Christ. These are the two olive-trees, and the two candlesticks or churches which have been standing before the God of the earth in their two prætorian Præfectures testifying against the purple and scarlet church by their sackcloth that his kingdom is not of this world; “and if any man will hurt them fire proceedeth out of their mouth and devoureth their enemies, and if any man will hurt them he must in this manner be killed." One of the Præfectures, which now comprises modern Turkey, long ago fell by the fault of a degenerate race, the slavish Greeks, incapable of enjoying any rational freedom either in church or state; or state; and so the great city has now but two parts out of the three. If these had not been two olive-trees, i. e. churches who preserved the truth in simplicity as guarantees of God's peace towards men, we had long ago been as Sodom and Gomorrha, without a name or nation as the Greeks have been; but thanks be to God we have never shewn ourselves dead, nor ever will, so long as there is one blast more of the trumpet to sound to bring the Antichristian Jericho down. The church of Rome was once a true church. But as soon as she mounted the Beast, or gave up her kingship and priesthood to the Roman Emperors, she became a false one, a whore, and all the churches who gave up their kingdom with her to the confederates of the beast harlots; and thus we have "BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS." The Two-winged Woman, the Two-horned Beast, and the Two Candlesticks evidently have the same geographical platform for their dominion, the two Prætorian Præfectures of the Gauls and Italy, containing England, Holland, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, part of Germany and Austria, Portugal, Spain, Italy and part of Africa; but it is equally evident, that they represent three distinct species of re ligious bodies on that platform. The Purple and Scarlet Two-winged Woman as carried by the Ten-horned Beast indubitably represents all National churches, i.e. churches endowed and supported by the State. The Two-horned Beast, as exercising all the power of the First Beast, is evidently distinct in character from the Two-winged Woman, because it is said to rise out of her, i.e. out of the Earth, which symbolises Rome, as we have before shewn, and it must then represent the churches as dependent solely upon the Papacy, whether National or not. The Two Candlesticks, as clothed in sackcloth, and with nothing but their mouth to defend themselves with, must also necessarily represent the Nonconformist churches, wherever they are situated, on the same geographical platform; and they are represented as the only two witnesses of God. Here then are sufficient marks in the Revelations by which any one may know the true church; and blessed are they who keep the sayings of that book, says the angel, Rev. xxii. 9, it being a practical as well as consolatory treatise. Let none say that the Two-winged Woman is merely the Two-horned Beast, the Papacy, for that rises out of her, and is one of her deformities, whereas she is herself both Papal and Protestant. WORD.-See ANTICHRIST and its APPENDIX. APPENDIX TO ANTICHRIST. THE SCRIPTURE DOCTRINE OF THE TRINITY VINDICATED FROM The Scripture Doctrine a Mystery which is Revealed, Great is the mystery of the religion; God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory. 1 Tim. iii. 16. Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; and to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath heen hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ. Eph. ii. 8, 9. Acording to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest, and by the Scriptures of the Prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations, for the obedience of faith. Rom. xvi. 25, 26. And upon her forehead was a name written MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS. Rev. xvii. 5. The leading article of our faith is no where represented in Scripture as a mystery, in the sense, in which the false church holds it. It is a mystery, only in as far as it is unknown to the uninitiated in Christ's kingdom, as few persons are ignorant, that Doctrines were anciently called Mysteries from their being revealed only to a select few, in which sense the doctrine of the resurrection is called by St. Paul a mystery. The principle doctrine of our creed was therefore a mystery, when the church was composed but of few members, or when it had not yet been revealed by the Gospel. Now any person may understand the great mystery, who can read his Bible, and will use in the interpretation of it, those faculties, which God has graciously vouchsafed to bestow on him for that very purpose. But the church soon adulterated the simple truth according to the forebodings of the Apostle and for want of understanding the mystery of the religion, adopted a religion of mystery. For their wickedness, also, God sent them strong delusion that they should believe a lie. So that according to the Prophet Zechariah, it has been a day to the church neither clear nor dark, though, according to the same prophet, at evening it will be light, (Zech. xiv. 6, 7); which will be a sufficient encouragement to any the least able in our advanced age, to attempt to dissipate the long-standing error. Prophecy has assured us that the church would be a long time bewildered, wrong-headed as well as wrong-hearted, that on her forehead would be engraved mystery; but it has also assured us, that the Word of God will at last start forth in his true character, with that name or nature which no man, as yet knoweth, (notwithstanding his many Nicene and Athanasian attempts to explain it,) but the Word of God, which nevertheless contains it, (Rev. xix. 12; Matth. xi. 27; Luke x. 22),—with that NEW name (Rev. iii. 12; Luke i. 35; Heb. i. 4, 5; Philip. ii. 9; Gal. iv. 1; Rom. iv. 13), which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it, (Rev. ii. 17; 1 John iii. 1), SON OF GOD,-that the false Teacher, the Teacher of false doctrine, shall vanish, and his strong delusion with him, before the eternal WORD, by his NEW name, SON OF GOD (Rev. xix. 20; 2 Thess. i. 8-11). For, from a careful comparison of Scripture texts relative to the great mystery of the religion, which was hid from ages and generations, and has been made known by the Gospel, it appears, that, there was originally but ONE person or subsistence of GOD,of different PORTIONS of whose attributes the WORD and HOLY SPIRIT were but IDEAL combinations, and REALLY though not constitutively identical with the WHOLE of them, which afterwards becoming combined with the man JESUS and the CHURCH, constituted by such combination, the two NEW REAL Subsistences or Persons of the Son and PARACLETE, when the two original IDEAL combinations ceased, and the only original REAL one, viz. that of ALL the attributes of the SuPREME GOD, with whom the two IDEAL PARTIAL combinations had been REALLY identical, presented itself under the new relation of FATHER. Thus the contituents of the SUPREME GOD, and the ORIGINAL Constituents of the WORD and HOLY SPIRIT with their accicidents by which they became in reality identical with him, in the ONE PERSON of God, may be represented in the following manner : of the Son. Constituents of the Supreme God or rather Subsistence, afterwards the Father Accidents of the Holy Spirit. Accidents of the Word. Eternal, Infinite, Immutable, Omniscient, Omnipotent, I Holy, Mind. Hence in reality, the Holy Spirit and the Word are each identical with the Supreme God, though not constitutively but accidentally. The Holy Spirit could not be constitutively Omniscient and Omnipotent, else when united with the church, the church would be constitutively Omniscient, and Omnipotent, which it is not. Neither could the Word or Holy Spirit be constitutively eternal, (I mean unoriginate,) infinite, and immutable, else when united with the man Jesus and the church, the man Jesus and the church would be constitutively eternal, infinite, and immutable, which they are not. Neither eternity nor infinity, nor immutability, can be comprehended or contained in originated, finite, and mutable flesh. Nevertheless, as it is evident, that the accidents could never be absolutely separated from the constituents, but only in the imagination, when the combinations must have been ideal, so when they became real, the accidents could never be separated from the constituents, absolutely, but only relatively. For the Holy Supreme Mind, can never cease to be Omniscient, and Om- Improper Constituents of the Son of God. Proper Constituents of the Son of God. Relative Accidents Eternal, Infinite, Immutable, | Originate, Finite, Mutable, | Omniscient, Omnipotent, Holy, Incarnate, Mind. Relative Accidents of Improper Constituents of the Paraclete. Paraclete. Absolute Accidents of the Holy Spirit, Eternal, Infinite, Immutable, Omnipotent, Omniscient, | Originate, Finite, Mutable, | Holy, Incarnate, Mind. Thus the Word which is absolutely eternal, infinite, and immutable, either in its ideal or elemental state, yet in its relative state or subsistence of the Son of God is originate from its prior state, the subsistence of the Supreme God, then become the Father, is finite in dimensions, and necessarily as capable of giving up its new state as of assuming it, i. e. necessarily mutable. Again the Holy Spirit though absolutely omniscient and omnipotent, and eternal, infinite, and immutable, either in its ideal or elemental state, yet in its relative state of the Paraclete or Comforter, need neither be omniscient, nor omnipotent, is derived from its preceding subsistence, the Supreme God, is finite in dimensions, and capable of giving up |