Part 6

Now if this signification of the sun, moon, and stars, be correct, we need not employ much time in fixing the meaning of the terms "heaven," and "earth," when applied to the church of God. _Heaven_, or the atmosphere, is that in which the sun, moon, and stars appear; and by means of which they produce their effects. It is the grand reservoir of those particles, which, acted upon by the sun, and thus set in motion, cause heat; and preserve on the earth, life and vegetation. And the earth is that body, on the surface of which vegetation flourishes and life appears. This at once points out the figures as applying to the _inward feelings_ and _outward life_ of an _individual_; or, to the internal state of the church and its outward forms and ceremonies. It is in what the apostle calls "the inward man," that _love_, _faith_, and _knowledge_ produce their first effects; and by operating upon the feelings and affections of the mind, cause spiritual light and heat--true wisdom and divine love. And these produce a corresponding effect in the outward conduct, bringing forth "fruits meet for repentance,"--the living forms and witnesses of religion. As the sun shines in the atmosphere and produces fruit on the earth, so love shines in the soul and brings forth effects in the conduct, either in the case of an individual, or of the church as an assembly of individuals. By the same rule of analogy we may perceive what is meant by _the clouds_. These in the natural world, are vapors exhaled from the earth by the heat of the sun; and which condensed into form in the atmosphere, serve to perform their important functions. They temper and lessen in some degree the heat of the sun; they serve to beautify the appearance of the heavens; they are the great depository of rain, and the principal agents in the production of tempests. That which corresponds to them must, therefore, be something springing from the outward state of man, which is the grand depository of truth (spiritual water), behind which the glory of the Divine Love and Wisdom is seen, and which accommodates this wisdom to the capacity of mankind. And this we find in the outward letter of the Word of God. The historical narratives, the figures of prophecy, the parables of the Saviour, are all images rising from the world and the temporal state of mankind; and thus, like the _clouds_, they have their origin from the earth. Within this outward body of image and narrative are contained the treasures of wisdom and knowledge; it is the grand source from which truth must be drawn. And the glory of God shines through the whole, imparting to every natural form the splendor of divinity. And as the material images of the Bible serve to accommodate the wisdom of God to the capacity of his creatures, so have they often been the cause of those convulsions in the church, which seemed even to threaten her existence. "The _letter_" has often killed, when unaccompanied in the mind with the "_spirit_ which giveth life." We cannot, therefore, find in the figure before us anything which so completely accords with its origin and design, as the outward letter of the Word of God--the clouds of the Christian heaven.

The meaning of the principal symbols being thus stated, we pass to the connexion which they bear to each other in the predictions of the Saviour. We have already noted that the prophecy contained in Matthew, and recorded by the other Evangelists, refers in its primary application to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman armies; but in its more extensive meaning it points to the state of the Christian church in her period of decline and corruption, of which Jerusalem in her last days was a fitting type. With respect to this it is declared "_the sun_ shall be darkened"--the Divine Love obscured and lost; "and the moon shall not give her light"--faith and charity shall sink in darkness; "and the stars"--the knowledge of truth "shall fall from heaven,"--no longer exist in the minds of her members; "and the powers of heaven"--the whole internal state of the church "shall be shaken"--shall be thrown into complete disorder and confusion. This meaning, to which we are led by the connexion and correspondence of the natural symbols, points to a time (not when the universe shall be destroyed, but) when true religion shall have ceased to exist in the church:--"when the love of many shall wax cold:" when true faith will no longer be found; and when knowledge--the knowledge of genuine spiritual truth--shall have passed away. The same things are described in the vision of the apostle. "There was a great earthquake"--a shaking and disorder in the state of the church; "and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood, and the stars of heaven fell to the earth,"--the knowledge of truth which once shone in the _mind_, sunk into mere outward _creeds_ and confessions of faith; "and the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together"--the whole internal state of the church was thrown into confusion, and every inward feeling of religion perished.

The event immediately following is the appearance of the Son of Man in the clouds, with a trumpet; and since it is confessed that a trumpet signifies "the call of the Gospel," or as I would express it, the manifestation of truth; and as the _clouds_ correspond to the _outward form_ of the Word, the appearance of the Lord in the clouds and attended by trumpets, must signify the manifestation of spiritual love and truth in the letter of Scripture: and this is supported by what is afterwards said to be the consequence; "a new heaven and a new earth,"--a new state of the church both internal and external, both as regards inward feelings and outward conduct.

That this interpretation is true, I call upon no one to believe; but that it is probable will, I think, be confessed by all; and that it is in perfect harmony with the infinite designs of God toward his rational creatures, as well as with his character as a Being of infinite Love, will be equally acknowledged. Whether there has been a period in the Christian church (as there certainly was in the Jewish) when the above description was applicable to her; when religion had sunk into mere formality; when bigotry and intolerance both in priests and people, cut up charity by the roots; when faith was a mere body from which the spirit had departed; when the clergy were mere formalists, and the people were sensualized; when sacred knowledge was neglected by the one and unknown to the other: whether, I say, such a period _has_ yet arrived, and if so, whether it was _eighty_ years ago, or eight hundred, it is not my province now to inquire. My object is to show that the images used by the sacred penmen have reference to such a state, and to a subsequent restoration; and this I have shown by the rule or law of analogy existing between spiritual and natural things, as well as by the grand design of the Word of God in which those images occur.

And if it be probable that such is really the fact, then the design with which I commenced my task is completed. If the natural sense of the words of Scripture is absurd--if the best commentators themselves admit that in their outward application the words have no reference to the destruction of the natural world--and if, considered in their internal meaning, they relate to the church, its decline, and restoration; then there is no proof in the Scriptures of the dissolution of the visible universe; but strong evidence that it will never take place.

Let us, however, before leaving the subject, take a hasty glance at the two doctrines which have been presented. The first declares that after creating the universe, and endowing it with life and beauty; after forming man as a candidate for eternal glory, and after raising up a church which it is said was to endure "for ever," God will at a future time (for what reason, or to answer what purpose, is unknown,) destroy the fabric he has created; throw the whole universe into confusion and reduce it to ashes. That He will, for some reason equally unknown, put an end to the human race, and no more bring rational creatures to eternal happiness; that heaven will be closed, and not another candidate admitted; and that the church will then cease on earth, and never again be restored. And this supposition is founded on vague and mysterious texts of Scripture, and on a literal interpretation of figures which the most learned confess they cannot comprehend.

The other doctrine maintains that God, having created the world and peopled it with inhabitants, will continue it in existence; and that though religion will in the "latter ages" decline, yet at length "the Lord will appear in the brightness of his glory," will destroy evil and false-hood among men,--restore the world to its first state of purity; and that it shall then for ever become one vast temple, from which a ceaseless song of praise shall continually arise; while its inhabitants, prepared and preparing for a higher state, shall pass in succession into the eternal rest of God; and that the earth shall therefore be a nursery for glory,--a place of trial for a continual race of candidates for heaven.

This is a consummation worthy of the Creator,--worthy of the infinity of his nature and perfections,--worthy of the plan of redemption which He became incarnate to effect. It is agreeable to the dictates of the soundest reason, and in accordance with the hopes and wishes of every man who has not bowed down his reason to the idol of popular opinion. While the opposite tenet sets reason at defiance, makes the Bible teach what is practically absurd, and stands in opposition to the opinion of some of the most learned among its own advocates.

We cannot conclude this little treatise more appropriately than in the words of a writer often quoted in these pages.

"The doctrines or principles which I have stated and defended in this work, I believe to be the truths of God. Those against which I have argued, I believe to be either false or unproved. The doctrine which cannot stand the test of rational investigation, cannot be true. We have gone too far when we have said 'such and such doctrines should not be subjected to rational investigation, being doctrines of pure revelation.' I know no such doctrine in the Bible. The doctrines of the Scripture are doctrines of _eternal reason_; and they are revealed because they _are such_. Human reason could not have found them out; but when revealed, reason can both apprehend and comprehend them. It sees their perfect harmony among themselves, their agreement with the perfections of the Divine Nature, and their sovereign suitableness to the nature and state of man: thus reason approves and applauds. Some men cannot reason, and therefore they declaim against reason, and proscribe it in the examination of religious truth."

Men may incorporate their doctrines in _creeds_, or articles of faith, and sing them in _hymns_; and this may be both useful and edifying if the doctrines be _true_. But in every question which involves the eternal interests of man, the _Holy Scriptures_ must be appealed to in union with _reason_ their great commentator. He who forms his _creed_ or _confession of faith_ without these, may believe anything or nothing, as the cunning of others or his own caprice may dictate. Human creeds and confessions have been often put in the place of the Bible, to the dishonor both of revelation and reason. Let _those_ go away, let these be retained, whatever be the consequence.

[1] See on this subject, "The Plenary Inspiration of the Scriptures asserted," by Rev. S. Noble:--a work well worthy the perusal of every Christian, and which deserves a place in every library.

[2] See Wesley's Sermons. Sermon xv. "preached before the Hon. Sir Edward Clive, one of the judges of his Majesty's court of common pleas, in St. Paul's Church, Bedford, on Friday, March 10, 1758."

[3] Dr. Clarke has a very curious note on this passage. He supposes that the "noise" will be occasioned by the action of electric fire, on the watery particles of the atmosphere. These, being divided into their two component _gases_, the one will ascend into the higher regions, and the other float on the earth's surface. Thus, he says, the account of the apostle is "philosophically correct." Whether this be the _apostle_, or whether such account is correct in any degree, let common sense judge.

[4] This passage in its mere outward application, refers to a temporal overthrow in the land of Idumea; it has also, however, an acknowledged relation to the triumphs of the Gospel, and the overthrow of its enemies. Still, it makes little difference in the strength of the argument, to which event it is referred. Such descriptions have been given, they have been fulfilled, yet in no case literally. This is all that need be proved.

[5] See Sir Isaac Newton,--Locke,--Dr. A. Clarke,--Burkitt, etc.

[6] See Dr. Adam Clarke's remark upon this passage.

[7] Birkitt's Notes on the New Testament.

[8] For further remarks on this text, see "Noble's Plenary Inspiration of the Scriptures."

[9] Dr. A. Clarke, in loc.

THE END.

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