Remarks on the Seventh Vial,
James Dodson
SYMBOLIZING
THE FALL OF POPERY AND DESPOTISM.
A SERMON
FROM REV. xvi. 17. xxi. 5, 6.
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 he that sat upon the throne, said, Behold, I make all things new.
And he said unto me, It is done.
MINISTER OF THE GOSPEL, WISHAWTOWN.
GLASGOW,
MAURICE OGLE, 17, WILSON-STREET:
G. GALLIE; AND THE PRINCIPAL BOOKSELLERS: G. CUTHBERTSON,
PAISLEY: R. NEILSON, KILMARNOCK: W. SCOTT, GREENOCK:
W. OLIPHANT; WAUGH & INNES; AND T. NELSON,
EDINBURGH: AND T. HAMILTON, LONDON.
1827.
ANDREW YOUNG, PRINTER.
[Unnumbered verso]
PRICE—SIXPENCE.
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A SERMON.
REV. xvi. 17. xxi. 5, 6.
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 he that sat upon the throne, said, Behold, I make all things new.
And he said unto me, It is done.
The first of these verses contains the account of the effusion of the seventh and last vial of Divine wrath on our Redeemer’s enemies. In obedience to the Divine command, “Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth;” the seventh angel came forward at the appointed time, and poured out his vial. The object into which this vial was poured, is the air. This is different from the objects upon which the six preceding vials were poured, and its fulfilment will complete God’s judgments on the Beast and the false Prophet. The text also mentions a voice which the apostle heard: “And there came a great voice out of the temple in heaven from the throne.” Immediately before the seven angels began to pour out their vials, the apostle heard a great voice out of the temple. No voice was heard from the temple, while the angelic operations were going on. But as soon as their ministrations in this vision were finished, another great voice, which came from the same place, sounded in the apostle’s ears. The solemn voice, which introduced these operations, and the majestic voice that concluded them, as they add incomprehensible solemnity to this vision, they also demand of us the most humble and careful attention to its meaning and fulfilment. This verse contains the words which this voice uttered: “It is done.” The voice mentioned in verse 1st of this chapter gave the angels authority to pour out their vials; and the voice in this verse intimates the termination of the vision, the Divine approbation of the angelic ministrations, and the certainty of their fulfilment.
In the two clauses taken from the 5th and 6th verses of chap. xxi, we have an account of a glorious Speaker, He who sat on the throne; of his merciful work, “Behold, I make all things new;” and of the important intimation he makes to the apostle, “It is done.” This saying is the same with the saying in the other verse, “It is done.” It was spoken from the same place, it came from the
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throne; and was uttered by the same Speaker, for he that sat on the throne said it. These words, “It is done,” as they are found in chapter xvi, spoken as they were in connection with the vision of the vials, must refer to those judgments which will be executed on Christ’s enemies, when that vision shall be fulfilled. But the same words in chapter xxi, standing as they do in connexion with God’s work of making all things new, must relate to the blessed alterations which he will establish on the earth, after the judgments predicted in the vials are finished, “and he hath made all things new.” That we may have a clearer view of the meaning of these important words, “It is done,” spoken twice from the throne, in two different visions, we have taken them into our text.
In speaking on this subject, I shall—I. Offer some remarks on the object on which the seventh angel poured out his vial. II. Endeavour to illustrate the description of the voice which the apostle heard at the end of this vision. III. Mention some of those things that shall be done and finished, at the pouring out of the seventh vial. IV. Mention some of those things that will be done when the Lord shall make all things new.
I. A few remarks are now to be made on the object into which the seventh angel poured out his vial. “And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air.”
1. This vial was poured into the air, to demonstrate its extensive influence, and the diffusive nature of its effects. The air constantly surrounds our globe, and is like the garment with which the Creator has arrayed it. The objects of the other vials are detached parts of the creation, but the air continually extends its influence to all things here below. The other vials were poured out on the earth or the dry land, the sea, the rivers, and fountains of waters, the sun or his rays, the seat of the beast, and the great river Euphrates. None of these are so extensive and abiding as the air, which always surrounds every one of them. This indicates the vast number and extent of the judgments of this vial. When it shall be poured out, every object existing on the Roman earth shall be smitten, and nothing shall escape its destructive power. Whatever objects the other vials have left, this vial will destroy. Neither root nor branch, blossom nor fruit shall be spared; all shall go up as rottenness and as the dust. By this vial which is poured into the air, that necessary and precious element will become as it were the mean of destruction to men. Those things that are necessary and profitable to
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the beast of the earth, and the beast of the sea, as air is to animal life and vegetation, shall be destroyed and removed for ever.
2. The air is the object of this vial, because the terrific symbols, which represent the dreadful judgments of this vial, are formed in the air. These are voices, or the soundings of mighty winds, the thunder of the Almighty’s power, the dreadful lightning, and tremendous hail. These are all formed in the air. It is therefore with the greatest propriety, that this vial is poured out into the air, that this terrible storm may be raised by Divine power against secular and ecclesiastic despotism. This hurricane, accompanied, as hurricanes sometimes are, and as this one shall assuredly be, with a fearful and unparalleled earthquake, will be put in motion on the Antichristian earth. And what will its effects be? An account of them follows. “The great city shall be divided into three parts, the cities of the nations shall fall, great Babylon shall come in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath; every island shall fly away, and the mountains shall not be found.” Such is the universal destruction which this vial will produce on Antichrist, and on every thing that is Antichristian, when the predictions that are contained in it will be realized. When the kingdom of Judah was invaded by a great army, composed of warriors from ten kingdoms, emblematical no doubt of the ten horns, who said, “Let us take to ourselves the houses of God in possession;” the Church prayed, “O my God, make them like a wheel; as the stubble before the wind. As the fire burneth a wood, and as the flame setteth the mountains on fire; so persecute them with thy tempest, and make them afraid with thy storm,” Psal. lxxxiii. 13, 14, 15. Their prayer was heard, the invading army was destroyed, and the Church was delivered. Many have been the prayers of the saints for the destruction of Popish abominations, and a full answer will be given to them, when the predictions of the seventh vial will be accomplished.
3. To indicate the total destruction of Satan’s kingdom in this world, the seventh vial was poured into the air. Such names are given to this enemy, and his infernal associates, as manifest their special concern in the regions of the air. He is called “the prince of the power of the air;” and they are characterized, “principalities and powers, the rulers of the darkness of this world, and spiritual wickedness in high, or heavenly, places.” He is also denominated the prince, and even the god of this world. The most astonishing display of his power in the air, was his conveying the Lord Jesus through
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it, from the wilderness to the temple, and from the temple, to an exceeding high mountain. He is represented not merely as going to and fro in the earth, and walking up and down in it; but also as roaming hither and thither in the air. These things shew the multitude of subjects he has always had on the earth, and his unwearied activity in going about seeking whom he may devour. They also manifest that the Devil and his angels, by Divine permission, have a limited power both on the earth and in the air, where they display their malice, exercise their cunning, and exert their power in tempting men to rebellion against God, that they, like themselves, may at last be drowned in everlasting perdition. This vial is poured into the air, to signify that the usurped dominion of the god of this world, the unhallowed influence of the prince of the power of the air, and his kingdom of darkness and spiritual wickedness among men, shall be destroyed. At the effusion of this vial, Christ’s words, in a most glorious manner, shall be realized: “When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace; but when a stronger than he shall come upon him and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils.” Then shall the whole earth behold Satan as lightning fall from heaven. At the period of this vial, the present war in heaven, between Michael and the Dragon and their angels, shall be finished, when the great Dragon, the old Serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, shall be cast out, dislodged from the air, banished from the earth, and apprehended, bound, imprisoned, and sealed in the bottomless pit.
4. The seventh angel poured out his vial into the air, to represent the removal of the smoke which came from the bottomless pit, as the smoke of a great furnace, by which the sun and the air were darkened. And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth. And they had a king over them, the angel of the bottomless pit, called Abaddon and Apollyon, Rev. ix. 2, 3, 11. This is the first particular account which this book contains of the appearance of the man of sin and son of perdition in this world. We are assured that the sun, or the rays of the sun, and the air, were greatly obscured by the noxious influences of this smoke. The precious doctrines of the Gospel, the pure and beautiful system of Divine worship, the instituted form of the government, and the scriptural order of all the administrations of Christ’s Church were greatly darkened by the introduction of Popish errors, blasphemies, superstitions, idolatries, tyrannies, and immoralities which have covered the earth. This
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vial was poured into the air, to predict those final judgments on Antichrist, by which this smoke might be swept away, those locusts might be driven to the place from whence they came, and the beast and the false prophet, acting under the influence of the angel of the bottomless pit, might go into perdition. Then shall the sun and the air be purified, Christ shall appear in his glory as the Sun of righteousness, the Spirit shall awake and blow on the Church, and her members shall say, 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.
II. To illustrate the description of this voice which the apostle heard at the end of this vision, is now to be attempted. There came a great voice out of the temple in heaven from the throne.
1. It is called a voice. It pleased God to make known to the apostle the important revelations of this book, by prophetic visions presented to his sight, and supernatural voices addressed to his ears; and therefore he says, chapter xxii. 3. “And I John saw those things, and heard them.” As he saw many significant visions, so he heard many important sayings. The preceding part of this chapter contains one of the most solemn visions, and our text one of the most interesting sayings of this book. When Christ by his angel made known to his servant John the revelations which God gave to him, to shew to his Church the things that must shortly come to pass, he caused him to hear many different voices. He caused him to hear the voice of God, the voice of the Mediator, the voice of the Holy Spirit, the voice of angels, the voice of the Church, and the voice of her enemies. The voice which John did hear and record in our text, is an important saying of God himself. It is called a voice. It was not merely a sound making a noise, or giving an alarm; but it was a distinct and articulate voice, uttering plain words—easy to be understood. It was not an ordinary voice; but it was altogether supernatural and miraculous. It was not the voice of a creature speaking in the name and authority of God, but it was the voice of God himself.
2. It is called a great voice. When John heard the voice of Christ, chapter i. 10, he says, “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet.” At the beginning of his prophetic visions, chapter iv, when he saw a door opened in heaven, he says, “And the first voice that I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up
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hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the Spirit.” Similar to these, was the voice mentioned in our text. It was a great and majestic voice like a trumpet; for it was the voice of the Almighty. It was a great voice, on account of its powerful influence. To it, we may apply David’s words, “The voice of the Lord is powerful, the voice of the Lord is full of majesty.” Since the first voice that he heard, caused him to say, “And immediately I was in the Spirit;” it is reasonable to believe that the vision of the vials, the voice by which it was introduced, and this voice with which it was concluded, would fill his mind with wonder, faith, humility, reverence, joy, and praise. It was also a great voice, because the information it conveyed, and the discovery it made of the Divine will to the apostle, were of the greatest importance. “It is done.” As the vision is finished in its exhibition, so shall it be verified in due time by its accomplishment. The tidings which this voice brought to the apostle’s ears, would reach his heart, and call forth the exercise of all the powers of his soul.
3. This great voice came from the temple. In the visions of this book, the temple is sometimes mentioned: “And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple, the ark of his testament. And after that I looked, and behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened. And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God.” In the voice which he heard when the angel’s ministrations began, and in the voice mentioned in our text when their ministrations in this vision were finished, the temple is also mentioned. This temple was neither the material temple at Jerusalem, nor the heavenly and everlasting temple of glory above; but it was a representation of the temple exhibited to John, in the extraordinary visions of God. When this voice came out of the temple, as did the voice at the beginning of the vision, it plainly imports, that it is the voice of the Church’s God who sits between the cherubims on the mercy-seat, opening his armoury, and bringing forth the weapons of his indignation, to execute on Babylon the great the vengeance of the Lord, the vengeance of his temple. As this voice came from the temple, we may be assured, that it had a respect to spiritual and sacred things. The temple was a consecrated and holy place. This voice must therefore refer to religion, to the glory of the holy God, the salvation of the holy people, and the prosperity of his holy work among the children of men. While God is terrible to his ene-
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mies out of his holy places, and bestows blessings on those who dwell in his house, it is our duty to believe and rejoice in the prophet’s declaration, “But the Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him,” Hab. ii. 20.
4. This great voice came from the temple in heaven. The heaven from which this voice proceeded, was not the heaven of heavens where the most bright displays of the Divine glory are made, where the innumerable company of angels, and the spirits of just men made perfect, enjoy and serve God, and where elect and redeemed sinners shall dwell for ever. As the temple out of which the voice came, was the temple seen in the vision; the heaven in which this temple stood, must signify the representation that was made of heaven to the apostle in the visions which he saw. In Ezekiel’s vision which is recorded in the first chapter of his book, we read several times of a firmament, and a voice from it: “And there was a voice from the firmament that was over their heads when they stood, and had let down their wings,” verse 25. The firmament in Ezekiel’s vision, represents the same object as the heaven in the visions of John. The firmament in Ezekiel’s visions was the scene under which, and the heaven in those of John was the scene in which all the discoveries of future things were made to them. When this voice is said to come from heaven, it shews that the God of heaven is the Speaker, that it is ratified by all the authority of Heaven, that it is worthy of our belief and attention, and that hell and earth combined, cannot prevent its accomplishment.
5. This great voice came from the throne. Of this throne, we have a description, chap. iv. 2, 3. “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.” The following verses describe the objects around and before this throne: “Round about the throne were four and twenty seats, and four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment, and had on their heads crowns of gold.” Tokens of Divine majesty proceeded from the throne. Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God. A sea of glass, like unto crystal, was also before the throne. Four beasts, or living creatures, full of eyes before and behind, were before the throne. And in chapter v. 6. “And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain.” Such is the view of this glorious,
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majestic, and imperial throne which John saw in the visions of God, and from which this voice proceeded. A voice from a throne, is the voice of a king. This King is the King eternal, immortal, and invisible, the only wise God. A voice from a throne, is the expression of the will and purpose of a king. This voice declares the royal will, and the unchangeable purpose of the Lord, the true God, the living God, and the everlasting King; at whose wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation. A voice from a throne, is accompanied with power and royal authority. This voice is ratified in heaven, sealed with the seal of the Eternal God, and cannot be reversed.
6. This great voice out of the temple in heaven from the throne, came to the apostle John. There was no other person there to whom it could be addressed, or by whom it could be heard; and, as it was not spoken in vain, we may be assured that it came to him. Contemplating the extraordinary circumstances that accompanied them, and remembering the spiritual frame of his soul, we may conclude, that the impression which the vision and the voices made on him, would far exceed any thing we are able to express. This voice came to his ears, and he heard it distinctly. It came to his judgment, and he clearly understood it. It came to his heart, and deeply affected him. It abode in his memory, and he could not forget it. That he might have understanding in the visions of God, and of the things which must shortly come to pass; he was caused to see this vision, and to hear this voice. These came to him not merely for himself, but for the information of the Christian Church in every generation till the end of time. These visions and voices came to him, that he might record them in that book, which God had designed to form a most appropriate and solemn conclusion to the whole canon of his merciful revelations to men.
III. I am now to mention some of those things that shall be done and finished at the pouring out of the seventh vial; or when these predictions of the seventh vial shall be fulfilled.
1. At the effusion of the seventh vial, God’s purposes and predictions concerning his enemies will be accomplished. God’s purposes extend to all his creatures, and will be fulfilled on them all. “There are many devices in a man’s heart; nevertheless, the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand.” His purposes are from everlasting in their formation, and to everlasting in their accomplishment. The formation of his purposes, is an adorable act of wisdom, holi-
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ness, and sovereignty; and the revelation of them to us, is an act of grace. The scripture predictions are a revelation of his purpose to us, and a declaration of his decree. When his predictions are fulfilled, his decree is accomplished, whether it be on a nation or a man only. This vision is a revelation of the Lord’s purposes concerning the great Antichrist and his supporters; and when this part of his work shall be ended, both the purpose and the prediction will be done and finished. Whatever was said concerning Babylon of old, may be applied to Babylon the great; for the former was the type, and the latter the antitype. Of ancient Babylon it is said, “Hear ye the counsel of the Lord that he hath taken against Babylon; and his purpose that he hath purposed against the land of the Chaldeans.” When the seventh vial shall be poured out, all God’s purposes concerning Babylon the great shall be fulfilled, and all his predictions, by which he hath revealed them to us in this book, will be completely realized.
2. At the effusion of the seventh vial, God’s threatenings and judgments will be completely executed on his enemies. The Divine threatenings reveal his destructive judgments on the objects to whom they apply; and the execution of his judgments on them will fulfil his threatenings. Every one of the vials predicts a scene of judgments which have been, and will be, inflicted on the enemies of our Lord and of his Christ. At the pouring out of the seventh vial, this strange work of God will be done; every threatening will then be fulfilled, and every judgment executed on God’s Antichristian foes. The accomplishment of this is compared to the labours of the harvest. The luxuriant growth of all sorts of wickedness on the Roman earth shall be reaped down, by the sharp sickle of Divine judgments. It is also represented by the labours of the vintage. When this vial shall be poured out, the grapes of the antichristian vineyard shall be gathered together, “and cast into the great winepress of the wrath of God; and the wine-press shall be trodden without the city,” Rev. xiv. 14—20. This execution of judgments and accomplishment of threatenings is symbolized by a terrible war, Rev. xix. 17—21. At this time, God’s threatenings and judgments shall be done and finished. The harvest shall be reaped, the vintage shall be gathered, and the great battle shall be won, by Him whose eyes are as a flame of fire, on whose head are many crowns; who is clothed with a vesture dipped in blood, who treadeth the wine-press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God,
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and who hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
3. At the effusion of the seventh vial, the false religion of Antichrist shall be abolished. Before this time the religion of the Arabian imposter will be greatly subverted, Heathenish idolatry will be greatly removed, God’s ancient people will be returning to their temporal and spiritual rest, the kings of the east will be walking in the way prepared for them, and the antichristian kingdom itself will be greatly shaken. But when this vial is poured out into the air, the Popish system of abominations, the offspring of infernal malice, and of worldly wisdom and carnal policy, shall be entirely annihilated. For the idols God will utterly abolish. The Apostle Paul predicted the rise and the ruin of the Popish system, “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. 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,” 2 Thess. ii. 3, 4, 8. When any object is consumed and destroyed, it is finally ended and annihilated for ever. He is the son of perdition, and as his name is, so shall his end be. “The beast that thou sawest was, and is not, and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition; and the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seventh, and goeth into perdition,” Rev. xvii. 8, 11. How solemn is the following proclamation of the angel who came down from heaven: “And the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen.” Another voice from heaven proclaimed, “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 that judgeth her,” Rev. xviii. 2, 8.
4. At the effusion of the seventh vial, secular despotism shall be overthrown. The kings of the earth and their armies are among those enemies of Christ who shall perish in this great conflict. The beast of the sea, as well as the beast of the earth, must go into perdition. Secular tyranny, exercised by the ten horns, is the enemy of God and his Christ, as well as the antichristian beast, and therefore it must be destroyed. They are mentioned in Rev. xvii. 12, 13, 14. In these verses they are described, in their number, they are ten; in their dignity, they are horns of power, ten kings ruling over ten kingdoms; in their non-existence, they had received no kingdom as yet; in their reception of dominion, but receive power
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one hour with the beast; in their harmony, they are of one mind; in the matter about which they are agreed, to give their power and strength to the beast; in their opposition to the church, they make war with the Lamb; in the result of this war, the Lamb shall overcome them; and in the reason of this victory, for he is King of kings and Lord of lords, and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful. These ten horns are the instruments by which the Pope of Rome has led the saints of God into captivity, and therefore they must go into captivity; by whom he has killed the saints with the sword, and therefore they must be killed with the sword; and by whom he hath destroyed the earth, and they themselves also must be destroyed. Every kind of secular oppression shall be banished from the earth. That they have neither been legitimate, nor have reigned by Divine right, shall then be known and read of all men.
5. At the effusion of the seventh vial, God will be glorified. Upon the fall of Babylon the great, the kings of the earth, the merchants of the earth, and the sailors, who trade by the sea, shall say, “Alas, alas! that great city Babylon, that mighty city, for in one hour is thy judgment come.” God will be glorified in such lamentations as these. But his glory will be celebrated chiefly by his church’s songs. At this time the four-and-twenty elders will fall on their faces, “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,” Rev. xi. 17. In the tenth verse of the next chapter, a similar anthem is sung, “And I heard a loud voice, saying in heaven, Now is come salvation and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ; for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, who accused them before our God day and night.” At the beginning of chapter xix. the same song is renewed, and continued to verse ninth. The church at this time shall glorify God for the exercise of his faithfulness, in doing as he hath said. They have waited long and prayed fervently for this glorious work; but then they shall see such a display of Divine veracity, as will convince them that faithfulness is the girdle of his reins. They shall also celebrate the glory of his Almighty power. “And I heard as it were the voice of many waters, and as it were the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia, for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.” They will likewise extol his inflexible justice. “The violence done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon, shall the inhabitants of Sion say; and my blood upon the inhabitants of Chaldea, shall Jerusalem say.” To these holy complaints the righteous Lord replies, “As
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Babylon hath caused the slain of Israel to fall, so at Babylon shall fall the slain of all the earth,” Jer. li. 35, 49. Corresponding to this is the song of the angel of the waters, Rev. xvi. 5, 6, “Thou art righteous, O Lord, who art, and wast, and shalt be, 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.” The destruction of popery and despotism will be a monument to the praise of Divine faithfulness, power, and justice.
6. At the effusion of the seventh vial, the church shall be delivered. When ancient Babylon fell, the captive church was honourably relieved from her bondage, and restored to possess her possessions in the land of promise. When Babylon the Great shall fall, the Christian church shall be greatly exalted. While Antichrist reigned she was like two witnesses prophesying, clothed in sackcloth; when he shall be dethroned, she shall become a great multitude whom no man can number, out of all nations, and kindreds, and tongues, and people. While Antichrist triumphed, she resembled a woman flying for safety into a wilderness, and abiding there; but when his triumph shall cease, she shall recover her glory, being clothed with the sun, having the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. From all the sufferings to which she has been exposed, by the unrighteous administrations of men in civil office, she shall be delivered. From all the dangers and griefs she has endured by false religion, she shall be completely relieved. “In that day thou shalt say, O Lord, I will praise thee, though thou wast angry with me, thine anger is turned away, and thou comfortedst me.”
IV. I now proceed to the last part of this subject; to mention some things that shall be done when the Lord shall make all things new.
1. When the Lord shall make all things new, the church of the 1260 days shall be purified and quickened. Of those blessings she will stand in great need. During the apostacy, and especially since the Protestant reformation, many and grievous corruptions have been introduced into the Christian church. They seem to hold them fast, and refuse to let them go. How many doctrinal errors have been maintained contrary to the truth as it is in Jesus, who is the centre and substance of all Divine truth! Many human inventions have been added to the pure system of Gospel worship. Much Antichristian disorder has been introduced into her government, respect-
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ing both the constitution of her governors and the rules of their administrations. And how distressing is it to see the unfaithfulness and partiality manifested in executing the censures of God’s house! But at this blessed era, the Lord Jesus will be like a refiner’s fire, and like fuller’s soap; purifying the sons of Levi, that they may offer to the Lord an offering in righteousness. Then every Antichristian corruption shall be removed, and every thing in the house of God shall correspond to his law. On account of these defilements of God’s sanctuary, a mournful degree of spiritual deadness has seized the Church of Christ. But at this period she shall be revived. Operations shall then be performed which, by the Divine blessing, will be to her like life from the dead. A resurrection is promised, and it will be fulfilled in its season. Those dry bones shall live and stand on their feet as an exceeding great army. Such a change will be effected, as will enable the Church to arise and shine, for her light is come, and the glory of the Lord hath arisen on her.
2. When the Lord shall make all things new, the Jews shall be converted to Christianity, and restored to their father’s inheritance. For their unparalleled sins of rejecting the Messiah, crucifying the Lord of glory, opposing his Gospel, persecuting those who preached and professed it, and cleaving to the ceremonial system after it was abolished, they have been deprived of their high privileges, cast away, and scattered among the nations. But has God cast them off for ever? No, indeed. The time is at hand, when they shall be received again, and graffed into their own olive-tree. “And so all Israel shall be saved; as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob. For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.” As those verses assure us of Israel’s conversion, they also display the glory of Israel’s God when he shall again betroth them to himself for ever. They also shall return to their own land. Among the many Scriptures which ratify this truth, two only shall be selected. The first is recorded in Isaiah xi. chapter. The 10th verse proves that the events predicted in the following verses must be accomplished in the days of the Gospel, and the preceding verses show that they will be fulfilled in the millennial period of the Church. The gathering of Israel from their dispersion is foretold in verses 11, 12. Their cordial brotherly affection, and the extent of their possessions are predicted, ver. 13, 14, 15. The other portion of Scripture is found, Ezek. xxxvii. 15th verse, to the end of
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the chapter. The first part of this prediction relates to the union of the two kingdoms of Judah and Israel, which fixes the realization of the other parts of the prophecy for a future period. In verses 21, 25, their return to their own land, their perpetual possession of it, and our New Testament David’s government of them, are plainly foretold. Their temporal prosperity, and their spiritual blessedness, are described in the other verses.
3. When the Lord shall make all things new, the darkened nations shall be enlightened in the knowledge of the Gospel of Christ, and his Church shall be established in all parts of the earth. Their universal illumination is clearly stated, Isa. ii. 2, 3. “And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it,” &c. The same things are mentioned, Hos. iv. 1, 2. Respecting the same era, the Prophets Isaiah and Habakkuk assure us, that the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, and filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. In giving us an account of his vision of the Church of the thousand years, John says, “And 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 who sitteth upon the throne, and to the Lamb,” Rev. vii. 9, 10. All these glorious predictions, to which many might be added, assure us that a season is drawing near, when all nations shall obtain the light of the glorious Gospel, and shall be directed by that light to the knowledge, the service, and the enjoyment of the only true God, and of Jesus Christ whom he hath sent, that they may have eternal life.—Christ’s kingdom shall also be established among them. Having been enlightened in the knowledge of Christ and his salvation, and many having believed in him to the saving of their souls, they shall set up and maintain Christ’s kingdom in the land where they dwell. In order to this, they will renounce and abolish the systems of error, idolatry, and wickedness, under which they formerly lived. This is the work of God. “And the idols he shall utterly abolish.” In consequence of this Divine work on them, they shall be active. “In that day, a man shall cast his idols of silver, and his idols of gold which they made, each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats.” They shall take on themselves the public
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profession of the Christian religion, submit to the ordinances of Divine grace, observe all Gospel institutions, set up the office-bearers in the house of God, devote themselves to the Lord, and endeavour, as those who are washed, sanctified, and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God, to walk in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. The extraordinary operations which have been carried on, and still making progress, both for enlightening the darkened nations, and for converting the Jews, are the beginning of that Divine work, by which God will give his Son the heathen for his inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for his possession, when all the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before him. While we wonder and praise the Lord for what he hath wrought; let us trust in him for perfecting his work.
4. When the Lord shall make all things new, the religious exercises, and spiritual enjoyments of believers, will be great and abundant. The exercises of their hearts will be elevated in their degree, and enlarged in their number. Their enjoyments from their God, will be high in their measure and kind, and frequently bestowed. Respecting both their exercises and enjoyments, they shall be fat and flourishing. The extraordinary things that they will have seen, the Divine influences that they will have experienced, the happy state into which the Church will then be brought, and the peaceful and prosperous condition of the nations, will constrain them, in a very singular manner, to exercise themselves unto godliness. Their knowledge of Divine things will be extensive, their faith strong, their hope lively, their humility deep, and their zeal warm and affect[ionate]. They will take great pleasure in searching the Scriptures, they will meditate in his law day and night, they will give themselves to prayer; and O how will they abound in praise and thankfulness to the God of their salvation! The public ordinances will be peculiarly beneficial and pleasant to them, causing them to say, “Lord, I have loved the habitation of thy house, and the place where thine honour dwelleth.” In the public prayers and praises of the Church, they will take great delight; in preaching and hearing the Gospel, they will have much pleasure; and with the most enlarged preparation, and in the most religious frame, will they shew the Lord’s death till he come. The private duties of Christian-fellowship will be very precious to them, and will be spiritually performed. To one another, they will say, “Come, and
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hear, all ye that fear God, and I will declare what he hath done for my soul.” While walking thus in the fear of the Lord, they shall enjoy abundantly the comforts of the Holy Ghost. The promises of the Spirit will then be accomplished, and his influences communicated to the saints, in a very superior degree. By these influences accompanying the word and ordinances, the God of all comfort will display his glory to his people’s souls. In the clearest manner, he will shew them the infinitely wise contrivance of the scheme of their redemption, the distinct work of each Divine person in carrying it on, and the harmony and glory of all the Divine perfections in its begun, progressive and final accomplishment. By means of the word and the power of the Spirit, the Lord Jesus will manifest himself to his millennial saints. They shall enjoy such discoveries of the glory of his person, offices, relations, righteousness, and fulness, as will constrain them to say, “We beheld his glory, the glory as of the only-begotten Son of God, full of grace and truth.” In all these exercises and enjoyments, the saints in the Church of the thousand years shall enjoy such communion with the Father in his love, with Christ in his grace, and with the Spirit in his influence, as will fill them with that joy which is unspeakable and full of glory, with that peace which passeth all understanding, and with that holiness without which no man shall see the Lord. While we are favoured with the same word and ordinances, by which these exercises and enjoyments of the saints of that age will be obtained; let us improve them most earnestly, that our exercises and enjoyments may resemble, as nearly as possible, those of the millennial believers.
5. When the Lord shall make all things new, he will cause all dominions to serve and obey our glorious Redeemer. This truth is confirmed both in the visions of Daniel, and in those of John. The vision that Daniel saw, and which he records in chapter vii, plainly asserts it. The conclusion of his account of it, is in the following words:—“And 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, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.” This is a plain prediction that, after the destruction of the Roman beast, the whole world will become Christian, and all rulers in it, will serve and obey our Lord Jesus Christ. The same revelation was made to the Apostle John. “And the seventh angel sounded, and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of
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this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever.” Since these kingdoms are destined to become the kingdoms of the Lord and his Anointed, it is evident, that at present, they are not such; but that in due time, they shall be brought to recognise God as their only King, Christ as their only Saviour and Lord, and his word as the only rule of all their administrations.
6. When God shall make all things new, all the inhabitants of the earth shall be blessed. In every period of time, God’s creatures have received blessings manifold from his bountiful hand; but at this time, their blessedness shall be greatly enlarged. From many of those things which occasion both inward grief and outward trouble they shall be delivered. From famine and pestilence, scarcity and want of things needful for the body, and from epidemical diseases they shall be set free. Are Christians often grieved on account of the low condition of the Church, and the miserable state of Israel? This shall be at an end; for the Church will be purified, and all Israel shall be saved. Are they afflicted because of the dismal situation of Heathen, Mahometan, and Popish nations? This cause of sorrow will then vanish; for all nations shall then come to the Gospel light, and the brightness of their Redeemer’s rising. Are they distressed with the oppression of civil and ecclesiastical rulers? At that day, violence shall no more be heard in the land. Are they perplexed by hearing of wars and rumours of wars? This also shall pass away; for then “men shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruninghooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” In seeing and hearing, do they often vex their souls, for the unlawful actions of men? This also shall cease; for the people shall be all righteous. Besides the removal of causes of grief, what pleasure and joy must it impart to their hearts, when they shall see all these glorious things accomplished. The Prophet’s words will then be fully realized; “Blessed is he that waiteth and cometh to the thousand, and three hundred and five and thirty days,” Dan. xii. 12. And then the Lord’s oath shall be most completely verified, “But as truly as I live, the whole earth shall be filled with the glory of the Lord,” Num. xiv. 21.
This Discourse must now be concluded with a few inferences.
1. False religion is hateful in the sight of God. When he speaks to his Church, by the Prophet Jeremiah, concerning their idolatry
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and other corruptions of his worship, he said, “Oh, do not this abominable thing that I hate.” The words are few, the address is earnest and affectionate, and shews how their conduct grieved and offended their God. That false religion, and idolatry, is equally hateful to God in the days of the Gospel, is evident from the following words of three of the Apostles. “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, flee from idolatry,” 1 Cor. x. 14. “For the time past of our life may suffice us to have wrought the will of the Gentiles, when we walked in—abominable idolatries,” 1 Pet. iv. 3. “Little children, keep yourselves from idols,” 1 John v. 21. God is the alone author and object of all religious adoration. To him it belongs both to require, and to prescribe the form and manner of his worship. This he has done in his holy word, from which, in this solemn work, we should take all our instructions. When the doctrine, the worship, and administrations of the Church, are totally corrupted, as they are in the Church of Rome, instead of being the Lord’s sanctuary, it becomes a synagogue of Satan. This is the object of the Lord’s hatred, and this he will destroy. To testify his abhorrence of it, he will pour upon the supporters of that system the vials of his wrath, till it is completely removed from the earth.
2. Secular despotism is an abomination before God. The true character of the despot is described in Daniel’s words. “Whom he would he slew, and whom he would he kept alive; and whom he would he set up, and whom he would he put down.” This is said of the first beast, but it is applicable to the other three, especially the last. The seven-headed and ten-horned and crowned beast which rose out of the sea, and the beast with two horns like a lamb, but spake as a dragon, which rose out of the earth, have for many ages ruled the Roman world. They have supported one another, they have reigned together, and they shall perish in company, Rev. xix. 20. By the harvest, the vintage, and the war, false religion and tyranny shall be overthrown. The vials of wrath, which shall abolish popery, shall annihilate despotism. The great city shall be divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations shall fall, when great Babylon shall come up in remembrance before God, to give her the cup of wrath to drink. “It is not of the Lord of hosts, that the people shall labour in the very fire, and the people shall weary themselves with very vanity. For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea,” Hab. ii. 13, 14. At the universal diffusion of Gospel light, despotism shall be destroyed, and the people shall,
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not labour in the very fire; and then false religion shall be abolished, and the people shall not weary themselves with very vanity.
3. The Gospel of Divine grace, and the people who believe and profess it, are the objects of God’s love and care. While popery and despotism shall perish, Christ’s Gospel and kingdom shall continue to the end. The Gospel is the glorious Gospel of the blessed God. By it he discloses to us the infinite stores of his mercy and grace, that we may believe and be saved. It is a revelation and offer of Christ to us, that we may receive and employ him as our Mediator and Saviour. This is his delight, the chief of his ways, and the object of his infinite complacency. The people who embrace the Redeemer, and obey his law, are also the objects of his delight and care. “For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour; I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee,” Isa. xliii. 3. He exercises the same love and care to his people, in the days of Babylon the great. “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.” As the vials are poured out, that the enemy may be destroyed, so their effusion will pave the way for the Church’s felicity. When the voice, “It is done,” comes out of the temple in heaven, every thing that tends to hurt or destroy shall be removed; and when it shall come from the throne the second time, all flesh shall see the salvation and the glory of our God.
4. The solemn and majestic manner in which these important revelations are made known to us, is worthy of our most serious consideration. Let any intelligent person carefully read the vii. chapter of Daniel, and the xv. and xvi. chapters of the Revelation, and let him say, if there is not an extraordinary grandeur in the symbols, a singular majesty in the transactions, and an inconceivable importance in the results. The fitness of the symbols to represent the things they exhibit, the beautiful order in which the operations are arranged, and the minute accomplishment of many things contained in the visions, clearly demonstrate, that both the revelation and fulfilment of the predictions, are the work of the Omniscient and Almighty God. Contemplating these things, it will be better for us to be still, and wonder and believe, than to make an attempt at description. By the former, we will profit; but in the latter, we must fail.
5. The accomplishment of the events which are yet to be fulfilled at the appointed time, is absolutely certain. As a fulfilment of this
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vision, many important events have been already realized, events which have been most dishonouring to God, and distressing to his church; and shall not the other predicted events be realized, especially as they are events which will most promote the Divine glory and the church’s felicity? Respecting the period of this vision, I shall only say a few words. In calculating Daniel’s number of 2300 days, and John’s number of an hour, a day, a month, and a year, we were brought to the year 1843. In calculating Daniel’s number of 1290 days, and John’s number of 1260 days, we were led to the year 1866. Perhaps it may happen, that the effusion of the sixth vial, symbolizing the fall of the Turkish empire and the Mahometan religion, may be accomplished at or near 1843. That the effusion of the seventh vial, symbolizing the fall of popery and despotism, may take place at or near 1866; and that the millennium may commence at or near 1867, as the last year of Daniel’s 1290 years, and the first year of John’s 1000 years. The two first of these numbers refer to the dynasty and religion of Turkey, and they end in the year 1843. The complete effusion of the sixth vial, drying up the water of the great river Euphrates, signifying the total subversion of the Mahometan empire and religion, may be fulfilled at that era. The last two of these numbers which end in 1866, relate to popery and despotism: it is therefore reasonable to hope, that the seventh vial may be finished at that period, in the final destruction of the Antichristian religion and secular tyranny.—I am far from maintaining these things positively; but from the calculation of the numbers, and many operations in Divine Providence, there is strong encouragement to hope that the time is drawing near.
6. This subject exhibits the closing scene of popery and despotism. When the words of our text, It is done, are pronounced, Babylon the great shall be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all. The harvest shall be reaped, the vintage shall be gathered, and the victory shall be gained by the captain of the Lord’s host. This scene will close in the destruction and torment of the beast and the false prophet, Rev. xix. 20. It will close in the bitter lamentations of their friends, who will cry, “alas, alas.” It will close in the triumphant songs of God’s redeemed church. To that call they will yield the most cheerful obedience, “Rejoice over her thou heavens.” It will close in the destruction of the kings of the earth and their armies. “And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat on the horse, which sword proceedeth out of his mouth; and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.” This
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scene will also close in the destruction of things. The blasphemous pretensions of the man of sin shall cease. The working of satan, with all power, and signs, and with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish, shall come to an end. All popish errors, idolatries, persecutions, cruelties, and immoralities shall be driven from the earth. All profane encroachments on the church, national wickedness, injustice, wars, and even Divine judgments shall pass away. When all these things shall be destroyed, with the utmost propriety may He who sits on the throne proclaim, “Behold, I make all things new.”
7. This subject exhibits also the opening scene of the blessed millennium. When these words, “It is done,” shall be spoken from the throne the second time, this delightful scene shall be opened. All things shall then be made new. A new heaven and a new earth shall appear, when religious and civil society will be formed according to the word of God. The spiritual sanctuary shall be built and established according to the scripture pattern, and civil rule will be erected and maintained according to the Divine law. All ecclesiastical administrations will be conducted for the glory of the church’s God, the honour of the church’s King, and the happiness of the church’s members. The Spirit will then be poured out on all flesh, and saints will increase in number and in holiness, till the whole earth shall see the salvation of our God. Civil authority will then be a real blessing to the nations. Having scriptural constitutions, and studying righteous administrations, “violence will no more be heard in their land, wasting nor destruction within their borders.” When this scene shall open, how rapidly shall every kind of useful knowledge increase in the earth; and how powerfully shall their knowledge direct their conduct! Religion and righteousness shall prevail on the earth, from the rising to the setting sun, Mal. x. 11. All this shall be continued a thousand years. “Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection, on them the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.”
8. By this subject we should be directed to those religious duties which it suggests to us. We should consider the infinite wisdom and sovereignty of God, in appointing the periods of the world and the times of the church, which have succeeded one another from the beginning, and will continue to the end. The circumstances of the church and her members have altered greatly from one season to another. Concerning these we should say, with humble submission,
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“Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in thy sight.”—We should be concerned to know the period of the church in which our lot is fallen, and the peculiar duties that are incumbent on us in that season. We live in times when strenuous exertions are made for sending Gospel light through the world. By ardent prayers for the Spirit to render them effectual, by liberal contributions for their support, and by a holy conversation evidencing our sincerity, let us labour for the prosperity of Christ’s kingdom. “Blessed is that servant whom his Lord, when he cometh, shall find so doing.”—We must also exercise an earnest concern for the preservation and comfort of God’s saints, who shall exist in the church at the last and most terrible conflict. Let us cry at the throne of grace, that, for their support, “There may be upon every high mountain, and upon every high hill, rivers and streams of water, in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall. Moreover, the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days.”—We must also, in our belief, profession, and practice, cleave to every thing that will stand the test of God’s word, and will be carried forward into the millennial church. These are the things which we should profess, to which we should adhere, and for which we should earnestly contend. “Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.”—We should likewise reject and avoid every thing that is contrary to God’s word, that shall perish in the wreck of popery and despotism, and shall not be found in the millennial age. Those whose faith, and worship, and practice, are most agreeable to the oracles of God, will be best prepared for entering into the millennial rest. “If any man’s work shall be burnt, he shall suffer loss, but he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire.”—It is also our indispensable duty to live a life of faith on the Son of God, and of holy obedience to our Redeemer’s law; daily receiving grace out of his fulness, and constantly fulfilling our vows to him; improving his covenant and promises, his obedience and atonement; setting our hearts on the things that are above, and preparing for death and immortality; and waiting, and watching, and praying for the time when the seventh angel will pour out his vial into the air, and there shall come a great voice out of the temple in heaven from the throne, saying, It is done; and when he that sat on the throne shall make all things new, and shall say again, “It is done.”
ANDREW YOUNG, PRINTER,
96, Trongate, Glasgow.