Heaven relates to the future kingdom of glory. Especially in some of the parables of our Lord does the term refer to the work of grace with the people of God in this mortal state. But if we may be allowed to express the relation between believers and their Lord in this mortal state by the term kingdom of grace, and the future relation of immortal beings with the King of kings by the kingdom of glory, the position that the kingdom was set up at the first advent is not relieved of any of its difficulties. For certainly the kingdom of grace was established immediately after the fall. Adam, Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and Moses, were as truly the subjects of the kingdom of grace as the apostles of Jesus. With this view of the subject every text relative to the kingdom can be harmonized.

It is true that both John and Jesus proclaimed the kingdom of Heaven at hand. The immortal kingdom of glory was then at hand in the sense that it was the next universal kingdom to come. In the time of the Babylonian kingdom, the kingdom of Persia was at hand. The kingdom of Greece was at hand in the period occupied by Media and Persia. And in the days of that kingdom, Rome was at hand, for it was the next kingdom to succeed. In this sense was the kingdom of Heaven at hand in the days of the ministry of John and of Christ.

DANIEL, CHAPTER VII.

In this chapter we have the same great outline of this world's history as symbolized by the image of chapter ii, again brought to view, but in a different form. The prophet here saw four great beasts, explained in verse 17 to be four great kingdoms, corresponding re

spectively to the gold, silver, brass, and iron, of the great image.

The first was like a lion, and had eagles' wings. Verse 4. The Chaldean empire, as advanced to its summit of prosperity under Nebuchadnezzar, was intended by this beast.-Scott.

The second like to a bear, and it raised itself up on one side, and had three ribs in its mouth. Verse 5. A fit emblem of the character and conquest of the Persian nation which succeeded Babylon B. c. 538.-Prideaux, Vol. I, p. 139.

And lo, another like a leopard, which had four wings and four heads. Verse 6. This was the emblem of the Grecian or Macedonian empire, which for the time was the most renowned in the world. It was erected by Alexander the Great on the ruins of the Persian monarchy, and it continued in four divisions under his successors. The leopard being exceedingly fierce and swift, represented the kingdom, and especially under Alexander, its founder, but the swiftness of the quadruped was not an adequate emblem of the rapidity with which he made his conquests; the leopard had therefore four wings of a fowl upon his back.-Scott. Prideaux, Vol. I, p. 380. Rollin's Hist. of Alexander.

And behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly. Verse 7. The kingdom that succeeded Greece was Rome, the invincible fortitude, hardiness and force of which, perhaps were never equaled. This beast had ten horns. These are declared in verse 24 to be ten kingdoms. The ten kingdoms are enumerated by Marchiaval, Bishop Lloyd, and Dr. Hales, as follows: 1. The Huns, A. D. 356. 2. The Ostrogoths, A. D. 377. 3. The Visgoths, A. D. 378. 4. The Franks, A. D. 407. 5. The Vandals, A. D. 407. 6. The Suevi,

A. D. 407. 7. The Burgundians, A. D. 407. 8. The Heruli and Rugii, or Thuringi, A. D. 476. 9. The Anglo-Saxons, A. D. 476. 10. The Lombards, A. D. 483. It is certain that the Roman Empire was divided into ten kingdoms; and though they might be sometimes more and sometimes fewer, yet they were still known by the name of the ten kingdoms of the western empire. -Scott.

I considered the horns, and behold there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots. In this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things. Verse 8. This little horn is by all Protestants acknowledged to be a symbol of the Papacy. Said the angel, speaking of this horn, "He shall subdue three kings." Verse 24. The three kingdoms that were plucked up to make way for the Papacy were, 1. The Heruli, in 493. 2. The Vandals, in 534. And 3, The Ostrogoths in 538. Gibbon's Decline and Fall. Into the hands of this power the saints, times, and laws, were to be given for a time, times, and the dividing of time, (1260 years; see Rev. xii, 6, 14). From 538, when the Papacy was set up, 1260 years extend to 1798; and it is a notable fact of history, that on the 10th of February, 1798, Berthier, a general of Bonaparte's, at the head of the Republican army of France, entered Rome and took it. The papal government was abolished, and the Pope died in exile in 1799. (See Croley on the Apocalypse, Their's History of the French Revolution, Clarke on Dan. vii, 25.) The Papacy has never been restored to its former power. We are by this chain of prophecy brought down to the eighteenth century. And the prophet does not see this beast gradually changing his wild and ferocious

nature to the innocence and gentleness of the lamb, to make way for a temporal millennium; but he looks only a step further, and says,

“I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame." Dan. vii, 11.

DANIEL, CHAPTER VIII.

It is characteristic of the different chains of prophecy, that each succeeding one introduces particulars not furnished in any previously given. The seventh of Daniel, after covering the general field symbolized by the image of chapter ii, instructs us more particularly concerning the development of the little horn, or man of sin. In the eighth chapter we are again conducted over a portion of the world's great highway, with additional particulars concerning the mighty kingdoms that stand as waymarks along our journey. On the symbols of this chapter, the ram, he-goat, and horn which waxed exceeding great, the prophet received the following instruction:

The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media and Persia. Verse 20. The Persian division of the empire was the highest and came up last. The ram with the two horns was the well-known emblem of the Medes and Persians. It was usual for the Persian kings to wear a diadem made like a ram's head of gold.-Scott.

And the rough goat is the king of Grecia; and the great horn that is between his eyes, is the first king. Verse 21. This was Alexander, who was born B. C. 356, decided the fate of Persia at the battle of Arbela, B. c. 331, and died eight years thereafter in a drunken fit, at the age of 33, B. c. 323.

And whereas the great horn being broken, four came up in its stead, four kingdoms, said the angel, shall stand up out of the nation. Verse 22. These were Macedonia, Thrace, Syria, and Egypt, into which the empire was divided shortly after Alexander's death, governed respectively by Cassander, Lysimachus, Seleucus, and Ptolemy.

And out of one of them came forth a little horn. Verses 9, 23-27. Rome was not connected with the people of God, and hence is not introduced into prophecy, till after its conquest of Macedonia, one of the horns of the goat; hence it is represented as coming forth from one of those horns. That this little horn which waxed exceeding great was Rome, the following considerations prove :

1. It was to rise in the latter part of their kingdom, that is, of the four kingdoms. So did Rome, so far as its place in the prophecy is concerned. Its connection with the Jews commenced B. c. 161.-1 Mac. viii. Josephus' Antiq., B. xii, c. x, sec. 6. Prideaux, Vol. II., p. 166.

2. It was little at first. So was Rome.

3. It waxed "exceeding great, towards the east and towards the south." So did Rome. It conquered Macedonia, B. c. 168; Syria, &c., to the river Tigris, B. C. 65; Egypt, B. c. 30. From this horn's increasing toward the south and east particularly, Sir Isaac Newton infers that it arose in the north-west corner of the goat's dominion, i. e., in Italy; which points directly to the Romans,

4. It cast down some of the host and of the stars to the ground. So did Rome; persecuting the disciples and ministers of Jesus as no other power ever did.

5. He magnified himself even to the Prince of the