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discern the signs of the times?"* And afterwards he warns his disciples "to take heed to themselves lest at any time their hearts should be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness and the cares of this life, and so that day should come upon them unawares."† And again, "take heed that no man deceive you."

All these ideas are particularly urged throughout the epistles of Peter, and they contain strong arguments for exerting the faith and zeal of God's people, in looking into his promises to the church in the last times, or the end of the Roman Hierarchy (both temporal and spiritual) when such severe trials and sufferings are predicted as to make it the duty of the faithful to pray to be hidden "till the indignation be overpast-and also that those days may be shortened, otherwise no flesh would be saved,"

But all this should be done in deep humility of soul, with a pure and teachable temper of mind, depending upon the powerful aids of the same almighty spirit, who dictated these prophecies for the consolation of the church of God while in the wilderness; and looking to him for light and knowledge, as the only original source from whence it can be derived. Thus we may proceed without fearing to offend the great subject and end of these prophecies, who concludes that to St. John by saying, "I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in

* Matth. ch. xvi. 3d verse.

↑ Luke, xxi. 24.

the churches-and he who testifieth these things saith, surely I come quickly."*

Let us then with a lively faith and humble fear,

*Ifit should be objeeted, that this is a vain enquiry, after the declaration of our Saviour," that concerning that day and hour knoweth no man, no not the angels of Heaven, but my Father only"-Edward King gives a sufficient answer to this objectionhe says, "To apply these words to the destruction of Jerusalem, which was to happen whilst some of the persons, who heard the words, were still living, must be very strange and improper indeed; since we know that it was our Lord's professed intention, that the believers should be warned to escape and save themselves by flight, which they actually did-and to apply these words to our Lord's second coming, as their sole final intention, seems no less strange, when throughout the prophecies of the New-Testament, so many notices are given to us that there is a fixed period, about which time the second great advent is to be expected; and when both Daniel and John, even gives us certain limits and numbers, by means of which, those who are skillful in understanding the words of prophecy, be enabled to form some near guesses and well founded expectations.

may

These words must then surely in their ultimate and most important signification, refer to what the disciples originally meant to enquire after, to wit, the end of the world, or the end and perfecting of the day of judgment; or the total destruction of the present scene of things here on earth; which so far from being connected either with the destruction of Jerusalem, or the second coming of our Lord, that although it be an event which is really to come to pass, yet it is indeed at so vast a distance, that even the angels of heaven who excel in knowledge, cannot at present, limit the period. For surely if the day of judgment, (when the kingdoms of this world shall be

search into, and examine the meaning of the spirit of God, by the many important and interesting facts foretold in the xith chapter of the apocalypse or revelation of the beloved disciple John, who was so greatly favored above his fellows.-It contains an epitome of all the times or periods mentioned in that heavenly book; and if these indeed, should turn out to be the latter times, or the last times, intended by Daniel and St. John, it must be of essential consequence to the church of Christ, that their attention should be called to consider, treasure up, and hold in continual view, these great events as the seals and evidences of the truth and certainty of their hope and confidence, during the dangerous and distressing times, which may now be at the very door.

The surest, and best, guide and interpreter will be the meaning of the spirit of God in the original places of the old testament, from whence the prophet

come the kingdoms of our Lord and of his anointed ruler) bo a period when judgment shall be so executed, as to place every soul in its proper lot; and to perfect that great and glorious scene of things, for the sake of which, this world was originally created, in order perhaps that spirits might be trained up and accustomed to righteousness and holiness, and made acquainted with scenes of glory, even here, previous to their translation to the heavens hereafter, it is much more rational to conclude, that this scene when once perfected on earth, shall continue as long at least, if not longer, than the unfinished, deranged scene, which has prevailed and been exhibited on earth, during the ages from the days of Adam to this hour.

and apostle have taken their examples: for it is worthy of remark, that almost every figure in the revelation of St. John, may be found in that sacred volume; and it may fairly be presumed, that by the same figurative language, in cases unfulfilled, is meant the same things that was originally intended by those which are known to be fulfilled.

Hence, it becomes necessary to understand the nature of the figurative language of the scriptures, which in general must be attended to, and explained by itself, and therefore is worthy of a few preliminary observations, as it is a subject sometimes not sufficiently attended to, but passed by unnoticed.*

* Vide Jones on the figurative language of the scriptures, to whom I am indebted for much of the following observations,

ON THE

FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE

OF THE

SCRIPTURES.

WHEN the eternal God, who is the great first sovereign cause of all things, and who is not obliged to give an account of, or reason for, his conduct to any of his creatures, condescends of his own mere good pleasure, to instruct and teach mankind, his infinite wisdom takes the surest and most likely method of accomplishing his divine purpose, in a way consistent with the free agency of man, and the great plan of his original creation. The divine scriptures contain this mode of instruction, which the great author of nature has adopted for the recovery of the fallen race of Adam; and as they were designed for all times, and for every nation, as a universal instructor, it was necessary they should be conceived in a universal language; this could be no other, than that of nature; and as the design of the scriptures is to teach us the invisible things of God, which are not the objects of our senses, but of faith and hope; it became absolutely necessary that they should be communicated by the medium of natural things, which are the objects of our senses; by which means every

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