Twenty-five years in the West

by E. Manford

A few days after this affair, I spent four days in discussion with Mr. Coon, a Scotch Presbyterian, and Calvinistic “up to the hub.” He was a prominent man in his church, intelligent, and well educated. He subsequently published a book of three or four hundred pages, against the doctrine of the Restitution, and in defense of eternal punishment. The discussion was held in Jefferson; and though the weather was intensely cold, a large number attended. Mr. Coon was a strong man, and all were anxious to hear. He had thoroughly prepared himself for the work. It required two or three men to carry his books to and from the church. I had my Bible, and perhaps two or three other books. He talked English, and Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew. Mr. Taylor, a Presbyterian minister, who had just closed an eight days’ debate with John O’Kane, of the Campbellite Church, was one of the moderators, and he prayed for Mr. Coon, imploring the Lord to help him on that important occasion.

“These shall go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into life eternal,” (Matt. xxv. 46,) was one of his proof-texts. “It is evident,” said he, “that this passage teaches the endless punishment of the wicked, for the following reasons: 1. It relates to what would transpire at the end of the world. This, and the preceding chapter, is an answer to the questions, ‘What shall be the signs of thy coming, and of the end of the world?’ Matt. xxiv. 3. 2. ‘These’ were to go into everlasting punishment when Christ would come the second time, and that event was to take place at the end of the world. 3. Everlasting is from the same Greek word that is rendered eternal, and consequently the everlasting punishment is to continue as long as the eternal life. If one will end so will the other end. 4. The best scholars tell us, that the Greek word here rendered everlasting and eternal, signifies endless duration.”

I replied: Mr. Coon tells us, that his text was to be fulfilled at the end of the world spoken of in Matthew xxiv. He is doubtless correct. Now, learned men of all denominations tell us, that world there means the Jewish Dispensation, and the end of the world the end of that Dispensation. Most of them translate the passage, “end of the AGE.” It is so rendered by Doddridge, Macknight, Whitby, Pearce, Le Clerc, Hammond, Wakefield and Kenrick—all learned men, and save one or two, advocates of endless misery. The word, world is often used in this sense in the New Testament. “Now once in the end of the world hath Christ appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” Heb. ix. 24. Christ did appear at the end of the Jewish Dispensation for that purpose. The Jews divided time into two ages—the age before Christ, and the age after Christ. The first age ended, as Paul says, “when Christ appeared.” The end of the world, then, took place eighteen hundred years ago, and then the gentleman’s text was fulfilled.

2. When Christ was to come the second time, some were to go away into everlasting punishment. When was he thus to come? In this same discourse Jesus speaks of that coming, and affirms, that it would take place in that generation. “And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man, ... and they shall see the Son of man coming.” He then states when he would come: “This generation shall not pass till all these things be fulfilled.” Matt. xxiv. 30, 34. On another occasion, addressing his disciples, he said, “But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another; for verily I say unto you, ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel till the Son of man be come.” Matt. x. 27. He would come so soon that the disciples would not be able to visit all of Israel’s cities. At another time he said, “For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father, with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.” Matt. xvi. 27, 28. He was to come the second time before some who heard these words would die. He intimated that the apostle John would live to witness this coming. “Peter seeing John, saith to Jesus, Lord, what shall this man do? Jesus saith to him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that the disciple would not die; yet Jesus said not to him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee.” John xxi. 21-23. It requires considerable effort to misunderstand these plain declarations. Jesus told his hearers, that he would come the second time, 1. In the generation in which he lived; 2. So soon the disciples would not have time to visit all Judah’s cities; 3. Before some he addressed would die; 4. That John, the beloved disciple, might live to see him come. In the face of all this testimony, Mr. Coon tells us, that coming is yet a future event! But the truth is, that coming took place at the beginning of the Christian Dispensation, at the ushering in of the Gospel Age, at the setting up of the kingdom of God. The revelator, who was the disciple John, says, he “saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven.” Rev. xxi. 3. Judaism had passed away, Paganism was dead, and a new order of things had commenced—old things had passed away, all things had become new. The world had entered on a new era. This is what Christ meant by his coming in power and glory.

3. The gentleman truly says, that everlasting and eternal are from the same original word. He then assumes that “eternal life” in his text means endless blessedness, and then infers, that “everlasting punishment” means endless wretchedness. His assumption and inference are alike fictions. According to the New Testament, the Christian, in this world, is in possession of eternal or everlasting life. “He that believeth on me HATH EVERLASTING LIFE.” “Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, HATH EVERLASTING LIFE, and shall not come into condemnation, but IS PASSED from death unto life.” John v. 24. “This is LIFE eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.” John xvii. 3. Eternal life is gospel life—spiritual life, and every Christian man and woman is now in possession of this life. When a person is alive to every thing holy and good, possesses the spirit of Christ, and lives the life of Christ, it may be truly said of him, he “HATH everlasting life.” So, when a man’s character is the reverse of this, when he is a son of error and sin, it may be truly said of him, he HATH everlasting punishment. If everlasting life can be enjoyed here, cannot everlasting punishment be suffered here? Again, a person may be a Christian to-day, and consequently in possession of everlasting life; but his love may wax cold, he may become a sinner, an unbeliever, an infidel; he will then be no longer in possession of everlasting life. So, an infidel and a sinner of to-day may become a saint, like St. Paul; he then passes from death to life, from suffering everlasting punishment to the possession of everlasting life. But, by everlasting punishment, Jesus had direct reference to the temporal desolation that was soon to befall his countrymen at the end of the Jewish Dispensation. The kingdom was to be taken from them, and they were to be cast out into outer darkness, till the fullness of the Gentiles should come in.

4. Mr. Coon informs us, that the Greek terms, aion, aionios, mean endless duration. These are two forms of one word. Aion is a noun, and ios added to it, forms the adjective. This word occurs in these two forms three times in the twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth chapters of Matthew. In the twenty-fourth chapter, the disciples inquired of Jesus, “What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?” These two chapters answer these two questions. Now, world is from aion, the same word rendered everlasting, and eternal, in the text. There was then to be an end to aion. Mr. Coon tells us, that this word means duration without end, and in the same speech cites the same word to prove that it (aion) is to end! One passage explains the other. In one place Jesus speaks of aionios punishment, without stating whether he means endless or limited time; in the other place the apostles inquire concerning the end of the aion, and Jesus in answering their question, tells them, that it shall end, “but,” he adds, “the end is not yet.” Many things would transpire before that event would occur. “He that endureth to the end shall be saved.... And the gospel of this kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness to all nations; and then shall the end come.... Verily, verily, I say unto you, this generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.” Matt. xxiv. 6, 13, 14, 34. We have, then, the word of Jesus for it, that aion, and consequently, aionios, everlasting punishment, may end. I will give the true definition of aion, according to learned men—all believers in endless woe:

Schleusner.—“Any space of time, whether longer or shorter, past, present, or future, to be determined by the persons or things spoken of, and the scope of the subject—the life or age of man; any space in which we measure human life, from birth to death.”

Donnegan.—“Aion, time; a space of time; lifetime and life; the ordinary period of man’s life; the age of man; man’s estate; a long period of time; eternity. Aionios, of long duration; eternal, lasting, permanent.”

Schrevelius.—“Aion, an age, a long period of time; indefinite duration; time, whether longer or shorter, past, present or future; life, the life of man. Aionios, of long duration, lasting, sometimes everlasting, sometimes lasting through life.”

This is the definition learned men give the word. I will now show that the Bible attaches the same meaning to it.