written. And to tear asunder that which time may not yet have fully unfolded or unsealed, were to do violence to the word of God. Yet we may read, that besides the long period during which the woman remained in the wilderness, mention is made of war in heaven, of the discomfiture of Satan and his being cast unto the earth-of his great wrath at last, because he knows that he has but a short time-of woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the seaof the flood cast out of the serpent's mouth after the woman of the earth helping the woman and swal lowing up the flood, and finally of the wrath of the dragon, and his making war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus.

The contest of the church is not yet over; nor can all the forms of its warfare be yet literally described. Time may not yet have unfolded that by which alone the prophecy can be unsealed. The judgments of God may be manifest, and yet his strange work may remain to be done. But while thus there may still be needful exercise for the patience as well as the faith of the saints, there may, at the same time, be some warrant for believing that the expiry of the twelve hundred and sixty years is not a period of repose to the church or to the world. It is the ceasing of the time during which the witnesses were to testify, and in which the kingdoms of the western empire were to be given into the hands of the church of Rome. But it is not said that they were to be easily, or in a moment, wrenched from its grasp. There was still to be war in heaven-great wrath on the earth— and there is the announcement of another woe. The papal kingdom was not to rest in peace, after wearing out the saints of the Most High. Nor was the strife of the kingdoms of this world against the kingdom of Christ at an end, that they should all serve

and obey him. On the termination of the 1260 years, the judgment, as often repeated, and as still remains to be shown, was to sit upon the рарасу, which was to be consumed and destroyed until the end.

The infidel power, which was at last to arise, was destined to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts, or kingdoms, of the earth. Whatever the flood may be that the serpent cast out of his mouth against the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood, we know that against the church of Christ all the gates of hell never shall prevail. Superstition shall be swept from off the earth. That which destroys it, may seem to overwhelm the church; but yet the truth shall be established for ever. "Now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of these things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.” -Heb. xii. 27, 28.

The conclusion of this vision shows the last struggle of the church, the death, perhaps, of the witnesses. But, even though the woe, that is announced to the inhabiters of the earth, unlike to the two former, reach to the sea as well as to the earth (v. 12,); and although the dragon, spoken of in the first part of the vision, reappear at its close, yet, looking to the original formation among the children of men of a church to Christ amidst manifold tribulations, and unto witnesses that afterwards, under another form of persecution, testified successively for 1260 years, who overcame by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and who loved not their lives unto the death; and waiting farther for a little season, the faithful need not fear that the last war and brief triumph of their

wrathful enemies, shall dispossess the saints of their faith and patience, or extirpate the religion of Jesus from the world. The man-child whom the Roman empire, like a dragon, sought in vain to devour, shall rule all nations with a rod of iron. However great may be the wrath of the devil, it is but the last sting of the serpent before the crushing of his head. And the kingdom of God and his Christ shall come.

Thus partly has the progress of history been anticipated, in order to view, in connexion, the one subject of the vision, the conflict of the church; and thus, as well as in preceding prophecies, it may be seen, that momentous events, if not a series of judgments, follow the expiry of "the appointed time," during which the church of Rome was to wear out the saints of the Most High. And their termination may therefore be marked by other wars.

The fate of the church having been noted in the preceding vision, the next, we apprehend, fills up the history of her enemies, pagan and papal Rome, till those judgments begin to sit upon the latter, which subsequent prophecies specially define.

CHAPTER XXIII.

THE FIRST AND SECOND BEAST.

And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his

heads the name of Blasphemy. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion; and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast; and they worshipped the beast, saying, who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things, and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. If any man have an ear, let him hear. He that leadeth into captivity, shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword, must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints. And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth, and them that dwell therein, to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, and deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he hath power to do in the sight of the beast, saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast which had the wound by the sword, and did live.

And he had power to give life to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he caused all, both small and great, rich and poor, and free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast; for it is the number of a man; and his number is six hundred threescore and six.

It seems to be universally admitted, that the first beast in this vision represents Rome; but whether pagan or papal has been disputed by Roman Catholic and Protestant commentators: we adhere to the opinion of the former. The beast, like the four beasts in the vision of Daniel, rose up out of the sea. It had seven heads, or seven kings, seven forms of government which successively ruled over it. Rev. xvii. 10. Like the fourth beast also, he had ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, even as these are similarly interpreted by Daniel as ten kings or kingdoms. A leopard in the vision of the prophet, represented the Grecian empire, a bear the Persian, and a lion the Babylonian-and these were all to be subdued by the Roman, the fourth empire, which is described as a beast great and dreadful and strong exceedingly; and which devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with the feet of it. And the beast which I saw in the vision, says John, was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion.

Upon his heads were the names of blasphemy.And the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.Romulus, the son of a vestal, the reputed suckling of a wolf, the murderer of his