in a cowardly manner from what he knows God requires, from motives of worldly interest,-this is what makes his sin so presumptuous and Heaven-daring in the sight of God; this is what calls forth the terrible threatening uttered by the third angel. But the good of past ages have not kept the day with any such understanding of the matter, nor from any such motives.

Just so with the mass of Protestants now living. But the third message is sent forth to warn us in reference to an issue yet future. The people of God are coming up to translation. They must be freed from Papal errors. The truth is to be agitated; and the antagonism between the requirements of God and those of antichristian powers, is to be set in a clearly-defined light before the people. The issue is to be met understandingly, the two-horned beast demanding from its subjects the reception of the mark, and the performance of the worship of the first beast, on pain of death, and God commanding us to refuse the mark and worship of the beast, and keep his commandment, on pain of drinking his unmingled wrath. With this issue before them, those who yield to his requirements instead of the requirements of God, will worship the beast and receive his mark. Thus seeking to save their lives by avoiding the wrath of earthly powers, they will lose them by becoming exposed to the wrath of God. Till this issue is upon the people, under the enactment of civil law, we accuse no one of worshiping the beast or receiving his mark. And the third message is sent forth to warn men to put away their errors and receive the truth, that they may be prepared to stand when this fiery ordeal shall come, and, at last, having gotten the victory over the beast, his image, his mark, and the number of his name, to sing the victor's song upon the sea of glass.

4. The patience of the saints. The chronology of the third message is distinctly marked as being the period of "the patience of the saints" which follows the proclamation of the two former messages. "Here is the pa

tience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." Verse 12. And this period of the saints' patience is marked by a most important fact, namely, the keeping of the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. We have seen that the first angel's message refers to the solemn proclamation of the immediate second advent, consequently the period of patience here brought to view must be the same as that which in many scriptures is located immediately preceding the second advent. A few texts must suffice as examples.

"Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. For ye have need of patience; that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. For yet a little while, and He that shall come will come, and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith; but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition, but of them that believe to the saving of the soul." Heb. x, 35-39.

"Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient, stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold the Judge standeth before the door. Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord,

for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience." James v, 7-10.

"Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown." Rev. iii, 10, 11.

"And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the Lord; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation." Isa. xxv, 9. 5. The commandments of God. The period of the saints' patience is distinguished by the fact that they are keeping the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. It should be distinctly noticed that the commandments here brought to view, are not the commandments of Christ. There may be a certain sense in which all the precepts of the Saviour may be called the commandments of God; that is, if viewed as proceeding from the sovereign authority of the Father; but when the commandments of God are spoken of in distinction from the testimony or faith of Jesus, there is but one thing to which reference can be made, namely, the commandments which God gave in person, the ten commandments. See John xv, 10. "If ye keep my commandments ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love." And thus we find the law of God which he proclaimed in person referred to in the New Testament as "the commandments of God," or as "the commandments."

"And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. He saith

unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Honor thy father and thy mother, and Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." Matt. xix, 17-19.

And they returned and prepared spices and ointment; and rested the Sabbath day, according to the commandment." Luke xxiii, 56.

“Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kindom of Heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of Heaven." Matt. v, 17-19.

"Honor thy father and thy mother (which is the first commandment with promise), that it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.” Eph. vi, 2, 3.

"But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? For God commanded, saying, Honor thy father and mother: and he that curseth father or mother, let him die the death. But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; and honor not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition." Matt. XV, 3-6.

"What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law; for

I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet." Rom. vii, 7.

6. The faith of Jesus. This term is used in distinction from the commandments of God. It does not refer to a particular degree or kind of faith which the Saviour exercised in the performance of his miracles; for it appears that he wrought these by the power which he had already received from his Father. Matt. viii, 2, 3; Mark i, 40, 41; Luke v, 23, 24. The world itself was made by him. John i. He had ample power, therefore, to perform every miracle which he wrought. There is but one other thing to which this term can refer, namely, the precepts and doctrines of our Lord as recorded in the New Testament. Thus "the faith of the gospel" (Phil. i, 27) must refer to the precepts and doctrines of the gospel. The faith to which a multitude of the priests were obedient (Acts vi, 7), which was resisted by Elymas the sorcerer (Acts xiii, 8), which was committed to the apostles for the obedience of all nations (Rom. i, 5), which Paul testifies that he had kept (2 Tim. iv, 7), and which is to be earnestly maintained, as once delivered to the saints (Jude 3), must refer, we think, to the precepts and doctrines of the everlasting gospel. That the faith of Jesus is used in this sense in Rev. ii, 13, we think cannot be denied. "Thou holdest fast my name," says Jesus, "and hast not denied my faith." That this is the sense in which it is used in Rev. xiv, 12, is further evident from the fact that it is spoken of as kept in the same manner that the commandments of God are kept.

"Here are they that keep the commandments of God [the Father], and the faith of Jesus" [the Son]. This excludes alike the blind Jew, who makes his boast in the law and rejects Jesus, and also the Christian who