judgment; and after him a sixth, which had power over fire, came out from the altar, and cried with a loud voice to his fellow: "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 winepress of the wrath of God." To this great slaughter, frequent testimony is borne by the sacred writers: Isa. lxiii. 1—6; Joel ii. 30—32; iii. 1-17; Dan. xi. 40; and Rev. xvi. 18-21. All these passages synchronize* in the battle of Armageddon. These are the judgments of God upon the antichristian powers gathered out of all nations against Jerusalem. At this time the Son of man shall "smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked," Isa. xi. 4; for he cometh to "judge and make war,' having "the armies which were in heaven" in his train. Then his word will be like a sharp sword, and "with it shall he smite the nations, and he shall rule them with a rod of iron and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God." Rev. xix. 15. The judgments represented by the harvest and the vintage are both in Judea, at Armageddon, and the valley of Decision. And the winepress was trodden without

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* See Faber's Sac. Cal, vol. iii. 307, 308.

the city, (Jerusalem,) and blood came out of the winepress even to the horse bridles." Such was the dreadful carnage seen by the Apostle, and anciently described by the prophet Joel: "I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land." On this decisive occasion the allied armies will be collected by a special proclamation, as if from heaven: "Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near, let them come up. Beat your ploughshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong. Assemble yourselves, all ye heathen--and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat." They will anticipate a decisive victory; but God saith, "There will I sit to judge the heathen round about.” Then the same order is given to the Captain of our salvation and the armies that follow him: "Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe; come, get you down, for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great." Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of Decision; for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of Decision." Joel iii. 2, 9-14. Zechariah foretells the same conflict: "I will gather all nations against

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Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city. Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle." Zech. xiv. 2, 3. See also Ezek. xxxviii. and xxxix.; Rev. xviii. and xix. which refer to the same events.

This view of the chapter gives us a definite idea of the principal person in the vision, the king Messiah,-his attendants, the armies which were in heaven,-his messengers, the holy angels,--the place where the battle is to be fought, Jerusalem,--the persons engaged in the conflict, all nations,--the result of the battle, victory to the Lord, and destruction to his foes.

CHAPTER XV.

The seventh Trumpet appears to me to contain the seven Vials, or last plagues, and this chapter to be introductory to their effusion. "And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God." This declaration shows that these vials of wrath complete the judgments of God upon his enemies. Having contemplated the seven angels, he saw in another part of the vision, as it were

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a sea of glass mingled with fire, which are emblems of a peaceful and glorious state. And on this celestial platform he saw the risen saints who had gotten the victory over civil and ecclesiastical usurpation, and over the badge of a corrupt church, “having the harps of God." And he heard them "sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of Saints: who shall not fear before thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy, for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest." ver. 2-4. While the saints are singing the song of Moses and the Lamb, they anticipate and foretell the future reign of Christ, and the universal homage of mankind: "All nations shall come and worship before thee." ver. 4. It appears from comparing the accounts of the harvest and the vintage, with the seventh Vial, that they synchronize, and refer to events which will occur after the second Advent. See xiv. 14, 15; xvi. 15-21.

John listened with attention to the song of the saints until it was for a time suspended; then adds, "After that I looked, and behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened. And I saw the seven

angels come out of the temple, having the seven plagues, clothed in pure and white linen, and having their breasts girded with golden girdles." And one of the cherubic order, that is, "one of the four living creatures, gave unto the seven angels seven golden" bowls, basons, or "vials, full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever." And the temple in heaven out of which the angels came, "was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled." Similar things occurred on earth in the tabernacle of Moses, and the temple of Solomon: "Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the congregation, because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle." Exod. xl. 34, 35. When Solomon dedicated the Temple, "the house was filled with a cloud, so that the priest could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of God." II. Chron. v. 14. At this part of the vision, the seven angels appear prepared to go and pour out the vials of wrath; they are only waiting to receive the divine commands.