Part 4

If, then, various and multiplied events are described as occurring _on the earth, after_ the heavens had departed like a scroll, and the islands were moved out of their places, nothing can be more clear than that the destruction of the earth is not here alluded to; for if the world is to be destroyed under the _sixth_ seal, then no events can happen _upon it_ under the _seventh_, since it will then have no existence; but as such events _are_ described as passing _in the world_ under the _seventh_ seal, then that world cannot previously be destroyed under the _sixth_ seal.

And in this opinion we are, as before, supported by the advocates of the doctrine themselves. The sealing of the tribes is almost universally acknowledged to signify the preservation of the church, under those heavy and forthcoming calamities represented by the effects of the seven trumpets. And as this preservation, and these calamities, occur _after_ the darkening of the sun, and the falling of the stars, the latter event is generally supposed to prefigure (not the destruction of visible nature, but) some great change in the political or religious constitution of the world. The precise period to which this change is to be referred, has, however, divided the opinions of the learned. Some apply it altogether to the Jews, and suppose that their destruction in Judea and at Jerusalem was so dismal that it was represented to John as the darkening of the sun, and the moon looking like blood, and the stars falling. Others apply it to the overthrow of Paganism and the destruction of the heathen emperors; and accordingly by the earth quaking,--the sun becoming black,--the moon becoming blood, and the stars falling from heaven to earth, is to be understood the great changes that were made in the Roman empire by the overturning of the Pagan state. Others again apply it to "the great and horrible confusion of the Christian world under Antichrist, when Christ the Sun of Righteousness began to be obscured; that is, his doctrine darkened,--the moon or church turned into blood,--the stars or pastors fallen from heavenly offices, the Scriptures, like the heavens rolled up, forbidden to be read, the mountains, (king and princes) in jeopardy,--and the islands brought under Antichrist's yoke and tyranny." Very few venture to apply it to what is commonly called the "end of the world;" and none can do it without charging the apostle with inconsistency, by affirming that it shall take place at a definite period of time; and then speaking of events that are to occur in the world _after_ that time, that is, after the world shall have been destroyed!

On this passage the commentator whom we have already quoted observes,

"A great earthquake," that is, "a most stupendous change in the civil and religious constitution of the world." "The _sun_"--the ancient Pagan government of the Roman empire, "_was totally darkened_; and like a black hair sackcloth, was degraded and humbled to the dust. The _moon_--the ecclesiastical state of the same empire, _become as blood_, was totally ruined; their sacred rites abrogated; their priests and religious institutions desecrated; their altars cast down; their temples destroyed, or turned into places of Christian worship. The _stars of heaven_--the gods and goddesses, demi-gods and deified heroes, of their poetical and _mythological heaven_, prostrated indiscriminately, and lay as useless as the figs or fruit of a tree shaken down before ripe by a tempestuous wind. _And the heaven departed as a scroll._ The whole system of Pagan and idolatrous worship, with all its spiritual, secular, and superstitious influence, blasted, shriveled up, and rendered null and void as a parchment scroll when exposed to the action of a strong fire. And every mountain--all the props, supports, and dependencies of the empire; whether regal allies, tributary kings, dependent colonies, or mercenary troops, were all moved out of their places, so as to stand no longer in the same relation to that empire and its worship, support, and maintenance, as they formerly did. And _island_:--The heathen temples, with their precincts and inclosures, cut off from the common people, may be here represented by _islands_."[9]

Like the former passage, therefore, this is rendered nugatory as a proof of the dissolution of the universe; and rendered so, too, by the admission of its friends. As that referred to the _Jewish heaven_ which passed away at the destruction of the city of Jerusalem, so this is affirmed to apply to the _mythological heaven_ of the Pagans, which was dissolved at the conversion of Constantine to Christianity; and to have no allusion to the system of material nature. Here are two of the strongest passages thrown aside as useless in the controversy; and we shall quickly perceive that, when closely examined, the advocates of the doctrine equally cast off, if not the whole, at least the greater part, of the remainder.

Indeed, as I have already remarked, the connexion of the passage is such as will by no means admit of any literal burning of the earth; so that, even though its inapplicability to the subject had _not_ been allowed, yet would the inconsistency attendant on such a meaning, have pleaded loudly for its rejection.

We pass now to consider the next proof, which occurs in the twentieth chapter of the same book: "And I saw a great white throne and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead small and great stand before God; and the books were opened," etc. In connection with this stands the first verse of the twenty-first chapter: "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away, and there was no more sea."

Upon this passage we may repeat the remark which we applied to the foregoing: that the events which follow this descent of the Saviour, and which are stated as its consequences, are such as apply only to the church of God on earth; and that, therefore, the words before us cannot point to any dissolution of the universe. The immediate effects of the passing away of the heaven and the earth, are the formation of a new heaven and a new earth, and the descent of "the holy city New Jerusalem." This latter event the celebrated Dr. Hammond declares cannot refer to the state of glorified saints in heaven, but must signify some peculiar benefit bestowed upon the church on earth. The expression "descending out of heaven from God," at once determines its reference to a state of things below; and it no doubt relates to the restoration of Christianity to its primitive purity. In the very same manner does Dr. Clarke explain the passage, though he evidently betrays a wish to find within it a proof of the dissolution of all things. "The New Jerusalem," says he, "doubtless means the Christian church in a state of great prosperity and purity:" and alluding to the description given of her, he observes, that "it has been _most injudiciously_ applied to _heaven_." If, then, the consequence of the passing away of the first heaven is to usher in (not eternal glory, but) a prosperous state of the church on earth, it must follow in course that such a passing away of the heavens must refer to a change and alteration in the church, and not in the natural world;--to the conclusion and departure of a state of darkness, and the commencement of a new state of light and affection. As the former _Jewish heaven_ of types and shadows departed at the first coming of the SON OF GOD, and as the _mythological heaven of Paganism_ was "shriveled up" at the triumph of the Gospel, so must the _modern Christian heaven_ of ignorance and evil pass away at the Second Coming of the SON OF MAN; and to it will succeed a _new heaven_ of purity and peace.

In this application of the passage, we are supported by the explanation of the above commentators. They agree in defining heaven and earth figuratively, to mean the state of the world and of the church;--of the Jewish world, when applied to the Jews;--of the Pagan world, when applied to the Heathen: and by the self-same mode of interpretation, we are justified in applying it to the _Christian world_ in its reference to Christians. In no case can it be explained of the visible world of matter; for the passages being acknowledged to be figurative, it must, as in the other instances, bear the figurative meaning.

Having thus noticed the only two texts in the Revelations, which seem, in the least, to bear upon the subject, I may be allowed again to repeat my surprise, that persons should be found attempting to support a doctrine by the literal sense of this book. Those among the advocates of the popular belief, who have most carefully studied the prophecy, protest their ignorance of its meaning and application. "I cannot pretend to explain the book," says the writer above quoted; "I do not understand it. I repeat it, I do not understand the book; and I am satisfied, that not one who has written on the subject, knows anything more of it than myself."--"What the prophecies mean, and when and _how_ they are to be fulfilled, God in heaven alone knows." It "is termed a _Revelation_; but it is a revelation of _symbols_;--an exhibition of _enigmas_, to which no particular solution is given; and to which God alone can give the solution." "To pretend to say, (observes Calmet,) what this new heaven and new earth mean, and what are their ornaments and qualities, is, in my opinion, the greatest of all presumptions." Yet, into this presumption do the generality of Christians fall, who, amidst this candid confession of learned ignorance, bring forth with the greatest confidence the literal sense of the book, to support a doctrine which length of time has seemed to render sacred.

The words of the apostles now demand our attention; and with respect to these we notice a fact which is necessary to the proper understanding of their ideas; that is, that the apostles were themselves ignorant both of the time when, and the manner how, the second coming of the Lord would be accomplished; and that they have, therefore, when speaking upon this subject, carefully abstained from giving any opinion of their own, confining themselves entirely to the words of the Saviour, or paraphrasing them without altering the symbolic images.

This circumstance in no degree detracts from that extraordinary illumination with which the apostles were endowed. They were men raised up by God, and filled with the Divine influence, in order that they might propagate in the world, and among all nations, the religion of Christ; but it does not appear that among the supernatural gifts which they received, the gift of _prophecy_ was included, except in the case of the apostle John. Yet, even if we allow, for the sake of argument, that they did _possess_ this gift, it would by no means follow that they perfectly understood their own predictions. It is the peculiar nature of prophecy, that its proper meaning is not known until the time of its fulfillment; and this was especially the case with the Jewish writers who foretold the first advent of the Saviour. Although their predictions seem now so clear and strong, yet both the prophets themselves and their followers, were at the time ignorant of their precise meaning; and hence arose the absurd notions which the Jews entertained of a temporal salvation and an earthly Saviour. The gift of prophecy was, therefore, except in very rare instances, accompanied by entire ignorance of the manner of its fulfillment. It does not, however, appear that this gift was bestowed in general upon the apostles; their knowledge of the second coming of the Saviour was derived entirely from the words of the Saviour; and of the express meaning of these words, as referring to a future event, they were completely ignorant. In quoting his prediction they, therefore, seem to have held a persuasion that this second coming was very speedily to be accomplished. Thus they speak of the "day of the Lord" as "at hand,"--of "the Judge standing at the door:" and Paul, in particular, seems to have believed that some of the Christians of that day, if not himself among them, would live to see its approach.

Whether this latter opinion be true or not, certain it is that the words of the apostles had such an effect upon the first Christians, that they were in momentary expectation of the appearance of the Lord. During the first nine centuries after his ascension, a general idea prevailed that his second coming would speedily take place; and when, after waiting nine hundred years, they found their expectations disappointed, they still looked to the one thousandth year to usher in this great event; and so powerfully did this opinion operate upon the world, that rich and poor flocked in great numbers to the Holy Land, there to await his appearance. The wealthy sold their possessions, or gave them away to charitable institutions; kings quitted their thrones, and subjects their employment, under the impression that "the end of all things was at hand," and that the world was of no further value. Such, then, was the effect of a misapplication of prophetic language; and though nearly nineteen hundred years have gone by, yet are the Christian churches still following in the steps of their predecessors, holding the literal sense of the Word in defiance of reason, and looking for the Lord's personal appearance in the clouds of heaven, though common sense proclaims its improbability.

But to return. From a comparison of the descriptions of the apostles with the predictions of the Lord, it is easy to perceive whence they quoted. In many instances the two accounts are almost word for word the same; in others they are enlarged; but in none is the connexion of events, or the prophetic symbols, disturbed. "The day of the Lord (says Peter,) shall come as a _thief in the night_, in which the heavens shall _pass away_ with a great noise." Here it is easy to perceive whence the words of the apostle were drawn; for we have only to compare them with those of our Lord, to be convinced that it was from these the description is taken. "Heaven and earth (says the Saviour) shall _pass away_, but my words shall not pass away." "Know this, that if the good man of the house had known at what hour _the thief_ would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through." Again, Paul declares, "The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the _archangel_ and _the trump_ of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first." Here, too, the prophecy is quoted from the Saviour's declaration: "He shall send his angels with a _great sound_ of a _trumpet_, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." Once more the Apostle John says: "Behold, he cometh _with clouds_; and every eye shall _see_ him, even they that pierced Him; and all _the tribes of the earth_ shall wail because of Him:" where the allusion is to these words: "Then shall appear the sign of the coming of the Son of Man in _heaven_; and then shall all the _tribes of the earth mourn_, when they _see_ the Son of Man _coming in the clouds_ of heaven, with power and great glory." "Behold, (says the Lord) I _stand at the door_ and knock;" "Behold," says the apostle, echoing the Saviour's words, "the Judge _standeth at the door_."

It would exceed my present limits to enter fully into this subject. Suffice to say, that in most passages the reference to our Lord's predictions may be plainly discerned; and in all the prophetic representatives are retained: The sun,--the moon,--the stars,--the earth,--the heavens, darkness, dissolution, and fire--the very images which are used by the Saviour, are likewise used by the apostles, and used, too, with a reference to the _same period_--the last days of the Christian church. If these images, when used by the prophets and by the Redeemer, are figurative, then, as the same _images_ applied to the _same period_, they are figurative when employed by the apostles. Or, if the dissolution and burning of the earth described by the latter are literal facts, then the burning of the earth and its dissolution described by the former, are literal facts likewise; for the _same images_ applied to the _same period_, must have the _same meaning_.

If, then, these observations be correct, and I see not how they can be fairly controverted;--if the apostles did not, except in one instance, possess the power of foretelling future events, and if their descriptions of the second coming of the Lord are gathered from his own words, or from the prophetic writings, then we must judge of their meaning by that of the prophecies whence they are derived. This is a plain and self-evident conclusion. If I quote the words of any writer, the meaning of the quotation must be gathered from the works of that writer; and more especially if I quote for a similar purpose, and profess myself one of his disciples and admirers. The passages, therefore, which occur in the apostolic writings, are by no means decisive proofs of the doctrine in debate. As quotations and paraphrases of the Lord's words and those of the prophets, they must, by every rule of fair criticism, have a similar meaning. We have seen that the former are, by the acknowledgment of the most learned writers, figurative and correspondent; the just inference therefore is, that the latter, as quotations and paraphrases of them, must be figurative also.

4. The last part of our proposition comes now before us, namely: that the doctrine of the destruction of the universe is opposed to the end of creation, and to the character of God as a Being of unbounded love and infinite wisdom. I may here be told of the tendency of matter to dissolution; of its mutability and constant change; of the elements of destruction which nature herself engenders; and of all those by which reason and science have sought to gloss over the popular tenet. But the _mutability_ of nature is no proof of final dissolution. _Mutability_ is liability to change, or a continual tendency to remove from one state to another. Whatever is changeable, or whatever can experience alteration, is, therefore, mutable. But this mutability attaches not to material nature alone, but to all creation; the highest archangel in the highest heaven, as well as every spirit embodied on earth, is a mutable creature. The state of glory in the eternal world, as well as the state of man below, is a state of _mutability_,--a state in which there are continual changes either for the better or the worse. This will appear plain if we consider that, whatever is immutable cannot be acted upon by any higher power; for the action of such a superior cause supposes a corresponding _effect_ and that effect supposes a _change_ in the object acted upon, in one way or another; and, consequently, any object upon which an effect can be produced, must be a mutable or changeable object. Now, in the case of angelic beings, God, the First Cause of their existence, is continually acting upon them by his love and wisdom, and thus raising them eternally in the scale of blessedness: such alteration of their state from glory to glory is a change,--an effect produced upon them by an Almighty Cause; and this effect is at once a proof that angels themselves are _mutable_ creatures, or liable to change. The same may be said of the state of blessedness; it is continually receiving fresh supplies of glory from the Fountain of life, and is thus _changing_--becoming more and more blessed: and it equally applies to the spirit of man. This, like the mind, is never "at one stay;" nor, perhaps, does the state of the mind remain precisely the same for two hours together. The angels of heaven, the state of the blessed, the spirit of man, are all changeable. God is the _only immutable Being_; for He alone cannot be acted upon or changed by any higher power; and hence it is one of his exclusive prerogatives to be "without variableness or shadow of turning." If, then, the angelic hosts, as well as heaven itself, are mutable, while yet they endure for ever, the mutability of nature is no proof at all that she, any more than the former, is approaching dissolution.

"Nature herself," as one well observes, "effects her renovation from her decay." Matter, though decomposed and subjected to ten thousand changes, loses none of its essential properties; but continually assuming new forms, gives variety to the world, without being at all altered from its original nature. Indeed, it has been strongly asserted that there has not been a particle of matter lost from the creation to the present moment; changed every particle may have been, but still there is not one wanting; and if this be the case, such continual change is no proof of approaching destruction.

We are accustomed to look upon God as a Being of infinite Love; and, perhaps, at this stage of the subject it may be well to inquire, what motive induced the Lord first to create the visible universe; and what was the end proposed in its creation. In the breast of the Divine Being there could exist but one motive from which creation could spring; and this was Love. But the Love of God being infinite, could only have respect to an eternal work; hence the end of creation was to make as many beings as possible happy, and this to all eternity. In order to accomplish this, infinite _Love_ clothing or embodying itself in _wisdom_, made the worlds. According to the words of the apostle, "By the Word (or the wisdom of God,) were the heavens made;" intending these as the habitations of rational beings, who after having passed through a short state of probation, might finally enter upon a spiritual state and enjoy perfect happiness. The wisdom of God, being the manifestation of his love, in completing this work, arranged everything in the most perfect order; and accordingly every part of the universe is formed in the manner best fitted to promote the end of its existence,--the everlasting happiness of man. In our own world, where evil has produced a corresponding change in outward things, even that change itself is good, since, while it reminds man of his corruption, it leads him to seek a better habitation.

Thus far our assertions are easy of proof. GOD IS LOVE;--not merely _loving_, but LOVE, the Spring and Fountain of all derived existence. And love, even in its derivative form in the bosom of man, is an active passion, continually seeking for objects on whom to bestow its affection. As is the stream, then, so is the fountain: God being Love in its Infinite Essence, must ever have sought to form creatures capable of being rendered eternally happy; and hence the motive that led to creation. But _love_ always manifests itself in the understanding or thought; and by the thought is brought into outward action. It is the thought or wisdom of man in which his love first takes a definite form; this serves it for a guide, and directs its operations: and so again is it with the Being in whose "image" we are formed. The manifestation of infinite Love, is infinite Wisdom; and this brings the power into outward act: by infinite Wisdom, therefore, as the acting form of infinite Love, were rational beings and their varied habitations created. But this perfect wisdom can never produce anything unlike itself; for, as is the _cause_, so is the _effect_; hence the frame of nature which that wisdom calls into being, must be like itself, the most perfect and complete that could possibly exist. The _motive_, therefore, which led to creation was _Love_; its _cause_, Wisdom; its _end_, continued and eternal happiness.