living creatures, the Apocalypse has every where taken for granted. For where did he see the altar openly," and under it the souls of those who were slain for the Word of God," except in the temple? How could the golden altar of incense be before the throne, unless that throne were a temple or a tabernacle? What else will "the four horns of the golden altar” imply, which is in the sight of God? What is meant by the temple, the courts of the temple, and the altar, as well those which were to be measured by the reed of the angel, as those which were to be left out? What the temple of God opened in heaven, and therein the ark of the testimony exposed to view? What the angels coming forth from the temple, and that also in heaven? What is meant by the harpers standing on the brink of the sea, or glassy laver, and singing the song of victory, and that likewise in heaven? What in the fifth verse of the same chapter, of the temple of the tabernacle of testimony opened in heaven? and of the same temple " filled with smoke from the glory of God?" But what places the matter beyond all chance of contradiction is, "And there came forth a great voice out of the temple of heaven from the throne."

Moreover, in this throne or temple, lest any doubt should remain, the place of God's seat, (or, as the Greek interpreters speak of the throne

of Solomon,) Opóvos τns κalidpas, the throne of his resting-place, was that interior and most holy part of the temple, where the ark of the covenant was enclosed with the mercy-seat. For there God was said to dwell, and sit between the cherubim of glory: For which reason, indeed, both the seven lamps in this place, and the golden altar of incense afterwards, are said to have been "before the throne;" that is, before the inmost recess of the temple; for that is plainly said of both in so many words, 2 Chron. iv. and 1 Kings vi. 20, in the former of which the Septuagint has, “ τοὺς λύχνους κατὰ τὸ πρόσωπον τοῦ δαβείρ ;” i. e. the lamps before the face of the Dabir*, (for so the inmost recess is called in Hebrew ;) in the other place, “ Θυσιαστήριον κέδρινον, κατὰ πρόστ ωπον τοῦ δαβείρ,” "the cedar altar of incense before the face of the Dabir;" nearly in the same sense as in the Apocalypse, "before the throne and before God." So the remaining parts, both of the temple and tabernacle, will consist partly of props, partly of steps, and partly of a footstool to the throne properly so called, of which kind that august throne of Solomon is said to have had parts or appendages. Thus far respecting the throne.

2. Four-and-twenty elders, in the next place,

* Before the Oracle. English translation.

surround the throne, who represent the bishops and prelates of the churches, and answer in place and order to the Levites and priests in the camp of Israel, and their number twenty-four corresponds with the daily courses of the priests and Levites, or, what comes to the same result, with the chiefs of the daily courses. Whence beside that they are next to God, they have likewise their thrones there: Moreover, they wear crowns, which are marks of dignity and power bestowed by God.

3. At a proper distance behind the elders, where lines drawn through the middle of the throne bisect its sides on every part of the circumference, towards the four cardinal points of heaven, four living creatures were seen; the first in the figure of a lion, the second of an ox, (for uóoxoc is an ox with the Hellenists,) the third in the likeness of a man, the fourth of a flying eagle, representing doubtless the Christian churches towards the four parts of the world, and answering to the four Israelitish camps, which bore standards of the same animals. For what is called in the Apocalyptic text, a little obscurely, "in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne," may be explained by the figure v dià Svoiv; i. e. one through two; familiar to the Hebrews, as if it had been said, in the midst of the circuit or circumference of

the throne; and in this sense, if you were to draw round the throne, as a square, a quadrangular parallel figure at a proper distance from the throne, and the elders surrounding it, in the midst, or at the middle of every one of the sides of the quadrangle, (for iv μéoy, in the midst, is to be taken distributively,) the four animals exhibited themselves, namely, one in the middle of each side.

Moreover, those animals are described as "full of eyes before and behind," having six wings around them, and those full of eyes within. So many eyes denote a multitude of very wellsighted persons, and full of the knowledge of the mysteries of God, of which kind there are many in the animals, that is, in the churches which the animals represent. The wings denote agility and alacrity in executing the commands of God. Wings with eyes denote zeal combined with knowledge and faith. Lastly, six wings around

In

them, denote that they are ready to fly every way, that is, fully prepared to fulfil the commands of God universally and entirely. addition we are told, lastly, what was the nature of their duty, as well that of the living creatures, as of the elders around the throne, namely, of this kind, that "as often as those animated beings were about to give glory, and honour, and thanks to Him that sat on the throne;" i. e. as often as the churches formed their holy congregations, so often the four-and-twenty elders, in right of their office preceding the animated beings, are accustomed to "fall down before God," saying, "Worthy art Thou, O Lord, to receive glory, and honour, and power; for Thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created." This interpretation being admitted, the diction of John, which many pretend to be a solecism, as improperly using the futures, δώσουσι, πεσοῦνται, προσKunov, instead of the preterites, will easily be defended; since, according to the Hebrews, (whose ideas the apostle every where adopts,) the future is used to denote an act of custom or duty, so that John is by no means to be supposed to relate what was there done in the vision, by the animated beings and elders, but what was to be done as occasion should arise, and what he himself saw done by them afterwards, in the