The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 180

.y~J~".16,-,-1,'be wonders of the last day. "And the kings of the earth," eto, The last day, the day of days, will be a day of wonders. The words indicate three .of the ~onders of that. day•:, . . . . · , . . · .. ·• .. . L . ~ ~ n t G TBJ(l'~CE .OJ!' C:imrsT. '"The face or him tliat Bit~th bn the t.hro~:u:~·ar~. men.preferrtng 9:nnihilation, to a sigM o! ..tiiat.r~.'~'la. the ~t~ W!th. tha:- face? It \11'.aS, _mdeed, the human face Dmne, trui, S41reneii~ ~ loveliest, the kindliest face ever seen on earth. It was a face whoae exprllss1on towarda_iµen ~us," Come unto me,".etc. What change has come over it now?. :Why ~ ~en at'raiil of it now? Their guilty consciences have made that face t:eiri1io•.. The sight of that fac.e wi)l call up, such memories of their, ingratitude, their folly. 'th~jr impiety, .as Will make. llX,ist1mce intolerable. . . . · . ' · ·· ll TD• LA~i1 ~ou~IiT INTO WRATH •• "The wrath o! the l,a.mb.'' H~:w ~~n~ and un:uatuml 1s this I The wrath of love 1s the most temble of wrath. 1: _Jt t m ~ the greatest moral enorrnit11 in. the ob:ject of it., .The wrath ofma.lign naturEls ~-so6h kh1ql~ is caprici?us, .oft~n rag_.es :Without reason. But when l?!~ i~ 4J,d1···gqant;·th~.!·ee. ~uf!t'be foorfulen:orm1ty m the object. Z.1t exert!!: most agoniz~ng infl'U.e'f/,ce ubi,;j:tffel ~s~ef!r.e of it1 object. 'l'lie anger ~f malign natures seldorq. tou~es the ~o~~f~*~.of 1ts,v_19tyn, b!-itqf~n aw.~ens c?ntempt @d defiance ... Not.so wJ,i,~n loye 1s md~il~; . h.m~•- W_ha_,.t pofer ~n. ear~~~ so,~t.Je_nng &\llh_~l~~.- ~.-;1n__ dig1'.lat1o_J:!...o.flove 1~ cr,us Il~ti?n_, of a plU'e.qt :w_h? ~,~.~n_tii!.ll.y beD;evoll)n.t ,!3-nd Iov1;i,g. ? 8: ~ is. _"11-'!l.~~ ~t# t{le re~sons for,,it, eanstence .are removed. ;T,he wrath of inaj,1gil _natlU'el·(!{~ bµrmi itself out, but the w~ rmin.eo: .. tp,of I.ave is a de:te_ oppositiQ/1 tQ ~r~r. : C , . "l'- '/ ,'· llt H~ITY_ ®YIN~ FOB ANNIHILATION~ , ".And ihe king~ 9f· tbe eiu1Ji, atld~~e gr81lt men . . • • hid themselvE!S in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; ·aqd said ~: t:lle i:pqun.ta.ins and the rocks, Fall on vs, and hide us," etC: Love of'life ii·•the strongest foiitinct in human natu~e, and hence ~he dread of d89;th. ·. Here iii:'~~ ~bW · aµd firs,t .of all. dreads. What will mel\ not give a')Vay to e,vo1d death.7 .But, 11'4at a ;cb~ge no'Y I 'l'hey earnestly cry for tna.t whfoh they dreaded I . 'l'hey ~ for 1WW¥lation. 1...The cryis earnest., "Mountains ~d rocks.~. 'l'he Wi~)>~tfi'~ ~el!tx\ess. ExJ.S;te?lce has become 1nto,Ierable. _I,t 1s a c~se, that call no)f.mg4ii'-~ ~e. 1 ,~. '.f~e c_cy: ~s !JUJ._~al. • " The ;kin~ of tjie. ~h, t'jie gl'e/Lt men., the, r,i~ ~en~ and the c.hie( capta.ins, the mighty m,en, ev,ecy bondfuan e,l)d ev'ej'y free," _&A 'l'hi, cpnquerors o'!-the worl~ i~e}iron m~te:rii 9f µa..tibns, m~n. YI_-4~ n'.ames. st:,nck ~~r through ages, np'l;V quail ~n ,e,gqny and cr1,..fo~ ex~nction, . 8. ':!;he cry ~ fnsi,~- '11hey cry tQ, the ".moun~1ns and .rocks." What· can they do for ,them? Can ili.!'t ~! .t~'li:n,? ~.• vVjl iliey h~ts ~ feel ? No ;'ih.s_ellsi~ive, hnmova..ble, _these re~a.inanfui tp.e.,wildest ilhijeks. But were tbey to fall on .tbem would they crtlSh them? ·'i.'he UJ,atepii,t univerifca;nnot crµsh A. l!Oul. It..~' an' fuex,tibguisb,a~le spark;. -~·oji'~oile, CliW '¼lfen,ch a soul.,,D. T. . . , , . , . ,.,,, : Ver. i6•...::."'Thewrath of the L~mb." "Ride us from the wrath of the Lam:b." W'mth ill & teJ;rible;t}iing;· But the. most terrible Qf aU'wrath we )lav:e here--P1e wti:itk ef.~ Lo.i(ib.:, •~ Hiµe us.'' WhQ says this? .~ The kings of the earth, the great inen, ~4'ihe rich men, and the. chief captains, and the mighty_ men, ~nd everr bo~'4nan! and ~~ free .man." These men had, no doubt, br11ved temble thmgs dunng their 6.XlsteDCli, bui tliey couI~.not.. brJ!,v.e t.hi~. It struck_an ove.rnrhelmin,g horror. in.w 'their. so.~ ~ makes this wrath so.temble? - · · · · · · · ' l; ITS tm:ll!Hl'I,,ED 8TB4NGENEBB. Who ever sa.w a lamb fu a rage? . The eth l>f •lio~ a tige~~ or a bea.r;-:-tl,lis is commop,. this .is n11-turaL , But the lamb ;~ ~~t@.f meek;tender,j,ietding. Of'all creatures this is tlie last'creature that could"~ hx'6~ to.. ~t~. --.~s ~ rule, wba~e:v~r is. stran.ge)s m.,O!e _or l~ss alarming•...A·s.~r!I-J;(t~'~-'t,. 4 strange. h~vmg of the sea, or a strange vibration lh the earth. . The, ~tl!- 'Qf _a tenil,er,loving2 meek-minded 'man is a (11,r more ~rrible tli,ing tba.n: the wnth'. (!f"iiji irascible ·nat~re. The lllore difficult;y: yo~ have in exciting wrath the more terri'bliHt is when it aIJpears: . ~h!n th~.Le.mb is in wrath it i?Dplies some ~~le provocati~ ~d, tpa.t 11ro~10catlon 1B &n. iJ'he wratl!, of th~ Lamb 1~ an oceiu:i, of ~nl 1n flames., 'vr'811 ip.,ay lt ~trlk!l' wror. An~ther reaaon whr this wrath IS so t~rnblins-;- ' ·:, . ,II. I~ INPINITE PVBITY. The lamb 1s the emblem of mnocence. The wril.~ ·of ,qi.~· Lamb. i1 not a passion, but a principle. It is not malign, but benevolent. lt is ~ 204- THE REVELATION OF ST. JOHN THE DMNE. [on. vt 1-11.