PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Expositor's Bible: The Book of Revelation
Milligan, William · 125,235 words · 164 reading sections
_The Beast And Babylon._
But, as to the first of these difficulties, it is not necessary to think that the beast rages in his highest and ultimate form from the very instant when Jesus rose from the dead and ascended to His Father. That was rather the moment of the beast's destruction, the moment when, under the sixth head, he "is and is not;"…
756 wordsSECTION 122_The Beast And Babylon._
(1) Babylon is the representative of religious, not civil, degeneracy and wickedness. She is a harlot, and her name is associated with the most reckless and unrestrained fornication. But fornication and adultery are throughout the Old Testament the emblem of religious degeneracy, and not of civil misrule. In numerous p…
710 wordsSECTION 123_The Beast And Babylon._
In forming a conclusion upon this point, it is necessary to bear in mind that to the eye of the faithful in Israel, and certainly of St. John, there were two Jerusalems, the one true, the other false, to its heavenly King; and that in exact proportion to the feelings of admiration, love, and devotion with which they tu…
805 wordsSECTION 124_The Beast And Babylon._
One other remark has to be made upon the identification of Jerusalem and Babylon by the Seer. It has been said that he has one special aspect of the metropolis of Israel in his eye. Yet we are not to suppose that he confines himself to that metropolis. As on so many other occasions, he starts from what is limited and l…
1,312 wordsSECTION 125_The Beast And Babylon._
A second, most unexpected and most startling, follows. We have seen that in the war between the ten kings and the Lamb the woman is present. That war ends in disaster to her and to those whom she inspires. _The Lamb shall overcome them: for He is Lord of lords, and King of kings._ The name is the same as that which we…
961 wordsSECTION 126Footnotes:
This is the prospect set before us in these words, and this the consolation of the Church under the trials that await her at the end of the age. "When the wicked spring as the grass, and all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever: but Thou, O Lord, art on high for evermore. For…
335 wordsSECTION 127_The Fall Of Babylon._
REV. xviii. Babylon has fallen. We have now the Divine proclamation of her fate, and the lamentation of the world over the doom to which she has been consigned:-- After these things I saw another angel coming down out of heaven, having great authority; and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried with a…
733 wordsSECTION 128_The Fall Of Babylon._
The first words of this voice from heaven deserve peculiar attention: _Come forth, My people, out of her_; that is, out of Babylon, the degenerate Church. We are at once reminded of the striking teaching of our Lord in chap. x. of the fourth Gospel, where He compares Himself to the "door" of the fold, not the door by w…
967 wordsSECTION 129_The Fall Of Babylon._
Three classes of persons are introduced to us: Kings, Merchants, and Sailors. All are _of the earth_; and each class, in its own strain, swells the voice of lamentation. The words are largely taken from the Old Testament, and more particularly from the description of the overthrow of Tyre in Ezekiel (chaps. xxvi., xxvi…
678 wordsSECTION 130_The Fall Of Babylon._
The conclusion to be drawn is that Babylon is a spiritual city. That, as such, she is Jerusalem is further confirmed by the fact that, at the close of the chapter, it is said, _And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that have been slain upon the earth._ Similar words met us in chap. xvii.…
695 wordsSECTION 131_The Fall Of Babylon._
* * * * * We have now reached the close of the longest and most important section of the Apocalypse, beginning, as has been already pointed out, with chap. vi. It is the fourth in that series of seven of which the book is composed; and the main purpose of St. John in writing finds expression in it. As the writer of th…
786 wordsSECTION 132Chapter Xv.
[480] Kliefoth seems to have been the first to point this out. [481] Luke ii. 9; Acts xxvi. 13. [482] Isa. xiii. 19-22. [483] John x. 7. [484] John ix. 35. [485] Exod. xxii. 4, 7, 9. [486] Jer. xvi. 18. [487] Isa. xxiv. 10. [488] Chap. xvii. 16. [489] Chap. xviii. 8. [490] Lev. xxi. 9. [491] Isaac Williams, …
669 wordsSECTION 133Chapter Xv.
It would seem as if we had a similar structure at the point of the Apocalypse now reached by us. There is a transition narrative which, so far as the thought in it is concerned, may be regarded either as closing the fourth or as beginning the fifth section of the book. It is probably better to understand it as the latt…
840 wordsSECTION 134Chapter Xv.
Meanwhile the _smoke of the harlot's torment goeth up for ever and ever_. Again, as once before,[501] we have here no right to fasten our thoughts upon immortal spirits of men deceived and led astray. Such may be included. If they have identified themselves with the harlot, we need not hesitate to say that they are ind…
768 wordsSECTION 135Chapter Xv.
Thus "made ready," the bride now enters with the Bridegroom into the marriage feast; and, as the whole of her future rises before the view of the heavenly visitant who converses with the Seer, he says to him, _Write, Blessed are they which are bidden to the marriage supper of the Lamb_. Once before St. John had heard …
696 wordsSECTION 136Chapter Xv.
_Heaven_ is _open_, and our attention is first of all directed to a rider _upon a white horse_. The description given of this rider leaves no doubt as to who He is. The "whiteness" of the horse is the emblem of a purity that can be connected with the kingdom of God alone. The description of the Rider--_Faithful_, who w…
1,321 wordsSECTION 137Chapter Xv.
The punishment of the wicked, and especially of the three great enemies of the Church, now proceeds; and it ought still to be carefully observed that we have to do with punishment, not war or overthrow in war. It was so at ver. 17, where, after the triumphing Conqueror had ridden forth, followed by His armies, there is…
679 wordsSECTION 138Chapter Xv.
The beast and the false prophet then are cast together into _the lake of fire that burneth with brimstone_; and this lake of fire is further explained in chap. xx. 14 to be "the second death." It is impossible to avoid the questions, How are we to conceive of this "lake of fire"? and, What is its effect? Yet, so far as…
822 wordsSECTION 139_Judgment Of Satan And Of The Wicked._
[495] Mark x. 39. [496] Rev. i. 9. [497] John xvii. 4. [498] Ver. 9. [499] Chap. xx. 7. [500] Comp. [501] Comp. p. 250. [502] Exod. xxxiv. 7. [503] Comp. chap. iii. 20. [504] Comp. Ps. xiv. 9-15; Isa. liv. 5; Hos. ii. 19; Matt. xxii. 2; Eph. v. 32, etc. [505] John ii. 1-11. [506] John iii. 28, 29. [507] Col…
897 wordsSECTION 140_Judgment Of Satan And Of The Wicked._
It is impossible within the limits of a commentary such as the present to discuss the different interpretations that have been given to a passage so difficult and so much controverted as the above. Nothing more can be attempted than to state briefly what seems to be the true meaning of the sacred writer, together with …
847 wordsSECTION 141_Judgment Of Satan And Of The Wicked._
2. What is the meaning of the last words of the third verse of the chapter,--_He_ (_i.e._, Satan) _must be loosed for a little time_? What is this "little time"? The words take us directly to that conception of the _Christian age_ which is so intimately interwoven with the structure of the Apocalypse, and even of the w…
780 wordsSECTION 142_Judgment Of Satan And Of The Wicked._
The condition of the saints thought of in this vision is described, however, not only generally, but in various particulars, all of which, it will be seen, correspond with the apocalyptic idea of it even in a present world. _And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them._ But we have been already told that "they reign over…
650 wordsSECTION 143_Judgment Of Satan And Of The Wicked._
5. The use of numbers in the Apocalypse ought to be remembered. These numbers are invariably symbolical; and, if the number a thousand is to be here interpreted literally, it seems in that respect to stand alone. Nor is it a reply to this to say that, though not in the strict sense literal, it may signify a period of _…
905 wordsSECTION 144_Judgment Of Satan And Of The Wicked._
Putting together the different considerations now adduced, we can have but little difficulty in understanding either the binding of Satan or the reign of the saints for a thousand years. The vision describes no period of blessedness to be enjoyed by the Church at the close of the present dispensation. Alike negatively …
795 wordsSECTION 145_Judgment Of Satan And Of The Wicked._
The three great enemies of the Church have not only been overcome, but judged, and for ever removed from all possibility of troubling the righteous more. But the great mass of the wicked have not yet been overtaken by a similar fate. The time has now come to show us in vision what awaits them also:-- And I saw a great…
860 wordsSECTION 146_Judgment Of Satan And Of The Wicked._
Many may doubtless think that such a hope is too earthly, too material, to be suited to the spiritual nature of the Christian dispensation. They fear that it has a tendency to withdraw us from Him who is "spirit," and who must be worshipped, if He is to be worshipped acceptably, "in spirit and truth."[556] But any such…
741 wordsSECTION 147_Judgment Of Satan And Of The Wicked._
3. The "books" mentioned in the passage are clearly books containing the record of evil deeds alone. When it is said that "books" were opened, and that "another book was opened, which is the book of life," the "books" are distinguished from the "book." It harmonizes with this that the book of life is not opened in orde…
327 wordsSECTION 148Footnotes:
[526] Chap. xix. 21. [527] Chap. xx. 9. [528] Ezek. xxxix. 14. [529] Chaps. i. 3, ii. 16, iii. 20, xxii. 20, etc.; 1 Cor. vii. 29; Heb. x. 37. [530] John v. 25. [531] John v. 28. [532] Comp. chap. vi. 9. [533] Chap. v. 10. [534] Comp. the teaching of our Lord in John xi. 25, 26, and v. 24. [535] John xiv. 19 (…
755 wordsSECTION 149Footnotes:
2. The second difficulty demanding notice is presented by the words of ver. 5, "The rest of the dead lived not until the thousand years should be finished." Who are these called "the rest of the dead," and in what sense did they "live"? The term "the rest," applied to persons, occurs in the following passages of the Ap…
654 wordsSECTION 150_The New Jerusalem._
[549] Comp. Matt. xxii. 12. [550] Chap. xxi. 1. [551] Acts iii. 21. [552] 2 Pet. iii. 10, 13. [553] Rom. viii. 21-23. [554] 2 Cor. v. 4. [555] Comp. 1 Cor. xv. 44. [556] John iv. 24. [557] In connexion with the point here spoken of, reference may be made to an interesting and instructive paper by Canon Dale Ste…
903 wordsSECTION 151_The New Jerusalem._
And there came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls, who were laden with the seven last plagues; and he spake with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the wife of the Lamb. And he carried me away in the spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem, coming do…
793 wordsSECTION 152_The New Jerusalem._
The substance of the vision is a description of the holy city, the new Jerusalem, the true Church of God wholly separated from the false Church, as she comes down from God, out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. Her marriage with the Lamb has taken place,--a marriage in which there shall be no unfa…
871 wordsSECTION 153_The New Jerusalem._
One important question still remains: What aspect of the Church does the holy city Jerusalem, thus come down out of heaven from God, represent? Is it the Church as she shall be after the Judgment, when her three great enemies, together with all who have listened to them, have been for ever cast out? Or have we before u…
761 wordsSECTION 154_The New Jerusalem._
3. This ideal view of the Messianic age is also constantly brought before us in the New Testament. The character, the privileges, and the blessings of those who are partakers of the spirit of that time are always presented to us as irradiated with a heavenly and perfect glory. St. Paul addresses the various churches to…
664 wordsSECTION 155_The New Jerusalem._
(2) Let us look at chap. xxi. 24 and xxii. 2: "And the nations shall walk by the light thereof; and the kings of the earth do bring their glory into it;" "And the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations." Who are these "nations" and these "kings of the earth"? The constant use of the same expressions in …
725 wordsSECTION 156_The Epilogue._
[561] Trench, _Synonyms_, second series, p. 39. [562] Comp. pp. 227, 357. [563] Chap. iv. 3. [564] Matt. v. 14. [565] Ps. xxxi. 21; Isa. xxvi. 1. [566] Ps. xci. 11. [567] Comp. Ezek. xlviii. 31. [568] Comp. Ezek. xl. 2, 3. [569] Chap. xxi. 9. [570] Ezek. xl. 1, 2. [571] Ezek. xliii. 2. [572] Ezek. xliv. 1-3.…
820 wordsSECTION 157_The Epilogue._
Again, we read here that _the Lord sent His angel to show unto His servants the things which must shortly come to pass_; and the statement is the same as that of chap. i. 1. The next words, _And, behold, I come quickly_, are probably words of our Lord Himself; but the blessing upon him _that keepeth the words of the p…
731 wordsSECTION 158_The Epilogue._
It is by no means easy to say whether the following words, _He that is unrighteous, let him do unrighteousness still: and he that is filthy, let him be made filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him do righteousness still: and he that is holy, let him be made holy still_, are to be considered as coming from the A…
951 wordsSECTION 159_The Epilogue._
In connexion with thoughts like these, we see the peculiar propriety of that declaration as to Himself and His purposes next made by the Redeemer: _Behold, I come quickly._ He comes to wind up the history of the present dispensation. _And My reward is with Me, to render to each man according as his work is._ He comes t…
851 wordsSECTION 160_The Epilogue._
First, He is _the root and the offspring of David_, not the root out of which David springs, as if He would say that He is David's Lord as well as David's Son,[603] but the "shoot that comes out of the stock of Jesse and the branch out of his roots that bears fruit."[604] He is the "Son, who was born of the seed of Dav…
973 wordsSECTION 161_The Epilogue._
Once more the Seer--for it seems to be he that speaks--turns to the book which he has written. In the Prologue he had said, "Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of the prophecy, and keep the things which are written therein."[611] In the same spirit he now denounces a woe upon him who adds to it: …
699 wordsSECTION 162_The Epilogue._
* * * * * We have reached the end of this singular, but at the same time most instructive, book of the New Testament. That the principles upon which it has been interpreted should be generally accepted were too much to hope for. Their acceptance, where they are received, must depend mainly upon the consideration that …
376 wordsSECTION 163Footnotes:
[585] Comp. p. 373. [586] Chap. i. 1. [587] Chap. xix. 5. [588] John xix. 35. Wider questions than can be here discussed would be opened up by an inquiry how far the same method of explanation may be applied to John xvii. 3. [589] Chap. i. 3. [590] Chap. i. 4, 9. [591] Chap. xix. 10. [592] Dan. xii. 4; comp. vii…
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