These four trumpets are interpreted by Mede and Bishop Newton of the four successive assaults of the barbarians upon the Roman empire, by the last of which it was extinguished. Mr. Faber differs slightly from this interpretation.

Woodhouse's peculiar mode of studying the Apocalypse certainly adds much confirmation to those points in which he accords with other interpreters.

Before the sounding of the seventh trumpet the Revelation introduces a little book (Bitxapidior) a kind of codicil, as it has been called, to the greater sealed one. This little book is supposed to extend through chaps. x.-xiv. And the substantial agreement of Mr. Woodhouse here with the general current of respectable interpreters is as remarkable and grateful, as his former dissonance was perplexing. The prophesying of the two witnesses is the succession of true Christians during the dark times of popery, till the close of the 1260 years, yet unexpired. The dragon, woman, and child are, Satan, the Church, and Christ. The ten-horned wild-beast from the sea is the Roman empire. The two-horned beast from the land is the ecclesiastical power, Papal and Mohammedan. This opinion, as far as respects the Mohammedan power, Mr. Woodhouse acknowledges to be singular. It may perhaps seem to derive some confirmation from Mr. Faber's discovery of the same power in the little horn of the he-goat, or Macedonian empire, in Dan. viii. 9. The parallel between the papacy and Mohammedism is well illustrated by Mr. Woodhouse. The xivth chapter is represented as relating to the true Church.

The fifth trumpet is that celebrated one, the first of the three denounced woes, which has generally been supposed to prefigure the rise and destructive progress of Mohammedism. Mr. Woodhouse contends that the Gnostics are intended. He supports his interpretation upon their being a natural object of the prophecies under consideration, upon their agreement with the symbols of this particular prophecy, upon their duration as a prevailing heresy for about 150 years (the term intended by five months in the prophecy) from A. D. 120 to A. D. 270, and upon other arguments of less weight, excepting one which we shall soon mention. Our author, however, compromises the matter in some degree, by giving Mohammed and his successes that place under the sixth trumpet which he had denied them under the fifth. For he considers the sixth as applicable, not only to the Turks, who are recognized there by most interpreters, but likewise to the Saracens and Tartars, p. 207. They have all the same character, he observes, as opposed to the Christian Church: they are all Mohammedan. Mr. Woodhouse very fairly contends, that, as these two trumpets einploy very different representations, the one announcing a swarm of scorpion-locasts, the other an army of cavalry, it is scarcely justifiable to interpret them of powers and invasions which have so near a resemblance, or rather so strict an union. This interpretation is not perfectly new, and it certainly deserves consideration. Mr.

Before we leave this part of Mr. Woodhouse's performance, it will be proper to mention his opinion respecting the important period of the 1260 prophetic days, a period, upon the determination of which so many circumstances in the present prophecies depend, and which has lately exercised the learning and sagacity of Mr. Faber, in a work professedly devoted to this subject. Mr. Woodhouse, as far as we know, is singular in supposing that this period, as applied to diffe rent events, has different commence

ments and terminations; although he does not pretend to decide any further concerning them, than that their termination is still future. pp. 339, &c. On the face of the thing, and none of Mr. Woodhouse's observations have altered our sentiment, it appears very improbable, that so definite and remarkable a period should be employed in the prophecy before us to denote portions of time not simultaneous. This period is, within the xith, xiith, and xiiith chapters of the Revelation,(the only places where it occurs in that book), found repeated in different equivalent terms six different times, but is reducible in its application to three distinct periods; the first designating the time of the gentiles treading (as Mr. Woodhouse translates Tar80*) the holy city and the prophesying of the witnesses; the second that of the continuation of the woman in the wilderness; the third that of the tyranny of the beast over the saints. Nothing, that we can perceive, forbids the supposition that these three periods are identical. Mr. Woodhouse, no doubt, will suspect us of being influenced by our previous reading on this subject; and we cannot deny, that, whether it be the force of truth, or of something only resembling truth, we have felt a strong inclination to subscribe to the opinion of Mr. Faber, both with respect to the identity of these periods, and the date which he has fixed upon for their commencement. And it is with much pleasure that we quote the following confirmation of this opinion from the work of Mr. Woodhouse. Speaking of Popery and Mohammedism as the two horns of the beast, he continues to observe,

« Both date their origin and rise from the same era. The year 606, says Pri

* Mr. Woodhouse has adduced the authority of Hesychius for his sense of the word: he should have given his readers the following explanation likewise from the same lexicographer, πατεσι, καταπάτησε, Schleusner likewise is plainly against him.

deaux, gave rise to both. In the very same year that the tyrant Phocas, by a grant to the Bishop of Rome, enabled him to assume tical supreme judge, the false prophet Mothe title of universal pastor, or ecclesiashammed retired to his cave, to broach his superstition: so that Antichrist seems at this time to have set both his feet upon Christendom together, one in the East, and the other in the West.' Thus the two horns of Antichrist sprouted out at the same time, and grew up together, being fed and nourished out of the same corruptive matter." p. 360.

Mr. Faber's objection to the term Antichrist as applied to the Papal or Mohammedan power is of little importance here, as the term itself does not occur in the Apocalypse, and the same thing is intended, whether the term be used or not.

Mr. Woodhouse dismisses the seven vials, which follow the sounding of the seventh trumpet, by observing, that four, or perhaps five, of them have been generally fulfilled. He has remarked the analogy between the vials and the trumpets, the first of which he represents as describing judgments upon the enemies of the Church, as the last described judgments upon the Church itself.

Chapters xvii.-xix. are referred to Papal Rome.

According to Mr. Woodhouse, our place at present in the chronology of the Apocalypse is under the sixth seal, the sixth trumpet, and the seventh vial. See pp. 308 and 410.

The work which has now engaged our attention, has impressed us with very favourable sentiments of the learning, industry, and candour of the author; and we are sorry our limits would not permit us to do full justice to those parts of his performance in which he has succeeded best. We cannot, however, help considering it, as a whole, defective, and that particularly with respect to the chronological arrangement of the events by which the prophecies are supposed to be fulfilled. It is justly objected to the scheme of Mede, that he has

included the first six vials in the sixth trumpet, instead of the whole number of vials in the seventh trumpet. But who can remark the following chronological order, or rather confusion, of these signals, which is Mr. Woodhouse's, and not be much more offended :-the first seal, the first, second, third, fourth, and fifth trumpets, the second and third seal, the sixth trumpet, the fourth, fifth, and sixth scals, to say nothing of the vials, whose places are not determined? Lowman might carry the matter to the opposite extreme, by adhering, or labouring to adhere, strictly to chronological order in the interpretation of the whole book, since the little book contains a sufficient intimation, that the representations given in it commence from a much earlier period than that, to which the immediately preceding part of the prophecy had extended. And accordingly Lowman himself has been obliged to consider this portion of the Revelation as giving three general descriptions of one period. But it is impossible to approve the utter inattention to regular succession with which Mr. Woodhouse is chargeable.

Before we dismiss the present article, we feel disposed to offer a few considerations on a subject, which fundamentally affects the interpretation of the mysterious book under consideration. All the interpretations of this book, as of many other prophetic portions of the Scriptures, may be divided into two classes, those conducted on a contracted, and those on an enlarged scale. The authors who adopt the contracted scheme, such as Grotius, Hammond, and others, and more especially Wetstein, consider the whole, or the greater part, of the Revelation, as predicting, and being fulfilled in, such near events as the destruction of Jerusalem, and the revolutions of the Roman empire which happened nearly at the same time. The greater part, however, of protestant expositors, (and the Papists are too much

a party in the cause to be permitted to speak) explain the apocalyptic predictions on the enlarged scale, and suppose them to relate to events to take place, in successive periods, to the end of the world. Some progress might be made towards the settling of this important question, by considering the examples of Scripture in general, and determining, by clear and undoubted instances, of what character, with respect to extent, are the prophecies contained in the sacred writings. And if it should be found, that there are extant in them prophecies of both characters, some having respect to near and others to remote objects, it would be important to ascertain the difference of style, if there be any, in which these different kinds of prophecy are expressed. For this investigation, however, we have not now at least sufficient time. We shall therefore confine ourselves to some observations upon a portion of Scripture the most parallel to the immediate subject of discussion, and that is, the celebrated prophecy of Daniel concerning the advent of the Messiah. The denomination of time, by which it expresses the period of its own accomplishment, is that of weeks, which, if they be understood, not of diurnal, but of annual weeks, the prophecy has been duly fulfilled. It is unfortunate, that our translation is much more definite, to the disadvantage of this interpretation, than the original. The word in the original is aw, and is, simply considered, nothing more than a numeral designation, signifying sevens. It is evident at once, how much more natural an association with different descriptions of time this word admits, than the word weeks*. It has accordingly been observed by most writers upon this subject, that the word is united with years, Lev. xxv. 8.; and Numb.

* Even the Greek 5ομαδες, and the Latin septimana (although the Vulgate uses the Greek word) are more favourable than the English term.

xiv. 33, 34, and Ezek. iv. 5, 6, are decisive instances of years being represented by days. This style is found among the Talmudic writers, and is not unknown to the heathens. We have been the more minute upon this point, because it bears directly upon the question of the scale of time upon which the prophecies of the Apocalypse are to be interpreted. The term of 1260 days, so frequently and variously used in that book, is the principal notation of time which it contains, and the days have generally been understood, according to the assumed prophetic style, to signify years. If this be the fact, the interpretation of the Apocalypse on the extended scale is established at once. Now the term in question, it is well known, is derived from the prophet Daniel. See ch. vii. 25, and xii. 7. If St. John understood Daniel as referring to the same events as are predicted by him to happen in the same period, it is evident, that he must consider his predecessor as prophesying on an extended scale; and it is a strong presumption, that he himself has done the same, and in this very instance. The style of the whole book of the Apocalypse is emblematic and mysterious, and it is utterly improbable, that a period, short in itself, and studiously varied, sometimes appearing in the form of days, sometimes of months, and sometimes of times, used figuratively for years *, should signify nothing more than the number of literal days, months, or years, which are mentioned. Almost every image in the Apocalypse is of a collective description, individuals as candlesticks, beasts, their heads and horns, women, &c. signifying multitudes. Why should not time be designated in

*This was not uncommon. See the writers quoted by Wintle, on Daniel xii. 7. It will be observed, in further proof of the mystic character of the period here mentioned, that when represented in the form of times or years, it is three and a half, just half the mystic, we might say the apocalyptic, number Seven.

a manner somewhat analagous? We shall only insist upon one more argument which we deem pretty conclusive: and that is, that there does not probably exist a single instance, except in calculations simply arithmetical, wherein an equal number of days, composing, not only a certain number of months, but a certain number of years, with the most integral fraction, a half, has been expressed uuder the denomination of days. Where is the writer, ancient or modern, to be found, who, designing to affirm the duration of an event, supposing it to be just three years and a half, or even a shorter term of a similar description, has said, that it occupied so many days? Is there any who has used this mode of expression, even when the days, exceeding the years, has been less resolvable into a fraction? Does not every author, in such cases, content himself with adding the number of such days to the years which he has specified? Our readers will excuse our labouring to establish the point under consideration, when they reflect, that it lies at the foundation of the just interpretation of the sacred book which has formed the subject of our present investigation, and affects that interpretation in so important an article; and that it has generally been assumed by the expositors of the Apocalypse, upon the enlarged principle, as requiring little proof, and therefore has not, as far as our reading has extended, or our recollection of that reading can discover, been fortified by that body of evidence, which it both demands and will admit.

The Works, Moral and Religious, of

Sir Matthew Hale, Knight, Lord Chief Justice of the Court of King's Bench: the whole now first collected and revised, to which are prefixed his Life and Death by Bishop Burnet, and an Appendix to the Life, including the additional Notes of Richard Baxter. By the Rev. T. THIRLWALL, M. A. Editor of

WE avail ourselves with pleasure of the opportunity, which a new edition affords us, of recommending to the notice of our readers the moral and religious writings of Sir Matthew Hale, and the interesting account of his life written by Bishop Burnet. But as the public have been long in possession of the principal contents of these two volumes, we shall, instead of attempting any regular analysis, confine ourselves to a few general remarks on the character of Hale, and the tendency of his works. A sketch of his life we may probably insert in a future number.

It is an error, the prevalence of which is equalled only by its absurdity, to imagine that religion renders a man unfit for the duties of life. Religion is considered by many as a medicine which may be salutary when used with due caution, and on proper occasions, not as wholesome food which should be our daily and regular diet. In refutation of such an opinion (if refutation it deserve) we would appeal to the account which is given us of Sir Matthew Hale. With him religion entered into every occurrence of life. It was his guide, his consolation, and his support, in the duties of the domestic circle, and on the tribunal of public justice; in the debates of the senate, and the social intercourse of friendship; in the retirement of study, in the exercise of benevolence and charity, and in the regular attendance on public worship. To the ascendancy which religion had over his mind may in a great measure be ascribed the eminence which he attained in his profession; the ability and integrity with which he executed the offices of a judge of the Common Pleas under Cromwell, and of Chief Baron of the Exchequer and Chief Justice of the King's Bench under Charles the Second. Great as were his natural talents, they would

in all probability have been wasted in idleness and unprofitable vanity, had not a sense of duty impelled him to cultivate his mind, with an industry almost unparalleled and his utmost industry might have proved unsuccessful, had not his piety led him habitually to apply for aid to the throne of grace, and strictly to observe, and religiously to employ, that day which God has set apart for sacred uses.

Accustomed to an upright administration of justice, unknown to other ages and other nations, we feel perhaps at first surprized at the anxiety discovered by the biographer of Hale, to display that inte grity in a judge, the slighest de viation from which would, in the present day, excite not less of astonishment than of censure. But when we reflect that, during an usurpation, under which every thing yielded to military despotism and democratic turbulence, under a reign, when servility assumed the name of loyalty, and ven.lity was too common to be disgraceful, Hale exercised his judicial functions with unsullied integrity, we shall ascribe his conduct to motives of a higher origin than those by which men in general are actuated, and we shall read with interest the anecdotes recorded by his biographer in proof of his firm adherence to the most rigid principles of justice. We shall notice but one of these anecdotes. Having discovered, as a trial was coming on before him, that the under sheriff had returned a jury nominated hy Cromwell, Hale dismissed the jury, and refused to try the cause. On his return from the circuit, the Protector said to him in anger, "that he was unfit to be a judge;" to which all the answer Hale made, was, "That it was very true."

The same Christian spirit which regulated his public conduct was also the basis of his private character. He endeavoured (though not it seems with complete success) to instil into his children those