is unprecedented, for where have we seen any other nation spread throughout all parts of the earth?

Secondly. I will bring forward prophecies fixing our continuance in this captivity for a protracted period extending to the latter days; and also promises of the prophets regarding our redemption from this captivity; and likewise many predictions from the sacred writers respecting the overthrow of the Roman and other powers who must be deemed unworthy to be allied with the nation of Israel at the time of its restoration. There are several other prophecies yet unaccomplished, which will come to pass at the appointed season.

Now referring to the prophecy concerning the captivity: viz., the captivity effected by the Romans, we read in the law (Deut. xxviii. 64), "And the Lord shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of tl e earth even unto the other;" for, in the Roman captivity, the Jews belonging to the second temple were dispersed and scattered in divers countries then possessed by the Romans. They brought with them people of various nations to besiege Jerusalem for they could not make an easy conquest on account of the great valour of the Jews. Such was not the case at the destruction of the first temple, the Jews being then too few and weak, so that the unaided Babylonians were sufficient to reduce them and to lead them into captivity; they were, therefore, only banished to Babel, as we read at the end of the Second Chronicles (xxxvi. 20), "And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon, where they were servants to him and his sons, until the reign of the kingdom of Persia." Thus we find also in Ezra (ii. 1), "Now these are the children of the province that went up out of the captivity of those who had been carried away, whom Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, had carried away to Babylon,

and came again unto Jerusalem and Judah, every one into his city." See also in the same prophet (i. 2), “ All the vessels of gold and of silver were 5400; all these did Sheshbazzar bring with them of the captivity that were brought up from Babylon into Jerusalem." You see here, from the testimony of Scripture, that the Israelites were only exiled to Babel, and returned only from thence. When we therefore read in Deut. (xxx. 3), "That then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, etc., and gather thee from all the nations whither the Lord thy God has scattered thee," we cannot possibly ascribe it to the captivity of Babel, but only to that of Rome.

When, further, the prophet Ezekiel says (xxii. 15), "And I will scatter thee among the heathen and disperse thee in the countries and cause thy impurity to cease,' we cannot possibly refer it to any other than this last captivity, viz., the Roman captivity. For in the captivity of Babylon their impurity was not removed from them. When they had left Babylon and arrived in the Holy Land, there were still among them men who had taken heathen wives, who profaned the sabbath and committed many more iniquities; hence they became again subject to captivity for their many sins. To this must be referred the remark of the prophet, that by reason of the length of this sad captivity, our sins and our impurities will be removed from us, so that we shall not be exiled again. See Lamentations (iv. 22), "The punishment of thy iniquity is accomplished, O daughter of Zion; he will no more carry thee away into captivity, etc." See also Amos (i. 6), "Thus saith the Lord, For three transgressions of Gaza, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof, because they carried away captive the whole captivity, to deliver them up to Edom"; and in the same chapter (ver. ix.), " Thus saith the Lord, For three transgressions of Tyre, and for four, I

will not turn away the punishment thereof, because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom, and remembered not the brotherly covenant.'

These prophecies referred to the future: viz., to the destruction of the second temple, for those who had escaped from the captivity of Titus and fled to the countries of the Philistines and to Tyre, both adjacent to the Holy Land, were seized and delivered up to the hand of Edom; that is, Titus and his army; for the Nazarene Nations, and the Romans at their head, are alluded to in Scripture under the title of Edom, or daughter of Edom, in like manner as those nations which were converted to the creed of Islam, are called by the Hebrews, Ismaelites, on account of their supposed ancestor Ismael.

Now, what the prophet says (Amos i. 9) concerning the whole captivity, means, that there remained no fugitive or runaway who was not subject to the yoke of the Romans, while there had remained many remnants during the Babylonian captivity who did not yield to the supremacy of the Chaldeans; and, therefore, went to Egypt, as Scripture testifies (see Jeremiah xliii. 7), "So they came into the land of Egypt, for they obeyed not the voice of the Lord." As to the expression of Amos (i. 9), "And they remembered not the brotherly covenant," it alludes to the covenant that existed between Hiram, king of Tyre, and King Solomon; for Scripture says, "That they made a covenant together and addressed each other as brothers (see 1 Kings ix. 13).

We shall now proceed to consult scripture respecting our continuance in this protracted captivity; and we shall perceive that after having surmounted many days of trouble and affliction, the Lord will have mercy again on us in the latter days; and we shall be convinced that, though our deliverance is so long deferred, the

Lord will not forget His covenant and His oath which He swore unto our fathers. See Deut. iv. 30, 31, "When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, thou shalt turn to the Lord thy God, and be obedient unto His voice. For the Lord thy God is a merciful God, and He will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which He sware unto them." Hosea iii. 4, "For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without Ephod, and without Teraphim-afterwards shall the children of Israel return and seek the Lord, their God, and David their king, and shall reverence the Lord in the latter days." This prophecy evidently refers to our present exile; for we have no king, and no prince in Israel, but are under the dominion of Gentiles and their monarchs. We cannot offer sacrifice to God, or seek information by means of the Urim and Thummim, neither is there a false oracle of the Teraphim, which, according to the representation of idolaters, revealed coming events-besides all Israelites are now in captivity, and what the prophet says, "Afterwards Israel shall return," refers to the latter days, close to the time of salvation when the children of Israel shall come back penitently and seek the Lord their God, and David their king, for then they will regret their ejaculation (1 Kings xii. 16), "What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse;" for he who denies the kingdom of David is as sinful as if he had rebelled against the Lord himself, who has given an everlasting dominion unto David and his seed. At the time of salvation shall be fulfilled the saying of Jeremiah xxx. 9, "They shall serve the Lord their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them." We find

besides an allusion to the redemption from the captivity by the Romans in the law, as well as in many passages of the Prophets (see Deut. xxx. 3) "Then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity and have compassion on thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations; and (ver. 4.) "If any of them be driven out to the uttermost of heaven, from thence will I the Lord thy God gather thee and from thence will He fetch them.' (Ver. 5.) "And the Lord thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it, and He will do thee good and multiply thee above thy fathers (ver. 6). And the Lord thy God will circumcise thy heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord thy God with all thine heart and with all thy soul, that thou mayst live." We see that these passages were not fulfilled on the return of Judah and Benjamin from Babylon; for the number of those who returned amounted to only 42,360, as recorded in Ezra ii. The majority remained in Babylon because they were unwilling to go back to Jerusalem. How then can it be maintained that the promise has been fulfilled, which declares "if any of them be driven out to the uttermost part of heaven, from thence the Lord thy God will gather thee, and from thence will He fetch thee."

If even at the time of the second temple, during an abode in the Holy Land, the Lord has not done us more good, nor multiplied us more than our fathers-how can it be asserted that the promises have been fulfilled? viz. "And He will do thee good and multiply thee above thy fathers." For during all the days of the second temple we were in distress and trouble. See Daniel ix. 25 "And after three score and two weeks the streets shall be built again and the wall even in troublesome times." See also the prophecy of Isaiah xliii. 5 "Fear not, for I am with thee; I will bring thy seed from the East, and