Chapter XVIII
AND after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the[543]earth was lightened with his glory.
1. And after these things. After the vision referred to in the previous chapter. ¶ I saw another angel come down from heaven. Different from the one that had last appeared, and therefore coming to make a new communication to him. It is not unusual in this book that different communications should be intrusted to different angels. Comp. ch. xiv. 6, 8, 9, 15, 17, 18. ¶ Having great power. That is, he was one of the higher rank or order of angels. ¶ And the earth was lightened with his glory. The usual representation respecting the heavenly beings. Comp. Ex. xxiv. 16; Mat. xvii. 2; Lu. ii. 9; Ac. ix. 3. This would, of course, add greatly to the magnificence of the scene.
2 And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, [544]Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is [545]become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.
2. And he cried mightily. Literally, “he cried with a strong great voice.” See ch. x. 3. ¶ Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen. See Notes on ch. xiv. 8. The proclamation here is substantially the same as in that place, and no doubt the same thing is referred to. ¶ And is become the habitation of devils. Of demons――in allusion to the common opinion that the demons inhabited abandoned cities, old ruins, and deserts. See Notes on Mat. xii. 43‒45. The language here is taken from the description of Babylon in Is. xiii. 20‒22; and for a full illustration of the meaning, see Notes on that passage. ¶ And the hold of every foul spirit――φυλακὴ. A watch-post, station, haunt of such spirits. That is, they, as it were, kept guard there; were stationed there; haunted the place. ¶ And a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. That is, they would resort there, and abide there as in a cage. The word translated “cage” is the same which is rendered “hold”――φυλακὴ. In Is. xiii. 21, it is said, “and owls shall dwell there;” and in Is. xiv. 23, it is said that it would be a “possession for the bittern.” The idea is that of utter desolation; and the meaning here is, that spiritual Babylon――Papal Rome (ch. xiv. 8)――will be reduced to a state of utter desolation resembling that of the real Babylon. It is not necessary to suppose this of the city of Rome itself――for that is not the object of the representation. It is the Papacy, represented {397} under the image of the city, and having its seat there. That is to be destroyed as utterly as was Babylon of old; that will become as odious, and loathsome, and detestable as the literal Babylon, the abode of monsters is.
3 For [546]all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the [547]merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the [548]abundance of her delicacies.
3. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. See Notes on ch. xiv. 8. This is given as a reason why this utter ruin had come upon her. She had beguiled and corrupted the nations of the earth, leading them into estrangement from God, and into pollution and sin. See Notes on ch. ix. 20, 21. ¶ And the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her. Spiritual adultery; that is, she has been the means of seducing them from God and leading them into sinful practices. ¶ And the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. The word rendered “abundance” here, means commonly power. It might here denote influence, though it may also mean number, quantity, wealth. Comp. ch. iii. 8, where the same word is used. The word rendered delicacies――στρήνους――occurs nowhere else in the New Testament. It properly means rudeness, insolence, pride; and hence revel, riot, luxury. It may be rendered here properly luxury, or proud voluptuousness; and the reference is to such luxuries as are found commonly in a great, a gay, and a splendid city. These, of course, give rise to much traffic, and furnish employment to many merchants and sailors, who thus procure a livelihood, or become wealthy as the result of such traffic. Babylon――or Papal Rome――is here represented under the image of such a luxurious city; and of course, when she falls, they who have thus been dependent on her, and who have been enriched by her, have occasion for mourning and lamentation. It is not necessary to expect to find a literal fulfilment of this, for it is emblematic and symbolical. The image of a great, rich, splendid, proud and luxurious city having been employed to denote that Antichristian power, all that is said in this chapter follows, of course, on its fall. The general idea is, that she was doomed to utter desolation, and that all who were connected with her, far and near, would be involved in her ruin.
4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, [549]Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
4. And I heard another voice from heaven. He does not say whether this was the voice of an angel, but the idea seems rather to be that it is the voice of God. ¶ Come out of her, my people. The reasons for this, as immediately stated, are two: (a) that they might not participate in her sins; and (b) that they might not be involved in the ruin that would come upon her. The language seems to be derived from such passages in the Old Testament as the following:――“Go ye forth of Babylon, flee ye from the Chaldeans, with a voice of singing,” Is. xlviii. 20. “Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and deliver every man his soul; be not cut off in her iniquity,” Je. li. 6. “My people, go ye out of the midst of her, and deliver ye every man his soul from the fierce anger of the Lord,” Je. li. 45. Comp. Je. l. 8. ¶ That ye be not partakers of her sins. For the meaning of this expression, see Notes on 1 Ti. v. 22. It is implied here that by remaining in Babylon they would lend their sanction to its sins by their presence, and would, in all probability, become contaminated by the influence around them. This is an universal truth in regard to iniquity, and hence it is the duty of those who would be pure to come out from the world, and to separate themselves from all the associations of evil. ¶ And that ye receive not of her plagues. Of the punishment that was to come upon her――as they must certainly do if they remained in her. The judgment of God that was to come upon the guilty city would make no discrimination among those who were found there; and if they would escape these woes they must make their escape from her. As applicable to Papal Rome, in view of her impending ruin, this means, (a) that there might be found in her some who were the true people of God; (b) that it was their duty to separate wholly from her――a command that will not only justify the Reformation, but which would have made a longer continuance in communion {398} with the Papacy, when her wickedness was fully seen, an act of guilt before God; (c) that they who remain in such a communion cannot but be regarded as partaking of her sin; and (d) that if they remain, they must expect to be involved in the calamities that will come upon her. There never was any duty plainer than that of withdrawing from Papal Rome; there never has been any act attended with more happy consequences than that by which the Protestant world separated itself for ever from the sins and the plagues of the Papacy.
5 For her sins have [550]reached unto heaven, and God hath [551]remembered her iniquities.
5. For her sins have reached unto heaven. So in Je. li. 9, speaking of Babylon, it is said, “For her judgment reacheth unto heaven, and is lifted up even to the skies.” The meaning is not that the sins of this mystical Babylon were like a mass or pile so high as to reach to heaven, but that it had become so prominent as to attract the attention of God. Comp. Ge. iv. 10, “The voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground.” See also Ge. xviii. 20. ¶ And God hath remembered her iniquities. He had seemed to forget them, or not to notice them, but now he acted as if they had come to his recollection. See Notes on ch. xvi. 19.
6 Reward[552]her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled, fill to her double.
6. Reward her even as she rewarded you. It is not said to whom this command is addressed, but it would seem to be to those who had been persecuted and wronged. Applied to mystical Babylon――Papal Rome――it would seem to be a call on the nations that had been so long under her sway, and among whom, from time to time, so much blood had been shed by her, to arise now in their might, and to inflict deserved vengeance. See Notes on ch. xvii. 16, 17. ¶ And double unto her double according to her works. That is, bring upon her double the amount of calamity which she has brought upon others; take ample vengeance upon her. Comp. for similar language, Is. xl. 2, “She hath received of the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.” “For your shame ye shall have double,” Is. lxi. 7. ¶ In the cup which she hath filled. To bring wrath on others. Notes, ch. xiv. 8. ¶ Fill to her double. Let her drink abundantly of the wine of the wrath of God――double that which she has dealt out to others. That is, either let the quantity administered to her be doubled, or let the ingredients in the cup be doubled in intensity.
7 How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her; for she saith in her heart, [553]I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.
7. How much she hath glorified herself. Been proud, boastful, arrogant. This was true of ancient Babylon, that she was proud and haughty; and it has been no less true of mystical Babylon――Papal Rome. ¶ And lived deliciously. By as much as she has lived in luxury and dissoluteness, so let her suffer now. The word used here and rendered lived deliciously――ἐστρηνίασε――is derived from the noun――στρῆνος――which is used in ver. 3, and rendered delicacies. See Notes on that verse. It means properly, “to live strenuously, rudely,” as in English, “to live hard;” and then to revel, to live in luxury, riot, dissoluteness. No one can doubt the propriety of this as descriptive of ancient Babylon, and as little can its propriety be doubted as applied to Papal Rome. ¶ So much torment and sorrow give her. Let her punishment correspond with her sins. This is expressing substantially the same idea which occurs in the previous verse. ¶ For she saith in her heart. This is the estimate which she forms of herself. ¶ I sit a queen. Indicative of pride, and of an asserted claim to rule. ¶ And am no widow. Am not in the condition of a widow――a state of depression, sorrow, and mourning. All this indicates security and self-confidence, a description in every way applicable to Papal Rome. ¶ And shall see no sorrow. This is indicative of a state where there was nothing feared, not withstanding all the indications which existed of approaching calamity. In {399} this state we may expect to find Papal Rome, even when its last judgments are about to come upon it; in this state it has usually been; in this state it is now, notwithstanding all the indications that are abroad in the world that its power is waning, and that the period of its fall approaches.
8 Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly [554]burned with fire: for [555]strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.
8. Therefore. In consequence of her pride, arrogance, and luxury, and of the calamities that she has brought upon others. ¶ Shall her plagues come in one day. They shall come in a time when she is living in ease and security; and they shall come at the same time――so that all these terrible judgments shall seem to be poured upon her at once. ¶ Death. This expression, and those which follow, are designed to denote the same thing under different images. The general meaning is, that there would be utter and final destruction. It would be as if death should come and cut off the inhabitants. ¶ And mourning. As there would be where many were cut off by death. ¶ And famine. As if famine raged within the walls of a besieged city, or spread over a land. ¶ And she shall be utterly burned with fire. As completely destroyed as if she were entirely burned up. The certain and complete destruction of that formidable Antichristian power is predicted under a great variety of emphatic images. See ch. xiv. 10, 11; xvi. 17‒21; xvii. 9, 16. Perhaps in this so frequent reference to a final destruction of that formidable Antichristian power by fire, there may be more intended than merely a figurative representation of its final ruin. There is some degree of probability, at least, that Rome itself will be literally destroyed in this manner, and that it is in this way that God intends to put an end to the Papal power, by destroying that which has been so long the seat and the centre of this authority. The extended prevalence of this belief, and the grounds for it, may be seen from the following remarks:――(1) It was an early opinion among the Jewish rabbies that Rome would be thus destroyed. Vitringa, on the Apocalypse, cites some opinions of this kind; the Jewish expectation being founded, as he says, on the passage in Is. xxxiv. 9, as Edom was supposed to mean Rome. “This chapter,” says Kimchi, “points out the future destruction of Rome, here called Bozra, for Bozra was a great city of the Edomites.” This is, indeed, worthless as a proof or an interpretation of Scripture, for it is a wholly unfounded interpretation; it is of value only as showing that somehow the Jews entertained this opinion. (2) The same expectation was entertained among the early Christians. Thus Mr. Gibbon (vol. i. p. 263, ch. xv.), referring to the expectations of the glorious reign of the Messiah on the earth (comp. Notes on ch. xiv. 8), says, speaking of Rome as the mystic Babylon, and of its anticipated destruction: “A regular series was prepared [in the minds of Christians] of all the moral and physical evils which can afflict a flourishing nation; intestine discord, and the invasion of the fiercest barbarians from the unknown regions of the north; pestilence and famine, comets and eclipses, earthquakes and inundations. All these were only so many preparatory and alarming signs of the great catastrophe of Rome, when the country of the Scipios and Cæsars should be consumed by a flame from heaven, and the city of the seven hills, with her palaces, her temples, and her triumphal arches, should be buried in a vast lake of fire and brimstone.” So even Gregory the Great, one of the most illustrious of the Roman pontiffs, himself says, acknowledging his belief in the truth of the tradition: Roma à Gentilibus non exterminabitur; sed tempestatibus, coruscis turbinibus, ac terræ motu, in se marcescet (Dial. ii. 15). (3) Whatever may be thought of these opinions and expectations, there is some foundation for the opinion in the nature of the case. (a) The region is adapted to this. “It is not Ætna, the Lipari volcanic islands, Vesuvius, that alone offer visible indications of the physical adaptedness of Italy for such a catastrophe. The great Apennine mountain-chain is mainly volcanic in its character, and the country of Rome more especially is as strikingly so almost as that of Sodom itself.” Thus the mineralogist Ferber, in his Tour in Italy, says: “The road from Rome to Ostia is all volcanic ashes till within two miles of Ostia.” “From Rome to Tivoli I went on fields and hills of volcanic {400} ashes or tufa.” “A volcanic hill in an amphitheatrical form includes a part of the plain over Albano, and a flat country of volcanic ashes and hills to Rome. The ground about Rome is generally of that nature,” pp. 189, 191, 200, 234. (b) Mr. Gibbon, with his usual accuracy, as if commenting on the Apocalypse, has referred to the physical adaptedness of the soil of Rome for such an overthrow. Speaking of the anticipation of the end of the world among the early Christians, he says: “In the opinion of a general conflagration, the faith of the Christian very happily coincided with the tradition of the East, the philosophy of the Stoics, and the analogy of nature; and even the country, which, from religious motives, had been chosen for the origin and principal scene of the conflagration, was the best adapted for that purpose by natural and physical causes; by its deep caverns, beds of sulphur, and numerous volcanoes, of which those of Ætna, of Vesuvius, and of Lipari, exhibit a very imperfect representation,” vol. i. p. 263, ch. xv. As to the general state of Italy, in reference to volcanoes, the reader may consult, with advantage, Lyell’s Geology, book ii. ch. ix.‒xii. See also Murray’s Encyclopædia of Geography, book ii. ch. ii. Of the country around Rome it is said in that work, among other things: “The country around Rome, and also the hills on which it is built, is composed of tertiary marls, clays, and sandstones, and intermixed with a preponderating quantity of granular and lithoidal volcanic tufas. The many lakes around Rome are formed by craters of ancient volcanoes.” “On the road to Rome is the Lake of Vico, formerly the Lacus Cimini, which
has all the appearance of a crater.”
The following extract from a recent traveller will still further confirm this representation:――“I behold everywhere――in Rome, near Rome, and through the whole region from Rome to Naples――most astounding proof, not merely of the possibility, but the probability, that the whole region of central Italy will one day be destroyed by such a catastrophe [by earthquakes or volcanoes]. The soil of Rome is tufa, with a volcanic subterranean action going on. At Naples the boiling sulphur is to be seen bubbling near the surface of the earth. When I drew a stick along the ground, the sulphurous smoke followed the indentation; and it would never surprise me to hear of the utter destruction of the southern peninsula of Italy. The entire country and district is volcanic. It is saturated with beds of sulphur and the substrata of destruction. It seems as certainly prepared for the flames, as the wood and coal on the hearth are prepared for the taper which shall kindle the fire to consume them. The divine hand alone seems to me to hold the element of fire in check by a miracle as great as that which protected the cities of the plain, till the righteous Lot had made his escape to the mountains” (Townsend’s Tour in Italy in 1850). ¶ For strong |is| the Lord God who judgeth her. That is, God has ample power to bring all these calamities upon her.
9 And the [556]kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,
9. And the kings of the earth. This verse commences the description of the lamentation over the fall of the mystical Babylon (see the Analysis of the chapter). ¶ Who have committed fornication. That is, who have been seduced by her from the true God, and have been led into practical idolatry. Notes on ch. xiv. 8. The kings of the earth seem to be represented as among the chief mourners, because they had derived important aid from the power which was now to be reduced to ruin. As a matter of fact, the kings of Europe have owed much of their influence and power to the support which has been derived from the Papacy, and when that power shall fall, there will fall much that has contributed to sustain oppressive and arbitrary governments, and that has prevented the extension of popular liberty. In fact, Europe might have been long since free, if it had not been for the support which despotic governments have derived from the Papacy. ¶ And lived deliciously with her. In the same kind of luxury and dissoluteness of manners. See ver. 3, 7. The courts of Europe, under the Papacy, have had the same general character for dissoluteness and licentiousness as Rome itself. The same views of religion produce the same effects everywhere. ¶ Shall bewail her, and lament for her. Because their ally is destroyed, and {401} the source of their power is taken away. The fall of the Papacy will be the signal for a general overturning of the thrones of Europe. ¶ When they shall see the smoke of her burning. When they shall see her on fire, and her smoke ascending towards heaven. Notes on ch. xiv. 11.
10 Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for [557]in one hour is thy judgment come.
10. Standing afar off for the fear of her torment. Not daring to approach, to attempt to rescue and save her. They who had so long contributed to the support of the Papal power, and who had, in turn, been upheld by that, would not now even attempt to rescue her, but would stand by and see her destroyed, unable to render relief. ¶ Alas, alas, that great city Babylon. The language of lamentation that so great and so mighty a city should fall. ¶ For in one hour is thy judgment come. See Notes on ver. 8. The general sentiment here is, that, in the final ruin of Papal Rome, the kings and governments that had sustained her, and had been sustained by her, would see the source of their power taken away, but that they would not, or could not attempt her rescue. There have been not a few indications already that this will ultimately occur, and that the Papal power will be left to fall, without any attempt, on the part of those governments which have been so long in alliance with it, to sustain or restore it.
11 And the [558]merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth her merchandise any more;
11. And the merchants of the earth. Who have been accustomed to traffic with her, and who have been enriched by the traffic. The image is that of a rich and splendid city. Of course, such a city depends much on its merchandise; and when it declines and falls, many who had been accustomed to deal with it, as merchants or traffickers, are affected by it, and have occasion to lament its fall. ¶ Shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more. The merchandise which they were accustomed to take to the city, and by the sale of which they lived. The enumeration of the articles of merchandise which follows, seems to have been inserted for the purpose of filling out the representation of what is usually found in such a city, and to show the desolation which would occur when this traffic was suspended.
12 The merchandise of [559]gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all [560]thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble,
12. The merchandise of gold, and silver. Of course, these constitute an important article of commerce in a great city. ¶ And precious stones. Diamonds, emeralds, rubies, &c. These have always been important articles of traffic in the world, and, of course, most of the traffic in them would find its way to great commercial cities. ¶ And pearls. See Notes on Mat. vii. 6; xiii. 46. These, too, have been always, and were, particularly in early times, valuable articles of commerce. Mr. Gibbon mentions them as among the articles that contributed to the luxury of Rome in the age of the Antonines: “precious stones, among which the pearl claimed the first rank after the diamond,” vol. i. p. 34. ¶ And fine linen. This was also a valuable article of commerce. It was obtained chiefly from Egypt. See Notes on Is. xix. 9. Linen, among the ancients, was an article of luxury, for it was worn chiefly by the rich, Ex. xxviii. 42; Le. vi. 10; Lu. xvi. 19. The original word here is βύσσος, byssus, and it is found in the New Testament only in this place, and in Lu. xvi. 19. It was a “species of fine cotton, highly prized by the ancients.” Various kinds are mentioned――as that of Egypt, the cloth which is still found wrapped around mummies; that of Syria, and that of India, which grew on a tree similar to the poplar; and that of Achaia, which grew in the vicinity of Elis. See Rob. Lex. ¶ And purple. See Notes on Lu. xvi. 19. Cloth of this colour was a valuable article of commerce, as it was worn by rich men and princes. ¶ And silk. Silk was a very valuable article of commerce, as it was costly, and could be worn only by the {402} rich. It is mentioned by Mr. Gibbon as such an article in Rome in the age of the Antonines:――“Silk, a pound of which was esteemed not inferior in value to a pound of gold,” vol. i. p. 34. On the cultivation and manufacture of silk by the ancients, see the work entitled, The History of Silk, Cotton, Linen, and Wool, &c., published by Harper Brothers, New York, 1845, pp. 1‒21. ¶ And scarlet. See Notes on ch. xvii. 3. ¶ And all thyine wood. The word here used――θύϊνον――occurs nowhere else in the New Testament. It denotes an evergreen African tree, from which statues and costly vessels were made. It is not agreed, however, whether it was a species of cedar, savin, or lignum-vitæ, which latter constitutes the modern genus Thuja, or Thyia. See Rees’ Cyclo., art. “Thuja.” ¶ And all manner vessels of ivory. Everything that is made of ivory. Ivory, or the tusk of the elephant, has always been among the precious articles of commerce. ¶ And all manner vessels of most precious wood. Furniture of costly wood――cedar, the citron tree, lignum-vitæ, &c. ¶ And of brass, and iron, and marble. Brass or copper would, of course, be a valuable article of commerce. The same would be the case with iron; and so marble, for building, for statuary, &c., would likewise be.
13 And cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and [561]slaves, and [562]souls of men.
13. And cinnamon. Cinnamon is the aromatic bark of the Laurus Cinnamomam, which grows in Arabia, India, and especially in the island of Ceylon. It was formerly, as it is now, a valuable article in the Oriental trade. ¶ And odours. Aromatics employed in religious worship, and for making perfumes. Mr. Gibbon (vol. i. p. 34) mentions, among the articles of commerce and luxury, in the age of the Antonines, “a variety of aromatics that were consumed in religious worship and the pomp of funerals.” It is unnecessary to say that the use of such odours has been always common at Rome. ¶ And ointments. Unguents――as spikenard, &c. These were in common use among the ancients. See Notes on Mat. xiv. 7; Mar. xiv. 3. ¶ And frankincense. See Notes on Mat. ii. 11. It is unnecessary to say that incense has been always much used in public worship in Rome, and that it has been, therefore, a valuable article of commerce there. ¶ And wine. An article of commerce and luxury in all ages. ¶ And oil. That is, olive oil. This, in ancient times, and in Oriental countries particularly, was an important article of commerce. ¶ And fine flour. The word here means the best and finest kind of flour. ¶ _And beasts, and sheep, and horses. _ Also important articles of merchandise. ¶ And chariots. The word here used――ῥεδῶν――means, properly a carriage with four wheels, or a carriage drawn by mules (Prof. Stuart). It was properly a travelling carriage. The word is of Gallic origin (Quinctil. i. 9; Cic. Mil. 10; Att. v. 17; vi. 1. See Adam’s Rom. Ant. p. 525). It was an article of luxury. ¶ And slaves. The Greek here is σωμάτων――“of bodies.” Prof. Stuart renders it grooms, and supposes that it refers to a particular kind of slaves who were employed in taking care of horses and carriages. The word properly denotes body――an animal body――whether of the human body, living or dead, or the body of a beast; and then the external man――the person, the individual. In later usage, it comes to denote a slave (see Rob. Lex.), and in this sense it is used here. The traffic in slaves was common in ancient times, as it is now. We know that this traffic was carried on to a large extent in ancient Rome, the city which John probably had in his eye in this description. See Gibbon, Dec. and Fall, vol. i. pp. 25, 26. Athenæus, as quoted by Mr. Gibbon (p. 26), says that “he knew very many Romans who possessed, not for use, but for ostentation, ten, and even twenty thousand slaves.” It should be said here, however, that although this refers evidently to traffic in slaves, it is not necessary to suppose that it would be literally characteristic of Papal Rome. All this is symbolical, designed to exhibit the Papacy under the image of a great city, with what was customary in such a city, or with what most naturally presented itself to the imagination of John as found in such a city; and it is no more necessary to suppose that the Papacy would be engaged in the traffic of slaves, than in the traffic of cinnamon, or fine flour, or sheep and horses. {403} ¶ And souls of men. The word used, and rendered souls――ψυχὰς――though commonly denoting the soul (properly the breath, or vital principle), is also employed to denote the living thing――the animal――in which the soul or vital principle resides; and hence may denote a person or a man. Under this form it is used to denote a servant or slave. See Rob. Lex. Professor Robinson supposes that the word here means female slaves, in distinction from those designated by the previous word. Professor Stuart (in loco) supposes that the previous word denotes a particular kind of slaves――those who had the care of horses――and that the word here is used in a generic sense, denoting slaves in general. This kind of traffic in the “persons” or souls of men is mentioned as characterizing ancient Tyre, in Eze. xxvii. 13: “Javan, Tubal, and Meshech, they were thy merchants; they traded in the persons of men.” It is not quite clear why, in the passage before us, this traffic is mentioned in two forms, as that of the bodies and the souls of men; but it would seem most probable that the writer meant to designate all that would properly come under this traffic, whether male or female slaves were bought and sold; whether they were for servitude, or for the gladiatorial sports (see Wetstein, in loco); whatever might be the kind of servitude that they might be employed in, and whatever might be their condition in life. The use of the two words would include all that is implied in the traffic, for, in most important senses, it extends to the body and the soul. In slavery both are purchased; both are supposed, so far as he can avail himself of them, to become the property of the master.
14 And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them no more at all.
14. And the fruits that thy soul lusted after. Literally, “the fruits of the desire of thy soul.” The word rendered fruits――ὀπώρα――properly means, late summer; dog-days, the time when Sirius, or the Dog-star, is predominant. In the East this is the season when the fruits ripen, and hence the word comes to denote fruit. The reference is to any kind of fruit that would be brought for traffic into a great city, and that would be regarded as an article of luxury. ¶ Are departed from thee. That is, they are no more brought for sale into the city. ¶ And all things which were dainty and goodly. These words “characterize all kinds of furniture and clothing which were gilt, or plated, or embroidered, and therefore were bright or splendid” (Professor Stuart). ¶ And thou shalt find them no more at all. The address here is decidedly to the city itself. The meaning is, that they would no more be found there.
15 The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,
15. The merchants of these things. Who trafficked in these things, and who supplied the city with them, ver. 11. ¶ Which were made rich by her. By traffic with her. ¶ Shall stand afar off. Ver. 10. ¶ For fear of her torment. Struck with terror by her torment, so that they did not dare to approach her, ver. 10.
16 And saying, Alas, alas, that great city, that was [563]clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls!
16. And saying, Alas, alas, &c. Notes on ver. 10. ¶ That was clothed in fine linen. In the previous description (ver. 12, 13), these are mentioned as articles of traffic; here the city, under the image of a female, is represented as clothed in the most rich and gay of these articles. ¶ And purple, and scarlet. See Notes on ch. xvii. 3, 4. Comp. ver. 12 of this chapter. ¶ And decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls. Notes on ch. xvii. 4.
17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And [564]every ship-master, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,
17. For in one hour. In a very brief period――so short, that it seemed to them to be but one hour. In the prediction (ver. 8), it is said that it would be “in one day” (see Notes on that place); here it is said that, to the lookers-on, it seemed to be but an hour. There is no inconsistency, therefore, between the {404} two statements. ¶ So great riches is come to nought. All the accumulated wealth of so great and rich a city. This should have been united with ver. 16, as it is a part of the lamentation of the merchants, and as the lamentation of the mariners commences in the other part of the verse. It is so divided in the Greek Testaments. ¶ And every ship-master. This introduces the lamentation of the mariners, who would, of course, be deeply interested in the destruction of a city with which they had been accustomed to trade, and by carrying merchandise to which they had been enriched. The word ship-master――κυβερνήτης――means, properly, a governor; then a governor of a ship――the steersman or pilot, Ac. xxvii. 11. ¶ And all the company in ships. Professor Stuart renders this coasters. There is here, however, an important difference in the reading of the text. The commonly received text is, πᾶς ἐπὶ τῶν πλοίων ὁ ὅμιλος――“the whole company in ships,” as in our common version; the reading which is now commonly adopted, and which is found in Griesbach, Hahn, and Tittmann, is ὁ ἐπὶ τόπον πλέων――“he who sails to a place;” that is, he who sails from one place to another along the coast, or who does not venture out far to sea; and thus the phrase would denote a secondary class of sea-captains or officers――those less venturesome, or experienced, or bold than others. There can be little doubt that this is the correct reading (comp. Wetstein, in loco); and hence the class of seamen here referred to is coasters. Such seamen would naturally be employed where there was a great and luxurious maritime city, and would have a deep interest in its fall. ¶ And sailors. Common seamen. ¶ And as many as trade by sea. In any kind of craft, whether employed in a near or a remote trade. ¶ Stood afar off. Notes on ver. 10.
18 And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What[565] city is like unto this great city!
18. And cried, &c. That is, as they had a deep interest in it, they would, on their own account, as well as hers, lift up the voice of lamentation. ¶ What city is like unto this great city? In her destruction. What calamity has ever come upon a city like this?
19 And they [566]cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate.
19. And they cast dust on their heads. A common sign of lamentation and mourning among the Orientals. See Notes on Job ii. 12. ¶ By reason of her costliness. The word rendered costliness――τιμιότητος――means, properly, preciousness, costliness; their magnificence, costly merchandise. The luxury of a great city enriches many individuals, however much it may impoverish itself. ¶ For in one hour is she made desolate. So it seemed to them. Notes on ver. 17.
20 Rejoice[567] over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath [568]avenged you on her.
20. Rejoice over her. Over her ruin. There is a strong contrast between this language and that which precedes. Kings, merchants, and seamen, who had been countenanced and sustained by her in the indulgence of corrupt passions, or who had been enriched by traffic with her, would have occasion to mourn. But not so they who had been persecuted by her. Not so the church of the redeemed. Not so heaven itself. The great oppressor of the church, and the corrupter of the world, was now destroyed; the grand hindrance to the spread of the gospel was now removed, and all the holy in heaven and on earth would have occasion to rejoice. This is not the language of vengeance, but it is the language of exultation and rejoicing in view of the fact, that the cause of truth might now spread, without hindrance, through the earth. ¶ |Thou| heaven. The inhabitants of heaven. Comp. Notes on Is. i. 2. The meaning here is, that the dwellers in heaven――the holy angels and the redeemed――had occasion to rejoice over the downfall of the great enemy of the church. ¶ And |ye| holy apostles. Professor Stuart renders this, “Ye saints, and apostles, and prophets.” In the common Greek text, it is, as in our version, “holy apostles and prophets.” In the text of Griesbach, Hahn, and Tittmann, the word καὶ (and) is interposed between the word “holy” and “apostle.” This {405} is, doubtless, the true reading. The meaning, then, is that the saints in heaven are called on to rejoice over the fall of the mystical Babylon. ¶ Apostles. The twelve who were chosen by the Saviour to be his witnesses on earth. See Notes on 1 Co. ix. 1. The word is commonly limited to the twelve, but, in a larger sense, it is applied to other distinguished teachers and preachers of the gospel. See Notes on Ac. xiv. 14. There is no impropriety, however, in supposing that the apostles are referred to here as such, since they would have occasion to rejoice that the great obstacle to the reign of the Redeemer was now taken away, and that that cause in which they had suffered and died was now to be triumphant. ¶ And prophets. Prophets of the Old Testament and distinguished teachers of the New. See Notes on Ro. xii. 6. All these would have occasion to rejoice in the prospect of the final triumph of the true religion. ¶ For God hath avenged you on her. Has taken vengeance on her for her treatment of you. That is, as she had persecuted the church as such, they all might be regarded as interested in it and affected by it. All the redeemed, therefore, in earth and in heaven, are interested in whatever tends to retard or to promote the cause of truth. All have occasion to mourn when the enemies of the truth triumph; to rejoice when they fall.
21 And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, [569]Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all.
21. And a mighty angel. Notes on ver. 1. This seems, however, to have been a different angel from the one mentioned in ver. 1, though, like that, he is described as having great power. ¶ Took up a stone like a great millstone. On the structure of mills among the ancients see Notes on Mat. xxiv. 41. ¶ And cast |it| into the sea. As an emblem of the utter ruin of the city; an indication that the city would be as completely destroyed as that stone was covered by the waters. ¶ Saying, Thus with violence. With force, as the stone was thrown into the sea. The idea is, that it would not be by a gentle and natural decline, but by the application of foreign power. This accords with all the representations in this book, that violence will be employed to overthrow the Papal power. See ch. xvii. 16, 17. The origin of this image is probably Je. li. 63, 64: “And it shall be, when thou hast made an end of reading this book, that thou shalt bind a stone to it, and cast it into the midst of Euphrates; and thou shalt say, Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise from the evil that I will bring on her.”
22 And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and [570]the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee;
22. And the voice of harpers. Those who play on the harp. This was usually accompanied with singing. The idea, in this verse and the following, is substantially the same as in the previous parts of the chapter, that the mystical Babylon――Papal Rome――would be brought to utter desolation. This thought is here exhibited under another form――that all which constituted festivity, joy, and amusement, and all that indicated thrift and prosperity, would disappear. Of course, in a great and gay city, there would be all kinds of music; and when it is said that this would be heard there no more it is a most striking image of utter desolation. ¶ And musicians. Musicians in general; but perhaps here singers, as distinguished from those who played on instruments. ¶ And of pipers. Those who played on pipes or flutes. See Notes on 1 Co. xiv. 7; Mat. xi. 17. ¶ And trumpeters. Trumpets were common instruments of music, employed on festival occasions, in war, and in worship. Only the principal instruments of music are mentioned here, as representatives of the rest. The general idea is, that the sound of music, as an indication of festivity and joy, would cease. ¶ Shall be heard no more at all in thee. It would become utterly and permanently desolate. ¶ And no craftsman, of whatsoever craft. That is, artificers of all kinds would cease to ply their trades there. The word here used――τεχνίτης――would include all artisans or mechanics, all who were engaged in any kind of trade or craft. The meaning here is, that all these would disappear, an image, {406} of course, of utter decay. ¶ And the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more. Taylor (Frag. to Cal. Dict. vol. iv. p. 346) supposes that this may refer not so much to the rattle of the mill as to the voice of singing, which usually accompanied grinding. The sound of a mill is cheerful, and indicates prosperity; its ceasing is an image of decline.
23 And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the [571]voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy [572]merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy [573]sorceries were all nations deceived.
23. And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee. Another image of desolation, as if every light were put out, and there were total darkness. ¶ And the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee. The merry and cheerful voice of the marriage procession in the streets (Notes on Mat. xxv. 1‒7), or the cheerful, glad voice of the newly-married couple in their own dwelling (Notes on Jn. iii. 29). ¶ For thy merchants were the great men of the earth. Those who dealt with thee were the rich, and among them were even nobles and princes; and now that they trade with thee no more there is occasion for lamentation and sorrow. The contrast is great between the time when distinguished foreigners crowded thy marts, and now, when none of any kind come to traffic with thee. The origin of this representation is probably the description of Tyre in Eze. xxvii. ¶ For by thy sorceries were all nations deceived. This is stated as a reason for the ruin that had come upon her. It is a common representation of Papal Rome that she has deceived or deluded the nations of the earth (see Notes on ch. xiii. 14), and no representation ever made accords more with facts as they have occurred. The word sorceries here refers to the various arts――the tricks, impostures, and false pretences by which this has been done. See Notes on ch. ix. 21.
24 And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of [574]all that were slain upon the earth.
24. And in her. When she came to be destroyed, and her real character was seen. ¶ Was found the blood of prophets. Of the public teachers of the true religion. On the word prophets see Notes on ver. 20. ¶ And of saints. Of the holy. See Notes on ver. 20. ¶ And of all that were slain upon the earth. So numerous have been the slain, so constant and bloody have been the persecutions there, that it may be said that all the blood ever shed has been poured out there. Comp. Notes on Mat. xxiii. 35. No one can doubt the propriety of this representation with respect to Pagan and Papal Rome.
In regard to the general meaning and application of this chapter the following remarks may be made:――
(1) It refers to Papal Rome, and is designed to describe the final overthrow of that formidable Antichristian power. The whole course of the interpretation of the previous chapters demands such an application, and the chapter itself naturally suggests it.
(2) If it be asked why so much of this imagery is derived from the condition of a maritime power, or pertains to commerce, since both Babylon and Rome were at some distance from the sea, and neither could with propriety be regarded as seaport towns, it may be replied, (a) that the main idea in the mind of John was that of a rich and magnificent city; (b) that all the things enumerated were doubtless found, in fact, in both Babylon and Rome; (c) that though not properly seaport towns, they were situated on rivers that opened into seas, and were therefore not unfavourably situated for commerce; and (d) that, in fact, they traded with all parts of the earth. The leading idea is that of a great and luxurious city, and this is filled up and decorated with images of what is commonly found in large commercial towns. We are not, therefore, to look for a literal application of this, and it is not necessary to attempt to find all these things, in fact, in the city referred to. Much of the description may be for the mere sake of keeping, or ornament.
(3) If this refers to Rome, as is supposed, then, in accordance with the previous representations, it shows that the destruction of the Papal power is to be complete and final. The image which John had in his eye as illustrating that was undoubtedly ancient Babylon {407} as prophetically described in Is. xiii., xiv., and the destruction of the power here referred to is to be as complete as was the destruction described there. It would not be absolutely necessary in the fulfilment of this to suppose that Rome itself is to become a heap of ruins like Babylon, whatever may be true on that point, but that the Papal power, as such, is to be so utterly destroyed that the ruins of desolate Babylon would properly represent it.
(4) If this interpretation is correct, then the Reformation was in entire accordance with what God would have his people do, and was demanded by solemn duty to him. Thus, in ver. 4 of this chapter, his people are expressly commanded to “come out of her, that they might not be partakers of her sins, nor of her plagues.” If it had been the design of the Reformers to perform a work that should be in all respects a fulfilling of the command of God, they could have done nothing that would have more literally met the divine requirement. Indeed, the church has never performed a duty more manifestly in accordance with the divine will, and more indispensable for its own purity, prosperity, and safety, than the act of separating entirely and for ever from Papal Rome.
(5) The Reformation was a great movement in human affairs. It was the index of great progress already reached, and the pledge of still greater. The affairs of the world were at that period placed on a new footing, and from the period of the Reformation, and just in proportion as the principles of the Reformation are acted on, the destiny of mankind is onward.
(6) The fall of Papal Rome, as described in this chapter, will remove one of the last obstructions to the final triumph of the gospel. In the Notes on ch. xvi. 10‒16, we saw that one great hindrance to the spread of the true religion would be taken away by the decline and fall of the Turkish power. A still more formidable hindrance will be taken away by the decline and fall of the Papal power; for that power holds more millions of the race under its subjection, and with a more consummate art, and a more powerful spell. The Papal influence has been felt, and still is felt, in a considerable part of the world. It has churches, and schools, and colleges, in almost all lands. It exercises a vast influence over governments. It has powerful societies organized for the purpose of propagating its opinions; and it so panders to some of the most powerful passions of our nature, and so converts to its own purposes all the resources of superstition, as still to retain a mighty, though a waning hold on the human mind. When this power shall finally cease, anyone can see that perhaps the most mighty obstruction which has ever been on the earth for a thousand years to the spread of the gospel will have been removed, and the way will be prepared for the introduction of the long-hoped-for millennium.
XIX. ANALYSIS OF THE CHAPTER
This chapter, as well as the last, is an episode, delaying the final catastrophe, and describing more fully the effect of the destruction of the mystical Babylon. The chapter consists of the following parts:――
I. A hymn of the heavenly hosts in view of the destruction of the mystical Babylon, ver. 1‒7. (a) A voice is heard in heaven shouting Hallelujah, in view of the fact that God had judged the great harlot that had corrupted the earth, ver. 1, 2. (b) The sound is echoed and repeated as the smoke of her torment ascends, ver. 3. (c) The four and twenty elders, and the four living creatures, as interested in all that pertains to the church, unite in that shout of Hallelujah, ver. 4. (d) A voice is heard from the throne commanding them to praise God, ver. 5; and (e) the mighty shout of Hallelujah is echoed and repeated from unnumbered hosts, ver. 6, 7.
II. The marriage of the Lamb, ver. 8, 9. The Lamb of God is united to his bride――the church――never more to be separated; and after all the persecutions, conflicts, and embarrassments which had existed, this long-desired union is consummated, and the glorious triumph of the church is described under the image of a joyous wedding ceremony.
III. John is so overcome with this representation, that in his transports of feeling he prostrates himself before the angel who shows him all this, ready to worship one who discloses such bright and glorious scenes, ver. 10. He is gently rebuked for allowing himself to be so overcome that he would render divine homage to any creature, and is told that he who communicates this to {408} him is but a fellow-servant, and that God only is to be worshipped.
IV. The final conquest over the beast and the false prophet, and the subjugation of all the foes of the church, ver. 11‒21. (a) A description of the conqueror――the Son of God, ver. 11‒16. He appears on a white horse――emblem of victory. He has on his head many crowns; wears a vesture dipped in blood; is followed by the armies of heaven on white horses; from his mouth goes a sharp sword; and his name is prominently written on his vesture and his thigh――all emblematic of certain victory. (b) An angel is seen standing in the sun, calling on all the fowls of heaven to come to the great feast prepared for them in the destruction of the enemies of God――as if there were a great slaughter sufficient to supply all the fowls that feed on flesh, ver. 17, 18. (c) The final war, ver. 19, 21. The beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies are gathered together for battle; the beast and the false prophet are taken, and are cast into the lake that burns with fire and brimstone; and all that remain of the enemies of God are slain, and the fowls are satisfied with their flesh. The last obstacle that prevented the dawn of the millennial morning is taken away, and the church is triumphant.
Chapter XIX
AND after these things I heard a [575]great voice of much people in heaven, saying, [576]Alleluia; [577]Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God:
1. And after these things. The things particularly that were exhibited in the previous chapter. See Notes on ch. xviii. 1. ¶ I heard a voice of much people in heaven. The voice of the worshippers before the throne. ¶ Saying, Alleluia. The Greek method of writing Hallelujah. This word――ἀλληλούϊα――occurs in the New Testament only in this chapter, ver. 1, 3, 4, 6. The Hebrew phrase――הַלְלוּ יָהּ Hallelujah――occurs often in the Old Testament. It means, properly, Praise Jehovah, or Praise the Lord. The occasion on which it is introduced here is very appropriate. It is uttered by the inhabitants of heaven, in the immediate presence of God himself, and in view of the final overthrow of the enemies of the church, and the triumph of the gospel. In such circumstances it was fit that heaven should render praise, and that a song of thanksgiving should be uttered in which all holy beings could unite. ¶ Salvation. That is, the salvation is to be ascribed to God. See Notes on ch. vii. 10. ¶ And glory, and honour. Notes on ch. v. 12. ¶ And power. Notes on ch. v. 13. ¶ Unto the Lord our God. That is, all that there is of honour, glory, power, in the redemption of the world belongs to God, and should be ascribed to him. This is expressive of the true feelings of piety always; this will constitute the song of heaven.
2 For [578]true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath [579]avenged the blood of his servants at her hand.
2. For true and righteous |are| his judgments. That is, the calamities that come upon the power here referred to are deserved. ¶ For he hath judged the great whore. The power represented by the harlot. See Notes on ch. xvii. 1. ¶ Which did corrupt the earth with her fornication. See Notes on ch. xiv. 8; xvii. 2, 4, 5; xviii. 3. Comp. Notes on ch. ix. 21. ¶ And hath avenged the blood of his servants. See Notes on ch. xviii. 20, 24. ¶ At her hand. Shed by her hand.
3 And again they said, Alleluia. And her [580]smoke rose up for ever and ever.
3. And again they said, Alleluia. Notes on ver. 1. The event was so glorious and so important; the final destruction of the great enemy of the church was of so much moment in its bearing on the welfare of the world, as to call forth repeated expressions of praise. ¶ And her smoke rose up for ever and ever. See Notes on ch. xiv. 11. This is an image of final ruin; the image being derived probably from the description in Genesis of the smoke that ascended from the cities of the plain, Ge. xix. 28. On the joy expressed here in her destruction, comp. Notes on ch. xviii. 20.
4 And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia.
4. And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts. See Notes on ch. iv. 4, 6, 7. As representatives of the church, {409} and as interested in its welfare, they are now introduced as rejoicing in its final triumph, and in the destruction of its last foe. ¶ Fell down. Prostrated themselves――the usual posture of worship. ¶ And worshipped God that sat on the throne. Ch. iv. 2, 3, 10. That is, they now adored him for what he had done in delivering the church from all its persecutions, and causing it to triumph in the world. ¶ Saying, Amen. See Notes on Mat. vi. 13. The word here is expressive of approbation of what God had done; or of their solemn assent to all that had occurred in the destruction of the great enemy of the church. ¶ Alleluia. Notes on ver. 1. The repetition of this word so many times shows the intenseness of the joy of heaven in view of the final triumph of the church.
5 And a voice came out of the throne, saying, [581]Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great.
5. And a voice came out of the throne. A voice seemed to come from the very midst of the throne. It is not said by whom this voice was uttered. It cannot be supposed, however, that it was uttered by God himself, for the command which it gave was this: “Praise our God,” &c. For the same reason it seems hardly probable that it was the voice of the Messiah, unless it be supposed that he here identifies himself with the redeemed church, and speaks of God as his God and hers. It would seem rather that it was a responsive voice that came from those nearest the throne, calling on all to unite in praising God in view of what was done. The meaning then will be, that all heaven was interested in the triumph of the church, and that one portion of the dwellers there called on the others to unite in offering thanksgiving. ¶ Praise our God. The God that we worship. ¶ All ye his servants. All in heaven and earth; all have occasion for thankfulness. ¶ And ye that fear him. That reverence and obey him. The fear of the Lord is a common expression in the Scriptures to denote true piety. ¶ Both small and great. All of every class and condition――poor and rich――young and old; those of humble and those of exalted rank. Comp. Ps. cxlviii. 7‒13.
6 And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of many thunderings, saying, Alleluia; [582]for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.
6. And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude. In ver. 1 he says that he “heard a great voice of much people;” here he says he “heard as it were a voice of a great multitude.” That is, in the former case he heard a shout that he at once recognized as the voice of a great multitude of persons; here he says that he heard a sound not distinctly recognized at first as such, but which resembled such a shout of a multitude. In the former case it was distinct; here it was confused――bearing a resemblance to the sound of roaring waters, or to muttering thunder, but less distinct than the former. This phrase would imply (a) a louder sound; and (b) that the sound was more remote, and therefore less clear and distinct. ¶ And as the voice of many waters. The comparison of the voices of a host of people with the roar of mighty waters is not uncommon in the Scriptures. See Notes on Is. xvii. 12, 13. So in Homer:――
“The monarch spoke, and straight a murmur rose, Loud as the surges when the tempest blows; That dash’d on broken rocks tumultuous roar, And foam and thunder on the stony shore.”
¶ And as the voice of mighty thunderings. The loud, deep, heavy voice of thunder. The distant shouts of a multitude may properly be represented by the sound of heavy thunder. ¶ Saying, Alleluia. Notes on ver. 1. This is the fourth time in which this is uttered as expressive of the joy of the heavenly hosts in view of the overthrow of the enemies of the church. The occasion will be worthy of this emphatic expression of joy. ¶ For the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Jehovah――God Almighty――the true God. The meaning is, that as the last enemy of the church is destroyed, he now truly reigns. This is the result of his power, and therefore it is proper that he should be praised as the omnipotent or Almighty God――for he has shown that he can overcome all his enemies, and bring the world to his feet.
7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the [583]marriage of the Lamb is come, and his [584]wife hath made herself ready.
{410} 7. Let us be glad and rejoice. Let all in heaven rejoice――for all have an interest in the triumph of truth; all should be glad that the government of God is set up over an apostate world. ¶ And give honour to him. Because the work is glorious; and because it is by his power alone that it has been accomplished. Notes on ch. v. 12. ¶ For the marriage of the Lamb is come. Of the Lamb of God――the Redeemer of the world. Notes on ch. v. 6. The relation of God, and especially of the Messiah, to the church, is often in the Scriptures represented under the image of marriage. See Notes on Is. liv. 4‒6; lxii. 4, 5; 2 Co. xi. 2; Ep. v. 23‒33. Comp. Je. iii. 14; xxxi. 32; Ho. ii. 19, 20. The idea is also said to be common in Arabic and Persian poetry. It is to be remembered, also, that Papal Rome has just been represented as a gay and meretricious woman; and there is a propriety, therefore, in representing the true church as a pure bride, the Lamb’s wife, and the final triumph of that church as a joyous marriage. The meaning is, that the church was now to triumph and rejoice as if in permanent union with her glorious head and Lord. ¶ And his wife hath made herself ready. By putting on her beautiful apparel and ornaments. All the preparations had been made far a permanent and uninterrupted union with its Redeemer, and the church was henceforward to be recognized as his beautiful bride, and was no more to appear as a decorated harlot――as it had during the Papal supremacy. Between the church under the Papacy, and the church in its true form, there is all the difference which there is between an abandoned woman gaily decked with gold and jewels, and a pure virgin chastely and modestly adorned, about to be led to be united in bonds of love to a virtuous husband.
8 And to her was granted that she should be [585]arrayed in fine linen, clean and [586]white: for the fine linen is the [587]righteousness of saints.
8. And to her was granted. It is not said here by whom this was granted, but it is perhaps implied that this was conferred by the Saviour himself on his bride. ¶ That the should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white. See Notes on ch. iii. 4, 5, 18; vii. 13. White has, perhaps, in all countries been the usual colour of the bridal dress――as an emblem of innocence. ¶ For the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. Represents the righteousness of the saints; or is an emblem of it. It should be remarked, however, that it is implied here, as it is everywhere in the Scriptures, that this is not their own righteousness, for it is said that this was “given” to the bride――to the saints. It is the gracious bestowment of their Lord; and the reference here must be to that righteousness which they obtain by faith――the righteousness which results from justification through the merits of the Redeemer. Of this Paul speaks, when he says (Phi. iii. 9), “And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.” Comp. Notes on Ro. iii. 25, 26.
9 And he saith unto me, Write, [588]Blessed are they which are called unto the [589]marriage-supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These[590]are the true sayings of God.
9. And he saith unto me. The angel who made these representations to him. See ver. 10. ¶ Write, Blessed |are| they. See Notes on ch. xiv. 13. ¶ Which are called unto the marriage-supper of the Lamb. The idea of a festival, or a marriage-supper, was a familiar one to the Jews to represent the happiness of heaven, and is frequently found in the New Testament. Comp. Notes on Lu. xiv. 15, 16; xvi. 22; xxii. 16; Mat. xxii. 2. The image in the passage before us is that of many guests invited to a great festival. ¶ And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God. Confirming all by a solemn declaration. The importance of what is here said; the desirableness of having it fixed in the mind, amidst the trials of life and the scenes of persecution through which the church was to pass, makes this solemn declaration proper. The idea is, that in all times of persecution――in every dark hour of despondency――the church, as such, and every individual member of the church, should receive it as a solemn truth never to be doubted, that the religion of Christ would finally {411} prevail, and that all persecution and sorrow here would be followed by joy and triumph in heaven.
10 And[591] I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellow-servant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus; worship God: for the [592]testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
10. And I fell at his feel to worship him. At the feet of the angel. Notes on ver. 9. This is a common posture of adoration in the East. See Rosenmüller’s Morgenland, in loco. Notes on 1 Co. xiv. 25. John was entirely overcome with the majesty of the heavenly messenger, and with the amazing truths that he had disclosed to him, and in the overflowing of his feelings he fell upon the earth in the posture of adoration. Or it may be that he mistook the rank of him who addressed him, and supposed that he was the Messiah whom he had been accustomed to worship, and who had first (ch. i.) appeared to him. If so, his error was soon corrected. He was told by the angel himself who made these communications that he had no claims to such homage, and that the praise which he offered him should be rendered to God alone. It should be observed that there is not the slightest intimation that this was the Messiah himself, and consequently this does not contain any evidence that it would be improper to worship him. The only fair conclusion from the passage is, that it is wrong to offer religious homage to an angel. ¶ And he said unto me, See |thou do it| not. That is, in rendering the homage which you propose to me, you would in fact render it to a creature. This may be regarded as an admonition to be careful in our worship; not to allow our feelings to overcome us; and not to render that homage to a creature which is due to God alone. Of course, this would prohibit the worship of the Virgin Mary, and of any of the saints, and all that homage rendered to a created being which is due to God only. Nothing is more carefully guarded in the Bible than the purity and simplicity of worship; nothing is more sternly rebuked than idolatry; nothing is more contrary to the divine law than rendering in any way that homage to a creature which belongs of right to the Creator. It was necessary to guard even John, the beloved disciple, on that subject; how much more needful, therefore, is it to guard the church at large from the dangers to which it is liable. ¶ I am thy fellow-servant. Evidently this was an angel, and yet he here speaks of himself as a “fellow-servant” of John. That is, he was engaged in the service of the same God; he was endeavouring to advance the same cause, and to honour the same Redeemer. The sentiment is, that in promoting religion in the world, we are associated with angels. It is no condescension in them to be engaged in the service of the Redeemer, though it seems to be condescension for them to be associated with us in anything; it constitutes no ground of merit in us to be engaged in the service of the Redeemer (comp. Lu. xvii. 10), though we may regard it as an honour to be associated with the angels, and it may raise us in conscious dignity to feel that we are united with them. ¶ And of thy brethren. Of other Christians; for all are engaged in the same work. ¶ That have the testimony of Jesus. Who are witnesses for the Saviour. It is possible that there may be here a particular reference to those who were engaged in preaching the gospel, though the language will apply to all who give their testimony to the value of the gospel by consistent lives. ¶ Worship God. He is the only proper object of worship; he alone is to be adored. ¶ For the testimony of Jesus. The meaning here seems to be, that this angel, and John, and their fellow-servants, were all engaged in the same work――that of bearing their testimony to Jesus. Thus, in this respect, they were on a level, and one of them should not worship another, but all should unite in the common worship of God. No one in this work, though an angel, could have such a pre-eminence that it would be proper to render the homage to him which was due to God alone. There could be but one being whom it was proper to worship, and they who were engaged in simply bearing testimony to the work of the Saviour should not worship one another. ¶ Is the spirit of prophecy. {412} The design of prophecy is to bear testimony to Jesus. The language does not mean, of course, that this is the only design of prophecy, but that this is its great and ultimate end. The word prophecy here seems to be used in the large sense in which it is often employed in the New Testament――meaning to make known the divine will (see Notes on Ro. xii. 6), and the primary reference here would seem to be to the preachers and teachers of the New Testament. The sense is, that their grand business is to bear testimony to the Saviour. They are all――whether angels, apostles, or ordinary teachers――appointed for this, and therefore should regard themselves as “fellow-servants.” The design of the angel in this seems to have been, to state to John what was his own specific business in the communications which he made, and then to state a universal truth applicable to all ministers of the gospel, that they were engaged in the same work, and that no one of them should claim adoration from others. Thus understood, this passage has no direct reference to the prophecies of the Old Testament, and teaches nothing in regard to their design, though it is in fact undoubtedly true that their grand and leading object was to bear testimony to the future Messiah. But this passage will not justify the attempt so often made to “find Christ” everywhere in the prophecies of the Old Testament, or justify the many forced and unnatural interpretations by which the prophecies are often applied to him.
11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a [593]white horse; and he that sat upon him was [594]called Faithful and True, and [595]in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
11. And I saw heaven opened. He saw a new vision, as if an opening were made through the sky, and he was permitted to look into heaven. See Notes on ch. iv. 1. ¶ And behold, a white horse. On the white horse as a symbol, see Notes on ch. vi. 2. He is here the symbol of the final victory that is to be obtained over the beast and the false prophet (ver. 20), and of the final triumph of the church. ¶ And he that sat upon him |was| called Faithful and True. He is not designated here by his usual and real name, but by his attributes. There can be no doubt that the Messiah is intended, as he goes forth to the subjugation of the world to himself. The attributes here referred to――faithful and true――are peculiarly appropriate, for they are not only strongly marked attributes of his character, but they would be particularly manifested in the events that are described. He would thus show that he was faithful――or worthy of the confidence of his church in delivering it from all its enemies; and true to all the promises that he has made to it. ¶ And in righteousness he doth judge. All his acts of judgment in determining the destiny of men are righteous. See Notes on Is. xi. 3‒5. ¶ And make war. That is, the war which he wages is not a war of ambition; it is not for the mere purpose of conquest; it is to save the righteous, and to punish the wicked.
12 His[596] eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were [597]many crowns; and he had a [598]name written, that no man knew but he himself.
12. His eyes |were| as a flame of fire. See Notes on ch. i. 14. ¶ And on his head |were| many crowns. Many diadems, indicative of his universal reign. It is not said how these were worn or arranged on his head――perhaps the various diadems worn by kings were in some way wreathed into one. ¶ And he had a name written. That is, probably on the frontlet of this compound diadem. Comp. Notes on ch. xiii. 1; xiv. 1. ¶ That no man knew but he himself. See Notes on ch. ii. 17. This cannot here mean that no one could read the name, but the idea is, that no one but himself could fully understand its import. It involved a depth of meaning, and a degree of sacredness, and a relation to the Father, which he alone could apprehend in its true import. This is true of the name here designated――“the Word of God”――the Logos――Λόγος; and it is true of all the names which he bears. See Mat. xi. 27. Comp. a quotation from Dr. Buchanan in the Asiatic Researches, vol. i. vi. p. 264, as quoted by Rosenmüller, Morgenland, in loco.
13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called [599]The Word of God.
13. And he was clothed with a vesture {413} dipped in blood. Red, as if dipped in blood――emblem of slaughter. The original of this image is probably Is. lxiii. 2, 3. See Notes on that passage. ¶ And his name is called The Word of God. The name which in ver. 12, it is said that no one knew but he himself. This name is Ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ, or “the Logos of God.” That is, this is his peculiar name; a name which belongs only to him, and which distinguishes him from all other beings. The name Logos, as applicable to the Son of God, and expressive of his nature, is found in the New Testament only in the writings of John, and is used by him to denote the higher or divine nature of the Saviour. In regard to its meaning, and the reason why it is applied to him, see Notes on Jn. i. 1. The reader also may consult, with great advantage, an article by Professor Stuart in the Bibliotheca Sacra, vol. vii. pp. 16‒31. The following may be some of the reasons why it is said (ver. 12) that no one understands this but he himself:――(1) No one but he can understand its full import, as it implies so high a knowledge of the nature of the Deity; (2) no one but he can understand the relation which it supposes in regard to God, or the relation of the Son to the Father; (3) no one but he can understand what is implied in it, regarded as the method in which God reveals himself to his creatures on earth; (4) no one but he can understand what is implied in it in respect to the manner in which God makes himself known to other worlds. It may be added, as a further illustration of this, that none of the attempts made to explain it have left the matter so that there are no questions unsolved which one would be glad to ask.
14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, [600]clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
14. And the armies |which were| in heaven followed him. The heavenly hosts; particularly, it would seem, the redeemed, as there would be some incongruity in representing the angels as riding in this manner. Doubtless the original of this picture is Is. lxiii. 3: “I have trodden the wine-press alone, and of the people there was none with me.” These hosts of the redeemed on white horses accompany him to be witnesses of his victory, and to participate in the joy of the triumph, not to engage in the work of blood. ¶ Upon white horses. Emblems of triumph or victory. See Notes on ch. vi. 2. ¶ Clothed in fine linen, white and clean. The usual raiment of those who are in heaven, as everywhere represented in this book. See ch. iii. 4, 5; iv. 4; vii. 9, 13; xv. 6.
15 And [601]out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a [602]rod of iron: and [603]he treadeth the wine-press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
15. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword. See Notes on ch. i. 16. In that place the sword seems to be an emblem of his words or doctrines, as penetrating the hearts of men; here it is the emblem of a work of destruction wrought on his foes. ¶ That with it he should smite the nations. The nations that were opposed to him; to wit, those especially who were represented by the beast and the false prophet, ver. 18‒20. ¶ And he shall rule them with a rod of iron. See Notes on ch. ii. 27; xii. 5. ¶ And he treadeth the wine-press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. This language is probably derived from Is. lxiii. 1‒4. See it explained in the Notes on that place, and on ch. xiv. 19, 20. It means here that his enemies would be certainly crushed before him――as grapes are crushed under the feet of him that treads in the wine-vat.
16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING[604] OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
16. And he hath on |his| vesture. That is, this name was conspicuously written on his garment――probably his military robe. ¶ And on his thigh. The robe or military cloak may be conceived of as open and flowing, so as to expose the limbs of the rider; and the idea is, that the name was conspicuously written not only on the flowing robe, but on the other parts of his dress, so that it must be conspicuous whether his military cloak were wrapped closely around him, or whether it was open to the breeze. Grotius supposes {414} that this name was on the edge or hilt of the sword which depended from his thigh. ¶ A name written. Or a title descriptive of his character. ¶ King of kings, and Lord of lords. As in ch. xvii. 5, so here, there is nothing in the original to denote that this should be distinguished, as it is, by capital letters. As a conspicuous title, however, it is not improper. It means that he is, in fact, the sovereign over the kings of the earth, and that all nobles and princes are under his control――a rank that properly belongs to the Son of God. Comp. Notes on Ep. i. 20‒22. See also ver. 12 of this chapter. The custom here alluded to of inscribing the name or rank of distinguished individuals on their garments, so that they might be readily recognized, was not uncommon in ancient times. For full proof of this, see Rosenmüller, Morgenland, vol. iii. pp. 232‒236. The authorities quoted there are, Thevenot’s Travels, vol. i. p. 149; Gruter, p. 989; Dempster’s Etruria Regalis, t. ii. tab. 93; Montfauçon, Antiq. Expliq. t. iii. tab. 39. Thus Herodotus (vol. ii. p. 196), speaking of the figures of Sesostris in Ionia, says that, “Across his breast, from shoulder to shoulder, there is this inscription in the sacred characters of Egypt, ‘I conquered this country by the force of my arms.’” Comp. Cic. Verr. iv. 23; Le Moyne ad Jer. xxiii. 6; Münter, Diss. ad Apoc. xvii. 5, as referred to by Professor Stuart, in loco.
17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, [605]Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;
17. And I saw an angel standing in the sun. A different angel evidently from the one which had before appeared to him. The number of angels that appeared to John, as referred to in this book, was very great, and each one came on a new errand, or with a new message. Everyone must be struck with the image here. The description is as simple as it can be; and yet as sublime. The fewest words possible are used; and yet the image is distinct and clear. A heavenly being stands in the blaze of the brightest of the orbs that God permits us here to see――yet not consumed, and himself so bright that he can be distinctly seen amidst the dazzling splendours of that luminary. It is difficult to conceive of an image more sublime than this. Why he has his place in the sun is not stated, for there does not appear to be anything more intended by this than to give grandeur and impressiveness to the scene. ¶ And he cried with a loud voice. So that all the fowls of heaven could hear. ¶ Saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven. That is, to all the birds of prey――all that feed on flesh――such as hover over a battle-field. Comp. Notes on Is. xviii. 6; lvi. 9. See also Je. vii. 33; xii. 9; Eze. xxxix. 4‒20. ¶ Come and gather yourselves together. All this imagery is taken from the idea that there would be a great slaughter, and that the bodies of the dead would be left unburied to the birds of prey. ¶ Unto the supper of the great God. As if the great God were about to give you a feast――to wit, the carcasses of those slain. It is called “his supper” because he gives it; and the image is merely that there would be a great slaughter of his foes, as is specified in the following verse.
18 That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.
18. That ye may eat the flesh of kings. Of the kings under the control of the beast and the false prophet, ch. xvi. 14; xvii. 12‒14. ¶ And the flesh of captains. Of those subordinate to kings in command. The Greek word is χιλιάρχων――chiliarchs――denoting captains of a thousand, or, as we should say, commanders of a regiment. The word colonel would better convey the idea with us; as he is the commander of a regiment, and a regiment is usually composed of about a thousand men. ¶ And the flesh of mighty men. The word here means strong, and the reference is to the robust soldiery――rank and file in the army. ¶ And the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them. Cavalry――for most armies are composed in part of horsemen. ¶ And the flesh of all |men, both| free and bond. Freemen and {415} slaves. It is not uncommon that freemen and slaves are mingled in the same army. This was the case in the American Revolution, and is common in the East. ¶ Both small and great. Young and old; of small size and of great size; of those of humble, and those of exalted rank. The later armies of Napoleon were composed in great part of conscripts, many of whom were only about eighteen years of age, and to this circumstance many of his later defeats are to be traced. In the army that was raised after the invasion of Russia no less than one hundred and fifty thousand of the conscripts were between eighteen and nineteen years of age (Alison’s History of Europe, vol. iv. p. 27). Indeed, it is common in most armies that a considerable portion of the enlistments are from those in early life; and besides this, it is usual to employ mere boys on various services about a camp.
19 And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered[606] together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.
19. And I saw the beast. Notes on ch. xiii. 1, 11. Comp. ch. xvii. 13. ¶ And the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together. There is allusion here to the same assembling of hostile forces which is described in ch. xvi. 13, 14, for the great decisive battle that is to determine the destiny of the world――the question whether the Messiah or Antichrist shall reign. There can be no doubt that the writer in these passages designed to refer to the same events――the still future scenes that are to occur when the Roman, the Pagan, and the Mahometan powers shall be aroused to make common cause against the true religion, and shall stake all on the issue of the great conflict. See the Notes on ch. xvi. 13, 14. ¶ Against him that sat on the horse. The Messiah――the Son of God. Notes on ver. 11. ¶ And against his army. The hosts that are associated with him――his redeemed people. Notes on ver. 14.
20 And the [607]beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were [608]cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
20. And the beast was taken. That is, was taken alive, to be thrown into the lake of fire. The hosts were slain (ver. 21), but the leaders were made prisoners of war. The general idea is, that these armies were overcome, and that the Messiah was victorious; but there is a propriety in the representation here that the leaders――the authors of the war――should be taken captive, and reserved for severer punishment than death on the battle-field would be――for they had stirred up their hosts, and summoned these armies to make rebellion against the Messiah. The beast here, as all along, refers to the Papal power; and the idea is that of its complete and utter overthrow, as if the leader of an army were taken captive and tormented in burning flames, and all his followers were cut down on the field of battle. ¶ And with him the false prophet. As they had been practically associated together, there was a propriety that they should share the same fate. In regard to the false prophet, and the nature of this alliance, see Notes on ch. xvi. 13. ¶ That wrought miracles before him. That is, the false prophet had been united with the beast in deceiving the nations of the earth. See Notes on ch. xvi. 14. ¶ With which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast. Notes on ch. xiii. 16‒18. By these arts they had been deceived――that is, they had been led into the alliance, and had been sustained in their opposition to the truth. The whole representation is that of an alliance to prevent the spread of the true religion, as if the Papacy and Mahometanism were combined, and the one was sustained by the pretended miracles of the other. There would be a practical array against the reign of the Son of God, as if these great powers should act in concert, and as if the peculiar claims which each set up in behalf of its own divine origin became a claim which went to support the whole combined organization. ¶ These both were cast alive into a lake of fire. The beast and the false prophet. That is, the overthrow will be as signal, and the destruction as complete, as if the leaders of the combined hosts should be taken alive, and thrown into a pit or lake that burns with an intense heat. There is no necessity for supposing that this {416} is to be literally inflicted――for the whole scene is symbolical――meaning that the destruction of these powers would be as complete as if they were thrown into such a burning lake. Comp. Notes on ch. xiv. 10, 11. ¶ Burning with brimstone. Sulphur――the usual expression to denote intense heat, and especially as referring to the punishment of the wicked. See Notes on ch. xiv. 10.
21 And the remnant were [609]slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth; and [610]all the fowls were filled with their flesh.
21. And the remnant. The remainder of the assembled hosts――the army at large, in contradistinction from the leaders. ¶ Were slain with the sword. Cut down with the sword; not rescued for protracted torment. A proper distinction is thus made between the deceived multitudes and the leaders who had deceived them. ¶ Of him that sat upon the horse. The Messiah, ver. 11. ¶ Which |sword| proceeded out of his mouth. Notes on ver. 15. That is, they were cut down by a word. They fell before him as he spake, as if they were slain by the sword. Perhaps this indicates that the effect that is to be produced when these great powers shall be destroyed is a moral effect; that is, that they will be subdued by the word of the Son of God. ¶ And all the fowls were filled with their flesh. Notes on ver. 17. An effect was produced as if the fowls of heaven should feed upon the carcasses of the slain.
The general idea here is, that these great Antichristian powers which had so long resisted the gospel, and prevented its being spread over the earth; which had shed so much blood in persecution, and had so long corrupted and deceived mankind, would be subdued. The true religion would be as triumphant as if the Son of God should go forth as a warrior in his own might, and secure their leaders for punishment, and give up their hosts to the birds of prey. This destruction of these great enemies――which the whole course of the interpretation leads us to suppose is still future――prepares the way for the millennial reign of the Son of God――as stated in the following chapter. The “beast” and the “false prophet” are disposed of, and there remains only the subjugation of the great dragon――the source of all this evil――to prepare the way for the long-anticipated triumph of the gospel. The subjugation of the great original source of all those evil influences is stated in ch. xx. 1‒3; and then follows the account of the thousand years’ rest of the saints, the resurrection of the dead, and the final judgment.
XX. ANALYSIS OF THE CHAPTER
This chapter, like chapters xvi. 12‒21, xvii., xviii., xix., pertains to the future, and discloses things which are yet to occur. It is not to be wondered at, therefore, for the reason stated in the Notes on ch. xvi. 16, that much obscurity should hang over it, nor that it is difficult to explain it so as to remove all obscurity. The statement in this chapter, however, is distinct and clear in its general characteristics, and time will make all its particular statements free from ambiguity.
In the previous chapter, an account is given of the final destruction of two of the most formidable enemies of the church, and consequently the removal of two of the hindrances to the universal spread of the gospel――the beast and the false prophet――the Papal and the Mahometan powers. But one obstacle remains to be removed――the power of Satan as concentrated and manifested in the form of Pagan power. These three powers it was said (ch. xvi. 13, 14) would concentrate their forces as the time of the final triumph of Christianity drew on; and with these the last great battle was to be fought. Two of these have been subdued; the conquest over the other remains, and Satan is to be arrested and bound for a thousand years. He is then to be released for a time, and afterwards finally destroyed, and at that period the end will come.
The chapter comprises the following parts:――
I. The binding of Satan, ver. 1‒3. An angel comes down from heaven with the key of the bottomless pit, and a {417} great chain in his hand, and seizes upon the dragon, and casts him into the pit, that for a thousand years he should deceive the nations no more. The great enemy of God and his cause is thus made a prisoner, and is restrained from making war in any form against the church. The way is thus prepared for the peace and triumph which follow.
II. The millennium, ver. 4‒6. John sees thrones, and persons sitting on them; he sees the souls of those who were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God――those who had not worshipped the beast nor his image――living and reigning with Christ during the thousand years: the spirits of the martyrs revived, and becoming again the reigning spirit on earth. This he calls the first resurrection; and on all such he says the second death has no power. Temporal death they might experience――for such the martyrs had experienced――but over them the second death has no dominion, for they live and reign with the Saviour. This is properly the millennium――the long period when the principles of true religion will have the ascendency on the earth, as if the martyrs and confessors――the most devoted and eminent Christians of other times――should appear again upon the earth, and as if their spirit should become the reigning and pervading spirit of all who professed the Christian name.
III. The release of Satan, ver. 7, 8. After the thousand years of peace and triumph shall have expired, Satan will be released from his prison, and will be permitted to go out and deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, and gather them together to battle; that is, a state of things will exist as if Satan were then released. There will be again an outbreak of sin on the earth, and a conflict with the principles of religion, as if an innumerable multitude of opposers should be marshalled for the conflict by the great author of all evil.
IV. The final subjugation of Satan, and destruction of his power on the earth, ver. 9, 10. After the temporary and partial outbreak of evil (ver. 7, 8), Satan and his hosts will be entirely destroyed. The destruction will be as if fire should come down from heaven to devour the assembled hosts (ver. 9), and as if Satan, the great leader of evil, should be cast into the same lake where the beast and false prophet are to be tormented for ever. Then the church will be delivered from all its enemies, and religion henceforward will be triumphant. How long the interval will be between this state and that next disclosed (ver. 11‒15)――the final judgment――is not stated. The eye of the seer glances from one to the other, but there is nothing to forbid the supposition, that, according to the laws of prophetic vision, there may be a long interval in which righteousness shall reign upon the earth. Comp. Intro. to Isaiah, § 7, III. (3)‒(5).
V. The final judgment, ver. 11‒15. This closes the earthly scene. Henceforward (ch. xxi., xxii.) the scene is transferred to heaven――the abode of the redeemed. The last judgment is the winding up of the earthly affairs. The enemies of the church are all long since destroyed; the world has experienced, perhaps for a long series of ages, the full influence of the gospel; countless millions have been, we may suppose, brought under its power; and then at last, in the winding up of human affairs, comes the judgment of the great day, when the dead, small and great, shall stand before God; when the sea shall give up its dead; when death and hell shall give up the dead that are in them; when the records of human actions shall be opened, and all shall be judged according to their works; and when all who are not found written in the book of life shall be cast into the lake of fire. This is the earthly consummation; henceforward the saints shall reign in glory――the New Jerusalem above, ch. xxi., xxii.
In order to prepare the way for a proper understanding of this chapter, the following additional remarks may be here made:――
(a) The design of this book did not demand a minute detail of the events which would occur in the consummation of human affairs. The main purpose was to trace the history of the church to the scene of the final triumph when all its enemies would be overthrown, and when religion would be permanently established upon the earth. Hence, though in the previous chapters we have a detailed account of the persecutions that would be endured; of the enemies that would rise up against the church, and of their complete ultimate overthrow――leaving religion triumphant on the earth――yet we have no minute statement of what will occur in the millennium. A rapid view is taken of the closing scenes of the earth’s {418} history, and the general results only are stated. It would not be strange, therefore, if there should be much in this that would seem to be enigmatical and obscure, especially as it is now all in the future.
(b) There may be long intervening periods between the events thus thrown together into the final grouping. We are not to suppose necessarily that these events will succeed each other immediately, or that they will be of short duration. Between these events thus hastily sketched, there may be long intervals that are not described, and whose general character is scarcely even glanced at. This results from the very nature of the prophetic vision, as described in the Intro. to Isaiah, § 7, III. (3)‒(5). This may be illustrated by the view which we have in looking at a landscape. When one is placed in a favourable situation, he can mark distinctly the order of the objects in it――the succession――the grouping. He can tell what objects appear to him to lie near to each other, and are apparently in juxtaposition. But there are objects which, in such a vision, the eye cannot take in, and which would not be exhibited by any description which might be given of the view taken. Hills in the distant view may seem to lie near each other; one may seem to rise just back of another, and to the eye they may seem to constitute parts of the same mountain, and yet between them there may be deep and fertile vales, smiling villages, running streams, beautiful gardens and waterfalls, which the eye cannot take in, and the extent of which it may be wholly impossible to conjecture; and a description of the whole scene, as it appears to the observer, would convey no idea of the actual extent of the intervals. So it is in the prophecies. Between the events which are to occur hereafter, as seen in vision, there may be long intervals, but the length of these intervals the prophet may have left us no means of determining. See these thoughts more fully illustrated in the Introduction to Isaiah, as above referred to.
What is here stated may have occurred in the vision which John had of the future, as described in this chapter. Time is marked in the prophetic description until the fall of the great enemy of the church; beyond that it does not seem to have been regarded as necessary to determine the actual duration of the events referred to. Comp. Professor Stuart, Com. ii. 353, 354.
(c) These views are sustained by the most cursory glance of the chapter before us. There is none of the detail which we have found in the previous portions of the book――for such detail was not necessary to the accomplishment of the design of the book. The grand purpose was to show that Christianity would finally triumph, and hence the detailed description is carried on until that occurs, and beyond that we have only the most general statements. Thus, in this chapter, the great events that are to occur are merely hinted at. The events of a thousand years; the invasion by Gog and Magog; the ultimate confinement and punishment of Satan; the general judgment,――are all crowded into the space of twelve verses. This shows that the distant future is only glanced at by the writer; and we should not wonder, therefore, if it should be found to be obscure, nor should we regard it as strange that much is left to be made clear by the events themselves when they shall occur.
(d) The end is triumphant and glorious. We are assured that every enemy of the church will be slain, and that there will be a long period of happiness, prosperity, and peace. “The eye of hope,” says Professor Stuart, beautifully, “is directed forward, and sees the thousand years of uninterrupted prosperity; then the sudden destruction of a new and fatal enemy; and all the rest is left to joyful anticipation. When all clouds are swept from the face of the sky, why should not the sun shine forth in all his glory? I cannot, therefore, doubt that the setting sun of the church on earth is to be as a heaven of unclouded splendour. Peaceful and triumphant will be her latest age. The number of the redeemed will be augmented beyond all computation; and the promise made from the beginning, that ‘the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent’s head,’ will be fulfilled in all its extent, and with a divine plenitude of meaning. The understanding and pious reader closes the book with admiration, with wonder, with delight, with lofty anticipations of the future, and with undaunted resolution to follow on in the steps of those who, through faith and patience, have inherited the promises, and entered into everlasting rest,” vol. ii. pp. 354, 355.
Chapter XX
AND I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the [611]key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
{419} 1. And I saw an angel come down from heaven. Comp. Notes on ch. x. 1. He does not say whether this angel had appeared to him before, but the impression is rather that it was a different one. The whole character of the composition of the book leads us to suppose that different angels were employed to make these communications to John, and that, in fact, in the progress of things disclosed in the book, he had intercourse with a considerable number of the heavenly inhabitants. The scene that is recorded here occurred after the destruction of the beast and the false prophet (ch. xix. 18‒21), and therefore, according to the principles expressed in the explanation of the previous chapters, what is intended to be described here will take place after the final destruction of the Papal and Mahometan powers. ¶ Having the key of the bottomless pit. See Notes on ch. i. 18; ix. 1. The fact that he has the key of that underworld is designed to denote here, that he can fasten it on Satan so that it shall become his prison. ¶ And a great chain in his hand. With which to bind the dragon, ver. 2. It is called great because of the strength of him that was to be bound. The chain only appears to have been in his hand. Perhaps the key was suspended to his side.
2 And he laid hold on the [612]dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and [613]bound him a thousand years,
2. And he laid hold on. Seized him by violence――ἐκράτησε. The word denotes the employment of strength or force; and it implies that he had power superior to that of the dragon. Comp. Mat. xiv. 3; xviii. 28; xxi. 46; xxii. 6; xxvi. 4. We can at once see the propriety of the use of this word in this connection. The great enemy to be bound has himself mighty power, and can be overcome only by a superior. This may teach us that it is only a power from heaven that can destroy the empire of Satan in the world; and perhaps it may teach us that the interposition of angels will be employed in bringing in the glorious state of the millennium. Why should it not be? ¶ The dragon. See Notes on ch. xii. 2. Comp. ch. xii. 4, 7, 13, 16, 17; xiii. 2, 4, 11; xvi. 13. There can be no doubt as to the meaning of the word here; for it is expressly said to mean the devil, and Satan. It would seem, however, that it refers to some manifestation of the power of Satan that would exist after the beast and false prophet――that is, the Papacy and Mahometanism――should be destroyed, and probably the main reference is to the still existing power of Paganism. Comp. Notes on ch. xvi. 13, 14. It may include, however, all the forms of wickedness which Satan shall have kept up on the earth, and all the modes of evil by which he will endeavour to perpetuate his reign. ¶ That old serpent. This is undoubtedly an allusion to the serpent that deceived our first parents (Ge. iii. 1, seq.), and therefore a proof that it was Satan that, under the form of a serpent, deceived them. Comp. Notes on ch. xii. 3. ¶ Which is the Devil. On the meaning of this word, see Notes on Mat. iv. 1. ¶ And Satan. On the meaning of this word, see Notes on Job i. 6. In regard to the repetition of the names of that great enemy of God and the church here, Mr. Taylor, in the Fragments to Calmet’s Dictionary, No. 152, says that this “almost resembles a modern Old Bailey indictment, in which special care is taken to identify the culprit, by a sufficient number of aliases. An angel from heaven, having the key of the prison of the abyss, and a great chain to secure the prisoner, ‘apprehended the dragon, alias the old serpent, alias the devil, alias the Satan, alias the seducer of the world,’ who was sentenced to a thousand years’ imprisonment.” The object here, however, seems to be not so much to identify the culprit by these aliases, as to show that under whatever forms, and by whatever names he had appeared, it was always the same being, and that now the author of the whole evil would be arrested. Thus the one great enemy sometimes has appeared in a form that would be best represented by a fierce and fiery dragon; at another, in a form that would be best represented by a cunning and subtle serpent; now in a form to which the word devil, or accuser, would be most appropriate; and now in a form in which the word Satan――an adversary――would be most expressive of what he does. In these various forms, and under these various names, he has ruled the {420} fallen world; and when this one great enemy shall be seized and imprisoned, all those forms of evil will, of course, come to an end. ¶ A thousand years. This is the period usually designated as the MILLENNIUM――for the word millennium means a thousand years. It is on this passage that the whole doctrine of the millennium as such has been founded. It is true that there are elsewhere in the Scriptures abundant promises that the gospel will ultimately spread over the world; but the notion of a millennium as such is found in this passage alone. It is, however, enough to establish the doctrine, if its meaning be correctly ascertained; for it is a just rule in interpreting the Bible, that the clearly-ascertained sense of a single passage of Scripture is sufficient to establish the truth of a doctrine. The fact, however, that this passage stands alone in this respect, makes it the more important to endeavour accurately to determine its meaning. There are but three ways in which the phrase “a thousand years” can be understood here: either (a) literally; or (b) in the prophetic use of the term, where a day would stand for a year, thus making a period of three hundred and sixty thousand years; or (c) figuratively, supposing that it refers to a long but indefinite period of time. It may be impossible to determine which of these periods is intended, though the first has been generally supposed to be the true one, and hence the common notion of the millennium. There is nothing, however, in the use of the language here, as there would be nothing contrary to the common use of symbols in this book in regard to time, in the supposition that this was designed to describe the longest period here suggested, or that it is meant that the world shall enjoy a reign of peace and righteousness during the long period of three hundred and sixty thousand years. Indeed, there are some things in the arrangements of nature which look as if it were contemplated that the earth would continue under a reign of righteousness through a vastly long period in the future.
3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and [614]set a seal upon him that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.
3. And cast him into the bottomless pit. See Notes on ch. ix. 1. A state of peace and prosperity would exist as if Satan, the great disturber, were confined in the nether world as a prisoner. ¶ And shut him up. Closed the massive doors of the dark prison-house upon him. Comp. Notes on Job x. 21, 22. ¶ And set a seal upon him. Or, rather, “upon it”――ἐπάνω αὐτοῦ. The seal was placed upon the door or gate of the prison, not because this would fasten the gate or door of itself, and make it secure, for this was secured by the key, but because it prevented intrusion, or any secret opening of it without its being known. See Notes on Da. vi. 17, and Mat. xxvii. 66. The idea here is, that every precaution was taken for absolute security. ¶ That he should deceive the nations no more. That is, during the thousand years. Comp. Notes on ch. xii. 9. ¶ Till the thousand years should be fulfilled. That is, during that period there will be a state of things upon the earth as if Satan should be withdrawn from the world, and confined in the great prison where he is ultimately to dwell for ever. ¶ And after that he must be loosed a little season. See ver. 7, 8. That is, a state of things will then exist, for a brief period, as if he were again released from his prison-house, and suffered to go abroad upon the earth. The phrase “a little season”――μικρὸν χρόνον, little time――denotes properly that this would be brief as compared with the thousand years. No intimation is given as to the exact time, and it is impossible to conjecture how long it will be. All the circumstances stated, however, here and in ver. 7‒10, would lead us to suppose that what is referred to will be like the sudden outbreak of a rebellion in a time of general peace, but which will soon be quelled.
§ a.――_Condition of the world in the period referred to in ver. 1‒3._
It may be proper, in order to a correct understanding of this chapter, to present a brief summary under the different parts (see the Analysis of the chapter) of what, according to the interpretation proposed, may be expected {421} to be the condition of things in the time referred to.
On the portion now before us (ver. 1‒3), according to the interpretation proposed, the following suggestions may be made:――
(1) This will be subsequent to the downfall of the Papacy and the termination of the Mahometan power in the world. Of course, then, this lies in the future――how far in the future it is impossible to determine. The interpretation of the various portions of this book, and the book of Daniel, have, however, led to the conclusion that the termination of those powers cannot now be remote. If so, we are on the eve of important events in the world’s history. The affairs of the world look as if things were tending to a fulfilment of the prophecies so understood.
(2) It will be a condition of the world as if Satan were bound; that is, where his influences will be suspended, and the principles of virtue and religion will prevail. According to the interpretation of the previous chapters, it will be a state in which all that has existed, and that now exists, in the Papacy to corrupt mankind, to maintain error, and to prevent the prevalence of free and liberal principles, will cease; in which all that there now is in the Mahometan system to fetter and enslave mankind――now controlling more than one hundred and twenty millions of the race――shall have come to an end; and in which, in a great measure, all that occurs under the direct influence of Satan in causing or perpetuating slavery, war, intemperance, lust, avarice, disorder, scepticism, atheism, will be checked and stayed. It is proper to say, however, that this passage does not require us to suppose that there will be a total cessation of Satanic influence in the earth during that period. Satan will, indeed, be bound and restrained as to his former influence and power. But there will be no change in the character of man as he comes into the world. There will still be corrupt passions in the human heart. Though greatly restrained, and though there will be a general prevalence of righteousness on the earth, yet we are to remember that the race is fallen, and that even then, if restraint should be taken away, man would act out his fallen nature. This fact, if remembered, will make it appear less strange that, after this period of prevalent righteousness, Satan should be represented as loosed again, and as able once more for a time to deceive the nations.
(3) It will be a period of long duration. On the supposition that it is to be literally a period of one thousand years, this is in itself long, and will give, especially under the circumstances, opportunity for a vast progress in human affairs. To form some idea of the length of the period, we need only place ourselves in imagination back for a thousand years――say in the middle of the ninth century――and look at the condition of the world then, and think of the vast changes in human affairs that have occurred during that period. It is to be remembered, also, that if the millennial period were soon to commence, it would find the world in a far different state in reference to future progress from what it was in the ninth century, and that it would start off, so to speak, with all the advantages in the arts and sciences which have been accumulated in all the past periods of the world. Even if there were no special divine interposition, it might be presumed that the race, in such circumstances, would make great and surprising advances in the long period of a thousand years. And here a very striking remark of Mr. Hugh Miller may be introduced as illustrating the subject. “It has been remarked by some student of the Apocalypse,” says he, “that the course of predicted events at first moves slowly, as one after one, six of seven seals are opened; that, on the opening of the seventh seal, the progress is so considerably quickened that the seventh period proves as fertile in events――represented by the sounding of the seven trumpets――as the foregoing six taken together; and that on the seventh trumpet, so great is the further acceleration, that there is an amount of incident condensed in this seventh part of the seventh period equal, as in the former case, to that of all the previous six parts in one. There are three cycles, it has been said, in the scheme――cycle within cycle――the second comprised within a seventh portion of the first, and the third within a seventh portion of the second. Be this as it may, we may, at least, see something that exceedingly resembles it in that actual economy of change and revolution manifested in English history for the last two centuries.
It would seem as if events, in their downward course, {422} had come under the influence of that law of gravitation through which falling bodies increase in speed, as they descend, according to the squares of the distance” (First Impressions of England and its People, pp. vii., viii.). If to this we add the supposition, which we have seen (Notes on ver. 2) to be by no means improbable, that it is intended, in the description of the millennium in this chapter, that the world will continue under a reign of peace and righteousness for the long period of three hundred and sixty thousand years, it is impossible to anticipate what progress will be made during that period, or to enumerate the numbers that will be saved. On this subject, see some very interesting remarks in the Old Red Sandstone, by Hugh Miller, pp. 248‒250, 258, 259. Comp. Professor Hitchcock’s Religion and Geology, pp. 370‒409.
(4) What, then, will be the state of things during that long period of a thousand years?
(a) There will be a great increase in the population of the globe. Let wars cease, and intemperance cease, and slavery cease, and the numberless passions that now shorten life be stayed, and it is easy to see that there must be a vast augmentation in the number of the human species.
(b) There will be a general diffusion of intelligence upon the earth. Every circumstance would be favourable to it, and the world would be in a condition to make rapid advances in knowledge, Da. xii. 4.
(c) That period will be characterized by the universal diffusion of revealed truth, Is. xi. 9; xxv. 7.
(d) It will be marked by unlimited subjection to the sceptre of Christ, Ps. ii. 7; xxii. 27‒29; Is. ii. 2, 3; lxvi. 23; Zec. ix. 10; xiv. 9; Mat. xiii. 31, 32; Re. xi. 15.
(e) There will be great progress in all that tends to promote the welfare of man. We are not to suppose that the resources of nature are exhausted. Nature gives no signs of exhaustion or decay. In the future there is no reason to doubt that there will yet be discoveries and inventions more surprising and wonderful than the art of printing, or the use of steam, or the magnetic telegraph. There are profounder secrets of nature that may be delivered up than any of these, and the world is tending to their development.
(f) It will be a period of the universal reign of peace. The attention of mankind will be turned to the things which tend to promote the welfare of the race, and advance the best interests of society. The single fact that wars will cease will make an inconceivable difference in the aspect of the world; for if universal peace shall prevail through the long period of the millennium, and the wealth, the talent, and the science now employed in human butchery shall be devoted to the interests of agriculture, the mechanical arts, learning, and religion, it is impossible now to estimate the progress which the race will make, and the changes which will be produced on the earth. For Scripture proofs that it will be a time of universal peace, see Is. ii. 4; xi. 6‒9; Mi. iv. 3.
(g) There will be a general prevalence of evangelical religion. This is apparent in the entire description in this passage, for the two most formidable opposing powers that religion has ever known――the beast and the false prophet――will be destroyed, and Satan will be bound. In this long period, therefore, we are to suppose that the gospel will exert its fair influence on governments, on families, on individuals; in the intercourse of neighbours, and in the intercourse of nations. God will be worshipped in spirit and in truth, and not in the mere forms of devotion; and temperance, truth, liberty, social order, honesty, and love, will prevail over the world.
(h) It will be a time when the Hebrew people――the Jews――will be brought to the knowledge of the truth, and will embrace the Messiah whom their fathers crucified, Zec. xii. 10; xiii. 1; Ro. xi. 26‒29.
(i) Yet we are not necessarily to suppose that all the world will be absolutely and entirely brought under the power of the gospel. There will be still on the earth the remains of wickedness in the corrupted human heart, and there will be so much tendency to sin in the human soul, that Satan, when released for a time (ver. 7, 8), will be able once more to deceive mankind, and to array a formidable force, represented by Gog and Magog, against the cause of truth and righteousness. We are not to suppose that the nature of mankind, as fallen, will be essentially changed, or that there may not be sin enough in the human heart to make it capable of the same opposition to the {423} gospel of God which has thus far been evinced in all ages. From causes which are not fully stated (ver. 8, 9), Satan will be enabled once more to rouse up their enmity, and to make one more desperate effort to destroy the kingdom of the Redeemer by rallying his forces for a conflict. See these views illustrated in the work entitled Christ’s Second Coming, by Rev. David Brown, of St. James’ Free Church, Glasgow, pp. 398‒442; New York, 1851.
4 And I saw [615]thrones, and they sat upon them, and [616]judgment was given unto them: and [617]I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and [618]reigned with Christ a thousand years.
4. And I saw thrones――θρόνους. See ch. i. 4; iii. 21; iv. 3, 4. John here simply says, that he saw in vision thrones, with persons sitting on them, but without intimating who they were that sat on them. It is not the throne of God that is now revealed, for the word is in the plural number, though the writer does not hint how many thrones there were. It is intimated, however, that these thrones were placed with some reference to pronouncing a judgment, or determining the destiny of some portion of mankind, for it is immediately added, “and judgment was given unto them.” There is considerable resemblance, in many respects, between this and the statement in Daniel (vii. 9): “I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit;” or, as it should be rendered, “I beheld”――that is, I continued to look――“until the thrones were placed or set,” to wit, for the purposes of judgment. See Notes on that passage. So John here sees, as the termination of human affairs approaches, thrones placed with reference to a determination of the destiny of some portion of the race, as if they were now to have a trial, and to receive a sentence of acquittal or condemnation. The persons on whom this judgment is to pass are specified, in the course of the verse, as those who were “beheaded for the witness of Jesus, who had the word of God, who had not worshipped the beast,” &c. The time when this was to occur manifestly was at the beginning of the thousand years. ¶ And they sat upon them. Who sat on them is not mentioned. The natural construction is, that judges sat on them, or that persons sat on them to whom judgment was intrusted. The language is such as would be used on the supposition either that he had mentioned the subject before, so that he would be readily understood, or that, from some other cause, it was so well understood that there was no necessity for mentioning who they were. John seems to have assumed that it would be understood who were meant. And yet to us it is not entirely clear; for John has not before this given us any such intimation that we can determine with certainty what is intended. The probable construction is, that those are referred to, to whom it appropriately belonged to occupy such seats of judgment, and who they are is to be determined from other parts of the Scriptures. In Mat. xix. 28, the Saviour says to his apostles, “When the Son of man shall sit on the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” In 1 Co. vi. 2, Paul asks the question, “Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world?” The meaning as thus explained is, that Christians will, in some way, be employed in judging the world; that is, that they will be exalted to the right hand of the Judge, and be elevated to a station of honour, as if they were associated with the Son of God in the judgment. Something of that kind is, doubtless, referred to here; and John probably means to say that he saw the thrones placed on which those will sit who will be employed in judging the world. If the apostles are specially referred to, it was natural that John, eminent for modesty, should not particularly mention them, as he was one of them, and as the true allusion would be readily understood. ¶ And judgment was given unto them. The power of pronouncing sentence in the case referred to was conferred on them, and they proceeded to exercise that power. This was not in relation to the whole race of mankind, but to the martyrs, and to those who, amidst many temptations and trials, had kept themselves pure. The sentence which is to be passed would seem to be that in consequence of which they are to be permitted to “live and reign with Christ a thousand years.” The form of this expressed approval is that of a resurrection and judgment; whether this be the literal mode is another inquiry, and will properly be considered when the exposition {424} of the passage shall have been given. ¶ And |I saw| the souls of them. This is a very important expression in regard to the meaning of the whole passage. John says he saw the souls――not the bodies. If the obvious meaning of this be the correct meaning; if he saw the souls of the martyrs, not the bodies, this would seem to exclude the notion of a literal resurrection, and consequently overturn many of the theories of a literal resurrection, and of a literal reign of the saints with Christ during the thousand years of the millennium. The doctrine of the last resurrection, as everywhere stated in the Scripture, is, that the body will be raised up, and not merely that the soul will live (see 1 Co. xv., and the Notes on that chapter); and consequently John must mean to refer in this place to something different from that resurrection, or to any proper resurrection of the dead as the expression is commonly understood. The doctrine which has been held, and is held, by those who maintain that there will be a literal resurrection of the saints to reign with Christ during a thousand years, can receive no support from this passage, for there is no ambiguity respecting the word souls――ψυχὰς――as used here. By no possible construction can it mean the bodies of the saints. If John had intended to state that the saints, as such, would be raised as they will be at the last day, it is clear that he would not have used this language, but would have employed the common language of the New Testament to denote it. The language here does not express the doctrine of the resurrection of the body; and if no other language but this had been used in the New Testament, the doctrine of the resurrection, as now taught and received, could not be established. These considerations make it clear to my mind that John did not mean to teach that there would be a literal resurrection of the saints, that they might live and reign with Christ personally during the period of a thousand years. There was undoubtedly something that might be compared with the resurrection, and that might, in some proper sense, be called a resurrection (ver. 5, 6), but there is not the slightest intimation that it would be a resurrection of the body, or that it would be identical with the final resurrection. John undoubtedly intends to describe some honour conferred on the spirits or souls of the saints and martyrs during this long period, as if they were raised from the dead, or which might be represented by a resurrection from the dead. What that honour is to be, is expressed by their “living and reigning with Christ.” The meaning of this will be explained in the exposition of these words; but the word used here is fatal to the notion of a literal resurrection and a personal reign with Christ on the earth. ¶ That were beheaded. The word here used――πελεκίζω――occur nowhere else in the New Testament. It properly means, to axe, that is, to hew or cut with an axe――from πέλεκυς, axe. Hence it means to behead with an axe. This was a common mode of execution among the Romans, and doubtless many of the Christian martyrs suffered in this manner; but “it cannot be supposed to have been the intention of the writer to confine the rewards of martyrs to those who suffered in this particular way; for this specific and ignominious method of punishment is designated merely as the symbol of any and every kind of martyrdom” (Professor Stuart). ¶ For the witness of Jesus. As witnesses of Jesus; or bearing in this way their testimony to the truth of his religion. See Notes on ch. i. 9; comp. ch. vi. 9. ¶ And for the Word of God. See Notes on ch. i. 9. ¶ Which had not worshipped the beast. Who had remained faithful to the principles of the true religion, and had resisted all the attempts made to seduce them from the faith, even the temptations and allurements in the times of the Papacy. See this language explained in the Notes on ch. xiii. 4. ¶ Neither his image. Notes on ch. xiii. 14, 15. ¶ Neither had received |his| mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands. See Notes on ch. xiii. 16. ¶ And they lived――ἔζησαν, from ζάω, to live. Very much, in the whole passage, depends on this word. The meanings given to the word by Professor Robinson (Lex.) are the following:――(a) to live, to have life, spoken of physical life and existence; (b) to live, that is, to sustain life, to live on or by anything; (c) to live in any way, to pass one’s life in any manner; (d) to live and prosper; to be blessed. It may be applied to those who were before dead (Mat. ix. 18; Mar. {425} xvi. 11; Lu. xxiv. 23; Jn. v. 25; Ac. i. 3; ix. 41), but it does not necessarily imply this, nor does the mere use of the word suggest it. It is the proper notion of living, or having life now, whatever was the former state――whether non-existence, death, sickness, or health. The mind, in the use of this word, is fixed on the present as a state of living. It is not necessarily in contrast with a former state as dead, but it is on the fact that they are now alive. As, however, there is reference, in the passage before us, to the fact that a portion of those mentioned had been “beheaded for the witness of Jesus,” it is to be admitted that the word here refers, in some sense, to that fact. They were put to death in the body, but their “souls” were now seen to be alive. They had not ceased to be, but they lived and reigned with Christ as if they had been raised up from the dead. And when this is said of the “souls” of those who were beheaded, and who were seen to reign with Christ, it cannot mean (a) that their souls came to life again, for there is no intimation that they had for a moment ceased to exist; nor (b) that they then became immortal, for that was always true of them; nor (c) that there was any literal resurrection of the body, as Professor Stuart (ii. 360, 475, 476) supposes, and as is supposed by those who hold to a literal reign of Christ on the earth, for there is no intimation of the resurrection of the body. The meaning, then, so far as the language is concerned, must be, that there would exist, at the time of the thousand years, a state of things as if the martyrs were raised up from the dead――an honouring of the martyrs as if they should live and reign with Christ. Their names would be vindicated; their principles would be revived; they would be exalted in public estimation above other men; they would be raised from the low rank in which they were held by the world in times of persecution to a state which might well be represented by their sitting with Christ on the throne of government, and by their being made visible attendants on his glorious kingdom. This would not occur in respect to the rest of the dead――even the pious dead (ver. 5)――for their honours and rewards would be reserved for the great day when all the dead should be judged according to their deeds. In this view of the meaning of this passage there is nothing that forbids us to suppose that the martyrs will be conscious of the honour thus done to their names, their memory, and their principles on earth, or that this consciousness will increase their joy even in heaven. This sense of the passage is thus expressed, substantially, by Archbishop Whately (Essays on the Future State): “It may signify not the literal raising of dead men, but the raising up of an increased Christian zeal and holiness; the revival in the Christian church, or in some considerable portion of it, of the spirit and energy of the noble martyrs of old (even as John the Baptist came in the spirit and power of Elias), so that Christian principles shall be displayed in action throughout the world in an infinitely greater degree than ever before.” This view of the signification of the word lived is sustained by its use elsewhere in the Scriptures and by its common use among men. Thus in this very book, ch. xi. 11: “And after three days and a half, the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet.” So in Ezekiel, in speaking of the restoration of the Jews: “Thus saith the Lord God, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, and brought you up out of your graves, and shall put my Spirit in you, and ye shall live,” ch. xxvii. 12‒14. So in Ho. vi. 2: “After two days he will revive us [cause us to live again]; in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.” So in the parable of the prodigal son: “This thy brother was dead, and is alive again,” Lu. xv. 32. So in Is. xxvi. 19: “Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise.” The following extract, from D’Aubigné’s History of the Reformation, will show how natural it is to use the very language employed here when the idea is intended to be conveyed of reviving former principles as if the men who held them should be raised to life again. It is the language of the martyr John Huss, who, in speaking of himself in view of a remarkable dream that he had, said, “I am no dreamer, but I maintain this for {426} certain, that the image of Christ will never be effaced. They [his enemies] have wished to destroy it, but it shall be painted afresh in all hearts by much better preachers than myself. The nation that loves Christ will rejoice at this. And I, awaking from among the dead, and rising, so to speak, from my grave, shall leap with great joy.” So a Brief addressed by Pope Adrian to the Diet at Nuremberg contains these words: “The heretics Huss and Jerome are now alive again in the person of Martin Luther.” For a further illustration of the passage see the remarks which follow (§ b) on the state of things which may be expected to exist in the time referred to in ver. 4‒6. ¶ And reigned with Christ. Were exalted in their principles, and in their personal happiness in heaven, as if they occupied the throne with him, and personally shared his honours and his triumphs. Who can tell, also, whether they may not be employed in special services of mercy, in administering the affairs of his government during that bright and happy period? ¶ A thousand years. During the period when Satan will be bound, and when the true religion will have the ascendency in the earth. Notes on ver. 2.
5 But the rest of the dead lived not again till the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
5. But the rest of the dead. In contradistinction from the beheaded martyrs, and from those who had kept themselves pure in the times of great temptation. The phrase “rest of the dead” here would most naturally refer to the same general class which was before mentioned――the pious dead. The meaning is, that the martyrs would be honoured as if they were raised up and the others not――that is, that special respect would be shown to their principles, their memory, and their character. In other words, special honour would be shown to a spirit of eminent piety during that period above the common and ordinary piety which has been manifested in the church. The “rest of the dead”――the pious dead――would indeed be raised up and rewarded, but they would occupy comparatively humble places, as if they did not partake in the exalted triumphs when the world should be subdued to the Saviour. Their places in honour, in rank, and in reward would be beneath that of those who in fiery times had maintained unshaken fidelity to the cause of truth. ¶ Lived not. On the word lived see Notes on ver. 4. That is, they lived not during that period in the peculiar sense in which it is said (ver. 4) that the eminent saints and martyrs lived. They did not come into remembrance; their principles were not what then characterized the church; they did not see, as the martyrs did, their principles and mode of life in the ascendency, and consequently they had not the augmented happiness and honour which the more eminent saints and martyrs had. ¶ Until the thousand years were finished. Then all who were truly the children of God, though some might be less eminent than others had been, would come into remembrance, and would have their proper place in the rewards of heaven. The language here is not necessarily to be interpreted as meaning that they would be raised up then, or would live then, whatever may be true on that point. It is merely an emphatic mode of affirming that up to that period they would not live in the sense in which it is affirmed that the others would. But it is not affirmed that they would even then “live” immediately. A long interval might elapse before that would occur in the general resurrection of the dead. See the Analysis of the chapter. ¶ This is the first resurrection. The resurrection of the saints and martyrs, as specified in ver. 4. It is called the first resurrection in contradistinction from the second and last――the general resurrection――when all the dead will be literally raised up from their graves and assembled for the judgment, ver. 12. It is not necessary to suppose that what is called here the “first resurrection” will resemble the real and literal resurrection in every respect. All that is meant is, that there will be such a resemblance as to make it proper to call it a resurrection――a coming to life again. This will be, as explained in the Notes on ver. 4, in the honour done to the martyrs, in the restoration of their principles as the great actuating principles of the church, and perhaps in the increased happiness conferred on them in heaven, and in their being employed in promoting the cause of truth in the world.
6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the [619]second death hath no power, but they shall be [620]priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
6. Blessed. That is, his condition is to be regarded as a happy or a {427} favoured one. This is designed apparently to support and encourage those who, in the time of John, suffered persecution, or who might suffer persecution afterwards. ¶ And holy. That is, no one will be thus honoured who has not an established character for holiness. Holy principles will then reign, and none will be exalted to that honour who have not a character for eminent sanctity. ¶ That hath part in the first resurrection. That participated in it; that is, who is associated with those who are thus raised up. ¶ On such the second death hath no power. The “second death” is properly the death which the wicked will experience in the world of woe. See ver. 14. The meaning here is, that all who are here referred to as having part in the first resurrection will be secure against that. It will be one of the blessed privileges of heaven that there will be absolute security against DEATH in any and every form; and when we think of what death is here, and still more when we think of “the bitter pains of the second death,” we may well call that state “blessed” in which there will be eternal exemption from either. ¶ But they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him. Notes ch. i. 6; v. 10.
§ b.――_Condition of the world in the period referred to in ver. 4‒6._
I. It is well known that this passage is the principal one which is relied on by those who advocate the doctrine of the literal reign of Christ on the earth for a thousand years, or who hold what are called the doctrines of the “second advent.” The points which are maintained by those who advocate these views are substantially, (a) that at that period Christ will descend from heaven to reign personally upon the earth; (b) that he will have a central place of power and authority, probably Jerusalem; (c) that the righteous dead will then be raised, in such bodies as are to be immortal; (d) that they will be his attendants, and will participate with him in the government of the world; (e) that this will continue during the period of a thousand years; (f) that the world will be subdued and converted during this period, not by moral means, but by “a new dispensation”――by the power of the Son of God; and (g) that at the close of this period all the remaining dead will be raised, the judgment will take place, and the affairs of the earth will be consummated.
The opinion here adverted to was held substantially by Papias, Justin Martyr, Irenæus, Tertullian, and others among the Christian Fathers, and, it need not be said, is held by many modern expositors of the Bible, and by large numbers of Christian ministers of high standing, and other Christians. See the Literalist, passim. The opinion of the Christian Fathers, with which the modern “literalists,” as they are called, substantially coincide, is thus stated by Mr. Elliott: “This resurrection is to be literally that of departed saints and martyrs, then at length resuscitated in the body from death and the grave; its time to synchronize with, or follow instantly after, the destruction of the beast Antichrist, on Christ’s personal second advent; the binding of Satan to be an absolute restriction of the power of hell from tempting, deceiving, or injuring mankind, throughout a literal period of a thousand years, thence calculated; the government of the earth, during its continuance to be administered by Christ and the risen saints――the latter being now ἰσάγγελοι――in nature like angels; and under it, all false religion having been put down, the Jews and saved remnant of the Gentiles been converted to Christ, the earth renovated by the fire of Antichrist’s destruction, and Jerusalem made the universal capital, there will be a realization on earth of the blessedness depicted in the Old Testament prophecies, as well as perhaps of that too which is associated with the New Jerusalem in the visions of the Apocalypse――until at length this millennium having ended, and Satan gone forth to deceive the nations, the final consummation will follow; the new-raised enemies of the saints, Gog and Magog, be destroyed by fire from heaven: and then the general resurrection and judgment take place, the devil and his servants be cast into the lake of fire, and the millennial reign of the saints extend itself into one of eternal duration” (Elliott on the Apocalypse, iv. 177, 178).
Mr. Elliott’s own opinion, representing, it is supposed, that of the great body of the “literalists,” is thus expressed: {428} “It would seem, therefore, that in this state of things and of feeling in professing Christendom [a feeling of carnal security], all suddenly, and unexpectedly, and conspicuous over the world as the lightning that shineth from the east even unto the west, the second advent and appearing of Christ will take place; that at the accompanying voice of the archangel and trump of God, the departed saints of either dispensation will rise from their graves to meet him――alike patriarchs, and prophets, and apostles, and martyrs, and confessors――all at once and in the twinkling of an eye; and then instantly the saints living at the time will be also caught up to meet him in the air; these latter being separated out of the ungodly nations, as when a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats, and all, both dead and living saints, changed at the moment from corruption to incorruption, from dishonour to glory, though with very different degrees of glory; and so in a new angelic nature, to take part in the judging and ruling in this world. Meanwhile, with a tremendous earthquake accompanying, of violence unknown since the revolutions of primeval chaos, an earthquake under which the Roman world at least is to rock to and fro like a drunken man, the solid crust of this earth shall be broken, and fountains burst forth from its inner deep, not as once of water, but of liquid fire; and that the flames shall consume the Antichrist and his confederate kings, while the sword also does its work of slaughter; the risen saints being perhaps the attendants of the Lord’s glory in this destruction of Antichrist, and assessors in his judgment on a guilty world. And then immediately the renovation of this our earth is to take place, its soil being purified by the very action of the fire, and the Spirit poured out from on high, to renew, in a yet better sense, the moral face of nature; the Shekinah, or personal glory of Christ amidst his saints, being manifested chiefly in the Holy Land and at Jerusalem, but the whole earth partaking of the blessedness; and thus the regeneration of all things, and the world’s redemption from the curse, having their accomplishment, according to the promise, at the manifestation of the sons of God,” iv. 224‒231.[621]
To this account of the prevailing opinion of the “literalists” in interpreting the passage before us, there should be added that of Professor Stuart, who, in general, is as far as possible from sympathizing with this class of writers. He says, in his explanation of the expression “they lived,” in ver. 4, “There would seem to remain, therefore, only one meaning which can be consistently given to ἔζησαν [they lived]; viz., that they (the martyrs who renounced the beast) are now restored to life, viz., such life as implies the vivification of the body. Not to a union of the soul with a gross material body indeed, but with such an one as the saints in general will have at the final resurrection――a spiritual body, 1 Co. xv. 44. In no other way can this resurrection be ranked as correlate with the second resurrection named in the sequel,” vol. ii. p. 360. So again, Excursus vi. (vol. ii. p. 476), he says, “I do not see how we can, on the ground of exegesis, fairly avoid the conclusion that John has taught in the passage before us, that there will be a resurrection of the martyr-saints, at the commencement of the period after Satan shall have been shut up in the dungeon of the great abyss.” This opinion he defends at length, pp. 476‒490. Professor Stuart, indeed, maintains that the martyrs thus raised up will be taken to heaven and reign with Christ there, and opposes the whole doctrine of the literal reign on the earth, vol. ii. p. 480. The risen saints and martyrs are to be “enthroned with Christ; that is, they are to be where he dwells, and where he will continue to dwell, until he shall make his descent at the final judgment day.”
II. In regard to these views, as expressive of the meaning of the passage under consideration, I would make the following remarks:――
(1) There is strong presumptive evidence against this interpretation, and especially against the main point in the doctrine, that there will be a literal resurrection of the bodies of the saints at the beginning of that millennial period, to live and reign with Christ on earth, from the following circumstances:――(a) It is admitted, on all hands, that this doctrine, if contained in the Scriptures at all, is found in this one passage only. It is not pretended that there is, in any other place, a direct affirmation that this will literally occur, nor would the advocates for that opinion undertake {429} to show that it is fairly implied in any other part of the Bible. But it is strange, not to say improbable, that the doctrine of the literal resurrection of the righteous, a thousand years before the wicked, should be announced in one passage only. If it were so announced in plain and unambiguous language, I admit that the believer in the divine origin of the Scriptures would be bound to receive it; but this is so contrary to the usual method of the Scriptures on all great and important doctrines, that this circumstance should lead us at least to doubt whether the passage is correctly interpreted. The resurrection of the dead is a subject on which the Saviour often dwelt in his instructions; it is a subject which the apostles discussed very frequently and at great length in their preaching, and in their writings; it is presented by them in a great variety of forms, for the consolation of Christians in time of trouble, and with reference to the condition of the world at the winding up of human affairs; and it is strange that, in respect to so important a doctrine as this, if it be true, there is not elsewhere, in the New Testament, a hint, an intimation, an allusion, that would lead us to suppose that the righteous are to be raised in this manner. (b) If this is a true doctrine, it would be reasonable to expect that a clear and unambiguous statement of it would be made. Certainly, if there is but one statement on the subject, that might be expected to be a perfectly clear one, it would be a statement about which there could be no diversity of opinion, concerning which those who embraced it might be expected to hold the same views. But it cannot be pretended that this is so in regard to this passage. It occurs in the book which, of all the books in the Bible, is most distinguished for figures and symbols; it cannot be maintained that it is directly and clearly affirmed; and it is not so taught that there is any uniformity of view among those who profess to hold it. In nothing has there been greater diversity among men than in the opinions of those who profess to hold the “literal” views respecting the personal reign of Christ on the earth. But this fact assuredly affords presumptive evidence that the doctrine of the literal resurrection of the saints a thousand years before the rest of the dead, is not intended to be taught. (c) It is presumptive proof against this, that nothing is said of the employment of those who are raised up; of the reason why they are raised; of the new circumstances of their being; and of their condition when the thousand years shall have ended. In so important a matter as this, we can hardly suppose that the whole subject would be left to a single hint in a symbolical representation, depending on the doubtful meaning of a single word, and with nothing to enable us to determine, with absolute certainty, that this must be the meaning. (d) If it be meant that this is a description of the resurrection of the righteous as such――embracing all the righteous――then it is wholly unlike all the other descriptions of the resurrection of the righteous that we have in the Bible. Here the account is confined to “those that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus,” and to “those who had not worshipped the beast.” If the righteous, as such, are here referred to, why are these particular classes specified? Why are not the usual general terms employed? Why is the account of the resurrection confined to these? Elsewhere in the Scriptures, the account of the resurrection is given in the most general terms (comp. Mat. xxv. 41; Jn. iv. 54; v. 28, 29; Ro. ii. 7; 1 Co. xv. 23; Phi. iii. 20, 21; 2 Th. i. 10; He. ix. 28; 1 Jn. ii. 28, 29; iii. 2); and if this had been the designed reference here, it is inconceivable why the statement should be limited to the martyrs, and to those who have evinced great fidelity in the midst of temptations and allurements to apostasy. These circumstances furnish strong presumptive proofs, at least, against the doctrine that there is to be a literal resurrection of all the saints at the beginning of the millennial period. Comp. Christ’s Second Coming, by Rev. David Brown, p. 219, seq.
(2) In reference to many of the views necessarily implied in the doctrine of the “second advent,” and avowed by those who hold that doctrine, it cannot be pretended that they receive any countenance or support from this passage. In the language of Professor Stuart (Com. vol. ii. p. 479), there is “not a word of Christ’s descent to the earth at the beginning of the millennium. Nothing of the literal assembling of the Jews in Palestine; nothing of the Messiah’s temporal reign on earth; nothing of the overflowing abundance {430} of worldly peace and plenty.” Indeed, in all this passage, there is not the remotest hint of the grandeur and magnificence of the reign of Christ as a literal king upon the earth; nothing of his having a splendid capital at Jerusalem, or anywhere else; nothing of a new dispensation of a miraculous kind; nothing of the renovation of the earth to fit it for the abode of the risen saints. All this is the mere work of fancy, and no man can pretend that it is to be found in this passage.
(3) Nor is there anything here of a literal resurrection of the bodies of the dead, as Professor Stuart himself supposes. It is not a little remarkable that a scholar so accurate as Professor Stuart is, and one, too, who has so little sympathy with the doctrines connected with a literal reign of Christ on the earth, should have lent the sanction of his name to perhaps the most objectionable of all the dogmas connected with that view――the opinion that the bodies of the saints will be raised up at the beginning of the millennial period. Of this there is not one word, one intimation, one hint, in the passage before us. John says expressly, and as if to guard the point from all possible danger of this construction, that he “saw the SOULS of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus;” he saw them “living” and “reigning” with Christ――raised to the exalted honour during that period, as if they had been raised from the dead; but he nowhere mentions or intimates that they were raised up from their graves; that they were clothed with bodies; that they had their residence now literally on the earth; or that they were, in any way, otherwise than disembodied spirits. There is not even one word of their having “a spiritual body.”
(4) There are positive arguments, which are perfectly decisive, against the interpretation which supposes that the bodies of the saints will be raised up at the beginning of the millennial period, to reign with Christ on the earth for a thousand years. Among these are the following:――
(a) If the “first resurrection” means rising from the grave in immortal and glorified bodies, we do not need the assurance (ver. 6), that “on such the second death hath no power;” that is, that they would not perish for ever. That would be a matter of course, and there was no necessity for such a statement. But if it be supposed that the main idea is that the principles of the martyrs and of the most eminent saints would be revived and would live, as if the dead were raised up, and would be manifested by those who were in mortal bodies――men living on the earth――then there would be a propriety in saying that all such were exempt from the danger of the second death. Once, indeed, they would die; but the second death could not reach them. Comp. Re. ii. 10, 11.
(b) In the whole passage there are but two classes of men referred to. There are those “who have part in the first resurrection;” that is, according to the supposition, all the saints; and there are those over whom “the second death” has power. Into which of these classes are we to put the myriads of men having flesh and blood who are to people the world during the millennium? They have no part in “the first resurrection,” if it be a bodily one. Are they then given over to the power of the “second death?” But if the “first resurrection” be regarded as figurative and spiritual, then the statement that those who are actuated by the spirit of the martyrs and of the eminent saints, shall not experience the “second death,” is seen to have meaning and pertinency.
(c) The mention of the time during which they are to reign, if it be literally understood, is contrary to the whole statement of the Bible in other places. They are to “live and reign with Christ” a thousand years. What, then? Are they to live no longer? Are they to reign no longer with him? This supposition is entirely contrary to the current statement in the Scriptures, which is, that they are to live and reign with him for ever: 1 Th. iv. 17, “And so shall we ever be with the Lord.” According to the views of the “literalists,” the declaration that they “should live and reign with Christ,” considered as the characteristic features of the millennial state, is to terminate with the thousand years――for this is the promise, according to that view, that they should thus live and reign. But it need not be said that this is wholly contrary to the current doctrine of the Bible, that they are to live and reign with him for ever.
(d) A further objection to this view is, that the wicked part of the world――“the rest of the dead who lived not {431} again until the thousand years were finished”――must of course be expected to “live again” in the same bodily sense when those thousand years were finished. But, so far from this, there is no mention of their living then. When the thousand years are finished, Satan is loosed for a season; then the nations are roused to opposition against God; then there is a conflict, and the hostile forces are overthrown; and then comes the final judgment. During all this time we read of no resurrection at all. The period after this is to be filled up with something besides the resurrection of the “rest of the dead.” There is no intimation, as the literal construction, as it is claimed, would demand, that immediately after the “thousand years are finished” the “rest of the dead”――the wicked dead――would be raised up; nor is there any intimation of such a resurrection until all the dead are raised up for the final trial, ver. 12. But every consideration demands, if the interpretation of the “literalists” be correct, that the “rest of the dead”――the unconverted dead――should be raised up immediately after the close of the millennial period, and be raised up as a distinct and separate class.
(e) There is no intimation in the passage itself that the righteous will be raised up as such in this period, and the proper interpretation of the passage is contrary to that supposition. There are but two classes mentioned as having part in the first resurrection. They are those who were “beheaded for the witness of Jesus,” and those who “had not worshipped the beast”――that is, the martyrs, and those who had been eminent for their fidelity to the Saviour in times of great temptation and trial. There is no mention of the resurrection of the righteous as such――of the resurrection of the great body of the redeemed; and if it could be shown that this refers to a literal resurrection, it would be impossible to apply it, according to any just rules of interpretation, to any more than the two classes that are specified. By what rules of interpretation is it made to to teach that all the righteous will be raised up on that occasion, and will live on the earth during that long period? In this view of the matter, the passage does not express the doctrine that the whole church of God will be raised bodily from the grave. And supposing it had been the design of the Spirit of God to teach this, is it credible, when there are so many clear expressions in regard to the resurrection of the dead, that so important a doctrine should have been reserved for one single passage so obscure, and where the great mass of the readers of the Bible in all ages have failed to perceive it? That is not the way in which, in the Scriptures, great and momentous doctrines are communicated to mankind.
(f) The fair statement in ver. 11‒15 is, that all the dead will then be raised up and be judged. This is implied in the general expressions there used――“the dead, small and great;” the “book of life was opened”――as if not opened before; “the dead”――all the dead――“were judged out of those things which were written in the books;” “the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and hell (hades) delivered up the dead which were in them.” This is entirely inconsistent with the supposition that a large part of the race――to wit, all the righteous――had been before raised up; had passed the solemn judgment; had been clothed with their immortal bodies, and had been admitted to a joint reign with the Saviour on his throne. In the last judgment what place are they to occupy? In what sense are they to be raised up and judged? Would such a representation have been made as is found in ver. 11‒15, if it had been designed to teach that a large part of the race had been already raised up, and had received the approval of their judge?
(g) This representation is wholly inconsistent, not only with ver. 11‒15, but with the uniform language of the Scriptures, that all the righteous and the wicked will be judged together, and both at the coming of Christ. On no point are the statements of the Bible more uniform and explicit than on this, and it would seem that the declarations had been of design so made that there should be no possibility of mistake. I refer for full proof on this point to the following passages of the New Testament:――Mat. x. 32, 33, compared with Mat. vii. 21‒23; xiii. 30, 38‒43; xvi. 24‒27; xxv. 10, 31‒46; Mar. viii. 38; Jn. v. 28, 29; Ac. xvii. 31: Ro. ii. 5‒16; xiv. 10, 12; 1 Co. iii. 12‒15; iv. 5; 2 Co. v. 9‒11; 2 Th. i. 6‒10; 1 Ti. v. 24, 25; 2 Pe. iii. 7, 10, 12; 1 Jn. ii. 28; iv. 17; Re. iii. 5; xx. 11‒15; xxii. 12‒15. It is utterly impossible to explain these passages on any other supposition than that they are intended to teach that {432} the righteous and the wicked will be judged together, and both at the coming of Christ. And if this is so, it is of course impossible to explain them consistently with the view that all the righteous will have been already raised up at the beginning of the millennium in their immortal and glorified bodies, and that they have been solemnly approved by the Saviour, and admitted to a participation in his glory. Nothing could be more irreconcilable than these two views; and it seems to me, therefore, that the objections to the literal resurrection of the saints at the beginning of the millennial period are insuperable.
III. The following points, then, according to the interpretation proposed, are implied in this statement respecting the “first resurrection,” and these will clearly comprise all that is stated on the subject.
(1) There will be a reviving, and a prevalence of the spirit which actuated the saints in the best days, and a restoration of their principles as the grand principles which will control and govern the church, as if the most eminent saints were raised again from the dead, and lived and acted upon the earth.
(2) Their memory will then be sacredly cherished, and they will be honoured on the earth with the honour which is due to their names, and which they should have received when in the land of the living. They will be no longer cast out and reproached; no longer held up to obloquy and scorn; no longer despised and forgotten; but there will be a reviving of sacred regard for their principles, as if they lived on the earth, and had the honour which was due to them.
(3) There will be a state of things upon the earth as if they thus lived and were thus honoured. Religion will no longer be trampled under foot, but will triumph. In all parts of the earth it will have the ascendency, as if the most eminent saints of past ages lived and reigned with the Son of God in his kingdom. A spiritual kingdom will be set up with the Son of God at the head of it, which will be a kingdom of eminent holiness, as if the saints of the best days of the church should come back to the earth and dwell upon it. The ruling influence in the world will be the religion of the Son of God, and the principles which have governed the most holy of his people.
(4) It may be implied that the saints and martyrs of other times will be employed by the Saviour in embassies of mercy; in visitations of grace to our world to carry forward the great work of salvation on earth. Nothing forbids the idea that the saints in heaven may be thus employed, and in this long period of a thousand years, it may be that they will be occupied in such messages and agencies of mercy to our world as they have never been before――as if they were raised from the dead, and were employed by the Redeemer to carry forward his purposes of mercy to mankind.
(5) In connection with these things, and in consequence of these things, they may be, during that period, exalted to higher happiness and honour in heaven. The restoration of their principles to the earth; the Christian remembrance of their virtues; the prevalence of those truths to establish which they laid down their lives, would in itself exalt them, and would increase their joy in heaven. All this would be well represented, in vision, by a resurrection of the dead; and admitting that this was all that was intended, the representation of John here would be in the highest degree appropriate. What could better symbolize it――and we must remember that this is a symbol――than to say that at the commencement of this period there was, as it were, a solemn preparation for a judgment, and that the departed dead seemed to stand there, and that a sentence was pronounced in their favour, and that they became associated with the Son of God in the honours of his kingdom, and that their principles were now to reign and triumph in the earth, and that the kingdom which they laboured to establish would be set up for a thousand years, and that, in high purposes of mercy and benevolence during that period, they would be employed in maintaining and extending the principles of religion in the world? Admitting that the Holy Spirit intended to represent these things, and these only, no more appropriate symbolical language could have been used; none that would more accord with the general style of the book of Revelation.
7 And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
7. And when the thousand years are {433} expired. See ver. 2. ¶ Satan shall be loosed out of his prison. See ver. 3. That is, a state of things will then occur as if Satan should be for a time let loose again, and should be permitted to go as formerly over the world. No intimation is given why or how he would be thus released from his prison. We are not, however, to infer that it would be a mere arbitrary act on the part of God. All that is necessary to be supposed is, that there would be, in certain parts of the world, a temporary outbreak of wickedness, as if Satan were for a time released from his chains.
8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, [622]Gog and Magog, to [623]gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
8. And shall go out to deceive the nations. See Notes on ch. xii. 9. The meaning here is, that he would again, for a time, act in his true character, and in some way delude the nations once more. In what way this would be done is not stated. It would be, however, clearly an appeal to the wicked passions of mankind, exciting a hope that they might yet overthrow the kingdom of God on the earth. ¶ Which are in the four quarters of the earth. Literally, corners of the earth, as if the earth were one extended square plain. The earth is usually spoken of as divided into four parts or quarters――the eastern, the western, the northern, and the southern. It is implied here that the deception or apostasy referred to would not be confined to one spot or portion of the world, but would extend afar. The idea seems to be, that during that period, though there would be a general prevalence of the gospel, and a general diffusion of its blessings, yet that the earth would not be entirely under its influence, and especially that the native character of the human heart would not be changed. Man, under powerful temptations, would be liable to be deluded by the great master spirit that has so often corrupted the race. Once more he would be permitted to make the trial, and then his power would for ever come to an end. ¶ Gog and Magog. The name Gog occurs as the name of a prince in Eze. xxxviii. 2, 3, 16, 18; xxxix. 1, 11. “He is an invader of the land of Israel, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal,” Eze. xxxviii. 2. Magog is also mentioned in Eze. xxxviii. 2, “the land of Magog;” and in Eze. xxxix. 6, “I will send a fire on Magog.” As the terms are used in the Old Testament, the representation would seem to be that Gog was the king of a people called Magog. The signification of the names is unknown, and consequently nothing can be determined about the meaning of this passage from that source. Nor is there much known about the people who are referred to by Ezekiel. His representation would seem to be, that a great and powerful people, dwelling in the extreme recesses of the north (ch. xxxviii. 15; xxxix. 2), would invade the Holy Land after the return from the exile, ch. xxxviii. 8‒12. It is commonly supposed that they were Scythians, residing between the Caspian and Euxine Seas, or in the region of Mount Caucasus. Thus Josephus (Ant. i. 6, 3) has dropped the Hebrew word Magog, and rendered it by Σκύθαι――Scythians; and so does Jerome. Suidas renders it Πέρσαι――Persians; but this does not materially vary the view, since the word Scythians, among the ancient writers, is a collective word, to denote all the north-eastern, unknown, barbarous tribes. Among the Hebrews, the name Magog also would seem to denote all the unknown barbarous tribes about the Caucasian mountains. The fact that the names Gog and Magog are, in Ezekiel, associated with Meshech and Tubal, seems to determine the locality of these people, for those two countries lie between the Euxine and Caspian Seas, or at the south-east extremity of the Euxine Sea (Rosenmüller, Bib. Geog. vol. i. p. 240). The people of that region were, it seems, a terror to Middle Asia, in the same manner as the Scythians were to the Greeks and Romans. Intercourse with such distant and savage nations was scarcely possible in ancient times; and hence, from their numbers and strength, they were regarded with great terror, just as the Scythians were regarded by the ancient Greeks and Romans, and as the Tartars were in the middle ages. In this manner they became an appropriate symbol of rude and savage people; of enemies fierce and warlike; of foes to be dreaded; and as such they were referred to by both Ezekiel and John. It has been made {434} a question whether Ezekiel and John do not refer to the same period, but it is not necessary to consider that question here. All that is needful to be understood is, that John means to say that at the time referred to there would be formidable enemies of the church who might be compared with the dreaded dwellers in the land of Magog; or, that after this long period of millennial tranquillity and peace, there would be a state of things which might be properly compared with the invasion of the Holy Land by the dreaded barbarians of Magog or Scythia. It is not necessary to suppose that any particular country is referred to, or that there would be any one portion of the earth which the gospel would not reach, and which would be still barbarous, heathen, and savage; all that is necessary to be supposed is, that though religion would generally prevail, human nature would remain essentially corrupt and unchanged; and that, therefore, from causes which are not stated, there might yet be a fearful apostasy, and a somewhat general prevalence of iniquity. This would be nothing more than has occurred after the most favoured times in the church, and nothing more than human nature would exhibit at any time, if all restraints were withdrawn, and men were suffered to act out their native feelings. Why this will be permitted; what causes will bring it about; what subordinate agencies will be employed, is not said, and conjecture would be vain. The reader who wishes more information in regard to Gog and Magog may consult Professor Stuart on this book, vol. ii. pp. 364‒368, and the authorities there referred to. Comp. especially Rosenmüller on Eze. xxxviii. 2. See also Sale’s Koran, Pre. Dis. § 4, and the Koran itself, Sura xviii. 94, and xxi. 95. ¶ To gather them together to battle. As if to assemble them for war; that is, a state of things would exist in regard to the kingdom of God and the prevalence of the true religion as if distant and barbarous nations should be aroused to make war on the church of God. The meaning is, that there would be an awakened hostility against the kingdom of Christ in the earth. See Notes on ch. xvi. 14. ¶ The number of whom |is| as the sand of the sea. A common comparison in the Scriptures to denote a great multitude, Ge. xxii. 17; xxxii. 12; xli. 49; 1 Sa. xiii. 5; 1 Ki. iv. 20, et al.
§ c.――_Condition of things in the period referred to in ver. 7, 8._
(1) This will occur at the close of the millennial period――the period of the thousand years. It is not said, indeed, that it would be immediately after that; but the statement is explicit that it will be after that, or “when the thousand years are expired.” There may be an interval before it shall be accomplished of an indefinite time; the alienation and corruption may be gradual; a considerable period may elapse before the apostasy shall assume an organized form, or, in the language of John, before the hosts shall “be gathered to battle,” but it is to be the next marked and prominent event in the history of the world, and is to precede the final consummation of all things.
(2) This will be a brief period. Compared with the long period of prosperity that preceded it, and perhaps compared with the long period that shall follow it before the final judgment, it will be short. Thus, in ver. 3, it is said that Satan “must be loosed a little season.” See Notes on that verse. There is no way of determining the time with exactness; but we are assured that it will not be long.
(3) What will be the exact state of things then can be only a matter of conjecture. We may say, however, that it will not be (a) necessarily war. The language is figurative and symbolical, and it is not necessary to suppose that an actual and bloody warfare will be literally waged against the church. Nor (b) will there be a literal invasion of the land of Palestine as the residence of the saints and the capital of the Redeemer’s visible empire, for there is not a hint of this――not a word to justify such an interpretation. Nor (c) is it necessary to suppose that there will be literally such nations as will be then called “Gog and Magog,” for this language is figurative, and designed to characterize the foes of the church――as being in some respects formidable and terrible as were those ancient nations.
We may thus suppose that at that time, from causes which are unexplained, there will be (a) a revived opposition to the truths of religion; (b) the prevalence, to a greater or less extent, of infidelity; (c) a great spiritual declension; (d) a combination of interests opposed to the gospel; (e) possibly some new form of error and delusion that shall extensively prevail. {435} Satan may set up some new form of religion, or he may breathe into those that may already exist a spirit of worldliness and vanity――some new manifestation of the religion of forms――that shall for a limited period produce a general decline and apostasy. As there is, however, no distinct specification of what will characterize the world at that time, it is impossible to determine what is referred to any more than in this general manner.
(4) A few remarks may, however, be made on the probability of what is here affirmed, for it seems contrary to what we should suppose would be the characteristics of the closing period of the world. The following remarks, then, may show that this anticipated state of things is not improbable:――(a) We are to remember that human nature will then be essentially the same as now. There is no intimation that man, as born into the world, will be then different from what he is now, or that any of the natural corrupt tendencies of the human heart will be changed. Men will be liable to the same outbreaks of passion, to be influenced by the same forms of temptation, to fall into the same degeneracy and corruption, to feel the same unhappy influences of success and prosperity as now, for all this appertains to a fallen nature, except as it is checked and controlled by grace. We often mistake much in regard to the millennial state by supposing that all the evils of the apostasy will be arrested and that the nature of man will be as wholly changed as it will be in the heavenly world. (b) The whole history of the church has shown that there is a liability to declension even in the best state and in the condition of the highest spiritual prosperity. To see this we have only to remember the example of the Hebrews, and how readily they apostatized after the most striking manifestation of the divine mercies; the early Christian church, and how soon it declined; the seven churches of Asia Minor, and how soon their spirituality departed; the various revivals of religion that have occurred from time to time, and how soon they have been succeeded by coldness, worldliness, and error; the fact that great religious denominations, which have begun their career with zeal and love, have so soon degenerated in spirit, and fallen into the same formality and worldliness which they have evinced who have gone before them; and the case of the individual Christian, who from the most exalted state of love and joy so soon often declines into a state of conformity to the world. These are sad views of human nature, even under the influence of true religion; but the past history of man has given but too much occasion for such reflections, and too much reason to apprehend that the same things may occur, for a time, even under the best forms in which religion may manifest itself in a fallen world. Man’s nature will be better in heaven, and religion there, in its purest and best form, will be permanent; here we are not to be surprised at any outbreak of sin or any form of declension in religion. What has often occurred in the world on a small scale we may suppose may then occur on a larger scale. “Just as on a small scale, in some little community like that of Northampton, as described by President Edwards, after the remarkable sense of God’s presence over the whole town had begun to wax feeble, the still unconverted persons of it, though subdued and seemingly won over to Christ, would by little and little recover themselves, and at length venture forth in their true character; so it will be, in all probability, on a vast scale, at the close of the latter day. The unconverted portion of the world――long constrained by the religious influences everywhere surrounding them to fall in with the spirit of the day, catching apparently its holy impulses, but never coming savingly under its power――this portion of mankind, which we have reason to fear will not be small, will now be freed from these irksome restraints, no longer obliged to breathe an atmosphere uncongenial to their nature” (Brown on the Second Coming of Christ, p. 442). “No oppression is so grievous to an unsanctified heart as that which arises from the purity of Christianity. A desire to shake off this yoke is the true cause of the opposition which Christianity has met with in the world in every period, and will, it is most likely, be the chief motive to influence the followers of Gog in his time” (Frazer’s Key, p. 455). (c) The representations of the New Testament elsewhere confirm this view in regard to the latter state of the world――the state when the Lord Jesus shall come to judgment. “When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” Lu. xviii. 8. “There shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise of {436} his coming?” 2 Pe. iii. 3, 4. “The day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child, and they shall not escape,” 1 Th. v. 2, 3. See especially Lu. xvii. 26‒30: “As it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. They did eat, they drank, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; but the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.”
9 And [624]they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
9. And they went up on the breadth of the earth. They spread over the earth in extended columns. The image is that of an invading army that seems, in its march, to spread all over a land. The reference here is to the hosts assembled from the regions of Gog and Magog; that is, to the formidable enemies of the gospel that would be roused up at the close of the period properly called the millennial period――the period of the thousand years. It is not necessary to suppose that there would be literally armies of enemies of God summoned from lands that would be called lands of “Gog and Magog;” but all that is necessarily implied is, that there will be a state of hostility to the church of Christ which would be well illustrated by such a comparison with an invading host of barbarians. The expression “the breadth of the land” occurs in Hab. i. 6, in a description of the invasion of the Chaldeans, and means there the whole extent of it; that is, they would spread over the whole country. ¶ And compassed the camp of the saints about. Besieged the camp of the saints considered as engaged in war, or as attacked by an enemy. The “camp of the saints” here seems to be supposed to be without the walls of the city; that is, the army was drawn out for defence. The fact that the foes were able to “compass this camp about,” and to encircle the city at the same time, shows the greatness of the numbers of the invaders. ¶ And the beloved city. Jerusalem――a city represented as beloved by God and by his people. The whole imagery here is derived from a supposed invasion of the land of Palestine――imagery than which nothing could be more natural to John in describing the hostility that would be aroused against the church in the latter day. But no just principle of interpretation requires us to understand this literally. Comp. He. xii. 22. Indeed, it would be absolutely impossible to give this chapter throughout a literal interpretation. What would be the literal interpretation of the very first verses? “I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit, and a great chain in his hand; and he laid hold on the dragon and bound him.” Can anyone believe that there is to be a literal key, and a chain, and an act of seizing a serpent, and binding him? As little is it demanded that the passage before us should be taken literally; for if it is maintained that this should be, we may insist that the same principle of interpretation should be applied to every part of the chapter, and every part of the book. ¶ And fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. Consumed them――fire being represented as devouring or eating. See Notes on ch. xvii. 16. The meaning is, that they would be destroyed as if fire should come down from heaven, as on Sodom and Gomorrah. But it is not necessary to understand this literally, any more than it is the portions of the chapter just referred to. What is obviously meant is, that their destruction would be sudden, certain, and entire, and that thus the last enemy of God and the church would be swept away. Nothing can be determined from this about the means by which this destruction will be effected; and that must be left for time to disclose. It is sufficient to know that the destruction of these last foes of God and the church will be certain and entire. This language, as denoting the final destruction of the enemies of God, is often employed in the Scriptures. See Ps. xi. 6; Is. xxix. 6; Eze. xxxviii. 22; xxxix. 6.
10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the [625]lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
{437} 10. And the devil that deceived them. See Notes on ver. 3, 8. ¶ Was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone. In ch. xix. 20, it is said of the beast and the false prophet that they were “cast alive into a lake of fire, burning with brimstone.” Satan, on the other hand, instead of being doomed at once to that final ruin, was confined for a season in a dark abyss, ch. xx. 1‒3. As the final punishment, however, he is appropriately represented as consigned to the same doom as the beast and the false prophet, that those great enemies of God, that had been associated and combined in deceiving the nations, might share the same appropriate punishment in the end. Comp. ch. xvi. 13, 14. ¶ Where the beast and the false prophet |are|. Notes on ch. xix. 20. ¶ And shall be tormented day and night for ever. Comp. Notes on ch. xiv. 11. All the great enemies of the church are destroyed, and henceforward there is to be no array of hostile forces; no combination of malignant powers against the kingdom of God. The gospel triumphs; the way is prepared for the final consummation.
§ d.――_Condition of things in the period referred to in ver. 9, 10._
(1) There will be, after the release of Satan, and of course at the close of the millennial period properly so called, a state of things which may be well represented by the invasion of a country by hostile, formidable forces. This, as shown in the exposition, need not be supposed to be literal; but it is implied that there will be decided hostility against the true religion. It may be an organization and consolidation, so to speak, of infidel principles, or a decided worldly spirit, or some prevalent form of error, or some new form of depravity that shall be developed by the circumstances of that age. What it will be it is impossible now to determine; but, as shown above (§ c, (4)), it is by no means improbable that this will occur even at the close of the millennium.
(2) There will be a decided defeat of these forces thus combined, as if fire should come down from heaven to destroy an invading army. The mode in which this will be done is not indeed stated, for there is no necessity of understanding the statement in ver. 9 literally, any more than the other parts of the chapter. The fair inference, however, is that it will be by a manifest divine agency; that it will be sudden, and that the destruction will be entire. We have no reason, therefore, to suppose that the outbreak will be of long continuance, or that it will very materially disturb the settled order of human affairs on the earth――any more than a formidable invasion of a country does, when the invading army is suddenly cut off by some terrible judgment from heaven.
(3) This overthrow of the enemies of God and of the church will be final. Satan will be “cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, to be tormented day and night for ever.” The beast and the false prophet are already there (ch. xix. 20); that is, they will have ceased long since, even before the beginning of the millennial period (ch. xix. 20, compared with ch. xx. 1‒3), to have opposed the progress of truth in the world, and their power will have been brought to an end. Satan now, the last enemy, will be doomed to the same hopeless woe; and all the enemies that have ever opposed the church――in all forms of Paganism, Mahometanism, Popery, and delusion――will be destroyed for ever. The world then will have peace; the church will have rest; the great triumph will have been achieved.
(4) For reasons stated in the Analysis of the Chapter, V. (c), it is possible that there will be a long period of continued prosperity and peace between the events stated in ver. 9, 10, and the final judgment, as described in ver. 11‒15. If so, however, the purpose of the book did not require that that should be described at length, and it must be admitted that the most obvious interpretation of the New Testament would not be favourable to such a supposition. Comp. Lu. xvii. 26‒30; xviii. 8; 1 Th. v. 2, 3; 2 Pe. iii. 3, 4. The great glory of the world will be the millennial period; when religion shall have the ascendency and the race shall have reached its highest point of progress on earth, and the blessings of liberty, intelligence, peace, and piety, shall have during that period been spread over the globe. In {438} that long duration, who can estimate the numbers that shall be redeemed and saved? That period passed, the great purpose contemplated by the creation of the earth――the glory of God in the redemption of a fallen race, and in setting up a kingdom of righteousness in a world of apostasy――will have been accomplished, and there will be no reason why the final judgment should not then occur. “The work of redemption will now be finished. The end for which the means of grace have been instituted shall be obtained. All the effect which was intended to be accomplished by them shall now be accomplished. All the great wheels of Providence have gone round――all things are ripe for Christ’s coming to judgment” (President Edwards’ History of Redemption).
11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the [626]earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
11. And I saw a great white throne. This verse commences the description of the final judgment, which embraces the remainder of the chapter. The first thing seen in the vision is the burning throne of the Judge. The things that are specified in regard to it are, that it was great, and that it was white. The former expression means that it was high or elevated. Comp. Is. vi. 1. The latter expression――white――means that it was splendid or shining. Comp. 1 Ki. x. 18‒20. The throne here is the same which is referred to in Mat. xxv. 31, and called there “the throne of his glory.” ¶ And him that sat on it. The reference here undoubtedly is to the Lord Jesus Christ, the final Judge of mankind (comp. Mat. xxv. 31), and the scene described is that which will occur at his second advent. ¶ From whose face. Or, from whose presence; though the word may be used here to denote more strictly his face――as illuminated, and shining like the sun. See ch. i. 16, “And his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.” ¶ The earth and the heaven fled away. That is, as the stars, at the rising of the sun, seem to flee to more remote regions, and vanish from human view, so when the Son of God shall descend in his glory to judge the world, the earth and all other worlds shall seem to vanish. Every one must admire the sublimity of this image; no one can contemplate it without being awed by the majesty and glory of the final Judge of mankind. Similar expressions, where the natural creation shrinks back with awe at the presence of God, frequently occur in the Bible. Comp. Ps. xviii. 7‒15; lxxvii. 16‒19; cxiv. 3‒5; Hab. iii. 6, 10, 11. ¶ And there was found no place for them. They seemed to flee entirely away, as if there was no place where they could find a safe retreat, or which would receive and shelter them in their flight. The image expresses, in the most emphatic manner, the idea that they entirely disappeared, and no language could more sublimely represent the majesty of the Judge.
12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the [627]books were opened: and [628]another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, [629]according to their works.
12. And I saw the dead, small and great. All the dead――for this language would express that――the whole race being composed of the “small and great.” Thus, in other language, the same idea might be expressed by saying, the young and old; the rich and poor; the bond and free; the sick and well; the happy and the unhappy; the righteous and the wicked; for all the human family might, in these respects, be considered as thus divided. The fair meaning in this place therefore is, that all the dead would be there, and of course this would preclude the idea of a previous resurrection of any part of the dead, as of the saints, at the beginning of the millennium. There is no intimation here that it is the wicked dead that are referred to in this description of the final judgment. It is the judgment of all the dead. ¶ Stand before God. That is, they appear thus to be judged. The word “God” here must naturally refer to the final Judge on the throne, and there can be no doubt (see Mat. xxv. 31) that this is the Lord Jesus. Comp. 2 Co. v. 10. None can judge the secrets of the heart; none can pronounce on the moral character of all mankind, of all countries and ages, and determine their everlasting allotment, but he who is Divine. {439} And the books were opened. That is, the books containing the record of human deeds. The representation is, that all that men have done is recorded, and that it will be exhibited on the final trial, and will constitute the basis of the last judgment. The imagery seems to be derived from the accusations made against such as are arraigned before human courts of justice. ¶ And another book was opened, which is the |book| of life. The book containing the record of the names of all who shall enter into life, or into heaven. See Notes on ch. iii. 5. The meaning here is, that John saw not only the general books opened containing the records of the deeds of men, but that he had a distinct view of the list or roll of those who were the followers of the Lamb. It would seem that in regard to the multitudes of the impenitent and the wicked, the judgment will proceed on their deeds in general; in regard to the righteous, it will turn on the fact that their names had been enrolled in the book of life. That will be sufficient to determine the nature of the sentence that is to be passed on them. He will be safe whose name is found in the book of life; no one will be safe who is to have his eternal destiny determined by his own deeds. This passage proves particularly that the righteous dead are referred to here as being present at the final judgment; and is thus an additional argument against the supposition of a resurrection of the righteous, and a judgment on them, at the beginning of the millennium. ¶ And the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books. The records which had been made of their deeds. The final judgment will proceed on the record that has been made. It will not be arbitrary, and will not be determined by rank, condition, or profession, but it will be according to the record. ¶ According to their works. See Notes on 2 Co. v. 10. The fact that the name of anyone was found in the book of life would seem, as above remarked, to determine the certainty of salvation; but the amount of reward would be in proportion to the service rendered to the Redeemer, and the attainments made in piety.
13 And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and [630]hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
13. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it. All that had been buried in the depths of ocean. This number in the aggregate will be great. If we include all who were swept off by the flood, and all who have perished by shipwreck, and all who have been killed in naval battles and buried in the sea, and all who have been swept away by inundations of the ocean, and all who have peacefully died at sea, as sailors, or in the pursuits of commerce or benevolence, the number in the aggregate will be immense――a number so vast that it was proper to notice them particularly in the account of the general resurrection and the last judgment. ¶ And death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them. That is, all the dead came, from all regions where they were scattered――on the land and in the ocean――in this world and in the invisible world. “Death and hell” are here personified, and are represented as having dominion over the dead, and as now delivering up, or surrendering those who were held under them. On the meaning of the words here used, see Notes on ch. i. 18; vi. 8. Comp. Notes on Mat. x. 23; Job x. 21, 22; Is. xiv. 9. This whole representation is entirely inconsistent with the supposition that a large part of the dead had been already raised up at the beginning of the millennial period, and had been permitted, in their glorified bodies, to reign with Christ. ¶ And they were judged, &c. All these were judged――the righteous and the wicked; those buried at sea, and those buried on the land; the small and the great; the dead, in whatever world they may have been.
14 And [631]death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
14. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. Death and Hades (hell) are here personified, as they are in the previous verse. The declaration is equivalent to the statement in 1 Co. xv. 26: “The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” See Notes on that passage. The idea is, that death, considered as the separation of soul and body, with {440} all the attendant woes, will exist no more. The righteous will live for ever, and the wicked will linger on in a state never to be terminated by death. The reign of Death and Hades, as such, would come to an end, and a new order of things would commence where this would be unknown. There might be that which would be properly called death, but it would not be death in this form; the soul would live for ever, but it would not be in that condition represented by the word ᾅδης――hades. There would be death still, but a “second death differs from the first, in the fact that it is not a separation of the soul and body, but a state of continual agony like that which the first death inflicts――like that in intensity, but not in kind” (Professor Stuart). ¶ This is the second death. That is, this whole process here described――the condemnation, and the final death and ruin of those whose names are “not found written in the book of life”――properly constitutes the second death. This proves that when it is said that “death and hell were cast into the lake of fire,” it cannot be meant that all punishment will cease for ever, and that all will be saved, for the writer goes on to describe what he calls “the second death” as still existing. See ver. 15. John describes this as the second death, not because it in all respects resembles the first death, but because it has so many points of resemblance that it may be properly called death. Death, in any form, is the penalty of law; it is attended with pain; it cuts off from hope, from friends, from enjoyment; it subjects him who dies to a much-dreaded condition, and in all these respects it was proper to call the final condition of the wicked death――though it would still be true that the soul would live. There is no evidence that John meant to affirm that the second death would imply an extinction of existence. Death never does that; the word does not naturally and properly convey that idea.
15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was [632]cast into the lake of fire.
15. And whosoever. All persons, of all ranks, ages, and conditions. No word could be more comprehensive than this. The single condition here stated, as being that which would save any from being cast into the lake of fire, is, that they are “found written in the book of life.” All besides these, princes, kings, nobles, philosophers, statesmen, conquerors; rich men and poor men; the bond and the free; the young and the aged; the gay, the vain, the proud, and the sober; the modest and the humble, will be doomed to the lake of fire. Unlike in all other things, they will be alike in the only thing on which their eternal destiny will depend――that they have not so lived that their names have become recorded in the book of life. As they will also be destitute of true religion, there will be a propriety that they shall share the same doom in the future world. ¶ Written in the book of life. See Notes on ch. iii. 5. ¶ Was cast into the lake of fire. See Notes on Mat. xxv. 41. That is, they will be doomed to a punishment which will be well represented by their lingering in a sea of fire for ever. This is the termination of the judgment――the winding up of the affairs of men. The vision of John here rests for a moment on the doom of the wicked, and then turns to a more full contemplation of the happy lot of the righteous, as detailed in the two closing chapters of the book.
§ e.――Condition of things referred to in ver. 11‒15.
(1) There will be a general resurrection of the dead――of the righteous and the wicked. This is implied by the statement that the “dead, small and great,” were seen to stand before God; that “the sea gave up the dead which were in it;” that “Death and Hades gave up their dead.” All were there whose names were or were not written in the book of life.
(2) There will be a solemn and impartial judgment. How long a time this will occupy is not said, and is not necessary to be known――for time is of no consequence where there is an eternity of devotion――but it is said that they will be all judged “according to their works”――that is, strictly according to their character. They will receive no arbitrary doom; they will have no sentence which will not be just. See Mat. xxv. 31‒46.
(3) This will be the final judgment. After this, the affairs of the race will be put on a different footing. This will be the end of the present arrangements; {441} the end of the present dispensations; the end of human probation. The great question to be determined in regard to our world will have been settled; what the plan of redemption was intended to accomplish on the earth will have been accomplished; the agency of the Divine Spirit in converting sinners will have come to an end; and the means of grace, as such, will be employed no more. There is not here or elsewhere an intimation that beyond this period any of these things will exist, or that the work of redemption, as such, will extend into the world beyond the judgment. As there is no intimation that the condition of the righteous will be changed, so there is none that the condition of the wicked will be; as there is no hint that the righteous will ever be exposed to temptation, or to the danger of falling into sin, so there is none that the offers of salvation will ever again be made to the wicked. On the contrary, the whole representation is, that all beyond this will be fixed and unchangeable for ever. See Notes on ch. xxii. 11.
(4) The wicked will be destroyed, in what may be properly called the second death. As remarked in the Notes, this does not mean that this death will in all respects resemble the first death, but there will be so many points of resemblance that it will be proper to call it death. It does not mean that they will be annihilated, for death never implies that. The meaning is, that this will be a cutting off from what is properly called life, from hope, from happiness, and from peace, and a subjection to pain and agony, which it will be proper to call death――death in the most fearful form; death that will continue for ever. No statements in the Bible are more clear than those which are made on this point; no affirmation of the eternal punishment of the wicked could be more explicit than those which occur in the sacred Scriptures. See Notes on Mat. xxv. 46, and 2 Th. i. 9.
(5) This will be the end of the woes and calamities produced in the kingdom of God by sin. The reign of Satan and of Death, so far as the Redeemer’s kingdom is concerned, will be at an end, and henceforward the church will be safe from all the arts and efforts of its foes. Religion will be triumphant, and the affairs of the universe be reduced to permanent order.
(6) The preparation is thus made for the final triumph of the righteous――the state to which all things tend. The writer of this book has conducted the prospective history through all the times of persecution which awaited the church, and stated the principal forms of error which would prevail, and foretold the conflicts through which the church would pass, and described its eventful history to the millennial period, and to the final triumph of truth and righteousness; and now nothing remains to complete the plan of the work but to give a rapid sketch of the final condition of the redeemed. This is done in the two following chapters, and with this the work is ended.
XXI. ANALYSIS OF CHAP. XXI., XXII. 1‒5
The whole of ch. xxi., and the first five verses of ch. xxii., relate to scenes beyond the judgment, and are descriptive of the happy and triumphant state of the redeemed church, when all its conflicts shall have ceased, and all its enemies shall have been destroyed. That happy state is depicted under the image of a beautiful city, of which Jerusalem was the emblem, and it was disclosed to John by a vision of that city――the New Jerusalem――descending from heaven. Jerusalem was regarded as the peculiar dwelling-place of God, and to the Hebrews it became thus the natural emblem or symbol of the heavenly world. The conception having occurred of describing the future condition of the righteous under the image of a beautiful city, all that follows is in keeping with that, and is merely a carrying out of the image. It is a city with beautiful walls and gates; a city that has no temple――for it is all a temple; a city that needs no light――for God is its light; a city into which nothing impure ever enters; a city filled with trees, and streams, and fountains, and fruits――the Paradise Regained.
The description of that blessed state comprises the following parts:――
I. A vision of a new heaven and a new earth, as the final abode of the blessed, ver. 1. The first heaven and the first earth passed away at the judgment (ch. xx. 11‒15), to be succeeded by a new heaven and earth fitted to be the abode of the blessed.
II. A vision of the holy city――the New Jerusalem――descending from heaven, as the abode of the redeemed, prepared as a bride adorned for her {442} husband――representing the fact that God would truly abide with men, ver. 2‒4. Now all the effects of the apostasy will cease; all tears will be wiped away, and in that blessed state there will be no more death, or sorrow, or pain. This contains the general statement of what will be the condition of the redeemed in the future world. God will be there; and all sorrow will cease.
III. A command to make a record of these things, ver. 5.
IV. A general description of those who should dwell in that future world of blessedness, ver. 6‒8. It is for all who are athirst; for all who desire it, and long for it; for all who “overcome” their spiritual enemies, who maintain a steady conflict with sin, and gain a victory over it. But all who are fearful and unbelieving――all the abominable, and murderers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and liars――shall have their part in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone. That is, that world will be pure and holy.
V. A minute description of the city, representing the happy abode of the redeemed, ver. 9‒26. This description embraces many particulars:――
(1) Its general appearance, ver. 11, 18, 21. It is bright and splendid――like a precious jasper-stone, clear as crystal, and composed of pure gold.
(2) Its walls, ver. 12, 18. The walls are represented as “great and high,” and as composed of “jasper.”
(3) Its gates, ver. 12, 13, 21. The gates are twelve in number, three on each side; and are each composed of a single pearl.
(4) Its foundations, ver. 14, 18‒20. There are twelve foundations, corresponding to the number of the apostles of the Lamb. They are all composed of precious stones――jasper, sapphire, chalcedony, emerald, sardonyx, sardius, chrysolite, beryl, topaz, chrysoprasus, jacinth, and amethyst.
(5) Its size, ver. 15‒17. It is square――the length being as great as the breadth, and its height the same. The extent of each dimension is twelve thousand furlongs――a length on each side and in height of three hundred and seventy-five miles. It would seem, however, that though the city was of that height, the wall was only an hundred and forty-four cubits, or about two hundred and sixteen feet high. The idea seems to be that the city――the dwellings within it――towered high above the wall that was thrown around it for protection. This is not uncommon in cities that are surrounded by walls.
(6) Its light, ver. 23, 24; ch. xxii. 5. It has no need of the sun, or of the moon, or of a lamp (ch. xxii. 5) to lighten it; and yet there is no night there (ch. xxii. 5), for the glory of God gives light to it.
(7) It is a city without a temple, ver. 22. There is no one place in it that is peculiarly sacred, or where the worship of God will be exclusively celebrated. It will be all a temple, and the worship of God will be celebrated in all parts of it.
(8) It is always open, ver. 25. There will be no need of closing it as walled cities on earth are closed to keep enemies out, and it will not be shut to prevent those who dwell there from going out and coming in when they please. The inhabitants will not be prisoners, nor will they be in danger, or be alarmed by the prospect of an attack from an enemy.
(9) Its inhabitants will all be pure and holy, ver. 27. There will in no wise enter there anything that defiles, or that works abomination, or that is false. They only shall dwell there whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
(10) Its inclosures and environs, ch. xxii. 1, 2. A stream of water, pure as crystal, proceeds from the throne of God and the Lamb. That stream flows through the city, and on its banks is the tree of life constantly bearing fruit――fruit to be partaken of freely. It is Paradise regained――a holy and beautiful abode, of which the garden of Eden was only an imperfect emblem, where there is no prohibition, as there was there, of anything that grows, and where there is no danger of falling into sin.
(11) It is a place free, consequently, from the curse that was pronounced on man when he forfeited the blessings of the first Eden, and when he was driven out from the happy abodes where God had placed him.
(12) It is a place where the righteous shall reign for ever, ch. xxii. 5. Death shall never enter there, and the presence and glory of God shall fill all with peace and joy.
Such is an outline of the figurative and glowing description of the future blessedness of the redeemed; the eternal abode of those who shall be saved. {443} It is poetic and emblematical; but it is elevating, and constitutes a beautiful and appropriate close, not only of this single book, but of the whole sacred volume――for to this the saints are everywhere directed to look forward; this is the glorious termination of all the struggles and conflicts of the church; this is the result of the work of redemption in repairing the evils of the fall, and in bringing man to more than the bliss which he lost in Eden. The mind rests with delight on this glorious prospect; the Bible closes, as a revelation from heaven should, in a manner that calms down every anxious feeling; that fills the soul with peace, and that leads the child of God to look forward with bright anticipations, and to say, as John did, “Come, Lord Jesus,” ch. xxii. 20.