13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the fight of men,

14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the fight of the beaft, faying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beaft which had the wound by a fword, and did live.

15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beaft, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beaft, fhould be killed.

16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads :

17 And that no man might buy or fell, fave he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beaft: for it is the number of a man; and his number is fix hundred threefcore and fix.

From

From the description of the ten-horned beast or Roman ftate in general, the prophet paffeth to that of the two-horned beaft or Roman church in particular. The beast with ten crowned horns is the Roman empire as divided into ten kingdoms; the beast with two horns like a lamb is the Roman hierarchy, or body of the clergy regular and fecular. This beaft is otherwife called the false prophet, as we shall see in several inftances; than which there cannot be a stronger or plainer argument to prove, that falfe doctors or teachers were particularly defigned. For the falfe prophet no more than the beast is a fingle man, but a body or fucceffion of men propagating falfe doctrins, and teaching lies for facred truths. As the first beast rose up out of the fea, that is out of the wars and tumults of the world; fo this beast (ver. 11.) groweth up out of the earth, like plants filently and without noise; and the greatest prelates have often been raised from monks and men of the lowest birth and parentage. He had two horns like a lamb; he had, both regular and fecular, the appearance of a lamb; he derived his powers from the lamb, and pretended to be like the lamb all meeknefs and mildness. But he spake as a dragon, he had a voice of terror like the dragon or Roman emperors, in ufurping divine titles

and

and honors, in commanding idolatry, and in perfecuting and flaying the true worshippers of God and faithful fervants of Jefus Chrift. He is an ecclefiaftical perfon, but intermixeth himself much in civil affairs. He is the prime minifter, adviser and mover of the first beaf, or the beaft before mentioned. (ver. 12.) He exercifeth all the power of the first beaft before him. He holdeth imperium in imperio, an empire within an empire; claimeth a temporal authority as well as a spiritual; hath not only the principal direction of the temporal powers, but often engageth them in his fervice, and inforceth his canons and decrees with the fword of the civil magiftrate. As the first beaft concurs to maintain his authority, fo he in return confirms and maintains the fovranty and dominion of the first beast over his fubjects; and caufeth the earth, and them who dwell therein, to worship the first beast, whofe deadly wound was healed. He fupports tyranny, as he is by tyranny fupported. He inflaves the consciences, as the first beaft fubjugates the bodies of men. As Mr. Whifton well (6) obferves, "He is the common center and cement which "unites all the diftinct kingdoms of the Roman "empire; and by joining with them procures "them

(7) Whifton's Effay on the Rev. Part

4

3. Vifion

5.

(8) Vide

+

"them a blind obedience from their fubjects: "and fo he is the occafion of the prefervation "of the old Roman empire in fome kind of unity, and name, and ftrength; which other"wife had been quite diffolved by the inun"dations and wars fucceeding the fettlement “of the barbarous nations in that empire."

66

Such is the power and authority of the beast, and now we shall fee what courfes he pursues to confirm and establish it. He pretends, like other falfe prophets, (ver. 13.) to show great figns and wonders, and even to call for fire from heaven, as Elias did. His impostures too are so fuccefsful, that (ver. 14.) be deceiveth them that dwell on the earth, by the means of thofe miracles which he hath power to do. In this refpect he perfectly resembles St. Paul's man of fin, (2 Thef. II. 9.) whofe coming is after the working of Satan, with all power, and figns, and lying wonders, and with all deceivableness of unrighteouf nefs: or rather they are one and the fame character represented in different lights, and under different names. It is farther obfervable, that he is faid to perform his miracles, in the fight of men in order to deceive them, and in the fight of the beast in order to ferve him: but not in the fight of God to ferve his caufe, or promote his religion. Now miracles, vifions, and reve

lations

lations are the mighty boaft of the church of Rome; the contrivances of an artful cunning clergy to impofe upon an ignorant credulous laity. Even fire is pretended to come down from heaven, as in the cafe of St. Anthony's fire, and other instances cited by (8) Brightman and other writers on the Revelation; and in folemn excommunications, which are called the thunders of the church, and are performed with the ceremony of cafting down burning torches from on high, as fymbols and emblems of fire from heaven. Miracles are thought fo neceffary and effential, that they are reckoned among the notes. of the catholic church; and they are alleged principally in fupport of purgatory, prayers for the dead, the worship of faints, images, and relics, and the like (as they are called) catholic doctrins. But if these miracles were all real, we learn from hence what opinion we ought to frame of them; and what then shall we say, if they are all fictions and counterfeits? They are indeed fo far from being any proof of the true church, that they are rather a proof of a falfe one; they are, as we fee, the diftinguishing mark of Antichrift.

The influence of the two-horned beast or

cor

(8) Vide Brightman. et Poli Synops. in locum.

(9) Lin