and galley with oars. At first, he describes a pebbly brook murmuring along the hills, now and then bursting into view with some gentle fall, then gliding softly away, until it meets some rugged head-land, shifts its course, and almost seems to retrace its path; then, suddenly bursting from the hills in cataracts of foam, bounding from rock to rock, leaping into the vale below, he again seems to follow the alluvial flats and receives his tributary streams, winds on his way, until it falls at its mouth by a tremendous leap into a gulf of waters, and is swallowed up in the waves of the sea.

Four times the Revelation seems to bring us down in this manner, as though he had begun on one mountain, and traced four different streams of history down to the great ocean of eternity; like the river of Eden, which watered the garden, becoming four heads of four great rivers, which watered and encompassed the whole land, taking different points of the compass, but falling at last into the ocean, Gen. ii. 10-14; and all these having seven tributary streams in their course. The seven churches of Asia is a history of the church of Christ in her seven forms, in all her windings and turnings, in all her prosperity and adversity, from the days of the apos tles down to the end of the world. The seven seals are a history of the transactions of the powers and kings of the earth over the church, and God's protection of his people during the same time. The seven trumpets are a history of seven peculiar and heavy judgments sent upon the earth, or Roman kingdom. And the seven vials are the seven last plagues sent upon Papal Rome. Mixed with these are many other events, woven in like tributary streams, and filling up the grand river of prophecy, until the whole ends us in the ocean of eternity.

This, to me, is the plan of John's prophecy in the book of Revelation. And the man who wishes to understand this book, must have a thorough knowledge of other parts of the word of God. The figures and metaphors used

in this prophecy, are not all explained in the same, but must be found in other prophets, and explained in other passages of Scripture. Therefore it is evident that God has designed the study of the whole, even to obtain a clear knowledge of any part. I shall then pursue the following method:

I. Explain the book which was in the right hand of him who sat on the throne.

II. Give the history of the seven seals, and their opening.

I. I am to explain what is meant by the book.

The book is often spoken of in the word of God. Sometimes we hear it spoken of as a little book, open, in the hands of the angel; and sometimes it is commanded to be sealed up; and sometimes to be unloosed, as in our text. The question arises, What can this book mean? It cannot mean the book of Revelation, for John was commanded not to seal the sayings of this book, Rev. xxii. 10. Neither could it be the prophecies, for they were commanded to be read every Sabbath day by the Jews, and were so read. Yet John tells us, in our context, "That no man, neither in heaven, nor in earth, nor under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon; and I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon." We see, plainly, that it could not apply to the law, nor the prophets, to the Old or New Testaments, for these were committed to the Jews, and also unto us Gentiles, and were to be read by all men; but this book they could not open, read, nor look thereon. There is one more book which answers to John's description, which no man, neither in heaven, nor on earth, nor under the earth, has yet been able to look thereon, or open and read, as we have any account of; and which, according to the whole tenor of the Scripture, will never be opened, read, or looked upon, until the last seal is broken, and the judgment sits. "And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the_book of life; and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books." In this book, which

declare who is on the Lord's side. For the apostle tells us, plainly, "Our lives are hid with Christ in God; that, when he appears, then we shall appear with him in glory." And John tells us, Rev. xxi. 26, 27, “And they shall bring the glory and honor of the nations into it, and there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie; but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life." "And whosoever was not found written in the book of life, was cast into the lake of fire." Again: "And they whose names were not written in the book of life, from the foundation of the world, shall wonder," &c. This book, although we are abundantly informed there is one, in the right hand of him that sitteth upon the throne, no man, as we are any where informed, has been able to look upon it, or open it, or to read its contents. This, then, is the book, on account of which John wept to know its contents. And so it has been with all Christians. They are anxious to know whether their names are written in the Lamb's book of life. But you must first learn, my dear brother in Christ, to live by faith; and faith, too, founded on the book in which you can look of which you may read the promises, the prophecies, and commands. But into the book of life you can never look, until the Lamb of God shall open the seventh seal, and the righteous dead be raised, to meet with the dear Savior in that world of glory, when the book will be opened in the presence of the universe, and he will own you as his, and crown you with joy unspeakable and full of glory.

II. I shall now give the history of the seven seals, with the time of their opening. After the prophecy of the seven churches, in the 2d and 3d chapters of Reve lation, John has a view of the heavenly host, singing the grand song, and gives us a description of the heavenly choir, and a part of the song. He likewise introduces the book, sealed with seven seals, and shows who can

open the book, in the fourth and fifth chapters. These we have attended to, in a former lecture.

His

We shall now begin with the sixth chapter, 1st verse, "And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals; and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts, saying, Come and see. And I saw, and behold, a white horse, and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him; and he went forth conquering and to conquer." The "beast," in this passage, is the first, which was like a lion, representing the church in its first state, in the days of the apostles, when the church went every where, preaching the word, bold as a lion. The white horse, and him that sat upon him, rep→ resent Jesus Christ going forth in the power of the gospel. This is proved by the passage, Rev. xix. 11-13, "And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written that no man knew but he himself, and he was clothed in a vesture dipped in blood; and his name is called The Word of God." This is the same personage as the other, and both places represent the same thing, only the first description is representing the spread of the gospel in the beginning of the gospel day, the other at the end of the gospel period, under which we are now living. Therefore the first seal opens with the promulgation of the gospel, as the last will be closed by the same. 3d and 4th verses, " And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see. And there went out another horse, that was red; and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another; and there was given unto him a great sword." The red horse denotes blood and carnage, and has reference to the times of persecution in the days of Nero and other Roman emperors, and answers to the same time as the Smyrna church. "Given unto him a great sword," shows that the power would have great authority. The second beast spoken of in this passage is the representation of the church, which was like a calf,

showing that the church would be given to the slaughter, like a calf fatted for the market, during the period of the opening of this seal, which period lasted until about A. D. 318, when Constantine put a period to the persecutions of the Christians.

5th and 6th verses, " And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo, a black horse; and he that sat upon him had a pair of balances in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny, and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine." The third beast, which represents the church, under this seal, had a face as a man, and shows that the church would be like a natural man, proud, haughty, independent, selfish, ambitious, covetous, and worldly. This seal was opened in the days of Constantine, when religion became popular, and was a stepping-stone to power; and this seal agrees with the Pergamos church, as to time and place. The black horse denotes error and darkness; and when the church became connected with worldly power and wisdom, she lost her purity of doctrine and practice, and adopted, in her creed, maxims and principles congenial with the natural heart, and forms and ceremonies for show and parade, rather than the humbling and cross-bearing life of the followers of Jesus. The balances denoted that religion and civil power would be united in the person who would administer the executive power in the government, and that he would claim the judicial authority both in church and state. This was true among the Roman emperors, from the days of Constantine until the reign of Justinian, when he gave the same judicial power to the bishop of Rome. The measures of wheat and barley for a penny denote that the members of the church would be eagerly engaged after worldly goods, and the love of money would be the prevailing spirit of the times, for they would dispose of any thing for money. The oil and wine denote the graces of the Spirit, faith and love, and there was great danger of hurting these, under the influence of so much worldly spirit. And it is well at