CHAPTER XVI.

AND I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven[474] angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.

1. _And I heard a great voice out of the temple._ A loud voice out of the temple as seen in heaven (Notes on ch. xi. 19), and that came, therefore, from the very presence of God. ¶ _Saying to the seven angels._ That had the seven vials of wrath. Notes on ch. xv. 1, 7. ¶ _Go your ways._ Your respective ways, to the fulfilment of the task assigned to each. ¶ _And pour out the vials of the wrath of God._ Empty those vials; cause to come upon the earth the plagues indicated by their contents. The _order_ in which this was to be done is not intimated. It seems to be supposed that that would be understood by each. ¶ _Upon the earth._ The particular part of the _earth_ is not here specified, but it should not be inferred that it was to be upon the earth in general, or that there were any calamities, in consequence of this pouring out of the vials of wrath, to spread over the whole world. The subsequent statements show what parts of the earth were particularly to be affected.

2 And the first went, and poured out his vial [475]upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous [476]sore upon the men which had the [477]mark of the beast, and _upon_ them which worshipped his image.

2. _And the first went._ Went forth from heaven, where the seat of the vision was laid. ¶ _And poured out his vial upon the earth._ That is, upon the _land_, in contradistinction from the sea, the rivers, the air, the seat of the beast, the sun, as represented in the other vials. In ver. 1, the word _earth_ is used in the general sense to denote this world as distinguished from heaven; in this verse it is used in the specific sense, to denote _land_ as distinguished from other things. Comp. Mar. iv. 1; vi. 47; Jn. vi. 21; Ac. xxvii. 29, 43, 44. In many respects there is a strong resemblance between the pouring out of those seven vials, and the sounding of the seven trumpets, in ch. viii., ix., though they refer to different events. In the sounding of the first trumpet (ch. viii. 7), it was the _earth_ that was particularly affected in contradistinction from the sea, the fountains, and the sun: “The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast _upon the earth_.” Comp. ch. viii. 8, 10, 12. In regard to the symbolical meaning of the term _earth_, considered with reference to divine judgments, see Notes on ch. viii. 7. ¶ _And there fell a noisome and grievous sore._ The judgment here is specifically different from that inflicted under the first trumpet, ch. viii. 7. {358} There it is said to have been that “the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.” Here it is that there fell upon _men_ a “noisome and grievous sore.” The two, therefore, are designed to refer to different events, and to different forms of punishment. The word rendered _sore_ properly denotes a _wound_ (Hom. _Il._ xi. 812), and then, in later writers, an _ulcer_ or _sore_. It is used in the New Testament only in the following places: Lu. xvi. 21, “The dogs came and licked his _sores_;” and in Re. xvi. 2, 11, where it is rendered _sore_, and _sores_. It is used in the Septuagint, in reference to the _boils_ that were brought upon the Egyptians, in Ex. ix. 9‒12, and probably De. xxviii. 27; in reference to the leprosy, Le. xiii. 18‒20, 23; in reference to the boil, ulcer, or elephantiasis brought upon Job, ch. ii. 7; and in reference to any sore or ulcer, in De. xxviii. 35. In all these places it is the translation of the word שְּׁחִין _shehhin_――rendered in our English version _boil_, Ex. ix. 9‒11; Le. xiii. 18‒20, 23; 2 Ki. xx. 7; Job ii. 7; Is. xxxviii. 21; and _botch_, De. xxviii. 27, 35. The proper meaning, therefore, is that or a sore, ulcer, or boil of a severe and painful character; and the most obvious reference in the passage, to one who was accustomed to the language of Scripture, would be to some fearful plague like that which was sent upon the Egyptians. In the case of Hezekiah (2 Ki. xx. 7; Is. xxxviii. 21), it was probably used to denote a _plague-boil_, or the black leprosy. See Notes on Is. xxxviii. 21. The word “noisome”――κακὸν, _evil_, _bad_――is used here to characterize the plague referred to as being peculiarly painful and dangerous. The word _grievous_――πονηρὸν――_bad_, _malignant_, _hurtful_――is further used to increase the intensity of the expression, and to characterize the plague as particularly severe. There is no reason to suppose that it is meant that this would be _literally_ inflicted, any more than it is in the next plague, where it is said that the “rivers and fountains became _blood_.” What is obviously meant is, that there would be some calamity which would be well represented or symbolized by such a fearful plague. ¶ _Upon the men._ Though the plague was poured upon “_the earth_,” yet its effects were seen upon “_men_.” Some grievous calamity would befall them, _as if_ they were suddenly visited with the plague. ¶ _Which had the mark of the beast._ Notes on ch. xiii. 16, 17. This determines the portion of the earth that was to be afflicted. It was not the whole world; it was only that part of it where the “beast” was honoured. According to the interpretation proposed in ch. xiii., this refers to those who are under the dominion of the Papacy. ¶ _And |upon| them which worshipped his image._ See Notes on ch. xiii. 14, 15. According to the interpretation in ch. xiii., those are meant who sustained the civil or secular power to which the Papacy gave life and strength, and from which it, in turn, received countenance and protection.

In regard to the application or fulfilment of this symbol, it is unnecessary to say that there have been very different opinions in the world, and that very different opinions still prevail. The great mass of Protestant commentators suppose that it refers to the Papacy; and of those who entertain this opinion, the greater portion suppose that the calamity referred to by the pouring out of this vial is already past, though it is supposed by many that the things foreshadowed by a part of these “vials” are yet to be accomplished. As to the true meaning of the symbol before us, I would make the following remarks:――

(1) It refers to the Papal power. This application is demanded by the results which were reached in the examination of ch. xiii. See the remarks on the “beast” in the Notes on ch. xiii. 1, 2, 11, and on “the image of the beast” in the Notes on ch. xiii. 14, 15. This one mighty power existed in two forms closely united, and mutually sustaining each other――the civil or secular, and the ecclesiastical or spiritual. It is this combined and consolidated power――the Papacy as such――that is referred to here, for this has been the grand Antichristian power in the world.

(2) It refers to some grievous and fearful calamity which would come upon that power, and which would be _like_ a plague-spot on the human body――something which would be of the nature of a divine judgment, resembling that which came upon the Egyptians for their treatment of the people of God.

(3) The course of this exposition leads us to suppose, that this would be the beginning in the series of judgments, {359} which would terminate in the complete overthrow of that formidable power. It is the _first_ of the vials of wrath, and the whole description evidently contemplates a _series_ of disasters, which would be properly represented by these successive vials. In the application of this, therefore, we should naturally look for the first of a series of such judgments, and should expect to find some facts in history which would be properly represented by the vial “poured upon the earth.”

(4) In accordance with this representation, we should expect to find such a series of calamities gradually weakening, and finally terminating the Papal power in the world, as would be properly represented by the number _seven_.

(5) In regard now to the _application_ of this series of symbolical representations, it may be remarked, that most recent expositors――as Elliott, Cunninghame, Keith, Faber, Lord, and others――refer them to the events of the French revolution, as important events in the overthrow of the Papal power; and this, I confess, although the application is attended with some considerable difficulties, has more plausibility than any other explanation proposed. In support of this application, the following considerations may be suggested:――

(a) France, in the time of Charlemagne, was the kingdom to which the Papacy owed its civil organization and its strength――a kingdom to which could be traced all the civil or secular power of the Papacy, and which was, in fact, a restoration or reconstruction of the old Roman power――the fourth kingdom of Daniel. See Notes on Da. vii. 24‒28; and comp. Notes on Re. xiii. 3, 12‒14. The restoration of the old Roman dominion under Charlemagne, and the aid which he rendered to the Papacy in its establishment as to a temporal power, would make it probable that this kingdom _would be_ referred to in the series of judgments that were to accomplish the overthrow of the Papal dominion.

(b) In an important sense France has always been the head of the Papal power. The king of France has been usually styled, by the popes themselves, “the eldest son of the church.” In reference to the whole Papal dominion in former times, one of the principal reliances has been on France, and, to a very large extent, the state of Europe has been determined by the condition of France. “A revolution in France,” said Napoleon, “is sooner or later followed by a revolution in Europe” (Alison). Its central position; its power; its direct relation to all the purposes and aims of the Papacy, would seem to make it probable that, in the account of the final destruction of that power, this kingdom would not be overlooked.

(c) The scenes which occurred in the times of the French revolution were such as would be properly symbolized by the pouring out of the first, the second, the third, and the fourth vials. In the passage before us――the pouring out of the first vial――the symbol employed is that of “a noisome and grievous sore”――boil, ulcer, plague-spot――“on the men which had the mark of the beast, and on them which worshipped his image.” This representation was undoubtedly derived from the account of the sixth plague on Egypt (Ex. ix. 9‒11); and the sense here is, not that this would be literally inflicted on the power here referred to, but that a calamity would come upon it which would be _well represented_ by that, or of which that would be an appropriate emblem. This interpretation is further confirmed by ch. xi. 8, where Rome is referred to under the name of _Egypt_, and where it is clear that we are to look for a course of divine dealing, in regard to the one, resembling that which occurred to the other. See Notes on that passage. Now, this “noisome and grievous sore” would well represent the moral corruption, the pollution, the infidelity, the atheism, the general dissolution of society, that preceded and accompanied the French revolution; for that was a universal _breaking out_ of loathsome internal disease――of corruption at the centre――and in its general features might be represented as a universal plague-spot on society, extending over the countries where the beast and his image were principally worshipped. The symbol would properly denote that “tremendous outbreak of social and moral evil, of democratic fury, atheism, and vice, which was specially seen to characterize the French revolution: that of which the ultimate source was in the long and deep-seated corruption and irreligion of the nation; the outward vent, expression, and organ of its Jacobin clubs, and seditious and atheistic publications; the result, the dissolution of all society, all morals, and all {360} religion; with acts of atrocity and horror accompanying, scarce paralleled in the history of men; and suffering and anguish of correspondent intensity throbbing throughout the social mass and corroding it; that which, from France as a centre, spread like a plague throughout its affiliated societies to the other countries of Papal Christendom, and was, wherever its poison was imbibed, as much the punishment as the symptoms of the corruption within.” Of this sad chapter in the history of man, it is unnecessary to give any description here. For scenes of horror, pollution, and blood, its parallel has _never_ been found in the history of our race, and, as an event in _history_, it was worthy of a notice in the symbols which portrayed the future. The full details of these amazing scenes must be sought in the histories which describe them, and to such works as Alison’s _History of Europe_, and Burke’s _Letters on a Regicide Peace_, the reader must be referred. A few expressions copied from those letters of Mr. Burke, penned with no design of illustrating this passage in the Apocalypse, and no expectation that they would be ever so applied, will show with what propriety the spirit of inspiration suggested the phrase, “a noisome and grievous sore” or plague-spot, on the supposition that the design was to refer to these scenes. In speaking of the revolutionary spirit in France, Mr. Burke calls it “the fever of aggravated Jacobinism,” “the epidemic of atheistical fanaticism,” “an evil lying deep in the corruptions of human nature,” “the malignant French distemper,” “a plague, with its fanatical spirit of proselytism, that needed the strictest quarantine to guard against it,” whereof, though the mischief might be “skimmed over” for a time, yet the result, into whatever country it entered, was “the corruption of all morals,” “the decomposition of all society,” &c. But it is unnecessary to describe those scenes farther. The “world has them by heart,” and they can never be obliterated from the memory of man. In the whole history of the race there has never been an outbreak of evil that showed so deep pollution and corruption within.

(d) The result of this was to affect the Papacy――a blow, in fact, aimed at that power. Of course, all the infidelity and atheism of the French nation, before so strongly Papal, went just so far in weakening the power of the Papacy; and in the ultimate result it will perhaps yet be found that the horrid outbreaks in the French revolution were the first in the series of providential events that will result in the entire overthrow of that Antichristian power. At all events, it will be admitted, I think, that, on the supposition that it was _intended_ that this should be descriptive of the scenes that occurred in Europe at the close of the last century, no more expressive symbol could have been chosen than has been employed in the pouring out of this first vial of wrath.

3 And the second angel poured out his vial [478]upon the sea; and it became as the [479]blood of a dead _man_: and every living soul died in the sea.

3. _And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea._ So the second trumpet (ch. viii. 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.” For the meaning of this as a symbol, see Notes on that verse. ¶ _And it became as the blood of a dead |man|._ “Either very bloody, like a mangled corse, or else coloured, as it were, with the dark and almost black blood of a dead man” (Professor Stuart, _in loco_). The latter would seem to be, most probably, the meaning; implying that the ocean would become discoloured, and indicating that this was the effect of blood shed in great quantities on its waters. In ch. viii. 8 it is, “the sea became blood;” here the allusion to the blood of a dead man would more naturally suggest the idea of naval conflicts, and of the blood of the slain poured in great quantities into the deep. ¶ _And every living soul died in the sea._ In ch. viii. 9 it is said that “the third part of the creatures that were in the sea died, and the third part of the ships were destroyed.” Here the destruction is more general; the calamity is more severe and awful. It is as if _every living thing_――πᾶσα ψυχή ζῶσα――had died. No emphasis should be put on the word _soul_ here, for the word means merely a creature, a living thing, an animal, Ac. ii. 43; iii. 23; Ro. xiii. 1; 1 Co. xv. 45. See Rob. _Lex._ _sub voce_, c. {361} The sense here is, that there would be some dreadful calamity, _as if_ the sea were to be changed into dark blood, and as if every living thing in it were to die.

In inquiring into the proper application of this, it is natural to look for something pertaining to the sea, or the ocean (see Notes on ch. viii. 8, 9), and we should expect to find the fulfilment in some calamity that would fall on the marine force, or the commerce of the power that is here referred to; that is, according to the interpretation all along adopted, of the Papal power; and the proper application, according to this interpretation, would be the complete destruction or annihilation of the naval force that contributed to sustain the Papacy. This we should look for in respect to the naval power of France, Spain, and Portugal, for these are the only Papal nations that have had a navy. We should expect, in the fulfilment of this, to find a series of naval disasters, reddening the sea with blood, which would tend to weaken the power of the Papacy, and which might be regarded as _one_ in the series of events that would ultimately result in its entire overthrow. Accordingly, in pursuance of the plan adopted in explaining the pouring out of the first vial, it is to be observed that immediately succeeding, and connected with, the events thus referred to, there was a series of naval disasters that swept away the fleets of France, and that completely demolished the most formidable naval power that had ever been prepared by any nation under the Papal dominion. This series of disasters is thus noticed by Mr. Elliott (iii. 329, 330):――“Meanwhile, the great _naval_ war between France and England was in progress; which, from its commencement in February, 1793, lasted for above twenty years, with no intermission but that of the short and delusive peace of Amiens; in which war the maritime power of Great Britain was strengthened by the Almighty Providence that protected her to destroy everywhere the French ships, commerce, and smaller colonies; including those of the fast and long-continued allies of the French, Holland and Spain. In the year 1793, the greater part of the French fleet at Toulon was destroyed by Lord Hood; in June, 1794, followed Lord Howe’s great victory over the French off Ushant; then the taking of Corsica, and nearly all the smaller Spanish and French West India Islands; then, in 1795, Lord Bridport’s naval victory, and the capture of the Cape of Good Hope; as also soon after of a French and Dutch fleet, sent to retake it; then, in 1797, the victory over the Spanish fleet off Cape St. Vincent; and that of Camperdown over the Dutch; then, in succession, Lord Nelson’s three mighty victories――of the Nile in 1798, of Copenhagen in 1801, and in 1805 of Trafalgar. Altogether in this naval war, from its beginning in 1793, to its end in 1815, it appears that there were destroyed near 200 ships of the line, between 300 and 400 frigates, and an almost incalculable number of smaller vessels of war and ships of commerce. The whole history of the world does not present such a period of naval war, destruction, and bloodshed.” This brief summary may show, if this was referred to, the propriety of the expression, “The sea became as the blood of a dead man;” and may show also that, on the supposition that it was intended that these events should be referred to, an appropriate symbol has been employed. No language could more strikingly set forth these bloody scenes.

4 And the third angel poured out his vial [480]upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood.

4. _And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters._ This coincides also with the account of the sounding of the third trumpet (ch. viii. 10, 11):――“And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters.” As to the meaning of the phrase, “rivers and fountains of waters,” see Notes on that passage. We found, it was supposed, in the application of that passage, that the invasion of the Roman empire by Attila, king of the Huns, was referred to, affecting mainly those parts of the empire where the rivers and streams had their origin. The _analogy_ would lead us, in the fulfilment of the passage before us, to look for some similar desolations on those portions of Europe. See Notes at the close of ver. 7. ¶ _And they became blood._ This would properly mean that they became _as_ blood; or became red {362} _with_ blood; and it would be fulfilled if bloody battles were fought near them, so that they seemed to run blood.

5 And I heard the angel of the waters say, [481]Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus.

5. _And I heard the angel of the waters say._ The angel who presides over the element of water; in allusion to the common opinion among the Hebrews that the angels presided over elements, and that each element was committed to the jurisdiction of a particular angel. Comp. Notes on ch. vii. 1. ¶ _Thou art righteous, O Lord_. In view of the judgments that reddened these streams and fountains with the blood of men, the angel ascribes righteousness to God. These judgments seemed terrible――the numbers slain were so vast――the bloody stream indicated so great slaughter, and such severity of the divine judgment; yet the angel sees in all this only the act of a righteous God bringing just retribution on the guilty. ¶ _Which art, and wast, and shalt be._ That is, who art _eternal_――existing now; who hast existed in all past time; and who will exist ever onward. See Notes on ch. i. 8. The _reason_ why this attribute of God is here referred to, seems to be that the mind of the angel adverts to it in the _changes_ and _desolations_ that were occurring around him. In such overturnings among men――such revolutions of kingdoms――such desolations of war――the mind naturally turns to one who is unchanging; to one whose throne is from everlasting to everlasting. ¶ _Because thou hast judged thus._ Hast suffered these wars to occur that have changed rivers and fountains to blood.

6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and [482]thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy.

6. _For they have shed the blood of saints._ The nations here referred to. They have been engaged in scenes of bloody persecution, and this is a just recompense. ¶ _And prophets._ Teachers of religion; ministers of truth. It is not necessary to understand the word _prophets_ here in its technical sense, as denoting those who are raised up by God and sent forth as inspired men, but it may be understood in its more common signification in the New Testament as denoting teachers of religion in general. See Notes on Ro. xii. 6; 1 Co. xiv. 1. ¶ _And thou hast given them blood to drink._ To wit, by turning the streams and fountains into blood, ver. 4. Blood had been poured out in such abundance that it seemed to mingle with the very water that they drank. This was a recompense for their having, in those very regions, poured out so much blood in persecuting the saints and prophets――the pious private members of the church, and the public teachers of religion. ¶ _For they are worthy._ That is, they deserve this; or this is a just recompense for their sins. It is not intended that those who would thus suffer had been individually guilty of this, or that this was properly a punishment on _them_; but it is meant that in those countries there had been bloody persecutions, and that this was a fit recompense for what had there occurred.

7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, [483]Lord God Almighty, true and righteous _are_ thy judgments.

7. _And I heard another._ Evidently another _angel_, though this is not specified. ¶ _Out of the altar._ Either the angel _of_ the altar――that is, who presided over the altar (Professor Stuart), or an angel whose voice seemed to come from the altar. The sense is essentially the same. The writer seemed to hear a voice coming from the altar responding to what had just been said in regard to the judgment of God, or to his righteousness in bringing the judgment upon men, ver. 5. This was evidently the voice of some one who was interested in what was occurring, or to whom these things particularly appertained; that is, one who was particularly connected with the _martyrs_ referred to, whose blood was now, as it were, to be avenged. We are naturally reminded by this of the martyr-scene in ch. vi. 9‒11, in the opening of the fifth seal, though it cannot be supposed that the same _events_ are referred to. There “the souls of those that had been slain for the word of God” are represented as being “under the altar,” and as crying to God to “avenge their blood on them who dwelt on the earth.” Here a voice is heard with reference to martyrs, as of one interested _in_ them, {363} ascribing praise to God for _having_ brought a righteous judgment on those who had shed the blood of the saints. They are both, for similar reasons, connected with the “altar,” and the voice is heard proceeding from the same source. In regard to the meaning of the word _altar_ here, and the reason why the martyrs are represented in connection with it, see Notes on ch. vi. 9. ¶ _True and righteous, |are| thy judgments._ Responding to what is said in ver. 5. That is, God is “true” or faithful to his promises made to his people, and “righteous” in the judgments which he has now inflicted. These judgments had come upon those who had shed the blood of the martyrs, and they were just.

In regard to the application of this there are several things to be said. The following points are clear:――(a) That this judgment would _succeed_ the first-mentioned, and apparently at a period not remote. (b) It would occur in a region where there had been much persecution. (c) It would be in a country of streams, and rivers, and fountains. (d) It would be a just retribution for the bloody persecutions which had occurred there. The question now is, where we shall find the fulfilment of this, assuming that the explanation of the pouring out of the first vial is correct. And here, I think, there can be no mistake in applying it to the events bearing on the Papacy, and the Papal powers, which followed the French revolution. The next material event, after that revolution, was the invasion of Italy, where Napoleon began his career of victories, and where he first acquired his fame. At this stage of my examination of this passage, I looked into Alison’s _History of Europe_ to see what events, in fact, followed the scenes of confusion, crime, blood, atheism, and pollution in the French revolution, and I found that the next chapters in these eventful scenes, were such as would be well represented by the vial poured upon the rivers and fountains, and by their being turned into blood. The detail would be too long for my limits, and I can state merely a summary of a few of the chapters in that history. Ch. xix. contains the “History of the French Republic from the fall of Robespierre to the establishment of the Directory”――comprising properly the closing scenes of “the Reign of Terror.” Ch. xx. contains an account of the campaign in Italy in 1796, embracing, as stated in the summing up of contents in this chapter, the “Battles of Montenotte, Millesimo, Dego; the passage of the bridge of Lodi, and fall of Milan; the siege of Mantua, and the battle of Castiglione; the battles of Caldero and Arcola; and the battles of Rivoli and Mantua.” This is followed (ch. xxiii.) with an account of the campaign of 1797, which closed with the fall of Venice; and this is followed (ch. xxvi.) with an account of the invasion of Switzerland, &c. It is unnecessary to dwell on the details of the wars which followed the French revolution on the Rhine, the Po, and the Alpine streams of Piedmont and Lombardy. The slightest acquaintance with that history will show the propriety of the following remarks:――(a) These wars occurred in regions under the influence of the Papacy, for these were all Papal states and territories. (b) These scenes followed closely on the French revolution, and grew out of it as a natural consequence, and would be properly represented as a second “vial” poured out immediately after the first. (c) The country is such as here supposed――“of rivers and fountains”――for, being mostly a mountainous region, it abounds with springs, and fountains, and streams. Indeed, on the supposition that this is the land referred to, a more appropriate description could not have been given of it than is found in this passage. One has only to look upon a map of Northern Italy to see that there is no other portion of the world which would more naturally be _suggested_ when speaking of a country abounding in “rivers and fountains of water.” The admirable map of this region prefixed to the volume, for which I am indebted to the work of Dr. Alexander Keith, on the _Signs of the Times_, will clearly illustrate this passage, and the corresponding passage in ch. viii. 10, 11. Let anyone look at the Po and its tributaries on the map, and then read with attention the twentieth chapter of Alison’s _History of Europe_ (vol. i. pp. 391‒424), and he will be struck with the appropriateness of the description, on the supposition that this portion of the book of Revelation was designed to refer to these scenes; for he cannot but see that the battles there described were fought in a country in every way corresponding with the statement here. (d) This country corresponds with the description here given in another respect. In {364} ver. 5, 6 there is a tribute of praise rendered to God, in view of these judgments, because he was righteous in bringing them upon a land where the blood of saints and prophets had been shed――a land of martyrs. Now this is applicable to the circumstances supposed, not only in the sense that Italy in general had been the land where the blood of martyrs had been shed――the land of Roman persecution, alike under Paganism and the Papacy――but true in a more definite sense, from the fact that this was the very region where the persecutions against the Waldenses and the Albigenses had been carried on――_the valleys of Piedmont_. In the times of Papal persecution these valleys had been made to flow with the blood of the saints; and it _seemed_, at least, to be a righteous retribution that these desolations of war, these conflagrations, and these scenes of carnage, should occur in that very land, and that the very fountains and streams which had before been turned into blood, by the slaughter of the friends of the Saviour, should now be reddened with the blood of men slain in battle. This is, perhaps, what John saw in vision: a land where persecution had raged, and the blood of the holy had flowed freely, and then the same land brought under the awful judgments of God, and the fountains and streams reddened with the blood of the slain. There was a propriety, therefore, that a voice should be heard ascribing righteousness to God for avenging the blood of the saints (ver. 5, 6), and that another voice should be heard from the “altar” of the martyrs (ver. 7) responding and saying, “Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.” (e) It may be added, to show the propriety of this, that this was _one_ of the series of events which will be found in the end to have contributed to the overthrow of the Papal power; for a blow was struck, in the French invasion of Italy, from which Rome has never recovered, and sentiments were diffused as the result in favour of liberty which it has been difficult ever since to suppress, and which are destined yet to burst out in favour of freedom, and to be one of the means of the final destruction of the power. Comp. Alison’s _History of Europe_, vol. i. p. 403.

8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial [484]upon the sun: and power was given unto him to scorch men [485]with fire.

8. _And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun._ Toward the sun, or so as to reach the sun. The effect was _as if_ it had been poured _upon_ the sun, giving it an intense heat, and thus inflicting a severe judgment upon men. This corresponds also with the fourth trumpet (ch. viii. 12), where it is said, that the “third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars.” For the general meaning of this symbol see Notes on that place. The idea is, that a scene of calamity and woe would occur _as if_ the sun should be made to pour forth such intense heat that men would be “scorched.” It cannot be supposed that the sun would be _literally_ made hotter, or that the exact nature of these calamities would be that men would be consumed by its rays. ¶ _And power was given unto him._ To the sun. The meaning is, that a calamity would follow _as if_ such an increased power should be given to its rays. ¶ _To scorch men with fire._ Literally, “And it was given him to scorch men with fire”――that is, with heat so great that it _seemed_ to be fire. The Greek word――καυματίσαι――meaning _to burn_, _to scorch_――is used in the New Testament only in Mat. xiii. 6; Mar. iv. 6; Re. xvi. 8, 9, in all which places it is rendered _scorch_ and _scorched_. Compare, however, the use of the word καῦμα, in Re. vii. 16; xvi. 9; καῦσις, in He. vi. 8; καυσόω, in 1 Pe. iii. 10, 12; and καύσων, in Mat. xx. 12; Lu. xii. 55; Ja. i. 11. The notion of intense or consuming heat is implied in all the forms of the word; and the reference here is to some calamity that would be well represented by such an increased heat of the sun.

9 And men were [486]scorched with great heat, and [487]blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and [488]they repented not, to give him glory.

9. _And men were scorched with great heat._ That is, as above expressed, calamity came upon them which would be well represented by such heat. It is said that this calamity would come upon _men_, and we are to suppose that it would be such that human life would be particularly affected; and as that heat of the {365} sun must be exceedingly intense which would cut down _men_, we are to suppose that the judgment here referred to would be intensely severe. ¶ _And blasphemed the name of God._ The effect would be to cause them to blaspheme God or to reproach him as the author of these calamities; and in the fulfilment of this we are to look for a state of things when there would be augmented wickedness and irreligion, and when men would become worse and worse, notwithstanding the woes that had come upon them. ¶ _Which hath power over these plagues._ Who had brought these plagues upon them, and who had power to remove them. ¶ _And they repented not._ The effect was not to produce repentance, though it was manifest that these judgments had come upon them on account of their sins. Comp. Notes on ch. ix. 21. ¶ _To give him glory._ To turn from sin; to honour him by lives of obedience. Comp. Notes on Jn. ix. 24.

In regard to the _application_ of this the following things may be remarked:――(a) That the calamity here referred to was one of the series of events which would precede the overthrow of the “beast,” and contribute to that, for to this all these judgments tend. (b) In the order in which it stands it is to follow, and apparently to follow _soon_, the third judgment――the pouring of the vial upon the fountains and streams. (c) It would be a calamity such _as if_ the sun, the source of light and comfort to mankind, were smitten, and became a source of torment. (d) This would be attended by a great destruction of _men_, and we should naturally look in such an application for calamities in which multitudes of _men_ would be, as it were, consumed. (e) This would _not_ be followed, as it might be hoped it would, by repentance, but would be attended with reproaches of God, with profaneness, with a great increase of wickedness.

Now, on the supposition that the explanation of the previous passages is correct, there can be no great difficulty in supposing that this refers to the wars of Europe following the French revolution, the wars that preceded the direct attack on the Papacy and the overthrow of the Papal government, for these events had all the characteristics here referred to. (a) They were one of a series in weakening the Papal power in Europe――heavy blows that will yet be seen to have been among the means preliminary to its final overthrow. (b) They followed in their order the invasion of Northern Italy, for one of the purposes of that invasion was to attack the _Austrian_ power there, and ultimately through the Tyrol to attack Austria itself. Napoleon, after his victories in Northern Italy, above referred to (comp. ch.xx. of Alison’s _History of Europe_), thus writes to the French Directory: “Coni, Ceva, and Alexandria are in the hands of our army; if you do not ratify the convention I will keep these fortresses and march upon Turin. Meanwhile I shall march to-morrow against Beaulieu, and drive him across the Po; I shall follow close at his heels, overrun all Lombardy, and in a month be in the Tyrol, join the army of the Rhine, and carry our united forces into Bavaria. _That design is worthy of you, of the army, and of the destinies of France_” (Alison, i. 401). (c) The campaign in Germany in 1796 followed immediately this campaign in Italy. Thus, in ch. xx. of Alison’s _History_, we have an account of the campaign in Italy; in ch. xxi. we have the account of the campaign in Germany; and the other wars in Europe that continued so long, and that were so fierce and bloody, followed in quick succession――all tending, in their ultimate results, to weaken the Papal power and to secure its final overthrow. (d) It is hardly necessary to say here that these wars had all the characteristics here supposed. It was _as if_ the sun were smitten in the heavens and power were given to scorch men with fire. Europe seemed to be on fire with musketry and artillery, and presented almost the appearance of the broad blaze of a battle-field. The number that perished was immense. These wars were attended with the usual consequences――blasphemy, profaneness, and reproaches of God in every form. And yet there was another effect wholly in accordance with the statement here, that none of these judgments brought men to “repentance, that they might give God the glory.” Perhaps these remarks, which might be extended to great length, will show that, on the supposition that it was _intended_ to refer to those scenes by the outpouring of this vial, the symbol was well chosen and appropriate.

10 And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the [489]seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of [490]darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain,

10. _And the fifth angel poured out his {366} vial upon the seat of the beast._ The previous judgments had been preparatory to this. They all had a bearing on this, and were all preliminary to it; but the “seat”――the home, the centre of the power of the beast――had not yet been reached. Here, however, there was a direct blow aimed at that power, still not such yet as to secure its _final_ overthrow, for that is reserved for the pouring out of the last vial, ver. 17‒21. All that is represented here is a heavy judgment which was merely _preliminary_ to that final overthrow, but which affected _the very seat of the beast_. The phrase “the seat of the beast”――τὸν θρόνον τοῦ θηρίου――means the _seat_ or _throne_ which the representative of that power occupied, the central point of the Antichristian dominion. Comp. Notes on ch. xiii. 2. See also ch. ii. 13. I understand this as referring to the very seat of the Papal power――Rome――the Vatican. ¶ _And his kingdom was full of darkness._ Confusion――disorder――distress, for darkness is often the emblem of calamity, Is. lix. 9, 10; Je. xiii. 16; Eze. xxx. 18; xxxii. 7, 8; xxxiv. 12; Joel ii. 2. ¶ _And they gnawed their tongues for pain._ This is a “most significant expression of the writhings of anguish.” The word here rendered _gnawed_ does not occur elsewhere in the New Testament, nor is the expression elsewhere used in the Bible; but its meaning is plain――it indicates deep anguish.

11 And blasphemed the God of heaven because of [491]their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.

11. _And blasphemed the God of heaven._ The same effect which it was said would be produced by the pouring out of the fourth vial, ver. 9. ¶ _Because of their pains and their sores._ Of the calamities that had come upon them. ¶ _And repented not of their deeds._ See Notes on ver. 9. Comp. ch. ix. 21.

In regard to the fulfilment and application of this, the following general remarks may be made here:――(a) It would succeed, at no great interval probably, what is referred to under the previous “vials,” and would be one in the series tending to the same result. (b) It would fall directly on the seat of the authority of the “beast”――on the central power of the Papacy, according to the interpretation of the other symbols; and we should look, therefore, for some calamity that would come upon Rome itself, and still more specifically upon the pope himself, and those immediately around him. (c) This would be attended with deep distress and darkness in the Papal dominions. (d) There would be an increase of what is here called “blasphemy;” that is, of impiety and reproaches of the Divine Being. (e) There would be no repentance produced. There would be no reformation. The system would be as corrupt as it was before, and men would be as much under its influence. And (f) we should not expect that this would be the _final_ overthrow of the system. _That_ is reserved for the outpouring of the seventh and last vial in the series (ver. 17‒21), and under that the system would be overthrown, and would come to an end. This is distinctly stated in the account of that “vial;” and therefore we are not to expect to find, in the application of the fifth “vial,” that the calamity brought upon “the seat of the beast” would be such that it would not recover for a time, and maintain, apparently, in some good degree, its former power and influence.

With this view of what we are to expect, and in connection with the explanations of the previous symbols, it seems to me that there can be no hesitation in applying this to the direct attacks on the Papal power and on the pope himself, as one of the consequences of the French revolution, and to the calamities that were thus brought upon the Papal States. In order to show the appropriateness of this application, I will state a few facts which will show that, on the supposition that it was the _intention_ in this symbol to refer to the Papal power at that time, the symbol has been well chosen, and has been fulfilled. And, in doing this, I will merely copy from Alison’s _History of Europe_ (vol. i. pp. 542‒546) a few statements, which, like many that have been quoted from Mr. Gibbon in the former part of these Notes, would seem almost to have been penned in view of this prophecy, and with a view to record its fulfilment. The statement is as follows:――

“The Ecclesiastical States were the {367} next object of attack. It had long been an avowed object of ambition with the Republican government to revolutionize the Roman people, and plant the tricolour flag in the city of Brutus,” and fortune at length presented them with a favourable opportunity to accomplish the design.

“The situation of the pope had become, since the French conquests in Italy, in the highest degree precarious. Cut off by the Cisalpine Republic from any support from Austria; left by the treaty of Campo Formio entirely at the mercy of the French republic; threatened by the heavings of the democratic spirit within his own dominions; and exposed to all the contagion arising from the complete establishment and close vicinity of republican governments in the north of Italy, he was almost destitute of the means of resisting so many seen and unseen enemies. The pontifical treasury was exhausted by the immense payments stipulated by the treaty of Tolentino; while the activity and zeal of the revolutionary clubs in all the principal towns of the Ecclesiastical States was daily increasing with the prospect of success. To enable the government to meet the enormous demands of the French army, the principal Roman families, like the pope, had sold their gold, their silver, their jewels, their horses, their carriages――in a word, all their valuable effects; but the exactions of the republican agents were still unabated. In despair they had recourse to the fatal expedient of issuing a paper circulation; but that, in a country destitute of credit, soon fell to an inconsiderable value, and augmented rather than relieved the public distress. Joseph Bonaparte, brother to Napoleon, had been appointed ambassador at the court of Rome; but as his character was deemed too honourable for political intrigue, Generals Duphot and Sherlock were sent along with him, the former of whom had been so successful in effecting the overthrow of the Genoese aristocracy. The French embassy, under their direction, soon became the centre of the revolutionary action; and those numerous ardent characters with which the Italian cities abound, flocked there as to a common focus, from whence the next great explosion of democratic power was to be expected. In this extremity, Pius VI., who was above eighty years of age, and sinking into the grave, called to his counsels the Austrian general Provera, already distinguished in the Italian campaigns; but the Directory soon compelled the humiliated pontiff to dismiss that intrepid counsellor. As his recovery then seemed hopeless, the instructions of government to their ambassador were to delay the proclamation of a republic till his death, when the vacant chair of St. Peter might be overturned with little difficulty; but such was the activity of the revolutionary agents, that the train was ready to take fire before that event took place, and the ears of the Romans were assailed by incessant abuse of the ecclesiastical government, and vehement declamations in favour of republican freedom.

“The resolution to overturn the Papal government, like all the other ambitious projects of the Directory, received a very great impulse from the re-ascendent of Jacobin influence at Paris, by the results of the revolution of 18th Fructidor. One of the first measures of the new government was to despatch an order to Joseph Bonaparte at Rome, to promote, by all the means in his power, the approaching revolution in the Papal States; and, above all things, to take care that at the pope’s death no successor should be elected to the chair of St. Peter. Napoleon’s language to the Roman pontiff became daily more menacing. Immediately before setting out for Rastadt, he ordered his brother Joseph to intimate to the pope that three thousand additional troops had been forwarded to Ancona; that if Provera was not dismissed within twenty-four hours, war would be declared; that if any of the revolutionists who had been arrested were executed, reprisals would forthwith be exercised on the cardinals; and that, if the Cisalpine Republic was not recognized, it would be the signal for immediate hostilities. At the same time ten thousand troops of the Cisalpine Republic advanced to St. Leon, in the Papal duchy of Urbino, and made themselves masters of that fortress; while at Ancona, which was still garrisoned by French troops, notwithstanding its stipulated restoration by the treaty of Tolentino to the Holy See, the democratic party openly proclaimed the ‘Anconite Republic.’ Similar revolutionary movements took place at Corneto, Civita Vecchia, Pesaro, and Senigaglia; while at Rome itself, Joseph {368} Bonaparte, by compelling the Papal government to liberate all persons confined for political offences, suddenly vomited forth upon the capital several hundreds of the most heated republicans in Italy. After this great addition, measures were no longer kept with the government. Seditious meetings were constantly held in every part of the city; immense collections of tricolour cockades were made to distinguish the insurgents, and deputations of the citizens openly waited on the French ambassador to invite him to support the insurrection, to which he replied, in ambiguous terms――‘The fate of nations, as of individuals, being buried in the womb of futurity, it is not given to me to penetrate its mysteries.’

“In this temper of men’s minds, a spark was sufficient to occasion an explosion. On the 27th of December, 1797, an immense crowd assembled, with seditious cries, and moved to the palace of the French ambassador, where they exclaimed, ‘Vive la République Romaine!’ and loudly invoked the aid of the French to enable them to plant the tricolour flag on the Capitol. The insurgents displayed the tricolour cockade, and evinced the most menacing disposition; the danger was extreme; from similar beginnings the overthrow of the governments of Venice and Genoa had rapidly followed. The Papal ministers sent a regiment of dragoons to prevent any sortie of the revolutionists from the palace of the French ambassador; and they repeatedly warned the insurgents that their orders were to allow no one to leave its precincts. Duphot, however, indignant at being restrained by the pontifical troops, drew his sword, rushed down the staircase, and put himself at the head of one hundred and fifty armed Roman democrats, who were now contending with the dragoons in the courtyard of the palace. He was immediately killed by a discharge ordered by the sergeant commanding the patrol of the Papal troops; and the ambassador himself, who had followed to appease the tumult, narrowly escaped the same fate. A violent scuffle ensued; several persons were killed and wounded on both sides; and, after remaining several hours in the greatest alarm, Joseph Bonaparte, with his suite, retired to Florence.

“This catastrophe, however, obviously occasioned by the revolutionary schemes which were in agitation at the residence of the French ambassador, having taken place within the precincts of his palace, was, unhappily, a violation of the law of nations, and gave the Directory too fair a ground to demand satisfaction. But they instantly resolved to make it the pretext for the immediate occupation of Rome and overthrow of the Papal government. The march of troops out of Italy was countermanded, and Berthier, the commander-in-chief, received orders to advance rapidly into the Ecclesiastical States. Meanwhile, the democratic spirit burst forth more violently than ever at Ancona and the neighbouring towns, and the Papal authority was soon lost in all the provinces on the eastern slope of the Apennines. To these accumulated disasters the pontiff could only oppose the fasts and prayers of an aged conclave――weapons of spiritual warfare little calculated to arrest the conquerors of Arcola and Lodi.

“Berthier, without an instant’s delay, carried into execution the orders of the Directory. Six thousand Poles were stationed at Rimini to cover the Cisalpine Republic; a reserve was established at Tolentino, while the commander-in-chief, at the head of eighteen thousand veteran troops, entered Ancona. Having completed the work of revolution in that turbulent district, and secured the fortress, he crossed the Apennines; and, advancing by Foligno and Narni, appeared on the 10th of February before the Eternal City. The pope, in the utmost consternation, shut himself up in the Vatican, and spent night and day at the foot of the altar in imploring the divine protection.

“Rome, almost defenceless, would have offered no obstacle to the entrance of the French troops; but it was part of the policy of the Directory to make it appear that their aid was invoked by the spontaneous efforts of the inhabitants. Contenting himself, therefore, with occupying the castle of St. Angelo, from which the feeble guards of the pope were soon expelled, Berthier kept his troops for five days encamped without the walls. At length, the revolutionists having completed their preparations, a noisy crowd assembled in the Campo Vaccino, the ancient Forum; the old foundations of the Capitol were made again to resound with the cries, if not the spirit, of freedom, and the venerable {369} ensigns, S. P. Q. R., after the lapse of fourteen hundred years, again floated in the winds. The multitude tumultuously demanded the overthrow of the Papal authority; the French troops were invited to enter; the conquerors of Italy, with a haughty air, passed the gates of Aurelian, defiled through the Piazza del Popolo, gazed on the indestructible monuments of Roman grandeur, and, amid the shouts of the inhabitants, the tricolour flag was displayed from the summit of the Capitol.

“But while part of the Roman populace were surrendering themselves to a pardonable intoxication upon the fancied recovery of their liberties, the agents of the Directory were preparing for them the sad realities of slavery. The pope, who had been guarded by five hundred soldiers ever since the entry of the republicans, was directed to retire into Tuscany; his Swiss guard relieved by a French one; and he himself ordered to dispossess himself of all his temporal authority. He replied, with the firmness of a martyr, ‘I am prepared for every species of disgrace. As supreme pontiff, I am resolved to die in the exercise of all my powers. You may employ force――you have the power to do so; but know that, though you may be masters of my body, you are not so of my soul. Free in the region where it is placed, it fears neither the events nor the sufferings of this life. I stand on the threshold of another world; there I shall be sheltered alike from the violence and impiety of this.’ Force was soon employed to dispossess him of his authority; he was dragged from the altar in his palace, his repositories all ransacked and plundered, the rings even torn from his fingers, the whole effects in the Vatican and Quirinal inventoried and seized, and the aged pontiff conducted, with only a few domestics, amid the brutal jests and sacrilegious songs of the French dragoons, into Tuscany, where the generous hospitality of the grand-duke strove to soften the hardships of his exile. But, though a captive in the hands of his enemies, the venerable old man still retained the supreme authority in the church. From his retreat in the convent of the Chartreuse, he yet guided the counsels of the faithful; multitudes fell on their knees wherever he passed, and sought that benediction from a captive which they would, perhaps, have disregarded from a ruling pontiff.

“The subsequent treatment of this venerable man was as disgraceful to the republican government as it was honourable to his piety and constancy as the head of the church. Fearful that from his virtues and sufferings he might have too much influence on the continent of Italy, he was removed by their orders to Leghorn, in March, 1799, with the design of transferring him to Cagliari in Sardinia; and the English cruisers in the Mediterranean redoubled their vigilance in the generous hope of rescuing the father of an opposite church from the persecution of his enemies. Apprehensive of losing their prisoner, the French altered his destination; and forcing him to traverse, often during the night, the Apennines and the Alps in a rigorous season, he at length reached Valence, where, after an illness of ten days, he expired, in the eighty-second year of his age, and the twenty-fourth of his pontificate. The cruelty of the Directory increased as he approached their dominions, all his old attendants were compelled to leave him, and the father of the faithful was allowed to expire, attended only by his confessor. Yet even in this disconsolate state he derived the highest satisfaction from the devotion and reverence of the people in the provinces of France through which he passed. Multitudes from Gap, Vizelle, and Grenoble flocked to the road to receive his benediction; and he frequently repeated, with tears in his eyes, the words of Scripture: ‘Verily, I say unto you, I have not seen such faith, no, not in Israel.’

“But long before the pope had sunk under the persecution of his oppressors, Rome had experienced the bitter fruits of republican fraternization. Immediately after the entry of the French troops, commenced the regular and systematic pillage of the city. Not only the churches and the convents, but the palaces of the cardinals and of the nobility, were laid waste. The agents of the Directory, insatiable in the pursuit of plunder, and merciless in the means of exacting it, ransacked every quarter within its walls, seized the most valuable works of art, and stripped the Eternal City of those treasures which had survived the Gothic fire and the rapacious hands of the Spanish soldiers. The bloodshed was much less, but the spoil collected incomparably greater, {370} than at the disastrous sack which followed the death of the Constable Bourbon. Almost all the great works of art which have since that time been collected throughout Europe, were then scattered abroad. The spoliation exceeded all that the Goths or Vandals had effected. Not only the palaces of the Vatican, and the Monte Cavallo, and the chief nobility of Rome, but those of Castel Gandolfo, on the margin of the Alban Lake, of Terracina, the Villa Albani, and others in the environs of Rome, were plundered of every article of value which they possessed. The whole sacerdotal habits of the pope and cardinals were burned, in order to collect from the flames the gold with which they were adorned. The Vatican was stripped to its naked walls; the immortal frescoes of Raphael and Michael Angelo, which could not be removed, remained in solitary beauty amid the general desolation. A contribution of four millions in money, two millions in provisions, and three thousand horses, was imposed on a city already exhausted by the enormous exactions it had previously undergone. Under the direction of the infamous commissary Haller, the domestic library, museum, furniture, jewels, and even the private clothes of the pope were sold. Nor did the palaces of the Roman nobility escape devastation. The noble galleries of the Cardinal Braschi, and the Cardinal York, the last relic of the Stuart line, underwent the same fate. Others, as those of the Chigi, Borghese, and Doria palaces, were rescued from destruction only by enormous ransoms. Everything of value that the treaty of Tolentino had left in Rome became the prey of republican cupidity, and the very name of freedom soon became odious, from the sordid and infamous crimes which were committed in its name.

“Nor were the exactions of the French confined to the plunder of palaces and churches. Eight cardinals were arrested and sent to Civita Castellana, while enormous contributions were levied on the Papal territory, and brought home the bitterness of conquest to every poor man’s door. At the same time the ample territorial possessions of the church and the monasteries were confiscated, and declared national property――a measure which, by drying up at once the whole resources of the affluent classes, precipitated into the extreme of misery the numerous poor who were maintained by their expenditure, or fed by their bounty. All the respectable citizens and clergy were in fetters; and a base and despicable faction alone, among whom, to their disgrace be it told, were found fourteen cardinals, followed in the train of the oppressors; and, at a public festival, returned thanks to God for the miseries they had brought upon their country.”[492]

12 And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon [493]the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was [494]dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.

12. _And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates._ On the situation of that river, and the symbolical meaning of this language, see Notes on ch. ix. 14‒21. The reference there was supposed to be to the Turkish power, and the analogy of interpretation would seem to require that it should be so understood here. There is every reason, therefore, to suppose that this passage has reference to something in the future history of the Turkish dominions, and to some bearing of the events which are to occur in that history on the ultimate downfall of the Antichristian power referred to by the “beast.” ¶ _And the water thereof was {371} dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared._ That is, as the effect of pouring out the vial. There is an allusion here, undoubtedly, to the dividing of the waters of the Red Sea, so that the children of Israel might pass. See Ex. xiv. 21, 22. Comp. Notes on Is. xi. 15. In this description the Euphrates is represented as _a barrier_ to prevent the passage of “the kings of the East,” on their way to the West for some purpose not yet specified; that is, applying the symbol of the Euphrates as being the seat of the Turkish power, the meaning is, that _that power_ is such a hindrance, and that, in some way that hindrance is to be removed _as if_ the waters of an unbridged and unfordable river were dried up so as to afford a safe and easy passage through. Still there are several inquiries as to the application of this, which is not easy, and, as it refers to what is still future, it may be impossible to answer. The _language_ requires us to put upon it the following interpretation:――(a) The persons here referred to as “kings of the East,” were ready to make a movement towards the West, over the Euphrates, and would do this if this obstruction were not in their way. _Who_ these “kings of the East” are is not said, and perhaps cannot be conjectured. The natural interpretation is, that they are the kings that reign in the East, or that preside over the countries of the eastern hemisphere. _Why_ there was a proposed movement to the West is not said. It might have been for conquest, or it might have been that they were to bring their tribute to the spiritual Jerusalem, in accordance with what is so often said in the prophets, that under the gospel kings and princes would consecrate themselves and their wealth to God. See Ps. lxxii. 10, 11: “The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents: the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. Yea, all kings shall fall down before him.” So also Is. lx. 4‒6, 9, 11: “Thy sons shall come from far.――The forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee.――All they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense.――The isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them.――Thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; that men may bring unto thee the forces of the Gentiles, and that their kings may be brought.” All that is _fairly_ implied in the language used here is, that the kings of the East would be converted to the true religion, or that they were, at the time referred to, in a state of readiness to be converted, if there were no hindrance or obstruction. (b) There was some hindrance or obstruction to their conversion; that is, as explained, from the Turkish power: in other words, they would be converted to the true faith if it were not for the influence of that power. (c) The destruction of that power, represented by the drying up of the Euphrates, would remove that obstruction, and the way would thus be “prepared” for their conversion to the true religion. We should most naturally, therefore, look, in the fulfilment of this, for some such decay of the Turkish power as would be followed by the conversion of the rulers of the East to the gospel.

13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs _come_ out of the mouth of [495]the dragon, and out of the mouth of [496]the beast, and out of the mouth of [497]the false prophet.

13. _And I saw three unclean spirits._ They assumed a visible form which would well represent their odiousness――that of frogs――but still they are spoken of as “spirits.” They were evil powers, or evil influences (ver. 14, “spirits of devils”), and the language here is undoubtedly designed to represent some such power or influence which would, at that period, proceed from the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet. ¶ _Like frogs_――βάτραχοι. This word does not occur in the New Testament except in the passage before us. It is properly translated _frogs_. The _frog_ is here employed clearly as a _symbol_, and it is designed that certain qualities of the “spirits” here referred to should be designated by the symbol. For a full illustration of the meaning of the symbol, the reader may consult Bochart, _Hieroz._ P. II. lib. v. cap. iv. According to Bochart, the frog is characterized, as a symbol, (1) for its rough, harsh, coarse voice; (2) on this account, as a symbol of complaining or reproaching; (3) as a symbol of empty loquacity; (4) as a symbol of heretics and philosophers, as understood by Augustine; (5) because the frog has its origin in {372} mud, and lives in mud, as a symbol of those who are born in sin, and live in pollution; (6) because the frog endures all changes of the season――cold and heat, summer, winter, rain, frost――as a symbol of _monks_ who practise self-denial; (7) because the frog, though abstemious of food, yet lives in water and drinks often, as a symbol of drunkards; (8) as a symbol of impudence; (9) because the frog swells his size, and distends his cheeks, as a symbol of pride. See the authorities for these uses of the word in Bochart. How many or few of these ideas enter into the symbol here, it is not easy to decide. We may suppose, however, that the spirits referred to would be characterized by pride, arrogance, impudence, assumption of authority; perhaps impurity and vileness, for all these ideas enter into the meaning of the symbol. They are not here, probably, symbols of _persons_, but of _influences_ or _opinions_ which would be spread abroad, and which would characterize the age referred to. The reference is to what the “dragon,” the “beast,” and the “false prophet” would _do_ at that time in opposing the truth, and in preparing the world for the great and final conflict. ¶ _Out of the mouth of the dragon._ One of which seemed to issue from the mouth of the dragon. On the symbolic meaning of the word “dragon,” see Notes on ch. xii. 3. It, in general, represents Satan, the great enemy of the church; perhaps here Satan under the form of heathenism or paganism, as in ch. xii. 3, 4. The idea then is, that, at the time referred to, there would be some manifestation of the power of Satan in the heathen nations, which would be bold, arrogant, proud, loquacious, hostile to truth, and which would be well represented by the hoarse murmur of the frog. ¶ _And out of the mouth of the beast._ The Papacy, as above explained, ch. xiii. That is, there would be some putting forth of arrogant pretensions; some loud denunciation or complaining; some manifestation of pride and self-consequence, which would be well represented by the croaking of the frog. We have seen above (Notes on ver. 5, 6), that although the fifth vial was poured upon “the seat of the beast,” the effect was not to crush and overthrow that power entirely. The Papacy would still survive, and would be finally destroyed under the outpouring of the seventh vial, ver. 17‒21. In the passage before us we have a representation of it as still living; as having apparently recovered its strength; and as being as hostile as ever to the truth, and able to enter into a combination, secret or avowed, with the “dragon” and the “false prophet,” to oppose the reign of truth upon the earth. ¶ _And out of the mouth of the false prophet._ The word rendered _false prophet_――ψευδοπροφήτου――does not before occur in the book of Revelation, though the use of the article would seem to imply that some well-known power or influence was referred to by this. Comp. Notes on ch. x. 3. The word occurs in other places in the New Testament, Mat. vii. 15; xxiv. 11, 24; Mar. xiii. 22; Lu. vi. 26; Ac. xiii. 6; 2 Pe. ii. 1; 1 Jn. iv. 1; and twice elsewhere in the book of Revelation, with the same reference as here, ch. xix. 20; xx. 10. In both these latter places it is connected with the “beast:” “And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet;” “And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are.” It would seem, then, to refer to some power that was similar to that of the beast, and that was to share the same fate in the overthrow of the enemies of the gospel. As to the application of this, there is no opinion so probable as that it alludes to the Mahometan power――not strictly the _Turkish_ power, for that was to be “dried up,” or to diminish; but to the Mahometan power as such, that was still to continue for a while in its vigour, and that was yet to exert a formidable influence against the gospel, and probably in some combination, in fact, if not in form, with Paganism and the Papacy. The _reasons_ for this opinion are: (a) that this was referred to, in the former part of the book, as one of the formidable powers that would arise, and that would materially affect the destiny of the world――and it may be presumed that it would be again referred to in the account of the final consummation, see ch. ix. 1‒11; (b) the name “_false prophet_” would, better than any other, describe that power, and would naturally suggest it in future times――for to no one that has ever appeared in our world could the name be so properly applied as to Mahomet; and (c) what is said will be found to agree with the facts in regard to that power, as, in connection with the Papacy and with Paganism, constituting the sum of the {373} obstruction to the spread of the gospel around the world.

14 For they are the [498]spirits of devils, [499]working miracles, _which_ go forth unto the kings of the earth and of [500]the whole world, to gather them to the [501]battle of that great day of God Almighty.

14. _For they are the spirits of devils._ On the meaning of the word used here, see Notes on ch. ix. 20. It is used here, as it is in ch. ix. 20, in a bad sense, as denoting _evil_ spirits. Comp. Notes on Mat. iv. 1, 2, 24. ¶ _Working miracles._ Working what _seemed_ to be miracles; that is, such wonders as to deceive the world with the belief that they were miracles. See Notes on ch. xiii. 13, 14, where the same power is ascribed to the “beast.” ¶ _|Which| go forth unto the kings of the earth._ Which particularly affect and influence kings and rulers. No class of men have been more under the influence of Pagan superstition, Mahometan delusion, or the Papacy, than kings and princes. We are taught by this passage that this will continue to be so in the circumstances referred to. ¶ _And of the whole world._ That is, so far that it might be represented as affecting the whole world――to wit, the heathen, the Mahometan, and the Papal portions of the earth. These still embrace so large a portion of the globe, that it might be said, that what would affect those powers now would influence the whole world. ¶ _To gather them._ Not literally to assemble them all in one place, but so to unite and combine them that it might be represented as an assembling of the hosts for battle. ¶ _To the battle of that great day of God Almighty._ Not the day of judgment, but the day which would determine the ascendency of true religion in the world――the final conflict with those powers which had so long opposed the gospel. It is not necessary to suppose that there would be a literal “_battle_,” in which God would be seen to contend with his foes; but there would be that which might be properly _represented_ as a battle. That is, there would be a combined struggle against the truth, and in that God would appear by his providence and Spirit on the side of the church, and would give it the victory. It accords with all that has occurred in the past, to suppose that there will be such a combined struggle before the church shall finally triumph in the world.

15 Behold, [502]I come as a thief. Blessed _is_ he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk [503]naked, and they see his shame.

15. _Behold, I come as a thief._ That is, suddenly and unexpectedly. See Notes on Mat. xxiv. 43; 1 Th. v. 2. This is designed evidently to admonish men to watch, or to be in readiness for his coming, since, whenever it would occur, it would be at a time when men were not expecting him. ¶ _Blessed |is| he that watcheth._ Comp. Mat. xxiv. 42‒44. The meaning here is, that he who watches for these events, who marks the indications of their approach, and who is conscious of a preparation for them, is in a better and happier state of mind than he on whom they come suddenly and unexpectedly. ¶ _And keepeth his garments._ The allusion here seems to be to one who, regardless of danger, or of the approach of an enemy, should lay aside his garments and lie down to sleep. Then the thief might come and take away his garments, leaving him naked. The essential idea, therefore, here, is the duty of vigilance. We are to be awake to duty and to danger; we are not to be found sleeping at our post; we are to be ready for death――ready for the coming of the Son of man. ¶ _Lest he walk naked._ His raiment being carried away while he is asleep. ¶ _And they see his shame._ Comp. Notes on ch. iii. 18. The meaning here is, that, as Christians are clothed with the garments of righteousness, they should not lay them aside, so that their spiritual nakedness should be seen. They are to be always clothed with the robes of salvation; always ready for any event, however soon or suddenly it may come upon them.

16 And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.

16. _And he gathered them together._ _Who_ gathered them? Professor Stuart renders it, “_they_ gathered them together,” supposing that it refers to the “spirits”――πνεύματα――in ver. 13, and that this is the construction of the neuter plural with a singular verb. So De Wette understands it. Hengstenberg supposes {374} that it means that _God_ gathered them together; others suppose that it was the sixth angel; others that it was Satan; others that it was the beast; and others that it was Christ. See Poole’s _Synopsis_, _in loco_. The authority of De Wette and Professor Stuart is sufficient to show that the construction which they adopt is authorized by the Greek, as indeed no one can doubt, and perhaps this accords better with the context than any other construction proposed. Thus, in ver. 14, the spirits are represented as going forth into the whole world for _the purpose_ of gathering the nations together to the great battle, and it is natural to suppose that the reference is to them here as having accomplished what they went forth to do. But who are to be gathered together? Evidently those who, in ver. 14, are described by the word “_them_”――the “kings of the earth, and the whole world;” that is, there will be a state of things which would be well described by a universal gathering of forces in a central battle-field. It is by no means necessary to suppose that what is here represented will _literally_ occur. There will be a mustering of spiritual forces; there will be a combination and a unity of opposition against the truth; there will be a rallying of the declining powers of Heathenism, Mahometanism, and Romanism, _as if_ the forces of the earth, marshalled by kings and rulers, were assembled in some great battle-field, where the destiny of the world was to be decided. ¶ _Into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon._ The word _Armageddon_――Ἀρμαγεδδών――occurs nowhere else in the New Testament, and is not found in the Septuagint. It seems to be formed from the Hebrew הַר מְגִדּוֹ _Har Megiddo_――_Mountain of Megiddo_. Comp. 2 Ch. xxxv. 22, where it is said that Josiah “came to fight _in the valley of Megiddo_.” Megiddo was a town belonging to Manasseh, although within the limits of Issachar, Jos. xvii. 11. It had been originally one of the royal cities of the Canaanites (Jos. xii. 21), and was one of those of which the Israelites were unable for a long time to take possession. It was rebuilt and fortified by Solomon (1 Ki. ix. 15), and thither Ahaziah king of Judah fled when wounded by Jehu, and died there, 2 Ki. ix. 27. It was here that Deborah and Barak destroyed Sisera and his host (Ju.