Notes On The Apocalypse by David Steele

D >> David Steele >> Notes On The Apocalypse

Pages:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23

History verifies this part of the Apocalyptic prediction. Only two years
after the death of that northern "scourge of God," Attila, who boasted
that "the grass never grew where his horse had trod;" Genseric set sail
from the burning shores of Africa; and, like a burning mountain launched
into the sea, accompanied by a vast army of barbarous Vandals, suddenly
landed his fleet at the mouth of the river Tiber. Disregarding the
distinctions of rank, age or sex, these licentious and brutal plunderers
subjected their helpless victims to every species of indignity and
cruelty. Hence the hostility to arts and science, the tokens of refined
civilization,--indiscriminate devastation of life and property
perpetrated by the savage warriors, has given rise to the word
"Vandalism."

10. And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from
heaven, burning as it were a Lamp, and it fell upon the third part of
the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;

11. And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of
the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because
they were made bitter.

Vs. 10, 11.--The object of the third trumpet is the waters as
before,--the population of the empire, but not in collective form as a
_sea_; rather in a state of separation or disconnected, as "rivers and
fountains." Some apply this symbol of a "falling star" to Genseric, but
this is incongruous. On the contrary, he was a victorious prince,--a
_rising_ star. It is more consonant to the truth of history and the
chronological series of prophecy, to apply this symbol to the downfall
of Momyllus the last of the Roman emperors, who was deposed by Odoacer
king of the Heruli, called in derision Augustulus,--the diminutive
Augustus. Doubtless the allusion here is to the king of Babylon:--"How
art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, (day-star,) son of the morning!
How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!"
(Isa. xiv. 12.) A star may indeed signify either a civil or
ecclesiastical officer, but the scope and context determine all these
judgments to the enemies of the church, and those of her illustrious
Head. It is the "vengeance of his temple." We have already found a star
the emblem of a gospel minister, and we shall hereafter find it employed
in that sense; but it does not seem to refer in the present connexion to
any apostate. The name of this star,--"Wormwood," embittering the
waters, is a lively emblem of the miseries experienced by the people, in
the use of the remaining temporal comforts which the preceding
calamities had left.

12. And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was
smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the
stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not
for a third part of it, and the night likewise.

V. 12.--The design of all the trumpets is to point out the utter
destruction of the Roman empire,--Daniel's "kingdom of iron." (Dan. ii.
40.) For although from the time of Constantine it assumed the Christian
name, it nevertheless continued to be a beast. Of this we shall have
cumulative evidence as we progress. The first trumpet began to demolish
the fabric of antichristian power; and by the fourth the western
division was overthrown. For although the northern barbarians under the
first, the southern Vandals under the second, and the successors of
both, prevailed to bring down the last of the Caesars, yet the ancient
frame of government still subsisted. The political heaven, though
shaken, was not yet wholly removed, while the Senate, Consuls and other
official dignitaries continued to shine as political luminaries in the
firmament of power. But as the last of the Caesars fell from power in
the year 476, so the last vestige of imperial dominion in the west was
removed in 566, when Rome, the queen of the nations, was by the emperor
of the east reduced to the humble condition of a tributary dukedom. Most
of the saints had their residence at this time in the nations of western
Europe and northern Africa, where they were grievously afflicted by the
Arian, Pelagian and other heresies; as also exposed to persecution by
the civil powers, whom those heresiarchs moved to oppress the orthodox:
consequently, the righteous judgments of God fall first upon that member
of the empire. The eastern section, however, is destined to become the
special object of the judgments indicated by the succeeding trumpets.
However interpreters differ in details when explaining the effects
produced by the sounding of the first four trumpets, they very generally
harmonize in the application of them to the western section of the Roman
empire. The luminaries of heaven are darkened, or fall, or are
extinguished, while the earth, the sea and the rivers are
correspondently affected. Now, these are the well known allegorical
representations of divine judicial visitations of guilty communities, as
we find in the prophetic writings. See, for example, the case of
Babylon, "the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency" (Isa. xiii. 1, 10;)
also Egypt,--(Ezek. xxxii. 7, 8.)

13. And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven,
saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabitants of the
earth, by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels,
which are yet to sound!

V. 13.--Before the fifth angel sounds, a note of warning is given by the
ministry, of another angel distinct from the seven with the trumpets. He
pronounces a "woe" thrice repeated, upon the inhabitants of the earth,
indicating that heavier judgments and of longer duration are about to be
inflicted. This announcement was intended to excite attention and awful
expectation. This angel's message of "heavy tidings" may be viewed in
quite interesting contract with that of a subsequent angel,--"flying
through the midst of heaven," (ch. xiv. 6.) How different, yet
harmonious, is the ministry of those heavenly messengers!

The first four trumpets, as we have seen, demolished the western
division of the Roman empire. About the middle of the sixth century this
work was brought to completion. Here, for greater clearness, we may be
allowed to anticipate by digressing a little. Assuming now, what shall
afterwards appear to be correct, that the Roman empire is Daniel's
fourth universal monarchy, and Paul's "let," or hinderance, to the
revealing of the "Man of Sin;" since the first four trumpets have
dismembered that great power, revealing the "ten toes,--ten horns," or
kingdoms; we would expect now to hear of the destruction of that "Son of
perdition." But it is not so. That is to be effected by the vials, (ch.
xvi.) As the general and grand design of the Apocalypse is to illustrate
the divine government, exhibiting the moral world as affecting, or
affected by the Christian religion, it seemed good to the Divine Author
that the destinies of the eastern section of the Roman empire yet
standing, where many of his saints reside, shall come under review.
Ecclesiastical history treats familiarly of a _Greek,_ as well as a
_Latin_ church and empire. As the trumpets cover the whole time from the
opening of the sixth seal till the final overthrow of the whole fourth
monarchy; (Dan. vii. 26; Rev. xi. 15,) it follows that the eastern
section must be the object of a part of them. Accordingly, the remaining
part of the second period,--the _Period of the Trumpets,_ includes the
first two of the three, emphatically and significantly styled
"woe-trumpets."

CHAPTER IX.

1. And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto
the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit.

2. And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a a smoke out of
the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were
darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.

3. And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth; and unto them
was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.

4. And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the
earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men
which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.

5. And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that
they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the
torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man.

6. And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and
shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.

7. And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto
battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their
faces were us the faces of men.

8. And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the
teeth of lions.

9. And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the
sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running
to battle.

10. And they had tails like unto scorpions; and there were stings in
their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months.

11. And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless
pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue
hath his name Apollyon.

Vs. 1-11.--The scene of the events announced by the sounding of the
first "woe-trumpet," is the eastern Roman empire. A variety of symbols
is here employed to represent the judgment to be inflicted. The
principal agents and events are,--a "star, locusts, Apollyon their king,
their depredations, the time of their continuance."

Neither Boniface III. nor Mahomet answers to the symbol "falling star."
Allowing that a star, as a symbol, may represent a person in either
civil or ecclesiastical office, no successful aspirants to places of
power, as both of these were, can be here understood. Obviously
degradation and not elevation is intended. Either dethronement of a
prince or apostacy of a theological dignitary must be intended.

No character in history at the time referred to, so well agrees to the
symbol of a fallen star as the monk Sergius, who is known to have been
the coadjutor of Mahomet. He had been a monk of the Christian sect
called Nestorians from Nestorius their leader. This monk Sergius had
been excommunicated for heresy and immorality. He was glad to serve the
devil as dictator to Mahomet in composing the Koran, which bears
internal evidence of having been written by one who was acquainted with
the Sacred Scriptures. When this degraded man had finished his task, he
was put to death by his master, lest he should betray the imposture.

He opened the bottomless pit, from which issued a smoke darkening the
whole face of the heavens. The pit is hell, whence came the smoke,--the
diabolical system of delusion. From the same place comes the character
afterwards to appear under the aspect of a beast, (ch. xi. 7.) Locusts
constituted one of the plagues of Egypt, and they are the emblem of a
destroying army. (Exod. x. 14-19; Joel i. 4-6.) And this is their import
here. They represent the deluded and destructive followers of Mahomet,
who in vast multitudes laid waste the nations of western Asia, southern
Europe, and northern Africa. The Saracens, originating in Arabia, the
national locality of the literal locusts, in great multitudes like
clouds, laid waste the fairest and most populous portions of the earth
for a succession of ages.

These symbolic locusts have also the property of scorpions, a poisonous
reptile, resembling in some degree a lizard combined with a lobster,
armed with a sting in the end of its tail. Wicked and impenitent men are
compared to scorpions. (Ezek. ii. 6.) But these locusts are under
restraint. They are permitted to hurt only "those men which have not the
seal of God in their foreheads." The time of their continuance is "five
months," of thirty days each, making 150 years,--"a day for a year."
(Ezek. iv. 6.) In the year 606, Mahomet began his imposture by retiring
to the cave of Hera. In 612 he appeared publicly as the apostle of his
new religion at the head of his deluded followers. Between 612 and 762,
he and the warlike chiefs who succeeded him, overran with terrible
destruction, Syria, Persia, India, Egypt and Spain. Although the
Saracenic empire continued for a longer time, yet from this time it lost
the disorderly _Locust_ character and because a more settled
commonwealth. In the year 762, the city of Bagdad was built by one of
the caliphs, who called it "the city of peace." This put a stop to the
devastations of the locusts, when the empire began to decline. It was
foretold, however, that during the time of successful war by these cruel
invaders, they would inflict such miseries upon their wretched victims,
that they would earnestly but vainly desire death to put an end to their
exquisite torments. It is farther said that these locusts resembled
horses, as indeed they do, especially in their heads. The Arabians
excelled in horsemanship, and their chief force lay in cavalry. The
"crowns upon their heads" may refer to the turbans worn by the Arabians
as part of their national costume; or to the kingdoms which they
subdued. Flowing hair is also characteristic of these people. Their
"teeth" like those of lions indicated their strength and fury to
destroy. "Breast-plates of iron,"--defensive armour, indicates
self-protection by the most effectual public measures. The sound of
their wings may denote the fury of their assaults, and the rapidity of
their conquests. But the deadly stings in their tails were their most
fatal instruments of torture, symbolizing the poison of their abominable
and ruinous religion.

Their king is "Abaddon or Apollyon," the destroyer: for so is his name
by interpretation, both in Hebrew and Greek. He is from the "bottomless
pit,"--from hell, the vicegerent of the devil. Mahomet in person, and in
the person of his official successors, will alone answer to this
_duplicate_ symbol. This is, without a rational shadow of ground for
controversy, the _Great Eastern Antichrist_, sufficiently distinguished
from the _Western_. The western combination against real Christianity
never attained to power by successful conquest of the nations; but on
the contrary by chicanery, insidious policy, flattery of princes and
priestcraft. This enemy is described with sufficient accuracy and
peculiar precision in the subsequent part of the Apocalypse. Prophecy
has a determinate meaning; and we are not at liberty to give loose reins
to our imagination: otherwise we shall bewilder, rather than satisfy the
devout and earnest inquirer.

12. One woe is past: and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.

V. 12.--Before the time of the sixth trumpet, intimation is given that
some pause shall intervene prior to the judgments which are to
follow:--"One woe is past."--The object of the first woe is the
nominally Christian Roman empire, which still stands in its Eastern
section; and is to be totally demolished by the second woe-trumpet: for
the Western section, recovering from the effects of the first four
trumpets, is the object of the third and last woe. The "man of
Sin,"--the "little horn" of Daniel, is actuating the "ten horns" to
"scatter Judah," etc., during the time of the Mahometan conquests in the
East; by which the whole Roman empire is ripening for the harvest of the
vials of wrath.

13. And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns
of the golden altar which is before God,

14. Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four
angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.

15. And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour,
and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.

16. And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand
thousand; and I heard the number of them.

17. And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them,
having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the
heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths
issued fire, and smoke, and brimstone.

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 their
tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do
hurt.

Vs. 13-19.--At the sounding of the sixth trumpet, a "voice comes from
the four horns of the golden altar," the immediate presence of the
Almighty. This indicates punishment to be inflicted upon men for
corrupting the gospel, similar to the judgment of fire from the "golden
censer," (ch. viii. 5.) The effects of the first woe may be supposed to
reach from the early part of the seventh century to the latter part of
the thirteenth,--the period of Arabian locusts. During the latter part
of this time, the Turks were held in check by the Crusaders, who strove
to wrest the Holy Land from the infidels. The "four angels" are the four
Turkish Sultanies. The river Euphrates is to be taken in this place
literally, as designating the geographical locality of these combined
powers, which were the instruments employed by the enthroned Mediator,
to demolish the remaining part of the Roman empire,--"the third part of
men." The time occupied in this barbarous work of slaughter is "an hour,
a day, a month and a year," about equal to 391 years; or from the year
1281 to 1672. The Western empire had been overthrown by the first four
trumpets, the Eastern nearly ruined under the fifth; and under the sixth
it was finally subverted. The numbers which the Turks brought into the
field are here said to be "two hundred thousand thousand,"--a definite
for an indefinite number as usual, a vast army. And historians tell us
that they were, in fact, from four to seven hundred thousand, and a
large proportion of them cavalry.

From the year 1672, one of their own historians dates the "Decay of the
Othman empire!" Since that date, the Turkish power is well known to have
been straitened by the Russian empire.

These eastern warriors and their horses are described by their military
costume and their arms. Fire is _red_, jacinth _blue_, and brimstone
_yellow_,--the chosen colors of the Ottoman warriors, their military
uniform. The heads of their horses "as the heads of lions," denote
strength, fierceness and cruelty. "Fire, smoke and brimstone issuing out
of their mouths," may be supposed to indicate the employment of
gunpowder, first invented about that time, as an element of destruction.
The commander at the siege of Constantinople is said to have employed
cannon, some of which were of such caliber as to send stones of three
hundred pounds weight! Thus their power was in their "mouth:" but like
the locusts, "they had in their tails power to do hurt,"--the deadly
poison of the Koran. The Turks left behind them wherever they went, as
the Saracens had done before, the poisonous and ruinous religion of
Mahomet, more durable and injurious to men than all their bloody
conquests. By this abominable system of delusion, the remains of the
Greek church in the Eastern division of the Roman empire, were almost
extirpated; Christianity was nearly extinguished in that part of the
world where the gospel had shone brightly, and there Mahometanism
continues till the present day. Such has been the desolating effect of
the sixth,--the second woe trumpet. Thus the Judge of all the earth
punishes impenitent communities. Besides the positive effects of the
second wo, we have intimation of some that are negative in the close of
this chapter.

20. And the rest of the men, which were not killed by these plagues, yet
repented not of the 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:

21. Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor
of their fornication, nor of their thefts.

Vs. 20, 21.--The "rest of the men that were not killed by these
plagues," or morally destroyed by becoming Mahometans, by the foregoing
calamities, were not brought to repentance of their evil deeds. The
population of the Western Latin empire and nominal Christian church,
still persisted in their idolatries and immoralities. Both individually
and as associated, they openly violated both tables of the moral law. It
is evident from these two verses, that the sins enumerated in them were
the procuring causes of the divine judgments symbolized by the
trumpets,--the two woe-trumpets, all the trumpets,--yes, including the
seventh and the last. Professing Christians both in the Greek and Latin
churches, after all the plagues inflicted by the angels of the past six
trumpets, continue to this day in the practice of worshipping demons,
angels and saints, for which they can produce no better arguments than
their Pagan predecessors whom the Lord charges with "worshipping devils"
here and elsewhere. (1 Cor. x. 20; Ps. cvi. 37.) In their stupid worship
of senseless images, consecration of places, etc., who cannot perceive
the identity of modern Papists and prelates with those portrayed by the
pen of inspiration in the passage before us? The horrible "murders,"
massacres and bloody persecutions of the saints, are verified in
authentic history. Papal bulls, imperial and royal edicts, issued
against _heretics_, answer to the second part of this awful picture.
Then follow "sorceries," plainly pointing out pretended revelations,
false miracles, etc. To these are to be added "fornications," corporeal
and spiritual, in a mass of superstitions added to, or supplanting
divine ordinances; together with vows of celibacy, monkeries and
nunneries,--followed by public license of brothels. And
finally,--"thefts." By these are to be understood the illegal exactions
and oppressive impositions, by which the nations of Christendom have
been plundered of their revenues to enrich the lordly hierarchy of
apostate Christendom. This state of things still continuing after the
sixth angel sounds his trumpet, and no evidence of repentance; who can
doubt that the same community is yet to be visited with the "third woe?"
Surely the Lord may justly still say,--"For three transgressions, and
for four, (of Antichrist,) I will not turn away the punishment thereof."
The eastern church, in which the first corruptions prevailed, was
punished by the _first woe_ of the Saracens; and this not producing
repentance, her ruin was completed by the _second wo_ of the Ottomans.
So, when God judges, he will overcome; therefore the western church,
still persisting in her abominations, without repentance, shall be
destroyed by the _third woe_. Let not the pious reader suppose that by
these penal inflictions on churches, the church of Christ is to perish.
No, no. But, on the contrary, their overthrow is subservient to her
preservation. This also will appear with increasing evidence as we
proceed with our meditations on this instructive book.

In the mean time it may be well to remark here, at the close of those
_woes_ which developed the rise and progress of Mahometanism, that the
creed of this religious sect is substantially the same as that of those
Christians called Socinians. Both presumptuously and arrogantly claim to
be the worshippers of _the one God_,--commonly called _Unitarians_. This
is one of the "depths of Satan." All who worship, as well as believe in,
three co-equal Divine Persons, Father, Son and Holy Ghost, believe in,
and worship _one God_, and in this sense are Unitarians.--_the only
scriptural Unitarians_. "Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not
the Father." (John ii. 23.) And the same is true of such who "have not
so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost." (Acts xix. 2.) "He is
Antichrist that denieth the Father and the Son,"--a deceiver and an
Antichrist. It is doubtless in view of these soul-ruining heresies, that
the beloved disciple tendered the caution,--"Little children, keep
yourselves from idols." (1 John v. 21.)

We would expect the tenth chapter to begin with the sounding of the
seventh trumpet; but we find it is not so. Indeed, we shall not find any
direct intimation of the work of the seventh angel till we come to the
fourteenth verse of the eleventh chapter. The sixth trumpet continues to
reverberate throughout Christendom for centuries; and during the
intermediate time, our attention is called to another scene, which the
Lord Jesus deemed necessary as preparatory.

CHAPTER X.

This chapter and the greater part of the next, from the first to the
fourteenth verse inclusive, is of the nature of a parenthesis; for the
fifteenth verse of the 11th chapter evidently connects the narrative or
series of events with the ninth chapter. The ninth chapter closes with
an intimation of impenitence on the part of those who had been punished
by the plagues of the preceding trumpets. Then it follows, as we have
seen, that they are to be still farther visited by the infliction of the
closing judgment symbolized by the seventh trumpet. The immediate
design, therefore, of interrupting the natural order of the narrative is
to place before us the actual condition of society when the seventh
trumpet sounds.

Pages:
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23