direct him? Surely not. The language of this text must be the language of prayer; showing that Christ accomplishes this work of judgment in answer to prayer. But whose prayer?-that of angels, or of saints on earth? Surely the latter, as may be shown. This angel then, who calls on Christ to thrust in his sword, and reap, must be a representation of Zion, imploring by her gospel ministry and members. The seven epistles to the seven churches are addressed to the angel (the ministry) of each church. And the angel whom John was about mistakingly to worship, speaks of himself as one of his fellow-servants the prophets. In Rev. xv. 7, one of the symbols of the gospel ministry is presented as giving into the hands of the seven angels their seven vials of wrath; of which the judgment in our text is one, and the last. That fact gives a clew to the business of the angel in this text. The plain sense no doubt is this (which fully accords with the whole Bible); that at the awful crisis under consideration, Zion led by her gospel ministry, will pour her addresses into the ear of the same Saviour, presented on the white cloud;- -even as Moses, at the Red sea, in the height of that distress (which was a type of the very scene of distress in our text), "cried unto the Lord" for help. Jesus Christ now dashes the powers of Antichrist as with his rod of iron, in answer to the prayers of the saints. He does accordingly, in this very book represent the saints as doing this very work of judgment. Rev. ii. 26, 27; "He that overcometh, to him will I give power over the nations: And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken in shivers; even as I received of my Father." Here is the very event in our text; and it is noted as being done by saints. It is done by Christ, at the prayers of the saints. This, therefore, explains the figure of a messenger from the temple, saying to Christ, "Thrust in thy sickle." The dangers of the times will then urge the ministers and people of God to most importunate prayers; such as the following:-"Is it not time, Lord, for thee to work, for men have made void thy law?" "Let God arise; let his enemies be scattered; let them that hate him flee before him! As smoke is driven away; so drive them away. As wax melteth before the fire; so let the wicked perish at the presence of the Lord." These, and similar prayers, Inspiration puts into the mouth of the saints at just such a time and occasion as in the text. And they perfectly accord with the prayer of the symbolic messenger in our text;

"Thrust in thy sickle, and reap; for the time is come for thee to reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe." Zion will then urgently cry for deliverance, which Christ will give in the battle of that great day of God, in our text. This explanation of the request of the symbolic angel under consideration, receives further confirmation from the fact, that this, and other works of judgment upon the enemies of Zion, are repeatedly ascribed to the people of God. Thus the two witnesses have power to shut heaven "that it rain not in the days of their prophecies; and to smite the earth with all plagues, as oft as they will." The psalmist says of the saints, "Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand, to execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people: to bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron; to execute upon them the judgment written: this honor have all the saints." Certainly then, in so great an extremity as the church will then be, we might expect some special notice would be given of this her power with God against her enemies; alluding to the power of her prayers when in the depth of affliction from the rage of Antichrist,-beseeching Christ to fulfil his word, in pleading his own cause. "Shall not

God avenge his own elect, who cry unto him day and night, though he bear long with them? I tell you (says our Saviour) he will avenge them speedily." This language, as explanatory of our text, is abundant in the word of God. "When the Lord shall build up Zion, he will appear in his glory: he will regard the prayer of the destitute, and not despise their prayer." In answer to this request Christ thrusts in his sickle, and the earth is reaped. Another angel is then presented with a sharp sickle, who is probably an instrument of judgment. God performs his works of judgment by the ministry of angels. He did thus of old; and probably will do it in the battle of that great day. In the cups of wrath, the seventh angel pours out his vial, to produce the very scene under consideration. The hosts of angels are in other prophetic descriptions of this very scene, represented as being present; "And all the armies of heaven followed him (Christ) upon white horses." Of the same it is again said, "Thousand thousands ministered unto him; and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.” "Thither cause

thy mighty ones to come down, O Lord."

Another angel comes from the altar having power over

fire, and directs his angelic associate to thrust in his sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, with her grapes fully ripe. The deed is done. How far the element of literal fire may be made to have a terrible agency in the events of that day, when the cities of the nations shall fall; time alone will decide. That one of the angelic instruments of the terrors of that day should be said to appear, "having power over fire," may indicate fatal conflagrations in antichristian cities. Whether this will be the case, or not, Inspiration says of the rage of that day, "The fire of thine enemies shall devour them." The wine-press is now trodden; and behold the extensive effect. Blood flows forth as high as the horses' bridles, for the space of two hundred miles. This is a figure; but one of amazing import. See blood flowing from a centre of destruction, and filling a region of two hundred miles; and as high as horses usually carry their heads. This would be a sea of blood indeed.

All that belong All that partake But the tremenSome motive

This treading of the wine-press is "without the city." Or the commencement of the battle of that great day of God, is somewhere out of the bounds of the old Roman earth. It is not to be finished there. The infinite terror will roll through every antichristian land. to the beast, or have his mark, shall sink. of his sins, shall receive of his plagues. dous scene commences "without the city." will lead the hostile powers of the day to concentrate their forces in some region "without the city" of the old Roman world, or papal territories. And to this the prophecies do expressly agree. Various of them present Palestine as the seat of this event in its first opening. In Joel iii. 1, 2, 12 (which is the parent text of the harvest and the vintage explained) the scene is a gathering of all nations to the valley of Jehoshaphat, when God shall bring again the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem. The same is expressly decided in the 38th and 39th chapters of Ezekiel. There Gog and his bands perish in an expedition against God's ancient people, restored from all nations to the land of their fathers. In Zech. xii. 2, 3, and xiv. 1-3, we have the same. The gathering of all nations is at Jerusalem. In Rev. xvi. 16 is the same: they are gathered to Armageddon. These passages may have also a mystical import. But we have no right to exclude from them all (if from any) a literal import. The two hundred miles' length of the sea of blood to be shed, may be designed to be bounded

by the length of the Holy Land. And the figure seems well to accord with the description in Ezek. xxxviii. and xxxix, of the slaughter of Gog and his bands upon the mountains of Israel. But wherever the battle (the harvest, the vintage) commences; it will not fail to sweep over the antichristian world. Jeremiah assures us, "The slain of the Lord shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth." In Zeph. God says, "I will gather the nations, and assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger; for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy." In Isaiah the scene is abundantly given, as having a general and most fatal extent. "The destruction of the transgressors and of the sinners shall be together." "He shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth; and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked." "I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease. "The nations shall rush like the rushing of mighty waters: but God shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off,-and shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains." Behold, the Lord maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down." "The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof." "Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth; and they that dwell therein are desolate; the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left." "For behold, the Lord cometh forth out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the world for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain." "Now therefore be ye not mockers, lest your bands be made strong; for I have heard from the Lord of hosts a consumption determined upon the whole earth." "Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the earth desolate, and to destroy the sinners thereof out of it." These are a few of the many denunciations in this sublime prophecy which all relate to the same period and event; and which give it a most general and decisive effect. The shorter prophets abound with the same event, and give it as no less general and fatal to all the hostile enemies of God. One passage more from the Old Testament shall be given as a specimen for

many. The last chapter of it commences thus: "For behold the day cometh that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be as stubble;

and that day that cometh shall burn them up saith the Lord, and shall leave them neither root nor branch. But unto you that fear my name, shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth and grow up as calves of the stall. And ye shall tread down the wicked, and they shall be as ashes under the soles of your feet, in the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of hosts. The event in our text is the same with that under the seventh trumpet; with that under the seventh vial; with the going into perdition of the beast from the bottomless pit; with the sinking of mystical Babylon like a millstone into the depth of the sea, never to rise; and the destruction of the beast, and false prophet, with the kings of the earth,—being cast into the lake of fire; Rev. xix. 20. Thus we have the scene of the Son of man upon the white cloud; the harvest and vintage; the battle of that great day of God, towards which the world is tending, and into which the affairs of the nations are now fast ripening.

May the people of God be prepared for whatever shall occur to try their faith and patience. These graces have fiery trials yet to pass, before the millennial sun will smile upon the earth. The people of God who may then live, will have a signal opportunity to glorify our Lord Jesus Christ, and to brighten their eternal crown. May all professed followers of the Lamb, when those days shall be found approaching, watch; stand fast in the faith; quit themselves like men; and be strong. Let them take to themselves the whole armor of God, that they may be able to stand in the evil day.

And let those who, when the days of trial shall be found rolling on, and coming near, shall find themselves arrested by some fatal harbinger of mortality, and about to die, after a life of faith;-joyfully recollect the testimony borne by the great voice from heaven, relative to that day, that "blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth;" or when that period commences. "Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them."

21*