for one week, &c. And in the temple shall be the abomination of desolation (so read the Greek, and Latin, and one Hebrew MS.). And in the midst of the week," &c; here the ancient Greek reads, "and in the end of the week." 27. Seventy weeks will "finish the transgression," that is, will bring to a head the apostasy of the Jews, and in the end of the 70th week the apostasy will be complete. 28. "The little horn," or eleventh king will rise without any pretensions, "he will come in peaceably and obtain a kingdom by flatteries. 29. If the preceding points are true, then very much that commentators have adduced as fulfilment of prophecy from the death of Alexander must be false. QUESTION. Have the foregoing statements any bearing on the walk of the saints? Let the following thoughts be considered. 1. At some future time, there will be war in heaven (the regions of the air), when Satan and his angels will be "cast into the earth." (Rev. xii. 9.) 2. The heavens are then called on to rejoice, and "they that dwell in them:" who can they be but the church, having been then "caught up. to the Lord's meeting (Gr.) in the air?" This meeting cannot be till the words of our Lord are fulfilled, "I go to prepare a place for you." 3. Immediately on Satan's depulsion," he stands (Tregelles et alii) on the sand of the sea," and calls up amid the turmoil of nations beast having seven heads and ten horns "-the Antichrist. 4. Then begins "the great tribula tion, such as was not since the beginning of the world." But there being nothing to keep the church from the heavenly places, and nothing to keep it on the earth, the word is fulfilled "that where I am, there ye may be also." μετὰ ταῦτα—After these things. Light to the Jews, gross darkness to the nations (Isai. lx. 1, 2): nevertheless the commencement of light to the whole earth, ver. 3 and onwards, and Rom. xi. 15, 25. Isa. lx. exhibits Jerusalem as the reflecting source of light to the Gentiles, and she is contrasted throughout with them. After the resurrection of the Church (comp. Rev. xix. 11-14 with Zech. xii. and xiv. 1-9), a spirit of grace and supplications" will be poured on the Jews remaining in the land, and God 66 I will hear them," and confirm to them all his gracious promises (Deut. XXX.), and they will be "life from the dead" to the nations (Rom. xi. 15;) whilst their own possessions will be co-extensive with the grant made to Abraham in Gen. xv. 18; and they will ask for more, as in Isa. xlix. 20, and the Lord will give, as in Amos ix. 11, 12, and Num. xxiv. 18; when all nations shall flow unto it (Isa. ii. 2, 3), which is the introduction of that period spoken of in Rom. xi. 25, "the fulness of the Gentiles." CHARACTER OF THE MILLENNIUM. 1. A state of progressive blessing unprecedented, as intimated in 1 Cor. xv. 24, 25; Zech. xiv. 17, 19; Isa. lx. 12; Ps. ii. 10-12. 2. Righteous rule and competent provision for happiness, for we read, "a king shall reign in righteousness." (Isa. xxxii. 1.) See also Ps. ix. 8; Acts xvii. 31; and "He will teach us of His ways." (Micah ii. 48; Ps. lxxii.) EVENTS AFTER the Millennium. Satan is loosed, (Rev. xx. 3, 7, 9); is cast into the lake of fire, his everlasting prison, ver. 10; final judg ment, ver. 12, &c.; passing away of all present things, and a new creation. (Rev. xxi. 1, 5.) Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly! THE SECOND ADVENT OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST. (COMMUNICATED.) WE gave in our last number a copy of the notice sent by Mr. Grantham, of Croydon, to those friends who attend the Bible Readings at his house, intimating that the subject for the next three monthly meetings, would be devoted, God willing, to the consideration of "The Second Advent of our Lord Jesus Christ." Judging, however, from the first of hese meetings, it is probable that many more will be necessary to exhaust the simple programme that had been proposed. The division of the subject to be considered on Monday, the 12th of last month, was, 'How would He come, and when would He come?" The second part, however, was not reached, and some features of the first were to be reconsidered. We are glad to see that so much interest is excited by this great subject, and trust many may be led to study it soberly and with care. The subject was opened by reading Matt. xxiv. 42 to the end. A brief view was taken of the state of mind of a large number of Christians on the subject of Christ's return. It was generally considered speculative, and as so many differing opinions were held, even by those who ought to be teachers, that even believers were afraid to approach it, the consequence was that it had been kept in the background, and that which should be our highest motive for Christian service and close walk with God, was practically inoperative. Congregations sitting under the sound of a clear Gospel reached a certain stage and then stood still; some, indeed, declined, and many instances could be found in our day where the light, instead of growing brighter, had grown dim. From the absence of clear and welldefined views, great confusion prevailed in the minds of many, and it was hoped that by a systematic study of the question, based solely on the prophetic teaching of God's Word, greater interest would be taken in it. In this study the question of the Jews must be kept prominently before us. It has been too much the habit amongst Christians to treat the glorious promises made to the Jews as intended for the Gentiles; forgetting that the Gentiles are only grafted on the Jewish root, which will again flourish and blossom as the rose. How will He come? and in what manner and in what character will He come? First, He would come as a MAN. In Luke xxiv. 39, after His resurrection, He says, 'A spirit hath not flesh and bones as ye see me have;' Secondly, He will come as a KING. When making His triumphal entry into Jerusalem (Matt. xxi. 5), He fulfilled the prophecy of Him in Zechariah ix. 9: "Behold thy KING cometh unto thee, meek and sitting on an ass, and a colt, the foal of an ass." On the same occasion the multitudes cut down branches from the trees and strawed them in the way, crying "Hosannah to the Son of David! Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord. Hosannah in the highest!" This last is part of the 118th Psalm, which was always sung at the feast of tabernacles-the type of the harvest or ingathering, when the Lord shall come with His angels to separate the wheat from the tares. In this connection, also read Matthew xvii. 4, where the Lord assumed for a moment His kingly aspect, and Peter in his surprise and joy exclaimed, "Let us make three tabernacles," apparently associating this glorious appearing with the same joyful feast. Another passage was referred to (see Zachariah xiv. 16), where, in the Millennium, the nations shall come up to join the Jew in his adoration of the "KING, the Lord of Hosts, at the feast of tabernacles." He will also come as a "thief," and as a snare,"-figures intended to represent the manner of His coming --that is, unexpected and suddenly. He will come in glory with His angels (see Mark viii. 33); and with His saints (see 1 Thessalonians iii. 13); then comparing these passages with Revelation iv. we have the saints immediately before the throne, saying, "Holy, holy, holy." In the fifth chapter, "many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders, saying, Worthy is the Lamb," &c. The saints nearest to their blessed Lord, admitted to the highest place around the throne. The angels next (Rev. iv. 11), the willing servants and the joyful witnesses of the glory of those who had been redeemed by His blood. The Lord comes, first, to catch away His saints, dead and alive, from the great tribulation, and then to return again with them to be partakers of His glory when He shall appear with ten thousands of His saints, and to reign with them on the earth a thousand years. The usual time of the meeting having expired, notice was given that the second portion of the subject, 46 When will He come?" will be brought forward at the usual time, the second Monday in February. OBITUARY NOTICE. THE readers of your magazine will learn with deep sorrow that a dark cloud hangs now over the family of the Rev. H. A. Stern, the principal of the London Jews' Society's Home Mission. The first day of the new year witnessed the solution of the earthly ties which united him to his beloved wife; and six days afterwards her remains were consigned to their final resting-place. How manifold and heavy have been the afflictions endured by this deeply tried servant of Christ, and yet how resigned and submissive under them all! Saved as by a miracle from a protracted state of mental agony and physical tortures worse than death, he fondly consoled himself with the hope, that whatever trials awaited him yet in future they would be rendered easy to bear by the cheering presence of her, who had been his faithful and devoted companion for nearly a quarter of a century, and whose intense anxiety for his safety during his captivity formed, perhaps, the bitterest ingredient in his cup of sorrow. And now this hope, too, is dashed and buried in the tomb which has just closed over her! But in the midst of his overwhelming grief, he is sustained by the confident assurance that this chastisement also, however grievous for the present, is designed in mercy, and will result in drawing him nearer to his gracious Redeemer. It will also exert a beneficial effect upon the blessed work in which he is engaged. Already the calm resignation and Christian fortitude exhibited by himself and his family under this heavy bereavement, must have given to his Hebrew catechumens a vivid impression of the reality and power of that gospel which he had expounded and recommended to them. They could not fail to perceive, that, unlike Judaism, Christianity is more than an empty sound without meaning, a shadow without substance. Now especially, they must feel convinced by the testimony of their own senses, that, by savingly embracing the gospel, an Israelite is not exchanging one religion for another, but is introduced for the first time in his life into genuine and filial relationship and intimate fellowship with the God of his forefathers, and is inspired with a well-grounded hope for eternity. Whatever the advocates of modern Judaism may say and write to the contrary, no one knows better than they do how utterly the whole system breaks down on the death-bed. At one time or another they must have been struck by the total absence of peace which invariably marks the expiring moments of even those Jews who had been most consistent in their religious observances. What heart-rending shrieks, what agonising groans, what distressing exhibitions of hopeless grief, are not witnessed on such occasions amongst unbelieving Hebrews! The king of terrors reigns supreme, and scarcely a ray of hope pierces the dark cloud which usually hovers over a Jewish death-bed scene. Eternity, in all its appalling mysteriousness, is inexorably present, and there is nothing tangible and reliable to sustain the soul in its passage to it, and to mitigate the intensity of the bereaved's affliction. Ah! Could but our Jewish brethren have watched the peaceful departure of our dear Christian sister, and the calm, subdued, and hopeful sorrow of those who mourn her removal from their midst. They would have been constrained to admit, that Hebrew Christians have not followed cunningly-devised fables when they embraced the gospel, and when they seek to make known to their unconverted brethren the power and coming of the Lord. The funeral cortege was followed for some distance by the children of the Hebrew schools, and the inmates of the Operative Institution and the Wanderers' Home. But a much larger number of believing Israelites, and among them not a few ordained ministers of the gospel, waited at the gate of the Ilford Cemetery to join in the obsequies. Many Gentile Christians, too, were attracted to the spot, who were evidently surprised to find such a large number of Hebrew Christians congregated in one place, and manifesting such genuine sympathy with the survivors. One feeling of deep sorrow pervaded the whole assembly, and hot tears were seen rolling down many a manly cheek. All felt the power and solemnity of our beautiful burial service, as it was read with emotional emphasis by the brother-in-law of the departed. But the deepest impression was produced upon all present when the Hebrew children, standing with their worthy teacher, Mr. Nickeles, at the open grave, sang melodiously: "A few more years shall roll, A few more suns shall set, This was followed by the equally appropriate German hymn, which was sung by the adult converts with thrilling pathos: "Lasst mich gehen, lasst mich gehen, Und vor seinem Thron zu stehen." The assembly then dispersed, all of them realising the truth of the preacher's declaration :-" It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting.” M. W. "He abideth in death." Where he was, there he remains. He is of the progeny of Cain, who hated his brother, "because his own works were evil and his brother's were righteous." This is the stamp of reprobation. Cain's hatred was instinctive. The same is seen in nature as in the kingdom of grace. Certain animals exhibit an antipathy for one another, and these are not always far removed in species; the domestic kine cannot endure its wild congener; "lands intersected by a narrow frith abhor each other; strange but true. The worldling and the Christian are both men; in natural generation the same; in the spiritual, eternally distinct. Hatred is mutual in the natural world; in the spiritual, only on one side, if our great Lawgiver's law is kept. Not only does our loving Saviour tell us to love one another, but He enjoins, "love your enemies." Love is the atmosphere of grace-unfeigned, fervent. "Into the heaven of heavens I have presumed, a mortal guest, and drawn imperial air." So writes the great Milton. Every child of God should be able to re-echo this. "Seated with Him in heavenly places," can we any longer breathe the fetid atmosphere of earthly joys? Can they afford a grateful pabulum G for the newly-born ward of heaven? Can he healthily inhale the dark vapour of his quondam natal sphere? "All things are become new.' He is a new creature, and he must have every thing new for his subsistencenew interests, new pursuits, new companions, new affections, new joys. Verse 15.-Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer; and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. If Peter is brother to Paul, then Paul is brother to Peter. If Peter hates Paul he is a murderer, and hath not eternal life abiding in him. The above is a test, not of a believer as such, but of a certain condition of a believer. What is hatred? Is it that which thirsts for the life-blood of its victim? That is hatred; but it is not a definition. Hatred is persistent wrath. 'Anger rests in the bosom of fools." There is a holy anger; it is not so if the sun goes down on it. It is not so if self-love cherishes its vigour. "Do not I hate them, O Lord, who hate Thee?" This was consistent once; it is so no longer. All sinners are God's enemies, hating him; under the Gospel they must be sought with the message of love from Him. "Whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause is in danger of the judgment," that is, the judgment on a murderer. Oh, how searching is the law of Christ, under which we are! The law under which Israel groaned was holy, indeed, but its design was not recovery; it was added because of transgression." The law for all who are redeemed by the precious blood is remedial; but it is "sharper than a two-edged sword. . . . a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." It goes deeper, it aims higher. The law suffered 66 an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth." but the grace that came by Jesus Christ speaketh on this wise, "Resist not evil." Our pen demands to record a confession of failure. How fertile in excuses! how ready in expedients! how crafty in zeal! Weak for good, mighty for evil, is the fleshly mind. It is a solemn fact that one who is a son of God, a brother of the Lord Jesus Christ, may be an incipient murderer. Under the intensely inquisitorial law of Christ, an evil desire is accounted as the actual commission of the crime (Matt. v. 28). But, one may say, we read that "no murderer hath eternal life." If this were the whole of the divine record, we must give up our thought that a genuine brother is meant; but it is added, 66 abiding in him." The Greek is yet more suggestive; it is in himself (avr). On the ground of genuine faith in the heart, and confession with the mouth," our life is hid with Christ in God"-eternal life; and "none can snatch out of His hands." But eternal life-the deep, earnest consciousness thereof-does not abide in him; "he has forgotten that he was purged from his old sins." How can he be occupied with these opposites together? Eternal life is his, but of no appreciable value to him. He is an heir of God, a joint-heir with Jesus, but meaner things charm him; ay, perilous things fascinate him, and he has cogent reasons for the pursuit. We first tolerate, then adopt, then defend: we become advocates of the evil to keep ourselves in countenance. That which we accept because we like it, we soon learn to commend and prove to be right. Ah, subtle casuistry! what the heart loves the intellect applauds. If we would like what we do we must not do what we like. If we would be like Christ we must love like Him. He loves in spite of all the grievous defilements which afflict His church. He is light, and He would have us walk in the light, that there may be no stumbling; but "he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes." (1 John ii. 11.) Oh, pitiable condition! self-inflicted disability! Verse 20.-"If our heart know anything against us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things." Verse 21.-"Beloved, if our heart know nothing against us, then have we confidence toward God." καταγινώσκω is κατά, against ; and yivwokw, I know (Parkhurst). The word has a forensic character, meaning, I know against, blame, accuse, |