that while the true people of Christ, though ignorant of the precise day and hour in which the final judgments of God will fall on his apostate church, yet, forewarned of their near approach, are, in some degree, watching and waiting for it, -those who will be the immediate objects of his wrath, will continue utterly insensi ble of the gathering storm, and will consequently make no efforts to avert it, till they shall be suddenly overwhelmed by its desolating fury.

1

How awefully and circumstantially do the great nations of the Papal earth, at this moment, answer to this description! Unreclaimed by past judgments and mercies, and undisturbed by apprehensions of impending evils, they are, in general, still cleaving, even with increased tenacity, to their superstitions, abominations, and idolatries;* still pertinaciously excluding from themselves the light of

*See Appendix.

the word of God; still maintaining and encouraging a spirit of bigotry and intolerance: some of them resuming with redoubled and with ten-fold guilt their iniquitous traffic in human flesh; and others pursuing with unabated zeal their selfish objects of interest or ambition; while, in the mean time, they discern not the subterranean fire, which is secretly at work, making preparation at the appointed moment for the production of that "great earthquake, such as has not been since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake and so great;" one early effect of which will be, that "Great Babylon will come in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath."

132

CHAP. XX.

THE SAME SUBJECT CONTINUED.

CHRIST, in the passage under consideration, having roused the attention of his people to the near and sudden approach of the time of unprecedented trouble, adverts, in the next place, to the subject of their immediate duty, under the full anticipation of this predicted event.

The world at large will not receive his admonitions, so as to be benefited by them. "Hearing, it will not hear; seeing, it will not perceive." It "sets at nought all his counsel, and will have none of his reproof." But, surely, it will not be so with his faithful servants. They will gladly avail themselves of the warning vouchsafed to them; and will seek to improve aright the important

crisis. And what, then, under existing circumstances, is their present, immediate duty? Let them "watch and keep their garments, lest they walk naked, and. they see their shame."

Watchfulness is, at all times, a prime duty of the Christian. In every situation, and at all times, he is called to exercise circumspection. Hence we find such frequent admonitions in Scripture to this effect: "Be sober, be vigilant." "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into tempt-: ation." "Walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise." And, perhaps, in› the present crisis, watchfulness may be more particularly enjoined with an especial view to those "signs of the times," to which the Christian is so peculiarly concerned to attend. "For as a snare shall that day come on all those that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye, therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all those things that shall come to pass, and to

stand before the Son of Man."* But it is chiefly in its connection with the subsequent part of the precept that vigilance appears to be here enjoined. Let the Christian " keep his garments," for the reason immediately annexed; and to this end let him "watch." It is in this order that we will consider this part of the admonition.

First, then, let the Christian "keep his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame." Frequent and continual reference is made in almost every part of the Scriptures, and especially in the book of Revelation, to the garments of the Christian. The expression is, evidently, figurative; but its meaning is easily ascertained. Garments, in general, are used for the purposes both of clothing and ornament; their office is to cover and to adorn. And analogous to these purposes are the Christian's garments. They are provided for him in order to

*Luke, xxi. 35, 36.