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shall be in such a way as that of Noah from the deluge, and of Lot from Sodom, i. e. through the exercise of faith and patience. They shall indeed "be accounted worthy to escape those things which "shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of "Man."* But it is not easy to say what previous fiery trials they may be called upon to endure, in order "to purge them and make them white unto "the end;" and "that the trial of their faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, might be found unto praise, and honour, "and glory, at the appearing of Jesus Christ." The above warning to the church, of the great need of patience and faith at this trying hour, seems evidently to coincide with the declaration in chap. xiii. 10. and the concluding clause of the verse, "Here is the patience and the faith of the saints;" and in considering that clause, I supposed it to refer to the awful time when the beast should be slain by the sword, as is mentioned in the former part of the verse. The two passages are therefore synchronical.

"And I heard a voice from heaven, saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the "Lord from henceforth, yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours, and their works "do follow them."

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In the preceding passage, the dreadful end of the worshippers of the beast and his image was shown; here, by way of contrast, is declared the blessedness of those who die in the Lord. Such seems to be the practical sense of the passage; but it has doubtless

* Luke xxi. 36.

+ Dan. xi. 35.

1 Pet. i. 9.

also a prophetical signification, and points out to us, in connection with what precedes and follows, that now at length the church is about to enter into that glorious state of rest which was promised by the mouth of all the holy prophets. Babylon being fallen, and the beast slain, as is declared in the context; the long expected year of jubilee is arrived the resurrection of those who had been slain for the testimony of Jesus, and who had not worshipped the beast or his image, is now about to take place; they are to live and reign with Christ a thousand years from henceforth, therefore, they are emphatically pronounced blessed. Such seems to me the most probable interpretation of this very obscure and difficult passage; but as it is new, I offer it with that diffidence which it becomes us to exercise in the exposition of this mysterious book. This explanation is, however, quite agreeable to the analogy of scripture; for we learn from the prophecies of Daniel, that as soon as the fourth beast is slain, the saints of the Most High shall take the kingdom and in like manner, in the Apocalypse, no sooner is the beast, and with him the false prophet, cast into the lake of fire, than Satan is bound, and the first resurrection takes place.+

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"And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of Man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand. "a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of "the temple, crying with a loud voice, to him that "sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap ;

* Rev. xx. 4.

+ Dan. vii. 17–22.

Rev. xix. 19—21; xx. 1—4.

"for the harvest of the earth is ripe. And he that "sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; " and the earth was reaped."

The coming of the Son of Man with the clouds of heaven, or, as Luke expresses it, with a cloud, is an event frequently mentioned in the scriptures. It occurs in the prophecies of Daniel,* and in our Lord's discourse concerning the destruction of Jerúsalem. It is also predicted at the beginning of the Apocalypse. This advent of Christ seems evidently to be intended in the passage before us. The symbolical reaping of the harvest of the earth, which is performed by our Lord, I consider to signify the gathering together of his elect from the four winds of heaven, which he himself assures us, shall take place immediately on his advent with the clouds of heaven. The action of reaping is in the Gospels more than once used as a symbol of the gathering in of Christ's elect; but never, so far as I remember, as a symbol of the execution of divine judgments. The gathering of the elect, here predicted under the image of reaping a harvest of corn or wheat, immediately precedes the harvest of the vintage, (mentioned in the following verses), which is every where in the prophetical writings used as a symbol of the wrath of God. This gathering of the elect is accordingly also alluded to in chap. xix. where a more full description of the vintage is given; the allusion to it is in the 9th verse," Blessed are "they which are called unto the marriage supper of

* Dan. vii. 13.

Rev. i. 7.

of Mark.

+ Matt. xxiv. 30. Mark xiii. 26. Luke xxi. 27.

§ Vide Matt. xxiv. 31, and the parallel passage

John vi. 35-38. ¶ Isai. Ixiii. 2, 3. Joel iii. 13.

"the Lamb."

The call given to the marriage

supper, is probably the same as the gathering together of the elect. In what manner it will be accomplished, it were presumptuous for us to conjecture: the event only will show.

In the above explanation of the symbolical wheat harvest, I entirely differ from Mede, Bishop Newton, and other writers, and also from Mr. Faber, whose reasons for his own opinion may be found in his Dissertation on the Twelve Hundred and Sixty Years. I have, however, the happiness to coincide with the eminently learned Bishop Horsley, who applies the harvest, as I do, to the gathering of the elect, mentioned by our Lord as taking place upon his advent with the clouds of heaven.

"And another angel came out of the temple, "which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. "And another angel came out from the altar, which "had power over fire; and cried with a loud voice "to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust "in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the "vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. "And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, "and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into "the great wine-press of the wrath of God. And "the wine-press was trodden without the city, and

blood came out of the wine-press, even unto the "horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six "hundred furlongs."

I think, with Mr. Faber, that the treading of the wine-press, predicted in this vision, is the same with that mentioned in chap. xix. where the Almighty Word of God is represented to us, as

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treading the wine-press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. It takes place when the beast and false prophet, and kings of the earth, are gathered to the battle of that great day of God Almighty at Armageddon.* It is the same with the dreadful destruction of the nations in the valley of Jehoshaphat, mentioned by Joel in his last chapter; and I agree with the above learned writer, that the scene of this awful catastrophe is to be in Judea. The same events are also predicted in the prophecies of Isaiah; particularly in that vision where he sees the Redeemer coming from Edom, with garments dyed in the blood of his enemies, after having trodden the wine-press.† But I shall defer the further consideration of this subject till we come to the effusion of the vials of wrath.

In reviewing the fourteenth chapter I have thus endeavoured to show, that it refers wholly to the period of the sixth seal and seventh trumpet, and contains a general account of the state of the church during that time; of a great and unusual promulgation of the Gospel, which is then to take place; and of the warnings which are to be given of the fall of Babylon, and the awful punishment which awaits the worshippers of the beast and his image. It then goes on to state the second advent of our Lord with the clouds of heaven, the gathering-in of his elect, and the treading of the wine-press of the wrath of God in the day of Armageddon. But for this chapter we should have had no account of the state of things in the church between the time of her emerging from the wilderness, and the