is the heavenly state at the end.  As the sixth seal describes the final overthrow of all the antichristian powers that have oppressed God’s people on earth; so this vision describes the great white-robed company gathered out of every nation, kindred, tongue, and people, who have been preserved faithful through all these trials and tribulations, and who receive at last the crown of everlasting life.  This last vision will be more fully described under certain symbols contained in the last two chapters of this book; while the earthquake, the falling of the stars, etc., of the sixth seal will be more perfectly detailed in chapters 15 and 16.

CHAPTER VIII.

    And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in
    heaven about the space of half an hour.

    2.  And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to
    them were given seven trumpets.

3.  And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.

    4.  And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of
    the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand.

    5.  And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the
    altar, and cast it into the earth:  and there were voices, and
    thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.

The remainder of the book is embraced in the contents of the seventh seal.  This may appear a little singular at first, being so much larger than the preceding ones.  But it is easily understood when we consider the six as being a synopsis of the whole book, containing a history of the church apostate to the final consummation, and also the contemporaneous history of the truth church of God; while the seventh gives in detail the account of these great persecuting powers, civil and ecclesiastical, and the trials and triumphs of the saints in the New Jerusalem—­developing more fully the events described under the six.

Upon the opening of the seventh seal, “there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.”  Whether this interval of silence is intended to be symbolical of any event on earth I do not know; neither have I seen any solution of the matter that is consistent or satisfactory.  Some have supposed that it denoted a cessation of persecution among the Christians of earth.  But if that were the case, then its opposite, “voices in heaven,” would indicate seasons of persecution.  There were several seasons of rest from persecution enjoyed by the early saints, and why should one period be singled out more than the rest and be thus described?  Besides, “a half hour,” according to prophetic time would signify only about one week, a period too short certainly to take account of.  Others have supposed that