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Such, for instance, is the battle announced by Joel' such, again, the battle predicted by Ze

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chariah and such, that final battle foretold by Daniel, in which, none being able to help him, the wilful Roman king perishes in the height of his strength. Each of these prophets connects the battle in question with the restoration and conversion of the Jews: and Daniel additionally determines its time to be that of the period, which he styles the time of the end, and which has been shewn to synchronise with the seventh apocalyptic vial and with the expiration of the latter 1260 years. Hence, on Mr. Mede's invaluable principle of synchronisation, there can be no doubt, that Joel, Zechariah, Daniel, and John, in severally predicting a great war or battle which occurs at the time of the conversion of Judah and which issues in a total overthrow of an impious confederacy, announce one and the same event.

Such being the case, these four parallel prophecies of one and the same occurrence will obviously throw much light upon each other; all severally setting forth some circumstance, which has been omitted by the rest.

Thus, from Joel and Zechariah and Daniel, we distinctly learn, that the battle will be fought in Palestine, and that the mighty controversy will be

1 Joel ii. iii.

2 Zechar. xii. xiii. xiv.

Dan. xi. 40-45.

decided between the two seas of that country; a point, which can be gathered only obscurely from St. John: while, on the other hand, we learn distinctly from St. John, that the parties, to be overthrown in the battle, are the Roman beast under his revived seventh head, the false Latin prophet, and the associated kings of the Roman Ecumenè; a point, which may be gathered indeed though not so precisely from Daniel, but which cannot at all be gathered from Joel or Zechariah.

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The several particulars, therefore, which we are taught by this combination of parallel prophecies, are the following: that the parties, destroyed in the battle, are the various Powers, civil and ecclesiastical, of the apostate Roman Empire; that the time of their destruction is the close of the latter 1260 years; that the region, where their destruc tion takes place, is the land of Palestine; and that the palmary event, synchronical with their destruction, is the conversion and restoration of Judah.

Matters of such a nature, thus established by concurrent testimony, will explain some points in the Apocalypse, which are otherwise of less easy explication.

1. The synchronism of the vintage and of the battle is determined by the circumstance of the interchangeable phraseology, under which they are respectively described for the vintage is a battle, and the battle is a vintage; and, as in the vintage the clusters of the vine are cast into the great wine

press of the wrath of God, so in the battle Christ is said to tread the wine-press of the fierceness and wrath of the Almighty 1.

Now, in the vision of the vintage, blood is represented as coming out of the wine-press, even up to the bridles of the horses, by the space of 1600 furlongs.

The preciseness of this geographical mensuration is remarkable but its import is fully explained by the elsewhere predicted fact, that the battle will be fought and that the wine-press will be trodden in Palestine; for 1600 furlongs are found to be the exact length of that country 3..

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2. As St. John alludes to Palestine by the accu racy of his geographical mensuration: so, by the Hebrew name Armageddon which he employs to designate the place of the battle, he again refers us to the very same region.

Into the compound word Armageddon, the name of Megiddo very plainly enters. But Megiddo is a town of Palestine: and, in fatal harmony with

'Compare Rev. xiv. 18-20, with Rev. xix. 11-21: and see Isaiah lxiii. 1-6. By the mystical Edom, the Rabbins very rightly understand the Roman Empire, which is destined to destruction at the close of Daniel's three times and a half. Quicquid dixerunt prophetæ de destructione Edom in postremis temporibus, says R. Kimchi, de Roma dixerunt. See Med. Placit. Doct. Heb. Oper. lib. v. p. 902.

* Rev. xiv. 20.

' See D'Anville's Map of Palestine with scales of mensuration annexed. This coincidence, between the length of Palestine and the 1600 Jewish Risin, was long since noticed by Jerome.

the parallel prophecy of Daniel, it is actually situated between the two seas of that country, the Dead Sea and the Mediterranean Sea'.

VII. In St. John's description of the battle of Armageddon, the Roman beast and the false prophet and the kings of the Latin earth stand arranged on the one side: while, on the other side, their opponents are Christ and the armies of heaven, mounted upon white horses, and clothed in tunics

of fine linen ".

This manifestation of Christ to destroy the apostate Roman Empire, on the principle of synchroni¬ sation already laid down, is clearly the same: as the coming of the Lord with fire to plead with all flesh, celebrated by Isaiah'; as the judicial interference of Jehovah from out of Zion, mentioned by Joel; as the going forth of the Lord to fight against his congregated enemies, mentioned by Zechariah; as the standing up of Michael on behalf of Judah at the time of the destruction of the wilful Roman King, mentioned by Daniel ; as the

From a comparative view of prophecy, Jerome and the ancient Fathers were brought to exactly the same result as myself: and I quite agree with Bishop Horsley in thinking, that they had good reason for their opinion, that Antichrist, in the fulness of his strength, is doomed to perish on the mountains of Palestine.

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coming of the Son of man in the clouds of heaven to overthrow the Roman beast and his little horn, also mentioned by Daniel'; as the parallel coming of the Son of man in the clouds of heaven at the epoch of the restoration of Judah and of the completion of the times of the Gentiles, announced by Christ; and as the brightness of the coming of the Lord to destroy the man of sin, foretold by St. Paul 3..

For, that all the several prophecies, which announce this coming, relate to one and the same event, cannot be doubted: because they alike predict a coming of the Lord; circumstantially, to destroy his enemies, the corrupt secular and ecclesiastical Powers of the apostate Roman Empire; geographically, to work this their overthrow in the land of Palestine; chronologically, to occur at the epoch of the restoration of Judah and at the expiration of the latter three times and a half“.

This being the case, since, by the concurrent voice of prophecy, an advent of Christ is clearly announced, as taking place at the close of the latter 1260 years and immediately before the commencement of the millennian period of blessedness foretold alike by Daniel and by St. John; a question, in regard to the specific nature of this predicted advent, here obviously presents itself: the question,

1 Dan. vii. 11-14.

2 Luke xxi. 24-27. 32 Thess. ii. 8.

'See Med. Comment. Apoc. de mill. ann. Oper. p. 531, 532.

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