1966 Wallace Revelation

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The Book of Revelation

CONSISTING

APOCALYPSE

OF A COMMENTARY ON

THE

OF THE NEW TESTAMENT

BY

FOY E. WALLACE, J R.

(Author of The Neal-Wallace Discussion; The Certified Gospel ; The Gospel For Today (the Certified Gospel en-larged) : God’s Propheti c Wor d; Bul war ks Of T he Fai th ;



I N S C R I P T I O N



F O R E W O R D The preparation of this work has been no easy task;

it represents daily toil and midnight oil at intervals of time over a period of years. The author has no apologiesfor its production. It is the outgrowth and result in the

processes of study and research, of an evolution in thoughtand a progression of views, which cover the period of yearsbetween preparation for the polemics of the public discus-sions on millennialism beginning in 1933 down to thepresent time. These notable occasions include the debates

with Neal at Winchester, Kentucky; with Norris in FortWorth, Texas; with Webber in Oklahoma City; with Tingleyin Birmingham, Alabama ; and with Matthews in LosAngeles, California.

In theNeal -Wal l ace D i scussi on of thirty-two years ago,

and several others of later date, no positive position wasespoused by the author relative to the time and content of Revelation. Being in the negative on the millennial reignof Christ on earth his obligation was to expose the error



early churches, and that its symbols were fulfilled in theexperiences of those churches. The last hurdle was todetermine whether it was composed in the Neroan or theDomitian period of the Roman empire, and the conclusionhas been irresistible, predicated on the solid arguments

herein postulated, that the composition of the apocalypsewas of a pre-destruction of J erusalem date, under the reignof the first of the persecuting emperors of Rome--NeroCaesar.

There have been many other books on Revelation,

authored by estimable and reputable writers, within andwithout our own brotherhood, assigning the events of theapocalypse to the successive centuries and to the end of theworld; and there have been a few authors who have placedthe contents of Revelation in the Neroan or Domitian period,

but who invariably deviated from the premises in theexegesis of some of its passage in order to bring some of its events into the distant future. In these deviations anddepartures they slipped into conflicting and contradictory



liquidation of the costs of printing and marketing, andthereafter to the publication of other books, several of whichare ready for the printers and are pending publication. Thebusiness men who have made possible these publications,whose names are here withheld, will ever remain in the

author’s debt; and the personal friends and good peoplewho have “at sundry times and in divers manners” ren-dered assistance and provided encouragement are far toomany for a deserved and grateful mention. The years havetaken their toll of faithful friends whose help in times of need and days of distress has left memories which timecannot erase. Numerous others are living and willing andready to lend us aid. With a sense of deep gratitude thedebt to these worthy men in the church of our Lord “inheaven and earth” is thankfully acknowledged, with thepassionate prayer that the grace of the Father of mercies

may direct our endeavors into further fertile fields of ser-vice in the cause of “his only begotten Son,” who is over all,“the blessed and only Potentate, the K ing of kings, andLord of lords ” to whom belongs all honor and praise and



TABLE OF CONTENTS

I N S C R I P T I O N .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii

FRONTISPIECE....... .. . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . v i i i

F O R E W O R D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i x

SECTION ONE : AN APOCALYPTIC PREVIEW. l-53I . Prophecy and Theophany. II. Authenticity and Chron-ology. I I I . Symbology and Typology.

SECTION TWO: THE VISIONAL PROL OGUE 54-110

(Chapters one to three, pages 57-62)I. I ntroduction--l:l-3. II. Salutatory I ntermission1:4-8. III. The Prefatory Vision--l :9-18. IV. Interpreta-tion of the Mystery--1:19-20. V. The Seven Messages

--chapters 2-3.

SECTION THREE: THE APOCALYPSE OF THE

C O N Q U E R I N G C H R I S T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111-236



Vials of Wrath, chapter 16, pages 326-337. VIII. The SevenPlagues of Penal Woes, chapter 16 continued, pages338-343. IX. The Roman War Against J erusalem asForetold by J esus Christ in Matthew 24, pages 343-362.X. The Harlot Woman on the Scarlet Beast, chapter 17,pages 362-3’76. XI. The Final Proclamation of Doom

on J erusalem, chapter 18, pages 3’76-384. XII. The Visionof Victory, chapter 19, pages 384-398. XII I . The Bindingof Satan and the Reign of the Saints with Christ,chapter 20, pages 399-423. XIV. The Disclosure of theNew Heaven and the New Earth and the Descent of theNew J erusalem, chapter 21, pages 423-446. XV. The

Abundance of the Symbolic Blessings in the SpiritualNew J erusalem, chapter 22:1-5, pages 446-456.

SECTION FIVE : THE APOCALYPTICEPILOGUE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 5 7 - 4 7 7

(Chapter 22, verses 6 to 21, pages 459-460)

I . The Completion and Culmination of Apocalyptic Rev-elation, pages 461-462. I I . The Confirmation of theVision, chapter 22:6-16, pages 462-472. III. The Invita-tional and Benedictory Conclusion, chapter 22:17-21,



BOOK OF REVELATION

SECTION ONE



THE BOOK OF REVELATIONAN APOCALYPTIC PREVIEW

The current phrase “the book of revelation” is at once

connotative of the apocalypse of J ohn on Patmos--but thewhole Bible is the book of revelation from God to man,and is the culmination of a divine pattern and policy of God’s communication with man.

The first two verses of the Hebrew epistle in the New

Testament states the whole policy of divine revelation:“God who at sundry times and in divers manners spakein time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in theselast days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath ap-pointed heir of all things, by whom also he made theworlds.” This One who was the agent of the creation of the universe and of man became the heir of all thingsin God’s revelation to man, the culmination and fulfillmentof the scheme of divine revelation. This chain of revelation,f th i f G d i th d f Ed t th i



2 T HE B OOK OF R E V E L A T I O N

past (the old dispensations) unto the fathers (from Adamto Moses) by the prophets (the agents of ancient revela-tion) in sundry times (in various parts or portions) and

in divers manners (employing many methods of communica-tion) , but in the last days (the gospel dispensation) God hasspoken unto us by his Son (J esus the Christ), whom heappointed heir of all things (spoken by the prophets). Thevarious parts and portions were gathered into one, the

many methods merged into the completed revelation, andthe Bible thus becomes the longest thread of thought everwoven in the loom of time. This course of divine revelationis a basic principle of the present treatise.

I

PROPHECY AND THEOPHANY

The Book of Revelation being admittedly an apocalypse,



AN APOCALYPTIC PREVIEW 3

and delusive, and must be regarded as impious in char-acter.

The vision in the periods of direct divine revelations

was a means by which God, through persons whom heappointed, revealed Himself and communicated his will.In this sense the vision was an oracle from God, and inthe Old Testament the term had reference to the MostHoly Place of the temple, where God through the high

priests revealed and declared his will to the people of Israel. (I K ings 6:5, 19, 23; 8:6) In the New Testamentthe word is used only in the plural, as in Rom. 3 :2 ; Heb.5 :12 ; I Pet. 4 :11, and refers to the inspired Scriptureswhich contain the will of God, revealed to the men of God

who were “moved by the Holy Spirit.” The oracles of theheathen world were uttered from their shrines, and atone time were consulted and held in repute and fear bykings, but did not long withstand the corruptive influences




vernacular of today has been the root of all error. Theprophets of the Old Testament were the “men of God”whom God authorized and inspired to reveal the things of

the future, whose prophecies were not mere prognosticationand human interpretation based on current events as thepremise from which to draw their conclusions for futuredevelopment. The character of true prophecy is such thatthere is no example in the present upon which to form a

prophetic premise from which to draw a prophetic con-clusion. “Knowing this first, that no prophecy of scriptureis of any private interpretation. For the prophecy camenot in old time by the will of man: but holy men of Godspake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” (II Pet.

1:20-21) Thus prophecy must be so far removed from any-thing in the present that there is no existing example of thething prophesied upon which to base the prediction of thefuture event. Otherwise there would exist in the prophecy




prophecy concerning things to come, that no example forit existed. But the whole vision of the Book Of Revel at i on was surrounded by existing events already in a state of development, and it was written in code as a warning tothe churches living in that period, endangered by theseconditions and facing the perils of persecution thereindelineated. If Revelation is “a book of future prophecy,”then we are in a regime of prophecy still, and living in anage of prophecy. But the Lord declared in Luke 16:16 that

“the law and the prophets were until J ohn: since that timethe kingdom of God is preached, and every man pressethinto it.” The phrase “until J ohn” here does not mean until

J ohn appeared, but until J ohn’s order ended. At the houseof Cornelius, in Acts 10:37, Peter used the phrase “after

the baptism which J ohn preached.” J esus said “until” J ohn,and Peter said “after” J ohn. Obviously after J ohn meantaf ter the cr oss; and un t i l J ohn meant un ti l th e cr oss. J esusdid not say that th e l aw was until the cross--he said the law




things” spoken by the prophets in that he is the fulfillmentof these “all things.” In Eph. 1:10-11 the same apostleuses the same phrase “all things” in reference to the

old and the new dispensations, saying: “That in the dis-pensation of the fulness of time he might gather togetherin one all things in Christ . . . according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his will.” The telescopes of the prophets were all focused on J esus

Christ; and the types of the old dispensation all pointedto Him who became “the heir of all things” thus spoken.

Like other students the author has in the past attemptedto tread the tangled maze of “the future prophecy” theoryof Revelation from A. D. 96 through the “dark ages” to

the end of time--and like all the others who did so, hebogged down in the meshes of the wildernesses! Such aneffort is as traditional as the Catholic calendar of popesfrom the apostle Peter in A D 33 to pope Paul VI of 1963--



AN APOCALYPT IC PRE V I E W 7

part for symbols that were fulfilled in the correspondingevents of the century of the apocalyptic disclosure. This“dark ages” network of prophetic bewilderment has so

trammelled the Book Of Revelation, and made it to bristlewith so many difficulties, that most readers and studentsof all other books of the New Testament shrink from anyeffort to understand and apply the symbolic language of theapocalypse, in the vague dread of the fearful future events

of a wholesale onslaught of reckless fury to be launchedagainst the church, either to overwhelm us in our day or toovertake our children in another day. So they stop readingthe New Testament at the end of J ude.

All who have followed these prophetic meanderings have

been misled into theological back alleys. The relation of the contents of Revelation to the persecution of the churchis undeniable, and there is no reason to look beyond theperiod of these persecutions for their fulfillment. The sym-



8 THE BOOK OF REVELATION

Israel--the exile and the dominion of the wicked lords,and in short the cause of th e Ol d . Testam ent chu r ch , thepeople of God, in conflict with the existing heathen powers. The apocalypse of J ohn in Revelation similarly portrays

the struggle and triumph of the early Christians--the New Testament church--in conflict with the existing J ewish andRoman persecuting powers in the period of their persecu-tions. All forms of apocalypse ended with the age of inspiration; there have been no revelations since, and there

are no visions or apocalypses or prophecies of divine sourcetoday.

For every phase, feature and symbol of the visions of Revelation, there is a parallel in the Old Testamentapocalypses. They are related in both character and de-

scription to the visions of J ohn on the isle of Patmos. Theclassification and structure of the Old Testament books areessential to the application of the similar portions of theNew Testament, such as the discourse of J esus on the



AN APOCALYPTIC PREV I EW 9

prophecy in the sense of the foretelling of future eventsmust have been so far removed from anything in thepresent that there could have been not even an examplein the present of that which was prophesied--otherwise

the element of human foresight, based on the developmentof the current events, would have obviously existed. Butthe visions of J ohn were based on existent conditions andsurrounded by events already in a state of development.

This fact removes the Book Of Revelat i on from the category

of “future prophecy” and places it in the classification of apocalyptic vision relating to the fortunes of the New

Testament churches in the midst of J ewish, Roman andPagan persecutions, comparable to and parallel with theapocalypses of Ezekiel in relation to the fortunes of the

Old Testament Israel. The symbolic and typical system of the old dispensation,with its altars, visions and apocalypses, pointed to fulfill-ment in Christ and the church. The blood stream of the




would be to the darkened world of humanity in sin. Infulfillment of the prophecies He came ; the Sun Of Right-eousness had arisen, and it cast the beams of splendoracross the crest of Calvary, glimmering and glistening in

the blood of the crucified Son of God, who thus became“the heir of all things” spoken by the prophets. “And hesaid unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you,while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled,which were written in the law of Moses, and in the

prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. Then openedhe their understanding, that they might understand thescriptures.” (Lk. 24:44-45) “And when they had ful-filled all that was written of him, they took him down fromthe tree.” (Acts 13:2 9) J esus Christ is the heir of all things

spoken by the prophets.Having shown the object of prophecy and apocalypse,

it is now in order to list the parallelism and application inthe prophets of old and the apostle of Patmos




consume it, and that they would remain so before allenemies. Here is a forecast, not only of the fortunes of thenation of Israel, but also of the “Israel of God” in Gal. 6 :16.

(4) The song of Moses--Exodus 15. These richly poetic and prophetic verses compose amagnificent song of triumph and victory over Egypt anddeliverance from Pharaoh’s power and sovereignty. It iscomparable to the Song Of M oses And The L amb in the

apocalypse of Revelation.(5) The tabernacle in the wilderness--Exodus 25.

This unusually remarkable and amazing tent of thewilderness of Sinai was a symbol of the manifestation,presence and dwelling of God in and with his people--an

outward demonstration of an inward dwelling among them,and is again set forth spiritually in I I Cor. 6:16-18and inchapters 11:19 and 21:3 of Revelation.



12 THE BOOK OF REVEL AT ION

dead in exile would live and exult in triumph over deliver-ance from the lords of Babylon. The expressions “thy dead”and “my body” refer to the collective body of Israel, whichwould rise from the dead state of captivity, and findsparallel in the figurative resurrection of the persecutedsaints in the throne scene of Revelation, chapter 20-l-6.

(9) The new heaven and earth for Israel--Isaiah 66:22.

The deliverance of Israel from Babylonian exile is

called their new heaven and new earth, when Israel re-turned from the Babylon of captivity to the land of theirfathers. I t finds symbolic parallel in the New Testamentchurch emerging from the Roman persecutions into theirnew heaven and new earth of victory.

(10) The winged creatures of Ezekiel--Ezekiel 1:4-28;10 : l-22.

The visions begin with the view of the opened heavens




(13) The branch, throne, priest and ruler--Zechariah6:9-15 ; Hebrews 4 :7-11; 8 :4.

The description of the priest and king on the throne andthe apocalypse of the temple are typical of the spiritual

priesthood and kingship of J esus Christ, who in fulfillmentof this prophecy was king and priest at the same time, asset forth in the Hebrew references and other parts of theNew Testament, including the imagery of Revelation.

(14) The fountain for sin--Zechariah 13:l-6.

This chapter points to Christ and to the crucifixion,where he was “wounded in the house of his friends”--bythe J ews who crucified him, as declared in J no. 1:11.Thevision channels the blood stream of redemption in the Old Testament forward to its crimson flow from the cross of

Calvary.

(15) The living waters of J erusalem--Zechariah 14:1-21.




is no sign mentioned below the thirty-fourth verse of Matthew 24, and it reads: “Verily I say unto you, Thisgeneration shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.” They were fulfilled before the passing of that generation,

in the events accompanying the destruction of J erusalem.(18) The apocalypse of J ohn in Revelation--in twenty-

two chapters. The apocalypse of J ohn in Revelation is but the ex-

tension of the descriptions of Christ in Matthew 24, of thedestruction of J erusalem, the signs preceding it, and theevents connected with it, before and after the siege. It rep-resents the blending of the apocalypses of the old and newtestaments, which form the basis of this treatise of Revela-tion.

AUTHENTICITY AND CHRONOLOGY




as Philip Schaff, the translator of the American StandardVersion, published in 1901. and many others of his classwho believe in the integrity, authenticity, credibility andinspiration of the Bible.

The claim regarding the differences in the language andstyle of Revelation, and of J ohn’s gospel and epistles, are of similar nature and intent. Such differences, if their ex-istence is actual, are attributable to the apocalyptic char-acter of Revelation--that it is not an epistle of J ohn’s

composition, but was dictated to J ohn by the angel; there-fore it was the language of the angel and not in his ownstyle. In his own epistles the Holy Spirit utilized J ohn’spersonality, style and language, but in Revelation it wasthat of the angel of Christ as plainly stated in chapter 1 :1.I t must also be considered that J ohn was “in the spirit”when Revelation was dictated to him, and was no more thanthe visional amanuensis to write from dictation the wordsof the angel of Christ.




apostasies of the Galatian churches “so soon removed”from Christ, as stated in Gal. 1:6 ; and of the Hebrewteachers and members, as mentioned in Heb. 6:1-6 and10:25-39, together seem to refute the impossibility of such

an early apostasy of the Asian churches, if not altogetherthe claim of improbabilities that departures in the churchescould have occurred and did occur that soon. The evidencesof these early apostasies are also seen in such passages asRom. 16:17 and I J ohn 2 :15. The argument for the late

Domitian date of Revelation, therefore, lacks finality andis entirely too inadequate for proof.

The argument for the early Neroan date has solidinternal proof--within the book itself--and external his-torical support by recognized and respectable scholars of

high standing.In the first book of the eight volume set entitled The

H i stor y Of The Chr i st i an Chur ch, by the world recognizedhistorian Philip Schaff the author cited a group of twenty




In addition to the consensus of the views of such animpressive array of scholars as mentioned and commendedin Schaff’s history, there are the testimonies of othereminents such as Charles Wordsworth, of Cambridge

(author of the multiple volume Commentar y On T he B i ble,and the long out of print volume entitled L ectu r es On The Apocalypse; and Milton S. Terry, of the Garrett BiblicalInstitute of the Northwestern University (author of Bib l i ca l Apocalypt ics) ; and J ames M. MacDonald, of

Princeton (author of The L i fe and Wr i t i ngs Of J ohn ).In the Commenta ry and the Lectures Wordsworth

stoutly opposed the various forms of millennialism andcommitted himself to the view of the early origin of Revela-tion. He argued forcefully against the theory of the future

millennium based on the twentieth chapter of Revelation,saying in substance that the millennialists have all com-monly supposed the apocalypse to be a continuous

h ti hi t fl i i l h l i l t



18THE BOOK OF REVELATION

tions of political import are not the objectin Revelation.

of the visions

The importance of this phase of the study of Revelation

justifies the further mention and consideration of History Of The Chr i st i an Chur ch, by Philip Schaff, the internationalscholar, theologian and historian, who was the president of the translating committee for the American Standard Re-vised Version of 1885-1901, composed of one hund r ed one

of the world’s ripest scholars. The statements that follow,gathered from the first volume of his history, summing upthe views of a galaxy of scholars, historians, theologiansand commentators, weigh heavily in favor of the earlyNeroan date for the Book Of Revelat i on .

The gist of the testimony of these authorities, as con-firmed by Schaff’s history, is here submitted in the follow-ing abridged summation :

(1) That none of the leading apostles remained to




96, rests on the testimony of I renaeus, and has the supportof some learned defenders, but the internal evidencestrongly favors the earlier date, before the destruction of J erusalem.--Page 834.

(4) That the apocalypse is a Christian counterblastagainst the Neronian persecution, with Nero representedas the beast of the abyss, and the number 666 signifyingthe very name of this imperial monster in the Hebrew let-ters--NERON CAESAR--as follows : N-50 ; R-200 ; O-6;

N-50; K-100; S-60; R-200 the sum of which is 666.--Page 845.

(5) That the Neronian coins of Asia bear the inscrip-tion of Nero Caesar, the first and most wicked of all im-perial persecutors of Christianity, and who was eminently

worthy of being characterized as the beast of the abyss,and who was regarded as the embodiment of Antichrist.--Page 846.

(6) That the Hebrew letters for 666 correspond to the




A fair weighing of the arguments thus far adducedshows that they all (referring to early writers) exceptingthe statement of I renaeus, favor the early rather than later

date. The facts appealed to indicate the times before ratherthan after the destruction of J erusalem.--Page 258.Now, there is no contention that Galatians and Hebrews

were written before the destruction of J erusalem, and, tosay the least, the most natural explanation of the allusionsreferred to is to suppose that the Apocalypse was alreadywritten, and that Paul and many others of his day werefamiliar with its contents. Writers who cite passages fromthe apostolic fathers to prove the priority of the gospelof J ohn are the last persons in the world who should pre-sume to dispute the obvious priority of the Apocalypse of J ohn to Galatians and Hebrews. For in no case are thealleged quotations of Gospel more notable or striking thanthese allusions to the Apocalypse in the New Testament




written in Matt. 24, Mark 13 and Luke 21. They concernedthe approaching end of that age, the overthrow of J eru-salem, and with it the old covenant of Mount Sinai. .. . . I twas necessary that these things come to pass shor t l y, for

J esus had repeatedly declared that the consummation of that age and his coming in his kingdom would take placebefore that generation passed away.--Page 276.

The exhaustive treatise on The L i fe And Wri t i ngs Of

John, by J ames M. MacDonald, of Princeton, was producedas a companion to the inestimable work of Conybeare andHowson on The L i fe And Epi st l es Of Paul , and ranks with

it in worth and merit and scholarship. In this work theauthor, MacDonald, devotes an entire section to the affirma-tion that Revelation was written before the siege andd t ti f J l D t H f E l d th



22

THE BOOK OF REVELATION

the author’s argument in favor of the early date of Revela-tion are observed from the following quotations:

The question whether the Apocalypse was written atan early date or in the very closing period of the apostolicministration has importance as bearing on the interpreta-

tion of the book. A true exposition depends, in no smalldegree, upon a knowledge of the existing condition of thingsat the time it was written ; i. e., of the true point in historyoccupied by the writer, and those whom he originally ad-dressed. . . . I f the book were an epistle, like that to the

Romans or to the Hebrews, it might be of comparativelylittle importance, in ascertaining its meaning, to be able todetermine whether it was written at the commencementof the apostolic era or at its very close




we open the book itself, and find inscribed on its very pagesevidence that at the time it was written J ewish enemieswere still arrogant and active, and the city in which ourLord was crucified, and the temple and the altar in it were

still standing, we need no date from early antiquity, noteven from the hand of the author himself, to inform usthat he wrote before that great historical event andprophetic epoch, the destruction of J erusalem.”

The present problem to this author is not to find the

facts to sustain the premises of this treatise on the periodto which the Book Of Revelat i on belongs, but rather toselect them. Before passing from the external testimony of eminent authorities to the examination of the internal evi-dence of the book itself, this part of the section would not

be complete without the inclusion of a few other references.First : The chronology on Revelation on the title page of

the Syriac Version of the New Testament assigns the datet th A D 68 before th d t ti f J l




ing writers have fallen into the same blunder. The internaltestimony is wholly in favor of the earlier date.”

Fourth: In a Catecheti cal Commen tar y on the New Testament (in question and answer form) William Hurte,of Edinburgh, Scotland, wrote in 1884: “That J ohn sawthese visions in the reign of Nero, and that they werewritten by him during his banishment by that emperor, isconfirmed by Theophylact, Andreas, Arethas, and others.We judge, therefore, that this book was written about A. D.68, and this agrees with other facts of history . . . Thereare also several statements in this book which can only beunderstood on the ground that the judgment upon J erusa-lem was then future.”

Fifth : In Dissertations, on the verbally parallel passagesof the New Testament, pointing to the same tribulations Tilloch, a reputable early scholar, finds proof in these paral-lels for the early date of Revelation before the destruction




the conclusion that the apocalypse was seen at that time.But the argument has been reduced to a logomachy, a warof words, as to whether the statement of Irenaeus meantthat John was seen or that the apocalypse was seen, and it

has little, if any value, as evidence. Moreover it is statedby J erome that in the year A. D. 96 the apostle was so agedand weak and infirm that “he was with difficulty carried tothe church, and could speak only a few words to the people.” This fact is incompatible with the interpretations of the

alleged claim of I renaeus, based on the reference in Euse-bius. Furthermore, the fact that Eusebius denied that theapostle J ohn was the author of Revelation, and assignedits authorship to what is called “another J ohn,” castsserious reflection on the worthiness of this particular testi-

mony and renders its value as evidence virtually nil.Commenting on the weight of the Irenaeus claim, as anargument touching the date of Revelation, Professor MiltonS. Terry makes the following extended comment in Bib l ica l




is that the man who saw the visions of the Apocalypse hadlived almost into the times to which I renaeus belonged, andhad it been needful to declare the name of the Antichristhe would himself have done it. The time when J ohn saw the

Apocalypse was of no consequence for determining thename of the Antichrist so long as the apostle himself wasyet alive. There is more reason for believing that the ref-erence is to the Apocalypse in the fact that Irenaeus else-where says that J ohn lived on into the times of Trajan.

2. But admitting that I renaeus refers to the Apocalypseas having been seen near the close of Domitian’s reign, hisambiguous statement is the only external evidence of anyreal value for determining the question. All other state-ments are later, and like the numerous statements of Euse-

bius, seem to be either repeated from Irenaeus or based onmere inferences. And it is notorious that even Eusebius,after Irenaeus and others, leaves the question of the author-ship of the Apocalypse in doubt--Pages 256-57




written during the reign of Nero, before the siege and de-struction of Jerusalem; that it was an apocalypse of theoverthrow of apostate Jerusalem, the obliteration of theJewish theocracy with the demolition of the temple, the

calamitous downfall of Judaism and the catastrophic endof the Jewish state; that in apocalyptic imagery it describesthe tribulations of persecution that engulfed the earlychurch and overwhelmed its members in suffering ; that theconflict with the persecuting powers ended in the victoryof the Cause for which Christians suffered and martyrsdied, symbolized in the triumphant scenes of a figurativeresurrection and enthronement--and, all in all, that thevisions of the Book Of Revelation were fulfilled in the ex-

periences of churches of that period, and that the apocalypse does not extend beyond the era of the Roman persecu-tion of the church.

To establish these premises it must first be shown be-yond reasonable doubt, by the contents of the apocalypse




the greatest importance, a translation of the Bible--com-monly called Peshito (“simple”), because it was literal andnot paraphrastic--which was made in the second century.It is the earliest of the direct versions.”

I t is of “greatest importance” now to observe that this“earliest of the direct versions” places the period of theApocalypse in the reign of Nero, hence, before the destruc-tion of J erusalem. This fact is cited by MacDonald, in T he L i fe And Wr i t i ngs Of J ohn, on page 171, as follows: “Inthe Syriac version this book is entitled: ‘The Revelationwhich was made by God to J ohn the evangelist in theisland Patmos, into which he was thrown by Nero Caesar’.And Theophylact, in the eleventh century, places the originof the Apocalypse during the reign of Nero.” Here is adouble-barreled combined internal and external testimonyin favor of the Neroan date of Revelation.

(2) Th hi i l b k d f i i h




ism, the empire could tolerate it; but the mere professionof Christianity was pronounced a crime worthy of death.

In the reign of Nero a great conflagration enveloped

Rome. The old saying that “Nero fiddled while Rome burned” is due to the common belief that he instigated the burning of the city. High authorities considered the emperor guilty, others were inclined to leave it an open ques-tion, but whether guilty or innocent the emperor must have

a scapegoat, and he found it in Christians. At the firstChristianity had been regarded by the empire as merely anew Jewish sect, but it had now come into a position of distinction from Judaism, and the Roman world was awareof this distinction. The riots which had erupted in the reign

of Claudius had created prejudice and engendered hatredagainst them in provinces other than Judea, and they werecommonly believed guilty of the crimes for which they werecharged Before Rome burned the people of the empire




minence of these events ; and if they were not to occur intheir own time there was no point for such urgency of ex-hortation, considering the suppositions of the theory thatmakes these events so far removed from them and evennow remote to us. These events had application to thepersecutions resulting from the destruction of J erusalem ;

the conflict with the powers of heathenism in the Romanempire, and in ruin of the Great City (J erusalem) “wherethe Lord was crucified,” which had become apostate--"afaithful city turned harlot.” The description of these eventsis parallel with and an extension of the same events morebriefly pictured in the Lord’s summary of them in Matthew24. In this light the Apocalypse has a clear and unforcedmeaning and immediate application. But the application of these time elements and allusions, to events millenniumsafter the date of the visions, and to the centuries yet tocome renders the whole book unreal its language unnatural



AN

APOCALYPTIC

PREVIEW 31

persecutions in the chapters and verses named identifies thedate of Revelation with these early J ewish persecutions.

(5) The activities of the J udaizers mentioned in the

letters to the seven churches--2 :l-6 ; 11:13.

There are clear and repeated references in the lettersto the churches, and other parts of the apocalypses to theprevalent activities of the J udaizers, and to their existence

and presence in the churches as a source of strife, trouble,discord and contention. But after the destruction of J erusa-lem, the demolition of the temple, the overthrow of theirtheocracy and the end of the J ewish state, the activities of the J udaizers became nonexistent, and their influence nulland void.

(6) The definite existence of the J ewish state at thetime of J ohn’s visions--6: 1-17 ; 9 :l-21.




necessarily indicates an earlier period, before A. D. 70,for the date of the Apocalypse.

(8) The indication that other apostles than J ohn were

known to be living--2:2.

I f it were known that J ohn alone survived, the claim of the pretenders “which say they are apostles,” thus claimingthat there were other apostles than J ohn yet alive, wouldhave been so palpably false as to have been completely un-tenable, and none would have dared to make the claim. I f the churches were aware that no other apostle than J ohnwas then living, as they would have assuredly known if the late date is correct, such a claim would have been soutterly false that no such crisis over it could have existedin the Ephesian church as that which made it necessary tobring the imposters to trial.




to reckon the succession of emperors, and we must arrivewith certainty at the reign under which the Apocalypsewas written or was seen.” And beginning with J uliusCaesar he adds: “It stands thus: (J ulius) Caesar, Augus-

tus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius; these make up the fivewho have fallen. ‘One is’--Nero.” MacDonald then adds:“The ancients, although the empire was not fully establishedtill the time of Augustus, reckoned from J ulius Caesar.”

Considering the same passage in point, Milton S. Terry,

in Bibl ical Apocalyptics, comments on page 259, as follows:“This (the early date) receives additional confirmation inthe fact that the book assumes to belong to the period of the sixth king as mentioned in 17:10, ‘the one that now is’,and if we follow the most natural method of reckoning the

Caesars, and the one which appears in Suetonius and Sibyl-line Oracles, we have (1) J ulius, (2) Augustus, (3) Ti-berius, (4) Caligula, (5) Claudius, (6) Nero. The reign of




the beast, identifies the time of the Apocalypse with thepersecutions of Nero--Chapter 13 : 16-18.

It has been shown by various scholars that the Hebrewconsonants, the Latin letters and the Greek characters, in

the official name of Ner o Caesar , when broken down intonumerals, all add up to the sum of 666. An impressivecolumn of scholars, commentators and historians have veri-fied this fact with a finality that cannot be questioned.

The juggling of these numerals in different languages

can be made to represent numerically this number, in theLatin, for instance, the name of La t e i n u s a medieval pope,and a variety of others in like fashion--but a relevant nameis required to harmonize with the text of the Apocalypse.By reason of the fact that the sixth ruler is mentioned in

the context, nothing can be more relevant to the vision norconclusive from the premises than for Nero-Caesar to bethe persecuting beast of this mystic number. In the search




is” refers to Nero, the sixth, in the line of succession from J ulius Caesar. It allows no alternative choice, and thosewho consider these points without pre-possession of mindconcerning the continuous historical pageant character of Revelation can come to no other conclusion than that of theearlier date, in the reign of Nero, the sixth emperor of Rome in succession to J ulius, the first of the RomanCaesars.

(12) The existence of only seven churches in Asia, at

the time of the vision, sets the date before the destructionof J erusalem--l:4-11.

By reason of the fact that the preamble of the bookaddresses the seven chur ches, it is evident that the visionwas received when there were only seven churches in pro-

consular Asia. But after the destruction of J erusalem, as aresult of the diffusion of Christianity, the Asian churcheswere numerous, as was foretold in the Lord’s description




kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reignforever and ever.” Like the Matthew passage, this versereferred to the expansion of the gospel after the destructionof J erusalem, and the everlasting extent of the kingdom and

reign of J esus Christ.I t has been offered as a counter argument that thechurches of Colosse and Hierapolis were both in Asia, andare not included in the mention of the seven churches inthe letters of the Apocalypse. But the historical fact is thatafter “the great earthquake,” by which this region was sodreadfully shaken, that these cities were not rebuilt andthe congregations merged with Laodicea. Geographically,these cities were separated by only a few miles, and it wasentirely feasible for the congregations to consolidate afterthis catastrophe. So the churches named did not maintaina separate existence after the earthquake, about the middleof the century, before the date of the Apocalypse. This factis verified by Philip Schaff, in his Dicti onar y Of The Bi ble,




evidence is accumulative in favor of the Neroan period be-fore the destruction of J erusalem for the date of Revelation.

(13) The numerous exhortations in the letters to theseven churches identify the date of the Apocalypse with the

experiences of the churches of that period--l-3. There are terms employed and expressions used in each

of the seven letters which clearly indicate that the eventsenvisioned would come within the life and experience of these churches.

1. The repeated use of the phrase “he that overcometh,”in all seven of the letters, is indicative of an imminent trialof faith by ominous impending events, forecasting a mo-mentous struggle. This word “overcome” is given an un-usual emphasis in both the apocalypse and in the epistle of J ohn, and the uses of it in his epistle may well be portentsof the same approaching crisis.

2 Th h t ti i h t 2 10 f th t “f




day and you wi l l go to heaven after death. The phrase“unto death” here means martyrdom ; and “a crown of life”is in contrast the reward. Paraphrasing the passage, itreads: Be faithful even unto martyrdom and your crown

will be life. I t is an advance martyr scene, as verse 10shows: “He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the seconddeath” ; and it finds fulfillment in the victory scenes of chapter twenty. To apply these things of Revelation to ayet historical future is to “wrest the scriptures” and remove

them from the context.

5. The commendation of patience, in chapter 2 :19,coupled with the advance warning to the church at Thyatirathat the supreme trial to come upon them was in the seer’s

crystal, was a dread portent of a yet unleashed assault uponthe church. “And the last to be more than the first”-theywere standing upon the threshold of events which wouldrequire patience in greater degree than at the first or




6. The promise of the preservation of the Philadelphianchurch through this period of trial, in chapter 3 :10, isnothing short of p r ima fac ie evidence that the events of theApocalypse belonged to and transpired in the period of the

experiences of these existing churches--3 :7-13. The pivotal passage in the letter to Philadelphia is thetenth verse : “Because thou has kept the word of my pa-tience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation(trans. “the hour of trial”), which shall come upon all the

world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.” Here is theaugur of the frightful onslaught that would strike thechurch in all parts of the Roman world. It is the invulner-able evidence that these portended events belonged to thatperiod of time, and to assign them to a continuous historicalfuture is anachronistic--an error in the order of time. Andto say that the passage means that these events would notoccur in the lifetime of the Philadelphian church reducesthe Lord’s promise to the nonsense of saying that he would




1 :11,Heb. 9 :28) ; to his chosen apostles in the church(J no. 14 :3) ; to the coming of his kingdom on Pentecost(Matt. 16 :28 ; Mark 9 :1) ; to the destruction of J erusalem(Zech. 14:1-4; Matt. 24:30, Mark 13:26; Luke 21:27) ; tothe death of a Christian at the end of life (Psa. 23 :4 ; I

Cor. 1:7-8) ; to the end of time (I Cor. 11:26; I Thess.4 :15) ; to the last judgment (Matt. 25 :30-31; II Thess.1:6-10) ; and to the rewards and judgments in the eventsof trial described in Revelation, as mentioned in the lettersto the seven churches (Rev. 2:5; 2:16; 2:25; 3:3; 3:11;

3 :20).

In the counsels to the declining and backsliding churchesthere are such phrases as “I will come unto thee quickly,and will remove thy candlestick out of its place”; and, "Iwill come to thee quickly and fight against them”; and, “Iwill come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know whathour I will come upon thee”--these are the warnings of the Lord’s coming in the events of judgment But to the




Lord J esus.” And He did come in the transpiring events of the Patmos vision.

There is no truth so evident, when the facts are broughtinto proper focus and perspective, as that of the presentthesis--that the Book Of Revel at i on was written before

the destruction of J erusalem, and its visions fulfilled in theexperiences of the early church.

(14) The parallels between the Lord’s forecasts of thedestruction of J erusalem in Matthew 24, and J ohn’s visions

in Revelation, join them together as being descriptions of the same events and as belonging to the same period of time. The following comparisions will show Revelation to be

an enlargement and extension of the discourse on MountOlivet in the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew (and in theparallel chapters of the thirteenth chapter of Mark and thetwenty-first chapter of Luke), of which J erusalem and J udaism and the J ewish state were the subjects and objects.

1 M tth 24 34 R l ti 1 1




her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold,your house is left unto you desolate."--Matthew.

“And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of thegreat city, which is spiritually called Sodom and Egypt,

where also our Lord was crucified” . . . “When, they shallsee the smoke of her burning, standing afar off for fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon,that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come”. . . “Thus with violence shall that great city Babylon be

thrown down, and shall be found no more”--Revelation.(In the commentary on these verses it is shown that as J erusalem was “spiritually called Sodom and Egypt, in11:8, the Babylon of chapter 18 is the symbolic name for

J erusalem).

4. Matthew 24 :16-21--Revelation 12 :6.

“Then let them which be in J udea flee into the moun-t i L t hi th t i th h t t d t



AN

APOCALYPTIC

PREVIEW 43

6. Matthew 24 :31--Revelation 11: 15.“And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a

trumpet, and they shall gather his elect from the fourwinds, from one end of heaven to the other”--Matthew.

“And the seventh angel sounded ; and there were greatvoices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of the world arebecome the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; andhe shall reign forever and ever”--Revelation.

This last parallel refers to the end of the period of per-

secution and visualizes the success of the church, whengospel emissaries (designated as angels) would proclaimthe gospel to the four winds--“from one end of heaven tothe other”--as described in the Matthew account. And inRevelation the scene envisions the universal sway of the

kingdom of Christ by the spread of the gospel, as the king-doms of the world became the kingdoms of God and of hisChrist. Both passages describe the universal expansion of




can be established by the period to which its language be-longed. The Septuagint version of the Hebrew Old Testa-ment (the Greek Old Testament) introduced the Hebraisticelement into the Greek, about 270 B. C. I t is claimed by

these scholars that this element is definite in the style andlanguage of Revelation; and that the comparison withJ ohn ’s Gospel lends weight to the evidence that Revelationwas composed many years prior to both the gospel and theepistles of J ohn. And any supposition to the contrary has

been declared to be a defiance of all observation andexperience in critical processes. The fact that Hebraisticelement had disappeared at the later time assigned to Reve-lation is considered by this class of ranking scholars as in-vulnerable evidence of the early date, before the destruction

of J erusalem.

(17) The various allusions in the other New Testamentepistles to the contents of Revelation indicate that it was




lem as the spiritual Babylon of the Apocalypse--Rev. 17:5 ;Isa. 1:21.

As the prophet in the Isaiah reference compared thef ormer apostasies of J erusalem to harlotry--“How is the

faithful city become an harlot! It was full of judgment;righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers”--so theseer in Revelation envisioned apostate J erusalem as theharlot and the mother of harlots in this later apocalypse. There is not a line in either secular or sacred history to

prove that Rome was ever a faithful city ; but the oncefaithful J erusalem that turned har lo t , the apostate J erusa-lem, the spiritual Babylon, was the harlot city of Revela-tion, and its fate along with the J ewish theocracy was theobject of J ohn’s visions. (Further references to these points

will be found in the comments on these verses in the com-mentary section of this work).

(19) The nature of the contents of the New Testament



46 THE BOOK OF

REVELATION

the downfall of their theocracy, and the end of their J ewishstate.

(21) The announcement of warning to the members

of the churches living at that time is proof that the eventsenvisioned would occur in their life time, and is evidencethat the symbols of the apocalypse applied to that period.--1:3; 22:10.

The emphasized imminence of these events in the repe-titions of the phrases “the time is at hand,” and “shortlycome to pass,” and “come’ quickly,” is the primary proof that the succession of happenings related to that period,not to the remotest times of the far future centuries.

(22) The code language of the Apocalypse, in the sym-bolic descriptions of the persecutors and of the persecutingpowers, is the p i l la r and ground of all other evidences that



AN APOCALYPTIC

I I I

47

SYMBOLOGY AND TYPOLOGY

PREVIEW

As a further preliminary to entering into the analysis

of The Book Of Revelat i on , and a commentary on its verses,a specific study of symbols and types, in addition to theprevious discussion of visions and theophanies is in orderfor the symbolic character of Revelation is the culminationof all biblical apocalyptics

(1) The symbolic pattern.

The parallels and comparisons in the visions of theprophets and the apocalypses of J ohn will demonstrate thatRevelation is the climax and crown of them all. The simi-

larities between the typology of the former and the sym-bolics of the latter, establishes a divine pattern of thetypical and symbolical form of divine revelation, showingth th i t bl it i th b k f th




6. The vision of the horses with mingled colors--Zechariah 1 and Revelation 6.

7. The vision of measuring J erusalem--Zechariah 2 andRevelation 11.

8. The vision of the ruling priest-king on the throne--Zechariah 6 and Revelation 5.

9. The forecast of the siege and fall of J erusalem--Zechariah 14 and Revelation 14.

10. The vision of the holy city, the new J erusalem--Zechariah 14 and Revelation 21.

11. The vision of the seven golden candlesticks--Zechariah 4 and Revelation 1.

12. The vision of the living waters flowing from J eru-salem--Zechariah 13-14 and Revelation 21-22.

The foregoing chart of comparisons of the old and the




are employed, and beasts and birds, and names and num-bers. The calamities of war, pestilence and famine, of con-quests and victories, are all envisioned--and all these willbe defined and applied in the progress of these commen-

taries. It is sufficient here to list their uses and meaningsin their respective categories.

1. The ai r refers to the sphere of life and influence, as“the prince of the power of the air” in Eph. 2:1.

2. The earth designates the place of the nations, par-ticularly Palestine, as in chapter 13 : 11-12, where the earthand the beast of the earth referred to Palestine, in contra-distinction from the emperor beast of Rome, from over thesea.

3. The quaking of the earth signified the shaking of nations, as in Rev. 16:18, where “the great earthquake”symbolized an upheaval in the nations.



50 T HE B OOK OF RE V E L A T I O N

of the white horse in the scene of sixth chapter, the Christ.Black was the sign of distress and calamity, as signified bythe rider of the black horse. Red was the evil omen of warand bloodshed, as symbolized by the red horse. Pale pre-

sented the aura of death, as is specified for the pale horseand its rider, in chapter 6 :8. Purple represents the show of pomp and luxury, as in the great harlot woman of chapter17:4, and of the once great city of J erusalem in chapter18 :16. Emerald was the emblem of divine grace and good-

ness and patience, as in chapter 4:3.

(3) The symbolic drama.

In the classification of the an ima ls in the visions, thecomposite beasts, with multiple heads and horns, tails and

toes, were the representation of varied characters of thepersecutors, and the various characteristics of the per-secuting powers, whether J ewish or Roman, or the com-




in complete victory. There is nothing said in the text orcontext of the r ei gn of Chr i st, but rather the reigning of thesaints wi th Christ, which represents the spiritual stateafter the victory over the persecutions. The words reigned

and reign in Rev. 20:4-6 denote the same spiritual stateas the same words do in Rom. 5 :17 and I Cor. 4:8and II Tim. 2 :12, all of which are used in the sense of the spiritualreign with Christ in the sacrifice and service of our fellow-ship with him.

The word thousand is mentioned in Revelation about ascore of times, and is a per fect number , as elsewhere in theBible in such references as Deut. 7 :9 : “Know ye thereforethat the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, whichkeepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and

keep his commandments to a thousand generations.” Also inI Chron. 16 :15, in a song of praise. David said : “Be yemindful always of his covenant; the word which he com-




The vision of the new he aven and the new ear th wasdescriptive of the state of victory and success after theperiod of persecutions through which they had passed, com-parable to Isaiah’s description of the deliverance of Israel

from exile in Babylon to their land of J udea, as recorded inIsa. 65 :17 and 66;22-23. This was called Israel’s “newheaven and new earth”; and the scenes of chapters 20 to22 of Revelation were the like depictions, symbolicallynarrated, of the deliverance of the church from tribulation

into the state of victory and blessing that followed. The figurative resurrection of these chapters form that

counterpart, previously mentioned, of the visions of thedeliverance of Israel from captivity, figuratively set forth inIsa. 26:13-19 and Ezek. 37:11-14 as the resurrection of the

people of Israel. The symbol of the spiritual J erusalem is used by theapostle Paul, in Gal. 4 :26, as “the mother of us all,” and themetaphor of “the new heavens and the new earth” is used



A N APOCALYPTIC PREVIEW 53

The scene of the great wh i te th r one, and the casting of theDragon into the lake of fire and brimstone, was the symbolic delineation of the judgment of God against the perse-cutors and of the divine wrath that descended upon them.

Having completed this cursive preview, attention is nowturned to the commentary on the visions and their sig-nificance.



BOOK OF REVELATION

SECTION TWO



THE V ISIONAL PROLOGUE 57

CHAPTERS 1 TO 3

"1 THE Revelation of J esus Christ, which God gave

unto him, to shew unto his servants things which mustshortly come to pass ; and he sent and signified it by hisangel unto his servant J ohn:

2 Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testi-mony of J esus Christ, and of all things that he saw.

3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear thewords of this prophecy, and keep those things which arewritten therein: for the time is at hand.

4 J ohn to the seven churches which are in Asia: Gracebe unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was,

and which is to come: and from the seven Spirits whichare before his throne ;

5 And from J esus Christ, who is the faithful witness,




12 And I turned to see the voice that spake with me.And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;

13 And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one likeunto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the

foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.14 His head and his hairs were white like wool, as

white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;15 And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in

a furnace ; and his voice as the sound of many waters.

16 And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and hiscountenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.

17 And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. Andhe laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not;

I am the first and the last:18 I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am

alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of




thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of hisplace, except thou repent.

6 But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of theNicolaitanes, which I also hate.

7 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spiritsaith unto the churches ; To him that overcometh will Igive to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of theparadise of God.

8 And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write ;

These things saith the first and the last, which was dead,and is alive ;

9 I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (butthou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them whichsay they are J ews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.

10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer :

behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, thatye may be tried ; and ye shall have tribulation ten days :





17 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spiritsaith unto the churches ; To him that overcometh will Igive to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a whitestone, and in the stone a new name written, which no manknoweth saving he that receiveth it.

18 And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write ; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes likeunto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass;

19 I know thy works, and charity, and service, andfaith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be

more than the first.20 Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee

because thou sufferest that woman J ezebel, which callethherself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servantsto commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.

21 And I gave her space to repent of her fornication;and she repented not.22 Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that





and the seven stars ; I know thy works, that thou hast aname that thou livest, and art dead.

2 Be watchful, and strengthen the things which re-main, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy worksperfect before God.

3 Remember therefore how thou hast received andheard, and hold fast, and repent. I f therefore thou shaltnot watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shaltnot know what hour I will come upon thee.

4 Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have

not defiled their garments ; and they shall walk with me inwhite: for they are worthy.

5 He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in whiteraiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the bookof life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and

before his angels.6 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spiritsaith unto the churches.




down out of heaven from my God: and I will write uponhim my new name.13 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit

saith unto the churches.14 And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans

write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and truewitness, the beginning of the creation of God;15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot:

I would thou wert cold or hot.16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither

cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased withgoods, and have need of nothing ; and knowest not thatthou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, andnaked :

18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire,that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thoumayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do

THE VISIONAL PROLOGUE 63




THE VISIONAL PROLOGUECHAPTERS l-3

I .

THE INTRODUCTION(Chapter 1: l-3)

“1 The Revelation of J esus Christ, which God gave unto

him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortlycome to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel untohis servant J ohn: 2 Who bare record of the word of God,and of the testimony of J esus Christ, and of all things thathe saw. 3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear thewords of this prophecy, and keep those things which arewritten therein: for the time is at hand.”

(1) The source of the visions

64 T HE BOOK OF REVELATION




(2) The object of the visions.

1. “To show unto his servants"--1 :1.

I t was on the principle that to be forewarned was to bef orearmed. So the things signif ied, or symbolized--set forthin signs--were explained to the members of the churchesfor their needful information concerning the immediateevents which pertained to the persons and churches ad-dressed, and which would be fulfilled in the period of theirown lives and experiences; else the language addressed tothem served no purpose to the people for whom “God gaveit,” and to whom it was sent.

2. “Things which must shortly come to pass"--1:1.

Reference to th ings indicated a definite form of eventsthen shaping, and the word must is not a speculative orconjectural term; it was factual, and the word sho r t l y





course, have been accomplished by the spiritually giftedteachers of that period in each church. The meaning is thatas a message, it was special and not general; it was forthe churches, and not for the public. As an example, theComforter (J no. 14 :16 and 13 :13) was a special promise

to the apostles alone, and not to all of the disciples, norfor the world in general--only the apostles. So it was withthe apocalypse; it was a message for the early churches,not for the J ewish world nor the Roman public--and that iswhy it was written in code instead of the use of literal

language, as in all of the other epistles.

(4) The witness of the visions.

1. “Who bare record of the word of God"--1 :2.

The word of God, to which J ohn was to be the witness,was the message of the revelation itself, the word whichGod gave unto J esus Christ (verse 1) at this time and in

66 T B R




all the other apostles had made, nor the testimony of Christin the sense of the gospel which they had preached. I twas the word of God and the testimony of this apocalypseonly of the things to which J ohn was bearing witness andof which he was making a record.

(5) The admonitions of the visions.

1. “Blessed is he that readeth and they that hear--1:3.

This is, first, a reference to the person whose task itwas to explain the visions, designated as he th at r eadeth ; and second, to the auditors assembled to receive it, as they th at hear . As previously mentioned, there were speciallyendowed teachers, spiritually gifted men, in all of the

churches (I Cor. 12), who could read and decode the revela-tion that was signified. The language of verse 3 indicatesthe need of the explanatory reading



T HE V ISIONAL PROLOGUE 67

context of it can mean only one thing--that these eventswere imminent. The sole reason for the admonition toread and hear and keep the things signified is stated in theclause of this verse: for th e t i me i s at hand. I f the things

wr i tt en ther ei n pertained to the remote future rather thanto the immediate future, there was no application for sucha warning.

I I

THE SALUTATORY INTERMISSION(Chapter 1:4-8)

“4 J ohn to the seven churches which are in Asia:Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and

which was, and which is to come ; and from the sevenSpirits which are before his throne; 5 And from J esusChrist, who is the faithful witness, and the first begottenf th d d d th i f th ki f th th U t

68 T B R




(2) To the seven churches.

The claim that seven dispensations are indicated byseven letters to seven churches, covering all Christian cen-turies, is reversed by the factual character of the names

and the events corresponding in date to the period of theapocalypse. Though addressed to the seven churches inthe Asian provinces of Mysia, Lydia, Caria and Phrygia,its contents would apply to all the early churches, as didthe teaching in the apostolic epistles.

The Asia of these churches is generally considered to bewhere J ohn went after the martyrdom of his brother J ames(Acts 12 :2-3), which was said to be “pleasing to the J ews,”and which connects with the J ewish persecutions belongingto the apocalypses of Revelation, and with J ohn’s associa-

tion with the seven churches of this Asian region. Thegeographical designation of the text, i n Asi a, does not in-clude the continent of Asia, nor the whole of Asia Minor,



THE V ISIONAL P ROLOGUE 69

aspect of the seven-branched lamps (or candlesticks)which represented the seven churches, and being before hi s thr one signified a unison with God and Christ in thesesalutations.

3. “And from J esus Christ, who is the faithful witness”--1:5.

It was J esus Christ who had borne witness to the truthof his Sonship before Pontius Pilate, as mentioned in I

Tim. 6:13. And he was associated with God in the saluta-tations to his servants who were on the brink of that hourof trial, which would bring death to them, for the sameconfession before men that J esus had made before Pilate.

4. “The first begotten of the dead"--1:5. The language here does not affirm that J esus was the

first person to be raised from the dead, for several names





deity to J esus Christ. The offices of royalty and priesthoodare united in the members of the churches, as typified inEx. 19:6, and finds its spiritual fulfillment in I Pet. 2:9.

The allusions to the “kingdom of priests,” in the Exodus

passage, was to emphasize that Christ has made us newkings and priests in contrast with what once was but is nomore. The church is the kingdom of Christ, and all themembers are priests unto God--hence, the church is akingdom of priests. The Syriac New Testament reads:

“And hath made us a priestly kingdom.”8. “Unto God and his Father"--1:6.

The eternal dominion of God is here pronounced. Al-though it is Christ who is King, and has made us into a

new kingdom and a new priesthood, it was so done un t o God and h i s Father . This was true of the old I srael whosekingdom, though ruled by appointed heads, was un to God ;

d hi i l d i i f G d h i d f h





the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.” This high priest would live to see the event hereforetold, the fulfillment of which occurred in the figurativecoming of Christ in the destruction of J erusalem, as pre-viously foretold in Matthew 24, and centuries before by

the prophet Zechariah in chapter 14. The prophet referredto the destruction of J erusalem as “the day of the Lord,”and in Matthew 24 J esus designated it as his coming. And J esus told Caiaphas that he would live to witness it. Thewords behol d he cometh are an announcement of warning,

a call to expectancy, an alert to the impending develop-ments.

The added expression w i th t he cl oud s are not to beliterally taken for a material display of his bodily presence.In the description of God’s judgment on Egypt, in I sa.

19:6, the prophet said: “Behold, the Lord rideth upon aswift cloud, and shall come into Egypt.” Also, in Ezek.38 :16 the prophet said that the latter days God would come




4. “And all the kindreds (tribes) of the earth shallwail because of him"--1:7.

The families of the J ews all over the Roman world arehere mentioned. The Gentiles were never referred to astribes; the tribes belonged to the J ews, who were dispersedinto every part of the earth. Yet the events foretold of whatwould happen to their city and their nation, in J erusalemand J udea, would become known wherever they were scat-tered, and all the J ews in every part of the earth wouldwail over this calamity. They would all mourn over the

ruin of their city J erusalem, and for the destruction of theirsystem of J udaism, and for the overthrow of their theocracyin the demolition of their temple, and for the terminationof their J ewish state-their national distinction and ex-istence. And they would wail (or mourn) because of h im ,

for it was in fulfillment of the fearful woes that he hadpronounced against J erusalem and which were figurativelyascribed to his coming




IIITHE PREFATORY VISION

(Chapter 1:9-18)

“9 I J ohn, who also am your brother, and companion

in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of J esusChrist, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the wordof God, and for the testimony of J esus Christ. 10 I was inthe Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a greatvoice, as of a trumpet, 11 Saying, I am Alpha and Omega,

the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in abook, and send it unto the seven churches which are inAsia ; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos,and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia,and unto Laodicea. 12 And I turned to see the voice that

spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven goldencandlesticks; 13 And in the midst of the seven candlesticksone like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down




rocky and rugged region off the barren coast of Asia Minor,approximately twenty-five miles from the mainland in theAegean sea--a gulf of the Great Sea (the Mediterranean),which formed the coastal provinces of Mysia, Lydia,Phrygia and Caria, and in which were situated all the

seven chur ches of Asi a, mentioned in the vision. Tradition claims that J ohn was banished by the Romangovernment and exiled on Patmos. There is no conclusivescriptural evidence nor verified factual history to sustainthis traditional claim, and it stands somewhat on the same

basis as the Petrine tradition that the apostle Peter onceresided in Rome. I t is not said in the text, nor necessarilyimplied in the contents of Revelation, that J ohn was aprisoner on Patmos. If J ohn was a prisoner on Patmos, asPaul was a prisoner in Rome, it is singularly strange, if not

unaccountable, that no mention was made of it, and noreference was made to it, by himself or in any other New Testament epistle.




this apocalypse. I f J ohn had been prisoner in exile, nosuch liberty existed on which to base such an announce-ment, for he was imprisoned on Patmos, and his status would have been no different from Paul’s imprisonment inRome.

Further comparisons in the context will support thepurpose, not the consequence, of the determinative expres-sion for th e wor d of God and th e testi mony of J esus Chr i st.

I t is worthy of notation here that the similar expres-sions “for the word of God” and “for the witness of

J esus,” in Rev. 6:9 and 20:4, are in another context andcarry another connotation, therefore do not warrant thesame construction as in Rev. 1:2 and 1:9. In one thetestimony was being received; in the other it was beingupheld.

(3) The companionship of suffering and citizenship.

1 “I J ohn who also am your brother and companion




Christ now. But the apostle, in Col. 1:13-14, declares thatall the Colossians who were delivered from darkness hadthereby been translated into the kingdom when they re-ceived redemption in Christ.

3. “I was in the spirit on the Lord’s day"--1 :10. The claim that J ohn was i n the spir i t means that he was

in visional rapture, not in the Holy Spirit, but in the statedescribed of Paul in I I Cor. 12, and of Peter in Acts 10. Asthough out of the body, J ohn was in a state in which the

external objects and material surroundings were as thoughthey did not exist--he had for the time passed out of thephysical world into the spiritual state. This was not theeffect of any natural cause, but rather the result of theinterposition of supernatural power.

The words visions and d r eam s are not synonymous, andtheir meanings are not identical, though sometimes theyare used indiscriminately in the Scriptures as in Gen




same in the Greek as in, and the context must determinethe distinction. The use of it here means i n the m idst of

the Lord’s day. I t is not a reference to the first day of theweek, but to the day in which the Lord accomplished theseevents, as used in Isa. 13:9 in which Isaiah described the

destruction of ancient Babylon as the day of the Lord; andin Zech. 14:1where Zechariah referred to the destructionof J erusalem as the day of the Lord. The phrase meant theday of events connected with the judgments of the Lord.II Tim. 1 :18 referred to th e day of God’s mercy, mean-

ing the time in which his mercy is extended to men. In thissense the phrase i n t he L or d’s day is used in Rev. 1 :10 ; itmeans in day of the rapture into which the Lord had placed

J ohn--that he had been transported into the midst of thescenes of the vision as though he was, himself, in the day

of their happening.

(4) The voice of the Son of man.




argument for the early date of Revelation, as previouslyshown, is in the historical fact that there were only theseven churches in these western Asian provinces beforethe destruction of J erusalem, but after that event thechurches became numerous by the diffusion of Christianity

over the empire, the opportunity for which was greatlyenhanced by the removal of J udaism, its greatest foe, fromthe path of the church. I t has been more than once men-tioned that such eminent scholars as Schaff, Terry and Mac-Donald (and others) verify the historical fact that after the

Great Earthquake (before the destruction of J erusalem) thechurches at Colosse and Hierapolis did not again maintain aseparate existence, but consolidated with the nearby Laodic-ean church. Concluding his remarks on this point in The L i fe And Wr i t i ngs Of John, page 154, MacDonald says: “There

appear to have been but seven churches in Asia . . . whenthe book was written. I t is dedicated to these seven aloneby the careful mention of them one by one by name as if




in the reign of Nero, and was not thereafter identified bythat name, but merged with the Laodiceans, as was trueof other cities and churches in the region. In his own one-volume work titled A D i ct i onar y Of Th e Bi ble, PhilipSchaff, commenting on Laodicea, makes the following state-

ment: “When, in the middle of the first century of our era,an earthquake destroyed Colosse, Hierapolis and Laodicea,the latter was rebuilt by its own inhabitants without anyaid from the Roman senate.” The casual reader cannot failto observe the significance of the statement that “the latter

(Laodicea) was rebuilt,” which, mentioned in direct con-nection with Colosse and Hierapolis, can only mean thatthese two were not rebuilt. Laodicea was rebuilt, butColosse and Hierapolis were not. This accounts for thedisbanding of the two churches as separate congregations,

and refutes the claim that there were more than the sevenchurches in the period when the Apocalypse was composed.I f the facts of history mean anything at all, there is




3. “And girt with a golden girdle”--1:13.It represented the source and sway of the truth, as the

girdle of truth suggests in Eph. 6:14.

4. “His head and his hairs were white like wool, as

white as snow"--1 : 14. These figures symbolized his sinless purity and his

sublime majesty, as employed in I sa. 1:18: “Though yoursins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; thoughthey be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”

5. “And his eyes were as a flame of fire"--1 :14.

The same symbols are used in the prophetic apocalypsesto designate divine omniscience, that He is the penetratorand the discerner of all things.

6. “And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burnedit in a furnace"--1 :15




the earth and all planets revolve around it. So was the Sonof man in this high point in the vision. In all his grandeur,as in the last prophetic glimpse of Malachi, he was the su n of r i ghteousness, with all the spiritual benefits to mankindthat the sun can bestow in its rays upon the earth.

10. "I am alive for evermore . . . and have the keys of hell (hades) and death"--1 :17-18.

This is the awe-inspiring declaration that by his owndeath of the cross, he became Lord of Death, and of the

hadean world, because its gates could not prevail againsthim. He is therefore the Lord of “both the dead and theliving” (Rom. 14 :9)--by his death and resurrection, of which his appearance to J ohn was the visible proof.

IV




ceptive, but revealed, they were seen by Revelation. Thethings which are, were not the knowledge of present things,but a reference to that part of the vision, or the revelation,which involved the present. The things which should bethereafter were declared to be immediate-shortly to occur.

It would not require an apocalypse to reveal the past events,but it was imperative that the churches should know thepresent, and those things which were immediately athand.

2. “The mystery of the seven stars . . . and the sevengolden candlesticks"--1 :20.

The use of the word mystery in Revelation comportswith the meaning of the word as used elsewhere in theNew Testament--that is, the spiritual truths not discover-

able by human reason; understandable, but hidden fromhuman knowledge until revealed. The word has the con-notation of “secret doctrine,” hence, prior to revelation it




(2) The explanation of the mystery.

The seven gol den cand lest i cks denoted, that as organizedbodies, a congregation receives light and reflects it. It is asignificant illustration of the functions and the ministriesof the local churches. The emblem of gold underscored theevaluation J esus Christ makes of his church, and the esti-mate he has placed upon it. The seven star s were repre-sentative of position, such as Christ at the right hand of God, indicating that there is something in the symbol thathas this representative place i n th e r i ght h and of C hr is t . The figure calls for pause and reflection, by all who holdposition in the church, lest we should become fa l l ing stars!

The angel s of t he chur ches are not to be taken as singlerepresentatives of the respective congregations, but ratherthe individual spirit of each church. It is the same in mean-ing as the description elsewhere of “the seven spirits be-fore his throne.” I t is a symbolic angel, and it refers to




period, who forfeited their high estates by apostasy, andwere condemned to darkness and judgment, and in Matt.25 :41, and I I Cor. 11:14-15, it is used to describe the deviland his demons. But in Rev. 20:1 the word applies to J esusChrist himself.

This is rather a wide classification of the word angel,but it is used in all of these senses. In the vision of the firstchapter of Revelation it seems evident that the word refersto the spirit of each church.

The stars in the vision are its members, every member--all members in the body of Christ, of the true spirit, arestars in His hand. There is no teaching that exalts one classin the church to any position above all the others, as all themembers of Christ stand in equal relation to Him. For oneto be exalted above another would “not be so among you,”

J esus said to his disciples, in Matt. 20:26.As each of the seven churches was individual in char-

t d d t th i i it l d th l tt




VTHE SEVEN MESSAGES

(Chapters 2-3)

These are the only documents of Christ. They were di-

rected to churches facing a crisis, in the period of thatcrisis, which fact, together with the contents of the letters,show the period of history to which the Book Of Revela- tion belongs. The assignment of events to the wrong periodof history is anachronistic ; and the theory that switches

the events of Revelation to the future is the greatest ana-chronism of all time. The messages of Christ to the seven churches contain

unmistakable indications that Revelation is the symbolichistory of the struggle and triumph of the early church in

conflict with the J ewish and pagan persecuting powers,written in signs and symbols which were fulfilled in theexperiences of the churches of that era.




The text says, these things saith he, not J ohn, not theHoly Spirit, not God, but Christ Himself, the Head of thechurch, to whom was given all authority, and who, as Paulwrote to the same Ephesian church, was made “the headover all things to the church.”

2. “I know thy works”--2:2.

Theworks here mentioned were not described as eithergood or bad, but simply works, and it rather refers to thedivine omniscience of Christ than to the character of the

works mentioned ; that nothing escapes his eye or his at-tention--he knows the works of every church of his own,of which he is the head.

3. “Thy labor and thy patience”--2:2.

These words set forth the active and the passive sidesto the relationship between the church and its divine head.The use of the word works would indicate that which is




that would enter in” among them. What Paul said therethat would occur, J esus said here that it had occurred. Itis also retrospective of the reason why Paul left Timothy inEphesus, as mentioned in I Tim. 1:3: “As I besought thee

to abide still at Ephesus, when I went into Macedonia,that thou mightest charge some that they teach no otherdoctrine.”

Here is the evidence of the necessary inference that theother apostles were living at the time J ohn composed Reve-

lation, as has been previously mentioned, for on no othersupposition could such a claim by these imposters haveeven appeared plausible. Doubtless the men who made thisclaim, like most promoters of religious cults, appeared aswise and venerable persons in outward mien and manner;

and they carried weight and influence enough to set up sucha claim, and to make it so effective as to precipitate a crisisof such proportions that required the action of a trial for




to the present determination; and it exhorted obedience inthe restitution of the f i rst works-- not in quantity, but inquality. It meant to do the first works i n t he spir i t of firstlove.

8. “But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of theNicolaitanes, which I also hate”--2:6.

The claim that this designation of a sect or a partyderived its name from Nicolas, of Acts 6:5, rests on as-

sertion. There is no historical or factual evidence of it. I tis more consistent with the code language of Revelation toregard the term Nicolaitanes as a symbolic expression,along with the use of the word Ba laam. The two wordsactually are similar in meaning, one meant a “victor of

the people” and the other a “devourer of the people.” Thesemeanings of the two words significantly unite the twosymbols as signs of the religious seductions of the Libertine




To eat of t he t r ee of l i fe: The expression give to eat,had reference to distribution and reward, and it meant thatthe promise was as sure as the One who gave it was true. The phrase to eat meant to participate in the life that is

the fruit of the tree of life. The tree of life is an allusionto the tree that disappeared in Eden, but did not perish; itis now i n th e par ad i se of God, instead of the paradise of man where it once was enjoyed by the first man and hismate ; it consists, in this symbolic presentation, in the re-

ward given to the overcomers of the persecutions, whichcomes only from above--from God.

The warnings to the Ephesian church surround the twoelements--the false apostles and the Nicolaitanes. The firstformed a parallel with the warning of Christ in Matthew

24 concerning the false prophets that should arise to dis-turb the disciples after the establishment of the church andbefore and during the siege of J erusalem ; and the latter




members to follow him even un to death , or martyrdom,with no fear of the consequences.

2. “The blasphemy of the J ews”--2:9.

This phraseology is not addressed to the true J ews, butto the pseudo-J ews, and had regard to the J ewish persecu-tions, which the calumnious and bitter opposition of thefanatical J ews waged against their own kinsmen who hadaccepted Christ. Again, it finds parallel in the J ewish perse-

cutions foretold by the Lord in Matthew 24.

3. “Ye shall have tribulation ten days”--2:10.

This cannot mean a literal ten days, but rather to theten persecutors, the number of which is historically factual.

As there were five fallen imperial rulers before Nero--fromNero to Diocletian there were ten persecuting emperors.This era of persecution reached its crescendo in Diocletian’s




of these churches in their own time, the trials of the im-mediate conflict, not prophecies of remote centuries.

5. “He that overcometh shall not be hurt with the seconddeath”--2:11.

This passage finds its apocalyptic fulfillment within thevision itself, in chapter 20:6, in the description of the cul-mination of all of the imagery of these scenes with thevictory of the saints in the conflicts that come to end. Thefirst law of the higher mathematics is that “things equalto the same thing are equal to each other.” This law ap-plied to the comparison between these two passages, chapter2 :11and chapter 20 :6, yields the following conclusion:1. Overcoming the persecutions equaled exemption fromthe second death; 2. Part in the first resurrection equaledexemption from the second death ; 3. These two things beingequal to the same thing were equal to each other. Therefore,

92 T HE BOOK OF RE V E L A T I O N



the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and inthe stone a new name written, which no man knowethsaving he that receiveth it.”

1. “He which hath the sharp sword with two edges"--

2 :12.

The sword is an instrument of war, hence Christthreatened to wage war against the church in Pergamos,because of the evils within it, with the weapon designated

“the sword of my mouth.” A sword of the mouth wouldnecessarily be the spoken word, and it meant the employ-ment of the two-edged sword of his word (Heb. 4 :12), asa dual condemnation of the outside espionage of Satan’sseat in Pergamos, and the inside sabotage of Balaam’s

doctrine within the church itself--the combined infiltrationof pagan secular practices on one hand, and the Nicolaitanespiritual contaminations of erroneous doctrines on the other




for martyrdom. The word Ant ipas is derived from antipater: “anti,” against; and "pater," father, or paternal--and itsmeaning was, agai nst t he gods: hence, symbolic of faith-fulness to Christ to the extent of “against all” gods of paganism. It therefore stood for all who would becomevictims of martyrdom in the persecutions to follow.

4. “Thou hast them that hold the doctrine of Balaam. . . also the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes”--2:14-17.

The mongrel prophet of the Old Testament contrived theevil scheme to destroy the purity of the Israelites by a two-fold seduction: first, seducing Israel into the worship of Baal; and second, tempting the men of Israel into lewdnessby fornication. This doctrine of Balaam in the Pergamos

church referred to apostate teaching. And the associationof the Nicolaitanes with Balaam, in the teaching of im-

lit ith th t d f i f Ch i ti it i




thee, because thou sufferest that woman J ezebel, whichcalleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce myservants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificedunto idols. 21 And I gave her space to repent of her forni-cation; and she repented not. 22 Behold, I will cast her into

a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into greattribulation, except they repent of their deeds. 23 And I willkill her children with death ; and all the churches shall knowthat I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and Iwill give unto every one of you according to your works.

24 But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, asmany as have not this doctrine, and which have not knownthe depths of Satan, as they speak ; I will put upon younone other burden. 25 But that which ye have already holdfast till I come. 26 And he that overcometh, and keepeth

my works unto the end, to him will I give power over thenations: 27 And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; asthe vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers:




3. “I will cast her into a bed . . . and I will kill herchildren”--2:21-23.

The Lord had given this leader of degenerates in the Thyatira church “a place to repent,” that is, a respite, orperiod of probation, as he had done for the antediluvians

in the days of Noah--but instead of accepting this suspen-sion of sentence and repenting, they proceeded in their de-generacy from bad to worse, and the Lord said : “I will casther into a bed,” that is, of pain, instead of the sensualitywhich represented spiritual fornication in the corruptions

of doctrine and practice. This symbolic J ezebel would becast into a bed of retribution for her sins, referring to the

judgment that would be brought upon the followers of theseapostate teachers in the churches. And the Lord added:“I will kill her children”--that is, by exterminating the

seeds of wickedness and false doctrine, thus preventing itsoffspring.




they were exhorted to hold fast to these truths until therendering of the judgment against the evil elements inthe church, and the execution of the judgments pronounced,in the events that were to follow. The statement “till Icome” has no reference to the second advent of Christ.

J esus did not deceive the church at Thyatira into believingthat his Second Advent and the J udgment Day would occurduring their life time. The admonition referred to hiscoming in the events of judgment against the J ezebel para-mours there. Again, it is solid proof that the things men-

tioned had fulfillment in the period of their own lives, thetime to which the apocalypse belonged.

6. “To him that overcometh . . . will I give power overthe nations, and he shall rule them with a rod of iron”--2:26-27.

This is not a future millennium text. I t is plainly theimagery of the irresistible force of the gospel I t compares




in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and theyshall walk with me in white: for they are worthy. 5 He thatovercometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment;and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, butI will confess his name before my Father, and before his

angels. 6 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spiritsaith unto the churches.”

1. “Saith he that hath the seven spirits, and the sevenstars”--3:1.

In J esus Christ there is the uniting of these symbols of the spi r i ts and the stars. The office of a spirit is to testifyor teach; and the function of a star is to shine. It is a dualsymbol which apparently refers to the uniting of the spiritof Christ in each church with the spirit of the congregation

itself, that is, in the testimony of the truth, and having itshine as stars, as affirmed of God’s servants in Dan. 12:3.

98 THE BOOK OF RE V E L A T I O N



4. “I will come upon thee as a thief"--3:3. The Lord would come as a thief, not as a robber. The

robber comes in violence, but the thief comes in the nightof sleep. This warning compares to that of Paul in I Thess.5 :l-2, and applies to the manner, not to the time, of his

coming. While they reposed in their spiritual slumber, theevents depicted would unexpectedly overwhelm them. Thewarning was a picture of their own spiritual state of un-preparedness. It was not a reference to the time of his ad-vent, but it did refer to his coming in the events of judg-

ment, and his coming as a thief meant that they were notalert and ready.

5. “Thou has a few names even in Sardis . . . that areworthy”--3:4.

The statement that there were a few even i n Sardi s isa commentary on the condition of the city, as mentioned,and the like condition in the church Notwithstanding the




of life, if it had never been r ecor ded i n i t; so here is positiveproof for the possibility of apostasy.

(6) The letter to the church at Philadelphia--3:7-13.

“7 And to the angel of the church in Philadelphiawrite ; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true,he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no manshutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; 8 I know thyworks: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and noman can shut it; for thou hast a little strength, and hastkept my word, and hast not denied my name. 9 Behold, Iwill make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say theyare J ews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make themto come and worship before thy feet, and to know that Ihave loved thee. 10 Because thou hast kept the word of my

patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation,which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell

h h h ld i kl h ld h f




be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The ever-lasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Of the increase of hisgovernment and of peace there shall be no end, upon thethrone of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and toestablish it with judgment and with justice even for ever.”

This prophecy gives the reason why J esus Christ said tothe Philadelphians that he had the key of David, for hepossessed the throne of David, and its government was up-on his shoulder, with the authority to order it and establishit.

Furthering this point reference should be made to theword of the angel to Mary in Luke 1:31-33: “And beholdthou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son,and shalt call his name J ESUS. He shall be great, and shallbe called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord shall giveunto him the throne of his father David: and he shall reignover the house of J acob forever, and of his kingdom there



Persecution could not destroy that to which Christ had thekey, and not having committed this key to any man, noman could open or shut this door.

3. “I will make them to come and worship before thy

feet”--3:9.

This statement refers to the J udaizers, who were of “the synagogue of Satan,” and who in claiming to be J ewswere false pretenders in that they were not true J ews in

the Lord’s sight. “For he is not a J ew who is one outwardly ;neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh,but he is a J ew who is one inwardly; and circumcision isthat of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whosepraise is not men, but of God.” (Rom. 2 :28-29) These out-

ward J ews had been the chief enemies of the church, andhad instigated the persecutions against Christians, whowere God’s J ews inwardly (spiritually) ; but these false




The Lord’s statement in Matthew 24 was the forecastof the siege of J erusalem; because of “the present distress,”in Corinthians Paul dispensed advice concerning certain

jeopardies involved in marriage; in Hebrews 10 they wereexhorted not to forsake (meaning to abandon, renounce)

their first day of the week assembling because of thesethreats of persecution (as the context of verses 25 through39 indicates), and to exhort each other, as the day of persecution approached, not to so renounce and abandonthe new covenant; in J ames 5, the declaration that thecoming of Christ was nigh could not have referred to thereturn of Christ, for it did not occur therefore it was notnigh--it referred to the Lord’s coming in these approach-ing events concerning which all of the apostles were ex-horting the members of all the churches in every place ;

and J ohn, in his epistle mentioned “the last time” in refer-

ence to the state of the J ews and of their nation ; in theapocalypse he symbolized it as “the hour of trial,” and


f i hf l i i h b ildi f d ld b



faithful constituents in the new building of God would bethe supporting pillars to uphold the Cause which wouldtriumph over all persecutions of this approaching “hour of trial.”

The statement of the latter part of verse 12, referring

to the “new J erusalem,” with a new name, simply meansthat the old J erusalem, and all for which it stood, wouldbe gone. As stated in chapter 21 of the apocalypse, the oldthings would pass away, and “behold, I will make all thingsnew.” This new temple would not be the restoration of the

old house nor the reconstitutions of its ordinances. Theemblem of the new name is used to distinguish a new in-stitution, the church, from J udaism completely. It wouldnot be a new dispensation of old ordinances: “The oldthings are passed away, behold all things are new.”

The promise to the members of the church at Philadel-phia was that in the spiritual temple of the new J erusalem,i t t ith th ld t l f th t t J l


l th f d t 20 B h ld I t d h



zealous therefore, and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at thedoor, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open thedoor, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and hewith me. 21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit withme in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down

with my Father in his throne. 22 He that hath an ear, lethim hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.”

1. “These things saith the Amen, the faithful and truewitness, the beginning of the creation of God"--3:14.

TheGod of Am en means the God of truth, as stated inDeut. 7:9: “Know ye therefore that the Lord thy God, heis God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercywith them that love him and keep his commandments to athousand generations.” The repeated expression the fai t h- ful and tr ue w i tn ess, refers to the things of the apocalypse

-the absolute certainty of all the announcements made byhis angels and agents in all of the visions.


ith th f d ti t k thi



mony with the grace of redemption to make this passagemean that God would rather these Laodiceans had neveraccepted the gospel at first. The purpose of the comparisonis to rebuke lukewarmness, which produces nausea. Itmeans that fervency is a condition of fidelity. Fervent heat

(II Pet. 3 :10) means intense heat; and fervent water isboiling water; and in Rom. 12 :10, Paul admonishes themembers of the body to be “fervent in spirit, serving theLord.”

The Lord’s aversion to the state of likewarmness is

expressed in the warning I w i l l spew thee out of my mouth. The advocates of the absolute and unconditional securityof the believer have appropriated the words of Paul in Eph.1:13, that the believer is “sealed with that holy Spirit,” totheir dogma of the impossibility of apostasy, by claiming

that a sealed believer cannot get out. Aside from the fallacyof the argument itself, the Lord’s statement to the Laodi-

l i h f ithf l b li d t t h


“Th d t f th L d i li ht i th



“The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening theeyes.” The gold which the Lord persuaded them to buymeant the raiment of righteousness, as in I Pet. 5 :5: “Beclothed with humility” ; and Rev. 7 :14 : “These are they . . .

which washed their robes, and made them white in the

blood of the Lamb.” These are strong analogies employed by the Lord coun-

selling the Laodiceans to seek the true riches. There were nocharges of the evils of error which existed in some of thechurches. The Laodiceans professed the truths of the gospel,

but with a materialistic apathy which rendered them un-conscious of being out of communion with Christ. To as-sure them of divine love and concern for their restoration,

J esus said: As many as I l ove, I r ebuke and chasten . Theseverity of his rebuke was not rejection but a sign of love

which seeks to prevent their condition reaching that stage. The mandate, Be zeal ous and r epen t , meant the zeal of re-pentance itself; that it could not be performed in the apathy


those inside in order that they might know who was



those inside, in order that they might know who wasknocking, and thus whether to open. J esus here announceshimself as the One seeking admission ; but he does not forceentrance. Here the truth of free moral agency incidentallyappears--man can receive or reject divine overtures.

5. “To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with mein my throne”--3:21.

Here is the constructive figure of a sitting court towhich the faithful would be given admission to sit with

Christ in his throne, to be associated with Christ in his spir-itual rule. In chapter 2 :26 this rule is said to be with “a rodof iron,” which, as previously stated, means the invinciblepower of the truth, or gospel of Christ. In I Tim. 2:11-12,the apostle taught Timothy that this rule is in process now,

and that reigning with Christ is concurrent with livingwith him.


ti i l b d t ti i ti



votion, in labour; and hope, or expectation, in patience. Theirs was an external work, a servile labour, and an im-passive hope. They had rejected false teachers and weredoctrinally sound; they abhorred the libertine practices of Nicolaitanism, and were maintaining moral rectitude. Butthe Lord issued the irrevocable directive for immediateresolution to restore the missing qualities, under the painof the withdrawal of divine presence.

Two: The church at Smyrna had attained congrega-

tional perfection, for which they received divine approval,but no assurance for the suspension of suffering was givento them; rather, they were exhorted to maintain the samedegree of faithfulness in martyrdom that they had mani-fested in life, and their vouchsafed reward would be the

inestimable crown of life. Three: the church at Pergamos had theoretically re-



BOOK OF REVELATION

SECTION THREE

THE APOCALYPSE OF THE CONQUERING CHRIST 113

CHAPTERS 4 TO 11



CHAPTERS 4 TO 11.

4 AFTER this I looked, and, behold, a door was openedin heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it wereof a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither,and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.

2 And immediately I was in the spirit; and, behold, athrone was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.

3 And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and asardine stone: and ther e was a rainbow round about thethrone, in sight like unto an emerald.

4 And round about the throne were four and twentyseats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elderssitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on theirheads crowns of gold.

5 And out of the throne proceeded lightnings andthunderings and voices: and ther e wer e seven lamps of


5 AND I i th i ht h d f hi th t t th



5 AND I saw in the right hand of him that sat on thethrone a book written within and on the backside, sealedwith seven seals.

2 And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud

voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the sealsthereof?3 And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under

the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon.4 And I wept much, because no man was found worthy

to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon.5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: be-hold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David,hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven

seals thereof.6 And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and

of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood aLamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven

T HE A POCALYPSE OF THE C ONQUERING C HRIST 1 1 5

all that are in them heard I saying Blessing and honour



all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour,and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon thethrone, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.

14 And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four a n d

twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for

ever and ever.

6 AND I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals,and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of thefour beasts saying, Come and see.

2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he thatsat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him:and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.

3 And when he had opened the second seal, I heardthe second beast say, Come and see.

4 And there went out another horse t ha t was red: andpower was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from


11 And white robes were given unto every one of them ;



11 And white robes were given unto every one of them ;

and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for alittle season, until their fellowservants also and theirbrethren, that should be killed as they were, should be ful-filled.

12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and,lo, there was a great earthquake ; and the sun became blackas sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood ;

13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even

as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shakenof a mighty wind.

14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolledtogether; and every mountain and island were moved outof their places.

15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, andthe rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men,

d b d d f hid th l i


5 Of the tribe of J uda were sealed twelve thousand Ofth t ib f R b l d t l th d Of th



5 Of the tribe of J uda were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the- -the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand.

6 Of the tribe of Aser were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Nepthalim were sealed twelve thousand. Of

the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand.7 Of the tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand.Of the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve thousand. Of thetribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand.

8 Of the tribe of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand.

Of the tribe of J oseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of thetribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand.9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which

no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, andpeople, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the

Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands ;10 And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our

God which sitteth upon the throne and unto the Lamb


8 AND when he had opened the seventh seal, there was



8 AND when he had opened the seventh seal, there wassilence in heaven about the space of half an hour.

2 And I saw the seven angels which stood before God;and to them were given seven trumpets.

3 And another angel came and stood at the altar, hav-ing a golden censer; and there was given unto him muchincense, that he should offer i t with the prayers of all saintsupon the golden altar which was before the throne.

4 And the smoke of the incense, whi ch came with theprayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of theangel’s hand.

5 And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fireof the altar, and cast i t into the earth: and there werevoices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.

6 And the seven angels which had the seven trumpetsprepared themselves to sound.

7 The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and


to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices



to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voicesof the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!

9 AND the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fallfrom heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the keyof the bottomless pit.

2 And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose asmoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace ; andthe sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smokeof the pit.

3 And there came out of the smoke locusts upon theearth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.

4 And it was commanded them that they should nothurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neitherany tree ; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads




4 And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices,I b t t it d I h d i f h



,I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heavensaying unto me, Seal up those things which the seventhunders uttered, and write them not.

5 And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and

upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven,6 And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who

created heaven, and the things that therein are, and theearth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, andthe things which are therein, that there should be time no

longer :

7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel,when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should befinished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.

8 And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto

me again, and said, Go and take the little book which isopen in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea

d th th


5 And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth outf h i h d d h h i i d if



y pof their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if anyman will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.

6 These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not inthe days of their prophecy: and have power over waters

to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with allplagues, as often as they will.

7 And when they shall have finished their testimony,the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall makewar against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.

8 And their dead bodies sha l l l i e in the street of thegreat city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt,where also our Lord was crucified.

9 And they of the people and kindreds and tongues andnations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half,

and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves.10 And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice

T HE A POCALYPSE OF THE CONQUERING CHRIST 123

17 Saying, We give thee thanks, 0 Lord God Almighty,which art and wast and art to come ; because thou hast



y g g g ywhich art, and wast, and art to come ; because thou hasttaken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.

18 And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come,and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and

that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants theprophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name,small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroythe earth.

19 And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and

there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: andthere were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and anearthquake, and great hail.


THE APOCALYPSE OF THE



THE APOCALYPSE OF THECONQUERING CHRIST

(CHAPTERS 4 TO 11)

With this section begins the Revelation proper, follow-ing the antecedent vision of Chapter 1 and the preliminarymessages to the seven churches.

This section surrounds Christ as conqueror, in conflictof his Cause with the secular powers and J ewish authori-ties. The developments are gathered around the divinepromise of 1:7--"Behold he cometh,” and 22:7--“Behold,I come quickly,” coupled with and corresponding to the

closing prayer “even so, come Lord J esus.” I t signified thecoming of the Lord in the immediate great events, whichh ld l t th t i h f hi d th


(5) I t designates the destruction of J erusalem--Zechariah 14 :1 ; Matthew 24 :3-30 ; Matthew 26 :64 ; J ames



Zechariah 14 :1 ; Matthew 24 :3-30 ; Matthew 26 :64 ; J ames5 :7-8.

(6) I t denotes the appearance of his kingdom--Matthew 16 :27-8 ; Mark 9 :l-his coming on Pentecost.

(7) I t is applied to the death of a Christian--ICorinthians 1:7 ; I Corinthians 4 :7.

(8) It is descriptive of the judgment day--Matthew15 :31; II Timothy 4 :1 ; II Thessalonians 2 :1 ; I Peter 3 :10 ;

J ude 21.(9) It is connected with the fulfillment of promises--

Romans 9 :9 ; Malachi 3 :2 and 4 :5 ; Acts 2 :20 ; Acts 15 :16.

(10) I t symbolizes events of both retribution and re-ward in the imagery of Revelation--l :7 ; 2 :5, 25 ; 3 :11,20;

22:7, 20.From beginning to end the book abounds in imagery




thus the sign of royalty, throne is applied to the center of ll di i th it (M tth 19 28) “C hith



all divine authority. (Matthew 19 :28) “Come up hitherand I will show thee.” The apocalypse in its complete com-position proceeded from the one who sits on the throne.(Daniel 2 :47; Matthew 11:27; Philippians 3 :15; J ohn 4 :1)

2. “A throne was set in heaven”--4:2.

The throne was not there for this vision only, it wasset, established as the throne of heaven. (Psalms 119:89)

3. “He that sat was to look upon like a jasper and asardine stone”4 :3.

Here was the figure of intense splendor. Jasper was anopaque species of different colors, subject to high polish. The New Testament use of the term “jasper,” here and

elsewhere referred to a transparent gem, the diamond, orthe translucent chalcedon. Sard ine (or Sardius) was an


(2) The four and twenty elders--4:4-5.



4. “And round about the throne were four and twentyseats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elderssitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their

heads crowns of gold. 5 And out of the throne proceededlightnings and thunderings and voices: and there wereseven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which arethe seven Spirits of God.”

1. “Four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I sawfour and twenty elders sitting”--4:4.

The four and twent y signified the patriarchs and apos-tles-twelve each, twenty-four in number. I t was the symbolof the totality of God’s people in the New Testament church ;

the whole body of the redeemed. The twelve tribes and thetwelve apostles represented the completeness of the church ;

th Old d th N bi d i th b l




Isa. 29:11, and illustrations of it have been produced inmost of the dictionaries of the Bible lands and times



most of the dictionaries of the Bible lands and times. This book which was wr i t ten w i th i n and on t he back-

side contained the events which were depicted. The unseal-ing of the closed book was the revelation of the predicted

events within.

2. “Who is worthy to open-and to loose-no man inheaven nor in earth"--5:2.

The st r ong angel is emphasizing the important proc-

lamation. The great voi ce is comparable to the announce-ment. The declaration no man i n heaven nor i n ear th meant

that it belonged only to the One on the throne to open it;no created being, terrestrial or celestial; no man i n ear th

belonging to authorities of the earth ; and, nei ther under the earth, or belonging to any order of humanity whether inth it h d d bj ti t f th


vailed to designate the invincible Christ who would con-quer his own and his people’s enemies



quer his own and his people s enemies.

The symbol of the tribe of Judah connects with theprophetic blessing of Genesis 49:8-12. The capital of the

tribe was Ar ie l , meaning “lion of God” (Isaiah 29 :1) .Hence, th e l i on of th e tr i be of J ud ah w as descriptive of thelineage and character of the divine descendant of the tribe. J udah, under divine favor, was a nation in itself, typicaland prophetic, in such biblical phrases as the “house of

J udah, the kindred, stock, and lineage” as in Genesis 12 : 17 ;I Timothy 5 :8 ; Luke 2 :4 ; I I Samuel 7 :18. The propheciespointed to Christ, the spiritual head of the house of J udah--Isaiah 22:21-22--having the ruler-ship--the divine gov-ernment, which J udah typified. And he was the minister of

the new covenant which God made with the “house of J udah,” as stated in Hebrews 8, verses 8 to 10. The limited


would no longer exist. Further references to the tabernacle,the throne, the mercies, the blessings, and the key of Davidll li d d ib d t J Ch i t



were all applied and ascribed to J esus Christ.

(5) The Lamb in the midst of the throne--5:6-10.

“6 And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne andof the four beasts and in the midst of the elders, stood aLamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seveneyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into allthe earth. 7 And he came and took the book out of the righthand of him that sat upon the throne. 8 And when he hadtaken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty eldersfell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps,and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints. 9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou artworthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: forthou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy bloodout of every kindred and tongue and people and nation ;


The Lamb took the book from him on the throne. TheOne on the throne is God The One who took the book is



One on the throne is God. The One who took the book isChrist--the Lamb “in the midst of the throne.”

4. “The four creatures (beings), the four and

and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having everyone of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, whichare the prayers of the saints”--5:8.

Because he was the One who was “able to open the book”

and to Him complete and united homage was due ; not onecreature (being), nor one elder, but the four of the onegroup, and the twenty-four of the other, representing com-plete and united worship and adoration: having every oneof them harps and golden bowls (vials) full of odors, which

are the prayers of the saints.

5 “H i f th h " 58


7. “The prayers of saints"--5:8.



The incense was symbolic of intercession, typical of theintercession of Christ for his saints. Here it is designatedto be th e pr ayer s of sai n ts because the saints in tribulation

were imploring the intercession of the Lamb. In chapter8:3, the incense was “added to the prayers of the saints,”which signified the merits of the death of Christ, and whichextended and amplified the symbol of intercession. The al-tar stood for that upon which sacrifice was offered as

mentioned in I Kings 13 :l-2 ; 18 :30, and it was appropriatedexclusively in the offering of sacrifices for sin on behalf of the one who had offended the law. It symbolized Christ asthe Christian’s only sacrifice, and there is no need for anyother altar. It is upon his altar that spiritual offerings arenow made (Heb. 13 :10) and to him all true worship ascends(Heb. 13 :15). This vision of Revelation is based on thetypical significance of the sacrificial offerings of the Old


9. “And hast made us unto our God kings and priests:and we shall reign on the earth”--5:10.



g

Kings: This refers to the reign of Christ in the king-dom now present and existing--“made us”--it was of past

performance and establishment; not a future kingdom, butpresent. The church is the priesthood now (I Pet. 2 :5,9), ananalogy based on Ex. 19:6. The church sustains a kinglyrelation to Christ, and of it the members “reign withChrist”; hence, they are kings in royalty with him. (Rom.

8 :17) It is a reference to the state of the church under thegospel--under the spiritual government of Christ. (I Tim.6 :15) The term “king” signified a sovereign prince or rulerin a kingdom. (Prov. 8 :15) I t is applied to God, the Su-preme Ruler of the universe (Psa. 44 :4) ; and to J esus

Christ, the King and Head of the church (Psa. 2 :6 ; 45 : 1;Eph. 4 :5) ; and to all true Christians who as heirs, reigni h hi i lif ( i


from Adam to Moses, Rom. 5:15--that is, prevailed, heldsway dominion; Sin reigns when the motions of sin are



sway, dominion; Sin reigns, when the motions of sin areobeyed, as one obeys the law or command of a king, whenit exercises an absolute uncontrolled power over the soul(Rom. 6 : 12) ; Grace reigns through righteousness, prevailsthrough the gospel to abolish the rule and dominion of sin,as we are governed by what it teaches (Rom. 5:21; Tit.2 :11-12) ; and Christians reign in righteous living withChrist (Rom. 5:17). All who receive grace in gift of righteousness (forgiveness in Christ), and partake of the

spiritual life, whereby sin is conquered, reign with apostlesin conforming to their teaching and example; and reignwith Christ as in the sufferings with him in the death to sinand partaking of his suffering (II Tim. 2 :12)

We shal l r ei gn: Literally rendered the passage readsar e r ei gni ng --referring in the Revelation context to theircontinuing conquests in the trials that were present


1. “I heard the voice of many angels . . . and the beasts(beings) and the elders ten thousand times ten



(beings), and the elders . . . ten thousand times tenthousand, and thousands of thousands”--5:11.

The voice: The sound of myriad thousands of angels

and beings was but one voice, a concert of praise ; with oneobject, the Lamb; and with one theme, in symphony of theadoration to the Lamb.

Thousands: The literal computation would be tenthousand times ten thousand--100,000,000--One hundred

million, plus thousands of thousands, on multiplied thou-sands more. So figuratively it signified that all the churchon earth, represented by the four and twenty elders, andthe whole family of heaven (Eph. 3:14), represented bythe multiplied decimals, joined in the adoration of the Lamb

in the midst of the throne. (see verse 13)


worlds, to be the Word through whom the Father resolvedall of his purposes, to create, to govern, to uphold, to judge,



to save-all wisdom is ascribed to him (Col. 2 :3)--"Whereshall wisdom be found"?--J ob exclaimed: Referring to thesublime and eminent wisdom, existing only in the counsels

of God far beyond man’s reach. The excellence of knowledgeand prudence are combined and centered in him who isfrom everlasting the wisdom of God. The eighth chapterof Proverbs is a large and profound’ discourse on the divinewisdom personified in Him.

Strength: The strength of anything is its substance,and in beings it is their character. The strength here men-tioned is an integral attribute belonging to God, an es-sential divine emanation; the prerogative to rule over allthings; and is joined to omnipotence and majesty. (Psa.

93:1)The Lamb of the apocalypse was worthy to receive all the adoration in these attributes


Blessing: This is a word of frequent occurrence, themeaning of which must be determined by the connection.

bl G d i ibi i G d bl i



Men bless God in ascribing praise; God blesses men intemporal and spiritual mercies bestowed. The evident mean-ing here in the doxology of the angels, is praise, adoration,

thanksgiving, blessing, that he alone, the Lamb in the midstof the throne, was abl e to open the book , and reveal itsseals. In this sense Israel blessed God (J osh. 22 :23) ; sodid Nehemiah, Ezra and J ob (Neh. 8 :6 ; J ob 1:21) ; in thesame circumstances Daniel blessed the God of heaven (Dan.

2 :19) ; and Simeon blessed God for J esus (Luke 2 :28) ; andPaul proclaimed the Creator blessed forever (Rom. 1:25)and the Christ is God blessed forever (Rom. 9 :5)--“Who isthe blessed and only potentate, the King of kings, and Lordof lords, who only hath immortality, dwelling in light

which no man can approach unto ; whom no man hath seen,nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting.

THE APOCALYPSE OF THE CONQUERING CHRIST 1 4 1

2. “And the four creatures (beings) said, Amen"--5:14.



Their scene was finished. “And the four and twentyelders . . . worshipped him that liveth forever.” Thus wasascribed united homage to Him who sat on the throne, toGod, and to the Lamb of God who lives forever and ever.He who had no beginning and shall have no end, whocreated all things and is over all things, is the One who didthese things.

I I

THE OPENING OF THE SEVEN SEALS

(Chapter 6)

(1) The ominous announcement--6:1.


and there was given unto him a great sword. 5 And whenhe had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say,C d A d I b h ld d l bl k h d h



Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse ; and hethat sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. 6 And Iheard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure

of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for apenny ; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine. 7 Andwhen he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. 8 And I looked, andbehold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was

Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was givenunto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill withsword, and with hunger, and with death, and with thebeasts of the earth.”

The horse is portrayed in the Old Testament as the

noblest of animals. (Gen. 49 :17; J ob 39 :19-25) The beastsof burden were oxen and asses, horses were warriors, re-


consecrated to that deity over all the east. The sun-god wasrepresented as riding his chariot drawn by the swiftestand most beautiful horses completing every day the journey



and most beautiful horses, completing every day the journeyfrom east to west, for the communication of light to all man-kind. I t is worthy of note that the secrets and ceremonies

of some fraternal orders today, a certain one in particular,based on the ancient mysteries surrounding the god andgoddess of the sun, Osiris and Isis, are not far removedfrom this ancient deism.

At one time the Lord forbade the kings of J udah tomultiply horses as an embargo measure to prevent tradebetween J udah and Israel, fearing that by means of com-merce, as a system of communication, I srael would becomeinfected with the Egyptian idolatries.

In the Old Testament apocalypses, as in Revelation, thesymbols of the horse and its rider were the most graphic,if not the most moving imagery. The striking resemblancein the vision of horses in the first chapter of Zechariah to


target, and became a symbol of terror from God. (Psa.

38:2; J ob 6:4) Along with lightning, thunder and famine,it was employed as a symbol of divine judgment. (II Sam.



22:15) As a metaphor of the penetrating power of truththe arrow symbolized the word of God. David refers to“sharp” arrows in hearts causing men to yield to “the

sceptre of righteousness.” (Psa. 45 :4-7) In the same figurethe bow stands for fidelity and strength, as in Gen. 49:24,and Psa. 44:6. In the hand of the rider of the white horsethe bow was the symbol of all these characters of conflict.

A cr own was gi ven unt o hi m : This is a significant de-

scription as it is noteworthy that Vespasian who initiated,and Titus who executed, the J ewish war both received theimperial crown.

H e went for th conquer i ng, and t o conquer : The conquestof Christ was not spontaneous, intermittent or spasmodic ;

it did not consist in single victories ; it was a continuous,progressive conquest of hearts which no might could de-


bitter, relentless and bloody struggle. I t was an intensifiedview of the events in successive symbols.The sword has connotations of both civil authority and



The sword has connotations of both civil authority andmilitary might. Even when it is used as a metaphor for theword of God it is a function of war against sin in the soul

and the rebellion of the heart against the will of God. (Eph.6 : 17 ; Heb. 4 :12) Moses used the sword as a metaphor of war. “I will punish you for your sins, I will bring the swordupon you,” (Lev. 26 :24-25), which meant that God wouldcause war to come upon them. “Ye shall be delivered intohands of enemies,” he said. Paul used the sword to signifythe authority of government. “For he beareth not the swordin vain, for he is the minister of God, a revenger to executewrath upon him that doeth evil.” (Rom. 13 :4) God hasordained the rightful power of government to punish evil-doers and defend the good. J esus used the sword to sym-bolize capital punishment. “Put up thy sword into its place,for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword ”


hand . . .a measure of wheat for a penny

.

.

.three measuresof barley for a penny . . . hurt not the oil and the wine.”

The black horse was the color of distress, the portent of



, pterror in the approaching calamity. I t compares with theOld Testament figure in J oel 2 :6 : “The people shall be much

pained, all faces gather blackness”; and in Nahum 2 :10 :

“The faces of them all gather blackness”; and in J er. 8 :21:“For the hurt of my people am I hurt, I am black.” J ude13 refers to the “blackness of darkness forever.” I t is thepicture of the grim, dread calamity of famine in the land.

The balances in the hand of the rider were scales andmeasures and indicated the scarcity in the land; the strictand small allowance of food to be issued by minute measureor exact weight with legislated care. I t compares with Matt.24 :7, where J esus foretold the famine that prevailed during

the siege of J erusalem. The voi ce i n th e m i dst of the four beasts (or beings) was in repetition of the voices heard inth i i d i d th hidd f th l



148 THE BOOK OF R EVELATION

By thesword

as the instrument employed by the riderof the pale horse to accomplish his work of destruction heis represented as having power to ki l l . I t symbolized the



weapon of war waged against J erusalem. Hunger is theblight of famine, and is descriptive of the mass starvationthat prevailed during the siege of J erusalem. Pestilence isthe terror of death by ravishing disease, which also pre-vailed in the destruction and siege of J erusalem. The beasts of this symbol do not refer to wild animals, as usuallyconsidered, but to cannibalism, as men turned beasts toravish and devour each other and even to eat the flesh of their children. It occurred during the siege of J erusalem,according to J esus in Matt. 24:6-8 and according to the eyewitness accounts of J osephus and Pliny.

I t is declared that death and hel l followed the rider of the pale horse. The word is hades, and refers to the domainof death, the realm of the departed, the unseen world of disembodied spirits the subterranean abode of the dead


rider, of the fourth horse, and his division of work was afourth part in this pageant of devastation. Elsewhere inthe scenes are found the expressions t h i r d pa r t and tenth



the scenes are found the expressions t h i r d pa r t and tenth

par t , apparently intended as proportionate figures of thevast destruction, but without geographical or mathematical

significance. The scene of the four horses and riders is a panoramaof the war on J erusalem in a fourfold set of events, an ex-tension of twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew. They repre-sent one set of events, not separate figures for separated

periods or ages of the world, such as war in one age, faminein another century, carnage in another generation, and witha final fantastic millennium in the end of the world. It is acombined series fulfilled in one period as foretold by J esusin Matt. 24:34. The conquest of the victorious rider of the

white horse through the bow could not be accomplishedwithout the war on J erusalem. The red horse of war could


should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservantsalso and their brethren, that should be killed as they were,should be fulfilled.”



The scene: Here is the first glimpse of the martyrdompageant which was reopened in the twentieth chapter with

the grand finale of victory. It is the tribulation of Matthewtwenty-four in extended form, an enlargement of Matthew24 :9 and Luke 21:16; depicting the supreme sufferings of those who were companions “in the tribulation and kingdomand patience of J esus Christ,” during the apostolic age, in

the wake of the war on J erusalem and the persecutions of Christians.

The a l ta r : The material altar was a structure ap-propriated exclusively to the offering of sacrifices. (Gen.8:20) Spiritually it is applied to Christ as the Christian’saltar upon which spiritual offerings are made. (Heb. 13 :10)




cept those days should be shortened”; also Luke 21:22 onthe “days of vengeance.” The time was extended to includethat part of their fel l ow ser vant s and breth r en th at shoul d

i th l t i t Th ld b



be k i l l ed in the later successive events. There could be nopremature act of divine interposition. I t shoul d be fu l f i l led according to seals--that is the events of the vision com-pleted. Again, the apocalypse is parallel with Matt. 24:34:“This generation shail not pass till all these things befulfilled”; and Matt. 23:36: “All these things shall comeupon this generation”; and Luke 21:22 : “For these be thedays of vengeance, that all things which are written may befulfilled.”

The identity of the period of the seals of Revelation 6with the events of Matthew 24 is unmistakable, as referringto, symbolic of, and fulfilled in, the destruction of J eru-

salem.


man after the tribulation mentioned in the verses beforeit, as the sixth seal of Revelation 6 joins with the contentsof the fifth seal before it. The divine visitations in the



signs of terrestrial upheavals and celestial disturbancesform an identical imagery. The comparison is impressive,

if not conclusive evidence of their fulfillment in the sameseries of events.

1. There was a great earthquake--6:12.

In all of these scenes the earth is the place of the na-

tions. The earthquake is the symbol of revolution, the shak-ing up of the nations in their various places. It is the figureof the agitations, upheavals, resulting in the revolutionsand wars of Matthew 24:29. It is the symbol of divine judg-ment on the nations persecuting the cause of the Lamb.

The same signal of the earthquake is found in the Old Testament prophecies of Isaiah 29:6, in the former judg-


kingdom were called stars in Dan. 8:10, and were said tobe “cast down”; and in Dan. 12:3 God’s people were saidto shine “as stars forever.”



4. As a fig tree casting untimely figs when shaken bymighty wind--6:13.

The fig tree was the most familiar fruit bearing tree of scripture illustrations. The first pair clothed their naked-ness with fig leaves. (Gen. 3 :7) The universal benefits of the new covenant were envisioned by Malachi as “every manunder his vine and under his fig tree.” (Micah 4 :4) Thedesolation of Nineveh is compared by Nahum to the ripefig falling from the tree that is shaken. (Nahum 3:12) The dissolution of the enemies of God’s people is describedby Isaiah to the leaf falling from the vine and to a fallingfig from a tree. (Isa. 34 :4) The rejection of the J ews wasinsinuated by J esus in the cursing of the fruitless fig tree.(M tt 21 19)


The disintegration of the enemies of the church wasalso foretold in the Messianic prophecies of I saiah by theuse of the same figures as J ohn employed in the imageryof Revelation; and it is again comparable to the Lord’s



of Revelation; and it is again comparable to the Lordspronouncement concerning the events after the fall of J erusalem, that with a great sound of a trumpet, he wouldsend his messengers to “gather his elect from the fourwinds, from one end of heaven to the other”--(Matt. 24 :31)-a description of expansion of the gospel after the destruc-tion of J erusalem and the downfall of J udaism. And inverse 34 the Lord said with the emphasis of Ver i l y I say

unto you that “this generation shall not pass untilall these things be fulfilled.” Here is the blanket proof that these events belonged to that time, that they pertainedto the church and the nations of the persecution period andnot to a distant future of far and remote centuries.

6. Every mountain and island were moved out of their




(5) The intermission scene (between sixth and seventhseals) --7: 1-17.

Six seals have been opened, revealing the signs of im-



p , g g pending events. The first four seals depict scenes of terror and tragedy never exceeded in the course of human history

--the siege of Jerusalem by the Romans, the details of which fulfill these visions of the horrorifying inflictions, of its duration, and of the subsequent tribulations in its wake.It should not be even momentarily overlooked that all of these calamities were included in the narration of Matthew

24, accompanied by the explicitly plain announcement byJesus that the calamities would come upon that generationand fulfilled in it (Matt . 23:36; Matt. 24:34). “All thesethings shall come upon this generation.”

After the disclosures of war, famine, pestilence and

mortality in the pageantry of the four horses and riders,the fifth seal discloses the call of the martyrs for avenging


1. And I saw four angels--7:l.“And after these things I saw four angels standing on

the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of



the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, noron the sea, nor on any tree.”

The fou r angel s were the imperial agents, not theheavenly messengers, as shown by the contrast with “an-other” angel of verse 2, which countermanded the ordersof the four angels to hold back the winds. These four angelswere the agents of Rome intercepting the word of God--

hold i ng the w i nds --hindering the messengers of the gospel--th at t hey shou l d not bl ow --that is, preventing the spreadof the gospel, or Christianity. The old word “hold” meant“hinder,” as in Rom. 1:18, “who hold (hinder) the truth.” The four cor ner s of the ear th i s a common expression to

denote the four points of the compass, meaning the wholeearth. It signified the universal sway of the Roman govern-




the church of the firstborn, sealed on earth and enrolled inheaven. A similar imagery is employed by J eremiah inforetelling the captivity of Israel in Babylon. (Ezek. 9 :4)I ts history repeats itself in these visions of tribulation in



I ts history repeats itself in these visions of tribulation inthe final destruction of J erusalem, and of Israel’s nation.

I t is noteworthy that in this imagery there was themark that sealed the servants of God i n th ei r for eheads,whoworshipped not the beast, in contrast with what waslater called th e mar k of t he beast, also received upon th ei r foreheads and i n thei r hands, by those who submitted to the

beast--to the decree of the emperor against the worshipof the Lamb, and for the worship of the emperor, as setforth in the second series of symbols surrounding thechurch the Bride of the Lamb. In a similar figure Paulcarried the mark of his Lord. (Gal. 6:17)

The number of t he seal ed was computed with the tabula-tion of twelve times twelve, on the basis of the twelve tribes

T HE APOCALYPSE OF THE CONQUERING CHRIST 161

new Israel. The proclamation of “the angel of the east”to the four angels standing on the four corners of the“earth” to “hurt not the earth till we have sealed theservants of our God ” signified that God would not permit



servants of our God, signified that God would not permitthem to destroy Old J erusalem until he had sealed a

representative number for the New J erusalem, the church,which was figuratively said to be “the twelve tribes” of thedispersion. (J ames 1 :1)

The “loud voice” of this angel commanded that the“wind blow,” that the gospel should be preached to thefour corners by the sealed servants. I t was parallel to theLord’s declaration that after the destruction of J erusalemhis angels (emissaries) would carry the gospel to the four winds. (Matt. 24 :31)

Following the visions of the sealed number there wasthe heavenly scene of the great multitude robed in white,

coming out of tribulation, composed of the angels, theelders and the beings who were before the throne who


The correlation in the symbolic arrangement of the con-tents, without the historical gaps and the fragmentarydislocations of the future theories identify them with thecurrent history then transpiring The entire genius of the



current history then transpiring. The entire genius of thebook justifies the conviction that it was designed for the

comfort and encouragement of the early apostolic churches.4. The innumerable multitude--7:9-10.

"9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, whichno man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and

people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and beforethe Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in theirhands ; 10 And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvationto our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto theLamb.”

In this coordination of the apocalypse, the angel’sproclamation concerning the hundred and forty-four


Heb. 12:22-23. So parallel are these passages that strongevidence is adduced from it that the Hebrew passage is anallusion to this Revelation scene of chapter 7, virtuallyequivalent to a direct quotation This is assuredly possible



equivalent to a direct quotation. This is assuredly possiblein the premises of the prior date of Revelation, in which

chronology it antedates the Hebrew epistle. The sameevidential relation of other epistles to the apocalypse isindicated in other references and examples, all of whichare internal evidences that Revelation is by no means thelast book of the New Testament canon, but quite to the

contrary-it bears an earlier date than several others,including Hebrews, Galatians, Second Peter (if not first),and even of the other epistles of J ohn.

The multitude of verses 9-10 were clothed in the whi te robes of victory, displaying pa lms of praise. There werethe emblems of a triumphant march. (J ohn 12:13) Witha loud voi ce the vocal unison of the great company ascribed

f h h l i d d


Reference to “all the angels” does not mean all angelsin heaven, but all the angels in this vision, beginning in thefourth chapter. After saying Amen to the acknowledgmentsof salvation by the multitude they repeated the doxology



of salvation by the multitude, they repeated the doxologyof chapter 5 :12, with the exception of the omission of

“riches,” inserting thanksgiving and substituting might for“strength.” For comments on the seven-fold attributes thusascribed to God and to the Lamb refer to chapter 5:11-13.

6. The white-robed throng--7:13-14.

“And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, Whatare these which are arrayed in white robes? And whencecame they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And hesaid to me, These are they which came out of great tribula-tion, and have washed their robes, and made them white in

the blood of the Lamb.”


7. The reward of the redeemed--7:15-16.“Therefore are they before the throne of God, and servehim day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on thethrone shall dwell among them They shall hunger no more



throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more,neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on

them, nor any heat.” These who were befor e the th r one of God and i n h i s temple, renewed the dual kingdom-priesthood character of the church, it is said of both in chapter 1:6, 5 :10. Thedemolition of the old temple only gave place to the new

(Acts 7:47-49) ; and his priests then would serve in histemple day and ni ght , and would be always before his throne, continually with none to make them afraid; andtheir God would dwell there. (2 Cor. 6 :16)

In this new temple-state, having emerged from tribula-

tion, they should hunger and th i rs t no more; neither su n nor heat would l i ght on them (afflict them)--figures of


scenes all merge into one company, the victorious churchof Christ.

(6) The silence period (seventh seal)--8:l-6.



( ) p ( )

“1 And when he had opened the seventh seal, there

was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour. 2And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; andto them were given seven trumpets. 3 And another angelcame and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; andthere was given unto him much incense, that he should

offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altarwhich was before the throne. 4 And the smoke of theincense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascendedup before God out of the angel’s hand. 5 And the angeltook the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast

it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings,and lightnings, and an earthquake. 6 And the seven angels


The old J erusalem was doomed to destruction before theadvance of the “J erusalem above” of Gal. 4:26, and“heavenly J erusalem” of Hebrews 12;23, and the “new

J erusalem” of Rev. 21:1--the church of the new covenant,



J ,the “holy city” and “temple” of the Christ who was theLamb of Revelation.

When the angel opened this seventh seal, before themomentous announcements were heard, a dread and awfulsilence was recorded.

1. “There was silence in heaven about the space of half

an hour."--8: 1. This scene was in Heaven: It was the place where all of

these correlated visions were disclosed. The “silence” herewas accentuated by the contrast with the “voices” in thesix seals before it. It was the silence of dreadful suspense,

fearful expectation, a calm before the storm.The silence period was for the space of hal f an h our :


further vision of judgments, of things “shortly” to cometo pass, which had been set forth in the six preceding seals. The trumpets of the seventh seal were the signals to proceedto the accomplishment of that which the seals signified.



3. “Another angel came and stood at the altar havinga golden censer ; and there was given unto him much incensethat he should offer it with prayers of all the saints uponthe golden altar before the throne"--8:3.

The altar was a place of sacrifice ; the throne was a

mercy seat. The angel stood at the altar before the throneto join with those who prayed.

The angel offered much incense . . . w i th th e pr ayer s of

al l th e sai n ts --This more than usual incense had a sig-nificance--the additional incense was because of the prayers

of al l the sai nt s in contrast with the prayers of only thosei t hi h d th lt f h t i It


5. “The angel took the censer and filled it with the fireof the altar and cast it into the earth: and there werevoices, thunderings, lightnings and an earthquake”--8:5.

The same fire that consumed the incense would speedily



The same fire that consumed the incense would speedilydestroy the enemies of the saints, and the apostate city of

J erusalem, and the temple of J udaism. The fire-filled censerwas cast i n to the ear th .

As previously shown “the earth” signified the place of the persecuting powers. The censer filled with the fire of thealtar was “cast into the earth” as an act to cause explosion

--and the result was symbolized by voices, thunder ings ,l ightn ing and an earthquake. This was the fourfold sign of the judgments ready to come, gathering as a storm ap-proaches with thunderings, and the earthquake signified theshaking of persecuting powers. The four angels and four

trumpets were four signs that these events were about tobreak in fury




of preparation for attack and destruction. The sameimagery is used of I srael’s powerful enemies in I sa. 40 :1;41:5. In this vision of the tribulations which were so soonto overwhelm the church, the burning mountain symbolized



the lust of war, and it was descriptive of the Roman and

J ewish persecuting powers.2. The mountai n cast i n to the sea. The great burning

mountain was seen in the vision as being cast i nt o th e sea. The Roman emperor was symbolized as the beast of the sea and was represented as coming up ou t of the sea: and this

symbol evidently signifies that the government which wouldwage this war against the church would be the empire andits tributary powers.

3. The sm i t ten sea. As earth referred to the J ewish

powers in the land of the J ews, the sea signified the Romanpowers. The sm i t ten sea meant the destruction of the power




(4) The sun smitten--(the fourth trumpet)--8 :12-13.

“And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, andthe third part of the stars ; so as the third part of them



p ; pwas darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it,

and the night likewise. And I beheld, and heard an angelflying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loudvoice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth byreason of the other voices of the trumpet of the threeangels, which are yet to sound!”

1. The sun, moon and stars: The blackout of the sun, themoon, and the stars, the darkness of the day and even thedenseness of the night are the signs of the stark distressand pall of gloom descriptive of the fourth stroke of thetrumpets, in the darkness that settled over the J ewish state

and nation.Th f t t h d d l f j d t


angel called his woes. The fearful plagues of the fourtrumpets that had sounded were only a start in the succeed-ing terrors. The “other voices” were the messages of theangels of the remaining trumpets “yet to come,” which wasthe “reason” for the fl ing eagle of oe



the “reason” for the flying eagle of woe.In the series of seven trumpets, four had sounded, three

remained. The woes of “the other voices” of the threeangels and trumpets “yet to sound,” in their respectiveturns, held forebodings “to the inhabiters of the earth”beyond all that had been theretofore depicted.

The “inhabiters of the earth,” does not mean all the peo-

ple in the world. The “earth” has been defined as the placeof the powers to which reference is made and is limited bysuch reference. Accordingly it sometimes denotes the placeof the J ewish powers only, but in other instances both the J ewish and the Roman powers, as the context of the attend-

ing signs and pronouncements show.U til th i i h d d J l


talk and write about it but they can neither write nortalk around it.

I t is so with the opening of the seals and the soundingof the trumpets, the relation to the destruction of J erusalem,the demolition of the temple the downfall of J udaism



the demolition of the temple, the downfall of J udaism,and the end of the J ewish state is too evident to be con-troverted.

With the “loud voice” of the flying angel, therefore,alerting the “inhabiters of the earth,” the J ewish world, tothe crescendo of woes in the “other voices” of the trumpetsof the three angels “yet to come”--the vision increases inthe forebodings of what was characterized as “men’shearts failing them for fear, and for looking after thosethings which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.” (Lk. 21:26)

In the grim contemplation of eventualities the hearts

of men would fail. And of those very indescribable occur-


of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle;and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, andtheir faces were as the faces of men. 8 And they had hairas the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions 9 And they had breastplates as it were breastplates



lions. 9 And they had breastplates, as it were breastplatesof iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle. 10 And theyhad tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in theirtails : and their power was to hurt men five months. 11 Andthey had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottom-less pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but

in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon. 12 One woeis past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.”

1. A fal l en star : I saw a star fall from heaven”--9:l. The star, as in previous instances where the symbol is

used, denoted a ruler; and heaven in this connection, as also

previously shown, denoted the dominion of these powers.Wh J id i L k 10 18 “I b h ld S t f ll


2. The key to the bott om less pi t: “And to him was giventhe key to the bottomless pit”--9:1.

The “bottomless” pit is the abyss, the infernal region,the diabolical domain of the devil. This fallen star being an



the diabolical domain of the devil. This fallen star being anagent of Satan personified, he was given the “key” to the

abyss of Satan, that he might unloose the woes announcedby the flying angel of chapter 8 :13.

The smoke of the pi t : “And he opened the bottomlesspit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace ; and the sun and the air were darkened--9:2.

The pit is the infernal underworld, the dark abode of demons (Luke 8 :31). Here the angel has the “key” to openit--unloose it--hence, an evil angel, in contrast with the

angel with the “chain” in chapter 20, to b ind .The smoke of the pit “as a furnace” similar to destruc


ence is to a large and vile insect of such multiplicity and

voracity as to be a dreaded source of scourge. These insectsborne by the wind in swift swarms hundreds of miles wereknown to the people of Palestine as “burners of the land,”a phrase derived from the literal meaning of “locust.” I t

th i t t b t th fl i i t b



was their nature to be together, flying in vast numbers,

spoiling the grain, infecting the part they did not eat, andpoisoning the very air through which they swarmed. Ascourge of locusts ended with the decomposition of severalmillions of the vile things, and resulted in pestilence thatafflicted the land, with heavy death toll. (J oel 2 :20) Onehistorical example is on record as occurring 125 B.C., whenthe swarms were driven by strong winds into the sea, andwashed back by the tide in such vast numbers as to causea stench and a plague from which several thousand peopledied in the countries of L ibya, Cyrene and Egypt.

From the time of Moses they were the instruments of divine judgment as in Exodus 10 :4-15; Deuteronomy




tionaries of antiquities and historical works, such as J ose-

phus and Pliny.4. Seek i ng death --“In those days shall men seek death,

and shall not find it"--9:6.

For comparison read Luke 21:26 Matthew 24:22 and



For comparison read Luke 21:26, Matthew 24:22, andMark 13:12, 20-the Lord’s own predictions concerningthese events. There could be no fitter application of thesesymbols than the tragic conditions attending the siege of J erusalem, as described in the graphic language of Mat-thew, Mark and Luke.

5. The hor se-l i ke locusts. “And the shapes of the locustswere like the shapes of horses prepared for battle"--9:7.

Shapes l i ke hor ses: The composite appearance of thelocusts-shape of horses for battle, heads as gold crowns,faces of men--shows this symbolism to be that of the rulers

with their armies of destruction. The locusts were seen ash d f b l h h i l b


reducing the city to rubbish and ruin--all the dreadful

horrors of which were depicted by both J eremiah and J oel.As the prophet J oel’s apocalypse of the invasion of lo-

custs concerned the J erusalem of about B. C. 600, this visionof J ohn’s apocalypse concerned the J erusalem of A. D. 70,

h V i d Tit t d th i i l d



when Vespasian and Titus executed the imperial orders

of Nero to besiege and destroy the city, the miseries of which exceeded all of its calamitous history before andafter.

“And when ye shall see J erusalem compassed witharmies, then know that desolation is near . . . for these be

the days of vengeance, that all things which are writtenmay be fulfilled.” Luke 21:20, 22.“For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not

since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor evershall be.” Matthew 24:22.

“For in those days shall be affliction, such as was notfrom the beginning of the creation, which God created unto




length of the scorpion was about two inches, but large

scorpions of the deadly species exceeded six inches. I tssting produced violent convulsions, excruciating pain anddeath. In this vision it symbolizes the deadly striking powerof the invading army.



Power to hu r t fi ve mont hs: In verse 5 the expressionis “tormented five months”; here it is “power to hurt menfive months.” The season of the locust was from late springto early fall of the year, May to September in our calendar.

The expression five months, being the whole season of the

locust, figuratively denotes the activity of the persecutingpowers through the period of tribulation without surcease.

9. The ki ng of the pi t: “They had a king over themwhich is the angel of the bottomless pit”--9 :11.

A k i ng, angel of bot tom l ess pi t : The king “over them”over this ferocious locust army was the angel king of


(Abaddon-Apollyon) was so designated. I t was most

apropos to so entitle the impious leader of such a monstrousarmy of horrid creatures of the abyss, to thus liken theliteral emperor of the Roman world to the figurative kingof the underworld.



The depths of Satan is the boldest delineation, the per-

sonification of whom code language alone could allow, as ina later chapter it was again done in the name and numberof the beast. And to so label this monarch of oppression adespot ; the destroyer in both of the two spoken languages--Abaddon and Apollyon, the Hebrew and Greek--was a chal-

lenge to boldness which must have excited courage and in-spired fortitude in all the suffering saints.

10. The woes: “One woe is past, behold there come twowoes more hereafter”--9:12.

In 8 :13 the flying angel announced three woes to enhancesolemnity Now it was J ohn speaking not the angel not


the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, havingbreastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and theheads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone. 18 Bythese three was the third part of men killed, by the fire,



p , y ,and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued outof their mouths. 19 For their power is in their mouth, andin their tails: for their tails were like unto serpents, andhad heads, and with them they do hurt. 20 And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repentednot of the works of their hands, that they should not wor-ship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, andstone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, norwalk: 21 Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.”

The symbolism of the sixth trumpet like that of thefifth is a parallelism of imagery with J oel’s vision of

T HE A POCALYPSE OF THE C O N Q U E R I N G C HRIST 1 8 7

scene of chapter 9, and there were four horns on the altar

--a horn to convey a divine message, an order, to each of the four angels ; but the one voice from the four hornssignified one message--the same for all. The horns were of the altar “which was before God,” so the voice from theh h i f di h i f G d Th i



horns was the voice of direct authority from God. The voice

was not personified, as of an angel, or any representative,but was simply designated a voice of direct command fromthe altar “before God” to the angel of the sixth trumpet.

L oose the four angel s: As the voice from the altar of

this scene is the same voice from within “the midst” inchapter 6, so the four angels here are the same four angels“holding the four winds of the earth” in chapter 7. Thefour angels there, as explained, were the imperial angelsor agents holding the winds that they should not blow:

that is, hindering the messengers of the gospel, preventingthe spread of Christianit A hea enl angel referred to as




ing tw i ce ten th ousand ti mes ten th ousand . I t was a figure

of overwhelming military might that descended on J udeaand Palestine. The apocalypse presented a two-fold catas-trophe : 1. the tormenting locusts which brought the demonicplagues ; 2. the armies of the Euphrates which brought thedemonic wars The swarms of locusts were said to h t



demonic wars. The swarms of locusts were said to h u r t

men; while the armies of the Euphrates were said to killmen. The two-fold vision of destruction symbolized f am ine and sword. The first part of the vision to hur t men was ac-complished in the ravages of pestilence by famine ; thesecond part of the vision to k i l l men was executed in the

devastations of war by the sword. The terrible atrocitiesof the armies of Titus, Cestius Gallus and Vespasian, wererecorded in the historical annals of eye-witnesses, who sawthe armies overrun J udea and who witnessed the fall of J erusalem, such as J osephus and Pliny ; and in the works of

the near-contemporary historians, Tacitus and others.


And I hear d t he number of th em : The number of this mighty army was proclaimed to J ohn, not in visionaryform, but as being audible--"I heard the number." It wasanother interposed statement, as of verse 12, containing theovertones of an overpowering onslaught.



3. The apocalyptic horses: “And thus I saw the horsesin the vision, having breastplates of fire, jacinth, brim-stone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke andbrimstone."--9:17.

Thus I saw . . . in the v ision : In the manner of thenarrative J ohn “thus” saw these things--that is, not inphysical life, not actual or real, but “in the vision”--there-fore, it was not a description of fleshly animals, materialarmor or human riders, but symbolic of the woes to befallthe inhabitants of J erusalem and the land of the J ews.

B r eastp l at es of f i r e j aci n th br im stone: In verse 9


and nations and of the future eternal punishment of thewicked, all of which uses are figurative and carry the fullintensity of the word in all of its connotations and applica-tions.

The “fire, jacinth and brimstone,” of verse 17, were used



j

to figuratively describe the irredescent glitter of the horse-men’s armor, in the glowing red of fire, the blue-purple hueof the hyacinth, and the smokish yellow of brimstone. The blending colors signified also the mingled sufferings tobe inflicted with the awful intensity of fire and brimstone,as indicated by the corresponding expression in the sameverse, that “fire, smoke and brimstone” proceeded from themouths of the horses. The vision of two hundred millionhorsemen bedecked in armor of fire, jacinth and brimstone,riding horses with heads “as the heads of lions,” withmouths issuing “fire and smoke and brimstone,” presentsa monstrous picture of the approaching speedy execution


used to denote the word “hell.” In the application of thefigure to the torments of hell J esus said: “Where theirworm dieth not and the fire is not quenched”--Mark 9:44,46, 48. The use J esus made of these words cannot be ap-plied literally to the torments of souls in hell any more thanth l f D id E ki l d I i h ld b li d



the language of David, Ezekiel and Isaiah could be appliedliterally to the rulers of the nations against whom theywere inveighing. As a metaphor of eternal banishmentfrom the presence of God, J esus used the expression “outerdarkness,” like “outer space,” a darkness beyond the physi-cal darkness of this world. In reference to the misery of

such banishment he used the phrase, “weeping and wailingand gnashing of teeth.” An amateur in exegesis shouldrecognize the figurative character of these expressions. Soit is in the use of the word “fire” to indicate the intensityof suffering beyond degree: “Where their worm dieth not

and the fire is not quenched”--remorse is the worm andi h i th fi h f i ill


serpents,” and as the horses had heads like the heads of

lions, their tails were not only like serpents, but their tailshad heads like serpent heads. “And w i th them they do h u r t ” --that is, using their tails to do harm, with devasta-tion from the rear as well as destruction that issued fromtheir mouths It is the description of the deadly scourge in



their mouths. It is the description of the deadly scourge in

the path of the invasion before this army and in its wakebehind, sweeping everything before, leaving nothing be-hind ; as a scorched earth and burnt land. It is an extensionof the appalling picture of the complete desolation men-tioned by J esus, in Matthew 24 :15 ; Mark 13 :14 ; Luke

21:20, which followed the siege and destruction of J eru-salem.

The same description is given by J oel of the invasion of J udea by the Chaldeans in the sixth century B.C. “A firedevoureth before them, and behind them a flame burneth ;

the land is as the garden of Eden before them and behind


as being guilty of the “worship of devils,” which covered

all the idolatrous objects immediately mentioned--“whichneither can see, nor hear, nor walk,” classified as “idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood"--allof which declared to be “the works of their hands.” To in-clude all these categories of idolatry under the blanket



g y

indictment of “the worship of devils” was in keeping withthe law of the J ews, which proscribed all idol worship ashomage “unto devils,” and was branded as religious whore-dom in the Mosaic law. “They shall no more offer theirsacrifices unto devils, after whom they have gone a whor-

ing. This shall be a statute forever unto them throughouttheir generations.” (Lev. 17:7) Again, in the song of Mosesit is said : “They sacrificed unto devils, not to God ; to godswhom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up,whom your fathers feared (worshiped) not.” (Deut. 32 :17)

The apostle Paul upholds the Mosaic statute on that point,having himself lived under it as a J ew: “But I say that




malediction was murder of his Cause; turning from the

principles of the faith to the arts of magic was a broaddefinition of sorcery (Acts 13 :6; 19 :13), of which thereseemed to be a rather numerous party. (Col. 2:18-23) Andtheft does not consist only in the violation of the eighthcommandment--seducing men was spiritual theft. (J ohn



commandment seducing men was spiritual theft. (J ohn

10 :8-10 ; Matt. 15 :9 ; J er. 23 :30 ; I Tim. 1 :10) That forn i- cation has a figurative as well as physical meaning goeswithout saying. (Rev. 2:21; 19:2; II Chron. 21:11; Rev.17 :5) Apostasy is spiritual fornication.

Thus “the rest of the men” is a phrase designating

apostate Israelites, guilty of the entire category of spiritualcrimes, of which they “repented not”--verse 20; “neitherrepented”--verse 21. This dual emphasis on the impenitenceof these apostates was for the four things representativeof apostasy both under the decalogue of Moses and the

gospel of Christ.




sense of traitors to the J ewish cause, and betrayers of their

brethren. It was spiritual sorcery in the magical influenceexercised over the J ewish population. It was spiritual forni-cation in adulterous affiliation with the false systems of deism, pantheism and paganism. I t was spiritual theft inthe stealing of the truth from men’s hearts and God’s way



g y

from their lives. The correctness of the characterization of the “rest of

the men which were not killed by the plagues,” and who“repented not” of the category of figurative crimes, as theresidual number of the J ewish people, is supported by the

corresponding J ewish history of the same period. The sinslisted in the category of verses 20 and 21 were typical of all

J ewish apostasies from the law of Moses promulgatedfrom Mount Sinai and which was preached in all thesynagogues. “Thou camest down upon Mount Sinai, and

spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them rightj d t d t l d t t t d d t


warnings against all such seducers and their doctrines, with

all the resulting wickedness. “Now the spirit speakethexpressly that in the latter times some shall depart fromthe faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” (I I Tim. 4 :1) “This know also that in the lastdays perilous times shall come.” (II Tim. 3 :1)



y p ( )

These apostolic admonitions correspond with the warn-ings of the Lord in the discourse on J erusalem, and aredescriptive of the same J ewish apostasies of the residualnumber in the closing scene of the sixth trumpet vision. The drawing of these parallels was in full accord with the

teaching of the passages cited in reference to the times, withthe history of that period, and with the purpose of theapocalypse.

The voice from the four horns of the altar commandedthe angel of the sixth trumpet to “loose” the four agents

which were “bound” in or at “the great river Euphrates”


salem discourse and with the like symbols of J ohn’s

apocalypse. To search the distant future for a fulfillmentof these symbolic descriptions, not only reduces both thetext and the context of Revelation to confusion, but rendersmeaningless all of the passages which apply with suchclarity and so full of force to that period. The interpreta-



y p p

tions which remove these events of the symbolic historyfrom the Neroan period of the apostolic century, and assignthem to centuries later and yet to come are rankanachronisms. Any attempt to explain these visions by therise and fall of the successive monarchies, through the

centuries from them till now and on to the end of time,would necessarily continue the existence of the armiessymbolized in this vision for periods ranging from five totwenty centuries, which not only destroys all practical ap-plications of the symbolic descriptions to the people to

whom they were addressed, rendering them impossible tod t d b t it f th d l f




Rev. 1:7) This display was not for the execution of judg-

ment, but rather to be clothed and attired with the glorybefitting his portfolio and comparable to his commission.Compare the similar symbols of official robes in Exodus40 :34-38 and Leviticus 16 :2, and the “woman arrayed withthe sun” in chapter 12 :1 of the next scene.



p

2. A r a in bow upon h is head : The rainbow is the symbolof divine covenant. (Gen. 9 :12-17) It represented assuranceagainst judgment, promise of help, a pledge of divinepresence. (Ezek. 1:28 ; Rev. 4 :3 ; 10 :7) I t was a sign that

this angel was a messenger of mercy, not of judgment,bringing good tidings, not evil forebodings.

3. His face as th e sun : The sun is the light of the uni-verse and is the source of all physical radiance. Seeking aterm of grandeur and splendor to portray the One to come,

the prophet Malachi selected the flaming orb of the day


Egypt, and was always the symbol of the presence and the

guidance of the angels of God. (Exodus 14 :19 ; 23 :20 ;32 :34) Describing the feet of this angel as “pillars of fire”denoted that his feet were illuminated with divine guidanceto give light to them that sat in darkness and in the shadowof death. (Luke 1:79)



5. I n h i s hand a l i tt l e book opened : This book in chapter5 :7 was “sealed and no man in heaven, nor in earth, neitherunder the earth was able to open it.” (Chapter 5 :2) Butthe “Lion of the tribe of J udah”--the Lamb in the midst

of the throne--“hath prevailed to open the book and toloose the seals thereof.” (Chapter 5 :5) I t was therefore nolonger sealed, no longer a mystery, but now an open book.When it was sealed it seemed large. Unknown things aregreater in seeming proportion than the things that are

known They become simplified and minimized in propor-ti t th k l d f th Wh th l ithi th


Thunder was regarded as the voice of God. (J ob 37 :2;

Psa. 18 :13 ; 81:7 ; Isa. 30 :31-32) Thunder attended theinauguration of the law. (Ex. 19 :16) When the peopleheard God’s voice, they said it thundered. (J ohn 12 :29) I twas a symbol of divine power in the executions of ven-geance on evil-doers. (II Sam. 2 :10 ; 22 :14 ; Isa. 29 :6) And



that was its significance here.

8. Seal up t hose thi ngs wh i ch th e seven th under s u tt er ed

and wr i te them not: The book of seven seals was opened,and its seals were loosed; the trumpets of the seven angels

were sounded; but the seven thunders wereseal ed up

and J ohn was commanded to w r i te them not. The things whichthe seven thunders uttered and which J ohn was ready totranscribe, related to the things of the future not disclosedin the seals nor proclaimed in the trumpets, neither con-tained in the vials yet to be poured. They were thingsoutside the realm of revelation beyond all human knowl-


“unspeakable words not lawful for a man to utter.” (I I

Cor. 12:l-4) The command of the voice fr om heaven toseal up and wr i te not, with no conditions, restrictions orlimitations of time has in it a finality that prohibits theexplanation that makes the voices of the thunders the mysticsymbols of imperial edicts and papal bulls of the medieval



centuries, and the continuous revelation of the history of Christianity to the end of the world.

9. That th er e shoul d be ti me no l onger : The words of finality spoken by the angel required that they be sealed

with the binding force of an oath. In the Old TestamentGod is said to have sworn by himself. (Gen. 22 :16; Isa.45 :23 ; Psa. 110 :4 ; Psa. 89 :35 ; Psa. 132 :11) In the New Testament Peter refers to God having “sworn with an oath”to David. (Acts 2 :30), and Paul declares in Hebrews 6 :18

that God “confirmed by an oath” his immutable counsel inwhich it was “impossible for God to lie ” So if the i


swered and would speedily come with no more delay. I n

chapter 8:3 the prayers of al l th e sai nt s are seen super-added to the cry of martyrs. The visions of the seven sealsand the seven trumpets, with their intermissions, have beenunfolded, and the vision having reached “the days of theseventh angel” there should be no more delay.



(2) The days of the seventh angel--10:7.

“But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, whenhe shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should befinished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.”

1. Days of the voice: This was a reference to the end of the J ewish state (Matt. 24 :3), which was politically theend of the old J ewish dispensation, the days when the lasttrumpet was about to sound the note of doom--when h e shal l begin to sound --hence, in the days of the last events

fulfilling these visions They were fulfilled in that genera-


Mosaic law had been “nailed to the cross,” “abolished” and“taken away”; but the J ewish state continued, and in thatsense the J ewish dispensation functioned, until “the daysof the voice of the seventh angel” which sounded the finaldoom. This was all in and part of “the mystery of God,"the divine scheme of things, which was “finished” in theculmination of these events.



culmination of these events.

3. As decl ar ed to the pr ophets: These things were alldeclared to the Old Testament prophets and witness bornein the prophecies to their fulfillment. (Rom. 16:25-26; IPet. 1 :10-12) These were the things that were “manifested

in last times”--the end of the J ewish world. (I Pet. 1:20) The old prophets contemplated all of the things pertainingto the kingdom of Christ, both of its inauguration and itsexpansion. (Gen. 49 :1; Isa. 2 :2-5; Mic. 4:1-4; Dan. 2 :42-45 ; Dan. 10 :14 ; Zech. 14) The revelations made known to

the prophets were a declaration in advance of the thingsi h d f d f lfill i h


with the same effects as described in this vision. (Ezek.

2 :9; 3:7, 14). The eating of this little book was in themouth sweet as honey, as the precious flavor ascribed tothe words of God. (Psa. 19:10; J er. 15:16) The effects of eating the book were both sweet and bitter.

J ohn said: I n m y mouth sweet--i n m y bel l y bi tt er . The



assurances and promises of victory and of reward were“sweet as honey.” The contemplation of such triumphsproduced the sweetness of joy and rejoicing; but the realiza-tion of the awful pronouncements fraught with fearfulwoes, turned the sweetness to bitterness in the belly, byreason of further contemplation on the tragic sufferings andsorrow, trials and tribulation they all would be called uponto endure in faithfulness, even in martyrdom, to receive thepromised crown.

(4) The commission to evangelize--10:11.

“And he said unto me Thou must prophesy again


passage indicates that J ohn left the scene of these visions

and became an active evangelist in many countries, amongmany peoples and tongues.

(5) The identity of the mighty angel--10:1 ; 11:3 ;

12:7; 14:1, 14; 19:11.



1. The open book of 10:8-11 is the sealed book of 5:1. The Lamb took that book from the One who sat on thethrone--5:7. After the opening of the seals, the book wasgiven to J ohn, thus identifying the angel of chapter 10 withthe Lamb of chapter 5.

2. The description of the angel of chapter 10 corre-sponds to that of the Son of man in chapter 1.

3. He appears as Lord in chapter 11:3, exercising apower and authority not ascribed to created beings.


The contents of the eleventh chapter are a continuation

of the scenes of the interlude, or intermediate visions, be-tween the sixth and seventh trumpet announcements. Thethings narrated belong to the days of t he voice of t he s eventh angel --the end of the J ewish state or politicaldispensation. The siege and fall of J erusalem was at hand.

The pronouncement of chapter 10 that there shoul d be time



p pno longer had been made. The eleventh chapter presentsintervening scenes of measuring the temple, for the preser-vation of the “holy seed,” the “true Israel,” the “onehundred forty-four thousand,” the “innumerable host,”the “remnant according to the election of grace,” and the“sealed number”--representative of all spiritual Israel, thewhole faithful church, and the true spiritual temple in con-trast with the old temple which though still standing, wasmeasured for destruction. The old J erusalem, the apostatecity, was marked for its downfall.


in chapter 2:27, “He shall rule them with a rod of iron"--

the rule of irresistible authority. The rod was also the symbol of affliction, as signifiedin the phrase “passing under the rod” of Ezekiel 20:37,and “take his rod away from me,” of J ob 9 :34.

This measuring reed given to J ohn symbolized the



authority of this “mighty angel” (10 :1) , and his powerto protect and preserve the true believers.

2. M easur e, templ e, al tar , worsh i p: At the start of theinterval between the sixth and seventh seals, the angel an-nounced the purpose of the interlude (chapter 7 :3) as time

to seal the ser van ts of God; and in verse 4 he describedand defined the number of them whi ch w er e seal ed as beingsymbolically of al l th e t r i bes of the ch i l d r en of I sr ael .

In the same imagery here, in the interval between thesixth and seventh trumpets, the command of the angel to

measure th e temple the al tar and them that w or shi p is


were given unt o the Gent i l es , and along with the old temple

and J ewish state they were destined for destruction. Asunbelieving Israel they should be cut off (Rom. 11:22).Paul said cu t off; J ohn said l eave ou t . The whole symbolis that the measured portion was the preserved spiritualIsrael, and the unmeasured part was the unbelieving fleshly



J ewish nation “given to the Gentiles” to be destroyed by theRomans, which was done in the siege of J erusalem, thedestruction of J erusalem, and the end of the J ewish world.

4. The holy ci ty shal l th ey tr ead under foot. J erusalemwas the once holy city: but was no longer that. I t was here

called holy because of its past association with the cov-enanted and the sainted ancestors. “How is the faithfulcity become harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousnesslodged in it; but now murderers.” (Isa. 1:21) “0 J eru-salem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them

which are sent unto thee . Behold your house is left unto


An example of such necessary mathematical application

is in the prophecy of Isaiah concerning the end of the tentribes, chapter 7 :l-9. Because of the importance of thisIsaiahan prophecy, and its bearing on the exact mathe-matical application of the forty-two months period of Revelation, the entire section of the Old Testament

h i h i d



prophecy is here inserted:

“1. And it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of J othan, the son of Uzziah, king of J udah, that Rezin theking of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up toward J erusalem to war against it, butcould not prevail against it. 2. And it was told the house of David, saying, Syria is confederate with Ephraim. And hisheart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the treesof the wood are moved with the wind. 3. Then said theLord unto Isaiah, Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou, andShearjashub thy son at the end of the conduit of the upper


fulfilled. And it was the history of it, in connection with

the point of discussion, that it was exactly for ty-two months (twelve hundred and sixty days, or a thousand two hund red

and thr eescor e days) from the imperial command to besiegeand destroy J erusalem to the accomplishment of the com-mission--and this apocalypse was thus literally fulfilled

l



also.For the historical evidence, Vespasian received his com-mission from Nero, and declared war on J erusalem Feb-ruary, A.D. 67. The siege ended with the fall of J erusalem,the burning of the city and temple, in August, A.D. 70.

This computation of dates yields the forty-two months for J erusalem to be “trodden under foot” as in the vision of Rev. 11:2. The historical authority for these dates isLardner’s J ewish Testimonies, Vol. 8, and J osephus, inWars Of The J ews, Vol. 7. The continuous historical theory

of the dark ages period and to the end of time lacks his-torical evidence and factual support and must be rejected


apostle further said that the Mosaic ordinances were im-

posed until the time of the new covenant--and there theold ordinances ended. So the declaration that J erusalemwas trodden down unt i l the times of the Gentiles were ful-filled had reference to the siege and destruction of thecity--that was the point of termination, and J erusalem and

ll f hi h it h d t d i th t f J d i th



all for which it had stood in the system of J udaism, theo-cratically and politically, according to all prophecies andapocalypses concerning it, came to its inglorious end.

(7) The testimony of the two witnesses--11:3-14.

“3 And I will give power unto my two witnesses, andthey shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and three-score days, clothed in sackcloth. 4 These are the two olivetrees, and the two candlesticks standing before the Godof the earth. 5 And if any man will hurt them, fire pro-

ceedeth out of their mouth and devoureth their enemies:


of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men

seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, andgave glory to the God of heaven. 14 The second woe is past;and, behold; the third woe cometh quickly.”

1. Power un to my two witnesses: The statement I w i l l

i i f t t i t l th t th



give in reference to my two w i tnesses reveals that thespeaker here is Christ, the angel of verse 1, the only Onewho could assume such rank and authority. The assuranceI w i l l gi ve power is based on a promise of the Lord to theapostles in Matthew 10 :18-20, that when they should be

arraigned “for testimony” they should “take no thoughthow or what” to speak; and as in Mark 13 :11, “take nothought beforehand, neither do ye premeditate”; and as inLuke 12 :12, “the Holy Spirit shall teach you in the samehour what ye ought to say.” This is the power here given

to the witnesses


2. Prophesy . . . cl oth ed i n sackcl oth : The word sack-

cloth was of Hebrew origin and was interfused into everylanguage as a symbol of ill-fortune. I t was the suit of mourning in death, the garb of humility and penitence under judgment, and the clothing of suffering in calamities andpersecutions-as so mentioned in J ob 16:15; Psa. 30:11;

J er 4 :8 ; Isa 29 :2 ; and Zech 13 :4



J er. 4 :8 ; Isa. 29 :2 ; and Zech. 13 :4. The speaker in this vision told J ohn that his two wit-

nesses should prophesy cl othed i n sackcl oth , as a sign of great affliction and as a token of the extreme suffering thattheir testimony should cause to come upon them, portrayingretrospectively the altar scenes of chapter 6:9-11, and pro-spectively all of the tribulations yet to be unfolded, of whichthe two witnesses were representatives.

3. A thousand two hundr ed t hr ee-scor e: The forty-two

months equal twelve hundred sixty days computed mathe


complete revelation, being the number of witnesses requiredfor testimony to be legally established.

The candlesticks signified light, the dispensing of light,which was its general significance always. The olive treewas then the source of the oil for the lamps, the lightthe two olive trees, standing in relation to two candlesticks,should dispense. Actually, our word candlestick is not exact,

t f i i th t li ht di h ld l



a sort of misnomer, since that light-dispenser held lampsonly, supplied with the purest olive oil when used in thetabernacle or temple service of God. In chapters 1:20 ; 2 :1the candlestick was made an emblem of the church, whichis not itself the light, but holds forth the light from Christ,who is Himself the light. The two witnesses were thusgiven an extended significance as representative of theprophets and the apostles, holding the lamp of light, burningthe oil of the divine testimony of the two covenants, theOld and New Testaments. As Zerubbabel and J oshua in the

same symbolism of Zechariah 4 were said to be “the two


calamities that would follow the testimony of the witnesses

to the ultimate destruction of their persecutors. The days of the prophesying of the two witnesses de-fined the same period as the days of t he voice of the seventhangel. (Chapter 10 :7) In one the mystery should be f inished,in the other they f i ni shed thei r test i mony. During this

period no power could prevail over them It was that interl i hi h th l f h t 7 d t “h t



period no power could prevail over them. I t was that inter-val in which the angel of chapter 7 gave command to “hurtnot . . . till we have sealed the servants of God.” If any manwilled to hu r t them, initiated action against them, he must i n th i s manner be ki l l ed --he would be destroyed in the man-

ner that verse 5 describes, by the “fire” proceeding “out of their mouths” which “devoureth their enemies.” These werethe symbols of divine judgment against the persecutors of witnesses and the opponents of their testimony (verse 7),and it followed the same figures of speech of the threatened

judgments of Christ to the seven churches in chapters 2d 3


by their own law demanded capital punishment, it was nec-essarily executed by Roman authority. The unbelieving J ews

were themselves the instigators of these persecutions butthe Roman emperor was the executing power, and was t h e beast which made war, overcame, and killed the witnesses--the cause they represented. But it was for a time only, forthe witnesses should rise up and live again.

In verse 8 the specter of th ei r dead bod i es was seen



In verse 8, the specter of th ei r dead bod i es was seenlying in the st r eet of t he great ci ty; it was an open spectacleof shame upon “the faithful city become an harlot.” (Isa.1:21) The once glorious city was figuratively called “Sodomand Egypt,” a designation known to the J ews as symbols

of wickedness. J erusalem had become a spiritual Sodom andEgypt. (J er. 23 :14 ; Ezek. 16 :46-52 ; Isa. 1 :10)

Thegreat ci ty is identified in the text as J erusalem bythe description where also our L or d was cr uci f i ed, of which,and in reference to himself, J esus said, “for it cannot be

that a prophet perish out of J erusalem” (Luke 13 :33;


A comparison of this application of the phrase three and one-hal f days is found also in the message that J esus

sent to Herod, recorded in Luke 13 :31-33: “The same daythere came certain of tne Pharisees, saying unto him, Getthee out and depart hence: for Herod will kill thee. And hesaid unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast outdevils, and I do cures today and tomorrow, and the third

day I shall be perfected Nevertheless I must walk today



day I shall be perfected. Nevertheless I must walk today,and tomorrow, and the day following: for it cannot be thata prophet perish out of J erusalem.” This was an effort of the Pharisees to scare J esus; he was lingering too long inGalilee to please his adversaries ; and he was adding fol-

lowers and new adherents to his teaching, as his reputationincreased. The province of Galilee was a safe retreat fromthe dangers that would surround J esus in J erusalem, andthe Pharisees knowingly attempted to reverse the Lord’sfavorable surroundings. It was an alleged Herodian threat,

which if true and J esus had yielded to the intimidation it

THE A POCALYPSE OF THE CONQUERING CHRIST 2 2 3

The Lord answered the Pharisees: Behol d , I cast out

devi l s, and do cur es today and tomor r ow , and the th i r d day I shal l be per fected . It would be equivalent to convictingthe Lord of cowardice to construe his statement to meanthat he would tarry in Galilee two days more and on thethird day he would quit! The proper analysis of the pas-

sage is : As in the past so in the present (today) ; I shall



sage is : As in the past, so in the present (today) ; I shallcontinue without interruption (tomorrow) ; and in the fu-ture also (third day), I shall pursue this course until myministry shall have reached completion in the finished work(perfected).

There had been a predetermined time for the Lord’searthly ministry ; instead of fleeing he would accomplishhis work thi s day and tomorrow, and when the t h i r d or last day came, he should then have been perfected-his ministryfulfilled and his work finished. In the meanwhile there

would be no abrupt or premature ending of his course byh i i id


fixed and appointed time for the ministry of Christ to be

accomplished.In the same figure of speech employed by J esus on the

two occasions mentioned, J ohn represents the two witnessesas having been dead in the street the th r ee and one-hal f

days. Here it denoted that fixed and appointed time for the

people to see their testimony as a result of martyrdom



people to see their testimony, as a result of martyrdom,during the period of suffering. But the fixed time was desig-nated as th r ee and one-hal f days because that figure is one-half the seven days period--as the number seven repre-sented the full time; and one-half of seven, the th r ee and

one-hal f days, represented the shortening of the period of tribulation through which they were passing. This applica-tion of the time figure blends into a complete harmonywith the Lord’s own predictive narrations of the tribulationperiod, as though woven by one hand into one apocalyptic

garment: “For then shall be great tribulation such as was

THE APOCALYPSE OF THE C O N Q U E R I N G C HRIST 225

They were tormented by the presence and testimony of the

two witnesses as the gospel torments the disobedient. (Acts7 :54) ; and as the effect of truth on evil spirits (I J ohn4 :18 ; Matt. 8 :29 ; Mark 5 :7 ; Luke 8 :28).

The finale to the scene of the two witnesses was signifiedin verse 11: Af ter th r ee days and a ha l f the Spi r i t of l i fe

fr om God en ter ed i n to them and th ey stood upon th ei r feet:



fr om God en ter ed i n to them , and th ey stood upon th ei r feet: The resurrection of the cause for which the two witnessesdied was here envisioned. It compares with Isaiah’s visionof the figurative resurrection of I srael from Babylonianexile (Isa. 26 :13-19) ; and with Ezekiel’s vision of the valley

of dry bones (Ezek. 37 :1-14), in which the prophets de-scribed the resurrection of I srael from the grave of theircaptivity. The Ezekiel and Revelation passages containseveral parallel expressions--the first, bearing on the re-turn of the captive people of Israel from exile, and the latter

applying to the overcoming of the heathen persecutions ; the

226 THE BOOK OF REVELAT ION

slain lived and reigned with Christ in Rev. 20 :4; and that

true Christians now reign with Him, as affirmed by theapostle in Rom. 8:17, I Cor. 4:8 and I I Tim. 2:11.

In the vision thei r enem ies behel d them ascend up toheaven. The witnesses hear d the voice, and the enemies be-held them ascend--it is the scene of victory ; it is the apo-

calyptic picture of the triumph of the cause of the apostles



calyptic picture of the triumph of the cause of the apostlesand prophets--the two-fold source of inspired testimony.

The awesome aftermath of these fearful occurrenceswas described in verse 13: I n the same hour th er e was a great ear th quake. The “same hour” evidently meant in the

midst of these events--the period of the triumph of thecause and the testimony of the two witnesses--in the hourof the interlude between sixth and seventh trumpets. Theear thquake signified the revolutionary storms, uprisingsand upheavals in human affairs, in governments, and among

both J ewish and Roman authorities as it became evident


part was put for the whole--J erusalem representing Pales-

tine, the tenth part of the empire, and when as a ten th par t,the city fell, so a tenth part of Rome fell.

It was as a result of the great ear th quake that th e ten th

par t fell, and the earthquake was symbolic of the greatpolitical upheavals that took place all over the Roman em-

pire in connection with these catastrophes. The siege and



pire in connection with these catastrophes. The siege anddestruction of J erusalem had become the signal for revolu-tions in various other Roman provinces, the historical factand details of which J osephus and Pliny relate, corroborateand verify. I t was therefore reasonable and appropriate

apocalyptically to put J erusalem for the whole common-wealth, and with the downfall of the city, the tent h par t fell. This view is further supported by the fact that thereis no historical record of such a mathematically fractionalpart of J erusalem falling during the siege. The contextual

surroundings of the phrase were descriptions of the uni


r emnan t wer e affr i ghted --that is, the calamities were so

great the rest of the populace, those not waging the per-secutions, abandoned their leaders and rulers in the midstof the awe of the fearful occurrences. As the Roman centu-rion executioner stood in awe at the crucifixon of Christ(Matt. 27 :54), saying, “truly this was the Son of God,” so

beholding the things transpiring “the remnant were af-frighted and gave glory to the God of heaven ” This was



be o d g e gs a sp g e e a e e afrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven. This wasthe apocalyptic gleam of light piercing the gathering cloudsof darkness--the omen of the success of the gospel and of the ultimate deliverance from persecution awaiting all who

would be true to the faith. With this assurance, verse 14declared that the second woe i s past; and, behol d , the th i r d

cometh quickly. The preceding scenes of the two witnesseshad predicted the second woe ; now, the final blow was athand--the end. The sounding of the seventh trumpet was

immediate cometh quickly and that was the last woe


kingdoms of men could no longer overpower Christianity--through their citizens they had become the kingdoms of ourLord (God), and of his Christ. This declaration depictedthe conversion of the empire’s citizens--the worldwide ex-pansion of Christianity. It was the fulfillment of the wordsof Christ in Matt. 24:31 to send h i s angel s w i th a gr eat

soun d of tr um pet, after the destruction of J erusalem togather together his elect from the four w i nd s, fr om one



g g ,end of t he heaven to the other . With the fall of J erusalemcame the shaking down of all J ewish opposition to gospel.Christianity was liberated from the fetters of J udaism andentered upon a worldwide career of leavening the civiliza-tions of world by bringing them under the influence of Christ. Thus the kingdoms or dominions of men became the kingdoms of our Lord (God) and of hi s Chr ist . In Eph.5 :5 the apostle designated it the ki ngdom of God and Chr i st,and declared in Col. 1:13-14 that it was then present. But

in the apocalypse the trumpets thunders and earthquakes


ing dominion of God, which no human authority, govern-

ments or powers can ever dethrone.(9) The song of triumph--11:16-19.

“16 And the four and twenty elders, which sat beforeGod on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped

God, 17 Saying, We give thee thanks, 0 Lord Almighty,which art and wast and art to come ; because thou hast



, y g, g , g y,which art, and wast, and art to come ; because thou hasttaken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned. 18 Andthe nations were angry and thy wrath is come, and the timeof the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou

shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, andto the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great;and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth. 19 Andthe temple of God was opened in heaven, and there wasseen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were

lightnings and voices and thunderings and an earthquake


of Christ, as in I saiah 26:13, 19 in reference to Israel. Thetime of avenging judgment had come, for the witnesses of chapter 11:7-8; and for the martyrs of chapter 6:9-11;and for “all righteous blood shed upon the earth” of Matt.23:35. The time had come to give victory’s r ewar d un to hi s ser van ts th e pr ophets; and to the sai n ts; and them that

fear th y name. The imagery delineates the ruin of the ene-mies and the reward of the servants and saints of God and



Christ--summed up in the phrase small and gr eat, the fullaggregation of th em that fear th y name. These all, in theaggregate, were included in song of glorified elders. The

J ewish rulers, aided by Roman rulers, who together con-

t r i ved t o dest r oy the ear th in their opposition to the king-dom of God, by the persecutions waged were themselvesdestroyed. In Matt. 21:33-46, J esus specifically pictured thisend of the J ewish rulers and their state.

Verse 19 presents the closing scene--the templ e of God d i h It was the new temple the vision of that


tion had not ended with the first vision. The great crisis just passed was to be followed by more of the same symbol-ism--and the heaven of this vision was therefore still open

with the close of chapter 11. But t he beast that was, andwas not, of chapter 13:8, yet i s --he would again be active.

Thus chapter 11 ends the first sequence of events. T h e

second begins with chapter 12, and repeats the imageryin another but similar set of s mbols e tending the same



g p p g yin another but similar set of symbols, extending the sameevents and experiences.

V.

SUMMARY OF THE SEVEN SEALS

It ill be remembered that the se en trumpets ere


(4) The four th tr um pet --chapter 8 :12-13--was the sig-

nal of the smitten sun, signifying the darkness that wouldsettle over the J ewish state in the divine judgments to de-scend on J erusalem, bringing an end to J udaism.

(5) The f i f th tr um pet --chapter 9:1-12-was the signal

of the fallen star, personified in a degenerate leader of im-i f d i t d f l t f th



pious forces, designated as an army of locusts from thesmoke of the pit, and symbolizing the invasion of J udea byterrifying armies led by Satan personified in the persecutingemperor--the resulting calamities of which brought to pass

the first of the three woes enumerated by J ohn.

(6) The si xth t r um pet- -chapter 9:13-21--was the sig-nal of loosing the four angels, the imperial agents whichhad been restrained from hindering the messengers of

Ch i t til th t I l f G d l d " f ll th


VI .

A RECAPITULATION OF THE FIRST APOCALYPSE

The apocalypse known by all as the Book Of Revelation is comprised of two parts--two series of visions--there-

fore, essentially two apocalypses, but consisting in a repeti-tion of import under a second set of symbols The first series



tion of import under a second set of symbols. The first seriessurrounded the conquering Christ; the second series sur-rounded the victorious church.

The object of the visions of the first part, beginning

with chapter four and ending with chapter eleven, wasmainly the end of both spiritual and political J udaism, re-sulting in the expansion of the new “kingdom of God andChrist” over the whole Roman world.

In harmony with this objective the first century perse-

ti ith th t ti f t t d

T HE A POCALYPSE OF THE C ONQUERING C HRIST 2 3 5

to defeat and conquer all the forces set in opposition to his

Cause. The seven seals portended the overthrow of the persecuting powers both Jewish and Roman.

(CHAPTER 6 )

The four seals were in the order portrayed by the four horsemen of the apocalypse.



The whi te hor se and its Rider of the first seal symbolized

Christ, the Conqueror, the leading figure of the imagery,who appeared again at the end of the visions as the Rider

of the white horse in the procession of victory in chapter

19.

The r ed hor se and rider of the second seal signified the persecutor waging war against the Cause of Christ.

The black horse and rider of the third seal, represented

di t l it d d dl f i i di t d b th


mighty men of the earth, who are envisioned as calling

upon the mountains for a hiding place from the face of God on the Throne, and from the wrath of Christ, whoseCause they had persecuted.

(CHAPTER 7)

The seven th seal , the last in the book of seals, displayedl di b f G d h



seven angels standing before God, to whom seven trumpetswere given ; and they “prepared themselves” to sound theseven trumpets as signals that the time had come to ac-complish the seals, and that they were ready to proceed.

(CHAPTERS 8-9)

In the sounding of the seven trumpets seven angelsproclaimed the judgments which were attended by

th hi h J h i di ll d i th



THE APOCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS CHURCH 239

CHAPTERS TWELVE TO TWENTY-TWO

12 AND there appeared a great wonder in heaven; awoman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet,and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:

2 And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, andpained to be delivered.

3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; andb h ld t d d h i h d d t



behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and tenhorns, and seven crowns upon his heads.

4 And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragonstood before the woman which was ready to be delivered,for to devour her child as soon as it was born.

5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to ruleall nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caughtup unto God, and to his throne.

6 A d th fl d i t th ild h h


for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath,because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

13 And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto theearth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth theman chi ld .

14 And to the woman were given two wings of a greateagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place,where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half atime from the face of the serpent



time, from the face of the serpent.15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a

flood after the woman, that he might cause her to becarried away of the flood.

16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earthopened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which thedragon cast out of his mouth.

1’7 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, andwent to make war with the remnant of her seed, which

k th d t f G d d h th t ti f


7 And it was given unto him to make war with thesaints, and to overcome them: and power was given him

over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him,

whose names are not written in the book of life of theLamb slain from the foundation of the world.

9 If any man have an ear, let him hear.

10 He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity:he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the



he that killeth with the sword must be killed with thesword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.

11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of theearth ; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake

as a dragon.12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast

before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwelltherein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound washealed.

13 A d h d th t d th t h k th fi


Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand,having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.

2 And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of manywaters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heardthe voice of harpers harping with their harps:

3 And they sung as it were a new song before thethrone, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no

man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.



,4 These are they which were not defiled with women;

for they are virgins. These are they which follow theLamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from

among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to theLamb.

5 And in their mouth was found no guile: for theyare without fault before the throne of God.

6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven,

h i th l ti l t h t th th t


that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of

J esus.13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me,

Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord fromhenceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest fromtheir labours; and their works do follow them.

14 And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and uponthe cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his



head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying

with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in

thy sickle, and reap : for the time is come for thee to reap ;for the harvest of the earth is ripe.16 And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on

the earth; and the earth was reaped.17 And another angel came out of the temple which

i i h h l h i h i kl


thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways,

thou King of saints.4 Who shall not fear thee, 0 Lord, and glorify thy

name? for thou only ar t holy: for all nations shall come andworship before thee ; for thy judgments are made mani-fest.

5 And after that I looked, and, behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened.



the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened.6 And the seven angels came out of the temple, having

the seven plagues, clothed in pure and white linen, andhaving their breasts girded with golden girdles.

7 And one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angelsseven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who livethfor ever and ever.

8 And the temple was filled with smoke from the gloryof God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter

i h l ill h l f h l

THE APOCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS C HURCH 245

sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men withfire.

9 And men were scorched with great heat, andblasphemed the name of God, which hath power overthese plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.

10 And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon theseat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness;and they gnawed their tongues for pain.

11 And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their



11 And blasphemed the God of heaven because of theirpains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.

12 And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon thegreat river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried

up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out

of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of thebeast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.

14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles,

hi h f h h ki f h h d f h


blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for theplague thereof was exceeding great.

17AND there came one of the seven angels which hadthe seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Comehither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the greatwhore that sitteth upon many waters:

2 With whom the kings of the earth have committedfornication and the inhabitants of the earth have been



fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have beenmade drunk with the wine of her fornication.

3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilder-ness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast,full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and tenhorns.

4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarletcolour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls,

h i ld i h h d f ll f b i i d

T HE APOCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS CHURCH 247

11 And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the

eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.12 And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings,which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive poweras kings one hour with the beast.

13 These have one mind, and shall give their power

and strength unto the beast.14 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lambshall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords and King of



shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen,and faithful.

15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest,where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, andnations, and tongues.

16 And the ten horns which thou sawest upon thebeast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make herdesolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her




And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, andsailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off.

18 And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning,saying, What ci ty is like unto this great city!

19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weep-ing and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city, whereinwere made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of

her costliness ! for in one hour is she made desolate.20 Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles

d h f G d h h d h



and prophets ; for God hath avenged you on her.21 And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great

millstone, and cast i t into the sea, saying, Thus with

violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, andshall be found no more at all.

22 And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all inthee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be


our God, all ye servants, and ye that fear him, both smalland great.

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 mightythunderings, saying, Alleluia : for the Lord God omnipotentreigneth.

7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him:

for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hathmade herself ready.



y8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed

in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is therighteousness of saints.

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

10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he saidunto me, See th ou d o i t not: I am thy fellow-servant, and

THE APOCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS CHURCH 2 5 1

captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of allmen, 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 againsthim that sat on the horse, and against his army.

20 And the beast was taken, and with him the falseprophet that wrought miracles before him, with which hedeceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and



,them that worshipped his image. These both were castalive 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 hismouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.

20 AND I saw an angel come down from heaven, hav-ing the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his


8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are inthe four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to getherthem together to battle: the number of whom is as thesand of the sea.

9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth andcompassed the camp of the saints about, and the belovedcity: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and de-voured them.

10 And the devil that received them was cast into the



lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the falseprophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for everand ever.

11 And I saw a great white throne, and him that saton it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away;and there was found no place for them.

12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand beforeGod; and the books were opened: and another book was


ing, neither shall there be any more pain: for the formerthings are passed away.

5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I makeall things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these wordsare true and faithful.

6 And he said unto me, I t is done. I am Alpha andOmega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that

is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I

ill be his God and he shall be m son



will be his God, and he shall be my son.8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable,

and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and

idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lakewhich burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the seconddeath.

9 And there came unto me one of the seven angelswhich had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and


17 And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, accor d i ng to the measure of a man,

that is, of the angel.18 And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and

the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.19 And the foundations of the wall of the city were

garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first

foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, achalcedony; the fourth, an emerald.

20 The fifth sardonyx; the sixth sardius; the seventh



20 The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh,chrysolyte ; the eighth, beryl ; the ninth, a topaz ; the tenth,a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an

amethyst.21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: everyseveral gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city waspure gold, as it were transparent glass.

22 And I saw no temple therein : for the Lord God


3 And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of

God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shallserve him.

4 And they shall see his face; and his name sha l l be in their foreheads.

5 And there shall be no night there ; and they need no

candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveththem light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.6 And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and



6 And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful andtrue: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angelto shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be

done.7 Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeththe sayings of the prophecy of this book.

8 And I J ohn saw these things, and heard them. Andwhen I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship beforethe feet of the angel which shewed me these things.


that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come.

And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the wordsof the prophecy of this book, I f any man shall add untothese things, God shall add unto him the plagues that arewritten in this book:

19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part outof the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the



of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from thethings which are written in this book.

20 He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come

quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord J esus.21 The grace of our Lord J esus Christ be with you all.Amen.


THE APOCALYPSE OF THEVICTORIOUS CHURCH

PREFATORY NOTE

The first series of symbols ended with the last verse of chapter eleven. The first verse of chapter twelve is the be-ginning of the second series of symbols. The visions of this



g g ysection were a recapitulation of the events of the first series,beginning from the first again, but with a new set of sym-

bols. They cover the same period, a repetition of the sameimagery in the delineation of the same occurrences. The reason for the two series is stated in the headings

by which the purposes of the two series are indicated. Inthe first series, the symbols surrounded the Lamb, the


enactments of the same events. In the same manner the four

beasts of Daniel in chapter seven were symbolic repetitionsof the four kingdoms of the colossal image dream of chaptertwo.

By the same process the first series of visions in Reve-lation, embracing chapters four to eleven, portrayed J esus

Christ, the prevailing Lamb of God, in multiple symbols of conquering all enemies of his church and avenging themartyred saints defeating all the minions of Satan All of



martyred saints, defeating all the minions of Satan. All of the events in this set of symbols were envisioned from thethrone in heaven, as introduced in chapter four, setting

forth the sending of armies by the King of heaven to de-stroy the murderers of his prophets and apostles and saints,burning their city and bringing an end to their persecutingpower. These visions surrounded, as previously set forth,the siege of J erusalem, the demolition of the temple, the

THE A POCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS CHURCH 2 5 9

of Christ, was robed in habilaments of victory “as the new

J erusalem coming down out of heaven”--after which divine judgment was pronounced upon the persecuting nations ;

and the tabernacle of God would be with men, signifyinghis dwelling place among his people in the new spiritualcity rather than the evil persecutors of the old apostate city.All tears of persecution were to be wiped away. The sorrowsattending the period of their persecutions would cease,and the church again would set out on its divine mission of

ki k h S i i ’ ll h l



making known the Spirit’s message to all men--the gospelinvitation.

The twelfth chapter retrospectively begins with theportrayal of the church in conflict with the existing powersunder the symbol of the woman and the dragon.

I


down of the J ewish and Roman rulers and authorities. InLuke 10 :18, J esus said : “I beheld Satan as lightning fallfrom heaven.” In this language the Lord was forecastingSatan’s complete downfall from his place and power of dominion, which would come as swiftly as lightning, as theresult of Christ’s victory over the hadean world by hisdeath and resurrection.

The sign in heaven meant the heaven of exalted domin-ion and rule--the heaven of the political dominion of the

h l ld Th “ t i ” i th l f th i



whole world. The “great sign” seen in the realm of authori-ties and dominions referred to the symbolic attributes of splendor and grandeur which followed, in which the womanwas adorned before the whole political world.

(1) The sign in heaven--12:1

1. And th er e appear ed a gr eat wonder i n heaven . Th e


church--an extended description of the glorious and ex-alted position of the church among and in the midst of all

the creations, institutions, and governments of man. Thesymbol picture was most espeoially significant in the Romanworld where this glory and exaltation would in succeedingevents become visibly manifest to all the authorities of Caesar’s empire. Isaiah the prophet pictured the church

(chapter 2 :2) “on top of the mountains, exalted above thehills.” The vision of the woman standing with the moon

under her feet was the same imagery of exaltation.



4. And upon her head a cr own of twel ve star s. The starsare the glory of all the luminaries which adorn the heavens.

No part of the visible creation exhibits the supreme gloryof God so illustriously as the starry firmament. The crownof stars was the diadem of highest glory on the head of the woman-the glorious church. In royalty it was the orna-ment of queens. Ahasuerus “loved Esther above all the


2. Tr ava i l i ng in b i r th . In this period of tribulation, thechurch would produce children in sorrow for martyrdom.

3. And pai ned to be del i ver ed . During the period of greatest tribulation the church did not cease to bear herfruit; she continued to bring forth children, but in painand persecution and martyrdom.

The following verses will develop further the applicationof these verses to the part of the woman’s seed that wasmartyred--the “child that was caught up unto God”--andthe part of her seed called “the remnant ” or rest of her



the part of her seed, called the remnant, or rest of herseed, that remained on the earth to suffer, but not to die.

I I

THE GREAT RED DRAGON

(Chapters 12:3-6)

"1 And there appeared a great wonder in heaven ; a

T HE A POCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS C HURCH 2 6 3

Genesis 3 :1 in Eden. In the Septuagint text serpent inIsaiah 27:1, is rendered d ragon , and in both Hebrew and

Greek texts it is made the symbol of Babylon, the power hostile to the people of God. In Ezekiel 29 :3 dragon in theSeptuagint was made the emblem of Pharoah, king of Egypt, the bitter enemy of God’s people Israel.

In this chapter of Revelation the names S a t a n a n dDevil, Serpent and Dragon were used interchangeably, andevidently personified the persecuting powers hostile to theh h h i N d hi i h h



church; that is, Nero and his successors, in whom the perse-cutions and the persecutors were personified.

(1) The dragon with multiple heads and horns--12:3-4.

1. And th er e appear ed anoth er wonder i n heaven . This

wonder was referred to as another sign. The other wonder,of verse 1, was the sign of the glory of the church in the


contain the Lord’s description of the events of the sameperiod.

2. A great r ed dragon- -12:3. The dragon referred toSatan, the antagonist of the church, personified in theactive persecutor--Nero and his successors--as representa-tive of all that was opposed to Christ and the church.

The flame-coloured description of the r ed d r agon wasthe type of the destruction of war and the bloodshed of martyrdom As in chapter six the colors of the horses cor-



martyrdom. As in chapter six the colors of the horses corresponded with the mission of the riders. The horses weresymbols of war and the r ed hor se signified bloodshed. So it

was here--the r ed dr agon signified the murderous characterof these minions of Satan--the Roman and heathen perse-cuting powers.

3. H avi ng seven head s and ten horns --12:3. As in


5. And h i s tai l dr ew th e th i r d par t of the star s of heaven

--12:4. The ta i l of the dragon was in the imagery of thesweeping power of the antagonist of the church and thedestruction behind him in the wake of persecution, de-scribed in the symbol of pulling the stars from their orbitswith the angry lash of his enormous tail. It was the vision

of the presumptive power of the persecutors of the church.6. And d i d cast t hem to th e earth- -12:4. The reference

to casting down to the earth a th i r d of the sta r s of heaven



gappears to have had application to the part of the politicalworld that was subject to these destructions--J erusalem,

J udaism and the J ewish state. The application to geo-graphical or political divisions could have had no meaning.

The same expression in chapter eight referred to the threewoes of destruction, one part each, as noted in the commentson that section. Here the imagery was that of a symbolic


3. And she brought for th a man child- -12:5. The useof the word man chi ld here is in neuter gender. And it is notsingular number any more than the use of the word“mother” when used in a collective sense ; and that is thesense in which man chi l d was used here--collectively, de-noting that portion of the church, or the woman’s seed,which was to be caught up to God in the martyrdom whichfollowed. That the man chi l d did not refer to Christ becomesevident in the following verses. The expression caught up to God from the face of the dragon would hardly be a



to God from the face of the dragon would hardly be afitting description of the ascension of Christ, but it was anappropriate symbol of the triumph of the martyrs who“overcame . . . by the word of their testimony ; and theyloved not their lives unto the death.” It further harmonizeswith the scene of victory for the souls of the beheaded inRevelation 20 :4.

T HE A POCALYPSE OF THE V I C T O R I O U S C H U R C H 267

4. Who was to r ul e al l nat i on s - -12:5. The reason ap-

parently for the interpretation that theman chi ld refers toChrist is the statement of verse 5, that he “was to rule all

nations with a rod of iron.” But this same phrase was used

in the language of Christ to the members of the Thyatira

church in chapter 2 :26-27 : “He that overcometh . . . to him

will I give power over the nations: and he shall rule themwith a rod of iron.” The r od of i r on was the symbol of the

impact of the gospel on the pagan world through the victory

f th h h lti f th i ti It i ifi d



of the church, resulting from their persecutions. It signified

the inexorable character of the law of the gospel in retri-

bution and reward. It was by teaching and practice thatthose who should overcome all oppression would rule withChrist, and thereby execute his unfailing law as with a rodof iron. (See comments on chapter 2 :26-27 and in GOD’SPROPHETIC WORD, p. 192.)


not to come down to enter his house for even clothing orfood; and the laborer in the field not to return to his house

for such purpose, for the same reason.

Describing the horrors of the siege J esus called it “thetribulation of those days ; and quoted the prophecy of Daniel12 :11 on “the abomination of desolation” (Matthew 24 :15)as being fulfilled in the destruction of J erusalem. Duringthe siege one million one hundred thousand people perished.All the houses and underground chambers were filled withperishing bodies ; famishing people ate the putrified flesh



perishing bodies ; famishing people ate the putrified fleshof human corpses ; mothers ate the flesh of their own babies.

Outside the besieged city the expatriated race of J ewsthroughout the empire were slaughtered. In his chronicleson the destruction of J erusalem J osephus, the eye-witnesshistorian, verifies the declaration of our Lord in Matt.24 :21: “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not


(J erusalem) depart out"--and they did, they departed andfled.

As generally known, J osephus was an eyewitness to thesiege of J erusalem and the events preceding it. In Wars,Book II I , Section 3, page 3, he relates that after the armiesof Cestius Gallius, Roman general, had besieged J erusalem,they withdrew--and in this interval the disciples fled, ac-

cording to the Lord’s admonition. The historian J osephuswas an unbeliever and admitted his inability to account forthe cessation, but declared it was nevertheless a fact. All



,who believe the statements of the Lord in Matthew twenty-four, Mark thirteen and Luke twenty-one, know and under-

stand the why-it was the Lord’s doing.Another later historian, Eusebius, whose history bears

date of 324 A. D., states in Book II I , Section 3, page 3, thatthe church in J erusalem, by divine revelation, fled to themountain country of Pella, beyond the J ordan, which ac-


“I say unto y o u . " His emphasis was on the fulfillment of thesigns in events of their own lives. The parallel in Revela-tion is verse 3 of chapter 1: “Blessed is he that readeth (the one who read it to the churches) ; and they that hear (heed) the words; and they that keep (remember and ob-serve) ; for the time is at hand.” If the time of these thingswas so remote as to be yet future, there was no point inthis exhortation for them, and no application to them. Asthe signs of Matthew 24 were fulfilled in that generation of living people so the symbols of Revelation were fulfilled in



living people, so the symbols of Revelation were fulfilled inthe experiences of the existing churches.

3. That they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and t hr eescor e days. Here is an instance of a literalperiod of time, a specific date, introduced into a figurativeand symbolic context. There is another identical exampleof a specific date connected with the context of prophetic


decease was linked with the prophecy that the invasion of J udah by Samaria would fail. That invasion did fail. The

prophet said Ephraim would cease to be a people. Ephraimdid cease to be a people. It all occurred within the "three-score and five years,” between 733 B.C. and 669 B.C.--thespecific time period and date. (For further discussion of Isaiah 7:5-8 seeGOD’S PROPH ET IC WORD, p. 409.)

The context yields the same exact computation of a th ousand tw o hundr ed and th r eescor e days of the woman’sflight into the wilderness. I t was the same period of “theforty and two months” of the preceding chapter eleven--



forty and two months of the preceding chapter eleven--the same mathematical time period in which J erusalem,“the holy city” was trodden “under foot forty and twomonths.” In the record of Luke 21:24, this period of thetreading under foot of J erusalem was limited by the phrase“until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.” I t was thesame period as the “forty and two months” of Revelation11:3, and the thousand two hundred and threescore days


the other epistles of the New Testament, all of which werewritten before the impending trial and tribulation and dis-

tress, lends coherency and harmony to its apocalyptic de-lineations.

I I I

THE WAR IN H EAVEN

(Chapter 12 :7-17)

“7 And there was war in heaven : Michael and his angelsfought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his



fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and hisangels, 8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found

any more in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was cast out,that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which de-ceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth,and his angels were cast out with him. 10 And I heard aloud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and


There are several words in the general vocabulary of Revelation, the connotations of which must be understood.

These are the words: air, earth, sea, quake, heaven, starsand war. The symbols are employed in the following mean-ing : a i r , the sphere of life and influence ; earth, the place

of the nations ; sea, society described as either troubled andtossed or placid and peaceful; quake, the political shaking

of the nations ; heaven, the governments, authorities anddominions ; stars, the rulers and officials of governments ;

war , the upheavals in the governments and among inhabi-f h h ( i i f h i ) d



tants of the earth (various provinces of the empire) ; andthe conflicts between the heathen authorities and the church

in the waging of the persecutions of the saints. With thisnomenclature defined, the various facets of the phraseologyemployed in the next few verses can be explained.

(1) The War with Michael and His Angels--12:7-8.


that Satan originated in heaven with God and Christ,apostatized from his created angelic state, caused war

among the sinless world of God’s own heaven, and becausehe could not be tolerated there, he was expelled to thismundane sphere to trouble and torment all humanity forall time-that is an inherited belief or notion completely outof harmony with the character of heaven. I t is a great in-

congruity.Heaven, where God dwells, is the divine domain of light,

where is no darkness, no evil, no apostasy. Hell is the dia-



p ybolical realm of darkness, where there is no purity, no good,and where light cannot penetrate. The generally acceptedview that Satan became a wicked angel in heaven whereGod dwells, and that he corrupted and recruited otherangels for his revolution, puts apostasy in heaven and is in-compatible with the nature of the angels of God. in heaven.I f apostasy can befall the inhabitants of heaven, in conse-

THE A POCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS C HURCH 2 7 5

sinned, and were cast down to hell, and delivered to chainsof darkness, and reserved to judgment--it was undoubtedly

in reference to the downfall of certain representatives of the human race in high estate, the era and details of whichthe apostle left unmentioned and therefore remains unre-vealed. It is more reasonable to theorize that Satan and hisdevils originated in this manner than to hypothesize that he

inhabited and corrupted heaven, the abode of God.

3. And the great dragon was cast out . . . which de-

cei veth the whol e wor l d . . . he was cast out i n to the earth--



12:9. The dragon and his evil agents “prevailed not”against Michael’s protection of the woman, which he ac-complished by the diversion of the emperor’s diplomacy toemploy his armies to quell the revolutions in many partsof the imperial world.

The context of this section was a diversion from themain scene due to the side effects of the involvement of the


tioned in I Pet. 5:8--"thedevil as a roaring lion, walkethabout, seeking whom he may devour.”

The dragon in the end was seen as having lost “the warin heaven” against the woman. J esus anticipated this de-feat of Satan in J ohn 12:31: “Now is the judgment of theworld: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.” This

judgment was pronounced upon the dragon in the war

against the woman. He lost his place of dominion, but con-tinued to deceive the world, as declared by Paul in Ephes-ians 2 :2 : “According to the course of this world, accordingto the prince of the power of air the spirit that now



to the prince of the power of air, the spirit that nowworketh in the children of disobedience.” The phrase

“prince of the power of the air” denotes a sphere of influ-ence only. Satan has no longer a dominion of power. He isonly an influent being who exerts a deceptive influence, aninfiltration insensibily affecting the mind and conscience--an inflow of evil.


angels included all of the combined forces of heathenismwhich he had employed against the church, and as “prince

of the power of the air,” he continued to operate in thesphere of life and influence through the spirit of disobe-dience.

(2) The victory of the woman--12:lO-17.

It should be remembered that with the twelfth chapterthere is the beginning of the recapitulation of all the eventsdepicted in the first series of visions from chapter four to



p peleven. The first series of symbols surrounded Christ theconquerer; the second series encompassed the same eventsin a new set of symbols and surrounded th e woman, thechurch in the midst of that period of trial. The verses nowunder consideration set forth the woman’s victory overthe dragon and parallels the triumph of the Rider of thewhite horse of the sixth chapter who was the conquering


in the persecutor, had been broken and by which his dia-bolical character had been exposed.

2. For the accuser of our br eth r en i s cast d own-- 12 :10.

In verse 9 it states that the dragon was cast out into theearth--the place of the nations, or the political society. Thiswas not the positions of government authority included

within the sphere of the phrase i n heaven. In verse 10 thedragon (the persecutor) was called the accuser of our brethren. This referred to that part of the offspring of thewoman who were not martyrs, but were like the seer of the



y ,apocalypse on Patmos: “I J ohn, who also am your brother,

and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom andpatience of J esus Christ.” The emphasis put on the accuser of our breth r en by the additional statement, whi ch accused t hem befor e our God day and n i ght , indicated the habitualcharacter of the dragon-accuser, that the oppositions of thepersecutor would be persistent and continuous


the fidelity that brought them victory over their accuserand persecutor.

4. Ther efore, rejoi ce ye heavens, and ye that dwel l i n them -- 12 :12. The power of the persecutors broken, and theaccuser of the brethren exposed, was here the cause forthis r ejoi ci ng of th e heavens- -because it had been deliveredfrom the evil spirit of the accuser. The heavens here meantthat spiritual realm referred to in Eph. 1:3 as the heavenlyplaces. The phrase and ye that dwel l i n t hem meant thatthese heavens are the spiritual abode of every faithful soul.(E h 2 6) I i h i i l h f h h h i hi h



(Eph. 2 :6) It is that spiritual sphere of the church in whichHe dwells to lead and instruct his followers, and in whichhis power had kept them through their faith in Himand their fidelity to His cause. (Eph. 3:17)

This benedictory is comparable to the prophet’s song of rejoicing for Israel in Isa. 49 :13: “Sing 0 heavens; and be


shor t t i me was based on the fundamental principle pervad-ing the apocalypse--“which things must shortly come to

pass” (1 :1) ; and “the time is at hand” (1:3). The bindingof Satan, the dragon, and casting him into “the bottomlesspit” were included in the things which in the first chapterof the Revelation the seer announced as at hand, and mus t

shor t l y come to pass; which things in the last chapter he

declared must shor tl y be done (22:6) ; and quick ly to occur(22:7) ; and, once more, at hand (22:10). From the firstchapter to the last the Revelation repeatedly emphasizedthe immediacy of the events removing them from remote



the immediacy of the events, removing them from remotefulfillment. I t forms a solid argument for the fulfillment of

the symbols of Revelation in the experiences of the churchesaddressed.

The extension of the apocalypse to the medieval cen-turies, to the dark ages, to the present day, and to the endof time is the greatest anachronism in all history.


and for this reason that th e woman f l ed i n to the w i lder ness

(verse 6), the manner of the flight being described here in

verse 13. The “two w ings of a gr eat eagl e” that were given to her

was the same symbol of divine strength employed in theexodus of Israel from Egypt. In Ex. 19 :4 God said to Israel,“Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I

bore you on eagle’s wings, and brought you unto myself.” The instinct of the eagle, when its young are ready to at-tempt flight, is to hover over the nest and flutter its wingsto lead the young ones into the venture. In Deut. 32 :ll-12,



y gin the Song of Moses, it is recorded that “as an eagle

stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreaclethabroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings :

so the Lord alone did lead him (Israel), and there was nostrange God with him.” In this same imagery, and doubt-less in allusion to it, the seer of Revelation represents God’shovering protection and imparted strength in the flight of




the siege to the termination of it was certainly designated.

(See comments on chapter 11 :9)It is said in verse 14 that the woman was nourished forthis time fr om the face of t he ser pen t (verse 14), in a placefar from, and safe from, the scene of the siege and its ac-companying trials, humiliations and horrors.

8. And the ser pen t cast ou t of h i s mouth water as a fl ood aft er the woman, that he m ight cause her to be car r i ed

away of th e flood --12 :15. The water as a fl ood from themouth of the serpent was the symbol of an overwhelming



mouth of the serpent was the symbol of an overwhelmingtide of persecution, combining all of the Satanic forces of

destruction at the command of the serpent. The psalmistDavid used the same imagery in Psalms 18:4, 16: “Thefloods of ungodly men made me afraid . . . he drew me outof many waters.” In a poem of salvation I saiah, the prophet,exclaimed: “When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the


John on the siege with its overwhelming flood of persecu-

tion. Such is the evident application of chapter 12, verse 15,of Revelation--“And the serpent cast out of his mouth asa flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be car-ried away of the flood.” The woman escaped this flood of the horrible onslaught of this war of the Romans against

Jerusalem, declared by Nero, ordered by Vespasian andexecuted by Cestius Gallius and his general, Titus. Theserelated events blend naturally and historically with theapocalypse, and they are not anachronistic.



9. “And th e ear th hel ped th e woman , and th e ear th opened her mout h, and swal l owed up the fl ood whi ch the

dr agon cast out of hi s m ou t h " --12:16. The symbol of theearth in Revelation has been defined as the pl ace of nat i ons.That was its meaning here. The rebellions and uprisings


that part of the church which did not dwell in J erusalemand J udea and was not of the martyred number.

The woman’s seed was composed of two classes--first,theman chi ld , represented collectively as f i r s t f r u i t s , whowere caught up un to God, symbolizing the martyrs ; second,the remnant or r est of her children who were not martyrs,but remained on the earth to pass through the tribulation.

The word man chi ld is an aggregate term which could nothave referred to a single person, anymore than the collec-tive phrase r est of h er seed could have had singular mean-ing The text will not yield to the view that the woman’s



ing. The text will not yield to the view that the woman sman chi ld was Christ. There is no principle of exegesis

which can represent the church as the mother of Christ.But there are numerous examples that represent both thenation of Israel in the Old Testament and the church in theNew Testament collectively as composed of the same oneswho are separately called the children, as a part of the


tribulation ; and the expression the testimony of Jesus Chr is t referred to the witness or testimony that He hadborne to them concerning the outcome of the period of trialthrough which they were passing, as in chapter 3:20: “Be-cause thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also willkeep thee from the hour of temptation (trial) which shallcome upon all the world, to try them that dwell in it.” Thewor ld referred to the Roman world, and them that dw el l

on th e ear th referred to Christians in every kingdom, nationor tributary, in every place or part of the empire.



(3) The summary of the symbols.

The context of chapter twelve yields three major pointswhich must be classified and discriminated in order:

First, the woman was a symbol of the J erusalem church--represented as “the new J erusalem,” in chapter 21:2 atthe close of the Revelation, and stands for the whole church.


and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads thename of blasphemy. 2 And the beast which I saw was like

unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, andhis mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave himhis power, and his seat, and great authority. 3 And I sawone of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his dead-ly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after

the beast. 4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, say-ing, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? 5 And there was given unto him a mouth speak-



g ping great things and blasphemies ; and power was given un-

to him to continue forty and two months. 6 And he openedhis mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name,and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. 7 And itwas given unto him to make war with the saints, and toovercome them : and power was given him over all kindreds,


receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the

mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding countthe number of the beast : for it is the number of a man ; andhis number is Six hundred threescore and six.”

The vision of chapter twelve dramatized the enmity of the dragon for the woman--the church of Christ--and hisdetermination in wrath to expand his war on the rest of thewoman’s seed to the whole of the Roman empire. I t wasf thi th t h t thi t b i ith J h ’



for this reason that chapter thirteen begins with J ohn’s

vision of the dragon placing himself on sands of the seafor the purpose of extending his war against the woman,whose seed was destined to destroy him, and in fury he hadturned upon “the rest of her seed” in persecuting them toextinction.


fitting description of Nero Caesar, in whom “the Neronicanti-Christ was incarnated,” who assumed divine names

and prerogatives, and commanded the worship of the em-peror.

3. The dr agon gave hi m great power , and h i s seat and

hi s author i t y -- 13 :2. The world power of the Roman empire

could not have been more accurately described. The visionsare not symbolic of the city of Rome. There is no allusionto “the eternal city.” The visions of Revelation were not ahistory of Rome, but within their symbols were included



the graphic representations of the emperor and the empire.

The Roman See--in Latin, a seat of power and authority--was derived from the dragon, who gave him hi s power , and h i s seat, and great aut hori ty. The dragon, therefore, waspersonified in the emperor of the Roman empire. Later, inverse 11, the second beast appeared on the land, as a satel-


temporary victory for the woman, the church. But it wasnot for long.

The wound was healed by the power of the emperor con-quering the rebellions and bringing to an end the civil wars,and the power of the empire was augmented to such an ex-tent that all the world wondered after the beast--the whole

Roman world marvelled at the universal power of theempire.

2. They wor shi pped the dragon whi ch gave power un to th e beast: and th ey wor sh i pped th e beast sayi ng who i s



th e beast: and th ey wor sh i pped th e beast, sayi ng who i s l i ke unt o th e beast? who i s able to make war w i th him?--

13:4. From this a dual pagan worship resulted. They wor-shipped both dragon and beast--that is, they worshippedone in the other. Thus, it becomes even more evident that thenear death stroke to the empire was caused by the uprisings,rebellions and civil wars But the empire survived the


himself the attributes and prerogatives of God and com-manding the worship of the emperor by all the world.

The Jehovah passage of Ex. 6:3 is one of sublimity.I t is God’s own declaration of omnipotent majesty. Mosesstood before Jehovah in awe, and all men should standin His august presence now, and should so honor Him inprayer, “Who is the blessed and only Potentate, the K ing

of kings, and Lord of lords; who only hath immortality,dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto ;

whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honorand power everlasting.” Such sublime attributes forbid



the lately modern forms of praying in degraded terms of

familiarity with God--addressing God as if He were man,as one would address a human father. It is being said thatto employ Thee and Thou in prayer is archaic andobsolete, and the sophisticated approach to God is to flingyou into the face of his Divine Presence. But thee and thou


of addressing God in prayer in the common term you. “AndGod spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the Lord:

and I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac and unto J acob,by the name of God Almighty, but by my name J EHOVAHwas I not known to them.”

The descriptions by Paul, in I I Thessalonians 2:3-4, of

the sacrilegious assumption of divine exaltation by theemperor for himself, parallels the visional representationsof the same thing by J ohn in Revelation. The Thessalonianpassage refers to “that man of sin . . . the son of perdition,

h th d lt th hi lf b ll th t i ll d



who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called

God, or that is worshipped ; so that he as God sitteth in thetemple of God, showing himself that he is God.” This pas-sage as a reference to emperor Nero could not be made moreobvious without actually calling his name; but for eitherPaul or J ohn to mention the name of the living emperor


mission ; indicating again the identity of the dragon andthe beast in the persecution of the church-the dragon being

personified in the emperor. He was thus represented asgiving power to the beast-emperor as his instrument for thepersecution of the church, to over come them by the siegeand destruction of J erusalem the sacred city and holytemple.

The sweep of this diabolical power to exterminate ex-tended beyond J erusalem and J udea to al l k i ndr ed, and

tongues, and nat i ons, and, after the destruction of J erusa-lem the persecution spread over the whole empire.



5. And al l th at dw el l upon the face of the ear th shall

worship him --

13:8. In all the pl aces of th e nat i ons (thesymbolic meaning of the ear th ) within the empire the wor-ship of the emperor prevailed under imperial edict--except,the faithful saints. It is declared that all “whose names ar e not w r i tt en i n th e book of l i fe” worshipped the emperor.


both a note of warning and a word of consolation: first, awarning that retribution would be administered to the

persecutors who incarcerated in prison and killed with thesword the saints-they would suffer the vengeance of God,and experience the same evils which they inflicted on hischurch ; it was the admonition to all of the churches that allwho exercised the pati ence and fai th , though they faced cap-

tivity and sword during the period of the dragon’s rage,would ultimately have the reward-that promise which per-meates the Revelation from J ohn’s signatory on Patmos,“your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in theki d d ti f J Ch i t ” t th l t t f



kingdom and patience of J esus Christ,” to the last note of

comfort in the apocalypse, “He that testifieth these thingssaith, surely I come quickly.” Herein was “the patience andcomfort of the saints,” pausing for decision at the verythreshold of prison and sword. In these words of the vision J ohn called all the saints in the empire to courage and


Paul said to Timothy (I I Tim. 4 :6) “the time of my de-parture is at hand” he meant that his decease was near. It

does not aid the argument to assert that the statement of J ohn in Revelation means the beginning of these events for J ohn did not say these things must begin--he said, must

shor t l y come to pass --and the t ime for them to come to pass was at hand.

Premillennialists in the church attempt the same evasionby admitting that the kingdom announced by J ohn and J esus was “at hand” and that it began on Pentecost, butclaiming that its ultimate growth would be in the millennialreign of Christ on the earth For some who are opposed to



reign of Christ on the earth. For some who are opposed to

the millennial contention to fall into the same method of argumentation is but to help the cause of millennial heresy.In neither case can the expression at hand be stretched be-yond immediate points of the two declarations--the im-mediate events.


The first beast, of the sea, was the Roman empire, per-sonified in the emperor; the second beast, of the land, was

personified in the ruling persecutors of Palestine, who werethe instruments of the Roman emperor to execute hisauthority and power. This is further symbolized in the factthat this second beast had horns like a lamb but spake as adragon--decei vi ng them that th at dwel l on the ear th to

worship the image of the emperor.

There is nothing in these descriptions to fit the muchlater emergence of the papacy and its popes. The beastsrepresent the world-power of Rome. The beast from the



represent the world power of Rome. The beast from thesea was the emperor; and the beast of the land was the sub-ordinate rulers of Palestine, exercising delegated power, asthe emperor’s representatives.

2. And he exer ci seth al l the power of the fi r st beast befor e h im and causeth th e ear th and t hem wh i ch dwel l th er e-


and menial instrument of the first beast, enforced his will,exercising an authority not his own, but was derived solely

from the superior beast number one, the Roman emperor.In this subservience the land beast in obedience to seabeast, “causeth th e ear th and t hem whi ch dwel l th er ei n t o

wor sh i p th e fi r st beast” --the emperor. The earth referredto the provincial governments; and them that dw el l ther ein

had reference to the people who were under their politicalrule. The grievous blow inflicted on the empire by civil warswas referred to as a deadly wound on the sea-beast whichhad been healed by his conquering power; and this broughtthe kings governors and people into submission to worship



the kings, governors, and people into submission to worship

the emperor.Verse 13: He performed visional pseudo-signs, which

were not actual, in order to deceive, such as J esus foretold(Matt. 24 :24) would precede the destruction of J erusalem;and such as Paul described (II Thess 2 :3-9) as character-


ecclesiastical history to fulfill them. The only apparentexplanation for it is that the theories of historical theologyrequire it, and they have been taken for granted so long asto have become so fixed in the thinking that they have beenaccepted as factual. No events of the future can be createdor can occur to harmonize more compatibly with thesescriptural apocalypses and apostolic descriptions of the

siege and destruction of J erusalem, the demolition of thetemple, the downfall of J udaism and the end of the J ewishstate. Added to the biblical facts, the histories of J osephus,Pliny, Eusebius and other annals of the times and the neari if h



times, verify them.

Verse 15: The second beast created a life image of the superior beast, and exercised the power given to him tocommand its worship. In verse 14, it is stated that thiswas made possible by the prestige of the sea-beast from


--the enforcement of a maniacally rigorous interdict, animperial boycott that would make life impossible for all

who refused to wear the stigmatic name of the demonicemperor. By such means the provincial procurators forcedall of their subjects into abject submission to the imperialedict of emperor-worship, which was themark or badge of the Satanic beast-the emperor. Thus themar k of t he beast

simply meant to yield and bow to the edicts of the Romanemperor to worship his image.

(5) The mystic number of the beast--13: 17.



“H er e i s wi sdom. L et h im th a t ha th un der stand i ng coun t t he number of t he beast: for i t i s th e number of a man, and h i s number i s Si x hu ndr ed thr eescor e and si x.”

The fact that the mystic number was assigned to the firstbeast, or sea-beast, shows that the second beast, or land-


of the text, her e i s w i sdom , and let h im that hath under-standing count the number. These supernaturally endowed

teachers in the churches could certainly decipher the crypto-gram.

I t has been established that the beast was the Romanempire, personified in the living emperor. I t is so evidentas to be patent that to mention the name of the living

emperor in these connections would have been disastrousto the church--it would have precipitated a premature on-slaught against Christians which could have resulted intheir complete obliteration in every part of the Romanempire



empire.

A cryptogram is a writing in ciphers, or secret letters,with symbolic figures and representations having a hiddensignificance. Cryptography is the art of writing in secretcharacters. A cryptographer is one who has mastered theskill of deciphering or decoding the mystic letters.


Inasmuch as J ohn was writing for the information andinstruction of Hebrew Christians, it is appropriate and ex-pediential that the code name for the Roman beast shouldbe hidden in Hebrew ciphers, thus less likely to be dis-covered by the pagan authorities into whose hands theRevelation might come ; and whereas the Roman empirewas the beast of verses 1-8, the numerical name must of contextual necessity designate the one in whom the empirewas personified. No name could be more conclusive anddecisive than that of Nero Caesar--the ruling emperor.

The Hebrew tongue was employed in chapter 16:16 inth b l f A dd d f l th j ti



the symbol of Armageddon, and for less reason than justi-

fies Hebrew ciphers in this case. In chapter 17:11 the beastwas visualized as the sixth ruling emperor in successionfrom J ulius Caesar. Though J ulius was the head of theRepublic, before the empire was actually formed, never-theless the Republic merged into the empire ; and it was


numerical figure of si x hund r ed si xty si x. I t is also factualthat I renaeus in the early second century mentioned this

solution to the numerical appellation. He further men-tioned that some of the old manuscripts computed thenumber to be six hundr ed sixteen , and a current abbreviatedform of writing the name of Nero among the Hebrewsformed exactly that figure--si x hundr ed si xteen.

These facts are but further proof that it was the com-mon understanding among the Hebrews that Nero wasthe intended character.

The proof of the numerical meaning of the Hebrewletters is available in the Hebrew alphabet and they are



letters is available in the Hebrew alphabet, and they are

not difficult to decipher. In the order of the official title of Nero Caesar it would be as follows numerically : 50-200-6-50-

100-60-200 = 666. The I nter nat i onal Cr i t i cal Commentar y on Revelation

states along with other scholars quoted that the solution


There could be no more natural application of thissymbolic number than the name of the Roman emperor,

and the most exacting analyst could not demand a morefitting solution. But the historical “dark ages” interpreta-tion is not only unconvincing, it is lacking in relevancy andcoherency, and is anachronistic.

V

T HE D ISCLOSURES OF D IVINE JUDGMENTS

(Chapter 14)

“1 And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount



, , ,

Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand,having his Father’s name written in their foreheads. 2 AndI heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters,and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voiceof harpers harping with their harps: 3 And they sung as

304 T HE BOOK OF REVELAT ION

indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brim-stone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence

of the Lamb: 11 And the smoke of their torment ascendethup for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night,who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever re-ceiveth the mark of his name. 12 Here is the patience of thesaints: here are they that keep the commandments of God,

and the faith of J esus. 13 And I heard a voice from heavensaying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die inthe Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that theymay rest from their labours ; and their works do followthem 14 And I looked and behold a white cloud and upon



them. 14 And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon

the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on hishead a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. 15And another angel came out of the temple, crying with aloud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle,and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the


Isaiah 9 :2 : “The people that walked in darkness have seena great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of

death, upon them the light hath shined.” This prophetic passage is quoted by the Lord in Matthew 4:16, as beingfulfilled by his coming into the world, yet it was spokenseven hundred years before his earthly advent. This is sothroughout the book of Revelation; it was composed a

decade or more prior to the destruction of Jerusalem; be-fore several other epistles of the New Testament werewritten; and was a description of the events of the tenemperor period from Nero to Diocletian, yet its languagewas largely in past and present tenses, as though the events



w s ge y p s d p ese e ses, s oug e eve s

were current.The fourteenth chapter appears to be an intentional

prolepsis--the dating of events out of chronological order --in that the scenes of judgment indicated the end of con-flict and tribulation, whereas the following chapter reverted


This new mount Zion was the seat of the new spiritualtemple, as the dwelling of the New Testament church,

described in chapter 11:19 as “measured off for them thatworship there”--the f i rs t f ru i ts , further mentioned by Paulas the firstborn, in Heb. 12;22-23: “But ye are come untomount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, theheavenly J erusalem, and to an innumerable company of

angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn,which are written in heaven, and to God the J udge of all,and to the spirits of just men made perfect.”

The hund r ed for ty-four thousand was the numerical



symbol for that great number of saints whi ch wer e r e- deemed fr om the ear th . These were the martyred numberof the woman’s seed, designated in chapter twelve as theman chi ld which was caught up unt o God in contrast withthe remnant or r est of the woman’s seed which remained


2. And I hear d a voice fr om heaven, as the voi ce of many water s, and as th e voi ce of a gr eat t hunder : and I

heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps-- 14:2-3. The voice from heaven was in unison, and sym-bolized the same triumphant chorus of victory over theforces of the dragon, as in chapters eleven and twelve. The voice which J ohn heard was as the voice of many

waters, and as the voice of a great thunder, and as thevoice of harpers with their harps.

I t has been asserted that the reference to harps andharpers here justifies the employment of mechanical musicalinstrumentation in the worship of the church. But a symbol



p y

never symbolizes itself, and a type cannot typify itself.Moreover, the scene is that of the spirits of the redeemedf rom the earth--and heaven is the home of the soul. Whatuse could a redeemed spirit make of a material instrument?I t is worse than folly--it is crass stupidity--to make a such


These verses were a further description of this groupof redeemed martyrs, of their spiritual purity while they

dwelt among men, before they were caught up u nt o God. Their virtues were extolled for the impression on the mem-bers of the churches in midst of pagan influences and sur-roundings.

Though these martyred saints were in the visionalsphere of glory in the triumph of the persecuted cause--their character on the earth before they ascended unto Godwas an exemplification of the spiritual purity which shouldbe maintained by all who remained under the evil influences



y

of pagan surroundings in the world. There is no distinctionin character between the saints in heaven and the saintson earth.

(2) The three angels of judgment--14:6-12.


in Matthew the twenty-fourth chapter, both of which werethe delineations of the war against the J ews, the siege and

destruction of J erusalem, and of the terrible tribulationwhich the churches sustained and survived. The evangelistic angel of verse 6 had the everlasting

gospel to preach . . . to ever y nat i on, and ki nd r ed, and

tongue, and peopl e, while the angels of Matt. 24:31 were

sent to gather h i s el ect fr om the fou r w i nds, fr om one end of heaven to the other . The events were the same, theangels were the same, their evangelistic mission and gospelmessage were the same, the symbolism was the same andthe period the visions covered was the same--the time of trial and tribulation of the churches during the war against



trial and tribulation of the churches during the war against J erusalem, with all of the events connected with its down-fall and the subsequent persecution of the church.

The apocalyptist here envisions the immediate post-persecution unrestrained proclamation of the gospel. Theangelic evangel was seen flying “in the midst of heaven”


ear th , and th e sea, and th e foun tai ns of w ater s. These wordsdeclare that God is over every realm of the activities of the

two beasts--the emperor and his satellite rulers--and thatall should acknowledge and worship him.

3. And th er e fol l owed anoth er angel , saying, Babylon isfal l en , is fal l en , that great ci ty, because she made al l na- ti ons dr i nk of the w ine of th e wr ath of her fornication-- 14:8. The second angel of this vision was the angel of doom-signifying the message of doom on Babylon-whichhere referred to apostate J erusalem--and the eminent fallof the once holy city.



In chapter 11:8 apostate J erusalem was designatedspiritually as Egypt and Sodom to symbolize her state of apostasy. The reference to J erusalem was made indisputableby the identifying phrase “where also our Lord was cruci-fied.” The prophet I saiah referred to apostate J erusalem as


called down the condemnation of God which brought theend in the destruction of the city and its temple.

4. And the th i r d angel fol l owed t hem , sayin g w i th a l oud voi ce, I f any man wor sh i p the beast and h i s image,and r ecei ve h i s m ar k - -14:9. The t h i r d angel of thisapocalypse was the angel of j u d gm en t - - the symbol of solemn warning against the worship of the beast, and

receiving his mark.As has been previously shown the beast of the land (in

Palestine) obeyed the beast of the sea (the Roman emperor)and caused all the people to worship the Roman emperorwhose image was the object of idolatry. This image worship



was the mark of the beast. Having this mark inscribed inthe forehead or in the hand was symbolic of its bindingpower, as an inviolable oath of allegiance. This particularannouncement of the angel is not a pronouncement of judg-ment on the beasts, but rather a warning against the beast-


tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doethevil.” It means that the punishment of the wicked will con-

sist of vexation of spirit, distress of mind, remorse of conscience, and anguish of soul.

6. The smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever : and th ey have no rest day nor ni ght, who wor shi p the beast and h i s image and whosoever r ecei veth the mar k

of h i s name-- 14:11. The duration of the condemnationon the idolatrous worship of the Roman beast was expressedin these terms of equal fear in the fateful words of thistext.

The phrase for ever an d ever always meant endless. The



The phrase for ever an d ever always meant endless. The

single term forever may refer to a period of time--andthough it must include all of the period to which it refers,it is limited to the duration of that period. On the other sideof time, in eternity, there will be no time limitations; there-fore the words forever and everlasting and eternal (all


guished mark of the saints in sustained and persistentfaithfulness during the continuing persecution. The refusal

to worship the beast (the emperor), or his image (where-soever it appeared or on whatsoever it should be inscribed)exemplified the faithfulness couched in the words th ey that keep the commandments of God and th e fai th of J esus.

2. And I hear d a voi ce fr om heaven- sayi ng un to me,

Wr i te, Bl essed ar e the dead wh i ch di e i n th e L or d fr om hencefor th : yea, sai th th e Spi r i t, th at th ey may r est f r om thei r labors; and thei r works do fo l low them - - 14:13. This passage has been truly named the beatitude of Revela-tion. I t appears to have an identification with chapter 20 :6 :



“Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrec-tion: on such the second death hath no power.” Bothpassages referred to the martyrs--and here again theproleptic element of chapter fourteen is seen in versethirteen, as the scene depicted was ahead of the orderly


referred to the parturition of birth--the travail, the pain,of bringing forth the man chi ld ; hence, labors had reference

to the rigors of the persecution unto death, or martyrdom. The works referred to their righteous acts in the midst of the period of torture and trial. These works, sait h th e Spir i t "

. . . do fol l ow them .” Their deeds of faith and fidelity in theunfaltering performance of their prime duty followed on

after their martyrdom to abide with, comfort and encouragethe r est of the seed--the remnant that remained on theearth--as though the martyrs by these righteous acts wereyet among them. In that way one’s righteous lives and deedsyet follow on among men after they are transported from



this earth on which we dwell. These blessed dead had been swept from the earth inmartyrdom, dying in the cause of the Lord, and thoughthey had been “caught up unto God” and “lived and reignedwith Christ” in a state of victory, they nevertheless re-

i d i th i it f th i k ith th h


signified retribution of the wrath of God for the enemiesof the church.

Indulging here in repetition, it is necessary to keep inperspective the fact that this fourteenth chapter is aprolepsis --an interposition between the parts of theapocalypse, relating events out of sequence, on the order of reading the last chapter of a novel first to see how the storyends. So this latter part of chapter fourteen envisionedscenes at the end of the apocalypse of the compensationsof reward for the faithfulness of the saints in symbols of reaping the harvest of grain; then the retribution of wrathfor the oppressors of the church represented by casting thevintage of grapes into the winepress. With these essential



vintage of grapes into the winepress. With these essentialconsiderations in mind, the latter part of this chapter maybe epitomized as follows:

1. The Son of man on the white cloud was J esus Christ.He alone is called by that title in Revelation and in one


scenes of triumphant procedure, picturing the conqueringof the imperial persecutor and his minions.

The Son of man had in his hand a gol den cr ow n --thesymbol of the highest royalty, identifying him as the Kingof heaven, above all potentates of the earth, the King of kings, and Lord of lords. He had in his hand a sharp sickle --the symbol of reaping. The sickle was a harvesting im-plement comparable to the scythe of our time, which wasunknown in scripture language. They are both instrumentsswung by hand in the mowing of ripened grain. The onesitting on the white cloud had come to reap the har vest of the ear th --meaning J erusalem and J udea.



2. The Son of man employs the ministry of angels toexecute his will. One angel came out of t he templ e andsignaled to the One on the cloud to thrust i n th y si ckl e and

reap. This was not an order from a superior voice, butthe signal for the reaping to begin. It was significant that


gather the cl uster s of the vi ne of the ear th ; for her grapes are ful l y ripe-- 14:18. This angel from the altar undoubt-edly signified the answer to the cry of the martyrs under

the altar of Chapter 6:9-10: “How long, 0 Lord, howlong, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge ourblood on them that dwell on the earth?” The Lord re-plied that “they should rest (wait) yet for a little season,until their fellow-servants also and their brethren, that

should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.” Now,the vision of these angels in chapter 14, sees the role of themartyrs in the visions completed and finished. The angelf r om the alt ar was seen answering the souls under the al tar (chapter 6:9-10), and he made an announcement to



the angel with the sickle that time had come to avenge themartyrs. With these signals the Son of man reaped theearth of its harvest of grain, and his ministering angelgathered the vintage of grapes. Here was a double vision:the har vesti ng of gr ai n and the gather i ng of vi nt age With


and blood came from the winepress, even unto the horse

bridles, by the space of a thousand and six furlongs-- 14:20.

This was a description of the Roman armies gatheredoutside the city as God’s agents of retribution against J udah and J erusalem for their apostasies. The contextpresents a dual vision. F irst, the two beasts of the seaand of the land were symbolic of the combined effort of

Roman and minion persecutors to destroy the church. Thesetwo persecutors were the objects of divine indignation inthis vision of the great winepress of the wrath of God.

Second, the fallen Babylon of verse 8 was J erusalem-- the fa i th fu l c i ty turned har lo t .



The symbolic description of these scenes envisionedthe terrible war against J erusalem, when the Roman armiesgathered outside the city to tread Jerusalem as the wine-

press. The blood that came out of the winepress even un to th h b i d l signified the horrible slaughter as though


VI .

THE SEVEN ANGELS WITH THE LAST PLAGUES

(Chapter 15)

“1 And I saw another sign in heaven, great andmarvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues ;

for in them is filled up the wrath of God. 2 And I saw as

it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them thathad gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image,and over his mark, and over the number of his name,stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. 3 Andthey sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the



song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thyworks, Lord God Almighty ; just and true are thy ways,thou King of saints. 4 Who shall not fear thee, 0 Lord,and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy : for all nationsshall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments


habitants of Palestine to worship the image of the imperialbeast, and caused all who refused to thus receive the mark

of the imperial image-worship to be killed. In the course of these visional events the faithful saints were slain, andchapter thirteen ended with the full and complete roll of the martyred saints. The interposed prolepsis of chapterfourteen introduced a vision of the whole martyred number,

symbolized by an hund r ed for ty-four thousand "redeemedfrom the earth,” and the visions were projected beyond theintervening chapters to the end. That chapter (14) there-fore must be studied as an interlude preview of the finalconsummation of all events. But chapter fifteen reverted to



the vision of events in the order of the sequence and suc-cession that was interrupted at the end of chapter th ir teen,

thus re-establishing the orderly connection.

The contents of chapter fifteen may now be arrangedas follows :


chapter had the effect of an introduction to the pouring outof the plagues contained in the vials of the following

chapter.In reference to the seven vials, verse 1 stated that i n them i s f i l led up t he wr ath of God, which indicated the ful-fillment of time. The function of the seven angels thereforewas to execute the seven plagues in the series of cosmicwoes to be poured out on the earth--the land of the J ews.

The visions of these final plagues, or woes, anticipatedthe overthrow of apostate J erusalem, referred to previouslyas the fall of the harlot Babylon. Later, the same sevenangels were seen showing to J ohn the new J erusalememerging as the spiritual J erusalem in contrast with the



old apostate J erusalem.

2. And I saw as i t w er e a sea of glass m i ngl ed w i th fi r e:

and th em th at had gott en th e vi ctory over th e beast, and

over h i s image and over h i s mar k and over th e num ber of


The reference to the Egyptian Pharoah in comparisonwith the Roman emperor was made clear by the mention

of “the song of Moses, the servant of God” and “them thathad gotten victory over the beast, over his image, and overhis mark, and over the number of his name”--the languageidentifies Phar oah Ram eses andNer o Caesar .

The mention of the victorious host havi ng th e har ps of

God, as in chapter fourteen, could not be literal any morethan the angels and martyred saints could be physical. Theharps here, as in preceding visions, were the symbol of theperfect melodious harmony of the grand symphony of re-deemed voices singing. “the song of Moses and the Lamb”

;



in exultant victory, standing on the crystal sea as Israel inthe exodus sang “the song of Moses,” standing by the sea. The analogy drawn enforced the relation between the op-pression and deliverance of I srael in the Old Testament,and the persecution and victory of the church in the New


expressed omnipotence ; the tribute great an d marvel lous

was exclamatory of matchless majesty; the attributes just

and t r ue, were the acknowledgment of submission to Hisrighteous judgment; the coronation name, th ou K i ng of saints, included the saints of all ages, hence has beenvariously translated thou K i ng of t he ages; and it ascribedto Him eternal existence and the Sovereign of all saints,through whose power they were freed from the dominionof the imperial beast.

2. Who shal l not fear th ee, 0 L or d, and glor i fy thy nam e? for thou onl y ar t holy: for al l nat i ons shal l come and wor sh i p before thee, for t hy ju dgments ar e made man i fest

h i i h h ll f h



--15:4. The interrogation, “Who shall not fear thee?” wasexpressive of complete and unalloyed adoration, short of the late irreverent familiarity. The refrain th ou onl y ar t

holy was the superlative holiness inherent only in God. Thedeclaration al l na ti ons sha l l come and wor sh i p befor e th ee


The reference to the templ e of th e taber nacl e of t h e testi mony in heaven was in comparison with the measuring

of the temple in chapter eleven. The picture here portrayedwas that of the temple transferred from J erusalem toheaven and transformed from temporal to spiritual. Thevision is based on all that the temple on mount Zion meantto the nation of I srael. “Who are the Israelites; to whom

pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants,and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and thepromises ; whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerningthe flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed forever”(Rom. 9:4-5). Thus the tabernacle stood for the mostprecious things in old covenant history. It was appropriate



for the seven angels with the vials of plagues to be pouredout on the harlot J erusalem, ready for destruction, to comefrom the transformed temple in heaven.

2 And t he seven angel s came ou t of t he templ e havi ng


which th e four bei ngs appeared and it was an appropriaterepresentation that these heavenly beings should act as the

intermediaries between God and the seven angels of thevials in the role of this scene of plagues. They were specialministers of the Lamb to order the procession of events inimagery of the vials and the plagues.

4. And t he templ e was fi l l ed w i t h smoke fr om th e glor y

of God, and fr om h i s power ; and no man was abl e to en ter i n to the templ e, ti l l the seven pl agues of the seven angel s were ful f i l l ed - - 15:8. The vision of the cloud-filled templef i l l ed w i th th e smoke fr om the gl or y of God, and fr om hi s

power was the symbol of the invisible presence of God. As

d d i E 40 34 35 ld t th t b l



recorded in Ex. 40:34-35 none could enter the tabernacleduring the manifestations of God’s presence. So in thisvision no man was able to ent er i n to th e templ e, ti l l th e

seven pl agues of t he seven angel s wer e fu l fi l l ed - - that is,until the order of events resulting in the destruction of the


living soul died in the sea. 4 And the third angel poured outhis vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters ; and they

became blood. 5 And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, 0 Lord, which art, and wast, and shaltbe, because thou hast judged thus. 6 For they have shed theblood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them bloodto drink; for they are worthy. 7 And I heard another out of

the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and right-eous are thy judgments. 8 And the fourth angel poured outhis vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him toscorch men with fire. 9 And men were scorched with greatheat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath powerover these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.10 A d th fifth l d t hi i l th t f



10 And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast ; and his kingdom was full of darkness ; and theygnawed their tongues for pain, 11 And blasphemed the Godof heaven because of their pains and their sores, and re-


the mountains were not found. 21 And there fell upon mena great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of

a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plagueof the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.”

The visions of chapter sixteen carry the scenes of theexecution of the seven plagues, and the pouring out of thewoes, in the recapitulation of the events enfolded in theseven seals and trumpets of the first series, which endedwith chapter eleven. The symbols of the plagues of thischapter envisioned the same successive and progressivedevelopments of the events surrounding the war againstthe J ews and the destruction of J erusalem ; with additionalisional scenes and intensified s mbols of calamit and de



visional scenes and intensified symbols of calamity and de-vastation; in the execution of the consuming judgment of God upon the beast, the false prophets, and the idolatrousworshipers of the imperial image.

h i i l f h i l i f h fi f


to descend on the subjects of God’s wrath. I t was duringthis period of divine wrath that no man was abl e to en ter

i nt o th e templ e to appear in the presence of God for theprayer of intercession to avert the destruction of old J erusa-lem and the devastation of the old temple.

2. The subjects of the plagues were the adherents of theRoman empire in Palestine ; and the judgments which com-menced with verse two were commensurate with the Romanbeasts and the worshipers of his image who were the re-cipients of his mark .

3. The plagues followed the pattern of the experiences

of the Israelites in Egypt as indicated in verses t h ree



of the Israelites in Egypt, as indicated in verses t h ree th r ough four ; and Pharoah Rameses, the oppressor of Israel, parallels Nero Caesar, the imperial persecutor of thechurch. I t again presented the comparison of the old testa-ment and new testament people of God--I srael and the


7. The realm of the persecutor’s operations, by thewrath poured out of the vials, was subjected to the calami-

ties narrated ; and the minions of the emperor gnawed their tongues for pain --thesymbol of retribution for the lies of deception and seduction their tongues had spoken ; whichwas the method employed to brand the subjects of theirdeceit with the mark of emperor-worship. And in evidence

of entire allegiance to the beast-power verse eleven declaredthat these representatives of Rome bl asphemed the God of heaven because of t hei r pai ns and thei r sor es, and r epen ted

not of t hei r deeds.

8. In the history of Israel the armies invading their

lands had come from the river Euphrates and that histori



lands had come from the river Euphrates, and that histori-cal fact was used in ver se twel ve as the symbol of J udeabeing over-run from that quarter. The drying of the riverEuphrates th at th e way of t he ki ngs of t he east m i ght be prepared represented the removal of all barriers which


gather their armies for th e batt l e of t hat great day of God

Almighty . All the evidence necessary to sustain the claim

that this day of God referred to the destruction of J erusa-lem is the comparison with the prophecy of Zechariah(chapter 14) on the destruction of J erusalem. The chapterbegins with reference to th e day of the L or d, and the entirechapter was a description of the siege and devastation of

the city and the employment of high metaphors of peaceand blessing that followed.In further support of the parallel between Zech. 14:1

and Rev. 16:14, the analysis of the Zechariah chapter fromthe author’s book, GOD’S PROPHET IC WORD, is here in-

serted :



serted :

We shall not here read the chapter, but rather referto its contents verse by verse. Zechariah 14 is almost uni-

THE A POCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS CHURCH 331

J osephus, Pliny, Horne and Clarke fulfill Zechariah’s de-scriptions.

Reference to “nations gathered for battle” is a descrip-tion of besieged J erusalem, the houses rifled and the womenravished. The same description is found in Isaiah 13, verses15 and 16, concerning the fall and destruction of Babylon.

The comparison is forceful.Verse 3 : “Then shall the Lord go forth, and fight against

those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.”Factually, all the nations were represented in the Roman

army, and God afterward fought against them by means of the Northern nations. Read Zechariah 9:14-15: “And theLord shall be seen over them, and his arrow shall go forthas the lightning ; and the Lord God shall blow the trumpet



as the lightning ; and the Lord God shall blow the trumpet,and shall go with whirlwinds of the south. The Lord of hosts shall defend them; and they shall devour, and sub-due with sling stones.” The visitations are figurative, of

b t th l i ifi t f th f t th t ll th


Azal : yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earth-quake in the days of Uzziah king of J udah: and the Lordmy God shall come, and all the saints with thee. And it shallcome to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear,nor dark: But it shall be one day which shall be known tothe Lord, not day, nor night: but it shall come to pass, thatat evening time it shall be light.”

Obviously, these verses are a metaphorical descriptionof the mixture of divine mercy with justice. After the visi-tation there would be light--the diffusion of divine knowl-edge. This did follow the fall of J erusalem and the destruc-tion of the J ewish state.

Verses 8-9 : “And it shall be in that day, that livingwaters shall go out from J erusalem; half of them toward



waters shall go out from J erusalem; half of them towardthe former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: insummer and in winter shall it be. And the Lord shall beKing over all the earth: in that day shall there be one Lord,


these verses are not literal, then the application made of the whole chapter by the millennialists loses its force. Theselast verses refer to the expansion of the blessings of the

gospel dispensation after the destruction of J erusalem. Up-on all who received the gospel, its blessings descended asrain ; but to the unbelievers who rejected the gospel “uponthem shall be no rain”--all such are barred from itspromises and privileges.

The simple truth of the matter is that as Isaiah 13 is aprophecy on the destruction of Babylon, Zechariah 14 is aprophecy on the destruction of J erusalem. I t does not teachmillennialism in “a sentence or a syllable.“--GOD’S PRO-

PH ETI C WORD, pp. 246-9.



Thus the downfall of Babylon in Isaiah 13, and of J eru-salem in Zechariah 14, Matthew 24, and in Revelation weredescribed with identical symbolism The evidence is pre


The warning words of ver se fi fteen are the interpositionof another parenthetical beatitude comparable to chapter1:3 and 14 :13. A blessing is pronounced on all that watch,

for God would come in these events as a th i ef. The phraseas a th i ef does not indicate the element of surprise, butrather of preparedness. J esus gave the signs of these eventsin Matt. 24 :25 : “Behold, I have told you before”; and inVerse 33, “so likewise ye, when he shall see all these things,

know that it is near, even at the doors.” This same eventmust have been the object of Paul’s exhortation to the Thessalonians, first epistle, chapter 5:1-4, in reference to“the day of the Lord,” saying that they were “not in dark-ness that that day should overtake you as a thief"--

that is having knowledge of it they would abide in prepa-ti f th i t



that is, having knowledge of it, they would abide in preparation for the ominous events.

(3) The gathering forces of Armageddon--16:16.


battlefield of mount Megiddo became a universal proverb.Under the word Armageddon, the original Bible Dictionaryof Philip Schaff states that it was “a name used figuratively

in Rev. 16 :16, and suggested by the great battlefield notedin the Old Testament and now known as the Plain of Esdraelon.” This figure in the text of the apocalypse wasemployed not for the physical location but for the battleimagery. The deepest affliction of J erusalem could be sym-

bolized in no stronger terms of mourning, as prophesied byZechariah in chapter 12 :11 : “In that day shall there be agreat mourning in J erusalem, as the mourning of Hadad-rimmon in the valley of Megiddon.”

The personage designated Gog in connection with this

battle imagery was the king of a country that sustainedrelations of hostility to Israel The names G and M



battle imagery, was the king of a country that sustainedrelations of hostility to Israel. The names Gog and Magog

were used identically and are associated in chapter 20:7-9as a type of the enemies of Christ. It becomes evident thatthe symbolic adaptation of Armageddon rises above the


had been accomplished, the mission of the seven angels hadbeen fulfilled.

The pouring out of the vial into the air symbolized thatthe sphere of the influence of the wicked nations was de-stroyed by the wrath of God in the seventh vial--it wasthe destr oying of them that dest r oy; and is the same of apocalyptic characters as Isaiah 26 :13-14, prophesying thedecease of the wicked lords who had oppressed Israel: "OLord our God, other lords have had dominion over us . . .

they are dead, they shall not live ; they are deceased, theyshall not rise ; therefore hast thou visited and destroyedthem, and made all their memory to perish.” No clearerexplanation could be made of the visions in Revelation inthe pouring out of the vials of wrath upon the nations that



the pouring out of the vials of wrath upon the nations thatpersecuted the Bride of Christ, the Lamb--his church.

(5) The fall of J erusalem and citadels of oppression--


sees that th e great cit y was di vi ded i nt o th r ee par ts. I t en-visioned the partitioning of the city by the circumvallationsof the Roman armies, as in Zechariah 14 ; and as suggestedin the comments by Adam Clarke on the Zechariah prophecyand verified by the history of J osephus.

The further statement that the ci t i es of the nat i ons fel l signified the collapse of the citadels of oppression and thestrongholds of evil influence in the operations of the beastand false prophet in their l y ing wonder s and pseudo-signsof deception and seduction. The great Babylon that came i n r emembr ance befor e God was the apostate J erusalem, thatfa i th fu l ci ty tur ned har l ot of Isaiah 1:21 designated inchapter 11:8 as the spiritual Sodom and Egypt wher e al so

our L or d was cr uci f i ed. In the remembrance of her apos-



In the remembrance of her apostasies God gave un to her the cup of the w i ne of t he fi er ce- ness of h i s w r ath in divine retribution for her harlotry.

In the process of this unrelenting succession of inexor-


VIII

THE SEVEN PLAGUES OF PENAL WOE S

(Chapter 16 Con’t)

The introduction of an extensive excursus on the De-struction of J erusalem, foretold in chapter fourteen of theprophecy of Zechariah, was the occasion for the inter-ruption in the course of comments, and the reversed orderof the verses in the dissertation of this chapter on theplagues and the woes, the symbolic imagery of which re-verts to a continuation of chapter sixteen.

There was a very certain continuity in the imagery of

the first and second series of visions in the striking analogy



g gybetween the seven trumpets of the first part and the sevenvials of the second part--showing the symbolism of thesame period and events in a recapitulation with an enlarge-

d i ifi i f h i F l h


church and cleared the way for the expansion of the king-dom of God.

The significance of the seven plagues may now be sum-marized as follows:

(1) The noisome sore upon the adherents of the im-perial beast: “And the first went, and poured out his vialupon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore

upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and uponthem which worshipped his image"--16 :2.

The object of this plague was the people in J udea andother provinces of Palestine who had submitted to theimperial decree of the emperor of idolatry in the form of his

image-worship, which was the mar k of the beast . The eff ect



g p,of this plague was signified by a noxious malodorous sore, astench in the nostrils, the symbol of the civic posion of idolatry; and it was grievous as a spiritual contagion, beingi i i l t th lti t d t Ch i ti it I thi l




full of darkness ; and they gnawed their tongues for pain”-16 : 10.

The king of the kingdom mentioned in this verse mustbe identified with th e great r ed dr agon of chapter 12:9,personified as the devi l and Satan.

The seat of the beast here was on the same principle of Satan ’s seat , or throne, in Pergamos ; mentioned in chapter2:13. I t referred to his base of operations through his im-

perial agents. His kingdom was darkened by the exposure of the deceptions of his l y i ng wonders, which resulted in hisignominious end. The subjects of this Satanic beast, whor epen ted not of t hei r deeds of idolatrous worship of theemperor-image, by which they blasphemed the God of

heaven, suffered the same consequences.



q

(6) The smiting of the Euphrates which evaporated itswaters : “And the. sixth angel poured out his vial upon thegreat river Euphrates ; and the water thereof was dried up,


(7) The last vial poured into the air, causing voices,thunders, lightenings and a great earthquake: “And theseventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and therecame a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from thethrone, saying, It is done. And there were voices, andthunders, and lightnings ; and there was a great earthquake;such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mightyan earthquake, and so great”--16:17-18.

As defined before, the symbol of the air represented thesphere of life and influence of the wicked nations. In Eph.2 : 1 Satan was named the pr i nce of the power of the ai r -- not the actual exercise of power, but of influence--the sp i r i t

th at n ow wor keth i n th e ch i l d r en of d i sobed i ence.In this symbol the gr eat voice ou t of the templ e of



In this symbol the gr eat voice ou t of the templ e of

heaven , fr om th e th r one was not the voice of an angel, butof the Great God Himself. The great voice said: I t i s done.The time for the end of the judgments had come ; the time


and exile. The prophecy of Ezekiel on the siege and destruc-tion of J erusalem described these three parts in the follow-

ing words: “Thou shalt burn with fire (pestilence) a thirdpart in the midst of the city, when the days of the siege arefulfilled: and thou shalt take a third part and smite aboutit with a knife (sword) : and a third part thou shalt scatterin the wind (exile) ; and I will draw out a sword after

them.” There could be no closer relation between the ful-fillment of a prophecy and an apocalypse than Ezekiel 5:2and Revelation 16:19. Again the Old Testament and theNew Testament furnish accumulative evidence that thesymbols of Revelation were fulfilled in the lives and ex-periences of the people to whom the apocalypse was ad-dressed.



IX

THE ROMAN WAR AGAINST J ERUSALEM As FORETOLD


The disciples naturally thought that when such a stupendousthing as that happened, it would be the end of the world--the end of all things. So the two questions: “When shall

these things be? And what shall be the sign of thy coming?”Answering the question--“What shall be the sign of thycoming.?" J esus told them plainly there would be none. “Of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.” There would be no signs of

his coming. No man knows the time of his coming ; theangels do not know; and Mark 13 :32 adds “neither the Son”--the Lord in his state of humanity had not been shown thethings of the future that belonged only to the Father. TheSon’s enlightenment and illumination on all things were

subject to the time that it was the Father’s will to showhi J h 5 19 20 b t “ ” ld b



him--J ohn 5 :19-20; but “no man” could ever by any“signs of the times” know the time of the Lord’s coming.In proof of this I need only to call your attention to the


throughout this chapter, and the parallel chapters of Markand Luke.

1. The abomination of desolation mentioned in verse 15,

taken from the prophecy of Daniel, was said by the Lord tobe fulfilled when the J ews should see the presence of thesigns and symbols of the Romans “standing in the holyplace,” as stated by Mark. This is the Lord’s own interpre-tation and explanation both of the prophecy of Daniel and

the fulfillment in Matthew 24.2. The exhortation to flee to the mountains with haste,

with no opportunity or means to arrange for the carriageand transport of personal belongings and supplies, whenthey beheld the Roman armies in full march, indicates the

beginning of the siege.3 The distress and tribulation that would accompany



3. The distress and tribulation that would accompanythe prolonged and bitter siege, confirmed by eye witnesshistorians such as J osephus and Pliny in appalling descrip-tive detail can be given no other application


6. The climax of all the statements of the wholechapter, to settle the question of time, is in the dec-laration that all the things indicated by the signs would have

fulfillment in that generation. The narrative of Luke addsto the strength of Matthew’s statements: “So likewise ye,when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that thekingdom of God is nigh at hand. Verily I say unto you, thisgeneration shall not pass away till all be fulfilled”--Luke

21:28-31. Matthew’s account reads, “till all these things be fulfilled.” Notice the expression : when YE see, know YE,and, I say unto YOU, statements which identify the peopleof that generation with the fulfillment of the events de-

picted.

A significant statement is made by Luke in verse 31. He“Wh th thi t k th t



says, “When ye see these things come to pass, know ye thatthe kingdom of God is nigh at hand.” Mark’s account adds,“even at the doors"-- Mark 13 :29. The obvious meaning is :


thew 26 :64 to the high priest of the J ews ; and as furtherannounced to this J ewish official that he and his fellowofficials of the Sanhedrin should thereafter see it. Methinksthey did--at the destruction of their capital city and theirnational temple.

(3) The end of the J ewish state.

1. “After the tribulations of these days.” The millen-

nialists teach that “the tribulation” will be at the time of the rapture. The saints, they say, will be caught up in therapture, and while the saints are in the rapture, “somewherein the heavens,” the tribulation period will be in processon earth; but the saved will be spared the tribulation, for

the saints will be up in the heavens somewhere with J esusin rapture until the tribulation period is over when with



in rapture until the tribulation period is over, when withthe Lord, they say, will return to earth for the millennium.But Matthew 24 does not fit the picture. The record saysth t th di i l t ld t fl t th t i h


In the winter their infants and children might perish withcold and hunger.

3. “The day of visitation.” That expression also has

to do with the things that occurred in connection withthe destruction J erusalem. “The things which ye be-hold,” is the key to it all. Mark and Luke must be re-garded as faithful reporters, along with Matthew, and theapplication of the language, therefore, must be in harmonywith all three records. A comparison of the three reportsclearly places the events in connection with the destructionof J erusalem and the end of the J ewish state. The twoquestions, as recorded by Matthew, read: “when shall thesethings be? and what are the signs of thy coming and of theend of the world ?" Mark’s record says : “Tell us, when shallthese things be? and what shall be the sign when all these



these things be? and what shall be the sign when all thesethings shall be fulfilled?” Then Luke’s record reads : “Mas-ter, but when shall these things be? and what sign will


as representing the end of the Babylonian nation and of the J ewish state. Thus J esus disillusioned the disciples onboth of their questions, showing them that he was proph-

esying the fall of J erusalem and the end of the J ewishstate, rather than of the second coming of Christ and theend of the world. When Matthew 24 is taken from millen-nialists, the argument for the imminent return of Christbased on signs of the ti mes is destroyed.

(4) The signs--verse by verse.

1. False teachers--verse 5. “For many shall come in myname, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.” J esussimply warned the disciples that false teachers would be

numerous, more than ever before. J osephus, the historian,verifies the fact that near the time of J erusalem’s fall



verifies the fact that near the time of J erusalems fall,many false Messiahs appeared, claiming to be the Christ.He says these became more numerous before the siege of


“And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signi-fied by the Spirit that there should be great dearth through-out all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar.” Again J osephus testified that the famineactually occurred before the destruction of J erusalem, andthe fulfillment is a matter of historical record.

4. Earthquakes--verse 8 : “All these are the beginning

of sorrows.” That great earthquakes occurred during thereign of Nero is a historical fact, and the testimony of J esus is added to that of J osephus of an unusual number of earthquakes occurring in various countries, before the de-struction of J erusalem. Many cities of Asia Minor were de-stroyed by earthquakes.

5. Delivered to death--verse 9: “Then shall they deliver



you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall behated of all nations for my name’s sake.” Paul, Peter, andJ ames and J ames the Less were all put to death before

T HE A POCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS C HURCH 351

creature which is under heaven; for which I Paul ammade a minister.” Hence, before the death of Paul this“sign” was actually fulfilled--literally enough, indeed, to

satisfy a most exacting literalist. Eusebius says “the gospelwas like the sun, enlightening the world at once.” It wasuniversally published ; the Gentile nations were illuminatedwith Christianity, providing the events to correspond withthe prophecies, a fact so striking as to be convincing with-

out disputation.8. The end of the J ewish world--verse 14: “Then shall

the end come.” Here, at once, with one accord, the millen-nialist jumps to the conclusion that this “end” means theend of the world--“then shall the end come”--but the end

of what? The end of J erusalem ; the destruction of thetemple and the end of the J ewish state and the end of J d i



J udaism.

9. The abomination of desolation--verse 15: “When yetherefore shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of


the mountains. The disciples did as J esus said-they heededthe warnings and fled. From the flat roofs of their housesin the city or from their fields in the country, they saw the

Roman army in full march, there was no time to go insidefor goods or raiment. L ife was more than personal property.When they saw the sign of the standards and symbols of the Romans in the temple, they remembered that J esushad warned them of that very thing, and at the news of the

Roman approach they fled to Pella, the northern boundaryof Perea.

I t is a remarkable but historical fact that Cestius Gal-lius, the Roman general, for some unknown reason, retiredwhen they first marched against the city, suspended the

siege, ceased the attack and withdrew his armies for aninterval of time after the Romans had occupied the temple,



p pthus giving every believing J ew the opportunity to obeythe Lord’s instruction to flee the city. J osephus the eye-

itness himself an unbelie er chronicles this fact and


shall be shortened.” These verses deal with the hindrancesto flight from the besieged city, the tribulation of the siege,and the lifting of the siege for the escape of the disciples.

11. Pseudo-signs--verses 23-26 : “Then if any man shallsay unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. Forthere shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and shallshow great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it werepossible, they shall deceive the very elect.” Here was the

Lord’s warning against deceivers, fake prophets, falsealarms and fraudulent signs--the forewarnings to enablethe disciples to discriminate between the spurious and thegenuine. “Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if theyshall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth:

behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not." Thesewarnings observed by the disciples of the Lord enabled them



to escape the traps incident to the approaching siege.

12. The eagles and the carcass--verses 27-28: “For as


fighting in the limited areas around J erusalem, one millionone hundred thousand people perished. Every building wasfilled with perishing bodies; famished people ate the putri-

fied flesh of human carcasses; mothers ate the flesh of theirown babies. And outside the besieged city the families of theexpatriated race of J ews in many places throughout theempire were slaughtered. J osephus, the historian, verifiesthe fact that there was never anything like it before or

since, nor ever shall be. The signs in the heavens, the darkening sun and fallingstars, refer to the falling of J ewish dignitaries, castingdown of authorities and powers, long established, andsignified the darkness that settled upon the J ewish state.

The sun of the Hebrew temple was darkened, the moonof the J ewish commonwealth was as blood, the stars of theS h d i f ll f th i hi h t f th it I i h



Sanhedrin fell from their high seats of authority. Isaiahand J oel describe the ruin of both ancient Babylon andJ erusalem in similar description in Isaiah 13 and J oel 2

T HE A POCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS CHURCH 355

15. Sending forth his angels--verse 31: “And he shallsend his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they

shall gather together his elect from the four winds, fromone end of heaven to the other.” Here is the grand an-nouncement of the world-wide success of the gospel, theuniversal expansion of Christianity after the destruction of

J erusalem. The angels of this verse were messengers,emissaries of the gospel. The gathering of the elect fromthe four winds meant that these messengers would carrythe gospel to every nook and corner of the inhabited world. This is the history of what occurred. With the downfall of J udaism the greatest foe of the church was removed, thepath cleared of the chief obstacle, resulting in the uni-

versal sweep of Christianity. The knowledge of God coveredthe earth as waters cover the sea.



the earth as waters cover the sea.16. The signs that it was near--verses 32-33: “When

the branch is yet tender . . . ye know that summer is nigh


and they did. “And when ye shall see J erusalem compassedwith armies, then know that the desolation thereof isnigh"--and they did know it. I f it meant the end of the

world, why say “let them which are in J udea flee to themountains”? And why say, “let not them that are in thecountry enter thereinto”--into J erusalem? These sayingsshow clearly that the whole thing is a description of thedestruction of J erusalem. Reverting in verses 41 and 42 to

these surroundings the Lord said that where two would be“in the field,” or “grinding at the mill”--one would betaken and the other left--that is, the believing disciplewould recognize the signs and take flight, while the unbe-lieving companion would remain and perish in the siege.

The statement that all the tribes of the earth shallmourn, as has been previously explained, is a reference to



p y pthe J ewish families scattered all over the Roman empire--they would mourn the downfall of J erusalem and the end

T HE APOCALYPSE OF THE VICTORIOUS CHURCH 357

it! No, J esus said “this generation”--the generation liv-ing then--would not pass “till all these things be fulfilled.” The Lord’s use of the same language after pronouncingthe woes on the Pharisees in the previous chapter of Matthew shows clearly the reference was to their own time.

There are nine woes pronounced upon these J ewish officialsin Matthew 23, which are followed by verse 36: ‘Verily Isay unto you, all these things shall come upon this genera-tion.” Immediately following this statement is the pro-nouncement on J erusalem in verse 37, “0 J erusalem, J eru-salem,” and the verdict of verse 38, “Behold, your houseis left unto you desolate.” There is but one conclusion, andit is clear--all the woes of Matthew 23 and all the signsof Matthew 24 referred to that generation of time and spanof life, and were all fulfilled in the destruction of J eru-salem, and immediately thereafter.



salem, and immediately thereafter.

18 Words shall not pass away--verse 35 “Heaven and


until the flood came, and took them all away, so shall alsothe coming of the Son of man be. Then shall two be inthe field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two

women shall be grinding at the mill ; the one shall be taken,and the other left. Watch therefore ; for ye know not whathour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the good-man of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have

suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore be ye alsoready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of mancometh. Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom hislord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meatin due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when

he cometh shall find so doing. Verily I say unto you, Thathe shall make him ruler over all his goods. But and if thatevil servant shall say in his heart My lord delayeth his



evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth hiscoming ; and shall begin to smite his fellow servants, andto eat and drink with the drunken the lord of that servant


humanity. It is on this point that Mark introduces thephrase “neither the Son” which Matthew omits. “But of

that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angelswhich are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father."--Mark 13 :32. The statement of J ohn 5:20 that the Father“showeth him all the things that himself doeth” evidentlydid not apply to the time of his fleshly humiliation; for itis positively stated by Mark that the time of the comingof the Son of man was not known by the Son himself.“Neither the Son, but the Father.” But having now returnedto the Godhead, no longer clothed with humanity, God hasshown to the Son all the things that he will do. “For inhim dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily."--

Colossians 2 :9. The fact stands that of that day and hour no man knows now, and no man shall ever know before-



hand--for “so shall the coming of the Son of man be.” I tshall so be when he comes.


suffering to usward, not willing that any should perish,but that all should come to repentance. But the day of

the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the whichthe heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and theelements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also andthe works that are therein shall be burned up.”

The comparison of this passage with Matthew 24, verses

36 to 39, shows that the references are to the second com-ing of Christ and the judgment, at the end of time. Thepoint of emphasis established is this one thing: of that day and hour no man knows, and there shall be no portents asthat phraseological anachronism “the signs of the times,”

so prevalent in religious parlance, would means.

20 One shall be taken and the other left verses 40 51



20. One shall be taken and the other left--verses 40-51.

In reference to the destruction of J erusalem, the dis-


alive at the coming of the Lord shall not "prevent"--pre-cede--the righteous dead in the ascension to meet him ; but

the dead in Christ shall rise first---that is, before the livingin Christ are caught up; and together the ascending saintsshall meet the descending Saviour ; and “so shall ever bewith the Lord.” As for the resurrection and judgment of the wicked, other passages teach that the wicked will beraised and judged at the same last day upon which therighteous will ascend to meet the Lord--the differenceexists not in the time of the resurrection but in the retribu-tion and the reward.

The parable of the faithful and wise servant, in verses

43-51, contrasted with the evil servant, provides the ex-ample for the practical application of the Lord’s teachingin reference to his future coming He would make the wise



in reference to his future coming. He would make the wiseand faithful servant “ruler over all his goods”; but theevil servant he would “cut asunder” a reference to the




the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast thatwas, and is not, and yet is. 9 And here is the mind whichhath wisdom. The seven heads are seven heads are sevenmountains, on which the woman sitteth. 10 And there areseven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is notyet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a shortspace. 11 And the beast that was, and is not, even he is theeighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition. 12 And

the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which havereceived no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings onehour with the beast. 13 These have one mind, and shallgive their power and strength unto the beast. 14 Theseshall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall over-

come them: for he is Lord of lords, and K ing of kings: andthey that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.15 And he saith unto me The aters hich thou sa est



15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest,where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and


transported in vision to a mountain where he was allowedto view the Bride, the wife of the Lamb (the church of Christ)--but before doing so, the first angel summoned the

Seer in spirit to appropriate surroundings to reveal theidentity and character of Babyl on , the great , the moth er of

th e har l ots, and abom inati ons of the ear th , and to visualizethe judgment that was to come upon her--for the destruc-tion of the Harlot must precede the victory of the Bride.

The seventeenth and eighteenth chapters must be con-sidered as one--for the announced judgment upon theHarlot by the angel at the beginning of chapter seventeen was suspended by the vision of the Harlot; and anotherangel descended in chapter eighteen to explain the mystery

of Babyl on the great , and to reveal the judgment againsther in the overthrow and destruction of the city which theHarlot represented



Harlot represented. There are numerous reasons why the Harlot could not


Fourth : The apocalypse was not directly concerned withRome, or the Roman Empire ; rather, they were envisionedonly as the instrument in the execution of judgment on

Jerusalem, which in her multiplied apostasies had come to be symbolized as th e mother of har l ots and abom i nat i ons of the ear th , i. e. Judea and Palestine.

All of this was in direct fulfillment of the things Jesusforetold in the twenty-third and twenty-fourth chapters of

Matthew and the twenty-f irst chapter of Luke concerningthe apostasies and abominations which would bring doomto the city of Jerusalem.

For example read Matt. 23 :34-37 : “Wherefore, behold, Isend unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and

some of them ye shall kill and crucify ; and some of themshall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute themfrom city to city: that upon you may come all the righteous



o c ty to c ty: t at upo you ay co e a t e g teous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abelunto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias whom ye slew


power of Rome as the beast upon which the Harlot sat.Corollary to these two symbolic characters were the two

judgments, one against the woman, the other against the

beast in the form of the announced destruction of both.However, as the beast symbolized the Roman Empire, itwas only as the persecuting instrument; hence, the de-slruction of the beast which should be accomplished was notthe empire itself but the persecuting power which the beast

embodied and personified.Seeing that chapters seventeen and eighteen deal with

J erusalem as the Harlot, and the persecuting power of thebeast as the Roman Empire, the verses of the two chaptersfall into an orderly sequence.

(1) The harlot sitting upon the waters--17:1-2.



“And there came one of the seven angels which had theseven vials and talked with me saying unto me Come


This statement has been considered an indication thatthe Harlot was Rome, sitting on the waters. But the samefigure of speech was applied to Babylon in J er. 51:13: “0

thou that dwellest upon many waters.” It was not a refer-ence to a literal geographical location, but to commercialsources of revenue and support; and it was a very im-pressive imagery of J erusalem’s dependence on affiliationswith the heathen tributaries of Rome.

The reference in ver se two to the harlot’s fornicat ion with the kings, and the w ine of her for n i cat i on makingdrunk the inhabitants of the land were symbols of the ex-tensions of J erusalem’s affiliations with foreign people, andthe passion to be like the nations around them, as Israel

demanded in I Sam. 8:5. These affiliations so enamored theinhabitants of J udah and J erusalem as to be characterizedin the symbolism of being dr unk w ith the wi ne of her for ni



in the symbolism of being dr unk w ith . the wi ne of her for ni -

cation. The apocalypse was consistently that of apostate


characterized the beast have been made in precedingchapters, this being the same beast, the Roman Empire andits tributaries, extended remarks here are unnecessary.

The description in ver se four , of the woman ar r ayed i n pur pl e and scar l et colour, and bedecked with all adornmentsof gold, jewels and pearls, were highly extended symbols of the harlots sources of seduction; and th e gol den cup i n her

hand ful l of abom i nat i ons and f i l th i ness of her for ni cat i on

were all descriptive of the lewd character of the harlotwoman, and symbolic of the unfaithfulness of J erusalem,“the faithful city become an harlot.” I t was a lurid pictureof the spiritual condition of J erusalem and all J udea.

The name written on the woman’s head, in verse five,

was the inscription: M yster y, Babyl on t he Gr eat , th e M other of H ar l ots and Abom i nat i ons of the Ear th . Thespiritual evils of the land of J udea with all the national



spiritual evils of the land of J udea with all the nationalapostasies of J udaism were her offspring.


was done in the visions that followed. The word admi ra t ion has the meaning of astonishment--that is, J ohn wonderedwith great amazement as he viewed the decked and jeweled

Harlot seated on the beast whose power would bring her todestruction.

An angel cryptologist in verse seven appeared to decodethe symbols which concealed in a mystery the vision of the beast upon which the woman sat. The enigmatic sig-

nificance of the mystic symbolism which surrounded boththe woman and the beast involved their respective destinies--the destruction of the woman (J erusalem), and the perdi-tion of the beast (the persecutor). The angel interpreter,proposing an explanation of the cryptic vision, repeated the

wonder of the woman sitting on the seven heads and tenhorns of the beast. It was a continued repetition in descrip-tion of the Roman Empire, as previously shown, and of



p p y J erusalem the apostate metropolis of J udaism.

An element of the mystery in the code description of the


The reappearance of the beast in the display of poweragain caused wonderment among the dwellers of the earthwhose names wer e not wr i tt en i n th e book of l i fe fr om the

f oundat i on of th e world--that is, all of the people of theheathen and Roman world who were not the people of God,and had never been so reckoned, held the worldly pompand power of the Roman emperor in great admiration. Butthis inhibition of the presence and power of the persecuting

beast was not for long. His reappearance as a persecutorwas also characterized as a final disappearance when hisdefeat and destiny should be accomplished--he wouldeventually go i nt o per di t i on. It should be remembered thatthe destiny of the beast did not refer to the destruction

of the empire itself but to the destruction of the persecut-ing power which the beast represented.

The symbols have the same force and application as



The symbols have the same force and application asIsaiah’s description of the decease of the wicked lords of


The m ind whi ch hath wi sdom referred to the deepmystical import of these symbols which were here merelyprojected but not fully explained or interpreted--the full

meaning is reserved for the following chapter.Everything in the visions revolves around the J erusalem

of the J ews, Rome being only collateral to the accomplish-ment of the visions. The reference to the seven mounta ins was not subject to a literal application any more than the

literalizing of the woman. Mountains were ordinarily thesymbols of the seats and positions of political and govern-mental authority, where power was concentrated. Andwhile that was true of Rome, surrounded literally by sevenhills ; it was true also that J erusalem was the city where

apostasy in the realm of religious power was concentrated;and J erusalem was also surrounded by seven literal moun-tains: Zion, Acra, Moriah, Bezetha, Millo, Ophel and



pAntonio ; all of which are mentioned in the history of J h i i i h h i J l


apocalypse; and Nero, the sixth Caesar, was reigning atthe time Revelation was written. The apocalypse belongedto the Neronic period. Omitting quite properly the sub-

ordinates, or mock rulers, Domitian was the seventh Caesar ;and the text specifically stated that he had not come. It isdifficult to account for a theory that fixes the chronology of Revelation in the latter part of the Domitian reign whenhe, the seven th , had not come. The rectification of the

traditional chronological error attached to the Book of Rev- elation will automatically correct the “future prophecy”theories so full of misconcepts.

The text stated that the seventh king, or emperor,must conti nue a shor t space --that is, the persecutions would

not end with Nero, but would continue to be prosecuted inreigns of short duration of the successive emperors. It isstated in ver se el even that the beast that was, and i s not,



s a ed e se e e e a t e beast t at as, a d s ot,

even he i s the ei ght h , and i s of t he seven th , and goeth i n to


and shall give their power and strength unto the beast. These shall make war with the Lamb, and Lamb shallovercome them : for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings :

and they that are with him are called, and chosen, andfaithful. And he saith unto me, The waters which thousawest, where the whore sitteth, are people, and multitudes,and nations, and tongues. And the ten horns which thousawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and

shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh,and burn her with fire. For God hath put in their hearts tofulfill his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto thebeast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled. And thewoman which thou sawest is that great city, which reignethover the kings of the earth.”

The ten kings of the beast in verse twelve had r ecei ved no ki ngdom as yet; but r ecei ve power one hour w i th th e

b t These mock rulers of theRoman tributaries had no



beast. These mock rulers of the Roman tributaries had noindependent rule ; they were the contemporary subordinate


It is repeated in ver se fi fteen that th e water s upon whichthe Harlot sat were t h e peopl es, and m u l t i t u des, and

nations, and tongues, which represented, as previously ex-

plained, J erusalem’s affiliations with the heathen world,and the intermingling with nations and people of all partsof the empire. This became a source of corruption andapostasy.

It is declared in verse sixteen that the kings of the em-

pire, represented by the ten horns, hated the Harlot. Thisis solid proof that the harlot city was not Rome--assuredlythe Roman kings did not hate the capital city of the RomanEmpire. But they did hate J erusalem and coordinated theirefforts with the emperor to reduce it to the condition here

described: make her desol ate and naked , and shal l eat her f l esh and bur n her w i th f i r e. The Lord’s account of thesiege of J erusalem together with the history of J osephus



g J g y J pwere a graphic fulfillment of these apocalyptic pronounce-


11:8, symbolically called Sodom and Egypt, but identified asbeing J erusalem by the statement where also our L or d was crucified.

The last statement of verse eighteen “which reignethover the kings of the earth” did not refer to theempire of the Caesars, nor the city of the emperors. The word reign here denoted a domin ion . The ea r th ,as defined at the beginning of the visions and laterrepeated, referred to the land of J udea, inclusive of Palestine. The city of J erusalem was the royal city wherethe kings of J udah reigned. The phrase th e k i ngs of the earth was used in the sense of Acts 4:26-27: “The kingsof the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered togetheragainst the Lord, and against his Christ. For of a truth

against thy holy child J esus, whom thou hast annointed,both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and thepeople of I srael, were gathered together.”



people of I srael, were gathered together.These “kings of the earth” were of J udah, and J eru-


J ews. The persecution of the church was a consequenceof such catastrophe, being considered by the Romans as asect of the J ews. But the Roman empire and Rome, the city,

were only collateral to the visions of Revelation as the in-strument of the power of destruction and of persecution.

XI

THE F INAL PROCLAMATION OF DOOM ON J ERUSALEM

(Chapter 18)

“1 And after these things I saw another angel comedown from heaven, having great power; and the earth waslightened with his glory. 2 And he cried mightily with astrong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen,and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of everyfoul spirit and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird



foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of

THE APOCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS CHURCH 377earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeththeir merchandise any more: 12 The merchandise of gold,and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen,and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyine wood, andall manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most

precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble, 13 Andcinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense,and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, andsheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men. 14 And the fruits that thy soul lusted after are de-

parted from thee, and all things which were dainty andgoodly are departed from thee, and thou shalt find them nomore at all. 15 The merchants of these things, which weremade rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, 16 And saying, Alas, alasthat great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple,and scarlet and decked with gold and precious stones and



and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, andpearls! 17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought


found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all thatwere slain upon the earth.”

The approaching fall of J erusalem, under the symbol

of Babylon was envisioned in this chapter. I t pictured theoverthrow of J udaism and the J ewish state as having beenactually accomplished when in fact it was an apocalypticforecast of an event still future, described in the details of past occurrence.

(1) The angel’s announcement--18: l-3.

This is another instance of a proleptic utterance by anangel, as the following verses of the chapter outline thesuccessive stages of the fall and the desolation of the

Babylon--J erusalem. The proclamation of doom was delivered by an angelhavi ng great power , a power commensurate with the magni-tude of the proclamation and which signified the authority



tude of the proclamation and which signified the authorityt fi l d A lt f th l ti


The repetition in verse three of the harlot’s wine-cup, representing her multiplied forms of seduction. Thereference to th e k i ngs of t he ear th was used in the sense

of the rulers and authorities of J udea and Palestine ; and thereference to the nat i ons was a designation for the heathen. They were all part iceps criminus, having drunk of theharlot’s seductive wine-cup of abominations. The languagewas symbolic of J erusalem’s heathen affiliations. Thus the

proud capital of the J ews, once the dwelling place of Godand the depository of the Oracles and the center of J udaism,by apostasy had come to destruction and was reduced to ahaunt of the demon-world of heathenism, the habitat of thediabolical agents of the satanic beast.

(2) The call to the faithful--18:4-8.

The voice from heaven introducing verse four was a callt th f ithf l i t t d t f th d d it b f



to the faithful saints to depart from the doomed city before


glory. The old city declared that she was no widow andwould see no sor r ow (of widowhood), for she was the J erusalem of the Israel which was wedded to the God of the

J ews. But ver se ei gh t bluntly decreed that destructionwould come upon her in one day, as suddenly as the Lord’sstatement in Matt. 24 :16-18 : “Then let them which be in J udea flee . . . let him which is on the housetop not comedown to take anything out of his house: neither let him

which is in the field return back to take his clothes.” Hence,the expression one day symbolized the suddenness of theimpending judgment against J erusalem and the shortnessof time for the faithful to respond to the call to come out

of her . The extended application, as in I I Cor. 6:17, meant

to come out of the evils and the errors of J erusalem’sapostasies and of heathendom’s idolatries. The last lineof verse eight, for str ong i s th e L or d God who jud geth her ,

meant that God’s word was inexorable and without change



meant that God s word was inexorable, and without changef h ld d h i


ear th shal l w ai l denoted the mourning of all Jewish familiesin all parts of the world over the destruction that had be-fallen their beloved city.

The rulers, merchants and mariners of Palestine be-wailed the calamity for no man buyeth th ei r mer chandi se

any mor e. The valuables of the merchandise in which thistrade consisted were listed in ver ses twelve to fourteen.The description of gol d, pur pl e and spi ce were symbols of

the flow of commerce which characterized Jerusalem’s prosperity. But with the severance of all trade, deprived of all commerce, the authorities of Judea, the merchants andthe shippers, once associated with Jerusalem in all of her luxury and wantonness, then stood aloof as witnesses of the destruction, deploring the devastation ; but only to be-wail her plight.

The extensive traffic in thirty articles specified by Johnrepresented the affiliations of the Jewish capital with all



represented the affiliations of the Jewish capital with allthe heathen world Included in this commercial revenue was


the once faithful city which had turned harlot. In contrastwith the wailing of the associates in the harlotries of thecity, J ohn was joined in vision to the witnesses and apostles

and saints who had been victims of J erusalem’s murderouswantonness--a united chorus in celebration of the end of theabominations of J erusalem and the obstructions of J udaism.

The Lord foretold this fulfillment in Matt. 23:29-38:“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because

ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepul-chres of the righteous, and say, I f we had been in the daysof our fathers, we would not have been partakers withthem in the blood of the prophets. Wherefore ye be wit-nesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them

which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, howcan ye escape the damnation of hell? Wherefore, behold, Isend unto you prophets and wise men and scribes : and



send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes : and

THE APOCALYPSE OF THE VICTORIOUS CHURCH 383

evil that I will bring upon her: and they shall be weary. Thus far are the words of J eremiah.”

It is appropriate that the end of the symbolic Babylon, J erusalem should be signified by the same imagery. The

symbols meant the total disappearance of both the literaland the figurative Babylons. Ver se twenty-th r ee includesthe symbols of the crafts of prosperity, of marriages andof merriment, all of which were to be no more ; and verse twenty-four reverted to the sins of J erusalem in the guilt-

iness of the bl ood of pr ophets, and of sai n ts, and al l tha t wer e sl ai n upon th e ear th (Matt. 23 :29-39). In the aveng-ing judgment on J erusalem the guilt of the blood of theseslain ones found retribution.

I t is needless to go out of the Neronic period or away

from J erusalem to find the facts of history that meet allthe demands of these apocalypses. They do not fit Rome,nor any other city than J erusalem ; where the prophets,apostles and saints were slain The usual interpretation to



apostles and saints were slain. The usual interpretation to


the corresponding events of history then in process-thecurrent events and the contemporary kings of Rome and J udah--in order to link the fulfillment of these symbolsto future events which, if they should come to pass, couldnot provide a more perfect similitude between the symboland the event that fulfills it than was present in the eventsof the history surrounding J erusalem and J udah; andwhich followed in immediate rapid succession the fall of J erusalem, J udaism and the J ewish state.

The theories of futurism would revive kingdoms thathave perished, and their kings who have turned to dust ; andafter several thousands of years in an ultra-special sortof resurrection stage a historical pageant to parade themall before the world again in order to meet the demands of a future fulfillment of Revelation. I t is not compatible withthe announced purpose of the book nor the character of itssymbols, the fulfillment of which was accomplished in the



y pcorresponding events of that period and in the experiences


up for ever and ever. 4 And the four and twenty eldersand the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that saton the throne, saying, Amen ; Alleluja. 5 And a voice came

out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants,and ye that fear him, both small and great. 6 And I heardas it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voiceof many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings,saying, Alleluja: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: forthe marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath madeherself ready. 8 And to her was granted that she shouldbe arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linenis the righteousness of saints. 9 And he saith unto me,Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage

supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are thetrue sayings of God. 10 And I fell at his feet to worshiphim. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thyf ll t d f th b th th t h th t ti



fellowservant and of thy brethren that have the testimony

T HE B OOK OF R E V E L A T I O N

free and bond, both small and great. 19 And I saw thebeast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gatheredtogether to make war against him that sat on the horse,and against his army. 20 And the beast was taken, andwith him the false prophet that wrought miracles beforehim, with which he deceived them that had received themark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burningwith brimstone. 21 And the remnant were slain with thesword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword pro-ceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled withtheir flesh.”

There is a striking analogy between these scenes of

the church emerging in victory from the period of perse-cution, described by J ohn in this nineteenth chapter, andthe deliverance of I srael from Babylonian exile, describedby Ezekiel in the closing section of his prophecy from the



by Ezekiel in the closing section of his prophecy from the

THE

APOCALYPSE OF THE

VICTORIOUS

CHURCH

387

thereafter it is used repeatedly to introduce and end thechapters in the Psalms. The word al leluia itself is used onlyin the nineteenth chapter of Revelation, verses 1, 3, 4, 6,which lends special significance to the chorus of theheavenly multitude praising God for Salva t ion fromenemies, and r i ghteous judgment s on J erusalem; and foravenging the blood of the martyrs. This was the reason forthe ascription of special praise, as indicated in ver se two.It was not the general or usual form of worship and praise,

but a special hal lelujah for tr ue and r i ghteous retributionon the harlot woman--apostate J erusalem--and heraffiliates. The words of ver se 3 decreed that this judgmentwas a pronouncement of final doom on J erusalem. And her smoke r ose up forever and ever . This was the declaration

that the old J erusalem would never be restored. It is the par-allel of the Lord’s declaration in Luke 21:24: “And J erusa-lem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled" which meant that J erusalem was



the Gentiles be fulfilled --which meant that J erusalem was

388 THE

BOOK OF

REVELATION

smal l and gr eat --all classes of men who were servants of God were bidden to rejoice. The greatness of the heavenlymultitude joined in chorus as one voice, verse six, was not

only a scene of awe and veneration, but was impressive of the magnitude of the significance attached to the end of J erusalem and the J ewish state, and the removal of J udaism as the greatest obstacle to the expansion of Christianity from the path of the church. With the Harlot

City, and the system of J udaism which she representeddestroyed; there remained only the execution of judgmentagainst political minions who had shared in her spiritualfornication sand abominations.

(2) The marriage supper of the Lamb--19:7-10.

The symbolism expressed in t he mar r i age of the L amb

of ver se seven, signified the blessed union of the church withChrist, the Head. But the use of the symbol here did not



yi if th t th h h h d t b th l t d t Ch i t

THE

APOCALYPSE OF THE

VICTORIOUS

CHURCH

389

The figurative clause hi s w i fe hath made her sel f r eady

was the symbol of victory over the evil forces of opposition--the verse declares that she was already his wife, andenvisions the spiritual relation as a complete process, not asa single thing.

That the Lamb’s wife should be ar r ayed i n fi ne l i nen,cl ean and whi te was explained to be the righteousness of

th e sai n ts, the purity of the New J erusalem church in con-trast with the iniquities of the harlot J erusalem, whichhad gone up in the smoke of destruction forever. This at-tire of cl ean and whi te vestures was a beautiful symbol of the character of all who are truly joined in union withChrist. They were the ones cal l ed u nt o th e mar r i age sup -

per of the L amb, the equal in number of all who were

in the married relation with Christ. This metaphor com-parable to the illustration of the wedding garment in theparable of Matt. 22:11-13, which was necessary to en-trance into the feast; without which the intruder would



trance into the feast; without which the intruder would

390

THE

BOOK OF

REVELATION

affirmed in the New Testament. The positive affirmationof this verbal inspiration is affirmed throughout all thescriptures ; but has been marred and mutilated by thesacrilegious pseudo-translations of the perverted new ver-sions. They have been advertised as new translations, butthey are in fact no translations. They ruin Revelation asthey do all other portions of the verbally inspired word of God.

The words of the angel had impressed J ohn as amessage direct from God ; and verse ten stated that he fel l at h i s feet to wor shi p h im . In bodily prostration J ohn wasabout to worship the angel. But the angel refused thehomage, saying, See th ou do i t n ot: I am a fel l owser van t,

and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus:

wor shi p God. This testimony of J esus had reference to themessage of Revelation ; and being a fellow servant withth y breth r en was an expression of humility as expressed byJ h hi lf i h t 1 9



J ohn himself in chapter 1 :9


glorious war of Christ against idolatry were the chosen fa i th fu l who shared the triumph of the procession of vic-tory. He was identified as the same Rider of the whitehorse in chapter 6 :2 ; then going forth to conquer, but nowin procession of victory over the emperial persecutors ; to

judge andmake war against all heathenism. This war wasto be waged by the shar p swor d which proceeded out of hi s

mouth --that is, a war on the heathen minions by the wordof God, the two-edged sword of Heb. 4 :12, and the sword of the Spirit of Eph. 6:17. His descriptions were put in sym-bols of a royal and ruling conqueror, which compared withthe array of the Son of man in the midst of the sevenchurches in chapter 1:13-16. The vestures of the Riderwere di pped i n blood, an imagery of the battle with the

persecuting beasts who had slain the martyrs and had shedthe blood of the saints. With the heavenly army Christ, theRider, subsequent to the extermination of J udaism, wasseen marching against the strongholds of heathenism



seen marching against the strongholds of heathenism


to engage--it was the conflict of Christianity with heathen-ism, and the t ru th was the weapon against all error.

In verse fourteen the armies that followed Him upon whi te hor ses, cl othed in fi ne l i nen, wh i te and cl ean, were theovercomers of the tribulation--redeemed from the periodof persecution. In ver se fi f teen it was declared that theRider would smite t he nat ions and r ul e them w i th a r od

of i r on. The process of this smiting was indicated in God’scommission to J eremiah, chapter 1 :10 : “See, I have thisday set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to rootout, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down,to build, and to plant.” In the Revelation text the phrases,sm i te th e nat i ons and r u l e them w it h a r od of i r on, weresymbolic of the impact of the gospel on the heathen world.

This inherent power and force of Christianity wasprophesied in the second psalm, chapter 2 :l-3 : “Why dothe heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take



T HE A POCALYPSE OF THE VICTORIOUS CHURCH 393

church. The conquest of “the kingdoms of this world”was spiritual, not literal; and it was to be accomplishedby the spread of the gospel and expansion of Christianityover the heathen world, as stated in Matt. 24:31 and as

prophesied in the second Psalm. The names and insignia attached to the Rider comport

with the Psalm prophecy and with all the divine offices of the Christ Rider. His insignia were: the white horse, thediadems, the blood-dipped garments, the flaming eyes, and

the inscribed name, unknown to men. His divine workswere: to judge, to wage war, t o smite with a verbal sword,to tread the winepress of God’s wrath, and to rule withthe inflexible iron rod of the inexorble law of the Christ.

(4) The great sacrificial Supper--19:17-18.

These verses represented a feast on the flesh of kingsconsumed by the birds of prey and was one of the most




The same metaphorical representation of the celebra-tion of the return of I srael from exile, subsequent to thefall of Babylon, was employed by Ezekiel in chapter39 : 17-20 : “And, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord God ;

Speak unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of thefield, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves onevery side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even agreat sacrifice upon the mountains of I srael, that ye mayeat flesh, and drink blood. Ye shall eat the flesh of the

mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of themfatlings of Bashan. And ye shall eat fat till ye be full, anddrink blood till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice which I havesacrificed for you. Thus ye shall be filled at my table with

horses and chariots, with mighty men, and with all menof war, saith the Lord God.”

It is apparent that this sacrificial supper in Revelationwas the vision of celebration for the triumph of the church




that no class or condition, high or low, in the heathen worldcould stand against the spiritual forces of Christ, the Con-queror and Rider of the white horse--and from thisimagery of spiritual victory over all the forces of heathen-

ism, the vision turns to the scene of judgment and finalbanishment of the Roman beast and his subordinate beast,the false prophet, who had beguiled the people into theemperor-image worship, and who was the original sourceof the spiritual war delineated in the apocalypse.

(5) The complete destruction of the persecuting powerof the Roman beast and his subordinate false prophet--19:19-21.

The fact that these visions anticipated events before,

during and after the destruction of J erusalem, should beobserved and retained in the mind, as the considerationsadvance from one stage and scene to another.

The scene of verses nineteen to twenty-one reverted to




the beast as having lost the battle against the church. Theinvincible spiritual forces of Christianity prevailed againstall powers of heathenism, and both the beast and hissatellite false prophet were taken; that is, captured and

consigned to the bottomless pit of banishment, symbolizedby the l ake of f i r e burn i ng wi th br imstone. The object of this vision was to symbolize the war of righteousness ledby Christ Himself, the Head of the church, against thewickedness of heathenism. It described the progress of the

persecution of the church, after the fall of J erusalem,through the period of t r ibu la t ion of chapter 2 :10 ; and of the hour of tr i al in chapter 3 :10 ; in the deadly conflictwith the heathenism of the Roman world.

The entire second psalm is a magnificent prophecy of

the defeat of all the cohorts of heathenism by the Kingwhom God had set “upon the holy hill of Zion,” and isworthy of insertion here in its entirety:




in these visions of Revelation where the “heathen raged”and “the kings of the earth set themselves . . . against hisAnointed.” The rulers did “take counsel together,” anddetermined to “break their bands asunder,” and thus to

scatter the forces of the Anointed; but “the Lord shall havethem in derision” and “shall break them with a rod of iron”which was done in the descriptions and fulfillment of thesevisions. In this imagery the Psalmist foresaw the establish-ment of the kingdom of Christ, and the defeat of all

heathen opposition by the gospel’s r od of i r on --the invinci-ble Word of Tr uth .

The apocalypse of these last verses of chapter nineteen follows the same pattern in visions of the defeat of thehosts opposing Christ. The second Psalm decreed that thou

shal t dash them i n pi eces l i ke a pot ter ’s vessel , and theapocalypse declared that they wer e cast al i ve i nt o a l ake of f i r e burn in g wi th br i mstone. One of these passages can-not be considered more or less literal than the other--both



398 T HE B OOK OF REVELATION

the brief vision of the defeat of the r emnant which had beenslain wi th th e swor d of h im th at sat u pon the hor se. Thisremnant symbolized the enemies of Christ other than thepersecuting beasts. I t represented all forms of error and

evil and doctrines of antichrist that stood in the way of thechurch. They were slain with th e swor d of h im th at sat upon the hor se; and the text identified the sword by themodifying phrase : whi ch sword pr oceeded out of h i s mouth

--the Word of God. By his word all forms of heathenism

were exposed and the enemies of his cause, in the battleimagery, were sla in, or defeated. They were figurativelyslain, by a figurative sword: whi ch swor d pr oceeded ou t of hi s mout h --that is, by the teaching of the truth and thespread of the gospel.

To complete the visional and metaphorical picture,chapter nineteen ends with verse twenty-one in the finalstatement: And al l th e fow l s wer e f i l led wi th th ei r flesh.

A th bi d d th i th t th




forecast of the events preceding and subsequent to thedestruction of J erusalem.

XIII

THE B INDING OF SATAN AND THE REIGN OF THE SAINTS

WITH CHRIST

(Chapter 20)

“1 And I saw an angel come down from heaven, hav-

ing the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in hishand. 2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent,which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousandyears. 3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shuthim up, and 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. 4 And Isaw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment wasgiven unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were




heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God;and the books were opened: and another book was opened,

which is the book of life: and the dead were judged outof those things which were written in the books, accord-ing to their works. 13 And the sea gave up the dead whichwere in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead whichwere in them: and they were judged every man according

to their works. 14 And death and hell were cast into thelake of fire. This is the second death. 15 And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into thelake of fire.”

The last three chapters of Revelation were sequel to the

visions of conflict in the preceding nineteen chapters, and presented in contrast a pageant of victory. Beginning withthe t wen t i e t h chapter a new picture was presented, animagery of changed conditions With the close of the n i n e -




dragon deceiver had been cast down from the position of assumed exaltation to his place in the abyss ; the souls of themartyrs were no longer under the a l tar o f a persecuted

cause, but in the figurative first resurrection they have beenelevated to t h r on es, reigning with Christ in the state of complete victory symbolized by th ousand year s; the sur-cease of persecution had come, symbolized by the b ind ing of Satan , and his imprisonment to estop the source of de-

ceiving the nations of the empire into the idolatry of em-peror-worship ; the persecutors represented as dead, l ived not again; and the wicked nations stood in judgment beforethe great whi te th r one of an avenging God. But the spiritualconflict between heathenism and Christianity was not

abated by the cessation of the activities of the persecutingpowers ; and through this idolatry of paganism the influenceof Satan was represented as l oosed out of h i s pr i son t o

destroy the church, not by the weapon of persecution but




special incident of the Revelation vision. The text saysthey lived and reigned. Where did they live and reign? Theylived and reigned wi th Chr i st . J ohn saw souls out of thebody, not in the body. It was a vision of the souls of t h e

martyrs living and reigning with Christ in a particular andpeculiar sense.

In a conversation with any group of denominationalpreachers one will invariably be heard to say that the Bibleplainly says that we shall reign with Christ on earth a

thousand years. When the asserter is asked for the passagethat so plainly says it, he will just as invariably and con-fidently refer his listeners to Revelation 20, verse 4. It isin order, in time and in place now to dissect this misunder-stood and misapplied passage of scripture.

This is the way its reads: And I saw th r ones, and they sat upon t hem and ju dgment was given unt o them : and I

saw the sou l s of t hem th at wer e beheaded for th e w i tn ess f J d f th d f G d d hi h h d t



THE A POCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS CHURCH 403

whom, in what place? It is not the reign of Christ, but thereign of souls “with Christ,” that is mentioned in Revela-tion 20. There is a vast difference between living andreigning “with Christ” and a millennial reign “of Christ.”So let us be true to the facts in the case. It does not mentionthe reign of Christ, but the reign of souls “with” him. They not only “reigned” with him, they “lived” with him. They “lived and reigned” with Christ a thousand years. The two verbs “lived” and “reigned” are both limited bythe thousand years. I f the expression denotes time, thenwhen the reign is over, and they ceased to reign ; the livingwould be over and they would cease to live.

Revelation 20 : l-6 does not mention the second comingof Christ. That is not the subject of it. I t does not mentiona bodily resurrection, and that is not the subject of it. I tdoes not mention a reign on the earth, nor does it mentionthe “reign of Christ”--and neither is the subject. I s it not

ibl f l li d i i h h i i h




It is said in Deut. 7:9 that God keeps his covenant andhis mercy unto a thousand generations. God does not counta literal thousand generations, then quits remembering his

covenant. I t means God’s memory of and faithfulness to hiscovenant are perfect and complete. The term thousand wasa figure of completeness. It does not denote a cycle of time.

Then what about the millennium? Nothing was said of a millennium. The thousand years did not mean a millen-

nium. There is no millennium. There never was a millen-nium. There never will be a millennium. The twentieth of Revelation did not refer to a millennium. The thousandyears was not literal, therefore was not a millennium andhas no reference to a millennium. There is no connotation

for the notion. The magic word mi l lenn ium is not in thetext.

In this vision J ohn “saw thrones” and the ones that“sat on them ” And those whom he saw were the souls of




Third: They l i ved and r ei gned. If the term “reigned”is limited by a thousand years, the verb “lived” is alsolimited by a thousand years. If the reigning ends with thethousand years, the living ends with a thousand years,

and the millennium will end with everybody in it ceasing tolive. That would be quite a hopeless millennium.

(3) The meaning of the first resurrection,

The expression th i s i s th e fi r st r esur r ecti on is itself the proof that reference was made to a figurative resurrection.The word was being used in an unusual sense, so unusualthat it was necessary for John to explain its use by saying,“this” is the first resurrection--that is why John explained

that t h i s is what was meant by the symbol.The resurrection of the twent ie th chapter of Revelationwas a figurative or spiritual resurrection, and of the samecharacter described by Ezekiel concerning Israel in cap-




wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saiththe Lord God; Come from the four winds, 0 breath, andbreathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesiedas I was commanded, and the breath came into them, andthey lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding greatarmy. Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones arethe whole house of Israel: behold they say, Our bonesare dried and our hope is lost; we are cut off for our parts.

Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the LordGod ; behold, 0 my people, I will open your graves andcause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you intothe land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord,when I have opened your graves, 0 my people, and broughtyou up out of your graves. And shall put my spirit in you,and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land:then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and per-formed it. said the Lord.”




dead will not live again. If that is what it means, therewill be no resurrection of the wicked, and a fundamentaltruth is thereby denied. But that is not the mean-ing. Here is the meaning: The dominion of the wicked lords

over God’s people would be put down. While these lords haddominion over God’s people they were said to “live’‘--livein their dominion. When their dominion should be de-stroyed and the oppression of God’s people brought to anend, these lords would be “dead’‘--they were dead as lords.

They shal l not l i ve --that is, their dominion would not existagain.

But speaking of the persecuted people of God, theprophet said : “thy dead men shall live.” When I srael wasin the bondage of the captivity of these lords, they were

said to be dead--they were dead as a people in captivity;

and the wicked lords were said to live--that is, in powerand dominion. But when the dominion of the lords ended,they were demised their power was deceased--they were



408 T H E B OOK OF R E V E L A T I O N

beneath the altar and elevating them to the thrones wascalled a resurrection in exactly the same sense that bring-ing the people of I srael out of bondage in Babylon wasopening their graves and causing them to “live’‘--a figura-

tive death and a figurative resurrection.A comparison here of two passages in the apocalypse

will further reveal the nature of the resurrection of thetwentieth chapter of Revelation.

First: “He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the

second death"--2 :11.Second : “He that hath part in the first resurrection:

on such the second death hath no power"--20:6.Picturing in advance the persecutions of the early

Christians, J ohn declared in Rev. 2:11that he th at over-

cometh shal l not be hur t of t he second death . But in Rev.20:6, the same apostle speaking to the same persons, said,he th at hath par t in th e fi r st r esur r ecti on; on such th e

second death hath no power ” Thus to have part in the first




elsewhere in the New Testament, and in Revelation. ToEphesus, Pergamos, Sardis and Laodicea, Christ said hewould “come.” He would come in the events named, inthings promised or threatened. To Thyatira he said: 1.

To hold fast. 2. To overcome. 3. To keep his works. All of that “till I come,” which obviously did not refer to hissecond coming. Furthermore, the expressions in verses26-28 were indicative of things that would occur in thelife period of Thyatira: 1. Power over the nations--the in-

fluence of the gospel in breaking the power of pagan perse-cutions and the heathen nations. 2. Rod of iron--the irre-sistible influence of Christ in the preaching and lives of early Christians, exemplified even in martyrdom. 3. Themorning star--the exalted place of those who overcome,

next to Christ, in his glorious empire, the church.On the same erroneous premises it is held that Rev.

3 :21-22 makes a distinction between the Father’s throne,upon which Christ is asserted to occupy now and Christ’s




declared that the disciples who had continued would beappoint ed the ki ngdom. Therefore to occupy thrones in thisgospel dispensation was the same thing as to be appointedthe kingdom--and both relations between Christ and

Christians exist now.In this gospel dispensation Christ is on the throne of

his glory (Matt. 19 :28) ; and he is on the throne of hiskingdom. (Heb. 1:8)

This occupancy of his kingdom--glory throne extends

from his ascension (Lk. 24 :26) to his coming (I Cor.15:23-24). Christians who overcome “sit with him in histhrone” now. They share his throne in the same sense,degree and extent that they share his glory and his kingdom,shown by the comparisons of these passages.

These considerations destroy the millennial interpreta-tion of the Father’s throne and the Son’s throne, as respectsa distinction and a difference between them, and refutetheir interpretations of all the Revelation passages forced to




(4) A textual analysis of chapter twenty.

I t has been shown that Rev. 20:4 is altogether too in-adequate as a text to sustain the millennial theory--and it

is the only text that makes mention of the thousand years.Hence, they have no text. No apostle in any epistle has evermentioned such a period of time, nor such a dispensation,nor such a millennial age or hope. It must not thereforebelong to apostolic doctrine, or to the Christian’s hope and

duty. Revelation 20 was but the climax of an imagery thatbegan with the scene of defeat in chapter 6:9 and ends ina scene of victory in chapter 20:4. The comparison of chapters six and twenty reveals the application of the sym-bols intervening. A running analysis of the final chapters

will display the success of the cause of the martyrs and theglory of the victorious church.

1. The angel coming down out of heaven. “And I saw anangel come down from heaven, having the key of the bot-




says Paul both in Col. 2 :15 and Heb. 2 :14, as previouslyshown in this series.

2. Satan cast into the abyss. “And cast him intothe bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal

upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, tillthe thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that hemust be loosed a little season."--20:3.

In the vision Satan returned from his prowling to hisdiabolical abode in ignominious and complete defeat. His

abysmal abode was shut by the angel with th e key to th e bot tom less pi t that he held; which angel also set a seal upon h im , as an authoritative act; such as the seal of statestamped on the documents signed by officials of government. The purpose of this satanic imprisonment was tha t he

shou l d decei ve th e nat i ons no mor e --that is, in the idolatryof Caesar-worship, a repetition of the previous symbols of the mark and image of the beast in the heathen emperor-worship




covenant is infinite; and in God’s infinite world days andyears are not reckoned. The term denoted completeness, per-fection, infinity. Their victory was complete, their triumphfull, and their reign infinite.

The fundamental principle of exegesis forbids that thethousand years be interpreted literally here, and the wordyear symbolically in all the book elsewhere. So, if it isliteral, the reign of Christ was for one thousand years only,not one day more or less. And, if literal, since both verbs

“lived” and “reigned” are modified by the thousand years,when they shall cease to reign, they shall cease to live also.Furthermore, if literal, only the beheaded lived and reigned.And, finally, the third personal pronoun, they cannot bechanged to the first personal we; and the verbs of past

tense l i ved and r ei gned cannot be changed to verbs of futuretense shal l l i ve and r ei gn. The conclusion is that there aretoo many difficulties in the way of the literal application.

4 The rest of the dead “But the rest of the dead lived




end or termination, for which there are numerous exempli-fications. In Heb. 9:10 the “carnal ordinances” of theMosaic order were “imposed on them until the time of refor-mation”-but this does not mean that after the present

gospel dispensation the ordinances of J udaism will beimposed again.In I Sam. 15 :35, after Saul’s disobedience in the expedi-

tion against the Amalekites, it is said that “Samuel cameno more to see Saul until the day of his death.” This couldnot mean that Samuel continued to visit Saul after hisdeath. The use of un t i l expressed end or termination.

In Luke 16:16, J esus said, “the law and the prophetswere un t i l J ohn”--that is, until J ohn’s order ended, but theLord did not imply that “the law and the prophets” wouldbe re-inaugurated afterward.

In Gal. 3:19, the apostle said the law of Moses "wasadded because of transgression till (until) the seed shouldcome,” but the statement assuredly has no implication that




over death and martyrdom, in a victorious cause of Christ,was called a resurrection in Revelation 20. The visionalprocedure of taking the souls of the martyrs out from underthe altar in chapter 6, and elevating them to thrones in

chapter 20, was symbolized as a resurrection ; as in Ezekiel37:11-14 the return of Israel from Babylonian captivitywas a symbolic resurrection. In the symbolic picture of Rev. 20 :5, the martyrs of the altar in chapter si x were raisedto the thrones of chapter twen ty, and were pictured as

living and reigning with Christ. I t was the resurrectionof the cause for which they died. The fact that they had tobe told that it was a resurrection is proof that it was usedin an unusual sense of the word ; it was a figurative, meta-phorical use, not a physical employment of the word.

The “first resurrection” was therefore spiritual--theresurrection of the cause for they had passed through tribu-lation and for which the martyrs died.

The passage in Revelation 20 described no period of




On such the second death hath no power - - the implica-tion of the context is that the f i rs t death was the martyrdomof the saints as represented by the sou l s of th em that were

slain under the altar in chapter 6:9. Receiving the guerdonof martyrdom for their overcoming faith, promised by theirLord in chapter 2:10-11, these martyred saints had exemp-tion from the judgment of them that had received the mark of the beast in submission to the imperial edict commandingthe worship of the Caesar-image. They were in a state of

special dispensation, not amenable to judgment. This incontrast with those who had "worshipped the beast” and“his image” and who had received “his mark,” and in conse-quence shared the same retribution--the oblivion of eternalbanishment.

Pr i ests of God and of Chr i st- -the expressions of “priestsof God and Christ” and “reign with” in this imagery wereused synonymously, as in chapter 1:6 and 5 : 10 ; and com-pares with the phrase “kingdom of Christ and God” in




cessation of persecution by the imperial rulers, the waywas open for the expansion of Christianity, as foretold byJesus in Matt. 24 :31, and envisioned by John in Rev. 11:15.

But it was not without opposition--the remaining enemywas heathenism. Satan’s theatre of activity in this strugglewas not persecution, but spiritual and doctrinal : And shal l go ou t t o decei ve th e nat i ons wh i ch ar e i n the fou r cor ner s

of th e earth--20:8.

That declaration was in opposition to the angel--mes-sengers of the gospel--of Matt. 24:31, gathering his elect“from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”This part of the vision was descriptive of the battle withheathenism, hence the reference to Gog and M agog (a com-

bination of one name), the mythical ruler of heathendom,and which title was so used in similar symbolic reference, by the prophet in chapter 38 : l-23, prophesying the threatof heathenism to Israel from Gog and M agog As the beast




threat to the church. But as in the finale of the imperialpersecutions, the church prevailed against heathenism, and f i r e came down fr om God ou t of heaven and devour ed th em .

This was the symbol of the consuming power of the wordof God in exposing the error and evil of heathen idolatry. The apostle declared in II Cor. 4:2-4 that the light of thegospel of Christ dispelled the darkness of “the god of thisworld.” Neither the imperial beast nor the heathen Magog

could withstand the power of God. It was in reference tothese same things that Paul said in Rom. 16:20: “And theGod of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly.”

The defeat of the emperor-worship was described inverse ten with metaphors of torment and endless punish-

ment. The three great enemies of the church had been van-quished. The devil who had employed the forces of heathen-ism to deceive the people and destroy the church, togetherwith the beast and false prophet of chapter 19:20, was cast




between the church on one hand, and all the forces of J uda-ism, Romanism and paganism on the other. Now the partici-pants stood before the bar of divine decision, where the

issues were settled. The cause of righteousness was acquit-ted, and the cause of wickedness was convicted, and forevercondemned.

A continuation of the textual analysis will add “preceptupon precept” that the apocalypse was limited to the period

of the struggle and triumph of the church with opposingpowers in the first century of its existence.

1. The great white throne. “And I saw a great whitethrone, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earthand the heaven fled away ; and there was found no place

for them”--20:11. This visional tribunal was the bar of divine justice to be

meted to the criminals of war against Christ and the church.The description of the gr eat whi te th r one adds awe to the




19:18. They were the “rest of the dead,” the persecutorsof the church, small and great --from the lowest to thehighest officials of the imperial beast--all of them together

stood before the tribunal of retribution. Comparison againwith Isaiah’s vision of the demise of the wicked lords whohad exercised evil dominion over Israel in I sa. 26:13-14will lend force to this application of the judgment thronevision. These dead were held in contrast with the blessed

of verse six, and there was no blessing for any of thesedead, small and great--they stood before the throne of thegreat God, as culprits called to account for their crimes.When the books wer e opened that contained the record of their works they were judged accordingly. In the same sym-

bolism, the beasts of Daniel’s vision, chapter 7:10, were judged by the books which were opened. These books sym-bolized the record of evil deeds, a book of remembrance.But the reference to another book . . . whi ch i s th e book of




mentioned in the classification of symbols in the firstchapter. There was no reference to the bodily resurrectionof the dead at the general judgment. This surrender by the

sea of its dead was as figurative as the f i rs t resurrection of verse six. The realm of death and hel l (hades) in like figurewere also said to del i ver up the dead wh i ch wer e i n t hem .

The words death and hades were used as a synecdoche--afigure of speech by which a part is put for the whole; the

genus for the species, the name of the substance for thething. So death and hades were used here for the subjectsof the diabolical and infernal powers.

In the same symbolism that the f i r st r esu r r ect i on of ver se six was described as a resurrection to a state of

victory--the resurrection of a cause ; the “rest of the dead”were envisioned in a resurrection of retribution--of judg-ment on the evil rulers and their wicked subjects who hadpersecuted the cause of the Lamb of God.




earth,” which affirms the great truth that in all nations andages the only people who belong to God in the true senseof the peopl e of God were and are the people who have livedand now live in obedience to His divine will.

Let it be impressed on the minds of the readers of Revelation, that these visions of resurrection; of seconddeath and judgment; were all extraordinary and of specialcharacter. They were not intended for future and generalapplication. They belonged to the apocalypse, and the apo-

calypse belonged to that period. The depiction of the f i rs t resurrection and the second deat h were not meant for ex-positions of the doctrine of the resurrection from the deadand the future eternal punishment of the wicked, abundant-ly taught elsewhere in numerous scriptures. Though the

imagery has basis in these fundamental doctrinal truths,the visions of Revelation were limited in application to thepageantry of apocalyptic description of the fortunes of theearly church and the divine judgments on its enemies




6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega,the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that isathirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. 7 He thatovercometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God,

and he shall be my son. 8 But the fearful, and unbelieving,and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers,and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have theirpart in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone:which is the second death. 9 And there came unto me one

of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of theseven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither,I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife. 10 And hecarried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain,and shewed me that great city, the holy J erusalem, de-

scending out of heaven from God, 11 Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious,even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal; 12 And had a wallgreat and high and had twelve gates and at the gates



T HE A POCALYPSE OF THE V ICTORIOUS CHURCH 425

were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl:and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were trans-parent glass. 22 And I saw no temple therein: for the LordGod Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. 23 And

the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, toshine in it : for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lambis the light thereof. 24 And the nations of them which aresaved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of theearth do bring their glory and honour into it. 25 And the

gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shallbe no night there. 26 And they shall bring the glory andhonour of the nations into it. 27 And there shall in no wiseenter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoeverworketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which arewritten in the Lamb’s book of life.”

(1) A preliminary vision of the new heaven and earthand of the new J erusalem and the Tabernacle--21 :l-7.




tine ; and the placid or tossed sea referred to the state of society ; and the word heaven denoted the existing authori-ties of government. The new heaven and earth, and thetrouble sea, having passed away and represented as being

no mor e, indicated the changed conditions within the ex-isting governments and society to make them favorable forthe prosperity of the cause of Christ and his churchthroughout the empire. The old system of J udaism had beenremoved and the opposition of heathenism had been over-

come ; and the vision represented new conditions to sur-round the church in the changed world.

The word new has various connotations. It may refer tothat which has never been used; or to a thing of late dateand recent origin ; or to something novel and strange ; or

simply to something else, another possession, relation orstate. In this context the evident meaning of the new earth

was that the surroundings were prepared and made favor-able for the expansion of the kingdom of Christ made




preserved from the tribulation of the old, “for the firstheaven and the first earth were passed away.”

In the period of persecution the vision was of the mili-

tant church passing through tribulation; but that scene wascompleted and here the vision was of the triumphant churchcoming out of tribulation into the victory of the cause of her Christ, the Conqueror of her enemies. The new J erusa-lem was described as the beautified Woman, who had once

fled into the wilderness as a persecuted church, but wasnow seen coming from God her Preserver wondrouslyclothed, resplendently attired, richly adorned, gloriouslydisplayed--triumphantly descending out of heaven. Thepersecuted Woman had fled to “the place prepared of God”

for her refuge, protection and preservation, but was hereenvisioned as having returned and in the ultimate descrip-tive phrases of victory and triumph she was presented to“the new heaven and the new earth” as the glorious Bride




the church of God and the church of Christ are one church(Acts 20 :28) ; and the great voice from the throne was thevoice of God and the voice of Christ in one united sound.

The great voice announced that the taber nacl e of God

i s wi th men. The use of the word tabernacle here was notecclesiastical as of old. The word meant pr esence. Thistabernacle of God was in contrast with the J ewish tent inthe wilderness which was “a shadow of heavenly things.”(Heb. 8 :l-4) It was here used to signify God’s presence

with men and that he would dwell in them through hischurch in the world. To take the church out of the worldwould be to take God out of it. The tent of the wildernesssignified the presence of God with Israel and through it hedwelt in them. (Ex. 40 :34-38) The church is the new taber-

nacle for his habitation (Eph. 2:22), and through it Goddwells in men and th ey shal l be h i s peopl e --in contrastwith the heathen gods--through their conversion by thetruth from the darkness of heathenism to the light of Chris




of speech are employed by Isaiah in the descriptions of the blessings that should come upon Israel when freed fromexile and returned to their land. It could not reasonably beargued that the metaphors of no more weeping and crying in Isa. 65:19 referred to heaven. Israel had been weepingwith their harps hanging on the willows in Babylon; butupon return to their land the weeping and tears of exilewould be wiped away. It was the same metaphorical rep-resentation in Rev. 7 :17 and 22:4--no mor e death referredto the martyrdom of the saints as in chapter 2 : 10 ; neither sor r ow nor cr yin g referred to the sorrows of persecution ;

and neither any mor e pai n was just another phrase for nomore tribulation. The rider of the r ed hor se of death had been conquered by the Rider of the whi te horse of deliver-

ance from the scenes of tribulation, and these descriptionswere in the continuity of the vision.

The mourning of Israel in exile was pictured as having




command given to him by Christ in chapter 1:19. The Seerwas ready to do what he had been commanded to do at thebeginning ; and they were here attested to be faithful and

true words; it was in the character of swearing to thetruthfulness of what J ohn was about to write, a form of anoath in affirmation of veracity. I t was before the visionswere received that the voice of chapter 1 had prompted

J ohn to record the things which would be heard and seen.

I t was the same voice which had first commanded him towr i t e which now was heard to say: Behol d, I make al l th i ngs new . This same expression has been used to dis-tinguish spiritual Israel from fleshly Israel (I I Cor. 5:17) ;and that phrase was employed here in distinction of the

new heaven and new earth from the old system of J udaism.With the fall of the old J erusalem, the destruction of itstheocracy, the termination of the J ewish state, and the re-moval of the last vestige of J udaism a new order would




of the water of life freely was the gospel invitation, to allthe thirsty people under the blight of heathenism in theland, to come to the fountain of the living waters Christian-ity--there was unrestrained liberty to preach salvation andunhindered access to its blessings to all men. I t was arestatement and a reproclamation of the Saviour’s preciousinvitation : “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavyladen, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you,and learn of me . . . for my yoke is easy, and my burdenis light.” (Matt. 11:28-30) The word yoke signified govern-ment, and the Lord’s words were chosen for the comparisonof his righteous rule in the hearts of men with the tyranni-cal rule of the Caesars; and of his power to save men fromsin with the dark and despairing hopelessness of heathen-ism. This vision of the new J erusalem in the new world of liberation from the evil powers was the offer of gospelblessings to the whole world.




hindrance having been removed, the full and free blessingsflowing from “the fountain of the water of life” (verse 6)would be the unmingled spiritual inheritance of the over-

comers.(2) The characters cast into the brimstone lake--

21:8.

But th e fear fu l , and unbel i evi ng, and th e abom inabl e,

and t he whor emonger s, and sor cer er s, and i dol ater s, and

al l l i ar s, shal l have thei r part i n t he l ake wh i ch bur neth w i th fi r e and br imstone: whi ch i s th e second death --verse8. Here was the pronouncement of doom on all classes of the persecutors and all parties and accomplices to the per-secutions, implying also a warning to any among the over-

comers against falling into any of this catalog of thingscondemned.

1. The fearful were those who shrank from the conflict




any form of heathen philosophy that would prevent theacceptance of Christ.

I t is said that all of these classes of promoters of evilpractices would be cast into the brimstone lake. This lakewhich burneth with f i r e and brimstone signified the completedestruction of the heathen powers that had persecuted Christand his church. (See comments on chapter 19:20; 20:10) This would be the part , or the portion, of all the unbelievers.

The explanations here and in chapter 19:20 andchapter 20 : 10 do not deny, destroy or modify the resurrec-tion and judgment of the wicked at the second comingof Christ, nor of the eternal punishment of the wicked,which doctrines are clearly taught in numerous portions of the scriptures of both the old and the new testaments. Thepurpose of the comments here is merely to place theseapocalyptic passages in proper contextual perspective andrelation to the symbolism of the Book Of Revelation




which was the city of David is buried far deeper belowthe surface of modern J erusalem. In the fifteen centuriesof its existence from its first appearance in Old Testamenthistory until its destruction in A. D. 70 it had been be-

sieged some fifteen or twenty times, was twice razed andburned, and twice its walls were crumbled by enemy at-tacks. There is not the slightest feature remaining todayof its ancient glory.

Under Solomon the city of David attained its highest

fame and greatest grandeur, as the result of the wise king’saccomplishments of the building of the magnificent templeand royal palace, and the extension and strengthening of its massive walls. With a vast army of skilled craftsmenthe enormous workmanship that entered into its erection

was completed, and the venerated temple with its splendor-ous sanctuary was dedicated within seven and one-half years. This was in wide contrast with the gradual work onHerod's temple standing in the time of Christ which re




all the imposing grandeur and strength to which it had beenbrought by Herod through nearly a half-century of work-manship, with all of its multiple walls and structures. I twas after the death of Herod Agrippa, the grandson of

Herod the Great, that the province of J udea was again ruledby oppressive provincial Roman procurators, and J erusalembecame the ground for the scenes of discontent, violentinsurrections and political rebellion. I t is no wonder thather apostasies and abominations should become the ob-

ject of the Patmos visions to signify the Harlot; and it isnot strange that the once holy city should be the type of the New J erusalem, the Bride and church of Christ theLamb.

With this excursion we return to the apocalyptic de-

scription of the Great City, the Holy New J erusalem, whichbegins with verse nine of chapter twenty-one.

This vision of the Holy City was in contrast with the




culminating in the glorious success of the church in theheathen world.

1. Come hi th er , I w i l l show thee the br i de, th e L amb’s wife-- 21 :9. This beckoning of the angel is another proof,among the many others in the contexts of these chapters,that the descriptions of the holy city were not visions of heaven the home of the soul, but of the glorious churchof Christ, designated the br ide and thewi fe of the Lamb,redeemed from tribulation, but yet to fulfill her divine mis-

sion on the earth.2. And he car r i ed me away in the spi r i t u nt o a great

and hi gh moun tai n, and showed me that great ci ty, the hol y J er usal em , descend i ng out of heaven f r om God-- 21 :10. The phrase i n t he spir i t here is the same expression as that

used in chapter 1 :10 and it did not refer to the Holy Spiritin either of the passages, but rather indicated the visionalrapture in which J ohn was shown these things. I t was in




In this vision of elevation the entranced Seer saw tha t great city descending--it had not already descended, theevents were yet in process, but the end was in sight. I twas about to be the culmination of the entire apocalypse.

The Holy City was descending out of heaven fr om God-- that is, the visional emergence of the Woman from that pl ace pr epared of God mentioned in chapter 12:6, and com-pared with Matt. 24:16 in the comments in chapter twelve on these two related passages. The holy city, the church,was seen descending fr om God --that is, from the placepr epar ed of God where God had protected her and pre-served her in that period of tribulation. Upon the loftymountain height, from a position where the Seer coulddescry the distant descent of the marvellous City, as if to

discover by the eye an object at far focus and observe itsapproach, this vision of the New J erusalem was unfoldedto the revelator.




th e wal l of t he ci ty had tw el ve foun dat i ons, and i n th em the names of t he twel ve apost l es of t he Lamb-- 21:12-14.

The great wall of this vision was symbolic of security, andrepresented the protection from all the foes by which the

church has been assailed; and which had assured them of the complete victory that was here envisioned. The massivewalls with the huge gates were necessary to the ancientcities. Upon the outer wall of ancient Babylon three horse-drawn chariots could drive abreast; in the walls were

twenty-five great brass gates ; and upon the walls were twohundred fifty gigantic towers for the guard of watchmen.

J erusalem had twelve gates in its wall, with the gatemanat each station, and the watchmen in its towers. In thismountain-top vision the wall of the Great City had twelve

gates; and at these gates twel ve angel s at guard. It wasthe symbol of the continued success of the cause of Christ,the security from all past hazards of persecution, and thef d f th lt f th d b t th




fulfilled the purpose of God in the redemption of mankind,brought together in the figure of the one new man (Eph.2 :14-16)--the church. The New J erusalem with its twelvewalls and twelve gates and twelve foundations was here

envisioned as the embodiment of the divine unity of allrevelation. The teaching of the twelve apostles uphold andsupport the church, which in the vision was so guarded bythe twelve angels as to keep it aware of all error and thatthe forces of the hadean world could never prevail against

it. 5. And he that t al ked w i th me had a gol den r eed to

measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall therof-- 21:15. The measuring rod in the hand of theangel was a reed of gold, which was symbolic of the divinity

of that which was to be measured--the city was divine. Thecity had perfect quadrangular dimensions--it was four - square. The word “foursquare” was a Greek term used todenote perfection in any form The immensity of the Holy



T HE A POCALYPSE OF THE V I C T O R I O U S C H U R C H 441

angel had used man’s standard of measurement, but it wassymbolically, not literally, applied. It meant that the stad ia

employed by the angel was on a scale of measurement thatwas not unknown to man. The literal view of these measure-

ments as being descriptive of the exact plan and size of the New Jerusalem as a city would destroy the sublimity of the apocalyptic picture and pervert the symbolism of thevision. In the comparison of the dimensions of the city andthe wall surrounding it, the vision represented that theeminences within the wall of the New Jerusalem were solofty that its highest summits and pinnacles were as manyfurlongs above the base of the wall as the length of thewall itself. The vision was symbolical of great and grandmagnificence. To the eye of John from the summit ranges,floating down from God, was a view of splendor the mag-nitude of which was indescribable. But the figurative de-scription, “according to the measure of a man,” was notgrotesque or disproportioned God was the architect and




registry of heaven. I ts citizenry consisted in a kind of firstfruits of all of God’s creatures (J as. 1:18)--they arehis choice creation. I ts structure was itself constructed of pur e gol d ; its streetway, or passage system, was the sameas of the city--of solid gold, and transparent. The ex-pression pure gold means unalloyed, without the compara-tive carats in weight or measure or degree of content; butin purity no mixture or alloy. The eye of man has discoveredand discerned pure gold, but no man has ever seen transparent gold, a description that adds visional resplendenceto the delineations.

The portals of the City were composed of pure pearls,each gate consisting of one solid pearl; and its twelvefoundations were garnished with twelve rare jewels of glistening beauty, which in the order from one to twelvewere : jasper, sapphire, chalcedony, an emerald, sardonyx,sardius, chrysolite, beryl, topaz, chrysoprasus, jacinth andan amethyst With vast clusters of edifices within the high




to shi ne i n i t (verse 23), for God was the light and Christwas the lamp of the New J erusalem, which had emergedfrom the darkness of tribulation into the light of deliver-ance and redemption. Here the same figure was utilizedthat was used by the prophet in a similar description of Israel’s return from the Babylonian exile: “The sun shallno more be thy light by day ; neither for brightness shallthe moon give light unto thee: but the Lord shall be untothee an everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. The sunshall no more go down ; neither shall the moon withdraw

itself; for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light, andthe days of thy mourning shall be ended”--Isa. 60 :19-20.Even the casual reader, if not biased by a continuous-history theory, can discern the similarity between thesepassages and the Revelation descriptions. The prophet

Isaiah foretold the deliverance of Israel from exile nearlytwo hundred years before its occurrence, and he adaptedthe same figures to describe their restoration to their land




with the old city and its temple which had passed away--and Holy City, the New J erusalem, which represented thechurch of the Lamb, was spiritual only and was the new“habitation of God through the Spirit” (Eph. 2:22).

This spiritual light of the Holy City would extend tothe whole world of darkness: th e nat i ons of th em that ar e

saved shal l wal k i n t he l i ght of i t: and t he ki ngs of th e ear th do bri ng thei r gl or y and honor i nt o i t-- 21:24. Thispart of the vision represented the saved as having come

from all nations, that the J ew and Gentile together shouldwalk in the light of the gospel. The language has its counterpart in the descriptions

of I saiah (chapters 2 :2-5 ; and 62 :l-2) which were theprophecies of the new J erusalem of the new covenant

which would include all nations. The prophet said: “0house of J acob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of theLord.” This prophecy was made by Isaiah in connectionwith the establishment of the new institution on the top




should not be shu t at al l by day, therefore entrance to thecity was always accessible. The vision was based on thedestruction of the beasts of persecution which had been castinto the brimstone lake, and there were no enemies remain-ing to threaten the citizenry of the city. In the period of

persecution the church had been hindered in the propaga-tion and the proclamation of the gospel, but the night of tribulation had ended. The figure was related to the motionof the globe in orbit; its diurnal revolution causes the dailyand annual changes in the sun which produce the alterna-

tion of light and darkness. But spiritually there would beno such rotation, for the night of the tribulation had cometo end; there was no longer the hindering power of theheathen persecutors in the spreading of the light of thegospel--the darkness had been dispelled and the day had

dawned for the church. I t can be seen again that the literalapplication of these figures of speech would demolish thebeauty of the vision as well as its truth in the spiritual




and the Lord of lords. The New J erusalem would co-existwith the nations as “all nations flow unto it”; and acceptHim who came to fulfill “the desire of all nations” (Hag.2:7) for the glory of God. The kings of the earth con-tributed to His glory in the conversion of the people of

their nations to the Christ of this apocalypse. The pristine purity of the church of the Lamb was

pictured in verse twenty-seven of the chapter: And th er e

sha l l i n n o w i se ent er i nt o i t any thi ng that defi l eth , nei th er

whatsoever wor keth abom i nat i on, or maketh a l i e: but

t h ey wh i ch a r e w r i t t en i n th e L am b ’s book of l i f e. These terms and phrases and words describe the wholecategory of the moral and spiritual corruption of heathen-dom. The first chapter of Romans is an inspired com-mentary on the depths of degradation into which the

heathen world had sunken by these practices because, saidPaul, “they did not like to retain God in their knowledge.”But these impurities of heathenism could gain no admission




the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.3 And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of Godand of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall servehim: 4 And they shall see his face; and his name shall bein their foreheads. 5 And there shall be no night there ;

and they need no candle, neither light of the sun ; for theLord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for everand ever.”

The first five verses of this the last chapter of Revela-

tion are contextually joined to the last verses of the pre-ceding chapter, to the section including verses ten totwenty-seven, as a continuation of the spiritual charac-teristics of the New J erusalem. The text of the twenty-firstchapter allows for the distinction between the constituent

features of the descriptions of the city and the blessingsthat flow in it for its citizenry. The shift from the oneto the other begins with verse ten of chapter twenty-one

d ti th h f h t




(1) The river of life--22:l.

The symbols of flowing rivers and streams of water runthrough the entire body of the scriptures. Literally, for asource of supply and security a great city was situated on

the river; and figuratively it was applied to the needs of the soul and the source of all spiritual blessing. The mentionof the flowing stream was in the description of the gardenof Eden in Gen. 2 :10. When God planted the garden forthe abode of the first pair it was said that “a river went

out of Eden to water the garden”; and its waters wereparted into four streams which formed the mighty riverswhich compassed the later inhabited land and upon thebanks of which great cities were built. The name of thefirst river was Pison “which compasseth the whole land of

Havilah, where there was gold.” The second river wasGihon, which encompassed Ethiopia. The third river wasHiddekel, which bordered Syria ; and the fourth river was




the new. It was a thousand years before the establishmentof the church that David swept the harp of psalm-prophecyand sang of this city of God. It was the new Zion, the new

J erusalem, His church of the new covenant, in which theriver of divine love should perpetually flow; the st r eams

whereof--the channels of his love--should distribute thebenefits which make glad the people of God.

The breadth and length and depth and height of in-finite love (Eph. 3 :18) cannot be finitely comprehended,but in the symbolism of the New J erusalem, with its ever

widening and deepening stream, it flows through thechurch to bring blessings abundant.

Thepur e r i ver of the New J erusalem had no pollution.It was cl ear as cr ystal ,without mingled elements to ob-scure its entrancing brightness. It pr oceeded ou t of t he

th r one of God ,its source was perennial and no force of man could stop its flow.

It was i n the m i dst of t he st r eet ,where without re-




Gilead. So the reference to the t r ee of l i fe on each side of the river of l i fe was not intended to limit the picture toone tree, but rather to make known its k ind --it was thetree of l i fe, to be found only in the New J erusalem. Its fruitwas life-giving, and its balm was soul-healing. The conceptadds to the force of these figures and enlarges the rangeof their truths.

The tree of life was further described as bearing twelve manner of fr ui ts and its yield was every month. T henumeral twelve in its use in chapter twenty-one was ap-plied to the apostles, which must also be true here, tosymbolize that apostolic teaching, or doctrine, was the all-sufficient source of spiritual sustenance. The yielding of thefruit ever y month , or the whole twelve months of the year,indicated that there were no seasons in this fruit-bearing,no unyielding intervals--the spiritual supply was per-rennial and perpetual




the eastern people. The language of J eremiah (chapter8 :22; 46 :11;51:8) cannot be exceeded in eloquence andtenderness in the expression of disappointment that “thedaughter of Zion,” the chosen people of God, should re-

main spiritually wounded and diseased, when there washealing balm of unfailing remedy within their reach. Therecould have been no finer figure of divine grace than the leaves of the t r ee for t he heal i ng of the nat i ons in thedelineations of the New J erusalem.

(3) The throne of God and of the Lamb--22:3.

The divine rule of God and of Christ together in the“kingdom of Christ and God” (Eph. 5:5) removed thepenal judgment for sin from the inhabitants of the re-

deemed city--and th er e shal l be no mor e cur se --that is, nomore of anything that was accursed, no accursed person orthing should have a place in the Holy City. The curse of i d b J Ch i Th l d l d h




of the ransomed city should not only pay homage of wor-ship to Him who was on the throne, but should also doservice--his ser van ts shal l ser ve h im (verse 3). At the

beginning of the Revelation (chapter 1:6) J ohn said that J esus Christ hath made us ki ngs and pr i ests un to God an d

hi s Father in his church and kingdom here ; and in chapter5 :10 the Seer said that this kingly and priestly characterof the saints redeemed from persecution is further indicationthat the descriptions were of the church, and not of heaven.It is full harmony with the general teaching of the New Tes-tament that Christians are priests in the church now (I Pet.2:5, 9) and the church therefore is “a holy priesthood.”

(4) The mark of recognition and approval--22:4. The citizenry should see h i s face in the sense of having

the recognition and approval of the One whom they served




same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God” (chapter14:9-10) ; but the victors “over the beast, and over hisimage, and over his mark, and over the number of hisname” were among the throng standing on the sea of glass

(chapter 15:2-3) singing “the song of Moses, the servantGod, and the song of the Lamb ; and it was this throngwhich had th e name of t he Father written in their fore-heads” (chapter 15:2). So the name in the foreheads of chapter 22:4 was the symbolic designation that they were

the servants of God.

(5) The reigning saints--22:5.

In repetition of previous statements in the context,verse f ive is a rephrasing of the words repeated: And ther e

shal l be no n i ght ther e; and they need no cand l e, nei th er l i ght of the sun , for th e L or d God giveth th em l i ght . (Seecomments on chapter 21:3). The use of the word night has




descriptions were all completed, and the terse finale of thegrand and majestic pageant was clothed in the crowningdeclaration: AND THEY SHALL REIGN FOREVER AND EVER.

The prophet Daniel foretold in the interpretation of kingNebuchadnezzar’s dream (Dan. 2 :44) that in the days of the Roman kings the God of heaven would “set up a king-dom which shall never be destroyed”; and he added in thewords of the apocalypse that “it shall stand forever.” Theprophet envisioned in this interpretation the rise and fallof Babylonia, Media and Persia, and Macedonia or Grecia,and clearly indicated the reign of the Caesar’s of the Romanempire as the fourth monarchy in the succession of kings. Itwas i n the days of these k i ngs, in fulfillment of Daniel’sprophecy, that J esus made the announcement (Mark 1:14-15) “the time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is athand.” In the record of Matt. 4 :17 it is stated that “fromthat time J esus began to preach and to say: repent for the




apostle of Hebrews (chapter 1:8) he declared that it wasdone. The gospel of Mark (9 :1) records the statement of J esus that some standing in his presence should not “tasteof death” (would not die) until this kingdom had come“with power--they would be the living witnesses to itsestablishment. After his ascension, in conversation with hisfuture apostles, he made the explanation to them (Acts1:8) that the coming of the kingdom would accompanythe descent of the Spirit and the power, and it is a matterof gospel record (Acts 2 :l-4) that the Spirit and thepower were received on the Day of Pentecost. I t followstherefore as an inescapable scriptural conclusion that thekingdom of God and Christ, otherwise designated thekingdom of heaven, came on that day of Acts the secondchapter; ; and that it was in fulfillment of the timeprophecies of the Old Testament.

After Pentecost all references to the existence and




entrance into the church. (Matt. 16 :18-20) ; and therewill be no exit from it for the faithful hereafter (II Pet.1 :11), for the eternal state is but an abundan t e n t r a n c e into an everlasting kingdom already received and possessed,which cannot be moved (Heb. 12 :28) ; and of which heavenwill be the final and abundant fruition of its glorifiedrealm.

Here ended the vision of the New Jerusalem, the Brideof the Lamb, the church of Christ. The remainder of thechapter is in the character of a conclusion to the apocalypticdisclosures. The complete symbolic picture of the fortunesof the church, standing on the threshold of the tribulation,had passed before John’s enraptured view, to the vindica-tion of the cause for which they were soon to suffer. Theending of the vision demonstrated that the church cannotdie, as the believer himself who lives in Jesus Christ never dies (Jno 11:26) The New Testament concept of the



BOOK OF REVELATION

SECTION FIVE




CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO: VERSES SIX TO

TWENTY-ONE

“6 And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful

and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent hisangel to shew unto his servants the things which mustshortly be done. 7 Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he thatkeepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book. 8 And I J ohn saw these things, and heard them. And when I had

heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of theangel which shewed me these things. 9 Then saith he untome, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, andof thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep thesayings of this book: worship God. 10 And he saith unto me,

Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for thetime is at hand. 11 He that is unjust, let him be unjust still :

and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that




Even so, come, Lord J esus. 21 The grace of our Lord J esus Christ be with you all. Amen.”



T HE A POCALYPTIC E P I L O G U E 461

THE APOCALYPTIC EPILOGUE

I .

T HE COMPLETION A ND CULMINATION

OF APOCALYPTIC REVELATION

In the arrangement of this commentary the first andthe second sections are a presentation of The Apocal ypti c Preview, dealing with the scope of biblical visions ; andThe Visional Prologue, presenting an analysis of themessages to the seven churches as an approach to theRevelation proper. The third section is an exposition of The Vi si on Concer ni ng T he Conquer i ng Ch r i st; and thefourth section is the explanation of The Vi si on Concer n i ng The Vi ctor i ous Chu r ch.

The most significant events in all epochs of the world




salem, the church of the Lord of all glory. Before its marchof advance the evil powers of paganism collapsed and theempire of heathenism crumbled. It was this display of divine judgment and supreme power that Israel’s Psalmist

anticipated in the prophetic imagery of the second psalm:“Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a

vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and therulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and againsthis anointed, saying, Let us break their bands asunder,and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in theheavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vexthem in his sore displeasure. Yet have I set my king uponmy holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: The Lordhath said unto me, Thou art my Son ; this day have Ibegotten thee. Ask of me and I shall give thee the heathenfor thine inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth




contents as a direct communication from God through J esus Christ. In verses six and seven the angel verified thetruthfulness of the words of the book; in verses eight andn ine J ohn added his own testimony to the witness of the

angel, and to the fact of the direct communication betweenhimself and the angel; in verses ten to fifteen the judicialadmonitions in consequence of the apocalypses were re-corded ; in verse sixteen the words of J esus himself wereemployed to authenticate the visions ; in verse seventeen

the opportunity and obligation for the evangelization of allthe world, as first announced by the Lord in the GreatCommission and the Great Invitation (Matt. 28 :18-20;Matt. 11:28-30), were renewed; in verses eighteen totwenty the final warning against the diversion and perver-

sion of God’s words were issued;

and in verse twenty-one --the benediction of divine grace closed the book of Revela-tion with the inspired Seer’s amen.





2. The th i ngs wh i ch m ust shor tl y be done. The verbalagreement with chapter 1 :1 here emphasized that thethings revealed were of high importance and attention tothem was imperative because of the shortness of time. I tagain supports the main thesis of this treatise that the

events belonged to this period of time.Verse 7: Behold I come quickly: blessed is he that

keepeth the sayi ngs of the pr ophecy of th i s book. Here again J ohn reverted to the first chapter of the book in order toaffirm the truth of what had there been said prior to the

beginning of the vision.1. Behol d, I come qui ckl y. At this point J esus himself

was not speaking, as when these words were first utteredby him ; but J ohn was here quoting the words of J esuswhich had previously been spoken. Here the person sent

was speaking for the Sender. There are three keys words in the context: signify and

short ly and quickly These words were significant of the

T A OCA C E OG 465



THE APOCALYPTIC EPILOGUE 465

the order by doing so here. It has been explainedthat John was mistaken in the identity of the angel in thisinstance, believing him to be Jesus. But there is no suchintimation in the context. John’s memory was not so shortas to have forgotten, even under the overwhelming cir-cumstances of an angel’s appearance, the so recent prohibi-tion against the worship of the angel. To the contrary, areappearance of the angel would have reminded him of the

previous command. The obviously correct view therefore isthat John was here restating what had previously occurred

for a necessary emphasis, just as he had quoted the wordsof Jesus in verse 7.

In the restatement of what had occurred in the recordof chapter 19:10, John added that the angel had said: I

am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethen the prophets.This word of the angel links the apocalypse of John withthose of the Old Testament, and as being of the same char-

t t t d d f th li ti





“It is written, thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, andhim only shalt thou serve.”

Verse 10: Seal not the sayi ngs of t he pr ophecy of t h i s book : for th e ti me i s at hand . The metaphor of sealing inrespect to visions denoted secrecy, or that which was notready to be disclosed. The prophet Daniel was instructed to“shut up the words, and seal the book” (Dan. 9 :24 ; 12 :4,9) for the events prophesied were far distant and were notat hand nor short ly to come to pass; therefore the prophetwas commanded to “seal up the vision”; and he was toldthat the words of it were “closed up and sealed till thetime of the end.” So it was with the vision of J ohn inchapter 10:4--the things which were not intended for dis-closure he was commanded to seal up and wr i te them not.But in chapter 22:10 the angel enjoined J ohn to seal not the contents of th i s book ; and the reason was stated--for the t ime i s at hand. For comparison again, in Dan. 8:26,the prophet was directed to shut up the vision f i t h l l

T A E 467




things is at hand ” - - that is, the end of the J ewish stateand all things pertaining to it. To impart any other mean-ing to the phrase at hand in these passages, and applythem to the end of time, would amount to convicting theinspired apostles of contradictions and of teaching error onthe second coming of the Lord, which was not at hand (I I Thess. 2 :2)--for he did not so come, neither as yet hasdone so. And if at hand can be stretched to the end of timein these instances, it obliterates the meaning of the sameexpressions in reference to his kingdom. I t adds up to one

conclusion: the siege and destruction of J erusalem, thedemolition of the temple and termination of the J ewishtheocracy, together with the end of the J ewish state withits attendant tribulations, were the impending ominousevents before the New Testament churches and the ob-

ject of many references in the epistles of the apostles.

Admonishing the J ews of the Dispersion, J ames ex-horted “Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the





tion by obedience to the gospel; they would remain holyby living apart from sin and its defilements.

The passage contains a judicial declaration upon theincorrigible heathen enemies and was indicative of the

ultimate destiny where there can be no reformation ; com-bined with an appeal to the righteous and the holy to passthrough tribulation with washed robes and undefiled gar-ments, for the threat of heathen influence would continueto be a reality, after the persecution itself had ceased.

J ohn had reverted to a pre-persecution exhortationbased on what he had heard and seen in the vision; and hewas obeying the command to seal not the sayi ngs of t he pr ophecy of t h i s book . The purpose of the admonition wasto ready and steady them for the impending onslaught.

There is an extended and continuous application of thesolemn words of ver se el even . When all of the events of time shall have transpired and the judgments shall have

T A E 469




wor k shal l be. Here again was the statement of an eternalprinciple with an everlasting application, the basis of whichwas in the fact as applied to the visional circumstances; butwas nevertheless indicative of the truth couched in numer-

ous epistolary references (Rom. 2 :6-14 :12 ; I Cor. 3:8--5:10)--that judgment by works is not subject to a single judicial decision, but is a continual process in the lives of men.

Verse 13 : I am Al pha and Omega, th e begi nn i ng and t he

end , the fi r st and the last. The title of this verse, Alpha andOmega, belonged to Christ alone in this connection, andrepresented the finality of the sayings of the vision--thefirst and the last, the beginning and the end, were the wordsof his authority--the yea and the amen from which there

could be no appeal and for which there could be no repeal. The vision, as previous shown, had closed and these wordsof Christ were being quoted by J ohn to corroborate and





The second was the benedictory for the future martyrswho should die in the cause of the Lord from henceforth--chapter 14 :13.

The t h i r d was in praise of the state of grace for thosewho were aware of the imminence of ominous events and

who lived in sustained preparation to meet the crisis--chapter 16 : 15.

The fourth included the faithful saints who survivedthe persecutions and participated in the renewed and con-tinuous fellowship of the victorious Bride in the marriage

supper of the Lamb--chapter 19 :9. The f i f th was the blessed state of victory shared by the

martyrs who “lived and reigned with Christ” in completevictory, which was symbolized by elevating the souls underthe altar (chapter 6) to positions on the throne (chapter

20) and which symbolized the resurrection of the causefor which they died, and therefore figuratively designatedthe first resurrection in which the enthroned souls had part





gospel text which should not be generalized by a tamperingwith its words, a thing that all of the late so-called revisionsappear to be specializing in doing. The text is sublime as itreads and it means that the gospel must be obeyed.

The clause that th ey may have r i ght to the t r ee of l i f e meant the title to it. The word r i gh t does not here merelymean a right or privilege of entering the city--but indicatesthe title of inheritance. The one who enters “throughthe gates into the city” has r i gh t to the tree of life--to the

inheritance of the l i f e which is the fruit of the tree, as setforth in the comments on verse three of this chapter. It is anedifying concept of the source of spiritual life in the churchof God and of Christ.

Verse 15: For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and

whoremonger s, and mur der er s, and i dolat er s, and whosoever loveth and maketh a l i e. These all were the aggregationof the enemies of Christ and the saints and the persecutors





designate heathenism and to define their practices; andthese words of J ohn constituted a pronouncement for theeternal exclusion of all classes which these evils represented,and of all who do not obey his commandments--the gospelwhich J esus Christ had commissioned his ambassadors topreach to all the world.

Verse 16: I J esus have sen t m i ne angel to test i fy un to

you these th i ngs i n the chur ches. I am the r oot and the off -

spr i ng of David, and t he br i ght and mor ni ng star . Thispassage is one of the pinnacles of J ohn’s utterances in thebook of Revelation, of which there had been many. I taffirmed that He who had commissioned his angel to testifythe things of the apocalypse was the rightful heir to thekingdom and throne of J udah’s sceptre as the legal and re-gal descendant of David. The statement forms an epexegeti- ca l insertion of a leading point for special emphasis--thatis, an additional explanatory point, put or set in the textfor extra accent and in this instance the purpose was to





III

THE INVITATIONAL AND BENEDICTORY CONCLUSION

Verse 17: And t he Spi r i t an d t he br i de say, Come. And

l et h im that hear eth say, Come. And l et h im that i s ath i rs t come. And whosoever w i l l , let h im tak e th e water of l i fe freely. As heretofore mentioned, these concluding admoni-tory words were the sayings of John himself, not of Jesus,in which he sounded the note of an unlimited invitation, but

not an unconditional one. Thisseventeenth

verse of the lastchapter of Revelation has had a first place in gospel preach-ing for centuries. It has been proclaimed the high note of redemption and has been compared to ringing the bells of heaven. It was the call to all men to come to the river andthe tree of life within the wonderful city of verse f ou r t een .

The city was the New Jerusalem, which has been specificallyand repeatedly designated the Lamb’s Bride--the church of Ch i





shoot the gospel into a sinner nor machine-gun Christianityinto a heathen--but he that wi l l , whosoever or whereso-ever he may be, can come without hindrance or restraint.

Verses 18-19: I f any man shal l add un to th ese th i ngs,

God shal l add u nt o him the pl agues that ar e w r i t t en i n t hi s

book: and i f any man shal l take away from the wor ds of the

book of th i s pr ophecy, God shal l take away hi s par t ou t of

th e book of l i fe, and out of t he holy ci ty, and fr om the th i ngs whi ch ar e w r i t t en i n t hi s book. These verses were prefaced

by the statement of J ohn for I testi fy un to ever y man. Thepreposition for connects this verse with the preceding verseseventeen. I t conveys the meaning: in view of which, or inconsideration of which, or with reference to which--that is,the universal invitation brought forth a universal admoni-

tion, a caution and a warning: the fateful consequences of add ing to or tak i ng from the Word of God. Though the re-striction in itself was limited to these th i ngs and t h i s book,





J ohn was here writing the epilogue to the apocalypse, andthe vision had been completed, the reference to these wordsof J esus was the quotation of what he had said to J ohn inthe vision. And the words, sur el y, I come qui ck l y, were not

in reference to the second coming of the Christ; but ratherthe promise to the churches in tribulation. He had sopromised, and that repeatedly, to come in the events readyto occur; and the promise had been repeated to each of theseven churches in various forms. These events were shor t ly

to take place and J esus would therefore in keeping with hispromise come quickly. J ohn had testified that J esus had sopromised--and he consistently, believingly and confidentlyresponded, Even so, come, L or d J esus. And it is the recordedfact that their Lord J esus did come in the events of thatgeneration to which J ohn belonged, the words of J esushimself being true (Matt. 23 :36--24:34--and He whosevery name was THE FAITHFUL AND TRUE and THE WORD

O G ( h t 191113) th t f th i f l




476

there has been nothing in all history to replace the eventsof that generation to which this apocalypse belonged. Theeffort to stage the re-enactment of these scenes of Revela-tion is scripturally unexegetical and historically anachronis-tic. The continuous-historical theory is biblically non-scien- t i f ic, not in the occult meaning of the word, but in the senseof its inconsistent exegetics. The future theory is non-his-

torical because its whole thesis consists in anachronisms,the taking of events out of the period to which they belongand assigning them to the wrong periods of time, or errorsin the order of time. As an end of the world theory thiscontinuous-history view is non-philosophical in its millen-nial phases in that it presents a pessimistic concept requir-ing the same conditions of tribulation which surroundedthe church in the Roman empire to be re-enacted, bringingback into existence the empires of heathenism necessary tofulfill the symbolic delineations of the apocalypse ; and af th th th t ill i l t ti th t th l f

THE APOCALYPTIC E PILOGUE 477



THE APOCALYPTIC E PILOGUE 477

parts fit--and when things fit it is a sort of pr ima fac ie

evidence that they are in the right place.In conclusion, the book of Revelation unrolls in a series

of images the sublime panorama of the victory of the church

over the great powers of J udaism and Romanism and Hea-thenism set to the theme of the promise and providence of God in the protection of his Cause and his Church, summedup in the initial divine assurance, I come quickly, and in theconcluding human prayer of response, even so, come, Lord

J esus. I t is between this beginning and ending that thevisional message of the angels was communicated--theepistles to the seven churches signalling the approach of tribulation; the apocalypses of the conquering Christ andof the victorious church ; and the vision of the glorious New

J erusalem--all of which were interspersed with lyric an-thems and choral doxologies, which all together impart tothe Patmos apocalypse its unique position as the apex of

The Book of Revelation —Subject and Scripture Index—

A D 58-64 15-46 Code language 48-50 299-



A.D. 58 64, 15 46 Code language, 48 50, 299

A.D. 96, 15-46. 303.Angels of the seven churches, Comings of Christ, The, 39-

83-84. 40, 45, 70-71, 124-

Apocalypse, 2-14. 125.

Armageddon, 50, 334-335, 401.

Authenticity, 14-46. Date of book of revelation,15-46.

Babylon, 310, 363-366, 378-384. Destruction of Jerusalem, 42,

Beasts, The, 294-303, 367-370. 267-269, 343-362,

Black horse, The, 145-147, 235. 395-399.

Book of life, The, 422-423. Domitian age, 15-46.Bride, The, 456, 473. Dragon, The, 262-266, 275-

277, 289-290.

Christ the conqueror, 390-393, 428.

Chronology, 14-46. Ephesus, the church at, 85-

Church victorious, The, 447-456. 89, 108.

2

Fall of Jerusalem, The, 344-347, Hundred forty-four thousand,

378 384 Th 305 306



378-384. The, 305-306.

First resurrection, The, 405-408,415-417, 422-423. Image of Nebuchadnezzar, 13.

Four beasts, 129, 134. In the spirit on the Lord’s day,

Four and twenty elders, 128, 134. 76-77.

Forty-two months, 213-216, 218, Iranaeus, 25-26.

292.Jehovah, 290-292.

Great earthquake, The, 226-228.

Great white throne, The, 419-423. Lake of fire and brimstone,

433-434.

Harlot, The, 363-367. Laodicea, The church at, 104-

Harps in heaven, 307. 108, 110.

Heaven, 260. Loosing of satan, 417.

Holy city, The, 434-446. Lucifer, 273-275.

3

MacDonald, James M., 17-46, 78. Patmos, 73-74.

Man child The 266 267 285 286 Pergamos The church at 91



Man child, The, 266-267, 285-286. Pergamos, The church at, 91-

Marriage of the lamb, 388-389. 93, 109.Martyrs, The, 312-314. Philadelphia, The church at,

Matthew 24:1-51, 42, 267-269, 99-104.

343-362, 395-399. Prophecy, 1-14.

Michael, 273-275.

Red horse, The, 144-145, 235, Nero, 18-46, 215, 263, 271, 292, 430.

299-303. Revelation 20:1-15, 400-423.

New heaven and new earth, 12, 52, Root of David, 132.

425-428.

New Jerusalem, 52, 434-456. Sardis, The church at, 96-99,

109.

Opening of seven seals, 141-170. Satan and his angels, 273-275,

412.

Pale horse, The, 147-149, 235. Schaff, Phillip, 16-18, 79, 125.

4

Second death, The, 406-408, Terry, Milton S., 17-46, 74.

416 417 422 423 433 434 Theophany 1 14 47



416-417, 422-423, 433-434. Theophany, 1-14, 47.

Seven churches of Asia, The, 35- Throne in heaven, 126-141.41, 68, 85-110. Thousand years reign, The,

Seven golden candlesticks, 81-84. 400-405, 411-415,

Seven seals, 232-236. 417.

Seven trumpets, 63-65. Thyatira, The church at, 93-

Signified, 63-65. 96, 109.Six hundred and sixty-six, 19, Times of the Gentiles, 215-

299-303. 216.

Tree of life, 449-451.

Sixty-five years, 270-272. Two witnesses, 217-218.

Smyrna, The church at, 89-91.

Souls under altar and on the throne, Valley of dry bones, 12.

149-152, 404, 407-408,

412-413. White horse, The, 143-144,

Symbolism, 47-53, 273, 286. 235, 430.

5

Woman with child, 259-262,

277 286



277-286.

Wordsworth, Charles, 17-46.

1966 Wallace Revelation

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Transcript of 1966 Wallace Revelation