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the Chriftians, and threatened to fignalize the beginning of his reign with the restoration of the Pagan, and abolition of the Chriftian religion. Nothing indeed was more likely to produce the ruin and utter fubverfion of the Chriftian church, than the irruptions of fo many barbarous Heathen nations into the Roman empire. But the event proved contrary to human appearance and expectation; the earth fwallowed up the flood; (ver. 16.) the Barbarians were rather swallowed up by the Romans, than the Romans by the Barbarians; the Heathen conquerors inftead of impofing their own, fubmitted to the religion of the conquered Christians; and they not only embraced the religion, but affected even the laws, the manners, the customs, the language, and the very name of Romans, fo that the victors were in a manner abforbed and loft among the vanquished. This course not fucceeding according to probable expectation, the dragon did not therefore defift from his purpose, (ver. 17.) but only took another method of perfecuting the true fons of the church, as we shall see in the next chapter. It is faid that he went to make war with the remnant of her feed, who keep the commandments of God, and have the teftimony of fefus; which implies that at this time there was only a remnant, that corruptions were

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greatly

greatly increased, and the faithful were minished from among the children of men.

I

CHAP. XIII.

ANDI ftood upon the fand of the sea, and faw a beaft rife up out of the fea, having seven heads, and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blafphemy.

2 And the beast which I faw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion and the dragon gave him his power, and his feat, and great authority.

3 And I faw one of his heads, as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beaft: and they worshipped the beaft, faying, Who is like unto the beaft? who is able to make war with him?

5 And there was given unto him a mouth fpeaking great things, and blafphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.

6 And he opened his mouth in blafphe

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my against God, to blafpheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.

7 And it was given unto him to make war with the faints, and to overcome them : and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.

8 And all that dwell upon the earth fhall worship him, whofe names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb flain from the foundation of the world...

9 If any man have an ear, let him hear. 10 He that leadeth into captivity, fhall go into captivity: He that killeth with the fword, must be killed with the fword. Here is the patience and the faith of the faints.

Here the beaft is defcribed at large, who was only mentioned before: (XI. 7.) and a beast in the prophetic file is a tyrannical idolatrous empire. The kingdom of God and of Chrift is never represented under the image of a beast. As Daniel (VII. 2, 3.) beheld four great beasts, reprefenting the four great empires, come up from a ftormy fea, that is from the commotions of the world; fo St. John (ver. 1.) faw this beaft in like manner rife up out of the fea. He was faid before (XI. 7.) to afcend x Tas vora, out of the

abyfs

abyfs or bottomless pit, and it is faid afterwards (XVII. 8.) that he shall afcend en ons afvoor, `out of the abyss or bottomlefs pit; and here he is faid to afcend εκ της θαλασσης, out of the fea; fo that the fea and abyfs or bottomless pit are in these paffages the fame. No doubt is to be made, that this beaft was defigned to reprefent the Roman empire; for thus far both ancients and moderns, papifts and proteftants are agreed: the only doubt and controverfy is, whether it was Rome Pagan or Chriftian, imperial or papal, which may perhaps be fully and clearly determined in the fequel.

St. John faw this beaft rifing out of the fea, but the Roman empire was rifen and established long before St. John's time; and therefore this must be the Roman empire, not in its then prefent, but in fome future fhape and form; and it arose in another fhape and form, after it was broken to pieces by the incurfions of the northern nations. The beaft hath feven heads and ten borns, which are the well known marks and fignals of the Roman empire, the feven beads alluding to the feven mountains whereon Rome was fituated, and to the feven forms of government which fucceffively prevailed there, and the ten horns fignifying the ten kingdoms into which the Roman empire

was

was divided. It is remarkable, that the dragon had feven crowns upon his heads, but the beaft hath upon his horns ten crowns; fo that there had been in the mean while a revolution of power from the heads of the dragon to the horns of the beaft, and the fovranty, which before was exercised by Rome alone, was now transferred and divided among ten kingdoms: but the Roman empire was not divided into ten kingdoms, till after it was become Chriftian. Altho' the heads had loft their crowns, yet they ftill retained the names of blafphemy. In all its heads, in all its forms of government Rome was ftill guilty of idolatry and blafphemy. Imperial Rome was called, and delighted to be called, (1) the eternal city, the heavenly city, the goddess of the earth, the goddess; and had her temples and altars with incenfe and facrifices

(1) Urbem æternam. Ammian. Marcell. Lib. 14. Cap. 6. p. 19. Edit. Valefii. Paris 1681. Urbis ab æternæ &c. Aufonii Epigram. 3 de Faftis. ga9 P. Athenæi Lib. 1. p. 20. Edit. Cafaubon. Terrarum dea, gentiumque Roma. Cui par eft nihil, et nihil fecundum. Martial. Lib. 12. Epigram. 8. Ita Romam, orbis caput, tanquam cælefte aliquod numen, feu terrarum deam gentiumque a Bilbilitano vate dictam, divinis honoribus, templis,

offered

facerdotibus, ædituis, ipfa EA POMIE appellatione, quod plures Græcarum illarum civi tatum nummi oftendunt, fibi condecorandam exiftimarunt. Quo autem referendum mihi videtur illud nomen blafphemiæ, quod feptem capitibus infcriptum geftâffe legitur beftia in facro Revelationum libro, et quod Hieronymus ac Prosper ad urbis æternæ appellationem retulerunt, Romæ cum alibi, tum in nummis ejus itidem familiarem. Spanhemii Differt.

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