THE SAINTSRAPTURE
TO THE
PRESENCE OF THE LORD JESUS
BY ROBERT GOVETT
Two women
shall be grinding at the mill. - Matthew 24:
41.
PUBLISHERS COMMENTS
[Page ii]
As Christians look toward the return of Jesus Christ, and know
that The Saints
Rapture is imminent,
they are challenged and encouraged to ready themselves and be found
well-pleasing in all good works. To this end, it is both our privilege and
responsibility to return this valuable work to the Christian that wished a full reward and an abundant entrance
into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
CONLEY & SCHOETTLE
[Page iii]
PREFACE
THE work
now before the reader, does not profess to be elementary. It is written with the
desire to bring before those students of prophecy, who are already agreed with
the writer on first points, some further views of the prophetic word.
Hence many points are previously assumed as supposed to be already
admitted by the reader. A brief sketch of these is subjoined. It is taken for
granted, that the Roman destruction of Jerusalem under Titus, did not fulfil
the Saviours prophecy on Olivet; that the Jews will shortly return to their
own land in unbelief; that they will rebuild the temple and offer sacrifices,
fulfilling amidst their outward obedience to Moses, those dark pictures of
avarice, unbelief, hypocrisy and bloodshed with which the prophets teem. It is
supposed, that out of this restoration of the temple rites, Jewish blasphemy
will burst forth against Jesus, and that European infidelity will second their
words. About that time will come the falling away from the Christian faith. But
a new witness for God and Christ will be raised up among the Jews in their own
land, in persons professing Judaism, but looking for the Messiah; instructed in
their own scriptures, and having [Page iv] more or less faith that Jesus is the Messiah. I
suppose them not to stand in the full faith of the
A friend who looked over the sheets as they came from the
press, observed to me - Your doctrine on the main
subject of the book, appears to rest on your change of the word coming for presence. This remark is quite correct. So greatly
are our ideas governed by our words, that I did not perceive the true Scripture
doctrine of the return of the Lord Jesus till the real rendering was
substituted for the ordinary; it appears necessary. therefore,
somewhat more fully to justify the rendering.
That the Greek word used means presence; every Greek scholar will at once
admit. It means the opposite of absence; the being alongside of certain other
things supposed in the circumstances. This is evident from the apostles words,
Wherefore
my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence:
Phil. 2: 12. For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit,
have judged already: 1
Cor. 5: 3. I who in person,
am base among you, but
being absent am bold toward you;
but I beseech you that I may not be bold when I am present, with that
confidence wherewith I think to be bold. For
his letters, say they, are weighty and powerful, but
his bodily presence is weak: 2 Cor. 1: 10.
This sense will translate it everywhere. I add therefore, that
the word ([
see Gk.]) never signifies motion, though motion is frequently implied in the
circumstances.
I was glad of the coming of
Stephanas: 1 Cor.
16: 17. Nevertheless God that comforteth those that are cast down,
comforted us by the coming of
Titus; and not by his coming only, but
both the consolation wherewith he was comforted in you: 2 Cor. 7: 6. Paul was comforted by the presence or
company of Titus. It is
seen from the circumstances indeed, that, that company could not be obtained by
Paul without motion on the part of Titus. But motion is not expressed in the word. The
first verse would have remained the same, though Paul and he had never parted
company from the first of his apostolic journeys to the last. And so with other
instances, on which it is needless to insist.
The reason why our translators have preferred the [Page
vi] rendering coming, may be traced to their great
deference to the Vulgate. That version translates the Greek by coming in all but four places. 1
1 1 Cor. 16:
17; 2 Cor. 10: 20; Phil. 2: 12; 2 Peter, 1: 16; Adventus is their word. Only in one place
does the English version differ: 1 Cor. 16: 17: where the word is praesentia,
Dependence on the Vulgate accounts for the many mistakes in regard to the
article in our English Version.
The present work originated in a
re-consideration of the Saviours last prophecy. Finding that many deep
students of the word of God refused to admit that the taking and leaving, of
the two in the field refers to the rapture, the author determined candidly to
weigh the evidence afresh; and now presents it as a settled truth in his own
mind, established by new arguments.
But while satisfied of this main truth, the writer would also
admit that he was in error in supposing The Fig Tree,
and The Days of Noah, to be signs to the
church. They are indeed transitional, as was formerly observed; but they are
signs to the Jewish disciple. 2
2 The saints
of 1 Thess. 3: 13, he now holds to be taken in the Old Testament
sense, of angels; not as relating to the
ransomed of the Church.
Hence, should any wish to give the fairest consideration to
this view, they would find that the Prophecy on
Olivet would be the
best preparation for reading this work. It would probably clear up any thing, which,
unperceived by the writer himself, is not sufficiently clearly stated in this.
-------
[Page vii]
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1
Nature of the Lords Presence -Tabular View of Matt. 24. -
Presence of the False Christ. - Signs and Types of the Presence. - Presence of
the Son of
CHAPTER 2
Difference of the Questions the basis of the difference of
Prophecy on Olivet as given by the three first Evangelists. - Review of the
first half of the Prophecy - The sign of the Son of
Man in Heaven, What? - Twofoldness of aspect in the two parts of the
Prophecy. [Page 22]
CHAPTER 3
The Figtree. - Sin of the End of the
Age - The Evil Generation, What? - The world not Converted before the Coming of
Christ. [Page 38]
CHAPTER 4
The Days of Noah. - Resemblances. - The taking. - Mysterious
disappearance. - Its nature and application. - Types of it in the Old Testament
and in the New. - The sign of the Presence. - Comparison with the former sign.
- Preparation for the next Parables. - Both the taken and the left Believers. [Page 51]
[Page viii]
CHAPTER 5
The Three Companionships. - 1. Raising of the Daughter of Jairus. - 2. The Transfiguration. - 3.
The Agony in the Garden. - Connecting truths. - The Day of Temptation. - The Resurrection
Presence. [Page 90]
CRAPTER 6
The Householder and Thief. - Connexion with the foregoing
Parable. - What the House, the Householder, the Thief, the Theft? - The Rapture
as the act of the Heavenly Thief. - Application of the Parable. [Page 107]
CHAPTER 7
The Steward. - Two aspects of his
case. [Page 119]
CHAPTER 8
The Ten Virgins. - Are the five foolish hypocrites? - Proofs
against the idea. - Why ten in number? - The first and second oil. - The Sleep,
what? - The Procession, what? - The Reply of the Bridegroom to the Foolish. -
Illustrations. - Sympathy of the external and internal. - Possible suppositions
in interpretation of the Parable. [Page 124]
CHAPTER 9
The Talents. - Compared with the Pounds. - Its Analysis. -
Connexion of the Presence-parables with each other and with the days of Noah. -
The four treat of Believers only. - General principles supposed in the four. -
Reward according to works. [Page 156]
CHAPTER 10
Luke 17: 20. - Its seven divisions. - The Kingdom
within. - The Kingdom without. - Its relation to Matt.
24. - The Jewish escape. - The Rapture of the Church. - The Unjust Judge. [Page 180]
[Page ix]
CHAPTER 11
THE EPISTLES TO THE
THESSALONIANS
SECTION I - Part of Chapters 4 and 5. - Case of the dead saints. [Page 206]
SECTION II - 2 Thess. 1. - Recompense to the Godly and
Ungodly at Jesus return.
SECTION
III - 2 Thess. 2. - The Man of Sin. - The Presence and
the Day of the Lord discriminated. - Names of the Great Deceiver. - An
individual. - Not the Popes. - The Popes acknowledge the true God. - The temple
in which he sits the rebuilt
CHAPTER 12
Comparison of Thessalonians with Matt. 25. - Resemblances and differences. -
Jewish escape omitted by Paul, and the discrimination of the rapture. - 2 Thess. 2. - Dispensational differences. - Two
classes of the elect. - History of the
CHAPTER 13
Hebrews. - The first seven worthies typical. - Passive and active
Faith. - Two heritages and two-fold seed of Abraham. [Page 280]
CHAPTER 14
2 Peter. - The abundant entrance. - The Abel and Enoch classes. - Two
objections met. - Abiding force of Gods word - Noah and
[Page x]
CHAPTER 15
Must
any events precede the rapture? - Evidence pro. and con. - More than one
rapture. - Principle of reconciliation. - Difference of change and rapture. [Page 290]
CHAPTER 16
SECTION I - Presence in Revelation. - Epistle
to
SECTION II - Rev. 10 and
11. [Page 313]
SECTION III - Rev. 12-14. - The
wonder in heaven. - More than one rapture.
[Page 314]
APPENDIX
Four points considered in Refutation of Dr. Cumming. - 1. The Mystery of Iniquity
(lawlessness) and the Apostacy. - 2.
Is the Man of Sin one person or many? - 3.
His self-exaltation above every god. - 4.
His sitting in the
* *
*
[Page 1]
CHAPTER 1
THE NATURE OF THE LORDS PRESENCE
IN order
rightly to understand the doctrine of the saints rapture, it will be necessary
first to propound the character of that Presence to which he is rapt.
I. It appears, from the Saviours own
testimony in the Book of Revelation, that he
is now seated on the Fathers throne. That seat he is to maintain till his
enemies become his footstool. Then he leaves his position on the throne,
descends from heaven into the air, and thither his saints ascend to meet him.
The time of his tarrying in air, during which he is hidden from the world, and
holding his court of inquiry into the deeds of his saints, is the time of his Presence.
1 For it is both a time and a locality: a place to which, by supernatural agency, his saints are caught
up; a time during which the
arrangement of his saints positions in the kingdom is effected.
1 It is for this reason necessary to
translate
Presence, for by coming, we understand motion, but the Presence
properly begins when the motion from heaven has ceased.
At that time certain great events, most deeply concerning the
1. The Presence is the time beyond
which the trial of the church will not last. Be patient, therefore, brethren, unto the Presence of the Lord: James 5:
7.
[Page 2]
2. For then will come the resurrection
of the dead saints and the rapture of them and of the living ones. In Christ shall all be made alive; but every man in his own order: Christ the first-fruits, afterwards
they that are Christs at his Presence: 1 Cor. 15: 23. We that are alive and
remain unto the Presence of the Lord, shall not prevent them that are asleep.
We who are alive and remain shall be caught up
together with them (the dead saints) in clouds
to meet the Lord in the air: 1 Thess. 4: 15, 17.
3. It is the centre of the saints
assembling. We
beseech you, brethren, by the
Presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, and our gathering together unto him, that ye be not
soon shaken in mind: 2 Thess. 2: 1. The Presence cannot take place
without our assembling to it, nor our assembly without the Presence. Now we are
gathered unto Jesus name, and there is his Presence, (in a certain
sense,) with us even now. Where two or three are gathered together unto
my
name, there am I in the midst of them: Matt. 18: 20 [see Greek]. The spirit is redeemed already, and Jesus in spirit meets his saints. But
then the body too shall be redeemed, and the gathering will be to the Person of Jesus.
4. It is the time when the ministers of
the gospel will present the souls whom they have turned from the error of their
way. For what is our hope, or joy,
or crown of rejoicing? Are
not even ye before the Lord Jesus Christ at his Presence? 1 Thess. 2: 19.
5. Then will the award of the saints
take place, whether for praise or dishonour. I pray God your whole spirit,
and soul, and body be
preserved blameless at the Presence of
our Lord Jesus Christ: 1 Thess. 5: 23; 3: 13. [Page 3] Abide in him that when he
shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be put to shame by him at his Presence.
1 John 2: 28.
(1) The Presence means the Lord Jesus exhibited bodily to the eyes
of his people who are risen from the
dead. Now if the Presence which precedes the [millennial] kingdom be personal, then much more
is the [coming messianic] kingdom a personal reign! The reality of the Saviours bodily Presence is
the basis of the phrase which he uses instead of the Presence, when discoursing of the signs of the
kingdom before the Pharisees. He spoke then of the days of the Son of Man,
meaning thereby days wherein he would be returned from heaven, and present in
body.
(2) The apostle Peter declares that what he and his privileged
fellow-apostles saw on the Mount of Transfiguration was a specimen of the
Presence. For
we have not followed cunningly devised fables when we made known unto you the
power and Presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eye-witnesses of his majesty.
And this voice which came from heaven we heard when we were
with him in the holy mount: 2 Pet. 1: 16,
18. The glory then
that beamed from his face and raiment, and was participated by Moses and Elias,
was a ray of the glory which will illumine the Presence-chamber of the sky,
when the saints of Jesus meet him, in the air. Within is all light and glory,
high above a sleeping and an unbelieving world, while clouds and night circle
in the favoured mount. At the foot of the holy mount to which the happy three
have ascended are still apostles, and the possession of evil spirits, and
little faith, and the taunting of adversaries, emboldened by the waning faith
of the disciples. Jesus [Page 4] descends and rebukes in indignation the faithlessness
of the generation and of the troubled father of the demoniac, and casts out the
evil spirit, bidding him no more to return. This is a scene of the [Lords]
kingdoms coming with power.
(3). We attain the same notion of its general character as the
stationary point where Jesus is, and whereto the disciples of the Lord are
gathered, if we consider the words dropped concerning the presence of the false
Christ. The disciples, when they asked Jesus concerning the sign of his Presence,
understood by it Messiahs royal display of his grandeur to a favoured few, ere
the world beheld him. This is the Jewish idea still, and Jesus therefore
proceeds to correct it, as soon as he comes to treat of false Christs and their
signs. Then he assures them that his Presence would not be pointed out by men
on earth to men on earth, but would at once outrun all power of notification,
and by its own irresistible evidence attract every eye. He intimates, too, that
it would not be on earth, but a coming forth from the chambers of the sky. It
would not be favoured earthly disciples led to him, but his coming forth in
wrath and terror against his foes.
The presence of the false Christ is exactly and designedly conformed
to Jewish expectations. They anticipate the presence of a man and a king. They
expect his being shown first to a favoured few in secret. They look for him to
be found in or near the temple. The true Messiah once presented himself in the
temple, and the blind and the lame came to him there, and he healed them: while
the children, as was foretold, gave him praise. But the Jew refused his
Presence there. Such [Page 5] a Messiah was not to his taste, however beneficent the
signs and wonders, and however marvellous the words of wisdom that fell from
his lips. But the worlds false Christ is joyfully accepted as fulfilling all
the Jews treasured thoughts, when, as God sitting in the temple, he exacts the
worship of himself and his statue; and, in proof of his assumed godhead, works
signs and wonders. He comes to reign in lawlessness, and in his own name. By
this moral key he wins
mens hearts, where the true Christ was rejected, because he came in purity and
obedience to the true God.
But the Presence of the true Christ below having been
rejected, it is now transferred to heaven, and thither his favoured ones who
recognize him as risen and ascended, are taken up. The Jews unbelief then
becomes his snare. He looks for Messiah on earth, and refuses as a fable, Messiah on high. Thus he falls into Satans net. For there
will be seen below, and in the temple now deserted by the true God and his
Christ - Satans false Christ, and to him all but the elect will bow down. The
true safeguard then to the Jewish disciple is the Saviours teaching of his Presence on high displayed in a
moment to all the earth. While the true Messiah is present on high and has
gathered to him his followers risen from the dead, the false Christ has
gathered to himself below the mighty multitudes of the lost, who are deluded by
Gods special appointment, because of their resistance to the truth. And when
that scene of horror is come to its height, the Presence of the true Messiah
flashing from on high strikes dumb and powerless his rival, and the
In order clearly to present the whole of the following subject
to the readers mind, I request his particular attention to the following
tabular view of the prophecy on Christ. It is divided into two great parts at ver. 31 of chap. 24. The first half I call A; it consists of
seven parts:
A
Verses 4-6. 1.
Wars, Rumours
Verses 7, 8. 2. War, famine, pestilence.
Veres 9-13. 3.
Persecution, falling away, false prophets.
Verse 4. 4. The Gospel of the Kingdom preached.
Verses 15-22. 5.
Abomination of desolation, flight, great tribulation.
Verses 23-28. 6.
False Christs and prophets.
Verses 29-31. 7. Signs in heaven, mourning, Son
of Man seen.
The second half I call B; it is divided
into seven parables:
B
Verses 32-35. 1.
The Fig tree.
Verses 36-41. 2.
The Days of Noah.
Verses 42-44. 3. The Householder and Thief.
Verses 45-51. 4.
The Stewards.
Verses 1-13. 5.
The Ten Virgins.
Verses 14-30. 6.
The Talents.
Verses 31-46, 7. The Sheep and Goats.
In A, then, (or the first portion of Matt. 24,) the,
Jewish disciples thoughts about the Presence of Messiah - that he will appear at
first (1.) in secret, and (2.) to a few favoured ones - are corrected. These
views are indeed both true; but when combined with the belief that the Presence
will be on earth,
and manifested to the elect of
But in B, Jesus gives the other aspect of the Presence; its
time of secrecy, its character as heavenly, and its true intent as designed to
gather to him the elect of
the church, before he comes
forth from the heaven in glory with them.
It is interesting to observe, that the Presence of the false
Christ is, in its great results, as might be expected, the exact reverse of the
Presence and reign of the true. The city of
The [millennial]
In the time of Antichrist, the NATIONS are full armed and harnessed for war;
while, in the reign of the Christ of God, weapons are changed into the
tools of peace, and war is learned no more. Then sin is come to its highest pitch;
apostacy from the truth, persecution, and blasphemy prevail; while in the reign
of Gods Messiah righteousness covers the earth, and praise resounds from every
land. Then temptation is clothed with its most dread form, and
damnable sin or death are the only alternatives. (Rev. 13.) In the Saviours day, temptation is
at an end, because the Great Tempter and Deceiver is shut up, and his angels
with him. Then the misery of man
reaches its climax, men desire to die and cannot, being tormented like the very
lost; and Gods most dreadful storm of wrath visits in turn whatever is
beautiful to the sight, or necessary to the sustenance of man. That is the
awful period of darkness, ere [i.e., before] the day of mercy and happiness in the
Presence of the Great Redeemer shines on man. It is darkest before the dawn.
II.
I would now notice briefly some other words which designate that most
important period of the Saviours Presence; and will endeavour to limit their
differences of meaning.
1. The Presence is distinguished then from the Coming. The coming is spoken of with
twofold meaning: first as it regards the Church; and then the world. The coming
of Christ to the church means his local motion from heaven into the air:
and is frequently mentioned. This coming, ceases when the Lord takes up his
temporary abode in that Pavilion of clouds and
darkness to which the saints are introduced. In that, his court of iniquity and
recompense, kept secret from the world, is held. When it is finished, he
appears to
2. The Presence then is distinguished from that being present with the Lord, which the [deceased] believer attains - [in Sheol
/ Hades the underworld of disembodied souls (see 1 Sam. 28: 11-19 cf.
Rev 6: 9-11)] - at death. While we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord. We are willing
rather to be absent from the body and present with the Lord 2 Cor. 5: 6, 8.
3. It differs also from the Lords invisible presence with his disciples
met for worship
now: Matt. 18.
[NOTE: There are three
Greek words (in Greek lettering) at the foot of this page which are not shown.
The last word is not used as a substantive, of Christ - R. Govett.]
[Page 10]
4. As two of three words whereby the
New Testament indicates the Lords return are partially adopted in English, I
propose to use them with their Anglican termination. The third I shall call Manifestation. The Greek words are given at the foot
of the page.
(1) The EPIPHANY of the Lord Jesus intends the same thing
as his Presence. It means that period when he who is now concealed from his
saints shall appear to them. This will appear, if we observe, that his Epiphany
no less than his Presence, is made the term up to which the believer is called
on to wait. Keep this commandment without spot,
unrebukable, until the
Epiphany of our Lord Jesus Christ: 1 Tim. 6: 14. The crown of
righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge shall give me at that day, and not to me only, but unto
all those who have loved his Epiphany: 2 Tim.
4: 8. It
is the time of judgment of the living and dead, and precedes the - [God-given promised inheritance
to His friend Abraham in the millennial and messianic (Heb. 9: 27; cf. Gen. 13: 14, 15; Acts 7: 5; Rev. 20: 6, R.V.)] - kingdom. The Lord Jesus Christ, who is
about to judge the living and dead
at his
Epiphany and his
kingdom; 2 Tim. 4: 1. The word Epiphany is applied
to the light of the sun and stars: Acts 27: 20. Hence, while the New Testament speaks
of both the Apocalypse and the Presence of the Man of Sin, it does not name his
Epiphany; for his Presence is not brightness
on high.
(2) The APOCALYPSE of the Lord Jesus appears to signify
the same thing as the Presence - the time when he is disclosed in majesty to his risen and changed - [from mortal to immortal living] - saints. It is the term for which his saints
are waiting and hoping. That the trial of your faith ... might be found unto praise and honour and glory, at the Apocalypse of [Page
11] Jesus Christ:
1 Pet.
1: 7. Hope to the end, for the grace
that is to be brought to you at the Apocalypse of Jesus Christ 13. Waiting for
the Apocalypse of our Lord Jesus Christ: 1 Cor. 1: 7.
(3) A compound expression indicates the display of Christs
hidden glory to the world.
The last of the two foregoing words in its very structure implies it. The apocalypse signifies the taking off a veil, which of course supposes that one
is worn by the Saviour up to that time. We have then the very significant
phrases, the Epiphany of the
glory, which is spoken of as it affects the
friends of Christ, and the Epiphany of his Presence, which
overwhelms the Man of Sin. The former passage has been quoted. The latter is as
follows. Looking for the blessed hope and Epiphany of the glory of our Great God and Savior Jesus Christ: Titus
2: 13. (Greek.) The hope of the [promised millennial] glory is the thing that first stands before the saints eye. That hope is satisfied by his - [select and conditional (see Luke 21: 34-36 cf. Rev. 3: 10)] - rapture to the Presence of the Lord Jesus, and beholding it himself. Then comes a further - [and latter] - stage - the display
of that glory to others.*
[* NOTE: This is when our Lord Jesus returns to earth at the end of
Antichrists persecutions, He will resurrect the holy dead and translate the left
living. See 1 Thess. 4: 14, 15. cf.
1 Cor. 15: 52, R.V.
Therefore, there must be two RAPTURES of living saints; the FIRST
- before the Great Tribulation
commences - which will consist of those accounted
worthy to escape all these things that
shall come to pass (Luke 21: 36, cf. Rev.
3: 10
A.V. & R.V.). This escape will depend upon an undisclosed standard of
the disciples PERSONAL righteousness;
and not upon our LORDS imputed
righteousness, - which all the justified and regenerate
presently possess! (See Matt: 5: 20; 7: 21.).
Whereas, the SECOND and last
rapture, at the END of the Great
Tribulation, will occur when our Lord resurrects the holy dead (Rev. 20: 6, R.V.).
This rapture of living saints is also accompanied by the
first
RESURRECTION (from Sheol / Hades) of
the holy dead: Gen. 37: 35; 1 Sam. 28: 7-20; Psa. 16: 10; Acts 2: 25-27; Heb. 11: 35; Rev. 20: 6. Rev. 6: 9-11. See
also; Matt. 16:
18; Luke 16: 23; John 20: 17, ff.; 2 Tim. 2: 16-19ff. etc,)]
The apocalypse of the glory also is mentioned as a time of joy to the sufferers for Christs sake. But inasmuch as
ye are partakers of Christs sufferings, rejoice,
that in the apocalypse of his glory ye may be also glad with exceeding joy:
1 Pet. 4: 13. The force of the above seems to be, that the martyrs and sufferers
for Christ will reign with Christ a thousand years; but Paul seems
to add here, that even in the very first outburst of his glory on the world
their reward and especial exultation would begin. Another expression is
employed when the manifestation represents the out-flashing of his [Page
12] glory on the
persecutors. To
you who are troubled rest with us at the apocalypse of the Lord Jesus Christ from heaven, with the
angels of his power: 2 Thess. 1: 7. The idea of previous concealment is
kept up in the application of the word to the Antichrist. Then shall
the lawless one be revealed. This comes after the declaration of the mystery of lawlessness
being then already at work, and only kept down for awhile.
(4) The word translated manifest is applied to the Saviours former appearing on earth: 1 Tim. 3: 16; Heb. 9: 26; 1 Peter 1: 20. It appears to be equivalent, in its
general meaning, to those which have preceded. When Christ shall be
manifested, ye also shall be manifested with
him in the glory: Col. 3: 4. When the Chief Shepherd shall be manifested, ye shall
receive the crown of glory which fadeth not away: 1 Peter 5: 4.
III. Having now noticed the words by
which the Presence is described, I would proceed to speak of (1) its PHASES, and (2) its SIGNS. It has first, its phase and period of secrecy, and its
appropriate sign. It has secondly, its moment of manifestation,
and its answerable sign; presented, however, (as it would appear) to
1. The sign of the Secret of the Presence
is the sudden rapture of the watchful
- [and accounted
worthy to escape] - saints of the
[Page 13]
The Presence takes place in secret, before the Great
Tribulation begins, while men are enjoying the pleasures of the world in
unbelief. The rapture then precedes the Great Tribulation. Hence the force of
the apostles consolation: 2 Thess. 2: 1. The day of the Lord in its terror is
not begun, for that will not take place till he has descended into air; and
then, at the same moment, your ascent to him will be effected.
The lightning is not the sign of Christs appearing, but only
a type of its sudden manifestation.
2. But there is a second sign, when the
Presence is just about to be disclosed to
This is the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. It seems doubtful which of the two
following constructions we should prefer. Should we read it as the sign of the Son of Man in heaven;
or should we say that it means, then shall appear in the heaven the sign of the
Son of Man? I do
not feel sure which of the two is correct, but rather suspect that the last is so.
Still the Son of Man is in heaven when that signal is made, and it is the token
of the Presence on high. The Son of Man is in the heaven ere his sign appears
there; and the rapture is his thief-like approach to his church, ere he
discovers himself to the Jew. Joseph has his Asenath (Gen. 41:
50) in his Presence and home, ere he reveals himself to his
brethren. And he reveals himself when all others are bid to depart out of his
presence: Gen. 45:
1.
[Page 14]
There are then two signs of the Presence, one on earth and one
on high - one a sign of its commencement
in secrecy, one of its close in manifestation. To
The rapture is to be exhibited to the Jewish disciple alone;
the cross, to the nation of the Jews. The
first takes place before the Great Tribulation, the other after it: Matt. 24: 29, 30. It seems to be
an answer to the formerly-refused demand of the Jew. More than once they asked
of Jesus a
sign from heaven. The
request was rejected. To the
unbelieving generation no sign but that of Jonah should be given. As then the sign at length is granted, it
is a proof that the evil generation has been cut off in the Great Tribulation.
The elect alone (of
Amidst the darkening of the heavens, by the eclipse of the sun
and moon, and the falling of the stars, how brightly the cross will shine! The
angelic powers are [Page 15] to be
shaken, that the lord of angels and of men may come forth in his full glory. Before the cross,
even during the sufferings of the Lord, the sun was darkened: how much
more now that the cross is erected in heaven, when the crucified
one comes to reign!
Formerly the Jews jeered at that sign,
now they mourn. The rejected stone [Acts 4: 11] is now exalted to
the heavens, and about to descend,
grinding to powder his foes. Do not the words of Mary - he bath put down potentates from
thrones, and exalted humble ones, (Luke 1: 52,) refer in their fulness to the casting
down of the rebel powers of the heavens before her Son, and his saints? The
rainbow was the sign of the covenant with the earth; it was to be set in the cloud,
as a signal that the waters should not overflow the earth: this seems to be
the token of the new covenant, and that the waters of wrath are past. The
signal of antichrists presence is the idol in the temple, the proof of power
given into the hands of the lawless one. The flood has begun; Enoch is on high;
Noah escapes into the ark.
The Presence to
IV. I would now consider some of the TYPES of the
Presence as seen in the history of the Old Testament.
1. The first account of the Lords
Presence with man, is when he cites the guilty pair before him, and sentences
them and the serpent.
2. Again, we find Cain and Abel in the Lords
Presence at the sacrifice when he pleads with Cain; and when the murderer is
sentenced by the Most High: Gen. 3: 8; 4: 16.
3. At the flood, the earth in the
Lords Presence appears corrupt, and wrath comes down from on high: Gen. 5: 11.
4. After the flood, Nimrod acts the
hunter before the Lord, and
5. But in the history of Abraham, just
before the [Page 17] destruction of
6. During the time of Gods patience
and
7. Then comes the deliverance of
8. At Sinai, the Presence is displayed
in all its majesty: and to develop all the light it throws upon the prophecy on
Olivet would demand more space than can be given here. It is proposed to
But Aaron descends from
his height; the lawless people, full of unbelief concerning the return of
Moses, will have a molten god: and Aaron
bows to their will, and becomes the
leader of their idolatry. Apostacy takes place thus in the Presence of the Lord at Sinai, just
as it is foretold it will be again [amongst many from within His Church]. The Lord knows it, and tells Moses of it, and he descends in wrath as the
avenger of their sin. But again he goes up after his intercession is accepted,
and a new covenant, resting on him as the basis, is made with
Then Moses descends in glory with the two tables of the covenant in his hands.
Moses thus, in these two descents, types the one great descent
of Jesus which will be both in wrath and in glory: in wrath as the Avenger of
the first covenant, and in glory as the Mediator of the new covenant.
The DESIGN of the Presence as presented in the
first part of the prophecy on Olivet is seen related to the great objects it
effected of old. (1). The Lord Jesus takes this station [Page
19] when sin is come
to the full, and the iniquity of the world is to be avenged. (2) It is Gods
mode, as of old for delivering
V. But there is one point on which it
will be well to say a few words, lest the evidence which has gone before should
seem vain, while this objection stands. It will be observed, then, that the
Presence in Matthew is generally
spoken of as the Presence of the Son of Man. Now it is
maintained by some, that the title Son of
Man is never used
in any passage, which directly relates to the
I do not think so myself: but be it as it may, I am quite sure
that it ought not to decide the question. And I would now produce some passages
in which, it appears to me, the church is certainly designed.
1. Was not Stephen of the Church, and
inspired of the Holy Ghost? when he said, Behold I see the heavens opened,
and the Son of Man standing on the right hand of God: Acts 7: 56.
2. It is a title given to our Lord in one
of the Epistles. There it is used in connexion with his promised [Messianic] kingdom of earth, in virtue of his
being a man. For unto angels hath he not put in subjection the world [Gk. age] to come,
(the habitable earth, as it shall be,) whereof we are speaking. But one in a
certain place testified, saying, What is man that thou art mindful of him, or the Son of Man that thou visitest him. This, I suppose, is the key to its application, Son of Man is the name given by Daniel to our
Lord as the head of [Page 20] the fifth and triumphant kingdom, by investiture of
which, he becomes ruler of all the works of Gods hands, and therefore of the
heavens no less than of the earth. Several passages combine to prove this. Hereafter ye shall see
heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the
Son of Man: John 1: 51. By virtue of this title he is the
executor of judgment in the [coming
millennial] kingdom. The Father hath given him authority to execute
judgment also, because he is the
Son of
3. It appears as our Lords title in
the sequel to the parable of the wheat and tares. They who gather in the church
are angels. The Son of Man shall send forth his angels, and
they shall gather out of his kingdom all
things that offend, &c.: 13: 41.
4. The Saviour assumes this name when
the church is first mentioned, and the Lord sets the disciple on the same path
of self-denial which he himself was called to tread. For the Son
of Man shall come in the
glory of [Page 21] his Father with his angels,
and then shall
he reward each according to his works.
Verily I say unto you, there
be some standing here which shall
not taste of death till they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom: Matt.
16: 27, 28. Now that scene of the transfiguration is by Peter in his
epistle called the Presence of our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 Peter
1: 16.
5. Except ye eat the flesh of the Son
of Man, and drink his blood, ye have
no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh and
drinketh my blood hath eternal life, and I will
raise him up at the last day: John 6:
53, 54. Here it is in connexion with life in
Jesus by faith, and the resurrection of the saint.
*
* *
CHAPTER 2
THE QUESTIONS OF THE
DISCIPLES
We shall
now somewhat minutely discuss the Prophecy on Olivet.
The inquiries made of our Lord are presented, with some
considerable differences, in the three gospels. The gospel of Matthew offers three questions: those of Mark and Luke,
but two.
The questions, as gathered from a comparison of the three
gospels, are as follows:-
1. Tell us
when shall these things be?
2. And what
shall be the sign of thy Presence?
3. And of the
End of the Age, when all these
things shall be about to be fulfilled? (to come to pass?) Luke.
The words in roman letters give the questions as exhibited in Matthew, Mark
and Luke agree with Matthew
as to the first of the three questions: but they totally omit the second, and
instead of the third, they inquire - What shall be the sign when all these
things shall be about to be fulfilled?
Accordingly, there is a considerable difference in the answers
returned. Matthew, as he is the fullest in his questions, is also the fullest
in the reply. Mark and Luke have all the information given by Matthew, save [Page
23] the notice of the gospel of the kingdom preached
among the Gentiles. (A 4.)
The abomination of desolation is the sign of the temples desolation, as given by Matthew and
Mark. The armies encircling
The false Christs and their signs are
not given by Luke in his account of the prophecy. They had before been touched
on. (Luke 17.)
Mark and Luke as they nearly
agree in the questions, so do they much accord in the general version of the
prophecy. And as all three agree very nearly in the first question; so do all
three very nearly agree in the first part of the prophecy, or that which
relates to the destruction of the Jewish temple, which has yet to take place.
For the Roman destruction of the temple was not that foretold by Daniel; therefore the Jewish temple must be
rebuilt, and its sacrifices restored, in order to its accomplishment.
Let us now inquire into the two remaining questions.
1. First, the opinions of the
disciples, which prompted them to make these inquiries, may well be noted. They
ask, then, not for the sign of the Saviours return, as a Christian would; but for
the sign of his Presence. By this word they
intended, not his return from heaven, for they did not believe in his death and
resurrection, though often forewarned of it, but the time when he would appear as the king of
2. They seem to have considered the
Presence and the End of the Age as so connected, that one sign would serve for
them both. This appears from the question. But the occurrence of the article
before both the
Presence and the End of the Age, shews that they regarded these two
periods as distinct, though closely connected. In that they were right.
If now we look at Mark and Luke we shall find, in their second part, (which
is the answer to the second question,) but one sign given. This is the
tenderness and budding of the tree in spring. It occurs in all three gospels.
That therefore is the answer to the third and last questions of the apostles;
which, as given in Mark and Luke, may be considered as a general one. The fig tree is the signal when all the
scriptures of the prophets hitherto unfulfilled, will be accomplished. And
accomplished they will be in that period - the End of the Age - which embraces
the whole time of the Saviours Presence, both in its secrecy at first, and in
its glorious out-shining at the close. Thus the second questions of Mark and
Luke agree very nearly with the third of Matthew. The sign when
all these things shall be about to be ended, ([
see Greek]) answers very
nearly to the
sign of the end ([
Greek]) of
the age.
But as the End of the Age affects not the Jew only, but the Church of God and the Gentiles, (and is the subject
of two of the parables in Matthew 13, the Wheat and Tares, and the Drag Net - the one referring to the [Page
25] Church of God,
the other to the Gentiles,) the Saviour, at the conclusion of each division,
addresses a word of exhortation to each of the two first parties in turn. Thus
the exhortation in Luke 21:
28. And when all
these things begin to come to pass, then look up,
and lift up your heads, for your
redemption draweth nigh, is a word to the
Jewish disciple, and follows immediately on the prediction of Jerusalems desolation,
and of the Lords appearing in the clouds. Then comes the parable of the Fig
Tree, or the sign of the End of the Age. But the exhortation which follows
that, is one to the
The new generation is the sign of the new age: the evil [and apostate church] generation at its height of sin,
the signal for the terrible judgments of God, like those of the Flood and
of
But the disciple might, like Peter, be blind to the signs given.
He would be, if his heart were overtaken
by worldly cares, or sunk in worldly
pleasures. Hence the lessons which follow both in Mark
and Luke. (Mark
13: 32, 33;
Luke 21: 34-36.) If so found, he would only, like Peter, be
recovered after his fall and bitter repentance, together with Christs rebuke at his appearing.
The Days of Noah (B 2) is not found in either Mark or Luke,
because the question to which it is the answer is not there. Hence too, both
the aspects of the Presence, whether in A
or B - whether the secret Presence,
or the appearing as lightning, are omitted.
The parts then peculiar to Matthew are the
answer to the special and peculiar question - What shall be the sign of thy
Presence? The five parables then that [Page
26] follow on the Fig Tree, I call THE PRESENCE PARABLES; and the
first of them, or the Days of Noah,
gives, I am persuaded, the sign of the Presence - or the Rapture. The four which follow next are the
application of that great and weighty subject to the
The [select] Rapture then is the visible sign of
Christs secret Presence begun on high. It is in the strictest sense a sign - a
thing supernatural, the suited indication of his supernatural position in the
air. The Jews seek a sign: and the Saviour
gives it to them, refusing it indeed to the evil
generation according to his former threat: but granting it to those who typify
the faithful remnant, spared at his second Advent to people the
But why is the parable of the Sheep and Goats omitted by Mark and Luke?
It is observable first, that they omit also the parables (given in Matthew 13) which relate to the end of the age.
But the main reason seems to be, because this scene of the judgment of the
Gentiles is to come to pass after the destruction of the temple, and is the last act of
the old age, preparatory to the introduction of the new age, or the [millennial and messianic] kingdom.
Now the questions in Mark and Luke [Page 27] embraced only the events previously to the end of the age, When all these things shall be about to take place. But Matthews question takes in the
end of the age as a period, and gives both the sign of the beginning of the
time of the end, and of its conclusion.
The Presence in short is the great characteristic of Matthews
version of the prophecy.
1. To believe in the secret one on
earth is the Jews bane [destruction]. He is
to expect only the open and visible one from heaven.
2. The secret one is for the [obedient and watchful] Christian. Not to believe in that, is the spring of unbelief; not to be ready for it, the ground of loss.
A 5 and A 6 give us the Presence secretly judging the Jews on earth.
B 3 to B 6 give us the Presence secretly judging the church in the air.
The Sheep and Goats are the Gentiles openly judged on earth by
the kingly presence; the Jews and the church being already judged and received
into favour.
As the prophecy is divided into two great parts, so it appears
that there are two sets of answers to the three questions proposed: the one in A, the other in B.
1. The first inquiry is concerning the
time of the destruction of the temple.
Now as there are two destructions of the temple, so there are
two answers; 1. The Roman
destruction [under Titus], as it comes first, so it is first
answered. The signs are the coming of many in the name of Christ, and real and
rumoured wars. (A l.) But of this
point I do not feel sure. 2. The
sign of the second desolation of the [Page 28] temple - that foretold by Daniel - is
the idol of the false Christ set up in the temple. This is yet future.
2. The second inquiry is concerning the
sign of the Presence. To this the replies are two; one in A, one in B.
(1.) The sign of the Presence (in A 7) is the cross in the sky, after the great tribulation, and just
before the Lords appearing. (2.) The sign (in B 2) is the rapture of the watchful saint. The last does not occur
in the series of signs.
3. The third inquiry is concerning the
sign of the end of the age. (1.) In A
4, the sign is the gospel of the kingdom preached among the Gentiles. In B 1, the sign is
The temple belongs to the Jew alone. Therefore that question
is treated in A only. As the end of
the age affects both the Jews and the Gentiles, we have the parables of the
Fig-tree and of the Sheep and Goats, taking up their cases respectively. And as
the Presence affects the
The following is a brief tabular view of the second great
division, (or B.)
*B 1. The Fig-tree. Sign of End of Age.
B 2. The Days of Noah. Sign of the
Presence.
B 3. Householder. > Transactions
relative to the Presence. > External.
B 4. Steward. > Transactions relative to the Presence. > External.
B 5, Virgins.
> Transactions relative to the Presence. > Internal.
B 6. Talents.
> Transactions relative to the Presence. > Internal.
*B 7. Sheep and Goats. End of the Age.
With the end of the age the parables begin. Why is this ? Is
it not because it belongs to the time of the [Page 29] mystery, which is concealed from
Israel, In that lie the mysteries of the
kingdom, as in the Jewish prophets are given the manifestation of
the kingdom. The time of mystery is that of
But let us review the whole prophecy more particularly.
The first answer to the disciples inquiries, refers, I
believe, to the Roman destruction: and the not perceiving the interval which
lies between that and the great destruction foretold by Daniel, has been the reason of the errors of interpretation
in this portion of Scripture. Let us
then briefly survey the first part of the prediction. Jesus had foretold, that
of the wonderful building that greeted their eyes not one stone should be left
upon another. Their first question therefore was regarded so grievous a
calamity. When should it take place?
The true time of the end of which Daniel had spoken was to
occur at the time of the temples overthrow. But there was to be a previous
destruction of the temple by THE PEOPLE of the future antichrist: Dan. 9:
26. But when the temple is at once polluted and destroyed, it is
by antichrist in person. Jesus, therefore, notices, that the destruction of the stones of the temple which they
were then beholding, would be before the end. It was to be effected by the
Roman nation, the people from whom the antichrist is to spring:
the future antichrist being asserted to be a king of
The same Roman destruction appears in the next parable of the
wedding garment. The king who sends out the invitation, angry at the slaughter
of his messengers, sent forth his armies and destroyed those murderers, and burnt up their city. Then comes the invitation addressed
to the bad and good, the Jew and Gentile alike. [Page 31] But among the guests, at length
assembled, there are those that are unworthy, and are cast out.
During the time then between the destruction of the temple
then near at hand, and the coming of the time of the end, the Gentile
dispensation was to come in. l
1 I
use this term, well aware that Gentiles alone do not constitute the saved
of the dispensation, and that the Gentiles stand on promises primarily made to
Abraham and the Jew.
When A 2 begins, the Jews are returned to their own land, and
the prophetic part of the Revelation begins.
It was suitable that
The next section in A describes the beginning in
1 [See Greek
] not a den of thieves.
The succeeding section (A 6) exhibits the deceits of all kinds
that will be abroad in that day of darkness and of trouble. False Christs and
false prophets will then arise, working signs and wonders such as Jesus, at
once the true Christ and true Prophet, manifested of old. But he in spite of
them was rejected: they are received.
Jesus is on high - the apostacy and the wrath on it both take
place during the time of the Presence apparently, as in
The tribulation which cuts off the evil generation, being
ended, the signs in the heavenly bodies are given, [Page 33] and the world trembles with
expectation of the appearing of Jesus. Then shines the luminous cross, signal
of the sin of
[* Beware of praying against what God has planned before His
return! Therefore pray not thou for this people
- (i.e. for apostates who steal, murder, and commit adultery, and
swear falsely
and walk after their own gods.
vv. 8, 9)
- neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee:
(Jer. 7: 16, R.V. Cf.
Acts 20: 30ff.
; 2 Pet. 2: 1, 2; Jude 4, 5.).]
2. A second time the evil generation
ply him with the like request. They tempt him by now demanding a sign from heaven: Matt. 16: 1. Jesus
replies, that it was their fault, if, from the aspect of the moral heaven, they
could not rightly anticipate the times which were coming. They could distinguish
in the appearances of the sky, between the healthy red, that portended fair [Page
34] weather, and the
dusky red, that foretold a storm. Had then the moral horizon no signs? Was the connexion between the worlds
happiness or misery, and the state of the men living on the earth, less certain
or less close than that between the clouds of heaven one day, and the weather
on the next? They knew the difference between the signs of fair weather and
those of foul; and expecting accordingly, they found their expectations
realized. But in spiritual expectations they were fools. They were looking for
the kingdom and its glories - that bright summer-time foretold by the prophets,
the days of
heaven upon the earth -
while the generation of men was a seed of hypocrites, malicious, adulterers [and liars]. Now the prophets had foretold not
only fair weather, but a period of awful storm. The prophets had connected that
time of storm - the great and terrible day of the Lord - with just such a moral horizon as then presented itself in
The meaning of the Saviour then in the passage of Matthew under consideration has been
misunderstood. Jesus did not mean to say that Israel was indifferent to the signs of
the times, but that they misinterpreted them, and grossly erred in regard to the then impending destinies of their
nation. They looked to their religiousness and efforts to proselyte, to their
imagined alms and fasts, and, therefore, that they deserved the promised
glories of the [coming] kingdom.
But He who looks beneath the surface assured them that their seeming piety was
hypocrisy, provoking that final threatened wrath
on which the prophets so largely dwell. The point blamed by the Lord is their
foolish inference from the signs before them; their want
of discrimination in not perceiving the difference between the form and the
power; and their overlooking the flagrant sins which were abroad. Is not this the very mistake of our day? Are not [multitudes of regenerate] Christians, in as entire contradiction
to the evidence and the signs before them, expecting the
kingdom instead of the day of the Lord?
It is not that Christians and men of the world are indifferent to the signs of the moral atmosphere, it is
that they misinterpret them. From the
broad signs of foul weather at hand, the heart of nature drew the conclusion of fair days to come. So now,
the worldly, and the neglecters of prophecy draw hopes for the future from the
state of things now, which should lead them rather [Page 36] to anticipate those days of darkness,
temptation, and wrath from
God, of which the New Covenant deals forth predictions neither few nor
doubtful.
Jesus then twice resists the evil
generations demand for a sign, once when they asked for that simply, once when
they asked for a signal from heaven. On both occasions he refers them to his own [select] resurrection [out of dead ones (Acts 4: 2,
lit. Greek)], as the sign which would suffice to
prove them guilty if they rejected it. But at length the sign from heaven is given. If the cross in heaven be that sign, it was
fitting that it should not be exhibited till the great sin of crucifying
Messiah had been committed. It is brought to their memory afresh, I believe, by
the crucifixion of the two witnesses at
1 May we not be reminded of the
remarkable effect exerted on the native Indians by the prophecy of
[Page 37]
The gathering of the outcasts to
The two-foldness of sense in many of the words of the prophecy
is worthy of notice. In A they are used literally, in the sense of the old
covenant. In B some of the same words are used in the new covenant, or
spiritual sense. Thus salvation is twice used of deliverance of the body from death, (5: 13, 22.) the elect, the enduring, the Presence, the Gospel are used in A in the old covenant sense. But in B the sleep, the taking and leaving, the day, and hour,
are taken in a spiritual and new covenant sense.
The day in A is literal,
they are to pray against its being on a Sabbath day; in B it is
spiritual. i.
There are two classes of prayers. (1.) The Jewish disciple is
to pray for a proper opportunity to escape; - Pray ye,
that your flight be not in the winter: Mark 13: 18. He
is to pray for the vengeance of justice on his adversary:-Luke 18:
1. (2.) But the Christian is to Pray always,
that he may be accounted
worthy to escape all these
things that shall come to pass, and to
be set before the Son of Man: Luke 21: 36.
The exhortations are also different. (1.) To the Jewish disciples, When ye see
the abomination of desolation, then let them
which be in
* *
*
[Page
38]
CHAPTER 3
THE FIG TREE
(B.
1)
But from the fig tree learn its
parable: when already its branch is becoming
tender, and putteth forth the leaves, ye recognize that the summer is nigh; so likewise ye, when ye see
all these things, recognize that it is near, even at the doors. Verily I
say unto you, this generation will not pass away, until all these things be fulfilled. The heaven and the earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
We have now
arrived at the second great division of the prophecy - the parabolic part. It
contains the answer to the second and third questions of the disciples; or
(since the second and third questions are closely bound together) we may
perhaps call them the second question of the four apostles.
The parabolic part treats of the end of the age, and of the
Presence of Jesus. The Fig Tree is the sign of the end of this evil age. The Sheep and
Goats give the last act of the age, preceding the full enjoyment of the [millennial] kingdom
on earth. The Days of Noah give the sign of Jesus Presence; and the four
following parables instruct us concerning the Lords adjustment of the position
of the saints in glory.
Thus the four parables belonging to the Presence, occur before
the king is manifested, (in the Sheep [Page
39] and Goats,) and
occupy the place of a parenthesis. That is the time of the secret between
Christ and his church; his revelation to
The disciples second question ran thus - What shall be
the sign of thy Presence and of the end of the age?
It is supposed, then, that but one sign would be given,
applying alike to each. But Jesus gives two signs; one for the End of the Age,
one to identify the time of his Presence. He also reverses the order in which
the two seasons are spoken of. The disciples had mentioned first the Presence,
then the End of the Age. Jesus gives first the sign of the End of the Age, then
treats of the sign of the Presence, and its interior invisible on earth; and
finally he closes with the End of the Age, in its last adjudication of the
controversy between
The last point mentioned before the Fig Tree, was the
ingathering of the Jewish elect from their dispersion and captivity, at the
time of the Lords appearing. The old generation of
I take for granted, that by the Fig Tree is intended the
Jewish nation, on which the Saviour had found the leaves of Mosaic ceremonies,
but not the fruits of holiness.
The appointing this as the sign of the new era of the
blessedness which is one day to visit the earth, was of a piece with the
Saviours usual manner, and like his marvellous wisdom, who was able to take up
any event or object before him, and to make it the type of the thoughts of his
unsearchable understanding.
The time of the year when Jesus and the four apostles were
seated opposite the temple, was spring: according to Greswell,
it was the 3rd of April. Doubtless there were, upon the
1 The true reading.
As
The fig tree is the natural sign of a natural season of the
year. The Jew, Gods spiritual fig tree, is the sign of the better spiritual
summer. Now it is winter; coldness, slipperiness, and death reign
around. The Jewish tree, though not for ever dead, yet seems so. Its buds are
sealed, its leaves are enfolded. But the summer is at hand, the season of light
and warmth, of splendour, growth, fruit, and the song of birds. The Age to come
and the Time of the End are Jewish seasons: the sign of them is Jewish also.
Not till the Jew repents and turns to God, can the worlds joy come. To the
Jewish disciple then (not to the church directly) is this sign given. They are
set to observe the previous signs, as the still accumulating proof that the
time of their hope draws near. So likewise ye, when
ye see [Page
42] all these things, know that it
is near, even at the doors. The church is independent of times
and seasons, and no series of events (it would appear) must first take place on
earth, ere it be caught away to glory. It walks by faith, not by sight;
while it is written here, When ye shall see all these things. Again, those words all these things, stand closely connected with the former part.
1. The blood of the innocent was yet to be exacted. All these things shall come upon this generation.
2. The temples destiny was one of the
matters in question. See ye not all these things? There shall
not be left one stone upon another.
3. The first strokes of judgment
belong to the enumeration, But all these things (war, famine, pestilence, earthquake) are the beginning of sorrows.
The same expression occurs twice in
the Fig Tree. When ye shall see all these things, know that it is
near. This generation will not
pass away, until all these things be
fulfilled.
In one point our parable is given more
definitely by Luke, than by the other two evangelists. Matthew and Mark say, When ye see
all these things coming to pass, know (recognize) that it is near, even at the
doors. What is
intended by it? That is left to be supplied by
research. Luke has it, When ye see these things
coming to pass, know that the
But the evil generation will not fail from the earth until all
the terrors of the day of the Lord have been accomplished. Sign after sign,
judgment after judgment, will fail to convince their blinded eyes, or to open
their barred hearts. Hardest of all will those be, who have heard the gospel of
grace, and hated it. On them in righteous indignation God will send an energy
of delusion that they may believe the lie of Satan; so that we might affirm
that the signs of winter will be abroad in all their sternness, even when the
warmth and glory of summer are nigh. Are the wicked generation the snow and ice of
winter? Then never will the snows lie thicker, nor the ice be deeper or more
compact, than just before the great and final thaw. For this reason Jesus does
not adduce the state of mankind in general as one of the proofs of the kingdom
being near. On the contrary, he assures us, as one of the strange things that
needed the strong proof of his assertion, that in spite of the good news of the
kingdom which will be published among
all the nations, and in spite of the judgments coming thickly and heavily
upon them, neither mercy nor justice will soften the guilty mass of mankind.
Therefore the word will (in verse
34) should have been
substituted for shall. This generation will not pass away. For the words are not a promise,
on Christs part, that his power shall take care to cut off the wicked: but
it is a prediction of the result. It means not, It shall be my care that thirty years shall not pass away
ere the whole of my prophecy be fulfilled; but it indicates the rooted
unbelief of mans [Page 44] heart, that nothing in the way of means, whether of terror
or mercy, will avail to change the enmity of the human race.
The evil generation and the evil age go together: the new generation, and the new age. The wickedness
of the earth is the cause of the sorrows of this present time. Therefore until sinners
are consumed out of the earth, the evil age in which they have their being,
will not come to an end. So that the destruction of the ungodly out of the
world, is the proper work of the end of the age, as well as the preparing of
those who shall inherit the earth, or of those who shall rule over it during
the future happy age of Messiahs reign.
Solemn then is this lesson. Vainly do christians expect that
the message of mercy in the gospel will convert the world, and change the tares
into wheat. Yea rather, these vile weeds will grow ranker and broader, until
they are rooted by angelic hands out of the field, which is the world. While
then there will be in one respect a beautiful resemblance to spring, in the
returning and repentance of
This seeming counter-indication then is taken up by the next
parable, and the destiny of the elect of
The above view gives the only sufficient and satisfactory
solution of the chief difficulty (to most persons) in the prophecy. That
generation was not to pass away till all was fulfilled. If the generation be a certain physical thing - a certain portion of
time - an insuperable obstacle must ever remain to its right interpretation.
But when we see that the generation is a moral thing, which
abides as unchanged, as human nature in its evil state, throughout the long
course of this present evil age, the difficulty is gone. The continuance of the
wicked generation is the cause of these wintry times.
The generation offers itself to our view in three great forms:
as (1) the world,
that hears the gospel, but loves its lusts too well to come to Christ; (2)
unbelieving
The generation was not cut off at the destruction of
The generation is to exhibit itself at the close according to
the type of three most wicked characters; Cain, Balaam, Corah:
Cain, denying the doctrine of the atonement, or approach to God by blood as the
only way for the guilty. Balaam, teaching
unrighteousness against his better knowledge, for gain; and Corah, resisting the
priesthood and kingly authority of Christ, and perishing therein. All these
three had forms of religion; all three were persecutors. The generation too is
not Jewish alone. It began in Cain, ere
Jews were distinguished from Gentiles. Accordingly, we find that both Jew
and Gentile are described in this prophecy as persecutors. [Page
47] The Jew is seen
up to the very close persecuting the messengers of God: Matt. 23:
1. The Gentile is found hating and bringing up as criminals
those who go forth preaching the gospel of the kingdom among them.
The generation, then, being unchanged by all the means brought
to bear on it, would pass away in the final wrath, but not till then. The day of the Lord is the day of perdition
of ungodly men. While
But what is the connexion of the succeeding verse - Heaven and
earth shall pass away, but my words shall not
pass away - with
the preceding? The Lord, I believe, regards the period of the destruction of
the ungodly, as lasting through the whole extent of the day [Page
48] of the Lord. The
judgments before the millennium cut down the evil generation to the very
narrowest limits, if indeed any be spared. But, at the close of the thousand years, wickedness, showing that
man is still unchanged, breaks forth
again, and then heaven and earth
pass. Certain it is, that Peter thus connects the passing away of the
wicked with the passing away of the heaven and earth. The heavens
and the earth which are now, by the same word
are kept in store, reserved unto fire against
the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men: 2 Peter 3: 7. But he adds a caution: when I say the day of judgment, do not understand me to mean a day of twenty-four hours. The day of the Lord is a day of a thousand
years. And as at its commencement the first strokes of vengeance fall on
the ungodly, so at its conclusion comes
the judgment of the great white throne, the destruction of the earth, and the raising up of new heavens and a
new earth, as the dwelling-place of
the righteous.
How vain, then, the expectation of the gospels converting the
world! Nay, the evil generation will abide to the close!
Can this emblem receive its accomplishment until
But lest the thought should arise, that the coming of the
As a further illustration of the principle involved in the
doctrine of the Fig Tree, that
As, when Israels heart is softened before God, the heart of
the evil generation and of its prince grows more and more hard, and his tongue
becomes more bitter and blasphemous, so was it also in the time of old; while
the Lord foretells that the signs wrought by his two witnesses should be
effectual in turning the heart of [Page 50] his people to faith, he
testifies also that the heart of Pharaoh and his servants would be hardened,
and that he would perish in the wrath of his stretched out arm.
The dealings of God in vengeance, then, suitably introduce the
doctrine of the Presence, or of the Lords witness against the evil world.
* *
*
[Page 51]
CHAPTER 4
DAYS OF NOAH
(B 2.)
36. But of that day and hour knoweth no
one, no not the angels of the heavens, but my Father only.
The
question naturally arises, on reading these words - Of what day is this spoken? It might seem to
refer to one of three times.
1. The Saviours Presence.
2. The Day of the Lord.
3. The End of the Age.
The two latter seasons have especial reference to the ungodly
world: the former principally to the saints. The section itself deals with the
Jew, the Gentile, the
I believe that it refers to the End of the Age, of which the
preceding parable treated: that by the day is meant that long and comparatively indefinite period, the
end; and that by the hour is meant
that special time of the Presence, which is signalized by the [select] rapture of the [repentant, obedient
and watchful] saint. If so, then the Fig Tree is the sign of the day; and is accordingly somewhat
indefinite in its note of time: for who can point out the moment when the fig
trees bark begins to become tender? Then comes the shorter period of the Presence,
and its [Page 52] sign - the rapture - which is very definite, and is instantaneous in point
of time.
37. But as the days of Noah, so shall be also the Presence of the Son of Man. 38. For as they were,
in the days that were before the flood, eating and drinking, marrying
and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah
entered into the ark, 39. And knew not, until the flood
came and took all away, so shall be also the
Presence of the Son of Man.
The resemblance of those days, when the Saviour will have
descended from the heaven into the air, will consist in four especial points,
which are here touched on.
1. The employments of men will evince
their unbelief of any judgment about to come on the world. In spite of warning,
they will live as if all things were to
continue as they had so long done.
2. There will be
an escape of a few - [watchful and accounted worthy, A.V.] - from the impending destruction. As God provided an ark
for Noah and his family, so has he for the earthly elect. In the ark, Noah and his sons were preserved through the
storm of divine indignation, and came forth to people the new earth. The desert
is the ark into which the Jewish elect are to flee, and where they escape the flood
which the dragon pours after them: Rev. 12. Has not the Saviours temptation in
the wilderness - when he answered Satan from the Jewish Scriptures, and
conquered - purchased this portion of earth as a refuge for
1 Not to detain the reader too long from
the main features of the resemblance to Noahs times, I throw into a note an
interesting question which arises, on comparing this view of the ark with that
given in 1 Pet. 3:
21. The ark there is applied to Christians; and baptism answers to their escape
through the waters. The ark, (to us,) then, is the righteousness of Jesus. The waters of which the
apostle speaks were the wrath of God, the cause of the Saviours suffering. But
his righteousness prevailed. He passed safely through, and we in him. The ark
has rode through the waters of death and judgment. In token of the believers
having gone through them, he has passed through the literal waters of baptism -
type of those of wrath. Christs death was the time when the floods of wrath
were loosed against him. His resurrection was the time of the floods
restraint. His ascent gives the arks resting high upon the Mount of God. He is
waiting, and we with him, for the day when God shall bid him come forth,
because in the seventh month the ground is dry. Our ark is not a tangible one, as the waters also which Jesus
passed for us are the spiritual ones of judgment. Now that is the distinction which Paul insists
on as characterizing the difference between us and
Our judgment is past, and we are on safe ground:
[Page
53]
3. The sudden wrath that came with universal
destruction upon the men of unbelief, when once the elect of earth had escaped,
is the next feature of resemblance. And thus, immediately after the command to
4. The fourth point of likeness is
contained in the verses which follow.
Then shall two be in the field;
the one is taken, and
the other left. Two women grinding at the mill;
one is taken, and one is
left.
The scene is presented as it will appear to the eye of a
spectator, looking in the direction indicated. In yonder field are two men
working - no other human being near - and now there is but one! The horses of
the plough move onwards, but he who held the plough is gone! He has not hid
himself, for there is neither tree nor bush near. There lies his coat beside
the hedge: the trees, the clouds, the fields, seem unaltered - where is he? His comrade looks up; where is his
companion? He turns himself about; rubs his eyes, as if doubting whether he
were not in a dream; stands amazed; runs to the hedge. There is his garment,
but not the master. Not even a sound does the rapt one utter: in the twinkling
of an eye he is out of sight. He is not! Must we not add, as in Enochs case, and as the only consistent
explanation - FOR GOD TOOK HIM! And what is the moral deduction
concerning the taken one but that given in Enochs case? By faith
Enoch was translated that he should not
see death; and was not found, because God had translated him, for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God: Heb.
11: 5.
[Page 55]
Here is sudden disappearance. To what shall we attribute it? (1.)
It is not the effect of an invading army. There the army would be seen in the
field; and the captive be beheld as he was borne away. Nor are men and women
dealt with alike by an army: Zech. 14: 2. We should see an attempt at escape
on the part of one or the other: and both would leave the field; the one by
flight, the other borne away as a prisoner of war. (2.) It is not death by an
arrow from a distance; then the arrow might be seen, and the hand that launched
it; then too the corpse would be left on the field. (3.) Nor is it sudden death
from the hand of God; still the corpse would be left: and one of the two is
taken. (4.) It is not voluntary concealment on the part of one of them. Then
his withdrawal of himself would be seen, and the activity he displayed would
not accord with the passiveness supposed.
(5.) Nor is it the effect of flight. The one who fled would be
seen escaping, as well as the one who remained still. The one removed is
passive in his removal. In the supposed flight there need be no separation; for
both could flee together. Hence, in the former part, where the flight is
commanded, but one is presented
to us. He that is on the housetop let
him not come down, to take any
thing out of his house. Neither let him that is in the field return back to take his clothes. If again activity could be supposed
on the part of one of the men, it could not on the part of the women;
for grinding is a posture in which flight could not be begun.1
1 The following extracts descriptive of the
mode of grinding in the East will not be uninteresting to the reader:-
Scarcely had we reached the apartment prepared for our [Page 56] reception, when looking from the window into the
court-yard belonging to the house, we beheld two women grinding at the mill in a manner most forcibly illustrating the saying of our Saviour.
They were
preparing flour to make our bread, as it is always customary in the country
when strangers arrive. The two women seated on the ground opposite to each
other, held between them two round flat stones, such as are seen in Lapland,
and such as in Scotland are called querns.
In the centre of the upper stone was a cavity for pouring in the
corn; and by the side of this an upright wooden handle for moving the stone. As
the operation began, one of the women with her right hand pushed this handle to
the woman opposite, who again sent it to her companion, thus communicating a
rotatory and very rapid motion to the upper stone: their left hands being all
the while employed in supplying fresh corn, as fast as the bran and flour
escaped from the sides of the machine.- Dr. E. Clarkes Travels, Vol. 2, p. 428.
In another tent was a woman kneeling
and grinding at the handmill. These mills are doubtless those of scriptural
times; and are similar to the Scottish quern. They consist of two stones, about eighteen inches or two feet in
diameter, lying one upon the other, with a slight convexity between them, and a
hole through the upper to receive the grain. The lower stone is fixed, sometimes
in a sort of cement, which rises around it like a bowl, and receives the meal
as it falls from the stones. The upper stone is turned upon the lower by means
of an upright stick fixed in it as a handle. We afterwards saw many of these
mills; and saw only women grinding, sometimes one alone and sometimes two
together. The female kneels or sits at her task, and turns the mill with both
hands, feeding it occasionally with one. The labour is evidently hard: and the
grating sound of the mill is heard at a distance, indicating, (like our coffee
mills) the presence of a family, and of household life. We
heard no song as an accompaniment to the work. [The time at which the
grinding was going on was soon after four oclock in the morning. ]- Robinsons
Palestine, Vol. 2, 180.
Again - May 28th. We rose before
four oclock, hoping to set off early. Very soon the grating sound of the
hand-mill was heard from a cave not far off, where an Arab family had taken up
their abode during the harvest. p. 471. On
one occasion (p. 385) the grinding occurred at
about three in the afternoon.
[Page 56]
6. It is not an earthquake that with
sudden yawn has swallowed up the one; the rocking earth and trees and its
opening gulf had been objects of sight.
[Page
57]
7. The wrath that is to come on the
ungodly is not to discriminate; it is to be universal, like that of the flood,
and of
8. The one shall be taken. Nor is the other
left because concealed from the eye of man; for both are in the field,
where the eye would take in the two as in the same open space together.
Both are equally in the daylight, in Matthew; both equally in bed, and so probably in darkness - in Luke - when this mysterious force separates
them. Can this be the act then of any other than God, of whom it is written, The darkness and the light to THEE are both alike? There is no security against this hand
within doors or without. But walls and doors are barriers to all of mortal
bodies.1
1 The description given by the Saviour
may remind the classical reader of the alleged mysterious and supernatural
disappearance of
A like explanation will suit also the succeeding case, of the
two women at the mill. By the mill is meant, not a more or less lofty building,
as in our own country, but a hand-mill, consisting of two stones, the upper one
turning upon the lower by means of a handle fixed in the upper. Beside this
mill two women, seated opposite [Page 58] to each other, push the handle round, pouring in the grain through a hole in the upper
millstone. [See Frontispiece.] The work, with its jarring, grating sound of
daily labour is proceeding as usual, when suddenly the handle stops. The
terrified maid looks up - her companion is gone! Her seat is empty - the hand
that should move the handle is no more. She could not have fled without rising,
and being seen to rise. Where is she?
i. Let us now notice, first, the parties taken.
1. Both the classes exhibited to us are
of an inferior grade, as society reckons. They are workers with their hands in
the labours of agriculture, or daily domestic servitude. The maid-servant (or
female slave) behind the mill is set forth as the greatest contrast to the king
on the throne: Ex. 11: 5. But while the Pharaohs of earth
would disdain companions so ignoble, Jesus takes them to himself as worthy of
his Presence, his love, his glory, his kingdom. He hath chosen the poor,
rich in faith, to be
heirs of the kingdom. The passage in Exodus
describes the Lords going forth as the Mighty one to destroy his enemies: when
the elect of
2. The parties taken are close
together, two in the same bed, two at the same mill, two in the same field; [Page
59] but a mysterious
hand severs between them with equal ease everywhere. Can any cause but one
explain this? The open country, the bolted door, the clearness of daylight, the
obscurity of night are both alike - to God!
3. They are in the same occupation and
attitude, yet they are discriminated, to teach us, that the difference of their
lot comes from Him who reads the heart, and not from man who judges after the
sight of his eyes. Two sets, one of men and the other of women appear before
us, that we may learn that the difference now rests not on the diversity of
sex. It did when the question
was the active flight from Jerusalem. Then woe to them that are with
child, and to them that give suck. Wherefore the difference now? but that
we have reached a higher region, where questions of the flesh take a very
subordinate place.
ii. Next, a word
concerning the taking.
1. The taking is quite sudden. To them there has
been no previous signal. Neither sight nor sound has disturbed them from their
daily round of toil. This unexpectedness then finds them in their ordinary
posture of soul. Had they, by sound or sign, been aware of the day or hour,
then surely they would have been upon their knees in the midst of the assembly
of the saints.
2. The separation is most rapid.
Quickly as the sentence which describes it is uttered, so speedy will the
severance be. And the Saviours words are in this case peculiarly brief, to
intimate the speed of the removal. That they are men and women, is known only
by the gender of the participles. There is no connecting particle between the
words descriptive of the destiny of the women and the men.
[Page 60]
Then shall two be in the field;
the one is taken and the other is left: two grinding at the mill; one
is taken and one is left. The language hurries, and would suggest to us the celerity of
the result.
3. The taking is mysterious. To the worldly it will suggest only
thoughts of human knavery: from the believer alone will it receive its
supernatural explanation. The act then will resemble
the words now. Can the words now be explained
away? So will the deed then.
4. The sign thus granted is miraculous. A sign in its
fullest sense in Scripture is always so. Thus were the signs to Gideon, to
Moses, to Hezekiah of his recovery from sickness; to Ahaz the sign was a
miracle either in the heaven above, or in the deep. The sign of Jesus
supernatural descent from heaven is itself a thing supernatural.
5. But the difference is not a matter of sovereignty,
taking whom it will and leaving whom it will, without rendering a reason.
Then the appropriate exhortation to us had been simply to submit, without
asking a reason from Omnipotent omniscience. But Jesus founds thereon the
solemn lesson of watchfulness;
to teach us that the discrimination will
be according to the believers state. Then the scene in its full
force comes home to our bosoms.
At this point, the questions will naturally arise:-
To what class do the taken and the left belong? And of what
character are the taking and the leaving?
Now these points mutually affect each other, as we shall see on
considering the answers given to the questions above supposed. It may be
replied -
1. The two are Jew.
[Page 62]
2. The two are Christians: one a nominal, the other a real [and regenerate] believer.
3. Both are believers: the one watchful, the other unwatchful.
1. Now if we take up with the idea that
both are Jews, then the taking will be in wrath, for destruction; and the
leaving will indicate Gods mercy sparing the other to enjoy length of life on
the millennial earth.
2. If the parties be both Christians,
then, as length of life on earth is not the promise to believers in Jesus, the
leaving will signify dishonour, and the taking the rapture to [millennial] glory. This applies to both the two
last suppositions.
3. And again, if the taking be for
honour, the parties are Christians; as, if the taking be for wrath, the parties
are Jews. This is the point by which the question will be decided.
In regard to the meaning of the taking and leaving, it is
granted on both sides that the two are opposites. If therefore we know the moral meaning of the taking, we
know that of the leaving; and the converse. Now the alternatives as to the
meaning of the taking are these:- It signifies either (1) the removal in wrath,
or (2) the removal in mercy. If then the taking be not a removal in wrath, it
is for mercy. But here, again, we must distinguish. The removal in mercy may be
of two kinds:- Either (1) the earthly escape from the wrath upon
(i) First, then, the taking is not for wrath, as appears
by the word employed. It is quite different from that which describes the
destruction wrought by the deluge. [Page 62] The flood came and took them all away. ([
see Greek].) The
word used to describe the separation between the two in the field and at the
mill is another. ([
see Greek].) To which I add, that the same word is used by both Matthew and Luke,
when speaking of the same thing; which, I infer, implies, that there is a
peculiar appropriateness in it to express the thing intended.
Now the idea expressed by the word in question, is the taking
one as a companion by our side. It is ordinarily the result of friendship. It is
the word used by the Lord Jesus, to describe his final reception of his people
to himself. I will come again and take you to myself, that where I am,
there ye may be also: John
14: 3. By the same word Jesus describes the evil spirits
choice of companions. Then goeth he and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself:
Matthew 12: 45. It is the word which is used where
Jesus on three special occasions took, by way of privilege, three of the
disciples to behold the raising of the daughter of Jairus, the Transfiguration,
and his sufferings in the garden. The evidence of the three latter instances is
so important, that they will be considered by themselves.
This sense of the word appears yet more evidently, where
another preposition, implying a conjunction, is added to the word. And Barnabas
and Saul returned from
But against such a view of the case an instance occurring in
the history of Jesus is alleged. Then delivered he him therefore unto
them to be crucified: and they took Jesus, and
led him away: John 19: 16. Was this a case of honour? Certainly not. But the radical
idea of the word is the same here as in the other cases. It intends that they made
him walk by their side. In that case it was the act of wicked men, and their
intent in the matter was evil. But he who takes in the present instance, is the
Holy One, and his design in taking any as his companions, cannot be for evil,
but is with intent to do them high
honour.
(ii.) But it may be pleaded that, while
indeed the taking intends honour done to the party taken, yet it follows not
that this power is the rapture heavenward, but only the earthly escape. - The
taking may mean one put into a place of safety on earth, no less than in
heaven. Athaliah arose and destroyed all the seed royal. But Jehosheba took Joash and stole him from among the kings sons that were slain, and they hid him, even him and
his nurse in the bed-chamber from Athaliah, so
that he was not slain: 2 Kings 11: 1, 2. Thus also the angels laid hold on
lot, and led him out of the devoted city. Now, in order to negative such a
plea, we have only to regard the points of discrimination furnished by the
prophecy itself.
The Saviour, where the earthly escape is in question, demands,
as the condition of that deliverance, the most earnest and instant flight. Had that been the matter here, the passage before us must have
borne marks of it [Page 64] in some such way as follows:- Two shall be in the field: one shall flee, and one shall be left and
taken. In such case
the taking would be manifestly evil, implying the captivity of the party, and
his being caught in the danger which the other evades. The two deliverances in
the history of the flood are either, Enochs passive removal, or Noahs active escape: the first before the tribulation, the other at its crisis. Now the deliverance here is wholly passive. In the present
case, both are one moment together, the next, without any effort, on either of
their parts, severed: one only remains in the field. The one is taken: the other is left. The same force that took but one,
could, had it so pleased, have taken both.
1. This deliverance is passive, and therefore
discovers the Enoch rapture. God took him, in the days that were before the flood. The flood overwhelmed all not in the
ark. The difference then was not, that both the preserved and the drowned being in the same
circumstances when the wrath
began, the one was left on earth, and
the other removed from it in destruction; but that the saved were in
different circumstances from the lost, the righteous being within the ark, the
lost outside it.
2. Messiah must
come attended by his fellows:
(Psalm 45: 6,
7, Hebrews 4:
14, Greek:) and this expression points out his choice of
companions. The present taking, however, differs from his former choice of the
twelve as his companions. Then both were on earth, and no visible exertion of
miracle attended it. But now, he being on high, and they in spirit already his,
and like him rejected by the world - their lot is, like the Saviours, to ascend. This, in truth,
is the hope [Page
65] of our calling. How we need the spirit of wisdom and revelation to discern and keep it
ever before us! Eph. 1. May it ever be granted us!
3. Where honour is in
question, the word take has a good
sense. All
* Taking in the above case is the result
of favourable choice. So again - He chose David also
his servant, and took him from the
sheepfolds ...to feed Jacob his people: Psalm 78: 70.
In the first part of the prophecy on Olivet the warning is
directed against the physical burthens which unfit for active bodily exertion: in the parables
and exhortations which succeed this sign, the Saviours voice is raised against
the spiritual burthens of covetousness, love of the pleasures of life, and engrossment with its cares. Take heed to yourselves
as regards your moral state,
is the cry to the church:
beware of things without, is the call to the earthly elect.
iii. We may now enter on the
signification of the other word left, which will corroborate our conclusion. Leaving may indeed have either a
good or an evil sense, according to its connexion.
1. It has a good sense, where the
question lies between the destruction of earthly
life, or its prolongation.
If Esau come to the one company and
smite it, then the other which is left, shall escape: Gen.
33: 8. They shall surely die in the wilderness. And [Page 66] there was not a man left of them, save Caleb
the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun:
Num. 26: 65. The inhabitants of
the earth are burned and few men left: Isaiah 24: 6.
But in the passage before us, the alternative is not, as we
have seen, destruction of life, but the
taking as a companion; and (as will be afterwards shewn) as the sign of the
Saviours Presence. Here then to be left
is not a mark of favour. To be left, where earnest
flight from the destroying sword is the only escape, is not set forth as mercy,
but heralded by the Lord with a woe: 24:
19.
2. To be left, has an evil sense, implying comparative dishonour, where the choice is that of an intelligent
being. (a.) When David is to go
to the camp to his brethren he leaves the
sheep: 1
Sam. 17: 20. When the woman of
3. Who leaves? is the great question. And for what are the parties left? When Jesus leaves some, taking others as his companions, on certain moral grounds, the being left is disgrace. When the
Pharisees tempt Jesus by asking a sign, he left them and
departed to the other side: Matthew 8:
13.
4.
If the leaving be
in mercy - the favourable alternative - [Page 67] the parables which follow must have
presented the case of the left in another light. Then the sentiment must have
been somewhat of this kind - Happy the person left! He, like the mariners left
when Jonah was swallowed up, shall rejoice and give thanks. But on the contrary, in the parable which follows, the
left one is regarded as the robbed householder, enduring
loss because of his unwatchfulness after warning. So in the parables of the
virgins, the left are the foolish, who suffer loss, because they are not ready at the Lords
appearing. To be left, when the question is the Lords Presence, must be
disgrace. The honoured are those within the Presence-chamber, the dishonoured
those who tarry unwillingly without.
5. Further evidence
arises to sustain this idea on connecting the words with another portion of
that parable which immediately follows. Then the taking and the leaving are to
be considered as the act of the Heavenly Thief. If silver and plated articles
were together presented to the eye and grasp of an intelligent thief, we should
infer, that the taken was the silver one; and the left, the plated one. But such a
supposed difference would overstep the limits assigned to the present choice.
The taken is carried away as watchful
and as ready, (ver.
42 and 44)
the left then remains behind as unwatchful, and unready. But that supposes only
a difference of circumstance, not of essential nature. The difference would be
fitly illustrated by the comparative ripeness of fruits. If peaches on a wall
were exposed to a thiefs gaze and power, and he took some and left others, we
should at once suppose that the taken were the ripe, and the left the unripe, or [Page
68] unready for his purpose. Similarly in
the present instance. Both are fruits of the same kind; but one as unripe for the heavenly glory, is left awhile, exposed to the fierce sun of persecution.
6. They differ only as the watchful
from the unwatchful. In other respects they are alike. That is, they are both saints. The command to watch, can only appropriately be addressed
to those spiritually alive. Jesus dissuades the Pharisees from watching. They
needed first the preparative within - righteousness, joy, and peace in the Holy
Ghost, ere the doctrine of the [coming inheritance and] kingdom and its watchfulness had immediate and direct reference to them. To such the cry
must first be, repent.
There are two groups in the parable. The one composed of those
eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage; the other, of those in
the field, and at the mill. On the one indiscriminate destruction falls:
towards the other, discrimination is exercised. There are men and women in both
parts of the picture; but in the one, the sexes are together; here, they are apart.
In the one compartment are seen the enjoyments, in the other the toils of life.
Feasting to excess, as we may collect from several passages, will characterize
the latter-day unbelief. The evil steward is seen falling into this snare, and
overtaken in it. But the servants of the Lord in general will be engaged in
labouring with their hands.
In the literal part of the prophecy a
visible object is set before the eye. When ye see
We may derive much confirmation to this opinion by considering
the cases of rapture which are recorded for us in both Testaments.
1. The Lord especially refers us to
Noahs day, as the time which typifies the days of his Presence. Now about that
period there were two races of men; in one of which the arts of life and
civilization were cultivated. These were the sons of Cain. The other, the sons
of Seth, walked as strangers and pilgrims. Out of this family, one prophet
(Enoch) was taken to glory, and one (Lamech, Gen. 5: 29) was left.
But beside the passive removal before the flood begun, there is another of active preparation and escape just at the very crisis of [Gods coming] wrath. This is Noahs case. He has to pass through the very turmoil and roar of
the waters: while Enoch was in the
heaven whence the wrath descended. Noah then is a type of the earthly and
Jewish escape; and Enoch [who
walked with and pleased God] of the heavenly, or of the [pre-tribulation] rapture of
the Church.
2. The history of Abraham and
1 At this promise Sarah
laughs in unbelief, as the crowd in the rulers house do, when Jesus announces in another form the
same truth of the resurrection.
3. The next instance is still more full
to the point. Elijah and Elisha, both saints, both
prophets, are together, when the Lord would take up Elijah into
heaven by a whirlwind. Elisha refuses to part from Elijah, though he must travel from Gilgal to
1. [
see the Hebrew]
Herein the two
are four times presented to our notice. We have the same nearness of the two,
the same passivity and instantaneousness of the separation. The way in which the
rapture is twice spoken of by the sons of the prophets is also worthy of
notice. Knowest thou that the Lord will TAKE thy master from thy head to-day? The taking was by the Lord, and it
was to enter heaven.
But there are several great differences, which require remark.
(1.) Elisha and the sons of the prophets are both aware of the day of the
rapture. (2.) Elisha, who is to be left behind, asks for a double portion of the Spirit,
and receives the promise of it under the condition
of his seeing Elijah as he goes up. And Elisha saw it. And he saw him no more. In the Saviours prophecy, the one left behind sees not the ascent, but is only cognizant of
the disappearance. (3.) Both parties were aware that the rapture was only for
Elijah. It was, therefore, no disgrace to Elisha to be left behind. He obtained
a double portion of the Spirit: though it was a hard thing, contrary that is, (I suppose,) to the tenor of the event to
be illustrated by it in after times. (4.) Elijahs rapture was not the sign of
any thing beyond itself to the men of that day. The rapture spoken of by the
Saviour is the sign of his [His] Presence.
But there is one other very interesting point. We have a third
party as spectators of the two.
The sons of the prophets in general are aware of the [Page
72] discriminating
rapture about to take place. But that is not all. Fifty of them stand to view
afar off, severed from the two
by the [river]
4. The rapture of Jesus from the
apostles is another case in point. He led them out as far as to
The Saviours ascent is also spoken of by himself in a way
that illustrates the subject. Days will come when the Bridegroom shall
be taken from them, and then shall they fast.
The passiveness of the rapt one is herein noticed, and the sorrow of those
left behind, who are [regenerate] believers
nevertheless. They could not mourn while companions of the Bridegroom: they
would after his departure. But as the loss of the company of Jesus took place
through his ascent from among them, so the joy of his company will be restored
to them by their ascending to his Presence.
(6.) The same truth, with obvious differences, appears on the
surface of the narrative of Philip and the eunuch. Philip is sent to preach to
an Ethiopian eunuch, (Isa. 56; Psa. 68: 31,) and baptizes him in the desert.
These two believers are close together, but lo! when they were come up out of
the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch
saw him no more.
The eunuch, however, unlike the warned but unwatchful householder, goes on
his way rejoicing. This rapture, too, was but a partial and typical one.
Philip was not removed from earth. Unlike Enoch, who was not
found, because God took him, Philip was found at Azotus.
(7.) As illustrating the point still further, I would offer
the case of the two witnesses, or the two martyr1 -prophets:
Rev. 11. These two prophets (being, as I [Page
74] collect, Enoch - [or possibly Moses] - and Elijah) are gifted with supernatural powers, but are slain - [by the Antichrist] - and
rise again. And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them,
Come up hither. And they
ascended up to heaven in the cloud, (Greek,) and their enemies beheld them: Rev. 11: 12. In this case the differences are
instructive, no less than the resemblances. -
Both prophets are equally faithful, and both ascend the sky
together. This is not the rapture strictly speaking of the living, but of the
dead: yet their death so resembles that of their Lord, that they remain under its power but three days and a half. They are slain, because they slay others, (verses 5, 6,)
and that because they belong not to the gospel dispensation of mercy, but to the
dispensations preceding it. The ascent of these is beheld not by friends, but
by enemies: while the [pre-tribulation] rapture
of the watchful - [and regarded
worthy to escape (Luke 21: 36. Cf.
Rev. 3: 10)] - saint is unseen by the world.
1 [The Greek
] in its fullest sense, signifies not only a witness, but a martyr.
Let me return a moment over the former ground. The great point
of the parable to the
* The following passage is quite illustrative
of disappearance being its proof of theft Petty thefts were
of nightly occurrence: Now a donkey was carried off, and now a
tent was missing. To the
Arabs, creeping out of their hiding-places (like jackals) after dark, nothing
was too small or worthless to escape notice, and the disappearance of an old
corn-sack, or a copper pot, often threw the whole encampment into commotion.
- The buried City of the East, p. 103.
It is mysterious, and therefore the more suited for a sign. It
is a mysterious absence, the token of a mysterious Presence. It is
unexpected. In such an hour as ye think not the Son of Man is coming. It is ambiguous, or at least capable of being
misunderstood; the more suited therefore to fulfil that word, [Page
75] The wise shall understand; but none of
the wicked shall understand: Dan. 12: 10. And again, Who is wise,
and he shall understand these things? prudent and he shall know them? for the ways of the Lord are right, and the just shall walk in them; but the transgressors shall fall therein: Hos. 14: 9. It is the coming of the thief;
noiselessly he takes with sound discrimination that which suits his purpose.
The taken is his elect one - To pass
away, not to be left, is the destiny of the evil [and apostate christian] generation. Verily, I say unto you, this
generation will not pass away, till all these
things be fulfilled. It in no way interferes with the world. Other things go on just as before. It
is an act, not of judgment and of slaughter, but of mercy, leaving no trace
behind it. It no more startles the ungodly from their feasts, than the raptures
of Enoch, Elijah, and the Lord Jesus, troubled the men of those days. Men are
terrified at things seen; such are the wonders of justice, which
interfere visibly with the course of the world, which touch the grass, or the
waters, or the heavenly bodies: Rev. 6: 11; Matt. 24: 31. This act takes place apparently ere the judgments of God by war or
miracle have blighted mans labours in the field [i.e., the world (Matt. 13: 22, 38, R.V.];
and while household employments are going on as usual. It takes place
before the coming of the flood: it is the Enoch rapture, disregarded or
disbelieved; yet still the token of the flood at hand: a lesson to Noah that
the time of his needing the ark is not far off. The ground of discrimination is
no external mark which could only have misled. The two in each case are of the same rank in life, not one rich and
the other poor. No external difference is seen to enhance the mystery to
1. The resurrection of Jesus in some
remarkable respects resembled the event before us. The proof that he was risen,
as given to the world on the day of his resurrection was principally negative.
The body was in the tomb, it is there no longer. Two explanations might be
given of the facts, the one of unbelief, which refused to see in it any thing
more than a natural event, and referred it to theft. His disciples
came, and stole him away while he slept.1
The other was the explanation of faith, given by the angels. He is not
here, he is risen. They rebuke the
women, appealing to prophecy. Remember how he spake unto you,
when he was yet in
1 Observe, too, the theft supposed was
of a person. Stole him
away. The theft here is of a person, but of a person alive, carried off
without resistance, and by no human hand.
2. The rising of
Lazarus takes place after Jesus had
concealed himself from the Jews, because of their making attempts upon his
life: John
7: 1; 8: 59; 10: 39. After tarrying till Lazarus had been some time dead, he
suddenly crosses the [River] Jordan,
appears in Bethany, meets those whom he loves in the presence of some who believe,
and then retires again with his disciples into a place of retreat and
concealment near the wilderness, ere he comes forth (after the supper with the
restored family) to present himself to Jerusalem, as her king: 11: 54;
12.
3. Would not the sign here given remind
the disciples (at least those three out of the four that were present) of the
sudden and secret taking to the mountain-top by night, and of the scene of
glory there displayed? That was to be kept hidden [until after His select resurrection (John 3: 13. Cf. 20: 17)]: this is a secret, though spoken
openly. How many have understood its
force? That was a vision granted to [a select group of three] apostles as evincing a faith beyond that
of their nation. And lastly, as the Saviours promise of beholding that glory
fell without any pleading it, so the hope
here supposed, and the command to
watch, have both fallen, for the most part, on ears dull of hearing [and minds not able to fully
comprehend]. Lord, be is not so
with us. As, in the sign between David and Jonathan, there was a
meaning in the words which the lad who bore his arrows knew not; a
signification in the arrow beyond him,
and the exhortation, Make speed, haste, stay not, only Jonathan and
David knew the matter, so here. The words may be lightly passed, but
there is an arrow beyond that first shot: 1 Sam. 20.
[Page 78] Was not the position of the four
disciples who heard this prophecy significant? They were taken, the other eight left.
They were on high, above unbelieving and doomed
Have not the prophets of the Old Testament given hints of this
hour? (1.) Woe is me! for I am as when
they have gathered the summer fruits, as the
grape gleanings of the vintage, there is no
cluster to eat: my soul desireth the fruit,
ripe fruit. The good man is
perished out of the earth, and there is none upright
among men; they all lie in wait for blood,
they hunt every
man his brother with a net: Micah 7: 1, 2. This is the chapter quoted by the
Lord in Matt. 10., as descriptive of the last times,
when a mans foes should be those of his
own household. (2.) Similarly the twelfth Psalm:
Help
Lord, for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men. They speak
vanity every one with his neighbour, with
flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak.
So again, The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart,
and merciful men are taken away, none
considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come: Isa. 57:
1.
I conclude, in short, that the taking is proved to be [Page
79] the [select] rapture of the watchful believer, by the following proofs. (1.) The force of the words used. (2.) The warning subjoined, which would
be quite incongruous on any other view. (3.)
The drift of the context, which implies that the leaving is the unfavourable
alternative. (4.) The connexion of
the parables which follow. Thus alone are the thief and the theft explained. (5.) Thus the leaving stands explained
as seen in the virgins suffered to stand without. (6.) Thus the connexion with the Presence is discerned. (7.) This accounts for the passivity of
the favoured one.
From the same view we learn that it is the sign of the Presence. The Presence is
a certain definite hour, and to signify it therefore a momentary sign,
definitely transacted, and noting that event to have then taken place is given.
The drawing near of a season of the year is not a definite and momentary thing,
hence its sign is of a different character.
I conclude, then, that nothing but the [coming select,
and pre-tribulation
] rapture will satisfy the conditions of the parable, and that the two are [not nominal but regenerate] believers. To unbelievers it would be
neither loss nor shame to be left. The two are suited companions of
each other, but not equally ready to be companions of
Messiah. Friend is severed from
friend, and the loss is both more
startling than that of the stranger, and
answers so nearly to the separation between the wicked and the just, as to be deeply painful to the one left
behind.
(1.)
The eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, are not the sign of
the Presence, being in fact only the ordinary course of this present evil age.
(2.) Nor is the escape into the ark
the sign of the [Page 80] Presence, but the sign of the flood, or of the
destruction at hand. (3.) Nor is the
destruction, which follows hard on that escape, the sign of the Saviours
Presence, but only the effect of the day of the Lord: 1 Thess. 5: 2, 3. The day of the Lord is so coming as a thief in the night.
then sudden destruction cometh upon them.
Let a word be added, instituting a brief comparison of the Fig Tree (B 1) and the Days of Noah (B 2.) They are both of them signs; the
first, of the end of the Age; the second, of the Presence of the Son of Man.
The signs of the Day of the Lord, as given in 2 Thess. 2, are evil: consisting, (1) in the
apostacy from the Christian faith, and (2) the appearing of the man of sin. As the
day is a terrible and evil day, the signs of it appropriately are the
development of the sin of men. But the sign of the end of this present evil
age, as it is also the sign of the coming of a better, is as appropriately, a
good thing. It is also (as Luke informs us)
the sign of the coming of the
The Jewish nation, Gods fruit-tree on earth, are the sign of
the winter passing away, and of the summer coming to the earth. They are the
sign of the Jewish or earthly thing - the End of the Age as affecting the
earth. But [Page 81] the church is the sign to the Jew of the heavenly thing the Presence
of Christ - which is kept hidden from both the Jew and the world, till, the
court having been held and the respective places of the servants of Messiah
having been adjusted, the glory bursts forth both to the Jew and to the world.
The Fig Tree exhibits the remnant of
Both these periods - the End of the
Age, and the Rapture - will take place at times unknown therefore says Jesus
once and again, Ye know neither the day nor the hour.
The Fig Tree is not the sign of the Presence. The sign of the
coming age of glory is the return of the Jew to his land, his softening, his
returning to the fulfilment of those rites which Moses commanded. These suppose
the rebuilding of the
In the Days of Noah, as
well as in the
Fig Tree, [Page
82] the Jewish
remnant and the evil generation
occur. The Fig Tree gave the state of these,
their tenderness or hardness under the judgments of God; the Days of Noah
gives the destiny of the two
bodies. The Jewish elect have their present escape into their appointed
chambers till the indignation is overpast, in order to their ultimate enjoyment
of Messiahs [millennial] kingdom now near at hand. The generation is found in
unbelief; and swept away. There is, however, in the latter parable a third body
which is made a sign of the Presence to the Jew; a body whose escape and
judgment both take place secretly in the hidden pavilion of the Son of Man. Thus
all the three great parties are seen as related to the Presence. (1.) The
Jewish elect and (2.) the evil generation, are both ripe; the one for
preservation, the other for destruction. (3.) But in the
1 In the flight of the Christians of
Jerusalem to
Thus the favoured Jew escapes the destruction, but passes
through the surges of that day: the watchful saint escapes not only the
destruction, but its day. The Presence in the latter of the two parables is twice mentioned. As the Days
of Noah, so the Presence of
the Son of
The first time exhibits its aspect
towards the Gentile and elect of the Jews: its aspect of sparing or of
destruction. It looks backward to that view of it which had been given in the former
portion of the prophecy. From the Presence of the Lord wrath to the evil
frequently went forth. The earth was corrupt in the Presence of God: And God said unto Noah, the
end of all flesh is come before me: Gen.
6: 11, 13. So at
Thus the taking and the leaving have two fronts, the one the
exterior, affording to the elect of Israel the proof of Messiahs descent to
save: the other is the door into the heavenlies, through which Jesus passes, and
leads his people into the interior of the mysterious Presence, disclosing its
principles, and addressing to them warnings, as the needful preparatives for
his servants joyful meeting with him.
It results from what has been said, that the usual ideas of
Christians concerning their true hope have swerved from the truth. The ascent
to heaven of the
disembodied [animating] spirit at death is the hope of most [Presbyterians], as though all the dead in Christ were there. The taking of the living to heaven WITHOUT DEATH is
the true hope of the Christian. The taken tastes not of death at all. Those
taken to the Transfiguration should not taste of death, till they had entered
that representation of the [Page 85] kingdom. Those taken to the Real Presence shall not
taste of death after they have entered it. The resurrection of the saintly
dead at Jesus descent from on high, is
the right expectation concerning the departed. The Virgins throws some light on this. The
sleepers, even the wise virgins, have to go to meet the bridegroom, they are not locally in his Presence till
they arise.
The one who is left then, no less,
than the one who is taken, is a believer. Could the one who is permitted to remain
on earth be robbed,
unless the taking were for glory, and both were joint heirs of the
same hope, which is instantly realized to the one, but deferred for a long unnamed, and uncertain time to the other?
Faith alone understands the loss of being left on the earth, and realizes the
glory into which the other is translated. To unbelief the sudden disappearance
were mystery and terror, and the ungodly would be thankful to be allowed to
linger on earth. He would account for the startling fact on some natural and
earthly principle, or consider it a deceit adroitly practised upon him by his
comrade. Even the children of the prophets refused to acknowledge Elijahs
sudden removal as a translation to heaven. Has any but a believer, again, been
made the witness of the removal to glory? Is not Gods great work revealed to
faith alone, till the Great Manifestation comes, and every eye is compelled to
behold?
The left one then is a [regenerate] believer; he knows the meaning of the sudden vanishing of his friend but knows it
only to his sorrow. The Lord thus rebukes him as unwatchful. For the Lords
secret coming takes a very different face, according to the spiritual position
in which it finds the believer. Is he unwatchful? The coming is the knock [Page
86] of a thief breaking at one
stroke into his house: Rev. 3: 3. Is he watchful? It is the knock of a
friend long desired entering in to sup with
his friend.
If, on the other hand, the one taken be a believer, but the one
left an unbeliever, then the Saviours lesson is not only lost, but inverted. Instead of acting as a keen lesson to the saints
to be vigilant at all times, it will have the effect of an opiate - [i.e., a drug containing opium to
induce sleep.]. Then its strain must be as follows. O
happy believer! come Christ when he may, you are always ready. Fear not! Though
you pamper the lusts of the flesh, though you are seeking to heap up riches as
the sand, though you love the world, and mingle in all its gaieties, you will
sustain no damage. Fear not! None but the wicked will be left. Sleep on and
take your rest! This is the view, though not so broadly expressed, of those who hold - [that regeneration only will qualify all Christians for escape, and] - that attention to prophecy - [and the numerous scriptural warnings
and conditional promises (1 Cor. 10: 5, 11; Col. 3: 25; cf.
Rev. Chs. 2.
& 3.] - is a needless and a dangerous
study: needless, because preparation for death is enough; and dangerous, because it leads to such enthusiasm.
I must stand then by the interpretation which gives to Jesus
words their highest force, which really ministers the most potent motive to
vigilance; which, while it acknowledges the perseverance and final salvation of
the saint, preaches yet the differences, great and eternal, of reward according to works.
The idea that we may substitute readiness for death in the place of readiness for the reappearing of Jesus must be rebuked,
even if we could not discern any difference between the working of the two
motives. God has given one object; at your peril, preacher, do you substitute
another, and say that it will do as well! Are you wiser than God? But it is
false. Death is not the hope of [Page 87] the believer, our
unclothing is not joyous: at the death of no saint does
the Son of Man appear in the clouds with power and great glory, terrifying the nations, and gathering in his Jewish elect. Again, the only preparation supposed
to be required for death is simply conversion, or the being born again, which
is, indeed, the ground of beholding into
the kingdom, but is not preparedness
for the Lords Presence. Beyond that first step of the Christians career
Jesus requires the standing aloof from
the love of the present evil world,
and from entanglement with its honours,
pleasures, cares. Beyond the
absolute question of entrance into, or shutting out from, the kingdom of glory,
lies the farther one of our place there
as one of honour or dishonour, to
which motive the believer it is supposed is, or ought to be, fully alive. Many will finally be
saved, who will escape only as the inmates of a house on fire. The ten virgins
all fall asleep alike, but the wise rise to joy and honour, the foolish to rebuke and disappointment.
Death separates believer from unbeliever eternally, for a time it severs between believer and
believer, but for that apostolic comfort is provided, in the Presence of Jesus
being at hand, when that barrier shall be removed; for to him the waking and
the sleeping are alike. But to the one left behind at the Lords Presence, what
comfort is there?
The expectation of death is the prospect of nature,
not of faith. Our expectation
of death and of the Lords coming are opposite poles. Do we in our thoughts
push the Lords coming into the far distant horizon? Then the nearest point at
which eternity meets us, is at the unwelcome season of our unclothing, even
death. Do [Page 88] we bring near our Lords return? Then ours maybe the blessed
portion of being caught up to meet the Lord without tasting of death. Observe, too, how instantly the creeping unbelief of the Lords coming affects the
heart; and through the heart, the conduct. The steward becomes evil
in his actions, both towards the world, the church, and the Lord, the moment he
entertains it. It was not that he disbelieved the reality or nearness of death. He knew, that
to him as well as to the ungodly death was as near in his days, as in the days
of Moses. Let none then attempt to
shuffle away Gods motive of the required preparedness for Jesus return, in the vain assumption that preparedness for death
is fully equivalent thereto.
Then comes the exhortation founded
upon this scene.
Watch, therefore; for ye know not at what hour
your Lord is coming.
1. In the former part of the passage,
where the reference was especially to the Jew and the world, the coming is
entitled twice, that of the Son of Man. Here it is the coming of your Lord. What can this
signify then, but that the parties so discriminated are both servants of the Lord
Jesus?1 (l.) This accounts for the
exhortation. The servants of the Saviour will be dealt with as they are watchful or unwatchful. Both then are
disciples of Jesus. But the ground of their different lot is, that the one is
watchful the other [Page 89] unwatchful. Here therefore, servants of the Lord, is
your lesson! Take heed that you be found expectant: else yours will be the
shame of being left when your fellow is taken to glory. (2.) It is not that of
the two one is holy and the other wicked. Else the exhortation has no hold. Be converted therefore,
had then been the appropriate admonition. But watch is the Saviours
injunction. Now watchfulness
is something which would
inappropriately be pressed upon the ungodly. They must be renewed,
ere they can see the
1 Two comings are supposed here. The flood came. Your Lord is
coming. The one then has reference to the destruction of the world, and
the escape of Noah. The other to the different lot of Noah and Enoch, or Enoch
and Elijah.
(3.) Only on this supposition do the Parables which follow
carry out the text, and the exhortations which follow only thus agree with the
scene which serves as their starting point and foundation.
To conclude: How has the real doctrine of the Presence of
Jesus been falsified by
* *
*
[Page 90]
CHAPTER 5
THE THREE COMPANIONSHIPS
IT has
been observed before, that the word translated taking1 occurs in three
very remarkable and leading passages of the gospel history. On these occasions
the Lord Jesus singled out three of the principal of his apostles, and
presented to their eyes some wonderful scenes, two of which were to be kept as secrets. They are all related by the three
first Gospels, and therefore constitute essential features of that history in
the mind of God. I take leave to call these acts of honourable discrimination
on the part of our Lord - CONPANIONSHIPS.
1 1st occasion: Mark 5:
37, 40. 2nd
occasion: Matt. 17:
1, Luke 9:
28. 3rd occasion: Matt. 26: 37.
I. The FIRST of these is at the raising of the daughter of Jairus.2 Of the three Mark
and Luke are the fullest: but the connexion
is more clear to my eye in Matthew than in
the others.
2 Narrated, Matt
9: 18-26;
Mark 5: 22-43; Luke 8: 41-56.
In the commencement of the ninth of Matthew,
Jesus discloses his power to forgive sins, and by way of proof gives the
removal of bodily ills as connected with sin.
[Page 91]
But
Jesus is addressed by Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue, requesting
him to come and heal his daughter, who was at the point of death. His was a
little faith. He believed that Jesus could heal, but not, as the centurion,
that he could heal at a distance. Come, and
lay thine hands upon her, and she shall live.
On his way thither, the woman with the issue of blood steals a
cure, but is detected, and the Saviours knowledge is proved, while she is
dismissed in peace.
Have we not here the Jew unclean - through his vain attempt to
establish his own righteousness - at length cleansed by faith in the
righteousness of the Son of God? To point out the proofs would detain me too
long.
Jesus delay on the road had given time for death to seize the
daughter of Jairus, and now certain messengers come from the rulers house. - Thy daughter
is dead: trouble not the teacher. Their unbelief
is manifest.
[Page 92]
They recognize in Jesus the Teacher only, and consider death as beyond his power. The
Saviour therefore sustains by a word of comfort the fainting faith of Jairus, Fear not,
believe only, and she
shall be made whole.
But since such unbelief had been manifested in the crowd
outside, he suffers them not to enter. So we see they could not enter in, because of unbelief. Only Peter,
James,1 and John are taken within.
1 Do we not sometimes miss connections with the Old Testament
history by translating [
see Greek] Jacob by James, and
Judah by Judas? Gen. 37: 26, 27.
But there were those within the rulers house: what was to be done with them? They were weeping
and wailing, as those who had no hope. The Lord puts them also to the
test. Could they own him as the Son of Man, possessing the power of
resurrection in himself? Why make ye this ado and weep? The maid is not dead but sleepeth.
And they laughed him to scorn: (Matthew,
Mark, Luke.) They were not the sons of Abraham
then: they believe not in a God that raises the dead. He puts them all out. They shall not
see this great sight. Only Peter, James, and John, and the father and mother of
the damsel shall be in the Presence of the Prince of Life when he recalls the
sleeper. Talitha koumi, Damsel,
I say unto thee, arise! She arises! Even they are greatly
astonished. They are then commanded to keep the thing a secret. He charged
them straitly (strictly) that no one should know it. What means that? Is it not that unbelievers shall not be aware of the
resurrection of the just, even after it has taken place?
The first resurrection of those asleep in Jesus shall have taken place long ere it be known to
those without. [Page 93] It is a secret for the saint to enjoy by himself, till
he and they appear together in the glory. The dead and living believers shall
be in the Lords Presence together, and they alone. Those in possession of the house are not only no better, but
worse than those outside. Utters not that a prophetic warning that in the last
days, the main body of professors, shall
give up faith in [Sheol / Hades
and in a select] resurrection,
and furnish out of their own number the scoffers, who jest at the idea of any violation of the laws of nature?
These, as useless salt, are cast out.
After so great an exhibition of power, the twelve are sent forth. The kingdom may
indeed be proclaimed as near. The dead are [yet to be] raised!
In the incidents that occur between this and the next
companionship, there is much instruction. But I hasten to the next act, and
will only touch on its more immediate introduction.
II. The circuit
of the twelve through
Such being the views of the multitudes, Jesus would call forth the higher
faith of his true disciples. Whom did they say that he was? Peter makes
answer, that he was the Messiah, the Son of the
living God. The
first word of the confession did not advance beyond [Page 94] the proper Jewish expectation: but
the concluding part does. That Jesus was the Son of the living God, was somewhat for which the Jews in
general were unprepared. They did not believe then, and do not now, that the
Messiah is to be anything more than a man, though the greatest of men.1 But Peters confession acknowledged
him as a Divine Person.
1 The discovery that the Christians
regarded Jesus as more than man, and worshipped
him, appears to have been the stimulating motive of zeal which led on Paul against
them. And when he is converted, his first discourse to the Jews is to prove
that Messiah is a divine Person: Acts 9: 20.
His acknowledgment Jesus takes up, and commends as the proof
of a higher revelation than any discovery which the natural sense of man could
have made. Jesus then expounds the consequences of that confession. As Son of
God he would be manifested to be so by his power of rising from the
dead; and not only so, but he would raise his sleeping saints, so
that the gates of Hades should not prevail against them.
On himself as the Son of God risen [out] from the dead, and therefore an immovable rock, the church should be built, and to Peter should be given the power, not
only of preaching the gospel of the
kingdom, but of excluding from millennial glory, in the way of discipline.
On this lofty discovery, therefore, of the glory of Messiahs
nature, a more exalted body than the Jewish nation was to be erected, and an
answerably loftier glory in the [coming] kingdom was to be granted. Hereupon the Lords title of
Messiah was to be dropped.
And as rejected in that character, his lot thenceforth [Page
95] was to experience
suffering and death. From that time began Jesus to show unto his
disciples that he must go unto
The lot of the Teacher was to be the lot of the disciple also; not only in the way of rejection, but even to the surrender of life. But such temporary loss would be more than requited when the Son of Man (the title of Messiah being now
dropped) should come in his Fathers glory.
Hereupon follows the promise specially connected with the subject
before us, that some of those standing there among the living should not taste
of death, till they saw the Son of Man coming in his kingdom; or, as Mark
and Luke express it, the kingdom of God coming in
power.
No one, it appears, asked the Lord to be partaker of the
promise; but grace selects those to whom this discovery should be made. Messiah chooses his companions. And after six days,
JESUS TAKETH Peter and James, and
John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart. Thus the three who see the glory of
the transfiguration before death are types
of those favoured saints, who, without tasting death, shall ascend to the presence of the
Lord. Thus, too, we have a type of the [select] rapture as well as of the [subsequent select] resurrection, and
of the union of the saints of the
church with those of [Page
96] the Old
Testament in the [millennial] glory. Moses and Elias are there; 1 but flesh and
blood cannot inherit the
1 These great saints were watchers: for forty days had each been sustained
of God, and taken to his peculiar presence-chamber. Show
me thy glory, was Moses petition. Ages pass, and now Moses looks on
the face of the Son of God in his glory, and is not consumed.
2 At the western side of
Moses and Elias [i.e., Elijah] return
in the cloud whence the Fathers voice proceeds. They are sons seated in the
chariot of heaven, partakers of the [future] glory. For the present it returns without Jesus, for his humiliation was
not yet accomplished; and the three favoured ones are sore afraid, both at the
glory and the voice; for as yet they knew not the Fathers voice, and flesh and
blood may not hear it unmoved.
[Page 97]
The state of things which they find on descending from the
mount is also typical. The disciples fail to eject an evil spirit through want
of faith and prayer, and the scribes seem to have taken advantage of it to
enter into unfriendly discussion with them - types of the mockers of the last
days. Jesus descends with a severe rebuke in his mouth against the unbelieving
generation, but he comes also with triumphant power over the evil spirit. I say unto thee, come out of him and enter no
more into him; where the I is emphatic.
The scene, too, of the glory was to be a secret. And as they
came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, Tell the vision to
no man, until the Son of Man be risen [out] from the dead. The [select] resurrection of the dead then, and especially of Jesus,
is the key to the matter. Only thus will the living and the
dead be united in the [coming
millennial] kingdom.
III. I would now first sketch the general
scheme of the intermediate events ere the THIRD
COMPANIONSHIP.
After the glory of the mount, comes the second notice of
Jesus death: 17: 22. He waives his right of exemption in regard to the tribute-money; though possessed
of the heavenly glory, he bows to his present apparent place. The right of
retaining offences is shown to be unsuited to the heavenly standing of the sons
of God, inheritors by grace of the heavenly kingdom: 18. The law of marriage now is not to admit
of the fleshly licentiousness of the Jew, but there was a surrender of even
marriage, in hope of the better blessings of the kingdom: 19. The self-denial of exchanging
present riches for the better wealth of the kingdom to come, would meet its
sure reward. Yet, even in the [Page 98] distribution of reward according to works, the
sovereignty of God would find room for its display: 20. For the third time, Jesus foretells
his betrayal and violent death, 17. There are degrees of glory in the coming kingdom; but they
are to be obtained, not by the arts of ambition and intrigue, but by lowly service to the saints, and
proportionate suffering for Christ. 20.
At this point we are conducted again to Jewish ground. During
the intermediate period we have scarcely a note of the places where the Lords
words of wisdom were uttered. But now, Jesus having passed through the eastern
region of the Holy Land, or the parts beyond Jordan, he is found passing out of
Jericho, and is there addressed by his proper Jewish title, as son of David. Once beyond the city of the curse, (Deut. 30: 1, 10,) Jesus enters the strict land of the
promise, prepared to approach the city of the Great King in his royal style, as
foretold by the prophets.1 There was a spark
of faith in the blind men of Jericho, and he meets it.
1 Answerably to this, the Mount of Transfiguration is
un-named and unknown; but the mount where
The entry into
The Lord then foretells to the disciples apart, the sad scenes
which were to fill up the time of his absence. Then, immediately after the
narrative of Jesus rejection by
1 This gives us a hint who the False
Prophet is to be: Rev. 13: 11, 12; of which I may say more on another occasion,
the Lord willing.
Whence I gather, that the parable of the Householder expresses
the result of the Saviours secret coming to the unwatchful and unprayerful.
They are left on earth - when
the watchful are rapt on high - left, to pass through the hour of the falling away, and the sore time of temptation.
But the scene in the garden was not a perfect specimen of that day, for none were found watchful,
and none therefore escaped the sifting time permitted to Satan. But then, some
will be taken on high, and those left behind will be almost immediately in the
very whirlpool of that day of trouble.
The companionship in
How dark that day will be, we may read in the typical samples
of it before us. Satans whole power is put forth. Satan has obtained
permission to sift,1 and the worlds power seconds him. With a
hypocritical kiss, Judas, moved by avarice [greed for money], betrays.2
Jesus is numbered with the robbers. False witnesses rise up against him. An
unjust sentence goes forth from him who should be holy to the Lord. But, while
he rends his garment, (a [Page
102] thing forbidden to
the High Priest,) the Lord rends away the priesthood from him, (Matt. 26: 65; 1 Sam. 15: 27,) and gives it to a neighbour of his better
than himself. The very servants then proceed to treat the Lord with scorn. The
disciples flee; Peter denies, and though the predicted signs occur, he
notices them not, till Jesus look recalls him to repentance. Judas despairs,
and hangs himself. The prophecies are fulfilled, which foretell
1 Not simply desired
to have you. [the Greek word
] means has begged till he has
obtained.
2
Judas is but the
But after this apparent victory on the part of man and Satan,
Gods triumph begins.
On the third morning, the sentence of death against Jesus is
repealed by God in [His] resurrection: and the vain attempt of man to hinder, is scattered by a
single angel. There is much stir and inquiry about the opened and empty tomb.
But both the world and the disciples join to refuse, as an idle tale, the true
explanation.
i. There are then two meetings with Jesus risen. First, the
watchful women who went early to the sepulchre, (I am now following Matthews
account, 28: 9,)
hold him by the feet and worship him. This was an [Page 103] unexpected and unforetold meeting. Then, unbelief on the part of
the Jewish ecclesiastics and Roman governor, puts forth its foolish and wicked
theory of the resurrection, and is believed. Finally there is a foretold second meeting,
with Jesus at the mountain 1 which
Jesus had appointed them.
This was probably the spot where five hundred brethren at once saw Jesus. The
elect are safely gathered at last to THE
PRESENCE, and worship. With instructions issued thence, the gospel closes.2
1 To
opos. Was it not that of the Transfiguration?
2 They worshipped him, but some doubted. The doubt refers I believe to the lawfulness of worshipping
Jesus. This was not on the part of the twelve, but of the others.
Similarly when Lazarus is raised, there are two meetings with
Jesus. First Martha approaches, and then Mary and those who had abode with her
in the house; Jesus being all the while, as we are told, in the same place: John 11.
In spite of Satans power and mans devices, the disciples -
the day of temptation over - meet in the Saviours Presence. How appropriate a
close of the gospels! So shall we be ever with the Lord.
The Lord hasten it!
The three companionships then discover to us Jesus taking his
people to see his glory and his sufferings. The Presence after the resurrection
offers to us Jesus glory as the risen. In the chamber of Jairus we see the power of Jesus; on the Mount of
Transfiguration we have the Presence. Peter puts the two together. We have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made
known to you the power and Presence of our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 Pet. 1: 16. The first was his power as Messiah: the second his greater glory as the [Page
104] Son of Man but his Presence
after the resurrection discovered him as the Son of God: Rom. 1: 4. The
two companionships of glory are in Galilee: the sad one beside
The Saviour on the Mount of Transfiguration was rather in
company with Moses and Elias, than with the three apostles. But after the
resurrection he has the fullest intercourse with them. He is alone with them, while the world believes not. In Jairus chamber
another is raised: in the upper room, Jesus risen self is there. He ascends
the mount naturally; then glory for an hour bursts forth from him. He enters
the upper room supernaturally, and though no brightness flashes from him, yet
this his prerogative he thenceforth always exerts, and ends his earthly
companionship by the power of ascension. The glory of transfiguration is on the mount by night,
seen by few: the glory at the entry into
[Page 105]
The same parties are found at the transfiguration, and amidst
the
A distinct and succinct account of some of the diversities
with which the four Evangelists relate the post-resurrection Presence, may lead
others to examine the question further. i. I have spoken before of Matthews narrative. ii. Mark exhibits the witness of angels
to the resurrection, the testimonies of Mary, and of the two from Emmaus. Yet
in spite of all, they disbelieve. Then comes Jesus, and rebukes these his disciples for their
unbelief. He gives them the promise of miracles as the signs of the coming [millennial] age of glory. Is it any marvel, then,
if these gifts come into question again at Jesus returned Presence? Rebuke of disciples is once, and again
apart of the business of the Presence. Brethren, watch!
iii. Luke narrates the angels recalling a
prophecy of [Page 106] Jesus to the memories of the women; and the Lords
intercourse with the two going to Emmaus, in which he reproves them for
believing a part only of the Old Testament prophecy. Thus the especial usefulness
of prophecy, both of the Old
and New Covenants, is commended to our notice. This topic Peter touches. The
two are rebuked as fools. Yet they are disciples. Behold then a proof that even [regenerate] believers may be fools, if they
receive not the whole of
Gods testimony. Then the five foolish virgins may still be [regenerate] believers. As of old the prophets
seemed to contradict themselves, affirming both the humiliation and exaltation
of Messiah; so now the secret and the open coming of the Lord - the coming with
signs, and without - appear contradictory testimonies. But faith receives both.
The two disciples press him to stay. He goes in and sups with them, according to the promise
to the church at
iv. John tells us of the unbeliever
absent when the Saviour first appeared, but of his subsequent conviction, and
of his partaking the joy of the Presence. Peters denials are remembered and
gently reproved. The Lord then exhibits the two great classes in reference to
his return - the sleepers, and those tarrying till then. But he will not say in
which class any shall be found.
* *
*
[Page 107]
CHAPTER 5
THE HOUSEHOLDER AND
THIEF
B. 3.
But that ye know, that if the master of the house had known at what watch the
thief is coming, he would have watched and would
not have suffered his house to be broken through. Wherefore do you too be ready; for in the
hour that ye think not, the Son of Man is coming.
THE taking and the leaving is the sign of the Presence. Now a
sign was something miraculous. If this be the rapture, this issue is in
accordance with the expectation and the desire of the parties asking it. It is
suitable, that the sign of a supernatural event or period like the Presence,
should have a supernatural sign as its proof. The more removed from the common
order of things the better is the sign, because less liable to be mistaken.
As we have come to the conclusion that both the taken and the
left are believers of the church, we see how appropriately the rapture of the
watchful believer becomes the door into those parables which apply to the
church. Jesus having presented this GREAT FACT, now proceeds to expatiate on its
significance. Though the sign of the Presence be given to the Jew, yet most appropriately are the
scenes, both outside of this door and within it, set before the apostles.
Though at the time the Saviour addressed them, they believed neither the death
nor [Page 108] resurrection of their Lord, (on which great doctrines the Church of Christ
is founded,) they were yet, in a brief space of time to receive these
fundamental truths, and to pass from their standing as Jews waiting on Messiah
in the flesh, to that of Christians waiting for the Son of God from heaven.
The application of this parable and of the three which
immediately follow it, the Steward, Virgins, and Talents, is directly to the church. I
call them, as has been before noted, the Presence
parables. The first of
them is manifestly in closest connexion with the taking and leaving.
Two women shall be grinding at the
mill; one is taken, and one is left. Watch, therefore, for ye know not
in what kind of season (hour) your Lord is coming. As if the Saviour had said - The
mysterious sign I have exhibited to your notice has especial reference to those who own me as their Lord. Do you
ask, why this difference of treatment in two cases so nearly resembling each
other? I answer, the difference hinges on the different spiritual state of the
two. The watchful one is caught up to me and my glory; the unwatchful is left
to earth at its highest tide of sins and sorrows, temptations and judgments. As
then you would not lose the first entrance into the glory, as you would escape
the surges of that day of peril, watch!
This is its evident and intelligible connexion with the
preceding mysterious disappearance. We have then another proof that the taking
is the rapture of the [watchful
and obedient (Psa. 51: 11. Cf.
Acts 5: 32,
R.V.)] saint.
But another point is added; the suddenness and unexpectedness
of the event. At what season it shall be, whether of the day, month, or year,
you are ignorant. Be always watchful, therefore: let the uncertainty keep [Page 109] you ever vigilant. Watch, therefore, for ye know not when the master of the house is coming:
at even, or at midnight,
or at the cock-crowing, or
in the morning: lest coming suddenly, he find you sleeping:
Mark 13: 35, 36.
The Lord is arguing upon the well understood and admitted
principles of human nature. Though ignorant of the time of your Lords return,
yet that you acknowledge, 1 that in case
intelligence were brought to a householder that on a certain night, a thief, (not
many thieves, for he might dread them and call in aid,) would attempt to break
into his house; his immediate question would be - At
what hour may I expect him? But suppose the reply to be: At what hour he will come I cannot tell; but it will be sometime
in the midnight watch. The
Lord Jesus supposes, that in such a case, a man through the desire of saving
his property, would be content to spend the three hours of that watch on the
alert, though he might find it too long to attempt to sit up all night. By such
a measure of self-denial, he would escape loss. The thief, finding the master
stirring, either would not make the attempt to enter, or would be baffled at
finding his coming expected.
1 [The Greek words
] Wrongly translated in the imperative, But know this. Its force is thereby lost. Nor is the
word,
but
But I proceed to discuss the parable more methodically, by
considering its material ground-work in four points of view.
1. What is the house?
2. Who is the householder?
3. Who is the thief?
4. What is the theft?
[Page
110]
1. The house here, is I believe the faith of
the Christian. It does not describe in this place the collective oneness of the church, which is sometimes
represented as a house: (Mark 13.; Heb. 3: 6.) It is taken in an individual sense, as at the
close of the sermon on the mount; where Jesus compares two disciples to two
builders of a house. The faith of each is, spiritually considered, the house in
which he dwells. His adding to the truths already known by him is his edifying in the faith.
Hence the house of some is more spacious and orderly than that of others. But
every [regenerate] believer is a householder. Only there
is this difference between the present case and that of the sermon on the mount,
that there the question is of the buildings fall or stedfastness here the
damage is only that of a breach in the wall or door, sufficient for the thiefs
entrance.
2. But if the house be faith, the
householder can be none other than the child of faith, who dwells beneath its
shelter, whose promises are the staff of his life, and whose hope constitutes
his treasure within. Then both the householders implied in the parable are believers. Their
difference of destiny springs from difference of watchfulness: in other points
they stand on the same footing. The two are before us still; the Lord is leading us to contemplate
the principles, involved. The reason assigned for watchfulness is the Masters coming.
The taking and the leaving, are the results of that, coming to the watchful and
unwatchful respectively. The time is uncertain. This appears in the position
occupied by the
two. They are caught
amidst their ordinary occupations. Would this be the case had notice beforehand been given?
[Page
111]
3. But who is the thief? Evidently the
Lord Jesus. The comer is the Lord. Ye know not what hour your Lord doth
come. In such an hour as ye think not the
Son of Man is coming. Had he known in what watch the thief is
coming, he would have watched. It is the Presence of Jesus that is
in question. The taking is by him and to him. More than once he testified to
his thief-like approach. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief: Rev.
3: 3. Behold, I come as a thief, Blessed is he
that watcheth and keepeth his garments, lest he
walk naked and they see his shame: Rev.
16: 15. Is now the thief the Lord Jesus? Then
the taking is his proper act in that capacity; an act of favour and companionship. As seen from earth, Jesus is
the thief, stealing away whom he will. As seen from on high, he is Messiah calling to him his chief
and choice companions for the [promised
inheritance
(Ps. 2: 8) and manifested] glory.
(1.) His Presence is thief-like from its concealment. He is near to
the spot whence he steals, but he does not leave his thicket of ambush. He is
hidden, both when his hand is put forth to take, and when it is withdrawn from
earth.
(2.) It is thief-like in its intent. Jesus means secretly to remove from earth the jewels of
heaven. And, as Bacon says, there is no secrecy like
celerity: like the motion of a bullet in the air, which speeds so fast that it
outruns the eye.
(3.) It is so in its result - But a few minutes ago, a purse of gold was
lying on yonder table; now it is gone! How it was borne away, or who
did it, may be a mystery, but that some hand was laid on it I am confident. That the purse was, and is
not, is proof sufficient. So [Page 112] in the case given above. yonder are two men at work! Now, (or my senses
deceive me,) there is but one! O
then some wondrous thief has been at work! The theft is the proof of the thief.
4 It is thief-like in the intelligent estimation of the two. If before an adept thief were
set two candlesticks of like pattern, but the one plated and the other silver,
I should infer, if he left one, when he might have taken both, that the one
taken was the silver one. The leaving would then be the proof of the
comparative disregard of the article left. This has been already noticed, but
it has its place here also.
5. The act is thief-like also in the
loss inflicted by his visit. One of the householders
is robbed. His house is broken into, himself is left to mourn. In the disappearance of the one, and
the damage to the other,
the action resembles that of a thief.
Noiselessness, invisibility, rapidity, amplitude of booty
taken, constitute together the boast of the thief. All these are in perfection
exhibited here.
But there axe peculiarities about this thief. (1.) Other thieves steal what is not
theirs, this thief takes his own. (2.)
Other thieves steal goods, this thief steals men, yet is blameless. (3.) Other thieves come to kill and
destroy; but this one steals that the stolen one may have life more abundantly.
(4.) Human thieves come without
notice of their intention given. Jesus first gives the householder notice of
his design. (5.) Human thieves
purloin earthly things on earth, this thief steals heavenly things from earth
to set them in heaven. (6.) The
human thief prefers the night, the heavenly one steals in broad noon. (7.) Thieves in general avoid the [Page
113] presence of
witnesses as fatal to their design; the thief from heaven bears away his prey before witnesses, and is not seen. (8.) For this thief is invisible, and
makes his booty invisible too. No sooner is his hand laid on it, than it is out
of sight! (9.) Nor is the abode to
which he takes his captive a robbers den, but the Presence of [heavenly] glory and of God! May we be so stolen from earth! To the robbed one
something is not. His position then is described by that word
which (as regards the Presence) is negative. He is left.
But if watchful, would not both parties be left?
In human similar circumstances, this would be the case. The thieves of
earth carry of goods, not their masters. But here the theft is a person, the thief removes the one he values.
4. But what is the theft, or thing stolen? (1.) The watchful saint. It is felt as a
theft by the one left behind. The one taken forgets, in the Presence of his
Lord and the glory, earth and its cares. The one left is the robbed. He has
lost his fellow and his friend. He cannot but feel his loss. Did not Elisha
mourn when Elijah was taken? My father, my father, the
chariot of
[*
Beware of those who give the Lords redeemed people a false hope - by neglecting His warnings and conditional
truths!]
Be ye also ready. Readiness is always readiness to be taken,
not to be left. The unready are left behind, as the foolish virgins,
and the unwatchful steward.*
[* Keep in mind: It is required in stewards, that
a man be found faithful (1 Cor. 4: 2, R.V.).]
The command to watch itself supposes the truth of our interpretation.
For watchfulness is no security against a robber, or an army,
or the wrath of God. To have
seen the first drop of the rain of the flood, or the first flake of brimstone
descend on
The parable then, it appears, is so constructed as especially
to apply to the case of the one left behind. Jesus supposes before him a house
broken into by a thief at night, and valuable goods carried off. Before us is
the master, who as soon as he rises in the morning discovers his loss. He
traces the way by which the thief entered, he notes sorrowfully his valuables
no longer in their places. But the thief is gone! We pity the poor man. It was
no fault of his that thus he suffered. But suppose now, that the day before the robbery, notice was given him of
the thiefs design. Suppose further, that in spite of this intelligence he took no precaution, but went to
bed as usual, and slept as soundly and
as long. [Page 115] Then our pity would cease. It
was his own fault that he was thus robbed!
The application of the parable is now easy. Since such a measure of warning as I have supposed would be
sufficient in things of this world to keep a householder in a state of
vigilance during the time when his earthly interests were threatened, so the same measure of intelligence afforded
to you concerning my secret coming entitles me to require of you a like
vigilance. As the householder would receive, not pity, but blame, who,
under the circumstances in question should neglect to watch, so with
yourselves. I have described to you the watch, though I cannot define at what
hour of it I may come. Be you then as
ready as the warned householder, for
the same motives apply to you. You know that I shall come as the thief; you
are taught too that my secret coming will be with loss to you, if you are unwatchful and unready. You have the
same partial
knowledge, the same partial ignorance with
the householder. The thief, you know, is coming.
Be watchful! The thief is coming, you know not when. You must supply then,
by watchfulness, the deficiency in the intelligence granted. The special time
is purposely withheld from you, that you may be kept always on your watch-tower.
But (the Lord Jesus goes on
to imply,) though have I given this warning, and disclosed the
loss to be endured by the unwatchful, half of my church will be asleep, and
will incur the damage foretold. I
ask of believers, no more than prudence would both demand
and receive from a worldly man; yet earthly
hopes and fears keep awake the householder of the world, but heavenly hopes and [Page
116] fears will not
suffice, with many of the saints, to keep them spiritually awake!
Yet will all such be inexcusable to every eye.
Thus the [select] rapture has two aspects. (1.) To
the Jew it is the sign of the Presence. (2.)
To the unwatchful saint it is the sign of the Hour of Temptation, and a theft inflicted on him in consequence of his spiritual slumber.
1
1 In Mark 13 the porter is
commanded to watch in a house
not his own. The Householder is thrown upon watching in his own house by
a sense of his own interest. In the one case the danger is lest the Master find
him asleep. In the other, the thief departs, the only trace being the loss
sustained.
The sleep in this parable is moral sleep, and hence loss
or reward turns upon it. But even spiritual slumber has two faces. Here the
sleep is imprudent, as
interfering with a mans own interests. At the close of the prophecy in Mark 13 the sleep is sinful,
as being contrary to the masters
command, and the servants duty. Thus it stands distinguished from the virgins sleep,
which is (1) alike participated by
all, (2) was not the subject of any
command, and (3) inflicts no loss on
any.
In the literal part, the householder is on the housetop by
day. He is not to seek to save his goods within the house but, leaving them, to
flee before the advancing foe for his life. In the parable, it is night,
and the Master within the house is to seek to save his house and his goods,
by remaining within, from the secret coming of the thief.
In the literal, both the house and the field appear, but the
parties in them are individuals only and the warning is to earnest effort; the
prohibition, dissuades [Page 117] them from doing
that which naturally they would be disposed to do. To enter the house or carry
off the articles of dress of which they were disencumbered while working would
be the natural course. In the parable there is no room for effort; if the
preparation have not been previously made, the case is hopeless; instantly, in the twinkling of an eye, the separation is effected, and the hope gone.
To whom is the sign given? To the Church, or to the Jew? Not
to the Jew; for the Lords coming to the Jew is not secret. For them to expect
Messiahs Secret Presence is the very basis on which the false Christs rest
their lever of deceit. To the Jew Jesus preaches only the manifestation of his
Presence, the lightning flash which suddenly illuminates the whole heaven and
enchains every eye. To expect him thus is their safeguard against the delusions
of the Time of Great Tribulation.
To know the rapture as the sign of the Presence, one must be
left on earth. The Presence itself is intended
for the Church, and not therefore the mere token that it is already begun. And
therefore the rapture, which introduces to the Presence, is the thing for the
Church. Signs are given throughout the first part to the Jew; they are the
steps which mount up to the visible coming of the Lord. But in the parable
which now engages us there is the absence of signs, and these lead to the
secret Presence. Watchfulness without signs is the attitude of the church.
There are then two different parties, one to whom a series of signals is
proposed, which end in the revelation of Jesus in the clouds of heaven to the
inhabitants of earth. To the other party [Page 118] signs are not given, but they are
taken to the secret audience-chamber of the Lord on high.
The Householder and the parables which follow are given that
the church, forewarned of her position, may not be in the position of those to
whom the Presence is known only by their being left behind.
To the Church the Presence is the coming of the Lord. But it is not so to the
Jew. For the Lords descent is first into the air, there the church meets him; there
the Presence-court is held. But he has to move from the air to the earth ere he is seen coming to the Jew. Thus this
parable is the true point of separation between
This explains why the [first and selective] rapture is so mixed up with Jewish
circumstances, as we find it here and in Luke 17. and 21. The
Church not being then formed, it appears only as the subject of the sign given
to Israel; or the rapture enters the scene as an event of the End of the Age,
or a sign of the coining [millennial] kingdom
of God, and of the Presence [and
righteous rule] of the Son of Man.
* *
*
[Page
119]
CHAPTER 6
THE STEWARD
B. 4.
Who then is the faithful and prudent servant
whom his lord appointed over his household, to
give them food in season? Blessed shall be that
servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find
so doing. Verily I say unto you, that he will appoint him over all his goods.
But if that evil (vicious) servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth to come, and shall begin to beat his fellow-servants, but 1 shall
eat and drink with the drunken, the lord of that
servant shall arrive 2 in a
day in which he looks not for him, and in an hour which he recognizes
not, and shall cut him in two, and appoint his portion with the hypocrites; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
[1 & see Greek
2 [See Greek
] A
different, and more definite sense than [
]
OF the connexion
of this with the foregoing I do not feel certain. Yet there must be some. Who then is
the faithful and prudent servant? His character is twofold, suited to his station -
faithfulness stands first, as the prime quality. It is required in stewards
that a man be found faithful. But as entrusted with so high a post, sustaining his masters
place in some degree, till his return, he
is possessed of intelligence also.
His post of honour is assigned him by Christ himself.
His lord set him over his household. This then is [Page 120] no human appointment, no ecclesiastical ordination. It
supposes the person a [regenerate] believer;
for how can there be faithfulness without faith?
I gather, too, from this passage, that apostles will be found
at the close, as they were at the beginning. For these were especially
appointed of the Lord, with [divine] power
to appoint others subordinately under themselves. Without immediate
communication with the Lord, they could not be apostles. 1 Cor. 9:
1. And apostles are one of the members of the body appointed to
gather and cherish it till it should attain its perfect measure: Eph. 4. Moreover, this parable was pointedly
addressed to the twelve on a former occasion. The Lord Jesus having bid his
disciples be like servants waiting for an absent master, who would return at
some unknown time, Peter inquired, if the parable applied to the disciples in
general, or to the twelve apostles in particular? Whereupon Jesus replied - Who then is
the faithful and wise steward whom his lord shall appoint over his household to
give them their portion of meat in due season?: (Luke 12: 41, 42.) That is, the parable I first spoke applies to you only as included among the servants generally, but if you wish for one specially
picturing your position - Who then is the steward?
Only the tense of the verb is
altered. In Luke we have, whom his lord
shall appoint. In Matthew,
whom his lord appointed.
From the parable then I infer, that, at the close, apostles will be raised again, appointed by
Jesus with the powers of old, not indeed to restore the broken
dispensation, but to rally and fit the
disciples for the harvest.
As Jesus supposes in the Jewish part of the prophecy the [Jews] temple to be standing at the close, and therefore we [Page
121] must believe it
will be rebuilt: so he implies also, that apostles will be on earth at the time
of his advent, and therefore that they will be restored.
The Steward is appointed to rule the church, and to feed it
with the truths specially suited to the circumstances of the time. His reward is made to turn on his
actual position at the Lords descent. His attitude then will be
the guarantee that it was so constantly. The position contemplated by the
parables is the spiritual one, not the physical, the grinding flour, or working
in the field; as in the sign of the Presence. He is dealing now
with another class, to whom spiritual truths directly belong. If found faithful, his reward will be further extension of his authority. From being ruler of his lords servants, he will become ruler of all his
possessions.
But there is a darker side to the picture. This confidential
servant thus appointed to so high a post might
be found unfaithful. Of deep import is it to observe that his wanderings
from the right path are traced to his Secret misgivings as to his lords return
- his putting it off at least to an indefinite period. He does not go so far as
to assert his unbelief openly, but it is the hidden worm of unbelief eating the
bud of his former devotion to his master and his work. The consequence of the
admission of this traitorous thought into his heart is a change of conduct. He
begins to use the power, which was given him to feed his fellow-servants, to
beat them. He once was separate from an evil world: he now begins to mingle
with the revelries of the worldly. Thus his attitude both towards the world and
the church is changed. This is more forcibly stated in the original [Page
122] than in our
translation. He shall begin to beat his fellow-servants, but shall eat and drink with the drunken; the disciples he treats as
malefactors, the worldly as his guests.
On such a servant the Lord will come unexpectedly, and appoint
him a severe recompense. He will come in a day which, like the ungodly world,
he does not expect. Is not that the Day of the Lord? He will arrive in an hour which he does not
recognize.
This, I believe, is the hour of the saints rapture. The scoffers of that day single
out the doctrine of the Lords Presence for the shafts of their ridicule. What is
become of the promised Presence? Beneath that unbelief his own faith totters; he ceases to
recognize the doctrine: perhaps his persecution of the saints is for the
maintenance of this very belief.
The difference between him and the watchful saint is sharply
defined. The hour he recognizes not. He does not admit it into his
creed. It does not therefore influence his life. Neither does the world. They recognized not till the flood came, and took them
all away. But the just
recognizes that hour, even although he knows not its period; and therefore it
is said of the just, even Ye know not at what hour your Lord is
coming. In an hour when ye are not
thinking of it ([
Greek]) your Lord
is coming.
[Page 123]
Being found in a posture so flagrantly at variance with the
trust bestowed on him, his life is violently taken away. He is cut in sunder.
As he smote the saints, he is himself smitten. His divided heart is visited
with a severed body. His feasts with the drunkard are now requited by a place
with them in their eternal [aionios] torments. As he joined in their merriment, he
partakes of their weeping and gnashing of teeth.
* *
*
[Page
124]
CHAPTER 6
THE TEN VIRGINS
B 5
1. THE GOING FORTH
Then shall the kingdom of heaven be
likened unto ten virgins, who took their torches, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
2. TWO PARTIES OF THEM
But five of them were prudent, and five
foolish. They who were foolish took their
torches [lamps], and took not oil with themselves; but the prudent took
oil in their vessels with their torches.
3. THEIR HISTORY AND
POSITION
Now while the bridegroom tarried, all became
drowsy and were asleep. But at midnight a cry
arose - Behold the bridegroom is coming, go ye out to meet him! Then
all those virgins arose and trimmed their torches.
4. THE LACK OF THE
FOOLISH DISCOVERED
Now the foolish said unto the prudent, give us some
of your oil, for our torches are going out, (margin.) But the prudent
answered, saying - (Not so,) lest there be not
enough for us and you; go rather to them that
sell and buy for yourselves.
5. THE SEPARATION
Now while they were going off to buy, the
bridegroom came, and the ready ones went in with
him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut.
6. THE REQUEST OF THE
FOOLISH
But afterward came also the remaining virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us. But he answered
and said, Verily I say unto you, I do not know you.
[Page
125]
7. THE LESSON
Watch, therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour. [wherein the Son of Man is coming.] 1
1 The words between brackets are omitted
by several critical editions.
To the
views of this parable expressed in my former work, I still adhere with
increasing assurance. Conviction has deepened with increasing light, with the
perception that no new theory has been brought forward which can explain the
text, and from the power to answer the objections brought against the former
interpretation.
Let me then just bring under review the general state of the
case, before proceeding to a more minute reconsideration of the text.
One point is agreed on by all the interpreters of the parable,
that difference of destiny will be finally adjudged according to
difference of character. But the usual interpretation assumes, that the answer
given to the foolish virgins is the final sentence proper to the lost. Thence it argues back to their
character, and infers that they are hypocrites. It is my aim, on the contrary,
to prove first,
from the parable itself,
that they are [regenerate]
believers, as it regards character; and,
therefore,
that the words of the bridegroom do not imply the final sentence on the [eternally] lost. To this I am
entitled by virtue of the preceding proof. The ordinary interpretation is
entitled to neither, for it proves not its first assumption. But I am able to
show besides, from analogy, that the destiny supposed is not final, and does not imply
exclusion from the [eternal] kingdom.
[Page 126]
The ordinary theory then supposes the foolish virgins to be
hypocrites. They had not a vital principle of
religion - a spiritual life imparted by the Holy Spirit; a germ of grace
budding into fruitfulness and ripening into glory.
This is one of the two pillars on which the whole house is
built. That ruined, the temple falls. Now against such an assumption the whole
structure of the parable stands in opposition. I will briefly suggest a series
of proofs which arise from a consideration of it.
1. They are virgins, not merely pretenders to virginity. The right to the name supposes the
possession of the reality. It is not THEY who call themselves so:
it is the Lord who does. Their virginity
is never questioned, even when their request for entrance is denied.
2. They have lighted torches [oil-lamps]:1 and the lit torch is a profession
supported by good works, which give light to [Page 127] all around. The torch unlit may be
profession only: the lighted torch is profession and reality.
1 LAMPS. - Calmet. Matt. 25 - The
lamps of Gideons soldiers, Judg. 7: 16, and those of the foolish and wise virgins, Matt. 25: 1, 2, &c., were of
another sort. They were a kind of torches
made of iron or earthenware, wrapped about with old linen, moistened from time
to time with oil. M. Bernier says, (Letter
to M. de Merville, p. 34) that in
3.
They go forth with
desire to meet Jesus. Then they take that position of separation from an evil
world, and of waiting for the Saviour, which none but a truly converted heart
can take. And instead of being overwhelmed with dread at the cry - The
bridegroom is coming! go ye forth to meet
him! they shrink not from the summons, but prepare to obey
it.
4. Their torches
burn some hours, and so have the oil of grace nor are they ever quenched so far as we read.1 There are persons able to sell even then, and they are able to buy.
1 Our lamps are
gone out is a mistranslation. The margin gives the true.
5. They are
accounted worthy to attain the first resurrection, the resurrection from among
the dead,* and are therefore the
children of God.
[* Note: Robert Govett, surprisingly, did
not
believe in a select resurrection from among the dead! He believed
Gods Judgment of a regenerate believers works, will take place after
resurrection in heaven; and if not accounted worthy
he / she will return into Sheol/ Hades - the place of all the dead before
the first resurrection!
See John 3: 13; 14: 2, 3; Acts 2: 34,
ff. 2 Tim. 2: 18f.; Rev. 6: 9-11. Cf. Heb.
9: 27: Acts 7: 4-5, R.V. with Num.
14: 11, 12,
20-23; 16: 30-35; 1 Cor. 10: 1-10; Heb. 10: 35b, R.V. etc. Also Mr. G. H. Langs First Fruits and
Harvest.]
6. They sleep with the wise, with the
wise they awake. Now, if the sleep be spiritual sloth, then those only can fall
into it who are possessed of spiritual life. And if they rouse themselves at last from even
spiritual sloth, they must then
be not merely nominal, but hearty, zealous
Christians. The wise and foolish together rise, but are not rapt together. The
question then as it regards them lies beyond the resurrection, in which all, both
foolish and wise, partake; and centres in the rapture, that is, in the Presence of the Lord
Jesus. The manifestation of wisdom or folly is reserved for the Presence.
Is that true of any but saints?
7. They were quite ready to enter in, had
the bridegroom come early instead of late; that is, before the [Page
123] sleep. Now, as
the ungodly never are ready, come Jesus when he may, these cannot be ungodly.
8. They have, even at last, virginity,
the deep internal qualification
for the wedding-supper: they are
deficient only in the circumstantial and secondary fitness - the want of the second supply of oil. But every - [unregenerate
and nominal
Christian] - unbeliever is inwardly unfit as well
as outwardly unready.
These considerations drawn from the parable itself prove to my
mind beyond a question, that the virgins, though some were foolish, were yet
all of them pure in Gods sight.
Compare with the parable before us
that of the Wedding Garment. In that, (it is acknowledged by both,) the false
professor, or essentially unfit person,
is exhibited. He comes in his own righteousness, having refused, or being
ignorant of, the righteousness provided for him by God. Now mark the
differences. (Matt. 22.) That parable was spoken to both the disciples and the multitude: This to the disciples alone. The ill-clothed guest is cast out by the king, ere the kings son has come into the feast. He is bound hand and foot, and cast into outer darkness amidst
weeping and of teeth. He is guilty against warning, and speechless. These
have no warning and have a plea both before their fellows and before the
bridegroom. The king looks upon the ill-clothed one as a man, not as a servant, and addresses him
by the lowest title he could use; But when the king came in to see the
guests, he saw there a man who had not on a
wedding garment; and he saith unto him, Comrade,1 how [Page 129] camest thou in hither? But the virgins are virgins to the close, and even the
rejected one of the Talents is acknowledged as a [regenerate] servant. The intruder does not attempt
to remedy his misconduct and disrespect to the king, even when it is pointed
out. The foolish, though guilty of no crime against the bridegroom, but simply
of folly against their own interests, seek to remedy their error at once.
Hence, also, the infliction of pain which is exhibited in The Wedding Garment comes from one possessed of the
supreme authority, a king; whereas a private person such as the bridegroom is
only permitted to shut out others from certain enjoyments which are in his own
hand and keeping.
1 [See Greek word
] Wrongly translated friend. Used by the Lord Jesus even to his betrayer, Matt. 26: 50; (11: 16; 20: 13, are the only other instances of its use.)
I believe, then, that the parable is intended to teach us that
those who have neglected to apply for the gifts of the Holy
Ghost, which are promised to believers of this
dispensation, and which we are
taught to covet and pray for, will
be excluded from a peculiar occasion of festivity and joy, just before the Saviour appears, an occasion which is described as the
Wedding Supper. The parable before us, however, does not take in the
consideration of the whole
Thus an objection frequently made to the present view is
easily answered. - This cannot be true: for you make
a part of the bride to be absent from the supper, by supposing that the five
foolish virgins constitute a portion of the church, and yet are shut out.
The reply is obvious; the parable does
not exhibit the whole church; it takes up only the case of those departed
in the faith. And the bride here is not the church, but the city of
At this point comes in the value of perceiving the number used
by our Lord, in his wisdom, to designate the virgins. Why are they ten in number? Because they form but a
part of the great whole; they signify but the sleeping portion of the
For twelve is the
complete and permanent number, occurring in those parts of Gods arrangements
which are designed to last for ever. Hence it occurs so very freely in the
description of the glorious city prepared for the saints by God: (Rev. 21. [&] 22.)
Twelve is the number of the tribes of that nation that is to abide for ever
before God. Twelve is the number of the hours of the complete day: John 11: 2. Twelve, the loaves on the holy table.
Twelve, the stones on the high-priests breast-plate.
So in the Gospel. When he had called to him his twelve disciples - [Judas,
who betrayed Him, also selected and included but afterwards
replaced], he gave them power
against unclean spirits to cast them out. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: Matt. 10: 1, 2; 11: 1. This
number is to abide in the kingdom. Ye which have followed me, in the regeneration,
when the Son of Man shall sit on the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit on twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of
Now Jesus had before dealt with the two.
Here he takes up the ten, which added together give us [Page
131] the complete number
twelve. He treats first
of the two who are alive. And it is interesting to observe that this division
of twelve into ten and two is that which obtains both in Hebrew and Greek.
Twelve in Hebrew is two-ten, and in Greek the
same. In both these cases the two precedes the ten. Thus Jesus first presents the two ere the ten.
The two represents the remnant, when any loss or misfortune
had by death or otherwise befallen the twelve. Ten of Jacobs sons go down into
(2.) Ten and two was the division of the tribes. When Jeroboam went out of
(3.) This is the division again, when the question of
distinguishing places in the kingdom comes into notice. Jesus going
up into
ii. But if two be the remnant, ten is the
imperfect number,
not unfrequently coupled with words which bespeak its imperfection, as a
part only of a larger number. The servant took ten camels of the camels of his
master, and departed: Gen.
24: 10. Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the
Lord had said unto him: Judges 6: 27. And he took ten
men of the elders of his city: Ruth 4: 2. And he called ten of his own servants: (Greek) Luke
19: 13. Ten thousand troops is the imperfect and insufficient
number for war, twelve legions of angels the perfect number, fully sufficient
to rid Messiah of his enemies: Luke 14:
31; Matt.
26: 53. Ten horns marks the
imperfect number of the Princes of Antichrist; twelve thrones is the sufficient number of thrones for the
Princes of Christs [millennial (Luke 22: 29, 30)] kingdom.
The ten and the two then represent the church complete; the greater
number represents, as was to be expected, the dead in Christ; the smaller
number, the living saints. The living are the remnant, we who are alive and remain unto the Presence of the Lord. It gives also, one may believe, the
proportion subsisting between the two parties at the advent of the Lord. But if
so, then all the twelve are [regenerate] believers. The Church is
not complete without every one of them. Exclude the [Page 133] unwatchful householder and the foolish
virgins from the kingdom, and the number of the saved is represented by six, a
number characteristic rather of Antichrist than of Christ.
The sign of the Presence turns on the two who are found living on earth at the
time, and who might be, of course, the subjects of any sign the Lord might be
pleased to grant.
Observe again, in confirmation of this view, that no number is
given in the case of the servants, in the parable of the Talents. The reason of
which is exactly in accordance with the argument here stated. The Talents are
not engaged with either the dead or the living as such, but with the gifted,
whether living or dead. All are
within the Presence-chamber, ere the question as to their use of the gifts
bestowed comes into investigation, and therefore the way by which they arrived
at the Presence, is of no importance as to the matter then in hand.
But we have not noticed the force of the word with which the
Virgins begins. Then shall the kingdom of heaven
be likened. To what
period does the word refer? One naturally looks back to that which immediately
precedes, and that is, the time of the untrusty - [i.e.,
undependable and easily bribed] - stewards being cast amidst weeping and gnashing of teeth. But such
period were too late, if, as I believe, that open vengeance cannot take place
till the Lord displays himself openly to the world. It seems far more suitable
to refer it back to that most wondrous time which is now the subject of the
Lords discourse, - the time of his Presence - and to the sign of his Presence
- the rapture of the ready saint. If we turn back to that point at which Jesus
commences the subject, we shall find him [Page 134] attracting notice to it as a point of
time by the same word. Then shall two be in the field. Therein is exhibited to us as we have seen, the case of [the
minority
of] the raptured living. The then repeated may fitly, therefore, recall our thoughts to the
same period of the ascent of living saints, and usher in the parable which displays the
answering destiny of the raptured [and resurrected] dead. Once more the
word occurs in the parable itself, and leads our eyes to the same period of the
Presence. Then all those virgins arose. Thus too we
shall find a perfect harmony between the words of Paul, asserting the identity
of the time at which the living and the
dead saints will ascend to the Presence. The dead in Christ shall first rise, then we the living who remain shall be caught
up together
with them in clouds to meet the Lord.
The parable now before us is a similitude of the kingdom of heaven. Of the full import of the phrase I
do not feel sure. However the commencing expression allies it with several other
parables which treat of that solemn juncture, when the passage from the kingdom
in mystery into the kingdom in its glorious manifestation occurs. Thus it
stands in near connection with the
wedding garment. That parable describes first, the process of judgment on
the Jews of that day, for their killing the Son of God. Secondly, the taking
away of the
[Page 135]
Somewhat farther back, the same phrase introduces the Labourers in the
Vineyard, the purport of
which parable is to shew the order of reward which closes the present
dispensation, and introduces the one to come.
Similar then, I believe, is the meaning in this instance also.
The case of the living, and the scrutiny to be enacted on them had been put
forth in several parables before, (as to take another instance, in the Wheat
and Taxes) but none ere this had entered into the test to be applied to the dead in Christ, ere their admission to the
glory. Hence, if I mistake not, the phrase precedes this, and none but this, of
the seven parables of the Prophecy on the Mount. It gives us the new feature
introduced by the long delayed return of the Lord; a delay which occasions the
great majority of his saints to fall asleep ere his advent. Hence, the force of
the present expression may, I believe, be given thus - At the time of my
Presence and of the rapture of the saints, (the critical time of the cessation
of the kingdom in mystery, and the commencement of the kingdom in power,) the
holy dead may be compared to ten virgins found asleep.
I shall now suppose the reader satisfied that the virgins are
all believers.1 All alike
possess the torch of profession. All alike have them lighted, and burning, from
sunset, the time of expecting the bridegroom, till past midnight.
1 If any desire further proof on this
point, I would refer them back to the treatises in the Prophecy
on Olivet.
The oil in the torch is grace in its general sense, or grace
sanctifying, which is absolutely necessary for any to enter the kingdom at all.
[Page
136]
The second supply of oil, the presence or want of which
characterizes the two parties, as either wise or foolish, is, I am persuaded,
grace in its special sense - the gifts of the Holy Ghost - or grace miraculous
and inspired.
A difference may well be noticed here between the two and the
ten. The two are objects of natural sight, presented in their ordinary physical employments, and thus constituting an appropriate sign
to the people of the letter, -
That [regenerate] believers may be foolish is proved by several texts, but one of especial
force may be given. Jesus in his Presence after the resurrection, accuses two
of his disciples of this very failing, a failing which he traces to the very
fault of the foolish here - ignorance or refusal to credit prophecy, or at
least all that the prophets have said. O fools, and slow of heart to believe
all that the prophets have spoken: Luke
24: 25.
These, observe, are foolish in relation to the Presence, not in relation to the kingdom. To enter the kingdom regeneration and [believers] baptism are enough: (John 3: 5.) to enter the bridal banquet more is
demanded.
[Page 137]
The second oil is taken as a voluntary act. That is, the gifts of the Holy
Ghost are no virtual thing, received
even ignorantly, the moment a man attains to faith in Christ. This truth shines
out conspicuously in the history of the Samaritan believers; (Acts 8.) and in the history of Johns twelve
disciples at
I have observed elsewhere, that there
would appear to be a significance in the order in which the prudent and foolish virgins are placed.
The wise begin, the foolish occupy the centre, the wise close the procession.
(See verses
2, 3, 4.) If so, the [miraculous] gifts of the first ages must be restored. The oil must be
within reach ere the bridegroom comes. Else there would be only foolish virgins
at last, and these would not be sent for oil, or would be sent in vain. Again,
it seems clear, that not one half of the dead in Christ, as they now stand,
have received the gift of the Holy Ghost. Hence it must be restored, in order
that the numbers may be as evenly balanced as in the parable, the five against
the five. When the gifts shall return, though many might fall asleep even then,
ere [Page 138] the Lord should take away his servants, the wise virgins would have
reappeared on the scene, and the end be (visibly) so much the nearer.
We may gather, I think, from various hints, that all the
saints living at Christs
Presence are possessed of gifts, and therefore that does not constitute the test
for the living but only for the departed. Hints having this tendency may be
seen in the fact, that Elisha was a prophet as well as Elijah, and so were the
sons of the prophets who looked on. Lamech prophesied as well as Enoch. The
prudent suppose oil still to be had, and the silence of the parable at its
conclusion permits us to believe that even the foolish returned not empty.
Elijah, at his return, is to restore all things, and therefore prophecy and
miracle, even to the Jew; and the gospel of the kingdom
is to be preached; which, as the Gospels shew, was always done before with
concurrent signs.
The doctrine of the
gifts of the [Holy] Spirit is one of the fundamentals of
Christianity, (Rev. 6: 1-5,) and the neglect of this doctrine produces errors of interpretation, or darkness as to
the meaning of many passages of the New Testament. The non-possession of them
as a fact, causes many difficulties and
impediments in practice.
It is suitable that the new age, the new Jerusalem, is the
Lambs Bride, and Jesus, the obtainer of the gifts, should be greeted by those
powers of the
New Age at his first
appearing. Hence they are noticed in the Psalmists picture of the glory. God, (even) thy God,1 hath anointed thee with the oil
of gladness above thy fellows. Both agencies of the Holy Spirit join to prepare [Page
139] companions for
Messiah. Without regeneration, the believer would not possess the
inward fitness for the kingdom; without the supernatural anointing, that familiar
acquaintance with the bridegroom which the parable teaches, could not be
attained.
1 Better still, Therefore, O God, thy God hath anointed
thee.
Comparing the present parable with the next, we see, that
where the responsibility of
attaining this blessing is laid on man, it is represented by oil, which the virgins have opportunity to procure,
and a price in their hand enabling them to purchase. Where it is exhibited as a
bounty from Christ, it
is represented by money bestowed by a master on a servant.
But after the inward difference between the two classes, and
its manifestation has been declared, we are informed, that they all became drowsy and
were sleeping. From the
use of the two words, I suppose the Saviour to describe their death, not as the
sudden death of persecution, but the death which is preceded by the usual
precursive illness. The symptoms of approaching dissolution are the becoming
drowsy; the actual departure answers to sleep. In violent deaths, as for
instance, beheading - these preparatory indications are not found. Hence the
Saviour indicates a case like that of Dorcas. It came to pass in those days,
that she was sick and
died, (Acts 9: 37:) where the sickness answers to the drowsiness,
and the departure to the final state of sleep, in which the virgins are found.
So Paul says of the Corinthians - For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.
The sleep continues unbroken, as that of death does, up to the
time of the cry; which answers to the shout of Christ, the voice of the archangel, and the trump of [Page 140] God, wherewith the resurrection of the
sleeping saints is ushered in: 1 Thess. 4. To the living Jesus comes as the thief, without noise:
to the sleepers, as the bridegroom,
with a sound,
because they must be first waked. But if so, both the wise and the foolish
are believers sleeping in Jesus.
Why the universality of the sleep here, if spiritual sloth be meant? It is
sometimes said, that certain parts of a parable are necessary as drapery. But such a detail was not necessary to the
story here. Part might have kept awake, as well as part have slept. It would
seem to be most probable that some would have been able to keep off slumber. If
the sleep were moral or sinful, some manifest difference would have been
introduced into it, either as to the degree or duration of it, in order to keep
up the broad demarcation between believer and unbeliever. But there is none.
This point then has its full significance, if we suppose that Jesus designed to
draw attention to it, because he would treat distinctly of the destiny of the
dead of the church; nothing comes of it, save that it prevents the foolish from
supplying their lack of oil till too late. Its use then is to distinguish the
ten, or the departed in Christ, from the two, or the living believers.
It has indeed been observed, that the sleep lasts only till
the cry, not till the bridegroom has actually arrived. And this is true; but
the distinction can make no difference in interpretation, for those not ready before the cry cannot get ready before the bridegroom
has arrived,
and the door is shut.
Hence the cry must be much nearer to the Lords advent than any preaching of
the coming of Jesus can be.
[Page 141]
The cry awakens at once the whole. Hence it is no rousing of
Christians to neglected principles. For that takes place gradually and
imperfectly. One rouses another, some refuse to be awakened. There, a power
from without, finding all asleep, bids all arise. The power of principle
proceeds from the virgins themselves, and is transmitted from one to the other.
If the sleep be physical, so must the cry be.
An important enquiry has room here. What procession is this? (1.) Of the bridegroom going to fetch
his bride from her fathers house? (2.)
Or is it the passage of the bride and bridegroom united to the house of the
bridegroom? To this we may reply - clearly, it is the procession from the house
of the brides father to the bridegrooms own house.
1. First, from internal considerations.
The bridegroom would go to fetch his bride much earlier than midnight, though through
unforeseen hindrances, he might be thus late in returning home.
2. Had it been merely a preparatory
tarrying, after which the bride was to come forth, and to be escorted home, the
case of the virgins would not be hopeless, but only demanding patience. 3. The bridegroom is evidently in his
own house, the feast is begun, he (and not the brides father) answers when excluding the
foolish.
4. The authority of classic and Jewish
custom so decides it. Hear Lightfoot. After the
betrothing the bridegroom might not be with the bride in his father-in-laws
house, before he had brought her to his own. That bringing of her was the
consummation of the marriage. This parable supposes that the bride was thus
fetched to the house of her husband, and that the virgins [Page
142] were ready against her coming, who yet, being either fetched
a great way, or some accident happening to her, did not come till midnight:
Lightfoot, Works, vol. ii. 246.
Again, It appears, that not only
among the Jews but also among the Greeks and Romans it was the custom, that the
bridegroom, after espousal, and before the consummation, should, late in the
evening, (and therefore by the light of lamps) with pomp, rejoicing, and
feasting, bring the bride to his house:
The following account of a wedding in
The bride, accompanied by her
paranymph, or bridesmaid, was led forth into the street, by the bridegroom and one
of his most intimate friends, who placed her between them in an open carriage.
Certain ceremonies were then performed in one of the temples. The rites thus completed, the virgins father, placing the
hand of the bridegroom in that of the bride, said, I bestow on thee my
daughter, that thine eyes may be gladdened by legitimate offspring. The oath
of inviolable fidelity was now taken by both, and the ceremony concluded with
fresh sacrifices.
The performance of rites so numerous
generally continued the whole day, so that the shades of evening were falling
before the bride could be conducted to her future home. And now commenced the
secular portion of the ceremony. Numerous attendants, bearing lighted torches, ran in front of the
procession.
Similar in this respect was the practice throughout
Here sacred
pomp and genial feasts delight,
And solemn dance and
hymeneal rite,
Along the streets the
new-made brides are led
With torches flaming, to the nuptial bed.
The house of the bridegroom diligently prepared for
their reception was decorated profusely with garlands, and brilliantly lighted
up. When, among the Boeotians, the lady, accompanied by her husband, had descended from the Carriage, its axletree was burnt, to
intimate that having found a home she would have no further use for it. -
So in the nuptials of the Romans. These ceremonies being ended, towards night the woman was
brought home to her husbands house with five torches, signifying thereby the need which married persons have of five
gods or goddesses. - Godtoyns Anthologia, p. 73.
Now torches
were used, either in honour of Ceres, (as Festus says,) or because the bride was not led home to the house of
her husband till it had become dark, (as Servius
following Varro and Plutarch asserts.) The same Plutarch, (in his Roman Questions, Quest. 2,)
writes, that but five torches or wax-lights, and neither
more nor fewer, were accustomed to be lit at weddings, and inquiring the causes
of that custom says
because that number seemed better and more perfect than
any other. These torches are often called by the poets, nuptial torches,
customary torches, genial, and festive torches. - Dempster de Antiquitatibus Romanis,
p. 960
[Page 144]
The form of lamps [torches] is described by Rambam and R. Solomon, whom see, (Kelim. chap. ii, hal.
8.) These things are also mentioned by R. Solomon. It is the fashion in the country of the Ishmaelites
[Arabians] to carry the bride from the house of her
father to the house of the bridegroom before
she is put to bed, and to carry before her ten wooden staves, having each of them on
the top a vessel like a dish, in which there is a piece of cloth with oil and
pitch. These being lighted, they carry before her for torches. The same things saith the Aruch in
Lightfoot, Works,
vol. ii, 247.
In those countries, it seems, the
bridegroom commonly brought home his bride in the evening. And that she might
be received at his house in a suitable manner, his female friends of the
younger sort were invited to wait with lamps, till some of his retinue,
despatched before the rest, brought word he was at hand. On this they went
forth with their lamps trimmed to welcome him, and conduct him with his bride
into the house. And for this service they
had the honour of being guests at the marriage feast. - Macknight.
Similarly
The foolish now, discovering their waning lights, petition for
oil.1 They are prudently requested to procure
some for themselves, and accordingly set out in quest of it. Now neither the
hypocrite nor the true believer could fall into error so gross as is supposed,
if we make the oil to signify the converting grace of God. Who knows not, that his fellow cannot grant it?
Who of the lost, [Page 145] will not awake to the full conviction that his
opportunity is gone for ever, when once he arises from the dead? And that it is
no mere rising from sloth is clear, because there is no possibility of
recovering the ground lost before the sleep.
1 They who complain that their lamps are going out, manifest
that they are still partially alight. - Jerome.
Again, if one of the virgins had possessed oil enough for
herself and a friend, and had been willing to share it, what would have been
the result? Must not both have entered the feast? Assuredly. But has any one of
the saved power to impart to another what shall suffice to attain eternal life? It
is supposed possible here, that one or all might have had more than sufficient
oil for their own purposes.
While the foolish are occupied in supplying their want of the
additional oil, the bridegroom comes, the procession enters the house of the
bridegroom, the wise enter, the door is shut. We have in the present case the
bridegrooms descent, the virgins ascent to meet him, (as in
1 Thess. 4.) Only, as the nature of the parable
required, the movement is spoken of as voluntary on their part.
The wise enter simply as the ready, not as the true virgins, while the others were only
professedly so; not as having lit torches, while the others lights were
extinguished; but as the ready differ from the imprudent and unready. They
enter the kings house by ascension, after the resurrection which they enjoy in
common with the foolish. They enter with the bridegroom. - They that were ready went in with him to the marriage-feast. Theirs is the joy of companionship.
This shows again our meaning of the taking to be correct. Both the living
householder and the raised wise virgins ascend together.
[Page 146]
What mean then the words which follow? Afterward came also
the foolish virgins. If the first approach signify a rapture from earth to heaven, so must the
second. Not only do they both rise at the first resurrection; they both ascend
to glory, though not at the same moment.
The foolish arrive at the spot where the wise entered the house. There are two raptures then for the
saints. They are acknowledged as virgins still. Afterward came also the other virgins. They plead for
entrance, ere yet the feast is over, but are refused. They return having
doubtless obtained the oil, else their lamps would be extinguished. This is
very important. The wise take it for granted, as it were, that this second oil
not only is capable of being
procured, but that it must be obtained, even at last, by all of the
dispensation, even though too late
for its blessing.
On the reply given by the bridegroom rests the whole amount of
force in the objections brought against the present view. But repeated
examination has convinced me, that these words are fully reconcilable with the
interpretation given. (1.) First, if the foolish be believers, which the whole
tenor of the parable proves, the certainty of the doctrine of the final
perseverance of the saints would supply enough to convince those persuaded of
it that the exclusion, and the words in which that exclusion is sustained, must
import something short of final
condemnation.
(2.) Next, they are
refused admission as unready. Now let us take a similar case among men, and see
how far it stands from implying final rejection. My
dears, says a father to his young children, I
am going for a drive to-day. Would you like to go? O yes, father! [Page 147] is the eager unanimous reply. Well then, it will be some time after twelve oclock; how
soon or how late after, I cannot tell. Those only who are ready the instant the
chaise drives up to the door, will go with me. I cannot stay a moment.
The notice is given. The children engage themselves in their
various sports or lessons. Some are deeply interested in them, and when the
hour of twelve strikes, they are still at play, thinking there will be plenty
of time yet. The prudent go up to dress ere twelve struck, and ere the last
stroke of the clock was dying are fully prepared. At length the sound of wheels
rapidly approaching is heard - the chaise - [i.e., a light or open carriage for one or more persons] - is at the door. The fathers voice
calls; the ready fly out to him; they are safely seated: off flies the
carriage. But all were not there - the chaise came ere they expected: they flew
upstairs as soon as the wheels were heard, and with panting haste sought to
dress. But too late - the chaise has started, while they are in their rooms.
One indeed, the nearest drest of the three left behind, rushes in eager haste
after the rapid carriage, and asks to be taken in. No,
is the fathers reply; I cannot take you. The
three are too late for that enjoyment, and sadness and tears evince their
disappointment. The fathers
reply is as absolute as the bridegrooms. But what then?
Are they no longer children? Will
the father punish them on his return? Will they be disinherited as rebellious? Who would dream it? Their loss is Punishment sufficient. They are not
rebellious, but simply imprudent. They have broken no command, but simply been
inattentive to their own enjoyment.
Or shall we take another illustration? The marriage [Page
148] of Queen
Viewed in this light, the words, Verily I say
unto you, I know you not, carry no sentence of final exclusion.
They import solely - You are no acquaintance of mine. Now this might be, and is,
accounted for on the supposition that there is an internal connexion between
the torch and the person. The lighted torch in the hand corresponds with the
virginity of the person. It was for virgins only to attend the nuptial feast
with torches. The lighted torch and the virgins going out to meet the
bridegroom are corresponding touches. The torch is the outward symbol, the
virginity the [Page
149] inward reality constituting the apparent passport to the feast.
But beside this there is a second sympathy. The additional oil
in the vessel runs parallel with the acquaintance with the bridegroom, and
consequent admittance to the banquet.
The wise enter on two grounds, (1.) as ready, manifestly because of their burning torch; and (2.) as acquaintances of the bridegroom.
These two things are connected and not accidental. All who have the vessel of
oil are acquainted with him; none who have it not, are so. They are guests
then, not simply as virgins, but as virgin-acquaintances, and that
acquaintanceship is discriminated from the ignorance of the foolish, by the
oil-vessel, and its counterpart - the brightly burning torch. The others are
refused, not, as not virgins, but as deficient in
intimacy with the bridegroom. Had the torches of the foolish gone out, the
correspondence between the lighted torch and their virginity had been lost: but
as admission to the feast turns, not on virginity, but virgin acquaintanceship on the one hand, or the readiness of
the torch on the other, so the two indications are in harmony to the close; and
the question as to whether they were able to procure oil or not, is left in
silence.
Again, all the torches are burning equally low at the awakening; but all are equally alight. By the
same principle then of the correspondence of the external and internal, we
gather, that the qualification which then comes into notice is something more
than what is required merely in order simply to enter the kingdom. It is some
special quality, not answering to simple grace, or the virginity of the person,
but one having relation [Page 150] to the special
glory of the bridal banquet. This demand the one party can meet, the other
cannot. The second brightness of the torch, after its trimming on awaking,
answers to a second inward qualification
of the prudent, till now concealed - their acquaintance with the
bridegroom. This is again accounted for by the second and equally
special meaning of oil. Oil in its general meaning is grace; and imports, ordinarily,
grace sanctifying. But oil, in its inner and special meaning, intends miraculous
grace; or the [miraculous] gifts of the Holy Ghost. For that which comes into view in the present
discourse, is not the [coming] kingdom, but the glory of the secret Presence, which precedes it.
The view which had been given in a former tract of the
difference between the two Greek words which are used in this prophecy to
express knowledge, appears to me, on going over the ground again, to be quite
sound. One [Greek] word, and that the one employed by the Saviour on the
present occasion, imports the direct knowledge obtained from the senses. By
that expression then the bridegroom declares, that the parties shut out are not
his acquaintance. But the other [Greek] word signifies conclusions drawn from signs, and admitted by
the mind. Examples of this are the following. The tree is known (recognized) by its fruit. Ye see and
know (by the budding
of the trees,) that summer is now nigh at hand. This is our inference from signs. This ye know (you recognize and admit,) that if the master of the house had known what hour
the thief would come."
Hence the two words, as has been noticed above, are
differently applied to the day of the Lords advent.
[Page 151]
Had then the Saviour affirmed of the foolish virgins that he
knew them not, as not recognizing them, they had indeed perished among the reprobate.
This is the word he uses of the finally lost, (and in this same gospel of Matthew,) I never knew (recognized) you; depart from me, ye that work
iniquity: Matt. 7: 23.
Some have thought the exclusion too severe on the principle
now indicated. To me it does not. Simply to behold the kingdom, it is enough to
be born again: John 3: 3; but to have part in its especial glories, do we wonder, if especial
qualifications are required. Any man may wear what dress he pleases in his
ordinary civil calling: but if he go to court, and would see the presence of
majesty, a peculiar dress is required. Is it any marvel then, that the Lord
Jesus asks of those who
would attain to a part in the highest glory of the age to come, that they should have sought and
obtained the peculiar promise of the present dispensation? The possession of
gift entailed of old, and would again entail, peculiar trials in virtue of its possession. Do you wonder, if, in consequence,
peculiar glory is annexed to it
in the life to come? Are not the gifts of the Spirit Gods promise in Christ by
the gospel? Eph. 3: 6. And shall the want of them below
draw after it no loss on high? If they were matters of sovereignty, there would
be no difference of reward dependent on them. But consider the want of gift as
the disregard of a privilege thrown open to all believers, as the failure to
obey a command, (1 Cor. 12: 31; 14: 1,) can it fail to issue in loss? To despise the blood of the covenant is to perish for ever. To despise the seal of God, shall it be no detriment to
us?
[Page 152]
The gifts of miracle and inspiration may seem to you now of no
importance: the omission of the foolish is not brought into view till the [select rapture and] resurrection
come. But they stand related to
privilege hereafter, as well as to present
responsibility when possessed. The simple possession of them brings
privilege, as is here manifested; their right use entails permanent power; as the Talents proves. They stand connected also
with the kingdom of glory in a two-fold manner. In its present state of
mystery, they were designed to be witnesses of the coming [millennial] kingdom, and a powerful testimony of
its reality; since it will be by power from that same source, and of a like
kind, that the kingdom will finally be established. They were tokens to the
believer himself, also, that he was to be an heir of that kingdom; and the superiority or inferiority of these
gifts discovered the different ranks in the present church, and in the future
kingdom. In the ordinary Christian, they were the red cross, marking him one of
the army of God; in the apostle, they were the officers epaulettes. This then
is, I believe, one of the prominent reasons why they come into notice in
connexion with the kingdom of heaven. John Baptist first preaches the kingdom,
(Matt. 3: 3,) then the baptism of water, the confession of sin, an answering life of
holiness, and then as a preparative for that kingdom, the baptism of the Holy
Ghost, or the miraculous gifts, 5: 11. The foolish then have the essentials of the kingdom,
but lack its seal. To the substance
of the kingdom then they shall enter. But what shall be the result of the loss
of the seal? With men, strict justice would say, the entire loss of it. But
mercy does not exact that, only the loss of a peculiar glory.
[Page 153]
Finally, it has occurred to me to sum up the exposition, by a
brief review of the possible suppositions which (within certain limits) may be
made.
The great cardinal points are, (1.) the virginity; (2.) the
torch; (3.) the oil; (4.) the sleep. Now of these four the torch is agreed on
by both, as signifying profession; and it is worthy of remark, as seeming to
prove the personal character of that symbol, that there is no proposal to
change torches:
as if that were unthought of, or impossible.
But the exposition runs on two different lines, according as
we embrace the idea that the foolish virgins are hypocrites - or that they are
believers. But either way the conditions of the parable carry with them the
appropriate correction. Are they unbelievers? How then are they virgins? Say
they are professors. How then is their torch lighted? Again, the oil! Is
that grace? Then are the foolish believers, contrary to the first supposition.
Do you deny them any oil? How then do their torches burn so many hours? Next
the sleep. What is that? Such as the sleep is, such are the cry, and the
awakening. If then the sleep be moral, so are the cry, and the awaking. But if
it be spiritual, then again the foolish are believers, and the starting point
is once more proved unsound.
Say, that the sleep is death; then, since all awake together,
all, as partakers of the first resurrection, are children of God. Here then I
see no escape! Whether the sleep be moral or physical, the foolish, both as
virgins, and as rising either from spiritual sloth or from the dead at the
Lords Presence, must be believers. The relation of these parables then to the Presence of the [Page
154] Lord, carries
with it the refutation of any theory which would make part of the virgins unbelievers or hypocrites.
The supposed moral of the parable too, on the usual theory,
bears on its front its own refutation. If the foolish be hypocrites then the
practical conclusion of the whole is - Be a believer, and however much you sleep, it shall not signify: you will be quite ready for the feast.
On the other hand if the foolish be believers, (and
foolishness is not inconsistent with faith, for Jesus declares all his saints comparatively foolish, Luke 16: 8): then grace does not fail, and the
exclusion of the five is not final, nor exclusion from the
The desire to get rid of so severe and searching a truth in
that here propounded, must raise a great obstacle to its reception. It is I acknowledge
a startling discovery and most unwelcome
in the present [apostate] day. It
shows a defect in thousands of the most excellent of Christs saints that have
fallen asleep. It exhibits such a present lack and future loss in many whom
we love and venerate of the saints now, that I wonder not if the exposition be
denied. Let those who are able, expose the fallacies. Or let them confess its
truth. I commit it to God and to his church, assured of its being of the Lord,
and confident that it cannot be overthrown. Christians try to make the
distinction of character between the wise and foolish, the essential one that
exists between believer and unbeliever. If
both be [regenerate] believers, then something more than simple faith is
required for the peculiar blessing of the Marriage Supper. If the
difference of destiny be final and essential, the difference of character [Page
155] must be made out
somehow. But if the difference of character and of actions be no greater than
Jesus has said, the difference of destiny cannot be final and essential.
But, (some one may say, who
is satisfied of the argument here propounded,) what if
I fall asleep after praying for the gifts, without obtaining one? The
answer is easy. Then the responsibility rests not with you, but with God. You
are a wise virgin: you have done what you could to procure the oil. Be assured
the Lord will remember you.
A tract lately published upon the parable has given me additional
confidence. The worthy writer assumes, as usual, that the wise are believers,
the foolish unbelievers. What then does he consider the general teaching of the
parable? It cries to thoughtless sinners, Awake! It cries to true servants of Christ, Watch!
This is the genuine result of such an assumption. If the
parties belong to two such different classes as believers and unbelievers, the
coming of Christ cannot have the same aspect to both. The exhortations must be
of just that different character: for the command to watch spiritually supposes spiritual life. But Jesus gives
no exhortation to awake, but only the one to watch. Whence it follows
evidently, if Jesus be the best judge of the meaning and lesson of his own
parable, that but one class is treated
of throughout it, and that the
class of [regenerate] believers, already possessed of
spiritual life. It is therefore by no means unprofitable, but in the highest
degree necessary to settle who are the parties designed, lest we wrest the
meaning of our Saviours instructions.
* *
*
[Page
156]
CHAPTER 9
THE TALENTS
I. THE MASTER PRESENT
Watch, therefore, for ye know neither the day,
nor the hour. For as a man going to a foreign
country he called his own servants, and delivered
unto them his goods.
II. HIS
DEPARTURE
And to one indeed he gave five talents, to another
two, to another one, to each according to his several ability; and straightway went to the foreign country.
III. HIS
ABSENCE
Then he that had received the five talents went and
traded with them, and made other five talents.
In like manner he also (that received) the two,
he also gained other two. But he that received the one (talent) went
off and digged in the earth, and hid away the
money of his lord.
IV. HIS
RETURN
Now after a long time, the lord of those servants
(slaves) cometh, and
entereth into a reckoning with them.
V. THE
FIVE TALENTS ACCOUNTED FOR
And he that received the five talents came up and
brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst to me five talents; behold I have gained other five talents beside them. His lord said unto him - Well
done, good and faithful servant, thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will appoint thee over many things enter into the joy of
thy lord.
[Page 157]
VI. THE TWO TALENTS
ACCOUNTED FOR
He too that received the two talents came up, and said:
Lord, thou deliveredst
to me two talents: behold I have gathered two
other talents beside them. His lord said unto
him - Well done,
good and faithful servant; thou hast been
faithful over a few things: over many will I
appoint thee: enter into the joy of thy lord.
VII. THE ONE TALENT
ACCOUNTED FOR
But he too that had received the one talent came up, and said -
Lord, I knew thee that
thou art a hard man, reaping where thou sowedst not, and gathering
together whence thou strewedst not. And I was
afraid, and went off, and hid thy talent in the earth: behold thou hast that which is thine. But his lord answered and said - Malicious and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather together whence I strewed not;
thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the bankers, and when I came I should have received mine own with interest. Take therefore from him the talent, and give it to him that hath ten talents. For to every one that hath shall be given, and he shall abound; but from
him that hath not, even that which he hath, shall be taken from him. And
cast out the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
We may
offer a brief comparison of this with the similar parable of the Pounds in Luke. There we find the servants constituting quite another class from the foes of the nobleman, and receiving a
different judgment. In Luke the slothful
servant is not said to be cast out into the outer darkness. But the same desire
to shelter himself by accusing his master, is apparent. False views of his
lords character engender a spirit of bondage and indolence.
Are not the unfaithful steward and he moral opposites? The
steward counts that his master will not fulfil his word, because he has so long
delayed it; [Page 158] the other, that he will be severer than he has spoken.
Thus the one overlooks the justice, the other the mercy of God. The one will
not work at all, the other will do as he pleases. The one is hampered by the
spirit of fear, the other gives way to licence, the offspring of unbelief.
The parable of the Talents is intimately connected with that
of the Virgins. The oil of the one answers to the talents of the other. The Virgins is intended to shew the
discrimination which will take place between the sleepers in Christ, according
as they are gifted or not. But the possession of gift is not enough. It might
be abused in a variety of ways. Accordingly the Talents follows, to discover
the responsibility which must attach to
the miraculous gifts, considered as a deposit bestowed by Christ, to be
used for him, and to be accounted for in his Presence: 1 Tim. 6: 20. The Virgins shewed the future utility of gift at the Lords
appearing to his saints. The Talents exhibits its present responsibility. But
while the primary force of the parable is to be steadily held, of course it
applies, in principle, to any power or ability bestowed of God.
The Saviour in this figurative history traces the bestowal of
gift upon his servants, (not on the worldly.) The grant is made in unequal
measure, according to diversity of natural ability; he then represents the
servants employment during the time of his absence, and finally, the reckoning
which is called for at his return.
The two first servants pass their accounts with credit, and
are rewarded; the last is guilty of a
double offence, (which will be considered more distinctly presently,) and
receives in recompence of it a two-fold
punishment.
It is divided, like the other larger parables, into seven
parts, and those again into four and three; the four first comprising the time
of probation, the three last, the time and manner of award.
Verses Div. The
Master. The Servants. The Goods.
Characteristic Words
14 1 Presence Delivery of goods. Goods. - Probation
15 2 Departure Distribution. Talents.
- Probation
16-18 3 Absence Employment. Talents.
- Probation
19 4 Return Account demanded. Account. - Account
20-21 5 Reward Five Talents Account given. Talents. - Judgment
22-23 6 Reward Two Talents Ditto. Talents. - Judgment
24-30 7 Punishment One Talent Ditto. Talents. - Judgment
I propose to append to this chapter the consideration of two general
questions.
I THE CONNEXION OF THE
FOUR PRESENCE PARABLES WITH EACH OHER,
AND WITH THE DAYS OF NOAH, (OR THE SIGN OF THE
PRESENCE.)
II. TO
CONSIDER THE EVIDENCE THAT THE FOUR TREAT
OF RECOMPENCE TO
BELIEVERS ONLY.
Ist. The mysterious disappearance
exhibited in the
Days of Noah is, I now
take for granted, the rapture of [Page 160] the watchful saint. Only on that supposition can it
receive a full, or even an intelligible meaning. Only thus can it be the sign
of the Presence. But this granted, the connexion with what follows is immediate
and strong. The Householder and Thief takes
up the case of the saint left behind, and explains to us how the loss he
sustains is due to his own neglect. No force or ingenuity can tear away this
from intimate connexion with the rapture. But if the Householder belong to the
church, so do the Virgins. Both are connected together by the question of readiness,
which is the basis of both. In the one case, readiness for the thief, in
order to escape damage; in the other, readiness for the bridegroom, in order to
prevent the disappointment of being excluded. Therefore, be ye also ready is
the warning in the Householder. They that were ready went in with him to the marriage, is the crisis in the Virgins. In both
it is a question of their own interests, and of prudence or folly in relation
thereto. In both half are taken, half left: and the left in both are the
unhappy and unwatchful. But the Householder again is connected with the
Steward, as containing another aspect of the judgment on the living,
and of the Saviours dealing with those found alive according to their
state then before him.
The Steward and the Talents are connected as both containing
instances of persons put in trust with an others interests, and
treated according to their faithfulness or unfaithfulness to those. The Steward
discovers to us faithfulness or the reverse, in the official Christian; the
Talents exhibits fidelity in its personal and private aspect.
[Page 161]
Again, the Virgins and the Talents embrace the case of the dead in Christ,
(though the Talents does not exclude the living,) just as the Householder and
the Steward are engaged with the living remnant.
The following table will give at a glance some of the more
prominent of these relations.
DIRECT.
1. Householder. Living. Moral state
2. Steward. Living. Moral state
3. Virgins. Dead. Gifts
4. Talents. Dead & living. Gifts
INDIRECT.
1. Ready. Own interests.
2. Faithful. Anothers.
3. Ready. Own interests.
4. Faithful. Anothers.
Thus the rapture is the GREAT
FACT on which they all hang. The Householder cannot be severed from the
Steward, for the Householder is joined to the Days of Noah and to the Steward too.
Again, these four parables take the place of parenthesis, between
1 Pauls account of the mystery, or the
union on equal terms of Jew and Gentile in the
II. I now proceed to the other point, the
evidence that the Presence-parables are occupied about believers only.
[Page 162]
Perhaps it will be best in treating this subject, to consider,
first, the special proofs arising from each of the four parables; and secondly to
exhibit the general principles which bind the whole together.
1.
THE HOUSEHOLDER.
This parable is an application of the previous sign - the two.
The taken and the left, are the watchful and the sleeping householders respectively.
This appears from the intimate connexion which the Lord makes between them. Then shall
two be in the field: the one is taken and the
other is left. Watch, therefore;
for ye know not at what hour your Lord is coming. The person addressed is a [regenerate] believer, for his house is faith. But
he may be either watchful or asleep. This must be admitted to be consistent
with faith, by all who hold that the sleep in the Virgins is spiritual sloth,
yet that it is consistent with the wise virgins being believers. Here the sleep
is spiritual slumber, and this can affect only those alive in spirit. All
others are dead in trespasses
and sins. The sleepy householder then who is robbed, is a [regenerate] believer. The watchful one is so, of course.
That is, the two,
the taken and the left, are both saints: and the meaning of the parable is to
trace their difference of destiny, to difference
of obedience in regard to the Lords injunction of watchfulness.
Watchfulness is the remedy against loss, where
Jesus appears as the thief: against blame, when he is set forth as the Master. If found not
watching, the coming is to him that of the thief: if watchful, it will be in
result, the master honouring the obedient
servant: Luke 12.
They are called to be ready; and that too is an address, strictly speaking, to a [regenerate] believer. Readiness is, as has [Page
163] been before
said, circumstantial fitness; and the call to circumstantial fitness, supposes
that the real and internal preparation has been already attained.
The leaving then is not desertion for ever.
2.
THE STEWARD.
The proof here is perhaps the most difficult of all. Nor is it
wonderful; for the sentence is so justly severe. The severity hinges upon the trespass being committed against the
highest possible responsibility. This servant has been appointed by his
Lord to take his place of rule and beneficial oversight during his absence. The
acquitting himself well of that commission is requited by the most enlarged
glory and trust at the Lords advent. Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Verily I say
unto you, that he will make him ruler over all
his goods.
But, as the glory and advancement are great, if the confidence
reposed be duly answered; so in like manner great must be the indignation of
the master, if the powers entrusted be
abused.
I would show then that even the evil steward is a [regenerate] believer. (1.) Would Jesus appoint any but a [regenerate] believer to rule and feed his flock?
Ought the servants to acknowledge any but a [regenerate] believer? If the words be taken in their fullest sense, he is
an apostle. (2.) The same kind of
person is supposed throughout. If that evil servant say in his heart. Do not Rom. 16:
18 and Phil. 3: 19, refer
also to [regenerate] believers? (3.) He is a servant
even to the close. He has real faith; he begins well; but when unbelief
regarding the Lords near advent creeps in, he falls. He begins, after feeding the servants, to beat
them, and is found acting thus. But [Page 164] even then he does not deny his lord. (4.) He is not a hypocrite. We are
introduced to his very heart; and all it whispers is, My master is long in
coming. Even in his
heart then he calls Jesus his Lord. He does not scoff as the ungodly - Where is the promise of his
coming? nor like the fool does he say in
his heart, There is no God. Nor does he stand in the place of the hypocrites, whom the
Lord rebuked in the previous chapter. They kill and crucify the Lords apostles and scribes. He neither kills nor is
drunk. Are not many Christians, and even many ministers, saying, not only with
their heart, but with their lips also, that Christ is not to be expected for hundreds of years? Are there not
many high-churchmen, who would assuredly, though believers, smite their
fellow-servants, under the influence of the semi-puseyite notions which have
crept into evangelical churchmanship? Now as the degree of unbelief might
possibly be found in a believer, so may the effects of it be found in his consequent conduct?
Is the unfaithful stewards sin incapable of being committed
by a [regenerate] believer? I think not. But if capable
of being committed, may not Christ find him engaged in its perpetration? If so,
then this is his portion. But if he be a believer, will the award be final?
If a mere professing hierarch, would not his unbelief and crimes be more
marked?
The conduct supposed, is very far short of that manifested by
the Popes. What a gainful fable is
this Christianity! said one of the Popes. And another declared that
he believed in Mary no more than in an ass, nor in her Son, than in the foal of
an ass! So much as to the difference in point of faith. And then as to [page
167] conduct both
towards the world and the church. The popes have wallowed in adultery, murder,
witchcraft, sodomy, and every abomination that man can be guilty of. They have
sought to exterminate the saints, and have slaughtered many. They shut up the
word of God. But this is conduct such as may be exhibited by a [regenerate] believer, such as actually has been in
various instances. One very striking case occurs in the history of the
Puritans, where the passage now before us was quoted against one of the
bishops, who in
In the year 1567 several Christians
met at Plummers Hall. Some of them were taken, examined, and thrown into
prison by Bishop Grindal. From prison, one of them, named
William. White, wrote thus to his lordship.
I desire you, in the bowels of
Christ, to consider your own case, who by your own confession was once a
persecutor, and have since been persecuted, whether displacing, banishing, or
imprisoning Gods children more straitly than felons, heretics, or traitors, be
persecuting again or no? They that make the best of it, say, you
buffet your brethren: which if the Master of the house find you
so doing, you know your reward. - History
of the Puritans in
5. He is appointed by Christ to this high
post. We have not then the case of an ungodly clergyman of a parish; for there
the appointment is not by Christ: nor are the servants bound to obey. Such a
one is a stranger from whom the sheep are to flee, refusing to listen to the
voice of strangers: John 10.
They are blind leaders of the blind. And the result is both falling into [Page 166] the pit. Here the servants escape. The servants surely are [regenerate] believers; believers suffering unjustly.
But they are his fellow-servants.
Whence I conclude that he is a [regenerate] believer
as well as they.
6. But probably it will be thought,
that the punishment he receives is a sufficient proof of his final perdition,
and so, by inference, of his never having been a [regenerate] believer. In such an idea I do not
participate. Let us consider what infliction falls upon him. His natural life
is violently taken away. I need not say that such infliction is no proof. For this cause (a far less one) many are weak and sickly
among you, and many sleep.
But it is said further. He shall appoint him his portion with the hypocrites,
there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. But this, though the strongest part of
the argument, does not seem to me to carry the conclusion. I have shown that he
is no hypocrite. From the very words then of the sentence I gather proof of his
being still a [regenerate] believer,
and therefore finally saved. The Lord shall appoint
his portion with the hypocrites; then it would not in the usual current
of judgment have befallen him. He did not belong to the class of hypocrites on
earth; he would not therefore, under ordinary circumstances, have been found
amidst that class in their woe. It is an act of infliction then, out of the
judges usual course. It is condign punishment suited to a peculiar case of
guilt. He resembles the hypocrites or the ungodly in two points. (1.) He is
found like them, troubling the servants of Christ. Righteous therefore is it in
God to trouble him. As having beaten them, himself is cut asunder. (2.) He is [Page
167] caught holding fellowship with an evil world.
Righteously, therefore, is his portion in sorrow appointed with those in whose
worldly pleasures and unrighteous deeds he took part. Let us compare the Lords
words with a similar case among men. We are looking over a man-of-wars book.
There we find the following entry, - James Johnson,
for disobeying orders, disrated and sent before the mast. What should we gather from it? That the
party specified was an officer, and that his usual place was not before the
mast, as also that it would be possible for him to be restored to his former
rank. Take another instance. You overhear the Governor of a jail saying to a
prisoner, Do that again, and I will lock you up
among the felons. What would you infer from it? First, that
the felons had a peculiarly dismal locality in the prison; and secondly, that
the person so threatened was not a felon, and would not, except for some
special trespass, be found among them. While then his companions are
hypocrites, and his lot is among them, in the judgment of Gehenna, his portion there is, I believe, not for ever;
in consequence of his not being, as they are, hypocrites. For the time of the thousand years I suppose him there shut up [in Sheol
/ Hades]. Even Satan is set free at the end of
the thousand years. The spirits in prison are set free at the great day. Those who in the days of Noah were
disobedient, after two or three thousand years of punishment. Two of the
servants of Pharaoh incur his displeasure and are put for a season in ward: but
one of them is restored again to his post.
Will any say that this is Universalism? It can only be for want
of discrimination, that any can so imagine. [Page 168] Universalism, asserts that all, whether converted or unconverted,
whether believers or not, will finally be saved. No such doctrine is supposed
here.
How solemn the lesson, and how little believed, that none can rightly rule or feed the
3.
THE VIRGINS.
To what has been said above on this point, little need be
added.1 Their case will present no
difficulty, if the punished steward be admitted to be a believer. Their penalty
is slight indeed, compared with his. But then again there is such a measure of
correspondence between the two, that, if their severe disappointment be not too
great a chastisement for their folly, then, for the stewards secret and partial
unbelief developed in open misdeeds, the recompence which he receives is not
too great.
1 I have found that the view which makes all the virgins believers,
had approved itself to some both in ancient and modern times. Thus Augustine, We must understand that those of whom Christ treats are
accounted Christians; for they who are not Christians, cannot go forth to meet
the Bridegroom. Tom. iv, col. 561. Ed. Basil, 1569.
For the
foolish virgins had oil, but not in abundance. On this account he calls them foolish, because after enduring the greater
trouble, for want of the smaller they lost the whole. - Chrysostom.
It is manifest
that Christ is speaking of those who all took their lamps, which as I shall
afterwards show is done by none but believers. For the lamp is faith. -
Maldonati.
4.
THE TALENTS.
The next most difficult case to that of the unfaithful
steward, is that of the unprofitable servant. But all that [Page 169] is told us concerning him is reconcilable with the
supposition of his being a [regenerate] believer.
For -
1. He is acknowledged as a servant even when his sentence is passed. Cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness.
2. He has a gift of the Holy Spirit
committed to him, a portion of the goods peculiar to Christ, and only entrusted
to his servants. He hid his lords
money. Do any persons
now possess spiritual gifts, (I address myself to those who think them
possessed in the present day,) who are unconverted? If any such exist,
are they called on to use such spiritual gifts?
3. This is a judgment in the Presence of Christ Himself - [after death (Heb. 9: 27) in Sheol / Hades], ere yet he is manifest to the world. All the other
questions are tried outside; the right and title to enter the Presence are the
points at issue there. This one enters the Presence by the rapture, yet is cast
out of it afterwards as unworthy. [!!!*] Will any mere professors be caught up
on high? Is not their case settled in the previous parable of the Wedding
Garment?
[* NOTE: To assume the judgment of a Christians works, after his/her regeneration,
takes place in Heaven; and therefore before the time of Resurrection or
Rapture, is contrary to the teaching of our Lord and His prophets and apostles!
See Psa. 16; 10; Acts 2: 27, 34; Luke 16: 23, 30, 31; Acts 7: 5. Cf. Heb. 11: 13-16; Gen. 13: 14; 2 Tim. 2: 18; Rev. 6: 9-11. See also: Luke 20: 35; Phil. 3: 11, 12; Rev. 3: 10; 20: 4-6;
John 3: 13;
14: 3
R.V.]
4. The sin he commits is not that of
which the ungodly world would naturally and most suitably be accused. He is not
arraigned as having squandered the talent, or used it as his own, denying the
right of any to interfere with it. Such are the ordinary, if not the universal
positions of the ungodly with regard to the powers they inherit at birth, or
acquired by industry. He is not brought up as a culprit in custody, but
voluntarily comes forward, like the other two.
What then is his offence? It has two aspects.
1. He is guilty of slothfulness first. 2. In order to hide it, he lays the
blame of his inactivity on the [Page 170] extreme severity of the master. He was afraid to
attempt to gain, lest he should be unfortunate, and incur the deep displeasure
of his covetous master by the loss.
Now these two points are internally connected. His false views
of his master lead to sloth; his sloth in return nourishes
false views of his lords character. When brought into the masters
presence he first insists on his view of his lords character, and then the
result appears in the unused talent. (1.)
Slander therefore, first discovers itself, and then the effect of his false views upon his own character and conduct.
His lord takes up these offences in the order of their manifestation: first
pronouncing him malicious, [See Greek] and then slothful He
represents to him how he ought to have acted, if he would have escaped blame;
even supposing that his idea of his masters qualities were correct. He then
settles the disposal of the misused trust; and the principle regulating the
same. Thus too it is proved by fact, that his master is not, as he asserts,
covetous and griping; for he permits the holders of the talents to keep them still;
and not only so, but he gives the
forfeited talent to the most worthy servant; rightly judging him not fit to be
trusted by his master, who will not trust his master. Then comes the personal
infliction on the profitless servant. He is cast into the
outer darkness, where are weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Thus his double offence has an answering double punishment. 1. For not using his talent, it is
taken from him, according to the principle which the Lord announces. He is not
trusty; he shall not be trusted. 2.
But for slandering the Lord to his very face, in a vain [Page
171] attempt to
screen himself, he is cast out of the brightness and
glory of the Presence. Simple sloth had deprived him of his trust.
With confession of his fault he might have still been, perhaps, permitted to
enter the kingdom. But slander thrust him out. 1
His hard
speeches against the Lord,
so nearly resembling those of the ungodly world, call for a lot like theirs.
His sloth is based upon false views of Christ, and these being cherished
through life, at length appear in his vindication of himself before the master.
The rewarded servants are possessed of the opposite excellencies. They are
praised as good; that is, well-disposed towards
their masters person; and faithful, in the use of their trust. As
faithful, they are to be made rulers over much; as having cherished love to
their master, they are called to enter into the joy of their lord.
Here the
Talents discovers its
connexion with the former parable. The Virgins shows the guests to have entered the house of the
bridegroom. The servants now tried and found worthy are permitted to enter the
bridal feast; and to have part in the nuptial and personal rejoicing of the
master: Cant. 3, 3. Thus an omission
is supplied. It would seem from the parable of the Virgins, as if only the
gifted dead would enter the bridal banquet. But this
teaches, that others besides the sleepers may have part therein. It discloses,
too, the important lesson, that [Page 172] beside the question of simple possession of gift, or
the contrary, Jesus will inquire, whether
the gift has been employed for the purposes for which it was bestowed.
1 I would not however overlook that he
is cast out as the now manifestly unprofitable servant.
The union of two qualities, intelligence and right dispositions, constitute the
worthy servant. Good (well-disposed) and faithful. But the one who is profitless
altogether, is the one whose sloth is based on wrong dispositions towards his
master - or both malicious and unfaithful.
On comparing the Talents with the like parable of the Pounds, a
further argument arises. In the Pounds, the Lord, as speaking to the ungodly
multitude, presents his dealing with his foes, as well as with his servants.
But in Matt. 24,
when addressing disciples alone, he omits all notice of the foes.
Are there not, alas! many saints who occupy this very
position? who have such evil thoughts of the severity of Jesus, that they look
on every effort of others for him with apprehension, and dare not attempt any
thing for him themselves? But will everlasting perdition be the consequence of
neglecting to use a spiritual gift?
Let us, in concluding this part, consider the general
principles offered to our notice in the Presence-parables.
1. Those in the Virgins and Talents
partake of the first resurrection, and in the raptures to the secret Presence.
Now no mere [unregenerate] professor
will partake of either of these. The question of reality or nullity of the
profession made, is settled by the king ere [i.e., before] the kings
son arrives. There the
distinction is drawn between the invited and the elect; the unsuitably
apparelled one being invited, but not elect. But after the Days of Noah the lesson is concerning
watchfulness or unprofitableness. Are not many real believers both unwatchful
and unprofitable?
The evil steward alone seems to be left on earth till the
Lords appearing.
2. The two first parables discover the
Lords dealings with those alive at his coming, or the
two. The [Page 173] Virgins give his
actings towards those who have departed. But the two and the ten make up
the full number of the saved of this dispensation; and if the two be believers,
as I have proved, so are the ten; and if the ten, so are the two.
3. The sins which come to light are not
those of the openly vicious: neither drunkenness, fornication, nor theft come
into view. The offences adjudged are sins against the dispensation only. They are not sins previous to
conversion, but subsequent to it only. If then the final salvation of all believers
be a certain truth, we must suppose the disappointments and punishments here
exhibited to be temporary only. Answerably whereto eternity is not mentioned in any one of the four
Presence-parables, though it does occur in the sentence on the Goats, in the very next succeeding one. Why is this?
but because there the point of
decision is between the changed and the unchanged, the seed of the woman, and
the seed of the serpent; while in the preceding ones, all are servants of Christ. Universalism has
its truth, the possibility of
punishment being inflicted for a time, and remedially. Its falsehood
is, that punishment will act
as a remedy to those unchanged by grace. As believers, these are not set on
trial for [eternal] life or death, but their position in
regard to the [millennial and messianic] kingdom of God is the point in
agitation.1 Hence it happens that as their faults
incur more or less of penalty, and resemble more or less those of unbelievers,
we are the more likely to confound the persons guilty of them with the
unregenerate. [Page 174] In point of fact are there not flagrant cases, both of
ministers and private [regenerate] christians abusing their trusts, and acting in defiance of light? Are
there not those who through their whole life are concealing their belief of
Jesus, and refuse to confess him? Are there not believers squandering money on
themselves, lavishing their wealth on every vanity of time? Are not many cut
off in these offences? Will they escape shame, deprival of trust, rebuke?
1 Tried by the test applied in the Sheep
and Goats of having unconsciously done good to some of the Lords people, both
the unprofitable servant and the steward might be saved.
The Lord Jesus is the Brother, Head, Bridegroom of the church:
but no less is he the Master, and they his slaves, as far as a right to
absolute disposal of them, and the requirement of obedience are concerned. The
slave that acts against the known will of his Master, is to be beaten with many
stripes: Luke
12: 47.
If mixed with errors, the work even of the believer and of the
fundamentally-true teacher will be burnt, and he will suffer loss, escaping
with a bare salvation: 1 Cor.
3. If then for simply erroneous doctrines
such a result will follow, what for conduct like that of the unfaithful
steward? The Presence-parables thus exhibit those, who for various offences,
suffer loss, but are finally saved.
It is observable that those addressed in the first part of the
prophecy are not called servants: only in the Presence-parables are any so
denominated.
Four different grounds of trial are set up in these parables.
Some pass them, and enter, not into bare life, but into the feast, the masters
joy, the dignities of the kingdom. Will such varied tests be presented to the.
ungodly? But one is applied in the Sheep and Goats; and the issue is eternal
life, or eternal death.
These answer rather to the different sins of
Whatever fault is found in that day, is in private, during the
Secret Presence. There are no spectators but angels; and these execute also the
sentences awarded. The church when exhibited to the world is all glory. So,
while Jehovah rebukes and punishes
In the parables before us the church is taken to pieces and
severed into classes; the Great Husbandman is thoroughly purging his floor. The
being rejected, ([see Greek
]) and accounted unworthy of the crown, is true of those only who run in the race, not of those who
never enter the lists.1
1 This expounds Pauls fear, lest having
proclaimed the race to others, he should, be judged unworthy, not of
everlasting life; (that depended on the rejection of the gospel altogether: Acts 13: 46;)
but of the prizes of the
Are the rewards to victory glorious? So the rebukes [Page 176] to the slothful must
carry disgrace. Are
the soldiers of Christ to be called before their general, and their acts of
bravery to be noted? So also must the
turning back in the day of battle be signalized with shame. We have not,
however, any where, traitors judged in the parables before us: though the false
steward occupies in some measure the place of a deserter, and is amenable to
punishment in consequence.
As there are different grounds of trial, so of rejection, as
well as of entrance. Hence Pauls not unfrequent caution to endeavour to be
blameless. So Peter and John take up the same subject.
If these views be correct, (and friendly hands are requested to point out where they are wrong,)
then the Presence-parables, can only be properly understood on the admission of
the following principles:-
1. That all four refer to the time of
the Presence, and to the time of the rapture, as the period of judgments
beginning at the house of God.
2. That two relate to the judgment on
the living remnant; one refers to the departed; one to the case of both the
living and dead.
3. That the parties tried are believers
only: and the two are both
believers. Without this, neither the taking nor the leaving can be
comprehended; nor the connexion of the sign with the parables which follow.
4. That the reward is not eternal life,
nor the rejection eternal death; but only glory or disgrace in Messiahs
kingdom.
5. Through them all runs the great
master-principle of REWARD ACCORDING TO WORKS If we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ,
that each may receive the things done in the body, according to that he hath done whether it be good or bad:
(2 Cor. 5: 10:) must not there be reward for the good deed, rebuke
for the evil? Will not the believer, who, in the most deliberate choice of
life, offended by marrying an unbeliever, receive shame from the Lord? When
Paul tells us how lightly he regarded the estimation of his fellow-believers,
and that his own judgment of himself and the decision of his conscience were
not final, he adds, that when the Lord shall come the hidden things of
darkness, and the counsels of the heart will be made
manifested: 1 Cor. 4. Thus the Lord will render to each
praise or blame righteously. Many [regenerate] believers die with sins
unrepented of;
many sacrifice their eternal [i.e., aionios] interests, in
important points, to their apparent
or worldly profit. These things must
one day be [judged and] weighed. Death fastens these things on the departed in Christ; and the Lords coming, more sudden and more secret than that, cuts short the time of the living, and fixes them in the attitude they occupy
in that hour.
If the questions in the Presence-parables be only between the
believer and the unbeliever, and none are shut out into the outer darkness but
the unconverted, then the warnings of preparation are not to us. This is to my mind proof the most convincing, that the parables exhibit
the Lord judging his people only. Will any one suppose, that none will be
ashamed before the Lord at his Presence? Do all abide in him? 1 John 2: 28; Heb. 10: 30. The Lord was speaking to disciples only, as he
sat upon the mount.
If the principle of reward according to works be true, [Page
178] then every
degree of disgrace and punishment short of eternal woe, may take effect in the
kingdom. For it is matter of sad observation, that every species and degree of
crime is committed, and has been committed, by [regenerate] believers after their conversion. So that there may be positive and
entire forfeiture of the [millennial] kingdom; and only the lowest position in eternal life after it. Sovereignty
guarantees indeed, that the elect shall not be lost for ever: but the sin
of man enables us to suppose any thing short of this. Look at Aaron,
But when we see that there is a peculiar readiness for the kingdom,
as distinct from the conditions that simply admit to eternal life;
and that there is a readiness for the Presence, which is over and above the readiness for death, with which many
seek to confound it, the way to move through the encompassing difficulties, is
open.
The bearing of each parable on believers of our day, is then
most energetic and practical. Hence we are able to apprehend, why with each of
the Presence-parables exhortation is connected. But there is no exhortation
preceding the Sheep and Goats, or following it. Why? [Page
179] Because it has
not to do with believers in Christ at all, much less with believers of the
church.1
1 This is the reason why it is not
commented upon in this place; the explanation of it will be found in The Prophecy on Olivet.
The points tried in all the four parables are the responsibilities of those who are Messiahs:
not the question - Are they friends or foes? nor even, Are they hypocrites or
true men? None but believers in Jesus are looking for the return of Messiah.
Hence the parable of the Talents is to the church.
* *
*
[Page 180]
CHAPTER 10
LUKE 17.
Much
additional light is reflected upon the present inquiry, by the comparison of
the prophecy on Olivet with the parallel place in Luke.
i. The Pharisees, dissatisfied with long delay, and
perhaps with something of reproach, inquired of our Lord - When the
I.
THE KINGDOM WITHIN.
He answered them, and said, the kingdom of God
is not coming1 with waiting, neither
shall (men) say,
Lo here, or Lo there! for behold the
kingdom of God is within you.
1 The translating the two occurrences of [the Greek word
], (ver. 20,) in two different ways has thrown a false
colouring over the passage. The
The Saviours words are designedly obscure. The Pharisees
question was another form of asking for a sign, which was not to be given to
the evil generation. He would give them no information concerning that aspect
of the kingdom. But he commends to their notice a primary truth, which they had
wilfully overlooked ever [Page 181] since its first promulgation by John the Baptist -
that the kingdom was not for the Jew because he was a Jew, but for those
prepared in heart.
The kingdom of God may be considered in two lights: either in
its preparatory work in the soul of man, fitting him for the enjoyment of the day of glory; or
as an outward and visible dispensation of God, taking effect on the times and
persons, places and circumstances around us.
To the Pharisees, who were utterly unprepared in spirit for
the [coming and manifested] kingdom,
the Lord would present only the inward preparation. To what purpose did they inquire about the
future kingdom who would have no part in it? Let them first receive the truth
in the love of it; and then they might inquire. In short, the Lord Jesus
exhibits the
Considered from this point then, the kingdom of God is a
something inward, not to be watched for as coming from without,
nor capable of being pointed out to us as lying in some spot near or far
off from us; but an inward state of the renewed affections. Except a man
be born
again, he cannot see the
The rendering in the margin, which substitutes outward show for observation,
is not correct in translation, nor agreeable to prophecy. The kingdom is coming [Page 182] with outward
show. What is the
lightning appearance of Jesus, the attendance of angels and saints, but outward pomp? But further, the Greek word never has
that meaning. It always signifies watching,
and looking out for something expected. It has generally, if not always, a bad sense;
and marks the close observation of enemies, intent to take advantage; either to
gainsay in word, or to destroy by force. Thus it is said of Jesus - And the Scribes and Pharisees watched him, whether he would heal on the Sabbath day; that they might find an accusation against him:2 Luke 6: 7; 14: 1; 20: 20.
2 In this sense the word is used in the story of Susannah and
the Elders: 12: 15,16. So Dan. 6: 11; Psa. 36: 12, in the
LXX.
The watching of the unbeliever is only the close observation of
an enemy, desirous of proving the falsehood of the expectation. Such watchers
become the scoffers of the last day, when the expectation
of the coming [messianic and
millennial] kingdom is entirely given up by them [i.e., like all
Anti-millennial believers today], as surely never to come.
To the Pharisees then Jesus presents the necessity of that
inward preparation for the kingdom, without which there will be no partaking of
its glories. He may also have had in view that long interval of time - the present dispensation - during which there would be no evidence of the
coming of the kingdom, no perceptible onward movement of the signs of prophecy;
and the only aspect of the kingdom would be the preaching of the grace of God
to the Gentile. For waiting supposes separation both of time and of place from the object waited for; but both
points Jesus denies. In the sense he would have [Page 183] them regard the kingdom, it was
already come, and was not a something without, but in the mouth and heart.
As the
But the Lords answer is not intended to deny that the kingdom
is outward,
visible, and future, as the succeeding words prove.
II. THE
KINGDOM WITHOUT.
But he said to the disciples - Days will come, when ye will
desire to see one of the days of the Son
of Man, and ye will not see it. And men will say unto you, Lo
here, or Lo
there; go not after them, nor follow. For as the
lightning that lighteneth out of the one part under heaven shineth unto the
other part under heaven, so shall the Son of Man
be in his day. But first he must suffer many
things, and be rejected by this generation.
It is evident, that these words describe the [Millennial / Messianic]
While then its present
and internal aspect is presented to
the Pharisees,
or men of unbelief; and their watching, for it as external, is reproved as
foolish; to those who had already
the kingdom within, it is exhibited as an outward [Page 184] reality; for which they did right to watch. Jesus now offers to their notice the future aspect of the kingdom. But he
lowers the tone of the question. The Pharisees asked concerning the coming of the
22. The declaration that they would desire to see one of the
days of the Son of Man and would not see it, refers to that period of
persecution, of which his Jewish disciples are forewarned in several places. As
for instance in Matt. 10 and 24 - in the fifth seal (Rev. 6,) - and in the parable of the -
Unjust Judge - which closes this discourse of the Saviour. Luke 21: 12-19; is the fullest comment upon the present passage; it describes the persecution to be endured by the [Lords] disciple before the wars, pestilences, famines, and earthquakes, which,
as the beginning of sorrows, are to signalize the Lords [soon] return.
Under these inflictions from men, they would be hoping for the
advent of Messiah to put a stop to their sufferings. But the expression used by
the Saviour is studiedly obscure. They would desire to see one of the days of the Son
of Man. They would
desire the vengeance which he has promised to come and inflict, both on their
oppressors of the Gentiles, and in the persecutors of their own nation. Their
feelings, in short, are such as are described in the following passage of Isaiah: Look down
from heaven and behold the habitation of thy holiness and glory! Return for thy servants sake,
the tribes of thine inheritance. Our adversaries have trodden down thy sanctuary. O that thou wouldst rend the heavens, that thou wouldst come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy Prsence! [Page 185] Make thy name known to thine adverwries, that the nations
may tremble at thy Prdsence:
Isa. 63: 15,
18; 64: 1, 2.
But this desire that vengeance may terminate the sin and
unbelief of man, would long be maintained in vain. The persecution would begin
before the day of the Lord, the exterminating wrath [of God] would come only [before and] at the time of the end. Ye will not see it.
But at the time of
great tribulation, there would come a seeming response to their desires. Men
would arise, affirming their ability to point out to them the long-expected
Messiah, the Son of Man, to whom, as Daniel had foretold, the kingdom was to be
given. Some would describe him as near - Lo here! some, as at a distance - Lo there! But in neither case were these indicators of Messiahs [manifested] Presence to be believed. Go not away with those who affirm him near, in
the secret chambers of the temple. Pursue not after those who assert him afar off in the wilderness.
The present view is fully borne out by the answering passage
in Matt. 24: 23-28, which proves that Jesus is referring
to that future time of great tribulation,
in which Jewish hopes will be kindled to their height, by signs and wonders of
false Christs, while their adherents would be on the alert to point out to any
whom they might be able to deceive, the place of abode of the false Christ to
whom they had attached themselves. The same safeguard against this delusion is
given by our Lord on both occasions. His Presence should not be of such a kind
as to be pointed out by any man on earth, and as filling but a single spot of
earth; it would be like the lightning coming forth from the secret chambers of
the sky, and, before it can be spoken of, filling at once the [Page
186] whole expanse of
the heaven. He will be seen, not by a few of his Jewish disciples first on
earth, but by all men at once, riding on the clouds of the sky: Matt. 25:
30.
Thus the parallelism of the Saviours expression to the
Pharisees and to the disciples is seen. To the
Pharisees it was said:-
1. The kingdom is not coming with watching.
2.
Neither shall men say, Lo here! or Lo
there!
3. For behold, the
To the disciples it
is said,
1. Ye will desire to see a day of the Son of Man, and not see it.
2. And they will say, Lo here ! or Lo there! But believe not.
3. For as the lightning, shall the Presence of the Son of Man
be.
We give thus the same signification to the expression Lo here! or Lo there! in both. In the first case, the expression would not be used. In the second it would be
used; but the disciples were not to believe the testimony; not indeed for the
reason assigned before, (because the kingdom of God is only internal, and
never [now] to be outwardly displayed,) but
because the advent of Jesus to earth
will be so sudden, that in an instant his
hosts of angels and saints - [who were previously raptured to heaven, because judged by our Lord Jesus
as accounted worthy to
escape Luke
21: 35; Rev. 3: 10) Antichrists persecutions]* - and himself will be conspicuous in the
heaven.
[* NOTE: There must
also be a number of surviving overcomers, -left unto the coming of our Lord (1 Thess. 4: 15a, R.V.). These tribulation saints of God, will
also be raptured at the time of His return, together with the resurrection of
the Holy dead Rev.
20: 4-6. from Sheol / Hades (Psa. 139: 8; Ps. 16: 10. Cf. Matt. Acts.
2: 34; 7: 5; Luke 16: 23,
R.V.).
It is important to notice that at the time of the first
and select rapture of living saints, a changed from mortality
to immortality
will take place: and this did not happen to Elijah! (see Rev.
11: 7 cf.
Num. 16: 30): but must occur before anyone can appear
in Gods presence in heaven! See also
Mr. G. H. Langs Firstfruits and
Harvest.]
The nature then of that appearing of the Son of Man, on which
the hopes of his persecuted Jewish disciples were to rest, is pointed out;
first, the erroneous ideas entertained of it by the unbelieving Jews, given up
to delusion from God are exhibited, and then the true view [Page
187] of it set before
them by Jesus himself, which was to be their safeguard against such Jewish
misapprehensions. The object offered to the disciples shows the nature of their
desire. They are looking for Messiahs Presence; and that the agents of
the false Christs undertake to discover to them.
The lightning- appearing of the Son of Man is to be in his day. Their desire is to be to see one of his days. Thus the
Presence of the Son of Man is to extend over some considerable period of time,
as will appear more fully afterwards. His open revelation on the clouds will be
the conclusion of that period of his Presence.
Ver. 25. But, before the manifestation of
Messiah in glory, his humiliation must come. Thus the personal sufferings of
Messiah at the hands of the evil generation, which consists both of Jew and
Gentile, and his present and future rejection by them both, stands as the sign
interposed between the two assertions of our Lord.
1. Before his personal sufferings,
there was to be no pointing out of the kingdom, or of Messiahs Presence as in
a certain spot. After them, there would be; and this received its fulfilment at
the time of
2. But the Saviour has yet to be
rejected by the Gentiles, and, as before their rejection, Messiah would not be
pointed out as on the earth, so after that, he would.
When
The sentiment that Christ must be rejected ere his day, answers to that of the apostle in 2 Thess. 2, where he declares, that the day
of the Lord will not come till the apostacy and the
revelation of the Man of Sin. It corresponds also with what we read in the
parable of the Pounds. The citizens hate the nobleman, and send a message after
him - We will
not have this man to reign over us. Then he returns, and issues his command to bring his
enemies and slay them before him.
We come now to the third division of the prophecy.
III.
DAYS OF NOAH AND
And as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating, were
drinking, were marrying, were giving in marriage, until
the day that Noah entered into the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them
all.
In like
manner also as it was in the days of Lot: They
were eating, were drinking, were buying, were selling,
were planting, were
building; but on the day in which Lot went out
of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from
heaven, and destroyed them all; even thus shall it be
in the day wherein the Son of Man is revealed.
By the days of the Son of Man, the same period is intended which
Matthew describes as the Presence of the Son of Man.
This will be evident on comparing two parallel passages.
1. As the lightning - so shall also the Presence of the Son of Man be:
Matt. 24: 27.
2. As the lightning - so shall also the Son of Man be in his day: Luke 17: 24.
1. As the days of Noah - so shall also the
Presence of the Son of Man be:
Matt. 24: 37.
2. As in the days of Noah - so also in the days of the Son of Man: Luke 17:
26.
The days of the Son of Man, or the Presence, include all that
interval which elapses between the descent of the Lord from the heaven into the
air, till his manifestation of himself with his assembled saints in the clouds.
The days of Noah and
In this point the divine judgments will be unlike those
usually coming upon men. Before war there is often consternation, and
stagnation of business, while the ill results are frequently not such as were
expected, and not destruction, but victory, has fallen to the lot of the
terrified nation.
But such will be the course of things in the great day of
wrath, as in the days of Noah and
1. Thus far both cases agree. But the
two cases have also their peculiar bearing. Noahs history presents the great
destruction as affecting the wide world. The escape into the ark, answers to the escape of the
Jewish elect into the mountains and desert. The flood was a long period of
wrath - the waters were a long while rising, a long while at their height, a
long while subsiding. This time answers then to the secret Presence of the Son
of Man, whence he pours forth the vials of his indignation.
2. But the day of wrath on
In Noahs case the point of comparison is the ark, or the point to which escape is to be
directed: in that of
In the second division we had both the days
of the Son of Man, and his day. Answerably whereto, in this third
section, we have the days of the Son of Man, exhibited in the history of the times of [Page 191] Noah, and the day of the
revelation of the Son of Man, answering to the day of vengeance on Sodom. The days of
Noah answer to Matt. 24: 15-28, (or A 5, 6.) the days of
The Son of Man is revealed to the inhabitants of the earth at the close. He is present
and manifested to his saints long before, but hidden from the world under a
veil of clouds and thick darkness; but when the iniquity of the earth and of Jerusalem is come to the full, the veil
of cloud is suddenly rent aside, and Jesus and the hosts of heaven stand
disclosed in all their majesty and power, to an unbelieving world. It is then
like the bird taken in the snare ere it is aware.
We come then next to the conduct befitting the terrible
crisis.
IV.
THE JEWISH ESCAPE
In that day,
he who shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff (goods) in the house, let him not
come down to take it away; and he that is in the
field, in like manner let not him return back
Remember Lot's wife.
The preceding portion had described the general unbelief,
together with the escape of some,
represented by Noahs entrance into his place of refuge, the ark; and Lots
escape from
The present passage then tallies with the more distinct
directions given in Matt. 25. There an idols being lifted into, or upon the
The next section relates to something, I apprehend, quite
distinct.
V.
THE DISCRIMINATING RAPTURE
Whosoever shall seek to save his life
shall lose it, and whosoever shall lose it,
shall get it restored. I
tell you, this 1 night two (men)
shall be on one bed: one shall be taken and the
other left. Two (women) shall be grinding together, the
one shall be taken and the other left.2
1 [See Greek
] No reason can be given why it should be rendered that night:
See Matthew 26:
31, 31, &c.
2 The 36th
verse is omitted by both MSS.
and Editors, as not genuine.
It seems apparent to me, on re-consideration, that the first
of these verses must belong to the present section: for the Jew in the former
is directed to use his most energetic efforts to save his life, and he is
promised in another part, that by patience he shall win it: Luke 21: 19.
But this sentiment refers to the surrender of life for Jesus
sake, and appears connected with the previous hint, that the disciples of the Lord would be under persecution, and so in danger
of complying with the temptations to sin. We have therefore a promise that
life so [Page 193] surrendered shall be restored. They will by God be
adjudged worthy of his kingdom who suffer for it: 2 Thess. 1.
The present sentiment is first propounded by our Lord on that
memorable occasion, when, having drawn from his apostles lips the proof of
Jewish unbelief concerning himself, he obtains from Peter the confession that
he was the Son of the Living God, which Jesus interprets to signify his having
life in himself, or the power of resurrection: in consequence of which he promises to build on himself his church, and to raise it, from the gates of the
place of the dead (Hades.) Jesus then foretells his own
rejection and sufferings, and declares that those who would
follow him must tread in his steps, disregarding
this present life, in order to
assume it again in resurrection. Then follows the promise of some
beholding the kingdom without dying, which was fulfilled in the three who
witnessed the Transfiguration.1
1 A confirmatory result would be
obtained from considering John 14: 25.
The above sketch will introduce us to the meaning of this
passage. It is a promise of resurrection life, and so is not for the Jew, who is to live in the flesh during the
Messiahs kingdom, but for those - [both Jew and Gentile] - raised [out from the among dead] at Christs
Presence. It strikes a new chord then, foretelling the resurrection of
bliss for the sleeping saint, preparatory to foretelling the rapture for those
who shall enter the kingdom without seeing death. But the sentiment that the
loser of life for Christs sake shall find it, though it has its fullest
expression in the martyr who yields up life in the service of the Lord, has, I
suppose, reference to the self-denial of the saints of God in general, in their
[Page 194] being ready to submit to any sacrifice at the call of
Christ. This then will be the ground of distinction
intimated between the taken and the left. The taken is the self-denying believer, the left, the
self-indulgent one. For watchfulness or self-denial are different aspects of
the same state of the christian; as self-indulgence, or the being overcharged
with the cares and pleasures of the world, are on the other hand convertible
views of the same character. Thus we see the harmony of the two conditions
given by Matthew and Luke respectively.
The expression, I tell you, has its own force. (1)
It frequently takes up the last sentiment uttered, and gives the practical
result of it. Thou shalt be cast into prison. I tell thee, thou shall not depart thence: 12: 59; 11: 8, 9; 18: 14. (2) It is the assertion of
Jesus authority, in opposition generally to the opposite thoughts of his
hearers, or the world at large. Were the slain Galileans worse than the rest of
the Jews? I tell you, Nay. Am I, think you, come to give peace
on earth? I tell you, Nay Luke 13:
3, 5; 11: 51.
I tell you, my
disciples, for the disclosure I am about to make concerns you, not the
unbelievers. Then follows the hint of the mode in which the self-denying
believer shall preserve his life, namely, by [a select] rapture to the Presence of the Lord. The startling announcement then,
which required the Saviours full authority to back it was, This night one shall be taken, and one
left.
This night must of course precede that day.
It is a portion of the present evil age. This
night, I suppose, ends in the great and terrible day of the [Page
195] Lord, which is emphatically called that day in the Old Testament. Thus only would the rapt ones escape the
things coming to pass. The flight is to take place, in that day in which the Son of Man is revealed, or reveals
himself. This night, then is a portion of that period
when the Lord Jesus is present, but conceals himself.
The taken and the left
here are, as in Matthew, both
[regenerate] believers; the
taken one is borne aloft to the Presence of the Lord, and the other - [not accounted
worthy to escape (see Luke 21: 34-36; Rev. 3: 10)] -left to the perils below. But the distinction between the two
parties of the elect, as the Jewish elect, or the Christian elect, is more evident here than in Matthew. In Matthew
24: 37,
41, the earthly escape of the Jew is very briefly marked. The day that
Noah entered into the ark, the flood came. Here we have, first, the days of Noah
in the unbelief of the worldly, Noah escapes, and the vengeance that followed,
with the similar circumstances in the history of
The two parties in Luke are more separated, first in the arrangements of our Lords
words; and secondly, in point of the
time, the taken and the left belonging to this night, the
fugitives belonging to that day.
The instance peculiar to Luke of the discrimination to be exercised between two in exactly
similar circumstances, proves more decisively, if possible, than that in Matthew, that the taking and leaving are
supernatural; and therefore, that the taking is the Lord [Page
196] removal of his
saint to glory. Two are in bed, the house locked, the chamber door bolted, both
perhaps asleep. Ere the house could be broken into, or the chamber door forced,
or even the sleepers awakened, one is taken, and one is left. There is no hint
of either rising to flee, or of any entering to carry them out. The human friend who comes at midnight must tarry
outside the barred entrance. The robber must dig his way in by force. But this
heavenly hand takes his own when and where he wills.
The women both grinding together are introduced as in Matthew. Does this scene point to the same
hour of the day? It may. The grinding is generally in the early morn. Sir John Chardin informs us (says
Harmer) that in the east they grind their corn at break of day; and that when
one goes out in a morning, one hears everywhere the noise of the mill, and that
it is often the noise that awakens people.
It has been commonly known, that
they bake every day, and that they usually grind their corn as they want it.
Vol. i, 250, (See also Robinson, Vol. ii, 181, 471.)
It is evident, that both these postures are unfit for instant
flight, and that the decision is represented as having taken place, while they
are passive.
The rapture enters the Saviours discourse here, as a sign of
the coming [millennial]
[Page 197]
VI.
THE EAGLES AND CARCASE
And they answered and said unto him, Where Lord? But he said unto
them, Where the body is, there will the eagles be gathered together.
The startling
announcement of the Lord that that night the sudden change of the destiny of many would take
place, aroused the disciples curiosity. When would the taking and the leaving take place? They
evidently understood the note of time literally. Jesus by his obscure reply
hints, that the night was to be taken metaphorically. The carcase was not a
literal nor entirely a local thing; so neither were the eagles. It was a moral question which he was laying before
them, rather than a physical: a question of diverse natures
attaining their respective awards - a moral scene - a matter of spiritual death* and life, and the issues of both. From his answer, confessedly obscure
as it is, we may collect, I believe, additional evidence that the preceding announcement
is that of the saints rapture to glory.
[* See Rev. 3: 1b-3, R.V., - I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and THOU ART DEAD, [2] Be thou watchful and establish the things
that remain, which were ready to
die: for I have found no WORKS of thine fulfilled
before my God. [3] Remember therefore how thou
hast received and didst hear; and keep it, and REPENT. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come
upon thee.]
By the corpse we are to understand the world after its
rejection of Jesus; by the eagles, I am apt to think,1 the saints of God. When sin has come
to its height below, glory on high attains its height also. The eagles gather when
the beast is dead. The eagles rise to their height of life and light, when the
beast totters and falls to the earth in death. The eagles place is in the
clouds, whence the lightning comes. In the body or carcase we have, I suppose,
a reference to Daniel. I beheld then because of the
voice of the great words [Page
198] which the horn spake, I beheld
even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to
the burning flame. I saw in the night visions,
and behold one like the Son of Man came with the
clouds of heaven: Dan. 7: 11, 13. The eagles in the clouds then, are
the saints - [i.e., the holy ones] - and the avenging angels
that come with Christ. And the word used of the gathering of the eagles, is the
very one used of the assembly of the saints to Christ by their ascension into
heaven: 2
Thess. 2: 1.
1 I do not feel certain about this
application, and therefore append a note of warning, that it may be tried by
each.
Jesus words imply, that the messengers of
judgment would collect where sin had reached its consummation on the earth.
Now the left one is left where the body is.
Thus then, if the eagles signify the heavenly elect soaring to their promised heaven, while persecution
and unbelieving feasting and rejection of Jesus below betoken the evil - [and
apostate
Christian] - generation arrived at its
carcase-state, then the interpretation of the taking as referring to the
saints rapture, as well harmonizes with the context of Luke as with that of Matthew.
VII. THE
UNJUST JUDGE
Moreover he spake a parable to them
on the duty of praying always and not fainting, saying,
There was a certain judge in a certain city who feared
not God, and regarded not man. Now there was a widow in that city, and she used to come to him,
saying, Avenge me of my adversary. And he was unwilling for a while; but after this, he said in
himself - Though I fear not God, and regard not man, yet
because this widow causeth me annoyance, I will
avenge her, lest by her continual coming she
weary me.
But the Lord said, hear what the judge of injustice
saith. Now shall not God avenge his own elect, who cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of
Man cometh shall he then find - [the - a definite article before the word] - faith on the earth?
It is an error to separate the present parable from the former
parts, of which it is the close. By making it the beginning of another chapter,
and putting in the word men, where there is
nothing to answer to it in the original, our translators have severed it from
the context to which it belongs.
The parable of the Unjust Judge is the
Saviours exhortation of his Jewish disciples to the conduct befitting them under that time of persecution and
trouble which he had foretold in the preceding part. He had given us to
understand, that his disciples would be longing for his presence, and that for a tedious period their hopes would be withheld, while the storm of persecution would beat upon them with a fury, hitherto unparalleled. What was
to be done under such critical circumstances? Resistance - [by
physical force]
- is forbid: Rev. 13: 10; 14: 12. Here is disclosed therefore the only, yet the
all-sufficient remedy for their perplexity and trial. It is constant - [faithfulness to Gods commands
and conditions.
5: 20; Rom 8: 17b; 1Cor. 3: 10b-15; Eph. 5: 5, 6. Cf.
For I,
Jehovah, change not
(Malachi 3: 6); For he that
doeth wrong shall receive again for the
wrong that he hath done: and there is no respect of
persons. (Col. 3: 25, R.V.)
The effect of that potent weapon is exhibited in a case where
success would seem almost hopeless. A widow without friends, and apparently
without money, appeals to a judge to have her cause righted; a judge on whose
character, as neither caring for the opinions of men about his deeds, nor
regarding the terrors of the future judgment of God, it must seem almost
useless to try to make any impression.
Accordingly, the Saviour informs us, that her plea was at first apparently in vain. He was indeed a [righteous] judge, whose office and duty it was to
avenge the oppressed. But that motive had no effect. For a time her suit was without any
apparent result. But soon it became evident [Page 200] that the visits of the widow and her
claims had a cumulative effect, which though small at the first, yet their
burden, like the increasing weight of the snow in a storm, after a time became intolerable.
As a matter of his own personal interest, he felt at length
compelled to take up and avenge her cause. Her visits were a constant
annoyance, and to get rid of them and live in quiet, he would be glad to do any
thing.
Now, says the Lord Jesus, if constant importunity availed in so apparently hopeless a
case, what must it not effect in yours? (1.)
That judge was unjust; but the God to whom you appeal is
the God of perfect justice, who is fully alive to every
claim made on him; yea, feels it before the claim is made.
(2.) The widow had no claim of
relationship upon the judge: but you, as Gods own elect, are especially loved by him, and affection prompts him to
lend you an ear. (3.) The widow
could only visit her judge by day, and perhaps but once or twice a day; but
Gods elect assail him with their
petitions night and day. (4.) The
widow was but one: they are
many, and their united supplications
will [eventually] draw down a speedy reply.
Yet such
will be the terrors of the time, such the apparent evidence in
favour of iniquity, that the [regenerate and repentant] believers of that day will be all but ready to throw up their faith, when
the manifested vengeance of God [suddenly and without delay] lights upon the persecutors, and the Son of Man makes his appearance in
the clouds.
Of that future, state of things the Acts give us a forcible type. Herod, the persecuting king, reigns
supreme. He slays James the brother of John with the sword. He takes Peter too,
and shuts him up with the utmost [Page 201] care in a prison, whence escape seemed impossible. But
prayer, fervent and unceasing, is made by the church at
We come now to inquire concerning the bearing of this on the
preceding part. What are the parties who
are thus instructed to petition God for vengeance?
1. It would seem evident, that it must
be the Jewish disciples of the Lord Jesus. But the question arises - In what state
are they supposed to be? At what time will their cry thus be raised? First,
before the day of flight. Even those who escape from
2. But it may be asked - Can the prayer for vengeance belong to the
It seems then that those exhorted to pray to the God of
justice for vengeance, and to whom vengeance is promised as the result of their
supplications, are not primarily the
The apostates [from within the Church] of the last days occupy ground more awful far than the merely worldly of the present day. God sends on them strong delusion, that
they who refused his truth may believe the devils counterfeit. And we are
informed that the damnation of those who, in token of their belief in the false
Christ, stamp their persons with his sacramental mark, is infallible: Rev. 14: 9-11. There is no room then to hope for
their recovery and salvation, and so no
power to pray for it.*
[* See Jeremiah Ch. 7;
cf.
Ezekiel Ch. 38.]
Thus the nature of the prayer put into the lips of these
disciples is an intimation that the rapture of those in the former part,
belongs to (a part of) the church.
To the Jewish disciple instructed to flee for his life, vengeance is the very
prayer taught in the Psalms. The first rapture of the church is promised
to be before the hour of sore temptation coming on the world. But the time of the present prayer is evidently at
that period, when the heaviest blasts of persecution assail the believers in
Jesus Messiahship: a time just
preceding his advent.
Before closing these observations, let us take a general
review of the teaching of the passage.
[Page 203]
The question started by the Pharisees, was - When the
i. Jesus refuses to give them any light upon the subject of the kingdom considered as
a thing distant in time and place, and commends to their regard its aspect as something
already before them, and a question of the state of the heart.
ii. But to the disciples,
Jesus exhibits the kingdom in that point of view in which the Pharisees
desired him to regard it. The general results of the Lords prophecy concerning
it then is, that the
1. When the evil world, both Jew and
Gentile, have rejected his faith and name.
2. When in consequence, his disciples
sigh and groan under persecution; and sore troubles
sent of God smite the earth.
3. It will come, when false Christs,
working great signs and wonders, arise, and their adherents profess to be able
to introduce the inquirer to the Presence of the long-promised Messiah.
4. It will come, when the world is sunk
in unbelief, though judgment is at the door, and wraths sword is drawn.
5. Then will take place the earthly or Jewish escape, obtainable only by the most urgent flight in the direction
pointed out by the Saviour.
6. But before it, will come the mysterious or heavenly escape obtained by being rapt to the true
Presence of Messiah.
7. Then, when sin is at the height,
vengeance will overtake the fallen carcase of the world: its open [Page
204] rejection of
Jesus, is its last gasp, after which it is fully ripe for judgment.
The following scheme will also discover another view of its
structure.
The two great subjects which Jesus treats of in secret, are
(1.)
In No. ii. then,
(for No. i. declines to consider the question in
that light,) we have
In No. iii. we have
first, the days of Noah, or the state of the world in general: then Lot and
In No. iv, the
order is indirect again, and flight from
Then (No. v.) the
rapture of the saint, or the heavenly and answering escape is mysteriously
given; and its connexion with the Saviours secret Presence is hinted.
[Page 205]
The question of the disciples (in No. vi.) brings Jesus back again to the earth and the local question,
and
The following will give a brief tabular view of these
conclusions: -
No. i. The Kingdom within.
No. ii. The kingdom without.
No. iii. Noah. The generation. Flood.
No. iv.
No. v. The generation. Rapture. Noah.
Enoch.
No. vi.
No. vii.
The
* *
*
[Page
206]
CHAPTER 11
THE EPISTLES TO
THE THESSALONIANS I
IT is
familiarly known to students of prophecy, that the two Epistles to the
Thessalonians treat more fully of the second coming of the Lord Jesus than any
other of Pauls writings. They were his earliest productions, and they shew his
mind still filled with the teaching of the Old Testament scriptures. In them he
is seen as the householder bringing forth out of his treasury the old things of
the Law and the Prophets combined with the new discoveries of the gospel.
In treating of this portion of the subject, I propose to adopt
a two-fold division, presenting
1. THE
EXPOSITION OF SOME OF THEIR PRINCIPAL PROPHETIC PORTIONS.
2. THEIR
BEARING UPON THE DISCLOSURES MADE BY OUR LORD
IN THE PROPHECY ON
OLIVET.
1. The main portions then which will
call for exposition are, in the first
Epistle, a portion of chapters 4 and 5; and in the second Epistle parts of chapters 1 and 2.
1. First then chapters 4 and 5.
[1 Thess. 4: 13]: But I would not have you to be ignorant brethren,
concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as
the rest which have no hope. For if we believe
that Jesus died and rose again, [Page 207] even so them
also which are put to sleep by Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the Presence of the Lord shall not precede them which
are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend
from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the
archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall first rise: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up
together with them in clouds, to meet the Lord,
into air: and so shall
we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one
another with these words.
[1 Thess. 5: 1] But of the
times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so
cometh as a thief in the night. For when they
shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child, and they shall not escape.
But ye, brethren,
are not in the darkness, that that day should
overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children
of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor
of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep as do others;
but let us watch and be sober. For they that
sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of
faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. For
God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to
obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ. Who
died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live
together with him.
From this passage it would appear, that the Thessalonian
Christians entertained the idea, that those believers alone who were found
alive on earth at the time of the Lords coming would partake in the kingdom.
Hence they mourned over the saints who had departed, not only with the sorrow
of nature, but with a new one, imparted by their
misapprehension of the christian hope. To remove this, the apostle wrote.
If Jesus death, he
says, were no barrier to his resurrection
and ascension, neither would it be to those put [Page 208] to sleep by Jesus. Such would God bring with Jesus. But this expression
carries with it a difficulty which must be spread before the reader. To whom
does the word bring refer? By that
expression we understand, that the dead are in some distant
locality, away from the living, but that they and Jesus are to be united in
one company at his coming. When Jesus says, Go into the
village over against you, and straightway ye
shall find an ass tied and a colt with her:
loose them and bring them to me:
(Matt. 21:
2.) we understand, that the ass and the colt were in some
locality at a distance, but that the disciples were to traverse the interval
between their position then, and the place of the ass and its colt, and were to
return to that where the Saviour was. Does then this bringing refer to the
place of the living saints? Does not it suppose, that the dead are already in the glory of heaven: and that when the kingdom comes, Jesus will
bring them with himself? But this is contrary, both to other
scriptures, and to the one now before us. For Paul assures us, that the dead in Christ shall first rise, and then both the living
and dead conjointly be carried to the Lord in the air. This would suppose
then, that the dead saints are in heaven as bodiless beings, that they descend
as unclothed spirits with Christ, that they leave him in mid-air, and come down
to earth to take up their bodies, and return with the living. Thus the departed
would have had long the start of the living, and this would have been the
natural topic of comfort to the survivors. - Do you mourn
the departed? They are already in the presence of Christ
in heaven. But Pauls
consolation is the hope of resurrection [from the dead], as embracing in
its [Page 209] wide arms both the sleeping and the waking saints. 2. We have supposed in the former case, that the bringing relates
to the place of the living saints, and that it means that they will return to
earth with Jesus. But there is another point of view from which the bringing
may be regarded. It may be referred to the position of God. And this, I
believe, is the true point of view. Them that are put to sleep by Jesus shall God
bring with him.
(Jesus.) So that the apostles teaching is, that - [when Christ returns (see John 14: 2, 3)] - both
the living and the sleeping [dead] saints shall by God be taken to himself in heaven.
Thus when Paul says, Take Mark and bring him with thee, for he
is profitable to me for service, we understand that Paul would be stationary, and that the
bringing refers to Pauls
position. There is a passage which seems to confirm this view: It became him,
for whom are all things, and by whom are all things in bringing many sons into glory, to make the
Captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings: Heb. 2: 10.
Have we not too, in Moses dying on
The answer to the fears of the Thessalonians then is - So far
from death hindering the entrance to
the Presence of Christ and the kingdom of God, the sleep of the departed [dead saints] shall first be broken, ere any
transforming hand is put forth on the living saints, and then - [at the end of the Great
Tribulation, when our Lord Jesus returns
to earth] - both together will - [become immortal, and] - ascend
to the Presence of the Lord. The signal of this rapture is to be the trump of God. Now this is either the seventh and
last trumpet, or a previous one. If it be the sixth trumpet, or a still earlier
one, then the [Page 210] dead will be raised from their graves for a long
period ere they ascend. For they are not to mount to meet Jesus till the living
go with them. But the time of the change - [from mortality to immortality] - that is to pass upon the bodies of
the living saints - a change necessary to fit them for the
The next chapter presents us with the effect of the DAY of the Lord on
the world. It would be to the worldly - swift, inevitable, sudden destruction.
But the watchful saint would not be in it.
[Page
211]
CHAPTER 11
SECTION II.
2 THESSALONIANS I
[2 Thess.
1: 4-10]: So that we
ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience in faith in all
your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure. Which is a manifest token of the righteous
judgment of God, that ye may be counted
worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also
suffer; Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to
recompense tribulation to them that trouble you; And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his
mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance
on them that know not God; and on them
that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction
from the Presence of the Lord, and from
the glory of his power; When he shall come
to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired
in all them that believe (because our testimony
among you was believed) in that day.
The patience of the Thessalonians under persecutions called
forth the apostles praise. He speaks of persecutions and afflictions. Persecutions seem to mean the acts whereby christians
were harassed; either in courts of justice, or when their steps were followed
with intent to do them mischief. Afflictions
seem the results of such pursuit of the ungodly, as prisons, scourgings, fines,
and death. Their suffering for well doing was an intimation that God would one
day take the cause into his own hand. As he must love holiness, and hate
injustice, [Page 212] he cannot always permit the persecutors to triumph. He must, as the just God, render
finally, to each according to his
works. Could God suffer his saints, who witness to the coming of his
promised kingdom, to endure trouble for the truths sake, and make them no
requital? By no means. They might then assure themselves that they would be counted worthy to enter the
coming [Millennial and Messianic] kingdom.
The expression accounted worthy startles some. But
it is the word of God, and is not to be explained away. It is no mistake. The
same expression occurs in three other passages. We pray always for you,
that God would count you worthy of this calling: 5: 11. They which shall be accounted
worthy to obtain that age,
and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry nor are
given in marriage, neither can they die any more,
for they are equal unto the angels, and are the children of God, being
the children of the resurrection: Luke 20:
35, 36. Watch therefore, and pray always, that ye may
be accounted
worthy to escape all these
things that are about to come to pass, and to be
set before the Son of Man:1 21:
36.
1 This is another notice of the [select] rapture.
Now it is observable in all these passages, that the judgment
of worthiness relates to the millennial glory. It could not have been said of eternal life,
for that is freely bestowed. The gift of God is eternal life. But the kingdom of God, or the thousand
years, is the time of especial reward,
and some will be saved finally who will be accounted unworthy to enter it; as for instance, those who die under the just excommunication of a church.
If then, even those who believe in the
[Page 213]
As then it was just, that the
sufferers should be rewarded, so was it that the persecutors should be recompensed with evil. With the same
measure that ye mete withal, it shall be
measured to you again. Then the power of the persecutor would cease, and the persecuted would
enjoy repose, together with the three apostles who head the Epistle; who no
less than themselves, were continually enduring the enmity of men.
The time of this recompense is then mentioned, as taking
effect at the unveiling (apocalypse) of Jesus Christ from heaven with the angels of his power. Jesus will be in heaven with the hosts of angels, but veiled there in clouds
and thick darkness, for a considerable period, ere he discloses himself in
wrath to the persecutors of his saints. It is evident from what follows, that
the subject that was especially before the apostles mind was the wrath on the troublers of
Christs flock. That will take place when the clouds which have so long
concealed him roll away, and the Saviour and his angels of power appear.
Thus the
There is a revealing in heaven to the saints: but this is a revealing of Jesus from heaven, attended with those angels by
whose might the power of the adversaries is overwhelmed. He will be manifested
in flames of
fire. Jesus compares his
revelation to the flames and brimstone that destroyed
The parties who suffer the vengeance of the Lord Jesus are
distributed into two classes
- those that know not God, and
those l that obey not
the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. (1.) Ignorance of God is the characteristic of idolatrous
Gentiles. Then when ye knew not God, ye did service to
them that by nature are no gods: Gal.
4: 8. And in the former epistle still more
directly. Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know
not God: 1 Thess. 4: 5; Psa. 79: 6.
1 Tois,
omitted in our translation before the second class.
(2.) But those who obey not the gospel are another class; who have heard the truth of God and
refuse it, loving darkness rather than light; who are also especially set forth
in the next chapter. A reference to the history in the Acts will enable us to see that these two great parties united in
persecuting the believers of Thessalonica; (1.) the Jews, who refused the gospel which they had heard from
Pauls lips; and (2.) the Gentiles,
who were urged on by Jewish intrigues and false reports to persecute the
brethren. The Jews professed that they knew God,
even when in works they denied him: Titus 1: 10, 11, 16. They are described therefore as not
pleasing God, 1 Thess. 3, in opposition to those who (like
Enoch) please him: Heb. 11.
There was then a difference of guilt in these two parties; and
I think we may trace a correspondent difference in their doom, or rather, in
the execution of the vengeance on them.
Their general destiny is, that they shall suffer [Page
216] everlasting destruction, or, as it is called in Matt. 25 everlasting punishment. But a question may arise as to the next sentiment.
This destruction is from the face of the Lord. To that expression two senses may
be attached. Does it signify, (1.) Banishment from his Presence? or
(2.) Destruction proceeding
from his face?
The latter is the correct meaning; as I am persuaded from
consideration of the cases where the same phrase occurs.
It should be, destruction from the face of the Lord, for we have taken the word Presence to answer to the Greek Parousia,
and this is another word, signifying his manifested Presence. The phrase in other places signifies, the personal
appearing of him of whom the expression is used. I saw a great white throne, and him that
sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away: Rev. 20: 11.
Fire from the face of the Lord consumed the burnt offering: Lev. 9:
24. Fire from the face of
the Lord consumed Nadab and Abihu: Lev. 10: 2.
The force of the expression here is the same. There it is
written. - There went out fire from
before the Lord, and devoured them. Here it is destruction going forth from
the face of the Lord. And several passages containing a
like construction can be produced. The day of the Lord is at hand; it shall
come as a destruction from the
Almighty: Isa. 13: 6; Joel. 1: 15. There came
out a fire from the Lord, and consumed the two
hundred and fifty men that offered incense: Num.
16: 35.
[Page 217]
The destruction also proceeds from the
glory of his power. Power
and splendour are united in the Saviours appearance. The angels of his might
execute the tasks required by power. And glory belongs to those who shine with
him like the sun - that is, the risen believers. Fire proceeds from the
Presence of the Lord, and the angels are despatched thence on those missions
which require strength.
If I rightly understand the connexion,
the succeeding verse, when he shall come to be glorified in his saints
in that day, has a backward reference, to the time of rest to the
troubled. The intervening verses, 8 and 9, are a
continuous description of the surrounding circumstances when Jesus takes
vengeance on the troublers: that which follows is, I believe the aspect of the
coming of the Lord to the troubled. So that the construction in brief would
stand thus. It is righteous in God to recompense
tribulation to your persecutors, when the Lord Jesus appears in fire; and to
you the troubled rest, when he comes to be admired in believers. Paul
had two great thoughts in his mind: (1.) the justice of God as manifested
towards the two opposite classes of troublers and troubled; the results of that
judgment he states first; then, beside that, his eye was upon (2.) the terrible
destruction of the persecutor; on this he dwells, till we almost lose sight of
the time of recompense to the other class.
But another question suggests itself as to the interpretation
of those words - when he shall come to be glorified in his saints.
(1.) Does that intend, (I refer to the word in the original,) that Jesus is to
be glorified as the source of the
power and glory of his companions and [Page
218] hosts? This is the idea which our translators
appear to have had. (2.) Or does it
mean to be
glorified by his saints?
Either gives a favourable sense. I am not satisfied which is the true; but
rather think that the first is so. The Lord hath redeemed Jacob; and glorified himself in
As the foes of Christ are of two classes, so are the friends
with whom he comes. Verse the seventh had described them as the angels of his power,
and those who were reposing after their persecution. The same distinction, I
believe, obtains here. The expression The saints in these two first Epistles of Paul has the Old Testament
signification of angels.
Thus, I heard one saint speaking and another saint
said unto that certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the daily sacrifice?
Dan. 8: 13. What is man, that he should be clean? And he that is born of a woman that he should be righteous.
Behold he putteth no trust in his saints, yea, the heavens are not clean in his sight. How much more abominable and filthy is man? Job 14:
16. The Lord came
from Sinai, and rose up from Seir unto them;1 he shined
forth from
1 Should be to
his people, [See Hebrew
] No parties are spoken of previously, therefore the relative
cannot be used.
It is the passage also especially referred to in the former
epistle, and there also the word saints takes
the signification of angels. To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable
in holiness before God even our Father, in the
Presence of our Lord Jesus Christ with all his saints; 3: 13.1
Jesus will be glorified by his angels in a two-fold manner: in
their clearing his kingdom of the ungodly, and the instruments of sin; and also
in their worshipping himself, according to the declaration of the apostle, When he a second
time bringeth in the
first-begotten into the habitable earth, he
saith, And let all the angels of God worship him:
Heb. 1: 6.
But he is to be admired in all them that believe, for the
testimony of the three apostles who head the epistle had not been in vain at Thessalonica.
How appropriately then are believers called on to live according to so glorious
a hope and calling, honouring the Lord Jesus now by patience, as then they will
be glorified with him!
1 The word [see Greek
] as referring to christian brethren
does not occur in these two epistles. In the first Epistle, 5: 27, the critical
editions omit
[this word].
* *
*
[Page 220]
CHAPTER 11
SECTION II.
2 THESSALONIANS II
[2 Thess. 2: 1-12]:Now we
beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by
spirit, nor by calculation, nor by letter as from us, as
that the day of the Lord is begun. Let none deceive
you by any means; for that day shall not come,
except there come the falling away first, and the man of sin be
revealed, the son of perdition; Who
opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so
that he 1 sitteth
in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
1 [See Greek
] omitted by the
critical editions.
Remember ye not, that,
when I was yet with you, I told you those things? And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed
in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth
already work: only he who now withholdeth will
withhold, until he be come out of the midst. And then shall the Lawless One be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the manifestation of his Presence;
Even him, whose
Presence is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and wonders of
falsehood, And with all deceivableness of
unrighteousness in them that perish; because
they received not the love of the truth, that
they might be saved. And for this cause God
shall send them an energy of delusion, that they
should believe the lie: That they all might be
damned who believed not the truth, but had
pleasure in unrighteousness.
IN the former
epistle Paul had to remove the believers sorrow for their departed friends and
relatives. In the second chapter of this epistle he has to combat the [Page
221] Thessalonians
fears for themselves. By appropriate revelations concerning that central and
brilliant object of faith, - THE PRESENCE OF CHRIST - he dissipates them both.
It is evident from a perusal of the second epistle, that great
terror had seized on the minds of many of the Thessalonian believers, through the
belief that they were then living on earth during that great and terrible day of
the Lord. The idea had
been fastened upon them, it would appear, by a three-fold cord of error. (1). First, by a spirit. Some false prophet inspired by an
evil spirit, probably in the midst of one of their assemblies, had asserted it.
(2.) Secondly by calculation. 1
How much calculations, put forth with more or less ingenuity, have power to
trouble the mind, we have seen in our times. (3.) By a forged letter - letter as from us. An epistle purporting to come from Paul, Silas, and
Timotheus had asserted it. It is not impossible too, that one or two
expressions in the former epistle had been forced to bear upon this point. Thus
it was said, that the wrath to the end, or
the final wrath, was already upon the Jews. 2
And the fifth chapter had represented the day of the Lord as sudden destruction
without escape. Knowing then that the Day of the Lord3 is represented
in the Old Testament as a fearful era, in which the wrath of God is poured
forth upon a guilty world, they were terrified to think that that day was
begun.4
1 [see Greek
].
2 [See Greek
] not wrath to the uttermost. 3 [See Greek
] is the true reading. See the Critical
Editions. 4 [See Greek
] not is at hand, but is present. So it means in other instances: Rom. 8: 38; 1 Cor. 3: 22, 7: 26, &c.
[Page
222]
Take a passage or two, asserting such views of that great day.
Behold
the
day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the earth (not land) desolate, and he shall destroy
the sinners thereof out of it. For the stars of heaven
and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for
their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy
of the proud to cease, and will lay low the
haughtiness of the terrible. I will make a man
more precious than fine gold; even a man than
the golden wedge of Ophir! Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath
of the Lord of hosts, and in the
day of his fierce anger: Is. 13: 9-13.
Again, The great day of the Lord is near, it
is near, and hasteth greatly, even the voice of the day of the Lord; the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. That day is a day of wrath, a day of
trouble and distress, a day of wasteness
and desolation, a day of darkness
and of gloominess, a day of clouds and
thick darkness. A day of the
trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and
against the high towers. And I will bring
distress upon men, that they shall
walk like blind men, because they have
sinned against the Lord; and their blood shall be
poured out as dust, and their flesh as dung. Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver
them in
the day of the Lord's wrath; but the whole earth shall
be devoured by the fire of his jealousy: for he
will make even a speedy riddance of them that dwell in the earth: Zeph. 1: 14-18. The day of the Lord then is an [Page
223] expression
equivalent to the day of his wrath, and no marvel
that believers were disturbed to find themselves (as they supposed) upon the
earth when it was beginning to be visited with those sore plagues by which
sinners are to be destroyed out of it. Through not discerning this point - that
the
coming (Presence) of
the Lord, and the day of the Lord,
are two quite different
things - the one, the
joyful expectation of the church, the other, the terrible day of wrath for
the world; many who have expounded this chapter
have asserted, that the Thessalonian Christians were terrified at the
expectation of Jesus
advent and appearing as close at hand, and that Paul to allay their fears
assures them, that certain events must previously come to pass. Now such is not
the case. The Presence of Jesus was the comfort which Paul set before them in the previous epistle. And he is
far from laying down any events as necessarily to occur before the advent of the Lord
Jesus. He does indeed describe events previously to arise ere the day of the Lord could fall in its just
vengeance on the world; but even in this place he presents the Presence of the Lord
Jesus as the saints comfort. Now the Presence of the Lord Jesus would not be consolation sufficient
against that terrible day, unless it should precede the day. However near the day might be, the Presence was nearer
still. Before the day of wrath come, certain signs of wickedness must arise.
But before the removal of the saints to the Lords Presence, no event is
necessarily to precede.
What mean those opening words - Now we beseech you brethren,
by the Presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, that ye be [Page 224] not soon shaken in mind,1 or be troubled; but this - Let not the thought of
the day of the Lord terrify you - the Presence of the Lord Jesus will precede
it, and we shall be gathered together to him, ere that awful tempest bursts on
the world. The Presence of the Lord, and the saints assembling to him, were to
be their shield against the anticipated terrors of the day of the Lord. The consolation is not, that
the joys of the Presence will requite them for the patient endurance of the
terrors of that day; but their eye is fixed on the preceding Presence. The day
is for the few and the
1 [See Greek
] From your understanding.
In the same order were these two things presented in the
former epistle. 1 Thess. 4, gave us the Presence of the Lord; and the gathering of the saints both living and dead to it: while the
next chapter disclosed the Day of the Lord
coming like a thief in the night upon the world.
[Page 225]
Similarly, in Peters second Epistle; in the first chap, the Presence of the Lord
is presented as the churchs sure hope: ver. 16. In the third chapter the Day of the Lord is taught as the terror of the scoffer, the day of judgment and
perdition of ungodly men:
7, 10,
12.
No variety of means then, whether singly or combined, were to
lead them into mistake on this point. For certain signs were to precede that day. The day of
wrath could not
come until the guilt of man had fully
provoked it. First the apostacy was to arise, which is described in 1 Tim. 4, as being an abandonment of
Christianity, owing to the teaching of certain persons inspired by evil
spirits. These, under pretence of introducing something purer than Christianity,
will denounce the partaking of animal food and the state of marriage as
defiling and unlawful to all men. On such principles Christianity cannot be
held, nor Judaism either; and these are therefore, strictly speaking, the germ
of the
apostacy. They are
principles which on being received by any will necessitate their relinquishment
of the main doctrines both of the Old Testament and of the New. These are already in the field in our day. Apostacy is a
personal thing, the abandoning for ones
self of truth formerly held. But as Romanists in general profess the same views from
childhood to death, they are not apostates.
Out of the apostates springs the Man of Sin, the Son of Perdition. These false principles are the lie which speedily is sustained
by Satans wonders on its behalf; and the False Christ, making his appearance
as the great head of the apostates, the destruction of the [Page
226] deceived one is
complete. This answers to what Jesus had said in Luke 17, that he must be rejected by the generation ere he
should appear as the lightning. The apostacy is the rejection of Jesus by the generation, and no mere
failure in seeing certain dispensational truths.
This deceiver has two names. (1.) The first springs from his
character - He is the Man of Sin, the
most awful specimen of iniquity: as Jesus was the Just One, the perfect pattern of holiness. (2.)
He is next called, the Son of Perdition, for he is worthy of wrath. He comes up from the bottomless pit, the place of lost souls, where
he now is: Rev. 9: 11; 11: 7; 17: 8-11. As Jesus came down from heaven, the
place of the Fathers presence, to possess the kingdom so his antagonist comes
up from the regions of the damned, that he may hold the reins of Satans
empire. One other person is thus denominated : Jesus so calls Judas; and he, as I doubt not, and may
perhaps show elsewhere, is the False
Prophet: (Rev. 13: 11.) He too comes up from beneath.
His character is further developed in the words which follow,
who opposeth
himself and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is
an object of worship. He is the most extravagant self-exalter that the world has seen or ever
will see. He will not be content till he has put beneath his feet every god,
whether the true God, or those worshipped by the heathen. He opposes himself to
every claim of worship
made by another. He himself is to be worshipped, and he alone. Hence we
are able to meet what is sometimes urged in favour of the Popes being the
Antichrist. It is said, that [Page 227] Antichrist does not signify opposition to Christ, but
only his being the exact counterpart of the Christ or Messiah. This is partly
true: but of the Antichrist it is also said, who opposeth himself to (and
exalteth himself above) all that is called God or that is worshipped. He must then oppose himself to the Christ: for Christ is
both called God, and is worshipped. As the oppositionist to the pretensions of
every other object of worship he is the chief of persecutors: putting to death
all who refuse to allow his claims: Rev. 13: 7, 8, 15-17. Hence the Apocalypse of Christ
presented in the former chapter has especial reference to him as the prince of
persecutors. As the greatest of boasters, he is also the chief of scoffers and blasphemers:
Rev. 13: 5, 6. In this point of view also he is
destined for destruction by the Lord Jesus: Dan. 7: 11. In
both these aspects, too, he is the great contrast to Jesus. Jesus bore not
witness to himself, but allowed his works silently to speak for him. He humbled
himself instead of exalting himself Phil. 2.
Therefore, as the principle of the kingdom is, He that exalteth himself shall
be abased, but he that humbleth himself shall be exalted, this truth will
receive its fullest and most striking confirmation by the opposite destinies of
the Lord of Glory and the Son of Perdition. Jesus, too, opposed not his
Fathers claims, but in all things maintained them; and vainly did Satan strive
to make him forsake the path of obedience.
Perhaps at this point it may be well to display the
unsatisfactoriness of the arguments which would interpret the present prophecy
of the succession of popes.
1. The text
speaks of but a single individual; the Man of Sin, the Son of Perdition. This title, The Man [Page 228] of Sin indicates his concentrated
wickedness. Now, while some of the bishops of
2. But the point in which the protestant interpretation (as it is called)
fails most signally to establish its conclusion, is on the Popes exalting
himself above every god, and every object of worship. A recent very popular
comment on the Apocalypse quotes the confession of the Catholic faith made
binding in
The citations then that are made containing blasphemous titles
of the Pope - as, Thou art our Shepherd, our
Physician, in short, a second God upon earth, are utterly worthless as proofs of the point
required. The Man of sin will not allow of a second
God either in heaven
or earth, much less will he take the second place. He claims to be the first God,
the only God. And
secondly, the quotations consist of what others say of the Pope, not what the Pope says of hinself. Take that which comes nearest to the proof demanded. The Pope (said Pope Nicholas, addressing the Emperor
Michael) who is called
God by
Page 230]
Now in this case also, though it be a Pope who is speaking, he
builds his argument on what another had asserted concerning him.
But the blasphemous audacity of the Man of Sin is further
exhibited when at its highest tide. So that he sits in the
The
1. The Saviours body: John 2: 19,
21.
2. The [regenerate and obedient (Acts 5: 32. cf.
1 John 3: 24,
R.V.)] -
believers body: 1 Cor. 6: 19.
3. The Church - [Gk.
(ekklesia)
= out-calling] - of Christ: 2 Cor. 6: 16.
4. The temple at
Now the two first of these senses are evidently excluded. That
the Pope does not sit in the
It remains then, that the temple at
Thus, again, we obtain the fitting contrast between Satans
Christ and the
Lords Christ. Jesus was
[Page 231] accused falsely of destroying the
1 This gives us to understand the force
of that expression in Rev. 17: The five are
fallen, intimating that they all died by violent deaths.
At this point a break ensues, and Paul notices that these
declarations were but repetitions of what he had [Page 232] told them before. He proceeds to
observe, that as there were events which must precede the Day of the Lord, -
(the Apostacy namely, and the rise of its great Head, the Man of Sin) - so
there was also a hindrance to the appearing of the Man of Sin. What that
obstacle was, they would now be aware. From which it appears, as if the apostle
was persuaded, that something he had just written would bring to their
remembrance what the obstacle was. The idea may help us to discover what the
hindrance is.
1. First, however, let us notice what
it is not. I think we may say
assuredly, that it is nothing physical, nothing political; and if so, we must
dismiss the idea entertained by the Fathers, that it was the unbroken state of
the
But if Paul had already hinted what the hindrance was (I am
not denying his having told them plainly what it was when he was with them at
first,) a consideration of the previous context may, with the blessing of the
Holy Spirit, lead us to the discovery.
2. I believe then, that it is the presence of the watchful saints of the Church. For Paul in 1 Thess. 4. had spoken of the rapture of the
saints before he had touched upon the unbelief and destruction of the world. (
The hindrance lay upon the Man of Sin (like the stone of lead
on the mouth of the ephah: Zech. 5.) to prevent his manifestation till the fitting season. But for that,
the plans of Satan would have come to a head long, ago; and the wickedness
of man have discovered itself before the time. The worlds
fermenting mass had long become putrid, but for the salt from time to time
scattered.
Can we not lay our finger on one remarkable instance? The
Antichrist is to be an emperor of
Even in Pauls day the mystery of lawlessness was at work. Principles subversive
of all control and order began to shew themselves so early as the apostles
day; but a gracious hand prevented the young hemlock plants from running too
quickly to seed. The mystery of lawlessness again is the
contrast to the
mystery of godliness: 1 Tim. 3: 16. True piety rests on the manifestation of God in the flesh;
the most flagrant defiance of all law will turn on the manifestation of an
incarnate fiend. Jesus is in mystery in heaven, and descends in order to his
manifestation. Antichrist is in [Sheol / Gk. Hades] mystery below, and ascends in order to his revelation.
On this point again it is easy to see that Romanism does not
tally with the prophecy. Romanism, overwhelms the soul with many laws, and a
heavy burden of the traditions of men; it does not set the man free to move at
his own wild will. It is the soul subjected to the tyrannous chains of the
confessional; not licensed to despise all laws, divine and human. Romanism, in
its essence, tends to Phariseeism - the increase of laws,
and abounding of sins. The sin of which the apostle is speaking, is, in its
essence, Sadduceeism - the
flinging down of all regard to law or
opinion - the assertion that nothing is sinful, and that every thing is lawful,
which the inbred passions of man may rush after.
The Romanism neither (1.) in its system, nor (2.)
in its chief - the Pope - is lawlessness. In many respects, evil as it is, it
is not only opposed to, but contrasted with lawlessness.
There are two tendencies of the human mind, [Page 235] intellectually,
morally, politically, religiously opposed. 1.
The one is that confidence in the individuals own power, which leads him to
consider himself competent to decide any question by his unaided REASON; and which rejects with
boldness, and even with scorn, whatever appears opposed to it. The other is,
that tendency to self-distrust, which is found in the majority of minds, which
dislikes to encounter difficulty, loves to follow in the train of a leader, and
to submit itself without examination to the judgment of those of former days,
or to those deemed wiser than itself.
Now on which of these tendencies does Romanism found itself?
On REASON, or on AUTHORITY? Which would be its favoured
specimen of humanity? - the Irish cottager, receiving with un-enquiring simplicity
every assertion of his priest - the organ of an infallible church? or the man
of science, who scoffs at transubstantiation, as a disgrace to the reason, and
who finds in scripture itself many things, which, as contrary to the prevailing
schemes of science he rejects as absurd? Which of these two again, furnishes
the nearest approach to lawlessness?
(2.) In every religion, there are two
tendencies either on the one hand to reduce every thing to rite and ceremony;
or on the other to sublime everything away into certain airy fancies and
metaphysical principles. Of these two tendencies the latter is the lawless one. Having
gained, as it confidently supposes, by a profound analysis, the real spirit of the Christian
faith, it despises forms, and would demolish them, as savouring only of the
sensual and earthly. Of these two tendencies which is the Romish? Is her
tendency to abrogate, or to [Page
236] multiply rites? The
question need but once be asked. The just accusation against her is, that she
smothers the spirit of christianity beneath a heavy load of self-devised rites
and forms. Of the two opposed principles - FORM
and SPIRIT- then, she has again
chosen that which is the
most opposed to lawlessness.
(3.) Her tendency is
ever to add what is useless
or noxious; as the lawless tendency is ever to cut off what is healthful and necessary.
(4.) The Romanist finds his home and
resting-place [Page 237] in the cloisters of the PAST. The Rationalist is in his element in the lecture-room of
science, and in the prognostics of the glorious FUTURE. He chants continually the glories of the PROGRESS OF THE AGE. The Romanists
theme is the wisdom of the fathers: and his motto is, ALWAYS THE SAME.
(5.) The cry of Rationalism is,
(6.) How can that system be characterized
as lawless, which rests upon and enforces a continually accumulating mass of law? Fathers, councils, bulls, indexes,
congregations, orders military and orders spiritual, breviaries, rubries, pontificals, compose some of the elements of the
vast heap of laws and regulations which give it shape. Law is its very essence.
The voice, the gesture, the posture, the words, all are to be regulated by
print. Not a book may appear even on subjects apparently the farthest from
religion, without the permission of the superiors.
But to Rationalism this is hateful; in no measured terms it denounces
the servility of such prostration to a mechanical routine. The grandeur of
originality fascinates it - it has positive delight in detecting the
absurdities of authority, and the heartlessness of ceremony dictated by law.
(7.) Look again at the political tendencies of the two. [Page
238] Romanism
coalesces most aptly with an absolute monarchy. With the rise of infidelity
fell popery in
Can we doubt then a moment to which of these tendencies we
must look for the full development of lawlessness? Lawlessness is the
determinate resistance to all authority. For a moment then review the two
systems from this point.
Does not
In all these points Rationalism is the reverse. Clerical
authority it inveighs against as priestcraft: kingly authority it speaks
against as tyranny. When it has reached its full height, it defies heaven as well
as the potentates of earth. Witness the French Revolution of 1790.
Romanism is the petrifying spring incrusting both the true and
the false; Rationalism is the concentrated acid, eating through wood and iron
alike. Her tool is the pickaxe; her favourite expedients the mine and
gunpowder. The spirit of
Shall we look at it in another direction? The False Christ,
who embodies the lawlessness of the
world, is in league with THE JEW.
Can we not detect then these two tendencies in that nation? Yes - there is
Talmudism, [Page 241] patronized by the Rabbins, an enormous concrete of the
traditions of the (so called) wise men. To this many bow down with misdirected
reverence. Its portentous, black, arid, rugged, granite mass hides from
Does it vibrate towards
Again, as the Jew tends not to
Finally, these two tendencies exist in
every religion. Mahommedanism has its Sonnites, who
add the traditions of the wise to the precepts of the Koran: and its Shiites,
who deny aught but the original documents. Brahminism
has its Buddhism.
In concluding this subject, be it
observed, that Romanism has, and always must have, an element deeply offensive
to Rationalism and lawlessness. It stands committed to the power of the priest,
both for instruction, and for the performance of rites acceptable to God. But
Rationalism and lawlessness abhor both pretensions. [Page 241] Man needs
not instruction from a superior: rites and temples are mere formality: the open
heaven, and the beauties of nature constitute the true temple! Hence
the first revolutionists assailed alike both priest and king; and one of their fearful stanzas
embodies the wish to strangle the last of the kings with the bowels of the last of the priests. Condoreet said, Kings persecute persons; priests,
opinions. Without kings, men must be safe; and without priests minds must be free.
So says Quinet also, the present
popular writer of the
To his eye the revolutionary spirit of
Let me give a quotation from another
modem writer, commenting on the last French Revolution. Let us never forget the impulsive adoration with [Page
243] which
the armed people, who had just dethroned kingcraft, bowed before the image of
Christ - the King of kings and Lord of lords! Friends, salute Christ! he is
the Master of us all. The revolution is rightly religious. But religion is an impulse, superstition a system. The salute of Christ was spontaneous,
impulsive. The scene was transferred to paper by two different artists:
one of revolutionary tendencies, one of priestly. Against the latter the writer
turns in rebuke. The first was the work of an artist,
the child of a religious impulse; the second, the work of a
priest, the creature of a system. The system of priestcraft is the foe of religious impulse,
and would insiduously subvert it to old formality. Let this fact be a warning.
What shall we say then? That Romanism is built upon the blind
spirit of veneration, that it depresses the individual, and seeks to repress
the spirit of reason and the desire for evidence, and that it naturally allies
itself with absolute power in civil things. But Rationalism exalts the
individual into a judge on all points, refuses to venerate any thing but
reason, rejoices in destruction, is furious at any control either spiritual or
civil. Rationalism then, not Romanism, is the lawless spirit destructive of
Christianity, of which the apostle here warns us.
Satan, while from on high he rules and
deceives the world (Eph. 6.) has used the one tendency of man to produce a
false worship, and his master-piece for the time of human ignorance has been
Romanism. But the race has awakened, and is awakening still, to knowledge [Page
244] and to its
attendant pride and self-reliance. He will use the other tendency of man,
specially when he is cast down from above, to teach him to blaspheme the
Creator, and to worship himself alone. That, his last scheme, will be the
master-piece. In Romanism it is possible for a few to escape perdition; but in
the coming scheme of Satan, to believe is to perish inevitably.
Or let us regard the subject again in the light of scriptural
history. True Christianity had two great antagonists in the times of the
apostles, Judaism on the one hand, and Philosophy or Gnosticism on the other.
Now these are the very same two opposed tendencies of the
human mind which have just passed in review before us. Gnosticism chipped and
hewed away doctrine after doctrine of Christianity, according as it seemed
opposed to its darling theories. This surely was lawlessness. Judaism sought by
degrees to bring in laws and ceremonies, and the value of human works in the
matter of [initial and eternal] salvation, with submission to the traditions of the elders.
The spirit of lawlessness is already at work, says Paul; and
as it wrought without, so doubtless within the church. Now can we not trace
some hints of this tendency in the Epistles to Thessalonica? There seems to
have been a disposition to call in question even the character of the apostle: 1 Thess. 2. He is obliged to caution them against
uncleanness, even in its most awful form, (ch. 4.) and then to add, in expectation of
some scorning his admonition (for uncleanness and lawlessness are closely
allied) that to despise it, was to make light of the word of God himself. May
we not gather from the fifth chapter, a
tendency to despise those [Page 245] who taught them, and a light value set on prophecy? 1
From the second epistle can we not see, that some were unjust, intermeddlers, refusing to support themselves by work? Nay,
the apostle supposes that some would resist his apostolic authority, and gives
directions how such a one is to be treated. It is easy to observe how greatly
this state of things accords with like indications (only more marked) at
1 Which party now scorns prophecy most?
The connection of Judaism with
Christianity is the seed of Romanism. Hence that corruption of the faith makes Christianity
a law, by obedience to which we are to be saved: hence its ritual, its
priesthood, its pomp, and its hankering after the power of the world.
2. But Gnosticism was the other element
which was to corrupt Christianity. It was chiefly to be feared in
Would I apologize for papal errors? God forbid. She has well
nigh choked up with rubbish and filth the channel of divine truth. But let us
remember that there are diversities of error, and that her errors are not of
the class described by Paul to the Thessalonians.
Look at history. Is it not seen, that from
Again, the characteristics of the Popes are not those of
the Man of Sin.
If the Man of Sin be a succession, then in each link of that
succession the characteristics of the Man of Sin must display themselves. Each
must be a son of perdition himself, and all his followers condemned everlastingly. Each
must have supernatural power, derived from Satan. Each must, by his own lips,
assert himself [Page 247] to be God. Nor were even that enough, impossible as it has been found to prove it
even of any one individual Pope. For the godhead claimed by others for the
Pope, and more or less tacitly admitted by himself, is a secondary and subordinate godhead. But the Great Usurper painted by Paul
is consistent. He opposes himself to the godhead of any but himself; he exalts
himself above every object of worship, true or false, Pagan, Jewish, or
Christian. His tone is that of the true God. Is there a God beside me?
yea, there is no God. I know not any. This is the one
article of the creed which he enforces, under penalty of death, upon the sons
of men. But in the Popes creed, the doctrine of the godhead of the successive,
or of the reigning Popes does not appear. Nay, on the contrary, it does not
only permit, it enjoins on every disciple of
[Page 248]
With apology for this long, but I trust not unprofitable
dissertation on a subject intimately connected with the interpretation of the
passage, I now return again to the text.
The obstacles to Christs appearing may be called two. God is
keeping Jesus back till his people are in a fit state: the wheat is not ripe yet. Satan is kept
back also, and his antagonist king and kingdom for a like reason. Iniquity is
not come to the full: the tares are not ripe yet.
Paul had spoken of a hindrance to the appearance of the Man of
Sin. That hindrance would subsist as long as the Hinderer remained in the
midst. Only there is the hinderer, until
he be come out of the midst. I give this as the more literal version of a difficult
passage. The obstacle is spoken of as both a thing, and a person; it has
both a neuter and a masculine form. It is something good, for it hinders the
development of evil. The restraining thing and the restraining Person are distinct, yet intimately related. It seems
probable, that they are, the church - and the Holy Spirit; and we know how
intimate the relation of these two is. The restraining thing opposes the
appearance of the Man of Sin. The restraining Person resists, (what man could not resist) the mystery of
lawlessness. There are two weights then that repress the development of evil.
One prevents the mystery of lawlessness from too early passing into the apostacy. The other
opposes the appearance of the
Man of Sin.
The mystery of the kingdom of heaven (Mark 4: 11,) answers to and is opposed to the mystery of lawlessness: and the saints as heirs of the
The Hinderer then, strictly speaking, is I suppose the Holy
Spirit abiding with the
The [Holy
Spirit filled] saints are the salt of the earth, the light of the world.
And what must be the result of the removal of salt, but the putrefaction of the
carrion? and what the withdrawal of the light and truth, but darkness and
delusion? Christians are those under law ([see Greek
]) to Christ:
1 Cor. 9: 21. When the removal of these has been
effected, what will result but the full outflow of lawlessness?
And not only so: not only do true Christians stem by their
example, and by the [scriptural] truths they hold, the tide of mens sin, but they answerably delay and keep
back the invasion of Gods judgments. I will keep thee out of the hour of temptation, (says Jesus to his patiently
watching saints,) which is about to come on all the world to try them that dwell upon the
earth. The presence of such therefore upon
earth is the sufficient proof that the day of the Lord is not begun.
1. Thus the
presence of ten righteous ones, in [Page 250] addition to the prayer of Abraham, would have put off
the destroying day from
2. Thus the presence and prayers of
Moses and Aaron hindered the destruction of the congregation of
3. Thus the Kenites must be removed,
ere the sword of destruction falls on Amalek: 1 Sam. 15: 6.
4. The converse of this is seen, where the body is supposed holy;
there the wicked are to be taken out of the midst, lest blessing should be hindered.
The destruction of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram is a remarkable
case in point. They, and
all that appertained unto them, went down alive into Hades, and the earth closed upon them; and they perished from the midst of
the congregation: Numb. 16: 33. The
removal of the wicked to the infernal regions from the midst
of a holy body, answers to the removal of the holy to the celestial regions from the midst
of an unholy world.
That portion of chap. 2 with which we are engaged, is divided into two great
parts, the first ending at verse 4,
the second with verse 12. In the
former part we have, first, the gathering of the saints to Christ; and then, the apostacy
with its great development - the Man of Sin.
[Page
251]
In part the second, the apostle goes
over the ground again; but he omits to
notice directly the gathering of the saints to the Presence of Christ. Instead of
that, he says, Now you know what the hindrance is.
Does not this hint that the presence of the saints on earth, and their
being not gathered as yet to Christ, is the hindrance?
In the first part, he speaks specially of the blasphemous pretensions of the Man of
Sin; in the other part he dwells upon the dangers of that day, arising partly out of the power of Satan,
whereby those pretensions will be sustained, and partly from the wrath of God,
who will, in just indignation for the hatred of the truth, invest falsehood
with prevailing plausibility and power.
In Pauls saying, that while he was yet with them he told them of these things, and then
proceeding to remark on the perils of that day - is there not a hint of the ignorant and unwatchful being left, amidst the trials of that hour?
As soon as the hindrance is removed the Lawless One shall be revealed. As Jesus, the Obedient One, has his
Presence and his revelation; so has the False Christ also his Presence and revelation. His revelation appears to take place at the
time of his taking his seat in the Jewish temple. Can lawless defiance of
God mount higher than to demand, on the very spot he has chosen for his own
worship, the adoration of both Jew and Gentile? As he springs out of the
mystery of lawlessness, he is appropriately the Lawless One. He falls in with mens views; he embodies and carries
to its full height the dread enmity against God and his laws, which lies
concealed in the heart of man. [Page 252] Worship me, and live as you
list! will be his concise scheme of legislation.
His revelation is the same thing nearly with his Presence; and
his Presence is displayed in the temple at
As in the destruction of Pharaoh and his host there were two
stages; first, the Lord looked into the host of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire
and of the cloud, and troubled the host of the Egyptians, and then came the waters upon the
host of the enemy - so it will be here.
[Page 253]
Thus it appears that the first named of the two effects is in
reality the last in order of time; and the last named, in point of fact will
come first. The reason of this disturbance of the natural order I believe to
be, that Paul might bring into the closest contrast the two manifestations, or
Presences, of the true Christ, and of the False. Jesus shall strike powerless, with the
manifestation of his Presence, him whose Presence is
according to the energy of Satan with all power and signs and wonders of
falsehood.
The Presence of the False Christ is surrounded with the
various forms of natural and supernatural power. It is by means of these that
he sustains his pretensions to be God, and thus does he impose on his votaries.
This is that seventh head of the wild beast, to which on its recovery, Satan
gives his
power and throne and great authority. The power of Satan to produce supernatural effects, is seen
in his treatment of Jobs family and property; and in the miracles of Pharaohs
magicians.
He will support his chosen vessel of deceit with power
political and supernatural. The miracles of Jesus and of Paul are designated by
nearly the same terms as here employed. Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did
by him: Acts 2: 22. Truly the signs of an
apostle were wrought among you in all patience, in signs and wonders and mighty deeds: 2 Cor. 12: 12. Only the prodigies wrought by the False
Christ, (who, as Jesus foretells, will show great
signs and wonders,) will
be wonders of
falsehood. Not that
these words [Page 254] mean mere pretences to miracle, but real miracles
wrought on behalf of falsehood.
How incapable is this feature of being found in the Popes! Is
their Presence with all power and signs and wonders? Has the Pope all political
power? Was there ever any Pope that wrought a miracle? Was there, amidst the
whole series of Popes, one that even pretended to have wrought one? If there be one such case, did it
ever prevail on any individual to turn Romanist?
God has mercifully in our day, disjoined supernatural power
from evil principles. But when the time of long-suffering is past, power of
miracle will attach itself to the dread lie of Satan. Here we are introduced to
the two great and fully sufficient principles, on which the
Loud will be the blasphemy of the true God; loud the worship
of the Great Destroyer. Bright will be the banquet of the second Belshazzar,
numerous his guests, and dread the profanation of the truths of God; till the
glory will fade, and the tongues be dumb before the dazzling glory that tells
the day of patience to be past.
In the same night was Belshazzar the king of
Lest we should doubt whether any form of deceit would avail to
attract around it and enchain all mankind, we are farther informed, that God will send on them an energy of
delusion, that they may believe the lie. Events shall fall out to confirm
apparently the claims of the Great Usurper. As one evil spirit sent from God to
punish wicked Ahab sufficed to produce perfect unity among the four hundred
false prophets, so may perfect unity characterize that damning lie of Satan. As
a mighty energy of the Holy Spirit attended the day of Pentecost and the first
steps of the Gospel, so will it be with this master-piece of Satans power and
deceit.
But lest we should sympathize with the dupes of Satan and of
the false Christ, as those who were unwillingly led astray, and innocently
perished, we are, introduced to the great reason of that final scene of horror.
Those who will perish in this wide haul of the great and wily fisherman will be
men who have heard [Page
256] the truth and refused it, but
who rush with their whole souls into the falsehood of Satan, in spite of most awful warning; because
it accords with their enmity against the true God, and their love of
unrighteousness.
The serpents seed and the womans seed are first gathered to
their respective centres, and then comes the suited recompense to each. To the
one magnet are attracted the lovers of truth, the patient, the persecuted, the
holy; these by secret miracle are caught up to the Presence of the true Christ
on high. To the other are borne the persecutors, the haters of truth, the
unholy, who lie beneath the full wrath of God. These collect around Satans
false Christ, led by a spirit of delusion, and captivated by strong power of
miracle to embrace the lie.
Thus - 1. The first
chapter of the epistle is occupied in giving us the relation of the persecutors
and the presented to the manifested Presence, and the coming of Christ.
2. The second
chapter gives us the relation of the Church and the Apostacy (together with its head the Man of Sin) to the Presence of
Christ and the Day of the Lord. Hence we have the Presence twice spoken of: first
at the commencement of the chapter, as the secret point to which the watchful - [and accounted
worthy to escape (Luke 21: 36. Cf.
Rev. 3: 10.)] - are caught up, and their hiding-place from the terrors
of the Day of the Lord. In the second place occurs the manifestation of his
Presence, when lawlessness is at its height, and the snares of Satan have
encircled to their destruction all the haters of the truth. The Presence,
therefore, appears here as the great centre of the wrath of God on his foes,
as before the centre of mercy of God to his friends.
[Page 257]
In concluding this portion I would just sum up the proofs
derivable from the present chapter that the succession of Popes is not the Man
of Sin. It appears, that the apostles consolation to those troubled concerning
the terrible
Day of the Lord was, that
the saints would be caught away to the Presence, ere the day began.
1. But if the Bishops of Rome be the
Man of Sin, the saints have not been
caught up, though the Man of Sin has been revealed, and 1260 years of his reign are nearly if not entirely
run out. 2. It appears, too, that
iniquity having been fully developed, and he having been seated 1260 years in
the
3. The Pope does not oppose every god
and every object of worship. He does not set himself up above every object of
worship. As witness these articles of Pope Piuss creed. I profess - that in the
most holy sacrifice of the Eucharist there is truly, really, and substantially,
the body and blood, together with the soul and DIVINITY of our Lord Jesus Christ. Art. 5. Likewise
that the saints reigning together with Christ are to be venerated and invoked. Art. 7. I most firmly assert that the images
of Christ, of the Mother of God, ever virgin, and also of other saints may be had and retained, and that due honour and veneration is to
be given them. Art.
8. The Pope neither opposes himself to the worship of Christ nor of St. Peter,
nor does he exalt [Page 258] himself above them: but he confesses himself the Vicar
of the one, the successor of the other. 4.
The sitting in the
5. No Pope has ever shown himself that he is God. Though others may have given him
the title of God, he has never claimed it on his own merits, much less has he
asserted that claim to exclusive Godhead, which the apostle supposes. 6. Having never even pretended to work
a miracle, he cannot be the Man of Sin, sustained by all power and signs. 7. Not all the ungodly are caught by his delusion, nor are all Romanists
damned. But all the parties here described are irrecoverably lost, as haters of
the truth, believers of Satans deadly lie, and loving unrighteousness. They
are the same parties spoken of as irremediably ruined in Rev. 14: 9-11.
* *
*
[Page 259]
CHAPTER 12
COMPARISON OF THE EPISTLES TO
THE THESSALONIANS, WITH THE
PROPHECY ON OLIVET.
THE
Epistles to the Thessalonians pass over most of the ground trodden by the Lord
in the Prophecy on the Mount of Olivet, but with most instructive variations
and omissions. Some of the most striking of these it is proposed now to offer
to the readers consideration.
First let us notice the correspondences.
1. The Saviour, in taking leave of his nation, and their
leaders, thus addresses them. Ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children
of them which killed the prophets. Fill
ye up then the measure of your fathers! Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how
can ye escape the damnation of hell? Wherefore, behold I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and
scribes, and some of them ye
shall kill and crucify, and some of them ye
shall scourge in your synagogues, and
persecute them front city to city: that upon
you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zacharias
son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the
temple and the altar. Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon
this generation. The [Page
260] generation is morally spoken of and abides to the present day: Matt. 23: 31-36.
And what says Paul?
Ye, brethren,
became imitators of the Churches of God who are in
Judaea in Christ Jesus, for ye also have
suffered the same thing of your own countrymen, even as
they (the churches in
Judaea) have of the Jews, who both killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and have persecuted us, 1 and they please not God, and are contrary to all men: forbidding us to
speak to the Gentiles that they should be saved, so as to fill up their sins alway, (this last clause
is spoken of the Jews,) but the final wrath is already come upon them.
1. Have driven us out of
While then Jesus is the deliverer of his people from the
coming wrath, it is lying already upon the Jews; and is soon to issue in its
highest flood, the Great Tribulation. The final wrath is that spoken of by
Daniel. The people of the Prince that shall come, [the Romans, the nation over whom
Antichrist will reign] shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; [as they did A.D. 70] and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the
end of the war desolations are determined. And
he [the Prince
that shall come] shall confirm a covenant with many for one week, and in the
midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease,
and on the battlements shall be the abomination of
desolation, even until the consummation, and that determined be poured out on the desolator: Dan. 9: 26, 27. (See margin.)
[Page
261]
The Prophecy on Olivet deals with the Presence of Messiah, the
1 Thess. 4: 5, or the rapture of the living and the dead, is chiefly in correspondence
with the second parable - the Days of Noah. (B. 2.)
2 Thess. 2, or the Man of Sin, partly touches on
that parable, but is especially parallel with (1) the Abomination of Desolation lifted up in the temple, (2) the signs of the false Christ, and (3) the appearing of the true Messiah. (A 5, A 6, A 7.)
The first Epistle
to the Thessalonians exhibits two
kinds of sleep; first, the blameless one of death, (4: 13,
14,) which, as the apostle teaches, will be no obstacle to entrance
into the kingdom; the living themselves having no advantage of priority in the
rapture. This answers to the parable of the Ten Virgins; where we find a sleep
which calls forth no blame from the bridegroom, and which is dissipated at his
coming offering no obstacle to the entrance even into the marriage-supper; and
much less into the kingdom.
The fifth chapter, however,
presents a blame-worthy sleep - the love of the world and its pleasures, (ver. 6,
7.) Answerably whereto, we have one of the parables discovering
to us the loss that will ensue to the householder, if after warning given of
the thiefs approach, he be found sleeping. So also Mark 13: 34-37.
[Page
262]
The exhortations of the Epistle agree also closely with those offered at
that time by the Lord Jesus. But [see
Greek
] take heed to yourselves, lest at any
time your hearts be overcharged
with surfeiting and DRUNKENNSS and
cares of this life, and so that day
come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall
it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. WATCH Ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that
shall come to pass, and to be set before the Son
of Man: Luke 21: 34-36.
But what saith the Epistle?
The day of the Lord so cometh as a
thief in the night. For when they shall say,
peace and safety, then
sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail
upon a woman with child, and they shall not
escape. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others:
but let us WATCH and BE SOBER 5: 2, 3, 6.
2. Having noticed the principal
accordances, let us now proceed to the still more remarkable differences.
The great point of contact between the two prophecies, as
already noticed, is the period of the Presence.
Let us now analyze and set side by side those two portions of
each which treat most of the Presence. They are (Matt. 24: 36-4l.) the Days of Noah, (or B 2.) and 1 Thess. 4: 13-18; 5: 1-9. Analysed, they present the following
aspect.
B 2.
1
Thess. 4, 5.
1. Day unknown.
1. Rapture
of living and dead.
2. Eating, drinking. Security.
2. No need of times & seasons.
3. Entry into the
4. Flood. Destruction.
4. Destruction.
5.
Rapture of living.
5. Watch.
6.
Watch!
[Page
263]
In Matthew,
the rapture comes last of the events: in Thessalonians, it is set first. In Matthew
it is stated ambiguously; in the Epistle it is clearly described. In Matthew it is given as the sign of the Presence. In the Epistle it is no sign of something future,
but the hope of it is the present comfort of the church; and it will be the
instant joy of the watchful believer whenever it occurs. In the prophecy on
Olivet, its outside is presented to the Jewish disciple: by Paul it is
exhibited in its interior; for the thing signified belongs to the
church.
In the Epistle there is no visible sign preceding the saints ascent, only there
is a sound, a shout, the voice of the
archangel, and the trump of God. In Luke 12, the signal to the expectant disciple is also a sound:
an opaque barrier intervenes, and this is removed suddenly, in order to the
meeting of himself and his lord. Ye yourselves like unto men that wait
for their lord ... that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open
to him immediately: Luke 12: 36.
The interior of the Presence is continually set before the eye
of the saint. In B 2, we have the
sign only - a mysterious disappearance - such as it appears to an inhabitant of earth, or some invisible hand
withdrawing the saint. But in the Epistle, we have two corresponding movements;
the Lords invisible descent from heaven, as well as the saints visible ascent
from earth to meet him. (1.) Thus
the passivity of the taken
one is accounted for. We that are alive and remain shall be
caught up. (2.) Hereby
we learn also why the taken so suddenly disappears. We shall be caught up in clouds. (3.) We are made acquainted with the intent of the mysterious disappearance; it is to meet the Lord.
From which [Page 264] it would appear, that ere Jesus motion of descent has
ceased, the upward motion of the saints ascent begins. Compare the saints of
The interior of the Presence furnishes the great practical exhortations
of the Epistle.
1. Pauls crown of rejoicing was to be
the converts whom he should present before the Lord Jesus at his Presence: 2: 19, 20. He was fearful, therefore, lest
persecutions should cause their faith to fail: 3: 3, 4, 7, 8.
2. He desires them to abound in love, that they might be blameless at the Lords Presence: 3: 12,
13. Thereupon he exhorts them, in the next chapter, to keep the
commands in general, which he had given; especially to beware of sins of
uncleanness, for the Lord Jesus would avenge himself on such; and some might
even be found despisers of God. He urges
them also to quietness, and to
labour with their hands.
3. In the same way, after describing
the terrors of the day of the Lord, he warns the saint to be unlike those on
whom that day would come: 5: 6-8. And he winds up the epistle with a
prayer, that they might be found blameless in body. soul, and spirit, in the
Presence of Jesus: ver. 23.
These exhortations and intimations, then, coincide to a considerable
extent with the teaching of the Presence-parables, and prove that there will be both praise and blame, or even punishment for the disobedient in
the time of the Lords Presence.
The limits during which the saint is to be found on earth are
the same as supposed by Matthew. The rapture
is the sign of the Presence. The apostle says,
[Page 265] similarly - We that are alive and remain unto the
Presence; which also supposes, that the majority would have died off
by that time, so that the sleepers would be fairly represented by the number ten in the Virgins - the living saints by the two in the field. In the view of the
rapture as given in Matthew, the two
precede, and occupy three parables before the sleepers come into view: from
which it might have been inferred that the living would be first in the
rapture. But that erroneous idea is corrected by Paul. The dead and living will together ascend.
But a point of much moment in confirming the interpretation of
the Days of Noah, must be adduced. In the Epistle there is no part answering to
the entry of Noah into
the ark. That was expounded as signifying the Jewish or earthly
escape. Now we have the security of the world in both passages, and its sudden
destruction consequent upon its unbelief; but no hint of any escape save the passive one, occurs in
Paul. This then confirms the belief, that the taking is the rapture of the
Christian; and the entry into the ark represents the active escape of the Jew,
which it does not fall to Pauls lot to notice. The reason is plain. The
apostle has set before us the Jews, as wholly and incurably wicked. It was
beside the scope of the Holy Spirit in the Epistle to notice the elect Jews, who in the crisis of the end are to be raised up. Of those Jesus had
treated, and the warning and destiny of these he carefully bears in mind.
But the point may be made yet more striking. Paul, in the
second Epistle, treads the very ground occupied by the Lord in the first part
of the prophecy on Olivet. He speaks of the apostacy and of the blasphemous [Page
266] pretensions of
the Man of Sin, and of the signs whereby those pretensions will gain credit.
Now on that occasion the Lord Jesus at once gives his most earnest command of
instant and headlong flight. In Pauls letter there is no trace of it. On two
occasions then the Saviour commands or exhibits flight; on the two corresponding occasions Paul omits all notice of flight,
but has instead tidings of the rapture and of the Lords Presence. The
omission is at once accounted for, if the flight be the earthly escape of the
Jewish elect.
Similarly we have not the series of signs given by the Lord in
the first part of his prophecy. It is not nation shall rise against nation; nor they shall deliver you up to
affliction, but
you are already in the midst of persecution, and it may abide till the Lord
come. And as to times and seasons, ye have no need that I write unto you. Nor is there any part of the
Epistle resembling the sign of the Fig tree: for Paul does not touch upon the End of the Age, nor the
raising up of the Jewish elect, to which that has reference.
Jesus exhibits the rapture as
discriminating: and the cases of the living and the dead appear separately, and
as turning on the state of the saint before God as watchful or the reverse.
Paul represents it in its united bearing, as combining the living and the dead.
He gives the physical obstacles broken through by God:
Jesus puts prominently forward the moral responsibilities
of the saint. In the case of the Thessalonians all were watchful: but they
needed comfort; in the other it suited the Saviours wisdom to rouse the
disciples by earnest admonition to spiritual vigilance. The apostle too has
nothing strictly answering to the parables of the [Page 267] Householder, Steward, Virgins, or
Talents. The nearest approach to them is his prayers and exhortations that they
might stand blameless at the Lords appearing. He does not deal more
directly with these, because the discrimination of the
rapture, (which is omitted by him,) is their real basis.
The [watchful
and Spirit-filled] believers of the church meet the Lord
in the air ascending in clouds, and they are with him during the time of his secret Presence: the
earthly disciples behold Jesus and his fellows on the clouds descending to the
earth.
THE MAN OF SIN
The second chapter of the second Epistle which gives an
account of the Man of Sin, corresponds in more points than one with a portion
of the prophecy on Olivet; as the following analysis will prove.
MATT. 24:
15-28.
2 THESS. 2.
(A 5.)
The Presence antidote to fear.
When ye see Abomination Let none deceive you.
in the temple-flee!
The apostasy first;
Woe to the pregnant. Then
revelation of Man of Sin.
Pray against the winter and Sabbath. His
self-exaltation, and
session in the
The Great Tribulation.
The hindrance to his revelation.
For elects sake the days shortened. Revelation of
the Lawless One.
Destruction by the Presence.
His power and signs.
(A 6)
Believe not assertions of deceit. The wickedness of men
False Christs. Real wonders. gives them their force.
The Presence as the lightning. God sends strong delusion.
and eagles.
First then, let us notice the points of agreement.
(1.) The great
usurper of Paul exhibits himself in the same spot where the abomination of
desolation is to be set up. The holy place of the one, is the temple [Page 268] of God, of the other. (2.) Both the False Christ and the Man of Sin are to be set up by
supernatural wonders wrought by Satan. (3.)
The Great Tribulation of Matthew,
answers to the Day of the Lord in Paul. (4.)
The resistance to truth which the apostle supposes, finds a resemblance in the gospel of the
kingdom preached to all the Gentiles, while they who believe it are hated by them all. (5.) Thereupon says Jesus, the end is to ensue. And thus the Epistle
represents the matter.
But the differences are very instructive.
In Matthew, Daniel - the prophet of the Old Testament - is the
authority to be appealed to. In Thessalonians,
Paul refers to his former unwritten communications. In Matthew it is men and women physically taken; in Thessalonians it is the race morally considered,
as loving or resisting the [prophetic] truth. In Matthew, the prayer is that their flight
might not be in the winter, or on the Sabbath. In Thessalonians, the prayers commended to the church
are, that God would count them worthy of
this calling, and fulfil the work of
faith with power, (2 Thess.
1: 11,) as also that the word of the Lord
might have free course and be glorified. In Matthew the elect need instruction as to the place of Christs
presence: in Thessalonians they
wait for the Son of God from heaven. In Matthew after the sign of the Son of Man the tribes of the land
mourn: in Thessalonians
there is joy in the
Presence of the Lord Jesus.
In the apostles picture, the Presence of the Saviour and the
assemblage of believers to it, is the first object and the great antidote to
dread. The Presence of Jesus cannot arrive, without the corresponding assembly
of the saints to it. Now in order that the saints may [Page
269] not be troubled,
they must be out of the onset of the Day of the Lord. Therefore they must be
removed ere the manifestation of the Man of Sin. For it is his revelation,
assumption of divine attributes, and worship in the temple at
The Presence of the Lord in its time of secrecy is a thing for the church. It contains its
hope, its salvation, its escape from the hour of temptation coming on all the
earth. The Day of the Lord on
the other hand, is that terrible period to the persecuting world, to the apostate faction, and to the Jews in especial, when God shall shower down in rapid succession
his most dread judgments, destroying sinners out of the earth. The manifestation (epiphany) of
the Presence, which occurs at the close of the Day of the Lord, is the point of
the Presence which chiefly concerns the world. This is the chief point of contact
between the chapter before us and the prophecy of our Lord. The manifestation
of Jesus Presence - [at the end of the Great
Tribulation] - in striking powerless and consuming
the Man of Sin, answers to that view which Jesus gives to the Jewish disciple,
when he compares his Presence to the lightning for its sudden flash, and to the
descent of the eagle for its swift and close destruction. But the Church is caught up in clouds
to meet the Lord in [Page
270] the air. They - [together with those who
are left
unto the coming of our Lord
(1 Thess. 4: 17b. Cf. Luke 21: 34-36; Rev. 3: 10, R.V.) -
after
the select pre-tribulation rapture] - are concealed as well as
their Master, till the crisis to the
world - [the evil and apostate Age] - is come.
Paul gives two signs that must precede the Day of the Lord; but none that must
Precede the Presence of the Lord. Jesus gives his Jewish
followers not only the signal for flight, but the sign of the Son of Mans
manifestation from heaven; while they themselves are to give the answering
signal from below; for, till they welcome his appearing, he will not be seen by
them. The idol of the
False Christ in the temple is the sign for flight to the Jewish disciple: then
must he flee. Not a word of this is
dropped to the saint: he is already (if watchful [and
judged by Christ as morally worthy of escape]) beyond the reach of the Destroyer. The Presence of the Lord Jesus is to calm the Christians heart against the
fear of the Day of the Lord. Not that it will not be terrible: but that the Presence will precede the Day. The Day bears terror: the Presence ministers comfort.
The two classes of the elect, the Jewish and the Christian,
both exercise their effect upon the state of things. The elect of the church keep
off the time of the [Christian]* apostacy and the revelation of the Man of Sin; the elect of the Jewish nation are Gods reason for shortening the
time of Great Tribulation, when it is come.
[* See Num.
14: 20-23. Cf. 1 Cor.
10: 5-11, R.V.]
There are attempts to deceive both; but the deceits are of different kinds. (l.) The Thessalonian believers were assaulted by false fears, that the
terrors of the Lord were let loose
upon them. That deceit the apostle scatters with the words of comfort.1 (2.)
The Jewish [Page 271] disciple would be in danger from false hopes of the Presence of Messiah on earth.
Against that Jesus guards beforehand, by appropriate warning. There would be
first, false Christs deceiving 2 many; (2
Thess. 2: 4.
5.) then false prophets, also deceiving many. (ver. 11)
In the Great Tribulation there would be both false Christs and false prophets, and then they would be possessed of miraculous powers, which
did not belong to the former two classes. Matt. 24: 24. To disbelieve the heavenly Presence of Messiah is the part of the scoffer: 2 Pet. 3. To believe the secret earthly Presence of
Messiah is the part of the non-elect and wicked Jews. The Church - [who escape
before
Antichrists persecutions begin] - goes to the Lord in air: the Son of Man comes down - [at the end of the Great
Tribulation] - to the Jew on earth. Believers are brought by God with Christ,
not gathered, as the Jewish elect, after his appearing. In the assembly of
the saints of the Church there is no question of place, but only the universal conditions of life and death.
1 It is worthy of notice, that the Mormonites promise safety on earth from the terrors of the Great Day, and
they rest their hopes, too, on false Scripture, as of old the deceivers - by letter as from us.
2 There are two words for deceiving. In Matthew 24,
[see Greek
], in 2
Thess. 2, [See Greek
]
The Jews are in danger, as we have seen, from wrong ideas of the Presence; and from false Christs and
their adherents acting on those misapprehensions. They expect scenes like that
of Jonathans secret meeting with David in the wood. The Jew is looking for the
Son of David on earth. The church is waiting for
the Son
of God from Heaven: 1 Thess. 1: 10.
Jesus was first pointed out to Israel on earth: by the angels
to the shepherds; by Simeon and Anna to those looking for redemption in
Jerusalem; by John the Baptist to his disciples, and when he asserted to the
deputation from the Sanhedrim, and to the [Page 272] multitudes, that the Messiah was
already in their midst. But the Jews failing to acknowledge Jesus as the
Messiah on such testimony, the Presence is transferred from
The prayers of
the two classes are also very distinct and characteristic. The Jewish disciple
is to pray for a favourable opportunity for flight, and is warned to use his utmost
energies at the critical moment. The christian is bid to pray that he may escape the day altogether, and be passively set in the
Presence of Jesus. Physical burthens might hinder physical exertion. But nothing save spiritual drowsiness would be any obstacle to the ascent to the
Lord. Winter and the Sabbath are no hindrances to the rapture of the saints.
That hope is as near to the saint at
Thessalonica, as in Judaea or
The Man of Sin in the epistle occurs as the head of the
apostacy, the champion of the lawless and blaspheming haters of the truth. The
temple is presented only as giving edge to his blasphemous self-exaltation. In Matthew, the Great Usurper is the False
Christ, the Destroyer of the temple, the Great Agent of wrath on the Jews,
taking up his post on the scene where Gods name is especially recorded. The
temple and the abomination of desolation are the turning-points of the end, and the basis of the exhortation in
Matthew. The temple and the Man of Sin occur
only in the second Epistle [Page 273] of Paul, and then only when he is shewing the believers
security against that dread day.
The false miracles are local in Matthew: in Paul they affect the haters of the truth
everywhere. The true Christ and the false each has his secret Presence and his
revelation, and separates to opposite
poles the two great moral classes of mankind.
Out of the apostacy spring the Man of Sin, the defilement of
the temple, the Great Tribulation, and the full power of Satan. The testimony
of the Lord is again denied - Ye shall not surely die - and the serpent and his dupes are called up anew, and
finally judged. Out of the repentance of Israel (B. 1) spring the Holy One, the cleansing of the temple, the
restoration of Israel, the times of refreshing, the full power of God.
Three more questions remain to be treated.
I. Why were these disclosures
concerning the Man of Sin made to the saints of Thessalonica, rather than to
those of
The principal reason I suppose to be, that the circumstances
at that city drew out especially that course of teaching.
The Jews appear prominently in the brief history of that
church: Acts
17: 1-9. Paul begins his appeals at the
synagogue. The points especially insisted on were, 1. That the Messiah must
suffer death and rise again.
2. That Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah.
Some of the Jews, and a multitude of the Gentiles, believe.
But the unbelievers both Jews, and Gentiles, unite to accuse the Christians -
1. Of creating a disturbance.
2. Of acting contrary to Caesars decrees.
[Page 274]
3. Of setting up a foreign sovereign, a Jew named Jesus.
Now that was, in spirit and in principle, a type of the great
apostacy and of the lawlessness of man. Caesar is set up against Gods king, and above him. Caesars partizans
exalt him above Jesus to whom God has given all power. Behold their lawlessness
in mystery! When Caesar himself shall come in the fulness of time, he shall, in
like manner, oppose himself to Jesus, and set himself up above him; and it will
be sufficient matter of accusation, that any refuse to keep his commands,
however contrary to those of God.
Nor should it be passed in silence, that the most celebrated
false Messiah, who appeared in modern times (A.D. 1666) first presented himself
in one of the seven churches of Asia,- Smyrna; and there declaring himself the
Son of David, fled to Thessalonica. History of
the Jews: vol. 3: 381. (Family Library.) Add to this that the Scotch Mission to
the Jews tells us that many believers in him are still found in that city. 1
1 Vol. 2: 109.
II. The sign of the End of the Age (B 1) may be compared with the signs of
the Day of the Lord as in this Epistle given. The sign of the End of the Age is
in one point of view the sign of harvest; for the harvest is the End of the Age, and the signs of harvest are in one
point of view the signs of summer. The Saviour gives then the state, not the
crop in the corn-field, but the budding of the fig tree.
The sign of the Presence betokens an advance thereon. It is the
harvest ready, the ripe grain cut.
The signs of the Day of the Lord are the apostacy; and the Man
of Sin, its great head.
[Page 275]
Thus the sign of the Day of the Lord is exactly contrasted
with the sign of the End of the Age. The sign of the Old Age passing away is
the repentance of
The sign of the End of the Age, being a Jewish season, is not
noticed by Paul. He gives - not the repentance of
III. There is one inquiry of importance
remaining to be treated of, ere this part of the subject is completed. It will
be observed, that Paul is silent as to the two-fold rapture, or the discriminating
of the saints. Can such omission then be accounted for, or does not Pauls
omission throw discredit upon the doctrine.
To which it must be replied - First, that if a doctrine be
once made out from Scripture, the silence of the other sacred writers does not in the least
weaken it.
Secondly, we may discern why the apostle omitted to notice it.
For the questions treated of by him are mainly two, and they are consolations
addressed to quiet certain vain fears. (1.)
The first of these was, a fear lest the dead saints should have no part in the kingdom.
[Page
276]
(2.) The second was
a fear, that the living saints
were already in the day of the Lord and would have to make their way through
the tempest.
(1.) Now in order
to answer the first, it was enough to reply, that, as death did not hinder
Jesus, the head of the coming kingdom, from entering upon it, so neither would
it prevent the saints, who were one with Jesus, from entering it also. He
appends also further intelligence respecting the mode of the resurrection;
which proves that the living, far from being alone in the kingdom, would not be
even first in it.
Such a mode of reply then did not require, and could hardly
admit, any notice of the distinguishing rapture. Whether the rapture takes
place at thrice or at once, the same assertion holds good, that the living and
dead will be jointly partakers of the ascent.
(2.) But with
regard to the other fear, the case was different. The apostle might have treated
the question so as to bring the discrimination into view. He might have said -
The watchful saint will escape that day of terrors;
the unwatchful will have to pass through it. But then it must be
remembered, that he had to meet the alarm of saints, who were persuaded that, though they were watchful, the day of dread had come upon them. To tell them
then, that some of the saints would have to endure the perils and sorrows of
that day, would hardly have tended to allay their fears. All at Thessalonica
were not only watchful, but in full expectation; and therefore the cautionary
view would manifestly be less needed, than where the saints were ignorant or
asleep on this momentous topic.
[Page
277]
Again, it was not proposed to Paul, as an inquiry, whether any
of the
Even the unruly of the Thessalonians were still watchful, and
would be partakers of the first [and select] rapture, though, if they continued in
their unruliness, they would be subject to rebuke after their ascent. For every
distinct offence of the saints has its answering and distinct recompense.
The main subject of Paul is the Presence, and this is but one, however many the saints entrances into it may be. He takes up the raptures only as relating
to, and introducing to, the Presence; and he treats of the Presence only as
referring to the life or death of the saints, (1 Thess. 4,) or as taking the watchful saint out
of the Day of the Lord.
Thus we may see the reasons why our
Lord brings it forward; and why his apostle does not. Paul viewed only the physical difficulties;
and thence gives the rapture only as seen from the point of Gods power to surmount
them. These difficulties abide the same, however often the rapture may be
repeated. But Jesus presents the moral aspect
of the rapture, or Gods requirements [Page 278] from man. Jesus puts forth warning to the careless; Paul, comfort to the terrified. Thus the one
wisely omits what the other had as wisely disclosed.
Pauls omission on this point is parallel by another omission
of a like kind. Jesus views both the church and the Jews as of two classes: and
presents the escape of the one, the trials and woe of the other. Paul
recognises but one class of the Jews, and but one of the church. The Jews
with him are wholly impenitent; the church wholly watchful.
Yet, in spite of the acknowledged omission, an attentive eye,
may, I believe, gather hints confirmatory of the doctrine even from the
Epistles before us.
For what says the fifth chapter of the first Epistle? The
apostle there is setting forth at one view the contrasted positions of the
church and the world. The church is awake and sober, the world is sleeping and
drunken; and answerably thereto, the one is seized on by the Day as by a thief,
the other escapes. But would it not follow from
such a principle, that if the [regenerate] believer have left the
characteristic and holy position of safety in which the church is to stand, that he also might be overtaken by
that day as a thief? Suppose a
converted man to fall back towards the world in all those hateful and
punishable aspects which the two Epistles offer to our notice - suppose him to
become secure, unbelieving as to the
Lords coming, a resister of the truth, a persecutor of the Lords saints, asleep in the arms of the worlds pleasures and cares, would
it be any marvel, if, as having deserted the post of the church, he should be dealt with as a deserter?
Is not this the lesson [Page 279] intended to reach us from the parable of the Steward? Was it not thus with Peter? He twice
resists the truth; even rebuking his Lord for giving utterance to the doctrine
of his sufferings and death; (Matt. 16.) then, (in chap.
26,) when warned of the approaching hour of trial,
he again opposes the truth, and having sighted the warning, and been thrice
found asleep by the Lord, he enters into the thickest of the temptation, and
falls foully, even though afterwards restored.*
[* See Col.
3:23-25. Cf.
Heb. 10: 22-30, R.V.]
* *
*
[Page 280]
CHAPTER 13
THE HEBREWS
We have
also some intimations of the same truths in the Hebrews. Paul assures us that the rest promised in the ninety-fifth Psalm, has not yet been fulfilled, and that
it applies to believers of the present dispensation. He then warns us against being shut out of it, as most of the Israelites were excluded
from Canaan, though they had come out of
It is worthy of notice that Moses and Aaron, Gods witnesses
before Pharaoh, are superseded by Joshua and Caleb, another pair. And these two
former witnesses both ascend, before their death, in the sight of all
But the passage seemingly most to our purpose is the first
portion of the eleventh of Hebrews. Seven worthies are offered to our notice;
after which there is a break. [Page 281] Abel, Enoch, and Noah; Abraham with his descendants,
Isaac and Jacob; and lastly Sarah. The last confessed themselves strangers and
pilgrims; as strangers desiring a better country; as pilgrims
desiring a settled home or city. God has provided both these for them.
1. Abel is the first martyr, the
witness of the sacrifice by which sinners draw near to God. 2. Enoch is the believer of God, who by
his [walk and] translation escaped death, and was no
longer found on earth, because of Gods removal of him from thence. The reason
of his translation was, because he pleased God. He is the contrast then to those who pleased him not,
or to the murmurers who fall in the wilderness. These two describe the two
states of the peculiarly privileged in our dispensation; as either suffering for Christ unto death, or
suddenly and noiselessly removed from earth, because well-pleasing to God. Thus Pauls lesson is
enforced positively and negatively. Be not like
3. The two former cases have presented passive faith. But
Noahs case is that of active faith,
providing a refuge for himself, and for others his household. Abel and Enoch stand alone; and as
individuals are slain or caught up.
Noah is brought into contact with the world, condemns it, and is made heir of the righteousness of faith. This
answers to the earthly active escape of the Jewish disciples into the ark of
the wilderness. [Page 282] They also are warned beforehand of things not yet
seen: things which the world, intent on marrying and giving in marriage, on
eating and drinking, refuses to believe.
4. Abraham, as the father of the
faithful is next seen, combining in himself the two classes of the people of
God; - the earthly and the heavenly inheritances
both meeting in him. The earthly inheritance is exhibited in those words, By faith
Abraham when he was called to go out into the place 1 which he was about
to receive as an inheritance, obeyed. His descendants, in like obedience
leave the land which they are about to receive as an inheritance; and fly like
himself, not knowing whither they go, but still unto a place
prepared of God, where they are to be fed a
thousand two hundred and three score days: Rev.
12. Here is Noahs active escape again.
But Abraham is also the stranger and pilgrim, looking for a
heavenly country, and for the city whose architect and fashioner is God: 5, 6.
In the same position of faiths expectancy, Isaac and Jacob are found with him.
7. Lastly, Sarah, the type of the
better covenant and of the heavenly
* *
*
[Page 284]
CHAPTER 14
SECOND EPISTLE OF PETER
THE foregoing
views derive very strong confirmation from the second Epistle of Peter. The
following is a sketch of the general strain of the first chapter, interspersed
with remarks.
The Epistle is addressed to those who have obtained faith in the righteousness (see Gr.) of our God and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Hence these take a sure standing for salvation: they are not on the ground
occupied by the intruder in the parable of the Wedding Garment.
To such believers very great promises are granted. Peter
mentions afterwards two: (1.) that of the Saviours Presence, and (2.) the new
heavens and earth: 3: 4, 9, 13. Being made partakers
of the divine nature, you have escaped the worlds corruption. But, he says, be
not content with this; add to faith its sister graces. Thus you will be neither
idle nor unfaithful. But there are those who neither have, nor seek to have these added graces; these are unable to discern any thing in the horizon, and they have
forgotten even the blest truth that the sins of their life ere they believed
had been forgiven. Behold then, again, the two classes of [regenerate] believers which have been before pointed out!
[Page 285]
The reasons of the apostles exhortation to such diligence next
appear. Thus they would make their calling and election sure: and not stumble.
Thus the entrance 1 into the
Saviours kingdom would be richly granted them.
1 The
article is in the original.
Both the election and the joyous entrance into the [coming millennial] kingdom,
I am persuaded, refer, not to eternal salvation, but to the rapture - the first
rapture of the saints. A difficulty has been always felt in the attempt to
apply these words to the sovereign election of God before the ages were. The reference
really is to the history of the transfiguration, and to the Saviours promise
which preceded it. The transfiguration was a specimen of the kingdom, and all
the disciples saw it not; but only an election out of them. The Saviours
taking them to his Presence was also the type of the abundant entrance into
the kingdom. This view accounts for the election and entrance being a matter of responsibility and a promise to be fulfilled to the zealous
and diligent saints; while, on the other hand, - [if repentance and restoration
is not forthcoming] - the blind and unwatchful will lose this choice of the Saviour; and will stumble like Peter in the day of
temptation.
Next occurs a slight digression relating to Peters own case. This
was a subject worthy of being often impressed on their minds; though they
acknowledged and were persuaded of it. But Peter knew that the [select] rapture without seeing death, would
not be granted to himself. The Lord showed him, (John 21,) that he must die a violent death.2 He was to belong to the Abel class,
not [Page 286] to the Enoch class. But though aware of his own removal ere that day, he
desired that the other hope should ever remain before the mind of the church.
2 It should be showed me,
not hath showed me.
The last supposes some later revelation. The fault lies in translating a first
aorist as a perfect.
The [first or select]
rapture then, without seeing death, is the true hope of the church. But two misapprehensions might destroy its
force; and each of these he proceeds to combat in turn.
1. The first is, that this promise was
a clever fable imposed on Peter by deeper wits than his own. 2. The second, that the promise of
rapture to the Presence without tasting death, had no reference to any but the [selected] three apostles who were present at
the transfiguration.
1. Against the first suggestion of
unbelief he brings his personal testimony as an eye witness. He had spoken to
them of two points - (1.) the power
and (2.) the - Presence of the Lord Jesus. (1.)
He had seen the power of Jesus, when he was with his two companions at the
raising of the dead in the house of the ruler of the synagogue. (2.) He had beheld also the majesty of
the Saviours Presence 1 in his Second Companionship on the holy mount. The transfiguration is a lesson to the
church. Peter speaks of it, not as the glory of the Son of Man, but the Presence of our Lord Jesus Christ. The voice he heard he describes as
that of God the
Father. That was a specimen of the future
companionship, to which the rapture introduces. This voice we heard when we were with
him on the holy mount.
1 [See Greek
] I translate it, the majesty of that
- Presence understood. His majesty, would be [see Greek
]
2. But he had a second proof, which he esteemed still more
secure 1 - the prophetic word. The reference
here is, I believe, specially to those passages which speak of the rapture;
though without denying a more general statement of the utility of prophecy and
its promises to the Christian. Verily I say unto you,
there are some standing here, which shall not taste of death till they have seen the
kingdom of God come with power: Mark 9: 1; Matt. 16: 28; Luke 9: 27. Then shall two be in the field: the one shall be taken, and
the other left.
1 I translate ver. 19,
And we esteem
still more sure the prophetic word.
To the same effect, Green on the Grammar of the New
Testament.
But the immediate objection to such a passage, of course would
be, that it had been fulfilled once and for ever, when the three apostles had ascended
the mount of transfiguration. Peter, therefore, addresses himself to remove the
objection. Such a view would rest upon the narrow idea, that the words of God
had no fuller or wider meaning than the words of man; that they died a natural
death when the occasion in reference to which they were first uttered, had gone
by.
But not so: no prophecy of Scripture is to be considered as
having reference to that special case only at which it first was uttered; for
it is dictated not by mans finite capacity, but by the Holy Spirit, the
searcher of the deep things of God. Not only then do those words of Christ
apply to it, but the histories of Enoch and Elijah, and some passages of the
prophets. An exemplification of the apostles mode of applying the Old
Testament speedily follows.
[Page 288]
CHAP. 2. While true prophecy
and its promises are thus useful, there would be also false prophecy, with its false
doctrines and awful practices. Gods [righteous] justice would be disbelieved; and Jesus himself
denied, as once he was by the apostle himself.
Peter therefore cites, as proofs of Gods justice, (1.) the imprisonment of the angels who
fell in the days of Noah; (the Sons of God, - [a reference to fallen angels] - of Gen. 6:
11)* (2.) The destruction of the world by the
flood, and Noahs escape. (3.) The
destruction of
1 For a full discussion of the usual
theory, see a tract, The Spirits in
Prison. Campbell,
Holborn.
[*
See also Christ, after His death, when He descended into Sheol = Gk. Hades -
and preached to the
spirits in prison (1 Pet. 3: 19, R.V.). Could
the apostle Peters use of the word spirits
above, have any reference to the Nephilim -
the half
human/angelic offspring of women? This event brought about a world-wide
corruption of mankind; and brought about Gods judgment upon the whole world during
the Noachian flood. As is was in the days of Noah, said our Lord Jesus at His first
Advent, so it shall be at the coming of the Son of Man - at the time of His second
Advent!]
The third chapter gives the
scoffing that will then arise against the doctrine of the Presence and its [select] rapture: [Page 289] scoffs based on the uninterrupted
course of nature, ever since the death of the fathers. Whether by the fathers we are to understand the Jewish or
the Christian fathers does not seem clear. The words, however, admit the
miracles of the Old Testament, or of the New, or of both. - How absurd to expect a rapture without death! when for so
many centuries the holiest have all quietly breathed their last! Against
such scoffers Peter testifies of the Day of the Lord. The Presence is the testimony to the believer: he who refuses to acknowledge that and its miraculous [select] translation of the living saint, will be left to the terrors of the
day of temptation.
Peter was present in the two first companionships as an
honoured servant of the Lord; but in the third, he was found sleepy and
prayerless; and, entering into temptation, was led even to deny his Master. He
is made the appropriate witness of the two destinies of the two
classes of - saints.1 May his exhortations and warnings,
beloved, find a deep and lasting echo in our hearts!
1 He notices the third companionship and
his part in it, but in the first Epistle, and in quite another connexion: 1 Pet. 5: 1.
* *
*
[Page
290]
CHAPTER 15
MUST ANY EVENTS PRECEDE
THE FIRST RAPTURE?
THE
subject at which we have arrived is one on which I am far from being certain;
owing to the seeming contradictoriness of the statements of Scripture on this
head. The apparent contradictions spring, doubtless, from differences of time,
or of persons, or of both. By means of this assumption, (for the word of God
cannot really contradict itself,) we shall, through grace, arrive at the true
and reconciling conclusion at length. In the meantime, the best mode of
studying the question is to present the evidence for both sides. We inquire
then - Are there any events which must precede the rapture of the church ?
I. To this we should answer, looking at
one class of passages - Assuredly not!
1. No previous sign is given to the two in the field. They are
found at their daily labour: Matt. 24; Luke 17.
The Presence of the Son of Man is thief-like, and therefore without previous
signal given.
2. In 2
Thess. 2, while signs are given of
the coming of the great and terrible day, there are none of the Presence of the
Lord Jesus.
[Page 291]
3. In the second Epistle of Peter, the first chapter, there are
no previous signs; indeed the absurdity of the saints hope is derided, because
there are no visible signs: (2 Pet. 3.) But does not that suppose, that the foretold
scoffers of the last days must first arise?
4. In the history of Enoch, the rapture was sudden, and
without any precedent notice. Similarly is the subject presented where the
apostle notices the rapture of that worthy: Heb.
11.
5. In Revelation the
Saviours coming is spoken of, more or less distinctly, in all the epistles to
the churches. But no where are any signs specified, as necessarily to precede
his coming to the saint.
II. But now turn we to the apparently
conflicting evidence.
1. Signs are given of the Saviours
appearing in Matt. 24,
especially the sign from heaven; after which and the great tribulation, the
Lord appears. But these things are easily reconciled with the foregoing view:
for they are signs of the appearing to
2. But there are found two series of events in the prophetic
part of Revelation: the first extending from
chap. 4 -
11, the second from 12
- 14. I assume, for the present,1 that the woman in heaven is
1 Should the Lord spare me, I hope to
return to this subject. In the meantime, proofs are given, in Babylon Literal and Mystical.
3. In the parable of the Labourers in the Vineyard, the fifth
call, an hour before sunset, supposes the raising up of a body not hitherto
known; and something, I believe, distinct from the church, and therefore
rewarded before it. For the masters command is, in paying the hire, to begin
from the last, and to ascend
to the first.
The remnant on earth, both the
watchful and the unwatchful saints, are, I believe, possessed of the miraculous
gifts of the Holy Ghost. For they are made the test of the dead only, and not of the living. But
if the living saint had been unpossessed of gift, he could not have been caught
up at the first rapture, because he would be in the condition of the foolish
virgins. He is rejected then on other grounds: that is, he is pogsessed of gift. Thus, too, Enoch and Elijah were
both prophets, while only one
ascended. Jesus alone was caught up, while his disciples also had been
possessed of supernatural endowments. Must not the sons of the prophets be raised up ere Elijah be taken
away?
The rapture is an event in the End of the Age, Matt. 13: 39. Then it would appear that the End of the Age has begun ere
the Presence takes place. That is, that the tenderness of the Jewish fig tree
will precede the Saviours descent. He is not near till the remnant softens
towards him. The Presence, that is in its time of secrecy, is of shorter
duration than the End of the Age; for the judgment of the Gentiles, presented
in the [Page 293] Sheep and the Goats and the Drag-net, occurs after the Saviours
manifestation. But the judgment of the Gentiles, too, is an event in the End of
the Age: Matt. 13:
49.
4. But the most stubborn passage is found in 1 Cor. 15:
50-53. Now this I say, brethren,
that flesh and blood cannot inherit the
1 It is observable, as confirmatory of
the views previously given that the distinction of sleepers and living occurs as soon as
the
I will first then produce the proofs of there being more
raptures than one; and then suggest how it seems possible to reconcile this
with the other passages.
[Page 294]
1. First, the time of the resurrection and rapture of the
church is fixed to the time of Jesus Presence. (1.)
In Christ
shall all be made alive; but each in his own
rank; Christ the first-fruits; then, they that are
Christs at his Presence. (2.) For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing?
Are not even ye before our Lord Jesus Christ at
his Presence? This is the time then of the presentation of converts,
now immortal, before Christ. So also 1 Thess. 3: 13; 5: 23; 1 John 2: 28. (3.) We who are
alive and remain unto the Presence of the Lord shall not get the start of those that are asleep;
the dead in Christ shall first rise, then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together
with them in clouds to meet the Lord in the air. (4.)
Be
patient, brethren, unto the Presence of the Lord: James 5: 7. (5.)
We
beseech you, brethren, by the Presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by
our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind:
2 Thess. 2:
1.
The latter passage, especially when taken in connexion with
the promise to Philadelphia hereafter to be considered, supposes that the Lords
Presence begins before the Man of Sins revelation; and consequently before the day of temptation, and its accompanying great
tribulation.
But the great tribulation and the day of temptation do not
begin till Satan is cast down from heaven, and when, being enraged because his
time is short, he sets up his false Christ. But he is cast out of heaven before
the first woe trumpet - the fifth in the series. Hence, those who are
(according to the promise to
We may reconcile, therefore, the difficulty as to there being
previous events, by a reference to distinct raptures. There may be a rapture -
the rapture of especial reward, promised to
That there must be more than one rapture seems clear from
several passages.
1. If it has been proved that the two in the field and at the
mill are both [regenerate] believers, and that the taking is the rapture of the watchful - [and
obedient
(Acts 5: 32; 1 John 3: 24,
R.V.)] - one, then if the unwatchful [
that are
alive, that are left
(1 Thess. 4: 15, R.V.)] - is also to be with Christ in the
kingdom, there must be a second rapture embracing him.
2. This is confirmed by the parable of the Virgins. The
foolish ascend to the chamber-door, after the wise have entered.
3. In the book of Revelation, there are several raptures. (1.) That of the Man‑child, answering apparently to the
promise to
Beside these, we have the great multitude on high, and the
ascent of the two martyred prophets: (Chapters 7,
11.)
In the history of Jesus life we have three scenes of similar
import, (1.) the secret raising of
the daughter of Jairus, (2.) the transfiguration,
(3.) and the general assembly of the
[selected] disciples around Jesus after his
resurrection.
May it not be then, that it is with the raptures, as with the
[select] resurrections, that they are in some places massed together, when there
was no occasion to separate them; while, in other places, principles are asserted, which
compel us to recognise a distinction of times and persons with regard to them
also?
A remarkable exemplification of such a view occurs in the
gospel history. Discrepancies arise in the statements of the Evangelists so
serious, that harmonists have been greatly perplexed to make them accord.
Matthew records the healing two blind men at
But how can it be true that there are no previous events to
take place ere the saints resurrection and the rapture of the just, if the
resurrection and rapture are not to occur till the last trump? For if it be the last trump, it must (as we find by a reference to the Revelation) be the seventh trump. And if the seventh trump, then the seals and the
six previous trumpets must precede it.
Again, How can there be two or more raptures, if all these
things are to be at the last trump?
These are the difficulties. I will now throw out the ideas
which seem to me most likely to furnish a reconciliation.
1. First, the passage does not deny that there may be more
than one rapture. It speaks of change,
not rapture. It binds that change to the last trump. But may there
not be a change of the saints
without their ascent? Or
again, (which seems to me more probable), an ascent without change of body? There may then be saints rapt on high, without the glorious [immortal and] resurrection-body, of which Paul is
speaking. Enoch and Elijah ascended with their mortal bodies. Jesus rose
from the dead, his body seemingly unaltered to sight and touch, though he was able
to enter the room through bolted doors. But it was not a glorified body. If we
suppose then, that the bodies in which the dead rise are incorruptible, but
that the glory is not put on till the seventh trump, we shall be far on our way to understand the passage
in Corinthians in harmony with those before
adduced.
2. The last trump seems to occupy some considerable [Page 298] space of time. The expression used of it is singular. - In the days of the
voice of the seventh angel, when he shall be about to sound, the mystery of God shall be finished. Then the mystery of
which Paul speaks here will be finished, and not till then.1
1 Can the last
trump mean a special trumpet, not a special blast of a trumpet? If so, it
might be sounded more than once. The attempts to disconnect the last trump of Corinthians from those of Revelation seem to me valueless.
While then there may be raptures without previous signs, the change of all the saints to
their bodies of glory will be instantaneous for all, and at a certain fixed
moment, after previous signs. In Matthew 24 we have the instantaneous rapture, in Corinthians the instantaneous change. It is quite
indifferent to the question of which the Holy Spirit is treating, whether there
be one or many raptures. For the point discussed is, How the dead are raised? that is, the physical question is the
one in hand. And this is the same in the case of the watchful and of the
unwatchful saint. The mode of passing from mortality and corruption to the body of
[immortality and] glory will be instantaneous in every
instance.
The Lords descent from on high with the trump of God can after this create no difficulty.
It is not said to be sounded at the moment of descent, and therefore does not
embarrass the question regarding the moment of the commencement of the
Presence. But the expression the trump of
God, as though it
alone were so, does seem to indicate that it is peculiar, and that it will
differ in itself, as well as in him who sounds it, from the preceding ones.
* *
*
[Page 299]
CHAPTER 16
THE PRESENCE IN REVELATION
To this church the Saviour takes three titles; as he also
finds in it three subjects of praise.
To the angel of the church in
Jesus is the holy, loving holiness, and requiring it in [all] his saints. He is the true, fulfilling his
promises, and specially in this case, his promise of the saints ascent to
himself. The last of the three titles is the most remarkable and characteristic.
There is but one passage where the phrase the key of David occurs, (Isa. 22: 12-25.)
That chapter begins by describing
But such as the people, so are the rulers. Therefor, the
prophet is instructed thus to address one of the chief functionaries of state.
Thus saith
the Lord God of Hosts - Go, get thee unto this treasurer, even
unto Shebna, which is over the house, and say, What hast thou here? and whom hast thou here, that
thou hast hewed thee out a sepulchre here, as he
that heweth him out a sepulchre on high, and
that graveth a habitation for himself in a rock? Behold the Lord will carry thee away with a mighty captivity, and will surely cover thee
And
I will drive thee from thy station, and from thy
state shall he pull thee down. And it shall come
to pass in that day, that I will call my servant
Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and I will clothe
him with thy robe, and strengthen him with thy
girdle, and I will commit thy government into
his hand, and he shall be a father to the
inhabitants of
The treasurer of state had confidently expected a continuance
of his glory; and a quiet decease in his own land, carefully providing for
himself a magnificent sepulchre, with much cost hewn out of the rock. This
discovered his forgetfulness of the hope of the resurrection. David did not build himself a
magnificent sepulchre; for he did not believe that that would be his last
house, [Page 301] but expected a resurrection [out] from the dead. The promises to him, [upon this earth] as he saw, could only be fulfilled in resurrection. It was not fit, therefore, that one, should preside over
Davids house, and wear his key of office, who had lost the real key to Davids
house and hopes - the assured hope of resurrection. For the Lords promise
respected Davids house, as well as his own person. Thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever: (2 Sam. 7: 16.) How was this possible save in
resurrection? It was not successionally fulfilled: for the family of David soon
left the throne empty. Resurrection therefore was the
key to the hopes and promises of David, no less than of Abraham.
Therefore the Lord would treat Shebna according to his unbelief. He should not
even die quietly in the land of promise; but be led captive, and his sepulchre
be for another. Also he should lose his station; another should be installed
into his post, who should both in name and in reality bear the key of David.
Eliakim the son of Hilkiah was to succeed this Shebna. Shebna signifies, Repent now. But the call to repentance was in
vain. God then would bring forward Eliakim, which signifies, God shall raise up, and he was the son of Hilkiah, which
signifies the portion of Jehovah. Thence we obtain
the mystic lesson, that resurrection is the portion which the Lord has provided
for his servants; while those who refuse to believe it, shall have no part in the sure
mercies of David. Jesus then takes to himself the promise. He is the Lord of Davids house,
in possession of the key that opens all the promises. He is the one raised up [out] from the dead; he has himself, too, the keys of Hades and of Death. The sepulchre then is not the glory
of the believer, but [Page 302] the resurrection from it; the gates of Hades shall at
length no more prevail against him. As saith Paul, We declare unto you glad
tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers God hath
fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he raised up Jesus again; as
it is also written in the second Psalm - Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. And as concerning that he raised him [out] from the dead, no more to return to
corruption, he said on this wise - I will give you the sure mercies of David.
For David after he had
served his own generation by the will of God fell asleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption. But he whom God raised
again saw no corruption.
The key of David then is the key that unlocks the sepulchre. When
Jesus opens the gates of Hades none shall keep his saints enclosed: and when he
closes them upon the ungodly, none shall open them. In the bottomless pit will
Satan and his angels be locked a thousand years, unable to come forth.
But there is yet another door to be opened, ere the saints,
both the living and the dead, can obtain their full glory. And is not this the
open door which Christ presents to the living saints of
The opening of a door indeed sometimes signifies a [Page
303] large
opportunity to preach the gospel: (1 Cor. 16: 9; Col. 4: 3.) That door man might have
some power to shut: but none is able to detain the saint from his ascent to
glory. This is not the door of utterance, to one about to commence or continue his career of
evangelizing, but is put forth as the promise attendant on past and well-nigh completed service to the
Lord. What then can it be, but the door of entrance to the glory on high?
As the Philadelphian saints had manifested a little strength
for Jesus, he would manifest his power on their behalf. He would open doors
that none could shut. May we not in the praise, which (without a word of blame)
is bestowed upon this church, coupled with a consideration of its name,
(Philadelphia, which signifies brotherly love,)
behold the chief requisite to that ripeness for glory which the Lord is expecting
in his wheat-field? The word before us is used by Peter to describe almost the
last addition that can be made to faith. He exhorts the saints to add to faith
virtue, (courage,) knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness,
(
Have not the three excellencies of the church before us a
reference to Jesus three titles? Is not their strength that of holiness, answering to Jesus title - he that is holy? Is not their keeping his word in correspondence with his being true, And has not their not denying his
name, a reference to his title as the Son of David having Davids key?
The last title of Jesus seems to be taken up immediately after
in the first promise which follows. Of the [Page 304]
While all who call themselves
Christians would confess in word Jesus name as Son of David; there are yet thousands - [upon thousands of Anti-millennialist Christians] - who deny that he will sit as
king on the throne of David his father.
The two first praises of the church
seem to refer to its witness against the world; the latter to its maintaining the title of Jesus to be governor of the
houses of
To deny that title was a proof that they were not real Jews;
not Jews inwardly, but only professing Jews. They were followers of the
rejected Saul, not the willing subjects of Gods anointed David. Their
assemblies were not owned of God, they were the synagogue of Satan. In another
of the addresses to the churches they are found blaspheming and persecuting: 2: 9. But at the present crisis the saints
are all but delivered out of [Page 305] their hands. The Saviour promises that the false Jews
shall fall down at the feet of the believers whom he is commending, and
acknowledge Christs love to them.
If these words refer to what I suppose is the great subject of
the epistle - the rapture of the watchful saint without death - how significant
the promise becomes! The loftiest lot bestowed on the most favoured of Gods
saints under the old covenant was the ascent to heaven - a lot of which Enoch
and Elijah were the only partakers. How startling then to the Jew to learn,
that those whom he accounted mad fanatics, and the followers of a cursed
deceiver, were by God accounted worthy to be caught up to glory without tasting
death! These will be more favoured than even those holy servants of God. For
those two prophets have yet to return and suffer death, as this book discovers.
(
Of the promise made by Christ have we not a type in the
history of David? In the day of his humiliation before his son Absalom, Shimei
comes forth and curses, and throws stones and dust. David does not resent it,
but in patience (the very spirit of the
May we not also see a confirmation of the view previously
given? The spectators of the rapture, to whom it is granted as a sign, are real
Jews; these are some who refuse to acknowledge Gods mercy towards the
disciples then, but they are compelled to do so afterwards.
But a third and equally blessed promise follows. Because thou has kept the word of my patience,
I also will keep thee out of the hour of the temptation that is about to come upon the whole
habitable earth, to try the dwellers upon
the earth.1 I am coming quickly; hold fast that thou hast, that none take thy crown.
1 Behold
is omitted by the Critical Editions.
The present privilege turns upon special service - the
keeping the word of Christs patience.
The expression is rather a difficult one. Two different meanings may be
assigned to it. It may signify either -
1. The doctrine of my prolonged stay,
(the genitive of subject.) Or,
2. The doctrine of the Christians
patiently waiting for me. (genitive of object.)
The last seems certainly the true meaning.
The word patience takes that sense in the two epistles which are most engaged with the doctrine
of the [Page 307] Lords second
advent. Thus we read, Remembering without ceasing your work of faith and labour
of love, and patience of the hope of our Lord Jesus Christ.1 Here it is equivalent to the patient expectation of the return of the Lord Jesus.
Again, The Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the
patient waiting for Christ; 2 Thess. 3: 5. Again, I John who am also your brother, and companion in the tribulation, and kingdom, and patience
of Jesus Christ: (Rev. 1: 9.) where the patience of Jesus Christ signifies the patient waiting for his advent.
1. [See Greek at the foot of this page;
and keep in mind that Robert Govett was gifted in translating Hebrew and Greek
writings.]
The previous expression, thou hast kept my word, is now enlarged
into keeping the word of my patience. To the maintenance of the doctrine of
Christs second advent, and the saints continued attitude of watchfulness, the
present promise stands annexed. Let then those ignorant of the Scriptures
exclaim against the study of prophecy as foolish; beside its great practical
blessings realized already, enlarging as it does the knowledge of our present
position, there belongs to it also the abundant entrance to
the kingdom, and the escape of a season of fearful
trial yet to be endured - [by those who will be left] - ere the glory comes.
When is that hour of temptation? It is not difficult to
answer. It begins when Satan is cast out of heaven; when, enraged because his time
is short, he gives to his great vice-gerent his throne and power and great
authority. That hour is to come upon all the habitable earth, to try all the
dwellers upon the earth. Now the dominion of Satans lieutenant extends over the whole
habitable earth, but its especial power is exerted [Page 308] upon the dwellers upon the earth; by which I understand the Roman earth, as it is called; or that portion of
the globe which encompasses the
1 [See Greek
] the Critical Editions add.
In what the temptation, when arrived
at its height, consists, the same chapter informs us. One who sits on Satans throne
blasphemes God, and requires to be worshipped. The power of the world and the
power of Satan sustain him. Human force and miraculous power combine to enforce
his pretensions. His false prophet establishes idolatry, and requires each to
stamp himself with a peculiar mark, without which none may buy or sell. To
refuse these requirements is to give oneself up for slaughter. Here are the patience and faith of the saints.
But some privileged ones (not the church as a body) are kept out
of the hour of temptation. How is that effected? It is not by providing some secure retreat on earth; for the temptation is to assail the whole
habitable earth. It is not that
Some have to endure - [See 2 Tim. 2: 12,
R.V.] -
in patience,
and without resistance, (which is forbidden,) the
full brunt of the adversarys attack
on earth.
The present view is exactly coincident with the exhortation, and implied promise in Luke 21:
36.
Watch therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape the things that are about to come to pass, and to be set before the Son of
The manner of the escape is also significantly hinted in the
words which follow. I am coming quickly. To the
Thessalonian believers, terrified at the day of the Lord, Paul (as we have
seen) presents his coming as [Page 310] their hope. In the gathering to him lay their glorious
deliverance.
The hour of temptation specially begins with the apostacy,
- [of those within the Church (Num. 14: 22; cf. 1 Cor. 10: 1-6, R.V.)] - and attains its full tide under the
Man of Sin. The present [select] rapture must therefore be before his revelation. It is a promise, not to all the church, but
to a certain clearly-defined portion of it - those who keep the doctrine of
Christs second advent, and its hope of - [a promised pre-tribulation] - rapture.
The maintaining Christs title as Son of David is closely connected with keeping the
word of his patience.
Both refer generally to the millennial glory, and to watchfulness - [repentance, restoration, and obedience] - as the saints preparation for
it. He who holds the one, will perceive the other also. They have indeed
different aspects. The one testimony is the churchs witness to the Jew.
Hence ensues thereon a promise concerning the Jew. The other regards especially
the world. Hence there follows a promise of the
escape of evil that will fall heavily upon the world.
It is hinted by the apostle also, that those who do not keep so important a portion of the
Saviours doctrine, and refuse that title, will
be left to the hour of temptation, and will find this door (for awhile at
least) shut. How solemn and
searching the thought! May it duly affect the reader!
May we give heed to the exhortation which succeeds, Hold fast that which thou hast, that none take thy
crown. What
does that imply? Clearly, that it is possible to have known and admitted this truth, and still to let it slip. With such
desertion of [prophetic] truth is connected deterioration of character, and loss of
reward. Look to yourselves, that we lose not the things that
[Page 311]
we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward:
2 John 8. The crown of which the Lord speaks is doubtless the crown of righteousness, prepared for those who have fought the good fight and proved victorious; for those who
have kept the faith, and loved the Lords
appearing.
Lastly, we have the promise to the victor.
Him that overcometh
will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall no more go out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the New Jerusalem, which
cometh down out of heaven from my God, and I
will write upon him my new name.
In the church itself there are two divisions; (1.)
the victors in the strife with our spiritual foes, and (2.) those who are more or less conquered by the world, or by the flesh. The division thus introduced
answers to that adopted by the Saviour in Matt. 25, where his saints are represented as
either watchful or sleeping; the sleepers being those overcome
by the cares of the world or the deceitfulness of riches.
To Davids Son it was promised that he should
build a house for the Lord. In the lower sense, Solomon fulfilled it. In the
higher, it has yet to be accomplished by
Jesus himself;* and Paul quotes a portion of the passage as applying to our Lord: Heb. 1:
5. But if so, then the context applies also. I will set up
thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his
kingdom. He
shall build an house for my name, and I will
establish the throne of his kingdom for ever: 2
Sam. 7:
12, 13.
[* See
also Zech. 6: 12:
Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold, the Man whose name is the BRANCH; and He shall grow [or
sprout] up out of His place, and HE SHALL BUILD THE
In the temple as built by Solomon,
were two great pillars, entitled Jachin and Boaz: (1 Kings 7: 15,
22.) [Page 312] remarkable ornaments of that wondrous building. But
the loftier Son of David is building a more glorious spiritual temple; and in
it the conquerors shall be
everlasting monuments. The earthly pillars were first stripped of their gold, then removed
from their bases, and finally broken in pieces and carried to Babylon: 2 Kings 18: 16;
25: 13, 16. But these pillars shall abide for ever.
Again, as pillars are wont to be inscribed with the memorials
of victories, so these trophies of Christs conquest, yet themselves conquerors also, are to have three
names engraven on them.
1. The name of my God.
The conquerors had
not denied Christs name; they shall now bear for ever the name of the God and
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2. The name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem.
David took the city of
3. And my new name.
The conqueror bears
a better title of Christ than that of Son of David. He denied not Christs name on earth; he is inscribed with
three names on high. The conqueror
wins glory from the God whom he served,
from the metropolis of which he is a freeman, and from the Captain under whose
conduct he came off victorious.
We are thus also advertised whither the conqueror
[Page 313] will be taken. The old
-------
SECTION II - CHAPTERS 10 AND 11
In these two chapters we have the Presence first, and then a [select] rapture; but it is not the rapture of the [whole] church. The Lord Jesus appears here as the angel of the Lord in connexion with
[* Believed by Mr. Govett to be Elijah and Enoch. But many Christians today,
believe Moses
will accompany Elijah because of his
appearance with him on the Mount of Transfiguration; and also because God
choose him to deliver His people from their slavery under Pharaoh in Egypt.
(See Exodus ch. 3; cf.
Rev. 11: 3-6.]
He is the angel of the covenant, as shewn by the rainbow about his head, and his having in
his hand the book of the covenant,1 while its ark
is seen on high, and its seals are now broken. His feet on earth and sea appear
to claim them both for the Creator against the vain pretensions of Antichrist.
1 Or is this something distinct? The
first roll is called a book, this a little book.
His two prophets witness for him, but after defending themselves for
1260 days, by miracle, from the enemies among whom they live,
after the time of their testimony [Page 314] is ended, they fall [i.e., are slain] before the power of the false
Christ, and are
crucified - [i.e., put to death (see
Rev. 11: 7, 8, R.V.)] - like their Lord, at
Jerusalem. Of so brilliant
a triumph, the nations who have come up to make war against
[* NOTE: This fact proves to us that at the time of the two
raptures into heaven (by Enoch and Elijah, Gen.
5: 23; 2 Kings 2: 11,
R.V.) that they did not enter into the presence of God where Christ now is - seated at His Fathers
right hand! The reason being, God will not allow any mortal man to
enter His presence! A good example of this truth is made known by the special
clothing which the High Priest
of the Jews was commanded to put on before entering
the
holy of holies where Gods presence was. That is, in that in that part of
Furthermore, we know of a very rare and unusual
occurrence which God allowed to happen! It is described in Num. 16: 30, R.V. as:
a new
thing
when [31]
the ground clave asunder that was under them: [32] and the earth opened
her mouth and swallowed them up
[33] So that they and all that appertained
to them, went down alive unto Sheol.
This event was new because Sheol is in the heart
of the earth Matt. 12: 40; and is
the place where our Lord Jesus descended immediately after the time
of His Death (Matt. 12: 40; cf. Acts
2: 31). It is the place in the heart of the earth, where all
disembodied souls of the dead are waiting for their
Resurrection. (Luke 16: 23; Acts 2: 24; cf. Rev. 6: 9-11, R.V.).
The LORDS holy anger
and righteous judgment fell upon all of these apostates: and the people, who
were told to Depart from the tents of these wicked
men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest ye be consumed in all their sins
(Num 16: 26,
R.V.).
for there is WRATH *gone out from the LORD:* the plague is begun: (verse 46, R.V.).
* See
also in Jeremiah Ch.
7. of the translators use of the
word wrath
[Verse16,
RSV]: Therefore pray not for
this people, neither lift up cry or prayer for them, neither make intercession
to me: for I will not hear thee.
[Verse 27] And thou shalt speak all these words
unto them - [i.e., the apostates]; but they will not hearken to thee: thou shalt also call unto
them; but they will not answer thee. And thou
shalt say unto them, This is the nation
that hath not hearkened to the voice of the LORD their
God, nor received
instruction: truth is perished,
and is cut off from
their mouth. [Verse 29]:
the LORD has rejected and forsaken
the generation of his WRATH.
Now we are not told in Scripture where Enoch
and Elijah
went to after their rapture into heaven
- and we dare not go beyond what is written in Holy Scripture - but we do know
what is written in the apostle Johns gospel (John
3: 13; cf. 14: 2, 3. R.V.); and what the apostle Peter preached on
Pentecost - 10 days after Christs Ascension into heaven in Acts 2: 27, 34; and what the Apostle Paul said many years
after Peters statement in 2 Tim. 2: 17b, 18, R.V.); and also the Writer (i.e. the
Holy Spirit) of Hebrews
has recorded in Heb. 10: 13ff.! Therefore we
believe, and are confident in our rejection of all other theories to the
contrary; and our disagreement with all those who maintain the the spirit which Christ surrendered at the time of His Death,
is supposedly the time when we can appear in the presence of God in heaven -
without an immortal body!
Therefore, the select pre-tribulation rapture of
those accounted worthy to escape all these things
that shall come to pass, and to stand before
the Son of man (Luke 21: 36, A.V.), will not include all who are
regenerate - but only those who are judged by Christ to have fulfilled
His conditions! See also Rev. 3: 10: Because thou hast kept the word of my PATINT ENDURANCE - (Lit. Gk. the word of the patience of me.) - I also will keep thee
from THAT HOUR of TRIAL, which is ABOUT to come on the whole HABITABLE, to try THOSE who DWELL on the EARTH. These words are written to the
CHURCH in
It is also interesting to note the request which Jesus said
was made to Abraham - to send Lazarus to his fathers
house (see Luke 16: 23, 27, R.V.).
This was not an unreasonable request to make; or one which was impossible for
God to grant because Solomon had said: All go unto one place
(Eccl. 3:
20, R.V.)! See Num. 16: 30, 33; 1 Samuel 28;
14-19; Psalm 139: 8b.
Cf. Matthew 17: 3;
Mark 8: 4;
Rev. 1: 18; 6: 9-11; 11: 3, R.V.).
Are not these scriptural truths AWSOME
for disciples, Christians,
(Acts 11: 26)
and non-Christians alike, who have never heard or fully understood them?]
-------
SECTION III - CHAPTIERS 12-14
Having sketched before my views of the principal points in
these chapters which bear on the subject before us, there is the less to say
now.
The woman in heaven adorned with three orders of celestial
light, is, as I suppose,
Those seen as the victorious company (in chap. 15.) before
the vials are poured out, must not be confounded with them. They ascend, after
the Antichrist has arisen, and after they have past through the severe conflict
of that day, and come off conquerors. The male child on the contrary escapes
that day of temptation.
A new company of conquerors appears at the commencement of chapter 14: 144,000, taken, not from the tribes of
Israel, but redeemed
from among men in or as it is elsewhere expressed, redeemed from the
earth. Either
they are a part of the male child, ascending with it, as belonging to the class
of conquerors in general, though afterwards distinguished from it because of
peculiar qualifications; or
this is a second rapture. I incline to the first view of the case. They are redeemed from
the earth. Now as the redemption out of
Deut. 7: 8; 1 Chron. 17: 21. They take
more than a Jewish standing: the name of the Father and the Son [Page
316] are on their
foreheads. The sound of their praises visits John from heaven, therefore they are
in heaven. They sing their special song before the throne and its living creatures and
elders. Nor do I find
that in this book Jesus takes the name of the Lamb any where but in the heaven.
Lastly, after a call to the saints, who are left on earth during the days of Antichrist, to be patient under their sufferings -
there is a declaration of blessedness to be obtained by those who should
from that day forward die in the Lord. Immediately afterwards we
have the reaping of the harvest of the earth by the crowned harvest-man seated
on the clouds. What can this be but the rapture of those of the
church who still abide upon the earth [when Christ returns]? As the first-fruits, so the harvest.
But the first-fruits are some redeemed from men, whose characteristics stand
opposed to those under the law: Gen. 1: 28; Dent. 7: 14.
Here then we have at least a second rapture; and that, after the appearance of
Antichrist in his power, as the former one was before
it.
Finally, these views are commended to the prayerful study of
the saints of God. May what they contain of truth find a willing reception! May
what is erroneous be exposed and avoided!* And may every fresh truth which we
learn, work in us that spiritual profit which was designed, and lead us to that patient preparation for our Lords advent, which includes in
it every grace which our Master desires to see developed in his disciple!
[* There is no mention of a resurrection
of the dead at the time of the first rapture of those accounted worthy to
escape the Great Tribulation! Only the
dead are Resurrected, and the Resurrection begins when Christ returns to earth
after the Great Tribulation. ]
* *
*
[Page
317]
IN REFUTATION OF DR. CUMMINGS TRACT,
ENTITLED THE POPE THE MAN
OF SIN.
2 THESSALONIANS 2
SINCE the above was
written, the Tract by Dr. Cumming, entitled The Pope
the Man of Sin, fell in my way. This induced me to reconsider the
prophecy with a view to answer the arguments. The result will be now laid
before the reader. Should he find repetition, let the importance of the subject
excuse it. That the Pope is Antichrist, has been asserted by national churches,
no less than by very holy men. But while this fact should induce caution in
examining the evidence, it is no proof of the truth of the opinion.
Dr. Cummings abilities may assure the reader, that he will
have the best arguments that can be mustered in its defence.
An Ultra-protestant may, I
hope, assail the theory without suspicion of a design to introduce Popery. He cordially
rejoices in the vigorous and sustained exertions against Rome made by the
learned Doctor, whom it is his privilege to hail and to know as a christian
brother [Page 318] If the theory be false, as false he is well assured it is,
then the assertion of it is a hindrance rather than a bulwark to the cause of
true Protestantism. The straining of Gods [prophetic] word is no light evil, and overstatements always recoil unfavourably on their [preachers and] author.
Concerning the nature of the argument, I would observe, that
the burden of proof lies on those who hold the
Protestant interpretation. Opponents are only bound to disprove their
arguments. But I am able to go further, and to shew, not only that the Popes as
a succession of persons have not fulfilled the prophecy, but that no succession
of persons can; and as a consequence, that an individual must accomplish the
prediction.
Next be it noted, that my opponents argument is a constructive charge, denied by the Romanists. Do
Roman Catholics admit that they worship the Pope as the supreme God, to the
denial of every other? They do not. This is a strong presumption then against
interpreting 2 Thess. 2. of the Popes.
I purpose then to consider five especial points.
I. THE MYSTERY OF
INIQUITY
AND THE APOSTACY.
II. HIS THE MAN OF SIN
ONE PERSON OR MANY?
III. HIS EXALTATION OF
HIMSELF
ABOVE EVERY GOD.
IV. HIS SITTING IN
THE
V. HIS WONDERS.
I. Let us consider Dr. C.s view of the apostacy. It is contradictory of itself.
The next expression by which the
Church of Rome is known, is the Apostacy. p. 22.
Now these two representations cannot both hold good of the
Church of Rome at the same time. It cannot be both the mystery of iniquity, and the apostacy too. The mystery of iniquity is lawlessness in
secret, and under a veil. The apostacy is lawlessness unveiled, and
open-mouthed, displaying both by word and deed, its disregard of all law.
If then it be the open rebel, it is not the secret foe. Nor is
one who heads the mystery of iniquity the Man of Sin. There would be but little
objection against considering some of the Popes as heads of the mystery of
iniquity. But if they were so, they would be thereby proved not to be heads of
the apostacy. The Man of Sin takes his
rise out of the open lawlessness of the apostacy [by
those within the Church], and is its head. Under the mystery there is a veil of apparent obedience;
under the apostacy there is no attempt at concealing
deadly enmity to God and his law. The mystery of
iniquity is a peoples secret dissatisfaction with their
sovereign, and covert thwarting of
his will, while still professing
allegiance. The apostacy is that
peoples openly refusing to obey [His commands], and lifting banner and sounding
trumpet against their sovereign. The
last act of such rebellion is the appointing a leader. Such a leader will the Man of Sin be.
Even upon Dr. C.s theory, Romanism
in our day cannot be properly regarded as any thing but the apostacy.
For the mystery of
iniquity was to continue till the [Page 320] person who withheld was removed. Now the hinderers
were the Roman Emperors. (p. 39.) Therefore after that
1 Why have the words - by the pious prince been
omitted in Dr. C.s translation?
2 Cited by Croly
on the Apocalypse. p. 135.
But further, omitting the question whether the Roman emperors
gave the popes their supremacy and blasphemous titles or not, certain it is,
that they did not prevent the appointment and residence of the bishops of
We come now to Dr. Cummings idea of apostacy.
What is the apostacy? Infidelity is
not apostacy. An infidel is one who is in no sense or shape a Christian, and
whose creed is not necessarily a departure from Christianity; but an apostate
is one who has been a Christian, and has lapsed from his Christianity into
something counter to it, or something that corrupts it.
Apostacy is departure from truth, and involves the previous possession of
truth: pp. 21, 22. Apostacy is that which holds the truth, but falls into
something additional to the truth, that destroys, vitiates, or corrupts it.
1. Apostacy is a change from a former
and true faith to a new and false one, or to utter unbelief.1 When then Dr. C.
says, Infidelity is not apostacy, it is only
true under certain circumstances. He has omitted the great characteristic of
apostacy - the change from good to evil. If there be no change, then, false
as the system of belief may be, or utter as the atheism, there is no apostacy.
The children of an apostate, if brought up in their fathers false religion,
are not apostate. Those Turks who are descended from families once Christian, [Page
322] are not
apostate. Roman Catholics of the present generation having experienced no
change of belief cannot be called apostates in any legitimate sense.
1 Apostate: one that has forsaken
his profession: generally applied to one that has left his religion.
- Dr. Johnson.
2. But if there
have been previous profession of Christianity, then infidelity is apostacy,
according to the Doctors own definition. He has been
a Christian, and has lapsed from his Christianity into something counter to it.
3. But the adding to truth something
that corrupts it is nowhere called, by any set of men, apostacy.
4. He who adds a corruption to Christianity,
does not abandon Christianity. He who falls from Christianity into something
counter to it, cannot be a Christian. But the same word cannot designate at
once the Christian and the man who has abandoned the Christian faith. The
definition then contains within itself inconsistent elements.
5. Our strict inquiry however is into
the meaning of apostacy anciently. What was an apostles view of the word? It
was apostacy from - the faith: 1 Tim.
4: 1, that
is, from the whole system of belief in Jesus - the Christian religion, as we
now term it. I need not prove at length that this is the force of the words. A
few texts will suffice: 1 Tim. 1: 2; 3: 9, 13; 5: 8, &c.
The addition of falsehood to the truth in a point of
importance, was called heresy by the fathers. Nestorius was
a heretic. But Julian, who, after professing Christianity, went back to
heathenism, has ever been known as Julian the Apostate. He had not been so called, except he had abandoned and
denied the truths which he once held as a Christian.
6. From the general question then of
apostacy, let [Page 323] us descend to the special one of apostacy from Christianity. Then we may say, An apostate is in no sense or shape a Christian, and is one
whose creed is necessarily a departure from Christianity. The apostate is one who has been a Christian, and has
lapsed from his Christianity into something counter to it. The truth which
he held is destroyed by untruth; he has departed from truth previously
possessed. How then can he still hold the truth?
The text asserts the very contrary: That they should believe the lie,
(see Gr.) that
they all might be damned who believed not the truth.
7. A man cannot
at the same time be a Christian, and an apostate from Christianity. But this
definition supposes that he may. He holds the truth
- how can you deny him the title of Christian? He has lapsed
from his Christianity into something counter to it. How can he be a Christian?
8. Nor is there apostacy where Dr. Cs
conditions are fulfilled.
Speaking to
Christians, the word apostacy is applicable to that which was once pure, but
has got that truth perverted, distorted, and destroyed.
Here is a Baptist, who once held that the immersion of
believers is the only true baptism. He, however, in his later days, embraces
the idea that the sprinkling of infants, though not the original mode of
baptizing, is yet, after all, as good as the immersion of believers. I ask of
Baptists - Is such an one an apostate from Christianity? May the term apostate be legitimately applied to him with
regard even to his notions of baptism? Yet Dr. Cs definition is met by this
case. Apostacy is that which holds the truth - he still maintains believers [Page
324] immersion to be
scriptural - but falls into something additional to
the truth that destroys, vitiates, and corrupts it; for if the
immersion of believers be true, the sprinkling of unbelievers is an addition
corrupting the true view.
Would I defend
1 Dr. Cumming rightly translates [see Greek
] the Lawless One. [see Greek
]
then is the mystery of lawlessness.
[Page325]
II. The next main point in controversy is
- Whether the
Man of Sin be an
individual, or a succession of persons. Dr. C. thus states the argument on his
side.
It has been argued, that a person
called the
lawless one,
the Man of Sin, must be an individual, and
not a succession of persons. I answer, it is a succession of persons. You ask
what authority I have for it? (1.) In Daniel we read of four kings, the heads
of four successive empires: that is confessedly a succession of kings. (2.) In Heb. 9: 7, we read, Into the second went the High Priest alone once every year, that was not an
individual, but an office held by many
in succession. So in the Revelation, (3.) the woman treading on the moon, (12: 1,) and (4.) the
woman sitting on the living creature, (13) 1 are admitted by all parties to be individuals made the types
of successive multitudes. The woman is a type of a society. So the Man of Sin
is the head and representative of a society; and just as (5.) he that letteth is the Roman Emperors, so
he that sitteth is the Roman Popes - not one person, but a succession of
persons, one wearing a crown, the other a tiara. P. 39.
1 Where is this woman to be found?
1. Of these five examples I must
dismiss the two from Revelation, because we are not agreed on their interpretation, and because they are
emblems; the Man of Sin is not an emblem. The last example also has weight only
with those who hold the Roman emperors to be the withholding power; it does not
touch me. I come then to the two first examples. Without making any special
objection to the first, I will only observe that both these possess one feature
in common, which enables them to connect and combine in one a number of
individuals. Both kings and high priests are offices in which they have
predecessors and successors; and thus the whole succession may in the minds
eye be regarded as one. Shew then in Pauls prophecy of the Man of Sin, any
passage or [Page 326] word that speaks of his office, and you may then claim the
argument, but not till then.
Not one of the three titles given to this terrible being is
official. Let us pass them in review.
1. He is the Man of Sin. Is this a name of office Has either God or man appointed such an
office? Nay, it is a description of a son of Adam: giving his moral aspect
towards his Maker. It is a description of his personal character in reference to the Law of God; and his title, Son of Perdition shews his obnoxiousness
to Gods future moral judgment.
2. But he is also the Son of Perdition. Is there any office here? I will not
believe, till I see or hear the assertion, that any one will be hardy enough to
make it. We agree that it means doomed to be destroyed.
But it means more. It intends an individual. The only other occasion on which
it occurs refers to an individual. None of them is lost but the
Son of Perdition, (Judas)
that the scripture might be fulfilled. Similar examples lend their light and
aid. Barnabas was named, Son of Consolation: Acts 4: 36. Where
two or many are meant the plural is used. James and John were Sons of thunder. The Son of Gehenna: (Matt.
23: 15.)
signifies not official, but personal
and moral qualities. The last especially
resembles the phrase of the text.
3. Lastly, he is the Lawless One. Is this official? Manifestly not.
It is a description of moral qualities. Not one of the three titles gives the idea
of an office.
4. But even if either or all of these titles
implied an office held successively by a series of persons, the circumstances
of the case are such as to render it certain [Page 327] that an individual is meant. Let me
imitate the two portions of the prophecy. - The times
of the first French revolution are not the darkest which that nation has to
experience. Worse days are in store, and then shall arise the Bishop of Bourdeaux, the ringleader of the infidels, who,
after publishing a book in favour of socialism, shall publicly abjure and
blaspheme Christianity, and die in a fit of insanity. Here no one will
doubt, that though there might have been many bishops of that city, one special one was meant. It is scarcely
necessary to imitate the other portion. But if I were io
say - Times of trouble are at hand for
Dr. C. however insists that the Man of
Sin is not to be regarded as an individual, but a series of official persons.
In speaking
of the pope as the Man of Sin, and the head of the apostacy, I do not mean to specify
an individual person. It is not, in short, Mastai Feretti that I pronounce the Man of Sin, but Pio Nono, his predecessors and
his successors, should he have any; it is not Mastai Feretti the monk that I proclaim to be the Man of Sin, or
that I charge with offences, but the official called the Pope of Rome, the head
of the Romish hierarchy; and with him in his official character as the head of the apostacy, and in no
other I have to do this night. p. 16.
[Page
328]
It is not however the personal but
the official
which we are to look at; it is the system not the individual. p. 27.
Against this I remark:-
I. An individual who made such
pretensions as the Man of Sin could not receive any office; much less could a
succession of persons. Still less could the Man of Sin acknowledge such an
office as a Christian bishopric.
1. He could not receive any office as
imparted to him by man. He shows himself that he is God. How can creatures communicate office to their
Creator? Can office impart the Divine nature?
2. Much less could the Man of Sin
appear as a succession of persons. The successors in every office are
manifestly only equal to
their predecessor. And how should this square with his demanded supremacy?
He exalteth
himself above all that is called God. He will admit no equal among the gods, how could he
acknowledge an equal among his predecessors? Beside which, we have the
absurdity of the godhead having divine yet mortal predecessors, and divine yet
mortal successors.
3. The Man of Sin must deny all derivative power. He
refuses to acknowledge a distinction of persons in the Godhead;1 therefore none can give him power.
The power of God must be underived. This he asserts. Much less could he admit power derived
from the God of Christianity, and from one of the subordinates of Christ! What
are the powers of an apostle to one who claims the supremacy of the Godhead? 2 To acknowledge Peters [Page
329] claims as the
ground of his assertions, would make his pretensions to supreme divinity
palpably absurd. I am supreme God, because I am the
successor of St. Peter! A series of supreme gods advanced to the
possession of Godhead by the election of men to a subordinate office under
Christ, would be too manifest an absurdity to be swallowed by men.
1 1 John 2: 22.
2 In Jesus we have the true God, in
Peter a [
see Greek] or object of worship. To fulfil the prophecy, he must exalt himself above
both.
4. He opposeth (himself) and exalteth
himself above all that is called God. No form of Christianity could be professed by one who
opposes himself to God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, and who exalts himself
above them. Nor could his adherents profess Christianity, for that would be to
deny him to be the only God.
5. The office which the popes sustain
is not evil. To be bishop of the church of Rome is not sinful. It was once of
God; it might be exercised for God still. Again, if the Man of Sin be the
various bishops who have presided over the church of Rome, then the holy men who
in apostles days, or immediately after, ruled that church are limbs of that
Impious One, and as sons of perdition are already condemned. The predecessors of Pius the IXth
are rightly included by Dr. C. in his charge.
6. Lastly, the very official title of
the pope may stand as irrefragable evidence that he is not the Man of Sin. It is not, in short, Mastai Feretti, that I pronounce the Man of Sin, but Pio Mono. On that very ground, Dr. Cumming, I challenge you to acquit him!
His official name is Pope Pius
the Ninth. How then can he who calls himself pious be the offender who denies all divinity but his own? Does not one who names himself pious acknowledge his duty of subjection as a
creature to his God?1 Prove him then,
if you can, to be the blaspheming rebel, that exalts himself above every object
of worship, and above every being to whom the title of God has ever been given!
1 Pious: 1. Careful
of the duties owed by created beings to God. - Johnsons Dictionary.
I press you further with the Creed of
Pope Pius IV. That Creed in its tenth article has these words. I promise and swear true obedience to the Bishop of Rome, SUCCESSOR TO ST. PETER, Prince of the
apostles, and VICAR OF JESUS CHRIST.
How can he exalt himself above Peter who owns himself his successor? How can he
exalt himself above Jesus who affirms himself only his Vicar?
II. Again those few words. - The Man of Sin shall be
revealed,
contain within themselves evidence sufficient to prove that an individual is meant.
The phrase a man of sin, would signify any sinful man, just as a man of
understanding would mean any man possessing intelligence; or a man of sorrows,
any one visited with frequent calamities and griefs. But substitute the definite
article - The man of
understanding. Now we have two meanings.
The phrase must
signify either 1. An individual. 2. Or a class.
By the man of understanding
may be meant (1.) the class - men of intelligence. This is what is termed the hypothetic
use of the definite article. (2.) In some circumstances it might signify an
individual.
Can we then fix the expression to one of these senses ? Are
there not some means of discriminating the meaning in which the Holy Ghost used
the phrase? There are.
[Page 331]
1. Where a class is intended, there,
whatever is affirmed of the class, is true of each member of it.
Take the instance given by Dr. C. Into the
second went the high-priest alone once every year, not without blood. This was true of each high priest in the days of Herod, no
less than in those of Moses. Had then the Man of Sin been a class, all that is
spoken of the class would have been true of each member of that class. Had that
class again been the bishops of
2. The things here asserted of the Man of Sin are not true of every sinful man. But they
must have been so, if the Man of Sin was only
a case of the hypothetic use of the article. Thus the sentence - The just man shall live by
faith, means, that every justified man shall so live.
It intends the same thing as the sentence with the indefinite article - A just man shall
live by faith. By it we design to assert a truth of every justified
person. It needs no proof, that the assertions of the apostle in 2 Thess. 2. are not true of every sinful man.
3. The very fact
that the Man
of Sin had to appear
after the apostles writing, proves that an individual, and not a class, is
meant. (1.) Sinful men as a class
had long appeared: the apostle then in prophesying of the Man as about to
arise, spoke of an individual. (2.)
The Man of Sin shall exalt himself above every [Page 332] God. Every sinful man does not do this.
Therefore it is spoken not of the class - sinful men - but of an individual
sinner. (3.) The Man of Sin shall
display himself in the
No one, in a parallel case, would doubt that an individual is
meant. Let us paraphrase the prophecy. Riches have
not yet come to their height: they will not, till, in the latter days, trade
shall take a range hitherto unknown. Then the
Man of Wealth shall appear - the Son of Profligacy - whose riches shall exceed
those of Solomon, of Croesus, and of all that have ever lived, whether
private persons or kings.
In those days of expanded commerce, when the barriers between international
communication shall be removed, shall
the Extravagant One arise, whose palace shall be built of bricks of gold,
and whose furniture shall be of gold and gems; whom nevertheless a popular
commotion shall kill, and whose wealth shall be dissipated by the rapacity of
armed banditti. Could any one from such a prediction assert with any
hope of success, that a succession of persons was meant? a succession of
persons whose houses at first were merely of wood, and their furniture of the
coarsest description, while they would gradually grow up to the height of
splendour and extravagance here supposed?
III. The next proof against the theory
arises from what [Page 333] is said of the revelation of the Man of Sin. This enters deeply into the question; for it is thrice repeated in the
brief prediction.
1. And now ye know what withholdeth - (in order) that he may be revealed in his time.
2. For the mystery of lawlessness doth
already work, only he who withholdeth will
withhold until he be taken out of the way. And
then shall the lawless one be revealed.
3. That day shall not come except there
come the falling away first,* and the Man of Sin be revealed.
[* That is, the foretold apostasy
which is now taking place within the Church. See Acts 20: 29, 30; cf. 2Tim. 2: 16-18; 2 Pet. 2: 1, 2, R.V.]
What then is meant by the word reveal? It signifies the
removing a veil from a person or thing previously existent, but till then
invisible or unknown. But we have here to deal with the case of a person. Of the
revelation of a person we have an example in the feat of Jonathan and his
armour-bearer. Behold we will pass over unto these men, and we will discover (reveal;
Heb.) ourselves unto them. And both of them discovered themselves unto the garrison of
the Philistines: and the Philistines said,
Behold the Hebrews come forth out of the holes where
they had hid themselves: 1 Sam. 14: 8-11.
1. The apostle then in speaking of the
Man of Sin as about to be revealed, though then kept down till the time
appointed of God, implies that he was already in existence when he wrote. What
then is the Man of Sin? Dr. Cumming would reply - Pope
Pius the IX. his predecessors and successors. But Pope Pius IX. his
predecessors and successors were not then in existence. The Man of Sin then
cannot be a series of persons, some of whom were not to be born for 1700 years
after Pauls death.
[Page 334]
2. By the same mode of proof it can be
shewn that an individual only is meant. For let it be supposed that many
constitute the Man of Sin. Then, as they together existed at the time of Pauls
writing, together will they be present when Gods time comes, together will put
forth their pretensions, and together be destroyed. But the pretensions
supposed cannot be made harmoniously by many. The Supreme God is not many. The
Man of Sin exalts himself against every God. He admits not an equal, visible or
invisible. Nor would the wily Satan back the pretensions of more than one. He
knows that a divided kingdom must fall. In order then, consistently to
challenge to himself the divine nature, and to receive the homage which is its
due, he must stand alone. The Man of Sin then, by virtue of his claims, is an
individual.
3. Again, it is taught in the prophecy
that there was mercifully a hindrance from God against the appearing of this
awful being. Now the bishops of
4. The bishops of
IV. But we proceed to another view of
the question. Is the Man of Sins revelation, the revealing of a person [Page 335] who is absent, or of a character who is present but disguised?
1. It is properly the revelation of a
person who is absent. His presence (or still more strongly his coming) and his revelation are put as
equivalent. He was not present then on earth, and was therefore invisible to
those on earth. When he is present he will be revealed.
That this is the proper intent of the word revealed is evident from the same expression
being used of Jesus in this same Epistle. To you the troubled rest with us,
when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven.
Here it signifies the manifestation of the person of Jesus. But if
it be the coming to earth of a person, it must be an individual. This appears
from the very expression. But further, whenever he comes, (1.) he must profess to be the supreme God, and usurp his homage. He
comes as the scourge of apostacy, as the provocation of the wrath of
the Day of the Lord. (2.) He
must, in exhibition of his claims, seat himself in the
There is no room then for a series of men here. God could
scarcely permit such an one to die a natural death without being
dishonoured. At any rate, he declares that he will not permit it. As
therefore Jesus has not yet been revealed, the Deceiver has not yet come.
2. But let us suppose, that the revelation refers to a disclosure of character. Then, as the disclosure proves him to be the Man of
Sin, he pretends at first to be better
than he really is: that is, he is a
hypocrite. He professes, at first, to
be a servant of Christ, though
afterwards he disowns and defies him.
Then he must be an [apostate] individual. For
hypocrisy cannot belong to any series as a whole. The two conditions necessary
to the proof of hypocrisy - (1.) the
being seemingly good, and (2.)
really evil - must belong to one and the same person. But spread the two conditions over the two ends of
series, and absurdity is the immediate result. A. cannot be proved a
hypocrite by the open iniquity of Z, his successor in office.
Hildebrands enormities cannot prove the apostle Peter or Bishop Linus, to be a hypocrite. Besides which, in point of fact,
the first popes may be fairly presumed to have been really, and not seemingly,
good men.1
1 Thus then, if the Man of Sin appears at
once in his full impiety, this supposition, which is agreeable to the prophecy,
is opposed to the history of the popes. If it be supposed that he
will appear first under a disguise; this, which is nearer to the history of the popes, is at variance with the prophecy. None with such pretensions, such
powers, and creating such a stir among apostates could long hide himself. But
he shows himself. His aim is to be known. He is revealed, as the lawless one,
as soon as the chain is taken off.
But was the Man of Sin then present on earth, or afterwards to
appear? He was not present, as the prophecy shows. But it may further be made
evident. Suppose the Man of Sin to be a person of disguised character then on
earth. Then, arguing, from the ordinary length of life, in fifty or sixty years
from the time of Pauls writing, he must have put forth those claims, and been
cut off by Christ. But it is granted that no such results have taken place.
Therefore he was not on earth.
But though not then on earth, he is still a man - the Man of Sin.
Then he must be a wicked man, who has once lived on earth, and
is now among the lost, but about to return to earth. That return to earth is
his revelation; that is the time of his presence. Thus we can account for his enormous blasphemy. His
conscience is seared beyond the measure of human hardness in this first stage
of existence. Thus too we account for his being kept down in mercy, and for his
appearing with supernatural power when he returns.
Thus are we brought into the utmost harmony with the
disclosures of Rev. 17. The wild beast which
thou sawest was -
he once lived as a man - and is not - he no longer dwells on earth - and is about to [Page 338] ascend out of the
bottomless pit; -
for as a lost soul he would be placed there, and
his ascent would be equivalent to Pauls revelation. He is about also to go into perdition.
Thus we have a commentary on the apostles word - Son of Perdition.
The fiery lake [Rev. 20:
15] is appointed him, after his ascent
out of the bottomless pit, and his
fresh career of unbounded wickedness on earth. Thus, too, we bring into
beautiful harmony Pauls word and that of Revelation. The earth shall wonder
when it beholds the beast, because it was, and
is not, and shall be present.1
1 [see Greek
], the true reading. Thus
too the difficulty about his being at once one of the seven heads, and yet the
eighth, is solved.
Thus, too, we bring Satans lie into wondrous approximation to
Gods truth concerning Jesus. That there is a great resemblance between the two
is hinted in this very prophecy. Both Jesus and the Man of Sin have their revelation, and their Presence. Now we know that Jesus is a man who
once lived on earth, is now away from it, and therefore invisible, but about to
return to the sight of men with supernatural power. Is then the Just One an individual? Why should not the
Unjust One be an individual too? The revelation of the Man of Sorrows is the revelation of an individual.
Show cause then why the revelation of the Man of Sin should not be
that of an individual also!
If the foregoing points be really implied in the apostles
prophecy, it is quite clear, that the Man of Sin is neither any individual
pope, nor all of them in succession. They are mere men, who never lived before,
and revelation cannot be predicated of them, nor have they ever manifested
supernatural power.
[Page 339].
III. I come now to the Man of Sins
exalting himself above every God.
Dr. Cumming observes -
It is said that the pope is not
opposed to Christ, and that you cannot, therefore, call him Antichrist. But the
word Antichrist does not mean opposed to Christ. You recollect reading of the
Anti-popes: they were not opposed to the popedom, but were fighting for it, and
so anxious were they to get it, that they did all they could to dislodge the
person who had possession of it. Antichrist then does not mean one who is
opposed to Christ, but one who takes the place of Christ p. 38.
1. The instance given overturns the
argument. - The anti-pope was opposed to the pope,
and sought to dislodge him. The Dr. did not see the opposition of his own example,
because he shifts his expression from the personal word pope, to the abstract word
for the office - popedom. But the anti-pope
was always, and of necessity, an antagonist to the true pope, and the true pope
an antagonist to him.
Let me give a quotation from one who holds the same protestant interpretation. For
the space of fifty years the Romish church had two or three different heads at
the same time; each of the contending popes forming plots and
thundering out anathemas against his
COMPETITORS. - Croly on the Apocablypse,
p. 90. Each anti-pope then not only resembled the true pope, but was opposed to
him; which is what we affirm of the Antichrist. They would not have been called
anti-popes by Englishmen, if they had
professed themselves the popes vicars. For then they would openly have confessed subjection to the true
pope.
So the Antichrist is an antagonist to the true Christ, while
at the same time he will greatly resemble him. [Page 340] He takes the place of the true
Christ, and seeks to dislodge
him; for the true Christ does not voluntarily
give up his place to the usurper. Then they must stand as antagonists of each
other.
2. But the opposition of Antichrist to
the true Christ does not rest on the word Antichrist alone. It may be proved from the prophecy before us. The Man
of Sin opposeth himself 1 to all that is called God,
or that is worshipped. Then he is opposed to Christ; for
Christ is both called God, and is an object of worship.
1 [The Greek word
] never has the sense
given by Dr. C. It occurs eight times in the New Testament, and is generally
translated adversary.
At this point we come upon other statements of Dr. C.
There are
two explanations of that phrase - [all that is called God;] one is, that it alludes to the consecrated
host, which the Roman Catholic calls his God, and above which the pope is
enthroned; but my impression is that gods alludes to magistrates.
31. The Man of Sin is said again to be exalted above all that is worshipped. This does
not mean religious worship. The Man of Sin then is exalted above all that is
called God that is above civil magistrates: and above all that is worshipped, that is, all
to whom reverence is due. 33, 34.
Few could more strongly expose such statements than Dr. C.,
were he on the other side of the argument.
Against understanding all that is called God of civil magistrates, there rise
four fatal objections; (1.) an
absurdity, (2.) an insufficiency, (3.) an inconsistency, and (4.) an inconsequence.
1. First, an
absurdity rises to view. If by all that is called God civil magistrates alone are meant, then by the
[Page 341]
2. Insufficiency is apparent. Be it
granted, (though I do not think it true,) that civil magistrates are called
gods. Still, unless you can prove that the title, God, is never given to any other than
civil magistrates, the point necessary to the proof is not made out. You have
only proved that the pope exalts himself above SOME that are called God, not that he exalts himself above ALL.
3. Inconsistency discloses itself. In
one portion of the Doctors argument it is maintained, that the pope exalts
himself only above civil magistrates; and that when the Man of Sin is said to
be exalted above
all that is worshipped,
this does
not mean religious worship. Yet a little further on, the Dr.
quotes from Roman Catholic writers, with his own approbation, as a true
statement of the case - When placed upon the high
altar he is adored by the
cardinals. Whom they create, they worship.
Which is it then? Is he worshipped as God? Why then confine his self-exaltation
above civil magistrates merely? Is he not worshipped as God? Why then allege the adoration in St.
Peters as proof of his asserting his divinity?
4. Lastly, an inconsequence is
apparent. He exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped, SO THAT he 1 sitteth in the
1 [See Greek
], omitted
by the critical editions.
1. Everything that is worshipped. This does not mean religious worship.
A daring denial! And as unfounded as it is daring. We might meet it by the
counter-statement, It never means in the New
Testament anything but religious worship. As I passed
by and beheld your devotions,1 I saw an altar with this inscription - To the
unknown God: Acts 17: 23. Does not that refer to religious worship?
But it were more properly translated in that passage objects of worship. This is the only other occurrence
of the substantive; but the verb is used in the same meaning, of religious
worship. Gentile idolaters worshipped and served the creature more
than the Creator: Rom. 1:
25.
The
emperor, (in Latin, Augustus,) was called [
], as a title of high official dignity. 1 [
] The same word as in Thessalonians, and used by the same apostle.
It includes then false gods as well as the True. See Wisdom, 19: 20; 15: 17.
Not so, Dr. C.: he was so called, because he was religiously worshipped:
because he was accounted a god, and altars, temples, priests, and
sacrifices were dedicated to his godhead. But the above is a tacit confession,
that, if the full force of the words be taken, they cannot be made to square
with the application of the prophecy to the pope. The Virgin Mary is
worshipped; Peter is worshipped; Christ is worshipped; the pope does not oppose
these claims to adoration, nor exalt himself above them. Ergo, he is not the
Man of [Page 343] Sin. He exalts himself, you admit, above all to
whom reverence is due. And is not reverence due to God and his Christ?
It is not said, that the pope says
he is God, but that he shows himself as if he were God, p. 35.
This is not correct. How can any without words exalt himself
above every God? How can he without words oppose himself to every God? The
cardinals showing him as an object of their worship is not the thing stated in
the text. He will show himself that he is God.
And what mean those words of the Antichrist? - A mouth
speaking great things. Because of the voice of
the great words which the horn spake: Dan.
7: 11. There was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies. And he opened
his mouth for blasphemy against God to blaspheme his name: Rev. 13.
1. I observe in several places of Dr. C.s argument a falling below the terms used, doubtless
unconsciously.
The Man of Sin is said again to be
exalted above all that is
worshipped. The Man of Sin then is exalted above all that is called
God.
The Man of Sin is said to exalt HIMSELF, not to be exalted, much less is exalted a part of the text, as would seem
from the inverted commas. Who opposeth (himself) and
exalteth, himself, is the true reading.
2. Again:-
The Man of Sin also sitteth in the
[Page
344]
Thrice the text is misquoted: once it is given with inverted
commas, as if the exact words of Scripture. But the words really are - He sitteth in the
I contend that whoever claims to
supersede conscience, and to put his hand in that holy place, assumes the
prerogative of God, and shews himself as if he were God. p. 36.
But that were not enough. The Man of Sin not only seizes on
the prerogative of God and claims equality with God, he denies the pretensions of every
other god. The wildest controversialist dares not assert this of
the pope. Nay, a passage quoted by Dr. C., as in his favour, smites his
interpretation with a deadly blow:
The deeds of
subjects, says the Canon Law, are judged by us, BUT WE ARE JUDGED BY GOD. p. 28.
So then the pope confesses himself subject to the judgment of
God, as truly as any one of his creatures! Then he cannot exalt himself above
every god, and every object of worship!
This brings me to another argument. Jesus, finding fault with the
Jews for their unbelief, says - I am come in my Fathers name,
and ye receive me not;
if another shall come in his own name, him ye
will receive: John 5: 43. We are agreed, I suppose, that this refers
to the Antichrist. But it cannot apply to the popes. (l.) They stand in the names of Christ and Peter. (2.) The Jews are to receive this
Deceiver. They have never received the popes.1 (3.) It is an individual that is [Page
345] foretold. I, an individual - am rejected. Another,
an individual - will be received. The Man of Sin comes evidently in his own
name. Consistently with his awful pretensions he acknowledges no superior who
could send him.
1 If the popes be the Man of Sin, what
shall we say of the position of the
It is evident then that the words All that is
called God, or that is Worshipped must be taken in their strict sense.
If the
True views of the claims of the Man of Sin and of the apostacy
mutually support each other. Apostacy is to be taken in its strict sense of
abandonment of the true religion. Till such abandonment, the claims of the
Deceiver described by the apostle could not be recognised. And, on the other
hand, the reception of his claims would cause an abandonment of the faith by
any who admitted them.
Not till the desertion of Christianity are men ready for this
usurper of the place and honours of the true God. This is the full lawlessness
of man, their determination to break off the bonds imposed by a recognition of
the Lord and his Christ: Psa. 2. The truth, and its great centre - the true God - being rejected, the nations
are ready for the false God and his lie. Then the hindrance which had kept under this Destroyer is removed.
Iniquity is come to the full; full permission is granted now for him to reveal
himself. The assertion of supreme Godhead is the full-blown iniquity of the
Usurper. This is the sufficient provocation of the wrath of God. On those who
refuse the truth he sends delusion that they may believe the lie. He sends also
outward and physical punishment: the plagues of the great and terrible day of the Lord.
IV. We come to the fourth point - the
Usurpers sitting in the
Let us now consider the proofs brought by Dr. Cumming, that
the
[Page 347]
1. The
Our Lord foretold that there would be no temple at
2. Secondly,
the Jewish temple was never called the
This begs the question. What if we add, that the holy place is
not once called even the temple, (
But what is meant by after the Jews
rejected Christ? Had they not rejected him, when they sent to seize
him, after refusing him when he entered
But is this the demand of one who asserts without any scripture proof at all,
that the
Are we pressed so narrowly for scripture usage, after a certain
point arbitrarily assumed by our antagonist? We can retort with effect.
Thus then this man, like a bishop,
sits in his cathedral, which is the
Give us proof from scripture, Dr. C. (we reply,) that any
cathedral is called the
The scripture gives several other senses to the expression, the
1. The body of Christ: John 2: 19-21.
2. The body of the [regenerate and Holy Spirit-filled (Acts
6: 5. cf. 5: 32, R.V.] Christian: 1 Cor.
6: 19.
3. The Christian Church: Eph. 2: 21.
4. The temple in heaven: Rev. 3: 12; 11: 19.
It needs no proof that the pope does not sit in the first,
second, or fourth of these. It is certain that he does not sit figuratively in
the real
[Page 349]
I will put it as a dilemma. The
3. Thirdly,
by Jews speaking to Jews it was called the
If this be true, of course argument is at an end. Only the
assertion lacks proof - and so is a begging of the question. But we can advance
beyond this refutation. Was not Paul a Jew? Was he not writing to Jewish
christians? They came to Thessalonica, where
was the (Greek) synagogue of the Jews.
And some of them believed: Acts 17:
1-4. Did he not in his former epistle
bring to their notice the conduct of the Jews? 1
Thess. 3: 14-16. For any thing that appears then, the Jewish
sense of the expression may be intended.
But I have shewn, and need not further shew, that it must be the one designed.
4. Fourthly,
the Greek word used is not
, but
, (from which we derive nave) a word never
used by the apostles to denote the temple at
[Page 350]
Still the same begging the question; still the same lack of
proof. It has been observed, that the apostles never have occasion to speak of
the temple by this term
, after Jesus rose from the dead, save in the present
instance.
5. If it be
the temple at
Indeed! then the cathedral of St. Peters at Rome, built as it
was by the Man of Sin, is no more the temple of God than the mosque of Omar:
and down falls the assertion - This man like a bishop
sits in his cathedral, which is the temple of God. But I have further fault
to find with this argument. The Traetarians say, that Antichrist is to rebuild the
temple at
But we may go further. The sitting in any part of any building
raised for religious purposes by christians is no proof of Godhead being
claimed by him who sits therein. It neither involves opposition to the claims
of any god, nor self-exaltation above him. The edifices used by christians are
for worshippers to meet in. The New Testament does not suppose Gods residence
in any building now. Jesus is present wherever his people [Page 351] meet. But again, where edifices are
consecrated, they are dedicated to a variety of persons, to
The sitting then of any one in any part of any place of
worship now, is no claiming of Godhead. And when we look at what Dr. C. has
said, we shall find how far he is from proving his point.
Catalano, quoting the account of the
election of Pins II, adds - When placed upon the high altar he is adored by
the Cardinals. Remember what the high altar in the Church of Rome is. It is
the place where the priest tells you he changes a piece of bread into the soul,
divinity, body and blood of the Son of God, and where he keeps the Saviour in a
pyx. When a Roman Catholic kneels to his altar he
does a consistent thing - he believes God is on it. p. 35.
On which I observe -
1. The apostle describes one thing, Dr.
C. another. We agree in the following observation.
The word vaos was always used to describe
the holiest place of a heathen temple, where the image of the deity was,
corresponding to what we call the chancel, the choir, or the altar-end of a
church.
If then the sitting in the chancel of a church, or the choir
of a cathedral, be the proof of claiming Godhead, the clergymen of the Church
of England are guilty of the impiety every Sunday. The cardinals sit in the
altar-end of St. Peters, probably, while the ceremony of the popes
consecration is being carried on. This then will not do. What then have we
given us instead? (1.) The being elevated,
(2.) by others [page 352] upon (3.)an altar in the chancel. 1 But elevation is not the same as
sitting, and the altar is not the same as the chancel. If the cardinals did not
worship him, no one, I suppose, would esteem the act to be impious. And as it
is, the pope makes no claim, he is set there by others. His being seated on the
altar would rather mark him out for a sacrifice, than for the Godhead. Is it
ever written that Gods seat is on the altar?
1 The words sitteth in I may mention
is from the Greek
to sit into, and implies being carried or moved towards, as
the Pope is carried towards the high altar. p. 37. Indeed it does not. The
expression implies motion - that he enters into the vaos, but whether by his own power, or the carrying of others, the
phrase expresses not.
2. Paul, you say, did not recognise
(3.) Neither do the cardinals, nor Roman Catholics, nor the pope
regard the act as setting aside the other objects worshipped in that cathedral.
Peters statue abides there still and is adored; the host after that is lifted
up above the same high altar. But the worship of the real Man of Sin must
displace every other object of worship.
ii. But there is one building, the
sitting in whose inner chamber would involve the assumption of Godhead. That is
the temple at
[Page
353]
(1.) It was called the House of God, the House of the Lord. In it God dwelt. In the holiest God
promised visibly to dwell. I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat: Lev. 16: 2. Isaiah saw him there. I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne high and lifted up,
and his train filled the temple: Isa. 6: 1. To it he promises to return: Ezek. 43: 19.
(2.) Over this
building God was ever justly jealous; for he had put his name there for ever,
and his eyes and his heart were to be there perpetually: 1 Kings 9: 3.
Into it none might enter but the priests the sons of Aaron. Into its holiest, none but the high priest once a year, and that, after
[putting on special clothing and] purifying himself in a set order. Hence God smote even a king of
(3.) Yet, from time
to time, the natural impiety of the human heart broke out, especially in
heathen kings, and we read either of their attempting to enter the Holy of
Holies, or actually accomplishing their design. (a) Thus when Pompey took Jerusalem - No
small enormities were committed about the temple itself, which in former ages
had been inaccessible and seen by none, for Pompey went into it, and not a few of those that were with him also, and saw all which it was unlawful for any
other men to see but only for the high priests. Josephus.
1 The very expression used here, [see Greek
,].
Now these cases, though all exhibiting impiety, are yet
inferior to that foretold. Those, except indeed Caligulas, were outbreaks of
impious curiosity. But here is manifested the determinate and intended defiance of God.
[Page 355]
In the act then of seating himself in the temple, if it be the
(1.) It discovers
his opposition to the true God.
He professes not to be the God of Israel; he refuses bloody offerings. He is the
antagonist of the God of Israel. He will enter his house, as the strong man
armed. He fears not his wrath. As Dagon bowed to the ark when it entered his
temple, so shall the God of Israel be proved powerless to injure him. He will
first bind the strong man, and then spoil his house.
2. He hereby exalts himself above him, and above every
god. The God of Israel professes to be the only true God, and asserts his
claims to the exclusion of every other object of worship. The Man of Sin then in
asserting his claims above those of the God of Israel on the very spot he
chose, asserts his superior title. The God
of Israel has a controversy with all other gods. Is there a
god beside me? Yea there is no god.
I know not any. He then has a controversy with the
God of Israel, and will thrust his defiance in his face. By that act of sitting
in the holiest of the Jewish temple, he virtually implies his title to supreme
Godhead, whether he be there worshipped by men or no.
V. I come lastly to consider Dr.
Cummings view of the lying wonders of the Man of Sin. He would explain them of the church of Rome.
I believe that the church
of Rome may yet, before she
is swept away, do supernatural things, as I am inclined to think she has done,
p. 42.
[Page 356]
But this, even if proved, would not suffice. It is not the church of Rome, but the popes of
We then read
of the lying wonders. This does not mean false wonders, but wonders establishing lies, p. 42.
In the above sentiment I am happy to be able entirely to
accord with Dr. C. But what then are we to make of the specimens of wonders
which he gives? The pictures of Nicodemus and St. Veronicas handkerchief, the
picture and host that flowed with blood, the winking statue of
[Page 357]
But the popes have never set up for themselves even a
traditional and fraudulent claim to be the workers of miracles: a point not a
little remarkable.
The Man of Sin, then, is an individual yet to appear. His
presence must be a marked
[time of apostasy] in the
worlds history. He comes when men have cast off faith in God and
his Christ. The loftiness of the deceivers pretensions then attract
universal attention; that attention deepens into faith, as his supernatural
power blazes forth in undoubted miracles: then follows universal enthusiasm of
the lost on behalf of this limb of Satan. And Gods wrath
shuts the scene of rebellion.
*
* * *
* * *
The Pre-Tribulation Rapture
By G. H. Lang
There
are two principal views upon the matters here considered: one, that the
Parousia will commence prior to the Times of the End, and that at its inception
all believers of the heavenly calling, dead and living, will be taken to the
presence of the Lord in the air; the other, that the Parousia will occur at the
close of the Great Tribulation, until when no believers will be raised or
changed. The one view says that no believers will go into the End Times, the
other that none then living will escape them. The one involves that the utmost
measure of unfaithfulness or carnality in a believer puts him in no peril of
forfeiting the supreme honour of rapture or of having to endure the dread End
Days: the other view involves that no degree of faithfulness or of holiness
will enable a saint to escape those Days. As regards this matter, godliness and unfaithfulness
seem immaterial on either view; which raises a doubt of both views.
Our study thus far has shown that the former view is
unfounded: we have now to see that the latter is partly right and partly wrong.
It is right in asserting that the Parousia will commence at the close of the Great Tribulation, but
wrong in declaring that no saints living as the End Times near will escape that
awful period.
1. For our Lord Jesus Christ has
declared distinctly that escape is possible. In Luke 21 is a record of instruction given by Him to four
apostles on the
Then He mentions the disturbances in nature and the fears of
mankind that are grouped under seal 6 in Rev.
6: 12-17, and adds explicitly that then shall they see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and
great glory, and that
when these things begin His disciples may know that their redemption draweth
nigh (ver. 27, 28).
In concluding this outline of the period of the Beast the Lord
then uttered this exhortation and promise: But take heed to yourselves, lest haply
your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and
drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that day come on you suddenly as a snare: for so shall it come upon all them that dwell on the face of
all the earth. But watch ye at every season, making supplication, that ye
may prevail to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.
This declares distinctly: (1) that escape is possible from all
those things of which Christ had been speaking, that is, from the whole
End-times. (2) That that day of testing will be universal, and inevadable by any
then on the earth, which involves the removal from the earth of any who are to
escape it. (3) That those who are to escape will be taken to where He, the Son
of Man, will then be, that is, at the throne of the Father in the heavens. They
will stand before Him there. (4) That there is a fearful peril of disciples
becoming worldly of heart and so being enmeshed in that last period. (5) That
hence it is needful to watch, and to pray ceaselessly, that so we may prevail
over all obstacles and dangers and thus escape that era.
This most important and unequivocal statement by our Lord sets aside the opinion that all
Christians will escape irrespective of their moral state, and also negatives the notion that no
escape is possible. There is a door of escape; but as with all
doors, only those who are awake will see it, and only those who are in earnest
will reach it ere the storm bursts. In every place in the New Testament
the word escape has its natural force - ekpheiigo,
to flee out of a place of trouble and
be quite clear thereof.* It never means to endure the trial successfully. In
this very discourse of the Lord it is in contrast with the statement, He that endureth (kupomeno) to the end [of these things] the same shall be saved (Matt.
24: 13). One escapes, another - [is left (see 1
Thess. 4: 17) and] - endures.
* It comes only at Luke 21: 36; Acts 16: 27; 19: 16; Rom. 2: 3; 2 Cor. 11: 33; 1 Thess. 5: 3; Heb. 2: 3; 12: 25. In
comparison with Rom.
2: 3), see its use in the LXX in the interpolated
passage after Esth.
8: 13: they suppose that they shall escape the sin-hating vengeance
of the ever-seeing God; also Judg. 6: 11; Job. 15: 30; Prov. 10: 19; 12: 13. The sense is invariably as stated above.
The [hyper
dispensational] attempt to evade the application of this passage to
Christians on the plea that it refers to Jewish
disciples of Christ, is baseless: (a) No Jewish
disciples of Christ are known to the Scriptures (Gal. 3: 28; Eph.
2: 14-18). (b) The God-fearing remnant of
2. In harmony with this utterance of our
Lord is His further statement to the church at Philadelphia (Rev. 3: 10): Because thou didst
keep the word of My patience, I also will keep
thee from (ek) the hour of trial, that hour which is to come upon the whole inhabited
earth, to
try them that dwell upon the earth. Here also are declared: (a) The universality of that
hour of trial, so that any escape from it must involve removal; (b) the promise
of being kept from it; (c) the intimation that such preservation is the consequence of a certain [disciples] moral condition: Because thou didst keep ... I also will keep. As this is addressed to a church, no
question of a Jewish application can arise.
Nor do known facts or the Scriptures allow of the supposition that every
[regenerate] Christian [disciple] keeps the word of Christs patience (Matt. 24: 12; Rev. 2: 5: Gal. 6: 12; Col. 4: 14 with 2 Tim. 4: 10 concerning Demas); so that this promise cannot be stretched to mean all believers.
In The Bible Treasury, 865, p. 380, there is an instructive note by J. N. Darby (see also Coll.
Writings, vol. 13, Critical 1, 581) on the difference between apo and ek. The former regards hostile persons and being delivered from them; the latter refers to a state
and being kept from getting into it. On Rev. 3: 10 he
wrote: So in Rev. 3 the faithful are kept from getting into this state,
preserved from getting into it, or, as we say, kept out of it. For the words here
answer fully to the English out of or from. That the thought is not
being kept from being injured in soul by the trials is implied in the
expression Keep thee out of that hour;
it is from the period
of time itself that the faithful are to be kept, not merely from its spiritual perils.
3. Of this escape and preservation there
are two pictures as there are two promises.
In Rev. 12 is a vision of (a) a woman; (b) a man-child whom she bears; (c) the rest
of her family. Light on this complex figure may be gained from Hosea 4 and Isa. 49: 17-21; 50: 1.
As to this woman the dominant fact is that at one and
the same time she is seen in heaven arrayed with heavenly glory and on earth in
sorrow and pain. This simultaneous and contradictory experience is true of the
As to the Man-child, his birth and rapture, as with the whole
of this book from ch. 4: 1, pointed
to events which the angel distinctly said were future to the time of the
visions. There is no exception to this, and therefore there is no possible
reference to the resurrection and ascension of Christ. Nor, in the fact, did
our Lord at His birth escape from Satan by rapture to the throne of God: on the
contrary, the Dragon slew Him in manhood and only thereafter did He ascend to
heaven. Nor at the ascension of Christ was Satan cast out of heaven. Thirty
years later, when Paul wrote to the Ephesians, he and his servants were still
there (Eph. 6: 12), and another thirty years later again, when John saw the
visions, his ejection was still future (Rev. 12).
The identity of this Man-child is indicated by the statement
that he is to rule
all the nations with a rod of iron, for this is a repetition of the promise (Rev. 2: 26-27), And he that
overcometh, and he that keepeth My works unto
the end [comp. the
keeping the word of My patience, as above], to him will I give authority over the nations, and he shall
rule them with a rod of iron. This promise is given only to
Christ and the overcomers of the churches. As it cannot here (Rev. 12) apply
to Him it can only apply to them.
This removal of the Man-child cannot be the event foretold in 1 Thess. 4: 15-17, for those there in view will be
taken up only as far as to the air around this earth when the Lord descends
thereto from heaven, but this removal takes the Man-child to the throne of God,
which is where Christ now is, in the upper heavens. This fulfils the promise
that such as prevail to escape shall stand before the Son of Man.
As we have seen, the Lord does not descend from heaven till the close of the Great
Tribulation, not before Satan is cast down. Moreover, this one child can be
only a part of the whole family, not the completed church in view in 1 Thess. 4* and 1 Cor. 15. The woman out of whom he is born remains on
earth, and after his ascent the rest of her seed are persecuted by the Beast; but his removal is before the
Beast is even on the scene or Satan is cast out of heaven. Thus those who will
form this [select] company escape all things that will
occur in the End-times, as Christ promised; and the identification
with the overcomers declares that they had lived that watchful, prayerful, victorious life, upon which, as the Lord said, that
escape will depend.
* In 1
Thess. 4:
15, 17 the word perileipo, that are left, deserves notice. It is not found elsewhere
in the New Testament, but the force may be seen in the LXX of Amos. 5: 15, and of the verb (in some editions) at 2 Chron. 34: 21; Hag. 2: 1 In each
case it means, to be left after others
are gone. So the lexicons also, and they are confirmed by The Vocabulary of the Greek Testament. In
this place it seems redundant save on our view that the rapture there in
question is at the close of the Tribulation and that some saints will not have
been left on earth until that event, but will have been removed alive earlier;
for to have marked the contrast with those that had died it would have been
enough to have said we that are alive, without
twice repeating this unusual word.
Consequent upon this removal of the watchful, Satan is cast
out of heaven, and presently brings up the Beast, who persecutes the rest of
the womans family (12: 17, 18; 13: 7-10). So that one section of the family - [are being judged
as accounted worthy (Luke
21: 36, A.V.
cf.
Rev. 3: 10; 1 Cor. 10: 1-11; Heb. 10: 30) and] - escapes the End-times by being rapt
to heaven, and the rest, the more
numerous portion, as the term
indicates, go into the Great
Tribulation. These latter are such as keep
the commandments of God and hold the testimony of Jesus (ver. 17). In Rev. 14: 12, such are termed the saints, which in New Testament times, was the term regularly used
by Christians of one another; and among their number John had already included
himself (1: 2,
9). It covers therefore the
4. The second picture of this
pre-Tribulation rapture is given in Rev. 14. In this chapter there are six
scenes:
i Firstfruits with
the Lamb on the
ii. The hour of
judgment commences (6, 7).
iii.
iv. The Beast
period is present and persecution is in progress (9-13).
v. The Son of Man
on a white cloud reaps His harvest (14-16).
vi. The vintage of the earth is gathered, and is trodden
in the winepress on earth (17-20).
The agricultural figure wrought into this chapter by the Holy
Spirit is the key to its teaching. In the early summer the Jew was to gather a
sheaf of corn as soon as enough was ripe, and this was to be presented to God
in the temple at
Thus the firstfruits are shown as on Mount Zion with the Lamb, the harvest is taken only as far as to the
clouds, which accords with 1 Thess. 4; and the vintage is trodden outside the city of
The last scene is the destruction of the Beast by the Lord at
His descent to
The Firstfruits cannot be a picture of the whole of the redeemed as they will
finally appear at the end of the drama of those days, for firstfruits cannot be more than a portion
of the whole harvest, neither can firstfruits describe the final ingathering.
It were a contradiction to speak thus. Firstfruits must be gathered first, before the reaping of the remainder. The number 144,000
need not be taken literally. In the Apocalypse numbers are sometimes literal,
but sometimes figurative.
As has been noted above, these had been purchased out of the earth, which shows that they
were not then on earth, and they learn the song of die heavenly choir. Nor can
this
The 144,000 of ch. 7 are a different company. They are the
godly Remnant of Israel seen on earth after the Appearing and the gathering of
the elect to the clouds, and are sealed (Comp. Ezek. 9) so as to be untouched by the wrath
of the Lamb now to be poured upon the godless (Zeph. 13;
Isa. 26: 20, 21).
The identity of these Firstfruits is revealed by a similar
means to that which reveals the identity of the Man-child. These persons are
shown as connected with the Father, the Lamb, and the Mount Zion, which also
refers back to the promises to the overcomers, and shows that the Firstfruits will
be a portion of the company of the victors, who, it is promised, will be marked
as connected with the Father, the Son, and the New Jerusalem (Rev. 3:
12). These three marks of identification come together in these
two passages only. Now the moral features attributed to
these Firstfruits show that they had lived just that pure, faithful Christian life which necessarily results from watchfulness, prayerfulness, - [according to the Lords will] - and patient obedience to the words of
Christ, as inculcated in the
corresponding passages quoted.
As the Man-child and the rest of the womans seed were but one
family, only removed in two portions, one before the Beast and the other after
his persecutions, so firstfruits and harvest were
grown from one sowing in one field, only they were
reaped in two portions, one before
the hour of judgment and the other after the Beast had persecuted.
We have remarked above that these latter are termed saints, and that this was
the regular title that Christians gave to one another; that it is amplified by
the double description they that keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, and that in this description John
had before twice included himself; so that the terms mean that company in which
John had membership, the church of God.
Moreover, as the Jewish remnant will not have owned Jesus during the period in
view the terms can apply only to - [regenerate Acts (Acts
11: 26)] - Christians.
Finally, as between the gathering of the
sheaf of firstfruits and the ingathering of the harvest there came the
intensest summer heat, so between the removal of the
Firstfruits and the reaping of the Harvest there is placed (ver. 9-13) the Great Tribulation, that final persecution which while, like all persecution, it
will wither the unrooted stalk (Matt. 13: 21),
ripens the matured grain. It is
ripeness, not the calendar or the
clock, that determines the time of
reaping (Mk. 4:
29). The Heavenly Husbandman reaps no unripe
grain: hence, the hour to reap is come when the harvest is dried up,
(Rev. 14: 15), for the dryness of the kernel in the husk is its
fitness for the gamer and for use. Thus the
Great Tribulation will be a true mercy to the Lords people by fully developing
and sanctifying them for their heavenly destiny and glory.
It thus appears that the foretold order of events will be:
1. The removal of such as prevail to
escape the Times of the End. These will be [immortal when] taken up to God and to His throne on the
2. The Beast arises and persecutes.
3. The Lord descends to the clouds and gathers together His elect (Matt. 24: 29-31; 1 Cor. 15: 51, 52; 1 Thess. 4: 15-17; Tit. 2: 13; Rev. 14: 14-16). At this time there will be the
first resurrection. Each who shall
be accounted worthy of the coming age will arise into his lot
at the end of the days, not sooner, certainly not before the End days have commenced (Dan. 12: 13). Nor may we assume of the
Firstfruits that they will have priority in the Kingdom over equally faithful
saints of earlier times.
4. After an interval the Lord descends
to the
It is therefore our wisdom to give earnest, unremitting
attention to our Lords most solemn exhortation take heed to yourselves,
lest haply your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting and
drunkenness [that
is, fleshly indulgence], and cares of this life [that is, its burdens through either poverty or riches], and that day come on you
suddenly as a snare: for so shall it come on all
them that dwell on the face of all the earth. But watch ye at every season,
making supplication, that ye may prevail to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to
stand before the Son of Man: (Lk. 21: 34-36).
Oh, dare and suffer all things!
Yet but a stretch of road,
Ten wondrous words of welcome,
And then - the FACE OF GOD!
* *
*
THE KINGDOM OF
THE BEAST
A little consideration given to the Scriptures which
predict the rise of The Beast would readily lead us to conclude that he is to be a
representative of those over whom he is destined to rule. In the providence of God a Beast is destined to rule beasts; and the characteristics of these, who are subjects of the Beast, are
clearly told forth in the Scriptures of Truth.
A
little consideration given to the
Scriptures which predict the rise of The Beast would readily lead us to conclude that
he is to be a representative of those over whom he is destined to rule. In the providence of God a Beast is
destined to rule beasts; and the characteristics of these, who are subjects of the Beast, are clearly told
forth in the Scriptures of Truth.
1. BRUTE-BEAST INSTINCT
But understand this, that in
the last days there will come times of stress. For men will become lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant,
abusive: (2 Timothy 3: 1, 2).
Every
stockman knows that this is the governing instinct of the feed lot of the
pasture. The most brutal (not always the biggest) of the heard claims, with a selfishness that man was never designed to
manifest. That same brute-beast
love of self and money has inflamed many a stockman probably more than any
other thing; it is so beastly, so unreasonable.
What
constitutes the peril of our day, as described in 2 Timothy, is first of all this brute-beast selfishness and greed. Surely no one can deny the many evidences of that
selfishness in our world today. Over the whole swamp of
deception and lies of our present day could be posted
one word, the word of the kingdom of all beasts - Greed.
2.
BRUTE-BEAST COERCION
Anyone who has attended a Freedom Rally will know that there
are people from all walks of life; every ethnicity, every faith, every
political persuasion, all gathered together under one common cause - Freedom.
The flags of countless nations catch the wind as people
march upon towns and cities. Banners, placards, and the iconic Vendetta masks
can be pictured at every demonstration.
For those at the helm of this draconian regime, the uniting
of people - who might never have seen eye to eye - will be a most inconvenient
and unwanted by-product. This has been demonstrated through the Western world,
with scenes of extreme police brutality
flooding onto social media whilst
the mainstream media remain largely silent, save for the odd article of
ridicule and condemnation.
Yet, despite the real threat of truncheons, tear gas, [pepper spray], rubber bullets, plastic bullets and even
live rounds; millions - thats right, there are millions of us - are still
turning out onto the streets of our respective home nations, week in, week out.
Whilst we know we
cannot rely on Government statistics, it is safe to say that a significant
percentage of the Western population have received at least one dose of the
Covid vaccine.
This is a matter of personal
choice, as has been the case for decades, yet there is something very
reassuring about the increasing number
of vaccinated Freedom Rally attendees.
An ever growing sentiment that is being voiced at these
gatherings is I did what I was asked, I took the first two doses, Ill
take no more.
Even those among us who
didnt fear taking the vaccine are now saying enough is enough. Not
least because it is unheard of to
receive two, three and now four
doses of an experimental drug within such a condensed period of time, but
more importantly, because even those who did take the jab, do not want to play any part in medical
apartheid.
Humans inherently
know right from wrong. We know that [constant Governments
bribery, and] forcing
people to take a vaccine in order to keep their job or go to a nightclub
is wrong, even if we have taken the shot
ourselves.
There is a heart-warming conviction growing among the vaccinated that they now have a moral duty to stand with their unvaccinated neighbour.
Because yesterday the State were gunning for the unvaccinated, today they are gunning for the un-boosted
and tomorrow the tyranny.
Never has any threat been as unifying, throughout the entire
world, than that of the removal of our most basic and fundamental right - to be free. That is not to say that
individuals have lost their identity nor abandoned their most strongly held
principles, but there is a common recognition - even by those who might be
deemed the most fanatical among us - that this cause, this fight, this desperate struggle to hold on to our
freedom, takes prevent above all
else.
AN UNHOLY
Staying true to form, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin
Welby has used his considerable position of power and influence to sow further seeds of division and contempt. This time the unvaccinated were his target, and his unsanctified, judgmental
remarks were, of course, lapped up by
the Mainstream Media. Never one to shy away from controversy, Justin Welby is the 105th
Archbishop of Canterbury and the most senior bishop in the Church of
England has, once again abused his
position to incite division among the masses.
Welby has suggested that people who refuse to get jabbed - [with an experimental vaccination of unknown
contents]
- are immoral.
Asked by ITV News
if being vaccinated is a moral issue,
the archbishop said: Im going to step out on thin ice here and say
yes, I think it is.
Aware of how the offence his statement would cause, he went
on to say: A lot
of people wont
like that, but I think it is because its not about me and my rights.
The Archbishop even went as far as to make the - [experimental mRNA] - vaccination a condition of a
Christians adherence to the Lords
commandment to love thy neighbour:
go and get boosted, get vaccinated. Its how we love our neighbour.
to
love one another - as Jesus said - get vaccinated, get boosted.
His inflammatory remarks following a string of verbal attacks
made by those in positions of authority, including the UK Prime Minister, Boris
Jhonson, who called people opposed to taking the Covid vaccine Nuts.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
gleefully announced that New
It is not just the Church
of England head who has jumped on the bandwagon of divide and conquer, in a
recent interview, Pope Francis
called those who have chosen not to take the Covid vaccine Negationists.
Speaking to journalists aboard the Papal Plane, the head of
the Catholic Church said he doesnt understand
why people refuse to take COVID-19 vaccines.
The
Prior to his mid-air address, the Pontiff told an Italian
news program that taking the Covid vaccine
was ethical
obligation and the refusal to
do so is suicidal
denial.
A little consideration given to Prophetic Scriptures which
predict the rise of The Beast would readily lead us to conclude that he too was a representative of those over
whom he is destined to rule. In the providence of God a Beast is destined to rule beasts; and the characteristics of
these, who are subjects of the Beast,
are clearly told forth in the Scriptures of Truth.
In 2
Peter and Jude, generally acknowledged to be the epistles for the last days, both
refer in plain language to these subjects - to these beasts. In 2 Peter we
read: But these men blaspheme in matters they do
not understand.
They are like brute beasts, creatures of
instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like beasts they too will perish.
In Jude 10 we read: Yet these men speak abusively against whatever they do not understand; and what things they do not
understand by instinct, like unreasoning animals - these are the very things that destroy them.
Behold
the in-roads made by sin! Man, made in the image of God in Genesis, becomes at the close of this
evil and apostate age, all too generally,like brute beasts.
3. BRUTE-BEAST MORALITY
Romans 1. covers this phase of mans degeneracy also.
Brute-beast theology is followed by brute-beast
morality. Part of the first
chapter of Romans seemed a few years ago to describe conditions not
likely to ever exist again in our civilised lands. Today all is changed, and
the Sodom-like countries and cities of our present day await a similar
destruction, not directly from the hand of God as in the days of
[*See 1 Cor. 5: 9-13. Cf. 2 Pet. 2: 1-3, 9b-10, 12-15, R.V.]
4. BRUTE-BEAST BRANDING
Much
has been written about the mark of the Beast. We are not concerned at present
with the symbol and its form, but rather with its acceptance, whatever
the mark may prove to be. Two
forms of government are represented in the iron and clay of Daniels image: and
both are being exercised in our world today. Are we justified in concluding
that men and women, becoming by their own choice like beasts that perish, going
to escape this final mark of submission to beast dominion? We believe not.
5. BRUTE-BEAST EXPRESSION
Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you
(James 5: 1).
Of them [apostates] the proverbs are true: a dog returning to its vomit, and a sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud
(2 Peter 2: 23).
Wallowing
in the mire, returning to that which has been vomited up, in these and other ways beasts declare themselves. Wolves, hyenas,
animals that prey on others, express themselves thus. Men, as selfish
accumulators, wail like beasts over their losses; Men, pouring forth the
corruption of their own hearts, turn to enjoy again what has been poured forth,
and, after enduring a temporary clean-up for a
period, are soon back to the enjoyment
of mud and dirt.
-------
THE STIMULUS OF THE ADVENT
For many years as a pastor of a church for several years as
an evangelist, says D. M.
Stearns, D.D., - it has been my inspiration, my
life, to tell of the Coming of Him who alone can bring peace on the earth. And
He will; and while we submit cheerfully to the powers that be, and do what we
are asked to do [in His word], we look higher than men - we cease from man and look to Him
alone who can - [and one day (Obadiah 15-17)
will] - do these things. The pre-Millennial coming of Christ to set
up His kingdom on earth really does energise,
and never paralyses.
Now these are facts, and
if any of your churches are lacking in missionary zeal, there is only one
reason why; they do not understand the Coming
of Jesus Christ. We are not here to win the world to Jesus Christ, it is not in the [His]
plan. We are
here to get a Bride* for Gods Son. We are here to get an Eve for the last
Adam, and when the
last Adam shall receive His Eve and the Marriage of the Lamb shall take place, then He will come
in His glory to set up His Kingdom.
[* See Gen.
1: 23,
R.V.
she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of
.:
Let us rejoice and be exceeding glad, and let us give glory unto him: for the marriage
of the Lamb is come, and his
wife hath made herself
ready. And it was given unto her that she should array herself in fine linen, bright and pure: for the fine linen is the RIGHTEOUS ACTS OF THE SAINTS. And he saith unto me, Write
Blessed are they which are bidden to
the marriage supper of the Lamb.
HOW MANY CHRISTIANS WILL QUALIFY?]
* *
*
RUTH
By ARLEN L. CHITWOOD
The book of Ruth is fraught with significance and
meaning. Teachings surrounding salvation
by grace occupy only a small part of the book and are seen at the beginning of the book,
in the first chapter (vv. 3-5). Then the remainder of the book deals with
that which follows salvation by grace, taking the regenerate in a spiritual
journey which carries him/her from the point in spiritual life following the
birth from above forward into the Messianic Kingdom (vv.
6ff).
It
is vitally important that regenerate Christians, shortly following their
conversion, be told why they have been
saved and be provided with instruction concerning the
spiritual journey in which they now fond themselves engaged.
If
not, how can Christians properly make the decision which Ruth made in chapter
one - to cleave unto Naomi and travel with her toward another land (which has
to do with the Christians connection with
Note
the parallel between the testing of the Israelites under Moses at Kadesh-Barnea
in Numbers chapters thirteen and fourteen
and the testing of Ruth and Orpah in Ruth
chapter one. A testing of this nature can occur only following certain things
having been known evident in the type of the Israelites under Moses); and at
the time of testing in the types, two
kinds of redeemed individuals are seen in each instance. The end of the matter has to do with two
kinds of saved individuals relative to the inheritance set before them: (1) those who overcome and ultimately realized
their inheritance; and (2) those who were overcome and were overthrown in the
desert, short of realizing the goal out ahead: their inheritance in the
land of promise.
In
the Book of Ruth, exactly the same thing can be seen in Ruths and Orphs
actions, though details are not given. It is simply stated that one [Ruth]
moved forward with Naomi, but the other
turned back.
Christians
need to understand that the only way in which they can overcome Satans attack
is through believing the Word and following Gods instructions, as these
instructions relate to all things in the spiritual life.
If
Christians do not believe all of Gods Word, defeat
will be inevitable. The whole of
the spiritual life, taking one from the point of birth from above (Ruth chapter
one) to an inheritance in the
Now
is the time of the Christians labouring in the field (the world [Matt. 13: 38]), he/she is to be labouring in such a manner that the labour is not
only a progression toward the goal of his/her calling (ultimately realizing an
inheritance in another land) but also a preparation for meeting Christ
(typified by Boaz) before the judgment seat at a time following his/her labours
in the field. Both the journey
and the preparation are part and parcel with the
labour in the field in this
respect.
Thus,
each of the three chapters present different facets of a complete, threefold
picture concerning exactly how a Christian is to govern his/her life during the
present time in order to be found among those
revealed as overcomers at the
judgment seat of Christ and subsequently be allowed to come into the
realization of the goal of their
calling (to be realized during the coming Messianic Era).
CHAPTER 1. The book opens by depicting two types of regenerate
believers. One type (the overcomer) is shown through the actions of Ruth, and
the other type is shown through the actions of Orpah. Following their becoming
members of the family (regeneration),
both Ruth and Orpah found themselves on a journey toward another land, with Naomi; and both exhibited a determination to continue the journey.
Only
one though (Ruth) continued the journey
to the end. The other (Orpah) turned back to her own people and land,
apparently during the early part of the journey.
Thus,
following things surrounding the birth from above, the book immediately deals
with things pertaining to both the spiritual and the
carnal Christian
- with things pertaining to the overcomer and the one who
is overcome. And the book deals
with these things in relation to the race of the faith, the journey from the
land of ones birth to the land of ones calling.
Thats
the way matters are introduced in the book. Its not labouring in Boazs field
(ch. 2) or preparing for meeting Baaz on his threshing floor
at the end of the harvest (ch. 3a) which is seen first, but the
journey toward another land. And
this order is for a reason. There can be no proper labour in the field or
preparation for that which lies ahead apart from possessing some type
understanding of the goal, knowing something about why these things are being
done.
Chapter 2. Naomi and Ruth arrived in
Barley,
normally ripening and being harvested first in
That
is, beginning with the barley harvest, the one working in the field is to
labour during the time of harvest in connection with and associated with the first resurrection.
(Note
that Christ was raised on the third day, as Jonah in the type [cf. Matt. 12: 39, 40; Luke 24: 21];
and all of Gods firstborn Sons (following the adoption of the firstborn status)
will be raised up from the dead to live in Gods sight yet future on the third
day [the third millennium, dating
from the same time as Christs resurrection - from the time of the crucifixion;
e.g., Hosea 5: 13- 6: 2.])
So
it is with the Lords servants today. Either they find themselves labouring in
the field in connection with things surrounding both
a three-day journey [pointing to resurrection] and a rest [pointing earths coming Sabbath], or they find themselves labouring in the field in an opposite
fashion [in a manner separate from the things surrounding both a three-day
journey and a rest]. The former will result in fruit-bearing, [and a
selection]
but not so with the latter.
A
Christian is to set his sights on the goal out ahead (his inheritance in the millennial
kingdom), and he is to be busy throughout the course of his Christian life, in
his Masters field (the world). And, relative to the harvest, he is to concern himself
with one thing. He is to concern himself with that provided for him to glean,
not with that provided for another to glean.
Boaz said to Ruth, My
daughter, listen to me. Dont go and glean in another field and dont go away from
here. All that Ruth had to do
was glean that which the workers, at Boazs instructions, had left her to
glean. And Ruth gleaned in Boazs field after this fashion from morning until
evening, from the beginning to the end of the harvest (2:
4-23).
And
so it is with [obedient] Christians bringing forth fruit today. The Lord of
the harvest has provided for each and every Christian. Christians are to wait
upon the Lord to provide and they are to glean that which has been provided for
them to glean. It is through this process - waiting upon the Lord and looking
to the Lord - that fruit is to be borne in a Christians life.
(But,
again, note it is the new man alone - the man of spirit alone - who has any
connection with this gleaning
process, looking forward to an inheritance and rest out ahead. The old man - the man of flesh - must be reckoned as
dead and left in the place of death. He has nothing to do with the harvest, the
inheritance, and the [entering into Gods promised
and future (Heb. 4: 1, 9, 11, R.V.)] rest.)
The
complete picture has to do with dying to self while walking in resurrection
life, as one patiently endures under trials and testings, waiting upon the Lord
of the harvest to provide throughout the time of harvest. If a Christian obeys the Lord and allows these things to occur in his life
in this manner, Christ, in turn, will allow that Christian to have a part in
His coming reign. That Christian will come into the realization of the
salvation of his soul during the coming day of Christs glory and power.
However,
the inverse of that is also true. If a Christian doesnt deny self, walk in
resurrection life (which he cant do if he desnt deny self), and patiently
endure under trials and testings, that
Christian will lose his soul and have no part with Christ during the coming of
his glory and power. That is, he/she will not be considered worthy of the age
to come and resurrection out from the dead. (Luke 20: 35.)
Chapter 3. The Book of
Ruth, in this type-antitype structure, presents
one of a number of parallel word pictures about the Church which God has
provided in the Old Testament Scriptures. Ruth
chapter two, dealing with work in the field during the time of harvest, covers one such part of this developing picture; and
the beginning of chapter three, dealing with
preparation for
meeting the Lord of the harvest on His threshing floor following
the
harvest, covers another
inseparably related part of the developing picture.
Wash and prepare
[anoint] yourself,
and put on
your best clothes (Ruth 3: 3).
Here
is a threefold preparation for meeting Christ at His judgment seat. And this verse is unique in Scripture with
respect to a complete and concise statement pertaining to the subject at hand.
Ruth 3: 3 is
addressed to saved individuals, relating exactly what must be done if
these individuals (regenerate believers) would one day come into a realization
of the salvation of their souls, ultimately
entering into the rest set
forth in verse one. And, though
different parts of this threefold preparation are dealt with numerous places
throughout Scripture, this is the only place in all the Scripture where
everything is brought together and the matter is stated in so many words, in a
complete manner, such as can be seen here ... wash... anoint ... put on clothes. They all relate to proper preparedness for meeting
Christ on His threshing floor, at His judgment seat, when the harvest is over.
Wash. The washings associated with
the Levitical priests in the Old Testament (a washing of the complete body
[regeneration], followed by washings of parts of the body), in turn, pointed
to, foreshadowed respectively, both Christs past work at Calvary and His
present work in the heavenly sanctuary as our High Priest. Christ died for our
sins providing a cleansing typified by the complete bath which the priests were
given upon their entrance into the priesthood. And Christ presently ministers today as our high Priest to provide subsequent cleansings, typified by
the subsequent cleansings at the laver in the type.
Thus,
Christ, through washing the disciples feet in John
chapter thirteen, was demonstrating truths typically seen through the
Levitical priests washing their hands and feet at the laver in the courtyard of
the tabernacle.
Anoint. Oil
is used in Scripture for anointing purposes, and oil
was used in this manner to anoint prophets, priests, and kings. And there is a
connection between the use of oil after this fashion and the Holy Spirit coming
upon an individual to empower him for the office to which he was being
consecrated.
Matt. 25: 1-13 sets
forth matters as they would exist relative to Christians today. Note that this
parable has to do with the kingdom of the heavens. In Ephesians,
Christians are commanded to be filled with the Spirit. Thus, the importance of spiritual growth is
inseparably related to the filling of the Spirit: a necessity if they would be
properly prepared to meet Christ at His judgment seat.
Put on your best clothes. Thoughts surrounding clothes in the Book of Ruth, brought over into the antitype, have to do
with Christians being properly clothed for going forth to meet the bridegroom.
The marriage and the marriage festivities are in view, and being arrayed or not
being arrayed have to do with acceptance or rejection relative
to the matter at hand.
In
view of that which lay ahead and what Scripture elsewhere has to say about the
matter, only one thing can possibly be in view in this part of Naomis command
to Ruth, as it relates to Christians. Only the wedding garment can be in view.
This
apparel, according to Rev. 19: 7, 8 is made up of the righteous acts of saints. This is
something which Christians progressively weave for themselves, over time, as
they glean in the field and beat out the grain. And to do this work in a proper
manner, with the wedding garment being progressively woven, an extra supply of oil is necessary.
Relative to the man appearing without a wedding garment and the subject at hand
in Matt. 22: 1-14 - the wedding festivities - the man was cast into
outer darkness outside the banqueting hall (v. 13) Clear instructions concerning necessary preparation have been given, and
clear warnings have been sounded if these instructions are ignored.
* *
*
RAPTURE AND REIGNING*
[* From
an address given at a prophetic conference, Within
This Generation.]
It is of
paramount importance that we should rightly conclude who it is that this
Scripture refers to, by the words, We shall be
caught up. Does
it include all that are believers in the Lord Jesus
Christ?* The Message is addressed to the Saints; are all that are saved also Saints?
Maybe we have hitherto understood that if we are saved by grace nothing else matters.
All things that appertain to the life that now is, as well as that which is to come in our Lords Millennium are included
with the New Birth. There are those who teach, that, if saved, then sons; if
sons, then heirs, joint-heirs with Jesus Christ - so all things are ours, all
is of grace, for we are Christs. What, however, is the consensus of Scripture
teaching on this vital point? Will there not be some, ashamed
before Him at His Coming (1 John 2: 28), saved, but so as through fire (1 Cor. 3: 15), while others will obtain an abundant
entrance into His
Kingdom (2 Pet. 1: 11)? Again, there are those who come out of great
tribulation, having washed their robes (Rev. 7: 14) and made them white in His blood, while others are accounted
worthy (Luke 21: 36) to escape it, and alternatively to stand before Him.
[* It is being
taught today that all who are regenerate will escape Antichrists
persecutions by a Pre-tribulation rapture! According to this theory, (1) there is no need for Christians to
repent; (2) no need to pay attention to the numerous warnings
against Apostasy from within the Church; (3) no need to worry about
disobedience to Christs precepts, or the numerous conditional * promises and accountability truths; (4) no
need to prepare ones self to
suffer for speaking truth; (5) no need to confront and reject what
false prophets are saying, - the sign
which our Lord Jesus said would characterise the end times!]
See a list of these conditional promises next. All who reject
these, for whatever reason, are guilty of giving the people of God a FALSE HOPE and going beyond
what is written throughout His Word!]
In the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, the question of Salvation by Grace is not
raised because it was written exclusively to
those who are saved, and have gone on to serve Him; therein nine times over they are exhorted to overcome, endure and remain faithful to the end. Amazing
position, possessions and blessings are extended to those who do so. They shall sit with Him in
His Throne (Rev. 3: 21). They shall rule the nations (Rev. 2: 27). They shall inherit all things (Rev. 21: 7), etc., etc.
Will any true Bible teacher really extend these
inestimable blessings to all
believers irrespective of the sort
of life they live after regeneration, or
to Christians of the Laodicean class, for
these also were saved by grace, they
are of the Church, the called out
ones, and St. John addresses them as my
brethren in the kingdom (Rev. 1:
9)? Or what of those of whom we read are as babes driven with every wind
of doctrine (Eph. 4: 14); again, those who
should have developed into teachers, but
still having need of milk (Heb.
5: 12); and those who fall away, who once loved and served their Lord, but have allowed their love to grow cold (Matt.
24: 12)?
I affectionately submit that to teach any such that they
attain to the highest, the prize of the of the high calling, without either running the straight
race or fighting the good fight, solely on the ground that they have been born,
born of the Spirit, the vestibule of the new life, given in order that they
might serve Him, is wresting Scripture, and throwing dust in the
eyes of the unready, Laodicean type of believer. Some at least may
think it wise to face up to this question, and read again the description and character of the
Overcomer, as given, for example, in the first Epistle of John, and Revelation, chapter 12, verse 11,
considering also the conditions imposed by the Word of God for being
a ready and prepared people for His glorious appearing.
Here are a few of these:- Those. who love His appearing (2 Tim. 4: 8), which, of course, does not mean being fond of hearing the Advent Message,
but living in the light of it as we
would be found at the time of it. Again, those who purify
themselves, even
as He is pure (1 John 3: 3). This is done, of course, by the washing of water by the Word, for
thereby we are perfected in Him, having previously had past sin cleansed by His
blood. Those that watch and pray (Matt. 24: 44) who are also ready. Those who are like unto men that wait for their Lord (Luke 12: 36). Those that lead others to - [live a life of] - righteousness. Those who are the good under Shepherds.
I commend a fresh study of the Sermon on the Mount, which some
have invited us to set aside as being Kingdom Truth
and, as they contend, not applicable to the Church, notwithstanding that our
Lord said of it: - He that heareth My Word and doeth it I will liken
him to a man that built his house upon a rock (Matt. 7: 24).
It should be carefully noted that it began with the so-called
beatitudes; they are correctly described as eight traits of character expected of those who would sit with
Him in his throne,
for of them He said, Theirs is the Kingdom. They shall inherit the earth (Matt. 5: 5). Some dispose of teaching that this is not acceptable to them
by passing it on to the Jews, but both companies alluded to in this Message are
clearly defined as cosmopolitan. The saints sing, He redeemed
us from the earth out of every Nationality (Rev. 5: 9). So also the great multitude are from every nation, tribe and
tongue plus 144,000 of all the tribes of
But to proceed with the picture. No one knows the day or hour
of the cry, behold I come as a thief, nor of the removal from the earth of
those whose lives are hid with Christ in God. But when this great Event has happened there would
seem to be 2,520 days remaining to complete the age. The period is given in
halves, in days, in months, and in times or years (Rev. 11: 2; 12: 6; 12: 14). Seven calendar years of 360 days
each, including the great tribulation period. There does not appear to be warfare in the first part
of this last period. On the contrary, there is to be a super-head over a large
part of
Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of Him in peace, without spot and blameless, lest ye being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own steadfastness. But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus
Christ: (2 Pet. 3: 17).
* *
*
SOME IFS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT
ADDRESSED TO BELIEVERS
FAITH AND INWARD DISPOSITIONS
1. We are Christs household, if we hold fast to the end our joy in
hope. Heb. 3:
6; John 8:
31.
2. We are His companions (Greek) if we hold fast to the end our first
confidence. Heb. 3: 14.
3. Presented to Him blameless, if at least we continue fixed in the
faith. Col. 1:
23.
4. If any hear Christs voice, and open the
door, Christ will sup with him and he with Christ. Rev. 3:
20.
5.
If you will hear His voice, harden not
your heart. Heb. 3: 15.
If not
6. If our heart condemn us not we are confident toward God. 1 John 3: 20,
21.
7.
If any receive not the kingdom as a
little child, he shall not enter it. Luke 18: 17; Mark 10: 15.
8.
If not repentance for lost love, the
candlestick removed. Rev. 2: 5.
9.
If not watchful, Christ will arrive
unexpected by us. Rev. 3: 3.
10.
If not repentant for fornication, will be
cast into great tribulation. Rev. 2: 22.
11.
If not repentant for immoral doctrine,
Christ will fight against such. Rev. 2: 15.
PRACTICE
12. If we live after the flesh, we are about to die; if we mortify the deeds of the body, we
are about to live. Rom. 8: 13.
13.
If defilers of Gods temple ourselves to
be defiled, or marred (Greek). 1 Cor. 3: 17.
14. If evil-doers against the civil power, be afraid. Rom. 13:
4.
15. If your eye cause you to stumble, pluck it out: else - Matt. 5:
29, 30.
16. If any add to the Revelation,
plagues added. If any take away, his name taken out of the holy city. Rev. 22:
18, 19.
17.
If we seek applause of men, no reward for
us in the kingdom of heaven. Matt. 5: 46; 6: 14.
18. If Pauls work done willingly, a reward to be given. 1 Cor. 9: 17.
19. If the righteous draw back, God will have no pleasure in
him. Heb. 10:
38 (Greek).
20. Paul strove, if by any means he might attain the
first resurrection. Phil. 3: 11.
21. If we suffer with Christ, with Christ to reign, 2 Tim. 2: 12.
22. Joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with him. Rom. 8: 17.
23. If we abide in Christ, our prayers are heard. If we do not, we become withered, and shall be cast as a branch into the fire. John 15: 6,
7.
24. If we deny Christ, denied by Him. 2
Tim. 2:
12; Matt.
10: 33.
If not
25. If not born out of water and spirit, no entrance into the
26. If we do not change
and become like little children, no entrance for us into the kingdom (Greek). Matt. 18:
3.
27. If not possessed of righteousness beyond the Pharisees,
no entrance into the kingdom. Mart. 5: 20.
28. If not obedient, no entrance into the kingdom (Greek) Heb. 3: 18; 4: 5, 6; Matt. 7: 21.
29. If we forgive not men, not
forgiven of God. Matt. 6: 14, 15.
30. If we forgive not our brethren
we shall be dealt with as the unmerciful servant. Matt. 18:
34, 35.
31. If quarrels not settled, the offender to be delivered
to the judge, and to be cast into prison. Matt. 5: 25, 26.
32. If not striving lawfully, not crowned at last. 2 Tim. 2: 5.
33. If not faithful in the false riches, how can we obtain the
true? Luke
16: 11, 12.
34. If on the true foundation be not built godly works, loss to be suffered and escape to be
so as through fire. 1 Cor. 3: 12, 15. If our character and works stand the trial, reward to be given.
35. We desire resurrection, if at least, on being
clothed, we shall not be found naked. 2 Cor. 5: 2, 3.
36. We will press on, if God permit. Heb. 6:
3.
Inference from previous dispensations
37.
If the breaking one of the commands at Sinai, entails just recompense, how
much more shall disobedience to one of Christs? Heb. 2: 2, 3; Luke 12: 47, 48.
38. If those
who turned away from the voice at Sinai, escaped not, much less we if we turn away
from any of the commands of Christ! Heb. 12: 25.
(From an old tract; revised).
* * *
THE JUDGMENT SEAT
OF CHRIST
By G. H. LANG
1. God has an inescapable duty to be
the Judge of all the earth (Gen.
18: 25).Those who submit
to Him are subject to this judgment equally with the insubordinate: The Lord
shall judge His people (Deut. 32: 36; Ps. 135: 14; Heb. 10: 30). The children of the sovereign
are amenable to the laws and the courts and liable to penalty for misconduct.
2. This judgment is ever in process. There is a perpetual overruling of human affairs by higher authorities.
Prominent instances are Job (ch. 1, 2), Ahab (1 Kin. 22),
Nebuchadnezzar (Dan. 4). The first case shows the judicial proceedings effecting perfecting,
the second death, the third reformation.
Job was a godly man under discipline for his good: an upright
man was made a holy man. Thus still does God chasten His sons that they may
become partakers of His holiness (Heb. 12: 10-11).
Sinning Christians were disciplined even unto premature death,
and it is explained that this operates to save them from liability to
condemnation at the time when God will deal with the world at large (1 Cor. 11: 32).
3. But this continuous judicial administration
has its crisis sessions, its special occasions. Instances are: the Flood; the
destruction of
Hereafter there will come the destruction of Gentile world
dominion and the punishment of Antichrist. Then the judgment at
But it is most necessary to keep in mind that all such separate and specific sessions are but part of the ceaselessly operating judicial
administration of heaven and earth.
4. It is important to remember that the
Son of man is the chief` Judge of the universe. It was He who acted at the
Flood: Jehovah sat as king at the Flood (Ps. 29: 10). It was He who, in holy care that only justice should be done,
came down to enquire personally whether Sodom and Gomorrah ought to be
destroyed (Gen. 18: 20-21), and Who again came down to deliver Israel from Egypt (Ex. 3: 7-8). It was His glory as judge that was
seen by Isaiah (ch. 6; John 12: 41), and later by Ezekiel (ch. l).
He is the Man appointed to judge the world in righteousness on
behalf of God the Father (Acts 17: 31); for the Father has entrusted
all judgment unto the Son, in order that He may receive equal honour with
the Father (John 5: 19-29).
5. Yet it is particularly needful to note that the last cited passage
is in reference to the future sessions of the divine judgment, for the judging in question is
there set in direct connection with the raising of men from the dead (John 5: 21-22, 27-29). For when the Son of God became man He
ceased for the present to supervise those judgments of heaven. This was among
the dignities of which He emptied, that is, divested Himself, for His immediate
and blessed purpose in becoming man was their salvation from judgment (John 5: 24). Therefore He said: God sent not
the Son into the world to judge the world, but
that the world should be saved through Him (John
3: 17); nor has He yet resumed the office of supreme Judge, though appointed thereto as man. In relation to the world He
is still the Dispenser of the grace of God, not yet the Executor of His holy
wrath, as He will one day become.
This is clear from three chief considerations:
(i) That the Father has called Him to sit at His own right hand
until the time when His enemies are to be put under His feet (Ps. 110: 1; Heb. 1: 13; 10: 13). That is, He is not yet sitting upon His own throne and
asserting His own right and authority, as He will do in a later day (Rev. 2: 26-27; 3: 21; Matt. 25: 31); but He is waiting expectantly that
coming day.
(ii) And therefore is it twice pictured that, as Son of man, the Lamb, He is
hereafter to be brought before the Father to be invested officially with that
authority to judge and to make war the title to which is His already but the
exercise of which is in abeyance (Dan. 7: 13-14; Rev. ch. 4 and 5). In both of these scenes it is God
the Father who is shown acting from the throne of judgment until the Son has
been thus formally installed as Judge.
(iii) And therefore is He now the Advocate
of His people before the Father (1 John 2: 1). But the Advocate cannot be at the
same time the Judge.
6. Thus during this interval the
especial concern and sphere of the Son of man is the company He is calling out
of the world, the
And this work calls for both grace and judgment. He can bear
gently with the ignorant and the erring, sympathizing
with our infirmities (Heb. 5: 2; 4: 15), but dealing with kind severity with
the wilful of His people. Behold then the goodness and severity of God
(Rom. 11: 22). Nor may we abuse His
goodness by making light of His severity; or if we do, it will be
unto painful disillusionment.
7. Judgment
upon His own people therefore God
exercises now; this is the very
period for it; but the general judgment of the world is deferred: The time is come for judgment to begin at the house of God
(1 Pet. 4: 17).
And again: If
we discriminated [sat in
strict judgment upon] ourselves, we should not be judged, but when [failing in this holy self-judgment] we are judged, we are
chastened by the Lord
[here perhaps the Father, comp. Heb. 12: 5, 9, where He who chastens is the Father
of spirits] that
we may not be condemned with the world (1 Cor. 11: 30-31). And this chastening may extend to
bodily weakness,
positive sickness, or oven death. So it was in the
cases of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5: 1-11, and see Jas. 5: 19-20; 1 John 5: 16-17; Matt. 5: 21-26; 18: 28-35).
8.The Lord made many most serious
statements as to His dealings with His own servants at His return. Some of these are:
(i) Luke 12: 22-53. From dealing with the crowd He
turns and speaks specifically to His own disciples (ver. 22). Only genuine disciples, regenerated
persons, are able to fulfil His precepts here given. To mere [unregenerate] professors the task is impossible,
and such cannot be in view. They are to
live without any anxiety as to the necessities of life, and in this are to
be in express contrast to the nations; they are His little flock, for whom the Father intends the
kingdom, and therefore they are to give
away, not to hoard, and so to
lay up treasure in heaven (21-34). It is impossible to include the unregenerate
in such a passage; nor would it be attempted save to avoid the application to
Christians of part of the succeeding and connected instruction.
This instruction is that disciples are like the personal
household slaves of an absent master, who upon his return will deal with each
according to his conduct during the masters absence. In particular, the
steward set over the household will be dealt with the more strictly that his
office, opportunities, and example were the higher. The goodness of the master
is seen in exalting the faithful (though from one point of view he had done no
more than his duty and was an unprofitable servant) to almost unlimited
privilege and power: He will set him over all that he hath (ver. 44): his severity is shown by cutting in sunder * the servant who had abused his
trust, and appointing his portion with the unfaithful (35-53).
* Equals severely scourge,
because the scourge used cut deeply into the flesh - see margin.
(ii) This is elaborated and enforced in
later statements. Luke 19: 11-27. The picture is the same, namely, the
absent master and the faithful or unfaithful servants. The Pound represents that deposit of truth
entrusted to the saints (Jude 3),
for their use among men while Christ is away: Trade ye till I come. The Nobleman himself held and used
it while here, and left it with us when He went to receive the kingdom. If we
traffic with knowledge it increases in our hands and we gain more; if we
neglect to do so - [or speculate by personal statements,
which go beyond what is written] - it remains truth, retaining its own
intrinsic value (thou hast thy pound),
but we do not accumulate knowledge, nor benefit others, nor bring to our Lord any
return for His confidence in us. In this parable it is not the personal life of
the slave that is in question; that may have been good: it is his use of the truth in either spreading it among man, or hiding his light under a bushel of silence, or, as the picture is here, burying
the pound in the earth.
The unfaithful servant loses opportunity further to serve his
lord, the pound is taken from him. Sadder still, his lord has no confidence in
him. But he is not an enemy of his lord, nor is treated as such. He does not lose
his life. The contrast is most distinct between him, however unfaithful, and
the foes and rebels: But these mine enemies that would not that I should reign
over them, bring hither and slay them before me
(ver. 27).
(iii) Matt.
24: 42 - 25: 30. Only a few days later the Lord repeated
this instruction, with fuller detail. The head slave, set as steward of the
house during the absence of the master, will be set over all his lords
possessions if only he have acted faithfully (45-47). But if that evil servant abuses his position, and becomes
self-indulgent and tyrannical, he will be severely scourged, and his portion be allotted with the hypocrites, where he
will weep and gnash his teeth over his folly and lot.
Only a [regenerate] believer
who does not consider his own heart will assert that a Christian cannot act the
hypocrite, be unfaithful, or arbitrary and unloving. But the pronoun that - But if that evil servant, etc., leaves no option but to regard him as a - [truly born again and justified by faith] - believer, for it has no antecedent
to whom it can refer except the faithful servant just before described, no
other person having been mentioned. That evil servant; what evil servant?
and there is no answer but that the faithful steward has become unfaithful*: And such cases are known. Nor will we, for our part, join to
consign all such to eternal ruin rather than accept the alternative of the temporary,
though severe, punishments intimated by the Lord being possible to a [genuine] believer. Those who take the latter
course, mainly influenced to support certain dispensational theories, have
surely never weighed the solemnity of thus easily consigning so many
backsliders to endless misery.
*
Since, then, an unbeliever is (a) not set by the Lord over His house, nor (b) could feed the souls of his fellows, nor (c) could be so faithful as to become at last ruler of all the
possessions of the Lord, this man must be a true believer. But when such a one
may lapse from his fidelity he does not thereby become unregenerate;
consequently the unfaithful steward is still called one of the Lords own servants; and therefore a believer may incur
the solemn penalties veiled under the figures used.
If it be thought inconceivable that the Lord should describe
one of His blood-bought and beloved people as a wicked
servant (Matt. 25: 26), it
must be weighed that He had before applied the term to a servant whose debt had been fully remitted: thou wicked
servant, I forgave thee all that debt (Matt. 18: 32). Thus one who, as an act of compassion by the Lord, has been
fully forgiven all his failure as a servant may prove a wicked servant, his wickedness consisting in this,
that though forgiven he would not forgive. To deny that a child of God can be
unforgiving is to blind the eyes by denying sad and stern fact. The Lord left
no room for doubt that members of the divine family were in His mind by the
application of the parable He then and there made: Even so shall my heavenly Father do unto you [Peter, whose question as to forgiving
had drawn forth the parable, and the other disciples, ver. 1,
21], if ye forgive not, each one of you (hekastos), his brother from your hearts (35). It is the Father and the brothers who are in question, not here those outside the [regenerate] family circle.
Moreover, if this parable be pressed to include a mere
professing but unregenerate person some inevitable implications must be
accepted. It is by no means denied that there are such persons, but if they are
in view here these consequences follow:
(a) An unregenerate person has had all his debt forgiven.
(b) In spite of this free forgiveness he remains unregenerate.
(c) A forgiven sinner can have the free
pardon of his sins revoked, in which case he will thereafter stand in his
former lost estate exposed to the eternal wrath of God. He may be saved today
yet lose this tomorrow.
(d) Though delivered to the tormentors he may entertain hope that he may
yet himself pay all that is due (ver. 34); that is, the wrath of God against
the unregenerate can be somehow, some time satisfied by the sufferings and
efforts of the sinner himself.
In these cases therefore Christ died for nought; they can at last secure their own deliverance.
In the fact, however, being delivered to the tormentors has no reference to the eternal
judgment of the lost. In the lake of fire neither lost angels nor lost men are
stated to torment one another, but are all alike in the same torment. It is a picture
of present and temporal chastisement under that continually proceeding judgment of God above
indicated, and which
applies to His [redeemed] family as to others. Regarded thus the above confusing implications do not arise,
implications which no one divinely illuminated could accept. But it results that the wicked servant is a real [regenerate] servant, not a hypocrite, and were it not for the severity of the [forthcoming] punishment no one would be likely to question this.
It is not difficult to see what the punishment is.
(a) The forgiveness of his great failures
as a servant can be revoked, and he be made to feel the
sin and bitterness of not having walked by the same spirit as his Lord, nor
rendered to Him the due use and return of the benefits grace had bestowed.
(b) Paul says of some who had once had
faith and a good conscience (or they could not have thrust these away), and who
had started on the voyage of faith (or they could not have made shipwreck), whom 1 delivered to Satan (the present tormentor, as of Job); but not to be afflicted
by him in hell, but for their recovery, that they might be taught not to blaspheme, which the torments of the damned
will not teach them, as far as we see in the Word (1 Tim. 1:
19-20. See also 1 Cor. 5: 3-5).
(iv) We remark upon one other instance of
these solemn testimonies by Christ, the parable of the virgins (Matt. 25). It is to the same effect.
(a) They are all virgins, the foolish equally with the wise,
which figure is inappropriate to indicate a worldling in his sins, even though
he be a professing Christian. In the only other places where it is used
figuratively and spiritually it certainly means true Christians (2 Cor. 11:
2; Rev. 14: 4).
(b) They are all equally the invited guests
of the bridegroom, not strangers, let alone his enemies.
(c) They all have oil, or, the foolish could not say our lamps are going out. Without some oil the lamps could
not even have been lit, for a dry wick will not kindle and certainly could not have
burned during the time they had slept.
(d) But the foolish had no supply to
replenish the dimly burning flax and revive their testimony. They had formerly
been light in
the Lord, but had been
thoughtless as to grace to continue alight.
(e) They found means for this renewing
for in spite of the darkness they gained the bridegroom's gate.
(f) They did not lose their lives, as
enemies, but they did lose the marriage* feast, and were left* in the darkness outside the house. This is
parallel to the wicked servant, who
also did not lose his life but did lose the entrance into the joy of his master
at his return, and was cast into outer darkness.
[* See 1 Thess. 4: 17, R.V. Cf. Rev. 19: 7, 8, R.V.)]
Two observations are vital to grasping the meaning of these
judgments.
(i) A marriage feast is obviously no
picture of anything eternal. Plainly it is a temporary matter. Grand, intensely
happy, a highly coveted honour, especially when the kings, son, the heir
apparent, is the bridegroom, it yet is but the prelude to a life, a reign, not anything long-extended, let alone
permanent. Does not this correspond to the joy of the millennial kingdom as the
glorious prelude to the eternal kingdom? For the marriage of the Lamb comes at the immediate inception of
that millennial kingdom (Rev. 19: 6-9). And are not the invited virgins those of whom verse 9 says, Blessed are they that are bidden to the
marriage supper of the Lamb, rather than the wife herself? A bride is not usually invited to her
wedding feast: it cannot (save, perhaps, among Moslems) be held without her.
Does not this give the clue to what the [foolish] virgins and the unfaithful servant lose?
(ii) Outer darkness is no picture of the lake of fire. It is the realm just
outside the palace where the feast is held, not the public prison or execution
ground. If the strict sense of Scripture pictures be kept, and imagination be
not allowed to fill in what the Divine Artist did not put in, much confusion
will be avoided.
It has been felt that the words of the bridegroom to the
virgins, Verily I say unto you, I know
you not preclude
us from taking these to represent His true people. But again the picture itself
will give the real sense. The bridegroom is here pictured as standing within
the heavy and thick outer door that secures every eastern house of quality, and
the door is shut. He does not open it, or he would see who they are, and that
they are some of his own invited guests, but standing the other side of the
closed door he says, in idiomatic English, I tell you sincerely, I
dont know who you are (Ameen lego humin, ouk oida humas). Into
such a picture it is not permissible to read in divine omniscience; it must be
taken simply as it is given.
Its force may be gathered more readily
by the distinction between what is here said and what the Lord said in Matt. 7: 15-23). There He spoke of false prophets,
bad trees, men who, like the sons of Sceva in Acts 19: 13, used His holy name without warrant.
Picturing Himself as standing face to face with these He protests, I never at any time made your
acquaintance! Here the scene is changed; there is no
closed door between: the verb to know is different: and the word rendered never is most emphatic and gives force and
finality to the assertion (Oudepote egnon humas). He did not
speak thus to the virgins.
9. It is not our present purpose to
consider all such testimony of the Word. Enough has been advanced to show how much and how solemn is the teaching of Scripture as to judgment upon careless Christians. We wish only to
deal now with the time of the judgment seat of Christ as to His people.
The most general opinion is that this judgment lies between the
moment of the Lords descent to the air, when they, dead and living, are caught
up to Him there, and that later moment when He is to descend with them to the
earth to set up His kingdom. That is, the judging of His saints will take place
during the Parousia.
Observations
(i) No passage of Scripture seems
distinctly to place this judgment in this interval and in the air. It seems to
be rather assumed that it must take place then and there since the effects of it
are to be seen in the different positions and honours in the kingdom
immediately to follow.
(ii) As regards the parabolic instruction
Christ gave when here it is to be observed that it speaks only of persons who
will be found alive when the nobleman, the
master of the house returns. Strictly, therefore, these parables tell nothing as to the time
and circumstances of the judgment of dead believers. It must be allowed that the principles of justice will be the same
for dead and living, but the details as to the judgment of the former
cannot be learned from these passages.
(iii) Some presuppositions held are:
(a) That every
believer will share in the first resurrection and the millennial kingdom.
(b) The opposite,
that not every believer will do so.
(c) That the
judgment of the Lord will result in some of His people suffering loss of reward
because of unfaithfulness, but nothing more than loss. This involves that none of the positive and painful inflictions
denounced can affect true believers.
(d) The opposite, that the regenerate may
incur positive chastisement as a consequence of the Lords judgment at that
time. Thus in Touching the Coming of the Lord (84,
85. ed. 1), upon Col. 3: 25, For he that doeth wrong shall receive again the wrong that he
hath done (margin): and there is no respect of
persons, Hogg and
Vine apply this text to that judgment of Christ at His parousia, and say: It may be
difficult for us to conceive how God will fulfil this word to those who are
already in bodies of glory, partakers of the joy of the redeemed in salvation
consummated in spirit, soul and body. Yet may we be assured that the operation
of this law is not to be suspended even in their case. He that knoweth how to deliver the
godly out of temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment unto the day of
judgment (2
Pet. 2: 9), knows also how to
direct and to use the working of His law of sowing and reaping in the case of
His children also. The attempt to alleviate the text of some of its weight
by suggesting that the law operates only in this life, fails, for there is
nothing in the text or context to lead the reader to think other than that
while the sowing is here the reaping is hereafter. It is clear that if it were
not for this supposed difficulty of referring the words to the Christian in the
condition in which, as we know from other Scriptures, he will appear at the
Judgment seat of Christ, the question whether that time and place were intended
would not be raised.
(e) Some (Govett, Pember, and others) who
hold that the millennial kingdom may be forfeited by gross sin, suppose that all believers rise in the first
resurrection, appear before the judgment-seat of Christ, and being adjudged
by Him unworthy of the kingdom they return
to the death state to await the second resurrection and the great white throne
judgment. Their names being then as believers found in the book of life, they have eternal life in the eternal
kingdom, but they will have missed the honour of sharing in and reigning in the
millennial age.
These two last ideas (d)
and (e) seem alike utterly
impossible. It seems wholly inconceivable that a body heavenly, spiritual,
glorified, like indeed to the [immortal] body of the Son of God himself, can be subjected to chastisement for guilt
incurred by misuse of the present sin-marred body. Not only the manner of the
infliction but the fact of it seems to us out of the question.
It seems equally so that a body that is immortal and
incorruptible can admit of its owner passing again into the death state. The
ideas and the terms are mutually contradictory and exclusive. Of those who rise
in that first resurrection the Lord said plainly: neither can they die any more (Lk. 20: 36).
What, then, is the solution of these difficulties?
10. We turn to passages dealing directly
with the subject.
(i) 2 Cor. 5:
10. We make it our
aim, whether at home or absent, to be well-leasing unto Him. For
we must all be made manifest before the judgment-seat of Christ; that each one may receive the things done through the body, according to what he hath done, whether it be good or bad. This chief statement leaves
unmentioned the time and place of the judgment.
(ii) Heb. 9: 27. It is laid up for men
once to die and after this judgment (meta de touto krisis, no article). Thus judgment may take place
at any time after death. Luke 16 shows
Dives suffering anguish immediately after death, for the scene is Hades, the
realm of the dead between death and resurrection, and his brothers are still
alive on earth. But again, Rev. 20: 11-15, shows another, the final judgment, after resurrection, after the
millennial kingdom. Both are after death.
Neither of these passages suggests the parousia in the air as
the time or place.
(iii) The statements of the Lord as to His
dealing with His own servants at His return, contemplate that His enemies will
be called before Him immediately after He will have dealt with His own
household: But
these mine enemies, who would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them
before me (Lk. 19: 27). Hither, that is, to the same spot where He
had just been dealing with His servants. This, as to servants then alive on
earth at least, excludes the parousia in the air, for His enemies will not be
gathered there.
(iv) Luke 16: 19-31. Dives and Lazarus are seen directly after death in conditions the exact
reverse of those just before known on earth. The passing of the soul to that
other world, and the bringing about of so thorough a change of condition, is
too striking, too solemn just to happen, Someone must have decided and ordered this reversal;
that is, there must have been a judging of their cases and a judicial decision
as to what should be their lot in the intermediate state.
This judgment therefore may take place at or immediately after
death, as Heb.
9: 27 above. And in the time of Christ thus almost all men
believed. See, for example, the judgment of Ani
directly after death, before Osiris the god of the underworld, in the Egyptian Book of the Dead. Or, as to the Pharisees, to whom particularly Christ spoke of
Dives and Lazarus, see Josephus, Antiquities,
18:3.
(v) 2 Tim. 4: 6, 7, 8. I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is come. I have fought the good fight,
I have kept the faith; I have finished the
course, henceforth there is laid up for me the
crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall
give to me at that day: and not only to me,
but also to all them that have loved His appearing.
Paul was now certain he had won his crown. When writing to the
Philippians a few years before (3: 10-14) he spoke uncertainly: not that I have already obtained, for then he had not yet finished the course; but now
he writes with certainty. How could this assurance have become his save by
communication from the Righteous Judge? But this implies that the Judge had
both formed and communicated His decision upon Pauls life and service, even
though Paul had not yet actually died. In such a case, as it would seem, any
session of the judgment seat in that day will be only for bestowment of the crown already won and allotted, not
for adjudication upon the race or contest, the latter having before taken place
as to such a person.
(vi) The expression I have finished my course is taken from the athletic world
which held so large a place in Greek life and interest and is so often used by
Paul as a picture of spiritual effort. In 1 Cor. 9: 24-27, it is used as a plain warning that
the coveted prize may be lost. Phil. 3: 12-14 employs it to urge to intense and unremitting effort to win that prize.
The Lord is the righteous Judge, sitting to adjudicate upon each contestant in
the race or contest.
Now of unavoidable necessity the judge of the games automatically
formed his decision as to each racer or wrestler as each finished the course or
the contest. The giving of the prizes was indeed deferred to the close of the
whole series of events: Pauls crown would be actually given in that day; but not till then did the judge
defer his decision as to each item or contestant. It could not be, for the most
celebrated of the Greek games, the Olympic, lasted five days.
The figure, taken with the case of Paul, and in the light of Dives and Lazarus, suggests
a decision of the Lord as to each
believer before or at the time of his death. That decision issues in determining the place and experience of the
man in the intermediate state, and
may extend to assurance that he has won the crown, the prize of the high calling.
(vii) Rev. 6: 9, 11. The Fifth Seal. As before shown,
these martyrs under the altar are
not yet raised from the dead, for others have yet to be killed for Christs
sake, and only then will they be all vindicated and avenged. But to each one of
them separately a white robe is given. Now ch. 3:
4, 5, shows that the white robe is the
visible sign, conferred by the Lord, of their worthiness to be His companions
in His glory and kingdom. This again makes evident that for these the Lords
judgment has been formed and announced. No later adjudication upon such is
needful or conceivable: only the giving of the crown in that day.
11. From these facts and considerations
it seems fairly clear that the judgment of the Lord upon the dead of His people
is not deferred to one session but is reached and declared either (a) immediately before death (as Paul),
when there is no further risk of the racer failing, or (b) immediately after death (as Lazarus), or (c) at least in the intermediate state of death (the souls under the
altar).
If this is so, then it will follow that the decision of the
Lord as to whether a believer is worthy of the first resurrection and reigning
in the kingdom is reached prior to resurrection, in which case the two
insoluble problems above stated simply do not arise; that is, there is no
question of one raised in a deathless state returning to the death state, nor
of [immortal] bodies of glory being subjected to
chastisement. Believers adjudged not worthy of the first
resurrection will not rise, but will remain where they are
until the second resurrection.
We agree fully that the judgment seat of Christ will issue in
chastisement for unworthy living by Christians, but this will not be inflicted
after resurrection.
(viii) Rev. 11: 18 repays exact study. The four and twenty elders worship God because He has
put forth His power, His great power (teen
dunamin sou teen megaleen) and
has exercised His sovereignty. In consequence of this asserting of power there
are five results. (1) The nations
are angry, (2) Gods wrath replies,
(3) there arrives the season
for the dead to be judged, (4) for the
faithful to be rewarded, and (5) for
the destruction of the destroyers of the earth.
Since prophets and saints are to receive their reward at the
resurrection of the just (Luke 14:
14), the first resurrection (Rev. 20: 1-6), the season for the dead to be
judged and rewarded is here found directly before the destruction of the
Antichrist and his helpers in the wasting of the lands.
Concerning this judging of the dead three features are to be
noted.
1. It must be of godly dead, for it is
before the thousand years, whereas
the judgment of the ungodly dead is thereafter (Rev. 20: 1, 11-15).
2. It is a judgment of persons who are
dead at the time they are judged. There is no ground for reading
in that they have been raised from the dead before the judgment takes place.
They are styled the dead. No one
would think of styling living persons the dead. The term employed (nekros) is nowhere used of persons who are not
actually dead, physically or morally. Moreover, resurrection does not of itself
assure life. That unique and glorious change to be the portion of such as share
the first resurrection (1 Cor. 15) is their special privilege; it does
not attach to all resurrection. Dead persons can be raised dead. In John 5: 29 our Lord creates a clear contrast: They that
have done good shall come forth unto resurrection of life; and they that
have done evil unto resurrection of judgment. The Lord did not say that they shall
come forth out of the tombs alive, but that they shall come forth unto
resurrection of life or unto resurrection of judgment (eis anastasin). There seems no scripture, indeed, that
at the moment they come forth they have even a body [of flesh and
bones (Lk. 24: 39, R.V.)], other than that psychical
counterpart before noticed and which persists in the death state.
Thus in Rev. 20: 12 also it is as dead that they, are
judged: I saw the dead standing before the throne ... and the dead were judged. It should therefore be supposed that
those there present whose names are found in the book of life will thereupon be
restored to life, that is, will
be given an immortal body,
even as the Lord said: The Father raiseth the dead (egeirei
tous nekrous) and makes them live (zoopoiei), thus
also the Son makes to live whom He will (zoopoiei,
John 5: 21).
Here two operations are distinguished by the and makes them live.
3. The verb to be judged, the season of the dead to be judged, is the infinitive passive aorist (kritheenai). Being an aorist it has the force of a
completed and final action. But this final judgment, which disposes of the
case, may be the conclusion of a process of judgment. This is seen in another
place where this aorist is twice used, Acts 25: 9-10. Festus asked Paul whether he would be willing to go up from
Caesarea to
This short discussion is no more than suggestive, directed to
certain obscurities and perplexities found in our main theme, designed to provoke enquiry so as further to
elucidate truth and dispel darkness. May the Lord in grace use it to this end.
ADVICE TO THE DEBTOR
PART ONE OF FOUR
As you are going with your adversary
to the magistrate try hard to be reconciled to him on the way, or he may drag you off to the judge, and the judge turn you over to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison. I tell you, you will not get out until YOU have paid
the last penny. Luke 12: 58, 59, N.I.V.
A glance at the text above will indicate that, in this
instance, Jesus is NOT
speaking about the free gift of eternal life, (Rom. 6:
23, R.V.): that has been paid for in full by our Lord Himself. Here, His words are addressed
primarily to His disciples. That is, to those who followed Him throughout the country to listen and learn from
His teachings: and, in Acts 11: 26, we are informed that the disciples
were first called Christians at
Here is a recorded instance, where Jesus teaches His disciples
who were in the crowd (verse 54) a solemn lesson drawn from the
circumstances of present-day life. A debtor is in danger of being imprisoned for his/her
debt: and the adversary - the prosecutor or creditor - is intent upon obtaining the arrears which are due to him.
Like hundreds of thousands of instances today during our
present-day Credit Crunch - where one owes
money for goods purchased, and the creditor, after some delay in the payments,
wants to receive what is now due. He is put off: it is not convenient, times are
hard and employment is very difficult to find at present. He calls again; the
debtor does not deny that payment is now due, but no service
(verse 35) - no attempt to pay is forthcoming. Let him call again is the debtors response! He calls a third
time, and now he utters a threat. If you will not
pay me, I shall enforce the law by turning you over to the officer. After a
considerable time, payment is still not rendered: and
at length he lays hands upon the debtor, and says I will be paid: come to
court with me.
Now it is evident that this is not the kind of activity which
Christians should adopt. They are to forgive those who are in their debt; and they are forbidden to go to court to recover it:-
If any of you has a dispute with
another, dare he take it before the ungodly for
judgment instead of before the saints? Do you
not know that the saints - [i.e.,
those amongst them who will inherit the
The very fact
that you have lawsuits among you means YOU HAVE BEEN
COMPETELY DEFEATED ALREADY. Why not rather
be wronged? Why not rather be cheated. Instead, you yourselves cheat
and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers: (1 Cor. 6: 1-8).
The theology of many today would have Christians believe God
will not demand payment for their wilful sin
and disobedience (Heb. 10: 26-30, R.V.)! That He will always turn a blind eye to disgraceful
behaviour in the lives of His redeemed people! Not so.
I will come near to you
for judgment. I will be quick to testify
against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers,
against those who defraud labourers of their wages
who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive aliens of justice, but do nor fear me, says the LORD
Almighty. I the LORD do not change
(Mal. 3: 5, 6a.,
N.I.V.). Anyone
who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favouritism. (Col. 3: 25,
N.I.V.).
God expects all who are called saints to be considerate and accommodating
toward all others -
especially toward those who are in the family of faith. That is, who are now being deprived of their basic rights as fellow believers. We see this
behaviour occurring all around us today by those who should know better.
It is here, at this point in time, when our Saviours lesson to His disciples begins. The creditor has his hand upon the
debtors shoulder; and both are on their way to court. What is the
debtor to do? Shall he ignore the circumstances which he has allowed to develop?
or even deny that there is a
debt? Shall he defy the creditor, by expecting him to overlook the situation or come to an unjust decision? Shall
he rail at him as a hard man, when he says there is payment due? Not if a little common sense would
prevail, and the thought of what the future day of judgment will hold for anyone who is foolhardy
enough to continue going down this road of self-destruction! It is only when
the verdict by a righteous judge is considered, that the words of
advice from Jesus will suddenly spring into the life and mind, to one who has
been blinded by Satan to the
responsibility and accountability truths which Jesus taught: As you are going
with your adversary to the magistrate, He said, try hard to be reconciled to HIM on the way.
Confess your debt to him NOW; confess to him now your own negligence and injustice in
having allowed disgraceful and selfish behaviour to develop,
and to go on for so long between you and your neighbour; and, by having so long delayed any attempt
to improve the situation ask him to forgive you your part, or the whole. It may
be that now - some time
after the offence has been named and brought to
his attention - he may listen
to you.
But the advice of our Lord Jesus is still more explicit. The
brother or sister has been, and continues to be mistreated, and the Magistrate is
now very angry and says: Why dont you judge for yourselves what is right? As you are going with your adversary to the magistrate, try hard - [Gk. take pains In other words, go out of
your way] - to be
reconciled to him on the way. Because of the
long delay, the affair has now become more
serious. No time can afford to be wasted, and a sense of urgency should
prevail. The creditor is evidently in earnest, and he is determined
to enforce payment. Therefore, we must be as earnest as he is, and be
reconciled to each other quickly. It will not take long to get from
our house into his courthouse.*
Every step of defiance now,
will bring us nearer his place of judgment then: and a true
impression of the predicted decision he will make, will indicate to us the
urgency and the zeal that is urgently now needed.
[* Heb. 9: 27.]
As you are going mercy may have its full scope, especially if acts of repentance
and compassion are genuine and visible: and he is not bound by any
law. He may forgive part of the debt
or even the whole debt. Come to an agreement with him NOW as you are going, and none will dare interfere between you and him, for it
is yet a private matter. But, if we neglect the God-given opportunity now; and our injustices continue to come before the
eye of the righteous judge, then
a completely different
principle and course of action must eventually take effect. There is such a thing as insulting the Spirit of grace:
For we know him who said, It is mine to avenge; I will repay. And again,
The Lord WILL
JUDGE HIS PEOPLE: (Heb. 10: 29, 30).
His court is the place of justice,
and unlike the
present time of mercy; at that time justice will take certain
unmeasured steps;
and Gods law will not allow itself to be disrupted by any considerations of
previous long suffering and mercy. Like the present Credit
Crunch, the time of spending will then have ended, and a time for paying our debts will now have arrived. It will be a
time of REWEARD according to OUR works - whether those works be good or bad. God has set aside a certain time and a certain place where He will
reward His redeemed people - even for as long as a thousand years.* (Rev.
20: 4-6.)
[*NOTE. The regenerate believer may question how life can be imparted
to one who already has eternal life.
He/she may rest upon the all-sufficiency of Christs merits; and, at the
same time, have little or no regard for His warnings to His redeemed people, and the consequences which may
arise from our present attitude and neglect of them.]
Robert Govett, in his book Entrance
Into The Kingdom explains it this way:-
Whoever said that there was no further
punishment for the guilty believer than simple exclusion from millennial bliss?
There are different degrees of punishment. A quiet love of the world in its
present forms, in the case of the uninstructed saint, may perhaps require at
the Lords hands no more than simple rejection from the scene of joy. But a deliberate choice of the works of the
flesh after the present TRUTH is presented and owned, a shocking and stumbling of the world by open breaches of [apostasy and] morality, would demand far more. There is time in a thousand
years to inflict as much of the wrath on the delinquent son [or
daughter] as the Father shall deem necessary. I say unto you, my friends ... I will forewarn
you whom ye shall fear. Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power
to cast into hell [Gk. Gehenna, R.V.], yea, I say unto you, fear him. That servant which knew his lords will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did not commit things
worthy of stripes, shall be
beaten with few stripes: Luke 12: 4, 5, 47, 48. This doctrine brings the
fear of God in all its magnitude and awe, to bear upon the disobedient [regenerate] child of God. And this motive
is assigned to perfect holiness. Let us
cleanse ourselves from all
filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God: 2 Cor. 7: 1
In another book, on the scriptural teaching of the
Intermediate Place and State of the Dead, and the lurking danger to Christians
who envy those with great worldly wealth, the same author has written the
following:-
Better
a poor but wise child, says Solomon, than an old and foolish king who will no more he admonished - [No longer knows how to take warning NIV] - For out of prison
he cometh to reign; WHEREAS ALSO HE THAT IS BORN IN HIS KINGDOM BECOMETH POOR. (Eccl. 4: 13, 14). This, as it stands, does not give any intelligible sense
to the concluding verse. But a more accurate translation of that verse is the
following: Better is a poor and wise child than
an old and foolish king, who will no more be admonished;
for from
the house of the prisoners (the one) shall
come to reign; whereas, (on the other hand,) he that was
born to his royalty shall become poor. The interpretation of this is now
simple. The poor and spiritually wise
child, after his soul has been
awhile detained among the souls in
custody, - [i.e., in Sheol / Hades the
underworld of the dead. Psalm 16: 10; Luke 16: 23, 28, 30, 31; Acts 2: 27. Cf.
2 Tim. 2:
18, R.V.)] - shall come forth at the first resurrection to reign with Christ: whereas the king, old and spiritually foolish, though he was born on
earth to a kingdom, shall become poor, and be cast into the house of the
prisoners: and to their respective destinies shall the just be reversed; except that the portion of the child is royalty forever, while the others temporary royalty is countervailed by perpetual poverty and
imprisonment.*
[*NOTE: In both Old and New Testament
scriptures, God has shown us where disembodied
souls go immediately after the time of DEATH: and from there they must WAIT until the time of their RESURRECTION: and the First Resurrection (Rev. 20: 5); precedes the time when Death
and Hades gave up the dead
that were in them (Rev. 20: 13b) by a thousand
years! See also Gen. 37: 35; Num. 16: 30, 33; 1 Sam. 28: 3-19; Psa. 139: 8b; Matt. 12: 40; Rev. 6: 9, 10; 20: 4-6, 13, etc.]
Sheol / Gk. LXX. Hades is, according to the scriptures, the place of the stern and strict execution
of the Judges sentence. From the far side of its GATES, says
the scriptures (Matt. 16: 18b), we must wait to have part and inheritance
in that age - [i.e., Christs promised millennium (Psalm 2: 8; cf.
Psalm 72.)] - and in the resurrection from the dead. (Luke 20: 35). Cf. Matt. 16: 18; Heb. 11: 40; Matt. 12: 40; 13: 41.
* *
*
ADVICE TO THE DEBTOR
PART TWO
Now let us apply the parable. Who is the creditor here? To
whom does each owe money, home, food, clothing, health, service, reason and
life itself? What does he ask as his due from each one of us? Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of
your Father in heaven: (Matt. 5: 44). If anyone
loves me, he will OBEY - [See Acts 5:
32; cf. 1
John 3: 24] - my teaching. My Father
will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him: (John 14: 23). JEHOVAH is the King who will take account of His debtors.
And what does He ask of all who
have heard of JESUS? Faith, for eternal salvation in HIM; and then afterwards, our obedience to the precepts of His
Beloved Son. And has He not many times demanded this debt from
us His servants? And have we not put
off the rendering of it? Then we
stand where the parable supposes us to be. We and He are on our way to His Court of Justice! The present time is the hour of mercy, the day of His long-suffering. But though mercy is free to forgive us now, yet our time here is conveying us onward - step
by step we draw closer to the Judgment Seat of Christ and a just recompense of reward:
[Compare Col. 3: 24, 25 with Rev. 2: 14-17, 20-23, and Rev. 3: 10, 11, 19-21, R.V.).] It is appointed unto men,
once to die,
and after
this cometh the judgment (Heb. 9: 27, R.V.). Unless YOUR righteousness
surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you [My disciples] will certainly NOT enter... (Matt.
5: 20). From this Creditor we have no
escape. The man of integrity walks securely, but he who takes crooked paths will be found out:
Prov. 10: 9. Hence the Saviours advice to His disciples is: Try hard to
be reconciled.
Satan would blind our minds to the coming glory and
Why does our Lords good advice not arouse multitudes of
regenerate believers today? Why do they not appear to care about the possible
loss of their inheritance during His millennial reign? See (Cor.
6: 9, ff; Gal.
5: 21; Eph. 5: 5, 6. Cf.
Rev. 3: 1-3, R.V.)?
God expects His people to attend to His words. He has not written to us in such terms as we
cannot understand. Neither has He used coded terminology open to various interpretations.
Politicians are very good at saying words which mean more than one thing; but
we cannot expect God to be like that! What He says, He will do: it is what He intends to do in
that future day (2 Pet. 3: 8, 9, R.V.); and that cannot be left open to many interpretations. In
fact, one of the reasons why there is a multiplicity of references and
a repeating of divine truth, is to set it out
at various angles so that there can be no doubt whatsoever about what He has said. Confusion is the result of giving heed to Satanic
suggestions and notions. The author of confusion is the devil. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work;
(James 3: 16, A.V)
If we are in earnest, we would say: - Lord Jesus, I cannot delay repentance for another moment; I will do to
others as I would expect them to do to me. I must be reconciled to by neighbour
before I go to sleep tonight. Lord God, I acknowledge Thy claims upon me, and I
read of Thy mercy and forgiveness. But I
have nothing to pay. Please forgive me, and grant to me the grace and
strength I need to live today as Thou hast demanded.
But if Gods favour is not with us on the way, because we have
continually neglected, despised or tested His patience, then the next scene which we are likely to encounter is the Judgment Seat of Christ.*
[* See Heb.
9: 27, R.V.: And inasmuch as it is appointed
unto men one to DIE, and after this
cometh judgment; so Christ
also, having been once offered to bear the sins
of many, shall
appear a
second time apart from sin, to them that wait for him, unto salvation. Cf.
1 Pet. 1: 3-5, 9-11: Blessed be the God
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according
to his great mercy begat us again unto a
living HOPE by the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, [4] unto a INHERITANCE incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved
in heaven for you, [5] who by the power of God are
guarded through faith unto a SALVATION
ready to be REVEALED in the last time.
[9] receiving the end of your faith, even the SALVATION
OF your SOULS. [10] Concerning WHICH [future] SALVATION the
prophets sought and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: [11] searching what time or what manner of time the [Holy] Spirit of
Christ which was in them did point unto, when it [He] testified
beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glories [see Rom. 8: 21] that should follow them.
We must learn to interpret the words judgment,
inheritance, and salvation
by the context used above!]
What will happen then? The proving of the debt; the deciding of
the amount; the accusation; the evidences; the sentence; the handing over the
trembling debtor to the officer; and the officer casting him into the prison. Outer darkness broods over them, and
weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth will be heard because of the
loss of the inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Matt. 13: 42; 22: 13; Eph. 5: 5. cf. Heb.
12: 14-17; Rev. 19: 7, 8.
How long shall
the debtor remain there? I tell you, you
will not get out until YOU
have paid the last penny. What does this mean? Truly, what Gods justice has spoken, Gods
justice will rigorously enact. Does the Judge say everlasting fire?
NO. It is for a thousand years, but when the
thousand years are finished,
then the book of life is
opened: (Rev.
20: 7, 15,
R.V.). Nothing will suffice until the
last penny: and the prison gates,
will remain locked to the unworthy until then.
Matt. 16: 18.
See then brother and sister in Christ, by this unpalatable truth, Satans other deceptions are broken into pieces.
He always featheres his arrows with some truth to make
them hit the target; but beware, the tips contain deadly poison! Does he
not sometimes whisper:- Have no fear, you are justified by faith alone, you now have Christs
imputed righteousness; you are not to be included in those
threats. God is Love. The millennial
The debt may be forgiven to its last penny; this is mercys proclamation now: after mercys last tear is shed, then the
time of judgment. This Judgment must take place before the time of resurrection when Jesus returns, (John 14:
3, and before the time of the pre-tribulation rapture (Rev. 3: 10). It
will determine when -
those who
are considered
worthy of taking part in that age and in the resurrection
from the dead, (Luke 20:
35; Phil. 3: 11; cf.
2 Tim. 2:
17, 18,
R.V.) - will have arrived.
Once our life on earth has ended, and the Gates of
Hades are closed
behind us, what opportunity is left to us of hoping to gain a better resurrection? (Heb. 11: 35.) Son, remember that in your
lifetime you received your good things, while
Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted HERE - [in Hades (Luke
16: 23)] - and you
are in agony. ... Then I beg you,
father, send Lazarus to
my fathers house, for I have five brothers. Let
him warn
them, so that they will not also come
to this place of torment: (Luke 16: 27, 28.)
What can be there for the deceived and disobedient Christian
but gnawing remorse, and the regret of countless opportunities to REPENT which were ignored during
his / her former life? They have Moses and
the Prophets; let them listen to them. No,
father Abraham, but if
someone from the dead goes to
them, they will REPENT.
The first principles of prudence, which were scorned and neglected,
will strike the heart of Gods unrepentant people. The love of Jesus lightly
regarded and a disobedience to His commands during the day of testing, will
fill the intolerable agony and contemplation of the realisation of the
tremendous loss. If, when living UPON the
earth, Gods debtor cannot win for himself something that his standard of righteousness has failed to attain, (Matt. 5: 20; Phil. 3: 11): then he will not get out from UNDER it until he has paid the last penny. The Redeemer therefore, in holy compassion to the debtor,
warns and beseeches His regenerate servants now,
to urgently be reconciled to him on
the way. Try hard to be
reconciled - for if the
debt is not recognised now and repentance is not forthcoming;
once it comes into the judges court, there will be no opportunity then to do anything about it.
Multitudes have not yet come to trial. They are yet on the way. Then they must be diligent to be delivered from the long
chain of arrears. Nothing is more important to us now, for we do not even know what will happen tomorrow: (Jas. 4: 14).
Christian! Do you want to be rich in the future? Then you must
first have your debts forgiven, and have respect your neighbour by treating him
as you would like to be treated yourself. Do you dread the bankruptcy of a wasted Christian life? If you
shudder at the prospect of having to spend time in a prison UPON the earth: then what will the
prison in Sheol / Hades
UNDER it be like? Remember it is not enough to confess the debt - to say with
cold acknowledgment, I know that I am a sinner.
Confession of a debt is not its payment: God looks for our ACTIONS - our continued good actions
toward all others. These will cause God to hear and answer our prayers, more than any crying or intense pleading
by words alone, no matter eloquent they might be! A famous childrens hymn by John Burton, 1803-77, put it this way:-
I OFTEN say my prayers,
But do I ever pray?
And do the wishes of my heart
Go with the words I say?
I may as well kneel down
And worship gods of stone,
As offer to the living God
A prayer
of words alone.
For words without the heart
The Lord will never hear;
Nor will He to those
lips attend
Whose prayers are not
sincere.
Lord, teach me what I need,
And teach me how to pray;*
And do not let me seek Thy grace,
Not meaning what I say.
[* Too often we want God to answer our
prayers, in our time and in our way! Its as if we know
better how to direct and accomplish His plans and decisions for the
present time! Its as if God should not be allowing current events to
happen as they are happening today! Its praying for peace at a time when
God has declared that there will be no lasting peace; and believing God
will be persuaded to change world events today by our prayers!
All of this type of praying is not according to Gods
will! In fact is sounds like is a gun is being held against His head to do
as they think needs to be done: and when the words go on, go on
and not on my watch are heard by others in the
meeting, will somehow help to change Gods mind and His plans for
the present time! this religious behaviour can only be described, in my
opinion, as disgusting and disgraceful: which only emphasises the fact that these
words are coming from the lips of deceived Christians who should know better! These people are giving others who hear
their prayers a false HOPE, which will only
cause disappointment, distrust, and a falling away in the near future, when
their prayers are not answered at a time
when they think they should be!
To suggest that regenerate believers cannot, and do
not often pray like this, is like throwing sand in
our face! These prayers will only discourage our complete trust
in the our Lord Jesus who knows, sees, hears,
and controls
all
things: and has come down to earth to tell us the end of all things from the
beginning!]
Behold, ye trust in lying words, that
cannot profit. Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery,
and swear falsely, and burn
incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods
whom ye have not known, and come and stand
before me in this house, which is called by my
name and say, We are delivered; that ye may do all these abominations?
I will cast you out
of my sight, as I have cast out all of your brethren, even the whole seed
of Ephraim.
Therefore pray not for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them,
neither make
intercession to me: For I WILL NOT HEAR THEE: (Jer. 7: 8-10, 16, R.V. Cf.
Heb. 10: 26-30, R.V.
[2b] Thus saith
the Lord GOD: Woe to the
shepherds of
A continued neglect of accountability truths and conditional
promises, will
eventually bring upon us the ordered and measured steps of justice from the
Hand that bears the two-edged sword - that Word of God which modern day
hirelings, with their false
prophetic teachings, accompanied by
their anti-millennial misinterpretations have made blunt! Be earnest and repent. Is He, who Himself entered the prison, not to be believed? Obedience
has both present - [Acts 5: 32; cf. 1
John 3: 24, R.V.] - and future advantages - [Luke 22: 28-30.
cf.
Rev.
2:
25,
26, R.V.)] - which the careless, greedy, sensual, impatient, selfish, and canal regenerate believers, on the other side of a great gulf fixed (Luke 16: 26.
Cf. Luke 23: 42, 43, R.V.) may not
enjoy.
Robert Govett, commenting on 2 Peter 1:
10, 11,
A.V. - Wherefore the
rather brethren, give diligence to
make your calling and election sure; for if YE DO these things, ye shall never
fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus
Christ. - wrote the following:-
Stability in our Christian course is
the promised result of advancement in grace. Not a few Christians, and those of
long standing in the faith, do stumble
and fall foully. Their fall resounds far and wide. The ungodly triumph. The
case of Christ sustains a serious blow. Those, then, who so fall are not the
advancing Christians here spoken of. They had been for some time declining in knowledge and grace. At length came the temptation which
tripped their feet. After some time ceasing to ply the oar, the boat was dashed
by the current against the shore.
The believers every fall, though it may not
exclude positively and absolutely from the kingdom, renders his entrance uncertain. It is just the
contrary to rendering it sure. The one who has so fallen may recover himself, and be roused to
extra diligence for the future. But
repeated falls must strongly tend to
exclude finally from the promised millennial glory.
To DILIGENCE
God will furnish the abundant entrance into
the everlasting kingdom of Christ. Christ has two kingdoms; the temporary
one of the thousand years, and the eternal one. The temporary one is the porch
leading into the eternal one. All
believers will obtain an entrance into the eternal one. But to obtain part in the temporary, is to
have the rich or abundant entrance into the eternal. (R. Govett.)
* *
*
ADVICE TO THE DEBTOR
PART THREE
Give DILIGEANCE that thou mayest be delivered from him; lest he hail thee to the judge, and the judge DELIVER
THEE INTO PRISON. I tell thee,
THOU SHALT NOT
DEPART THENCE, till thou HAS PAID THE LAST
MITE: (Luke 12: 58, 59, A.V.)
So important is this truth - (the truth that God punishes
disobedient believers after death)
- and that Christ and His
apostles, did not cease to preach it to His redeemed
people. Those to whom Christ
addressed himself knew this truth;
and Peter, after being restored from
his fall, would continue to repeat
it. Known accountability truths
always need exhortation to keep them fresh in our minds. But especially is this true of the
importance of good works, and their
connection with the resurrection at the time of Christs return in millennial glory.
Now if those who were established in this truth, needed to be frequently reminded of it; how much more do those who have never heard of it need it made
known to them. When so many important truths have slipped away from
the teachings of the churches of Christ today, how should their true members be
otherwise than ignorant of future events? How should regenerate believers be
zealous of holy living, when Gods rewards for holy living are forgotten and
ignored?
But is all this emphasis upon the works of the regenerate, and the possibility of a future just
recompense of reward, not another form of purgatorial teaching similar to that found in Roman
Catholicism? NO, it is NOT! Roman Catholic teaching about
punishment after the time of death in Purgatory, is added to the sufferings of
Christ for ETERNAL salvation, thereby falsely teaching its
followers that Christs sufferings were NOT sufficient to purchase this ETERNAL salvation for ALL of His redeemed people!
Hades / Sheol is the
place where disembodied SOULS go immediately
after the time of death: You will not abandon me to Sheol [= Gk. Hades
(Psa. 16: 10. cf.
Acts 2: 27,
where grave in the NIV should be Hades as in the Greek text & R.V., A.S.V. and all
other good translations.]. He, seeing this before,
spake of the RESURRECTION
of Christ, that his SOUL was not LEFT IN HELL [Gk. Hades]: (Acts 2: 31, A.V.). What does he ascended mean except that he [Christ] also DESCENDED
[first] to the LOWER EARTHLY REGIONS? He who descended is the very one who ASCENDED - [after His resurrection, but never
before that time, (John 20: 17)] - higher than all the heavens ... (Eph. 4: 9, 10): and the captives He led in His train (verse 8), were His enemies not His
friends, (Col. 2:
15).
It was with reference to this FUTURE salvation - the salvation that is ready to be revealed IN THE LAST TIME - which is the goal of our faith, THE SALVATION OF SOULS, which the apostle Peter wants to
make known to Gods elect. 1 Pet. 1: 1, 5, 9, 10. And because, we do not know what a DAY may bring forth (Prov. 27:
1; James 4:
14), Peter stresses the importance of holy living, for we call on a Father who JUDGES EACH MANS WORK IMPARTIALLY (verse 17): and the outcome of that righteous
judgment, could mean that, at the time of Christs return, many of His servants
will
not attain unto the better resurrection out from the dead: Heb. 11: 35; Phil. 3: 11. Cf. Rev. 20: 4-6; Luke 14: 14; Luke 20: 35.
Nothing, it has been said, is more dark to the human mind than the future. It is a direction
in which we are unable to look. We can look back; we can look around us,
interpret events that are taking place, but the future truly is unknown.
Isaac said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my
death (Genesis 27: 2). It seems to me that when he spoke of being old, he was
saying that he expected to die before too long. If so, he was wrong, as he lived another 40 years after he uttered
those words! That underscores for us
that we truly do not know the future, even
when we feel we have many pointers that certain things are imminent.
Our natural state of ignorance
regarding the future increases therefore the value of that which
sheds light upon it. That is
what makes [Bible] PROPHECY not only relevant but invaluable.
As there is more than one kingdom of God - (a millennial kingdom, upon this
earth; and an eternal
kingdom upon a new earth, after this earth is destroyed) - there is also more
than one general resurrection of the dead: and the salvation of the soul has to do with the TIME of Resurrection, and the nature of the REWARDS (to be
distributed by the righteous Judge)
to each of His servants AT THE TIME OF the FIRST RESURRECTION, when Christ
returns to establish His millennial kingdom upon this earth.*
* Let it be carefully pondered that this
is no mere detail of a disputed prophecy, but is a fearful reminder of Heavens
summary of the former lives of those of His servants who will be judged worthy to be resurrected at this time. This
resurrection of reward is of practical urgency to us all; especially to all who
agree with me that this resurrection turns on a regenerate believers fidelity - Phil. 3: 11; Rev. 20: 4-6; Luke 20: 35.
All within the Church of God, who influence others to believe the contrary, are
making a fatal blunder by not disclosing to regenerate believers the possible loss
of their inheritance in the kingdom, Gal. 5: 13-21; Eph. 5: 1-7. There are those who would like to get rid of unpalatable
truths; but the Righteous Judge will not allow anyone to be cheated out of a
moral and righteous judgment: Thou shalt not depart thence, till thou hast paid the last mite.
The outstanding characteristic of this teaching of Christ,
which ought to make a wise man fear
Christs coming judgement seat, is that their will be no escape for any souls
that will be LEFT in Hades at the
time of His return.
Commenting upon the immediate context of our Lords words
above, an anonymous writer has exposed a divine truth which many of our modem-day bible teachers (so called)
take extreme measures to keep
concealed: -
Those that would purpose that
believers should not incur any punishment - rather, only affectionate
discipline for their training and correction, should take careful heed to the
gravity of our Lords declarations in Luke 12. It is not the possession of the talents that
determined the reward or punishment of the servants, it was their use of them. A believer who stands before
the Judgment Seat of Christ with no more than he had at conversion can expect
to receive a like recompense.
Some will argue, Surely, that servant who beat the slaves, was
an unbeliever. Though no such suggestion is implied by the parable. Far from
being a comparison of two different servants, what is portrayed is a change of mind in the wicked servant, showing the recompense of either good or bad stewardship. If the third servant were an unsaved
individual, his works could in no
way, and on no ground, be even considered for acceptance.
When Jesus said, You too, be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect, Peter asked, Lord, are you addressing this
parable to us,
or to everyone
else as well?
That Jesus statement implied both a
general warning to all believers, and a
specific warning to the apostles, is confirmed in His answer in verses47 and 48. The apostles, having
received much, would have greater
responsibility and accountability, while he who did not know the masters
will and committed deeds worthy of a few stripes, will receive a few. It is not
uncommon that many who teach on these parables, do so with the presupposition
that the references to punishment are references to eternal damnation.
They then conclude that the
unfaithful servant must, therefore, have been an unbeliever. However, even a
cursory study of Gods dealings with His [redeemed] people, will prove this to
be an unwarranted assumption. God DOES
PUNISH HIS PEOPLE.
Others will contend that the parable
shows that the unfaithful servant was a believer who lost his [eternal] salvation. But that would
make our [initial] salvation contingent upon
service, and deny the completed work of Christ upon the cross.
Perhaps an even more graphic analogy
is drawn by the Lord in the parable of Luke
19. For here, He says, A certain nobleman went to a
distant country to receive a kingdom for himself and then return. Then, after relating the
tasks which the nobleman assigned to his slaves, He continues, But his citizens hated him, and sent a delegation after
him saying, We do not want this man to
rule over us. The distinction between
the slaves [regenerate believers] and the citizens [unregenerate
believers], in this parable, is clear. The slaves were
rewarded or punished for their degree of service. The citizens who rejected the nobleman
were brought to him, and slain in his presence.
The difficulties which the parable
presents to both the Calvinist and the Arminian theologies are resolved only by
trying to force the scriptures to say something that they do not.
To assume that the absence of work
is evidence that an unregenerate spirit, is to negate the warnings to Christians
concerning the consequences of our disobedience to the commands of our Lord
Jesus Christ.
To assume that it is our ETERNAL life which is at risk, for
failing to attain to the holiness which Christ desires of every believer, is to add to the gospel of
grace, the necessity
of our works. If the security of the
saved depends on service, what limit of toil is necessary to preserve it? If a
serving believer must serve to be [eternally] saved, how much must he serve? Can service save one who is already saved?
God places [eternal] salvation before, and not after good works. (R. E. Neighbour.)
For example, we are offended by the
immoral conduct of Christians, particularly when such conduct is exposed by unbelievers
and flaunted as an indictment against Christianity. And so, we defend the
faith by saying to non-Christians, and even to ourselves, Surely, he is no
Christian. No Christian, we adamantly protest, could do such a thing.
But how often have the accusers
looked at a woman (man) to lust after her (him) in their heart, and thus,
according to Jesus, committed adultery with her in his heart (Matt. 5: 27)?
Do they therefore, ponder in their
heart, Surely, I am no Christian, for no Christian would do such a thing? No,
instead we compare ourself with the
immoral person and not with the standard of Christ.
And what guarantee has the Christian that he too will not fall into such
conduct tomorrow, or next week, or next month, or next year?
Our justification [by grace] is not preceded by, nor dependent upon, works as a
determinant of [this] justification. This is the Scriptural denial of the doctrine
that ETERNAL salvation depends in
part upon outward sanctification, so that no one can be assured of [eternal] salvation until he has
persevered in holiness to the end of life. (Lang.)
We are, most assuredly, told to judge those in the church, but
it is not their [eternal] salvation that we are judging; it is their CONDUCT. And Jesus said that the churchs decision to expel one from
fellowship is bound in heaven as well as upon earth (Matt. 18: 17, 18). And so, the sinner who
is justly cast out of the church,
and remains UNREPENTANT, will also be excluded from the fellowship of overcomers in the MILLENNIAL kingdom - not
from eternal life. God, alone, may exclude from eternal life, the one
who rejects His only begotten Son.
* *
*
ADVICE TO THE DEBTOR
PART FOUR
And why even of yourselves judge ye not what is right? For as thou art going with thine adversary before a ruler,
on the way give diligence to be quit of him; lest haply he drag thee unto the judge, and the judge shall deliver thee to the exactor, and the exactor shall cast
thee into prison. I tell thee, Thou shalt in no wise come out thence, till thou have paid
the very last mite: (Luke 12: 57-59, Numeric English New Testament).
In part three, we made mention of the future Salvation of the Soul, in this tract we are focused upon the question asked by our
Lord as recorded in verse 57:-
And WHY even of yourselves judge ye not the right? [Gk. the righteous thing]
The reader will notice a difference in the words used at the end
of the question above. It is not what is right but the right or the righteous thing. That is because in this revision
where rigorous police duty has been kept up against all manner of intruders,
and where the definite article the, is in the Greek permitted
where the English refuses it, a bell as it were is ringing to
attract attention,
Here, forsooth, GIVE HEED, reader,
Article HERE no article
there: a distinction, AND IT IS FOR THEE TO FIND WHEREIN IT IS.
I believe that the judgment mentioned here, is of yourselves. That is, it is self-judgment and NOT the
judging of others. We will, at the judgment seat of Christ, be held accountable
by the righteous Judge OF HOW WE HAVE JUDGED OURSELVES; of how we have, in the light of that judgment, behaved toward others after regeneration; and of how we have matured in
the faith: of how much debt [we may have accumulated], by our disobedience to Christs precepts!
This begs the question: What are we,
as sincere and humble Christians, now intending
to do about our daily shortcomings and past failures?
SUMMING UP
It is important for us no notice and benefit from the close
connection between these verses, and the subject matter of the whole chapter -
(Luke 12). The purpose of these latter verses
in this chapter is to sum up (or bring to a head), the teachings of our Lord to
His disciples (verse 1), to bear upon US
TODAY.
(1) We are to beware of false doctrines (12: 1), because of the terrible effect they
will have upon others by leading us and them away from the whole
truth. False teachings are so prominent within the
We have a saying, Great is the truth, and will prevail. That is
never so in this age. Truth is
always with the minority; and so
convinced am I of this that if I find myself agreeing with the majority on any
matter, I make haste and get over to the other side, for I know I am wrong. (Dr. A. T. Pierson.)
(2) We are told by
our Lord to fear God, who has
power to throw us into Hades (verse 5). Here is the scriptural proof that the
righteous Judge has a place where He can deal with His disobedient children - and He will not allow them to get out until they have paid the last penny!
(3)
God expects His redeemed people to be faithful to truths which the Holy Spirit
has disclosed to them from His Word; and servants of Christ are unfaithful when they
deliberately conceal responsibility truths from other Christians!
Therefore
seeing we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness, nor
handling the word of God deceitfully; but by the
manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every mans conscience in the
sight of God. [3] But if our
gospel is veiled, it is veiled to them that are
perishing: [4] in whom the god of this age hath blinded the minds of the
unbelieving, that the light of THE GOSPEL OF THE
GLORY OF CHRIST, who is the image of God
should not dawn upon them:
(2 Cor. 4: 2-4, R.V. & A.S.V.)!
Being a just Judge, God most certainly
will hold us accountable for any neglect or misuse of accountability
truths, which He
has given us to fully understand and disclose to others! And inasmuch
as it is appointed unto men once to die,
and after this cometh judgment:
(Heb. 9: 27, R.V.). That servant WHO KNOWS his masters will and does not get ready OR DOES NOT DO WHAT HIS MASTER WANTS will be beaten with many blows:
(verse 47).
The fact of the matter is that Gods
redeemed people are being STARVED TO
DEATH from hearing and accepting accountability truths and conditional
promises! These are constantly being hidden and withheld from regenerate
believers by apostate teachers who KNOW
and fully UNDERSTAND these
truths, but are unwilling to disclose them to the Lords redeemed people!
Why do we NOT JUDGE OURSELVES as often
as we should? It is because we are continually being tempted, influenced and deceived by Satan: and we are
allowing ourselves to be carried away by apostates, who know, but are doing all in
their power to prevent Christians - [Acts 11: 26b] - from hearing or fully understanding these truths!
I wrote to you
in my epistle to have no company with fornicators; [10] not altogether with the fornicatiors
of this world, or with covetous and extortioners,
or with idolaters; for
then must ye needs go out of the world: [11] but now I write unto you not to keep company, if any man that if
named a brother, be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner: with such a one no,
not to eat.
[12] For what have I to do with judging them that are without? Do not ye judge THEM THAT ARE WITHIN, whereas them that are
without God judgeth? Put away
the wicked man
from among yourselves: (1 Cor. 5: 9-13.)
[6: 9] Or know ye
not that the unrighteous shall NOT INHERIT the
[* Note the contrast of lifestyle the
apostle made in verse 11 by the words, - and such were some of you - [i.e., before
the time of their initial salvation - with their experiences after
receiving that salvation,] - ye were
washed, ye were sanctified,
but ye were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and in the Spirit of our God. He does NOT say at the time of writing
to them - ye ARE washed, Justified, sanctified, etc. He
was comparing their former experiences before becoming Christians, with
what was possible after Christan APOSTASY by some of you in the FUTURE! See 1
Cor. 10: 1-12. Also, cf. Gal. 5: 13-21; Eph. 5: 5-7. Do not
be deceived, God is not mocked -
the UNRIGHTEOUS
shall NOT INHERIT the
What are these unscriptural teachings?
(1) That our spirit can ascend into Heaven at the time death; and
there is no need to wait for our body to be united to it!
This theory taught by Spiritists who believe death is
resurrection. At death the soul clothes itself with a very ethereal or subtle
body, and rises up out of the corpse. This spirit-body is the spiritual body,
of which Paul speaks.
NO. It does NOT. This did not happen after our Lords death! and there is no
proof anywhere in Scripture for what spiritists believe and teach:
nothing at all in any of their false teachings in spiritualism: false teachings which many
regenerate believers are accepting today! Resurrection from the
dead, embraces the WHOLE man. That
is, all
that Death has separated, Resurrection - when our Lord Jesus will return - reunites.
Look and see - Rom.
10: 7;
Eph. 4: 9.
Cf.
John 3: 13; 14: 3; 2 Tim. 2: 17, 18; Rev. 6: 9-11; 14: 13; 20: 4, 5, R.V.
After surrendering His animating spirit
into His Fathers hands (Luke 23: 46), Jesus descended into Hades / Sheol; and from there, as a disembodied
soul Himself, preached to the spirits in
prison: 1 Peter 3: 19. For three days and
nights He was not seen
alive, until after the time when His spirit,
soul and body
were reunited at the time of His
RESURRECTION. He remained in
the underworld of the dead for three days and three
nights as a disembodied soul (Acts 2:
31, R.V.)
Christ rose in His capacity of firstfruits. Now the
firstfruits are a specimen of the whole harvest which is to follow: 2 Cor. 4: 14. Jesus Christ is the first-born from the dead. His other brethren who are
to be born after Him from the
dead, will then be like
Him in that birth: He indeed having the pre-eminence, but their resurrection
being after the pattern of His: Col. 1: 18; Rev. 1: 5.
The Swedenborgians and Spiritists assert, that man
is only temporarily a corporeal being. He is essentially a spiritual being: the
body is but the scaffold to the building; taken away for ever, after the soul
is matured at death. (R.
Govett.) See Spiritism A Foe to Christianity).
[36] And as they
spake these things, he - [the Resurrected Messiah] - himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. [37] But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they
beheld a spirit. [38] And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? and wherefore do reasonings arise in your heart? [39] See my hands and my
feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a
spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye behold me having. [40] And when he had said this, he shewed them his hands and his feet.
[41] And while they still disbelieved for joy, and wondered, he said unto
them, Have ye here anything to eat? [42] And they gave
him a piece of fish. [43] And he took it and did eat before them.
[46] and he said unto them, Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer, and rise again from the dead the third day. (Luke 24: 37-43, 46. R.V.).
(2) Beware of the danger of reading into
Scriptural texts what the texts do NOT teach! Two good examples of
this, can be found in 2 Cor. 5: 8 and 1
Thess. 4: 16.
In the former text, it is assumed by multitudes of regenerate
believers, that because Christ is now BODILY
present in Heaven; that this is where they will go immediately (as a spirit) after
death! Here is a total disregard of the apostles teaching in verse 4: For while we are in this tent, - (i.e., inside a mortal body, destined to decay immediately after the time of Death) - we groan and
are burdened, because we do NOT WISH TO BE UNCLOTHED but
to be clothed WITH OUR
HEAVENLY DWELLING - (i.e., with an immortal
body like that of our resurrected Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (see Luke 24: 37-39, R.V.) - so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by LIFE.
In the latter text: For the Lord himself will come down from heaven,
with a loud command, with
the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, AND THE DEAD SHALL RISE
first.
It is believed that this text declares that God will RESURRECT ALL the dead at this time! Nothing could be further from the truth! It is contrary to the numerous teachings of
Christ and His Apostles:-
(a) Those who are considered
worthy of taking part in that age - [i.e., the promised
millennium (Ps. 2: 8; Rev. 20: 5)] - and in the RESURRECTION
FROM THE DEAD
(Luke 20: 35, R.V.). (b)
that I may know him, and the
power of his - [i.e., Christs] resurrection, and the
fellowship of his sufferings,
becoming conformed
unto his death; if by any means I
may ATTAIN unto the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have
already obtained, or am already made perfect:
but I press on,
if so be that I may apprehend that for which also I was
apprehended by Christ Jesus: (Phil. 3: 10-12, R.V.). (c)
others
were tortured, not accepting their
deliverance; that they might obtain a better
resurrection
(d) And all these all, having
witness borne to them through their faith, RECEIVED NOT the promise, God having provided some
better thing concerning us, that APART FROM THEM they should NOT BE MADE
PERFECT: (Heb. 11:
35b-39, 40, R.V.
(3) By failing to understand what is
meant by the word SALVATION; and in particular, the expression the salvation of SOULS - the salvation that is ready to be REVEALED IN THE LAST TIME, which Peter has described as: the GOAL of your faith, the salvation of YOUR SOULS: (1 Pet. 1: 5-9, R.V.).
One of the better commentaries concerning this future
salvation is by Philip Mauro. Commentating on the Authorized Versions translation of Hebrews 10: 38, 39 he wrote:-
1. The words any man are introduced by the translators as the subject of the
verb draw back;
but the fact that they are in italic type
shows that they are without warrant in the original. The antecedent subject is
the just man,
who is to live by faith. The expression is the same that Paul used of himself
in Galations 2: 20,
the life which I now live in the flesh I live
by the faith of the Son of God. Jesus Christ
is not only the author, but also the finisher of faith. As already seen, it is only the [regenerate] believer, the man who has been
justified by faith, that can draw back. The unbeliever has not come to anything from which he could
draw back. There is no question at all as to the
correctness of the reading, if he draw back. The drawing back
to destruction is put in direct contrast with the living by faith, and going on to the saving of the soul. It is true that the believer cannot
draw back from his standing in
Christ. He cannot dray back from ETERNAL
life. But he needs to be warned lest he draw back from the
pilgrims place and return to the world.
2. It should be pointed out
that the word perdition should be destruction. The difference is
important. The people of God will surely suffer destruction if they draw back into the world.
Because it is polluted, it will destroy them with a sore destruction (Mic. 2: 10); that is, will involve them in great and irreparable [future] loss. But they will never come
into perdition.
3. The words of them that believe should read simply of faith. While the meaning is
substantially the same, yet the exact wording of faith is important, for the reason that this word faith announces the theme of chapter 11. That Great chapter is given
to the people of God for the very purpose of instructing them in regard to the nature of that faith which is effectual to the salvation of the soul.
(4) Take another example from the life of
Jacob and Esau. Why do we not put Esau first? Was it not Esau who was the firstborn of the twins? Is the loss of Esaus double
portion of the fathers inheritance* not
another very good reason why Christians should judge
themselves by continually looking to see what things
in this life they place at the top of their list of their priorities.
The loss of Esaus first-born
status, and his record in the book of Hebrews has an important significance for most regenerate people
today! Regenerate Christians can also lose their inheritance
in
the millennial
* For one mess of meat he
sold his birthright. With tremendous irony and perfect truthfulness all
earths passions are catalogued under a mess of
meat. It is the bartering for present
passion, for future [millennial] glory: it is mortgaging the - [promised (Ps. 2: 8; cf. Rev. 2: 5, 7; 25-27; 3: 21, R.V.)] - Kingdom
for
worldly gain: it is counting Gods conditional promises cheap. (D. M. Panton.)
The millennial Age will be a time, not only of reward for
those who have overcome by the blood of the Lamb, but also of chastisement for
such disobedient believers as will be found to have failed in their walk -
through indolence, or the minding of earthly things - and will, consequently,
be sentenced in abodes of the dead until the Last Day. For it will then appear, that, through their
lack of earnestness and prayer for the Holy Spirits help, their sanctification
was not perfected during their earth-life; and it must be so before they can
dwell forever in a new heaven and a new earth with the Lord. They did evil in
the body as well as good, and DID NOT JUDGE THEMSELVES and REPENT with bitter crying before the Lord: Therefore,
they must be judged by Him, and even as they did, so must they also receive a just
recompense of reward.
(5) Hence, the Judgment-seat of Christ
will dispense temporary chastisement
for trespasses, as well as rewards. This
is plainly indicated in the verses under our consideration, as well as in other
striking passages in the First Gospel, which, as we study them in due course,
will increase our knowledge of a solemn but disliked and much
neglected truth.
Hence the decisions issued from the Judgment-seat of Christ
will have the following results:-
Those servants of the Lord who
shall be found to have been faithful to be judged worthy of the First Resurrection, will immediately be made
Priests of God and of His Christ, and will reign with Him for a thousand years. They will thus enjoy the
great Sabbath rest that remains for the people of God, and will themselves rest
from their works, even as He did from His.
But the unfaithful servants will be
banished into the darkness of Hades / Sheol without the pale of the
Hence the need for
regenerate believers to act in
judgement upon themselves now, so that when the time finally arrives
to determine who will be judged worthy to
enter the coming Kingdom, they will
not be ashamed. The sacrifice of the Age to Come for the pleasures of this Age is
ratified at the Bema. Therefore, the millennial birthright potentially belongs to every
regenerate believer, but actually only to those who fulfil divine
conditions.
There are but few, when they come at the cross, cry, Welcome cross, as some of the
Martyrs did to the stake they were burned at; therefore, if you meet with the
cross in thy journey, in what manner soever it be, be not daunted, and say,
Alas, what shall I do now! But rather take courage, know that by the way of the cross is the way to the Kingdom: - Bunyan.
Take up your cross, then, in His strength,
And calmly every danger brave;
It guides you to a better
home,
And leads to conquest over the grave.
Take up your cross and follow Christ,
Nor think till death to lay it down;
For only those who
bear the cross
May hope to wear the
glorious crown.
- Charles William Everest,
1814-1877.
LET US PRESS ON, AND THIS WE WILL DO IF GOD PERMIT