closely corresponds." How closely he does not say; nor

"The invasion under By what "grammati

can he by any "authority." (2) Titus to the capture of the city." cal construction" does Dr. Warren place that treading down before the capture which Christ placed after it? Until Dr. Warren can prove that period to have been definitely fulfilled (which he cannot) his position is baseless.

"7. The long postponement of the parousia is contradicted by the repeated and positive declarations of the New Testa

ment."

I shall reserve what I have to say on that subject till I come to his letter on that point. But I will notice. one remark: "It [the Parousia] is in express terms said to be nigh. Yet Dr. Litch after this lapse of more than eighteen centuries ventures to affirm that it has not come yet."

Yes; and so has the universal Church in the Apostles' Creed, from so near the apostles and Jerusalem's overthrow, that then if ever they should have known that Christ had come. Yet from then till now they have gone on affirming, "I believe in God the Father and in his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. that he was crucified and dead and buried, that he descended into hades and rose again the third day and ascended into heaven, where he sitteth on the right hand of God, the Father Almighty, from whence he shall come to judge the living and the dead." Yet Dr. Warren, eighteen centuries after, ventures to affirm in the face of all this that it did take place before the Creed was formulated!

THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.

In his paper of March 10th Dr. Warren devotes himself to the subject of "the kingdom of heaven," and replies to my argument, that the kingdom of heaven which John, Christ, the twelve and the seventy proclaimed as at hand, was the reign of Christ conditionally promised to the Jews, for they had such a promise. See Zech. 6: 9-15. The Lord directed the prophet to make crowns and set them upon the head of Joshua the high priest, and address him thus: "Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is the BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord; even he shall build the temple of the Lord; and he shall bear the glory, and he shall sit and rule upon his throne, and he shall be a priest upon his throne." The man whose name is the Branch, is Christ, the Son of David (Jer. 23:5, 6). He was to be a priest-king, on certain conditions, named in verse 15 of Zech. 6: thus, "And this shall come to pass, IF ye will diligently obey the voice

of the Lord your God."

There is not a more distinct condition attached to a promise in the whole Bible. But the Jews failed to fulfill the condition; hence he never took the throne of David.

Zechariah foretold that he should grow up. Then he foretold the form and spirit in which he would make his royal manifestation to Jerusalem as her king (chap. 9: 9): "Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and

riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal an ass." Now let it be remembered, that he did come as here described amidst the shouts and royal acclamations of Jerusalem's children. So far it was for him to do independently of their action. Here comes in the condition. He will rule as an enthroned priest-king, provided the Jews comply with the condition-"diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God,"--which they did not and therefore lost the blessing. He came and offered them the kingdom and they refused it, and he said: "Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given unto a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof" (Matt. 21: 43). What kingdom did he mean if not the one he brought to them and offered them?.

THE SECOND ROYAL ADVENT.

Christ being rejected by his people has gone as a "nobleman to that far country called heaven, "to receive for himself a kingdom and to return" "having received it." So he taught in parable, Luke 19:1127. He has gone; he has left his interests in this world with his servants; and will reckon with them when he returns, rewarding the faithful, casting out the unfaithful, and destroying his avowed enemies. And he has left word that he will come as he went, in a cloud. He never has come in that way, and therefore he will so come in the future.

This answers the most of Dr. Warren's points in his second letter. A few I will notice in detail. He says;

"When Pilate asked Jesus about his kingdom to which he was accused of laying claim, he replied, 'My kingdom is not of

this world; if my kingdom were of this world then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now [as things are,] is my kingdom not from hence.''

That is what Christ said; but it is not all he said to Pilate. He was arraigned on this charge found and preferred by the Jewish council-"We found this man perverting the nation." Specification 1. "Forbidding to give tribute to Cæsar;" Specification 2. "Saying that himself is Christ a king." To this the court called on the prisoner to plead. The question was squarely put: "Art thou the king of the Jews?" It was as squarely answered: "Thou sayest," that is, I am (Luke 23:1-3). It was only as king of the Jews, that he came as king. It was only to the Jews, "the lost sheep," he and his co-laborers heralded the kingdom at hand. It was only as claiming to be king of the Jews, that he was tried, sentenced and crucified. Pilate wrote the superscription of accusation, thus: "THE KING OF THE JEWS" (Mark 15:26). Of this the Jews demanded a revision, which Pilate refused. He was foretold as king of the Jews; he was born king of the Jews; he was proclaimed king of the Jews; he was tried as king of the Jews; he was crucified as king of the Jews. And because the Jews rejected him when he offered the kingdom to them, he took the kingdom from them. Being rejected by his people he said to Pilate, "BUT NOW my kingdom is not from hence," &c. The Father has called him to sit at his right hand for a season, as an everlasting priest,—until he should make his foes his footstool; when he will "send the rod of his strength out of Zion" and he shall "rule in the midst of his enemies" and "fill the places

with the dead bodies." Then he will find a willing people who will say, "Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord." See Psa. 110.

Once more Dr. Warren says:

"John warned the people that the coming kingdom was coming wrath to them, &c. Did Christ do all this on that Palm Sunday?"

No, my friend; because he was refused "the throne" and his life sought. He said, "Now is the krisis of this world"-its future is fixed. "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all to me." To that time the Jews had the oracles of God. From then, they having rejected the kingdom, the world was to have the glad tidings. See John 12: 31, 32. Christ no more reigned than did Charles II. of England after his father's death. He made his claim to the throne at the head of his army, but being overcome by superior force fled and awaited his time, when he returned to find a willing people. So with Christ. Had he been permitted by his people to reign he would no doubt have gone on as he begun in the temple (by purging it, until his authority was challenged). And he will as certainly come back and be a crowned and enthroned king on David's throne, as did Charles II. to reign on his father's throne,

Dr. Warren asks what there was in the parables of Matt. 13, corresponding with the first royal advent? Nothing. Those parables all related to the everlasting kingdom. But the parable of the husbandman (Matt. 21: 33-43), and the parable of the marriage of the king's son (Matt. 22: 1-14) illustrate most forcibly this whole proceeding.