3. The happiness, harmlessness, and sociability of animals is shewn by the following texts:

"The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid, and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them: and the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together, and the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den." (Is. xi. 6—8.)

"The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock, and dust (not man as aforetime,) shall be the serpent's meat. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the Lord." (Is. lxv. 25.)

4. The earth itself also shall partake of the general blessing, and the whole face of it undergo a glorious change, as is shown by the following texts:

"Then shall the earth yield her increase, and God, even our God, shall bless us." (Ps. lxvii. 6.)

"And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing: and the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase." (Ezek. xxxiv. 26, 27.)

"And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the Lord, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth, and the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil, and they shall hear Jezreel.” (Hos. ii. 21, 22.)

5. The length of time during which this glorious and

happy state shall continue, is shown in the following passages:

"In his days shall the righteous flourish, and abundance of peace, so long as the moon endureth." (Ps. lxxii. 7.)

"There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days; for the child shall die an hundred years old . . . . . and they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them; they shall not build and another inhabit, they shall not plant and another eat; for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands;" or, according to the margin, "they shall wear their work out." (Is. lxv. 20. 22.)

"Thus saith the Lord of hosts, There shall yet old men and old women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem; and every one with his staff in his hand for very age," or, for multitude of days"— margin. (Zech. viii. 4.)

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"And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end." (Luke i. 33.)

The above passages from Isaiah and Zechariah admit of illustration, by a reference to the ancient patriarchs, who might have been reckoned children under one hundred years of age, as the descendants of Jacob were under twenty years. (See Numb. xiv. 29—31.)

The question now arises, How are these wondrous and extensive changes to be effected? The general opinion is, that they will be effected by the Son of God, who will descend in person, while "the earth is given into the hands of the wicked." But this is evidently incorrect; for if, when the Lord Jesus Christ was upon the earth, he could not, before his

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death, convince his apostles even, that the purport of his coming was to die for man's offences, and to rise again for his justification; (see Matt. xvi. 21-23; Mark xvi. 14; Luke xxiv. 21. 25; John xx. 25;) what reason is there to believe that if the Lord were to come again in person, he would be much better received, or that his commandments and ordinances would be more regarded or better kept? The world, considered as a whole, is not in a much better state now than it was at his first coming. Our Lord then said unto his apostles, I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he the Spirit of truth is come, he will guide you into all truth, for he shall not speak of himself, but whatsoever he shall hear that shall he speak, and he will show you things to come. He shall glorify me, for he shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you." (John xvi. 12-14.) Again; "These things have I spoken unto you being yet present with you, but the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” (John xiv. 25, 26.) And again; "All

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things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you." (John xv. 15.) Nevertheless (he said unto them), I tell you the truth, it is expedient for you that I go away; for if I go not away the Comforter will not come unto you, but if I depart I will send him unto you." (John xvi. 7.)

It is the Comforter, then, with the testimony of the Son of God, who shall accomplish in all the sons of men this great reformation, for "his people shall be willing in the day of his power." (Ps. cx. 3.) And the Lord closed his personal ministry by saying, "All power

is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go

ye therefore and teach all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you; and lo I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." (Matt. xxviii. 18-20.) These words were spoken to the apostles about eighteen hundred years ago; and as it is self-evident that our Lord has not been personally present with his people during that time, so is it equally self-evident, according to the Scriptures, that he will not again be personally present with them before that great and glorious day, spoken of by the Apostle, when "the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the arch angel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." (1 Thes. iv. 16, 17.)

From a careful consideration of the foregoing passages, then, can any other conclusion be arrived at than this, that all these wondrous events, described in such glowing colours, are to be accomplished by the Lord's taking to himself his great power? (Rev. xi. 17,) and that the great and favourable change in men will be accomplished by the same power, through the preaching of the gospel, "the Lord working with" the preachers (Mark xvi. 20), opening the hearts of the hearers to attend to all that the Scriptures reveal. (Acts xvi. 14.) For as the apostle Paul says, writing to the Thessalonians, "Our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance," (1 Thess. i. 5,) so has it come to believers

in all subsequent ages, and so will it continue to come to the latest period of time.

The prophet Isaiah, contrasting the state of the righteous with the state of the wicked who shall be living when Christ shall come to reign by the power of his gospel, says to the wicked, "Ye are they that forsake the Lord, that forget my holy mountain, that prepare a table for that troop, that furnish a drink-offering to that number. Therefore I will number you to the sword, and ye shall bow down to the slaughter ; because when I called ye did not answer, when I spake ye did not hear, but did evil before mine eyes, and did choose that wherein I delighted not. Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, my servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry. Behold, my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty. Behold, my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed. Behold, my servants shall sing for joy of heart, but ye shall cry for sorrow of heart, and shall howl for vexation of spirit, and ye shall leave your name for a curse unto my chosen, for the Lord shall slay thee, and call his servants by another name." While to the righteous he says, "But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for behold I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem and joy in my people; and the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying. There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days; for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner, (not the child, but he who shall be living when the Lord shall bring to pass this glorious change,) being an hundred years old, shall be accursed.” (Isaiah lxv.) That this is no forced reading, no going beyond the due limit of interpretation, is obvious, when