Vermont telegraph. [volume] (Brandon [Vt.]) 1828-1843, 1838-01-31
For the pymOnt Telegraph
SECOND COMING or CHRIST.

For the Vermont Telegraph
sEcOyD COMING or CHRIST.
no WIN. MINER, Low-Hampton.N n. Va II
Brother Miller:-Upon more mature re-
Election, Ihave thought best to introduce
my Jifah objection in connection with the
last, and therefore, shall pass to notice that,
q God has nerer revealed the time, and
hence zoe cannot knop."
My reasons are the following:
" = 1. All expressions, upon which common
tators rely to ascertain the time, are figura-
tive: $4,000 days." 1890 days"-" 1885
days"-"time, times & half''-and slime,
times and the dividing Of times"-and $40
weeks in Daniel; 1890 days'-'42 months
-" Eve months"-"a an hour, and day, and
month"; and a year." &c, in Revelation
These, neither you, nor commentators in
general, believe to mean literal time. No
one pretends that these days were just so
many days, and no more; but you suppose
these are as many years meant, as there are
days expressed. But never have been
able TO conceive why God should have di.
rected his prophets TO use 6gurative express
ioas concerning time, when the mode Of
reckoning time was generally known, and
easily to be understood. The Bible abounds
in figures, comparisons and metaphors, but
these are all used to make the subject better
understood-to make more lively and
lasting impression. But can this be true, if
these expressions concerning time are 6g-
uratiVe, and still mean definite period
Should write you letter, informing you
that would make you visit in ten days,
Providence permitting, would you think !
had kept my word, if, in just ten years
visit youl Would you not inquire why, if
meant ten years, I did not say so, and not
use 6gurative language in so plain case
But If inform you that before many days
| shall visit you, il will be seen that make
use of the most convenient way of express
ing an indefinite period. But not only am
/ at loss to know why 6gurative express
ions should be used to denote definite
period, but / find that in some cases at least
when the time Of an event was specified
the prophets were directed to use ttterG
expressions 10 make themselves understood
In proof Of this, see Gen. XIV, l3: And b
said unto Abram, Know Of a surety tina
thy seed shall be a stranger in a land tina
is not theirs, and shall serve them; an
they shall aflict them four hundred years.
AH will admit that these 400 years mean
Just so many, or in other words, were III
eral years. And, although in comParin
this with Exod. Xii, 40, Al, we find di:
.crepancy, yet this can easily be aocounte
for. Be this as it may, Isnever have rea
an author who considered these years fig
urative. Again, when God sentenced tn
Jews to captivity, in Babylon, he gave th
precise time; see Jer. XIV, IL: And tn
whole land shall be desolation, and q
establishment; and these nations shall serN
the king of Babylon seventy years" Con
pare with Dan. tx, 2: in the first year
his reign, Daniel understood by books ii
number Of the years, whereof the word
the Lord came to jeremiah the prophet tn
he would accomplish seventy years in Il
desolations Of Jerusalem" Now who W
pretend that these years were 6gurativ'
Far the contrary, is perfectly evident t
same is true with respect to the wanderin
Of the Jews in the wilderness. They we
expressly told that they were to remain
the wilderness 40 years, aud these yea
proved TO be literal Jonah also was
saw 10 Ninevah, "yet within 40 days." 4
Nooue can doubt, that these days WI
> understood to be just so many aud no me
have now shown that, in some instdn
at least God has made known the time
events, BY using the common mode Of re
q oning and call on you, and all 9th
who believe in your modesOf reckon
time, 70 show one instance where the pei
Of any evshs IS defined BY any other q
litrol days, years, &c. In The cases
Ezekiel ani TIE spies, the time is uneq'
ocally define By literal years.
2 These feuratives expressions do
dirays denote ths same period Of tim
II they did, then, could we but find the
ecifc period Of one, we could as well rec