merical word in this place expressing numbers, and not mingos, parvus, which he certainly would have preferred, had he intended to indicate the idea conveyed by our English version. Oyo nagov should be rendered a few time, and expresses the whole period of duration allotted to the third wo. This is the term, during which the Devil is suffered to remain on the earth, and on the sea; from the time when he was cast out of heaven, until his imprisonment in the bottomless pit. Its precise limits however, can only be determined by comparing it with synchronizing periods and events, or the preceding and following prophetic numbers. It is certainly less than the succeeding thousand years of his confinement; but as it includes the 666 years of the beast from the sea, which is the du ration of this wo in Europe, and as it begins previous to this term on the earth in Asia, it must also be considerably longer than the 666 years. I have determined this period in my "Prospective view," to be 777 years, for which I might allege many reasons, if it was necessary to multiply arguments on a subject, so well established already by completion. The following may suffice.

I. It commences not in the parallel prophetic side-line of the Church, to which it does not properly belong; but in the main line of prophetic chronology, as advanced by the three woes, with which it stands exclusively connected by being termed the period of the third wo. Morcover, it must be evident to discerning minds, that its time of beginning cannot be dated previous to Satan's precipitation from heaven into the earth; and that the war in heaven, cannot in the ordinary course of this prophecy, precede the first flight of the woman into the wilderness.

II. The woman commenced her first flight into the wilderness A. D. 832, upon which the war in heaven ensued, between Michael and the dragon. As there is no term of time annexed to the prophecy, concerning the duration of this war, the length of its period can be determined only from

history; and if we had no synchronizing facts & periods besides, to which we could refer for more certainty, we should not be able to fix any determined date to the continuance of this war, and the total overthrow of Satan in heaven. But if the whole scale of prophetic numbers, and concurring events are taken into consideration, the result is in favour of A. D. 1073. Since at that time the main opposition of Satan, in the garb of Paganism, and by Pagan princes and rulers ceased, in those countries to which the woman had fled, and re-commenced in Asia. Though we meet with partial combats even after this period; yet if closely inquired into, they will prove to be only tumults of turbulent multitudes, unorganized, and seldom supported by civil authority, to which particular reference must be had, in determining the date when Satan was cast out into the earth.

III. The mysterious manner, in which the apostle has expressed this period, shows that it was intentionally sealcd against the scrutinizing efforts of vain curiosity. It was not the will of the Lord to divulge it, until it should be discovered by the accomplishment of other periods ; which by comparison would reflect the necessary light on this subject, and assist to determine its duration. It is unequal to every other period in this book, and therefore properly distinguished by a peculiar expression of prophetic numbers. And though it is an indeterminate number in itself, yet it is affirmed in this verse, the devil knew that he had but a few time, or some, but not many times, to persecute the Church and oppose the designs of the Lord. He knew that he would then be shut up in the bottomless pit, and this, together with his former defeat, excited in him great wrath.

Verse 13. And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought fourth the manchild.

The dragon first intended to devour the manly son, and missed his aim; he then waged war against the arch-angel Michael, in which he was totally defeated, and cast out of heaven into the earth, where he now commences the third wo. This wo has a double commencement; it first begins on the earth, and sometime afterwards, also on the sea. The earth here denotes the interior continent of the ancient Roman empire, and appears to have a particular reference to the Eastern and oriental part of the general Church of Christ. The sea signifies the countries adjacent to the Mediteranean. And the woman represents the whole visible Church of Christ on earth, in an undivided sense of the word, when spoken of, as opposed by the dragon. Though only a part may be affected at a time, yet, the whole is mentioned as suffering thereby; because all the parts are considered as sympathetic with each other, and as possessing but one common interest. In the Eastern part of the Church the dragon causes this wo by the instrumentality of Pagan princes and priests, generally, without making any particular power, or nation his sole agent; but in the Western part of the Church, his chosen instrument of wrath, is the beast from the sea. For this reason, that part of this wo which affects the earth, is here interwoven with the history of the Church; and that far greater calamity on the sea, treated of in a more distinct and separate detail, under the history of the beast, chap. XIII.

Though this wo produces an inferior degree of distress on the earth, in comparison with that caused by Satan, through the beast, on the sea; yet it still is a wo, and in itself a great calamity to the Church. Satan is here represented as proceeding in it, by three different modes of attack. He first persecutes the woman before her second flight, as we see in the verse which we are now elucidating; he secondly annoys her by a flood of water, in order to carry her away, verse 15; and he

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thirdly makes war with the remnant of her seed, verse 17. All this he accomplishes on the earth, to which these assaults have a peculiar reference, exclusive of what he performs afterwards on the sea. We shall illustrate these subjects, as they occur in the text.

The woman which brought forth the man-child. It evinces an extraordinary narrowness of heart, incompatible with the principles of love, and the genuine spirit of Christianity, when some authors, who yet profess impartiality, explain this woman as denoting a particular community in Christendom, and not the whole Church of Christ on earth. Truly, this is nourishing pride and self-conceit, amidst all our professions of humility. Whosoever receives the apostolical creed with conviction of its truth, and embraces the Gospel as his rule of practice, is numbered with this woman. No one party or community should suppose that it constitutes the centre of the kingdom of God on earth, if ever so old, numerous or pure in its own eyes. We can say of every denomination, Destroy it not for there is a blessing in it, Isa. LXV, 8. There is no respect of persons with God; neither should there be any with his people, Rom. 11, 11. Every Christian party, sect, or community, is here considered a part of the general Church of Christ, and of the kingdom of God. They are surely very different as to their internal worth and purity in doctrine and practice; but the decision on that point belongs to the Lord.

He persecuted the woman. With this persecution Satan commenced the third wo on the earth. A wo is a calamity of an extraordinary degree of oppression to the Church, and may be distinguished from the afflictions by this, that it affects the Church generally, in her very vital parts, agrandizes human authority upon her ruins, and is inimical to the approach of the kingdom of Christ. From this definition we may safely conclude, that whereever Satan may have caused this wo, its commencement

will be marked by strong features, and delineated on the page of history to the conviction, of discerning minds. However prophecy only terms its beginning a persecution, and we must not expect, that it opens by blood and slaughter. According to prophecy, and my elucidation of prophetic numbers, it commenced in the Eastern part of the Christian Church, A. D. 1073; and this is precisely the time of a great change of affairs in the East. While the Grecian emperors were able to maintain their authority against the Turks and Saracens, Christianity yet enjoyed some esteem with Pagans and Mahommedans; but when since the year A. D. 1071, the Turks gradually took possession of all their Eastern provinces, a threatening gloom began to encompass the church in that part of the world. Christianity every where met with general opposition, and its professors were loaded with injuries, oppression and cruelty. The wo of the Church soon rose to such a height, that the cries & lamentations of the oriental Christians resounded over all Europe, and produced a general sensation of sympathy and compassion. Not only the Christians in Palestine, but also in other Pagan and Mahommedan countries, sent numerous petitions with representations of their intolerable grievances to kings and Pontiffs, for assistance and redress. These were the first inducements in Europe, to the crusades, or as they are termed the holy wars; the first cause of which in the East, was the commencement of this third wo.