The angels, &c. worship God.

Anno DOMINI 96.

11 And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God,

12 Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.

13 And one of the elders answer

ed, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?

14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that a Chap. 21. 3. sitteth on the throne shall a dwell among them.

b Isai. 49. 10. 16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.

14. These are they which came out &c.] These persons were very lately in a state of great afflictions, and suffering for the sake of their faith and constancy; but, having kept the faith, they have received the blessings which Christ obtained by His blood, for His church and faithful people; they are now cleansed from all impurity, adorned with all perfection, and advanced to this state of glory and happiness, in which they now appear. Lowman.

15. Therefore are they before the throne &c.] Here follows a very simple and interesting figurative description of the future happiness of this redeemed multitude. The figures which are here employed are such as frequently occur in the writings of the Old and New Testaments. Dean Woodhouse.

Chap. VIII. ver. 1. the seventh seal,] The seventh seal or period is of much longer duration, and comprehends many more events, than any of the former seals. It comprehends indeed seven periods, distinguished by the sounding of seven trumpets. At the opening of this seal "there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour." This silence of half an hour is a sign that the peace of the church would continue but for a short season. It is an interval and pause, as it were, between the foregoing and succeeding visions. It is a mark of solemnity to procure attention, and to prepare the mind for great and signal events. Perhaps there is also an allusion to a ceremony among the Jews. As Philo in

с

The seventh seal opened.

and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

1

CHAP. VIII.

At the opening of the seventh seal, 2 seven

angels had seven trumpets given them. 6 Four of them sound their trumpets, and great plagues follow. 3 Another angel putteth incense to the prayers of the saints on the golden altar.

AND when he had opened the

seventh seal, there was silence 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.

Anno DOMINI 96.

c Isai. 25. 8. chap. 21. 4.

3 And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all Or, add it to saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.

4 And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand.

5 And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were

the prayers.

forms us, the incense used to be offered before the morning, and after the evening sacrifice: and, while the sacrifices were made, 2 Chron. xxix. 25-28, the voices and instruments and trumpets sounded: while the priest went into the temple to burn incense, Luke i. 10, all were silent, and the people prayed without to themselves. Now this was the morning of the church, and therefore the silence precedes the sounding of the trumpet. Bp. Newton.

2. -seven trumpets.] The seals foretold the state of the Roman empire till it became Christian, and of the church, till its civil establishment; the trumpets foretell the state of Rome and of the church afterward. They sound the alarm of war, and excite the nations against Rome; they also sound the alarm of religious corruptions. Abp. Newcome.

3. And another angel came and stood at the altar,] This altar is afterwards expressly called "the golden altar which was before the throne." Upon this altar, standing before the mercy-seat, (the local seat of the Divine glory in the temple,) was to be offered no strange incense, Exod. xxx. 9, 38; or strange fire, Lev. x. I; and by no strange priest, Numb. xvi.; but incense, offered thereon by the legal priests, was as an atonement for the people, Numb. xvi. 46, who accompanied this offering by their prayers. For it was the custom of devout people to offer up their prayers in the court of the temple, while the priest was burning incense within; see Luke i. 9, 10, 21. This angel may be supposed to represent the Christian priesthood in general, as exercised in subordination to the great High Priest. Dean Woodhouse.

4.- ascended up before God] A testimony of God's

Four angels sound their trumpets,

Anno DOMINI 96.

voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.

6 And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.

7 The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.

8 And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;

and great plagues follow.

9 And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.

10 And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;

11 And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.

12 And the fourth angel sounded,

Anno DOMINI 96.

5. voices, and thunderings,] These were the usual prophetick signs and preludes of great calamities and commotions upon earth. Bp. Newton.

7.—and there followed hail and fire] At the sounding of the first trumpet, ver. 7, the barbarous nations, like a storm of "hail and fire mingled with blood," invade the Roman territories, and destroy "the third part of the trees," that is, the trees of the third part of the earth, and "the green grass," that is, both old and young, high and low, rich and poor together. On the death of Theodosius the Great, A. D. 395, the Huns, Goths, and other barbarians, like hail for multitude, and breathing fire and slaughter, broke in upon the best provinces of the empire both in the east and in the west, with greater success than they had ever done before. But by this trumpet I conceive were principally intended the irruptions and depredations of the Goths, under the conduct of the famous Alaric, who began his incursions in the same year 395, first ravaged Greece, then wasted Italy, besieged Rome, took and plundered the city, and set fire to it in several places. The historians of the time give such terrible descriptions of the destruction caused by these incursions, that they might well indeed be compared to "hail and fire mingled with blood." Bp. Newton.

hail and fire] A tempest of hail and thunder, that throws down all before it, is a fit metaphor to express the calamities of war, from civil disturbances or foreign invasion, which often, like a hurricane, lays all things waste, as far as it can reach. See Isaiah xxviii. 2; xxix. 6; Ezek. xiii. 13. The storm is here represented as destroying not only "the green grass," which is more easily blasted, but also a great part of the trees, which are supposed more likely to withstand the violence of it. Lowman.

66

8.—and as it were a great mountain] At the sounding of the second trumpet, as it were a great mountain burning with fire;" that is, a great warlike nation or hero, "cast into the sea, turneth the third part into blood," &c.; that is, falling on the Roman empire, maketh a sea of blood with horrible destruction of the cities and inhabitants; for "waters," as the angel afterwards explains to St. John, chap. xvii. 15, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues;" and "the third part" means, throughout, the Roman empire, which was about a third part of the then known world. The next ravages after Alaric and his Goths were Attila and his Huns, who, for the space of fourteen years, shook the

formed the provinces of each empire with all kind of plundering, slaughter, and burning. Attila, having first overcome the Eastern emperour, turned his arms towards the west, fell upon Italy, and filled all places between the Alps and the Apennines with terrour and devastation. He was preparing to march upon Rome, but was diverted from his purpose by a solemn embassy from the emperour, and the promise of an annual tribute. Such a man might properly be compared to “a great mountain burning with fire," who really was, as he called himself, the scourge of God, and the terrour of men; and boasted that he was sent into the world by God for this purpose, that, as the executioner of His just wrath, he might fill the earth with all kind of evils. Bp. Newton.

was cast into the sea:] Great disorders and commotions, especially when kingdoms are moved by hostile invasions, are expressed, in the prophetick style, by carrying, or casting, mountains into the midst of the sea, Ps. xlvi. 2. Lowman.

10. And the third angel sounded,] At the sounding of the third trumpet, a great prince appears like a star shooting from heaven to earth,' a similitude not unusual in poetical diction. His coming therefore is sudden and unexpected, and his stay but short. "The name of the star is called Wormwood," and he infects the third part of the rivers and fountains with the bitterness of wormwood; that is, he is a bitter enemy, and proves the author of grievous calamities to the Roman empire. It was within two years after Attila's retreat from Italy, that Genseric king of the Vandals embarked from Africa with 300,000 Vandals and Moors, and arrived upon the Roman coasts, the emperour Maximus and the people not expecting or thinking of such an enemy: he marched towards Rome, and the city fell an easy prey into his hands, the inhabitants flying to the woods and mountains; he abandoned it to plunder, carried off immense booty, and a vast number of captives, and left the state so weakened, that in a short time it was utterly subverted. Some critics understand "rivers" and "fountains" with relation to doctrines, and in this sense the application is very proper to Genseric, who was a most bigoted Arian, and during his whole reign most cruelly persecuted the orthodox Christians. Bp. Newton.

12. And the fourth angel sounded,] At the sounding of the fourth trumpet, "the third part of the sun, moon, and stars," that is, the great lights of the Roman empire, are eclipsed and darkened, and remain in darkness for some time. Genseric left the western empire in a weak and desperate state, in which it struggled about twenty

The fifth angel soundeth.

DOMINI 96.

Anno and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.

13 And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabitants of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!

CHA P. IX.

1 At the sounding of the fifth angel, a star falleth from heaven, to whom is given the key of the bottomless pit. 2 He openeth the pit, and there come forth locusts like scorpions. 12 The first woe past. 13 The sixth trumpet soundeth. 14 Four angels

are let loose, that were bound.

years. At last, in A. D. 476, Odoacer, king of the Heruli, put an end to the very name of the western empire, and caused himself to be proclaimed king of Italy. His kingdom indeed was of short duration, being soon overthrown by Theodoric, who established the kingdom of the Ostrogoths in Italy. Thus the Roman "sun" was extinguished in the western empire; but the other lesser luminaries, "the moon," and "the stars," still subsisted; for Rome was still allowed to have her senate and consuls, and other subordinate magistrates, as before. These lights probably shone more faintly under barbarian kings, than under Roman emperours, but they were not totally suppressed till Italy was made a province of the eastern empire; the whole form of government was then changed, the senate and all the former magistrates abolished, and Rome degraded to the level of other places and from being the queen and empress of the world, was reduced to a poor dukedom, and made tributary to Ravenna, which she used to govern. Bp. Newton.

:

and the third part of the sun was smitten,] Darkening, smiting, or setting of the sun, moon, and stars, says Sir Isaac Newton, are put for the setting of a kingdom, or the desolation thereof: and when darkness is opposed to light, Mr. Daubuz observes, as light is a symbol of joy and safety, so darkness is a symbol of misery and adversity. See Jer. xiii. 16; Isai. xiii. 10; Ezek. xxxii. 7, 8. Thus, as the subject, order, and scene of action here, is the downfall of the Roman empire, and of the power and authority of Rome, the imperial city, there is fitly represented an entire extinguishing of all its authority and power. Lowman.

13.-saying-Woe, woe, woe,] Notice is now proclaimed by an angel that the three other trumpets sound to still greater and more terrible plagues, and are therefore distinguished from the former by the name of the woes. The design of this messenger is to raise our attention to the following trumpets, which we shall find to be more strongly marked than the foregoing. The foregoing relate chiefly to the downfall of the western empire; the two following to that of the eastern. The former are described more concisely, and comprehend a less compass of time; the two latter are set forth with more particular circumstances, and are of longer duration, as well as of larger description. Bp. Newton.

Anno DOMINI 96.

The bottomless pit opened. ND the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaunto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit.

ven

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

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

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

Chap. IX. ver. 1.—a star fall from heaven &c.] Stars, in the language of prophecy, (sometimes) signify angels; and the expression here, of a star falling from heaven, or an angel coming down from heaven with a key to open the bottomless pit, seems to denote the permission by Divine Providence of those evil and calamitous events, which are described as ensuing, which could not have happened except by His permission, and according to the wise and holy order of the Divine government. Lowman.

2. And he opened the bottomless pit;] This prison of Satan, and of his angels, is permitted to be opened for the just punishment of apostate churches, who would not repent of their evil works. Here is something more terrible than we have hitherto seen. Hell opens, and Satan appears, followed by an army of a stronger figure than St. John has any where else described. Lowman, Bossuet.

and there arose a smoke] That is, a false religion, the religion of the impostor Mahomet, was set up, which filled the world with darkness and errour. Bp. Newton.

3. And there came out of the smoke locusts] Here is an allusion to the habit of locusts, which, as Pliny and the eastern historians tell us, breed in pits and deep slimy holes in the latter part of the summer; and from the eggs or spawn there laid arise the vast swarms in the spring following. By this, in the same figurative language which is used by the Prophet Joel, (Joel i. 6; ii. 5-7,) are described the terrible forces of the Saracens and Arabians under Mahomet and his successors, their leaders; invading and ravaging not only the European kingdoms, but large tracts both of Asia and Africa: their false and impious religion was as smoke and darkness arising out of hell, and their armies fitly resembled locusts for multitude, and both of them together were as mischievous to the minds and liberties of men, as the poison of serpents is to the human body. Pyle.

4.-not hurt the grass &c.] This shews that they were not natural, but symbolical, locusts. Jos. Mede. - but only those men which have not the seal &c.] That is, those who are not the true servants of God, but are corrupt and idolatrous Christians. Now it appears from history, that in those countries of Asia, Africa, and Europe, where the Saracens extended their conquests,

Description of the locusts

DOMINI 96.

Anno 5 And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man.

6 And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.

7 And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men.

the Christians were generally guilty of idolatry in the worshipping of saints, if not of images; and it was the pretence of Mahomet and his followers to chastise them for it, and to re-establish the unity of the Godhead. The parts which remained most free from the general infection were Savoy, Piedmont, and the southern parts of France, which were afterwards the habitation and nurseries of the Waldenses and Albigenses; and it is very memorable that, when the Saracens approached those parts, they were defeated with great slaughters in several engagements. Bp. Newton.

5. And to them it was given that they should not kill &c.] As they were to hurt only the corrupt and idolatrous Christians, so these they were not to kill, but only to torment, and to bring on them such calamities as would make them weary of their life. Thus, though the Saracens greatly harassed and tormented the Greek and Latin churches, they did not utterly extirpate the one or the other. They besieged also Constantinople, and plundered Rome, but did not make themselves masters of the one city or the other. Bp. Newton.

but that they should be tormented five months: Evidently alluding to the time, during which natural locusts commit their devastations, and after which they die. They are hatched, as Bochart observes, about the spring, and die at the latter end of summer, thus living about five months. Lowman.

It is again mentioned at ver. 10, that "their power was to hurt men five months." If these months be taken for natural months in the interpretation of the prophecy, then the meaning is, that the Saracens, after the manner of locusts, made their excursions during the five summer months, and retreated in the winter. And it appears from history that this was their usual practice in particular it is related, that at the siege of Constantinople they always retreated at the approach of winter, and renewed their attacks during the summer months, for seven successive years. But if, as seems more probable, and as accords with the prophetick style, these months designate each a space of thirty prophetick days or years, then the whole period denoted is one hundred and fifty years. And accordingly we shall find, that, though the empire of the Saracens had a longer duration, yet within that period they made their principal conquests, and their power of " tormenting men" was chiefly exerted. It appears from their history, that their greatest conquests were made from the year 612, when Mahomet first began to propagate his imposture, to the year 762, when the caliph Almansor built Bagdad, to fix there the seat of his empire. Syria, Persia, India, and the greatest part of Asia, Egypt, and the greatest part of Africa, Spain, and some parts of Europe, were subdued within this period: but when

which came forth from the pit.

8 And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions.

9 And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.

10 And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months.

11 And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew

Anno DOMINI 96.

the caliphs fixed their habitation at Bagdad, then their armies ceased from ravaging like locusts, and they assumed more the character of a settled nation. Bp. Newton.

as the torment of a scorpion,] The sting of a scorpion, "when he striketh a man," is severe, attended with inflammation and violent pain. Lowman. 6. -shall men seek death,] That is, so great shall be the calamities of those times, that men shall be tired of life. Jos. Mede.

7. And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses] In the following verses, the nature and qualities of locusts are described, partly in allusion to the properties of natural locusts, and the description given of them by the Prophet Joel, (see Joel ii. 1, &c.) and partly in allusion to the habits and manners of the Arabians. Many authors have observed, that the head of a locust resembles that of a horse; whence the Italians call them cavalette, or little horses. And the Arabians have in all ages been famous for their horses and horsemanship; it being well known that their strength consists chiefly in their cavalry. Bp. Newton.

on their heads were as it were crowns like gold,] Alluding to the headdress of the Arabians, who constantly wore turbans or mitres. Bp. Newton. The "crowns of gold" may also signify the success and extent of their dominion; for there never was a nation which extended its power so widely, or in so short a space of time reduced beneath its yoke so many countries and kingdoms. Jos. Mede.

7, 8.—faces were as the faces of men. And—hair &c.] The Arabians wore their beards, or at least their mustachios, like men, while the hair of their heads was flowing and plaited like that of women. Bp. Newton. 8. as the teeth of lions.] That is, strong to devour, Joel i. 6. Jos. Mede.

9.- breastplates, as- - of iron;] Locusts have a hard shell or skin, which has often been called their armour. This figure is designed to express the defensive, as the former was the offensive, arms of the Saracens. Bp. Newton.

- and the sound of their wings &c.] Hereby signifying the rapidity of their conquests. Pyle. Natural locusts fly with so great a noise of their wings, that they may be taken for birds. Bp. Newton.

10. And they had tails like unto scorpions,] They are thrice compared to "scorpions," ver. 3, 5, 10; and had stings in their tails," &c.; that is, wherever they carried their arms, there they distilled the venom of a false religion. Bp. Newton.

11. And they had a king over them,] Although the natural locusts have no king, (see the observation of

Agur, Prov. xxx. 27,) yet these figurative locusts have one, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, that evil spirit, the prince of the power of darkness, who, from the constant evils he is designing and doing in the world, is called "the destroyer.' Lowman.

-Abaddon, Apollyon. &c.] The one name in Hebrew, the other in Greek, means "the destroyer." Mr. Mede imagines that here is some allusion to the name of Obodas, the common title of the kings of that part of Arabia, from which Mahomet came, as Pharaoh was the common name of the kings of Egypt, and Cesar of the emperours of Rome; and such allusions are not unusual in the style of Scripture. Bp. Newton.

12. One woe is past;] This is added, not only to distinguish the woes, and to mark more strongly each period, but also to suggest that some time will intervene between this first woe of the Arabian locusts, and that which ensues. Bp. Newton.

it

13.- I heard a voice from the four horns &c.] Thus appears that the scene of this vision was still in the temple. The circumstance of the voice proceeding from "the four horns of the golden altar," is a strong indication of the Divine displeasure; and plainly intimates that the sins of men must have been very great, when the altar, which was their sanctuary and protection, called aloud for vengeance. Bp. Newton.

14.- Loose the four angels &c.] These "four angels" are the four sultans, or four leaders of the Turks or Othmans. For there were four principal sultanies or kingdoms of these bordering on the river Euphrates, one at Bagdad, another at Damascus, a third at Aleppo, and a fourth at Iconium in Asia Minor. These subsisted several years afterwards, and the sultans were "bound" and restrained from extending their conquests further than the countries adjoining the Euphrates, primarily by the good providence of God, and secondarily by the crusades, or expeditions of European Christians into the Holy Land, about the end of the 11th, and in the 12th and 13th centuries. But when an end was put to these crusades, and the Christians abandoned their conquests in Syria and Palestine towards the close of the 13th century, then "the four angelswere loosed:" the Turks gained several victories over the Tartars on one side, and the Christians on the other; and Othman, from whom the people were afterwards called Othmans, being proclaimed sultan, founded a new empire. Jos. Mede, Bp. Newton.

15.-which were prepared for- -a day, &c.] The meaning of this may be, that they were prepared and ready to execute the Divine commission at any time, or for any time, that God should appoint, or that they were ready all of them together at one appointed time. Daubuz, Lowman. Otherwise, if the expression be taken mystically, and the hour, and day, and month, and year, be a prophetick hour, and day, and month, and year, then a year (according to St. John's computa

and four angels are loosed.

15 And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.

16 And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them.

17 And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and

Anno DOMINI

96.

Or, al.

tion, who follows herein that of Daniel,) consisting of three hundred and sixty days, is three hundred and sixty years, a month consisting of thirty days is thirty years, a day is a year, and an hour fifteen days; so that the whole period of the Othmans' "slaying the third part of men,' or subduing the Christian states in the Greek or Roman empire, amounts to three hundred and ninety-one years and fifteen days. Now it is wonderfully remarkable that the first conquest mentioned in history of the Othmans over the Christians, was in the year of Christ 1281; compute three hundred and ninety-one years from that time, and they will terminate in the year 1672: and in that year Mahomet the Fourth took Cameniec from the Poles, and forty-eight towns and villages in that territory were delivered up to the sultan on the treaty of peace. Whereupon an historian of those events has made this memorable reflection: This was the last victory by which any advantage accrued to the Othman state, or any city or province was annexed to the ancient bounds of the empire. Other wars and slaughters ensued; but since that period they have subdued no new state or potentate of Christendom, and in all probability they never will again, their empire evidently declining. Here then the prophecy and the event agree exactly in the period of three hundred and ninety-one years; and if we possessed more accurate histories, the same exactness might probably be found as to the fifteen days. Bp. Newton.

the third part of men.] Meaning, the men of the Roman empire. Bp. Newton. Or, more generally, a considerable number of the countries which they invaded. Lowman.

The kingdoms subdued by the Mahometans, if examined by the maps, will be found to compose a full third part of the then Christian world; and it may be assumed as a general position, that about one third part of the world which was once Christian, was cut off from Christianity by the Mahometan invaders. Dean Woodhouse.

16.-were two hundred thousand thousand:] The number in the original is myriads of myriads, which is to be understood of many myriads, as when we say "thousands of thousands," to express many thousands. It is here affirmed, that the armies of these destroyers should be chiefly horsemen, and that the numbers should be so great that the report of them should be scarcely credible. Lowman.

It is well known from history what mighty armies the Othman emperours brought into the field. Thus, when Mahomet the Second besieged Constantinople, he had about 400,000 men in his army, besides a powerful fleet; it is well known also that their armies consisted chiefly of horsemen, as is here described. Bp. Newton.

17.- having breastplates of fire, &c.] The colour of fire is red, of hyacinth blue, and of brimstone yellow;