This chapter contains another representation of
those things that had been revealed before concerning the
wickedness and ruin of antichrist. This antichrist had been before
represented as a beast, and is now described as a great whore. And
here, I. The apostle is invited to see this vile woman,
1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will show unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: 2 With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. 3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. 4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: 5 And upon her forehead was a name written, Mystery, Babylon the great, the mother of harlots and abominations of the earth. 6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
Here we have a new vision, not as to the
matter of it, for that is contemporary with what came under the
three last vials; but as to the manner of description, &c.
Observe, 1. The invitation given to the apostle to take a view of
what was here to be represented: Come hither, and I will show
thee the judgment of the great whore, &c.,
7 And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns. 8 The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. 9 And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth. 10 And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space. 11 And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition. 12 And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast. 13 These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.
Here we have the mystery of this vision
explained. The apostle wonders at the sight of this woman: the
angel undertakes to open this vision to him, it being the key of
the former visions; and he tells the apostle what was meant by the
beast on which the woman sat; but it is so explained as still to
need further explanation. 1. This beast was, and is not, and yet
is; that is, it was a seat of idolatry and persecution;
and is not, that is, not in the ancient form, which was
pagan; and yet it is, it is truly the seat of idolatry and
tyranny, though of another sort and form. It ascends out of the
bottomless pit (idolatry and cruelty are the issue and product
of hell), and it shall return thither and go into perdition. 2.
This beast has seven heads, which have a double
signification. (1.) Seven mountains—the seven hills on
which Rome stands; and (2.) Seven kings—seven sorts of
government. Rome was governed by kings, consuls, tribunes,
decemviri, dictators, emperors who were pagan, and emperors who
were Christian. Five of these were extinct when this prophecy was
written; one was then in being, that is, the pagan emperor; and the
other, that is, the Christian emperor, was yet to come,
14 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful. 15 And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues. 16 And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire. 17 For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled. 18 And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.
Here we have some account of the downfall of Babylon, to be more fully described in the following chapter.
I. Here is a war begun between the beast and his followers, and the Lamb and his followers. The beast and his army, to an eye of sense, appear much stronger than the Lamb and his army: one would think an army with a lamb at the head of them could not stand before the great red dragon. But,
II. Here is a victory gained by the Lamb: The Lamb shall overcome. Christ must reign till all enemies be put under his feet; he will be sure to meet with many enemies, and much opposition, but he will also be sure to gain the victory.
III. Here is the ground or reason of the victory assigned; and this is taken, 1. From the character of the Lamb: He is King of kings and Lord of lords. He has, both by nature and by office, supreme dominion and power over all things; all the powers of earth and hell are subject to his check and control. 2. From the character of his followers: They are called, and chosen, and faithful. They are called out by commission to this warfare; they are chosen and fitted for it, and they will be faithful in it. Such an army, under such a commander, will at length carry all the world before them.
IV. The victory is justly aggrandized. 1.
By the vast multitude who paid obedience and subjection to the
beast and to the whore. She sat upon (that is, presided over) many
waters; and these waters were so many multitudes of people, and
nations, of all languages; yea, she reigned not only over kingdoms,
but over the kings, and they were her tributaries and vassals,