As to the passages which concern Jerusalem, we may cite Joel 3:1, 9-17; Mic. 4:11 to the end of the chapter; and Zech. 12:3-11: “And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all peoples; all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the peoples of the earth be gathered together against it. In that day, saith the Lord, I will smite every horse with astonishment, and his rider with madness; and I will open mine eyes upon the house of Judah; and will smite every horse of the peoples with blindness. And the governors of Judah shall say in their heart, The inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be my strength in the Lord of hosts their God. In that day will I make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the peoples round about, on the right hand and on the left; and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem. The Lord also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David, and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, do not magnify themselves against Judah. In that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the Lord before them. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications; and they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for Him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for Him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon.” Chap. 14:3, 4: “Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against those nations, as when He fought in the day of battle. And His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.”
It is said (Acts 1), Jesus “shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven,” that is, upon the Mount of Olives (compare Ezek. 11:23). “And his feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives,” says the Holy Ghost in Zech. 14:4— “His feet,” the feet of Jehovah. Though indeed He was the man of sorrows, Jesus is Jehovah, and has been so from eternity.
As to the second point, this is what we have to remark, namely, that the nations, the descendants of Noah, will be ranged either under the Beast or under Gog, the two principal powers. If you consult Gen. 10, you will read (ver. 5), “By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands.” In the generations of the sons of Japheth are named Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, under the same names in Ezek. 38 as followers of Gog; you will also find there Persia which was united to Media (Madai), and from whose hands it received the crown (as we are told in Dan. 8 and other places), so that there only remain Javan and Tiras to be accounted for. Those mentioned above are the nations which comprise Russia, Asia Minor, Tartary, and Persia (all the people, in short, of which the empire of Russia is composed, or which are under its influence). They are described as under the dominion of Gog, prince of Rosh (the Russians), Meshech (Moscow), and Tubal (Tobolsk).
The children of Ham are pointed out in Gen. 10:6. Of these, Canaan has been destroyed, and his country turned over to Israel; Cush (Ethiopia) and Phut are also found (Ezek. 38:5; see margin) under Gog; those of Cush only in part, and for the reason that one part of the family of Cush established itself on the Euphrates, the other on the Nile, that is, north and south of Israel. Those of the north are then, by their position, in direct relation with the partisans of Gog. Mizraim, or Egypt (for Mizraim is none other than the Hebrew name for Egypt), and the remainder of Cash and the Libyans, you will find in the scenes of the last day (Dan. 11:43).
As to the children of Shem (Gen. 10:22), Elam is the same as Persia, of which we have already spoken. Asshur is named in the judgment which will take place in the last times (Mic. 5:6; Isa. 14:25; 30:31); also in the conspiracy of Psa. 83, and in other places. Arphaxad is one of the ancestors of the Israelites. We know nothing of the family of Joktan. It is supposed to be a people of Arabia or the East. Aram, or Syria, was displaced by Asshur, and is found under the title of the king of the North. The same remarks, it appears, may be made of Lud. Javan (Greece) is to be in the last combat (Zech. 9:13). Of all the nations, Tiras is the only one besides Joktan, which is not named as to be in these great judgments. We speak only of the word of God. Profane authors unite Tiras (Thrace) and Javan in Greece; but with this we have not to do.
In the present day we may observe Russia extending her power exactly over the nations which will be found under Gog.
Dan. 11 introduces us to two other powers, to which we must direct our attention; they are the king of the South, and the king of the North. The chapter contains a long account of already accomplished events, as to their wars, ex.; but after this come the ships of Chittim (ver. 30), and then there is an interruption in their history (ver. 35). These kings were the successors of the great king of Javan (Greece): the one, possessor of Assyria; the other, of Egypt. The object of their fightings was Syria and the Holy Land. From verses 31-35 the Jews are introduced as set aside during a long period of time (see ver. 35). It is said, “And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end; because it is yet for a time appointed.” Then follows ver. 36, “And the king shall do according to his own will:” this is Antichrist. In ver. 41 we have him in “the land” of Israel, in that territory which is the cause of the difference which exists between the king of the North and the king of the South. “And at the time of the end shall the king of the South push at him.” That is, after a long interval, behold again the king of the South brought, in this chapter, upon the scene. And this has historically occurred only a few years ago, after an interval of nearly two thousand years.
The greater part of the nations who, as we are told, are to be at the feet of Gog, are now coming under the dominion of Russia; “and the king of the North shall come against him like a whirlwind.” Antichrist will be the object of attack, at one and the same time, to the king of the South, or Egypt; and to the king of the North, the possessor of Asiatic Turkey, or Assyria. I do not say who the king of the North will be at the end; but we see that the circumstances and the personages described in the prophecies, which have reference to this time appointed— “the time of the end,” begin to appear. It is nearly two thousand years since there has been a king of the South; and it is but a few years since he has appeared anew. In the same way a great people has come forward, of which the world a century or two ago hardly knew the existence, and which now rules over the exact countries of the Gog in Ezekiel. We do not desire that you should fix your attention too much upon events which are taking place in our time; it is only when we have explained the prophecy, that we advert to the circumstances which pass around us. All nations have their attention occupied about Jerusalem (Zech. 12:3), and know not what to do about it. The king of Egypt wants to call the whole country his own; the king of the North is unwilling to cede it (the Turk being the actual king of the North, or Assyria). The kings of the North and South dispute for the same country, which they fought over two thousand years ago. This is just what the prophecy says is to occur at “a time appointed.” We do not mean that all of it comes out plainly; for example, the ten kings cannot be enumerated, and Antichrist is not yet revealed, still less has the beast, or Roman Empire, re-appeared. But the principles which are found in the word of God are acting in the midst of the kingdoms where the ten horns are to appear. That is, we find all western Europe occupied about Jerusalem, and preparing for war; and Russia, on her side preparing herself, and exercising influence over the countries given to her in the word; and all the thoughts of the politicians of this world concentrating themselves on the scene where their final gathering in the presence of the judgment of God will take place where “the Lord shall gather them as the sheaves into the floor” (Mic. 4:12). It is a remarkable coincidence. In observing what is passing around us, we recognize certain prophetical descriptions; at least we see those who are to act, or upon whom God will act, developing the characters which prophecy puts into relief.
If you take the trouble, dear friends, to follow the chapters which we have been quoting (and many others, as doubtless there are), you will understand Matt. 25 which speaks of the Lord sitting upon His throne, and gathering all the nations (an allusion to Joel 3), judging them, and separating them “as a shepherd divideth the sheep from the goats."
Let us remember one thing; that is, that we Christians are sheltered from the approaching storm. We have said nothing this evening about the church; but let us recall its place to our memory. It is, that during these events (yea, even at present, as united to Him by faith), its place is to be with Christ, and to accompany Him; the church has the privilege, the glory, the special character, of being in union with the Lord Jesus Christ. Thus, if we search for the church in the Old Testament, it is only Jesus Christ we find. A striking example of this truth is found in Paul's quotation (Rom. 8), taken from Isa. 1 where Christ says, “Who is he that shall condemn me?” which Paul applies to the Christian, being united to Christ as of His body.
The union of the church in a single body, whether Jews or Gentiles, was not revealed in the Old Testament; if we seek for it, it is Christ Himself that is seen. Although there are many things in the relationship of Jehovah with Zion which often exist between God the Father and the church, nevertheless it is not in Zion that we are to look for the church. In the Old Testament the privileges of the church are of Christ Himself, in the person of Christ, because the church has the same portion as Christ. This is it (see Eph. 1:22, 23), “which is the fullness of Him that filleth all in all;” for this reason we are not to look for the church in the prophecies. The church is the body of Christ Himself; and Christ is to judge, not to be judged. We have seen that Christ is to smite, and break in pieces the nations; this is said also of the church. The church has nothing to do with that of which we have been speaking, as if it were to be subjected to the same judgments (Rev. 2:26, 27). Its place is not to be in the midst of the nations that are to be broken in pieces; but, being united to Christ, it is to enjoy the same privileges as Christ, and with Christ to break in pieces the nations. There is nothing true as regards Christ in the glory which He has taken, which is not also true of the church.
It is always precious for us thus to understand our place, that of joint-heirs with Christ. And the more we think of this, the more our strength will be increased, and the more we shall become in our minds, as heirs of God, detached from the world, which is judged, as indeed the church is justified. The saints are justified; we see not all yet the effects of it; because the glory is not come. The church only has the fruits of justification in glory; the world only has the fruits of wickedness in the judgment. Nevertheless, it is true that the church is united to Christ. The world is judged because it has rejected Christ. “Holy Father,” said the Savior, “the world hath not known thee.” But this is what grace has done for us. Just as unbelief separates men entirely and for all eternity from Christ, grace by the Spirit has united us entirely and forever to Him; and we ought to bless God for it. (Concluded from p 336)