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CHAP. X.

ND I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud, and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the fun, and his feet as pillars of fire.

2 And he had in his hand a little book open: and he fet his right foot upon the fea, and his left foot on the earth,

3 And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.

4 And when the feven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven faying unto me, Seal up those things which the feven thunders uttered, and write them not.

5 And the angel which I faw ftand upon the fea, and upon the earth, lifted up his hand to hea

ven,

6 And fware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven and the things that therein are, and the earth and the things that therein are, and the fea and the things which are therein, that therefhould be time no longer;

7 But in the days of the voice of the feventh angel, when he fhall begin to found, the mystery of God fhould be finished, as he hath declared to his fervants the prophets.

8 And the voice which I heard from heaven fpake unto me again, and faid Go, and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel. which ftandeth upon the fea, and upon the earth.

9 And I went unto the angel, and faid unto him, Give me the little book. And he faid unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it fhall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth as sweet as hony.

10 And I took the little book out of the angel's hand,

hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth as fweet as hony and as foon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

11 And he faid unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.

St. John, in the conclufion of the laft chapter, having touched upon the corruption of the western church, proceeds now to deliver fome prophecies relating to this lamentable event. But before he enters upon the fubject, he (and the church in him) is prepared for it by an auguft and confolatory vifion. Another mighty angel came down from heaven (ver. 1.) defcribed fomewhat like the angel in the three laft chapters of Daniel, and in the firft chapter of the Revelation. He had in his hand (ver. 2.) a little book, Bixapidov a little book or codicil different from the Bio or book mentioned before: and it was open, that all men might freely read and confider it. It was indeed a codicil to the larger book, and properly cometh under the fixth trumpet, to defcribe the ftate of the western church after the defcription of the ftate of the eastern: and this is with good reafon made a feparate and diftinct prophecy, on account of the importance of the matter, as well as for engaging the greater attention. He fet his right foot upon the fea, and his left foot on the earth, to fhow the extent of his power and commiffion: and when he had cried aloud, (ver. 3.) feven thunders uttered their voices. St. John would have written down (ver. 4.) thofe things which the feven thunders uttered, but was forbidden to do it. As we know not the fubjects of the feven thunders, fo neither can we know the reafons for fuppreffing them: but it may be conceived, that fomething might be proper to be revealed to the apostle, and yet not to be communicated to the church. By these feven thunders, (6) Vitringa understands the feven great croifades or expeditions of the western Chriftians for the conqueft of the holy land, and Daubuz the feven

(6) Vitring. in locum. p. 431. Daubuz, p. 469.

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kingdoms

kingdoms which received and established the proteflant reformation by law. But doth it not favor rather of vanity and prefumption than of wisdom and knowledge, to pretend to conjecture what they are, when the Holy Spirit hath purpofely concealed them? Then the angel (ver. 5, 6, 7.) lifted up his hand to heaven, like the angel in Daniel, (XII. 7.) and fware by him that liveth for ever and ever, the great creator of all things, 7 xos x ESαι £TI, that the time fhall not be yet, but it shall be in the days of the feventh trumpet, that the mystery of God fhall be. finished, and the glorious ftate of his church be perfected, agreeably to the good things which he hath promifed, s Evalyenre, to his fercants the prophets. This is faid for the confolation of Chriftians, that tho' the little book de-, fcribes the calamities of the western church, yet they shall all have a happy period under the feventh trumpet. St. John is then ordered (ver. 8, 9, 10.) to eat the little book, as Ezekiel (III. 3.) did upon a like occafion; and he ate it up; he thoroughly confidered, and digefted it; and found it to be, as he was informed it would be, fweet as hony in his mouth, but bitter in his ftomach. The knowledge of future things at firft was pleafant, but the fad contents of the little book afterwards filled his foul with forrow. But thefe contents were not to be fealed up like thofe of the fecen thunders; this little book was to be pub lifhed (ver. 11.) as well as the larger book of the Apocalyps; it was a kind of fecond prophecy, added to the former; and as it concerned kings and nations, fo it was to be made public, for their use and information. But if here, as fome contend, the prophecy begins again anew, the fubject is refumed from the beginning, and all that follows is contained in the little book, then the little book contains more matter than the larger book, and part of the fealed book is made part of the open book, which is contrary to the regularity and order of the Apocalyps, and in great measure deftroys the beauty and fymmetry of the different parts; for it is evident and undeniable, that the feventh trumpet is the feventh part of the feventh feal, as the feventh feal is the feventh part of the fealed book, and confequently can be no part of the little

open

open book, which endeth, as we fhall fee, with the fixth trumpet, and immediately before the founding of the feventh.

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CHAP. XI.

ND there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel ftood, faying, Rife, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.

2 But the court which is without the temple, leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city fhall they tread under foot forty and two months.

3 And I will give power unto my two witneffes, and they fhall prophefy a thoufand two hundred and threefcore days clothed in fackcloth.

4 Thefe are the two olive-trees, and the two candlefticks ftanding before the God of the earth.

5 And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.

6 These have power to thut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to fmite the earth with all plagues as often as they will.

7 And when they thall have finished their teftimony, the beaft that afcendeth out of the bottomlefs pit, fhall make war against them, and fhall overcome them, and kill them.

8 And their dead bodies fhall lie in the street of the great city, which fpiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where alfo our Lord was crucified.

9 And they of the people, and kindreds, and, tongues, and nations, thall fee their dead bodies three days and a half, and fhall not fuffer their dead bodies to be put in graves.

10 And they that dwell upon the earth fhall re

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joice

joice over them, and make merry, and fhall fend gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.

11 And after three days and an half, the fpirit of life from God entered into them: and they stood upon their feet, and great fear fell upon them which faw them.

12 And they heard a great voice from heaven, faying unto them, Come up hither. And they afcended up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies beheld them.

13 And the fame hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were flain of men feven thoufand; and the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven,

14 The fecond woe is paft, and behold, the third woe cometh quickly.

In the former part of this chapter, from the first verfe to the fourteenth, are exhibited the contents of this little book. St. John is commanded (ver. 1.) to measure the inner court, the temple of God, and the altar, and them who worship therein, to show that during all this period there were fome true Chriftians, who conformed to the rule and measure of God's word. This meafuring might allude more, particularly to the Reformation from popery, which fell out under this fixth trumpet; and one of the moral causes of it was the Othmans taking of Conftantinople, whereupon the Greeks flying from their own country, and bringing their books with them into the more western parts of Europe, proved the happy occafion, of the revival of learning; as the revival of learning opened mens eyes, and proved the happy occafion of the Reformation. But tho' the inner court, which in cludes the fmaller number, was measured, yet the outer court, which implies the far greater part, was left out (ver. 2.) and rejected, as being in the poffeffion of Chriftians only in name, but Gentiles in worship and practice, who profaned it with heathenifh fuperftition and

idolatry: