15.- Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me.

16.—I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things.

17.-These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.

18. But the saints of the most high shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and

ever.

19. Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet; 20.-And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.

21.-I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;

22.-Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the Most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.

23. Thus he said, the fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.

24.--And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.

25.-And he shall speak great words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand, until a time and times and the dividing of time. 26. But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and destroy it unto the end.

27. And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.

28.-Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me, Daniel, my cogitations much troubled me, and my countenanc● changed in me but I kept the matter in my heart.

These verses contain an explicit interpretation of the preceding vision, in accordance with which we have endeavoured to frame our explanations. Danicl, it appears, was deeply affected with what he saw, and in his dream applied to "one of them that stood by," that is, an angel, for the developement of these mysteries. He was then assured of the emblematic reference of what he saw to the four great empires, and, upon a further inquiry into the meaning of the symbols, he received information respecting the fourth beast, and the horns in particular. In these verses we have an additional intimation respecting the persecuting spirit of the little horn, which "made war with the saints"deep aggravation of its other guilt, as evinced in boast and blasphemy. The saints of the Most High are said to take the kingdom, that is, the rule of the world by a moral and spiritual, not a military, operation. It would ill comport with the spirit of christianity to suppose an ambitious seizure of empire; but it is precisely consonant with its principles, and with the

-a

continual aim of the people of God, to interpret this of a subjugation and acquired dominion by the force of evidence, argument, and example-such "a compelling of them to come in," as ministers and missionaries daily use in exhibiting the glory and the grace of Christ, urging their compliance with his claims, and appealing against the aversion of their hearts and the pertinacity of their resistance.

A particular period of time is here specified. Times and laws are said to be given into the hands of the little horn or power that should speak great words against the Most High, and wear out the saints, "until a time, and times, and the dividing of time." It has been before seen that by time in prophetic language is signified a year; by times, of course two years; by the dividing of time, half a year. But a prophetic year is 360 prophetic days or years; therefore these three years and a half correspond with 1260 years, which synchronises with another period in prophecy of forty-two months, the season during which the apocalyptic witnesses were to prophesy in sackcloth and antichrist to exist. The computation must be made from the period when the little horn or ecclesiastical power of the church of Rome should arise. That application of the prophecy is the most probable, which fixes on the time, when,

by the decree of Phocas, the Roman pontiff was constituted universal bishop, and supreme head of the church. This was in the year of our Lord 606. This being admitted, the 1260 years of ecclesiastical domination would bring us to A. D. 1866.

LECTURE XII.

DANIEL VIII.

Verse 1.-In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared unto me, even unto me Daniel, after that which appeared unto me at the first.

2. And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was at Shushan in the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai.

3.-Then I lifted up mine eyes and saw, and, behold, there stood before the river a ram which had two horns, and the two horns were high; but one was higher than the other, and the higher came up last.

4.—I saw the ram pushing westward, and northward, and southward; so that no beasts might stand before him, neither was there any that could deliver out of his band; but he did according to his will and became great. 5.-And as I was considering, behold, an he-goat came from the west, on the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground; and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes.

6.--And he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen standing before the river, and ran unto him in the fury of his power.

7.—And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with choler against him, and smote the ram, and