ravenous bird, saying, “Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executeth my counsel from a far country" (Isa. 46: 11). Mystical Babylon, that is Jerusalem, at the time of her overthrow is described as a cage of every unclean and hateful bird (Rev. 18:2). It is into this air where these unclean birds fly, build their nests, and have their habitation, that the last vial of God's wrath is poured out, and the effect of this vial upon these unclean and hateful birds,- that is upon the kings, princes, priests, and prophets of Jerusalem, will be voices, and thunders, and lightnings, and a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake and so great.

These voices, thunders, and lightnings, and this mighty earthquake are powerful figures which will serve to show the mighty and sudden changes that will transpire among the chief rulers in Israel and among the people, when great noise, confusion, and consternation will reign, and when the former conditions and relations of the people will be broken off and rent asunder as with a great and mighty earthquake; and when Israel will suddenly break up her friendly relations with the nations who are called her lovers, who have mingled with her in her abominations and whose idols she has worshipped and served, for it is testified of her that her mind shall be alienated from them; therefore the Lord says of her, "I will raise up thy lovers, from whom thy mind is alienated, and I will bring them against thee on every side" (Ezek. 23:22).

AND THE GREAT CITY WAS DIVIDED INTO THREE PARTS (REV. 16:19)

This is Jerusalem when the day of her destruction has arrived, concerning which the Lord sware, saying, "Wherefore, as I live, saith the Lord God, Surely, because thou hast defiled my sanctuary with all thy detestable things, and with all thine abominations, therefore will I also diminish thee; neither shall mine eye spare, neither will I have any pity.

The Three Parts

A third part of thee shall die with the pestilence, and with famine shall they be consumed in the midst of thee; and a third part shall fall by the sword round about thee; and I will scatter a third part into all the winds, and I will draw out a sword after them" (Ezek. 5:11-12).

"" AND THE CITIES OF THE NATIONS FELL (REV. 16: 19)

These great nations that the Lord has brought into his land to execute judgment upon his people in that day, are here called cities. The Prophet Isaiah groups them together and speaks of them as "the city of the terrible nations (25:3). The meaning of the saying, "The cities of the nations fell," may be seen by what was said when the kingdom of Israel was broken up and divided into two separate nations. When the ten tribes revolted from the house of David, it is testified as contained in the marginal reading saying, So Israel fell away (margin) from the house of David unto this day" (I Kings 12:19).

As the ten tribes fell away from the house of David, so will the nations fall away from the house of Israel and suddenly break their covenant and

their connection and friendly relations with Jerusalem and her people, who in this prophecy are called Babylon, and will afterwards turn upon her for her destruction; for one-third of Jerusalem and her people will perish by the sword, one-third will fall by famine and pestilence in their besieged cities, and one-third will be sent away into captivity among the nations of the earth which neither they nor their fathers have known.

THE PUNISHMENT OF BABYLON (REV. 16: 19)

When the cities of the nations fall away and stand aloof from Babylon, then it is added, "And great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath." The time now draws nigh for treading the wine-press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God, when the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates will be loosed which are prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, to slay the third part of men. Moreover, as the nations fall away and withdraw from the doomed city, it will afford a good opportunity for the rebellious house to flee and take refuge in their defenced cities from impending judgment. But alas, this is but a snare, for then the enemy will besiege them in all their gates until their high and fenced walls come down wherein they trusted. When their food fails them, then will be witnessed that terrible spectacle when the fathers will eat their sons, and sons will eat their fathers, and the tender and pitiful women will kill and eat their own children in the straitness wherewith their enemies shall distress them in all their gates; and to add to their miseries, the Lord says, "When ye are gathered together within your cities, I will send the pestilence among you, and ye shall be delivered into the hand of the enemy" (Lev. 26:25).

Thus one-third will fall by the sword, and one-third by famine and the pestilence, but where under this last vial shall we look for the last third, which are to go into captivity and who are to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth, and a sword drawn out against them? and under what figure of speech under this vial is this captivity referred to and set forth?

66 AND EVERY ISLAND fled AWAY, AND THE MOUNTAINS WERE NOT FOUND (REV. 16:20)

This departure of the islands and mountains is also set forth under the sixth seal, saying, "And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal and lo, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places" (Rev. 6: 12-14). These very impressive words, this highly figurative language, is here employed to show the terrible downfall of the kingdom of Israel, as it will exist in the latter days under the old covenant in its second manifestation, as it will be under the second law as it is written in the Book of Deuteronomy, a word which signifies "second law." The sun, moon, and stars in this prophecy are the kings, priests, prophets, and princes of the house of Israel; the heavens. which are to be rolled up as a scroll, are the heavens or government of the

kingdom of Israel. And "every mountain and island" which were moved out of their places, as it is said under the opening of the sixth seal, and “every island" that fled away, and the mountains" that were not found, as it is said under the pouring out of the seventh vial of the wrath of God, are the third part that is to go into captivity. They will be moved out of their places and transferred into heathen countries, and the mountains will not be found because they will have been removed to other lands, and the places they occupied in Israel will be desolate.

Now mountains and islands are terms used in symbolical prophecy to signify persons; therefore the Lord addresses his people in one place saying, "Son of man, set thy face toward the mountains of Israel and prophesy against them, and say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord God, Thus saith the Lord God to the mountains and to the hills, to the rivers and to the valleys, Behold I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, and I will destroy your high places" (Ezek. 6:2-3). These mountains, hills, rivers, and valleys are to be understood in the same manner as those which are spoken of in connection with the ministry of John the Baptist, saying, "Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low, and the crooked shall be made straight and the rough places shall be made smooth" (Luke 3: 1-6). Mountains, hills, and valleys here refer to persons in high and low positions in Israel who were all brought to a common level by the preaching of John the Baptist.

The islands which fled away are groups of people of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah who are taken under escort by detachments of soldiers and transported to all parts of the earth, even as the Lord spake to them by the hand of Moses, saying, "And the Lord shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even to the other; there thou shalt serve other gods which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone."

With reference to groups of Israelites being called islands in figurative language, this is shown as follows. The tribes of Israel are spoken of in the prophets as rivers and fountains of waters, and also in the Revelation the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters. Again the Lord says in the prophets that he will convert these rivers into islands, saying, "I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs, and I will make the rivers islands, and I will dry up the pools" (Isa. 42: 15-17). These are the islands that flee away in the time of judgment.

The Lord says, " Moreover the Lord shall bring thee into Egypt again with ships, by the way whereof I spake unto thee; thou shalt see it no more again" (Deut. 28:68). Now as ships do not sail and convey passengers and do business on dry land, therefore these ships mean military escorts, detachments of soldiers from the ranks of the great Assyrian army, who convey these captives under guard and under the power of the sword to the countries to which they are destined to go, and where they must dwell. Israel came out of Egypt on foot and on dry land, and as they are to return the same way on ships, it is plainly to be seen that what we have said of these ships is true. Therefore as ships do business in great waters and transport their passengers to different parts of the earth, so will the military ships of the Assyrian con

vey the third part of the rebellious house in groups and in companies over the seas of nations to the countries where they must sojourn.

Therefore it is contained in the Psalms saying, “O Lord, how manifold are thy works! in wisdom hast thou made them all. . . . So is this great and wide sea (of nations) wherein are things creeping innumerable, both small and great beasts (that is, such as Daniel saw rise up out of the sea, and such as John also saw rise up out of the sea of nations). There go the ships (with their cargoes of Israelitish captives); there is that leviathan (that dragon king of Israel) whom thou hast made to play therein" (Ps. 104: 24-32).

Again, concerning these captives who go down to the sea in ships, it is testified (Ps. 107: 23-31) saying, " They that go down to the sea in ships (in these ships), that do business in great waters, these see the works of the Lord, and his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth and raiseth the stormy wind which lifteth up the waves thereof; they mount up to the heaven; they go down again to the depths; their soul is melted because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end. Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. He maketh the storm a calm so that the waves thereof are still. Then are they glad, because they be quiet: so he bringeth them unto their desired haven. Oh that men would praise the Lord for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men."

Israel will indeed have a stormy and tempestuous journey when they go down to the seas of nations in Gentile ships, for Moses says, And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest; but the Lord shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind; and thy life shall hang in doubt before thee, and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have none assurance of thy life" (Deut. 28: 65-67). These things when couched in figurative language may well be spoken of as sailing upon tempestuous seas, when the Lord commandeth and raiseth the stormy wind which lifteth up the waves thereof, which mount up to the heaven and go down again to the depths, when they reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end. Then they cry unto the Lord, and he makes the storm a calm, and mitigates their suffering even as it is testified in plain language by the prophet saying, "Thus saith the Lord God, Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary, in the countries where they shall come" (Ezek. 11:16).

Moreover the Lord will bring them back again to their desired haven in ships, to their own country,- those that he carried away of the house of Judah after forty years, and those that be carried away of the house of Israel after 390 years, as the Prophet Ezekiel testifies in the fourth chapter of his book. The Lord said also by Zechariah, "The Lord also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not magnify themselves against Judah." Now in the last verse of the one hundred and seventh Psalm it is plainly intimated that there is a hidden meaning in these figurative expressions that requires the exercise of the senses to understand, for it says, "Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the loving-kindness of the Lord."

The same also is testified of the mysteries of the prophecies of Hosea in the last passage of his book, saying, "Who is wise and he shall understand these things? prudent, and he shall know them? for the ways of the Lord are right, and the just shall walk in them, but the transgressors shall fall therein."

THE GREAT HAIL (REV. 16:21)

This word is used in the Scripture in two ways, first to denote hail storms such as were visited upon Pharaoh and his land as a judgment when he would not let Israel go. Then Moses at the command of the Lord stretched forth his rod toward heaven, as it is testified saying, "And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven; and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt. So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation" (Exod. 9:23-25); and again, in the days of Joshua, when he said in the sight of Israel," Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon, and the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. And it came to pass as the five kings of the Amorites and their armies fled from before Israel and were in the going down to Beth-horon, that the Lord cast down great stones from heaven upon them, unto Azekah, and they died. They were more which died with hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword" (Joshua 10: 11-15).

Second, hail is used to denote soldiers from the north. The plagues of Egypt are, according to Moses, to be visited upon faithless and idolatrous Israel in the latter days when they are themselves called Sodom and Egypt, when they will suffer from the hail in both ways: First, literally, as we have stated above, and second, as testified by Isaiah saying (28:2-3), "Behold the Lord hath a mighty and strong one, which, as a tempest of hail and a destroying storm, as a flood of mighty waters overflowing, shall cast down to the earth with the hand. The crown of pride; the drunkards of Ephraim shall be trodden under foot." Hail, a destroying storm, and flood of mighty waters, are here used as similitudes.

But when it is said under the seventh vial, " And there fell upon men (the wicked men of Israel) a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent," this plague is no doubt real, as are the famine, the pestilence, and the sword, which are not figurative expressions but plain statements of plagues, as they will prove to be. The weight of a man is much more than a talent, but these real hailstones weigh about a hundred pounds, more or less, and many of the latter day Amorites will die from this hail, as it was said of the Amorites of old, that more died with hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword. In causing Jerusalem to know her abominations the Lord said to her, "Thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan; thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite" (Ezek. 16: 1-3).

When the hail falls out of heaven upon these last named Amorites spiritually so called, what is the result? It is said, "And men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, for the plague thereof was exceeding great.”