The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 167

the lnflttence or our Lord's df,scriptlon in to aak, " la it worih while? If Obristiant\y Matt. mv. is notie,,able. The special involves all this suffering, would it not be revelation of God's preeenoe or of hie judg- better to be as the world is, and 88C6pe? " ments ii wroally depicted nuder the figure a picture of the future is given. The fifth of terrestrial commotion (see on oh. vi. I; aeal shows that, immediately upon the com- also Isa. ii. 19; xiii. 18; :s:uiv. 4: Ezek. pletion of this lire, the souls of the righteoua xuii. 7, 8 ; Hos.- x. 8; J oelii. 30; Hag. ii. are at peace ; and the sixth aeal shows that 6). The last throe Beals seem connect.ed a day of reckoning will eertainly oome for more especially with life in the next world. the world; while the seunth seal is au The fifth sea.I. displays to us the souls of as.suran(•e of heaven. It I, worth while, tbe faithfnl in peace, but desiring the therefore, to endure and to peneve.re, both perfect consummation of their bli1111; the on account of God'■ reward to the just, and .tixth announces the oenaintj' of future his retribution upon the unjust. Thus judgtllBllt, when all will be set right, when would the ~ignification of the visions be the right.eous will be preeerved and the easily oomprehended by thoee for wboru -wicked justly TOOOmpensed; the seventh they were originally intended; and the •1:ypifies the indescribable joy and peace of same Jesso!UI ore equally 1'81.uable for the heaven. It seems :reasonable, therefore, to Church 11,t all time. Grotitl8 considers that consider the J)lll!Bnge eh. Ti. l~vii. 17 this vi11iou refers to the destruction of 118 all contained under the sixth seal; since, J'erusalem; Elliott, Faber, and Mede n(er aJ1hough set forth at rather greater length its acoom plish ment to the beginning of tile thun tlie other seals, it all followe in natural fourth century; Wordsworth eeea the "last sequence-the destruction of the earth, the age" of the Church represented ; Stern fear of the wicked, the preeervation and joy thinks it indicates the general state of the of the righteous; and then follows heaven, Church: Wetstein, the corumotions in-JudlB!i portrayed under the opening of the seventh previous to the destruction of Jerusalem; eeat · Some hal'B ·tried to separate eh. vii. while Cunuinghame and Frere see a refer- aa "an episode,'' or rather two el)iaodea, ence to the French Revolution of 178j. commencing at, and marked off by, the But these in~tations do not fulfil the .,..,...0 ,.....a of ver. J and ,..... a. ftlffll of ver. condition, mentioned ahol'B, since the Chris- 9," after these tbinga." But this expreeaion, tians to whom thia hook is addressed were though undoubtedly marking the beginning ignorant of those events yet in the future. of a freah phase of the rnbject, does not And, lo, there wu a gru.t earthquake. nece811arily imply the opening of an entirely Omit "lo." The earthquake ie the Ulll181 now and ullOODllected disoourae. This view manifestation of God'e presence or epeoial of the sixth aeal is in harmony with what dealing with men (flio:la mpra). Thie ia appears to be the general plan of the 'l'isiooa the answer to the question of the aaints in or the - - - . n is imporiant to bear in the tlrtb seal-the period of probation is mind, in our intelpretation of the Apocalypse, finite. And the 111111 b - • black u ■aot­ theee WO principi-flrat, the DOOk WU oloth of hair, ThllB Isa. L S, " I clothe the addn!Moo to certain Obriatiana for a definite heal'BnB with blaoknBIB, &Dd I make MOit- pllrJ)OII!. and iii object woald be aet forth cloth their covering" (of. Matt. xxiv. 29). ao ae to be comprehended b:, tbem: ll800nd, And the moon beoame u blooi; U,e whole the truths thus oontained must be aueh as t11001J (ot Joel ii. SI, quoted in Aota ii. to be applicable to the poaition of DIADki.nd 20). in general in all age& We have, therefore, \'er. 1s:-Ani the ■ta.ft of h&ave11 fell to inquire to whom and (or what purpose ato the earth (of. Matt. xxiv. 29, "The the oook ,ru primarily writkm,. and then stars ■hall fall from heal'OD "). The figure bow the lt.'880ll8 contained 0811 beneftt ma.n- of "stars.. is sometimes UBed to typifr kind in general. It thus appears that the "rulers," as iu Numb. uiv. · 17, "There mpyage WRB origiP.all:, intended aa an shall come a ■tar out of Jacob;" Isa. xiv, enoouragement and a ■upport to those 13, "I [Lucifer] will exalt my throne above Christians who were being penrecnted, and the &tare of God.n Some baye thus been were •ui'ering in ftrious ways, and whose led to find a particular application or this patienoe might be inadequate t.o preserve sentence. Stem considers that the falling them t.brough trials BO severe or 10 long. away of Christian rulers ie signified: while The vieiona of the -Is would speak plainly m1m:, refer it to 1:he overthrow of pagan to 1111Gh a■ tbeile. The fint four would tell rulers. ha u a :lg tree eaateth her them that, though they must not doubt of aiimeq :Ip, when the ii! lhakea of a mighty Christ'• final viotory, it is yet with God'• wind; ler vnripejlg1. Probably the unripe ,knowledge and permiBSion that this life i ■ ftga of the spring, many of whioh would. ba afflieted with troubles of dift"erent kinds; 1haken down by a strong wind, or possibly it is not becaD1e God is weak, forgetful, or the winter flge, which commonly fall off . unjW!t. ThBDt leaf any thould be tempted whi;e unripe. The flpre ii doubUesa IDI• OB. vr. 1-17.J THE REVELATION 01P ST. JOUN TUB DIVINE. =191