-one class who looked with joy to the Lord ' s appearing , and who had been diligently preparing to meet Him ; another class that , influenced by fear and acting from impulse , had been satisfied with a theory of the truth , but were destitute of the grace of God . In the parable , when the bridegroom came , " they that were ready went in with him to the marriage ." The coming of the bridegroom , here brought to view , takes place before the marriage . The marriage represents the reception by Christ of His kingdom .
The Holy City , the New Jerusalem , which is the capital and representative of the kingdom , is called " the bride , the Lamb ' s wife ." Said the angel to John : " Come hither , I will show thee the bride , the Lamb ' s wife ." " He carried me away in the spirit ," says the prophet , " and showed me that great city , the holy Jerusalem , descending out of heaven from God ." Revelation 21:9 , 10 . Clearly , then , the bride represents the Holy City , and the virgins that go out to meet the bridegroom are a symbol of the church . In the Revelation the people of God are said to be the guests at the marriage supper . Revelation 19:9 . If guests , they cannot be represented also as the bride .
Christ , as stated by the prophet Daniel , will receive from the Ancient of Days in heaven , " dominion , and glory , and a kingdom ;" He will receive the New Jerusalem , the capital of His kingdom , " prepared as a bride adorned for her husband ." Daniel 7:14 ; Revelation 21:2 . Having received the kingdom , He will come in His glory , as King of kings and Lord of lords , for the redemption of His people , who are to " sit down with Abraham , and Isaac , and Jacob ," at His table in His kingdom ( Matthew 8:11 ; Luke 22:30 ), to partake of the marriage supper of the Lamb .
The proclamation , " Behold , the Bridegroom cometh ," in the summer of 1844 , led thousands to expect the immediate advent of the Lord . At the appointed time the Bridegroom came , not to the earth , as the people expected , but to the Ancient of Days in heaven , to the marriage , the reception of His kingdom . " They that were ready went in with Him to the marriage : and the door was shut ." They were not to be present in person at the marriage ; for it takes place in heaven , while they are upon the earth . The followers of Christ are to " wait for their Lord , when He will return from the wedding ." Luke 12:36 . But they are to understand His work , and to follow Him by faith as He goes in before God . It is in this sense that they are said to go in to the marriage .
In the parable it was those that had oil in their vessels with their lamps that went in to the marriage . Those who , with a knowledge of the truth from the Scriptures , had also the Spirit and grace of God , and who , in the night of their bitter trial , had patiently waited , searching the
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