to the scene of festivity, forgetful of all but the terror of him, whose steps she had guarded in infancy, and now saw trembling, though crowned with a diadem. Who should shed light on the characters, who should explain their purport? "Then was Daniel brought in before the king." The man of God who had given the warnings, which had passed unheeded, was now called in to read the sentence of judgment on the eve of execution. Large gifts were promised as if in remembrance that he had been neglected. The dignity of office was proffered, royal power proposed. Strange inconsistency of man. To give like a king in the hour of terror, helpless to all that he needed! (verses 13 to 24). "And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom and finished it. TEKEL; thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting. PERES; thy kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians. Then commanded Belshazzar, and they clothed Daniel with scarlet, and a chain of gold about his neck, and made a proclamation concerning him, that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom. In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain." put "How was he brought into desolation as in a moment" (Ps. lxxiii. 19). How different the end of the believer! "Thou shalt guide me by thy counsel and afterwards receive me to glory" (v. 23). There is intimate connection between the book of Daniel and the Revelation of St. John. Evil is developed in both, and judgment follows; much of the one is matter of history now, much in both remains for fulfilment. As has been remarked by another, the first six chapters of Daniel give us power in the hands of the Gentiles, and their conduct in possession of it. In the book of Revelation we have the fact, that the Gospel amongst the Gentiles would end in utter corruption, and the testimony of our Lord to the judgment of the nations, and the call of his people to be separate would be disregarded, and men seek to improve it, and find a home in it. Luke xix. 12, 13, 14." A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return." The faithfulness of his servants in his absence depended upon the assurance of his return; the character also of their service upon their estimate of his character. In Mark ii. 18. the question was asked of our Lord, "Why do the disciples of John and the Pharisees fast, but thy disciples fast not? And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber fast while the bridegroom is with them? as long as they have the bridegroom with them they cannot fast. But the days will come when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days." The return of the Lord was to be the hope of the church. The measure of faithfulness in testimony depended upon the brightness of this hope: His love brought him into the world, where he was set at nought and crucified. His people are given him out of the world, left here to witness of the grace which was ready to pardon the vilest sinner, but also of certain judgment on the impenitent. "When the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven, with his mighty angels in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ" (2 Thess. i. 7 and 8). The coming of the Lord will surprise the world, as the flood did its inhabitants in the days of Noah, or the destruction of Sodom in the days of Lot. It will be as unlooked for as the change from the banquet in the palace of Babylon to the midnight slaughter of Belshazzar, and the transfer of the kingdom to Darius the Mede. And this judgment will take place when the iniquity is at its height. Repeated testimonies superciliously disregarded. The cry" Behold He cometh!" the subject of merriment! "There shall come scoffers in the last days, walking after their own lusts and saying, Where is the promise of His coming?" (2 Pet. iii. 3). And Jude declares, "There shall be mockers in the last time" (ver. 18). Let not then the non-reception of the truth by others lead us to doubt it, but the rather, seeing Scripture speaks of the coming of Christ surprising a careless professing people and a guilty world, "Therefore let us not sleep as do others, but let us watch and be sober" (1 Thess. v. 6). W. THE MIDNIGHT CRY. "Behold the Bridegroom cometh"!-Matt. xxv. "HE comes! He comes! The Bridegroom comes!" Your absent Lord no longer mourn; Reproach no longer bear; "He comes! He comes!" Rise, happy saints, To meet Him in the air! "He comes! He comes! The Bridegroom comes!" The Church is now complete; Her Lord beholds her clean and fair, A partner for Him, meet. "He comes!" His purchased bride to claim; Her mansion is prepared; "He comes! He comes!" rise, ready saints, To meet your ready [or waiting] Lord! "He comes! He comes! The Bridegroom comes!" He shouts, for great his joy; As yet, unseen by mortal flesh, He tarries in the sky. The marriage o'er, to earth he'll come, No longer hid from men: He'll come! He'll come! As "Son of David" then! With all His saints But nought shall stand before Him, then In terror you will cry, "He comes! He comes! Alas! Alas! Where from Him can we fly?" "He comes! He comes! The Bridegroom comes!" O sinners hear the sound! Accept Him now, if you among His chosen would be found! Still mercy's offer'd-costless-free No longer turn away, "He comes! He comes!" O linger not Come "while 'tis call'd to-day!" A. M. No. X. JOSHUA. WE have gone through, by the goodness of God, the five books of Moses. They have set before us, on the one side, the great principles on which the relations of man with God and of God with man are founded, and on the other, the deliverance of a people set apart for Himself, and the different conditions in which they were placed: whether under grace, under law, or under God's government established over them by the special mediation of Moses. We have had occasion in them to examine the history of this people in the wilderness; and the pattern presented by the tabernacle, of things to be afterwards revealed; sacrifices and priesthood, means of relationship with God granted to sinners, wherein is indeed wanting the image of our perfect liberty to approach God, the veil not being then rent, but wherein the shadow of heavenly things is placed before our eyes with most interesting detail;finally, we have seen that God, having, at the end of the journey, in the wilderness, pronounced the definitive justification of His people, and caused His blessing to rest upon them in spite of the efforts of their enemies, declares under what conditions the people should retain possession of the land, and enjoy His blessing in it; and what would be the consequences of disobedience; revealing at the same time His purposes with respect to this people, purposes which He would accomplish for His own glory. This brings us to the taking possession of the land of promise by the people under the guidance of Joshua. This book is full of interest and instruction, as setting before us in type the conflicts of the inheritors of heaven with spiritual wickednesses in heavenly places. If the church is blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places, they were temporal blessings in earthly places which Israel was to enjoy. It is easy to understand, that if we may rightly use the name of Canaan as a figurative VOL.III. PT.II. 6 expression of the rest of the people of God, that which we have here to do with, is not the rest itself, but the spiritual conflict which secures the enjoyment of the promises of God to true believers. The epistle to the Ephesians presents that which precisely answers to the position of Israel in this book. The church having been quickened and raised up with Jesus, has her con flict in the heavenly places; it is there she gives testimony, the testimony of the infinitely manifold wisdom of God. Joshua then represents Christ, not as coming down in person to take possession of the earth, but as leading His people through the power of the Holy Ghost, who acts and dwells in the midst of this people. Yet in Joshua, as in all other typical persons, those errors and sins are found which betray the weakness of the instrument and the fragility of the vessel in which for the time, God had condescended to put His glory. Let us apply ourselves now to the study of this book. The first chapter shows us Joshua placed in service by the Lord, who commands him to go over Jordan into the land which He had given to the children of Israel. Let us pause a moment over this immediate commission from the Lord. Moses here holds the place, not of the living mediator, but of the written word. All that he commanded, being from God, was evidently the word of God for Israel. Joshua is the energy which brings them into possession of the promises. First of all, we have the principle on which possession is taken. The knowledge of the boundaries assigned by God, was not enough; God had defined them very accurately, but a condition was attached to their possession. "Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you. They must go there, overcome the obstacles, with the help and by the power of God, and take actual possession. Without that, they could not possess it; and, in fact, that is what happened. They never took possession of all the land which God had given. Nevertheless, to faith the promise was sure. "There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life." The power of the Spirit of God, of Christ by His Spirit (true energy of the believer) |