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Naturally, Christians during the nineteenth century were confronted by the difficulty that while they believed the prophecies were being fulfilled in away clearer and surer than ever before, nevertheless the New Testament stated that 'no one knoweth the hour'. This issue was therefore taken up by many commentators. H.G. Guinness, for example, believed that some elements of prophecy built up to a culmination in history, and therefore, 'It can be no wonder that, as the page of history has unrolled itself, greater accuracy should have been attained, than it was possible for earlier students to possess' (Approaching End of the Age 130). For many Christians, this reasoning explained why Christians in earlier centuries did not seem to understand the prophecies as clearly. Elaborating on the progressive nature of the Christian understanding of prophecy, Guinness writes:
(144:6)
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