Recently I have been doing a good deal or research on 17th and 18th century millenarian ideas both on the European Continent and and in England. I recently obtained a set of books on inter-library loan entitled Millenarianism and Messianism in Early Modern European Culture, and when I went into them - especially Volume III - I discovered that except for the date setting based on the 1260 Days of Daniel and Revelation, J.A. Brown's exposition on the seven times (later the seven gentile times), and the concept of the two stage coming that is enunciated in Lacunza's The Coming of the Messiah in Glory and Majesty, all of which was dealt with at the Albury Park Conferences,there was virtually nothing new in Adventist or Bible Student/JW millenarianism.

What particularly fascinated me was the material on Sir Isaac Newton. To my great surprise he had a heavenly hope for the Martyrs and saints and an earthly hope for the Jews and the righteous nations during the millennium. But besides that he had the concept of the invisible presence with a heavenly New Jerusalem ruling over the earth. In most cases I found that Newton's ideas and C. T. Russell's were very close, although Newton believed there would be no resurrection during the millennium. Rather, it would take place after the 1000 years and the destruction of Satan and his hordes. And so far, I have found no example of where Newton thought the 144,000 were the children of the first resurrection or the church class.

Besides the fact that Newton believed in the invisible presence during the millennium, the things that interested me in particular were that Newton believed in the soul sleep, was an Arian and very critical anti-trinitarian, and believed in the conversion and the return of the Jews to Palestine. Was Newton, like John Milton, a proto-Bible Student? I know RR144 will appreciate this information.

I know also that Carl Olof will want to see the information on Newton and the invisible presence, and I'll send it to him shortly.

Jim