The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 316

position to which we a.re shut up in Scripture is thili: God has not shown us a• end to future punishment. Ws dare not affirm ehat it never will end ; but if any OM doe, that, he does it entirely at his own risk. Objection: "But this phrase is .the.very strongest which iii employed in the Word of God to denote absolute unendingneu.• We reply, No. It is a fearfully strong expreMion for an indefinitely prolonged period; but there are stronger expressions; e.g. " Thy kingdom iii a kingdom of all the ages" (Ps. cxlv. 13); "To him be glory , •• through all the generation■ of the age of the ages" (Eph. iii. 21); "My salvation shall be for ever, and my righteousness shall nol be abolished" (Isa. li. 6); "Not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an indissoluble life," etc. (Heb. vii. 16). The strongest expressions, which declare absolute unendingness, are reserved in Scripture for the good alone. E98n when we grant all this, however, the outlook for the wicked ia one of unspeakable gloom; of a night with no revealed morn beyond it. There is, however, one more feature of this penalty. It will be inflicted "in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb." There iii a profound interest taken in the destinies of man in the distant places of creation. The angels are supremely concerned for the honour of the Son of God. And they will acknowledge that God's judgrnents are right. The Son of God, too, who died for us, will himself be the Judge. .All things are put into his hand. "God so loved the world that he gave his Son ; " but he does not love leas that Son whom .he gave. .And while he will not dishonour that Son by letting any 11inner who repents remain unforgiven, so neither will he dishonour him by letting any one who rejects such a Saviour remain unpunished. FiLBlly, we deem it of infinite moment, when a preacher has to handle these awful themes (and handle them he must if he would declare "the whole counsel of God ''), that he should show with vivid <ilearness that it is sin which is to be mainly dreadtd, rather than its penalty. Sin is the infraction of law. The punishment is God's defence of law. Could we wish for a time to come when ·existing sin wonld not be punished? Could we wish that the punishme1;1t of sin should be in any other hands• than those of a pure and holy God? Could we wish that God should give a law, and never guard its honour? Could we wish that he should give us a gospel, and then let it be rejected with impunity? Could we wish that he should surrender the Son of his love, and then let him be trampled underfoot, and remain unvindicated? "But," it may be said, "while I fully confirm that, still I do long for the tin1e to ~me when sin will cease altogether." Be it 10. If God wills it, so it will be sooner or later; but we cannot find any clear dill<lloaure of that. Three things only remain for ua to see to: (1) To hate sin as God hates it. (2) To seek his grace to slay it in us. (3) And then to co-operate with him in putting it down everywhere. Ver. 13.-.A voice.from heaven: tAe blessed dead. However deep the ,::loom in which the description of the future struggles of the Church may plunge us, the Holy Ghoac never suffers it to be indefinitely prolonged. We have stood with wondering awe amid: the deep recesses of a glacier, and, as if lest the chill should be too BeVere and the gloom too intense, many a chink overhead let in a light and a glow that revealed wondrous glory. above. Even so, as we stand in the mid3t of the threatening conflicts of :the Church, we see light let in from above-a glory shining in the gloom. Thus it ill here. We have witnessed the rise and power of the. dragon, of the first beast, and of the second beast. We have looked upward and caught a glimpse of the heavenly •Stat.e. We have heard the voices of the three augds, proclaiming (1) the everlasting gospel, (2) the fall of Babylon the great, (3) the punishment of the ungodly; and again there ia a gleam of heavenly brightness shining in upon us. A voice is heard-whose, we are not told-but it is a commanding voice, m,der the direction of the Holy Ghost, and that is enough for us. Moreover, it is from heaven, from the realm of light, from the region whence the ehado1vs have fled away. I!'rom that higher region thQ changing scenes of Hfe and death, of struggle and of victory, are beheld; and from the clearer light in which these earthly incidents are viewed, there is' an emphatic testimony given to us which is of priceless value. As so much of the book deals with the struggl6" of earth, it is restful indeed to be permitted to hear something as to how they fare whe have passed beyond them. L lN TIUB DYING WORLD THERB 18 J. PU.TORE WHICH DISTINOI'IVELY MARKI &OV■ 856 TIIE REVF.LATION OF ST. JOIIN TIIE DIVINE. [ea. xrv. 1-20.