"Hence the end of the world should be awaited with all longing by all believers"

William Ames, a prominent Puritan theologian of the early 17th century, reflects here on the appropriate Christian attitude toward the end of the world, more accurately, the Second Coming of Christ and the fulfillment of God's promises. His statement suggests an approach not characterized by fear or anxiety, but by longing and anticipation. For Ames, Christian faith orients believers’ hopes not to the continuation of earthly life but to the ultimate restoration and glory brought about in the final consummation of God’s plan.

The underlying assumption rests in a robust confidence in God’s promises. The end of the world, in Christian theology, is synonymous with the completion of redemption, the resurrection of the dead, final judgment, and the arrival of a renewed creation wherein suffering, sin, and death are vanquished. For believers, this is not destruction but fulfillment, the realization of all things hoped for. Ames thus invites Christians to desire this event actively, to yearn for it rather than shrink from it. The longing he speaks of is grounded in a love for Christ, a desire to be united with him fully, and a trust that what God has in store surpasses anything possible in the present fallen world.

Ames also implies a sense of corporate solidarity, “all believers”, an attitude that transcends individual experience and gathers the Christian community in hope. Such longing is not simply passive waiting but an active posture of faith. It involves preparing the heart and living in a manner that reflects hope in God’s promises, spurring holiness and perseverance amidst trials.

Anticipating the end of the world shapes the believer’s values, minimizing attachments to transient and imperfect earthly matters. It roots joy and motivation not in present circumstances but in the sure expectation of God’s ultimate victory. In Ames’s view, Christian life is essentially forward-looking, animated by a hope that makes the end, not something to dread, but something to eagerly await.