"See the Day Approaching."

Some time ago, after a reading on prophecy, a young believer in the Lord Jesus Christ said to me “O, why don’t you write all this for us in GOOD NEWS? It brings the coming of the Lord so near, and I am sure it would be a blessing to many.” It struck me at the time that what she had found profitable might, by the Lord’s grace, prove so to others; the chief difficulty being to make the matter simple enough for the readers of GOOD NEWS, because prophecy is generally looked upon as being beyond the comprehension, not only of the young, but also of many among the old, to whom this magazine is addressed, unless they have a pretty good knowledge, both of Scripture and of history. Nevertheless, by going a little more into details than one would find necessary in speaking to persons having some acquaintance with these matters, I think it quite possible to make the subject plain to all who really desire to understand it, except, of course, the little ones. But before attempting this I would remind you that the coming of the Lord (1 Thess. 4), of which I hope to speak more fully hereafter, consists of two stages, first His descent into the air (vs. 17) for His Saints, and second His descent on, to the earth with them (Jude 14,14And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, (Jude 14) Zec. 4, 5). Now, the first stage of His coming may take place at any moment, and is in nowise dependent upon any event foretold in prophetical Scripture. It occurs before, and ushers in “the Day.” As the morning star is seen glittering in the sky before the dawn of day, and tells that it is at hand, so is it with the first stage of the Coming of Christ for His own, hence, as the Bridegroom, He is called the Morning Star (Rev. 22:1616I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. (Revelation 22:16)). Thus, the believer looks for HIM before the fulfillment of anything foretold in prophecy. This is important, else the mind gets occupied with foretold events connected with the Day rather than with Himself. But if by the light of prophecy we can, not only “see the Day approaching,” but evidently nigh at hand, it follows that the Coming of the Bridegroom must be nearer still, and this is what the young sister just referred to meant when she said, “It brings the Coming of the Lord so near.” Moreover, the Spirit by the apostle Peter, when speaking of the Coming Kingdom and glory of Christ, says “We have also a more confirmed word of prophecy whereunto ye do well that ye take heed (as unto a light that shineth in a dark place) until the day dawn and the Morning Star ARISE IN YOUR HEARTS” (2 Peter 1:1919We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: (2 Peter 1:19)). With this end in view, I must begin my subject by telling you that there was a time long, long ago when God’s throne was set up on this earth. This, I dare say, will surprise a good many; yet it is quite true, for in the Temple of Solomon God “dwelt between the Cherubim” in the Holy of holies, where the Shechinah or glory over the Mercy Seat was the sign of His presence. But none ever saw it save the high priest, and he only once a year, through a cloud of incense. So that Israel only knew it by report, and the Gentile nations knew nothing about it. By Gentile nations I mean all who were not Israelites, such as the Egyptians, Assyrians, and others. You must look at a map if you want to know where these nations were, and I hope you will do so, and that your parents and friends will show you one, in order that you may get a clear understanding of things and places often spoken of in Scripture.
Now, I suppose you know how that Israel sinned against Jehovah again and again, until after long patience He gave them up into the hands of the Gentiles; and first the Assyrian king carried away the tribes in the north of the land (2 Kings 17); and finally, Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, conquered and destroyed Jerusalem, burnt the temple, and carried the Jews into captivity (2 Chron. 36:11-2111Zedekiah was one and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. 12And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord his God, and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the prophet speaking from the mouth of the Lord. 13And he also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God: but he stiffened his neck, and hardened his heart from turning unto the Lord God of Israel. 14Moreover all the chief of the priests, and the people, transgressed very much after all the abominations of the heathen; and polluted the house of the Lord which he had hallowed in Jerusalem. 15And the Lord God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling place: 16But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against his people, till there was no remedy. 17Therefore he brought upon them the king of the Chaldees, who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion upon young man or maiden, old man, or him that stooped for age: he gave them all into his hand. 18And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king, and of his princes; all these he brought to Babylon. 19And they burnt the house of God, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt all the palaces thereof with fire, and destroyed all the goodly vessels thereof. 20And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia: 21To fulfil the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept sabbath, to fulfil threescore and ten years. (2 Chronicles 36:11‑21)). Then the Throne of Jehovah finally left Jerusalem, as you see in Ezekiel 10:18, 19,18Then the glory of the Lord departed from off the threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubims. 19And the cherubims lifted up their wings, and mounted up from the earth in my sight: when they went out, the wheels also were beside them, and every one stood at the door of the east gate of the Lord's house; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above. (Ezekiel 10:18‑19) and thus “the times of the Gentiles” (Luke 21:2424And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. (Luke 21:24)) began. Yet although God’s throne had departed, it was not forever. A time is coming when His throne shall be again set up in Jerusalem, and that, not as it were in secret, but openly and manifestly, so that all the world shall know it. And it is this that I want to draw your attention to, because, as I hope to show you, the time is very near, much more so I am quite sure than many even of the Lord’s people suppose or have any idea of. When God’s throne went up from the earth, as you see in Ezekiel, there were three witnesses left to tell us about what then occurred—Jeremiah in the land of Israel, Ezekiel among the captives by the river Chebar, and Daniel in Babylon, the great capital of Nebuchadnezzar’s empire; and while both Jeremiah and Ezekiel tell of Israel’s continued sin and rebellion, even when under these heavy chastisements, and Daniel shows the pride and wicked self-exaltation of the Gentile, they are nevertheless all three witnesses to God’s super abounding grace and goodness, and all foretell, in spite of the failure, sin, and ruin of both Jew and Gentile, a time of such blessing as this earth has never seen, to be brought in at the coming of the Lord with all His saints (Jer. 31, 33.; Ezek. 37, 43. et seq.; Dan. 7:1818But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever. (Daniel 7:18)). But before this time of universal blessing there must come a time of judgment because of the wickedness of men. The world will not be converted by the Gospel, but “evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived,” until judgment overtakes them, and that in this world, for “the Son of Man shall send forth His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom (the field, the world), all things that offend and them which do iniquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 13:3838The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; (Matthew 13:38) to 43). Now it is chiefly in the books of Daniel and Revelation that these things are spoken of. Daniel, in Babylon, was the witness of the ways of the Gentiles from the time that power was committed into their hands down to the coming of “the Ancient of Days.” To him were given visions and revelations setting forth the whole course of Gentile rule to the end; and this is particularly the case in chapter 7. Let us now turn to that chapter. At verse 2 you read, “Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and behold the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea, and four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from another.” Then describe three of them, and to show how they followed each other in succession until the 7th verse, and there the chapter is divided by the words, “After this I saw in the night visions, and behold.” This occurs again at verse 13. Thus this portion of the chapter is divided into three parts—first, that relating to the three beasts, then that which concerns the fourth, and then, lastly, that which foretells the kingdom of the Son of Man. Now, first, you must understand that by “the sea” is not meant the ocean, but something quite different, for in prophetic scripture the Spirit uses certain figures or symbols which are intended as pictures or representations of other things to which they have some resemblance. Thus “the sea,” in prophetic language, is used as a figure of nations, or rather peoples, not yet reduced to rule or order by regular government, as the waves tumble over each other, and are tossed hither and thither by the wind without order or control. Again, by “beasts” are meant Gentile empires or monarchies, which all history tells have had their origin in the strife and passions of men, and, like wild beasts of the forest, destroy and prey upon that which is weaker than themselves. How true it is that “that which is highly esteemed amongst men is abomination in the sight of God!” (Luke 16:1515And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God. (Luke 16:15)). So, then, the “four great beasts” in Daniel 7 represent the four great Gentile empires which succeed each other, from the time that Israel fell for his iniquity under the power of the Gentile until the Lord shall restore His people to their own land and the divinely-given place they ought always to have kept; and He “shall reign in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before His ancients gloriously” (Isa. 24:2323Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the Lord of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously. (Isaiah 24:23)).