of men and angels should be assembled and sentenced within a single day) beginning with its commencement, and extending a little beyond its conclusion, will take place that glorious reign of Christ on earth with his saints, so often promised in Scripture, even until all his enemies shall be subdued. His kingdom of grace, indeed, which is also called the kingdom of heaven, began with his first advent, when its beginning was proclaimed by John the Baptist, as appears from the testimony of Scripture; but his kingdom of glory will not commence till his second advent. Dan. vii. 13, 14. 'behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven....and there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom;' given him, that is, from the time when he came with the clouds of heaven (in which manner his final advent is uniformly described) not to assume our nature as Junius interprets it,* (for then he would have been like the Son of man before he became man, which would be an incongruity) but to execute judgment; from the period so indicated, to the time when he should lay down the kingdom, 1 Cor. xv. 24. then cometh the end,' of which more shortly. That this reign will be on earth, is evident from many passages. Psal. ii. 8, 9. compared with Rev. ii. 25-27. I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession; thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.' cx. 5, 6. Jehovah at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath he shall judge among the heathen, he * 'Veniebat; perfecturus in terris mysterium redemptionis nostræ.' Junius on Dan. vii. 13. shall fill the places with the dead bodies, he shall wound the heads over many countries.' Isai. ix. 7. 'of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David and upon his kingdom.' Dan. vii. 22. until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High, and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.' v. 27. 'the kingdom, and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High-.' Luke i. 32, 33. 'the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David; and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end.' Matt. xix. 28. ye which have followed me, in the regeneration, when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.' Luke xxii. 29, 30. 'I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my father hath appointed unto me; that ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.' It appears that the judgment here spoken of will not be confined to a single day, but will extend through a great space of time; and that the word is used to denote, not so much a judicial inquiry properly so called, as an exercise of dominion; in which sense Gideon, Jephthah, and the other judges are said to have judged Israel during many years. 1 Cor. xv. 23-26. 'every man in his own order; Christ the first-fruits, afterward they that are Christ's at his coming then cometh the end-.' Rev. v. 10. 'thou hast made us unto our God kings and priests, and we shall reign on the earth.' xi. 15. 'the king doms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.' xx. 1-7. 'I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them.....and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years: but the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished: this is the first resurrection: blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection; on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.' 6 After the expiration of the thousand years Satan will rage again, and assail the church at the head of an immense confederacy of its enemies; but will be overthrown by fire from heaven, and condemned to everlasting punishment. Rev. xx. 7-9. when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle and they compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city; and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.' 2 Thess. ii. 8. '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.' After the evil angels and chief enemies of God have been sentenced, judgment will be passed upon the whole race of mankind. Rev. xx. 11-15. 'I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, .......................and I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead. 29 VOL. II. underrect ределения were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works: and the sea gave up the dead which was in it, and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them; and they were judged every man according to their works. Then, as appears, will be pronounced that sentence, Matt. xxv. 34. Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. v. 41. Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels. The passing of the sentence will be followed by its execution; that is to say, by the punishment of the wicked, and the perfect glorification of the righteous. Matt. xxv. 46. these shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life eternal.' Rev. xx. 14, 15. 'death and hell were cast into the lake of fire: this is the second death: and whosoever was not found written in the book of life, was cast into the lake of fire. Then will be the end, spoken of, 1 Cor. xv. 24-28. 'then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father, when he shall have put down all rule, and all authority, and power; for he must reign till he hath put all enemies under his feet; the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death; for he hath put all things under his feet: but when he saith, all things are put under him, it is manifest that He is excepted, which did put all things under him and when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.' * It may be asked, if Christ is to deliver up the kingdom to God and the Father, what becomes of the declarations, Heb. i. 8. 'unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever,' (in sæculum sæculi, for ages of ages,) and Dan. vii. 14. his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed;' Luke i. 33. of his kingdom there shall be no end.' I reply, there shall be no end of his kingdom for ages of ages, that is, so long as the ages of the world endure, until time itself, shall be no longer, Rev. x. 6. until every thing which his kingdom was intended to effect shall have been accomplished; insomuch that his kingdom will not pass away as insufficient for its purpose; it will not be destroyed, nor will its period be a period of dissolution, but rather of perfection and consummation, like the end of the law, Matt. v. 18. In the same manner many other things are spoken of as never to pass away, but to remain eternally; as circumcision, Gen. xvii. 13. the ceremonial law in general, Levit. iii. 17. xxiv. 8. the land of Canaan, Gen. xiii. 15. Jer. vii. 7. xxv. 5. the sabbath, Exod. xxxi. 16. the priesthood of Aaron, Numb. xviii. 3. the memorial of stones at the river Jordan, Josh. iv. 7. the signs of heaven, Psal. cxlviii. 6. the earth, Eccles. i. 4. although every one of these has either already come to an end, or will eventually be terminated. The second death is so termed with reference to the first, or death of the body. For the three other, Then thou thy regal sceptre shalt lay by, Paradise Lost, III, 339. |