has loved and revered her own immediate dear mother, will not echo the hope?

Again and eminently, the heavenly figure under consideration presents an image of the Church: "the King hath brought me into His chambers."

"Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?" All glorious she is within by the Indwelling of the Holy Spirit, and effluent glory envelopes her as with the sun for a garment. The moon, set below, may never again eclipse the sun; yet inasmuch as the perfect life had to be developed out of the imperfect, the unchangeable out of the changeable, therefore the moon abides underlying that consummated glory. Twelve stars compose her crown, a twelvefold splendour. I have seen the Twelve Apostles suggested as the interpretation of this symbol; and well may it direct our thoughts to their glorious company, the illumination of their doctrine, the shining light of their example. Perhaps there will be no harm in an additional gloss. The eternal state of the Church Triumphant is expressed by her sun-vesture; the moon beneath her feet memorializes her temporal probation while militant in this world; the twelve stars may-may they not? for earth's day is as night when compared with heaven's day-may remind us of those twelve hours in the day during which she was bound to walk and work in accordance with our Lord's own words and practice. Thus her probation issues in glory, a glory all the more glorious because of that probation. "Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates." Or if stars seem too incongruous an emblem of any daylight hours; I call to mind both that there shall be no night there, and that certain benefactors have for their allotted dignity to shine as the stars for ever and ever : whereby stars take rank in the everlasting day.

Or rather, what real connection is there between stars and night more than between stars and day? Earth's shadows approach them not in their high places; nor so far as we can trace, affect them in any way, or do aught in their regard beyond revealing them to mortal ken. Our perception varies, not their lustre. 2. And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.

Wending my way amid inscrutable mysteries, the words of each verse suggest at least detached matter for thought.

The 87th Psalm (1-6: Player-book version) narrates how

"he" was born in divers places and apparently of different parentages. Which comes to pass concerning Christ: Who being formed in each elect soul of whatever kindred, nation, people, tongue, locality, is thus "born wheresoever such

happy souls are born; holy Church being their mother. "Her foundations are upon the holy hills: the Lord loveth the gates of Sion more than all the dwellings of Jacob. Very excellent things are spoken of thee: thou city of God. I will think upon Rahab and Babylon: with them that know me. Behold ye the Philistines also: and they of Tyre, with the Morians; lo, there was he born. And of Sion it shall be reported that he was born in her: and the Most High shall stablish her." Thus out of Egypt again and again God vouchsafes to call His Son. Thus may Philistia a thousand times be glad of Him. Is any spot excluded? Nay: "The Lord shall rehearse it when He writeth up the people that He was born there." Cries and travail pangs :-no marvel then that not without effort, suffering, fear, sometimes agony, missionaries do and must do their work of travailing for souls. But they shall remember no more the anguish for joy of the birth: "In that day shall there be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians. In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the land: whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt My people, and Assyria the work of My hands, and Israel Mine inheritance."

Eve, the representative woman, received as part of her sentence "desire": the assigned object of her desire being such that satisfaction must depend not on herself but on one stronger than she, who might grant or might deny. Many women attain their heart's desire: many attain it not. Yet are these latter no losers if they exchange desire for aspiration, the corruptible for the incorruptible: "Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah for the Lord delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married." "The desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband." "Give me children, or else I die," was a foolish speech: the childless who make themselves nursing mothers of Christ's little ones are true mothers in Israel.

O Lord, when Thou didst call me, didst Thou know
My heart disheartened thro' and thro',

Still hankering after Egypt full in view,

But, Lord, when Thou didst choose me, didst Thou know
How marred I was and withered too,

Nor rose for sweetness nor for virtue rue,

Timid and rash, hasty and slow?

"Yea, I knew.".

My Lord, when Thou didst love me, didst Thou know

How weak my efforts were, how few,

Tepid to love and impotent to do,
Envious to reap while slack to sow ?
"Yea, I knew.".

Good Lord Who knowest what I cannot know
And dare not know, my false, my true,

My new, my old; Good Lord, arise and do

If loving Thou hast known me so.

-"Yea, I knew."

3. And there appeared another wonder in heaven and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.

A wonder and not least a wonder because beheld "in heaven." The monster has seven heads, which perhaps may be viewed as indicating pseudo-self-completeness and assumption of independence; ten horns, pseudo-strength; seven crowns, pseudo-supremacy. For these seven crowns appear (see Revised Version) to be correctly translated "seven diadems"; and to be consequently not wreaths of victory but insignia of dominion. Power therefore the dragon wields, yet only under sufferance and until it be reclaimed from him: victory is not his, nor shall be. He is that "swift" to whom the race is not, that "strong" to whom is not the battle.

Even his "red" colour may possibly express a pseudosanctity for of the Stronger than he we read: "Wherefore art Thou red in Thine apparel?" Thus would Satan himself be transformed into much more than an angel of light.

And at the present day when so open-mouthed an antagonism has set in against Christ and Revelation; and when so many "devout and honourable" persons (if following the Inspired text I dare call them so) are arrayed against the truth as it is in Jesus; and when signal virtues of philanthropy, with selfspending and alacrity in being spent, take the field like Goliath the Giant in defiance of the armies of the Living God; I think the pseudo-Christ-like aspect of error becomes prominently urged upon our gravest consideration : especially as of necessity we know not how close upon us may already be the actual ·

personal Antichrist in whom human wickedness appears to culminate; that Antichrist who will, it seems, be a foul human agent and copy of the old original Evil one. Let us pause a moment to face this last great adversary, who not as our open enemy but as one of ourselves, will do us this dishonour.

Some then presage in the Antichrist a pseudo- or mockChrist. And that his adherents will be not rebels merely, but eminently dupes, St. Paul by Inspiration intimates; when touching the Second Advent and the awful period preceding it, he writes: Let no man beguile you in any wise: for it will not be, except the falling away come first, and the man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, he that opposeth and exalteth himself against all that is called God or that is worshipped; so that he sitteth in the temple of God, setting himself forth as God. And then shall be revealed the lawless one, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the breath of His mouth, and bring to nought by the manifestation of His coming; even he, whose coming is according to the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, and with all deceit of unrighteousness for them that are perishing; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God sendeth them a working error, that they should believe a lie that they all might be judged who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness."

I have here quoted the Revised Version in preference to the Authorized because, whilst in my ignorance of Greek I can only take either text upon trust, I note some difference between the two renderings. The words "bring to nought by the manifestation of His coming," seem pointedly to express how the simple revelation of truth must supersede and abolish error: whereas "destroy with the brightness of His coming" (Authorized Version), may suggest a physical destruction as by fire from heaven. Again: "all deceit of unrighteousness for them that are perishing," is perhaps more easy to be understood, than "all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish" (Authorized Version); and by suggesting that the perishing persons in question entertain no idea of their death-struck condition, the phrase recalls those piteous words of Hosea concerning Ephraim: "Strangers have devoured his strength, and he knoweth it not: yea, gray hairs are here and there upon him, yet he knoweth not."

4. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood

before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. "Yea, the stars are not pure in His sight." "How is the gold become dim! how is the most fine gold changed! the stones of the sanctuary are poured out in the top of every street. . . . They that were brought up in scarlet embrace dunghills."

Temptation, whatever guise it assumes, remains essentially and unalterably base: not even the head, but the tail of the dragon drew and cast down those stars. Temptation, however urgent, remains powerless to compel: the stars were "drawn," not swept along, their free will being seduced, not overborne. At least, they preach to ourselves by such a parable; to ourselves who are free to stand or to fall.

"He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in Him will I trust. Because thou hast made the Lord, which is

...

my refuge, even the Most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee. The dragon shalt thou trample under Because he hath set his love upon Me, therefore will I deliver him."

feet.

As to this dragon, he appears to be that "murderer from the beginning," whom our Lord thus characterized plainly to His hearers. As he was, so he is; and his lusts he will do so far as in him lies.

Yet is God Almighty able to break the heads of the dragons in the waters. Meanwhile, what is the mind of the saints? "Our heart is not turned back, neither have our steps declined from Thy way; though Thou hast sore broken us in the place of dragons, and covered us with the shadow of death."

A travailing woman and a new-born babe: truly these might have seemed souls destitute of help. But even concerning doomed Edom, the word of prophecy saith: "Leave thy fatherless children, I will preserve them alive; and let thy widows trust in Me." Not fathoming the profound signification, let me be thankful for the encouragement of a homely mercy. If my song cannot be of "mercy and judgment," it can at least be "of mercy . . . unto Thee, O Lord, will I sing. O let me have understanding in the way of godliness."

:

Behold in heaven a floating, dazzling cloud,

So dazzling that I could but cry Alas!
Alas, because I felt how low I was;

Alas, within my spirit if not aloud,