ble Church. I term them symbols, because they have, literally, no likeness on earth, being composed of parts taken from different earthly creatures, though in their composite state they symbolise the character, state, and profession of a servant of God; they display to the eye that which is of the heart,-in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of man but of God. Even from the beginning, as I have shown, God partly revealed his will by symbols. Our first parents were deprived of everlasting joy through sin, and were driven into this world of sorrow, terminating in death. Provision, however, was immediately made for the recovery of our loss. This is the fruitful theme of the Bible, which is first set forth by symbols, and then accomplished by the life and death of Christ. The mercy-seat, which was the covering or lid of the ark, and the two cherubim, were composed of one piece of gold. Why so? The cloud, or shekinah, was undoubtedly a symbol of the Divine presence; and as it rested on the mercy seat, might not this denote Christ's human nature, which dwelt among us in a way of mercy? God, in reconciling the world to himself, virtually made Christ's human nature a mercy-seat, just as the lid of the ark was the seat of the cloud. But this mercy-seat was one piece with the two churubim, which were not soldered to it, but the whole was wrought out of the same solid lump of gold. It was not a union, but a oneness and entirety. Now, Rev. v. 9 declares that the cherubim were redeemed men; the mercyseat, therefore, being of the same nature with them, could be nothing else but our Saviour's humanity, through which alone God can be merciful to us. Christ is the head of the body, the Church; hence believers are described as members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones. † Cherubimic figures covered the curtains and boards of the sanctuary, so that the holy of holies, with the mercy-seat, symbolised God in Christ, united to or in the midst of the visible Church. The cherubim are nearest to the throne * Exod. xxv. 19-37; vii. 9. and almost form a part of it. It is not improbable that they denote the civil authority, which is a vicegerency, God acting in and through it. The seraphim (Isaiah vi.) occupy the same place and office as the cherubim in the temple, and may justly be regarded as the same. It does not militate against their symbolical character that they are living creatures, and compose a multitude; for the four beasts (Dan. vii.) are incontestably both. Their worship is peculiar, and more appropriate to the militant than to the triumphant Church; for while they praise the triune God, and declare the whole earth is full of his glory, as a pure and holy Being, they cover their faces and feet, being ashamed that their course of life is beneath God's regard, or obnoxious to His displeasure. Now, though God, in strong, poetic language, charges His angels with folly, because great intelligence and purity fall infinitely below the Divine perfection, yet it is never said that pure and holy angels approach God, except with confidence and joy. So much is the vision accordant with the service of God on earth, and so little with that in heaven, that it composes a scene exhibiting pardon and grace, affairs which take place alone in the militant Church. Isaiah personates a convinced sinner under the ministry of the seraphim. Their declaration of the Divine holiness convinces rim of sin, whilst his alarm is removed by the application of a live coal from the altar, which denoted Christ. If now we pass on to Ezekiel, chap. i., we have additional proof that the cherubim are redeemed men; there is evidently an allusion to the holy of holies, the cherubim being four in number, two on the mercy-seat and two larger ones made by Solomon. Ezekiel, chap. x. 16, calls the living creatures cherubim; a wheel is connected with each; and in 1 Chron. xxviii. 10, Ps. xviii. 10, the chariots of the cherubim are expressly mentioned. Thus these living creatures, with their wheels, are identical with the cherubim and their chariots. God sits on his throne, or rides in the midst of his redeemed people on earth. He takes the human form in Christ. The rainbow likewise identifies this vision with the militant Church, for it denotes the covenant of grace which, in the midst of judgment, remembers mercy, and showers blessings upon men in the storm, tempest, and flood. But in heaven the grateful showers of the Divine favour are unaccompanied with the rolling thunder and the lightning's flash. As the bodies of the cherubim are for the most part human and the wheels intelligent, for they have eyes, whilst a common spirit pervades both, they probably denote members of the visible Church. Their wings perform two offices: their motion is language apparently spoken to God, for when it ceased, a voice was immediately heard in answer or expressive of approbation. The second use of their wings was to cover their bodies. This appears appropriate only to man below. Angels have no covering, as Adam had none in Eden; for the meanest, even the guardians of little children, always behold the face of God.* When David exclaims, "I shall behold thy face in righteousness," he implies that he will behold in heaven the countenance of God without a veil between, and being exempt from sin, will be fully persuaded of his entire affection: we shall look into His face, partly because our own will be without spot or wrinkle, and partly because we shall feel and know that He perfectly loves us through Christ.† This, however, is not our present condition. We may be scripturally confident of our safety, and have peace with God through Jesus Christ; and yet, if we fully know the Gospel and ourselves, we shall be sensible that sin remains in us, causing us frequently to cry out, To us belongs confusion of face, but unto thee, O Lord, belongs mercy." The veiling of their bodies, therefore, intimates the consciousness of sin that is foremost in the worship of the visible Church. 46 Having now gathered from the Old Testament whatever illustrates the present subject, I return to the Apocalypse where additional information * Matt. xviii. 10. + Ps. xvii. 15. is supplied. Here the living creatures' eyes are before, behind, and within, and as eyes denote intelligence, it is here complete. They take cognisance of all time, and look within or scrutinise the motives of their conduct. If these remarks are as applicable to angels as to men, what follows are not so, but must be restricted to creatures under discipline. Each of the living creatures in Ezekiel has the face of a lion, calf, man, and flying eagle, but in John the same faces are distributed but not repeated among the four, for reasons which will hereafter appear. And what do these faces denote? The lion is an emblem of dignity and courage; the calf, of labour and patience; the face of man, of intelligence; and the flying eagle, of an heavenly in opposition to an earthly mind; qualities which fit the possessor for a life of trial, such as obtains on earth, but which are derogatory to the repose and enjoyment of heaven. If now the next chapter be adduced, that I may bring together whatever is descriptive of these creatures, it will be found that they are neither angels nor departed saints, but living men. They have golden vials, and that we may not mistake their symbolical meaning, they are interpreted to mean the prayers of saints; they likewise sing. Had prayer only been mentioned it might have been taken in a loose general sense for worship or thanksgiving, but prayer united with, and distinguished from praise, must be restricted to supplication or entreaty, which all, except Romanists, restrict to the present life. alone is decisive and makes John beyond contradiction to be standing in the visible Church at some indefinite period subsequent to the time of the vision. The word "redeemed " appears at first sight to describe an inhabitant of heaven; it is, however, a singular fact that no writer in the New Testament applies it, except to the present life, and even John himself uses it in that sense. (Chap. xiv. 4.) Their assured hope also that they shall reign upon the earth brings one to the same conclusion This that they represent inhabitants of the earth or members of the visible Church. Who, then, it may be asked, are they? They cannot be less exalted than the ministry, being nearer to the throne of God and in a certain sense apparently even placed within it. But what other power is comparable with, or superior to, the sacred ministry? I reply, the civil power. It will be necessary here to revert to the imagery by which John was surrounded; I have proved that he was brought into the visible Church under the figure of the temple, which represented God dwelling in the midst of His people on earth. The service is the formula of the sinner's return to God, but I would now subjoin not necessarily of an individual merely, but of a community. But where in the temple do we find Christ's kingly office symbolised? Paul, speaking of governors, says they are God's ministers; and our Saviour implies that they are officially gods (being His delegates), to whom the Word of God came.* Now what can more suitably denote the delegated or official office of the civil power than the cherubim who reside next to the throne and even within it? It must never be forgotten that the temple service is symbolical throughout, nor is the least part of it without meaning, as is implied in the declaration of Christ that no jot or tittle of it shall pass away till it is fulfilled. It appears, then, to me that the civil power is probably described by the cherubim. I have now demonstrated that the throne, rainbow, and elders; the thunder, lightning, and voices; the sea, lamps, and beasts, describe the militant, not the triumphant Church. I have also shown that it was not the visible Church in its integrity, but in a decline, since the priestly raiment and golden crowns of the elders denoted pretensions to a high priesthood and an authority to impose rules of faith and duty upon the Church which exactly accords with the measures of the clergy before and in the fourth century. Nor does the decline stop here. The Church of the Apostles (the things which were, or the first *Rom. xiii. 1-6; John x. 34, 35. scene) was composed of independent communities under one invisible spiritual Head, the glorified Immanuel; but this temple, like the Jewish of old, was only one, for the twenty-four elders or high priests worship in one and the same temple. Here is a visible oneness, and yet in another point of view there is a plurality, for the elders are high priests, being without the common head which obtained under Judaism. And this unity and plurality certainly did then exist. The bishops affected one form of worship and doctrine, and met together in council in order to perpetuate it whilst they were independent of each other, or if they manifested respect for the Roman bishop, authority was scarcely yet conceded to him. Thus John was not introduced to the courts above that he might receive Divine communications and convey them to mankind, but the heavenly company by which he was surrounded comprised in part the revelation of the things that were to be hereafter, he stood in the midst of a Church which had already made considerable advances beyond the degeneracy of his own latter days, and which was going to trace rapidly a still more downward course. I now proceed to the worship which was celebrated. 66 And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to Him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever, the four and twenty elders fall down before Him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created." (Ver. 9-11.) We have probably here, and in the next chapter, a service interrupted and the removal of the interruption followed by very great changes, for no sooner had John listened to the heavenly symphony than silence was produced by the introduction of a sealed book which continued unbroken till the book was taken possession of by the Lamb with seven eyes and seven horns. But in what did this service consist? It was the worship of the unchangeable Jehovah-the triune God to whom all praise, honour, and thansksgiving are ascribed as alone justly due. This, however, is more apppopriate to angels than to men; salvation by Christ here omitted, will not be forgotten by the redeemed even in heaven. Had I not already proved that neither the persons here engaged, nor the place and circumstances were compatible with such a view, I should infer that we have here the worship of angels: but this cannot be. Still as it is the worship of God, rather than of God in Christ, and though His holiness is acknowledged, yet as His method of dispensing mercy is entirely kept out of sight, I consider it a defective, because I hope to show that it is an interrupted service. (To be continued.) THE STATE OF THE WORLD AT THE MESSIAH'S SECOND ADVENT. BY J. G. SPARKES. WITHOUT making any preliminary remarks, we will at once hasten to the discussion of our theme. First, let us inquire what will be the probable state of the world at Messiah's second advent. Now, in order to arrive at a clear conception of our subject, we judge it will be best to divide it into two parts, viz.,-First, What will be the state of the physical world; and then, secondly, What will be the state of the moral and religious world. Under each of the above heads we propose to offer a few observations. First, What do we understand by the term physical world. Physical is opposed to moral. By the phrase, physical world, we mean the universe in general. As to the earth's surface, and the objects existing upon it, wə presume it will be found to be much in the same condition as observed at present, when Messiah does come; yet it may be in a state of confusion, for it is doubtable whether it will be prepared for His advent. That the earth will undergo a great change we doubt not; indeed, St. Peter speaks to that effect in his second epistle, iii. 10, 12; that the regeneration will occur at a subsequent period of the world's history; but when that will happen we know not; neither can we discover where all (some, doubtless, will be with Christ: 1 Thess. iv, 16, 17) its inhabitants will be placed whilst the process of regeneration is going on; much less can we tell whether that divine operation will be gradual or instantaneous. We have no means of arriving at any certain knowledge on these points, therefore it is needless to speculate. Seeing that such questions are not within the compass of any finite mind to fathom, we shall leave them as they are a mystery to be revealed hereafter, and so pass on to the consideration of our next inquiry; viz., secondly, What will be the probable state of the moral and religious world then. We must first look at the state of society from a moral point of view, as seen now, in order to find out what its probable future will be. What, then, is the actual state of things around us? Do we find morality on the increase or decrease? Is crime becoming a thing of the past? Is it not rather making rapid strides on every hand? Is it within the grasp of the strong arm of the law fully to arrest its progress. Does not some new form of evil ever and anon present itself, each exceeding the other in atrocity? Do not criminals seem to vie with each other in committing deeds of the blackest die? Permit the daily newspapers to speak for themselves. Leaving the outer world, let us for a moment take a glance at the inner circle of life, viz., the social state of society. What do we know of families in general? Are things in a more promising condition in this respect? Does love and unity prevail in each house? Do we observe the holy bond of conjugal felicity strengthening with age and perience? Is fidelity at the present time with husbands and wives constantly regarded as a sacred obligation? Let the Divorce Courts be their own witness. What revelations do they disclose! Is it not a Bible injunction that the husband should bear rule in his own house, and guide his children with discretion? (Gen. iii. 16; Esther i. 22.) But is it so now? Let households testify. Is not, also, obedience ex to parents a command of God, and of perpetual obligation? (Col. iii. 20 ; Ephes. vi. 1, 2.) But is that precept obeyed by the children of to-day? Is not the order of things reversed? Does not the wife govern, and the child rule the house; thus violating the laws of God? It is recorded of a lunatic that he once said to his keeper, "When I am dead bury me head-downwards." "Why?" asked his keeper. "Because," said he, "the world is turned upside down." Madmen sometimes speak the truth. A friend of mine reminded me of another story, "Why were madmen put into lunatic asylums?" "Because," said a lunatic, "the world was gone mad." To return: the admonition of the "wise man" is disregarded. Parents, in many instances, instead of training their children up in the way they should go, frequently train them up in the way they would go; thus reversing the order of things. And what, may it be asked, would be the natural consequence of such conduct on the part of such parents? What, but rebellion? Children allowed to have their own way grow up self-willed, obstinate, disagreeable, unsociable members of society. If they are of the lower class, they are not unfrequently suffered to attend, without restraint, that very worst of all schools, the street school at night; thus they become perfected in every species of vice and infamy. Habits of immorality and lawlessness are thus formed in youth, and will increase with growth, unless prevented by the grace of God, and, therefore, are not easily to be broken off. The prophet Jeremiah asks, "Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good who are accustomed to do evil." (Jer. xiii. 23.) Yet, doubtless, some parents are to be met with who, finding their children daily becoming unconquerable, with a view to their reformation, send them to a day school; but at the same time, expecting that miracles should be wrought at the teacher's hands. Yes, forsooth, that these homepests, tyrants, and lions should immediately be turned into lambs. But, we ask, is it possible that children with such an education as that, if it Νο can be called an education, should at once become tractable, teachable, and obedient? How does experience bear us out? It is against such a supposition. For every instructor of the young well knows, that the task of teaching children now becomes more and more difficult with every rising generation. The want of homeinfluence is felt everywhere, and we may add, in many instances, the want of home comforts, too. Precepts are good, but examples are better. Alas, many children have neither. wonder, then, they are what they are; the astonishment is that they are not much worse! Appalling thought! Is not the child the type of the parent. What, then, will be the future generation? Yet, order is heaven's first law. Is it not the duty of every parent and teacher, first, to instil into the minds of children right principles, and to inculcate upon them right habits? Until this be done no amount of good can be possibly effected. But, enough. Turn we in the next place to examine the religious state of society as it is now evinced. At the outset we ask, is there no cause for complaint-no ground for alarm? We think there is very much fear to apprehend that even here things are not what they ought to be. What is its tone? Is it low or high? Healthy or unhealthy? Let experienced Christians speak. Now, what do they say? It is true, say they, that religion has not changed, but that the form of it has greatly changed. Instead of being pure and simple in its nature and worship, it has become impure and lofty, partaking of a sensational, rather than a spiritual character. Such being the case, its subjects must of necessity also be affected by the transformation. For, as the face of nature changes by the succession of seasons, so does the form of religion change by the many practices and ceremonies introduced into public worship. The desire for novelty is everywhere apparent. As with dress, so with religious worship. This is not the least dangerous feature in the case: would that it were so. The most to be dreaded is, a spirit of worldliness, which has of late years crept up from the root, and now has |