58SKS ■ ■•■'■ •''■■■ ■••■•'■'•■ •••■•■■;•■ ' ■ •••■■■•- '■■ '■:'• 8««5 ^^^p mmmmmmmm K /2, ?,Z2L 3Frnm tip iCtbrarg of •Prnftaanr Utttjamttt Smktttrtiige Hartfolft SttjHeatlp& bg Ijtm to tip IGtbrarg of Jlrmrrtott SUjwlogtrai g>?mtttarg BS2S2b ,F%sr ^ fftk m $§ni IrS PIP Pp^v^^ (K^iS* iS^^3<^i THE REVELATION OF ST. JOHN THE DIVINE SELF-INTERPRETED. A COMMENTARY FOR ENGLISH READERS. BY THE REV. SAMUEL FULLER, D.D., PROFESSOR OF THE LITERATURE AND INTERPRETATION OF THE HOLY SCRIPTURES IN THE BERKELEY DIVINITY SCHOOL, MIDDLETOWN, CONN. NEW YORK: THOMAS WHITTAKER, 2 and 3 Bible House. 1885. Copyright, 1884, By THOMAS WHITTAKER. FRANKLIN PRESS I RAND, AVERY, AND COMPANY, BOSTON. equation. TO HIS WIFE. CHARLOTTE KINGMAN GREENLEAF, FOR FIFTY-FIVE YEARS 'HE PARTNER AND HELPER OF HIS LABORS AND STUDIES, THE PAST AND PRESENT LIGHT, JOY, AND LIFE OF HIS STUDY AND HOME, 2Tt)t!3 Uolume is most fitlg tngcribrtj bg tfje Slutfjor ; EVER PRAYING, MAY WE BECOME POSSESSORS TOGETHER OF THE GRACE OF ETERNAL LIFE IN THE NEW JERUSALEM. PREFACE. After centuries of virtual exclusion from the calendar, the Apocalypse of St. John is now inserted in the Tables of Lessons of Holy Scripture in the Book of Common Prayer. The last legacy of Christ to his church is beginning to be duly appreciated. Christians perceive that the inspired book, so long misunderstood and neglected, provides them with the most efficient armor in their incessant warfare with error and sin. The}' need courage and hopefulness : the Apocalypse abounds in these essential treasures. The new position now occupied by the precious volume demands new recognition, and requires, on account of the enriching truths everywhere pervading its pages, familiar explanations in order to render its obscurities intelligible to all classes of readers. We are painfully aware that many Christian people think the Book of Revelation a sealed depository. But our Lord himself does not fasten the arsenal with a seal. He ends each of his Epistles to the seven churches with this urgent exhortation: " He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches." He ends his parables with the same inviting encouragement. He evidently supposes his "unlearned and ignorant" first disciples can readily vi PREFACE. understand these figurative discourses. " How then will ye know all parables?" (Mark iv. 13.) Plainly, in Christ's judgment, the Book of Revelation is quite as intelligible as are his parables. The book itself presumes that the first Christians compre- hended its utterances. Without this presumption, the words which now follow are mockeries : " Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein " (Rev. i. 3). "Tes- tify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy ' ' (xxii. 18). Since Christ made the Apocalypse to be understood, and since its first readers understood it, the book can be under- stood now. Christians of the nineteenth century can so far take the place of the first readers of the book as to "see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart" (Isa. vi. 10). Whenever this possible internal substitution occurs, the discoveries and riches will be " pearls of great price " (Matt. xiii. 46). The Apocalypse contains largely within itself the means of its own explanation. The very first voice St. John hears — " What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia" (i. 11) — reveals Jesus Christ as their Judge; since in the book he himself there utters both approvals and condemnations. At this very spot does the Apocalypse itself open wide its own door of explanation. No reader is denied full and free entrance. Thus, Christ is Supreme Judge in the very first vision he grants us, and also throughout his seven Epistles. In the second division of the Apocalypse (chapters iv.-xx. 1-10), the Lamb is co-partner with his Father in the throne PREFACE. VII of judgment erected at the beginning of the division (iv. 2), and sustained throughout the division. On this judgment- throne the Lamb is ever the same heart-searching Judge, deciding in this world the destinies of all men, and acting as Supreme Judge invisibly, and yet absolutely, so long as time itself shall last. In chapter xx. 11-13, the Son of God, even Christ (verse C), is the jinal Judge of all the risen dead, both " small and great," whether buried on the unmeasured surfaces of the land, or in the unfathomable depths of the sea. A throne of judgment does not exist without a court and its different actors. In the second division of the book, where Christ is the enthroned Judge, the plaintiff before the bar of his judgment-seat is his Church, ever living by suc- cession, ever suffering, and ever pleading his vengeance (vi. 9, 10) against all her enemies in the present life, both heathen and nominally Christian. The Judgeship of Christ is, therefore, one of the strong keys which render the opening of the many locks in this peculiar book ready and easy. Of this pervading subject of Christ's supreme Judgeship, the other portions of the volume are illustrations and confirmations. Every person who reads the Apocalypse with this key the book itself provides, need not longer think its pages sealed and locked away from his knowledge. His progress may prompt him to exclaim, with St. Paul, "We are come unto Mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are writ- ten in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to Jesus the mediator of the viii PREFACE. new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel " (Heb. xii. 22-24). References to the principles of the original language of the Apocalypse could not be wholly avoided. Greek scholars will appreciate the necessit} 7 . The swell of the sea is always quickly felt by the experienced navigator. An actual voyage on the ocean sharpens practised eyes to discern, not only the underlying quicksands, but also the profound depths no line can fathom. The Greek text of Westcott & Hort is used in this volume. CONTENTS. FIRST DIVISION. PAGE Chapter 1 3 Chapter II 21 Chapter III. 53 SECOND DIVISION. PART I. Chapter IV. . 95 Chapter V 102 Chapter VI 110 Chapter VII 124 Chapter VIII 133 Chapter IX 143 SECOND DIVISION. PART IT. Chapter X 157 Chapter XI 165 Chapter XII 189 Chapter XIII 203 Chapter XIV 235 Chapter XV 249 Chapter XVI 260 Chapter XVLl 279 Chapter XVI11 294 Chapter XIX. ... * 309 Chapter XX 324 THIRD DIVISION. Chapter XX. — continued 350 Chapter XXI 356 Chapter XXII 374 DIVISIONS. The Book of Revelation separates itself into three divis- ions (chapter i. 4-7). FIRST DIVISION. The epistles to the seven churches (chapters i.-iii.). SECOND DIVISION. The symbolic history of the Church of Christ before his second advent (chapters iv.-xx. 10) ; namely, the various conflicts and triumphs of the Church. The second division of the Apocalypse has two parts : — 1 . The judgments of God on the heathen world (chapters iv.-ix.). 2. His judgments upon his apostate Church (chapters x.- xx. 10). THIRD DIVISION. The Church and the world of mankind after the second advent of our Lord, and the universal judgment (chapters xx. 11-xxii.). The last judgment and its consequences (chapter xxii. 6-20 is a summary of the second division). THE REVELATION OF ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. FIRST DIVISION (Chapters i.-iii.). CHAPTER I. THE PREFACE (Yerses 1-3). 1. The Kevelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him, to shew in vision to his servants the events which must shortly come to pass : so in symbols he signified them b} T sending through his angel to his servant John. The Revelation of Jesus Christ : the revelation of which he is the Author. The revelation he " shewed and signified" (verse 1). God: the Father (see verse 6). "The times and seasons the Father hath put in his own power " (Acts i. 7). To shew in vision: all things that he sow (verse 2). His servants: Christ's people; my servants (ii. 20). The events which: the antecedent (implied in "which") is em- bodied in the verb below, "come to pass." Must: the Greek verb denotes objective necessity, created by God's purposes. On the contrary, "ought" (St. John xiii. 14) ex- presses the duty on its subjective side. Shortly : a portion of the events predicted in the Apocalypse began to be fulfilled immediately. The complete fulfilment is even now still in the future. So: the Greek particle has this meaning (xvii. 3): "so he carried me away." THE REVELATION OF He: Christ. "I Jesus have sent mine angel" (xxii. 16). In symbols he signified them : the Greek verb has this signifi- cation. St. John xii. 33, " signifying what death he should die ; " xxi. 19, "signifying by what death he should glorify God."' By sending: the Greek participle, because following its verb, describes manner. "So making peace" (Eph. ii. 15) is an instance. Angel: Christ's interpreting angel (xxii. 6, 16). Servant: Christ's prophetic servant (xxii. 9). John: the apostle and evangelist, who, besides the Book of Rev- elation, wrote the fourth Gospel and three Epistles bearing his name. 2. Who testifies of the word of God, even of the testimony of Jesus Christ ; that is, of all the visions he saw. Testifies: in this book. The narrative aorist tense has the force of the present. "Who testifies: no other New-Testament writer but St. John applies this title of testifier to himself. Whenever, therefore, the title appears in any writing, it designates him as the author of the writing. He gives himself this title (John xix. 35, and 1 John i. 2). Its appearance here (Rev. i. 2) identifies him with John the apostle and evangelist, and thus proves that the author of the fourth Gospel and of the three Epistles of St. John is also the author of the Apoc- alypse. Even: in the expression, "the word of their testimony" (xii. 11) (with this sense, the word containing their testimony), the testimony explains the preceding phrase, — the word. Since " testimony" is ex- planatory in xii. 11, "testimony" is explanatory in i. 1; and even is the meaning of the Greek conjunction between the two phrases, " the word of God," and " the testimony of Jesus Christ." The testimony of Jesus Christ : the testimony he himself gives. He is " the faithful and true witness" (iii. 14). That is : the clause, " all the visions he saw," is in apposition with the expression, "the testimony of Jesus Christ;" that is, expresses this apposition. The visions he saw: only in vision ("I saw in vision," ix. 17) did St. John see the objects he describes in this book. 3. Blessed is he that readeth, and blessed are they that obe}', the words of this prophecy, and keep the writings in it ; for the time is at hand. Obey: this sense of the Greek verb is warranted by iii. 20, " hear [obey] my voice." "He that readeth," and " they that obey," con- ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. stitute but one class of persons. This is St. John's own usage in the Apocalypse, and in a beatitude example: "Blessed is he that hath [every one that hath, all that have] part in the first resurrection : on such [Greek, these] the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God" (xx. 6). This usage, in xx. 6, forbids the explanation (Bible Commentary, vol. iv. p. 499) which, in i. 3, finds two classes, — the public reader of the Apocalypse in the days of St. John, and the public hearers of this reader. Keep: observe (xii. 17). Writings: the Greek participle signifies engraved, pictured, as well as written. The seven scrolls "written" (v. i.) are covered with pictured emblems (vi. 1-8, etc.). In it: in this prophecy, in this prophetical book. For : gives the reason for reading, obeying, and holding fast the new revelations ; namely, the time of their fulfilment is fast approach- ing ; obedience will soon be rewarded; negligence will soon be pun- ished. The time: when the prophecies of the Apocalypse will begin to be fulfilled (1 Pet. iv. 17). At hand: is coming near. The first time Christ appears in the Apocalypse, he appears as a judge (i. 10-18). With his appearance, then, his rewards and punishments in this life also begin to appear, and continue to appear throughout the second division of this book. THE PROLOGUE (Verses 4-8). This portion summarizes the contents of the entire book, by the following threefold division : — (1) The seven churches, which represent the church univer- sal (verse 4, first clause^. (2) The love of Christ, in the Apocalypse (verses 4-6). (3) The justice of Christ, in the Apocalypse (verses 7, 8). The mention of Christ's love here precedes the mention of his justice, to assure us that " mercy rejoiceth against judg- ment " (Jas. ii. 13). The prologue is to be explained, so far as possible, by the Apocalypse itself. 4. John to the seven churches which are in Asia : Grace be unto you, and peace, from him who is, and who was, and THE REVELATION OF who is to come ; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne. (1) Seven: Ephesus (ii. 1), Smyrna (8), Pergamos (12), Thyatira (18), Sardis (iii. 1), Philadelphia (7), Laodicea (14; i. 11). Besides the seven churches enumerated (i. 11), there were certainly, in Asia, three others: Colosse (Col. i. 1), Miletus (Acts xx. 17), Hie- rapolis (Col. iv. 13). As seven is a complete number (Gen. vii. 2), the seven churches of Asia are representative, in their circumstances and character, of the "church universal," called "the churches" (Rev. ii. 7, 17, 29; iii. 6, 13, 22; xxii. 16). Asia: Proconsular Asia (of which Ephesus was the capital), com- prehending the western provinces of Mysia, Lydia, Caria, and part of Phrygia. (2) Grace : the divine love manifesting itself to man. Peace : the state resulting from the reception of this love. Who is: the Self-existent (Exod. iii. 14). Here, God the Father. Who was: the Eternal in the past, "from everlasting" (xi. 15, 17; Ps. xciii. 2). Who is to come : to judgment. This is the explanation given by verse 7, "He comes with clouds" (xxii. 7, 12, 20). Who is coming continually in this world, both to reward and to punish. He is thus exhibited in the first and second divisions of the Apocalypse, as the present Judge and Ruler of the world of mankind. In verse 5, the Son of God is associated with the Father and Holy Spirit. The seven Spirits : since the seven Spirits are the equivalent of the personal Holy Spirit (ii. 7, etc.), they must denote the Holy Spirit in his various manifestations. Thus, St. John invokes grace and peace from the three Persons of the adorable Godhead. Before the throne : in verse 6, the seven Spirits are " sent forth into all the earth;" they are therefore " before the throne," because they are in readiness to be sent into the hearts of all men. 5. And from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. Unto him who loves us, and washes us thoroughly from our sins by his own blood. Faithful: trustworthy (1 John i. 9). The firstborn from the dead : St. Paul explains this appellation ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. of Christ when he calls him "the firstfruits" (1 Cor. xv. 20) "of them that are now sleeping in Jesus" (1 Thess. iv. 14). Of all human beings, our risen and ascended Messiah is the only one who as yet hath bodily immortality (1 Tim. vi. 16). That "im- mortality " in this place is only bodily, is certain from 1 Cor. xv. 53, 54, where "immortality" must be solely bodily, because contrasted with "mortal" and "corruptible," and with bodily "death" (verses 55, 56). "Immortality" (Rom. ii. 7) has the same meaning. Bodily im- mortality is the special object of St. Paul's constant desire (Phil, iii. 11). The Ruler: Jesus Christ is the Supreme Ruler of all kings and nations (Matt, xxviii. 18; 1 Tim. vi. 15). No pope can be this ruler. The present love of Christ is his perpetual legacy and gift to his Church, and its unceasing fruition and enrichment (John xiii. 1). Loves us, and washes us thoroughly from our sins : the Greek tenses here describe present actions. The Revision, 1881, has " loosed us." But nowhere in Bible Greek is "loosed" used with sins. " Wash" is repeatedly so connected (John xiii. 10; 1 John i. 7; Heb. x. 22). Usage is often of greater authority than manuscripts, and f must be here. The Vulgate has lavit, "washes" (Gnomic "per- fect"). Thoroughly : out of, is the meaning of the Greek preposition. By : the Greek preposition is instrumental ; required by Heb. x. 22, " washed with." Blood: shed blood. " My blood shed" (Matt. xxvi. 28). 6. And makes us a kingdom, priests unto God, even his Father. To him the glory and the power due, for ever and ever. Amen. Makes: "loves" (verse 4) imparts its own present time to " makes;" makes us, forms us into. A kingdom: a spiritual kingdom (John xviii. 36). Priests : even priests. In verse 10, the Greek demands this trans- lation: "Unto our God a kingdom, even priests." Both in i. 6, and v. 10, the word "priests" is explanatory. "A kingdom of priests" (Exod. xix. 6) ; that is, devoted to God's service. St. Peter defines the nature of this priesthood, making it spiritual, like the kingdom; " a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices " (1 Pet. ii. 5). Neither the kingdom nor the priesthood, in Rev. i. 5, is external. St. John does not here create and authorize laymen and lay-women to be literal priests in the church of Christ. THE REVELATION OF Unto God, even his Father : Granville Sharp, 1790, thus de- scribes the usage, when, in the New Testament the conjunction and, becomes even : — " When two or more personal nouns of the same gender, number, and case are connected by the copulative and, if the first has the defi- nite article, and the second, third, etc., have not, they both relate to the same person." — Aybe, Introduction Old Testament, p. 216. "God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. xv. 6; also 2 Cor. i. 3; Eph. i. 3, Greek). The English Version thus recognizes the usage, and anticipates Granville Sharp's rale by more than one hundred and fifty years. Amen: St. John's affirmation and prayer. So be it. 7. Behold, he cometh with the clouds, and every eye shall see him ; even all they who are piercing him : and all the tribes of the earth shall wail because of him. Yea, Amen. (3) Behold: let every hearer consider the present subject with personal interest. He : who loves us (verse 5). Cometh: quickly (ii. 5, 16; iii. 11; xxii. 7, 12, 20), to administer justice. The reference here is not to the last and universal judg- ment-day, at Christ's second and final advent. With the clouds: of punishment (xiv. 14-16). The imagery is from a thunder-storm, and describes Christ's present judgments. From thunder-clouds God "scatters and discomfits," in King David's time (Ps. xviii. 10-14). " The Lord rideth upon a swift cloud, and shall come into Egypt. The Lord shall smite Egypt" (Isa. xix. 1, 22). Into Egypt Jehovah came with a single cloud of punishment. In Rev. i. 7, the Lord Jesus Christ is in this world continually coming with many punitive clouds. The plural here denotes an indefinite number. Every eye: eye for the person who sees. "No eye [no person 1 pities him" (Ezek. xvi. 5). Every person; that is, all persons. Shall see : shall perceive with the mind : — (a) by faith. "Seeing him who is invisible" (Heb. xi. 27). (6) by the judgment. " I perceive that thou art in the gall of bit- terness " (Acts viii. 23). " Ye see that a man is justified " Jas. ii. 24. (c) by consciousness. "I see another la,w in my members " (Rom, vii. 23. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 9 Rev. vi. 15, 16, afford an illustration of mental seeing, and a ful- filment of the prediction, "Every eye shall see him." Him: Christ, as Judge. " In righteousness doth he judge" (xix. 11). Even they who are piercing him: this clause explains the clause immediately preceding. Even they who are piercing Christ shall see their guilt and danger. All they who: the Greek of Acts x. 41, 47, requires this trans- lation. Are piercing: this verb first occurs in Zech. xii. 10, where it is, according to John xix. 37, a prediction of the piercing of our Lord's hands and feet (Ps. xxii. 16) when he was nailed to the cross, and was thus crucified and cursed for our sins (Gal. iii. 13). Only his hands and feet were pierced in his crucifixion. The Roman sol- dier did not pierce his side. The Greek verb translated "pierced" (John xix. 34) appears in Bible Greek in only one other place (Ecclus. xxii. 19), where it describes a prick in a man's eye, and this so slight that it does not bring blood, but merely "tears." A spear-stroke of this mildness could not have entered, much less "pierced," our Saviour's dead and stiffened side. St. Paul explains the nature of the piercing of which St. John speaks (Rev. i. 7). " They crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh" (Heb. vi. 6). A "fresh crucifixion" can be only in the spirit and intention of the crucifier. This " fresh crucifixion " is such hatred of Christ as would lead its possessor, could the mad scene be repeated, to shout with the Jewish rabble, "Crucify him, crucify him!" (Mark xv. 13, 14.) Very many are always thus piercing Christ, and "putting him to an open shame," in every period of the world's history, and in every place where he is now preached as the only Saviour of lost men. All the tribes of the earth: in contrast with the "twelve tribes of the children of Israel" (vii. 4), the representatives of the Chris- tian Church; and therefore "all the tribes of the earth" is another name for " the world lying in wickedness" (1 John v. 19). " The earth" is often, in the Bible, the synonyme of depravity and wickedness. "He that is of the earth is earthly" (John iii. 31). Shall wail: shall beat themselves through grief; shall mourn most bitterly. " In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jeru- salem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon " (Zech. xii. 11), when the good king Josiah was killed in battle (2 Chron. xxxv. 20-25). Because of him: from regard for Christ: — (a) regard for his love (verses 5, 6). "We love him because he 10 THE REVELATION OF first loved us" (1 John iv. 19). "The love of Christ constraineth us" (2 Cor. v. 14). (b) regard for his justice. "The great day of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand? " (Rev. vi. 17.) Yea, Amen: in St. John's double affirmation and prayer, " Yea" translates a Greek affirmation; "Amen" translates a Hebrew affirma- tion. The language of this verse 7 predicts the great success of the gospel of Christ in this world. His lif ting-up draws all men to him (John xii. 32). He designs his judgments for our reformation. He chas- tens us "for our profit " (Heb. xii. 10). This declaration is confirmed by experience. " Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now have I kept thy word" (Ps. cxix. 67). 8. I myself am the Alpha and the Omega, saith the Lord God, who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almight}*. The Alpha and the Omega: the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet are (verse 11) explained as meaning " the first and the last," and are therefore designations of eternity. In verse 11, "Alpha" and " Omega " are appellations of the Son of God. In verse 17, " the first and the last" are also appellations of the Son. Alpha and Omega occur elsewhere in the Apocalypse only xxi. 6, and xxii. 13. In xxi. 6, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end," the promise, in the same verse, "I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely," connects this verse with vii. 17, " The Lamb shall lead them unto living fountains of waters; " and thus decides that the Alpha and the Omega of xxi. 6 is no other than the Lamb. Equally certain is it that Alpha and Omega (xxii. 13) designates the Son of God. The immediate context establishes this certainty: " I come quickly," verse 12 ; "I am Alpha and Omega," verse 13. Thus complete is the proof that the appellation Alpha and Omega (Rev. i. 8) designates the Son of God, and not the Father. Four times only does the appellation occur in the Apocalypse. Three times the appellation designates the Son of God. As these places follow Rev. i. 8, they are not only all the places which can possibly define this verse 8, but they are the explanations and definitions St. John himself creates and authorizes. The Lord God : Lord means Supreme Ruler. God is thus defined by St. John : " God is light, and in him is no darkness at all " (1 John i.5). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 11 Almighty ; all-powerful. " All power is given me " (Matt, xxviii. 18). The several divine appellations — all of which are ascribed to the Son of God — magnify his Deity, and render it absolute. THE FIRST VISION ST. JOHN HAS OF JESUS CHRIST (i. 9-iii. 22). The vision consists of — (1) The manifestation of Jesus Christ to St. John (i. 9-20) . (2) The epistles to the seven churches of Asia (chapters ii., iii.). 9. I John, myself, your brother and joint partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and patience in Jesus, was for a time in the island which is called Patmos, for the word of God, even the testimony concerning Jesus. John myself: the very John to whom Jesus Christ gave the rev- elation (verse 1). He is about to describe the circumstances of the revelation, and the prophetic commission he received from Christ with it. Your brother: St. John and the members of the seven churches form a Christian brotherhood, because they are all animated by the same spiritual life Christ gives all his people. Joint partaker: in the tribulation Christians are now enduring. It is a time of persecution by the Roman government (ii. 13) ; and St. John, banished to Patmos because he is a Christian, is a fellow- sufferer. The tribulation: because the article the unites the three nouns — "tribulation" and "kingdom" and "patience" — in one group, they constitute the common allotment of Christians at the time. And kingdom: because himself a spiritual king, St. John is en- during the distress inherent in Christ's kingdom. "In the world ye shall have tribulation" (John xvi. 33). And patience : tribulation not only demands, but also works out, , patience (Rom. v. 3). Patience itself inherits God's promises (Heb. vi. 12). In Jesus: in the fellowship of Jesus (1 Cor. i. 9). The participa- tion of the life of Christ involves the participation of his sufferings (John xv. 20; 1 Pet. iv. 13). 12 THE REVELATION OF Was for a time : the Greek verb sometimes describes temporary being. The time was about A.D. 95. Patmos : a rocky island in the iEgean Sea, about thirty miles in circumference, and about forty miles from the mainland, and the mouth of the river Meander and the city Miletus. The Apostle John was banished to this island by the Emperor Do- mitian, A.D. 81-96. The Emperor Nerva restored him to Ephesus, A.D. 96. Even : see i. 2. 10. I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a great voice as of a trumpet. Was in the Spirit: was entranced by the Spirit (Acts xxii. 17). In a trance saw a vision (xi. 5). The Lord's day : (1) Our Lord rose from the dead on the first day of the week (Matt, xxviii. 1). (2) Tbe first Christians celebrated the Lord's Supper on the first day of the week (Acts xx. 7j. (3) Chrysostom testifies that this first day — mentioned Acts xx. 7 — is the Lord's day. — Wordsworth, in loco. (4) " The Son of man is Lord of the sabbath " (Mark ii. 28). (5) The word "Lord," in the expression "Lord's day," is, in the Greek, an adjective, and denotes proprietorship. The first day of the week is the Lord's day, because it belongs to him. He made the day what it now is. He changed the sabbath from the seventh day of the week to the first day. There are intimations in the Bible why the manifestation of the Son of man to St. John occurred on the Lord's day: — (1) He thus recognizes and honors his own day. (2) The sabbath is an institution of blessing (Exod. xx. 11). (3) To the Jews, the seventh day was a season of instruction and illumination from God. " Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day" (Acts xv. 21). (4) On the sabbath day our Lord revealed himself to the Jews as God's anointed messenger (Luke iv. 18). (5) In his manifestation to St. John, our Lord is a Revelator. (6) In selecting his own day as the time of his manifestation, our Lord not only recognizes and honors the day, but also perpetuates the purpose of the sabbath as a season of blessing, and repeats the ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 13 illumination he grants the Nazarenes in their synagogue, by new- revelations to his servant John. Behind me: the terrors of the vision are presented gradually (Ezek. iii. 12). Were the trumpet-voice in front of St. John, his sight, as well as hearing, would be addressed, and produce an effect beyond all endurance. Trumpet: heralds the infliction of judgments (viii. 13). With trumpet-voice God spake terrors from Mount Sinai (Exod. xix. 19). 11. Saying, The sight thou art seeing write in a book, and send it by the hand of messengers to the seven churches which are in Asia ; to Ephesus, and to Smyrna, and to Per- gamos, and to Thyatira, and to Sardis, and to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea. Art seeing: in the vision now beginning, and in the visions following. Book: volume; a book was, in the time of St. John, a rolled scroll (Luke iv. 17). By the hand of messengers : this is implied from Isa. xxxvii. 14. A separate scroll was sent to each of the churches. 12. And I turned to see the voice which was speaking to me, and when I turned I saw seven golden lamp-stands. Voice : for the speaker (iv. 1). " There came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill and eat. But Peter said, Not so, Lord" (Acts x. 13, 14). Lamp-stands: each lamp-stand was like the original golden candle- stick, with its seven bowls or lamps on seven branches from the main stem (Exod. xxv. 31, 32; Zech. iv. 2). The lamp holding the oil was somewhat like a flattened bottle, with the wick issuing from the neck. In this verse the seven lamp-stands are symbols of the seven churches of Asia. Each church is a lamp-stand lighted by Christ to shed abroad his revealed light (Matt. v. 14; Phil. ii. 16). VISION OF THE SON OF MAN (Verses 13-16). The shining constellations in the sky at night guided the ancient mariners safety in their devious and perilous voyages. The bright and illuminating symbols, with which the Holy Spirit by St. John fills the Apocalyptic heaven of prophecy, are our beckoning constellations on the dangerous voyage of our present inquiries. These prophetic symbols will 14 THE REVELATION OF surely conduct us to the calm and blissful "haven where we would be," on these two practicable conditions: (a) Find the position and design of each enlightening star ; (6) Follow the radiant path the sparkling gem traces for our footsteps. 13. And in the midst of the lamp-stands a Person, like the Son of man, clothed with a garment falling to the feet, and girded close to the breasts with a golden girdle. In the midst: the seven golden lamp-stands encircle the likeness of the Son of man. All are under the searching glance of his eyes of fire. Like : the person in the vision seen by St. John is merely like the Son of man. The Son of man is not actually present. The sym- bolic description of the Son of man, chapter i., does not exhibit his person as he really now exists. His head is not actually white, neither his eyes nor his feet are real lightning-flashes; his tongue is not a real sword ; his voice is not actually like the deafening roar of the restless ocean. The non-reality of symbols must be our constant guide in the interpretation of this book of visions. Likeness (not sameness, identity) is the characteristic of all the exhibitions in the Apocalypse. The neglect of this fact is the cause of very many of the erroneous interpretations of the book. The observance of the fact will insure correct explanations. Son of man: (1) this expression, though without the article in the Greek, is not a Son of man, but is the Son of man ; for the per- son here called in Greek, Son of man, is in ii. 18 " the Son of God." Son of man (i. 13) and the Son of God (ii. 18) are the same person. Because he is the Son of God, (a) he is not a Son of man, but the Son of man: (b) he is not human, but is divine. (2) Greek words indicating likeness omit the article from the words which follow, and yet the article must be expressed in English. In i. 15, " as the voice of many waters " is in Greek thus: "as voice of many waters." This usage of comparative words requires us to translate the exact Greek, " like Son of man," " like the Son of man." No Greek would here translate, " a Son of man." Clothed -with a garment falling to the feet : in the following description, each member of the person of our Lord exhibits a differ- ent attribute of his divine nature, or performs a different action of almighty power. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 15 Clothed: self-clothed. This is the peculiar sense of the Greek verb. The Greek here identifies the imagery with Ezek. ix. 2, "Six men came, every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; one man among them clothed with linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side." In Lev. xvi. 4, the " linen coat" worn by Aaron is the inner tunic, because it is the first garment put upon him. The garment, there- fore, seen by St. John on the person of our Lord, is referable to the inner tunic worn by the Aaronic high priest, and is a sacerdotal dress. It is, however, a robe, either priestly or royal. The nature of the garment worn here by our Lord indicates his purpose. He appears, not for the display of kingly power, but, like EzekiePs clerical scribe with an inkhorn at his side and a slaughtei weapon in his hand, to record sins, and to execute judgments. Girded close to the breasts with a golden girdle : the dative case in the Greek, indicating the closeness of the girdle to the breasts shows both the width and the strength of the girdle, and also the strength and power of our Lord the wearer. 14. And his head, even his hairs were white as it were white wool, as snow, and his sight swift as lightning. White : shining white. The whiteness denotes great age. "The Ancient of days" (Dan. vii. 9). The imagery in this verse is taken from the prophet Daniel; and not from Matt. xvii. 2, Mark ix. 3, as there our Lord's head is not mentioned. The whiteness, by being threefold (white, white wool, snow), is greatly intensified, and denotes unlimited age, even eter- nity. "The eyes" here is another expression for sight (Mark xii. 11). Flame of fire is lightning (Ps. civ. 4). 15. And his feet, as on fire in a furnace, swift like the flashing lightning ; and his voice as the voice of man}' waters. "Fire" and " burned" (English Version) are synonymes. For this reason, the last clause of verse 14 and the first clause of verse 15 form a synonymous parallelism. Since a flame of fire (verse 14) is swift lightning; swift lightning, resembling "fine brass," that is, "polished [flashing] brass" (Dan. x. 6), is also intended (verse 15), because the two clauses are synonymous. Rev. x. 1 confirms the explanation of "fine brass" we have just given. The mighty angel (x. 1), who is a symbol of Christ, has feet 16 THE REVELATION OF which are "as pillars of fire; " that is, are like the straight and bril- liant white lines of flashing lightning on a thunder-cloud. These lightning-figures represent the feet as moving with inconceivable swiftness. "Fine," refined; as silver and gold in the fire (Zech. xiii. 9). The voice of mighty -waters : the roar of the waves of the ocean (Ezek. xliii. 2; Rev. xiv. 2, xix. 6). In Rev. xix. 6, "many" is the equivalent of "mighty." The substitution of "mighty" for "many" (English Version) is thus justified. St. John's images here are surpassingly sublime. 16. And holding in his right hand seven stars ; and out of his mouth a sharp two-edged sword coming forth ; and his appearance, as [when] the sun shineth in his strength. In his right hand : the position at the right hand is most honorable (Matt. xxii. 44). Seven stars : these stars may have been the gems of the signet- rings on the right hand of the Person now manifesting himself: — (1) In the time of St. John, a man of high rank wore several signet-rings upon his right hand. (2) This signet-ring was ornamented with precious stones. (3) The gems of the signet-ring were sometimes called stars. 1 The Son of man is about to send epistles to the seven churches of Asia. Some of the epistles contain severe and threatening reproofs. The seven stars — tokens of affection (Jer. xxii. 24) — assure the churches, that although he finds in them faults, and threatens to punish, they still have his love. The seven stars, as tokens of his affection, give emphasis to this declaration of his, " As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten" (Rev. iii. 19). In their design, the seven stars on the right hand of the Son of man resemble the " rainbow round about the throne" of judgment (Rev. iv. 3). Both stars and rainbow symbolize the lesson, so welcome at all times to suffering hearts: in wrath God remembers mercy (Hab. iii. 2). Out of his mouth: opened in anger. "His lips are full of indig- nation" (Isa. xxx. 27). A sharp two-edged sword: this is the heavy broadsword of Thrace. The Grecian sword was shorter and lighter. Christ's sword in the Apocalypse is the Thracian blade, and is always the emblem of judgment and death (ii. 12, 16 ; xix. 15, 21). 1 Liddell & Scott, Greek Lexicon. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 17 Going forth: the sword is incessant in its action. His justice is an unceasing power. His appearance, as [when] the sun shineth in his strength : the appearance of his whole person shone like the brightness of the meridian sun. In the Apocalypse, St. John for "face" invariably uses a different Greek noun from the one he employs here, which (John vii. 24) means "appearance." Christ calls himself "the light of the world" (John viii. 12). As with the light of the meridian sun, he is now to illumine the future history of his Church and the world. 17. And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying, Fear not ; I myself am the First and the Last. As dead: the unearthly splendors of the vision deprive St. John of all strength (Dan. x. 8). Laid his right hand: a sign of favor (Matt. ix. 18). The First and the Last: I am eternal. The eternity of Christ is the foundation and pledge of his unchanging love, both for St. John and for the Church (Deut. xxxiii. 27). 18. Even He who is living. And yet I was dead for a time ; and yet, behold, I am living for ever and ever ; and so I hold the keys of death and of hades. Even: explains the preceding assertion, "I myself am the First and the Last." He who is living : explains the First and the Last. And yet: contrasting his life and death. The Greek verb here describes a temporary action. For ever and ever: in contrast with the short time he was dead. And so: the consequence of his possession of life eternal. The keys: the power over (iii. 7). Hades is represented (Matt, xvi. 18, and here) as having "gates," to be opened by "keys." Death : the separation of soul and body. Hades : the invisible world, into which the soul enters at the death of the body. Fear not (verse 17). Nothing can harm you. Death cannot kill your soul. Hades cannot receive you until I open the door for your departure from this life. " Because I live, ye shall live also" (John xiv. 19). 19. Accordingly, write the visions which thou art seeing, — 18 THE REVELATION OF both visions which are now, and the visions which are cer- tainly to appear after these present visions. Accordingly: looks back to the vision of Christ's Person (verses 11-16). The visions thou art seeing: namely, in the Isle of Patmos, be- ginning with the vision of Christ's Person, and ending with the com- pletion of the entire Book of Revelation. The visions -which are now: the visions described in chapters ii. and iii. " The visions which are now, and the visions which are certainly to appear," divide the Apocalypse into two parts, — the present and the future. The present visions occupy chapters ii. and iii. The future visions fill the remaining chapters of the book. 20. The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest on my right hand, and of the seven golden lamp-stands. [This is the explanation.] The stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lamp-stands are the seven churches. Are: that is, represent. Thus, Rev. iv. 5; Matt. xiii. 37-39, xxvi. 26. The stars may be signet-gems (verse 16), and emblems of Christ's affection for the angels who represent the churches. The stars rep- resent the angels. The angels represent the churches. Through this twofold representation, Christ exhibits and demonstrates his love for the seven churches. Since merely representations, the angels can- not be proved real Christian bishops. That they are, must be assumed. Who are the seven angels of this verse ? The imagery of the seven angels is, we may conclude, derived from the prophet Zechariah, and therefore from no other source. 1. St. John employs elsewhere imagery taken from this very prophet. (a) The "book written within and on the backside" (Rev. v. 1) is taken from Zech. v. 2, 3. (b) "The two olive-trees and the two candlesticks" (Rev. xi. 4) must be referred to Zech. iv. 11. Thus referring to Zechariah in these places, St. John may have previously referred to this prophet in Rev. i. 20, and in chapters ii. and iii. 2. Each angel in Rev. ii. and iii. represents a Christian church, and communicates to it divine revelations. There is precisely the same kind of representation and of commu- nication in the prophet Zechariah : — ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 19 (a) In Zecli. i. 12, and elsewhere, whenever the angel appears, he acts in behalf of the city Jerusalem, the old church of God; (b) And declares to it his revealed purposes (Zech. i. 13, etc., iii. 6, etc., iv. 14, v. 3, vi. 5). The symbolic character of the Apocalypse deprives the seven angels of all literalness, and of all literal ministerial office, either as presby- ters or primates. The seven angels are symbols, and not actual ser- vants of the gospel. Since the angels in Zechariah, the originals of the angels in Rev. i. 20, ii. 1, 8, 12, 18, iii. 1, 7, 14, are not church officers, the angels in Rev. ii. and iii. are not church officers. Prelacy in parity, in opposition to presbyterianism on the one hand, and to popery on the other, has, by the records of the New* Testament and of early Church history, an impregnable position in. the Christian Church, quite apart from the assumption that the angelsj of the seven churches are bishops. The Bible recognizes only two kinds of sacred ministry, — the Jew- ish and the Christian; but no man, either in the one or in the other, is, in the Bible, ever called an angel. Consequently the theory that the angels of the seven churches are Christian bishops, is contrary to Bible usage, and must be pronounced an assumption. There are no exceptions to the assertion that neither a Jewish nor a Christian minister is by the Bible ever called an angel. 1. "Messenger" (angel) (Matt. xi. 10; Mark i. 2; Luke vii. 27, re- peated from Matt. iii. 1) is no exception, as the ministry of John the Baptist is itself exceptional. 2. The same is true of Luke vii. 24, since the messengers (angels) of John the Baptist are in no sense ministers. 3. The messengers (angels) mentioned in Luke ix. 52 are also without ministerial character. 4. No one will claim "the messenger [angel] of Satan" (2 Cor. xii. 7) as a minister, either Jewish or Christian. 5. The messengers (angels) Rahab receives (Jas. ii. 25) are "spies" (Josh. ii. 1), without any sacerdotal commission. These five places are all the instances the Bible contains where the word "messenger" translates the Greek word meaning "angel." So utterly are the Bible proofs wanting, that a minister of God, whether Jew or Christian, bears the name of angel. Since he does not, it is wholly assumption to regard the angels of the seven churches as Christian bishops. 20 THE REVELATION OF THE RELATIONS OF THE SEVEN EPISTLES OF THE APOCALYPSE TO THE REST OF THE BOOK. The seven epistles, occupying the second and third chap- ters of the Apocalypse, are intermediate, not only in their position between the first and fourth chapters, but likewise in their nature and office. Their intermediateness is char- acteristic. (1) Of the brilliant and majestic appearance of the Son of man (i. 13-16), the seven epistles are both the design and the result. His manifestation occasions the epistles. Ever} T feature of the manifestation is repeated in the epistles. (2) In reference to the positions annexed to the third chapter, the seven epistles provide the requisite ingots, out of which are drawn the golden threads forming much of the shining and attractive tissue of the unexampled narrative. From the epistolary section of the book are also taken the brightest gems of its abounding ornamentation, illustration, and instruction. The seven epistles are, therefore, not, as they may seem at first sight, a detached and isolated intrusion into the Book of Revelation, but are essential contributions to the harmo- nious adaptation of its parts to each other, to its symmetrical structure, and to its full explanation. The epistles are indis- pensable preparations for the rest of the incomparable book. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 21 CHAPTER II. THE FIRST EPISTLE: THE EPISTLE TO THE CHURCH OF EPHESUS (Verses 1-7). PRINCIPAL SUBJECT, BROTHERLY LOVE. 1 . To the angel of the church in Ephesus write : These things saith he who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who is walking in the midst of the seven golden lamp-stands. Saith he : the phrase is very often in the Book of Amos (i. 3, 6, etc.). The figurative style of this prophet is strongly reflected in the Apocalypse of St. John. Holds : holds firmly. Christ holds firmly in his possession each one of the seven churches. His firm hand even now clasps to his loving heart every church, however small and however unnoticed by worldly men. He thus fulfils his cheering promise, "My sheep shall never perish. No one shall pluck them out of my hand" ( John x. 28). The seven stars: the seven signet-gems, as tokens of Christ's affection for the members of the Ephesian church, and for all church- members. The stars sparkle with this message: I write this epistle because I love you. The reference of the seven stars is to i. 16, where is the same expression. It is the first reference in chapter ii. to chapter i. The reference is the beginning of a series of seven recapitulations, in chapters ii. and iii., of previous descriptions of the Son of man in chapter i. The fact of recapitulation in the Apocalypse discloses the peculiar structure of the entire book, and also unfolds to us its own method] of self -interpretation. \ Walking in the midst of the seven lamp-stands : second part of the first reference and recapitulation. The place referred to is i. 13. 22 THE REVELATION OF Walking: to supply the lamps with oil (Lev. xxiv. 2-4), and to preserve the union between the churches and himself (xxvi. 12). In the midst : of the churches, as their official centre and spirit- ual head. Christ, in his watchful love and present grace, now thus walks and thus provides, in the midst of all his churches, the wide world over. 2. I know thy works, even thy labor and patience, that thou canst not endure evil men, and thou art testing them who say they themselves are apostles (and yet they are not) , and thou findest them false. I know thy works : these words Christ addresses to each one of the seven churches. The words express these truths: (a) the om- niscience of Christ; (b) the occupation of each church is Christian work. A large portion of this work is the same as that Christ imposed upon Saul of Tarsus at the time of his conversion, — " to bear my name before the Gentiles, and the children of Israel" (Acts ix. 15 l Each of the seven churches is, by its creation, a missionary church ; and its mission work is the conversion of both Gentiles and Jews. In his epistle to the church in Thyatira, Christ gives prominence to its mission work among the Gentiles. " He that overcometb, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations [Gentiles] " (Rev. ii. 26). That "the nations" are the Gentiles, is proved by St. John him- self, who, in the ten places in the Apocalypse where he uses the expression, by it distinguishes the Gentiles from the Jews. The mission work for the conversion of the Gentiles, which Christ assigns to the church in Thyatira, he also assigns to each of the other six churches. Christ by his Spirit addresses his commands in this book to all churches. "He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches" (ii. 7, 11, 17, 29, iii. 6, 13, 22). As this command follows each epistle, all the churches are thus addressed by every one of the epistles; and, consequently, Christ, at the PRESENT TIME, CONSTITUTES ALL CHURCHES, EVERYWHERE, MIS- SIONARY CHURCHES. Thy : Christ is addressing the church as a corporate body. Works: in my behalf; "for my name" (verse 3). Even thy labor: literally, beating; labor with stripes; toil accom- panied with suffering ; severe labor. Patience: brave patience, endurance. Both labor and patience were necessary in the " stir " in Ephesus (Acts xix. 23-40). ST. JOHN TEE DIVINE. 23 Thy: in the Greek, the position of "thy" renders labor and pa- tience one expression. This power of thy, in Rev. i. 2, is possessed by the genitive " apos- tles" (Acts ii. 42), where not only the " doctrine," but also the "fel- lowship" and the "breaking of bread" and the "prayers," belong exclusively to the apostles. Thus Acts ii. 42 furnishes the model of the original Church of Jesus Christ. By his inspiration and direction, the apostles gave the Church its "doctrine;" were the centres of church "fellowship;" themselves (not the laity) administered the Supper of the Lord; and composed and offered the "prayers" of the Christian assemblies. Evil men: (Acts xx. 29, 30) "grievous wolves, not sparing the flock; men speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Testing: "examining, proving" (2 Cor. xiii. 5). Apostles : appointed by Christ. The impostors in the church of Ephesus claim his appointment. St. Paul encountered similar "false apostles" (2 Cor. xi. 13-15). Christ, however, by pronouncing these self-made apostles " false," rejects their claims. 3. And so thou art retaining patience, and art enduring [them] for nry name, and art not becoming weary. Them: the evil men (verse 2). For my name : for myself as made known to men. On account of thy regard and affection for me. 4. Yet I have this against thee : Thou art leaving thy first love. First love : only in one other place in the Apocalypse does the word "love" occur, — ii. 19, where, from its connection with "ser- vice" ("ministering to the saints," 2 Cor. ix. 1), it must denote the love Christians bear each other (1 John v. 1; John xiii. 34). At their first association as a church, the Christians in Ephesus "loved one another with a pure heart fervently" (IPet. i. 22). But now they are leaving their first love. Their mutual love is growing less, and is becoming cold. They are, by this alienation from each other, defeating the great purpose for which the Son of God became incarnate, died to redeem them from guilt, and created them anew in his own image of love for others. This great purpose is the formation, in this hating world, of a spiritual brotherhood of renewed hearts, fervently loving each other because first fervently loving Christ their Redeemer and Sanctifier. 24 THE REVELATION OF Christ assures the Ephesian Christians that their loss of mutual love is "against" them. St. John elsewhere shows us the frightful extent to which the injury goes. " He that loveth not his brother abideth in death. Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer; and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him" (1 John iii. 14, 15). 5. Accordingly, remember whence thou art falling, and repent, and do thy first works. But if thou dost not repent, and dost not do the first works, I am coming against thee, and I will move thy lamp-stand from its place, unless thou repent. Accordingly : in view of thy relapse and fall. Remember: in private. Each member of the Ephesian church is here thus addressed: Bring thy fallen and ruinous condition, occa- sioned by the loss of love for thy brethren, home to thy recollection and conscience. Whence thou art falling: at the present moment. The perfect tense in Greek has the force of the present. Whence : from what high elevation. Once thy place was a spirit- ual height. (a) Christ and all truly loving souls stand on this lofty height. They form a peculiar and rare company. So unlike are they to the hating, quarrelling, harmful, tormenting, and tormented multitude below them, that we must call them good and loving angels incarnate. (6) Supreme peace reigns on the summit where loving hearts are standing. There no lightnings flash; there no thunders roll. Christ's loving people hear the storm of angry voices, fighting hands, and hating hearts, in the world beneath; but the mad tempest does not rise high enough to touch them. It does not jar their abiding peace. Their day is unclouded sunshine. The soft winds of paradise cheer them, for they are close to its opening gate. This is the spiritual height from which Thou art falling: falling from a temple pinnacle, as the Devil urged our Saviour to fall; falling as wandering stars fall; falling as Satan fell in the sight of Christ. Why art thou thus falling ? Not because Christ thrusts thee down; not because loving Christians drop thee from their high standing- point. But thou art falling for the reason Sir Isaac Newton's apples fall, — the earth draws them down ; for the reason wandering stars fall) — because they leave their orbits ; for the reason the devils fell from heaven, — they had not the dispositions fitting them to stay there. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 25 Falling from the love for Christ's people he demands of us, is often caused by our substituting for the motives he creates, the motives we derive from earthly considerations. The peculiar relation Christians bear to the incarnate Son of God, arising from their redemption by his blood, and from their endowment with his life and holiness, is the highest and strongest motive to inspire us with enduring love for all the redeemed and sanctified. But when we cease to "remember" this divine and most influential constraint, and exchange it for their personal qualities, the lower motive proves the weaker, and fails to preserve and continue the ardent feeling we once cherished. Thus the earthly and personal motive, because the feebler, so benumbs our affections, that we leave and lose the love we may have once enter- tained for our brethren in Christ. Even then, however, our condition is not hopeless. We can be recovered from our deep falling. Christ himself points out the way. The way he prescribes is repentance, and return to our "first love." Repent: repentance is an after-view. It is a change of mind and heart It is ■ return of the whole soul, animated and reformed by the Spirit of Christ, to the love it may have formerly cherished for its brethren in Christ. First works: the works prompted by love for Christ (John xiv. 15), and performed for the conversion, edification, comfort, and salva- tion of both Gentiles and Jews. Am coming against thee : with special and personal judgments. Move thy lamp-stand: remove the lamp, take away its oil, with- draw my grace from thy heart, leave thy declining spiritual life to die from exhaustion. In interpreting Christ's words here, the symbolical nature of his language must be preserved fully and in every portion. Unless thou repent : Christ repeats his exhortation to repentance to show its remedial efficacy, as well as its great and imperative neces- sity. With every duty he creates, he gives sufficient grace for its performance. 6. But this thou hast in thy favor : Thou hatest the works of the Nicolaitanes, which works I myself also hate. Hatest : the Greek verb means to feel hatred. " Hateful " (Tit. iii. 3), on the contrary, means, from its verb, to show hatred. Christ's life in us causes us to feel the same dislikes he feels. If, then, we hate and shun sin, his life and holiness are abiding in us, and we are his spiritual children. The works of the Nicolaitanes : The attempts to explain this passage historically have proved un- successful. Possibly the context may disclose the true explanation. 26 THE REVELATION OF 1. Our Lord himself, in the context, distinguishes between old and new names (ii. 17, iii. 12). 2. The "new name" is figurative ("Mystery," xvii. 5) ; "his name is Death" (vi. 8) ; "Wormwood" (viii. 11). 3. Our Lord uses the name " Jezebel" (ii. 20) in a figurative sense. He may, therefore, use other proper names in figurative senses, as Nicolaites (ii. 6) and Balaam (ii. 14). 4. Our Lord makes the Nicolaitanes identical with the imitators of Balaam (verses 14, 15). This identity is proved by the Greek particle hontoos (verse 15), which means, in this exact way, and not, in like way. In this exact way "pray ye" (Matt. vi. 9). "When ye pray, say" (Luke xi. 2); say exactly the words of the Lord's Prayer. This being the meaning of houtoos in ii. 15, this particle here iden- tifies the Nicolaitanes with the imitators of Balaam (verse 14). By this identification, we discover what are "the works of the Nicolai- tanes. They eat things sacrificed unto idols, and commit fornica- tion" (verse 14). Two questions now meet us : — 1. In their literal meaning, are Balaam and Nicolaites identical ? 2. Does our Lord use these names figuratively f Literal Identity. 1. Balaam, in its Hebrew derivation, means destroyer of the people. Nicolaites. in its Greek derivation, means conqueror of the people. But conquest and destruction differ so little, that we may say, in their literal meanings, Balaam and Nicolaites are identical. Figurative Use. 2. Our Lord may use these names figuratively . He may intend by Balaam to signify destroyer of the people, and by Nicolaites conqueror of the people, and thus unite Balaam and Nicolaites in a common figurative signification. He may thus use these names figuratively , because he uses the name " Jezebel " in this figurative way (verse 20). In perfect consistency, then, with his own usage, can our Lord give to Balaam and Nicolaites a figurative sense. As conqueror and destroyer of people, Balaam represents licen- tiousness and idolatry. These sins, as subjugators and murderers, have, in all ages of the world, captured and ruined more "people" than all the military devastators and scourges whose detested names blacken the pages of history. While the church in Ephesus retains any measure of Christianity, it must "hate" the hurtful deeds of the Nicolaitanes. So long as the Son of man loves the souls of men, for whom he shed his redeem- ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 27 ing and cleansing blood, will he abhor and oppose "the doctrine of Balaam," the destroyer of people. So long as any Christian hates the sins Christ hates, he will hate, oppose, and "reprove" (Eph. v. 11) licentiousness, and " covetousness which is idolatry" (Col. iii. 5), both in high places and in low places. 7. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. To him that overcometh, I will give to him to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God. The Spirit: the Son of man, the speaker, transmits his words throughout to St. John by the Holy Spirit inspiring this apostle. Unto the churches: Christ's message to each of the seven churches, he designs for all churches. " What I say unto you, I say unto all 1 * (Mark xiii. 37 J. 1 Overcometh: the symbolic Balaam conquers the people. Christ would have every human soul conquer Balaam. I will give : Christ is the supreme arbiter of life and death (xxi. 6). Tree of life : the tree of life in the Garden of Eden conferred im- mortality (Gen. iii. 22). Paradise, into which Christ entered at his death (Luke xxiii. 43), and to which. St. Paul was once in vision caught up (2 Cor. xii. 4), has its symbolic tree of life (Rev. ii. 7, xxii. 2, 14). I will give to him to live forever. The paradise: literal, "the king's forest" (Neh. ii. 8); spiritual, "Eden, the garden of God" (Ezek. xxviii. 13); the place of blessed souls between their death and resurrection. Of God: prepared by him (John xiv. 2). SUMMARY OF THE FIRST EPISTLE. The first epistle has these general subjects : — I. Christ's approvals. I. Mission-labor. 2. Patience. 3. Rejection of evil men. 4. Trial of false apostles. 5. Regard for his name. 6. Perseverance. 7. Hatred of Nicolaitanes (verse 2). II. Faults of the Ephesian church. 1. Loss of brotherly love. 2. Loss of high position. 3. Discontinuance of labors. i See Rev. i. 2, p. 4. 28 THE REVELATION OF III. Adversaries. 1. Evil men. 2. False apostles, who are advocates of self-will. 3. Nicolaitanes, advocates of self-indulgence . IV. Duties. 1. Review of past life. 2. Repentance. 3. Renewed love and service to others. V. Principal subjects : brotherly love, self-will, self-indul- gence. VI. Christ's threat : removal of lamp. VII. Christ's promise : tree of life. VIII. Adaptation of Christ's titles to the contents of the epistle. (1) His love, " holdeth the seven stars;" (2) His om- niscience, " walketh in the midst of the golden candle- sticks," — make him a perfect judge. IX. Adaptation of Christ's promised reward, " the tree of life," to the principal subject, brotherly love. Brotherly love is itself Christ's life in our souls. The possession of his life, he rewards by the preservation and increase of the same life. PRACTICAL TRUTHS OF THE FIRST EPISTLE. 1. Christ "knows" our hearts and ways. His lightning sight reads all our thoughts, and follows us in all the paths we tread. 2. He regards all souls as priceless " gems," — priceless, because redeemed by his precious blood. When, therefore, we commit our souls to his strong and safe keeping, no power, outside of ourselves, can pluck them from his al- mighty hands. 3. He constantly "walks" in the midst of the personal life in which we habitually live, sees the needs of our souls, and supplies them with the necessary grace and strength to serve him. 4. Evil men and hurtful influences abound now, as always in the ages before, and must at all times be by us abhorred and resisted (2 Cor. vi. 14, 15). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 5. The holiness Christ imparts to the souls he renews causes them habitually to hate sin, to oppose it, to reprove it, to avoid it. 6. The Nicolaitan spirit, self-icill, is the source of all heresies. It is naturally connected with self-indulgence. 7. Love for Christ, and with it love for his people, is the first impulse of every heart renewed in the image of Jesus. This twofold love is the life of all inward piety, of all spirit- ual growth, of all work for Christ. The decay of this love is the cause and the presage of spiritual death. 8. When our first love for Christ and his people is left and lessened, it can be renewed and recovered by repentance and a new life. 9. Loss of love for Christ and for our fellow-men is its own punishment ; because this loss occasions the displacement of the lamp of light and life Christ kindles and cherishes within us, and because the removal of the lamp is the extin- guishment of the light of life in the soul. 10. Were there not true apostles, false apostles would be impossible. This is as true now as formerly. The present existence of false apostles is the proof of the present exist- ence of true apostles. Thus Christ historically and unceas- ingly preserves in the world the threefold ministry — apostles, presbyters, and deacons — he originally appointed ; and thus fulfils his promise, " Lo, I am with } T ou alway, even unto the end of the world" (Matt, xxviii. 20). 11. Victory on our part is the unalterable condition of Christ's favor, and of our admission to life eternal. 12. Our possession of immortality renders necessary our admission into a world which is itself immortal, even into heaven, of which paradise is the foretaste and pledge. THE SECOND EPISTLE: THE EPISTLE TO THE CHUKCH IN SMYRNA (Verses 8-11). This epistle is the shortest of the seven. The epistle to Thyatira is the longest. Christ does not reprove this church, 30 THE REVELATION OF nor that of Philadelphia. The subject of the second epistle is Martyrdom. This subject is closely connected with the subject of the first epistle, Brotherly Love. We are required to love all men, because Christ loves them. But Christ's love for all men caused him to die for them : hence brotherly love in following the example of Christ results in martyrdom. " Hereb}- perceive we the love of Christ, because he laid down his life for us : and we ought to lay clown our lives for the brethren " (1 John iii. 16). " Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life " (Rev. ii. 10). 8. Also to the angel of the church in Snryrna write: These things saith the First and the Last, who was for a time dead, and } T et is living. Also : except the first, each epistle begins with " and," in the sense of addition, also. The First and the Last: the reference is to i. 17. Second Recapitulation. — The eternity of Christ is the support and defence of his Church. Is living: the tense is the Greek aorist. But as the aorist here is defined by the present participle ''is living" (i. 18), "is living" ("is alive," English Version, A.D. 1611), is the sense of the aorist in ii. 8. Only twice more does the aorist of this verb occur in the Apocalypse (xiii. 14 and xx. 4). The present participle (i. 18) is St. John's own definition of the aorist in Rev. ii. 8, xiii. 14, xx. 4. Having thus from him the true definition, namely, "is living," we should in each place obediently receive and most firmly hold this authoritative defi- nition: is living (xiii. 14), are living (xx. 4). 9. I know thine own works, even the persecution and the poverty (but thou art rich) , and the blasphenry coming from those who are saying thej' themselves are Jews, and yet they are not, but are a s} T nagogue of Satan. The persecution: the existing persecution (verse 10). The poverty: the real poverty, bordering on beggary. So the Greek. Rich : in my love, help, and promises. Rich is emphatic, very rich. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 31 The blasphemy : the hurtful speech spoken against thee. Jews: since denned by "synagogue of Satan," they are bad Jews, they are not " Israelites indeed " (John i. 47). A synagogue: this is the sense, because (a) in the Greek, the noun is without the article, (b) is the predicate. Satan: in the Hebrew means an adversary. The Smyrnean members of his synagogue " are enemies of the cross of Christ " (Phil. hi. 18). 10. Do not fear the sufferings which thou art certainly to suffer. Behold, the Devil is certainly to cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried. And yet ye shall have persecution during [only] ten days. Show thyself faithful even unto death, and I will give thee the crown of life. Behold : each one of you has a deep and personal interest in my next words. The Devil : the accuser, the slanderer. This is the Greek mean- ing of the word "devil." The two names Christ here gives "the prince of devils" (Matt. xii. 24), "adversary" and "accuser," exhibit him as exerting all his power against the church of Smyrna, and as hurting it, both by arti- fices and open violence, and by slanderous accusations. To all faithful Christians, the Devil is always the same malignant and deadly enemy. Some of you: the church is addressed as individuals. This occa- sional appearance of the individual members of the churches proves that the angel of each church is addressed as the representative of the church. "Thou [the angel] shalt suffer," is in this verse 10 an instance of the relation of the angel to the church. The fact of representation is one of the effectual keys to open the locked mean- ings of the Apocalypse. Into prison: the persecution, in the next clause, since external, forbids the spiritual sense of prison. That ye may be tried: by temptations and sufferings, to fall away from Christ, but to be proved invincible. During ten days: a short period of time. This sense of "ten days" is established by Bible usage. "Not ten days, nor twenty days, but a whole month " (Num. xi. 19, 20). Show thyself: the Greek verb often has this meaning (Matt. x. 16, xxiv. 44; John xx. 27). Unto death: this phrase occurs in Kevelation, only here, and xii. 11, where the death is violent. Death by violence, by martyrdom is therefore denoted in Rev. ii. 10. 32 THE REVELATION OF The crown: the emblem of kingship (Matt, xxvii. 29). Of life : conferring the life eternal. 11. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches : He that overcorneth shall in no wise be hurt by the second death. The second death : in xx. 14, denned to be " the lake of fire." St. John, in the Revelation, is the only New-Testament writer who expresses contrast between first and second by using one of the words and implying the other. Thus, in Rev. ii. 11, when he uses " second death," he implies first with "death" (verse 10). When in Rev. xx. 5, 6, he uses " first resurrection," he implies the phrase "second resurrection," when he thus narrates: "Death and hades delivered up the dead which were in them" (Rev. xx. 13). Thus. St. John's use of implication is uniform. We note this fact in St. John's usage, and infer the same uniformity when he writes " first resurrection " (Rev. xx. 13). In his contrast between the first death and the second, the first death is bodily, and the second is spiritual. In his contrast between the first and second resurrection, the second is bodily. Since, in this contrast, St. John follows the same law of uniformity which he observes in the other contrast between the two kinds of death, the first resurrection must be spiritual. It is certainly most probable that he here uses the same law. If it is barely possible that St. John here uses the same law, no person is authorized, by the laws of exegesis, to assert positively that the first resurrection (Rev. xx. 5, 6) is a bodily resurrection to precede the universal resurrection in the last day. The martyr-victor shall in no wise be hurt by the second death. His death will be only bodily. His soul will live " the life everlast- ing" (Luke xviii. 30). SUMMARY OF THE SECOND EPISTLE. The second epistle has these general subjects : — I. Christ's approvals. I. The acquisition of the true riches. 2. Faithfulness. 3. The endurance of sufferings. II. Trials of the church in Sm} T rna. 1. Tribulation. 2. Poverty. 3. Blasphemy of Jews. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 33 4. Imprisonment. 5. Enmity of the Devil. 6. Martyrdom, in the expression " unto death." III. Adversaries. 1. Satanic Jews. 2. The Devil. IV. Principal subject : martyrdom. V. Duties. 1. Courage. 2. Fidelity. VI. Promises of Christ. 1. The possession of courage. 2. Endurance under trials, " faithful unto death." 3. Tribulation temporal*}-, " ten days." 4. A " crown of life." VII. Adaptation of Christ's titles to the principal sub- ject of the epistle. 1. "The First and the Last." Christ's eternity secures an eternal reward. 2. " Was dead, and is alive." Christ outlived his martyr- dom. All who die for him will have the same deathless life, " a crown of life ; " a crown conferring life eternal. VIII. Adaptation of the promised reward, freedom from "the second death," to the principal subject, mailyrdom. Christ's martyrs die but once. Their destiny and reward is life eternal. PRACTICAL TRUTHS OF THE SECOND EPISTLE : THE REWARDS OF FAITHFULNESS TO CHRIST. 1. Life follows death. It was so with Christ: it will be so with every faithful disciple of his. 2. Temporal trials and losses often accompany fidelity to Christ. 3. The true riches: Christ's love, Christ's presence, Christ's help, Christ's image. 4. Loss of worldly expectation the consequence of fidelity to Christ. 5. Pretence proves alliance with Satan, and hostility to Christ. 6. Courage is inspired by the assurance of victory over sufferings. 34 THE REVELATION OF 7. Trials are beneficial. 8. The power of the Devil is limited, both in time and in degree. 9. Enduring fidelity to Christ secures endless honor. 10. The church in Smyrna is the martyr church. 11. Christ expects all churches to possess the martyr spirit. 12. Christ's epistle to the church in Smyrna must have armed the martyrs of the early church with undying faith and unflinching courage. 13. This epistle is the manual appointed b} T Christ for all his martyrs. THE THIRD EPISTLE: THE EPISTLE TO THE CHURCH IN PERGAMOS (Yerses 12-17). SUBJECT: DOCTRINE OF BALAAM, SELF-WILL AND SELF-INDUL- GENCE. 12. Also to the angel of the church in Pergamos write: These things saith he that hath the sharp two-edged sword. The sharp two-edged sword : the reference is to i. 16. The Third Recapitulation. —The sword is the symbol of punish- ment. Christ threatens to punish the church in Pergamos. 13. I know where thou dwellest, even where is the throne of Satan ; and 3'et thou holdest fast my name, and dost not deny the faith in me, even in the days when Antipas is my faithful martyr, who is killed in your presence ; where Satan dwells. Throne : metonomy for dominion. Holdest fast my name: holdest fast the confession that Jesus is Lord (Rom. x. 9), and holdest fast prayer to my name (verse 13). Dost not deny: the Greek aorist tense has here the force of the present. Dost not deny; that is, thou dost openly confess: emphatic negation for strong affirmation. In the days : this is a possible sense of the expression, the days, predicted by our Lord (Matt. x. 21), and fulfilled in Pergamos. Antipas: is not an individual, but the representative of a class of martyrs. Reasons for this explanation of Antipas: — ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 35 1. The angel of each of the seven churches is representative: he represents the whole church. 2. In the Book of Revelation, proper names represent classes. (a) "That woman Jezebel " (ii. 20) is representative. She repre- sents the class of fornicators, and eaters of idol-sacrifices. {b) The Nicolaitanes are representative (ii. 6). 3. In the names Balaam and Nicolaites, St. John refers to the derivative meanings of the words, and then employs them as desig- nations of classes and not of individuals. He may treat the word " Antipas" in the same way; (a) by taking it in its derivative sense {against all), and (6) by designating a class of fearless martyrs, and not an individual. 4. The Apocalypse is seZ/-interpreting. By its own usages, Antipas is not personal, but only representative. Antipas means, in the Greek, against all. The name may repre- sent a class of brave and self-sacrificing martyrs, who could not be restrained from martyrdom by all the remonstrances and tears of all their timid and compromising relatives and friends. Hilary, Bishop of Poictiers, has an affecting description of this resolute and unyield- ing class of martyrs (vol. i. p. 371, 3). This class of martyrs is constrained to submit to a violent death, rather than deny Christ, by these declarations of his : " He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life- shall lose it; and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it" (Matt. x. 37, 39) ; and by the hope of receiving from him the frui- tion of this promise: " Every one that forsaketh houses, or brethren or sisters, or father or mother, or wife or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life" (xix. 29). In your presence: the Greek preposition has this sense (Col. iv. 1G). The presence of Christians does not prevent these unfeeling martyrdoms. Is killed: The Greek verb is a most deadly word; it describes butchery with the sword (Rev. vi. 8, xiii. 10). The preceding present tense, " holdest," changes all the Greek aorists in this verse 13 into present tenses. As we now see Jewish and Pagan fathers causing their own chil- dren to be killed by the sword, we can see why our Lord, when be- ginning his epistle to the church in Pergamos, refers to his own sword, ''These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges." He will avenge the blood of his youthful saints, now being shed in Pergamos. 14. But I have against thee a few things : that thou hast 36 THE REVELATION OF there certain men holding the teaching of Balaam, who was teaching Balak to cast a stumbling-block before the children of Israel, to eat sacrifices to idols, and to commit fornication. Pew: few faults compared with thy many virtues. There: this particle contemplates Pergamos as distant from Pat- mos. Pergamos was the most northerly of the seven churches. Even there, where my name is held fast (verse 13). Holding: in contrast with "thou holdest " (verse 13). The teaching Balaam was teaching : an intensified expression, the teaching Balaam was earnestly teaching. Stumbling-block: an occasion of sin. Sacrifices to idols: the Israelites not only actually ate these for- bidden sacrifices, but also " bowed down to their gods " (Num. xxv. 2). Fornication: (Num. xxv. 1; 1 Cor. x. 8). Like sins, like punishments: the divine inflictions in the time of Balaam, Christ is about to repeat in Pergamos, if not in kind yet in severity. St. Paul's writings show the proneness of some of the early Chris- tians to relapse into their former heathenish practices (1 Cor. viii. 1, v. 1). 15. In this way, thou hast, even thyself, certain men hold- ing the teaching of Nicolaitanes in like manner. Hast: emphatic. Thus repeating hast (verse 14), and the repeti- tion referring the phrase, in this exact way, to verse 14. Teaching of the Nicolaitanes: on the identity of their teaching with that of Balaam, see verse 6. In like manner : this expression establishes the close connection between the teachings of Balaam and the Nicolaitanes. 16. Accordingly, repent. But if thou dost not, I come unto thee most certainly, and will war with them by the sword of my mouth. Them: the Nicolaitanes. Sword : the punishments my mouth threatens, I shall inevitably inflict. 17. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a brilliant gem, ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 37 and on the gem a new name engraven, which no one knoweth except the receiver. Manna: food from heaven (Exod. xvi. 15). Hidden : the blessing represented by the manna, even Christ him- self (1 Cor. x. 4). The showbread, because made of manna, also rep- resents Christ (Exod. xxv. 30; John vi. 49-51). Brilliant gem : brilliant white. Gem: the gem in a signet-ring, a token of affection (Jer. xxii. 24). — Church Review, June, 1883 (ar- ticle "Cephas"). Name engraven: names were engraved on signet-gems (Exod. xxviii. 11). New : as a different word, and in a different sense, the new name indicates Christ's love (Jer. xi. 15, 16). No one knoweth except the receiver: the gift of the "new name," indicating Christ's love, be accompanies by the manifestation of his love in the soul of every one to whom he gives the new name. The nature and extent and preciousness of this manifested love can be known only by the person who experiences the love. This experienced love, unknown to others, the Scriptures call "the secret of the Lord." "The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him " Ps. xxv. 14. "His secret is with the righteous" Prov. iii. 32. The Son of man expressly calls this secret a manifestation : "Him that loveth me, I will love, and will manifest myself to him" (John xiv. 21). SUMMARY OF THE THIRD EPISTLE. The third epistle has these general subjects : — I. Approvals. I. Adhesion to faith in Christ. 2. Open confession of Christ. 3. Courage (verse 13). II. Sins. 1. Approval ("hast," verse 14) of the doctrine of Ba- laam. But approval of the doctrine is participation in the doctrine; hence, 2. Holding the doctrine of Balaam is the second sin. As a doctrine, Balaamism is (a) Self-ivill. Balaam, throughout his downward course to destruction, followed his own will. (b) Self-indulgence. Balaam advised feasting and sensu- ality as traps for the Israelites. 38 THE REVELATION OF As a practice (" deeds," verse 6), Balaamisni is (a) Idolatiy. (b) Fornication. Since meat offered to idols, and fornication, were prohib- ited by the council of Jerusalem (Acts xv. 29), these sins must have been committed hy some of the earl}- Christians, and, therefore, by some members of the church of Pergamos. Hence III. The principal subject of Christ's epistle to the church of Pergamos is, Self-will and Self-indulgence. These sins are "the Anakims, great and man}- and tall," to whom Christ gives not " so much as a foot-breadth " 1 of possession in his church ; and yet they are, always and every- where, subtle intruders, bold invaders, audacious heresiarchs, and loud-mouthed Balaams. A special epistle from Christ is imperiously needed for their reproof, resistance, expulsion, and destruction. IV. Adversaries. 1. Satan (verse 13). 2. Balaamites. V. Duties. 1. Repentance; which, in this epistle, includes (a) con- demnation of Balaamism, which is, in its essence, self-will and self-indulgence ; (6) Rejection of Balaamism in its prac- tices, — gluttony and licentiousness. 2. The practice of (a) submission to God's will and institutions, the opposite of self-will ; and (6) of self-denial (Matt. xvi. 24) , the oppo- site of self-indulgence. VI. Threat. Speedy punishment (verse 16). The Israel- ites who, by Balaam's arrangement, " committed fornication, fell in one day three and twenty thousand " (1 Cor. x. 8). VII. The adaptation of Christ's title, " He which hath the sharp sword with two edges" (verse 12), to the principal subject — self-love and self-indulgence — is very obvious. These sins demand immediate extermination. Self-will an- nihilates revealed truth. This was most conspicuously the effect of Balaam's self-will. Self-indulgence destroys both 1 Deut. ii. 5, 10. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 39 body and soul. Balaam, the instigator of the fornication of the Israelites, who died of a plague, was himself " slain with the sword" (Num. xxxi. 8). The souls of the sinning Balaam and the sinning Israelites perished, as " fornicators do not inherit the kingdom of God " (1 Cor. vi. 9). Sins which are as destructive as are self-will and self-indul- gence ever demand a sharp and heavy sword, quickly struck, for their excision and destruction. VIII. Adaptation of Christ's promises (verse 17) to every victor over Balaamism. l.,"The hidden manna," which is Christ's life, — the food of the soul, — is the contrasted substitute for idolatrous feasts, eaten to gratify the body. 2. Christ's secret love, symbolized by the " new name " known only to the receiver (verse 17), is the contrasted substitute for unlawful sexual love. The rewards promised by Christ in the third epistle are exactly adapted to the circumstances of the persons here addressed. PRACTICAL TRUTHS OF THE THIRD EITSTLE. 1 . A sharp sword is always needed to cut out deep-rooted sins. 2. Christ does not hold us responsible for outward condi- tions beyond our control. 3. Christ ever appreciates and rewards devotion shown him in the midst of dangers. 4. Every church is responsible for the heresies and sins of its members (Matt, xviii. 15-18). 5. Idolatry dethrones God. Fornication is murder in anticipation, and the prevention of family life. These sins are, therefore, most offensive to God. 6. Sins are to be measured by Christ's standard. 7. Destructive sins receive quick judgments. 8. The food Christ provides for the soul is infinitely pref- erable to bodily food. 9. The possession of Christ's love is not to be exchanged for illicit indulgence. 40 THE REVELATION OF 10. The more we feed on Christ, and enjoy his love, the less will be the power of our sinful inclinations over us. THE FOURTH EPISTLE: THE EPISTLE TO THE CHURCH IN THYATIRA (Verses 18-29). The longest epistle of the seven. The two great subjects — the Christian Ministry, clerical and lay, and Spiritual Apostasy — occupy this larger space. Also unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write : These things saith the Son of God, who has his eyes as lightning, and his feet are like the flashing lightning. The Son of God: this title of Christ is only here in the Apoca- lypse. Like all his titles in the Apocalyptic epistles, it is closely con- nected with the subjects of the epistle, and will aid us in determining what they are. The title, " Son of God," first appears, Ps. ii. 7, where, as we learn from Heb. i. 5, it declares his eternal generation from the Father, and consequently his essential and absolute Deity. When the angel Gabriel announces the birth of the predicted Immanuel (Isa. vii. 14), he names him "the Son of God" (Luke i. 35). Our Lord habitually applies this divine title to himself (Matt. xx vii. 43). The title is thus defined by John Baptist: (a) as "the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world" (John i. 20), and as therefore incarnate; and (6) as "He which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost" (verse 33), and consequently as our Almighty Sanctifier (verse 34). Christ himself connects the new creation of the soul in his holy image with this sanctifying title: "The dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and they that hear shall live " (John v. 25). Our Lord makes belief in himself as the Son of God the condition of discipleship (ix. 35, 38). St. John makes belief in the Son of God the condition of " life through his name" (xx. 31). By Philip {the deacon, and therefore a minister of Christ) the Ethiopian eunuch was admitted to Christian baptism, on his profession of faith in the Son of God (Acts viii. 37, 38). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 41 We may now see why, in his epistle to the church in Thyatira, our Lord calls himself "the Son of God." The title introduces him, (a) as divine in his nature; (6) as our Sanctifier; and (c) as the supreme Author of these instruments of salvation, through him as Sanctifier, (a) faith, (b) the sacrament of baptism, and (c) the gospel ministry. The truths we have thus reached are all embodied in these sove- reign words of his, "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth " ( Matt, xxviii. 18). " He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved " (Mark xvi. 16). " As my Father sent me, even so I send you [my "disciples," verse 20] " (John xx. 21). " Go ye [my "disciples," verse 16], therefore, and disciple all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost" (Matt. xxviii. 19). By the title "the Son of God," in this epistle to the church in Thyatira, Christ exhibits himself as Sanctifier of all churches and all hearts, by these instruments of his own appointment, — faith, baptism, and the apostolic ministry. His eyes : the reference is to i. 14, 15. Fourth Recapitulation. — The lightning-vision of the Son of God denotes his omniscience. His feet: His lightning-feet indicate the rapidity and promptness with which he executes his sovereign will. 19. I know thy works, even tlry love, and fidelit}', and ser- vice, and patience ; and so thy last works are more than the first. Thy works: Christ expects all churches to work for him. Thy love: Brotherly love. As the "service" in this quadruplet is mutual (" ministering to the saints," 2 Cor. ix. 19), the other works in this verse — love, fidelity, and patience — must be mutual. Faith: towards each other; fidelity. Service: the Greek word, the English Version often translates "ministry;" we may therefore regard it as the Christian ministry, both clerical and lay. (a) Clerical. — The false ministry of the woman Jezebel implies a true ministry performed by men. The true ministry is also con- tained in the Greek word translated "service" (verse 19), which des- ignates (Acts i. 17, 25, vi. 4, xii. 25, xx. 24, xxi. 19; Rom. xi. 13; 2 Cor. iv. 1, v. 18, vi. 3; Eph. iv. 12; Col. iv. 17; 1 Tim. i. 12; 2 Tim. iv. 5, 11) either the personal ministry of the apostles of our Lord, or the apostolic ministry they committed to other men. 42 THE REVELATION OF (b) Lay. — But, associated as is "service" (Rev. ii. 19) with "char- ity," mutual love, with "faith," mutual fidelity, and with mutual "patience" of " the church in Thyatira" (verse 18), consisting of lay people as well as clergymen, the word "service" (Rev. ii. 19) must include the ministry of laymen and lay women. The inclusion, in the church of Thyatira, of laymen and lay women among Christian workers, is no exception to the organization of the church universal in the days of St. John. The following statements of St. Paul on this point also, most conclusively, establish the Chris- tian ministry in two forms, — clerical, performed by men ; and lay, performed by men and women. "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus" (Gal. iii. 28). The "oneness" of Jew and Greek, of bond and free, of male and female, is not merely the possession of a common salvation in Christ Jesus. The "oneness" is also their common duty, imposed upon all by the possession of a c'ommon salvation, of working for Christ. This common duty resting upon all souls, because they are all redeemed by the blood of Christ, is illustrated and enforced by St. Paul, in his graphic manner. " I beseech you, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God; namely, your ivord-service 1 [that is, the service of speech for Christ]. For, as we have many members in one [material] body, and all [bodily] members have not the same office [Greek, " acting"] ; so we, being many [indi- viduals], are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having, then, gifts [duties] differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether (a) prophecy [one form of speech], let us proph- esy according to the proportion [the analogy] of the faith; or {b) ministry [of the word, Acts vi. 4, a second form of speech] ; or he that (c) teacheth [a third form of speech], on teaching; or he that (eZ) ex- horteth [a fourth form of speech], on exhortation; he that giveth, with simplicity ["liberality," 2 Cor. viii. 2]; he that showeth mercy, with cheerfulness" (Rom. xii. 1, 4-8). According to these words of St. Paul, it is the Christian duty of every human being, who possesses the requisite knowledge and ability, 1 The Greek word translated " reasonable" by the English Version (Rom. xii. ] ) occurs in the New Testament elsewhere, only, 1 Pet. ii. 2, where the English Ver- sion translates the same Greek by " word." The immediate context (Rom. xii. 4-8) decidedly prefers xoord as the translation in Rom. xii. 1, as we shall soon show. The Greek word translated "service" (Rom. xii. 1) means service rendered to God. Besides Rom. xii. 1, the following are all the places where this Greek word Latvia (" service") occurs in the New Testament: John xvi. 2; Rom. ix. 4; Heb. ix. 1, 6. That, in all of them, God is the object of the " service," there can be no doubt # ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 43 to perform word-service for Christ. This primary Christian duty St. Paul recognizes in another form. " Ye are enriched by Him in all utterance " (1 Cor. i. 5). "Ye abound in utterance' 1 '' (2 Cor. viii. 7). In Christians, God prepares a people whose special business it is to speak for him. This general obligation is, however, in the New Testament, modi- fied by special enactments. Christian men are, in the Church of Christ, either clergymen or laymen; "the apostles, and elders, and brethren" (Acts xv. 23); "the apostles and elders with the whole church" (verse 22). Christian women, while excluded from teaching in churches (1 Cor. xiv. 34) and from authority overmen (1 Tim. ii. 12), are required by St. Paul to teach in private (Tit. ii. 3, 4). In Tit. ii. 3, 4, Christian women give private instruction to other women. But in Acts xviii. 26, Priscilla, the wife of Aquila, does, with her husband, give Christian instruction in private to Apollos, "an elo- quent man." That the instruction is private, is certain from this lan- guage, " they took him unto them;" that is, took Apollos to "their house" (1 Cor. xvi. 19). More: in number; "more than ten days " (Acts xxv. 6). 20. But I have this against thee, that thou lettest alone the woman Jezebel, who ssljs she herself is a prophetess ; and so teaches and seduces m}* own servants to commit fornica- tion, and to eat sacrifices offered to idols. Lettest alone: dost not hinder. " Let him alone " (John xi. 48). • The woman Jezebel: the name Jezebel Avas first borne by the Zidonian wife of King Ahab (1 Kings xvi. 31). The historical Jezebel was a pestilence (Greek, Acts xxiv. 5) to the subjects of her Israelitish husband. (a) She introduced idol-worship (1 Kings xxi. 25, 26). (b) She killed the Lord's prophets (1 Kings xviii. 4), also Naboth (xxi. 15). The historical Jezebel was the representative of the idolatrous and lawless portion of the kingdom of Ahab (1 Kings xviii. 13, xix. 2, xxi. 7-15). St. John 1 calls the class of apostatizing women in the church in Thyatira Jezebel, on account of their resemblance to Jezebel of Tyre. 1 Antipas (Rev. ii. 13) is a representative. The " man of sin" (2 Thess. ii. 3), and M antichrist" (1 John ii. 18), is each " antichrist." 44 THE REVELATION OF In her conduct, the representative Jezebel of Thyatira resembles Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron. (a) Miriam was a prophetess (Exod. xv. 20). Miriam, like Debo- rah (Judg. iv. 4) and Anna (Luke ii. 30), was inspired by tbe Holy Ghost to teach God's will. The representative Jezebel of Thyatira claims for herself the same inspiration and office (Rev. ii. 20). (b) Miriam resisted the authority of Moses (Num. xii. 1). The representative Jezebel of Thyatira resists the authority of its apos- tolic ministry (ii. 2). Since Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron, and a prophetess, proved rebellious, it is not incredible that in the church of Thyatira there should be a body of women (which, for their resemblance to Allah's heathen wife, Christ calls Jezebel) raising a rebellion against the ministerial authority he constituted in the churches. "Who says she herself is a prophetess: in ii. 2 and 9, where like claims are urged, Christ denies the claims: "They are not." The same denial of the representative Jezebel's claim is here implied: she is not a true prophetess. Teaches : Jezebel of Thyatira is a teaching prophetess. Seduces: withdraws from the truth. Fornication : here spiritual, for three reasons : — (a) Contextual. The sin is called in the text both fornication and adultery, and is committed by the same individuals. The literal commission is thus impossible. (b) Fornication is here emphatic in position. In verse 14, the phrase is "idol-sacrifices and fornication" where the sin is literal: here the phrase is "fornication and idol-sacrifices." The only con- ceivable reason why fornication has this emphatic position is its des- ignation of spiritual sin. This is a law established by Bible-Greek usage. When, in couplets repeated, the normal order of the words is inverted, the words become in sense figurative. Example: "Pillar and ground [foundation] " (1 Tim. iii. 15). The architectural order of the words is "foundation and pillar." The inversion of the order, "pillar and foundation," renders these words figurative. (c) In this book itself, fornication is often spiritual, meaning apos- tasy from God (xiv. 8, xvii. 2, 4, 5, xviii. 3, xix. 2). What is the nature of the sin committed by the representative Jezebel of Thyatira? The woman Jezebel claims to be an inspired prophetess. Observe: the word " woman " precedes the proper name Jezebel. This position of " woman " is contrary to usage elsewhere. In the only other places in the New Testament (Matt. i. 20, xiv. 3; Mark vi. 17; Luke i. 24, ST. JOHN Tin-: DIVINE. 45 ii. 5, iii. 19, viii. 3; Acts v. 1, xviii. 2, xxiv. 24), ten in all, where " woman " occurs in the original with a proper name, the proper name precedes woman. Thus the woman (Rev. ii. 20) is proved to be emphatic. The woman is the prominent object in the clause. The fact is instructive in determining the meaning of the passage. Women in the church of Thyatira assert their divine inspiration, commission, office, and authority. Perhaps they adopt the argument of Koran and his rebellious company, "all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them " (Num. xvi. 3). In Rev. ii. 2, certain men claim to be the apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ. But in Rev. ii. 20, a different case presents itself: women proclaim themselves his prophetesses. This proclamation initiates in the church of Thyatira, and in the Church at large, a new kind of Christian ministry. The success of this new ministry can be achieved only by the exclusion of the old. Prophetesses necessarily supersede the prophets. Victory and domi- nation create subjugation and ruin. We can now perceive why our Lord calls the women who occasion these radical changes, Jezebel. The heathen mistress of Ahab intro- duced into the nation the priests of Baal. We see not less than eight hundred and fifty of these usurpers at Mount Carmel. At the same time, Queen Jezebel puts to death the prophets of the Lord. The false displaces the true. The false prophetesses of Thyatira are a Jezebel for this obvious reason: in bringing in their usurping female ministry, they drive out the male ministry of Christ's appointment. The elevation of women to the ministerial office is the downfall of men. It is certain, (rom the language our Lord employs in the context, that he himself regards the male and female ministries in this very light. He approves and upholds the ministry of men: he condemns and rejects the ministry of women. The words by which he describes the ministry of the representa- tive Jezebel of Thyatira are condemnatory in the highest degree. In his description, her ministry is spiritual fornication and spiritual idolatry. Ministerial Jezebelism is both the rejection of the will of God, shown in his own ministerial appointments, and the adoption of the human will, shown in self-appointments, as the master and guide in religion. St. Paul also excludes women from the public Christian ministry (1 Cor. xiv. 34). 21. And yet I am giving her a certain time, in order that 46 THE REVELATION OF she may repent ; and } T et she doth not desire to repent, and turn from her own fornication. May repent: by demanding repentance of Jezebel, our Lord pro- nounces her ministry sinful. Does not desire : as her sin began in self-will, she does not even desire to abandon her self-worship. 22. Behold, I am casting her into a sick-bed, and those who are committing adultery with her into great affliction, unless they repent of her works. I am casting: the punishment is already being inflicted. Her into a sick-bed: in the Old Testament, bed was the instru- ment of sin (Isa. lvii. 7-9; Ezek. xxiii. 41-44). Here bed denotes bodily weakness: in Mark vii. 30, the prostrated position denotes weakness of body. With the woman Jezebel, the symbolic bed of the Old Testament is the symbolic instrument of her punishment. Her punishment is spiritual weakness and decline. As in the preceding verses, so in this (verse 22), the prevailing sense is spiritual. " Into a bed," being paral- lel with " into great affliction," describes spiritual suffering. Jezebel's self-will is in opposition to Christ's will. She is -"fighting against God" (Acts v. 39). Her self-will resists the Holy Spirit within her. As her self-will increases in obstinacy, the influences of the Holy Spirit diminish. The divine life in her is expiring. Her soul is expe- riencing moral death. The literal adulteress was punished with bodily death (Lev. xx. 10). Jezebel, a spiritual adulteress, is punished with the death of her moral affections. This is Jezebel's sick-bed. This is the "great tribulation" of her followers. This is her punishment. This is their punishment. Sinners perish and die spiritually in this world (2 Cor. ii. 15); "sweet savor" in the perishing. Those who are committing adultery with her: some men in the church of Thyatira joined the secession of the apostatizing women. Affliction: may be internal as well as external. It is sometimes distinguished from outward persecution. " Affliction or persecution " (Mark iv. 17). From her works: Jezebel's works, because requiring repentance, were evil. In verse 24, they are called "the depths of Satan." A sinful mind produces a sinful life. 23. And so her children will I kill Iry death, and so all the churches shall fully know that I nryself am the searcher of ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 47 all reins and hearts: even I will give to 3-011, to each one, according to your works. Her children : Jezebel of Thyatira is a spiritual harlot. Her children are therefore her spiritual children. They are her followers. St. John calls his disciples " my children " (3 John 4). Will kill: in a spiritual sense (Rev. ix. 15, xi. 5, 7, 13, xix. 21). By death: the repetition of the same word intensifies the predic- tion; I will utterly kill. St. John wrote the Apocalypse about A.D. 95. During the reign of Antoninus Marcus, A.D. 138-161, perhaps only a generation after the writing of this book, Montanus, of whom Tertullian was a fol- lower, appeared in Phrygia, a province closely adjoining the territory in which Thyatira is situated. Montanus was assisted in promul- gating his wish to be regarded as the Paraclete of Christ, by two influ- ential women, Priscilla and Maximilla, who claimed to be prophetesses inspired by the Holy Ghost. It is thus possible that these fanatical matrons of Phrygia derived their system from the fanatical women of Thyatira, and that Mon- tanism itself is the off-shoot and continuation of the Jezebelism of this Apocalyptic city. — Eusebius, Eccl. Hist, b. v., c. 16; Mosheim, Eccl. Hist., i. 151. This then, is the meaning of the passage: "Her converts I will by a moral death utterly kill." Know fully : from their own experience. The searcher: this title of God the Father (Roin. viii. 27), Christ here appropriates to himself. Reins and hearts : this twofold specification includes every por- tion of the human soul (Heb. iv. 12, 13). The Searcher of the reins and hearts sees the secret spring, both of Jezebel's sin and of the sin of her followers. This secret spring-head is pride and self-conceit (Rom. xii. 16). ''I will give to you [all the churches], to each one [to each indi- vidual member of the churches], according to your works : " the char- acter of the sin determines the character of the punishment. 24. But to you I sa3 T , the rest who are in Thyatira, all who are not holding this doctrine, who are not personally knowing the depths of Satan (as they call them) , I am not casting on you any other burden. This doctrine : of Jezebel's. Who : as a class. 48 THE REVELATION OF Depths: secret purposes (2 Cor. ii. 11), [" devices"]. Not certain that there is in the word " depths " any reference to gnosticism. Satan: the prime instigator of Jezebel and of her party (verse 9). As they : the rest. The uncorrupted portion of the church call the new teaching Satan's purposes. Other burden: other requirement (Matt. xi. 30); that is, the retention of your present Christian graces and the performance of your present Christian duties (verse 25). 25. Except the burden which }'e have, hold fast, until I shall come. Hold fast: hold fast my teaching; hold fast my ministry, consist- ing exclusively of men. The command applies to Christians in all ages of the world. Shall come: to the final judgment in the last day. 26. Also he that overcometh, even he that keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give authority over the nations. He that overcometh: nominative of designation. As to each victor in Thyatira. He that keepeth: the keeper; victory comes by keeping. My works: the works I require; "my patience," the patience I require (iii. 10). Authority over the nations : over the Gentiles (see ii. 9). I will make him a fellow-victor with myself over the Gentiles (see xi. 15, xii. 5, xv. 4, xix. 15). He shall be in my hands an instrument of extending my church in the Gentile world, by turning souls from sin unto holiness. 27. (And he shall rule them with a rod of iron, as the ves- sels which are of clay are utterly shivered) as I myself also receive of nry Father. Rule: as a shepherd (John x. 11). Rod: sceptre (Heb. i. 8). Of iron: irresistible (ix. 9), not oppressive. As the vessels : as vessels of clay can be utterly shivered by a rod of iron, so utterly shall Christ's victors overcome their spiritual ene- mies in the hearts of men. Receive of my Father: "all authority is given unto me in heaven and in earth" (Matt, xxviii. 18). This clause belongs to verse 26. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 49 28. And so I will give him the morning star. The morning star is the emblem of a king (Isa. xiv. 12). I will make my victor a king. By this star, symbol of kingship, I constitute him irresistible king over all nations. Every true disciple and faithful minister, Christ makes the instrument of his divine power and success in the world. The martyrs in all ages were such kings. What kings in the world are St. John and St. Paul to-day! This explanation of the morning star accords with the kingly language of verse 27. 29. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. See ii. 7, 11, 17, iii. 6, 13, 22. SUMMARY OF THE FOURTH EPISTLE. The fourth epistle has these general subjects : — I. Titles of Christ. I. The Son of God (verse 18). 2. Searcher of hearts. 3. Possessor of lightning-eyes. 4. Possessor of lightning- feet. 5. Impartial judge, " I will give according to works " (verse 23). 6. Merciful judge (verse 21). II. Approvals. 1. Mutual love, " charity " (verse 19). 2. Mutual " ser- vice " (" ministering to the saints," 2 Cor. ix. 1). 3. Mu- tual fidelity, "faith" (verse 19). 4. Mutual patience. 5. Increase (" more," verse 19) of all these Christian graces. 6. Ignorance of Satan's depths (verse 24). III. Sins. 1. Of the church itself, (a) Toleration of the women called Jezebel, " sufferest " (verse 20). (b) Neglect to sup- press her "doctrine" (verse 24). 2. Of Jezebel, (a) Spiritual apostasy, "reins and hearts" (verse 23). (b) Love of power (verse 26). (c) Assumption of the minis- terial office, " calleth herself a prophetess " (verse 20). (d) Creation of a female ministry, " woman Jezebel " (verse 20) . (e) Teaching spiritual apostasy to the church of Thyatira, " teach " (verse 20). (/) Practical seduction of a portion of the church, " seduce " (verse 20) ; " leave this doctrine " (verse 24). (g) Refusal to repent (verse 21). 50 THE REVELATION OF IV. Principal subjects. 1. The great duty : the exercise of the Christian ministry, both clerical and lay. 2. The great sin: Spiritual Apos- tasy. V. Adversaries. 1. Jezebel. 2. Her folio wers. 3. Satan. VI. Duties. 1. Non-toleration of Jezebel. 2. Holding fast present mutual love, service, fidelity, and patience. VII. Threats. 1. Sickness (casting into a bed). 2. Great tribulation. 3. Spiritual death. VIII. Mercies. 1. Space for repentance (verse 22). 2. No other burden than present duties. IX. Promises. 1. Power over the Gentiles, to convert them to Christ. 2. Equality of dominion with Christ (verse 27). 3. Morning star. X. Adaptation of Christ's titles — (a) Son of God, (b) searcher of "reins and hearts" (verse 23), (c) eye's, (d) feet — to the general subjects, the Christian ministiy, and spiritual apostasy. 1. The Son of God is the author of the Christian niinistiy. 2. The special design of the gospel proclaimed by the Chris- tian ministry is to reveal the thoughts of hearts (Luke ii. 35). Christ's infinite knowledge finds the thoughts, appoints his ministers (Acts i. 24), distributes his gifts of the Holy Ghost (Acts xv. 8) . Since spiritual apostasy is in the heart, the secret sin requires the Searcher of "reins and hearts" to detect it. 3. Christ's lightning eyes scan the thoughts of both min- isters and people, and discern the nature and extent of the departure of each soul from his will and appointments. 4. Christ's lightning feet alwa} T s go with his ministers wherever the}- carry his gospel, and bring its messages of ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 51 salvation to all souls, whether willing or unwilling to receive his mercies. Since his lightning feet dispense his mercies, his lightning feet also reach all sinning and apostate souls to inflict on them his just punishments. XI. Adaptation of Christ's rewards to the working mem- bers of the church in Thyatira. The rewards of the Chris- tian ministry are both in the present life and in the world to come. In the present life, the rewards of the Christian ministry are these three : (a) opportunity, (b) success, (c) increase of grace in the soul of each minister. 1. Opportunity. This is the field into which Christ sends every minister, both clerical and lay, to work. In Thyatira, this field was the Jews and Gentiles, who filled the city, and the members of the church itself. To men and women alike, there was the open opportunity of practising their graces, of love of souls, of services of fidelity, of enduring patience. 2. Success. "To him that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, will I give power over the Gentiles" (verse 26), to convert them unto myself. This promised success Christ "received of his Father" (verse 27), and the hope it inspires in him moves him in his own ministry for our salvation. 3. Increase of grace in the soul of every worker for Christ. " He that watereth shall himself be watered " (Prov. xi. 25) ; " It is more blessed to give than to receive " (Acts xx. 35), — more blessed on account of the inner and personal reward. The future rewards of the Christian ministry are so great and inconceivable that they must be described b}' figures : " They that turn many to righteousness are shining stars for ever and ever" (Dan. xii. 3). The church Christ is ad- dressing in his fourth epistle knew this promise (Rev. ii. 28) ; and the working Christians in the Church must, for its sake, work on " unto the end." 52 THE REVELATION OF PRACTICAL TRUTHS OF THE FOURTH EPISTLE. 1. Because divine, the Son of God is both omniscient and omnipresent (verse 18). 2. Brotherly love is a prolific root, producing service, fidelity, and patience (verse 19). 3. Christ endows Christian graces with the power of growth and increase (verse 19). 4. Although Christ does not allow women to be public prophetesses in his church, he appoints them teachers in private life (Phil. iv. 3 ; Tit. ii. 3, 4 ; Acts xviii. 26). 5. Toleration of sin is itself sinful (verse 20). 6. The love of power is a sin hard to overcome and for- sake (verse 21). 7. Sins cherished always displace Christian graces (verse 22). 8. Spiritual sickness, unless cared for, occasions spiritual death (verse 23). 9. Sin in its origination in the human heart is so secret, even to our consciousness, that only the omniscience of Christ can detect it (verse 23 ; Ps. xix. 12, 13). 10. Christ makes our works the test of our spiritual state (verse 23). 11. The purposes of Satan are his " devices" (2 Cor. ii. 11), by which he plots our ruin (verse 24). 12. Christ imposes duties according to our strength. 13. Before we can subdue the hearts of others to Christ, we must be habitual victors over our own dispositions and affections (verses 26, 27). A Christian wilfully sinning cannot be a successful soldier of Jesus Christ. 14. The starry brilliancy with which Christ rewards his gospel servants (Dan. xii. 3) is in proportion to the Chris- tian light the}^ impart to others (verse 28) . ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 53 CHAPTER III. THE FIFTH EPISTLE: THE EPISTLE TO THE CHURCH IN SARDIS (iii. 1-6). SUBJECT, SPIRITUAL DEATH. 1. Also to the angel of the church in Sardis write : These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars : I know th3 T works, that thou hast a name to live, and yet thou art dead. The seven Spirits and the seven stars : in these expressions, there is reference to i. 4 and 16, where the expressions are explained. Fifth Recapitulation of previous titles borne by Christ. Name : emphatic, mere name. Your life is not a reality. To live: in the Apocalypse, only here in a spiritual sense. The same sense, Rom. vi. 8. In Rev. xx. 4, "live" denotes, not resur- rection-life, but manner of life ; describes a kingly life. And yet thou art dead : in a spiritual sense, because contrasted with "to live" in preceding clause. In the Apocalypse, only here in this sense. Also, Luke ix. 60; Eph. ii. 5; 1 Tim. v. 6. Christ, as always, " uses great plainness of speech" (2 Cor. iii. 12). The first stroke of his resistless hand tears off the mask of hypocrisy. By this startling address he intends to break the fond dream of self- delusion, in which the church of Sardis is sleeping. The sudden address to this dead church is, like his loud call to the entombed Lazarus, "Come forth!" The sharp summons is a resurrection trumpet to rouse the sleeping and dreaming church to newness of life. In the dull ears of many a church, at the present hour, is the same stirring trumpet voice now sounding, Thou art dead ! 2. Become ever watchful, and strengthen the rest of the 54 THE REVELATION OF works, which were about to die ; for I do not find thy works perfected in the sight of m}' God. " The rest" (in the Greek) refers to the preceding " works" (verse 1), just as "the rest" (ii. 24), refers to the preceding "you." Christ determines the character of persons by their works (Matt. vii. 16). By "the rest of the works" [workers] we may understand the rest of the persons; namely, the careless or backsliding Christians in Sardis. "Were about: in his love and hopefulness, Christ regards the death as already past (Rom. vi. 17). To die : in a spiritual sense, as in Rom. viii. 13. Perfected: brought to perfection, not in the full "measure" (Matt, xxiii. 32) I require. In the sight of: in the judgment of; "before" (Luke i. 6) has this sense. God is our present Judge. He is incessantly measuring our works by his own perfect standard. My God : in the Apocalypse, only in the epistle to Sardis, where Jive times (iii. 2, 12) in the Greek. Our Lord utters the expression (Matt, xxvii. 46; Mark xv. 34; John xx. 17). It is taken from Ps. xxii. 1, 2, 10. The word "my" denotes the closeness of the relation subsisting between God the Father and God the Son. So close is this relation, that each knows the mind of the other. When, then, our Lord says in Rev. iii. 2, "in the judgment of my God," he, in effect, says, "in the judgment of the Father, whose judgment I myself fully know." 3. Accordingly, remember how thoa art receiving and hearing and keeping ; and so repent. Accordingly, if thou dost not watch, I will come against thee as a thief; and so thou art in no wise knowing in what hour I shall come against thee. Accordingly: the particle we translate "accordingly" is both retrospective and summarizing. It is not inferential, and cannot be justly translated " therefore " (English Version). This Greek particle here reviews the declarations and exhortation in verses 1 and 2, and presents them as constraining reasons for personal and minute recol- lection and immediate repentance. Remember: see ii. 5. How: "after what manner" (Acts xx. 18). Since the manner required repentance ("repent," next clause), the manner was bad. "How" (1 Cor. iii. 10) describes manner; and the manner, "wood, hay, stubble," must also be bad. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 55 In Rev. iii. 3, "how" is in contrast with " livest," "watchful," and "strengthen" (verses 1 and 2), and therefore has this meaning: "How lifelessly, carelessly, and feebly art thou receiving and hearing and keeping!" In Eph. v. 15, " how" (so in the Greek) means, how not foolishly, "not as fools." Supreme folly likewise marks the manner of the dying church of Sardis. Receiving: the new name (ii. 17). This is the only kind of receiving predicated in the Apocalypse of Christian individuals. Hearing: the voice of the Holy Spirit (ii. 7, 11, 17, 29). Keeping: my works (ii. 26), observing, doing the works I com- mand. The Greek verb we translate "keeping" is in the present tense, and thus makes the two preceding Greek verbs we translate "receiving" and "hearing," in sense present tenses, describing con- stant habit. The church of Sardis is a sick man, scarcely able to walk. The grasp of his receptive hand is feeble. The hearing of his ear is dull. His active obedience, so far as he attempts it, is partial and irresolute. As a thief: unexpectedly (Matt. xxiv. 43). The Sardian church neither looks for nor hastes unto the coming of her Lord (2 Pet. iii. 12). She neither expects his coming nor desires it. How many Sardian Christians are there at the present time ! Their expectations and desires are fixed upon all worldly objects. For Christ, and the treasures he presents to their hearts, their affections are feeble and dying. 4. Yet thou hast a few names in Sardis, that are not defil- ing their garments ; and so they shall walk with me in white, for they are worth}-. Yet : there is a brighter fact than the deadness of the church of Sardis as a community. Thou hast : even in the midst of the universal spiritual deadness. A few names: persons (Rev. xi. 13; Acts i. 15). Few, compared with the whole number; a few live Christians, "the election" (Rom. xi. 7). Are not defiling : the Greek tense describes their usual practice. Not defiling; that is, are most carefully preserving the unsullied whiteness of their garments. They are retaining the holiness and purity of their souls, with which Christ incessantly blesses them. In the presence and light of Christ in our souls, may we all now continually see light! Garments: this language is symbolic. Garments are symbols of states of soul. (a) Of a sinful state. "Joshua the high priest was clothed with o6 THE REVELATION OF filthy garments" (Zech. iii. 3). "The Lord spake unto those that stood before him, Take away the filthy garments from Joshua. Unto Joshua the Lord said, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee" (verse 4). Thus it is proved from the Bible itself, that a soiled gar- ment is the symbol of the sinful state of the soul ( Jude 23). (6) Of a holy state. " I will clothe with change of raiment" (Zech. iii. 4). " He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness'" (Isa. lxi. 10). " To the Lamb's wife was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is [represents] the righteousness of the saints" (Rev. xix. 8). Walk: that is, live (xxi. 24). With me : John xvii. 24. In white : in white garments (verse 5) ; that is, in holiness. Worthy: of every honor (1 Tim. vi. 1). 5. He that overcometh shall be thus clothed in white gar- ments, and in no wise will I blot out his name from the book of life ; and I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels. Overcometh : he all the time, every day and every hour, conquers his unwatchfulness and deadness. Every sin is a dangerous enemy, and therefore must be conquered. Thus clothed : clothed as " the few " are in verse 4, in white. Clothed : clothed about, fully clothed. Blot out: the blotting assigns to the lake of fire (xx. 15). Book of life : God commanded Moses to number the children of Israel on two occasions: (a) in the second year of their departure from Egypt (Num. i. 1-4); (6) in the plains of Moab (xxvi. 1-3). A great sin, for example idolatry, caused the name of the sinner to be blotted out of this book of numbering (Exod. xxxii. 33). In other words, the idolater was put to death (Judg. vi. 31). This, then, is the meaning of these words, " I will not blot out his name from the book of life;" I will not put him to death, I will not subject him to the second death (xxi. 8). Confess his name: declare his name to be rightly written in the book of life (Ezra ii. 62; Neh. vii. 64). Before my Father and before his angels : angels will attend our Lord when he comes to the universal judgment (Matt. xxv. 31). His confession of each conqueror will be approved by God the Father and by his angels. The decisions of God always commend themselves to the intelligence and moral judgment of all good angels. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 07 6. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. See ii. 29. SUMMARY OF THE FIFTH EPISTLE. This epistle has these general subjects : — I. Christ's titles. 1. He that hath the seven Spirits and the seven stars (verse 1). 2. The Author of the book of life (verse 5). 3. The Judge (verse 5). II. Evils. 1 . Decline of the life of God in the soul (verse 1 ) . 2. Decline of spiritual graces : (a) of self-examination ("remember"); (6) of watchfulness ; (c) of the desire for restoration (" strengthen "). III. Causes: Loss of the life of Christ in the soul; (a) by indifference, (6) by sin. IV. Remedies. 1. Renewal of the soul by the Holy Spirit. 2. Practice (a) of self-examination, (b) of watchfulness, (c) of former graces. 3. Restoration to former spiritual state. 4. Repentance and abandonment of sin. V. Grounds of hope. 1. Life and graces, though dying, are not absolutely dead (verse 2). 2. A few souls are still faithful and worthy (verse 4). VI. Threats. 1. Of Christ's advent to judge. 2. Of unexampled judgments (verse 3). 3. Of omission of warnings (verse 3). VII. Rewards. 1. Christ's life. 2. White garments. 3. Enrolment in the book of life. 4. Acceptance. 58 THE REVELATION OF VIII. Principal subject, spiritual death. IX. Application of Christ's titles to the principal subject. 1. The seven Spirits can restore spiritual life. 2. Christ's love, symbolized by the seven stars, leads him to attempt the restoration. X. Adaptation of the promised rewards to the persons addressed. The rewards promised (VII.) will excite to the use of the remedies (IV.). PRACTICAL TRUTHS OF THE FIFTH EPISTLE. 1. Christ now employs the Holy Spirit for restoration from spiritual cleadness, as well as for growth in grace (verse 1). 2. The mention of "the stars," signet-gems, emblems of Christ's love, proves that he ever loves his people, even when they are backsliding (verse 1). 3. Great as is the blessing of registration by Christ in his book of life, the blessing may be forfeited and lost b} T spirit- ual deadness (verse 2). 4. The remedy for spiritual deadness is twofold : (a) habitual watchfulness ; (b) re-establishment of Christ's life and of the dying graces in their former activity and strength (verse 2) . 5. Examination precedes finding. Christ is constantly examining our works (verse 2). 6. St. Paul's exhortation embraces the only safe rule : " Let us go on to perfection" (Heb. vi. 1). His example enforces his own exhortation in Phil. iii. 13, 14 (verse 2). 7. Memoiy, the observer and recorder of our nominal profession, urges us to practise repentance and a new life (verse 3). 8. Neglect to watch and repent insures swift and sudden punishment (verse 3). 9. There are always, in every church, a few worthy souls who are ever faithful to Christ (verse 4) . .sT. JOHN THE DIVINE. 59 10. The rewards of victory over sin are life with Christ, and his recognition and reception "in the hour of death, and in the day of judgment " (verse 5). 11. The voice of the Holy Spirit always enters and in- structs the willing ear. THE SIXTH EPISTLE: EPISTLE TO THE CHURCH IN PHILADELPHIA (Verses 7-13). SUBJECT OF THE EPISTLE, THE CON VERSION OF THE JEWS. The church in Philadelphia is a missionary church to the Jews. This church is Christ's own pattern for all his churches, at the present time and at all times. 7. Also to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write : These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth and no one shutteth ; and shutteth, and no one openeth. These things : which follow. Holy: " The Holy One" is one of the names of Christ (Acts iii. 14). Holiness is more than sinlessness: it is moral perfection. True: real, perfect. Christ is "the true [perfect] light'' (John i. 9). He is "the true [perfect] God" (1 John v. 20); "very God. of very God" (Nicene Creed). The key of David : the reference is to i. 18, where the keys are "the keys of hell and of death." In iii. 7, " the key" is the key of church authority. Sixth Recapitulation. "The key of the house of David will I lay upon him" (Isa. xxii. 22). Key is the symbol of kingly dominion (Luke i. 32). David, as founder of the kingdom of Israel, was its head. He is thus a type of Christ (Jer. xxx. 9). David's kingdom typifies the Church of Christ. Christ alone has the key of the Church, the supreme authority in it (Matt. xvi. 19, xxviii. 18). No Roman pope has this key. Openeth, etc.: from Isa. xxii. 22, which is prophetic of Christ. The quotation describes the resistless, almighty power of Christ. 8. I know thy works : behold, I am now setting before thee an opened door, which no one can shut ; for thou hast 60 THE REVELATION OF very little ability, and thou art keeping my own word, and art not denying niy name. I know thy works : that they are good. Because they are good. I now give thee additional work to do. Behold: for thyself. Give personal and earnest attention to all I am about to say. My words are of the deepest interest to thee, to the Jews, to the Church of Christ, and all mankind. My important utterances immediately follow. I am now setting before thee an opened door: I am now placing an opened door before thine eyes. I myself open the door. The door thus opened immediately before thee is my command for thee to enter the door at once. The door symbolizes a large opportunity to work for Christ. St. Luke and St. Paul not only use this symbol, but explain it: " God opened the door of faith to the Gentiles" (Acts xiv. 27). God gave the Gentiles the opportunity of believing in Christ. " A great and effectual door is opened unto me" (1 Cor. xvi. 9) : I am allowed by God to do a great and effectual work for him. The opening and shutting, in verse 7, suggest the image of a door; and the opened door itself images an open and wide opportunity to work for Christ by extending his gospel. The work to which Christ, by the door he opens, appoints the church in Philadelphia, is the conversion of the Jews, of which he assures this church when he thus promises, " I will make them to come and worship before thy feet" (verse 9). The door which Christ, in his epistle to the church in Philadelphia, opened for the conversion of the Jews, has never been shut. This door has always been opened ever since. It is wide open at the present moment. It will not be shut until all the Jews have had the opportunity of entering it, and through it of passing into Christ's kingdom, both on earth and in heaven. A very little : small in quantity. In the Greek, emphatic : thus 1 Cor. v. 6, " a very little leaven." Ability: pecuniary ability. "Beyond their power," pecuniary ability (2 Cor. viii. 3). The pecuniary ability of the Corinthians is defined by St. Paul as " deep poverty" (verse 2). The church in Philadelphia is therefore very poor in this world's goods; but the "deep poverty" of this church, Christ makes the first of the three reasons he gives for setting before the Philadelphians the opened door, the duty he imposes upon them of working for the conversion of the Jews. "1 am setting before thee an opened door, for thou hast very little pecuniary ability: thou art very poor [first reason], and thou art keeping my own word [second reason], and art not denying my name [third reason]." ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 61 He pronounces poverty the primary qualification for the service. Poverty is a comprehensive term, and may mean, (a) simple scanti- ness of temporal living, or (b) temporal support by others, or (c) may include both these states. Ministerial Poverty is thus a subject which Christ himself places permanently in his church, and presents to our constant attention. I. Ministerial poverty is a Christian fact. 1. Christ himself was a poor man. "The Son of man hath not where to lay his head" (Matt. viii. 20). 2. His twelve apostles were poor men. "They forsook all, and followed him " (Luke v. 11). 3. St. Paul was a poor man. " Ye sent once and again to my necessity " (Phil. iv. 16). " These hands have ministered to my neces- sities " (Acts xx. 34). " In hunger and thirst, in cold and nakedness " (2 Cor. xi. 27). 4. The ministers of Christ in the early Church were all poor men. "The ministers of Christ in necessities" (2 Cor. vi. 4). 5. As a class, Christ's ministers have in all ages been poor men. This Christian fact, so fully established by the example of Christ and of his ministers for so many centuries, plainly indicates that the fact is his own appointment. Since it is Christ's own ordinance, ministerial poverty will be a Christian fact to the end of time. It will exist always. II. Ministerial poverty is a Christian power. The poverty of min- isters does not hinder their success. Instead of a hinderance to ministers, poverty is a power. This was pre-eminently the fact with the ministry of Christ and his apostles. Ministerial poverty is a mighty power, because it detaches minis- ters both (a) from the attractions and {b) from the instrumentalities of the world. (a) Since poverty is Christ's appointment for his ministers, men will not enter the ministry through hope of personal advantage, but through the constraint of their convictions that the gospel is from heaven, and through the impulse of the call of Christ's Spirit in their hearts, which they can neither silence nor resist. (b) The field of ministerial usefulness which Christ creates and appoints is devoid of worldly instrumentalities. Christ does not place in the hands of his soldiers carnal weapons. Ministers carrying with them the abiding belief in this ordinance will use only the instru- ments he allows; namely, (a) the power of his written and preached Word, (b) the power of believing prayer, and (c) the accompanying power of the Holy Ghost. In view of Christ's own ministry and appointment, and in view 62 THE REVELATION OF of the experience of his Church in all past ages and at the present time, we do not exaggerate when we say, poverty is the instrumen- tality by which the gospel was at first planted; poverty is the instru- mentality by which the gospel has been preserved and extended in the world; poverty is the instrumentality by which the gospel will yet overcome all obstacles, and become the belief and the law of all nations. III. The Christian fact of ministerial poverty can never justify ministerial idleness. What is true of Christ's ministers is true of Christ's people. When other things are not hinderances to any per- son's Christian usefulness, his poverty is not an excuse for the neglect of the duty of speaking and laboring for Christ. Every person who has a mind can think for Christ. Every person who has a voice can speak for Christ. Every person who has hands can work for Christ. Every person who has feet can, like Christ himself, "go about doing good." When voice and hands and feet fail, every person who has a praying heart (and every person can have, and can wield, this effec- tual power) can, in silence and in secret, pray Christ to "make his ways known to all sorts and conditions of men, his saving health unto all nations." The ministerial poverty Christ establishes does not at all release the laity from the obligation, under which he places them all, to provide his ministers with an adequate temporal support. " The Lord hath ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel " (1 Cor. ix. 14). "Have we not power [right] to eat and to drink?" (verse 4. ) " Have we not power [right] to lead about a sister, a wife, as well as other apostles, and as the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas?" (verse 5.) These questions of St. Paul establish these truths : — 1. Every minister of the gospel has the right granted him by Christ to marry. 2. Himself, and wife, and children have the right from Christ of lay support. 3. The laity are required by Christ to provide ministers and their families with adequate sustenance. The adequacy of ministerial support is to be determined by — (a) The common lay expense of living, and (6) the unavoidable necessities of ministers and their families. In case the laity do not give ministers adequate livings, the clergy are then bound to support themselves, so far as possible. St. Paul, when not in prison, supported himself (Acts xx. 34). Lay neglect cannot authorize ministerial neglect. When not sustained by the laity, ministers are bound by Christ to still work on for him, so far as .ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 63 they are able. Eacli minister receives his commission from Christ, and not from the people. The ministerial commission is created, not by money, but primarily by the Holy Ghost; and this commission must be obeyed until bodily ability is withdrawn by Christ. When both lay and self support cease, even then these duties re- main obligatory upon every minister of Christ: (a) speaking for Christ in private, (6) incessant prayer, giving Christ no rest till he make his Church a praise in all the earth (Isa. lxii. 7). My own word: My own teaching. Not denying: that is, boldly confessing. The emphatic negative is here used for the strong affirmative. Poor churches and poor ministers are, by Christ's appointment, "to spend and be spent in preaching the unsearchable riches of Christ" (2 Cor. xii. 15; Eph. iii. 8). What classes are churches and ministers to enrich by Christ's unsearchable riches ? Are "the poor of the earth" (Job xxiv. 4) to be thus blessed? or are the blessings of the gospel to be restricted to the "rich in this world" (1 Tim. vi. 17), and to "honorable men" (Nah. iii. 10) and "honorable women"? (Acts xvii. 12.) Our Lord's answer to these questions is most direct and conclusive. The answer is but a single sentence, easily understood and easily remembered: "The Lord hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor" (Luke iv. 18). Christ's duty is our duty: " As my Father hath sent me, even so I send you" (John xx. 21). " Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature " (Mark xvi. 15). According to Christ's decis- ion and command, we are to preach his gospel " to every creature." Christ allows no exception. Neither race, complexion, nor condition can deprive any human being of the gospel. Christ's assumption of our nature makes " every human creature " Christ's brother. Our duty to Christ thus becomes our duty to his brethren, who are all mankind. Our duty to Christ's brethren is, to feed, to clothe, to house, to visit, when sick or in prison (Matt. xxv. 35-45), in case they need our help. By these decisions, Christ gives to the poor, the sick, the helpless, the right to a portion of the greater abundance with which he favors the rich and prosperous. No! since Christ partakes of our humanity, and has tasted death for every man, and is thus related to every human being, the gift of his gospel is by no means the only Christian debt rich and well-to-do people owe the abject poor, even the most miserable pauper. The relief of their bodily wants forms an essential portion of the impera- tive obligation Christ creates and enforces. G4 THE REVELATION OF No region can have permanent health till the swamps are drained and cultivated. The world cannot have a stable and safe civilization till the whole populace is Christianized and incorporated permanently into the State and Church. Majorities govern, if not by votes, by example and influence. A godless population will destroy any nation. 9. Behold, I will make some of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews, and yet the}' are not, but are lying, behold, I will make them come and worship God before thy feet, and make them know that I myself am loving thee. Some of the synagogue : Christ here promises to make a portion of these bad Jews his true worshippers. He thus pledges himself to give success to the labors of the church of Philadelphia in behalf of the Jews. This promise of Christ is the door he opens and keeps open, first for the Philadelphian church, and also for all churches in all succeeding years. The wide door was open; and the duty commanded by Christ, to enter it and work for the conversion of the Jews, was unalterably binding upon all the churches, both Eastern and Western, during all the unchristian and disgraceful periods of the past, when, instead of trying to convert the Jews to the gospel of Christ, Christians tried to shut his open, and fastened-open, door, and persecuted the Jews with fines, disenfranchisement, expatriation, imprisonment, and death. Even in Christian countries, at the present hour, the Jews as a class are regarded with dislike, and are excluded from all social inter- course. Christian disposition and Christian conduct towards the Jews must precede all Christian effort in behalf of their souls. Say they are Jews, but yet they are not, but are lying: these Jews, because not "Israelites indeed" (John i. 47), are not true, but false, Jews. Their claim to this true Judaism is a falsehood. The miracle of the conversion of such enemies to the cross of Christ is the more striking. Come and worship God before thy feet : after the word " wor- ship," God is implied in the Greek, and for this reason: the word "God" is expressed, vii. 11, xi. 16, xix. 4. The Greek verb translated "worship " describes the adoration of a Divine Person (iv. 10, v. 14, vii. 11, xi. 1, 16, xiv. 7, xv. 4, xix. 10, xxii. 9). "Worship," and "before thy feet," are different actions. Proof: (a) " I fell at his feet (6) to worship " (xix. 10, xxii. 8). Prostration may be the accompaniment of the worship of a Divine Person, but is not the worship itself. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 65 We see this distinction broadly drawn in the request of Naaman (2 Kings v. 18). The promised conversion of the Jews fulfils Isa. ix. 14, in substance quoted in Rev. iii. 9. Shall know that I am loving thee : My blessing upon the labors of the Philadelphian church for the conversion of the Jews will be proof to the converted Jews that I am loving this church, and that I shall give additional proofs of my love by converting still other members of the Jewish body. 10. Because thou art keeping the word respecting the patient endurance I require, I myself also will keep thee from the hour of trial, which will certainly come upon all the world to try them that dwell on the earth. Patient endurance : this is the meaning of the Greek noun the English Version here translates " patience." This essential requisite in all labors for the conversion of souls to Christ, the church in Philadelphia conspicuously exhibits. Its endur- ing patience eminently fits it for the arduous work of converting the obstinate Jews. Patient endurance is now the indispensable qualification for the complicated missionary work Christ is demanding so urgently at the hands of all his churches. Success is impossible without the constant application of the patience which is resolved not to fail. The present conversion of the Jews is difficult by reason of their neglect of their own scriptures, and their adherence to the human system of rabbinism. Keep: preservation from evil is one of the rewards with which Christ compensates labors in his behalf. This preservation Christ both promises and prays for. "I have given them thy word [to speak]; I pray that thou shouldest keep them from the evil" (John xvii. 14, 15). Christ neither promises nor prays in vain. The hour of trial: the season of severe afflictions which char- acterized the early history of the Christian Church. "In the world ye shall have tribulation" (John xvi. 33). "We told you before that we should suffer tribulation; even as it came to pass, and ye know " (1 Thess. iii. 4). " The fiery trial which is to try you " (1 Pet. iv. 12). To try: trials, like winds, separate the chaff from the wheat (Matt. iii. 12). Like fire, trials purify the gold from the dross (1 Cor. iii. 13). Trials discover character. "The Lord your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the Lord your God with all your heart and 66 THE REVELATION OF with all your soul" (Deut. xiii. 3). As winds, fires, and searchers and judges of the heart and soul, trials are God's present judgment- seats, from which he is incessantly issuing his own decisions respect- ing our spiritual state. When trials make us better, they prove us the pure gold God treasures for his own use. When trials make us worse, they prove us the useless dross God rejects and casts away. Christ's reward of preservation from all that is really evil is, as formerly and always, so at the present time, one of the strong motives he is ever presenting to all his churches everywhere to engage them actively and persistently in the evangelization of the Jews, and in the conversion of all heathen people, both at home and abroad. The world: strictly, the inhabited world. So the Greek, me- tonomy for the inhabitants of the world. In St. Paul's Epistle to the Hebrews (i. 6, ii. 5), this Greek term means not "habitable earth" (as explained by William Kay, D.D., in the Bible Commentary, vol. iv. p. 31), but means the Church of Christ. This meaning of the Greek term is derived from the Septua- gint of Isa. lxii. 4, where this Greek terra is for the Hebrew appella- tion "Beulah," the meaning of which is "married." "As a young man rnarrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee ["daughter of Zion," verse 11; the same city as "the holy people, the redeemed of the Lord," verse 12: that is, "Mount Zion, the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem," Heb. xii. 22, which is no other city than the Church of Christ]; and as the bridegroom rejoice th over the bride ["the Lamb's wife," Rev. xxi. 9], so shall thy God rejoice over thee" (verse 5). The Church, as the beloved bride of Christ, "mar- ried," dwelt-with (the meaning of the Greek term both in Isaiah and the Epistle to the Hebrews), "loved," is inteuded in Isa. lxii., and consequently in Heb. i. 6 and ii. 5, because the Greek term in these two places is the same as the Greek term in Isa. lxii. 4. That dwell on the earth: another name for the enemies of Christ. This is proved by Rev. vi. 10, viii. 13, xi. 10, xiii. 8, 14. While the church in Philadelphia, laboring faithfully and earnestly for the conversion of Jews, shall be preserved from every real evil, the enemies of Christ will be tried and punished with his heaviest judgments. 11. I come quickly. Hold fast the treasure thou hast, that no one take thy crown. Come quickly: to fulfil my three great promises: 1. Conversion of the Jews (verse 9); 2. Preservation of the converting church in Philadelphia; 3. Punishment of my enemies. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 67 Treasure: implied after "hast," because expressed after "have" (2 Cor. iv. 7). We have this treasure (of preaching the gospel). In Rev. ii. 1, the verb " hold " has a treasure for its object; namely, "the seven stars," the signet-gems. These examples from 2 Cor. iv. 7, and Kev. ii. 1, prove that both verbs "hold" and "hast" can lawfully admit "treasure" as their object. Preaching the gospel is a precious treasure, for these most in- viting reasons: (a) It gathers priceless souls for Christ, who are imperishable jewels in his crown (Mai. iii. 17). (6) It procures for the preacher the crown of life, his inestimable gift and reward from Christ. In Rev. iii. 8, the opportunity to convert the Jews is the treasure. This precious treasure hold fast most firmly. This golden opportu- nity most faithfully and enduringly improve. This urgent exhortation Christ still addresses to all his churches, of every name and in every country. No one take : let no one prevent your taking the crown Christ promises you, the crown of life (ii. 10). The same glorious prize Christ now places within the reach and grasp of each one of us. What an unspeakable blessing and honor to be crowned by Christ ! Reader, let neither man nor woman nor evil angel take thy crown. 12. He that overcometh, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out ; and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming clown out of heaven from God, and my new name. Pillar : a door suggests a side-post and pillar. A pillar implies a temple. Pillars of ancient temples were sometimes carved into fig- ures of men. 1 On the conqueror (verse 12) thus sculptured, names might be engraved. In the Apocalypse, the Greek noun here (verse 12) translated "temple" always designates the holy of holies, the second apart- ment of the temple at Jerusalem; and by the figure, a part for the whole, this second apartment denotes the entire temple. This fact requires us to derive the imagery of the "pillar" from this temple on Mount Moriah, and thus forbids the primary reference to a heathen temple. In the New Testament, "pillar" occurs elsewhere only Gal. ii. 9, The Atlantes at Pompeii is an example. 68 THE REVELATION OF and 1 Tim. iii. 15. But as in each place "pillar" is a figure, the New Testament does not explain the origin of the imagery in Rev. iii. 12. The Old Testament, however, furnishes the literal pillar, and this in connection with the temple in Jerusalem, and thus gives us the source of the figurative language when Christ promises to make the angel of the church in Philadelphia a pillar : — Hiram of Tyre came to King Solomon, and cast two pillars of brass, and set up the pillars in the porch of the temple. He called the name of the right pillar Jachin (that is, he shall be established) ; he called the name of the left pillar Boaz (that is, in it is strength) " (1 Kings vii. 13-15, 21). The meaning of the names of these pillars King Solomon caused to be erected, established and strength, is fully expressed in this de- scription of the pillar (Rev. iii. 21). " He shall go no more out" (of the temple); which is the negative form of the affirmation, he shall be strongly established in the temple. Go no more out (that is, established in strength), obviously embodies the meanings of Jachin (established) and Boaz (strength) ; and signifies, by this double embodi- ment, that the angel of the church in Philadelphia is, as a pillar, as strong, firmly set, immovable, and enduring, as were both the pillars of molten brass in the high porch of Solomon's temple. As a repre- sentation of the vast strength and lasting stability of the church in Philadelphia, nothing in the compass of Scripture architecture can exceed this doubled imagery taken from the masterpiece of the skil- ful Hiram 1 of ancient Tyre, the city which the prophet Ezekiel pro- nounces "perfect in beauty" (xxviii. 12), made so by its cunning craftsmen, of whom Hiram was the most noted. He shall go no more out: he shall always be a pillar in the tem- ple of God, which is his church. In the historical Church on earth, the missionary example of the church in Philadelphia will ever live, and will ever prove a controlling power in the world. In the New Jerusalem, the evangelizing members of the church in Philadelphia will be pillars of beauty, as permanent and glorious as is the golden city itself. The permanence of the truths here imaged so graphically and impressively creates the permanency of the duties Christ by this imagery so richly rewards. So long as verse 12 of chapter iii. is a part of his Apocalypse, it will be the changeless duty of his Church at all times, and in all places, to design systematically, to attempt habitually, and to seek most earnestly and permanently, the conver- sion of every Jewish soul and of every heathen heart. 1 Kings vii. 14. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 69 The name of my God: the name of God is "the seal of God" (ix. 4). God's seal is the mark of his favor (vii.»3, 4; Ezek. ix. 4). The name of the New Jerusalem: the inscription on a person, of the name of a city, denotes that he is a citizen of this city, and is identified with its own existence, history, riches, and honors (Acts xxi. 39). Which is descending : is descending incessantly : so the Greek present participle decides. The New Jerusalem is another name for Christ's kingdom. The capital city here stands for the kingdom itself. Christ himself is from above (John viii. 23). His kingdom has the same origin (Gal. iv. 26; Heb. xii. 22), not only in the world, but in our hearts (Lnke xvii. 21). Thus heavenly in its origin, Christ's kingdom is spiritual in its nature and influences. The kingdom of God thus within us is in power (1 Cor. iv. 20). This power is to every believing soul "living water" (John iv. 10) and " living bread " (vi. 51). In these ways the New Jerusalem has an unceasing descent. In- cessantly is the New Jerusalem descending into believing hearts. Out of heaven : heaven is here for the first time in the Apoca- lypse. It means, in this text, the residence of God. Sometimes heaven in the Apocalypse means the sky (vi. 13, 14, viii. 1, x. 5, xi. 6, xii. 4, xvi. 21, xx. 11). This, therefore, may be the meaning of heaven in some other places in the Book of Revela- tion; for example, iv. 1, 2. Many of the symbols and scenes in the book may be pictured and exhibited on the face of the sky. My new name: Christ's new name he has already minutely described (ii. 17). On the forehead of the conqueror described in the epistle to the church in Philadelphia, three names are inscribed. Three is a full number (Isa. xix. 24) : name is identical with seal. Seal is a mark of favor. Three seals, therefore, on the forehead of the Philadelphia conqueror, are indications that Christ confers upon him boundless favor. No favor whatever does Christ withhold from his missionary conqueror. But the Philadelphia conqueror is, in modern language, a success- ful missionary to the Jews. By thus magnifying his regard for every one who labors for the conversion of the Jews, Christ not only magnifies the importance of the work, but he also magnifies his love for "his brethren, his kins- men according to the flesh" (Rom. ix. 3). Christ has not cast away his people which he foreknew " (Rom. xi. 2). He still loves the chil- dren of Abraham: he still desires their salvation. He still com- 70 THE REVELATION OF mands and expects all his churches, without exception, to work incessantly for their conversion to himself. 13. (Identical with ii. 29, etc.) SUMMARY OF THE SIXTH EPISTLE. The sixth epistle has these general subjects : — I. Christ's titles. I. The holy. 2. The perfect. 3. He that hath the key of David. 4. He that openeth, and no one shutteth ; and shutteth, and no one openeth. II. Approvals. 1. Faithfulness; "kept my word" (verse 8). 2. Open confession of Christ's name (verse 8). 3. Enduring patience (verse 10). III. Principal subject : the door Christ opens, namely, the opportunit}* he gives for the conversion of the Jews. IV. Duties. 1. To enter the door Christ opens ; that is, to attempt the conversion of the Jews. 2. Retention of present possessions, "hold that fast which thou hast" (verse 11) ; (a) faith- fulness, (b) courage (open confession), (c) enduring pa- tience, (d) occupation of the opened door, continuance of your work for the conversion of the Jews. 3. To conquer (verse 12). V. Promises. 1 . The door now opened will remain opened : "no man can shut it " (verse 8). The opportunity I give for the con- version of the Jews will always remain, even to the end of the world. 2. The work for converting the Jews will suc- ceed ; Jews will be converted : " I will make them to come and worship before thy feet" (verse 9) ; " My word shall not pass away" (Matt. xxiv. 35) ; "The natural branches shall be graffed into their own olive tree" (Rom. xi. 24); "All Israel shall be saved" (verse 26). 3. Preservation "from the hour of temptation" (verse 10). 4. Rewards, (a) crown (verse 11), (b) pillar (verse 12), (c) names (verse 12). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 71 VI. Fitness of the church of Philadelphia for the work to which Christ appoints it. 1. Poverty; ''little strength" (verse 8). Christ here pronounces poverty a ministerial advantage. The experience of his Church confirms the truth of his declaration. The most successful promulgators of his gospel have always been poor men. 2. Faithfulness (verse 8). 3. Courage (verse 8). 4. Endurance (verse 10). VII. Application of Christ's titles to the principal subject. 1. His holiness prompts him to attempt the removal of the unholiness of the Jews. 2. His perfection includes love. Christ's affection for his brethren according to the flesh is the moving cause of all his efforts for their conversion. 3. His omnipotence ("openeth, and no man shutteth") secures the fulfilment of this promise, " I will make them to come and worship before thy feet " (verse 9). VIII. Adaptation of Christ's rewards to the Philadelphian church. Christ appoints this church to be a missionaiT church. Mission- work among the Jews is both most impor- tant and most difficult. The rewards Christ promises his workers in this field are proportionabty great and numerous (verse 4). PRACTICAL TRUTHS OF THE SIXTH EPISTLE. 1 . The promises of Christ cannot fail ; because they rest upon his holiness, his perfectness, his kingship, his omnipo- tence. 2. The duties Christ specially rewards are firm adherence to his revealed word, open confession of his name, enduring labors in his service. .'). Both ministers and people should accept with cheerful- ness and thankfulness the respective positions Christ assigns them in his Church. The service of each class he most amply rewards. This is the minister's reward (Matt. xix. 29) ; this, the layman's (Heb. vi. 10, xiii. 16). 4. Christ never shuts his opened doors of opportunity and duty. 72 THE REVELATION OF 5. Christ makes special provision for the salvation of the Jews, by assigning the work of their conversion to all his churches. 6. The conversion of the Jews is with Christ a promised fact. The Jews, as a body, will yet become Christians. Christ's promise cannot fail. 7. Christ's epistle to the church in Philadelphia is a Mis- sionary Manual, prescribing the duty of all his people, not only to the children of Abraham, but to all unconverted and heathen souls. 8. This Manual should be thoroughly studied and dili- gently practised by every Christian. THE SEVENTH EPISTLE: EPISTLE TO THE CHURCH IN LAODICEA (Verses 14-22). SUBJECT: LUKEWARMNESS, WANT OF SUPREME LOVE FOR GOD. 14. Also to the angel of the church in Laodicea write : These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the author of the new creation of God. The Amen: only here in the New Testament as an appellation of Jesus Christ. From the Hebrew, with this meaning: the truth, " the God of truth" (Isa. lxv. 16). The faithful and true witness : this expression refers to i. 5, the faithful witness." The Seventh Recapitulation. Faithful : trustworthy. True: perfect. The author: the Greek arche is in meaning identical with " cause " (Ecclus. xxv. 24, xxxvii. 16; Wis. of Sol. xii. 16, xiv. 27; Col. i. 18). But "cause" is nothing less than " author." -^ The new creation : the new creation of the soul in the image of Christ. " I make all things new" .(Rev. xxi. 5). " If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature" (2 Cor. v. 17). Christ here appeals to these appellations to show that his subse- quent language respecting the church in Laodicea will most certainly be realized. 15. I know thy works, that thou art neither cold rtor hot. I would thou wert cold or hot. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 73 The reference in verses 15 and 16 may be to water in three states, — cold, boiling hot, and lukewarm. Cold water cools thirst (Luke xvi. 24). Hot water boils meat (1 Kings xix. 21). Both are thus useful. But lukewarm water nauseates (" spew," Rev. iii. 16), and is thus useless and hurtful. In the New Testament, cold and heat describe different states of human love for God. Examples. — "The love of many shall wax cold" (Matt. xxiv. 12). "Fervent in spirit, serving the Lord" (Rom. xii. 11). Fervent love for God is, therefore, the supreme love for God. Christ demands of every human being, " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind " (Matt. xxii. 37). We can now see the nature of lukewarm love. It loves something more than God. Men who are "lovers of their own selves, and are lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God" (2 Tim. iii. 2, 4), Judas in loving money (John xii. 6), and Demas in loving "this present world" (2 Tim. iv. 10), more than they loved Christ, are all examples of lukewarm love. The church in Laodicea is " neither cold nor hot." It has not lost all love for Christ, but it does not love him fervently and supremely. Its love is hesitating, irresolute, reserved, partial, indifferent. When ^ Christ says, "I would thou wert cold or hot" (verse 16), he does not desire this church to be colder than it is in its love, but he desires it to be more fervent in its love. Christ demands of the Laodicean church such love for himself as is supreme and exclusive. The wish, "I would thou wert cold or hot," is hyperbole. This wish is by the hyperbole intensified into this expression : Most earn- estly do I desire thee to love me supremely. God in the same manner intensifies his desire that idols would prove themselves possessed of life, when he exclaims, " Do good, or do evil, that we may know that ye are gods" (Isa. xii. 23). 16. In this way, since thou art lukewarm, and so neither hot nor cold, am I certainly about to do, namely, to spew thee out of my mouth. In this way: in this unusual way. Christ's usual way is long forbearance (Rom. ii. 4). To spew thee out of my mouth: this language presupposes that Christ expects satisfaction from the conduct of the church of Laodicea. He expects she will reciprocate his love, and that her love for him will be to him like food pleasant to his taste. But in place of satisfaction his experience brings disappointment. "The morsel 71 THE REVELATION OF he has eaten, he vomits up" (Prov. xxiii. 8). Christ through loath- ing and disgust rejects the lukewarm church; and unless she opens her heart to admit his newly proffered love (verse 20), her rejection will be final and unalterable. 17. Because thou art saying, I am very rich, and continu- ally growing richer, and I have need of nothing ; and yet thou knowest not that thou thyself art the most wretched, and the most pitiable, even poor and blind and naked. The want of love for Christ in the church of Laodicea is occasioned by her self-love, her self-trust, and her self-satisfaction. Like her prototype, the selfish "spouse" in the Song of Solomon (chapter v.), who lost her "beloved" because, while he was knocking at her door for admission, she was through her self-love arraying her person, even to the profuse anointing of her hands and fingers (verse 5), the church of Laodicea is most amply providing for her own tem- poral convenience and luxury. Rich : already rich. Growing rich : becoming richer. Need of nothing : this negative expression intensifies both " rich " and "richer," and in sense is the superlative, "richest," with this boastful meaning: In my own estimation I am the richest of mortals. All this self-trust and self -boasting has both a spiritual sense and application. It is the language of self -righteousness, such as the self-righteous Ephraim utters, "I am become rich, I have found out substance: in all my labors they shall find none iniquity in me that were sin" (Hos. xii. 8). The church in Corinth, as described by St. Paul, is influenced by the same self-righteous spirit. "Ye are full, ye are rich, ye have reigned as kings without us" (1 Cor. iv. 8). S* The self-righteousness of the church in Laodicea prevents her real- izing her need of the righteousness of Jesus Christ. She does not love him supremely, because she does not feel her imperative need of his atoning blood to remove her guilt, and of his renewing grace to make her a new creature in him. She loves him little, because in her judgment he forgives her little (Luke vii. 47). Totally different is the judgment of Christ, the author of the new creation, respecting the spiritual state of the self-righteous and coldly loving church of Laodicea. Most wretched art thou : in thyself. Thy spiritual condition is most miserable. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. (Q Most pitiable: Its wretchedness excites the pity of all people truly Christian, and also of the holy angels (Luke xv. 7). Thou art even poor, blind, naked: these words are not addi- tional appellations, differing from "wretched" and "pitiable," but are explanations of "most pitiable." Poor: to beggary, utterly poor. In a spiritual sense. "In me dwelleth no good thing" (Rom. vii. 18). Blind: darkened, in a spiritual sense: — (a) Blind to her own sins and to her spiritual poverty. {b) Blind to the necessity of being justified by the blood of Christ, and saved by his gracious and new-creative power. Naked: Without clothing, without the white garments Christ gives (verses 4 and 5), without the inward holiness these garments represent. 18. I counsel thee to buy of me gold-coin purified by fire, that thou mayest grow rich ; and white garments, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the disgrace of thy nakedness does not show itself; and eye-salve to anoint thine eyes, that thou ma3'est see. Counsel : The Greek word implies that the counsellor is intimately acquainted with the mind and state of the counselled (Matt. xii. 25 ; John ii. 25). Because I fully know thy wants, I counsel thee. Buy: the meaning is not literal. The blessings Christ confers cannot be obtained by either money or service (Acts viii. 20). The true meaning of buy is strongly to desire. " Ho, every one that thirst- eth, come buy without money and without price" (Isa. lv. 1). Of me : Christ alone possesses and dispenses the spiritual blessings he counsels the spiritually poor earnestly to desire. Purified: melted by the fire till all the dross is separated from the > ore, and the gold is made pure and bright. Rich: have "the true riches" (Luke xvi. 11), in increasing quan- tities. Poverty (verse 17) is want of holiness. In this world, then, holiness constitutes "the true riches." Show itself: (John xxi. 1, 14) "showed himself." Disgrace : Isa. xlvii. 3. Nakedness : in spiritual sense, sinfulness. Eye-salve: inner illumination by Christ (Luke xxiv. 45). Eyes: hearts (Eph. i. 18, iv. 18; 1 John ii. 27; Matt. vi. 22, 23). In verse 17, blindness is second in the triplet: poor, blind, naked./ , In verse 18, the removal of the blindness is the last in the triplet, to show that the spiritual illumination of the soul by Christ is essen- tial to the perception of spiritual poverty, and to the desire of 76 THE REVELATION OF spiritual riches, and also to the sight of our spiritual deformities, and to our aspiration after the possession of Christ's image in our hearts. See: have spiritual sight (Mark viii. 18; Luke viii. 10). 19. Whomsoever I love, I myself reprove and chasten. Accordingly , be fervent and repent. Love : with personal affection. Reprove: so as to convince him of his sin (2 Sam. xii. 13). Chasten: to make him better (Heb. xii. 5, 6). Be fervent: the Greek verb, and "hot" (verse 15), have the same root. Fervent, not "zealous" (English Version), is therefore the correct translation. 20. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock : if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. Behold: with only one exception, "behold," in the Apocalypse, introduces either a new subject or a new illustration. In verse 19, "repent" is the concluding exhortation, which we may regard as equal to this declaration and promise to the Laodicean church, "Re- turn unto me, and I will return unto you " (Mai. iii. 7). Love me with all thy heart, and thou shalt have my unreserved love. In verse 20, "behold" introduces a most graphic and most attractive picture of the manner of our Lord's return to the repenting soul. There is no such picture of Christ's love elsewhere in the Bible. His manner is most condescending and most winning. - I stand : I am standing on the outside of thy house (Luke xiii. 25). In Rev. iii. 7, Christ calls himself "He that openeth, and no man shutteth;" but here he is standing on the outside of the door, as a brother (Acts xii. 13), as a servant (Luke xiii. 25), as a bridegroom (Song of Sol. v. 2), and knocks, and thus asks for admission. In drawing us to himself, Christ respects the freedom of the human will. . At the door: of the house (Mark ii. 1). At, close to; so near as to touch and knock the door; nearer than "about" (Mark ii. 2); nearer than " before" (Jas. v. 9) ; at the door of the heart. And knock : am knocking continually. Forms of Christ's knocking: — External: by his word and providence; (a) rebuke (verse 19), (6) discipline (verse 19). Internal: by his Holy Spirit; (a) illumination (Luke xxiv. 45; Rev. iii. 18), (b) conviction (John xvi. 8), (c) sense of Christ's love (Rom. v. 5). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 77 Any one: " Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out" (John vi. 37). Hear: and obey, i. 3. My voice : merely the sound of my voice. In the Greek, " voice," genitive with "hear," as in this place, is simply the sound of the voice. In Acts ix. 7, "voice," accusative with "hear," is the mean- ing of the voice (Acts xxii. 9). The Lord's voice (Rev. iii. 20) is the whispered word, "open" (Matt. xxv. 11 ; Luke xiii. 25). When he simply whispers this entreat- ing word, he desires and expects us to listen and obey. Returning love for Christ waits to hear this whisper, however faint, and rejoices because it heralds the near presence of Christ himself. Open the door: in two ways. Literal. — At the time St. John wrote the Apocalypse, the door of a dwelling-house had two valves, each called a door. This double door was fastened on the inside by two perpendicular bolts and a horizon- tal cross-bar. Each valve was fastened to the sill by one of the per- pendicular bolts. The cross-bar resting on mortices in the side-posts also fastened both the valves. The whole door was opened by remov- ing the bar, and raising the bolts. Spiritual. — (a) Reviving love; (b) attention (Prov. iv. 20); (c) faith (Markxi. 22); {d) obedience ( John xv. 14). The excluding inside bar and bolts are, therefore, (a) indifference, (6) inattention, (c) unbelief, (d) disobedience. . I will come in to him: I will enter his house and his heart. Will sup with him: supper was, in the time of St. John, the principal meal, and was taken in the evening (Mark vi. 21; Luke xiv. 16; John xii. 2). I will feast with him. To eat with a person is to receive him to one's confidence and affection (Luke xv. 2; Gal. ii. 12; John xxi. 20, xiii. 25). "I will love him freely, I will receive him graciously, I will heal his backsliding" (Hos. xiv. 2, 4). This, then, is the meaning of Christ's promise : I will sup with him, namely, I will love him, leaning on my heart (John xiii. 23). He with me: thus leaning and being loved, he shall fervently love me in return for my immeasurable love (1 John iv. 19). I will feed him with my own holy humanity (John vi. 51, 54-56), and thus make him a partaker of my own holy nature. With what a divine exhibi- tion of his humble condescension, undying love, and exhaustless desire for the salvation of every human soul, does Christ end his sev- enth and last epistle to the churches! Neither lightning nor thunder accompanies his gentle approach. The only voices audible are these voices which are ever turning the world to the incarnate Son of God. "Christ's love passeth knowledge" (Eph. iii. 19). "The love of Christ constraineth us " (2 Cor. v. 14). " We love him because he first loved us" (1 John iv. 19). 78 THE REVELATION OF The language of this verse and that of the Song of Solomon (v. 2) are so much alike, that the similarity cannot be accidental, but must be designed by the Holy Spirit who inspired both passages. 1. The persons addressed are similar. Each is an espoused bride; each is called bride, — " spouse [Greek numphe, bride] " (Song of Sol. v. 1). " The bride [Greek, numphe], the Lamb's wife" (Rev. xxi. 9). 2. The mind of each is in a hesitating, irresolute state. When the spouse rises to open the door, she hesitates, and lingers to anoint her hands and fingers (Song of Sol. v. 5). ''Thou art neither cold nor hot" (Rev. iii. 15), also describes a state of hesitation. 3. Each is addressed by the bridegroom. "The voice of my be- loved" (Song of Sol. v. 2). The voice of the bride's beloved is her bridegroom. Because the Lamb's wife is his bride (Rev. xxi. 9), he himself is the Bridegroom. Christ's wife is his Church (Eph. v. 23). The church in Laodicea, because connected with the Church univer- sal, is his Church, and is therefore his bride. 4. Each is beloved by the bridegroom. ''My love, my dove" (Song of Sol. v. 2). " Christ loves the church " (Eph. v. 25). 5. To each the bridegroom seeks admission. "My beloved knock- eth, saying, Open to me, my love" (Song of Sol. v. 2). "I stand at the door, and knock: if any man open the door, I will come in to him" (Rev. iii. 20). 6. To each a feast is promised. "He brought me to the banquet- ing house" (Song of Sol. ii. 4). "I will sup with him, and he with me" (Rev. iii. 20). These multiplied coincidences between the Song of Solomon and Rev. iii. 20 not only disclose the origin of St. John's language in this verse, but also establish the character of the Song of Solomon. The book is an Oriental and poetical description of the reciprocal love subsisting between Christ and his Church. 21. To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, as I also m} r self overcame, and sat down witli my Father in his throne. This verse describes the final reward Christ gives every victor over the sins mentioned in the seventh epistle. The reward is participa- tion in the exaltation, dignity, and glory of Christ (John xvii. 24). He that overcometh. See ii. 7. To sit: enthroned, as Christ sits enthroned. The enthronement of the victor will resemble the enthronement of Christ. It will not be the same enthronement. " When he shall appear, we shall be like him " (1 John iii. 2). In the New Testament, the preposition " with " sometimes denotes, not sameness, but likeness, resemblance. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 79 Examples. — (a) " Abraham dwelt in tents with Jacob." Abraham and Jacob were not contemporaries: Abraham, therefore, must have dwelt in tents as Jacob dwelt in tents. (b) "Herod the king was troubled, and all Jerusalem with /urn" (Matt. ii. 3). Jerusalem was troubled as Herod was troubled. (c) "Eat and drink with the drunken'''' (Matt. xxiv. 49). Eat and drink, as the drunken eat and drink, to excess. (d) " Watch ivith me " (Matt. xxvi. 38). Watch as I watch. (e) "May die with him" (John xi. 16). May die as Jesus dies. With me: enthroned as I am enthroned (iv. 4). In my throne: " the throne of God and of the Lamb" (xxii. 3). Sat down : and am now sitting; " am set down," English Version A.D. 1611, which (2 Tbess. ii. 4) translates the same aorist verb of Rev. iii. 21, as a present tense, — "sitteth." With my Father in his throne : In this clause, " with " does not denote likeness, but association and sameness. " With " here receives this sense, from this command of God the Father to God the Son, "The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand" (Ps. ex. 1). After his ascension into heaven, our Lord Jesus Christ " sat on the right hand of God " (Mark xvi. 19). The right hand of God is " the right hand of his throne" (Heb. viii. 1, xii. 2). The right hand of the throne of God is the right-hand seat in this thione. The two seats are in one and the same throne. But one throne is mentioned. The assumption that there is a second throne cannot, however, create a second throne. The enthroned Father and Son occupy but one throne. With Christ's enthronement at God's right hand in the same throne, he was by his Father invested with universal sovereignty and dominion (Eph. i. 20, 21; 1 Pet. iii. 22). This investment proves his occupation of the same throne with his Father. The refusal to receive and love Christ is — 1. Ingratitude (2 Cor. v. 14). 2. Contempt (Heb. x. 29). 3. Sin (John xv. 22). 4. Loss (Acts iv. 12). 5. Danger (Heb. x. 28-31). 22. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. 1. Seventh repetition of this exhortation, — ii. 7, 11, 17, 29; iii. 6, 13, 22. 80 THE REVELATION OF 2. These seven repetitions invest the exhortation with the strong- est emphasis, and with the greatest value and authority. 3. Christ himself pronounces the exhortation. 4. The Holy Spirit conveys the exhortation to the seven churches. 5. Because these churches are representative, this exhortation Christ addresses to all churches, at all times and in all places. 6. The blessing of Christ always accompanies the reception of the exhortation (i. 3), through the perpetual presence and almighty power of the Holy Ghost (1 Pet. i. 12). SUMMARY OF THE SEVENTH EPISTLE. The seventh epistle has these general subjects : — I. The titles of Christ. 1. The Amen. 2. The faithful and true Witness. 3. The Author of the new creation. 4. Counsellor (verse 18. See Isa. ix. 6). 5. Reprover (verse 19). 6. Bridegroom, '* stand at the door, and knock " (verse 20 ; Song of Sol. v. 2). 7. Friend, " sup with him " (verse 20). (8). Judge (verse 21). II. Subject, lukewarmness, — want of supreme love for God III. Sins. 1. Lukewarmness. 2. Self-righteousness (verse 17). 3. Self-ignorance (verse 17). IV. Duties. 1. To bivy gold, and white raiment. 2. To anoint e} T es (verse 18). 3. To be zealous (fervent). 4. To repent (verse 19). 5. To hear Christ's voice. 6. To open the door. 7. To sup with Christ (verse 20). 8. To overcome all sins (verse 21). V. Threats. 1. Rebuke (verse 19). 2. Chastening. 3. Rejection (verse 16). VI. Dispositions of Christ. 1. Desire for the fervent love of Laodicean church (verse 15). 2. Regard for the welfare of the church (verse 18). 2. Love for the church (verse 19). 4. Love manifested (verse 20). VII. Christ's promises. 1. To give (a) the true riches, (6) holiness, (c) illumination (verse 18). 2. Fellowship with himself (verse 20). 3. Kingly authorit}' and honor. VIII. Adaptation of Christ's titles to the general subject. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 81 Each of the eight titles is closely connected with the great purpose of this seventh epistle, — the creation, in the soul of every human being, of supreme love for Christ. IX. Application of the truths of the epistle to the case of the persons addressed. These truths are the motives Christ presents to induce all men, without exception, to love him supremely. These motives exhaust even the divine treasury of instrumentalities. If the threats and the prom- ises and the surpassing love of Christ do not draw sinners to him, nothing will. Their sinfulness and their ruin are beyond remedy. Christ is free from the blood of all men. Lost souls are the authors of their own destruction. PRACTICAL TRUTHS OF THE SEVENTH EPISTLE. 1. Love felt and actiug, desires love in return. 2. The infinite love of Christ demands, from its own na- ture, the supreme love of every human soul. 3. The infinite love of Christ deserves the supreme love of every human soul. Love shown merits love reciprocated. 4. Christ, the Author of the human nature, creates in eveiy human soul instinctive gratitude. We naturally love them that love us. 5. Christ, the Author of our moral nature, and of its new creation in him, not only creates the capability, but also inspires the inclination, to love him as Creator, Redeemer, Benefactor, and Sanctifier. Christ "tasted death for every man " (Heb. ii. 9) . Every human soul does, in consequence, possess the gift from Christ of the efficacy of his blood. Redemption is thus universal and unlimited. With this gift, every human soul also receives from Christ the gift of moral capability, and with it the grace and power to exercise it. Were not this second gift the possession of every human soul, the first gift would be useless, and " Christ is dead in vain " (Gal. ii. 21) ; a possibility forever inconceivable. The Christian facts that Christ tasted death for every man, and that he is "the true Light which lighteth ever}' man " 82 THE REVELATION OF (John i. 9), establish these Christian truths, — universal redemption, and universal participation in Christ's gift of spiritual light. These fundamental truths of the gospel destroy a promi- nent position in " Natural Law in the Spiritual World," by Heniy Drummoiid, "Spiritual life is conferred only upon a small portion of mankind ; " and also this kindred dogma of John Calvin, " By the eternal decree of God, eternal life is fore-ordained for some, and eternal damnation for others " (Institutes, book iii. chap. 21). 6. Refusal to love Christ is opposition both to the native instinct of gratitude, and to the grace of his Holy Spirit, with which he inspires every human soul. 7. Destitution of love for Christ is destitution of his image, which is love (1 John iv. 8). 8. If we are not like Christ, we shall not see him when he shall appear (1 John iii. 2). CHARACTERISTIC PECULIARITIES OF CHAPTERS L, II. , AND III. I. RECAPITULATIONS. We have just listened to the sevenfold repetition ot Christ's impressive exhortation to the seven churches. In our previous attention to his words, we have heard seven other recapitulations. These deserve to be more minutely examined. Chapters ii. and iii. repeat substantially the first chapter. The first chapter of the Apocalypse contains a most graphic, and at the same time unique, description of the person and offices of the Son of man. This description fills two portions of the chapter (verses 4-8 and 11-18). The second description is an expanded recapitulation of the first. Thus early in the Apocalypse does the principle of recapitulation appear. The same prin- ciple pervades the entire volume. The obvious design of ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 83 recapitulation is the exhibition of the unfailing and absolute certaint}' of the events symbolized and predicted. Recapitu- lation is the emphatic repetition of this declaration. " The dream [vision] was doubled unto Pharaoh tivice; because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass" (Gen. xli. 32). Recapitulation is often-reiterated instruction and admoni- tion, " precept upon precept, line upon line " (Isa. xxviii. 13), that the lessons may be deeply engraven upon the imagi- nation and memory, and be forever remembered and obeyed. St. Paul employs recapitulation with forcible impressive- ness and persuasive tenderness : " Of many I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping " (Phil. iii. 18). These illustrations from Isaiah and St. Paul will help us understand and appreciate the incessant use of recapitulation in the Apocalypse. In Rev. ii. and iii., each of the seven epistles begins by repeating a portion of the description of our Lord in the first chapter. That the exactness of* the recapitulations ma}' be easily seen, the description of our Lord and the recapitulations are here placed in opposite col- umns. OUR LORD S DESCRIPTION. 1. " In the midst of the seven golden candlesticks, one like unto the Son of man" (i. 13). "He had in his right hand seven stars " (verse 16). 2. "I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth and was dead ; and behold, I am alive forever- more" (i. 17, 18). 3. "Out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword" (i. 16). 4. " His eyes were as a flame of fire; and his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a fur- nace" (i. 14, 15). RECAPITULATIONS. Epistle I. — "Who walketh in the midst of the seven golden can- dlesticks." "He that holdeth in his right hand seven stars" (ii. 1). Epistle II. — " The first and the last, which was dead, and is alive" (ii. 8). Epistle III. — " He which hath the sharp sword with two edges" (ii. 12). Epistle IV. — "Who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass" (ii. 18). 84 THE REVELATION OF 5. " The seven Spirits which are before his throne " (i. 4). " In his right hand seven stars " (verse 16). 6. " I have the keys of hell and of death" (i. 18). 7. "Jesus Christ, the faithful witness" (i. 5). Epistle V. — "He hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars" (iii. 1). Epistle VI — "He that hath the key of David; he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shut- teth, and no man openeth" (iii. 7). Epistle VII — "The faithful and true witness" (iii. 14). OFFICE OF THE RECAPITULATIONS. Each recapitulation introduces either a threat or a promise. Epistles one, three, five, seven, contain threats ; epistles two, four, six, contain promises. Thus the threats and promises alternate. Epistle I. — Threat. "I will remove thy candlestick" (ii. 5); repeated from "He that walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks" (ii. 1). Epistle II. — Promise. "I will give thee a crown of life" (ii. 10); repeated from "which is alive" (verse 8). Epistle III. — Threat. " I will fight against them with the sword of my mouth" (ii. 16); repeated from "He which hath the sharp sword with two edges" (verse 12). Epistle IV. — Promise. "I will give him the morning star" (ii. 28) ; repeated from " the Son of God hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass" (verse 18). The morning star is the emblem of a king. (Isa. xiv. 12) "I will give him the morning star;" that is, I will make him a king. "To him will I give power over the nations" (Rev. ii. 26). "He shall rule them with a rod of iron " (verse 27). In other words, his ruling power shall be irresistible. His power will be resistless, because his eyes, like mine, shall be quick to discern, like " a flame of fire," that is, like the lightning; and his feet swift to execute, like my own lightning feet, "burning" and flaming in their almighty and con- quering rapidity. Epistle V. — Threat. " I will come on thee as a thief; and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee" (iii. 3); repeated in its ideal from " He that hath the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars" (verse 1). Holding the seven stars, Christ is affectionate. Holding the Spirits of God, Christ is both omniscient and omnipotent. These attributes enable Him to come as a thief, suddenly, at any un- ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 85 known instant. His affection will determine the manner of his coming. While punitive, it may yet be in love. Epistle VI. — Promise. " I have set before thee an open [opened] door, and no man can shut it" (iii. 8) ; repeated from "He that hatb the key of David ; he that openeth, and no man shutteth ; and shutteth, and no man openeth" (verse 7). Epistle VII. — Threat "I will spew thee out of my mouth" (iii. 16); repeated as the necessity of the rejection, from "the faithful and true witness" (verse 14), who has already said "I hate" false disciples (ii. 0), and who therefore will show this declaration to be " faithful and true." These seven groups of Apocalyptic scriptures disclose the relations existing between the descriptions of our Lord in the first chapter, and their recapitulations in chapters ii. and iii. The descriptions of our Lord are designations of the char- acter of the several threats and promises pronounced in the second and third chapters. But symbolic descriptions, which are thus definite designa- tions, are themselves symbolic predictions. These, then, are the veiy significant and instructive rela- tions subsisting between the descriptions of our Lord's per- son and offices, in the first chapter of the Apocalypse, and their subsequent recapitulations : The descriptions are pre- dictions, THE RECAPITULATIONS ARE FULFILMENTS. The recapitulations are fulfilments, because with God a threat is an execution, unless the threat is averted by repent- ance. With God also, a promise is a realization, unless the- promise is nullified by human unbelief and disobedience. These inherent relations between chapter i. and chapters ii. and iii. are most important. They cast invaluable light upon the structure and significance of the remaining portions of the book. In the sublime visions which follow the seven epistles, are both symbolic predictions, and symbolic fulfil- ments of these predictions. In arrangement, chapters iv.- xxii. are reflections and counterparts of the first three chapters. Recapitulation is the initiating clew into the in- 86 THE REVELATION OF tricate and complicated labyrinth, which it will be our next attempt to enter, and trace to the end. The fact of predic- tion and fulfilment in chapters i., ii., and iii., is a strong and divine key, prepared to open, on all doors, all locks, and lift all bolts which may hereafter in their received traditions and antiquated rustiness resist our tentative hands, and bar our inquiring way. II. INTENSIFICATIONS BY AMPLIFICATION. These intensifications abound in the second and third chapters. The intensifications are of two kinds. 1. The descriptions of our Lord in chapter i. EXAMPLES. Simple, (a) "I have the keys of hell and of death" (i. 18). (b) "Jesus Christ, the faithful witness" (i. 5). Intense. " He that hath the key of David; he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth " (iii. 7). "The faithful and true wit- ness" (iii. 14). 2. A climactic series : — (1) Of threats. (a) " I will remove thy candlestick " (ii. 5) . (b) "I will war with the sword " (verse 16). (c) kt I will come as a thief" (iii. 3). (d) k ' I will spew thee out of my mouth " (verse 16). (2) Of promises. (a) "Tree of life" (ii. 7). (b) " Crown of life. ' ' Preservation from ' ' second death ' ' (ii. 10, 11). The promise is here doubled. (c) Hidden manna. White stone. New name (ii. 17). The promise is here tripled. (d) Power over nations. Rod-of-iron rule. Breakage to shivers. Morning star. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 87 The promise is here quadrupled. (e) Sentence of worthiness. White raiment. Name in book of life. Confession before Christ's Father. Confession before his angels (iii. 4, 5). Here the promise is quintupled. (/) Crown. Pillar. Immovability. Name of God. Name of New Jerusalem. Christ's new name (iii. 11, 12). Here the promise is sextupled. (g) Enthronement with Christ (iii. 21). This promise is sevenfold, since enthronement with Christ is the consummation of all the twenty-one other promises ; twenty-one being the multiple of three and seven, each of which is a perfect number. Thus their multiple is perfect. These elaborate illustrations of intensified amplification disclose an unexpected literary excellence in the Apocalypse, — its minutely artistic character. Other instances may here- after reveal themselves. III. REPRESENTATION. Recapitulation and amplification are inherent in the ver} T nature of the Apocalypse, as a literary creation. The book is a series of visions. The visions are not realities, but the representations of realities. Because the visions are repre- sentative, they can be recapitulated and amplified. Representation pervades and characterizes the whole vol- ume. Nothing on its pages is literal fact, in case the object presented can be symbolized. Instances of representation in the first division of the Apocalypse may enable us to perceive more clearly the structural character of the book. 1 . The vision of the Son of man in the first chapter rep- resents his actual character, so far as he exhibits it in the various symbols. In the seven epistles, Christ exhibits himself in various symbols and in various characters. He is, thus a multiplied symbol. The fact is a model. Other persons may, then, 88 THE REVELATION OF assume different symbols, provided St. John shall so deter- mine. The scarlet woman (chapter xvi.) may be the s} r m- bol both of civil and ecclesiastical power. 2. In the seven epistles, the angels are representatives of the seven churches. 3. In their turn, the seven churches are representatives of all future churches which may possess their excellences, or may renew their faults and vices. The recapitulations, amplifications, and representations of the first division of the Apocalypse foreshadow, predict, and insure the re-appearance of the same peculiarities in the diversified visions which succeed the epistolary portion of the book. We await with impatient interest the presentation and development of the larger and more eventful drama. The new scenes will, in outward features, closely resemble their instructive predecessors. KELATIONS OF THE SEVEN EPISTLES OF THE APOCA- LYPSE TO THE AFTER PORTIONS OF THE BOOK. The seven epistles are not a separate and completed part of the Apocalypse. They are necessary and essential prepara- tions for the subsequent portions. I. At the beginning of the second part of the book, a throne of judgment is erected (iv. 2) . The seven epistles are the divine code by which the decisions of this judgment- throne are ruled. The seven epistles of the Apocalypse, although bearing different titles, constitute a comprehensive summary, first of all Christian duties, and then of all the sins which oppose the creation of Christ's life in our nature, deaden this life when it exists, cause the ruin of lost souls, and perpetually weaken his Church, and hinder its growth and extension. The contents of the seven epistles disclose their inherent ST. JOHN TEE DIVINE. 89 possession of these indispensable constituents of Sijudyment- code. CHRISTIAN DUTIES PRESCRIBED BY THE SEVEN EPISTLES. 1. The first epistle enjoins brotherly love as a habitual affection of the soul. •2. The second epistle enjoins Christian love, which shows itself in labors for the spiritual good of others, even unto martyrdom. 3. The third epistle enjoins open and persistent confession of Christ, and self-denial and self-restraint. 4. The fourth epistle enjoins submission to God's will in all its revelations and institutions. 5. The fifth epistle enjoins the activity, energy, increase, and controlling sway of the life Christ imparts to the soul. 6. The sixth epistle enjoins absolute obedience to the com- mand of Christ respecting the conversion of the Jews. 7. The seventh epistle enjoins supreme love for Christ. Thus disclosing their inherent legal contents, the seven epistles demonstrate their nature. They are in their asso- ciation and exhaustiveness a comprehensive summary of all Christian duty, both to God and man. SINS FORBIDDEN BY THE SEVEN EPISTLES. 1. By the first epistle, hatred of our fellow -men. ■ 2. By the second epistle, neglect of the souls of others. 3. By the third epistle, self-indulgence in the twofold forms of gluttony and sensuality. 4. By the fourth epistle, self-will and apostasy from Christ. 5. By the fifth epistle, self-murder in causing the death of the soul. 6. By the sixth epistle, the neglect of Christ by the neglect of his brethren the Jews (Matt. xxv. 45) . 7. By the seventh epistle, self-love, the dethronement of supreme love for God. So inclusive is this list of sins forbidden by the seven 90 THE REVEL AT TON OF epistles, that all our spiritual enemies, of whatever name, are contained in the comprehensive summation. We thus discover the close connection St. John himself creates between the seven epistles and the throne of judg- ment (iv. 2) . The judgment-throne imperiously needs a legal code by which to frame its decisions. A throne implies the previous existence of law. The legal code, the authoritative standard of its mandates, the throne of judgment now pos- sesses in the seven epistles already prepared as legal au- thority for its use. II. The seven epistles contribute, from their varied re- sources, very largely towards the construction of the second and third parts of the Apocalypse. The exhibition of the extent of this contribution is here necessary, in order to appreciate the intimate relations the seven epistles bear to the compositions which follow. 1 . The material imagery of the seven epistles is afterwards repeated. (a) The candlestick (ii. 5) appears again in xi. 4; not only in form, but also in signification, that of the Church. (b) " The tree of life " (ii. 7) still bears fruit (xxii. 14). (c) Christ's sword (ii. 12) re-appears (xix. 15). (d) The "white stone" (ii. 17) shines anew (xxi. 11). (e) The " rod of iron" (ii. 27) smites again (xii. 5), and still again (xix. 15). (/) "The morning star" (ii. 28) has a second rising (xxii. 1G). (g) "White garments" (iii. 4) retain their signification (xvi. 15). (h) " The book of life " (iii. 5) is re-opened (xx. 12). (i) "The key of David" (iii. 7) "opens" treasures no other key can open (v. 5). (j) The "open door" (iii. 8) is seen a second time (iv. 1). (k) "Throne" (iii. 21) is almost constantly visible in the remaining divisions of the Apocalypse. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 91 2. The immaterial figures of the seven epistles occur in the subsequent chapters. (a) The second death (ii. 11) is also mentioned (xx. 14). (b) " The New Jerusalem," the Church (iii. 12) descends from heaven once more (xxi. 2). (c) The promised enthronement (iii. 21) is fully realized (xx. 4). 3. The same persons appear both in the seven epistles and portions following. (a) Jezebel (ii. 20) is newly created in the "woman sit- ting on the scarlet-colored beast " (xvii. 3). The resemblances between Jezebel and this woman are so striking and numerous, that they must be drawn by the finger of God. (1) Each woman is moved by pride. (2) Both women are controlled by self-will (Jer. 1. 29, 31). (3) Each woman claims to be the head of a church. (4) Both women collect followers. (5) Each woman teaches false doctrines. (6) Each woman is a spiritual adulteress, and is thus un- faithful to God. (7) Each woman is guilty of apostasy from God. (8) Both women are associated with Satan. (9) Both women refuse to repent (Rev. ii. 21 ; Jer. Ii. 9). (10) Both women are punished with spiritual death. (6) The faithful portion of the church in Thyatira is the model of " the woman clothed with the sun " (xii. 1), "the Lamb's wife " (xxi. 9). (c) The faithful martyrs represented by Antipas (ii. 13) re-appear in vi. 9-11, xviii. 20, xix. 2, xx. 4. (d) The seven conquerors (ii. 7, 11, 17, 26; iii. 5, 12, 21) re-appear by implication, with the first symbolic appear- ance of Christ as conqueror (vi. 2) ; and re-appear actually, when clothed in fine linen, white and clean, they upon white horses follow the victorious and triumphing " Word of God " (xix. 13, 14). 92 THE REVELATION OF (e) The searching declaration, prefacing each epistle, " I know thy works," recognizes Christ as supreme Judge of all churches and of all mankind. He Jills the rest of the volume with his judicial acts. He is supreme Judge, in breaking the seven seals ; in imaging on the seven scrolls the coming histoiy of his Church and of the world ; in blowing the seven trumpets ; in pouring out the seven censers ; in defeating and punishing his enemies ; in vindicating and rewarding his followers ; in annihilating Babylon ; in harvesting the earth ; in calling the dead, small and great, before his great white throne ; in preparing the New Jerusalem for the eter- nal residence of the blessed, and "the lake of fire" (Rev. xx. 14) for the Devil and his angels and adherents. These multiplied repetitions of the seven epistles, in the subsequent writings of the Apocalypse, demonstrate that the connection of these epistles with the sections which follow is not onl} T real, intimate, and pervading, but is intended and created by the inspiration and guidance of the Holy Spirit. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 93 SECOND DIVISION (Chapters iv.-xx. 1-10). The second division of the Apocalypse has both a chro- nology and a purpose. I. The chronology begins with the commencement of the Church of Jesus Christ, and ends with the destruction of this present earth. This is the extensive period included in the chronology. But, while thus comprehensive, the chro- nology is not an enumeration of exact dates. These are known only to the omniscience of God, and can be deter- mined only by the fulfilment of his predictions. II. The purpose of the Apocalypse is twofold : — 1. First, to exhibit the sovereignty of Jesus Christ, both in his Church and in all worlds. Just before his ascension, he assumed the possession of all power in earth and heaven (Matt, xxviii. 18). The second division of the Apocalypse is, in part, the symbolized exhi- bition of this supreme sovereignty. 2. Second, to exhibit Christ's administration of his sov- ereignty, in rewarding his true disciples, and in punishing his enemies. This discriminating administration is portrayed by series of sj'mbols most appropriate and most instructive. Both the chronology and the purpose are symbolized by the erection of the "throne," at the opening of the fourth chapter, and by the succession of symbols which closes- follows. The sovereignt}' of Christ is denied : his administration is resisted. This denial and this resistance cause opposition 94 THE REVELATION OF and conflict. The maintenance of Christ's sovereignty, and the preservation of his administration, are, in the Apoca- lypse, represented by the conditions of warfare and its military instrumentalities, horses and horsemen, the bow and the sword. The second division has two parts. The first part (iv.- ix.) is characterized by the seals (iv.-vii.) and the trumpets (viii., ix.). The second part (x.-xxii.) contains the s} T mbolic Bride- groom (chap, x.) ; the two witnesses (xi.) ; the bride of Christ, and her enemies (xii. and xiii.) ; the victor Lamb and his victor Church ; the fall of the apostate Church, sym- bolized by two harvests (xiv.) and by the seven censers (xv., xvi.) ; the scarlet woman and her ruin (xvii., xviii.) ; alleluias ; the marriage of the Lamb ; the enthronement of the martyrs (xix., xx. 1-10). The seals are symbolical predictions. The trumpets, the harvests, the censers, are the symbolical fulfilments of the predictions. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 95 SECOND DIVISION, PART I. (Chapters iv.-ix.). CHAPTER IV. This chapter is a preparation for the introduction and opening of the " seven seals " (v. 1). A throne of judgment is set in heaven. God the Father is seated on this throne. Encircling his throne are twent}'- four other thrones. On these thrones t went}- four human elders are sitting as associate judges. Before the supreme throne, seven torches of fire are blaz- ing, representing the seven Spirits of God. The pavement before the throne is, in its whiteness and purity, like a sea of glass. The executioners of the decisions of the thrones are cherubim. VISION OF GOD'S THRONE OF JUDGMENT (Verses 1-11). 1. After these things I saw. And behold, an opened door in heaven, and the first voice, which I heard as a trum- pet speaking with me [spake again] saying, Ascend thither, and I will show thee the events which must certainly come to pass hereafter. After these things : after the delivery and reception of the seven epistles. Opened door: "the heavens were opened" (Ezek. i. 1; Matt. iii. 1G; Acts x. 11, vii. 56). The first voice: that is, the same voice which addressed St. John (i. 10), the voice of the Son of man (verse 13). 96 THE REVELATION OF Ascend: St. John ascended "in the vision" (ix. 17; seexi. 12). I will show : the Son of man is the Kevelator (John i. 18). 2. And immediately I was in the spirit : and behold, a throne was set in heaven, and upon the throne, a Judge sitting. A throne was set : of the judicial character of this throne, the following proofs in the context are sufficient: (a) "the lightnings and thunderings" proceeding from the throne (Ps. xviii. 14); (b) the presence of the living creatures (verses 6, 7), who are the execu- tioners of God's judgments (Ezek. x. 2, 6, 7). A Judge sitting: "Thou satest in the throne judging right" (Ps. ix. 4). The Judge enthroned is God the Father, because (vii. 10) distinguished from "the Lamb" and (iv. 5) from the Holy Spirit. 3. And he who is sitting is in appearance like a jasper, and a cornelian, and a rainbow around the throne is in appearance like an emerald. Jasper: the precious stone intended is probably the diamond {Diet, of the Bible). The white diamond is an emblem of the purity and impartiality of God. Cornelian : emblem of his justice. Rainbow: God's own "token" of his mercy and faithfulness (Gen. ix. 12; see Ezek. i. 28). Emerald: emblem of peace (Ps. xxiii. 2). As the green of the emerald tempers the red of the cornelian, so the bow of promise tempers God's judgments. 4. And encircling the throne are twenty- four thrones, and upon the thrones I see twenty- four elders sitting, clothed in white garments, and upon their heads golden crowns. Twenty-four thrones: the imagery of the throne encircled by twenty-four other thrones is derived from the Jewish Sanhedrin. In this court, the high priest presided (Matt. xxvi. 62), and was therefore the supreme judge. His associate judges were twenty-four in number, corresponding to the twenty-four classes into which the Jewish priests were divided (1 Chron. xxiv. 7-18). The Sanhedrin sat in the form of a half-circle (Smith, Diet. Bible, iv. 2839, a.). The twenty-four judges were thus under the eye of the principal judge. Our Lord himself (Rev. i. 1) furnishes St. John with the imagery of iv. 2-7. Of this imagery our Lord may, therefore, have made the ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 97 court of the high priest Caiaphas (Matt. xxvi. 57), and the judgment- seat of Pilate with its paved court, the suggestive model. If so, then our Lord makes the very tribunals which condemned him, the pattern of the higher tribunal he has created in this world, and is now sustaining and administering. Golden crowns: a golden crown is the badge of a king (Ps. xxi. 3). The executive Judge, representing the Son of man, wears a golden crown (Rev. xiv. 14). The twenty-four elders wear golden crowns on account of their judicial office. By Christ's appointment, his gospel ministers are incessantly act- ing as judges in his Church (Matt, xviii. 18; John xx. 23). The enthronement of twenty-four human judges (Rev. iv. 4) symbolizes the abiding and perpetual exercise of judgment by the ministers of Christ's Church. In Rev. xxi. 12, 14, "the twelve tribes of the children of Israel" and "the twelve apostles of the Lamb" are conjointly the foundations of the holy Jerusalem, the Church of Christ. This representation repeats the symbolism of the Christian ministry, also symbolized in iv. 4. 5. And out of the throne are going forth lightnings and thunderings, and voices : and seven torches of fire are burn- ing before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God. Lightnings and thunderings : "thunderings and lightnings" is the normal order of the Bible expression for the audible and visible manifestation of electricity (Exod. xix. 16; Ps. xviii. 13, 14). But in the Apocalypse the order is changed, and the expression is exaggerated. Lightnings, and voices, and thunderings (iv. 5, xi. 19, xvi. 18). Thunderings, and voices, and lightnings (viii. 5). The order is thus changed, and the expression intensified, to show the scenes are not literal, but unearthly and symbolic. Voices: words uttered by the thunders (vi. 1, x. 3, 4). The lightnings, voices, and thunderings are symbols of God's judgments. "He shot out lightnings, and discomfited them" (Ps. xviii. 14). "A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies" (xcvii. 3). Seven torches: (John xviii. 3; Rev. viii. 10). Are: that is, represent (i. 20; Matt. xxvi. 26, 28). Spirits of God: (Zech. iv. 10; Rev. i. 4, v. 6). 6. And before the throne, a sea of glass, like crystal ; and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, four living beings full of eyes before and behind. 98 THE REVELATION OF A sea of glass : the pavement of polished marble before the sove- reign's throne is the origin of this language. " Thick sheets of glass of various colors were laid down for paving floors" (Smith, Diet. Gr. and Rom. Antiq., p. 1212, a). Roman judges placed their judgment-seat, their official chair, on a tessellated pavement of different colors. Pilate had such a seat (John xix. 13). Julius Caesar, on his campaigns, carried with him this kind of pavement. Moses once saw a vision resembling this shown St. John. " Under the feet of the God of Israel, as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in clearness" (Exod. xxiv. 10). Crystal: (Ezek. i. 22; Rev. xxi. 11, xxii. 1) the rock-crystal. Four living beings: identical with the "four living creatures" (Ezek. i. 5) and the cherubim. "The living creatures are the cher- ubim" (Ezek. x. 20). The cherubim are the ministers of God's judgments (Ezek. x. 2, 7; Rev. vi. 1-8, xv. 7). The cherubim in the Book of Revelation are also ministers of the judgments of God. " One of the four living beings gave unto the seven angels seven golden censers full of the wrath of God" (Rev. xv. 7). As the executioners of God's judgments, each of the four living beings (Rev. iv. 6) corresponds to "the officer" (Matt. v. 25): "The judge deliver thee to the officer." The Jewish Sanhedrin had a band of these officers, attending, like cherubim, our Lord when before Caiphas (Matt. xxvi. 57). Full of eyes : thus symbolically full of knowledge, the cherubim can execute with certain wisdom. In Rev. vii. 11, the cherubim are distinguished from " all the angels." The cherubim are, therefore, not angels. A cherub is the symbol of the life God imparts to his material creation (Ezek. i. 20, 21, x. 17). The four cherubim are not symbols of the Four Evangelists. This explanation is purely imaginary. 7. And the first living being like a lion, and the second living being like a bull, and the third living being having the face of a man, and the fourth living being like a flying eagle. In the Book of Genesis, the land-animal creation appears in four forms, — wild beasts, tame cattle, man, and birds (Gen. i. 20, 25, 26). These four classes re-appear in Ezek. i. 10 and Rev. iv. 7. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 99 1. The "lion " represents the wild beasts. 2. The "ox" of Eze- kiel, the "calf" of Revelation, the "bullock" (bull) of Judg. vi. 25, represent tame cattle. 3. "Man" represents the human race, in its different "kindreds, tongues, peoples, and nations" (Rev. v. 9). 4. The "eagle" represents the birds. The cherubim, thus representing the life of God in the whole ani- mated creation, are the ministers of God's judicial providences. In this very character of God's judicial messengers, the several classes of animated beings, represented by the cherubim, present themselves, either directly or by necessary inference, in the Book of Revelation. 1. War is one of the agencies the punitive cherub wields. The descriptions of the war-horse by the patriarch Job (xxxix. 19-25), and by St. John himself (Rev. ix. 17-19), rank this animal, certainly not among tame cattle, but with wild beasts. Whenever the horse appears in the Apocalypse, he is a war-horse. A horse with the head of a lion and the tail of a serpent (ix. 17, 19) is, in representation, a wild beast. 2. Tame cattle administer to the prosecution of war, (a) by produ- cing the grain that feeds the soldiers, (b) by moving army-stores on marches (1 Chron. xii. 40). The service of tame cattle is, therefore, implied in the Apocalypse whenever battles occur. 3. Men, as the chief combatants, are present in the Apocalypse as often as horsemen and armies move before us. 4. Among birds as instruments of God's judgments in the Apoca- lypse, locusts, classified with birds by Moses (Lev. xi. 22), are first prominent because generating pestilence, one of God's judgments in the Book of Revelation; and then eagles, who devour the carcasses of the slain in battle (xix. 21). We thus see why the judicial cherub is compounded of lion, bull, man, and eagle. Each component part of his symbolic structure indicates the peculiar agency he employs as the executioner of God's penal judgments. 8. And the four living beings, each one of them having apiece six wings encircling all round, and within are full of eyes ; and no intermission have the}' da}' and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come. Six wings: six, definite, for many, indefinite; "six troubles" (Job v. 19): full-winged. The many wings denote rapidity of flight. Their rapidity equals the lightning (Ezek. i. 14). 100 THE REVELATION OF Connection of the Cherubim with God's Throne. In the prophet Ezekiel's description of the cherubim, they are connected with four wheels (i. 15), the "rings," or rims, of which are " so high" and vast, " that they are dreadful " (verse 18). These wheels, so terrific in their height, sustain and move the throne of the Lord Almighty. His throne is moved by these immense circles, which themselves are moved by the cherubim; "for the spirit of the living creature is in the wheels. When the cherubim go, the wheels go by them" (verses 19, 20). As the movements of the cherubim are as " flashes of lightning" (Ezek. i. 14), the movements of the wheels and of the judgment- throne they bear and propel, have the same immeasurable speed. Thus giving motion to wheels of such magnitude, the cherubim must be equally great in size. Moved by wheels so vast, and by living creatures so immense, the throne of judgment itself partakes of the like vastness and immensity. Of what are these superhuman objects, filling the material heavens with their encompassing outlines, the symbols? (a) They are most instructive symbols of God's omnipotence, act- ing through his animated creation. {b) Neither throne, nor wheels, nor cherubim have locality. In their electric swiftness they are everywhere. They are thus also symbols of God's omniscience and omnipresence. The cherubim in Revelation are the representatives of the same truths respecting God as are the cherubim in Ezekiel. Holy, holy, holy: in Isa. vi. 3, the seraphim, ministers of God's mercies, praise him for his love and mercy. In Rev. iv. 8, the cher- ubim, ministers of God's judgments, praise him for his justice. "Justice and judgment are the foundation of thy throne" (Ps. lxxxix. 14). 9. And when the living beings give glory and honor and thanksgiving to him who sits upon the throne, to him who liveth for ever and ever ; Glory : glorious condition. Honor: exalted state. Glory, honor, thanksgiving, explain "Holy, holy, holy." Three forms of doxology in the Apocalypse, — threefold (iv. 9, 11), fourfold (v. 13, xix. 1), sevenfold (vii. 12). Each form is perfect in itself. The different forms indicate that God deserves all possible forms of perfection. 10. The twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 101 on the throne, and worship him who liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying : The prostrations of the elders reflect their dispositions, — humility, reverence, gratitude. 11. Worthy art thon, O Lord, to receive the glory and the honor and the power : because thou thyself didst call into being all things ; and so on account of thy will they existed, and were called into being. The glory : just giveu by the cherubim. On account of thy will : because thou didst so determine. Thus the original and sole Creator of all things, God is able to execute all the decisions which proceed from his righteous throne (iv. 2). THE APOCALYPTIC SYMBOLS SUCCEEDING THE FOURTH CHAPTEPv. Of symbols repeated seven times, three kinds present them- selves to our attention in the second division of the Apoca- lypse, — scrolls, trumpets, and censers. 1. The scrolls (chapter vi.) symbolize the triumph and exaltation of the martyr church. 2. The trumpets (chapters viii., ix.) symbolize the punish- ment and ruin of the heathen enemies of the church. 3. The censers (chapter xvi.) symbolize the punishment and overthrow of the apostate church. The seventh of the scrolls (viii. 1), of the trumpets (xi. 15), and of the censers (xvi. 17), is used for transition to a new subject. The seventh scroll introduces the trumpets. The seventh trumpet introduces the censers. The seventh censer announces the fall of the great city Babylon. 102 THE REVELATION OF CHAPTER V. THE LAMB, THE REVELATOR, THE PRINCIPAL SUB- JECT (John i. 18). 1. Also I saw upon the right hand of him who is sitting on the throne a scroll, pictured inside and backside, fast- sealed with seven seals. Upon the right hand: the occupant of the throne is in appear- ance like a man, — anthropomorphism. The right hand indicates ahsolute control. The scroll lay upon the open hand, thus ready to give it to the "worthy" claimant. A scroll: resembling that described by the prophet Zechariah (v. 2): " A flying roll, the length is twenty cubits [thirty feet], and the breadth thereof ten cubits [fifteen feet]." In Acts x. 11, the vessel descending from heaven to the Apostle Peter is as a great sheet, so great as to contain all [so the Greek] the four-footed beasts of the earth, and the wild beasts, and the creeping things, and the fowls of the air" (verse 12). The scroll St. John sees (Rev. v. 1) may in size, then, equal the microcosm St. Peter saw. Pictured: portrayed. The scroll (Rev. v. 1) is covered with the figures of the horses and their riders exhibited (vi. 2, 4, 5, 8). Both the scroll itself, and the pictures portrayed on it, indicate per- manency and unchangeableness. The visions shown St. John are not of a transient and temporary character, but the events they prefigure are all enduring and unalterable. The Scriptures ascribe this char- acter to the productions of the pen and the brush. "Write this for a memorial" (Exod. xvii. 14). "Note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come" (Isa. xxx. 8). Inside and backside : when the inside of the parchment or papy- rus was filled, then the backside was also used. The expression ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 103 "inside and backside," is equivalent to saying, "The contents of the scroll are very large" (Ezek. ii. 10; Zech. v. 3). "The two tables of the testimony were written on both sides" (Exod. xxxii. 15). Fast-sealed with seven seals: the scroll, because thus sealed, consists of seven convolute scrolls. Each seal is attached to a sepa- rate scroll. The seven scrolls are rolled successively around the seventh or inner scroll. A seal is appended to the outer edge of each scroll. The seals denote that the contents of the scrolls are utterly secret and absolutely unknown (Dent, xxxii. 34). The imagery here is taken from Isa. xxix. 11, 12. See Dan. xii. 4, 9; Rev. x. 4, xxii. 10. Breaking the seals includes unrolling the scrolls, and disclosing their contents. This is certain from these texts in Revelation : "Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not" (x. 4). "Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book; for the time is at hand " (xxii. 10). (a) "This book" consists of several written scrolls, (b) Because " not sealed," they are unrolled, (c) Because unrolled, their contents are disclosed. 2. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to unroll the scroll and to break its seals ? This question magnifies the unfitness of all angelic and human agents, and the exclusive worthiness of the Lamb. "Worthy: morally worthy (John i. 27; Matt. viii. 8). The incar- nate Son of God is worthy in his perfect humanity as the sacrifice for our sinfulness and guilt. 3. And no one in heaven, nor on the earth, nor under the earth, was able to unroll the scroll, or even to imagine its contents. Heaven, earth, under the earth: the expression includes the universe. Under the earth: denotes "the place of departed spirits." Imagine its contents: the Greek verb has this sense (Col. ii. 5). "Who can think what the will of the Lord is ?" (Wis. of Sol. ix. 13). 4. And I myself was bewailing greatly, because no one was found wortlvy to unroll the scroll ; even to imagine its contents. Was bewailing: with the voice (xviii. 19), not by tears. The 104 THE REVELATION OF scene which excited St. John's distressing lamentation is a represent- ative picture. It exhibits the hopeless wretchedness of our fallen and sinful human nature, apart from the incarnation of the Son of God, and his sacrificial death, to redeem us from our guilt and to save us from unholiness. Imagine : see verse 3. 5. And one of the elders saith to me, Lament not : behold, the Lion who is out of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, conquered, so as to unroll the scroll, even its whole seven scrolls. Lion: " Judah is a lion's whelp" (Gen. xlix. 9). Juda: "Our Lord sprang out of Juda" (Heb. vii. 14). The Root of David: the offspring of David (Isa. xi. 10). Conquered: by his blood (Rev. v. 9), the right to open the entire future history of his Church. John the Baptist first calls Christ the sacrificial Lamb: "Behold the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world " (John i. 29). We can never fully perceive the extent and value of the divine truths contained in this declaration. Except for the revealed truth, that*, by the appointment of God, Christ is "the Lamb slain from the founda- tion of the world" (Rev. xiii. 8), the redemption .of the fallen and sinful race of mankind would not have been accomplished, the church of the redeemed would not have existed, and the Church of Christ could not have had a history. For the redemption of sinning and guilty man, not only is the incarnation of the Son of God necessary, but also his assumption, from the moment Adam and Eve trans- gressed the law of God, of the sacrificial character of the "Lamb slain" in place of the disobedient human pair. In their guilt and sinfulness, our first parents could not be pardoned, and restored to the holy image of God they had lost, except by the "worthiness" (Rev. v. 2, 4, 9), the incarnation, the sacrificial death, the renewing power, of the " Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." For a season St. John contemplates these necessities as not pro- vided for. The bare thought torments his soul with the bitterest anguish. The assurance of the elder, "the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David," the Incarnate Son of God, "the Lamb slain" and yet standing alive, conquered by his blood, to open the sealed scrolls, and to unfold the history of his Church, stops forever all lamentation from the exulting and grateful heart of the apostle. If he does not sing with his own mouth, the swelling song of the heavenly hosts stirs him with emotions too deep for words. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 105 Neither in his Gospel nor in his Apocalypse does St. John reveal his own feelings excited by the wonders he saw and heard. That his soul was strongly stirred, we discover from this declaration in one of his epistles: " We love him, because he first loved us" (1 John iv. 19). When the four living beings, and the twenty-four elders, perceive that these necessities are all most fully met by the "Lamb slain," they break forth into ecstatic joy, and thank and praise God for the redemption and salvation (v. 6, 9) he has forever perfected. The living beings and the elders rejoice and exult for the same reason, that Christ is the revelator of the history of his Church. Scrolls : Greek, seals ; seals by metonomy for scrolls ; the sign for the thing signified. Opening the seal of a letter is opening the letter. Christ breaks the seven seals; Christ unrolls the seven scrolls. By anticipation, the cherubim, the elders, the angels, and every creature in the universe (v. 8-13), thank and praise the Lamb for opening the entire scroll (v. 9). In chapter vi. 1, the Lamb begins the opening of the seven seals; that is, the unrolling of the seven scrolls, and the full exhibition of their pictured contents. The remainder of the sixth chapter describes the opening, the unrolling, and the exhibition of all the scrolls except the seventh. The character of the revelations thus made by Christ, we shall see when we examine the contents of the sixth chapter. 6. And I saw in the midst of the throne, and of the four living beings, and in the midst of the elders, the beloved Lamb standing, as having been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent into all the earth. The beloved Lamb : our Lord uses the Greek form of the word as a term of affection (John xxi. 15: "Feed my beloved lambs"). St. John adopts the term, with the love our Lord imparted to it (1 John iv. 19). St. Paul calls Christ " the beloved " (Eph. i. 6). Standing: alive, upright, and strong. A slain lamb is prostrate. Although once slain, the Lamb of God now ever lives (Rom. vi. 9). As having been slain : indicated by marks of blood on him (verse 9, vii. 14, xii. 11, xix. 13). Seven horns: emblems of omnipotence (Deut. xxxiii. 17). The Lamb is able to create the history of his Church. Seven eyes: emblems of omniscience (2 Chron. xvi. 9). The Lamb is able to foresee and predict the history of his Church. 106 THE REVELATION OF 7. And he comes and receives the scroll out of the right hand of him who is sitting on the throne. Comes: in a couplet, as here, "comes" gives graphic effect to the language. 8. And when he receives the scroll, the four living beings, and the twenty-four elders, fall down before the Lamb ; each elder holding a harp, and each living being holding a golden altar-basin full of incense-offerings, which are the pikers of the saints. Fall down: to worship the Lamb. Prostration is one act, wor- ship is another. Harp: commemorates victory (xiv. 2, xv. 2). The Lamb is the victor (verse 5). He is here praised for his anticipated triumphs, as well as his past victories. The. elders only have the harps. They nowhere in the Apocalypse burn incense. Altar-basin : in the Mosaic ritual, the Greek phiale, English Ver- sion "vial/' was a large basin, used in the service of the great altar for the reception of the blood of the animals there sacrificed (Exod. xxvii. 3. Bush, note ; G-esenius, Heb. Lex., p. 462, sub mizrak). This altar-basin was much larger than the "censer" (Rev. viii. 3), and may be used (verse 8) elsewhere to indicate the large quantity of incense burned. The altar-basin may be used for still another reason, which accords with the context. As the receptacle of the blood of the#acrificed animals, the altar- basin was an "instrument of death" (Ps. vii. 13). Incense burned in such an instrument must partake of its nature, and be itself deadly. Deadly nature is the exact possession of the incense offered and consumed in Rev. v. 8. Only the four living beings have the altar-basins (xv. 7). Themselves chief executioners, the four cherubim very signifi- cantly burn incense in the large basins in which the slayers of oxen before the out-door altar caught their blood. Incense-offerings: this is the meaning of the Greek (Exod. xxx. 34-36). Are the prayers: that is, represent the prayers. The prayers. This phrase in Revelation, only here and viii. 3, 4. Whatever, then, is the character of the prayers in viii. 3, 4, is the character of the prayers in verse 8. But the prayers in viii. 3, 4, are prayers for ven- geance : they are the prayers we hear in vi. 10, " How long, O Lord, ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 107 holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?" Of the saints: identical with " them that were slain for the word of God" (vi. 9): they are Christ's martyred saints. The incense-offerings represent these prayers of the martyred saints for vengeance. Incense, in the Apocalypse, is beyond doubt an emblem of wrath and judgment. The censers of the two hundred and fifty rebels (Num. xvi.) caused their death. " The censers [the incense in the censers] of these sin- ners against their own souls" (verse 38). "Take you censers, Korah and all his company, and put fire there- in, and put incense in the censers before the Lord to-morrow" (verses 6,7). "Bring ye before the Lord every man his censer, two hundred and fifty censers. They took away every man his censer, and put fire in the censers, and laid incense thereon" (verses 17, 18). " There came out a fire from the Lord, and consumed the two hun- dred and fifty men" (verse 35). Thus, in the case of Korah and his associate rebels, incense was the instrument of their destruction. Hence (Rev. v. 8, viii. 3, 4) censers (the incense in them) are sym- bols of judgments and punishments. This is most certain with Rev. viii. 3, 5, as verse 5 proves: "The angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth; and there were voices, and thunderings, and light- nings, and an earthquake," which are all unmistakable tokens of God's judgments. Here also sharply notice: the two hundred and fifty rebels of Num. xvi. are members of the Israelitish church. The destroying incense, in their case, acted within God's church. Thus incense is a church instrument of destruction. The objects incense affects in the Book of Revelation are, therefore, ecclesiastical. The persons on whom the censers are poured are within the church of God in its two forms, Jewish and Christian. 9. And they sing a new song, saying, Worthy art thou to receive the scroll, and to unfold its scrolls ; for thou wast slain, and didst redeem to God by thy blood, out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation. They sing: with the voice, but not accompanied by the harp. The imagery here is taken from the choirs arranged by King David (1 Chron. xv. 19-22). 108 THE REVELATION OF New: renovated (2 Cor. v. 17); that is, better, superior. Redeem : it is Greek usage to omit the accusative after the verb, when the phrase out of follows (Rev. ii. 10). The phrase, with out off takes the place of the accusative. This usage renders " us " (Rev. v. 9, Eng. Ver.) superfluous, and the insertion of the Greek for " us" a clerical blunder arising from ignorance of usage. Tribe, etc.: fourfold enumeration denotes completeness (Gen. x. 5, 31). 10. And thou didst make them a kingdom, even priests : and so they shall reign on the earth. Kingdom : see i. 6. They shall reign: Christ's martyrs, as a continual succession, from generation to generation, are intended. So also xx. 4, 6. On the earth : by this phrase, the present material earth is in the Apocalypse always intended. No changed and renovated earth is ever indicated. 11. Also I saw, and I heard the voice of many angels encircling the throne, and the living beings and the elders, even thousands of thousands ; I saw: in vision. The angels are visible, as well as audible. They respond to the anthem of the cherubim and the elders. Even thousands of thousands : the expression denotes numbers innumerable. 12. Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive this praise, this Alleluia [namely], power, and riches, and wisdom, and might, and honor, and glory, and blessing. Riches: fulness of every grace (Eph. i. 23). This sevenfold doxol- ogy denotes the completeness of Christ's worthiness, and of the praise as his due. 13. Also every creature which is in heaven, and in the earth, and under the earth, and the creatures which are on the sea, even all in them, I heard saying, To him who is sitting on the throne, and to the Lamb, be given blessing, and honor, and glory, and might, for ever and ever. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 109 In Rev. xix. 3, the Alleluia is repeated by the "people" a second time. In the same way, verse 13 repeats verse 12. This fourfold ascription is also complete in its structure and purpose. 14. And all the four living beings were saying, Amen. Also the elders fall down and worship. Were saying, Amen: to each of the ascriptions (verses 12. 13). The elders: unite with the worship in heaven and in earth. 110 THE REVELATION OF CHAPTER VI. THE SIX SCROLLS: IMAGERY, CONTENTS. The six scrolls, in chapter vi., must be examined in con- nection, in order to be understood. The first scroll (verses 1, 2) discloses the imagery and purpose of the whole. The predicted Conqueror (verse 2) implies previous war- fare, and devastations from the enemy. The proposed expe- dition is occasioned by the injuries already inflicted upon the cause of the future Conqueror. He arranges to defeat his enemies in tlir ee wa} T s, — war (verse 4), famine (verse 5), and pestilence (verse 8) . The imagery, in each case, may be taken from the Bible history of the Jews. 1. War. — Babylon was the successful invader of Judaea, and the resistless captor of Jerusalem with great slaughter (Jer. xxxix. 1-8). Yet Babj^lon itself was afterwards de- stroyed by the Medes (Jer. li. 11). In the avenging war of the Medes against Babylon, there is the pattern of the war- imagery of Rev. vi. 4. Cyrus (Isa. xliv. 28, xlv. 1-6) may be the model after which the representative of the Conqueror (Rev. vi. 2) is constructed. The resemblance between Cyrus and the rider of the white horse is remarkable. (1) Both are kings. (2) Both are conquerors. (3) The conquests of each are extensive. (4) The enemy of each is Bab}don. (5) Each is to subdue Babylon. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. Ill Proofs. — (a) Cyrus : " Besiege, O Media " (Isa. xxi. 2) ; "Babylon is fallen, is fallen" (verse 9). (b) The repre- sented Conqueror is the Lamb (Rev. xiv. 1). No sooner does he appear with his followers on Mount Zion, than an angel repeats the same annunciation of Babylon's overthrow Isaiah uttered, " Babylon is fallen, is fallen" (Rev. xiv. 8). The prophet Jeremiah utters predictions against Babylon of the same character : " Babylon is taken" (1. 2) ; "Out of the north there cometh up a nation against her" (verse 3) ; "I will raise up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country" (verse 9). 2. Famine. — This infliction is the accompaniment of war. Jerusalem, when besieged by the Babylonians, was distressed and weakened by famine. Babylon, when in turn besieged by the Medes, must have experienced the same wasting pro- cess, and furnished the imagery of Rev. vi. 5, G. 3. Pestilence. — This frightful evil is the rapid sequence of famine. The Jews had witnessed a memorable instance of its power. When the king of Assyria besieged Jerusalem, the angel of the Lord relieved and ended the siege : a pesti- lence he inflicted destroyed in one night one hundred and eighty-five thousand Assyrian soldiers. The memoiy of St. John would recall this example of divine rescue, when, in Rev. vi. 8, he predicts the ravages of pestilence. We thus find, in the history of the Jews and of the adjoin- ing nations, the sources from which the striking imagery of scrolls one, two, three, and four, may, in chapter vi., have been derived. These four warlike and destructive scrolls prepare the road for the sudden appearance of the fifth scroll (Rev. vi. 9-11). The affecting imagery of this scroll may be repetitions of these bloody histories : " The king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes : also the king of Babylon slew all the nobles of Judah " (Jer. xxxix. G) ; " Their blood have they shed like water round about Jerusalem " (Ps. lxxix. 3), Pilate mingled ttie blopd of certain Galilieans with their 112 THE REVELATION OF sacrifices (Luke xiii. 1). In the confusion of the sacking of Jerusalem by the Babylonians, worshipping Jews may have been butchered at the foot of the altar of burnt-sacrifice, and have thus furnished the imagery of prostration and sup- plication in the fifth scroll. The first, second, third, and fourth scrolls prepare the instrumentalities for relieving the miseries depicted in the fifth scroll. The fact of this previous preparation is most instructive and encouraging. The fact reveals one of God's methods of dealing with his persecuted children. He pro- vides beforehand for the removal of their sufferings. Their distresses never take God by surprise. The sixth scroll (vi. 12-17) is the symbolic confirmation of the symbolical prophecies in the first four scrolls. Thus the martyr-church is the great and absorbing subject of the six scrolls in chapter vi., and in consequence, of the entire sec- ond division of the Apocalypse. The sixth scroll is prophetic of the seven trumpets (chap- ter viii.). The sealing (chapter vii.) is preparatory to their sounding. The seventh trumpet (xi. 15) is prophetic of the seven censers (xvi.). Since, under the scrolls, Judaea and Jerusalem, the modal imagery, are supposed to be nationally in ruins, all legal forms of redress are impossible. The only available relief is the supplication of the martyred saints to Almighty God (vi. 10), who loves justice and mercy, and promises to hear and answer the prayers of his people. Legal processes, because possible, are used under the censers (xvi.). THE UNROLLING OF THE FIRST SCROLL (Verses 1, 2). 1. Also I saw, when the Lamb unrolled the first of the seven scrolls. And so I heard the first of the living beings, as the voice of thunder, saying [to the first horse and horse- man], Come. Also I saw: I had another vision. The first of the living beings: like a lion (iv. 7) he re-appears (xv. 7), ST. JO UN TffE DIVINE. 113 The lion-like cherub is now the herald of the representative of Christ, "the Lion of the tribe of Judah" (v. 5). The lion-faced cherub is the symbol of resistless power. The prophetic symbols he now summons to present themselves cannot be defeated. As the voice of thunder: as though the thunder spake, the lion- cherub utters this command, " Come." " A sound of battle is in the land, and of great destruction" ( Jer. 1. 22). Come: addressed, not to Christ, as xxii. 20, but to each of the four riders in succession (verses 1, 3, 5, 7). The cherub, the minister of God's justice, calls each of the horsemen to come and do his appointed work. This explanation of "come" agrees with "went forth" (verse 2), and " went out" (verse 4) ; and with " Come, and he cometh" (Matt, viii. 9, where "come" is the address of the centurion to the soldier, to present himself and do the work commanded him). This, and no other, is the meaning of "come" in Rev. vi. 1, 3, 5, 7. The scene now before our eyes is a military muster. The thunder- voice we hear is a startling war-cry. 2. Also I saw, and behold a white horse, and the rider on him having a bow, and there is given him a crown, and he is going forth conquering, and that he ma}- conquer. Horse: is an emblem of war (Prov. xxi. 31; Jer. li. 27; Ezek. xxvi. 10, 11). "A people shall come from the north; they shall ride upon liorses" (Jer. 1. 41, 42). The imagery of the four horses (Rev. vi. 2, 4, 5, 8) resembles that of Zech. i. 8-10. White: brilliant white, "as snow" (i. 14). White is emblematic of victory (xix. 11-18), indicated by "conquering and conquer" (last clause of verse 2). The rider: is not Christ himself, but is a prophetic symbol of Christ, "the Word of God" (xix. 11-13). Nowhere in Bible Greek is victory personified. The crowned rider in this verse cannot be the symbol of victory, for this insuperable reason: he cannot be the symbol of a personification which in Bible usage does not exist. Having a bow: the bow was specially the Oriental weapon. The bow implies arrows. In an engagement, the archers on horses began the battle (2 Kings xix. 32; Ps. lxxvi. 3; .Jer. vi. 2::, 1. 4:2). Our Lord is, in Old-Testament prophecy, an archer (Ps. xlv. 4, 5). In Isa. xiii. 18, the Medes, the destroyers of Babylon, use "bows to dash the young men to pieces." The coincidence is one of many that indicate "Cyrus, king of Persia" (2 Chron. xxxvi. 23), as the original of the representative conqueror in Rev. vi. 2. 114 THE REVELATION OF "All ye that bend the bow, shoot at Babylon, spare no arrows" (Jer. 1. 14). "Call together the archers against Babylon" (verse 29). This, then, is the inspiriting truth symbolized by the conquering archer in Rev. vi. 2: Our Lord now begins every fight in which his Church is lawfully engaged; he leads in every spiritual battle. This truth applies to Christians as individuals, as well as to his corporate Church. A crown is given him: the symbol of victory (xiv. 14), in antici- pation of his certain triumph. In xix. 19-21, Christ is actual victor: as such, he has "many crowns." He is going forth: to battle (1 Sam. xxviii. 1). Conquering: is now conquering. That he may conquer: his purpose in going forth to battle is to conquer. His purpose will be fully realized (1 Cor. xv. 27). THE UNROLLING OF THE SECOND SCROLL (Verses 3, 4). 3. Also when he unrolled the second scroll, I heard the second living being saying [to the second horse and horse- man], Come. The second living being: like a bull (iv. 7). The symbol of work, execution. "Ox strong to labor" (Ps. cxliv. 14). 4. Also goes forth another horse, fire-red, and to his rider is given to take away all peace from the earth, even that the combatants shall kill each other : and there is given him a great sword. Fire-red: symbol of destructive war (Zech. vi. 2). This meaning of the symbolism is established by the remainder of the verse. The rider: personifies war. Instances of personification in the Bible: "Sword, go through the land" (Ezek. xiv. 17); "I send my judgments, the sword, and the famine, and the pestilence" (verse 21). The same judgments are the riders in Rev. vi. 4, 5, 8, by personifica- tion (Matt. x. 34). Kill each other: mutual destruction of the combatants is the effect of all wars. Sword : implies close and deadly combat. THE UNROLLING OF THE THIRD SCROLL (Verses 5, 6). 5. Also when he unrolled the third scroll, I heard the third living being saying [to the third horse and horseman], Come. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 115 And so I saw. And behold, a black horse, and his rider holding a balance in his hand. The third living being: "has a face as a man" (iv. 7). Man is the emblem both of intelligence and kindness (Dan. vii. 4). A black horse: blackness is the image of terror (Job iii. 5). The rider: personifies famine. Balance: beam of the balance (Lev. xix. 35, 36). Symbolizes food weighed on account of its scarceness. "Meat by weight" (Ezek. iv. 10). 6. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living beings, saying, A quart of wheat for a penny, and three quarts of barle}' for a penny ; also hart not thou the oil and the wine. In the midst of the four living beings: they surround the throne (iv. 6). The voice, then, comes from the throne. The voice comes from God, who sits on the throne. In accordance with the symbolism furnished by the man-faced cherub symbolizing intelli- gence and kindness, God's voice mitigates the severity and horrors of famine by fixing the price of food to a lining standard. A quart of wheat for a penny: the price of wheat must not be greater. A penny was the price of a day's labor (Matt. xx. 20). Among the Greeks, a quart of wheat was the daily allowance to a common laborer. God forbids the diminution, in time of famine, of the daily allowance of wheat, and also forbids the increase of its price. Three quarts of barley for a penny: three denotes fulness (Isa. xix. 23, 24; Zech. xiii. 8). Barley is a less valuable grain than wheat. A penny shall buy the usual full measures of barley. The oil and the wine : by metonomy, for the olive-tree and the vine. Thou shalt not hurt: the address is to personified famine. The rider of the black horse is thus forbidden to lessen the production of oil and wine, since both, like wheat and barley, are articles of bodily nourishment (Ps. civ. 14, 15; Joel i. 10-12). Hurt: ii. 11, vii. 2, 3. These divine limitations of the evils of famine prove that God is a merciful Judge. In wrath he remembers mercy (Hab. iii. 2). Whenever famine prevails, he forbids the rich to oppress the poor by raising the prices of provisions, and by curtailing wages. Were this benevolent law of God universally obeyed, there would be few conflicts between capital and labor. 116 THE REVELATION OF THE UNROLLING OF THE FOURTH SCROLL (Verses 7, 8). 7. Also when he unrolled the fourth scroll, I heard the voice of the fourth living being, saying [to the fourth horse and horseman], Come. The fourth living being: "like a flying eagle," symbolizing the rapidity with which the pestilence depopulates. 8. And I saw, and behold a pale horse, and his rider over him. His name is Death, and Hades follows with him, and authority is given him over the fourth part of the earth, to kill hy sword, and by famine, and by death, and by the wild beasts of the earth. Pale horse: the color is the first light-green shoot of plants in the spring of the year (Mark vi. 39). With the prophet Isaiah, the color is the paleness occasioned by fright (Isa. xxix. 22). His rider: pestilence personified. Over him: (Matt, xxiii. 22) "over" describes the sitting of the invisible God. In Rev. vi. 8, there is no visible form, as a skeleton, representing death, as sometimes in pictures. So invisible is pesti- lence in its coming and ravages, that it can have no visible symbol. His name is Death: nothing here but a mere name of an invisi- ble power guiding the "pale horse," the symbol of pestilence; and therefore over the horse, and not on him as his visible rider. Hades : the unseen world of departed human souls personified. The fourth part of the earth: the earth, by synecdoche, for mankind. In Rev. xx. 8, "the four quarters of the earth" include the whole earth. "The fourth part of the earth" lacks three parts of being the whole. Through the unfailing mercy of God, the rav- ages of pestilence are never total. To kill: the infinitive expresses the unlimited action of the verb. Again in wrath God remembers mercy (Hab. iii. 2). By sword: by metonomy, for war symbolized by the "red horse " (verse 4). By famine: symbolized by the " black horse" (verse 5). By death: that is, pestilence, symbolized by the "pale horse" (verse 8). By the wild beasts of the earth: "I send my four sore judg- ments, — the sword, the famine, and the noisome beast, and the pes- tilence" (Ezek. xiv. 21). This reference by St. John to God's four judgments is, in sense, this declaration: The ravages of pestilence shall equal the ravages of all the four judgments combined. In ST. JOHN TIIE DIVINE. 117 oilier words, the ravages of pestilence shall exceed the united ravages of Avar, famine, and wild beasts. St. John here employs the imagery of the prophet Ezekiel (Ezek. xiv.). The experience of the world confirms the truthfulness of this desolating prediction. War, famine, wild beasts, in turn slay tbeir thousands: pestilence slays its ten thousands. Since three is a complete number (Isa. xix. 24, 25), the three horses following tbe wbite horse and his rider, and achieving all the exter- minating victories, form a complete army, both in its constitution and outfit, and in its ability and successes. No other forces are necessary. Were other troops gathered and marshalled, there would be no object in massing them for a battle. There would be no enemy to be attacked and conquered. Thus finished and absolute is the victory of our Lord over all his enemies, which is symbolically predicted by the red, black, and pale horses following his triumphant march through this world. THE UNROLLING OF THE FIFTH SCROLL (Yerses 9-11). THE SUFFERING CHURCH OF CHRIST. Our Lord, having predicted the occurrence of "famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes," after the destruction of Jerusalem b}' the Romans, describes the treatment his Church shall receive from " all nations : " " The}' shall deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you " (Matt. xxiv. 7, 9). The fifth scroll, which he now unrolls and displays, repeats, in most impressive symbols, the startling prediction he pro- nounced upon the Mount of Olives (Matt. xxiv. 3, etc.). The four living beings do not herald the opening of the fifth scroll. The act would not accord with their office as the executioners of Christ's judgments. His Church is now to be vindicated, not punished. The vindication belongs to Christ, not to the cherubim. Accordingly, Christ, without cherubic heralding, unfolds the fifth scroll. 9. Also, when he unrolled the fifth scroll, I saw under the altar the souls of the slain on account of the word of God, even on account of the testimony which they were holding. 118 THE REVELATION OF I saw: in the vision (ix. 17). Under: down under. The altar: of burnt sacrifice (Exod. xxx. 28). The blood of the sacrifice was poured out "at the bottom of the altar" (Lev. iv. 7). To be down " under the altar," is, then, to lie slain at the foot of the altar of burnt sacrifice. These slain saints are lying in their blood. Lying slain in their blood, at the foot of the altar of burnt sacrifice, these saints are themselves sacrifices to God. They sacrificed their lives in his service, and for his sake. St. Paul uses the same imagery (Phil. ii. 17), and illustrates it in his own life (Acts xv. 26). Their shed blood is crying for vengeance (Gen. iv. 10). Their un- avenged blood is itself a pleading supplication. I saw the souls of the slain: this sight was, according to the psychology of the Jews, not impossible. In their psychic theory, the soul was not so changed by the death of the body as to become invisible. The dead in Hades see the soul of the king of Babylon when it comes into their place (Isa. xiv. 4, 9, 16). Even St. Paul ascribes to the soul "joints and marrow" (Heb. iv. 12). In accordance, then, with Jewish representations, does St. John say," I saw the souls of the slain." But his language here is highly figurative. The souls, although visible, are not real souls. They are merely souls in vision. They are representative souls. They represent the suffering Church of God in all ages of the world. Because representative, and not real souls, they have no locality. They are not souls in paradise. They are not personal individuals, but only a representative class. The cause of the martyrdom of these prostrate and slaughtered saints deserves to be closely and habitually studied. They are slain on account of the word of God, even the testimony they are holding. These martyrs constitute a class of God's servants, who in succes- sion from age to age proclaim to their fellow-men his revealed will. They are firm believers in divine revelation, and fearless heralds of its entire contents. The essence of their constant proclamation is the faithful testi- mony they incessantly bear to the nature, character, and redeeming and saving work of the incarnate Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ. This Christian testimony is both a historical fact, and a constrain- ing, undying, and binding example. The historical fact records itself in the deaths of the illustrious line of martyrs from St. Stephen through the centuries of shed blood down to the martyrs of the English Reformation, Cranmer, Latimer, and Ridley, and their fellow-sufferers. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 119 The sublime example of th<>se martyrs for Christ's truth is our rich inheritance, and our daily and authoritative lesson. Like this "noble army," we are to hold Christ's entire gospel most firmly; proclaim it in its full integrity most faithfully and fearlessly; and to recommend it to others, and force it upon their attention and love, not only by word of mouth, but by our own self-denying, prayer- ful, and holy lives. Testimony : see i. 2. Were holding: most firmly and faithfully. The testimony Christ gives them, they ever retain and hold. THE PRAYER OF THE SACRIFICED SAINTS. 10. And the}' were praying with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? The personification of Gen. iv. 10 here becomes a drama. Were praying: the Greek verb has this meaning (Rom. viii. 15; Gal. iv. 6; Jas. v. 4). How long : delay deplored (Ps. Ixxix. 5; Zech. i. 12). O Lord : as Head of the Church (1 Tim. vi. 15). Holy: cannot allow sin to be unresisted. True : will fulfil his promises. Judge: this prayer for judgment proves that "the throne" (iv. 4) is a throne of judgment. Avenge : same prayer, Ps. Ixxix. 10, and Luke xviii. 7. Thus tbe words are the incessant prayer of God's suffering Church, by his appointment. Vengeance is invoked (Rev. vi. 10); vengeance has been inflicted (xvi. 5-7, xix. 2). Dwell on the earth: the persecutors of God's Church (xi. 10, xiii. 8, 12, 14, xvii. 8). Rev. vi. 10, the martyrs pray for themselves; xi. 18, the twenty- four elders pray for the martyrs; xvi. 5-7, "the angel of the waters" announces the infliction of the vengeance. 11. And there is given them each a white robe. Also it is commanded them to rest utterly yet for a season, until are completed in number both their fellow-servants and their brethren, who are about to be killed as they themselves also were killed. White robe : worn by a victor-king (1 Chron. xv. 27). The "great multitude which no man can number" (Rev. vii. 9, 120 THE REVELATION OF 13), identical with martyr-saints, "are clothed with white robes." But this innumerable host are victors. Their character of victors is proved by this song of victory they sing, " Salvation [Vulgate, victo- ria] to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb" (vii. 10). The "white robe" given to each of the slain under the altar is, then, the symbol of victory. They are regarded as suppliants whose prayers are answered. The gift of the white robe of victory follows the answer to their prayers. Had God not answered their prayers, he would not mark them with a symbol of victory. Since they are victors, they are kings. Priests are not victors, because they do not fight battles. Because the martyrs are here regarded as victor-kings, the white robes they wear are kingly robes. The gift of the white robes entitles the victor-saints to the future dignity of enthroned kings. White-robed, they are candidates for kingly enthronement, when God shall determine the time (xx. 4, 6). Rest utterly: in their present condition of approval by God, aud of expectation of the kingly dignity promised (xiv. 13). For a season: which ends (xx. 4). Fellow-servants: as present witnesses for Christ (xix. 2). Brethren : future witnesses for Christ. They are brethren because members of the one body of which Christ is the Head (Rom. xii. 5; Eph. iv. 15). Fellow-servants and brethren form two classes. To be killed: there will be martyrs while the Church is militant. They themselves : the martyrs of vi. 10. THE UNROLLING OF THE SIXTH SCROLL (Verses 12-17). SYMBOLIC CONFIRMATION OF THE PRECEDING- SCROLLS. Confirmation by recapitulation. In the first three chapters, recapitulation is structural usage. The several aspects of our Lord's first manifesta- tion in the first chapter are minutely repeated in the second and third chapters. Recapitulation, as a structural principle, appears in the sixth scroll, itself being in substance the repetition of the preceding scrolls. Specifications by sevens : a complete list ; earthquake, sun, moon, stars, heaven, mountain, and island, — all classes of men. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 121 12. Also I saw when he unrolled the sixth scroll, and there is a great earthquake, and the sun becomes black as sackcloth of hair, and the whole moon becomes as blood. The prophecy of Isa. xiii. 1-22, that Babylon shall he destroyed by the Medes, contains the same images of desolation and terror that are depicted by the sixth scroll. This scroll is, in substance, the copy and repetition of Isa. xiii. The Medes may be the prototypes of the Northern hordes which destroyed the Roman Empire. Babylon is the prototype of the Roman Empire itself. Earthquake : whenever occurring in the Apocalypse, is the sym- bol of punitive judgment. Sun: another symbol of punitive judgment (Matt. xxiv. 29). Sackcloth : Isa. 1. 3. The whole moon: this third punitive judgment intensifies Joel ii. 31; Matt. xxiv. 20. The imagery of the darkened sun and moon is derived from solar and lunar eclipses. 13. And the stars of heaven fall to the earth, as the fig- tree casts its unripe figs because shaken try a mighty wind. Stars: are symbols of rulers (Num. xxiv. 17; Isa. xiv. 12). The imagery is taken from falling meteors. Unripe figs : Nali. iii. 12. 14. And the heaven passes away as a rolled scroll; and every mountain and island is moved from its place. By these strong and frightful representations, great political and social destructions are predicted. So Isa. xxxiv. 4. 15. And the kings of the earth, and the princes, and the military chiefs, and the property-holdera, and the conquerors, and every bondman, and every freeman, hide themselves by fleeing into the caves, and into the rocks of the mountains. Enumeration by sevens, a complete list. Portions of this enumera- tion are from Jer. 1. 35, 36. "Princes" (verse 35) is identical with "great men" (Rev. vi. 15). Kings, great, rich, chief, mighty, bond, free. Startling description of universal fright. Terror makes all classes absconding and hiding cowards. "They shall become as women" (Jer. 1. 37). "Men's hearts failing them for fear" (Luke xxi. 26). 122 THE REVELATION OF Same imagery, Isa. ii. 21. Its origin is found in Zech. xiv. 5, " Ye fled from before the earthquake." "Two years before tbe earth- quake" (Amos i. 1). This earthquake occurred in the reign of Uzziah, King of Judah (Zech. xiv. 5), B.C. 500. Tbis earthquake was so violent as to divide in halves a mountain near Jerusalem, and to move a part of the mountain from its place ( Josephus, Antiq. ii. § 4). 16. And they are saying to the mountains and the rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb. So overwhelming is their fright, that they prefer death to life (Jon. iv. 3). Mountains, etc. : repetition of Hos. x. 8. 17. For the great day of his wrath is come; and who is able to stand ? Day: time, season. The only instances where the expression " great day" occurs in Revelation are vi. 17 and xvi. 14. In xvi. 14, it is a day of battle on this earth. On this earth, therefore, is the day (vi. 17), and is not the day of the last and universal judgment. Who is able: rhetorical, for "none can." Stand: opposed to flight (Eph. vi. 13). Who can stand against fright and flight? God's judgments are irresistible. Man is power- less when they fall upon him. Tbis is the final teaching of the sixth scroll. The sixth scroll is in its terrific specifications a repetition of the scrolls which precede it. Its repetitions confirm the previous prophe- cies, to show that their fulfilment is infallibly certain. The imagery throughout the sixth scroll is the imagery of wrath. The great earthquake, the black sun, the blood-moon, the falling stars, the departing heaven, tbe trembling mountains, the swaying islands, the horrified and fleeing men (women and children are, from unendurable fright, all previously dead); their shrieks of terror as they enter the dens and rocks, and call upon the mountains to crush them, — are the most appalling images, manifestations, and predic- tions of the divine wrath, here symbolically predicted to be inflicted on this sinful world, so long as it shall continue to disobey the laws of God. Of the utter defeat and irreparable ruin of all the enemies of Christ, the sixth scroll is the most conclusive as well as the most appalling prophetical demonstration. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 123 The period of time occupied by the scrolls will equal the continu- ance of the martyr church on earth. The scroll-period will therefore be coeval with the periods assigned by God to both the trumpets and the censers. We thus ascertain that the second division of the Apoc- alypse, in its succession of changing symbols, is not an unbroken and continuous chronological series. The book is rather a succession of prophetically shifting scenes, repeating for amplification, impressive- ness, and the establishment of certainty under different symbolic forms, the same history of the Church and the world in both its records already written, and its records to be hereafter written. CHARACTER OF THE SCROLLS. Each of the scrolls is a symbolic prophecy. The fulfil- ments of the prophecies are in two forms, — trumpets and censers. The trumpets are judgments upon secular Babylon, and thence upon the heathen enemies of the Church of God. The censers are judgments upon his apostate Church, the spiritual Babylon. The martyr-church is confronted and assailed by each class of enemies, — heathen, and apostate Christian. The assault will end only with the termination of this present probationary system, in wmich God places us for our moral trial and spiritual perfection. So far as this assault can be illustrated by histoiy, the evils have thus far been both material and spiritual. The future history of the world will, we may conclude, resemble its past history, at least for a while, but not always. While, under the trumpets, secular Babylon and the heath- endom she represents are being subdued, a portion of the true Church becomes secularized, and changed, while out- wardly Christian, into the old hostile Babylon in spirit and character. Thus Babylon, either secular or spiritual, is throughout the Apocalypse the enemy and assailant of the martyr- church. 124 THE REVELATION OF CHAPTER VII. THE SEALING OF TIIE ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY- FOUR THOUSAND (Yerses 1-8), Before the great and prolonged battle (doubly prefigured in the six scrolls by the horses and the earthquake) begins, the preservation of the faithful Church is symbolized by the sealing of the same number (twelve thousand) of persons in each of the twelve tribes of the Israelites. Israelites are sealed, not in contrast with Gentiles, but in conTorraity to the previous sj'mbolism, chapter vi., in which, on behalf of the Israelites, the representative Medes are pre- paring to wage war upon the Babylonians, the representative foes of God's Church. 1. Also, after this, I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. Four angels: are avenging angels, because they "hurt the earth and the sea" (verse 2). Four angels (ix. 14, 15) "prepared to slay the third part of men." The four angels in vii. 1, 2, and ix. 14, 15, are, we may conclude, the same angels ; since their business is the same, " to hurt and to slay." Four corners : the winds come from the four corners of the earth (Jer. xlix. 36). Standing on the four corners of the earth : that is, encompass- ing the whole earth. The four corners indicate the entire circuit ST. JO FIN THE DIVINE. 125 (Isa. xi. 12; Rev. xx. 8). Standing is the attitude of execution (Heb. x. 11). They stand ready to let all winds loose. Holding: holding in, restraining the winds, that they "should not blow.*' The four winds: all the winds. This restraint is for the work of sealing. The infliction of the threatened judgments is suspended during the time of the sealing. 2. And I saw another angel ascending from the rising sun, having the seal of the living God ; and he cries with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it is given to hurt the land and the sea ; Another angel: the minister of God's favor to the sealed. Ascending: like the rising sun with blessings. Seal: of approval. The affixing of a seal is approval (Jer. xxxii. 44). Of the living God : the seal he seals. Since ever living, God can during all time affix the approving seal. 3. Saying, Hurt not the land, nor the sea, nor the trees, until we seal the servants of our God on their foreheads. Hurt not: by letting the winds loose. The perfect stillness of the winds indicates the perfect security of the sealed. Not a zephyr breathes, not a leaf stirs, not a wave whispers. The absolute security from evil of all sealed souls, symbolized by the absolute hush of air and land and ocean, Christ confirms by this promise: "No man shall pluck them out of my hand" (John x. 28). We : myself and the four angels. Seal: for preservation. The persons not sealed are to be destroyed (Ezek. viii., ix. ). Servants of our God: his true worshippers (Gen. 1. 17; Isa. lxi. 6). Their foreheads : " a plate of pure gold, with the engraving, Holi- ness to the Lord, shall be upon Aaron's for ehead, that the children of Israel may be accepted before the Lord" (Exol. xxviii. 3G, 38). The inner seal is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (John xiv. 23; 1 John i. 3). The sealing, though not described by St. John, now takes place (Ezek. ix. 4, 11). He then hears the number of the sealed. The sealing is mor faithfulness to God. "The children of Ephraim, armed, carrying bows, turned back in the day of battle. They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in his law; and forgot his works, and his wonders that he showed them." 128 THE REVELATION OF Thus unfaithful, Ephraira is not fit to represent any portion of the one hundred and forty-four thousand, all of whom are sealed and approved on account of their fidelity to God. 2. Judah heads the list of the sealed (Rev. vii. 5). "Our Lord sprang out of Judah" (Heb. vii. 14). The list in Rev. vii. 5-8 is therefore a Christian list. The one hundred and forty-four thousand sealed are Christians, the representatives of faithful Christians until the end of this present world. These sealed Christians receive, in chapter vii., a twofold recog- nition from our Lord, the presiding Judge. The second recognition (verse 9) explains the first (verse 4). Their numbers are not limited, but are boundless. The twofold recognition shows how precious the sealed are in the estimation of Christ. They are treasures so price- less, that his love constrains him to count them more than once. The miser's affection for his gold and silver, his notes and securities, leads him to give them repeated countings. A saved soul is dearer to Christ than all material creations. SYMBOLIC REPRESENTATION OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST VICTORIOUS AND TRIUMPHANT (Verses 9-17). The Church represented in these verses is the same body as that composing the one hundred and fortj-four thousand sealed. "The multitude no man can number" is the reca- pitulation of the sealed twelve tribes. The structural usage which pervades all portions .of the Apocalj-pse creates the recapitulation in the present instance. 9. After this I saw, and behold a great multitude which no one could number, out of every nation, even out of all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb clothed with white robes, and palms are in their hands. Multitude : innumerable. The sight St. John saw of an innumer- able multitude of sealed, approved, and accepted Christians answers the great question, once asked our Lord, "Are there few that be saved?" (Luke xiii. 23.) The saved are so many that they cannot be numbered. No numbers can count the vast and increasing throng. The goodness of God in the present day leads to repentance (Rom. ii. 4). Christ ever travels in the greatness of his strength, mighty to ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 129 save (Isa. lxiii. 1). The preaching of the cross is everywhere "the power of God " (1 Cor. i. 18). Now, as always, multitudes of believers are being added to the Lord (Acts v. 14). Tbe churches throughout the habitable earth are continually "edified, and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort and renewal of the Holy Ghost," are incessantly "multiplied." Sanctified souls, dying in the faith of Christ, and sleeping in Jesus, are every moment being added to the "great multitude no man can number." In the countless and swell- ing assembly, Christ sees the triumphs of the travail of his soul, and is satisfied (Isa. liii. 11). Standing: is the attitude of praise. "Stand up and bless the Lord" (Neh. ix. 5). The throne: the throne erected (iv.), and remaining (v. 1, 6, 13, vi. 16). Clothed with white robes: re-appearance of the martyr-saints (vi. 11, tH. 13, 14). Palms: emblems of joy, not of victory. The imagery of palms is derived, not from Greece and Rome, but from the usages of the Israelites. On the annual festival of tabernacles, commemorative of the pas- sage of the Israelites through the wilderness, and of the goodness of God in the return of seedtime and harvest (Deut. xvi. 13-15), " they took branches of palm-trees, and rejoiced before the Lord seven days " (Lev. xxiii. 40). "There was very great gladness" (Neh. viii. 17). "They kept with gladness the feast of tabernacles. They bare branches of jialms, and sang psalms unto Him that had given them good success" (2 Mace. x. 6, 7). The "great multitude innumerable" rejoice in the possession of the security, rest, and peace resulting from Christ's tabernacling with them (verse 15) ; and they express their joy by waving palm-branches, and shouting, "Salvation to our God" (verse 10). 10. And are crying with a loud voice, saying, The victory to our God who is sitting upon the throne, and to the Lamb. The victory: the deliverance (1 Sam. xiv. 45; 2 Sam. xix. 2; 2 Kings v. 1 ; Hab. iii. 8). " Tbey sang psalms unto Him that had given them good success" (2 Mace. x. 7). The worshippers ascribe their victory both to the Father and to the Lamb; thus "honoring the Son even as they honor the Father" (John v. 23), 11. And all the angels had placed themselves in a circle around the throne and the elders and the four living beings, and fall before the throne, on their faces, and worship God. 130 THE REVELATION OF Antiphonal response of angels. Had placed themselves: while the "great multitude" is shout- ing. Angels sympathize with the Redeemer and the redeemed (Luke ii. 9-14; Matt. iv. 11, xxviii. 2; John xx. 12; Acts i. 10). The elders and the four cherubim are not here worshippers. They are in v. 8. Both classes are distinguished from " all the angels." Neither elders nor cherubim are angels. 12. Scrying, Amen. The blessing, and the glory, and the wisdom, and the thanksgiving, and the honor, and the power, and the might [due, be given] to our God for ever and ever. Amen. The words of the response are in two parts. (a) Amen, which is assent to the human multitude (verse 10). (b) The sevenfold doxology. 13. And one of the elders speaks, saying to me, These who are clothed with white robes, who are they? and whence came they? Speaks: "answered," English Version. This elder is not previ- ously addressed. "Answer" has here this sense, begins to speak. (See John v. 17.) Who? and whence? the questions fix attention upon the objects, and obtain more minute descriptions. This elder, as a representative of the Church of Christ, makes, by his questions, this consoling truth most prominent, that Christ most richly rewards all sufferers for his sake. 14. And I said to him, My master, thou thyself knowest. And he said to me, These are they who are coming out of the great tribulation, and they washed their robes and made them white by the blood of the Lamb. My master: honorary title of address to a superior (John xii. 21). Thou knowest: that is, I know not (Ezek. xxxvii. 3). "Who are coming: the present for the certain future (John xvi. 13, Greek). The great tribulation : " In the world ye shall have tribulation " (John xvi. 33); "There shall be great tribulation" (Matt. xxiv. 21). The white-robed victors represent Christ's militant, suffering, and victorious people, in all ages of his Church. Washed : the Greek verb implies the personal action of the agent. Robes : that is, themselves. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 131 Made them white: made themselves, through faith in Christ crucified, pure and holy. " The blood of Christ cleanseth from all sin" (1 John i. 7). 15. On this account they are before the throne of God, and are serving him day and night in his temple, and he who sitteth upon the throne shall cause his tabernacle to rest upon them. On this account: because they are sanctified. Are before the throne : the white-robed throng (verse 9) are before the throne in this present vision. This is a symbolical repre- sentation of the position Christ's faithful servants occupy at all times, and in every period of the world. They " come boldly unto the throne of grace" (Heb. iv. 16). Serving him day and night in his temple : their service sym- bolizes the service we are all now exhorted by St. Paul to render. "Let us serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear" (Heb. xii. 28). In his temple: which is, in this verse, the holy of holies, where is the mercy-seat, the throne of grace, to which we can all now come boldly and acceptably, since by his own blood (Heb. ix. 12) Christ has made manifest to us all the way into this holiest of all seats of his mercy (verse 8). The possession of Christ's mercy and image in this world fore- shadows and secures the possession of his presence and glory in the world beyond this (John xvii. 24; 1 John iii. 2). Cause his tabernacle to rest upon them : shall spread his own habitation over them; shall defend them by his everlasting presence (Exod. xxix. 45; Isa. iv. 5, 6). In symbol, this assurance is Christ's promise renewed to each believing and obedient soul. "If a man love me, my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him" (Johnxiv. 23). 16. They shall not hunger more, and they shall not thirst more, and in no wise shall the burning sun hurt them, nor any kind of heat. These four assurances are amplified repetitions of God's promises, by the prophet Isaiah, of blessings in this life. "They shall not (1) hunger, nor (2) thirst; neither shall (3) the heat nor (4) the sun smite them" (Isa. xlix. 10). "The blood of the Lamb" (Rev. vii. 14) imparts to these assur- 132 THE REVELATION OF ances Christian senses, which the Bible explains as indicating spirit- ual blessings he is at present continually bestowing. (1) "Blessed are they which do hunger and (2) thirst after right- eousness: for they shall be filled" (Matt. v. 6). Both the sun and heat are emblems of spiritual evils. (3) " The sun shall not smite thee by day. The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil : he shall preserve thy soul" (Ps. cxxi. 6, 7). (4) "Thou, O Lord, hast been a shadow from the heat" (Isa. xxv. 4). 17. Because the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne shall tend them, and shall lead them unto life-fountains of waters. Also God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes. This verse embodies a triplet of Christian blessings, since conferred by the Lamb: two positive, shepherd-tending and leading; and one negative, wiping away tears. 1. Shepherd-tending: includes defending and feeding. Christ is " the good Shepherd" (John x. 11). (a) He defends us from all evil (John xviii. 9); (b) he feeds us with himself (John vi. 51). 2. Shepherd-leading: unto life-fountains of waters (Ps. xxiii. 2; John iv. 14). 3. The wiping-away of tears (Isa. xxv. 8) is the negative form for the positive bestowal of peace and joy. " Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you " (John xiv. 27). "I have spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full" (John xv. 11). "Your joy no man taketh from you" (xvi. 22). "They that sow in tears shall reap in joy" (Ps. cxxvi. 5). Christian poets and divines very properly employ Rev. vii. 14-17, to portray the bliss of paradise. The words may, indeed, have this secondary application, although the primary reference seems to be to the spiritual joys Christ provides for Christian pilgrims in their journey through this imperfect world to the perfection of his heaven- ly presence. St. John himself employs portions of this imagery to picture the increased happiness of the citizens of the New Jerusalem after the universal resurrection, and the annihilation of this present earth (Rev. xxi. 3, 4, xxii. 3). Our Lord's prophecies in Matt. xxiv. have a nearer and a more remote perspective. Rev. vii. 15-17 must have the same twofold reference. Our Lord himself doubles the rewards he promises to faithful devotion to his service (Mark x. 29, 30). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 133 CHAPTER VIIL Thus far in chapters iv.-vii., all is preparation, — the throne of judgment, the Judge, the associate judges, the executioners, the judgments to be inflicted, the preservation of the Church of Christ, its thanksgiving and praise. With chapter viii., executions begin, in the forms of trump- ets and censers. The executions are wholly confined to this present world. The executions end with chapter xx., verse 10; thus ex- tending through thirteen chapters. Thus with chapter viii. begin the symbolical fulfilments of the preceding symbolical predictions in chapters iv.-vii. The Apocalypse has, like the Book of Ezekiel, these forms of prophecy and fulfilment, in order to indicate and proclaim the absolute certainly of the events which Christ by these graphic representations foreshadows and predicts (Gen. xli. 32; Ps. lxii. 11). THE UNROLLING OF THE SEVENTH SCROLL. We must now notice and remember that the seventh scroll is itself a scroll. It does not differ in nature from the pre- ceding scrolls. It does not change their subjects. Its spe- cial office is perpetuation. Retaining the essential nature of the former scrolls, and holding most firmly their own purpose, the seventh scroll expands their subjects, and presents them in new aspects and with more definite applications. This scroll bears the same relation to its predecessors as our Lord 134 THE REVELATION OF bears to the Old-Testament prophets. The business and duty of the seventh scroll is to fulfil. 1. The trumpets are previous prophecies* fulfilled upon heathen nations. This fact, so important to the right interpretation of the trumpets, is clearly demonstrated by subsequent records. The blasts of the fifth and sixth trumpets ''hurt" and "kill" heathen men (chapter ix.). They are heathen, because they " have not the seal of God in their foreheads " (verse 4), and because they "worship" both '"devils and idols" (verse 20). 2. The censers are antecedent predictions fulfilled upon ecclesiastical persecutors, both Jewish and Christian. This fact will appear in chapter xvi. 1. And when he unrolled the seventh scroll, there is silence in heaven about the space of half an hour. Silence: implies (a) preparation, "the seven angels prepared themselves to sound" (verse 6); (6) waiting, "praise waiteth [Heb., "is silent"]" (Ps. lxv. 1); (c) dread, "the earth feared, and was still" (Ps. lxxvi. 8). The silence is connected with the offering of the incense (verse 3). So Luke i. 10: the people are in silent prayer "at the time of incense." 2. And I saw the seven angejs who are standing before God, and there are given them seven trumpets. The seven angels : the seven designated for the seven trumpets. All angels are ministering spirits (Heb. i. 14). Standing: prepared for their work. Seven trumpets: are war-trumpets (Num. x. 9, xxxi. 6; Job xxxix. 25; Hos. viii. 1; Joel ii. 1; 1 Cor. xiv. 8). Thus the seven trumpets herald war in its executive horrors. With Kev. viii. 2 compare Josh. vi. 4, " Seven priests bear seven trumpets." These priests blow their trumpets against the heathen city of Jericho. Judas Maccabseus follows the example of Joshua: "O God, be our help ! The heathen are assembled together against us to destroy ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 135 us. Then sounded they with trumpets" (1 Mac. iii. 52, 54). So in Rev. viii. 7, 8, 10, 12, ix. 1, 12, the six: trumpets announce Christ's judgments on heathen nations. 3. And another angel comes and stands upon the altar, having a golden censer ; and there is given him much incense that he may give it to the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar which is before the throne. This verse contains the symbolic answer to the prayers of the saints in the fifth scroll (vi. 9). In this verse 3, there are two altars, — the altar of burnt sacrifice in the first clause, and the golden altar of incense in the last clause. A golden censer: for burning incense on the golden altar within the temple. May give it [much incense] to the prayers: the usage in the Apocalypse, of the Greek verb meaning "give," requires the prepo- sition to, and not with (English Version). There is not an instance in this book where the verb is followed by the dative of coincidence, which requires the prcq)osition with. On the contrary, when "give" is succeeded by the dative, the dative is that of the recipient, and must be translated to, and not with. Much incense is necessarily the accusative implied after "may give" in this sentence: there is given him much incense, that he may give it [much incense] to tbe prayers. All the saints: the prayers of all saints, and the prayers of saints (v. 8), are identical. The prayers themselves are there offered by the slain under the altar (vi. 10), — these prayers for vengeance, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood?" The incense (viii. 3) is itself the answer to these prayers of the martyr saints. Incense is the symbol of prayer answered. This is Hebrew usage. " Give ear unto my prayer," answer my prayer. (Ps. cxli. 2) "Let my prayer be set forth incense,^ let my prayer he incense; let my prayer be ansv:ercd. "As incense" is not permitted by tbe Hebrew, which omits the as of the English Version. This answer of vengeance (verse 3) is twofold, — trumpets (viii. 7, 8, 10, 12, ix. 1, 13), censers (xvi. 2-4, 8, 10, 12). 4. And so the smoke of the incense ascends by the prayers of the saints, out of the hand of the angel, before God. Smoke: avenging smoke. This may be the sense of smoke every- where in this book (ix. 2, 3, 17, 18, xiv. 11, xv. 8, xviii. 9, 18). 136 TEE REVELATION OF By the prayers : no instance in Bible Greek where the verb trans- lated "ascend" is used with the prepositions representing "with." "We must therefore reject "with" of the English Version, and use "by." In Ezek. xxvi. 3 (Septuagint), the Greek verb to ascend is followed by an instrumental dative. The sea rises by its waves. Thus Greek u«age provides no other meaning for "prayers" than the instrumental. The smoke of the incense ascends by the prayers. Incense, as we have just seen (verse 3), is prayer answered. The ascent of the incense is the answer obtained. This, then, is the mean- ing of Rev. viii. 4, first clause. Answer is obtained by the prayers of the saints. 5. And the angel takes the censer, and fills it from the fire of the altar, and casts it to the earth, and there were Toices and thunders and lightnings and an earthquake. Lev. xvi. 12, 13, provides the imagery of Rev. viii. 4. This verse 5, because symbolizing spiritual judgments, describes actions which are not mentioned in the Mosaic ritual; namely, the return of the priest to the great altar, and his use of the golden censer. Tbe loud responses which followed are most impressive confirmations of the answer the prayers of the saints have already received (verse 4). The imagery of these loud responses, "voices, thunders, earth- quake," may be derived from the shouts of the priests, the sounds of the trumpets, and the voices of the singers which formed the "fin- ishing the service at the altar," as narrated by the "Son of Sirach:" " Then shouted the sons of Aaron, and sounded the silver trumpets, and made a great noise; the singers also sang praises with their voices" (Ecclus. 1. 14, 10, 18). Cast it to the earth: this pouring-out of the contents of the golden censer, namely, the glowing coals and the smoking incense, is an impressive symbol of God's wrath, and is also prophetic of the severe judgments inflicted by the trumpets and by the censers. See Ezek. x. 2; Luke xii. 49. 6. And so the seven angels who are holding the seven trumpets are preparing themselves to sound. The seven angels : mentioned in verse 2. Are preparing themselves: by the actions of the angel with the incense (verse 3). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 137 TBE FIRST THREE TRUMPETS (Verses 7-11). The bowman on the white horse (vi. 2) is the symbol of victory. Like him, the first three trumpets symbolize con- quests. TIIE FIRST TRUMPET. 7. And the first angel sounded. And there follows hail and fire, both mingled with blood, and they are cast unto the earth. And the third part of the earth is burned up, and the third part of the trees is burned up, and every green herb is burned up. The imagery of this verse is taken from the plague of hail in the Book of Exodus. "The Lord sent hail, the fire ran along upon the ground ; the hail s>note both man and beast; the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field " (ix. 23, 25). In tbe two passages, the agents and the objects affected are essen- tially the same. The passage in Exodus will help us interpret the passage in Revelation. In this important respect, however, the pas- sages differ. That in Exodus is a literal narrative: this in Revelation is a symbolic representation. In this verse 7, the only effective agent is fire. Its action is three- fold, to show that its destruction is utterly remediless. Of the three objects irremediably burned, — 1. "The earth" denotes the inhabitants of the earth (xi. 6, 18, xix. 2) ; the common people. 2. "The trees" symbolize cicil rulers (Ezek. xxxi. 2-18). 3. The "green herb " is an emblem of the weakness and helpless- ness, both of people and rulers, before the fire of God's indignation. "Evil doers shall wither as the green herb" (Ps. xxxvii. 2). THE SECOXD TRUMPET (Verses 8, 9) . 8. Also the second angel sounded. And. as it were, a great mountain, burning with fire, is cast into the sea; and the third part of the sea becomes blood. This language is made symbolic by the expression, "as it were." The symbols are, — 1. "A great mountain," symbolizing a great kingdom (Dan. ii. 35-45). A burning mountain: a mountain rent from its high range, and thrown into the sea by a volcanic earthquake; symbolizing the de- struction of the great kiugdom. 138 TEE REVELATION OF With the prophet Jeremiah, this mountain symbolizes the kingdom of Babylon on the Euphrates : " I am against thee, O destroying moun- tain; and I will roll thee down from the rocks, and will make thee a burnt mountain" (li. 25). In the Apocalypse, Babylon is (a) Rome ecclesiastical (xiv. 8), de- rived from (b) Rome civil (xiii. 3). The mountain, therefore, in this verse 8, represents the civil Koman empire, destined to dislodgement, overthrow, and ruin. Our Lord (Matt. xxiv. 15; Luke xxi. 20) iden- tifies the fourth beast of Dan. vii. 7, with the Roman empire. But this fourth beast ("kingdom," verse 23) " wears out the saints of the Most High" (verse 25). The Pagan Roman empire caused the ten persecutions of the early Christian Church. The denunciations of the trumpets are directed, first of all, against this persecuting Pagan empire, symbolically destroyed (Rev. xviii. 21; repeated from Jer. li. 03, 04). 2. The sea is often, in the Bible, the image of political confusion and revolution. In the Book of Daniel, the four beasts, which are symbols of four kingdoms (vii. 23), "come from the sea" (verse 3); from political turmoil and change. Our Lord, when foretelling the destruction of Jerusalem, intensifies his prediction by adding this image of unrest and removal: " The sea and the waves roaring" (Luke xxi. 25). In this sense, then, political confusion and revolution, may we understand "sea" (Rev. viii. 8). 3. BlQod: imagery taken from Exod. vii. 20. We cannot mis- understand the signification of this word as a symbol. Blood is the image of death. "The third part of the creatures in the sea died" (verse 9). 9. And so the third part of the creatures which are in the sea, and which have lives, die ; also the third part of the • ships perish utterly. This verse, like its predecessor, has three subjects. 1. Creatures in the sea: participants in military rebellions and governmental revolutions. 2. Have lives: the most active agents in the civil wars and politi- cal changes. "We are willing to impart unto you our own lives" (1 Thess. ii. 8). 3. Ships : for sailors, by metonomy. " Howl, ye ships of Tarshish " (Isa. xxiii. 1). " The ships of Tarshish did sing of thee" (Ezek. xxvii. 25). Perish utterly : when kingdoms and empires decay, navies are ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 139 inactive and useless, and sailors cease to be a class of laborers. The declining Roman empire illustrated this beginning of its extinction. THE THIRD TRUMPET (Verses 10, 11). 10. Also the third angel sounded. And there falls from heaven a great star, burning as a torch, and it falls on the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters. Star: an angel (Judg. v. 20; Job xxv. 5, xxxviii. 7). Falls: an act of injury (vii. 10, viii. 10). The great burning and shining star is a destroying angel. Burning: each of the first three trumpets causes burning (verses 7, 8, 10). Torch: blazing as a torch, to intensify the purpose of his fall. Rivers and waters: other names for the common people (xvii. 15). The common people are " the fountains" of national life. 11. The name of the star is called Wormwood. And so a third part of the waters become wormwood, and man} r of the men die by means of the waters, because the}' are made bitter. Wormwood: the star has this name on account of the effects he produces. In the Old-Testament prophets, wormwood is a punishment threat- ened the people. "I will feed this people with wormwood" (Jer. ix. 15). The effect of wormwood when eaten is to produce drunkenness. "Make drunken with wormwood" (Lam. iii. 15). The nature of the drunkenness is thus described by the prophet Jeremiah: "I will fill all the inhabitants of this land, the kings, the priests, the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, with drunkenness. And I will dash them one against another, even the fathers and the sons together, saith the Lord: I will not pity, nor have mercy, but destroy them" (xiii. 13, 14). Wormwood is thus, in the Old Testament, the most frightful symbol (a) of popular infatuation, and (b) of mutual destruction by the in- fatuated and besotted people as a nation. In chapter vi. of the Apocalypse, the three prophetic symbols, war, famine, pestilence, — these destroyers are from without. In the three symbols of actual destruction, introduced by the tbree trumpets, the destroyers avefrom within. The people as a nation all combine to kindle spontaneous combustion, and work internecine annihilation. 140 TIIE REVELATION OF The men: implied in the preceding trumpets, and thus revealing the reference of the symbols to human beings. The waters represent the common people, here injuring the men, and therefore of a differ- ent class. The men are consequently the upper classes corrupted and mined by the demoralized lower classes. The first three trumpets prophetically and most instructively sym- bolize the Eoman empire in its decay and overthrow. It is a burning forest (verse 7); it is a consuming mountain (verse 8); it is a deadly sea (verses 8, 9). It is a poisoned spring-head of human life. Without conscience, the people commit suicide by self-indulgence. Without mutual confidence, the higher orders disappear with the dis- appearance of the only sustaining basis in the social edifice, — an honest constituency. The history of Rome, after the time of St. John, gives remarkable confirmation of his symbolic predictions respecting this doomed empire. Previous to the year A.D. 222, less than one hundred and thirty years after St. John had his visions in the isle of Patmos, thirteen Roman emperors had died a violent death. An imperial death every ten years! Within fifty years after this date, not less than fifty emperors had ended their perilous days in the same manner. The reign of an emperor averaged only a single year (Millot, Elements Bist., ii. 269, 275). " Wars, famine, pestilence, contempt of the laws, and insurrec- tions of the army, set the empire in combustion [p. 281]. The laws sunk into chaos [p. 275]. Unbridled licentiousness put an end to all subordination" [p. 271]. The prophetic symbols of St. John apply to every civil power that adopts the vices and sins of the Pagan empire of Rome. The frightful symbolism of these three trumpets has ever its evi- dent application and its unmistakable notes of warning. No human organization can long endure which is animated and controlled by a self-indulgent, unprincipled, and contentious population. The symbolic star, popular infatuation, as in ancient Rome, so in all countries, is inevitably self-destructive. "The madness of the people" in the French Revolution is an obvious and an admonitory illustration. When time shall so clear the public eye of sectional prejudice as to let it look heavenward, the people of the United States of America will see, in the fratricidal war of A.D. 1861-1865, the re-appearance of the burning and flaming star "Wormwood." The incipient strike in these Northern States, A.D. 1877, which threatened to become a general insurrection, is alarming proof that the bad angel " Wormwood " still hovers in our own ominous sky. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 141 THE FOURTH, FIFTn, AND SIXTH TRUMPETS. The fourth, fifth, and sixth trumpets announce the instru- ments by which the first, second, and third trumpets will be accomplished. THE FOURTH TRUMPET. 12. Also the fourth angel sounds. And the third part of the sun is smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars, that the third part of their light may be darkened ; even the daylight in its third part may not shine, and the night-light in the like manner. To the locked meaning of this figurative verse, these words of Moses provide the opening key: "The precious fruits brought forth by the sun; the precious things put forth by the moon" (Deut. xxxiii. 14). According to this declaration of Moses, the sun and moon are the causes of vegetable growth. In Rev. viii. 12, one-third part of the sun, moon, and stars is dark- ened, so that the daylight (Luke vi. 13; 1 Thess. v. 5, first clause) and the night-light (John xi. 10: 1 Thess. v. 5, last clause), is diminished one-third. This diminution of daylight and of night-light would occasion pro- portional diminution of vegetable growth. The darkened sun, moon, and stars are, therefore, most undoubt- edly symbols of famine. The causes of famine are, — 1. Drought, which is God's infliction. Two present causes of famine are human and largely self-inflicted. 2. The production of tobacco and opium instead of grain. By this substitution, the quantity of grain is diminished, and its price increased, and the people are rendered poor in purse and health. 3. The distillation of grain into intoxicating liquors. This con- sumption of food creates the twofold evil of poverty and of possible and inevitable drunkenness, — the cause of increased poverty and of multiplied wretchedness. Drought is only an occasional infliction from God. The substitution of narcotics and alcohol for bread, the staff of life, is a deep and open volcano, dug by human hands, ever burning, ever belching, ever covering unmeasured districts of all continents with its barren lava, and ever consuming with its incessantly ejected flames millions of blighted sufferers of all nations of mankind. 142 THE REVELATION OF Of the cause of famine in these its threefold manifestations, the eclipsed sun, the black moon, and the quenched stars, are most appropriate and most significant symbols. The ever-falling showers of human tears are in most instances the ascended clouds which hide the luminaries of heaven. The Herald Eagle. 13. Also I saw and heard an eagle flying in the place of the noonday sun, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe to the inhabitants of the earth, b} r the other voices of each trumpet of the three angels who must soon sound ! An eagle: the emblem of a swift messenger (Jer. xlviii. 40). Place of the noonday sun: this is the meaning of the Greek word erroneously translated "the midst of heaven" by the Eng- lish Version. The eagle, in this verse, flies in the zenith at noonday, that he may be seen by all eyes, and heard by all ears. Saying: the loud and high scream of the flying eagle heralds the infliction of three separate woes (ix. 12). (a) ix. 1-11. Pestilence. (&) ix. 13-21. War. (c) ix. 14. The contents of censers (xv. 7, xvi. 2-16). As three is a, full number, God will inflict no more woes than these. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 143 CHAPTER IX. The imager}' in this chapter is amplified and intensified to an extent unknown in any preceding portion. THE FIFTH TRUMFET. The woe now trumpeted is pestilence. This character of the first woe is required both by the context, and by the sym- bols employed. (a) By the context. The fourth trumpet (viii. 12) announces fam- ine. The sixth trumpet (ix. 14-17) announces war. The prophetic and natural triplet, war, famine, pestilence (vi. 4, 5, 8), demands its own fulfilment to be (since famine is the voice of the fourth trumpet, and war is the voice of the sixth trumpet) famine, pestilence, and war. The context thus assigns unalterably pestilence to the fifth trumpet. The natural order of the judgments is changed, because they are here symbolic. (b) By the component symbols. The ''star" (ix. 1) and the "lo- custs" (ix. 3), the meaning of which we shall soon see. 1. Also the fifth angel sounds. And I see a star from heaven fallen to the earth, and there is given him the key of the bottomless pit. A star from heaven fallen to the earth: the star is an angel. (See viii. 10.) In some sense, the star is actually on the earth. The fall of the star is a judgment (viii. 10). The sun falls, and hurts by its influence (vii. 10). The " star" (ix. 1) may also have fallen, and hurt by its influence. This star personified has the key of the bottomless pit. He uses the key. He opens the door of the bottomless pit. From the opened door, ascend columns of smoke (verse 2). Smoke implies fire. Fire implies heat. 144 THE REVELATION OF Thus, by opening the door of the bottomless pit, the star fills the whole atmosphere with burning heat. The fifth trumpet heralds pes- tilence. The fallen star produces the burning heat. The burning heat produces the pestilence. The fallen star therefore produces the pestilence. The fallen star in its deadly influence resembles the deadly influ- ence of one of the planets. In the time of St. John, it was the prevalent opinion, that the excessive heat and the increased mortality of summer were caused by the dog-star, Sirius (in Greek Seirios, which means scorching). This is the opinion of the principal Greek and Latin writers daring the period of a thousand years from the poet Homer, B. C. 900, to the naturalist Pliny, the contemporary of St. John. These are the possibilities that St. John derived the imagery, by which he portrayed the power of the pestilence, from the common opinion of his day. St. John may have been familiar with the popular belief respecting Sirius. For 1. He resided many years in Asia Minor, where Greek ideas pre- vailed, and Greek literature was accessible. 2. He may have read the Greek poets. St. Paul had read some of them: St. John had the same opportunity. 3. St. John must have read the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament. It was the Bible of the apostles. In the Septuagint, Orion, the name of the constellation of which Sirius forms a part, occurs (Job xxxviii. 31) . 4. St. John may have seen this very place in the Book of Job. In Rev. iii. 7, St. John refers to Job xii. 14. In Rev. xii. 10, St. John refers to Job i. 9 and ii. 5. He was therefore not a stranger to the book. 5. St. John repeatedly quotes the prophet Isaiah. This writer ranks Orion with the stars (xiii. 10, "the constellations thereof;" Hebrew, their Orions). Thus, in St. John's time, and in a volume he often quotes, Orion, the constellation containing Sirius the dog- star, was itself known as a star. St. John may, then, have been familiar with the current belief respecting Sirius. If familiar, he may by "the star" (Rev. ix. 1) refer to Sirius. Is given : by Christ. Bottomless pit: this expression in the Apocalypse (ix. 1, 2, 11, xi. 7, xvii. 8, xx. 1, 3) not identical with " lake of fire and brimstone' (xix. 20, xx. 10, 14, 15, xxi. 8). 2. And he opens the bottomless pit, and there ascends ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 145 smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun is darkened, and the air, by the smoke of the pit. Smoke: accompanied by heat (xviii. 9, 18). Furnace: like the "burning fiery furnace" (Dan. iii. 6). The air: the atmosphere. (Exod. x. 15) the air is darkened by locusts. The atmosphere is heated by the hot smoke, as well as darkened. It is thus proved that "the star" (verse 1) is the cause of burning heat. 3. Also out of the smoke come locusts upon the earth ; and there is given them power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. The fifth trumpet introduces pestilence. It is thus defined: "the offspring of inclement skies, and of legions of putrifying locusts" (World's Progress, article "Plague"). Jerome (fifth century) thus describes the deadly influence of these decaying insects: — " Putredo mortuorum locustarum et factor in tantum noxius fuit, utajram quoque corrumperet, et pestilentia tarn jumentorum, quam hominum gigneretur" (on Joel ii. 20). "Locusts, when dead, so corrupt and infect the air, that it often occasions dreadful pestilences." —John Thevenot (French travel- ler), A.D. 1607. Power is given them : permission to poison; dead locusts poison the air. Scorpions : the sting of the scorpion is not always fatal. While it is a torment, it is not a deadly infliction. Thus the scorpion's sting is a just representation of the pestilence. When it prevails, while many of its victims die, death is not universal. 4. And it is said to them : Not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who have not the seal of God on their foreheads. Is said : by Christ. Hurt not: thus, unlike all other locusts. These locusts are there- fore dead. They can eat neither "grass," nor "green thing," nor "tree," the special depredation of live locusts. Their present absti- nence the direct opposite of their clean work in Egypt (Exod. x. 15). Objection. Pestilence cannot be the woe introduced by the fifth trumpet, because pestilence assails the sealed as well as the unsealed. 146 THE REVELATION OF Answer. 1. Pestilence may be taken in a large sense. Pestilence may in- clude every waste of the health of the human being, except its origi- nal mortality. 2. The violation of the laws of health shortens human life. " The wicked shall not prolong his days" (Eccles. viii. 13). 3. The observance of the laws of health prolongs human life. " Godliness hath the promise of the life that now is " (1 Tim. iv. 8). 4. God employs bodily diseases as medicines of the soul. 5. The wicked, the unsealed, are "hurt" instead of blessed by these medicines. 6. The righteous, the sealed, are blessed by their bodily inflictions, and in this way are "not hurt" by the pestilence. 7. The Book of Revelation predicts spiritual evils and spiritual blessings, and not merely bodily injuries and bodily advantages. 8. In connection with human freedom, and human imperfection and wickedness, the laws God appoints often appear as destined tend- encies rather than as absolute certainties. 9. Bodily diseases, the outgrowth of human sinfulness, may be included in the subjects of symbolic prediction under the fifth trumpet. 10. The waste of human life by (a) drunkenness, by (b) use of tobacco, opium, morphine, hashee>h, and other narcotics, by (c) sexual sin, is a perpetual pestilence by which God is punishing the transgressors. The general destruction of female virtue among the Romans of the first centuries of the Christian era was one of the principal causes of the utter fall and hopeless ruin of the Roman empire. The Scriptures themselves ascribe loss of bodily health to drunk- enness and licentiousuess. " Whoredom and wine take away the heart" (Hos. iv. 11). Wine "biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder" (Prov. xxiii. 32). "Remove thy way from the strange woman, lest thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed" (Prov. v. 8, 11). Thus pronounced by the Scriptures to be destructive of bodily health, these sins may, by St. John, be most properly symbolized as a pestilence. 5. And permission is given the locusts, not to kill the men, but that the}* shall be tormented five months. And so their torment is as the torment of the scorpion when he strikes a man. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 147 The men shall be tormented: the locusts do not torment. The men are tormented by the pestilence. The Greek verb elsewhere describes the "palsy " (Matt. viii. 6). Since thus used, this verb may legitimately de>cribe pestilence. Five months : the life-time of the locust. He is hatched in the spring, and dies in the fall, when his decaying body produces pes- tilence. The five months symbolize the limited duration of pestilence as a divine judgment. Health is the daily sun of human life: dis- ease is the passing cloud. Their torment: the torment the locusts inflict, not the torment of the sufferers (Alfordj. 6. Also in those days the men shall seek death, and shall not find it ; and shall long to die, and yet death shall flee from them. This verse forms an intensive parallelism. The men: described in verse 4. Shall seek death, etc. : a graphic picture oT despair and hope- less misery (Jer. viii. 3; Job iii. 21). The pestilence, in its various kinds, may assume the chronic forms predicted by Moses. " The Lord will make thy plagues great plagues, and of long continuance, and sore sicknesses, and of long continuance" (Deut. xxviii. 50). Description of the Locusts (Verses 7-10). The description consists of a series of unexampled intensi- fications, for the purpose of showing the greatness and hurt- fulness of the pestilence in its numerous ramifications and manifestations. The exaggerated imagery cannot denote material objects. Such exaggerations are natural impossi- bilities. Moral evils must be intended. 7. And the images of the locusts are like horses prepared for battle ; and upon their heads, as it were, crowns like gold ; and their faces, as it were, the faces of men. The images : suggested by the locusts. These images are : — 1. Horses (Joel ii. 4) prepared for battle: caparisoned (Zech. x. 3; Jer. vi. 23). This equipment implies strength. Feeble horses would not be arrayed for battle. 2. Crowns like gold: a crown is the symbol of kingship. "The soldiers put a crown of thorns upon the head of Jesus, s >ying, Hail, 148 THE REVELATION OF King of the Jews!" (Matt, xxvii. 29.) The locusts have power like kings. Like gold: the crowns of the locusts are not mock crowns, like the thorns our Saviour wore, but crowns of real gold. Their power is not in appearance, but is actual and most efficient. 3. The faces of men: the face is the index and expression of intelligence. The pestilence, under the figure of the locusts, St. John represents as intelligent. Intelligence is the ability to execute. The pestilence can execute according to the measure of its power. 8. And they were having hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions. 4. Hair of women: have long hair (1 Cor. xi. 15). There is a species of locust with hair ( Jer. li. 27) ; " rough caterpillars," English Version. Because covered with hair, the locusts are here represented as large and strong as quadrupeds, perhaps as lions, next clause. 5. Teeth of lions: the fifth similitude, like the preceding four, describes the 'power of the symbolized pestilence. The prophet Joel applies the same illustration to the locusts (i. 6). 9. And the} T were having breastplates like breastplates of iron ; and the noise of their wings was like the noise of chariots drawn by man}' horses rushing into battle. The imagery in this verse describes the irresistible character of the power wielded by the pestilence. Breastplates: making the locusts invulnerable. "When they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded" (Joel ii. 8). Iron: symbol of hardness (Dent, xxviii. 23). The breastplate was usually made of brass. Iron is harder than brass, and more impene- trable. Wings: denote swiftness of execution. The hairy locust has wings (Nah. iii. 16). Chariots: "Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap" (Joel ii. 5). The chariots and horses here represent irresistible power (Isa. lxvi. 15; Jer. iv. 13; Dan. xi. 40). 10. Also they are having tails like scorpions, and stings; and in their tails their power is to hurt the men five months. Tails: "head and tail" (Isa. ix. 14), is a phrase for completeness. The heads, verse 7, begin the description of the locusts; tails, verse 10, end the description. Stings: poisonous stings; this meaning of "sting" (1 Cor. xv. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 149 55, 56). This is the meaning of " sharpness" (a sharp point) in the Te Deum, as this word is taken from the passage in First Corinthians. Power: delegated power. God himself ever commissions the pestilence. 11. The} T have over them as king the angel of the bottom- less pit. His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in- the Greek tongue he has the name Apolluon. King: political chief of the tribe. Here, predicate, as king. Locusts natural have no king (Prov. xxx. 27). The king, therefore, in this verse, must be immaterial. The king cannot be the com- mander, even in symbol, of armies of human soldiers. The immate- rial cannot symbolize the material. The locusts (Rev. ix. 3-11) cannot represent flesh-and-blood military hosts. The angel of the bottomless pit: the pestilence personified, which comes from the bottomless pit (verses 2, 3). The patriarch Job has a similar personification (xxviii. 22). "Destruction and death, say.'''' Abaddon: the destroyer. Apolluon : the destroyer. The name is repeated for emphasis. The repetition equals a superlative, — most destructive destroyer. The repetition explains the intensifications in the imagery investing the locusts. The in- tensifications magnify the deadly nature of the pestilence. When we consider the frightful extent to which human life has been continually wasted, and is now continually wasted, by pesti- lence, in its Bible sense, we perceive that the intensified imagery St. John employs to depict the desolating evils is by no means exaggera- tion. The great and accumulated obstacles which at the present time hinder personal and social happiness, and oppose civilization and the influence and extension of Christianity, are the very pestilential vices and destructive sins so graphically and minutely portrayed under the fifth trumpet. 12. The first woe is past. Behold, there are coming 3-et two woes after this. This is the announcement of St. John. First woe: of the three predicted (viii. 13). The first woe is the plague of the locusts, symbolizing pestilence (ix. 1-11). Is passed: in symbol and prediction. Two woes: one given immediately (ix. 13-21) by the sixth trum- pet, the woe of war; the other by the seventh trumpet (xi. 14), that is, by the contents of the censers it introduces (xv. 7, xvi. 2-16). 150 THE REVELATION OF These three woes finish the symbolic representations of God's judg- ments in the Apocalypse. In Bible arithmetic, the number three equals an integer, or whole number. "Israel shall be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, even a blessing [full blessing] in the midst of the land: whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, Blessed be (1) Egypt my people, and (2) Assyria the work of my hands, and (3) Israel mine inherit- ance" (Isa. xix. 24, 25). In this passage, Israel is a third, Egypt is another third, Assyria is still another third; and yet the united three are one full blessing. In this way, the "three woes" (Kev. ix. 12) are in their destina- tion one full and exhaustive curse. They completely empty the cup of God's indignation. THE SIXTH TRUMPET (Verses 13-21). The Judgment of War. 13. Also the sixth trumpet sounds. And I hear a voice out of the horns of the golden altar, which is before God ; Voice : an answer to the prayers of the saints for vengeance (viii. 3). Horns the space enclosed by the horns of the golden altar (Exod. xxx. 2) was the surface where the incense was burned, which is a symbol of vengeance; a voice, then, of vengeance, from the incense- altar. 14. Saying to the angel who is holding the trumpet, Loosen the four angels, who are bound on the great river Euphrates. Trumpet: the avenging trumpet. Loosen: the opposite of "bound," next clause. The angels re- strained from inflicting God's judgments are now loosened from this restraint. Four angels: (see vii. 1, note). They are the avenging cherubim (iv. 6-9). In Ps. Ixxx. 1, 4, cherubim and hosts are identical. In Ps. ciii. 20, 21, hosts and angels are identical. The "four angels" (Rev. ix. 14) are, therefore, cherubim. The river Chebar (Ezek. i. 1, 3, x. 22) is a branch of the Euphrates. The location of the four angels on the Euphrates thus identifies them with the cherubim on the Chebar. Bound: held back from their work of destruction. Euphrates: was the north-eastern boundary of the promised land (Gen. xv. 18; Deut. i. 7, xi. 24; Josh. i. 4; 1 Kings iv. 21). The ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 151 Euphrates was the battle-border between contending armies (2 Sam. viii. 3; 2 Kings xxiii. 29). Tbe Euphrates is the symbol of invading armies (Isa. viii. 7, 8). Thus associated in the Old Testament, the Euphrates is (Rev. ix. 14, xvi. 12) most appropriately the symbolic barrier against military invasion. 15. And the four angels are loosed, who had been prepared for the period of an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, to kill the third part of the men. An hour : the definite words in this specification of time prove the period is definite. The usual order of designating a period of time, namely, year, month, day, hour ("year and four months," 1 Sam. xxvii. 7), is reversed for emphasis, to show that the period here desig- nated would be definite to an hour, at the beginning of the period. Since thus measured by hours, and begun at a definite hour, it would also end at a definite hour. The phrase is an emphatic form of expressing this truth, "God hath determined the times before ap- pointed" (Acts xvii. 26). The time included in the phrase is a little more than a year, and therefore a brief period. God limits the destructive work of the four angels to this space. Through his mercy, wars are usually short. Kill: the locusts (v. 5) only torment. The horsemen sent by the four cherubim kill their victims. The third part : God thus limits the ravages of war, as he limits the ravages of famine (viii. 12) and of pestilence (ix. 5). The effects of the first three trumpets are also limited to the same extent (viii. 7-10). 16. And the number of the embattled hosts of the horse- army is two hundred millions. Even I hear their number. The appalling imagery (ix. 16, 17) is taken from the following places in the Old Testament: — "A people cometh from the north country [beyond the Euphrates, Jer. xlvi. 6, 10], and a great nation. They shall lay hold on bow and spear. They are cruel, and have no mercy. Their voice roareth like the sea. They ride upon horses, set in array as men for war " (Jer. vi. 22, 23). " King of Babylon from the north, with horsemen; the abundance of his horses ; the hoofs of his horses" (Ezek. xxvi. 7, 10, 11). The number: this word marks the sublime beauty of the passage. The numbering of the horsemen is the very first indication of their 152 THE REVELATION OF presence. They are already gathered and marshalled, waving their spears, and aiming their arrows. Two hundred millions : to such immeasurable numbers, effectual resistance is impossible. They are victors before striking a blow. 17. And in this outlook I saw the horses in the vision, and their riders : they have breastplates fire-red, purple and yel- low ; and the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions, and out of their mouths issue fire and smoke and brimstone. St. John must take his imagery from the ascension of the prophet Elijah. " Horses of fire; he went up by a whirlwind into heaven" (2 Kings ii. 11). The invulnerable breastplates flash with rays fire-red, purple, and brilliant yellow. The utter uselessness of striking such polished armor is the admonition thus symbolized. Like the heads of lions: the prophet Jeremiah compares war- horses to swift eagles (iv. 13). Tbe prophet Habakkuk compares war- horses to swift leopards and fierce wolves (i. 8). Thus compared to eagles, to leopards, to wolves, horses in St. John's imagery may, with- out excessive exaggeration, have heads like lions, to symbolize their overwhelming power of charge and assault in battle. 18. By these three plagues are killed the third part of the men, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which is issuing out of their mouths. This verse describes the effect of the triform stream the monster horses breathe from their open mouths. 19. For the power of the horses is in their mouth, and in their tails ; for their tails are like serpents, by having heads, and so by them they inflict hurt. The locusts have tails like scorpions (verse 10). The horses have tails with heads, the tails being thus like serpents. The origin of the intensified imagery in verses 17, 18, 19, is obvious. 1. The borse fights with his mouth. When fighting he breathes strongly, and his breath is visible. This hot breath St. John aggra- vates into " fire, smoke, and brimstone." 2. The horse also fights with hind hoofs. The horse thus fighting "head and tail" (Isa. ix. 14) may by hyperbole be said to fight with his tail; and his tail becomes by exaggeration " a serpent." ST. JO TIN THE DIVINE. 153 Thus ends the frightful portrait of the second woe, — the punitive judgment of war. The fulfilment of this symbolic prediction may have begun with the invasion and overthrow of the Roman empire by the Northern hordes, hosts of whom came from regions beyond the river Euphrates. The past history of the world demonstrates the indescribable severity of this universal and long-continued judgment. War can never be robbed of its horrors. Wars are created by human passions. God, while disapproving wars, ever uses them as manifestations of his displeasure against the sins of nations. As punitive inflictions, wars will continue in the world so long as states, kingdoms, and empires are selfish, ambitious, unjust, and aggressive. The Impotence of Mere Punishment to produce Preformation is the subject of verses 20, 21. 20. And yet the rest of the men, who are not killed by these plagues, do not repent and forsake the works of their hands, not to worship devils and idols, which are of gold, and of silver, and of brass, and of stone, and of wood, which can neither see, nor hear, nor walk. The rest of the men: the rest, in contrast with the third part of the men (verse 18), who are killed. Of the men: the men who have not the seal of God on their foreheads (verse 4). Only one-third are killed (verse 18). The rest God spares, that they may repent, and become his true worshippers. God's mercy shines conspicuously throughout the Apocalypse. By these plagues: inflicted by the horsemen. Devils: fallen angels. Works of their hands: the idols they make of gold, silver, brass, stone, wood. Gold, etc: this enumeration repeated from Dan. hi. 5, and v. 4. The idolatry of the Babylon on the Euphrates is continued by the Babylon on the Tiber. See : Ps. cxv. 5. Hear : verse 6. Walk : verse 7. 21. And yet they do not repent, and forsake their murders, nor their sorceries, nor their fornication, nor their thefts. Murders: of the early Christians during the ten persecutions; in war against Jerusalem (Matt. xxiv. G); by acts of violence against individuals (Acts xii. 2). 154 THE REVELATION OF Sorceries: the practice of divination, augury, oracles (Smith, Diet. Antlq.). See notes on xviii. 23. Fornication: Rum. i. 26. In Rome, as well as in Greece, the State not only tolerated fornication, but protected it, and obtained profit from it (Diet. Greek and Roman Antiq., 605 a). Thefts: perhaps of men (1 Tim. i. 10). The plural denotes a large number. The Greek word means the thing stolen. This, then, is the sense of the assertion in the text: They will not forsake their thefts; they will not surrender their stolen possessions; they will not return to its lawful owners the property they acquire by stealing or by unlawful means. The refusal of these spared unbelievers to forsake their sins illus- trates our Lord's assertion in Luke xvi. 31. They despise the for- bearance of God (2 Pet. iii. 9). 1. When pestilence is by symbol predicted (ix. 1-11), other methods of depredation upon health and life are likewise predicted. In this extensive catalogue must be placed all bodily inflictions arising from the abuse of our animal appetites, — gluttony, alcoholism, narcotic poisoning, and the wasting death of unbridled lust. 2. War is the outward manifestation of inward passions, — ill- will, hatred, malice, deadly purpose. These inward passions often become to us instruments of self- punishment. God may employ the unrestrained lusts of our hearts as scorpions by which he chastens us within for our sins. In our souls, these secret tormentors may be sorer judgments than even the calamities of war itself. Most necessary every moment is this prayer in our Litany, " Good Lord, deliver us from hatred and malice ; from all inordinate and sin- ful affections; from all the deceits of the flesh," as well as "of the world and the Devil." Ever since God had a separate people, they have been opposed by the ungodly world, which, if not actually, is practically, a heathen world. The opposition presents itself in two principal forms. One form is war; the other form is ungodly manners. Ungodly manners always prove a more formidable enemy than even the desolations of war. Illustrations of this fact abound in the history of the past, and in the condition of human life at the present time. The personal sins of King David, and of his voluptuous son Solo- mon, were more injurious to Israelites than their wars with the sur- rounding nations. In our own body politic of to-day, depravation of morals, and our prevalent vices, are more destructive evils than even the ravages of our great fratricidal war. An internal cancer is more pestilent than a gun-shot. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 155 SECOND DIVISION, PART II. (Chapters x.-xx. 10). In the first part of the second division of the Apocalypse (chapters iv.-ix.), there are these visions: God's throne of judgment; the cherubim, his executioners; the unrolling of the seven scrolls ; the six trumpets, predicting judgments upon the heathen world. The second part of the second division of the book pre- sents a different subject. The Church of Christ appears. The whole scene is new. The symbols change from trumpets to censers. The seventh and last trumpet (xi. 15) predicts victory (Num. x. 10). This third form of symbolism by censers is historical. It reflects past history ; it foreshadows future history. Both the reflection of histoiy, and the prediction of histoiy, are without specific dates. The symbols in this second part are, as in the antecedent portions, not realities. They are representations of realities. The Apocalyptic symbols are nothing more than strong shadows. The censers symbolize Christ's judgments upon his apos- tate Church. The great subjects occupying chapters x.-xx. are the fol- lowing : — (x.) The Bridegroom, Jesus Christ. (xi.) The two witnesses, representing the perfect Church, as Christ's herald in the world to the end of time. 156 THE REVELATION OF (xii.) The Church, in its faithfulness to Christ, as his pure bride. (xiii.) The hostility of the dragon to the Church. His agents, the two wild beasts ; their efforts to injure and cor- rupt the Church. (xiv.) The true Church victorious. The victors and their enemies. (xv.) Preparation for the final conflict. (xvi.) The effusion of the seven censers. (xvii.) The apostate Church. (xviii.) Her destruction. (xix.) The alleluias ; the marriage of the Lamb ; Arma- geddon heralded. (xx. 1-10) Imprisonment of Satan ; the enthronement of the martyrs ; defeat of Gog and Magog ; and punishment of the Devil, the beast, and the false prophet. From this brief summary, it is evident that chapters x.-xx. form a closely connected symbolic exhibition of the earthly history of the Church of Christ from his incarnation to the end of the probationary state of the world of mankind. As we surve3 T the multiplied and unrivalled symbols of these wonderful and divine chapters, this changeless truth should take full and tenacious possession of our deepest convictions, namely, All that these symbols were to St. John and his contem- poraries, they are to every soul of man at the present moment. Every truth s} T mbolized lives continually, and has an inces- sant application to each one of us. To us all, Christ is the same Judge and Saviour he was in the isle of Patmos. On each of our foreheads is now either the seal of Christ, or the mark of the lamb-dragon. In reserve for each one of us is either a crown or a curse. ST. JO/IN THE DIVINE. 157 CHAPTER X. ANGELIC SYMBOL OF CHBIST THE BRIDEGROOM (Yerses 1-12. ) 1. And I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, clothed with a cloud, his face as the sun, and yet a rainbow is on his head ; and his feet as pillars of fire. The term "another" is, in the second division of the Apocalypse, applied to the word "angel" nine times. But in no instance is the angel one of a group of angels. Consequently, "another" (x. 1) re- fers back to "another" (viii. 3), where the angel imprecates judg- ments. The office of "another angel" (x. 1) is, therefore, of the same kind, that of imprecation. Mighty: applied to an angel, v. 2, x. 1, xviii. 21, only. The appellation does not in any instance determine the rank and character of the angel. Angel: Who is symbolized by this mighty angel? This is the answer. required by the context. In chapter xii. 1, a woman is the symbol of Christ's Church. The Church is "the Bride, the Lamb's wife" (xxi. 9). Christ is, then, the Bridegroom. The mighty angel (x. 1) symbolizes Christ as the Bridegroom, for these conclusive reasons : — 1. A bride (xii. 1) implies and requires a bridegroom. 2. A bridegroom precedes a bride : "Adam was first formed, then Eve" (1 Tim. ii. 13). In Bible practice, the man chooses and takes the woman to be his wife : the woman does not choose and take the man to be her hus- band. These facts involve this conclusion: The bridegroom, Christ, is symbolized, in point of time, before his bride, the Church, is symbol- ized. 158 THE REVELATION OF 3. As an angel, Christ was with the children of Israel in the wilder- ness (Exod. xxiii. 20, 21; 1 Cor. x. 4). 4. Our Lord was, at that time and in that place, " a husband unto them" (Jer. xxxi. 32). He is also the husband of the Christian Church: "I have espoused you to one husband, to Christ" (2 Cor. xi. 2). 5. He, as their husband, reproves the children of Israel (Jer. iii. 20). These five Bible facts authorize this assertion. The mighty Angel (Rev. x. 1) symbolizes Christ as Bridegroom. The assertion accords with the facts. 1. Since an angel, the mighty angel most appropriately symbolizes the angel with the Israelites, who was Christ. 2. Christ was the husband of his Church from its foundation. Thus a husband, he is most properly symbolized as a bridegroom. 3. Christ, as the reprover of his ancient Church, is most justly rep- resented, when he re-appears symbolically in the mighty angel, whose "little book" (x. 2) is a record of reproofs against Christ's present Church. The identity of the symbols designating the mighty angel, with the symbols designating Christ, make the mighty angel a symbol of Christ. 1. The mighty angel is " clothed with a cloud." He is thus clothed to indicate that he is the herald of terrific judgments. "A great cloud and afire" (Ezek. i. 4). " Out of the fire went forth lightning " (verse 13). The Son of man is thus announced : " Behold, he cometh with clouds" (Rev. i. 7). " He cometh with clouds" to punish. "The Lord rideth upon a swift cloud into Egypt " (Isa. xix. 1). " The Lord shall smite Egypt" (verse 22). The symbolism investing the mighty angel, and the symbolism investing the Son of man, are thus identical. 2. " The face " of the mighty angel is " as it were the sun " (x. 1). This face of fire is identical with this description of the Son of man. "His eyes are as a flame of fire" (i. 14). 3. The feet of the mighty angel are "as pillars of fire" (x. 1). The feet of the Son of man are "like lightning" (ii. IS). These symbolic identities between the mighty angel and the Son of man are resemblances which enforce this conviction : The mighty angel symbolizes Christ, who is the Bridegroom of his Church, and who now appears to punish his adulterous wife, — his apostate Church. The adulteress is, by the law of Moses, punished with death (Lev. xx. 10). The husband of the adulterous wife institutes the legal pro- ceedings against her, as authorized by Moses (Jer. iii. 8, v. 7; Ezek. xvi. 38, 48), where the husband inflicts death as the punishment. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 159 It is certain, therefore, that the appearance of the mighty angel (Rev. x. i.) symbolizing Christ as the avenging Bridegroom of his faithless Church, and the death-penalty he inflicts upon the apostate Babylon (Rev. xviii. 8), accord perfectly with the provisions of the law of Moses for the treatment of the adulteress. She is to be put to death; and the injured husband is to institute the proceedings, and see that the required punishment is inflicted. 5. There is another resemblance between the mighty angel and the Lamb, which certainly prepares the angel to symbolize Christ. The mighty angel holds in his hand a scroll unrolled. In the entire Book of Revelation, the Lamb is the only other person who unrolls scrolls, and holds them in his hand. The Lamb alone unrolls the seven scrolls. Indeed, by unrolling the seventh scroll, and causing six trumpets to be blown, he creates the very visions which immedi- ately precede the descent of the mighty angel, holding in his hand an unrolled scroll. Since the Lamb is the only being in the universe worthy and able to unroll scrolls, the sole relation the descending angel, who is not Christ, can bear to the Lamb, is that of representative. On account of this relation, therefore, the mighty angel represents and symbol- izes the Lamb, who is the Bridegroom (Rev. xxi. 9). 6. In another aspect does the symbolizing mighty angel resemble the Son of man. The mighty angel is in the act of " coming down out of heaven." So the Greek of this verse 1. This act of continual descent the Son of man is also performing: "The bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life to the world" (John vi. 33). In Rev. iii. 12, the New Jerusalem, which is the Church of Christ, is characterized as the "city which is coming down out of heaven." Thus closely and remarkably does the mighty angel resemble, in his continual descent from heaven, the continually descending Son of man, and his continually descending Church, of which he is the Head and the Bridegroom. Since resemblances authorize symbolism, the symbolical connection of the mighty angel with Christ, the Bridegroom of his Church, is most amply established. Rainbow : In Revelation, only here and iv. 3, where, as here, it is the symbol of mercy (Gen. ix. 13-15; Ezek. i. 28). Although the sym- bolizing mighty angel is descending from heaven to inflict judgments upon the apostate Church of Christ, judgment is modified by mercy. Pillars of fire: the straight and brilliant white lines of lightning (i. 15. ii. 18), so often seen on the dark face of a thunder-cloud. His feet have lightning swiftness to run and to execute. The explanation which regards the mighty angel (x. 1) as the rep- 160 THE REVELATION OF resentative of Christ, the Bridegroom of his Church, fully harmonizes (chapter x.) with the imagery of the bride (chapter xii.); also with the virginity (spiritual) of the followers of the Lamb (xiv. 4); and like- wise with the fornication (spiritual) of the woman (the unfaithful bride) sitting upon the scarlet-colored beast (xvii. 3) ; and lastly, with the "marriage-supper of the Lamb" (xix. 7), accompanying his union wth his faithful bride. 2. And while holding in his hand a small scroll, unrolled, he also places his right foot on the sea, and his left on the earth. In his hand: in v. 1, the scroll is on the right hand of the Judge on the throne. The right hand of the angel may, therefore, be hold- ing " the little book open." He may also lift his right hand when he utters his oath. In swearing, the Orientals raised the right hand (Ps. cxliv. 8, 11; Isa. xliv. 20, lxii. 8). The swearing hand of the angel grasps the scroll containing God's judgments. Small scroll : containing accusations (Isa. xxx. 8, 9). The imagery of the "small scroll" maybe derived from the "bill of divorcement" (Ueut. xxiv. 1). The symbolic Bridegroom holds the accusing scroll. It may contain an indictment for adultery against his wife, "arrayed in scarlet" (xvii. 4). She is "burned with fire" (xviii. 8). Burning was the punishment of the adulteress (Gen. xxxviii. 24; Lev. xx. 14). Before the infliction of the burning, there must be a previous (a) indictment, (b) trial, (c) conviction, (d) sentence, (e) execution. This fivefold process of justice fully discloses itself (chapters x. -xviii.). (a) In the Jewish courts, charges are brought in writing (Job xiv. 17; Dan. vii. 10; Rev. xx. 12). The "little book" is the indictment. (b) The two witnesses (xi. 3) establish the charges. (c) Conviction (xiv. 7). (d) Sentence (xiv. 8). (e) Execution (xiv. 9-11, xv. 6, xvi., xvii. 1, 14, xviii. 2, 5, 8, 20). Then, in the midst of the symbolic drapery of these nine chapters, the usual proceedings of a court can be plainly detected and regularly traced. Unrolled: indicating that the charges are ready to be made at once. Sea and land : in the creation of this earth, the sea was first seen; hence, here first mentioned. The angel stands on both sea and land, to show that Christ is universal Judge, and that his judgments affect all parts of this world where his Church exists. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 161 3. And he cries with a loud voice, even as a lion roars. And when he cries, seven thunders speak their peculiar words. Roars: the voice of the angel is frightful; carries terror with it. Thunders: responsive. The voice of the angel utters threats. The voices of the seven thunders utter their peculiar threats. The repetition of the utterances intensifies the denunciations. 4. And when the seven thunders had spoken their peculiar words, I was about to write ; and I heard a voice from heaven, saying unto me, Seal up the words which the seven thunders have spoken, and write them not. From heaven : from God. Seal: roll up and seal the scroll; that is, reserve for the present the publication of the threats (xxii. 10; Isa. viii. 10). " The words of God" (xvii. 17) may refer to the subjects contained in the "little book." The predictions of God's judgments are symbolically announced in these three forms: (a) the " little book," {b) the voice of the mighty angel, and (c) the voices of the seven thunders, to emphatically affirm the certain fulfilment of all the predictions. The fulfilments of these threefold predictions are symbolized by the censers, chapters xv. and xvi. First, predictions; then fulfilments. This method is but the repetition of preceding methods in the Apocalypse. Examples. — (a) The three horses, red, black, pale (vi. 4-8), predict war, famine, pestilence. (6) The darkened sun, moon, and stars (viii. 12), and the locusts, and the horsemen (ix. 1-19), symbolically fulfil the predictions sym- bolized by the tri-colored horses (vi. 4-8). Recapitulation is the movable bolt which opens many a door, otherwise shut, in this figurative and elaborate book. 5. And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the earth raised his hand to heaven ; The raising of the hand was the accompaniment of an oath (Gen. xiv. 22; Dan. xii. 7). The upraised hand calls God to witness the truth of the oath. 6. And lie sware by Him that liveth for ever and ever, who 162 THE REVELATION OF created the heaven and the things in it, and the earth and the things in it, and the sea and the things in it, that delay shall be no longer ; Sware: the angel's oath, calling God to witness the truth of his declaration, is his most solemn confirmation of his assertion respect- ing time, in the last clause of this verse. The insuperable difference between resemblance and identity ren- ders these comments of Dean Alford irrelevant: — "The angel in Rev. x. 1 is not Christ, for Christ could not swear by himself. This he would do (verse 6), if he were this angel " (Al- fokd, in loco). But, although the angel is not Christ, yet as the angel represents Christ, and therefore is not identical with Christ, he may in symbol swear by Christ. Created : the sole Creator of the universe ("heaven, earth, sea"), is able to control and limit time in its progress. Delay: the Greek word is translated "space," respite (ii. 21). When the noun is embodied in a verb, it is translated "delayeth" (Matt. xxiv. 48; Luke xii. 45). There has been delay, "a little season" (vi. 11). But now delay shall cease. The predictions by the "little book," by the voice of the mighty angel, and by the voices of the seven thunders, shall be fulfilled shortly. The cessation of delay is followed by fulfilment. This fulfilment is embodied in "finished" [fulfilled], (verse 7), the finish being "in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound" the seventh trumpet, heralding the censers, chapter xvii. 7. Bat in the days of the trumpet of the seventh angel, when he must sound, and so is made effectual the mystery of God as he declares the good news to his servants the prophets. Days: the period following the seventh trumpet (xi. 15), announ- cing the complete establishment of the kingdom of Christ. Must: the Greek verb often denotes necessity; that is, accordance with the divine appointment, and therefore certain, destined by God to take place. Is made effectual: This translation is justified, — 1. By derivation : — The Greek noun, which is the root of the Greek verb we translate "is made effectual," has the sense of effect, in these places: — " The effect of those things is death " (Rom. vi. 21). " The effect everlasting life" (v. 22). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 163 " Christ is the effect of the law " (x. 4). "The effect of that which is abolished" (2 Cor. iii. 13). "The effect of the commandment" (1 Tim. i. 5). "The effect of your faith" (1 Pet. i. 9). 2. By usage : — "When they shall make effectual their testimony" (Rev. xi. 7). " In them is made effectual the wrath of God " (xv. 1). "Till the seven plagues of the seven angels are made effectual" (v. 8). " Until the words of God are made effectual" (xvii. 17). The mystery of God: by comparing Col. i. 23, "mystery of God," with Col. ii. 2, " the gospel," we discover that "the mystery of God" (Rev. x. 7) is "the gospel," in the strict sense given it by its derivation, namely, good news. The gospel in this sense, "the gospel" identical with "the mystery of God," is the root of the Greek verb which the English Version in- adequately translates " declared," but which should be translated as follows: "makes known the glad tidings," that is, joyful prophecies, which abound in the Apocalypse (xi. 15, xii. 10, xiv. 1-4, 6-8, 13, xv. 2-4, xviii. 20, xix. 1-9, xx. 4-6), and are included in the word " glad tidings." Prophets: New-Testament prophets are intended (xxii. 6, 9); and St. John is among the number. 8. And the voice which I heard from heaven is again speaking to me, and saying, Go, take the small scroll which is unrolled in the hand of the angel, who is standing upon the sea and upon the earth. Take: to publish (verses 8, 9); take to read, as eating (verse 9) is reading. 9. And I went to the angel, and said to him, Give me the small scroll. And he saith to me, Take, and eat it up, and it shall make thy stomach bitter, but in thy mouth it shall be sweet like honey. Eat it up: eat it entirely; read it carefully; fully comprehend the meaning of the scroll. This direction is Ezek. iii. 3 repeated. Bitter: the contents of the scroll are, in themselves, woeful and destroying. Sweet: the knowledge of the contents of the scroll is at first pleasant to St. John. He was pleased to be assured that God will avenge his martyred saints ; but the manner and the severity of the vengeance sadden his spirit. 164 THE REVELATION OF t 10. And I took the small scroll out of the angel's hand, and ate it up ; and it was in my mouth sweet like honey ; and }*et when I had eaten it, 1113- stomach became bitter. In this verse, the emphatic position of the words gives this sense: The sweetness was greater than predicted. 11. And 3'et they sa} r to me, It is necessary for thee again to prophesy against many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings. And yet: notwithstanding the good news (verses 7-10). They: the voices heard (verses 4, 8). Necessary : because God commands. Prophesy: reproofs and warnings (Ezek. xi. 4, 5, 9). Again: the previous prophecies (viii. 12, ix. 1-19) were of the woes of famine, pestilence, and war. The word "again" gives, therefore, to the word " prophesy," this sense: predict reproofs and warnings. Against: " Set thy face against Mount Seir, and prophesy against it" (Ezek. xxxv. 2). Peoples: nations, tongues: "peoples, nations, tongues" (xvii. 15). Kings: "With the great whore the kings of the earth have com- mitted fornication" (xvii. 2) "Eat the flesh of kings" (xix. 18). St. John, in subsequent portions of the Apocalypse, utters prophe- cies against all classes of the unbelieving and disobedient. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 165 CHAPTER XI. The eleventh chapter of the Apocalypse contains these subjects : the measurement of the temple ; the rejection of the outer court ; the two witnesses ; the sounding of the seventh trumpet. THE MEASUREMENT OF THE TEMPLE. 1. There is given me a reed, like a staff; and he said, Arise, and measure the hoh r of holies of God, and the altar, and the worshippers in the court. The angel here, as in chapter x., represents Christ. The angel gives St. John a reed, and commands him to measure the temple. Measurement is the symbol of preservation. "Measuring reed" (Ezek. xl. 3). Temple measured (xli. 1). Result of measurement: The glory of the Lord fills the temple (xliii. 4). "I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever" (verse 7). ''A man with a measuring line in his hand; to measure Jerusa- lem; Jerusalem shall be inhabited; towns without walls for the mul- titude of men. For I, saith the Lord, will be unto her a wall of fire round about" (Zech. ii. 1-5). In Rev. xi. the first act of the representative angel, and the first words he speaks, are symbols of mercy. By him, Christ still contin- ues and preserves his true Church. Its faithful members still " look for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life" (Jude, verse 21). The precious objects St. John is commanded by the angel to measure, and thus preserve, are these two, — the temple and its court. The temple includes its worship, and the couit includes its worshippers. 166 THE REVELATION OF This is the symbolical process of the twofold inclusion, (a) The holy of holies is used for the entire temple, by synecdoche, — a part for the whole. (6) The altar of incense is used for the worship offered on the altar; a metaphor, — the container for the contained, (c) The worshippers are used for the court they occupy; namely, the court of the Israelites, closely adjoining the temple; metaphor, again, — the contained for the container, the reverse of the preceding figure. The temple of God is his Church (1 Tim. iii. 15), in which are his worship and his worshippers. The true worship of God includes, [a] his ministry, (6) his sacra- ments, (c) his creeds, (d) his ritual (Acts ii. 42). His true worshippers are Christians, whose souls are renewed in the image of Christ, and who thus " worship him in spirit and in truth " (John iv. 24). The symbols in the first clause of verse 1 resemble, both in design and in persons, the sealing of the one hundred and forty-four thou- sand (Rev. vii. 4). There, Christ's judgments upon the heathen world are about to be predicted. Here, his judgments upon his apos- tate Church are at once to be prophetically symbolized (xi. 2). The faithful portion of the Church will be saved. Its measurement is the symbol of its salvation, just as the numbering is the symbol of the salvation of the one hundred and forty-four thousand. Both the thousands numbered (vii. 4), and the worshippers in his preserved temple, are the same Church of Christ numbered twice. They are numbered the first time to assure them that they shall be preserved from heathen enemies. They are numbered the second time (for measurement of living men is numbering) to assure them of their preservation from the assaults of apostate Christians. The double numbering is a repeated assurance of the fidelity and omnipotence of Christ (Gen. xli. 32). " Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my word shall not pass away" (Matt. xxiv. 35). " The gates of hell [whether heathen, or nominally Christian] shall not prevail against my Church" (xvi. 18). "There is a remnant according to the election of grace" (Rom. xi. 5). THE REJECTION OF THE OUTER COURT. 2. And } T et the court, which is without the temple, cast it without, and do not measure it, because it is given to the Gentiles ; and so the holy city they shall tread forty-two months. The court : is here used for the occupants of the court which was outside of the court of the Israelites, and, thus situated, is, in this ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 167 verse, the court of the Gentiles. This use is metaphor, — the con- tainer for the contained. Cast it without : that is, cast the Gentiles without the court of the Israelites, who, in verse 1, are " the worshippers in the temple." Do not measure it: do not measure, do not number, the Gentiles ; that is, reject the Gentiles from the number of "the worshippers." Although the Gentiles occupy the court bearing their name, aud thus occupy a portion of " the holy city," they are not true worshippers. Is given to the Gentiles : the language of this part of the verse is derived from these prophetic words of our Lord: "Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles" (Luke xxi. 24). But the word " Gentiles " in Rev. xi. 2 cannot be taken in a literal sense. Its sense is here figurative, because the preceding portion of the verse is figurative. Literalness and figure cannot be commingled in the same passage. The exact figurative sense of the word "Gentiles" in this verse 2 is given it by its contrast with "the worshippers" (verse 1). "The worshippers" are true Christians. The "Gentiles" are, conse- quently, false Christians. The holy city : is defined by Rev. xxi. 2 as the " new Jerusalem," which, according to St. Paul, is the Church of Christ (Gal. iv. 26). Tread : not in a literal manner, as the present Jerusalem is trodden by the feet of the Gentile Turks. To tread the holy city, is to occupy it with worship. "When ye appear before me, to tread my courts" (Isa. i. 12). The apostate Church will, with its own worship, occupy the true Church. The modernized liturgy of the Church of Rome has displaced the ancient liturgies of the Western Church, the Galli- can, the Mozarabic, the Sarum. Forty-two months: three years and a half. Three and a-half years is the half of seven years, a full period. Thus forty-two months denotes a limited period. The wild beast, the compound of leopard, bear, and lion, continues the same limited period (Rev. xiii.). This monster represents the Roman Empire Christianized. The apostate Church and the Church of Rome are identical in the length of time they are to continue in this world. The time will come when they will not be. The true Church will yet rejoice at their departure. The Lord in mercy hasten the time he promises! In the scenery of the judicial court, which the Apocalypse estab- lishes, the apostate Church is the culprit to be tried, condemned, punished and forever removed. 168 THE REVELATION OF THE TWO WITNESSES. 3. And I will give to these two witnesses of mine, to prophesy. And so they shall prophesy, one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth. I -will give to prophesy: the insertion of "to prophesy" with "give " is required by usage in the Apocalypse itself. Examples. "I will give" is followed by the infinitive expressed, ii. 7, "to eat;" and iii. 21, "to sit." The infinitive "to drink" is implied after give (in the Greek), xxi. 6. Tbis infinitive is therefore implied after "give" in this verse 3, " I will give to prophesy.'''' These two witnesses of mine: the pronouns (Greek) "these" and "mine" necessarily identify the two witnesses with two objects in the immediately preceding context. The pronoun "these" (the Greek article before "witnesses") proves that two objects which can be called "two witnesses" have, in the near past, been already mentioned. The pronoun "mine" proves that the "two witnesses" were, pre- vious to their being mentioned here, in the possession of the angel and in his service. It is thus a constructural demonstration, that the "two witnesses" exist in the previous context, and are to be sought there and nowhere else. The "two witnesses" cannot possibly be any objects whatever out of the previous context. In the previous context, there are only two associated objects, (a) The worship of God, and (fr) His worshippers. These two objects are, therefore, exclusively the " two witnesses." To state the fact in a more definite form : — The "two witnesses" are, The worship of God, and The wor- shippers of God in the Church of Christ. Worship and worshippers in being called "witnesses" are personi- fied. As worship is for the incense-altar, and worshippers for the court of the Israelites, altar and court are material objects, and capable of personification. The material nature of the incense-altar and of the court of the Israelites deprives the "two witnesses," represented by the altar and the court, of all personality. The u two witnesses" cannot be persons, either scriptural or historical, either ancient, primi- tive, mediaeval, modern, or future. The positions we give "these" and "mine" are fully justified by the English Version in its translation of the Greek article and of the Greek personal pronoun. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 169 (a) This version thus translates the Greek article with the number two, "these two" (Rev. xix. 20). (b) "Friend of mine" is the expression of the English Version, (Luke xi. 6). St. John thus exhibits the Church of Christ in two forms, — its worship and its worshippers. By this exhibition the Church becomes " two witnesses," and by being two witnesses can give legal testimony according to the requirement of the law of Moses. " At the mouth of two witnesses, shall the matter be established" (Deut. xix. 15). In these two forms of worship and worshippers, the testimony of the Christian Church to its divine original and authority is most ample and conclusive. 1. The worship of the Church embraces ministry, sacraments, creeds, ritual (Acts ii. 42). Each of these institutions of Christ is, in its historical life, a reli- able witness that the Church of Christ is from heaven. (a) The Christian ministry includes both a body of officiating men, and the divine message they deliver. (aa) As a body of officiating men, the present ministers of the his- torical Church can trace their origination along an unbroken historical line, back to this first commission from the sole Author of the minis- try: " As my Father sent me, even so I send you" (John xx. 21). (bb) The message the ministers of Christ deliver is his gospel, con- tained in the twenty-seven books of the New Testament. The his- torical evidence that these books are authentic and genuine is vastly stronger than the evidence any other book in existence can bring to prove its own authenticity and genuineness. (b) The Christian sacraments of baptism and the Lord's Supper have existed in all ages, from the present to the time of Christ. Their historical existence makes him their only Author, and as such a divine Person. (c) The Christian creeds, the Apostles' and the Nicene, also have an historical life which identifies them with the historical beginning of the gospel itself. (d) The Christian ritual of the historical Church consists largely of the Lord's Prayer and the Book of Psalms. Christ enjoins the habitual use of his Prayer (Matt. vi. 9). St. Paul commands the responsive use of the Psalms (Eph. v. 19). Both the Lord's Prayer and the Book of Psalms are historical wit- nesses for Christ. Like the ministry, the sacraments, and the creeds, the Lord's Prayer and the Psalms are component parts of all Church history; and as such they recognize Christ as their Author and Insti- tutor, and therefore as divine. 2. Christian worshippers are witnesses for Christ, first as a Church, and then as individuals. 170 THE REVELATION OF (a) As a Church. — The Church of Christ has existed historically for nineteen centuries. It appears as an organized institution from the present day back to the primal day when Christ said "My Church" (Matt. xvi. 18). During all these centuries, the Church has verified these words of his, "I build my Church: " for, had he not continually built his Church from century to century, his Church could not have existed continually; and because he thus ever builds it, he is divine. (6) As individuals. — Every individual Christian who possesses and exhibits Christian graces in his heart and life is himself a witness that Christ is divine. Christian graces are not human in their origin and growth. Christ alone creates and preserves his holy image in our souls. His new creation within us proves and establishes his own deity. "Ye shall be witnesses unto me, both in Jerusalem and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost parts of the earth," (Acts i. 8), are our Lord's last words to his apostles, just before his ascension into heaven. As Christ's appointed witnesses, the apostles include not only the Christian ministry, since next to Christ himself they are its founders; but also the Christian sacraments, creeds, and ritual, because, when the apostles organized the Christian Church, they administered its sacraments, embodied in writing the facts forming the creeds, and also performed the ritual Christ prescribed for the perpetual use of his Church (Acts ii. 41, 42). The testimony the apostles, as Christ's chosen witnesses, give for him, thus including the books of the New Testament, and its creeds and ritual; these books and their embodiments of the Christian faith, and their forms of Christian worship, — become the standards by which the "two witnesses" in the Apocalypse try and test the ministry, the sacraments, the creeds, and the ritual, of all the churches exist- ing from the beginning of the gospel, and thus determine whether or not these churches are actually apostolic, really primitive, and purely Christian. As constituted by St. John, the " two witnesses " are not rhetorical figures, not dramatic illustrations, not inexplicable puzzles, not con- cealed personages, to be forever wrapped in impenetrable mystery; but the " two witnesses" of the Apocalypse are the infallible criteria fixed by Christ himself for the incessantly needed process of detecting all that is false, and of establishing and vindicating all that is true, in the multiform Christianity of the historical periods and of the present day. One thousand two hundred and sixty days: this number identifies the "two witnesses" with "the woman in the wilderness," the bride of Christ, His true Church, where she is fed for exactly the ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 171 same period of days (Rev. xii. 6), " a thousand two hundred and three- score days." Because limited by the identical duration of time, "forty-two months," the apostate Church (xi. 2) and the beast from the sea (xiii. 5) are identical. Since the same duration of time thus identifies the apostate Church and the marine beast, the same dura- tion of time identifies the true Church and the two witnesses. One thousand two hundred and sixty days equals forty-two months ; with this important difference, the period of these 7nonths is shorter than this period of days by twenty-eight days. With the Jews, a term of time partly completed is counted as though fully completed. Our Lord thus predicts of himself, " The Son of man shall be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights" (Matt. xii. 40). He was actually in the tomb of Joseph only parts of three days. Forty-two months may be merely forty-one months and one day. One thousand two hundred and sixty days cannot be less than forty-one months, twenty-nine days, and one hour. The difference between the two periods is twenty-eight days, or four weeks; a period in prophetical time extending through several years. The true Church of Christ will, therefore, in this world outlive the apostate Church. Shall prophesy: only twice does this verb occur in the Apoca- lypse. In x. 11, the verb means to testify against: this, consequently, is its meaning in xi. 3. Clothed in sackcloth: the dress of "the two witnesses" dis- closes their office. Their message is warning. Thus clothed, Elijah, Isaiah, John the Baptist, were warning messengers (2 Kings i. 8; Isa. xx. 2; Matt. iii. 1-4). 4 These are the two olive-trees, and the two candlesticks, standing before the Lord of the earth. This description of the two witnesses is obviously derived from the vision of the prophet Zechariah : "Behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof" (Zech. iv. 2). " And two olive-trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof" (Zech. iv. 3). According to the explanation an angel gives Zechariah of the use of these two olive-trees, they yield an incessant supply of oil for the golden candlestick. In this minute representation, the two olive-trees and the candle- stick are in official structure one object, contributing to one effect, the production of light. 172 THE REVELATION OF In St. John's representation (Kev. xi. 4), evidently borrowed from that of Zechariah, each olive-tree is also a candlestick, producing light. Both Zechariah and St. John symbolize this great truth, each olive- tree produces light by the appointment of God. By his appointment, the olive-tree is a light-bearer. This truth St. John applies to "the two witnesses." Each witness is, by Christ's appointment, a light-bearer. Since the two produce but one effect, the two witnesses are virtually one light-bearer. Light-bearing is the especial office of the true Church of Christ, both in its Head and in all its members. 1. Christ the Head of the Church is " the light of the world" (John viii. 12). 2. The ministers of his Church " are the light of the world " (Matt, v. 14). 3. All the members of his Church are light-bearers. " Ye shine as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life" (Phil. ii. 15, 16). As a light-bearer, the Church enlightens and dispels all moral and spiritual darkness. "The light shineth in darkness" (John i. 5). " Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove [testify against] them" (Eph. v. 11). Standing: ready to serve the Lord (Heb. x. 11). Before the Lord of the earth: since the two witnesses are his servants, sin against them is sin against him (Luke x. 16). The next verse (Rev. xi. 5) illustrates this startling truth. 5. And so, if any one desires to hurt them, fire comes forth from each of their mouths, and devours their enemies. And so, if any one desires to hurt them, in this way is it necessary for them to die. Desires: the Greek verb has this sense (John v. 6, ix. 27). Even the desire to hurt the two witnesses offends God (Exod. xx. 17). Fire: is the consuming message the two witnesses utter (2 Kings i. 10, 12; Jer. v. 14, 23, 29). Devours : God punishes the inflicters of hurts upon his two wit- nesses (Luke x. 16). " They shall be devoured as stubble fully dry" (Nah. i. 10). Enemies: of God (Jas. iv. 4), of the cross (Phil. iii. 18). Children of the Devil (John viii. 44; 1 John iii. 8, 10). In this -way: by fire. Necessary: by the will of God. "With the froward, thou wilt show thyself froward " (Ps. xviii. 26). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 173 6. These have authority to shut the heaven, that the rain wet not the earth, in the da}'s of their prophecy, and the}- have authority over the waters to turn them into blood, even to smite the earth with every kind of plague, as often as the}' will. Authority : the power God gives the two witnesses. 1. Shut heaven: God grants his two witnesses the same power he gave the prophet Elijah (1 Kings xvii. 1; Jas. v. 17). This prophet punished, by God's appointment, the Israelites with famine. With some form of curse, God still punishes the despisers of his Church and gospel. Days of their prophecy: in the same sense as "prophesy" (verse 3) ; in the time of their utterance of reproofs and warnings. 2. Turn waters into blood : turn blessings into curses (Exod. iv. 9, vii. 17-20; 2 Cor. ii. 16). 3. Smite the earth: mankind (Gen. vii. 11). Every kind of plague : Deut. xxviii. 15, etc. As they will: the two witnesses are God's representatives and agents. Under his guidance, their will is his will. He adapts his punishments to the nature of the sin. 7. And when the} 7 shall make effectual their testimony, the wild beast ascending from the bottomless pit shall make war with them, and shall overcome them and kill them. Shall make effectual: for justification of this translation, see x. 7. The deadly wound this wild beast receives (xiii. 3, 14) is the effect of the testimony of the two witnesses. The wild beast: bis appearance is here prophetically announced. He does not actually appear till xiii. 1. Strictly, the wild beast, be- cause (Acts xi. 6) distinguished from a "four-footed beast," a tame, domesticated beast. The word is here in the Apocalypse for the first time. Not to be confounded with "another beast," the lamb-dragon (xiii. 11). The article, the wild beast (Rev. xi. 7), does not refer this beast to "fourth beast" (Dan. vii. 19). In Rev. xi. 7, the article " the " is required by the participial adjunct "ascending from the abyss." This participial adjunct is in effect an attributive adjective, to which the article belongs, and forms this phrase: The ascending (from the abyss) wild beast. Instances of this usage are "The coming king" (Luke xix. 38); "The walking men" (Mark viii. 24). 174 THE REVELATION OF The article (Rev. xi. 7) is restrictive. The particular wild beast is distinguished from other wild beasts, by the words connected with it, " ascending, from the abyss." Here the limiting expression, " ascend- ing — from the abyss" (attributive) unites with the one limited sub- ject (wild beast), and forms one complex idea; namely, the ascending (from the abyss) beast. In this view, the article (Rev. xi. 7) has its generic use, which in- cludes the instances where a single object (the wild beast) forms a class by itself. There is no other such wild beast as this (Rev. xi. 7). Who is the ascending (from the abyss) wild beast? Wild beast is the Bible-symbol of a kingdom. " These great beasts, which are four, are four kings" (Dan. vii. 17). "The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom" (v. 23). & kingdom, then, is intended by the wild beast (Rev. xi. 7), the Pagan kingdom (empire) of Rome. See xiii. i. To make war: this phrase in the New Testament only, Rev. xi. 7, xiii. 7, xix. 19); often in the Septuagint. The phrase is stronger than the simple word to war, which merely indicates the fact of war; while to make war implies deliberation, purpose, preparation, con- flict. With : is always the sense of the Greek proposition with " to war " and " to make war," when opposition as here is expressed. The oppo- sition is from the preaching of the two witnesses. The wild beast from the bottomless pit appears prophetically in Rev. xi. 7. He ap- pears actually in xiii. 1, but is there the creation and agent of the dragon. Because he and the dragon are agent and principal, the war- fare of both and the enemies of each are precisely the same. In con- sequence of this identity, "the two witnesses" (xi. 7) and "the remnant of the woman's seed " (xii. 17) are the very same objects. These identities of warfare and enemies determine that the peri- ods of the time when "the two witnesses" are overcome and killed, and "the remnant of the woman's seed" is warred with by the dragon, are also identical. The two witnesses, as the representatives of the worship of the Church of Christ and of its worshippers, begin their symbolical life with the very beginning of the gospel itself. The remnant of the woman's seed also has a beginning equally early. These identities of warfare and enemies likewise determine the period of time when the wild beast from the sea and from the bottom- less pit receives his deadly wound and his partial healing. The time is identical with the time of the two witnesses and of the remnant of the woman's seed. The exegetical facts now before us respecting the wounding and ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 175 healing of the first wild beast the dragon creates and employs, do not authorize the explanation that the sword-stroke of the first wild beast, and the cicatrization of the gash, have their realization in the decline of the Pagan Roman empire, and in its revival in papal Rome. The numerical difficulties inhering in this venerable explanation, it is neither the ability nor the duty of the Greek exegesis of the Apoc- alypse to explain: the attempt is entirely outside of her legitimate province. War: the verbs "make war," " conquer," "kill," are in the New Testament used both in a material and in a spiritual sense. 11 Make war" has a material sense, Luke xiv. 31; the sense is spir- itual, Rev. xix. 19. "Conquer" is material, Luke xi. 22; is spiritual, Rev. xii. 11, xv. 2. " Kill" inflicts bodily death, Rev. ii. 13; spiritual, Rev. ii. 23, 16. The twofold meanings of these verbs create this fact. The war- fare, the defeats, and the deaths, which "the two witnesses," the rep- , resentatives of the true Church, suffer from the wild beast, — the representative of the false Church, —are also both material and spir- itual. The injuries inflicted by the wild beast (Rev. xi. 7) are pro- phetic. There are historical fulfilments of these prophecies which irrefutably ascribe these twofold injuries exclusively to the Church of Rome. (See xiii. 15). THE LIFE AND DEATH OF THE TWO WITNESSES. Success is figurative life; failure is figurative death. Figurative life and figurative death may be contemporaneous. The Figurative Life of the Two Witnesses. 1. As heralds of Christ's revealed truth, and as his reprovers of all human sin, the "two witnesses" are ever living in a ministerial succession, where, while individuals die, the succession itself con- tinues with a deathless life. 2. The "two witnesses" are also ever living, as the conservators and expositors of the books of the Old and New Testaments. The duties and prohibitions contained in these divine records, the "two witnesses," as ministers of the gospel, are ever applying to the lives and consciences of their hearers. 3. The "two witnesses," as gospel ministers, also live incessantly in the Christian creeds, sacraments, ritual, and canons. Living this diversified life, they are not only teachers and advisers, but often- times judges and administrators. The rubrics of the Prayer-book, and the canons of the Church, embody injunctions and denials, of which ministers are, by their sacred office, the sole exponents and administrators. 176 THE REVELATION OF When their instructions, acts of discipline, and their own Christian example are effectual and edifying, they have their figurative and official life. The Figurative Death of the Two Witnesses. The death of the two witnesses is as varied as are the ingenuity and perverseness of human nature. A few specifications may be instructive and admonitory. When their apostolic ministry is rejected; the books of the Old and New Testaments are denied a divine original, pronounced forge- ries, superseded by Church traditions, displaced by human dogmas, exchanged for false philosophies ; the Christian creeds are neglected ; the Christian sacraments are discarded ; the Christian ritual is aban- doned; the Christian catechism enjoining temperance and chastity ''for every male child" as well as "for every female," and the Christian canons defining consanguinity and restraining divorce, are disobeyed, — then the two witnesses themselves die, because their crushed hopes and their disappointed desires die, because ruined souls die to all hope of holiness and bliss, and because Christ himself dies by a new crucifixion in the failure of his own" means of grace " and salvation. 8. And so each of their dead bodies lies on the broad wa} T of the great cit}-, which is called, spiritually, Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord is crucified. The imagery of this verse assumes, — (a) The actual death of the two witnesses, and of the persons they represent. "I will bring a sword upon you. I will cast down your slain before your idols. I will lay the dead carcasses of the children of Israel before their idols " (Ezek. vi. 3-5). (b) The contempt with which the two dead witnesses are treated. " They shall not be lamented, neither shall they be buried ; they shall be as dung upon the face of the earth" (Jer. xvi. 4). These prophetic symbols, describing the actual death and profound contempt of the two witnesses, were strictly fulfilled in the murders and burnings inflicted in the middle and more recent ages by the Church of Rome. The broad way : in ancient Rome, on the east bank of the Tiber, was a street of this name, Via Lata, extending from the Capitol to the north-west angle of the city. The carcasses of the two witnesses are laid on the principal street, that they may be seen and mocked by the passing crowds. " All that, pass by clap their hands at thee, they hiss and wag their head. They ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. Ill open their mouth at thee; they hiss and, gnash their teeth" (Lam. ii. 15, 16). The great city : Jerusalem material is never so called in the Bible. The term is only, elsewhere, Rev. xvi. 19, xvii. 5, 18, xviii. 2, 10, 16, 18, 19, 21, where Babylon, the " harlot woman," the apostate Church, is meant; and xxi. 10, where "the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God," the Church in post-resurrection glory, is intended. Spiritually : only here, and 1 Cor. ii. 14, where the word is defined by the phrase, " by the Spirit." " Is called spiritually," means, there- fore, is called, is named, by the Holy Spirit, who shows St. John the visions in the Apocalypse, and explains to him their meaning. Sodom and Egypt: Sodom. Were Jerusalem intended, the phrase would be "Sodom and Gomorrah" (Isa. i. 10). As this is not here the phrase, by Sodom the harlot Babylon is meant (xvii. i. 5). Sodom literal was characterized by fornication. Here (xi. 8) the fornication is spiritual; that is, unfaithfulness to Christ, the husband of his Church (Eph. v. 23). " Babylon, the great city, made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication" (Rev. xiv. 8). Egypt: is characterized by plenty (Acts vii. 12), by wealth (Heb. xi. 26). The possession of riches creates spiritual pride (Rev. iii. 17). This is one of the sins of the harlot Babylon: "She glorified herself. She saith in her heart, I sit a queen " (Rev. xviii. 7). The name Sodom, a burning, prefigures the nature of her destruc- tion: " She shall be utterly burned with fire. The kings of the earth shall see the smoke of her burning " (xviii. 8, 9). Where also our Lord is crucified: the word "crucified" also shows that the crucifixion is a sin in addition to the sins of spiritual fornication and spiritual pride. The fact that the crucifixion is an addition to spiritual sins intro- duces and establishes three other facts : — (a) The crucifixion is spiritual, as in Heb. vi. 6. (b) The crucifixion is committed at the present time, since the cruci- fixion (Heb. vi. 6) is described by a present participle. (c) Is crucified, is the Greek aorist of habitude, the equivalent of our present tense : is crucified continually. The nature of this crucifixion is described Heb. x. 29, where, as here, the Greek aorists have the force of present tenses. For the fact that our Lord is crucified by Babylon, see Rev. xvii. 6; Matt. xxv. 40. He is crucified in the death of his martyrs. Their Lord : this appellation only here in the Apocalypse. The Lord of the two witnesses; the "Lord Jesus" (xxii. 20), who made them witnesses, and commissioned them to testify in his name. The crucifixion of their Lord is a greater outrage than the murder of his witnesses. 178 THE REVELATION OF The Church of Rome now crucifies the Lord Jesus by every dogma of hers which detracts from his offices of Redeemer, Mediator, and Intercessor. 9. And certain men of the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations joyfully behold their dead bodies three days and a half, and will not suffer their dead bodies to be laid in a sepulchre. Certain men of the peoples: a mob, composed of all nations and classes of people. Joyfully behold : contemplate with exultiDg delight the spectacle of the exposed carcasses. Three days and a half: the time the two witnesses remained dead (verse 11). The half of a week, a short period. The exultation and mockery of the motley crowd will be very brief. The dead wit- nesses will soon live again. The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church. "Will not suffer: the mob would leave the lifeless and derided witnesses to be devoured by prowling birds and the wild dogs of the city. Dead bodies : the words are repeated, to mark the inhumanity of forbidding interment. Laid: a burial-word (Matt, xxvii. 60). Sepulchre: of stone (Luke xxiii. 53). The Jews did not bury "in graves" (English Version). St. Paul does not teach immersion in Rom. vi. 4: " We are buried with Christ by baptism." Christ was not buried in a grave, but "laid in a tomb hewn out in the rock." (Matt, xxvii. 60). 10. Also, all the inhabitants of the earth rejoice over them, and make themselves merry. They will also send gifts to each other, because these two prophets torment all the in- habitants of the earth. Also : the joy of the city-mob spreads widely, and seizes all the inhabitants of the earth. Torment : cause the wicked world to be tormented by the inflic- tions of God's punitive judgments, mentioned inverses 5 and 6 of this chapter. "Whereas, men have lived dissolutely and unrighteously, thou hast tormented them with their own abominations" (Wis. Sol. xii. 23). The torments of the inhabitants of the earth are retributive. They ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 179 are illustrated by this prayer against Antioclrus Epiphanes: " Think not that our nation is forsaken of God ; abide a while, and behold his great power, how he will torment thee" (2 Mace. vii. 16, 17); and by this answer to the prayer, "The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, smote the king with sore torments ; and most justly: for he had tor- mented other men" (ix. 5, 6). Rejoice: " the carnal mind is enmity against God" (Rom. viii. 7). All nations hate Christ's messengers (Matt. xxiv. 9). "Men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil. Every one that doeth evil hateth the light " (John iii. 19, 20). For these reasons, when Christ's messengers — represented by the two witnesses — are killed, "all nations" rejoice. Send gifts: marks of excessive joy. Feasting is implied. "The Jews made days of feasting and joy, and sent portions one to another" (Esth. ix. 22). Prophets: in the same sense as prophesy (verse 3), teachers and reprovers. Historical Illustration. In 1572, the massacre of St. Bartholomew's Day was the subject of boasting throughout Roman Christendom. At Rome, pope, cardinals, and bishops went mad with joy over the intelligence. The messenger who brought the news from Paris was rewarded with a gift of a thou- sand crowns. The cannon of St. Angelo thundered a grateful salute; the bells rang from every steeple; bonfires turned night into day. The Pope, Gregory XIII. , attended by cardinals and lesser dignitaries, went in procession to the Church of St. Louis, and joined in a Te Deum of ecstatic praise. As they entered, they read, over the portals of the church, the words, Angelo Persussore Divinitus Immisso; that is, the avenging angel is divinely sent, — a blasphemous application of Isa. xxxvii. 36, " The angel of the Lord smote, in the camp of the Assyrians, one hundred and eighty-five thousand; and in the morning they were all dead corpses," to King Charles IX. of France, by whom the great slaughter of St. Bartholomew's Day was effected ("Edinburgh Review," vol. xliv., 1826; "Massacre of St. Bartholo- mew," by Henry White. London : Murray, 1868). Our Lord assures us that he shows his Church the prophetic visions of the Apocalypse, to reveal her future history (Rev. i. 1, 19, iv. 1). Civil history records the fulfilment of Apocalyptic prophecy. The voice of history, when once uttered, can never be silenced. Prophet- ical and historical coincidences are not accidents. They are the crea- tions of God's superintending Providence. The world, in its progress, is not controlled by chance. The light God's providences disclose, we may safely follow. Historical light is the beacon-fire God kindles and keeps burning on the hilltops of the passing centuries. Because God 180 THE REVELATION OF creates and maintains these inextinguishable fires, they are not phan- toms. The lights of history are God's illuminations for our sure guidance. 11. And after three days and a half, the Spirit of life from God comes into them, and rests upon them, and they stand upon their feet ; and great terror falls upon the wondering spectators. Nothing divine can die. The Spirit of life : this phrase in the New Testament, only Rom. viii. 2. The Holy Spirit giving life, "quickeneth" (John vi. 63, where "the Spirit" is the Holy Spirit, as the Nicene Creed rightly judges). Whenever our Lord calls a person of the Trinity " the Spirit," he in every instance means the Holy Spirit, the Third Person. Comes into them: this expression is evidently taken from the prophet Ezekiel's description of the resurrection of the " dry bones ; " "the breath [spirit] came into them" (xxxvii. 10). Rests upon them: this addition to the English Version is re- quired by the Greek. The Holy Spirit both enters the two witnesses, and rests upon them continually. Stand upon their feet : language taken from Ezekiel's vision of the "dry bones" (xxxvii. 10). Standing on the feet is restoration to full life, and to perfect health and strength (Acts xiv. 10, xxvi. 16). Fear : panic-fear, terror, outward show of fear. Divine manifesta- tions awaken fear (Matt. xvii. 6, xxvii. 54). 12. And the two witnesses hear a loud voice from heaven, saying, Come up hither. And they go up to heaven in the cloud. And yet their enemies merely behold them with wonder. Come up hither: exaltation to heaven describes symbolically the highest prosperity. "Thou, Capernaum, art exalted unto heaven" (Matt. xi. 23). " Sit together in heavenly places " (Eph. ii. 6). " The man thought he could reach the stars of heaven " (2 Mace. ix. 10). Ccesar in ccelumfertur (Cicero, Phil. iv. 3, 6). The cloud: a cloud may be implied with the voice from heaven, in the first clause of this verse, "a voice out of the cloud" (Matt, xvii. 5). THE RESURRECTION OF THE TWO WITNESSES. "There is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again" (Job xiv. 7). "The tree of life in the garden of Eden" ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 181 never dies. "Because I live, ye shall live also" (John xiv. 19). Christ imparts his own immortality to his Church, and thus secures its endless perpetuity and universal prevalence. Because Christ lives in his Church, its battlefields, although for a season covered with bleaching skeletons, are soon thronged with revived armies, ready and strong to renew the conquering fight. Thus animated and sustained, the Church cannot die. Its seeming death is another life. It is victor over all assaults. Spear-thrusts cannot kill its vitality. Exploding cannon cannot hit its impalpable deathlessness. Fires cannot stop its revivification. Its scattered ashes are the live germs of new forests, in themselves self-perpetu- ating, and the sprouting pledges of larger harvests, possessing the deathless principle of indefinite reproduction. Historical Illustrations. 1. The Romish Inquisition did not, in the thirteenth century, exterminate the Albigenses. A remnant fled to Bosnia, near the Adriatic Sea. Their descendants are a part of its present Christian population. 2. The Waldenses were not converted to Romanism by the sword, in the sixteenth century. Large numbers remained faithful to their primitive faith. The present government of Italy grants them reli- gious freedom. 3. The horrors of St. Bartholomew's Day did not destroy Protest- antism in France. At the present time there are one hundred and fifty consistories of the reformers. The Central Council of the Re- formed Churches holds its sittings in Paris, the very city where the butcheries of St. Bartholomew's Day began their devastations. 4. Bishops Latimer and Ridley were, by order of Queen Mary, burned at the stake in the city of Oxford, A.D. 1555. As they were burning, Latimer said to Ridley, "We are kindling to-day a flame in England which will never go out." In the largest measure has the prediction been realized. Only three years after its utterance, the Protestant Queen Elizabeth succeeded the Romish Mary. With the reign of Elizabeth, the great glory of England, both in Church and State, began its unexampled career. Then the number of the bishops of the Church of England was not twenty: now the bishops of this Protestant Church, in all its branches, are more than two hundred, and are found on every con- tinent of the habitable earth. Not till the year 1784, was there a bishop of the Protestant Episco- pal Church in the present United States of America. The principal cause of this exclusion was State legislation against this Church, which was thus virtually dead. In 1885 this Church has seventy bishops. 182 THE REVELATION OF And yet : the enemies of the two witnesses do nothing more than behold them with wonder. They are satisfied to fear, to behold, and to wonder. Although not simply "one" witness, but "two wit- nesses," rise from the dead, the affrighted and wondering beholders do "not repent" (Luke xvi. 30, 31). " Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish" (Acts xiii. 41). 13. Also in that hour there is a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city falls, and in the earthquake seven thousand persons are killed ; and so the rest are affrighted, and give glory to the God of heaven. Earthquake: a symbol of God's indignation (vi. 12, viii. 5, xi. 19, xvi. 18). "The earth shook and trembled, because he was wroth" (Ps. xviii. 7). The indignities offered the persons of the " two witnesses" greatly aggravate the condemning and inexpiable accusations symbolized by "the little book" in the angel's hand (Rev. x. 2, 8-10). Like the persons of all official servants, the persons of the two witnesses are sacred in the eyes of the law. Indignities to witnesses are indignities to the judge, to the court, to the officers, to the gov- ernment itself. History illustrates this fact. When the messengers of King David to Hanun, King of Ammon, were by him "villanously entreated" (caption of Bible chapter), David avenged the insult to his kingdom by a desolating war upon the Ammonites (2 Sam. x. 1-7, 14). When, in our Lord's parable of the husbandmen, they killed not only the servants of the owner of the vineyard, but also his son, his treatment of the murderers is justified by the law of nations: he "miserably destroyed those wicked men" (Matt. xxi. 41). The conduct of King David and of the owner of the vineyard shows how lawless and past forgiveness are the multiplied insults heaped upon " the two witnesses." God's punishments surely and swiftly follow. As in the vision of the prophet Ezekiel, the symbolic exhibition of the different forms of idol-worship by the Jews (viii. 5, 10, 12, 14, 16) warrants and ushers in this awful decision of God, " Mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity" (viii. 18); so the symbolic treatment of "the two witnesses" by the jeering rabble demands and hastens this infliction upon the murderers and abusers of his special servants and representatives. Also in that hour there is a great earthquake (xi. 13). The city: mentioned in verse 8, called Sodom and Egypt, "the harlot Babylon." ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 183 Names: metonymy for persons (iii. 4). Seven: a full number. Here, definite for indefinite (Lev. xxvi. 18; Ps. xii. 6; Prov. xxvi. 16). The "slain" are in great numbers, are innumerable. The harlot city killed the two witnesses: now her own citizens are killed in countless numbers. God avenges the blood of his servants (Dent, xxxii. 43.) Historical Illustration. In 1572 the Church of Rome massacred in France at least thirty thousand Protestants. At this very time there were, in Japan, two hundred thousand converts to Romanism. In 1587, on\y fifteen years after the massacre of St. Bartholomew's Day, the Emperor of Japan began to persecute his subjects who adhered to the Church of Rome. All historians pronounce this the direst persecution the world has ever seen. The persecution ceased only with the extermination of Christianity. The Japanese government required universal return to paganism, on pain of death. The decree was rigorously enforced. All the Japanese Christians either renounced their religion, or were put to death. Are we mistaken when we see in this unparalleled persecution the retributive hand of God, fulfilling his own prediction? "There is a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city falls, and in the earthquake are killed seven thousand" (xi. 13). The rest are affrighted, and give glory to the God of heaven. The rest: of the inhabitants of the city, the citizens who are not killed. Give glory: become God's true worshippers. His judgments prove instruments of mercy and salvation. Has the Church of Rome renounced in conviction and purpose her persecuting policy ? Is she, through God's transforming grace, return- ing to primitive and original Christianity? The last clause of this verse 13 contains the promise, " All things are possible with God." 14. The second woe is past. Behold, the third woe com- eth quickly. In viii. 13, three woes are predicted. Three is a, full number. The three woes are all the woes with which God will afflict this world. 1. The first woe is the plague of locusts (ix. 1-11). "One woe is past" (verse 12), — the infliction of the fifth trumpet. 2. The second woe is the infliction of the sixth trumpet (ix. 13- xi. 13). " The second woe is past" (xi. 14). 184 THE REVELATION OF 3. The third woe is the infliction of the seventh trumpet (xi. 15- xiv. 20), and includes the seven censers (xv. 1-xvi. 20). Chapters xvii.-xx. 6 are amplifications of the seventh censer (xvi. 17-21). Swiftly: denotes certainty (2 Pet. ii. 1; 1 Thess. v. 3). THE SEVENTH TRUMPET (Verses 15-19). The preceding trumpets repeat themselves. Trumpets four, five, and six are repetitions of trumpets one, two, and three. The seventh trumpet is the outgrowth of the pre- ceding six, and the herald of the six censers. The seventh trumpet introduces the third and last woe. The seventh trumpet is thus a war trumpet (Num. x. 9), and a trumpet of judgment and warning (Joel ii. 1). The seventh trumpet is here also a trumpet of victory (Num. x. 10). • The seventh trumpet is followed by "great voices in heaven," announcing prophetically the victory of the kingdom of Christ over all its enemies. Trumpets of triumph were blown at the dedication of Solo- mon's temple (2 Chron. v. 12, 13) ; also when the founda- tion of the second temple was laid (Ezra iii. 10). We have already seen, in the Apocalypse, judgments pre- ceded by symbols and proclamations of victory. 1. The white horse of victory precedes the red, black, and pale horses of war, famine, and pestilence (vi. 2-8). 2. The sealing of the one hundred and foily-four thousand precedes the judgments announced b} r the six trumpets upon the heathen w r orld (vii.-ix. 21). 3. The measurement of the temple of God, the repetition of the sealing, precedes the judgments denounced against the apostate Church for its- treatment of "the two witnesses," the representatives of the true Church (xi. 1-13). By these several symbols of triumph, Christ designs to strengthen the faith and animate the courage of his Church in its incessant and varied conflicts with sin, the world and the Devil. In worldly battles, victory is never certain. Before every battle truly Christian, Christ, by all the sym- bols of victoiy he shows us, proclaims our duty and heralds ST. JO IIX THE DIVINE. 185 our success. "Fight you must; suffer you must; but tri- umph is the fixed result by my promise and help." Encouragement, accordingly, is the loud note of the great voices from heaven we now hear. 15. Also the seventh angel sounds. And there are great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdom over the world is become our Lord's ; also his Christ's, and he shall reign for- ever and ever. Voices: that is, speakers, — part for the whole. Thus "ears" (Ps. xl. 6), "eyes" (Luke x. 23), "feet" (Rom. x. 15), for persons. The kingdom: predicted (Dan. vii. 14, 27). The world: the inhabited world. Our Lord: God the Father (xix. 1). His Christ: the kingdom has also become his Messiah's (Ps. ii. 2). He shall reign: namely, our Lord, God the Father (xix. 6). 16. And the twenty-four elders, who before God are sit- ting upon their thrones, fall upon their faces and worship God. The twenty-four elders who appear in iv. 4, 10, v. 8, 14, vii. 11, appear again. They are the representatives of the Church of God in both its forms, — the Jewish and the Christian. Fall and -worship: two different acts. Worship: in the Apocalypse, the object worshipped is either really divine, or regarded as deserving honor as though divine. The elders now thank and praise God for his unlimited victory. 17. Saying, We thank thee, Lord God Almighty, who art, and who wast, because thou hast taken thy great power, and art reigning. This verse contains the eucharistic language of the elders. Art reigning: the reign of God resulting from his victories. 18. And so the Gentiles are angry, and th} T wrath is come, and the time promised the dead to be avenged, even to give the recompense due thy servants, the prophets and the saints, and the worshippers of thy name, small and great, and to destroy the destroyers of the earth. 18G THE REVELATION OF Verse 17 is a thanksgiving. Verse 18 is a series of petitions for (a) judgment, (b) recompense, (c) destruction. Verse 19 contains the symbolical answers to these petitions. In vi. 10, the martyrs pray for themselves. In xi. 18, the Church of Christ, by. its representatives, the twenty-four elders, prays for ven- geance upon the heathen foes of the same martyred saints. In xi. IS, the twenty-four elders pray that the false Christians who kill the martyrs may be punished. Thus prayers for vengeance introduce two series of punishments, — the series symbolized by the trumpets, and the series symbolized by the censers. And so: in consequence of the contents of verses 15, 16, and 17. The Gentiles are angry, and thy wrath is come : these facts excite and create the petitions. The Gentiles : in the same sense as in verse 2 of this chapter xi. ; namely, false Christians. The phrase has the same sense in xvi. 19, xix. 15. Angry: the word is in the Apocalypse only here and xii. 17, where the dragon is angry with the woman, who represents the Church of Christ. Thus, in each instance, the anger has for its object the true Church. Thy -wrath : the execution of thy wrath. The same sense in vi. 17. THE THEEE PETITIONS. 1. For judgment. The time promised the dead martyrs in vi. 9, 10, and 11 ; the vision of the fifth scroll. There God promises the martyred dead a time of vengeance. The twenty-four elders, in their first petition (xi. 18), plead the promise in vi. 9-11, where " judged " (English Version, xi. 18) means avenged. The verb has the sense of vengeance in xviii. 20. In vi. 10, " judge " is defined by " avenge." The vengeance implored in the first petition consists of two divine manifestations, — recompense and destruction. 2. For recompense. Recompense implied in vi. 11; recompense expressed, xviii. 12. The recompense follows the temporary rest of these martyrs. This twofold nature of the vengeance gives the Greek conjunction before "to give recompense," etc., the meaning of even, and also renders "thy servants . . . small and great," explicative of the dead in the first petition. Thus the second petition entreats recompense for the dead martyrs under the name of "servants," which is their name in vi. 11; "fel- \ow-servants, ,, a name here in xi. 18, expanded into prophets, saints, and fearers of God's name. ST. JO TIN THE DIVINE. 18' In xix. 5 is this classification : his servants and his fearers. This classification proves that prophets and saints (xi. 18) are specifications of servants, requiring the explicative "even." Prophets: the dead martyrs were themselves prophets. They were slain on account of the word of God they proclaimed [prophe- sied], and on account of the testimony, which they would not change (vi. 9). Saints: the dead martyrs are often elsewhere called saints (v. 8, viii. 3, 4). Worshippers of thy name : in Acts xiii. 26, the worshippers of God are distinguished from the "children of the stock of Abraham." The " worshippers of thy name " in xi. 18 are, therefore, Gentile wor- shippers of God. Fearers of God are his worshippers. " Cornelius, a devout man that feared God, and prayed to God always" (Acts x. 2). "Fear God, and worship him" (Rev. xiv. 7). Small and great: this class includes both " thy servants and thy worshippers." This inclusion is proved by " all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great" (xix. 5). Small and great: small here means young; great means old,— young and old, children and adults. Among children who were martyrs for God, we must include the children of the Albigenses, Waldenses, and Huguenots. Among adult martyrs must be forever ranked the Christian men and women put to death by the Romish Inquisition, whatever may have been their nationality. Their innocent blood utters an incessant cry for ven- geance. :>. The destroyers of the earth. Their methods of destruction, as described by the Bible, are, — 1. Following other gods (Judg. ii. 19). Example in the Church of Rome: Mariolatry. 2. Forsaking God (Jer. xv. 6). Instances in the Church of Rome : Its doctrines, which are addi- tions to the primitive creeds. 3. Sinful lives (Ezek. xx. 44). "It is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret" (Eph. v. 12). The earth: by synecdoche, for the inhabitants of the earth, sin- ful mankind (Gen. xi. 1; Rev. vi. 8, xi. 6, xiii. 3, xix. 2). 19. And so the sanctuary of God which is in heaven is opened, and the ark of his covenant shows itself, and there are lightnings and voices, and thunders, and an earthquake, and great hail. 188 THE REVELATION OF The Three Answers to the three petitions (verse 18) now follow. First Answer. 1. The sanctuary of God in heaven is opened. This is the first time this sanctuary is opened in the Apocalypse. Over the mercy- seat were the cherubim, symbolizing the messengers of God's judg- ments. The sanctuary is now opened for the egress of his avenging angels (xiv. 15, 17, xv. 5, 6). The first petition was for the infliction of judgments (v. 18). The opening of tbe sanctuary is, then, the symbolic answer to this first petition. Second Answer. 2. The manifestation of the ark of the covenant. This ark was in the sanctuary, the most holy place (Exod. xxvi. 34). Covenant is the appellation of the ark, because it contained — (a) The two tables of the Ten Commandments, which are called the two tables of the covenant (Dent. ix. 15). (6) The mercy-seat, the cover of the ark (Exod. xxv. 21). Covenant and mercy being thus associated, the ark of the covenant is also the ark of mercy. On the mercy-seat, sacrifices were offered which pro- cured mercy (Lev. xvi. 15). (c) In the gospel, the covenant of which Christ is the Author (Matt. xxvi. 28) contains promises (Gal. iii. 17; Heb. ix. 15). Thus the New Testament gives to "the covenant" (Rev. xi. 19) this mean- ing, the covenant of promise. The manifestation of the ark of the covenant of promise is, then, a most impressive symbol of the fidelity of God in fulfilling his promises; and also a symbolic answer to the second petition, the peti- tion for recompense. Third Answer. 3. A storm of great hailstones, accompanied with flashing light- nings, loud voices uttering woes, crashing thunders, and a convulsing earthquake, form the symbolic answer to the third petition (verse 18), the petition for destruction (viii. 7, xvi. 21; Ps. xviii. 7, 12, 13). These symbolic answers are also symbolic prophecies. Their ful- filments are the contents of the chapters which now immediately follow chapter xi. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 189 CHAPTER XII. The twelfth chapter introduces b} r most graphic symbols the history of the Church of Christ in this world. THE WOMAN CLOTHED WITH THE SUX (Verses 1, 2). 1 . Also a wonderful sign appears in heaven ; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon is under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars. Sign: presage foreshadowing future events (Matt. xvi. 3, xxiv. 3). A vision exhibits a temporal period of a peculiar character. The period is exhibited as a whole. Its beginning may have already tran- spired, when the vision is first disclosed. Historically, a vision may be retrospective, as well as prospective. Thus, in the vision of "the man-child" (Rev. xii. 5), events are exhibited, antecedent as well as subsequent to his birth. This twofold perspective characterizes other visions in the Apoca- lypse. In the visions exhibiting the powers resisting the true Church, the narrative shows the beginning of the destructive process, as well as its progress and its completion (Rev. xii. 7-17). These explanations anticipate and remove difficulties otherwise formidable. Great: connected (xv. 1) with "marvellous," wonderful; great therefore because exciting wonder, a wonderful sign. In heaven: the visible heaven. "Woman: symbol of the Church (Isa. liv. 6; Ps. xlv. 9). The model of the woman here pictured is Eve, the first woman, in her original holiness, innocence, and faithful allegiance to God. In Rev. x. 1, a mighty angel has already appeared as the symbol of the hus- band of this representative woman. Now the symbolic wife herself 190 THE REVELATION OF appears. No aspects of the symbol are necessarily derived from Mary, the wife of Joseph (Matt. i. IS). The Old and New Testaments fur- nish the essential outlines. The church her 3 represented is the perfect Church (Eph. v. 27). Clothed: as a bride (Isa. xlix. 18). The attire of a bride is "f linen, clean and white" (Rev. xix. 8), fine linen shining and clei So the Greek. In verse 14, the fine linen is white and clean. Ti whiteness of the fine linen is shining. White is shining white. This shining whiteness of the fine linen resembles the light of the sun, — resembles sunlight: "His face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light" (Matt. xvii. 2). In the Song of Solomon, the beauty of the maiden is there portrayed in language most figurative. She is compared to the moon and to the sun. " Who is she that looketh forth [from the window] as the dawn [dawning morning], shining as the white [moon], pure [bright] as the heat [sun], formidable as furnished with banners [as a camp of soldiers] ? " (Cant. vi. 10. ) The maiden here described wears an outer robe, called "veil" (Cant. v. 7), similar to the outer robe of pale tint worn by the bride (Rev. xii. 1). The descriptions of this maiden are not so much of her person as of the adornments of her person. "Thy cheeks are comely with rows of jewels, thy neck with chains of gold" (i. 10). Her com- plexion was not fair: "I am black'" (verse 6). When, then (Song of Sol. vi. 10), she is said to be "fair as the moon, clear as the sun," the fairness and the clearness may be referred to her dress. Like the bride (Rev. xii. 1), she may in her linen tunic have been clothed with sunlight, and in her "veil" (Song of Sol. v. 7), her outer robe, with moonlight. If this reference is admissible, the resemblance between the maiden in Canticles and the bride in Revelation becomes still more close and remarkable. In both women, their loveliness was moral beauty. " The fine linen is the righteousness of saints % " (Rev. xix. S). St. John may from this figurative passage in Solomon's Song take his imagery in Rev. xii. 1. By the sun he may here mean sunlight, — light. "Sun" has this meaning in 2 Sam. xxiii. 4; Ps. lxxiv. 16; Isa. xxx. 26, lx. 19; Jer. xxxi. 35. Instead, then, of " a woman clothed with the sun" (English Ver- sion, Rev. xii. 1), we may translate, "a woman clothed with UghV Her fine linen garment will be like the raiment of Christ when trans- figured, "shining, white as the light" (Matt. xvii. 2), and thus bright as the sunlight (Cant. vi. 10). The Old Testament clothes a bride in two garments (Ps. xlv. 13, 14; Ezek. xvi. 10). The first and principal garment was "fine linen" ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 191 (Rev. xix. 8; Ezek. xvi. 10). This garment covered the feet (Jer. xiii. 22). The second garment called (Ezek. xvi. 10) "silk," and (Cant. v. 7) "veil," was a thin translucent tissue, probably of silk, as St. John (Rev. xviii. 12) mentions "silk." This outer robe of silken tissue covered principally the lower por- tions of the body, and fell in flowing compass far below the feet. These forms of the bridal dress amply explain St. John's additional description of the woman clothed with moonlight, namely, "the moon under her feet." Since the sun is sunlight, is light, the moon is moonlight, is pale light. The open-work robe of thin silk would dim the brilliant white of the inner linen garment, and thus give to its lower portions a paler light. The moon, that is, the moonlight, is, then, the outer robe of thin open silk; and, because it dims the brilliant whiteness of the inner garment of fine linen, this glossy tissue clothes the inner tunic with the pale hue of moonlight. Because the delicate silken robe encircles the feet with graceful folds, this garment is "under the feet." A crown of twelve stars : this imagery St. John takes from these words of Ezekiel, describing God's bride of the Old Testament: "I put a beautiful crown upon thy head" (xvi. 12). As a queen, this Old-Testament bride wears a crown (Esth. ii. 17). Since Christ is king, as well as a bridegroom, his bride is queen, and wears a crown. The stars on her crown may refer to the gems with which the crown is studded and adorned. The number "twelve" refers the stars to the twelve tribes of Israel, which are themselves symbols of the Church of Christ in its membership (Matt. xix. 28). The symbolic bride (Rev. xii. 1), thus arrayed, adorned, and digni- fied, is "a glorious church" (Eph. v. 27), even "all glorious" (Ps. xlv. 13). 2. And being with child, she cries out, because in travail and in pain to bring forth. Even this definite language does not designate any actual woman. The woman here is merely a symbol of Christ's Church. The minute description is solely for graphic effect. The same use of minute specifications in the Old Testament fully justifies the explanation just given of the language of this verse. The "prophet Ezekiel (chapter xvi.) exhibits a woman as the symbol of Jerusalem (verses 1 and 2). For intensification this sym- bolic woman is most minutely portrayed, first as an infant, and then as a wife. But the infant foundling and the faithless wife of Ezekiel is not a real woman : she is nothing but figure. 192 THE REVELATION OF In the same way the woman of St. John (Rev. xii. 2) is not a real woman: she is wholly figure. She is not the personal Mary the Virgin, the mother of Christ. THE GREAT RED DRAGON (Verses 3-17). 3. And still another sign in heaven shows itself; and be- hold a great dragon, fire-red, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his heads seven diadems. The cry of the suffering woman does not bring another woman to her help (Gen. xxxv. 17). Not even an Egyptian hag comes in ready to kill the expected child (Exod. i. 16). Quite a different murderer presents himself. He is the instigator of all murders (John viii. 44), a great dragon, fire-red. The dragon here is the symbol of Satan (Rev. xx. 2, where he is called a " serpent "). The imagery of the dragon is thus taken from "the serpent" that tempted Eve, the first woman (Gen. iii. 1-6; 2 Cor. xi. 3). Having in the Garden of Eden destroyed the holiness of the Avife of Adam, the dragon hopes now to destroy the entire person of the bride of Christ. When he cannot annihilate this bride, then he plots for her spiritual destruction, and succeeds in producing the apostate Church, the harlot Babylon. Eve herself, in disobeying God's prohibition not to eat the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, beoame an apostate and a spiritual adulteress and spir- itual harlot. His ruinous success with Eve prompts the dragon to attempt the alienation of a portion of the Church from its affection for Christ. Fire-red: bent on destruction; red in blood (Ps. lxviii. 23). Seven heads and ten horns: this dragon has but one mouth (xii. 15). The beast (xiii. 2) with seven heads and ten horns has but one mouth. The dragon's seven heads may therefore be seven pro- tuberances of his one head. A serpent's head is often covered with plates. Head is the symbol of wisdom (Eccles. ii. 14). Horn is the symbol of power (Luke i. 69). Both the numbers seven and ten are definite for indefinite. The seven heads and the ten horns of the dragon are symbols of his deep cunning and of his great power. Seven diadems: diadem is simply a head-band of linen or of silk, sometimes adorned with pearls or precious stones. A crown is a head-wreath, originally of leaves or flowers, afterwards of gold. In origin and use, the diadem precedes the crown. A diadem is the sym- bol of royal dignity (Ecclus. xi. 5). Kings sometimes wore more than one diadem: (1 Mace. xi. 13) "two crowns upon his head, the crown of Asia and of Egypt." ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 193 4. And his tail draws awaj r the third part of the stars of heaven, and casts them to the earth. And the dragon stands in front of the woman who is on the point of bringing forth, that when she brings forth he may devour her child. Draws away: present tense, draws continually. The dragon's power is incessant. The verb in the New Testament always implies force: draws by force. Third part: this amount of destruction often in Apocalypse (viii. 7-12, ix. 15, IS). Stars: may denote civil rulers (Dan. viii. 10; Matt. xxiv. 29). In the Septuagint, dragon is the constellation called the Serpent. " lie garnished the heavens ; his hand formed the serpent " (Job xxvi. 13). Possibly reference is here made to this constellation of the northern sky. The dragon's displacing the stars indicates his power over civil rulers. Stands: half erect. Pliny thus describes the dragon: " celsus et erectus in medio incedens" (Historia Naturalis, viii. 3). 6. And she brings forth a mighty son, who is certainly to rule all the nations with an iron sceptre. And her child is caught up to God, even to his throne. She brings forth: the mother bringing forth is the Church. " Jerusalem is the mother of us all. She hath many children " (Gal. iv. 26, 27). Although Jerusalem is the Church, yet St. Paul calls her a bearing (" gendereth," verse 24) mother. A mighty son: "man," English Version, means manly, strong, mighty; "manly stomach" (2 Mace. vii. 21). Mighty, the title of the son the symbolic woman brings forth, is the very title the prophet Isaiah gives Christ, "mighty to save" (Isa. Ixiii. 1). Clement of Alexandria, second century, calls Christ the mighty child. To rule: as a shepherd (John x. 11). Iron: that is, irresistible. Is caught up to the throne of God : is rescued from the power of the dragon (xi. 12). The occupant of a throne is a king. Christ was king while he was in this world (John xii. 15, xviii. 37). 6. And the woman flees into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared by God, that there the}' may nourish her a thousand two hundred and sixty daj's. 194 THE REVELATION OF Flees : through fright. Wilderness: not on the earth; the vision is in the visible heaven (verse 1). In the Bible, the "wilderness" is (a) An uninhabited and uncultivated region; a solitary place (Isa. xxxv. 1). (b) A place of refuge and safety (1 Kings xix. 4). This is the meaning of "the wilderness," Rev. xii. 6. (c) The resort of evil spirits, devils, demons, and their associates (Matt. iv. 1, xii. 43; also Rev. xvii. 3). Nourish: that is, men implied. In sense, the equivalent of "is nourished " (verse 14). By perpetual succession of members, the Church is nourished and preserved in the world. Days: a longer time than forty-two months (xi. 3, xiii. 5. See xi. 3). The period is a limited one. The time will come when the true Church will cease to be persecuted, either by Romanism or by infidels. THE DESCENT OF SATAN AND HIS ANGELS TO THE EARTH (Verses 7-12). Digression from the previous narrative. Narrative resumed, verse 13. 7. And there is war in heaven : Michael and his angels to war against the dragon ; and the dragon wars and his angels. Verses 7-12 describe a symbolic scene shown to St. John, to ex- plain the sudden appearance of the dragon in front of the woman (verse 4). The symbolic scene must be derived from real transac- tions. When and where they occurred, the Bible does not reveal. The Scriptures furnish only the following intimations respecting the actual events here referred to: — 1. Certain "angels kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation" ( Jude 0). 2. "Pride" was the cause of their "fall and condemnation" (1 Tim. iii. 6). 3. " The serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety " (2 Cor. xi. 3). 4. " The Devil was a murderer from the beginning" (John viii. 44). There is war: not, there had been war. The context forbids the pluperfect. The verbs, " I heard " (verse 10), and " rejoice ye " (verse 12), make St. John a witness of the scene, which, consequently, is within his hearing and sight. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 19i War: a representation of war. The entire scene (verses 7-12) is symbolic. Since the scene is symbolic, the events are consistently represented as occurring partly in heaven and partly on earth. Michael : this name means, He who is like God. Like God in his punitive actions, not in his nature. The name occurs only in Dan. x. 13, 21, xii. 1 ; Jude 9; Rev. xii. 7. His angels: the angels Michael commands, as "prince" (Dan. x. 13, 21, xii. 1), as "archangel" (Jude 9). Since Michael and his angels are (Rev. xii. 7) fighting angels, they are cherubim (Ps. lxxx. 1-3). To war: the war in heaven was for this purpose, — for Michael and his angels to war against the dragon and his angels. 8. And vet he does not prevail. Not even their place is longer found in heaven. Does not prevail: the Devil and his angels have not internal strength to resist the assault of Michael and his angels. Disobedience weakens even an angelic nature. Their place is not found: there is no place they can hold. So complete is their defeat and expulsion, that not even one dragon- angel is left in heaven. The utter defeat of the dragon, thus symbolically exhibited, is a prediction and an assurance of his utter defeat here on earth. 9. And so the great dragon is cast out, the old serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, who is deceiving the whole world, he is cast out into the earth ; also his angels are cast out with him. Is cast out: is thrown out. Old serpent: who deceived Eve (2 Cor. xi. 3). Old: he was in the Garden of Eden (Gen. iii. 1-6). Is called: in the Bible. Devil, in Matt. iv. 1, means "slanderer" (1 Tim. iii. 11); is called Satan, adversary (Matt. iv. 10). Who is deceiving: xx. 3, 8, 10. The whole world: all the inhabitants of the world (Rev. iii. 10) are subject to "his devices" (2 Cor. ii. 11). Is cast out: repeated for emphasis. Into the earth: for the probation of the human race. "In the world ye shall have tribulation " (John xvi. 33). " Temptation is common to man" (1 Cor. x. 13). His angels are cast out : into the earth, for the same purpose the 196 THE REVELATION OF Devil is cast into it. His angels are demons (Rev. ix. 20; Jas. ii. 19; 1 Cor. x. 20). There is but one Devil : demons are many. THE MARTYRS WITNESS THE CONFLICT AND ITS RESULTS. THEIR EXULTATION OVER SATAN'S DEFEAT, PAST AND ULTIMATE (Verses 10-12). 10. And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, Now is the salvation and the power and the kingdom our God's, and so [is established] the authority of his Christ ; for the accuser of our brethren is cast out, who is accusing them before our God, da}- and night. This voice in the material heaven is the voice of the martyrs, whose prayer for vengeance we heard (Rev. vi. 10). The answer God gives their prayer contains this declaration: — "Their [Christian] brethren" would be "killed," as they them- selves had been "killed for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held " (vi. 9). Among the utterances of "the voice in heaven" (xii. 10), this is one : "The accuser of our brethren." Thus "their brethren" (vi. 9), and " our brethren " (xii. 10), are identical. In consequence of this identity, the martyrs of vi. 9, and the speakers of xii. 10, are themselves identical. The martyrs of vi. 10 re-appear in xii. 10. In their exultation (xii. 10-12), they anticipate their own full vindication, and also the full vindication of all their fellow-martyrs, as well as the absolute triumph of the Church of Christ. By these processes of investigation, we discover the nature of the rest promised the martyrs (vi. 11). The rest promised them is the rest and exaltation of soul inspired by their faith and hope in the certainty of their ultimate enthronement. The Special Purpose of Rev. xii. 10-12. This passage, expressing victory and triumph, strongly resembles vii. 10, 12, and xi. 15, 17, 18. Each of these three exclamations of victory precedes the infliction of judgments upon the enemies of Christ, and the endurance of trials and sufferings by his Church. The purpose of each exclamation is the same: to assure the Church of its com- plete triumph at last. Rev. xii. 10-12 precedes the account of the Devil's most deadly machinations and assaults : (a) his pursuit of the woman (xii. 13) ; (6) his war upon her seed; (c) his creation of the triform beast, leopard, bear, lion (xiii. 1, 2); (d) his intrusion of the lamb-dragon ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 197 (xiii. 11). To prepare the Church for these Satanic enemies, and to strengthen her for the terrible conflict, the martyrs in their secure and hopeful rest exclaim, — " Now is come salvation and power, and the kingdom of our God." Now: at this very moment, even now: we take the very first instant after the victory to express exultation and joy. Salvation: victory, including deliverance; in this sense, also, vii. 10, xix. 1. Power : the manifestation of the power, " from his power" (xv. 8). The kingdom: the establishment of the kingdom, of the reign of Christ. Kingdom means reign (xvii. 17); English Version, "do- minion." Our God's : the context requires this sense, which is confirmed by vii. 3, " the servants of our God," servants belonging to our God. Is accusing : of being guilty and sinful (Job i. 7-11). 11. And 3-et the}' themselves conquer him by reason of the blood of the Lamb, and by reason of the word of their testimony ; and so they love not their life unto death. They themselves: the earthly combatants; the succession of Christian martyrs. Mortal and sinful, weak, and assaulted by Satan himself, they yet conquer. The blood of the Lamb : removes their guilt, and cleanses them from all sin (Eph. i. 7; 1 John i. 7). The word of their testimony : the word they testify respecting Christ. They persevere in their confession of Christ. Their endur- ance secures their victory. They love not: they disregard. Unto death : theirendurance results in the sacrifice of their lives. 12. On account of this, rejoice, }'e heavens,' and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the earth and to the sea, for the Devil is come down against 3~ou, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time. This: the endurance and triumph of the martyrs, and the defeat of Satan. Heavens: this address to inanimate objects denotes the most exultant joy in the martyrs (Isa. xlix. 13). Dwell : permanently, to abide, to live. In them : in the heavens. Angels are here addressed; angels dwell in heaven (Matt, xviii. 10). 108 THE REVELATION OF Woe: introduces a state the opposite of joy, the distress of the present Church of Christ. The land and the sea: is (a) an expression for this entire world, and (6) for the inhabitants of this world; "you," next clause. Is come down: cause of the woe. The Devil, cast out of heaven, comes down to afflict mankind, a creation next in rank to the angels (Ps. viii. 5). Wrath: his defeat in heaven fires his wrath. Short: this world is not to be always subject to the assaults of the Devil. The shortness of his time stimulates his malice and activity. THE CHASE OF THE DRAGON AFTER THE WOMAN (Verses 13-17). Resumption of the narrative, verses 4-6. 13. And when the dragon sees that he is cast out into the earth, he pursues the woman who brought forth the mighty son. Pursues: "persecuted," English Version, is too indefinite. The primary sense of the verb, cause to run, hunt, chase, pursue, should be retained in the translation. Mighty son: the mighty shepherd King (verse 5). 14. And to the woman are given the two wings of the great eagle, that she may fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished a time, and times, and half a time, through fear of the serpent. Are given: by God. The two wings: the wings of the great eagle, when they are expanded, measure nine feet. The imagery is taken from Exod. xix. 4. The great eagle: is the aquila heliaca, the sun-eagle, who flies high even in the eye of the sun (viii. 13, notes). The woman, furnished with the long and broad wings of the sun- eagle, is ready to fly swiftly, loftily, and far away from the mouth of the pursuing dragon. But he anticipates her flight by close pur- suit. Time, times, and half a time : three years and a half (Dan. iv. 16, 23, 25, 32 (29), vii. 25); an indefinite period, but of limited duration. For fear: the English Version (Judg. ix. 21) translates by this expression, "for fear, 1 ' the same Greek phrase that occurs here (Rev. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 199 xii. 14), where the English Version has "from the face of." Before she can spread her wings, the dragon is close to her with his helching month. 15. And the serpent casts out of his mouth, behind the woman, water, as a river, that he ma} r cause her to be car- ried away by the river. Behind: so (i. 10) "behind me." River: image of destruction (Ps. xviii. 4; Matt. vii. 25). The behemoth may be the origin of this imagery. "He drinketh up a river: he trusteth that he can draw up Jordan into his mouth" (Job xl. 23). 16. And the earth helps the woman, and the earth opens its mouth, and swallows up the river which the dragon casts out of his mouth. Helps: quickly, as the verb in its composition intimates. Swallows up: Greek, drinks down. This imagery marks the impotence of the dragon's effort to destroy the fleeing woman. A dry desert of sand instantly absorbs his large mouthful of water. The incessant attempts of infidels to destroy the gospel of Christ ever prove equally impotent and useless. 17. And the dragon waxes wroth with the woman, and departs to make war with the rest of her seed, who are keep- ing the commandments of God, and holding the testimony respecting Jesus. "Waxes wroth : the dragon is burning with wrath because he can- not kill the woman and her mighty son. The life of this son is the death of the dragon, who avenges himself for his failure and dis- appointment by waging war with the rest of the woman's seed. Departs: this is a weighty word. It embodies both purpose and inception. The dragon here resolves to make war; the dragon here begins to make war. New-Testament usage gives each of these meanings to the Greek verb we translate " depart." " They went to buy " (Matt. xxv. 10) : they resolved to buy. " The woman went and saith " (John iv. 28) : she began her narrative. The rest : implies contrast with the portion of the seed which does not "keep the commandment of God," and which does not "hold the testimony of Jesus." The word "rest" is here equal to "rem- 200 THE REVELATION OB 1 nant" (Rom. ix. 27, xi. 5), and implies the existence of the harlot Babylon (Rev. xvii. 1), the apostate Church. The word "rest" marks contrast in the parable of the Ten Virgins. "Came the other virgins," the rest of the virgins (Matt. xxv. 11). St. John calls the true Church "the seed of the woman," on ac- count of its vital relation to Christ, "the seed" predicted (Gen. iii. 15). Since Christ is this " seed," Eve is the original of the woman who (Rev. xii. 1, 2, 5, 13, 17) represents the Church of Christ. " The rest of her seed," are, by another figure, " the good seed, the children of the kingdom " (Matt. xiii. 88). Keeping the commandments of God : this is the first time this expression occurs in the Apocalypse. Its contents identify it with this command of our Lord, "Keep the commandments" (Matt. xix. 17); a command, the essence of which, he says, consists in habitual obedience to another injunction of his, "Give to the poor" (verse 21). We know how very diligent the first Christians were in obeying this injunction of their divine Master. Zaccheus gave the half of his goods to the poor (Luke xix. 8). The original church of Jerusalem "sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all, as every man had need " (Acts ii. 45, iv. 34, 35). "Barnabas, having land, sold it, and brought the money, and laid it at the apostles' feet" (Acts iv. 37). "Remember the poor" (Gal. ii. 10). "Concerning the collection for the [poor, Rom. xv. 26] saints, upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him" (1 Cor. xvi! 1, 2). " Whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?" (1 John iii. 17.) From these Scriptures, it is most certain that care for the poor is a command of Christ of incessant and universal obligation. The duty of caring for the poor has these special applications: — 1. To give the poor the gospel of Jesus Christ. "The poor have the gospel preached to them" (Matt. xi. 5). This gift embraces Christian missions, both at home and abroad. 2. To provide for the sick and helpless poor. " They brought unto him all sick people, and he healed them" (Matt. iv. 24). " Jesus saith unto the impotent man, Rise and walk. And imme- diately the man was made whole, and walked" (John v. 8, 9). This is an imperative duty which every Christian congregation, and every Christian individual, is required by Christ to perform systemati- cally and with unfailing fidelity. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 201 Christian missions and Christian charities are the potent instrumen- talities our Lord ordains for the conversion of the whole world, Jews and Gentiles, the ignorant, the unbelieving, the sinful, the lost, the diseased and the dying, unto his loving and saving self. Holding the testimony respecting Jesus : what testimony did the first Christians hold and proclaim respecting Jesus, the incarnate Son of God? St. Peter and St. Paul answer this great question: "There is salvation in no other. There is no other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved " (Acts iv. 12). "He is able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them" (Heb. vii. 25). The maddened dragon well knows the nature of the command- ments of God, the rest of the seed of the woman are keeping, and the character of the testimony they are holding and proclaiming respect- ing the only Saviour, Jesus, incarnate, and enthroned and interceding in heaven. The dragon is quick to perceive that the loving servants of Christ who help the poor, and the bold heralds of Christ who proclaim an almighty and successful Saviour, will- themselves prove strong and swift eagles to bear innumerable human souls beyond his grip of death. The knowledge and the sight intensify his raging anger. He fears his kingdom of darkness will not longer be pre- ferred to the kingdom of Christ. The dragon resolves at once, and begins at once, to make war upon these dangerous dispensers of kindness and love, and upon these de- tested messengers of light, holiness, and salvation. The dragon creates, appoints, and employs the wild beast from the bottomless pit (xi. 7) through the sea (xiii. 1). The dragon and the sea-beast are thus principal and agent. This relation between them imparts identity to their warfare and to their enemies. In xi. 7, there is a prophecy that the wild beast from the bottom- less pit will overcome and kill " the two witnesses." In xii. 17, the dragon resolves and begins to "make war with the remnant of the woman's seed." Here is the fulfilment of the prophecy in xi. 7. xiii. 1, 2, 4, 7, describes the manner in which the prophecy is ful- filled. The dragon conducts the war through his agent, the sea- beast, to whom he gives " power and authority to make war " (verses 2, 4). Thus commissioned and empowered, the sea-beast actually "makes war with the saints, and overcomes them''' (verse 7). In the prophecy (xi. 7), the objects of the predicted warfare are "the two witnesses." In the fulfilment of the prophecy, the objects of the warfare are " the remnant of the woman's seed" (xii. 17), and "the saints" (xiii. 7). The persons who are the objects both of the 202 THE REVELATION OF prophecy and of its fulfilment are the same persons. "The two wit- nesses, the remnant of the woman's seed, and the saints" are identi- cal. The Apocalyptic history and experience of either one of the three classes are the Apocalyptic history and experience of the other two classes. When the wild beast from the bottomless pit overcomes and kills "the two witnesses," he at the same time overcomes and kills "the remnant of the woman's seed, and the saints." When the dragon makes war upon "the remnant of the woman's seed," he at the same time makes war upon the two witnesses and upon the saints. When the beast from the sea overcomes the saints, he at the same time overcomes the two witnesses and the remnant of the woman's seed. The two witnesses, the remnant of the woman's seed, and the saints, are all one and the same class of persons. 18. And the dragon stops on the sand- shore of the sea. The dragon can stop nowhere else. He has not the two long and broad wings of the great sun-eagle. He cannot use the air, and fly in pursuit of the escaping woman. The earth is her friend and helper, and his enemy, and will open its mouth wider than his jaws, and swallow him up. The narrow sand-shore is his only standing-place. The deep sea, the prolific nest of savage monsters like himself, is his only resort and arsenal. His dragon-kindred affect deserts and loneliness (Matt. xii. 43; 1 Pet. v. 8). This desolate dragon, banished from sky and land, stands on a congenial and hopeful spot. There is a wild beast in the bottomless pit, figured by the fathomless sea, that will hear and answer the dragon's imperative call. The two witnesses, the dragon confronts and opposes by two wild beasts. The Church of Christ represented by the two witnesses is both "a congregation of faithful men," and the "keeper and witness of Holy Writ." The social organization of the Church, the dragon opposes by the wild beast from the bottomless pit, the symbol of civil power hos- tile to the Church. The Church as " the keeper and witness of Holy Writ," the inspired record of G-od's revealed truth, the dragon opposes by the wild beast from the earth, the lamb-dragon, who as "false prophet" perverts God's truth, and occupies its place by his own in- ventions and errors. The kingdom of Christ, the dragon now aspires to overthrow by worldly kingdoms and states, anti-Christian in their policy and ad- ministration, and by churches nominally Christian, as Romanism and Unitarianism, and by religious bodies renouncing Christianity, as Lootseeism, Confucianism, Buddhism, Brahmanism, Mohammedan- ism. Rabbinism, Morraonism. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 203 CHAPTER XIII. The structural continuity of chapters x.-xiii. requires that the prophetic symbols of chapter xiii. be referred, for their incipient fulfilment, to the early periods of the gospel. In chapter x., there appears an angelic symbol of Christ, the Bridegroom of His Church. In chapter xi., two witnesses testify for Christ, and are about to be killed by the wild beast from the bottomless pit. In chapter xii., the murderous dragon attempts in vain to destroy the symbolic woman and her mighty infant son. Here, ihen, at the very beginning of the life of the incar- nate Christ, does the dragon begin his deadly persecutions of the Church both in its body, and in its head Jesus Christ. Dragon-hostility begins and runs parallel with incarnate love. There is no intermission in the enmity of Satan. THE TWO WILD BEASTS. In this chapter, two wild beasts appear, one out of the sea (verse 1), the other out of the earth (verse 11). The wild beast from the sea is a composite nondescript, part leopard, part bear, part lion. Both wild beasts are God's punitive agents. Punitive wild beasts are in the Bible in two forms. Literal: Lev. xxvi. 22 ; Dent, xxviii. 26, xxxii. 24; 1 Kings xiii. 24; 2 Kings ii. 24; Ps. Ixxix. 2 ; Tsa. lvi. 9; Jer. v. 6, vii. 33, xii. 9, xv. 3 ; Lam. iii. 10; Ezek. v. 17,' xxix. 5, xxxii. 4. 204 THE REVELATION OF Figurative: Ezek. xxxiv. 8, xxxix. 17-20; Hos. v. 14, xiii. 7, 8; Dan. vii. 3, 17. An inspection of the references will disclose the sources from which the prophets Ezekiel, Hosea, and Daniel, as well as St. John, derived their images of punitive wild beasts. At the present time, in Hindostan, wild beasts every year destroy thousands of human beings. The first wild beast, the one from the sea (xiii. 1), from the abyss, "bottomless pit" (xi. 7, xvii. 8), is mentioned without the second wild beast, the one from the earth, the lamb-dragon, the false prophet, ten times ; namel}', xi. 7, xiii. 1, xvii. 3, 8, 11, 12, 13, 16, 17, xix. 19. On the contraiy, the second wild beast, the one from the earth, the lamb-dragon, the false prophet, is associated with the first wild beast in these places: xiii. 11, 12, 14, 15, 17, 18, xvi. 13 ; and is his subordinate. These facts prove the superiority of the first wild beast to the second. Pagan imperialism has always been the control- ling power of the Church of Rome. Subjects of the chapter. — The enraged dragon summons to his help two other spirits as wicked as himself, (a) the leop- ard-bear-lion wild beast (verses 1-10), (b) the lamb-dragon (11-18). The imager}' of the compound wild beast is taken from the prophet Daniel (vii. 3-7), with this difference: in Daniel, each beast represents a separate kingdom ; in Revelation, the tri-bestial monster represents a single kingdom, the Pagan Roman empire. The imagery of the lamb-dragon is derived from these words of our Lord: "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves " (Matt. vii. 15). The lamb-dragon is called "the false prophet" in Rev. xvi. 13, xix. 20, xx. 10. The mongrel wild beast represents the Pagan Roman em- pire. The lamb-dragon represents the same empire nomi- nally Christian. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 205 THE FIRST WILD BEAST (Verses 1-10) . 1. Also I saw, out of the sea, a wild beast coming up, having ten horns and seven heads, and upon his horns ten diadems, and upon his heads names of blasphemy. I saw: this vision, out of the sea, a wild beast coming up. The sea: Isaiah explains this symbolism of the sea. " The wicked are like the troubled sea [negative for the positive, continually causing destruction], when it cannot rest" (lvii. 20). The sea represents the troubled wicked world. Out of its confusion, wicked governments originate. Also from the sea the four beasts, lion, bear, leopard, and the beast dreadful and terrible and strong exceedingly, described by the prophet Daniel, arise (Dan. vii. 3-7). Only here does the first wild beast come from the sea. In xi. 7, xvii. 8, he comes from " the bottomless pit," the prison of the dragon (xx. 3), who gives him his power and throne (xiii. 2). The first wild beast comes from a lower depth than the sea, his apparent birthplace. Ten horns : only in two other places, namely, xii. 3, and xvii. 3, are there beasts with seven heads and ten horns. But in xii. 3, and xvii. 3, the heads precede the horns. On the contrary, in xiii. 1, the heads follow (Greek) the horns. This order is against nature. There must be a head before there is a horn. There cannot be a horn with- out a head. This order also conflicts with St. John's own usage (xii. 3, xvii. 3). Why does he here (verse 1) change the order f This is the only possible contextual answer. He designs to indicate that the wild beast (xiii. 1) is in symbol the repetition of the fourth beast in Daniel, as only this beast has ''ten horns," its only bodily mark save its "iron teeth" (vii. 7). Other Explanations of the Reversed Order. Dean Alford thus explains: "Ten horns put first, because they are crowned." Usage does not justify this explanation. Usage establishes itself by comparing xiii. 1 with xii. 3 and xvii. 3. If the "ten horns" (xiii. 1) "are put first because they are crowned," then the "seven heads " (xii. 3) stand before the " ten horns " because the seven heads are crowned ; " seven crowns upon bis heads " (xii. 3). But crowning is not the reason for the precedence of the seven heads (xii. 3) ; because in xvii. 3, the " seven heads," although not crowned, precede the " ten horns." Thus the only usage there is decides that the crowning (xiii. 1) is not the reason for the reversed order. 206 THE REVELATION OE "The bonis of the beast are mentioned before the heads, because, when the beast Avas arising from the sea, the horns would first appear." — Bishop Wordsworth. But it is not certain that the horns appeared first. The appearance of the beast in a vision would be instantaneous, and not gradual as Bishop Wordsworth supposes. Until a better reason than the contextual can be given, this must hold its immovable position. Ten horns and seven heads : ten and seven, definite for indefi- nite; many horns, symbols of power; many heads, symbols of intelli- gence (Eccl. ii. 14). Ten diadems: symbols of kingly dignity (xii. 3). Names of blasphemy: the heads of the sea-beast bear titles which are blasphemous, because claiming for him the character and power of Deity. A Roman emperor had the title Divus, divine. (Matt. xxvi. 65; Mark ii. 7; 2 Thess. ii. 4.) 2. And the wild beast which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion ; and the dragon gives him his power and his throne, even great authority. Leopard: remarkable for swiftness (Hab. i. 8), for voracity (Ecclus. xxviii. 23). Bear : with his long and sharp claws tears his prey in pieces. Mouth of the lion: mouth for teeth. "Their teeth as the teeth of lions" (ix. 8). In verse 1 of chapter xiii., St. John connects the sea-beast with the fourth beast (Dan. vii. 7). In this verse 2, he connects the sea-beast with the first, second, and third beasts of Dan. vii. 4-6. He thus connects the sea-beast with all the beasts Daniel exhibits. Thus con- necting the sea-beast with all four, St. John does not, in symbol, con- nect the sea-beast with any single one of the four. According to the prophet Daniel, his four beasts represent these four kingdoms: — 1. Babylon (Dan. i. 1; 2 Chron. xxxvi. 6, 22). 2. Media (Dan. xi. 1). 3. Persia (Dan. x. 1). 4. Greece (Dan. viii. 20, 21, x. 20, xi. 2). Since the sea-beast is connected with all these kingdoms, he is not connected with any single kingdom. He is not connected with Greece. The kingdom the sea-beast symbolizes is not Greece. The immediate successor of Greece was the Roman empire. The sea-beast symbol- izes the Pagan empire of Rome. The sea-beast can symbolize NO OTHER. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 207 A wild beast agile, fleet, and voracious as the leopard, stout and sharp-footed as the bear, lion-mouthed, and ten-horned, "dreadful and terrible," is a most formidable monster. In describing him, hor- rid symbolism exhausts itself in the word "exceedingly" (Dan. vii. 7). Such a complicated wild beast is the fit representative of the Pagan Roman empire, which for emperors had these human monsters Nero, Domitian, Severus, and for soldiery and people the counterparts of their imperial tyrants. As the wild beast from the sea represents the Pagan kingdom or empire of Rome, other truths follow: — I. The sea wild beast does not represent any individual person in the empire, whether emperor, or pope, or any other imperial officer. II. As the representative of the Roman empire, the sea wild beast can represent the empire only in its nature, spirit, character, condition, and influence. He represents it in its idolatrous heathenism, in its immoralities, in its imperiousness, in its selfishness, in its ambitions, in its injustice, in its oppressions, and in its cruelties. III. Since the wild beast from the sea is thus an abstraction, he cannot be either "wounded" or "die," or be "healed" (Rev. xiii. 3), or have a "mouth" (verse 5), except figuratively. The sea wild beast has not a material body: he is simply a symbolical monster, and must be so interpreted and understood. IV. The same symbolical character belongs to several other apparent personages in the New Testament; namely, the lamb-dragon (Rev. xiii. 11), the harlot woman (xvii. 1), the man of sin (2 Thess. ii. 3), and Antichrist (1 John ii. 18, 22, iv. 3; 2 John 7). V. As the sea wild beast is nothing but an abstraction, and cannot therefore be wounded bodily, the "sword" (xiii. 14) must be a figura- tive sword, and as such can be nothing else than " the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God" (Eph. vi. 17),— his revelation by Jesus Christ. 3. And I saw one of his heads, as though slain unto death ; and yet the wound causing his death is healed, and so the whole earth greatly admires the wild beast, and fol- lows after him. One of his heads: the sea wild beast, like the dragon (xii. 15), has but one mouth (xiii. 2), and therefore but one head, — the seat of life. His other heads are mere emblems of multiform wisdom (Eccl. ii. 14). As a representative abstraction, this wild beast can be wounded only figuratively; and, as his figurative wounding is in the seat of his intellect, this wounding must be the loss of a measure of his wisdom. 208 THE REVELATION OF The wisdom of the sea wild beast is the wisdom of the heathen world, which is religious wisdom, because contrasted by St. Paul with Christian wisdom. "After that the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God, by the foolishness of preaching Christ crucified, to save them tbat believe " (1 Cor. i. 21). Pagan Eome is wounded and weakened in its idolatrous heathenism by the preacbing of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The New-Testament history exhibits the depth of these wounds and the extent of this weakening. The Church of England, in her Bible published A.D. 1611, predicts that the " blow will not be healed " (Epistle Dedicatory). The prediction was inspired by faith in Christ, and is still repeated and cherished by the same inspired faith, sustaining this Church and all her children the wide world over in their opposition to the false Church of Rome. As early as A.D. 57, a Christian church is firmly established in the city of Rome itself; for St. Paul wrote his Epistle to the Romans to this church. Afterwards St. Paul "dwelt two whole years in his own hired house," in the city of Rome, "and received all that came in unto him, preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbid- ding him " (Acts xxviii. 30, 81). So great is the blessing of God upon St. Paul's preaching, that he is able to make these remarkable records in his Epistle to the Philip- pians, written from his prison in Rome : — "I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; so that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places; and many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident in my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear" (Phil. i. 12-14). "All the saints salute you, chiefly they that are of Ccesar's house- hold" (iv. 22). At still a later date, the ministry of St. Paul in the city of Rome continues to be greatly successful. "In my gospel I suffer trouble, as an evil doer, but the word of God is not bound" (2 Tim. ii. 9). Previous to his imprisonment in the city of Rome, and to the won- derful success of his preaching in the palace of the emperor, he had, to use his own account of his extensive travels in the Roman empire, " fully preached the gospei from Jerusalem round about unto Illyri- cum" (Rom. xv. 19), a thousand miles farther west than the "holy city." The last time St. Paul visited Jerusalem, he found there myriads of Christian Jews (Acts xxi. 20). ST. J0J1N THE DIVINE. 209 Before his death St. Paul sent epistles, not only to the church in Koine, but also to the churches in Corinth, Galatia, Ephesus, Phil- ippi, Colosse, and Thessalonica. St. Peter addresses his epistles to Jewish Christians " in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia" (1 Pet. i. 1). "So mightily grew the word of God" throughout the Roman empire, before the death of St. Van), A.D. 65, "and prevailed" (Acts xix. 20). The general prevalence of the gospel in the Roman empire is a spiritual wound in the heathenism of the wild beast from the bottom- less pit, so deep and vital that though for a time cicatrized and seem- ingly healed, the sword-stroke will yet prove fatal. The heathenism still pervading the Church of Rome is sure to die and disappear. As though slain: the Greek particle we translate "as though," makes the participle " slain " figurative. Proofs of this effect of the particle upon the participle: — " As dying, and, behold, we live " (2 Cor. vi. 9). "Remember the. prisoners, as hound with them" (Heb. xiii. 3). As an abstraction, the wild beast from the bottomless pit can be slain only figuratively. We now see that New-Testament usage allows the participle "slain" to be used in a figurative sense. The word "slain" does not conflict with the figurative explanations we give of this verse. Unto death: this expression occurs also in Matt. x. 21; Luke xxii. 33; Rom. vi. 16, vii. 10; 2 Cor. ii. 16, iv. 11. The slightest in- spection of these places will satisfy us that the expression "unto death" means unto utter and absolute death. The wild beast from the bottomless pit can die only figuratively. His figurative death is the utter extirpation from the Roman empiie of idolatrous heathenism and its inevitable accompaniments. Is healed: the wild beast from the bottomless pit is wounded b\ the general prevalence of the gospel of Jesus Christ in the pagan Roman empire. He is healed by the suppression of the gospel of Christ, and by the restoration of the worship of idols by the authority of the Roman emperors. St. Paul, and all the apostles of our Lord save St. John, are vic- tims to the bloody persecutions which assail and afflict the early Christian Church. The healing, however, of the wild beast representing the Pagan empire, is neither thorough nor permanent. 1. It is not thorough. Christianity is not totally suppressed : waters cannot drown it; fires cannot consume it; magisterial enactments and executions cannot annihilate it. 210 THE REVELATION Of 2. It is not permanent. The worship of idols gradually ceases. Heathen temples become Christian churches. Paganism no longer has in Western Asia and in Europe an external life. The spirit of the old heathenism still survives in the imperialism, the assumed infallibility, the claims to universal dominion, which characterize the Church of Rome, and the civil governments which inherit and adopt her selfish and aggressive policy. The past conflicts between the gospel of Christ and the wild beast from the bottomless pit are most instructive, most admonitory, and, in their lessons, most obligatory and most encouraging. The first, the early, and the subsequent victories of the Christian Church were won by two outward instrumentalities, made successful by the accompanying power of the Holy Ghost: (a) the preaching of Christ crucified, and (b) practical Christian love. When the clergy became philosophers and rhetoricians, when they quarrelled with each other, and when externalism took the place of love of Christ and love of souls, the lamb-dragon rises out of the earth, and the harlot woman rides queen on the scarlet wild beast. The ambitious, contentious, worldly, and degenerate clergy are often the real "men of sin;" the actual "antichrists;" the associ- ates of the dragon in summoning ravaging wild beasts from the sea and the earth ; the adopting fathers of the spiritual harlot ; the ics- thetic brokers who exchange the pure and life-giving gospel of Christ for absorbing and deadening formalism. And yet the gospel itself is not dead. It is now, as always, the power of God unto salvation. Christ is now present with his Church, as ever of old. No more now than at the beginning, does God give to Christ and his people the Spirit by measure (John iii. 34). The Church of to-day ought to be, and can be again, a Church inflicting deadly and killing wounds on all Satanic wild beasts, on all apostatizing churches, on all forms of heathenism, on all modern infidelity and prevalent sin, and make herself the victorious, conquer- ing, and renovating " arm of the Lord " in the whole world. The first conquests of the gospel can now be repeated by the re- sumption of its first instrumentalities appointed by Christ himself: "Preach the word" (2 Tim. iv. 2); "Love the brotherhood" (1 Pet. ii. 17); "Love thy neighbor as thyself" (Gal. v. 14); "Love thine enemies" (Matt. v. 44). Christ's truth will overcome human error. Love will conquer hatred. Holy example will purify viciousness of life. The whole world greatly admires: in xi. 10, "they that dwell on the earth," the ungodly world, rejoice and make merry, because the two witnesses are dead. Here, in this verse 3, the whole ungodly 8T. JOHh THE DIVINE. 211 world, in their joy that the gospel is suppressed, and that heathenism is restored, greatly admires the wild beast, because he is the author of the change which inspires their joy and swells their merriment. 4. And they worship the dragon, because he gives the authority to the wild beast; and so they worship the wild beast, saying, Who is like the wild beast? and who can war with him ? The revived Roman empire, though gradually becoming nominally Christian, continues essentially Pagan in its spirit and policy. Who is like: this question is rhetorical for this denial: There is no one like the wild beast; he is incomparable. Who can : rhetorical question equalling this negation : No one is able to war with the wild beast; he is invincible. 5. And there is given him a mouth speaking impious words, even blasphemies. Also there is given him authority to do his work, foily-two months. Is given him: by the dragon, verse 2, last clause. Impious words: Dan. vii. 8, 20; Ps. xii. 3. Blasphemies : 2 Thess. ii. 4. Authority: by God. The context demands this sense. To do his work: this sense of "do" allowed by ii. 5. Kind of work given, Dan. viii. 24, " to destroy." Forty-two months: three years and a half. With the Hebrews, seven years were, in reference to the duration of slavery, a complete period (Exod. xxi. 2). The hurtful work of the sea-beast will last only the half of such a period. See xi. 2, 3. G. And so he opens his mouth for blasphemy against God ; namely, to blaspheme his name and his tabernacle, even the dwellers in heaven. Opens his mouth: begins to speak, Dan. x. 16; Matt. v. 2; Acts viii. 35. For blasphemy : the purpose for which he speaks. Against God: the Supreme God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. To blaspheme: the objects following. (a) His name: God himself in all his attributes and relations (Exod. ix. 16; Luke xi. 2); a deadly sin (Lev. xxiv. 16). (6) His tabernacle: his Church (xv. 5, xxi. 3). 212 THE REVELATION OF Even: the tabernacle, the Church, is defined by the phrase intro- duced by "even." In heaven: because attributive, and thus emphatic, is identical with "heavenly places" (Eph. i. 3, ii. 6), which are spiritual bless- ings in Christ (Eph. i. 3); "heaven" in a figurative sense (Rev. xi. 12). Dwell : to dwell in heavenly places, is, then, to dwell in spiritual blessings in Christ. To dwell in Christ, is to dwell in God, and for God to dwell in us (1 John iv. 16). As a definition, then, of "tabernacle," the phrase "dwellers in heaven" discloses the character of the tabernacle, the Church. It is the spiritual Church. This the sea-beast "blasphemes," misrepre- sents, hates, opposes, and injures. 7. Also authority is given him over every tribe and nation, and tongue and people. Is given: by the dragon. Tribe : community of common blood. Nation: community of common name. Tongue : community of common speech. People : community of common customs. Universal sovereignty was the aspiration of the Pagan Roman empire. Universal dominion is the audacious claim of the present Church of Rome. 8. And so all that dwell upon the earth will worship him, of whom not one name is written in the Lamb's book of life, who was slain from the foundation of the world. Worship him: the mongrel wild beast (verse 1) which represents the Pagan Roman empire. The emperors of Pagan Rome were addressed as gods, and were worshipped as gods. This proof is furnished by an inscription in Greek, found at Assos, A.D. 1881, containing a decree of the town of Assos, passed on the accession of the Emperor Caligula, A.D. 37. The following is from the vote of the people : — "Every city and every nation is eager to behold the face of the god" (namely, Caligula). The following is from the oath of allegiance to Caligula, taken by the people of Assos, same date, A.D. 37: — ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 213 " We swear by the Saviour and God, Cresar Augustus, that we will be faithful to Gaius Csesar Augustus" (that is, to Caligula), (Paper of the Archaeological Institute of America, pp. 133-135, Boston, 1882. Suetonius, Caligula, 22, elc.) Name: for person (Acts i. 15); distributive singular. Book of life: book giving eternal life (Phil. iv. 3). "Who was slain: as a sacrifice for sin. "Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood" (Rev. v. 9). From the foundation of the world: this phrase belongs nut to " written," but to " who was slain." Tbe connection of "from the foundation of the world" is im- movably established by the following unchangeable and authoritative usages. Usage is the law and rule of speech. — Hoka.ce, Art of Poetry, 72. 1. A prepositional clause {"from the foundation of the world" is a prepositional clause) belongs to the nearest participle, and not to the remote verb. Examples. — (a) "1 will utter things kept secret from the founda- tion of the world" (Matt. xiii. 35). In this passage, "will utter" is the verb, "kept secret" is the participle, "from the foundation of the world" is the prepositional clause. Since "will utter" predicts future action, and "from the founda- tion of the world" denotes past time, the verb and the participial clause cannot be connected until the distinction between future and past ceases. The only possible connection the prepositional clause "from the foundation of the world" (Matt. xiii. 35) can have is with the participle " kept secret." (6) "The blood shed from the foundation of the world may be required of this generation " (Luke xi. 50). In this verse, "shed" is the participle; "from the foundation of the world" is the prepositional clause; "required" is the verb. The prepositional clause and the verb cannot be connected, for this invincible reason : — Their times are different. The time of the prepositional clause is past; the time of the verb is present. Past and present time cannot be united. The usage, thus most firmly established by the two examples just given, connects, in Rev. xiii. 8, "from the foundation of the world," not with the remote verb " written," but alone and inseparably with the adjacent participle "slain." Rev. xvii. 8 does not destroy this usage, but strongly confirms it. The words of xvii. 8 differ essentially from the words of xiii. 8. This essential difference is shown most clearly by placing the two 214 THE REVELATION OF passages by the side of each other. "Of whom not one name is written in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain from the foundation of the world " (Rev. xiii. 8). "Whose names were not- written in the book of life from the foundation of the world " (xvii. 8). This, then, is the essential difference between the two passages: Rev. xiii. 8 has the words, "of the Lamb who was slain;" Rev. xvii. 8 has not these words. The passages are, then, not identical. Rev. xvii. 8 cannot explain Rev. xiii. 8. It is both irrelevant and useless to refer to Rev. xvii. 8 as an illustration and interpretation of Rev. xiii. 8. Rev. xiii. 8 can be truly explained only by the words and usages it actually contains. 2. The expression " who was slain " is the equivalent of a relative sentence. The Yulgate, and the Latin Fuldensis Codex, qui occisus est, as well as the Greek, regard the expression as a relative sentence. But the phrase in Rev. xiii. 8, "from the foundation of the world," is by Matt. xiii. 35, and Luke xi. 50, made, as we have already seen, an inseparable part of this relative sentence. No power on earth can detach the phrase from the relative sentence. This rela- tive sentence cannot be attached to "written." The relative sen- tence has no relation to this verb " written." As a relative sentence, all the relation " who w r as slain " can possibly have is to " the Lamb." So long as " who was slain" is a relative sentence, — and it will be forever, — it will belong to "the Lamb," and not to "written." "Who was slain from the foundation of the world,"* will always remain the same sentence it is at present. The assertions of all Christendom cannot annihilate the steel welding St. Matthew, St. Luke, and St. John create between the prepositional clause "from the foundation of the world," and the relative sentence " who was slain." The conjunction is divinely constructed, and eternal. The connection we have just exhibited is also established by St. Peter. " Ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, but with the precious blood of Christ, who verily was fore-ordained before the foundation of the world" (IPet. i. 18-20). ■ Because "fore-ordained," Christ was in God's purpose "slain before the foundation of the world." The animal sacrifices which God appointed from the beginning of the human race, are closely connected with this promise, "The seed of the woman shall bruise the serpent's head " (Gen. iii. 15). The animal which Abel sacrificed took away his sin, but not by its own virtue. "The blood of bulls and of goats cannot take away sin" (Heb. x.4). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 216 The animal sacrifice offered by Abel must have represented " the seed of the woman," and derived all its efficacy to remove sin from the represented seed, who is thus " the Lamb who was slain from the foundation of the world " (Rev. xiii. 8). 9. If any man have an ear, let him hear. Also Rev. ii. 7, 11, 17, 29; iii. 6, 13, 22. In substance, our Lord's words (Mark iv. 23). This call summons attention to the words following as most significant. 10. He that leadeth into captivit}^ shall go into captivity : he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faitli of the saints. The persecutors of the Cliurch will themselves be destroyed. The language is the repetition and intensification of our Lord's words, " They that take the sword shall perish with the sword " (Matt. xxvi. 52; see Jer. xv. 2, xliii. 11). These predictions are here uttered to encourage his people to perseverance and faith. Leadeth captivity: leadeth captives. Abstract for concrete. Sense of the first clause of the verse: Captors shall become cap- tives. Sense of the second clause: The victor who shall with his deadly sword so strike through the bodies of his enemies in fight as not to leave even one alive, shall yet be himself killed outright by the sword. Sense of the whole verse: God shall cause his Church, though captured and killed, to triumph over all opposition. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints : by the truths and promises just uttered by God, the endurance and the faith of his people survive all assaults (xiv. 12). THE APPEARANCE OF THE LAMB-DRAGON (Verses 11-18). A more subtle enemy than the sea-beast. The apt symbol of Papal Rome; outwardly a lamb, inwardly a dragon. "There shall arise false Christs, send false prophets, and shall show great signs and won- ders, and shall deceive many. Behold, I have told you before" (Matt. xxiv. 11, 24, 25). 11. Also I saw another wild beast coming up out of the earth ; and he was having two horns like the horns of a lamb ; and yet he was speaking like a dragon. 216 THE KEY ELATION OF Another: the third monster afflicting the true Church. The dragon is the first (xii. 3). The sea-beast is the second (xiii. 1). Three is a full number. A fourth monster will not appear. The third is the last of the desolating trio. Out of the earth : the first wild beast (verse 1) comes apparently from the sea, but really from the bottomless pit. A second wild beast (verse 11) comes from the earth. "The earth" is here a term for this wicked world of mankind. " He that is of the earth is earthly," is sinful (John iii. 31). Papal Rome in its worldly spirit and outward form has its origin in Pagan Rome. The lamb-dragon represents the succession of the Roman hierarchy. The woman in purple and scarlet (xvii. 3) repre- sents the Church of Rome in her apostasy from Christ. The horns of a lamb : the horns ef a lamb are short and harm- less, unlike the strong and dangerous horns of the bull (Exod. xxi. 29) and of the first wild beast (xiii. 1). Was speaking: the Greek tense, the imperfect, was speaking, describes his habitual speech. The two witnesses speak for Christ. The lamb-dragon speaks for Satan. Like a dragon : the dragon is " the Devil and Satan, which de- ceiveth the whole world" (xii. 9). "The Devil is a liar" (John viii. 44). The dragon's speech, and the speech of his imitator the lamb- dragon, is therefore deceitful, lying, false. The lamb-dragon is iden- tical with the "false prophet" (xvi. 13, xix. 20, xx. 10). The lamb-dragon " deceiveth them that dwell on the earth" (verse 14). False speech is false doctrine. " Beware of false prophets which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves" (Matt. vii. 15). Historical verifications of the false doctrines of the Church of Rome are, — 1. The creed of Pope Pius IV., A.D. 1564. 2. Jesuitism, sixteenth century. 3. The dogma of the immaculate conception of the Virgin Mary, A.D. 1854. 4. The dogma of the Pope's infallibility, A.D. 1870. 12. And he executes all the authority of the first wild beast before him, and makes the earth, even the dwellers in it, to worship the first wild beast, whose death-wound was healed. Executes: the lamb-dragon performs all the acts authorized by the wild-beast from the bottomless pit. Papal Rome, represented ST. JOHN THE DiyiNE. 217 by the lamb-dragon, is, as an organization, the creation, the repe- tition, the successor, of Pagan Home. The succession is too obvious to be gainsaid. 1. The Pope succeeds the Roman emperor. 2. The present Roman Curia, the councillors of the Pope, succeeds the Roman senators who formed the council of state for the Roman emperor. 3. The Roman cardinals, the representatives of the Pope in foreign countries, are the successors of the proconsuls under tbe Roman empire. Authority: when Satan tempted our Lord, the tempter claimed authority over "all the kingdoms of the world." Our Lord himself calls Satan " the prince of this world " (John xii. 31), because he in- spires and controls wicked men. A portion of the authority the dragon claims, he intrusts to the wild beast from the bottomless pit (Rev. xiii. 2). In his turn, the wild beast from the bottomless pit authorizes the wild beast from the earth to act in his place. The wild beast from the bottomless pit represents the civil and religious power of Pagan Rome. This twofold power is embodied in Papal Rome. The present Pope (Leo XIII.) is not satisfied with the possession of ecclesiastical power. He is at the present time exciting such governments in Europe as he can influence, to demand of all the powers the restoration of his civil power. He thus re-asserts the old Papal usurpation that Popery has authority over all civil govern- ments. Even : explanatory. Healed : see verse 3. 13. And he doeth great signs, even to make fire come down from heaven to the earth in the sight of men. Great signs : Matt. xxiv. 24; 2 Thess. ii. 9. The Church of Rome claims the power of working miracles (Archbtshop Wfately, Er- rors of Romanism). In 2 Thess. ii. 9, the signs are characterized as false, " lying won- ders." The miracles wrought by the lamb-dragon, the symbol of Papal Rome, are mere pretences. Doeth : " Nothing is more common than to speak of professed jugglers as doiwj what they pretend or appear to do." — Rev. Dr. Hugh Farmer (the pupil of Dr. Philip Doddridge). Exod. vii. 11, 22, viii. 7, 18, are instances which confirm Dr. Farmer's assertion. 218 THE REVELATION OF Fire: reference to Elijah, who called fire from heaven, — (1) To vindicate revealed truth (1 Kings xviii. 36-39). (2) To punish God's enemies. (a) The Church of Rome professes to work miracles to justify her exclusive claims. (b) The Church of Rome annually (every Maunday Thursday) invokes God's vengeance on all heretics. " Excommunicamus et anathematizamus omnes hereticos." — Perceval, Roman Schism, p. xxxvii. 14. And so he deceiveth the dwellers upon the earth by reason of the signs which it is permitted him to do to please the wild beast, because saying to the dwellers upon the earth to make an image for the worship of the wild beast, which has the wound of the sword, and yet lives. And so: deception follows the exhibition of pretended miracles. Deceives: this verb proves that the miracles (signs) are decep- tions, impositions, and frauds. Permitted : by God. Because saying: the command to make an image to the sea-beast pleased him. The adoption of Pagan worship by Papal Rome was most agreeable to the Pagan emperors, and to the ignorant masses of people. An image for the worship of the wild beast: this is the expression, verse 15: ''King Nebuchadnezzar required the image he made to be worshipped " (Dan. iii. 5). Even Christians were compelled to worship the image of the Roman emperor. The testimony of Pliny establishes thisfact: "Cum praeeunte me deos appellarent, et imagini turn, quam propter hoc jusseram cum simulacris nummum afferri, thure ac vino mpplicarent, preterea maledicerent Christo, quorum nihil cogi posse dicuntur, qui sunt revera Christiani, dimittendos esse putavi" (Pliny's Letter to Trajan, Ep. x. 97). Adoratio pontijicis, prescribed by the Cceremoniale Romanum, is now performed after each papal election. The adoration was per- formed to Pope Pius IX., Wednesday, June 17, 1846. Sword : the thrust of the sword is mortal (Heb. iv. 12). Lives: the present tense "has" imparts the same time to "lives" (verse 3). Pagan Rome lives for the present in Papal Rome. But the sword-thrust in the head of the first wild beast will yet cause his utter and lasting death. Christian civilization will be the destruction ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 219 of Roman imperialism, both in all churches and in all civil govern- ments. The spirit of Pagan Rome is the spirit of selfishness, is the spirit of self-indulgence, is the spirit of self-aggrandizement, is the war-spirit, which now afflict both rulers and people, and retard and hinder the extension of the gospel of Christ. 15. Also it is permitted to give breath to it, the image of the wild beast, that the image of the wild beast may even speak, and cause that whoever shall not worship the image of the wild beast may be killed. Permitted : by God. The Greek does not warrant the English version, "he had power." Breath: the Greek noun sometimes has this sense: "Thou takest away their breath" (Ps. civ. 29). The superstition which can worship an image will easily regard it as alive and breathing. This strong denial, "There is no breath in the mouths of idols" (Ps. cxxxv. 17), may oppose the actual belief of "the heathen," that their idols did breathe. To give breath to the image of the wild beast, is a specification of the deception ("deceives," verse 14). St. John does not assert the reality of the breath in the image. Speak : an image which is assumed to breathe can also be as- sumed to speak. The Psalmist, in denying speech to idols, seems to imply that their worshippers claimed for them the power of uttering words. " They speak not" (Ps. cxxxv. 1(3). The pretended life and speech of Roman Madonnas are fulfilments of the predictions in this verse. 1 Killed : the Lateran Council expressly requires the death of heretics by the hands of the civil power. " Monearetur sceculares intestates, quod de terris sure jurisdiction^ subjectis universos hcereticos exter- minare" (Lateran IV., A.D. 1215; Canon III.'- Perceval, Roman Schism, pp. 134, 135.) The injuries contemplated by the Lateran Council are both mate- rial and spiritual, and are, contrary to the law of Christ, "Love one another" (John xv. 12), inflicted by Christians upon other Christians. Material Inquiries. Of injuries material, inflicted by Christians upon other Christians, there are no examples in history until the mediceval period of the Christian Church. 1 Watson, Theological Institutes, I. 168, etc. * Called Lateran, because held in the Church of St. John Lateran in Rome. 220 THE REVELATION OF The Inquisition. — Previous to the twelfth century (xiii. 15) Chris- tians had various controversies, but their weapons were always verbal. Not till the thirteenth century was there an organized and estab- lished Christian system of imprisonment, torture, and death for heretics. This system was the Inquisition, which was created by the Church of Rome, and which continued its deadly work for at least five centuries. 1. By order of the Inquisition in the thirteenth century, the whole race of the Albigenses in Languedoc and Toulouse, France, were hunted by fire and sword: neither sex, age, nor condition was spared. The towns became heaps of burning ruins, and the country a wil- derness. In modern France, the spirit of the wild beast seeking the bodily death of the members of Christ's Church still survives. "The Anti-Clerical League" of Paris, in its annual report, 1884, maintains an exterminatory intolerance for all Christian ideas and persons, and asserts the power of persecution even unto death. — Churchman, Sept. 6, 1884: "Prospects of Reform in the French Church." 2. The Waldenses in Dauphine and Piedmont, between France and Italy, were, in 1560, conquered by a Spanish and French army insti- gated by Pope Paul IV. Many prisoners w r ere buried alive, and women and children ruthlessly slaughtered. The poet Milton has given disgraceful immortality to this inhuman carnage perpetrated by the Church of Rome: — " Avenge, O Lord, thy slaughtered saints, whose bones Lie scattered on the Alpine mountains cold; Even them who kept thy truth so pure of old, When all our fathers worshipped stocks and stones, Forget not: in thy book record their groans, Who were thy sheep, and in their ancient fold Slain by bloody Piedmontese, that rolled Mother with infant down the rocks. Their moans The vales redoubled to the hills, and they To heaven. Their martyred blood and ashes sow O'er all the Italian fields, where still doth sway The triple tyrant; that from these may grow A hundred-fold, who, having learned thy way, Early may fly the Babylonian woe. (John Milton, A.D. 1674: Sonnet xiii.) 3. Massacre of St. Bartholomew, Sunday, Aug. 24, 1572. Thousands of Huguenots (French Protestants) were on that day murdered in France. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 221 The reigning Pope, Gregory XIII., commemorated and justified the horrid massacre by striking a medal, bearing on the obverse the face of the Pope, and this inscription: "Gregory XIII.; Pontjfex Maximus. Anno primo." On the reverse, the destroying angel, bearing in her left hand a cross, in her right a sword; before her are flying and prostrate Huguenots of both sexes and various ages; and this inscription: "Ugonottorum strages, 1572." ("The slaughter of the Huguenots.") This medal is reproduced in fac-simile under the auspices of The American Association of Numismatists, 1877, Lagrange, Ky. 4. During the short reign of Queen Mary of England, A.D. 1553- 1558, Bishops Ridley, Latimer, and Cranmer were burned at the stake, and nearly three hundred other persons. Spiritual Injuries by the Church of Home. 1. Decrees of the Council of Trent, 1545-1563. 2. Creed of Pius IV., 1564. 3. Jesuitism, sixteenth century, by which large numbers of Prot- estants were recovered to Romanism. 4. Dogma of immaculate conception, 1854. 5. Dogma of papal infallibility, 1870. Thus the history of the Church of Rome furnishes most infamous fulfilments of the symbolical prophecies of Rev. xiii. 15. No other Church furnishes such coincidences between prophecy and history. The fact demonstrates the wild beast from the earth as the symbol of this persecuting and erroneous Church. The Lamb-dragon's Slave-marks (Verses 16, 17). 16. Also he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark on their right hand, or on their forehead. Mark: eight times in Revelation (xiii. 16, 17, xiv. 9, 11, xv. 2, xvi. 2. xix. 20, xx. 4) ; in every instance imposed by the lamb-dragon. Mark: brand burned in. " These enrolled to be branded even by fire into the body with the ivy-leaf mark of Bacchus" (3 Mace. ii. 29). Right hand: the hand for work (Judg. v. 26; Ps. exxxvii. 5). "The marks of soldiers are in their hands" (JElian, third century). Forehead: "Slaves are inscribed with the mark of their lord, and soldiers are inscribed with the mark of their leader" (St. Am- brose, fourth century). 222 THE REVELATION OF "On the forehead for profession, in the hand for work" (St. Augustine, fifth century). Ptolemy Philopater, second century, compelled the -Tews in Alex- andria to be enrolled in his army, and to he branded with a hot iron. Philo Jiukeus, first century, mentions idolaters who confessed their idolatry by branding its mark on their bodies with a hot iron. The infliction of marks by the lamb-dragon, upon all classes of men, is both a symbol and a prophecy of the universal dominion the Papacy claims and asserts. The Papacy would even now enforce these claims, were it not for the want of civil power. The acknowledged records of the Church of Rome itself are unde- niable proofs of these claims and assertions. We copy from these records of history : — 1. " The Roman pontiff alone is rightly called universal." 2. " All princes should kiss his feet." 3. "He may dethrone emperors." 4. " The Pope is able to release subjects from their allegiance to evil men." (Dictates of Pope Gregory VII., Hildebrand, eleventh century.) — Wordsworth, Rev., p. 225. " Diffinimus sanctam Apostolicam Sedem, et Romanum pontificam, in universam orbem terrere primatum" (Council of Florence, A.D. 1438). — Perceval, Roman Schism, p. 153. 17. And that no one may buy or sell, save he that has the mark ; namely, the name of the wild beast, or the number of his name. Buy or sell: transact business (Jas. iv. 13). The mark: was the name of the lamb-dragon. The name of the popedom. The name of each pope in the succession of popes which the lamb-dragon represents. Papal Rome adopted these interdicts from Pagan Rome: — "Non illis emendi quidquam, aut vendendi copia, nee ipsam hau- sire aquam dabatur licentia, antequam sacrificerent detestandis idolis. (Interdict of the Roman Emperor Diocletian, fourth century.) — Alford, iv. part ii. p. 678. The number of his name: St. John refers to an actual practice. Numerical values were given to the letters of the name. Mercury or Thoth was invoked under the name of 1218; Jupiter, under the name of 117; the sun, under the name of 608 {Dictionary of Bible, "Anti- Christ," p. 111). Here several questions arise. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 223 1. What was this number ? The reference given above proves that the number was the number of the letters in the name, to each of which a numerical value was given. Tharion, the Greek noun for wild beast, has in Greek tbe numerical value of only sixty -nine. 2. Is the number of the wild beast's name to be understood symboli- cally, or literally f As the Apocalypse is throughout a book of symbols, the literal number sixty-nine is not intended. Were the literal sense admissible, sixty-nine is not six hundred and sixty-six (verse 18). When, therefore. St. John, in verse 18, says, " the number of the beast is six hundred threescore and six," he cannot possibly mean the literal number. 3. Since the number of the wild beast is not literal, the number must be symbolical. But in what sense ? Are the letters of the wild beast's name symbols ? or is the action of burning, indicated by the use made of the letters, the symbol ? The letters composing the names were, when heated red-hot, burned into the quivering flesh of the slave. The burning, and not tbe letters composing the name, is the symbol of tbe slavery. The language itself of verse 17 demands this sense for the number of the wild beast. The symbolism of the verse consists of two parts, "the name, and the number of the name;" that is, the numerical values of the name as a different brand. The repetition of the symbols intensifies the symbolism. St. John, by repeating the symbols in verse 17, magnifies the arbitrariness and severity of the wild beast as a tyrannical despot. 18. Here is The Wisdom [Christ]. Let him, who has the mind of revelation, determine the number [of the years] of the wild beast, for the number is a man's number. And so his number is six hundred and sixty-six. Here: our Lord by "here" (Matt. xii. 6, 41, 42, xxiv. 23) calls at- tention to himself. St. John may, therefore (Rev. xiii. 18), repeat Christ's manner of designating personality. The "Wisdom: the article "Tbe" must here be noticed, and allowed its full force. Perhaps this article will disclose the hiddeu meaning of wisdom (Rev. xiii. 18). Wisdom with the article "the" occurs in Bible Greek only in these three places: Matt. xi. 19, Luke vii. 35, and Rev. xiii. 18. In Matt. xi. 19, Luke vii. 35, our Lord appropriates this title, The Wisdom, to himself. The Wisdom, for The Wise One, that is, God; abstract for concrete. This is our Lord's own usage. 224 THE REVELATION OF Examples. — "I am the way," the Leader; and "the truth," the True One; and "the life," the Living One (John xiv. 6). "I came into the world, that I should hear witness to the truth," the true God [in opposition to idols]. " Every one that is of the truth " ("of God," John viii. 47) "heareth my voice" (xviii. 37). " Right hand of the power," the Powerful One (Matt. xxvi. 64). Since it is thus Christ's own usage to use the abstract for the con- crete, and especially since he (Matt. xi. 19; Luke vii. 35) applies " The Wisdom" to himself, "The Wisdom" (Rev. xiii. 18), the only other place in Bible Greek (besides Matt. xi. 10, and Luke vii. 35, where our Lord decides "The Wisdom" means himself) where "The Wis- dom" occurs, it is proved (since Matt. xi. 19 and Luke vii. 35 impart their meaning to Rev. xiii. 18) that "The Wisdom" (Rev. xiii. 18) is no other than Christ himself. The lamb-dragon, the deceiver (Rev. xiii. 14), is the author of false dogmas in the Church. Most fitting is it for Christ, who is The Wisdom, the wise God, to expose the deceits of the cunning deceiver, and decide the number of his years. He who has the mind: this expression may also be a title of Christ. The Septuagint of Isa. xl. 13 has this phrase, the mind of the Lord. St. Paul (Rom. xi. 34 ; 1 Cor. ii. 16) repeats these words in his Christian arguments ; while in the second passage (1 Cor. ii. 16), he makes "the mind of the Lord" and " the mind of Christ" identical. "The mind of Christ" is the mind belonging to Christ. But the mind belonging to Christ is the mind Christ "has" (Rev. xiii. 18). Thus Christ is proved by New-Testament usage, to be He who has the mind; and the expression becomes one of his own titles. But when Isaiah asks, " Who knows the mind of the Lord?" (Isa. xl. 13), the prophet regards the Lord as a Revelator (see verse 14). In this way we discover the character of the mind of Christ (Rev. xiii. 18). His mind is a revealing mind. He has the revealing mind. St. John in the Book of Revelation itself describes Christ as this very possessor of the power of revelation. "The Son of God hath his eyes like unto aflame of fire" (ii. 18). " He hath the seven Spirits of God " (iii. 1). The expression, "He that hath the mind" (Rev. xiii. 18), is in meaning the intensified repetition of the expression, "If any man have an ear" (xiii. 9); that is, have a mind to understand. The identity of verse 9 and verse 18 (Rev. xiii.) is not merely in form, but also in subject and purpose. In verse 8, the first wild beast ("him ") is sovereign conqueror, as civil ruler. In verse 17, the lamb-dragon, as religious ruler, is in like manner universal despot. Verses 9 and 10 predict for the wild beast coming out of the sea ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 22< defeat and punishment. This prediction is for the encouragement of the faith and endurance of the saints. Verse 18 contains, as we shall he ahle to prove, similar predictions of defeat and punishment of the lamb-dragon coming out of the earth. The predictions in symbol (verse 18) have the same object as the previous predictions (verse 10); namely, to strengthen and render unconquerable the faith and patience of Christ's people, renewed in his holy image. Let Christ decide the number [of the years] of the wild beast. In attempting to justify this translation of a portion of the Greek of verse 18, we must first of all broadly distinguish the following expressions, which resemble each other, and, on account of their re- semblance, are often confounded and taken to denote the same thing. 1. The wild beast (verse 17). 2. The name of the wild beast (verse 17). 8. The number of his name (verse 17). 4. The number of the wild beast (verse 18). These four expressions are thus distinguished : — (a) The wild beast is the lamb-dragon, distinguished, by coming from the earth, from the wild beast coming from the sea (verse 1). (b) The name of the wild beast is lamb-dragon (verse 11). (c) The number of his name is the numerical value given to the letters of his name. (cZ) The number of the wild beast is the number of his years on earth. The Number of the Wild Beast. Of the nature and design of the symbolism of this language, Sciip- ture usage furnishes most ample and conclusive proofs. The same word has different meanings. In xii. 16, the word " mouth" has two meanings. In xiii. 10, the Greek word translated "captivity" has two mean ings, — captivity and captive. Since these Greek words (xii. 16, xiii. 10) have two meanings, arithmos (number, verses 17 and 18) may have two meanings, in case the context so permits. The context certainly gives permission. In verse 17, number is numerical value. In verse 18, number is the number of years. In verse 17, the wild beast uses numbering for injustice. In verse 18, Christ uses numbering for justice. Proofs that Number is a Symbol of Destruction. 1. Proofs derived from the word itself, (a) In Rev. vii. and xiv., numbers are symbols of future condition. 226 THE REVELATION OF In these chapters, the future condition is preservation. The future condition may be the opposite of preservation. Number, as a symbol of destruction, is therefore, in Rev. xiii. 18, possible. (b) Number, as a figurative word, is sometimes the equivalent, of fewness. " Years of number," that is, few (Job xvi. 22). (c) Numbering is designation to destruction; that is, a sentenct to destruction. "I will number [sentence] you to the sword" (Isa. lxv. 12). (d) Number sometimes means to complete, to finish. The prophet Daniel thus explains Mene in the divine inscription on the inner wall of Belshazzar's palace : " God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it" (Dan. v. 26). Mene, therefore, as a symbolical number, expresses a finished numbering. Thus Bible usage decides that the number of the wild beast may mean a, finishing number, a number which finishes the career of the lamb-dragon. The number 666 will finish his kingdom and domination in this world. (e) The word "number" is used, in the Bible, with years, to desig- nate a period of time. "The number of Ids years'' (Job xxxvi. 26). "The number of the years" (Dan. ix. 2). The Book of Ecclexiasticus uses the word " number" in connection with a definite designation of years. "The number of a man's days at the most are a hundred yews" (xviii. 9). Bible usage, therefore, permits St. John to say definitely, "The number of the years of the wild beast are six hundred and sixty-six," and to designate by the language the destruction of the wild beast as determined and defined by Christ. 2. Proofs derived from the Greek verb psephizo (translated " count," English Version). In Bible Greek, this verb occurs but twice, here and Luke xiv. 28, "counteth." The verb is derived from pse^/ios, a peb- ble, a vote. In classic Greek, the verb means not only "to count," "to reckon," but also "to vote," "to decide." Meaning of the Greek expression, Psephisto ton arithmon (Rev. xiii. 18): — This expression is not, either in its form or in its meaning, the same as either of these four Greek expressions : — (a) "Take the number" (Num. iii. 40). That is, count the number. (6) "Number the number" (2 Chron. ii. 17). That is, carefully number the number. (c) "Know the number" (2 Sam. xxiv. 2; 1 Chron. xxi. 2). That i*, know the exact number. (d) "Understand the number" (Dan. ix. 2). That is, understand the meaning of the number. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 227 Had St. John intended to give either of these four directions, (a) take (count) the number, (b) carefully number, (c) know the exact number, (d) understand the meaning of the number, he would have used either "take," "number," "know," or "understand." But in Rev. xiii. 18 he uses neither : he rejects each of these four verbs, and selects in their place the verb psephizo. By this rejection, and by this selection, St. John most plainly indicates, that by the Greek expres- sion, psephlsato ton arithmon, he does not mean either (a) count the letters in the name of the wild beast, or (b) carefully number them, or (c) know their exact number, or (d) understand their meaning. By his selection of psephizo, he not only rejects the four verbs, "take [count]," "number," "know," "understand," and their meanings, but also rejects from this Greek verb itself, in Hev. xiii. 18, each and all of these meanings. According to St. John's own decision, psephizo cannot, in Rev. xiii. 18, mean "count," cannot mean "number carefully," cannot mean "know exactly," cannot mean "under- stand the meaning." (e) " The number of years " is, as we have seen, a Bible term for a definite period* of time. But, whenever a period of time is numbered in the Bible, the verb used to express the numbering is never psephizo, the verb in Rev. xiii. IS; but, on the contrary, is without variation, in every instance, either arithmeo, to number, or its compound with a preposition. We subjoin all the places: — Simple verb, Lev. xxiii. 16; Job xxxix. 2. Compound, Lev. xv. 13, xxv. 8; Deut. xvi. 9. It is thus a Bible demonstration, that psephizo (Rev. xiii. 18) does not mean merely "to number," but has an additional and different signification. Nor is this the entire effect of St. John's rejection from psephizo the meanings of "take [count]," "number," "know," "under- stand." He by anticipation utterly and forever rejects from Rev. xiii. 18, all the explanations, prophecies, discussions, and contro- versies which have arisen during the subsequent centuries from the prevalent assumptions that this Greek verb may have its impossible sense in the passage, of either "take [count]," "number," "know," or " understand." Since psephisato (Rev. xiii. 18) cannot mean "take [count]," can- not mean "number," cannot mean "know," cannot mean "under- stand," cannot mean merely " to number," we have yet left us the task of finding, if possible, the true and full meaning of the verb in this verse 18 of chapter xiii. The Bible meaning of psephizo: — Inasmuch as this verb occurs but twice in Bible Greek (Luke xiv. 228 THE REVELATION OF 28, and Rev. xiii. 18), the only Bible illumination remaining to en- lighten our exegetical darkness is the noun psephisma, the only derivative this verb has. Since it is a Septuagint word, its authority is decisive and binding. Psepliisma is thus defined : " A decree of the people, binding upon all classes" (Smith, Diet Antiq., p. 211 a.). Thus defined, psephisma was, with the Greeks, a binding decree for ti whole community. In the Septuagint, this judicial word occurs five times, and in these three senses : — 1. In the Grecian sense, three times (2 Mace. x. 8, xii. 4, xv. 36), a decree binding the whole community. 2. A decree, with the penalty of death. "There went out a decree [psephisma] to the neighboring cities of the heathen, by the suggestion of Ptolemee, against the Jews, that they should observe the same fashions, and be partakers of their sacrifices; and whoso would not conform themselves to the manners of the Gentiles should be put to death" (2 Mace. vi. 8, 9). 3. A decree for the actual destruction of life. "Haman, the enemy of all the Jews, devised against the Jews to destroy them, and cast Pur, that is, the lot \psephisma, Sept.], to con- sume them and to destroy them" (Esth. ix. 24). Thus, in 2 Mace. vi. 9, and Esth. ix. 24, psephisma means a deadly decree. This deadly meaning psephisma derives from its verb, psephizo, which must, therefore, mean (Rev. xiii. 18) to determine a deadly decree. Because psephisato (verse 18) must have this meaning, we are au- thorized by the usages of Bible Greek to translate the second portion of the verse in this form : — "Let Christ, who has the revealing mind, determine the number of the wild beast. For it is a man's number." The wild beast from the earth is the symbol of a kingdom (Dan. vii. 23). For this reason, this beast cannot be an individual king. The beast cannot symbolize any one man whatever, either king or emperor, either bishop or pope. The consequence is most important. Man, in the phrase "man's number," cannot refer to the symbolizing wild beast, the lamb-dragon. The word "man" cannot refer to any civil officer or ecclesiastical ruler of Rome, either ancient or modern. Meaning of the Phrase. The me aning of "man's number" is determined by the phrase, 1 man's measure " (Rev. xxi. 17), as it there means a measure used by ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 229 man. Hence " man's number " can mean notbing else than a number used by man, used by mankind. The number is a human, common. usual number. The sense of " a man's number" cannot be a number pointing out a man. This is the only possible sense of "a man's number;" namely, a number, numerals every man uses and under- stands. And so his number is six hundred and sixty-six. His: that is, his appointed number; appointed by Christ. Six hundred and sixty-six: in Second Maccabees, there ar^ various division of large numbers, which are indefinite, and which determine the character of the number six hundred and sixty-six. Examples. — (a) A fourth. " Five and twenty thousand " (2 Mace, xii. 26). (6) Half. Two hundred and forty (verse 9) [about half] five hun- dred and five thousand (verse 10). (c) Tbree-fourths. Seven hundred and fifty (verse 17). (d) Two-thirds. Six hundred (verse 29). In the canonical books of the Bible, six hundred is the same in- definite two-thirds of a thousand. "About six hundred" (1 Sam. xxiii. 13) ; afterwards, the same body of men, who are thus only "about six hundred," are called exactly six hundred (xxvii. 2, xxx. 9). These facts respecting the Bible use of numbers prove that "six hundred and sixty-six" (Rev. xiii. 18) is two-thirds of a thousand. But as this number, a thousand, is indefinite {"about a thousand," Judg. ix. 49), its two-thirds, six hundred and sixty-six, is also indefi- nite. Tbe fact is decisive in the explanation of our present passage. Since six hundred and sixty-six is indefinite, it cannot designate the numerical values of the letters composing any man's name. The numerical value of such letters is definite. But six hundred and sixty- six (Rev. xiii. 18) is indefinite. An indefinite number cannot possibly define and denote a definite number. Indefinite six hundred and sixty- six cannot by any process be embodied in the definite. — (Lateinos. Alford, iv., part ii. p. 679. Wordsworth and Webster and Wilkinson, on Rev. xiii. 18, Bible Commentary on Rev., p. 697.) All words, whether Latin, Greek, Hebrew, or some other tongue, are definite in the number of their letters. No definite word can match the indefinite six hundred and sixty-six. No defined casting can fit an indefinite mould. The old attempts to explain Rev. xiii. 18 must be abandoned. Why St. John regards .six hundred and sixty-six as two-thirds of a thousand : — In Zech. xiii. 8, an integer is divided into three parts, two of which are cut off. 280 THE REVELATION OF St. John employs the triform enumeration of Zechariah to indi- cate that the number six hundred and sixty-six is itself a symbol of excision. This symbolical excision of the lamb-dragon is most instructive, and also most animating to the faith and patience of Christ's true people. The existence, the domination, the oppression, of Popedom are not perpetual. Their period of six hundred and sixty-six, what- ever of actual time these may be, will surely come to an end. Both the world of mankind and the Church of Christ will outlive all popes. The happy time will come when Popery will be known only as a usurpation and an affliction of the past. Christ alone will yet be uni- versal Bishop, and the sole Head of his liberated and purified Church on earth. God, in his infinite mercies and unfailing love and power, hasten the advent of the long-desired and glorious day! " The Lord of heaven and earth defend us from the tyranny and pride of the popes and prelates of Rome; that they never enter his vineyard again, but that they may be utterly confounded and put to flight in all parts of the world: and he of his great mercy so work in all men's hearts by the mighty power of the Holy Ghost, that the comfortable gospel of his Son Christ may be truly preached, truly received, and truly followed, in all places, to the beating-down of sin, death, the pope, the Devil, and all the kingdom of Antichrist, that like scattered and dispersed sheep, being at length gathered into one fold, we may in the end rest all together in the bosom of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, there to be partakers of eternal and everlasting life, through the merits and death of Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen." — Homilies. Second part of sermon for Whitsunday. Article of Re- ligion, xxxv. The Spiritual War/are of the Lamb-Dragon. On several preceding pages, there are memorable instances of the external warfare of the lamb-dragon. But we largely fail to estimate his power, if w r e regard the destruc- tive warfare he incessantly wages as wholly external, or wholly in times gone by. The lamb-dragon is a deceiver (Rev. xiii. 14). In order to detect his numerous deceptions, and by their detection measure his influ- ence in the Church of Christ, and discover his character, we must first of all closely examine the words of Christ and his apostles, in which they either describe the existence in their own times of spirit- ual adversaries, or predict their advent in the future. Our Lord and his first ministers invariably ascribe the prevalence of moral evil in this world to Satan and his subordinate demons. Our Lord attributes his own temptations in the wilderness to the Devil. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 231 " Get thee hence, Satan." " Then the Devil leaveth him" (Matt. iv. 10, 11). "The Devil is a liar, and the father of it" (John viii. 44). 11 Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts" (Mark iv. 15). " The enemy that sowed the tares is the Devil " (Matt. xiii. 39). "Simon, Satan hath desired to have you" (Luke xxii. 31). " Ye are of your father the Devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do" (John viii. 44). When Christ commissions St. Paul to preach the gospel, it is for this purpose, "To turn the Gentiles from the power of Satan unto God" (Actsxxvi. 18). The apostles of our Lord everywhere repeat his declarations re- specting the hurtful influence of Satan upon the souls of men. St. Paul thus addresses Elymas the sorcerer: "O full of all subtlety and all mischief, thou child of the Devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?" (Acts xiii. 10.) St. Paul elsewhere utters the same alarming truths. "Give not place to the Devil" (Eph. iv. 27). "Be able to stand against the wiles of the Devil" (vi. 11). " Lest he fall into the snare of the Devil " (1 Tim. iii. 7). " Some have already turned aside unto Satan " (v. 15). St. James is equally decided in his warning. " Resist the Devil " (iv. 7). The trumpet of St. Peter is even louder in its warning. "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the Devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Pet. v. 8). St. John is even more explicit. " He that committeth sin is of the Devil " (1 John iii. 8). The roaring lion does not walk about without seizing his prey of human souls. His ruin of Judas, one of the disciples our Lord him- self chose to be his personal attendant, was the introduction to the ruin of many others who ranked themselves among the followers of Christ. Through the dictation of Satan, heresiarchs and apostates start immediately into life, succeed each other in rapid succession, and perpetuate their perversions and errors to future periods. The discovery and delineation of the several abettors of Satan pertain to the history of the Church of Christ. As spring-heads of poisonous streams, many of which are still running in desolating cur- rent, they are as records full of instruction and admonition. We must not pass them by. Faithfulness to truth andto history demands their accurate recognition. 232 THE REVELATION OF " There shall arise false Christs" (Matt. xxiv. 24). The prediction seems from its improbability almost incredible. St. Paul, however, not only reiterates substantially the prediction, but so definitely explains it that we are obliged to recognize " the man of sin" (2 Thess. ii. 3), the false Christ, in the Roman Papacy. To no other historical body can these words of this apostle possibly apply: "There shall come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God" (2 Thess. ii. 3, 4). The translators of the Bible of King James I., A.D. 1611, refer 2 Thess. ii. 3, 4, to the Roman popedom : — " The zeal of Your Majesty toward the house of God manifests itself abroad in the farthest parts of Christendom, by writing in de- fence of the truth (which hath given such a blow unto ' that man of sin,' as will not be healed)." — The Epistle Dedicatory. These English translators not only identify "that man of sin" (2 Thess. ii. 3) with the Roman popedom ; but in using the word " healed," they identify the Roman popedom with the first wild beast (Rev. xiii. 3). 1. "The temple of God" is the Church of Christ (1 Tim. iii. 15). Christ is the supreme Head of the Church (Col. i. 18). He that sitteth as God in the temple of God, sitteth there as supreme head, sitteth there as a false Christ. But, of all organized bodies in the whole world, only the Roman papacy claims to be the supreme head of the Church. By the simple assertion of this untenable claim, the Roman papacy proclaims itself a false Christ, and thus fulfils the prediction of our Lord himself, "There shall arise false Christs.'' 1 "All the popes and prelates of Rome, for the most part, are wor- thily accounted among the number of false prophets and false Christs which deceived the world a long while" (Homilies, second part of sermon for Whitsunday). " The Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing sprits, and doctrines of devils, forbidding to marry" (1 Tim. iv. 1, 3). The prohibition, "forbidding to marry," is itself forbidden by St. Paul by this question of his, which proves that " apostles," and even "Cephas" (who is St. Peter himself), and the "brethren of the Lord," were all married ministers of Christ; and, because they were, also proves that he himself authorizes the marriage of all his minis- ters without exception : — "Have we not power to lead about a sister [Christian] wife, as well as other apostles, and the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas ?" (1 Cor. ix. 5.) ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 233 That the Church of Rome forbids the marriage of all her minis- ters, is a fact too well known to require here any evidence. It is to our present purpose, which is to show the existing influence of the Devil in the Church of Christ, to refer again to this declara- tion of St. Paul: " Forbidding to marry is taking heed [is obedience] to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils,'' that we may appreciate its comprehensive and appalling signification. St. Paul continues the frightful list of existing spiritual adversaries. "False apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ'* (2 Cor. xi. 13). These men are " false apostles," because, — 1. Christ does not appoint them to be his ministers. They appoint themselves, " transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ." 2. They are "deceitful workers." They "handle the word of God deceitfully'' (2 Cor. iv. l ; ). These marks of falsehood adhere most closely and undeniably to the ministers of the Church of Rome: — 1. Their assertions that St. Peter is the source of apostolic au- thority, and that the ministry of the Church of Rome is derived from St. Peter, are totally incapable of proof. 2. The ministers of the Church of Rome pervert and change the revealed word of God, (a) by unwritten and worthless traditions, and (6) by papal decrees contrary to the Scriptures. " They which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins" (2 Tim. iii. 6). This designation has a present as well as a past history. The im- prisoned nuns in all Romish countries and communities, and the sinful histories of nunneries, affix this description of St. Paul upon the ministry of the Church of Rome, beyond denial and beyond removal. "Try the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God; and every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God " ( I John iv. 1-3). When St. John created this test of truth and error, there were men claiming to be Christian teachers who denied the incarnation of the Son of God. All such teaching St. John pronounces false. Since the time St. John thus decided, there have been, and are now, well-known imitators of this false teaching, which, inasmuch as it is not of God, proceeds from the lamb-dragon, the Church- deceiver. Mohammed in his Koran denies the incarnation of Jesus Christ, and of course all Mohammedans everywhere now embrace and pro- mulgate the same blasphemous dogma. 234 THE REVELATION OF Large numbers of Unitarian Christians, because they withhold from our Saviour the possession of Deity, also refuse to admit the truth that he "came in the flesh;" that "the Word who is God" (John i. 1) became a man by taking our human nature. The errors we now expose are indeed held and advocated by large bodies of estimable people who are our own neighbors and acquaint- ances. But truth is not created either by a greatly multiplied or by a popu- lar vote. Nor can the same kind of vote destroy the origination of the errors from the lamb-dragon. Both the errors themselves, and the truths they confront, exist solely by the permission and authority of Christ, and by the decision of the apostles whom the divine Saviour Jesus Christ himself inspires, and thus makes our infallible teachers. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 235 CHAPTER XIV. This chapter contains predictions (verses 1-12) and ful- filments (verses 13-20). The exhibition of both predictions and fulfilments denotes the certainty of the events thus symbolized. I. In the predictions are three divisions, indicated by the three angels. Three is here a full number, and indicates completeness. II. The fulfilments are also three, required by the three predictions, (a) verse 13, (b) verses 14-16, (c) verses 17- 20. Among the fulfilments are two harvests; the grain (verses 15, 16), the fruit (verses 17-20). The reference is to the two harvests in Palestine. This twofold harvesting renders the reaping of the earth complete. The enemies of Christ's Church are forever exterminated. "The harvest" of the world is forever "past;" and "the .summer" of reaping, ingathering, and burning, is absolutely " ended." The two reapers are directed by two angels. Each angel denotes God's time for reaping. "The times and seasons, the Father puts in his own power " (Acts i. 7). In chapter xiv., symbols of victory and triumph follow the symbols of persecution and suffering in chapter xiii. Subjects of this chapter. — 1. The Lamb, and his victories over the apostate Church (1-5). 2. A succession of angels announcing blessings and woes (verses 6-20). 236 THE REVELATION OF THE LAMB AND HIS VICTORIES (Verses 1-5). 1. Also I saw [in vision], and behold, the Lamb standing upon the Mount Sion. and with him a hundred and fort} T - four thousand, having his name and the name of his Father engraven upon their foreheads. The Lamb : the Lamb of v. 6. The Lamb, symbolized as victor (vi. 2), here appears victor over the old dragon and his two wild beasts. The symbolic prediction (vi. 2) is here (xiv. 1) realized. The Lamb in prophetic symbol overcomes the apostate Church, created by the wild beast from the bottomless pit, and headed by the lamb- dragon. Standing: firmly and triumphantly. "Stand" (Eph. vi. 13), as victors. Sion: in the New Testament, only here and Heb. xii. 22; in Rev- elation, only here. The city of David (1 Kings viii. 1). Christ is David's son and successor (Luke i. 32). Sion is the emblem of the true Church (Heb. xii. 22), opposed to Babylon (Rev. xiv. 8), the city of the sea wild beast (verse 9). Sion and Jerusalem are identical. Babylon cannot possibly, there- fore, be Jerusalem, as is sometimes said. The Lamb that was slain in Jerusalem, who once entered it as King, in meekness and lowliness (Matt. xxi. 5), now as symbolic vic- tor occupies and holds Sion, his capital city, and with it his kingdom. He thus by symbol gives victory to his Church, and symbolically fulfils his own promise, "The gates of hell sball not prevail against my Church" (Matt. xvi. 18). A hundred and forty-four thousand: the persons here enu- merated are symbolic, not real. As symbols they represent the true Church victorious over the apostate Church. In Rev. vii. 4, the same symbolic number represents the victory of the Church over its heathen adversaries. His name, and the name of his Father : in strong contrast with the "mark" by the lamb-dragon (xiii. 16). The one hundred and forty-four thousand victors are by numbering and sealing doubly honored and doubly secure. Christ's name is " the Word of God " (xix. 13). His Father's name is "I Am That I Am" (Exod. iii. 14). The engraven names are di- vine pledges of endless preservation. Each name embodies eternity. "The Word of God" is eternal (John i. 1). "I Am That I Am," asserts self-existence, and consequently affirms the Father's eternity. ST. JOHN TH/-: DIVINE. 237 2. And I heard a voice out of heaven, as the voice of mighty waters, and as the voice of great thunder; and the voice which I heard was as the voice of harpers, harping with their harps. Voice: one combined harmonious voice. St. John repeats the word five times; thus indicating the captivating and absorbing attrac- tion of the loud and united harmony. Waters: the resounding waves of the ocean (Ps. Ixv. 7- Isa v 30- Jer. vi. 23). Thunder: its reverberating peals. Harpers : as the ear of St. John becomes accustomed to the sounds he perceives the music is both vocal and instrumental. While harp- ing, the harpers are at the same time singing. The commingled voices and harps are creating an anthem of exultation and praise in anticipation of the complete victories of the Lamb over all his ene- mies. " They take the harp, and rejoice" (Job xxi. 12). 3. And so they are singing as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four living beings, and the elders : and yet uo one was able to learn the song, but the hundred and forty-four thousand, who were redeemed from the earth. New: in contrast with their former trials and prayers (v. 9, vi. 9, Redeemed: by the blood of Christ (v. 9). Gratitude to Christ inspires their song. Without the sense of his love, no one can sin- this song (ii. 17, xix. 12). ° From the earth: from the sinful people of the earth (xiii. 3). "Look unto the rock whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged" (Isa. Ii. 1). The deepest emotions of which the soul of man is capable are the perceptions of the lost condition and ruinous companionship from which Christ saves us These perceptions find utterance in the exclamations of men who had these perceptions, " Who maketh thee to differ?"' (1 Cor. iv. 7-) ''Is not this a brand plucked out of the fire? " (Zech. iii. 2;) " I am not meet to be called an apostle" (1 Cor. xv. 9). 4. These are they who are not defiled with women ; for they are virgins. These are they who follow the Lamb wherever he goeth. These are redeemed from men, the first fruits to God and to the Lamb. 238 THE REVELATION OF These . . . are virgins: the one hundred and forty-four thou- sand, here said to be virgins, represent the entire Church of Christ, in all time. To predicate literal virginity of such a representative class, is simply to formulate an impossibility, which as a proposition refutes itself. The predication is imposed upon the passage by the commou mistake of regarding the Apocalypse as a record of real events, and of overlooking its actual character, a book of symbolic predictions. In the language of the Bible, idolatry is spiritual adultery. "Through her whoredoms Israel defiled the land, and committed adultery with slocks and sUmes" (Jer. iii. 9). " With their idols have they committed adultery" (Ezek. xxiii. 37). In the Apocalypse, the great city Babylon (xiv. 8) is called "the great harlot" (xvii. 1), with whom "the kings of the earth commit fornication" (verse 2); and this fornication is the worship of the wild beast from the sea, and his image (xiv. 9). When, therefore, St. John asserts that not at all with women the one hundred and forty-four thousand are defiled, he merely asserts that they do not either in form or in spirit practise the worship of idols, introduced by the wild beast, and cherished by the harlot Babylon. The "ten virgins" (Matt. xxv. 1) are not virgins in a literal sense, but in a spiritual sense. They are ten representative men, who are all outwardly faithful worshippers of God. The "wise" are spiritual worshippers. The worship of the "foolish" is merely external. 1 "Virgin" is often in spiritual sense (2 Cor. xi. 2; 2 Kings xix. 21; Isa. xxxvii. 22; Jer. xviii. 13, xxxi. 4, 21; Lam. i. 15, ii. 13; Amos v. 2). Rev. xiv. 4 does not in the slightest degree warrant this dogma of the Church of Rome: — "It is better and more blessed to remain in virginity or celibacy than to be joined in matrimony" (Council of Trent, session xxiv., A.D. 1563, Canon X.). — Pekceval, Eoman Schism, p. 330. Follow: as victor-soldiers (xix. 14). Wherever: in every warfare Christ conducts. Redeemed from: rescued, delivered, separated from the sinful men, described in ix. 4, 6, 10, 15, 18, 20, — "have not the seal of God in their foreheads." The first-fruits: only here in the Apocalypse; the beginning of the gathering of souls to Christ. A larger harvest will follow: the first-fruits is the pledge of this increase (1 Cor. xvi. 15; Jas. i. 18). Origin of the term, Exod. xxiii. 19; Lev. xxiii. 10, 11, 14. 1 See " The Teu Virgins in their Spiritual Character," The Churchman, Aug. 9, 1884. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 239 5. And in their mouth is found no lie ; for they are with- out fault. Mouth: for speech; " mouth speaking " (Rev. xiii. 5; Matt. xv. 8, xviii. 16). Distributive singular, each mouth. Is found: by Christ; "I have found" (Rev. iii. 2). Lie: the lamb-dragon is a deceiver (xiii. 14). The Devil, who inspires him, is a liar (John viii. 44). The redeemed neither deceive nor lie: they are faithful servants of Christ, as they profess to be. Without fault : blameless. Nothing in them can be blamed : they are " without sin" (Heb. iv. 15). Emphatic; negative for the positive : they are perfect. SUCCESSION OF ANGELS HERALDING PROPHECIES (Verses 6-20). Predictions and fulfilments are in order after the exhibition of the triumphant Church. The appearance of six heralding angels (verses 6, 8, 9, 15. 17, 18), in two groups. First group of three angels, verses 6, 8, 9; second group of three, verses 15, 17, 18. The numbers are significant. As seven is absolute completion, six in a group^ of seven is a very full number, — twice three. There are only six angel-trumpeters of woes (viii. 7, 8, 10, 12, ix. 1, 13). The seventh trumpets victory (xi. 15). There are only six angel censer-bearers of woes (xvi. 2-4, 8, 10, 12). The seventh enacts completion (xvi. 17). As a. full number, therefore, do the six angels present themselves (xiv. 6-20). As three is also an integer, each angel-group of three is a, full number. Moreover, angel is the symbol of message in Exod. xiv. 19, 20. In Rev. xiv., the six angel-messengers (verses 6, 8, 9, 15, 17, 18) explain in detail the symbolic representation (verse 1) of Christ's victory over all his enemies. There is thus, in chapter xiv., first, general an- nouncement, and then more minute explanations. There are, in the New Testament, examples of this twofold form of annunciation. In Matt. iii. 16, 17, there is, first, the dove, the symbol of a mes- sage of peace from God to Jesus Christ; then, the verbal explanation of the actions of the dove, by the voice of the Father. The same duplex form of divine communication is seen and heard in Acts x. 11-15, 28. First, the symbol of the "great sheet" and its microcosm contents; then, audible words of explanation. 240 THE REVELATION OF In Rev. xiv. 1-5, the victory of the Lamb over the wild beast from the sea, and over the wild beast from the earth, are most sublimely and impressively celebrated. In verses 6-20, the several events which precede and cause this triumphant victory, and conduct to it, are symbolically enumerated in these two forms: first, predictions (verses 6-12); then, fulfilments (verses 18-20). FIRST GROUP: PREDICTIONS. The Publication of the Enduring Good News of God's Coming Judg- ments (Verses 6, 7). 6. And I saw another angel flying in the eye of the sun, having an eternal message of good news, to publish as good news for them who are abiding upon the earth, even for every people, and tribe, and tongue, and nation. Saw: see note on viii. 13. Good news: only here in the Apocalypse. The Greek verb, of which the Greek noun is the root, occurs x. 7, xiv. 6. Eternal: only here in this book: never elsewhere with this noun. The eternal good news; the good news will endure always. The "good news" is not here the gospel of Christ, but this eter- nal good news, namely, that "the hour of his judgment is come" (verse 7). In the New Testament, the word "gospel" occurs alone (without an adjective) thirty-four times; in every instance with the article, " the gospel." Also when connected (with an adjective) the word "gospel" always has the article, except once (Rom. i. 1); "gospel" is deprived of the article by the word "God." But in Rev. xiv. 6, "good news" (gospel) is without the article. Moreover, the phrases "gospel of God" and "of Christ" never have an adjective; but "good news" ("gospel," Rev. xiv. 6) has the adjective "eternal." These facts of usage utterly forbid our regarding the phrase "eter- nal good news" (Rev. xiv. 6), as the gospel of Jesus Christ. To publish: not "preach " (English Version), in the sense of preaching the gospel of Christ, but to publish the good news of God's coming judgment. For: this is the sense of the Greek preposition with the accusative (Matt. iii. 7); for baptism (Luke vii. 44, xv. 4, xxiii. 4S; Heb. xii. 10). People, etc. : xiii. 7. 7. Saying, with a loud voice, Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment is come ; and so worship ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 241 the Maker of heaven and earth, and the sea and fountains of waters. Fear: revere, reverence. Glory : praise. Hour : a definite and fixed time. Judgment: first time in the Apocalypse. In the singular num- ber, only here and xviii. 10, where judgment on Babylon is meant. This, therefore, is the meaning here. " Babylon is fallen, is fallen " (verse 8). The final judgment is not here intended. The maker : Exod. xx. 11. And the sea: Acts iv. 24, xiv. 15. Fountains of waters: in viii. 10 and xvi. 4, rivers are joined with fountains. The waters of rivers and fountains are added to the sea to intensify the truth that God is the Creator of all things, without exception. Since the universal Creator, God is to be exclusively worshipped. This verse embodies these truths: God will destroy all worship of idols; therefore reverence and worship him. Cease from every form of idolatry, both in form and in spirit. The Announcement of the Fall of Babylon. 8. And another, a second angel follows, saying, Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, because she makes all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. The second anger follows the first angel. That the second angel follows the first, is certain from this assertion (verse 9): the third angel follows "them;" that is, the third angel follows the second angel, and also the first. The three angels perform the same actions, and act in the same sphere. But the first angel flies; therefore the second and third angels also fly. The first angel flies in the eye of the sun (viii. 13): consequently the second and third angels fly in the eye of the sun. All three angels fly in the eye of the sun, that all the world may see them in their flight, and hear their great messages. Since these angels are associated inflight tles, prophets, —the same in number as the mourners. The rejoicing is as universal as is the sorrow. Thou heaven heaven for its inhabitants (Dent. iv. 2G; Ps. lxix. 34; Isa. xlix. 13, "Sing, O heavens"). " The heaven and earth sing for Babylon" (Jer. li. 48). Seventh Triplet. 1. Ye saints: under the altar (vi. 9, 10); martyred saints (xviii. 24). 2. Ye apostles: in the largest sense, — messengers (Rev. ii. 2). The messengers Christ sends to preach his gospel. 3.. Ye prophets : martyred prophets (xviii. 24). The New-Testa- ment prophets both predict and instruct. Is avenging: is inflicting judgment, punishment (vi. 10). From her: God exacts from Babylon the judgment she inflicted upon the Christian martyrs (verse 0). 304 THE REVELATION OF On you : the same form of expression as this, the judgment on the harlot (xvii. 1). This command of the angel is promptly oheyed in the quadrupled Alleluia (xix. 1-8). SYMBOLIC CONFIRMATION OF GOD'S JUDGMENTS UPON BABYLON. 21. And a strong angel takes up a stone, like a great millstone, and casts it into the sea, saying, Thus with vio- lence shall Babylon, the ver}' great cit} T , be cast [out of sight] , so that in no wise shall she be found hereafter. The destruction of Pharaoh and his host illustrates the imagery in this verse. " Pharaoh's chariots and his host hath the Lord cast into the sea; his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red Sea. The depths have covered them: they sank into the hottom as a stone" (Exod. xv. 4, 5). "The persecutors of our fathers in Egypt, thou threwest into the deeps, as a stone into the mighty waters" (Neh. ix. 11). The sea: in St. John's vision, the Mediterranean, surrounding the island of Patmos. Seraiah, the servant of Jeremiah, casts a stone into the Euphrates to symbolize the utter destruction of its city Babylon ( Jer. li. 63, 04). AMPLIFICATION BY THE STRONG ANGEL OF GOD'S JUDGMENTS UPON BABYLON (Verses 22, 23). Universal silence is the inclusive judgment. 1. The sounds heard both in peace and war are all silent, (a) In peace : harpers, singers, pipers. (6) In war : trumpeters. 2. Human occupations silent. Eveiy artisan of every art. 3. Family life ceases : millstone, lamp. 4. The family, the source of human life, ceases: bride- groom, bride. 22. And the vcice of harpers, and singers, and pipers, and trumpeters, shall in no wise be heard in thee aiy T more ; and eveiy artisan of every art shall in no wise be found ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 305 in thee any more ; and the sound of a millstone shall in no wise he heard in thee any more. Harpers: rejoicing (Job xxi. 12; Isa. xxiv. 8). Singers: the harp was accompanied by the voice (Ps. lxxi. 22; Ezek. xxvi. 13). Pipers: blowing reed instruments (Matt. xi. 17), not " flute-play- ers " (Westminster Revision). Every artisan: the Bible list of artisans is large: bakers (Jer. xxxvii. 21), barbers (Ezek. v. 1), blacksmiths (Isa. xliv. 12), carpen- ters (Isa. xliv. 13), coppersmiths (2 Tim. iv. 14), engravers (Deut. xxvii. 15), fullers (Mark ix. 3), glass-blowers (Rev. iv. 6, xv. 2), gold- smiths (1 Ghron. xxix. 5), masons (2 Kings xii. 12), moulders (Deut. xxvii. 15), painters (Jer. xxii. 14), potters (Jer. xviii. 2), ropemakers (Acts xxvii. 32), sailinakers (Isa. xxxiii. 23), shipbuilders (1 Kings ix. 26), shoemakers (Isa. v. 27), silversmiths (1 Chron. xxix. 5), spinners (Exod. xxxv. 25), tanners (Acts ix. 43), weavers (Exod. xxxv. 35). What silence follows the cassation of these numerous pursuits! Millstone: same language in Jer. xxv. 10. Usually turned by women (Matt. xxiv. 41). In Babylon no millstone is turned. The women are all dead and motionless. Every house is silent. 23. Also the light of a lamp shall in no wise shine in thee any more ; and the voice of a bridegroom and of a bride shall in no wise be heard in thee any more. Lamp: language taken from Jer. xxv. 10. No lamp is lighted anywhere; no breath to kindle the flame; no hand to set the light on the lampstand. Every house is dark: the darkness of death reigns in every dwelling. Bridegroom and bride : language taken from Jer. vii. 34, xvi. 9, xxv. 10. Bridegroom, bride: the source of human life fails. No more bridegrooms, no more brides, no more children, no more families. Man, as a race, is ended. The primal command, "Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it" (Gen. i. 8), is forever revoked. With his life, the presence and dominion of man cease. Wild beasts will now roam and ravage. Wild birds will henceforth scream and revel. In horrific certainty nothing can surpass these depopulating speci- fications of consummated and changeless desolation. The present desert site of Babylon on the Euphrates is the visible counterpart of this symbolic silence and death. 306 THE REVELATION OF CAUSES OF THE UNIVERSAL DESTRUCTION. 24. For thy merchants were the great men of the earth ; for all nations are deceived by ttry sorcery. Also in her the blood of prophets and saints is found, and of all the slain upon the earth. Eighth Triplet. These causes are three. The threefold enumeration, denoting com- pleteness, is continued. In the presentation of the first and second causes, the personified city of Babylon is still addressed. 1. First cause. The wickedness of the Roman merchants. Thy merchants are the great men of the earth. (a) The designation, of the earth, places the great men in the class of the worldly and wicked. See notes on xvi. 1. (b) The Greek term translated "great men" occurs in the New Testament only three times, — in this verse, and Mark vi. 21, and Rev. vi. 15. In Mark vi. 21, the great men ("his lords") are among the drink- ing companions of Herod Antipas, who demanded the unjust death of John the Baptist. " For their sakes which sat with him, the king sent an executioner, and commanded John's head to be brought" (verses 26, 27). In Rev. vi. 15, "the great men" are conspicuously among the un- repenting enemies of Christ. Since in these two places " the great men" denote the worldly and the wicked, "the great men" must also denote the worldly and the wicked in Rev. xviii. 24, the only other place where the word occurs in the New Testament. Each Roman merchant was the counterpart of the prophet Hosea's merchant: "the balances of deceit are in his hand: he loveth to oppress" (Hos. xii. 7). God destroyed Pagan Rome for the same reason that he destroyed the city of Tyre. "By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled thee with violence. Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the iniquity of thy traffic; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee; it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes" (Ezek. xxviii. 16, 18). For its iniquitous traffic, God burned ancient Tyre. For their own iniquitous traffic in Pagan Rome, her oppressive merchants behold the city they had doomed burning before their eyes. 2. Second cause of the destruction of Babylon. Her sorcery. ST. JOnN THE DIVINE. 307 Are deceived by thy sorcery: what is sorcery? (1) According to the immediate context, sorcery is a deceit, a de- ception, a pretence. Sorcery claims to be something which it is not. (2) In itself sorcery is, — (a) Divination; assumed superhuman foresight (Acts xiii. G). (b) The pretended exercise of superhuman power. The people of Samaria called Simon the sorcerer " the power of God" (Acts viii. 10). Thus sorcery is both divination and magic. In each of these forms : — 3. Sorcery becomes idolatry, by attributing to created persons and things foresight and power possessed exclusively by God. Sorcery may include the pretended miracles of Papal Rome. Idolatry in the heart excites the displeasure of God not less than material idolatry (Ezek. xiv. 7, 8). Pagan Rome was largely infidel. Infidelity always degenerates into superstition. Superstition is the inventress and administratrix of sorcery in all its modifications. 3. Third cause of the destruction of the harlot city. The murder of prophets, saints, and martyrs. Eusebius, the Church historian, shows the fulfilment of these pre- dictions respecting the bloodshed of Christian prophets, and saints, and martyrs, by the emperors of Pagan Rome (Ecclesiastical His- tory, book viii., and Book of Martyrs, pp. 317-375). The history of St. Bartholomew's Day shows us not only the murders of Protestants, Papal Rome then committed, but also the approval by the Pope and his cardinals of the savage outrage, and their frantic exultation over it. THE APOCALYPSE HISTORICAL. We can now, perhaps, answer this question: How far is the Book of Revelation historical? When the fulfilment of an Apocalyptic prophecy can be verified by history, secular or church, then the event becomes historical. By the application of this safe test, the prophetic fall in the Apocalypse, both of the Pagan city of Rome, and of its Pagan empire, are established as historical verities. Pagan Rome, on the east bank of the Tiber, has for centuries been an absolute desolation. Before the close of the fifth century, the empire of Pagan Rome was annihilated by the invasions of savage hordes from the East and North. The fall of Pagan Rome is prophetic of the fall of Papal Rome. The majestic symbols of defeat and victory, of destruction and 308 THE REVELATION OF revival, St. John here places before our eyes, are too vast for human foresight even feebly to trace and measure. As prophecies, these symbols predict two certain events in the coming future: (a) The overthrow and disappearance of every institution, social, civil, and religious, which is anti- Christian ; and (b) the incessant growth and universal dominion of Christ's subverting kingdom of righteousness, holiness, and peace. As God's reconstructing hand is present in all existing changes, so will it be present in all future revolutions. "I will overturn, overturn, overturn [completely overturn] it [every false thing] : and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it" to Christ (Ezek. xxi. 27). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 309 CHAPTER XIX. THANKSGIVINGS IN HEAVEN FOE THE FALL OF BABY- LON, FOR THE MARRIAGE OF THE LAMB, AND FOR HIS VICTORIES. Chapters xix.-xxii. resemble Ezek. xxxvi.-xxxix. THE ALLELUIAS (Verses 1-6). These are four (verses 1, 3, 4, 6). Each alleluia con- tains a triplet , — salvation, glory, power (verse 1). The worshippers also form a triplet. (a) "Much people" (verse 1) ; (b) The elders and the living creatures (verse 4); and (c) "All God's servants, small and great" (verse 5). As three is a complete number, the fourth alleluia has entered upon a second triplet, one number only of which is littered, to indicate that the second triplet will never be completed. Alleluias will be perpetual, even eternal. Throughout eternit}', God will be praised for the downfall and annihila- tion of the apostate Chinch, for the union of Christ and his true Church, and for his triumph over sin, death, and Satan. First A llehiia. 1. After these visions, I hear a sound of words, as the great voice of much people, saving in heaven, Alleluia ; All salvation, and all glory, and all power are our God's : Hear: hearing now takes the place of seeing (xviii. 1). Much people : the true Church of Christ. 310 THE REVELATION OF Ninth Triplet. Much people; elders and living creatures; all God's servants. Alleluia: in the New Testament, only in this chapter. Its mean- ing in the Hebrew is, Praise ye Jehovah. "Praise ye the Lord" (Ps. civ. 35). Tenth Triplet. All salvation, all glory, all power. "To the Lord are all things; to whom be all glory" (Rom. xi. 36). He alone has the power to give his people salvation. To him alone belongs the glory. 2. For true and righteous are his judgments ; for he is judging the great harlot, who was corrupting the earth with her fornication, and is avenging the blood of his servants at her hand. True : see xv. 3. Corrupting: "I am against thee, Babylon, O destroying moun- tain, which destroyed [art corrupting] all the earth" (Jer. li. 25), ever corrupting both the religion and morals of the world. The earth: that is, mankind (Gen. vi. 11; Rev. vi. 8). Avenging: exacting in vengeance (2 Kings ix. 7). At her hand : by demanding payment from her hand. Second Alleluia. 3. And a second time they sa3 T , Alleluia. And her smoke rises up for ever and ever. Second time: for two reasons: (a) For emphasis; (b) To denote extension of time. The second alleluia is prolonged in its performance. This pro- longation is indicated by the Greek accusative of the time. Rises up: the perpetual ascent of the smoke of the harlot-city's burning causes the extension (see xiv. 11; Isa. xxxiv. 10). The smoke of the burning city arises forever as an eternal memorial of the justice of God in destroying the apostate Church. The alle- luia arises forever as an eternal memorial of the mercy of God in delivering his true Church and the world from the hurtful example and persecuting ravages of the spiritual adulteress. The Response of the Eiders and the Living Creatures. — Third Alleluia. 4. And the twentj'-four elders and the four living beings ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 311 fall down and worship God, who sitteth upon the throne, saying, Amen ; Alleluia. Elders, etc.: iv. 4-6. The judges and the executioners also ex- claim, Alleluia. Throne: of judgment (iv. 2). Amen: so be it. Emphatic repetition of alleluia. Alleluia is thus repeated the third time. The praises now given God for his judgments and mercies are in themselves complete, because proclaimed three times, — a full number. The Voice from the Throne. 5. And a voice comes out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, all ye that fear him, all ye small and great. A fourth alleluia (praise our God) commanded. Eleventh Triplet. (a) Servants; (b) That fear God; (c) Small and great. (a) His servants: faithful members of Christ's Church (Kev. vii. 3). (b) That fear God: they that in every nation fear him (Acts x. 35). St. Paul distinguishes between the " men of Israel " and "ye that fear God" (Acts xiii. 16; Eom. ii. 14). The saved of the heathen. (c) Small and great: young and old, children and adults (Matt. xxi. 15, 16). Answer of the Three Classes to the Voice from the Throne. — Fourth Alleluia. 6. Also I hear an answer, as the voice of a great multi- tude, and as the voice of man}' waters, and as the voice of mighty thunders, saying, Alleluia; for the Lord our God, the Omnipotent, reigneth. Twelfth Triplet. (a) Great multitude; {b) Many waters; (c) Mighty thunders. 1. Voice of a great multitude: as the united voices of a vast crowd. The imagery may be derived from the vocal worship of the great multitudes assembled at Jerusalem on the three annual festivals, when the attendance was national and enormous. 312 THE REVELATION OF "The singers went before, the players on instruments followed after: among them were the damsels playing with timbrels" (Ps. lxviii. 25). " All Israel sounded, by lifting up the voice with joy; with shouting, and with the sound of the cornet, and with trumpets, and with cym- bals, making a noise with psalteries and harps" (1 Chron. xv. 16, 28). "All the people said Amen, and praised the Lord" (1 Chron. xvi. 30). 2. Many "waters: as the unceasing roar of the swelling waves of the tossing sea (see i. 15). 3. Mighty thunders: as the echoing peals of the deafening lightning-strokes. The simultaneous alleluia of the innumerable assembly of im- mortal voices of small and great, of children and adults, not only more than equals, but immeasurably surpasses, the commingled harmony of the shouting masses, of the resounding ocean, and of the all-pervading thunders. No earthly sounds can adequately repre- sent the majesty and sublimity of the response the hosts of heaven return to the voice from the throne commanding the response. The alleluia anthem, St. John's ear alone hears, is A super- mundane Magnificat. Reigneth: the Greek verb is the aorist, which the English Ver- sion correctly here translates as a present tense. God has defeated Babylon, and all his enemies, and is reigning omnipotent on his throne of judgment, and in his Christian kingdom. The vision of the quadrupled alleluia anthem of the Church uni- versal ends with verse 6. The Design of the Alleluias. Would we perceive the ( design of the four alleluias, we must recall to our notice the symbolical character of the Apocalypse. In the alleluias, as in every portion of the book, there are these funda- mental portions : — 1. The actuality from which the symbolism is derived. In the alleluias, the choirs of King David constitute the actuality (1 Chron. xiii. 8). 2. The alleluias themselves constitute the symbolism. They sym- bolize some object outside of themselves. 3. The alleluias symbolize the universal joy created by the tri- umphs of Christ, and the defeat of his foes. Music is itself the symbol of gladness (Luke xv. 25, 32). When "all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of God, they shall break forth into joy [such as is here symbolized] : with the voice together shall they sing" (Isa. lii. 8-10). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 313 To this symbolized joy, every human soul, renewed in the image of Christ, is at the present time contributing a note by his own unceasing heart-song. St. Paul recognizes this undying music of the renewed soul, " mak- ing melody in your heart to the Lord " (Eph. v. 19). The strings of this inner harp, God creates in sanctified hearts, nothing outward can break and silence. The heavenly strings are always vibrating, and always diffusing gladness; in darkness as well as in sunlight; in affliction and sorrow as well as in external pros- perity and comfort. These incessant heart -songs, though heard by no human ear save the consciousness of each happy possessor, form over the sur- face of the earth, wherever the gospel and the Spirit of Christ inspire the cheering and abiding music, a united anthem, which is ever loud and welcome in "tlie ears of the Lord of Sabaoth," and are in part the fulfilment and the realization of the prophetic alleluias St. John heard in heaven. The preservation and perpetuation of Christian heart-songs in this sinful world is the ground of hope, both for the salvation of individ- uals, and for the extension and prevalence of the joyous and glad- dening gospel of Christ unto even the ends of the habitable earth. THE MARRIAGE OF THE LAMB (Verses 7-9). 7. Let us rejoice and be exceeding glad, and give him glory ; for the marriage festival of the Lamb is come, and his wife is making herself ready. Thirteenth Triplet. Kejoice, be glad, give glory. The marriage of the king follows, as a usual sequence, after his firm establishment in his throne (1 Kings ii. 46, iii. 1; 2 Chron. xxi. 5, 6). Naturally, the expression of joy succeeds the occasion of the joy. " When they saw the star, they rejoiced " (Matt. ii. 10). "The friend of the bridegroom rejoiceth, because of the bride- groom's voice" (John iii. 29). But here (Rev. xix. 7) the joy precedes the occasion of the joy. It is the joy of certain faith. Faith believes the event foretold will occur, because predicted by God, and therefore rejoices in anticipation and by faith. The same reversed order appears in xviii. 20, xix. 1, 3, 6, and for the same reason. Thus previous usage explains why in this verse 7 there is the expression of joy before the cause of the joy is mentioned. 314 THE REVELATION OF Let us rejoice, etc.: these exulting words (verses 7, 8, 9) are not from the throne (verse 5). The angelic speaker reveals himself (verse 10). Exceeding glad : exult. Give glory : that is, praise him. Marriage-festival: "marriage-supper" (verse 9; see Matt. xxv. 1-10). His wife: his Church. "Thy Maker is thy husband" (Isa. liv. 5). " The husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the Church" (Eph. v. 23). Christ and his Church are now, in spiritual union and oneness, husband and wife. Their future reign over the world is, in Rev. xix. 7-9, represented as the occasion of such joy as marks a marriage festival. Is making herself ready: is preparing for the festival. The preparation is described in the next verse (verse 8) " array in fine linen, the righteousness [acts] of saints." The preparation is, there- fore, a righteous life, inspired and perfected by internal righteousness (Matt. v. 6) ; is holiness of heart and life. This is Christ's present and incessant command to every Christian, "Son, go work to-day in my vineyard" (Matt. xxi. 28). Only the actual and habitual doer of this work, which he requires of each one of us who bears his name, "is making himself ready" for Christ's final welcome. "Come unto the marriage" (Matt. xxii. 4). Work, not mere spirituality, is the preparation. 8. And it is given her to be clothed in fine linen, white and clean, for the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. Is given: God permits the Church to be clothed with Christian graces. lie permits her to be saved. He saves her by his mercy (Tit. iii. 5). We cannot save ourselves. "Without me ye can do nothing" (John xv. 5). Fine linen: a simple dress, although ornamented, "adorned" (xxi. 2). In strong contrast with the gaudy attire of the harlot (xvii. 4). Righteousness: righteous acts (xv. 4; Rom. v. 18). The acts of the saints are made righteous by the blood of the Lamb (Rev. vii. 14). Is: represents. This is the meaning of "is" (Matt. xxvi. 20). The saints', compose the Church, the Lamb's wife. ST. JOHN THE D TV INK. 315 9. And he saith to me, Write, Blessed are they who are called to the marriage-supper of the Lamb. Also he saith to me, These sayings are the true sayings of God. He saith : an angel (verse 10). The interpreting angel of i. 1. Write : on account of the supreme importance of the declaration I now utter (i. 11, xiv. 13)." Blessed : see i. 3. No blessing greater than this call. Called: not only invited (Matt. xxv. 3), but accepted as guests (verse 10). These sayings : the sayings included in xvii. 1-xix. 9. True: the sayings God himself utters, and therefore unalterable and most credible. ANGEL-WORSHIP FORBIDDEN - . 10. And I fall before his feet to worship him. And he saith to me, See thou do it not. I am thy fellow-servant and of thy brethren, who have the testimony respecting Jesus. Worship God alone : for the testimony [the testifier] respecting Jesus is the Spirit inspiring prophecy. I fall before his feet: St. John seems not to distinguish between the voice from the throne (verse 5), and the voice of the angel (verses 7 and 8). Perhaps the angel, when he began to speak, was in- visible. Worship him: as divine. Worship, in the highest sense. This verb always has this sense in the Apocalypse. See thou do it not : do not give divine honor to an angel; he is only a created being. St. Paul pronounces the worship of angels a delusion (Col. ii. 18). It is not merely a delusion. It is idolatry, because it is worship given a creature. Thy fellow-servant : my service is the same as thy service. I am thy official equal. Respecting Jesus: see 1 John v. 9. Alone: tbe contrast between the worship given to an angel and the worship given to God creates this emphatic sense. For: introduces the reason for the official equality of the angel with St. John and his Christian brethren. This is tbe reason. They are all inspired by the same Spirit of prophecy. They are all made to drink of one Spirit ( 1 Cor. xii. 13). They are all moved by the Holy Ghost (2 Pet. i. 21). But the Holy Spirit in them is the Spirit of Christ (1 Pet. i. 11). 316 THE REVELATION OF His Spirit is, therefore, the Spirit of prophecy who inspires them. This common inspiration creates official equality. Thus inspiring them, the Spirit of the prophecy is himself the testimony (the author of the testimony), the testifier, respecting Jesus. He testifies respect- ing Jesus, as well as the angel, St. John, and his brethren. There are thus two sufficient reasons against St. John's worship- ping the angel. 1. His official equality with St. John. 2. The Spirit of prophecy, and not the angel, is the author of the testimony respecting Jesus. This is the teaching of the angel himself. 1. I am thy fellow-servant. I am nothing more than a servant in giving my testimony respecting Jesus, and not its author. For, — 2. The testimony, the author of the testimony, the testifier, is the Spirit of prophecy. So fully and exclusively is he its author, that he himself is the Spirit inspiring prophecy. " All Scripture [testimony, prophetic or otherwise] is given by inspiration of God" (2 Tim. iii. 16). THE TRIUMPHS OF THE LAMB (Chapters xix. 11, xx. 1-6). The Consummation of all the Preceding Symbols. 11. And I saw the heaven opened. And behold a white horse, and his rider called Faithful and True, and in justice doth he judge and make war. Heaven opened: the opening of heaven is the initiation of great events (iv. 1, xi. 19, xv. 5). White horse : this expression in the Apocalypse, only here and vi. 2. White is the emhlem of victory (see vi. 2, note). Horse: kings rode on horses (Esth. vi. 8). His rider: this rider is a symbol of Christ, the Word of God (xix. 13). The rider (vi. 2) is a symbol of the same person. The other horses and riders of vi. 4-8, having served their symbolic purposes, have disappeared. The symbol of Christ returns (xix. 11) to show the result of these accomplished purposes. Faithful and True: see iii. 14. The attributes by which he triumphs. The possession of the same attributes will cause his fol- lowers to triumph. In justice: the Greek word is in Revelation only here and xxii. 11, where, because contrasted with " unjust," must signify justice. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 317 This sense (Acts xvii. 81; Kora. ix. 2S; Heb. xi. 33), "The Word of God," here fulfils Isaiah's prophetic description of Christ (Isa. xi. 3-5). Doth he judge and make war: the present tense of the verbs "judge" and " war" teaches us that Christ is a present judge and a present warrior; that he is now at the present hour judging both his Church and the world, and also continually fighting for his Church and making it victorious, and continually fightiug against its enemies and causing their defeat. 12. Also his e}-es are a flame of fire ; and on his head are man}' diadems ; having a name written which no one knows save he himself. The first clause of this verse is, as a description, parenthetic. His eyes: see i. 14. The eyes of fire symbolize the punishment the Supreme Victor will now inflict. Diadems : in the Apocalypse only here and xii. 3, and xiii. 1. The difference between crown and diadem is noticed (xii. 3, note) . The single crown (vi. 2) has become, in his successive victories, many diadems. Having: is a modal participle, belongs to "judges and makes war" (verse 11), and thus is ready to describe the manner of the judg- ing and of the warring. Name written: unknown to all, save to Christ himself. In the Greek and Latin, the word "name," since derived from verbs which signify " to know," is the means by which something is made known. Were the name here an explanation, it would describe the manner of Christ's judging and warring. But since the name is unknown save to Christ, it is not an explanation, and consequently Christ does not here disclose his manner of judging and warring. This manner he reserves for the exercise of his own unrevealed wisdom. The rider wearing many diadems his already three names, " Faith- ful and True " (verse 11), " The Word of God " (verse 13), and " King of kings and Lord of lords" (verse 16). These names constitute The Fourteenth Triplet in this part of the Apocalypse. The three names are personal names, because describing his per- sonal character. As personal appellations, the threefold symbolism indicates that these three complete the present description of his personal character. 318 THE REVELATION OF What can a fourth name, known in its meaning only to the victor rider, denote? From the fact that the name is known only to the bearer, it must denote secrecy. " The angel of the Lord said unto Manoah, Why askest thou after my name, seeing it is secret?" (Judg. xiii. 18.) A name of God is the disclosure he makes in it of his nature and character (Exod. iii. 13, 14). In Rev. xix. 11, 13, 16, Christ in three names reveals himself as (a) "faithful and true" to fulfil all his promises to his true Church, and all his judgments upon his apostate Church; as (b) able to do all this, because as " the Word of God" he is in his nature divine, and therefore sure to prove himself in this world (c) "King of kings and Lord of lords." More knowledge of himself than the truths contained in these three names, he does not here reveal. He holds exclusively in his own infinite knowledge both the time when he will actually become Supreme Ruler on earth, and also the methods of his justice (verse 11) by which he will achieve his triumphs and impose his punishments. Since a divine name is God's special disclosure of himself, and since Christ does not disclose either the time or the methods of his actual supremacy, his reserved knowledge, in contrast with the dis- closures in the three names of the context, becomes in effect a secret name (Acts i. 7). Importance of these Four Names. These four names in Rev. xix. constitute the instructive and definite explanation the Apocalypse itself (jives of its own character and de- sign. Throughout the entire book, Christ is the same kind of Revelator he is in the four names. Everywhere is he "Faithful and True." Everywhere is he the eternal and almighty "Word of God." Every- where is he supreme "King" and universal "Lord." But nowhere are the times of the events predicted fixed and definite. Nowhere does he exhibit the exact instruments he employs to revolutionize the world, and to extend and establish his Church till the full knowledge of himself shall cover the whole earth as the waters now cover the seas. The explanation the Apocalypse, by means of the four names, gives of itself, is the true and authoritative explanation. It is useless to seek any other. 13. And clothed with a mantle d}*ed with blood : and his name is called The Word of God. ST. JOfTN THE DIVINE. 319 Mantle: the upper garment. Dyed with blood : the blood of his conquered enemies. In depth their blood must have reached his horse's bridle (xiv. 20) to have dyed his mantle. The Word of God: John i. 1; 1 John i. 1. The Eternal and Al- mighty Word of God incarnate. 14. And on white horses, the armies, which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white, clean, follow him. Armies: are angels. When inflicting judgments, as Christ is here, he is attended by angels (Matt. xiii. 41, xxv. 31, xxvi. 53; 2 Thess. i. 7). The saints are not judges till Rev. xx. 4, and are never execu- tioners. White : with impartial justice will the angels act as executioners. Follow: Christ leads. The armies of angels follow. " My Father gives me more than twelve legions of angels" (Matt. xxvi. 53). " O Everlasting God, mercifully grant, that by thy appointment thy holy angels may succor and defend us on earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord " [St. Michael and All Angels). 15. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp two-edged sword, that with it he may smite the nations ; and he himself shall rule them with an iron sceptre : and so he himself treadeth the winepress of the wine of the fierceness of the wrath of God Almight}'. Out of his mouth: the sharp sword is therefore "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God" (Eph. vi. 17). Sword: a broad-sword. In vi. 2, Christ in symbol begins the bat- tle with arrows. In Rev. xix. 15, Christ in symbol finishes the battle with the heaviest and sharpest sword ever wielded by a horseman. Smite: slay, destroy. Nations : classes of unbelievers. Iron: irresistible, not oppressive. Wine-press: in Revelation, only xiv. 19, 20, and xix. 15. Image- ry from Isa. lxiii. 3. Wine: grape juice, like blood in its color. Words are here multi- plied to show the severity and completeness of Christ's punishments. 1G. And he hath on the mantle and upon his thigh the name written, Kixu of kings, and Loud of lords. The thigh: the place of the girdle, in which is the sword (Ps. xiv. 3; 1 Sam. xxv. 13). 320 THE REVELATION OF The name may be on the sword. The victories achieved by his sword are virtually marked on it by his triumphant name, "King of kings, and Lord of lords." King of kings : King over kings. Lord of lords: Lord over lords. Thus is Christ Universal Sovereign (Matt, xxviii. 18; see Rev. xv. 4). SYMBOLIC PREDICTION OF CHRIST'S VICTORY OVER THE BEAST AND THE FALSE PROPHET (Verses 17, 18). See Ezek. xxxix. 17, 22. 17. And I saw an angel standing in the sun, and he cries with a loud voice, saying to all the eagles that fry in the face of the sun, Hither, gather yourselves unto the great supper of God. The call to the birds of prey, repeated from 1 Sam. xvii. 46; Isa. xviii. 6; Jer. vii. 33, xii. 9; Matt. xxiv. 28. Eagles: "wheresoever the carcass is, there will the eagles be gath- dred together" (Matt. xxiv. 28). In the face of the sun: the Greek word is in Revelation only viii. 13 (see notes), xiv. 6, xix. 17. Feast of God : feast prepared by God, the carcasses of the slain at Armageddon (xvi. 16). The number of eagles hasting on swiftest wing to the immeasur- able battle-field is far beyond all human count. The summoning angel utters his call from the face of the sun. Each shooting ray of the bright luminary shining in all directions is a messenger bearing the loud command to the ear of every listening and waiting eagle. When we can count the sun's rays, then can we number the flocks of eagles started from their perches, scenting from afar the piled corpse- ground, and speeding with most rapid flight to the coveted carnival. 18. That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of strong men, and the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all [the slain] both freemen and slaves, both small and great. Fifteenth Triplet. Kings, captains, strong men. A most frightful representation of utter defeat and universal slaugh- ter. Riders and horses and footmen "in on red burial blent." — Byron, Battle of Waterloo. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 321 Flesh : repeated fire times to magnify the numbers of the slain prepared for the hungry and thronging eagles. Kings: the armies are so large that many kings are needed to lead the different national forces. Captains: captains of thousands, chiliarchs, the officers of the armies. Great armies have great divisions. No division here smaller than a thousand men. Strong men : the soldiers, the rank and file. The prophet Isaiah explains how these soldiers are strong. " None shall be weary nor stumble among them" (v. 27). All: the slain (xviii. 24). Freemen and slaves, small and great : a most desperate battle. The enemies of Christ summon into the field all their forces, not only freemen, but slaves; not only adults, but youths and boys. But numbers, however large, cannot save the hosts fighting against Christ from repulse and* slaughter. All are "dead corpses" (Isa. xxx vii. 36), and flocks of screaming eagles are hovering over the countless dead to tear their flesh from their bones. THE FULFILMENT OF THE SYMBOLIC PREDICTION OF DEFEAT AND VICTORY (Verses 19-21). 19. And so I saw the wild beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make the war with him who sitteth upon the horse, and with his army. I saw: no mortal eye ever before or since saw such a gathering. On the exciting day when the President of the United States of North America is elected, fifty millions of people are in purpose gathered together. But these numbers covering a continent are but one man compared with the wild beast's gathered armies covering all conti- nents. Wild beast: introduced xiii. 1. He heads and leads the numer- ous armies gathered against Christ. Kings of the earth: wicked kings (vi. 15, xvii. 2, 18, xviii. 3, 9). The war: predicted (xvii. 14). Sitteth: is sitting. Not " sat," English Version. The Capture of the Wild 11 east and the False Prophet: their Punish- ment. 20. And the wild beast is taken, and with him the false prophet, who doeth signs before him, by which he deceives them that receive the mark of the wild beast, and them that 322 THE REVELATION OF worship bis image. Although alive, the two are cast into the lake of fire, which is burning with brimstone. He who affixes "the mark" is taken: the capture of the leader of an army is its hopeless defeat (Josh. xii. 9-24). When Napoleon III. surrendered at the battle of Sedan, Sept. 2, 1870, the French cause was lost. False prophet: in xiii. 11-17, the actions of the second wild beast are identical with the actions of the false prophet mentioned in this verse 20. The second wild beast and the false prophet are thus proved to be the same person. His image : the image of the first beast, the lamb-dragon causes to be made (xiii. 14). The lake: the first time in Revelation. Afterwards, xx. 10, 14, 15, xxi. 8; Dan. vii. 11. There may be allusion to Gen. xix. 24 and Dan. iii. 19-21. Thus confined, the two wild beasts are powerless and harmless. They no more afflict the world of mankind. Destruction of the Army. 21. And the rest are slain with the sword of him who sitteth upon the horse, which sword goeth out of his mouth. And so all the eagles are satiated with their flesh. The re&t: the numerous kings and their numberless armies (verse 19). The victory of King David over the Syrians may have suggested the imagery in this clause (2 Sam. x. 18). The horse : archers begin the battle (Rev. vi. 2; 1 Sam. xxxi. 3). Horsemen with their swords finish the battle (2 Sam. i. 6). All the eagles : although innumerable, they could not devour all the slain. No real army ever equalled this representative host of slain. No literal defeat is here predicted. Both victory and defeat are spiritual. The battle is between Christ's truth and human error. Christ will, with his truth, yet displace all human errors. When, A.D. 451, Actius the Roman general, with Theodoric king of the Visigoths, defeated Attila king of the Huns, in the battle of Chalons, on the Marne, France, the battlefield was strewn by one hundred and sixty-two thousand corpses, — the most destructive bat- tle ever fought. — Millot, Elements Hist., ii. 4G6. Infinitely greater is the slaughter symbolically predicted by St. John in Rev. xix. 21. But all the descriptions (Rev. xix. 11-21) are figurative and spir- ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 323 itual. The presence of Christ to destroy Jerusalem (Matt. xxiv. 27) was invisible. He will also be invisible in Rev. xix. 11-21. Both the conflict and the victory are spiritual, because out of his mouth pro- ceedeth the sharp two edged sword (verse 15). "The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God " (Eph. vi. 17). By his revealed word and his Spirit, Christ wars and contends with the minds and souls of men. The struggle and conflict now dividing and enlisting mankind for so many weary centuries are between truth and error, between holiness and sin, between happiness and misery; between the fallen and sinful Adam, and Christ the second Adam, the incarnate Lord from heaven. Each one of us is a soldier on this present battlefield, and is mak- ing his own place and destiny in it. There is no neutral position. He that is not for Christ is against Christ. In this spiritual battle, which no one can shun, victory is won only by "manful and con- tinual fighting against sin, the world, and the Devil." Continual fighting triumphs by this habitual prayer: "Merciful God, grant that the old Adam in me may be so buried, that the new man may be raised up in me. Grant that all sinful affections may die in me, and all things belonging to the Spirit may live and grow in me. Grant that I may have power and strength to have victory, and to triumph against the devil, the world, and the flesh" (Public Baptism of Infants). Each one of us shall die on this battle-ground, either a coward de- feated, Or A BRAVE AND A VICTOK. 324 THE REVELATION OF CHAPTER XX. THE SEIZURE AND CONFINEMENT OF THE DRAGON (Verses 1-3). 1. And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, hold- ing the key of the bottomless pit, and a great chain on his hand. An angel: a symbol of Christ's power in this world (Luke xi. 20). When on earth Christ cast out devils, and thus has power over them at the present time. Bottomless pit: in Rev. ix. 1, 2, 11, xi. 7, xvii. 8, xx. 1, 3. Prisons were sometimes subterranean. Such was Jeremiah's ( Jer. xxxviii. 6). Key : ix. 1. The holder of the key of the prison is its keeper. Chain: "This chain" (Acts xxviii. 20). The chaining of the prisoner made his confinement more sure (Acts xii. 6). All this representation is figurative, and yet describes a present reality (Luke x. 18, "the power of the enemy"). 2. And he lays hold on the dragon, the old serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and binds him for a thousand years. Lays hold on: Mark xiv. 51, " seizes." Dragon: xii. 3, note. Serpent : xii. 9, note. Devil and Satan : xii. 9, note. Binds : with the chain. The wild beast and the false prophet are already cast out of this world (xix. 20). Now Satan himself is bound. Absence of evil is the negative side of this world's condition. The prevalence of the gospel, and the blessings and happiness it confers, is the positive side of this world's bliss, ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 325 A thousand years: first time in Revelation. Afterwards only verses 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. Definite time for indefinite. This is indisputable Bible usage (Deut. i. 11, vii. 9; Judy. ix. 49; 1 Chron. xvi. 15; Ps. xc. 4; Eecles. vi. 6; Wis. xii. 22; Eceles. vi. 6, xvi. 3, xviii. 10, xxxix. 11, xli. 4, 12; 1 Mace. ii. 38; 2 Pet. iii. 8). Since the thousand years in Rev. xx. 2 is thus proved by Bible usage to be an indefinite number, therefore it cannot be a definite mil- lennium, a definite period of a thousand years. A millennium, in this sense, has always been, and always will be, a chimera. Christ is stronger than Satan (Luke xi. 22). Already has the power of Christ silenced, in large portions of this world, heathen oracles, dethroned material idols, and demolished their sacrificial altars. God is incessantly fulfilling his promises to his incarnate Son (Ps. ii. 8; Ezek. xxi. 27). Past victories are certain pledges of future triumphs. Haste is often a characteristic of God's mercy (Isa. Ix. 22). May he, in his mercy, hasten the utter overthrow of Satan in this wicked and suffering world ! 3. And casts him into the bottomless pit, and shuts it up, and sets a seal over him, that he may no more deceive the nations, until the thousand years are ended. After these years, he must be loosed for a short season. Sixteenth Triplet. Casts, shuts, seals. The imprisonment of Satan is complete. Casts: throws (Job xxx. 19). Shuts: its mouth (Ps. lxix. 15). Sets a seal: of clay (Job xxxviii. 14; Bel and Dragon, verses 11, 14; Matt, xxvii. 66). Must: by God's purpose (Matt. xxiv. 6). A very short : so the emphatic Greek. At the end of the thousand years, Satan is still Satan. Imprison- ment does not improve him. Punishment with him is not reforma- tory. "Like people, like priest" (Hos. iv. 9). How Satan is bound and loosed, we will consider when we exam- ine Rev. xx. 7-9. VINDICATION AND REWARD OF THE SUFFERING CHURCH OF CHRIST (Verses 4-6). The passage included in verses 4-6 is one of the most important in the Book of Revelation. The passage exhibits the consummation of the great drama of this world's history. 326 THE REVELATION OF The drama begins with chapter iv. The drama ends with verse 6 of chapter xx. In chapter vi., verses 9-11, the martyr saints pra} r the Lord to vindicate their deaths, and to reward them for the injuries they have received. Their importunate prayer is in part immediately answered ; for their investment in white robes constitutes them victors, and also candidates for higher honors when the full number of their fellow-mart3Ts shall be completed. In chapter xx., verses 4-6, there is the most graphic and impressive exhibition of the full vindication of these ver} T praying saints, and of their associate martyrs, and also of the exalted dignity with which they are all now rewarded. In vi. 9, these Christian martyrs are under the great altar of burnt sacrifice, and prostrate in their flowing blood. In xx. 4, the bloocty altar, and their prostrate bodies cov- ered with gore, have disappeared. The scene of violence gives place to an occasion of joy and honor. The white- robed martyrs are the occupants of thrones, are in the pos- session and enjoyment of a kingly life, and are reigning with Christ himself, King of kings, and Lord of lords. Enthronement is the consummation of dignit} T and bliss, by the promise and appointment of the Captain of our salva- tion. " To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame and am set down with my Father in his throne " (Rev. iii. 21). This dignified and blissful consummation is the great reward still promised all the martyrs of Jesus. See notes on v. 10, and vi. 11. 4. And I saw thrones (and persons are sitting upon them, and so vengeance is granted the enthroned), also [I saw] the souls of the beheaded, because of the testimony for Jesus, even because of the word of God ; even I saw the souls who did not worship the wild beast, not even his image, and did ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 327 not receive the mark upon their forehead, and upon their hand ; and so they are living, and are reigning with Christ a thousand years. I saw: in vision. This word "saw" introduces a new vision (xiii. 1, 11, xiv. 1, 6, 14, xv. 1, 2, 5, xviii. 1, xix. 11, 17, 19, xx. 1). Thrones : the plural in Revelation only heie and iv. 4, xi. 16, where the twenty-four elders are the occupants. Thrones, then, in Revela- tion, are occupied by human beings, and therefore are thus occupied in xx. 4. The throne is a symbol of conquest and exaltation. So our Lord teaches (iii. 21). Are sitting: in this verse are four Greek narrative aorists, which are to be translated as present tenses ; namely, "are sitting," "is given," "are living," "are reigning." Are sitting: in Revelation, the Greek verb is only here and iii. 21, where the verb describes enthronement. So also here. Persons are sitting upon them ; that is, are sitting upon the thrones (iv. 2). I. The souls of the beheaded here occupy the thrones. They are reigning with Christ (verse 4) at the end. But they must occupy thrones before they can reign. II. The occupants of the thrones are not only the souls of the beheaded, but their fellow-martyrs (vi. 9) are also occupants. That " the souls of the beheaded " and the souls in vi. 9 constitute one body, we are forced to believe by the-e stringent facts : — 1. Both classes are martyrs: " slain," vi. 9 ; " beheaded," xx. 4. 2. St. John (vi. 11) pronounces both classes one brotherhood : " their brethren." The "beheaded" (xx. 4) are the "brethren" of the "slain" (vi. 9). 3. If the "beheaded" (xx. 4) are not the "brethren" predicted (vi. 11), then this prediction (vi. 11) has no fulfilment in the Book of Revelation. If there is no fulfilment, then we are left without proof that the prayers of martyred saints are ever answered. Without this proof, the Book of Revelation would be incomplete. All other pre- dictions in this book have, in the book itself, records of their fulfill meut. The predictions in vi. 11 cannot be an exception. 4. If the full answer to the prayers of the "slain" (vi. 9-11) is not embodied in xx. 4, etc., this Book of Revelation contains no answer whatever to their impatient entreaties. 5. Identity in the cause of their suffering foreshadows for both classes of sufferers — the " slain" and the " beheaded " — identity of reward. Both were martyred for the same reasons : " For the word of God and for the testimony which they held" (vi. 9). " For the witness of Jesus, and for the woid of God " (xx. 4). 328 THE REVELATION OF 6. God (vi. 11) expressly promises the "slain" (v. 9) that they and their martyred " brethren " shall be avenged and rewarded to- gether. Their brethren are avenged "; " vengeance is granted them" (xx. 4). Consequently, the " slain " themselves are also here (xx. 4) avenged and rewarded. Both classes occupy thrones. Both classes are living kingly lives. Both classes are reigning with Christ. Vengeance is granted : The true sense of the Greek word krima, we will now ascertain. In Rev. vi. 10, this is the prayer of the "slain :" "How long, O Lord, dost thou not judge [krlaeis) and avenge (ekdikeis) our blood? " These are the constraining reasons for regarding the words, " Ven- geance is granted" (xx. 4), as the recorded ansioer to this prayer. 1. (vi. 10) "judge" and "avenge" are so closely connected in sense, that "judge" includes "avenge," and thus also includes the meaning of vengeance. 2. In Rev. xix. 2, "judged" is expressly denned by "avenged." But "judged" is the very verb from which the Greek noun krima is derived. Consequently, St. John himself gives to this noun the meaning of vengeance. 3. Krima itself has in Revelation the meaning of vengeance. In Revelation, krima, " judgment," occurs only three times (xvii. 1, xviii. 20, and xx. 4). The meaning of krima, in xvii. 1, and xviii. 20, must, therefore, be the meaning of krima in xx. 4. In xvii. 1, krima is the judgment of the great whore. But krima here is defined by "judged" and "avenged" (xix. 2); and since "avenged" imparts its meaning to "judged," vengeance is the mean- ing of "judgment," in xvii. 1. In Rev. xviii. 20, krima also means "vengeance." It derives this meaning from the verb "judged," in this verse, which means "avenged," and thus requires this translation for the verse, "God avenges on her her vengeance on you." This is the proof, from Revelation itself, that krima, in Rev. xvii. 1, and xviii. 20, means vengeance. These two places give that sense of krima to krima in xx. 4. In xx. 4, krima cannot escape from the mean- ing of vengeance. W® must define krima, in Rev. xx. 4, by Us meaning in the Book of Revelation. We must not look to other portions of the New Testament for the meaning of krima in Rev. xx. 4. Krima (Rev. xx. 4) does not constitute the martyrs judjes. They are suppliants for vengeance ("avenge," vi. 10), and "vengeance," krima (xx. 4), is granted them. They are here seated, not on thrones pf judgment, but on thrones of conquest and exaltation. I saw the souls of the beheaded: with the article, as here, souls, in the New Testament, means either in the body (Rev. xii. 11) or disembodied (1 Johij iii. 10 ; Rev. yh 9, xx. 4). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 329 When without the article, "souls" means persons (Acts ii. 41, vii. 14, xxvii. 37; 1 Pet. i. 9, iii. 20; 2 Pet. ii. 14; Rev. xviii. 13). Beheaded: the Greek participle is derived from a noun which means an axe ; beheaded by an axe. Here only in the New Testament. In the Septuagint, only 1 Kings v. 18, for the Hebrew satal, to cut ("hew," English Version). Thus, as stones may be hewn by a chisel, the Hebrew verb does not necessarily include an axe, as does the Greek participle in Rev. xx. 4. Literally, then, the Greek participle means beheaded by an axe, which was a Roman instrument of beheading. Howson (Conybeare and How- son) thinks St. Paul suffered death in this way. If literally beheaded by the axe, the martyrs (Rev. xx. 4) were under the Pagan Roman Empire. See ii. 13. But the "beheaded," as well as the " slain " (vi. 9), are representa- tive martyrs, and, as such, include in symbol all actual martyrs in all ages, whatever may be the instrument of execution. The beheading here need not be understood as literal. The word may be used figura- tively, to describe the severity and bloody character of the martyr- dom. Because of the testimony for Jesus: depicts the positive virtues of the beheaded. Who did not worship, etc.: exhibits their negative virtues (xiii. 15, 10). Before "who did not worship," supply "souls," and translate. " even the souls who did not worship." The wild beast: the lamb-dragon. His image : the image he causes to be made (xiii. 14). Mark: he affixes (xiii. 10, 17). Are living: the Greek verb is in Revelation only, i. 18, ii. 8, iii. 1, iv. 9, 10, vii. 2, x. 0, xiii. 14, xv. 7, xix. 20, xx. 4, 5. In these senses, see ii. 8. Note: — 1. To have bodily life, i. 18, ii. 8, xiii. 14, xix. 20. 2. To have moral life, iii. 1. 3. To live eternally, iv. 9, 10, vii. 2, x. 6, xv. 7. These three divisions of meaning exhaust the list of places where the Greek verb, "to live," is found in Revelation; except xx.4, 5, after whose signification we are now inquiring. 1. " To live," in Rev. xx. 4, 5, cannot mean, the martyrs have bodily life. They are disembodied souls, and therefore destitute of material bodies and of bodily life. To say they have resurrection bodies, because partakers of "the first resurrection" (verse 5), is an assumption; since it can never be proved that " the first resurrection " is a bodily resurrection. 2. "To live," cannot mean, the martyrs have moral life. The pos- 330 THE REVELATION OF session of moral life made them martyrs. Moral life cannot be the consequence of their martyrdom. 3. " To live," cannot mean, the martyrs have endless life. Endless life is the inherent possession of every human soul. The martyrs were always immortal. It cannot be proved that they became im- mortal in consequence of their martyrdom, or of any other event in their history. We have thus exhausted the explanations of "to live," furnished by the Book of Revelation itself. Its definitions fail to define "are living" (xx. 4, 5). Our next resort for an explanation of "are living" must be to the context. In the context, " are living " is contrasted with " beheaded." But beheading implies both degradation and misery. The opposite of degradation and misery is exaltation and happiness. "Are living" may, then, mean, the martyrs are exalted and happy. They are living an exalted and happy life. Bible usage elsewhere gives " to live" this very meaning, and thus confirms the contextual meaning. 1. Exaltation : "Oh that Ishmael might live before thee! I will make him a great nation" (Gen. xvii. 18, 20). 2. Happiness: " We live, if ye stand fast in the Lord" (1 Thess. iii. 8. The explanation of " are living" (Rev. xx. 4, 5), which the con- text demands, and Bible usage confirms, we are not at liberty to reject, but are bound by the laws of language to accept, hold, pro- claim, maintain. Are reigning -with Christ: are reigning: are kings in dignity. "Makes us a kingdom" (Rev. i. G). Makes us Christians kings in present exaltation and blessings. With Christ: on the earth. " Makes them to our God a kingdom, even priests, and they shall reign on the earth" (Rev. v. 10). St. Paul also describes Christians as reigning in the present life with Christ; as having a present spiritual enthronement. His words embody truths which the English Version does not fully exhibit. " When we were dead in sins, God quickens us with Christ (by grace are ye saved) [the quickening, then, is a %>resent act], and raises us with Christ [gives us, with the raised Christ, a spiritual resurrection], and makes us sit [as reigning kings] with Christ, in heavenly bless- ings in Christ Jesus [in him by spiritual union] (Eph. ii. 5, 6). "Even now we sit there in him" (Bishop Lancelot Andrews, vol. i. Serm. vii. p. 115; Bishop Joseph Hale, Christ Mystical, chapter v. 1). The explanation that St. John, in Rev. xx. 4, may describe the present spiritual enthronement of Christians with Christ, does not ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 331 conflict with this language of his in the passage, " The souls of the beheaded are reigning with Christ;" because, — 1. These beheaded souls have neither present existence, nor present locality. They are not actually living and rejoicing, either on earth, in paradise, or in heaven. The souls of the beheaded are nothing else and nothing more than symbolical representatives of Christ's suf- fering Church in this world, from generation to generation, until Christ shall return to end its momentous and protracted probation. 2. These symbolical representatives of Christ's suffering Church, in all ages, and of ultimate victory and triumph over all opposition, appear, in symbol, as souls, because they could not be exhibited as Christians enduring death, the completion and perfection of all bodily suffering, unless they are shown in the model drama as souls disem- bodied. The character of disembodied souls, when once imposed by the nature of the symbolism they are presenting, must be continued whenever they exhibit themselves. Because, for the perfection of suffering, they are at first souls under the altar, they must continue to be souls, even when sitting on thrones, when living exalted lives, and when reigning with Christ on earth. This whole exhibition is nothing but symbolic representation. When we forget the fact, then difficulties arise in our minds, and perplex us. When we remember and hold the fact, the perplexing difficulties vanish. A thousand years : this indefinite period of time belongs not to the souls erroneously supposed to have actual existence and definite locality, but to the great object represented by the present symbolism, — the true Church of Christ in this world, in its prolonged history; suffering, enduring, victorious, triumphing, exulting, enthroned with Christ for a blissful period, the end of which he holds in his own measureless and inaccessible knowledge. THE REST OF THE DEAD: THE FIRST RESURRECTION". 5. The rest of the dead live not, until the thousand years are ended. This is the first resurrection. The rest: are in contrast with the souls of the beheaded (verse 4), and therefore constitute a different class of souls, and possess a different character. They are not holy souls, but are wicked souls. The contrast is created by the declaration "live not." Since they are wicked souls, they cannot be awaiting the resurrec- tion unto eternal life. The life they have not, cannot be a bodily- resurrection life. In two other instances in Revelation, does "the rest" indicate contrast (ii. 21, xi. 13). 332 TEE REVELATION OF Of the dead: "the rest," because in contrast with the souls of the beheaded, are themselves souls. They are called " dead," because they are souls disembodied. Their bodies are dead, and give to their supposed personality this appellation, "dead." The rest of the dead, and the rest of the souls, are in meaning identical. But though " the rest" are souls, they are not souls in reality, but only in symbol. They are representatice souls. They represent an object, the direct opposite of the object the souls of the beheaded represent. The souls of the beheaded represent the true Church of Christ. The wicked souls represent his apostate Church, and all its members in this world. They live not: the wicked souls, as symbols, "live not," in a sense the exact opposite of the life the souls of the beheaded are enjoying. As representatives of the apostate Church, and all its members in this world, the wicked souls are not occupying thrones; they are not living exalted and happy lives; they are not reigning with Christ on earth. In their symbolism, "the rest of the dead" are in appalling contrast with this enthronement, with this happi- ness, with this union and living with Christ. They are degraded. They are wretched. They possess not either the image, the charac- ter, or the fellowship of Christ. They represent unrenewed, unsancti- fied, unholy souls. They represent the unbelieving, prayerless, godless, wicked, self-indulgent class, which always forms so large a portion of every generation of mankind. Until the thousand years are ended: since a thousand years is in itself an indefinite period, it cannot have a definite and complete end. The thousand years can never be literally ended. They can be ended on]y figuratively. Do periods of time ever, in the language of the Bible, have figura- tive endings? The Bible, itself answers this question in the affirmative. "Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death" (1 Sam. xv. 35). "Michal had no child unto the day of her death" (2 Sam. vi. 23). In these passages, there are two periods of time: (a) "came no more," and {b) " had no child." Simple prose endings to these periods would be, in the one case, at all, (a) "came no more at all ;" in the other case, ever, (b) "had no child ever." But, instead of these simple terms of emphasis, there is, in the quotations from the Books of Samuel, the strong figure of hyperbole: in the first instance, (a) "until the day of his death;" in the second, (b) "unto the day of her death." By this usage of figurative endings of negative assertions, this Ian- ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 333 guage, "until the thousand years are ended," must be explained. This hyperbole St. John uses instead of the simple emphasis, ever: The rest of the dead live not ever. Enthronement, an exalted and happy life, and dominion and union with Christ, are never theirs. We are obliged to accept and use this figurative explanation of the first clause of Eev. xx. 5, simply because there is no other explana- tion, either biblical or possible. The indefinite period of a thousand years cannot admit a literal explanation. The Underlying Basis of the Symbolism in Rev. xx. 4, 5. According to St. John's symbolical statements in the passage, the souls of the beheaded are rewarded by being enthroned with Christ, and the rest of the dead are punished by being left in their degrada- tion and wretchedness immediately after death. This symbolical truth presupposes other truths: — 1. With the termination of each human life, its probation ends utterly. 2. There is no probation after death. There is no second proba- tion. 3. The state after death proceeds as it begins. As the happiness of the saved never ends, so the misery of lost souls never ends. 4. Punishment in the world of the dead is not reformatory. The present life is the only period God gives us for repentance and refor- mation. 5. There is no purgatory. 6. The state of departed souls is unalterable. 7. Prayers for the impenitent dead are useless. 8. Prayers for the blessed dead presuppose their imperfection. On the contrary, the Scriptures teach their perfection. "The spirits of just men made perfect" (Heb. xii. 23). 9. All the truths in the Book of Kevelation respecting the true Church and the apostate Church apply to the individual members of these churches, as churches are composed of individuals. We are neither saved nor lost as corporations, but only as individual souls. The First Resurrection. This is the first resurrection: the demonstrative pronoun "this" refers "the first resurrection" to the state of the souls of the beheaded, described in verse 4. This state is figurative and spiritual. The consequence of this fact can be neither denied nor ignored. Since the state of the souls of the beheaded is a figurative and spiritual state, "the first resurrection" is also figurative and spiritual. " The first resurrection," since identical with the figura- 334 THE REVELATION OF tive and spiritual state of the souls beheaded, cannot be material and bodily. St. John calls the state of the beheaded souls a resurrection, just as the prophet Ezekiel calls the revived and improved state of the Jews a resurrection. Of their former wretched and hopeless state as a nation, " the dry bones " Ezekiel sees in vision are a just emblem. These dry bones clothed with flesh, and animated with new life, are the emblem of their improved condition, and thus are, to the Israelites as a people, a resurrection. St. John, in Rev. xx. 4, 5, repeats Ezekiel' s imagery and language. When in the Book of Revelation we see the Church of Christ for the first time, her slain saints are entombed under the altar (vi. 9). In Rev. xx. 4, 5, the Church has left her tomb; and her new condition of enthronement and dominion is to her, figuratively, a '* resurrec- tion" from death. Nor is St. John the only New-Testament writer to whom the prophet Ezekiel suggests resurrection imagery. St. Paul, in his Epis- tle to the Romans, predicts with exultation the universal conversion of the Jews to Christ. As this enraptured Hebrew of the Hebrews contemplates the Church in its Jewish enlargement, he exclaims, "What is it but life from dead?" (Rom. xi. 15.) The first resurrection. The expression is only here, and in verse 6. This first resurrection is a spiritual resurrection. 1. The prophet Ezekiel mentions two resurrections, — material, xxxvii. 10; spiritual, verse 11. 2. Our Lord himself describes two resurrections, — material, John v. 28, 29; spiritual, verses 25, 26. 3. St. Paul also teaches two resurrections, — material, 1 Cor. xv. 52; spiritual, Rom. vi. 5; Col. ii. 12, 13. Reasons why St. John's First Resurrection [Rev. xx. 5, 6) is a Spiritual Resurrection. 1. The symbolic character of the Book of Revelation requires the figurative and spiritual sense of the expression, unless the context forbids this sense. 2. In the Book of Revelation, St John has two deaths, — one bodily, "there shall be no more death" (xxi. 4); the other spiritual, "thou art dead" (iii. 1), " the second death" (ii. 11, xx. 6, xxi. 8). St. John, then, only repeats his own usage, when he also has two resurrections, — the opposites of the two deaths, — one bodily (Rev. xx, 12, 13); the other spiritual, made so by this usage of St. John himself. In no place does St. John use the exact phrases, the second resur- ST. JO/IN THE DIVINE. 335 rection and the first death; but the second death, thus undefined, is figurative and spiritual. The same is true of the first resurrection; because undefined, the first resurrection is also figurative and spir- itual. 3. In Rev. xx. 6 is this assertion: "Upon him that hath part in the first resurrection, the second death hath no power." But the second death is a spiritual state (verses 14, 15, ii. 11, xxi. 8) ; a state of spiritual dealh. Here mark the assertion of St. John, as thus explained by himself. This is his own explanation. The subject of the first resurrection cannot experience the spiritual state called the second death. He can- not experience this spiritual state, because he is in a different spiritual state. He cannot experience spiritual death, because he is in the opposite state, the state of spiritual life. He cannot die the spiritual death, because his soul has been raised from the death of sin unto the life of righteousness. Thus does St. John's own assertion, "Upon him that hath part in the first resurrection, the second death hath no power," prove that "the first resurrection" is a spiritual resurrection. 4. The adjective "first," attached to "resurrection," proves the resurrection to be spiritual. The proof presents itself in these forms: — (a) "First" is an adjective of enumeration. Its noun, "resur- rection," existed before it was enumerated. "Resurrection" existed before "first" was attached to it. " The resurrection " existed before it is mentioned (Rev. xx. 5). But we have already proved that "the resurrection" (Rev. xx. 5) is a spiritual resurrection. The consequence cannot be resisted, namely, "the resurrection" (Rev. xx. 5) existed as a, spiritual resur- rection, before it is mentioned in the Book of Revelation. {b) This previously existing spiritual resurrection of Rev. xx 5. is identical with the spiritual resurrection taught by our Lord in these words: "The Son quickeneth whom he will. He that believeth on him that sent me hath everlasting life, and is passed from death unto life. The hour is coining, and now is [in this present life] when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and they that hear shall live. For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself" (John v. 21, 24-26). The spiritual resurrection of Rev. xx. 5 is identical with the spiritual resurrection our Lord confers (John v.), for the following reasons: — (1) The spiritual resurrection conferred by our Lord is itself "the first resurrection," because, — (a) It is first taught by our Lord. No previous revelator ever mentions, in express phrase, a spiritual resurrection. 336 THE REVELATION OF (b) The spiritual resurrection taught hy our Lord is also "first," because he himself connects it with a second resurrection. Thus: " The hour is coining, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear the voice of the Son of man, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation" (John v. 29). (c) The spiritual resurrection taught by our Lord (John v. 21-20) is likewise first, on account of its absolute necessity. The spiritual resurrection must precede the second, or the second will be "the resurrection unto damnation" (John v. 29). St. Paul presents the two resurrections in this very order; the spiritual first, as essential to the happiness of the second. "That I may know the power of his resurrection, being made conformable unto his death; if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead" (Phil. iii. 10, 11). (2) We have shown that "first" demands for "resurrection" identification with some previous spiritual resurrection. This requi- site identification is set forth fully and completely with the spiritual resurrection of John v. 21-20. Identification of the resurrection (Rev. xx. 5) with any other resurrection than that taught by our Lord is impossible. We are therefore bound by the impossibility to receive and maintain this sole identification. "This is the first resurrection," as consummated in St. John's vision (Rev. xx. 4, 5). " The first resurrection " has two consummations. It is consummated symbolically in Christ's triumphing Church (Rev. xx. 4). It will be consummated actually, when "life from the dead " (Rom. xi. 15) shall fully come, not only to all Jews, but to all Gentiles. 6. Blessed and hoi}* is he who hath part in the first resur- rection. Over these [blessed and hoi}' ones] the second death hath no authorit}'. On the contrary, they shall be priests serving God, even Christ, and they shall reign with him a thousand } T ears. Holy: the blessedness will consist largely of holiness. He who hath part : he who partakes of his portion. In the New Testament, this expression only here and John xiii. 8. The second death : only in Revelation, and there only here and ii. 11, xx. 14, xxi. 8. The second death implies sinfulness, "fearful, unbelieving," etc. (xxi. 8). ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 337 No authority : sinfulness hath no authority over the holy. " Jesus Christ hath perfected forever them that are sanctified " (Heh. x. 14). Priests: i. 6, v. 10. Even Christ: Granville .Sharp's Kule, Ayre. Introduction, pp. 216, 217. A thousand years: for this indefinite period will there he in this world a succession, in increasing numbers, of holy souls serving- Christ "in spirit and in truth" (John iv. 24). This service is worship (Rev. iv. 8-11) and obedience (John xv. 14). So long as we worship and serve Christ, we are a portion of the growing succession, and of the increasing holy Church. THE LOOSING AND THE DEFEAT OF SATAN (Verses 7-10). These subjects seem, at first sight, to embody difficulties which are insuperable. But apparent difficulties are not always real difficulties. The Book of Revelation itself creates apparent difficulties. The book is a symbolical drama. Because it is a drama, its visions seem to present themselves in chronological order. This dramatic chronology makes the loosing of Satan sub- sequent to the enthronement of the saints and the consum- mation of the triumphs of the Christian Church. Then, in the Apocalyptic drama, the enthronement of the saints, and the binding and loosing of Satan, are apparently acts done in a very few moments. But drama is only a series of symbols, and its continuous chronology is only in appearance. The exaltation of the saints and the treatment of Satan may, when realized, be events both gradual and contemporaneous. All these great events symbolized may actually occur, not only at the same time, but at different times. The acts, whatever they may be, prefigured by the binding and loosing of Satan, may transpire not merely simultaneously, but at periods both past and present. The important truths signified by the opposite conditions of Satan are, that he is both a iceakened and an existing power in the world. Though chained, he is not yet dead. 338 THE REVELATION OF Were he dead, this life of ours would cease to be a life of probation. When Satan disappears in the lake of fire and brimstone, after his final defeat with Gog and Magog, this earth itself will also disappear, hy being burned up. Then will all human probation cease ; for the day of judgment with its unalterable decisions will immediately follow. The progressive character and the simultaneousness of the events indicated hy the binding and loosing of Satan remove from Rev. xx. 7-10 a portion of the difficulties which at first sight present themselves to our minds. So long as this earth continues, it will be infested with evil. Satan will not be an enemy absolutely conquered, till this present world terminates, and he is banished to eternal and hopeless punishment. In its dramatic character, the Book of Revelation exhibits results, not their processes. When the angel exclaims, "Babylon is fallen" (Rev. xviii. 2), he prophetically an- nounces a finished result. But the process hy which this result will be reached is not } T et finished, but is still tran- spiring. This being the case, the inhabitants of this earth may have been in the midst of these processes during cen- turies now past, and ma}' be in the midst of these processes at the present time. The former destructive hostility to pure Christianity, waged hy civil governments and false S3'stems of the gospel, though not extinct, is certainly for the present at least restrained and modified. In countries nominally Christian, and in all heathen com- munities, infidelity is the modern form of opposition to the revealed religion of Jesus Christ. Since Satan is still a living power in the world, he may be in this nineteenth century gathering his forces for his most deadly assault upon the Christian revelation, and we Chris- tians of the passing hour may be living in the midst of the stirring muster. This surely may be our situation. If so, Gog and Magog ST. JOTIN THE DIVINE. 339 do not belong solely to the remote future. If we will listen, we may now hear the blast of their trumpets. If we will open our eyes, we may now see the flights of their arrows and the thrusts of their spears. 7. And when the thousand years are ended, Satan shall be loosed from his prison. The thousand years: of his binding. This began when Christ was on earth (Matt. iv. ]-10; Luke x. 18). The thousand years, in- definite in extent, was in its beginning contemporaneous with the beginning of the gospel, which in its indefinite duration is also measured by a thousand years, since during this uncertain period of time the saints are reigning with Christ on earth (Rev. v. 10). The saints began thus to reign so soon as there were Christian believers (Eph. ii. 6). Satan's binding and the saints' reign with Christ thus began together. They continue together through the same indefinite duration, and they will end together. The loosing is a process, as well as a final result, portrayed by the graphic symbol of his going out of his prison "to deceive the na- tions" (Rev. xx. 8). The process of Satan's loosing is contemporaneous with the process of his binding. The two processes in point of time run parallel with each other. During the Christian era, Satan is a conquered and re- strained and yet an active enemy. Through Christ's help, we can always overcome Satan. Still he is always ready to tempt us to sin, and always able to ruin us, unless standing in Christ's greater might we "resist the devil," and then he flees from us (Jas. iv. 7). At the close of the Christian era, Satan will attempt to consummate the destruction of the second Adam, which he is now continually plot- ting. But his own defeat will be signal and complete, and his own ruin beyond recovery. Satan will never leave the "lake of fire and brimstone" (Rev. xx. 10). Symbols. An Apocalyptic symbol exhibits a complete and immediate occur- rence. Because complete in its nature, a symbol cannot describe a comparison. Comparisons are defined only by language either spoken or written. There can be no degrees in symbols. In them, however, degrees may be implied. This implication must be always recognized in all symbolic representations. In their outward character merely, 340 THE REVELATION OF symbols, although graphic and impressive, are inadequate substitutes for language. A symbol is, in its nature, not only full and complete, but is also immediate. A symbol knows, in itself, nothing of time. A symbol is a present vision, and not the picture of a process. Thus, both complete and timeless, a symbol must be always esti- mated according to ils actual design and capability. A symbol is not definite language, and must never be interpreted as such. When regarded as the adequate substitutes of explicit language, symbols convey false and erroneous impressions. These obvious differences between symbols and words will greatly help us rightly understand the binding and loosing of Satan (Rev. xx. 1-3, 7-10). In symbol, the binding is apparently total and timeless. But when regarded in its exhibition as symbolic, the binding is invested with degrees and temporal progression. The loosing of Satan is to be interpreted by his binding, and be- comes gradual, and is incorporated into the lapse of centuries. The great and decisive battle between the Word of God, and Satan and his two wild beasts (Rev. xix. 11-xx. 1-3, 7-10), is symbolically described as one battle fought at one time. Yet actually this battle is continuous, and is waged at all times. This unceasing perpetuation of the battle is explicitly proved by the following account of our Lord's inces-ant employment in this present world: He goes forth conquering and to conquer (Rev. vi. 2). Thus Christ is a perpetual victor. But victory requires conflict: conflict requires enemies. The habitual and ever-fighting enemies of Christ are no other opponents than Satan and his two wild beasts. Their hot battle against him is continual and never-ending. This representation of the battle constantly prosecuted between the Word of God, and Satan and his two wild beasts, explains the binding and loosing of Satan. They are symbolized as different events, oc- curring at different times. Yet, like the battle between Christ and his spiritual foes, the binding and the loosing may be simultaneous events. Indeed, the binding and the loosing are, in the visions St. John saw, a part and continuation of the great and unremitted battle itself, between Christ and his chief adversary the Devil. In this stern and protracted conflict, the Word of God is ultimately victorious and triumphant. In the process and in the details of the awful warfare, Satan sometimes recovers himself for a season after a defeat. At such times he is symbolically " loosed." Whenever he is worsted, he is then symbolically "bound" and restrained. Can the subjoined words of St. John be so explained as to accord with the explanation just given ? ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 341 "Satan should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years should be fulfilled; and after that he must be loosed a little season" (Rev. xx. 3). "When the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth " (verses 7 and 8). All these strong and positive assertions are derived from the ac- companying symbols of binding and loosing, with their inability to express comparisons and portray degrees, and are conformed to these symbolic conditions. 1. This is pre-eminently the case with the unrestricted negation, "No more." The symbolism demands the phrase. The Devil, "bound with a great chain, cast into the bottomless pit, shut up" in it, and its door sealed over him, could " no more deceive the nations." The symbolism renders his deception impossible. The truth under- lying the symbolism is the comforting fact that through Christ's over- mastering power, the influence of Satan in this world is diminished, and is diminishing. "No more" is itself symbolic, and not to be understood in its full restriction. 2. The loosing of Satan is the exact counterpart of his binding. His confinement denotes partial loss of power. His loosing is not unlimited, but has its degrees of restraint. 3. The rigid symbolism of the passage also provides sufficient ex- planation of the meaning of " the thousand years." When in Rev. xx. 4, it is said, " The souls lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years," the time is indefinite according to frequent usage in both Testaments of the Bible. The indefinite period cannot, therefore, be limited in its duration. When, consequently, it is writ- ten, "an angel bound Satan a thousand years" (Rev. xx. 2), "the thousand years should be fulfilled" (verse 3), "the thousand years are expired" (verse 7), the limitations are wholly symbolic. They are occasioned by the pervading symbolism. The binding and the loosing of Satan, although actually simultaneous, are in symbol necessarily pictured as occurring in succession. Symbolically the loosing must by the change succeed the binding. But the succession is solely in appearance, created by the symbols. The period of "the thousand years" is, both with the binding and the loosing, not defi- nite in time, but is indefinite. Throughout the entire indefinite duration of this world's existence, the increasing defeats and partial successes of Satan will ever run parallel not only to each other, but also to the accompanying victories and triumphs of the Word of God and of his saints, who, in unbroken perpetuity, are here on earth reigning with their omnipotent Lord, ever by his gospel and his Spirit subduing and recovering to himself the precious souls of men he pur- 342 THE REVELATION OF chased by his atoning blood, as his present right and his indisputable possession. 8. And he shall go forth to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for the war : whqse number is as the sand of the sea. To deceive: xii. 9. Satan's aggressive armor is always deception (John viii. 44). His greatest deception is the denial of his own ex- istence. Four corners: every portion (vii. 1; 1 Sam. xiv. 38), Hebrew. Gog and Magog: Gog is the name of the king. Magog is the name of his people. His kingdom was in "the north part" (Ezek. xxxviii. 15), in the region north of the Black and Caspian seas, the land of Scythia, the most barbarous and savage sountry of ancient times. "Barbarian, Scythian" (Col. iii. 11). "Those poor men, if they had told their cause, yea, before the Scythians, should have been judged innocent" (2 Mace. iv. 47). " The Scythians are a people who rejoice in murders, and scarcely differ from wild beasts " ( Josephus against Appian, ii. 37). In Ezek. xxxviii. and xxxix., Gog and Magog prophetically invade the land of Israel, and are defeated. The prophet Jeremiah, i. 14, iv. 6, vi. 22-24, predicts the invasion of the land of Israel from the north, and by the north must mean Scythia, as he does not mention Babylon till chapter xx. 4 of his book. Scythopolis, city of Scythians, was six hundred furlongs, seventy- five miles, from Jerusalem (2 Mace. xii. 29). By 1 Mace. v. 52, Scyth- opolis is identified with Bethsan, the modern Beisan, in the Jordan valley, twelve miles south of the Sea of Galilee, and four miles west of the Jordan. Bethsan was a strong military position (1 Sam. xxxi. 10; 1 Mace, v. 52, xii. 40, 41). Its name Scythopolis proves its possession by a body of Scythians, who may have invaded Palestine, according to the predictions of Jeremiah and Ezekiel, and according to the history of Herodotus, B.C. 600 (i. 103-105). We may therefore conclude, that both Ezekiel and St. John, when referring to Gog and Magog, derive their prophetic imagery from an actual invasion of the Holy Land by the barbarous Scythians. We thus discover not only the origin of St. John's imagery in Bev. xx. 8, but also his design in referring to the Scythians. By this refer- ence he predicts the most violent and deadly assault on the part of large numbers of mankind upon the Church of Christ, and their utter defeat. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 343 As the sand of the sea: that is, "innumerable" (Heb. xi. 12). 9. And the}' come up upon the breadth of the earth, and compass the fortress of the saints, even the city which is beloved. And yet, there comes down fire out of heaven from God, and utterly devours them. Come up: implies attack. " Go up against" (Judg. i. 1). Breadth: the whole extent (Gen. xiii. 17; Job xxxviii. 18; Isa. viii. 8; Hab. i. 6). The armies of Gog and Magog occupy the entire surface of the earth. Compass: in Luke xxi. 20, this verb describes the desolating siege of Jerusalem. The armies of Gog and Magog are besieging " the beloved city." St. John may derive his imagery from the sieges of Jerusalem by the Babylonians (2 Kings xxv. 1, 2) and by the Romans (Luke xxi. 20, 28). The language of St. John indicates the desperate peril to which "the beloved city," now in a state of close and assaulting siege, is exposed. The fortress: in the New Testament, the English Version trans- lates the Greek noun («) "army" (Heb. xi. 34); (5) "camp" (Heb. xiii. 11, 13); (c) "castle" (Acts xxi. 34, 37, xxii. 24, xxiii. 10, 16, 32). The context of Rev. xx. 9 requires" castle," fortress, as the mean- ing of the Greek noun in this verse! The saints are evidently re- duced to the last extremity. They do not risk a battle in the open field. They retire to their only fortress left them, their "beloved city." The beleaguered saints may be suffering the consequences of a long and hopeless siege, "famine and pestilence" (Deut. xxviii. 52- 57; 2 Kings xxv. 3; Jer. xxxii. 24). * The horrors of starvation and pining death seize the decimated defenders of the last stronghold of revealed religion in this world. This is St. John's startling exhibition of the final struggle between infidelity, and loyalty to Christ. The Tower of Antonia, called by St. Luke "the castle" (Acts xxi. 34, 37), St. John had often seen. He may have taken his imagery (Rev. xx. 0) from this castle, as he uses the same Greek word which is translated "castle" by St. Luke.' 2 The capture of the Tower of Antonia by Titus, the Roman general was the total destruction of the Jews as a nation. 3 The annihilating > Euaebiua describes the famine in Jerusalem, when besieged by the Romans, E. II., iii. 6, pp. 87, etc. 2 Vict. Bible, i. p. 816. 3 /t / M lu p> 1307> 344 THE REVELATION OF event must have left an indelible impression upon the mind of St. John. According to our Lord's own prediction (Luke xxi. 28), the destruc- tion of Jerusalem was succeeded by the prosperity and extension of his Church. " So long as the shadows of the Levitical law, along with cily and temple, were standing, the kingdom of God, or the free exercise of the Christian reli'jion, did not as yet enjoy unrestricted • scope." — Bengel on Luke xxi. 28. " When ye see all these things that I have foretold you, begin to come to pass, then take comfort, and expect with confidence that the time of your deliverance and of the firm and universal establishment of my church drawetli nigh." — Dr. Samuel Clarke on Luke xxi. 28. The siege of Jerusalem by the "Romans may have suggested to St. John the imagery in Rev. xx. 9. But how different the results of the two sieges! At Jerusalem the Roman besiegers are victors, and the besieged Jews are destroyed. On the contrary, in Rev. xx. 9, the be- siegers, Gog and Magog, are totally destroyed, while the besieged, the Church of Christ, is triumphant and perpetual victor, and sole possessor of the liberated and Christianized earth. Even: defining the nature of the fortress the saints are holding; namely, "the beloved city." The city: iii. 12, on which see notes. Beloved: by Christ (i. 5, iii. 9). Over Jerusalem, on Mount Zion, Christ shed tears of love (Luke xix. 41). Christ's love illumines the last scene in the history of his Church in this world. The very last word in this history is Christ's love. When the besieged and imperilled, diminishing Church cannot save itself, Christ's love saves it (Rom. viii. 37). Fire comes down: (Gen. xix. 24; Ezek. xxxviii. 22, xxxix. 6). Every portion of the circumambient atmosphere over the entire earth flashes with falling lightning. The destruction of Gog and Magog is sudden and utter, and is from God (Matt. xxiv. 27). Utterly devours: their destruction is complete. "God makes an utter end " (Nah. i. 9). Second strokes of lightning do not fall. The impressive symbols of a vast besieging army, and of a closely besieged castle, terminate with the absolute destruction of the invest- ing army, and with the rescue and triumph of the desperate fortress. These overwhelming symbols are too huge and impossible to be interpreted literally. They must be understood spiritually. The imperishable truths taught by the shining symbols St. John saw pictured on the sky encircling Patmos, are for our present encouragement, and for our persistent endurance in the service of Christ. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 345 1. Infidelity will yet cease in this world. 2. Faith in Christ will he universal. 3. The Church of Christ preserves the faith. 4. His Church will triumph over every form of opposition. 5. Though not in person, yet by his truth, by his Church and min- istry, and by his Spirit, Christ will be universal King on this earth in its present material state. 6. The complete conversion of the world to Christ will be his greatest miracle. "My word shall not pass away" (Matt. xxiv. 35). "Therefore, my beloved brethen, be ye stedfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord" (1 Cor. xv. 58). 10. And the devil, who deceiveth them, is cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where are the wild beast and the false prophet ; and they shall be tormented day and night, for ever and ever. Deceiveth : the devil deceives infidels by the hope that they will destroy the Church, and be masters of the world. Their hopes end in remediless disappointment. They: the wild beast, the false prophet, and the devil. Day and night: incessantly. For ever and ever : in the Greek, unto the eternities of the eter- nities; that is, eternally. The devil has a moral nature. His nature is eternal. His moral and eternal nature is his eternal torment. The torment of the Devil is, in part, self-accusation. This is the torment of all moral beings in this world and in the world to which all souls are hastening. Thus, with the exception of xxii. 6-20, ends the second part of the Apocalypse of St. John. With it also ends his symbolical exhibition of the probationary history of the Church of Christ and of the human race. Our Lord's own words form its most appropriate summary and final exhortation : " Enter ye in at the strait gate; for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat; because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it" (Matt. vii. 13, 14). "It is finished" (John xix. 30). "The master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door" (Luke xiii. 25). RETROSPECT. We have now beheld the series of visions Jesus Christ showed unto his servant John, and through him also shows to every human being who will read the Book of Revelation. 346 THE REVELATION OF These numerous visions display in prophetic symbols the history of the Church of Christ, from its beginning in Pales- tine, nineteen centuries since, to its end in the remote future. Next to seeing objects with our natural eyes, symbolic vision is the most convincing form of proof in our posses- sion. Vision brings its representations into the present moment, and causes them to appear as present realities. It is a fact worthy of special notice, that the word hope lias no place in the Apocalypse. There is no room for hope. Hope enters the future, and there finds the objects on which it rests. Vision has no future : it lives only in the present. As proof, vision does not depend upon reasonings and demon- strations and conclusions. Vision merely displays its ob- ject ; and its exhibition is to the mind of the beholder a present reality, bringing with it its own truth, and impressing it indelibly upon his conviction and judgment. Vision is a kind of proof which can reach every human heart. All minds cannot weigh demonstrative evidence ; but all e3 T es can see, and all hearts can believe, the visions they behold. The visions of the Apocalypse show its design. Christ designs the book for all eyes and all hearts. When the book is more generally read, Christianity will be more gener- ally believed and obeyed. The Book of Revelation most clearry and most positively foretells and contemplates the universal prevalence and do- minion of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in this present world. Confirmations of the prophetic declarations of the Apoca- lypse abound, both in the book itself, and in the past history of the Christian Church, and in the present condition of the Church and the world. I. The instrumentalities Christ himself provides, in the Book of Revelation, for the conversion of the whole world to himself, strongly confirm the symbolic predictions he there exhibits. 1. In the very first vision Christ grants us in the Apoca- ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 347 lypse, he manifests himself as "the Son of man" (Rev. i. 13). As "the Son of man," Christ is God incarnate. lie himself, though God, partakes of our human nature. In our nature, he now ever lives, and ever will live. Christ's in- carnation creates in the human famil}' universal brotherhood. Christ's incarnation is the pledge and the power insuring the realization both of the universal brotherhood of mankind, and of their universal restoration from the slavery of sin to the liberty of holiness. 2. In the Apocalypse, the Son of man " hath the seven Spirits of God" (iii. 1). By this possession and control, the Son of man provides for his own incessant presence in his Church and the world, and also for the renovating and transforming power of all the agencies he appoints for the instruction, improvement, and salvation of men, — his minis- try, his Bible, his sacraments, his worship, his Church. Both Christ incarnate and the Holy Spirit are omnipotent and omnipresent. Thus almighty and everywhere present, the}' are fully equal to the complete accomplishment of the superhuman work the Apocalyptic symbols so positively and so repeatedly predict, — the universal extension and sovereign rule in all lands of the gospel of the incarnate Son of the merciful Father of all human spirits. II. The past history of the Church of Christ largely con- firms the prophetic symbols of the Apocalypse, respecting the universal reign of his gospel. In the centuries gone by, the gospel has not been a dead letter in the world. The gospel has abolished human slavery in all Christian countries. The gospel converted the North- ern hordes which overturned the Roman Empire, from hea- thenism to Christianit} r , and out of this Christianized barbar- ism constructed Christian Europe. The Christian civilization which now cheers and blesses all Christian lands is the work of the power of God in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 348 THE REVELATION OF Before the coming of Christ, women were, in all heathen communities, slaves. Of their present freedom, culture, and refinement, the gospel of Christ is the sole author. These are some of the might} T achievements and blessings of the gospel during the period we so justly call the Chris- tian era. The past insures the future. III. The present spirit of the Church, and of the world, still more amply confirms the hopeful predictions of the Apocalypse respecting the future universality of the Gospel. 1. Never since apostolic days, has the Church of Christ been so extensively and powerfully pervaded and controlled by the missionary spirit, as at the present. This spirit of Christian benevolence and effort characterizes all names and bodies of Christians. If separated from each other on other grounds, they are all united as one man in the burning and impellent purpose of obeying Christ's undying command, " Preach the gospel to every creature." Nor is the missionary spirit simply the common purpose of all Christ's people. All continents and islands are vocal witnesses to the most encouraging fact, that, " wherever the foot of man treads," Christian missions are accomplished blessings. 2. Care for the poor, to an extent before unknown in the history of the world, inspires and controls innumerable multi- tudes of Christian hearts. Wherever care for the poor is practical and efficient, it is the realization of Christ's uni- versal brotherhood ; and the old and desolating evils of igno- rance, intemperance, licentiousness, brutality, starvation, misery, and premature death, depart like the possessing demons of old at the resistless command of Christ. The gospel enjoins the spirit of peace. The observance of this injunction by modern nations has, without doubt, re- cently increased. (a) The causes of national hostility have diminished. The neglect of legitimacy in the kingly succession is no longer the occasion of a declaration of war, and the in- vasion of the offending kingdom. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 349 (b) In national differences, there is a growing disposition to settle the conflicts by arbitration. Both the diminution of the occasions of war, and the pref- erence of peaceful arbitration over resort to settlement by armies, are cheering indications that the gospel of peace is erecting not only an abiding throne in the palaces of kings, but also a permanent seat in all halls of legislation. The past and present victories of the gospel of Christ are pledges and securities of its future triumphs. The gospel is a stream which acquires width' and depth and strength, the farther it progresses. The power of the gospel will be vast- ly greater in the next generation than it is in the present. Its inherent force will constantly increase. Its human agents will be immeasurably multiplied. The inspiring breath of the Hoty Spirit will be the new life of souls beyond all count. The Son of man, embraced because of his own surpassing love for his own brotherhood, will yet be welcomed, beloved, adored, and served by all hearts. This remarkable structural peculiarity of the Apocalypse prefigures both the coming histo^ of the gospel, and its final triumphant glory. As the visions of the book are multiplied, their vividness becomes brighter and brighter. This glowing splendor is the foreshow of the radiance from the rising sun, diffusing the full realization of the ecstatic bliss the gospel will confer when sin and misery will be on this happy earth only historical remembrances ; and holiness, and the pure image of Christ, will be the possession and J03' of all the Christian brethren and Christian sisters, redeemed and cleansed by his blood, and saved and prepared for his second advent by the grace and power of the Holy Ghost. 350' THE REVELATION OF THIRD DIVISION (Chapters xx. 11-xxii. 1-5). CHAPTER XX. (continued). THE UNIVERSAL JUDGMENT AND ITS DECISIONS (Verses 11-15). 11. And I saw a great white throne, and him who sitteth upon it ; from whose presence the earth and the heavens flee away, and no place is found for them. Great white throne: "I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up" (Isa. vi. 1). The occupant of this throne is the Son of God (John xii. 41). The occupant of the great white throne of final judgment is God the Son (Matt. xxv. 31-46; John v. 22). In Isa. vi. 9, the Son of God on his throne sends forth the prophet Isaiah, one of the precursors of the gospel ministry. From his great white throne (Rev. xx. 11), he summons all nations of men before him to account for the reception they have given this ministry. The universal resurrection precedes the universal judgment (John v. 27-29). This resurrection is material, because our Lord in the context (verses 25, 26) distinguishes it from the spiritual resurrection. Since the universal resurrection is, therefore, literal and visible, the uni- versal judgment will also be literal and visible. " Before him shall be gathered all nations" (Matt. xxv. 31, 32). Great: compared with the "thrones" of the saints (Rev. xx. 4), and all other thrones. White: with "throne" nowhere else in Bible Greek. The garment of the enthroned Judge, "the Ancient of days," is ST. JOITN THE DIVINE. 351 white (Dan. vii. 9). White is the emblem of purity ; ''made their robes white in the blood of the Lamb" (Kev. vii. 14). Applied to a judgment-throne, white denotes impartial and absolute justice. The earth and the heavens : the present earth and its present heaven, or atmosphere. " The heavens and the earth which are now" (2 Pet. iii. 7). Place is not found for them: the present earth and its heaven totally disappear. They are to be entirely and forever destroyed. "The heavens and the earth, which are now, are reserved unto fire. The heavens shall pass away, and the elements shall melt ^ith fervent heat; the earth also shall be burned up" (2 Pet. iii. 7, 10). Since the present earth and its heaven are thus to be utterly destroyed, they are not to be renovated for the residence of Christ's people after the universal judgment. The repeopling of the earth after Noah's flood does not foreshadow and predict any such renovation. The only shadow of this prediction is the misunderstanding of these words of St. Peter, "The world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished" (2 Pet. iii. 6). " The world" in this verse 6 is not the material earth, but is "the world of the ungodly" (2 Pet. ii. 5). This is St. Peter's own explanation. "God spared not the old world, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly" (2 Pet. ii. 5). According to St. Peter, therefore, "the old world" is not the old earth, but is solely " the world of the ungodly." As the world, in 2 Pet. ii. 5, is the world of the ungodly, so, in 2 Pet. iii. 6, the world is not the old earth, but is exclusively the world of ungodly men. When, then, in 2 Pet. iii. 6, St. Peter saith, " The world perished," he does not say the earth perished, but this is his only declaration: The world of the ungodly perished. As the earth did not perish in the days of Noah, it was not after- wards renovated. By Noah's flood, the material world did not perish, only the ungodly world, the ungodly people, perished. Since the material world did not then perish, it was not then renovated to be the pledge and the model of its renovation and inhabitation at Christ's, second coming. 12. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne; and books are opened: and another book is opened, which is the book of life : and from the records in the books, the dead are judged, according to their works. The dead: are all men who have died. That the expression, " the dead," designates all who have died, is certain from the receptacles 352 THE REVELATION OF out of which these dead come. These receptacles are the " sea, death, and Hades" (verse 13). Each of these receptacles delivers all its contents. There are no reserves. But death and Hades hold all the dead. "Death passed upon all men" (Rom. v. 12). St. John himself thus, by the receptacles of the dead, affirms that "the dead " include all men who have died. All these dead are no longer dead. They are all alive. "Deliv- ered up" by the sea and death and hades, they are all "risen from the dead" (1 Cor. xv. 20). Risen from the dead, all are clothed with immortal bodies. "The dead shall be raised incorruptible" (1 Cor. xv. 52). Each "is raised a spiritual body" (verse 44). Great and small: all ages of men, all mankind who reached the age of personal responsibility before they died. Standing before the throne: standing for trial. "I stand at Caesar's judgment-seat" (Acts xxv. 10). This present earth and its heaven having disappeared, the place of Christ's great white throne and the standing-place of the risen dead may be the limitless space now enclosed by the earth in its annual circuit. Christ's omnipotence will provide a judgment-hall of suffi- cient amplitude. Books are opened: containing accusations (Dan. vii. 10; Ps. lvi. 8; Isa. Ixv. 6). The symbolism of books represents, — I. Conscience (Rom. ii. 15). The consciences even of the wicked will approve the decisions of Christ. II. The moral law under which men were living, and still at the judgment-seat retained in their memories. III. The omniscience of the Judge (John v. 45). The book of life (Exod. xxxii. 32; Ps. lxix. 28; Dan. xii. 1; Mai. iii. 16; Phil. iv. 3; Rev. xiii. 8, xvii. 8, xxi. 27) : symbolizes the omnis- cience and love of Christ (Matt. xxv. 33, 34). In the books: in the several books. According to their works: in this world (2 Cor. v. 10). So impartial and just will Christ's final sentences be, that neither angel nor human soul will dissent either in word or in conviction. Every mouth will be stopped (Rom. iii. 19). Every heart will hide the bitterness it knoweth (Prov. xiv. 10). 13. And the sea gives up the dead that are in it; and death and Hades give up the dead that are in them ; and they are judged, each one, according to their works. The sea: designates all oceans anc} seas — all waters, as distin- guished from the dry land. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 353 The material sea is meant. In the Apocalypse, the word "sea" occurs twenty-four times. The ''sea of r/lass" three times (iv. 6, xv. 2 twice) is figurative. In every other instance the sea is contrasted with the material earth, and is therefore itself material. Usage, not conjecture, decides the sense in which "sea" is to be understood in Rev. xx. 13. Our Lord predicts the resurrection of all the dead buried on the land: "All that are in the graves [tombs] shall come forth" (John v. 28, 29). This prediction St. John enlarges, by foretelling the resurrection of all the dro'oned. This class of the dead includes vast multitudes. (a) The antediluvians who perished in Noah's flood. (b) The Egyptians who were drowned in the Red Sea. (c) The combatants who were killed in naval engagements. (d) The mariners and travellers, who, during the many centuries of navigation, have disappeared in the ingulfing waves of the sea. To our apprehension, the resurrection of the buried in the sea seems more difficult than the resurrection of the buried on the land. In our minds, the lo'-t at sea have no locality: on the contrary, we know the very places where the precious dust of the sleepers in graves is awaiting its return to life. Perhaps St. John addresses this apprehension of ours, when he assures us that even the sea, through the omnipotence of Christ, shall at the universal resurrection recall to life the unknown myriads now sleeping in the silent depths of all seas. How the sea can surrender its dead, when, according to Rev. xx. 11, the earth, and with it the sea, has passed away, is not a real difficulty. Rev. xx. 11 describes the consummation of the last judgment; Rev. xx. 13 describes the process of the last judgment before its absolute completion. Death: in the language of the Bible, death is a king (Rom. v. 14), " reigning from Adam to Moses," and from Moses to the end of the world, over the bodily life of every human being. From the do- minion of this king, no one escapes: "It is appointed unto men to die" (Heb. ix. 27). But Christ has conquered death (1 Cor. xv. 57). At the universal resurrection, Christ compels death to surrender the bodies of all men, on which Christ himself then confers animal life. Hades: the invisible world; "the place of departed spirits" (Apos- tles' Creed, Book of Common Prayer). Hades thus holds at the present time the soids of all the disembodied children of Adam. The duration of the disembodied state, though long, is temporary. Hades, when Christ comes to judgment, will deliver all souls into his hands. The re-union, through Christ's resistless power, of all the 354 THE REVELATION OF bodies and all the souls of mankind, will constitute the universal res- urrection, the great preparation for the universal and final judgment'. Judged each one according to their -works: works, — not thoughts, not feelings, not words, not profession, either merely or mainly; but works. Work is thought, feeling, speech, profession, acted. Action is consummation. Action includes all its predecessors. Action expresses character. Most justly do our works decide our eternal destiny. What depth of emphasis do these facts create in this exhortation of St. Paul, "Be careful to maintain good works" (Tit, iii. 8). 14. And death and Hades are cast into the lake of fire. This second death is the lake of fire. Cast into the lake of fire : and there burned up; that is, death and Hades cease to exist. Men's bodies die no more. Men's souls are no more separated from their bodies. The place of departed spirits is annihilated. This second death is the lake of fire : this second death is caused by the lake of fire. When the subject is capable of cessation, extinc- tion follows immersion in the lake of fire: When the subject is in- herently deathless, endless suffering follows. The fact, though most appalling, is most undeniable. It is St. John's divine teaching, and so must be true and unalterable. "Who- soever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire" (Eev. xx. 15). Death and Hades are capable of cessation: every human soul is eternal. "These shall go away into everlasting punishment" fMatt. xxv. 46). The eternity of the punishment proves the eternity, in their nature, of the punished. Thus eternal in its own nature, every human soul is incapable of cessation. Whatever, then, is represented by the lake of fire, be it an accusing conscience, or infliction from God, or both, the misery of lost souls, as portrayed by St. John, is hopeless. " Who shall dwell with everlasting burnings ? " (Isa. xxxiii. 14. ) Who can consent to make himself incapable of regeneration, and to fit him- self solely for the companionship of the devil and all unholy souls ? 15. And if any one is not found written in the book of life, he is cast into the lake of fire. Is not found: omission from the book of life involves not only the loss of heaven, but also the actual infliction of the second death (verse 14, note). The non-appearance of one's name in the book of life must there- ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 355 fore be his own fault and his own'sin. "I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God; wherefore, turn your- selves, and live ye" (Ezek. xviii. 32), while ye can. Our Saviour gives the true reason of the sinner's spiritual death and endless misery : "Ye will not come unto me, that ye may have life " (John v. 40). " Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou me from my secret faults" (Ps. xix. ]2). " Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me " (Ps. li. 10). 356 THE REVELATION OF CHAPTER XXI. THE NEW JERUSALEM. INTRODUCTION. In attempting to understand St. John's description of the New Jerusalem, two rules are essential : — ■ 1. Rejection of all astronomical facts disclosed to us by modern science. 2. Adoption of St. John's imagery derived from the Old Testament. I. St. John knew nothing of the actual connection between the earth and the sun and moon. He did not know that the earth revolves about the sun, and the moon about the earth. With him the earth was not essentially dependent upon the sun and moon. He could, therefore, construct a world with- out either sun or moon. He knew nothing of the origin of rain hy the process of evaporation of water from the ocean ; nothing of the forma- tion of clouds, and the precipitation of their contents to the earth. He could, in consequence, make an earth without an ocean, and without a concave atmosphere. St. John's ignorance in these respects we must constantly recognize, in our attempts to understand him when drawing pictures of the New Jerusalem. II. In constructing the New Jerusalem, St. John would, as a Jew, familiar and (illed with the ideas of the Old Tes- tament, freely employ its peculiar imagery. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 357 The Old Testament exhibits the heavenly state of God's people in two forms, — a country and a city. 1. The picture of heaven as a country is derived from the earthly Canaan. Instances of this representation we find both in the Old and New Testaments. Among these instances, the following are most instruc- tive : — (a) " Thine eye shall behold the land that is very far off" (Isa. xxxiii. 17). "I believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of life" (Ps. xxvii. 13). Also Ps. cxvi. 9, cxlii. 5. (b) This very imagery our Lord uses in one of his beati- tudes : — " Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the land [of life] " (Matt. v. 5). 2. The picture of heaven as a city is derived from Jerusa- lem on Mount Zion. St. Paul declares the city Jerusalem to have both a literal and a spiritual signification : — (a) "Jerusalem which now is" (Gal. iv. 25). (b) " Jerusalem which is above " (verse 26). " Ye are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem" (Heb. xii. 22). "Abraham looked for the city having the foundations" (xi. 10). With these Bible representations of heaven, both as a country and as a city, in his mind, St. John, when in Rev. xxi. 1 he sees " a new heaven and a new earth," the future residence of the risen and glorified saints, describes the new world both as a country and as a city. At first sight, the new heaven and the new earth appear to be a city. But when we learn the symbolic dimensions of the "New Jerusalem," and recall the vast size of the typi- cal Jerusalem of the prophet Kzekiel (xlviii. 30-35), a 358 THE REVELATION OF model which St. John himself follows (chapters xxi., xxii., of his Apocalypse) , we perceive that the cit} T of Jerusalem is, in its enlarged extent, a country. As a city, the New Jerusalem fills the entire land of the heavenly Canaan. Country and city are, in their dimensions, but one and the same. The fact of local identity will help explain portions of St. John's language in his delineations of the New Jerusalem, " the new heaven and the new earth." REPETITIONS IN" CHAPTERS XXI. AND XXII. In all the preceding sections of the Apocalypse, recapitula- tion is an obvious and instructive characteristic of the book. The same peculiarity pervades the last two chapters. The design of the repetitions is impressiveness and certainty (Gen. xli. 32). There are two exhibitions and descriptions of " the New Jerusalem." The first exhibition and description occupy xxi. 2-7. The second exhibition and description occupy xxi. 9-xxii. 15. The second portion contains repetitions and amplifications of the first portion. 1. The city itself; xxi. 2 is amplified by xxi. 9-xxii. 5. 2. Its blessings ; xxi. 3,4, 5, are amplified by xxi. 22- 26, xxii. 2-5. 3. Its citizens ; xxi. 6, 7, are amplified by xxi. 24, 27, last clause, and xxii. 3-5, 7, 11, 14. 4. Its outcasts ; xxi. 8 is amplified by xxi. 27 and xxii. 11, 15. 5. Its securit}', nameh T , Christ's eternity; xxi. 6 is ampli- fied b}^ xxii. 13, " the Beginning and the End." 1. And I saw a new heaven and a new earth ; for the first heaven and the first earth are passed away. And so there is no more sea. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 359 A new heaven and a new earth: in the Bible, "heaven and earth" sometimes mean this material world* " Thy heaven that is oner thy Jiead, and the earth that is under time" (Dent, xxviii. 23). " Heaven and earth shall pass away" (Matt. xxiv. 35). " The world passeth away " (1 John ii. 17). When, therefore, St. John sees a new heaven and a new earth, he sees a new world. The heaven and earth St. John sees are "new," because they differ from the old heaven and earth. The old heaven and earth were material. The new heaven and the new earth are, consequently, immaterial and spiritual. Are passed away : the departure and destruction of the old material earth and its heaven (its atmosphere) make necessary the creation and appearance of a spiritual world for the residence of the saints with spiritual bodies. The new world is not the old world spiritualized, but is a different and better creation than the old world of matter. No more sea : for the omission of the sea in the new world, there is this obvious reason: a material sea cannot exist in a spiritual world. The absence of the sea proves, therefore, the sphituality of the new world. A world without an ocean, and consequently without evapo- ration, without rain, rivers, vegetation, and animal life, must be spiritual. 2. Even the holy eit}-, the New Jerusalem, I saw coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. The holy city, the New Jerusalem, is identical with the new heaven and the new earth. The new heaven and the new earth is the new world for the residence of the saints; and this new world is the New Jerusalem, the holy city. Coming down: the descent of the New Jerusalem cannot be to this present earth. In St. John's vision, this present earth, " the first earth," Jias forever passed away (verse 1). In Rev. iii. 12, the New Jerusalem is described as the city "which is cominy down out of heaven." According to this description, in the present tense, this city is incessantly coming down. This incessant descent of the New Jerusalem is its great characteristic, pertaining to it continually and perpetually. The descents, then, which St. John sees (Rev. xxi. 2, 10) are by no means the first descents of the holy city of God. The first descent (Rev. iii. 12) is a symbol of the divine origin oj the Church. 360 777 £ REVELATION OF The other recorded descents (Rev. xxi. 2, 10) are also symbols of the same kind of origin. That descent denotes divine original, this following narrative proves: — Peter saw "heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him" (Acts x. 11). "I saw a certain vessel descend, let down from heaven" (Acts xi. 5). The great truth of the divine origin of the Church, thus symbol- ized, is also expressed in these plain words of the enthroned Alpha and Omega: "Behold, new am I making all things " (Rev. xxi. 5, 0). The descent, therefore, of the New Jerusalem does not teach that its location will be on this earth. This earth is to be utterly destroyed (verse 1, note). The descent of the New Jerusalem is the creation of the new heaven and the new earth, the new world, for the eternal home of the risen and glorified people of God. Prepared: not the city, but its inhabitants. This is Bible usage. " When he was come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved" (Matt, xxi. 10). As a bride : xix. 7. Adorned : the bride's adornment, the Bible thus specifies: (a) attire (Jer. ii. 32), "fine linen" (Rev. xix. 8); (6) jewels (Isa. lxi. 10; Rev. xxi. 19). THE TABERNACLE OF GOD (Verses 3-8). 3. And I heard a great voice from the throne, saying, Behold the tabernacle of God with men. and he shall dwell with them, and the}' themselves shall be his people, and he himself, God with them, shall be their God. From the throne: from the enthroned King (xix. 5). The tabernacle of God with men: "tabernacle" in Revelation only here and xiii. 6, xv. 5. See Lev. xxvi. 11, 12, from which the language of this verse is derived. By the shechinah, God dwelt in the tabernacle in the wilderness. The prophet Ezekiel repeats this language (xxxvii. 27). Men: as a class of beings (Jas. iii. 9). Seventeenth Triplet, (a) Dwell with them, (6) his people, (c) their God. 1. Dwell: in New Testament, only John i. 14; Rev. vii. 15, xii. 12 xiii. 6, xxi. 3; implies recognition and love on the part of God. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 361 2. People: Greek, peoples. The Church includes "all sorts and conditions of men" (Ps. cxvii. 1; Rom. xv. 11). God with them: " Immanuel, God with us" (Matt. i. 23). 3. Their God: his presence with liis glorified saints completely fulfils these ancient promises of God's continual presence with his people, and watchful care over them (Exod. xxix. 45; Lev. xxvi. 11, 12; Ezek. xxxvii. 27). 4. And God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes ; and there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying, nor pain ; for the first things are passed away. Wipe away every tear : repeated from Isa. xxv. 8. Death: xx. 14, first clause. Nor, etc.: negative specifications of the causes and accompani- ments of death. First things: sin, death, and their consequences (Matt. xii. 45; 2 Pet. ii. 20). 5. And he that sitteth on the throne saith, Behold, I am making all things new. Also he saith to me, Write : for these words are faithful and true. Sitteth: God the Son. "The Alpha and Omega" (verse 6, i. 8, xx. 11; Matt. xxv. 31). New : different. Write: my words just spoken. Faithful and true : most certainly am I making a new and better world, with new and better relations and conditions. 6. Also he saith to me, The}' are done. I myself am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I myself to him that is athirst will give of the fountain of the water of life freely. They are done: my words (verse 5) are fulfilled, accomplished, done. Alpha, etc. : I am the same in my nature always. I cannot change. Having promised, I shall perform. Give : to drink, "give to eat" (ii. 7). Fountain: vii. 17; John iv. 10, vii. 38; Ps. xxxvi. 9; Isa. lv. 1; Jer. ii. 13, xvii. 13. Freely: gratuitously. In Revelation, only here and xxii. 17. No payment is required. "By grace are ye saved" (Eph. ii. 8). 3G2 THE REVELATION OF 7. He that overcomcth shall possess these things. And I will be his God, and he shall be my son. Possess: have and enjoy (1 Kings xxi. 16). These things : these blessings. I will be, etc. : 2 Sara. vii. 14. The promise of God to Christ, the seed of David. This promise Christ extends to every Christian con- queror. His God : to keep, and bless him. My son : to love and serve me. The reciprocal affection of an earthly father and son is the refer- ence and illustration here used. THE SUBJECTS OF THE SECOND DEATH. 8. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and abominable, and murderers, and adulterers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake burning with fire and brimstone : which is the second death. But: creates contrast between "God's people" (verse 3) and the subjects of the second death, who refuse to take Christ as their king. Ei'jht Classes. 1. The fearful : the cowardly, in contrast with the courage of the conqueror (verse 7), who "stands" firmly (Eph. vi. 13); who "fights" (1 Tim. vi. 12) ; who " earnestly contends" (Jude 3). "Fearful:" the Greek word in the New Testament only here and Matt. viii. 26; Mark iv. 40. The fearful lack faith in God (Mark iv. 40), and are afraid of other men (Prov. xxix. 25; Heb. xiii. 6). 2. The unbelieving: only here in Revelation, in contrast with "faithful unto death" (ii. 10). 3. The abominable: in the New Testament only here and Rom. ii. 22. Abhorred by God; abominable, because "working abomina- tion" (Rev. xxi. 27); "abominations and filthiness" (xvii. 4); the impurities and cruelties of idol-worship (1 Kings xi. 5; 2 Kings xvi. 3); the worshippers of the dragon and the wild beast (Rev. xiii. 4), in contrast with the worshippers of God and the Lamb (v. 14). 4. The murderers : both (a) actual, a numerous class in every period of the world; and (b) in the sense given by our Lord (Matt. v. 22), murderers in disposition and purpose. In contrast with the followers of this exhortation of St. John, "Let us love one another" (1 John iv. 7), and in contrast with all Good Samaritans. 5. The adulterers: the transgressors of the seventh command- ment of the Decalogue, in its letter (1 Cor. vi. 18) and in its spirit ST. JOHN TI7E DIVINE. 363 (Matt. v. 28). In contrast with the observers of "all purity" (1 Tim. v. 2), and with "the pure in heart'' (Matt. v. 8). 6. The sorcerers (see xviii. 23, note) : in contrast with the obedient to these rules: "Believe in God " (John xiv. 1), and "In all thy ways acknowledge him" (Pro v. iii. 6). 7. The idolaters: the worshippers of material idols (Hos. viii. 4), and of any object whatever, more than God (Matt. vi. 24). In contrast with God's true worshippers (John iv. 23). 8. The liars: false swearers, liars, and deceivers ; the opposite of him " that speaketh the truth in his heart" (Ps. xv. 2). "Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me " (Ps. li. 10). Christ's Own Amplified Description of the Broad and the Narroio Ways. Rev. xxi. verses 6, 7, 8, are Christ's oivn words. I. They are his amplified description of the broad way (Matt. vii. 13). Every human soul has, by his creation in the image of God, moral light ; " the light that is in thee " (Matt. vi. 23). From this natural possession the broad way has these eight de- scending steps just described ; each in succession a more aggravated refusal to obey the moral light, with which Christ endows every human being. 1. Cowardice. 2. Unbelief. 3. Acceptance of false religion. 4. Indulgence of malignant passions. 5. Indulgence of animal appetites. 5. Superstition. 7. Mental blindness; inability to distinguish between spiritual and material objects (Isa. xliv. 9-20). 8. Moral blindness. Unable to discern between truth and false- hood, the lost soul cannot speak the truth; having become, in his incessant degradation, a helpless liar. The lost soul is, in these eight processes, the author of his own ruin. II. ChrisVs Amplified Description of the Narrow Way (Matt. vii. 14). 1. Courage to follow moral light. 2. Belief of divine revelation. 3. Rejection of religious errors. 4. Restraint of malignant passions. 5. Government of the animal appetites. 6. Recognition of God's providences. 364 THE REVELATION OF 7. Mental illumination by the study of the Holy Scriptures (2 Pet. iii. 18). 8. Moral illumination by the Holy Spirit (Prov. iv. 18; Johnvii. 17, xvi. 13; 1 John ii. 20). The Broad Way leads to the "without" (Eev. xxii. 15). The narrow way leads the soul to Christ and to the New Jerusalem. A MORE DISTINCT VISION AND DEFINITE DESCRIP- TION OF THE NEW JERUSALEM (xxi. 9-xxii. 5). 9. And there comes one of the seven angels, who have the seven censers, which are full of the seven last plagues ; and he talks with me, saying, Come hither, and I will show thee the bride, the Lamb's wife. Show: In xvii. 1, the angel shows the apostate Church. Here the angel shows, in contrast, the faithful Church. We may regard these showing angels as different persons. Bride : see verse 2. "Wife: see xix. 7. The betrothed virgin was called wife (Matt. i. 20; Deut. xx. 7). The Church of Christ is, in this world, only the betrothed wife. In the New Jerusalem, the Church will be the married wife. 10. And he carries me awa}' by the Spirit, and sets me on a great and high mountain, and shows me the holy city Jeru- salem descending out of heaven from God. The Spirit : the Holy Spirit, who places St. John's mind in a state of trance (i. 10, note). Mountain : elevation secures extensive views. From the top of Pisgah, Moses views the land of Canaan (Deut. iii. 27, xxxiv. 1-4); God sets the prophet Ezekiel "upon a very high mountain," to show him the prophetic temple, city and country (xl. 2, etc.); our Lord taketh Peter, James, and John into a high mountain, when he shows them the vision of his transfiguration (Matt. xvii. 1, 2; Mark ix. 2). The angel, carrying St. John to a high mountain to show him the New Jerusalem, follows these examples. 11. Having the glory of God. The light from it is like the most precious stone, as the costal jasper-stone. Glory of God : the shechinah, the glorious presence of God him- self (verse 23, xv. 8). " The glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle" ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 3G5 (Exod. xl. 34). " The cloud, the glory of the Lord, filled the house of the Lord" (1 Kings viii. 10, 11). The light from it : the glory shining from it. The light coming from the shechinah becomes the light-giver, the illuminator, the lumin- ary. In the New Testament, the Greek word is only here and Phil, ii. 15. In the Septuagint (Gen. i. 14, 1G; Wis. xiii. 2) the Greek noun is the name of the sun and moon. The crystal jasper-stone: the ice-clear jasper; of clear white color, the emblem of purity and holiness. 12. Having a wall great and high, with twelve gatewa} T s, and at the gateways twelve angels, and on the gatewaj-s names written, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel. Having: the city having (verse 10). Wall: the old Jerusalem had a wall (2 Kings xviii. 26; Neh. iv. 6). Great and high: strong and lofty, for security. Twelve gateways: three gateways on each side-wall (verse 13). Twelve angels: cherubim guarded the Garden of Eden. To this fact there may be here allusion. If so, the twelve angels may here be cherubim. "The angel of the Lord encampeth about them that fear him" (Ps. xxxiv. 7). Angels are needed at the gateways to enforce the prohibition (verse 27). Written: engraven. Twelve tribes : represent the whole Church of God, Christian as well as Jewish (Matt. xix. 28). 13. At the east, three gatewa3*s ; and at the north, three gateways ; and at the south, three gateways ; and at the west, three gatewa}'s. These constructions are derived from the encampment of the Israelites in the wilderness. " On the east side toward the rising of the sun, Judah, Issachar, Zebulon. On the south side, Reuben, Sim- eon, Gad. On the west side, Ephraim, Manasseh, Benjamin. On the north side, Dan, Asher, Naphtali" (Num. ii. 3, 5, 7, 10, 12, 14, 18, 20, 22, 25, 27, 29. I. The order here follows the course of the sun, — east, south, west, north. II. Ezekiel gives a different order and a different classification: north, Reuben, Judah, Levi; east, Joseph, Benjamin, Dan; south, 3GG THE REVELATION OF Simeon, Issachar, Benjamin; west, Gad, Asher, ISTaphtali (xlviii. 31-34). III. St. John's order differs from each, of the other orders: East, north, south, west. The changes by Ezekiel and St. John may be to denote the unearthly nature of the cities and of their citizens. 14. And he shows me the wall of the city having twelve foundation-stones, and upon them are the twelve names of the apostles of the Lamb. The strength and stability of the wall depend upon the strength and stability of the foundation-stones (Matt. vii. 24-27). Foundation-stones: between the twelve gateways. Each foun- dation-stone must be of great length and size (1 Kings v. 17; Ezra vi. 3). At Baalbek there are now foundation-stones sixty feet long, seventeen feet broad, fourteen feet thick. Upon them: upon the foundation-stones. The names of all the apostles are upon each foundation-stone. " The foundation [not foundations] of the apostles" (Eph. ii. 20). All the apostles are here equal in position and authority. This heavenly symbolism is an exact copy of the apostleship existing in the Christian Church when St. John wrote the Apocalypse. On the foundation-stones of the New Jerusalem, the perfect equality of the apostles in their office is engraven twelve times (there is ample spare room), that it might never be changed in the Church on earth. There is no supremacy of the Pope in the Church triumphant. The time will come when there will be no supremacy of the Pope in the Church militant. St. John sees his own name engraven twelve times on the founda- tion-stones of the Church in glory. The sight may have inspired him to write afterwards, " We know, that when Christ shall appear, we shall be like him" (1 John iii. 2). The Number Twelve in Verses 12, 13, U. Twelve (a) gateways, (b) angels, (c) tribes, (d) foundation-stones, (e) apostles. 1. The twelve tribes (verse 12) are the representatives of all the members of God's Church, Jews and Christians (Matt. xix. 28). Twelve is therefore here a definite number for an indefinite. The twelve tribes in Rev. xxi. 12 represent " all the tribes of the earth" (Matt. xxiv. 30). 2, The twelve apostles (verse 14). There were more than twelve apostles of the Lamb: Paul was an apostle (Rom. i. 1); Barnabas was an apostle (Actsxiv. 14). Since there were more apostles than ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 367 twelve, the number twelve in Rev. xxi. 14 is representative, and con- sequently is a definite number for an indefinite. 3. The character of the number twelve, when defining tribes and apostles, determines its character when defining gateways, angels, and foundation-stones. In each of these instances, twelve is a defi- nite number for an indefinite. The holy city has more than twelve gateways; more than twelve angels stand at these numerous gate- ways. The foundation-stones are not merely twelve, but are many. These facts respecting the numbers in Rev. xxi. 12, 13, 14, will greatly assist us wben we meet with other numbers in this third part of the Apocalypse. TIIE MEASUREMENT OF THE HOLY CITY (Verses 15-17) . 15. And the angel talking with me was holding a measure, a golden reed, that he might measure the city, and its gate- ways, and its wall. A measure : why this measurement? 1. To give to St. John, and through him to others, an exact and impressive description of the holy city. Ezekiel wituessed a similar measurement, the design of which was definite impression and distinct narration (xl. 2-5). "The man said unto me, Behold with thine eyes, and set thy heart upon all that I shall show thee ; declare all that thou seest to the house of Israel" (verse 4). 2. To denote the perpetuity of the city (Zech. ii. 1-5). " Measure Jerusalem. For I, saith the Lord, will be unto her a wall of fire round about" (verse 5). 16. And the city lieth foursquare, and its length is as great as the breadth; and he measures the city with the reed twelve thousand furlongs. Its length and breadth, even on its top, are equal. Four-square: the Greek word means four equal corners. The four corners are all right angles ; not acute, not obtuse, not curvilinear. This is the explanation of Ezekiel: "The altar twelve cubits long, twelve broad, square in the four squares [parts; Greek, "sides"] thereof" (xliii. 10). Twelve thousand furlongs: fifteen hundred miles. Each side of the city measured three hundred and seventy-five miles. These numbers are definite for indefinite. This city is too large for this present earth. Its vastness indicates its unearthly nature. 368 THE REVELATION OF Its length and breadth, even on its top, are equal : this trans- lation cau be fully justified by Bible usage. 1. A city with a wall three hundred and seventy-five miles high cannot be symbolized by any earthly city; but all Bible symbolism is derived from some earthly reality. No such earthly reality of a city ever existed. A symbolical city with its height as great as its length and breadth is an impossibility and an absurdity. We are not obliged to suppose any such monstrous and impossible symbolism. " Height " is here capable of a consistent explanation, and of a practicable sense. 2. Height, in the Greek word it here represents, sometimes means top, the top-surface of the wall. "He walked upon the top [Greek, epi kupsos] of the earth." Lit- eral translation of Ecclus. xlvi. 9. 3. A wall was measured on Us top. "The Lord stood upon a wall with a plumb-line in his hand" (Amos vii. 7). " The man went up the stairs and measured ; he measured from the roof of one chamber to the roof of another" (Ezek. xl. 6, 13). That is, on each flat roof he measured the tops of the walls of the several chambers. 4. With the words " length," " breadth," "top," the word "meas- ure" is implied. "With what measure ye measure" (Matt. vii. 2). " He measured the wall, a hundred forty -four cubits, the measure of a man" (Rev. xxi. 17). Usage, therefore, warrants this translation of Rev. xxi. 16, last clause: " The measures of the length and of the breadth, even on the top, are equal." In its own series, the Greek conjunction kai, represented by and, is often in its last mention explanatory ; namely, even. 5. The explanation given above of the word "height" is not only warranted by Bible usage, but is demanded by verse 17, which gives the height of the walls of the city as two hundred and sixteen feet instead of three hundred and seventy-flee miles. In literal measures, the holy city is 140,625 square miles. This extent exceeds in size all New England and the States of New York and New Jersey.. The measures of the holy city cannot, then, be taken literally. In indefinite measures, the measures St. John intends us to take, the bounds of the holy city are limitless, its extent inconceivable, the designation of its locality impossible. The holy city cannot be built on this earth. The holy city can be constructed only in the boundless heavens. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 369 The Height of the Wall. 17. And he measures its wall, one hundred and fort} T -four cubits ; man's measure, that is, of the angel. One hundred and forty-four cubits : 216 feet, 72 yards. A wall 216 feet high would require proportionate thickness; perhaps 30 feet. In Rev. vii. 4, and xiv. 1, the definite number one hundred and forty-four is used for an indefinite. Indefiniteness is also the char- acter of a hundred and forty-four in llev. xxi. 17. The height of the wall is indefinitely lofty. Man's measure: the angel used the common human measure. In our explanations of the passage, we must measure by his standard. THE MATERIAL OF THE HOLY CITY (Verses 18-21). 18. And the building of the wall is jasper; and the city is pure gold, like clear glass. The building : the structure. Jasper: the material of the wall, its body compacted. The city: in its area of streets (verse 21). Pure gold: gold translucent (verse 21). Clear: as water, translucent. 19. And the foundations of the wall of the city are adorned with every kind of precious stone ; the first foundation, jas- per ; the second, sapphire ; the third, chalcedony ; the fourth, emerald. The wall of the city is itself jasper. The foundations (material, not mentioned because covered and invisible by the ornamentation) of the wall are ornamented by twelve kinds of precious stones. King Solomon ornamented " with precious stones" the temple he built in Jerusalem (2 Chron. iii. 6; 1 Chron. xxix. 2). Tbese pre- cious stones were ornaments on the surface of the foundation-stones. "I will lay thy stones with fair colors, and lay thy foundations with sapphires'" (Isa. liv. 11). This form of ornamentation explains St. John's description of the structure of the holy city. 1 The Twelve Precious Stones. 1. Jasper: crystal hue. 2. Sapphire: blue. 1 Diet. Bible, iv. p. 484; Diet. Gr. and Rom. AlUiq., p. 771, a 1f2. 370 TIIE REVELATION OF 3. Chalcedony. 4. Emerald: green. 20. The fifth, sardonyx ; the sixth, sardine ; the seventh, chrysolite ; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase ; the eleventh, jacinth ; the twelfth, amethyst. 5. Sardonyx : pale rose and white. 6. Sardine: red. 7. Chrysolite : goldstone, chrysolith, chrysolite, pale green. 8. Beryl: sea-green. 9. Topaz: yellowish tint. 10. Chrysoprase : gold-leek, greenish golden color. 11. Jacinth: dark blue. 12. Amethyst: violet. The great variety of the contrasted colors increases the beauty and splendor of the appearance. THE GATEWAYS OF THE HOLY CITY. 21. And the twelve gateways are twelve pearls. Separ- ately each one of the gatewa3*s is of one single pearl. And the broad street of the city is pure gold, as brightly translucent glass. The gateways : the two doors of each gateway. Each door is a single pearl. The broad street: in the city of Shushan, there was an avenue, bearing this pre-eminent name, the broad street of the city (Esth. vi. 9). Other ancient cities had similar avenues. In the city of Damascus, " the street called Straight" (Acts ix. 11) was one hundred feet wide (Diet. Bible, art. "Streets"). Pure gold: paved with pure gold. The streets of ancient cities were sometimes paved. Herod the Great paved one of the streets of Jerusalem. With Tobit, a costly pavement is essential to the perfection of his ideal Jerusalem. " The streets of Jerusalem shall be paved with beryl and carbuncle and stones of Ophir" (xiii. 17). Brightly translucent: while permitting the light to pass through it, the translucent gold radiates the light, causing it to shoot forth rays. The 'Greek embodies all this meaning. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 371 THE TEMPLE OF THE HOLY CITY. 22. And 3 T et I did not see a temple in the cit} r ; for the Lord God Almight}-, even the Lamb, is its temple. In the Greek, holy of holies, a part of the temple, is used for the whole. Is its temple : the Lord God Almighty, even the Lamb, is wor- shipped without a temple. Heaven realized and spiritual, and the worshippers themselves, spirits in spiritual bodies, cannot admit a temple, either symbolical or material. THE LIGHT OF THE HOLY CITY. 23. Also the cit}' hath no need of the sun, nor of the moon to shine in it ; for the glory of God doth lighten it, and the Lamb is its light. The sun : Isa. lx. 19. Light: John viii. 12; Isa. lx. 20; Mark ix. 3. " Sun of my soul, thou Saviour dear." — John Keble. THE CITIZENS OF THE HOLY CITY. 24. And the nations shall walk b} r means of its light, and the kings of the earth are bringing their glory into it. This is the fulfilment of Isaiah's prophecy, " The Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising" (lx. 3). Nations: " all nations shall serve him " (Ps. lxxii. 11). Walk : shall live and have their happiness in the light of the city, even in the Lamb. They enter into his joy (Matt. xxv. 21). Kings: the kings in the holy city were once "of the earth" earthy, and sinful. They are so no longer. They are not only "brought" themselves (Isa. lx. 11), but they are bringing into the city their own subjects, and are thus becoming " nursing fathers" (xlix. 23). It is quite possible that " their glory " may mean their subjects. "He delivered his strength [his strong men] into captivity, and his glory [his glorious victors] into the enemy' s hand. He gave las people over unto the sword, and was wroth with his inheritance" (Ps. lxxviii. 61, 62). Here "strength, glory, people, inheritance," are all identical. A king's "people" are his sufjects. It is thus possible for "glory" (Rev. xxi. 24) to mean subjects. It is J5t. John's practice to use words 372 THE REVELATION OF in figurative senses. If "glory" (Rev. xxi. 24) may mean subjects, the passage accords with this prophecy of Isaiah, " Kings shall be thy nursing fathers " (xlix. 23). THE SECURITY OF THE HOLY CITY. 25. And its gatewa}'S are not shut at all by d&y ; for no night shall be there. By day: as there is no night in heaven, "by day" is the only time the gateways can be shut. But as there are no enemies to enter the city, it is secure with open gateways. Since the day is perpetual, the gateways are never shut. They are perpetually open. They are perpetually secure. "Thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night" (Isa. lx. 11). No night : the presence of the Lamb creates perpetual day. The glorified saints are never weary. They do not need the rest of night. There is here no reference to our present earth. It exists no longer. Its diurnal revolutions have forever ceased. THE RICHES OF THE HOLY CITY. 26. And they shall bring the glorj 7 and the honor of the nations into it. They shall bring : men shall bring. The glory and the honor: as this verse repeats Isa. lx. 11, "men may bring unto thee the wealth of the Gentiles," glory and honor may signify wealth. Thus the glory and the honor may be the wealth the nations possess. But material wealth cannot have place in the New Jerusalem. Apart from figures, St. John declares that the regenerated nations brought into the holy city will increase its spiritual riches. Souls saved and glorified are Christ's most precious treasures. With this verse 26 ends St. John's description of the holy city. The description begins with verse 11, and consists of these seven specifications, thus rendering the description complete, namely: — 1. Shechinah (verse 11). 2. Wall (verses 12-21, 25). 3. Street (verse 21). 4. Temple (verse 22). 5. Light (verse 23). 6. Citizens (verse 24). 7. Wealth. Human souls saved and glorified (verse 26). ST. JO TIN THE DIVINE. 373 EXCLUSIONS. 27. And in no wise shall enter into it any unholy person, and any one practising abomination and falsehood. Eighteenth Triplet, (a) defileth, (6) abomination, (c) lie. 1. First exclusion. Every unclean thing. Every thing unholy (Acts x. 14, xi. 8). The neuter for comprehensiveness. Every un- holy person. 2. Second exclusion. Any one working abomination; that is, practising idolatrous abominations (see verse 8). 3. Third exclusion. Any one practising falsehood. Every one that " maketh a lie" (xxii. 15). Written: approved by Christ. "Well done" (Matt. xxv. 21; Rev. xx. 15). Approval follows the record. "Thy people shall be de- livered, every one that shall be found written in the Book" (Dan. xii. 1). Modern astronomers, finding the sun unlike any earthly substance, do not venture even a sketch of this self-evolving and self-involving luminary. Since the centre of our material system cannot be described, much less can the present abode of the Sun of righteousness, and the future home of his glorified saints. No human mind can add any thing to the vision St. John had of the New Jerusalem. "Imagination's utmost stretch In wonder dies away ! " Mrs. Anne Steele. 374 THE REVELATION OF CHAPTER XXIL DESCRIPTION OF THE HOLY CITY {Continued). THE RIVER OF LIFE. 1. Also he shows me a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God, even the Lamb. River: this river mentioned in Revelation, only verses 1 and 2; Gen. ii. 10; Jer. ii. 13; Ezek. xlvii. 1-5; John iv. 6, 14; Rev. vii. 17, xxi. 6. The river symbolizes the spiritual life of which Christ is the Author, and which he continually imparts to his people (John xiv. 19; ICor. x. 4). Bright : verse 16. Proceeding: Ezek. xlvii. 1-5. Throne: symbol of God himself (Matt, xxiii. 22). Even: Granville Sharp's rule (Ayre, Introduct., pp. 216, 217). THE TREE OF LIFE. 2. Between the broad street of the city and the river is the tree of life, on each side of the river, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month : even the leaves of the tree are for the health of the nations. Between : in the space between. The tree of life: as a class of trees. There are many separate trees of this class on each side of the river of life (Gen. ii. 9; Rev. ii. 7). The tree uiving life (Gen. iii. 22). Water and fruit were the means God provided for preserving the lives of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden (Gen. ii. 10, 16). Their appetites of thirst and hunger were thus satisfied. ST. JO IIS THE DIVINE. 375 Of these animal appetites our Lord makes a spiritual application. " Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled" (Matt. v. G). St. John, in Rev. xxii. 2, em- ploys the same imagery to indicate the perfect provision God prepares for the spiritual wants of the citizens of the New Jerusalem. On each side of the river: "at the bank of the river were very many trees on the one side and on the other" (Ezek. xlvii. 7). Bearing twelve kinds of fruit: "all trees shall bring forth new fruit" (Ezek. xlvii. 12). Each month yielding its fruit : the productiveness is unearthly. "Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, which provided victuals for the king and his household : each man his month in a year made provision " (1 Kings iv. 7). The victuals thus furnished at short and regular intervals would be abundant. There would be no deficiency. The spiritual provisions in the Holy City are, through Christ's life, constant and most ample. The Numeral Twelve. In this verse 2, the numeral "twelve" occurs the seventh time in St. John's description of the New Jerusalem. In his employment of numbers, chance is not the guide. System and intention are apparent everywhere. There is significance in each of the numbers twelve and seven. The number twelve has an instructive history, from which we can gather its significance when used by St. John. 1. "The sons of Jacob were twelve" (Gen. xxxv. 22). 2. "All these [twelve] are [represent] the twelve tribes of Israel" (xlix. 28). The twelve sons of Jacob, thus representing the twelve tribes of Israel, represent the Church of God as it was then constituted; as Israel is the true Church of God (Gal. vi. 16). 3. "Moses built twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel" (Exod. xxiv. 4). Because there were twelve tribes, Moses made twelve pillars: the number of the tribes determined the num- ber of the pillars. The fact is instructive and explanatory. 4. Aaron bore on his breastplate, and "on his heart," the twelve names of the tribes of Israel, "for a memorial" of God's love of his Church (Exod. xxviii. 12, 30). 5. There were twelve loaves of shewbread; symbols of spiritual blessings in Christ (Lev. xxiv. 5). 6. There were twelve princes of Israel (Num. i. 44). 7. The animals and the utensils connected with the service of the tabernacle of the Israelites were twelve in number (Num. vii. 84-87). 8. Aaron's rod was one of twelve rods (xvii. 6). 376 THE REVELATION OF 9. Twelve spies visited Canaan (Deut. i. 23). Each tribe was thus represented. 10. At the crossing of the Jordan, the twelve memorial stones were placed by twelve men (Josh. iv. 2-8). Another instance of tribal representation. Other instances follow: — 11. The molten sea stood on twelve oxen (1 Kings vii. 25). 12. Twelve lions skirted Solomon's throne (x. 20). 13. Twelve stones were in Elijah's altar, " according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the Lord came, saying, Israel [prevailer with God] shall be thy name" (xviii. 31 ; Gen. xxxii. 28). 14. Our Lord makes the twelve tribes of Israel representatives of his own Church (Matt. xix. 28). Tin's Bible history of the number twelve discloses its significance in its sevenfold application by St. John to the New Jerusalem. The name " twelve" designates in every instance the holy city as the beloved Church of Christ. The number seven indicates fulness, completeness. When used symbolically, as it is here by St. John, it is another form of St. Paul's declaration, "The love of Christ passeth knowledge" (Eph. iii. 19). Other indications of Christ's love cluster around St. John's exhibi- tion of the golden city. 1. All its surpassing excellences are marks of Christ's surpassing love. 2. Its inconceivable costliness is perhaps the most impressive em- blem of Christ's inconceivable love. His love for us cost him his life, —his priceless blood. Visible to the eye of faith is this inscription on every portion of the Jerusalem above: "Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him" (1 Cor. ii. 9). The leaves of the tree are for the health of the nations : this imagery, like much of the preceding, is from the prophet Ezekiel. " The fruit of the tree shall be for food, and the leaf of the tree for medicine" (xlvii. 12). As the occupants of the New Jerusalem cannot need food, so they cannot need medicine. This language must therefore have a spiritual explanation. Nowhere in the Bible are the leaves of fruit-trees said to be medi- cinal. To suppose them medicinal, as is the case with Ezekiel and St. Jobn, is to suppose them possessed of extraordinary power. This exceptional possession by leaves we can express by saying, even the leaves are for medicine. This may be the sense intended by both ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 377 Ezekiel and St. John. If so, then we may understand them as speak- ing figuratively, and as declaring this fact respecting the garniture oi the heavenly city. Every thing, however insignificant in itself and usually worthless, even a leaf, shall contribute something to the comfort and bliss of Christ's beloved people who "walk the golden streets" (Rev. xxi. 21; Isaac Watts, Hymnal, 462). PERFECTION OF THE HOLY CITY (Verses 3-5). 3. And no longer shall there be an}' accursed person ; and so the throne of God, even of the Lamb, shall be in the city, and his servants shall serve him. Accursed person : this is the meaning of the Greek noun. "I could wish that I myself were accursetV (Rom. ix. 3). " Calleth Jesus accursed" (1 Cor. xii. 3). " Let him be accursed" (Gal. i. 8). A " curse " coming from God is, in Greek, a different word from that translated " accursed." " Under the curse" (Gal. iii. 10). " Re- deemed us from the curse " (13). No accursed person : the underwritten prophecy may have sug- gested the expression, "There shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the Lord of hosts" (Zech. xiv. 21). Canaan was cursed (Gen. ix. 25), and so was an accursed person. Achan, who coveted and took for his own, portions of the spoils of the city of Jericho when captured by Joshua, defines the kind of accursed person who is no longer in the holy city (Josh. vii. 1-25). The sinful dispositions Achan exhibits are, (a) covetousness, "I coveted the goodly Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels" (verse 21); (6) selfish- ness, " I took them and hid them in the earth, in the midst of my tent;" and (c) disregard of the welfare of the whole body of the Israelites, and of the lives of his own sons and daughters (verses 15, 24). Achan is a primary Judas, and the representative of this class of selfish people described by our Lord, who always seek their own advantage, and care not for others. " I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink; I was a stranger, and ye took me not in; naked, and ye clothed me not; sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not" (Matt. xxv. 42, 43). When, therefore, St. John writes, "There is no longer any accursed person in the holy city," his record embodies a twofold declaration. 1. Negative. No Achan, no Judas, no Demas, who loves this present world (2 Tim. iv. 10), " no covetous man who is an idolater," (Eph. v. 5), no person living solely to himself, no soul not loving ;i78 THE REVELATION OF others as he loves himself, and loving Christ more than he loves any other being, " hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ" (Eph. v. 5). 2. Positive. St. John's negative sentence here emphasizes its opposite. The citizens of the New Jerusalem not only bear Christ's test when he judges them in the last day, but they forever possess and cherish the loving dispositions by which he then tries and approves them (Matt. xxv. 35, 36). They love Christ supremely; and, because they thus love him, they " love one another with a pure heart fervently " (1 Pet. i. 22). St. John's negative sentence in Rev. xxii. 3 is the completion of his portraiture of the perfection "of the saints in light." Their highest perfection is not external glory, but is their love for Christ and their mutual love fully consummated. This consummation is the principal design and work of the gos- pel of Christ from its foundation to its top-stone. Its proposed trans- formation of human hearts into living temples of love incarnates the Word of God, brings the Holy Spirit from heaven, prepares there new mansions of bliss, inspires new alleluias, fills the new world with glorified spirits innumerable, all perfect in love for each other because all are perfect in Christ who is himself "Love" (1 John iv. 16). St. John's outline of the perfection of the New Jerusalem most instructively and impressively illustrates St. Paul's "excellent way" to its full possession. "Now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three, but the greatest of these is charity " (1 Cor. xiii. 13). It is up this great ladder of St. Paul's that ascending angels carry the spirits of the just to the wall of the holy city; but it is only their own "charity" that opens the gates of pearl, admits the glorified to the golden streets, and thus consummates the perfection of the saints, bearing the image and possessing the holiness of Jesus. The loving brotherhood of mankind, the great object of the incarnation of the Son of God, is realized. The throne: not of judgment (xx. 11), but of mercy (Heb. iv. 16). Shall serve him: in adoration, love, and praise (vii. 15, 10). They serve Christ " with a perfect heart, and with a willing mind " (1 Chron. xxviii. 9). 4. And they shall see his face, and his name shall be on their foreheads. See his face: "stand continually before him" (1 Kings x. 8); shall be in his presence, and enjoy his favor. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 379 On their foreheads: God marks them his own servants and friends, and cheers them with his exhaustless love. 5. And no night shall be there ; and so they need no light of a lamp, nor the light of the sun ; for the Lord gives them light ; and they shall reign for ever and ever. No night: see xxi. 28. Lamp: xxi. 23. Sun: Isa. lx. 19. Shall reign : shall he kings. The saints have two reigns : — 1. On earth (Eph. ii. 6; Rev. v. 10, xx. 4, 6). 2. In the New Jerusalem, for ever and ever (Rev. xxii. 5). RESUMPTION OF THE SECOND DIVISION (Verses 6-21). The second division of the Apocalypse, chapters iv.-xx. 1-10, contains the symbolical history of the Church of Christ in this world, the long and unknown period between his two advents, — his incarnation, and his second coming to raise all the dead and to judge all mankind. The third division, xx. 11-xxii. 1-5, describes the uni- versal resurrection and judgment, and the opposite places to which he assigns the righteous and the wicked. At chapter xxii., verse 6 to the end of the book, there is a resumption of the second division, with this most important subject closely connected with the universal judgment at his second advent : the present judgments of Christ in this world. In the second division itself, the s} r mbolical Judge is God the Father. In the resumption of the second division, Christ himself, enthroned with his Father (iii. 22), is the present Judge of mankind ; continually and incessantly judging all nations and all individuals, and determining their relations to him, and their different conditions, according to their moral characters and their actual lives. The present judgment of Christ is thus described by him- self:— "The Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son. The Father gives the Son authority 380 THE REVELATION OF to execute judgment, because he is the Son of man. My judgment is just" (John v. 22, 27, 30). " I have many things to judge of you " (viii. 26). " He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not m} T words, hath one thatjadgeth him ; the ivord that I speak, that shall judge him in the last day " (xii. 48). Christ's final judgment will confirm his present judgment. " For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see, and that they which see might be made blind" (ix. 39). " Now is the judgment of this world " (xii. 31). In the very first chapter of the Apocalypse, Christ appears as Judge, moving for the administration of his judgments in the midst of the seven churches. Whenever lie appears afterwards in the book, he is the same kind of judge, ever present with his Church, and ever present in the world, to reward the righteous, and to punish the wicked. Thus Christ himself is the author of the startling truths, that he himself is the present Judge of the hearts of all men, and that the guide to his perpetual decisions is the relation they themselves create between his Spirit and their own souls. the truthfulness of the book. 6. Also he saith to me, These words are faithful and true : and the Lord God of the spirits of the prophets sent his angel to show to his servants the events which must quickly be accomplished. The speaker is the angel mentioned in i. 1, xxi. 9. These words : the entire Book of the Apocalypse: " the words of the prophecy of this book" (xxii. 18). Faithful and true: iii. 14, xix. 11, xxi. 5. The spirits: Num. xvi. 22, xxvii. 16. The prophets : of the Xew Testament, Rev. x. 7, xxii. 9. The God who made the spirits of the prophets, and revealed to the spirits of the prophets the truths they declared to his Church. His angel: i. 1, xxi. 9. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 381 His servants: on earth, i. 1. Must: by God's determination (Acts xv. 18). Quickly: as soon as the events are predicted, they begin to be accomplished. 7. Behold, I come quickly. Blessed is he that keepeth the words of the prophecy of this book. I come : I am coming already. Quickly : without delay. Christ here speaks in place of his angel. Keepeth : observes and obeys, i. 3, note. Prophecy: the prophetic character of the Apocalypse is here re-asserted. (Elsewhere, i. 3, xxii. 10, 18, 19.) ATTEMPTED IDOLATRY OF ST. JOHN. 8. And I John myself am the hearer and eye-witness of the prophetic visions. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who is showing me these things. I John myself, etc. : a strong affirmation of the truth of the Apoc- alyptic prophecies. Fell down : xix. 10. The appearance of the angel must have been most majestic and glorious, to cause St. John to repeat his attempt to worship a created being. Christ, although present to inspire and guide the angel, is himself invisible. ANGEL-WORSHIP FORBIDDEN. 9. And he saith to me, Take heed, do it not. I am thy fellow-servant and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them that keep the words of this book. While the angel refuses worship, Christ accepts it (xxi. 22). Both here and xix. 10, the language equalizes the prophetic office. The angel is the fellow-serv&nt of St. John and of his brethren the New- Testament prophets, and so not their official superior. The scene of St. John's attempted worship of the angel is repeated from xix. 10. By this repetition, the prohibition of all angel-worship is also repeated, and thus most strongly emphasized, and made abso- lutely and forever obligatory. 382 THE REVELATION OF THE PROPHECIES UP THE APOCALYPSE TO BE PUBLISHED. 10. And he saith to me, Seal not the words of the prophec}* of this book ; for the time is near. Seal not: that is, publish widely. To seal is not to publish. Not to seal is, therefore, to publish. The emphatic negative, Seal not; for the positive, Publish widely. The time: when the prophecy will begin to be fulfilled, is ap- proaching. The command of Christ, enjoining the unlimited publication of the Apocalypse, enjoins at the same time the universal reading, study, adoption, use, and acceptance of the book, as divine and authorita- tive. MORAL LIBERTY PERMITTED. 11. Let the wrong-doer be doing wrong still ; let the filthy man make himself filth}' still ; let the righteous man be doing righteousness still ; let the holy man make himself hopy still. The prescience of God does not change the free-will of mankind. The prophecies of the Apocalypse do not diminish human liberty. The wicked can still be wicked. The righteous must still practise righteousness, in order to perfect holiness and secure the possession of heaven. The two clauses of verse 11 form an emphatic parallelism. In the first and third sentences, the "doing" is to others. In the second and fourth sentences, the action of each man upon himself is described. Our translation of the clauses of this verse is fully justi- fied by Bible usage. CHRIST THE IMPARTIAL JUDGE. 12. Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to repay eveiy man as his work is. I come quickly: to fulfil the preceding prophecies I have pub- lished, by symbols and by word of mouth. Christ is at the present time judging both the righteous and wicked, by his providences, and by his spiritual influences on their hearts. Christ is not merely the future Judge of the world : from his ascension to this very hour, he has been its Judge, and will be its Judge until his second advent. By his judgments in this world, Christ is always shaping and forming the eventful and momentous history of the human race. My reward is with me : the reward Christ repays all men with- out exception is twofold. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 383 (a) The " righteous man's reward.'' Matt. x. 41. (6) " The reward of iniquity." Acts i. 18 ; 2 Pet. ii. 13. Repay: in kind; good for good; evil for evil; every man as his work is. (a) When it is righteous. Ps. xviii. 25; Rom. ii. 7. (b) When it is evil. Ps. xviii. 6; Rom. ii. 8, 9. THE ETERNITY OF CHRIST ENABLES HIM TO REWARD AND PUNISH. 13. I myself am the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. Nineteenth Triplet. (a) Alpha, etc. ; (6) first, etc. ; (c) beginning, etc. His eternity is complete and absolute. Nothing before Me, nothing after Me: "Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and to-day, and for- ever" (Heb. xiii. 8); unchangeable in his nature, and at all times, past, present, and future, administering impartial justice to all man- kind, both as nations and as individuals. Alpha: i. 8, xxi. 6. First: i. 11. Beginning: xxi. 6. NATURE OF HIS REWARDS AND PUNISHMENTS (Verses 14, 15). Rewards. 14. Blessed are they who wash their robes ; for their authority shall be over the tree of life, and by the gateways may they enter into the city. Twentieth Triplet. Three forms of blessedness: (a) washing, (6) tree of life, (c) en- trance into the holy city. 1. Wash their robes: the Greek verb translated "wash" is re- markable for the instruction it embodies. It implies the personal activity of the agent. He washes himself. The fountain in which to wash is the blood of Christ (vii. 14). Washing the robes includes, therefore, (a) trust in the efficacy of Christ's blood for pardon (Eph. i. 7), and (6) personal activity and diligence in saving one's own soul (Phil. ii. 12). 2. Tree of life : Rev. ii. 7, xxii. 2. The blessing the tree of life symbolizes is in this world, as well as 384 THE REVELATION OF in the holy city (1 Cor. x. 4; John vi. 35; 1 Cor. x. 16), Christ's life in uar souls. 3. There is a gate and pathway in this life, which, when entered and followed, not only leads to the holy city, but is a present reward in the moral strength and inward peace which self-denial, self-govern- ment, and obedience to Christ always confer (Prov. iii. 17; Rom. xv. 13). The Place and Subjects of Christ's Punishments. 15. Without are the clogs, and the sorcerers, and the forni- cators, and the murderers, and the idolaters, and every one loving and making a lie. Without: is the place where Christ inflicts his punishments. Without, as often represented in the New Testament, is a place of misery, and this for several distressing reasons. 1. It is a place of privation. It is outside of the Church of Christ (1 Cor. v. 12). Thus sepa- rated from the Church, the outside place is deprived of all the blessings the Church possesses; the Bible, the ministry, the sacra- ments, the example and help of Christian people, the presence of Christ, and the influences of the Holy Spirit. Every human soul deprived of these Church blessings is miserable. He cannot be happy, and his self-imposed misery is his unceasing punishment. 2. Outside the Church of Christ is also a place of bad and most hurtful influences. It is the abiding place of the seven spiritual mon- sters enumerated by St. John in this verse 15, whose society is the transforming mould of all wickedness, and whose consuming influ- ence is kindled by the fires of hell. 3. Union in the society of these spiritual monsters, and subjection to their burning influence, is to be one of their number, to be one of them, both in spirit and character, and, therefore, is participation in their own inherent and growing fourfold wretchedness; namely, — (a) The possession of malignant passions: they "hate one another" (Tit. iii. 3). (6) "Hateful" in themselves, they hate themselves, and often through self-disgust commit suicide. (c) Their sense of loss distresses them; the loss of opportunities, the loss of holiness, the loss of the fellowship of the good, the loss of the approval and the presence of Christ. (d) Their heaviest misery and their severest punishment are the reproaches of an accusing conscience, which because within them, and inconsumable, is more tormenting than a lake of fire. ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 385 It is both painful and disgusting to notice the revelations of crimi- nal courts, and to read the confessions of murderers and suicides. But there is an instructive reason why we should observe these reve- lations, and peruse these confessions. They are exhibitions of the methods Christ now employs to punish the wicked by allowing them to make themselves self-destructionists, self-accusers, and self-mur- derers. These exhibitions cannot indeed benefit the dead, but they warn the living. Even a bird shuns a net (Prov. i. 17). The instinct of a bird ought not to be stronger than reason and conscience and the fear of God, on the part of human souls. There are in this verse seven classes of outcasts from the true Church in this world, and from the holy city in heaven. By this sevenfold classification, St. John indicates that the enumeration is complete. All classes of outcasts are included in it. 1. The dogs, etc.: the dogs, etc., previously mentioned (chapter xxi.). The dogs. The impure (Deut. xxiii. 17, 18). 2. The sorcerers (xxi. 8). 3. The fornicators (xxi. 8). 4. The murderers (xxi. 8), including sdf-murderers, Saul (1 Sam. xxxi. 4), Judas (Matt, xxvii. 5). 5. The idolaters (xxi. 8). 6. The lover of lies. 7. The maker of lies. The worst class of outcasts are liars. Also mentioned last (xxi. 27), because they constitute the worst and most hopeless class. JESUS THE AUTHOR OF THE APOCALYPSE, AND THE KING OF ALL WORLDS. 16. I Jesus sent my angel to testify to 3*011 these revela- tions concerning the churches. I myself am the root, even the offspring of David, the bright morning star. Twenty-first Triplet. (a) root, [b) offspring, (c) star. You: St. John and his readers. 1. The root: "a root out of the stem of Jesse" (Isa. xi. 1); "a root of Jesse" (verse 10). The root of David is, therefore, a shoot from the root of David. 2. The offspring of David : since David's offspring, Christ is King (Lukei. 32). 3. Star: ii. 28. A star is the symbol of royalty (Num. xxiv. 17; Isa. xiv. 12). 386 THE REVELATION OF The morning star is the brightest of all stars, consequently " the bright morning star" designates Christ as Universal King. " King of kings, and Lord of lords" (Rev. xix. 16). "All power is given unto me, in heaven and in earth" (Matt* xxviii. 18). THE GOSPEL INVITATIONS, CONDITIONS, AND DUTIES. 17. And the Spirit and the bride sa}-, Come. And let him that heareth sa} 7 , Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. Twenty-second Triplet. Three invitations: come, come, come. 1. The Spirit invites, namely, the Holy Spirit. Everywhere in the New Testament, the Spirit is the Holy Spirit, unless the context for- bids, as in 2 Cor. iii. 17. 2. The bride, the Church (Rev. xxi. 2, 9, 10; Eph. v. 23, 32), in- vites. 3. The hearer of the Gospel himself invites. Every one who hears the Gospel is thus by Christ himself made a herald and a teacher of his "unsearchable riches" (Eph. iii. 8). Twenty-third Triplet. Three conditions. 1. Desire to have the gospel is the first condition. Every human soul thirsting for the water of life may come and drink. 2. Determination to come and drink is the second condition. "Whosoever will, let him take the water of life." Simple desire is not sufficient to bring to us the water of life. The will must resolve to take and drink, and this continually, daily, hourly, every moment. 3. The freeness of the gospel is the third condition. This most precious gift of God cannot be bought with money (Acts viii. 20). Neither works nor merits can obtain the gift of salvation. " Accord- ing to his mercy, God saves us" (Tit. iii. 5). Twenty-fourth Triplet. Three duties. Each duty is to come to Christ. When we habitually come to him, our duty is completely done. Three is a full number, and here denotes duty completed. This verse 17 is Christ's message of love to every human soul. In its love this message repeats the loving declaration with which Christ ends his messages to the seven churches. " Behold, I stand at the ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. 387 door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me" (iii. 20). Here his message of love precedes his warnings. Even when threatening, Christ is still our loving Saviour. ADDITIONS AND REMOVALS FORBIDDEN (Verses 18, 19) . Additions. 18. I, even myself, testify to every man who heareth the words of the prophecy of this book : If any man shall add unto them, God shall add unto him the plagues which are written in this book. God shall add : Dent. vii. 15. The additions forbidden are unwritten traditions, apocryphal books, erroneous comments intentionally made. Removals. 19. And if any man shall take away the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take his part from the tree of life and out of the holy city, which are described in this book. Take away the words : this removal ' can be done in two ways : — (a) Omissions from the sacred text itself. (b) Intentional changes and perversions of the grammatical sense. His part: every human being has potentially and conditionally a part in the tree of life and in the holy city as they exist, both in this world and in the new world Christ is now creating for his people. Described : the tree of life and the holy city are minutely and most attractively portrayed. Every man may therefore see the nature and extent of the forfeiture he hazards in case he attempts to alter and misrepresent the precious contents of the Apocalypse. FINAL ATTESTATION OF THE TRUTH OF THIS PROPHETICAL BOOK. 20. The Testifier saith, Yea, I come quickly. Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. The Testifier: is the Lord Jesus. "I testify" (verse 18). " Come, Lord Jesus " (last clause of verse 20). Saith yea: the Greek nai, translated "yea" by the English Ver- sion (Rev. xiv. 13), confirms previous words (i. 7, xiv. 13, xvi. 7), and 388 THE REVELATION OF ST. JOHN THE DIVINE. therefore also xxii. 20, as these four places are the only places in the Apocalypse where nai occurs. In sense, "yea " here equals the assertion : This book is most true. I come: I am coming to execute judgment in this world. This is the meaning of "I come" (verse 12), where Christ immediately adds, "my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work is.'' "In righteousness he doth judge" (xix. 11). "All power is given me in earth" (Matt, xxviii. 18). " I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world" (verse 20). Amen: St. John's assent to the Lord's declaration, "I come quickly." Come : in the same sense as " I come," in the preceding clause. St. John thus prays with the Psalmist, "Arise, thou Judge of the world, and reward the proud after their deserving" (Ps. xciv. 2). "Save thy people, and bless thine inheritance " (Ps. xxviii. 9). Lord Jesus : nowhere else does St. John use this expression. As " Lord," he is able to judge and save. As " the man Jesus" (1 Tim. ii. 5), he loves his people, and will love them "unto the end"( John xiii. 1). THE BENEDICTION. 21. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with the saints. The whole book is for the saints. Its final benediction ever accompanies them. " Grace to help in time of need" (Heb. iv. 16); grace to bear their trials ; grace to love each other, and all mankind ; grace to love, serve, and please Christ. "Thou art the King of glory, O Christ. We believe that thou shalt come to be our Judge. We therefore pray thee, help thj servants whom thou hast redeemed with thy precious blood. Make them to be numbered with thy saints in glory everlasting." 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