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16. And he gathered them together into a place called in the

Hebrew tongue Armageddon.

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Here our blessed Lord himself declares his second Advent, to comfort and encourage the members of his Church in these days of great trial and distress. He foresees many wavering, and others apostatize, considering the cause of the Church of Christ as lost; and would therefore recall them to more constancy and watchfulness, as indispensable duties at this time of extraordinary temptation. For it will be midnight, Math. xxv, and the darkness of these days will border on Egyptian density, within the sphere of the beast. Even the wise virgins will be tempted to slumber; and while the bridegroom tarries, the scoffers will ridicule them, and say, Where is the promise of his coming? II Pet. 111, 4. The Lord therefore assures them, Behold I come, continue in my faith a little longer; but rise also to a state of vigilance, for I come as a thief, I Thes. v, 2. II Pet. 111, 10. Rev. III, 3. sudden to your surprise. This we are not to understand of his spiritual, but of his personal coming at the commencement of the Millennium, when he shall judge his enemies, and publicly espouse his Church. For this reason all believers, and more especially the ministers of the Gospel are cautioned, carefully to attend to the work of the Lord in their own hearts; to watch the temptations of Satan, the world and the false teachers; to observe the signs of the times, and improve every opportunity to promote the prosperity of Zion. It is at all times the duty of Christians to watch and pray, but he here. enjoines it as a particular obligation, at the time when we shall hear of this great coalition. Blessed is he, who attends to his heavenly uniform, the garments of the righteousness of Jesus Christ; for that glorious period is now near at hand, when the certain nobleman, who went into a far country, will again return to adjust the accounts of his servants, Luke XIX, 12. But woe to those, whom he shall find

asleep! Their spiritual nakedness will be exposed to public shame like that of the priests whose clothes were burnt off their bodies, because they were found asleep on their watch in the temple, to which these words are an allusion.

Verse 16. And he gathered them. These words seem to connect themselves again with the 12th verse, and probably refer to an assemblage of powers, different and posterior to that of the 14th verse. It would appear to me after mature reflection, that there are two gatherings here alluded to, the first is ascribed to the three unclean spirits, and the second to the angel of the sixth vial in this verse; which St. John intended to distinguish, by annexing the day to one, and the place of rendezvous to the other, and by inserting the Lords special instruction to his Church between them. The three unclean spirits gather the kings of the whole Roman empire, and the angel of the sixth vial the kings of the East. Both innumerable armies meet at Armageddon, on the great day of God Almighty. This requires a considerable time, until they are thus collected. The object of this almost immense meeting, is not expressed; but this we know, that they will meet with a total overthrow and utter destruction, from the powerful interposition of the Lord.

A place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon. The Jews know well, that this word Armageddon is Hebrew; this remark is probably intended to inform others, that the land of Judea would be the theatre of this dreadful scene. Palestine will yet be a stage of great and important events, both to the Church and enemies of Christ, chap. xi. Learned expositors have varied in their opinions, as to the signification of the word Armageddon, since it may be derived from different Hebrew roots. Its most probable meaning is," the total destruction of the powerful" In my opinion it alludes to 2 Kings 1x, 24—27. and does not so much indicate the great slaughter, as

much more the particular kind of enemies, and the state of the Church at the time of her glorious deliverance. However, the time of this vial comprises only the period of their coalition and general meeting at the place of rendesvous, and the seventh vial is reserved for their des truction. Joel. III, 2. 13. 14. 2 Chron. xxxv, 23. 25. Zech. XII, 11.

THE SEVENTH VIAL.

Verse 17. 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.

18. 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.

The kings of the earth have set themselves against the Lord and his Anointed, whom he has placed upon the holy hill of Zion. But he that sitteth in heaven shall laugh at their counsels, and speak to them in his wrath. Ps. 11. This prophecy has received a growing completion from the time of Christ's death, and will now be fully accomplished by the effusion of the seventh vial. Here the final blast of the seventh trumpet unites with the pouring out of the seventh vial chap. x1, 19. whose effects terminate in the vintage, to consummate the wrath of God against the rulers and nations of the whole Roman empire. The seventh vial also distinguishes itself from all the preceding vials in this, that, like the seventh trumpet, it contains not only one, but many important events, requires more time than any of the rest for its completion, and terminates, the great drama by a more dreadful and tremendous catastrophe. It levels off the symbolic carth Gg

to a plain, in order to introduce the personal kingdom of Christ, and the glorious state of things during the Millennium, Luke 111, 5. Isa. X1, 4. LI, 10.

The seven vials successively, reach all the elements of civil and political life, upon the whole theatre of the four great empires in Daniel. We have seen that the earth represents the regularly organized government of a state; the sea, nations in a state of revolution; fountains and rivers, the public institutions of learning, religion, and merchandise of a people; the sun, the highest civil authority, or the imperial power of a whole confederacy of ruling princes; and the Euphrates, the Turkish empire. In this set of symbols, the ambient air, into which the seventh vial is poured out, must signify the all pervading principles, spirit and sentiments of nations on subjects of universal interest, such as religion, politics, philosophy and manners; in which that order of things in the world, mentioned under the preceding vials, has all along existed. This whole symbolical atmosphere, and all its elementary parts, will be turned into instruments of divine vengeance by the effusion of the seventh vial. And as the contents of this vial complete the wrath of God against the nations of the earth, the King of kings proclaims in a thundering voice from his throne, It is done; the whole system of measures against the united opposition to the Church and kingdom of Christ, is now put into a train of execution. Thus he once said on the gross, TE TEλESTAS, factum est, consummatum est, it is finished, the enemies have lost their last strong hold for ever, and the work is done.

The effects of this vial will be awful and tremendous beyond expression. The whole symbolical atmosphere will be involved in menacing darkness, and agitated by dreadful confusion, so as to involve in total obscurity the face of the political firmament Voices may refer to extraordinary phenomena in nature, which are generally

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the precursors of heavy judgments; thunders and lightnings, signify rebellious commotions of short continuance and of unimportant effects.

The first effect of this vial is a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. This figure according to the import of prophetic language, signifies a most tremendous revolution on the continents of Europe and Asia, more bloody and terrible than that of France; in which the rage for rebellion, for political reformation, liberty and equality will rise to such a height, as to dissolve all the bonds of civil society, and compel men to abandon their lives and property to the mercy of the mob, and the tempestuous fury of a ravaging soldiery. And at the same time that the political earth will be thus shaken and agitated in many countries, so as to bercave their inhabitants of the last comfort of the miserable, the knowledge of a place of refuge and security; but few only will be able to flee from destruction and death, after this dreadful catastrophe has once commenced. Many have been the revolutions since the deluge upon the earth, and probably, as we may conclude from these words, a great rebellion, preceeded that catastrophe; but this earthquake exceeds all, that have ever been witnessed since the existence of the human family.* However the Lord will prepare a place of refu

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*It is an elementary idea in the Zend-Avesta of Zoroaster, or holy book of the Persians, to consider the duration of the world, as divi ded into many different reigns, distinguished by predeterminate and general revolutions, which more or less affect the material world, but at all times the whole human family, and always produce a totally new order of things, and at stated periods, a new creation of rational inhabitants. For the ancient Asiatics believed, that the creation of the world mentioned by Moses, should be consideret a zλYEVEqta, a regeneration of a former world in ruin, Math. xIx, 28. the ele. mentary parts of which had undergone many such revolutions and regenerations before. This opinion seems to be favoured by the original of Gen. 1, 2. and may be alluded to in a civil and political

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