Star. — London, England, 1808-06-03 00:00:00

ma, L.DI SL SIR. ON THE PROPHECIES. No. VIII. THE SEVENTH SEAL OPENED. j when he had opened the seventh seal there was .f; i n heaven about the space of half an hour. A n d I tit seven angels which stood before GOD ; and t o th em ,Om seven trumpets. And another angel came and the altar, having a golden censer ; and there was im hi m much incense, that he should sfrer it with the r ojen r.-- of all s aints upon the golden altar, which was b e .. tk throne. And the smoke of the incense, with the T or o f the saints, ascended up before Gon, out of the A r ts hand. And the Angel took the censer and filled it it i t i t fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth : and ow e? voices and thundering:, and lightning:, and an oficiake. (Rev. viii. 1-5). n ie heaven" here spoken of refers evidently to sc ene of the vision, as does also the half hour ;" _the' , silence is maintained only while the prepara are making for the ensuing representation ; and to every thing is ready, it is terminated by voices i s h ou ksings." In the interim, the end and design f a ll the services that were performed in the typical i ca naly are pointed out by the office and work of t i t j 4 who eer, much incense with the prayers of all & L imp in virtue of which they ascend up before Gon, and are accepted. That the word Angel" sig- l i e s 4 , messenger" will not be questioned by any one a ll conversant in Scripture phraseology. Here on we have the ANGEL or " MESSENGER or THE Co ngo-7a' brought to our view...THE LORD, who had me to his temple, agreeably to the prediction in giLicsu (1. 3.) ;—the merciful and faithful high mat, who hath made reconciliation for the sins of tie people (Heb. ii. 17.) ; the GREAT HIGH PRIEST, tut is fumed into the Heavens. JESUS THE SON OF GOD ...offering that incense by which alone the persons L a services of his saints are made acceptable—even e merits of hisown perfect obedience and atonement. We have seen, frcm the opening of the preceding fel ls, that the events, which they predict, do not follow is such an order and succession of time, as to make the business of the second commence when the first xnninates, and the business of the third when that of ik second is finished, by a rgular succession ; but that, on kis contrary, all the first five seals relate to the commencement and progress of the warfare car ded the Rider on the white horse and those Oho oppose his kingdom ; and the sixth to the issue i that contest. The case is exactly the same with !egad to this seventh seal : for though, of necessity, in removing the seals in order, from the book of Dmuti, the seventh must be last opened, the events srlich it predicts do not take place subsequently to thme of the other seals. On the contrary they have Dearly' the same time of commencement—even the pe- t iod in which THE MESSENGER OF THE .COVENANT wide censer and . filled it with thefire of the altar, and colt it *antic earth ;" for though he came with the glad tskt of p I eace, he forwarned his disciples that his message would not be so received by the world—lam amc," says he, " to send FIRE on the earth suppose "that lam come to give peace on earth ? I tell you, Nay; lot rather &vision." (Luke 7cii. 49-51.) " Think not that lam come to send peace on earth ; I came not to send kat on earth, but a siroaD." (Mat. x. 34.) From the passages first quoted, we see that " rendingfre on the meth," means sending a Pu•nrd s." This was to follow th: profession of the name of CHRIST ; nor need we to wonder if his disciples were " hated of all nations," *en we find that among " a man's fors were to be those On own household. " But" says CHRIST, " he that lank father or mother more than me, it not worthy of me he that taketh not his cross and followeth after me, is ' tottsorthy of me. He that indeth his life [by conform ug with the world to avoid persecution] shall lose it : [he shall not partake in the first resurrection] and he tin !meth his life for my sale, shall Joel it." We see thea that persecution, strife, and contention are pre dicted here as destined to follow the preaching of the Gospel —the very same fact that was proclaimed by the opening of the second seal. But, instead of a mere s atline of the history of the warfare between the crowned rider and his enemies (which was all that thepreceding sealsgaverespecting DANIEL'S "PRINCE 0*114 Elloar," and " the people of the Prince" that was to fight against him) by the opening of the seventh seal a farther, and, as we shall immediately see, a Stry particular detail of all the leading circumstances of in contest is brought to view ; for we are not only told generally what followed the preaching of the Word, namely, " thundering: and lightnings, and an tarthguale"—great noise and wrath, followed by a Wonderful change in the rule or government of the ranh, but seven Angels are introduced to explain the events alluded to in these expressions, and to proclaim, as by sound of trumpet, the authentic and authorised interpretation of the sealed book, so far as it relates to these events. THE FIRST TRUMPET. " Ilk &VCR Angels which had the seven trumpets pre fared themselves to sound. The first Angel sounded, and Cure followed fire and hail mingled with blood, and they spree east upon the earth : and the third part of the earth man burnt up, t and the third part of the trees was burnt V, and all green grass was burnt up. (Rev. viii. 6,7.) s See alio 1 Cor. ill. 13, 14. . tni►d part of the earth war burnt air." These words are * *lain the common version. They are bend in the Vulgate lad in marl 600411155. men. Sending I , Fire" on the earth, as we have just seen, means in prophetic language, the same as sending a ~ :word"—contention and strife, followed by blood shed. " Hail" denotes, in general, the judgments of GOD upon a people*. "Tree," signify great men, and " gran" the lower orders : thus in the 4th chap ter of DANIEL, a great tree represents King NP.SUCHAD. NzzzAß—the earth, in which were its roots, his king dom—and the tender grass of the field, his people ji : but the same figures are applied also to the people of GOD ) as distinguished from the world ; as in Isaiah (lxi. S.) where they are called "trees of righteoutnen, the planting of JEHOVAH," and in other places t —and therefore, where this n g ure occurs, its application to the one or to the other can be decided only by the context. By this trumpet not only is fire east upon the earth, but from the context we learn that it was "fire of the altar"—Therefore the quarrels and bloodshed here mentioned, are chiefly to be attributed to the disputes among ecclesiastics—disputes which were carried on with so much enmity and brutality, that not only the subjects of CHRIST'S kingdom, who were taught by their MASTER to expect nothing else, and who, gene rally speaking, have always been reckoned heretics by all true churchmen, but mankind in general, be came the victims of the blood-thirsty fury of the va- rious contenders for ecclesiastical dominion. Nor was this mischief confined within narrow bounds — the "fire and hail mingled with blood were cast upon the earth ;" and if we turn to Daniel (vii. '23.) we shall find that " the earth," when employed without limi tation, includes not only the proper territories of the fourth empire, but those of the three preceding ones which it destroyed and brake in piece:, before the esta blishment of the ten kings. _ From this it follows that the commencement cf this fire and hail was while the CAMARS still held the sovereignty of Rome, and the empire remained un broken—though we learn by their ultimate effects, the burning up of the third part of the trees and grass, that they were to continue much longer, during the whole time, in which the beast was to reign with the ten kings ; for it was only during the latter period that its power to make “fire come down from heaven on the earth in the tight of men," exciting wars whenever it might think fit, respecting orthodox and heterodox opinions, was limited to the third part of the earth, the sea, &c. As to the precise period for the commencement of these evils, nothing is said in the text t ; but we learn generally that they point to the introduction of religious disputes, and the consequences to which these would lead. We know from the writings of the Apostles, that the spirit which produced this— the wish of certain professors of christianity to rule over their brethren, like the Kings of the Gentiles, had shewn itself even in their day ; and we have seen that, though it did not mark it so precisely, the second seal included these religious disputes as well as the persecutions to which CHRIST'S followers, in particular, were to be subjected—and, therefore, this trumpet may be considered as the commencement of a new prophetic history, in which is given a more ample detail of those circumstances which were only sketched, as it were, in outline, but yet in perfect or der, by the opening of the former seals. In corroboration of this, we find that the blood shed and accompanying judgments, proclaimed by this trumpet, are followed by exactly the same conse quence as the going out of the rider who took peace from the earth, and the rider with the balances.— • The third part of the earth was burnt up," that is, wasted with war and bloodshed ; " and the third part of the trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up"—not only many who had heard the word and re ceived it joyfully were offended when this sword, or fire of persecution § came, and so fell away from the truth ; but, throughout all that portion of the world, which in this book is called a third part, the whole visible profession of Christianity was ultimately withered and [ blasted—bishops [the trees] and their flocks [the green grass] becoming both equally fruitless, the com mandments of GOD being made void by the tradi. eons, doctrines, and commandments of men. This defection from the truth began as soon as persecution for the word appeared ; it reached its • See Eirod. ix. 23. Lai. milk 2, IT. Psalms lxxviii. 17, 48, Esti. xiii. 1 s.—Among the Eastern Magi, hail and fire, employed as symbols, had a similar signification. Acusg Ex ts in his inter pretation of dreams, cap. 191, out of the Rules ef the Indians, Persians, and Egyptians, says k " If any shall seem to see hail fall any where, let him expect a sadden hostile attack if the hail shall have hurt the stalks of wheat or barley ; in the place where the stalks were so broken, warlike slaughters shall happen—And in cap. 159 and 160, he says, thatfre, if it shall seem to burn any thing or any one, signifieth death, war, fightings, prnisiteent, and afflicticn. Hsee also Fall. chap. xxi, and- Tsai. chap. ii. Acusteres, the author mentioned in the preceding note, also puts trees for great f The church is Goes husbandny. Cn■IST if the true vine, and his people the branches. Those that abide in him bring forth much fruit (lebn 5.)—" they spring up among the gram, as willows by the wahr courses." xliv. 4.)—But if any man abide not in him he is cast forth like the branches that are withered [or " burnt up," as in the passage before us) which are gathered and cast into the fire. t This obiervation applies equally to all the trumpets, but the duration of some of them is pointed out, and in other parts of this prophecy and in Daniel, the period for the commencement of some of them is precisely marked, as shall be shewn hereafter. This is the fire which the Apostle PAUL tells the Corinthians would try every man's work of what sort it is. They were boasting, some that they had been converted by PAUL, some by Arca Los s ice. but he informs than, that the Apostles would receive no , reward but for that part of their work which could endure this fire. height after the little horn [the hierarchy] obtained power from the Kings of the earth to wear out the saints of the Mott High. Throughout Europe [the third part of the earth] the truth was cast down to the ground, and the little horn prospered, while the woman [the true church] was obliged to hide herself in the wilderness ; those who chive to her by flatteries, whether distinguished Bishops and teachers, or men in less elevated situations, having entirely perverted her institutions, and new modelled the church to make it suit their worldly views ; holding this lie in their right hand : that it was possible to serve God and mammon—and making it manifest, by their whole conduct, that they were of the number whom Jude calls g , trees whose fruit witherdh wit/tout fruit *, twice dead, plucked rep by the roots; raging waves of the sea foaming out their own shame; wandering stars t to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever." This sin gular fact was sealed up in the book of DAN/EL. It was there only ,told generally, what a malignant enemy should arise against the kingdom of t he MES SIAH, and that the people of a certain ruling power, which was yet to come, should carry on this war fare : but from no part of Daniel could it be learnt, till explained by the FAITHFUL WITNESS, that those who should thus oppose his rule, though of " impu dent caantenanee," should have the effrontery to main tain that they were his own subjects, and were only seeking to promote his glory ! This wonderful and universal degeneracy, as has been before noticed, came not to its height till Anti christ had received his full power, usurped the outer court of the temple of Gon, and trodden it down as his own property; and we know, from other passages, that it continues till the time appointed for the ckan. sing of the sanctuary—or, in other words—till the pe riod arrives, in which the saints shall flosses: the kingdom. Hence it follows that this trumpet, in opposition to the general interpretation, continues to sound during the whole period of the five succeeding trumpets, down to 44 the days of the yoke of the seventh angel," when the mystery of God shall be finished. BIBLICUS. * fe.roxuspva, axaprce Expttw6Evra. Not only bearing no fruit to perfection but barren—void of vegetable life, and only fit to be rooted up for fuel. t Bishop, neither appointed nor ruling by CHRIST'S authority, but " runenog greedily after the error of Ashton for reward." THE. EVENING STAR. LONDON. FRIDAY, JUNE 3. PRICE OF STOCKS THIS DAY AT ONE O'CLOCK : Consols, for money, shut—for July 691-1-omnium st pr. Reduced 68-H—Exchequer Bills 4s. 6s. prem. PRICE OF STOCKS YESTERDAY. 3 per Cent. Red. 6711 India Bends par a Is. pr. Is. dis. .3 per Cent. Cons. 68a Imp. 3 per Cent. seci I per Cent. 84 Escheq Bills, 9.5. a6s pre. 5 per C. Navy, shut Omnium 13 21 34 3 i.org Ann. 18 11-Itithq English Tickets 211. India Stock 1784 17 81 178 Cons, for acc. The armed vessel which passed Dover the night before last, and was taken for an American, proves to be an English ship from Honduras, but last from Charlestown. Having received damage at sea, she was obliged to put into that port to repair. She brings no news. The embargo was still continued when she came away. It appears by foreign journals to the 29th ult. re ceived last night, that on the 13th NAPOLEON was still at Bayonne, having sent off the Royal Family of Spain to the different residences assigned to them. The news from Paris given in these papers is to the date of the 25th ult. but of no moment. From Ma drid the accounts are to the 13th.—The Grand Duke of BERG appears, by them, to exercise the powers of Goverment without any opposition. Parma, Piacenza, and Tuscany are now incor porated with France ; a transaction which, in the utter annihilation of all political power, even in the roi-di sant independent States, will probably excite no obser vation or remark whatever. In Italy, besides, we find that great hopes are professed of being able soon to rival the naval power of Great Britain. In Genoa one 74 gun ship has been launched, and at Venice three ships of the line are building. Ministers certainly entertain hopes that the French and Spanish ships at Cadiz will soon be in our posses. sion. Arrangements are in train to have the Sea Fencibles in readiness, as was the case with the Da nish men of war, to navigate these ships home to England. Accounts received by Government state, that it was on the 14th ult. that the troops under Ge neral SPENCER left Gibraltar for Cadiz. Of their joining our fleet off Cadiz intelligence was received some days ago : they were there before news could be received of the Spanish Monarch having abdicated the Throne, and of course ready for any event which might result from that intelligence. A Gentleman just arrived from Lisbon states, that a conscription is about to take place throughout Por tugal, including all young ncen Wom 16 to 30 years, for the supposed purpose of being marched into Spain. Accounts from Sicily, dated April 15, represent the English force in that island to be in perfect health.— They were about to change quarters, but no apprehen sion was entertained of a visit from the French. The corps of MEURON, WATTEVILLE, and an English re giment, which were landed in Sicily some time before, had re-embarked, for the purpose of joining the ex pedition which was to sail from Gibraltar under Ge neral SPENCER. The Earl of COVENTRY is dangerously ill. He is near 86 years of age. The retreat of Sir A. 1 1 •••••—r, and Lady $p N, has been ascertained to be Lindhurst. DISTURBANCES AT MANCHESTER: EXTRACT OF A LETTER FROM MANCHESTER, JUNM I am sorry to inform you that the numerous h ~Iv of cotton-weavers in this town and neighbourhxxi are yet still dissatisfied with the proposals which the m t er-manufacturers have agreed on at their meeting List night at the Bull's Head inn here, which is 10 per cent. advance on all kinds of cotton goods weaving, to take place this day (June 1), and 10 per cent. a g tin advance, to take place on the Ist of August next-- - :his makes a full 20 per cent. which does not meet the approbation of this great body of useful men. Their demands are, and they do stand out and persist in having 6s. Bd. to the pound sterling advance, an advance which is 33 1-3 d per cent.—so that between the m t nufacurer and weaver there is just 13 1-3 d per cent. and I am sorry to add, at this moment, not any of them will go to the loom, neither here nor in any part of the neighbourhood, and upon a moderate calculation there are not less than 60,000 looms, in the cotton tral.! only, standing still in this town and neighbourhood of twelve miles. If any of them are at the shuttle, parties rush into the house, cellar or garret, and take it from them. This, lam sorry to say is too true.— Great numbers of weavers walk in small parties about the streets, and in a peaceable manner.—l am happy t say all is regularly quiet. Past 10 o'clock, Wedneazi night, June 1. SPORTING INTELLIGENCE. EPSOM MEETING, THURSDAY, JUNE 2. Derby Stakes of 50gs. each, h. ft. for 3-yr old Colts, Bst. 71b. au I Fillies, Bst. 21b. The last mile and a half. The owner of th 2 second horse to receive 100 gs. out of the stakes. Mr. Howarth's names Sir H. Williamson's Pan, by St. George, out of Wahon's dam I Duke of Grafton's c. Vandyke, by Sir Peter 2 Lord Grosvenor's b. c. Chester, by Sir Peter, out of a . . . . Sweetbrtar mare - - Mr. D. Radcliffe's Ruben., brother to Castrel Five to 2 on the field agst Vandyke the favourite, even betting on the field agstVandyke and Ruben', 5 to 1 apt Clinker, 4 to 1 agst. Ruben', 5 to 1 apt. brother to Trafalgar, and 20 to 1 ags'. the winner, which was scarcely thought of in betting. A good race, and won by a length. Fifty Pounds for horses, &c. that had not won more than one 501. plate since the Ist March, 1807 ; 4-yr. olds 7st. 41b. 5-yr. olds Bst. 61b. 6-yr. olds 9st. and aged 9st. 31b. Two-mile heats. Lord Foley 's b. h. Comrade - - - 5 1 1 Mr. Butler's b. h. Epsom, 4 yrs. - - 1 2 2 Mr. Goodison's b. h. Foxburgh - - 4 3 8 After the first heat, 2tol on Comrade. The second beat wa well contested—the last heat was wan easily. NAUTICAL INTELLIGENCE, FOWEY, (CORNWALL) MAY SI. A Pilot of this place, being at sea, in Lantrick Bay, saw a bottle floating, close corked, and taking it up saw a paper in it, which he took out, and found written thereon the following : " English brig Mary and John, lat. 47. 40. lon7. 5. 25. ; chaced by a fleet of five sail of ships, which captured and burnt the Mary and John, of London. CHARLFS JEPIIBON master; took this opportunity of writing this and putting it in a bottle ; the French men steering E.N.E. Wm. THOMPSON, 6 ' May 1, 1808. Chief Mate." PLYMOUTH, JUNE 1. Came in the SPENCER, of 74 guns, Rear-Admir — al STOPFORD, from the Eastward; SCORPION, of 18 guns, from a cruize. PORTSMOUTH, JUNE 2. Arrived the Ellen, WATSON, for the Brazils, and the Minerva, Boats, for Gibraltar, from the Downs. Sailed the SUPERB to the Eastward.—Wind S.W. DOVER, JUNE 2. Passed by last night a convoy from the Westwart under the protection of the SPRIGHTLY cutter. Salle t his Majesty's sloops CHALLENGER and FLY, on cruise. A ship of the line past by here this afternol i for the Downs ; and the ship Betsey, Capt. WILLIAM •, from Jamaica.—Wind W. and moderate. DEAL, JUNE 2. Arrived the SPARROWHAWK sloop, from a cruize ; BUSTLER gun-brig, from a cruize off Boulogne AFRICA, of 64 guns, from a cruize off Ushant, an sailed for Yarmouth. Sailed on a cruize off Ostend; the BLAZER gun-brie ; FEARLESS en -brig, on a cruize off Boulogne. Arrived the Admiral Gambier, —. from the River for New South Wales.—Ships remain as per last. SHEERNESS, JUNE 2. Sailed his Majesty's ship ALAART with a convoy for Gettenburgh.—Wind S.W. HARWICH, JUNE g. Arrived this day the Lord Duncan packet, Captain HAMILTON, with mails from Gottenburgh.—Sailed the Diana, Captain Nl , Doivoucil, for Gottenburgh ; and the Auckland, Captain DEANE, for Heligoland, both with mails and passengers. GRAVZSLND, Jima 2.—Passed by the Canton, Ludwig, from New York; and the Margaretta, —, from Gottenburgh. Sailed the Industry, Prnton, for Barbados; Ann, Rowett, and Selina, Owen, for Malta. HORRID Mnenza.—Early yesterday, as one of the men in the employ of Mr. Rhodes, the cow-keeper, was going to attend the cows in the field at the back of the Queen's-head sad Artichoke public-house, leading to Camden-town, he found a man, gen teely dressed, who appeared to have been shot ; be made the cir cumstance known, and the body was in a short time after owned by the disconsolate widow of the deceased. He proved to be a Mr. Jacobs, of Pratt-place, Camden -town, who had retired there from business in London with a sufficient property to live upon. He left his home in the afternoon to visit Mr. Moss, who resides in Cumberland-place, Lisson-green, and received some money. When he left Mr. Moss, he said he was going to Salis bury-place, where he stopped to eee some persons play at skittles till a late hour. About half past eleven o'clock, the Landlord of the Queen's Head and Artichoke public-house heard the re port of a pistol and the cry of " Murder !" at which time, it is supposed, Mr. Jacobs was attacked by some robber or robbers, and he being a resolute maa, had resisted their attack. In corro boration of this, the stick that he had with him was found with large marks upon it, as if it had given some violent blows. His watch is stolen, audit is supposed he had Bank Notes about him to the amount of 10( which it is conjectured the villains had by s ome means got informatics of. Yesterday morning a eargeon opened the body, and found• that a large bullet had entered the i left side through the ninth and tenth ribs, and passed through the I heart.