The Pulpit Commentary — Revelation — Section 253

. llOMILIES iY VARIOUS AU'THORS. Ver. 2.-.Tha littk book; or, cluwacteristics of revelation,• "He bad in his hand a little book open." Like as there was an interval between the opening of the shth'·and seventh seals, so is there between tne sounding oftpe sixth and seventh, trumpet.. ·The record of this latter ititerval, and of the events which took place in it, stretches thi:ough this tentµ. chapter down to ver. ·13 of oh.· :xi, This chapter is occupied with the account of the little book which St. J ohu saw in the hand of "another· strong ·angel ·coming down out of heaven." The other "strong angel" is spoken of in eh. v. 2; in.con;. nootion with the seven~sealed: book held in the right liand of "'him that sat o~:tbe throne, and which only the Lion of the tribe of Judah" was found worthy to ta)t.e aitd open. This book .told of' here is described as "little" as cori:rpared with that, and, probably, in contrast with it. Now, although the historical interpreters affirm ·tlillt this little book means the Bible, as we have it, yet the difficulties that beset 'I.his interpretati6n are so many and so great, that it has been abandoned by all the more reliable expositors of the Apocalypse as inconsistent with its avowed purpose to decfate the "things that must shortly come to pass," an<t the time of which was "at hand;" still, what is here ·said of this "Httle book " does suggest to us not a few of the most intereating and important characteristics of the Word of God. ·For note- I. THE AHBASSADOB WHO BBINOB IT. Much may be learnt concerning any memge that is sent by an earthly monarch from the character and rank and insignia. which belong tQ the messenger. If the business which he bas to transact be of great impor- tance, and it be desired to impress its ·significance upon the minds of th9se to whom he is sent, he himself will be of ,such dignity, and accompanied with such· tokens of authority and power, as· will prepare those to whom he comes rightly ·to receivtJ the message he brings. &'here, he who brings God's message to mankin.11 is one of no mean order, and· the tokens of hie authority are of· the most impressive 'kind. ' 1. He comes from heaven. The Bible is not a merely human production. It is inspired by God ; it is a message from heaven. It contains what no human mind could. have known ~ invented; it speaks with an authority that they who receive the message realize to be from God. Inspiration cannot be argued and so demonstrated to the intellect, but it speaks to the soul, and is felt to be present in the Scriptures, which therefore are declared to be the Word of God. It wakes up a response in the eoul, quickening, informing, strengthening, consoling, uplifting, sanctifying it, as no mere human words have ever done or can do, save as they draw their inspiration from ·this source. 2. It is mighty in ita power. It was" a strong angel" that St. John saw, suggesting to him and to us the strength of that mesSl\ge which he was commissio11ed to bring. What trophies of its power has not the Bible won? Where is the age, the country, the rank, the character, the intellectual condition, the circumstances of any kind, amid and over which it has not proved strong to subdue and bless and save? · 3. It, trulh,fill thtt soul with awe. The angel was" clothed with a cloud "-symbol tlus of the majesty and mystery that surround and invest the fowidation-teaching1 of the Word of God. The soul can only bow in reverence and awe before them, and oonfi!ia its feebleness b> their presence. 4. But lhey are crowned 'lflith ·blesaed prM1lilt Rd ~ "'.£ho r,ainbqw,,.waa ~po;D, his head." . ~Qugh ~ b,i ~. much tbatwo ~ penetrate o.r ~mehe!ML ne.T,erthelesit the praj.Qminallt (ll:iaraof,eristic is tha,t !>i," g#a,:,e.., tba$ of which. the raiuhow wv. at the .mll$, ~ is ~v,~ ·the bE!autuul ~,- bi~ q:ml»L , E'fen tlipa&awful jw)gi:Qents oJ..God s~n in;,f,llfr. 7.are ther,i:_oe<:lared to be-.,~ ef t" ~e .-OC!d tj.di~ ~h~ he. declared t.o his l!er".!141}il th~ prophets ", (11eJ1 Bmse4, Vera1on); ~:whim. W!' preach .out of the Bible we ~e smcl to pffl.l,9h the ~ - This ja. jjs .llllffll;;cli~t4?. and, intent. P? They • ~ '<VtUJ ~ cilt owr MlrlAh.flife. f llis ~&;was.as it w~ fA'r ,if/!'•" <'TNly,the light ia !!cWoet, &11da pl~,thing it 1, io,~hQ].d the,sun "---i!O says Ecc~IWi xi. 7, . An4J1ie CQnfll!lsiorp. of •-1iant grace. this•:blessed light ,whicli ;Streanis fqrth,t,om_ tbe Word of Goo, is a .oommonplace of all t h e ~ -writers. and. 9f. all who have rejoi~ in that light. ~ AM Jhey akall .nner ~ drilJlm: forlh;,<»' mp,oveq.,, , «Hif _f~ as pillars. 9f fire, n_.anc;l ver. 2, "He planted his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot uwn. t~e ~~-" His invincible power is signified by "the pillars of fire;" and his having set hls feet upon the earth and sea tells of " the immovable steadfastness of the heavenly Conqueror a~inst all J.b,e resi!'t&nce. o( his en~es." He _is _come. to stay, and he cannot be dnven forth. · Wlxen ·and where has not the attempt to dislodge the Word ~µ- ~ade? ijut it hu never. sui:Qeeded. Alj.JJ4urc;li hiswy pi:ov:es thi,s. hi many :111es.~yd places it h~ been d~th to keep a copy of the.sacred writings. Wherever they ·w;qre ~und, they were ruthless},y d~trQyed, and often they also wiih whom they were foun4, • J~ut every copy of. the Bible that we poS811911 to-day p?Qvea how. 'partial 81}\l, J~tive ~ such endeavour~ .were•. -· Gloit be ~o GOil that they. were so I .. .· .JI,., Tmll>EIIOBIP'.m;>li GIVEN OF IT~ CIA ~ttl!) book open.'>i .:L, .d book. The Bibi' i!!-uotj,he. ni,velation ~f, but the f!lCOrd of it. .. But withc,ut the ;iword the revelation ~oajd not have aTipled ,µ11.. . Great e:com hri,s beep poured on the, idea of "a bpok revela:. ~~;imd au ~manse deal of poor wit has .beeri ,expended upon the iclea,, that Goq. a!i9uli;l. bi,.ve ~~. such mean material~ as books are made of as the ·vehicle o( W,s ~y,Ii/.tion o(hinlself•• Butthe Bibfo is nq~ the prv:elation, ~Y its record.; and it ill ,.r;eaaoJl f,;,r eterp.11tgratit1Jde that his re_yelat1on h~ been so given that it . can be thu, ,feO()J'ded. i :In what other way coajd, the knowledge of God have been BO well preserved , o r ~ abroad? · (Of.. on this' 'l'b,e Eclipse of Faith,' by H. Rogers.) 2. I t s ~ i ~ c e . It ~ "a little book." .. In these days of gold and gllllll, when wealt]j, ~q armies are tho11ght to be the great ~eans of acoomplishi~g, everythin~, tbi:! spiritual force that lies hidden iD "~ little book" ,counts .but for little. , But what hat;ji ;o.ot God wrought by it? And w11 ma:r Wgrateful that it~ littlti, ap.d 1!,0t.a pondeWU11 library .which it would need a lifetiD;1e even to know part of, bu,t Qne small volwne. which can lie ~;and reread and caroe4 everywhere~ we will.. No dou~f th11 littlB!].jl,se of th11 book here spoken of is in~nded to lie in contrast. with that vast VQhu:ile,wld of in oh. v., which WU. written within: and without, Bf) complete, BO full, was 'it.' This tells of hut" part of his ways;" that seems to have been the declaration oI allhil!- will. But it suggeats the seeming insi~iµcance, b9th in form and foroe, of ibil.t whlph W!! ~ the booli: of God, but whose msignificance ir,, indeed, only seeming;'.iiot 'kea,1: 3,. Ii~ to ~ an ~ bopk. St. John saw it " ppen " in. the hand of the ~get ';('Ilere liave been and there are those who would have the }Vord of God closed, if n,ot entirely, yet t;o large utent. They a:flirm it is not a boo~ fo~ the common peoplll, but fo~ the priests of the Churc. h. ; apd for centuries it was k~t_ closed, a.lid is even nor looked npon with more or less of dislike. But, blessed be Gqjl, it is operi, not to the eyes alone, but to the mind. For though it contains the profoundest truths that the intellect of ~ has ever .aiµdied, still it contains •also those tru.th~ml they are the most nu~us and imw,tant-wbioh the. humblest and least instru,ct/)d are able to receive &JJ.d rejoice in, Gpd- hat4 caused the ~on to be written and made " plam/' so that .~ unlearned may learn, and t,he most S1mple comp,rehend. . · . . I II. Tu VOI<lBB FOR AND .AG.mTST n'.· We read that the angel cried with a loud voice, and that the seven thunders utter,cl. their voices. Now : I. The angelic 1IOice ■uggests: (1) The,tarllingsff«t of the Word o/Goa ~ mankind. Theangel's voice 'Y!III "aswhen a lion f04l'Bth," . So did the Word of God aff"ec::t men. See wl,len at the lteformation it ~as first freely giY"'1 to E~pe. llo\V it ?Qu,ied men's ,D,UPPt, awoke the from iheu lethargy, nation after wit1on heard. ~ aound and broke away from tb, ~ and 1U18 in: which ~y had ao lone lived I And it it ao atlll. " Wbali  tt. s. 1.,;-11,] THE REVELATION. OF ST. JOHN T1ilE Dm]iJl -