Gospel, or to the office of publishing it, which the angel here has. It is therefore a definite age,1 which, in accordance with the analogy of the other times, consists of two periods (chroni), and extends from the publishing of this Gospel to the judgment day itself. This length of the age in particular, besides many other things, affords an occasion for considering whether this angel be Arndt . We are not so certain that the second angel is already come ; if he is already come, it must be understood of Spener. The third precedes the close of the 42 months by a shorter interval : although the worship of the beast himself, and not only the worship of the image, which is subsequent, is forbidden by him. — suayyeA/Va/) There is a similarity of expression in ‘Trzipuff/Jjov — vreipaffai, ch. iii. 10, and eua yyskiov — ibuyyi\i<sui, in this passage. — rods xadrgAvovs) Several copies read rods xaroiTiodvras,2 accord- ing to the more usual phraseology of the Apocalypse. The Reuch- linian Manuscript has joined both readings : the better part of the copies, together with Lat. Orig. To sit on the earth is something more innocent than to dwell on the earth : the latter is the part of citizens, the former of persons less closely connected with it. They whom the three woes strike are spoken of as dwelling upon the earth : they to whom the everlasting Gospel is preached, as sitting on the earth. The difference between the words plainly appears from Isa. xviii. 3, pK bn 'QB* b.
7. K ptoote, of judgment ) D. Lange , Epicr. p. 402, refers this preaching to the last times : but this however ought not to be
1 But that the notion of a definite age contributes in no slight degree to con- firm the harmony of the rest of the chronology of Scripture, the sainted Author appears to me to have proved in his Ord. temp. Ed. I. p. 410, Ed. II. p. 352, n. 20, saying, Paul makes repeated mention ruv otiavav, of the ages, especially in the Epistles which were written when the close of the fourth space of a thousand years was now drawing near. Rom. xvi. 25 ; Eph. ii. 7, iii. 9 ; Col. i. 26 ; 1 Tim. i. 17 : 2 Tim. i. 9 ; Tit. i. 2 ; especially 1 Cor. x. 11, where he says that ret t&y) ruv ctiuvav, the ends of the ages , have arrived. The duration of the world contains 35 times, or 7 periods (chroni), or 3£ ages altogether : and when Paul wrote thus, 18 times were just on the close, and 17 times still remained. These are in the ratio of 1-^j to and are in the total 3i ages. We do not know how distinct a knowledge the apostles had respecting the past and future times of the world, before the Apocalypse was given to John, but undoubtedly they were so governed by God, that their expressions admirably agreed with the discovery about hereafter to take place. Comp. D. Burscher, in dem Versuch einer kurzen Erlauterung des Propheten Jeremiae Lcips. 1756, pp. 255, 256. — E. B.
2 BC Orig. Vulg. Cypr. 312 read xxthofiivovs. Rec. Text has xxtoixovvtx;, with A Memph. Syr. — E.