14 Saying to the sixth angel | loosed, which were prepared for which had the trumpet, Loose an hour, and a day, and a month, the four angels which are bound and a year, for to slay the third in the great river Euphrates. part of men. 15 And the four angels were 14. Loose the four angels, &c. The command is to loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates. The great river. The Euphrates is a great river, and was more especially so in the estimation of the ancients. Its banks were the seat of many noble cities; and towering above all in importance was Babylon, "the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency." The Euphrates, or the region thereof, was the eastern boundary of the Roman empire, and that river flowed through a vast extent of populous country. Being far removed from the capital of the empire, and the nations bordering upon it being hard to govern, it was expedient to keep armies there, under experienced generals. The first efforts of the Romans to obtain possession of Jerusalem having failed, it became necessary for them to draw their forces together. Dr. Hammond says, "It is said by Josephus, (lib. 5, ch. 6,) that the Syrian legions of the Roman army lay as far as Euphrates; and Philo in his Embassy mentions the armies reaching to Euphrates." What, then, does the loosing of the four angels bound in the great river signify, but a call upon the Roman commanders in that region, who had been detained there by previous orders, to repair to Jerusalem with their forces? Vespasian may perhaps be regarded as one of those angels, for he was a leader of the Syrian army, and repaired to Jerusalem after the former leader, Cestius Gallus, had failed to subdue the rebellious Jews. It was by this army that he was nominated as emperor, at which he repaired to Rome, and was succeeded by Titus, his elder son, who prosecuted the war in Judea. This, then, is what is 16 And the number of the meant by the loosing of the angels in the Euphrates, viz., the calling the Roman commanders, who were encamped in different provinces in the vicinity of that river, to bring their forces to the city. In the interim between the withdrawal of Cestius and the approach of Vespasian, the Christians had an opportunity to escape from the ill-fated city; and in this way the 144,000 who had been sealed in their foreheads fled away, and were saved; Rev. vii. 3, 4. This all transpired before the temple was destroyed, because the voice that com. manded to loose the four angels came from the golden altar, which could not with propriety have been said after the temple and the altar were demolished. 15. An hour, and a day, and a month, and a year.-' That is, they were prepared and ready at all times for any length of service; they were instant in season and out of season; they were ready at any warning for the work of destruction. They were to take part in the destruction of the Jews, and do their share in slaying that misguided people. 16. Two hundred thousand thousand. -This is a certain number for an uncertain. It was a custom of the ancients, and is still retained by the moderns, to express an uncertain number by a certain one. The demons were called legion, not because the exact number of them was known, but because they were many. We might say of a vast host, "there was a million of them," without intending that exact number. So when it is said, the number of the horsemen were "two hundred thousand thousand," or two hundred millions, the only idea intended to be eonveyed was that there were a large number. army of the horsemen were two | and out of their mouths issued hundred thousand thousand: and fire, and smoke, and brimstone. I heard the number of them. 17 And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breast-plates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; The expression is surely hyperbolical. The Roman armies assembled around Jerusalem were very numerous. 17. And thus I saw. That is, I am now about to describe more particularly the appearance of the horses and the horsemen, which I have mentioned as passing before me in my vision.¶Breast-plates of fire, and of jacinth, and of brimstone. It is but a matter of small importance to settle, whether these breast-plates were worn by the horses or the riders. They were of fire, jacinth and brimstone; i. e., they were in appearance like these articles. A breast-plate very highly polished, and reflecting brilliantly the rays of the sun, or of the camp fires, would seem like a breastplate of fire. The jacinth was a precious stone; it is mentioned, Rev. xxi. 20, as one of the garnitures of the foundation of the New Jerusalem. Some of the breast-plates looked like a brilliant of this description; and others had the appearance of brimstone, i. e., (we think,) burning brimstone. As the heads of lions. They were fierce, fearless; their manes were like lions' manes; they had the appearance of great majesty and strength. The best horses are trained to war; and the nations around the Euphrates, from whom this cavalry came, abounded in the best of horses. Fire, and smoke, and brimstone. This is purely the work of the revelator's imagination. Out of the mouth, or nostrils, for the breath may proceed from either; and in a hard chase, or in great citement, the horse breathes through his mouth. 18 By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths. 19 For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for When highly excited, he drives his breath with great force through his nostrils, and we say he snorts. By this noise, he is sometimes described as being heard at a distance. "The snorting of his horses was heard from Dan: the whole land trembled at the sound of the neighing of his strong ones: for they are come, and have devoured the land, and all that is in it; the city, and those that dwell therein;" Jer. viii. 16. The horses which John saw breathed fire and smoke from burning brimstone. It is customary in our day, in a painting of the excited horse, to show him with head uplifted, ears put forward, eyes all kindled with animation, and phosphorescence at his nostrils. So saith Job: "The glory of his nostrils is terrible;" xxxix. 20. To give the horses of the eastern cavalry the appearance of great animation, fierceness and power of destruction, the revelator describes them as breathing out flames, like the flames that proceed from burning brimstone. 18. By these three. That is, "by the fire, by the smoke, and by the brimstone." The power described by them is meant. By this power did the cavalry its part in the work of destruction. their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt. 20 And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the heighten the description, and hence said, "For their power is in their mouth and in their tails;" i. e., in the latter as well as the former. He says no more about their mouths, but proceeds, "their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt." Such is the picture. They had not such tails as horses generally have, -the long, graceful, flowing hair, but instead of these, serpents were appended "their tails were like unto serpents;" that is, they resembled serpents, and like serpents, "they had heads." ¶ With them they do hurt. The description is very singular; but the only intention is to make the horses appear as fearful as possible; to give them the power of doing fearful execution. It must be confessed that horses and horsemen thus armed would be invincible. Breathing fire, and smoke, and brimstone, they could not be resisted in front; and having tails like serpents, with heads, (the part of a serpent's body in which his fearful power lies,) they were safe from assaults in the rear. Such is the picture; and when we consider how much in the habit of hieroglyphical writing were the ancients, and what strange pictures they sometimes presented to give the idea of fearful power, we shall be less surprised at the revelator's images. 20. Were not killed by these plagues. The plagues mentioned in the Apocalypse will be treated of more fully under xxii. 19. The plagues in this case were certainly not in the immortal state, but were such as were inflicted by the armies_that came up against Jerusalem. ¶ Repented not. See under verse 21. ¶ Worship devils. — The word here works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear nor walk: "It is is not diabolous, but daimonia. manifest here (says Dr. Campbell) that the word rendered devils ought to have been demons; nor is it less manifest, that every being who is not the one true God, however much conceived to be superior to us, whether good or bad, hero or heroine, demigod or demi-goddess, angel or departed spirit, saint or sinner, real or imaginary, is in the class comprised under the name demons. And the worship of them is as much demonolatry, (if you will admit the word,) as the worship of Jupiter, Mars, and Minerva. This may serve to show of how much consequence it is to attend with accuracy to the differences to be found in the application of words. It is only thereby that we can learn their exact import, and be qualified to judge both of the subject and of the completion of scriptural prophecies. As to the worship of the devil, tou diabolou, nothing can be clearer than that in Scripture no pagans are charged with it; and as to the worship tou darmonian, beings subordinate to the Supreme, it may be considered how far we can with justice say that the pagans are peculiarly chargeable. It will deserve to be remarked, by the way, that the only difference between demonolatry and idolatry appears to be, that the first regards the object of worship, the second the mode. The former is a violation of the first commandment; the latter of the second. The connection, however, is so intimate between them, that they have rarely, if ever, been found separate." (Prelim. Diss. vi., p. i., sec. 19.) The Jews seem to have been guilty of both demonolatry and idolatry; for they not only worshipped demons, but 21 Neither repented they of | ceries, nor of their fornication, their murders, nor of their sor- nor of their thefts. idols, also, of gold and silver, and brass, and stone, and wood. writer states, in another place, that when Titus had obtained possession 21. Neither repented they. - This is of the upper city, "he admired not true to the facts as they existed. only some other places of strength in Notwithstanding the Roman armies it, but particularly those strong towers encompassed the city, notwithstand- which the tyrants, in their mad coning the fall of the city and temple duct, had relinquished: for when he was very imminent, notwithstanding saw their solid altitude, and the there had been destruction on every largeness of their several stones, and hand, and full a third part of the the exactness of their joints, as also people had been slain, yet those who how great was their breadth, and how remained, viz., "the rest of the men extensive their length, he expressed which were not killed by these himself after the manner following: plagues," repented not of their wick-'We have certainly had God for our edness. It is a well known fact that the Jews grew more wicked as their troubles increased; they seemed to grow more and more forgetful of God as they fell more and more into need of his protection. The Romans had a very severe and dangerous service to perform, even after their forces around the city had been increased by calling the squadrons from the Euphrates. It seemed for a long time doubtful whether Vespasian, and after him Titus, would obtain full possession of the city and temple, and put down all opposition. What would have been the consequence had the Jews repented of their idolatries, and all their evil deeds, [for idolatry is put in the Scriptures as a metaphor for all kinds of sin,]- before their final fall, we will not undertake to say; but it seems almost impossible that the Romans should ever have prevailed, had the Jews maintained a virtuous union among themselves. The city was very strong in a military point of view. It stood on a high elevation, and had great works and ramparts to secure it. Josephus says, "The temple was like a citadel, having walls of its own, which had more labor and pains bestowed on them than the rest. The cloisters wherewith the temple was enclosed were an excellent fortification." See his third Dissertation. And the same assistant in this war, and it was no other than God who ejected the Jews out of these fortifications; for what could the hands of men, or any machines, do towards overthrowing these towers?'" — (De Bell. Jud., Book vi., ch. ix., sec. 1.) Thus we have the testimony of the Roman commander, that the final overthrow of this people must be attributed to the interposition of God. This fact is treated of in the 10th and 11th chapters of Revelation. We have seen that it was God who gave them up to destruction; and the reason is described in the verses before us, viz., "The rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues [i. e., such plagues as had already occurred] repented not of the works of their hands." They resorted to deeds that might have been expected only from those given up to idolatry. They plundered the temple, melted down the sacred utensils, emptied the vessels of the sacred wine and oil, and distributed them among their followers; and these worse than idolatrous iniquities led Josephus to say, "that had the Romans made any longer delay in coming against these villains, that the city would either have been swallowed up by the ground opening upon them, or been overflowed by water, or else been destroyed by such thunder as the country of Sodom perished by; for it had brought forth a gene CHAPTER X. and a rainbow was upon his AND I saw another mighty head, and his face was as it were angel come down from the sun, and his feet as pillars heaven, clothed with a cloud of fire: To The ration of men more atheistical than power, came down from heaven, were those that suffered such punish- i. e., he was divinely commissioned. ments, for by their madness it was¶ Clothed with a cloud. He was that all the people came to be de- clothed or enveloped in a cloud. stroyed." (De Bell. Jud., Book v., come in the clouds of heaven was, ch. xiii., sec. 6.) When, therefore, among the Jews, the known symbol all which they had suffered, especial- of divine power and majesty. The ly under Cestius Gallus, Vespasian divine presence upon the mount, at and Titus, failed to bring them to re- the giving of the law, was veiled in a pentance, (the Roman armies still cloud. Our Saviour said that at his encompassing their city,) it seems second advent he should come "in God gave them over to absolute and the clouds of heaven, with power and immediate destruction, — city, tem- great glory ;" Matt. xxiv. 30. Hence ple and nation. An angel came the angel is said to be a mighty angel. down from heaven; and with one ¶ A rainbow upon his head. foot on the land, and another on the "great glory" of his coming is desea, he cried with a loud voice, and scribed by the "rainbow upon his swore by him that liveth forever and head." A splendid figure! and ever, that there should be time no what a unity of metaphors — the longer, i. e., that no more time should cloud and the rainbow!¶As it were elapse before the final overthrow. the sun. - His face was as the sun. But of this we shall treat in our notes This was the exact description given on the next chapter. of the Son of man, ch. i. 16: "His countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength." See also the acAt the conclusion of the last chap-count of the transfiguration; Matt. ter, we read that the people repented not "of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts;" ch. ix. 21; and because they repented not, God's forbearance endured no longer. He resolved then to execute judgment without any further delay. And this, let it be remembered, is the principal fact brought out in chap. x. The plan of the revelator in respect to the fall of Jerusalem is fast hastening to its development. CHAPTER X. 1. Another mighty angel. This has reference to some former angel, perhaps to the one of whom we read in ch. ix. 1, under the figure of the star, who came down from heaven to unlock the bottomless pit; or it may refer to the one mentioned ch. v. 2. Come down from heaven. - This "mighty angel," this angel of great xvii. 2. ¶ His feet as pillars of fire. |