him; I agreed to finish a building, and when I came into the vineyard to cut down trees, I saw the dresser, and he asked me whether I would have for the building, trees that bare fruit or that bare none? I said, I would have of the trees that had borne. But I saw that they were hollow, and appeared to be worth little, then I said, I would have of the trees which bore not fruit, for they were much better for the building. The owner of the vineyard said unto him, Why then couldst thou not have taken them, and been at peace?

"The carpenter said, The doctor, the lawyer, and the parson came and contended with me, and said, if I let the dresser go on, there would be no fruit to support the house, and they cried to me for power to stop him, for the parson said, If all the trees which bare fruit were cut down, but that which the dresser chose to put the vine in, he would have none to bury nor to preach to; and their seeking to kill me has brought me here before thee, for thee to decide the matter. The owner of the vineyard says, Call in the dresser, but the parson, the lawyer, and the doctor, strove to hinder him. When he came not, the owner said send the two-edged sword which kept the way of the vine, which is to be put into the branches of the trees; so the slain was on the right hand and on the left, till a road was made for the dresser to come in. The lawyer, the doctor, and the parson contended to come in, and were admitted to the gates that they might hear the word.

"And the owner rose and said unto the dresser, Did not I send thee into the vineyard to dress it, that after thou hadst dressed it thou shouldst put the branch of me into the olive tree, into that part which bare like unto the root, whether it was above or below the graft?

"The dresser answered, When I came into the vineyard I saw many branches below the former graft, and the top had both become hollow, and in many cases dead. Yet the carpenter would contend

that I should put in the graft at the top of this tree, though he refused it for the building, for he said they were trees that were for fruit, which fruit belonged to the house. And when he saw I would not hearken to him, he brought the parson, the lawyer, and the doctor, to contend with me, and they opposed me. The owner of the vineyard said, Hear, Oh ye doctors, lawyers, and parsons, of the Gentile house! ye shall have one hour to consider on it. If ye bear fruit like unto the root, the dresser of the vineyard shall put the graft within you. But if ye bear not fruit like unto the root, the carpenter shall cut you off where ye were grafted in, and the dresser shall put the graft of me the vine into those branches which have sprung out under you from the stem of the olive, and they shall bear fruit for the house. The parsons say unto the owner of the vineyard, Let us speak: What fruit is it that is like unto the root? The owner says I am the vine, the life of me is the husbandman, who giveth the increase unto the vine. (John xv. 1.)

"And man was formed out of the dust of the earth, and the spirit of life was breathed into him, (Gen.ii.7,) and the tree of life and of death was brought unto him, that he might choose which he would, and he chose death; so it was pronounced upon them and their posterity, that they should eat the first year of that which grew of itself, and the second year that which sprang of the same, which were two dispensations; and in the third I brought forth the vine, that they might sow it unto life eternal, (Isa. xxxvii. 30,) that the blood might be shed to sow seed to the corruptible bodies, that they might take root and put on incorruption. And the body was sown in the earth to give seed to the mortal bodies, that they might take root and become immortal.

The olive was wild by the fall of Adam, who after he had disobeyed, sowed his seed with that which was to become the seed for the Spirit of God to dwell in, which marred it, so the body dieth, and

seeth corruption, till the evil be taken away from them that remain alive, and the door be opened, that the Spirit enter in. (Rev. iii. 8.) But I said within the sixth day I would remove that which marred the tree, and would put my branch within it. So the vine tree says unto the olive tree, and the wild olive tree, if the inside of the cup be clean, will not the outside appear clean also? (Matt. xxiii. 26.)

So hear, Oh dresser of the vineyard! take the twoedged sword, which has kept the vine, and it shall go before thee, and it shall cut down those trees which contend with thee. And every tree of the olive that thou seest, has a branch sprung out under the wild olive graft; if it bear fruit as the root, thou shalt put the graft in it, and it shall produce wood for the building and fruit for the house, and the two-edged sword shall cut off all the rest of the branches of that tree, and other men shall gather them up, and they shall be fuel to them; they shall not go to the grave, but the four winds shall cast them to and fro, so that they shall be dust on the face of the planet, because they have contended with the dresser of the vineyard. But hear, Oh dresser of the vineyard! thou shalt search all the wild olive branches, and if thou find any that bear fruit like unto the stem which bears them, thou shalt put them in the vine. The dresser of the vineyard replied, I have one sort of trees which bear no fruit that contend with me, and say unto me, though we bear no fruit, how is it that thou passeth by us, seeing we have leaves like unto the olive, there is nothing differs us, but we are barren, the outside of our cup appeareth the same, and Abraham is our father, but our mother was not free. The owner of the vineyard said, Tell them if they interfere not with the dresser of the vineyard, till he has put the graft into the other trees there shall then be a city of refuge prepared for them, but he that interfereth with the dresser of the vineyard, shall be destroyed from the land of the living.

"Now I must shew thee the interpretation of three things, which are the vine, the natural olive, and the wild olive.

"The first, The vine tree is the body of the woman's seed, the blood of which was offered for the transgressions, the husbandman became the life of it, who was the giver of the increase. This is the bridegroom.

"The second is the good olive tree, which is good by nature, but marred by Adam, which appeared in the image of my creation, which marred not his temple, but that which marred him remained in him, which Adam received from the tree of the knowledge of evil, which Satan persuaded the woman to persuade the man to take of, which fulfils the words which I said by Paul," For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins." Rom. xi. 27. For if the sin be not taken away from them, the graft of the vine will not abide in them, which will fulfil the words of Jesus, "A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt." Matt. vii. 18; xii. 33.

"The wild olive upon which death was pronounced, which was to bear no immortal fruit, but incorruptible fruit, which I declared by Peter, "To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you." 1 Peter i. 4. But he who is begotten in the uncleanness of both father and mother cannot be made good, because he is all corrupt. So that if that which is corrupt was removed, the whole would be removed, and nothing would remain into which to put the graft of the vine. So that they will not be made fit for the graft of the vine to live in, but must die and return to corruption.

"Every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire.* Wherefore by

* Which is spiritually called the grave.

L

their fruits ye shall know them." Matt. vii. 19, 20. But that which marred the natural olive, was to remain in it till the sixth day, and yet his time should be divided into three times and a half time. In the first time, I would cleanse the cup of one, which was Enoch, for the first dispensation, and that it should be a sign and a refreshing unto those that were left, that of their seed should be born them that should be made immortal, that after the translation of Enoch, the door should be shut till the second dispensation; but those that repented, though their bodies died, there should be an incorruptible and undefiled inheritance laid up in heaven for them, till the sixth day; and it shall make them higher than before they fell, as the angels. So in the second dispensation, I opened the door of Elijah, who was of the good olive, and I took from him that which marred him, and I put his spirit within him, that his body saw not corruption. And for the third dispensation I commanded the swords which kept the way to guard the tree of the woman from man, lest man should go in unto her, and they should say, It was the seed of man. And I sent the angel unto her, to tell her she should conceive of her own seed, and that the power of the highest should overshadow her, and that that holy thing which should be born of her should be called the Son of God. (Luke i. 26 -35.) And the tree brought forth immortal fruit, whose substance is in itself. (Isa. vi. 13.) Here there was not the seed of man, and yet the body was Abraham's seed, purified by the process which was in the woman. And yet they believed not, but when I raised it immortal, all that saw it believed, and faith increased to those that did not see it. Then the door was shut till the sixth day, fulfilling the words, "The Lord, the God of Israel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut." Ezek. xliv. 2.

"So now I have sent the Spirit to rest upon the olive tree of those who have sought for sin to be taken away, that they may bear fruit like unto the