4 6 living princes, who were worshipped as Gods, which 'was to continue to deceive the whole world from Daniel's time forward.' And speaking of St. John's prediction, that men fhall worship the ten-horned Beast, he fays, worshipping, as I have already fhewed, rightly expreffes that unreasonable idolatrous refpect, which 'mankind have in all ages fhewn to abfolute princes, by treating them as Gods 13. And it is obferved by bp. Chandler, that human figures, in early times, were, as the remains in ancient coins ftill fhew, the ufual fymbols, whereby cities and people were known. And the metal they were made of, and the colours that adorned them (of which the herald's art preferves yet fome traces), were farther marks to diftinguish them from each other 14.' The demolition of the metallic image is reprefented under a well-known figure, that of a flone, which, being cut out without hands, fmote the image on his feet, and brake them to pieces; which prophecy conveys a fimilar meaning to a paffage in the apocalypfe already expatiated upon, that the Lamb fhall overcome the Ten Kings. The Ten Toes of the image,' fays Mr. Lowth, when fpeaking of the Roman empire, fignify the Ten Kings, who were in after-times to divide this kingdom among themfelves denoted by the Ten Horns of this fourth Beaft, mentioned in ch. vii. 7, compared with Rev. 'xvii. 12. By the ftone being a fpecies of mineral altogether different from that of which the image was compofed, it was, fays bp. Chandler, implied, that this 13 An Eff. on Script. Proph. and particularly on the Three Periods of Daniel, 1724, p. 58, 84. This writer expreffes his expectation, that the year 1790 would be a memorable epocha, distinguished by great and momentous events; but his expectation was grounded on an erroneous computation of the periods of Daniel. See p. 158. 14 Def. of Chr. p. 95. 6 new 'new kingdom fhould be not only different in number, or a diftinct empire, but of another nature from that of the image'.' Like an unfhapen ftone, alike deftitute of polish and of magnitude, the difpenfation of Jefus was to be principally propagated by men of the plainest manners, unadorned by learning, and undignified by rank; and, at its firft rife, it was to make a small and comparatively inconfiderable progrefs. The ftone cut out 'without hands,' fays Mat. Henry, reprefented the kingdom of Jefus Chrift.' It is faid to be cut out of the mountain without hands, for it fhould be neither raised, nor fupported by human power or policy; no 'visible hand should act in the setting it up, but it should ⚫ be done invifibly by the Spirit of the Lord of Hofts: 'this was the Stone which the builders refused, because it was not cut out by their hands, but it is now become the Head Stone of the corner. Mat. Henry alfo observes, that Christ himself declares (Mat. xxi. 44), with a reference to this prophecy 16, that on whomfoever this Stone fhall fall, it will grind him to powder. And to whom does the prophecy of Daniel relate? Unqueftionably to the Ten antichriftian Monarchies, which are eftablished, fomewhere or other, in the European quarter of the globe. Let tyrants read this affeveration of our Saviour, and tremble. In v. 32 and 33 it is declared, that this image's head was of fine gold, his breaft and his arms of filver, his belly and his thighs of brafs, his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. Now the commentators prove at large, that the golden part of the monarchical 15 Def. of Chr. p. 97. 16 That our Saviour in his difcourfes had these prophecies of Daniel very frequently in view, Dr. Sykes has proved in his Eff. on the Chr. Rel. p. 30, 79. image reprefented the empire of the Affyrians, the filver that of the Perfians, the brafs that of the Greeks, and the iron and the clay that of the princes of the Roman empire. It was on account of its great strength, as the prophet himself informs us, that the fourth empire was compared to the last of these metals. And th fourth kingdom fhall be ftrong as iron; forafmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and fubdueth all things; and as iron that breaketh all thefe, fhall it break in pieces and bruife. Daniel's own interpretation is,' fays bp. Chandler, 'fo plain, that no unbiaffed person can easily mistake in the empires he prophefies of. He is exprefs in the ' number. There shall be four kingdoms; and he counts ⚫ the Babylonian, then in being, for the firft". Hiftory tells us, the Medo-Perfian broke, and fucceeded the 'Babylonian. The Greek empire came into the place ' of the Persian by conqueft, and is therefore the third. 'No historian ever confined the Greek empire to Alex'ander's perfon, or made a diftin&t empire of the four 'kingdoms, that arofe upon his death. The Greek was 'deftroyed in its two lateft branches, that of the Seleucides and Ptolemies by the Roman, which is confequently the fourth kingdom, and answers in every ' respect to its iron character 18.' Since it is faid in v. 34, that the flone fmote the image; and in v. 35, that then was the iron, the clay, the brafs, the filver, and the gold, broken to pieces TOGETHER", and became like the chaff of the fummer threshing-floors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was 16 V. 40. 17 V. 18 Def. of Chr. p. 99. 19 In v. 45 it is again faid, that the flone, which was cut out of the mountain without hands, brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the filver, and the gold. found for them20; we must of neceffity affent to the obfervation of bp. Hurd, that the four kingdoms of 'Daniel-form a prophetic geography, being confidered, in the eye of prophecy, as coexiftent' and as ftill alive';' and we must conclude, that not only in Europe, but in all the countries of the globe, formerly poffeffed by the Babylonians and Perfians, the Greeks and Romans, the modern antichriftian monarchies fhall be fo completely deftroyed, that not the minuteft portion of their power fhall be fuffered to maintain its ground. From an observation, fhortly to be alleged from Sir I. Newton, this conclufion will appear farther evident. All the best commentators do, indeed, agree, that the fourth of Daniel's empires is the Roman in its largest fignification; and that it includes, not only the republican government of the Confuls, not only the arbitrary government of the Emperors, but the multiplied dominion of their fucceffors, the Ten Kings: and it must therefore be admitted, in confiftency with this, that the other metals are not merely emblematic of the empires of Affyria, of Perfia, and of Greece, properly fo called, but likewise of the modern as well as the ancient monarchies, erected in thofe parts of the globe. These last, in the ftrict acceptation of the words, had indeed perished antecedently to the firft propagation of Chriftianity; fo that the fymbolic stone, having no exiftence, could not poffibly have contributed to break them in pieces. The words of Jurieu and of bifhops Newton and Chandler, I next cite, though it must be acknowledged, that on a matter, predicted with so much plainness, there 6 30 The expreffion alludes, fays Mr. Lowth, to the threshing-floors in 'the Eastern countries, which were usually placed on the tops of hills.' 1 Vol. II. p. 143. is was firft fet up, is little need of farther elucidation or of additional autho rities. These Ten Toes,' fays the divine of Rotterdam, ' are the Ten Kings, which were to make up the king'dom of Antichrift 22, and reign together with him, in 'the laft period of the Roman empire, during the 1260 ' years marked in the Revelation 23. The kingdom of 'Chrift,' fays the bishop of Briftol, 'while the Roman empire was in its full ftrength with legs of iron. The Roman empire was afterwards di'vided into Ten leffer kingdoms, the remains of which are fubfifting at prefent. The image is still flanding ' upon his feet and toes of iron and clay :--but the ftone ' will one day fmite the image upon the feet and toes, and defroy it utterly 24. Not unfimilar is the language of bp. Chandler. The kingdom of the mountain,' fays the prelate, fhall beat the feet of the monarchical ftatue 'to duft 25. In truth, the prophet himfelf does not merely predict, that the feet of this image of monarchy fhall be broken in pieces; but he afterwards fpeaks without a figure, adding by way of explanation, v. 44, that all these kingdoms fhall be broken in pieces and confumed. To darken the import of fuch language would be a vain attempt. As the ruin of thefe Ten Kings appears plainly announced by the voice of prophecy, will not fome of the readers of Dr. Gill's Expofition of Daniel, when they perufe his enumeration of the countries which they govern, take efpecial notice of the imperial dominion in Germany, and of the monarchies ' 26 * In order to understand the apocalypfe, it is of the first importance, that the reader fix in his mind correct ideas of the genuine extent of the antichriftian empire, and learn who are the perfons who hold within it a high pre-eminence of crimes and power. 23 Vol. II. p. 290. 24 Vol. I. p. 426. * Def. of Christianity, p. 106. The diftinction of Mr. Mede, hereafter to be given in his own words, the bifhop here adopts. 16 On Dan. vii, 24. A a 2 of |