as some others, epistles of commendation
to you, or letters of commendation from you? Ye are our epistle, written in our
hearts, known and read of all men" (2Co 3:1-2). They were not letters of
transfer or of dismissal, but letters certifying that the bearer was a brother
or sister in the Lord. Thus, when Phebe left Cenchrea for Rome, Paul, in his
letter, described her as "our sister," and commended her to the saints in that
city. She was not to be admitted into fellowship at Rome, nor to become a member
of the Church at Rome, but being already in fellowship, and a member of the
Church of God, the Roman brethren were so to receive her. (Rom 16:1). But while
there was no independency on the one hand, neither was unity maintained by
organisation on the other. In each assembly Christ’s presence gave authority. He
acted as Head, not of the local assembly, but of the whole body, and thus unity
of discipline was preserved throughout the Churches. So long as His authority
was owned, Divine order and unity must prevail. If they ceased, it could only be
because His presence and authority were no more acknowledged. Would man’s
organisation mend this? Nay, it would make it a thousand-fold worse. It would be
stepping from insubjection to exclusion, from failure to ruin. It would be
saying, "Christ’s presence cannot maintain unity, let us see whether we cannot
find something better." Will God own such a unity? Having made the headship of
Christ the binding principle, will He recognise a unity where Christ’s headship
is set aside, and where the binding principle is man’s organisation? No; man’s
organisation may form a splendid unity in the eyes of the world. But this is not
the unity of the Spirit, it is not the body of Christ, it is not the Church of
God. It is of the world, of the flesh; and though all believers were enrolled in
it, and none others, it would still lack every feature of God’s assembly. It
would be but one more vain attempt of man — "Go to, let us build us a city and a
tower whose top may reach unto heaven, and let us make us a name, lest we be
scattered abroad on the face of the whole earth." Self, and not God, is the
object, and splendid as the structure may be, here, as in the attempt of old,
"the name of it is called Babel." Yes; Babylon, this is the name which God’s
Word gives to the effort to frame a unity by man’s organisation, instead of
adhering to the Divine unity of the Church of God. For that Church is not man’s
work. Man’s will, man’s wisdom, man’s government, these are all usurpations of
functions which, in the Church of God, belong only to the Holy Ghost and to
Christ. Nothing is the body of Christ but that unity which the Spirit forms with
Christ as the sole and acknowledged Head. The Church, then, according to God’s
order, was one body. The believers in each city were the Church of the place,
and when met together in Christ’s name, could bind and loose, receive to
fellowship or exercise discipline, in His power. In this they acted on behalf of
the whole Church, whose oneness of mind was secured by Christ’s presence in each
assembly. Such was the visible Church as established by God, and in His estimate
nothing is the Church, nothing is a Church, which does not answer to these
conditions.

II. In local assemblies there were generally two kinds of officers — the
deacons, and the bishops or elders. They are named by Paul, who writes to "all
the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons"
(Php 1:4). No other officers are named in connection with local assemblies. The
"gifts" of an ascended Christ, apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and
teachers, are never spoken of as officers, or as connected with local
gatherings. A deacon means a servant, but there is nothing in the name to show
the kind of service. In Acts 6:2, we read that "the twelve called the multitude
of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the
word of God, and serve tables." Here the serving of tables is contrasted with
"the ministry of the word," the same word, varied in form, being used in both
cases. The seven men chosen are not called deacons in this place, but it is
probable that such was the name given them; for they were appointed to "serve
tables," so that the title of servant or deacon might easily attach to them;
moreover, they were connected with a local assembly, and no other local officer
is spoken of at all resembling this, except the deacon; lastly, deacons seem to
have been appointed in the same way as these seven. The apostle said to the
believers, "Look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy
Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business." The brethren chose
such men, "whom they set before the apostles, and when they had prayed, they
laid their hands on them" (Acts 6:3-6). Here, then, though the brethren were
asked to choose, the appointment was apostolic, by the laying on of hands. We
have no other account of how deacons were appointed, but, in writing to Timothy,
Paul says — "Likewise must the deacons be grave, not double-tongued, not given
to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre, holding the mystery of the faith in a
pure conscience. And let these also first be proved; then let them use the
office of a deacon, being found blameless. Even so must their wives be grave,
not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things. Let the deacons be the husbands
of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well. For they that have
used the office of a deacon well purchase to themselves a good degree" (1Ti
3:8-13). These qualifications, though amplified, agree with those named in Acts
6:1-15. In both cases they are such as would be sought in persons managing the
pecuniary and temporal matters of the assembly. Such full instructions would
hardly be given to Timothy, if the appointment were not to be made by himself.
No such directions are given in the epistles addressed to Churches, and why
should Timothy be told whom to appoint and the Churches not be told, except that
the appointment rested with Timothy and not with the Churches? It would seem
clear, therefore, that the deacons were instituted in office either by apostles,
or by duly authorised apostolic delegates.

Such was certainly the case with the bishops or elders. That bishops and elders
were the same is clear from Paul’s language to Titus, whom, he says, he left in
Crete, to set things in order, and to "ordain elders in every city, as I had
appointed thee; if any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful
children, not accused of riot, or unruly. For a bishop must be blameless, as the
steward of God" (Tit 1:5-7). So Peter exhorts the elders to "feed the flock of
God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof" (literally, "bishopping
them"), "not by constraint, but willingly" (1Pe 5:2). In like manner we read
that when Paul from Miletus "sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the
Church," he beseeches them — "Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all
the flock, over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers," — or "bishops,"
which is the same word in the original (Acts 20:17, Acts 20:28). The elders and
bishops, or overseers, then, were the same persons. There were, as the passages
quoted in the last paragraph will show, several in each assembly, and their
appointment is always either by apostles or apostolic delegates. When Paul and
Barnabas, in their first journey, had reached Derbe, they returned through the
various cities which they had before visited, comforting and exhorting the
brethren, "and when they had ordained them elders in every Church, and had
prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord on whom they believed"
(Acts 14:23). This shows, not only that elders were appointed by the apostles,
and that there were several of them in each assembly, but also that the assembly
was not dependent upon them. The journey described occupied a considerable time,
and during this time, till the apostle’s return to each city, the Church of that
city had no elders, notwithstanding the persecution it endured and the little
knowledge it possessed.

Titus was left to appoint elders or bishops in the cities of Crete. Directions
were given to Timothy resembling those to Titus, as to the persons qualified for
bishops. A bishop must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober,
of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach; not given to wine, no
striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous;
one that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all
gravity; (for if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take
care of the Church of God?) not a novice, lest, being lifted up with pride, he
fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must have a good report of
them which are without; lest he fall into reproach, and the snare of the devil"
(1Ti 3:2-7). The appointment, therefore, was made by Paul and Barnabas in one
case, and by Titus in another, while the directions given indicate that it must
have been made by Timothy in the third. Nowhere is there any trace of assemblies
choosing elders. Those assemblies which had none waited until they were duly
appointed by apostolic authority. The character and functions of these officers
may be gathered from their names. The name "elder" implies age and gravity, and
that of "bishop" or overseer indicates that they were to "take care of the
Church of God," exercising godly authority and supervision over the younger and
less established members. It is easy to see how all the qualifications
enumerated are such as would adapt a person for these functions. They are
qualifications for rule. Bishops or elders must be irreproachable in character,
watchful over those under their charge, of a gravity which ensures respect,
peaceable and patient, above suspicion of sordid motives, of proved capacity for
the exercise of authority, of an age and experience which would prevent them
being puffed up with the distinction, and of good report for conduct among those
outside. They were, moreover, to be "apt to teach," not necessarily as public
expounders of the truth, but "holding fast the faithful word," that they might
"be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers" (Tit
1:9). An elder or deacon might also be an evangelist or teacher, as Stephen and
Philip, two of the first deacons, were. But their office and their gift were
entirely distinct things. They were appointed to serve tables; they were not
appointed, either by the apostles or by the assembly, to go forth as
evangelists. The elder or deacon, never, by virtue of his office, exercised
gift; nor did the evangelist or teacher ever, by virtue of his gift, hold
office. An elder was, indeed, to be "apt to teach," because it was by applying
"the faithful word" to the conscience, that his vigilant oversight would chiefly
be exercised. But it does not follow that he could teach in the assembly.
Everybody knows grave and godly men, deeply taught in Scripture, and most apt,
privately, in their application of it, but entirely without gift publicly to
edify the Church. It is clear that in the apostle’s day, some elders had gift,
and some had not, for he says, "Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy
of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine" (1Ti
5:17). Ruling was their proper office, labouring in word and doctrine was a gift
unconnected with their office — a gift which some possessed and others did not.
Gift and office, then, are entirely distinct. There is no such thing as an
office of teacher or preacher; no such thing as an elder or bishop officially
teaching or preaching in the assembly; no such thing as an assembly choosing, or
an apostle ordaining, any person to act as teacher or preacher, either in a
particular gathering, or in the Church at large. All this is man’s invention,
and in direct opposition to God’s order.

Who, then, it may be inquired, administered the sacraments? Nowhere, in
Scripture, is there a hint that baptism or the Lord’s Supper were "administered"
by any officer whatever, or that their administration was connected with any
gift. Paul says that he was sent "not to baptize, but to preach the gospel," and
he only baptized two men and one household during his long residence in Corinth
(1Co 1:14-17). Peter, when the Holy Ghost fell on the Gentiles in Cornelius’s
house, "commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord" (Acts 10:48).
Nowhere is baptism administered in connection with gift or office. So, too, of
the Lord’s Supper. Of course some person must give thanks and break the bread,
but where does Scripture describe these as official acts? Man’s organisations
have consigned the "administration of sacraments" to local officers, and have
appointed officers to exercise gift. But God’s Word sanctions neither of these
practices. It carefully distinguishes between gift and office, and it does not
invest either gifted or official persons with any function like that which is
now called the "administration of the sacraments." If it be said that such
regulations are necessary to order, I reply that the order thus obtained is
man’s order, and not God’s, and that man’s order is styled in the Word carnality
and self-will, The first lesson of faith is to distrust our own hearts — to say,
as to this matter, and all others, "Let God be true, but every man a liar."

III. But if officers were not appointed to preach and teach, how was the Church
to be edified? The nourishing of the body was the work of "the Head, from which
all the body, by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit
together, increaseth with the increase of God" (Col 2:19). What, then, are these
joints and bands which minister nourishment and cause increase? No doubt, in a
certain sense, all receive some gift which contribute to this end, and for the
use of which they are responsible. For "unto every one of us is given grace
according to the measure of the gift of Christ" (Eph 4:7), and it is as
"compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual
working in the measure of every part," that the body "maketh increase" (Eph
5:16). But besides these gifts distributed to every man, there are certain
special gifts of a more public character. In Eph 4:8-13, we read that when
Christ "ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.
. . . And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and
some pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the
ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come in the unity
of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto
the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ." This, then, is the work of
the gifts — apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers — bestowed by
the risen Lord upon the Church. We have seen that the function of the elder was
to rule, and his province was the local assembly. These gifts were bestowed, not
for rule, but for edification, and their province was, not the local assembly,
but the whole Church of God. They are the joints and bands by which our ascended
Head ministers nourishment to His body.

Besides these gifts for edification, there were sign gifts, such as that of
tongues, which was "for a sign, not to them that believe, but to them that
believe not" (1Co 14:22). They were all of a supernatural kind, "the powers of
the age to come," and were not meant for the professing Church, but for Jews and
heathen, to whom the Lord thus "confirmed the word with signs following" (Mark
16:20). So the "great salvation which at the first began to be spoken by the
Lord," "was confirmed unto us by them that heard Him, God also bearing them
witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles and gifts of the
Holy Ghost, according to His own will" (Heb 2:3-4). We see how effectually these
signs wrought among the persons for whom they were intended. Thus when Æneas was
cured of his palsy, "all that dwelt at Lydda and Saron saw him, and turned to
the Lord" (Acts 9:35); and when Dorcas was raised from the dead, "it was known
throughout all Joppa, and many believed in the Lord" (Acts 5:42). The object of
these sign gifts, therefore, shows their temporary character. They were early
abused, and if perpetuated in a Church in ruins, their abuse might have led to
fearful consequences. Having answered their immediate purpose, they were
mercifully withdrawn, and no hint is given of their revival. The only signs and
miracles spoken of in the future have a very different origin from those of the
early Church. The gifts for edification were apostles, prophets, evangelists,
pastors, and teachers. Elsewhere it is said that "God hath set some in the
Church, first, apostles; secondarily, prophets; thirdly, teachers;" after which
the sign gifts are named. (1Co 12:28.) The chief gift, then, was that of
apostles. They were to testify of Christ’s resurrection and to lay the
foundation of the Church. It seems to have been an essential qualification,
therefore, that they should have seen Jesus after He rose from the dead. Thus,
Peter, speaking of the appointment of another apostle in Judas’s room, says that
he "must be ordained to be a witness with us of His resurrection" (Acts 1:22).
Accordingly on the day of Pentecost, "Peter, standing up with the eleven,"
declares to the Jews that "this Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are
witnesses" (Acts 2:32). We read afterwards that "with power gave the apostles
witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus" (Acts 4:33). And still later,
speaking to Cornelius, Peter says that God raised Jesus up "the third day, and
showed Him openly, not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of
God, even to us, who did eat and drink with Him after He rose from the dead"
(Acts 10:40-41). The only persons who ate and drank with Jesus after His
resurrection were the apostles. Though others saw Him, therefore, these were the
chosen witnesses of the resurrection. Paul, himself, though not one of these,
owns the same thing, declaring that Jesus had been raised up "from the dead, and
He was seen many days of them which came with Him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who
are His witnesses unto the people" (Acts 13:30-31). Paul’s own apostleship is
connected with the same evidence, and required the same qualification, though
the place where he saw the risen Christ was not on earth, but in glory. Thus
Ananias says to him, "The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou
shouldest know His will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of
His mouth; for thou shalt be His witness unto all men, of what thou hast seen
and heard" (Acts 22:14-15). Accordingly Paul, when asserting his apostleship,
asks — "Am I not an apostle? Am I not free? have I not seen Jesus Christ our
Lord?" (1Co 9:1). And afterwards, speaking of the witnesses of His resurrection,
he says — "And last of all, He was seen of me also, as of one born out of due
time; for I am the least of the apostles" (1Co 15:8-9). The apostles, then, were
to be eye-witnesses of Christ’s resurrection, an important fact, inasmuch as it
shows the office to be temporary in its character, and incapable of revival in
after times. But besides being witnesses of Christ’s resurrection, they were
foundation gifts, the Church being "built upon the foundation of the apostles
and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner-stone" (Eph 2:20). The
mystery of the Church was revealed "unto his holy apostles and prophets by the
Spirit" (Eph 3:5), and they were thus made responsible for laying the foundation
of this wondrous truth. Such were the two great functions of the apostles. When
the testimony of those who had seen the risen Christ was finished, when the
whole ground-plan of God’s truth concerning the Church had been marked out, this
gift had done its work, and no renewal of it is shadowed forth in God’s Word. We
do, indeed, hear of false apostles, for the Ephesian Church is commended because
it had "tried them which say they are apostles, and are not," and had "found
them liars (Rev 2:2). But there is nothing to indicate that true apostles would
again exist. The nature of their functions forbade the thought.

Prophets, like apostles, were entrusted with the mystery, and laid the
foundation of the Church. Some, like Agabus, foretold future events, but this
was not their chief characteristic. The most striking feature was the address to
the conscience. "If all prophesy," says the apostle, "and there come in one that
believeth not, of one unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged of all,
and thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest" (1Co 14:24-25). In an age
when the Scriptures were not completed, moreover, special revelations, probably
on other matters, but certainly connected with the "mystery," were made to the
prophets; for it is said — "Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the
other judge; if anything be revealed to another that sitteth by, let the first
hold his peace" (1Co 14:29-30). Some of the prophetic gift in reaching the
conscience may still survive, but when God’s Word was completed, all that He
meant prophetically to reveal was already brought out, and the foundation part
of the prophetic gift necessarily disappeared. But if the foundation gifts
lasted only till the foundations were laid, the gifts of evangelists, pastors,
and teachers were of a more permanent character. The evangelist, or preacher of
the gospel, has his sphere of labour in the world. Nevertheless, it is important
to observe that he is a gift to the Church, and therefore he has, in proclaiming
the gospel, a responsibility connected with the Church. He is not merely given
to preach the gospel so that souls may be saved, but he is responsible for
bringing the souls consciously and intelligently into their place in God’s
assembly. The pastor and teacher are different gifts, though they may be
combined in the same person. The pastor’s work is looking individually after the
sheep; the teacher’s is giving them public instruction. The pastor is more
occupied with the persons, the teacher with the truth.

It should be clearly seen that these are gifts, not offices; also that they are
for the whole Church, not for local assemblies. They were bestowed or the Church
by an ascended Christ, were responsible to Him for exercising their gift where
and as He directed, and either apostolic investiture or choice by an assembly,
instead of lending them a legal sanction, would have been a direct infringement
of Christ’s authority. It is disorder to tie gift to office; it is greater
disorder to limit the sphere of its exercise by human regulations; but it is
more than disorder, it is dishonour to Christ Himself, to insist on man’s
countersign before recognising the validity of His dispositions.

Again, the evangelist, pastor, and teacher are three different gifts. Two may be
often, three occasionally, united in one person, but still they are different,
and nothing can be more opposed to God’s institution than appointing a person
who, and who alone, shall be expected to exercise these three rarely combined
gifts in some particular place. Indeed, it would be difficult to find one single
direction of Scripture which is not completely set aside by the so-called
Christian ministry, as now seen in all the sects of the professing Church, from
the Roman Catholics to the congregational dissenters. No doubt this is more the
result of traditional teaching than of conscious disobedience; no doubt, too,
there are thousands of true servants of Christ in these various systems. But
this does not lessen the divergence of these systems from God’s Word, nor
diminish the obligation of those before whom the truth is presented to come out
of them. However easy, and apparently innocent, it is to slip into traditional
habits of thought or action, it is a deeply solemn matter when these traditions
are in opposition to the Word of God. Few denunciations are more pointed than
that which our Lord directs against the Pharisees — "Thus have ye made the
commandment of God of none effect by your tradition" (Mat 15:6).

There might, of course, be cases where the only person with any gift was
compelled by circumstances to reside in a particular neighbourhood, and in such
cases the teaching or preaching might be solely in his hands. But this would no
more make him the official minister, in the modern sense of the word, than the
fact that there was only one tradesman of any sort in a town would make him the
official purveyor of his wares to the inhabitants. Teaching and preaching were
not things connected with the assembly, nor do we read of the Church gathering
together for these purposes. Doubtless, if a teacher came to a city the brethren
would seek to hear him, but he would not exercise his gift in responsibility to
the assembly, nor would the meeting of those gathered to hear him be a meeting
of the assembly.

IV. For the object of the gathering of the assembly was worship. There might be
meetings of brethren for consultation, meetings of believers for prayer, for
reading the Scriptures, for hearing gifted teachers and evangelists, but the
meeting of the assembly was that held on the first day of the week for
remembering the Lord and showing His death. At this meeting the Church acted,
"with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ," whether to bind or to loose, but its
main object was "the breaking of bread." In instituting the Lord’s Supper, Jesus
had broken bread, and this act, recorded in each of the narratives, gave its
name to the feast. It is said of the believers immediately after Pentecost, that
"they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in
breaking of bread, and in prayers" (Acts 2:42). At Troas we read that "upon the
first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul
preached unto them" (Acts 20:7). Paul had been six days at Troas before this,
and had doubtless taught and preached, but this is the only meeting of the
Church recorded. The language shows that it was not an accident (Paul happening
to be there on "Communion Sunday"), but that it was the custom to meet together
on the first day of the week, for the breaking of bread. So Paul, writing about
the collection for poor saints, says — "Upon the first day of the week, let
every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him" (1Co 16:2). At
Corinth, where the Lord’s Supper had been converted into a social meal, at which
disorder, and even drunkenness, prevailed, the apostle corrects the abuse, and
gives directions how the feast should be observed. But throughout he speaks of
the meeting for the breaking of bread as the coming "together of the Church,"
and assumes that "when ye come together into one place," the object was to
celebrate the Lord’s Supper. This is no inference from a single passage. We
learn the same thing from the language of the apostle in another place. He says,
"in the Church (or assembly) I had rather speak five words with my
understanding, that I might teach others also, than ten thousand words in an
unknown tongue" (1Co 14:19). What does he mean by saying "in the Church"? The
context shows that he means the meeting for the breaking of bread, for he asks
referring to the speaking with tongues — "When thou shalt bless with the spirit,
how shall he that occupieth the room of the unlearned say "Amen," at thy giving
of thanks." Now blessing and giving of thanks are the two things which
characterise the Lord’s Supper. He also describes the meeting in the same words
used in chapter 11 as "the whole Church" coming "together into one place." The
meeting of the Church was, then, for "breaking bread." The value which Christ
set on it is shown, not only from the time and manner of its institution as
recorded in the Gospels, but from the special revelation concerning it given
afterwards to Paul, who says, "I have received of the Lord that which also I
delivered unto you" (1Co 11:23). It was a feast of thanksgiving; a feast calling
Christ Himself to mind — "this do in remembrance of me;" a feast showing His
death till His return. It was not a meeting to learn or to pray, but to thank,
to praise God for His unspeakable gift, and to worship in the sense of His
favour and blessing. The worshippers met, not to receive, but to give, to
rejoice before the Lord, and to bless Him in the holy confidence and delight of
those whom He had filled to the full with His salvation. They realised Christ’s
presence, not merely in authority, but in fellowship, as the One who had said,
"I will declare Thy name unto My brethren, in the midst of the Church will I
sing praise unto Thee" (Heb 2:12). Like every other assembly act, it set forth
the oneness of Christ’s body — "for we, being many, are one bread (or loaf), and
one body, for we are all partakers of that one loaf (1Co 10:17).

Praise, worship, thanksgiving, adoration — such were the features of this
blessed institution. For this no gift was required. A gift of prayer, a gift of
praise, these are man’s thoughts, and, like all else that is of man, quite
foreign to the thoughts of God, To quench the Spirit by committing the
expression of praise and thanksgiving to some gifted or official person, or by
appointing some president to regulate its expression in others, is among the
most daring usurpations of the Holy Ghost’s prerogatives that man s presumption
has ever made. But though gift was not necessary, indeed had absolutely no
place, in connection with the principal object of the meeting, its exercise
under the Spirit’s guidance was freely permitted. Thus, at the breaking of bread
in Troas, "Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued
his speech until midnight" (Acts 20:7). In writing to the Corinthians, he
rebukes the way in which the liberty of the Spirit had been abused — "When ye
come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue,
hath a revelation, hath an interpretation." They were using these gifts for
display, not for edification. The apostle, therefore, adds — "Let all things be
done unto edifying" (1Co 14:26). He then directs how these gifts should be
exercised, — unknown tongues were only to be used when there was an interpreter,
prophets were to speak two or three, women were not to raise their voice in the
assembly, and "all things" were to "be done decently and in order." But while
Scripture here points out the marks of the Spirit’s guidance as opposed to the
intrusions of the flesh, there is no code laid down, no "order of service"
prescribed, no officer appointed to "administer the Lord’s Supper." Surely if
ever there was a suitable occasion for bringing in such institutions, the
disorder prevailing at Corinth furnished it. Why, then, was it not done? The
supreme action of the Spirit in the assembly was God’s purpose, and from this
purpose He is not diverted by man’s disorder. To meet this He shows how the
workings of the flesh and of the Spirit may be distinguished; but He does not
fall back on man’s organisation, on a ministry which supersedes the Holy Ghost’s
sovereignty, or on an officialism which exalts man and sets aside Christ. As
long as the Holy Ghost’s sovereignty is owned, we have the authority of the Word
for saying that there will be order — "for God is not the author of confusion,
but of peace, as in all Churches of the saints" (1Co 14:33). If, then, there is
any need felt for man’s rules and regulations, it can only be because the Holy
Ghost’s sovereignty is no longer acknowledged. What sort of an order will it be
which man establishes by the deposition of the Spirit? It will be the order of
death, not of life — peace, truly, but, as far as the Spirit is concerned, the
peace of the grave! And now let us cast a momentary glance at the fabric whose
details we have been tracing. The Church on earth, as it came from God’s hand,
was the model of His own Divine thoughts about it. It was the body of Christ,
perfect in its oneness, and perfect, too, in its subjection to the Head. It was
furnished with an infallible guide to the thoughts and order of God in the Holy
Scriptures. It was united with Christ and formed into one body by the Holy
Ghost, who dwelt in its midst, and directed its assemblies. Could anything more
perfect, more divine, be imagined? And how could this fabric be kept, in its
outward form down here, what God meant it to be, "a holy temple," "an habitation
of God through the Spirit"? God’s first earthly dwelling-place, a type of the
Church, was made fit for His presence by simply following His own directions —
"See," saith He, "that thou make all things according to the pattern showed to
thee in the mount." Only by similar adherence to the heavenly pattern could the
Church have been kept according to God’s institution. Subjection to Christ as
exercising authority in the assembly, would have maintained unity of discipline.
Subjection to the divinely-given Word, the heavenly pattern, would have
maintained unity of doctrine. Subjection to the Holy Ghost, the Divine guide and
director, would have maintained unity of order in the assemblies. What would
Moses have said, if, when looking at the work of Bezaleel and Aholiab, he had
found it different from the pattern showed in the mount, and made to suit their
own thoughts of what was right or convenient? Is it a less solemn thing for
Christians to set aside the heavenly pattern contained in the Word, and to
substitute a tabernacle according to their own devising? When Israel acted on
its own thoughts, the results were the golden calf, the strange fire, the
gainsaying of Torah. When it observed God’s order, the results were His
presence, His service, and His guidance. Which precedent has Christendom
followed?

CHAPTER VII. THE CHURCH IN RUINS.

We have in previous chapters regarded the Church in two different aspects,
according to what it is in the mind of God, and according to what it was as
established by God on earth, and entrusted to the responsibility of men. Viewed
in the first aspect, as the body and bride of Christ, there can be no failure,
for it is all of God Himself. Viewed in the second aspect, there has been
grievous failure, for it has proved, like everything else, the inability of men
to enter into the thoughts and purposes of God. These different views are
strikingly presented in two parallel figures. In Ephesians, which pictures the
Church according to God’s thoughts about it, believers are described as "built
upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the
chief corner stone; in whom all the building, fitly framed together, groweth
unto an holy temple in the Lord; in whom ye also are builded together for an
habitation of God through the Spirit" (Eph 2:20-22). Peter uses similar
language, saying, with respect to Christ, "To whom coming, as unto a living
stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, ye also, as
living stones, are built up a spiritual house" (1Pe 2:4-5). In these passages
God is the builder, only "living stones" are used as materials, and the result
is a spiritual house, a holy temple, a habitation of God. Thanks be to God, no
failure on man’s part can change this.

When, however, we see the Church, as it has become outwardly under man’s
responsibility, the same figure is used in a strikingly different way. As the
epistle to the Ephesians presents the Church according to God’s thoughts, that
to the Corinthians presents it according to its outward manifestation to the
world. Here, then, the builders are men, not God. The foundation, Christ
Himself, is secure, "but let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon;" for
"if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay,
stubble, every man’s work shall be made manifest, for the day shall declare it,
because it shall be revealed by fire" (1Co 3:10-13). The Church, then, viewed
according to God’s thoughts, is always perfect. The Church, as entrusted to man,
soon shows failure, wood, hay, and stubble being built in with the costly
material which alone can stand the searching fire of God’s scrutiny. A like
contrast occurs elsewhere. In the First Epistle to Timothy the Church is viewed,
not indeed on its heavenly side, but as consisting of real believers holding the
truth on earth. It is, therefore, spoken of as "the house of God, which is the
Church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth" (1Ti 3:15). In the
Second Epistle the Church is regarded as the professing mass called by the name
of Christ, and it is there described as a "great house," in which "there are not
only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to
honour and some to dishonour" (2Ti 2:20).

We have already looked at the Church, as the temple of God, that is, in its
heavenly character; also as the house of God down here on earth, that is, in the
practical manifestation which it had as established on earth according to God’s
order. We have now to inquire how far man has adhered to this order; how far the
so-called Church, or Christian profession, of the present day corresponds with
God’s thoughts; how far it represents the temple of His building, and how far it
is composed of the wood, hay, and stubble of human workmanship. To ascertain
this, let us briefly recall the leading features of the Church, as founded by
God.

I. It is the body of Christ formed by the Holy Ghost sent down to dwell on
earth.

II. As united with a heavenly Head, it is not of the world, but is heavenly in
character and hope.

III. It is the witness to the world of the oneness of the Head with the body,
and of the members of the body with each other.

IV. This oneness was to be maintained, as to doctrine and order, by absolute
subjection to the Word of God.

V. The local assembly was to show the same oneness as the Church, and all local
assemblies were to be kept one with each other in discipline by subjection to
the authority of Christ as present in their midst.

VI. Officers belonged to local assemblies, and were appointed by apostolic
authority, while gifts belonged to the whole Church, and were bestowed by an
ascended Christ.

VII. The assembly met on the first day of the week for the breaking of bread,
the Holy Ghost alone regulating the order and deciding how and by whom gift
should be exercised.

I. The Church is the body of Christ, formed by the Holy Ghost sent down to dwell
on earth. — As such it consists only of true believers, real members of Christ’s
body. Such is God’s institution; but what is the Church, as man has made it?
Throughout a large part of Christendom, the so-called Church, instead of being
the assembly of the saved, is held forth as the means of salvation. Unconverted
persons are urged to come into it, and are told that deliverance from wrath and
judgment is to be obtained by its offices. In other cases the Church is a
political institution, and every citizen, without respect to his conversion or
non-conversion, is entitled to its communion and its privileges. There are
considerable exceptions, no doubt, but in one or other of these two classes the
enormous preponderance of nominal Christians are included. To the great mass,
therefore, of that which bears the name, and is the responsible witness, for
Christ on earth, the solemn words of the Judge may be addressed — "I know thy
works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead" (Rev 3:1). The
professing Church, instead of consisting only of living members of Christ, has
merely a name to live, and is dead — "having a form of godliness, but denying
the power thereof" (2Ti 3:5). How needful, then, that where there is true life,
the solemn warning should be heeded — "Be watchful, and strengthen the things
which remain, that are ready to die, for I have not found thy works perfect
before God (Rev 3:2). The Church, moreover, as instituted by God, was bound, as
the body of Christ, to derive everything from Him, to hold "the Head, from which
all the body, by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit
together, increaseth with the increase of God." The Head has furnished the truth
necessary for the growth of the body, and this is God’s provision; the increase
thus obtained is "the increase of God." But what has man made the Church? Not
the recipient, but the decider of truth. So much is this the case that
throughout the greater part of Christendom those who are allowed to act as
teachers are bound to declare their assent, not to the truth of God contained in
the Scriptures, but to the statements of doctrine prepared by the Church, and
embodied in certain human creeds. And what are these creeds? Take the earliest
and best, the so-called "apostles’ creed;" its very first words are in direct
contradiction to Scripture — "I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of
heaven and earth." The Word ascribes creation to God, but when it speaks of the
persons of the Godhead, while it does name the Spirit as taking part, and while
it constantly attributes the work to the Son, the Father is never mentioned. It
is of the "Word," that Scripture says "All things were made by Him, and without
Him was not anything made that was made" (John 1:3). It is of Christ that the
apostle declares — "All things were created by Him and for Him, and He is before
all things, and by Him all things consist" (Col 1:16-17). It is God as displayed
in the person of the Son, of whom it is written, "By whom also He made the
worlds" (Heb 1:2). That the Father had a part is not questioned, but is it not
ominously suggestive that in man’s very first attempt to deal with such matters,
the one person of the Godhead to whom He ascribes creation should be the one
person to whom Scripture does not ascribe it? And yet it is these creeds that
the Church, as administered by man, has set up for the guidance of believers
instead of the living oracles delivered by God. Scripture never refers us for
direction to the Church, always to itself. "What," says the apostle, to those
who would set up their own thoughts, "came the Word of God out from you, or came
it unto you only?" (1Co 14:36). So Timothy is exhorted by Paul to continue "in
the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom
thou hast learned them, and that from a child thou hast known the Holy
Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which
is in Christ Jesus" (2Ti 3:14-15). Peter classes Paul’s teaching with "the other
Scriptures" (2Pe 3:16); and in the above passage Paul sets the truth which he
communicated to Timothy side by side with the Old Testament Scriptures of which
he there speaks. We know Paul’s teaching only through the New Testament
Scriptures, and to these, therefore, together with the others — that is, to the
whole Word of God — the believer is referred in the dark times of unbelief and
formal profession which the apostle foresees. But did not the council at
Jerusalem decide a doctrinal question? At that time, however, the New Testament
was not yet written; while the apostles, who were divinely taught concerning the
Church, were there to speak with an authority which now belongs only to the
Scriptures. Besides, this was not a general council of the Church, but merely a
local gathering of the Church of Jerusalem. No complete break with Jewish
customs had yet been made by this assembly, and such was its influence that
there was great danger of the Gentile Churches being led by ignorant or
interested teachers to fall into legal bondage. It was, therefore, divinely
ordered that this assembly, under the Holy Ghost’s guidance, and with apostolic
authority, should emphatically repudiate the conduct of such of its members as
were seeking to force legal practices upon the Gentiles. All the circumstances
were exceptional, and cannot possibly be repeated. This council, then, cannot
certainly be pleaded as sanctioning the claim of the Church to settle doctrinal
questions. On such matters the Word of God is our only and all-sufficient guide.

II. The Church, as united with a heavenly Head, is not of the world, but is
heavenly in its character and hope. How has man adhered to this design of God,
as taught in Scripture, and practically exemplified in the Church, according to
His institution? Some of the ecclesiastical systems claim to govern the world,
others have accepted the world’s protection, received from the world their
doctrine and discipline, and appeal to the world’s tribunals to settle questions
which can only be divinely decided by the Word of God. Where this open commerce
has been repudiated, separation is taken up as a political maxim, urged by
political means, made the basis of political associations. In this case it is,
just as much as in the other, an attempt, on the part of the so-called Churches,
to regulate the world’s politics according to their own views. Is it not sad to
see godly and devoted men referring matters concerning the Church to their
"parliamentary committees," organising political campaigns, unequally yoking
themselves with the world’s factions, in order to improve the social standing
and prospects of their own denomination, under the vain delusion that worldly
advantage will give a greater leverage for the proclamation of spiritual truth?
We need not question their motives, but we ask, Is this consistent with a
heavenly calling? Can such persons say that the weapons of their warfare are not
carnal? Our politics are not of this world, but of heaven. We are crucified with
Christ to the world — how, then, can we seek to secure the world’s suffrages,
avail ourselves of the world’s alliances, or desire to regulate the world’s
affairs? In another form of worldliness, too, almost all sects are equally
implicated, vying with each other in their efforts to please the flesh, and to
allure the crowd. I am not speaking of ritualism, which attaches a superstitious
significance to various acts, but of the avowed attempt to secure the admiration
of the world by artistic display, by magnificent buildings, by richly-toned
organs, and by highly-paid choirs, often composed of singers who make no
pretence to personal faith in the Lord Jesus. How different from the apostle,
who thought that "if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ"
(Gal 1:10). And this is only a specimen of the way in which the world’s approval
is bid for, and the world’s support demanded. Persons asked to take the chair at
their meetings, not for their piety, but for their social position —
subscriptions sought by importunate begging, utterly regardless of whether the
givers are the children of God, or the children of the wicked one — bazaars,
conversaziones, and all sorts of worldly devices resorted to for the sake of
raising money or of attracting favour — different Churches and associations
pitted against each other as to which can secure the largest collections —
talents, elegance, and accomplishments sought in the preacher in order that the
worldly estimation of the sect may be raised, and its ministers may be deemed
fully abreast with the progress of the age — all these, and multitudes of other
symptoms which can hardly fail to suggest themselves to the reader, indicate the
set of the current, not in those great religious apostasies where the spirit of
the world might naturally be looked for, but in those denominations which have,
as to many things, made a real stand for truth, and which contain large numbers
of the Lord’s children. And if the heavenly character and heavenly dependence
have almost disappeared, what shall we say of the heavenly hope? Alas!
Christians are for the most part seeking to civilise and improve the world by
Christianity, rather than to gather a people out of the world, who shall stand
with their loins girt about and their lamps burning, and they themselves like
unto men that wait for their Lord. As the Church lost her heavenly calling and
gave her heart up to the world, she began to say — "My Lord delayeth His
coming;" and "Where is the promise of His coming?" is what the great bulk of
believers, like the scoffers of the last days, are now incredulously asking.
Surely these things furnish food for sorrowful reflection to those who inquire
how far the Lord’s people have entered into His thoughts concerning the Church.

III. The Church is the witness to the world of the oneness of the Head with the
body, and of the members of the body with each other. — As such in perfect
Divine oneness, God set it on the earth — the image of the oneness of Christ,
the testimony to the sending of the Son by the Father. Could a sadder contrast
be conceived than between the beautiful vessel launched by God’s hand, and the
floating fragments of wreck now tossing far and wide on the waves and currents
of this restless world? Instead of all believers meeting round the person of
Christ, His name is the only centre which is not known. There is no difference
of doctrine too trivial, no variety of discipline too microscopic, to form the
rallying point of a separate denomination; no name too insignificant to become
the label of a distinct sect. No need to dwell on the humiliating picture, the
details of which are familiar to every eye. To gather up the fragments of wreck,
and reconstruct the shattered vessel, is impossible. But are we on that account
to shut our eyes to the fact that under man’s pilotage this disastrous shipwreck
has happened, and that the professing Church is responsible for the ruin into
which it has fallen? Alas! if Christians only recognised this fact, and took
their place, like Daniel of old, in confession before God, there would still be
blessing, though there could never be restoration. But man has got so filled
with his own thoughts, and so divorced from the thoughts of God, that he has
begun to regard these divisions as rather beneficial than injurious. He has
ceased to ask, like the apostle, "Is Christ divided?" ceased to regard the least
approach to diversity with the jealous apprehension of those who watch for the
Lord’s glory, and judging everything by the low standard of his own thoughts,
scoffs at the Divine unity as a cramped and slavish conception, and rejoices in
a thousand-fold diversity as a proof of his own mental independence. He compares
the various sects to the various rays of coloured light refracted from a prism,
each one of which is necessary to the light of the perfect beam; forgetting that
God’s light is not the light, after it has been twisted and scattered by human
prisms, but the light as it proceeds direct from His own mind. No doubt it
proves that in which man glories, the range and activity of his own mind. What
it does not prove is his subjection to the mind of God.

IV. The oneness of the Church was to be maintained, as to doctrine and order, by
absolute subjection to the Word of God. In this book we have the perfect
revelation of God’s mind, and to its teaching He demands absolute obedience.
Here is the Divine chart by which the vessel committed to man’s responsibility
might be steered through every strait. What has man done with it? Thinking the
chart insufficient for his guidance, he has added to it lines and marks of his
own, either deviating from the divinely-furnished plan altogether, or putting in
numerous other tracings according to his own fancy. God’s fathomings of truth
and error were not good enough for him; he must let down the little plummet of
his own philosophy and note the more accurate soundings thus obtained! Is it
wonderful that the Church, so piloted, made shipwreck? The grand truth needed
for our day is this of entire subjection to God’s Word, not only in what we call
great things, but in small things too. God does not demand subjection as far as
we think proper, but that every thought should be brought into captivity. And
this implies, not only obedience to what is written, but rejection of what is
not written. To refuse the former is to deny the obligation of God’s Word; to
refuse the latter is to deny its sufficiency. To maintain that I may depart by a
hair’s breadth from what is written, is to declare my judgment better than
God’s. To maintain that I may do what is not written, is to declare God’s
directions imperfect.

How wide the departure has been in doctrine is familiar to all. There is no
need, however, to call up the grosser errors of the professing Church — the
purgatories, the prayers to the Virgin, the intercession of saints, the
penances, the indulgences, and the other glaring forms of evil — in evidence of
this departure. Take the comparatively pure doctrine of Protestant countries,
and contrast it with the Word of God, The great mass of believers, if they have
given up the law as the ground of justification, have retained it as the rule of
Christian walk. Having absolutely lost all sense of the heavenly calling, they
are content to take as their standard the law of commandments contained in
ordinances, which was suited to a fleshly religion and a worldly people. By the
majority of professing Christians, eternal life as a present fact is thought a
mere dream, and the claim to its possession an almost impious presumption. The
complete setting aside of man after the flesh is to most an unmeaning phrase,
and conversion and the new birth signify nothing more than a bettering of the
nature which God has declared hopelessly bad. Hence how few even among real
Christians there are who possess entire deliverance and settled peace. The great
and all-important fact of the Spirit’s present abode in the world, the leading
feature of the work in which God is now engaged, is treated as "another craze."
The hope of the Lord’s return for His saints is scoffed at as a fanciful
delusion. And all this ignorance of God’s truth is found among the teachers and
leaders of religious thought in the so-called evangelical denominations of
Christendom. Nor has the departure from God’s order in the Church been less
conspicuous or disastrous than the departure from His doctrinal teaching.
Indeed, while as to doctrine there has been a measure of return to God’s truth,
as to Church order the departure continues as wide as ever. The horrible mass of
corruption in the professing Church in the days of Luther compelled him and all
who cared for God’s glory to come out. Instead of adopting Church principles,
however, as laid down in God’s Word, they threw themselves into the arms of the
civil power, and in return for its aid placed themselves under the authority of
the state. In Protestant countries, the state took the place of the Pope; and
the Church, though cleansed from some gross corruptions, became just as much the
tool of the world and the centre of political intrigue, just as destitute of
Divine life and stricken with spiritual atrophy, as the Church of Rome itself,
without even the show of unity which this still retained. The ever-increasing
corruption and deadness of the political Churches drove spiritual men outside
again; but once more, instead of finding the true principles of the Church of
God, they set up Churches of their own. In those they either sought unity by
human organisation, thus perpetuating the evils against which they protested, or
else they lost sight of the fact that unity was God’s principle. Sect after sect
arose, gathered round the person of some great leader, or knotted into
factitious oneness by common opinions as to the most expedient mode of Church
government. In a few cases there may have been an attempt to return to some
forgotten principle of order in God’s Word, though in these the influence of
tradition and the want of thoroughness is painfully evident. In the majority of
cases, however, rules of government were adopted simply from motives of
expediency. The Scriptures were not dishonestly twisted to suit the new
constitutions, for their authors supposed that these matters of Church order
were just left to man’s will and wisdom. But this involves two things, an
admission that the Word of God is not a sufficient guide under all
circumstances, and a splitting up of the Church into all sorts of sects
according to man’s varying thoughts as to the best mode of ecclesiastical
government. It implies, therefore, a virtual setting aside of God’s authority, a
lowering of the claims of Scripture, and the outward ruin of the Church. How it
has worked in practice is easily seen. Men have thought it expedient to adopt
their own constitutions instead of adhering to God’s order. But if one set of
persons may adopt one constitution, another may adopt another. Unity, therefore,
is of course impossible. But what made it impossible? Simply that man’s diverse
thoughts have been brought in to supplement or set aside the Word of God.

Here is the simple and sufficient origin of all the sects. If a person objects —
"Well, but how are we to help this? The mischief has been done, and no action on
our part can repair it" — the question I would ask is this: Are you yourself
personally free from the guilt which has brought this evil in? Are you allowing
anything which the Word of God either distinctly forbids, or does not expressly
sanction? If you are, the first step you have to take is to separate yourself
from this thing. It is of no use corn tending that you are not answerable for
the divisions, so long as you are going on with the insubjection and
disobedience which caused the divisions. You are answerable for the legitimate
consequences of your own acts. And if the legitimate and inevitable consequence
of bringing in man’s thoughts to override and overstep God’s revealed mind, is
the rending in pieces of that Church which is responsible for maintaining in
visible display the oneness of the body of Christ, the only way in which you can
escape the responsibility of such a result is by personally abandoning whatever
there may be in your conduct or position which in any way contributes to it. Act
faithfully in this, and the next step will soon be made plain.

V. The local assembly was to show the same oneness as the Church, and all local
assemblies were to be kept one with each other in discipline by subjection to
the authority of Christ as present in their midst. — How has man adhered in this
respect to the Divine model? What has he made of the local assembly? Under his
administration, the local assembly, as an outward, visible thing, has ceased to
exist. Where is the Church of London or of Paris? In Scripture use, the Church
of London is the whole body of believers in London, meeting together, not of
course in the same place, but in manifested oneness. Where is such an assembly
to be found now? Nowhere. Then God’s institution as to the local expression of
the one body has been entirely lost — absolutely effaced from the world. And
what has taken its place? In each town there are a multitude of sects, divided
in discipline, in doctrine, or in something which isolates them from the others,
some more or less friendly with their neighbours, and admitting a certain amount
of intercommunion, others holding a position of complete separation, or even of
avowed antagonism. In some of these sects, care is taken to receive into
fellowship only those of whose conversion there is reasonable evidence; in
others nothing farther is demanded than the desire of the person asking for
communion; in others, again, the right is conceded either as a political
privilege or as a means of bestowing life on those who are admitted to be
spiritually dead. Thus instead of order, there is chaos; instead of unity,
division; instead of a local assembly, a broken mass of sects, not one of which
can claim for itself the leading characteristics of the Church of God. Even in
these sects, taken by themselves, the order of the Church is utterly given up.
Each local meeting is, in some cases, independent of all others. Where there is
any common government it is brought about either by the rule of the state, or by
an organisation wholly of man’s devising. All these plans are widely at variance
with the teaching of God’s Word. This enjoins unity, but it is the unity
springing from the oneness of Christ’s action in the assembly, and to substitute
for this an artificial unity of man’s contriving is as much opposed to His order
as the open abandonment of oneness for the fuller exercise of local
independence.

VI. Officers belonged to local assemblies, and were appointed by apostolic
authority, while gifts belonged to the whole Church, and were bestowed by an
ascended Christ. — Such was God’s wisely-ordained institution, the reason for
which will afterwards appear, though even if our intelligence could not
comprehend the reason, the fact that it is God’s plan should be sufficient. Man,
however, has almost invariably joined what God has separated. There were two
kinds of officers, deacons, who serve tables, and elders or bishops who
exercised rule, and took the oversight of the flock. Both these were appointed
by apostles or apostolic delegates, and no directions are given for their
appointment in any other way. But some of the human systems called Churches have
made the bishop, instead of one of several officers of a local assembly, an
officer over several local assemblies. No such officer is named in Scripture,
and to appoint one is to forsake God’s order. Others have confounded the elder
or bishop with the deacon, and have made the appointment one of popular
election, both of which are in direct contradiction with the teaching of God’s
Word. In some cases the bishop and elders, which in Scripture are the same, have
been made quite different officers, and the bishop has been invested with the
totally unscriptural power of ordaining the presbyter or elder. It has been
said, indeed, that Timothy and Titus exercised functions very much like those of
a modern "bishop." If so, it only proves how unlike a modern bishop is to the
scriptural bishop, for Timothy and Titus received a commission to appoint
bishops, and nothing can be greater than the difference between their work and
that of the bishops whom they were sent to appoint. It may be objected, however,
that this is only a question of names, and that if Timothy and Titus had an
office resembling that of modern bishops, the office itself must be lawful, even
though the name be questionable. But Timothy and Titus acted under direct
apostolic authority, and without that authority their action would have had no
weight or value whatever. Who can show such an authority now? The Word lends no
more sanction to a succession of apostolic delegates than to a succession of
apostles. Why should we not have apostles now? Because Scripture gives no
directions for their appointment. For the same reason we cannot have apostolic
delegates. Supposing, therefore, that a modern bishop’s functions are identical
with those exercised by Timothy or Titus, he has no more scriptural foundation
for heft exercise, than he has for assuming the place of an apostle. But what is
far more important than any mistake as to the exact functions of bishops and
deacons, is the invention of an officer called "the minister," to whom, in his
official capacity, belong the sole exercise of gift, the sole regulation of the
service, and the sole administration of the "sacraments." I say this officer is
a simple invention of man’s mind. The only person named in Scripture who at all
approaches such an officer, is Diotrephes, who "loved to have the pre-eminence"
(3Jn 1:9-10), and usurped a sort of clerical position in the Church. But this
assumption, instead of being sanctioned, is strongly denounced by the apostle.
Deacons and elders are the only officers spoken of in God’s Word, and neither of
these bears the slightest resemblance to the person we have just described. In
the first place, there were several deacons and several elders in each local
assembly. And next, there is not a word which confers on either of these
officers the right, by virtue of his office, of exercising his own gift, or of
regulating the exercise of gift in others. An officer might or might not have
gift, but if he exercised his gift it was not because of his office, and if he
fulfilled his office it was not because of his gift. Gift is simply the
endowment of a risen Christ, and to ask man’s sanction for its exercise is to
set man up against Christ. It is given to the Church as a whole, and to make
regulations which confine it to a particular assembly, is to presume by human
rules to thrust aside the order of God. It is to be exercised under the guidance
of tie Spirit, and to lay down a code as to the manner of its exercise is to
usurp the functions of the Holy Ghost. The apostle Paul himself would never have
dared to ordain or appoint a person to act as evangelist, pastor, or teacher —
still less to combine these three gifts in one; but if he would have shrunk from
this as a usurpation of Christ’s authority, what would he have said about
ordaining such a person to an official position which neither evangelist,
pastor, nor teacher ever possessed, about bestowing upon him the Holy Ghost’s
function of regulating the order of the assembly, and about authorising him to
administer the sacraments, in direct contravention of the Word of God?

VII. The assembly met on the first day of the week for the breaking of bread,
the Holy Ghost alone regulating the order and deciding how and by whom gift
should be exercised. — Man, however, setting aside God’s order, has made the
Lord’s Supper merely an occasional meeting, and has put teaching, evangelising,
or some other thing, into the place of prominence which the Lord gave to His own
supper. He has defended this, not as scriptural, but because constant repetition
might destroy its solemnity! If theatrical effect is what is sought this will
doubtless be the case. But what a thought for a believer to cherish! God’s
institution set aside, because man knows so much better than He! The remembrance
of Christ and His matchless love become so familiar that at length it breeds
contempt! Such is the working of man’s mind when it strays from simple
obedience, and brings in its own wisdom to supplement or supplant the teaching
of God. And yet it is to the exercise of this wisdom that we are abandoned the
moment we depart from the living oracles. That the mode of celebrating the
Lord’s Supper is as unscriptural as its infrequency, we have already seen. I am
not alluding to those who attach to it a sacrificial efficacy, nor to those even
who look at it as a "means of grace," a kind of spur occasionally given to the
sluggish conscience and heart; but to those who have retained, at least in a
certain measure, a true apprehension of the nature of the feast. Even among
these, with few exceptions, the liberty of the Spirit is not owned, and the
supper is "administered" by a sacerdotal or official person wholly unknown,
either for that or any other purpose, in the Word of God.

Let us cast our eye, then, over this wide scene of ruin and desolation. There is
absolutely nothing that God has instituted which man has not perverted or
destroyed. If God has set up the Church as the body of Christ, man has converted
it into a means of salvation, by which a person may be made into a member of
Christ. If God has put it in subjection to Christ, man has made it the rival of
Christ, and the authoritative judge of doctrinal truth. If God has made it
heavenly in its character; its resources, and its hopes, man has lowered it to a
worldly standard, has claimed for it worldly support, and has given it worldly
expectations. If God has established a divine unity, man has broken it up into a
chaos of rival sects and jarring systems. If God has given it the Word as its
Divine guide, man has called in his own wisdom to supply the deficiencies, or
correct the errors of which, in his arrogance, he accuses the Scriptures. If God
has instituted local assemblies to express the oneness of the assembly in each
city, man has split them up into a thousand detached masses, not one of which is
gathered on the true principles of the Church. If God has instituted local
officers, man has perverted them to every purpose except that for which they
were appointed, has set aside the scriptural mode of ordination for the
inventions of his own brain, and has invested them with a character which God
never conferred upon them or upon any other human being. If God gave gifts to
the Church, man has insisted that these gifts should be exercised only according
to his own will, should be restrained within the limits of an official class,
and should be tied down to the narrow circle of a local assembly. If God made
office local, man has made it general; and if God made gift general, man has
made it local. If God separated gift and office, man has insisted upon their
union, regardless of whether the officer possesses gift, or the gifted person
possesses the qualifications for office. If God has left the exercise of gift
free in the assembly, to be guided only by His own Spirit, man has deposed the
Spirit by giving the authority to an officer of his own appointment. If God has
gathered the assembly together with the special object of remembering Christ
according to His own institution, man has thrust this institution into a corner,
made it the exceptional instead of the principal object of meeting together, and
put his own supposed profit in the place of prominence which Christ claims for
the memorials of His death.

It may, indeed, be pleaded with perfect truth that the practices here pointed
out as contrary to the Word of God, had already begun in times closely
following, if not even overlapping, the apostles’ days. This is constantly urged
in defence of one or other of the institutions now found among the varied sects,
by writers, not only of those denominations which profess to receive the.
traditions of the fathers, but even of those which profess to repudiate them.
But what reason is there for assuming that those who immediately followed the
apostles were purer in doctrine, or more tenacious of God’s order, than modern
Christians? They had the same guide that we have — the Word of God, and if they
departed from it, we are bound to judge their departure, instead of following
it. To draw conclusions from the practice of the early Church is to test the
truth of God’s Word by the fathers, instead of testing the truth of the fathers
by God’s Word. Surely every reader of the New Testament must see that we have
not to wait for the days of the apostolic fathers to detect the signs of ruin,
but that they are plainly marked in the epistles themselves. The Corinthians had
introduced sectarianism, allowed immorality, tolerated drunkenness at the Lord’s
table. The Galatians had fallen from the principle of justification by faith.
The Colossians were being beguiled by Jewish traditions and Greek philosophy. At
Rome people were preaching Christ "of envy and strife." Even of Paul’s personal
companions, all were seeking their own, not the things of Christ. Already many
were walking as "the enemies of the cross of Christ." Later, Diotrephes refuses
the apostle John. Of the seven Churches in Asia, five are called upon to repent;
one had lost its first love; another was tolerating the grossest evil; a third
was almost wholly given up to wickedness; a fourth had a name to live, but was
dead; a fifth, self-complacent and lukewarm, was so nauseous to Christ that He
threatens to spue it out of His mouth. The Word is full of warnings of coming
evil, and the flood had already risen to a fearful height before the canon of
Scripture was closed. Ecclesiastical history shows that the waters swelled to a
still more disastrous deluge with awful rapidity afterwards. Such, then, in and
immediately after apostolic times, was the failing, ruinous, Christ-dishonouring
state to which the Church had sunk under man’s guidance. Yet from this armoury
writers of almost all denominations are willing to borrow weapons for the sake
of parrying the thrust of "the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God!"

CHAPTER VIII.

SEPARATION FROM EVIL THE PATH OF OBEDIENCE. In looking over the sterile scene
pictured in our last chapter, we cannot refrain from asking, whence flow the
bitter waters which have converted this garden of the Lord’s planting into such
a wilderness of death? The poisonous spring is not difficult to discover.
Insubjeetion is the one copious fountain head from which all these streams of
sorrow have issued — insubjection to Christ, Insubjection to the Spirit,
insubjection to the Word. The presence and authority of Christ in the assembly
were disowned; the guidance of the Spirit was withstood by the flesh; and when
disorder necessarily ensued, recourse was had to the wisdom of man rather than
to the teaching of the Word of’ God.

What, then, is the remedy? But, perhaps, a preliminary question may be asked —
Can there be any remedy? As Israel of old said, "There is no hope; but we will
walk after our own devices, and we will every one do the imagination of his evil
heart" (Jer 18:12), so have many believers said concerning the ruined, divided
condition of the Church. Some have laid it down as a self-evident truth that,
whether sects are good or bad in themselves, they have once come in, the only
possible result of attempting to separate from them, and meeting in a different
way, is to make an additional sect; in other words, that any effort to depart
from the evil can only lead to its aggravation. But let it be clearly seen that
sects are unscriptural, and surely this reasoning stands self-refuted. For if
meeting on sectarian grounds and in sectarian groups is a departure from God’s
Word, it is manifest that there must be some mode of meeting of a different
kind, and that however great the ruin and confusion, this mode of meeting is
still open; else, God would be demanding obedience, and compelling disobedience!

If there is, then, an unsectarian mode of meeting, a ground which can still be
taken in obedience to God’s Word, where is it to be found? To settle this, let
us recur to an illustration previously used. Let us suppose a mutinous army,
which, instead of obeying its lawfully appointed general, has wandered off, at
first in two or three great detachments, but at last divided into single
regiments, or even companies, and scattered itself in such voluntary groups,
under different leaders of its own choosing, over the whole country. Suppose,
now, that one or two soldiers, in some of these groups, perceiving the evil of
such lawless combinations, felt a desire to return to the path of obedience and
duty, what course is open to them? Even a child would reply that they must
separate themselves from the mutinous bodies of which they have formed a part,
return to the position which they were originally ordered to occupy, and place
themselves once more under the command of the lawful general. If, in taking such
a step, their companions were to charge them with causing division — if they
were to say, "You talk of mutiny and disobedience, and yet you yourself are
mutinying, and disobeying our orders; you talk of the evils of division, and you
seek to remedy it by just making one division more" — would even the dullest of
them be deceived by such transparent fallacies? Would they not reply at once,
"You are disobeying the lawful commands of your general; we are merely
disobeying your unlawful command to continue in this disobedience. Your division
is a departure from the true centre of unity; our division from you is a
necessary step in returning to the true centre of unity"?

What, then, does this illustration show? There are a number of men, perhaps a
mere handful, who have separated from the mutinous masses, and returned to their
true allegiance. Are they the army? Surely not, but they are the only ones who
occupy the place which the army ought to occupy, or obey the command which the
army ought to obey; they are the only ones who represent the army in its proper
aspect, and the only ones in whose company the faithful ought to be found. Nor
is this altered in principle if we suppose that large numbers among the mutinous
bodies are good soldiers, misled through ignorance or sophistry, and perfectly
honest in their intention to serve their sovereign. Such a fact should cause
those who have returned to the true path to think and speak of them with all
forbearance, as the consciousness of their own previous wanderings should
effectually exclude all boastfulness and exultation. But surely it would rather
increase the desire to see their still mutinous companions brought back to the
true standard, than create any thought in their own minds of once more deserting
it. If urged to make common cause with the mutinous bodies, what would be their
answer? They would say — "How is that possible? Our first duty is obedience, and
what sort of fidelity should we show to this duty if we acted in such a way as
to compromise us with those who are continuing in disobedience? Our second duty
is to help back the faithful hearted to the path of obedience, and how can we do
this if, by our conduct, we show that in our estimation obedience and
disobedience are indifferent matters?"

Here, then, we have principles readily understood, and not difficult of
application. Let us see how they fit the case before us. In the Church, as in
the supposed army, unity has given way to division, discipline to disobedience,
the sovereign authority of the Word to the discordant judgments of men. What,
then, is the remedy? In this case, as in the other, it is manifest that if the
mischief has been brought in by insubjection, the first step towards deliverance
is to cease from insubjection. The Lord’s order is — "Cease to do evil, learn to
do well" (Isa 1:16-17). A father would not go on telling his child what he
wished, so long as he was wilfully disobeying what he had already told him. He
would say, "Do what I have bidden you, and then I will let you know what more I
want you to do." God deals with us as children, and he has made obedience the
condition of progress "If any man will His will, he shall know of the doctrine
whether it be of God" (John 8:17). If we have fallen into error from taking
counsel of men, His first demand is that we go back to His own Word, start again
in His own way. When David’s sin in taking counsel of his captains as to the
bringing up of the ark had led him into the grievous error which resulted in the
death of Uzzah, it was not enough for him to warn others against Uzzah’s folly.
The whole work must be stopped, the mode altogether changed, and the Word of God
consulted, instead of the captains, as to the right way of carrying the ark.
When this was done, and not till then, was the ark brought up with joy and
rejoicing.

It is clear, then, that no compromises, no attempts to improve the present
condition of things, no efforts to mitigate some of the more crying evils, will
suit the case. This is merely avoiding the sin of Uzzah; it is not following the
Lord’s commandments. Occasional fraternisations among the scattered divisions of
a mutinous army — amicable speeches assuring each other that they had one common
object, though they might pursue it in different ways — would not alter the fact
that the army was in a mutinous state, or lessen the responsibility of those who
still remained among the mutinous bodies. Unions of Christians, evangelical
alliances, and other attempts to talk to each other over denominational fences,
may be of value as indicating the restless sense, in the hearts of many
believers, that such fences are not of God. But beyond this they are of no value
at all. Either the fences are according to the mind of God, or they are contrary
to it. If they are according to His mind, they ought never to be passed; if they
are contrary to his mind, they ought never to be erected. Catholicity, charity,
in the sense in which it is now used, and all the other attempted palliatives,
are like dressing the eruption of a man in the small-pox instead of seeking to
reach the roots of the disease. Nay, they are worse, for they are merely taking
counsel of man again how to remedy the mischief which man’s counsel has already
brought in; whereas the one resource of faith when it has stumbled through the
leading of man is to fall back upon the teaching of God. It is no use trying to
make sects more friendly, if sectarianism itself is contrary to God’s Word. For
the same reason, it is no use trying to make a sect somewhat better, to purge it
of some of its more serious defects, for this does not touch the root of the
evil. If the very fact of its being a sect is a departure from God’s Word, the
only remedy, the only path of obedience, is to come out of it. We have seen that
God’s Word denounces sects, that their existence is contrary to His mind, and if
we would return to His way, therefore, the first step is to sever ourselves from
all sectarian connections. But here the question may be raised — What is a sect?
To answer this we must go back to first principles, and inquire what is the
cause of the divisions out of which sects have arisen. The cause is, as we have
seen, insubjection to the Word of God. Only by absolute obedience to this
standard, only by the disallowance of everything not enjoined in this volume,
could sectarianism have been prevented and unity maintained. Everything,
therefore, is a sect which will not stand this test. It has in its nature the
fatal root out of which the sectarian poison is distilled, Tried by this
standard, both the Church of Rome and all the national Churches are sects, for
where do we find in the Word of God any person exercising authority like that of
the Pope, any order of ecclesiastics like that of the cardinals, any form of
episcopal government like that either of Rome or England? Where do we see the
state, the world, appointing ministers, laying down forms of worship, or
deciding points of doctrine? Coming, then, to the various dissenting
denominations, we find, for the most part, their zealous assertion of the right
to think and act as they like, to form constitutions according to their own
thoughts, and to break into separate communities as best suits their own
inclinations and convenience. Thus their very starting point is in direct
antagonism with God’s Word, which condemns sects; and is an express assertion of
man’s right to bring in his own thoughts and his own wisdom to supplement the
Spirit’s teaching. Nor, in coming to details, do we find more subjection. Where
is the scriptural authority for deciding by conferences or synods in what places
preachers shall exercise their gift? Where the warrant for the election of
ministers by popular assemblies? Where do we find in the Word the human
distinction between clergy and laity? Where the existence of single officers in
the local assembly, to whom the exercise of gift is restricted? Where does
Scripture speak of official persons administering the sacraments? Where does it
sanction the thrusting of the Lord’s Supper aside as the object of assembling
together, and converting it into a monthly or quarterly celebration? Where the
entire throwing away of both the Lord’s Supper and baptism as symbols which
believers are not now called upon to use?

Romanism, nationalism, and all the varied forms of dissent, are alike in this,
that they have each departed from the pure standard of Scripture as their only
guide. Some have deviated, some have added, some have subtracted — but all have
departed from it as the sole and all-sufficient test. No need to dwell on the
grosser errors of doctrine, or the monstrous pretensions of worldly hierarchies.
It is enough for us that they have not adhered absolutely to the Word, for in
this lies the real germ of sectarianism. It is not a question as to whether they
hold more or less doctrinal truth, whether they have among them a greater or
smaller number of genuine believers. The only question which the person who
wishes to act in subjection to God’s will needs to ask, is, whether there is
entire surrender to the teaching of the Word; and if anything is practised which
that Word does not enjoin, or anything omitted which it does enjoin, the system
is a sect, and his duty is to separate himself from it.

"What!" it may be asked, "would it not be better to stay in it and try to
improve it?" But if it is a sect, it is contrary to God’s mind; and to stay in
what is known to be contrary to God’s mind is disobedience. Is it by going on in
disobedience that we can hope to help others to obedience? The only road towards
improvement is obedience, and for a man to continue in disobedience because he
wants to make others obedient, is like a man throwing himself into the mud
because he wants to make others clean. No, the first step towards obedience is
to cease from disobedience, the first step towards setting others right is to
get right one’s self. Those who are ignorantly and conscientiously in error are
small transgressors indeed, compared with those who are wilfully in it; and for
one to remain wilfully in it for the sake of helping those who are ignorantly in
it, is for the man with the beam in his eye to offer to take the mote out of his
brother’s eye. This is simply hypocrisy. To such an one the Lord says — "First
cast out the beam out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to cast
out the mote out of thy brother’s eye" (Mat 7:5).

Separation from evil is always God’s principle of action. If we are on God’s
ground, separation must be effected by putting away the evil. If we are not on
God’s ground, separation must be effected by coming out of the evil. Achan’s sin
brought defilement on Israel, and the Lord said "Neither will I be with you any
more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you" (Jos 7:12). This is the
first kind of separation. Israel was on God’s ground, and the true principle was
not to go out of Israel, but to put away the evil from it. But when Israel
sinned in setting up the golden calf under Mount Sinai, the Lord withdrew His
presence altogether, and refused to go up with the congregation. Now the case
was different, and Moses, instead of remaining in the defiled camp to try and
make matters better "took the tabernacle and pitched it without the camp, afar
off from the camp" (Exo 33:7); where he remained until his intercession brought
the Lord once more into their midst. This is the second kind of separation.
Israel had got off God’s ground, and the true principle was not to remain
within, hoping there to deal with the evil, but to take a place without. Was
this self-righteousness? Never was Moses more lowly, more prostrate before the
Lord, than when he took this place. Was it want of love? Never did the yearning
of his heart towards Israel show itself in tenderer entreaty. Was it selfish
abandonment of the people? Never did he so truly serve them as when he thus
withdrew from their midst. How could he have interceded for them with God so
long as, by remaining among them, he was really identified with them? Having
separated himself clean from them, gone "afar off" from the defilement they had
contracted, he could, and did, strive effectually with God on their behalf. We
must take God’s side against evil, before we can have power with Him in
intercession for those who are in it.

Now it is this last sort of separation that Christians who would walk faithfully
are called upon to make. All the various sects and systems of Christendom are
off God’s ground. They may contain multitudes of true and godly believers, hold
much pure doctrine, show much zeal and devotion for the Lord’s service, but, as
sects, they are not according to God’s mind. To remain in them is to identify
one’s self with them, that is, to become responsible for the departure they have
made from God’s order and Word. The place of obedience, the place of blessing,
the place of power; the place of intercession, is outside — "afar off" Even in
Babylon, the corrupt Christian profession of the last days, there are the Lord’s
people, but the word is — "Come out of her, My people, that ye be not partakers
of her sins" (Rev 18:4).

Jehovah’s presence could not be associated with anything unclean in Israel.
"Command the children of Israel," He said to Moses, "that they put out of the
camp every leper, and every one that hath an issue, and whosoever is defiled by
the dead; both male and female shall ye put out, with out the camp shall ye put
them, that they defile not their camps, in the midst whereof I dwell" (Num
5:2-3). The Church also is "holy" for the same reason, being "builded together
for an habitation of God by the Spirit" (Eph 2:22). On this ground, therefore,
separation from evil is enjoined on Christians — "Be ye not unequally yoked
together with unbelievers for what fellowship hath righteousness with
unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? and what concord
hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?
And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of
the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them and walk in them; and I
will be their God, and they shall be My people. Wherefore come out from among
them and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing" (2Co
6:14-17). Here, no doubt the immediate subject under review is the separation of
Christians from all connection with idolatry, but the principle laid down is
general. That principle is, that believers are to be separate from all
association with evil, because the Church is the dwelling-place of God. Are not
sects evil? Are those parties and schisms concerning which the Spirit exclaims,
"Is Christ divided?" — those parties and schisms which the body was tempered
together expressly to exclude — are these things fit for the dwelling place of
God through the Spirit? Light is the Word of God; that which man’s will has
introduced in opposition to the Word is darkness; and if believers would walk
according to the light, walk as those among whom God dwells, they must separate
from that which He judges and condemns. In the description which we have of
Christendom in its last stage, after the beginning of those "profane and vain
babblings" which should "increase unto more ungodliness," the believer’s ground
of comfort is that "the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The
Lord knoweth them that are his. And let every one that nameth the name of Christ
depart from iniquity. But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold
and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour and some to
dishonour. If a man, therefore, purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel
unto honour, sanctified and meet for the Master’s use, and prepared unto every
good work" (2Ti 2:16-21). Now, what is the state of things here depicted? A
Christian profession in which all sorts of evil have entered, so that none but
the Lord Himself can detect His own amidst the mass of worldly religion and
empty formalism. What, then, characterises the faithful? They call upon the name
of the Lord and they separate themselves from iniquity. The two things are
closely connected together. Finding every name thrust into prominence except the
name of Christ — whether names of countries or names of men, names of doctrines
or names of systems — Churches of England and Churches of Scotland, Lutherans
and Wesleyans, Baptists, Presbyterians, Methodists, and Independents — they ask,
"Is Christ divided?" Was Wesley crucified for us? or were we baptized in the
name of Luther? Have we God’s authority for meeting in any other name but that
of the Lord Jesus Christ? Are we not bound, then, to depart from these
unscriptural and unauthorised modes of gathering, to revert simply to the name
of Christ, the teaching of the Word, and the guidance of the Spirit? They learn
to judge, not believers in the various sects, but the sects themselves, as being
evil, the work of man, and contrary to the Word of God, and so to separate
themselves, to purge themselves that they may become vessels unto honour. Of
course the "iniquity" here spoken of is not merely, or even chiefly,
sectarianism. But this very epistle sets up the Word of God as the one and only
standard for the Christian’s guidance in the chaos of doctrines and systems
which would distinguish the last days. The apostle knew how men would jumble up
the Scriptures to suit their own notions, and he, therefore, insists on the
importance of "rightly dividing the word of truth." He knew how "evil men and
seducers" would "wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived," and he
casts back the believer simply on the Word of God. What, then, is the standard
and measure of iniquity but departure from this rule of faith? If I am mixed up
with anything not sanctioned by the Word, whence does it come? Not from the
Spirit, for the Spirit expressly refers me to the Word. Then it must come from
the flesh, and the Spirit tells me that in the "flesh dwelleth no good thing"
(Rom 8:18).

It is surely a deeply solemn matter to be taking counsel of the flesh, and
refusing to take counsel of God’s Word. What is the estimate which God has given
us respectively of these two things? "It is the Spirit that quickeneth," says
our Lord; "the flesh profiteth nothing. The words that I speak unto you, they
are spirit and they are life" (John 6:63). Nothing is more marked than the
authority which is claimed for Scripture all through the sacred volume. To the
Jews it was said — "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according
to this word, it is because there is no light in them" (Isa 8:20). And if we
speak not according to the Word we have received, is there any more light in us?
Timothy, in view of all the evil that was already appearing, and is still
further predicted, as characteristic of "the last days," receives directions to
which we should do well to give heed. "Continue thou in the things which thou
hast learned, and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them;
and that from a child thou hast known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to
make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All
Scripture is given by inspiration of God" (2Ti 3:14-16). That is, he is thrown
back, amidst abounding and increasing evil, not on the Church, or on his own
judgment, but on God’s Word, whether ministered by Paul himself, which reaches
us through the New Testament, or in the then existing Scriptures, which are the
writings of the Old Testament. How solemn is the language contained in the
closing book of the Scriptures — "I testify unto every man that heareth the
words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God
shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book; and if any man
shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away
his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things
which are written in this book" (Rev 22:18-19). This, it is true, is said only
of one particular book; but if God has so solemnly fenced round ono book from
man’s intrusion, does He leave the others open to be accepted or rejected just
so far as shall suit man’s ideas of convenience or expediency? No, the only
standard of good and bad in the things of God is His own Word. Whatever conforms
to this rule rests on an absolutely immovable foundation. Whatever departs from
it, whether by addition, alteration, or subtraction, is "iniquity" — is the
working of the flesh — is the wood, hay, and stubble of human construction which
will be burnt up in the day when "it shall be revealed by fire." But here three
questions may arise. The first is — supposing a person to be useful, busily
employed in good works, apparently owned of the Lord in his labours, can it be
right for him to give up his position of influence, to abandon the sphere of
effort in which he is made a blessing, and to go out, he knows not whither —
probably to a place where be may find little room for his exertions, a far
smaller audience for his preaching or teaching, and at all events where the
fruits of his past labours must be lost or abandoned to others? I can fully
sympathise with the feeling of doubt and hesitation. After all, however, what is
it but balancing expediency against obedience? No doubt if I look to man, I find
a far wider scope for a Christian’s influence inside sects than outside. But
this is looking to man when I am called upon to look to God. How would Moses
have decided if he had argued on grounds of expediency? He would have said — "I
must remain in the camp. I am more needed here than I ever was. By going outside
I shall lose all the power and influence I can now employ for the people’s
good." Instead of thus arguing with the flesh, he acted in the energy of the
Spirit, pitched the tabernacle "without the camp, afar off," and thus took his
stand alone for the Lord. What was the consequence? "It came to pass that every
one which sought the Lord went out unto the tabernacle of the congregation,
which was without the camp" (Exo 33:7). Instead of alienating himself from those
who sought the Lord, he drew them to him. He got into the position of power —
power with God, and power for blessing to men.

Take another case. Saul was ordered to destroy the Amalekites with their flocks
and their herds. Instead of simple obedience, he acted according to his own
thoughts of what was right. He was not regardless of the Lord. Far from it: he
and "the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto
the Lord." It was the wisdom and religion of the flesh, judging for itself in
the things of the Lord, instead of letting the Lord judge; preferring service,
in man’s way, to obedience in God’s way. What does God reply? "Hath the Lord as
great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the
Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of
rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity
and idolatry" (1Sa 15:22-23). Have these Old Testament narratives no voice for
us? Is God more indifferent about obedience now than He was in the days of Saul?
Or are we better able to judge of what is right than Saul was, that, like him,
we should set up our judgment against God’s? Let us consider against whom we are
matching ourselves, and ask, with the apostle — "Do we provoke the Lord to
jealousy? Are we stronger than He?"

It may be said, however, that the circumstances are not parallel. Saul received
a positive commandment in which no discretion could possibly be allowed. We, on
the contrary, have only a book written eighteen centuries ago, in a state of
things, both as to the Church and as to the world, wholly different from that
which now prevails, and it is surely lawful to bring in our own wisdom to modify
the teachings there given so as to adapt them to modern circumstances and
necessities. Let us take, then, another case, already referred to, and see what
light it throws on our subject. When David wished to move the ark to Jerusalem
what had he to guide him? He was doing the Lord’s will, so that there was
nothing wrong in the act itself and yet he did it in a wrong way. What was the
cause of his error? He had, in the books of Moses, a clear command as to how the
ark should be moved. But might he not justly have answered — "This law is now
centuries old, all the circumstances are entirely altered, the ark itself has
for a couple of generations been away from its proper place, the primitive order
has in almost every respect been long since abandoned; this doubtless is quite
right, the result of natural growth and progress, and we must seek to
accommodate ourselves to the new state of things; a council of the mighty men
and captains will be the proper mode for determining how we can bring up the ark
of the covenant in the way most honouring to the Lord." This would have been
exactly analogous to modern reasoning, which would call in man’s aid to mould
the Church according to supposed present requirements. The First Epistle to the
Corinthians is admitted to have taught the evil of sects, and to have laid down
certain principles with respect to the meetings of Christians, at that day; but
when these principles are insisted upon as applicable now, the reply is that we
live in another age, and that what was very good for the Corinthians will not do
for us, Yet what has the Spirit taught us? Foreseeing that of all the books of
the New Testament this epistle and the Revelation would be most persistently set
aside, He has taken especial pains to mark out, in the one case the universality
of its application, and in the other the blessing attached to its study. It is
only in the Book of Revelation that we find a blessing pronounced on them "that
hear the words of this prophecy." It is only in the First Epistle to the
Corinthians that we find a dedication, not only to the saints at Corinth, but to
"all that, in every place, call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord" (1Co
1:2). Yet this is the very book which modern believers, as to questions of
Church order and discipline as to its estimate of fleshly wisdom and sectarian
divisions, have most systematically set aside.

Some, indeed, have even gone so far as to say that the Church at Corinth was not
in the usual state, but was, just when the apostle wrote, without a minister! If
a writer on the British Constitution were to seek to illustrate its principles
by the acts performed under the Commonwealth or Protectorate, the most ignorant
reader would be amazed at his folly. If a writer on the parochial system of the
English Establishment were to attempt to show its ordinary routine by describing
the events which happened after the death of one incumbent and before the
appointment of another, his book would be laughed at as a monument of stupidity.
But the folly and stupidity which would draw down ridicule on an uninspired
writer many Christians are not afraid to ascribe to God! Such irreverence and
presumption are, I admit, wholly unconscious and unintentional, but this only
serves the more strikingly to show how even real and devoted believers, when
they once depart from the simple standard of the written Word, and fall back
upon the uncertain teachings of human experience and expediency, are driven to
theories about Scripture which, in their naked form, they would be the first to
reject. No; the Scriptures of God’s truth are not ephemeral writings to be
received or refused as later experience may suggest; the institutions of God
concerning His assembly are not provisional regulations to be modified by the
wisdom of man according to the circumstances under which he may be placed; but
both are as permanent and universal as the Divine source from which they flow.
When the choice lies between subjection to God’s Word and the suggestions of
man’s heart, surely the believer cannot hesitate a moment which he is to follow.
With the Scriptures for his guide, amidst all perplexities, his way is plain —
"Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." What, on the other
hand, is the wisdom of man that it should exalt itself against God? Is it not
"written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the
understanding of the prudent"? The Lord does not need our service, but He does
need our obedience. By remaining in a sect there may be a wider field of
apparent usefulness, more to show in the eyes of the world; but if, by thus
remaining, we are acting in conscious disobedience to the Lord’s will, we shall
assuredly find that what "is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the
sight of God." But now comes the second question — Is it not uncharitable, and
even presumptuous, to separate from the excellent men who are found in most of
the sects? To this, however, there are several sufficient answers. These
excellent men have, by their connection with different sects, separated from
each other, and whichever sect you belong to, you are necessarily separated from
those in other sects. Again, by going outside sects, you do not separate
yourselves from believers in the sect, but occupy the only place which denies
and condemns such separation. You break down all human barriers, and take the
common ground of the Church of God. If others maintain them, it is they who keep
up the separation, not you. The great question is, however, which are we to
follow — God or good men? No snare has been greater to God’s people than that of
following good men. Would it not have been uncharitable, or presumptuous, in the
young man of God sent to Bethel, to question the word of the old prophet who
decoyed him back to eat bread in his house? Yet we see what was the Lord’s
judgment of his disobedience (1Ki 13:1-34). Would it not have been uncharitable,
or presumptuous, in Barnabas to take a different course from Peter, when he
"walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel" at Antioch? Yet, how
does the Holy Ghost, speaking through Paul, characterise his conduct? "Barnabas
also," he says, "was carried away with their dissimulation" (Gal 2:11-14). God’s
truth is to be followed though apostles, or even angels, speak against it.
"Though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that
which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed" (Gal 1:8). With such
energy does the Holy Ghost repel the idea of setting up any other authority side
by side with the Word of God. The third question which suggests itself in
connection with this subject of separation is — "Am I to go out and stand all
alone, with, perhaps, no other human being to have communion with me, occupying
a position of absolute isolation as respects fellow-believers?" This is
certainly not the Lord’s order. But we live in a state of things when God’s
order has been superseded by man’s disorder. The Lord calls us to fellowship
with himself and with one another, but he demands that we should "have no
fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness." If man and Satan have
corrupted God’s truth, set aside God’s order, and abandoned the guidance of
God’s Word, I must separate myself from this. It is not separation from
believers, but separation from that which believers are taking up without
sanction from Scripture, separation from that which grieves and quenches the
Spirit, godly separation from that which causes ungodly separation. Instead of
dividing me from my fellow-Christians, it is taking God’s side against such
divisions, declaring that I come out to the only ground where such divisions can
have no place, and that I leave behind the whole sphere in which such divisions
are tolerated. But while, in coming out to the Lord’s name, one is doubtless
taking the only position compatible with Christian unity, it must be admitted
that outwardly the place is often one of extreme trial and painful isolation.
Has the Lord ever promised, however, that the Christian’s path shall be an easy
one? Has He not said, "In the world ye shall have tribulation"? And what is to
be our comfort? That He has overcome the world. If, then, such a position be
taken in obedience to Him and in fellowship with Him, shall we shrink from it
because of the worldly trials it involves? With Him who has overcome the world
on our side, shall we sink beneath its ridicule or its reproach, its
condemnation or its contempt? Can we not rather rejoice that we are "counted
worthy to suffer shame for His name"? — that unto us "it is given in the behalf
of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake"? — that
we are called, in however small a measure, to "fill up that which is behind of
the afflictions of Christ in our flesh for His body’s sake, which is the
Church"? Surely we do not forget, that "if we suffer, we shall also reign with
Him," or "that the trial of our faith, being much more precious than of gold
that perisheth, though it be tried with fire," will "be found unto praise and
honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ." Moses took a lonely and
trying path when he gave up all his worldly prospects in Egypt to identify
himself with the despised and down-trodden children of Israel; but he saw things
according to God’s thoughts, not according to man’s, and, therefore, "refused to
be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter," "esteeming the reproach of Christ
greater riches than the treasures of Egypt, for he had respect unto the
recompense of the reward." To shrink from the path of obedience because I may
stand alone is to declare that I prefer the fellowship of man to the fellowship
of God. To shrink from it because it may involve earthly suffering and loss is
to prefer the treasures of Egypt to the reproach of Christ. No, if as we have
seen, all these sects have taken a position more or less out of harmony with
God’s Word — if the very fact of their sectarian standing is in itself
inconsistent with His revealed thoughts about His Church — I have not to weigh
consequences, not to be counting costs, but in simple obedience and faith in
Him, to separate from everything that is contrary to His mind, to go forth unto
Christ "without the camp, bearing his reproach."

CHAPTER IX.

GOD’S PROVISION FOR THE FAITHFUL.

Separation from evil is, as we have seen, the first step in the path of
obedience. Christendom, with its sects, its human organisations, its departure
from the simple truth of God, has become a great house, and from all that is not
according to God’s mind, the obedient are called to purge themselves. We have
seen that this may involve trial and isolation. But while it is quite possible
that in walking obediently, in separating from all denominational ties, the
believer may find himself absolutely alone, this is not the Lord’s usual way. He
may thus test our faith. Where He does so, however, circumstances are peculiar,
a departure from His ordinary plan for some special purpose. In most cases,
where a believer thus takes a stand for the Lord against the world, he finds one
or more who have been led in the same path, and taught the same blessed truths.
If so, these can meet simply in the Lord’s name; nay, they are bound to do so,
for it is His own Divine institution. "Let us consider one another," says the
apostle, "to provoke unto love and to good works; not forsaking the assembling
of ourselves together, as the manner of some is" (Heb 10:24-25). While, on the
one hand, the believer is to "depart from iniquity," he is, on the other, to
follow "peace with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart." He cannot
have fellowship with that which is contrary to the Lord’s mind, and must
therefore separate from sects; but he is to desire fellowship with all the
Lord’s people, and should there be any walking in a godly way, who are willing
to meet with him simply in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, he is bound to
receive them and meet with them. Were there but two persons in the world
assembled in this manner, they would be the two meeting in the Lord’s way and on
the Lord’s ground. But though those gathered out in the Lord’s name in any
particular locality form a meeting there, this meeting is not independent of
those who assemble in the same name in any other place. Though the Church is in
ruins, the principle of the Church remains intact according to God’s
institution. Those who, in every part of the world, meet together in the Lord’s
name are all one, each local assembly being but the representative of the
oneness in its own town or village, and exercising discipline there, not as an
independent body, but in real concert with the whole, whose joint action is
secured, not by any human organisation or mutual correspondence, but by the
oneness of the action of Christ in all the assemblies. It is a matter of faith,
not of sight — but none the less, so long as Christ’s authority is owned and
felt, a Divine and blessed reality. Is this, then, it may be asked, a
restoration of the Church? And is the local meeting the Church of this place?
No, by no means. The Church is the whole body of believers in the world, and the
Church of any place is the whole body of believers in the place. It would lead
to confusion, arrogance, and intense sectarianism if those meeting in this way
made any such claim. They are neither the Church, which means the whole of the
believers now living; nor a Church, in the unscriptural sense in which the word
is now used, meaning a sect cut off from the rest of believers by human
regulations and barriers. What are they, then? They are those who, amidst the
ruins of Christendom, having separated from the sects which divide it, for none
of which they can find any Scripture foundation, have come out simply to the
name of Jesus, refuse everything for which there is no warrant in the Word of
God, and own no guidance except that of the Holy Spirit. Though they are not the
Church, therefore, they have reverted to Church ground, and their gathering is
on exactly the same principle as that of the apostolic assemblies. True they are
in the midst of ruin, and numbers of the Lord’s children, being unseparated in
heart or intelligence from the ruin, do not meet with them. In fact, they are a
mere handful, despicable in numbers, in worldly influence, in everything that
meets the natural eye or satisfies the natural heart; but they have taken God’s
ground, and represent, though of course with much feebleness and failure, God’s
order in the midst of man’s confusion.

What relationship do they hold to other Christians, then? The closest of all
relationships, oneness in Christ, fellow-membership of His body. But for this
very reason they decline to form themselves into corporations which virtually
deny this oneness. They recognise their fellow-believers in the various sects as
members of Christ’s body, as members of God’s assembly. But they are members who
have forsaken the assembling of themselves together, are met in other names than
that of the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not take their place at the gathering
where nothing save His name and authority are owned. Those, therefore, who meet
only in the Lord’s name have separated, not from their fellow-believers, but
from the sects and associations into which their fellow-believers have formed
themselves. The division is not their act, for they are met on the only ground
of unity, hat the act of those who, by forming themselves into other
confederations than that which binds them together as members of Christ’s body,
are practically denying that oneness.

Having, then, taken Church ground, while they must carefully bear in mind that
they are not the Church, they are entitled to reckon on the blessings, the
governments, and the gifts which God has bestowed on the Church, except indeed,
so far as these in their nature can only belong to the Church in its perfect
condition. Being gathered together in the Lord’s way, and in the Lord’s name,
they can count on his presence. Every local assembly met on this Church ground,
though consisting of but two or three persons, has this to reckon upon, and
where, therefore, there is real subjection of heart, unity of discipline and
order is maintained between it and other gatherings meeting in the same manner.
As to local officers, it is true, they see no way in which these can be
scripturally appointed, nor indeed any body over which they could scripturally
exercise their authority. For elders and deacons were appointed in connection
with the Church of a particular city, and where is such a Church to be found
now? There is no body that in any way answers to the apostolic Church of Ephesus
or Corinth, and it would be a mere assumption to make officers for any other
body. No doubt persons, acting in self-will, can establish an organisation of
their own, and elect or appoint officers to whom they can give the scriptural
names, but these so-called elders and deacons of the various sects are no more
elders or deacons according to God’s order, than the "house of high places,"
made by Jeroboam, was the temple of Jehovah, or the priests that he instituted,
"not of the sons of Levi," were the priests of Jehovah, or the feast which he
ordained in "the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own
heart," was the feast of Jehovah (1Ki 12:31-33).

Besides, both elders and deacons were ordained by apostles or apostolic
delegates, and as neither apostles nor apostolic delegates now exist, they find
no scriptural mode of ordaining them. What, then, must they do? Add to Scripture
by inventing a mode of their own? Deviate from Scripture by allowing them to be
instituted in a way different from that which is there directed? Assume that
because no provision is made, God forgot to give us directions, or left the
matter to our own discretion? Vastly different from any of these ways. Reckoning
with unshaken confidence on the sufficiency of Scripture, assured that God would
never neglect the minutest detail necessary for His people’s guidance, judging
the flesh according to God’s estimate of it, and knowing that its wisdom would
only darken God’s truth, they conclude that since no provision is made for
officers being appointed, God meant that they should not be appointed. There
were no officers left, after the apostles and their delegates were gone, but
bishops or elders and deacons. Now Scripture gives no sanction to the idea of
bishops and deacons being appointed by other bishops and deacons, or by synods
of bishops and deacons, or by any other officer above both (for after the
apostles’ time there was no such officer), or by popular election of the various
assemblies. Yet in one or other of these ways, infinitely modified and varied,
all appointments of officers have taken place and must take place. That is,
there is no possibility of having officers at all, but by some plan which does
not rest on the authority of Scripture.

Which, then, we ask, is the true attitude for the believer to take — to act for
himself without Scripture warrant, or to refrain from acting at all because he
has no Scripture warrant? When Israel stood on the borders of the Red Sea, the
waters in front and the Egyptians behind, God’s word was — "Stand still and see
the salvation of the Lord" (Exo 14:13). Man’s restless unbelief wanted to do
something; God bids him do nothing, but wait for His word and work. So, in the
wilderness, "at the commandment of the Lord the children of Israel journeyed,
and at the commandment of the Lord they pitched; as long as the cloud abode upon
the tabernacle, they rested in their tents" (Num 9:18). However trying it might
seem to linger month after month, and year after year, in the same place,
however slow their progress might appear, however much fleshly energy might
prompt them to press forward, until God’s express sanction was given, "they
rested in their tents." Man might scoff at their inaction and call it
foolishness; man might censure their long delays and ascribe them to weakness.
But "the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is
stronger than men." The Lord led them into the land in His own time and in His
own way; whereas, when on one occasion "they presumed to go up unto the hill
top" in their own strength and without the Lord, "the Amalekite came down, and
the Canaanites which dwelt in that hill, and smote them, and discomfited them,
even unto Hormah" (Num 14:44-45).

Look, again, at the action of the returned remnant, in the days of Zerubbabel.
Certain persons, supposed to be of priestly descent, "sought their register
among those that were reckoned by genealogy, but they were not found." What was
to be done? "Decide the matter by human rules of evidence," is the natural
reply; "determine their status one way or other, according to the best light we
possess." So would man bring in his own wisdom in the things of God. But
Zerubbabel was a man of faith. He would not act without God. No motives of
expediency, to strengthen the priesthood, would induce him to put them in
without Divine sanction; on the contrary, "the Tirshatha said unto them, that
they should not eat of the most holy things, till there stood up a priest with
Urim and with Thummim" (Ezr 2:61-63). What a lesson for the day of ruin! How
blessed and refreshing the faith, which, in the absence of Divine guidance,
refuses to act in the wisdom of the flesh, or on the promptings of expediency,
but simply stands still and waits patiently upon God! But if those meeting
simply in the Lord’s name find no scriptural authority for office, if they
conclude, therefore, that God did not mean office to continue in a ruined
Church, are they, on this account, left over to the self-will of man or to
complete anarchy? So far from it, God has graciously shown us in the apostolic
history, that assemblies are not dependent upon office at all. The Churches in
which Paul and Barnabas ordained elders had, as we have seen, gone on for a
considerable period, and in times of great difficulty and trial, without any
such officers. Titus, too, was to ordain elders in cities where, until then,
there had been none. Will the same grace and power, which kept these early
Churches before elders were appointed, fail to keep those which are in the same
position now? What resource had they? God Himself — that God who "is not the
author of confusion, but of peace, as in all the Churches of the saints." Shall
I say — "God is not sufficient for me; I must have some other provision, and
since He has not made it for me, I will make it for myself"? Alas, how
dishonouring to Him is all this appointment of officers, all this framing of
rules and constitutions, without the sanction, even in opposition to the
teaching of His Word!

And, if we look to the means, we sec how God acts. He has given directions,
which, if observed, will maintain order. Has He not said — "Likewise, ye
younger, submit yourselves unto the elder; yea, all of you be subject one to
another, and be clothed with humility" (1Pe 5:5)? Here we have a rule widely
removed from democratic licence on the one hand, and with no reference to office
on the other. It prescribes that godly subjection to age and gravity which
nature enjoins and the Word of God ever inculcates. Where the mind was simple,
there was a spiritual discernment of those who were fitted to exercise
authority, quite apart from any appointment to office. We see this in the
exhortation of the apostle to the Thessalonians — "We beseech you, brethren, to
know them which labour among you and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you"
(1Th 5:12). Here nothing is said about office, and as this epistle was written
very shortly after Paul’s brief sojourn among them, he must have deviated from
his usual practice if he had appointed officers. Besides, how could they be
exhorted to know them, if they had an official character? The natural meaning of
the passage is, that there were certain persons qualified to bear rule and guide
the assembly, and that there ought to be in the assembly godly discernment
enough to recognise such persons, and godly subjection enough to own their
authority. This, then, is the Lord’s provision now; and if there is a subject
heart and simple faith, its sufficiency will be readily recognised; while, if we
look at the sad history of the Church since the days of the apostles, we shall
feel unfeigned thankfulness that the Lord has not perpetuated office in a ruined
assembly, thus lending the sanction of Divine appointment to all the
abominations and atrocities which have left their bloody mark on almost every
page in the annals of ecclesiastical rule.

Office, then, has no longer any scriptural foundation, and to feign office,
built on another foundation, is simply to use "strange fire" in the Lord’s
service. It is "the gainsaying of Korah," who instead of accepting God’s
ordinance, brought in man’s rights, and set these up against the institutions
delivered by the Lord. It is true, indeed, that thousands of the Lord’s real and
honoured servants are themselves exercising, or acquiescing in the exercise, of
unscriptural official functions. This shows that the Lord is exceedingly
gracious, and will not withhold His blessing because of man’s ignorance; but it
does not in any way alter His order. Every Protestant knows what godly and
devoted men there have been mixed up with the errors and superstitions of
Romanism, but this does not make these errors or superstitions any better. We
are bound to own all that is of God, and to love all believers; but this should
not blind us to God’s truth. One of the most fruitful sources of error in all
ages has it been thinking of good men rather than of God. But though office has
disappeared, gift is just the same as it ever was. Office, in a ruined Church,
would only have lent God’s sanction to man’s disorder. But man’s failure and
disorder have never hindered the outflow of God’s grace. "The perfecting of the
saints, the work of the ministry, the edifying of the body of Christ" — this has
been going on amidst all the lawlessness and confusion brought in by man’s
self-will. How perfect are the Lord’s wisdom and grace! Had he combined gift and
office, He must either have sanctioned man’s disorder by perpetuating office, or
have left His people to starve by withdrawing gift. He has separated them, and
thus has been able both to withhold His sanction from man’s disorder by
abolishing office, and yet to minister to the needs of His saints, and send out
the gospel of His grace to sinners, by continuing gift.

Gifts are for the Church, even the Church in ruins. At no time have they been
withdrawn. At no time has the risen Lord ceased to provide for His own by
evangelists, pastors, and teachers. In having gifts, those who meet in the
Lord’s name, outside all man’s divisions, are in no respect different from the
rest of believers. But though they are not distinguished from others by the
possession of gift, they are by putting it in its proper scriptural place. God
has never in his Word authorised the restriction of gift to a particular local
assembly; He has never sanctioned the combination of gift and office, so that
gift shall be exercised by virtue of an official position; He has never given
directions, in the assembly, for any person, official or unofficial, to
prescribe the order of service, to regulate the persons by whom prayer should be
offered, thanks given, praise uttered, or gift exercised. To say that this is
necessary to maintain order is to say that God does not know how to keep order,
but that man does. It is an addition to, or rather a deviation from, Scripture —
a thrusting aside of God’s way in favour of man’s — a quenching of the Spirit,
whose guidance is treated as a fanatical delusion and transferred to the hands
of some humanly-appointed official. Who does not wonder at the riches of that
grace which could still go on supplying gift to his Church, even where it was so
grossly abused!

Those who meet simply in the Lord’s name have no choice but to revert in this
matter to His order. Where there is any real spiritual apprehension of what it
is to meet in that name as distinguished from human systems, there could be no
thought of returning to the most unscriptural feature of those systems in
superseding God’s order by their own regulations, or in gagging and bridling the
gifts of an ascended Christ by restrictions and conditions which He has never
imposed. Instead of authorising an officer for whose appointment they have no
scriptural authority, to exercise gifts which he may or may not possess, and to
shut out the exercise of gift by those on whom Christ has conferred it, they
meet, owning no guidance but that of the Spirit, and leave the flow of praise,
prayer, thanksgiving, exhortation, or teaching, in His hands. If the evangelist
preaches the gospel to sinners, if a gifted teacher invites saints to gather for
instruction, this is not a meeting of the assembly, and the gift is exercised,
not in responsibility to the Church, but to God. There is no such thing in
Scripture as the Church regulating gift, any more than converting it into a
function of office. Those, therefore, who meet in the Lord’s name only, and in
subjection to Scripture, make no such attempts, but leave the matter as God has
left it in His Word. But it may be asked, whether great disorder may not thus
come in? Even if, where there is faith, the Spirit’s guidance is sufficient, may
not dire confusion result from want of faith? Undoubtedly, if the flesh acts
instead of the Spirit, disorder will ensue. But what is the remedy for this? Is
it to provide for the acting of the flesh, by setting up fleshly rules, or to
look to God that He will keep the flesh from acting? Fleshly rules cannot
prevent the acting of the flesh, but they can regulate it. They can keep things
going on decently in spite of its acting; thus covering up the evil instead of
letting it come to the surface. Is this what a truly spiritual mind would seek?
Is it not better that if the flesh is acting, its true character should be
discerned? And what is God’s remedy? In the Corinthian Church, the very thing
dreaded had occurred, and that in a shocking and revolting form. How does God
meet it? By recalling the Corinthians to His own order and mode of acting, never
by authorising them to set aside his order and make rules of their own. If the
meeting was in so carnal a state that it could not keep God’s order, how much
spirituality would there have been in the rules it prescribed for maintaining
its own? Surely this question should be pondered by those who imagine that God’s
order is not sufficient, and that the only way of preventing confusion is to
substitute an order of man’s devising. But is not a regular, paid ministry
sanctioned in Scripture? "Do ye not know, that they which minister about holy
things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are
partakers with the altar? Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach
the gospel should live of the gospel" (1Co 9:13-14). And so again — "Let him
that is taught in the Word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good
things" (Gal 6:6). This undoubtedly authorises, what no godly person would ever
object to, contributions from those who possess means for the support of those
who are labouring in the Lord. A person thus labouring is justified in receiving
such gifts as from the Lord, and he is not a true servant if he feels humiliated
by so doing. But does this provision justify setting aside God’s order of
ministry altogether, and substituting for it an organisation of man’s? It may be
urged that unless a gifted person is confined to a certain congregation or
circuit, unless the number of times he exercises his gift is prescribed, and
unless the salary received is duly arranged, neither side has any certainty; the
congregation may receive too little for its money or the minister too little for
his labour. This is quite true, and what does it show? That the moment we depart
from God’s order, a low fleshly standard of thoughts, reasonings, and motives
comes in. Not that I would for one moment imply that all, or nearly all, of
those in what is called the "stated ministry" are actuated by the commercial
motives here suggested. Thank God, there are and have been multitudes to whom
the bare idea of bartering gift for gold, measuring salary by service, would be
as abhorrent to their own thoughts as it is contrary to God’s Word. But this
does not alter the system. If what is called a regular, paid, professional
ministry is to be introduced in the place of God’s order, this commercial
argument is what is urged in its defence; only showing to what poor, low
thoughts we descend when we leave God’s principle to bring in our own. This
ministry is man’s ministry, and receives not a shadow of foundation, but direct
condemnation, from Scripture. It was before any such human systems were devised
that the words above quoted were spoken. Their application, therefore, was to
something quite different from what is called the stated or professional
ministry of our day. We see how it was meant to be applied in the case of the
apostle. Though for special reasons he would receive nothing from the saints at
Corinth, he did from other Churches. When he was in Thessalonica, the
Philippians "sent once and again unto his necessity." When he was at Corinth, he
says, "I robbed other Churches, taking wages of them, to do you service" (2Co
9:8). But how different this from what is called a paid ministry. Here was one
led of the Spirit to give up his time entirely to the Lord’s work. The Lord
would not let him want, and He supplies his lack by putting it into the hearts
of individuals or of Churches to contribute to his necessities. Does anybody say
— But how can an ordinary servant trust the Lord? If his faith is not equal to
the occasion, it is manifest that the Lord has not called him to go forth in
that way, and he will simply make a mistake, to his own grievous injury, and
that of others, if he attempts it. In such cases — and they are the vast
majority — the Lord’s direction is, that he should work for his living, and
honest work will not in anywise interfere with the proper exercise of his gift.
And those who thus gather in the Lord’s name, rejecting all ministry but that of
His own appointment, will seek to follow Scripture also in the object of their
meeting. Where God’s thoughts are put aside in one way, they will soon be
treated with contempt in all. Our blessed Lord, on His last night with His
disciples, just before the agony of the garden and the still more terrible
darkness of the cross, instituted a feast as a memorial of Himself, specially
showing forth His own death, When in the glory, to the one apostle who had never
known Him on earth, and knew Him only there, He rehearses, as it were, this
touching scene, and again presses the tender words — "This do in remembrance of
Me." Setting forth, as it does, in its very nature, the oneness of the Church,
it is essentially an assembly-act, and, as might have been expected, was the act
for which the assembly especially met. All the rest was, so to speak, by the
way. The great object of gathering was thus to remember the blessed Lord in His
own touching manner. One might have thought that if there was anything which
even a Church that had lost its first love would not thrust into a corner, it
would be this memorial. But what has been done? In the great majority of
so-called Churches the whole meaning of the Supper has been lost, and it has
been converted into a means of grace instead of an occasion of worship and
thanksgiving. Even where it has been retained in anything like its purity as to
object, man has thought once a month or a quarter was quite often enough to
remember Jesus in His own way, and has diverted the first day of the week from
the object of doing Christ’s will according to His parting request, to the
object of seeking for edification according to his own thoughts. Surely first
love must not only have been lost, but have degenerated into Laodicean
lukewarmness, before so heartless a refusal, or so indifferent a compliance with
the Lord’s last injunction, could have been tolerated.

Those who meet in the Lord’s name will necessarily revert to apostolic practice
and teaching on this point also. No plea of expediency, no pretence of active
service in the gospel will draw aside the heart from simple obedience, or cause
any neglect of this exquisitely expressive memento of the absent Lord. Was He
who instituted this feast more indifferent to the need of sinners than modern
religious denominations? Was Paul one who indulged in the selfish enjoyment of
the blessings he possessed or careless of the spiritual darkness and death
reigning around him? Should those, then, who seek, instead of following their
own thoughts, to follow the Lord’s command, and the apostle’s example, be
subjected to this reproach, they have only to "rejoice and be exceeding glad."
Their answer to those who accuse them is this, — "Whether it be right in the
sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye;" or again, "We
ought to obey God rather than men." The question is — Who shall be judge, man or
God? Is the word of truth given for the believer to revise or to obey?

Such, then, is the course which remains open to those who seek to separate
themselves from the ruin and confusion of Christendom, and walk with the Lord.
To reconstruct is impossible. As well try to put man back again in Eden. But to
leave the paths of self-will and disobedience, to build again on the old
foundation, to bow down before the sovereign authority of the Word — this at
least is still possible; and we see what rich provision the Lord has made for
those who would thus walk. Who would not rejoice, in the midst of conscious
failure and weakness, to hear those cheering words, "Behold, I have set before
thee an open door, and no man can shut it; for thou hast a little strength, and
hast kept My Word, and hast not denied My name"? (Rev 3:8). But before we leave
this subject, the question may be asked — "Have not those who have sought to
take this place sadly failed? Have they ever realised this ideal unity? Or have
they exhibited such a success as to draw others into the same faith?" Have they
failed? "Much, every way." Have they realised the ideal unity? "No, in no wise."
And why? Because the flesh in them is just the same as the flesh in others. But
it is one thing to fail, and another thing to give up God’s ground. We are told
to walk even as Christ walked. No believer will deny that in this he has
signally failed. What, then, shall he do? Shall he say — "God’s standard is too
high. I will set up a lower one for myself"? The very thought is monstrous. And
yet this is just what Christians have done with respect to the Church of God.
They have taken a conception of their own, instead of God’s, and because they
can come up to the standard of the flesh, while those who adhere to God’s
standard fail to reach that of the Spirit they rest satisfied with their own
systems and reject the teaching of God’s Word. These who have sought to follow
this Word as their sole guide have done so with much failure, with only "a
little strength;" but while confessing it fully, they can rejoice that, through
God’s grace, they have been able to keep Christ’s word, and not to deny His
name.

Many doubtless have come into fellowship, drawn by the simplicity of worship or
other motives, without fully apprehending the position taken with respect to the
Church. When, therefore, a question arose concerning the oneness of Christ’s
action in discipline, some missed its true point, and while themselves clear
from false doctrine, received those who still associated with the teacher who
put it forth. This rendered them personally responsible for the doctrine, for
the Word says, "If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine" — that
is, the doctrine of Christ — "receive him not into your house, neither bid him
God speed; for he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds" (2Jn
1:10-11). From these, therefore, who thus made themselves responsible for the
doctrine, separation became necessary. In many cases want of grace and want of
love may have been shown. But this does not alter the principle, however much it
should humble those who maintained it, and however diligent and earnest it
should cause them to be in prayer for those from whom this painful separation
had to be made. But do not those meeting on this ground convert themselves into
a sect by refusing to receive Christians associated with the various
denominations around them? I reply, emphatically, that such is not their
principle, though, of course, from ignorance or mistake, it may occasionally
have been done in practice. The table is the Lord’s, and any believer, not, like
those just spoken of, responsible for false doctrine, has a title to take his
place at it. A believer from any evangelical denomination, asking fellowship,
would be received, provided he came duly accredited as to personal faith in
Christ, and was not by his position in association with some false doctrine. But
this is a totally different thing from intercommunion. Those meeting in the
Lord’s name and on the Lord’s ground, not as a sect, but on the true principle
of the Church of God, cannot possibly have anything to say to sects as sects.
They have left them behind, as not of God, and can enter into no arrangements
that persons shall break bread one day among the sects and the next among them.
Surely if one were to wish to act in this manner, it would be due to him, and
due to the Lord, that the difference of principle should be pointed out to him,
and that he should understand the inconsistency of meeting at one time on a
ground which condemns all sects, and at another on a sectarian basis. No man of
conscience or intelligence, perceiving the distinction, would wish to pursue
such a course. But this arises, not from any desire to exclude such a person on
the part of those meeting in the Lord’s name, but from the manifest
inconsistency of the conduct itself. The question for the conscience is, not
whether those who take this ground have failed, but whether the ground itself is
the Lord’s. Sects and systems of man’s devising have been shown to be contrary
to God’s Word. To say, then, as many have done, that there is no escape from
them, is to say that God has made no provision for his people to walk
obediently. Surely every spiritual heart will at once repudiate so fearful and
dishonouring a thought. But if God has marked out a path in which the obedient
may walk, what is it? It is clear that we cannot get into this path until we
leave the path of disobedience, and therefore the first step is to separate from
all those sects and systems which, as we have seen, derive no authority, but
receive condemnation, from the Word of God. Having, then, got out of the path of
disobedience, what finger-posts has God set up to direct us into the path of
obedience? He has given us His own Word to tell us how to meet. If, following
that Word, we meet in Christ’s name only, He has given us the promise of
Christ’s presence in our midst. If, in obedience to that Word again, we meet for
the object which that Word prescribes, and in the dependence which that Word
enjoins, bringing in nothing of man, but leaving everything in God’s hands, He
has promised us the guidance of His own Spirit. What do we want more? Is it a
constitution? We have the Word of God. Is it a preserver of order? We have the
guidance of the Holy Ghost. Is it gifts and endowments? We have the gifts and
endowments of an ascended Christ. We may fail in faith; but God, at all events,
will not fail in faithfulness. And now, in concluding, let us cast back a brief
glance over the ground already traversed. We have seen that God hiss set before
believers a present and precious hope of the Lord’s return to take them to the
mansions He has prepared for them; that the world, having refused the One in
whom all God’s promises of earthly blessing centred, has been left behind, and
will not receive the rich promises in store for it until judgment has been
executed; that during this interval of Christ’s rejection by the world, God is
gathering for Him a heavenly people, His body and His bride, and that for this
purpose the Holy Ghost has been sent down to form this people into oneness with
their heavenly Head; that the people thus gathered out are heavenly in
character, have before them a heavenly hope, and will share the dominion of
Christ over creation as His heavenly bride; that while here they are not to
expect an earthly portion or to seek after earthly power, not to mix themselves
up with the world, as though they belonged to it, but, as those who partake of
Christ’s earthly rejection, to be separated from it and awaiting the heavenly
bridegroom; that their responsibility is to bear witness for Christ here,
showing forth the heavenly character and heavenly oneness into which they are
brought; that in this testimony they have signally failed, not answering in any
way to God’s thoughts, but departing entirely from His Word, setting aside His
order, showing to the world a divided Christ; and that the true path of
obedience and subjection which the faithful are now called upon to pursue is to
detach themselves from all the systems, to gather simply to the name of Christ,
to accept no ministry but that which He has given, no presidency but that of the
Holy Ghost, and no rules and regulations but those enacted in the inspired Word.
This may be a lonely and a trying path, but it is the path of obedience, the
path of faith, and the path of blessing. May our hearts be led to walk simply in
it.


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  CHAPTER 13: 03.0. THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST
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The Revelation of Jesus Christ by T.B. Baines 1. "The Things Which Are"

2. Preliminary Judgments 3. The Glorious Coming and Kingdom of Christ


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  CHAPTER 14: 03.1.     "THE THINGS WHICH ARE"
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"The Things Which Are" by T. B. Baines.

Section 1 of: The Revelation of Jesus Christ.

(Rev 1:1-20; Rev 2:1-29; Rev 3:1-22) THE PREFACE.

Rev 1:1-3.

"The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto Him, to show His servants
things which must shortly come to pass; and He sent and signified it by His
angel unto His servant John, who bare record of the word of God, and of the
testimony of Jesus Christ, [and of] all things that he saw. Blessed is he that
readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things
which are written therein: for the time is at hand." (Rev 1:1-3.) Such is the
preface to this book, which is entitled, "The revelation of Jesus Christ." These
words, however, do not mean His predicted revelation or manifestation to the
world, but a revelation or prophetic communication which He receives from God
and transmits to His servants. This shows the character in which the different
persons, divine and human, are here presented. God is not looked at as the
Father of believers, or even of Jesus Christ, but as sovereign Creator and
Judge, communicating to Christ His own counsels. Jesus Christ, again, is not
seen as "the only-begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father," and
acquainted with all that is there hidden, but as the servant, who knows and does
nothing of himself, the dependent man to whom God’s purposes concerning the
judgment of the earth and the coming kingdom are entrusted. He is thus seen in
Mark’s gospel, where He says, "Of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the
angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father." (Mark 13:32.) To
His disciples also He does not here show himself as Head of the body, nor even
as the Friend opening to them His heart, but as the Lord giving directions to
his servants concerning "the things which must shortly come to pass." This "He
sent and signified by his angel unto his servant John." Now angels were God’s
medium of communication with Israel. Stephen says they "received the law by the
disposition of angels" (Acts 7:53); and in Hebrews, "the word spoken by angels"
is contrasted with God speaking by the Son. (Heb 1:2; Heb 2:2) There is, then, a
return to Jewish modes of communication perfectly suitable to the character of a
book which unfolds God’s dealings with the world when He restores to favour His
earthly people; a book which regards the Church, not in its privileges, but in
its responsibilities as a witness for Christ, a branch grafted into the good
olive tree, which must either bear fruit or be broken off.

It is said the things "must shortly come to pass;" for the Church period is
always left indefinite; and though the Lord, "not willing that any should
perish," has hitherto mercifully postponed His coming, still His word is,
"Behold, I come quickly," and His disciples are to have their "loins girded
about, and their lamps burning," and to be "like unto men that wait for their
Lord." (Luk 12:35-36). The angel gives the message to John, "who bare record of
the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, — all things that he
saw." There is no "and" before the last clause. He does not bear witness to
something that he saw in addition to the word of God and testimony of Jesus
Christ, but to all that he saw of them. Here again Christ is not the Son
revealing the Father, but the faithful witness testifying God’s word. And this
word is earnestly commended to our study. "Blessed is he that readeth, and they
that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written
therein: for the time is at hand." Of such value is the book in God’s eyes.
There is a blessing both upon reading and hearing; for the truth is practical,
and must be held fast because its accomplishment is near. THE INTRODUCTION.

Rev 1:4-20. The introduction comprises — first the greeting (Rev 1:4-6); next,
the general purport of the book, the coming of Jesus Christ in power and glory
(Rev 1:7-8); and lastly, the vision of Jesus as the Son of man in His judicial
vesture, walking amidst the golden candlesticks. (Rev 1:9-20) THE GREETING.

(Rev 1:4-6)

"John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace,
from Him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven
Spirits which are before His throne; and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful
witness, and the first-begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the
earth." (Rev 1:1-5)

Here is the usual salutation, "Grace be unto you, and peace;" but not, as in
Paul’s epistles, "from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ." On the
contrary, God is here named the One "which is, and which was, and which is to
come." This is the New Testament equivalent for Jehovah. He is the "I am," the
self-existent One, and therefore the expression "which is" stands first. But as
the "I am" He was from eternity, and will be to eternity; so it is added, "And
which was, and which is to come." This phrase, "is to come," does not refer to
His future coming in judgment, but to His eternal existence as the One who
always is, always was, and always will be. This is not the way in which God
elsewhere reveals Himself in the New Testament; it is a return to the character
in which He shows Himself when declaring His ways concerning the world in the
Old Testament. It harmonizes therefore with the general scope and object of the
book, which unfolds God’s actings in government towards the world, and towards
the Church, as a professing system in the world.

Again, the Holy Ghost is described as "the seven Spirits which are before His
throne." Afterwards He is spoken of under the figure of "seven lamps of fire
burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God" (Rev 4:5),
alluding to the seven lamps of the golden candlestick in the sanctuary. The
number seven, so often used in this book, is a well-known Scripture symbol of
heavenly perfection. The Spirit therefore is here looked at in reference rather
to the complete circle of His activities than to the oneness of his person,
which is so strongly insisted upon in connection with the Church considered as
the body of Christ. The place of the seven Spirits, moreover, "before the
throne," shows them to be connected with God’s ways in the government of the
world, not in the formation of the Church.

Further, in this salutation the name of Jesus Christ does not, as is usual
elsewhere, follow that of God. He is looked at, not in his divinity, but as the
Son of man. He is "the faithful witness," giving to His servants the revelation
He has received from God — "What He hath seen and heard, that He testifieth."
(John 3:32.) But as man He is now the risen One, "the first-begotten of the
dead;" and in this character He receives dominion, and is made "the Prince of
the kings of the earth," just as in Php 2:8-10, because He went down into death,
"therefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above
every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow." These three
characters, which Jesus bears throughout this book — the faithful witness, the
One who was dead, but is alive again, and the rightful ruler and judge — none of
them relate exclusively to His connection with the Church; while the last
clearly shows Him as the Messiah, the man of God’s purposes for earthly
government. In all these titles and attributes, whether of God, of the Spirit,
or of Jesus Christ, we see a departure from the Church position maintained in
the New Testament, and a return to the principles, symbols, and associations of
the Old. We are taken from the heavenly dispensation entrusted to Paul, and
brought back to the earthly counsels and purposes unfolded in the Psalms and the
prophets. All this, as before remarked, is in perfect. harmony with the scope
and character of this book. But here a beautiful interruption comes in. Though
in the style of the Old Testament, the salutation is to the seven churches, and
the Church must respond to the name of Jesus. Suddenly therefore a chorus of
praise bursts out — "Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His
own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and His Father [or, more
correctly, "a kingdom, priests unto His God and Father"]; to Him be glory and
dominion for ever and ever. Amen." (Rev 1:5-6). The Church is built on Jesus as
"the Christ, the Son of the living God." (Mat 16:16-18.) The word Father, which
in this book is never applied to God’s relationship with believers, is only used
five times of his relationship with Christ. And in none of these passages is
Christ regarded as Judge, but as connected with the Church or an elect people.
Here it is the Church’s joyous response to the mention of His name and titles.
In the next three instances it occurs in promises to the overcomers in the
different churches. It is used once again in connection with the saved remnant
who stand with the Lamb on mount Zion, "having His Father’s name written in
their foreheads." (Rev 14:1.) There He is seen as God’s anointed King seated in
Zion, and declaring the decree, "Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten
thee."

It is beautiful to observe how believers cannot think of Jesus even as Judge
without exulting joy. For them the judgment has no terrors; for they know Him as
the One "that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood." This
gives peace to the conscience, and confidence to the heart. They can add, too,
"And hath made us a kingdom — priests unto his God and Father." Peter calls
believers "a royal priesthood." They are entitled to reign with Christ, and are
priests "to offer up spiritual sacrifices." (1Pe 2:5, 1Pe 2:9) They are also the
depositaries of God’s counsels concerning Christ, and can, even during His
rejection, ascribe to Him "glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen." THE
PURPORT OF THE BOOK.

(Rev 1:7-8) The salutation is followed by a statement of the grand purpose
toward which the whole book is directed: "Behold, He cometh with clouds; and
every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Hun: and all the kindreds
of the earth shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen." (Rev 1:7) This is not
the Lord’s coming for His saints; for then He will appear only "unto them that
look for Him." (Heb 9:28.) Nor is it His coming at the end of the world to judge
the dead before the great white throne. The coming here spoken of is that which,
as recorded later in this book, precedes His thousand years’ reign over the
earth. This is clear from a comparison with other Scriptures. Jesus said to the
Jews, "Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is He that
cometh in the name of the Lord." (Mat 23:39.) In the passage before us however
the Jews do see Him; for "every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced
Him." Now this is a quotation from Zechariah, describing the effect of Christ’s
appearing on the faithful remnant of the Jews at the time of their national
deliverance: "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." (Zec 12:9-10) This
quotation shows that the time here spoken of is when the godly remnant of the
Jews, lamenting their sin in the rejection of the Messiah, own Him as the One
"that cometh in the name of the Lord." Then Jerusalem’s deliverance and Judah’s
blessing will be accomplished, for God "will seek to destroy all the nations
that come against Jerusalem." But though a day of repentance and deliverance for
the godly Jews, it is a day of solemn judgment for others. "Behold, He cometh
with clouds," recalls the words spoken, certainly not as a promise, to Caiaphas
and the Council, as representing the unbelieving mass of the people. "Hereafter
shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in
the clouds of heaven." (Mat 26:61) Nor is it only to the Jews that this
appearing will be a solemn event. To unbelievers everywhere He will come "in
flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the
gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ." (2Th 1:8)

"I am Alpha and Omega, [the beginning and the ending], saith the Lord" [or
rather "the Lord God "], "which is, and which was, and which is to come, the
Almighty." (Rev 1:8) Here it is not Christ that speaks, but the Lord God —
Jehovah-Elohim — the Almighty. Now the names of God are not arbitrarily used,
but are titles suited to the character in which He is acting. In human matters
everyone knows how differently the same persons address each other according to
the relationships they occupy at the moment. Take two brothers, both in
Parliament, and one the mayor of some borough. In familiar intercourse, they
call each other by their Christian names. In corporation business the one would
address the other as "your worship." In the House of Commons they would speak of
each other as the honourable member for so and so. Each title would be suited to
its own place, and quite unsuited to the others, and everybody would understand
from the name or title used whet her the one speaking was addressing his brother
as a brother, a mayor, or a member of Parliament. Scripture is assuredly not
less accurate in the use of the titles applied to God than men are in the use of
the titles they give to one another.

It is important therefore to observe that many of the titles given to God in
this book are never found elsewhere in the New Testament, while they are of
constant occurrence in the Old. Thus the name "Almighty" is never used in any
other book of the New Testament, except once in a quotation. So the name "Lord
God," often used in revelation, is never found elsewhere in the New Testament
(for 1Pe 3:15 should read "the Lord Christ"), except in citations from the Old,
or in prophecies like that of Zechariah relating to Israel, which bear
throughout an Old Testament character, and are largely made up of Old Testament
quotations.

What, then, is the import of this departure from the New Testament style of
speaking about God, and this return to Old Testament titles? These titles have a
significance. God said to Moses, "I am the Lord [Jehovah] and I appeared unto
Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name
Jehovah was I not known unto them." (Exo 6:2-3) Thus "Almighty" was the title
under which God entered into covenant with Abraham; Jehovah-Elohim, "Lord God,"
was the title under which He entered into covenant with Israel. Both these
covenants are connected with the earth, and have their fulfilment in the earthly
reign of the Messiah. The significance, then, of this return to the Old
Testament titles is exceedingly great. It marks that God is now reverting to His
purposes concerning the earth, and that the character in which He here reveals
Himself is not that in which we now know Him, but that which He will take after
the Church is caught up to heaven, and when He resumes his long-suspended
dealings with Israel and the world in preparation for the Messiah’s reign. THE
VISION OF CHRIST.

(Rev 1:9-20) The third part of this introduction is the vision of Christ’s
glory. "I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in
the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos,
for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ." (Rev 1:9) John was
banished to Patmos for his faithfulness to the truth. Writing to believers, he
styles himself their brother; but he was also their "companion in the
tribulation, and kingdom, and patience of Jesus Christ." The words are
singularly, but most expressively, grouped. First, there is the companionship of
believers in Christ’s sufferings. This suggests that "if we suffer we shall also
reign with Him;" hence, after the "tribulation," comes the "kingdom." But the
kingdom is not yet. Christ has not yet taken his throne, but is seated at God’s
right hand, waiting "till His enemies be made This footstool." Now they are
triumphant, and His people are called upon to share His patience. That they had
kept the word of His patience is one of His highest commendations to the church
of Philadelphia. (Rev 3:10.) In all these things, the tribulation, and the
kingdom, and the patience, it is the servant’s privilege to be associated with
his Master. The tribulation and the patience are his present portion; the
kingdom will come in God’s time.

"I was [or became] in the Spirit on the Lord’s-day, and heard behind me a great
voice as of a trumpet." (Rev 1:10) This does not describe his usual spiritual
condition, but a state in which he was, under the Spirit’s power, receiving
inspired communications from Christ. "The Lord’s-day" is not "the day of the
Lord," from which in the original it differs in form as widely as in meaning.
The day of the Lord is the time of Christ’s power and glory on earth. But the
Lord’s-day was a day which John spent in Patmos. In creation God appointed a day
of rest, and in His covenant with Israel marked it specially as His own. The
covenant is gone, and the rest of the old creation broken. God therefore,
instead of calling us to share his rest from the old creation, calls upon us to
share His joy in the new. The day on which this new creation began, by Christ’s
resurrection from the dead, is called "the Lord’s-day." It is not a transfer of
the sabbath from the last day of the week to the first, for this would destroy
the meaning of both, but an entirely new thing, resting on an entirely new
foundation. Being thus "in the Spirit on the Lord’s-day," he adds, I "heard
behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, saying, [I am Alpha and Omega, the
first and the last: and,] What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the
seven churches [which are in Asia]; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto
Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto
Laodicea." (Rev 1:10-11) The words in brackets are omitted here by the best
authorities. The trumpet signifies God speaking with power and majesty. It was
with the sound of a trumpet that He gave the law on mount Sinai; it is with the
sound of a trumpet that Christ will summon the believing dead to meet Him in the
air.

Looking round, John beholds the form from which this voice proceeds. "And I
turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden
candlesticks; and in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son
of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a
golden girdle. His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as snow;
and His eyes were as a flame of fire; and His feet like unto fine brass, as if
they burned in a furnace; and His voice as the sound of many waters. And He had
in His right hand seven stars: and out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged
sword: and His countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength." (Rev
1:12-16)

Here Christ appears as Son of man, clothed in judicial robes. He is "in the
midst of the seven candlesticks," which, as we afterwards learn, "are the seven
churches" here addressed. (Rev 1:20) His majesty befits the One to whom all
judgment is committed. The "garment down to the foot" is the judicial robe, as
distinguished from the warrior "vesture dipped in blood," with which He
afterwards comes forth to execute judgment (Rev 19:13); since here judgment is
only pronounced, and not executed. He is "girt about the paps with a golden
girdle," the symbol of divine righteousness; for when he acts in judgment,
"righteousness shall be the girdle of His loins." (Isa 11:5.) His person is as
indicative of judgment as His robe, and shows His divine glory as well as His
human exaltation. "His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as
snow." In Daniel’s vision, when the judgment of the earth began, "the Ancient of
days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head like the
pure wool." (Dan 7:9.) The glory therefore which in Daniel belongs to the
Ancient of days, is here seen investing the "One like unto the Son of man."

"His eyes were as a flame of fire, and His feet like unto fine brass, as if they
burned in a furnace." Both figures signify judgment. Brass was the material of
the altar on which the sacrifice was burnt to meet the claims of God’s
righteousness. The eyes like fire show searching, discriminating judgment; for
fire is what tests, purifying the good, destroying the bad. Thus in Malachi,
Christ comes "like a refiner’s fire" (Mal 3:2), and when Israel is restored, the
Lord will purge "the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of
judgment, and by the spirit of burning." (Isa 4:4.) Paul, too, says that "every
man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it
shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort
it is." (1Co 3:1-23)

"And His voice was as the sound of many waters." This figure is eminently
expressive of majesty and power, and is so used by our own poets, as Wordsworth
says of Milton: "Thou hadst a voice whose sound was like the sea." In Eze 1:1-28
the sound made by the wings of the cherubim is compared to "the noise of great
waters, as the voice of the Almighty;" and afterwards, "the glory of the God of
Israel came from the way of the east, and His voice was like a noise of many
waters" (Eze 43:2.) A voice like the sound of many waters is, therefore, a
Scriptural figure of the glory and majesty of God, and it is in this glory that
Christ, though man, now appears.

"And He had in His right hand seven stars." These are afterwards said to be "the
angels of the seven churches." (Rev 1:20) Whatever the force of the expression,
the power which Christ here holds in His right hand is clearly nothing less than
complete authority, whether for ministry or government, over the churches.

"And out of His mouth went a sharp two edged sword." The word of God is likened
to a sharp two-edged sword, and though this refers to its power on the
conscience, it is no less sharp in judgment also. "He that rejecteth me," said
our Lord, "and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that
I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day." (John 12:48.) He
threatens the evil-doers in Pergamos to "fight against them with the sword of my
mouth" (Rev 2:16); and the followers of the beast are "slain with the sword of
Him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of His mouth." (Rev
19:21.) So Isaiah, foretelling His coming, says, He shall smite the earth with
the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall He slay the wicked."
(Isa 11:4.)

"And His countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength." Nothing can more
strikingly picture His power and glory than this figure of the noonday sun. As
the greatest of God’s visible works, it is the symbol of supreme authority, "the
greater light" which He has created "to rule the day." This was the glory in
which John and his companions beheld him when He "was transfigured before them,
and His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment was white as the light." (Mat
17:2.) The transfiguration was the testimony which God gave to chosen witnesses
of "the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (2Pe 1:16); and in this book,
where his coming "with clouds" is the great climax to which everything tends, we
behold Him clothed in the same glory.

Such are the judicial robes and majesty of Christ in connection with "the things
which are," as walking "in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks." They are
suited to Him as judging in the house of God, but are not the insignia either of
"the prince of the kings of the earth," or the executor of God’s counsels
concerning His earthly people. When He appears in these characters, as connected
with "the things which shall be after these," the vesture and titles we have
been examining are changed for others of a totally different kind.

"And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead." (Rev 1:17) No wonder! Who can
behold Christ judging the Church according to its responsibility, without
feeling the dreadful failure? But His words dispel all dread. "And He laid His
right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am
He that liveth [or, "the living One "]; and I was dead, and, behold, I am alive
for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hades and of death." (Rev 1:17-18) What
reassuring words. True, Christ is judge, and is clothed in majesty befitting His
office; but to John He says, "Fear not." And why? Because He, the first and the
last, the living One, has become man, has died, and has risen. He "was delivered
for our offences, and was raised again for our justification." (Rom 4:25.) Thus
"we may have boldness in the day of judgment, because as He is, so are we in
this world." (1Jn 4:17.) He has robbed Satan of his power, death of its sting,
the grave of its victory, and He now has in His hands "the keys of hades and of
death." This victory, wrought by His death and resurrection, sets the soul at
rest, and dispels the fear of judgment. The Lord then charges John: "Write the
things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which
shall be hereafter" [or, "after these"]. (Rev 1:19) "The things which thou hast
seen" are those already related. There remain therefore "the things which are,
and the things which shall be after these." In the fourth chapter (Rev 4:1) John
is bidden to come up into heaven, and behold the things which must be after
these." "The things which are," therefore, comprise those named in the second
and third chapters; "the things which shall be after these" comprise those named
in the following chapters. The first were seen by John on earth, the second in
heaven. The symbols are then explained: "The mystery of the seven stars which
thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars
are the angels of the seven churches and the seven candlesticks [which thou
sawest] are the seven churches." (Rev 1:20) There has been much discussion as to
what is meant by the angels. They are clearly not angels in the ordinary sense;
for there is no Scripture showing angels to have charge of local churches; and
who can suppose that Christ would speak to angels through the prophet? The
angel, too, is here identified with the moral condition of the Church, and must
therefore be a part of it, some person or persons holding towards it a place of
special responsibility. Some have inferred that it means a clergyman or official
minister, like those now found through nearly the whole of Christendom; but this
is mere assumption, and an assumption which is contradicted by all other
Scripture. Had God instituted such a ministry He would have revealed it plainly,
not left it to be surmised from a passage whose mystical character appears upon
its face. The word "angel" carries the idea of representation, and seems to be
here used figuratively to describe those who are responsible, from their gift or
influence, for the condition of the Church. These doubtless included teachers
and rulers, but no information is given as to their appointment or functions.
This must be gathered from other parts of the Word. The seven golden
candlesticks — a figure borrowed from the seven lamps of the tabernacle —
symbolize the seven churches. They are "golden;" for the Church is founded on
God’s righteousness, and so bears the stamp of its divine origin. But they are
candlesticks, not candles. The Church is not a source of light, and the claim to
be so has been one of the most fruitful seeds of evil in Christendom. It is,
however, responsible for holding forth the light; and if it fails in this, it is
useless. Hence the threat that the candlestick will be removed out of its place.

ADDRESSES TO THE SEVEN CHURCHES.

Rev 2:1-29; Rev 3:1-22.

"The things which are" comprise the state of the seven churches in Asia, as
shown in the following addresses or letters; but they probably also give a short
prophetic outline of the whole history of the Church on earth. While in Paul’s
epistle to the Ephesians, however, the Church is looked upon as the body of
Christ, which of course can never be judged, in the Revelation it is looked upon
merely as a professing system, responsible to Christ, and destined to be judged
according to its faithfulness. In these letters the judgment is pronounced,
though not executed.

Two points claim notice before going into details. First, in the three earlier
epistles the Lord’s coming is not named, while in the others it holds a
prominent place. Again, in the three earlier epistles the exhortation to hear is
put before the promise to the overcomer, while in the four others it is put
after. Even in a man’s writing such a change could scarcely be an accident; but
in the word of God the idea of accident is impossible, and some sufficient
reason must therefore exist. The simplest explanation is that in the first three
letters, the Church, though failing, is not yet looked upon as hopelessly bad,
and therefore the whole body is still exhorted to "hear what the Spirit saith
unto the churches." But in the following letters the Church as a whole is
regarded as reprobate, so that none can now be exhorted to hear the Spirit’s
words, except the overcomers, the true believers in the midst of the corrupt
profession. This explanation obviously favours the thought that in these
epistles we have a prophetic outline of the history of Christendom from the
decay of first love, as seen at Ephesus, till it is finally spued out of
Christ’s mouth as threatened at Laodicea. In the three earlier stages there is
still a corporate conscience, so that the whole Church can be exhorted to hear;
whereas in the four later all corporate conscience is gone, and the appeal can
only be made to the true believer. The three earlier phases moreover pass away
before the Lord’s coming, so that this event is not named in addressing them.
The four others, though arising in the order of the epistles, run side by side
to the end, and in these therefore the Lord’s coming, or its effect, is held out
either in the shape of encouragement or of warning. The idea of a prophetic
character in these epistles is further supported by the mystical number of the
churches, and by the remarkable agreement with historic fact. Why seven
churches? The number seven is constantly used in this book to mark a complete
cycle. Now what more probable or more gracious than that the Lord should under
the figure of these seven churches give a sketch of the various phases of
Christendom during the complete cycle of its history on earth in addressing a
certain number of churches, each according to its own circumstances, the
selection of a symbolic number would have had no meaning. But if, besides this
immediate object, the addresses had a prophetic scope, the choice of the number
seven is in perfect harmony with the symbolic character of the book. The
parallel between the state of things described in these letters, and the various
phases of Church history from the earliest to the latest time, will come before
us more clearly as we look at the letters in detail.

Each address contains four parts; first, the special character in which Christ
presents himself; second, the judgment He pronounces, and the words of
encouragement or warning which He utters; third, the reward promised to the
overcomer; and fourth, the exhortation to "hear what the Spirit saith unto the
churches." This last is always in the name words, though, as already stated, not
always in the same order. The others vary in the different epistles, and have
always a more or less obvious connection with one another. We shall now examine
the addresses individually.

EPHESUS.

(Rev 2:1-7)

"Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith He that
holdeth the seven stars in His right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven
golden candlesticks." (Rev 2:1) The stars signify the angels or mystical
representatives of the seven churches, those who are responsible for teaching
and for government, as the stars give light and rule the course of time. The
gift and authority for these purposes belong to Christ. Man may make rules for
the government of the Church, or for the ordination of teachers and pastors, but
this is really a usurpation, however undesigned, of Christ’s authority. He holds
the "stars in His right hand," and walks in discriminating judgment among the
seven churches, or golden candlesticks.

He thus sums up the condition of the church of Ephesus: "I know thy works, and
thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil:
and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast
found them liars: and hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast
laboured, and hast not fainted." (Rev 2:2-3) How the Lord loves to commend
whatever He can in His people! As the apostle exhorts believers, "Whatsoever
things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just,
whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are
of good report: if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on
these things" (Php 4:8), so the blessed Lord Himself, even in His judicial
office, delights first to recognize and approve whatever good His eye can
discover. And here there was much outwardly good. Not only were there works,
labour, and patience, but there was godly jealousy for holiness, godly judgment
of falsehood, and earnest care for the Lord’s name expressed in patient and
unwearied endurance.

Yet there was a lack. In writing to the Thessalonians Paul speaks of their "work
of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ."
(1Th 1:3.) At Ephesus there is work, but it is not said to be the "work of
faith;" there is labour, but it is not spoken of as the "labour of love;" there
is patience, but it is not called the "patience of hope." Christ was ever before
the Thessalonians, and so faith, hope, and love were all occupied with Himself.
Some of this was still left at Ephesus, but it was on the ebb. One may be busy
in works even where the power which once prompted them has largely declined. A
church may manifest great outward zeal and activity, soundness of doctrine and
discipline, even after the dry-rot of waning affection is secretly eating away
its very life. So it was in this favoured Church of Ephesus, where the
declension foretold by Paul (Acts 20:29) had already set in.

Hence the Lord goes on to say, "Nevertheless I have ["somewhat" is not in the
original, and weakens the sense] against thee, that thou hast left thy first
love." (Rev 2:4) To the world, perhaps to themselves, all seemed fair; no decay
was suspected. But "He which searcheth the reins and hearts" saw the germs of
evil as yet hidden from other eyes. What is it to the loving bridegroom that the
bride be faultless in her behaviour, if her affections are growing cold? Will
mere propriety of conduct, or diligence in duty, satisfy the heart that thirsts
for love? Can a love like Christ’s be contented with a cold, though active,
attention to Christian work, or a barren, though scrupulous, orthodoxy of faith,
while the heart is not aglow with affection for Himself? Love demands love, and
no deference and diligence can atone for its absence. There was therefore here a
deep wound inflicted on that blessed One whose love was so coldly met, and He
warns them of what the result of their waning affections must be.

"Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first
works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick
out of his place, except thou repent." (Rev 2:5) This may seem harsh treatment
for such an offence, but the Lord looks forward to ultimate consequences. The
word "quickly" is doubtful, and hardly agrees with the long-suffering which
marks the Lord’s action. But however great the long-suffering, the end is
certain, unless repentance comes in. The only safe place for the soul is near
Christ. A church once taken up with work, but growing cold in its affections,
may for a while escape scandalous evil and corruption, but it has lost its
security. The only resource is repentance, a return to first works. If it does
not repent, its fall, though possibly delayed, is sure. Its candlestick will be
removed; it will cease to be a bearer of the light entrusted to it; God will
openly disown it as unfit for His use. But why urge a return to "first works,"
since its works at this time were commended? Because in God’s eyes the work is
judged by the motive. Suppose two children each brought their mother a present
of equal value, but while the one showed its love to her in all its ways, the
other proved by its manner that its love was poor and cold, which present would
have the greater value in the mother’s eyes? So with Christ. The work may be
outwardly the same, but how different when springing from a heart burning with
love to Himself, and when performed from a chill sense of duty, or in a lifeless
spirit of routine.

Looking at the address historically, the failure and the warning are very
solemn. Even in Paul’s life the decline from first love was clearly seen. "All
they which are in Asia be turned away from me" (2Ti 1:15); "at my first answer
no man stood with me, but all men forsook me (2Ti 4:16); such are the sorrowful
statements of the apostle in one of his latest epistles. And the decline after
his death was, as he forewarned the Ephesian elders, rapid and general. The
epistles of John prove that grave evils, both of practice and doctrine, had
already shown themselves in his days. The first downward step in the history of
the Church had therefore been already taken when the book of Revelation was
written. With the Church generally, as with single gatherings, the declension
was the same. It began everywhere wish a decay of first love. The world, the
flesh, and other things came in between Christ and the affections; and the
result was speedily discerned by the heart-searching Judge. The warning is still
more solemn. The Church is summoned to repent and to do the first works. Who,
alas does not know that it has turned a deaf ear to this call, that as a
professing system it has grown more and more corrupt? The end, then, must be
just what is here foretold. The Church will be judged, its candlestick removed,
itself disowned as an instrument for holding forth God’s light in the world.

We return, however, to this particular church. "But this thou hast, that thou
hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate." (Rev 2:6) The Lord
lingers over everything in his people’s ways that can really please Him. The
Nicolaitanes are described in the epistle to Pergamos as holding "the doctrine
of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumbling-block before the children of
Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication." (Rev
2:14) This shows the character of their deeds. Balaam, when he could not curse
the children of Israel, counselled Balac to seduce them into idolatry, and an
abandonment of that separate place which they were called upon to hold in the
world. Such, whatever its special form, was the general tendency of the
Nicolaitane doctrine. It was rather their deeds than their doctrines that were
judged by the church at Ephesus, and in this the Lord owns their faithfulness.

Then comes the general exhortation: "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the
Spirit saith unto the churches." (Rev 2:7) It is not said "to the church," but
"to the churches;" so that he who has an ear is charged to weigh, not only what
is said to his own church, but to all the others. The exhortation is therefore
general, and addressed to all believers.

Then follows the promise: "To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree
of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God" (Rev 2:7) Man has lost,
his own paradise, and is driven away from the tree of life, lest he "eat and
live for ever" (Gen 3:22.) Yet his heart is always seeking to make for himself a
paradise down here, forgetting that the world is under God’s judgment. It was
this worldliness that was cooling the affections of the Ephesian saints towards
Christ. How does He seek to recall them? He reminds them of their heavenly
portion. This world was not their rest; for it is polluted. But "there remaineth
a rest to the people of God," and where is it? Where is the believer to find his
rest? where is the object of his affections now? "Where Christ sitteth on the
right hand of God." The paradise of God is the place where Christ dwells, and
the only true rest, the only tree of life, for the believer is there. It is,
then, to this heavenly scene, into which Jesus has himself entered, to this
scene in which His people are to enjoy their true portion that He recalls the
wandering and waning affections of the Church. Alas! how little response His
appeal has found! how soon the sense of the heavenly calling was lost and the
Church, instead of seeking the things which are above, became immersed in
worldliness and corruption.

SMYRNA.

(Rev 2:8-11)

If in Ephesus the Lord finds a decay of first love, in Smyrna we see Him
overruling Satan’s malice to restore sense of the former freshness. We have here
a church under persecution, or, looking at the wider historical bearing of the
epistles, the state of the Church after it had incurred the enmity of the
world’s ruling power. The Lord graciously adapts Himself to these circumstances.
"And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first
and the last, which was dead, and is alive." (Rev 2:8) Judge as He is, He never
forgets His people’s wants, and in trial and suffering He is still with them.
But his care is not shown now as in the Old Testament. Then He was not known as
the Conqueror of death, and His way of intervening for His saints was to save
them from death, delivering them out of the furnace, or shutting the mouths of
the lions. Satan might try Job, but a limit was imposed "Behold, he is in thine
hand; only save his life." (Job 2:6.) Here, however, is no such restriction;
they were to be "faithful unto death." No deliverance on this side the grave is
promised. And why? Because a believer now knows Christ, not only as able to save
from death, but as having triumphed over death. He is "the first and the last,"
that is, God having all power in Himself; but He is also the One which was dead,
and is alive;" for He, as man, has borne death in our stead, and been "raised up
from the dead by the glory of the Father." (Rom 6:4.) The believer is therefore
secure. The death of the body is only a door leading into Christ’s presence; and
from the second death, the lake of fire, he is already delivered. The Lord goes
on "I know thy [works and] tribulation, and poverty (but thou art rich), and I
know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the
synagogue of Satan." (Rev 2:9) What a contrast between this and the church of
Laodicea, which boasted, "I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of
nothing," while the Lord counts it "wretched, and miserable, and poor, and
blind, and naked." (Rev 3:17.) How true it is that in the things of God "every
one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be
exalted." Especially in these days, what folly to be talking of greatness and
prosperity amid the ruin and failure of all that is responsible for Christ’s
name here on earth. But their tribulation and poverty did not tempt them into
tolerating evil. They rejected the false pretension which claimed the position
of Jews, but is here called the synagogue of Satan. Judaism is a religion fitted
for this world, and for man after the flesh. Hence it put man under law, and had
a worldly ritual and priesthood. This is just what Satan has brought into
Christendom. From the first Paul withstood the judaising of Christianity, which
sapped the very foundations of the gospel committed to his charge, and the
heavenly truths of which he was the special minister. In Smyrna this doctrine,
whatever form it took, was as busy as elsewhere; but the poor tried saints
remained true, and "earnestly contended for the faith which was once delivered
unto the saints," in opposition to this attempted corruption. The Lord notes and
approves their fidelity.

He then speaks of what was before them, and gives them words of encouragement
and comfort: "Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the
devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall
have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a
crown of life." (Rev 2:10) He does not promise deliverance, but sustaining
power. "In the world," Christ tells His disciples, "ye shall have tribulation:
but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." (John 16:33.) So the apostle
could say, "In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that
loved us." (Rom 8:37.) In like manner here, they should suffer; but they were to
look forward to their sufferings without fear, for Christ’s power was above
Satan’s. True, God permitted the devil to try them, as he did Job, but it was
only that they might come all the brighter out of the furnace. He was allowed to
cast some of them into prison, and some were put to death, but his power was
restrained even as to the duration of the evil. It was to be for "ten days," at
all events a limited time. They are exhorted to be "faithful unto death," and
they should receive a "crown of life."

Looking at this church as a picture of the second phase in the history of
Christendom, it is a fact that the fiery persecutions which the Church suffered
between the reigns of Trajan and Diocletian, if they did not restore purity of
doctrine and discipline, called forth deep devotion and love to the Lord
Himself, while many of the worst heresies which early invaded the Church were
vigorously and faithfully withstood. It has been noted too that some of these
persecutions, especially the great closing one in the reign of Diocletian,
lasted for ten years, which may perhaps be shadowed forth in the "ten days" here
spoken of.

"The crown of life" is again mentioned in James’s epistle in connection with
faithfulness in trial. "Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he
is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to
them that love Him." (Jas 1:12.) Paul speaks of another crown: "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 all them also that love
His appearing." (2Ti 4:8.) And Peter tells the faithful elders that "when the
chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not
away." (1Pe 5:4.) "The crown of life" suggests the complete triumph over all the
foes ranged against the believer; "the crown of righteousness," the just
apportionment of the rewards which "the righteous Judge" will dispense; "the
crown of glory," the full recognition of the faithful service rendered, often in
obscurity and with little appreciation from man, down here in the world. The
exhortation, "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the
churches (Rev 2:11), is again addressed to all the assembly, instead of being
confined to the overcomers. To the latter it is said, "He that overcometh shall
not be hurt of the second death." (Rev 2:11) This falls short of the warmth of
recognition bestowed upon the overcomers in some other churches, but the crown
of life had already been promised to those bearing the overcomer’s character —
those who remained "faithful unto death." The suitability of such a promise to
those who were threatened with the first death must be obvious to all.

PERGAMOS.

(Rev 2:12-17.) In Smyrna we see a measure of devotion kindled by the fiery
persecution which Satan directed against the church. But where violence fails,
craft often meets with better success. Both resources are at Satan’s command,
and on the defeat of one he readily betakes himself to the other. Against the
blessed Lord he tried both, exhausting all his wiles in the wilderness, and all
his rage at the cross. How signally on both occasions to his own shame, and the
glory of his adorable foe! With Paul at Philippi he first sought to damage the
gospel by backing it up, and thus confounding it with Satanic energy. Baffled in
this, he again tries to crush it by violence, once more sustaining an
ignominious defeat. So it was with these churches. In Smyrna he tried
persecution, but this only aroused a greater spirit of earnestness and devotion.
In Pergamos he tried his wiles, and his worldly snares lulled the church into
carelessness and indifference. There is something sadly suggestive in the way
the Lord presents Himself to this assembly: "And to the angel of the church in
Pergamos write: These things saith He which hath the sharp sword with two
edges." (Rev 2:12) What a change from the last epistle! There, to a people
appointed to die, the Lord makes Himself known as "the first and the last, which
was dead and is alive." Here it is as the Judge carrying the sharp two-edged
sword. In Smyrna He reveals Himself as having the power of life; here, as having
the power of death.

"I know [thy works, and] where thou dwellest, even where Satan’s seat is: and
thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days
wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you where Satan
dwelleth." (Rev 2:13) There was therefore much faithfulness still left; for He
says, "Thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith," and this amidst
severe persecution, in which one martyr named Antipas had suffered death. All
this the Lord graciously owns. But still there was failure. "I know where thou
dwellest, even where Satan’s seat [or throne] is." This is a figurative
expression, nor do we know the exact reference in this particular church. But
there can be little doubt as to its general meaning. What is Satan’s throne? It
is in contrast with God’s throne, which is in heaven. Later in this book Satan
gives to the beast, the great sovereign of the world, "his power, and his seat
[or throne], and great authority." (Rev 13:2.) Satan’s throne then is that
usurped worldly power which, in the temptation, he claimed as his own, and which
Scripture repeatedly declares him to possess, styling him the "prince of this
world" and the "god of this world," the spirit that now worketh in the children
of disobedience." The church of Pergamos then had settled down into the world,
the scene of Satan’s authority. This implies no outward or scandalous
wickedness. Satan is quite content to see Christians becoming worldly. So long
as they are untrue to Christ by admitting the world into their hearts, his
object is gained quite as effectually as if he had betrayed them into the
grossest sin. When the world, whether "the religions world" or any other, takes
the place to which Christ is entitled, the ardent love for His person and the
bright hope of his return disappear, and coldness, deadness, toleration of evil,
indifference to His claims, are sure to come in. Open evil may follow, but the
mischief is done whether this is the case or not. In Pergamos the effect was the
permission of evil which was most offensive to Christ. "But I have a few things
against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who
taught Balac to cast a stumbling-block before the children of Israel, to eat
things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication. So hast thou also them
that hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes [which thing I hate]. Repent; or else
I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my
mouth." (Rev 2:14-16) We have already seen the character of this evil. Just as
Balaam taught Balac to seduce the Israelites into idolatry and commerce with his
own people (that is, with the heathen world), so does Satan try to draw the
believer into that which abandons Christ’s claims, and gives the world supreme
control over his heart. Such was the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes. What shape it
took is a matter of indifference, but its moral character is plainly indicated
by the comparison with Balaam.

Here then, as compared with Ephesus, is marked declension. In Ephesus "the deeds
of the Nicolaitanes" had aroused hatred. In Pergamos "the doctrine of the
Nicolaitanes" was tolerated, and we may be sure that the practice did not lag
far behind. Indeed, as a general rule, the practice runs ahead of the doctrine,
and evil is not formally sanctioned until it has long been tacitly allowed.
Probably the poison was served up in a very attractive form as a philosophical
and progressive element, for human nature is ever the same. In the vanity of his
heart man always fancies that he can improve upon the word of God by adapting it
to the greater enlightenment and liberality of his own times, and applying the
wisdom which knew not God to modernize and refine the revelation which God has
given. How few, alas! in our own days who can give God credit for a wisdom
superior to modern thought, a wisdom into which any intrusion of man’s opinions
or philosophy is but presumptuous folly.

If we look at this church as foreshadowing the third stage of ecclesiastical
history, it closely corresponds with the facts which the annals of Christendom
bring before our view. For after the persecutions which the Church endured under
the heathen emperors, the favour and worldly prosperity which awaited it under
Constantine and his successors rapidly corrupted both its morals and its
doctrines. In many cases the heathen were won over by the adoption of pagan
rites and festivals as parts of Christian worship, or as holidays in the
Christian calendar. Still worse was the open and shameless worldliness of that
which called itself by Christ’s name. It had settled down where Satan’s throne
was, and henceforth the history of Christendom for more than a thousand years
was one of growing conformity to the world, and indifference to the claims of
its absent Lord. All heavenly truth was dropped, and even real Christians lost
sight of the Scripture teaching that the believer is already united with Christ
in heaven, and is called upon to wait for His return as a "blessed hope." But
the Lord does not yet treat the church as hopelessly ruined. The evil is viewed
as local rather than general; a mortified limb needing excision, rather than a
mortified body for which there is nothing but death. The whole church was indeed
responsible, and is therefore called to repentance under the threat of speedy
visitation; but the objects of judgment are only those who themselves hold the
evil doctrine. "Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight
against them [not thee] with the sword of my mouth." Evil may grow till the
whole church is corrupted, and the faithful ones are looked upon as a detached
remnant. So it is with the churches addressed alter this, or at least with the
phases of Christendom which these churches represent. But here matters have not
yet reached this stage, and hence the church as a whole, though threatened, is
still acknowledged, while judgment is confined to the evil-doers. The
exhortation, therefore, "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith
unto the churches" (Rev 2:17), is once more addressed to the whole assembly. The
promise to the overcomer is very beautiful: "To him that overcometh will I give
to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a
new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it." (Rev 2:17)
When the church had "in their hearts turned back again into Egypt," were eating
things sacrificed unto idols, lusting after the leeks and onions, the good
things of this world, Christ presents Himself as the "hidden manna," the "true
bread from heaven" which, unseen by the world, can satisfy the heart of the
hungering believer. Nor is it only that he feeds on Christ in humiliation, which
is what the manna typifies, but he has a special link also with Christ in glory.
True, he gives up the worldly position and dignity after which the Church is
striving, but what are these compared with the white stone from Christ’s own
hand, as a mark of his approbation, and engraved with a secret name, a love
token known only to Him who gives and to him who receives it? Who would not
rejoice to have such a secret between his soul and Christ? It is the portion of
the overcomer in the days of advancing worldliness and corruption. Alas! that we
should know so little about it.

THYATIRA.

(Rev 2:15-29.)

We now come to a different state of things. In Thyatira there is still much
faithfulness and zeal, but the mass is corrupt and the exhortation to hear is no
longer addressed to the whole church, but only to the faithful. Moreover, in
this and the following epistles the Lord’s coming is named, seeming to show
that, in the historical view, we have now reached a phase in the annals of
Christendom which will last till the end of the Church’s history on earth.

"And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son
of God, who hath His eyes like unto a flame of lire, and His feet are like fine
brass." (Rev 2:18) Here Christ appears as "the Son of God," but the Son of God
in judgment. "His eyes, like unto a flame of fire," search into and try
everything. "His feet like fine brass" symbolise the righteous judgment He has
come to pronounce. All this is very solemn.

There is still much on which His eye delights to dwell. "I know thy works, and
charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last
[or rather, "and thy last works "] to be more than the first." (Rev 2:19) These
certainly were not the works of Jezebel, whose doings characterise the bulk of
the church. They doubtless come from the remnant afterwards named. But before
going into the solemn charges He is about to bring, He dwells upon these bright
features, thrown up into all the stronger relief by the dark background against
which they stand.

"Notwithstanding I have ["a few things" is omitted by the best authorities]
against thee, because thou sufferest that woman [or "thy wife"] Jezebel, which
calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit
fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols." (Rev 2:20) Jezebel was
the heathen queen who, having decoyed her husband into idolatry, usurped the
regulation of religious affairs in Israel, persecuting the worship of Jehovah,
and introducing that of Baal. Balaam was a seducer outside, and represents the
snare which the world became to the Church. Jezebel was a corrupter inside, and
represents the shameless alliance of the Church with idolatry and with the
world. The difference in guilt between Balaam and Jezebel may not have been
great, but the difference in position was enormous, and the later figure shows
far more complicity on the part of the Church than is pointed to by the figure
of Balaam. In Pergamos there were individuals, probably numbers, guilty of the
evil, but the church as a whole is looked at as free. In Thyatira there were
individuals, probably numbers, free from the evil, but the church as a whole is
looked at as guilty.

If we may accept the fairly supported reading, "thy wife Jezebel," the point is
even stronger. Ahab stood for Israel, and was responsible for it morally, as the
angel or mystical representative of the Church is responsible for it here.
Ahab’s guilt was, first, that he married the daughter of a heathen king, thus
identifying himself with the worship of Baal; and next that he permitted her, an
alien and an idolatress, to become a religious regulator, to "call herself a
prophetess" in God’s heritage. This is what the Church, historically looked at,
did after the Pergamos stage, in the days of Rome’s ecclesiastical supremacy.
The state of things then was an alliance between the professing Church and the
world, together with an introduction of all sorts of idolatrous practices,
which, under the pretence of divine authority, the Roman hierarchy brought in.
Indeed, in the historical view of the churches, the parallel is closer than in
its application to the church of Thyatira; for Rome, like Jezebel, not only
introduced heathen corruptions, but drenched the earth with the blood of those
who refused to accept them.

Still the Lord’s long-suffering grace lingers, even in the case of Jezebel, as
He says, "And I gave her space to repent of her fornication, and she repented
not;" or more correctly, "And I gave her space to repent, and she willeth not to
repent of her fornication." (Rev 2:21) How long that space was in the assembly
of Thyatira we know not; but in the historical church which that assembly
represents what long-suffering patience, what constant calls to repentance, what
warnings in one form or another has not the Lord given, and all in vain! "She
willeth not to repent of her fornication." It is not mere blindness and
ignorance, but will acting in opposition to God.

Judgment however, though tardy, comes at length: "Behold, I will cast her into a
bed, and them that commit adultery [or fornication] with her into great
tribulation, except they repent of her [not "their"] deeds. And I will kill her
children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am He which
searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according
to your works." (Rev 2:22-23) The dreadful state of things is here manifest, and
the judgment sharp and sure. Not only has first love to Christ declined, but
adulterous love to the world and idolatry, or spiritual fornication, have taken
its place. Jezebel is to be cast into a bed, given up to her own abandoned ways;
while those who hold intercourse with her are to be brought into "great
tribulation," and her children are to be killed with death. The figure is
borrowed from the fate of Jezebel’s followers and children in the Old Testament
— the former were pursued and destroyed; the latter put to death. The fate of
Jezebel herself, historically considered, we shall trace later in the book when
we come to the judgment of the great harlot, whose flesh is eaten like that of
the wicked Israelitish queen. (Rev 17:16.) The churches see this judgment, and
recognize Christ as the One who tries the reins and hearts. But there are
degrees of guilt even among the followers of Jezebel, and the judgment is
therefore discriminating: "I will give unto every one of you according to your
works." Such was the Lord’s righteous mode of dealing with the church of
Thyatira, or with the great mass of it which had become permeated with this
corruption. Such will be His righteous judgment of the worldly system which this
Asiatic church represents.

It is a relief to turn from this dark picture to the remnant to which the Lord
now addresses Himself: "But unto you I say [the word "and" should be omitted],
the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not
known the depths of Satan (as they speak), I will put upon you none other
burden. But that which ye have already hold fast till I come." (Rev 2:24-25)
There were in Thyatira simple believers who did not hold the doctrine that had
wrought such mischief, and were ignorant of Satan’s devices. On them no judgment
should fall; but surrounded as they were with evil, they are counselled to hold
fast what they had "till I come." The Lord’s coming is now held out before the
faithful as the object of their hope. This is ever the point to which He directs
the eyes of His people. When He is put aside, and the world takes the place to
which He alone is entitled in the Church’s affections, He reminds those whose
hearts are still true to Himself that He is corning, and bids them wait
patiently for this blessed hope.

Then follows the promise: "And 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 shivers: even as
I received of my Father. And I will give him the morning star. He that hath an
ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches." (Rev 2:26-29) "My
works" is a peculiar expression, recalling Paul’s language. "Let this mind be in
you which was also in Christ Jesus." The believer should be in his walk the
reproduction, as it were, of Christ. He is quickened together with Christ, has
by the Spirit the same life, and the life He thus possesses is to show itself in
his daily conduct and ways. The blessed Lord was, amidst all the trials and
sorrows of His earthly path, the spotlessly pure, the unswervingly faithful, the
absolutely obedient One; and amidst all the corruptions and unfaithfulness of
Christendom, believers are in this respect called upon to exhibit the life of
Christ in their own walk and conversation. There is a contrast, too, between the
works of Christ and those of Jezebel. While those seduced by Jezebel are
threatened with judgment unless they repent "of her works," those faithful to
Christ are promised reward if they keep "His works." And what is this reward?
"If we suffer, we shall also reign with Him." Here, while Jezebel and her
followers were taking their pleasure, and lording it over the world, those who
stool aloof from her iniquities must give up worldly advantages and
distinctions. They share Christ’s rejection here, and they are promised that
when He reigns they shall reign with Him. They may well afford to let go the
authority and influence now usurped by Jezebel; for to them will be given "power
over the nations." Christ will come to reign, and the first act will be
judgment. Even in this believers will come forth with Him as "the armies of
heaven" when He appears to rule the nations with a rod of iron. They must
therefore have been previously taken to heaven at Christ’s coming for his
saints. Hence the hope of His coming immediately follows: "I will give him the
morning star." Christ is the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and
morning star." (Rev 22:16.) As "the root and the offspring of David" He will
take the kingdoms of the earth for His own; as "the bright and morning star" He
is His people’s hope, the herald of the coming dawn amidst the darkness which
broods over the world. The two things therefore presented for the encouragement
of the wayworn saints, amidst all the wickedness and persecution that Jezebel
had brought into the house of God, are the prospect of reigning with Him, and
the hope of His return to take them to be with Himself. The exhortation to hear
follows, addressed for the first time, not to the Church as a whole, but only to
the overcomers.

SARDIS.

(Rev 3:1-6.)

"And unto the angel of the church of Sardis write; These things saith He that
hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou
hast a name that thou livest, and art dead." (Rev 3:1) The Holy Ghost is seen in
this book in the diversity of His action as "the seven Spirits of God" in
connection with the throne, and not in His unity as forming the body of Christ.
He is here the One through whom Christ as Lord administers His government of the
churches. Christ has also the seven stars. They are His, though no longer said,
as at Ephesus, to be in His right hand; for man has actually usurped them in
practice. But how sad the state of the assembly at Sardis. There is not, indeed,
the gross evil and corruption seen in Thyatira, but here for the first time the
Lord finds nothing to commend. The censure begins at once, and the state is
described in a single word — soulless profession, a name to a live, but dead. It
was not scandalous wickedness, but decent death; the form retained, the heart
gone; Christ owned in word, ignored in deed; creeds correct, conduct
respectable, life departed. How does it please the Lord, who is looking for love
from the Church, that it should have sound doctrine or outward propriety, if the
affections are not only waning, but gone, His name held, His word read, His
truth owned, Himself forgotten? Such was the state of the assembly at Sardis. It
had become just a part of the world, as barren and lifeless towards God as any
other portion. No doubt there were exceptions, and in these a little glimmer of
life still remains. He says therefore, "Be watchful, and strengthen the things
which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect
before God." (Rev 3:2) What a picture! For the most part dead, the small remnant
ready to die. It does not say their works were bad, but that they were not
"perfect," not complete; they had stopped short. After aiming at something good
they had grown careless and never reached it. The Lord calls them therefore to
awake out of their listless state, to be watchful, and to fan the dying embers
of spiritual life once more into heat and flame, Moreover He assumes that they
have the knowledge of the truth, at least intellectually, which, of course, so
far increases their responsibility. "Remember therefore," He says, "how thou
hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent." (Rev 3:3) These words are
important. It is not a call upon the Church to reform itself, but a reference to
the one standard which God owns when the Church has utterly and hopelessly
failed. When man’s word and man’s authority have brought in nothing but
confusion and ruin, God’s word and God’s authority still remain unmoved, the
firm rock which nothing can shake amidst all the contending waves and currents
of human opinion.

Surely every one must recognize the resemblance between this church and
Protestant Christendom. No doubt a mighty stream of spiritual power and blessing
issued forth at the time of the Reformation; but this warm current as it spread
quickly cooled, and after no long interval froze into a dreary and lifeless sea.
The faith which had animated preachers in the pulpit and martyrs at the stake
dwindled from its divine proportions till it became little more than the badge
of a political party. The Protestants sought and accepted worldly patronage, and
recognized temporal sovereigns as heads of the several churches. Thus the
Protestant Church, instead of an ambitious hierarchy ruling over the kings of
the world, became the pliant tool of worldly princes, and speedily sank into
spiritual torpor and death. It was free from the scandals and idolatry of
Romanism, but lacked all life and godly power. It had the word of God, the
diffusion of which was the most blessed result of the Reformation, and it had a
certain amount of newly-recovered truth; but its works were "not perfect." It
got hold of truths and let them lie powerless, never seeking to recover more,
and settling down into a dry traditionalism less fertile in evil, but hardly
less barren in good, than the worst type of Romanism. Still it had the
Scriptures, and here, as everywhere, its privilege measures its responsibility.
Hence there is a peculiar significance in the exhortation to remember and hold
fast that which "thou hast received and heard." It is on the truth of God,
delivered by the apostles and contained in the Scriptures, not on any Church
traditions or authority, that the faithful are always cast back in times of
weakness and difficulty. The words that follow are solemn. "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) This coming "as a thief" is not the
Lord’s coming for His saints. Paul writes, "Yourselves know perfectly 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." (1Th 5:2-5.) The event therefore which
overtakes the world as a thief in the night is not the coming of the Lord for
His saints, but the coming of "the day of the Lord," which is always spoken of,
not as a "blessed hope," but as a time of fearful retribution and judgment.
Believers of this dispensation will not be in the night which then broods over
the world, but, as "the children of the day," will be with Christ; and will
afterwards, when He comes to execute judgment, appear with Him in His own glory,
as promised to the overcomer in Thyatira. This "sudden destruction" therefore
falls upon no true member of the body of Christ, but only upon the world,
including those false professors who are left behind when the Lord comes for His
saints. The bulk of Sardis was in this state; and the bulk of those belonging to
that condition of the Church which Sardis represents will be found in this state
also. Real believers will be taken out of it to meet the Lord, but on the whole
it will continue slumbering in fancied security until Christ comes upon it as a
thief in the night, and it is overwhelmed with sudden destruction.

There is indeed a remnant, though small and feeble. "Thou hast a few names even
in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in
white: for they are worthy." (Rev 3:4) The believer’s place is "to keep himself
unspotted from the world." (Jas 1:27.) The Church of Sardis, however, had so
sunk to the world’s level that it is even threatened with the world’s judgment.
The few that had been worthy, and kept their garments undefiled, shall walk with
Christ in white. The blamelessness and holiness of their lives shall be publicly
manifested. This suggests the promise to the overcomer. "He that overcometh, the
same shall be clothed in white raiment, and I will not blot out his name out of
the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before His
angels. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the
churches." (Rev 3:5-6) The church of Sardis had become thoroughly worldly,
professing to have life while really dead, and thus virtually denying Christ.
The overcomer is contrasted with the assembly in these particulars. While it had
become a worldly mass, he had kept himself "unspotted from the world;" and
therefore the promise is that he "shall be clothed in white raiment." While the
assembly had a name to live, but was dead, the overcomer was actually entitled
to a place in "the book of life;" and hence the promise is that his name shall
not be blotted out. Again, while the mere professors at Sardis had a form of
godliness, but denied the power thereof, the overcomer had truly confessed
Christ in the midst of the general apathy; and therefore the promise is given,
"I will confess his name before my Father, and before His angels."

Some have gathered from the words, "I will not blot out his name out of the book
of life," that a person once saved may afterwards be lost; others, that all
persons originally have life, but some forfeit it by sin. Both deductions are at
once destroyed by a glance at the connection. Sardis is a mass of lifeless
profession. But the very fact of profession is a claim to know Jesus as a
Saviour, or, in other words, a claim to have life. Now with regard to the
professing believers in Sardis this claim was unfounded; they had a name to
live, but were dead. Hence the Lord, according to the natural but significant
figure, strikes their names out of the book. But the overcomer has a claim which
the Lord admits, and therefore his name stands while the others are blotted out.
One may compare it with the drawing up of a list of burgesses. Every dweller in
the town may claim to be enrolled; all are entered in a book until the revisor
sits, when the true claims are allowed to stand, while the fictitious or
unsupported ones are struck off the roll. The former alone have the hearing ear,
and to them alone the exhortation is addressed.

PHILADELPHIA.

(Rev 3:7-13).

"And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith He
that is holy, He that is true, He that hath the key of David, He that openeth
and no man shutteth; and shutteth and no man openeth." (Rev 3:7). The Lord does
not present Himself here in the same judicial character as in former epistles.
He is the holy and the true, also the Messiah with the key of David. It would
seem as if the question were not so much how far the church had met His
requirements as a judge, but how far it corresponded with the demands of His own
heart and nature. Now the believer is called upon to "put on the new man, which
after God is created in righteousness and holiness of truth." (Eph 5:24.)
Holiness and truth therefore are the things which answer to the Lord’s own
heart; and hence He here reveals Himself as "He that is holy, He that is true."
But there is another character in which He shows Himself, suited to the weakness
in which the church is here seen. He is the One to whom all power is given in
heaven and on earth, "He that hath the key of David, He that openeth, and no man
shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth." He is not indeed yet exercising
this power in worldly government, but having been "made both Lord and Christ"
(Acts 2:36), He now uses His lordship on behalf of the feeble saints at
Philadelphia to remove obstacles out of their way. "I know thy works: behold, I
have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a
little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name." (Rev 3:8)

Here we have great feebleness, but the Lord himself sets before them an open
door, so that there shall be no hindrance to the little strength they have.
Still it is a day of small things. Philadelphia has little outwardly to show;
but it has this, Thou "hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name." Of
Pergamos it is said, "Thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith."
As to the name of Christ therefore, both were true. In the other matter the
resemblance is not so close. Pergamos had not denied the faith of Christ. This
is something, but far less than what is said of Philadelphia, that it had kept
His word. Not to deny Christ’s faith is to remain on Christian ground; but to
keep Christ’s word is his own test of love and condition of communion: "If a man
love me, he will keep my words, and my Father will love him, and we will come
unto him, and make our abode with him." (John 14:23.) The word, too, is that
which cleanses and sanctifies: "Now ye are clean through the word which I have
spoken unto you" (John 15:3); and again, "Sanctify them through thy truth; thy
word is truth." (John 17:17.) This fidelity to his word therefore suited the
qualities for which Christ was looking as "He that is holy, He that is true."

Philadelphia, then, is distinguished as not denying Christ’s name, and also for
that obedience to His word which springs from love and ensures fellowship. This
is the contrast between Philadelphia and Ephesus. In all outward things Ephesus
excelled; it lacked love, but abounded in works. In. all outward things
Philadelphia was wanting; it lacked works, but abounded in love. This is what
commends it to the Lord, who delights, not in the works, but in the affections
of His people. No doubt where there is love there will also be, as at
Thessalonica, the "labour of love;" but what the Lord values is the motive, not
the result. So while the great works of the Ephesians are lowered in His
estimation by the growing coolness of their love, the poor works of the
Philadelphians are endeared to His heart by the truth of affection out of which
they flowed. Only among them does He appear as One who shares their labours,
holding before them an open door because of their little strength.

There is another feature in this church. In Ephesus and Smyrna we see an energy
which judges evil, but in the next three churches this disappears. Pergamos
endures evil; Thyatira adopts it; Sardis is dead to it. But in Philadelphia,
with little power, there is at least a moral repudiation of evil, which the Lord
owns. "Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are
Jews, and are not but do lie: behold, I will make them to come and worship
before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee." (Rev 3:9) The synagogue of
Satan, as already said, is the return to Jewish principles, putting men under
law, and restoring the hierarchy and ceremonial suited to an earthly religion
like Judaism, but totally out of place in a heavenly religion like Christianity.
This attempt to put the new wine into old bottles is denounced by Paul as
destructive to the truth committed to his keeping. The danger from idolatry,
seen in Pergamos and Thyatira is not found here; for in spiritual churches like
Smyrna and Philadelphia such snares were too obvious, and Satan tries a subtler
device. This spurious Judaism was more specious and equally fatal, and has
always proved a formidable danger to Christendom. This, then, was what he
attempted to introduce here, but the evil was clearly discerned by the faithful
Philadelphian believers.

They not only saw it, however, but withstood it. At the time it would seem to
have been too strong for them; but they are assured that soon all will be
changed, the despised upholders of Christ’s word vindicated, and the victorious
corrupters of the truth humbled. "At the name of Jesus every knee shall bow,"
and when He comes His people will come with Him. Then the oppressors of the
truth will be compelled to bend before those who have faithfully held it in the
teeth of their opposition, and to own that Christ has loved them. This last
expression is very beautiful here. It harmonizes with this epistle just as much
as it contrasts with the others. There Christ is seen as Judge, and the
expression of His affections would not be suitable; for what has a judge to do
with love? Here, however, we see Him laying aside His judicial robes, and
identifying Himself with His feeble people, dealing with them in His personal,
not in His official, attributes, holding before them an open door, strengthening
their faith by the assurance of victory, and finally telling them, and promising
to display to their adversaries, how much He loves them. If the general
character of the book is judicial, surely there is something most refreshing in
this green spot in the midst of the wilderness.

"Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the
hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell
upon the earth." (Rev 3:10) This is a special promise made to the Church of
Philadelphia. What, then, is the word of Christ’s patience? Paul prays, "The
Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patience of Christ."
(2Th 3:5.) The patience of Christ is contrasted with His power. He will reign,
but His reign has not yet begun. Till now He is waiting for the kingdom. The
believer is called upon to wait with him, and so to share His patience. This is
what the Philadelphians were doing, and for this they receive commendation.
Their reward was exemption "from the hour of temptation which shall come upon
all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth." Scripture foretells a
period in which there "shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the
beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be." (Mat 24:21.) At
that time Daniel’s people, the Jews, "shall be delivered, every one that shall
be found written in the book." (Dan 12:1.) So Jeremiah says, "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." (Jer 30:7.) The woes and trials of that day
however are not confined to Jacob, for the Lord adds, that He will "make a full
end of all nations whither I have scattered thee." (Rev 3:11) Besides the period
too, when the misery reaches its dreadful climax, there are preliminary
troubles, called the beginning of sorrows, in which "nation shall rise against
nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and
pestilences, and earthquakes, in diverse places." (Mat 24:7.) All these events
are included in the hour of temptation. This time will be marked also with a
peculiar energy of evil — Satan working, through his agents, "with all power,
and signs, and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness."
(2Th 2:9-10.) Such then is "the hour of temptation which shall come upon all the
world."

There are two classes whose deliverance is named in connection with this hour.
Daniel’s people, who are "found written in the book," are "saved out of it."
Those who keep the word of Christ’s patience are saved from it. The godly
remnant of the Jews will pass through "the furnace of affliction," and will
there be "refined" and "chosen" (Isa 48:10), being finally saved by "the Son of
man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." (Mat 24:30.) But
the believer under the present dispensation will never enter this "hour of
temptation." He looks not for "the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven
with power and great glory," but to be caught up "to meet the Lord in the air."
(1Th 4:17.) When Christ comes to deliver His earthly people the heavenly saints
will be with Him. This is at the close of the "hour of temptation:" but they
will have been taken up to be with the Lord before the hour begins, and thus be
delivered from its nameless woes and horrors.

Hence follows the promise of the Lord’s speedy return. Behold, I come quickly:
hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown." (Rev 3:11) This
text troubles some anxious souls, because it is supposed to show that a man may
lose his place in Christ. But the crown is a reward, and there is surely a great
difference between losing a reward and losing eternal life. Moreover, this book
does not deal with the question of life, but of profession, and Scripture never
assumes a man to be safe because he has made a profession. The end alone must
prove it, because there may be profession, and even consistency of outward walk,
where there is no life at all. Such expressions as these therefore in no way
weaken the believer’s safety in Christ, though they furnish a solemn warning
against the abuse of this doctrine to let in carelessness of walk.

"Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall
go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of
the city of my God, which is New Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from
my God: and I will write upon Him my new name. He that hath an ear, let him hear
what the Spirit saith unto the churches," (Rev 3:12-13) The frequent repetition
of the words "my God" in this promise brings Christ’s relationship with the
believer into special prominence. When Christ in resurrection would give His
brethren the same place with Himself, He sent to tell them, "I ascend unto my
Father and your Father, and to my God and your God" (John 20:17.) And Paul
quotes Christ’s words, "I will put my trust in Him" (that is God), as showing
that "both He that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for
which cause He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, . . . I will put my
trust in Him." (Heb 2:11-13.) So, when asking that the believer may know God’s
power in quickening him together with Christ, he prays to "the God of our Lord
Jesus Christ." (Eph 1:17.) The peculiar emphasis here given therefore to the
words "my God" marks Christ’s manhood, and His identification with these
believers, showing that "He is not ashamed to call them brethren." The promise
is most full and blessed. The believer, despised and weak here, will have a
place as a pillar a symbol of strength, in the temple of God. Holiness and truth
have characterized him down here, and he shall therefore dwell in the place
which "holiness becometh" (Psa 93:5), and "shall go no more out." Again, there
is peculiar nearness and consecration to God signified in the name of God being
written on him. And he is specially identified with the heavenly things, the New
Jerusalem, whose name he also bears. In the days of Christ’s rule over the earth
it will be the peculiar distinction of some to have been born in His city. "Of
Zion it shall be said, This and that man was born in her." (Psa 87:5.) The
overcomer in Philadelphia will bear about him, not the name, however exalted, of
the earthly Zion, but the name of the New Jerusalem, "the city of my God," which
cometh down out of heaven. "And I will write upon him my new name." To write
one’s name on a person is a figure implying appropriation or adoption, and the
idea therefore here conveyed is the special interest which Christ and His God
have in the faithful believers at Philadelphia who have kept Christ’s word, and
not denied His name.

LAODICEA.

(Rev 3:14-22)

"And unto the angel of the church in Laodicea write; These things saith the
Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God." (Rev
3:14) here again the Lord presents Himself, not in His judicial, but in His
moral attributes. He is "the Amen," "for all the promises of God in Him are yea,
and in Him Amen" (2Co 1:20.) He is also "the faithful and true witness," for
though the Church has failed as God’s witness on earth, Christ still abides
unchangeably faithful and true. Moreover, He is "the beginning of the creation
of God," the head of that new creation of which the Church ought to have been
the manifestation down here. The Church has utterly departed from God’s thoughts
in this as in all other respects, but Christ is still the same.

"I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot. I would thou wert cold or
hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue
thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods,
and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable,
and poor, and blind, and naked, I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the
fire, that thou mayest be rich, and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed,
and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with
eye-salve, that thou mayest see." (Rev 3:15-18) Such was the sad state of the
church of Laodicea, such the sad picture of the professing Church in one of its
last phases. There is not the gross corruption of Thyatira, nor the hopeless
deadness of Sardis, but what is even more offensive to Christ, whose name is
turned into a means of self-exaltation, instead of being an object of love.
There is activity in the name of Christ, abundant works, abundant
self-complacency, but heartless indifference to his person. This grieves Him
more than anything else, and it is against this that His sternest denunciations
are directed. Only here does He speak of casting the Church out as too nauseous
to be endured: "Because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot I will spue
thee out of my mouth." What solemn words! addressed not to a scandalously
corrupt or languidly torpid church, but to a church where there was clearly much
work done in Christ’s name, together with large outward results. So satisfactory
were these in its own estimation that it became blind to the truth, and was
boasting of its wonderful success at the very moment when, in Christ’s
estimation, it lacked everything of real value.

It is counselled, therefore, to turn to Christ Himself, and to buy of Him "gold
tried in the fire that thou mayest be rich." Gold is the figure of God’s
righteousness, and the term "tried in the fire" refers to its perfect purity,
rather than to any judgment by which it is refined, as the Psalmist says of the
Lord’s words, that they are "as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified
seven times." (Psa 12:6.) White raiment is the clothing in which the believer is
fitted to stand before God, instead of appearing in the filthy rags of his own
righteousness. Man wishes to clothe himself in robes suitable to God’s presence.
Adam and Eve sewed fig leaves together that the shame of their nakedness might
not appear; and yet how useless they found them when called to stand before God.
He gave them a garment by which their nakedness was really covered. So this
church at Laodicea was clothing itself with works, and boasting of its success,
while the Lord sees it to be naked, and endeavours to rouse its conscience to
the fact, so that it might receive from Him the garments it really required. But
its eyes were blinded with self-conceit, and it could not discern its need of
such clothing. He therefore adds, "Anoint thine eyes with eye-salve, that thou
mayest see." These self-satisfied professors lacked the very germs of spiritual
life. Their eyes had never been opened to see their true condition as lost
sinners. Consequently they did not know that they needed to be justified
according to God’s righteousness, and to stand before Him in the only clothing
suited to His presence — "in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom,
and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption." (1Co 1:30.) But amid all
this lukewarmness, the Lord still has a few of his own people. For their sakes
He deals sharply in discipline, and He calls on them for earnest repentance. "As
many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent." (Rev
3:19) The church as a whole is not called upon to repent. On it the sentence is
not conditional, but absolute: "I will spue thee out of my mouth." But grace is
always open to individuals, and to His own people the Lord never ceases to be
faithful, however far they may have sunk into the coldness or carelessness of
the religious profession around them. Here the saints, though true, had become
infected with the lukewarmness which was so nauseous to Christ, and discipline
was needed to awaken their consciences to the sad condition into which they were
fallen. And now comes a melancholy fact, accompanied by a blessed promise. From
the church as a whole Christ is, so to speak, shut out. "Behold, I stand at the
door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to
him, and will sup with him, and he with me." (Rev 3:20) Christ is still the
same. Though shut out, figuratively speaking, of the church, He still seeks a
place in individual hearts. It has come now to be a matter of persons, not of
churches, and "if any man hear my voice, and open the door," there is still rich
blessing — the blessing of soul communion; the blessing of having Christ to
dwell in the heart, in the closest fellowship of daily intercourse. "I will come
in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me." This is a blessed promise
suited to the circumstances of the faithful. What distinguishes this Church is
heartless indifference to Christ. What distinguishes the overcomer is just the
reverse; for in him is found love, expressed in obedience, which is the
condition of Christ taking His abode in the heart.

"To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also
overcame, and am set down with my Father in His throne. He that hath an ear, let
him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches." (Rev 3:21-22) Such is the
promise to the overcomer in Laodicea. Some have supposed that it shows a
peculiarly rich order of blessing. But this is a mistake. There is no special
reward in this, for it is the common portion of all believers. Still there is
here, as in other cases, a marked appropriateness. What distinguishes the
faithful in this church is, their individual association with Christ, and this
character is retained in the promise to the overcomer. He had admitted Christ
into his heart, and known Him in secret fellowship down here. His recompense is
to be admitted to the portion of Christ in the kingdom and glory up there.
Christ, as the overcomer, had been received up to sit or the Father’s throne,
the mark of the Father’s approbation and love. The believer who has let Christ
into his heart will, as an overcomer, be received up to sit on Christ’s throne,
the mark of Christ’s approbation and love. To such, to the overcomers in the
midst of the general lukewarmness, goes forth once more the gracious appeal: "He
that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches."

HISTORICAL CHARACTER OF THE CHURCHES. And now let us pause to trace the
remarkable coincidence between the history of Christendom, and the state of the
churches in the order in which it is unfolded in these epistles. As Paul had
predicted, failure soon began; and at the time this book was written first love
had already cooled, and the germs of serious evil, both doctrinal and moral,
were already sown. Still for a time evil teaching and practice were withstood,
and there was much activity and zeal in labour. This is the state of things
described in Ephesus.

Then came an era of bloody and cruel persecutions, breaking out at intervals
through two centuries, during which period love and devotion were kindled, and
noble instances of suffering for Christ’s sake are recorded. Such is the phase
of ecclesiastical history depicted in the church of Smyrna.

After this a disastrous change took place. The world no longer persecuted the
Church, but patronized it. The Church, not suspecting the danger, settled down
under its protection, "where Satan’s seat is;" and then corruption and deadness
rapidly set in. Devoted men, like Athanasius, still rose as champions of the
truth; but the Church generally became worldly and careless, tolerating false
doctrine and evil practices, like those here ascribed to the Nicolaitanes. This
third stage in Church history is set forth in the epistle to the assembly at
PERGAMOS.

Up to this time the Church, though already corrupted, retained at least so much
truth and faithfulness that it could yet be owned of God, and therefore the
exhortation to hear is still addressed to the whole professing body. But
henceforth this is no longer possible; for the next stage shows the Church in
western Christendom, now wholly given up to worldliness and idolatry, beginning
to claim supreme power over the kings of the earth. The pretensions and crimes
of Rome, the mystical Jezebel, knew no bounds: There were still indeed devoted
men, earnest missionaries, but the Church as a system was rotten to the core,
false to Christ, entirely abandoned to worldly ambition and idolatrous
practices. Amidst the general ruin however there were always individuals and
small communities faithful to Christ, often unobserved by the world; and, when
seen, generally brought into notice by the cruel persecutions they endured. But
the Lord had his eye upon them, sustaining and encouraging them amidst their
sufferings. These are "the rest in Thyatira." The evil condition of the Church
as a whole lasted from the usurpation of temporal power by the Roman see down to
the Reformation; and though since somewhat modified by events, is in principle
the same yet. This is the phase in the Church’s annals foreshadowed in the
epistle to Thyatira.

Such is the main stream of ecclesiastical history from the decay of first love
as seen at Ephesus to the last days of the Church on earth. But besides the main
stream there are side channels diverging from it, and running along parallel
with it to the end, the most important of which are treated of in the three
following epistles. As these four phases all last to the coming of the Lord,
this event is named in these epistles, but not in the first three. After the
corruptions of Rome had become intolerable the Protestant Reformation arose to
clear away, at least in part, the more scandalous evils, and to establish
greater purity of doctrine and worship. Unhappily, after the first outburst of
zeal, it soon degenerated into worldliness and torpor; and though not outwardly
scandalous, it became heartless and dead. Of this state of things we have only
too faithful a portrait in the epistle to the church at Sardis.

Still from time to time, amidst this hopeless apathy, the Lord has raised up a
feeble few whose hearts sought to walk in obedience and faithfulness. These find
their representatives in the church at Philadelphia. But side by side with this
is the self-satisfied religious activity which, while boasting of large results,
is cold and indifferent towards Christ. This last phase is pictured in the
church of Laodicea. This is a solemn picture; but not more solemn than true. It
is surely a deeply momentous question to ask ourselves, To which of these last
four phases of the professing Church do we belong?


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  CHAPTER 15: 03.2.     PRELIMINARY JUDGMENTS.
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Preliminary Judgments. by T. B. Baines.

Section 2 of: The Revelation of Jesus Christ.

(Rev 4:1; Rev 19:4) GOD AND THE LAMB.

Rev 4:1-11; Rev 5:1-14.

We have now looked at "the things which are." The fourth chapter begins thus
"After this [or rather, "after these things;" that is, "the things which are"] I
looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I
heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither,
and I will show thee things which must be hereafter [or "the things which must
be after these"]." (Rev 4:1) The new things we now come to divide themselves
into two portions — the judgments preparatory to Christ’s coming and kingdom,
and the coming and kingdom themselves. It is the first portion with which we are
now concerned.

What then are these events? If "the things which are" only apply to the seven
churches in Asia, "the things which must be after these" may begin from any time
later than this book; and there is doubtless a certain correspondence between
the outlines here given and some great events in subsequent history. But many
prophecies have, first a general and partial fulfilment and afterwards a far
more exact and complete one; and if "the things which are" be understood in
their wider scope, as embracing the whole cycle of Church history, "the things
which must be after these" will, of course, begin only when Church history ends.

Admitting a general truth in the first mode of interpretation, it seems
probable, for reasons already given, that "the things which are," in their
principal application, take in the entire duration of the Church on earth, and
therefore that the prophecy of "the things which must be after these" has its
more complete and precise fulfilment after the Church has ceased to exist down
here. Nothing answering to the Church is seen on earth during the judgments
which follow, a fact quite inexplicable if these judgments occurred while the
Church was still in the world. The names and titles in which God reveals Himself
are also very different from those used in speaking of His relationship with the
Church. So, too, Christ is here seen in quite another character from that in
which He presented Himself to the seven churches in Asia; and, indeed, the whole
scheme of the book from this point agrees far more with God’s ways concerning
the establishment of the Messianic kingdom than with His mode of acting during
the present dispensation. The proofs of this will appear as we advance.

It may perhaps help to simplify this subject to those unacquainted with God’s
ways if we briefly sketch the order of coming events as taught in other portions
of Scripture. Two great events are spoken of as before the Church and the world.
These are the coming of the Lord for His saints, and the coming of the Lord with
His saints. It is most important that the distinction, both of time and
character, between these events should be carefully borne in mind. The coming of
the Lord for his saints is the present hope of the Church. When this happens, as
it may at any time, all living and dead believers, from the foundation of the
world, will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. The Church, as the body of
Christ, consisting only of true believers, will then cease to exist on earth.

After the coming of the Lord for his saints, and before the coming with His
saints, God will not be occupied, as now, in gathering out a people to be united
with Christ in heaven, but in preparing the way for the establishment of
Christ’s earthly kingdom, and in making ready a people who shall receive Him as
their earthly sovereign. These objects are both accomplished by means of sore
judgments inflicted on the earth, judgments by which His enemies are punished
and His people purified. "The hour of temptation," already spoken of, is the
period during which these judgments are poured forth. The coming of the Lord
with His saints will take place at the end of this "hour of temptation," after
the preliminary judgments have been brought to a close. It is the event
described as "the coming of the Son of man," the coming of the day of the Lord,
and the appearing of Christ. At this coming Christ will execute judgment on His
enemies, deliver his chosen earthly people, and establish His dominion in
righteousness over the world. The interval between the coming of the Lord for
His saints, and the coming of the Lord with His saints, or, in other words,
between the taking away of the Church and the establishment of the kingdom, is,
as already stated, a period of heavy judgments. During this time God and Christ
are not acting in the same manner, or revealing themselves in the same
character, as during the present dispensation. We shall see how, in the
prophecies now to come before us, God’s ways and titles harmonize with the
character of this interval, and how completely they differ from the character of
the present or Church dispensation. The preliminary judgments detailed in this
part of the book form several distinct groups, but before these are related the
scene in heaven is opened to our gaze. There we are permitted to see things from
God’s point of view, to see the character in which He is acting, the purposes
which He is bringing to accomplishment, and the secret springs which regulate
the judgments hanging over the world. In these two chapters God is set forth,
first in his rights and titles as Creator, dealing with the world which He has
made; and next, in His sovereign prerogatives as Judge, committing all judgment
to "the Man of His right hand, the Son of man whom He has made strong for
Himself."

GOD AS CREATOR.

(Rev 4:1-11.) The first verse, already quoted, shows John summoned up through an
opened door into heaven. The whole scene is changed. In spirit he is no longer
in Patmos, hearing Christ’s judicial estimate of the Church down here, but in
heaven, beholding the development of events preparatory to His taking his
earthly kingdom. This is the place from which the believer will look on during
that "hour of temptation which will come upon all the world." John therefore is
translated to the sphere of observation from which the Church will behold the
judgments of that dreadful time. This surely suggests that the events which He
describes are these judgments.

Why then, it may be asked, is nothing said about the rapture of the Church?
Because in the Revelation the Church on earth is regarded, not in its privileges
and hopes, but in its responsibilities and failure. Moreover prophecy is not a
continuous narrative, but a succession of scenes often widely separated in time
and circumstances. So it is here. The book reveals Christ acting as judge. His
judicial estimate of Christendom, or the professing Church, comes first; then
follow His judgments poured forth upon the earth after the true Church, His
body, has been removed. There is no room for the "blessed hope" in this scheme.
We see that the Church, the whole body of real believers, is gone, but must
learn from other Scriptures how it has been taken away.

"And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven,
and one sat on the throne. And He that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a
sardine stone; and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like
unto an emerald." (Rev 4:2-3) This is God seated on the throne. The jasper is
called "a stone most precious" (Rev 21:11), and the idea suggested by both gems
is that of dazzling glory. It is a session of judgment; for "out of the throne
proceeded lightnings, and thunderings, and voices." (Rev 4:5) Still it is
encircled with a rainbow, the token of God’s "everlasting covenant" with
creation. (Gen 9:16.) When Ezekiel beheld God about to give up Jerusalem to
desolation, he saw "the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of
rain." (Eze 1:28.) So here, again, God shows that in judgment He remembers the
covenant He has made with the earth. The emerald may be emblematic of the
preciousness of the covenant in His sight, or its greenness may indicate the
refreshing rest brought to the eye when wearied with the vision of the impending
judgments.

Surely it brings cheer to the heart while traversing the dark gulf of gloom
through which this book carries us, to look up and see that it is all spanned by
the rainbow arch of God’s unfailing covenant with the world. God will be
glorified and Christ receive His rights even in this scene, and in this the
believer’s heart can rejoice. But the covenant indicated by the rainbow is a
covenant with the world, not with the Church, and its appearance now in
connection with the throne indicates that God is not acting in relationship with
the Church, but with the world, where Israel is always the central object.

"And round about the throne were four and twenty seats [or thrones]: and upon
the thrones I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and
they had on their heads crowns of gold." (Rev 4:4) Who are these elders? They
are not angels; for in the next chapter the angels stand "round about the throne
and the living creatures and the elders," singing quite a different hymn of
praise from that in which the elders had previously joined. (Rev 5:11.) Their
number is symbolic, and clearly refers to the four and twenty courses of priests
instituted by David. Their "white raiment" is the clothing promised to the
overcomer, and afterwards used as emblematic of the "righteousness of saints."
(Rev 19:1-21.) So, too, the thrones on which they are seated and the golden
crowns they wear are both promised to believers; and their rank, as assessors
with God in this scene of judgment, is suited to the saints who "shall judge the
world." (1Co 6:2.) All this suggests that we have, under the figure of these
elders, the class which raised the song before recorded, "Unto Him that loved
us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and hath made us kings and
priests unto His God and Father; to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever.
Amen." (Rev 1:5-6.) Not only, then, have we no mention of the Church on earth,
not only have we John looking down from the place whence believers will witness
the judgments which follow the taking of the Church, but we have a company in
heaven answering in every respect to the position which raised believers will
occupy. Moreover the work in which God is here engaged — judgment qualified by
the recollection of His covenant with the earth, corresponds, not with His
present ways of grace, but with what is foretold of His acts when the day of
grace is ended, and He resumes His dealings with the world preparatory to the
establishment of the Messianic kingdom. All this shows that the scene here is
one which follows the coming of Christ for his saints, and that the elders in
heaven represent believers who are then taken up and changed into His own
likeness. The throne and its surroundings are then described: "And out of the
throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven
lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God. And
before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal." Here the
lightnings and thunderings show the throne to be a throne of judgment. The
Spirit is seen in His manifold activity in judgment, symbolised by the "seven
lamps of fire," in connection with the throne. The "sea of glass like unto
crystal" typifies fixed purity, in contrast with the sea of water in the court
of the temple. On earth there was need of purifying; in heaven there is not, so
that the sea is no longer of water, but of crystal — that "terrible crystal,"
spotless purity of holiness, on which Ezekiel saw the throne of God standing.
(Eze 1:22, Eze 1:26.) But besides the lamps of fire and the sea of glass, "in
the midst at the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts [or living
creatures] full of eyes before and behind. And the first living creature was
like a lion, and the second living creature like a calf and the third living
creature had a face as a man, and the fourth living creature was like a flying
eagle. And the four living creatures had each of them six wings; and they were
full of eyes about and within; and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy,
holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come." (Rev 4:6-8)
These living creatures resemble in part the seraphim whom Isaiah saw above the
throne of the Lord, having six wings, and crying, "Holy, holy, holy" (Isa
6:1-3); and in part the living creatures of Ezekiel’s vision, where the same
emblems, of the lion the ox, the man, and the eagle, also appear, and where the
wheels which move with them, are "full of eyes round about." (Eze 1:1-28). They
are "in the midst of the throne," as well as around it, seeming to show that
they are rather symbols of God’s ways in providence and judgment than separate
beings. They are full of eyes, before and behind around and within, indicating
perfect knowledge and intelligence. The man, the ox, the lion, and the eagle
show the four chief types of the living creation in which God has displayed His
power, and may perhaps also signify the intelligence, the utility, the power,
and the swiftness of His judgments. In their wings we see the rapidity with
which his purposes are carried out, while they are the unwearied proclaimers of
that holiness which marks all His ways. On both the occasions when these living
creatures were formerly seen, God was acting in judgment. On both occasions the
place of His appearance was the temple at Jerusalem. And on both occasions the
declaration of His purposes concerning Israel, as the centre of His schemes of
earthly government, was the object with which He thus revealed Himself The glory
in which He is here beheld is therefore a glory connected with Israel. Isaiah
had been told that the desolation of Jerusalem was impending, and Ezekiel saw
the glory quit the temple and city before the Gentile domination began.
Afterwards, in the prophecy of the Messiah’s reign, and the restoration of
Jerusalem, the same glory, "even according to the vision that I saw when I came
to destroy the city" (Eze 43:3), returns and takes its abode in the rebuilt
temple. All this shows that we have here the revelation of God’s ways, not about
the Church, or the present dispensation, but about Israel and the coming age,
when God resumes the execution of His purposes concerning the government of the
world. The same thing is signified in the use of the title, "Lord God Almighty."
These are names recalling God’s covenants with Abraham and Israel, and relating
to His government of the world. They are used, as consistent with the general
character of the book, in the first chapter. They are then entirely dropped
during the addresses to the seven churches. After the close of these addresses
they are resumed, and henceforth kept up to the close, showing that we have
entered upon an epoch quite different from that of the Church. The proclamation
of God’s holiness draws forth the worship of the elders. "And when those living
creatures give glory and honour and thanks to Him that sat on the throne, who
liveth for ever and ever, the four and twenty elders fall down before Him that
sat on the throne, and worship Him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their
crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and
honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they
are and were created" [or "were and have been created"]. (Rev 4:9-11) This is
not worship addressed to the Father, but to the God of creation and providence.
In this chapter Jesus is never separately named or seen. Yet in creation He is
the person of the Godhead who actively works; for "all things were created by
him and for Him; and He is before all things, and by Him all things consist."
(Col 1:16-17.) It is not, then, the Father, as distinct from the Son, that is
here the object of adoration, but God, the Creator, including Father, Son, and
Spirit. All creature glory is merely derived, and the elders, though crowned,
and even associated with God in judgment, fall down and worship the ever-living
One, casting their crowns before the throne, and owning that He only is worthy
of honour, glory, and power; for by Him and for Him all things exist and were
created.

JUDGMENT COMMITTED TO CHRIST

(Rev 5:1-14) In the last chapter God was worshipped as Creator. We now see Him
as "judge of the earth" committing "all judgment unto the Son," and giving "Him
authority to execute judgment also because He is the Son of man." (John 5:22,
John 5:27.) "And I saw in the right hand of Him that sat on the throne a book
written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong
angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book and to loose
the seals thereof? And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth,
was able to open the book, neither to look thereon. And I wept much, because no
man was found worthy to open [and to read] the book, neither to look thereon."
(Rev 5:1-4) God, as we have seen, is resuming the execution of His counsels
concerning the earth. The promises made to Abraham and to David, though
temporarily suspended after the rejection of the Christ to whom they all
pointed, are still in his thoughts; "for the gifts and calling of God are
without repentance." (Rom 11:29.) "The Man of His right hand," rejected in His
humiliation, has been seated on the Father’s throne, while the Spirit has been
on earth gathering out a people to keep the word of His patience, and baptising
them into one body with their glorified Head in heaven. This is Christ’s place
during the formation of the Church, and not until it is caught up to Himself
does He rise from the Father’s throne to commence the work of judgment. But now
this has taken place, and the saints, raised or translated at His coming, are
seen under the figure of the elders seated in heaven. The time of Christ’s
patience is ended, the time of His kingdom approaching, and the judgments
preceding the kingdom about to begin. God always designed to govern the world by
a man. Adam, put in trust, failed in obedience, and ruined the whole creation.
After this, sin having entered, the exercise of rule necessarily involved the
execution of judgment. Hence the sword of government was entrusted to Noah. But
he, too, proved unworthy, and became the object of mockery to his own son. Man’s
effort to establish government in independence of God was confounded at Babel,
and each successive hand which received the government from God proved itself
unworthy to carry out His judgments. Israel failed to execute His purposes upon
the Canaanites; the judges failed to maintain His government in the land; Saul
failed to carry out his command against Amalek; the house of David failed to
meet his righteous requirements, till the nation, already divided, was given as
a prey to the Gentiles. The Gentile monarchies all failed, and were set aside,
till the last of the four powers crowned man’s guilt by joining with God’s own
people in rejecting and crucifying the Messiah. "No man was found worthy." The
scroll of God’s judgments cannot be unfolded by man. Nay, man cannot even look
upon it; for when God is dealing in judgment, whether at mount Sinai or in these
coming woes, who is there that does not, like Moses, "exceedingly fear and
quake"? The strong angel’s proclamation remains unanswered. All human resources
have been tried, and on all may be written the words which foretold the doom of
the first Gentile monarchy. "Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found
wanting." But as in grace, so in government. When man’s resources are exhausted,
God’s power enters the scene. Well might John weep at the impotence of man to
carry out the purposes of God; but God only waits till this has been fully
demonstrated to bring forth the Man of His own counsels. "And one of the elders
salt unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of
David, hath prevailed [or overcome] to open the book, and to loose the seven
seals thereof." (Rev 5:5) Here, then, an elder, who knows the mind of God,
heralds Christ as the One who is to take and open the book of judgment.

What all others have failed to do, He can and will do. For He is "the Lion of
the tribe of Judah." The lion is a type of resistless strength, whether acting
lawlessly or, as here, in the righteous execution of God’s judgments, for "the
King’s wrath is us the roaring of a lion." (Pro 19:12.) Long ago the figure had
been used of Israel — "Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and
lift up himself as a young lion: he shall not lie down until he eat the prey,
and drink the blood of the slain." (Num 23:24.) And of Judah especially it was
said, "Judah is a lion’s whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he
stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up?"
(Gen 49:9.) These prophecies are yet unfulfilled; for He who holds God’s mighty
power, symbolized by the lion, has not yet appeared in this character. He has
been on earth as a lamb led to the slaughter, but not as "the Lion of the tribe
of Judah." This is the character however which He now takes. He is also "the
Root of David," for it is from God’s purposes concerning Him that all the
glorious promises to David and his house are derived.

We have not here Christ’s power and dignity as Son of God. Judgment is committed
to Him "because He is the Son of man." (John 5:27.) And not only so, but He owes
His dominion to His humiliation unto death, because, "being in the form of God,
He did not think it an object of rapine to be equal with God: but made Himself
of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the
likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and
became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath
highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name, that at the
name of Jesus" (His name as man) "every knee should bow, of things [or beings]
in heaven, and beings in earth, and beings under the earth; and that every
tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the
Father." (Php 2:6-11.)

Hence, although Christ is coming forth as "the Lion of the tribe of Judah," the
executor of God’s judgments, and as "the root of David," the centre of His
earthly counsels, how does He appear? "And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of
the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders,
stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are
the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth." (Rev 5:6) While God’s
praises as Creator are celebrated, Christ is "in the midst of the throne" in his
own essential glory — the glory of God. But when earthly government and judgment
are in question, He stands forth in his derived human glory as the Lamb that had
been slain. He is now clothed however with perfect power, as shown in the seven
horns, and possesses perfect knowledge and wisdom, as symbolized in the seven
eyes, "which are the seven Spirits of God." For Christ, as man, receives from
the Spirit the knowledge and wisdom of God, and thus discerns everything
throughout the whole earth. As the slain Lamb, invested with authority to
execute judgment, He receives His commission from God. "And He came and took
[the book] out of the right hand of Him that sat upon the throne." (Rev 5:7) And
now the homage to "the name of Jesus" begins. "And when He had taken the book,
the four living creatures and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb,
having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the
prayers of saints. And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the
book, and to open the seals thereof, for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed [us]
to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation,
and hast made them [not us] unto our God kings and priests: and they [not we]
shall reign on [or rather over] the earth." (Rev 5:8-10) Here Christ is
worshipped, not as God, but as the slain Lamb, because "He humbled Himself, and
became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." According to the
strict grammatical sense — which does not however always determine the meaning —
it is only the elders who are said to have harps, and therefore we may conclude
only the elders who raise this song. But however this may be, the four living
creatures join in the adoration of the Lamb, falling down before Him in worship,
thus signifying perhaps the fact that God’s power in judgment, which they
represent, is now placed in Christ’s hands. The song is new, for though the
merits of Christ’s death are not new, the character in which He now appears, as
the One who takes the book of God’s judgment, and opens the seals thereof, is
new. It is a character which He only assumes after the Church has been taken to
heaven. The elders worship as priests. As a "royal priesthood" they celebrate on
the harp "the praises of Him who hath called them out of darkness into His
marvellous light." (1Pe 2:9.) As heavenly priests too, in "the holiest of all,
which had the golden censer" (Heb 9:3-4), they have "golden vials full of
odours, which are the prayers of saints."

We have before seen that these elders represent the redeemed in heaven. Their
song confirms this. If the words, "and hast redeemed us to God" were correct,
the evidence would be still stronger. But though most manuscripts so read, the
omission of "us" from a few copies is confirmed by the fact that in the next
verse the reading undoubtedly is, "And have made them unto our God, kings and
priests, and they shall reign over the earth." The word "us," therefore, is
doubtful. But still the whole song, being a celebration of Christ’s work in
redemption as entitling Him to take the book, naturally belongs to those who
represent the redeemed. Who should be so interested in the fact that men were
redeemed to God by His blood, were made kings and priests, or should reign over
the earth, as the redeemed themselves? All these topics, so natural for them,
are omitted from the angels’ song, showing that these elders have a far deeper
interest in the redeemed than the angels. A difficulty may arise from the words,
"and they shall reign on the earth;" but the true reading is, "over the earth;"
and while it is certainly never said that the heavenly saints shall dwell on the
earth again, it is distinctly promised that when Christ reigns over the earth,
they shell reign with Him. The praise of the angels follows. "And I beheld, and
I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the living creatures
and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and
thousands of thousands; saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was
slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and
glory, and blessing." (Rev 5:11-12) At the time here spoken of, the Psalmist’s
words are fast approaching their fulfilment: "Jehovah hath prepared His throne
in the heavens; His kingdom ruleth over all" (Psa 103:19); and even now "His
angels that excel in strength," the "ministers of His that do His pleasure"
bless Him in the person of "the Son of man," through whom His rule is carried
on, and who is about to have all things put under His feet. (Psa 8:4-6.) But
there is a great difference between this worship of the angels and that of the
elders. The angels look at his "obedience unto death," and own that it is as the
slain Lamb He is entitled to receive glory and blessing; but they say nothing
about redemption. To them the central object in the cross is the perfect
obedience there manifested; to the elders the central object in the cross is the
redeeming work there accomplished. But the chorus of praise does not stop here.
The prophet’s eye glances forward in vision to the universal adoration which
will be rendered to the name of God and of the Lamb. The Psalmist knows nothing
of throned elders in heaven, but he summons, not only angels, but all God’s
"works in all places of His dominion" to bless the Lord, (Psa 103:22.) And here
in John’s vision, after the songs of the elders and of the angels, the praises
of creation also rise. "And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth,
and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them [or,
"all things in them "], heard I saying, Blessing, and glory, and honour, and
power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and
ever. And the four living creatures said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders
fell down and worshipped." (Rev 5:13-14) The words added in our version, "Him
that liveth for ever and ever," are without authority, and spoil the passage.
For the worship rendered to God in this chapter is not to God as Creator, or as
the Eternal, but to God sitting upon the throne of judgment, and to Jesus as the
slain Lamb, to whom the judgment is committed.

These two chapters, then, form the introduction to the judgments which follow
the rapture of the Church, and usher in the day of the Lord. The present
dispensation of grace having come to an end, God takes up again the thread of
His schemes of earthly government, of which Christ is always the centre. He
appears in the first chapter as Creator, about to assert His rights over the
world He has made, and ever mindful of the covenant into which He entered with
Noah. Here He is adored as Lord God Almighty, while Christ is not seen as
separate from the glory of God, or as having any distinctive dignity as Son of
man. In the next chapter, however, God is not presented as Creator, but as
Judge, and then Christ appears as man, the One who had been "brought as a Lamb
to the slaughter," but now stand forth armed with all God’s power, as "the lion
of the tribe of Judah" to avenge his chosen people, and as "the Root of David"
to "judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth." (Psa
96:13.) As such, the redeemed in heaven, the angels, and all creation, join to
celebrate His praise. The worship of creation, indeed, is only anticipative, the
prophet’s gaze being carried on, in this, as in other cases, beyond the
immediate present, to contemplate the glorious results which were to flow out of
the sad scenes of judgment now about to commence. THE SEALS.

Rev 6:1-17; Rev 7:1-17; Rev 8:1. The sealed book of judgment is now entrusted to
Christ, and God begins to "do His work, His strange work, and bring to pass His
act, His strange act." (Isa 28:21.) From the sixth to the close of the eleventh
chapter the judgments follow each other in regular order. The first series are
those brought in by the opening of the seven seals; the second, those heralded
by the sounding of the seven trumpets. These two series of sevenfold judgments
embrace the whole cycle of time, from the taking of the Church to be with Christ
down to the beginning of His reign over the earth. After detailing these, the
Spirit carries the seer back to witness some parts of the great tragedy more
closely, especially God’s dealings with Israel, the last phase of Gentile
lawlessness, and the judgment executed on the great harlot that has committed
fornication with the kings of the earth, and become drunk with the blood of
saints. We shall first examine the judgments under the seven seals.

FIRST SEAL.

(Rev 6:1-2.)

"And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the
noise of thunder, one of the four living creatures saying, Come [and see]. And I
saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was
given unto him: and he went forth conquering and to conquer." One need hardly
combat the thought that this rider is the Lord Jesus, and that His conquests are
the triumphs of the gospel. No doubt Christ afterwards comes from heaven upon a
white horse (Rev 19:11); but a white horse only symbolizes victorious power,
and, like the lion, the throne, the crown, and other emblems, is used without
regard to the moral character of those with whom it is connected. Christ is
called a lion, and so is the devil. God has a throne, and so has Satan. Christ
has many crowns, and so has the dragon. The mere figure then of a lion, a
throne, or a crown proves nothing about the nature of the one of whom it is
spoken. This must be learnt from the context. So with the white horse. We must
ask what the surroundings show of him who sits upon it.

Looking, then, at this vision as referring to the past, how does it resemble the
spread of the gospel? Where Christ afterwards sits on a white horse it is in
judgment. Did the gospel go forth in judgment? Were not its preachers to share
Christ’s patience? And what is there of patience here? But again, this is
entirely a scene of judgment. One of the living creatures representing God in
creation and judgment bids the prophet come, and bids him in a voice of thunder.
How unlike a summons to witness the triumphs of God’s grace! The events under
the other seals are also manifestly judgments. Why then make this one seal to
differ from all the rest in introducing blessing instead of judgment?

If we dismiss this strange misconception, the meaning is clear. As to the past,
these six seals doubtless give a general sketch of the judgments on the earth,
of the persecution of Christians, and lastly of the fall of the heathen Roman
Empire. The future application is however much more important, showing that when
God prepares to establish Christ’s kingdom on earth the work of judgment
commences. The first scene discloses a victorious warrior going forth on his
career of conquest. He is armed with a bow, indicating the rapidity and wide
range of his; acquisitions. A crown is given him, showing probably that he is
not originally of royal descent, but obtains imperial or royal dignity by his
success as a warrior after the manner of the first Napoleon. This then is
nothing more than a providential scourge, not perhaps more remarkable than
others with which history teems.

SECOND SEAL.

(Rev 6:3-4)

"And when He had opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say,
Come [and see]. And there went out another horse that was red: and power was
given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should
kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword." The rapid success
of the conqueror under the first seal is followed by a further outbreak of war.
The red horse, and the great sword given to the rider, are clearly symbolic of
bloodshed. Peace quits the earth. "Nation rises against nation, and kingdom
against kingdom." War and slaughter on a gigantic scale are indicated by this
second seal.

THIRD SEAL.

(Rev 6:5-6)

"And when He had opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say,
Come [and see]. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a
pair of balances in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four
living creatures say, A measure [choenix] of wheat for a penny [denarius], and
three measures [choenixes] of barley for a penny [denarius]; and see thou hurt
not the oil and the wine." The black horse signifies mourning and consternation.
Devastating wars have brought in famine. The "pair of balances" in the rider’s
hand recalls the prophecy of Ezekiel concerning the siege of Jerusalem by
Nebuchadnezzar’s army: "I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem: and they
shall eat bread by weight, and with care; and they shall drink water by measure,
and with astonishment." (Eze 4:16.) It is a figure eminently suggestive of
scarcity. The prices given also imply extraordinary dearness of the commonest
necessaries of life; for it is calculated that they were about eight times the
rate then current. This implies extreme suffering, not indeed among the rich,
whose oil and wine are yet untouched, but among the poor, who find the cost of
even the coarsest food, such as barley bread, almost beyond their reach.

FOURTH SEAL.

(Rev 6:7-8)

"And when I had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living
creature say, Come [and see]. And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his
name that sat on him was Death, and Hell [or Hades] followed with him. And power
was given unto them [or him] over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with
sword, and with hunger, and with death [or pestilence], and with the beasts of
the earth." This crowns the misery of these four preliminary judgments. Conquest
leading to blood-shed and famine, has wrought wholesale desolation and
wretchedness. The pale horse, significant of haggard want and despair, has Death
as its rider. Hades, the unseen world, follows in his train, as if to devour his
victims, according to the vivid imagery of the prophet: "Therefore Hades hath
enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and
their multitude and their pomp and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it."
(Isa 5:14.) Death receives power over "the fourth part of the earth," there to
descend with the "four sore judgments" of God — "the sword, and the famine, and
the noisome beast, and the pestilence." (Eze 14:21.) Lands ravaged by the sword;
the wretched survivors left with wasted fields and resources to die of hunger
and plague; wild beasts quitting their lairs, and prowling over the desolated
country; such is a picture of the woes hanging, probably at no distant period,
over this world. How blessed the portion of those who, having kept the word of
Christ’s patience, will be kept from this "hour of temptation which shall come
upon all the world!"

Here, then, are the first judgments. There is, so far, no obvious intervention
of divine power. Man’s evil passions, which have stirred up wars and calamities
in all ages, are the only instruments seen. But it is the first breath of that
whirlwind of judgment which will soon sweep over the earth. Compare this with
our Lord’s own words about the signs of His "coming and of the end of the age."
Addressing the disciples as representing those who will then be looking for Him,
He says, "And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars see that ye be not
troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For
nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall
be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are
the beginning of sorrows." (Mat 24:6-8.) Wars, famines, and pestilences, the
contents of the first four seals are, therefore, the earlier judgments predicted
by our Lord Himself, as among the signs of his coming in judgment at the end of
the age. A further analogy will be found as we come to the next scene.

FIFTH SEAL.

(Rev 6:9-11)

"And when He had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them
that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: and
they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou
not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes
were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should
rest yet for a little season, until their fellow servants also and their
brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled." Here, then,
war, famine, and pestilence, are followed by persecution. Exactly the same thing
is seen in the prophecy from which we have already quoted in Matthew. Our Lord
proceeds: "Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you:
and ye shall be hated of all the nations [or, the Gentiles] for my name’s sake.
. . . And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a
witness unto all the nations" [or, Gentiles]. (Rev 6:9, Rev 6:14) To what
period, then, does this persecution refer, and on whom does it fall?

Granting a general reference to the martyrdom of Christians under the heathen
emperors, yet the agreement of this prophecy with Matthew shows that its chief
fulfilment is in the troubles preceding the coming of the Son of man. Already,
as we have seen, the redeemed of the present and of past dispensations will be
in heaven. Whence then are these martyrs? They must consist of those who have
the word of God after the Church’s departure. Does the description here given
answer to this? The Revelation says that these saints "were slain for the word
of God, and for the testimony which they held." This might apply either to
Christianity or to the testimony of believing Jews after the Church as taken.
But in Matthew the Jewish character of the testimony is clear, for our Lord
says, "Ye shall be hated of all the nations (or Gentiles) for my name’s sake."
The word "the," omitted in our translation, is important; for "the nations" is
the phrase used to distinguish the Gentiles from the Jews. The Lord’s prophecy
is, therefore, that the believing Jews, who proclaim his word in those days,
will encounter the hatred of the Gentiles. No marvel; for while the Gentiles are
striving for power, and pushing their schemes of aggrandisement, as shown in the
first four judgments, the believing Jews will be proclaiming, not a gospel of
grace for mankind, but "the gospel of the kingdom," the coming of a Messiah who
will subvert all earthly dominion, establish His throne in Zion, and exalt His
people above all the nations of the world. What government would tolerate such
preaching? What Gentile monarchy would not seek to crush the heralds of so
revolutionary a faith? This then is what will provoke the persecution. "The
gospel of the kingdom" is a phrase never used of Christianity, but of the glad
tidings of the Messianic kingdom, as foretold by John the Baptist and by our
Lord Himself before the nation had rejected His claim. "This gospel of the
kingdom" is to "be preached in all the world for a witness unto all the
Gentiles," showing that it is the proclamation of the Messiah’s kingdom to the
nations of the earth. In Luke’s gospel, where the prophecy relates to the events
preceding the destruction of the temple and city by the Roman army, "the gospel
of the kingdom" is not named, and the persecution described is not said to be
specially from the Gentiles, but from Jews and Gentiles alike. "They shall lay
their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and
into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name’s sake." (Luk
21:12.) The difference is important, for it helps to show that the prophecy in
Matthew relates, not to the events preceding the siege of Jerusalem, but to the
woes and troubles preceding the day of the Lord, the same period as that spoken
of in the book of Revelation. The sufferers, then, under the fifth seal are
slain after the Church is taken, and when God has resumed His purposes towards
Israel. They have to do with a God of judgment, and cry that their blood may be
avenged. How unsuitable such a prayer even in the mouths of those slain, until
the time of judgment arrives. Those with Christ will surely keep the word of His
patience as they did on earth. Could Stephen, who immediately before his death
prayed for his murderers, cry, immediately after his death, for vengeance upon
them? If not, these martyrs do not belong to the Church period, but to the
period when Christ is risen up for judgment. They are of those elect whom God
will speedily avenge, because they "cry day and night unto Him, though He bear
long with them." (Luk 18:7.) The Psalms are filled with their prayers: "Arise, O
Lord; let not man prevail: let the Gentiles be judged in thy sight. Put them in
fear, O Lord; that the nations may know themselves to be but men." (Psa
9:19-20.) And again, "Break thou the arm of the wicked and the evil man; seek
out his wickedness till thou find none." (Psa 10:15.) This is not language for a
Christian under persecution, but becomes those who are associated with Christ
when the clays of His patience are over, and He is acting in judgment towards
the world.

White robes are given them as tokens of Christ’s approval But they are still
left as souls under the altar; not raised like the elders who are already
perfected by the redemption of their bodies. There are other martyrs yet to die,
and they must remain until these also have suffered.

SIXTH SEAL.

(Rev 6:12-17)

"And I beheld when He had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great
earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair; and the moon became
as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig-tree
casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven
departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island
were moved out of their places. And the kings of the earth, and the great men,
and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman,
and every freeman, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of
Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: for the great
day of His wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?" Of course this is not
to be literally taken. Such a convulsion would be the total destruction of the
universe, whereas the world exists long after these events. It is then a
figurative description, borrowed from the magnificent prophecy of Joel
concerning the events preceding the day of the Lord "I will show wonders in the
heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall
be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible
day of the Lord come." (Joe 2:30-31.) A portion of the imagery is taken also
from the words of Isaiah, describing "the indignation of the Lord upon all the
nations" [or Gentiles], where he says, "All the host of heaven shall be
dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll and all their
hosts shall fall down, as the leaf falleth from off the vine, and as a falling
fig from the fig-tree." (Isa 34:2, Isa 34:4.) These passages show not only the
time and circumstances, but the proper interpretation of the figures used in the
Revelation. The time is before the coming of "the great and terrible day of the
Lord." The circumstances are God’s judgment of the nations. The interpretation
of the figures is the overthrow of the powers of the earth by great social and
political convulsions. This is the meaning to be attached here to the "great
earthquake." The sun, the supreme authority, is obscured, and the lesser powers,
the moon and stars, are either disturbed or utterly overthrown. Places of
strength and security, the mountains and islands, are removed; and a general
shaking of all the kingdoms follows the wars that have raged, and the
wretchedness and anarchy they have brought in their train. This vast disruption
fills all hearts with dismay. Christ’s return in judgment had been foretold; and
though the world then scoffed, this wide-spread overthrow recalls the prophecy,
and a shudder of coming judgment seizes the people. There is no repentance, no
cry for mercy, merely a terror of vengeance, and a frantic desire to escape
shown by their calling on the mountains and rocks to fall on them, and hide them
from the dreaded wrath. But their horror is premature. The judgments preceding
the great day of wrath have begun; but not the day itself. Man will be allowed
to go on a little longer in his sin to show that this fear dues not change his
heart, but that with him, as with Pharaoh, each judgment, when passed, only
increases its desperate hardness.

There is something fearful in the thought of a world crying out to be sheltered
"from the wrath of the Lamb," the wrath of the meek and lowly One, who "was
wounded for our transgressions, and bruised for out iniquities." But it is a
solemn truth. The same voice which now says, "Come unto me," will, if His tender
invitations are refused, at length say, "Depart from me, ye cursed." Now is the
day of salvation; then will be the day of judgment; and surely every shaft of
judgment will be barbed by the memory of slighted grace.

INTERVAL BETWEEN THE SIXTH AND SEVENTH SEAL.

(Rev 7:1-17.)

After the sixth seal comes a pause, during which we see a faithful remnant who
are saved on earth, as we have already seen one saved for heaven. This remnant
consists of two companies; first, a definite number from Israel; and next, a
countless multitude from the nations.

I. We see the saved remnant of the twelve tribes of Israel (Rev 7:1-8): "And
after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth,
holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth,
nor on the sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from the
east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the
four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, saying, Hurt
not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants
of our God in their foreheads." (Rev 7:1-3) The "four angels standing on the
four corners of the earth" are the ministers of God’s judgments, occupying even
the remotest regions of the world. The "four winds of the earth" are those
disturbing elements existing in all quarters, which God can at His will let
loose in judgment. Thus Gog, the great hostile hewer named in Ezekiel, is said
to "ascend and come like a storm" (Eze 38:9); and Jehovah, when delivering
Israel from her enemies, is described "as an hiding place from the wind, and a
covert from the tempest." (Isa 32:2.)

What, then, is signified by the earth, the sea, and the trees? The earth in
Scripture is used for the nations under settled, stable government; while the
sea is a figure naturally suggestive of multitudes, especially of people in a
disorganized condition. Thus among the few symbols explained in this book we
read that "the waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples,
and multitudes, and nations, and tongues." (Rev 17:15.) In another chapter the
last Gentile monarchy is described as rising "up out of the sea" (Rev 13:1); and
in Daniel all the four beasts which represent the four Gentile powers come out
of a weltering scene of confusion and anarchy, where "the four winds of the
heaven strove upon the great sea." (Dan 7:2.) The figure is in frequent use, as
where the Psalmist speaks of the Lord as stilling "the noise of the seas, the
noise of their waves, and the tumult of the people." (Psa 65:7.) A tree, on the
other hand, is a well known Scripture figure of a great one of the earth: "The
day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and
upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low: and upon all the
cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of
Bashan." (Isa 2:12-13.) The meaning of the imagery therefore is, that God is
about, through his providential agents, the angels, to let loose various
elements of social convulsion on the nations under settled government, the
troubled mass of the peoples, and the great ones of the earth. But before this
vast upheaving begins God remembers His elect, and provides for their safety.
For their deliverance an angel ascends "from the east." The east is the quarter
of the sunrise, and how will God’s elect then be occupied? They will be looking
for "the Sun of righteousness to arise with healing in His wings." (Mal 4:2.) In
our dispensation the believer is to look to the east, to have his eye fixed on
the "bright and morning star," the herald of the coming day. In the time
described in this scene the east is still the quarter of hope, and though the
Lord himself does not yet appear for His people’s deliverance, His angel ascends
to mark them in the forehead with "the seal of the living God." This is not "the
Holy Spirit of God" sealing "unto the day of redemption." (Eph 4:30.) The Spirit
will not then be given as now but the angel, one of those "ministering spirits
sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation" (Heb 1:14),
sets the seal of the living God, the pledge of life and deliverance, in their
forehead. It is as "the Son of the living God" that Christ builds a church
secure against the power of hades. It is as sealed by the living God that these
later saints will be secure against the power of death. The shafts of death and
hades glance harmlessly aside from those who are protected behind the shield of
"the living God."

"And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an
hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.
Of the tribe of Juda were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were
sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand. Of the
tribe of Aser were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Nepthalim were sealed
twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand. Of the
tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi were sealed
twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand. Of the
tribe of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph were sealed
twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand." (Rev
7:4-8)

Here the number is clearly symbolic, twelve being the number of administrative
perfection, as seven is of mystical or heavenly perfection. Thus there are
twelve patriarchs, twelve apostles, and here twelve thousand sealed from each of
twelve tribes. Why the tribe of Dan is omitted can only be conjectured. It is
not because the tribe is cut off; for in the new division of the land foretold
by Ezekiel Dan occupies the northernmost portion. (Eze 48:1.) Looked at
historically, this remnant doubtless represents the Israelite believers in the
early Church; but the historical fulfilment is, as we have seen, only a
subordinate one, and the main scope of this prophecy is still future. What
therefore we here learn is, that before the woes about to fall on the earth
after the sixth seal, a remnant out of the twelve tribes of Israel will be
specially marked out by God for deliverance.

II. But besides this sealed multitude from Israel, we see another countless
throng of Gentiles, also reserved for blessing. (Rev 7:9-17) "After this I
beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations,
and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the
Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; and cried with a loud
voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the
Lamb." (Rev 7:9-10) This multitude are "clothed with white robes," the symbols
of righteousness, and "have palms in their hands," the symbols of victory. Their
song ascribing deliverance to "God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the
Lamb," is very different from the praise of the Church — "Unto Him that loved
us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood;" and from the song of the
elders in proclaiming the worthiness of Him who was "slain, and hast redeemed to
God by thy blood out of every kindred." These victors say nothing of the blood
or redemption, but merely ascribe salvation to God on His throne, and to the
Lamb. Yet we afterwards see that they had "washed their robes and made them
white in the blood of the Lamb." Whence, then, the silence on this subject in
their outburst of praise?

It arises from their circumstances. The throne before which they stand is not
one of mercy, but of righteousness, and the Lamb is here seen, not as slain for
sin, but as executing judgment. As the souls under the altar prayed that their
blood might be avenged, so these saints have been crying for deliverance by the
judgment of their adversaries. Christ’s coming is to them deliverance from
earthly tribulation and establishment in earthly blessing. The prophet’s eye
looks forward to the complete result when their praise ascends to God and to the
Lamb, as having thus intervened for their salvation. The grace of God in giving
His Son, or the love of Christ in redeeming them with His blood, is not here the
subject of their thoughts, but rather the delivering might which has interposed
in judgment on their behalf. This is the constant theme of the Psalms.
"Therefore shalt thou make them turn their back, when thou shalt make ready
thine arrows upon thy strings against the face of them. Be thou exalted, Lord,
in thine own strength; so will we sing and praise thy power." (Psa 21:12-13.)
The angels’ response to the cry of this multitude is in a like strain. "And all
the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders, and the four
creatures, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God,
saying, Amen: blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and
power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen." (Rev 7:11-12)
Comparing this with the song of the angels in Rev 5:1-14, we no longer find "the
Lamb that was slain" to be the prominent object. No doubt Christ as man takes
the kingdom by this title. Here, however, the subject is not the title, but the
fact. The angels give praise that God’s kingdom is at length established in
manifest power and glory, while the deliverance thus wrought is the subject of
thanks to the palm-bearing multitude. But the true character of this scene
unfolds as we advance: "And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are
these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto
him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said unto me, These are they which came out of
the great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the
blood of the Lamb." (Rev 7:13-14) These victors, then, are persons who have come
out, not merely of "great tribulation," but of "the great tribulation." Now "the
great tribulation" which is the true reading, is an era as definite as the day
of the Lord, or any other clearly-marked Scripture epoch. It is the period
mentioned in passages already quoted from Jeremiah, who calls it "the time of
Jacob’s trouble," and declares that "he shall be saved out of it;" the period
spoken of by Daniel, who says it is a "time of trouble, such as 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;" the period named
by our Lord Himself, who also emphasises its unparalleled character. This is
"the great tribulation out of which these Gentile victors come; for the sorrows,
though having their focus among the Jews, reach out to "all the world, to try
them that dwell upon the earth." Whatever secondary application therefore this
prophecy may have to the Church in the early period of persecution, its
principal reference is to another and very different class of sufferers. The
Church will never enter into the "hour of temptation." These, then, are
believers existing on earth after the Church is taken, and looking for the
coming Messiah. Though not of Israel, they trust the word specially spoken of
that day, "And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of
Jehovah shall be delivered." (Joe 2:32.) They have therefore "washed their
robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb."

Now why is "the great tribulation" named here? And why are we shown a vision of
those who pass victoriously through it? The introduction of such a subject would
be wholly unmeaning if it were not that the narrative has now brought us to the
very verge of this dreadful epoch. The judgments described under the first six
seals are providential visitations of a terrible nature, but they are only the
beginning of sorrows." The heavier judgments attending "the great tribulation"
are about to commence, and two things are therefore first displayed. The one is
the sealing of a definite symbolic number from the twelve tribes of Israel,
showing that they shall still be preserved, and preserved in administrative
perfection, through all these impending judgments. The other is a vision from
which we learn that a countless multitude of Gentiles will also pass
victoriously through this period, and be dignified with special marks of God’s
favour.

Everything here agrees with God’s ways of dealing with the world after the
Church is taken. The distinctive blessing of the Church is, that it does not
came into the great tribulation; while the blessing of those here named is that
they come victoriously out of it. Their praise, too, is quite different from
that of the Church, referring, not to redemption through Christ’s blood, but to
salvation through His power. It is the acclamation of persons delivered, not
from their sins, but from their oppressors. Besides, while the Church consisted
of a remnant of Israel, together with saved Gentiles, they were, when once
converted, "baptized by one Spirit into one body," and formed in Christ "one new
man;" whereas nothing is more marked in this scene than the prominence given to
Israel, and the difference between God’s ways towards these tribes and towards
the Gentiles. The hundred and forty-four thousand are sealed beforehand as the
special objects of God’s case; the others only appear at the close, when the
marks of victory are seen upon them. This is natural; for in the judgments
preparatory to the Messianic kingdom Israel will be the peculiar object of God’s
counsels and love. That they should be sealed before the judgments is therefore
quite consistent with the principles on which he will then be acting, while it
is also consistent that multitudes of Gentiles will be saved though not thus
specially distinguished. But some may think that, since this multitude stand
"before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in
their hands," they must be in heaven, instead of being a saved remnant on earth.
We must remember, however, that the scene is symbolic, and so regarded it is
quite consistent with their being in the world. If it is on earth that they wash
their robes, and make them white, why should it not be on earth that they wear
them? If they are conquerors on earth, why should they not carry their palms on
earth also? The multitudes in heaven are said to stand "around the throne," but
these are said to stand "before" it. This position does not imply that they are
in heaven. During Christ’s reign God will have His earthly throne, and Christ’s
glory will be manifested on earth. Even now believers can "come boldly unto the
throne of grace" without being in heaven, and surely similar language might be
used about God’s people when His presence is vouchsafed to them as it will be at
that time. Standing "before the throne and before the Lamb" may therefore only
mean special nearness of access to God, such as Moses enjoyed, in the way in
which He will then be approached. The association in which they are placed also
favours this conclusion. The sealed thousands of Israel are manifestly
delivered, and reserved for earthly blessing; for the object of their sealing is
that they may be uninjured by the judgments. Now though the Gentile multitude is
separately named, yet its association with the Israelites shows that it forms an
outer circle to this sealed remnant, sharing the same kind of salvation. Indeed
the words, "came out of the great tribulation," can only refer to persons
brought through it, not to those falling in it; for deliverance from this time
always means escaping with life, not suffering death. Moreover, in the case of
the souls under the altar, and those afterwards slain by the beast, their
martyrdom is distinctly mentioned, and they are presently seen as living and
reigning with Christ, and having "part in the first resurrection" (Rev 20:4-6),
whereas nothing of the sort is spoken about this white-robed multitude. And
surely if they had joined the elders and the angels in heaven something would be
said to show their presence. But the company in heaven is just the same in this
chapter as before; nothing indicates that a fresh multitude has entered. This
countless number of Gentiles, then, represents those who have, during the great
tribulation, believed on the coming Messiah, and at length, after severe
sufferings, escaped with their lives. Their reward is then told. "Therefore are
they before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple: and He
that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among [or rather, "tabernacle over"]
them." (Rev 7:15) This does not mean that they are in heaven. The aged Anna
"departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night
and day." (Luk 2:37.) The longing of the godly remnant to dwell in God’s temple
is constantly expressed in the Psalms. "How amiable are thy tabernacles, O
Jehovah of hosts! My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of Jehovah:
my heart and my flesh crieth out for the living God." (Psa 84:1-2.) This
blessing therefore is strictly in accordance with the longings of the saints
during the millennial age.

Believers in heaven dwell in the Father’s house, or with Christ but it could
hardly be said that God tabernacled over them. This He did, however, in the
pillar of cloud in the wilderness; and this He will do when He shall "create
upon every dwelling-place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and
smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: and over all the glory
shall be a covering. And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime
from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from
rain." (Isa 4:5-6.) Thus the blessings which these multitudes enjoy are those
promised to the millennial earth.

"They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more, neither shall the sun light
on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb that is in the midst of the throne shall
feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall
wipe away all tears from their eyes." (Rev 7:16-17) These are blessed promises,
but promises fitted for an earthly rather than a heavenly people. In the eternal
state "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." (Rev
21:4.) Then tears and sorrow, pain and death, are all done away, while the
blessings of the Gentile multitude are rather exemption from trouble and
protection from evil. They shall neither hunger nor thirst. To an earthly people
just rescued from suffering, but still in the scene of their privations, this
promise is most gracious, but how little appropriate to those dwelling in the
Father’s house.

These blessings too are those promised to the earthly people during Christ’s
reign. For He will come and "say to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in
darkness, Show yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall
be in all high places. They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat
nor sun smite them for He that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the
springs of water shall He guide them." (Isa 49:9-10.) This is not a prophecy
about heaven, but about restored Israel; for it goes on to declare, "I will feed
them that oppress thee with their own flesh," and concludes by saying that "all
flesh shall know that I, Jehovah, am thy Saviour, and thy Redeemer, the mighty
One of Jacob." (Isa 49:26) And though these blessings are promised to Israel,
the same prophecy shows us also a Gentile remnant, who share, at least in part,
the same portion. "It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to
raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will
also give thee for a light to the Gentiles that thou mayest be my salvation unto
the end of the earth." (Isa 49:6)

Again, speaking of the time "when Jehovah of hosts shall reign in mount Zion and
in Jerusalem, and before His ancients gloriously," it is said that "He will
destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and the
vail that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death in victory; and
the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of His
people shall He take away from off all the earth." (Isa 24:23, Isa 25:7-8.) The
time then at which this prophecy in the Revelation receives its fulfilment is
neither during the Church period, nor in the eternal state; and the place is not
in heaven. It is a prophecy about people on the earth during that blessed age
when Christ, having judged his enemies, will reign in righteousness and peace
over the nations of the world. Looking back then on this and the previous
chapter, we see the connection and meaning. The first six seals record the
earlier judgments following the rapture of the Church.

After these "the great tribulation" is about to begin. At this moment God
remembers His elect of Israel, and the judgment is stayed, figuratively, till
these are sealed for deliverance. But His grace includes also multitudes of
Gentiles. These indeed, not being then His peculiar object, are not sealed like
the Israelites; but the vision, passing forward to the close of the tribulation,
displays them robed in white, and with palms of victory, enjoying the nearest
access to God, and in the fullest enjoyment of His care and favour during the
period of the Messiah’s reign. This interval therefore is not, as some have
supposed, an interruption in the orderly development of events. It marks the
conclusion of the lighter judgments recorded under the first six seals, and
shows God’s gracious care of His elect during the heavier judgments that are yet
to follow. Or if we compare this book with our Lord’s prophecy in Mat 25:1-46,
it marts the division between the "beginning of sorrows," named in the first
verses, and the "great tribulation," foretold later in the discourse.

SEVENTH SEAL.

(Rev 8:1.)

"And when He had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the
space of half-an-hour." The prophecy then goes on, "And I saw the seven angels
which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets." (Rev 8:2) Some
have thought that the seventh seal inaugurates the reign of Christ, and that the
seven trumpets refer back to another set of previous judgments. The text
however, both by its silence and its words, points to an opposite conclusion. It
makes no mention, expressly or by implication, of the reign of Christ having
come. On the other hand, the apparition of the trumpet angels seems to be just
us much the development of the seventh seal as the apparition of the warrior on
the white horse was the development of the first seal. The solemn preparations
in the interval after the sixth seal appear to show that the opening of the
seventh seal must be followed by very great results, and it is clear that the
half-hour’s silence in heaven is no adequate fulfilment of such expectations.
Yet no other result is stated, unless the appearance of the seven angels is so
regarded. This then seems to be the natural sequence, and indeed the only
sequence which the text admits. From the opening of the first seal to the
sounding of the last trumpet is one consecutive series of events. The first six
seals disclose a number of judgments preceding the great tribulation. The drama
then pauses while God declares His purpose of saving a multitude, both from
Israel and from the Gentiles, amidst the sorrows of this dreadful time. After
this announcement the tragedy proceeds. The last seal is opened, and the
response is the appearance of the seven angels to whom the trumpets are given.
As these trumpets are successively sounded the various judgments of the great
tribulation are unfolded. The opening of the seventh seal is therefore a most
momentous event, and its deep solemnity is marked by the brief, but impressive,
silence in heaven. At the sounding of the last trumpet, which really does
introduce the reign of Christ, there are "great voices in heaven, saying, The
kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ"
The "silence in heaven" is as appropriate to the opening of the seventh seal as
the "great voices in heaven" are appropriate to the sounding of the seventh
trumpet. For while the last seal inaugurates the age of the world’s supreme
suffering, the last trumpet inaugurates the age of its supreme blessing.

We now come therefore to the second and heavier series of judgments heralded by
the angels with trumpets. THE TRUMPETS.

Rev 8:2 to Rev 11:18 The solemn silence in heaven which follows the opening of
the seventh seal is succeeded by a vision of seven angels. "And I saw seven
angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets." (Rev
8:2.) The sound of a trumpet is a familiar figure in Scripture. It was the loud
sound of a trumpet that accompanied the thunderings, and lightnings, and the
thick cloud at the giving of the law, when "mount Sinai was altogether on a
smoke, because Jehovah descended upon it in fire." (Exo 19:18.) No more fitting
symbol, then, could herald the dreadful judgments that are now to follow. But
before these begin a new form appears. "And another angel came and stood at the
altar, having a golden censer: and there was given unto him much incense, that
he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which
was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers
of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand. And the angel
took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into [or
unto] the earth and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an
earthquake." (Rev 8:3-5) Who is this angel? It should be noted that during the
trumpet judgments, "the Lamb" is never named. This section of the book is
distinguished by the exclusive action of angels. Now in dealing with Israel God
not unfrequently presents Himself in angelic form. Thus in the burning bush it
is sometimes Jehovah that is said to be seen, and sometimes His angel. So in
Isaiah it is said, "In all their affliction He was afflicted, and the angel of
his presence saved them." (Isa 63:9.) In Malachi Christ’s coming is similarly
described: "The Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the
messenger [or angel] of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, He shall come,
saith Jehovah of hosts. But who shall abide the day of His coming? and who shall
stand when He appeareth? for He is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’
soap." (Mal 3:1-2.) It is then in this character, as the angel of the covenant,
that He will be looked for by the faithful remnant during the time of the great
tribulation. It is a form characteristic of His relationship with Israel,
especially at that period, when, though again mindful of His covenant with them,
He has not yet manifested Himself as their Saviour and Messiah. But it is not a
form in which He never has to do with the Church. In the passage before us it is
probable that the angel is Christ, who, though not yet publicly entering into
relationship with His people, still, by His work of intercession on their
behalf, saves and sustains them in the midst of their sorrows.

They are, indeed, in sore distress. The sealed remnant of Israel, named in the
last chapter, are now about to be cast into the sevenfold furnace of the great
tribulation. Already the cry is ascending from many a heart, "How long wilt thou
forget me, O Jehovah? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?" (Psa
13:1-6) Already a remnant of Israel are praying, "Help us, O God of our
salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins,
for thy name’s sake. Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is their God? let
Him be known among the heathen in our sight by the revenging of the blood of thy
servants which is shed." (Psa 74:9-10.) The time of their deliverance is not yet
come, but their groans and cries for judgment on their adversaries are heard.
Their prayers are presented before God by the angel, probably Christ Himself
with "much incense." The incense burnt on the golden altar at the time of prayer
(Luk 1:10) symbolised the perfect acceptance of Christ giving efficacy to the
people’s petitions. So in this figurative scene. The altar stands before the
throne, not here the mercy-seat, but the throne of judgment; and from this
golden altar of incense, the prayers of the remnant for deliverance and judgment
rise to God, perfumed with all the fragrance of Christ, and draw down a speedy
answer.

Burning coals from the altar — not now the golden altar of intercession, but the
brazen altar of judgment, where the consuming fire of God’s righteousness
continually burns — are put into the censer, and cast down upon the earth. How
unsuited to God’s present ways of grace! How suited to the coming day of
judgment, and the then circumstances of His oppressed and suffering saints! From
the very censer in which the prayers of the saints are offered, and, therefore,
harmonising in character with them, the fire of God’s righteous judgment is
hurled down upon the earth, and at the same time "voices, and thunderings, and
lightnings, and an earthquake" mark his indignation. Voices, and thunderings,
and lightnings had issued from the throne before, but the earthquake is an
additional feature, inaugurating the most disastrous scenes in that overturning
which will go on till He come whose right it is to take the diadem and reign.
Then follow the trumpets. "And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets
prepared themselves to sound." (Rev 8:6)

FIRST TRUMPET.

(Rev 8:7)

"The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood,
and they were cast upon the earth: [and the third part of the earth was burnt
up] and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up."
This is, of course, figurative. The judgments, restrained in the last chapter,
are now let loose, and the earth, the sea, and the trees, are all visited with
the pent-up tempests of wrath that are poured out upon them. Hail is used
elsewhere as a symbol of sweeping desolation: "Behold, the Lord hath a mighty
and strong one, which as a tempest of hail and a destroying storm, as a flood of
mighty waters overflowing, shall cast down to the earth with the hand." (Isa
28:2.) And of this very time it is written, "The hail shall sweep away the
refuge of lies." (Isa 28:17) Fire is another well-known symbol of judgment. In
the plagues of Egypt, from which many of these figures are borrowed, the two are
combined. "And the Lord sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the
ground." (Exo 9:23.) Here the hail and fire are "mingled with blood," showing
that the judgments symbolised are destructive of life. The consequences are
terrible. "The third part of the earth was burnt up" — for this is in the best
manuscripts — shows destructive judgment over a third part of the ordered,
civilized nations of the world. "The third part of trees" signifies, as already
shown, the great ones of the earth. The burning up of "all green grass" may
refer to the withering of the means of support; or, if grass is here used as a
figure of man in his frailty, it indicates a destruction of the choicest and
most vigorous portion of the human race, such as the wholesale slaughter of
young men called out to serve in war.

SECOND TRUMPET.

(Rev 8:8-9)

"And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire
was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood; and the third
part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third
part of the ships were destroyed." Here again Scripture itself furnishes the key
to this vivid symbolism: "Behold, I am against thee, O destroying mountain,
saith Jehovah, which destroyest all the earth: and I will stretch out mine hand
upon thee, and roll thee down from the rocks, and will make thee a burnt
mountain." (Jer 51:25.) Such was the doom pronounced upon the city and empire of
Babylon. The "great mountain burning with fire" then is some powerful state,
which, becoming itself ablaze with revolutionary passions, falls, as it were,
like a conflagration among the mass of the peoples represented by the sea,
causing frightful wars, immense loss of life, and wide-spread ruin of commerce,
all strikingly pictured by the sea turned into blood, the living creatures
killed, and the ships destroyed. The scene may be illustrated by the great
French Revolution, when the powerful kingdom of the Bourbons became a living
crater of anarchical frenzy, kindling the whole of Europe into flame, and
belching forth for a quarter of a century bloodshed, misery, and ruin over every
quarter of the globe.

THIRD TRUMPET.

(Rev 8:10-11)

"And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great turning as it were a star
from heaven, burning as it were a lamp [or torch], and it fell upon the third
part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters and the name of the star is
called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men
died of the waters, because they were made bitter." This figure signifies some
person in high, though subordinate, authority, who, falling from his place,
corrupts and poisons the very springs of life. It appears not to be so much a
political as a spiritual apostacy, diffusing some deadly falsehood, which works
like a poison in the heart and conscience, producing moral rather than physical
death. Such is the figure used by Moses to describe the bitter fruits of
idolatry among the Israelites, who are warned, "lest there should be among you
man, or woman, or family, or tribe, whose heart turneth away this day from
Jehovah our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations; lest there should be
among you a root that beareth gall and wormwood." (Deu 29:18.) We may illustrate
the state of things from history by referring to the fearful spread of
infidelity that accompanied the revolutionary outbreak already named.

FOURTH TRUMPET.

(Rev 8:12-13)

"And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and
the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third
part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the
night likewise." The sun symbolizes supreme, the moon derived, and the stars
subordinate, authority. Thus in Joseph’s dream Jacob, the head of the family,
his wife, and his eleven sons, all heads of families, but still subordinate to
their father, are represented by "the sun, and the moon, and the eleven stars."
(Gen 37:9.) What is foreshadowed here therefore is a general collapse of
government over a third part of the earth, all authority, high and low, supreme
and subordinate, being, as it were, obscured throughout this region. A somewhat
similar figure is used to express the abasing of all other powers during the
millennial reign: "Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when
Jehovah of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before His
ancients gloriously." (Isa 24:23.) In this passage, however, it is the paling of
earthly authorities before the brightness of Jehovah’s kingdom, while in the
Revelation it is their prostration before the hurricane of judgment then
sweeping over the earth.

It will be observed that in all the first four trumpets the judgment falls on a
"third part" of the earth, the sea, or whatever else is its subject. It is said
of the dragon that "his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did
cast them to the earth." (Rev 12:4.) Now the chief seat of the dragon’s rule, as
we shall see, is the revived Roman Empire, to whose last head he gives "his
power, and his throne, and great authority." (Rev 13:2.) This has led some to
think that the third part of the earth named in the trumpet scenes is the
re-established Roman Empire; but whatever the fraction may mean, it is probable
that the judgments here portrayed do fall, at least to a great extent, on this
part of the world. There it is that the light of the gospel has shone with the
clearest lustre, and been quenched in the deepest night. There it is that the
great apostacy figured by Babylon has had its seat. There it will be that, after
the true Church is taken, men will be given up to "strong delusion, that they
should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth,
but had pleasure in unrighteousness." (2Th 1:11-12.) There too it will be that
the last head of the Gentile powers will raise himself in impious rebellion
against "the King of kings," and gather his armies for "the battle of that great
day of God Almighty." Nothing is more likely therefore, morally speaking, than
that the heaviest blows of judgment will fall on this part of the world, and
more especially that deadly delusion symbolized in the plague of the bitter
waters. The trumpets are clearly divided into two classes. The first four, which
we have already looked at, have a somewhat common character; the other three are
of an entirely different kind, and are distinguished as "woe trumpets." They are
preceded by a proclamation foretelling their solemn and dreadful burden "And I
beheld, and heard an eagle [not an angel] flying through the midst of heaven,
saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth, by
reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels which are yet to
sound." (Rev 8:13) The phrases "inhabiters of the earth," and "they that dwell
upon the earth," which are only different translations of the same word, occur
several times in this book. They seem to regard the earth as the scene, not only
of man’s residence, but of his hopes and affections; and thus to imply a moral
character, like that which Paul bewails among professing believers, "whose glory
is in their shame; who mind earthly things." On these "inhabiters of the earth"
judgment is about to fall, the eagle by which the woes are announced probably
signifying the swiftness with which the blows will descend; for "when they shall
say, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh." When God begins in
judgment, it is "a short work" that He "will make upon the earth."

FIFTH TRUMPET.

(Rev 9:1-12.)

"And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth:
and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. And he opened the bottomless
pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace;
and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit." (Rev
9:1-2) This and the next woe are marked by their manifestly Satanic character.
The fall of a star is, as before, the apostacy of some great, but subordinate,
power, only here it is plainly not an earthly power, but one of the
principalities and powers who rule the darkness of this world, one of the wicked
spirits in heavenly places. To this baleful star is given permission to let
loose infernal darkness and torment on the earth. He has "the key of the pit of
the abyss," the unfathomable or bottomless pit, in which evil is restrained
before receiving its final doom. It is here that "the spirits in prison" are
confined (1Pe 3:19); here that Satan will be shut up for a thousand years before
his last rebellion and everlasting punishment (Rev 10:1-3); here that the angels
who sinned are "delivered into chains of darkness to be reserved unto judgment."
(2Pe 2:4.) It is to this abode that the demons dreaded they would be sent when
they besought Jesus, "that He would not command them to go out into the abyss,"
or deep. (Luk 8:31.) And now from this gloomy prison-house rolls forth a dense
volume of smoke, blinding the heart to God’s light, and polluting all healthy
influences, as figured by the darkening of "the sun and the air." But this is
not all. Direct demoniacal power is let loose. "And there came out of the smoke
locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the
earth have power. And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass
of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men
which have not the seal of God in their foreheads. And to them it was given that
they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and
their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man. And in
those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die,
and death shall flee from them." (Rev 9:3-6) The figure of locusts is probably
taken from the prophecy of Joel, where they are called the Lord’s "great army,"
and where their ravages are magnificently described. They are a scourge equally
known and dreaded in eastern lands. The air is darkened by their vast numbers as
they approach, and no green thing escapes their voracity. Their overwhelming
hosts and man’s utter helplessness before them seem to be the features here
specially alluded to, for their action is quite different from real locusts,
which inflict no torment on man, and destroy the grass and foliage which these
creatures are forbidden to touch.

While resembling locusts in their overwhelming numbers and power, they have
stings like scorpions, and so dreadful is their torment that men desire death.
Death however "shall flee from them," for this is not a plague of slaughter and
ravage, but only of intense suffering. The persons injured are "only those men
which have not the seal of God in their foreheads." Since, then, the sealing was
not for the Gentiles, but merely for a select number from the twelve tribes, we
may infer that it is only the reprobate portion of Israel who are subjected to
the fearful, though not fatal, anguish inflicted by this army of tormentors from
the, bottomless pit. The nature of these locusts is then described: "And the
shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their
heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of
men. And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth
of lions. And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the
sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to
battle. And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings; and in
their tails was their power to hurt men five months. And they had a king over
them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue
is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon." (Rev 9:7-11) It may
be admitted that historically this foreshadows the swarms who overran the East
under the diabolical inspiration of Mahomet, and much ingenuity has been shown
in tracing minute points of resemblance between the Arab hordes and these
mystical locusts. But that this is only a secondary and far from complete
fulfilment of the prophecy is clear, from the fact that while the Mahometan
conquests were carried on with great bloodshed, these locusts are expressly
stated not to inflict death. The main application is, therefore, to something
quite different, and still future. When the event occurs the coincidences
between the fact and the prediction will be evident to the eye of faith, not
microscopic resemblances, which can only be detected by minute antiquarian
research. In the description of the locusts certain moral features are probably
delineated. Resistless fury and show of power would seem to be indicated in the
war horses and crowns; the appearance of boldness and independence, with real
weakness and subjection, in the faces of men with the hair of women; destructive
violence in the teeth of lions, and a conscience steeled against pity and
remorse in the breastplates of iron, while their progress causes a mighty
commotion like war-chariots hastening to battle. The injury they inflict is with
their tails, alluding probably to the words of Isaiah, "The prophet that
teacheth lies, he is the tail." (Isa 9:15.) Such explanations of the symbols are
suggested; but without professing to unravel all the details of this mystical
prophecy, we may discern its general character. It is not a material, but a
moral plague, that the followers of Apollyon, "the destroyer," inflict. The
locusts leave behind them a spiritual desert, the scorpions inflict their
torment on the heart and conscience, but there is no destruction of physical
life. The ravages of the infernal host are confined to the unbelieving
Israelites, and are limited in duration, as indicated by the term of five
months.

Such, then, is the first of the three "woe trumpets." Proclamation is made, "One
woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter" [or after these].
(Rev 9:12)

SIXTH TRUMPET.

(Rev 9:13-21)

"And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the
golden altar which is before God, saying to the sixth angel which had the
trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates."
(Rev 9:13-14) "The golden altar" is the altar of incense or intercession, which
stood, though separated by the vail, before the throne of grace or mercy seat.
In the figure it is the same place at which the angel offered up the prayers of
the saints. It is from the horns of this altar, signifying that it is in answer
to the prayers, that the command to loose the angels in the river Euphrates goes
forth. This surely shows that the fulfilment primarily in view is future. The
horsemen from the Euphrates represent, according to the historical view, the
countless hordes of Turks who overran and eventually destroyed the eastern Roman
Empire. But without disputing that the prophecy thus received a partial
fulfilment, how could this be an answer to the prayers of saints, as shown by
the voice coming from the golden altar? No saint could ever have desired such a
scourge; nor, indeed, could the prayers of saints during the present
dispensation ever have taken such a form. But when Christ is judging the earth,
and the saints cry to God to avenge them of their adversaries, such a scourge
may most consistently be let loose in answer to their requests. The Euphrates
was the boundary of Roman rule, which seems to indicate that while the first woe
falls upon the unbelieving Israelites, this second woe falls on the revived
Roman Empire. In accordance with this view we shall presently see that it is the
head of this empire who inflicts the severest persecutions on the saints, so
that it is on him and his people that the judgments might be expected chiefly to
fall. The destroying host is one prepared beforehand, but restrained until this
period. "And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared [not "for an
hour," but] for the hour, and day, and month, and year, for to slay the third
part of men." (Rev 9:15) Here again we find "the third part," confirming the
inference that this blow is directed against the resuscitated Roman Empire.
Ingenious calculations have been made on the theory that in prophecy each day
stands for a year, to show the length of time which this woe lasted, and to
harmonize it with recorded historical events. But "the hour, and day, and month,
and year," do not signify the duration of the woe, but the time of its
commencement. The outbreak of this woe had been determined even to the very hour
when it was to begin.

"And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand:
and I heard the number of them. And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and
them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and
brimstone and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions and out of
their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone. By these three was the third
part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which
issued out of their mouths. For their power [or rather, "the power of the
horses"] is in their mouth, and in their tails for their tails were like unto
serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt." (Rev 9:16-19) The judgment
comes with the swiftness of the horse, and has the destructive power of the
lion. The countless throng of agents — two hundred million — shows its
resistless force, and the complete flooding of the district under visitation.
Fire and brimstone, the extreme form of judgment, the symbols of eternal
punishment, and smoke, with its darkening power, are the instruments of
destruction. But besides this, a direct Satanic agency is typified in the tails
formed like serpents, having poisonous heads with which "they do hurt." There is
not only moral death, but physical. Vast destruction of life, besides Satanic
poison infused into souls, marks this woe, the details of which will be
understood by the wise when it happens, but can only be generally gathered now.

Terrible as this woe is, it produces no repentance. "And the rest of the men
which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their
hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and
brass, and stone, and of wood which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: neither
repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their
fornication, nor of their thefts." (Rev 9:20-21) We know not what form idolatry
will take in the last day, though this book afterwards gives us some hint. But
here and in other places we learn the humbling truth that the direction towards
which "the progress of the age" is ultimately drifting is the institution of
idolatry, in some shape or other, among the civilized nations of the earth.
Doubtless it will take some specious and intellectual form, appealing to the
natural religious feelings, as in its earlier manifestations it always does, but
by God it is simply classed with other heathen abominations. Idolatry and moral
corruption are the two great sins denounced by the old prophets, the sins which
brought ruin on God’s ancient people. History repeats itself; for with all his
discoveries and inventions man’s moral nature remains everywhere the same. And
here in the closing days of the Gentile monarchy the same two sins, idolatry and
moral corruption, again draw down the judgment of God.

How solemn a picture of the extent to which man’s heart may become hardened
against God, that even this dreadful visitation produces no salutary effect.
Given up to "strong delusion that they should believe a lie," those who once
despised God in His grace will at length despise Him in His government; and each
successive stroke of His judgment will only render them more callous and
defiant, until at last, like Pharaoh, they walk blindfold into the very flood
which is to swallow them up. Such is man. How marvellous the grace that could
stoop to the fallen state of creatures so degraded and undone, and purchase them
for glory at so inestimable a price! "Thanks be unto God for His unspeakable
gift."

APPENDIX TO THE SIXTH TRUMPET.

(Rev 10:1 to Rev 11:14.)

There is what has been called a parenthesis or interval between the sixth and
seventh trumpets as there was between the sixth and seventh seals. But there is
this difference: the sixth seal had been opened, and its full effect
experienced, before the events mentioned in the interval are detailed; whereas
the second woe, which the sixth trumpet inaugurates, does not end until the
events of the interval have been fully described. This shows that while the
events of the earlier interval are preparatory to the judgment under the seventh
seal, the events of the later interval are supplementary to the judgments under
the sixth trumpet. This we shall see to be important, as throwing light on the
part of the earth, and also on the period of time, in which this woe falls. The
interval deals with two subjects; first, the proclamation of the mighty angel,
declaring that the "mystery of God" is shortly about to be finished; and second,
the condition of that part of the earth on which God’s thoughts are centred,
just before the event foretold by the angel takes place.

I. The proclamation of the mighty angel. (Rev 10:1-11): "And I saw another
mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon
his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:
and he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the
sea, and his left foot on the earth, and cried with a loud voice, as when a lion
roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices. And when
the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write and I heard a
voice from heaven, saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders
uttered, and write them not." (Rev 10:1-4.) That Christ is elsewhere described
under the figure of an angel we have already seen. He is called "the angel of
the covenant," and it is in this title that He comes for the deliverance of
Israel, with whom His covenant is established. Now this, as we shall see, is
just the time at which we are arriving, and nothing therefore is more
appropriate than that Christ should appear in His angel character. The
description of the "mighty angel" confirms this. He is clothed with a cloud,
Jehovah’s dwelling-place in judgment; as it is written, "Clouds and darkness are
round about Him, righteousness and judgment are the habitation of His throne."
(Psa 97:2.) It was from "the cloud," or as Peter calls it, "the excellent
glory," that God testified His pleasure in Jesus on "the holy mount" and it is
"in a cloud with power and great glory" that the Son of man will come for the
deliverance of His chosen people. The angel also has a rainbow upon or over his
head. This is the token of God’s everlasting covenant with the earth, and was
before seen encircling His throne. The face "as it were the sun," and the "feet
as pillars of fire," also closely resemble the figures applied to Christ in Rev
1:1-20.

There can be little doubt, then, that the angel here seen is Christ Himself. He
has "in His hand a little book," not sealed, like the former, but open. A sealed
book is a book whose contents are not yet revealed; an open book is a book whose
contents are revealed, if not understood. The sealed book must be opened; the
open book must be eaten and digested; for though revealed by God, it needs to be
learnt by man. We have already beheld the opening of the sealed book, and shall
presently behold the eating of the open book. The first book was sealed because
it was new; for though shadows of the coming sorrow appear in the prophets and
in our Lord’s own words, the orderly marshalling of the judgments under the
seals and trumpets was an entirely fresh revelation. This other book, however,
would appear to be the open book of prophecy, which the writer of the Revelation
was now to ponder and understand.

Now the book of prophecy declares that "the earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness
thereof; the world and they that dwell therein." It also declares that God’s
Anointed shall have "the nations for His inheritance, and the uttermost parts of
the earth for His possession." In accordance with these and countless similar
prophecies, the Angel, who is Jehovah’s Anointed, sets "His right foot upon the
sea, and His left foot on the earth," thus taking possession of the whole world,
the land and the sea, the people under settled government, and those still in a
rude, disorganized condition. But His first work when He receives "the nations
for His inheritance" will be judgment: "Thou shalt break them with a rod of
iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel." The first sound
therefore when taking the dominion is "the king’s wrath" which Solomon describes
"as the roaring of a lion." (Pro 19:12.) Such is the terrible voice that He
utters, and the roll of the seven thunders, whose solemn import still remains
shrouded from our ken, betokens the going forth of His indignation. And the
angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to
heaven, and sware by Him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and
the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and
the sea, and the things that are therein, that there should be time no longer
[or "no longer delay"] but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when
he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as He hath
declared to His servants the prophets." (Rev 10:5-7) The meaning of this is
clear, and the details are instructive as showing the way in which this book
reverts to Old Testament thoughts. Throughout the whole of these trumpet
judgments Christ is not seen as the Lamb that was slain, but either as "the
Angel of the covenant" or as the Anointed of God. He takes the earth, not in
virtue of His work on the cross, which is not named, but as the One whom God, in
His sovereign rights as Creator and "possessor of heaven and earth," has
resolved to set over the works of his hands. In Rev 5:1-14, where God appeared
as Judge, Christ was seen as the Lamb slain. In Rev 4:1-11, where God appeared
as Creator, the Lamb was not seen. So here, where God is spoken of as the
eternal, the One "that liveth for ever and ever," the One "who created heaven,
earth, and sea, Christ is again beheld, not in his human character, but as the
"mighty angel" declaring God’s purposes. These purposes are, that there should
"no longer delay," but that "the mystery of God" should now be brought to a
close. The real force of the words "when he shall begin to sound," is "when he
shall sound, as he is about to do." This, with the expression, "there shall be
no longer delay," fixes the time. It is just before the seventh trumpet, when
"the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ."
(Rev 11:15.) Then "the mystery of God" will be finished. The mystery often means
the Church, but this is not its meaning here. The whole of the present epoch is
a mystery; that is, a secret purpose which God had not previously revealed. "The
sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow" were no mysteries; for it
was of these that the prophets had spoken. But though there were passages
showing that a longer or shorter time would intervene between these poles of
prophecy, yet the purposes of God concerning this period were not revealed, and
both its moral features and its duration were therefore a mystery. The mystery,
then, which was now to be finished, is that gap, unfilled by former prophecies,
which begins with Christ’s rejection, and ends with His glorious return to reign
over the earth. This is the mystery which the angel swears shall now be brought
to a close. We are thus clearly brought to the very verge of the millennial
reign of Christ, and whatever events in the historical view may be foreshadowed
by this prophecy, its main reference is manifestly to the future.

"And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and
take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon
the sea and upon the earth. And I went unto the angel and said unto him, Give me
the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make
thy belly bitter but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey. And I took the
little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet
as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter. And he said unto
me, Thou must prophesy again before [or rather, "about"] many peoples, and
nations, and tongues, and kings." (Rev 10:8-11) here, as with Ezekiel, the roll
when eaten "was in my mouth as honey for sweetness." (Eze 3:3.) But however
sweet to the mouth, where the contents are, as with the prophet, "lamentations,
and mourning, and woe," the inward digestion must be exceedingly bitter. So it
was to John. The open book was a book of judgments, judgments, indeed, already
foretold, but not yet comprehended in all their bitter import. Now John learns
God’s full purposes of judgment towards the world, and sweet as was the sense of
this privilege to the taste, the knowledge proved, as it must ever do, bitter to
the inward parts.

Such is the double action of God’s word in judgment. Looking at God and His
glory, the Psalmist says, "The judgments of Jehovah are true and righteous
altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold:
sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb." (Psa 19:9-10.) But when man is
looked to, the effect is sadly otherwise. His guilt and rebellion turn the sweet
into bitter, the food into poison, life into death, so that in view of these
same judgments the prophet exclaims, "Oh that my head were waters, and mine eyes
a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the
daughter of my people!" (Jer 9:1.) One sees both effects in their perfection in
the blessed Lord Himself. After upbraiding "the cities wherein most of His
mighty works were done because they repented not," we read that "in that hour
Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and
earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast
revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight."
(Luk 10:21.) Here He is occupied with God’s side, and finds His ways sweet as
honey. But afterwards He looks forward to God’s judgments in the light of man’s
guilt, and then all the yearning sorrow of His heart breaks forth in tears. "And
when He was come near, He beheld the city, and wept over it, saying. If thou
hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto
thy peace." (Luk 19:41-42.) The knowledge thus obtained was to be used. Hitherto
John’s prophecies had been the contents of the sealed book, whose judgments were
then first unfolded by Christ. Bunt the contents of the open book he had now
eaten were to form at least a part of the prophecies he was yet to deliver.
Having received divine intelligence to understand the book of prophecy, he was
now to be its exponent, and "must prophesy again concerning many peoples, and
nations, and tongues, and kings."

II. This brings us to the second topic of the interval following the sixth
trumpet, the condition of that part of the earth on which God’s thoughts are
centred just before the event foretold by the angel takes place. (Rev 11:1-14.)
One most prominent subject dealt with by the ancient prophets is the conflict to
be waged between the Gentile oppressor and Jehovah, who takes the part of his
suffering people, executes judgment on their enemies, and sets His Anointed on
his throne in Zion. This subject forms a principal feature in the rest of the
Revelation, which casts fuller light on the purposes of God announced in the old
prophets. It is taken up at once, and the new prophecy opens to our gaze the
city and temple of Jerusalem. "And there was given me a reed like unto a rod:
[and the angel stood], saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the
altar, and them that worship therein. But the court which is without the temple
leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy
city shall they tread under foot forty and two months." (Rev 11:1-2.)

We learn from other scriptures that before the great tribulation multitudes of
Jews will have returned to their land, and that their temple will have been
rebuilt. This is while the Gentile rule still lasts, and while the bulk of the
Jewish people are yet in unbelief, aiming at national advantages by political
means rather than looking for deliverance from God. Such is the state of things
here disclosed. The prophet’s eye is carried back to a time preceding the great
tribulation, and the course of events in connection with the temple and
Jerusalem is traced down from that time to the closing moments introduced by the
seventh trumpet. The temple is seen, and is called "the temple of God," and the
altar, and the inner circle of worshippers are owned. But the mass of
worshippers, as typified by "the court without," where the people prayed, are
not acknowledged. Here the inner and outer enclosure of the temple are used as
symbols of the real worshippers, God’s elect people, and the mass of empty
unbelieving profession around them. The bulk of the nation have not yet returned
to Jehovah, but are placing dependence on the Gentile power with which they are
in alliance. Hence they are still defiled, and their city, though holy according
to God’s counsels, is yet trodden down for forty and two months. The reason for
this term we shall consider hereafter, but at present we shall follow the course
of the vision. "And I will give power [or efficacy] unto my two witnesses, and
they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in
sackcloth. These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing
before the God [or rather, "Lord "] of the earth. And if any man will hurt them,
fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies and if any man
will hurt them, he must this manner be killed. These have power to shut heaven
that it rain not in the days of their prophecy; and have power over waters to
turn them to wood, and to smite the earth with all plagues as often as they
will." (Rev 11:3-6) These witnesses are "olive trees," having oil, or the
anointing of the Holy Ghost. They are also lamps, shedding forth the light of
the Spirit amidst the "gross darkness" in which at this time Jew and Gentile are
both enveloped. Their number s significant. During the Church period, while the
Holy Ghost dwelt on earth, there was full, heavenly witness, seven candlesticks
sending out their light. The sevenfold light is now transferred, as it were, to
heaven, where the "seven lamps of fire burn before the throne." (Rev 4:5.) But
God will not be without a testimony on earth, and therefore two witnesses — not
two persons — but the smallest number for adequate evidence according to Jewish
law, are raised up even in this dark day. The meaning of the symbol is, that God
gives a sufficient testimony throughout the whole of this period, "a thousand
two hundred and threescore days," or the "forty and two months," during which
the holy city is trodden under foot by the Gentiles.

What then is this testimony? The witnesses are "clothed in sack-cloth," a
familiar expression of mourning and humiliation before God. Believers in our
dispensation are told to "rejoice in the Lord alway." Rejoicing suits those who
have the knowledge of accomplished redemption; sack-cloth suits those who feel
and own their sin, and are crying to God for salvation. The garments of mourning
will be as appropriate to the suffering Jewish of the Church remnant as the
garments of praise are to the Church. These witnesses stand "before the Lord of
the earth." Now, though Christ has already the right to the earth, this is not
the title which He takes during the Church dispensation. At present He is not of
this world, and His redeemed people are not of this world. But when the Church
is taken to the Father’s house, and this heavenly dispensation comes to an end,
God will resume His plans of earthly government, of which Christ’s lordship is
at once the solid foundation and the glorious headstone. The woes recorded in
this book are God’s judgments preparing the way for this event and the testimony
raised up during the period of these woes is God’s witness to this event.

Hence the attitude of these witnesses to their opponents is not that of
Christians, but that of Elijah, who prayed for drought, and called down fire
from heaven, and of Moses, who turned water into blood, and smote the earth with
plagues. This is God’s way in government, but it is quite foreign to His present
long-suffering grace. Here, then, we are breathing the atmosphere so familiar in
the Psalms, among a mourning, suffering remnant, holding God’s truth under
persecution, sustained by his power against their adversaries, and praying, not
for the conversion, but for the destruction, of their oppressors. The testimony,
therefore, is not that of Christians proclaiming thc gospel of God’s grace, but
of the Jewish remnant proclaiming again the gospel of the kingdom, the glorious
and triumphant advent of the Messiah. Their miraculous powers are given just so
long as their testimony lasts. But God’s time for intervening on His people’s
behalf is not yet fully come, and hence, after their witness is ended, they are
still subject to the persecution of their adversaries. These are at present
headed by one called "the beast," of whom we shall hear much more as we go on
with the book. "And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast
that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall
overcome them, and kill them. And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of
the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our [or
rather, "their"] Lord was crucified." (Rev 11:7-8) This makes it clear that the
scene of their testimony is Jerusalem. Whatever wrong the Lord’s name may have
suffered at Rome, and however truly Rome may be pointed to in the secondary or
subordinate applications, it would surely be doing unpardonable violence to the
text to maintain that any other city could be meant than the city where our Lord
was actually put to death, that is, the city of Jerusalem. The vision of the
altar and the temple in the first verse, the character of the testimony borne by
the two witnesses, and the prophecies of the Old Testament, at some of which we
shall presently look, are all confirmatory of this view, which, indeed, the
language of the text imperatively demands.

Jerusalem is looked at in two very different lights, according to its place in
God’s counsels and to its actual condition. We have both views in this chapter.
In speaking of God’s purposes, and the guilt of the Gentiles in treading it
down, it is called "the holy city." But here, when looked at in its spiritual
state, under the power of "the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit,"
it is spoken of as in the deepest moral blackness, reeking with the filthiness
of Sodom, and lying under the judgment of Egypt — the city where man’s guilt had
culminated in the rejection and crucifixion of the Lord.

Here, then, we get two forces drawn up in array against each other, with
Jerusalem as the arena of conflict. God has raised up an adequate testimony, not
to His grace, but to His government; while "the beast" tries to crush this
testimony and to destroy the witnesses. Though somewhat anticipating, it will be
well to enquire what these antagonistic forces are. And first, let us look at
the witnesses. Their testimony is, as we have seen, that of a mourning remnant
in Jerusalem. Now when and why do we find a remnant of Jews thus lamenting? It
is in connection with the return of the Messiah. God has declared that Jerusalem
shall become "a cup of trembling unto all the people round about;" that "all
that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces;" and that the governors
of Judah shall be "like a torch of fire in a sheaf and they shall devour all the
people round about, on the right hand and on the left, and Jerusalem shall be
inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem" But connected with this
there is a grievous mourning: "They shall look upon me whom they have pierced,
and they shall mourn for Him as one mourneth for his only son;" there shall be
"a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of
Megiddon." (Zec 12:2-11.)

Deep mourning, therefore, among the faithful Jews precedes their national
deliverance. In Luke, too, we read of the sufferings of the godly portion of the
nation just before the glorious advent of the Messiah. "There shall be signs in
the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of
nations, with perplexity; 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." (Luk 21:25-28.) Thus we see that on the eve of Christ’s return in power
and glory, the godly remnant of the Jews will be in profound distress and
misery, bewailing their guilt in rejecting the Messiah, and plunged into the
extremity of suffering by the persecution they endure, and the general
convulsions and judgments around. This is the very state of things so vividly
pictured in the judgments that follow the sounding of the trumpets. And besides
this general correspondence of character, the time itself exactly coincides. In
Luke and Zechariah, the troubles described were those immediately preceding
Christ’s coming and reign. What, then, have we in the Revelation? We there see
the lamp of testimony as to God’s government of the nations once more kindled at
Jerusalem; we see the strong angel, who represents Christ, taking possession of
the whole earth, and swearing that there shall be no longer delay; we see the
promise that on the sounding of the last trumpet the mystery of God shall be
finished; and we see, looking a little forward, that when the seventh trumpet is
blown, "the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His
Christ." These scriptures then, no less than the character of the witnesses
themselves, show that the subject of the testimony they are now sending forth is
the speedy return of the Messiah to judge His enemies, deliver His people, and
establish His throne.

Such is one party to this great controversy. What then is the other, called "the
beast"? We learn here that he "ascendeth out of the bottomless pit," puts to
death the witnesses, and exercises power in Jerusalem during the twelve hundred
and sixty days of their prophecy, or the last forty-two months that the holy
city is trodden under foot by the Gentiles. In Rev 13:1-18 he is described as
having seven heads and ten horns. One of his heads was "wounded to death, and
his deadly wound was healed, and all the world wondered after the beast" The
dragon gives "him his power, and his throne, and great authority," and all "that
dwell upon the earth worship him, whose names are not written in the book of
life." Power is "given unto him to continue forty and two months," during which
time he blasphemes God, and makes war with the saints and overcomes them. Rev
17:1-18 speaks of him as one "that was, and is not, and shall be present;" also
as coming "out of the bottomless pit;" and going into perdition, while it
explains his seven heads to be "seven mountains." In Rev 19:1-21 he makes war
with Christ, and is "cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone."

Combining these descriptions, it seems that "the beast" is the head of the
Gentile kingdom which rules over Jerusalem just before Christ’s glorious advent,
and has its seat in the seven-hilled city, or Rome. Now the Roman empire was the
last of those four great monarchies which, according to Nebuchadnezzar’s dream,
were to hold sway during the times of the Gentiles, and to be broken in pieces
by Christ’s coming, as the stone "cut out without hands," and setting up his own
dominion over the earth. This power disappears for a while, as signified in the
head wounded to death; it "was and is not." But it "shall be present," for the
deadly wound is healed, and in this last time at which we are now looking it
reappears with a specially infernal character, typified by its rising up out of
the bottomless pit, and becomes Satan’s chief tool in persecuting the witnesses
who are prophesying of Christ’s return and of the coming kingdom. For three and
a half years, or forty-two months, the beast makes war with the saints, speaks
blasphemies against God, and at length heads the confederacy against the Lord
and against His anointed, in which climax of wickedness he meets his fearful
doom. A passage from Daniel further illustrates this. To him was revealed God’s
governmental ways during the times of the Gentiles, or the period during which
Judah is set aside and the sceptre transferred to Gentile hands. Four monarchies
successively arise — the Babylonian, the Persian, the Greek, and the Roman. This
last is figured as a "beast dreadful and terrible . . . and it had ten horns. I
considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn,
before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots; and,
behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great
things." Then the Ancient of days comes in judgment, and "because of the voice
of the great words which the horn spake, I beheld, even till the beast was
slain." Afterwards "one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven," to
whom is given "an everlasting dominion which shall not pass away." (Dan 7:7-14.)
From the explanation we learn that "the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten
kings that shall arise." The little horn comes up "after them, and he shall be
diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. And he shall speak
great words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most
High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand
until a time and times and the dividing of time," which, as we shall presently
see, means three and a half years. Then the judgment sits, the dominion of the
little horn is taken away, and the kingdom "given to the people of the saints of
the Most High." (Dan 7:23-27)

Here the statements are perfectly simple. The fourth beast is the Roman Empire.
This great dominion was at length overrun by the barbarians, thus receiving a
deadly wound, from which, humanly speaking, it seems impossible that it should
recover. As a united political power it disappeared, being divided into
independent kingdoms, which historians have reckoned at ten in number. This is
the present state of things. The Roman empire is no longer in existence. It
"was, and is not." But the separate kingdoms into which was broken, though often
fluctuating in extent and number, yet remain; and out of these kingdoms, in the
last days of Gentile supremacy, will arise a king, like the little horn in the
vision, who subverts three of the ten independent sovereigns, and revives in
some form or other the long vanished unity and power of the old Roman Empire.
This king will blaspheme the Most High, and persecute His saints, for a term of
three and a half years, until judgment overtakes him, and the Son of man
receives the dominion, the kingdom being taken from the Gentiles and "given to
the people of the saints of the Most High."

Nothing can be clearer, then, than the identity between this little horn and
"the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit." Both are heads of the
strangely-revived Roman Empire. Both have dominion in Jerusalem, which is yet
under Gentile supremacy. Both blaspheme God and persecute the saints. Both
exercise their sway during the last three and a half years of Gentile rule. Both
are cut off in judgment by the coming of Christ, who restores Israel to her
promised place of superiority among the nations, and establishes His own
righteous kingdom over the world.

Such, then, are the times described in this chapter of the Revelation: the Jews
returned to Jerusalem and the temple rebuilt; a number of true worshippers
owned, but the mass of the people yet in unbelief; the city again recognized as
holy according to God’s purpose, but as to its actual condition defiled,
unrepentant, and still under a foreign yoke; true witnesses testifying of the
coming Messianic kingdom, but the last head of the Gentile powers yet permitted
to persecute them to death. The Gentiles, and "they that dwell upon the earth,"
rejoice over the suppression of this testimony, little suspecting that in spite
of the death of the witnesses, the prophecy is on the very eve of fulfilment.
"And they [or some] of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see
their deal bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies
to be put in graves. And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them,
and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets
tormented them that dwelt on the earth." (Rev 11:9-10) Here two classes are
distinguished, the nations or Gentiles, and the dwellers on the earth. Of the
former "some," no doubt a vast majority, rejoice, and in their triumph will not
even allow the bodies to be buried. But still louder in their exultation are the
other class, "they that dwell upon the earth." This name is, as we have seen,
not a local, but a moral description, indicating earthly-minded people. To such
persons, loving and living for the world, the prophecy of the witnesses,
foretelling a kingdom of righteousness and judgment, is intolerable. Their joy
is therefore intense when they hear that the hated witnesses are slain, and the
voice of the dreaded testimony silenced. But their triumph is brief. Only three
and a half days have passed by when they are terrified by a miraculous display
of God’s power, showing His acceptance of the fallen witnesses and His wrath
against their exultant destroyers. "And after [the] three days and an half the
Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and
great fear fell upon them which saw them. And they [or I] heard a great voice
from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in
a [or the] cloud, and their enemies beheld them. And the same hour was there a
great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake
were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and gave
glory to the God of heaven." (Rev 11:11-13)

"The first resurrection" is for the most part already past. The blessed Lord
Himself was "the first fruits of them that slept." "Afterward they that are
Christ’s at His coming" will be caught up to meet Him in the air. This coming of
Christ for His saints is before the period of tribulation which these chapters
detail. The Old Testament saints and the Church have their part in this first
resurrection, and have been seen in heaven before the judgments we are now
considering had commenced. But by a further act of quickening power two other
classes have also part in the first resurrection. These are "the souls of them
that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the word of God, and [those]
which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image." (Rev 20:4.) Thus the
first resurrection includes three classes; first, those who are raised before
these sorrows begin, and are already seen in heaven under the figure of the four
and twenty elders; second, those "beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the
word of God," whose souls were beheld under the altar on the opening of the
fifth seal; and third, those who suffer death for refusing to worship the beast
and his image. To this class the slain witnesses belong. Their resurrection is
striking and public, the very malice of their enemies contributing to enhance
its glory; for while the earth is ringing with rejoicings over their downfall,
while their unburied corpses are decaying in the streets of the city, they are
suddenly filled with fresh life, and caught up to heaven, like Christ Himself,
in a cloud, or rather in the cloud, the express emblem of the divine presence.
"And their enemies beheld them." What a sight! More appalling than the
handwriting on the wall of Belshazzar’s palace, and pointing to a still more
terrible doom. At the same moment an earthquake shakes the city, and seven
thousand men are cut off in the midst of their exultations. The survivors,
affrighted, render homage to God, glorifying Him as the God of heaven. But there
is no repentance; no recognition of His claims to the earth, now about to be
asserted; no submission to the truth which the raised witnesses had proclaimed.
There is natural terror, and the religious awe which natural terror inspires;
but no exercise of conscience, no faith, no bowing to the testimony of God’s
word. And yet the trumpet announcing its fulfilment is just about to sound: "The
second woe is past; behold, the third woe cometh quickly." (Rev 11:14) SEVENTH
TRUMPET.

(Rev 11:15-18)

"And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying,
The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His
Christ [or "the kingdom of the world" (meaning "the world-kingdom") "of our
Lord, and of his Christ, is come"] and He shall reign for ever and ever." (Rev
11:15) Such is the burden of this last trumpet, ushering in the reign of our
Lord and of his Christ, of Jehovah and His anointed — that glorious reign in
which "He shall judge the people with righteousness, and the poor with
judgment;" in which "the righteous shall flourish, and abundance of peace so
long as the moon endureth;" in which "all kings shall fall down before him: all
nations shall serve Him." (Psa 72:1-20.) To this groaning creation it is art
hour of unspeakable blessedness, of deliverance "from the bondage of corruption
into the liberty of the glory of the children of God." (Rom 8:21.)

Why, then, is it called a woe? To "the inhabiters of the earth" it is indeed a
woe, the greatest of all woes. However creation may smile, however the tried
remnant of God’s people may rejoice, however the countless multitude of the
believing Gentiles may give thanks, to the earthly-minded, the persecutors of
the saints, the rulers and oppressors of the world, it is a time of judgment and
unsparing retribution. This causes joy and thanksgiving in heaven, especially
among the saints, who now behold for the first time God’s rights over the earth
fully established, and Christ occupying the place to which He is entitled, both
as the Creator of all things, and as the Lamb that was slain: "And the four and
twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats [or thrones], fell upon their
faces, and worshipped God, saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty,
which art, and wast [and art to come]; because thou hast taken to thee thy great
power, and hast reigned. And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and
the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give
reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy
name, small and great and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth." (Rev
11:16-18) The details of this last woe are not here recorded, though some of
them are given in later chapters. But the grand result is the end of all lawless
and godless authority, and the establishment if the world-kingdom of Jehovah and
His anointed. The language and the scene both recall the second Psalm. The
witnesses had proclaimed the coming kingdom, sending forth the, warning, "Be
wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve
Jehovah with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry,
and ye perish from the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little." (Rev
11:10-12) But instead of heeding the exhortation, "the nations rage, and the
people imagine a vain thing. The kings of the earth set themselves, and the
rulers take counsel together against Jehovah, and against His anointed, saying,
Let us break their hands asunder, and cast away their cords from us." Thus the
great powers of the earth are in confederacy to resist Christ’s dominion. How
vain their efforts! "He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall
have them in derision." Next comes judgment, such as those preliminary woes at
which we have been looking in the Revelation: "Then shall he speak unto them in
His wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure." But all this is only
preparatory to His great object: "Yet have I set my King upon my holy hill of
Zion." The King now speaks, and further announces God’s purpose: "I will declare
the decree: Jehovah hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten
thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the nations for thine inheritance, and
the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession." But these are now in the
hands of kings who have been taking counsel against him. The nations are angry,
and wicked men are destroying the earth. The first work therefore must be
judgment; and so the decree goes on, "Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron;
thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel." Who can fail to see the
analogy between the Psalm and the Revelation, or to discern that they are both
speaking of the same thing, the establishment of Christ’s world-kingdom in Zion,
"the city of our God?" This kingdom is everywhere spoken of as inaugurated by
solemn judgments. To follow the figure of a well-known parable, the rejected
nobleman has "returned, having received the kingdom," and His solemn sentence
is, "Those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring
hither and slay them before me." (Luk 19:11-27.) Such is the issue of the
seventh trumpet, over which the elders in heaven, representing the glorified
saints, now utter their rejoicings. They give thanks to God under His Old
Testament name, a name associated with His covenants as to the earth, "the Lord
God Almighty." They speak of the world-kingdom as His; for the kingdom of Christ
is also the kingdom of God. When Christ reigns as man He is just as much the
obedient servant, not doing His own will, but the will of Him that sent Him, as
He was in the days of His suffering and humiliation. The perfection of His rule
is that instead of exercising it in independence and self-will, as both Jew and
Gentile had done, He exercises it in perfect subjection to the will of God. It
is therefore Jehovah’s kingdom, and in the prophets and Psalms is indifferently
spoken of as Jehovah’s and Christ’s. Sometimes it is said, "Jehovah reigneth,"
and sometimes "the King," as distinguished from Jehovah, is described as
reigning. Both are true; for on the throne, as in His humiliation, His word
holds good, "I and my Father are one." This unity is beautifully shown in "the
voices in heaven;" for after declaring that "the world-kingdom of our Lord and
of His Christ is come," they go on to say, not "and they shall reign," but "He
shall reign for ever and ever." The effects of the reign here briefly summarized
are named in the order of importance, not of time. Thus the judging of the dead,
the most solemn and momentous act of the reign, is mentioned first, though in
reality it does not take place until the close. But Christ "shall judge the
quick and the dead;" and though the judgment of the dead is not till the end,
the judgment of the quick is at the beginning. It comprehends the distribution
of reward to "the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name," and
the destroying of "them which destroy the earth." The prophets and saints here
spoken of are not those already in heaven; for the whole theme here is connected
with the world-kingdom which Jehovah and His Christ are now taking, and the
reward or judgment of those who are still on the earth. Of the prophets who
witnessed of His kingdom some, in spite of persecution, have probably escaped.
These, then, are the prophets rewarded. Besides these, however, God has also His
"saints;" that is, a people sanctified and set apart for Himself, "the saints of
the Most High," against whom the ruling earthly power has directed his cruel
hostility. But Christ now comes to "judge the poor of the people," to "save the
children of the needy," and to "break in pieces the oppressor." Those
Israelitish saints, snatched by His coming from the hand of their deadly foe,
now receive their reward. They are placed in the position of pre-eminence lately
occupied by their oppressors, and associated with Christ in the execution of
judgment, with "a two edged sword in their hand, to execute vengeance upon the
Gentiles, and punishments upon the peoples; to bind their kings with chains, and
their nobles with fetters of iron; to execute upon them the judgment written
this honour have all His saints." (Psa 142:6-7.) Besides the prophets and
saints, there are numbers of Gentiles scattered over the earth that fear God’s
name. In the judgment of the nations Christ owns them as the blessed of His
Father, and bids them "inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation
of the world." Such is the reward of the believing Gentiles, of "them that fear
thy name." The other side of the picture is the destruction of "them which
destroy the earth." This is a mighty and dreadful work. The Lord Jesus is
"revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance
on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus
Christ." (2Th 1:7-8.) The prophets of the Old Testament relate the destruction
of the Assyrian, of Gog, and of other smaller foes. In Matthew we see the solemn
judgment of the living nations before the tribunal of Christ; but in the
Revelation the special judgments recorded are those of the beast and his
confederates. He is the great power then destroying the earth and persecuting
"the saints of the Most High." It is on him therefore that the stone falls with
the most crushing force, grinding him to ponder beneath its overwhelming weight.
And it is specially over his destruction that the elders in heaven now rejoice.

Having now reached the close of that consecutive series of judgments which
precedes the establishment of Christ’s world-kingdom, it may be well to glance
back and briefly retrace the path which we have thus trodden. The second and
third chapters reveal Christ’s judgment of the Church as a professing system,
giving in the picture of the seven churches in Asia an outline chart of the
history of Christendom from the first departure to the last phase of its
existence on earth. Beginning with waning affection for Christ, it gradually
becomes careless about evil, and at length stands forth either in the gross
corruption of Thyatira, the hopeless deadness of Sardis, or the nauseous
lukewarmness of Laodicea, a barren wilderness relieved only by the bright oasis
which refreshes the eye in the weak but faithful Philadelphia. With the end of
the third chapter the Church on earth disappears. "The things which are" fade
from our sight, and "the things which shall be after them" rise into view.
Henceforth God is seen, not in the character He bears towards the Church, but in
the character in which He reveals Himself in the Old Testament scriptures. A
company appears in heaven which certainly is not angelic, and bears all the
marks of representing the saints, risen and glorified, in the presence of God.
The work of judgment is about to begin, and the "lightnings and thunderings and
voices" issuing from the throne proclaim that it is a throne of righteousness,
and not of grace, on which God is now seated. A sealed book full of judgment is
in His hand, and no man is found worthy to open it until Christ, the Man of
God’s counsels, appears, the One to whom, as "Son of man," all judgment is
committed. As "the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Rout of David," He will
execute God’s judgments, and carry out His government on the earth. This He does
by a double title, as the slain Lamb, and as the Man of God’s choice. He first
appears as the slain Lamb, and as such He opens the seals of the book which He
has received from God. The first four seals usher in judgments, which, however
severe, are not out of the ordinary course of human events — conquest, bloody
wars, famine, and widespread devastation and disease. The fifth shows
persecution to be raging, and a prayer for judgment rises up from the souls of
the martyred saints, which clearly indicates that the day of grace is over and
the day of retribution begun. On the opening of the sixth seal there is, us if
in answer to this prayer, a general shaking of the powers of the earth, and
universal consternation at the prospect of the wrath which is thought to be
immediately impending. All this corresponds with the famines and wars,
persecutions and pestilences, foretold in our Lord’s discourse as "the beginning
of sorrows.

Then comes a significant pause. The judgments that follow are of a more terrible
character, and a special election of God is signified, marking those who shall
pass through them without suffering death. From each of twelve tribes of Israel
twelve thousand are sealed in the forehead; and a countless multitude of
Gentiles, though not thus sealed, are shown as passing through "the great
tribulation," and obtaining the victory, having "washed their robes, and made
them white in the blood of the Lamb." Thus the line between Israel and the
Gentiles, obliterated during the Church period, again appears. We find ourselves
also on the confines of that "great tribulation" which, though having its centre
among the Jews, expands in ever-widening circles fill its waves reach the
furthest limits of the habitable earth.

After this brief respite the seventh seal is opened, and another series of
judgments, more dreadful and more distinctly from God’s hand, falls upon the
world. These are introduced by seven trumpets sounded by seven angels, and
during the course of these judgments Christ is no longer seen as the Lamb slain,
but as "the Messenger of the covenant," and always in angelic character As such
He offers up the prayers of the saints, and the answer is the fire of God’s
consuming judgment cast on to the earth, thus again showing that the day of
Christ’s patience is over, and a totally different dispensation begun. The
trumpets follow each other in rapid and dreadful succession. The first four
announce wars, tumults, delusions, and anarchy spread over a third part of the
world, a phrase probably signifying the Roman Empire. But the worst is still to
follow, in the three last trumpets which bring "woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters
of the earth." The first of these woes is obviously infernal in character,
spiritual darkness, accompanied with torment of conscience worse than death,
judicially let loose for the judgment of those Israelites who have not the seal
of God in their forehead. The second woe falls apparently on the Roman Empire,
and is called for by a voice from the altar of intercession. It is a fearful
scourge, having a Satanic character, and inflicting horrible slaughter and
misery on the region it visits. But other purposes of God manifest themselves
during the course of this woe. A strong angel, whom we recognize as Christ
himself, descends from heaven and takes possession of sea and land, swearing by
God, as Creator of heaven and earth, that there shall be no longer delay, but
that, when the next angel sounds, the mystery of God shall be finished. The book
of prophecy is given into John’s hand, who is enabled to understand its bitter
contents, and thus to prophesy again concerning nations and kings. Immediately
on this we behold Jerusalem once more inhabited by Jews, with the temple rebuilt
and the temple worship re-established. Among the worshippers God has His own
saints, but the great body of the people are as yet defiled, and Jerusalem is
still to be trodden under foot by the Gentiles forty and two months. During this
time God raises up witnesses to his present work, and for twelve hundred and
sixty days, that is, driving the last period of Gentile domination, their
testimony continues. At the close of this time, however, the head of the revived
Roman Empire, which is then trampling down Jerusalem, succeeds, to the great joy
of the dwellers on the earth, in putting the witnesses to death. This is
scarcely done when their bodies are visibly quickened, and they are caught up to
heaven in the sight of their late exulting, but now terrified, adversaries,
seven thousand of whom are at the same moment overwhelmed by a violent
earthquake that shatters the city. But the term of man’s guilt is now reached,
and at the peal of the last trumpet great voices in heaven proclaim that the
world kingdom of Jehovah and His Christ is come. Thus "the mystery of God" is
finished, and the reign of righteousness on the earth brought in. The dead are
to be judged, though this is the last act. The prophets, the saints, and those
that fear God’s name, are to receive their reward; and the wicked destroyers of
the earth are themselves given over to destruction.

GOD’S PEOPLE AND THEIR OPPRESSORS.

Rev 11:19 to Rev 13:18.

"And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in His temple
the ark of His testament [or covenant]: and there were lightnings, and voices,
and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail." (Rev 11:19.) Such is the
vision introducing the new scenes which are now to pass before us. These are not
a continuation of the judgments already depicted. They are another set of
events, contemporaneous and connected with the former, but here expanded in much
fuller detail. The verse just quoted shows God’s present thoughts. From the
Babylonish captivity the ark of the covenant was lost, and never afterwards
heard of. While it was in the tabernacle or temple, it was the central object,
the sign of Jehovah’s presence, the pledge of Jehovah’s care. But the earthly
things were only copies of the heavenly. The appearance of the ark in the
heavenly temple is therefore a great event. Hitherto unseen, it now comes into
view, a figure showing that the covenant with Israel, though long hidden from
sight, is now again taking its former place in the thoughts and ways of God. The
ark is the sign of security to his own people, but also of judgment to His
enemies, as when the walls of Jericho fell flat, and the victorious Philistines
were put to shame, in its presence. So here, the lightnings and voices speak of
coming wrath on the Gentile oppressor.

We have already seen that numbers of Jews are, for at least three and a half
years before Christ’s coming, resident in Jerusalem, where, though for the most
part still in unbelief, they have rebuilt the temple, and reinstituted the old
worship. Taking Jerusalem, then, as the focus towards which everything now
converges, we discern there three distinct parties; first, a faithful remnant,
among whom are the witnesses proclaiming the coming of the Messianic kingdom;
second, the rest of the nation, who still remain in obstinate unbelief; and
third, the Gentile oppressor, who treads Jerusalem under foot, and eventually
puts the witnesses to death. God’s care of His own people, and His judgment of
the Gentile oppressor and the head of the unbelieving Jews, are the principal
subjects of this part of the book. But there is another actor in this drama not
yet brought on to the stage. Satan is no idle spectator of these scenes.
Whatever is dear to God is hateful to him. When God is occupied with the Church,
the Church is the object of his hostility. When God returns to Israel, Israel
becomes the object of his hostility. Hence we see him here persecuting the
remnant with all his fury and malignity. In the two following chapters therefore
we have unfolded, first, Satan’s rage against the believing Jewish remnant;
next, the character and objects of the beast, the great Gentile ruler now
oppressing Jerusalem and lastly, the craft and cruelty of the impostor who acts
in concert with the beast at the head of the unbelieving Jews. THE WOMAN AND THE
SERPENT.

(Rev 12:1-17)

"And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and
the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars; and she
being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered. And
there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having
seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. And his tail drew
the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the
dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her
child as soon as it was born. And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule
all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his
throne." (Rev 12:1-5)

Now who is this woman? She is clothed with the sun, or supreme authority, and
has the moon, the symbol of derived authority, under her feet, while she is
crowned with full administrative power, indicated by the perfect number of
subordinate authorities, the twelve stars, upon her head. This is just the place
which promise and prophecy assign to Israel. She also brings forth the "man
child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron." This is obviously
Christ. The woman, then, is Israel, "of whom as concerning the flesh Christ
came, who is over all, God blessed for ever" (Rom 9:5.) It is Israel, not, of
course, in her sin and shame, the byword and reproach of the Gentiles, but
Israel clothed with the glory which belongs to her in the purposes of God, "to
whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving
of the law, and the service of God, and the promises." (Rom 9:4).

Opposed to Israel is a dragon or serpent, a creature full of subtlety, a liar
and deceiver from the beginning, and, above all, the sworn foe of the woman’s
seed. From the fall God had told him that the woman’s seed "shall bruise thy
head, and thou shalt bruise His heel." (Gen 3:15.) The dragon is red, the
imperial colour, and has seven heads, each with a crown, showing that in the
exercise of his imperial power he is guided by full deliberative wisdom; not
divine wisdom indeed, and a wisdom which in the end proves fatal folly, but such
wisdom as the creature is capable of without God. He has ten horns, or
instruments of power, under his control. "His tail drew the third part of the
stars of heaven, and did cast them to the ground," which signifies that he drags
in his fatal toils a third part of the subordinate powers of the world, that
part, as we shall presently see, included in the revived Roman Empire. For
though Satan is "the prince of this world," he is here seen only in connection
with that portion of it which is then oppressing God’s chosen people. He is the
prince of the Roman Empire who moulds this state to his own image, and invests
its monarch with his own authority. Hence, when the Roman Empire afterwards
appears, it also has seven heads and ten horns, the ten horns being crowned, and
signifying ten kings, answering to the ten horns or instruments of power which
Satan wields.

Satan’s great object of enmity is Christ; for the "liar from the beginning" must
hate "the truth;" "the ruler of the darkness of this world" must hate "the
light;" the false usurper of dominion must hate the true Anointed of God. From
Christ’s birth, therefore, Satan sought to destroy Him. At Bethlehem he seemed
almost to have gained his end, but God’s protecting shield was spread over the
child. At the cross he did appear to be victorious; for there he wounded the
heel of the woman’s seed. But here again God intervened, and the dependent,
perfect Man, who had voluntarily yielded to the power of death to accomplish the
glory of God, was raised again, triumphant over every foe, and "caught up unto
God, and to His throne." A great chasm now opens in the prophecy. The Church
period is sunk, its having nothing to do with the conflict between Satan and
Israel. During the whole of this interval God declares Israel to be "Lo-ammi
[not my people]; for ye are not my people, and I will not be your God." But now
Israel’s restoration is at hand; the ark of the covenant is again seen in
heaven, and God sends His message, "Say ye unto your brethren, Ammi [my people];
and to your sisters, Ruhamah [having obtained mercy]." (Hos 1:9, Hos 2:1.) All
that intervenes is buried in silence. The Church, the body of Christ, is not
seen, except as it is seen in Christ Himself; its rapture is not named, except
as it is included in His own. The vision leaps at once to the closing days of
Israel’s rejection. "And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a
place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred
and threescore days." (Rev 12:6) This, though clothed in figurative language, is
quite clear. Satan, balked in his efforts to destroy Christ, now directs his
malice against His people. All his wiles and power are summoned for their
destruction, and they are actually driven to flight. But God still watches over
them; and in the wilderness He cares for them, supplies their wants, and shields
them from their enemy. The period during which they are thus hidden is twelve
hundred and sixty days, the same time that the witnesses testify in Jerusalem,
that Daniel’s little horn is suffered to continue, and that the holy city is
trodden under foot of the Gentiles before its final deliverance. This shows that
the time here named is that brief period, three and a half years, preceding the
overthrow of the Gentile power, the restoration of Israel, and the establishment
of the Messiah’s kingdom. This will be confirmed by other prophecies, but the
vision now changes to show us quite a different scene. "And there was war in
heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought
and his angels, and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in
heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil,
and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and
his angels were cast out with him." (Rev 12:7-9) No careful reader of Scripture
will wonder at finding Satan in heaven. Limited as our knowledge on the subject
is, we read of "spiritual wickedness," or spiritual powers of wickedness, "in
heavenly places," and we see him as the devil, or asperser, accusing the
brethren, and as Satan, the adversary, opposing Joshua, the high priest, and
Michael, the archangel. Probably he cannot enter "the third heaven" where God
dwells, but he clearly has some place in the heavens out of which he is driven
by this war. The dragon is at this time the great enemy and persecutor of God’s
people. Now Michael, his opponent, is "the great prince which standeth for the
children of God’s people." He is the only "archangel" named, and is always
mentioned in connection with Israel. It is he that aids the angel sent to Daniel
when withstood by "the prince of the kingdom of Persia." (Dan 10:13.) The same
angel, going to contend with the princes of Persia and Greece, says, "There is
none that holdeth with me in these things but Michael, your prince." (Dan
10:20-21) And on the eve of Jewish deliverance Michael shall "stand up, the
great prince which standeth for the children of thy people." (Dan 12:1.) So in
Jude he disputes with Satan "about the body of’ Moses." It would seem therefore
that there are evil principalities and powers directing the nations antagonistic
to Israel, and that Israel itself is under the special guardianship of Michael,
the chief of those blessed angels who are the ministers of God, doing his
pleasure. It is significant therefore of God’s revived purposes towards Israel
that Michael, "the great prince which standeth for" the people, is the angel who
here wages war against the dragon, their relentless persecutor and traducer.

There is joy in heaven over this victory. "And I heard a loud voice saying in
heaven, Now is come. salvation, and strength" [or "the salvation and the
strength"] "and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ; for the
accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and
night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their
testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death." (Rev 12:10-11) It is
not said from whom this song comes, but only saints in heaven could speak of the
suffering remnant on earth as "our brethren." It is not, therefore, the song of
angels, but of glorified saints represented by the elders. The expulsion of
Satan from heaven was a necessary preliminary to "the salvation, and the
strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ;" indeed, so
necessary, that on its accomplishment these are already said to have come. All
the hindrances in heaven are removed, though, as we shall see, there are yet
enemies to be overcome on earth. But Satan’s power as accuser of the brethren,
by which he was able to harass and distress them, is broken for ever. These
saints, though thus harassed and distressed, had "overcome him by the blood of
the Lamb," and had thus held their testimony against all his power, and remained
steadfast even unto death. But though Satan’s expulsion causes joy in heaven,
the immediate effect is disastrous to the earth. "Therefore rejoice, ye heavens,
and ye that dwell in them. Woe to [the inhabiters of] the earth and the sea! for
the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he
hath but a short time." (Rev 12:12) Shorn of his power to accuse the saints in
heaven, he pursues them with all his rancour on the earth. Moreover, he knows
that his time is brief, for the kingdom of Christ is near, and his baleful
dominion is therefore drawing to a close.

Hence his whole strength is concentrated against God’s people, represented by
the woman. "And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he
persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child." (Rev 12:13) This is not
a different persecution from that previously named. The narrative was
interrupted to relate the war in heaven, and explain the intensity of the
dragon’s present rage. Having shown this, it resumes the story of his
persecution, and of the woman’s flight and sojourn in the wilderness. "And to
the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that he might fly into the
wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and
half a time, from the face of the serpent. [This is the same expression
translated in Daniel, "a time, and times, and the dividing of time."] And the
serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might
cause her to be carried away of the flood. And the earth helped the woman, and
the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out
of his mouth. And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with
the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the
testimony of Jesus [Christ]." (Rev 12:14-17) Thus the dragon’s persecution
drives the woman, the godly remnant of Israel, into the wilderness. Her flight
is swift, God giving special providential aid, as signified by the "two wings of
a great eagle."

It is to this time, shortly preceding the coming of the Son of man from heaven,
that our Lord refers in his prophetic warning: "Then let them which be in Judæa
flee into the mountains: let him which is on the housetop not come down to take
anything out of his house: neither let him which is in the field return back to
take his clothes. And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give
suck in those days! But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither
on the sabbath day: for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since
the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be." (Mat 24:16-21.)
This is often referred to the siege of Jerusalem by Titus, and somewhat similar,
though far from identical, language is applied to that event in Luke. But the
prophecy in Luke contains no such urgent appeals for haste; and, in fact, the
advance of the Roman army left ample leisure to the Christians to quit the city,
and take their goods with them. But besides this, the quotation from Daniel
fixes the time. There can only be one tribulation exceeding all that have been
before, and all that will come after. Now this is named in Daniel, whose words
are quoted by our Lord. But as our Lord adds, "Immediately after the tribulation
of those days shall the sun be darkened . . . and then shall appear the sign of
the Son of man in heaven" (Mat 24:29-30); so Daniel adds, "And at that time thy
people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book."
(Dan 12:1.) The great tribulations spoken of by our Lord and by Daniel are
therefore identical, being the brief period of sorrow immediately preceding the
deliverance of Israel, and the reign of the Messiah. At that time our Lord
forewarns the faithful to flee with all speed from the city. We have the same
period before us in the passage we are now looking at from the Revelation, and
we see that the flight actually takes place, and that the believing remnant
escape into the wilderness, into a hiding-place prepared by God, special aid
being given them, as signified in the "eagle’s wings," to hasten their speed.

Satan’s rage is not appeased by their exile from Jerusalem. He still pursues
them with his hatred, pouring out a flood to devour them. This probably means
another persecution, as David says, "The floods of ungodly men made me afraid."
(Psa 18:4.) But whatever form his malice takes, God cares for His people, and a
providential door of escape is opened — the earth swallows up the flood. Thus
baffled, Satan turns from the fugitive remnant, who are safe in the shelter of
God’s providing, and expends his rage on any who may yet have been unable to
take to flight, or the witnesses who may have remained behind to continue their
prophecy, all, indeed, who "keep the commandments of God and have the testimony
of Jesus." In his persecution of the woman, as in all his other ways, Satan’s
malice only subserves the purposes of God. He uses this persecution of the
faithful to "try them as gold is tried," carrying them into the very place where
He can meet them. Outwardly it is Satan’s rage that drives them into the
wilderness, but to the eye which sees God’s ways, it is He that has drawn them
there. He has now visited on His beloved, but unfaithful, earthly bride, "the
days of Baalim, wherein she burned incense to them, . . . and forgat me, saith
the Lord." The time is come of which it is written, "Therefore, behold, I will
allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her.
And I will give her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor (trouble) for
a door of hope." (Hos 2:13-15.) It is here, in the wilderness, whither He has
allured her, in this deep valley of tribulation, that He unfolds to them the
greatness of their sin, shows them the riches of His own mercy, and leads them
to true repentance and faith in Him. Hence it is that they emerge purified, and
fitted for Jehovah’s blessing. THE GENTILE OPPRESSOR.

(Rev 13:1-10.)

We now see the dragon in direct antagonism with the woman. But he works behind
the scenes, through his agents, for Satan always seeks to work by craft, and
himself to remain unobserved. Though at this time nearing the end of his deadly
sway, he is still "the god of this world," and he uses his few remaining moments
with fearful energy to finish his masterpiece of deception and wickedness. God
has a people whom He purposes to set above all the nations of the world. Satan
will have such a people too. God has an anointed Ruler of the world, whom He
will invest with His own authority. Satan will have such a ruler too. God has
his Christ, the Lamb, whom He will bring forth as the deliverer of Israel. Satan
will have his Antichrist, his false Lamb, who pretends to be the deliverer of
Israel too. The workings of Satan are a hideous parody, so to speak, of the ways
of God. This is what now comes before us.

"And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea,
having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his
heads the name of blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard,
and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion;
and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat [or throne], and great
authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his
deadly wound was healed and all the world wondered after the beast." (Rev
13:1-3.)

Every one must be struck with the resemblance between this vision and that of
Daniel, who saw "the four winds of the heaven strive upon the great sea. And
four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another. The first was
like a lion; . . . a second, like to a bear; another like a leopard. . . . After
this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast dreadful and
terrible, and strong exceedingly; . . . and it had ten horns." (Dan 7:2-7.) In
both cases the beasts came up out of the sea, the struggling, unformed mass of
nations, not yet moulded into coherent political societies, out of which both
the Roman and the other Gentile monarchies originally arose. The beast in the
Revelation combines in himself the lion, the bear, the leopard, and the last
beast of Daniel’s vision, while resembling the dragon in his seven heads and ten
horns. It has the swiftness of the Macedonian, the voracity of the Persian, the
ferocity of the Babylonian, and the mighty strength of the Roman Empire, all
inspired by Satanic principles and energy. But though heir to the whole Gentile
succession, and having certain moral affinities with each of the four
monarchies, it is the immediate lineal descendant of the last. We have already
seen that this beast is, like the little horn of Daniel, that revived form of
the Roman Empire which surprises the world shortly before Christ comes to
establish His kingdom. We read that "there are seven kings: five are fallen, and
one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a
short space. And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is
of the seven, and goeth into perdition." (Rev 17:10-11.) The kings in this
passage mean heads or forms of government. Of these the Roman government had
passed through several, here reckoned as five. The sixth or imperial form then
existed, and a seventh was to arise and continue for a short space. The final
form of the empire will be that embodied in the beast, who "is the eighth, and
is of the seven, and goeth into perdition." The head "wounded to death," then,
would seem to be the seventh, that is the last form which the empire took before
its overthrow. From that time till now it disappears from view. But the wound is
healed, and all the world wonders. The long-vanished empire revives, the lineal
heir of the varied forms of Roman dominion, and becomes the theme of universal
amazement, its head being endowed by Satan with all the power and dignity and
authority which as god of this world he is able to bestow. Thus we learn the
deeply solemn fact that the last form of Gentile dominion will rise from the
bottomless pit, will bear the dragon’s form, and will sit upon the dragon’s
throne. It will have a Satanic origin, possess a Satanic character, and exercise
Satanic power. But the terrific energy of evil during these last days of "woe to
the earth" is shown also in another form. Satan and his human tool become the
objects of religious worship. "And they worshipped the dragon which gave power
unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the
beast? who is able to make war with him?" (Rev 13:4) What a ghastly commentary
on this age of progress and cultivation to read the words of the living God
telling us where it is all to end. Man’s energy and self-will only make him
Satan’s tool. He fancies himself free, and, in throwing off God’s yoke, dreams
that he has escaped from bondage, whereas he has only rendered himself the slave
of sin. Christ came to deliver from the power of darkness; but if men love
darkness rather than light, they still remain under the dreadful yoke. The
result is that God gives them up, and Satan becomes their absolute lord.
"Professing themselves to be wise, they become fools," and the terrible end, as
here shown, is nothing less than putting Satan in God’s place, prostrating
themselves before the deceiver and destroyer of souls, and "worshipping and
serving the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever." As long as
the Holy Ghost is in the world, there is a restraint laid upon the power of
evil, so that, though the mystery of iniquity already works, it cannot break
through the barriers with which God has hedged it round. But when the Church is
caught up to be with Christ, the Holy Ghost no longer makes His abode on earth,
and then the "letting," or hindering, power is "taken out of the way." (2Th
2:7.) Thus man’s self-will is no longer restrained by the Holy Ghost, while
Satan’s malice is aroused to twofold energy by the knowledge "that he hath but a
short time." No wonder then that human presumption and rebellion against God
become a resistless torrent, sweeping away all obstacles in its headlong course.

How long God’s grace has pleaded with man! How earnest the invitations, how
solemn the warnings, how tender the appeals, which have come as it were from the
heart of God to a perishing world! But all has been in vain. And "he, that being
often reproved, hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that
without remedy." God gives man over at last to taste the bitter fruits of his
own wickedness and folly. Iniquity is allowed for a time to have its own
disastrous way. "And there was given unto him [that is, the beast] a mouth
speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue
[or work] forty and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against
God, to blaspheme His name, and His tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.
And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them and
power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that
dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book
of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." (Rev 13:6-8) At
present we often see God practically ignored, the fool pursuing his career of
sin and folly, saying "in his heart, There is no God." But in this passage there
is an advance in wickedness. The time is coming, and we know not how soon it may
be here, when the only god acknowledged by the great ruler of the world will be
the dragon, and when God, the Creator of heaven and earth, will be derided and
blasphemed. Heaven, and all in it, will be the object of scorn and hatred to
"the man of the earth" (Psa 10:18), whose heart has become the willing echo of
all Satan’s delusions and lies. Exaltation of self, blasphemy of God, such is
the miserable folly of this vain instrument of Satan, little dreaming, in his
fancied security and power, of the awful doom that speedily awaits him. During a
brief period of "forty and two months" his rule will be allowed to continue, for
so long is Israel to be tested, so long is Satan to have his own way, so long is
man to show what he is when left to the workings of his own heart. During this
time God is choosing His own people "in the furnace of affliction." (Isa 48:10.)
He lets the scorching rays of the beast’s fury fall upon them that He may purge
away all their dross. Hence the war against them is successful, and the beast’s
triumph seemingly complete. All worship him save God’s elect — those whose names
have, from the foundation of the world, been written in the book of life of the
slain Lamb.

Here again we observe the resemblance between this beast and the little horn of
Daniel. The little horn "made war with the saints, and prevailed against them."
(Dan 7:21.) The beast has "given unto him to make war with the saints, and to
overcome them." (Rev 13:7.) The little horn "speaks great words against the Most
High." (Dan 7:25.) The beast "opens his mouth in blasphemy against God." (Rev
13:6.) The little horn’s power lasts "a time, and times, and the dividing of
time." (Dan 7:25.) The beast’s power continues "forty and two months" (Rev
13:5), which is only another way of expressing the same period.

Meanwhile the prayers of the persecuted saints are rising: "O God, the Gentiles
are come into thine inheritance; thy holy temple have they defiled; they have
laid Jerusalem on heaps. The dead bodies of thy servants have they given to be
meat unto the fowls of the heaven, the flesh of thy saints unto the beasts of
the earth. Their blood have they shed like water round about Jerusalem; and
there was none to bury them. We are become a reproach to our neighbours, a scorn
and derision to them that are round about us. How long, Lord? wilt thou be angry
for ever? shall thy jealousy burn like fire? Pour out thy wrath upon the
Gentiles that have not known thee, and upon the kingdoms that have not called
upon thy name. . . . Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee; according
to the greatness of thy power preserve thou those that are appointed to die; and
render unto our neighbours sevenfold into their bosom their reproach, wherewith
they have reproached thee, O Lord. So we thy people and sheep of thy pasture
will give thee thanks for ever: we will show forth thy praise to all
generations." (Psa 79:1-13.)

Such, as we learn from the Psalms, is the language of God’s saints in this
terrible crisis, when the wicked man is puffing at his enemies, and saying "in
his heart, I shall not be moved: for I shall never be in adversity. . . . God
hath forgotten: He hideth his face; He will never see it." (Psa 10:6-11.) But a
word of comfort for the groaning saints is dropped in the midst of this dreadful
scene: "If any man have an ear, let him hear. He that leadeth into captivity
shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the
sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints." (Rev 12:9-10) To
anybody who can distinguish between God’s ways in government and God’s ways in
grace, it will be obvious how such words agree with the former, and differ from
the latter. Stephen had to do with God’s ways in grace. What comfort would it
have been to him, when praying for his persecutors, to tell him that they would
be stoned? In this passage, however, we are in another dispensation, connected
with God’s ways in government; and then the promise given to His saints is, that
their persecutor shall soon be destroyed; that the one who is leading them into
captivity shall himself be taken captive; that the one who is killing them with
the sword shall himself perish by the sword. This it was that during the short
intervening time of sorrow and persecution was to uphold "the patience and the
faith of the saints." THE ANTICHRIST

(Rev 13:11-18.)

We have now seen the first half of Satan’s terrible work. Civil government is
received directly from the dragon, and allegiance and worship rendered to him
and his instrument. But there is another part of the work of delusion and
blasphemy yet to be accomplished, and at this we must now look. "And I beheld
another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and
he spake as a dragon." (Rev 13:11) This beast does not, like the first, "rise up
out of the sea," the troubled, agitated condition of society, but "out of the
earth," a state of ordered and settled government. When we look at his character
and pretensions we find that, bad as the other beast was, there is here
something yet more dreadful. Looking like a lamb, he bears the external
appearance of the Messiah, but to those who know the voice of the true Messiah
there is an awful difference. They recognize it as the voice of a dragon, a
Satanic voice.

We have only to reflect on the position of the Jewish people at this crisis in
order to see the fearful craft of the imposture. Just when the witnesses are
proclaiming the reign of the coming Christ, and the overthrow of the Gentile
power, Satan raises up a false Christ, with all the outward semblance of the
true, as if in answer to their prophecy. No wonder that people without moral
discernment are deceived. Our Lord said, "I am come in my Father’s name, and ye
receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive."
(John 5:43.) This prophecy now obtains a dreadful fulfilment. Of course Christ’s
sheep "know His voice, and a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from
him: for they know not the voice of strangers." (John 10:4-5.) This dragon voice
has no attraction for their ears. They recognize not the voice for which their
hearts are longing, but the stranger from whom they must flee. Thus the real
Israel, God’s true saints, are delivered from Satan’s wiles. But alas for the
bulk of the people, ever ready to turn from God, ever ready to turn to man! They
have rejected the true Shepherd, and now they greedily devour the pretensions of
the "idol shepherd." They have refused "the Lamb of God," and now they willingly
receive the wolf in sheep’s clothing. The god of this world has found them a
Messiah suited to their taste, one who calls for no repentance, one who flatters
their vanity instead of rebuking their sin, one who promises them the deceitful
desires of their own hearts instead of the rest that remaineth for the people of
God; and to him they listen. But it may be asked why, since Jerusalem is not
named in this vision, it should be supposed that this second beast is at
Jerusalem, or exercises his power among the Jews? The answer is, that the whole
of this part of the book, and the whole interest of the time concerning which
this prophecy is spoken, are connected with Jerusalem. In Rev 7:1-17 we see a
remnant of Israel sealed, in marked distinction from the Gentile multitude. In
Rev 10:1-11 Christ, asserting His rights to the earth, declares that God’s
purposes should be speedily accomplished on the sounding of the seventh trumpet.
Now when the seventh trumpet sounds "the world-kingdom of our Lord and of His
Christ, or Jehovah and his anointed, comes," and of this world-kingdom the
metropolis is mount Zion, "the city of the great King." Accordingly, we find the
state of things in Jerusalem, during the brief period before Christ’s return,
set forth in Rev 11:1-19. It is there the witnesses prophecy; there the beast
exercises his power; there the Gentiles trample the city under foot. Vast as is
the beast’s empire, the interest centres in Jerusalem, and its other parts are
not even named. In the next chapter it is Israel that appears as the great
object of Satan’s fury; it is between Israel’s foe and Israel’s "great prince,"
the archangel Michael, that the war in heaven is waged; it is against the
remnant of Israel that the dragon’s wrath is directed when he is cast down to
the earth. In this chapter, again, the beast, as Satan’s tool, persecutes the
saints against whom Satan’s rage is turned, that is, the Jewish remnant.
Everything, therefore, shows that God is now coming back to Israel, that the
time is the brief period of Gentile oppression preceding Israel’s deliverance,
and that Jerusalem is the centre round which the events here symbolised cluster.

Jerusalem, then, is the stage on which the tragedy now passing before us is
enacted. We shall presently see other reasons, from a comparison with various
prophecies, for connecting this second beast with that city; but for the time
those we have already given will amply suffice. What then is the state of
Jerusalem at this moment? We learn from many scriptures that Jerusalem will
before its deliverance be in terrible straits from a foreign foe, who will in
that day take the place of the ancient Assyrian, both in the loftiness of his
pretensions and the ambitious designs he has against Palestine. This northern
power, as we shall presently see, is threatening Jerusalem during the period
spoken of in the Revelation. The unbelieving mass of the people, instead of
looking to the Lord for deliverance, seek shelters as in ancient times, in
worldly alliances; and this false Christ enters into league, on behalf of the
Jewish people, with the head of the revived Roman Empire. It is this alliance
that Isaiah foretells, "Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with
death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall
pass through, it shall not come unto us for we have made lies our refuge, and
under falsehood have we hid ourselves: therefore thus saith the Lord God,
Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious
corner-stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet and the
hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the
hiding-place. And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your
agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass
through, then ye shall be trodden down by it. . . . For the Lord shall rise up
as in mount Perazim, He shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that He may
do His work, his strange work; and bring to pass His act, his strange act." (Isa
28:15-21.)

Here, then, we have the period before the Lord rises up in His power for the
deliverance of His people. Their condition in that time is set forth. A mighty
confederacy is rolling like a flood against the land, and threatening to
overwhelm it. The true refuge is God Himself, who has laid in Zion a sure
foundation-stone. The faithful ones can rest on this foundation, and awaiting
their deliverance from the Messiah, "do not make haste." The rest of the people
however, terrified and unbelieving, listen to the lies of the antichrist, and
under his guidance seek refuge in a covenant with death and an agreement with
hell, an alliance with the wicked head of the Gentile powers, the vice-regent of
the dragon upon earth. It avails them not. The scourge still overflows, their
refuge of lies fails, their covenant with death is dissolved, and the Lord rises
up in His power for the deliverance of His faithful people, and the judgment of
all His enemies.

Now this prophecy in Isaiah exactly corresponds with what we find in the
Revelation. There the false Christ becomes a sort of vassal or liege-man of the
Gentile monarch. "And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him,
and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast,
whose deadly wound was healed. And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh
fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, and deceiveth them
that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do
in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they
should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did
live." (Rev 13:12-14)

Here, then, we see an alliance established between the false Christ and the
Roman power. Satan has before, as in Job’s case, called down fire from heaven.
If his civil authority, as prince of this world, is given to the first beast,
the miraculous power he is still permitted to exercise is given to the second.
Thus we have the civil and ecclesiastical power both directed by Satan. The
healing of the deadly wound, or the revival of the Roman Empire, is evidently
regarded by the unbelieving Jews as a miraculous interposition of God on their
behalf. False and diabolical as this power is, they are occupied only with their
own safety; have no care for God’s truth, no trust in God’s salvation; and
instead of resting on the sure foundation stone laid in Zion, they readily
acknowledge as a Saviour any one who comes with promises of present deliverance.
Hence this fatal refuge of lies, this ghastly covenant with death and agreement
with hell. The ancient Roman Emperors caused themselves to be worshipped as
gods, and their images to be erected in the heathen temples. But there is a
hideous feature about this new and debasing idolatry which at once marks Satan’s
power, and explains the greedy reception of the delusion by the multitude "And
he," that is the second beast, "had power to give breath [not life] unto the
image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause
that as many us would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And
he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a
mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or
sell, save he that had the mark — the name of the beast, or the number of his
name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the
beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is six hundred threescore
and six." (Rev 13:15-18) This is what things are coming to. The chains of Satan
will be riveted on everything, body and soul. The witnesses of the Messiah will
be put to death, though not till their testimony is finished. The faithful ones
who have not succeeded in escaping to the wilderness must suffer martyrdom; for
no person can be tolerated who does not worship the beast. All must confess
themselves his vassals, and receive his mark, either his name or the number of
his name. The wise will at the time understand the number of the beast’s name,
and the mode of reckoning it. But however the number is derived from the name,
it is clear that it can only be got when the name is known. All efforts then to
ascertain it before the beast is known are merely wasting time.

There is a striking resemblance between the false Christ here described and "the
man of sin" named by Paul. He warns the Thessalonians against the delusion "that
the day of the Lord is come" (for this is the true reading), and tells them that
before its arrival there will be a falling away, "and that man of sin will be
revealed, the son of perdition: who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that
is called God, or that is worshipped so that he [as God] sitteth in the temple
of God, showing himself that he is God." (2Th 2:2-4.) At present this wickedness
is checked by the Holy Ghost’s presence on earth; but when the Church is caught
up, the Holy Ghost will no longer be here, and all hindrance will "be taken out
of the way. And then shall that Wicked [one] be revealed, whom the Lord shall
consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of
His coming: even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power
and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in
them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they
might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that
they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believe not the
truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness." (Rev 13:7-12) The place in which
this "man of sin" shows himself is Jerusalem, where "the temple of God" is; and
the time of his appearance is between the Church’s removal and the day of the
Lord. He lasts till Christ comes, when he is destroyed "with the spirit of His
mouth." He claims to be a god in man’s form; that is, to be what Christ alone
can be; and this blasphemous pretension is supported by "power and signs and
lying wonders" which he is especially inspired by Satan to perform. He thus
deceives those who, having refused the truth, are now judicially given over by
God to the delusions of this impostor, and so bring upon themselves righteous
judgment. In place, in time, in doom, in the character of his pretensions, in
the nature of his powers, and in the success of his imposture, there is an exact
correspondence between the two persons described in Thessalonians and in the
Revelation. In Daniel this false Messiah is also mentioned by the name of "the
king." It is said, "The king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt
himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things
against the God of gods, and shall till the indignation be accomplished: for
that that is determined shall be done. Neither shall he regard the God of his
fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify
himself above all. But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces . . . and
shall divide the land for gain. And at the time of the end shall the king of the
south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a
whirlwind." (Dan 11:36-40.)

Here is a king reigning in "the land," which when thus spoken of can only mean
Palestine, the land about which Daniel was interested, and this prophecy spoken.
He is "at the time of the end" and continues "till the indignation be
accomplished," showing that he reigns in the last days of Gentile supremacy —
until, God’s indignation against Israel being ended, He once more restores her
to favour. He is an Israelite; for he does not regard "the God of his fathers,"
an expression which in Daniel can only mean the patriarchs. Neither does he
regard "the desire of women." The great desire of all Hebrew women was to give
birth to the Messiah. Thus Mary was saluted by Gabriel as "highly favoured among
women," when her miraculous conception of the Saviour was announced. In naming
"the desire of women" between "the God of his fathers" and "any God," the
connection shows that something analogous in nature, not something entirely
different, is meant. Though an Israelite, he heeds neither Jehovah, the God of
the nation; nor the Messiah, the hope of the nation; nor even the false gods to
which the nation had so often turned. But he honours the God of forces,
referring probably to the religious homage rendered by his direction to the
beast, the head of the Roman Empire, and the embodiment of worldly power. In
time and place, in blasphemy and self-exaltation, in rejection of God and the
introduction of a new and dreadful idolatry, this king exactly corresponds with
the false Christ of the Revelation and the man of sin of the Thessalonians. "The
king of the north," too, who comes against him, shows the existence of that
enemy against whom the fatal alliance with the beast is formed. OUR LORD’S
PROPHECY.

We have now seen the character of the first beast, the head of the revived Roman
Empire, to whom idolatrous worship is rendered, and of the second beast, the
false Christ, who deceives the Jews, enforces the worship of the first beast and
his image, and joins him in persecuting to death all who refuse this blasphemous
homage. Two passages of Scripture throw important light on this dreadful time.
The first is a prophecy of our Lord’s, at parts of which we have already looked.
"When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel
the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) then
let them which be in Judæa flee into the mountains. . . . . For then shall be
great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this
time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there
should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be
shortened. Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there;
believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and
shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they
shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they
shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in
the secret chambers; believe it not. For 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." (Mat 24:15-27.)

Now let us see under what circumstances this prophecy was uttered. Jesus had
just told the Jews, "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." (Mat 23:38-39.) He then foretells to His
disciples the overthrow of the temple. After this his disciples gather round
Him, and as Jews inquire, "When shall these things be? and what shall be the
sign of thy coming, and of the end of the age?" This "end of the age" was a
perfectly well-understood phrase, signifying the termination of the existing age
of Gentile rule, and therefore connected with the return of the Messiah, the
period when the Jews would receive Him as coming "in the name of the Lord." It
is in answer to this question that our Lord’s prophecy, as reported in Matthew,
was spoken. In Luke no doubt the prophecy is directed to the siege of Jerusalem
by Titus, but in Matthew both the question asked and the reply are different.
Our Lord’s prophecy had doubtless a double meaning; and while Luke was led by
the Spirit to select those parts referring to the siege of Jerusalem which was
comparatively near, Matthew was led by this same Spirit to record those portions
which answered the disciple’s question about his own return and the end of the
age. The first part of the discourse is occupied with these "beginnings of
sorrows" which we have already seen to correspond with the wars, famines,
pestilences, and persecutions detailed under the first six seals. The second
part, from which the above extract has been drawn, begins with an event of which
Daniel had prophesied — "the abomination of desolation" standing in the holy
place. The passage in Daniel is as follows: "From the time that the daily
sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up,
there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days. Blessed is he that
waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days."
(Dan 12:11-12.) Daniel is here prophesying of the time of Israel’s restoration
and blessing, and is told that from the setting up of "the abomination that
maketh desolate" to this period is twelve hundred and ninety, or thirteen
hundred and thirty-five days. These times are just a little longer than the
forty-two months, or twelve hundred and sixty days, named in the Revelation,
showing that there are three stages, one three and a half years after this
event, and the other two following at intervals of thirty and seventy-five days
respectively, before the full work of Israel’s redemption and blessing is
accomplished. This passage in Matthew, then, teaches that there will be an
abomination, which in Scripture means an idol, set up in the holy place, the
temple at Jerusalem, about three and a half years before Israel’s final
deliverance. It is called an "abomination of desolation;" or an "abomination
that maketh desolate," because, as we shall see from another prophecy, this
return to idolatry is visited with misery and desolation upon the city of
Jerusalem.

Let us now trace the correspondence between this prophecy of our Lord’s, and the
prophecies of the Revelation. In Matthew we have an idolatrous image set up in
Jerusalem about three and a half years before the end of the Gentile rule. In
the Revelation we have the same. In Matthew the faithful are warned, on the
setting up of the image, to flee from Jerusalem to the mountains. In the
Revelation they do flee. In Matthew a tribulation without parallel is described
as happening during this period. In the Revelation, those who survive the
judgments are said to have "come out of the great tribulation." In Matthew the
time is, for the elect’s sake, made short. In the Revelation Satan is enraged
"because he knoweth that he hath but a short time." In Matthew there arise false
Christs working wonders and signs which, if it were possible, should deceive the
very elect. In the Revelation the false Christ "deceiveth them that dwell on the
earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do." In Matthew
people are seeking for a Christ, not to appear from heaven, but to be found on
earth. In the Revelation they are following a false Christ who is altogether of
the earth. Finally, in Matthew the scene closes by "the Son of man coming in the
clouds of heaven with power and great glory." (Mat 24:30) In the Revelation the
scene closes by Christ coming from heaven as King of kings, and Lord of lords,
arrayed in glory and majesty, and accompanied by the armies of heaven. (Rev
19:11-16.) DANIEL’S PROPHECY OF SEVENTY WEEKS. The second prophecy to which
allusion was made, as shedding a flood of light on this period, is the
communication made by Gabriel to Daniel, in answer to the prophet’s prayer and
confession with respect to the guilt and ruin of his people. "Seventy weeks," he
says, "are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the
transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for
iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision
and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy." (Dan 9:24.) Now here, not only is
Gabriel’s message sent in answer to Daniel’s prayer about his own people and his
own city, but he expressly defines his communication as referring to "thy
people," which is Israel, and "thy holy city," which is Jerusalem. These,
therefore, are not merely comprehended in the scope of the prophecy, but are its
immediate and exclusive objects. It is the transgression of Israel and Jerusalem
that is to be finished, the sin of Israel and Jerusalem that is to be ended,
reconciliation for Israel and Jerusalem that is to be made, everlasting
righteousness for Israel and Jerusalem that is to be brought in. Who will say
that this has happened? Israel is still "Lo-ammi," "not my people," and her
reconciliation and restoration are still future. Until these are accomplished
the prophecy remains unfulfilled. Till then, the people and the city are under
the Gentile yoke. The reconciliation will take place when the Messiah comes to
reign over the earth. The Messianic kingdom is, therefore, the goal towards
which the prophecy points. Seventy weeks are to be spent in dealing with Israel
before this goal is reached. It is not said that these weeks were to begin at
once, or were to be continuous when they did begin. As a fact, they did not
begin at once, and have not been continuous, It is quite consistent with the
language of the prophecy that the work should be laid aside for a while, and
then resumed; and indeed we shall see that the Jews, by their own act,
interposed a break in the time, and caused God to delay the completion of His
promised work for an indefinite, and as yet unexhausted, period.

Gabriel proceeds — "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of
the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince
shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built
again, and the wall, even in troublous times [or "the strait of time"]. And
after [the] threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off and shall have
nothing," as the margin correctly reads. (Dan 9:25-26) "The strait of time" may
mean the shorter of the two periods. Evidently there is a purpose for dividing
the whole space of sixty-nine weeks in this manner, and there can be little
doubt that the seven weeks, or forty-nine years, was spent in rebuilding the
city, and that the sixty-two weeks, or four hundred and thirty-four years, is
the interval between the completion of this work and the Messiah. But this only
accounts for sixty-nine weeks, and after this, whether immediately or not,
Messiah is cut off and has nothing. Instead of taking His dominion, the point
towards which the prophecy is looking, He Himself is cut off. To say that this
is after the seventy weeks of the prophecy is to make the prophecy contradict
itself. For it expressly says that the Messiah is cut off after "the sixty and
two weeks," which makes, with the previous seven, sixty-nine in all; and what
conceivable sense could there be in saying that Messiah was cut off after the
sixty-nine weeks, if He was really cut off after the full period of seventy
weeks had expired? There is obviously a term of one week, or seven years,
remaining over, and necessary to complete the whole cycle after the Messiah’s
death. This fact, as well as the express language of the prophecy itself, shows
that the work here spoken of, the finishing the transgression and making an end
of sins, is not Christ’s death upon the cross, or the redemption there
accomplished, but another work altogether, the reconciliation and restoration of
Israel, which, though of course resulting from Christ’s death, is to take place
at a later period. Was there, then, any event that could be described as
"finishing the transgression" of Israel and Jerusalem, or making an end of their
sins, within seven years after Christ was cut off? Manifestly nothing of the
kind. Therefore this last week does not follow immediately on the other
sixty-nine, but only after an interval. Nor is it difficult to account for this.
In due time the Messiah who was to fulfil all their hopes presented Himself to
Daniel’s people; but these, instead of hailing Him as their deliverer, refused
and crucified Him. Thus, after sixty-nine weeks, He was cut off, and had
nothing, while His people invoked the guilt of His blood on their own heads.
What marvel that God should take them at their word, visit them with terrible
judgments, and set them aside while He gathered out a people from the Gentiles?
But "the gifts and calling of God are without repentance," and, therefore.,
after this grace to the Gentiles, or the church period, is over, He once more
takes up his suspended work with Israel, and the last week runs its course. The
message then proceeds — "And the people of the prince that shall come shall
destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood,
and unto the end of the war desolations are determined," [or rather "unto the
end, war, desolations, are determined"] (Dan 9:26) After the Messiah was cut
off, terrible judgment fell on the Jews, The Roman army destroyed "the city and
the sanctuary," with a fearful overthrow, compared to a flood, and from that
time to the present wars and desolations have visited the city. These will
continue to the end; that is, till the period towards which this prophecy looks
forward. The Romans, who effected this destruction of Jerusalem, are described
as "the people of the prince that shall come." This shows that "the prince that
shall come" is not Christ, but a prince or sovereign of the Roman Empire. The
prophecy goes on to speak more about this sovereign.

"And he shall confirm a covenant [not the covenant] with the many [not "many"]
for one week, and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the
oblation to cease, and for [or "because of"] the overspreading of abominations
he shall make it desolate [or "because of the overspreading of abominations, a
desolator], even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured
upon the desolate." (Dan 9:27) Now what is this week? The prophecy declares that
seventy weeks are to be accomplished before the restoration and blessing of
Jerusalem, and the bringing in of the Messianic kingdom. It says that after
sixty-nine weeks the Messiah is cut off, not taking the kingdom. There remains,
therefore, one week to be accounted for. The cutting off of the Messiah is
followed by a long interval, during which the temple is destroyed, and wars and
desolations visit the city. After this another week is named. What can this week
be but the seventieth week, as yet unaccounted for, and now emerging. as it
were, out of this long interval of ruin and desolation, to complete the
unfulfilled period of prophecy? As each of the other weeks meant a term of seven
years, this last week must clearly mean a term of seven years also. The period
following Christ’s rejection is, therefore, to culminate in a short term of
seven years, the seventieth week, of which the events are here foretold.

"And he shall confirm a covenant with the many for one week." During this week
there is to be a covenant between some person here referred to and "the many."
Who is this person? and who are "the many"? The person is the one last named,
"the prince that shall come." We have already seen that this prince is the head
of the Roman Empire; for he is the prince of the people that destroyed
Jerusalem. But he is not Titus, or any past Roman Emperor; for certainly none of
these, after the destruction of Jerusalem, formed any compact with the Jews.
Besides, this prince reigns in the last week, or seven years, before the
Messianic kingdom. He can therefore be none other than the little horn elsewhere
named by our prophet, or the first beast of the Revelation. This last head of
the Roman Empire enters into a covenant with "the many," meaning the mass or
bulk of some people. As the whole subject of the prophecy is Daniel’s people and
Daniel’s city, this must mean the Jews. The nature of the covenant confirms
this: for in the middle of the week he breaks the covenant, causes "the
sacrifice and oblation to cease," and sets up some abomination or idol. Now the
sacrifice and oblation can only mean the Jewish ritual and worship restored,
which shows that this covenant was with the Jews, and that the "prince" has
power in Jerusalem. The events of the last week are therefore as follows: The
head of the Roman Empire forms a league with the bulk of the Jewish people for
seven years, in virtue of which they are to observe their own religion,
doubtless under his protection. But in the middle of the week, that is, three
and a half years before the Messiah’s reign, he breaks the covenant, causes the
worship of Jehovah to cease, and sets up some idol or abomination as an object
of divine homage. The next clause should read, "On account of the overspreading
(or protection) of abominations, a desolator." This means that God punishes the
idolatry by sending a desolating army against Jerusalem. Hence the abomination
is elsewhere spoken of by the same prophet as "the abomination that maketh
desolate," and by our Lord as the abomination of desolation." This desolator is
the Assyrian, or king of the north, the "overflowing scourge" against which the
unbelieving Jews seek to protect themselves by a covenant with death and an
agreement with hell; or in other words, a treaty with this agent of the dragon
and blasphemer of God named in the Revelation. The false Christ, their pretended
prophet and king, is Satan’s instrument in forming this deadly alliance, and in
afterwards imposing upon them that idolatrous worship of the beast and his image
which brings the desolator against the city. This lasts "until the consummation,
and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate." The desolate is
Jerusalem. Her deliverance and the full end of her woes come at the very moment
when the desolating force is flushed with triumph, when it has taken and sacked
the city, and carried off half its inhabitants. For the Lord says, "I will
gather all the nations [or Gentiles] against Jerusalem to battle; and the city
shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; 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 Jehovah go forth, and fight against those
nations [Gentiles], as when He fought in the day of battle. And His feet shall
stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem." A mode
of escape is then provided for His people, and the result is that "Jehovah shall
be King over all the earth." (Zec 14:1-9.) This is "the consummation," when the
determined judgment having at length been "poured upon the desolate," she is
again restored to favour and blessing. "Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken;
neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate; but thou shalt be called
Hephzi-bah (my delight is in her), and thy land Beulah" (married). (Isa 62:4.)
The coincidence between this prophecy of the seventy weeks and those previously
looked at is most striking. The little horn in Daniel speaks great things
against the Most High, wears out His saints, and changes times and laws, for a
time, and times, and the dividing of time; that is, for three and a half years.
The seven-headed beast in the Revelation blasphemes God, makes war against the
saints, and receives idolatrous worship for forty and two months; that is, for
three and a half years. The prince that shall come breaks covenant with the
Jews, abolishes the worship of Jehovah, and establishes idolatry in the temple
for half a week; that is, for three and a half years. The little horn is the
last ruler arising out of the fourth beast; that is, the last prince of the
Roman Empire. The seven-headed beast is the last ruler of the city of seven
hills; that is, the last prince of the Roman Empire. The prince that shall come
is the last ruler of the people that destroyed Jerusalem and the temple; that
is, the last prince of the Roman Empire. The little horn continues till the
kingdom is given to One like unto the Son of man; that is, he endures till the
establishment of the Messianic kingdom. The seven-headed beast continues till
Christ issues forth with the armies of heaven to destroy him, and set up His own
dominion on the earth; that is, he endures till the establishment of the
Messianic kingdom. The prince that shall come reigns during the last half-week
before the deliverance of Jerusalem and the restoration of Israel; that is, he
endures till the establishment of the Messianic kingdom. In every respect the
coincidence is complete. The three persons severally described as the little
horn, the seven-headed beast, and the prince that shall come, are all rulers
over the same empire reign at the same epoch, endure for the same time, possess
the same character, perform the same deeds, and suffer the same destruction.
Every date, incident, and characteristic prove them to be the same person.

ONE THOUSAND TWO HUNDRED AND SIXTY DAYS. The last prophecy of the seventy weeks
will enable us to settle an important question as to whether the days spoken of
in these prophecies mean days or, as is often assumed, years The woman who flies
into the wilderness is said (Rev 12:14) to be nourished there "for a time, and
times, and half a time," and in verse 6, to be fed for "a thousand two hundred
and three score days." The words "a time, and times, and half a time" mean
therefore twelve hundred and sixty days; and as these words are taken from the
Greek version of Daniel, the words used by the prophet, and translated "a time,
and times, and the dividing of time" (Dan 7:25) have the same signification.
This, according to the Jewish reckoning, in which a year contains twelve months
of thirty days each, is just forty-two months, or three and a half years, or
one-half of a week of seven years.

Now we have seen that the last half-week in the prophecy of the seventy weeks
represents a period of three and a half years. It is during this time that the
wickedness and idolatry of the beast manifest themselves. It is of this time
then, and not of any more lengthened period, that the Revelation speaks. This is
the time that Jerusalem is trodden under foot after it first appears as the
centre of God’s purposes. This is the. time that the witnesses prophesy. This is
the time that the persecuted saints flying to the wilderness are cared for by
God. This is the time that the idol is set up in Jerusalem. This is the time
that the little horn flourishes. This is the time that the beast has power given
him over all kindreds and nations. All falls within the last half-week, or one
thousand two hundred and three score days, which closes Gentile rule, completes
God’s judgment of His chosen people, and ushers in the Messiah’s reign.

Availing ourselves of the light which these prophecies cast upon the passage now
before us from the Revelation, we see clearly the history of that period of
three and a half years with which this portion of the Word is concerned. The
Roman Empire will have revived, under the headship of a great and powerful
prince; while a person endowed by Satan with miraculous gifts, will set himself
forth as the expected Christ, and will gain ascendancy over the mass of the
Jews. These will have already returned to Jerusalem, mostly in unbelief, and
there rebuilt the temple, and re-established the ancient worship and sacrifices.
A great power, answering to the Assyrian of old, under "the king of the north,"
will then threaten the returned people. To protect themselves against this power
the mass of the nation, led by the false Christ, will form a treaty for seven
years with the great prince ruling the revived Roman Empire. By this treaty the
Jews will be guaranteed in the exercise of their religious rites. Meanwhile,
however, a new testimony to Christ will spring up among a number of Jews, who
reject the claims of the false Messiah. But in the middle of the seven years a
great event happens in heaven. Satan is cast down to the earth, and, being full
of malice against the Lord’s people, who have begun to testify concerning the
coming Messiah, stirs up the Roman prince and the false Christ against them. The
Roman prince, wielding Satan’s gigantic power, breaks his covenant with the
unbelieving Jews, represses the worship of Jehovah, and forces them to embrace
idolatry. In this undertaking he is aided by the false Christ, who, using all
his miraculous skill, deceives his followers, and persuades them to set up and
worship an image of the Roman prince. On the erection of this image the
believing Jews, who are looking for the Messiah, make their escape with all
haste out of the city, and seek a refuge in the wilderness, where, in spite of
Satan’s efforts for their destruction, they are providentially sheltered and
tended by God during the remaining three and a half years of the Roman prince’s
ascendancy. Others, however, unable to flee, or detained by God as witnesses,
are left behind in Jerusalem, where they are persecuted to death at the hand of
the false Christ and his Roman confederate.

Meanwhile the alliance between the prince and the unbelieving Jews does not
prevent the invasion of the northern army, which, on account of the revived
idolatry, comes as an overflowing scourge, spreads desolation over the land, and
has already captured the city, when Christ suddenly descends for the relief of
His faithful people. His startling appearance changes the whole scene. The
northern army is destroyed. The Roman prince and the false Christ, though at a
different time, are cut off. The faithful remnant of the Jews are restored, and
with the remnant of Israel, blessed under the Messianic reign. These results we
gather from other scriptures. The Revelation only deals with the judgment of the
Roman prince and the false Christ with their followers, which is related in a
subsequent part of the book. Meanwhile other scenes open before us.

RESULTS AND WARNINGS.

Rev 14:1-20.

During the events related in the two preceding chapters God only works, as it
were, behind the scenes. The time for showing himself to Israel has not yet
arrived, though they have once more become the centre of his counsels and the
objects of His sheltering care. There is now a break, during which the history
of His controversy with their oppressors is suspended, until other preliminary
judgments, in one of which the beast and his confederates play an important
part, are brought before our view. In this chapter we have disclosed, first, the
blessing of the Jewish remnant, and secondly, the threatenings and promises of
God sent forth during this brief but eventful period. The blessing of the Jewish
remnant on earth is not the subject of the book, but is brought in
parenthetically to cheer the hearts and uphold the faith of the saints amidst
the unparalleled sufferings through which they are passing. THE JEWISH REMNANT.

(Rev 14:1-5)

"And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Zion, and with him an hundred
and forty and four thousand, having His Father’s name [or, "His name and His
Father’s name"] written in their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, as
the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the
voice [or, "and the voice which I heard was, as it were,"] of harpers harping
with their harps: and they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and
before the four living creatures, and the elders: and no man could learn that
song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the
earth. These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins.
These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth. These were redeemed
from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. And in their
mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault" [before the throne of
God]. (Rev 14:1-5) This scene is, like the vision of the palm-bearing multitude,
anticipative. The Spirit looks forward, and gives a glimpse of the millennial
blessing and glory of that faithful remnant which we recently saw groaning
beneath the persecution of the Roman prince and his crafty coadjutor. We have
beheld the deluded followers of the false lamb; we now behold the faithful
followers of the true Lamb. Jehovah has held all the rage of men in derision,
and after vexing them in His sore displeasure, has seated His King on His holy
hill of Zion. There God’s Anointed is seen, with a multitude of His people,
symbolized by the mystical number one hundred and forty and four thousand, the
highest order of administrative perfection, gathered around Him. As the
followers of the false Christ had received a mark in their forehead, so these
followers of the true Christ have His name and His Father’s written in their
forehead. The name in the forehead signifies that they bear the moral impress of
the One whose lordship they acknowledge. The followers of "the man of the earth"
bear his image; the followers of Christ bear His. Heaven rejoices over their
deliverance and, blessing, as it rejoiced when Satan was cast down to the earth.
The heavenly saints then owned these suffering ones as their "brethren," and
gave thanks that their accuser was driven from heaven. They now participate in
their joy as those who have triumphed over him on the earth. A new song, which
only they can learn, rises from these conquerors to the throne of God,
surrounded by the living creatures and the elders. For there is a special joy
belonging to those who have passed through the furnace of affliction. Several
passages of Scripture seem to indicate that the ten tribes will be gathered
after Jerusalem is delivered, while the Jews, who rejected Christ, will be
gathered before, and will there endure the full heat of the great tribulation.
No doubt it will try all the world with more or less intensity; but its most
scorching rays will fall upon the Jews, and it is apparently of the redeemed
Jews that this select band consists. Of the faithful portion of the Jewish
people there are two classes, the martyrs who suffer death, and the remnant who
escape. The blessed fate of the martyrs is presently revealed; but we here see
the triumph and joy of those who survive. Others will share the blessings of the
millennial reign, but none will taste all its sweetness like those who have
drained the bitter cup of the preceding sorrows. To none will such special
nearness to the throne be possible as to those who have tested God’s strength
and faithfulness in the hour of sorest need.

These were in the midst of "the dwellers on the earth;" but they have been
"redeemed from the earth," and now know the blessedness of "following the Lamb
whithersoever He goeth." Like Him, in the days of His flesh, they have been a
separated people, virgins holding aloof from the defilements of the world; and
now they are the first-fruits of this new harvest of His redemption-toil. They
have held and practised the truth; for "in their mouth was found no guile" or
lie, while all the world was going after the falsehood of the beast. They have
too been without fault, blameless, while all the world has been loving and
living in unrighteousness. It does not say that they are "without fault before
the throne of God," as in our translation; for though as believers their sins
are all put away, that is not the question here. But the character of their walk
is blameless, just as that of believers should be now, in distinction from the
wickedness and corruption of the world around. THE THREE ANGELS.

(Rev 14:8-12)

Having refreshed our gaze with a glimpse of the glories awaiting the saved
remnant when the Lamb is seated on mount Zion, the ever-shifting series of
visions returns to the troubles and woes of the great tribulation. In the two
preceding chapters we have seen the visible agents at work; but though God’s
hand is not yet disclosed, He is guiding all things silently for His own glory
and His people’s salvation, making the wrath of men, and even the malice of
Satan, all to praise Him. Not yet being in acknowledged relationship with His
people, He speaks through angels, and in this manner forewarns them of the
judgments about to come upon the world.

First Angel. "And I saw [another] angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the
everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every
nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God,
and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come: and worship Him
that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." (Rev
14:6-7)

Such is the first angelic voice. In the midst of man’s wickedness God gives a
call to repentance. While man is turning to idols, and worshipping the creature
more than the Creator, God asserts once more His rights as Creator to the
worship of those whom He has made. It is not here the gospel of His grace, but
"the everlasting gospel," the claim of God on man as his Creator independent of
all dispensations.

Neither we nor the millennial saints could worship God simply on the grounds on
which His claim is here made to rest. We worship Him as a heavenly people
redeemed by grace; the millennial saints will worship Him us a earthly people
redeemed by grace; the remnant, during the great tribulation, will worship Him
as the God of the promises, from whom they look for deliverance and blessing.
But in this message to the dwellers upon the earth, whose hearts are now given
up to idolatry, God asserts the double claim which Paul pressed upon the people
of Athens — His claim as Creator, and His claim as Judge. He demands the worship
now diverted from Him to idols, and warns them that the hour of His judgment is
at hand.

Second Angel. "And there followed another [a second] angel, saying, Babylon is
fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the
wine of the wrath of her fornication." (Rev 14:8) If God’s judgment is coming on
all the earth, there are two systems specially marked out for visitation. In the
address to the Church at Thyatira we saw "the depths of Satan" in connection
with a profession of Christianity, and learnt the dreadful doom awaiting those
who had corrupted themselves with Jezebel. As long as the Holy Ghost is on earth
evil is more or less restrained; and during this time no religious system,
however corrupt, is called "Babylon." But after the Holy Ghost is withdrawn the
empty profession comes out in all its falsehood and rottenness. Then it is that
the nominal Church, no longer seasoned with the salt of true believers, becomes
the offensive mass of corruption to which the name Babylon is given. Then it is
that God’s judgment on the false system is executed. Here we have the warning
given, the details and instruments of the judgment being recorded in a future
chapter.

Third Angel. "And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If
any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead,
or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is
poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation; and he shall be
tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the
presence of the Lamb: and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and
ever; and they have no rest day nor night who worship the. beast and his image,
and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Here is the patience of the
saints: [here are they] that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of
Jesus." (Rev 14:9-12) Offensive as Babylon is to God, there is something even
worse. The idolatry and blasphemy of the beast, the direct agent of Satan, is
the climax of human apostacy and rebellion; and terrible is the judgment here
foretold as awaiting it. Is this, then, a mere fancy picture? Alas! it is not
even a picture of far-distant events. We are told to be looking for the Lord’s
coming to take believers to Himself. Then "the door is shut." This may be at any
moment, and what then? Satan’s energy for evil redoubled; the Holy Ghost’s
energy for good withdrawn; man given up to his own will; strong delusion,
judicially sent by God to blind the eyes of those who had refused the truth; the
followers of the deceiver lost for ever. Well may this gloomy picture sustain
the patience of those who keep God’s commandments, and hold the faith of Jesus!
They may suffer grievously for their refusal to worship the beast and his image;
but what are these sufferings compared with the eternal torments of those who,
listening to the voice of present ease, become partakers in this blasphemous
idolatry?

There is a manifest connection between the voices of these three angels. The
world is divided between a lifeless superstition, having the form without the
power, the name without the spirit, of Christianity, and a horrible, blasphemous
form of creature-worship organized by Satan and his instruments. God first meets
this by calling upon men to worship Him as Creator, the One who as man’s Maker
has a claim on his service, and as man’s Judge will soon visit the world. He
next warns men of the two things on which the lightnings of His judgment will
descend with their most scathing force, the two forms of evil already spoken of.
The fall of Babylon, the corrupt remnant of the Church after true believers are
removed, is first announced; and then the awful doom of those who follow the
delusions of the false Christ, and become the worshippers of the beast and his
image. THE BLESSED DEAD.

(Rev 14:13) And I heard a voice from heaven saying [unto me], Write, Blessed are
the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they
may rest from their labours; and [or "for"] their works do follow them." This
passage is often quoted with respect to departed believers, nor would anybody
question its general applicability. But if we would rightly divide the word of
truth we must beware of supposing that all the texts which are applicable to
Christians were written about them. Here the words "from henceforth" show that a
particular time is referred to, and that something more is meant than a mere
general statement of the truth concerning the blessedness of the believing dead.

Nor, if we understand God’s dealings at the period here spoken of, will there be
any difficulty in seeing the special meaning intended. A thick cloud of moral
and spiritual darkness is at this moment brooding over the earth, the Holy Ghost
withdrawn, Satan working with awful energy and success in blinding the eyes of
men, and human presumption and rebellion against God rising to its highest
pitch. In this chapter we have revealed the blessed lot of those who hold the
truth through this period of darkness, and then the dreadful fate of those who
follow the two classes of delusion prevailing in the earth. But there is another
class, those who hold the truth and yet perish during the miseries and
persecutions of this disastrous time. These are the blessed dead here spoken of.
They have had to choose between receiving the mark of the beast and death, and
have chosen death. What then will be their portion? This might seem an easy
question, and if the reference were to our dispensation it could hardly have
arisen. At present believers are a heavenly people, and should they die before
the Lord comes, it is only another mode of being with Christ — "to be absent
from the body and to be present with the Lord." But in the time of which this
part of the Revelation treats, believers are not a heavenly people. Instead of
waiting to be taken to heaven, they are waiting to be blessed on the earth. This
is their proper Scriptural hope. Moreover, though quickened, they are not sealed
with the Holy Spirit, and have, therefore, neither the full assurance of
salvation, nor the earnest of an inheritance to be shared with Christ. Death,
accordingly, comes to them, not as a fulfilment, but as a frustration, of their
hopes; not as introducing them to, but taking them from, their own proper
promises. Hence a special word is needed, and is here sent, from God, to assure
them of blessedness in another form. True the fruit of their labours is lost
here, but it will be reaped in heaven, "for their works do follow them," and in
the meanwhile all their toils and sufferings down here are brought to an end.
THE HARVEST AND THE VINTAGE JUDGMENTS.

(Rev 14:14-20)

Having shown the blessings of the faithful survivors, and also of the martyrs,
during this period; having warned men of the solemn retribution about to fall
upon Babylon and the followers of the beast, another class of judgments
overhanging the world is now unfolded. They are of two sorts, represented
respectively under the figures of the harvest and the vintage of the earth. The
Harvest. "And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat
like unto the Son of man, having on His head a golden crown, and in His hand a
sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice
to Him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is
come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe. And He that sat on
the cloud thrust in His sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped." (Rev
14:14-16) A prophecy in Joel will cast light on this and the next vision. "Let
the Gentiles be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there
will I sit to judge all the Gentiles round about. Put ye in the sickle, for the
harvest is ripe: come, get you down, for the press is full, the fats overflow,
for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision
(or threshing): for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. The
sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.
The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter His voice from Jerusalem; and
the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of His
people, and the strength of the children of Israel. So shall ye know that I am
the Lord your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be
holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more." (Joe 3:12-17.)

It is clear that the scenes in the Revelation are taken from this prophecy, and
describe the accomplishment of the events here foretold. We learn, therefore,
the time, connection, and object of these judgments. The time is the advent of
the day of the Lord, the period when He judges the Gentiles and restores Israel.
Here, therefore, we see Israel to be the centre of His purposes, Jerusalem the
centre of His interests, Zion the centre of His government. The Gentiles, who
have long oppressed them, are gathered for judgment, and the power and glory of
Jehovah are manifested on the side of His chosen people, and issue forth from
His chosen city. God has permitted the Gentiles to have their day, and the pass
to which they have brought things is the terrible blasphemy and wickedness of
the beast acting under Satanic inspiration. At this point He must intervene in
judgment — "the harvest of the earth is ripe."

Everything is connected with Israel and the Messianic reign. It is an angel
coming forth from the temple — that temple in the heavens where the ark of God’s
covenant was lately beheld — that bids the judgment commence. It is the Son of
man that executes this judgment. This is the title in which Christ takes the
kingdom from God’s hand (Dan 7:13-14), intervenes for the deliverance of his
chosen people (Psa 80:17-18; Luk 21:27-28), and has all things put under His
feet. (Psa 8:4-6; Heb 2:5-6.) As Son of man He now sits upon a white cloud, as
He had foretold that He would come for Israel’s salvation. As the Anointed of
God He wears a golden crown, and carries a sharp sickle as the executor of
righteous judgment on the earth. By Him "the harvest of the earth is reaped."
The Vintage. "And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he
also having a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, which had
power over fire; and he cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle,
saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the
earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. And the angel thrust in his sickle into
the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great
wine-press of the wrath of God. And the wine-press was trodden without the city,
and blood came out of the wine-press, even unto the horse bridles, by the space
of a thousand and six hundred furlongs." (Rev 14:17-10)

There are two kinds of judgment spoken of by the prophets and our Lord — the one
a judicial process discriminating between the wicked and the good; the other a
terrible outpouring of wrath against open and avowed enemies. The nations
summoned before the throne of glory where the Son of man sits, and divided into
two companies on the right hand and on the left, are dealt with in the former
way. The armies of the beast and the false prophet of the Assyrian and of Gog,
are dealt with in the latter. These are the two sorts of judgment foreshadowed
in these two visions. The figure of the harvest suggests the judicial inquiry,
the separation of the wheat from the hires, and the binding up in separate
bundles. The figure of the wine-press suggests the desolating and unsparing
storm of divine indignation which shall devour His adversaries. The angel who
bids the harvest commence comes out of the temple, a fit place from which to
demand a holy, discriminating judgment. But the angel in the vintage scene comes
"out of the altar," the place of consuming judgment, and has "power over fire,"
the symbol of devouring wrath, in the discriminating judgment Christ appears as
the Son of man, the character in which He will summon the Gentiles to His
tribunal, and divide the sheep from the goats. In the second He appears only in
His angelic character, as the Psalmist prays, "Let them be as chaff before the
wind, and let the angel of Jehovah chase them." (Psa 35:5.) The passage in Joel
clearly shows that the subject is the judgment of the Gentiles. The harvest
judgment has, as we have seen, at least a part of its fulfilment in the scene
described in Mat 25:1-46, where the Gentiles are arraigned before Christ’s
tribunal and dealt with according to their treatment of the faithful Jews. The
vintage judgment takes place outside "the city," and as no other city has yet
been named, this can only be Jerusalem, where the Lord’s open and avowed enemies
are gathered in hostility to His chosen people. The wine-press is trodden there,
and blood flows for a "space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs" — a vivid
and awful picture of the wholesale destruction of the armies assembled against
Jerusalem, through the two hundred miles, or whole length, of the Holy Land. In
both cases it is a judgment of the Gentiles, the enemies of Jerusalem and of
God’s chosen people, preparatory to the establishment of the Messianic reign.
THE VIALS.

Rev 15:1-8; Rev 16:1-21. The last chapter was parenthetic. After showing man’s
ways on the earth, God turns aside, as it were, to let us know His own purposes
before they are carried into execution. He takes us forward in spirit therefore
to see what will be the blessed lot of those saints who escape with life from
the persecutions of the beast. Then, after asserting His own claims to worship
as Creator and Judge, He announces the doom about to fall upon Babylon and upon
the followers of the beast, and at the same time promises a special blessing to
those who die for their faithfulness during this period of tribulation. Finally,
He declares how He will deal, whether in discriminating or in unsparing
judgment, with the Gentiles.

Having thus shown His general purposes, He resumes the thread of the narrative,
dealing, first, with the closing series of preliminary judgments which precede
the coming of the Son of man; then, in fuller detail, with the overthrow of
Babylon; and lastly, with the destruction of the beast and false prophet when
Christ actually appears. But there is another subject, dear to the Lord’s heart,
with which He also deals. The blessedness of the "dead which die in the Lord"
was one of the themes named in the previous chapter; and after just referring to
the last plagues, before their dreadful character is detailed, another welcome
break in the gathering cloud of judgment discloses a blessed vision of these
victorious ones in the presence of God. The narrative begins — "And I saw
another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last
plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God." (Rev 16:1.) We see,
therefore, that we are drawing to the close of these preliminary judgments; but
having furnished this landmark to show where we are, the Spirit now leads no
aside to contemplate another scene. THE BLESSED DEAD IN HEAVEN.

(Rev 15:2-4.)

"And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire, and them that had gotten
the victory over the beast, and over his image [and over his mark], and over the
number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. And they
sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,
Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy
ways, thou King of [not saints, but] the nations. Who shall not fear thee, O
Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations [or all the
nations] shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made
manifest." This is not a vision of earthly blessedness, for "the sea of glass
like unto crystal" is, as we learn from the fourth chapter, before the throne in
heaven. On earth there is always need of cleansing, and there we have the brazen
sea filled with water; but in heaven there is fixed, perfect purity which
nothing can defile. Here it is mingled with fire, indicating probably the fiery
trials through which these conquerors had passed. The purity they have now
attained has been got through the fire in which they have been tried as gold.

These conquerors have "gotten the victory over the beast." What a change! Looked
at from man’s side, the beast had made war with them, "and overcome them."
Looked at from God’s side, they have "gotten the victory over the beast." On
earth the cry is, "Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with
him?" In heaven the song is, "Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy
name?" God is always victorious in the end, and so are those who trust Him.
These saints, who died rather than worship the beast and his image, are now
singing praises in the presence of God, while those who worship the beast "shall
be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in
the presence of the Lamb." The victors "sing the song of Moses, the servant of
God, and the song of the Lamb." The song of Moses is the triumphant chant raised
on the shores of the Red Sea, when Israel, delivered from the oppression of
Egypt, had been brought safely through the deep waters, and beheld the waves
closing over the pursuing host. So had these saints been delivered from this
scene of persecution, brought through death, and now looked back on the judgment
of their foes. The song of the Lamb is the song, not of redemption, but of the
triumphs which belong to Christ as the meek and lowly One, now exalted in the
earth. God is addressed by His Old Testament name, Lord God Almighty. These
saints say nothing about being made kings and priests, or about reigning over
the earth. It is the reign of Jehovah, the Almighty, as King over "the nations,"
or Gentiles, and His righteous judgments in the earth, that fill their hearts
with joy. The whole scene is Jewish and millennial in character. They rejoice
that the Gentiles come and worship before God, not through gradual conversion,
but because His "judgments are made manifest." "For when Thy judgments are in
the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness." (Isa 26:9.)
THE TEMPLE IN HEAVEN.

(Rev 15:5-8)

Having refreshed our eyes, as it were, with this glimpse of heavenly light, we
return now to the midnight darkness in which the world is still wrapped. The
scene, indeed, is yet in heaven, but derives its colour from the earth, for
whose judgment preparation is being made. "And after that I looked, and, behold,
the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened and the seven
angels came out of the temple, having the seven plagues, clothed in pure and
white linen, and having their breasts girded with golden girdles. And one of the
four living creatures gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the
wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever. And the temple was filled with smoke
from the glory of God, and from His power; and no man was able to enter into the
temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled."

Again "the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven" is the place
from which God acts. This is the place in which the ark of God’s covenant with
Israel was lately seen, the place from which the judgment of the Gentiles was
lately demanded. This shows, though figuratively, what is in God’s thoughts;
that in the plagues He is now about to pour forth on the earth, He is acting in
view of His relationship with Israel, the nation with which His covenant is
established. Now, though the temple is there, it is filled with smoke. So had
Isaiah seen the earthly temple, when the Lord came to announce the desolation of
Israel. (Isa 6:4.) So had God shown Himself to His people, at the giving of the
law, when "mount Sinai was altogether in a smoke, because Jehovah descended upon
it in fire; and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the
whole mount quaked greatly." (Exo 19:18.) God, dealing with man in righteous
judgment is necessarily "a consuming fire." The world has rejected grace, and
refused the call to repentance; and now God is about to vindicate His
righteousness. The temple in heaven is opened, but not for intercession. It is
filled with the smoke of that consuming fire which God will now show Himself to
be, and no man can enter until His righteous indignation has been poured forth.
Seven ministers of His judgments, clothed in white linen, the garb of spotless
purity, and girt with the golden girdles of divine righteousness, carry forth
the full vials of His wrath. It is "the wrath of God who liveth for ever and
ever," of Jehovah, the God of Israel, that is here stored up. One of the living
creatures, the executors of His providential judgments, hands the vials to the
seven angels.

GENERAL CHARACTER OF THE VIAL JUDGMENTS.

(Rev 16:1.)

"And I heard a great voice [out of the temple] saying to the seven angels, Go
your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth." Before
examining the vials in detail, it may be well to make a few remarks about their
general character. The number here, as in the seals and trumpets, is seven. But
while the trumpet judgments are the development of the seventh seal, the vials
are not a development of the seventh trumpet. The seventh trumpet brings us down
to Christ’s coming in power and glory, and its development, therefore, is not
given in detail until other events, also preceding this great consummation, have
been recorded. The vial series runs, so to speak, to the same terminus, being
"the seven last plagues." They are, therefore, in whole or in part,
contemporaneous with the trumpet judgments. The stress which is laid, however,
on their final character, as filling up the wrath of God, suggests that though
terminating at the same time as the trumpets, they begin later, and occupy,
therefore, a shorter period.

Comparing the vials with the trumpets, there is a singular parallelism. The
first trumpet judgment affects the earth; so does the first vial. The second
trumpet affects the sea; so does the second vial. The third trumpet affects the
rivers and fountains; so does the third vial. The fourth trumpet affects the
heavenly bodies; so does the fourth vial. The fifth trumpet brings darkness and
torment without death; so does the fifth vial. The sixth trumpet announces
invasion from the Euphrates; so does the sixth vial. The seventh trumpet ushers
in the reign of Christ; so does the seventh vial. No doubt there are great
differences, and as a general rule the vial judgments are severer and more
extensive than those under the trumpets. Still the general parallelism, coupled
with the shorter duration of the vial judgments, seems to indicate that towards
the close the trumpet series become aggravated in character, plagues of the same
nature being either increased in intensity or widened in area. Such would seem
to be the general character of these vial judgments.

FIRST VIAL.

(Rev 16:2)

"And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a
noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon
them which worshipped his image." Here, as in the first trumpet, the scene
affected is the earth, the region of ordered government. Whether the plague be
literally or figuratively understood, it obviously refers to some painful and
humiliating visitation on those who had worshipped the beast and owned
themselves his vassals. There is no difficulty in understanding the plague
literally. Similar visitations had marked God’s displeasure with. the Egyptians
and with the Philistines; for God will abase the proud, and pour contempt on the
lofty. But from the general symbolic character of the book, one would rather
conclude, that while in this and other cases the plagues of Egypt furnish the
figures, the judgments here named are to be less literally understood. It is so
undoubtedly in the plagues that follow, and we may, therefore, infer that in
this instance also the sore is rather in mind and circumstances than an actual
bodily infliction, some deep, fretting trouble falling or the worshippers of the
beast and his image. God has various judgments to inflict. The revival of
idolatry is one sin to be judged, and its votaries are, therefore, sorely
visited. This is the special object of the first plague.

SECOND VIAL.

(Rev 16:3)

"And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the
blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea." Here, as before,
the sea stands for the great mass of the peoples; for God’s judgments are not
confined to the beast and his followers. Throughout its whole surface the world
is reddened with war and bloodshed, signified in the ghastly picture of the sea
becoming like the blood of a dead man, and all its living creatures being
destroyed. Such is the import of the second plague.

THIRD VIAL.

(Rev 16:4-7)

"And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of
waters; and they became blood" (Rev 16:4) Here, as in the third trumpet, the
rivers and fountains represent the springs and sources of human refreshment.
Under the trumpet these were corrupted and embittered over a third part of the
earth. Under these severer visitations they are not only corrupted, but turned
to death, becoming blood, and that not only over a third part of the globe, but
generally. The voice of intelligent creation acquiesces in the righteousness of
this judgment. "And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous [O
Lord], which art, and wast, and shalt be [or "which art, and wast holy"],
because thou hast judged thus. For they have shed the blood of saints and
prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy. And I
heard [another out of] the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and
righteous are thy judgments" (Rev 16:5-7) Though no special portion of the world
is signified, it seems that this judgment is aimed chiefly at those who have
persecuted the prophets and saints. The voice from the altar is most suggestive;
for beneath that altar were seen in a former vision "the souls of them that were
slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held." Now this
altar, where they had presented their bodies as a sacrifice to God, having once
witnessed their sufferings, rejoices in the righteous retribution which
overtakes their persecutors.

FOURTH VIAL.

(Rev 16:8-9)

"And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto
him to scorch men with fire. And men were scorched with great heat, and
blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they
repented not to give Him glory." As the sun represents supreme authority, this
plague indicates the pressure of intense tyranny — the nations groaning beneath
the fierce rays of oppressive power exercised by the ruler of this period. In
the fourth trumpet the sun is not intensified in heat, but partially darkened.
From this one may perhaps gather that the anarchy and confusion implied in the
trumpet judgment ends in a period of intense oppression and suffering, just as,
for example, the total subversion of all authority in the French Revolution
culminated in the blood-thirsty tyranny of the reign of terror. But the most
solemn feature of the whole scene is that man, though recognizing God as the
author of these plagues, is only hardened in rebellion against Him. Instead of
repenting and turning to Him, he breaks out in still more awful blasphemy
against his name.

FIFTH VIAL.

(Rev 16:10-11)

"And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat [throne] of the beast;
and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain,
and blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and
repented not of their deeds." Such is man when left to himself with Satan for
his guide. Here we see the fabric he has reared for himself under the direction
of the God of this world. Science and art, civilization and culture, all that,
according to modern thought, humanizes, refines, and elevates our race —
freedom, with all its benefits, leaving man to work out his own destiny — all
this brought to bear on his circumstances; and what is the result? In Western
Europe, the chosen home of civilization, liberty, enlightenment, and progress,
the result is the kingdom of the beast, the focus of tyranny, darkness, misery,
and blasphemy. And why? Because man has left God out of account. "God is not in
all his thoughts." Independence of God was the cause of his fall, the beginning
of all his ruin and wretchedness. Independence of God will culminate in all the
miseries of this disastrous time. The darkness here is doubtless moral, or
rather spiritual; men groping in their blindness for some refuge from their
gnawing misery, and yet so deluded by Satan that instead of turning to the only
Deliverer, they blaspheme His name, and persist in the sins which have provoked
His judgments. But alas! a still worse madness remains to be brought out.

SIXTH VIAL.

(Rev 16:12-16)

"And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the
water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the East might be
prepared. And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of
the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false
prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth
unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle
of that great day of God Almighty. (Behold, I come as a thief; blessed is he
that watcheth and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his
shame.) And he [or "they"] gathered them together into a place called in the
Hebrew tongue Armageddon." We need not understand this, any more than the
previous judgments, literally. The Euphrates was the eastern frontier of the
Roman Empire. The drying up of its waters, then, to make a way for the kings of
the East is a natural figure for the breaking down of that boundary-line of the
revived empire under the beast. The kings of the east probably signify a
confederacy of eastern powers under the king who takes the place of the ancient
Assyrian. In opposition to Egypt their leader is styled the king of the north.
In opposition to the revived Roman Empire, the confederates are styled "the
kings of the east." We have seen that such a power will be arrayed against
Jerusalem, which seeks aid in the disastrous alliance with the beast, the head
of the revived Roman Empire. It is by God’s counsel that all the nations are
thus gathered "against Jerusalem to battle," but God makes the dragon and men’s
evil passions to work out his own will. Just as He bade the lying spirit go and
lure Ahab to his fall, just as He sends men in this dreadful time "strong
delusion that they should believe a lie," so here He uses the unclean spirits
out of the mouth of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet, to draw
together this assemblage of powers, "the clusters of the vine of the earth," to
be trodden in the wine-press of His righteous indignation. Doubtless to men’s
eyes the war will be declared with the usual exchange of diplomatic dispatches,
and the usual protests of disinterested intentions. But the Spirit of God
unmasks the true motives at work, and shows that the real agents in this great
gathering are demons, diabolic counsels, from the heart of Satan and his wicked
instruments. By these the war is stirred up, and God’s purpose accomplished. The
kings of the east gather their forces, and invade the frontier of the beast’s
dominions. The beast, in concert with the kings of the west, also gathers his
forces, and marches to the fatal field of Armageddon.

Whatever doubt there may be as to the exact meaning of this word, there is none
as to the fact that it refers in some way or other to the valley of Megiddo.
Here it was that the most formidable Gentile oppressors were overthrown, when
God arose for the deliverance of His people. Here it was that "the kings came
and fought, then fought the kings of Canaan in Taanach by the waters of Megiddo;
they took no gain of money. They fought from heaven; the stars in their courses
fought against Sisera." (Jdg 5:19-20.) It is obvious how admirable a type this
furnishes of the great battle yet to come, when Christ shall descend from heaven
for the deliverance of His people, the destruction of His enemies, and the
establishment of His glorious rule. We learn elsewhere, that the Gentile will be
gathered in the Holy Land, but the name Armageddon probably refers less to the
place than to the character of their overthrow, as typified in the great battle
"by the waters of Megiddo."

Thus the world’s misery seems to culminate. Who can fathom the distress of the
saints, or the groans that ascend — "How long?" But the day of deliverance is at
hand. Little do the gathering forces imagine that instead of encountering each
other, they will meet the One whose claims they have despised, whose saints they
have persecuted, whose name they have blasphemed; that He is coming to take the
crown "whose right it is;" that the land they have destined for their spoil God
has destined for their sepulchre. Little do the beast and his still more wicked
coadjutor dream that from that field of slaughter to which they are hastening
they will be carried captives, and hurled without death into the eternal
torments of the lake of fire. Little do the groaning saints, hid among the
mountains and caves, dare to hope that now at last they may lift up their heads,
for their redemption draweth nigh. How cheering, then, yet how solemn, drop the
words, like a momentary lull an the wildest fury of the storm, "Behold, I come
as a thief" What a fearful surprise for "the inhabiters of the earth," who
still, amidst all the convulsions, pursue their own way, and dream of a good
time yet before them! What a joyful surprise for the suffering saints, thus to
behold their Deliverer appearing in the moment of their deepest gloom! Well may
He warn them to be on the watch, and to keep their garments that they be not
found naked.

SEVENTH VIAL

(Rev 16:17-21)

"And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great
voice out of the temple [of heaven] from the throne, saying, It is done. And
there were Voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great
earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an
earthquake, and so great. And the great city was divided into three parts, and
the cities of the nations fell and great Babylon came in remembrance before God,
to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of us wrath. And every
island fled away, and the mountains were not found. And there fell upon men a
great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men
blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was
exceeding great."

Here, then, the preliminary judgments come to an end. The vial is poured out
into the air, the scene of Satan’s authority; for he is "the prince of the power
of the air." Mighty results follow. God, speaking from the throne out of the
temple in which the ark of the covenant is placed, declares that the work is
done. What work? The work towards which all God’s schemes of earthly government
have been directed, the work of which the ark of the covenant was a constant
memorial, the work of setting his King upon His holy hill of Zion, and making
Jerusalem a joy and a rejoicing to the whole earth. The time for this is now
come, and the voices, and thunders, and lightnings announce the judgments by
which it is to be accomplished. An earthquake of unexampled violence, or an
unprecedented crash of all earthly power, ensues. "The great city is divided
into three parts" In the Revelation "the holy city" means Jerusalem; "the great
city," Rome. It is elsewhere called "that great city which reigneth over the
kings of the earth." (Rev 17:18.) The city is here used for the whole Roman
dominion, which is split into three parts. Besides this, the cities of the
nations fall, there is a general overturning, the crashing up of the gold, and
the silver, and the brass, and the iron, and the clay, beneath the weight of the
stone which falls upon them and grinds them to powder. Great Babylon comes in
remembrance, that corrupt religious system which survives the removal of the
true Church. It, too, must now drink the cup of judgment whose contents are
beheld in the next chapters. All places of security and strength, all islands
and mountains, disappear, and a terrible scourge, likened to a storm of gigantic
hailstones, sweeps away all man’s schemes and systems from the earth. But all
this hurricane of judgment cannot bow the stubborn rebellion and hatred of man’s
heart towards God, which again rise in fresh blasphemy against His name and
ways. THE JUDGMENT OF BABYLON.

Rev 17:1 to Rev 19:4. The last plague showed a shaking of all political and
religious systems, in which the fall of Babylon held a foremost place. Babylon
means confusion; for at Babel man made his first organized attempt to act in
independence of God, and therefore God confounded it. It afterwards became the
head of the Gentile powers which desolated Jerusalem, and consequently is often
spoken of as representing the whole. The prophets also frequently denounce it in
strong language on account of its shameless idolatry. The ideas therefore
suggested by Babylon, whether civil or religions, are all in antagonism to God’s
city. It began in independence of God; it continued as the oppressor of God’s
people; it fell while using the vessels of God’s temple to do honour to its own
idols. The city of Babylon has long been a ruinous heap, where the "wild beasts
of the desert" couch, and the "houses are full of doleful creatures." But the
system which Babylon represents still survives. Politically, it is independence
of God, as seen in the beast; religiously, it is idolatry, as seen in the woman.
Both agree in hatred and persecution of God’s people. The civil and religious
aspects are often, as in Babylon itself, twined together, so that the threads
cannot always be unravelled, but all the evil elements are united in the
mystical Babylon of the Revelation. In every point of view it is ripe for
judgment. The Church may be looked at in its relationship either with Christ or
with the world. In the former view no figure can be more exquisitely appropriate
than that of the bride or wife. In the latter view no figure can be more
expressive than that of some striking object in which skill and beauty are
displayed such as a magnificent temple or city. Thus the Church is presented by
John in this book under the two symbols of the Lamb’s wife, and the "great city,
the holy Jerusalem." On the other hand the counterfeit church, the apostate body
which has professed to be the bride of Christ is presented under two
corresponding figures — as the harlot or false wife in contrast with the true,
and as the unholy city in contrast with the holy, the city of earth in contrast
with the city "descending out of heaven," man’s city in contrast with God’s
city, the city of the beast’s throne in contrast with the city of the Lamb’s
throne. These two aspects are successively placed before us in the two chapters
we are now considering.

BABYLON, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS

(Rev 17:1-18.)

"And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked
with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will show unto thee the judgment of the
great whore that sitteth upon many waters: with whom the kings of the earth have
committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk
with the wine of her fornication." (Rev 17:1-2) The seven angels had the last
plagues, one of which was in part directed against Babylon. It is by one of
these angels therefore that John is taken to witness her judgment. He styles her
"the great whore that sitteth upon many waters." Now the first part of this
figure is constantly used in Scripture as to those who forsake God for idolatry.
In this sense it is repeatedly applied to Jerusalem and the Jews. As to the rest
of the figure, we afterwards read that "the waters which thou sawest, where the
whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues." (Rev
17:15)

"The great whore that sitteth upon many waters" means therefore some system of
idolatry which has spread over vast regions and many nations. It is not, like
the idolatry of the antichrist, a national apostacy, but has a far wider area.
Again, she commits fornication with the kings of the earth. Instead of retaining
her purity she lends herself to the corrupt passions of the world’s sovereigns,
and ensnares the people with her intoxicating charms, making them "drunk with
the wine of her fornication."

"So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit
upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads
and ten horns." (Rev 17:3) Little of a wilderness as the world might seem to the
enchantress herself or her ensnared votaries, to one who was in the Spirit her
dwelling place was a wilderness indeed. "The vine of the earth" might flourish
there, but fruit for God could not grow in such soil. To the anointed eye there
is a moral and spiritual desert encircling far and wide this "mother of
harlots." In this waste land she sits "upon a scarlet-coloured beast, full of
names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns." This admits of no
mistake. The scarlet or imperial colour is the only feature added to the
description from which we have already identified the beast with the head of the
Roman Empire. This false system of religion, so widely spread over the earth,
ministering by her corruptions to the kings, and seducing by her intoxicating
charms the peoples of the world, rests upon that Roman Empire whose revival
calls forth universal astonishment.

"And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold
and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of
abominations and filthiness of her fornication." (Rev 17:4) Not only does she
lean on the imperial power for support, but she clothes herself in imperial
garments (purple and scarlet) adorning herself with all sorts of worldly
splendour, and holding even her defilements and abominations in a golden cup.

"And upon her forehead was a name written, mystery, babylon the great, the
mother of [the] harlots and abominations of the earth." (Rev 17:5) She has not,
like the beast, the names of "blasphemy," but she has the name of "mystery." Now
a mystery in Scripture means a secret not before revealed. There is therefore
here a secret; but it is not the "mystery of iniquity" spoken of by Paul. No
doubt there is a considerable likeness; but the man spoken of by Paul is clearly
a person, while the woman named here is clearly a system. That is destroyed by
Christ’s coming in judgment; this is destroyed by the ten kings and the beast
before Christ’s coming in judgment. The "man of sin" named by Paul answers
closely to the false Christ of the Revelation, but differs essentially from the
woman on the scarlet beast. The mystery here, then, is not "the mystery of
iniquity," but the strange secret that the Church should become thus hopelessly
corrupt, a fact winch in the next verse fills John with astonishment. "Babylon
the great" shows her to be the moral representative of the corruption, idolatry,
and enmity of God’s people which formerly characterized the Chaldean monarchy.
She is also called "the mother of harlots and abominations of the earth;" for
not merely is she an idolatrous system herself, but she has given birth to other
idolatrous systems scattered over the world. And with Babylon’s idolatry she
inherits also her oppression of God’s people, though here it is not Jews, but
Christians, that she persecutes. "And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of
the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I
wondered with great admiration." (Rev 17:6) In persecuting the saints it
resembles the false Christ, but this fills John with astonishment. Now the
apostacy of the Jews under the antichrist had been foretold by Daniel and other
prophets, so that John could feel no surprise at this. But here is a new thing,
another apostacy, which overwhelms him with amazement. What could so astound him
as such a corruption of Christianity itself? And what, apart from the work of
the antichrist, is there to be found at all resembling this description save
that so-called church, which, while bearing the name of Christ, has drawn her
strength and her resources from Rome, has decked herself out in imperial
raiment, has pandered by her corruptions to the kings of the world, has dazed
the nations with her meretricious splendour, has darkened heaven with the smoke
of her persecuting fires, and has set up idolatry side by side with the worship
of God?

"And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the
mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven
heads and ten horns. The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall
ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on
the earth shall wonder, whose names are not written in the book of life from the
foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and
shall be present [for this is the true reading]. And here is the mind which hath
wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth, And
there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet
come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space. And the beast that
was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into
perdition." (Rev 17:7-11) In this passage the seven heads receive a double
explanation. First they are said to be seven kings or forms of government. At
this we have already looked. Secondly, they are interpreted as meaning seven
mountains. Now the seven-hilled city is everywhere recognized as Rome. This
identifies the beast with the Roman Empire. But they are also the "seven
mountains on which the woman sitteth." It is not therefore a mere general
connection between the empire and this religious apostacy that is here
indicated, but a local connection between the religion and the city. The woman,
or the system which the woman represents, has her seat in Rome. As "the mother
of harlots," she may have children walking in her own evil ways, not directly
connected with Rome. The principles of idolatry, and of worldly traffic
unbecoming the bride of Christ, have eaten into a large portion of Christendom
that is not professedly Romanist. But the harlot herself is the religious
corruption that has its seat in the seven-hilled city. Is it, then, Romanism in
the past and present or Romanism in the future, that is here portrayed? The
scene itself is, of course, future, and shows her in connection with the revived
Roman Empire represented by the beast. But much of the description given is true
of the past and present, belonging to the system itself. She is judged for her
general character and career, her worldliness, her idolatry, her intoxication of
the senses, and her persecution of God’s people. She has had time given her to
repent, and has not repented. Her last state is worse than her first; for the
arm of flesh on which she now seeks to stay herself is the blasphemous tool of
Satan, who at that time rules the revived Roman Empire. And now the time is come
that she is to be cast "into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into
great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds." (Rev 2:22.) There is
grace for individuals connected with her if they repent, but none for the system
itself, which has refused repentance. The vision now quits the woman for a time,
to give further information about the beast and the ten horns. "And the ten
horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet;
but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. These have one mind, and
shall give their power and strength unto the beast. These shall make war with
the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for He is Lord of lords, and King of
kings; and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful." (Rev
17:12-14) Daniel shows that the Roman Empire is divided into ten kingdoms — "the
ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise." (Dan 7:24.) After
this another little horn, the same as the beast in the Revelation, comes up,
subduing three kingdoms, and exercising the whole power of the empire, which is
judged on account of his blasphemy; "because of the voice of the great words
which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast [the Roman Empire] was
slain." (Dan 7:11.) This throws light on the Revelation. Some great power
springs up out of the ten kingdoms into which the Roman Empire is divided,
conquering three, and gaining ascendancy over the rest. This is the beast of the
Revelation. A confederation is formed of status temporarily leagued under this
powerful prince. There was something like this when several states acknowledged
the lead and aided in the wars of the first Napoleon. In these days of rapid
change there is nothing improbable in such a combination. These ten sovereigns
"receive power as kings one hour with the beast." They may not be new
sovereigns; the authority they receive may only refer to the present league.
Thus it is said that power was given to the beast "to continue forty and two
months;" but he reigned before this; for he made a covenant for seven years, of
which the "forty and two months" was only the latter half. We need not therefore
understand that these kings became kings at this time; but they have power given
at this time for a special object, a very brief term, only "for one hour," but
long enough to accomplish their dreadful purpose of making war with the Lamb.
His victory, and the character of his followers, here just named, is more fully
recorded afterwards. But before starting to their doom the beast and the ten
kings have another object to accomplish. The woman has been seated on the
scarlet-coloured beast. She had been willing to commit fornication with the
kings of the earth, to prostitute the religious power she wielded to pursue
worldly ends, and advance the schemes of worldly sovereigns. She was willing to
do this for the beast, even when acting under Satan’s inspiration. But a new
religion has now sprung up, the worship of a man, and all trace of Christianity
must be obliterated. These sovereigns, therefore, now turn their hatred against
the woman, who, though frightfully perverting, has still been called by the name
of Christ. Vast as her influence has been, and perhaps still is, over the
peoples, they resolve on her utter destruction. "And he saith unto me, The
waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes,
and nations, and tongues. And the ten horns which thou sawest and the beast [not
"upon" the beast], these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and
naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire. For God hath put in
their hearts to fulfil His will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the
beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled. And the woman which thou
sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth." (Rev
17:15-18) This is all clear enough, and most instructive. God can use any
instruments He will to carry out His purposes. Satan’s malice only drives the
remnant of God’s people into the wilderness, where He meets them and speaks
comfortably unto them, while it gathers the armies of the world to the place
where He designs to execute judgment upon them. The Assyrian of old, and the
beast and ten kings in this chapter, though hating and blaspheming God, are just
his tools, with no knowledge or will of their own, to accomplish His unfailing
designs. He has purposed to destroy the harlot, and these wicked kings, though
leagued together to "make war with the Lamb," are the blind instruments He uses.
Vanity of vanities! They rebel against His authority, deny His truth, blaspheme
His name, combine against His purposes, and yet He hath put in their hearts to
fulfil His will." The federal character which this revived Roman Empire will
take is clearly shown in this verse. The ten kings "agree, and give their
kingdom unto the beast" for a specific object and season. It is not only the
beast compelling them to follow his command, but it is a voluntary act on their
part: "the kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel
together against the Lord and against His Anointed." This fierce outbreak of the
infidel against the corrupt ecclesiastical power is what we see foreshadowed in
the familiar events of the great French Revolution, where the so-called church
was the special mark for popular hatred and bloody persecution. This was but a
presage of the more terrible retribution which will presently be exacted, when
the ten horns and the beast "shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate
and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire."

"And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the
kings of the earth." Popular language has undesignedly confirmed this blending
of the city and the system. We speak of persons going over to the Greek Church,
or the English Church, not of their going over to Greece or England, but to say
that anybody has gone over to Rome means that he has joined the Roman Catholic
Church. The language of the world thus undesignedly coincides with the language
of Scripture in identifying "the great city, which reigneth over the kings of
the earth" with the religious system of which it is the seat. This chapter
really presents no more difficulty than always attaches to symbolic writing. But
the distinction between Babylon and the Beast is so important, and so often
overlooked, that we may add a few words on the subject. Three earthly powers,
closely related, but quite different are seen in the Revelation.

First, there is the Roman power, under its last chief, the beast with seven
heads and ten horns. He is a great prince, presiding over a confederacy of ten
kings, and rules, either as sovereign, or by his ascendancy in the counsels of
the league, over the territory, or at least the Western territory, of the
ancient Roman Empire. His power, during the last three and a half years of his
reign, is directly received from Satan, and is used to carry out Satan’s
persecution of the godly remnant of the Jews.

Second, the false Christ, or antichrist, is a pretender to divine character and
worship — outwardly like a lamb, but with the voice of a dragon. He has
miraculous powers, enters into a league with the head of the Roman Empire, which
is described as "a covenant with death, and an agreement with hell;" and
finally, when the Roman prince, under Satanic inspiration, puts down all Jewish
rites, and exalts himself as an object of worship, the false Christ aids his
schemes, sets up his image, which he miraculously endows with breath, and
persecutes with relentless cruelty all who refuse to bow down to this new idol.
This is the religious apostacy of the Jews.

Third, Babylon the great, the mother of harlots, has not her seat at Jerusalem,
but at Rome; is not a Jewish, but a Christian apostacy. True, all religious
apostacies have some resemblance, and as both are connected with the Roman
Empire, it is not strange that they are often confounded, especially where the
Scripture truth concerning the restoration of Israel is not understood, and all
prophecy has to be violently crushed into the straitened confines of the history
of the Church. But while having many features alike, there are clear marks of
distinction. In Rev 12:1-17 and Rev 13:1-18 the Spirit is occupied with Israel,
and the Roman power is looked at only in this relationship. Here, therefore, its
connection with the antichrist is brought out. But in Rev 17:1-18 it is looked
at in its relationship with the harlot. Here, therefore, the league of the ten
kings, and the attitude assumed towards the great religious system of the Roman
Empire, are the prominent questions. The difference between the two religious
apostacies, the Jewish and the Christian, is thus clear; and what makes it still
more manifest is the different judgments which they undergo. The harlot is
destroyed by the beast and his confederates; the antichrist perishes with the
beast and his confederates. If then, Babylon be the Church of Rome, the
antichrist cannot be the Church of Rome also. The confusion of the two involves
even simple prophecies in perplexity; their distinction makes even prophecies
which have caused perplexity perfectly simple. THAT GREAT CITY BABYLON.

(Rev 18:1 to Rev 19:4.)

We have now seen God’s judgment of Babylon as the harlot, the one who falsely
took the place of the Lamb’s wife. This chapter shows us its judgment as a city,
or religious system in the world. Here we learn man’s thoughts about it, and see
how different the feelings created by its desolation in earth and in heaven.

"And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great
power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a
strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the
habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit and a cage of every
unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of
her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her,
and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her
delicacies." (Rev 18:1-3.) There is a close correspondence here with the
language of Isaiah. No doubt the prophet is foretelling the literal destruction
of the Chaldean metropolis, whereas here it is figuratively applied, not to the
city, but to the Church of Rome. Like the great city of old, the grandeur and
glory of this mighty religious system have been overthrown. She, who drugged the
nations with her intoxicating draughts, who flaunted as the paramour of earthly
sovereigns, whose luxury and splendour enriched the merchants of the world, is
now left empty and desolate, like a ruined city in whose tenantless abode all
unclean creatures make their dwelling place. She who, in her religious
arrogance, had claimed to be the habitation of the Holy Ghost, is now become
"the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit." In this corrupt
system, indeed, there are, and always have been, true children of God; for His
grace can overleap all barriers. But God calls them to come out of it, warning
them of its true character and coming judgment. "And I heard another voice from
heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her
sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto
heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities." (Rev 18:4-5) How contrary God’s
thoughts are to the sadly low thoughts of many of His people. To man it often
seems a light thing whether he is connected with evil or not, provided he is
personally safe. But how dishonouring are such thoughts to God! Here the people
called to quit this evil system are God’s people, as Lot was in Sodom, and God
will never let His own perish. But how different the fate of Lot — saved "so as
by fire" and with loss of everything — from that of Abraham, beholding the
judgment from the heights of Hebron. Such is the difference between those who
walk in separation from evil, and those who go on contentedly with it because
they are assured of their own salvation. Like Sodom, the sins of this corrupt
system have ascended up to heaven, and God’s people are called, like Lot to save
themselves by coming out of it. The kings leagued against the Lamb are the
instruments by which the false church is stripped of its glory and riches, and
rendered desolate; but in this they are ignorantly carrying out God’s purposes,
as Nebuchadnezzar of old. So the voice from heaven bids them "reward her even as
she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup
which she hath filled fill to her double. How much she hath glorified herself,
and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her
heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow. Therefore shall
her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine, and she shall be
utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her" (Rev
18:6-8) Rome, though committing fornication with the kings of the earth, has
often shown her insolence and spiritual pride in trampling upon them. Perhaps
this is what is alluded to when they are told, "Reward her even as she rewarded
you," though more probably it is only a general exhortation to repay her
according to her wickedness and cruelty. She had exalted herself and lived for
the world instead of Christ and now sorrow and torment are her lot. She had
filled her cup with the filthiness of her fornications, and now the cup of
judgment is to be filled to her double. She had prided herself in her power and
glory, instead of waiting for her absent Lord, and now desolation comes upon her
— she is destroyed as by fire, for the God whom she has despised is a mighty
God, and will not be mocked.

Such are the voices from heaven; but man’s thoughts are very different. Two
classes of persons mourn over her — "the kings of the earth," who have been
aided by her power, and "the merchants of the earth," who have grown rich out of
her luxuries. "And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and
lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they
shall see the smoke of her burning, standing afar off for the fear of her
torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city Babylon, that mighty city for in one
hour is thy judgment come." (Rev 18:9-10) Though appalled by the violence of her
overthrow, and fearing to stand up for her defence, yet the crowned heads
generally lament the fall of a power which has usually sought its own
aggrandisement by ministering to the aggrandisement of sovereigns. A corrupt
alliance with the secular power, which she upheld as a tool of her own ambition,
has always been a favourite policy of the Roman See. The sovereigns of the world
are therefore, for the most part, distressed at her overthrow. But Rome has not
only woven the meshes of her net round the great and powerful. Her worldliness,
her splendour, and her pomp have made her dear to those who minister to luxury
and ostentation. The wife of an absent Christ should have been clothed in
widow’s weeds, but she had sat as a queen, and no widow, arraying herself in
purple and scarlet, and bedizened with gold, and precious stones, and pearls. No
wonder "the merchants of the earth" bewail her fall. "And the merchants of the
earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any
more: the merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls,
and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyme wood, and all
manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of
brass, and iron, and marble, and cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and
frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and
sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men [or "bodies and
souls of men "]. And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are departed from
thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and
thou shalt find them no more at all. The merchants of these things, winch were
made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and
wailing, and saying, Alas, alas that great city, that was clothed in fine linen,
and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls!
For in one hour so great riches is come to nought." (Rev 18:11-17) The Church
was called to be separate from the world, and to wait for the Lord. "Our
conversation," says Paul, "is in heaven, from whence also we look for the
Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ." But it soon left this waiting attitude, and
said in its heart, "My Lord delayeth his coming." Presently, as we see in the
sketch of ecclesiastical history furnished by the seven churches, it settled
down in the world, "where Satan’s seat is." The next step is soon made. Having
ceased to be a widow, she began to be a queen. Abandoning her proper heavenly
hope, she appropriated the earthly hopes of the Jews, which were more pleasing
to her worldly tastes. Heedless of the apostle’s warning, she forgot that, if
unfaithful, she would be cut off. Her widowed character was dropped, and the
splendour and glory promised to Israel, but utterly unsuited to the Church, were
claimed and appropriated for herself. She became, not only a great power in the
world, but a power before which all others must bow. True, her pretensions
aroused resistance, and the monarchs who crouched before her at one moment would
defy her at another. But such were her claims, claims she has never abated,
while her splendour and luxury exceeded all limits. For this she is now visited.
Suddenly, as by an unexpected squall, when apparently sailing along in perfect
safety, she is plunged a wreck beneath the waves. The very power she has leaned
upon turns with fury against her, and becomes her destroyer. "In one hour so
great riches is come to nought."

Man loves what glorifies and enriches himself. The fail of this system is
regarded by him without care for its moral character or the dishonour it has
done to God. Absorbed in his on a interests, God is not in all his thoughts.
"And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as
trade by sea, stood afar off, and cried, when they saw the smoke of her burning,
saying, What city is like unto this great city! And they cast dust on their
heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city,
wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea, by reason of her
costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate." (Rev 18:17-19) It is terrible
to see what man may become without God. But, perhaps, the most hideous spectacle
of all is man’s self-exaltation in the things of God, the Church, wrested, as it
were, from Christ, and made the ladder to human selfishness and aggrandisement.
There is awful significance in the words "souls of men," closing the list of her
merchandise. The power of the priesthood has been horribly abused in other
religions; but who could have dreamed of a deliberate bartering of souls for
money carried on by that which professes to be the spotless bride of Christ? Who
can wonder that God’s judgments, long suspended, should at length fall, with
sudden and crushing destruction, on such a system? No wonder there is joy in
heaven. "Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets [or ye
saints, and apostles, and prophets], for God hath avenged you on her." (Rev
18:20) It may seem strange that a system which sprung up long after the
apostles’ days should be thus spoken of. No doubt, like Jerusalem of old, it
"built the tombs of the prophets and garnished the sepulchres of the righteous,"
and said, "If we had been in the days of our fathers we would not have been
partakers with them in the blood of the prophets." But to this very same
Jerusalem it was said, "Behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and
scribes, and some of them ye shall kill and crucify, and some of them shall ye
scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city, that upon you
may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of the
righteous Abel." (Mat 23:29-35.) In like manner it is said of Babylon, "In her
was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon
the earth." (Rev 18:24.) The close moral connection between the head of the
Gentile monarchies and the mystical Babylon of the Revelation is further shown
by the resemblance of the figures describing their overthrow. Jeremiah, binding
up his prophecy against Babylon with a stone, cast it into the Euphrates,
saying, "Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise from the evil that I will
bring upon her." (Jer 51:63-64.) So, in the chapter before us, we read, "And a
mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea,
saying, Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and
shall be found no more at all." (Rev 18:21)

Instead of a city full of worldly delight and activity, she is to be like a city
utterly forsaken, a picture of desolation and misery. "And the voice of harpers,
and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in
thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in
thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee; and
the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the
bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy
merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations
deceived. And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all
that were slain upon the earth." (Rev 18:22-24) Three charges are thus brought
against this system. The Church was set here to live for heaven, but Rome has
sought worldly objects worldly wealth, worldly power, worldly glory — her
merchants have been "the great men of the earth." The Church was set here to be
"the pillar and ground of the truth," but Rome has corrupted the truth "By thy
sorceries were all nations deceived." The Church was set here to endure
persecution, if needs be, on Christ’s behalf; but Rome has been the persecutor
of God’s people — "In her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of
all that were slain upon the earth."

Angels and voices from heaven have declared the joy there felt at the
destruction of Babylon. We now behold the joy of the heavenly host in the
presence of God. "And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in
heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the
Lord our God [or "the salvation, the glory, and the power of our God"]: for true
and righteous are His judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did
corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of His
servants at her hand. And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for
ever and ever." (Rev 19:1-3.) Nothing can more solemnly mark God’s abhorrence of
counterfeits in the things of Christ than this reiterated joy over the judgment
of the corrupt system which usurps the name, while belying the character, of the
Lamb’s wife. While much people on earth, mindful only of their own fancied
interests, are bewailing her fall, "much people in heaven," mindful of Christ’s
glory, are giving praise to God for avenging the blood of His servants and
judging the corrupter of the world.

"Again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever." To man,
and religious man, there is something imposing in a system which can boast of
antiquity so venerable, architecture so splendid, music so enchanting,
organization so perfect, power so tremendous, pretensions so overwhelming. But
all this is worthless in God’s sight. It is the wine with which she makes the
nations drunk; but it is the product of "the vine of the earth," intoxicating to
the senses, and having nothing of the Spirit of God. Such earthly delights are
unsuited to the bride of an absent Christ, and are consistent with the bitterest
hatred and cruelest persecution of the servants of God. All therefore will be
consumed in judgment — "Her smoke rose up for ever and ever."

"And the four and twenty elders and the four living creatures fell down and
worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia." (Rev 19:4) All
heaven has but one song, but one note, as to the downfall of this corrupt
system. True, judgment is God’s strange work, but it is needful to clear the
ground for blessing, and we shall see shortly for what a mighty and blessed
event this judgment prepares the way. The four and twenty elders who join in
this thanksgiving are here named for the last time. They are, as we have seen, a
company representing the redeemed, who have been raised or caught up when Christ
came for His saints, and are, now for ever with the Lord. They add their
Alleluia to the chorus of joy at the judgment of the harlot, and then as a
company vanish out of sight. The reason for this will appear as we look at the
new scenes now about to open before us.


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  CHAPTER 16: 03.3.     THE GLORIOUS COMING AND KINGDOM OF CHRIST.
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The Glorious Coming and Kingdom of Christ. by T. B. Baines.

Section 3 of: The Revelation of Jesus Christ.

(Rev 19:5 to Rev 22:21) THE LAMB’S WIFE.

Rev 19:5-10. As the marriage of the Lamb and the presentation of the bride are
before Christ’s glorious appearing to judge and govern the world, it might be
thought better to class them with those preliminary events dealt with in our
last part. They are however so closely associated with His coming to receive His
inheritance that the moral connection seems more strictly preserved by regarding
them as a foreground to that picture of His advent and reign which fills the
rest of the book. Christ takes His inheritance as "Head of the body, the
Church;" nor is He, so to speak, perfected for this inheritance until the Church
is thus associated with him; for it is "the fulness [or completion] of Him that
filleth all in all." In one sense indeed the Church is thus associated with Him
now; but the time for its full and perfect recognition as the Lamb’s wife is
only just before His glorious appearing. The judgment of Babylon is among the
latest acts before Christ’s reign; for the seven last plagues "fill up the wrath
of God," and this judgment is one of the last events in this closing scene. The
league of the beast and the ten kings is only for "one hour," a term clearly
signifying a very short period; and they are already gathering their forces for
the fatal battle-field of Armageddon, when this outburst of fury lays Babylon in
the dust. There is a design in this. The events in heaven wait, so to speak, on
the events in the earth. While the harlot reigns the wife does not take the
place she has in God’s counsels. As soon as the harlot is judged the wife is
seen arrayed in her wedding garments, and the marriage of the Lamb is celebrated
in heaven.

"And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye His
servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great." (Rev 19:5.) This verse
connects the portion we have before been looking at with that which now comes
before us. A voice issues from the throne, the throne of judgment on which God
is sitting, claiming worship from all His servants, and all that fear Him. His
judgments now visiting the earth include both the solemn destruction of His
enemies, and the vindication of His own holiness. The former we have seen in the
judgment of Babylon; the latter we now see in time reign of Christ, and the
glory of the Church, the first-fruits of His redemption work.

"And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many
waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord
God Omnipotent [or Almighty] reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give
honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made
herself ready." (Rev 19:6-7) Here, as we have seen before, the reign of Christ
and of God are spoken of as identical. This is not because Christ is God (for it
is as man that He takes the kingdom), but it is because Christ as man perfectly
carries out God’s will; so that His government is, what all government should
be, the government of God administered in obedience to His will by man. How soon
after its institution government lost this character is shown in the Old
Testament. How completely it reverses it in its last stage, when the ruling
power of the world becomes the executor, not of God’s will, but of Satan’s, is
shown in former chapters of this book. Now God is about to give the throne to
the one man who will perfectly carry out His will, so that He Himself shall
really reign in the earth.

Here again God is spoken of as Lord God Almighty — Jehovah, Elohim, Shaddai. It
was as Almighty God that He entered into covenant with Abraham; it was as
Jehovah that He made Himself known to Israel. The promises of earthly dominion
and government given to the seed of Abraham and the nation of Israel all cluster
round these names. It was only by faith indeed that Abraham knew God as the
Almighty; but now He is about to show Himself, both to friend and foe, as at
once almighty in His judgments, and almighty in His salvation. But glory is
given to God, not merely because He reigneth, but because "the marriage of the
Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready." Who then is this wife of
the Lamb? Speaking to the Corinthians, Paul says, "I am jealous over you with
godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you
as a chaste virgin to Christ." (2Co 11:2.) And so in another epistle he writes,
"Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the Church, and gave
Himself for it . . . that He might present it to Himself a glorious Church, not
having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing. . . . For no man ever yet hated his
own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the Church: for we
are members of his body, of His flesh, and of his bones. . . . This is a great
mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the Church." (Eph 5:25-32.)

These passages show that the Lamb’s wife spoken of in the Revelation is the
Church. The scene of the marriage is in heaven, and it is important to bear this
in mind, for there is an earthly as well as a heavenly bride, just as there is
an earthly as well as a heavenly Jerusalem. The difference, however, is most
marked. Jeremiah writes, "Go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, Thus
saith Jehovah; I remember thee, the kindness of thy youth, the love of thine
espousals." (Jer 2:2.) The espoused wife proves herself unfaithful, and is cast
off; but God declares, that after many days of visitation He "will allure her,
and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her. . . . And she
shall sing there, as in the days of her youth." (Hos 2:14-15.) And when Christ
comes as King, girding His sword upon His thigh, making His arrows sharp in the
heart of His enemies, and establishing His throne "for ever and ever;" when He
appears anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows, all His garments
smelling "of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory palaces;" then it is
said to Jerusalem, "So shall the King greatly desire thy beauty: for He is thy
Lord; and worship thou Him." (Psa 45:1-11.) How different the earthly and the
heavenly brides! The earthly bride, having proved unfaithful, is cast off, but
will at length be allured into the wilderness, and thence restored and made
glorious in the earth. The heavenly bride, the true Church of God, has never
been cast off but is taken to be with Christ, and receives glory in heaven. It
is clearly to the heavenly bride, and not to the earthly, that the scene in the
Revelation refers.

We can now understand why, after the rejoicings which took place on the fall of
Babylon, the twenty four elders are never again seen. As representing the
redeemed, they consisted partly of "the Church of the firstborn," that is,
believers baptized into one body with Christ, His bride, and partly of the "just
men made perfect," or the saints of the older dispensations. Until the marriage
of the Lamb these formed one company. But now that His wife hath made herself
ready, they must separate. Some of those whom the elders represent belong to the
Church, the Lamb’s wife, and some do not. They are now, therefore, divided into
different companies, each to receive a distinct blessing. The blessing of the
Old Testament saints is afterwards named, but John’s vision was naturally
riveted on the glories of the wife. "And to her was granted that she should be
arrayed in fine linen, clean and white; for the fine linen is the
righteousnesses of saints." (Rev 19:8) The use of the plural here shows that
this raiment is not the righteousness imputed to all believers, but the
righteous deeds of the saints, wrought in them by the Spirit of God, and now
displayed as the covering and glory of the Church. The thing is stated in an
abstract way to suit the figure, but is individually applied in the epistles.
Before this time believers will have been manifested at the tribunal of Christ,
their works scrutinized, and a reward, proportioned to their faithfulness,
bestowed. Each saint will appear with Christ arrayed in the righteousness He has
wrought; the trials of faith, often so hard to bear down here, will "be found
unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ." (1Pe 1:7.)

What a contrast between the scarlet and purple, the gold, and precious stones
and pearls, with which the harlot dazzled the eyes of the world, and the white
robe, the mark of God’s approval, in which it is granted to the wife to appear
at the revelation of Jesus Christ! The splendour of the harlot, though "highly
esteemed among men, is abomination in the sight of God." On the other hand, the
very deeds that drew down the scorn, the hatred, and the persecution of the
world, are owned by God, and given for the adornment of the Lamb’s wife
throughout eternity.

"And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the
marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of
God." (Rev 19:9) Here, then, are two classes. The Church is the Lamb’s wife, but
besides her there are persons "called unto the marriage supper" John the Baptist
said, "He that hath the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the
bridegroom, which standeth and heareth Him, rejoiceth greatly because of the
bridegroom’s voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled." (John 3:29.) These
words, though spoken of the earthly bride, are equally true of the heavenly.
They show that there are saints who rejoice in the bridegroom’s voice, yet are
not of the bride. The Old Testament saints were, in this respect, like John the
Baptist. They are not of the bride. Heirs of glory and immortality, blessed
according to the riches of God’s grace, still their relationship with Christ and
their portion in heaven are not the same as those of the Church. Friends of the
bridegroom they will, of course, be, and will rejoice greatly because of His
voice. Their hearts will go forth in praise and gladness at the marriage supper
of the Lamb. This is their blessed portion in connection with the bridegroom
whom they love. But to the Church will belong the supreme, unapproachable joy of
being acknowledged as His wife, the special object of His affections, presented
to himself without "spot or wrinkle, or any such thing," loved and cherished
even as His own flesh. And here comes in a word to the conscience — "These are
the true sayings of God." How such an assurance seems needed as a spur to our
poor, halting faith! How apt we are, in contemplating so magnificent a destiny,
to yield the assent of our intellects, while withholding the confidence of our
hearts. What rapture would fill one souls, if these things were received, not
only as doctrines, but as facts. How the brightest light of this world would
pale before the splendour of this noonday sun. What down here could attract the
heart that was really gazing by faith on this prospect of unclouded glory opened
up to us in the heavens? What riches, what splendour, what pleasures, could
allure the soul to earth, which had appropriated, through trust in God’s word,
the glories that belong to the Lamb’s wife? So overwhelming is this spectacle,
that John, oppressed by the exceeding eight of glory, would fain render divine
homage to the angel that showed him it. "And I fell at his feet to worship him;
and he said unto me, See thou do it not; I am thy fellow servant, and of thy
brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: Worship God: for the testimony of
Jesus is the spirit of prophecy." (Rev 19:10) God alone is the object of
worship. The angel, however glorious, is only a ministering spirit, and here
ranks himself with John as a "fellow servant." He is also the fellow-servant of
all "that have the testimony of Jesus." This, in the book of Revelation, is the
spirit of prophecy. In other portions of the Word the Holy Ghost speaks, but
here the spirit of prophecy is the testimony of Jesus Himself for it is "the
revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto Him, to show unto His servants
things which must shortly come to pass."

CHRIST’S COMING WITH HIS SAINTS.

Rev 19:11 to Rev 20:3. The marriage of the Lamb has hardly taken place when the
grand spectacle for which all the previous history has formed the avenue
suddenly bursts upon our sight. Terrible as the successive waves of judgment
have been, they have led to no repentance. Man, as the billows have broken over
him, has only hardened himself in iniquity, and blasphemed the God from whom
these warnings came. Their terror has not roused him from his self-satisfaction
and self-seeking. Life still runs its course as when Noah entered into the ark,
or when God rained fire and brimstone from heaven upon the cities of the plain.
Men eat and drink, marry and give in marriage, buy and sell, plant and build,
till the very day that the Son of man appears "in flaming fire taking vengeance
on them that know not God." And if such is the ordinary course of life even in
this dreadful epoch, what will be the condition of the world politically and
morally? A great war will be raging, with the holy Land for its battle-field and
its prize. The prince of the Roman Empire, now strangely revivified, will have
led his confederate forces into the country to perish on the field of
Armageddon. The unbelieving portion of the Jews, who, under the false Christ,
have re-established idolatry and entered into a league with the Roman
confederacy, will be sustaining a siege of unexampled horrors from an enemy that
has crossed the Euphrates and now threatens the total destruction of the nation.
Behind this scene Satan will be at work, rising the antichrist as his tool to
deceive the Jews, the head of the Roman Empire as his tool to corrupt the
Gentiles, and both as his tools to persecute the faithful remnant who, in the
very vortex of this raging wickedness and misery, are still crying, and looking
to God for deliverance. And over all is God, still hidden, but unswervingly
carrying out His own purposes, converting the machinations of His enemies and
the wiles of Satan into pit-falls for their destruction, and instruments for the
accomplishment of His own will.

It is only with one branch, either of the judgments or of the blessings, that
the Revelation deals. Other Scriptures tell the fate of Gog, of the Assyrian, of
the Edomites, and other neighbouring nations. This book describes only the
judgment of the Roman prince and of the false Christ, who have cast so lurid a
light over its earlier chapters. Other Scriptures tell the glories of the
earthly Jerusalem and of restored Israel. This book describes only the glories
of those who reign with Christ, and of the New Jerusalem, "descending out of
heaven from God." We do indeed catch glimpses of the countless throng of
Gentiles emerging from "the great tribulation," of the sealed remnant of Israel,
and the victorious remnant of Judah, through momentary rifts in the dark clouds
of judgment which have been rolling round us. These glimpses show how fully the
word of God here is in with the word of God elsewhere. But the general object of
the book is to supplement the truths already revealed, by fresh unfoldings of
God’s purposes. The Church held no place in the Old Testament teaching. It is,
therefore, concerning the Church, and things connected with the Church, that the
light of revelation is here specially given.

Now this book takes up the Church and its immediate connections in three
aspects: the true Church, whose glory it shows in heaven as the Lamb’s wife; the
false church whose destruction it narrates in the fall of Babylon; and Latin
Christendom, which, as the revived Roman Empire, at last destroys Babylon, and
plunges into blasphemous infidelity and idolatry. It is of these things,
scarcely touched in the Old Testament, that the book of Revelation treats. The
fate of Babylon we have already seen: the coming of Christ, in its connection
with the true Church and the Roman Empire, is now brought before us.

CHRIST’S GLORY AND ARMY.

(Rev 19:11-16)

"And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and He that sat upon him was
called Faithful and True, and in righteousness 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." (Rev 19:11-13)
The great event for which the saints have been sighing, creation groaning, and
even a shuddering world at one time looking, now at length takes place. Mounted
on a white horse, the symbol of victorious power, Christ issues from the opened
heavens. While, on earth, "they are all gone aside, they are all together become
filthy, there is none that doeth good, no, not one," He comes as the Faithful
and the True. The armies of the world were summoned by "unclean spirits," but
"in righteousness He doth judge and make war." Coming in awful retribution, "His
eyes are as a flame of fire;" while as King, He wears on His head "many crowns."
But beyond all that man’s eye can see, He has a glory and character of His own,
incommunicable and incomprehensible, "a name written, that no man knew, but He
Himself." Man as He is, He is also the Son of God, and thus a fulness resides in
him which no mere creature intelligence can fathom.

Awful to relate, He is "clothed with a vesture dipped in blood," not the blood
of atonement, but the blood of judgment. He is red in His apparel because, as He
says in Isaiah, "I have trodden the wine-press alone; and of the people there
was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my
fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all
my raiment. For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my
redeemed is come." (Isa 64:3-4.) It is a terrible picture, but not more terrible
than true. He is, as in the days of His humiliation, "the Word of God," the
perfect exponent of God’s mind. Then He came "full of grace and truth," laid His
glory by, stooped to death, and was made a propitiation for sins. He has since
sent forth His ambassadors, praying men, in His stead, to be reconciled to God.
But men have scorned and slighted his invitations, despised and persecuted His
messengers. And now the same "Word of God" comes again, to declare and execute
God’s will, no longer in grace, but in judgment.

Even now, indeed, His love is as great as ever, and the blessings He bestows as
worthy of Himself. But they must be brought in by judgment. Men, having refused
to submit to His grace, must be made to submit to His power. Then shall the
world be filled with praise. Then shall the song burst forth, "Make a joyful
noise unto God, all ye lands: sing forth the honour of His name: make His praise
glorious. Say unto God, how terrible art thou in thy works! through the
greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee. All the
earth doth worship thee, and shall sing unto thee; they shall sing to thy name."
(Psa 66:1-4.) But Christ does not come alone. "And the armies which were in
heaven followed Him upon white horses, clothed in. fine linen, white and clean.
And 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 of
the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God." (Rev 19:14-15) These armies in heaven
are "clothed in fine linen, white and clean, which, as we have lately seen,
symbolizes "the righteousnesses of saints," and, like Christ, are seated on
white horses, types of victorious power. This identifies them with the Church,
which is clothed in white raiment, and is to reign with Christ. That it must be
the Church is clear, too, because Christ is now coming to "smite the nations,"
and to "rule them with a rod of iron." But He has promised the Christian
overcomer to give him "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 shivers, even as I
received of my Father." So likewise, in describing the war of the ten kings
against the Lamb, it is said, those who "are with Him are called, and chosen,
and faithful." (Rev 22:14) Now this can only refer to saints, for though angels
are "chosen and faithful," they are not, and could not be, spoken of as
"called." Calling, on the contrary, is the special characteristic of the saints,
who are constantly spoken of as "called saints," or saints by calling. It is,
therefore, the Church, with the addition, perhaps, of the Old Testament saints,
that here accompanies Christ as the armies in heaven. The Church is associated
with its Head in everything, in suffering, in life, in judgment, in dominion, in
glory. Like Christ, it is not of this world, and in the world it must have
tribulation. But if believers suffer with Christ, it is because they are
quickened together with Him, and "He that raised up Christ from the dead shall
also quicken their mortal bodies." They are, therefore, one with Him in life as
well as in suffering. And being thus associated with Him, He makes them sharers
of all He is and has. If He will judge the world and angels, the saints shall
judge the world, and judge angels also. If He will rule the nations with a rod
of iron, the saints will rule them with a rod of iron also. If He will appear in
glory to the world, the saints "shall appear with Him in glory" also. If He
reigns, the saints who suffer shall reign with him also. Here He comes forth
with a sharp sword out of His mouth, to tread "the wine-press of the fierceness
and wrath of Almighty God," and the saints, as the armies of heaven, come forth
with Him also.

"And He hath on his vesture and on His thigh a name written, King of kings and
Lord of lords." (Rev 19:16) How vain are all man’s efforts to resist God. "The
kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against
Jehovah and against His Anointed." The armies of the beast have been summoned to
"make war with the Lamb." To such giddy heights of madness can human pride and
presumption climb. But God’s decree remains unchanged: "Yet have I set my King
upon my holy hill of Zion." In spite of all man’s feeble efforts He hath "a name
written, King of kings, and Lord of lords;" for God hath "given Him a name which
is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things
in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every
tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the
Father." (Php 2:9-11.) JUDGMENT OF THE BEAST AND FALSE PROPHET.

(Rev 19:17-21)

"And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying
to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves
together unto the supper of the great God; that ye may eat the flesh of kings,
and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses,
and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both
small and great." (Rev 19:17-18) God prepared a great supper before, a banquet
of grace and love, and sent out his servants to call them that were hidden. For
near two thousand years the table has been spread, and still men turn a deaf
ear, and go, one to his farm, and another to his merchandise. Nay, the remnant
have taken His servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slain them. But God
will not be mocked for ever. The day of judgment has now dawned. It is not now,
as with Israel, armies sent forth to destroy the murderers and burn up their
city. It is Christ Himself coming to slay them with the sword of His mouth. And
now another supper is spread, the supper of the great God, and the flesh of
kings and captains, the despisers alike of grace and judgment, is the dreadful
repast. An angel, standing in the seat of supreme authority, bids the guests,
"all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven," to come and revel in the feast.
One’s heart sickens at the horrid sight, and one can only say, with Abraham,
"Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?" And now comes the great
catastrophe, the end of man’s daring machinations when he madly raises his puny
hand against God. "And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth, and their
armies, gathered together to make war against Him that sat on the horse, and
against His army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that
wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the
mark of the beast and them that worshipped his image. 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 upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth:
and all the fowls were filled with their flesh." (Rev 19:19-21) Man dares to
defy God now; but how fearful the arrogance to which his pride will reach, when
he goes forth "to make war against Him that sitteth on the horse!" Yet "these
are the true sayings of God." This is what man will surely do. But how speedy
and inevitable the end! As in creation, "He spake and it was done, He commanded
and it stood fast," so here, in an instant, the wicked is consumed with the
spirit of His mouth, and destroyed with the brightness of His coming. There is
no campaign here, no long, doubtful struggle, with victory inclining first to
one side and then to the other; for as Isaiah says, when describing the
destruction of another adversary by the Lord’s advent "Every battle of the
warrior is with confused noise and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be
with burning and fuel of fire." (Isa 9:5.) The armies of the beast are slain,
and given to the fowls of heaven. But a more awful fate is reserved for the
beast and his wicked coadjutor.

Two men have been taken to heaven without tasting death. Two men will be cast
into hell without tasting death. A thousand years before the. dead are judged, a
thousand years before Satan is finally punished, the leaders of man’s guilt and
blasphemy will be "cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone." Other
companies will follow both in the blessing and the doom. When the Lord comes for
His saints, before the time we are now looking at, all believers living on the
earth will be caught up to be with Him in heaven. When the Lord judges the
nations, shortly after the time we are now looking at, all those whom He places
on the left hand will be banished at once "into everlasting fire prepared for
the devil and his angels." But as there is something specially blessed in the
lot of the two men singly caught up into God’s presence, so there is something
specially ghastly in the fate of the two men singly cast into the lake of fire.
There is an awful isolation in their doom which oppresses the imagination. And
yet this is the destiny of men whom the popular voice has exalted into gods, men
whose wisdom and power have been the theme of universal admiration, men who have
only carried out the common desire of our fallen nature to forget God, and work
according to their own will.

SATAN BOUND.

(Rev 20:1-8.)

There are, as we have said, other judgments on the nations before Christ’s
throne is established and his people fully delivered. Three epochs are fixed —
the thousand two hundred and sixty-days already named, and two others beginning
from the same period. "And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken
away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand
two hundred and ninety days. Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the
thousand three hundred and five and thirty days." (Dan 12:11-12) There are,
therefore, three stages in the deliverance, one thirty days, and the other
seventy-five days, after the close of the three and a half years. But since the
only judgment here named is that of the beast and his confederates, it would be
beside our purpose to enter into the other events. The Revelation, however,
draws aside the curtain, and discloses a series of scenes not named in other
scriptures. The war in heaven showed the part which Satan was playing as accuser
of the brethren. Afterwards, however hidden behind his human masks, he is the
real instigator of all the horrible wickedness and cruel persecution of the
saints which his deluded agents carry on in the world. Till now God has left him
at large; and such is the power which he has gained by his lies over the hearts
of men, that he is called the prince and the god of this world. But now that the
true Prince is come, and God claims His rights as the Creator and Governor of
mankind, Satan must be bound. If the true wife is to be acknowledged, the harlot
must be judged; if the true Prince is to be acknowledged, the usurper must be
put aside. "And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the
bottomless pit and a. great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon,
that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him,
that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be
fulfilled; and after that he must be loosed a little season." (Rev 20:1-3.)

Satan is not very frequently mentioned in the Old Testament; but enough is said
there to show his real character. He is the persistent hater of God and good. He
first appears as the deceiver of men, then as their accuser before God, and in
both cases his falsehood rivals his malice. Hence our Lord says of him, that
"when he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the
father of it." (John 8:44.) As God is the author of truth, Satan is the author
of falsehood; as God is the author of light, Satan is the author of darkness.
But alas! his deceits have so blinded men’s eyes, that even when the light
shines they love darkness rather than light. He so deluded the Gentiles, that
they worshipped devils instead of God; he so deluded the Jews, that they
clamoured for the blood of their own Messiah, and crucified the One who alone
could bring them blessing. Since then he has gone about as a roaring lion,
seeking whom he might devour. He is "the god of this world," "the prince of the
power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience."
He has infused his poisonous corruptions into Christianity, and will at last
bring in that iniquity and blasphemy which draw down so dreadful a doom on the
beast and the false prophet. While he is permitted to go to and fro in the earth
there is no safety for man. At the beginning of Christ’s reign therefore he is
bound, and allowed to deceive the nations no more. This is not, as some have
thought the result of the spread of truth. So far from truth spreading, it is at
this period all but extinguished, and the most hideous wickedness is corning in
like a flood. Satan’s power is never so great as just before his imprisonment.
Instead of being overthrown by the triumphs of the gospel, he is suddenly
arrested in the very climax of his disastrous sway over the hearts of men by the
personal advent of the Lord himself. The blessings brought to the world by this
advent come, not gradually, but in a moment. It is suddenly that Satan is bound,
suddenly that the beast and false prophet are destroyed, suddenly that God’s
faithful people are redeemed, suddenly that creation "is delivered from the
bondage of corruption into the liberty of the glory of the children of God."
Then will come a season of real blessing for the earth and for mankind. But all
Scripture describes its advent, not as a gradual dawn slowly expunging the
darkness from the sky, but as a vivid burst of light revealing and banishing the
thick gloom that overspreads the nations, and then shining in calm splendour
over a redeemed and emancipated world. THE MILLENNIAL REIGN.

Rev 20:4-15. The reign of Christ is often spoken of in Scripture. Its splendours
and blessings, as affecting Israel, shine prominently out in the Old Testament,
and stand clearly marked in the background of the New. They have shot occasional
gleams of sunshine even through the thick gloom of judgment which envelopes this
book. Here, however, in consistency with the general character of the
Revelation, we see rather the retributive than the beneficent side of the
Messiah’s kingdom. "He must reign till He hath put all enemies under His feet."
The first act of the reign was the judgment of the living, of which we had one
awful example in the beast and his armies. Its last act will be the judgment of
the dead and the casting of Death and Hades into the lake of fire. THE
FELLOW-HEIRS.

(Rev 20:4-6) The earthly glories of the Messiah’s kingdom are, as we have said,
merely seen in transient glimpses throughout this book. But the heavenly
glories, about which other Scriptures are silent, are more fully detailed.
Believers are said to be "heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ." When
Christ reigns, therefore, it will not be alone, but in company with His
fellow-heirs. This is the feature of the reign now brought before us. "And I saw
thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them; and I saw the
souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the Word of
God, and [those] which had not worshipped 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." (Rev 20:4-6)

Three classes are here associated with Christ in His reign. The first is not
described "I saw thrones, and they sat upon them." Who are these? None to whom
this could refer have been named since the armies of heaven came forth with
Christ. It can only be to these, therefore, that allusion is here made. Indeed,
the reason why they are not more fully described is probably that none other
could be meant. These armies of heaven, as we have already seen, consist, wholly
or in part, of the church. But the Old Testament saints may, perhaps, also be
included, The garment of white linen is the special bridal costume of the Lamb’s
wife, but as it signifies "the righteousnesses of saints," it might adorn also
the saints of the older dispensations. It is not, indeed, said that these shall
reign with Christ, but comparatively little is revealed as to their distinctive
portion in the heavenly glories, and the silence of the Old Testament is not
supplied by the teachings of the New. The Lamb’s wife is the Church, and only
the Church; but it is possible that the older saints are included in the armies
of heaven which accompany Christ and in the first of the three classes which
share His reign. In this reign the Church, whether alone or not, obtains its
long-promised portion. Believers, fully conformed to Christ’s image, will share
His dominion over "the world to come." Such are the riches of God’s grace
bestowed upon all who have rested in Jesus as a Saviour. After enumerating the
most loathsome vices and crimes, the apostle says to the Corinthians, "And such
were some of you; 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 God." (1Co 6:11.) And of
such it is declared that they are "heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ,"
that they are made "meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in
light." No wonder the apostle prays that we "may be able to comprehend with all
saints, what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the
love of Christ, which passeth knowledge." But besides this first class there are
two others. On the opening of the fifth seal were seen "under the altar the
souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which
they held." (Rev 6:9.) This is the second class, here described as "the souls of
them that were beheaded for the witness of’ Jesus, and for the word of God."
These had cried to God to judge and avenge their blood on them that dwell on the
earth. They had white robes given them, but "it was said unto them, that they
should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow-servants also and their
brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled."

These fellow-servants and brethren of the earlier martyrs form the third class
of those who have "part in the first resurrection." It consists of those slain
during the great tribulation for refusing to worship the beast and his image,
saints whom we have already seen by anticipation in heaven, who having "gotten
the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over the number of his name,
stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God." The proper hope of these
two later classes of saints was not heavenly, but earthly. They were called
after the Church, or heavenly dispensation, had passed away, and called to look
for Christ’s return to reign over the earth. Of this they witnessed; for this
they died. But by their martyrdom they lost the very hope for which they had
been martyred; and as the heavenly hope was not theirs, what was to be their
portion? To the last class "a voice from heaven" had proclaimed, "Blessed are
the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth; yea, saith the Spirit, that they
may rest from their labours, and their works do follow them." We now see what
this blessedness is. Instead of the earthly portion they have lost, they are
made to share the heavenly portion of the Church, and perhaps the saints of the
older dispensations, as joint heirs with Christ. Truly a blessed exchange! For
God delights to give, not according to the measure even of His own calling, but
beyond all measure except the abounding fulness of His own grace.

These three classes, then, live and reign with Christ. At this point the book
lays aside for the moment its usual symbolic garb, and appears in a naked
simplicity of language which leaves room for no misunderstanding. It says that
Christ comes to judge the world; that after destroying His enemies and binding
Satan, He reigns for a thousand years; and that in this dominion the three
classes of heavenly saints live and reign with Him, while the rest of the dead
live not again until the thousand years are finished. This shows that the saints
here named had, for the most part at least, been dead, and had now been raised.
For if they had been only disembodied spirits, in what would they have differed
from "the rest of the dead"? The difference is, not in the fact that their
spirits lived, for this was common to both, but in the fact that their bodies
had been raised.

Hence it goes on to say, "This is the first resurrection," showing that there is
more than one resurrection, and that these persons who live and reign with
Christ are raised in the first. It adds, "Blessed and holy is he that hath part
in the first resurrection; on such the second death hath no power, but they
shall bc priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand
years." No language could be clearer. It is evident that there are two
resurrections — the first of believers before the thousand years’ reign, and the
second of unbelievers after the thousand years’ reign. If this does not mean a
resurrection of the body, where in Scripture is the resurrection of the body
taught? The theological chemistry which could evaporate the teaching of this
passage could equally evaporate the teaching of the others, or indeed of any
passage on any subject. The Church having through its worldliness lost the
present hope of the Lord’s return, began to look for it only at the end of the
world. Hence the doctrine of a universal resurrection and judgment at that
period received general acceptance, and theology sought to manipulate Scripture
into accordance with this doctrine. But no manipulation can destroy the plain
meaning of a passage like this, which shows that there are two resurrections —
one to life, the other to judgment and that the first precedes the second by a
period of a thousand years.

Other scriptures show that the first resurrection takes place when Christ comes
for His saints. "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." (1Th 4:16-17.) And again, "Behold, I show you a mystery;
We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the
twinkling of an eye, at the lust trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the
dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." (1Co 15:51-52.)
These passages show that the first resurrection takes place when the Lord comes
for His living saints, and that this was to be the present hope of even the
generation of Christians then on earth. Hence our Lord says, "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 immediately. (Luk 12:35-36.) And Paul commends
the Thessalonian saints because they had "turned to God from idols, to serve the
living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven." (1Th 1:9-10.) This is
the great scene of the first resurrection, which takes place before the
judgments and sorrows recorded in this bock. It includes all of the first class,
all the saints, who, as represented by the four and twenty elders, are seen
around the throne of God in glorified bodies, while the judgments are visiting
the world. But the other two classes who share this resurrection suffer
martyrdom during these judgments. Their resurrection is therefore a sort of
supplemental act to the great scene already described. It is symbolized, at
least partly, in the raising of the two witnesses. It is not said that these two
classes of saints form a part of the bride; for this is the blessed distinction
of the Church alone; but like the rest of the saints who have part in this
resurrection, they are "blessed and holy," are freed from the power of the
"second death," are "priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a
thousand years.

SATAN LOOSED A LITTLE SEASON.

(Rev 20:7-10) The blessings of the earth during the Messiah’s reign, the
fulfilment of the prophecies to Abraham and to David, the removal of the curse
on creation, the new covenant with Israel and Judah; these and other subjects of
deep interest are abundantly treated of in the prophets, and are alluded to in
the New Testament. But they are all omitted here. The glories of the heavenly
Jerusalem and the heavenly bride are recorded; those of the earthly Jerusalem
and the earthly bride are passed over in silence. For in this book the earth is
always a scene of judgment. And now a very solemn fact is mentioned. "And when
the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and
shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth,
Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the
sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the
camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out
of heaven, and devoured them." (Rev 20:7-9)

Such is man, and such is Satan. A thousand years confinement in the bottomless
pit has not changed the character of the deceiver. A thousand years’ blessedness
under Christ’s rule has not changed the nature which greedily listens to the
deceiver’s voice. Gog and Magog are here used in a wider sense than in Ezekiel,
and their invasion differs in time and details, though agreeing in character and
object, with that which he foretells. Ezekiel predicts an incursion by a great
northern power called Gog, which, from certain geographical indications, is
easily identified with Russia. In the Revelation, however, Gog and Magog are
used to designate the nations, not merely from the north, but from all parts,
"the four quarters of the earth." Again, the invasion named by Ezekiel is at the
beginning of Christ’s reign; that in the Revelation at the end. The hosts in
Ezekiel, too, fall on the mountains, and their bodies are buried; whereas the
forces assembled in the Revelation are devoured by fire from heaven. The
judgment is instantaneous. Christ’s reign is a reign of righteousness, during
which evil is not tolerated as now, but promptly crushed. Fire from heaven here,
as with Sodom and Gomorrah, overwhelms the gathered hordes, and thus in hideous
and hopeless ruin ends the last vain attempt of man to act in independence of
God. The people of Israel are here owned as "the saints," and Jerusalem as "the
beloved city." Taken in connection with Old Testament promises and prophecies
this presents no difficulties. "Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole
earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King."
(Psa 48:2.) "They shall call thee, The city of the Lord, The Zion of the Holy
One of Israel. Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went
through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many
generations." (Isa 60:14-15.) "Be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I
create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. And I
will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people." (Isa 65:18-19.) It is only
when these clear statements are discredited, and an interpretation contrary to
their plain meaning adopted, that difficulties begin to appear. This rebellion
against Christ is Satan’s last triumph. and the last outbreak of man’s enmity to
God. We have seen how the nations are at once swept away by the fiery tempest
which bursts upon them. We now see the final doom of their malignant deceiver.
"And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone,
where the beast and the false prophet are, and [they] shall be tormented day and
night for ever and ever." (Rev 20:10) He had previously been shut up in "the
bottomless pit;" now he is cast into the "lake of fire" that awful abode into
which the beast and the false prophet were hurled a thousand years before; that
"everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels," to which the "cursed"
ones, placed on the left hand of the Son of man in His judgment of the living
nations, are hopelessly consigned. There "they" (that is, the beast and the
false prophet as well as Satan) "shall be tormented day and night for ever and
ever." What do these words mean? Setting aside this book, the New Testament only
uses them in ascribing praise to God in such texts as, To whom be glory for ever
and ever." In the Revelation they are applied to the reign of Christ but their
commonest use is to designate the eternal existence of God, who is repeatedly
spoken of as the One "that liveth for ever and ever" Why is it so used? Clearly
because Scripture language contains no phrase equally strong to describe
continued, immutable existence. Now, if the strongest phrase that can be applied
to the eternal existence of God Himself is here used with respect to the
torments of Satan and the companions of his doom, it is surely meant that these
sufferings are eternal in the fullest and largest sense of the word,
everlasting, enduring without cessation and without end. No doubt the phrase
means "to the ages of ages," and when applied, as in the Old Testament, or in
reference to Christ’s kingdom, to the things of this world, it means, of course,
during the ages of this world; that is, as long as the world lasts. But in the
passage before us this application is impossible, since at this very time the
world comes to an end, the punishment of Satan being at the close of the
thousand years’ reign, which is the last stage in the world’s history. No
limitation therefore to the term of this world’s existence is here possible. The
words are spoken on the threshold of a boundless eternity over which no
measuring line of dates and epochs is thrown. In that eternity the self-existent
God is declared to live "for ever and ever." In that eternity the torment of the
lost is said to endure "for ever and ever." Surely it becomes those saved by
grace, instead of replying against God, silently to bow our heads before this
unfathomable mystery, and adore the goodness which has delivered us by such a
ransom from so fearful a doom. Nor are these words used of the three great
offenders alone. Those who worship the beast and his image "shall be tormented
with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence
of the Lamb; and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever, and
they have no rest day nor night." (Rev 14:10-11.) These, many of whom are "slain
with the sword of him that sat upon the horse," are raised for judgment after
the world has "fled away," so that any limitation of the punishment by the ages
of the world’s existence is, in their case as in the other, impossible. Their
doom therefore, like that of the beast and the false prophet, is an eternity of
suffering. And this surely removes all question as to the sense in which the
other phrases used on this subject are to be interpreted. "These shall go away
into eternal punishment" must mean the same punishment which others, cast into
the same lake of fire, undergo, and this is, as we have seen, in the fullest
sense of the words, "for ever and ever.

It is easy to quibble about phrases. "Where their worm dieth not, and the fire
is not quenched," is, no doubt, a figure; but is it a figure of transient or of
unending suffering? Does our Lord in thrice repeating these solemn words mean
that, though the worm dies not, the people on whom the worm feeds do die? that,
though the fire is not quenched, the people who are tormented in it cease to
exist? Surely this is trifling with the words of God. What does a man sentenced
to a limited term of imprisonment care whether the prison in which he is
confined is a permanent or temporary structure? What does a man condemned to be
stretched on the rack care whether the rack will last for an indefinite time, or
will be destroyed immediately after he has been tortured? All they are concerned
about is the time during which they suffer. So, if the worm and the fire are
figures of punishment, how can it affect those doomed to a limited period of
such suffering to know that after they have ceased to suffer the instruments of
their torment will exist for ever? If words are to be understood in their
ordinary sense, the torment spoken of is eternal, unending, as the existence of
God Himself. THE RESURRECTION OF JUDGMENT.

(Rev 20:11-15) This understanding of the words "for ever and ever" throws an
appalling gloom over the scene which next rises before us. Christ "must reign
till He hath put all enemies under His feet." The judgment of the quick has
already been completed. It only remains that the dead should be summoned before
His tribunal also. The believing dead have had their part in the resurrection to
life a thousand years before the end of the world, but "the rest of the dead"
are still, throughout the thousand years’ reign, in their graves, for they live
not again until the thousand years are finished. Now, however, is come "the time
of the dead that they should be judged."

"And I saw a great white throne, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the
earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw
the dead, small and great, stand before [not "God," but] the throne; 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. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and
Death and Hades delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged
every man according to their works. And Death and Hades were cast into the lake
of fire. This is the second death [even the lake of fire]. And whosoever was not
found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." (Rev
20:11-15) The end of the world is now come. Before the face of Him that sits
upon the great white throne, the earth and the heaven fled away. Nature is
dissolved, the present order of creation disappears, to make way for that new
creation which God will bring in upon the ruins of the old. The time has come
when "the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall
melt with fervent heat. The earth also, and the works that are therein, shall be
burned up." (2Pe 3:10.) This is the last act in "the day of the Lord," and at
this supreme moment we have now arrived. All that man has been living for, the
world and his own works in it, his riches, his greatness, the mighty monuments
of his skill, the cities he has built, the empires he has founded, all on which
his pride and his affections were fixed, vanish as a waking dream — "there was
found no place for them." But though man’s works are gone, though the very earth
has melted away, man himself has not perished. Those yet in their graves belong
to Christ, not, alas! for salvation, but for judgment. "Thou hast given Him
power over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as thou hast
given Him." (John 17:2.) Some are given to Him that He may bestow upon them
eternal life; but He has power over all flesh; all is His. He has not redeemed
all, but He has purchased all the lost as well as the saved. Thus Peter speaks
of false teachers, "who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying
the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction." (2Pe
2:1.) His rights, by virtue of the cross, extend to all, and all must bow the
knee to Him "of things [or beings] in heaven, and beings in earth, and beings
under the earth" — all heavenly, earthly, and infernal, must own His lordship.
The redeemed own it in grace; the rejecters of grace must own it in judgment.

He has bought their bodies as well as their souls, and now the hour is come in
which all that are still in their graves must hear His voice and come forth to
the resurrection of judgment. to be judged according to the stainless purity of
the great white throne. On that throne Christ, not God, is seated; for though
God is "the Judge of all" (Heb 12:23), He "hath committed all judgment unto the
Son," and that "because He is the Son of man." (John 5:22, John 5:27.) It is
God’s judgment, because Christ, as the perfect man, perfectly executes God’s
righteousness; but it is before "the Son of man" that "the dead, small and
great," are here arraigned. And now the great assize begins. "The books were
opened, and another book was opened, which is the book of life." These are
figures found in Daniel and drawn from the proceedings of human tribunals. There
are two books — one containing the works of the dead, for they were "judged out
of those things which were written in the books, according to their works," the
other registering the names of those ordained to eternal life. The dead now
raised may be divided into two classes, those who died before the reign of
Christ, and those who died during that reign. As to the first, their fate is
painfully evident. "They that are Christ’s" are raised at His coming for His
saints. Those who die in the Lord between his coming for His saints and His
coming to reign have also part in the first resurrection. All, therefore, that
have died "in the Lord" from the beginning of the world to Christ’s reign, have
already been raised a thousand years, and "the rest of the dead" consists of
persons who were not "in the Lord." These are judged according to their works.
Their names cannot be in the book of life. Its silence can only witness against
them. For them, therefore, there can be nothing but the second death; for
"whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of
fire." As to the other class, those who die during the reign of Christ,
Scripture is not so explicit. We read in Isaiah — "I will rejoice in Jerusalem,
and joy in my people and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor
the voice of crying. There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old
man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old;
but the sinner, being an hundred years old, shall be accursed. . . For as the
days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the
work of their hands." (Isa 65:19-22.) It is clear, then, that death during the
millennium will, in certain cases, be inflicted as a judgment, and of course
sinners thus cut off will be raised for condemnation. But is it equally clear
that death will happen only as a judgment? Doubtless there will be great
longevity in Israel but we are not told that this extends to the Gentiles, or
that even in Israel death is excluded except as a penalty. And if there is
nothing in Isaiah conclusively proving that believers will not die during this
period, neither is there anything in the Revelation showing that their names may
not be found in the book of life when raised in the final resurrection.

It is thought indeed by some, that all, if judged according to their works, must
be lost. But in the judgment of the quick described in Mat 25:1-46, the Gentiles
are judged according to their works, and yet some are saved. Indeed this is
always the principle of God’s action, for it is said that the dead "shall come
forth, they that have done good unto the resurrection of life, and they that
have done evil unto the resurrection of judgment." Now how can any be said to
"have done good," and not to "have done evil"? Merely because their evil deeds
are blotted out by the blood of Christ, and only the deeds wrought in them by
the Spirit are reckoned. This principle would apply to believers dying — if any
do die — during the millennium. Where Scripture says so little, one should speak
cautiously; but it seems a somewhat strong inference to conclude that only the
wicked die during Christ’s reign, or that, because the judgment is according to
man’s works, none can be saved. The statement that "whosoever was not found
written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire" suggests, at least,
a different conclusion.

We repeat, however, that if any are saved in this resurrection, it can only be
believers dying during the millennial age. Its general, if not universal,
character is, therefore, that of doom. It is the solemn knell of the second, the
eternal, death. The countless millions of sinners who have perished in their
sins, the millions who have heard the word of God’s salvation and rejected it,
the millions who have been "almost persuaded," but not quite; the millions who
have said, "We will hear thee again of this matter," and then turned away to
indulge in their lusts; the amiable, the upright, the religious, the self-
righteous, who have been too good for Christ — all will be there. Not one can
escape. "The sea gave up the dead which were in it." "Death and Hades," the
resting-place of the body and the home of the spirit, "delivered up the dead
which were in them, and they were judged every man according to their works."
Nor are these merely the works seen by man, for in that day "God shall judge the
secrets of men by Jesus Christ." (Rom 2:16.) To all, except, perhaps, the class
already named, there is one fearful doom. "Death and Hades," it says, "were cast
into the lake of fire," all their crowded vaults emptied into this gulf of
endless woe. "This is the second death."

It is strange that these words, which seem to bid an eternal farewell to hope,
should be urged as an argument against the eternity of punishment. True, fire is
a symbol of destruction, but destruction does not necessarily involve
annihilation. In this case it has not this force, for the beast and the false
prophet, as well as Satan, were cast into the lake of fire, but instead of being
annihilated, are there "tormented day and night for ever and ever." Again, there
is nothing in the second death which implies annihilation. Where in Scripture is
death used with this meaning? Does a man dead in trespasses and sins mean a man
who does not exist? Does the first death put an end to conscious being? The rich
man and Lazarus, to say nothing of the thief on the cross, are a sufficient
answer to this question. On what ground, then, can it be argued, in spite of the
plain declaration that the lost shall be tormented "for ever and ever," that the
second death means annihilation? Alas that men should rather seek to blindfold
themselves to the horrors of the coming wrath, than escape it by casting
themselves on the infinite riches of divine grace! THE ETERNAL STATE.

Rev 21:1-8.

"And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first
earth were passed away; and there was no more sea." (Rev 21:1) These words are
taken from God’s promise to Israel: "Behold, I create new heavens, and a new
earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. But be ye
glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create
Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy." (Isa 65:17-18.) But though similar
language is used, the New Testament vastly expands its meaning. The state of
things in the millennial age so differs from that previously existing, that it
is figuratively described as a new heaven and a new earth; but the context shows
that the change is only from the present condition of the world to the
infinitely more blessed condition it will assume, both physically and morally,
under the reign of Christ. This is the scope of Old Testament prophecy; but the
New Testament brings us to the shores of the boundless eternity which stretches
beyond, and bids us gaze on the new heaven and the new earth of this unending
age.

Peter describes believers as "looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day
of God, wherein the heavens, being on fire, shall be dissolved, and the elements
shall melt with fervent heat. Nevertheless," he adds, "we, according to His
promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness."
(2Pe 3:12-13.) In the millennial earth righteousness reigns; but wickedness,
though repressed and judged, still exists. It can hardly be said therefore that
righteousness yet dwells on earth; that is, has the earth for its suited,
settled abode. Moreover the day spoken of by Peter is after "the heavens, being
on fire, shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat." It
is not therefore in the millennium, but after both the millennium and the world
itself have vanished away. During Christ’s reign the physical condition of the
earth will be greatly improved; but in the age spoken of in the Revelation it is
entirely altered. Before Him that sat on the great white throne "the earth and
the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them." Now all is new.
"There was no more sea." This implies a total reconstruction of the globe and
its atmosphere, as well as of the physical organization of those inhabiting it.
These new heavens and new earth are therefore quite different from those named
by Isaiah.

Another striking feature may be noticed. In the verses we are now to look at the
Lamb is not mentioned, only God. This is quite different from the millennial
earth, where Christ reigns, having had it put in subjection to Him as Son of
man. The order of events sketched by Paul will explain this. He says, "Since by
man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. 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-fruits; 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.
For He must reign till He hath put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy
that shall be destroyed is death. For He hath put all things under His feet. But
when He said, All things are put under Him, it is manifest that He is excepted,
which did put all things under Him. And when all things shall be subdued unto
Him, then shall the Son also Himself be subject unto him that put all things
under him, that God may be all in all." (1Co 15:21-28.)

Now this passage explains the order of events. Death having entered by man,
Christ takes His place as man to bring in resurrection. He Himself rises the
first-fruits of the new creation, then His people at his coming. His reign
follows, lasting till every enemy is subdued. In this reign He is still the
subject man, receiving dominion and power from God, and exercising it in
obedience to God. The last enemy subdued is death. Now this is the stage at
which we have arrived in the Revelation — His reign has been sketched, his
enemies subdued, and last of all death itself defeated and destroyed. What comes
then? Christ yields up the kingdom to the Father, and God, not the Father, but
God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, is "all in all." When God is adored as
Creator (Rev 4:1-11) the Son is unseen; God alone appears. And as in the past
eternity, before the first heaven and the first earth were created, so in the
future eternity, after the first heaven and the first earth have passed away.
Then again God will be all in all; not exercising His dominion through a man,
even the Son in man’s nature, but in His own eternal sovereignty as God. This is
just what we find in the brief description of the eternal state given in the
Revelation. In this eternal state the Church, symbolized as the holy city, and
also as the bride, has a glorious place: "And I John saw the holy city, new
Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for
her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the
tabernacle 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." (Rev 21:2-3)
It is said of the new Jerusalem in the millennium that "the throne of God and of
the Lamb shall be in it." (Rev 22:8.) In the eternal state the Lamb is not seen;
for Christ has given up the kingdom to the Father, and God is all in all. But
the city will still be, as during the millennium, God’s dwelling-place; for when
it is seen coming down out of heaven there comes "a great voice," saying,
"Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them."

Paul declares believers to be "built upon the foundation of the apostles and
prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner-stone; in whom all the
building, fitly framed together, groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: in
whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit."
(Eph 2:20-22.) The Church then is designed to be God’s dwelling-place. Now it is
"an habitation of God through the Spirit." In the millennial age "the throne of
God and of the Lamb shall be in it" In the eternal state God, who is all in all,
will make it His tabernacle. Such is the marvellous destiny of the Church. It is
a "mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who
created all things by Jesus Christ: to the intent that now unto the
principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known, by the Church, the
manifold wisdom of God." (Eph 3:9-10.) But the Church will also retain its glory
as the Lamb’s wife. True, God will then be all in all, and to this end Christ,
as man, will have given up his rule into the Father’s hands. But Christ, though
not administering God’s government as man, will never cease to be man, and will
never cease to love the Church, "which He hath purchased with His Own blood." He
will still love her as his own flesh, and in the new heaven and the new earth
she will still appear "prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." The figure
of the Church as God’s tabernacle recalls the camp in the wilderness, where God,
descending from heaven, had His dwelling-place constructed after the heavenly
pattern, in the midst of Israel, thus marking them as His people and showing
Himself to be their God. The resemblance, however, only extends to the manner in
which God dwelt among them in a tabernacle suited to his own glory. In other
respects all is contrast. In the wilderness were sin and death, weary wandering
and unsatisfied expectations, distance from God and trials of the journey. In
this eternal scene of bliss sin and death are unknown, or remembered only as
vanquished foes. Here is no more wandering, for all have entered into the rest
that remaineth for the people of God; no more expectation, for every longing of
the heart has found complete satisfaction. Distance from God is no more known,
for the glorified saints are fitted for the presence of Him who is "of purer
eyes than to behold evil." And the trials and sorrows of the wilderness have
been left for the unclouded rest and joy of the desired land.

How wonderful the change! "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. And He said unto me, Write:
for these words are true and faithful." (Rev 20:4-5) What marvels are condensed
in these few words! When God created the world and man He saw that all was very
good. Alas! the deceiver entered, and fearful havoc was soon made in this fair
scene. Sin fell with its withering blight upon creation, and this world, acting
in independence of God, became a wilderness of death and sorrow, of tears and
pain. But now the Son of God has been made man to redeem a people for Himself
and for God, to save them from their sins, and to bring them into that
dependence from which alone happiness can flow. Here we see the blessed and
eternal fruits of His toil — God, in His infinite holiness, able to take His
place in this new creation, and to shed around the blessings of His love to a
happy and dependent people; all tears wiped away; death with its dark shadow
blotted out of the scene; pain and sorrow for ever gone. Such is the blessed lot
of those among whom God can dwell. How different from the ruin and misery of a
world which knows Him not. Do our hearts answer, with a sigh, that such riches
of glory are beyond our powers to conceive? How graciously God stoops to meet
our weakness and reassure our faith! "And He said unto me, Write: for these
words are true and faithful."

How, then, are these blessings to be secured? "And He said unto me, It is done
[or, "they are done"]. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will
give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. He
that overcometh shall inherit all [or, "these"] things; and I will be his God,
and he shall be my son." (Rev 20:6-7) How cheering, after these unspeakable
glories have flashed before our eyes, to be told that the Eternal One, the first
and the last, is pledged to accomplish them on our behalf, and that they are
ours freely. The second death is the portion of man by nature; for "it is
appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." But to the
thirsting one, whose parched soul feels its need of the gift of God, is given
"of the fountain of the water of life freely." "Whosoever drinketh of the water
that I shall give him shall never thirst," says our Lord; "but the water that I
shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting
life." (John 4:14.)

There are two conditions, and two only — the thirst and the conquest. "He that
overcometh shall inherit these things." But does not this imply some power, some
merit, on the part of man? Not at all. "This is the victory that overcometh the
world, even our faith." (1Jn 5:4.) Israel overcame Pharaoh’s host, not by their
own strength, but by God’s. To us, as to them, the word is, "Fear ye not, stand
still, and see the salvation of the Lord." (Exo 14:13.) When Satan accused the
brethren before God, "they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the
word of their testimony;" that is, by their faith in the work of Christ and the
word of God. And so against all the array of adversaries that Satan and
circumstances may gather against us, "in all these things we are more than
conquerors through Him that loved us." (Rom 8:37.) The Eternal One has pledged
his word that they who thirst, and put their trust in him, poor, empty sinners
who come to draw from His infinite fulness, shall inherit all these surpassing
blessings and glories which it is the delight of his heart to bestow. Alas!
however, there is another side to this picture. "But the fearful, and
unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers,
and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth
with fire and brimstone which is the second death." (Rev 20:8) How solemn the
contrast. We are now in Gods eternity, alter all the ages of this world have
rolled their course; in that trackless ocean of time which stretches out into
the immeasurable future. In this limitless expanse two classes, each living,
each fixed in its present condition "for ever and ever," stand before us. The
thirsting one whose lips sought the water of life, who leaned on the might of
God for victory, shall inherit nameless glories and blessedness in His presence
for ever. The unbeliever, the doubting one, who refused the message of God’s
grace, or, left to himself, pursued the desires and follies of his own corrupt
heart, will receive eternal perdition, the unending misery of the second death.
Not one ray of light struggles through the blackness of this dense cloud. It is
the final, irrevocable doom. Restoration and annihilation are the wrecker’s
fires by which Satan seeks to deceive his victims till they are dashed to pieces
on the rocks of eternal judgment. God holds out the steady light of His word to
save men from these false guides, and to direct their eyes to the true channel,
His own way of salvation, by which alone they can escape the wrath to come. He
has no pleasure in the death of a sinner, and still the voice of Him who died
for the lost goes pleadingly forth, "Come unto me, all ye that labour and. are
heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

Thus in hopeless gloom for the unbeliever, and in cloudless glory for the
believer; ends this brief vision of the eternal state. "The second death" shuts
in its jaws the refusers of grace, those who "loved darkness rather than light
because their deeds were evil." The presence of God, including in itself all
other blessings, sheds an eternal radiance of joy and glory over those who have
believed in Him. Scripture furnishes no other light with respect to this period,
this boundless stretch of future existence in which God is all in all. We are
set for a moment on its shores to gaze into its fathomless immensity, permitted
to catch one glimpse of its surpassing glories and one wail from its unending
woes; then the curtain is dropped, and the prophet’s vision turns away to other
scenes. THE NEW JERUSALEM.

Rev 21:9 to Rev 22:5.

"And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full
of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will show
thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife." (Rev 22:9) The sudden change of scene and
person shows that this is not a continuation of the vision we have just been
looking at. A new person comes as John’s guide, perhaps the same that had shown
him the harlot before, but not the one in whose presence he had just been. This
guide opens to him a new sight; one, indeed, which he had already beheld in a
general way in his vision of the eternal state, but whose detailed glories are
now to be fully unfolded to his eyes.

One great feature of the seven vials was the fall of Babylon, which prepared the
way for the marriage of the Lamb, and the appearance of the bride. The angels,
therefore, who poured out these vials are fitting messengers sent to show, first
the judgment of the false wife, amid next the glories of the true. It was one of
them which came to John, and talked with him, saying, "Come hither; I will show
unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters." (Rev
17:1.) It is one of them which now again comes and talks with him, saying, "Come
hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife." The similarity is not
accidental. It shows a connection which intensifies the contrast between the two
things thus symbolized. What is the direct opposite of the false church which,
however widely spread, has its roots in Rome? Surely the true Church, which has
its roots in heaven, where Christ, its life, is. To contrast Jerusalem under the
Messiah’s reign with the false system of religion which has borne the name of
Christ, would be altogether without point. The false thing must be contrasted
with the true, the counterfeit with the genuine.

Both the false and the true Church are set out under two very different symbols.
Looking Christward, the false church is the harlot, and the true Church is the
wife. Looking manward, the false church is Babylon, the habitation of confusion,
and the true Church is Jerusalem, "the habitation of peace." The harlot is
decked out in a gaudy rube fitted to dazzle the world; the bride is arrayed in a
white garment, pleasing to the eye of Christ. The great system framed according
to man’s will is a moral chaos; the great system moulded according to God’s mind
is the display of perfect symmetry and order. No doubt the symbolic description
of the true Church is borrowed from Jerusalem, just as the symbolic description
of the false church is borrowed from Babylon. But this no more proves the real
Jerusalem to be meant by the one description than the real Babylon to be meant
by the other. On the contrary, if we admit Babylon to be a figure, we must admit
Jerusalem to be a figure also, each morally perfect, but not to be confounded
with the reality.

Indeed, that this New Jerusalem is not a real city seems obvious, for it is
described, not as the dwelling-place of the bride, but as the bride herself,
whose marriage with the Lamb has already been celebrated in heaven. Its form
too, as shown in the following verses, though exquisite as a symbol of the
divine symmetry of the true Church, is impossible as the shape of a real city.
Besides, the description of the millennial Jerusalem given by Ezekiel, while
bearing some resemblance, is for the most part a striking contrast, to the
glorious vision here beheld.

"And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed
me that great city, the holy Jerusalem [or "the holy city, Jerusalem"],
descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God: and her light was
like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal."
(Rev 21:10-11) When he saw the judgment of the harlot, he was carried "away in
the spirit into the wilderness," the home of desolation and death. When he sees
the glories of the bride, he is carried "away in the spirit to a great and high
mountain." Mountains, in Scripture, are often used, both symbolically and
literally, as the scenes of glorious visions. It was from a mountain height that
Balaam was forced to exclaim, "How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy
tabernacles, O Israel!" It was from a mountain height that Moses saw stretched
beneath him the glorious land he was not permitted to enter. It was on a
mountain height that the Lord Himself was transfigured before the eyes of His
bewildered disciples. The figure here is taken from Ezekiel’s vision, when he
was carried to the land of Israel, and set "upon a very high mountain, by which
was as the frame of a city on the south." (Eze 40:2.) But the resemblance only
brings out more clearly the difference of the two visions. In Ezekiel the
earthly character of the scene is marked. The place of observation is "the land
of Israel," and the city is on the earth. John’s place of observation is not
connected with Israel, and the city is not on earth, but "descending out of
heaven from God." The symbol of a city being adopted, the name given is
naturally that of the city in which God will have His delight, the city of
peace, Jerusalem. But it is the heavenly Jerusalem in contrast with the earthly,
and blessed and glorious as the earthly city will be, what are its blessings and
glories compared with those now set forth in connection with this holy city
descending from heaven? It has "the glory of God." Its light is "like unto a
stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal." In an earlier
chapter, He that sits upon the throne is "to look upon like a jasper and a
sardine stone." (Rev 4:3.) The Church appears, therefore, in the glory of God
Himself: All the brilliancy of the jasper, all the transparent purity of the
crystal "the glory of God," meetness for "the inheritance of the saints in
light," such is the Church after Christ has presented it "to Himself a glorious
Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing;" but "holy and without
blemish." (Eph 5:27.)

"And [it] had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates
twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve
tribes of the children of Israel: on the east three gates; on the north three
gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates." (Rev 21:12-13) In
Ezekiel the city is also quadrangular, having twelve gates, three on each side,
named after the twelve tribes of Israel. (Eze 48:30-35.) In both cases there is
complete order and symmetry; in both cases a connection between the city and
Israel. But in Ezekiel’s city it is an earthly connection; in the city in the
Revelation it is a heavenly connection, for at the gates are twelve angels. The
gate is the place where the judges sit, and it was promised the apostles that
"in the regeneration, when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of His glory,
ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel."
(Mat 19:28.) We know not, indeed, how the saints will exercise judgment, and the
vision here is manifestly symbolic. It agrees, however, with our Lord’s promise
in showing some kind of connection between the Church, or heavenly Jerusalem and
the earthly government of God having Israel for its centre. The "wall great and
high" suggests separation and security. Everything defiling must be shut out
from God’s dwelling-place as out of the tabernacle of old, and perfect security
beyond the reach of evil is the blessed portion of God’s redeemed people. "And
the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the twelve names of the
twelve apostles of the Lamb." (Rev 21:14) The Church is "built upon the
foundation of the apostles and prophets." Some may ask, Where is Paul, the
special depository of Church truth? In a literal description it would of course
be necessary to make the numbers accurately agree with the number of apostles.
This description however is not literal, but symbolic; and in symbolic
descriptions this literal accuracy is not needed. Twelve is often used as a
typical number where it is not strictly adhered to in fact. Thus Scripture
always speaks of the twelve tribes, when in reality there were thirteen; and our
Lord promises that the twelve apostles should sit on twelve thrones judging
Israel when one of them was a "son of perdition." In common usage convenient
typical numbers are retained as descriptions, though the actual numbers may
differ. Thus in many trades a dozen is used, not to mean twelve, but some
arbitrary number deviating from twelve. "A hundred" was at first a division of
our own land inhabited by a hundred families. The name is still kept, though
perhaps not one division has now the hundred families from whence it was
originally derived. So here the perfect symbolic number is used without
reference to the individuals which make it up. The wall is what fences a city
off from the world without; the gate is what gives it communication with the
world without. In that which marks the exclusive distinction of the Church the
apostles appear; in that which marks its relationship with the world the twelve
tribes appear; for the apostles are the foundation course of the Church, whereas
Israel is always God’s first thought in His government of the world. In that
which symbolizes the going forth of the Church’s authority towards the world
Israel therefore naturally comes into prominence.

"And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates
thereof, and the wall thereof And the city lieth four-square, and the length is
as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand
furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal. And he
measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to
the measure of a man, that is, of the angel." (Rev 21:15-17) Once more we note
the symbolism of Ezekiel, both as to the measuring reed in the hand of the man
who shows him the city (Eze 40:3). and as to the quadrangular form of the city
itself. But again the differences are thrown into bolder relief by this designed
parallelism. In Ezekiel the measuring reed is of ordinary construction, suited
to an earthly city; in the Revelation it is a golden reed, the type of divine
righteousness, suited to the dwelling-place of God. In Ezekiel the city is
large, becoming a splendid earthly metropolis; in the Revelation the city is
vast beyond all possible earthly limits. In Ezekiel it is of the quadrangular
form, often used in Scripture to indicate perfect earthly symmetry; in the
Revelation there is another dimension, a height equal to the length and the
breadth, showing a perfect cube, a still higher order of symmetry, heavenly in
character, and manifestly unsuited to the earth.

It is surely no mere coincidence that the Holy of holies in the temple was of
the same cubic form. "The oracle in the forepart was twenty cubits in length,
and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof: and he
overlaid it with pure gold." (1Ki 6:29.) Now David gave to Solomon "the pattern
of all that he had by the Spirit of the courts of the house of the Lord." (1Ch
28:12.) His plans therefore, like those of Moses, were formed after a heavenly
model, and had a typical signification, so that the cubic form of the holiest
place in the temple was an inspired type of the perfect symmetry of that
"habitation of God" which formed the pattern of these earthly structures. Here
too the number of administrative perfection twice appears in the twelve thousand
furlongs which is the length of the side, and in the twelve times twelve, or one
"hundred and forty and four cubits," of the height of the wall. The measure is
"the measure of a man, that is, of the angel." The standard therefore is after
the measure of man, not in his earthly body, but in the body he will have after
resurrection, when he is clothed upon with his house which is from heaven. In
these "spiritual bodies" the "children of the resurrection" are said to be
"equal unto the angels" (Luk 20:36), and it is to this new condition that the
standard of measurement is conformed. The scene, though all symbolic, is
throughout symbolic of the heavenly, and not of the earthly. The symbols are, of
course, borrowed from the earth, but each has a heavenly stamp impressed upon
it.

"And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold,
like unto clear glass." (Rev 21:18) Jasper, as we have seen, is symbolic of "the
glory of God." Gold typifies the righteousness of God, not in His government,
but in His nature. Thus the Church shares the righteousness belonging to God,
the saints being made morally "partakers of the divine nature." (2Pe 1:4.) The
glory of God, also, the jasper wall, hems it in, at once defending it from all
intrusion of evil, and maintaining it in that holy separateness which becomes
His chosen habitation. A cube entirely inlaid with gold was the typical
dwelling-place which He took in Israel. A cube of "pure gold, like unto clear
glass," is the symbolic representation of the "holy temple," the "habitation of
God through the Spirit," here set before us in the heavens.

"And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of
precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the
third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth,
sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the
tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst. And
the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and
the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass." (Rev
21:10-21) The names of the apostles are engraved on the foundations of the
Church, but Christ Himself is the true foundation. As in the breastplate of the
high priest the perfections of Christ, gleaming in the precious stones, were
linked with the tribes whose names were cut upon them, so here the manifold
perfections, and beauties, and glories of Christ, the true foundation, bear up
the Church in its heavenly brightness. The foundation of all is jasper, "the
glory of God;" for it is on Christ as "the Son of the living God," the One in
whom "dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily," that the Church is built.
Then comes the stone on which the elders of Israel had seen God Himself
standing, when "there was under His feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire
stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness." (Exo 24:10.) Then,
completing the perfect number, follow the varied yet harmonious beauties
centring in His matchless person, all sustaining that Church which He has built
for His own delight and for God’s habitation, that wondrous structure which only
divine wisdom could have planned, only divine grace could have erected, only
divine glory could uphold.

"Every several gate was of one pearl." The Church itself is the "one pearl of
great price," which, on account of its exceeding beauty and preciousness in His
eyes, Christ "hath purchased with His own blood." And in every avenue of
approach God will have the memorial of this beauty and preciousness preserved.
At each portal the "one pearl" meets the eye. If "the kings of the earth do
bring their glory and honour unto it," they cannot approach its gates without
beholding how precious this blood bought assembly is to the heart of Christ. Its
streets, too, are "pure gold, as it were transparent glass." The sea of glass
occupies the same place in the heavenly temple that the sea of water did in the
earthly, the change showing that while on earth there was constant need for
purification, in heaven there is fixed, unalterable purity. So in this scene. On
earth, though sin cannot be imputed to the believer, there is constant liability
to defilement in his walk, and the washing of water by the word, so beautifully
typified in the washing of the disciples’ feet, is constantly needed to restore
communion. In this scene defilement of walk is just as impossible as imputation
of sin. The path for the feet is the gold of divine righteousness, and the
transparent glass shows that the need of cleansing is there unknown. All is
spotlessly pure, transparently stainless, and the heart and the conscience are
free to hold uninterrupted fellowship with God.

"And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the
temple of it." (Rev 21:22) The city itself; or the Church, is a "holy temple,"
an "habitation of God through the Spirit." There could be no temple here; for a
temple is a place where God, though deigning to dwell, is yet hidden. Outside,
God is not seen, but only His dwelling place; inside, one is in the immediate
presence of God Himself. Believers even now have access there, into the holiest
of all, though the rent veil. There needs no temple, no veil, to separate them
from God. So in this marvellous vision. The Church is, as it were, the perfectly
-proportioned, innermost shrine in which God dwells, the holy of holies, of pure
gold and heavenly symmetry, in which the throne and presence of God find their
habitation. And as there is no temple, nothing to hinder the immediate glory of
the, divine presence shining in its midst so there is no need of any other
authority or any other light. "And the city had no need of the sun, neither of
the moon, to shine in it for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is
the light thereof." (Rev 21:23) All created light, all created authority,
however necessary here, will be superseded there by the perfect light shining in
the glory of God and the person of Christ. Nor is this all. The Church will
radiate the light it receives. "And the nations [the words "of them that are
saved" should be omitted] shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the
earth do bring their glory and honour unto [not "into"] it." (Rev 21:24)
Christians are placed here to "shine as lights in the world." (Php 2:15.) Alas
what poor, dull lights, what faint, glimmering reflections of the glory of Him
who came as "the light of the world," even the most devoted and holiest
believers are. And what is the power of shining? Not the effort to do so, but
gazing upon the glory of Christ. Moses’ face shone, though he knew it not,
because he had been in God’s presence. Believers’ faces shine when they,
"beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image,
from glory to glory." (2Co 3:18.) But the time is coming when believers will
behold Christ face to face, and will bear His image perfectly; when He Himself
shall "be admired in all them that believe," and there shall be no dimming of
the glorious light in which they shine. "We shall be like Him; for we shall see
him as He is." (1Jn 3:2.) And as with believers individually, so the Church as a
whole will be the perfect manifestation of God’s glory, suited for His own
chosen habitation.

"The kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour unto it," not into it.
They will not enter the Church, but will render it the joint homage which is
meet for "the bride, the Lamb’s wife;" for when Christ reigns, and "all kings
shall fall down before Him, all nations shall serve Him," then the Church will
reign as His royal bride, the sharer of His universal dominion and universal
homage. "And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day; for there shall be
no night there. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations unto
it." (Rev 21:25-26) There is perfect security. The night, in which evil can
encroach unseen, has no place here. We are children of the day, children of the
light. This is even our present standing, though our failure to walk as children
of the light should fill us with grief and shame. But there all will be
manifested, all will be perfect. Of the Church it will then be true, as of God
Himself, that in it there is "no darkness at all; for it will shine with God’s
light. The nations, like their kings, will do homage to "the Lamb’s wife" as
sharing the throne and glory of the Lamb Himself. This shows that the Church is
here seen, not in the eternal, but in the millennial state. Its own condition
will indeed be for the most part unchanged in the eternal state; but there will
then be no nations on the earth, no kings to bring their glory and their honour
to it. All this belongs to the earth in the divided condition which begun at
Babel, and continues even during the millennium. But it has no place in the new
earth, from which all trace of the failure and sin of the old creation is for
ever blotted out. As the figure of a city is consistently maintained, the
heavenly saints are spoken of as its inhabitants. "And there shall in no wise
enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or
maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life." (Rev
21:27) God is "of purer eyes than to behold evil;" and if believers are saved,
it is only because He has made them "meet to be partakers of the inheritance of
the saints in light." No evil can exist in the presence of His light. The jasper
wall, His own surpassing glory, is a perfect wall of separation between His
dwelling-place and all that defiles, all that is abominable, all that is
inconsistent with His own holy truth. None can be there but those "written in
the Lamb’s book of life;" those whom He has fitted by His own grace for His own
presence. But it is not only in authority, not only in glory, that "the bride,
the Lamb’s wife," is associated with the Lamb Himself. The city will also be as
the dwelling-place of God, the fountain-head from which streams of blessing gush
forth to the millennial earth. "And he shewed me a pure river of water of life,
clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the
midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree
of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month:
and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations." (Rev 22:1-2.)
The symbolism here is that of Ezekiel, but with differences which show that the
earthly things are only types of the heavenly. In Ezekiel there is a real river
of water issuing "from under the threshold of the house eastward" (Eze 47:1),
and going forth to heal the waters of the Dead Sea. "And by the river upon the
bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat,
whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall
bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued
out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf
thereof for medicine." (Eze 47:12) The earthly things are moulded after the
heavenly. Thus the earthly Jerusalem is fashioned like the heavenly,
four-square; but in size and form suited to this world. The Holy of holies,
God’s earthly dwelling-place, is fashioned like the heavenly, of the same form
and the same material, but with dimensions fitted to its earthly character. From
the temple, God’s dwelling-place in the earthly metropolis, the waters flow
forth to spread life and fertility over the barren parts of the land, and to
heal the bitter waters of the sea of death. From "the throne of God and of the
Lamb" in the heavenly metropolis streams forth the river of the water of life;
not to the land only, but to all mankind. Trees with fruit monthly renewed "for
meat," and with leaves "for medicine," are on either side the stream renting out
of the earthly city. But "the tree of life," of which the overcomer shall eat,
is on either side the stream of the water of life flowing out of the heavenly
city; and besides its fruit for the overcomer, its leaves are for the healing,
not only of those in the land, but of the nations. Thus while the earthly
Jerusalem is especially the centre of blessing to the land of Israel, the
heavenly Jerusalem is the centre of blessing to the whole earth; for wherever we
deal with the earthly things, Israel has the foremost place; but the circle of
the Church’s interests is wider, and in its blessings Jew and Gentile are alike
partakers.

There is no "true of the knowledge of good and evil," no tree of responsibility
now. That tree, whose taste brought death, was withered up by the cross, where
all our broken responsibilities were met; and met so perfectly, that we now
"have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Here therefore "the tree of
the knowledge of good and evil" disappears, and "the tree of life" alone
flourishes. Those dwelling in "the paradise of God" eat of its fruits; but in
the millennial earth, where evil, though checked, still exists, "the leaves of
the tree are for the healing of the nations." Here again it is clear that the
time described is not the eternal state, when all evil is done away, but the
millennial age, when healing is still needed.

"And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall
be in it and His servants shall serve Him; and they shall see His face, and his
name shall be in their foreheads" (Rev 22:3-4) Among the nations of the earth
there is still the curse, not constantly abiding, but occasionally coming in as
the punishment of sin; for "the sinner, being an hundred years old, shall be
accursed." (Isa 65:20.) Here, however, in this heavenly Jerusalem, "there shall
be no more curse." How can there be for those who have been conformed to the
image of God’s Son? They are a people whom God has fashioned for Himself for His
own dwelling-place, and therefore "the throne of God and of the Lamb" is among
them. They are His servants, and now none other divides their allegiance with
him. Unreservedly "they serve Him." Serve whom? it may be asked; God or the
Lamb? Here, as often in John’s writings, no distinction is made; both are spoken
of as one. There is but one throne named, but One whom they serve, but One whom
they see, but One whose name is written in their foreheads. Everywhere the same
truth meets us — "I and my Father are one." They are His chosen companions,
seeing as they are seen, for they behold His face; and they are specially
claimed as His own, for "His name shall be in their foreheads." They shall then
bear perfectly the moral imprint which, alas! it is often so difficult to
discern in his saints now. "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." (1Jn 3:2.)

"And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of
the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light; and they shall reign for ever and
ever." (Rev 22:5) This is, as it were, the summary of the blessings enjoyed by
the heavenly saints, the Church, in the millennial state. And what a summary!
All darkness gone for ever; God Himself, not now through instruments, but in His
own person, their blessed source of light, shining upon them in all His glory,
and they able to rejoice in the glory; the saints reigning with Christ to the
ages of ages during the whole millennial cycle.

Such is the Church, the bride, the Lamb’s wife, the heavenly Jerusalem, during
the thousand years’ reign. The figures used may vary. The affections of Christ
may be brought into prominence by presenting it as the bride; its relationship
with the earth may be symbolized by picturing it as a city; its wonderful place
in the counsels of God may be shown forth by delineating it as His
dwelling-place. But whatever the figure used, the prominent thought is the
surpassing glory and blessedness of that assembly which God is now calling out
to be formed into one body, and to be for ever associated in peculiar closeness
with the Son of His love. What a contrast the moral glories here portrayed with
the sad, ruined, failing condition of even the true Church as we now see it in
the world! God’s thoughts and love are not deflected from their purpose by our
failure; but should not this very fact cover us with shame that our failure has
been so great?

CLOSING WARNINGS AND EXHORTATIONS.

Rev 22:6-21. The Revelation, strictly speaking, ends with the vision of the New
Jerusalem, for the following verses are not so much a part of the Revelation
itself as words, spoken by the angel or by the Lord, pressing the truth and
value of what is revealed upon our hearts. "And he said unto me, These sayings
are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets [or of the spirits
of the prophets] sent His angel to show unto His servants the things which must
shortly be done. Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings
of the prophecy of this book" (Rev 22:6-7) No book so marvellously unfolds the
heavenly glories awaiting the saints; no book so emphatically repeats the
assurance that these things are "faithful and true." The Old Testament name of
Lord God, His title of God of the spirits of the prophets, the angel messenger
sent, and the relationship of servants ascribed to the saints — all fit in with
what we have seen to be the prophetic character of the book. But there is a
difference between these prophecies and those of the Old Testament, which they
so strongly resemble. In the Old Testament the events foretold are spoken of as
distant; here they are spoken of as "things which must shortly be done." The
reason is, that the Church period is always counted outside the course of time.
It is an interval, a parenthesis, which grace may lengthen, but which at any
moment may be brought to a close. Believers are, therefore, to be constantly
expecting the coming of the Lord. His word to them here is, Behold, I come
quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book."

What is meant by keeping these sayings? During the Church time the greater part
of the judgments predicted in this book are yet future, and how then can the
sayings be kept? To treasure up the sayings of God is, however, always
profitable. It is not necessary even that they should in every case be
intelligently understood, much less that they should immediately affect
ourselves. The historical development of the events foretold may not be divinely
apprehended; but the great principles of God’s righteous judgments, culminating
in the glory of Christ, may be clearly discerned through the thickest haze of
misinterpretation in which the book can be wrapped. Has the Church, then, been
faithful? Alas! something more than misunderstanding has helped to obscure the
truth. The great feature of the book is the failure of Christendom. It stands
out in the letters to the seven churches, in the corrupt, apostate Babylon, and
in the great Gentile power of the last days which, though embracing none but
Christian lands, falls into the most hideous idolatry and rebellion against God.
Now this utter failure of the Church as a professing system, though the great
feature of the book, is just the feature which Christians have refused to see.
The Spirit had warned the Gentiles that they stood by faith, and that if God had
not spared the natural branches, the Jews, they insist take heed lest He also
spare not them Instead of taking heed, they became high-minded, and did not
fear. If God’s word be true, therefore, they must be cut off: This the
Revelation points out; but the Church, fancying itself secure, has never dreamed
that judgment is awaiting it, and, shutting its eyes to the solemn truth, has
accepted any interpretation but that which thus appealed to its conscience. Had
it bowed to the truth concerning the judgment about to come upon the house of
God, this apostacy could never have taken place. But it has failed to keep "the
sayings of the prophecy of this book," and high-mindedness, worldly ambition,
and departure from its true character as waiting for Christ, have been the sad
results.

"And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I
fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.
Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellow-servant, and of
thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book;
worship God." (Rev 22:8-9) Now, as before, when John fell down to worship the
angel, it is the sight of the glories of the Church that overwhelms him. Then he
had beheld "the Lamb’s wife" "arrayed in fine linen, clean and white;" now he
has been gazing on the dazzling vision of the New Jerusalem. On each occasion
the angel refuses worship, associating himself with John, and his brethren the
prophets, and those "which keep the sayings of this book."

"And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for
the time is at hand. He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is
filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous
still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still." (Rev 22:10-11) Daniel was
told to "shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end."
(Dan 12:4.) This is quite different from the directions here given, where the
prophecy is not to be sealed, "for the time is at hand." Neither prophecy has,
however, yet received its fulfilment. Why, then, should the first be spoken of
as far distant, and the second as at hand? Why should the first be sealed up as
papers only wanted at some future time, and the other left unsealed as papers
wanted for immediate use? To say that Daniel’s prophecy was six hundred years
earlier than the other will not suffice; for if two thousand four hundred years
is a distant date, so is eighteen hundred years; and if events eighteen hundred
years off are said to be at hand, why may not events two thousand four hundred
years off be said to be "at hand" also? The explanation lies in the character of
the present epoch, during which no dates are given, and no time is reckoned.
None is to put off, even in thought, the Lord’s return. This being a momentary
expectation, the whole Church period is passed over, and the only time counted
is the short interval after the Church is taken. Then God’s dealings with the
world in government are resumed, and the preparation for the restoration of
Israel and the reign of Christ is again carried on. When that time comes the
moral condition of men will be fixed. The unjust will remain unjust, and the
filthy will remain filthy, the righteous will remain righteous, and the holy
will remain holy. Clearly this cannot apply to the present day of grace. It is a
warning that "the time is at hand;" for the day of grace is passing, and no
calculation of its continuance can be made. These judgments are therefore to be
regarded as near, and when once come, the call to repentance will sound no more,
the blessed will be eternally blessed, the wicked eternally wicked.

Hence the speedy retain of the Lord is again pressed, and now by the Lord
Himself; for up to this point it has been an angel speaking, though sometimes in
Christ’s name, but henceforth it is Christ speaking in his own person. "[And]
behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as
his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first
and the last." (Rev 22:12-13) In the Revelation the two parts of the Lord’s
second advent, His coming for his saints, and His coming to judge the world, are
often spoken of in the same language. Morally they resemble each other, being
both acts of judgment towards the world, and both bringing blessing to the
believer, The believer is taken to glory by the first act, manifested in glory
by the second. The world is left over for judgment by the first act, brought
under the execution of judgment by the second. The important point is, then, not
the order of events, but the great fact that Christ is coming, and that when He
does come, He "will render to every man according to his deeds." (Rom 2:6.) This
is the invariable principle of God’s righteous dealings, and is in no respect
weakened by grace. Grace, it is true, lays our sins on another as our
substitute, and credits us with the good deeds wrought in us by God’s own power;
but this confirms the principle instead of contradicting it. If an upright man
winds up his affairs, he collects what is due to him, and pays what he owes. Nor
is the justice of this course affected by the fact that certain debts have been
remitted, or certain obligations incurred, out of kindness. So God’s righteous
judgment according to works is in no way impaired by the fact that the
believer’s sins have been put away, and the believer’s righteousnesses have been
wrought, by his own grace.

These righteous principles, being as eternal and immutable as God Himself, are
followed by the declaration of Christ’s own character as the eternal One, "the
Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last." The
consistency of righteousness and grace is shown in the next verse: "Blessed are
they that wash their robes [not as our version has it, "do His commandments"],
that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates
into the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and
murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie." (Rev 22:14-15)
Thus while righteousness has been declared the principle of Christ’s judgment,
grace is the foundation on which the blessing of the redeemed is based. The
"right to the tree of life," which is in the midst of the paradise of God, is
not "keeping the commandments," or any goodness on man’s part, but the
righteousness of "the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin," because he has
washed his robes, "and made them white in the blood of the Lamb." This, too, is
his title to "enter in through the gates into the city," or to become a member
of the Church of God. For unless thus washed, he is in himself defiled, and must
remain without, classed among the dogs, or unclean, the sorcerers, the
whoremongers, the idolaters, the murderers, the lovers and practisers of
falsehood, who have no place in the holy city.

Having thus declared the principles of righteousness on which He will act at His
second coming, the Lord closes the book with a few weighty and solemn words. "I
Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I
am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star." (Rev
22:16) There is something beautiful in the way in which the Lord, when thus
closing his Revelation, speaks to the beloved disciple, not in His official
character, but for a moment in that personal name by which he had known and
loved Him here on earth. It is as though He had said, True I am the eternal One,
the supreme judge; but for all that I am still that same Jesus with whom you
walked in Galilee, that same Jesus on whose breast you leaned at supper. He is
also "the faithful and true witness," and as such He has, through His angel,
testified the coming ruin and failure in the churches, But still He is the hope
alike of the earthly and of the heavenly saints. To the earthly saints, whose
portion consists in the fulfilment of the promises made to David, He is "the
root" of David, or the One to whom all the promises owe their origin, and also
the offspring of David, the royal seed to whom they all point To the heavenly
saints, the Church, He is the perennial hope, the harbinger of the coming day,
"the bright and morning star." And this draws forth the response, prompted by
the Spirit, from the heart of the bride; "And the Spirit and the bride say,
Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And
whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely." (Rev 22:17) The true
attitude of the Church, the bride of Christ, is always to be waiting for his
coming. He is her hope. The declaration that He is "the bright and morning star"
naturally awakens the longing of the bride, and the Spirit, speaking through
her, joins in the invitation to "come." And still the word of grace is going
forth, telling of Jesus as a Saviour, so that he who hears may receive the word
and he able to join in the cry; "Let him that heareth say, Come." Nor will He
who bid the weary come to Him for rest, and the thirsty for water, leave it only
to others to proclaim the word. Once more His own voice goes forth in tender
solicitation — "Let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take
the water of life freely." How cheering these words of grace, these earnest
loving appeals, at the close of this book of judgments. They seem to say, "The
day of retribution is fast approaching, but the day of grace still lingers;
eternal life is my free gift. Before it is too late, come, drink of this
fountain which will satisfy for evermore." The one-sidedness of man always leads
him to set grace and judgment in antagonism, whereas the many-sidedness of God’s
word gives to each its proper place. After the tender words of invitation just
uttered, it is solemnly instructive to see the rampart with which God shelters
this book of sevenfold judgments from any intrusion of man’s reasoning and
unbelief. "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy
of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the
plagues that are written in this book: and if any man shall take away from the
words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book
[or from the tree] of life, and out of the holy city [and from the things],
which are written in this book." (Rev 22:18-19)

What is meant by adding to and taking from this book? It does not mean only the
open infidelity which refuses it as God’s word. No doubt it would include this,
but it includes much more. The professing Church has practically set aside this
book, not through mere misunderstanding, which is not here referred to, but
because its character and hopes took a worldly instead of a heavenly type. It
refused to believe itself under judgment, and thus took from this portion of
God’s word. It assumed its own universal dominion and triumph over evil, and its
own continuance to the end of time, and thus added to this portion of God’s
word. No doubt many of God’s children, who reverence His word, have been misled
by this false traditional belief, and have in all simplicity and honesty adopted
a system of interpretation founded upon it. We need not say that the judgments
here denounced against those who tamper with God’s word have no application to
such. But to Christendom as a whole the guilt is chargeable, and on Christendom
as a whole the penalty will fall. Babylon, which, instead of repenting and
clothing herself in sackcloth, like Nineveh of old, has "said in her heart, I
sit a queen, and am no widow," will have added unto her "the plagues that are
written in this book." The denunciation only extends to those who shall add to
or take from the words of this particular book; but it must not be inferred that
God regards a similar treatment of other portions of His word with greater
indifference. The fact that this book would be so wrested from its true meaning
as to blind men’s eyes to the failure and judgment of Christendom, has indeed
caused God to invest it with a s special sanctity, not only pronouncing a
distinct blessing on those who read it, but a distinct curse on those who slight
it. But the principle is true of Scripture generally. To add to God’s word, or
to take from it, must bring judgment. Those who set their minds and wills in
opposition to God’s can have no part in the tree of life or in the holy city.
And now come the Lord’s closing words, words at once of warning and of hope: "He
which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come,
Lord Jesus." (Rev 22:20) They are words of warning, for is it not time that
Christendom should wake from its sleep, and instead of indulging in the dream of
universal dominion, own the ruin and failure which its apathy has brought in?
They are words of hope, for what can be more cheering to the true saint of’ God,
who sees that all has failed on man’s side, than the thought that the Lord is
coming to take His waiting people to Himself and afterwards to establish His
throne in righteousness on the earth? Hence, when His voice is heard, "Surely I
come quickly," the heart response of His people goes forth, "Amen. Even so,
come, Lord Jesus." So closes this book, the writer only adding the parting
salutation, "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all [or with all
saints]. Amen" (Rev 22:21)

SUMMARY

It perhaps assist the memory, and thus give a clearer grasp of the whole book,
if we seek once more to map out on a small scale the wide tracts of time and
space over which the Spirit leads us in this revelation of the ways of God. As
far as the earth is concerned the book is almost exclusively a book of
judgments. The earthly glories of the kingdom are scarcely seen. On the other
hand, the heavenly glories of the kingdom, and especially of the Church, which
were entirely hidden from the Old Testament prophets, are unrolled in dazzling
splendour before our eyes.

God reveals Himself as Creator and Judge, as Jehovah, who entered into covenant
with Israel, and as the Almighty, the author of the promises to Abraham and the
fathers. Christ bears throughout the character of the Son of man to whom
judgment is committed. The Holy Ghost is seen in the manifold activity of His
ways as connected with the government of God, not in His present unity as
baptizing all believers into one body. In the first part Christ appears clothed
in judicial garments, and walking amidst the seven golden candlesticks, which
represent the seven churches. He makes a revelation concerning "the things which
are," the church period, and "the things which shall be after these," or the
things that will happen after the church period. (Rev 1:1-20.) THE THINGS WHICH
ARE. The Church as a responsible thing here on earth is first brought under
review, and its melancholy decline set forth. As a professing body it has
utterly failed, though always containing true believers, the overcomers to whom
special rewards are promised. in Ephesus the first symptoms of that fatal malady
which at length undermines the whole system are discerned, not by any outward
marks visible to the eye of man, but by those subtle manifestations which the
searcher of hearts too surely detects. First love is withering, and though in
Smyrna we see a temporary revival under persecution, in Pergamos we find the
affections transferred to the world, and evil hateful to Christ lightly
tolerated. In Thyatira the gangrene has spread, and evil is not only endured,
but delighted in. Thorough corruption has eaten into the very vitals of the
Church, and henceforth the overcomers are only a feeble remnant holding the
truth in the face of opposition, and looking for the Lord’s return as their
hope. In Sardis there is a partial recovery as to outward purity of doctrine and
practice, but no real restoration of vital power; the mass dead, the rest ready
in die. Philadelphia shows much weakness, but a faithfulness and dependence
which call forth the Lord’s approval. Laodicea displays activity and fancied
power, but with no sense of or true humility before God; hence the lukewarmness
which makes it nauseous to Christ, and leads to its final rejection. (Rev
2:1-29; Rev 3:1-22.)

Such is the sad prophetic outline of the Church on earth. The coming of the Lord
for His saints forms no part of the scheme of this book; but its true place is
after the third chapter. It is the event for which the overcomers were bidden to
look, and though naturally omitted in a record of judgments, it must necessarily
occur before the professing Church is spued out of Christ’s mouth.

PRELIMINARY JUDGMENTS. From this point therefore we enter on entirely new
scenes. The true Church has disappeared from the earth. God, as Creator, sits on
the throne of judgment, encircled with a rainbow, the token of His covenant with
the earth, and surrounded by the twenty-four throned elders who represent the
redeemed, including the true Church, in glorified bodies in heaven. Christ,
together with the Father and the Spirit, is here adored as God and Creator. (Rev
4:1-11.) But God next appears occupied with the execution of His counsels
preparatory to the establishment of Christ’s earthly kingdom. Christ is no
longer seen walking in judicial robes among the candlesticks, but as the
executor of God’s purposes of wrath upon the earth. He comes forth us the man
who is found worthy to unfold and carry out God’s judgments contained in the
seven-sealed book. He is the Lion of the tribe of Judah and the Root of David,
the One who is to accomplish all that God promised to Israel and its royal
house. He takes His dominion, however, not in virtue of His divine power or
dignity, but as the slain Lamb, the obedient One, to whom, because He had
stooped to death, every knee must bow. The adoration already commences, and by
anticipation is even perfected, in the worship of the elders, of the angels, and
finally of all created things. (Rev 5:1-14.) With the opening of the sealed book
the stream of preliminary judgments begins to flow, and continues to the close
of the eleventh chapter. It is divided into two portions, the milder judgments
of the seals, and the heavier ones of the trumpets. These correspond with the
two divisions in the prophecy of our Lord, who speaks first of "the beginning of
sorrows," and afterwards of the great tribulation immediately preceding His own
glorious advent. The first six seals disclose wars, famines, pestilences, and
persecutions, ending in a mighty social convulsion which excites general terror
and consternation. The martyred saints cry for vengeance in a way unsuited to
this dispensation, but in perfect accordance with the voice of the waiting
saints, who lock for deliverance from Christ’s coming and reign, as
prophetically recorded in the Psalms, (Rev 6:1-17.) After these judgments there
is a pause, during which a remnant of one hundred and forty-four thousand,
consisting of twelve thousand from each of the twelve tribes of Israel, is
sealed for preservation; while the eye is also permitted to glance forward and
behold a countless throng of Gentiles who are brought out victoriously from the
great tribulation. (Rev 7:1-17.)

Then the seventh seal is opened, and the judgments of this terrible hour, each
ushered in by the solemn sound of a trumpet, fall in awful succession upon the
earth. The first four indicate dreadful suffering (Rev 8:1-13.); but the last
three have a specially fearful character, and are designated "woe" trumpets.
(Rev 9:1-21.) During the second of these woes we see God’s purposes clearly
brought out. Christ, as a mighty angel, takes possession of the earth, and a
proclamation is made that on the sounding of the last trumpet the mystery of God
will be finished. John receives an open book, and is told that he must prophesy
again concerning peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings, thus unfolding
God’s purposes about the government of the world. (Rev 10:1-11) The prophecy
therefore proceeds to show us God in connection with Jerusalem, where, though He
has a people and witnesses, the Gentiles still reign and the mass of the Jews
are still in unbelief. The beast, the last head of the Roman Empire, now revived
with Satanic energy, exercises authority in the city, and causes the witnesses
of the coming Messianic kingdom, notwithstanding their miraculous powers, to be
put to death. The earth rejoices at their destruction, but speedily stands
aghast as it beholds their dead bodies supernaturally quickened and taken up to
God, whose wrath further manifests itself in a destructive earthquake. The time
of the witnesses’ prophecy and the beast’s ascendancy in Jerusalem, as recorded
in this chapter, is the three and a half years of Gentile rule directly
preceding Christ’s glorious advent. On the sounding of the seventh trumpet joy
breaks forth in heaven over the establishment of Christ’s kingdom, the reward of
His saints, and the judgment of His adversaries. Details are not given, but such
is the grand event over which the heavens rejoice. (Rev 11:1-19.)

Here the continuous narrative breaks off. But God has other purposes to reveal.
Having already shown that He is now occupied with Israel and Jerusalem, we have
His thoughts concerning these central points of His earthly government further
unfolded. The ark of the covenant again appears in the temple in heaven. (Rev
11:19.) Satan’s hostility to Israel, symbolized under the figure of the dragon
and the woman, is brought to light. He vainly attempts to destroy Christ, the
man child, who is caught up by God into heaven. The Church interval is then
entirely passed over, and the events of the last days of Israel’s sorrow, before
her final deliverance, are revealed. Michael the great prince who stands up for
Israel, drives Satan, their enemy and accuser, out of heaven, who, coming to the
earth fall of rage, because he knows that his time is short, persecutes the
woman and her seed, or the faithful Jews who are looking for the Lord’s advent.
But his designs are frustrated, God providing a refuge in which the saints are
sheltered from his malice. (Rev 12:1-17.) The instruments whom Satan uses in
this persecution are then shown. The first is the beast, or the head of the
Roman Empire, whose revival is filling the world with astonishment. The prince
by whom it is resuscitated is the last head of the Gentile monarchy, and is
specially endowed by Satan as the god of this world with dominion and authority,
which he uses to further Satan’s object in persecuting the saints now looking
for the Messiah’s kingdom. Worship of God is set aside, and the beast not only
renders religious honours to Satan, but claims them for himself. He has in
Jerusalem a wicked co-adjutor, who, gifted by Satan with miraculous powers,
presents himself to the Jews as their Messiah, and persuades them to worship the
beast and his image, inflicting death on those who refuse. Such is the state of
things in Jerusalem, just before Christ returns to set up His reign of
righteousness over the earth. The period during which this unparalleled
tribulation endures — the period of Satan’s persecution, the beast’s rule, and
the anti-christ’s deceptions — is three and a half years, or the last half week
of Daniel’s prophecy. (Rev 13:1-18.)

Having now shown us the evil agencies at work, we are next called aside to see
God’s purposes in the midst of all this. Permitted to look to the end, we behold
the persecuted remnant who had fled into the wilderness brought into power and
blessing in the millennial earth. We then hear the proclamation of the
everlasting gospel, or God’s claim as Creator, set forth, followed by the
denunciation of judgment against Babylon, the corrupt profession of Christianity
still remaining in the world, and against those who worship the beast and his
image; while at the same time an announcement is made of the blessed lot of
those who henceforth die in the Lord. Two classes of judgment are also foretold
as awaiting the Gentiles, the discriminating judgment indicated by the harvest,
and the unsparing outpouring of wrath symbolized by the treading of the wine
press. Such are God’s thoughts and designs concerning this world, which seems to
be abandoned to Satan and his tools. (Rev 14:1-20.) The prophet is then allowed
a brief glimpse at the blessedness of those who have died in the Lord during
this dreadful season, after which he is called to witness the preparations for
pouring out the seven vials in which the wrath of God is filled up. (Rev
15:1-8.) These follow, and are generally of the same character as the judgments
under the trumpets, though seemingly of shorter duration and greater intensity.
Towards the close they pave the way for the final catastrophe, the armies of the
world being gathered to make war with the Lamb, and judgment being at length
executed on Babylon, the corrupt system which has usurped and dishonoured the
name of Christ. (Rev 16:1-21.) The true character of this system in God’s sight,
its abominations, and its connection with the Roman Empire, are next portrayed.
But the head of this empire and his confederates at length turn against it, and
inflict upon it a terrible destruction. Its overthrow is recorded first under
the figure of the harlot, the abandoned woman who claimed to be the bride of
Christ, but was really the paramour of the world (Rev 17:1-18) and next as a
vast worldly and political system, symbolized by the expressive figure of a
great city. (Rev 18:1-24.) CHRIST’S COMING AND REIGN. The pretended wife being
thus signally judged amidst the rejoicings of heaven, the true wife, the real
Church, is beheld in heaven, clothed in white raiment, which typifies the
righteousnesses of saints; and the marriage of the Lamb takes place. Henceforth
the elders are no more seen, some of the united company which they represented
forming a part of the Church, and being thus included in the bride, and others
being among the friends of the Bridegroom. And now all the preparations are
completed, and the time for Christ to take the kingdom, together with His
heavenly bride, has at length come. He issues from heaven, girded with majesty
and power, and accompanied by His saints. The time to judge the great destroyers
of the earth has arrived, and the beast and the false prophet are captured, and
cast alive into the lake of fire, while their armies are destroyed by the sword
of Him that sits upon the horse. (Rev 19:1-21.) Satan too is bound, and thrust
into the bottomless pit, where he is confined a thousand years. (Rev 20:1-3.)

Judgment having now been executed, the reign of Christ and of His saints
commences. These saints comprise three classes those who were raised and taken
to heaven before these judgments begun, whom we have already seen under the
figure of the four and twenty elders, and two companies of martyrs, who suffered
death during the persecutions of this time. All have their part in the first
resurrection, the resurrection of life; all are made priests of God and of
Christ; all reign with Him during the thousand years of His dominion over the
earth. At the close of this period Satan, being loosed for a short time, stirs
up a vast insurrection against Christ’s rule, which is crushed by flames coming
down from heaven and destroying the rebels, while Satan himself is finally cast
into the lake of fire. Then comes the end of the world, accompanied by the
resurrection of those who are still in their graves. This is the resurrection of
judgment, in which the risen ones are summoned before the great white throne,
and there tried according to their works. The vast bulk, or perhaps all, not
being found written in the book of life, are thrown into the lake of fire, which
is the second death. (Rev 20:1-15.)

Having thus brought us down to the end of this world’s history, we are allowed
one glimpse into that eternal state in which God is all in all. There we see the
Church as the bride of Christ, and also as the tabernacle of God. There we see
God dwelling with the redeemed in the new heaven and the new earth, where there
is no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, for the former things have passed
away. At the same time we see the lost enduring the deathless anguish of the
second death. (Rev 21:1-8.) The Spirit then carries back our gaze to the
millennial state, where the glories of the bride are figured under the radiant
vision of the New Jerusalem, gleaming with the glory of God, fitted in its
symmetry and holiness for His own dwelling-place, the seat of His throne, and
the reservoir from whence His blessings stream forth to the redeemed earth. (Rev
21:9 to Rev 22:5.) After this magnificent vision, a few words of tender
encouragement, and also of solemn warning, close this marvellous book. (Rev
22:6-21.)

We have thus traced the record of God’s purposes and judgments from beginning to
end of this "Revelation of Jesus Christ." We have seen the highest glories which
God’s grace can bestow, and the deepest abyss into which man’s guilt can plunge.
We have seen man under grace, rejecting and despising it; man in responsibility
to God, turning in rebellion and blasphemy against Him. We have seen Satan
working behind the human instruments whom he employs, and bringing upon this
wretched world woes and judgments which the heart sinks to contemplate. Looked
at from man’s side, all is failure, misery, ruin. But God is above all, and
Christ, the man of God’s right hand, is victor over all. The professing church
may fail on earth, but the true Church shines forth in His own glory in heaven.
Man’s earthly government may end in blasphemy and rebellion, but He will take
the reins into His own hands, and carry out God’s purposes of righteous
government and blessing for the world. Satan may rage for a while, but in the
end he is cast into everlasting torment. Death may reign ever a sinful world,
but death itself is at last destroyed, and sin is banished for ever from the
presence of God. May the Lord grant, as we close the record of His own ways, a
deeper sense of the utter ruin and lost condition of man, and a fuller
confidence in the boundless grace and exhaustless resources hidden in Christ.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 17: S.   A MAN IN CHRIST
========================================================================

"A Man in Christ."

T. B. Baines.

Christian Friend Vol. 5, 1878, p. 113 etc.

Eph 1:1-23; Eph 2:1-10 Eph 2:11; Eph 3:1-21

Eph 4:1-2 Eph 4:3-6 Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit Eph 4:3-6
(cont’d) Eph 4:7-11 The Gifts of an Ascended Christ Eph 4:11-16 The Edification
of the Body of Christ Eph 4:17-29 Living Christ in the World Eph 4:29; Eph 5:2
Followers of God Eph 5:3-21 Children of Light Eph 5:22 to Eph 6:9 The Christian
at Home Eph 6:10-24 Wrestling in the Heavenly Places Eph 1:1-23; Eph 2:1-10.

I wish in these papers not so much to dwell on the doctrine of the epistle to
the Ephesians, as on the conduct to which this doctrine leads. If the teaching
of the epistle unfolds the highest character of Christian standing, its
exhortations enforce the highest character of Christian walk. But in the
Spirit’s teaching these subjects are always combined. The rules laid down for
the believer’s conduct are drawn from the exposition of the place in which he is
set. While therefore we shall look more at the practical than at the doctrinal
parts of the epistle, we must ascertain the believer’s standing as here
revealed, in order to comprehend the nature and motives of the conduct
afterwards enjoined. The epistle to the Ephesians, though of course owning Jesus
as the eternal Son, looks at Him generally in another character. We read in Php
2:6-11 that He, though "in the form of God, thought it not an object of rapine
[a thing to be grasped at] to be equal with God: but made Himself of no
reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the
likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and
became obedient unto death, even, the death of the cross. Wherefore God also
hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name: that at
the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in
earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." Now here we have glory
conferred upon Jesus, not in consequence of His being equal with God, but in
consequence of His humbling Himself, being found in fashion as a man, and
becoming obedient unto death. As God, all dominion and glory were His own; nor
could anything be given Him. But as man, He had voluntarily emptied Himself,
taking the lowest place, and bowing even to the power of death, in order to
carry out God’s purposes of grace. God’s righteous response, then, to this
obedience and devotedness was to exalt Him in the same character in which He had
humbled Himself, giving to the man "Jesus" a name at which every knee should
bow, and making every tongue to confess that He is Lord.

Now it is in this character that Jesus is generally presented in the epistle to
the Ephesians. And this gives occasion to the unfolding of two great mysteries,
till then hidden in the counsels of God from before the foundation of the world.
The first of these is, that God will "gather together in one all things in
Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth." (Eph 1:10.) This is a
vast expansion of the Messiah’s glories predicted in the Old Testament, and is
the dignity which Jesus has acquired by His humiliation — the exalted "name"
given Him because of His obedience "unto death, even the death of the cross."
The other mystery is, "that the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, and of the same
body, and partakers of God’s promise in Christ by the gospel." (Eph 3:6.) This
shows the complete suspension of God’s earthly purposes while He is bringing in
a new people. In this new people the distinction between Jew and Gentile
entirely disappears, and the two are classed together on the same ground. The
new people are not an earthly people; for though still in the world, they are
"blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places" — nay, are even made
to "sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus." Their distinguishing
feature is, that they are seen and accepted "in Christ." The two mysteries are,
then, the counsels of God, first concerning the full glory of the Lord Jesus,
and next concerning the blessedness of the people who are thus closely
associated with Him. The development of these two mysteries is the great object
of the first half of the epistle. Hence it is not the sinner’s side of
salvation, as in the epistle to the Romans, but God’s side, that is brought into
prominence. In Romans the sinner is seen in his evil nature, and the cross is
brought in for his deliverance. In Ephesians God’s eternal purposes are
disclosed, and the object of redemption and the blessedness of the redeemed in
connection with Christ set forth. The epistle to the Romans starts from man’s
need to God’s grace; the epistle to the Ephesians starts from God’s grace to
man’s need. The one shows how God can be righteous while He justifies and
delivers the sinner; the other how the sinner’s need gives occasion to the
display of God’s wisdom and grace. Hence in the Romans the sinner is regarded as
alive in the flesh, and death is brought in as the means of his deliverance;
while in the Ephesians the sinner is regarded as spiritually dead, dead in
trespasses and sins, and the quickening power of God is shown in raising him out
of this state, and setting him in the heavenly places in Christ. The epistle
begins therefore with thanksgivings for the standing which the believer now has
in Christ. The question is not how far he comprehends or enjoys the privileges
and blessings into which he is brought. In this there may be wide differences;
in the privileges and blessings themselves there are none. The babe in Christ is
in this respect on an equality with the young man and the father, for both are
"in Christ," and have the full blessedness of this standing. All believers are
"blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ;" have been
"chosen in Him before the foundation of the world, that they should be holy and
without blame before God in love;" have been "predestinated unto the adoption of
children by Christ Jesus" unto God, "according to the good pleasure of His
will;" and are, therefore, "to the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He
hath made us accepted in the Beloved." (Eph 1:3-6.) These are the privileges,
though the very unequally enjoyed privileges, of all believers as seen in
Christ, just as the foundation on which everything rests, "redemption through
His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of God’s grace" (Eph
1:7), is the common portion of all saints. They are not future, but present
privileges, and our possession of them arises from our having an acceptance in
Him who has perfectly glorified God, and is now — not as the eternal Son of the
Father, but in virtue of His work and obedience unto death — the object of God’s
special delight and love. To speak of our being accepted, or of our being "in
Christ," when He is looked at in His divine nature, would be a grave error. But
we are accepted, and are, as to our standing, "in Christ," the risen glorified
man at God’s right hand. In Romans believers are not spoken of as being "in
Christ" until the eighth chapter, because there only do we arrive at the true
Christian standing. In Ephesians this remarkable expression occurs at the very
threshold, because all is here seen according to the counsels of God, and the
full standing of the believer is therefore at once set forth. And now the
apostle, having put us in possession of our present privileges "in Christ," goes
on to show how God in His grace "hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and
prudence" (Eph 1:8), disclosing to us His own marvellous purposes concerning
Christ. These purposes are not only concerning the earthly glories foretold by
the Old Testament prophets, but also concerning the heavenly glories now first
made known. Hence they are called a mystery; and we are told that God hath "made
known unto us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He
hath purposed in Himself; that in the dispensation of the fulness of times He
might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and
which are on earth." (Eph 1:9-10) The Christ, God’s anointed, was always
predicted as the One who was to exercise sovereign authority on earth; but that
the man Jesus should, by virtue of His obedience and humiliation, have this
supreme dignity conferred upon Him in heaven as well as on earth, was a mystery
now first revealed. Of course it is not Christ’s glory as God that is here
spoken of, for that He had always and inalienably; but it is as the risen man,
the One in whom we are accepted, that He is thus exalted and glorified. Hence
believers have a share in this dominion; for in Him "also we have obtained an
inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all
things after the counsel of His own will; that we should be to the praise of His
glory, who first trusted in Christ" (Eph 1:11-12) And not only had the believing
Jews, "who first trusted in Christ," this inheritance, but the believing
Gentiles had the same; for they also had trusted when they heard the gospel, and
after they believed, "were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the
earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession."
(Eph 1:13-14) The possession has been purchased by the cross, but has not yet
been fully redeemed, has not yet passed into the hands of the purchaser. Hence
Christ is waiting, seated at the Father’s right hand, until "the dispensation of
the fulness of times," when this gathering together of all things in Himself
will take place. We, too, are waiting, often indeed with very feeble faith and
hope, but still with no uncertainty as to the result; for God has sealed us with
the Holy Spirit of promise, which is the pledge or earnest of our title till the
time of redemption, when the possession will be entered upon and fully enjoyed.
The subject here is not the believer’s blessedness when he goes at death to be
with Christ, nor even the richer blessedness he will know when the Lord comes to
complete the work of redemption as to him, by giving him a body like His own,
and taking him to the Father’s house. The redemption spoken of is not the
redemption of the believer, but the redemption of the inheritance which the
believer will receive together with Christ. The possession spoken of is not the
possession of the joys and blessedness of the Father’s house, but the possession
of that dominion which Christ will take, together with us as His joint-heirs,
when all things are gathered together in Him.

Thus we have brought before us, in the opening of the epistle, our present
privileges and our future possession "in Christ." The apostle then prays that we
may understand these things, and also "what is the exceeding greatness of His
power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power,
which He wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His
own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power,
and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world,
but also in that which is to come." (Eph 1:15-21) If our acceptance in the
Beloved involves our receiving the same privileges and possessions that He
receives, it is brought about through our being quickened by the same power by
which He was quickened. We are not only one with Him in our blessing and
prospects, but also in our life. The same power was exercised in the same way in
quickening us as in quickening Him. God has wrought toward us "according to the
working of His mighty power, which He wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from
the dead;" for He "hath quickened us together with Christ." (Eph 2:4-5) He has
also "wrought according to the power which has set Christ "at His own right hand
in the heavenly places;" for He "hath raised us up together, and made us sit
together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus." (Eph 2:6)

All this is most beautiful. We, poor helpless sinners, had no spiritual life
whatever; "were dead in trespasses and sins." Jesus in grace put Himself in our
stead under God’s judgment, and died "the just for the unjust" Thus we are fully
delivered — not only freed from the righteous judgment of God, but, as shown in
the Romans, "dead with Christ," "crucified with Him," our old sinful nature
regarded as dead and buried with Him. The epistle to the Ephesians begins at
this point of our history. It takes Christ up in death, and shows how God’s
power "raised Him from the dead;" it takes us up as "dead in trespasses and
sins," and shows how the same power which raised Christ has quickened us. Thus
in Romans we are delivered from the old nature by the cross of Christ; in
Ephesians we are quickened in the new nature together with Christ. And this is
something much more than new birth. It is a new birth, or a new life, of a
peculiar character, conferred by the same power which raised Christ from the
dead, so that we are not only quickened with Him, but are identified with Him —
the risen and glorified One at God’s right hand. And so close is this
identification, that, though still on earth, we are even now spoken of as seated
together "in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus." The closing words of the
first chapter show the character of this identification in a very striking way.
There we are told, concerning Christ, that God "hath put all things under His
feet, and gave Him to be the Head over all things to the Church, which is His
body, the fulness of Him that filleth all in all." (Eph 1:22-23) This is the
first time the Church is named in the epistle, and a most marvellous revelation
it is as to its character. From it we learn that when Christ takes the dominion
over all things, according to God’s purpose, He will take it, not alone, but in
conjunction with the Church. It is not Christ that will reign merely, but Christ
and the Church; the Church being so inseparably united with Him that it is said
to be His "fulness" or completion — as much one with Himself as the body is one
with the head. Hence Christ is not complete, in the character in which He will
take the headship over all things, until the Church, His body, is complete also.
Until the last member has been added, Christ waits; for until then His body has
not received its, "fulness," and the Head cannot take the dominion apart from
the whole body.

It is perhaps unnecessary to repeat, though most important to remember, that
this union, with all its blessed consequences, is not with Christ as the eternal
Son, the Word who "was God," but with Christ as the, risen glorified Man. As
God, there could be no union with Him. Nor again, as born into this world, could
we be united with Him, or He with us. Until the corn of wheat had fallen into
the ground and died, it must abide alone; but having died, it could bring forth
much fruit. In His sinless life He was the spotless and obedient One, the
revealer of the Father, but alone. In the death in which "He was made sin," He
was our Substitute and Saviour; but there too He was all alone. In resurrection
He became the head of a new creation, and it is by new creation that we are now"
"in Him;" for "if any man be in Christ, it is a new creation." (2Co 5:17.) Union
with Christ is always spoken of in this connection: "He is the Head of the body,
the Church, who is the beginning, the first-born from the dead." (Col 1:18.) It
is after He has been on the "horns of the unicorns" that He says, "I will
declare thy name unto my brethren." (Psa 22:21-22; Heb 2:9-12.) Not till after
His resurrection does He use the words, "Go to my brethren," or associate the
disciples with Himself by speaking of "my Father, and your Father; my God, and
your God." (John 20:17.) So, too, it is by our being conformed to the image of
the risen One that He becomes "the first-born among many brethren." (Rom 8:29.)

Such then is God’s grace towards us, who were once walking "according to the
course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air . . . .
fulfilling the desires of the flesh . . . . children of wrath." (Eph 2:2-3)
Grace has delivered us from this lost state, quickened us together with Christ,
made us members of His body, given us His own acceptance before God, and
associated us as fellow-heirs in His universal dominion. Surely this is worthy
of God! He has thus wrought for His own glory, "that in the ages to come He
might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through
Christ Jesus." (Eph 2:7) All is of grace. Works can have no place here, nor the
boastings of man. But is God indifferent to good works? Nay; "for we are His
workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before
ordained that we should walk in them." (Eph 2:8-10) As to our standing, good
works have no place; for we are God’s workmanship. But this very fact demands
that good works should follow as a result. We are not created by good works, but
we are created unto them.

Eph 2:11; Eph 3:1-21. In our last chapter we saw the privileges of the believer
as associated with the risen Christ in new life, in present blessing, and in
future dominion and glory. This is the portion of the individual Christian; and
in the scriptures then before us only a brief, though very blessed, reference
was made to the character of the Church. The part we now come to is, however,
more concerned with the Church than with the individual Christian. In the
passage already looked at, the Church was shown as the body of Christ — "the
fulness of Him that filleth all in all." But the passage we are now to examine
regards it in another aspect, bringing out its exceptional nature, its wide
departure from all God’s previously pursued or previously announced plans. In
former times God had called a people into special relationship with Himself.
This people was "the commonwealth of Israel," and to it belonged the knowledge
of God, the birth of the Messiah, the covenants of promise, and the outward mark
of circumcision. In Old Testament history, they had been His favoured, though
rebellious, people. In Old Testament prophecies, they were the centre of all His
dealings. The glories of the Messiah were to be displayed in their midst, and no
promise of blessing was made to the Gentiles save through them. But God was now
performing a work entirely distinct from anything recorded in Old Testament
narrative, or predicted in Old Testament prophecies. The apostle therefore calls
upon the Ephesian believers, who were of Gentile origin, to remember that they
had no title such as the Jews might claim, not having one of those marks, which
the Jews possessed, of relationship with God. They had been "in time past
Gentiles in the flesh, who are called uncircumcision by that which is called the
circumcision in the flesh made by hands." Moreover, they were at that time
"without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers
from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world."
(Eph 2:11-12) But though the Gentiles had no title founded on covenant, promise,
or national connection, God was now bringing them in by His own sovereign grace.
The Jews, who had a direct interest in the Messiah, had rejected Him and shed
His blood. This had caused them, as a nation, to be set aside, and had ended,
until their restoration, all those purposes to which the covenants and promises
referred. God had therefore turned, as it were, to another object. "The blood of
Christ," which caused the national rejection of the Jews, was made the means of
bringing people nigh. But in this sovereign and wonderful action of grace, God
was no longer confined within the channels traced out by prophecy. All the
prophetic blessings were postponed, because the nation in whom they centred was
rejected. A new class of blessings, richer, higher, and with no restriction of
nation or class, was thus brought in.

Hence the apostle says, "Now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are
made nigh by the blood of Christ." (Eph 2:13) Thus Gentile believers were
brought nigh by that very blood, the shedding of which caused the rejection of
the Jews and the postponement of their national blessings. And not only was the
blessing entirely different from what they as Gentiles could have enjoyed, if
the covenants of promise to Israel had then been fulfilled. It was of a far
higher order than even the Jew Himself could have enjoyed under those covenants.
For these Gentiles were now brought nigh "in Christ Jesus," which is a standing
never spoken of in Old Testament prophecy. In this wondrous place the believing
Jew and the believing Gentile were blended together, all earthly distinctions
disappearing in the new character of blessing, into which both were now
introduced. Christ not only had made peace for them, but was their peace, and
had "made both one," having "broken down the middle wall of partition," and
"having abolished in His flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments
contained in ordinances; for to make in Himself of twain one new man, so making
peace." (Eph 2:14-15) This passage conclusively shows that Christianity is not
the fulfilment of Old Testament prophecy, but something brought in while this
awaits its fulfilment. In the fulfilment of the prophecies, the Jew will receive
the place of pre-eminence which the covenants of promise assign him, and his
blessings will be of a national character. The blessings here named are not
national, but individual, and require the setting aside of all national
distinctions for their accomplishment. Moreover, the passage speaks of both Jew
and Gentile being made in Christ into "one new man." Understood literally, this
could have no meaning; but understood figuratively, its sense is at once clear
and beautiful. The Church is the body of Christ; and the Church and Christ are
the "one new man" here spoken of. Language such as this is wholly foreign to the
old prophets. It implies a nearness of relationship which the Old Testament
never contemplates, and which indeed would be entirely inconsistent with the
character in which the Messiah will be known by His earthly people. But this
nearness of relationship is the blessed portion of the believer, without
distinction of Jew or Gentile; for Christ’s object was, "that He might reconcile
both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby." (Eph
2:16) The cross has not only obtained for us forgiveness of sins. It has ended
up our standing in the flesh. As "dead with Christ," earthly and fleshly
distinctions cease; and in the new creation, that is, in Christ Himself, there
is neither Jew nor Gentile, circumcision nor uncircumcision. By the cross we are
dead, and the enmities of the flesh are slain with us. Thus both Jew and Gentile
are reconciled "unto God in one body." This body is, of course, the body of
Christ, the Church, which stands therefore entirely outside all earthly
distinctions or covenant relationships. Hence peace can now be preached alike,
says the apostle, "to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh" (Eph
2:17); for those that were nigh having forfeited their claim, and those that
were afar off never having had any claim, both are now dealt with on the same
footing of sovereign grace. They are brought, not into the position which as a
nation the Jews had lost by their rejection of the Christ, but into an entirely
new position; "for through Him we both have access by one Spirit unto the
Father." (Eph 2:18) Jehovah is the name and character in which Israel will yet
know God. But under the new order of things introduced by grace, the believer,
whether Jew or Gentile, knows God as Father. The result is that old distinctions
altogether vanish. "Now therefore ye" (the Gentile believers) "are no more
strangers and foreigners, but fellow-citizens with the saints" (that is,
believers generally, whether Jewish or Gentile) "and of the household of God;
and are built upon the foundation of the apostles. and prophets, Jesus Christ
Himself being the chief corner-stone." (Eph 2:19-20) Both Jewish and Gentile
believers are transplanted from their old ground and placed in entirely
different soil. They are "fellow-citizens," but not of an earthly country; for
"our citizenship is in heaven." They are of the "household of God " — a closer
relationship than the Jew will enjoy when his national blessings reach their
highest point. They are built into a new and wonderful structure, of which
"Jesus Christ Himself" is the chief corner-stone, and "the apostles and
prophets" the foundation course. In the next chapter we read that the mystery of
the Church was in other ages "not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now
revealed unto His holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit." (Eph 3:5.) This
shows that the prophets here spoken of in connection with the apostles were not
the Old Testament prophets. In the times of the Old Testament prophets the
mystery was not made known. To the prophets here named, as well as to the
apostles, the mystery was made known. In this epistle "prophets" are only named
three times, and each time in connection with "apostles." Both apostles and
prophets are spoken of as gifts of an ascended Christ. The prophets therefore
here mentioned as forming part of the foundation on which we are built are not
the Old Testament prophets, but the prophets to whom this mystery was now first
imparted. But the figure of our oneness with Christ is still strikingly
continued; for after speaking of Him as "the chief corner-stone," the Spirit
adds, "In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy
temple in the Lord: in whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of
God through the Spirit." (Eph 3:21-21) Strictly speaking, it is not correct to
say that a building grows, or that the various materials added are built
together, in the corner-stone. But this very departure from strict accuracy only
shows with greater vividness the prominence in which the Spirit seeks to set the
thought of our standing "in Christ." In another epistle Paul writes, that "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." (1Co 12:12.) Here the Church is
the body, and Christ is the head; but the two are looked upon as so identified
that the body itself, as well as the head, is spoken of as "Christ." It is the
same blending together of Christ and the Church that we find in the passage
before us. Christ is the corner-stone, and believers are the rest of the
building; but so bound up are they with each other that the whole is spoken of
as in Him, and is said to be builded together in Him "for an habitation of God
through the Spirit." This is God’s building, consisting only of real believers,
who are built together in Christ, and form, as thus constructed, a suitable
dwelling-place for Himself. It must be carefully distinguished from the building
raised by man on the same foundation — a building in which all sorts of
worthless material are brought in, and which will therefore be tried by fire. A
confusion between these two buildings has been the source of very much and very
lamentable error.

Thus we have two remarkable figures of the Church, in both of which its oneness
with Christ is very strikingly set forth. Considered as a body, it is the body
of Christ — a thing necessary, as it were, to His own completeness. Considered
as a temple, a dwelling-place for God, it is "builded together" in Christ, He
Himself being the chief corner-stone, all believers being reared upon this
foundation, and the whole growing up to completeness in Him. To Paul was
specially entrusted this truth concerning the new thing which God was bringing
in. For this cause he was a prisoner of Jesus Christ for the Gentiles, having
had given to him "a dispensation of the grace of God" towards them. He had
received "by revelation" a mystery — or secret purpose of God — not disclosed in
past times, "that the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, and of the same body, and
partakers of His promise in Christ by the gospel." (Eph 3:1-6.) That the
Gentiles should be "fellow-heirs" with the Jews was a new thing, not only in
fact, but in the revealed purposes of God. Still more marvellous was it that
they should be "of the same body;" for this was something which neither Jew nor
Gentile had ever heard of. They were made "fellow-heirs" with each other by
being made fellow-heirs with Christ; they were made "of the same body" with each
other by being made members of the body of Christ. It was thus that the Gentiles
became "partakers of God’s promise in Christ by the gospel." According to
covenants and prophecy, Christ was the special hope of Israel. But the promises
of blessing in Christ went far beyond Israel, and were wide enough to embrace
God’s present work, in which Jew and Gentile are blended together, as well as
that work to which the covenants and prophecies of the Old Testament look
forward.

Paul therefore had before him two objects. As a servant of the gospel he had
"this grace given," to "preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of
Christ." (Eph 3:7-8) And as the one to whom the mystery was revealed, he was "to
make all men see what is the dispensation of the mystery, which from the
beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things, to the
intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be
known by the Church the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal purpose
which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Eph 3:9-11) This is a wonderful
passage. God, as creator of all things, had shown His wisdom. But there was a
still more marvellous display which this wisdom was to receive, a display
contemplated in God’s counsels from all eternity, but now first brought to
light. When all His earthly purposes seemed to be frustrated, when Satan seemed
to have succeeded, God’s manifold wisdom displays itself by turning this very
apparent defeat into the crowning victory of His grace. The great seeming
triumph which Satan achieved at the cross, the temporary setting aside of all
the revealed purposes of blessing and glory through Christ, only gave occasion
for God to put a higher glory on Christ, and to introduce a richer and more
unrestricted blessing than any before revealed. Thus the manifold character of
God’s wisdom shows itself, and not only to men, but to the principalities and
powers in heavenly places. "The morning stars sang together, and all the sons of
God shouted for joy" when they beheld His wisdom in creating the world; but they
see its manifold nature and its brightest display in His ways concerning the
Church. This leads the apostle to a very remarkable prayer, which closes the
third chapter. In the. prayer which concludes the first chapter, Christ is
looked upon as man, as the One who was raised from the dead. The prayer is,
therefore, addressed to "the God of our Lord Jesus Christ." In the prayer of the
third chapter, the subject is not our standing in Christ, but Christ dwelling in
our hearts. Christ is looked upon, not as the man raised from the dead, but as
the One who accomplishes the purposes of God, and manifests His love. It is more
as the Son revealing the Father, than as the man glorifying God and glorified by
Him, that He is here presented before us. The prayer is therefore addressed, not
to "the God," but to "the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Eph 3:14) While the
earlier prayer, moreover, is, that we may understand God’s purposes and power,
this carries us into a still higher region. The apostle prays that we may,
according to the riches of God’s glory, "be strengthened with might by His
Spirit in the inner man; that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye,
being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints
what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of
Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled to all the fulness of
God." (Eph 3:16-19)

Here we have the indwelling of the Holy Ghost as the source of strength, and
that "according to the riches of God’s glory;" Christ taking His abode in our
hearts by faith; the soul, "rooted and grounded in love," able to enter into the
vastness of God’s ways; "the breadth, and length, and depth, and height" of
those purposes which His grace has formed for His own glory, as well as for our
blessing; and, finally, ourselves taught to know, not indeed in its extent — for
in this it passes knowledge — but in its nature, the wondrous love of Christ
Himself, that we may "be filled to all the fulness of God." This last expression
is beautiful in its very indefiniteness. That we can be filled to God’s fulness
is, of course, impossible; but this is, as it were, the measure in which God is
willing to supply, and the only limit of the Holy Ghost’s desire for us. Full as
we may be, there is still infinitely more beyond; so that there is no limit to
what is placed at our command. And then, after bringing out all God’s wonderful
purposes, His power and His grace; after showing His manifold wisdom, as
displayed in the Church, the apostle concludes by an outburst of praise to Him.
"Now," he says, "unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that
we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto Him be glory in
the Church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen." (Eph
3:20-21) It is surely meet that He who has displayed His wisdom and grace in
calling the Church should throughout eternity derive glory from it. Such is the
apostle’s desire, and such should be the desire of every believer brought into
this marvellous place. It will be fulfilled in the ages to come; but just in
proportion as our hearts enter into the spirit of this prayer will it be their
desire that, as far as may be, it should be fulfilled now.

Eph 4:1-2.

We have seen in the first three chapters of the epistle the believer’s standing
in Christ, and God’s thoughts about the Church. The practical teaching which
follows is divided into four classes, according to the believer’s relationship
with the Church (Eph 4:1-16), the world (Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:1-21), the family
(Eph 5:21 — Eph 6:9), and the powers of darkness (Eph 6:10-17). We shall see
how, in each of these positions, the rule of conduct given him corresponds with
his standing as shown in the earlier part of the epistle. The apostle describes
himself as a "prisoner in the Lord." This is an interesting circumstance, and
throws much light on the Lord’s present ways. Although, as Peter told the Jews,
"God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ,"
yet His lordship is so far from being recognised by the world that His most
faithful servant and ambassador is now a prisoner in the hands of the world’s
ruling power. This could not have been if the kingdom in its proper or prophetic
form had been established. In that day Christ will cast out His enemies, and
exalt His faithful followers. Now, however, tribulation and rejection are the
portion which God’s people are told to expect. This does not at all interfere
with the lordship of Christ. David was as much God’s anointed king when he hid
in the cave of Adullam as when he reigned on the throne in Zion; but in the one
case his dignity was discerned only by faith, in the other by sight. So with the
great Antitype. Christ’s lordship exists now as much as it will when He comes to
reign over the earth. But it is now only seen by the eye of faith; and the world
may go on despising Him and rejecting His people without calling down immediate
judgment. Jesus has taken in grace the position of a dependent and obedient man;
and He retains His position as man, though glorified at the right hand of God.
He waits till the world shall be given Him by His Father. Till then, vengeance
belongeth unto God, and Jesus, like David, leaves His case in God’s hands. His
followers are called upon to share His patience and rejection; and hence the
foremost apostle is now nothing in the eyes of the world but an obscure prisoner
in a Roman gaol.

He begins his exhortation in the fourth chapter with the word "therefore." This
word really resumes the sentence commenced in the first verse of the third
chapter, and interrupted by the long and wonderful parenthesis of which that
chapter consists. It refers, therefore, to what has been said before in Eph
2:1-22, that is, to the calling of the Gentiles and Jews into one "new man," the
breaking down of the middle wall of partition between them, and the building of
them both into "an holy temple in the Lord," of which Jesus Christ Himself was
the chief corner-stone, the apostles and prophets the foundation course, and
believers the materials, "builded together for an habitation of God through the
Spirit." And this call was from a condition of deadness in trespasses and sins,
a state of distance and alienation from God, to which no promises and no
covenant relationships attached; so that all was of simple grace, the believer
having no claim to any portion of the blessing he receives in Christ.

Such, then, being the character of the saints’ standing, the apostle beseeches
them "that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called." (Eph 4:1.)
But what walk is worthy of a vocation in which all is of simple grace? The most
humbling thing in the world is the reception of boundless and undeserved favour;
and the first point therefore which the Spirit urges on believers as worthy of
their calling is that they should walk "with all lowliness and meekness, with
long-suffering, forbearing one another in love." (Eph 4:2) Nothing is more
becoming in a believer than "lowliness and meekness;’ but perhaps there is
nothing more misunderstood. In too many instances these beautiful Christian
graces are transformed, through the craft of Satan, into doubts dishonouring to
God and destructive of the believer’s peace. Now God never calls it lowliness
and meekness to doubt the truth of His word, or the efficacy of Christ’s work.
On the contrary, He counts it pride and presumption. The simple child-like faith
which bows to the word He has spoken, which says, "Let God be true, but every
man a liar," alone pleases and honours Him. Abraham was commended, not because
he questioned God’s truth, but because he trusted it, and even "against hope
believed in hope;" not because he doubted whether God would fulfil His word, but
because he was "fully persuaded that, what He had promised, He was able also to
perform." And what was the effect? Did it puff him up? Just the contrary.
Because he was "strong in faith" he gave "glory to God." The very fact that
there was no power in himself only magnified God’s grace. And so it must be with
the believer. The more fully we lay hold of what grace has done for us, the more
completely are we abased in God’s presence. That we, sinners and enemies, should
be chosen by God to be fellow-heirs with Christ, should be predestined to be
conformed to the image of His Son, can, if really apprehended by faith, only
fill us with wonder and praise. Where is the room for boasting when all is so
clearly of God? None are so meek and lowly as the crowned elders who fall down
and worship in heaven; and the larger our grasp of God’s purposes towards us,
the deeper our lowliness and meekness will be. So far, then, from being founded
on doubts as to the blessings we have received, these graces are the proper
fruits of faith, and are always proportioned to the degree in which the
blessings are apprehended by the soul.

There is, however, another mistake on which we would touch while speaking of
lowliness and meekness. If it is not true lowliness, but Satan’s counterfeit of
lowliness, to doubt our standing in Christ, neither is it true lowliness for one
to shrink from taking the place, or exercising the gift, which God has bestowed
upon him in the Church. There is a time to speak as well as a time to be silent;
and while nothing is more unbecoming than that forwardness and ostentation of
gift which seems to have brought disorder into the meetings of the assembly at
Corinth; yet, on the other hand, it is quite possible to quench the Spirit, and
thus hinder blessing, under the false impression that silence is a display of
lowliness and meekness. If God has bestowed a gift, He means it to be used; and
to plead lowliness and meekness as a reason for not using it is merely to cloak
our unfaithfulness under a pretentious name. So as to prayer, or the giving out
of a hymn, if anyone has it laid on his heart by the Spirit thus to take part in
an assembly, is it lowliness and meekness to remain silent? Is it not rather the
vanity that shrinks from the criticism of others, or seeks their applause by a
feigned modesty? No doubt there is need of spiritual discernment as to when and
how to take part; but this will be given where it is sought. It was becoming in
Barnabas, when travelling with a more gifted brother, to let Paul be the chief
speaker. But would it have been becoming in Paul to decline exercising the gift
which he had received, on the plea of showing "all lowliness and meekness" in
the presence of Barnabas, who was his elder? It was becoming in Elihu to stand
aside in the colloquy between Job and his old friends; but would it have been
becoming in him, when they had failed to convince Job, and when the truth was
taught him by the Spirit, to remain silent and refuse to utter it? These, no
doubt, are very far from ordinary examples, but they serve to show the
difference between true lowliness and meekness, and that which, though so easily
mistaken for it, is in fact nothing more than the indulgence of the sloth or
timidity of the natural heart in opposition to the leadings of the Spirit of
God.

"Lowliness and meekness," then, are the first things pressed upon us by the
Spirit of God as worthy of the vocation wherewith we are called. But closely
associated with these, and indeed necessarily flowing out of them, are other
graces mentioned in the same verse, "long-suffering, forbearing one another in
love." The man who is prompt to resent injuries and assert rights is the man who
has a high opinion of himself. If he sees himself in the nothingness to which
grace reduces him, patience under injury, and forbearance towards those who have
wronged him, will be the result. But still more will this be the case with those
with whom he is made one in Christ. How can the man who is conscious of the
grace that has remitted the ten thousand talents seize his brother by the throat
and claim the hundred pence due to himself? If there is any sense of the love
with which we are loved, and loved in spite of our coldness and deadness, our
ingratitude and provocations — if there is any apprehension of the grace which
bought us, and which still bears with us in all our perverseness and folly —
long-suffering will be a comparatively easy thing, and forbearance in love will
commend itself as suited to the state of one whose own failures and sins are
continually calling for the forbearing love of our blessed Lord. The key to the
whole verse is "love." This is the nature of God Himself, and grace, which is
the form love takes when directed towards sinners, is just the very thing which
the Son manifested when He came to reveal the Father. For "the Word was made
flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only
begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth." (John 1:14.) The
long-suffering and forbearance here spoken of are not the results of a naturally
placable and generous disposition, nor of the training which reason and
philosophy may give. They have a higher source. They are the outflow of divine
love, dwelling in the heart, and shaping the ways in conformity with the mind
and walk of the blessed Lord. In Him alone we see all these graces perfectly
displayed. Unwearied in devotion, whether to God or to man, "having loved His
own which were in the world, He loved them unto the end." How beautifully, too,
does the same appear in the ways of His servant who, in writing to the
Corinthians, could say, "I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though
the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved."

Yet here again, Satan has been busy in setting up an imitation of Christian love
which is too easily accepted for the original. To talk of Christian love while
there is allowance of evil is to suppose Christian love in which Christ is
dishonoured. Forbearance and forgiveness towards those who commit evil is surely
a very different thing from connivance at the evil itself. Where did love
manifest itself in forgiveness so marvellously as at the cross? and where was
God’s intolerance of evil so fearfully displayed? The blessed Lord’s present
dealings with us are expressly for the purpose of cleansing us from defilement
by the washing of water; for He cannot endure that the least stain should rest
upon His beloved people. So, too, the Father’s chastening is directed just to
this point, "that we might be partakers of His holiness." Under the Levitical
economy an Israelite was told, "Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart:
thou shalt in any wise rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him." (Lev
19:17.) So, too, if one believer has been injured by another, he is to go to him
and "tell him his fault," not with a view of getting redress for himself, but
because "if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother." In extreme cases,
the discipline of the Church must be called into action, and the offender put
out as a "wicked person;" but even here the motive is love, and the object to be
sought is, "that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus." (1Co
5:5.)

Nothing therefore can be less in accordance with the love here spoken of than
that sort of good-fellowship with believers which refuses to disturb their
conscience when they are acting in a way to dishonour the Lord. True Christian
love must give Christ the first place, and where the fellowship of believers is
preferred to the honour of Christ, the "love in the Spirit" spoken of by the
apostle has really been surrendered to the instincts of natural affection. On
the other hand, if we are called to show the Lord’s faithfulness in dealing with
evil, we are called to show His gentleness too. How many a rebuke has missed its
point altogether, because the manner in which it was delivered savoured rather
of the natural legality of the human heart than of the tenderness of Christ. May
we be much in His own presence, that His ways may be more perfectly reflected in
our walk. This is the only transforming power. Just so far as we are "with open
face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are" we "changed into the
same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord."

"Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit."

Eph 4:3-6. The believer is, as we have seen, entreated to "walk worthy of the
vocation wherewith he is called." Owing everything to grace, and nothing to
self, "lowliness and meekness" are obviously becoming, and these are therefore
the first qualities he is exhorted to display. Longsuffering and forbearance in
love, as the close, and indeed inseparable companions of lowliness and meekness,
are also enjoined along with them. These characteristics should under all
circumstances distinguish one who is saved by grace, and we shall see how their
manifestation is urged in each of the various positions in which the believer is
looked upon in this epistle. In none, however, are they more important than in
that relationship which takes the first place in the practical exhortations here
given; for nowhere does the working of self-will and self-assertion produce such
disastrous consequences as in the assembly of God.

We are called through grace into oneness with Christ, as members of His body;
and into oneness with each other, as united in Him. If, then, we would walk
worthy of our vocation, we must, in accordance with the next practical
exhortation, be "endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of
peace." (Eph 4:3) How closely this is connected with lowliness and meekness, how
constantly it calls for the exercise of long-suffering and forbearance, is too
evident to need further remark. If self is made much of, the unity of the Spirit
cannot be preserved. It is only as self is dropped out of sight, and Christ
becomes the prominent object before the eye, that this exhortation can be
followed. But as the Church-relationship is the first here taken up in the
practical portion of the epistle, and as this exhortation is the first given
with reference to the Church, it is clear that it demands an especially close
and careful examination. The preservation of unity is obviously the point which
the Holy Ghost is here pressing, and the importance attached to it is somewhat
intensified by the word which is translated "bond," but which should rather be
rendered "the uniting bond." The believer is not told to keep the unity of the
body, or even the unity of the Spirit, but to endeavour to keep the unity of the
Spirit. The word "keep," however, is here used in the sense of watching over or
caring for, rather than in the absolute sense of maintaining. This latter is
clearly beyond man’s power, and can be done by God only. Thanks be to His name,
it is safe in His keeping; and however grievously man may have failed in His
responsibility, the unity of the body and of the Spirit cannot really be broken.
What, then, is the meaning of the exhortation here addressed to the believer? It
is manifestly not to maintain that which can be maintained by God only; and yet
it is manifestly something after which the believer is to strive. The unity of
the Spirit exists, and can never cease to exist; but it may cease to be held,
guarded, and watched over by us. It is to this, then, that the exhortation of
the apostle is directed. But how is this to be accomplished? Most Protestants
say that the unity here spoken of is an invisible unity in Christ, and that it
is quite consistent with sectarian divisions; though believers thus outwardly
separated, being really one, should cultivate peace towards each other. This
interpretation, however, makes peace the object, and leaves oneness, as a thing
which we are to strive after, entirely out of account. Now we are not told to
endeavour to keep the bond of peace, but to endeavour to keep "the unity of the
Spirit in the bond of peace." The unity of the Spirit is what we are to
endeavour to keep, and the bond of peace is the means to be employed. The Holy
Ghost does not press that peace should be kept amidst divisions, but that
oneness should be kept by peace. How, then, can this oneness be the invisible
oneness which exists in Christ? How could believers be told to endeavour to keep
that which is solely in God’s keeping? They might as well be told to endeavour
to keep the earth revolving on its axis. If they are exhorted to do something,
it is because there is something for them to do. And what there is for them to
do here is quite plain. Being called into the unity of the Spirit, they are to
watch and guard it, to endeavour to keep it in the bond of peace. It is not an
invisible unity which they can neither keep nor lose, but something which can be
kept or lost according to their watchfulness or negligence. The preservation of
this outward unity is to be the object of striving and effort.

If this be so, it is clear that the present divided condition of the Church is
not according to the mind of the Spirit. It may be well, however, to look at
some other scriptures bearing on this subject. In John 17:1-26 we find that,
whether our Lord was praying for the disciples then with Him, or whether He
enlarges the sphere to the whole of those who should believe on Him through
their word, in both cases the first petition that He presents concerning them is
— for their oneness. In John 17:21 He prays, "That they all," that is all
believers, "may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they
also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me." Here,
then, the special object for which the Lord desires this oneness is that it may
be a testimony to the world. No invisible unity can be this. The world can
receive no evidence but that presented to it, and unless the oneness of
believers is a thing discernible by the world, the testimony here spoken of is
not given. The Church indeed was not formed when these words were uttered, but
they were uttered in full view of the fact that the Church was soon to be
formed; and the formation of the Church could not dissolve, but rather cement
and define the oneness here spoken of. In 1Co 12:12-13, we read that "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. 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" This is clearly the same unity
spoken of in Ephesians (Church unity), the whole being one with and in Christ.
It cannot be said that the unity here named is merely spiritual, and that
nothing is said about its practical manifestation to the world; for the very
same chapter declares that "God hath tempered the body together, having given
more abundant honour to that part which lacked, that there should be no schism
[or division] in the body." (Eph 4:24-25)

Other parts of the same epistle bring out the same truth with even greater
clearness. Thus in 1Co 10:17, which speaks of the Lord’s Supper, we find that
the reason for our all partaking of one loaf is that our oneness in Christ may
be signified. "For we being many are one bread [that is one loaf], one body: for
we are all partakers of that one loaf." In the first chapter we find divisions
denounced in the most solemn and energetic way. The apostle beseeches the
believers to "speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions [or schisms]
among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the
same judgment. For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them
which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you. Now this
I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of
Cephas; and I of Christ. Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were
ye baptized in the name of Paul?" (Eph 4:10-13) Now what do we find here? Just
the same thing as in modern Christendom. Different sects had already begun to
exist in principle, different human teachers or schools of theology to be
regarded as rallying-points. True, they had not yet gone the length of
separating from one another, and they still, as to outward form, recognized no
centre of gathering but Christ. But what does the apostle say about it? He asks,
"Is Christ divided?" These words can have but one meaning. They show that the
division of Christians into different schools or sects, even in the mild form
which it had then assumed, was a contradiction of the oneness of the Church as
the body of Christ. To set up Paul as a rallying-point was like saying that
Paul, rather than Christ, had been crucified for them.

If they used Paul’s name as a party cry, they should, in consistency, be
baptized in Paul’s name too. Every Christian must be shocked at the thought of
Christ being divided, of Paul being crucified for him, or of being baptized in
the name of Paul. But the Holy Ghost declares that the divisions of the
Corinthians are just as shocking as these suggestions; nay, that nothing but the
truth of these suggestions could justify their divisions. Surely a more emphatic
condemnation of sects, even in the mildest and least offensive form, it would be
difficult to conceive. But the powers of the human mind are illimitable in
escaping unpleasant conclusions. Thus it has been urged that though the
divisions of the Corinthians were doubtless wrong, what the apostle condemns was
not the divisions themselves, but the spirit in which they were carried out;
that the rival schools were probably very bitter, and that it was this
bitterness which the apostle censures; whereas modern sects are so loving and
amiable, that had he lived in our days he would have commended their spirit, and
sanctioned their separate organizations. Now, nothing is more dangerous than
seeking to blunt the edge of Scripture so as to escape the wound to our own
consciences. The apostle does not say, "I beseech you that ye all speak
different things in a friendly way;" but he does say, "I beseech you that ye all
speak the same thing." He does not say, "Let the divisions among you be amiably
conducted;" but he does say, "Let there be no divisions among you." He does not
say, "Let there be peace among those of different minds and of different
judgments;" but he does say, "Be perfectly joined together in the same mind and
in the same judgment."

"Oh, but," it is objected, "these persons were all in one assembly, and of
course their divisions were wrong. But this is quite different from the state of
things now." No doubt it is different; but when the apostle blames them for
saying, "I am of Paul, and I of Apollos," does he mean that the followers of
Paul ought to form one sect, and have one sort of meeting, and the followers of
Apollos to form another sect, and have another sort of meeting? When he says,
"Is Christ divided?" does he mean that the evil ought to be cured by believers
widening their divisions, and splitting into different denominations? Surely
such reasoning is trifling with Scripture! And is it not a solemn thing to see
believers willing to trifle with God’s word for the sake of hiding from their
gaze the evidence of the ruin which stares them in the face. The Pharisees
boasted while they were groaning under the Roman yoke: "We be Abraham’s seed,
and were never in bondage to any man." (John 8:33.) But would they not have been
wiser if they had owned their ruined condition, and searched into its cause? Is
it not the same with modern believers? Surely it would be better to bow to God’s
word instead of seeking to torture it into sanctioning the Church’s failure! Who
can, without stifling his own conscience, maintain that the state of things
reproved by Paul at Corinth was wrong, and that the state of things now
prevailing around us is right? If the apostle says to the Corinthians, "Ye are
yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions,
are ye not carnal, and walk as men?" if he asks, "While one saith, I am of Paul;
and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?" is it not self-evident that he
would have regarded those who are now divided into all sorts of sectarian
combinations as carnal too? No doubt this is deeply humbling. It is far more
pleasant to be flattering ourselves that we are "rich, and increased with goods,
and have need of nothing," than to be owning that we are "wretched, and
miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked." But if this is our real condition,
what do we gain by concealing it? We gain nothing, and we lose everything. In
the things of God, to judge ourselves is the sure precursor of blessing. If once
the conscience is brought into exercise about our state, whether individually or
collectively, we are on the way to discover God’s mode of deliverance. Among the
Jews of old, as among ourselves now, the most fatal thing is that slothful
acquiescence in the confusion and ruin around us; that readiness to accept
present ease, and to drift on with the current of the day, which at once closes
the heart against the entrance of God’s truth, and shuts out self-judgment on
account of our own failure. We are quick enough in detecting the folly and fatal
results of this conduct among the Jews. How little we often suspect the same
blindness among ourselves!

Eph 4:3-6. The apostle goes on to enlarge on this subject of "endeavouring to
keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." He gives as a reason for
this effort the various unities into which we are brought. These may be divided
into three classes, comprising, as it were, three concentric, but not
co-extensive, circles. "There is," he says, "one body, and one Spirit, even as
ye are called in one hope of your calling." Here we have the innermost circle,
consisting only of true believers, those who are really members of the body of
Christ, really sealed by the Spirit, and really possessed of the hope of God’s
calling as unfolded in the first chapter. Besides this, however, the believer is
brought into another circle, including, but far overlapping, the first, the
circle of outward profession and privilege, the circle which owns the "one Lord,
one faith, one baptism." All Christendom owns, however little it may submit to,
the lordship of Christ, and the authority and truth of "the faith," while by far
the greater part of Christendom is baptized. There is yet another circle, with
wider circumference still, presented to us in the words, "One God and Father of
all, who is above all, and through all, and in us all." Here we have the whole
race included, God being the common Father, in the same sense in which Paul else
where quotes the Greek poet as saying, "We are also His offspring." (Acts
17:28.) As such He is "above all," and His providence ranges "through all," but
it can only be said of believers that He is "in all;" hence in this case only do
we find in some of the best texts that the word "us" is introduced. But why is
this sevenfold oneness here urged? As a reason for "endeavouring to keep the
unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." "There is one body;" what more
unseemly, then, than the divisions by which the unity established by God is
obscured and practically denied? There is "one Spirit;" why, then, the endless
diversities of judgment, of practice, of order, of doctrine, indicating the
multiform action of man’s thoughts rather than the operation of the one Spirit
here spoken of? There is "one hope of our calling;" whence, then, the
conflicting ways and purposes of men who should all be marching to the same
goal? There is "one Lord;" how shocking, then, the setting up of every species
of human rule, dividing those who own His lordship into different camps, each
under a government of man’s invention. There is "one faith;" alas! what a
multitude of faiths and creeds, confessions and professions, have sprung up to
hide and choke that one "faith which was once delivered unto the saints." There
is "one baptism;" how sad, then, that those who profess to be "buried with
Christ" should be splitting into sects and divisions which show that they are
"carnal, and walk as men." Lastly, there is "one God and Father of all, who is
above all, and through all, and in us all;" how bitter a satire, then, on the
faithfulness of the church, that even believers, who know this Father, should
exhibit, not the reflection of divine order and oneness, but the picture of
confusion and division which we see around us in Christendom. But if sects are
thus a denial of God’s teaching concerning the Church, what are believers to do?
The only organization which claims catholicity is so evidently corrupt that its
pretensions to be the one Church need scarcely be discussed. Evangelical
believers, admitting the practical evils, though denying the unscriptural
character, of the divisions in the Church, have sought to mitigate them by
various devices for friendly co-operation among the sects. Of the kindly feeling
thus evinced, and the sincere expressions of brotherly love thus called forth,
we would certainly not speak in slighting terms. But a false diagnosis
necessarily leads to false treatment. The disease is not the ill-feeling
existing among the sects, but the sects themselves; and this disease is neither
removed nor altered in character by the occasional "exchange of pulpits," united
prayer-meetings or communions, joint committees and societies for common
objects, by which modern evangelical Christians so earnestly seek to promote
religious fellowship and good feeling. We have seen that sects are condemned
altogether, and no mere rubbing off of their angles will therefore restore the
order enjoined in God’s word

"Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean?" A mortified limb may exhibit
certain superficial wounds; but the most careful dressing of these will not
obviate the necessity for amputation. Excision of sects, not removal of a few of
their worst features, is what is needed to revert to God’s order. But here the
question necessarily arises, Is this possible? Granted that the unity ought
never to have been broken, surely it cannot now be regained? This is quite true
and the Holy Ghost does not therefore exhort believers to keep it, but to
endeavour to keep it. Each person is responsible to do all in his power; and
though, when ruin has come in, he cannot reconstruct, he can at all events
revert to the principle on which the unity was founded. The passage already
quoted from 1Co 1:1-31 shows us how the departure took place, and therefore
gives some indication of the way of return. What, then, was the manner in which
the ruin commenced? By the believers in Corinth setting up party names and
rallying-points. It is clear, therefore, that the first step back towards the
original ground is the abandonment of all party names and rallying-points. We
are told to gather to "the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;" and are assured by
Himself that those thus gathered have His presence in their midst.

It is possible however, as this passage proves, to use the name of Christ as a
party name; and no distinction in guilt is made between those who thus used the
name of Christ, and those who thus used the name of Paul and Apollos. It is not
enough, therefore, merely to renounce all other names, and to meet in the name
of Christ only. What, then, is required besides? The apostle exhorts the
Corinthians not only to have no party names, but all to "speak the same thing,"
and to "be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment."
Man cries at once that this is impossible; and if man’s mind and man’s judgment
are allowed, undoubtedly it is. But surely it is a solemn position to take, thus
to challenge God’s word, and to charge the Holy Ghost with urging
impossibilities. Where, then, is the solution of the apparent contradiction?
Clearly in the fact that man’s will and man’s judgment are not here allowed, but
that God’s will and God’s judgment are put in their place. The same chapter
which tells us to be joined together in mind and judgment pours contempt on all
human wisdom, and especially declares the incompetence of that wisdom to deal
with the things of God. It asserts that God hath "made foolish the wisdom of
this world," and that "the world by wisdom knew not God." What, then, has God
substituted for it? "The foolishness of preaching" "Christ crucified, to the
Jews a stumbling-block, and to the Greeks foolishness; but unto them which are
called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God."
Thus He has "chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise." How
clear, then, that in the things of God man’s wisdom can have no place, His mind
and judgment are set aside, and the word of God is given as the only rule. This
brings out the second thing which is needed, if we would escape the evil of
sectarian division. The name of the Lord Jesus Christ must be the only centre
around which we gather, and the word of God the only guide by which we are led.
It is these two things, and these two things alone, that amidst much weakness,
and in the absence of any special works, draw forth the Lord’s commendation of
the church in Philadelphia, and cause Him momentarily to drop the judicial
character elsewhere maintained throughout these addresses, and to declare,
concerning this assembly only, "that I have loved thee." Are these two things
sufficient, then, to remove us from a false sectarian position, and to put us on
a true scriptural foundation? Amply sufficient. They are all that the Lord finds
in the church in Philadelphia; they are all that can be expected or attained in
an age of failure and ruin. They are the two things that lend such a beauty to
the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, who, amidst all the failure and weakness of the
day in which their lot was cast, were kept in the path of obedience and blessing
by no other means than their faithfulness to the name of Jehovah and their
subjection to the written Word. All the errors that Christendom has fallen into
have begun by altering, adding to, or taking from, the Scriptures.

Paul, Apollos, and Cephas were all honoured servants of God; but God had given
to each his own special line of truth. What, then, was the first error?
Believers, instead of taking the truth from all, took only that portion of the
truth ministered by one. Instead of recognizing that all things were theirs,
"whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas," their narrowness would only receive one;
and in receiving one, rejected and opposed the others. Here we have the root of
nearly all doctrinal error. It is almost invariably, at least in its origin, a
partial, one-sided application of truth. Instead of the many-sidedness of
Scripture, man has generally preferred to build upon some special doctrine; and
all the rest be has either wholly neglected, or worked into the shape most
suited to harmonize with his peculiar and partial theological system. His faith
has not been sufficient to persuade him that all the different lines of
Scripture truth are really harmonious; that their reconciliation depends on
their origin in God’s wisdom, not on the powers of his own intellect. The same
want of faith has operated, though in a different way, in matters of church
order. Instead of believing that God cares for His Church, and has left ample
rules for its government, man has sought to form a code of his own; and as human
wisdom has been the source of this code, each man has had his own judgment; so
that in proportion to the freedom with which man could act, different codes and
different sects have multiplied. Every departure in this way has been by the
addition of something to the word of God - the assumption of powers which the
word of God does not give, or the adoption of rules which the word of God does
not enjoin. The simple faith which could receive what God has said, leaving
difficulties to Him, would have prevented the schisms caused by various
theological schools. The simple faith which could accept the teaching of God’s
word as sufficient guidance on all matters of church order would have prevented
the schisms caused by various denominational schools. There would still, of
course, have been different measures of intelligence; but even the most
unintelligent, if subject to Scripture, would have seen that these furnished no
excuse for sectarian separation.

Admitting, then, most fully that any attempt to reconstruct or to imitate the
original unity is out of the question, the exhortation to "endeavour to keep the
unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" is still perfectly practicable, and
indeed binding. To say that because the Church of God has become broken up into
sects, there is no possibility of taking an unsectarian position, is, in fact,
to say that God has shut us up to the path which He has expressly stigmatised,
and that He exhorts us to a course which He foresaw to be impossible. Anything
more dishonouring to Him can scarcely be imagined. There must be some way of
walking in obedience to God’s word, and the way is clearly pointed out to us.
The refusal of every name as a centre of gathering, save the name of the Lord
Jesus Christ, and an entire subjection to the word of God, will place us, not in
the original church unity, but on the divine principle on which that unity was
founded, and by the observance of which it could alone have been preserved.

It is objected, however, that in dividing from fellow-believers those who thus
gather only form another sect. To this however it is sufficient to answer, that
they do not divide from other believers. They find believers divided, each sect
meeting round a centre of its own, and they say, "This division is wrong; we
cannot sanction it or become responsible for it by going on with any of the
sects, but we come out from them to the common ground on which all believers are
told to gather." This is not separating from fellow-believers, but separating
from that which divides believers, and going on to the ground which condemns
such divisions as unscriptural, and a denial of the oneness of Christ. The
sectarian position in which other believers still remain may make a separation,
but that separation is not caused by those who refuse such a position, but by
those who retain it. If only two or three persons are gathered on true
scriptural ground, they are met on the principle of the church, and not of a
sect. There is a centre round which all believers ought to be gathered; and if
the majority are absent, preferring to meet round other centres, the charge of
sectarianism and division lies against them, not against the few persons
assembled in the Lord’s Name. The Gifts of an Ascended Christ.

Eph 4:7-11.

We have seen how the first exhortations, with respect to walking worthy of our
vocation, are directed to "endeavouring to keep the unity of the spirit in the
bond of peace." Nothing is more practical, nothing dearer to the Lord’s heart,
than this manifested oneness; and though its restoration is now impossible, yet
the principle on which it was founded can be owned, and obedience to the word of
God exhibited. But it is objected that in all God’s works there is variety, that
men’s minds are differently constituted, and that it is impracticable to mould
all to the same monotonous pattern. Does the oneness then, so strongly insisted
upon in Scripture, imply a lifeless uniformity? The very illustration by which
it is constantly described proves the exact opposite. In the human body no two
portions are alike, and the endless differences in each of its bones, veins,
muscles, and ligaments, all contribute to its healthy action as a whole.
Diversity of action does not involve schism and division. Such is the apostle’s
argument with respect to the setting of the individual members in the body of
Christ. "If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole
were hearing, where were the smelling? But now hath God set the members every
one of them in the body, as it hath pleased Him. And if they were all one
member, where were the body? But now are they many members, yet but one body."
(1Co 12:17-20.) The same fact as to diversity of gifts in one body is presented
in the epistle to the Ephesians. The apostle, after dwelling strongly on the
manifestation of unity, goes on to say: "But unto every one of us is given grace
according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Wherefore He saith, When He
ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men." (Eph
4:7-8) The second of these verses explains the sense in which the word "grace"
is used in the first. It is not that display of grace by which sinners are
saved, but that by which believers are endowed with the gifts of an ascended
Christ. The grace, of course, is the same in both instances, but exercised in a
different manner.

There is a marked distinction between the way in which gifts are spoken of in
this epistle and in the epistle to the Corinthians. In writing to the Church at
Corinth the apostle was giving directions as to the use of gift in the assembly,
which is regarded as the house of God on earth, administered by the Holy Ghost.
Hence the teaching is not so much with respect to the origin of gifts as with
respect to their distribution and exercise, which is the proper circle of the
Spirit’s activity. "To one," we read, "is given by the Spirit the word of
wisdom, to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit," and so on through
the other gifts; "but all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit,
dividing to every man severally as He will." (1Co 12:8-11.) Moreover, as the
subject here dealt with is the Spirit’s sovereignty in regulating the exercise
of gift in the assembly, all gifts that might be used in the assembly are taken
into account — the sign gifts, such as the speaking with tongues, as well as the
gifts for edifying the body. In the epistle to the Ephesians the question is not
the exercise of gift, but its origin and its object. The object is, "For the
perfecting of the saints, unto the work of the ministry, unto the edifying of
the body of Christ." (Eph 4:12) The origin is Christ Himself, not acting,
however, in His sovereign rights as the eternal Son of God, but in His acquired
rights as the victorious, risen, and ascended man. This agrees with the general
character of the epistle. In its earlier chapters we see God’s "mighty power,
which He wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His
own right hand 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." (Eph 1:19-21.) It is in virtue of the same
victory and exaltation that Christ now bestows gifts on believers. "When He
ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men." (Eph
4:8) To lead captivity captive is a poetical expression signifying the complete
triumph over a power by which one has formerly been subjugated, as it is said of
Israel in reference to Babylon, "They shall take them captives whose captives
they were." (Isa 14:2.) The words are first found in the song of Deborah, when
celebrating the victory of Barak over the armies of Jabin, by whom the
Israelites had long been oppressed: "Arise, Barak, and lead thy captivity
captive, thou son of Abinoam." (Jdg 5:12.) It is adopted in the passage here
quoted by the apostle from the Psalms, where it is clearly prophetic of Christ’s
triumph: "Thou hast ascended on high, thou past led captivity captive, thou hast
received gifts for men." (Psa 68:18.) The title by which Christ bestows these
gifts is therefore as follows: Man, as fallen, was in bondage under the fear of
death, and under the power of the devil. Jesus has come as man, has entered into
our wretchedness, charged Himself with our responsibilities, gone down under our
judgment, so that "through death He might destroy him that had the power of
death, that is, the devil." (Heb 2:14.) Having thus descended and conquered the
foe who held us in captivity, He has ascended in triumph, and received gifts
from God in His character as the risen, victorious man. Hence it is said, "Now
that He ascended, what is it but that He also descended first into the lower
parts of the earth? He that descended is the same also that ascended up far
above all heavens, that He might fill all things." (Eph 4:9-10) It was in
consequence of His humbling Himself and taking the lowest place that He obtained
this victory; and in virtue of this victory He "receives gifts for men," or, as
the margin reads, "in the man," that is, in His character as man.

It will be seen that the Spirit of God, in quoting this passage, has somewhat
varied and extended its scope. The psalm, after declaring Christ’s victory,
says: "Thou hast received gifts for men," or, "in the man." The apostle quotes
it thus: "And gave gifts unto men." The Old Testament shows Christ, as man,
receiving gifts in consequence of His triumph. But the Holy Ghost in the New
Testament so applies the passage as to show the actual bestowing of these gifts
on those for whom they were acquired. Nor is this all. The psalm describes the
time when God arises, and His enemies are scattered; when God "is blessed in the
congregation, even the Lord from the fountain of Israel;" when, "because of His
temple at Jerusalem, kings shall bring presents unto Him;" when "princes shall
come out of Egypt, and Ethiopia shall stretch out her hands unto God." All this
looks on to the reign of Christ in glory and majesty; to the full blessing of
Israel and the world. Then it is that He receives "gifts for men; yea, for the
rebellious also, that the Lord God might dwell among them." But in the epistle
Christ is shown as bestowing these gifts before this reign and this period of
earthly blessing begin — bestowing them in the sphere of His present interests
"unto every one of us." Though the victory has been won, its consequences, in
respect to Israel and the world, are not yet seen. But towards the Church He
already exercises His rights in bestowing the gifts He has acquired. How
remarkably this insertion of the present use of gifts, not alluded to in the Old
Testament, agrees with the character of the Church as a mystery "which in other
ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto His
holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit."

Though some special gifts are named in Eph 4:11, the language used in Eph 4:7
takes in a wider field. It is said: "Unto every one of us is given grace
according to the measure of the gift of Christ." In the parable of the talents
the Lord distributes "to every man according to his several ability." (Mat
25:15.) This, as the parable shows, includes false professors as well as true
believers. It makes clear, however, that all believers are entrusted with some
gift to use for their absent Lord. So in the text before us the grace spoken of
is given not merely to a few, but "unto every one of us." In connection with
Christ, the Head, "the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that
which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure
of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love."
(v. 16.) While, therefore, the special gifts needed for public labour are
confined to comparatively few, each believer has some gift for the edifying of
the body. In Rom 12:1-21 : where the question is the faithful and diligent use
of the gifts bestowed, the apostle names, among others, liberality, showing
mercy, and ministry — or service — in the widest sense of the word. A vast
circle of responsibility and activity is thus opened up, and a set of gifts
brought to light which are equally distinct from the miraculous sign-gifts named
in the Corinthians, and from the gifts for public teaching. In this wider sense
all receive some gift, for the use of which they are responsible. In verse 11,
however, the writer comes to a special class of gifts. "He gave some, apostles;
and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers." It
does not say that the apostles or others received gifts, but that they were
gifts. The subject is not, therefore, the gifts bestowed upon individual
believers, but the gifts bestowed upon the Church in the form of apostles,
prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers.

Nothing is said about the continuance of these gifts, and we must look at them
separately to see how far they were meant to be permanent or only temporary. As
to the apostle, the distinguishing feature was his ability to bear testimony to
Christ’s resurrection. Thus in the case of the new apostle chosen by lot, the
object, as explained by Peter, was that he might "be a witness with us of His
resurrection." (Acts 1:22.) And even Paul, who had never seen Jesus either
during His life or in the forty days before His ascension, rests his apostleship
on the same ground. "Am I not an apostle?" he asks. "Have I not seen Jesus
Christ our Lord?" (1Co 9:1.) And afterwards, speaking of Christ’s resurrection,
he says, "Last of all He was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.
For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle"
(1Co 15:8-9), thus again associating his apostleship with his having seen the
risen Christ. Since this, then, was a condition of apostleship, it is clear that
no one who has not seen Christ risen could be an apostle; or, in other words,
that apostles were only temporary gifts. But again, apostles and prophets were,
so to speak, the foundation course of the Church; for we are "built upon the
foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief
corner stone." No doubt the foundation is permanent, and in this sense the gift
is permanent. But this very fact precludes the thought of a succession of
apostles; for how could there be a succession of foundations to the same
building? The idea of a succession or revival of apostles is therefore a mere
fancy of the mind of man, entirely opposed to Scripture, and subversive of all
that is there taught concerning apostolic qualifications and functions. The
prophet was also a foundation gift. It was to prophets as well as to apostles
that the mystery which had before been hidden was revealed by the Spirit. In
certain cases too the prophet foretold future events. In all these characters
the gift of a prophet was only temporary. On the other hand, that part of the
prophetic gift which consists of speaking "unto men to edification, and
exhortation, and comfort," and in this way "edifying the Church" (1Co 14:3-4),
has never been removed, though whether those possessing it are prophets, in the
scriptural sense of the word, is at least doubtful. The gifts of evangelists,
pastors, and teachers are of course permanent, and require little explanation.
An evangelist is one who brings glad tidings. It may be well to observe that
there is nothing to identify evangelization with public preaching. No doubt many
evangelists are public preachers; but it would be a great mistake to confine the
term to those who thus labour. Perhaps some of the most largely-blessed
evangelists are those who, by their writings, or even by their private visits
and conversation, have set forth Christ, with little or no qualification for
addressing large audiences. No one would for a moment speak slightingly of
preaching; but it is more easy to be led by a desire for display in this work
than in work of a quieter and less public character. Moreover, the effect
produced on the conscience and on the heart by the presentation of the truth in
private is often far deeper and more durable than that wrought amidst the
excitement of preaching. The same may be said of the teacher, who is really the
same gift as the pastor, only as teacher he is looked upon rather in respect of
the truth he sets forth, and as pastor rather in respect of the flock which this
truth nourishes. But there is nothing in either case which necessarily
identifies the gift with public ministry. Indeed, while the labours of a teacher
may be, those of a pastor almost inevitably must be, of a private rather than of
a public character. The Edification of the Body of Christ.

Eph 4:11-16.

Apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, such, as we have seen,
are the gifts of an ascended Christ. But it is important to take notice that
they are gifts, not offices. The confusion of these two things has led to the
greatest disorder, and the widest departure from God’s thoughts. In the epistles
to the Ephesians and Corinthians, where we have the fullest teaching with
respect to gift, office is not even named. The most complete instruction
concerning office is contained in the first epistle to Timothy, where the
subject is the proper ordering and administration of the house of God. This
harmonises precisely with the character of the truth contained in these various
letters, and shows how completely distinct gift and office are from one another.
Gift is the provision made by an ascended Christ for the building up of His
body, the Church. Official character and responsibility, on the one hand, are
associated with the regular ordering of the Church as administered by man; and
as soon as that order ceased to exist, office had no further place. The only
officers named in Scripture are elders (also called overseers or bishops) and
deacons. Both these were ordained by apostles, or apostolic delegates, and
exercised their office in the assembly of the city to which they belonged. This
assembly consisted of all believers in the city, who were gathered together as
one body. Since no such assembly is now to be found, or is indeed possible —
since the Church, as to its outward order, has become a ruinous heap, no more
presenting even a semblance of its divinely-instituted oneness — it is clear
that there can no longer be any officers similar to those named in Scripture.
Nay, even if there could be a restoration of church unity, and an assembly which
could, in the Scripture sense, be styled the assembly of any particular town, it
would still be impossible to have officers, inasmuch as there is no longer any
scriptural mode of ordaining them. Man may invent substitutes in his sectarian
gatherings; but they are not, and cannot he, the officers spoken of in the word
of God. They are mere arrangements of human convenience, without any scriptural
sanction or authority. The use of the same names as those given to the officers
of the apostolic church is simply misleading, and the claim to appoint such
officers, in whatever way, is at once a denial of the Church’s ruin, and a
usurpation, however unintended, of apostolic authority. This will make it clear
that the distinction between gift and office is one of the very deepest
importance to the Church’s welfare; for had gift been in any way dependent upon
office, the gift must have ceased as soon as the Church fell into ruins. But as
it is, though office has ceased through the failure and disorder into which the
Church has fallen, gift, the grace bestowed by an ascended Christ, is just as
free as ever. Amidst the wildest confusion, amidst the grossest corruption,
amidst the infinite sub-division of that which ought to have retained and
exhibited its divine unity, the Lord can still freely bestow His gifts, and has
done so, in matchless grace, through every age of the melancholy history of the
Church on earth.

We have seen that office was local in its character, and required the ordination
of apostles or apostolic delegates. In both these particulars gift presents an
entire contrast. We read of the bishops and deacons of a particular church; but
we never read of the evangelist, pastor, or teacher, of any particular church.
These were gifts bestowed upon the Church as a whole, and a teacher or
evangelist in one place was also a teacher or evangelist in every place to which
he went. Moreover, they were the gifts of an ascended Christ, and never
required, or could have received, any human sanction. This was clearly the case
with apostles; for when, as Paul tells the Galatians, "it pleased God to reveal
His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the heathen, immediately I
conferred not with flesh and blood: neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which
were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto
Damascus." (Gal 1:15-17.) And it was the same with respect to the teacher. As
soon as Aquila and Priscilla had taken Apollos, "and expounded unto him the way
of God more perfectly," without asking any ordination or authorisation he began
to proclaim the truth which he had learnt. Nor was this deemed irregular; for
"when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the
disciples to receive him: who, when he was come, helped them much that had
believed through grace." (Acts 18:26-27) The gifts of an ascended Christ, then,
whether apostles, evangelists, or teachers, received their authority from Him
alone, and exercised it in responsibility to Him alone. Of course an apostle’s
advice as to the place or mode of labour would be received with great respect;
but he possessed no authority, nor did his advice take away from the
responsibility of the individual workman. Thus when Paul "greatly desired"
Apollos to go to Corinth "his will was not at all to come at this time." And as
with the exercise, so with the authorisation — it came from Christ only. To
accept sanction or ordination from men, or to connect their labours with any
local appointment, would have been a departure from God’s order, and would have
been a marked affront to Christ’s authority, by declaring it insufficient unless
supported by human approval.

These gifts were bestowed "for the perfecting of the saints, unto the work of
the ministry, unto the edifying of the body of Christ." (Eph 4:12) As to
standing, the saints are perfected already. All the blessings and privileges
recorded in the earlier portion of the epistle belong to the weakest believer,
who is sealed by the Spirit of God, no less than to the strongest. But the
question here is our practical acquaintance with the truth, and the power it
gives us both for maintaining sound doctrine and for pursuing a godly walk. The
two prayers in the first and third chapters are directed to these ends, and in
the things they ask there is unlimited room for growth. Christ, ascended and
triumphant, has therefore bestowed the gifts named in this chapter in order that
saints may be perfected. This is always His object. We may be content with a low
state, a low walk, a low appreciation of our blessings, a low intelligence of
the ways and purposes of God; but Christ is not content. From the height of His
glory He is still occupied with the wants of His people, and the first purpose
to which He turns His triumph is to send down gifts which shall minister to
their growth.

These gifts are provided "unto the work of the ministry." This does not mean, as
we have shown, the establishment of any official order of men. It is really
Christ’s ministry, the work of service He began on earth, now carried on in
another form through these gifts which He has bestowed upon the Church. There is
another object dear to His heart besides the perfecting of individual saints,
and this is "the edifying of His body." Whether this is carried on through the
work of the evangelist in bringing sinners to the knowledge of the truth, or
whether through that of the teacher and pastor in establishing and strengthening
those who are thus brought in, it is equally precious to Him who "loved the
Church, and gave Himself for it," and who recognizes in it, notwithstanding all
its failures, His own "body, the fulness of Him that filleth all in all." How
little do we enter into Christ’s thoughts as to the preciousness either of the
individual believer or of the Church, the "one pearl of great price," which He
has purchased at such a cost! In Eph 4:14 the apostle shows more fully what is
meant by "the perfecting of the saints." It is, that "we all come in the unity
of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto
the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ." Nothing less than this
will meet God’s thoughts about us. Here it is not a question of filling up the
body of Christ, but of individual growth. The point towards which we are to
grow, that which constitutes the perfect man or the full stature, is oneness in
the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God. This will not indeed be fully
reached till we see face to face; but meanwhile there is to be growth — growth
in "the faith;" that is, in acquaintance with God’s revealed mind, and growth of
heart in knowledge of Jesus the Son of God Himself. These are in accordance with
the two prayers of the first and third chapters. In the first the apostle asks
for growth in the faith, "that the eyes of your understanding may be
enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the
riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding
greatness of His power to us-ward who believe." In the second He asks for growth
in knowledge of Christ, that He "may dwell in your hearts by faith;" that ye may
be "rooted and grounded in love;" and that ye may "know the love of Christ,
which passeth knowledge."

It is not only growth in the faith, however, or even in the knowledge of the Son
of God, that is here spoken of. Besides this, we find that the "oneness"
elsewhere insisted on is again introduced. The goal towards which the gifts
should aid us is, "till we all come unto the unity of the faith and of the
knowledge of the Son of God." In this there should be progress; for thus only do
we come "unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of
Christ." We are to exhibit a perfect man — a man fully grown up in Christ. But
where there are sects and divisions, believers, instead of being full-grown men
in Christ, are only babes. They are carnal, not spiritual — walking as men
instead of showing forth Christ. These divisions came in, as we have seen,
through the eye being taken off Christ and occupied with men. If the eye is
fixed on Christ, the maturity — "the measure of the stature of the fulness of
Christ" — here spoken of will practically display itself in our walk. Thus alone
believers, "with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are
changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the
Lord." (2Co 3:18.) The apostle then shows us the results of this maturity in
Christ. The first is, that soundness of judgment in spiritual things which
renders even the most unlearned believer proof against the subtleties of the
human intellect, drawing away the heart from "the simplicity that is in Christ"
into all sorts of false teaching — "that we henceforth be no more children,
tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight
of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive." (Eph 4:14)
It is important to observe how this vantage-ground is gained. It is not by human
learning, or by skill in controversy. This verse connects itself with the one
immediately preceding it, showing that our stability in the midst of the
shifting currents of human opinion and speculation is the result of our being
full-grown in the faith, and the knowledge of the Son of God; that is, of our
possessing an intelligent acquaintance with the word of God, and a heart
acquaintance with the blessed Lord Himself. No safeguards against error and
false doctrine are proposed by the Scriptures, or can be of the smallest avail
if set up by man, except these two. But God is never satisfied with negative
results, and it is not enough therefore that we should be shielded from error.
He desires something more for us, that we, "holding" (not merely "speaking")
"the truth in love, may grow up unto Him in all things, which is the Head, even
Christ." (Eph 4:15) The knowledge of the faith is, as we have seen, the weapon
which alone enables us to "hold the truth" amidst the "opposition of science
falsely so called." But there must be a corresponding state of soul, showing
that the truth is operative in the heart as well as the mind, that it is forming
the affections as well as the intellect. Hence the truth must be held in love;
for without both of these there can be no "growing up unto Christ in all
things." Where, on the other hand, the truth of God is really held, not simply
as an intellectual creed, but in love, the believer will grow up unto Christ —
will become more and more assimilated in his walk and ways to the blessed Lord.
And it is from Him alone, who is "the truth," and who "is love," that real
growth must come. From Him "the whole body fitly joined together and compacted
by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the
pleasure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself
in love." (Eph 4:16) Here then we have important teaching, not only as to the
part which the Head, but also as to that which the members play, in this
"increase of the body." Of course all the power for growth, all the supplies,
come from the Head. Hence the whole is said to be "from," or "out of" Him. But
the "compacting" of the whole is "through (not from) that which every joint
supplieth, according to the working in its measure of each part" Though all
comes from Christ, yet each believer takes his proper place; and thus through
him, in his measure, the cementing and filling up of the body is carried on.
This is true through grace in spite of man’s failure; but surely it is a deeply
humbling fact, that this wondrous unity should have no outward manifestation
here on earth. Our failure cannot indeed prevent God’s grace; but should not His
grace make us ashamed of our failure?

Living Christ in the World.

Eph 4:17-29. The believer, "through the law," as shown by the apostle Paul, is
"dead to the law," that he may "live unto God." He can say, like Paul, "I am
crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me."
This is his standing before God, and the result upon his outward conduct should
be, as with the apostle, "The life which I now live in the flesh I live by the
faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me." (Gal 2:19-20)
He has no longer the law, but Christ, for his standard. To live Christ, that is,
to reproduce as it were the life of Christ in our own, is true Christian walk.
Christ always walked in the Spirit, and if we are walking in the Spirit we
"shall not fulfil the lusts of the flesh," but shall bring forth those fruits of
the Spirit — that "love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness,
faith, meekness, temperance," which adorn in such rich clusters the life of the
blessed Lord. (Gal 5:20-23.) It is impossible to gather grapes from the thorns
of the old nature. Christ is the true vine, the one stock from which fruit for
God can be brought forth. Only as we are branches abiding in Him can we bear
fruit like His own; only thus is it possible for us "so to walk even as He
walked." (John 15:5; 1Jn 2:6.)

These truths are beautifully brought out in the passage now before us. The
apostle having shown how a believer can walk worthy of the vocation wherewith he
is called in the church, next goes on to indicate how he should carry out the
same principle in his conduct towards his fellow-men, whether believers or
unbelievers. He does not put Gentile converts under law; but while not bringing
them on to Jewish ground, he carefully removes them from Gentile. "This I say
therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other
Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened,
being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them,
because of the blindness (or hardness) of their heart; who being past feeling
have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with
greediness." (Eph 4:17-19)

Such is man, as fallen, and left to the guidance of natural conscience and
reason. Truly he is "without excuse," for the ignorance is not a guiltless one.
"When they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful; but
became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was hardened." It was
because "they did not like to retain God in their knowledge" that He "gave them
over to a reprobate mind," or a mind void of judgment. (Rom 1:21, Rom 1:28) So
in the passage we are considering. It is "because of the hardness of their
heart" that their understanding is darkened, and in their ignorance they are
alienated from the life of God. Thus they walk "in the vanity of their mind,"
the vain, sinful desires and feelings of the natural heart being their only
guide. Nor is this all. Corrupt appetites, followed without restraint, soon
deaden the conscience and poison the affections, so that all right natural
feeling is lost. This is the lamentable condition of the Gentile world. They are
"past feeling," the restraints of conscience and even decency are removed, and
giving themselves over to depraved appetites, they "work all uncleanness with
greediness." Thus it was with the world before the flood, when the whole earth
was filled with "corruption and violence." Thus it was with the cities of the
plain, till God rained upon them fire and brimstone from heaven. Thus it ever
has been when man has been left to himself to follow the leading of his own evil
heart. But the Ephesians had, through grace, been brought out of this state of
things. They had another guide, as widely removed from mere natural conscience
on the one side as from law on the other. "But ye," says the apostle, "have not
so learned Christ; if so be that ye have heard Him, and have been taught by Him,
as the truth is in Jesus: that ye put off concerning the former conversation the
old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in
the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is
created in righteousness and holiness of truth." (Eph 4:20-24) These Ephesians
had learnt, not law, but Christ. They had by faith heard Him, and been taught by
— or rather in — Him, according to the truth of which His own life as man had
been the perfect and divine manifestation. The truth as it is in Jesus does not
mean the doctrinal truth of salvation, but the perfect, holy walk of truth, as
shown in His person; for when Jesus is spoken of in this way it refers to His
life and walk here in the world. The Ephesians had "learned Christ" in the only
way in which He can be learned. The natural man may learn of Christ; the
spiritual man alone can learn Him. For "the natural man receiveth not the things
of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know
them, because they are spiritually discerned." (1Co 2:14.) There must be the
hearing ear before Christ’s words can be understood. As Jesus said to the
Pharisees, "Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my
word." (John 8:43.) The Ephesians had heard Christ, and been instructed in Him.
The words that He spoke, "they are spirit and they are life," and they had
produced their quickening power on the hearts of these saints. Hence they knew
the truth as it showed itself in the spotless, holy life of Jesus. This was to
be practically manifested in their own lives. They belonged no more to the
flesh, and therefore their walk was not to be according to the old model — "the
old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts." They had done with
the old creation, as to their standing before God, and were seen in a new
creation, as quickened together with Christ. This then was to be their new
model. Being "renewed in the spirit of their mind," they were to walk after a
new fashion, not according to the law of the old nature, but as having "put on
the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and holiness of truth."
The new man is man in the new creation — the creation which has its head in
Christ, the creation which draws its character from Christ. To walk as having
put on the new man is therefore to walk as Christ walked; for this new man is
created according to God’s nature in righteousness and holiness suited to His
own truth. This standard once acknowledged, practical results are to follow; and
it is interesting to see how even the most common-place acts are submitted to
this new test. Thus the apostle says, "Wherefore putting away lying, speak every
man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another." (Eph 4:25)
Moral philosophers have discussed the question why men should not lie, and wide
differences have existed among them on the subject. But moral philosophy never
assigned as a reason anything like what is given here. The life of Christ is to
be our rule, not worked out through imitation, but worked out by the fact that
we are quickened together with Him, and created anew on His model. This settles
the whole question. Who can imagine falsehood from the lips of Him whose words
were the words of God, and whose truth was the truth of God? Just as little
could falsehood be found in the lips of one who walked in His spirit, showed
forth His life.

There is, indeed, another reason given, also characteristic of this epistle,
"for we are members one of another." How practical the "one body" is. No man
would lie to himself; no man could imagine the hand trying to deceive the foot,
or the ears trying to deceive the eyes. Just as little should believers in
Christ deceive each other. Being members of Christ, "we are members one of
another" — parts, as it were, of the "one new man" which Christ has made us "in
Himself."

Another result is seen in the next admonition, "Be ye angry, and sin not: let
not the sun go down upon your wrath: neither give place to the devil." (Eph
4:26-27) Our Lord was angry with certain persons, "being grieved for the
hardness of their hearts." (Mark 3:5.) There is therefore an anger which is of
God, but the abiding wrath which springs from vindictive feeling is not of God.
Even the anger kindled by godly indignation against evil may too readily
degenerate into fleshly passion. We must beware therefore that in anger we "sin
not," and guard against vindictive feelings by watching that the sun does not go
down on our wrath. Otherwise the tempter may come in, and we are not to "give
place to the devil." The next exhortation is a little startling from its very
obviousness, "Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour,
working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him
that needeth." (v. 28.) We must remember that the early assemblies were formed
of persons just brought out of heathenism, with all its abominations, and
consisted in part of slaves, an oppressed and degraded class, among whom theft
was practised without scruple or shame. The exhortation too goes beyond open
theft, and in principle condemns all taking of unfair advantage, such as even
the fuller morality of our own day often but feebly condemns. But the interest
of the exhortation lies rather in the motive than in the course of conduct
enjoined. If believers had been under the law, a simple appeal to the eighth
commandment of the decalogue would have been enough. But we are not under the
law, but under grace. What is the obligation then imposed by this position? Not
only to do "the righteousness of the law," but a great deal more. Did Christ
stop with doing the righteousness of the law? On the contrary, He went far
beyond it. The law requires that we should love our neighbour as ourselves, but
it does not require us to lay down our lives for our neighbour. This however was
what Christ did; and if the life of Christ is in us, "we ought to lay down our
lives for the brethren." (1Jn 3:16.) So extreme a sacrifice may indeed be rarely
demanded, but the spirit of it may always be shown. Christ not only did not
injure man, but "though He was rich, yet for our sakes He became poor, that we
through His poverty might be rich." (2Co 8:9.) His whole life was one of
self-sacrificing love. How beautifully this reappears in Paul, "I will very
gladly spend and be spent for you." (2Co 12:15.) The Christian should walk in
the same path, as he has the same life, not only refraining from stealing, or
taking unfair advantage, but working to have the means of ministering "to him
that needeth."

Thus the Holy Ghost, by one of the simplest exhortations in Scripture — an
exhortation which from its common-place character might to our blind reasoning
seem hardly worthy of a place in such an epistle — brings out one of the most
striking differences between law and grace. Law simply prohibits evil; grace
delights in doing good. Law is what God demands from man; grace is what God is
in Himself. How sad, then, to see believers, who have been brought into liberty
and associated with Christ, falling back into the lower class of motives and
principles, and putting themselves again in bondage under a system to which they
are declared to be "dead by the body of Christ." The whole "righteousness of the
law" shone out in the ways of Christ, and will shine out in the ways of one who
is abiding in Christ. But how infinitely beyond law the grace revealed in every
action of that perfect life! And this is what will appear, of course in a vastly
inferior degree, but still as a real fruit of abiding in Him, and walking in the
power of the new life in which we are quickened together with Him. The same
thing may be observed in the next exhortation, "Let no corrupt communication
proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that
it may minister grace to the hearers." (Eph 4:29) A special class of corrupt
communications, such as might be expected from Gentiles who wrought "all
uncleanness with greediness," is alluded to in the next chapter; but here the
exhortation has a wider scope. "How can ye, being evil, speak good things?" asks
our Lord of the Jews. (Mat 12:34.) A corrupt tree can only bring forth corrupt
fruit. The words, as well as the works, will bear the character of the heart
from which they proceed. But it is not enough that the believer merely abstains
from corrupt communications such as naturally belong to "the old man, which is
corrupt according to the deceitful lusts." He has put on the new man, of which
Christ is the perfect representative. Did Christ merely refrain from evil in His
conversation? No; His words, like His life, "ministered grace unto the hearers."
And so will the words of one who is in communion with Christ. Just so far as we
walk after "the new man" will our words resemble the words of Him of whom it is
written, "Grace is poured into thy lips, therefore God hath blessed thee for
ever." (Psa 45:2.) Followers of God.

Eph 4:29; Eph 5:2. The life of Christ shining forth from the believer is true
Christian walk. It is not merely negative, abstaining from evil, but positive,
abounding in grace like His who "went about doing good." There is, however,
another motive added, equally in accordance with the general character of this
epistle. After exhorting the believer to "let no corrupt communication proceed
out of his mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may
minister grace unto the hearers," the apostle adds, "And grieve not the Holy
Spirit. of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption." Among the
privileges of the believer especially enumerated in this epistle we read, "After
that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, which is the
earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession."
(Eph 1:13-14) This verse declares God’s purpose concerning us, and shows the
perfect security of the believer who is thus sealed. He is sealed for a
permanence, sealed "until the redemption of the purchased possession;" that is,
until he receives the inheritance which he now enjoys only in promise.

What, then, is the practical application made of this truth? Is it to sanction
carelessness of walk? Is it to give the smallest toleration to sin? Nothing
could be more dishonouring to the holiness, or more destructive to the truth of
God, than this thought. The very opposite is the fact. Though the believer who
falls into sin does not forfeit his standing as sealed of the Spirit, he does
grieve the Spirit, and therefore loses all the joy which the presence and
fellowship of the Spirit impart. Hence the apostle, instead of using the sealing
of the Spirit as an excuse for carelessness, urges it as a motive to
circumspection. We get the same truth in the epistle to the Corinthians, where,
in warning believers against sensual conduct, he tells them that their bodies
are members of Christ, and then further asks, "What? know ye not that your body
is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye
are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your
body, and in your spirit, which are God’s." (1Co 6:19-20) In both cases the
believer is said to be sealed or indwelt by the Holy Ghost, and the conduct
enjoined is not in order to get or keep this privilege, but because he already
has it.

Here again we see the distinction between law and grace. Law demands a certain
walk as the means of obtaining a position. Grace bestows the position, and
demands a corresponding walk. Law gives no power, but exacts the penalty for
failure; grace remits the penalty, and then bestows the power. Law is like the
vain attempt to carve a dead stock into the likeness of a living tree. Grace
supplies the sap and vital energy which makes it a living tree.

It may be well to distinguish between the grieving of the Spirit here spoken of,
and two other expressions found in other parts of the Word. Stephen, in
addressing the Jewish council, says, "Ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as
your fathers did, so do ye." (Acts 7:51.) Paul, in writing to the Thessalonians,
exhorts them thus: "Quench not the Spirit. Despise not prophesyings." (1Th
5:19-20) Now both these expressions differ, as the connection will show, from
the grieving of the Holy Spirit of God spoken of in the passage before us.
Resisting the Holy Ghost is refusing the testimony which He gives, whether by
prophets, by the mouth of Jesus Himself, or by the apostles after His ascension.
This the Jews had done through their whole long history, as Stephen had just
been showing, and they were still persisting in the same path of unbelief. The
quenching of the Spirit, on the other hand, is connected with ministry. Though
Christ risen and ascended is, as we have seen, the author of gifts, their
distribution and their exercise in the assembly are regulated by the "Spirit
dividing to every man severally as He will." (1Co 12:11.) Any usurpation of this
power by man, or any rule or regulation not sanctioned by the Word, which
restrains the Spirit’s freedom of action in this matter, is quenching the
Spirit; and as prophecy was the most important gift for "edification, and
exhortation, and comfort," in the church (1Co 14:2-4), the apostle connects the
command, "Quench not the Spirit," with the further warning, "Despise not
prophesyings."

Grieving the Holy Spirit is quite a different thing. In Galatians the
exhortation given is, "If we live in (or by) the Spirit, let us also walk by the
Spirit." (Gal 5:25.) That the Spirit is our life is assumed, and the practical
injunction founded upon this is, that we should have Him also for our power of
walk. So again we are told to "walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the
lusts of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit
against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other." (Gal 5:16-17)
In writing to the Romans, also, the apostle says that "the minding of the flesh
is death; but the minding of the Spirit is life and peace." (Rom 8:6.) It is
only, then, as we are walking after the Spirit that the flesh is prevented from
acting, or that our conduct can be pleasing in God’s sight. If the flesh acts,
the Holy Spirit is grieved, and the effect of grieving the Holy Spirit is to
destroy fellowship with God.

Moreover the Spirit was promised by Jesus to His disciples as the One who "shall
take of mine and shall show it unto you" (John 16:15); and besides this, "the
love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto
us." (Rom 5:5.) But how can the Holy Ghost be ministering Christ to our hearts,
and shedding abroad God’s love in them, while we are walking in sin, walking
after the flesh? The effect, therefore, of grieving the Holy Spirit of God is,
to lose that revelation of Christ, and that shedding abroad in our hearts of
God’s love which it is the special work of the Spirit to bestow. The apostle now
goes on further to specify the walk suited to a believer, and again we find that
the standard held up is infinitely higher than that of law. For while law sets
before us what man ought to be, grace sets before us what God is. Law reveals
God’s righteousness, grace reveals His heart, reveals Himself, and that in the
scene where all His perfections receive their brightest manifestation. Believers
are exhorted, therefore, "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour,
and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice and be ye kind one to
another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake
hath forgiven you. Be ye therefore followers (literally, imitators) of God, as
dear children; and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given
Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savour."
(Eph 4:31; Eph 5:1-2)

Let us look for a little at both the positive and negative side of this picture.
As usual, the negative comes first. We have already seen that there is a
righteous anger, an anger that never transgressed the limits of righteousness in
the blessed One of whom it is recorded, but which needs to be most jealously
watched lest it should degenerate into fleshly passion in the believer. The
anger here spoken of, however, is, as the context will show, of a different
character, and is simply the work of the flesh. In Galatians, where the contrast
between the fruits of the flesh and those of the Spirit is so strongly marked,
we find among the works which are declared to be manifestly of the flesh,
"hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings."
(Gal 5:20-21) Such works, then, are unsuited to those who are sealed with the
Holy Spirit of God; they grieve the Spirit; they belong to the old man which we
have put oft; and have nothing to do with "the new man, which after God is
created in righteousness and holiness of truth." How beautifully the same
connection is shown in the writings of another apostle, who, after reminding
believers that they are "born again, not of corruptible seed, but of
incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever," continues
his exhortation — "Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and
hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, as new-born babes, desire the
sincere milk of the Word, that ye may grow thereby." (1Pe 1:23-25; 1Pe 2:1-2.)

Let us note in passing the condemnation so repeatedly and emphatically
pronounced in Scripture against "evil speaking." No doubt there is much that may
truly be said against almost any believer. It does not follow that because a
person speaks evil, he speaks falsely. But the more thoroughly one is brought to
judge one’s own condition before God, the less disposed one is to that
censorious, fault-finding spirit which delights to detect and expose the
failings of others. There are sorrowful occasions when it is necessary to deal
with evil; but the Christian is most happily and profitably occupied when he is
thinking on "whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest,
whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are
lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue, and if
there be any praise." (Php 4:8.) It is God’s work to justify, Satan’s to accuse.
How beautifully the Lord Himself speaks the praises of His imprisoned
forerunner, even in the moment when He sent the needed warning, "Blessed is he,
whosoever shall not be offended in me." (Mat 11:6-11.) How ceaseless His
compassion, now, as High Priest, towards "them that are ignorant and out of the
way." How tender and unfailing His intercession, as advocate with the Father,
for the believer who has sinned. Contrast with our readiness to speak evil, the
generous warmth which glows in the words of Paul when naming his fellow-soldiers
and companions in labour. But the Holy Ghost never stops with negatives. There
is the positive side of the picture also. We are made, morally of course,
"partakers of the divine nature," and as such God Himself is our example; just
as in John we read, that "if God so loved us, we ought also to love one
another." (1Jn 4:11.) Hence the model for our walk towards our fellow-believers
is God’s own love to us. The same tender-heartedness, the same forgivingness
that God Himself has shown in forgiving us, we are called upon to exhibit
towards each other. We are children, and "dear children" — how God delights to
tell out the love of His heart towards us! We ought therefore to be followers,
or imitators, of Him to whose love and grace we owe all we have, all we are, all
we hope to be. But the example of Christ is also set before us, and that in the
matchless love which made Him give Himself on our behalf. Of course in the
atonement which He made Christ stands all alone. There He is the One forsaken of
God, and that as the bearer of sin. For us to be so forsaken would be eternal
perdition; but, thanks be to God, "by one offering He hath perfected for ever
them that are sanctified," so that we are as secure as Christ Himself, "because
as He is, so are we in this world." (1Jn 4:17.) We are not told therefore to
"walk in love" as Christ loved us, and gave Himself for us a sin-offering unto
God, but as Christ gave "Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a
sweet-smelling savour." There is a vast difference between these two things. As
bearing sin, Christ was under the judgment and curse of God, "made a curse for
us." As glorifying God in death, as exhibiting the perfect obedience due from
man, and the perfect grace that belongs to God, He was never so acceptable,
never so much the object of the Father’s delight, as when He gave up His life
upon the cross. It was this entire surrender of self for God and man that made
Him the perfect sweet-savour offering, whose fragrance morning and evening
ascended to God from the brazen altar.

This, then, is the model of walk presented to us. How marvellous the thought
that in the poor self-sacrificing love of our hearts God can find, as it were,
some faint savour of the infinite fragrance of that perfect self-sacrifice in
which Christ offered Himself upon the cross! In degree, of course, the
difference is as wide as between the infinite and finite, between heaven and
earth; but yet this is the model placed before us, this the type in every
blurred copy of which God can still find His delight. Thus Paul, writing to the
Philippians in acknowledgment of their gift, says, "I am full, having received
of Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you, an odour of a sweet smell,
a sacrifice acceptable, well-pleasing to God." (Php 4:18.) So again to the
Hebrews, "To do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God
is well pleased." (Heb 13:16.) To what an immeasurably higher level the standard
is raised when the living Christ Himself is thus placed before the soul, than
when the believer is again brought beneath the mandates of a lifeless law!

"Children of Light."

Eph 5:3-21.

Believers are exhorted to be "imitators of God as dear children." Now God has
revealed Himself as love and as light. He is of course righteous and holy; but
we never read that God is righteousness or holiness, whereas we do read that
"God is love," and that "God is light." In former verses God is seen as love,
and hence we are told to "walk in love." Here God is seen as light, and hence we
are told to "walk as children of light." The universal principle is, that
believers are to "walk worthy of the vocation wherewith they are called." Since,
then, believers are "called to be saints," or "called saints" (Rom 1:7; 1Co
1:2), their ways should be such as are suitable for saints. So it is here. They
are not called to become saints by a saintly walk, but are urged to a saintly
walk because they are saints through God’s calling. Hence the apostle says, "But
fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named
among you, as becometh saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor
jesting, which are not convenient [or suitable]: but rather giving of thanks."
(Eph 5:3-4) These believers had once walked in the lusts of the flesh,
"fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind." But they were now saints,
or sanctified; and having the life of Christ, they were to show forth this life
in their, walk. How unfit for those thus sanctified to be walking in
uncleanness! How unbecoming in the followers of Him who, though rich, for our
sakes became poor, to be eagerly clutching at the riches of this world! Nor is
it merely in deed, but in word, that believers are to act "as becometh saints."
The light, foolish, and often filthy talk to which as heathen they had been
accustomed was as little suitable to those "quickened together with Christ" as
the deeds named in the previous verse, and must be just as completely put away.
The lightness of heart which in the old man thus expressed itself, might now in
the new man find a suitable expression in the "giving of thanks." But another
motive is added. "For this we know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor
covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ
and of God." (Eph 5:5) The believer is a joint-heir with Christ; for in Him "we
have obtained an inheritance." But if we are to have part "in the kingdom of
Christ and of God," we must be morally suited to it in character. As seen in
Christ indeed we are already made "meet to be partakers of the inheritance of
the saints in light;" but here the question is not so much one of standing as of
conduct. And in this too the great principle holds, that if we are to be in
God’s presence, we must be fitted for it; "for without are dogs, and sorcerers,
and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh
a lie." No doubt there is often grievous failure; but this does not alter the
principle. What distinguishes a well-governed state is order and obedience to
law. What distinguishes the kingdom of God is holiness and purity of walk. There
are, even in a well-governed state, instances of disorder and disobedience to
law; and there are, even among members of the kingdom of God, instances of
unholiness and impurity of walk. But in both cases this is a departure from the
normal order. In both cases the distinguishing characteristic is not the
departure from the normal order, but the normal order itself. Thus licence and
immorality are condemned equally by the grace and by the government of God, and
the believer is appealed to, both as a saint and as a member of the kingdom of
Christ and of God, to walk worthy of the vocation wherewith he is called.

Man’s vain philosophy might indeed seek to pervert the doctrine of grace into a
sanction of immorality; but against such corruptions of the truth the apostle
warns them: "Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things
cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore
partakers with them." (Eph 5:6-7) There needs no lengthened argument. The vanity
of the teaching which would sanction such practices is seen at once by the fact,
that these were the very practices for which God’s judgment comes upon. the
children of disobedience. They had been in this condition themselves; walking
"according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of
the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience." But God
had called them out of it; and how could He possibly endure that they should
walk in the very acts from which they were thus delivered? "For," he argues, "Ye
were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of
light: (for the fruit of the light is in all goodness and righteousness and
truth;) proving what is acceptable unto the Lord." (Eph 5:8-10)

"God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all." Christ has come to reveal God
in this as in all other ways. He is "the true Light, which, coming into the
world, lighteth every man." Hence He speaks of Himself as "the light of the
world," and declares that "he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but
shall have the light of life." (John 8:12.) The character of the believer is
therefore that he has left the darkness, and is in the light. Now Scripture
knows no such thought as a man who is in the light walking in darkness. It knows
indeed, and gives abundant instances, of the failing and falling of believers;
of those who are in the light not acting up to it; and of much else which shows
how the flesh, where allowed to work, is just as bad in the converted as in the
unconverted person. But for all this the human thought that a believer can,
because secured through grace, continue to walk and delight in sin is utterly
opposed to the teaching of God’s word: "If we say that we have fellowship with
Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the
light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood
of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin." (1Jn 1:6-7) The two broad
classes are therefore the believer, who walks in the light, and has fellowship
with God; and the unbeliever, who walks in darkness, and has no fellowship. The
Ephesian converts had once belonged to the former class, but were now in the
latter. As children of the light, they were to show what was acceptable to God;
to bring forth the fruit of light (not of the Spirit, as in the English
version), which are "goodness, and righteousness, and truth." Where light is,
darkness disappears. The light of God shining into the heart dispels the evil;
not indeed changing the old nature, but enabling us to judge it and its deeds;
to take the place of Job, when he saw himself in God’s presence: "Now mine eye
seeth thee; wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes." (Job
42:5-6) Hence, where the rays of God’s light are allowed to search the heart
there is real and deep judgment of evil, as well as practical separation from
it. So the apostle goes on: "And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of
darkness, but rather reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of those
things which are done of them in secret. But all things that are reproved are
made manifest by the light; for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.
Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and
Christ shall give thee light." (Eph 5:11-14) The believer not only walks in the
light, but by so doing becomes himself a source of light. He does more than
refuse to have fellowship with "the unfruitful works of darkness;" as "light in
the Lord" he reproves them. Noah "condemned the world." His own faith and walk
were the lights which disclosed the thickness of the moral darkness around. So
our Lord says, "If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin:
but now they have no cloke for their sin." (John 15:22.) Thus it must ever be in
God’s moral government. Darkness does not discover itself, but is discovered by
the light. Mere philosophy, however deep, cannot show things according to God’s
thoughts. Life and light must go together. There must be divine life in the soul
before God’s light can be received. Only the quickened soul can discern in
Christ the light of the world, and see all things in the form and colour in
which this light reveals them. "Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest,
and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light." The whole of the
preceding exhortations are thus briefly summarized: "See then that ye walk
circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days
are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the
Lord is." (Eph 5:15-17) Folly and wisdom in Scripture are not merely
intellectual qualities, but have always a moral character. It is the fool who
says in his heart, "There is no God." It is the fear of the Lord that is
declared to be the beginning of wisdom. The believer as a child of light has
"the mind of Christ;" he has the Holy Ghost to teach him the deep things of God.
However little gifted in mere worldly wisdom or knowledge, he has "an unction
from the Holy One," and so has the mind of God in all that concerns His things.
But the flesh is constantly present to lust against the Spirit, and it needs
circumspection therefore, constant watchfulness, to walk as wise men, and not as
fools. This is what the Christian is exhorted to exercise. If he is called out
of the folly of the world, and has the hidden wisdom of God given him, he is
urged to walk worthy of his vocation. And this is all the more necessary because
the times are evil, so that every opportunity needs to be seized. A particular
example is then given which illustrates the principles thus laid down: "And be
not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; speaking
to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody
in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the
Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; submitting yourselves one to
another in the fear of God." (Eph 5:18-21) The world’s joy expresses itself in a
carnal manner; it is mere natural excitement, such as that caused by wine. The
believer’s is to be in contrast with this. It is not the exhilaration ministered
by mere natural causes, but the deeper delight ministered by the Spirit of God.
It is one thing to be indwelt by the Spirit, and another to be filled with the
Spirit. All believers are indwelt; but how few, alas, are filled! As we have
seen in former chapters, the Spirit, though still sealing, may be grieved, and
not able to minister either peace or joy. But to be filled with the Spirit is to
be under the direct energy of the Spirit’s action. It is here put in contrast
with the forced, natural mirth caused by wine. In place of this the believer
should have the joy and happiness shed abroad in his heart by the Holy Ghost.
This will find its suitable outlet in expressions of joy; not the foolish songs
of the world, but the psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs in which the heart,
filled with the sense of God’s goodness, delights to pour forth its feelings.
Thanksgiving is as natural to hearts thus tuned as the idle songs of the world
are to the heart excited by the world’s gaiety and folly.

There is another word added which seems to come in somewhat strangely:
"Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God." The mirth excited by
wine is quarrelsome and self-assertive; not so the gladness of heart shed abroad
by the Spirit. The deep sense of grace which calls forth praise and thanksgiving
to God humbles instead of exalting. The fuller the heart is of praise to God the
lower it will be in its own esteem, and hence the submission one to another; not
indeed out of simple kindness and good-nature, but in the deep sense of the fear
of God, which never ceases to fill the heart occupied with His goodness and
love. The Christian at Home.

Eph 5:22 to Eph 6:9. The family is especially dealt with in the epistles which
treat of the Church. Those epistles which take up Church order and rule take up
also the order and rule of the family; and those epistles which show the Church
as the body of Christ, show also how this relationship, and the principles it
involves, affect the family life. Family relationships were instituted by God in
Eden, and confirmed after the fall. Christianity does not change their outward
character, but infuses into them new and divine principles. The husband is the
responsible head of the house, and the mutual obligation subsisting between him
and his wife, his children, and his servants, is the subject of the portion now
before us. The question is not one of rights on either side, but rather of the
way in which each, as having the life of Christ, should exhibit this in his
conduct towards the other.

"Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the
husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the Head of the Church: and
He is the Saviour of the body. Therefore as the Church is subject unto Christ,
so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing." (Eph 5:22-24) Part of
the curse pronounced on the woman at the fall was, "Thy desire shall be
[subject] to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.’’ (Gen 3:16.)
Christianity confirms this order, but so remodels it that all trace of the curse
disappears. The subjection of the believer to the Lord, or of the Church to
Christ, is no curse or bondage, and these are now the models of wifely
subjection; for she is to be subject unto her own husband, "as unto the Lord,"
and as "the Church is subject unto Christ." How beautiful to see a human
relationship, and one too which derives a part of its character from the fall,
thus transformed into a type of the mystery in which God displays His "manifold
wisdom" unto "the principalities and powers in heavenly places." The subject is
expanded in dealing with the other side. "Husbands, love your wives, even as
Christ also loved the Church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify
and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that He might present it
to Himself a glorious Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing;
but that it might be holy and without blemish." (Eph 5:25-27) Here, though
natural affection is owned, a far higher order of love is brought in, so that
the earthly relationship is re-cast, as it were, in a heavenly mould. The past,
present, and future love of Christ to the Church are all made to bear on the
duty of the husband to his wife. And how beautiful the unfolding of this love
is! Christ loved the Church — not only saints, but the Church — and gave Himself
for it. It was the "pearl of great price" for which He sold all that He had. Now
He watches over it, cleansing it from defilement by the application of His word.
Soon He will present it to Himself in His own beauty, "prepared as a bride
adorned for her husband," the object of His own eternal delight. And here the
order of creation is brought in, and made to blend, as it were, with that love
of Christ of which it furnishes so beautiful a type. "So ought men to love their
own wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth Himself. For no
man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the
Lord the Church: for we are members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones.
For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto
his wife, and they two shall be one flesh." (Eph 5:28-31) The peculiar mode of
Eve’s creation out of Adam both gives marriage a special sanctity, so that the
wife is to be cherished as a part of the husband’s own being, and furnishes an
exquisite type of Christ’s relationship with the Church. As Adam was not
complete without Eve, so Christ, though Head over all, is not complete without
the Church, "the fulness [completion] of Him that filleth all in all." As Adam
fell into a deep sleep, so Christ went into death. As Eve was formed out of
Adam, so the Church is quickened with Christ, and has His own life. As Adam
acknowledged Eve to be bone of His bone and flesh of his flesh, so does Christ
acknowledge the Church. As Adam was bound to care for and cleave to the woman
thus formed out of himself, so Christ delights in nourishing and cherishing the
Church which is His own body. How wonderfully all that belongs to this
divinely-instituted relationship is raised by being thus linked up with the
tender, watchful love of Christ over the Church!

This, of course, is the grand subject, and therefore the apostle writes: "This
is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the Church." Still the
relationship of husband and wife is also in his view, so he adds, "Nevertheless
let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the
wife see that she reverence her husband." (Eph 5:32-33) Though the believer is
not promised his portion in this life, yet he is told that "godliness is
profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that
which is to come." (1Ti 4:8.) We have an illustration here. Who cannot see the
happiness that would reign in the house where the relationship of husband and
wife was formed on the godly model here furnished? The subjection of children to
their parents is part of God’s order as seen in nature; and under the law a
special blessing was attached to the observance of the commandment in which this
duty was enjoined. Christianity takes up the obligation, but transplants it from
natural to divine ground. "Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is
right. Honour thy father and thy mother; which is the first commandment with
promise; that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth."
(Eph 6:1-3.) Thus the obligation of children, as of wives, is connected with
"the Lord." It is not merely the dictate of nature, though perfectly right, but
the acknowledgment of the Lord’s claims as represented in the parents. The
blessed Lord Himself, who "learned obedience," was the beautiful example of
this. Of Him in His lifetime it is recorded that He went with His parents "to
Nazareth, and was subject unto them." The law is not here introduced as showing
that believers are under it, but as proving the special value which God attached
to this duty, so as even to depart from the ordinary character of law, by
coupling it with a promise which makes known the connection between this duty
and earthly blessing. But the duty is not one-sided. The apostle adds, "And ye,
fathers, provoke not your children to wrath but bring them up in the nurture and
admonition of the Lord." (Eph 6:4) Both parents are to be obeyed, but this
admonition is addressed only to the fathers. This may be partly because fathers
are more likely to err in the provoking of their children to wrath than mothers;
but the principal reason is that the father, as the head of the house, is
responsible to God for the bringing up of the children, and he is treated on the
ground of this responsibility. This principle, as seen in Eli’s case, runs
throughout Scripture. It is all the more solemn because under Christianity the
children are already holy, as belonging to the house of God; and the obligation
is therefore the greater to "bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the
Lord." The Israelites were holy by birth — not personally, but as belonging to a
nation set apart to God — and therefore the fathers were to instruct the
children in the law, their then link with God. So Christian parents are to
instruct their children as to what becomes the holy character which attaches to
them as members of a Christian family. The next class of household relationships
differs from the others in being one instituted by social rather than natural
causes. The servants here named were bondsmen. Whether slavery is right or
wrong, humane or cruel, is not the point here. Christianity takes men in the
social position in which it finds them, and shows how they may live Christ in
that place. It is not occupied in remodelling society, but in teaching the
believer to exhibit Christ. He was to be subject to the powers that be; and as
these authorized slavery, he was to obey the laws in this as in other matters,
seeking freedom lawfully if he could, but if not, to be content with his lot.
The service rendered under present social conditions differs in its legal basis,
but this does not alter the obligations on either side named by the apostle.
Nay, if there is any difference, the obligation is even stronger; for service
rendered for wages should surely be given as cheerfully and performed as
thoroughly as service exacted by bondage.

"Servants," therefore, are exhorted to "be obedient to them that are your
masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your
heart, as unto Christ; not with eye-service, as men-pleasers; but as the
servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; with good will doing
service, as to the Lord, and not to men." (Eph 6:5-7) Here again the obligation
is taken out of the range of the old creation, and connected with Christ in
glory. Like wives and children, the servants are exhorted to render their
obedience "as unto Christ." This at once transfers their duties to a higher
region than either the legal compulsion of the old system, or the legal contract
of the present. Even a slave’s duties were at once ennobled and sweetened if he
could say, "I am doing this, not for reward, or to escape punishment, but to
please Christ." It was not to be a question of whether the task imposed was
reasonable or unreasonable, light or arduous. Wrong endured, or severe labour
performed for Christ’s sake, might be cheerfully borne.

How beautifully our Lord Himself furnishes the example of this. He "took upon
Him the form of a servant." Though entitled to be free, He submits to tribute
lest He should offend them. So the believing servant, under the cruelest and
most tyrannical treatment, was to show out the life of Christ in him. "For this
is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering
wrongfully . . . . for even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also
suffered for us, leaving us an example, that we should follow His steps." (1Pe
2:19-21.) And as the cheerful and diligent obedience of the servant was the
means of showing forth Christ, so any failure in the respect or subjection here
enjoined would bring reproach on His name. Hence the apostle, in writing to
Timothy, says, "Let as many servants as are under the yoke count their own
masters worthy of all honour, that the name of God and His doctrine be not
blasphemed." (1Ti 6:1.)

Nowhere is the honour of Christ spoken of as bound up with the conduct of the
believer, so remarkably as in the case of the servant. The very hardships of his
lot, the very injustice and cruelty with which he was liable to be treated, only
rendered the power of the life of Christ in him the more conspicuous. And before
none other is the reward of his conduct so distinctly set: "Knowing that
whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord,
whether he be bond or free." (Eph 6:8) How cheering to the suffering bondsman,
to look beyond the drudgery and unrequited labours of his earthly lot, and to
know that the faithful toil endured with good will for the Lord’s sake here, is
not, and never will be, forgotten, but will all "be found unto praise and honour
and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ!" (1Pe 1:7.) And if Christ, as the
Lord of the inheritance, holds out the hope of reward to the servant, so He
utters words of warning to the master: "And, ye masters, do the same things unto
them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in heaven;
neither is there respect of persons with Him." (Eph 6:9) "The same things"
probably mean what is called in the Colossians, "that which is just and equal."
The principle here is the counterpart of that in the last verse. Even a
Christian master might forget that social distinctions, though recognized and
sanctioned on earth, have no existence in Christ’s judgment. Master and servant
will all answer to Him. To the one whose low position might cause discouragement
He holds out, therefore, the prospect of reward for faithful service; to the one
whose high position might lead to oppression, He holds out the judgment that
will follow an abuse of power. Though the law might give the injured servant no
redress, the master was reminded of another tribunal before which he must stand,
and in which his conduct to his servant would be judged, not according to man’s
laws, but according to the estimate of Him that is holy, Him that is true. Thus
Christ is made the standard of everything in the Christian’s walk. Whether as
wife or husband, as child or parent, as bondsman or master, the rule is, that
having Christ’s life, the walk of Christ is to be shown forth in the believer’s
ways. "He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk even as He
walked."

Wrestling in the Heavenly Places.

Eph 6:10-24.

Believers are in this epistle seen in Christ. They are blessed "with all
spiritual blessings in heavenly places" in Him, and made to "sit together in
heavenly places in Christ Jesus." This is where God’s grace has set them; and
their walk in the world is to be such as befits those holding so marvellous a
position. The same fact determines also the character of their conflict; for
though the believer has a perfect title to these blessings and this position,
his practical enjoyment of them in this world depends entirely on the extent to
which he lays hold of them by faith. In heaven there can of course be no
conflict; then it will all be rest, and calm, undisturbed possession, with no
foe to seek to drive us out of the field. Here, however, it is entirely
different; we are not only surrounded with foes on every hand, but we have a
special class of enemies to meet, and a special kind of conflict to maintain, in
consequence of the heavenly place into which we are brought.

We have a type of this in Joshua, where the Israelites come up from the Jordan,
a figure of resurrection, and enter into the land, which represents the heavenly
places. The day will come when Israel will have rest in the land, and all
conflict will be over. But it was not so when they crossed under Joshua’s
guidance. Their title was good, for it rested on God’s promise to Abraham; but
they were yet in a scene of conflict, a scene calling for self-judgment, for
watchfulness, and for courage. So it is with us. The heavenly places are ours in
title, and we too, as "quickened together with Christ," are entered into them.
But, like Israel, the time for undisturbed possession has not yet come, and we
must hold our ground in them by vigilance and conflict. The Israelites began at
Gilgal, the hill of circumcision; and so we are called upon to "put off
concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to
the deceitful lusts."* Having thus in type put the flesh in the place of death,
the Israelites had to gird themselves for conflict with giants, dwelling in
"cities great and walled up to heaven," enemies in comparison with whom they
were "in their own sight as grasshoppers." So, too, we have enemies,
principalities and powers in heavenly places, compared with whom all our
strength is mere weakness. Joshua was exhorted — "Be strong and of a good
courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with
thee whithersoever thou goest." (Jos 1:9.) So, in the portion we are now
considering, the exhortation is — "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord,
and in the power of His might." (Eph 6:10) The conflict is not one as to
standing. There the believer can say, "In all these things we are more than
conquerors through Him that loved us." In these conflicts in the heavenly
places, however, the believer is himself called upon to wage war, to "put on the
whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the
devil." (Eph 6:11) The power of Satan and the spiritual principalities is,
indeed, already broken; but their wiles are always to be dreaded, and call for
unceasing watchfulness. They cannot change or lower our standing, but they can
cheat us of the enjoyment of it, and so rob God of the glory which our walk and
conversation should bring Him; for Satan’s object always is to deprive God of
His glory, and the believer of his blessing. And here, where God is setting a
people in Christ, accepting them in the Beloved, "to the praise of the glory of
His grace," Satan’s craft is specially put forth to lower the standard of
blessing, and lead them to take an inferior place, and therefore a place less
honouring to God than that which He has assigned them.

*It so stands in our translation; but it may be questioned whether it should not
read, "that we have put off the old man," etc. — E.D.

Hence our conflict, as set forth in this epistle, is for the possession by faith
of these heavenly places, and our enemies are those who would seek to drive us
from them. "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against
principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this
world, against spiritual wickedness in high (or heavenly) places." (Eph 6:12)
This conflict is one we must sustain if we would practically enjoy the heavenly
place and the heavenly blessings which are ours in Christ. "The old corn of the
land" can only be eaten in the land. But it is clear that no strength of ours
can cope with such enemies as those now arrayed against us. What, then, is our
resource? God has made ample provision; He has stored up in His divine armoury a
harness which can withstand even such assaults as those we have to resist.
"Wherefore," He says, through the apostle, "take unto you the whole armour of
God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to
stand." (Eph 6:13) Thus, though we are ourselves to wage this warfare, it is as
strengthened with the power of God’s might, and equipped with armour from God’s
magazine.

What, then, is this suit of armour? "Stand therefore, having your loins girt
about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet
shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield
of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the
wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is
the word of God. (Eph 6:14-17) We have seen how Joshua was assured of the Lord’s
presence; but this was not promised unconditionally. The condition was this —
"Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do
according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from
it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou
goest." (Jos 1:7.) Such was Joshua’s armour for the conflict which typifies ours
— the truth of God, grasped by faith and followed in obedience. God’s presence
could alone give victory, and this depended upon obedience. So, too, the
believer can only sustain his conflict by having his "loins girt about with
truth." Thus only can he baffle "the wiles of the devil." Had Eve been thus
guarded, how could the serpent have deceived and destroyed her? This, then, is
the first requisite for withstanding his wiles. The immutable truth of God’s
word is the only anchor that can steady the soul amidst all the waves of
temptation with which the devil assails it. But what is the security which this
truth gives? How does it enable us to meet the devil’s wiles with unruffled
breast? It furnishes us with the breastplate of righteousness, "the
righteousness which is of God by faith." Assured that God is our Justifier, we
can keep possession of the heavenly places from which the devil would seek to
dislodge us. A doubt upon this point, and all is lost, as to the practical
enjoyment of our heavenly position. Our title to it is, that we are "made the
righteousness of God in Christ;" and our practical power to make good the
position depends on our grasp of this truth. The heart once calmly resting on
the full work of Christ and our standing in Him, all the efforts of Satan to
dislodge it are vain. It is protected with the breastplate of righteousness,
which all his shafts cannot pierce. "If God be for us, who can be against us?"
is the triumphant answer to all his assaults in this direction. This
breastplate, as has been said, is the believer’s righteousness in Christ, not
the righteousness of his walk. It must be remembered, however, that
unrighteousness of walk saps the heart’s confidence and destroys its communion,
so that though the believer’s standing may be certain, his own sense of it is
weakened, or even lost, and thus he is wholly unable to maintain his ground
against the wiles of the devil.

"Being justified by faith, we have peace with God;" and if it is necessary that
our breast should be shielded from danger by the consciousness of our
righteousness in Christ, it is equally necessary, along the rough road we have
to tread, that our feet should be "shod with the preparation of the gospel of
peace." The assurance that every question is settled between God and our souls,
that we have full unclouded peace with Him, can alone keep our feet steady in
the conflict we have to wage with the craft of the enemy. Without this we shall
be sure to trip at the critical moment of the fight, for if Satan can once
insinuate a doubt on this point, it is vain to suppose we can hold our ground
for conscious enjoyment in the heavenly places. All these, however, are only
kept by faith. The truth of God, our righteousness in Christ, and our peace with
God, are indeed the believer’s portion, even when his faith fails; but it is
only as his faith is in active operation that they can avail him in baffling the
wiles of the devil, or in maintaining his heavenly standing. It is necessary,
therefore, that over all these he should cast the protection of faith — "above
all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the
fiery darts of the wicked" — or, rather, "of the wicked one." And closely
connected with this is another piece of defensive armour — "the helmet of
salvation." This, like one of the former figures, is doubtless taken from the
Old Testament prophecy, which speaks of Christ as putting on "righteousness as a
breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon His head." (Isa 49:17.) But with
Christ it is the righteousness which He executes in judgment, and the salvation
which He brings as the deliverer of His people. With us it is the righteousness
and salvation we have in Him. If righteousness is the breastplate which protects
the heart from misgiving, the helmet is the crowning piece of the armour, which
enables the believer to hold his head erect in the conflict, the consciousness
of full assured salvation, which gives a title to the heavenly places, and
therefore gives confidence in maintaining the ground against all the stratagems
of the foe.

There is, in addition to these pieces of defensive armour, one offensive weapon
— "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." It is interesting to see
the close connection between the first and last piece of God’s panoply. The
truth of the Word is the power to gird up the loins; the sword of the Word is
the weapon to put Satan to flight. Our Lord Himself furnishes us with an example
in the use of both. He repels all the subtle attacks of Satan by the simple use
of the Word. In the first two temptations, however, He uses it only as a
defensive piece of armour, baffling the enemy, but not, as it were, wounding
him. On the third occasion, on the contrary, He uses it as a sword, inflicting
so deadly a thrust that the enemy is put to flight.

Such is the armour in which God has clothed us for this conflict in the heavenly
places. Our attitude there is defensive — guarding what is already ours through
grace. But this defensive attitude, being maintained solely by what we have in
God, needs constant prayer. Dependence alone enables us to hold the heavenly
places in spite of Satan’s opposition; and this dependence expresses itself in
prayer. The Apostle therefore adds — "Praying always with all prayer and
supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and
supplication for all saints." (Eph 6:18) What a place prayer has in almost all
the apostle’s letters! How earnest and incessant his own prayers for the saints!
A constant sense of dependence on God, and of God’s interest in His people — the
two great essentials to prayer, shine forth in all his writings and his ways.
So, too, in the gospel of Luke, where we have the path of the perfectly
dependent man, do we not continually find Him going apart to pray, and even
spending whole nights in prayer? How much of the weakness and failure we have so
constantly to deplore arises from our being so unlike the apostle, and the
blessed Lord Himself, in this respect! and he who best knows the value of prayer
will most desire the prayers of others. Thus the apostle constantly asks the
prayers of believers, even as he does here, exhorting them to pray "for all
saints; and for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my
mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an
ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak." (Eph
6:18-20) It is not for his liberation, or for any personal benefit, that he
seeks their prayers; but only that through him "the mystery of the gospel" might
sound forth, and thus glory be brought to the name of Christ. Oh for more of the
apostle’s singleness of eye in those whom the Lord now uses to proclaim His word

It is beautiful to see, too, how tenderly he cares for the feelings of the
saints, counting on their affections, and sending one who, while helping them in
their souls’ growth, would also meet the anxiety of their hearts for news
respecting his own position and circumstances. "But that ye also may know my
affairs, and how I do, Tychicus, a beloved brother and faithful minister in the
Lord, shall make known to you all things; whom I have sent unto you for the same
purpose, that ye might know our affairs, and that he might comfort your hearts."
(Eph 6:21-22) The personal messages and salutations, so beautiful in some of the
epistles, are not given here, being probably carried by Tychicus himself. But
the warm love of the apostle’s heart to all the saints glows forth in the
parting benediction — "Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God
the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all them that love our Lord
Jesus Christ in sincerity" — or incorruptness. — "Amen." (Eph 6:23-24) How
comprehensive and beautiful a prayer to close this epistle! an epistle which
unfolds all the purposes of love in God’s heart towards us, the wonderful
blessedness of our standing "in Christ," the walk suited to our heavenly
calling, and the weapons furnished for our heavenly warfare. It is doubtful
whether the "Amen" is in the original; but surely it will be the suited response
of every believing heart.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 18: S.   BEHOLD, I STAND AT THE DOOR
========================================================================

“Behold, I Stand at the Door”

“Drawn from the wells of light that lie afar, The dim cold dawning quells the
lamps above, Save where the lightnings of the morning star Flash like the eyes
of love.

As showers of pearls, beneath the morning beam, The icy dewdrops glimmer on the
grass — Below the meadow slowly glides the stream, A flood of liquid glass.

And ghastly in the face of coming day — Where leaves and fruits around unheeded
rot — A wreck amidst that store-house of decay, There stands a lonely cot.

Around the walls the earth-born ivy clings, And clutches at the nails upon the
door; The portal seemeth to all outer things Close shut for evermore.

For grossly wrapped around with earthly growth, Buried in self, its breathing
tenant lies — A living sepulchre of vice and sloth, Where manhood droops and
dies.

And all the threshold is with weeds o’ergrown Of rankest sort; the door with
twofold locks Is closely barred. — But mark, where all alone A Stranger stands
and knocks.

Alone, alone, in that keen frosty air, Long at the door of that unsheltering cot
He stands, and gently craves admission there, But answer comes there not.

See where He stands in kingly vesture clad, With god-like love and pity in His
face, And eyes divinely calm, divinely sad, All full of truth and grace

The scarlet robe, which once in bitterest scorn Enwound His limbs, is gemm’d
with lustres now; A crown of gold, wreathed in the crown of thorn, Gleams
king-like on His brow.

Oh, let Him in; on such a wintry night The vilest wretch might claim a boon like
this; But He has come to bring thee life and light, And everlasting bliss.

The cross, the crown of thorns He bore for thee; The crown of glory thou with
Him shalt wear; Oh, open now thy heart, and let Him be No more a stranger there.

“Not yet, not yet — a little longer rest In sin, in sloth, in self — not yet,
not yet;” Unready is my heart for such a guest — Perchance He still will wait.

Thy heart is dark, but He will give it light; Thy heart is vile, but He will
cleanse its sin; For where He dwelleth, there, there is no night; Oh, haste to
let Him in.

“Not yet, not yet — my heart is dull and cold; It has no thirsting to be truly
blest; It cannot love His goodness — ’twere too bold To sup with such a guest.”

Oh, still He knocks; oh, still He gently pleads, “Give Me thy heart; I gave My
life for thee, And I will give thee all thy bosom needs; All fullness dwells in
Me.”

“Not yet, not yet” — the years roll slowly by “Tomorrow will I open; not today;
Still in my slothful slumber let me lie;” He will not go away.

Oh, haste, oh, haste; the morrow is not thine; Today, if thou wilt hear His
voice, repent And open; listen to the voice divine — The voice in mercy sent.

The day creeps on with steady, stealthy pace; He knocks again as He has knocked
before, The patient sorrow deepens in His face — Soon will He knock no more.

The night is dying, and thy nakedness Shall soon be open in the eye of day, And
He who would have robed thee in His dress will sadly turn away.

“Not yet, not yet.” — Oh, open now thy heart, And bid Him enter as a welcome
guest; Yea, open now, and, darkling as thou art, Ev’n now thou shalt be blest.

T.B. Baines

S.T. 1915


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 19: S.   CHILDREN OF LIGHT
========================================================================

"Children of Light."

Eph 5:3-21.

Believers are exhorted to be "imitators of God as dear children." Now God has
revealed Himself as love and as light. He is of course righteous and holy but we
never read that God is righteousness or holiness, whereas we do read that "God
is love," and that "God is light." In former verses God is seen as love, and
hence we are told to "walk in love." Here God is seen as light, and hence we are
told to "walk as children of light." The universal principle is, that believers
are to "walk worthy of the vocation wherewith they are called." Since, then,
believers are "called to be saints," or "called saints" (Rom 1:7; 1Co 1:2),
their ways should be such as are suitable for saints. So it is here. They are
not called to become saints by a saintly walk, but are urged to a saintly walk
because they are saints through God’s calling. Hence the apostle says, "But
fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named
among you, as becometh saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor
jesting, which are not convenient [or suitable]: but rather giving of thanks."
(Eph 5:3-4) These believers had once walked in the lusts of the flesh,
"fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind." But they were now saints,
or sanctified; and having the life of Christ, they were to show forth this life
in their walk. How unfit for those thus sanctified to be walking in uncleanness!
How unbecoming in the followers of Him who, though rich, for our sakes became
poor, to be eagerly clutching at the riches of this world! Nor is it merely in
deed, but in word, that believers are to act "as becometh saints." The light,
foolish, and often filthy talk to which as heathen they had been accustomed was
as little suitable to those "quickened together with Christ" as the deeds named
in the previous verse, and must be just as completely put away. The lightness of
heart which in the old man thus expressed itself, might now in the new man find
a suitable expression in the "giving of thanks." But another motive is added.
"For this we know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man,
who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God."
(Eph 5:5) The believer is a joint-heir with Christ; for in Him "we have obtained
an inheritance." But if we are to have part "in the kingdom of Christ and of
God," we must be morally suited to it in character. As seen in Christ indeed we
are already made "meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in
light;" but here the question is not so much one of standing as of conduct. And
in this too the great principle holds, that if we are to be in God’s presence,
we must be fitted for it; "for without are dogs, and sorcerers, and
whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a
lie." No doubt there is often grievous failure; but this does not alter the
principle. What distinguishes a well-governed state is order and obedience to
law. What distinguishes the kingdom of God is holiness and purity of walk. There
are, even in a well-governed state, instances of disorder and disobedience to
law; and there are, even among members of the kingdom of God, instances of
unholiness and impurity of walk. But in both cases this is a departure from the
normal order. In both cases the distinguishing characteristic is not the
departure from the normal order, but the normal order itself. Thus licence and
immorality are condemned equally by the grace and by the government of God, and
the believer is appealed to, both as a saint and as a member of the kingdom of
Christ and of God, to walk worthy of the vocation wherewith he is called.

Man’s vain philosophy might indeed seek to pervert the doctrine of grace into a
sanction of immorality; but against such corruptions of the truth the apostle
warns them: "Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things
cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be not ye therefore
partakers with them." (Eph 5:6-7) There needs no lengthened argument. The vanity
of the teaching which would sanction such practices is seen at once by the fact,
that these were the very practices for which God’s judgment comes upon the
children of disobedience. They had been in this condition themselves; walking
"according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of
the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of, disobedience." But God
had called them out of it; and how could He possibly endure that they should
walk in the very acts from which they were thus delivered? "For," he argues, "ye
were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of
light: (for the fruit of the light is in all goodness and righteousness and
truth;) proving what is acceptable unto the Lord." (Eph 5:8-10)

"God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all." Christ has come to reveal God
in this as in all other ways. He is "the true Light, which, coming into the
world, lighteth every man." Hence He speaks of Himself as "the light of the
world," and declares that "he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but
shall have the light of life." (John 8:12.) The character of the believer is
therefore that he has left the darkness, and is in the light. Now Scripture
knows no such thought as a man who is in the light walking in darkness. It knows
indeed, and gives abundant instances, of the failing and falling of believers;
of those who are in the light not acting up to it; and of much else which shows
how the flesh, where allowed to work, is just as bad in the converted as in the
unconverted person. But for all this the human thought that a believer can,
because secured through grace, continue to walk and delight in sin is utterly
opposed to the teaching of God’s word: "If we say that we have fellowship with
Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the
light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood
of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin." (1Jn 1:6-7.) The two broad
classes are therefore the believer, who walks in the light, and has fellowship
with God; and the unbeliever, who walks in darkness, and has no fellowship. The
Ephesian converts had once belonged to the former class, but were now in the
latter. As children of the light, they were to show what was acceptable to God;
to bring forth the fruit of light (not of the Spirit, as in the English
version), which are "goodness, and righteousness, and truth." Where light is,
darkness disappears. The light of God shining into the heart dispels the evil;
not indeed changing the old nature, but enabling us to judge it and its deeds;
to take the place of Job, when he saw himself in God’s presence: "Now mine eye
seeth thee; wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes." (Job
42:5-6.) Hence, where the rays of God’s light are allowed to search the heart
there is real and deep judgment of evil, as well as practical separation from
it. So the apostle goes on: "And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of
darkness, but rather reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of those
things which are done of them in secret. But all things that are reproved are
made manifest by the light; for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.
Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and
Christ shall give thee light." (Eph 5:11-14) The believer not only walks in the
light, but by so doing becomes himself a source of light. He does more than
refuse to have fellowship with "the unfruitful works of darkness;" as "light in
the Lord" he reproves them. Noah "condemned the world." His own faith and walk
were the lights which disclosed the thickness of the moral darkness around. So
our Lord says, "If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin:
but now they have no cloke for their sin." (John 15:22.) Thus it must ever be in
God’s moral government. Darkness does not discover itself, but is discovered by
the light. Mere philosophy, however deep, cannot show things according to God’s
thoughts. Life and light must go together. There must be divine life in the soul
before God’s light can be received. Only the quickened soul can discern in
Christ the light of the world, and see all things in the form and colour in
which this light reveals them. "Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest,
and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light." The whole of the
preceding exhortations are thus briefly summarized "See then that ye walk
circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days
are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the
Lord is." (Eph 5:15-17) Folly and wisdom in Scripture are not merely
intellectual qualities, but have always a moral character. It is the fool who
says in his heart, "There is no God." It is the fear of the Lord that is
declared to be the beginning of wisdom. The believer as a child of light has
"the mind of Christ;" he has the Holy Ghost to teach him the deep things of God.
However little gifted in mere worldly wisdom or knowledge, he has "an unction
from the Holy One," and so has the mind of God in all that concerns His things.
But the flesh is constantly present to lust against the Spirit, and it needs
circumspection therefore, constant watchfulness, to walk as wise men, and not as
fools. This is what the Christian is exhorted to exercise. If he is called out
of the folly of the world, and has the hidden wisdom of God given him, he is
urged to walk worthy of his vocation. And this is all the more necessary because
the times are evil, so that every opportunity needs to be seized. A particular
example is then given which illustrates the principles thus laid down: "And be
not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; speaking
to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody
in your heart to the Lord giving thanks always for all things unto God and the
Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; submitting yourselves one to
another in the fear of God." (Eph 5:18-21) The world’s joy expresses itself in a
carnal manner; it is mere natural excitement, such as that caused by wine. The
believer’s is to be in contrast with this. It is not the exhilaration ministered
by mere natural causes, but the deeper delight ministered by the Spirit of God.
It is one thing to be indwelt by the Spirit, and another to be filled with the
Spirit. All believers are indwelt; but how few, alas, are filled! As we have
seen in former numbers, the Spirit, though still sealing, may be grieved, and
not able to minister either peace or joy. But to be filled with the Spirit is to
be under the direct energy of the Spirit’s action. It is here put in contrast
with the forced, natural mirth caused by wine. In place of this the believer
should have the joy and happiness shed abroad in his heart by the Holy Ghost.
This will find its suitable outlet in expressions of joy; not the foolish songs
of the world, but the psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs in which the heart,
filled with the sense of God’s goodness, delights to pour forth its feelings.
Thanksgiving is as natural to hearts thus tuned as the idle songs of the world
are to the heart excited by the world’s gaiety and folly.

There is another word added which seems to come in somewhat strangely:
"Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God." The mirth excited by
wine is quarrelsome and self-assertive; not so the gladness of heart shed abroad
by the Spirit. The deep sense of grace which calls forth praise and thanksgiving
to God humbles instead of exalting. The fuller the heart is of praise to God the
lower it will be in its own esteem, and hence the submission one to another; not
indeed out of simple kindness and good-nature, but in the deep sense of the fear
of God, which never ceases to fill the heart occupied with His goodness and
love. T. B. Baines.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 20: S.   FOLLOWERS OF GOD
========================================================================

Followers of God.

Eph 4:29; Eph 5:2. The life of Christ shining forth from the believer is true
Christian walk. It is not merely negative, abstaining from evil, but positive,
abounding in grace like His who "went about doing good." There is, however,
another motive added, equally in accordance with the general character of this
epistle. After exhorting the believer to "let no corrupt communication proceed
out of his mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may
minister grace unto the hearers," the apostle adds, "And grieve not the Holy
Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption." Among the
privileges of the believer especially enumerated in this epistle we read, "After
that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, which is the
earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of, the purchased possession."
(Eph 1:13-14.) This verse declares God’s purpose concerning us, and shows the
perfect security of the believer who is thus sealed. He is sealed for a
permanence, sealed "until the redemption of the purchased possession;" that is,
until he receives the inheritance which he now enjoys only in promise.

What, then, is the practical application made of this truth? Is it to sanction
carelessness of walk? Is it to give the smallest toleration to sin? Nothing
could be more dishonouring to the holiness, or more destructive to the truth of
God, than this thought. The very opposite is the fact. Though the believer who
falls into sin does not forfeit his standing as sealed of the Spirit, he does
grieve the Spirit, and therefore loses all the joy which the presence and
fellowship of the Spirit impart. Hence the apostle, instead of using the sealing
of the Spirit as an excuse for carelessness, urges it as a motive to
circumspection. We get the same truth in the epistle to the Corinthians, where,
in warning believers against sensual conduct, he tells them that their bodies
are members of Christ, and then further asks, "What? know ye not that your body
is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye
are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your
body, and in your spirit, which are God’s." (1Co 6:19-20.) In both cases the
believer is said to be sealed or indwelt by the Holy Ghost, and the conduct
enjoined is not in order to get or keep this privilege, but because he already
has it.

Here again we see the distinction between law and grace. Law demands a certain
walk as the means of obtaining a position. Grace bestows the position, and
demands a corresponding walk. Law gives no power, but exacts the penalty for
failure; grace remits the penalty, and then bestows the power. Law is like the
vain attempt to carve a dead stock into the likeness of a living tree. Grace
supplies the sap and vital energy which makes it a living tree.

It may be well to distinguish between the grieving of the Spirit here spoken of,
and two other expressions found in other parts of the Word. Stephen, in
addressing the Jewish council, says, "Ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as
your fathers did, so do ye." (Acts 7:51.) Paul, in writing to the Thessalonians,
exhorts them thus: "Quench not the Spirit. Despise not prophesyings." (1Th
5:19-20.) Now both these expressions differ, as the connection will show, from
the grieving of the Holy Spirit of God spoken of in the passage before us.
Resisting the Holy Ghost is refusing the testimony which He gives, whether by
prophets, by the mouth of Jesus Himself, or by the apostles after His ascension.
This the Jews had done through their whole long history, as Stephen had just
been showing, and they were still persisting in the same path of unbelief. The
quenching of the Spirit, on the other hand, is connected with ministry. Though
Christ risen and ascended is, as we have seen, the author of gifts, their
distribution and their exercise in the assembly are regulated by the "Spirit
dividing to every man severally as He will." (1Co 12:11.) Any usurpation of this
power by man, or any rule or regulation not sanctioned by the Word, which
restrains the Spirit’s freedom of action in this matter, is quenching the
Spirit; and as prophecy was the most important gift for "edification, and
exhortation, and comfort," in the church (1Co 14:2-4), the apostle connects the
command, "Quench not the Spirit," with the further warning, "Despise not
prophesyings."

Grieving the Holy Spirit is quite a different thing. In Galatians the
exhortation given is, "If we live in (or by) the Spirit, let us also walk by the
Spirit." (Gal 5:25.) That the Spirit is our life is assumed, and the practical
injunction founded upon this is, that we should have Him also for our power of
walk. So again we are told to "walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the
lusts of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit
against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other." (Gal 5:16-17.)
In writing to the Romans, also, the apostle says that "the minding of the flesh
is death; but the minding of the Spirit is life and peace." (Rom 8:6.) It is
only, then, as we are walking after the Spirit that the flesh is prevented from
acting, or that our conduct can be pleasing in God’s sight. If the flesh acts,
the Holy Spirit is grieved, and the effect of grieving the Holy Spirit is to
destroy fellowship with God.

Moreover the Spirit was promised by Jesus to His disciples as the One who "shall
take of mine and shall show it unto you" (John 16:15); and besides this, "the
love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto
us." (Rom 5:5.) But how can the Holy Ghost be ministering Christ to our hearts,
and shedding abroad ’God’s love in them, while we are walking in sin, walking
after the flesh? The effect, therefore, of grieving the Holy Spirit of God is,
to lose that revelation of Christ, and that shedding abroad in our hearts of
God’s love which it is the special work of the Spirit to bestow. The apostle now
goes on further to specify the walk suited to a believer, and again we find that
the standard held up is infinitely higher than that of law. For while law sets
before us what man ought to be, grace sets before us what God is. Law reveals
God’s righteousness, grace reveals His heart, reveals Himself, and that in the
scene where all His perfections receive their brightest manifestation. Believers
are exhorted, therefore, "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour,
and evil speaking, he put away from you, with all malice and be ye kind one to
another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake
hath forgiven you. Be ye therefore followers (literally, imitators) of God, as
dear children; and walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given
Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for. a sweet-smelling savour."
(Eph 4:31; Eph 5:1-2.)

Let us look for a little at both the positive and negative side of this picture.
As usual, the negative comes first. We have already seen that there is a
righteous anger, an anger that never transgressed the limits of righteousness in
the blessed One of whom it is recorded, but which needs to be most jealously
watched lest it should degenerate into fleshly passion in the believer. The
anger here spoken of, however, is, as the context will show, of a different
character, and is simply the work of the flesh. In Galatians, where the contrast
between the fruits of the flesh and those of the Spirit is so strongly marked,
we find among the works which are declared to be manifestly of the flesh,
"hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envying."
(Gal 5:20-21.) Such works, then, are unsuited to those who are sealed with the
Holy Spirit of God; they grieve the Spirit; they belong to the old man which we
have put off, and have nothing to do with "the new man, which after God is
created in righteousness and holiness of truth." How beautifully the same
connection is shown in the writings of another apostle, who, after reminding
believers that they are "born again, not of corruptible seed, but of
incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever," continues
his exhortation - "Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and
hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, as new-born babes, desire the
sincere milk of the Word, that ye may grow thereby." (1Pe 1:23-25; 1Pe 2:1-2.)

Let us note in passing the condemnation so repeatedly and emphatically
pronounced in Scripture against "evil speaking." No doubt there is much that may
truly be said against almost any believer. It does not follow that because a
person speaks evil, he speaks falsely. But the more thoroughly one is brought to
judge one’s own condition before God, the less disposed one is to that
censorious, fault-finding spirit which delights to detect and expose the
failings of others. There are sorrowful occasions when it is necessary to deal
with evil; but the Christian is most happily and profitably occupied when he is
thinking on "whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest,
whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are
lovely, whatsoever things are of good report, if there be any virtue, and if
there be any praise." (Php 4:8.) It is God’s work to justify, Satan’s to accuse.
How beautifully the Lord Himself speaks the praises of His imprisoned
forerunner, even in the moment when He sent the needed warning, "Blessed is he,
whosoever shall not be offended in me." (Mat 11:6-11.) How ceaseless His
compassion, now, as High Priest, towards "them that are ignorant and out of the
way." How tender and unfailing His intercession, as advocate with the Father,
for the believer who has sinned. Contrast with our readiness to speak evil, the
generous warmth which glows in the words of Paul when naming his fellow-soldiers
and companions in labour. But the Holy Ghost never stops with negatives. There
is the positive side of the picture also. We are made, morally of course,
"partakers of the divine nature," and as such God Himself is our example; just
as in John we read, that "if God so loved us, we ought also to love one
another." (1Jn 4:11.) Hence the model for our walk towards our fellow-believers
is God’s own love to us. The same tender-heartedness, the same forgivingness
that God Himself has shown in forgiving us, we are called upon to exhibit
towards each other. We are children, and "dear children" - how God delights to
tell out the love of His heart towards us! We ought therefore to be followers,
or imitators, of Him to whose love and grace we owe all we have, all we are, all
we hope to be. But the example of Christ is also set before us, and that in the
matchless love which made Him give Himself on our behalf. Of course in the
atonement which He made Christ stands all alone. There He is the One forsaken of
God, and that as the hearer of sin. For us to be so forsaken would be eternal
perdition; but, thanks be to God, "by one offering He hath perfected for ever
them that are sanctified," so that we are as secure as Christ Himself, "because
as He is, so are we in this world." (1Jn 4:17.) We are not told therefore to
"walk in love" as Christ loved us, and gave Himself for us a sin-offering unto
God, but as Christ gave "Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a
sweet-smelling savour." There is a vast difference between these two things. As
bearing sin, Christ was under the judgment and curse of God, "made a curse for
us." As glorifying God in death, as exhibiting the perfect obedience due from
man, and the perfect grace that belongs to God, He was never so acceptable,
never so much the object of the Father’s delight, as when He gave up His life
upon the cross. It was this entire surrender of self for God and man that made
Him the perfect sweet-savour offering, whose fragrance morning and evening
ascended to God from the brazen altar.

This, then, is the model of walk presented to us. How marvellous the thought
that in the poor self-sacrificing love of our hearts God can find, as it were,
some faint savour of the infinite fragrance of that perfect self-sacrifice in
which Christ offered Himself upon the cross! In degree, of course, the
difference is as wide as between the infinite and finite, between heaven and
earth; but yet this is the model placed before us, this the type in every
blurred copy of which God can still find His delight. Thus Paul, writing to the
Philippians in acknowledgment of their gift, says, "I am full, having received
of Epaphroditus the things which were, sent from you, an odour of a sweet smell,
a sacrifice acceptable, well-pleasing to God." (Php 4:18.) So again to the
Hehrews, "To do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God
is well pleased." (Heb 13:16.) To what an immeasurably higher level the standard
is raised when the living Christ Himself is thus placed before the soul, than
when the believer is again brought heneath the mandates of a lifeless law! T. B.
Baines.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 21: S.   GIFT AND OFFICE.
========================================================================

Gift and Office.

T. B. Baines. The confusion of gift and office has led to great disorder and
wide departure from God’s thoughts. In Eph. and Cor., where we have teaching
with respect to gift, office is not named. Complete instruction as to the latter
is contained in 1. Tim., where the subject is the administration of the House of
God. Gift is the provision by the ascended Christ for the building up of His
body, the Church. While responsibility is associated with the ordering of the
Church administered by man. Scripture names elders (overseers or bishops) and
deacons. Both were ordained by apostles or apostolic delegates and exercised
their office in the assembly of their city, which consisted of all believers in
the city who were gathered together. Because no such assembly is now found,
there can be no longer any officers, similar to those named in Scripture. Even
if there could be a restoration to Church unity in any particular town, it would
still be impossible to have officers, as there is no longer any scriptural mode
of ordaining them. Man may invent substitutes, but they are mere arrangements of
human convenience without Scriptural sanction. The use of the same names as
given to the officers in the apostolic Church is misleading: a denial of the
Church’s ruin and an usurpation of apostolic authority. The distinction between
gift and office is important, for had gift been dependent upon office, it must
have ceased. As it is, office has ceased through failure and disorder, but grace
bestowed by the ascended Christ is as free as ever. (Extract from T. B. Baines,
1879).


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 22: S.   LIVING CHRIST IN THE WORLD.
========================================================================

Living Christ in the World.

Eph 4:17-29. The believer, "through the law," as shown by the apostle Paul, is
"dead to the law," that he may "live unto God." He can say, like Paul, "I am
crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me."
This is his standing before God, and the result upon his outward conduct should
be, as with the apostle, "The life which I now live in the flesh I live by the
faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me." (Gal 2:19-20.)
He has no longer the law, but Christ, for his standard. To live Christ, that is,
to reproduce as it were the life of Christ in our own, is true Christian walk.
Christ always walked in the Spirit, and if we are walking in the Spirit we
"shall not fulfil the lusts of the flesh," but shall bring forth those fruits of
the Spirit - that "love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
meekness, temperance," which adorn in such rich clusters the life of the blessed
Lord. (Gal 5:20-23.) It is impossible to gather grapes from the thorns of the
old nature. Christ is the true vine, the one stock from which fruit for God can
be brought forth. Only as we are branches abiding in Him can we bear fruit like
His own; only thus is it possible for us "so to walk even as He walked." (John
15:5; 1Jn 2:6.)

These truths are beautifully brought out in the passage now before us. The
apostle having shown how a believer can walk worthy of the vocation wherewith he
is called in the church, next goes on to indicate how he should carry out the
same principle in his conduct towards his fellow-men, whether believers or
unbelievers. He does not put Gentile converts under law; but while not bringing
them on to Jewish ground, he carefully removes them from Gentile. "This I say
therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other
Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened,
being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them,
because of the blindness (or hardness) of their heart; who being past feeling
have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with
greediness." (Eph 4:17-19)

Such is man, as fallen, and left to the guidance of natural conscience and
reason. Truly he is "without excuse," for the ignorance is not a guiltless one.
"When they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful; but
became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was hardened." It was
because "they did not like to retain God in their knowledge" that He "gave them
over to a reprobate mind," or a mind void of judgment. (Rom 1:21; Rom 1:28.) So
in the passage we are considering. It is "because of the hardness of their
heart" that their understanding is darkened, and in their ignorance they are
alienated from the life of God. Thus they walk "in the vanity of their mind,"
the vain, sinful desires and feelings of the natural heart being their only
guide. Nor is this all. Corrupt appetites, followed without restraint, soon
deaden the conscience and poison the affections, so that all right natural
feeling is lost. This is the lamentable condition of the Gentile world. They are
"past feeling," the restraints of conscience and even decency are removed, and
giving themselves over to depraved appetites, they "work all uncleanness with
greediness." Thus it was with the world before the flood, when the whole earth
was filled with "corruption and violence." Thus it was with the cities of the
plain, till God rained upon them fire and brimstone from heaven. Thus it ever
has been when man has been left to himself to follow the leading of his own evil
heart. But the Ephesians had, through grace, been brought out of this state of
things. They had another guide, as widely removed from mere natural conscience
on the one side as from law on the other. "But ye," says the apostle, "have not
so learned Christ; if so be that ye have heard Him, and have been taught by Him,
as the truth is in Jesus: that ye put off concerning the former conversation the
old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in
the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is
created in righteousness and holiness of truth." (Eph 4:20-24) These Ephesians
had learnt, not law, but Christ. They had by faith heard Him, and been taught by
- or rather in - Him, according to the truth of which His own life as man had
been the perfect and divine manifestation. The truth as it is in Jesus does not
mean the doctrinal truth of salvation, but the perfect, holy walk of truth, as
shown in His person; for when Jesus is spoken of in this way it refers to His
life and walk here in the world. The Ephesians had "learned Christ" in the only
way in which He can be learned. The natural man may learn of Christ; the
spiritual man alone can learn Him. For "the natural man receiveth not the things
of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know
them, because they are spiritually discerned." (1Co 2:14.) There must be the
hearing ear before Christ’s words can be understood. As Jesus said to the
Pharisees, "Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my
word." (John 8:43.) The Ephesians had heard Christ, and been instructed in Him.
The words that He spoke, they are spirit and they are life," and they had
produced their quickening power on the hearts of these saints. Hence they knew
the truth as it showed itself in the spotless, holy life of Jesus. This was to
be practically manifested in their own lives. They belonged no more to the
flesh, and therefore their walk was not to be according to the old model - "the
old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts." They had done with
the old creation, as to their standing before God, and were seen in a new
creation, as quickened together with Christ. This then was to be their new
model. Being "renewed in the spirit of their mind," they were to walk after a
new fashion, not according to the law of the old nature, but as having "put on
the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and holiness of truth."
The new man is man in the new creation - the creation which has its head in
Christ, the creation which draws its character from Christ. To walk as having
put on the new man is therefore to walk as Christ walked; for this new man is
created according to God’s nature in righteousness and holiness suited to His
own truth. This standard once acknowledged, practical results are to follow; and
it is interesting to see how even the most common-place acts are submitted to
this new test. Thus the apostle says, "Wherefore putting away lying, speak every
man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another." (Eph 4:25)
Moral philosophers have discussed the question why men should not lie, and wide
differences have existed among them on the subject. But moral philosophy never
assigned as a reason anything like what is given here. The life of Christ is to
be our rule, not worked out through imitation, but worked out by the fact that
we are quickened together with Him, and created anew on His model. This settles
the whole question. Who can imagine falsehood from the lips of Him whose words
were the words of God, and whose truth was the truth of God? Just as little
could falsehood be found in the lips of one who walked in His spirit, showed
forth His life.

There is, indeed, another reason given, also characteristic of this epistle,
"for we are members one of another." How practical the "one body" is. No man
would lie to himself; no man could imagine the hand trying to deceive the foot,
or the ears trying to deceive the eyes. Just as little should believers in
Christ deceive each other. Being members of Christ, "were members one of
another" - parts, as it were, of the "one new man" which Christ has made us "in
Himself."

Another result is seen in the next admonition, "Be ye angry, and sin not: let
not the sun go down upon your wrath: neither give place to the devil." (Eph
4:26-27) Our Lord was angry with certain persons, "being grieved for the
hardness of their hearts." (Mark 3:5.) There is therefore an anger which is of
God, but the abiding wrath which springs from vindictive feeling is not of God.
Even the anger kindled by godly indignation against evil may too readily
degenerate into fleshly passion. We must beware therefore that in anger we "sin
not," and guard against vindictive feelings by watching that the sun does not go
down on our wrath. Otherwise the tempter may come in, and we are not to "give
place to the devil." The next exhortation is a little startling from its very
ohviousness, "Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour,
working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him
that needeth." (Eph 4:28) We must remember that the early assemblies were formed
of persons just brought out of heathenism, with all its abominations, and
consisted in part of slaves, an oppressed and degraded class, among whom theft
was practised without scruple or shame. The exhortation too goes beyond open
theft, and in principle condemns all taking of unfair advantage, such as even
the fuller morality of our own day often but feebly condemns. But the interest
of the exhortation lies rather in the motive than in the course of conduct
enjoined. If believers had been under the law, a simple appeal to the eighth
commandment of the decalogue would have been enough. But we are not under the
law, but under grace. What is the ohligation then imposed by this position? Not
only to do "the righteousness of the law," but a great deal more. Did Christ
stop with doing the righteousness of the law? On the contrary, He went far
beyond it. The law requires that we should love our neighbour as ourselves, but
it does not require us to lay down our lives for our neighbour. This however was
what Christ did; and if the life of Christ is in us, "we ought to lay down our
lives for the brethren." (1Jn 3:16.) So extreme a sacrifice may indeed be rarely
demanded, but the spirit of it may always be shown. Christ not only did not
injure man, but "though He was rich, yet for our sakes He became poor, that we
through His poverty might be rich." (2Co 8:9.) His whole life was one of
self-sacrificing love. How beautifully this reappears in Paul, "I will very
gladly spend and be spent for you." (2Co 12:15.) The Christian should walk in
the same path, as he has the same life, not only refraining from stealing, or
taking unfair advantage, but working to have the means of ministering "to him
that needeth."

Thus the Holy Ghost, by one of the simplest exhortations in Scripture - an
exhortation which from its common-place character might to our blind reasoning
seem hardly worthy of a place in such an epistle - brings out one of the most
striking differences between law and grace. Law simply prohibits evil; grace
delights in doing good. Law is what God demands from man; grace is what God is
in Himself. How sad, then, to see believers, who have been brought into liherty
and associated with Christ, falling back into the lower class of motives and
principles, and putting themselves again in bondage under a system to which they
are declared to be "dead by the body of Christ." The whole "righteousness of the
law" shone out in the ways of Christ, and will shine out in the ways of one who
is abiding in Christ. But how infinitely beyond law the grace revealed in every
action of that perfect life! And this is what will appear, of course in a vastly
inferior degree, but still as a real fruit of abiding in Him, and walking in the
power of the new life in which we are quickened together with Him. The same
thing may be observed in the next exhortation, "Let no corrupt communication
proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that
it may minister grace to the hearers." (Eph 4:29) A special class of corrupt
communications, such as might be expected from Gentiles who wrought "all
uncleanness with greediness," is alluded to in the next chapter; but here the
exhortation has a wider scope. "How can ye, being evil, speak good things?" asks
our Lord of the Jews. (Mat 12:34.) A corrupt tree can only bring forth corrupt
fruit. The words, as well as the works, will bear the character of the heart
from which they proceed. But it is not enough that the believer merely abstains
from corrupt communications such as naturally belong to "the old man, which is
corrupt according to the deceitful lusts." He has put on the new man, of which
Christ is the perfect representative. Did Christ merely refrain from evil in His
conversation? No; His words, like His life, "ministered grace unto the hearers."
And so will the words of one who is in communion with Christ. Just so far as we
walk after "the new man" will our words resemble the words of Him of whom it is
written, "Grace is poured into thy lips, therefore God hath blessed thee for
ever." (Psa 45:2.) T. B. Baines.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 23: S.   OCCUPY TILL I COME
========================================================================

"Occupy till I come."

Luk 19:11-27.

T. B. Baines.

Christian Friend, vol. 8, 1881, p. 29.

Few portions of Scripture contain fuller instruction as to God’s present ways
than this parable. Its object is disclosed in the opening verse, where we learn
that Jesus spoke it "because He was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought
that the kingdom of God should immediately appear." Just afterwards, as he
entered Jerusalem, His disciples hailed Him as King, saying, "Blessed be the
King that cometh in the name of the Lord." (Luk 19:38) They expected, as the two
disciples on the way to Emmaus declared, that He would at that time "have
redeemed Israel" (Luk 24:21), and that the kingdom of God would thus be
manifested. We see, indeed, from Luk 17:20-21, that the kingdom had already
come, but it was not yet with outward show or "observation." It was even then
"among" them, but neither then, nor now, as a visible kingdom, recognizable by
the world. The real "children of the kingdom" may recognize it in its present
hidden form; others in Christendom may acknowledge it as a kingdom in word, but
with no true sense of God’s sovereignty. The rest of the world can see in it
nothing but a religious profession, with no character of a kingdom about it.

While, then, the kingdom of God, in the veiled form in which it now exists, had
already come, it had not then, nor indeed has yet, appeared, or been manifested,
and it was to check the eager anticipations of the disciples as to its immediate
appearance that this parable was spoken. In it, therefore, the Lord details what
is to happen before that appearing for which they were looking should take
place. He Himself, seen here under the figure of the nobleman, was to go into a
far country — in fact, to leave the world for heaven — there to receive the
kingdom, and having received it, to return. Meanwhile, those who denied His
rights — the Jews especially, but also the world as a whole — not only rejected
Him in person while here, but "sent a message after Him, saying, We will not
have this man to reign over us." (Luk 19:14) Such a message was the stoning of
Stephen, and the persistent refusal to hear the testimony of the apostles and of
the Holy Ghost after Christ’s departure. This is, and has been, the attitude of
the world as a whole, and of the Jews in particular, towards Jesus since He "sat
down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;" and this will be their attitude
as a nation till He comes again. He will then return, having had the nations
given Him as His inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for His
possession; and those who would not that He should reign over them will be dealt
with in judgment. But between His departure and His return there is, besides the
citizens who rejected Him, another class of persons called His servants. These,
though left among the citizens, are clearly of a different class. They are in
the city to care for their Lord’s things entrusted to their charge. While the
citizens reject Him as their King, these own His authority; while the citizens
have no thought of His return, these occupy till He comes. These servants, then,
represent Christendom, those who, in name at least, acknowledge the authority of
the rejected Lord. Is it not startling to contrast this picture of the
responsibility of the Christian professor with the thought which even true
believers commonly cherish as to their place in the world? What is spoken of
here is no limited class, specially set apart as ministers or servants. The
responsibility pointed out is the common responsibility of Christendom; and
surely it is impossible to look at Christendom in the light of the
responsibility here disclosed, without a sad sense of its utter failure to
execute the charge with which it has been entrusted. Nevertheless, the
responsibility of the professing "Christian world" is to occupy for Christ till
He returns; and according to this responsibility it will be judged. By the mass
indeed of nominal Christians the charge is simply disregarded. If the pound is
not thrown away, or the very name of Christian abandoned, this is all that can
be said. Hard thoughts of God are entertained; His gifts forgotten or despised;
His demands regarded as unreasonable exactions. He is looked upon as "an austere
man," taking up what He had not laid down, reaping what He had not sown. And yet
man, with his usual inconsistency, while judging God as exacting more than is
due, has taken no pains to earn, as it were, anything for Him. He is therefore
judged out of his own mouth, and condemned as an unprofitable servant.

Leaving, however, the sad case of mere professors, let us ask to what extent we
answer to the view here presented of the believer’s responsibility. To how many
true Christians is the thought present, "I am here for Christ, in charge of His
interest in the scene where He has been rejected"? What would the world appear
to one who had this conception of the place he was called upon to occupy? The
cross, as the means by which sins were put away, is of course valued by all real
believers, and in this sense they can and do glory in it. But Paul gloried in it
for another reason, and saw in the death of Christ another aspect. To him that
death was not only deliverance from sins, but deliverance "from this present
evil world." To him that cross was not only the place where sin had been judged,
but the means by which "the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world."
He saw in the death of Christ the death of all, "and that He died for all, that
they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him which
died for them and rose again." What complete separation from the world, what
complete devotedness to Christ, do we see here! And yet this is only what
becomes one who, in the light of Christ’s own words, realizes the place he is
responsible to occupy in this world. For must there not be a complete separation
of heart and feeling between the servant who is truly occupying for Christ, and
the world which has rejected Him? "What fellowship hath righteousness with
unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?"

It may be urged indeed that the citizens here do not represent nominal
Christians who constitute the world around us. This is true; but if nominal
Christians have become just as much "of the world" as the heathen, if Christ’s
lordship is just as little practically admitted among them as in the rest of the
world, is the call for separation any the less urgent? Is the world any more
allowable because it takes the name of Christ, while practically it disowns and
rejects Him?

If there is one rule of separation in Scripture more stringent than another, it
is the separation from those who, while called by Christ’s name, are walking in
an ungodly fashion. If there is one scene over which judgment is impending with
more fearful gloom than over any other, it is over this very Christendom which,
on account of the privileges it has enjoyed, and the sad use it has made of
them, is held as especially guilty in God’s sight. The principle of separation,
therefore, applies even with greater force to the believer in the world of
Christendom around him at present than to the believer in the midst of Jews and
heathen.

What the Lord desires in His people is wholeheartedness for Himself. This does
not imply separation from the ordinary occupations of the world. But the
question is, whether these occupations entangle the heart and become our
objects? or whether, while pursuing these occupations, the heart is still free
for Christ? Is getting on in the world what fills our thoughts? or are we, while
providing things honest in the sight of all men, really living among men and
before men as those who are not their own, but bought with a price — as those
who, being constrained by the love of Christ, are seeking, however feebly, to
live, not unto ourselves, but unto Him who died for us and rose again? Few, of
course, are called upon to preach Christ, but all are called upon to live
Christ. And to live Christ involves taking His place in relationship to the
world. "They are not of the world," He said, "even as I am not of the world." It
is easy to put imaginary cases, and to ask where the line is to be drawn. The
heart that is in communion with Christ, though it may not know how to lay down
principles, will distinguish readily enough what will suit Him, and what would
grieve His Spirit. Indeed it is only Christians who are anxious to mix with the
world that have any difficulty in the matter. The world quickly enough discerns
what is consistent and what is inconsistent in a Christian, and estimates
without difficulty the value of the testimony given by a worldly believer. If
the heart is really true to Christ it will unconsciously bear witness to Him,
and separate from the world which knows Him not. The spirit and objects of the
world cannot have a place in the soul that is filled with Christ. The pursuits
and riches of the world will appear worthless to him whose affections are set on
things above. The character of the true servant will show itself in various
ways. If to serve Christ is really the object, His own word and directions will
be the rule of service. Who could suppose the servants of the absent Lord taking
counsel with the citizens that had cast Him out, as to how they should care for
His goods? Is it any better when believers go to the world, or resort to worldly
principles, worldly wisdom, and worldly alliances, in the hope of furthering the
cause of Christ? The power is of God, who does not need our wisdom as to the
mode of carrying on His own work, but who does demand our obedience as servants.
No truth is more needed at the present moment than that of the all-sufficiency
of the word of God. Whatever, under the name of service, is not built on this
foundation, is not service such as the Lord owns. There may, of course, be
earnestness and truth of heart, which the Lord does own, even where much is
added which He could not sanction; but in these cases His blessing is on what
comes from Himself, not on what comes from the flesh and the world.

There is another thing which will mark the true servant. He will be waiting for
the coming of his Lord. If the heart is really estranged from the world and set
on heavenly things, what expectation will bring such blessedness as the thought
of the Lord’s return? The idle servant, whose heart was full of hard thoughts
about his Lord, could of course entertain no bright hopes in connection with His
coming again. To him the thought must necessarily be unwelcome. But what joy
would the prospect bring to the heart of the faithful servant who had been
living and labouring for Him during His absence! Are our hearts thus waiting and
longing? Are we occupying for Christ during His absence, seeking to act in
obedience to His word, waiting in joyful anticipation for His return? T. B. B.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 24: S.   THE CHRISTIAN AT HOME.
========================================================================

The Christian at Home.

Eph 5:22-33; Eph 6:1-9. The family is especially dealt with in the epistles
which treat of the Church. Those epistles which take up Church order and rule
take up also the order and rule of the family; and those epistles which show the
Church as the body of Christ, show also how this relationship, and the
principles it involves, affect the family life. Family relationships were
instituted by God in Eden, and confirmed after the fall. Christianity does not
change their outward character, but infuses into them new and divine principles.
The husband is the responsible head of the house, and the mutual obligation
subsisting between him and his wife, his children, and his servants, is the
subject of the portion now before us. The question is not one of rights on
either side, but rather of the way in which each, as having the life of Christ,
should exhibit this in his conduct towards the other.

"Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the
husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the Head of the Church: and
He is the Saviour of the body. Therefore as the Church is subject unto Christ,
so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing." (Eph 5:22-24) Part of
the curse pronounced on the woman at the fall was, "Thy desire shall be
[subject] to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee." (Gen 3:16.) Christianity
confirms this order, but so remodels it that all trace of the curse disappears.
The subjection of the believer to the Lord, or of the Church to Christ, is no
curse or bondage, and these are now the models of wifely subjection; for she is
to be subject unto her own husband, "as unto the Lord," and as "the Church is
subject unto Christ." How beautiful to see a human relationship, and one too
which derives a part of its character from the fall, thus transformed into a
type of the mystery in which God displays His "manifold wisdom" unto "the
principalities and powers in heavenly places." The subject is expanded in
dealing with the other side. "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also
loved the Church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it
with the washing of water by the word, that He might present it to Himself a
glorious Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it
might be holy and without blemish." (Eph 5:25-27) Here, though natural affection
is owned, a far higher order of love is brought in, so that the earthly
relationship is re-cast, as it were, in a heavenly mould. The past, present, and
future love of Christ to the Church are all made to bear on the duty of the
husband to his wife. And how beautiful the unfolding of this love is! Christ
loved the Church not only saints, but the Church - and gave Himself for it. It
was the "pearl of great price" for which He sold all that He had. Now He watches
over it, cleansing it from defilement by the application of His word. Soon He
will present it to Himself in His own beauty, "prepared as a bride adorned for
her husband," the object of His own eternal delight. And here the order of
creation is brought in, and made to blend, as it were, with that love of Christ
of which it furnishes so beautiful a type. "So ought men to love their own wives
as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth Himself. For no man ever yet
hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the
Church: for we are members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones. For this
cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his
wife, and they two shall be one flesh." (Eph 5:28-31) The peculiar mode of Eve’s
creation out of Adam both gives marriage a special sanctity, so that the wife is
to be cherished as a part of the husband’s own being, and furnishes an exquisite
type of Christ’s relationship with the Church. As Adam was not complete without
Eve, so Christ, though Head over all, is not complete without the Church, "the
fulness [completion] of Him that filleth all in all." As Adam fell into a deep
sleep, so Christ went into death. As Eve was formed out of Adam, so the Church
is quickened with Christ, and has His own life. As Adam acknowledged Eve to be
bone of His bone and flesh of his flesh, so does Christ acknowledge the Church.
As Adam was bound to care for and cleave to the woman thus formed out of
himself, so Christ delights in nourishing and cherishing the Church which is His
own body. How wonderfully all that belongs to this divinely-instituted
relationship is raised by being thus linked up with the tender, watchful love of
Christ over the Church!

This, of course, is the grand subject, and therefore the apostle writes: "This
is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the Church." Still the
relationship of husband and wife is also in his view, so he adds, "Nevertheless
let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the
wife see that she reverence her husband." (Eph 5:32-33) Though the believer is
not promised his portion in this life, yet he is told that "godliness is
profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that
which is to come." (1Ti 4:8.) We have an illustration here. Who cannot see the
happiness that would reign in the house where the relationship of husband and
wife was formed on the godly model here furnished? The subjection of children to
their parents is part of God’s order as seen in nature; and under the law a
special blessing was attached to the ohservance of the commandment in which this
duty was enjoined. Christianity takes up the obligation, but transplants it from
natural to divine ground. "Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is
right. Honour thy father and thy mother; which is the first commandment with
promise; that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth."
(Eph 6:1-3) Thus the obligation of children, as of wives, is connected with "the
Lord." It is not merely the dictate of nature, though perfectly right, but the
acknowledgment of the Lord’s claims as represented in the parents. The blessed
Lord Himself, who "learned obedience," was the beautiful example of this. Of Him
in His lifetime it is recorded that He went with His parents "to Nazareth, and
was subject unto them." The law is not here introduced as showing that believers
are under it, but as proving the special value which God attached to this duty,
so as even to depart from the ordinary character of law, by coupling it with a
promise which makes known the connection between this duty and earthly blessing.
But the duty is not one-sided. The apostle adds, "And ye, fathers, provoke not
your children to wrath but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the
Lord." (Eph 6:4) Both parents are to be obeyed, but this admonition is addressed
only to the fathers. This may be partly because fathers are more likely to err
in the provoking of their children to wrath than mothers; but the principal
reason is that the father, as the head of the house, is responsible to God for
the bringing up of the children, and he is treated on the ground of this
responsibility. This principle, as seen in Eli’s case, runs throughout
Scripture. It is all the more solemn because under Christianity the children are
already holy, as belonging to the house of God; and the obligation is therefore
the greater to "bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." The
Israelites were holy by birth - not personally, but as belonging to a nation set
apart to God - and therefore the fathers were to instruct the children in the
law, their then link with God. So Christian parents are to instruct their
children as to what becomes the holy character which attaches to them as members
of a Christian family. The next class of household relationships differs from
the others in being one instituted by social rather than natural causes. The
servants here named were bondsmen. Whether slavery is right or wrong, humane or
cruel, is not the point here. Christianity takes men in the social position in
which it finds them, and shows how they may live Christ in that place. It is not
occupied in remodelling society, but in teaching the believer to exhibit Christ.
He was to be subject to the powers that be; and as these authorized slavery, he
was to obey the laws in this as in other matters, seeking freedom lawfully if he
could, but if not, to be content with his lot. The service rendered under
present social conditions differs in its legal basis, but this does not alter
the obligations on either side named by the apostle. Nay, if there is any
difference, the obligation is even stronger; for service rendered for wages
should surely be given as cheerfully and performed as thoroughly as service
exacted by bondage.

"Servants," therefore, are exhorted to "be obedient to them that are your
masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your
heart, as unto Christ; not with eye-service, as men-pleasers; but as the
servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; with good will doing
service, as to the Lord, and not to men." (Eph 6:5-7) Here again the obligation
is taken out of the range of the old creation, and connected with Christ in
glory. Like wives and children, the servants are exhorted to render their
obedience "as unto Christ." This at once transfers their duties to a higher
region than either the legal compulsion of the old system, or the legal contract
of the present. Even a slave’s duties were at once ennobled and sweetened if he
could say, "I am doing this, not for reward, or to escape punishment, but to
please Christ." It was not to be a question of whether the task imposed was
reasonable or unreasonable, light or arduous. Wrong endured, or severe labour
performed for Christ’s sake, might be cheerfully borne.

How beautifully our Lord Himself furnishes the example of this. He "took upon
Him the form of a servant." Though entitled to be free, He submits to tribute
lest He should offend them. So the believing servant, under the cruelest and
most tyrannical treatment, was to show out the life of Christ in him. "For this
is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering
wrongfully . . . . for even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also
suffered for us, leaving us an example, that we should follow His steps." (1Pe
2:19-21.) And as the cheerful and diligent obedience of the servant was the
means of showing forth Christ, so any failure in the respect or subjection here
enjoined would bring reproach on His name. Hence the apostle, in writing to
Timothy, says, "Let as many servants as are under the yoke count their own
masters worthy of all honour, that the name of God and His doctrine be not
blasphemed." (1Ti 6:1.)

Nowhere is the honour of Christ spoken of as bound up with the conduct of the
believer, so remarkably as in the case of the servant. The very hardships of his
lot, the very injustice and cruelty with which he was liable to be treated, only
rendered the power of the life of Christ in him the more conspicuous. And before
none other is the reward of his conduct so distinctly set: "Knowing that
whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord,
whether he be bond or free." (Eph 6:8) How cheering to the suffering bondsman,
to look beyond the drudgery and unrequited labours of his earthly lot, and to
know that the faithful toil endured with good will for the Lord’s sake here, is
not, and never will be, forgotten, but will all "be found unto praise and honour
and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ 1" (1Pe 1:7) And if Christ, as the
Lord of the inheritance, holds out the hope of reward to the servant, so He
utters words of warning to the master: "And, ye masters, do the same things unto
them, forbearing threatening knowing that your Master also is in heaven; neither
is there respect of persons with Him." (Eph 5:9) "The same things" probably mean
what is called in the Colossians, "that which is just and equal." The principle
here is the counterpart of that in the last verse. Even a Christian master might
forget that social distinctions, though recognized and sanctioned on earth, have
no existence in Christ’s judgment. Master and servant will all answer to Him. To
the one whose low position might cause discouragement He holds out, therefore,
the prospect of reward for faithful service; to the one whose high position
might lead to oppression, He holds out the judgment that will follow an abuse of
power. Though the law might give the injured servant no redress, the master was
reminded of another tribunal before which he must stand, and in which his
conduct to his servant would be judged, not according to man’s laws, but
according to the estimate of Him that is holy, Him that is true. Thus Christ is
made the standard of everything in the Christian’s walk. Whether as wife or
husband, as child or parent, as bondsman or master, the rule is, that having
Christ’s life, the walk of Christ is to be shown forth in the believer’s ways.
"He that saith he abideth in Him ought himself also so to walk even as He
walked." T. B. Baines. The character of a Christian is thorough abstraction of
heart from the world. A Christian who is not dead to the world is but a
stumbling-stone to every one who seeks to follow Christ.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 25: S.   THE DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM AND THE ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION
========================================================================

The Destruction of Jerusalem and the Abomination of Desolation.

T. B. Baines.

Christian Friend, vol. 7, 1880, p. 177.

We lately glanced at the earlier verses of our Lord’s prophecy concerning these
events as recorded in Matthew and Luke, noting the variations in their reports,
and tracing these variations to the different objects before the mind of the
writers. The prophecy itself had, like many others, a twofold application,
referring immediately to the approaching destruction of the city and temple; and
remotely, but no less directly, to the events preceding the establishment of the
Messianic kingdom. Matthew then speaks only of the later event; Luke is
specially occupied with the earlier; while, therefore, the resemblance between
the two is very close, the differences are also very striking. Thus Matthew
speaks of the faithful being hated of the Gentiles, of false prophets arising
and deceiving many, of the love of many waxing cold, of the salvation of those
who endure to the end, and of " the gospel of the kingdom " being first preached
to all the nations. This agrees with what Scripture elsewhere teaches about the
last days before Christ’s appearing, but is inapplicable to the Christians
before the siege of Jerusalem. Luke therefore omits these parts of the prophecy,
but says that "the time draweth near," speaks of a persecution arising largely
from the Jews, and records a special promise of wisdom in addressing the
tribunals, while he fixes the date of the persecution before the wars previously
foretold; in all which he differs from Matthew, but exactly coincides with what
occurred before Jerusalem was taken by the Romans.

It is in the next part of the discourse, however (Mat 24:15-28; Luk 21:20-24),
that the most marked differences appear. The prophecy, as recorded in Luke,
simply foretells what occurred about forty years later. "And when ye shall see
Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh.
Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are
in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter
thereinto. For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written
may be fulfilled. But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give
suck, in those days! for there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath
upon this people. And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led
away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the
Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." (Luk 21:20-24) Nothing
can be simpler. The prediction is exact, and the directions given are precisely
those followed by the Christians residing in the city when Titus’s army
approached Jerusalem. No exhortation is given to special haste, and in fact no
occasion for special haste existed. Every reader knows that the Christians,
forewarned by this prophecy, left the city; that the city was destroyed, and its
inhabitants either killed or carried into slavery. Jerusalem then became a prey
to the Gentiles, who have ruled over it and kept it in subjection ever since.
This closes the earlier portion of Luke’s prophecy.

Matthew, however, speaks not a word about Jerusalem being "compassed with
armies," but about "the abomination of desolation" standing "in the holy place."
"When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel
the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand.) then
let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains: let him which is on the
housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: neither let him which
is in the field return back to take his clothes. And woe unto them that are with
child, and to them that give suck in those days!" (vv. 15-19.) Some have thought
that the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place referred to the
Roman standards brought into the temple. But this only took place at the end of
the siege, when all chance of flight had long been cut off. For the true meaning
of the phrase we must turn to the prophecies of Daniel, to which reference is
here made. Daniel receives a communication concerning the time when "thy people
(the Jews) shall be delivered." (Dan 12:1.) Among the marks of this salvation
approaching it is said that "from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be
taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a
thousand two hundred and ninety days. Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to
the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days:" (Dan 12:11-12) Did any
special blessing come to the Jews or to the Church 1336 days after the fall of
Jerusalem? or, if the days be taken as years, was there, after that number of
years, say at the date A.D. 1405, any event which is pointed to in this
prophecy? If not, then the setting up of the abomination of desolation is
clearly not the destruction of Jerusalem.

What, then, does it signify? Daniel, in another prophecy, names a period of
seventy weeks, which is to end in the restoration of Jerusalem and the people of
Israel. These weeks are universally understood, and obviously meant to be
understood, as periods of seven years. After sixty-nine of these, Messiah is cut
off without receiving the kingdom. This brings us to the death of Christ,
leaving one week yet unfulfilled. The series is then interrupted for an
indefinite period, during which "the city and sanctuary" are destroyed by a
Gentile power, and war and desolation are appointed "unto the end." This exactly
answers to the treading down of Jerusalem "until the times of the Gentiles be
fulfilled," as foretold by Luke. But after this interval we read the history of
the remaining week; that is, the last period of seven years, as yet unfulfilled
before the restoration of the people and city; "and in the midst of the week,"
we are told, some person or power "shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to
cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate."
(Dan 9:24-27.) Now, that this is the same thing as the setting up of the
abomination of desolation is clear, for in the passage already quoted that event
is contemporaneous with the making of "the sacrifice and the oblation to cease."
The time, if not the nature, of the event is therefore obvious. It is in the
middle of the last week, or about three-and-a-half years, before the deliverance
of the Jews and the restoration of Jerusalem by the setting up of the Messiah’s
kingdom.

Details, giving us a fuller insight into the character of this period, are
supplied in the book of Revelation, where we read that "the holy city" will be
trodden down of the Gentiles "forty and two months" (Rev 11:2) - the half of the
seven years spoken of by Daniel; that the faithful remnant of God’s earthly
people are persecuted by a ruler who "continues forty and two months;" that this
ruler receives idolatrous worship, and an image or abomination is set up to
which all are required to bow down (Rev 11:14-15); that the faithful then flee
into the wilderness, where they are sheltered by God for the same period of
three and a half years. (Rev 12:6, Rev 12:14) This exactly corresponds with that
we read in Daniel, and with the events connected with this setting up of the
abomination of desolation as foretold in Matthew. There is, however, nothing in
these prophecies connecting itself with the siege of Jerusalem as foretold in
Luke.

Indeed the only resemblance in this part of the prophecy, as recorded by Matthew
and Luke, is that in both cases the faithful are warned to flee. But even here
the differences are remarkable. No doubt, even in the less hasty flight spoken
of by Luke, before the Roman army reached Jerusalem, women in the condition
named in the prophecy would find escape difficult or impossible. The lament over
their fate is, therefore, common to both; but here the resemblance ends. In Luke
the flight is not to the mountains, nor marked by extreme haste. In fact the
Christians retired with no special rapidity to the city of Pella. But when the
abomination of desolation is set up, not an instant must be lost, the flight
must be with all speed, and even the most trifling delay will be fatal. The
place of refuge, too, is not a sheltering city, but "the mountains," for the
rage of the idolatrous power will pursue them, and it is only as specially
shielded by God that they can escape its fury. Both the rapidity of the flight
and the sojourn in the desert are typified in the Revelation, where "to the
woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the
wilderness." (Rev 12:14.) Of all this there is no trace in the prophecy as
recorded in Luke. But if we turn to Luk 17:30-31, where the Lord is speaking of
"the day when the Son of man is revealed," we find the exhortation — "In that
day, 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." Here the language of the two evangelists is almost identical; but
in this case Luke is not speaking of the siege of Jerusalem, but of the
revelation of the Son of man. This makes it clear, therefore, that Matthew is
speaking of the same time.

Matthew’s prophecy goes on, "But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter,
neither on the Sabbath-day; for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not
since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except
those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved; but for the
elect’s sake those days shall be shortened." (Mat 24:20-22) To this there is
nothing answering in Luke’s record. Nor could there be. We can understand the
scruples of godly Jews, under the law, such as those who will be awaiting the
Messiah’s return, about making their flight on the Sabbath. But what hindrance
would the Jewish Sabbath have been to the flight of the Christians before the
siege of Jerusalem? Again, terrible as were the sufferings connected with the
siege of Jerusalem, this was not the most awful crisis in the history of the
people. Daniel expressly says that "there shall be a time of trouble, such as
never was since there was a nation, even to that same time: and at that time thy
people shall be delivered." (Dan 12:1.) Our Lord was obviously alluding to this
time; for not only does He quote Daniel’s very words, but it is clear that there
cannot be two periods of unparalleled suffering. But the time spoken of by
Daniel immediately precedes the deliverance of the people. The Lord, therefore,
is here speaking, not of the siege of Jerusalem, but of His own return for the
salvation of Israel. How, moreover, could it be said that the sufferings
connected with the fall of Jerusalem threatened the destruction of all flesh, or
were shortened for the elect’s sake? It is manifestly, therefore, of another
period and other sufferings that our Lord is here speaking. The rest of that
part of Matthew’s prophecy now before us warns against the deceptions of false
Christs. "Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there;
believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and
shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they
shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they
shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in
the secret chambers; believe it not. For 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. For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together."
(Mat 24:23-28) All this is omitted in Luke. Nothing of the kind occurred before
the siege of Jerusalem, and it formed no part, therefore, of the prophecy as
reported by him. On the other hand it is, as we learn from other Scriptures,
exactly the state of things which will prevail before Christ’s appearing in
power and glory for the establishment of His world-kingdom. The remainder of the
prophecy, as handed down by the two evangelists, refers to this great event. In
Luke, however, this portion of the discourse begins abruptly, without note of
time; for, in fact, he passes by a rapid transition from the siege of Jerusalem
to the coming of Christ. But in Matthew the continuity of this last event with
what has gone before is unmistakably marked, for his report goes on without
break" 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." (Mat 24:29-30) Thus again it is clear that while Luke,
in his report, has been speaking of the siege of Jerusalem, Matthew has had
before him a totally different subject; namely, the events immediately preceding
the revelation and kingdom of Jesus Christ. T. B. B.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 26: S.   THE EDIFICATION OF THE BODY OF CHRIST.
========================================================================

The Edification of the Body of Christ.

Eph 4:11-16.

Apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, such, as we have seen,
are the gifts of an ascended Christ. But it is important to take notice that
they are gifts, not offices. The confusion of these two things has led to the
greatest disorder, and the widest departure from God’s thoughts. In the epistles
to the Ephesians and Corinthians, where we have the fullest teaching with
respect to gift, office is not even named. The most complete instruction
concerning office is contained in the first epistle to Timothy, where the
subject is the proper ordering and administration of the house of God. This
harmonises precisely with the character of the truth contained in these various
letters, and shows how completely distinct gift and office are from one another.
Gift is the provision made by an ascended Christ for the building up, of His
body, the Church. Official character and responsibility, on the one hand, are
associated with the regular ordering of the Church as administered by man; and
as soon as that order ceased to exist, office had no further place. The only
officers named in Scripture are elders (also called overseers or bishops) and
deacons. Both these were ordained by apostles, or apostolic delegates, and
exercised their office in the assembly of the city to which they belonged. This
assembly consisted of all believers in the city, who were gathered together as
one body. Since no such assembly is now to be found, or is indeed possible -
since the Church, as to its outward order, has become a ruinous heap, no more
presenting even a semblance of its divinely-instituted oneness - it is clear
that there can no longer be any officers similar to those named in Scripture.
Nay, even if there could be a restoration of church unity, and an assembly which
could, in the Scripture sense, be styled the assembly of any particular town, it
would still be impossible to have officers, inasmuch as there is no longer any
scriptural mode of ordaining them. Man may invent substitutes in his sectarian
gatherings; but they are not, and cannot be, the officers spoken of in the word
of God. They are mere arrangements of human convenience, without any scriptural
sanction or authority. The use of the same names as those given to the officers
of the apostolic church is simply misleading, and the claim to appoint such
officers, in whatever way, is at once a denial of the Church’s ruin, and a
usurpation, however unintended, of apostolic authority. This will make it clear
that the distinction between gift and office is one of the very deepest
importance to the Church’s welfare; for had gift been in any way dependent upon
office, the gift must have ceased as soon as the Church fell into ruins. But as
it is, though office has ceased through the failure and disorder into which the
Church has fallen, gift, the grace bestowed by an ascended Christ, is just as
free as ever. Amidst the wildest confusion, amidst the grossest corruption,
amidst the infinite sub-division of that which ought to have retained and
exhibited its divine unity, the Lord can still freely bestow His gifts, and has
done so, in matchless grace, through every age of the melancholy history of the
Church on earth.

We have seen that office was local in its character, and required the ordination
of apostles or apostolic delegates. In both these particulars gift presents an
entire contrast. We read of the bishops and deacons of a particular church; but
we never read of the evangelist, pastor, or teacher, of any particular church.
These were gifts bestowed upon the Church as a whole, and a teacher or
evangelist in one place was also a teacher or evangelist in every place to which
he went. Moreover, they were the gifts of an ascended Christ, and never
required, or could have received, any human sanction. This was clearly the case
with apostles; for when, as Paul tells the Galatians, "it pleased God to reveal
His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the heathen, immediately I
conferred not with flesh and blood: neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which
were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto
Damascus." (Gal 1:15-17.) And it was the same with respect to the teacher. As
soon as Aquila and Priscilla had taken Apollos, "and expounded unto him the way
of God more perfectly," without asking any ordination or authorisation he began
to proclaim the truth which he had learnt. Nor was this deemed irregular; for
"when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the
disciples to receive him: who, when he was come, helped them much that had
believed through grace." (Acts 18:26-27.) The gifts of an ascended Christ, then,
whether apostles, evangelists, or teachers, received their authority from Him
alone, and exercised it in responsibility to Him alone. Of course an apostle’s
advice as to the place or mode of labour would be received with great respect;
but he possessed no authority, nor did his advice take away from the
responsibility of the individual workman. Thus when Paul "greatly desired"
Apollos to go to Corinth "his will was not at all to come at this time." And as
with the exercise, so with the authorisation - it came from Christ only. To
accept sanction or ordination from men, or to connect their labours with any
local appointment, would have been a departure from God’s order, and would have
been a marked affront to Christ’s authority, by declaring it insufficient unless
supported by human approval.

These gifts were bestowed "for the perfecting of the saints, unto the work of
the ministry, unto the edifying of the body of Christ." (Eph 4:12) As to
standing, the saints are perfected already. All the blessings and privileges
recorded in the earlier portion of the epistle belong to the weakest believer,
who is sealed by the Spirit of God, no less than to the strongest. But the
question here is our practical acquaintance with the truth, and the power it
gives us both for maintaining sound doctrine and for pursuing a godly walk. The
two prayers in the first and third chapters are directed to these ends, and in
the things they ask there is unlimited room for growth. Christ, ascended and
triumphant, has therefore bestowed the gifts named in this chapter in order that
saints may be perfected. This is always His object. We may be content with a low
state, a low walk, a low appreciation of our blessings, a low intelligence of
the ways and purposes of God; but Christ is not content. From the height of His
glory He is still occupied with the wants of His people, and the first purpose
to which He turns His triumph is to send down gifts which shall minister to
their growth.

These gifts are provided "unto the work of the ministry." This does not mean, as
we have shown, the establishment of any official order of men. It is really
Christ’s ministry, the work of service He began on earth, now carried on in
another form through these gifts which He has bestowed upon the Church. There is
another object dear to His heart besides the perfecting of individual saints,
and this is "the edifying of His body." Whether this is carried on through the
work of the evangelist in bringing sinners to the knowledge of the truth, or
whether through that of the teacher and pastor in establishing and strengthening
those who are thus brought in, it is equally precious to Him who "loved the
Church, and gave Himself for it," and who recognizes in it, notwithstanding all
its failures, His own "body, the fulness of Him that filleth all in all." How
little do we enter into Christ’s thoughts as to the preciousness either of the
individual believer or of the Church, the "one pearl of great price," which He
has purchased at such a cost! In Eph 4:14 the apostle shows more fully what is
meant by "the perfecting of the saints." It is, that "we all come in the unity
of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto
the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ." Nothing less than this
will meet God’s thoughts about us. Here it is not a question of filling up the
body of Christ, but of individual growth. The point towards which we are to
grow, that which constitutes the perfect man or the full stature, is oneness in
the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God. This will not indeed be fully
reached till we see face to face; but meanwhile there is to be growth - growth
in "the faith;" that is, in acquaintance with God’s revealed mind, and growth of
heart in knowledge of Jesus the Son of God Himself. These are in accordance with
the two prayers of the first and third chapters. In the first the apostle asks
for growth in the faith, "that the eyes of your understanding may be
enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of His calling, and what the
riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding
greatness of His power to us-ward who believe." In the second He asks for growth
in knowledge of Christ, that He "may dwell in your hearts by faith;" that ye may
be "rooted and grounded in love;" and that ye may know the love of Christ, which
passeth knowledge."

It is not only growth in the faith, however, or even in the knowledge of the Son
of God, that is here spoken of. Besides this, we find that the "oneness"
elsewhere insisted on is again introduced. The goal towards which the gifts
should aid us is, "till we all come unto the unity of the faith and of the
knowledge of the Son of God." In this there should be progress; for thus only do
we come "unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of
Christ." We are to exhibit a perfect man - a man fully grown up in Christ. But
where there are sects and divisions, believers, instead of being full-grown men
in Christ, are only babes. They are carnal, not spiritual - walking as men
instead of showing forth Christ. These divisions came in, as we have seen,
through the eye being taken off Christ and occupied with men. If the eye is
fixed on Christ, the maturity. - "the measure of the stature of the fulness of
Christ" - here spoken of will practically display itself in our walk. Thus alone
believers, "with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are
changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the
Lord." (2Co 3:18.) The apostle then shows us the results of this maturity in
Christ. The first is, that soundness of judgment in spiritual things which
renders even the most unlearned believer proof against the subtleties of the
human intellect, drawing away the heart from "the simplicity that is in Christ"
into all sorts of false teaching - "that we henceforth be no more children,
tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of, doctrine, by the
sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive."
(Eph 4:14) It is important to observe how this vantage-ground is gained. It is
not by human learning, or by skill in controversy. This verse connects itself
with the one immediately preceding it, showing that our stability in the midst
of the shifting currents of human opinion and speculation is the result of our
being full-grown in the faith, and the knowledge of the Son of God; that is, of
our possessing an intelligent acquaintance with the word of God, and a heart
acquaintance with the blessed Lord Himself. No safeguards against error and
false doctrine are proposed by the Scriptures, or can be of the smallest avail
if set up by man, except these two. But God is never satisfied with negative
results, and it is not enough therefore that we should be shielded from error.
He desires something more for us, that we, "holding" (not merely "speaking ")
"the truth in love, may grow up unto Him in all things, which is the Head, even
Christ." (Eph 4:15) The knowledge of the faith is, as we have seen, the weapon
which alone enables us to "hold the truth" amidst the "opposition of science
falsely so called." But there must be a corresponding state of soul, showing
that the truth is operative in the heart as well as the mind, that it is forming
the affections as well as the intellect. Hence the truth must be held in love;
for without both of these there can be no "growing up unto Christ in all
things." Where, on the other hand, the truth of God is really held, not simply
as an intellectual creed, but in love, the believer will grow up unto Christ -
will become more and more assimilated in his walk and ways to the blessed Lord.
And it is from Him alone, who is "the truth," and who "is love," that real
growth must come. From Him "the whole body fitly joined together and compacted
by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the
measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself
in love." (Eph 4:16) Here then we have important teaching, not only as to the
part which the Head, but also as to that which the members play, in this
"increase of the body." Of course all the power for growth, all the supplies,
come from the Head. Hence the whole is said to be "from," or "out of" Him. But
the "compacting" of the whole is "through (not from) that which every joint
supplieth, according to the working in its measure of each part." Though all
comes from Christ, yet each believer takes his proper place; and thus through
him, in his measure, the cementing and filling up of the body is carried on.
This is true through grace in spite of man’s failure but surely it is a deeply
humbling fact, that this wondrous unity should have no outward manifestation
here on earth. Our failure cannot indeed prevent God’s grace; but should not His
grace make us ashamed of our failure? T. B. Baines.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 27: S.   THE FIRST THOUGHT OF CHRIST IN RESURRECTION.
========================================================================

The Lord’s Prophecy concerning Jerusalem.

Mat 24:1-51; Luk 21:1-38.

T. B. Baines.

Christian Friend, vol. 7, 1880, p. 151.

Two things are familiar to most attentive readers of Scripture. Who has not
observed the variations often occurring in the accounts of the same event given
by the different evangelists? These variations, over which the infidel
ignorantly trumpets as proofs of their human imperfection, are to the believer
among the clearest marks of their divine perfection. The object of the Spirit,
who records the same event or the same discourse with these striking variations,
is to bring out in each case a different phase of truth; and in all instances
the variation in the narrative or the report is in divine harmony with the scope
of the various gospels He has indited. A second thing, obvious to careful
readers, is that many, if not most, prophecies have a double fulfilment. David
and Solomon were each, in different ways, types of Christ. Hence many
prophecies, especially in the Psalms, while referring directly to them, point
forward, in a far fuller and more important sense, to the Lord, whom they
partially foreshadowed. So, too, the prophecies about Babylon, while foretelling
the capture of the city by Cyrus, have clearly a wider range, carrying us on to
the final overthrow of that Gentile rule of which Babylon was the golden head.

These observations will help us to understand the variations between Matthew and
Luke in their accounts of our Lord’s prophecy concerning the temple and
Jerusalem. In the earlier part of this prophecy (Mat 24:4-28; Luk 21:8-24),
though it is clear that the two evangelists are recording the same discourse,
yet such are the differences that it is difficult to suppose they are speaking
of the same event. If, however, our Lord’s words have a double application, both
the resemblance and the variations are at once explained. Such is actually the
case. The earlier part of this prophecy refers, first to the capture of
Jerusalem by Titus, and then to the troubles preceding the coming of the Son of
man. The Spirit led Luke to record all that related to the former event, and
Matthew all that related to the latter. In two reports of the same discourse
thus given there must clearly be a close resemblance of arrangement and
language; some expressions, applicable to both events, common to both
narratives; others, much alike, yet varied to harmonise with the object which
each reporter had in view; others again, occurring in one and omitted in the
other, according as they bear, or do not bear, on his general design. Such are
the resemblances and differences found in a comparison of the two passages
before us.

Indeed the questions which draw forth the discourse, as related by the two
evangelists, are very different. In Matthew, Jesus had just spoken of the Jews’
house being left desolate, and of His own departure till they should receive Him
as coming "in the name of the Lord." Then, being pointed to the temple, He
foretells its ruin, on which the disciples ask, "When shall these things be? And
what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the age?" Here the
leading thought is as to "the end of the age," and the Lord’s reappearance after
His predicted withdrawal. In Luke, however, Jesus has not been speaking of His
departure or return, but simply foretelling the overthrow of the temple. He is
therefore asked, "When shall these things be? And what sign will there be when
these things shall come to pass?" The disciples are therefore asking about two
quite distinct things. No doubt they really asked about both, but here in the
question, as afterwards in the prophecy, Luke confines his report to matters
relating to the destruction of the temple, while Matthew, in harmony with the
context and his usual dispensational character, gives attention chiefly to the
later events connected with the Lord’s return and the end of the age. But if, it
may be objected, our Lord is, in Matthew’s report, speaking of events in distant
ages, how could He use the second person, saying, "Take heed that no man deceive
you;" and again, "Ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars"? In the first place
the words had a present application, as seen in Luke, and were therefore spoken
in the second person, which form is naturally retained even where the remoter
application is more prominent. Again, the disciples, in asking about the Lord’s
return and the end of the age, were regarded as Jews asking about their own
national affairs, so that this form of address was perfectly suitable. Men
constantly speak of "our victories," or "our prospects," in referring to the
deeds or prospects of their countrymen in past or future generations. And if
such a mode of speech is intelligible in ordinary discourse, in prophecy it is
not only intelligible, but habitual. Thus Isaiah says, "Strangers shall stand
and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your
vinedressers. But ye shall be named the Priests of the Lord." (Isa 61:5-6.)
Everybody knows that this does not mean the Jews of Isaiah’s day, but of
far-distant generations, and yet nobody finds any difficulty from the prophet’s
writing in the second person. The same principle will apply to our Lord’s
discourse.

There is evidently a great resemblance between the condition of things
accompanying the siege of Jerusalem by Titus, to which Luke refers, and the
final troubles of the Jews, to which Matthew refers. The features which have
long since become history as to the earlier events will re-appear in the later.
False Christs, wars, commotions, and fearful natural phenomena, are common to
both periods. In the first few verses, therefore (Luk 21:8-11; Mat 24:4-8),
there is but slight variation between the reports. The only material differences
are that in Luke, whose thoughts were on events but few years distant, our Lord
is recorded to have said that "the time draweth near," while Matthew, who refers
to the later fulfilment of the prophecy, omits these words; and again that
Matthew says the false Christ "shall deceive many," alluding to the great
national apostacy at the end of the age, whereas Luke, while giving the warning,
records no such prediction, for the Christians in Jerusalem were in fact not
deceived by the pretensions of the impostors who arose at the time of the revolt
against Rome. The next section of the prophecy, in both accounts (Luk 21:12-19;
Mat 24:9-14), foretells the sufferings of the faithful, and though both periods
are marked by great persecutions, there is a far wider difference in the reports
of this part of the discourse than of the former. Matthew, speaking of the
persecution of the faithful witnesses before Christ’s advent, says, "Then shall
they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you, and ye shall be hated
of all nations" (or "all the Gentiles") "for my name’s sake." (Mat 24:9) This is
what the believing Jews will suffer on account of their testimony to the coming
Messiah in the last days; but it would be incorrect as an account of what the
early Christians endured. They were not hated by the Gentiles as Gentiles, but
by all men, whether Jews or Gentiles; and indeed their chief sufferings and
persecutions came from the Jews. To these sufferings our Lord refers in Luke,
where the description is far more general. "But before all these things, they
shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the
synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my
mine’s sake. And it shall turn to you for a testimony." (Mat 24:12-13) Comparing
this passage with Matthew, there are two important differences. The persecution
in Matthew is contemporaneous with the wars and disturbances previously spoken
of, for our Lord says, "Then, shall they deliver you up to be afflicted." In
Luke, however, the persecution spoken of precedes the fightings and commotions
which had been mentioned in the earlier verses, and our Lord’s language is, "But
before all these things shall they lay their hands on you." This distinction is
in accordance with facts. The great persecution of the Christians by the Jews
was not during the civil wars which ended in the fall of Jerusalem, but before
them, and this is the subject alluded to in Luke. On the other hand, the great
persecution of the faithful Jews by the Gentiles, which is the subject spoken of
in Matthew, will be during the terrible wars and convulsions preceding the
Lord’s glorious appearing. The second difference is that while Matthew ascribes
the hostility to the Gentiles, saying, "Ye shall be hated of all the Gentiles
for my name’s sake," Luke speaks of a persecution arising in part at least from
the Jews, for he says that they should be delivered "up to the synagogues," as
well as cited before kings and rulers. He therefore adds (Mat 24:7), "And ye
shall be hated of all men (not all the Gentiles) for my name’s sake."

So, too, though hatred, persecution, and betrayal are spoken of in both
evangelists, the character is different. Luke is foretelling the sufferings
which the early Jewish Christians should endure at the hands of their countrymen
and nearest relatives, and his prophecy is simply a description of what shortly
after took place, "And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and
kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death."
(Mat 24:16) In Matthew, however, the persecution spoken of is a very different
one, originating from the Gentile oppressors of the nation before the Lord’s
advent in power. Here, therefore, the feature of family dissension is omitted,
and the prophecy simply says, "Then shall many be offended, and shall betray one
another, and shall hate one another." (Mat 24:10) The remainder of the reports
of this section of the prophecy are entirely different, each of the evangelists
recording matters altogether omitted by the other. Luke says, "Settle it
therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye shall answer: for I
will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able
to gainsay nor resist." (Mat 24:14-15) This was a special promise given to the
disciples, which we see strikingly and repeatedly fulfilled in the Acts of the
Apostles. But there is nothing to show that such will be the case with the
Jewish believers in the last days. They will be silenced, banished, almost
destroyed, and only delivered from entire extinction by Christ’s sudden and
glorious appearing. In Matthew, therefore, there is nothing at all answering to
this portion of the prophecy as recorded by Luke. On the other hand, Matthew
names features of the last time which have nothing corresponding with them in
Luke’s prophecy. He says, "And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive
many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he
that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." (Mat 24:11-13) Here
prominence is given to false prophets and their deceptions. In Luke, where the
warning is intended for believers, before the siege of Jerusalem, these are not
mentioned. But to the Jews awaiting Christ’s return, the danger from this source
will be exceedingly great, and therefore the warning is specially emphasised,
and the extent of the deception specially foretold. Again, in Matthew it is
predicted that "because iniquity shall abound the love of many shall wax cold;
but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." Luke, who is
recording the parts of the prophecy relating to the events before the
destruction of Jerusalem, entirely omits these verses, because no such apostacy
as that which is here foretold then took place. But such an apostacy will form
one great feature of the days spoken of in Matthew’s prophecy, when numbers, who
begin to wait for the coming of the Messiah, will grow cold, and faint under the
persecution and oppression to which they will then be subjected. The verse, "He
that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved," is often used to show
that believers have only a conditional security depending on their own
faithfulness. It has, however, nothing to do with the subject, but refers only
to the Jews waiting for a national redemption before the Messiah’s advent. Some
of these, God’s elect, will stand faithful to the end. Others, seduced by false
Christs or false prophets, or wearied out with the sufferings besetting the path
of the faithful, will turn aside, and perish with the unbelievers.

Again Matthew adds, "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the
world for a witness unto all nations (or all the Gentiles); and then shall the
end come." (Mat 24:14) In Luke the "end" contemplated is the destruction of
Jerusalem, and it is well known that before that event the gospel was not
preached to all the Gentiles. In his report, therefore, these words are wholly
omitted. But in Matthew the "end" is that about which the disciples had asked,
"Christ’s coming, and the end of the age." And before that event the gospel will
be preached to all the Gentiles. It is not, however, the gospel of God’s grace,
but "the gospel of the kingdom," a term never applied to Christianity, and
referring to the proclamation of the kingdom of the Messiah which will go forth
before His appearing. This goes forth not merely to all nations, but to all the
nations, or Gentiles, as apart from the Jews; a distinction obliterated under
Christianity, but of the utmost moment when the Lord is about to establish his
earthly kingdom, with Jerusalem as the centre of His government, and Israel as
the head of the nations.

Thus in all details, notwithstanding the striking resemblances, the variations
in the reports of the two evangelists show that they are really dealing with
quite different subjects. The still more striking difference between the
"abomination of desolation," and the siege of Jerusalem by the Romans, we must
reserve for consideration in another number. T. B. B.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 28: S.   THE GIFTS OF AN ASCENDED CHRIST.
========================================================================

The Gifts of an Ascended Christ.

Eph 4:7-11.

We have seen how the first exhortations, with respect to walking worthy of our
vocation, are directed to "endeavouring to keep the unity of the spirit in the
bond of peace." Nothing is more practical, nothing dearer to the Lord’s heart,
than this manifested oneness; and though its restoration is now impossible, yet
the principle on which it was founded can be owned, and obedience to the word of
God exhibited. But it is objected that in all God’s works there is variety, that
men’s minds are differently constituted, and that it is impracticable to mould
all to the same monotonous pattern. Does the oneness then, so strongly insisted
upon in Scripture, imply a lifeless uniformity? The very illustration by which
it is constantly described proves the exact opposite. In the human body no two
portions are alike, and the endless differences in each of its bones, veins,
muscles, and ligaments, all contribute to its healthy action as a whole.
Diversity of action does not involve schism and division. Such is the apostle’s
argument with respect to the setting of the individual members in the body of
Christ. "If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole
were hearing, where were the smelling? But now hath God set the members every
one of them in the body, as it hath pleased Him. And if they were all one
member, where were the body? But now are they many members, yet but one body."
(1Co 12:17-20.) The same fact as to diversity of gifts in one body is presented
in the epistle to the Ephesians. The apostle, after dwelling strongly on the
manifestation of unity, goes on to say: "But unto every one of us is given grace
according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Wherefore He saith, When He
ascended up on, high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men." (Eph
4:6-7) The second of these verses explains the sense in which the word "grace"
is used in the first. It is not that display of grace by which sinners are
saved, but that by which believers are endowed with the gifts of an ascended
Christ. The grace, of course, is the same in both instances, but exercised in a
different manner.

There is a marked distinction between the way in which gifts are spoken of in
this epistle and in the epistle to the Corinthians. In writing to the Church at
Corinth the apostle was giving directions as to the use of gift in the assembly,
which is regarded as the house of God on earth, administered by the Holy Ghost.
Hence the teaching is not so much with respect to the origin of gifts as with
respect to their distribution and exercise, which is the proper circle of the
Spirit’s activity. "To one," we read, "is given by the Spirit the word of
wisdom, to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit," and so on through
the other gifts; "but all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit,
dividing to every man severally as He will." (1Co 12:8-11.) Moreover, as the
subject here dealt with is the Spirit’s sovereignty in regulating the exercise
of gift in the assembly, all gifts that might be used in the assembly are taken
into account - the sign gifts, such as the speaking with tongues, as well as the
gifts for edifying the body. In the epistle to the Ephesians the question is not
the exercise of gift, but its origin and its object. The object is, "For the
perfecting of the saints, unto the work of the ministry, unto the edifying of
the body of Christ." (Eph 4:12) The origin is Christ Himself, not acting,
however, in His sovereign rights as the eternal Son of God, but in His acquired
rights as the victorious, risen, and ascended man. This agrees with the general
character of the epistle. In its earlier chapters we see God’s "mighty power,
which He wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His
own right hand 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." (Eph 1:19-21.) It is in virtue of the same
victory and exaltation that Christ now bestows gifts on believers. "When He
ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men." (Eph
1:8.) To lead captivity captive is a poetical expression signifying the complete
triumph over a power by which one has formerly been subjugated, as it is said of
Israel in reference to Babylon, "They shall take them captives whose captives
they were." (Isa 14:2.) The words are first found in the song of Dehorah, when
celebrating the victory of Barak over the armies of Jabin, by whom the
Israelites had long been oppressed: "Arise, Barak, and lead thy captivity
captive, thou son of Ahinoam." (Jdg 5:12.) It is adopted in the passage here
quoted by the apostle from the Psalms, where it is clearly prophetic of Christ’s
triumph: "Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive, thou hast
received gifts for men." (Psa 68:18.) The title by which Christ bestows these
gifts is therefore as follows: Man, as fallen, was in bondage under the fear of
death, and under the power of the devil. Jesus has come as man, has entered into
our wretchedness, charged Himself with our responsibilities, gone down under our
judgment, so that "through death He might destroy him that had the power of
death, that is, the devil." (Heb 2:14.) Having thus descended and conquered the
foe who held us in captivity, He has ascended in triumph, and received gifts
from God in His character as the risen, victorious man. Hence it is said, "Now
that He ascended, what is it but that He also descended first into the lower
parts of the earth? He that descended is the same also that ascended up far
above all heavens, that He might fill all things." (Eph 4:9-10) It was in
consequence of His humbling Himself and taking the lowest place that He obtained
this victory; and in virtue of this victory He "receives gifts for men," or, as
the margin reads, "in the man," that is, in His character as man.

It will be seen that the Spirit of God, in quoting this passage, has somewhat
varied and extended its scope. The psalm, after declaring Christ’s victory,
says: "Thou hast received gifts for men," or, "in the man." The apostle quotes
it thus: "And gave gifts unto men." The Old Testament shows Christ, as man,
receiving gifts in consequence of His triumph. But the Holy Ghost in the New
Testament so applies the passage as to show the actual bestowing of these gifts
on those for whom they were acquired. Nor is this all. The psalm describes the
time when God arises, and His enemies are scattered; when God "is blessed in the
congregation, even the Lord from the fountain of Israel;" when, "because of His
temple at Jerusalem, kings shall bring presents unto Him;" when "princes shall
come out of Egypt, and Ethiopia shall stretch out her hands unto God." All this
looks on to the reign of Christ in glory and majesty; to the full blessing of
Israel and the world. Then it is that He receives "gifts for men; yea, for the
rebellious also, that the Lord God might dwell among them." But in the epistle
Christ is shown as bestowing these gifts before this reign and this period of
earthly blessing begin - bestowing them in the sphere of His present interests
"unto every one of us." Though the victory has been won, its consequences, in
respect to Israel and the world, are not yet seen. But towards the Church He
already exercises His rights in bestowing the gifts He has acquired. How
remarkably this insertion of the present use of gifts, not alluded to in the Old
Testament, agrees with the character of the Church as a mystery "which in other
ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto His
holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit."

Though some special gifts are named in Eph 4:11, the language used in Eph 4:7
takes in a wider field. It is said: "Unto every one of us is given grace
according to the measure of the gift of Christ." In the parable of the talents
the Lord distributes "to every man according to his several ability." (Mat
25:15.) This, as the parable shows, includes false professors as well as true
believers. It makes clear, however, that all believers are entrusted with some
gift to use for their absent Lord. So in the text before us the grace spoken of
is given not merely to a few, but "unto every one of us." In connection with
Christ, the Head, "the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that
which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure
of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love."
(Eph 4:16) While, therefore, the special gifts needed for public labour are
confined to comparatively few, each believer has some gift for the edifying of
the body. In Rom 12:1-21 where the question is the faithful and diligent use of
the gifts bestowed, the apostle names, among others, liberality, showing mercy,
and ministry - or service - in the widest sense of the word. A vast circle of
responsibility and activity is thus opened up, and a set of gifts brought to
light which are equally distinct from the miraculous sign-gifts named in the
Corinthians, and from the gifts for public teaching. In this wider sense all
receive some gift, for the use of which they are responsible. In Eph 4:11,
however, the writer comes to a special class of gifts. "He gave some, apostles;
and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers." It
does not say that the apostles or others received gifts, but that they were
gifts. The subject is not, therefore, the gifts bestowed upon individual
believers, but the gifts bestowed upon the Church in the form of apostles,
prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers.

Nothing is said about the continuance of these gifts, and we must look at them
separately to see how far they were meant to be permanent or only temporary. As
to the apostle, the distinguishing feature was his ability to bear testimony to
Christ’s resurrection. Thus in the case of the new apostle chosen by lot, the
object, as explained by Peter, was that he might "be a witness with us of His
resurrection." (Acts 1:22.) And even Paul, who had never seen Jesus either
during His life or in the forty days before His ascension, rests his apostleship
on the same ground. "Am I not an apostle?" he asks. "Have I not seen Jesus
Christ our Lord?" (1Co 9:1.) And afterwards, speakiug of Christ’s resurrection,
he says, "Last of all He was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time.
For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle"
(1Co 15:8-9), thus again associating his apostleship with his having seen the
risen Christ. Since this, then, was a condition of apostleship, it is clear that
no one who has not seen Christ risen could be an apostle; or, in other words,
that apostles were only temporary gifts. But again, apostles and prophets were,
so to speak, the foundation course of the Church; for we are "built upon the
foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief
corner stone." No doubt the foundation is permanent, and in this sense the gift
is permanent. But this very fact precludes the thought of a succession of
apostles; for how could there be a succession of foundations to the same
building? The idea of a succession or revival of apostles is therefore a mere
fancy of the mind of man, entirely opposed to Scripture, and subversive of all
that is there taught concerning apostolic qualifications and functions. The
prophet was also a foundation gift. It was to prophets as well as to apostles
that the mystery which had before been hidden was revealed by the Spirit. In
certain cases too the prophet foretold future events. In all these characters
the gift of a prophet was only temporary. On the other hand, that part of the
prophetic gift which consists of speaking "unto men to edification, and
exhortation, and comfort," and in this way "edifying the Church" (1Co 14:3-4),
has never been removed, though whether those possessing it are prophets, in the
scriptural sense of the word, is at least doubtful. The gifts of evangelists,
pastors, and teachers are of course permanent, and require little explanation.
An evangelist is one who brings glad tidings. It may be well to observe that
there is nothing to identify evangelization with public preaching. No doubt many
evangelists are public preachers; but it would be a great mistake to confine the
term to those who thus labour. Perhaps some of the most largely-blessed
evangelists are those who, by their writings, or even by their private visits
and conversation, have set forth Christ, with little or no qualification for
addressing large audiences. No one would for a moment speak slightingly of
preaching; but it is more easy to be led by a desire for display in this work
than in work of a quieter and less public character. Moreover, the effect
produced on the conscience and on the heart by the presentation of the truth in
private is often far deeper and more durable than that wrought amidst the
excitement of preaching. The same may be said of the teacher, who is really the
same gift as the pastor, only as teacher he is looked upon rather in respect of
the truth he sets forth, and as pastor rather in respect of the flock which this
truth nourishes. But there is nothing in either case which necessarily
identifies the gift with public ministry. Indeed, while the labours of a teacher
may be, those of a pastor almost inevitably must be, of a private rather than of
a public character. T. B. Baines.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 29: S.   THE LORD'S PROPHECY CONCERNING JERUSALEM.
========================================================================

The Lord’s Prophecy concerning Jerusalem.

Mat 24:1-51; Luk 21:1-38.

T. B. Baines.

Christian Friend, vol. 7, 1880, p. 151.

Two things are familiar to most attentive readers of Scripture. Who has not
observed the variations often occurring in the accounts of the same event given
by the different evangelists? These variations, over which the infidel
ignorantly trumpets as proofs of their human imperfection, are to the believer
among the clearest marks of their divine perfection. The object of the Spirit,
who records the same event or the same discourse with these striking variations,
is to bring out in each case a different phase of truth; and in all instances
the variation in the narrative or the report is in divine harmony with the scope
of the various gospels He has indited. A second thing, obvious to careful
readers, is that many, if not most, prophecies have a double fulfilment. David
and Solomon were each, in different ways, types of Christ. Hence many
prophecies, especially in the Psalms, while referring directly to them, point
forward, in a far fuller and more important sense, to the Lord, whom they
partially foreshadowed. So, too, the prophecies about Babylon, while foretelling
the capture of the city by Cyrus, have clearly a wider range, carrying us on to
the final overthrow of that Gentile rule of which Babylon was the golden head.

These observations will help us to understand the variations between Matthew and
Luke in their accounts of our Lord’s prophecy concerning the temple and
Jerusalem. In the earlier part of this prophecy (Mat 24:4-28; Luk 21:8-24),
though it is clear that the two evangelists are recording the same discourse,
yet such are the differences that it is difficult to suppose they are speaking
of the same event. If, however, our Lord’s words have a double application, both
the resemblance and the variations are at once explained. Such is actually the
case. The earlier part of this prophecy refers, first to the capture of
Jerusalem by Titus, and then to the troubles preceding the coming of the Son of
man. The Spirit led Luke to record all that related to the former event, and
Matthew all that related to the latter. In two reports of the same discourse
thus given there must clearly be a close resemblance of arrangement and
language; some expressions, applicable to both events, common to both
narratives; others, much alike, yet varied to harmonise with the object which
each reporter had in view; others again, occurring in one and omitted in the
other, according as they bear, or do not bear, on his general design. Such are
the resemblances and differences found in a comparison of the two passages
before us.

Indeed the questions which draw forth the discourse, as related by the two
evangelists, are very different. In Matthew, Jesus had just spoken of the Jews’
house being left desolate, and of His own departure till they should receive Him
as coming "in the name of the Lord." Then, being pointed to the temple, He
foretells its ruin, on which the disciples ask, "When shall these things be? And
what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the age?" Here the
leading thought is as to "the end of the age," and the Lord’s reappearance after
His predicted withdrawal. In Luke, however, Jesus has not been speaking of His
departure or return, but simply foretelling the overthrow of the temple. He is
therefore asked, "When shall these things be? And what sign will there be when
these things shall come to pass?" The disciples are therefore asking about two
quite distinct things. No doubt they really asked about both, but here in the
question, as afterwards in the prophecy, Luke confines his report to matters
relating to the destruction of the temple, while Matthew, in harmony with the
context and his usual dispensational character, gives attention chiefly to the
later events connected with the Lord’s return and the end of the age. But if, it
may be objected, our Lord is, in Matthew’s report, speaking of events in distant
ages, how could He use the second person, saying, "Take heed that no man deceive
you;" and again, "Ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars"? In the first place
the words had a present application, as seen in Luke, and were therefore spoken
in the second person, which form is naturally retained even where the remoter
application is more prominent. Again, the disciples, in asking about the Lord’s
return and the end of the age, were regarded as Jews asking about their own
national affairs, so that this form of address was perfectly suitable. Men
constantly speak of "our victories," or "our prospects," in referring to the
deeds or prospects of their countrymen in past or future generations. And if
such a mode of speech is intelligible in ordinary discourse, in prophecy it is
not only intelligible, but habitual. Thus Isaiah says, "Strangers shall stand
and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your
vinedressers. But ye shall be named the Priests of the Lord." (Isa 61:5-6.)
Everybody knows that this does not mean the Jews of Isaiah’s day, but of
far-distant generations, and yet nobody finds any difficulty from the prophet’s
writing in the second person. The same principle will apply to our Lord’s
discourse.

There is evidently a great resemblance between the condition of things
accompanying the siege of Jerusalem by Titus, to which Luke refers, and the
final troubles of the Jews, to which Matthew refers. The features which have
long since become history as to the earlier events will re-appear in the later.
False Christs, wars, commotions, and fearful natural phenomena, are common to
both periods. In the first few verses, therefore (Luk 21:8-11; Mat 24:4-8),
there is but slight variation between the reports. The only material differences
are that in Luke, whose thoughts were on events but few years distant, our Lord
is recorded to have said that "the time draweth near," while Matthew, who refers
to the later fulfilment of the prophecy, omits these words; and again that
Matthew says the false Christ "shall deceive many," alluding to the great
national apostacy at the end of the age, whereas Luke, while giving the warning,
records no such prediction, for the Christians in Jerusalem were in fact not
deceived by the pretensions of the impostors who arose at the time of the revolt
against Rome. The next section of the prophecy, in both accounts (Luk 21:12-19;
Mat 24:9-14), foretells the sufferings of the faithful, and though both periods
are marked by great persecutions, there is a far wider difference in the reports
of this part of the discourse than of the former. Matthew, speaking of the
persecution of the faithful witnesses before Christ’s advent, says, "Then shall
they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you, and ye shall be hated
of all nations" (or "all the Gentiles") "for my name’s sake." (Mat 24:9.) This
is what the believing Jews will suffer on account of their testimony to the
coming Messiah in the last days; but it would be incorrect as an account of what
the early Christians endured. They were not hated by the Gentiles as Gentiles,
but by all men, whether Jews or Gentiles; and indeed their chief sufferings and
persecutions came from the Jews. To these sufferings our Lord refers in Luke,
where the description is far more general. "But before all these things, they
shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the
synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my
mine’s sake. And it shall turn to you for a testimony." (Luk 21:12-13.)
Comparing this passage with Matthew, there are two important differences. The
persecution in Matthew is contemporaneous with the wars and disturbances
previously spoken of, for our Lord says, "Then, shall they deliver you up to be
afflicted." In Luke, however, the persecution spoken of precedes the fightings
and commotions which had been mentioned in the earlier verses, and our Lord’s
language is, "But before all these things shall they lay their hands on you."
This distinction is in accordance with facts. The great persecution of the
Christians by the Jews was not during the civil wars which ended in the fall of
Jerusalem, but before them, and this is the subject alluded to in Luke. On the
other hand, the great persecution of the faithful Jews by the Gentiles, which is
the subject spoken of in Matthew, will be during the terrible wars and
convulsions preceding the Lord’s glorious appearing. The second difference is
that while Matthew ascribes the hostility to the Gentiles, saying, "Ye shall be
hated of all the Gentiles for my name’s sake," Luke speaks of a persecution
arising in part at least from the Jews, for he says that they should be
delivered "up to the synagogues," as well as cited before kings and rulers. He
therefore adds (Luk 21:17), "And ye shall be hated of all men (not all the
Gentiles) for my name’s sake."

So, too, though hatred, persecution, and betrayal are spoken of in both
evangelists, the character is different. Luke is foretelling the sufferings
which the early Jewish Christians should endure at the hands of their countrymen
and nearest relatives, and his prophecy is simply a description of what shortly
after took place, "And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and
kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death."
(Luk 21:16.) In Matthew, however, the persecution spoken of is a very different
one, originating from the Gentile oppressors of the nation before the Lord’s
advent in power. Here, therefore, the feature of family dissension is omitted,
and the prophecy simply says, "Then shall many be offended, and shall betray one
another, and shall hate one another." (Mat 24:10.) The remainder of the reports
of this section of the prophecy are entirely different, each of the evangelists
recording matters altogether omitted by the other. Luke says, "Settle it
therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye shall answer: for I
will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able
to gainsay nor resist." (Luk 21:14-15.) This was a special promise given to the
disciples, which we see strikingly and repeatedly fulfilled in the Acts of the
Apostles. But there is nothing to show that such will be the case with the
Jewish believers in the last days. They will be silenced, banished, almost
destroyed, and only delivered from entire extinction by Christ’s sudden and
glorious appearing. In Matthew, therefore, there is nothing at all answering to
this portion of the prophecy as recorded by Luke. On the other hand, Matthew
names features of the last time which have nothing corresponding with them in
Luke’s prophecy. He says, "And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive
many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he
that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." (Mat 24:11-13.) Here
prominence is given to false prophets and their deceptions. In Luke, where the
warning is intended for believers, before the siege of Jerusalem, these are not
mentioned. But to the Jews awaiting Christ’s return, the danger from this source
will be exceedingly great, and therefore the warning is specially emphasised,
and the extent of the deception specially foretold. Again, in Matthew it is
predicted that "because iniquity shall abound the love of many shall wax cold;
but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." Luke, who is
recording the parts of the prophecy relating to the events before the
destruction of Jerusalem, entirely omits these verses, because no such apostacy
as that which is here foretold then took place. But such an apostacy will form
one great feature of the days spoken of in Matthew’s prophecy, when numbers, who
begin to wait for the coming of the Messiah, will grow cold, and faint under the
persecution and oppression to which they will then be subjected. The verse, "He
that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved," is often used to show
that believers have only a conditional security depending on their own
faithfulness. It has, however, nothing to do with the subject, but refers only
to the Jews waiting for a national redemption before the Messiah’s advent. Some
of these, God’s elect, will stand faithful to the end. Others, seduced by false
Christs or false prophets, or wearied out with the sufferings besetting the path
of the faithful, will turn aside, and perish with the unbelievers.

Again Matthew adds, "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the
world for a witness unto all nations (or all the Gentiles); and then shall the
end come." (Mat 24:14.) In Luke the "end" contemplated is the destruction of
Jerusalem, and it is well known that before that event the gospel was not
preached to all the Gentiles. In his report, therefore, these words are wholly
omitted. But in Matthew the "end" is that about which the disciples had asked,
"Christ’s coming, and the end of the age." And before that event the gospel will
be preached to all the Gentiles. It is not, however, the gospel of God’s grace,
but "the gospel of the kingdom," a term never applied to Christianity, and
referring to the proclamation of the kingdom of the Messiah which will go forth
before His appearing. This goes forth not merely to all nations, but to all the
nations, or Gentiles, as apart from the Jews; a distinction obliterated under
Christianity, but of the utmost moment when the Lord is about to establish his
earthly kingdom, with Jerusalem as the centre of His government, and Israel as
the head of the nations.

Thus in all details, notwithstanding the striking resemblances, the variations
in the reports of the two evangelists show that they are really dealing with
quite different subjects. The still more striking difference between the
"abomination of desolation," and the siege of Jerusalem by the Romans, we must
reserve for consideration in another number. T. B. B.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 30: S.   WHAT IS A CHRISTIAN'S RULE OF LIFE, CHRIST OR THE LAW?
========================================================================

What is a Christian’s Rule of Life, Christ or the Law?

T. B. Baines.

Christian Friend, vol. 7, 1880, p. 94.

It is commonly taught among Christians, that the believer’s rule of walk is the
moral law, or the Ten Commandments. It is admitted, of course, by all, that the
believer is not justified by the deeds of the law, and that if the law be thus
used, it will only add to man’s condemnation. His justification must clearly be
by grace, and on the principle of faith; but when justified, what is the
standard by which his life is to be governed? This, it is generally held, is the
moral law, which was undoubtedly the rule given to Israel, and for its own
purpose is, therefore, as perfect as all the other works of God’s hands. It is
true that believers are said to be under grace, and not under law; but this, it
is maintained, applies to justification, not to walk. They are urged also not to
return to law, but this is explained to mean the ceremonial law, not the moral.
These distinctions are intelligible, but are they scriptural? Where does the
word of God speak of a believer as being under the law for one purpose, and not
for another? Where does it declare that while the ceremonial law is abrogated,
the moral law is still in force as the rule for Christian walk? No doubt there
is a distinction between the moral and ceremonial law, and also between the law
as a ground of justification, and the law as a rule of life; but when this
distinction is used to make Scripture harmonize with theology, it behoves us to
inquire whether Scripture is thus fairly interpreted.

It is said, "that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth;" but it
is added that the believer does not live, having "become dead to the law by the
body of Christ, that he should be married to another, even to Him who is raised
from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God." (Rom 7:1, Rom 7:4)
Then follows — "Now we are delivered from the law, having died to that" (the
true reading) "wherein we were held, that we should serve in newness of spirit,
and not in the oldness of the letter." (Rom 7:6) Here, as usual in this epistle,
man is looked at as first alive in the flesh. Such is his standing before God,
and in this standing the law "hath dominion over" him. But believers are "dead
with Christ" (Rom 6:8), and are therefore "become dead to the law" — "delivered
from the law, having died to that wherein they were held." No language can be
clearer. The believer, as dead with Christ, is free from the law. Is this the
ceremonial law? Evidently not; for the passage goes on — "I had not known lust,
except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet" (Rom 7:7); so that it is of the
decalogue itself that the Holy Ghost is here speaking, and to the decalogue
itself that the believer is declared to be dead. Is he dead to it, then, only as
concerns justification, and still alive to it as a rule of conduct? In the above
passage the question of justification is not even alluded to; and the reason why
we are said to have "become dead to the law" is, that we "should be married to
another, even to Him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth
fruit unto God." When "in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law,
did work in our members, to bring forth fruit unto death." (Rom 7:6) The
contrast, then, is not between justification and condemnation, but between the
fruits produced under the law, and those produced by our being "married to
another." We cannot be "married to another" until we are dead to the law. If
alive to the law, we are not dead with Christ, and the result is "fruit unto
death." If married to Christ, we are dead to the law, and the result is "fruit
unto God." The believer is, therefore, dead to the law, not only as a ground of
justification, but as a rule of walk. The law can no more produce fruit to God
after his conversion, than save him from his sins before his conversion. So in
the previous chapter it is said, "Neither yield ye your members as instruments
of unrighteousness unto sin, but yield yourselves unto God as those that are
alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.
For sin shall not have dominion over you, for ye are not under the law, but
under grace." (Rom 6:13-14) Here, again, the subject is not justification, but
walk. Our justification is assumed, and the question is, whether, being
justified, we shall serve sin or God. What delivers us from the power of sin?
When "in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our
members to bring forth fruit unto death." Now, however, being "not in the
flesh," but "dead with Christ," are we put under the law again to be kept from
sin, and to bear fruit for God? Just the contrary. "Sin shall not have dominion
over you; for ye are not under the law, but under grace." In a word, the power
for walk is not in our being under the law, but depends upon our being dead to
the law. The apostle then asks, "Shall we sin because we are not under the law,
but under grace? God forbid." (Rom 6:15) But what is the ground for this decided
negative? Does he say, "You must not sin, because, though not under the law for
justification, you are under it for walk"? Surely if this had been true, it
would have been the obvious reply, and that the apostle does not so reply proves
that the doctrine is not true. Instead of drawing this theological distinction,
he shows that the new basis of Christian morality is, not the law partially
revived as a rule of conduct, but the new position into which the believer is
brought as dead and risen with Christ. The law, so far from being the rule of
life for a believer, works nothing but misery when the believer thus uses it;
for even of a quickened soul it is said that "sin, taking occasion by the
commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupiscence" (Rom 7:8), while
elsewhere it is written that "the strength of sin is the law." (1Co 15:56.) So
the apostle reproaches the Galatians for bringing in the law after grace was
known. "Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of
faith? Are ye so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect in
the flesh?" (Gal 3:2-3) This is very striking, for the Holy Ghost here speaks of
the introduction of the law, after they had believed, as a reverting to the
flesh. He then shows that the law, however introduced, is fatal; "for as many as
are of the works of the law are under the curse, for it is written, Cursed is
everyone that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the
law to do them." (Rom 7:10) It may be said that this refers to justification,
not to conduct. It is, however, addressed to persons already justified.
Moreover, the principle is a general one, applying to any use of the law
whatever, and showing that there is no such thing as being half dead to the law,
and half alive to it; but that if we are under the law at all, we are under the
curse. So it is taught elsewhere, "For I testify again to every man that is
circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law." (Gal 5:3.) How could
Scripture and theology more flatly contradict each other? Theology says that we
are under the law in one way, and free from it in another. Scripture says that
we must be under the law altogether or free from it altogether.

Sinking theology, then, and following Scripture, we find that the believer is
dead to the law, not only for justification, but as a rule of life, and that its
introduction in any form is a departure from the principle of grace. But does
this give rein to lawlessness? The apostle deals with this very question in the
Romans. If the law were retained as a rule of life, it could never have arisen,
and the fact that it did arise proves that the law was not so retained. But if
not, what barrier is there against lawlessness? A twofold barrier; first, that
being "dead to sin," we cannot "live any longer therein" (Rom 6:2); and next,
that being "married to another," we can "bring forth fruit unto God." As dead
with Christ, we are dead to sin, and the practical teaching founded on it is,
"Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the
lusts thereof." (Rom 6:12.) As having life in Christ, we are "alive unto God,"
and the practical result ought to be, "that like as Christ was raised up from
the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of
life." (Rom 6:4) The law was, of course, perfect for its own purpose; but,
working through the flesh, it not only could give no power against lust, but
positively created lust. Being "weak through the flesh," it could not "condemn
sin in the flesh." (Rom 8:3.) But now we, being "married to another, even to Him
who is raised from the dead," are able to "walk not after the flesh, but after
the Spirit," and thus "the righteousness of the law is fulfilled in us" (Rom
8:4). While under law, we are, through the flesh, unable to fulfil its righteous
requirements. Freed from the law, walking as those who are dead and risen with
Christ, its righteous requirements are fulfilled in us. Thus the attempt to put
the believer under the law as a rule of life defeats its own purpose. It is only
when we are completely emancipated from it, that its righteous demands are
brought out in our lives. For the law, while it gives directions, gives no
power. Power comes from the new life in which we are quickened together with
Christ. Having the life of the risen Christ, we are able to show forth that life
in our walk and conversation. But it may be asked, Did not Christ fulfil the
law? was He not "made under the law?" and if we are to show forth His life in
our own, must not we be under the law too? Undoubtedly Christ, as a man born
into this world, was "made under the law." But we are not "married" to Christ as
a man born into this world, but as the man "who is raised from the dead." It is
as united with Christ risen that we have, and are enabled to "walk in, newness
of life." Christ as man met every righteous requirement of the law, even to
death, which He endured on our behalf. Is Christ risen and glorified under the
law? If not, neither are we; for we are dead with Him, and thus delivered from
all out of which He has passed, while our life, as quickened with Him, is the
same as His own. But is not the law appealed to by Paul himself? Does he not say
that "all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this, — Thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself"? (Gal 5:14.) Does he not quote the fifth commandment in
speaking to children, "Honour thy father and mother, which is the first
commandment with promise, that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live
long on the earth"? (Eph 6:2-3) And do not these and kindred passages show that
the believer is still under the law? Such passages doubtless show that "the law
is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good." To the Galatians his
reference to the law was most apt; for they wished to put themselves under the
law, and what more telling than to show them that the law itself condemned them?
But surely we can quote the law as indicating God’s mind without putting
ourselves under it. Some of our judges have cited the Roman law, because of its
admitted excellence, in delivering their judgments; but who dreams that these
judges held the Roman law to be binding in our country? If God lays down
principles in the law, they must be perfect, and as such Paul quotes them. But
this no more proves that we are under the law of the Ten Commandments, than a
judge’s reference to Roman law proves that Roman law is the law of this realm.
On the other hand, if believers are under the law as a rule of life, why is this
rule so rarely named? Why is the apostle constantly urging other motives, and
hardly ever even alluding to that code which, according to theology, is the
Christian’s real guide? This alone suffices to show how widely the theological
dogma of the believer’s being still under the law as his rule of walk departs
from the true teaching of God’s word. The rule for the believer’s walk, then, is
Christ, and not the law. He may follow the law ever so diligently, but the
result will be that "the commandment which was ordained to life" will be "found
to be unto death." (Rom 7:10.) Just so far as his walk answers to the truth that
he is "married to another, even to Him who is raised from the dead," will he
"bring forth fruit unto God." In all cases our rule of life depends on the
position we occupy. A child and a servant both owe obedience to the head of the
house, but the child’s obedience should flow from his position as a child, the
servant’s from his position as a servant. An Israelite’s relationship with
Jehovah was determined by the covenant made at Sinai, and his rule of life was,
therefore, the law. Our relationship with God is determined by our having
received the Spirit of adoption, and our rule of life is, therefore, Christ,
"the first born among the many brethren" to whom we belong, the Son, whose
Spirit "God hath sent forth into our hearts, crying, Abba, Father." As dead with
Christ, we are dead to the law; as quickened with Christ, we can walk in newness
of life; as beholding the glory of Christ, we "are changed into the same image,
from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." (2Co 3:18.)

T. B. Baines.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 31: S.   WORDS OF MAN'S WISDOM
========================================================================

Words of Man’s Wisdom.

1Co 1:17-31.

T. B. Baines.

Christian Friend, vol. 8, 1881, p. 116. The most familiar and most forgotten of
truths is, that the flesh in the believer is just the same as the flesh in the
unbeliever. This was doubtless known, but certainly neglected, by the saints at
Corinth; and as the evil which the flesh brings into the Church always resembles
that prevailing in the world around, so here we see the vices of Greek society
penetrating into the Corinthian assembly. Licence of walk and licence of
speculation distinguished the world in which these new converts dwelt, and
licence of walk and licence of speculation were the evils which soon appeared in
the church. The licence of walk showed itself in their tolerance of moral
conduct such as was not even "named among the Gentiles," in their drunkenness
and indulgence at the Lord’s table, and in the disorderly and lawless character
of their meetings. The licence of speculation showed itself in their sceptical
reasonings about the resurrection, in their lax thoughts about identifying
themselves with idol worship, and in their readiness to divide into schools of
doctrine according to their preference for certain teachers.

They did not, in fact, see man’s ruin. They believed, of course, as Christians
do now, in the fall as a fact; but they failed, as these also do, to grasp the
consequences it involved. They would have allowed that it alienated man from
God, but that it so utterly blinded his moral nature as to render him incapable
of seeing the truth of God they do not appear to have understood; and this is
just the error of our own times. Many indeed think that the flesh wants mending,
and is susceptible of improvement. Others, again, admit its moral ruin, and
confess the need of a new nature; but how few see the total incapacity of man’s
natural wisdom to judge rightly in the matters of God. The Corinthians,
overlooking this truth, brought their own fleshly wisdom to divine things, and
the inevitable result was confusion and division. They were splitting into
schools of doctrine, the germs of sects like our own; and the apostle declares
that they were carnal, and walked as men.

It is for the purpose of meeting this tendency to exalt, or rather to allow,
man’s wisdom that the passage before us was written. Paul says that Christ sent
him "to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ
should be made of none effect." How solemn this in the light of what we see
around us? In how much of the preaching of the day is human wisdom not only
allowed, but demanded? Preachers are sought after for their eloquence, their
logic, their talents, rather than for the fidelity with which they present the
truth of God. Simple subjection to Scripture is not up to the level of modern
thought, shows that the preacher has not kept abreast with the progress of the
age. But God’s word is clear. The cross of Christ and the wisdom of man cannot
go together. If the cross of Christ is to be exalted man’s wisdom must be
brought low. If man’s wisdom is to be magnified the cross of Christ must "be
made of none effect." The reason is simple; "for the preaching of the cross is
to them that perish foolishness, but unto us which are saved it is the power of
God." So widely do man’s thoughts diverge from God’s, that even in the most
marvellous display of God’s saving power man can discern nothing but
foolishness. No wonder; for if God is to be known at all He must be known
morally. But men’s consciences shrink from looking at God in His moral
character. Therefore, long ago, "even as they did not like to retain God in
their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind." The very wisest became
fools in the things of God. The most learned and philosophical people in the
world owned their ignorance by raising an altar "to the unknown God." Others
groped in idle speculations, but all were equally blind as to what God was. This
was according to God’s wisdom; for as He is holy and righteous, these are the
first things that a sinner must learn, and these are just the truths to which
natural wisdom can never attain. God must be known, not as fallen man can
understand Him, but as He has revealed Himself; and this only the soul taught by
the Spirit can comprehend. "The natural man receiveth not the things of the
Spirit of God; for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them,
because they are spiritually discerned." But when "in the wisdom of God the
world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to
save them that believe." For God’s salvation must address itself to man’s moral
ruin, and this is just the fact which the pride of human wisdom will not and
cannot recognize. Hence the cross becomes the scoff of the wise, the
stumbling-block of the worldly-minded. Power and wisdom are the two things which
man admires, but they must be power and wisdom suited to his own thoughts. The
Jews looked for a messiah arrayed in worldly majesty and glory; the Greeks
sought after a god suited to their own philosophical speculations. How could
either, then, recognize or receive a Saviour who came clothed with humility and
weakness? "For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom; but we
preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling-block, and unto the Greeks
foolishness; but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the
power of God, and the wisdom of God."

It was impossible for the Jew, with no sense of the moral ruin of his people, to
recognize the power of God in the One whom he had seen scorned and spit upon,
scourged and crucified. It was impossible for the Greek, with no consciousness
of sin or need, and seeking only for the gratification of his intellect, to
discern the wisdom of God in the death of an obscure Galilean peasant who had
been crucified between two thieves. To perceive the wisdom and power of God in
such a scene there must be the complete giving up of all human pretension, the
submission of heart to God’s righteousness, the consciousness of need as a lost,
ruined sinner. It is only "unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks,"
that the power and wisdom of God can shine out from such a background. But to
them what marvels of power and wisdom are here disclosed! Where was victory so
complete and so far-reaching as that which was achieved when this Man of sorrows
bowed His head and gave up the ghost? The iron bondage of sin and Satan, of the
grave and death, was for ever broken; the veil which hid God from man, and kept
man from God, was rent in twain from the top to the bottom: the righteous
judgment of God was borne by the spotless sacrifice, and the fountain of His
grace and love set free to flow out in streams of richest blessing to a ruined
world. Such was the display of God’s power in Christ crucified; nor was His
wisdom less conspicuous or less adorable. If it is in the Church that God now
displays His manifold wisdom to the principalities and powers in heavenly
places, where would that Church have been but for the hours. of darkness passed
by the Holy One upon the cross? There it was that the cunning and craft of Satan
were turned to his own confusion, his seeming victory changed to defeat,
Christ’s seeming overthrow converted into triumph. Thence, from that lowest
depth, it was that He ascended up on high, led captivity captive, and gave gifts
to men; for truly "the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of
God is stronger than men." And this is always God’s way, that "no flesh should
glory in His presence." So it was when Jesus was in this world; for then the
things of God were hid from the wise and prudent and revealed to babes. So it
was of old. It was by the foolishness of blowing rams’ horns round a powerful
fortress that "the walls of Jericho fell down after they were compassed about
seven days." It was by the weakness of Shamgar’s ox-goad, Gideon’s three
hundred, Samson’s jaw-bone, that Israel was delivered, and the armies of the
aliens were turned to flight. Everywhere we see God choosing "the foolish things
of the world to confound the wise," and "the weak things of the world to
confound the things which are mighty."

Such is, and ever has been, God’s way. That man’s natural wisdom is corrupted
and useless in the things of God, and that God has poured contempt upon it, and
chosen to work by that which the world’s wisdom despises as foolish, is plain
wherever we look. He would strip fallen man of all glory in order that He may
make Christ Jesus to be to the believer "wisdom, and righteousness, and
sanctification, and redemption." How worse than useless, then, to bring in the
thing which God has thus discredited, to the preaching of the gospel, the
teaching of God’s truth, or the ordering of His Church. When brought into the
preaching of the gospel, its effect is to make the cross of Christ of none
effect; when brought into the teaching of God’s truth, its effect is to cause
strifes and sect, to substitute "philosophy and vain deceit" for that mystery in
which "are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge;" when brought into the
ordering of the Church, its effect is to displace the directions of Scripture
for rules and forms of man’s devising. Whether it takes the form of wisdom or
ceremonial, of rationalism or ritualism, it is, as we see in the epistle to the
Colossians, an intruder and disturber, from which those who are dead with Christ
should know their deliverance.

There is but one rule for the new man, and that is the word of God; but one
interpreter of Scripture, and that is the Holy Ghost. Here we have God’s wisdom,
and not man’s; and if we would rightly understand it, we must do so by
discarding man’s wisdom altogether and taking the place of learners in God’s
school. If any man "seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool that
he may be wise." In an age when man’s wisdom and science are exalting themselves
against God, and even true believers are beguiled by their pretensions, it is
well to see clearly the utter worthlessness of these things in helping us to
understand the mind of God, and to grasp with firmer hand the truth of the
all-sufficiency and sovereign authority of that Word which "is profitable for
doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that
the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." T. B.
B.


========================================================================
  CHAPTER 32: S.   WRESTLING IN THE HEAVENLY PLACES
========================================================================

Wrestling in the Heavenly Places.

Eph 6:10-24.

Believers are in this epistle seen in Christ. They are blessed "with all
spiritual blessings in heavenly places" in Him, and made to "sit together in
heavenly places in Christ Jesus." This is where God’s grace has set them; and
their walk in the world is to be such as befits those holding so marvellous a
position. The same fact determines also the character of their conflict; for
though the believer has a perfect title to these blessings and this position,
his practical enjoyment of them in this world depends entirely on the extent to
which he lays hold of them by faith. In heaven there can of course be no
conflict; then it will all be rest, and calm, undisturbed possession, with no
foe to seek to drive us out of the field. Here, however, it is entirely
different; we are not only surrounded with foes on every hand, but we have a
special class of enemies to meet, and a special kind of conflict to maintain, in
consequence of the heavenly place into which we are brought.

We have a type of this in Joshua, where the Israelites come up from the Jordan,
a figure of resurrection, and enter into the land, which represents the heavenly
places. The day will come when Israel will have rest in the land, and all
conflict will be over. But it was not so when they crossed under Joshua’s
guidance. Their title was good, for it rested on God’s promise to Abraham; but
they were yet in a scene of conflict, a scene calling for self-judgment, for
watchfulness, and for courage. So it is with us. The heavenly places are ours in
title, and we too, as "quickened together with Christ," are entered into them.
But, like Israel, the time for undisturbed possession has not yet come, and we
must hold our ground in them by vigilance and conflict. The Israelites began at
Gilgal, the hill of circumcision; and so we are called upon to "put off
concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to
the deceitful lusts."* Having thus in type put the flesh in the place of death,
the Israelites had to gird themselves for conflict with giants, dwelling in
"cities great and walled up to heaven," enemies in comparison with whom they
were "in their own sight as grasshoppers." So, too, we have enemies,
principalities and powers in heavenly places, compared with whom all our
strength is mere weakness. Joshua was exhorted - "Be strong and of a good
courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with
thee whithersoever thou goest." (Jos 1:9.) So, in the portion we are now
considering, the exhortation is - "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord,
and in the power of His might." (Eph 6:10) The conflict is not one as to
standing. There the believer can say, "In all these things we are more than
conquerors through Him that loved us." In these conflicts in the heavenly
places, however, the believer is himself called upon to wage war, to "put on the
whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the
devil." (Eph 6:11) The power of Satan and the spiritual principalities is,
indeed, already broken; but their wiles are always to be dreaded, and call for
unceasing watchfulness. They cannot change or lower our standing, but they can
cheat us of the enjoyment of it, and so rob God of the glory which our walk and
conversation should bring Him; for Satan’s object always is to deprive God of
His glory, and the believer of his blessing. And here, where God is setting a
people in Christ, accepting them in the Beloved, "to the praise of the glory of
His grace," Satan’s craft is specially put forth to lower the standard of
blessing, and lead them to take an inferior place, and therefore a place less
honouring to God than that which He has assigned them.

*It so stands in our translation; but it may be questioned whether it should not
read, "that we have put off the old man," etc. ED.

Hence our conflict, as set forth in this epistle, is for the possession by faith
of these heavenly places, and our enemies are those who would seek to drive us
from them. "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against
principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this
world, against spiritual wickedness in high (or heavenly) places." (Eph 6:12)
This conflict is one we must sustain if we would practically enjoy the heavenly
place and the. heavenly blessings which are ours in Christ. "The old corn of the
land" can only be eaten in the land. But it is clear that no strength of ours
can cope with such enemies as those now arrayed against us. What, then, is our
resource? God has made ample provision; He has stored up in His divine armoury a
harness which can withstand even such assaults as those we have to resist.
"Wherefore," He says, through the apostle, "take unto you the whole armour of
God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to
stand." (Eph 6:13) Thus, though we are ourselves to wage this warfare, it is as
strengthened with the power of God’s might, and equipped with armour from God’s
magazine.

What, then, is this suit of armour? "Stand therefore, having your loins girt
about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet
shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield
of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the
wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is
the word of God. (Eph 6:14-17) We have seen how Joshua was assured of the Lord’s
presence; but this was not promised unconditionally. The condition was this -
"Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do
according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from
it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou
goest." (Jos 1:7.) Such was Joshua’s armour for the conflict which typifies ours
- the truth of God, grasped by faith and followed in obedience. God’s presence
could alone give victory, and this depended upon obedience. So, too, the
believer can only sustain his conflict by having his "loins girt about with
truth." Thus only can he baffle "the wiles of the devil." Had Eve been thus
guarded, how could the serpent have deceived and destroyed her? This, then, is
the first requisite for withstanding his wiles. The immutable truth of God’s
word is the only anchor that can steady the soul amidst all the waves of
temptation with which the devil assails it. But what is the security which this
truth gives? How does it enable us to meet the devil’s wiles with unruffled
breast? It furnishes us with the breastplate of righteousness, "the
righteousness which is of God by faith." Assured that God is our Justifier, we
can keep possession of the heavenly places from which the devil would seek to
dislodge us. A doubt upon this point, and all is lost, as to the practical
enjoyment of our heavenly position. Our title to it is, that we are "made the
righteousness of God in Christ;" and our practical power to make good the
position depends on our grasp of this truth. The heart once calmly resting on
the full work of Christ and our standing in Him, all the efforts of Satan to
dislodge it are vain. It is protected with the breastplate of righteousness,
which all his shafts cannot pierce. "If God be for us, who can be against us?"
is the triumphant answer to all his assaults in this direction. This
breastplate, as has been said, is the believer’s righteousness in Christ, not
the righteousness of his walk. It must be remembered, however, that
unrighteousness of walk saps the heart’s confidence and destroys its communion,
so that though the believer’s standing may be certain, his own sense of it is
weakened, or even lost, and thus he is wholly unable to maintain his ground
against the wiles of the devil.

"Being justified by faith, we have peace with God;" and if it is necessary that
our breast should be shielded from danger by the consciousness of our
righteousness in Christ, it is equally necessary, along the rough road we have
to tread, that our feet should be "shod with the preparation of the gospel of
peace." The assurance that every question is settled between God and our souls,
that we have full unclouded peace with Him, can alone keep our feet steady in
the conflict we have to wage with the craft of the enemy. Without this we shall
be sure to trip at the critical moment of the fight, for if Satan can once
insinuate a doubt on this point, it is vain to suppose we can hold our ground
for conscious enjoyment in the heavenly places. All these, however, are only
kept by faith. The truth of God, our righteousness in Christ, and our peace with
God, are indeed the believer’s portion, even when his faith fails; but it is
only as his faith is in active operation that they can avail him in baffling the
wiles of the devil, or in maintaining his heavenly standing. It is necessary,
therefore, that over all these he should cast the protection of faith - "above
all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the
fiery darts of the wicked" - or, rather, "of the wicked one." And closely
connected with this is another piece of defensive armour - "the helmet of
salvation." This, like one of the former figures, is doubtless taken from the
Old Testament prophecy, which speaks of Christ as putting on "righteousness as a
breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon His head." (Isa 59:17.) But with
Christ it is the righteousness which He executes in judgment, and the salvation
which He brings as the deliverer of His people. With us it is the righteousness
and salvation we have in Him. If righteousness is the breastplate which protects
the heart from misgiving, the helmet is the crowning piece of the armour, which
enables the believer to hold his head erect in the conflict, the consciousness
of full assured salvation, which gives a title to the heavenly places, and
therefore gives confidence in maintaining the ground against all the stratagems
of the foe.

There is, in addition to these pieces of defensive armour, one offensive weapon
"the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." It is interesting to see
the close connection between the first and last piece of God’s panoply. The
truth of the Word is the power to gird up the loins; the sword of the Word is
the weapon to put Satan to flight. Our Lord Himself furnishes us with an example
in the use of both. He repels all the subtle attacks of Satan by the simple use
of the Word. In the first two temptations, however, He uses it only as a
defensive piece of armour, baffling the enemy, but not, as it were, wounding
him. On the third occasion, on the contrary, He uses it as a sword, inflicting
so deadly a thrust that the enemy is put to flight.

Such is the armour in which God has clothed us for this conflict in the heavenly
places. Our attitude there is defensive - guarding what is already ours through
grace. But this defensive attitude, being maintained solely by what we have in
God, needs constant prayer. Dependence alone enables us to hold the heavenly
places in spite of Satan’s opposition; and this dependence expresses itself in
prayer. The Apostle therefore adds - "Praying always with all prayer and
supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and
supplication for all saints." (Eph 6:18) What a place prayer has in almost all
the apostle’s letters! How earnest and incessant his own prayers for the saints!
A constant sense of dependence on God, and of God’s interest in His people - the
two great essentials to prayer, shine forth in all his writings and his ways.
So, too, in the gospel of Luke, where we have the path of the perfectly
dependent man, do we not continually find Him going apart to pray, and even
spending whole nights in prayer? How much of the weakness and failure we have so
constantly to deplore arises from our being so unlike the apostle, and the
blessed Lord Himself, in this respect! and he who best knows the value of prayer
will most desire the prayers of others. Thus the apostle constantly asks the
prayers of believers, even as he does here, exhorting them to pray "for all
saints; and for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my
mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an
ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak." (Eph
6:18-20) It is not for his liberation, or for any personal benefit, that he
seeks their prayers but only that through him "the mystery of the gospel" might
sound forth, and thus glory be brought to the name of Christ. Oh for more of the
apostle’s singleness of eye in those whom the Lord now uses to proclaim His
word!

It is beautiful to see, too, how tenderly he cares for the feelings of the
saints, counting on their affections, and sending one who, while helping them in
their souls’ growth, would also meet the anxiety of their hearts for news
respecting his own position and circumstances. "But that ye also may know my
affairs, and how I do, Tychicus, a beloved brother and faithful minister in the
Lord, shall make known to you all things; whom I have sent unto you for the same
purpose, that ye might know our affairs, and that he might comfort your hearts."
(Eph 6:21-22) The personal messages and salutations, so beautiful in some of the
epistles, are not given here, being probably carried by Tychicus himself. But
the warm love of the apostle’s heart to all the saints glows forth in the
parting benediction - "Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God
the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace be with all them that love our Lord
Jesus Christ in sincerity" - or incorruptness. - "Amen." (Eph 6:23-24) How
comprehensive and beautiful a prayer to close this epistle! an epistle which
unfolds all the purposes of love in God’s heart towards us, the wonderful
blessedness of our standing "in Christ," the walk suited to our heavenly
calling, and the weapons furnished for our heavenly warfare. It is doubtful
whether the "Amen" is in the original; but surely it will be the suited response
of every believing heart. T. B. Baines. In Rev 4:1-11 the elders are first seen
sitting in peace, then prostrate in worship.


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Source: https://sermonindex.net/books/writings-of-t-b-baines/
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