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The law of Moses was confined, by the terms of its promulgation, to the land of Judaea: and other systems which have been embraced as Divine attempted to ensure their success In some quarters of the globe by an accommodation to local manners which prevented them from spreading to distant regions. But the religion of Christ has all the internal characters of an universal religion. The manner in which the Gospel was introduced corresponds to these characters of an universal religion. Before He ascended to heaven the Founder constituted His apostles witnesses to Him unto the uttermost parts of the earth, and sent them forth to make disciples of all nations...We readily recognise in Jesus that illustrious descendant promised to Abraham, "in whom all the families of the earth were to be blessed"; that Prince of Peace whose universal dominion the prophets have painted by various imagery, "in whose reign the righteous were to flourish, and the knowledge of the Lord was to cover the earth." But when we look beyond the destruction of Jerusalem these bright views seem to vanish, and we mark, with wonder and regret. a striking inconsistency between the earlier and later history of the Christian Church: This religion was, for many ages, persecuted and despised by the powers of the earth. For a long time it was involved in the superstition and barbarism of the dark ages. The fact is, that, after seventeen hundred years have passed, the religion of Jesus is established in less than a fifth part of the globe. The faith of Mahomet, which has been permitted to overspread a larger portion of the earth, retains undisputed possession of its conquests. What can be said as an answer to the presumption, drawn from present appearances, against the fulfilment of the promise of universality for Christianity?

1. Though the Almighty may do all His pleasure by the word of His mouth, He generally chooses to employ means in accomplishing His purposes, and the operation of those means is so gradual as to admit of a progress ill which one thing not only paves the way for another, but gives notice of its approach. We are not warranted, by the analogy of any part of Divine providence, to expect, in the communication of religious instruction, that haste which to our imaginations may appear desirable.

2. As in natural productions there is a time of maturity to which all the preparation has tended, so the season destined for the appearance of the Gospel, which is called in Scripture "the fulness of the time," was produced by a preparation of four thousand years.

3. The partial propagation of Christianity has already diffused a large measure of religious knowledge, which concurs with other circumstances in preparing the world for its being universally received.

4. The partiality, the delay, and the imperfection in the propagation of Christianity are fully accounted for by the nature of those human means which, without a succession of miracles, it was necessary to employ...Presumption against the universal propagation of Christianity, which has been drawn from present appearances, is contradicted by the general analogy of the Divine government, by the effects already produced, and the forward tendency of things.

(G. Hill, D. D.)

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KJV: For the kingdom is the LORD'S: and he is the governor among the nations.

WEB: For the kingdom is Yahweh's. He is the ruler over the nations.