(as it is declared) "Even to the horse-bridles by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs."*

But there shall be OTHER CAUSES OF SAD TROUBLE in the last days, besides those which we have now referred to.

Satan, knowing "that he hath but a short time," will grow desperate. He will "come down having great wrath." A peculiar power will be permitted, and he will exercise it wisely. There shall be "fearful sights and great wonders. Blood and fire, and pillars of smoke." "Doctrines of devils" advocated and received. Wandering spirits" communicated with, heeded and trusted.‡ Men energized by Satan and empowered to work miracles upon the earth-of kind without example on the page of history; iniquity and craft performing such astounding deeds "as to deceive, if it were possible, even the elect;"|| the earth filled full of "trouble and darkness, dimness and anguish;" so that men in their multitudes shall be "driven to darkness."

Thus wickedness and tribulation, terrible and increasing, shall be found among the characteristics of THE WORLD as the great day of the Lord draws near, and there shall not be (as so many vainly think) a

*Rev. xiv. 20.

† Rev. xii. 12.

"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly that in the latter days some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing (mavos i. e. wandering) spirits, and doctrines of devils speaking lies in hypocrisy." 1 Tim. iv. 1, 2. See also Isaiah viii. 19-22, 2 Thess. ii. 3— 12, Rev. xiii. 11-16, and xvi. 13, 14. This subject is very faithfully dealt with in a little work by REV. E. NANGLE, M.A., Rector of Skreen, entitled "Spiritualism fairly tried.” (Werteim and Macintosh.)

Matt. xxiv. 24,

gradual increase of true enlightenment, righteousness, and peace, to usher in the gentle reign of the Redeemer. For aught then which we learn from the state of things around us in the world, we may be even at the present moment drawing near to the great Advent of our God.

But what now as to the CHURCH? This is a point of deepest interest with the Lord's people. The world will always be at work for its own god, and therefore it is no marvel if it reap the fruit of such a servitude: but how the children of the Lord will fare amid the increased wickedness, and in the day of vengeance, is a matter as to which the earnest Christian must desire to be informed. The judgments we have spoken of are to be world-wide. Exceptions seem to have been made but sparingly on the prophetic page. A man is to be "more precious than the golden wedge of Ophir." "The slain of the Lord" are to be "from one end of the earth to the other." Indeed, "When the Lord cometh shall he find faith,"-shall he find a real Christian,-" upon the earth?" But how is this to be? Will the Lord's people then deny their faith, consort with the wicked, and be consumed with the transgressors? O surely not. The people of the Lord are many; multitudes in every nation under heaven. We cannot think they will apostatize. Nay, who shall make so great multitudes afraid? Moreover, the Inspired Word is plain upon the point. They shall not apostatize. The iniquity and tribulation shall be such as to deceive even the Elect "if it were possible;" but it is not possible; as Christ has said, "My sheep, hear my

voice and I know them, and they follow me, and I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any (man) pluck them out of my hand."* Indeed a great change must pass upon the world before the day can come wherein the Church of Christ upon the earth, taken as a whole, will be the subject of a persecution unto death. It is true that both Daniel† and St. John‡ speak clearly upon the subject of a last great persecution which is to afflict God's servants; and that immediately before the coming of the Lord for judgment. But if we examine what they say as to the state of things which will exist upon the earth, at that period, (as we must presently,) we shall see that the whole aspect of the world's affairs will have undergone A CHANGE, sudden and wonderful, brought about by God himself.

The very strongest intimation which occurs in Scripture about the spread of Gospel faith and the spiritual standing of the Church-its zeal-its devotedness—its love for souls-and its position of power in the world when the great day is near; appears to be that which our Lord Jesus Christ himself gave to his disciples when he said "This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world, for a witness unto all nations: and then shall the end come." But this says very little in the direction of an universal reception of the Gospel. The Gospel is but to be preached everywhere "for a witness.” Not to be received everywhere, nor even by every

* John x. 27, 28.

Rev. xx. 4.

† Daniel vii. 25, and xi. 31–37. Matt. xxiv. 25.

nation. Nothing more indeed need be done, nothing more need be expected than we find to have already taken place. For anything that is declared in this passage we may expect the Second Advent of our Saviour now. It is MARVELLOUS how very little we read in Scripture about the Spiritual standing of the Church of Christ as the Millennial age approaches, and how much we read of the abounding wickedness of the world, its sinfulness increasing, its evil seducers waxing worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.

By what is said respecting the amazing growth of wickedness "in the last days," I think we may expect that the true people of the Lord will appear more decidedly distinct, and that they will stand out to greater disadvantage in the eyes of men. Not, however, that mankind will be in the main without religion. Very evidently otherwise. Religiousness will be a mark of the last days. Men will have "a form of godliness, but deny the power thereof:" they will be "ever learning, but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth:"* preparing themselves, although they know it not, for the worship of that wicked one, whose coming shall be "after the power of Satan," and who "as God," sitting in the Temple of God, will show himself "that he is God."†

SATISFACTORY, therefore, the state of the outward church will not be. And the true spiritual church of the Lord's believing people will be MUCH TRIED. There will be an urgent call for watchfulness and prayer, that the things which remain and are ready * 2 Timothy iii. 3-5.

† 2 Thess. ii. 4.

to die may be strengthened;-there will be need for looking well both to the girdle and to the lamp, and for the maintenance of a simple, childlike faith in the all-sufficient Saviour.

But now the minds of some amongst us will perhaps be in a strait, by reason of what seems to be a CONTRADICTION. We have seen that the Church will not apostatize that a persecution unto death (so far as the whole Church is concerned) will not take place,-AND YET that our Lord Himself has intimated, and the Inspired Writers have led us clearly to conclude, that when the judge of all men shall descend upon the earth, it will be—as it were-a question whether He will find ONE TRUE BELIEVER THERE; whether there will be ANY CHURCH WHATEVER in the world to welcome His appearing. In other words,that there will be a people, ready, waiting, watching, for the Lord's Advent; and yet that there will be no faith, no love, no readiness, and no expectancy; but only sin, misery, and anguish of heart, among the multitudes of earth.

But there is NO REAL CONTRADICTION here;-all is plain and clear: although the solution of the difficulty may perchance oppose itself to the pre-conceived ideas of many Christian people. Let us now, however, proceed to an examination of this matter.

We will again refer to our Lord's assertion, "As the days of Noe were, so shall the coming of the Son of Man be. . . . As it was in the days of Lot . . . even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed." ""*

* Luke xvii. 26-30, and elsewhere.