Ver. 14. For they are the fpirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth to the kings "of the earth, and of the whole world, to gather them to the BATTLE of THE GREAT 64 DAY of GOD ALMIGHTY."

Ver. 15.-"Behold, I come as a thief. Bleffed "is he that watcheth and keepeth his garments, " left he walk naked and they fee his fhame."

Ver. 16. And he gathered them together "unto a place called, in the Hebrew tongue, "ARMAGEDDON."

.

Ver. 17. And the feventh angel poured out his vial into the AIR; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, faying, IT IS DONE."

Ver. 18." And there were voices, and "thunders, and lightnings; and there was a "great earthquake, fuch as was not fince men 66 were upon the earth, fo MIGHTY AN EARTH"QUAKE and fo GREAT."

Ver. 19." And the great city was divided "into three parts, and the cities of the nations "fell: and GREAT BABYLON came into remem"brance before God, to give unto her the cup of the WINE, and fierceness of his WRATH."

Ver. 20,-" And every island fled away, and "the mountains were not found."

Ver. 21. And there fell upon men a great "huil out of heaven, every ftone about the weight of a talent: and men blafphemed "God because of the plague of the hail for "the plague thereof was very great."

We

We have seen it foretold, under, the first fix vials, that the wrath of God fhould be poured out on the enemies of the Gofpel of Chrift, on idolatrous Rome, Mohamedan deifin, and the powers of atheism, as judgments for their wicked perfecutions and oppofition to his holy word. By thefe judg ments they were to be feverely punished and weakened, but not to be utterly deftroyed. Indeed it appears, from the texts and the tenour of the fubfequent parts of the Revelation, that the awful event is referved for the GREAT DAY, when Chrift fhall come to fubdue all his enemies, to raise the juft from the dead, and to reign with them on the earth; and at the conclufion of all things, to fummon all the race of Adam, both quick and dead, before his folemn tribunal, and to pafs a final judgment upon them, "according to the deeds done in the body." That fuch a day fhall come, there is no truth in holy writ more frequently inculcated, or more firmly cftablifhed. But when thefe events fhall come to pafs, it seems to be the Divine pleafure that no man, nor even the angels, fhall know the time thereof. For Chrift himself, when fpeaking to the apoftles, refpecting these times, tells them, "It is not for you to know the times, and the feafons, which the fa"ther hath put in his own power*" St. Paul teaches the Theffalonians, That the day of the "Lord cometh as a thief in the night for when ་་ they (the ungodly) fhall fay, peace and safety; "then fudden deftruction cometh upon them, as "travail on a woman with child, and they shall not "efcape." And when the difciples of Chrift inquired of him" When fhall these things be, and "what fhall be the figns of thy coming, and the end "of the world?" He tells them exprefsly, "Of that "day and hour knoweth no man, no not the angels in

* A&s, i. 7. † 1 Theff. v. 2, 3. ‡ St. Matt. xxiv. 36.

ev heaven,

heaven, but my Father only." But although it is the all-wife pleasure of a righteous God, that we fhall not know the exact day and hour of these awful events, I humbly truft that it will not be prefumptuous to obferve, that from the rapid fucceffion of the first four vials, and from the frong probability that the fifth and the fixth are foon to follow, the faithful believer in the word of God has reafon to Hope, and the wicked to fear, that the events of the feventh vial, which foretels the fecond coming of Chrift, will not be very diftant in refpect of time.

However, as it is the nature of prophecy in ge neral, that the events foretold fhall remain, in a measure, myfterious and obfcure until they fhall come to pass, and as it is expressly the Divine will, that no man, or angel, fhall be apprized of the exact time of the events of the feventh vial, far be it from me to attempt to unfold either the time or the particular manner of them, beyond what Chrift himself, the apoftles, and the prophet, have faid refpecting them. So much, we may humbly conclude, it must be the Divine will, fhould be studied and underfood, in a good degree, by every true believer of the word of God, which commands us to fearch the

Scriptures," as the only guide to a true knowledge of Chrifts for fays he*, "They are they which tef tify of meBefides, he enjoins us to be in daily expectation of thofe great events watch, therefore, for ye khow not when the Son of man 4 cometh. And fo the prophet, Behold, I come “as a thief: bleffed is the that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, left he walk naked, and they fee his fhame. di » lndt fedu * todo lábgyn and allot o11 Whear sit. " niel With a mind humbly impreffed with this idea, Ifhall proceed to the confideration of the awful and

T

vick Jula de t St Jeht?, v. 39.

ALY ITA
+ St. Mate xxv. 13.

† Rev. xvi. 15. important

important events foretold under the feventh and laft vial of the wrath of God.

It may be feen throughout the Revelation, that when the prophet enters upon the events of a new period, or upon a new fubject, his method is to take a brief view of the prominent features of it, previously to his narration in detail. To give one example. In the fourteenth and fifteenth chapters he briefly refers to the principal events of all the feven vials but as the feventh vial was to contain the laft moft important and moft decifive of the judgments of God, he reviews the great outlines in the texts under immediate confideration, before he proceeds to detail the events. of this grand and awful fubject. And here he briefly foretels a great league and con fpiracy against the church of Chrift, which is to take place previous to his coming, defcribes the parties to that confederacy, and mentions the place in which they fhall gather their mighty hofts together in battle; the great day of the battle, the pouring out of the feventh vial, and the immenfe deftruction of the enemies of Chrift, which fhall follow.

three

He begins this review with a defcription of the parties to this confpiracy. And as this defcription feems to be the key to unlock the literal fenfe of many parts of his fubject, I fhall give it a particular confideration. He tells us, that he faw "unclean fpirits, like frogs, come out of the mouth "of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, " and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For "they are the fpirits of devils working miracles, "which go forth to the kings of the earth, and of "the whole world, to gather them together to the "battle of the great day of God Almighty."

Let us, in the firft place, inquire what the prophet means by this "dragon," this beat," and this" falfe prophet;" and who are thefe "kings of

the earth," and of the whole world? To folve these questions, we must apply to the Scriptures, for they are the best expofitors of themselves; and when rightly understood, are infallible expofitors. I have faid before, that the "Revelation" is a prophetic hiftory of the church of Chrift, in which three temporal enemies and oppofers of the word of God are mentioned, viz. pagan idolatry, apoftafy, and athefm. The firft has been the perfecutor of the church of Christ, from the beginning up to these times; the fecond, during the courfe of more than the laft twelve centuries; and the third, for the last ten years. The power of the firft was fo reduced by the provie dence of God, in converting pagan Rome to the truths of Christianity in the fourth century, that it has been deftitute of ability to continue its perfecutions ever fince. The powers of the second, in like manner, have been, and are to be fo weakened by the events and plagues of the first fix vials, that they are never again to be able separately to oppose the progrefs of the word of God: for there is no intimation given by the prophet, that they fhall utterly be destroyed by the judgments of thofe vials. On the contrary, we shall presently fee from the text, that they fhall, at fome future time, redouble their efforts to deftroy the Gospel of Chrift, and even to prevent his coming, Hitherto each of them have made the attempt Separately, and at different times; but, hereafter made fenfible of their inability, and despairing of fuccefs by their feparate efforts, they are to enter into a great confederacy, under the patronage of Satan, to accomplish their ungodly purpose.

Who, or what kings or ftates, in what parts of the world refident, or over what nations spreading,

are