ciples, and that he did not intend that the words "soul and body" should be interpreted literally or spiritually. He merely meant to impress upon their minds that, if they, for fear of men, apostatized, God was not only able, but would destroy them with the Jews, as a nation, in such a manner as men were not able to destroy them, as a church or body of believers under the care of their heavenly Father. In the former case, their destruction would be final and irretrievable. They would never again be restored to national life in their own land, nor enjoy the religion of Moses in their temple worship. But, in the latter case, though men could put them to death with severest tortures, yet they could never exterminate his church, or that kingdom which it was his "Father's good pleasure to give them." It was built upon a rock, and the gates of hell could not prevail against it. To use the proverb, they could not destroy it "soul and body," or "root and branch." It was sustained by the power of God, and no persecutions or deaths could shake it. It should outride every storm of opposition, tower above ruin and decay, and stand as immutable as the throne of eternity, till all beings should be subdued to God, till God should be all in all. And thus far these words of Daniel in relation to it have been fulfilled, "And in - the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed." And we add; but it shall break in pieces and consume all other kingdoms, become a great mountain, and fill the whole earth. ARTICLE XXV. DESTRUCTION OF SOUL AND BODY IN HELL. [Concluded.] LET us now turn to the Old Testament and see if there is not some evidence to sustain us in the above view of the subject. Let us see if it is not a proverb. I will pass over all those Scriptures which speak of God's utterly consuming nations, and of his threatening to consume them, which, I might show, have a bearing upon the subject under consideration. They are indeed the same proverb in substance, and only varied in expression; the same as if we should say, Mr. Skinner has had a controversy with Alexander Campbell, and he has torn him up root and branch. He has demolished him soul and body. He has completely put him down to rise no more. Now these expressions are varied in language, yet by them we mean but one thing. We only mean to express entire defeat, proverbially. I therefore pass over such passages of Scripture, and leave the reader to examine them at his leisure, [see, for example, Exodus xxxii. 10. Num. xvi. 21. Deut. vii. 22. 1 Sam. xv. 18, &c.] Leaving these, I will select one or two, which now occur to my mind, as having a direct bear ing upon the case in hand. Isaiah x. 16, 17, 18, "Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire. And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy one for a flame; and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day; and shall consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body; and they shall be as when a standard-bearer fainteth." Here you perceive the prophet declares, that they shall be destroyed "soul and body." This did not mean their punishment in another world, nor their "moral death," nor even the natural death of that whole people, but it was a proverbial expression, to denote their entire destruction as a nation. On this passage, Dr. A. Clarke says, "The fire of God's wrath shall destroy them both great and small, it shall consume them from the soul to the flesh, a proverbial expression; soul and body, as we say; it shall consume them entirely and altogether, and the few that escape shall be looked upon as having escaped from the most imminent danger." Here Dr. Clarke says, that to destroy or consume them, "soul and body," is a proverbial expression," and that in the Hebrew, it means "from the soul to the flesh;" yet he grants, that it did not even mean the natural death of all of that people against whom it was spoken. Scott says, that to destroy them soul and body means "absolutely and finally." This proverb originated among the Hebrews, and hence we see why our Lord's disciples perfectly understood him. The expression, destroying soul and body, is equivalent to destroying a nation, "root and branch." The latter is, in fact, the same proverb in different phraseology. In proof of this, I will produce an instance. Malachi iv. 1, "For behold the day cometh that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly shall be stubble, and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch." Now all commentators, so far as I am acquainted, apply the above passage to that very destruction of the Jews, to which I believe the language of Jesus, now under consideration, applies. And is there not a striking coincidence between the words of Malachi and Jesus? "Burning them up root and branch," and "destroying them soul and body in Gehenna fire," I consider as parallel passages. They both refer to the same people, and to the same long predicted and final destruction which God brought upon them, when their national sun went down in blood. the passage in Malachi, (destroying them root and branch,) Scott says, "it is a proverbial expression for extirpating desolation." Dr. Clarke, On |