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A FOURTH Sign of the times, is the efforts that have been made, through the instrumentality of different religious societies, within the last thirty years, to propagate the Gospel throughout the world. Our Lord hath told us (Matt. xxiv. 14) that "this Gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and THEN SHALL THE END COME." And in Rev. xiv. 6, 7, at the time when the hundred and forty-four thousand (the symbolical number of the Lord's elect) who have been sealed against the coming days of vengeance and slaughter, are represented as standing with the Lamb on Mount Zion, a symbolical angel is seen flying "in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to Him; FOR THE HOUR OF HIS JUDGMENT IS COME; and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." From both these important announcements, each of which is made in connection with the judgments of the last times, it is evident that this remarkable sign is indicative of the nearness of the "time of THE END"-for "THEN shall the end come. Perhaps there is scarcely a portion of the habitable globe in which, either by the labours of Bible or Missionary Societies, the

Gospel has not been preached; so that this sign, inasmuch as it was to be not for the conversion of, but only as a witness to, all nations, has already been fully accomplished; and we have therefore, on this account, every reason to conclude that "the hour of his judgment" is indeed very near at hand.

A FIFTH sign of the times, is the extraordinary movement that has, within the last few years, been made by many of the Lord's people in favour of the Jews. Not that much good has been really effected; not that their labours (any more than has been the case, as above noticed, with other societies) have been much blessed in the way of conversion; but because they are connected with a Divine promise. In the 102d Psalm, the prophet says: "Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to favour her, yea, the set time, is come : for thy servants take pleasure in her stones, and favour the dust thereof."

The SIXTH and last sign of the times which I would notice, is the fatal security and indifference of nations and individuals, during the present calm, to any approach of danger. It may be argued, that "had these great and tremendous judgments been announced to happen during the alarms of the last great war, there might have been reason to apprehend danger; but what have we now to fear? what

three distinct master-" SPIRITS," or, to use the words of the late Mr. Canning, CONFLICTING

OPINIONS.

The first in order of these spirits, now prominently moving on the surface of society, is that of DESPOTISM, or an abuse of absolute power in the hands of one individual; said here to proceed "out of the mouth of the dragon," a symbolical term for the ancient Pagan Roman Empire. The second is that of INFIDELITY, or that spirit of disorganization, insubordination, and change, which is the effect of a disbelief and neglect of the word of God, and a denial of the Deity of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ; said to come "out of the mouth of the beast"— that is, the beast mentioned in Rev. xi. 7, that "ascendeth out of the bottomless pit." The third of these master-spirits influencing the present age, is that of POPERY; and this is described as coming "out of the mouth of the false prophet."

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These three spirits are further described as unclean, like frogs"—" the spirits of devils ;" and it may enable us to form some more distinct and tangible ideas of the significancy of such epithets, if we consider what the operation of each has been, as exhibited to the world on the pages of history. First: that of Despotism may be contemplated as it appears in the lives and conduct of the Tiberiuses, Neroes, Caligulas,

serve as an apology for digressing a little in this place, and attempting to give a more full opinion of its meaning and reference.

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There can be no question but that the dryingup of the bed of the literal "Euphrates," adopted by Cyrus as the last immediate preparation for the taking and overthrow of Babylon, was a type of the symbolical "drying-up" here mentioned of the same river, preparatory to the destruction of the symbolical "Babylon," or the ten Papal nations: and that, as the literal drying-up" was for the ulterior purpose of restoring the captive and dispersed Jews to their own land, so, in like manner, the symbolical dryingup, which is now rapidly going forward, is, although in a more full and complete sense, for the same great ulterior purpose. And, considered in this view, this "sign of the times" bears most materially on the subject before us, and leaves no room to doubt, irrespective of all chronological prophecy, that, along with the downfall of Popery, THE END OF ISRAEL'S AND JUDAH'S CAPTIVITY, and their return to the land of Judea, is very near at hand: and particularly when it is considered further, that it is the Mohammedan power, as exercised respectively by the Saracens and Turks, that has for so many centuries been in possession of this land; that has kept it so long desolate; and that has in so

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whole world, unto the battle of the great day of God Almighty;" or, more literally, to gather the kings of the Western Roman Empire, and all other kings, to the great, decisive, and unprecedented battle of Armageddon.

The ancient prophets, alluding to this awful event, use the following tremendous language: "Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near, let them come up: Beat your plow-shares into swords, and your pruning-hooks into spears; let the weak say, I am strong. Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O Lord. Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the VALLEY OF JEHOSHA PHAT: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about. Put ye in the sickle; for the harvest is ripe come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for the wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel. So shall ye know that

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