from desiring to find fault with others, merely to set the public mind against them, we do feel constrained, most solemnly to protest against the common practice of terrifying the minds of the naturally timid, with the awful representations of what is usually called, The end of the world. It is true, the philosopher can carelessly pass the idle hour in hearing what he believes is an idle story, without absolutely tormenting his own feelings; but women and children suffer incalculably in consequence of those representations, which they hear from the pulpit, and from the lips of those who never once called the subject in question, never thought of proving the horrible story with which they torment those, whom they ought to instruct in the doctrine of "peace on earth and good will toward men."

J

But you will say, that, let what will be meant by the end of the world, our text informs us, that at that time, the angels shall come forth and sever the wicked from among the just, and cast them into the furnace of fire." That we may understand what the Saviour meant by the end of the world, and the severing of the wicked from among the just; let us examine his own words on the same subject, recorded in other passages. But let us first remark, that whenever the Redeemer spake of a similar separation of the righteous and the wicked, or of rewarding the one and punishing the other, we should do well to understand him to be speaking of the same event, though his language may somewhat vary.

When he described the end of the world, as we read in the 24th chapter of Matthew, he spake of this same event of a separation which should be made by the angels. See verses 30, 31, "And then shall appear the sign of the son of man in heaven; and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great

sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." He then immediately certified his disciples that all these things should take place in that generation. In our labours on this and the following chapter in endeavouring to illustrate the parable of the sheep and the goats, we have shown that what the Saviour meant by the end of the world was the destruction of Jerusalem and the breaking up and dispersion of the nation of the Jews by Titus. The hearer is requested to read the 24th of Matthew with attention, and observe, that when the Saviour speaks of the end, he then says; "Then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains," &c.

What the divine teacher stated in the 24th chapter as the end of the world, and carefully confined the time to that generation, he represented by three parables in the 25th. And it is directly to our purpose to observe, that in these several parables the same thing is very plainly set forth which we find in the text now under consideration. In the first parable the wise and the foolish virgins, mean the same as is meant in our text by the just and the wicked; in that of the talents, those who improved their Lord's money, and he that neglected so to do, represent the same thing; and it is worthy of observation, that it is here said, "cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth," which agrees with the conclusion of our text; "There shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth." So also, in the parable of the sheep and goats, the same distinction is made.

The argument on which we rest this subject is the following: As it is evident, and out of all dispute, that the Saviour confined the end of the world and the separation between the righteous and the wicked to the generation in which he lived, it seems necessary to apply the end of the world, mentioned in our text, to the same period

and event. And we further contend that this application of the end of the world, and of this division of the righteous and the wicked, is abundantly strengthened by the words of the Saviour, recorded in the 16th of Mat., "For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father, with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. Verily I say unto you, there be some standing here which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom." The same ideas are expressed in St. Mark and St. Luke.

In further confirmation of this exposition and application of the end of the world, the hearer is referred to the following words of St. Paul to the Hebrews; "For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world; but now once in the end of the world, hath he appeared, to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself." 1 Cor. x. 11. "Now all these things, (meaning the destructions of the children of Isreal in the wilderness, for their transgressions) happened unto them for ensamples; and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are

come."

As for the common use which is made of those passages which speak of the end of the world, let it be distinctly understood that it is altogether a mistake, as there is not one instance in the whole New-Testament where the end of the world signifies the dissolution of the present order and laws of material nature.

By the end of the world we may understand the end of the Jewish age, and by the severing of the wicked from among the just, we learn the distinction which was made between the enemies and friends of the gospel and the name of Christ, in the day when Jerusalem and the Jews were visited with the desolating judgments, which the Saviour, in a number of instances, denounced upon them. It now remains that we endeavour to understand

what is meant, in our text, by the furnace of fire, into which it is said the wicked are cast.

This furnace of fire is generally believed to be a state of endless torment in the future existence, where the wicked will be tormented as long as God shall exist. But, my friends, have we any other evidence that this is the true meaning of this scripture, than barely tradition? What reason can there be rendered why this kind of language should mean something different in the New Testament, from what it does in the prophecies of the old? Let us be candid enough on this important subject to look into the scriptures of the prophets for the use of this kind of language. See Duet. iv. 20. Moses in giving special directions to the people against idolatry, turns their attention to the Lord, who had been their deliverer, and says; "But the Lord hath taken you, and brought you forth out of the iron furnace, even out of Egypt." You will notice here, that the affliction and oppression which the Israelites suffered in Egypt, was signified by a furnace. Isaiah xxxi. 9., The Lord's "fire is in Zion, and his furnace in Jerusalem." xlviii. 10., "Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction." Ezekiel xxii. 18-22., "Son of man, the house of Israel is to me become dross; all they are brass, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the midst of the furnace; they are even the dross of silver. Therefore thus saith the Lord God, because ye are all become dross, behold, therefore, I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. As they gather silver, and brass, and iron, and lead, and tin, into the midst of the furnace, to blow the fire upon it, to melt it; so will I gather you in mine anger and in my fury, and I will leave you there, and melt you. Yes, I will gather you, and blow upon you in the fire of my wrath, and ye shall be melted in the midst thereof. As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof;

and ye shall know that I the Lord have poured out my fury upon you."

Whoever will compare this prophecy with the history of the siege and destruction of Jerusalem will see how well prophecy and events agree.

The hearer is requested to notice that in the language of prophecy, and the scriptures of the Old Testament, great afflictions are represented by the similitude of a furnace. This being understood, why should we use this language differently, when we read it in the New Testament, from what we understand it in the old? Egypt and Jerusalem are denominated a furnace in the passages which we have noticed. Why then must the furnace mentioned in our text be in a future state? Both Egypt and Jerusalem are in this world; and it does not occur to recollection, that any other place is figuratively called a furnace in the whole of the scriptures.

Respecting a furnace, it should be remembered that it is never prepared by our heavenly Father but for the purpose of refining. The tyrant of Egypt did not afflict Israel for the benefit of the afflicted, but "God does not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men." The King of Babylon once prepared a furnace to burn those to death, who would not worship the image which he had set up, and it seems the common doctrine on the subject of our labours this evening, has prepared a furnace of eternal torment for no better motives than the furnace on the plains of Dura was prepared.

Though we have not time to be particular on all parts of our subject, there is one question which may be proper to consider, before we close. As it seems by our text, that the wicked, who were to be cast into this furnace, were such as. had come into the possession of the gospel, this passage does not so naturally apply to the destruction of the Jews, who, generally speaking, rejected even the name of Christ.