Earlier text: PRAYERMrs. Henry Ward Beecher, in an article on “True Courage,” in the Christian Union, relates the following incident:— We have been led into this train of thought by an account of the courage and self-possession of a lady in New Orleans under circumstances of the most startling character, when a moment’s wavering or weakness manifested would have cost her her life. She was a woman of wealth, with rich surroundings and costly adornments. She was that evening alone, with only one servant in the house; and laying aside some articles of jewelry and replacing them in their appropriate cases in her bureau, she chanced to raise her eyes to a mirror opposite. From a night-lamp standing on a table in the opposite corner she caught in the mirror a reflection of the figure of a man curled up under a center-table, but hidden from all sight save what was gained by the reflection cast in the mirror from the lamp, on the floor. In this way she saw one of the hands resting on the floor. This hand lacked two fingers, and she at once suspected that close by her was a most notorious character, whose crimes and depredations had been the terror of the neighborhood. Suppose she had screamed or made a hurried effort to reach the door! That would have sealed her fate. But forcing herself to be calm, she finished what she was doing at her bureau, and then quietly stepping to the bell, rang for the one servant then in the house. When the girl appeared she said, “Jane, I wish you would step to Mr. —— (naming a jeweler in the neighborhood), and tell him I wish he would send me back immediately the diamonds he has been resetting. They are the most valuable of all I have, and I feel uneasy to have them out of the house and not under my own care another night. Tell him to send them to-night, even if not done. Wait, I’ll write him a note.” So this brave lady seated herself with apparently the greatest composure by the very table where the ruffian was concealed, and wrote. We can readily imagine that she wrote not for her diamonds, but for help. The girl took the note, and alone, absolutely alone in the house, save with the fearful object concealed under the table, this lady waited. To avoid awakening the least suspicion she busied herself in putting various articles away in different parts of the room, even humming a tune or little snatches from some opera. We can well imagine that she dared not sing lest her voice should betray her. How fearful must have been that waiting! How full of joy and safety the sound of the bell when the girl returned! But she came not alone. Her friend promptly answered her appeal for help, and bringing with him the police, the man was captured before he had a moment’s time to defend himself. This story speaks for itself, and more forcibly than anything we could say, teaches the importance of cultivating courage, governed and held firmly by self-control, or presence of mind. THE BEAUTIES OF THE PSALMS.
Greatness confers no exemption from the cares and sorrows of life; its share of them frequently bears a melancholy proportion to its exaltation. This the Israelitish monarch experienced. He sought in piety that peace which he could not find in empire, and alleviated the disquietudes of state with the exercises of devotion. His invaluable psalms convey those comforts to others which they afforded to him. Composed upon particular occasions, yet designed for general use; delivered out as services for Israelites under the former dispensation, yet no less adapted to the circumstances of Christians under that of the gospel; they present religion to us in the most engaging dress, communicating truths which philosophy could never investigate, in a style which poetry can never equal, while history is made the vehicle of prophecy, and creation lends all its charms to paint the glories of redemption. Calculated alike to profit and to please, they inform the understanding, elevate the affections, and entertain the imagination. Indited under the influence of Him to whom all hearts are known and all events foreknown, they suit mankind in all situations, grateful as the manna which descended from above, and conformed itself to every palate. The fairest productions of human wit, after a few perusals, like gathered flowers, wither in our hands, and lose their fragrancy; but these unfading plants of paradise become, as we are accustomed to them, still more and more beautiful; their bloom appears to be daily heightened; fresh odors are emitted, and new sweets extracted from them. He who hath once tasted their excellences will desire to taste them yet again; and he who tastes them oftenest will relish them best. The Baptist Teacher of April, 1880, gives the following good advice to teachers, with a hint to others who are not teachers. Of course no one need take it unless it applies to him. “There is an old saying, that ‘he that scours the head of an ass wastes his soap.’ Of like character are attempts, by well-meaning adult-class teachers, to discuss abstruse or controverted points of doctrine in open class, with conceited and opinionated people, found in every neighborhood, who come into the class to hear themselves talk. It is better to stick to the lesson, even though one falls to an abysmal depth in the estimation of such wiseacres, than to turn the class into a theological debating club, and to—waste your soap.” A LITTLE girl went home from Sabbath-school full of what she had seen and heard. Sitting at the table with the family, she asked her father, who was a very wicked man, whether he ever prayed. He did not like the question, and in a very angry manner replied, “Is it your mother or your Aunt Sally that has put you up to that, my little girl?” “No, father,” said the little creature, “my Sabbath-school teacher says all good people pray; and those who don’t pray are not going to Heaven. Father, do you pray?” This was more than the father could stand, and in a rough way he said, “Well, you, and your mother, and your Aunt Sally, may go your way, and I will go mine.” “Father,” said the little creature, with sweet simplicity, “which way are you going?” This question pierced his heart. It flashed upon him that he was in the way to death. He started from his chair, burst into tears, and began to pray for mercy.—Selected. Memorial Services Planned for Robert Raikes in England
—The memorial services in honor of Robert Raikes, whose great fame rests on the fact that he was the founder of Sunday-schools, is to take place in England next June, under the patronage of the Queen. The exercises will be held in Westminster Abbey, in St. Paul's Cathedral, and at Lambeth Palace, and will be under the direction of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dean Stanley, the Lord Mayor, and other high dignitaries. The programme of exercises, so far as announced by the Committee, indicates that the occasion will be a very interesting one. Special arrangements are being made with some steamship lines to carry passengers from this country. It is now one hundred years since Robert Raikes opened the first Sunday-school, by employing women to teach a number of the ragged children of Gloucester. Ten Million Readers Studying International Bible Lessons
—It is estimated that ten millions of persons are studying the current International Series of Bible Lessons. Accepted Prayer Versus Immediately Answered Prayer
—Every accepted prayer is not an immediately answered prayer. THE SECOND ADVENT.
By James White
Sermon delivered at the Tabernacle, Sabbath, Feb. 7, 1880. The custom of reading sermons is popular in our day. Such sermons are sometimes written by those who read them; sometimes they are bought, and sometimes borrowed. Some are theoretical, some practical. I will read a portion of a sermon from an eminent minister,—one who excelled in his day. As a practical reasoner, he probably excels all. His Christian experience has been regarded as very remarkable by Christians for eighteen hundred years. “But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. “For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. “For the Lord himself shall descend from Heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first: “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord. “Wherefore comfort one another with these words. “But of the times and the seasons, brethren ye have no need that I write unto you. “For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. “For when they shall say, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. “But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. “Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. “Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. “For they that sleep, sleep in the night; and they that be drunken, are drunken in the night. “But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for a helmet, the hope of salvation. “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, “Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. “Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do. “And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labor among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; “And to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. And be at peace among yourselves. “Now we exhort you, brethren, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feeble-minded, support the weak, be patient toward all men. “See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men. “Rejoice evermore. “Pray without ceasing. “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. “Quench not the Spirit. “Despise not prophesyings. “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. “Abstain from all appearance of evil. “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. “Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.” 1 Thess. 4:13-18; 5:1-24. The subjects introduced by the apostle are the second coming of the Lord, and the practical duties necessary to a preparation for that glorious event. I think I hear the congregation say, That sermon of Paul’s is splendid. I might now sit down, for we already have more gospel truth than we usually find in the lean sermons read from the popular pulpits of our time. There is something wonderful in the epistles, especially those of Paul, Peter, and John. Paul was a profound scholar and reasoner, and as he enters into the great truths of God, there may be some things difficult to understand. Peter expresses it when he says that in the writings of his beloved brother Paul, “there are some things hard to be understood.” And at the same time, Paul comes down to our wants. In expressing divine truth in his sermons, he has the preference. Peter, full of zeal and life, urges the church to faithfulness; and the beloved John announces, again and again, that “God is love.” What these men have said about the coming of the Lord is of thrilling interest to us, and should be studied with care. The position is taken by some, who reject our special message and work, that the apostles looked for the coming of Christ; that the martyrs and reformers looked for that event in their day; that it is right for us to look for the coming of the Lord as they did; and that there is no special message to be given upon the subject. These persons have not studied the subject. They arrive at their conclusions because they take a surface view of the matter. We do not deny that the early Christians looked for the return of the Lord in their day. They did not understand the prophecies, and from the very nature of the case they could not understand them as we now may. Prophecy is history in advance, and nothing but the lapse of time can unfold it. The prophetic pen gives a sketch of the future rise and fall of kingdoms. Time rolls on; the student of prophecy now has two histories covering the same ground, that which was given in advance, and the secular history. He may compare the two, and learn where in the history of the world he stands. But the clear light of prophecy, and the great object to which it points, can never be comprehended and fully understood until we reach the last generation, where all the specifications of the prophecy are fulfilled but one, and that is the coming of the Lord, and the resurrection of the dead. That some of the early church looked for the coming of Christ in their day, appears evident from Paul’s second epistle to the church at Thessalonica. “Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that when I was yet with you, I told you these things? And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work; only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.” 2 Thess. 2:1-8. Some were looking for the second advent in Paul’s day, and they were writing letters about it, which made it necessary for the apostle to warn the church at Thessalonica against their influence. In his epistle he represents such as deceivers. There must come a falling away first. The great apostasy of the second, third, and fourth centuries, resulted in the establishment of the Papacy. The spirit of the Papacy was working in Paul’s day. Paganism, which hindered the full development of the papal power, was taken away, and the man of sin had the supremacy in A. D. 538. This blasphemous and persecuting power was to extend over a period of 1260 years, reaching down to 1798, when Berthier, a French general, entered Rome and took the pope prisoner, who died in exile in 1799. “That Wicked” is the power which is to exist until the coming of Christ. It was established in 538, and then it must continue 1260 years before Christ could come. Any man that would preach the coming of the Lord in the apostle’s day, or in succeeding centuries, prior to 1798, is branded by Paul as a deceiver. The Saviour takes up the signs in the sun, moon, and stars, the last of which was fulfilled in A. D. 1833, and then illustrates the subject by the parable of the fig tree. “Now learn a parable of the fig tree; when his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: so likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.” Matt. 24:32-35. We have reached the very period when the great prophecies of Daniel and John have all been fulfilled, excepting the last specification. Now many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased. Daniel exclaimed, “O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things?” The angel replied, “Go thy way, Daniel; for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end.” The prophecy was sealed to the time of the end, not to the end itself. Daniel could not understand the things shown him; they related to the future, and therefore they were closed up and sealed. The apostle introduces the state of the dead in words of condolence to those who had been bereaved of their Christian friends. He would dispel their grief by expelling their ignorance on the subject. “But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.” 1 Thess. 4:13. These impressive words of the apostle do not refer to natural sleep. When our friends retire for the night, and enjoy sweet rest, we do not sorrow, but rejoice. “Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spake of his death; but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep. Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.” John 11:11-14. Paul proposes to instruct the Thessalonians relative to the condition of the dead. Does he tell them that at death the immortal soul, or real man, is separated from the body, and goes up to God’s right hand for the purpose of enjoying sleep? Paul is about to give some information that will give comfort to the church. “For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.” The living saints are not to receive the touch of immortality and ascend to meet their Lord in advance of the resurrection of those who sleep in their graves. “For the Lord himself shall descend from Heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.”185 The apostle has now told the story without once intimating that at death the immortal spirit separates from the body, and goes up to God. He declares that the Lord himself is coming. But some say that the second coming of Christ took place at the destruction of Jerusalem; others place the event at death, or at conversion; and still others point to Spiritualism, or Shakerism, or Mormonism, as the second advent. Still others say the outpouring of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost was the beginning of Christ’s spiritual reign. Hence the fulfillment of the words of our Lord relative to those who should say, Lo, here is Christ; and, Lo, he is there. Angels thus addressed the men of Galilee as they took the last view of their departing Lord: “Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into Heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into Heaven.” Paul continues: “But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.” He would seem to say to us, You have the books of Daniel and John, and have no need that I write to you as to the period of the second advent. The burden of this epistle is the practical duties necessary to a preparation for the coming of Christ. Paul continues: “For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.” That is what I thought, says one, that the Lord would come as a thief in the night, and the church would be in darkness on the subject until the event bursts upon them unexpectedly. Hear Paul again: “But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.” The church of Christ are not in darkness upon the subject. The event will not come upon them unexpectedly. Mark the difference between “ye” and “they.” Ye, the true church, are not in darkness; they who say, Peace and safety, will be suddenly surprised when the Lord comes, and will not escape the destruction that will come upon them in that great day. This epistle is prophetic, and evidently applies to our time, when the subject of the second advent is agitated. By no system of interpretation whatever can Paul’s words apply to the first centuries. The subject of the times and seasons was not to be agitated then. It is to be agitated now. There was no light then shining from the prophetic word upon the subject, as the words relative to the end were closed up and sealed to the time of the end. These prophecies are now unsealed; and, in the language of the apostle, “Ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.” Although this epistle might have a general application to the Christian church during the entire Christian dispensation, yet it is evident that the apostle comes down over the centuries, and places himself in this generation, and speaks in behalf of those who are waiting for the coming of the Son of man. When Paul says we shall be changed, he means, literally, you. He is writing with his eye on our time. But did they say, Peace and safety, relative to the day of God? Not in Paul’s day. It is the generation that is to witness the coming of Christ, that hears this serene lullaby. In writing to the church at Corinth, he says: “Behold, I show you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” 1 Cor. 15: 51, 52. When Paul says we shall not all sleep, die, and we shall be changed, made immortal, he does not mean that he and his Corinthian brethren were not to see death, but were to live to the second coming of Jesus Christ. Stern facts in the case positively forbid the application of these words to Paul and his brethren. Paul died a martyr for his Master. He and the Corinthian brethren long centuries since returned to dust, from which the first man was made. They will not be alive at Christ’s second coming to receive the touch of immortality, without seeing death. This, however, will be the case with those whom Paul addresses in the prophetic portions of his epistles, which can have an application to no other period than the last generation, and to no other people than those who are actually looking for the coming of the Son of man. Many of these will be alive when Christ comes, and will be changed to immortality without seeing death. But if it be urged that the words, “We shall not all sleep,” embrace the great apostle as one that should not die, we would simply remark that in this case he must be a very aged gentleman, outliving Methuselah nearly twice over. The view taken of the subject of the second coming of Christ by his first disciples, is good evidence in the case. Did they regard death, conversion, or the manifestations of the Holy Spirit, as the second coming of Christ? Peter, ardent Peter, whose active mind and good heart were ever awake to the interests of his Master and his fellow-disciples, makes an inquiry relative to the duty of John in these words: “Lord, and what shall this man do?” “Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me. Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die; yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?” So far from regarding death as the second coming of Christ, the early Christians were impressed with the fact that those who should be living at the time of the second advent, would not die at all. Hence, at the least intimation that John would tarry till the coming of his Master, away flew the saying, as upon the wings of the wind, that that disciple should not die. We offered some reasons last week to show that probation could not continue after the second coming of Christ. We offer a few more thoughts on that point, and then turn to another branch of the subject. We not only find no allusion in the Scriptures to any work of salvation, mediation, and mercy to sinners, after the second coming of Christ, but the circumstances attending and immediately following his coming are such as to forever preclude the idea of any such work. Thus, when he comes, all the wicked are destroyed from the face of the earth. 2 Thess. 1:7–9: “And to you who are troubled, rest with us, 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; who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power.” Matt. 24:30 reads: “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.” The expression, “all the tribes of the earth,” must include all its inhabitants. Again in the 25th chapter and 31st and 32d verses we read: “When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: and before him shall be gathered all nations; and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats.” All mankind are certainly here classified in two divisions,—one are sheep, the other goats; and the line of separation is forever drawn between them. No further probation is offered to the goats, and there is no third class which are neither sheep nor goats, either brought to view, or in any manner hinted at. In Rev. 19 we have a still further presentation of this subject. Commencing with the 17th verse, we have the second coming of Christ unmistakably brought to view. He comes as King of kings and Lord of lords. He comes to smite the nations, and to tread the wine-press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. A call is made to all the fowls that fly in heaven to gather themselves together unto the supper of the great God, to eat the flesh of kings, and captains, and mighty men, and horses, and of all men, both free and bond, both small and great. The beast, and the false prophet are taken and cast alive into the lake of fire, burning with brimstone; and lest some should suppose that any escape, it is immediately added, “And the remnant were slain with the sword of Him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth.” Where is there any multitude, tribe, nationality, or people, which are excepted from this universal destruction, to have the privilege of hearing the gospel in the “Age to Come”? There is no such exception. Rev. 20 still further shows this. After this universal destruction, John beholds those who have been redeemed seated with Christ upon his throne, uniting with him in the work of determining the judgments to be meted out upon the wicked. These are they, he declares, who have part in the first resurrection; and he says that the rest of the dead live not again until the thousand years are finished. When the thousand years end, we are held to the conclusion that the rest of the dead do live again, and that they come up on the breadth of the earth, an exceeding great army, under the names of Gog and Magog, and compass the camp of the saints about, the beloved city, and fire comes down from God out of heaven and devours them. Verses 7–9. In all these descriptions, do we find a neutral class brought to view, who, having once rejected the gospel, or sinned against light sufficient to insure their condemnation, have a second offer of probation and mercy given them? We find no such class; and the representation that Christ is to continue to offer his blood, that he still performs the work of priest, and that there will be opportunity for sinners to repent and secure everlasting life after the second coming of Christ, is a delusion and a snare. The foregoing reasons show that there will be no subjects upon which the gospel can work during this period called the “Age to Come,” or the thousand years next succeeding the second advent of Christ. We can also show that this earth will be in a condition which will cause it to be both uninhabited and uninhabitable. According to Rev. 16:17–21, which describes a scene to take place just before the second coming of Christ, the earth experiences a more terrible convulsion than has occurred in all its previous history. There is an earthquake exceeding any event of this kind in all the past, so great that every island is unmoored and every mountain will be thrown to the ground. The same scene is described in Rev. 6:14–16. Here, again, we read that every island is moved out of its place, and that the wicked inhabitants of the earth, of every class and grade, flee to rocks and mountains and call upon them to hide them from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne. This scripture, being unlimited, shows that at that time mountains, fissures, caves, and rocks will be found everywhere, even in those localities where now there are none. The prophet Isaiah further describes this catastrophe of nature, in the 24th chapter, in language as follows: “Behold, the Lord maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof. . . . The land shall be utterly emptied, and utterly spoiled; the earth mourneth and fadeth away; the curse hath devoured the earth; the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left; the earth is utterly broken down; the earth is clean dissolved; the earth is moved exceedingly. The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage.” No language could more forcibly describe the last convulsion of nature,—the utter breaking up, and overthrow, and depopulation of the earth, than that186 which is here used; and that this takes place at the coming of Christ, at the commencement of the thousand years, is proved by the verses that follow; for the wicked are brought to view, who shall be gathered into the pit or the grave to remain in death for a thousand years, after which they will be visited, or as shown by the 20th of Revelation, be raised from the dead, and the final judgment be executed upon them. This condition of the earth is further described in Jeremiah 4:23: “I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light.” The context shows that this takes place in connection with the day of the Lord, when the whole land shall be spoiled and desolated, as described in the quotation from Isaiah; and here we find the earth reduced to its original chaotic condition, in which it will be both uninhabited and uninhabitable. How long will this condition continue? As we have seen, the wicked are all destroyed at the second coming of Christ; the saints are made immortal, and taken up to Heaven to reign with Christ, according to John 14:2, 3; Rev. 15:2, 3; 19:1. The wicked, according to Rev. 20:5, remain in their graves a thousand years, and the righteous, being taken to Heaven and seated with Christ upon his throne, remain with him a thousand years. Rev. 20:4. There are, therefore, no inhabitants upon the earth during the thousand years, neither any one to preach nor any one to listen to the doctrines of the “Age to Come,” and when the thousand years are ended, the wicked are raised only to receive the just punishment of their sins,—to come up around the camp of the saints, and perish by fire from God out of heaven, or to experience the perdition described in 2 Peter 3:7–11. During this thousand years, the earth is described in Rev. 20:3 as the bottomless pit. That this applies to the earth in its chaotic condition is evident from Gen. 1:2, where, when the earth was without form, and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; we find the word “deep” from the same Greek word exactly as the bottomless pit of Rev. 20:3; and since Jeremiah informs us that the earth is to be reduced again to its chaotic state at the beginning of the day of the Lord, this term appropriately describes its condition, and applies thereto. But Satan remains in this bottomless pit a thousand years; hence there is no change in the condition of the earth during all this time. We have, then, these great facts before us, setting forth the condition of things during the thousand years, or the “Age to Come;” namely, the wicked are all in their graves, the saints are all in Heaven, and the earth is in a condition of ruin and chaos. We therefore not only find no subjects, but we find no place, for the “Age to Come.” We may apply to it the same language which David applies to the wicked: “Yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.”