The

revolution that took place in both under Constantine. The profound and univerfal peace and calm, which took place in the Roman empire, and among Christians, commenced in the year 325, when Conftantine the Great became fole emperor of Rome and terminated in the year 340, when the civil war broke out between Conftantine the Second, and Conftans, two of the fons of Conftantine. four angels who were the inftruments, under God, of preferving this calm and peace, were Conftantine the Great, who reigned over the whole empire from the year 325 to the year 337, and his three fons, Conftantine the Second, Conftantius, and Conftans, who together ruled over the whole empire, each of the three having his own particular division of it, till the year 340, when Conftantine the Second loft his life. The hiftory of these events will fall more properly to be produced in the commentary on the two following verfes, in which fome other striking circumftances, in the history of these four perfons (angels) are predicted.

Verjes 2d, 3d. And I faw another angel ascending from the east, having the feal 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 fea, faying, Hurt not the earth, neither the fea, nor the trees, till we

have

have fealed the fervants of our God in their foreheads.

John, at the fame time, faw another angel afcending from the eaft. This other angel was Christ, as shall be fhewn, after the other fymbols contained in these two verfes are explained.Chrift had in his hand the feal of the living God. Paul gives an exact and full defcription of the feal of God, in 2 Tim. ii. 19. "Nevertheless, the foun"dation of God ftandeth fure, having this feal, "The Lord knoweth them that are his. And let K every one, that nameth the name of Chrift, depart from iniquity."

He was going to feal the fervants of God in their foreheads, with this feal. When the flaves, the cattle, or any of the property of men are in danger of being loft, they imprefs their particular mark or feal upon them, by which they may know them to be theirs, wherever they may be scattered, or however much they may be mixed with those which belong to other perfons. The fervants of God are true Chriftians, thofe who regulate their faith, worship, and obedience, by the commands of God, and not by the commandments of men taught as doctrines. The application of this feal to Chriftians, fignifies a fituation and time of danger, in which they fhall be fo mixed among the fervants of men, and of Satan, that this feal of God fhall be

neceffary

neceffary to diftinguish them from, and to keep them from being loft among them.

The

The feal of the living God hath two infcriptions upon it, which at once mark the real character of every true Chriftian, and hinder him from being loft from among the sheep of God, however long and far he hath wandered in the wilderness. firft is, "The Lord knoweth them that are his fer"vants." There never was, there is not, and there never fhall be one fingle true fervant of God, whom the Lord does not perfectly know to be his. Their characters may be mistaken, or misreprefented by men, but whether they live in the bustle of active life, or in the most lonely retirement; whether they are of high rank, or are deftined to move in the lowest ranks of life; whether they are the citizens of this country, or the flaves of that; whether they live within the pale of this or that particular church, the Lord will never miftake their true character, overlook one of them, nor claim as his own any one who is not his in reality, and on whom this mark is not to be found. The fecond is," And let every one that nameth the name "of Chrift, depart from iniquity." They all rightly believe in Chrift: They entertain thofe juft views of him which correfpond to his real natures and character, and to the account given of him in fcripture; and they openly profefs that faith. They gradually depart farther and farther, not Ff from

VOL. I.

from this or that particular vice only, butfrom every thing that is iniquity or fin. They believe in Chrift, and their faith does not make them continue in fin, but on the contrary, it makes them depart from iniquity. They depart from iniquity, and their good works instead of fuperfeding, flow from and ftrengthen their faith in Chrift. They make perpetual progrefs in holiness in this world, but they anive not at fpotlefs perfection in it; for while they are on this fide of the grave, they ftill feel fome evil in themfelves from which they depart. By the former mark their falvation is fure. None can be finally loft, whom the Lord knows to be his. It is not poffible to deceive the elect to their final deftruction. By the latter, they are prepared for heaven, they may derive comfort to themselves in this world, and in many inftances, may be known to be the fervants of God by the difcerning part of mankind. Through faith in Chrift, their iniquities are forgiven; by departing from iniquity, they are made meet for the inheritance of the faints in light. From perceiving that in their own character, faith in Chrift is connected with a gradual departure from iniquity, they have the best grounds to trust that they are of the number of those whom the Lord knows to be his fervants. By connecting faith in Chrift with holinefs of life, and fuch a holiness, too, as fully proves the neceflity of a Saviour, and clothes them with humility, fince they

they ftill feel fome evil in them from which to depart, and by connecting holiness of life with faith in Chrift, they afford the most unequivocal proof to the difcerning part of mankind that they are the fervants of God.

Thefe fervants of God are fealed in their foreheads. They are not afhamed of their mafter, nor afraid to profefs themselves his worshippers and fervants. Their facred regard to the commands of God, their firm faith in Chrift, and their improving holinefs of life, diftinguish them from the men of the world, the flaves of fin and Satan.

It was given to the four angels to hurt the earth and the fea. It is thus predicted, that Conftantine and his three fons, who fhould preferve fo profound a peace in the Roman empire, fhould foon after hurt the empire, and draw much evil upon it out of the late revolution. But they are prohibited from hurting the earth, till Chrift fhould have fealed the fervants of God. By this part of the hieroglyphic, the commencement of the period, when the Chrif tian church fhould be reprefented by the fealed fervants of God, is marked.--It should be in that time, when the fhort calm in the empire under Conftantine and his three fons, fhould happen, that is, between the years 325 and 340 The termination of the period is fixed, as fhall appear in the commentary on the 9th, and fome following verfes of this chapter, to the commencement of the millenium

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