Bible Standard April 1881

8/3/2019 Bible Standard April 1881

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___ ~I\lIj'"-7illEY RECEIVEDrHtWOR DWiTH AL L R EAO I--N ES S OF MI ND AN OSEARCHED THE SCRIP--If/RES DA ILYWH{l Ifll17 I0SETHIAfCS WERESOfHEREFORE MANYOF THEM B E U E V ff , s> < V 1 J .

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EDITED BY CYRUS E. BROOKS.

"The Wages of Sin is Death; bu,t the gift of God is Eternal Life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

No. 7. VoI. IV. PRICE ONE PENNY.PRI L, 1881.TABLE OF CONTENTS.

PAGEThe Gehenna of the WickedEaster Sunday.-A DialogueImmortalityReligious Teaching of Children ...John Wesley on Heaven at Death ...The Popular Creed ...Conditional Immortality.-A ReviewThe Coming King (Continued)Correspondence Extracts ..." What of the Night? "~embers' Berean ClassNotes, News, and ReviewsQuestion and AnswerChurch and Mission News ...

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CONDITIONAL IMMORTALITYASSOCIATION,

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94 THE BIBLE STANDARD.SPECIAL NOTES.

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THE GEHENNA OF THE WICKED.By REV. DAVID MAORAE.

Extract from a Discourse delivered at the Kinnaird. Hall, Dundee.pEOPLE have been taught to believe that these words about hell and

" the fire that shall never be quenched" are Scriptural authority forthe hell taught by the Churches, in which all who die unsaved are to bekept burning alive in hopeless and unspeakable torment for ever andever. Now nobody, I suppose, can wish such a doctrine to be true.Nobody who has seen a fellow-creature writhing and shrieking under theexcruciating pain of even a scald or a burn; nobody who has read of thehorrible agonies of men burned at the stake, or the sufferings of thosewho, in the Inquisition, were tortured with red hot irons till their eyeswere starting out of their heads with agony; nobody, I say, who hasseen or read anything of this can wish that if, in the other world (as isalleged) such tortures are to be inflicted on our friends and fellow-creatures who die unsaved, these tortures should go on for ever.Nobody can wish that after hours and days and years and countlessages of torment so horrible, it should yet be no nearer to an end; thatthere should be no hope of either deliverance or death. I should think,also, that no Christian people could believe our Heavenly Fathercapable of keeping any of His creatures alive for ever in such torment,un less they thought themselves compelled to believe it by such passagesas those before us to-night. It therefore becomes important to ascertainif such passages really teach what they are said to do. Let us thereforelook at the one before us in which, according to our version, Christspeaks of people being cast into hell, where the worm dies not, and thefire is not quenched.

It may be observed, first of all, that this expression is not our Lord'sown, but is a figure of speech quoted from Isa. lxvi. 2,i. It needs alsoto be known that the word which is here translated" hell" is not thehell of theologians, but the name of a valley outside the walls ofJerusalem. I do not know whether the revised version, which will soonbe issued, is to help in correcting this confusion by giving us the actualword Gehenma ; but, whether or no, Gehenna is the word used in thetext. Now, Gehenna, as I have said, was a valley outside the walls ofJerusalem-a valley into which offal and dead bodies were cast. There,of course, lived worms, which fed upon them. Fires, also, were keptcontinually burning in the 'valley to consume all this corruption, andprevent the air from becoming infected and breeding disease. Here,therefore, the worm never died and the fire was never quenched. ButGehenna and its fires had a wise and beneficent purpose. That pur-pose was the purification of the city and the burning up of corruptionand offal. This idea is practically lost in the" orthodox" interpreta-tion of Christ's words, and another idea put in its place, which is false.For, as a moment's reflection will show, there was nothing in Geheunato suggest the keeping alive of human beings in torment. It was notgiving creatures that the worms fed on, or that were cast into the fire.

It was carcasses and offal. And even if these represented sin, osinner, Gehenna would suggest, not everlasting existence, but destion. For carcase and offal were thrown into Gehenna and its finot to be preserved, but to be destroyed and burned up. If, thereas the orthodox hold, Christ in this passage is speaking of the statedeath, and if by what is thrown into hell, or Gehenna, is meantsinner, then the doctrine taught is that of extinction-the same docwhich the advocates of that view find in such passages as these-"wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the Lord shall be as tbelambs; they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume awaPs. xxxvii. 20. And again, in Christ's own words-" If a mannot in Me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; andgather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned."-Joxv. 6. We see, then, that if what is cast into the fires of Gehstands for wicked men, the doctrine Christ teaches here is annihilatIf, on the other hand, what is cast into the fire represents whatitself abominable in the eyes of God-if it represents not the sinnerhis foulness and corruption-then the doctrine taught here is purtion. This figure, therefore, as drawn from the worms and fiGehenna, may teach purification, or extinction, but not everlatorment. The idea of it teaching that in hell human beings areeverlastingly burning, without being even consumed, is an interprtion which not only violates all the known probabilities of hunature, but distorts and destroys the very figure which Christselected for the exhibition of His thought.

Even with regard to the fire, the assumption that it must burnever, because it is said never to be quenched, is to overlook the uboth of everyday language, and of Scripture itself. We say that ais un quenchable when it cannot be put out till its work is done-the yard, or shed, or building, on which it has seized, is utterlysumed. Eusebius, for instance, in his "Ecclesiastical History,describing the martyrdom of Cronon and Julian at Alexandria,they were burned in "unquenchable fire." No one supposes thmean that the fire is burning still. It lasted only a few hours. Budescribed it as unquenchable, because it was a fierce devouring fireburned on, unquenchably, till it had done its urork, We find theusage in Scripture. In Lev. vi. 12-13, we find it said of the firethe Jewish altar-" The fire shall ever be burning; it shall neveput out." Where is that fire now? Though it burned long, itout when its purpose was served. In Jer. xvii. 27, it is said, in warthe people of Jerusalem what would befall them if they did not obsthe Sabbath law-" I will kindle a fire in the gates, and it shall dethe palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched." Here theidea is implied. The fire would go out, but not till it had done its wIn Jude we read of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah having sufthe vengeance of eternal fire." Yet the cities have not been bureternally. They were soon consumed, and their ruins have been uwater now for thousands of years. Even the fire itself, though ceternal," has long since ceased to burn. But it was" eternal"" unquenchable " till its work was done. Again, ISaiah, in predicthe judgment that was coming on Idumrea, said-" The land theshall become burning pitch. It shall not be quenched, night orThe smoke thereof shall go up for ever. None shall pass throit for ever aud ever." Yet the fire is not burning to-day, The smis not rising now from Idumsaa. Bedouin tribes roam in the land.travellers from our own and other countries pass through it every yNot the less truly tbat which the prophecy meant was accomplishThe judgment was terrible and complete. The fire did not go ouit had done its work. Such passages shew us what such expressias those in our text mean. The worm will never die while therwork for it to do. The fire will burn unquenchable till its work is dAnd the work of both is to devour all that is dead and uselessoorrupting, till none of it be left.


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THE BIBLE STANDARD . 95EASTER SUNDAY.By J. J. HOBBS, BLANDFoRD.

CLERGYMAN-" Good morning, neighbour; I hope you are well. Alovely morning, is it not? "

PARISHIONER-" Good morning, sir. It seems good to see the sunagain after such a long spell of dull weather:'

C-It does, indeed, and it ought to remind us of that yet moreglorious sun, the Sun of Righteousness, whose rising we so gladlycelebrate this Easter Sunday. At the same time you will allow me toexpress the regret I feel that you should appear so indifferent to themomentous event. Not only have you not been present at church thismorning, but for a long time past I have noticed a vacancy in your pewwhich would have been better filled."

P-" I am not surprised that you have missed me of late, sir, for, tospeak the truth, I must confess to an increasing lack of interest alto-gether in religious things, or at any rate in Christian teaching."

C-" It vexes me much to hear you speak so, my friend. Tell mecandidly, now, how this is to be explained \ "

P-" Well, to be candid, then, I must say that many of the doctrinestaught by you good miuisters are so seemingly contradictory andincredible that I cannot even pretend to accept them as Divine."

C-" , Incredible,' indeed \ Particularize, my friend, that I may knowwhat you mean."

P-" This would take more time than either of us may bave at ourcommand just at present, but being Easter Sunday, I don't mindmaking mention for a moment the -great mystery of the resurrectionas taught by the universal Church, and which event Christendom iscelebrating this day."

C-" Good, dear sir, nothing could be more appropriate. This wasthe subject of my discourse this morning, as may have been expected."

P-" This then is what I should like to say, having in view all that istaught about it, I am utterly at a loss to understand what the resurrec-tion really means."

C-" Means, dear friend \ why what can there be so difficult to under-stand in the declaration tbat ' Christ died for our sins according to theScriptures, and rose again? ' "P-Not so much difficulty in this Scripture statement, but, unfortu-nately for us, this is not all you ministers teach about it. One cangrasp the idea of our Lord's ceasing to live for a time and then livingagain, but you also teach us that whilst thus in the power of the enemyHe was more really alive than ever \-' In the heart of the Earth' andin ' Paradise' at the same time \ "

C-" Is this your perplexity, my friend? Surely you cannot fail todiscriminate between the body and soul of our Lord? "

P-" I well know you divines make extraordinary distinctions betweenbody, soul, and spirit. You are always setting before us the two orthreefold elements composing our poor humanity. More than this,you tell us these elements, 01' whatever you cboose to call them, thoughmaking one person in life, as we all know, form two or sometimes itseems even three personalities in death. There is the mortal body, tbeimmortal soul, and added to that the spirit, each of wbich seems to bethe true personality in death-Is not this enough to drive us todespair ~"

C-" You seem in a fog, my friend. We do not teach three, or eventwo distinct personalities. The personality is one, and only one, andthe immortal soul is the true person, now dwelling in a tabernacle ofclay. Death severs the connection and liberates the captive, but to beneunited in resurrection."

P-" Just so; the body is nothing I the conscious capable soul iseverything \ resurrection is nothing after all! It is only the cage thatU! restored, and the emancipated one made c,a,~tiy,e a~ain 1. Tl:;is i!\

your doctrine. But see what more we must add, as the logical outcome.Dying is not death \ Only the body dies, the true man lives on inParadise or somewhere else. Christ never died \ He eluded the gripof the foe. His soul was never made' an offering for sin \' Atone-ment is yet to be offered and we are yet in our sins \ The Word wasnever made flesh \ None ever handled Him! No human eye ever sawthe incarnate Son of God \ "

C-" Shocking \ Your misrepresentations appal me \ "P-" Nay, dear sir, the misrepresentations are your own, not mine,

nor do I wonder you recoil from them. And more, I am bold to say, theygive the lie to the Bible from beginning to end, if language has anymeaning."

C-" You are a Materialist, I find. One of the School of our modernscientists who teach us that matter is everything, and so bow God outof His own universe,"

P-" Sir, I am not. I believe in God. Nor am I of the sect of theSadducees ; I believe in angels and spirits as well as in the resurrectionof the dead. Moses I know, Paul I know, Christ I also know, but thetheology of such as yourself ntterly confounds me. Excuse me forsaying it, sir, but it seems to me that the vail covers more than Jewisheyes after all. If I am materialistic, you are spiritualistic, and youseem to need the Lord to address yon as He did His mistaken disciplesof old-' It is I Myself; a spirit hath not flesh and bones as ye see Mehave.' But I cannot stay longer. You will pardon my boldness Iknow. Perhaps another time we may renew our conversation on thesubject."

IMMORTALITY.THE writer of this paper desires to enforce and exemplify this grand

and mighty theme by means of a German Legend, which he readmany years since, and now proceeds to narrate to the best of hisrecollection.

A German Philosopher had an ardent thirst for Immortality; a thirstso deep as to absorb his whole being. After long study he discoveredthat Immortality through continuous self-conscious existence was notnow possible to man. The Philosopher gave himself to further thought;as the result of which he conceived that Immortality might yet be his,only it must come through resurrection by the application of an ElixirVitce after death.

The first point was to discover this essential panacea, which he didafter long years of study; and having placed it in a crystal vase, hecarried it in his bosom.

The next point was to discover an individual whom he could trust toapply the Elixir to him after his death. After very many inquiries,first in his own locality and then through all Germany, he at last heardof a Paragon of honesty, truth, and trustworthiness. At once removinghis residence he sought and found the friendship of this faithful onewhich being reciprocated, they became bosom companions.

The time having come for the Philosopher to die, he called his friend,and thus addressed him :-" I sought your friendship from the reportsI heard of your worthiness. You have verified these expectations to theutmost; for your true and ardent friendship I thank you. I want nowto ask of you a supreme proof of yonr love ;-after my death takecrystal vase from my bosom, and with care use the contents to anointme. You will find the quantity just sufficient to cover my whole body."

Tbe friend having promised compliance, the Philosopher then laidhim under a dread, solemn oath, to be faitbful to his dying request.

After the death of the Philosopher, the friend, according to hisengagement, possessed himself of the crystal vase. As hestood with it in his hand, the strangeness of the circumstances,and the dread, oath laid u~on him"much affected him.. Movedwith,


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96 THE BIBLE STANDARD .curiosity he determined first to test it and await the effect of a smallquantity; accordingly, allowing a drop to trickle on the tip of hisfinger, he anointed one of the eyehalls of the dead man. In a fewmoments the eye slowly opened, and with a living, loving expressionwas fixed on the friend, seeming to say to him-Give me Immortality.

Then the hosom of the friend became torn with contending emotions." I see it all," said he; "I am possessed of the Elixir Vitce. I holdImmol'lality in my hands-hut why not my own! This Immortality Ineed myself; why give it to another?" Under these strong feelings,his faithfulness, his truth, his oath, fast faded away.

The one living eye of the Philosopher now changed in its expression:after a gaze of the deepest, keenest reproach, piercing the very depthsof the being of the false ingrate, it gradually glazed, and closed again indeath.

The friend (? ) had not long rejoiced in his prize before a solemnthought took possession of his mind-I have the Elixir Vitce, hut whois to apply it to me after I am dead? After my own unfaithfulness,where could I look for a true friend? Under the force of this painfulconviction, he dashed the crystal vase to the ground, shattering it to athousand fragments.

Dear Reader,-have you disoovered that Immortality, through con-tinuous, self-conscious existence, though not a German is but a GrecianLegend; that you can only have it after death, and by Resurrection atthe glorious appearing of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ, whoat His coming will give Eternal Life to all who trust and serve Him?The Word of God has been in the hands of Platonist translators, com-mentators, and readers for ages; and though, consequently, a few textsmay be so warped as to vamp up the Grecian conceit, yet the deepbroad, onward current of Scripture from Genesis to Revelation (in com-plete harmony with true inductive science) gives no countenance to itwhatever.

The idea of the natu7'al immortality, self-existence, and eternity ofman is but the fruit of his pride and self- sufficiency, and, though thesepretensions minister to his fancied native glory and pride of destiny,they are simply opposed to the doctrine of the great gift of Eternal Lifein Christ alone, and are but a spume or froth upon the mighty river oftruth; which, nevertheless, will cleanse itself in its onward progress,and roll in all its own brightness, sweetness, and fnlness into the oceanof eternity.

The faithful one, the friend that stioketh closer than a brother, theone born for our adversity, the one sought but never found by theGerman Philosopher is revealed to us in the Holy Scriptures, and Hisname is " Jesus," "Immanuel." Let us "acquaint now ourselves withHim, and be at peace," having a sure and joyful hope of a gloriousresurrection at His appearing and kingdom.

An epitome of the evidence for Immortality through death and re-surrection, as opposed to that by continuous self-conscious existence,may be given in a future paper.-R. J. Hammond, 62, Maida Vale, W.

RELJGIOUS TEACHING OF CHILDREN.Ithe Christian World of the 27th January, a letter appeared on the, above subject, in which a saying of Mr. Spurgeon was condemned,viz.-" That children must be forgiven before they pray," and that he," never dreamed of teaching un converted children to repeat the Lord'sprayer," evidently referring to it as an act of devotional prayer. Thewriter thinks there is something rotten in this, and says, I do not thinkchildren in general care so much about what they sing or say as aboutlearning it. What shall we teach them P he asks, The answer ~s,'

Whatever is Scriptural. But who will determine this? The parteacher, if intelligent Christians, we reply. The Bible aboundsinstruction as to acceptable prayer, and they are as suitable for chas adults. The writer asks, however, " Shall we gladden the heartschildren by telling them, if unconverted, they will be annihilated ator sometime after? Shall the gospel of the Conditional ImmorAssociation be preached to them, or the Gospel by which the meof the Association have been converted? We cannot hide the darof Scripture from our children, and if we could they would soona flaw in the evidence which ascribes it to the same origin with crand providence. Says one, 'Ah, what would we all give to believit is all a hideous dream,' (evidently meaning the existence of sithe heathen dogma of its assumed penalty, 'eternal torment,')that because we cannot reconcile it with God's love and holiness,fore, these sins and sorrows upon earth cannot be, and have notBut they are, and have been; and in this stern fact I find a srebuke to the presumption of men who construct theories basedmere human reason and feeling."

The writer of the above letter should know that" without faitimpossible to please God," and that forgiveness and salvationthrough that channel. Death is the penalty of sin, and withouresurrection of Christ Jesus, who is our life, it would to all be anntion (of being). Believers in the Saviour will, at His second comiraised from among the dead to an endless life of holy blessedness'! new earth," but'the consequence of the sinner's rejecting God'sof forgiveness and life through Jesus, will be that, after resurreand judgment, they will die the second death from which therepromise of a resurrection: they will perish, " And will be as if thenot been."-Obad. 16.

These are not" theories based upon human reason and feelingare the revealed purposes of " God who cannot lie;" who has swoHis Holy Name, "I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked,who has taught us in His Holy Word the heart-cheering truthis His will " that all men should be saved, and to come unto theledge of the truth." 1 Tim. ii. 4. The Gospel of Jesus istidings of great joy to all people," and isdesigned and fitted to glthe hearts of children as well the aged. The assumed Gospelcurrent orthodoxy of our day is on the contrary "sad tidingsdescribable horrors," entirely foreign to the Word of God, but tracto the abominations of the heathen. The design of the "ConditiImmortality Association" is to unfold the beauties of the one, aexpose the gloomy errors of the other. The writer of the letter, "has evidently never studied, without prejudice, the suhject abouthe writes.-A Canadian Subscriber, Toronto, 14th Feb., 1881.

JOHN WESLEY ON HEAVEN AT DEATH."BUT see the change 1 The beggar died,'-here ended povert

pain 1-'and was carried by angels,'-nobler servants thanthat attended the rich :o:.an,-' into Abraham's bosom,'-so thecommonly termed what our blessed Lord styles paradise; thewhere 'the wicked cease from troubling, and where the weary arest;' the receptacle of holy souls from death to the resurrection.indeed very generally supposed, that the souls of good men, as sthey a!"edischarged from the body, go di7'ectlyto heaven; but this ohas not the least foundation in the oracles of God; on the contraryLord says to Mary, after the resurrection; Touch me not; for I ayet ascended to My Father' in heaven."-Wesley's Sermons, Vol'P ' 235, London" 1838.-Selected b.yH. Brittaim,


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THE BIBLE STANDARD . 9THE POPULAR CREED.

By J. C. AKE5TER."I BELIEVE that I am composed of a hody, that at death goes to thegrave, and a soul or spirit, that goes to Paradise, or Heaven.

" I believe that my body is mortal, made by God from the earth, andthat at death it will turn to dust.

"I believe that my soul or spirit is immortal, a part of God, and cannever die." I believe that if I am saved by faith in Jesus; at the resurrectionmy body will rise from the grave, be reunited to the immortal soul,(which is a part of God,) and then I shall be with Jesus for ever.

" I believe that if I am not saved, my body will still be raised at thelast day, and, being reunited to the immortal soul, (which is a part ofGod.) will go to hell, there to be tortured for ever and ever.

"I believe that the torture will never end, but that, while God isreigning in the kingdom of Heaven, the part that is in me, (the im-mortal soul,) will be suffering in the kingdom of the devil.

"I believe that the happiness of the saved will not be marred byseeing their FATHERS,MOTHERS,BROTHERS,SISTERS, and CHILDREN,suffering the torments of the lost.

" I believe there is nothing inconsistent with the text, 'GOD ISLoVE 'in the above creed, but, on the contrary, it will redound to the honourand glory of God, that, while untold millions are suffering accumulatingtorments in hell, only a remnant will be enjoying eternal life inHeaven."

The above is the belief of nine-tenths of professing Christians onIMMORTALITYnd ETERNALTORTURE,and is almost universally taughtfrom the pulpit, and in our Sunday schools.

Is it the truth? Is it what the Word of God teaches? No, it is not.It is founded on the devil's lie, "Ye shall not surely die, ye shall be asgods," and the heathen mythology of the infernal regions.

Reader, do you love the Lord Jesus? are you jealous for the honourand glory of His name? Then, search the Scriptures, and let not yourfaith stand on the teachings of men, but on the unerring Word of God.[This may be had in Tract form of the Author. 79, Hesele-road, Hull.]

CONDITIONAL IMMORTALITY.Lecture by the Rev. Thomas Child, published in three recent numbers

of "Morning Light," a New Church weekly journal.REVIEWEDBY H. H. RORSMAN.

BEING anxious to know all there is to be said for and against thisdoctrine, we have carefully read these arguments and venture to

express a few thoughts in review of the same.The writer commences by defining the term as follows :-" Man is

intrinsically mortal, but his immortality depends upon a certain con-dition." We give this our hearty assent, as a correct definition of atrue doctrine. But when he proceeds to state, respecting the resurrec-tion of the wicked, that" their bodies are united to their souls again,that their bodies which have sinned in their lusts, may be burned withtheir souls," it is apparent that he does not clearly apprehend that ofwhich he writes. We have not contended for the rising again of bodiesof such a kind as this-a body which he compares to a sword or a pistolwhich is powerless to do harm unless wielded by some person. If thehuman frame were as helpless and irresponsible as this, we would agreewith the writer that its resurrection would be useless. But thisis a pure assumption. The complicated piece of mechanism-man-so fearfully and wonderfully made, must, as a whole, andnot in part, render an account to its Maker. We do not findmany traces of man's existence apart from a body. We read of

celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial, all glorious, though in differendegrees; of a natural body, and a spiritual body, but of such a bodythe writer contemplates there is no trace, nor of men without bodieAccording to the Apostle Paul, it is a body of humiliation which is tochanged by the Lord Jesus, and fashioned like the body of His glor(Phil. iii. 21). Whilst the Apostle John expresses the same truth in thwords, "we shall be like Him." (1 John iii. 2). If man be regardeda whole, in which sense he is spoken of throughout the ScripturesTruth, there will be nothing incongruous in the idea of the body whicis the basis of man being raised from the dead.

The only reason to be given for the resurrection of the wicked is, thathey are raised to be punished, that punishment being second deathThis, the writer is pleased to term" annihilation"; but until that wois used to express something possible, we must oppose the introductionof it into this controversy. That" man shall return to dust" is affirmein more than one passage of Scripture, but that he will or can be reduceto nothing we beg to dispute. At the same time we would urge that thman himself is as completely passed out of existence as though that hataken place. Then we are told that destruction will not be inflictedGod, but by "the sin in the man." How this can be sustained we fto see, in the face of the statement made by the Psalmist (cxlv. 20" The Lord preserveth all them that love Him; but all the wicked wHe destroy."

The writer then proceeds to examine" the assumptions of the theorythe first of which is " that we must accept the literal interpretationthe early chapters of Genesis." Is this then sufficient to condemn ttheory, for? The writer says, yes. He cannot accept any theory whinecessitates his belief in a serpent which speaks,-in trees of good aevil and of life,-in the condemnation of man because of partakinof certain fruit which is forbidden. Is it so very unreasonablto believe that literal disobedience will be literally condemned; or thpartaking of ~prohibited. tree would involve a knowledge of evil as was good? We do not yet see why such a theory should be esteem"self-condemned." If the Word of God contain throughout some despiritual meaning, yet need we not discard the literal interpretation;for as the Apostle Paul declared concerning the condition of man, " thwas not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; afterurarthat which is spiritual," so would we contend respecting the revelatiogiven him-especially as his (the apostle's) next words consist ofliteral. recognition and interpretation of this very early part of Genes"the first man is of the earth, earthy." (1 Cor. xv, 47). We submithen, that this" first assumption" is the only reasonable one, and thit is impossible to exclude the literal element from the early chaptersGenesis, as anyone may see by carefully reading the first elevchapters of that book.

"The second assumption of the theory is," says the writer, "thaRevelation is not progressive, but that the statement of it made in thearliest parts are to be the criterion by which to judge the whole."

The latter part of this statement may be to a certain extent true, anyet Revelation be progressive. Progress does not involve the rejectioncontradiction of the positions with which we commence, but the develoment of them. In fact there can be no progress if the starting pointnot firm and secure, so that we may fall back upon it, in case of anmistake in our course of investigation. The progress of Revelationfrom man's mortal condition by nature to his immortality on certaiconditions,-from his condition in the present which is "a little lowthan the angels" to the condition of "those who are accounted worthto obtain that age, and the resurrection from the dead" who are" equto the angels" and cannot die any more. It is progressive from thaccount of the introduction of sin into the world, and death by sin,the prediction of a time when sin shall have passed away and deat


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98 THE BIBLE STANDARD.have been destroyed. Surely this is progress, although it is in harmonywith the literal interpretation of the early chapters of Genesis.

"The third assumption of the theory is that death means literaldeath. and .that life means literal life, that is to say, existence." As itis " self-evidently" reasonable to assume that words are used in tbeirprimary significance, when no intimation is given and no necessityexists for interpretation in a secondary or figurative sense, we willhumbly plead guilty to the charge, and continue the assumption untilshown" a more excellent way."

The fourth assumption of the theory is that immortality is the sameas eternal life." "Life is one thing in Scripture; immortality isanother thing in Scripture; and, as we read,' immortality' is thenatural condition of man as stated by Scripture, and 'life' is thatspiritual condition into which the man comes through intercourse withhis Saviour."

Our writer must surely be interpreted otherwise than literally, in theabove statements. He must intend the passages to be read in aprecisely opposite sense to that which is literally expressed.

Where do we find it "stated by Scripture" that" immortality is thenatural condition of man"? Not in a single passage! "We" musthave been ., reading" from some other book to flnd such a statement.If such an oue is to be found in Scripture we challenge its production,and wait for the silence which always follows such a request. But,again, if immortality which means incapability of death be man'snatul'al condition, how can" life" be added thereto?

With life, simply life, as man's natural portion, the extension of itto an eternal life is possible; it then becomes immortality. But withthe latter to commence with, how can that which is comprised in it(life) be added to it?

Two passages are quoted in illustration of the confusion introducedby the theory. One is-" Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible,the only wise God our Saviour." We will ask a question or two uponit. If man is immortal, or eternal, why are these words used as anespecial description of the Deity? If man be not the flesh and bloodbeing we see, but something invisible within, why is the Deity describedparticularly as the" invis'ible One," whom no man hath seen or can see?The other passage is " who hath brought life and immortality to light."Jesus, who was "God, manifest in the flesh" was the Revealer ofImmortality as a possibility for man. He did not bring simple" life"to light, but life and incorruptibility comhined-life manifested in anincorruptible body; this was brought to light by Jesus. And now, didHe bring to light man's natural. possession, or an existence to he attainedto by faith? The latter, beyond question. "These then, are theassumptions of the theory."

(Continued in OU? next.)THE COMING KIN G. .: 1I.A Lecture delivered in Mint-lane Chapel, Lincoln.

By REV. H. B. MURRAY.N 0 W there is a great change coming, these beastlike Governments areto be overthrown, to make way for the peaceful government of.Christ,

and Christ is now calling out by the Gospel a number of specially-privileged individuals who are to share His great power with Him.The government of this entire universe is soon to be placed in thehands of the saints of God. Thus, in Dan. vii. 22, you read, " Theancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the MostHigh; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom."Now mark, dear friends, (as I said just now,) we of ourselves are nobetter able to govern the world than its present rulers, but when underChrist's authority we are exercising power, we shall be no longer frailand mortal as we are now; before that time comes we shall have been

changed and glorified, we shall have been transformed into immwe shall (according to promise) have been made partakers odivine nature, we shall have had Divine power and wisdom imunto us, and we shall live and reign with Christ a thousand yearhow our hearts burn within us, with joy, wonderment, gratitudpraise, when we think of the honour God has conferred uponthat wondrous position of glory and dignity to which the electChrist is called; to think that our manifestation, as the Sonsis to be the signal for creation's emancipation and blessinRom. viii., the Apostle says, " The whole creation is hoping andfor the development of the Sons of God, subjected-in the hoalso the creation itself would be emancipated from the bondageruption, into the liberty of the glory of the Sons of God"." Thedescribes the creation as now groaning and travailing in pain, bthe Church of the Firstborn is manifested, when the Sons of Gowho are now being begotten by the word of truth, are fully developethey are brought forth to the New Birth, and manifested in eteand glory, then creation's groans and travails will cease, anwoman forgetteth her sorrow, for joy that a man child is bornworld, so will creation dry its tears and rejoice with great jopresence of that Man Child which is to rule the nations (see0, and ii. 26-27.) Then the world's Sabbath of rest and joy wiand oh what a glorious Sabbath that will be! How glowing areIsaiah's prophecies concerning that time-" There shall comerod out of the root of Jesse, the Spirit of God shall rest upon Hspirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and sthe spirit of knowledge and godliness shall fill Him; the spirifear of God. He shall not judge according to appearance. noraccording to report, but He shall judge the cause of the lowly.He shall have His loins girt with righteousness, and His sideswith truth. And the wolf shall feed with the lamb, and theshall lie down with the kid; and the young calf and bull and lfeed together; and a little child shall lead them. and ashall put his hand upon the holes of asps, and they shall not hshall they at all be able to destroy anyone on my holy mounta[here the reason is given] the whole world is filled with the knof the Lord, as much water covers the seas. In that day therea root of Jesse, and He shall arise to rule over the Gentiles;shall the Gentiles trust, and His rest shall be glorious."t "shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many peopthey shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spepruning-hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation,shall they learn war any more." "The mountains and the hbreak forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clhands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and inthe briar shall come up the myrtle tree. The wildernesssolitary place shall be glad, the desert shall rejoice and blossomrose, it shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice with joy andThe parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty landof water. The Lord will comfort Zion; He will make her wilderEden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord. Joy andgiving shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice ofThy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice togeththey sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the Lord shagain Zion. Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste pJerusalem: for the Lord hath comforted His people, He hath rJerusalem, the Lord hath made bare His holy arm in the eyes onations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvationGod. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain andbe made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and t

Th. Syriae, + Septuagint.


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THE BIBLE STANDARD . 99places plain, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all fleshshall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it."

The Psalms, too, are full of references to this time-" 0 let tbenations be glad and sing for joy, for Thou shalt judge the peoplerighteously, and govern the nations upon earth. Then shall the earthyield her increase, and God, even our own God, shall bless us." Ps.lxvii.In Ps. lxxii., David describes the prolificality of the earth by a beautifulfigure. He says-" There shall be an handful of corn in the earth uponthe top of the mountains; the fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon."The Forests of Lebanon were celebrated for their beautiful luxuriantgrowth, and during Messiah's reign the earth will be so fruitful that ahandful (or literally, a piece, or small portion) of corn sown in a rockyplace, such as the top of a mountain, shall produce a crop that shallwave like the forests of Lebanon. "He shall come down (says David)like rain upon the mown grass, as showers that water the earth." Asthe gentle showers descend on the new-mown hay, filling the air withf,agrance and sweetness, so Christ shall come down like a refreshingshower upon this weary world; all nature shall revive, and His nameshall be in the earth like sweet perfume. "His name shall endurefor ever (ver. 17): His name shall be continued as long as the sun, andmen shall be blessed in Him: all nations shall call Him blessed."Nations have sometimes had to deplore the death of a good king; butHis name shall continue as long as the sun; "He shall live " earth'sfirst Divine Immortal King.

Now it was' about this future Divine Kingdom that Christ and Hisapostles went everywhere preaching. Brethren, we have been defraudedof a part of the Gospel message, We have been told that the glorioustidings of the Gospel of Christ is, that there is a place of eternal fireand torment, into which we are liable to fall at any moment, and ourprincipal object in looking to Christ is, that we may be preserved fromthis pla,ce of eternal burning, and that at death, in some spiritual form,we may flyaway to some ethereal region and be at rest. Now mark you,the Lord Jesus Christ was the first Evangelist; He preached His ownGospel Himself, before any other man preached it,. and you never findsuch testimony as that issuing from His lips. We read that" He wenteverywhere preaching and she wing the glad tidings of the Kingdom ofGod." And when He sent His disciples out, they went preachingthe same message, we read, "He sent them everywhere preaching thekingdom of God." We may suppose that when Christ first met Hisdisciples after His resurrection, they would be sure to talk of that whichwas nearest and dearest to their hearts; and what was the first grandtheme of conversation between them? Why, we read in Acts i., that Hewas seen of the disciples 40 days, "speaking of the things pertaining tothe Kingdom of God." Now, surely this shows what was the supremeobject of their faith and hope.

We have seen from Daniel what this phrase, "The Kingdom of God,"means; it refers to the time when all human authority shall be sub-jugated to Christ and His saints. It points us to the time when theaffairs of the kingdoms of this earth shall be carried on upon divineand heavenly principles, the perfection and stability of these principlesbeing insured by the fact that they are personally administered andenforced by the Lord,-Jesus, the Christ.

Orthodoxy teaches that the" Kingdom of God" means the Church,as it at present exists; thus you find Ministers everywhere praying thatGod will be gracionsly pleased to extend His Kingdom, as if His King-dom was already in existence, and only wanted extending. Tn this theyare openly disobedient to their Master, for He always taught Hisdisciples to pray, "Thy Kingdom come," and surely Christ would nothave taught them to pray for the Kingdom to come, if it already existed.But to prove that the Kingdom is not the Church, I will give you a

passage which shows that the Kingdom had already been in existence,on a portion of the earth, before the Church was formed. I refer toMatt. xxi. 43, where Christ, speaking to the Jews, says, "The Kingdomof God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forththe fruits thereof." It is therefore evident that in the mind of Christ,His Church militant and the "Kingdom" were two distinct things.Then, some say the "Kingdom of God" is above the Heavens, farbeyond the starry skies. Well, dear friends, did the Jews ever live in acelestial kingdom, beyond the starry skies? I think not. Then whatwas the Kingdom of God, that Christ said should be taken from theJews? Why, the land of Palestine,-that was the only kingdom theyever possessed; it has been taken from them, and we see the fulfilmentof the Lord's words, for this very day Israel is a scattered nation.

I say that the" Kingdom of God," to which our Lord referred, wasthe land of Palestine, for although the Coming Kingdom will exist (asDaniel says) "under the whole hea'ven," yet the phrase has specialreference to the Holy Land. Just as the kingdom of England extendsover many countries, our Queen exercising jurisdiction over Canada,India, Australia, New Zealand, &c., these collectively constituting thekingdom of England, but primarily and' properly the kingdom ofEngland being Great Britain, so it will be under Christ's reign; HisKingdom will extend over all the earth, yet the Kingdom proper will bePalestine; that will be, so to speak, the seat. of power, "the homecountry." As Isaiah says, "The Lord shall reign in Mount Zion and inJerusalem, for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of theLord from Jerusalem." You all know Israel's ancient position. Underthe typical reigns of David and Solomon, they enjoyed a position ofglory that no nation has enjoyed since; the Queen of Sheba heard ofthe glory of Solomon's kingdom, but when she saw it her spirit failedwithin her, and she declared that report (which always exaggerates) hadnot told of half the glory. Bnt at the time of our Lord's sojourn uponearth, the J ew s were in bondage to the Romans, and bitterly they feltthe yoke; knowing their glorious prestige and supromacy in the past,they felt all the more keenly their subjection and degradation. But Godhad given them many clear and gracious promises that the throne ofIsrael should be restored. I will give you one of them. You willremember that Zedekiah was the last lineal descendant of David thatsat upon the throne of Israel. Zedekiah had been a very wicked prince,and the Lord sent Ezekiel to him with a message. You find thatmessage in Ezek. xxi.-" Thou, profane wicked prince of Israel, whoseday is come, ... Thus saith the Lord God; Remove the diadem, andtake off the crown: ... I will overturn, overturn, overturn it: and. itshall be no more, until He come whose right it is; and I will giveit Him."

Now Jesus of Nazareth came professing to be the one of whom thisprophecy spoke, He came professing to be the long looked for Messiah,the King whose mission it was to restore Israel's throne, and so we findthat a confession of faith in Christ in those days meant somethingvastly different from what it means now; it meant that those whofollowed Him believed that He was soon to set up and occupy thatthrone which had been unoccupied since the days of Zedekiah. Thusafter the resurrection of Christ, and His manifestation to His disciples,this was the first question they put to Him. We read in Acts i., that" when they were come together, they asked of Him, saying, Lord, wiltThou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel? " That was what theywere waiting for, not for some new kingdom, but to have restored tothem that which they had previously enjoyed. The great desire oftheir hearts was the literal restoration of the Jewish kingdom; theywere Jewish patriots, and their hope was entirely a political one.

[ To be Oontinne.d.l


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100 THE BIBLENIGHT?"ORRESPONDENCE EXTRACTS.

rAs we receive in our General CorreB~much informa.tion that (though uct'In-tended for publication) would be useful to, and a.ppreciate~hy, many of our.readers, wepurpose making a judicious selection monthly, under this headlllg.-Ed~tor]Auckland, New Zealand, Jan. 3"d, 1881.

"The first number of our New Zealand Bible Standard is now out.I have sent you a copy by this mail. I think it will do a great deal ofgood in this country. I have already seen good results from it. Iwanted something to send out to the regions beyond, because the peopleare all anxious to know what the new doctrine is that is being preachedin Auckland. We are circulating them freely at present.' The workis becoming too heavy for me. Oh, that the Lord of the harvest wouldsend out labourers into this great field! "-Geo. A. Brown, CorrespondingMember. Gravesend, Feb. 27th, 1881.

"We have had a very nice meeting to-night, a large sprinkling ofsailors being present. I am going to try to continue the services, but itwill be a severe strain. If you could obtain me a few donations, Ishould be glad."- C. F.

Bedford, March - 1881."Would say to 'W. A. Surrey' that I feel much sympathy (with his

letter, March issue), having been amongst them (the Plymouth Brethren)myself for several years. I quite endorse the remark, ' they are devotedbelievers, as well as earnest students of the Word.' But the subject ofFnture Punishment is not dwelt upon at their Readings, it is almost"prohibited subject. There is, therefore, a great difficulty in reachingthem, especially to those who, like myself, are 'outside.' At the sametime there is no doubt there are many who hold our views in secret,-how far this is honest is another question. I might say I had aninterview with J. N. D. (the leader of the Exclusive Brethren) someyears ago, with others who, like myself, were exercised upon the subject.I said, 'Mr. Darby, I only want you to show me from Scripture thatman is naturally immortal.' His reply was, 'I cannot do that; I canonly deduce it.' "-F. J. S. London, S.W., Morch. 4th, 1881.

" On Sunday evenings the chief curate here lectures in a large roomadjoining the Vicarage, on 'The difficulties of the Christian faith andpractice, as taught by the Church of England.' Discussion is invited,and those who speak in opposition are treated with great respect andcourtesy. On the 20th Feb., 'Eternal Punishment' was uuder con-sideration. Mr. Exreet, in his short lecture, argued against eternal pain,but said nothing definite as to what would become of men who lived insin. Two Christadelphians commenced the discussion, one referring toman's creation and sin, observing that 'after man's sin God mercifully1/1'evented him from partaking of the tree of life,' A Secularist denouncedthe teaching that God made a man and placed him in a garden, tellinghim to eat of every tree but one, and then making a devil to tempt the manto disobey, and having disobeyed, sentenced hi.m to etemal torment.' AChristadelphian denied that God made a devil to tempt man, or tbatthere is any personal devil. A gentleman reasoned that' if the punish-ment was not eternal then the soul was not immortal, and,' he added,'we were conscious of something more than the body,-the thinkingpower could not be and was not material.'. Ca~iug atten~ion to t.his laststatement I enquired, 'Could a man think uritlunit brains t DId menthink when in a sound sleep? And, if one received a severe blow uponthe skull, so that the brain became depressed, would such. an one continueto think until that was put 1'ight J' I then gave my support to whathad bee~ said previously, as to man's creati?n and the tree .of life, butdiffering on the non-personality of the devil. And, endorsing most ofwhat had been said by the lecturer against eternal torment, I appealedto him, 'If the punishment of the wicked (according to th~ Scripturesof Truth) was not the direct antithesi.~.of what is to.be enjoyed by ~herighteous? If the word perish (John Ill, 16) did not involve a cessationot' being? If Mal. iv. 1, did not teach destruction? Then, if they didso could he refer me to any passage of Holy Writ contradicting them 1 'H~ replied, 'Oh, I go in for the restitution of all things,- Universal.salvation.' "-Edward Hobbs.

STANDARD."WHAT OF THE

By "WATCHMAN."r.:!r SIGNS are multiplying of the decay of the Western or PaAntichrist. (Dan. vii. 26; Rev. xvii. 16.) The New Spanish Cabiis giving proof of its intention to carry outa liberal policy, for whthe Papal Nuncio and clerical dignitaries are charging it with violatthe Concordat and Constitution. Several Liberal Professors have breinstated in their respective Colleges, and judicial proceedings (whhad been previonsly ordered) against several Protestants for unlawteaching, have been abandoned. France, Italy, and Ireland arebeing further divorced from their long connection with the West" Man of Sin." In the French Chamber urgency has been voted foBill repealing the Act which divided the Cemeteries, and made disttions between the dead. Bishop Freppel opposed the Bill as absolucontrary to the doctrines of the Catholic Church, and hostile to religbut it was carried by 348 to 126. In Rome, lately, on receivingRoman aristocracy, the Pope warned them against the seductivefluences of the Revolution, and besought them to rally round him.Romish Bishops are being troubled in Ireland, for, as one good resulthe present painful land agitation, the people are fast slipping funder the control of the priests. In thus speaking of Papal Romthe Western Antichrist, we are not confounding the Papal withPersonal, the Historic with the Literal Antichrist. That the PaSystem is Antichrist the Preterist mode of interpretation abundanproves, and, as we write, the press supplies us with a new illustratiof its truth, The Defense-French clerical organ-inquiring how revtion is to be stopped, concludes: "Look at the holy and serene facour great Pope, the custodian of the doctrines of truth and light.alone can save the uiorld " ! !f8;'" The last Autocrat of Christendom has "gone over to

majority." The tireless hate which for years tracked the late Empeof Russia has at length won its quarry, at the cost of the righteexecration of Europe. Whilst recording our detestation of the cthus wrought, we w~uld draw attention to one resulting gain toRussian people. It is more than the removal of a life, it is alsoknell of despotism in Europe. It is the completion of a long histprocess, extending over 15 centuries, by which the clay-iron stategovernment-depicted by Daniel's Image-is about to be realised.thus marks an epoch in history, and declares plainly" The Lordat hand." The new Emperor, Alexander HI., must reign as astitutional Monarch, no other course being possible. True, it isby some part of the public press that, the Russian people will find"finger thicker than his father's loins," that, "where the fatherwhips the son will use scorpions." This is not possible. Anyattempt will probably result-as in the case of Behoboam, 1 Kings16-iu the division of the empire. The needs of prophecy demandchange, and therefore it will take place, seeing that the last state ofChristian World is that of" iron mixed with miry clay." Dan. ii. 4@" Gambetta, Bismarck, and Gladstone, are names of men

stand out conspicuously upon the stage of European life and actThe commanding position attained by these, as kings of men, amdemonstrates the feasibility of a Personal Antichrist. What thesehave won by natural. talent and morai influence, may surely be surpasby one of yet greater force of talent, appearing at a juncture mfavourable to his claims, and supernaturally endowed by Satanic ageOf the above three, probably Gambetta is destined to make the deemark in history. He is the youngest (42), a citizen of that Frenation whose history (1793 to 1870) has chiefly tended to fulfilprophetic Scriptures, in its relation to the events of the latter dTrue, we do not personally look to France, but Syria or Greece, foradvent of the final Democratic Head, still it is extremely probable


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THE BIBLE STANDARD. 10France, with Gambetta, will play a striking part in the development .ofthe events we are about to witness.IS"" The Historic Eastern Antichrist (.ystem not person) seems

rapidly nearing its end, and making way for the Personal Antichrist to. follow. It is impossible for Turkey, with her impoverished resources, tohold her own much longer. The latest resolution, to exact five years'taxes in advance, shows her terrible financial straits, and is probably thelast straw on the proverbial camel's back; and the coming strife withGreece will give the general signal of revolt. The magazine is ready,only the match is wanting.S"" Unless some early deliverance be secured out of the wretched

Transvaal business, we may have a difficulty with Holland, where publicfeeling is deeply stirred, which is but natural, seeing that" blood isthicker than water." If Holland should-unwisely for her-becomeentangled with this country, her extremity will be Germany's opportunityto acquire the seaboard so long coveted, and for which she waits only afavourable opening.S"" The "Signs of the Times" thicken; the long-expected One

draws near. Earthquakes in Austria and Switzerland have beenfollowed by a terrible shock at Casamicciola, off the coast of Italy.Seven seconds of time sufficed to destroy 400 houses, to take 126 lives,and to injure near 200 persons. At St. Michael's, Azores, in theAtlantic, 36 successive shocks have been experienced, from which200 houses have fallen in, and several persons have been killed. Austriais suffering from serious inundations of the rivers Danube and Theiss,which has caused great loss. In Mesopotamia, the dreaded plague hasclaimed many victims; whilst in the Western States of America, a half-million head of cattle have perished in the storm. At home a terriblestorm and snow-fall, unprecedeuted in March during this century, hascaused many wrecks, buried trains and villages, and destroyed above200 lives. The British wreck calendar, Jan. 1st to March 13th, 1881,gives a total of 546 wrecks, (an increase of 226,) with a total loss of12,000,000. Here we stay our pen, not from want of matter, but ofwill to follow the gloomy record further. Everywhere there is trouble,-men's hearts failing them for fear." Our comfort is, the morningcometh after the night. These things are predicted, and thereforenecessary, forerunners of the" Prince of Peace." Carlyle once said hewould do away with responsible government in Britain, and substitutefor it an unidentified King of Men, an undiscoverable Wisest and Best,whom some thirty millions, mostly fools and knaves, should have thediscernment to recognise and the conscience to obey. This would wepersonally do on behalf of this weary Ko emos ; and our light in thisdense darkness, our joy in this wailing and sorrow, is in the certainknowledge that there is such a "King of Men," such a "Wisest andBest," who will shortly establish His Personal Rule upon and over ourdistracted earth. Of such we say, "Even so, come, Lord Jesus."

Kosmos, March 16th, 1881.

MEMBERS' BEREAN CLASS.[Under this heading we devote a portion of our space st&tedly to the use of Members 8/

the A88ociation,-to whom it will be confined,-for the purpose of mutual help.Onr own part will simply be that of receiving and selecting' corre~ponde[!ce, a~dplacing it ill the most suitable form before our readers. Three thmgs we requirefrom an contributors :-1. Brevity; 2. Simplicity; 3. Charity.s--Er>, OF B. S.]MR. G. W. BARBER, NOTTINGHAM,

Writes,-" Referring to your question as to Solomon, in Book ofEcclesiastes, not introducing the subject of the resurrection, I wouldsuggest, in that book he is looking at man in his best estate on earth,and shews that even in that condition 'all is vanity and vexationof spirit.' The current of his mind was viewing things upon theearth '-four times named, 'under the heavens '-three times named,, )l .J;lderthe sun '-},lamed 29 times. Ohapters cd. 9 and xii, 1t give ,a

salutary warning to the worldling. Know Him above the sun, and yowill soon understand what is meant by , under the sun.' "

MR. R. E. GARDINER, GLASGOW,Wdtes,-" In reference to the question proposed in the February issueI tender the following :-The Book of Ecclesiastes is decidedly human;it is the confession of one who had tried the world and found it to bbut' vanity and vexation of spirit.' The opening chapters of Ecclesiasteif read as an account of Solomon's experience, shows us that even hwith all his wisdom, could derive no true substantial happiness fromthe mere pursuit of pleasure. There are several passages which clearlshow that Solomon is here looking only at one side of the picture (seix. 9-lO, and chap. xii.) The Books of Psalms and Ecclesiastes aboth in harmony when viewed as different sides of the picture. Solomodeclares that there is no true happiness to be derived from anythinunde1the 8un. 'For that which befalleth the sons of men befalletbeasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth thother; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.'-(iii. 19.) David, howevepoints to the future, when the dead will be raised, and when each onwill receive the reward due to his deeds done in the flesh, whether thehave been good or evil."

MR. JOSEPH PATTINSON, APPIN,Writes,-" Having no knowledge of Hebrew, I respectfully request thopinion of brother-members as to which of the following versionsPsalm xxxvii. 37, 38, is nearest the original. The Revised EnglisBible, by Gotch, Davies, Jacob, and Green, gives :-' Mark the perfeman, and observe the upright: that the end of that man is peace. Butransgressors are destroyed together: the end of the wicked is cut ofThe marginal reading in the same Bible gives :-' Mark the perfect manand observe the upright, that the :man of peace hath a future. Btransgressors are destroyed together: the future of the wicked is coff.' The Book of Common Prayer gives :-' Keep innocency, and takheed unto the thing that is right: for that shall bring a man peacat the last. As for the transgressors, they shall perish together: anthe end of the ungodly is, that they shall be rooted out at the lastAny answer to the above will oblige."

MR. W. JOHN SON, BIRTLEY,Writes,-" What is the right rendering of 2 Cor. v. 6-8? I have beestudying it from Gall's Concordance, which is the only thing I havehelp me (I do not know Greek). According to this, the words' homeand 'absent' should be substituted by (1) at home among my owpeople, and (2) exile or emigrate. At that rate ought the word ' bodyto be in or not? I think it looks very like an interpolation."

NOTES, NEWS, AND REVIEWS.6"The Closing Days of Christendom," (Partridge, Paternoste

Row, London. 419 pages. Five Shillings.) By Burlington B. WalWe desire to write of this work in the highest terms of praise, to giveour most hearty commendation, and to express the hope that manyour readers will obtain copies. Its purpose is to harmonise the Preterisand Futurist systems of prophetic interpretation, and we think thauthor may lay claim to have fairly succeeded. Whilst firmly holdinthe Historic (year-day) school of teaching, he (as firmly) maintains thathat system is incomplete and unsatisfactory without the Literal. Iother words, the Literal is the key to the Historic; the two systemscombined and harmonised, making a clear and (humanly) perfecsystem of interpretation. For ourselves we heartily ~thank Mr. Wafor this :\Vork,and trust }t wi.II ~ep.d ~o bl!lng. Jj.p.d.pwd the disciples


10/12

102 THE BIBLE STANDARD.those (hitherto) opposing systems. We had intended giving the salientpoints of a few of the principal chapters, but as we dipped further intothe book, our list of references grew so rapidly that we felt constrainedto confine ourselves to merely indicating those sections of the workmost likely to commend it to our readers: Thus-" The Silent Junctureof Eras, or the Overlapping of Dispensations," chap. vii. " TheHarmony of Discrepancies," chap. ix. "Not Dates but Characteristics,"chap. x. "Mistaken Expectations," chap. xiii. "The Kingdom inMystery," chap. xvi. As a Handbook to Advent Truth we much preferthis work to anything else we have read. True, it is not as exhaustiveas the larger and dearer work of Grattan Guinness, (" The ApproachingEnd of the Age,") but it is more suggestive, and includes the Futuristview-which that does not. Our friends will be serving the cause ofAdvent Truth by obtaining and circulating copies of this work amongstthe enquiring, as it is clear and convincing. It may be had direct fromthe author-Rev. B. W. Wale, Baptist Minister, High Wycombe,Bucks, post free at the published price; or ordered through any book-seller. On one point we find Mr . Wale differs from the generally-received version (Matt. xxiv. 40,41,) agreeing in this with the teachingof our esteemed friend, Dr. W. Morris, of Plymouth.0'" In the official announcement of the death of Alexander IT. , of

Russia, occur these words-" God has taken him to Himself." If thesewords are to be taken in their natural meaning, the Emperor is notdead, but glorified; and the misguided assassins, who thus distinguishedthemselves (?), have perfected instead of destroying their victim. Theyhave rendered him the highest service, instead of inflicting upon himthe greatest loss. For ourselves we prefer such language as that ofMr. Lowell on this subject of death. Speaking of consolation, hesayE :-

HI can bear it; 'tis well-meant alms of breath,But not all the preaching stnce Adam can makeDeath other than Death,"

S'" The schools of the Christian Brothers in Jerusalem are attendedby more than three hundred children of all denominations, amongwhom is the son of the Pasha.S'" The Rev. Richard Glover (Baptist, Bristol), at Colston Hall, on

Sunday afternoon last, said that" He believed all punishment inflictedby God in this world was remedial, and he dared to think that allpunishment inflicted in the future life would be remedial also. Atleast, he would with Tennyson 'Faintly trust the larger hope.' Hecould not believe in the perfect joys of heaven, while so many weresufferers from the consequences of sin."-F1om Zigzag. Better the" Larger Hope" than "Eternal Torment," but we trust Mr. Glover(who is probably the most popular minister in Bristol) will shortly seehis way to a more Scriptural belief-that of " Conditional Immortality,"or the Eternal Life of the just and the Destruction of the unjust.gConsiderable opposition has been shown in Poole to the pro-cessions of the" Salvation Army." So much so that the Mayor hassuppressed them. Touching their operations at Bristol, a writer in theChristian W01'ld thus comments :-" At the after meeting, at whichabout one thousand persons remained, short but intensely earnestprayers were offered by several members of the army. Lieutenant Startthen appealed to any who wanted to be saved to come to the penitentform :-' Who's going to come out for salvation? There's a fountainopen, who's going to plunge in? If some of JOU don't come out to-night, you'll be damned for ever! Who'll have salvation? Come andfetch it! Father! Mother Iwill you come?' As little apparent resultfollowed these burning appeals, the prayers that followed became almostagonising in their fervour. Up to the time, however, that the writerleft, few came forward as penitents. Is it not possible to adopt what isgood in this movement, while rejecting what is objectionable and bad? "At the annual.meeting held at. headquarters, London, according to the

report of the above paper, Mrs. Booth (the General's wife, and thead of the Mission) "told how the Lord had given her wopower when she left the denomination (Methodist New Connexiowhich she had originally belonged, and had now fulfilled His promher that she should be the mother of many nations. That arm, Salvation Army') was the highest type of God's work on earthere were a higher, she would join it at once. The time had cothe gathering in of the nations, and they uiere the people to do it.have italicised the words to which we take serious objection, andour readers would do well to ponder, as a guid e to the real claimsleaders of this movement. Evidently they disclaim the modesuseful, work of "beating the bushes," that the stated Churche"catch the game." As to the result of this effort, no Scripturecan be in doubt. Christ said, "When the Son of man comethHe find faith on the earth?" (Luke xviii. 8). "But as the dNoah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of ma(1I1att. xxiv. 37-39.)

~ "New Zealand and Australian Bible Standard." EdiGeorge A. Brown. 3d. We have received Nos. 1. and n. of theuuiform in size with our own paper, and desire for it a wide andcirculation. An ndvertisement will be found on our last page b

~ We would again call the attention of Members and Subswho may receive this month's paper in a colored wrapper, to thsubscriptions, and respectfully urge them to remit without delawould also invite special donations to enable the Committee tothrough the work entrusted to them. We also ask the kind andeo-operation of all who love the truth to help the good work by beAnnual Subscribers, and to aid the circulation of the Bible Standbringing it under the notice of their friends, and securing subscrfor the same (1/6 per annum). We will gladly send parcels for gradistribution, at special rates, and also, with show-bills, fosale.-Editor.The Link, Malvern, lI1arch 18th, 1881.QUESTION AND ANSWER.[This column is statedly devoted to replies to such questions, objections, antions as may be of general interest. We only undertake, however, to repcommunica.tions as. ma.y commend themselves to our own judgmen

ackriowledging the receipt of others. We are personally responsiblanswers given.-EDITOR.lQ.-" Can you inform me what has become of Satan? as I haasked, and cannot satisfy the enquirer."

A.-We presume your question is one as to the locality owhether above, on, or under the earth. The apostles Paul ansufficiently reply,-Eph. ii. 2, Phil. vi. 12, Rev. xii. 7-10, 12, 1only conclusion we can arrive at from these passages is that theabode of Satan is above the earth, from whence he is soon todown thereto. Job ii. 2, is quite consistent with this view.Q.-" Can there be found in the Bible any foundation for th

in Infant Immortality, or any warraut for the belief that anypeople will be glorified with Christ at His Coming, who hbelieved in Him for their salvation? "~. A.-The silence of our opponents to our repeated and earnestfor Scriptural proof of natural immortality, is a sufficient answerquery, for if man, as man, is not immortal, infants are not. Asecond part of your question, it seems self-evident that, as touchFirst Resurrection, only those who have believed unto salvationglorified with Christ. We have purposely omitted part of youbecause it might land us in needless controversy.Q.-" Our Lord repeatedly tells His disciples that He wouagain in their lifetime, and at the destruction of Jerusalem, andgeneration, and also before some of them had ceased to live, analso abundantly proved from the writings of the apostles. I wwhom are we to believe,-our Saviour and His disciples andor what is popularly preached? "A.-We scarcely understand your question. Where does o

~ay He would come in the lifetime of the disciples? The exp"This generation shall not pass," (Matt. xxiv. 34) is explainedxxiii. 36, where it is clearly spoken of the Jewish race, future apresent. If your reference is to Matt. xvi. 28, that was clearlyin the scene of the Transfignration, which followed. As to ourto whom we should follow, let Peter reply,-" We ought to orather t4al). men." (ActB v. ~~ '.


11/12

TltE BIBtE STANDARD. 1 0 3CHRI.ST.HURCH AND MISSION NEWS.

LONDoN.-At High Street Chapel, Bow, Mr. H. H. Horsman has beenrendering helpful service, in the shape of special Sunday EveningLectures on important subjects.

GRAVESEND.-The Special Services in the Assembly Rooms are stillbeing continued, with very gratifying success. Offers of gratuitous pul-pit service are invited, to be sent to C.F., care of the Secretary.

AUCKLAND,EW ZEALA.ND.-The Sunday School Treat was held onChristmas-day, at the farm of the pastor (Mr. Geo. A. Brown), eight milesout. There are now eighty Scholars in the School. The Church Teaand Meeting was held at the Hall on New Year's-day. A very profitabletime was spent. The Church now numbers one hundred members. TheAuckland Christadelphiams have given up their distinctive tenets, andhave joined this Church, where they are making themselves very useful.

CHELTENHA.M.-A"Sale of Work" in aid of the Church Fund, washeld here on the 16th and 17th. We have not heard the result.

BACuP.-The Recognition Services-in connection with the settlementof the Rev. Thos. Vasey-were held here on March 19 and 20. SeveralLiverpool friends took part. We desire for our good brother a rich andabundant blessing in his new sphere of labour.

THE BIBLE STANDARD[NEW ZEALAND AND AUSTRALIA].Edited by Geo. A. Brown.

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The Renovated Earth the Eternal Abode of theRedeemed Saints.

T HIS Work demonstrates from Scripture testimony the perpetuity of. the Earth, in a restored and renovated state, and the continuanceof the human race upon it during the countless ages o f eternity. It alsoshows that, according to the Inspired Volume, the Earth, which was theplace of Christ's suffering and death, will be the scene of His futuretriumph, and of His everlasting kingdom; and that there also the saintsshall find their eternal rest.

OPINIONS OF THE PRESS.A very readable book of about 300 pages, designed to prove by the Scriptures thedoctrine Betforth in the title. Some of the arguments are very ingenious, and much inthe book will repay careful reading. If we do not clearly see with the eyes of the author,nor accept his oouclustons at all times, nor even his general conclusion, we neverthelessthank him fora bookthat will be read with pleasure by many.-Penuel,To readers in quest of a queer book, altogether out of the ordinary grooves, thi~volume will be welcome. . . . We muat in fairness to the author say, that hisreasoning is often striking, He has a complete mastery of the Scriptures, and he isalways chaste and reverent in his treatment of his difficult and mysterious subject.-Dundee Advertise1'.The author exercises some ingenuity in producing his proofs,-Nonconjonnist.He certainly, in a . very ingenious manner, makes out a case.-Christian Family.The calm thoughtfulness 01the writer, the clearneee of his style, and the appositenessof his quotations from Scripture, are among the attractive features of the work, whichwe hope wili have, as it deserves, a host of readers.-Rainbow,Will amply repa.y perusal by all serious and thoughtful ruinds.-Dlndee Courier and

Argus.We pass no opinion on the theory, but the book will repay the reading, The autbor isintelligent and reverent, and such cannot go dangerously ftstray.-Methodist Recorder,This is a curious little book, the reading of which may interest, if it does Dot instructor profit.-Edinblrgh COU1'a'nt.Whatever ma.y be the objection to the theory, the argument is certainly conductedwith reverence and ability.-The Ohristian.Anyone wishing to learn how much may be said in favour of the Christia.n's hoped-for heaven being found on the renovated earth, may do worse than peruse this volume.c-Baptist.To be had from W. N01' 1 'ie, 22, Ilosebank Street, Dundee.

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104 THE BIBLE STANDA:n n .THE EMPHATIC DIAGLOTT.

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Bible Standard April 1881