of the Beast, is shown in verse 2, where "the victors over the Beast, and over his image," are represented as singing a congratulatory song of triumph; and a sublime description is given, intended to show the majestic presence and interposition of God, in the execution of these judgments. Being, however, “the last plagues," it appears that they are all yet to come; and, therefore, they cannot be explained beforehand, and it would be fruitless to attempt it.

SIXTEENTH CHAPTER.

And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth. 2 And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image. 3 And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man and every living soul died in the sea. 4 And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood. 5 And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus. 6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy. 7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments. 8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire. 9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues and they repented not to give him glory. 10 And

the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, 11 And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds. 12 And the

sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared. 13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14 For they are the spirits of devils working miracles which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. 15 Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. 16 And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.

17 And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done. 18 And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. 19 And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. 20 And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. 21 And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.

In obedience to the divine command, the seven angels come forth to pour out the seven Vials of the wrath of God upon the earth. As the seven Trumpets were so many steps towards the ruin of the Roman Empire; so the seven Vials are of the ruin of the Roman Church. The one, in polity and government, is the image of the other; and each is compared to the system of the world, having her earth, sea, rivers, and sun, upon which the plagues are visited. There is also some resemblance between these plagues and those of Egypt. Papal Rome

having been previously styled (ch. xi. 8.) "Spiritual Egypt," from her idolatry and tyranny, resembles that country in her punishments.

The first Vial is poured out upon the earth, producing "noisome and grievous sores;" whether natural or moral, the event must show.

The second is poured upon the sea, which becomes as congealed blood. This is also the case with the rivers and fountains from the third Vial; each implying sad slaughters, probably of a retributive kind, upon those that had poured forth the blood of the saints like water.

The fourth Vial gave the sun an increased power of intense heat; either naturally to wither up, or metaphorically to cause a fire of persecution.

The fifth Vial was upon "the throne of the Beast," causing darkness thereon; when some calamity shall darken the whole Antichristian Empire; but yet, like Pharaoh, "they repented not."

The sixth Vial is upon the river Euphrates,' whose waters are dried up, to prepare the way for the "kings of the east." Whoever these may be, and what the "frogs" that stir them up, they seem to threaten the destruction of the kingdom of the Beast'

1 As Rome has been styled the mystic Babylon, and Babylon itself stood on the Euphrates; so here Euphrates may mystically signify the river on which Rome is seated.

and to portend that these shall be times of great affliction; so that an exhortation is parenthetically given, of "the blessedness of watching and being prepared." The conclusion of the events under this Vial, is that the Kings above mentioned shall be gathered to Armageddon," i. e. the mountain of destruction!

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The seventh Vial is "poured out into the air," Satan's special principality: then a solemn proclamation is made from God's throne, "It is done," or finished. This last period will complete the ruin of the kingdom of the Beast; the completion thereof, however, is by gradual processes, represented by "voices, and thunders, and earthquakes,"-sad and amazing revolutions and changes; wherein "cities of nations fell" from their obedience to the spiritual Babylon, that is about to be made to drink of the cup of God's wrath. Still some shall remain incorrigible, blaspheming God under His righteous judgments, and will be destroyed, before they will be reformed.

SEVENTEENTH CHAPTER.

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.

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. 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 shall 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.

The seventh Vial, (like the seventh Seal, and the