PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation
Alfred Plummer [1841-1926] · 535,750 words · 528 reading sections
The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 421
cbaracteT, which covers and adorns the spirit of the bride-" the ornament ihat coven a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price." Moral character is evermore the garment in which the soul is clad. If the character is impure, its apparel is but filthy rags; if holy, it is clad in the "robes of …
856 wordsSECTION 422The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 422
those which ignorant men confer on their fellow-titles which disgrace alike t,ha donors and the donees! (2) The aRpect he wears, and the followers he cowmand& (a)" His eyes were [are] as a flame of fire" (ver. 12). The eye is the best mirror of the &ml; one glance reveals more of the inner self than the strongest words…
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the supper.• "Whereaoever the caroase ii,, there shall the eagles be gathered together• for feasting. The ravenous vultures devour the fleah of thousaud&. The carrion on the battle-field is a rich feast for those armies, who, like the rapacious birds of prey. not only kill, but devour. These are the men engaged in t…
1,094 wordsSECTION 424The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 424
. Ver. 13.-Intfflle e11MU11t11U1 o/ being. "Clothed in a. ve!lture dipped in blood." Wha.t was the "blood" that dyed the robes of the illustrious Chieftain? N°' that crimson fluid ~ atreama from the vew of atla.ughtered ruen. U may "be regarded- I. As A SYMBOL OP ma OWN AGONIZING EARNEST~El!B. In Gethsemane it is said…
1,168 wordsSECTION 425The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 425
EXPOSITION. Having the ke7 ot the bottomlesa pit; the CHAPTER XX. abyu; as in eh, ix. I, 2, 11 ; xi, 7; xvii, 8. Ver. 1.-A.nd I BllW an angel come down Iu all these places the word signifies the from heaven ; coming down out of heaven. present abode of Satan and his angela, The usual mode of introducing a new vision…
1,200 wordsSECTION 426The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 426
a sul>ordination of the 11CCOndary to the 24); "We have pallSed from death unto primary eff'ect is really what is intended t.o We " (1 John iii. H). be eon,eyed (s,•e Milligan, quoted above). Ver. 5.-,--llut the reat of the dead li1'e4ut Ver. 4.-And I IJ&W thrones, and they sat again nntil the thouan4 years were lnuhe…
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Satan wlll be bound, and the •inta will priloJt j df'6 jWued; that U, the power of Nlign: then finally the uttimate punishment the cleTil Iii.ring 1-n m principle oom- of 8a1an-tbe cuting into the lake of fire. pletely O\'fflhrown by our Loni (aee on Some limit the loeality of this reign to a p ~ g .,_), Satan is still…
1,042 wordsSECTION 428The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 428
and dnoured them, "From God• la dead, 11111&11 and great, etaud before God; omitted in A, a few enm.vea, and Primasins, t1WJ dead,- t1WJ great and the -U. ,tandi,ag but appean in N, B, P, l, 7, and most 0111'• before the tMOM. All the dead, good and Nves and versions; but these authorities bad, ae in Matt. xxv. 31-33. …
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HOMILETICS. Vere. 1-8.-&ttm 5outad for a thousand years. God sees the end from the beginning. If he pleases, he can disclose the future to others, although even then, by reason of the limitation of creatnre-faculties, the unfolding of the future must be limited too. '!'here is, moreover, one feature of that limit whic…
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Aooordiug to 1101119> U is past. (1) Aooording to Hengstenberg. tli.e thousand years begm on the OnristmM Eve of the yar 800, when the pope plaoed the crown on the head of Charlemagne. But surely then was not at that time, nor during the thousand yeam after, such a et.ate of thing& as would seem to be represented by a …
965 wordsSECTION 431The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 431
IV. Tu STRONGER FOBCII OF GOOD BAS :&VD BEEN AT wo:as:. This world bu DeTer been given up to the evil one. He bas never roamed unchecked. He bas gone aboutonly so far as the Lord of BOula hu permitted. When Jesus hu111( on the CJ'OIIS, his power wu grappled with ; when he died, " the prince of this world ,. was "east o…
1,195 wordsSECTION 432The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 432
Ver. 4.-'-The blessed dead living and rei,gning with Ohrist during the thO'USllna yeara. We are compelled to differ more widely from the great bulk of exhlsi~rs in regard to this than in regard to almost any other passage in the entire Apooa ypse. It seems to us that, in order to piece out a tolerably complete theor…
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The expression is akin to many more in the New Testament. ·"To-day thou shait be with me;" ".Absent from the body, at home with the Lord." Thus much, and tbid is all that is said. Oh I the refreshing invigoration which we get when we drink pur., water from this crydta.l spring I "With Christ I" Enough! 1 .And this ble…
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inflJiencing the world's thon~ht 1>y ihe presentation of truth; awaying men•• eonaeienoe by lnsisting on righteousne8B; and winning men's hear-ta by the philanthrt>pie1t of love. It waa no merely empty title with which they were honoured. They had the di;..•nUy of a royal i.-iesthood below. But they bow more t'tllly no…
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Vera. 7-10.-Safatl loo,e<l from hM pruon qfter thfl thcm11nd ye,,,rs. Durillg tlw millennial period on earth, while the departed lltlints are living and reigning wi~h Christ, evil will be BUbdued md restrained, but by no means will it be extiQct. ,H8'l it beea exiinot it could not have broken out ,-gain, nor would ther…
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~ Ohriat. 8. It is equally clear that the millenninm will not be a period of uittnixed good, nor will it be a time when the sait,ta can dit1pense with the W'QfHt4JoAI,. Compared with things as they are now, the earth will be still and at rest; there will; be a eabbatic calm, bnt it will not be heaven. Evil will be subd…
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there is .another set :which indicates that there will be a fierce outbreak oI evil befom . our Lord shall come. It is 110 small confirmation of the correctness of .an i_nterpre- tation of this passage if thereby apparently condicting stntepients fall in Rlaoe. -l'he binding of Satan, which was and is effected through …
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81!8 what light Scripture throws on the destiny of each ; studying first the doom of the ungodly, and then the glory of the new heaven and the new earth. The topic of our• present homily iB-TA, day of the Lord• .Inasmuch III our. exposition of d1is and, kindred themes can be valid orrly as it accords with the general t…
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where the ·term "decision" is from a word thn.t deoot.ee a, threahing,-imttuiae~ by1 which the wheat is &eparated from the chalf; and the word ••multitudes,. iB from DDI, that signifies" a hum," and brings vividly b~fore the miod the confuaed noiae ot& v,in· c.towd. Crowds on crowds! One: li:ving, surging sea of hum…
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~ phrases in the Word or God for duration,and those which in'fll>lve endlessness, llN all 611 tM mk of good.1. 'Bttt while we refrain from asserting the abllolute endl- iie. ef'future' punishment,, we do affirm: (l) That God has not shown• an end U, it.· (2). That eTI\ry moment a sinner eont,inues t.o harden ,his he…
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, Vera. ll~15.-ne ~ur,drum the dead. This :peragraph is an amazingly ~m~ pelliled ell!:hatology. We h~ . ~ y l!tudied.the Soripture teaphing on "the 4ay 0£ whw.b .will m9,rk that day. Qne ,of. t• $bil, Lord • which it. opens :up ,to Ullo We ,have. now .to look, at .the dread incident, is iudicated by f.hlt words, "…
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of autherliy. Are men prepared to acce-pt as authorities on thts matt.er men -.vho ll8k them l\o' disbelieve the resurrection, br cause science can give them no information 0 ~ t n g it? We; for our pa.rt, ohallenite men to prodnt1e mMe trustworthy testimony on any matter, than that of our Lord and h_is apostles conc…
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to jud~ Such ~ · a a Ps. cii.J!S~27; Matt. ;w;xiv,,,35; m. 2&;:lleb.J, 12-;-H; 8 Pet. ill. 7, 10-12; lJohn ii..17, prepare us to e.xpec~ V4st changes. i•tf there ill any analogy between what has bee11 and what is co be, t ~ DJAY yet be ,rnpth,tr eat.a.strophe .on the llllriaee of the earth by virt11e of which present f…
952 wordsSECTION 444The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 444
and that we shall• :l!.nd there Socrates and Plato, I Alil sure we shall be glad indeed,to meet them; but if we shall not find them in heaven, I am also sure that theJndge of all tLe earth. will be able t.o 881lign a good reason for their· absence, and that none in heaven will be either able or williug to dispute ei…
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~ 'Jhat.fota-fere very materially'Wi'lih -...--.o1 ihe;ii•.of the believer in -<Jlr,ii& . . ,tluJB .,brougltt to view and expoaed, before. all, .will .the .saved? ,llepl.y: (;-,i) It. iai:R~ surprismg lf, when we attempt detail, we 110011 ,gM - , - i ....-,~..a -1i.llg .il'i&a t.hemes 80 yast. (b) fa this case, h,w…
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i&a interpretation would be impossible. And even with the aid of the -Plainer words, the theme before us is, so vast.. so dread, so fraught with terror, that for our pan we scarcely know how to write upon it or even to approach it. Nor even now can we pretend to do more within the space at our command than to lay down …
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and everlasting contempt (Dan. xii. 2). What a burden for men to unfold ·to their follow-men-" the terrors of the Lord "l Yet this must be done, Who can gauge the contents of these phrases? V, TBIB BlllllDKBilllG 'tO BVBBY HAN ACOOBDDIG '1'0 HU DEBDB WILL BJWIQ .Al'l'j.LL- Pi"G auFDBING. It is very common for those…
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Jesus Christ. 4. That every man will, ere then, know or hifl own .personal relation to the l,,)rd Jesu~, and that he is to be the Judge or all mankind. 5. That the final stat.e or every soul w,11 depend un its attitude to th~ Lord Jesus Christ. 6. That men will be eentenoed, not according to the light God saw tl~ to se…
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brings before us, and the whole teaching of God's Word; is ntterly subversive of this popular and plausible but pernicious belie£. It teaches that there is a "prize" of our high calling of God in Christ Jesus; a being, if faithful, first in the kingdom of heaven, or, if unfaithful, last; a being greatest or least; a…
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if every one is to be raised. up 11,t tht1 last <la:r.,•-if thl\t be the general rosurrection, why is there thi¥ ll1$.rk of distinotion for "him.u lf there be none? We conclude there is a ~tinctian. 4.nother and a ~ . glptjoua resurrection await, "him'' taan awaita . ~ n i . . 'l'hen (~ke xiv. 14) tht Loid speaks of …
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Vers.-1-10.-The ,-e,tra-int upon evil,. Following D,l~f•appropriately ~~'u the foregoing .<lesoription of a conflict; and the conquest by the .. ttuth and .tpe power of ragbteQusneSll, is.•a repr888ntatiop, in most significant imagery, of the restraini· that iB put upon evil, by the preval,ence_;0f _righteousness-th…
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<:boqt himself on the 1iouls of others. If we have helped them heavenward, that is there; if we have urged them hell ward, that is there. ·2. But chiefly in' our own souls. We are. always writing such record, and it msy be read even now in• the body, in ·the countenance, in the very way wt uear ourselws before our' fc…
1,190 wordsSECTION 453The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 453
Vers.~l-10.-The ,-e,tra-int upon evil,. Following D,l()S~ appropriately ~pon the foregoing .<lesoription of a conflict; and the conquest by the .. ttuth and .tpe power of ragbteousneS11, is.•a repr888ntatiop, in most significant imagery, of the restraini· that iB put upo(i evil, by the preval,ence_;0f _righteousness…
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Vers. 11-15.-~ Jfflal iudgment upon ~vi1 co,u.Zuct. The scenes or'the,:&ok of Revelation a.re now. approaching completion, and they present more definitely the characteristics of "t.he end." J udgment proceeds on human conduct daily, but there ia a final jlldgmentt "the judgnient of the great day,.. wh!ln "Wll sh11ll a…
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opposite classes of moral phenomena. In _the world we have error, selfisbne;is, infidelity, and misery; ana truth, benevolence, religion, and hllppiness. Can these b(I branches from the same root? or streams from tho same fount? (3) The general teaching of the Bible. 2. Th6 personality of such an enemy. These are names…
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of the dead lived not again." .4c. They will be men roised for ever beyond the reach <d aJl future wil. " Blessed and holy is he. that hath pa.rt in the first resurrection : on such the second death bath no power" (ver. 6). Such men are deli\:'ered for eYer from all the influences and all the fears of Hades. What an …
1,681 wordsSECTION 457The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 457
shall go out [come forth} to deceive the nations" (vers. 7,.8). Christ, who knows his entire history, has declared that he "abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him; n and that" he is a liar, and the father oflies." He. baa filled the.worid with lies-charged our atmosphere wit.h lies-political, social, …
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but.it should be remembered that inspired writers, in accommodation to our ordinary iabits-ay, ~Jl{l Jaws of thoti~ht-:reveal to us the. unknown through the medium o,t tlie kn~~ Wfiat mind, in soqth, can rei:'eive any. new idea without· comparing it '\Vith, the old? We i001!8 oBhe unseen by the seen; we learn what the …
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Take the case of a man in two different periods of life-say, ten years of age and sixty. Tn the intervening periods his body has passed through several ,-adical changes ; yet at sixty he/eels that h11 has the same body which he had at ten. It is not until your science comes that he questions it; and where the science h…
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fJ,a.Ill«i,. They stand before him, feeling his presence, and aivaiting his. doom-fi,tiµ,.g wo:t'd:· This is a distinguishing feature of the retributive period. In every preceaing. period of human history, with the exception of the millennial ages, the vast majorities of all generations had no conscious contact with…
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EXPOSITION. is intended, or a revivified earth, aeems to be CHAPTER XXI. founded on the false assumption that the Ver. 1.-And I saw. The usual introduc- dwellers in heaven must be localized in tion to a new vision (cf. eh. xx. 11, etc.). space (of. Isa. lxv. 17, "I create new Having described the origin and progre…
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great-contrast is ilie. to th'e. fo?JnCl' chapter. Order In Nmnb.'11: Order In Ezek. ilvllll. 30. Th' oll.; ·~+H. 11 was·~~ a. pi:~tiue or'a harlot; East- : · · East- the tlnfaitl).frtl p~ tif Christ's bhm:ch ~·here · ··Judal'l. JCJScph. we lla~:·~~dlls'cnJl:~on of thoae_}vho )ia:ve lssMhM',·· Benjamin. b8iin ";'t…
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The DatrMI "golden leek-green " appears to them will be hereafter a real earth witl;i poi~t t9-a epeci~s of beryl, e.nd the modem inhabitants. "The nation&" are tha ,e- aq U!!-":m,rll)fl. It is th-i,s probably a variety deemed, described in this way on aeot>unt of emerald, oeing of a yellowish pale-green of their se…
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paasage to their oppo~it.es." The seven angels with the seven last plague11 ha'fhg aet before the vision of the apostle scenes of awe and terror, l:e la now carried forward to ~ vision that lies beyond them all-even to the glory that is yet to be revealed. When the warrior hath done with fighting, it must be pleasan…
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u another guard, even "at the gates twelve- angels,'' so that none can enter with hostile aims. And not only so, but on the several gates the name of a tribe of Israel is found. None but Israelites enter there. 4,. ltafoundation& (Ver. 14.) (1) '.l'here 8l'tl inscribed the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. l…
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without. (/) No night thm,, No-pa.1111e' in the aoth,itle11 cf life;, 1'eca'llll8 no .,,..rinel!B will ever be felt. There will be oontlt.ant work and const.ant. worship. (JI) No temple. Not only will hindrances which exil!ted here be baniilhed there, but helps which were precious here. will not be needed there. If, as…
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHOBS. Ver& 1---4.-TAe new heavens and ea'l'th. The retribution of God has fa.Hen on the enemies of Christ and his Church. Death and hell, Satan, the beast, and the false prophet, have been cast into the lake of fire, The thunders of God's vengeance are b11shed; . the manifestations of his love t…
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adornPd," eto. F,1ir nnd comely, rich and honoured, blessed becauee perfectly atisfled. Never has it been possible to describe the Church in such way before. (3) A new f"IIIZlizatioA ,qf GO<l. In intimate fellowship; as a tent shall he shelter and encloee them, tabernacling over them. '!'his abiding, "He.shall dwell wi…
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Mtuftrles, and all along our 1hoffll, wa!!hing elt>11n what else would he foul, stiagnant, poisonous. 6. Its aaltnen, ministering iO the life of ita inhabitauts.; hy its weight. aiding in the transmiBSion of those warm currents of which we have spoken.; preventing corruption; and much more. But what we have said is suf…
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· Ver. 4.-" Neither ihall there be any more pa,m:., a Hoapita~ Swn.4,Jy lll!'l'mOn. If the wards of our hospitals could declare what words of Holy Scripture, what gracioua promises out of God's book, are, more often than almost any other, spoken, read, or thought of, and most beloved, by the suffering inmates of tho…
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t,y the bodily senses, he grasps theirs. For just as he went down amon~ the " multitude of impotent folk ,, that lay in the porches of Bethesda,· so .still he come• -down amongst our poor BUtfering humanity, himself a c. Man of 80lTOWS, ,and ,acquaintlld with grief.• And now the M.arab-like waters--tbe bitter wells o…
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stranger, a foreigner, an alien, and an intruder. It came in with sin and shall go ouli therewith. (2)'l'hat. it is tendering high and holy service~ Of. St. Paul, "Our light allicuon which is," eic. (2 Cor. iv. 17). "In these verses it is nohnerely lll!88rted that; one dal we &hall be rid of pain, but also that mean…
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would have become the blade and the springing eorn as we now see tbem. We ahould gaze with admiration, but with wonder, at the glorioua garment of fo1'88t and of field. ApLrt tiom our knowledge, all this new creation which the returning apring presents would have l:Jeen as incredible to us as the resurrection of the de…
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Ver. 6.-TMfree salvatwn. "I will give ••• freely." "What! free?" Mys1me, "When I have to watch and pray, to struggle and l'trive, if I am to obtain the crown of life.? Bow can it be free when I have thus to strain every energy in order to make it mine?" But: the veg, fact that you do thus strive shows that you have alr…
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Ver. _7.-The predominant practical pu".flOB6 o/ the Apocalyps~. "He thai over.. oometh," etc. At the beginning of this book-in the epistles to the seven. Ohurche&- we bad tl).is repeated promise, "to him that overcometh." And. its reiteration. tbm-e M well as here alike proves that the purpose of this book was an inten…
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comes down from God and is according to his mind, it, graeioU& character, the Chris~ within her, will be the all-oonspicuo118 thing. II. BKB tlECUltlTY~ (Vers. 12-14; cf. Iea. liY. H.) The Church is likened to a city for its strength. ha. xxvi. 1, " We have a strong city," et.c. The perfect Chu,rch shall be impregn…
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set forth by the fi!!UN! of the gates of "one pearl.,. Who could compute the price of such a pearl? ft will be the glory of· the perfect Church that " one pearl,'' and that' "the Pearl of great price," even Christ himself, is presented to every man. at every entrance to the Church, so that notie can come eave by him. A…
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and ~he.Lamb.. - :F~:the ;Holy Ghost p.\'OC~deth fl'am the Father- and. the Sun;, and when Clu:i~t; sppke of t,;ie water that ,lie w.ould. giv&,, St. John adds, "This apake. he -~f the Spiri\;" Aud .as to the tree,of,life, ,Jesus said,•~ I am· the Way, the lfrutli,:and u ._,tlte l,ife;" I api the ltesurreption, aqd …
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'Ver. 25.'--" No nig'kt tlwre!' I. Tlil: NIGHT A COMMON ,EXBLEX OP 'l'llmGs 1~t.. 'l'he Bible notices of it are, like this of oui-,t.ext, almost always' of a disparaginlfa'!fd ~precatory .tone. It is .r.epresented as undesirable, aBd as telling of.things th,;t'~re eTil..i, &rrow (Isa; xxi., rr Watchma.b, what of the ni…
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ror i~ .game ·ertlargem:elit 'li.'riff' instruction by :the' spectircle of tli,il starry' heavens ; .~ey, thenl •~Jani the gfoey of '11od.. ·'·And tile sl:>'Ul is uplt'fted 'by the conteiµi,:,W,tio;i;i;.~fthat !,': - o>, •• ; ·• • • • gby. Thtn1, nd for yet other reasons'. ls night to be Jegarded as one:or &d's .good…
1,263 wordsSource & rights
Public domain historical Pulpit Commentary. Source page identifies the volume as Public Domain; text extracted from its historical PDF.
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.