mote; for the last times of atheism and infidelity, so minutely described and predicted by the apostolical prophets *, have indisputably commenced: but the times of the Gentiles are not yet altogether fulfilled, their fulness has not yet perfectly arrived; because we still behold the Jews led away captive through all nations. Nevertheless, when the appointed three times and a half shall have expired, the Lord will assuredly begin a wonderful work in the earth. He will go forth in his wrath, and cut off those ingraffed branches that have not continued in his goodness: and at length, after the destruction of Antichrist is completed, all Israel, in both his great divisions, shall be converted and saved. Glorious will be the inauguration of the Millennian Church! If the fall of the Jews have been hitherto the riches of the world; and the diminishing of them, the riches of the Gentiles: how much more their fulness! In the hand of God, they shall be a most powerful instrument of spreading the Gospel through all nations. The harvest of the first advent shall not be comparable to the harvest of the second advent. For the name of Christ shall be known from the east to the west; and his praises shall be heard in the utmost parts of the earth. Israel shall be made the seed of the Church; and thus, from first to last, will prove the true Jezreel of God t. • See my Dissert. on the 1260 years. Chap. iii. I think ? * I think it right to observe, that Mr. Mede, Dr. Whitby, and Dr. Doddridge, have given an interpretation of the coming of the fulness of the Gentiles, different from that which I have done. By this phrase they understand the great conversion of the Gentiles to Christianity at the time of the second advent: but, in adopting such an interpretation, they do not seem to have sufficiently considered the order of events. We learn from St. Paul, that what he terms the fulness of the Gentiles is to arrive previous to the general conversion and restoration of Israel: whereas the second great harvest of the Church, or the universal conversion of the Gentiles to the faith, is to be posterior to it, and in a great measure the consequence of it. Antichrist is first to be overthrown, and the whole house of Israel to be brought back both to their own land and the fold of the Church: then, and not till then, the general conversion of the Gentiles is to take place. In short, how can the Jews be made instruments of converting others, how can "Blindness in part hath happened to Israel, until the ful86 ness of the Gentiles be come." Whence it is plain, that the fulness of the Gentiles must first come; and afterwards the blindness of Israel be removed. I may here however repeat what I have already observed at the beginning of this work, that St. Paul must be understood to speak of the general national conversion of Israel. Some of the Jews will be converted before their restoration, and therefore apparently before the 1260 years shall have fully expired. they they become the seed of the Millennian Church, unless they themselves be first converted? But the fulness of the Gentiles arrives before the general conversion of the house of Israel: therefore it cannot denote the conversion of the Gentiles, which will not be accomplished till afterwards, and that by the instrumentality of the now converted Israelites, as we are repeatedly taught in various prophecies. It is somewhat remarkable, that Dr. Doddridge does not seem to be aware how much he contradicts himself, when, in another note on this same prediction of St. Paul, he very justly remarks, that, when the restoration and conversion of the Jews "shall be accomplished, it will be so unparalleled, "as necessarily to excite a general attention, and "to fix upon men's minds such an almost irresist"ible demonstration both of the Old and New "Testament revelation, as will probably capti vate the minds of many thousands of deists in "countries professedly Christian: nor will this "only captivate their understanding, but will have "the greatest tendency to awaken a sense of true religion in their hearts: and this will be a means "of propagating the Gospel with an amazing ve"locity in Pagan and Mohammedan countries." How can all this be the consequence of the restoration of Israel, if the general conversion of the Gentiles (supposing such to be the import of St. Paul's expression the coming of the fulness of the Gentiles) take place before Israel is restored? Mr. Mr. Mede is liable to the very same charge of self-contradiction *, and, what is yet more, of absolute inconsistency. For, while in one part of his works he explains the phrase to mean the conversion of the Gentiles, he elsewhere supposes it to be parallel to that of our Lord the fulfilling of the times of the Gentiles, which he rightly conceives to denote the end of the last great monarchy at the termination of the three times and a halft. Bp. Newton * Compare his works, p. 197, 891, 892. "Because the Jews are not yet called, it followeth that "the fulness of the Gentiles is yet to come: and what then "should this fulness be, but the fulness of the Gospel's extent 66 over all the nations of the world?— 66 "Some think, that St. Paul in this place hath reference unto "that speech of Christ (Luke xxi. 24.), where he foretells, "that the Jews should fall by the edge of the sword, and be led captive into all nations, and Jerusalem should be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles should be fulfilled or accomplished. But it seems to me, that the fulness of "the Gentiles and the fulfilling or accomplishment of their times "should not be the same, howsoever they may be coincident." Mede's Works. Disc. xxxvi. p. 197. Here Mr. Mede denies the parallelism of the two phrases. "The Jews shall be carried away captive over all nations, and "Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times 46 of the Gentiles be fulfilled: that is, until the monarchies of "the Gentiles should be finished. For these times of the "Gentiles are that last period of the fourth kingdom prophesied of; a time, times, and half a time; at the end "whereof the angel swears unto Daniel (Chap. xii. 7.), that → God should accomplish to scatter the power of the holy people. "This is that fulness of the Gentiles, which being come, St. "Paul Newton is guilty of much the same inconsistency. He teaches us, that the fulfilling of the times of the Gentiles means the expiration of the times of the four great kingdoms of the Gentiles when the last of them shall be overthrown, and that the coming of the fulness of the Gentiles signifies their general conversion; and yet he represents, like myself, the two phrases as being parallel to each other*. The common application of St. Paul's expression to the conversion of the Gentiles seems principally to have arisen from translating the word 0, shall come in; as if it related to the Gentiles coming into the Church. But it by no means necessarily bears any such sense. It may with equal propriety be translated shall take place or shall happen ↑. In this case therefore the whole phrase would be, Paul tells us, the Deliverer shall come out of Zion, and all Israel "shall be saved. Rom. xi. 26. Works B. iii. Treatise on Daniel's Weeks. p. 709. Here, if I mistake not, he asserts their parallelism. "The times of the Gentiles will be fulfilled, when the times "of the four great kingdoms of the Gentiles according to "Daniel's prophecies shall be expired, and the fifth kingdom "or the kingdom of Christ shall be set up in their place."Jerusalem, as it hath hitherto remained, so probably will "remain, in subjection to the Gentiles, until these times of the "Gentiles be fulfilled; or, as St. Paul expresseth it, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in, and so all Isruel shall be "saved, and become again the people of God. The fulness of "the Jews will come in, as well as the fulness of the Gentiles.” Dissert. xx. at the end. ↑ As in Luke ix. 46. Until |