e immediate neighbourhood of Laodicea were the
Churches of Colosse and Hierapolis; [271:3] and in the vicinity of
Ephesus, perhaps the Churches of Tralles and Magnesia. But the seven
angels mentioned by John may have been the only ecclesiastical
messengers in Patmos at the time of the vision; and they may have been
the organs of communication with a greater number of Churches than those
which they directly represented. Seven was regarded by the Jews as the
symbol of perfection; and it is somewhat remarkable that, on another
occasion noticed in the New Testament, [271:4] we find exactly seven
messengers deputed by the Churches of Greece and Asia Minor to convey
their contributions to the indigent disciples in Jerusalem. There are,
too, grounds for believing that these seven religious societies, in
their varied character and prospects, are emblems of the Church
universal. The instructions addressed to the disciples in these seven
cities of Asia were designed for the benefit of "THE CHURCHES" of all
countries as well as of all succeeding generations; and the whole
imagery indicates that the vision is to be thus interpreted. The Son of
Man does not confine His care to the Seven Churches of Asia, for He who
appears walking in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks is the
same who said of old to the nation of Israel--"I will set up my
tabernacle among you, and my soul shall not abhor you, and _I will walk
among you_, and will be your God, and ye shall be my people." [272:1] In
the vision, the "countenance" of the Saviour is said to have been "as
the sun shineth in his strength;" [272:2] and the prayer of the Church
catholic is--"God be merciful unto us, and bless us, and _cause his face
to shine upon us_, that that thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving
health among all nations." [272:3]

The preceding statements demonstrate the folly of attempting to
construct a system of ecclesiastical polity from such a
highly-figurative portion of Scripture as the Apocalypse. In the angel
of the Church some have believed they have discovered the moderator of a
presbytery; others, the bishop of a diocese; and others, the minister of
an Irvingite congregation. But the basis on which all such theories are
founded is a mere blunder as to the significance of an ecclesiastical
title. The angels of the Seven Churches were neither moderators, nor
diocesans, nor precentors, but messengers sent on an errand of love to
an apostle in tribula