12. Ωδε ἡ ὑπομονὴ τῶν ἁγίων ἐστίν, οἱ τηροῦντες τὰς ἐντολὰς τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ τὴν πίστιν Ἰησοῦ.

12. Here is the patience of the saints, who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.

At R. xiii. 10, where the death of Nero by the sword is foretold, we have a similar intimation, "Here is the patience and faith of the saints." The Seer knew the strength of the temptation to sacrifice to Cæsar, how men would cling to life, and fall into apostacy like green figs shaken from a fig-tree in a high wind (R. vi. 13). The natural instinct of self-preservation had to be met by the strongest arguments in favour of self-sacrifice. These he puts forward in the punishments of hell.

The patience of the saints is to ponder the reward of the good and the punishment of the bad, as set forth above, and to bear patiently the trials of this short life to avoid the worse sufferings of the wicked in the eternal life to come. We gather from S. Paul that " tribulation worketh patience" (Rom. v. 3).

13. Καὶ ἤκουσα φωνῆς ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ λεγούσης, Γράψον. Μακάριοι οἱ νεκροὶ οἱ ἐν Κυρίῳ ἀποθνήσκοντες. ἀπ ̓ ἄρτι ναι, λέγει τὸ πνεῦμα, ἵνα ἀναπαήσονται ἐκ τῶν κόπων αὐτῶν, τὰ γὰρ ἔργα αὐτῶν ἀκολουθεῖ μετ ̓ αὐτῶν.

13. And I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, Write, Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord. From henceforth now saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours, for their works follow them.

(S. puts the stop after år' apтi.)

Angels having threatened with punishments those who lapse into idolatry; a voice from heaven proclaims the reward of the "constant." Blessed are they who die in the Lord, now, and from henceforth. The voice is the voice of the Spirit, the Holy Ghost. It takes us back to the letters to the Seven Churches, which begin with Tpávov, "write," and end with, He that hath an ear let him hear what the Spirit-" Tò πveûμa "—says to the Churches.

That they may rest-"va àvаTańσovтaι." So, the martyrs who cried out "How long, O Lord" were told to rest-"va ȧvаπаúσоνтαι" (R. vi. 11, where see notes).

66

Their labours are ended, but their good works follow them. God warns the Church of Laodicea, "I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot." At R. xx. 12, 13, we are told the dead "were judged, every one according to his works." Again at R. xxii. 12, "My reward is with me, to render to

every man according to his works." Revelation is very clear as to the value of works. S. John in his Gospel throws light on the meaning of works (Jhn. v. 36, vi. 29, viii. 39, 41).

The command to write means that this is an important decree specially worthy of remembrance.

14. Καὶ εἶδον, καὶ ἰδοὺ νεφέλη λευκή, καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν νεφέλην καθήμενον ὅμοιον υἱῷ ἀνθρώπου, ἔχων ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτοῦ στέφανον χρυσοῦν καὶ ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοὐ δρέπανον ὀξύ.

14. And I saw and behold a white cloud ; and upon the cloud one sitting like to the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.

(S = υἱὸν ἀνθρώπου.)

This is a fresh vision. It introduces the Roman catastrophe with a tableau symbolising the fall of Rome. Nεφέλη λευκή, “ α white cloud,” and sitting on the cloud, as on a throne “one like the Son of man." See o καθήμενος, R. iv. 2. "One like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven " (Dan. vii. 13). "And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man" (R. i. 13). (R. i. 13). "Behold He cometh with the clouds (R. i. 7). See Matt. xxiv. 30, xxvi. 64; Acts i. 9, II.

"The Son of man," an expression used frequently by the prophet Ezechiel for the Messias, adopted by our Lord and used by the Seer at R i. 13, evidently means our Saviour. He holds a sharp sickle or reaping hook in His hand, as a symbol of reaping. He appears in an executive capacity in this comprehensive symbolism to match His appearance at the head of the forces which overthrow Rome in Chapter xix. II.

15. Καὶ ἄλλος ἄγγελος ἐξῆλθεν ἐκ τοῦ ναοῦ, κράζων ἐν φωνῇ μεγάλῃ τῷ καθημένῳ ἐπὶ τῆς νεφέλης, Πέμψον τὸ δρέπανόν σου καὶ θέρισον, ὅτι ἦλθεν ἡ ὥρα θερίσαι, ὅτι ἐξηράνθη ὁ θερισμὸς τῆς γῆς.

15. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat upon the cloud, Put to thy sickle and reap, because the hour is come to reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe.

"Another angel," different from the herald angels, "came out of the Temple”; that is, Hebraically, from the presence of God. At R. xi. 19 the Temple of God was opened in heaven, in connection with the judgment, " and there were lightnings and voices." This angel came from the judgment seat of God as a messenger. "Put to thy sickle and reap," is the

command of God. This is in accordance with the teaching of the Gospel of S. John. "This commandment have I received from my Father" (Jhn. x. 18, xii. 49, xiv. 31.

For the harvest of the earth, "Ts yns," is ripe. We have seen that Ts yns is put throughout the Apocalypse for the nonChristian inhabitants of the Roman Empire. As we have done with the Jews, "Ts yns" refers here to pagans. Dr. Swete says, "In the Prophets the harvest, whether wheat harvest or vintage, represents the overthrow of the enemies of Israel, who are ripe for their fall" (op. cit., p. 190). S. John uses the same metaphor with reference to Rome.

The angel announces that the hour has come to reap (see verse 7, ante). The hour is mentioned again in connection with the destruction of Rome at R. xviii. 10, 17, 19. The harvest of paganism took some centuries to reap, but Christians of the first century could not know that.

16. Καὶ ἔβαλεν ὁ καθήμενος ἐπὶ τὴν νεφέλην τὸ δρέπανον αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν, καὶ ἐθερίσθη ἡ γῆ.

16. And he that sat on the cloud, put his sickle to the earth, and the earth was reaped.

(S.= τῆς νεφέλης.)

"And he that sat on the cloud put " his reaping hook upon the Empire. "Eẞaλev, as we have seen at R. ii. 22, does not mean violence. He laid the sickle-ènì Tv Yu-upon the Roman world and it was reaped. He gave the signal for reaping, and forthwith the reaping was finished. Thus the Seer shows the irresistible power and greatness of Him that sat on the cloud. A display of Divine omnipotence was needed to symbolise the destruction of the Roman-world-power.

17. Καὶ ἄλλος ἀγγελος ἐξῆλθεν ἐκ τοῦ ναοῦ τοῦ ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, ἔχων καὶ αὐτὸς δρέπανον ὀξύ.

17. And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle.

There were two harvests, the cereal, and the wine harvest. The idea of gathering these in, as the harvests of iniquity, comes from Joel. "Put ye in the sickles for the harvest is ripe, come and go down for the press is full, the fats run over, for their wickedness is multiplied" (Joel iii. 13). Another angel came out of the Temple of Judgment, with a sharp sickle. Apéπavov means a pruning sickle used for vines as well as for

corn.

18. Καὶ ἄλλος ἄγγελος ἐξῆλθεν ἐκ τοῦ θυσιαστηρίου, ἔχων ἐξουσίαν ἐπὶ τοῦ πυρός, καὶ ἐφώνησεν φωνῇ μεγάλῃ τῷ ἔχοντι τὸ δρέπανον τὸ ὀξὺ, λέγων, Πέμψον σου τὸ δρέπανον τὸ ὀξὺ καὶ τρύγησον τοὺς βότρυας τῆς ἀμπέλου τῆς γῆς, ὅτι ἤκμασαν αἱ σταφυλαὶ αὐτῆς.

18. And another angel came out from the altar, who had power over fire, and he cried with a loud voice to him that had the sharp sickle saying, Put to thy sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vineyard of the earth because the grapes thereof are ripe.

The angel from the altar who had power over fire reminds us of the angel of punishment at R. viii. 5, who " took the censor and filled it with the fire of the altar and cast it on the earth." To have power over fire is to be concerned in the administration of punishments. He ordered the other angel—ἄλλος ἄγγελος -of verse 17, who had the sharp sickle, to gather the clusters of the vineyard of the earth—τῆς γῆς—meaning the Roman Empire. For the grapes are—ήκμασαν—“ full ripe,” from the point of view of iniquity.

19. Καὶ ἔβαλεν ὁ ἄγγελος τὸ δρέπανον αὐτοῦ εἰς τὴν γῆν, καὶ ἐτρύγησεν τὴν ἄμπελον τῆς γῆς καὶ ἔβαλεν εἰς τὴν ληνὸν τοῦ θυμοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ τὸν μέγαν.

19. And the angel put his sharp sickle to the earth, and gathered the vineyard of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.

Εἰς τὴν γῆν, as Prof. Stuart says, " generically expresses the object on or toward which the action of the Spéπavov was directed." The angel gathered the vineyard of the earth, τῆς γῆς, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. The over-ripe vineyard of the earth is symbolical of the moral pagan rottenness of the Empire.

...

The idea of the great winepress of the wrath of God follows the threat at R. xiv. 9, 10, "If any man shall adore the Beast and his image. He also shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God." And these tropes are strongly contrasted with the sin of mystic Babylon, "which made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication" (R. xiv. 8). This symbolism is taken from the O.T. Job says of the wicked man, “ He shall drink of the wrath of the Almighty” (xxi. 20). "Pour out thy wrath on the nations that have not known thee" (Psalm lxxviii. 6). "For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel. Take the cup of wine of this fury at my hand,

and thou shalt make all the nations to drink thereof "

(Jer. xxv. 15).

Note that the "Son of Man" gave the signal for reaping, but the executive work is done by angels.

20. Καὶ ἐπατήθη ἡ ληνὸς ἔξωθεν τῆς πόλεως, καὶ ἐξῆλθεν αἷμα ἐκ τῆς ληνοῦ ἄχρι τῶν χαλινῶν τῶν ἵππων, ἀπὸ σταδίων χιλίων ἐξακοσίων.

20. And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress up to the horses' bridles for a thousand and six hundred furlongs.

The prophet Isaias refers to the winepress and the blood of the Gentiles. "I have trodden the winepress alone, and of the Gentiles there is not a man with me." "I have trampled upon them in my indignation, and have trodden them down in my wrath" (lxiii. 3). The Seer follows Isaias in making blood come up out of the trodden winepress. We know that he has this Isaian figure of the Gentiles, that is of pagan Roman punishment in view. (See R. xix. 13, notes.)

Blood standing up to "horses' bridles" is a Jewish figure, taken from Enoch. "A horse will wade breast high in the blood of sinners" (c. I. 3). But the Seer goes further, and says aπò σταδίων χιλίων ἐξακοσίων, wherein σταδίων has been translated furlongs" for a thousand six hundred furlongs." But length and height, without breadth, makes an unnatural figure. It is a faulty metaphor. It is meant to express quantity, but fails to do so, for the third dimension is wanting. When the Seer wrote this, Christians were being slaughtered in the "stadium "-or amphitheatre-of Rome. His prophetic eye saw the stadia of the Empire running with Christian blood. He had in view the martyrs' cry, "How long, O Lord, dost thou not revenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth (R. vi. 10). It was a question of blood for blood, and the measure of it. As Christian blood was shed in the stadium; stadia are appropriately taken as the measure of retaliation. We are told that blood from the winepress of the wrath of God stood up to the level of horses' bridles in sixteen hundred stadia. Sixteen, the square of four multiplied by one hundred, is a symbol of amplitude. We have here a perfectly natural figure and a measure of quantity, which the servants of God of the first century would readily understand. In their day a stadium. was a place for athletic, gladiatorial, and wild beast shows. In the Acta Martyrum such public arenas were called in