And, my reader, remember the words of the Lord Jesus Christ, how he said, "_as it was_ in the days of Noah, _so shall it be_ in the days of the Son of man." Some would have us to believe that ere the Son of man appears in the clouds of heaven, this earth shall be covered, from pole to pole, with a fair mantle of righteousness. They would teach us to look for a reign of righteousness and peace, as the result of agencies now in operation; but the brief passage just quoted cuts up by the roots, in a moment, all such vain and delusive expectations. How was it in the days of Noah? Did righteousness cover the earth, as the waters cover the sea? Was God's truth dominant? Was the earth filled with the knowledge of the Lord? Scripture replies, "the earth was filled with violence." "All flesh had corrupted his way on the earth." "The earth also was corrupt before God." Well, then, "_so_ shall it be in the days of the Son of man." This is plain enough. "Righteousness" and "violence" are not very like each other. Neither is there any similarity between universal wickedness and universal peace. It only needs a heart subject to the Word, and freed from the influence of preconceived opinions, in order to understand the true character of the days immediately preceding "the coming of the Son of man." Let not my reader be led astray. Let him reverently bow to Scripture. Let him look at the condition of the world, "in the days before the flood;" and let him bear in mind, that "_as_" it was then, "_so_" shall it be at the close of this present period. This is most simple,--most conclusive. There was nothing like a state of universal righteousness and peace then, neither shall there be any thing like it by-and-by.