SECTION II.

THE PROPHECIES.

"Write the things which thou hast seen, ard the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter."

The address and prophecy to the churches, are plainly included together, under the terms, "which thou hast seen, and the things which are;" for when John is subsequently invited to receive a view of political prophecy, he is called to look only at the "things which shall be hereafter." Now, the temporal state of the churches predicted under the "things that are," seem limited to the period designated by ten days. "Ye shall have tribulation ten days." A day signifies a certain limited period, and is generally put for it. Now, these ten days of tribulation had their coincidence, and by consequence their fulfillment, in the ten great persecutions under the pagan emperors, and closed in the days of Constantine the Great. So that the prophecy of "the things that are," seems clearly bounded by this ten days. This is further confirmed, by the fact, that the political prophecies began to be realized at the union of church and state.

The very expression, "things that are," seems to im ply things that will transpire, while the church is under the then present pagan government, in the world.

CHAPTER XI.

POLITICAL PROPHECIES OF REVELATION.

THE visions of John and Daniel, being in the same great field, they must coincide; and it is plain, that as Daniel prophesied in full of the political state of Rome, so John must also do the same, and that, in the principal features of the fourth kingdom, they must agree together. It will, therefore, be expected that there will be a similarity of the construction of their imagery; and such we shall find to be the case. As Daniel gives a twice doubled view of the world from his times, so does John, from his. John begins his political visions at the union of church and state, and thence proceeds to the final kingdom; but of the Roman world he gives four distinct views. The first view is that by seven seals, extending down to the Millennium; the second, is by seven trumpets, rehearsing great eras of the same period. He then gives a view of Rome, during the same great era, under the form of a dragon and a beast, and under the symbols of a beast and harlot.

In addition to this, he gives a double history of the dual Israel, through the same period, under the symbols of two witnesses, and the woman and her man child. Besides these, he gives two episodical descriptions; one of the destruction of the Roman church, and one of the destroyer of the Roman state.

We shall first interpret the seals, and then the epi sodical descriptions of Rome and Israel, and then of the seven trumpets.

The seat of prophecy, whence the book of seals is given, is worthy of attention, as it is a prophetic one.

SECTION I.

THE SEAT OF POLITICAL PROPHECY.

At the seat of spiritual prophecy, no throne was to be seen; but only Christ among the churches; here the scene is changed, and the symbols of civil dominion over the world are introduced. The imagery before us claims attention, as it is all of a dual character. We shall quote the descriptive text of the second seat of prophecy, as it may be needed.

1. “A door was opened in heaven." This was a symbolic heaven, as any one can see at a glance; for, in the "third heaven," no such objects as beasts or doors exist. The term, heaven, was originally applied by God to the atmosphere, or firmament, and is figuratively used as the etherial dwelling of the true Christians after death; and on earth it is used variously to represent sublimity, or exaltation; and, symbolically, it represents the place of the church on earth, or the dominion of God on earth, &c. Many passages of scripture teach us the figurative sense of the term.

2. "Come up hither, and I will show thee things hereafter." Here John changes his locality of view.

3. "Behold a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne, and there was a rainbow round about the

SECTION VIII.

EPITOME OF DANIEL'S PROPHECIES AND THEIR MUTUAL
COINCIDENCE.

The four great visions of universal empire given by Daniel, all coincide with each other, point to point; the last two visions leaving out Babylon, which had passed away at the time they occurred. In the first two, the four metals and four beasts coincide in representing the four great monarchies; and after these two, leaving out Babylonia, they all agree together.

The gold head, and lion, both symbolize Babylon; the silver breast and arms, the bear with the two sides, . the ram with the two horns, and the king of Persia, all coincide with the Medo-Persian empire; the belly and thighs of brass, the leopard with four wings and four heads, the he goat with one horn, divided into four horns, and the mighty king of Grecia, and the kingdoms of Syria and Egypt, all coincide with the Macedonian empire and its four divisions, ultimating in two.

The legs of iron, the fourth beast; the little horn from the he goat, or king of fierce countenance, and the willful king, or ARMS, all coincide with the Roman empire. The iron and clay, the little horn and ten horns, the fierce king understanding dark sentences, the willful king and his new god, all coincide with church and state union in the Roman empire. The ten toes and the ten horns coincide with the broken state of the Roman empire. The fall of the whole monarchy image, the taking of the fourth beast, the fall of the fierce king,

and the breaking of the willful king on the mountains of Israel between the two seas, all coincide with the destruction of Gog by Israel, or with the general destruction of monarchy. The mountain, and stone cut out of the mountain, the ancient of days, and locomotive throne of fire, the saints and people of the saints; the sanctuary and host, the holy people and the POWER of the holy people, all coincide with the Christians and the government growing up from them in the United States of America. The 2300 evenings and mornings of the casting down of the sanctuary, the three and a half times of the scattering of the power of the holy people, and the 1290 days from the cessation of the daily sacrifice, coincide with 1708 years, in civil measure, and dated at the 17th of Panemus, or 189th day, 68 A. D., end on July 4th, 1776. In spiritual measure, they are 1451 years long, and agree with the three and a half times of the little horn of the fourth beast, and, dated on June 19th, 325, at church and state union, they end on the 4th of July, 1776. The three and a half times in civil measure, are also 1810 years and ten days long, and, dated at the last passover Nisan 14th or 97th day, 68 A. D., they end 1878 A.D., and 117th day. The 1335 days equal 1809 years and 244 days, and dated at the burning of Jerusa lem the 8th of Elul or 239th day of 68 A. D., we are brought to 1878 and 117th day. Thus, do all four versions most wonderfully harmonize, even down to days, though they cover a field of vast ages. We now turn to Revelation, and shall find it harmonizing with Daniel's visions of the fourth, fifth and sixth empires.