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Since then the king of the North plainly cannot be the Turk, and since consequently the actions, which Mr. Mede and Bp. Newton ascribe to the king of the North, cannot have been performed by the Turk; since moreover, as I will venture to affirm, if the actions ascribed to the king of the North were not performed by the Turk, they were never performed by any king of the North, and if not by any king of the North certainly not by any power which may be deemed the antitype of the wilful king it will follow, that all these actions, whether performed by the wilful king as I suppose, or by the king of the North as Mr. Mede and Bp. Newton suppose, are still future; which will bring me back to the point whence I set out, namely that the period to which they are ascribed is future likewise; in other words that the time of the end denotes some future period, which (as I have already attempted to shew) there is reason to think commences when the 1260 years terminate.

In fact, the only expedition undertaken against Palestine at the close of the 1260 years and contemporaneously with the restoration of the Jews, an expedition noticed by almost every prophet that treats of the restora tion of the Jews, is plainly the expedition undertaken by the Roman confederacy of the beast the false prophet and the kings of the Latin earth. Hence, since Daniel predicts an expedition undertaken against the same country and at the same time either by the infidel king, or by the king of the North, this expedition must be the same as that mentioned in the Apocalypse: consequently it must be undertaken by that king who may be considered as the dominant Roman power. But the king of the North, unless I greatly mistake, is not a Roman power: whereas the wilful king, according to my interpretation of his character, is the greatest of the Roman powers. For these various reasons, deduced from a general survey of

This point is fully considered in my unpublished work on the restoration of Israel and the destruction of Antichrist. The Jewish Rabbies themselves have collected from their own prophets, that the restoration of their countrymen will synchronize with the destruction of the Roman power in its last form; and they scruple not to maintain, that the Edom, whose overthrow is represented as being contemporary with the return of the chosen people, denotes that power. (See Isaiah lxii. Ixiii.) I believe them to be perfectly right in their opinion.

the context of this and other prophecies, I conclude, that the expedition, certainly will be undertaken, not by the king of the North, but by the infidel king: and I apprehend it was from some such general survey of the different prophecies, which treat at once of the restoration of the Jews and the contemporaneous destruction of some great enemy of God in Palestine, that the ancient fathers believed that Antichrist was destined to perish in that country; an opinion, which Bp. Horsley, and I think very rightly, judges to be well founded.*

But it may be said, if I maintain, that the infidel king is atheistical France, that the predicted expedition into Palestine will be undertaken by the infidel king, and that this predicted expedition about to be undertaken by the infidel king is the same as the contemporary expedition about to be undertaken into the land that extends 1600 furlongs by a confederacy of the beast under his last head the false prophet and the kings of the earth: if I maintain these various connected positions, it will necessarily follow, that, at the time of the expedition, the infidel king must have become the same as the beast under his last head. Such appears undoubtedly to be the consequence of this train of comparative reasoning. I must at present however decline saying any thing more on the subject, as I purpose to resume it after I have discussed the character of the seven-headed apocalyptic beast, and when I treat of the events foretold under the last vial.

It may not be amiss to remark, that, whenever the mystic Euphratean waters are exhausted under the sixth apocalyptic vial, or in other words whenever the Ottoman empire is overthrown, it will greatly assist us in explaining both the present prophecy of Daniel, and another of Ezekiel which many, though I believe erroneously, have thought to be parallel to it. Both Mr. Mede and Bp. Newton suppose, that the events predicted in Dan. xi. 44, 45, which they refer to the king of the North, are the same as those predicted in Ezek. xxxviii, xxxix; and they both equally suppose, that those two prophecies will be accomplished in some yet future expedition of

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the Turk into Palestine at the era of the restoration of the Jews. I have just explicitly avowed my total dissent from them, and have very fully given my reasons for such dissent according however to all appearances, though I presume not to say how soon,* not many years will elapse before the question is decided between us for ever. If the Ottoman empire fall, as I myself firmly believe it will do, without undertaking the predicted expedition into Palestine contemporaneously with the return of the Jews; we shall then be sure, that it cannot be the subject of either of the two prophecies, whether the two relate to the same event or not to the same event. And, if it should prove not to be the subject of the prophecy contained in Dan. xi. 44, 45, which of course it cannot be unless it fulfil that prophecy by undertaking the expedition into Palestine; then neither can it be the subject of the prophecy contained in Dan. xi. 40-43. And, if it be not the subject of that prophecy; then it cannot be the king of the North, to whom the entering into the countries and all that follows is ascribed, erroneously indeed I believe, by Mr. Mede and Bp. Newton. And, if the Ottoman power be not the king of the North; then neither can the Saracenic power be the king of the South. In short, unless the now debilitated Turk shall perform at some future period all that is predicted in Dan. xi. 44, 45, which both Mr. Mede and Bp. Newton allow to be yet unaccomplished; their whole exposition of Dan. xi. 36— 45 will be untenable.

The Turkish empire seems at present to exist, balanced as it were between the jealousy of France and Russia; and, what is more, its crisis, so far as human foresight can calculate, seems very rapidly approaching. The usurper is claiming all the Turkish provinces that ever belonged to the Venetian republic; and, if France and Russia seriously measure their strength, it will most probably be upon Ottoman ground. Can an empire, which totters to its very base, and which is faintly strug gling with open rebellion, stand the shock of two such conflicting rivals? Unless ! greatly mistake, the route of Antichrist or the infidel king to Palestine will be through the northern provinces of Turkey and Asia minor. Here the king of the South will butt at him and here the more mighty king of the North will come against him like an impetuous whirlwind, not only with land forces, but with many ships to prevent his crossing the Constantinopolitan strait. Yet, in despite of this resistance, he shall overflow the countries like a torrent and safely “pass over." Wonderful is the concurrence of facts with prophecy! Even now we behold the monster, who at one period seemed effectually excluded from Turkey by the powerful intervention of Austria, hanging upon the frontiers of the Ottoman empire, and devouring by anticipation his devoted prey. June 3, 1806.

Since then the infidel king is to spring up after the reformation and to continue to the time of the end, when he is to undertake an expedition against Palestine, we must look for his two antagonists, the kings of the South and the North, after the reformation also. And here it may be observed, that, since the king of the North is no where said to be a horn of the fourth beast, we may seek him either within or without the limits of the ancient Roman empire, according as we are directed by existing circumstances. The same remark applies with equal force to the king of the South. Now, when we consider that near twelve centuries have elapsed since the rise of the great Apostacy in the year 606, and consequently (if this be the true date of it) that it has to continue but little more than 60 years; when we next recollect, that the king of the North is to be contemporary with the infidel king, whose primary rise must be dated from the year 1789 when the French revolution commenced, who was fully revealed in the year 1792 when the reign of atheism and anarchy began,* and whose overthrow will begin to take place at the end of the 1260 years; when from this circumstance we obviously deduce, that the king of the North is to be the most powerful northern sovereignty of Europe that shall be in existence between the years 1789 and 1866, at which last period the 1260 years terminate if they be dated from the year 606; and when we lastly advert to the existing and probably future state of the great European commonwealth, we can scarcely doubt but that the king of the North is the colossal monarchy of Russia. What state is meant by the king of the South, is not quite so easy to determine.

As for the predicted wars of the infidel power with these two sovereigns, none of them have yet received their accomplishment. The prophet begins his account of them with declaring, that they shall happen at the time of the end. The time therefore is not yet: for the 1260 yeurs have not yet elapsed, consequently the time of the end is not yet come. Assuredly however will Antichrist hereafter invade Palestine in conjunction with

* These dates will be fully discussed hereafter,

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the false prophet and the kings of the Latin earth: and, though tidings out of the East and out of the North* may trouble him, will succeed in planting the curtains of his pavilions between the seast in the glorious holy mountain: yet, notwithstanding the temporary prosperity of his affairs, he shall come to his end, and none shall help him. The series of events, which terminates with the destruction of the monster and his confederated host, will be contemporary with the restoration of the Jews. At the close of the 1260 years, and at the commencement of that intermediate period styled by Daniel the time of the end, Antichrist will undertake the expedition which will terminate in his destruction; and at that same period the Jews will begin to be restored. Few therefore of the present generation can expect to behold even the beginning of the expedition: none can hope to witness his predicted invasion of Palestine, his capture of Jerusalem, his tremendous destruction between the two seas.§ Awful as the scenes have been, which we have

* Daniel teaches us, that he will hear these tidings out of the East and out of the North, while engaged in the conquest of Egypt. Now we have reason to believe, that a large body of the Jews will be restored in a converted state by some great maritime power. Suppose then that these Jewish converts and their protectors should land in Palestine, while Antichrist was in Egypt, the tidings of such a circumstance must undoubtedly come to him out of the East and out of the North. But the series of events, here detailed by Daniel, are considered at large in the work which I am now preparing for the press on the restoration of Israel and the destruction of Antichrist. To that work I beg to refer the reader.

†The dead sea and the Mediterranean sea, between which Jerusalem is situated.

Dan. xi. 40. xii. 1, 6, 7. That the declaration contained in these two last verses relates to the commencement and not to the accomplishment of the restoration of Judah, in other words, that Judah will only begin to be restored at the end of the three times and a balf, is manifest from the following statement. We are taught in Dan. xii. 1, that the Jews will be delivered at the same time (according as we understand the passage,) either with the commencement of the infidel king's expedition in Dan. xi. 40, or with his overthrow in Dan. xi. 45. The last supposition is forbidden by other parrallel prophecies, which represent the Jews as being already in their own land at the time that the Antichristian confederacy is broken: consequently, they must have begun to be restored previous to its being thus broken. The first supposition therefore must be adopted; whence it will follow, that the Jews begin to be restored contemporaneously with the commencement of the infidel king's expedition. But this expedition commences at the time of the end (Dan. xi. 40.): and the time of the end commences at the expiration of the 1260 years therefore the expedition commences at the expiration of the 1260 years: and therefore the restoration of the Jews, which commER= ces with the commencement of the expedition, must necessarily commence, not be perfected, at the expiration of the 1260 years likewise.

SI speak only as supposing my date of the 1260 years to be the true one. Should I be so mistaken in the date, as that the 1260 years expire sooner than I expect, these awful events will of course take place proportionably earlier likewise.

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