Lectures on the Millennium online

tlice. into the land which thy fathers po«-



During the Millennium, 21

sessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he
will do thee good, and multiply thee above
thy fathers. And the Lord thy God will
circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy
seed, to love the Lord thy God with all thine
heart, and with all thy soul, that thou may*
est live. And the Lord thy God will put all
these curses upon thine enemies, and on them
that hate thee, which persecuted thee. And
thou shalt return, and obey the voice of the
Lord, and do all his commandments, which
I command thee this day. And the Lord
thy God will make thee plenteous in every
work of thine hand, in the fruit of thy body,
and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the
fruit of thy land, for thy good. For the
Lord thy God will rejoice over thee for
good, as he rejoiced over thy fathers; if thou
shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy
God, to keep his commandments and his
statutes, which are written in the book of the
law, and if thou turn unto the Lord thy God
with all thine heart, and with all thy soul."

Tho some of these promises are con-
ditional, yet there can be no reasonable doubt
that they will all be accomplished according
to the faithfulness of him, that has promised.
For the Lord their God has engaged to cir-
cumcise tlieir hearts, and the hearts of their
children; and this will ensure the perform-
ance of every condition on their part, upon
which any of the promises are suspended.

In the eleventh of Isaiah, we have one of



££ State of the World

the most striking and delightful accounts of
the peaceful and blessed state of the Millen-
siiun), to be found in the bible. The succeed-
ing verses contain a most unequivocal pre-
diction of the conversion of the Jews. "And
in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse,
which shall stand for an ensign of the peo-
ple; to it shall the Gentiles .seek; and his rest
shall be glorious. And it shall come to pass
in tlMit day, that tlie Lord shall set his hand
again the second time, to recover the rem-
nant of his people, which shall be left, from
Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros,
and from Cush, and from Elam, and froia
Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the
islands of the sea. And he shall set up an
ensign for the nations, and shall assemble
the outcasts of Israel, and gather together
the dispersed of Judah from the four corners
of the earth. The envy also of Ephraim
shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah
shall be cut olf; Ephraim shall not envy Xu-
dab, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim.'*

In the latter part of Jer. 3. we have anoth-
er promise of Israel's conversion. <*Turnj

backsliding children, saith the Lord; fop

1 am married unto you; and I will take you,
one of a city, and two of a family, and 1 will
bring you to Zion. And I will give you
pastors according to mine heart, which shall
feed you with knowledge and understanding.
At that time they shall call Jerusalem the
throne of the Lord, and all nations shall be



During the Millennium. 23

gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to
Jerusalem^ neither shall they walk any more
after the imagination of their evil heart.
In those days the house of Judah shall walk
with the house of Israel, and they shall come
together out of the land of the north, to the
land that 1 have given for an inheritance
unto your fatiiers. But I said. How shall I
put thee among the children, and give thee
a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the host
of nations? And 1 said, Thou shalt call me
My Father, and shalt not turn away from
me.'*

Jer. 25:3 — 8. "And I will gather the rem-
nant of my flock out of all countries, whither I
have driven them, and I will bring them again
to their folds, and they shall be fruitful, and
increase. And I will set up shepherds over
them, which shall feed them; and they shall
fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall
they be lacking, saith the Lord. Behold the
days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise
unto David a righteous Branch| and a King
shall reign, and prosper, and shall execute
judgment and justice in the earth. In his
days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall
dwell safely; and this is his name whereby
he shall be called, The Lord our Right-
eousness. Therefore, behold, the days
come, saith the Lord, that they shall no more
say. The Lord liveth, which brought up the
children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;
but the Lord liveth, which brought up, and



£4 State of the World

which led the seed of the house of Israel out
of the north country, and from all the coun-
tries, whither I had driven them^ and they
shall dwell in their own land."

Jer. 30:7 — 10. "Alas! for that day is
great, so that none is like it: it is even
the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be
saved out of it. For it shall come to pass in
that day, saith the Lord of hosts, that I will
break his yoke from off thy neck, and will
burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more
serve themselves of him. But they shall
serve the Lord their God and David their
king, whom I will raise up unto them.
Therefore, fear tliou not, O my servant Ja-
cob, saith the Lord; neither be dismayed, O
Israel; for lo, I will save thee from afar, and
thy seed from the land of their captivity;
and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest,
and be quiet, and none shall make him
afraid." This king that the Lord promised
to raise up unto his people, whom they were
to serve, could be no other than the spiritual
David, the Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the
son of Jesse was an eminent type.

Jer. 31:31—34. '^Behold the days come,
saith the Lord, that I will make a new cove-
nant with house of Israel, and v/ith the
house of Judah; not according to the cove-
nant that I made with their fathers, in the
day that I took them by the hand, to bring
them out of the land of Egypt, which my
covenant they brake, though 1 was an iias-



Burim the Millennkmi 25



"S



band unto them, saith the Lord. But this
is the covenant that I will make with the
house of Israel. After those days, saith the
Lord, I will put my law in theirinward parts,
and write it in their hearts; and will be their
God, and they shall be my people. And
they shall teach no more every man his
neighbor, and every man his brother, say-
ing, Know the Lord; for they shall all know
me from the least of them unto the greatest
of them, saith the Lord; for I will forgive
their iniquity, and I will remember their sin
no more.'*

Still more is said upon this subject by Eze-
kiel. If you begin at the S4th chapter and
read six chapters in course, you will find
much, very much, to confirm the proposition
we are now considering.

In the New Testament also we have the
most clear and striking confirmation of the
same. Rom. 11:15,23 — 26. "For if the
casting away of them be the reconciling of
the world, what will the receiving of them be,
but life from the dead? And they also, if
they abide not still in unbelief, shall be
graffed in; for God is able to graff them in
again. For if thou wert cut out of the olive
tree, which is wild by nature, and wert
graffed, contrary to nature, into a good
olive tree, how much more shall these,
wiiich be the natural branches, be graffed
into their own olive tree? For I would not,
brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this
3



26 Slate of the World.

mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own
conceits, that blindness in part is happened
to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be
come in. And so all Israel shall be saved;
as it is written. There shall come out of Sion
the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungod-
liness from Jacob. For this is my covenant
unto them, when I shall take away their
sins." This Deliverer, who is to turn away
ungodliness from Jacob, can be none else
than Christ the Redeemer; and the time is
coming, when all Israel shall be saved by
the blood of the Lamb, so long rejected, des-
pised and abhorred — when Jew and Gentile
shall be one sheepfold under Jesus Christy
the great Shepherd and Bishop of souls..



LECTURE If.

The deliverancd ojthe Church — The eessatiou
of War,

PROPOSITIOK^ IVi

During the Millennium, the church will
be delivered from her external enemies.

Numerous, bitter and dreadful have been
the enemies of the church, from the begin-
ning of her existence. The persecution of
the good-— the persecution of the good, on
account of tkeir goodness, has been almost;
coeval with the world. Almost from the be-
ginning of time, they that have been born
after the spirit have been, persecuted by
them, who have been born after the iiesh*
Among the first-born of mankind, behold the
hands of a brother are bathed in a brother's
blood! And wherefore slew he him? why did
Cain slay his brother, his only brother,
Abe!? Because his own works were evil, and
his brother's righteous. Enoch too was
probably persecuted. His prophecy, as well
as his holy walk v.lth (iod, condemnfed a
wicked world. "Behold the Lord cometh,"
said he, "with tentliousandof hissaints,to ex-
ecute judgment upon all, and to convince all
that are ungodly among them, of all their
ungodly deeds, which they have ungodly
committed; and of all their hard speeches.



£8 State of the World

which ungodly sinners have spoken against
him." Such conduct and declarations no
doubt kindled the wrath and rage of those,
by whom he was reproved. And when it is
said that he was not founds it probably means,
that he was not found by his persecutors.
We know that Lot was persecuted, and that
his righteous soul was vexed by the Sodom-
ites from day to day. If Abraham, Isaac
and Jacob were not persecuted,it was because
God miraculously restrained their enemies.
With particular reference to these patriarchs
it is said, "When they went from one nation
to another,from one kingdom to another peo-
ple, he suffered no man to do them wrong;
yea he reproved kings for their sakes; say-
ing, Touch not mine anointed and do my
prophets no harm."=^ Joseph was cruelly
persecuted, first by his own brethren, and
then by one who attempted to lead him into
sin; and all this for righteousness' sake.
How cruel, how inhuman, how execra-
ble was the treatment, which the children
of Israel received from the Egyptians. That
ungrateful people rendered slavery and
slaughter for the distinguished favors, the
wonderful deliverance, which they had re-
ceived by the hand of Joseph. After the
Israelites were delivered from Egypt, and
planted and greatly multiplied in the prom-
ised land, a great part of the nation forgot

* Ps. 105:13—15.



During the Mittenniiim, 29

tliat God was their Maker, and the most
high God their Redeemer. Becoming ex-
ceedingly wicked, they persecuted the little
remnant of those who were Israelites indeed^
How grievously did Elijah make supplication
against Israel, when he said, "Lord they
have killed thy prophets, and digged down
thine altars; and I am left alone, and they
seek my life." And God declared to them
%vith awful plainness and emphasis, "Your
own sword hath devoured your prophets
like a destroying lion." Accordingly we
find the Savior expostulating with them,
and weeping over them in a manner, the
most tender and affecting. "O Jerusalem^
Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and
stonest them, whi^h are sent unto thee, how
often would I have gathered thy children
together, even as a hen gathereth her chick-
*ens under her wings, and ye would not.*'

The people of God were also sometimes
greatly molested by heathen nations^ who
united to crush Israel, and destroy the
church, Ps. 83: "Keep not thou silence, O
God; hold not thy peace, and be not still, O
God. For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult;
and they that hate thee have lifted up ths
head. They have taken crafty counsel
against thy people, and consulted agaiost
thy hidden ones. They have said, Come^
and let us cut them off from being a nation ^
that the name of Israel may be no more in
remembrance. For they have consulted to-



^0 state of the World

g-etlier with one consent; they are confeder-
rite against thee; the tabernacles of Edom,
and the Ishmaelites; of Moab and the Ha-
garenes; Gebal and Ammon and Amalek;
the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre;
Assur also is joined with theni; they have
holpen the children of Lot," How greatly
were the children of ^ion molested in re-
building their temple and the walls of their
holy city. They were obliged to hold a wea-
pon in one hand, while they built with the
other. In the 11th of Heb. we have a most
affecting picture of the persecutions, inflict-
ed upon ancient saints. They were tortur-
ed, not accepting deliverance — and others
had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings,
yea moreover of bonds and imprison-
ment. They were stoned, they were sawn
asunder, were tempted, were slain with
the sword; they wandered about in sheep
skins and goat skins, being destitute, afflict-
ed, tormented; of whom the world was
not worthy; they wandered in deserts, and
in mountains, and in dens, apd caves of
the earth."

When the Prince of peace came into the
w^orld, he did not hnd it a place of peace for
him. Scarcely was the Savior born, when
the sword of persecution was unsheathed, to
drink his blood. Behold Rachel, weeping
for her children, and refusing to be comfort-
ed, because they are not. Ah^ hapless moth-



During the Millennium, Bl

ers in Bethlehem, suddenly bereaved of your
sweet smiling innocents, by the relentless
sword of the cruel. By flight into Egypt^
the holy Infant is preserved. There he re-
mains, till it is safe for him to return. Hav-
ing at length entered upon his public minis-
try, the Savior's life was almost one contin-
ued scene of persecution. He was persecute
ed by rulers and people, by Scribes and
Pharisees, by Sadducees and Herptlians,
Enemies could become friends, and combine
their efforts in opposition to the Savior. =^
After treating him with all mapner of abuse,
jand making repeated attempts to take away
his life, they at length succeeded| and with
bold and wicked hands they took, and cru-
pified, and slew, the Jiord of glory.

But the persecutian of the righteous did
hot end here. Jesus had forewarned his dis-
|ci5)Ies what to expect from a wicked world,
^•Blessed are ye, when men shall revile, you,
and persecute you, and shall say all man^
ber of evil against you falsely for my sake.
lUejoice and be exceeding glad; for great is
lyour reward in heaven; for so persecuted
they the prophets which were before you. — =
And the brother shall deliver the brother to
ileath, and the father the child; and the chiU
Iren shall rise up against their parents, and
zsiUHG them to be put to death. And ye shall
be hated of all men for my name's sake.-^

* Luke 23:12.



32 State of the World

The disciple is not above his master, nor the
servant above his lordB If they have called
the master of the house Beelzebub, how much
more shall they call them of his household?
And fear not them which kill the body, but
are not able to kill the soul^ but rat her fear him
which is able to destroy both soul and body
in hell." A short time before his death he
told his disciples, "Then shall they deliver
you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you; and
ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's
sake. And then shall many be offended,
and shall betray one another and shall hate
one another. — If the world hate you, ye
know that it hated rae, before it hated you*
If ye were of the world, the world would love
his own| but because ye are not of the world,
but I have chosen you out of the world,
therefore the world hateth you. Remember
the word that I said unto you? The servant
is not greater than his Ioy4. If they have
persecuted me, they will also persecute
you; if they have kept my saying, they will
keep yours also. But all these things will
they do unto you, for my name's sake be-
cause they know not him that sent me.—
They shall putyououtof the synagogues; yea
the time cometh that whosoever killeth you
will think that he doth God sei'^-ice."

These solemn premonitions, the followers
of Jesus found most awfully verified. The
book of the Acts of the Apostles is in a great
measure a history of pcrsecutionSj intlicted



Daring the Mlleimmin. 33

upon the disciples of Jesus. We find in the
epistles, some direct accounts of persecution
for righteousness' sake; and besides these
there are many allusions to the cruel and
murderous treatment which Christians re-
ceived or might expect from their enemies.
John the Revelator had in vision a pros-
pect of similar scenes of bloodshed and hor-
ror. «<After this," says he "1 beheld, anci
lo, a great multitude, which no man could
number of all nations, and kindreds, and
people, and tongues, stood before the throne,
and before the Lamb, clothed with white
robes, and palms in their hands; and cried
with a loud voice, saying. Salvation to our
God, which sitteth upon the throne, and un-
to the Lamb. — These are they which come

out of GREAT TRIBULATION,"* The most

astonishing object, presented to the apostle's
view, was a symbol of a persecuting power.
Rev. 17: *'So he carried me away in the spir-
it into the wilderness; and 1 saw a woman
sit upon a scarlet-colored beast, full of
names of blasphemy, having seven heads and
ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in
purple and scarlet- color, and decked with
gold and precious stones, and pearls having
a golden cup in her hand? full of abomina-
tions and filthiness of her fornication. And
upon her forehead was a name written^
MYSTERY, BABl^LON THE GREAT,



S4 mate of the World

THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND
ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.

And I saw the woman drunken with the
blood of the saints, and with the blood of
the martyrs of Jesus^ and when I saw her, I
wondered with great admiration." This
woman no doubt represented Papal Rome;
and well might the apostle wonder with great
admiration, to see the symbol of a hierar-
chy, professing to be the only true church,
but in reality the most tremendous persecu-
tor of the true church, that has ever been
known.

Much more might be adduced from this
mystical book, predicting the persecutions
of the saints. But I forbear. Perhaps
enough has been quoted from the Bible up-
on this awful subject.

History bears witness, that these predic-
tions and symbolic representations, were
from Him, who sees things that are not, as
tho they were, and is able to declare the end
from the beginning. The sword of perse-
cution has been bathed in the blood of mar^
tyrs for a considerable part of the time, ever
since there were Christians to be persecuted.
Rivers and rivers of Christian blood, have
been shed by the enemies of the cross, in
France, in Spain, in Italy, in Germany, in
Holland, in Britain, in Ireland, &c. It
seems almost enough to make us weep blood,
to read the accounts of the cruelties and
enormities, that have been perpetrated up-



During the MiUeimiunu S$

QYi those, who have loved their Savior more
than brother or sister, father or mother,wife
or child — who have loved their Savior even
unto death.

But blessed be the Father of mercies, these
days of blood and horror must have an end|
and, I trust, if not already finished, they are
drawing to a close; and all the various forms,
in which persecution has been inflicted up-
on the people of God, will soon be termina*
ted. "Sing O heavens, and be joyful, O earth,
and break fortb into singing, O mountains^
for the Lord hath comforted his people, and
will have mercy upon his afilicted. But
iZion said. The Lord hath forsaken me, and
my Lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman
forget her sucking child, that she should
have no compassion on the son of her womb?
Yea, they may forget; yet will I not forget
thee. Behold I have graven thee upon the
palms of my hands; thy walls are continu-
ally before me. Thy children shall make
haste;' thy destroyers and they that made
thee waste, shall go forth of thee." "Corn-
Fort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your
God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem,
md cry unto her, that her warfare is accom-
i pushed, that her iniquity is pardoned.'* ^«For
the arms of the wicked shall be broken.'*
i 'And my people shall dwell in a peaceable
,Hiabitation, and in sure dwellings, and in
i [uiet resting places." "Look upon Zion,
j:he city of our solemnities; thine eyes shall



36 State of the World

see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a taberna-
cle, that shall not be taken down, not one of
the stakes thereof shall ever be moved, nei-
ther shall any of the cords thereof be brok«
en." God declares to Zion, "They that
swallowed thee up, shall be far away.'^ <*ln
righteousness shalt thou be established, and
thou shalt be far from oppression, for thou
shalt not fear| and from terror, for it shall
not come near thee. No weapon that is
formed against thee, shall prosper; and ev-
ery tongue, that shall rise against thee in
judgmentjthou shalt condemn." "Behold the
days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise
iHito David a righteous Branch, and a King
shall reign and prosper, and shall execute
judgment and justice in the earth. In his
days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall
dwell safely; and this is the name whereby
he shall be called, THE LORD OUR
RIGHTEOUSNESS.'' "And Jacob shall
return,and be in rest, and be quiet, and^none
shall make him afraid." "And I will 'make
with them a covenant of peace, and will
cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land,
and they shall dwell safely in the wilder-
ness, and sleep in the woods. — 'And they
shall no more be a prey to the heathen, nei-
thershall the beasts of the land devour them;,
but they shall dwell safely, and none shall
make them afraid."

Thus Christians shall be at peace, and
dwell safely. They shall not even be molest-



During the Millennium, 37

ed by their great accuser. Their grand ad-
versary, that has taken the lead in every
persecution since the foundation of the world,
shall be cast out; he shall be confined during
the whole Millennial period.

If any objection should arise in tlie mind
of any one, that most of the above mentioned
passages refer to the Israelites, and there-
fore cannot imply, that the cliurch generally
will be at rest, to such objection tliere are
two answers. In the first place, if we should
grant that these passages do refer merely to
the natural descendents of Abraham and Is-
rael, still they must imply, that the whole
church will be equally at rest. For we
can hardly suppose, that the Jews, after be-
ing converted to Christianity, will be thus
at rest, while Gentile Christians are perse-
cuted. The same causes, that bring peace to
the Jewish Christian, must bring it equally
to the Gentile. But there is reason to
believe, that these promises extend to the
Gentile church, as well as to the Jewish; or
rather to the church generally,the one sheep*
fold, composed of all nations, united under
the great Shepherd and Bishop of souls. The
Jews are represented as being broken off
from the olive tree, and the Gentiles grafted
into the same. When tlierefore the Geii=
tiles are united to the church, or brought
into the covenant, symbolized by the olive,
all the promises that were made to the
church, founded upon that covenant, do
4



38 State of the World

equally extend to the Gentiles. It is in this
way, and in this way only, that the Gentiles
can become partakers with the Jews of the
root and fatness of the ancient olive. It is in
this way, that God accomplishes his promise
to Abraham, to make him the father of many
nations. All therefore, who are grafted into
the ancient olive, become Abraham's spirit-
ual children, and heirs to the exceeding great
and glorious promises made to Abraham,
and his spiritual children. In confirmation
of this the apostle expressly declares, «If ye
be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and
heirs according to the promise." Thus the
promises are confirmed in Christ, and in him
are Yea and Amen; and thus they are made
sure to all the seed| not to that only, which
is of the law, but to that also, which is of the
faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all.
By becoming fellow citizens of Zion, the
Gentiles become heirs to all the spiritual
promises, made to ancient Zion.

Inhere is no doubt that during the Milieu
siium every Christian on earth will find ene-
mies in the remaining corruptions of his own
heart, yet from the passages of scripture,
which have been quoted, it appears, that
their warfare with external enemies, will en-
tirely cease. The same may be made to ap-