The praise and triumph]

CHAP. XIX.

AND after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God:

2 For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand.

3 And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and

ever.

4 And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia.

5 And a voice came out of the

[of the heavenly host.

throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great.

6 And I heard as it were the vece of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.

7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.

8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

9 And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unte the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.

10 And I fell at his feet to worship

burned the bodies of men by thousands! Well may those who have thus traded beyond the seas stand "afar off," and cry,

Alas! alas!" While, however, earth is mourning, heaven rejoices; though Rome's harpers, and pipers, and trumpeters, be all now dumb, heaven, as we shall see in the next chapter, is all joy and triumph. In the mean time, behold, another mighty angel descends from heaven, and tearing up a stone from the rock, like a great millstone, casts it with all his strength into the fathomless ocean, and cries, "Thus with violence shall Babylon be thrown down, and be found no more at all."

The close of this chapter is beautifully poetical, but the concluding verse contains an appalling fact, that must make every reader shudder. "In her (that is, in Rome) was found the blood of prophets,

and of saints, and of ALL that were sla's upon the earth." O what a discovery is here! Wrath treasured up against the day of wrath, and blood against the day of vengeance! But is not this a strong hyperbole? Scarcely can it be so called; for all the blood that had been shed under the persecutious of Jews and Pagans, as well as nominal Christians, is shed upo one and the same principle, and that de cidedly a Popish one-the pretended right of controlling consciences: it was found in Rome, the great manufactory and depot f we may so speak) of persecution. To cal culate the quantity of this blood, we must write a martyrology.

This sublime ode is continued in the first ten verses of the following chapter, where we shall be greeted by a song from heaven.

Ver. 10. See thou do it not. The Rhemish tralators sadly equivocate here, as supposing that the angel only forbade that supreme worship (letrie which is peculiar to the Deity, and not the inferist worship which the church allows to saints and angels, but certainly without any authority from the Scriptures. Nor do the common people knew any thing of this distinction.-See Fletcher's Lectures against the Roman Catholic Religion, Lect. vi.

Ibid. Thy fellow-servant.-Doddr. and Wondh "A fellow-servant with thee and thy brethren, who keep (or hold) the testimony of Jesus."

The testimony of Jesus]

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 spirit of prophecy.

the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. (G)

11 ¶ And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat

CHAP. XIX.

(G) Ver. 1-10. Heaven rejoicing in the fall of Babylon-the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.-Alas! how estranged is earth from heaven !-that which gives joy to one, is matter of lamentation to the other. How many scenes are there of pleasure and hilarity on earth, which are enough to make an "" angel weep" to view them! We need not wonder, then, if sometimes, when earth is weeping, heaven should be rejoicing. Hark to the shout of heaven! "Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power unto the Lord our God!.... He hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her band." This is an act of retributive justice, and while we remain sinners we may well tremble at its exercise; but in a state of perfect holiness, it should appear, saints and angels rejoice as well in the exercise of the divine truth and equity, as in the display of the milder perfections of the Deity.

:

"And again they said Alleluia!" The praises of heaven are incessant and unwearied that which is with us duty, is with them enjoyment. It was said in the preceding chapter, "Rejoice over her, thou heaven; and ye holy apostles and prophets, for God hath avenged you on her;" namely, on the great harlot, which debauched the world, and persecuted the church. But victory is not the only source of joy; the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife has made herself ready.

The harlot who had pretended to be the spouse of Christ, being "convicted of fornication with the worldly powers," and for ever discarded, "the attention of heaven and earth (says Archdeacon Woodhouse) is naturally turned to that chaste and pure virgin, who is now to be presented to her Lord. The choral song brings her to view; arrayed, not in purple and scarlet, and gold and precious stones; not in worldly splendour, like the harlot, but in pure, simple, and resplendent garments, which are the clothing of the heavenly inhabitants. She has washed her garments, and 'made them

white in the blood of the Lamb.' By faith in her Redeemer she is become righteousfor this is the fine linen, the righteousness of the saints."

The marriage of the Lamb being announced, a blessing is pronounced on all those who are invited to his marriage supper. This supper is by some commentators considered as the Millennium, but is by no means to be confined thereto. Whenever the Lord Jesus vouchsafes to his people a display of his redeeming mercy, it is a marriage feast, whether in earth or in heaven; and happily we are invited to such a feast, without waiting for the Millennium.

"How rich are thy provisions, Lord;

Thy table furnish'd from above! The fruits of life o'erspread the board, The cup o'erflows with heavenly love!"

Watts.

But a remarkable incident is here introduced. The prophet, dazzled, perhaps, with the glory of the angel that appeared to him, or peculiarly struck with the solemnity of his words-" These are the true sayings of God"-seems to have mistaken bim for the Lamb himself, and fell at his feet to worship him. The angel, however, instantly corrects his error: "See thou do it not; I am a fellow servant of thine, and of thy brethren, who hold the testimony of Jesus; worship God." This seems to us, as plain and as strong a prohibition of worshipping angels, as we can well conceive See thou do it not."

The angel thus classing himself with St. John and his brethren, intimates, that both his office and theirs was to honour the Lord Jesus, by bearing witness to him. "The testimony of Jesus (saith he) is the spirit of prophecy;" or, as Dr. Doddridge and Bishop Hurd invert the sentence, without any material change of sense-"The spirit of prophecy is the testimony of Jesus" to bear witness to his glory, is the great object of prophets on earth, and of angels in heaven.

Ver. 11. Behold a white horse.-This evidently refers to the same Conqueror introduced in chap.

vi. 2. There he had a crown; here he has many crowns, implying that he had gained many victories.

The victories of]

upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.

12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.

13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.

14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and

clean.

15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.

16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.

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 King of kings.

the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;

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.

19 And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.

20 And the 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 cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.

21 And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh. (H)

(H) Ver. 11-21. The grand contest between the Word of God and the beast and false prophet.-This description is an evident amplification of a former one, chap. vi. 2, though it appears to refer to a very different event. The conqueror here described is the Logos, or Word of God. His name is Faithful and True, and who in righteousness alone maketh war. His eyes are described as before (chap. i. 14, &c.), "like a flame of fire," and upon his head

Ver. 12. Many crowns.-Gr. " diadems." Ver. 13. A vesture dipped in blood.-Compare Isa. Ixiii. 1, &c.

Ver. 15. Rule them with a rod.-Another allusion to Ps. ii. 9, before repeatedly referred to.

Ver. 16. King of kings, &c.-This title was often affected by the eastern despots. So Cyrus had engraved on his tombstone-"Here am I buried, Cyrus, King of Kings." Other Asiatic monarchs followed the example; and medals also of Parthian kings, of Tigranes, of Pharmaces, &c. are found with the same title inscribed. Woodhouse.

Ver. 17. An angel-Gr. " one angel," which Doddridge renders " a single angel."

Ver. 18. That ye may eat the flesh of kings, &c.

-This is an evident imitation of Ezekiel xxxix. 17. Mr. Forbes (author of the " Oriental Memoirs.") states, as an illustration of this passage-" that during the night after a sanguinary battle in India, hyenas, jackalls, and wild beasts of various kinds, prowled over the field with a horrid noise; and the next morning a multitude of vultures, kites, and birds of prey, were seen asserting their claims to a share of the dead." Orient. Mem. vol. ii. p. 73.

Ver. 20. These both were cast alive.—This marks a most exemplary punishment, as Mr. Lowman observes: they were not slain, and their carcases burnt; but they were burnt alive, and were so to continue tormented for ever and ever. Chap, xx. 10.

The dragon chained]

CHAP. XX.

AND I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of

[for a thousand years.

the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.

2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil,

<< The armies which were in heaven followed him;"-and who are they? Chapter 1 xvii. 14, will give the answer "They that are with him are called, and chosen, aud faithful." It may be worthy of remark, that though the great leader in this battle, The Word of God, is described as having his vesture dipped in blood," his followers had no stain upon their garments: they were all clothed in " fine linen, white and clean." This seems to have an evident allusion to Isa. Ixiii. 1, &c. where au illustrious conqueror, and doubtless the same here spoken of, says " I have trodden the wine-press alone, and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled on my garments, and I will stain all my raiment." HE it is, we see, that fights the battles of his church, and gains the victory; and he also expressly states, "of the people there was none with me -none to help-" therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me; and my fury, it upheld me." This accounts for the garments of his followers being "white "and clean," while their Leader himself has his garments not only stained, but even dyed with blood. It is to be hoped, that Christians will bear this in mind, whenever the eventful period now under consideration shall arrive, and not attempt to forward the kingdom of Christ by those sanguinary means which himself forbids. He is King of kings, and Lord of lords; and "in righteousness he maketh war :" but let us keep our garments clean from the stain of human blood.

"

A new vision now presents itself, at ver. 17. "I saw," says our apostle, "an angel standing in the sun." He is going to address eagles, and vultures, and birds of prey, which soar on high, and love to fly direct toward the sun: he therefore takes his station above them, as it were to collect them about his feet, and calls them to the supper of the great God. "That great Being who openeth his hand," and supplieth every living thing. He feeds the young

ravens when they cry, and the young lions when they roar, for food: the numberless tribes of the ocean wait on him; and when he collects the eagles in the sunbeams, he provides for them; nor does a sparrow fall to the ground without his notice.

"The supper of the great God," here referred to, can be none other, as we conceive, than the battle of Armageddon," before spoken of. The beast and the false prophet, with the frog-like spirits emitted from their months, went (as we have seen, chap. xvi. 14) on a mission through the earth, and have collected together all its kings and armies in hostility against the Lamb and his little company; but instead of conquering, they become themselves food to the birds of prey; and even the beast and the false prophet are taken prisoners, and cast alive into the "lake of fire burning with brimstone."

"By the false prophet" is evidently meant the second beast, described in chap. xiii. ; and, more immediately considered as the great Antichrist of St. John; and whose character seems perfectly to correspond with the " man of sin," or grand apostacy, described by St. Paul in 2 Thess. chap. li. The most striking points of similitude are, that both assumed the prophetic office, and worked false miracles, and lying wonders; and both presided in the church of God. Of "the Man of sin," this is expressly stated; and of the other it is strongly implied, in his having the horns of a lamb, "which marks his ecclesiastical character; and in the voice with which he spake, being that of the drugon, we have a plain indication of the authority which he assumed. To both the beasts above referred to, secular and ecclesiastical, divines sometimes refer this character, though it belongs more eminently to the latter; but they, in fact, act so completely in unison, that both their bodies may be said to be animated by one spirit; and it is "the old serpent," the dragon, that inspires them both.

CHAP. XX. Ver. 1. The bottomless pit.-See Note on chap. ix. 1.

Ver. 2. A thousand years.-All sober commenta.

tors take this literally; the hypothesis which makes these 360,000 years (a day for a year), we think most extravagant, and unwarranted by analogy,

Roman Catholic writers, indeed, object, that St. John, in his Epistle, describes Antichrist as one that denies both the Father and the Son: but he says, also, that "there are many Antichrists" (chap. ii. 18), and the false prophet here spoken of is eminently, if not exclusively, entitled to that character. In short, any one who assumes the place of Christ, and denies his doctrine, is an Antichrist. It would not be difficult, therefore, to demonstrate, that by admitting the worship of saints and angels, and the doctrines of human merit and priestly pardon, the adherents to Popery deny both the Father and the Son.

We conclude all our remarks on Antichrist, however, with an extract from Bishop Hurd (in the conclusion of his Lectures on Prophecy), on this subject:

"To draw, then, what hath been said on the several marks of Antichrist, to a point: consider within what part of the world he was to appear; in what seat or throne he was to be established; of what kind his sovereignty was to be; with what attributes he was to be invested; in what season, or about what time, and for how long a time, he was to reign and prosper: Consider these FIVE obvious characters of Antichrist, which the prophets have distinctly set forth, and which, from them, I have successively held up to you: and then compare them with the correspondent characters which you find inscribed by the pen of authentic history, on a certain power sprung up in the West, seated in the city of Rome, calling himself the Vicar of Christ, yet full of names of blasphemy; that is, stigmatized with those crimes which Christianity, as such, holds most opprobrious-the crimes of tyrannic dominion, of persecution, and even idolatry : and, lastly, now subsisting in the world, though with evident symptoms of decay, after a long reign; whose rise and progress can be traced, and whose duration, hitherto, is uncontradicted by any prophecy: put, I say, all these correspondent marks together, and see if they do not furnish, if not an absolute demonstration, yet a high degree of probability, that apostate Papal Rome is the very ANTICHRIST foretold.". (Sermon x1.)

But we must here add a word on the fate of Antichrist, in the conclusion of this chapter. It is remarkable, that though 856

we have a pretty full account of the preparations for this battle, and of its issue, we have no account of the battle itself. The arm of omnipotence being displayed in this conflict, we are not to wonder that its decision was so sudden and complete. By what specific means this victory shall be obtained, is not distinctly stated, but is sufficiently indicated in the name of the victor-The Word of God. So St. Paul says, respecting the "Man of sin," that "the Lord shall consume him with the breath (or spirit) of his mouth," and "the brightness of his coming."

But how is this Antichrist, which we consider not as an individual, but as a body politic, or rather ecclesiastical, to be cast into a lake of fire?"It is true," says Mr. Fuller," that neither political nor ecclesiastical bodies, as such, can be literally cast into a place of torment, as individual unbelievers that compose the will be they may, however, be cast int perdition, so as never to rise any more, which may be the whole of what is in tended. As the Christian church in her Millennial glory is described in language applicable to individual believers (ver. 8) so the Antichristian church is represented as a hardened sinner, arrested in a course of wickedness, and sent to his own place."

The beast and the false prophet being thus assigned to their proper and deserved fate, still there is a remnant of their fel lowers left; and it might naturally be asked, What shall become of them? The answer is, "They were slain by the sword of him that sat upon the horse”—whose name is called The Word of God; and the instrument by which they were subdued is "the sword which proceedeth from his mouth."

CHAP. XX.

(I) Ver. 1-3. The Millennium.—“ The removal of the beast and the false prophet, is followed by the decline of impiety and wickedness, and by the rapid growth of true religion and virtue. This is symbo lically displayed. The dragon, that ancient foe of man, who, under the disguise of a serpent, had beguiled Eve; who had lent his throne, his authority, and his arts to the beast and the false prophet, to mislead the nations and their kings, is taken and confined. His influence upon earth is wonderfully diminished. And this in