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who worships the beast, no profit arising from all his services, why is not this foolish, idolatrous, and superstitious worship bad enough to punish its deluded vo

taries.

Let us try the force of the following metaphor, which we shall find to be apposite to the present subject. You who are the parent of a number of children have an enemy, who, taking the advantage of the dusk of the evening, and by putting on some of your clothes and by imitating your voice deceives your children, so that while they think they are following your directions through the most dreary, unpleasant ways, they are zealously executing your enemy's most cruel injunctions. The poor deluded children sometimes complain of their hard service, and of being destitute of refreshment or rest, but are told to hold on with good courage, that though their lot be hard at present, they may rest assured that as it is their kind father who is leading them, he will reward them tenfold for all they suffer. This deception goes on until morning. No sooner than day-light appears, one of your children happens to get a glance of the haggard visage of your inveterate foe! He starts back and refuses to go any further, and calls on his brethren and sisters to stop, and tells them they are all deceived, and are devoted to the service of their father's enery. They no sooner find their error, than their deluder leaves them, and you find your wandering offspring wounded, and half dead. When they see you they rejoice and fly to your embrace, deeply regret the delusion that has led them from you, and humbly implore your favor. The question now before you is this, will you now punish your emaciated offspring because they have been deluded into misery and want? Your answer is anticipated. You reply, No, surely my children have suffered enough, I will now let them see that their father's yoke is easy, and that his burden is light.

That this metaphor is justified by the subject, may be seen by the following in St. Paul's epistle to the Thessalonians. Speaking of the man of sin, he says;

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." If the beast spoken of in Revelations had not deceived the people he surely never would have been worshipped. And if we examine the passage which speaks of the torment endured by the worshippers of the beast, we shall see that the worshippers are thus tormented, while they worship. Notice these words; "And they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast." Have and worship, are in the same tense. And we have no more authority for supposing that the worshippers of the beast are to be tormented any longer than they worship him, than for supposing that they were thus tormented before they worshipped him.

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The hearer will also carefully notice these words; They have no rest day nor night." Here we find the present tense and the present state distinctly set forth. They have no rest;" that is, they are now destitute of rest, "Day nor night." That is, here, where time is divided by day and night.

Having ascertained that this torment is during day and night, and while the tormented are worshipping the beast, it will contribute much to the settling of the subject, to know how long this beast is to be worshipped. In the 13th chapter of the Revelations, we have the account wanted, it reads thus; "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." In the 11th chapter, we are informed that the Gentiles should tread the holy city under foot forty and two months. This is the same forty and two months, which the beast had power to continue.

Now if we multiply forty-two by thirty, the number of days which the Jews allowed to a month, the amount is twelve hundred and sixty days. This is exactly the same time which the two witnesses were to prophecy in sackcloth, as we read in chapter 11th, "And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they

shall prophecy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth." One thousand two

hundred and three score, is twelve hundred and sixty. This is the same period with the three days and an half which the dead bodies of the two witnesses were to lie in the street of the great city, which is spiritually called Sodom and Egypt. If we call a day a year, three years and an half contain forty and two months. And this is the same as the time, times, and half a time which the woman, of whom we read in the 12th chapter, was to be in the wilderness. Calling these times prophetic years, we find the forty and two months, which afford the twelve hundred and sixty days, which we may suppose are so many years.

Twelve hundred and sixty natural years is as long a time as can be allowed for the continuance of the beast, of his worship, or the torment of his worshippers with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.

It is evident, beyond all dispute, that there is no more propriety in carrying the second death, or lake of fire and brimstone into the eternal world, than there is in supposing that the forty and two months the beast had power to continue, are to be reckoned in the eternal world; or in supposing that the holy city will be trodden under foot of the Gentiles in the eternal world; or in supposing that the two witnesses will prophecy clothed in sackcloth in the eternal world; or that their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city called Sodom and Egypt, three days and an half, in the eternal world; or that the woman will be in the wilderness a time, times and half a time in the eternal world.

Iter.

This representation of the religion and doctrines of the church of antichrist, by fire and brimstone agrees with the prophecy of Isaiah, recorded in his 34th chap"And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone, and the land thereof shall become burning pitch. It shall not be quenched night nor day, the smoke thereof shall go up forever; from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it forever and ever."

It would seem that a land of this description could not be inhabited by any creature whatever; but the prophet says; "But the Cormorant and the Bittern shall possess it; the Owl also and the Raven shall dwell in it." He further supposes that wild beasts will dwell in this land of brimstone and fire, and says; "There shall the great Owl make her nest, and lay and hatch, and gather under her shadow." This language is so similar to the account we have of this fire and brimstone in Revelations, that we may suppose they both relate to the same subject.

The unclean beasts and birds, mentioned by Isaiah, are the same as mentioned in Revelations 18th. "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."

It seems to have been the design of prophecy, to represent the church and her doctrines by a land whose very dust is brimstone, and whose streams are burning pitch, and her clergy and rulers by unclean birds and ravenous beasts. And it is certain that the church of antichrist, with its rulers, its clergy, its doctrines, and superstitions, has answered the description in full.

We will now endeavor to show that the characters mentioned in our text are those who answer to the worshippers of the beast, that they are the unclean beasts and birds of Babylon, and that their doctrine in room of being a pure river of the water of life, is fire and brimstone by which they are tormented.

The first character mentioned in our text is the fearful. Fear is the very foundation of antichristian religion. It views God in the character of a most voracious beast. It worships him with a view to pacify his wrath. It represents him as full of vengeance towards all who do not render him faithful service, and supposes that he will punish them unmercifully, if they do not yield to his requirements. This religion says, take away the fear of eternal damnation, and I would never worship God again, I would pay no regard to his ordinances.

This religion is in fact a stream of fire and brimstone, fire, because it is full of zeal, and brimstone, because it destroys the reason of its votaries. There is nothing which more suddenly destroys the regular action of the brain, than sulphur. Fear is of this nature, it sets reason at defiance. So has the religion of the church. It says, reason has nothing to do with religion. What St. John says of fear and love seem very appropriate in this place. He says "Fear hath torment," and again; "Perfect love casteth out fear."

The unbelieving is the second character mentioned. But who are unbelievers? They are those whose creeds contradict the faith of Abraham. God promised Abraham, that in him, and in his seed, all the nations of the earth should be blessed. And it is said, that Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him for righteousness. Abraham was therefore called the friend of God, and the father of the faithful. Now those who believe in that Babylonish creed which excludes a great part of mankind from the blessings of Jesus and his grace, are the unbelieving mentioned in our text. These unbelievers suppose that they are the only true believers on earth, and their belief is like fire and brimstone, and the more firmly they believe, the more intensely they are burnt. They have their part in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.

Just

How much is a man's part in this torment? so much as will correspond with the perverseness of his abominable belief. In the same ratio as they believe, they are tormented, and as far as they doubt they find relief.

The abominable is the third character mentioned. There are many sinful practices, which are called abominable in scripture; one may be mentioned, of which Israel was guilty, and by which the christian church has become contaminated. In his 16th chapter, Ezekiel charges Jerusalem of having committed more abominations than were committed by Sodom and her daughters; and among those the following is stated; "Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daugh

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