The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1879-04-03
Eternal Punishment.
BY THE LATE DR.. W. E. M1rNsEy

BY THE LATE DIR. w. E. MuNsEY.
TExT-"These shall go away into ere,-
lasting punishment; but the righteous into
tJe eternat."-Matt. XIV, 46.
The eternal punishment of the wicked,
the eternal happiness of the righteous, and
the eternity of God, as far as Revelation is
concerned, form the same building. The
universalist has placed his shoulders against
the basement pillars, and if lie succeed the
whole structure falls; but he and his CO. |
laborers may toll and sweat, and leave their
bones to moulder away in the cellars. but
God lives on. the righteous shout on. and the |
damned sroan on-throughout eternity-O, |
Eternity
The meaning OF such a word in its connec-
ton with the future punishment of the wick
ed is dreadful-O, Eternity! Its significance
is as high and wide and deep and grand as
God is. He fills it, and it fills Him, and all
the worlds, and all the men, and all the
demons, and all the angels, but perform
their parts in its awful shadow. 1 can tell
you what time is, but eternity cannot be de-
fined. Time can be measured, because it is
first measured by the revolutions of the
planets and the aspect OF the stars; because
having beginning and an end its past can
be increased, and its future diminished It
can be defined because it has parts, these
parts sustain relations to each other and the
whole-any enc Of them can be selected out
OF the Whole and given name-any one of
its parts can furnish an ultimate for the
mind to reason about all the others. 1t can
be defined because having parts it can be
| analysed.
But eternity cannot be defined. Begin
ningness and endless it cannot be measured
its past increased, its future diminished.
1t has no past, it has no future, it has no
ends. it has no middle, it las no partisan
analyzable, tremendous unity. If all the
mountains of all the worlds were pressing
upon the brain, they could not weigh it
down more heavily than eternity's last con-
ception. 1t is something which always was,
and is, and always will be. 1t is coeval with
God; it began when He began, and He had
no beginning; twill end when He will end,
and He will have no ending. 1t is an I'M
originated, beglnningless, endless, measure
less, imperishable, indescribable, undefina-
BILE thing. Itself is its only definition. Il
asked what is eternity? we can only answer
ETERNITY" and in our answer confess our
weakness and folly. It is older than the
| world older than the sun, older than the
stars, Older than the angels, as old as God
yet no older now than when worlds, suns,
stars, and angels were made, and never will
be any older, yet meyer was any younger.
| 1t is infinite circle. A circle itself is un-
ending. Mount the car of thunder, drawn
by steeds of lightning, and ride around the
world, and find the end Of the equator. Fas-
| ten your horses to your chariot on the An
des, facing TO the east. Take the reins, APP
| ply the lash, and roll over the flowers, ever |
| the trees. over the rivers, over the cities,
| over the sands, over the islands, over the
| continents, over the seas, and girdle the |
| world, and girdle it again, and girdle it for
| ever. Where the line begins and where it
| ends, you never will find-O Eternity ! |
| Mount Ph@bus' solar car, and seat yourself
beside the driver, and search for the end of
| the ecliptc. Lay on the burning whip, and
| see the fiery named and foot winged steeds
dash through the MISUNDERSTANDING
worlds standing out Of your tracks, and
| spaces abyss gaping beneath you; and drive
| on till the wheels of your car shall SILVER,
| and the overdriven horses die, and you are
| lost where no angel will find your bones
| and you will find no end to the ethereal cir
Gle. But these circles are finite, and while
you cannot find the end, yet you, in the
search for 1t, pass along the same track
again and again. Eternity is an infinite
circle, and along its line you may travel for
ever without reaching your starting point
an infinite circle, and Now, the porte nteous
Now, is its centre. Being infinite, its centre
is anywhere and everywhere, within its cir
conference. With reference to us, whatever
was nO,C, is noD, or will be now, is its centre.
We were born in the centre OF the circle,
we will die in the centre, and remain there
forever.
Eternity is an infinite line. The strongest
winged angel who cleaves the illimitable
ether may track it, and track it forever, yet
he can no more find its end than he can find !
the cradle or tomb of God. The Flooding
and incarnated soul of man can find it just :
as quickly. 1t is day without morning.
day without an evening-an eternal noon.
1t was just noon when the world was made,
it will be just noon when the world is de-
stroyed-high noon forever. O Eternity
The idea deepens, widens and towers, till
the human mind, COMPOUNDED and crushed, T
shrinks into infinite littleness, and frighten. I
ed, flies into its temple closes all the doors,
and tries to hide its little self forever.
0 Eternity! All languages beg at thy foot 3
stool for one word to tell thy name and all
sciences pile their symbols at thy feet, and 4
implore thee for one Illustration of thy
length. But thy oracles are dumb because :,
OF the dizziness of the querlst-God can only t,
be thy questioner. And thy vast pendulum n
beating to the birth and death of worlds,
ever vibrating. goes and comes .orever-and a
der. Eternity! Mother of cycles and
parent of ages, whose incalculable and in t.
value no satisfaction can 8,
diminish, no addition increase-thou only 81
ype of Diety, and day of His Duration Ii
What must be thy significance when joined a,
o the stern penalty Of sin, thou becomest to b'
The lost Eternal death. Dreadful phrase 81
t will be written with fiery pen upon all m
he walls of hell, and scared in every arch II u
" the lightening's blaze, and sounded sa
trough every dungeon by the thunder's b
orrid breath. 1t is the motto upon the seal s 81
God which fastens the doors of woe.
here are no farewells in Heaven. Such a
7ord never rang in chords OF breaking an q
uish from the harps of the redeemed, or X
lrieked in their harmonious preludes, or :,
anced upon their vibrating strings-also, no
lere are no farewells in hello Eternity Sta
ternity..