The Lord God Omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come; and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted, that she should be arrayed in fine linen clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints'.

In regard to this allegorical marriage, I fully assent to the application proposed by Mr. Mede. Every thing connected with that marriage, whether chronological or circumstantial, whether negative or positive, demonstrates its relation to the conversion and ecclesiastical readmission of Judah. ⠀⠀ #

1. To settle this important matter, it will be useful to begin with discussing the question negatively.

The consort of the Lamb, here described, cannot be the harlot-church of Babylon, who is represented as the mother of all younger harlots, and who therefore collectively with them is the whole apostate Church of the Gentiles: for that Church is prophetically exhibited, as being completely overthrown and therefore as resolved into its component individuals, at the very time when the marriage of the Lamb takes place.

Neither can she be those godly individuals and those two distinct ancient Churches, who, under the figure of the measured worshippers and the two prophesying witnesses, faithfully proclaim the

truth during the whole period of the latter 1260 years for, if this were the case, if they were espoused to Christ only at the very close of that period, they would be described, by a necessary implication, as having been previously alienated from their Lord; the very contrary of which is plainly set forth in the prediction relative to the measured worshippers and the two faithful wit

Neither yet can she be the several Churches coldectively, which reformed themselves in the course of the sixteenth century: for the same implication would attend upon this hypothesis, as would obviously attend upon the preceding theory.

Neither, lastly, can she be the hitherto unconverted Gentiles, who will at length be brought to embrace the faith of Christianity: for the marriage of the Lamb takes place synchronically with the overthrow of the antichristian faction; but the ultimate conversion of the Gentiles, by the general testimony of prophecy, succeeds that overthrow1. A2. Thus far the point has been ascertained negatively and this will enable us, without much difficulty to ascertain it positively.

It is said of the Lamb's mystical consort, that she hath made herself ready: and it is added, that, as soon as she hath made herself ready, the time of the marriage is come. From this statement, we

'See 'Isaiah lxvi. 15-24. Dan. vii. 9-14, 25-27. Zechar. xiv.

learn two very important particulars: that the des tined consort will not be prepared for her Lord, until the days of the seventh vial or until the time of the end or until the close of the latter 1260 years; and that, in the days of the seventh vial or at the time of the end or at the close of the latter 1260 years, she will be prepared for him. If, then, the destined consort will not be prepared for her Lord, until the arrival of that epoch: she must plainly be unprepared at this present moment, because that epoch has not yet arrived. In other words, she must be a community, which hitherto has not been converted to Christianity, but which will be converted at the close of the latter 1260 years or in the days of the seventh vial or at the time of the end.

Now to this description the ancient Israel of God alone corresponds: and that long repudiated, but not finally rejected, Church answers to it in every particular. The Jews, having renounced and cru cified that divine person the Angel of Jehovah, who was the God of their fathers Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, and who was the allegorical husband of the Levitical Church, became alienated from the Lord, while the Gentiles were called in to supply their place. In this state of figurative repudiation they have continued down to the present day; without the King even without the Ruler, and without sacrifice, and without statue, and without ephod and teraphim: rejected by the regal head of the theocracy, and incapacitated by the course of

events from celebrating the gorgeous rites of the temple-service; yet, unlike their forefathers of old, steadily abominating every form of idolatry, and bearing witness in all quarters of the globe to the divine unity. But we are assured, that they will not remain in such a condition for ever. A set time is fixed to the reëspousal of the Levitical Church for we are taught, that, contrary to the universal practice among men who never take back a once repudiated wife, Jehovah will at length receive again his dismissed consort'. And this set time of reëspousal is explicitly determined to be, at the close of the latter 1260 years, or at the time of the end, or at the expiration of the times of the Gentiles and it is always described, as synchronising with some remarkable overthrow of God's enemies.

Such are the destinies, past and future, of the Levitical Church: and they plainly answer, with the utmost degree of minuteness, to those of the Lamb's consort in the Apocalypse; while the condition of the Lamb's consort will answer to that of no other community than the Levitical Church. Each is at present unprepared, and therefore not the consort of the Lamb: each will make herself ready at the close of the latter 1260 years: and each, at that precise epoch, will be solemnly owned

1 Jerem. iii. 1.

2

Dan. xi. 40. xii. 1, 6, 7. Luke xxi. 24. Jerem. xxx. xxxi. Joel ii. iii. Zephan. iii.

Isaiah lxvi. 5-24.

Zechar, xii. xiii. xiv.

Suci, zträng ve in a be the case in the *me the free marriage of the

Lani si fie un if being crmed that great lace, i vilei de Bomen beat the fise prophet, and the kings of the ea re humbed together against the Lori, is represented as ocaring. The red as the complete overthrow of the antichristian faction and the final triumpa of Christ and La mis1.

The collocation of this battle, under the seventh vial, at the close of the latter 1960 years, and syndrotizlly will the restoration and ecaversion of Judah, determines its identity with that battle, which, under exactly similar circumstances, is foretold by more than one of the ancient prophets.

'This application of the marriage of the Lamb is confirmed by its strict chronological accordance with the arrangement set forth in other prophecies. The national conversion of the Jews will precede the general national conversion of the Gentiles. Nee above book ii. chap. 2. § II. 1. 2.

* Rev. xix.