all those earthly and infernal powers destructive of the perfect order and complete happiness of the universe, 'then shall come the end' of the Son's mediatorial kingdom; then shall the Son of God deliver up the kingdom to God the Father,' in whom nevertheless the Son and the Spirit will still have the dominion belong. ing to their divine rank: And thus, while the man Christ, still united to the Word, shall be the first 'subject of him, who put all things under him,' God (namely the Father, including the Word, and the Holy Ghost) will be all in all for ever. (1 Cor. xv. 24, &c.) But I return to Samuel.

Although, in his time, the Jews incurred already the horrible guilt of rejecting the Lord of Glory from being their ostensive King, they did not, they could not put an end to his supreme authority. The theocracy, though impugned, was not destroyed. Jehovah, King of the Jews, still exercised his prerogative, in appoint. ing worshipful types of that divine Prophet, who was to declare and do the will of God better than Samuel, and of that divine Priest and King, on whom he would transfer the Shekinah, the divine glory, which rested in the tabernacle, when Jehovah filled it with adorable displays of his presence. Hence he continued Samuel s his Prophet, and by his means foretold, both by Words and typical actions, the removal of all ungodly Priests, the destruction of all wicked Kings, and the appearance of Christ, the man after his own heart, who should do all his pleasure, and of whose divine anointing, that of Aaron, David, and Elisha, was but a faint shadow.*

As Job speaks of the Messiah, when he says, I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the atter day upon the earth,' (Job xix. 25 ;) so his afflictions were a type of the tribulation of the righteous, and his happy end was an emblem of the prosperity of

Here there seems to be a chasm in the work.-Mr. Fletcher un abtedly meant to have drawn more proofs or illustrations of h trine from the historical books before he came to the poetical an Popbetical

the church, in the day when our Lord shall stand on the Mount of Olives,' and 'gather his saints,' that they may see the vengeance, and wash their feet in the blood of the ungodly.' (Psalm lviii. 10.)

David, in the beginning of the 22d Psalm, describes the amazing sorrows of the Messiah, and the manner in which his heel was bruised, when his hands and his feet were pierced' by the seed of the serpent. And at the end of that Psalm, he declares that the gather ing of the people shall be unto Shiloh: That the ends of the world shall remember themselves, and turn unto the Lord' in his Son, and all the kindreds of the earth shall worship before him,' for (after the day of vengeance) the kingdom shall be the Lord's, and he shall be the Governor among the nations. Then shall the meek inherit the earth, then shall they eat, worship, and be satisfied;' enjoying without alloy the days of refreshing, which the Lord's presence will bring to those who shall have been faithful unto the end, whether they shall be of those dead saints, who shall have a part in the first resurrection, which shall take place in the beginning of the days of refreshing; or whether they shall be among the saints, who then shall be found alive.

Isaiah is full of this doctrine; take one or two instances out of a hundred. You know, Sir, that in the language of the prophets, as Jacob and the house of Joseph signify the godly, so Edom and the house of Esau stand for the wicked, the enemies of God's holy church. Isaiah had a prophetic view of the Messiah, performing his strange work, his work of judgment, and travelling in the greatness of his strength,' as Lion of the tribe of Judah, when he says, (Isa. lxiii. 1, 6,) Who is he that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? This that is glorious in his apparel, (Rev. xix. 12,) travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness (answers Shiloh,) mighty to save :-Aud I will tread [all the Edomites] in mine anger, and trample then in my fury, and my garments shall be sprinkled wit

!

their blood, for the day of vengeance is in my heart, and the year of my redeemed is come. In mine anger I will tread down the people [who obstinately trample my blood and my followers under foot.] I will make them drunk in my fury, and will bring their strength down to the ground.' The prophet, struck with awe, breaks out into a song of praise to the Lord for his 'great goodness towards the house of Israel,' the righteous to whom the Lord condescends to give rest from those who turned the earth into cruel habitations, and who made the very houses of God dens of thieves, murderers, and hypocrites. (Verses 7, 8.) This song of thanksgiving and praise was echoed back by St. John, when he had a prophetic view of the Messiah 'coming in righteousness to judge and make war' on all the anti-christian powers. (Rev. xix. 1—11.)

Isaiah speaks next of the days of refreshing which shall follow those days of vengeance, which shall have such an effect upon the nations that they shall flock into the church as pursued doves to their windows. 'The Lord (says he to the righteous) shall appear to your joy; and those who cast you out for my name's sake shall be ashamed. A voice of noise from the city! A voice from the temple! A voice of the Lord who rendereth recompence to his enemies!' Now for the effect of these voices mixed with the sound of the gospel trumpet: Before she [the New Jerusalem] travailed, she brought forth: Before her pain came she was delirered. Shall the earth be made to bring forth in a day, or shall a nation be born at once? Yes, saith the Lord. Shall I bring to the birth and not cause to bring forth saith thy God. [It is done!] Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, ye that love her: Be glad with her, ye that mourned for her. Come, that ye may suck, and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolatious: That ye may milk out, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory. For thus saith the Lord, Behold I extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the Gentiles, [converted,] like a flowing stream. Then shall ye suck; ye shall be borne on her sides and

dandled on her knees: As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you, and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem: Your hearts shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish, when ye thus see the hand of the Lord towards his servants, and his indignation towards his enemies.' (Isa. lxvi. 5, 14.) The dawn of this day of refreshing' was seen in the earthly Jeru→ salem when three thousand and five thousand people entered at once into the New Jerusalem, the holy church, the spiritual kingdom, which is righteousness, peace, and joy, through the Holy Ghost, in whose comfort they walked, when great grace was upon them all.'

·

6

What

Isaiah points out these days of the Messiah in so many ways, that you will excuse me, Sir, if I copy one more of his striking pictures. Behold,' says he, 'the Lord [Jehovah our Saviour] will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire: For by fire, and by his sword, will the Lord plead with all flesh, and the slain of Jehovah shall be many. follows is his last description of the days of refreshing, which Jehovah Shiloh will usher in by the destruction of the wicked. It shall come to pass that [after those days of vengeance] I will gather all nations and tongues, and they shall come and see my glory. I will send my Heralds, those that shall escape [from the great tribulation,] unto the nations and to the isles afar off, which have not heard my fame; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles. As the new heavens and the new earth, which I will then make, so shall your seed and your name remain. And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, shall all flesh come [by turns to my holy mountain Jerusalem'] and shall worship before me, says the Lord: And they shall go forth [to the valley of Jehoshaphat] and look upon the carcasses of the men that have trangressed against me, for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched, and they shall be an abhorrence of all flesh.' (Isa. lxvi. 15, 24.) Here ends Isaiah's account of that glorious reign of

Jehovah Shiloh, which the fathers called the Millen. nium, as being to last a thousand years, and during which it is probable, that our Lord will use these extraordinary means to keep all the nations in the way of obedience. (1.) A constant display of his goodness over all the earth, but particularly in and about Jerusalem, where the Lord will manifest his glory, and bless his happy subjects with new manifestations of his presence every Lord's day and every new moon :— (2.) A distinguished interposition of Providence, which will withhold the Messiah's wonted blessings from the disobedient: For it shall be that whoso will not come up, of all the families of the earth, unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, even upon them shall be no rain.' (Zech. xiv. 27.) (3.) The con stant endeavours of the Saints, Martyrs, Patriarchs, Prophets and Apostles, raised from the dead, and conversing with men, as Moses and Elijah did with our Lord's disciples upon the mount, where they were indulged with a view of his glorified person, and of his kingdom come with power.' These glorified

high priests and kings, as ministers and lieutenants of the Messiah, will rule all churches aid states with unerring wisdom and unwarped fidelity. (4.) The care that the Lord himself will take to set apart for the ministry under his glorified saints, those who in every nation shall distinguish themselves for their virtue and piety. This seems to be the meaning of his own words: And when they shall come out of all nations to my holy mountain; I will take of them for Priests and Levites, saith the Lord,' speaking to the prophet in the language of the Jewish Church. (Isa. lxvi. 20, 21.) (5.) A standing display of the ministration of condemnation, as appears from Isa. lxvi. 24, above quoted, and from other parallel Scriptures.

6. At the same time that the ministration of condemnation will powerfully work upon the fears of mankind to keep men in the way of duty, an occasional display of the ministration of righteous mercy will work upon their hopes. How will those hopes be