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We should notice also the distinction which is repeatedly made between those who are written in the book of life, and those who are not. The former walk in the light with which the holy city, the Christian church, is illuminated, and share in all its blessings and privileges; but the latter do not. They are aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenant of promise. The difference in character and condition between these is very great, and unspeakably important. For, as Christ hath said, 'Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.'

CHAPTER XXII.

The Great Consummation.

We have had the future prosperous and purified state of the Christian church presented under the emblem of a vast and splendid city most brilliantly illuminated, having at its command the wealth and influence of nations and kings, and having all that is erroneous and polluting excluded from it.

The visions of this last of the prophets now close with a symbolic representation of the abundant blessings, which will be enjoyed in this truly happy and glorious dispensation. It may be called the compensating period, in which God will make up amply for all the evils and miseries, which sin has occasioned. It is described as paradise restored, with God in Christ, as the acknowledged and adored Sovereign of all. To develop these scenes fully requires something of the inspiration given to the seer of Patmos, and the aid of the angel who caused these panoramic views

to pass before his mind. I feel, therefore, that all the explanation I have given or can give, falls far below the sublime realities, which they shadow forth. And we should bear in mind, that it is entirely inadmissible in a commentator on the word of God to give scope to his imagination. His work is simply to show what is the truth revealed.

1. And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.-A river is an emblem of an abundance of what is spoken of. Thus in Isa. 48: 18, we have this address, O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments; then had thy peace been like a river, i.e., abundant and unfailing. David said concerning those who trust in the Lord,—‘Thou wilt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures. For with thee is the fountain of life.' abundance of holy enjoyment. of him who believeth on him, living water: that is, he will be favored with the gifts and graces of the Spirit in great plenty, which shall be refreshing to himself and to others also.

They will experience an And Christ said, that out there should flow rivers of

This is a river of water of life. Water is an emblem of spiritual blessings and privileges, particularly the graces and comforts of the Spirit. Isaiah says, of the prosperity of Christ's kingdom, 'In the wilderness shall waters break · out, and streams in the desert.' 'Ho every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters.' Come and partake of those blessings, which the immortal soul needs and desires. The water of life is that which invigorates and sustains life,--that on which not only the comfort of life, but life itself depends. These are the truths and ordinances of the gospel and the influences of the Spirit. With these the

soul is refreshed and strengthened, and without them it languishes and dies.

This water is very pure, clear as crystal, signifying that these means of producing and sustaining life in the soul, are holy in their nature, and adapted to produce holiness wherever they are enjoyed. The spiritual blessings of believers, their inward peace, their communion with God, their hope, and their delight in his truth, are the effects of the Spirit's influence, and are pure and satisfying.

This river proceedeth from the throne of God and the Lamb. As in every other part of these visions, the figures are such as plainly to show, that they are figures; so it is in this instance. A real river proceeding from such a source, would be literalizing and materializing quite too far. A throne is the emblem of supreme authority, of governmental rule. In this rule God and Christ are conjointly associated; showing that God is governing the world by Jesus Christ, whom he hath appointed heir of all things.' He is made head over all things to his church.' As himself said, 'All power in heaven and in earth is given unto me.'

What then is the import of this river issuing from such a source? It is, that at this coming period, under the divine government, a great abundance of spiritual blessings will be poured forth among men. Then the Christian world will be like 'a well watered garden,' beautiful in arrangement and rich in production. No part will be barren and unsightly, no part will be parched with drought,—no part will be overrun with briars and thorns. It will be a blooming Eden, favored again with the presence of the Lord, and with those spiritual blessings which will signalize this closing period of Messiah's reign.

Here, again we see, that John was taught to communicate his predictions by the use of the same emblems, as

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those which were employed by the ancient prophets. He seems to have given an almost exact transcript of these verses of the forty-sixth psalm. There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the Most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved. God shall help her and that right early.'

Ezekiel was shown this same river, six hundred years before it was exhibited to John, and in the forty-seventh chapter of his book he describes it thus: 'He brought me again to the door of the house of the Lord, and behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward, -and ran down beside the altar of sacrifice, and so flowed away. The angel then led him out of the city, and measured the stream for one thousand cubits in length, and the waters were to the ankles. Then he measured another thousand, and the waters were to the knees; then another thousand, and they were to the loins, and then another thousand, and it was a river, that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over.'

Observe the coincidences. John's river proceeded from the throne of God and the Lamb; Ezekiel's from the threshold of the sanctuary, God's dwelling place. It flowed round the south side of the altar on which the sacrifices, typifying Christ, were offered, thus nearly encompassing it; importing that all the blessings prefigured by it, proceed from God through Jesus Christ, the great sacrifice for sin. And then it flowed on rapidly increasing as it left the city, till it became a broad deep river; indicating that the gospel which was first preached at Jerusalem attended with the first great effusion of the Spirit, would extend its blessings farther and farther, and with constantly increasing profusion, like the volume of water in a majestic river.

Furthermore Ezekiel says, 'the river shall go forth into the desert eastward, and to the sea (meaning the Dead Sea), and its bitter waters shall be made good. And everything shall live whither the river cometh.' The import of this beautiful figure is apparent. The blessings of the gospel proceeding from God through Christ will flow through this desert world, and convert it into a fruitful field, and where they come, they will cause everything that is good, and excellent, and lovely, to live and flourish.

Zechariah also employs the same figure of a perennial stream, saying, 'It shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem. And the Lord will be king over all the earth; in that day there will be one Lord, and his name one.' As all these prophets describe an earthly state of the church, so, doubtless, does John.

2. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.-We have had the book of life, and the water of life, and now we have the tree of life. It is evident that the allusion is to the garden of Eden, and to the tree of life which grew there. It is so called because its fruit preserves, sustains, and invigorates life. The tree of life in Eden, was different from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, of which Adam was forbidden to eat. After the transgression therefore, God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us to know good and evil; and now lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever. That tree, then, was a different one from that of whose fruit he had eaten; and it was of such a nature, that it would have preserved his life even after his transgression, had he been

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