It provided a respite, a space for repentance, before the final stroke fell; and so far as we can see, it was because of that respite that the Jewish people, unlike their kinsfolk of the north, survived the utter destruction of their state, and lived to hand on a great religious inheritance to the wider world. (religion-online.org)
I used to think that this Christmas Eve moment for Advent was like the final stroke of midnight before New Year's Eve turned into the New Day: a shout, a celebration, pour the champagne! (sarahbessey.com)
On the eighth day He bestirred Himself again, and created moth and rust, His final stroke of mastery.» (religion-online.org)