vi Saint Peter on Final Restoration. 89 



and the mention of the wounded heel is a prophecy 

 that the Christ should suffer. There are, it is true, 

 suffering gods in some heathen mythologies ; but 

 though divine, they are regarded as finite and of 

 limited power. The thought of a Messiah wounded 

 and suffering in the strife, while vanquishing, tramp- 

 ling down, and destroying his enemies, was, on the 

 contrary, too alien from Israelite feeling for any 

 prophet or poet to utter, unless by Divine inspiration. 

 And the mention of the Serpent's head is a prophecy 

 that in the strife with the Messiah he shall be 

 utterly destroyed, with all his works. A serpent, 

 like any other vertebrate animal, is killed when its 

 head is crushed or cut off; and all the activity of 

 the power of evil, since Christ died " to destroy him 

 that had the power of death," J has been but the 

 death-struggle of the Serpent. 



We now go on to the prophecies of final restora- 

 tion in the New Testament. Peter, the foremost of 

 the Apostles in proclaiming forgiveness to those Jews 

 of Jerusalem who had clamoured for the Saviour's 

 death, spoke of " the Christ who hath been appointed 

 for you, even Jesus ; whom the Heaven must receive 

 until the times of restoration of all things, whereof 

 God spake by the mouth of all His holy prophets 

 which have been since the world began." 2 "The 

 restoration of all things" can only mean their re- 

 storation to sinless perfection and to the favour 

 of God. 



1 Heb. ii. 14. 2 Acts iii. 20, 21. 



