ed, in some sort, when Charles the great was proclaimed emperor of the Romans, or when Justinian received the imperial dignity.

But Jurieu has given another opinion concerning the healing of the deadly wound, which I prefer. He says, that the wound was healed when the ten Christian kings were deceived by the clergy to acknow-~ledge the bishop of Rome as sovereign pontiff. In this view, "all the world wondered after the beast. And they worshipped the dragon, which gave power to the beast, saying, who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?" By this submitting to the temporal and spiritual tyranny of Rome, they in reality forsook the Lord, and did homage to the devil.

V. 7, 8. "And power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. And all that dwell on earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." This is not true of the German empire; but it is really true, that the Christian world in general submitted to the pontificate. "And power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.” This is exactly the same as the duration of Daniel's little horn, twelve hundred and sixty days, which, according to the manner of calculating prophesy, implies so many years. Then he shall surely be destroyed. "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."

IV. We shall next proceed to St. John's two horned beast, which is expressly descriptive of the pontificate.

Rev. ch. xiii. 11. “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." The clerical empire rose out of the earth as a wild beast leaves his den in the dark, and arrived at the highest glory and power: the two horns represent the two swords, or temporal and spiritual power. The decretals or

th

bulls of the church illustrate this; they are issued in the high tone of superior majesty.

V. 12. "He exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth, and them which dwell therein, to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed." Pagan Rome endeavored to subjugate all nations to her unlimited control, and Christian Rome has endeavored by every means to do the same. She has healed the wounded imperial power by presiding as the queen mother over her ten reigning sons.

V. 13. "And he doth great wonders, so that he maketh fire to come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men." The pope, and the princes of the church, represent the sun and stars of heaven, and his anathemas have frequently set whole kingdoms in a flame of discord and war.

V. 14. "And deceiveth them, by means of those miracles, saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword and did live.” The pontificate is but an image of the ancient Roman power. The emperors had their senators, generals, prefects, and governors; and the popes have their cardinals, legates, metropolitans, and bishops. These are the princes of the anti-christian empire, who have "power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should speak, in lying and ambiguous oracles, as well as the images in the pagan temples; and they have power to cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast, should be killed."

The accomplishment of this prophesy is sufficiently obvious from the wars of extermination which the pontificate has prosecuted against all who would not submit to its tyranny; and from the cruel and bloody procedures of the courts of inquisition. Indeed, so rigorous and cruel have been those proceedings, that they have caused "all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads." As the slayes had their master's mark, so the catholics have been com

pelled to receive badges of slavery; they have been compelled to receive the cross and the chrism on their forehead; they carry the crucifix, rosary and chapelet in their right hand, and on pain of damnation, are obliged to confess, at least once a year, to their proper priest. Surely these are badges of slavery!

V. 17, 18. "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." Nothing can be more striking than the application of this prophesy to the pontificate in all its decretals it has prohibited the catholics, on pain of excommunication, to have any intercourse with heretics. With regard to the number of the beast, the good Irenætus affirms, on the testimony of persons who had conversed with St. John, that it was to be found in the numerical letters of his name. He adduces the Greek ΛΑΤΕΙΝΟΣ, which exactly gives that number, from which he infers that the anti-christ was to be of the Latin church.† But it should also be remarked, that the numerical letters in the pope's favorite title, Vicarius dei generalis in terris, contain the same number.‡

V

5

G

0

T

Du Pin's Ecc. His. Lateran Coun. 1215.

Euseb. Hist. Ecc. lib. v. cap. viii.

In the sixteenth century, our reformers frequently place the name Louis, or LUDOVICVs, opposite this text, which gives the number 666.

V. In the seventeenth and eighteenth chapters of this book, we have a very figurative description of the anti-christian empire, and of its destruction. But the Holy Spirit saw it meet to disguise the representation, under the mystic name of Babylon. Had the description been more open, it would have made a premature exposure of the divine council, and might have occasioned the suppression of those scriptures which are here considered.

V. 3, 4. "And I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet colored beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads, and ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in purple, and scarlet color, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand, full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication." The empires of the earth are represented by beasts, but the church is frequently represented by a woman. Hence, this woman is the harlot church presiding over the empire, and having the ten kings reined at her command. The scarlet, purple, gold, and jewels, in which she is dressed, represent the splendor of the papal court, which has aggrandized itself by every species of ecclesiastic corruption. The golden cup, full of intoxicating wine, is expressive of the pomp and majesty with which Rome asserts its dignity, and conducts its worship, and of the fascinating effects which it has upon the people. They wonder after the beast, and are dazzled with the decorations of their mother. But the Most High God, who seeks his temple in the humble heart, abominates this deceit and pride. The vulgate translation, used by the papists, reads, poculum aurcum plenum abominatione, and the first letters of these words make Papa: if this was intended by the Holy Spirit, as Jurieu thinks, the author of these corruptions is published by name. The name, however, is sufficiently marked in the following verse by four luminous characters.

V. 5. And upon the forehead was a name, written, Mystery-Babylon the great-the mother of harlots-and abomination of the earth." When the duke

de Montmorency was at Rome, he learned, on good authority, that this term-" mystery," was written on the pope's diadem, and that it was erased on account of this text. This term is understood to be of the same import as St. Paul's mystery of iniquity, which began to work very early in the church. And it is a mystery of the profoundest nature, that so much ambition and wickedness should be couched under the garb of humble sanctity; that the pontiff should call himself the servant of servants, and yet retain the title of Vice Deo.

Rome is here denominated Babylon; because, as that haughty empire captivated the apostate Israelites, and demolished their temple; so the pontificate has extended its sovereignty over the apostate church, and defaced the superstructure raised by the apostles. Likewise, as God preserved Israel in captivity, and brought them back after seventy years to rebuild his city and sanctuary, so he has preserved a people in the corrupt and tyrannical church to revive and reform his pure religion; and at the expiration of the 1260 years, he will complete their emancipation, and destroy the empire of their enemies.

Concerning the two remaining names, we need but add, that as a woman renders her character infamous by leaving a faithful husband and becoming a prostitute, so this church, by bowing to idols, has in reality forsaken the Lord, and rendered herself detestable by innumerable idolatries and crimes.

V. 6. "And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus, and when I saw her I wondered with great admiration." In her intoxication, she thought to have secured her revenues and honors by branding the saints with the appellation of heretics, and by exterminating them; but it developed her real character, and caused the world to hate her. We have but to read the history of the crusades she published against the Waldenses, Albigenses, and others; the history of her inquisitions and massacres; of her bloody wars