Thus the Apocalypse contains, in regular order,-first, the history of the Western Branch of the Empire, divided into the periods of the Seven Seals; then, the history of the Eastern Branch of the Empire, divided into the periods of the Seven Trumpets; and thirdly, the History of the Church; given first in epitome, and then in the details of its three periods.

The commencement of each history, we have already shewn, is marked in the text, by an intimation that the order of prophecy is about to begin afresh and we have now to shew, from notices also discoverable in the text, that these histories end together, or that the last Seal and last Trumpet, and last period in the Little Opened Book are one and the same; and all refer alike to the events given in the Supplementary History of Rev. xv. xvi.

In order to prove the synchronism of the last Seal and Trumpet, I would observe, that on the opening of the Sixth Seal, it is said, that "there was a great Earthquake," described in chap. vi. 12-14; and from the next verses 15-17, we learn, that this Earthquake is immediately followed by the Great Day of the Wrath of the Lamb.

Again, where the sounding of the Seventh Trumpet is mentioned, in chap. xi. 13-18, we find, that an Earthquake immediately precedes it; and that as soon as the Seventh Trumpet

sounds, the Day of the Wrath of God is said to be arrived, from which circumstances we draw the conclusion, that the period of the Sixth Trumpet contains the Earthquake, which is immediately followed by the Day of the Wrath of God; but the period of the Sixth Seal†, we have just seen, contains the same Earthquake: the periods of the Sixth Seal and the Sixth Trumpet therefore synchronize, both containing the

same events.

The Sixth Seal in the history of the Western branch of the Empire, being thus proved to synchronize with the Sixth Trumpet in the history of the Eastern branch of the Empire, it follows, that the Seventh Seal also synchronizes with the Seventh Trumpet, or that these histories terminate together.

To prove that the period of the Seventh Trumpet synchronizes also with the last Period in the history of the Church, or that in which the Seven Vials of Wrath are described as being poured out, I would observe, that on the sounding of the Seventh Trumpet, "the Temple of

or the Holy of seen in his TemThere then fol

God is opened in Heaven," Holies is opened, and there is ple the Ark of his Testament. lows the Second Earthquake of the Apocalypse,

which is distinguished from the first by the "Great Hail," said to accompany it*.

In like manner, in the history of the Church, when the pouring out of the Seven Vials of Wrath is described, we find that the Temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in Heaven is opened; and the seven Angels having the seven Vials come out from thence to pour them out upon the earth, and the effect produced by the seventh Vial is an Earthquake accompanied by a Great Hail. Thus we find that the periods of the Seventh Trumpet, and of the pouring out of the Seven Vials is the same; for during each, the Tabernacle in Heaven is opened, and each contains the Second and Last Great Earthquake of the Apocalypse, which is accompanied by a Great Hail.

The Seventh Seal has before been shewn to synchronize with the Seventh Trumpet; thus the Seventh Seal in the history of the Western Empire, the Seventh Trumpet in the history of the Eastern Empire, and the period of the Seven Vials of Wrath in the history of the Church, synchronize, and these histories terminate together; and the proofs of these synchronisms are the more satisfactory, as they are founded on a reference to the simple language

of the text, considered independently of any interpretation that may be given to the symbols.

The natural arrangement of the prophecies of Daniel and St. John into two classes, as relating to the Empire and to the Church, and the division of the history of each, into three periods of time, having been thus established by a cursory examination of the prophetic writings, and especially of the Apocalypse of St. John, which, taken in the regular order of the chapters, points out such an arrangement: I now proceed, in compliance with our first rule, to class the various prophecies according to the plan thus established, so as to bring into one point of view all those relating to the same period.

In arranging the different prophecies according to their several periods, it will be found that I shall follow the natural order of the text; and that this arrangement will therefore be made in a great degree upon a consideration of the text as unconnected with its interpretation: but that so important a part of the plan may be the more intelligible, I shall give the supposed date of each period, and upon mentioning the prophecies belonging to each period, I shall add a brief intimation of the subjects to which they relate.

The Roman Empire in the PERIOD OF ITS

STRENGTH, before the reign of its emperors terminated, or its complete division into ten kingdoms, took place, is spoken of in the vision of the Great Image of Daniel in the first clause of verse 33, chap. ii., in this brief description, "his legs of iron."-It is during this period in Esdras's vision of the Great Eagle, that the "twelve Feathered Wings," and "the Feathers which followed," are said to reign; under which symbolical representations are described the reigns of the twelve Cæsars, and the foreign Roman Emperors who succeeded them. -This period comprehends also the events of the four first homogeneous Seals†, and the four first Trumpets of the Sealed Book of St. John, which run parallel to one another, each Seal to its corresponding Trumpet: the Seals when

II. Esd. xi. 12-21. † Rev. vi. 1-8. + Rev. viii. ¶ It is to be understood that the whole time of the Roman Empire, from the year 312, when the judgments commenced upon Paganism and Pagan Rome to the end of its history, is divided into the periods of seven Seals (to which the periods of the seven Trumpets are parallel), each period therefore must embrace a large space of time: the symbolical description in each may, however, refer only to some principal event which took place in it; it is not meant, therefore, that the actions represented in the parallel Seal and Trumpet are cotemporary, but that their periods are so; that is, that the action of the first Trumpet will be over before the action of the second Seal commences; and the action of the second