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to Christ was mere civil respect; for then the same might be said of John's worshipping the angel, and which he might have done without being repulsed. We learn therefore from this circumstance that Jesus is not only the theme of the gospel ministry, and the irit or substance of prophecy; but that he is truly and properly divine.

DISCOURSE XXVII.

THE TAKING OF THE BEAST AND THE FALSE PROPHET.

Chap, xix. 11-21.

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. 12 His 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: 13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called, The Word of God. 14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. 15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. 17 And I saw an angel

standing in the sun; and he cried with a

loud voice, saying to all

the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come, and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; 18 That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great. 19 And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies gathered together, to make war against him that sat on the horse, and VOL. VI.

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against his army. 20 And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.

21 And the remnant were slain with

the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.

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When the Israelites, full of fearful apprehension from the pursuit of their enemies, cried out for fear, Moses said unto them, "Fear not stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to-day, ye shall see no more for ever!" In going over these last ten chapters, we have seen and heard much of the beast, and the false prophet, and of the mischiefs which they have wrought upon the earth: but this is the last account that we shall have of them. By the prophecies in these verses they are buried in oblivion, so that the church in after times shall know of them only as we know of Pharaoh and his host, namely, as matters of history.

In cases wherein the parties have been assured of victory, it has not been unusual for a battle to be preceded by a song of triumph. It was thus when Jehoshaphat went forth against his enemies: singers were first appointed to praise the Lord, and then the army was led on to the engagement.* And thus our Lord, when about to engage the powers of darkness, being certain of victory, exclaimed, "Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out!-Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him!" It is thus, I conceive, that the prophecy, having anticipated the victory over Babylon in a song of triumph, proceeds to describe the battle. The scene of the song was in heaven; but the battle in which the event will actually occur is upon earth. It is the same as that before described under the sixth vial, namely, the battle of Armageddon; "the great day of God Almighty,"-" the supper of the great God!"

Observe the preparations for it.-"Heaven is opened, a white horse is seen, and he that sat upon it is called Faithful and True,

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who in righteousness doth judge and make war." We can be at no loss in deciding who this great warrior is. He is doubtless the same that is addressed in Psa. xlv. 3, 4. "Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty and in thy majesty ride prosperously, because of truth, and meekness, and righteousness: and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things."-I may add, he is the same that is described in the first six verses of the sixty-third chapter of Isaiah; and what is here predicted by John not only alludes to that prophecy, but appears to refer to the same event. His coming up from Edom with garments stained with the blood of his enemies, appears to be justly paraphrased by Dr. Watts:

"I lift my banner, saith the Lord.

Where antichrist has stood;

The city of my gospel-foes

Shall be a field of blood.

My heart hath studied just revenge,
And now the day appears;
The day of my redeem'd is come,
To wipe away their tears.

Slaughter, and my devouring sword,

Shall walk the streets around;
Babel shall reel beneath the stroke,

And stagger to the ground."

It may be thought that this bloody representation is unsuitable. to the character of the Prince of Peace; and that the battle between him and his army on the one side, and that of the beast and kings on the other, is contrary to the genius of the gospel dispensation. To solve this difficulty, let it be observed, that the war here described is of two kinds, and Christ sustains a two-fold character in conducting it. The first is spiritual; and this he undertakes as the "head of the church." In this character he rides upon a white horse, and the armies of heaven follow him upon white horses; fitly representing the great efforts that shall be making at the very period of Babylon's overthrow, to spread the gospel over the whole earth. The second is providential; and

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this he undertakes
as "head over all things to the church." In
this character, he is "clothed with a vesture dipt in blood." In
making war in his spiritual character, he does not wait to be
attacked by his enemies: he goes forth in this respect conquering
and to conquer. But in so far as the war is of a providential char
acter, the enemies are the aggressors. The beast and the kings
of the earth, and their armies, "gather together to make war
against him and his army." Ver. 19. The idea conveyed by this
language is, that while he who sitteth upon the white horse, and
his army are going forth to spread the everlasting gospel in the
world, the beast and his allies will gather together to oppose its
progress, and will perish in the attempt.

There is no necessity for supposing the armies of Christ will have literally to fight with those of the beast and the kings: but while they are following him in spreading the gospel, He, as King of kings and Lord and lords," may work the utter overthrow of their adversaries, by setting them at variance with one another. We have seen this accomplished in part already, in the antipathies and wars which have raged between Infidelity and Popery; and such may be the progress of things, till, like two furious beasts of prey, they shall both be destroyed. The account itself agrees with this supposition: for though the armies of the beast are said to have gathered together against the armies of him that sat upon the horse, yet there is no mention of any being engaged in their overthrow but he himself. It is he that "smites the nations," "treads the wine-press," and has his "vesture dipt in blood." It is remarkable, too, that in the corresponding prophecy of Isa. Ixiii. 1-5, he is said to have "trodden the wine-press ALOne, and of the people, THERE WAS NONE WITH HIM.

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These remarks may suffice for the general meaning of the prophecy. Let us now attend to a few of the particulars.

It is a joyful sight to see the Son of God riding forth upon the white horse. He will not wait for the fall of the antichristian powers ere he extends his spiritual kingdom. The flight of the evangelical angel was prior to the fall of Babylon; such is still the order of things; and it is in opposing this great and good work

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