8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, John's gospel, is this fact mentioned about the piercing Christ's side with a spear; and in both instances John refers to what is mentioned by the prophet Zech. (xii. 10,) viz., that those who pierced him should behold him at his coming in power and glory. These are singular facts, if John were not the author of the Apocalypse. ¶ Even so, Amen. draweth nigh;" Luke xxi. 28. They said, "Even so, Amen." are a justification of the terms."(Note on Matt. xxiv. 30.) Kenrick observes, "The great power and glory of Christ were as conspicuously displayed at the destruction of Jerusalem, and the other circumstances which accompanied that event, as if they had seen him coming upon the clouds of heaven, to punish his enemies. When the prophet Isaiah represents God as about to punish the Egyptians, he This is almost precisely like xxii. speaks of him as riding upon a swift 20, "He which testifieth these things, cloud for that purpose; Isa. xix. 1. saith, surely I come quickly; Amen. In that case, there was no visible ap- Even so come, Lord Jesus." It is pearance of Jehovah upon a cloud; an expression of desire for the combut it was language which the proph- ing of Christ. The enemies of Jesus et adopted, in order to express the would wail because of his coming; evident hand of God in the calamities but he directed his friends to rejoice of Egypt. The same thing may be when that event should happen. said of the language of Christ upon "And when these things begin to the present occasion."-(Expos. on come to pass, then look up, and lift Matt. xxiv. 30.) Dr. Hammond in-up your heads for your redemption terprets Christ's coming to be a "coming in the exercise of his kingly office, to work vengeance on his ene- Ver 8. I am Alpha.- Having commies, and discriminate the faithful pleted this section of the introduction, believers from them."-(Par. and God, the Father, whom John had Annot. Matt. xvi. 28.) Again he mentioned, ver. 4, is represented as says, "The only objection against speaking again, and confirming what this interpretation is, that this de- had been said by his unerring and struction being wrought by the Roman immutable authority. "I am Alpha army, and those as much enemies of and Omega." Alpha was the first Christianity as any, and the very same letter of the Greek alphabet, and people that had joined with the Jews Omega was the last. It was the custo put Christ to death, it doth there-tom of Hebrew writers to use the first upon appear strange, that either of and last of their letters to signify the those armies which are called abomi- beginning and end of things. John nable should be called God's armies, introduces the custom here; but writor that Christ should be said to come,ing, as he did, in Greek, he takes the when in truth it was Vespasian and Titus that thus came against this people. To this I answer, that it is ordinary with God, in the Old Testament, to call those Babylonish, Assyrian heathen armies his, which did his work in punishing the Jews, when they rebelled against him.”—(Ibid. Matt. xxiv. 3.)¶ They also which pierced him. This is peculiarly like the apostle John. In no other place, except in the Apocalypse, and in Greek letters. The beginning and the ending, i. e., I am Alpha, the beginning, and Omega, the ending; I exist forever; or, as it is in the next words, I am he "which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty." This is the precise phraseology applied to the Father in ver. 4. These terms, in this instance, are applied to God, the Almighty; but in ver. 11, and in other places, they seem to be applied to Jesus Christ. The terms saith the Lord, which is, and | patience of Jesus Christ, was in which was, and which is to the isle that is called Patmos, come, the Almighty. for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. 9 I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and are peculiarly those of the Apocalypse, occurring in the following passages only: Rev. i. 8, 11; xxi. 6; xxii. 13. Ver. 9. John. The revelator here gives his name for the third time; and then proceeds to describe the appearance of the Lord Jesus to him, with the symbols of his power, and the commission received from Him to write what he beholds. ¶ Your brother. John was their brother in Christ. It will be remembered this book was addressed to the seven Christian churches in Asia; ver. 4. John styles himself the brother of those suffering Christians; their companion in tribulation, for he was at that time suffering banishment for his devotion to Christ; and he was their companion also in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ; see under ver. 6. ¶ Isle that is called Patmos. He was in the isle of Patmos, whither he had been banished, for the word of God, [i. e. for adhering to the word of God,] and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. Patmos is a small island, lying west of Asia Minor, in the Archipelago. It is one of the nineteen islands called the Sporades; and is between Icaria and the promontory of Miletus, or between Samos and Naxos, and is now called Patimo, or Patmosa. Its circuit may be twenty-five or thirty miles. There are different opinions in regard to the time of John's banishment, some supposing that it took place in the reign of Nero, and others in the reign of Domitian. That the book of Revelation was written before the destruction of Jerusalem, we can entertain no doubt; and if so, John was banished in the reign of some emperor previous to that time. In the Syrian 10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind version of the Apocalypse, the titlepage declares, that it was written in Patmos, whither John was sent by Nero Cæsar. (Stuart on Apoc. i. 267.) This banishment, probably, took place between A. D. 55 and 60. 10. Lord's day. - This is the only instance in the Bible of the occurrence of this phrase. It is probable the first day of the week was intended. This was the day on which Jesus rose from the dead; and very early did the Christians commence to observe that as the holy-day of the week, instead of the Jewish Sabbath; see Acts xx. 7; 1 Cor. xvi. 2. Jesus was Lord even of the Sabbath day; Mark ii. 28; and had the authority, therefore, to change the day. The same principle is observed in the New as in the Old Testament, viz., that one day in seven is sacred; but the day was changed from the seventh to the first day; and the latter is called the Lord's day. In the spirit— that is, under the influence of the spirit. God fits his servants for the duties he calls them to perform. was given without measure unto Jesus; Isa. xi. 2; Matt. xii. 18. The Christians upon the day of Pentecost were all filled with the Holy Ghost; Acts ii. 4; that is, such a measure of divine power and wisdom was communicated to them as to fit them for the duties they were called to perform. Paul took the same view; 2 Cor. iii. 3; Eph. i. 17; and Peter likewise; 1st Epistle, iv. 14. ¶ A trumpet. - The revelator was under the peculiar influence of God's spirit, upon the Christian Sabbath; and he heard a great voice as of a trumpet. A communication of divine wisdom to men is described as a voice uttered -- The spirit me a great voice, as of a trum- |churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea. for the revelator to speak of the communications God made to him, as coming in a trumpet-like voice. His mind was evidently on the temple, and on the services there. The voice was behind him. He saw not who spake, but he heard the words. We know not what language was used. Saul testified that the voice which he heard spake in Hebrew; Acts xxvi. 14. The voice which spake to John certainly used a language which he could understand, and that was all that was necessary. from the throne of God; see iv. 5; 11. Alpha and Omega.- These terms will be found explained under ver. 8. They are applied to both the Father and the Son. ¶ First and the last.· Meaning the same, or nearly so, as the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. What thou seest, or rather, what thou art about to see, write in a book. That is, make solemn record of it; and send the communication to the seven churches in Asia, in particular. ¶ Asia.-By Asia here is not meant the entire quarter of the world which at present bears that name, but Asia Minor, so called, a cape, or peninsula, that lies between the waters of the Black Sea and the MediterraIt belongs now to the Turks. The scimetar gleams where the proudest trophies of the cross were once gathered. The island of Patmos was in its immediate vicinity. The seven churches are named; but as we shall notice the case of each church, when we come to consider the epistle sent to each, as recorded in chaps. ii. and iii., we pass by them now without any further remarks. Why these seven churches are mentioned, and not others, is explained under verse 4. 12 And I turned to see the I voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; 12. I turned. The voice had been behind him; ver. 10. He had been instructed, What thou seest, or art about to see, write in a book. He turned to see who addressed him. ¶ Seven golden candlesticks. Here again the number seven is preserved. It was a sacred number, or series, made so in the first place, perhaps, in the minds of the Jews, by the seventh day being established as a day of rest. Thus seven became a sacred round of days, and signified to the mind of the pious Hebrew the idea of sacred completeness and perfection. The revelator evidently draws several of his metaphors in this chapter from the sacred furniture of the temple. Moses was commanded to make a golden candlestick, of massive size, having branches, three upon a side, very highly ornamented; and these, with the help of the main shaft, would hold seven lamps. See God's command to Moses to make this candlestick, Exod. xxv. 31-40, where a very particular model of it is described, and the manner in which it was made is showed; Exod. xxxvii. 17-24; Numb. viii. 4. It stood in the holy place without the vail, was fed with pure olive oil, and was lighted by the priests every evening, and extinguished every morning. Do we not have here the origin of the figure of the seven golden candlesticks? True, they were all united in one main shaft; but there were seven. There is a remarkable resemblance in Zech. iv. and v. to the style of the Apocalypse. The prophet saw a vision of a candlestick all of gold, with seven lamps thereon. These figures of speech were probably well known to the revelator. He, therefore, employed the well-known metaphor to represent the seven churches to whom he was to write. 13 And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and 13. In the midst of the seven candlesticks. -A person was seen in the midst of the seven candlesticks. When the high priest was behind the branches, moving about to dress the lamps, he appeared to an observer in the front to be walking in the midst of the seven candlesticks. These candlesticks represented the churches, whose duty it was to let their "light shine before men, that others might see their good works, and glorify their Father in heaven;" Matt. v. 16. Christians were called the light of the world. Jesus was the true light; John i. 9; and John the Baptist was "a burning and shining light;" John v. 35; that is, a light of great brilliancy. Perfectly correspondent was it to these figures, which John knew his Lord had used, to represent the seven churches by the seven-fold lamp-bearer in the temple. ¶ One like unto the Son of man. — This language is borrowed from Daniel. "I saw in the night visions, and behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him ;" vii. 13. This was the title which our Lord took to himself—“Son of man.” How is it to be interpreted? Does the word son here have the same force that it has in other New Testament combinations in which it is used? Is the term significant of distinction? or does it merely import that Christ was a human being like other men? Perhaps the modesty and humility of Jesus inclined him to use this term in reference to himself, in preference to one of higher distinction; or, perhaps, he used it to signify to the Jews that he was the personage referred to in the prophecy of Daniel. ¶ Clothed with a garment. He is represented as appearing in the girt about the paps with a golden | brass, as if they burned in a furgirdle. nace; and his voice as the sound of many waters. 14 His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; 15 And his feet like unto fine dress of a Hebrew priest,-a garment, or ephod, reaching down to the feet, and girt about the breast with a golden girdle. For an account of the ephod and the girdle of the priest, see Exod. chapters xxviii. and xxxix. Jesus is well described in the dress of the high priest, as he is the high priest of the Christian profession, "a high priest over the house of God;" Heb. x. 21. Daniel had described the heavenly messenger whom he saw. His images were not the product of any wild fancy of his own; he drew them from the sacred books of the Jews. "As the sound of many waters." The figure here is truly grand. It is borrowed from the Old Testament. See Psa. xxix., "The voice of the Lord is upon the waters; the God of glory thundereth; the Lord is upon many 14. White like wool. This descrip- waters; the voice of the Lord is tion is evidently copied from Daniel. powerful; the voice of the Lord is "I beheld till the thrones were cast full of majesty." See also Psa. xciii. down, and the Ancient of days did Ezekiel's metaphor is very forcible : sit, whose garment was white as "His voice was like a noise of many snow, and the hair of his head like waters, and the earth shined with the pure wool: his throne was like the his glory." These things are metfiery flame, and his wheels as burn-aphors merely; they have no foundaing fire;" Dan. vii. 9. It is Daniel's description of the appearance of the Son of man. Possibly, the whiteness of the hair is mentioned to add venerableness to the description. His His eyes were said to be as a flame of fire, that is, exceedingly brilliant, searching. eyes. 15. And his feet. — The description of the feet is also copied from Daniel. In describing the eminent messenger that appeared to him in his vision, he said, 66 His body also was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as lamps of fire, and his arms and his feet like in color to polished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude;" Dan. x. 6. ¶ His voice as the sound of many waters. This is clearly taken from the verse last quoted. It will be seen, then, that the revelator sought to describe the appearance of the Son of man himself, in the same terms in which tions in fact; they are the appearances which the vivid imaginations of the Hebrew poets supposed the Holy One to assume in the presence of men. 16. In his right hand seven stars. —— That is, in the hand of him who was in the midst of the seven candlesticks. It has been conjectured by some one, that this figure originated in the circumstance, that the priest, in dressing and lighting the seven golden lamps in the holy place, carried in his right hand a rod with seven miniature lights attached to it, intended for ornament, symmetry, and use. If so, it was natural to say he had in his right hand seven stars, or twinkling lights. They appeared to the beholder like stars. What they represented will be seen under ver. 20. ¶ Sharp two-edged sword. - This seems at first an unnatural metaphor, -a sword going out of one's mouth. We suppose it must have originated in |