The Cloud of Doves

The Cloud of Doves

(No. 2764)

A SERMON INTENDED FOR READING ON LORD'S-DAY, FEBRUARY 2, 1902.

DELIVERED BY C. H. SPURGEON,

AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON, ON LORD'S-DAY EVENING,
OCTOBER 12, 1879.

"Who are these who fly as a cloud, and like doves to their roosts?"
Isaiah 60:8.

WE believe that, in the latter days, according to the Word of God, men
will flock to Christ and to His Church in far greater numbers than they
have ever done. At present, we have to go to them, but, by-and-by, they
will come to us. Now we have to search them out, like lost sheep in a
cloudy and dark day, but, in those days, they will feel a gracious
drawing towards their God and His Church–and they will come in vast
multitudes to worship with the people of God–yes, they will themselves
become the people of God and bow down before the feet of Emmanuel, the
Prince of peace! Why should it not be? Why should we not expect it and
why should not the expectation greatly encourage us in laboring on
through these weary years, being well assured that they that sow in
tears shall one day reap in joy?

Yet, even at that time when, through the full preaching of the Gospel
and the effectual working of the Holy Spirit, men shall come flocking
to Christ in troops, even in that hour the Church will be astonished at
the result! She will lift up her hands, and say, "Who has begotten me
these?" She will cry, in the words of our text, "Who are these who fly
as a cloud, and like doves to their roosts?" For, alas, God's people
are often very unbelieving. We have seen something of this spirit even
in our own time. There are certain good old Christian people who, if
they see a convert added to the Church, now and then, are pleased and
satisfied. But if there should be a score added in a month–if there
were to be a hundred–they would hold up their hands and say, "This
cannot be the work of God! There are too many, it is all excitement!"
And they would take counsel together and try to stop it. "Surely," they
say, "it cannot be the work of God because it is so great."

Now my argument is that if we are to judge a work by its size, I should
say that a little work was not the work of God. My method of reasoning
would be this–the greater the work, the more likely is it to be of
God. I do not insist upon that always being the case because God is in
the least conversion–if there is but one, as much as in the conversion
of thousands–but still, if a Brother begins to throw discredit upon a
work in any place because large numbers are converted, I am ready to
meet him and to prove that he is wrong! Pentecost was not the
conversion of some one old woman in a chimney corner through reading a
sermon–Pentecost was not the bringing in of one dear child of a
deacon, one who had been in the Sunday school all his life–but
Pentecost was the conversion, then and there, of three thousand sinners
of every sort, through the preaching of the Word of the Lord! And I
expect that where God is especially manifested, and where He gives His
Churches, Pentecosts, we shall have thousands born in a day, multitudes
flocking to Christ as the doves to their roosts!

Let us begin to enlarge our expectations. Already, in this house, we
have had the prophecy fulfilled on a small scale. See how, these many
years, the multitudes have pressed and thronged to listen to the
Gospel! What other attractions have we had? We have not even that
wonderful box of music with which men praise God with wind–we have
nothing but the most plain possible singing. I am certain that the
crowds do not come to hear that and, as for the preaching, I have
purposely laid aside all the graces of oratory that I might have
had–and tried to make my message as plain and simple as possible. One
good man, who is going away from us, said to me, this morning, "I shall
miss the plain preaching to which I have been accustomed. No doubt
there are some rich people who would like to have it put very finely,
but, you see," he

said, "I have no education and I am glad you have preached so that I
could understand you, because the other people can do the same if they
like." Yes, and they must, too, if they come here, for I will never get
away from the simple preaching of Jesus Christ, as plain as I can make
it! My one work is just to talk of Jesus Christ and of His blessed
Gospel, as plainly as I can. And is there anything like it, in all the
world, to draw the multitudes, to hold the multitudes, to impress the
multitudes? Yes, and to lead them to fly, like doves, to Jesus' wounds
to find salvation there?

Now, coming to our text, I think that the passage refers, first of all,
to the Israelite who sees multitudes coming to Jerusalem to worship the
one living and true God. He stands on the top of Carmel and he looks
across the Mediterranean and he sees the ships of Tarshish coming in
such great numbers across the sea, scudding along before the wind, that
he says, "Who are these who fly as a cloud?" Seen from a distance, the
great fleet of vessels seem like a cloud, and as they come nearer,
those long triangular sails which we who have been along the coast of
the Mediterranean remember so well, suggest to him the second figure,
"Who are these that are flying like doves to their roosts?" It was the
promise being fulfilled, "the ships of Tarshish first"–the men from
the far-off lands hurrying up that they might worship with the
multitude that kept holy day in the sacred city!

Now we may leave both these figures and use the text as the exclamation
of the Church of God when she expresses her wonderment at what God is
doing in the conversion of sinners–"Who are these who fly as a cloud,
and like doves to their roosts?"

I. First, WHO ARE THEY THAT THEY SHOULD BE SO MANY–that they should
"fly as a cloud," like doves in flocks?

The answer to that enquiry is another question–Why should they not be
many? There are a great many sinners in the world–why should not a
great number be converted? When many souls are brought to Christ, they
are only relatively many. Usually, alas, they are relatively small! We
have sometimes rejoiced greatly when we have had as many as a hundred
added to this Church in a month, yet I have gone away and said to
myself–"What is that hundred, after all? It is not sufficient to keep
pace with the increase of the population." It makes us very sad to know
that the increase of sinners far exceeds the increase of the converts
to God. At present, they do not "fly as a cloud." They come in scores,
perhaps, and we are thankful for that, but they do not come as a cloud,
and like a flock of doves flying to their roosts! But why should they
not do so one of these days? Why should they not do so very soon? If
the Gospel is but faithfully preached, and the power of prayer is
fairly and fully tried, and the Spirit of God is working mightily
through the Gospel, why should they not come like a cloud?

There are plenty of them all over the world. Look at the millions all
around us in this nation-city–scarcely to be called a city–for it is
a very world for multitude! Think of the millions of inhabitants in the
British islands who still remain unconverted. There is no fear of our
nets being drawn to shore empty because there are no fish! We may be
bad fishermen, but there are plenty of fish. When we fire in among the
birds, the coveys are large enough. There is no reason, except bad
marksmanship, why we should not hit some among them, for there are
plenty of them! When I hear of a minister fearing that his congregation
will suffer because another chapel is brought near his, I feel ashamed
of him! Go and build a whole street of chapels, if you like! If the
Gospel of Jesus Christ is faithfully preached there, you will fill
them! If it is not, you will not. You need not fear however many
preachers come near you in such a city as this, so swarming with people
as it is. And why should they not be converted in swarms, as there are
so many of them? Why should they not "fly as the doves to their
roosts"?

Has not Christ brought into the world a great redemption When I see Him
dying upon yonder Cross, I cannot sit down and watch His amazing
sufferings and then think that He died only for a few and that, as the
result of the travail of His soul, there will be just a few very
respectable people redeemed with His precious blood! If you can believe
it, you must–but I cannot. I claim for Christ a great reward! I expect
that His Father will so abundantly reward Him that when He makes Him to
see of the travail of His soul, and to be satisfied, it will be with
unnumbered and innumerable millions of redeemed men, women and children
who shall look unto Him and live! Up till now the passion of Christ has
only been very partially rewarded. The Cross has not, as yet, brought
forth its full crop of blessed fruit. Jesus–that precious "grain of
wheat" that was cast into the ground to die, and so to bring forth
fruit–has not yet yielded the wondrous harvest which shall surely come
of that marvelous seed-sowing!

O Beloved, by the blood that fell upon the sterile earth and made it
fruitful, look for great sheaves and abundant harvests and begin to
already sing the harvest home song in anticipation of that great
ingathering! Yes, Christ's converts must "fly as a cloud, and like
doves to their roosts," for He has bought, with His precious blood, a
multitude that no man can number! They must come in great multitudes
because He has attractions which they cannot resist. Let Him but be
made known to them and they must come to Him! Well has it been said–

"His worth if all the nations knew, Surely the whole world would love
Him, too."

"But they are blind," says one. I know they are, but cannot He open
their eyes? "They are deaf," says another. That also is true, but
cannot He unstop their ears? "But their hearts are hard," says a third.
Yes, so they are, but cannot He soften them, or take them away and give
them hearts of flesh? Oh, with such a Christ as ours, I must believe
that sinners must come to Him in vast crowds! He must have the heathen
for His inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth for His
possession. God always works according to scale–He never made a great
cause to produce a little result–and when He Himself becomes
Incarnate–when He Himself bleeds and dies–when He gives Himself up as
a Sacrifice for sin, I must expect that men will come to Him "as a
cloud, and like doves to their roosts."

And why should they not come in crowds when the Spirit of God is quite
able to lead them to come That same Holy Spirit who converts one, can
just as easily convert a hundred! The Gospel, applied by the Spirit of
God to a dozen souls, can manifestly convert a thousand, or a million!
Spiritual force is like fire–give me but one spark and I can set a
city all ablaze! One little lamp, overturned by a cow, caused Chicago
to be swept away in flames. One match could cause a prairie
conflagration of almost immeasurable extent. There is, practically, no
limit to fire, and there is absolutely no limit to the power of the
Spirit of God. He has but to work, and the same Truth of God which
converted one soul, today, can convert ten thousand or ten millions
tomorrow! Why, then, should He not make them willing in the day of His
power, so that they should "fly as a cloud, and like doves to their
roosts"?

Once more, let us remember, that Heaven is very great and the
preparations which Grace has made are very large. That is a most
gracious sentence in Christ's parable of the great supper, "Yet there
is room." If we could enter Heaven, at this moment, I guarantee you
that we would not hear the angels or the redeemed from among men
talking of the place being overcrowded! If we went down its shining
streets, we would see many mansions furnished and prepared, and the
destined inhabitants must occupy them. There is many a sacred joy laid
up in store and those for whom it is intended must have it. Heaven is
not a place prepared in vain, which will, at last, prove to be a
failure! You may build a city, but you cannot fill it with inhabitants
at your own pleasure. I saw, in the South of France, part of a city
with street after street of well-built houses–with fountains and a
cathedral–but the streets were green with grass, the fountains were
full of filth and the houses were inhabited by the poorest of the poor,
or else were standing empty! But Heaven, at the last, shall not be like
that. Oh, no! The wedding shall be furnished with guests. At the great
King's banqueting table, there will not be one empty seat! No David
will be missing in that day! The Lord shall gather in all His elect
from the East, and from the West, and from the North, and from the
South–and they shall "fly as a cloud, and like doves to their roosts."

II. Now, secondly, WHO ARE THEY THAT THEY SHOULD FLY?

As the light cloud before the breath of the tempest, so they come to
Christ. As the doves fly with swift wings, to their roosts, so do they
speed to the Savior–but why do they come to Him in such a hurry? These
new converts are not to be kept back! Old saints preach patience to
them, but they will have none of it. They tell them to wait a while,
but they feel that they cannot wait–so they "fly as a cloud and like
doves to their roosts." Why do they fly?

The first answer is they fly to Christ because they are driven and
cannot help flying to Him. When the Spirit of God lays hold upon a
man–and like the wind, He blows where He wishes–I guarantee you that
that man must fly to Jesus! He can hold out no longer. He must repent,
he must believe, he must have Christ and he must have Him now! Look,
there he is, on his knees! He cries to God for mercy and he adds many
tears to his earnest entreaties. He cannot wait for the blessing and he
will take no denial! He cries, "Give me Christ, or else I die!" And
well he may, for the blessed Spirit, like a strong North wind, is
blowing behind him and making him to be one of those who fly like a
cloud!

Why do they fly? They may well fly because they are in danger. Do you
wonder that a man is in a hurry to escape when he sees the gulf of Hell
yawning before him? These sinners who are in such haste to fly to
Christ are like doves pur-

sued by a hawk. Satan is after them! Sin is pursuing them! Death is
drawing near them and Hell is close at their heels–so they are rightly
alarmed and distressed. Do not tell me about seeking Christ calmly and
quietly–you cannot do it if once your conscience is thoroughly
aroused! If you realize that sin is upon you, that God condemns you
because of your sin and that, by-and-by, you may be where hope and
mercy can never come to you–

"In flames that no abatement knows, Though briny tears forever flow"–
why, you must fly! That is not the time for roosting or resting! You
must fly like a dove to its dovecot when you have a true sense of the
danger in which you are placed through your sin!

Besides that, these flying sinners have strong desires within them. The
dove flies to her dovecot because she wants to be there and she will
not be happy until she gets there. I sometimes see a man throw a pigeon
up into the air, that it may find its way home. It usually wheels about
for a little while, as though it were uncertain which direction it
should take. But, presently, its quick eye catches sight of some
familiar landmark, or by instinct it knows which is its way home and
then, away it goes! There is no turning to the right, or to the left,
but, straight as an arrow shot from a bow, it flies towards its roost!
So is it with a soul that the Spirit of God has once quickened! It
longs for Christ, it pines for Christ. It may hesitate and look about
to find the way it is to go to find Him, but, at last, it says within
itself, "There He is," and away it goes, like the doves to their
roosts! Do you wonder that it does so when the sacred instinct, the
holy desire, is so strong within it?

Why do they fly? Well, they may well fly because they have such a short
time in which to reach the Savior. I cannot tell–for I am neither a
prophet nor the son of a prophet–but I may be addressing someone who
will never see the sun rise again. There may be an unsaved soul in this
place who must be saved before 12 o'clock shall come round, or that
soul will be lost forever. We have had deaths, before now, while the
service was proceeding in this Tabernacle–and such a thing may happen
again–and strike us with sudden sorrow as well as with deep solemnity.
But, in any case, mortal man has but a short time to live and some–we
know not to which among us this may relate–have a very, very short
time to live. The Rabbi's answer to a foolish question was a wise one.
When he was asked, "How many days before he dies should a man repent?"
He replied, "One day before he dies and, as he may die today, or
tomorrow, he had better repent at once." So, as we sang, a little while
ago–

"Come, guilty souls, and flee away Like doves to Jesus' wounds"– using
all possible haste–because the day is far spent and the night is at
hand in which you will not be able to find your way to the shelter of
perishing sinners which is now available for you!

III. A third question is–WHY DO THEY FLY AS DOVES–that is, all
together–in a covey–in a flock, so that they look like a moving
cloud?

Well, the first reason is, because they are all in one common danger
and, usually, when persons are in that condition, they give up their
bickering against one another and join heartily together! Each one, as
he becomes anxious for himself, also feels a similar anxiety for his
fellows, so they band themselves together and "fly as a cloud, and like
doves to their roosts." Souls convinced of sin have no time or
inclination to quarrel! When a man feels that he must "flee from the
wrath to come," he does not notice that someone else is not respectful
to him. No, he thinks of himself as a lost sinner– and lost sinners
must not be so foolish as to stand upon their dignity, nor even to
insist upon their rights and privileges! At such times they are willing
to stand in the aisle, or to be crowded up in a corner anywhere, so
long as they can but hear the Gospel–and they will bear anything from
their fellow men if they may but find Christ! It is wonderful what
communion of spirit springs up among them.

One, who has himself been under conviction, has seen another weeping on
account of sin and has said, "Well, if I do not find Christ, myself, I
hope that young man will do so. If I am never to be saved, I do hope
that poor woman, whom I saw in such an agony of spirit, may soon find
joy and peace in believing." And, sometimes, when they hardly dare to
pray for themselves, they will pray for one another! And when they
scarcely have any hope for themselves, they will entertain very kind
desires concerning those who have sat next to them, who have been under
impression. They are too much taken up with the solemnities of their
condition before God to have time or wish for contention and,
therefore, they do not quarrel and fight, as a number of hawks might
do, but they fly together in one band, as a company of doves might be
expected to do.

Besides that, they fly together, because they are seeking one common
Refuge. They seem to say to one another, "Are you seeking the Savior?
So am I. Are you anxious to get rid of sin? So am I! Are you desirous
to be washed in the precious blood of Jesus? So am I. Do you want the
Spirit of God to renew you? So do I." So, in these various points, they
are so closely bound together that they fly as a cloud! Besides, the
Holy Spirit has already changed their nature to such an extent that
they are all seeking that which is holy. Once they were like the hawk,
the bird of prey–they were of an angry spirit and they strived with
one another. But penitence imparts to those who possess a dove-like
character. When sin is being mourned over, pride lies low. When
transgression and iniquity stare a man in the face and humble him, he
becomes gentle, tender and patient. He mourns like a dove without its
mate and he seeks the Savior in the hope that, finding Him, he will
also find peace and comfort of heart.

For all these reasons, convinced sinners, when God is dealing with
them, get close together and they "fly as a cloud, and like doves to
their roosts." I would like again to see such a cloud of them here as
we have sometimes seen. When I came back from my holiday two years ago,
and met the 150, or thereabouts, who had sought and found the Savior
during the special services, it was a pleasant thing to listen to their
hearty singing and to hear them talk in their own simple, earnest style
of the way in which Christ had met with them! It was indeed cheering to
my heart to see these doves thus flying as a cloud! Oh, for another
such flight! May the Lord send it to us speedily! Let us believingly
pray for it–then shall we have it–for He is sure to grant us the
desire of our hearts.

IV. There is only one other question which I will try to answer. Let me
remind you that we have already had these three enquiries–Who are
these converts that they should be so many as to fly as a cloud? Who
are they that they should fly so fast, like a flock of pigeons or
doves, hurrying to their dovecots? Who are they that they should fly
together, so as to make one cloud, one flock of doves? Now, lastly, let
us ask–WHO ARE THEY THAT THEY SHOULD FLY THIS WAY? I mean, what makes
them fly to Christ? What makes them fly to His Church? I can understand
that when they are in danger, they should fly, but why do they fly this
way? The answer is because it is the dovecot of souls! Christ Jesus is
the Owner of this dovecot–no, more than that–He Himself is the
Dovecot!

So, first, like a flock of doves they fly this way because they are
seeking safety and there is no safety for them except in the Lord Jesus
Christ. What is the safety that is in Him? It is this. It is inevitable
that God must punish sin, but He sent His Son into the world and laid
on Him the iniquity of all who will ever believe on Him. He punished
Christ instead of them and, therefore, He cannot and will not punish
them, for, to punish the same offense twice would not be justice! To
exact the penalty of sin first at the hand of the Divine Surety and
Substitute, and then to exact it again at the sinner's hand, would not
be right–and the Judge of all the earth will always do right. So,
because God has exacted, at the hand of His dear Son, the ransom price
for our iniquity, therefore all for whom Christ died are forever clear
of all liability– and if you believe on Him, you have the mark of
those for whom He died! If you trust Him, you have positive proof that
you are one of His! If you rely upon the merit of His blood and
righteousness, that is clear evidence that He gave His life as a ransom
for you and you can never be sent to Hell! You cannot be punished for
your sin, for Christ has borne the punishment of it. Your guilt was
laid on Him and all your sin is gone forever–it cannot be brought
against you, period! This is the comfort of all Believers and,
therefore, these people come flying to Christ to get this safety. Like
doves, they fly to the dovecot that they may be in safety there.

But they need more than safety. They also need rest and a dovecot is a
place of rest to a dove. I went, some time ago, into one of those old
dovecots which used to belong, by a sort of right, to large estates. A
man must have a considerable amount of property before he was allowed
to possess a dovecot. With my guide, I entered a square building and I
saw that up the four walls, which were very lofty, there were almost
innumerable places made for the pigeons–and they all seemed to be
full. We could not stay very many minutes in the place, but we could
see tiers upon tiers of nests of pigeons, all occupied by the
softly-cooing birds. That is just what is meant here. When the doves
are pursued by the hawk, they fly to the dovecot and there they find
both safety and rest. It is their home–there, they enjoy themselves to
the fullest. And oh, what a sweet rest we have in our Divine Dovecote,
our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! We are so protected and preserved in
Him that we rest in perfect security!

Jesus Christ is the "home, sweet home" of His people. We find ourselves
completely at home when once we get to Him. Wherever we wander, there
is no place like this home. A swallow has two homes–one here, in the
summer–and another in the sunny South, in the winter. I bade the
swallows. "Good-bye," a week or two ago, but I daresay that I shall

soon see some of them again in their other home. But a dove has only
one home. Winter or summer she lives in the same dovecot. So is it with
a Believer–he has only one home and that is His Master's bosom! He
loves Jesus, He rests in Jesus and Jesus is, therefore, the home of his
spirit.

Now, in closing my discourse, shall I tell you why some of you love to
come to Christ's House as well as to Christ Himself? I think, first,
that you like to come where God's people assemble because your food is
there. It must be one main part of the business of the minister, on the
Sabbath, to feed his people. And if he does that, they will be sure to
flock around him. Did you ever stand in the square of St. Mark at
Venice, as the clock struck two? If you have ever done so, you have
seen the pigeons come flying down in such flocks that they cover all
the ground! You may even walk among them and they will not mind you.
Somebody always feeds them at two o'clock and they know it–and they
come then because they are fed. I will be bound to say that if I were
to employ a musician to go there tomorrow at two o'clock, and to play
on a flute to them, but to give them no barley, they would not come!
And if he were to go there dressed in the particular robes adapted to
St. Monday, or whatever "saint's day" it is tomorrow, the pigeons would
not come if his hands were empty–but if he gives them barley, they
will come, however he is dressed, and whatever music he may play! And
we love to come to the House of God because, like doves, we have
appetites and we like to be fed! And if the finest of the wheat is
scattered in the form of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we are sure to be
there, to eat and to be satisfied.

We love to be there, next, because our companions are there. The doves
fly to their roosts because there are other doves there that they love.
And we sing with Dr. Watts–

"My soul shall pray for Zion still, While life or breath remains. There
my best friends, my kindred dwell, There God my Savior reigns."

In the midst of the Lord's people we have formed associations that will
outlast all the ties of blood, for, in that land where they neither
marry, nor are given in marriage, ties formed here will endure forever
there. Fathers in Christ will still be fathers there. Mothers in Israel
will continue to be mothers there. Friends in Christ will be friends
forever there. If the Gospel had done nothing else for some of us but
introduce us to dear friends to whom we are knit for eternity, it would
have been an everlasting blessing to us! We fly, like doves to our
roosts, because there are other doves there and we wish to be with
them.

Some of us fly there because our young are there. No dove flies so
swiftly home as that mother dove that has young ones awaiting her
return. And there is, I think, no man who loves the Church of God
better than he does who has young children in it. Remember how the
Psalmist wrote, "Yes, the sparrow has found a house, and the swallow a
nest for herself, where she may lay her young, even among Your altars,
O Lord of Hosts, my King and my God." Blessed be His holy name, He is
my father's God! He was my grandfather's God! He was my
great-grandfather's God! He was the God of all my ancestors as long as
we have any record of them and I am glad to say that He is the God of
my sons, too! So I must love Him and rejoice in Him. Fathers and
mothers, I hope you will all have this tie to the Church of God, for it
is a very tender one and, also, a very strong one. May you come to love
the Church of God because your children are there!

Last of all, we fly to Christ and to His Church because our All is
there. Mr. John Wesley used to sing–

"No foot of land do I possess, No cottage in this wilderness"– and he
had not any–when the good man came to die, all the wealth he had in
the world was less than £10. When he was asked how he would dispose of
his plate, he said that he had only two silver spoons, one at York, and
one in London, for everything else had gone into the great cause of his
Master! And we best prove that we love Christ when everything we have
is given up to Him and all our wealth, all our strength, all our joy
and everything else is found in Him, so that Christ is All, and in all!
When He is all to you, you will fly to Him as a dove flies to its
roost. God help you all to do so, for Jesus Christ's sake! Amen.

EXPOSITION BY C. H. SPURGEON: ISAIAH60.

This is a chapter full of good news, a prophecy of the bright days that
are yet to come to this dark world. These dull days are not to last
forever. The reign of wickedness will come to an end and earth shall
have the bright sunlight of Jehovah's Presence. The words are addressed
to the Church of God–it little matters whether to the Jewish or the
Gentile Church for, now, they are all one in Christ and there is no
distinction in the message to both Jews and Gentiles.

Verses 1, 2. Arise, shine; for your light is come, and the Glory of the
LORD is risen upon you. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the
earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon
you, and His Glory shall be seen upon you. We have had abundant proof
of the darkness and of the grossness of that darkness, for these many
centuries. Now we are to look–and I trust that we can already see it
in part–for the arising of the Sun of Righteousness, first upon the
Church, and then upon the whole world!

3, 4. And the Gentiles shall come to your light, and kings to the
brightness of your rising. Lift up your eyes roundabout and see: all
they gather themselves together, they come to you: your sons shall come
from far, and your daughters shall be nursed at your side. Or, rather,
"shall be carried as by a nurse upon her side." The strong ones–the
sons–shall come walking. The weaker ones–the daughters–shall be
carried like children who need to be nursed, but they shall all come.
Today, the Church of Christ has to go. The message to Christ's
disciples still is, "Go you into all the world, and preach the Gospel
to every creature." The Church must send her heralds far and wide to
tell the good news, but a blessed change will be worked when the
nations will come to hear the story, flocking in crowds to listen to
it, and Christ will be sought by those who never sought Him before–

"O long-expected day, begin!

Dawn on these realms of woe and sin!"

5. Then you shall see, and be radiant, and your heart shall fear, and
be enlarged. First, the blessing shall seem too great to be real, and
the Church shall tremble with fear. But, afterwards, she shall believe
in it, and rejoice in it, and so her heart shall be enlarged.

5. Because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto you–The
sailors shall come to Christ in great numbers! And when they are
converted, they will be the best of missionaries. Each boat shall be a
floating Bethel and every port at which they touch shall be the gladder
for the good news they will have to tell–"The abundance of the sea
shall be converted unto you."

5. The forces of the Gentiles shall come unto you. The soldiers, as
well as the sailors, shall enter the service of the King of kings! Oh,
what a happy day it will be when every soldier shall have enlisted
beneath the banner of peace! Then they will be able to fight the good
fight of faith every day and to be the means of saving multitudes of
precious souls. According to this verse, great importance is attached
to the conversion of sailors and soldiers–God grant that some of us
may live to see this prophecy fulfilled!

6. The multitude of camels shall cover you, the dromedaries of Midian
and Ephah. Wealthy nations of the Oriental type, who ride upon camels
and dromedaries, and who have long been under the sway of the false
prophet, Mohammed, shall yield allegiance to the Son of God.

6, 7. All they from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and incense
and they shall show forth the praises of the LORD. All the flocks of
Kedar shall be gathered together unto you, the rams ofNebaioth shall
minister unto you: they shall come up with acceptance on My altar, and
I will glorify the house of My Glory. Pastoral people–travelers from
place to place in the wilderness–shall come to Christ. There shall be
no untamed nation, no barbarous people that shall continue to oppose
the coming of that glorious Kingdom of the blessed God in those happy,
happy days! As for the Church, she shall be so astonished that she
shall cry out–

8. Who are these who fly as a cloud, and like doves to their roosts?Or,
"to their cotes."

9. Surely the isles shall wait for Me, and the ships of Tarshish first.
Tarshish was some country far away from Palestine. It is difficult to
say exactly where it was, but the Phoenicians made their most distant
voyages there. It may have been this very island in which we live–and
we know that they came here for tin. It is a very remarkable thing that
islanders have usually been the first people to be converted to Christ.
If you will, at this moment, think of any places where true religion is
strong and dominant, you will naturally think of islands. Then, the
mention of ships shows what regard God has for sailors when He says,
"The ships of Tarshish first."

9, 10. To bring your sons from far, their silver and their gold with
them, unto the name of the LORD your God, and to the Holy One of
Israel, because He has glorified you. And the sons of strangers shall
build up your walls. And it is so today. Some, who were total strangers
to God and to His Grace, have now become the most earnest ministers of
Christ–"The sons of strangers shall build up your walls."

10, 11. And their kings shall minister unto you, for in My wrath I
smote you, but in My favor have I had mercy on you. Therefore your
gates shall be open continually. No alarms of war will cause them,
then, to shut the iron gates.

11, They shall not be shut day nor night. There shall be free access to
Zion, to the Church, and to Christ, Himself, at all times.

11-17. That men may bring unto you the forces of the Gentiles, and that
their kings may be brought. For the nation and kingdom that will not
serve you shall perish; yes, those nations shall be utterly wasted. The
glory of Lebanon shall come unto you, the fir tree, the pine tree, and
the box together, to beautify the place of My sanctuary; and I will
make the place of My feet glorious. The sons also of them that
afflicted you shall come bending unto you; and all they that despised
you shall bow themselves down at the soles of your feet; and they shall
call you, The City of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel
Whereas you have been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through
you, I will make you an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.
You shall also drink the milk of the Gentiles, and shall milk the
breast of kings: and you shall know that I the LORD am your Savior and
your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. For brass I will bringgold, and
for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron.
You see, it is better, and better, and better, for that is God's way
with His people–to bless them, and then to bless them over again, and
again, and again, giving them Grace upon Grace, Grace to qualify them
to receive yet more Grace!

17-22. I will also make your officers peace, and your exactors
righteousness. Violence shall no more be heard in your land, wasting
nor destruction within your borders; but you shall call your walls
Salvation and your gates Praise. The sun shall be no more your light by
day; neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto you: but the
LORD shall be unto you an everlasting Light, andyour God your glory.
Your sun shallno more go down, neither shallyour moon withdraw itself
for the LORD shall be your everlasting Light, and the days of your
mourning shall be ended. Your people also shall be all righteous: they
shall inherit the land forever, the branch of My planting, the work of
My hands, that I may be glorified. A little one shall become a
thousand, and a small one a strong nation: The LORD will hasten it in
His time. Oh, that "His time" were come! The happy period is hastening
on and it will come at the right time. We ought not to be dispirited by
delays, for it will surely come–it will not tarry a moment beyond the
time appointed by God, blessed be His holy name! Amen.

HYMNS FROM OUR OWN HYMN BOOK–436,494,607. HYMNS FROM "OUR OWN HYMN
BOOK"–136, 494, 607.