apple-tree, and all the trees of the field are withered: because joy is withdrawn from the children of men.

V. 17. "The beasts have rotted in their dung: the barns are destroyed, the storehouses are broken down: because the corn is confounded.

V. 18. 66 Why did the beasts groan, why did the herds of cattle low? because there is no pasture for them: yea, and the flocks of sheep are perished."

Here, then, the corn, wine, oil, and fruit, are all swept away by these rapacious wolves, and such universal devastation and desolation overspread the land, that the people are reduced to lamentation, famine, and despair, v. 8, the priests have not even bread and wine sufficient for the holy sacrifice, v. 9, and the beasts of the field perish for want of food, v. 17, 18.- -Joel continues,

Chap. ii. 1. "Blow ye the trumpet in Sion, sound an alarm in my holy mountain, let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: because the day of the Lord cometh, because it is nigh at hand.

V. 2. "A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and whirlwinds: a numerous and strong people, as the morning spread upon the mountains: the like to it hath not been from the beginning, nor shall be after it even to the years of generation and generation.

V. 3. "Before the face thereof a devouring fire, and behind it a burning flame: the land is like a garden of pleasure before it, and behind it a desolate wilderness, neither is there any one that can escape it."

At the approach of this tremendous army, the alarm is sounded, ver. 1, 2, to give notice that the day of the Lord cometh, the day of darkness is nigh at hand, that is, the terrible day of the wrath of God, who is now going to pour out his judgments upon mankind in a more severe manner than ever before. A numerous and strong people comes, ver. 2, a prodigious army appears, the like to it has not been from the beginning, nor shall be after it even to the years of generation and generation, which shows it to be the army of Antichrist, the most numerous that has been or will be, consisting, according to St. John, of two hundred million, Apoc. ix. 16. It overspreads the land with a swiftness, like to that of the aurora or morning light expanding itself over the tops of the mountains, ver. 2. This is done by means of incorporeal devils, that make part of this army, as we have before observed. Before the face thereof proceeds a burning fire, v. 3, the

fire of gunpowder with which they destroy mankind; and behind it a devouring flame, arising from their setting fire to every thing as they march, and thus reducing the whole country into a desert, or as the prophet beautifully expresses it, the land is like a garden of pleasure before it, and behind

it a desolate wilderness.

V. 4. "The appearance of them," continues Joel, “is as the appearance of horses, and they shall run like horsemen. V. 5. “They shall leap like the noise of chariots upon the tops of mountains, like the noise of a flame of fire devouring the stubble, as a strong people prepared to battle.

V. 6. "At their presence the people shall be in grievous pain: all faces shall be made like a kettle."

The picture here drawn of the army is similar to that we saw from the hand of St. John. Joel does not say the army consists wholly of cavalry, but the appearance of them is as the appearance of horses, ver. 4, including the artillery or cannon under the appearance of horses, in the same manner as St. John saw them. (See page 230.) The carriages of the cannon, as they are drawn up the mountains, make a noise like the noise of chariots, v. 5, and a crackling like that of a flame of fire devouring stubble, as they are dragged over the stones and rocks. These carriages are moreover said to leap up upon the tops of the mountains, by the celerity with which the hellish spirits move them forwards. Consternation, terror, and despair, are the vanguard of such an army, all faces shall turn black like a kettle with fear and dread, v. 6.

V. 7. "They shall run like valiant men," continues Joel, “like men of war they shall scale the wall: the men shall march every one on his way, and they shall not turn aside from their ranks.

V. 8. "No one shall press upon his brother: they shall walk every one in his path: yea, and they shall fall through the windows, and shall take no harm.

V. 9. "They shall enter into the city: they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up the houses, they shall come in at the windows as a thief."

Here is the last part of the description of this strange army. Their intrepidity is unparalleled. They run upon danger, or scale the walls of fortified towns, without the least concern, v. 7; and in their march they keep their ranks without pressing one another, every one walking in security in his path without the least fear of enemies, v. 7, 8. Their agility is such, that they come in at the windows as a thief, and if they fall

through them, they take no harm, v. 8, 9. They insinuate themselves into towns, though the gates be shut; they run upon the walls, as upon plain ground; they get upon the tops of houses, as if they had wings. It is plain, such actions are not human actions, and consequently the agents are not men, but infernal spirits, as we have so often remarked. At the head, then, of such troops, the furious tyrant and general enemy of mankind, Antichrist, carries ravage and desolation through the land, burns the cities, reduces the strongest fortresses without difficulty, and levels them to the ground. He will seem to imitate the proud and haughty king of Assyria, Nabuchodonosor, who may be well deemed a figure of him. That monarch said to his general, Holofernes: "Go out against all the kingdoms of the west, and against them especially that despised my commandment. Thy eye shall not spare any kingdom, and all the strong cities thou shalt bring under my yoke." Judith ii. 5, 6 In consequence of these orders, Holofernes "went forth, he and all the army, with the chariots, and horsemen, and archers, who covered the face of the earth, like locusts. He came to the great mountains of Ange, which are on the left of Cilicia: and he went up to all their castles, and took all the strong places.-And he passed over the Euphrates, he came into Mesopotamia; and he forced all the stately cities that were there.And he carried away all the children of Madian, and stripped them of all their riches, and all that resisted him he slew with the edge of the sword. And after these things he went down into the plains of Damascus in the days of the harvest, and he set all the corn on fire, and he caused all the trees and the vineyards to be cut down." Judith ii. 11, &c. And though the inhabitants of the cities went out to meet him and make their submission, "they could not for all that mitigate the fierceness of his heart: for he both destroyed their cities, and cut down their groves. For Nabuchodonosor the king had commanded him to destroy all the gods of the earth, that he only might be called God by those nations, which could be brought under him by the power of Holofernes." Judith iii. 11, 12, 13. Here is an imperfect picture of the proceedings of Antichrist, who, according to the accounts above given of Joe! and St. John, will far surpass, in rage and barbarity, Holofernes or his master Nabuchodonosor. Antichrist will have a more powerful and pernicious instrument in hand, namely, gunpowder, which he will make so much use of, according to St. John, as to kill the third part of men by it." Apoc. ix. 18. And all obstacles seem

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their

to vanish before him, as being easily removed or surmounted by the devils that attend him: for the dragon, Satan, gave him his own strength, or his own armies. Apoc. xiii. 2. All this is permitted by Almighty God in his wrath for the execution of his judgments, as he formerly permitted the northern barbarous nations in like manner to assist Rome for a while with their armies. "For God hath given into their hearts," said St. John, "to do that which pleaseth him: that they gave their kingdom to the beast till the words of God be fulfilled." Apoc. xvii. 17. The iniquities of mankind having filled up measure at this period, Antichrist is the rod of punishment in the hand of God; who therefore allows him an extraordinary destructive power, such as had never been permitted to fall into the hands of any mortal before. And power was given him," says St. John, "over every tribe, and people, and tongue, and nation." Apoc. xiii. 7. Thus then the beast be comes irresistible, and with the feet of a bear and the mouth of a lion, as St. John says, Apoc. xiii. 2, or with claws and teeth of iron, according to Daniel, vii. 9, the beast devours the whole earth, treads it down, and breaks it in pieces, Dan. vii. 23. Thus we see how fully he answers the character given him in the fourth seal. "Behold a pale horse," says St. John, "and he that sat on him, his name was Death, and hell followed him. And power was given to him over the four parts of the earth, to kill with sword, with famine, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.". Apoc. vi. 8. And thus he becomes universal monarch."

Both the ancients and moderns speak of Antichrist as domineering over the whole world. Lactantius says, he will torment the world with an insupportable tyranny "Inst. l. 7. c.

16. Sulpitius Severus tells us he had heard from St. Martin, that "the whole earth and all mankind will be reduced under the power of Antichrist." Dial. 2. de vita S. Mart. St. Jerom says, that "Antichrist will reign over the whole world." In Dan. ix. St. Austin and St. Hyppolytus, martyr, hold the same sentiment.

Among the moderns, Bellarmine, Cornelius a Lapide, and others, speak the same language.

Several of the preceding articles, relating to the character and actions of Antichrist, being also intimated to us with other

* If the prince of darkness be allowed an insight into futurity by means of the prophecies, he may have suggested to the Turkish monarchs the prophetic motto which they inscribe upon their military standard, "Donec totum impleat orbem, till it fills the whole earth."

particulars in a passage of the prophet Daniel, which has been applied to Antichrist by St. Jerom, Theodoret, and other ancient and modern interpreters, we shall here give it.

Chap. xi. 36. The king," says Daniel, “shall do according to his will, and he shall be lifted up, and shall magnify himself against every God: and he shall speak great things against the God of gods, and shall prosper, till the wrath be accomplished. For the determination is made." Here is Antichrist's power of doing according to his will; here is his arrogance, his luciferian pride, his rebellion and his blasphemies against the Almighty, just as St. John and St. Paul have described them. And it is added, that he shall prosper, till the wrath be accomplished, that is, till the Almighty has executed, by him, his judgments upon mankind for their wickedFor the determination is made; for such is the decree

ness.

of heaven.

V. 37. "And he shall make no account of the God of his fathers," continues Daniel, "and he shall follow the lust of women, and he shall not regard any gods: for he shall rise up against all things." Antichrist is here represented as an atheist, and addicted to lust.Daniel proceeds,

V. 38. “But he shall worship the god Maozim in his place: and a god whom his fathers knew not, he shall worship with gold and silver, and precious stones, and things of great price." Antichrist, though he was said before not to regard any gods, yet he worships in his place, or privately, the god Maozim, that is, the god of fortresses; for so the word Maozim is translated by Theodotion and Aquila, by the authors of the Syriac and Arabic versions, and by Vatable and others. It would seem that Antichrist, on his astonishing success in reducing the strong holds and fortified places, beyond that of any conqueror the world ever saw, will acknowledge it, but not publicly, to be owing to the aid and operation of Satan, who attends him, and whom on that account he will privately worship with gold and silver, and precious stones, &c. under the name of the god of fortresses. That such will be his success over fortresses, we have seen in the prophecy of Joel.-Lastly,

V. 39. "And he shall do this to fortify Maozim with a strange god, whom he hath acknowledged, and he shall increase glory, and shall give them power over many, and shall divide them the land for nothing." He will fortify his god Maozim with a strange god, whom he hath acknowledged, that is, with another infernal spirit, from whom he acknow