ertheless, escape out of his hand. For this they have to thank, not his moderation and clemency, but merely their local situation. A map will best explain the reason of their security. The districts, which those nations formerly occupied, lie so far to the east, as to be entirely out of the way of any army which is passing from Judea into Egypt. But, over other countries more closely adjoining to Egypt, he will stretch forth his hand: and, while Egypt is unable to escape his marauding rapacity, those, whom Daniel calls the Lubim and the Cushim, will be compelled to attend his steps, and probably either augment his armies or perform the more menial offices of his camp.

In the midst of his African conquests, he will be troubled by tidings out of the east and the north. What these tidings are, Daniel does not positively determine: but the subsequent context plainly shews, that they must relate to the approach of some new enemy, and to some disagreeable intelligence respecting Jerusalem. From these data, and by the assistance of other parallel prophecies, we may form no improbable conjecture at least respecting those tidings out of the east and out of the north, which are described as so grievously troubling Antichrist. We left the great maritime power bringing by sea its allies, the converted Jews, as a present to the Lord of hosts, to mount Zion. Now, in whatever part of the world this power may be situated, whether far beyond the eastern or the western Cushèan streams, it is plain that its navy can only approach Palestine by the way of the Mediterranean sea. Such then will indisputably be its course. The maritime expedition, which we may conceive to set sail at some indefinite period after the close of the 1260 years, in order that we may allow a sufficient space of time for the collecting together and converting such of the Jews as are destined to be restored by the agency of the great naval power, at length reaches Palestine: but the believing Jews, and their protectors, find themselves opposed by the unbelieving Jews, and the troops which Antichrist had left behind him to garrison Jerusalem and other strong-holds. Apparently after no trifling bloodshed, and (if 1 judge rightly from some prophecies) when the convert

ed Jews had suffered very considerably, the eyes of their unconverted brethren will unexpectedly be opened; they will spiritually look upon him whom they have pierced; and, throwing off the base yoke of Antichrist, they will cordially join such of their nation as had embraced christianity, and had allied themselves to the faithful Thus will the Lord bring to salvation maritime power. the tents of Judah first; or that body of the Jews, who are attached to the army of the great maritime nation, and who have not yet acquired a permanent settlement in citties and afterwards the house of David, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem; or those Jews, who have been restored in an unconverted state, and have been placed in their ancient metropolis by Antichrist.

At the period when these events happen, and that they will happen may be collected with sufficient clearness, we may suppose Antichrist to be in Egypt and Lybia: for to what other time, in the course of his whole progress, can we with equal propriety ascribe them? Thus situated, he would plainly receive the intelligence from From the north and the the north and from the east. northeast he would learn, by means of some light vessels, first that the navy of the maritime power was approaching, and afterwards that it had safely reached the coast of Palestine: from the east and the northeast he would learn, by means of his own fugitive troops which had been stationed in Judea, that the maritime power had completely succeeded in its first attempt, that it had brought back a large body of converted Jews, and that those who had been restored by Antichrist in an unconverted state had suddenly embraced the faith of protestant christianity, and had revolted from him to their Unless we admit, that eialready believing brethren.

ther this or something like it will be the case, we shall find it no easy matter to account for the fury with which Antichrist is represented as returning into Judea which he had already subdued, and as besieging Jerusalem which he had already given to his allies the unconverted Jews. For, that certain unbelieving Jews will be converted in Jerusalem, is plainly asserted by Zechariah : and, that the city will afterwards be besieged and taken,

VOL. II.

732

is asserted both by Zechariah and Daniel. But all those Jews, who are restored by the maritime power, will return in a converted state, as is manifest from the language used by Isaiah :* by whom then can the unconverted Jews have been restored, except by Antichrist, who will make himself master of the whole land of Palestine; and why should he afterwards besiege them in Jerusalem, except on account of their conversion mentioned by Zechariah, and their revolt from his cause? for, if they had not revolted from him after their conversion, no reason can be assigned why he should so bitterly attack them.

Troubled with such unpleasant tidings from the east and from the north, Antichrist hastily quits Egypt and Lybia, and retraces his steps to Judea. Going forth in the height of his fury, he threatens to destroy all such as should oppose him: and, calling in the aid of Popish bigotry he sanctifies his expedition by representing it as a holy crusade against heretics; and, with banners blessed by the false prophet, who (as we have reason to believe from the Apocalypset) will be his attendant, he devotes many to utter extermination under the blasphemous pretext of religion. His wonted success at first attends him. He besieges Jerusalem now occupied by his enemies, and takes it. Here he exercises his usual barbarity; a barbarity, increased ten-fold by the defection of his late allies. The houses are rifled, and the women are ravished, by his licentious soldiery. Half of the inhabitants are made captive: but the other half are permitted still to remain in the city, under the control most probably of a strong garrison. Thus does he plant the curtains of his tents between the seas in the glorious holy mountain : and thus is Jerusalem, now for the last time, trodden down of the Gentiles.

During these disasters, the troops of the maritime pow er appear to have retreated towards the sea-shore, in order that they may be able to regain their ships, if all further resistance should prove fruitless. Here they would doubtless be joined by the great body of their allies, the first converted Jews, and by such of those that were af

* See the preceding extract from Bp. Horsley.

† Rev. xix. 19, 20.

terwards converted, as were able to effect their escape To this devoted host the from the rage of Antichrist.

tyrant now directs his attention. Anticipating an easy victory over his last enemies, either by suddenly cutting them off from their ships or by compelling them to reembark, and with proud exultation looking forward to the uncontrolled empire of the civilized world, he leaves Jerusalem, and advances with his whole army to Megiddo. Between this town and the sea we may suppose the troops of the maritime power and the Jews to have taken their position, hopeless probably of victory from their vast disparity in numbers to the huge hosts of their enemy. But the battle is not always to the strong, nor the race to the swift. At this anxious moment, the glory of the Lord is suddenly manifested in the midst of Jerusalem, and Jehovah himself becometh a wall of fire around her. The Almighty Word of God goeth forth, like a man of war, in the greatness of his strength; and all his saints, the innumerable armies of heaven, are with him. His awful commission is from the Most High. For, after the manifestation of the glory, the Lord of hosts sendeth him unto the nations that have spoiled his an cient people; that he may shake his hand over them, that they may become a spoil unto those whom they had made their servants, that they may know that the Lord of hosts hath sent him, that they may learn by bitter experience that he who toucheth Judah toucheth The tremendous vision halts for the apple of his eye. a moment on the mount of Olives; which, like Sinai of old, acknowledges a present God, and with a mighty earthquake cleaves asunder in the midst. It then advances to the valley of Megiddo, and hovers over the heads of the palsied troops of Antichrist. The divine word displays himself to the assembled nations. The faithful look up with awful wonder, knowing that their Every eye seeth him; and redemption draweth nigh. they also, his kindred after the flesh, which pierced him, now behold him in his glory. He cometh with clouds; and all the kindreds of the Latin earth wail because of him.

He descendeth in his wrath: he treadeth the

wine-press in the fury of his indignation: his garments are sprinkled with the blood of his enemies.*

It appears from comparing various prophecies together, that the overthrow of the Antichristian confederacy will be effected partly by supernatural and partly by natural agency. Christ will indeed tread the wine-press alone, for to his sole might will the victory be owing: yet will he likewise use the instrumentality of others. While he miraculously smites his enemies with a dreadful plague, so that their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth; he will send likewise among them a great tumult from the Lord, so that they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour. Judah also, summoned to the dreadful task of vengeance by his God, shall take an active part in the destruction of his enemies for, in that day, the Lord will make the governors of Judah like a hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left. Thus will Antichrist come to his end, and none shall help him. Thus will the beast now under his last head be taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both will be cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone: and the remnant will be slain with the sword of that Almighty Conqueror who sitteth upon the white horse, the sword that proceedeth out of his mouth; and all the fowls will be filled with their flesh.

Since the Jews are to be restored in the midst of war and bloodshed, or as Daniel expresses it, during a time of

After a long and attentive examination of the subject, I rest in Mr. Mede's opiqion that there will be some preternatural manifestation of the Messiah, though I cannot think that he assigns to it its proper place in the succession of events. He supposes, that it will be the cause of the conversion of the Jews: whereas, according as matters appear to me, they will be previously converted; and Christ will be revealed, not to turn them to the faith, but to execute judgment upon his enemies. See Isaiah Ixiii. 1-6. Dan. vii. 9, 10, 11. Joel iii. 16. Zechar. ii. 8-11. xiv. 3, 4, 12, 13. Thess. ii. 8. Rev. xix. 11-21.

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