that the Reformation is the prelude to the kingdom, of God, and the power of his Christ "upon earth; "inafmuch as Satan, the accufer (feducer) of the "brethren, is caft down; which accufed (feduced). "them before (or in the presence, or by the per"miffion of) their God, day and night." From this conftruction of the verfe, which I humbly apprehend is the true one, it is evident that the prophet could not mean, by the war between Michael and the dragon, the contest between the church and the perfecuting pagan emperors; becaufe he had foretold, that after they fhould be no more, the should be perfecuted by the barbarian nations, and afterwards led by Satan into Mohamedan and Papal captivity, all of which has fince come to pass; and therefore the could not rejoice and fay with propriety, upon her deliverance from pagan perfecutions, "Now is come the king"dom of our God, and the power of his Chrift:' for they were not come, nor had begun to come, But the could fay it at the time of the Reformation, if that great event was the prelude to her perfect reformation, and preparation for the kingdom of Chrift. Nor could the fay that Satan, the accufer of the brethren, was caft down, unless his power had received fo mortal a wound, that he should not be able hereafter to perfecute her but for a "fhort f time," and so as not to ftop the progress of her final reformation: a truth which we fhall presently find was alfo foretold." Ver. 11. And they overcame him (Satan). "by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word "of their teftimony; and they loved not their "lives unto the death." Here the prophet concludes his prediction of the Reformation, and informs us, that it fhould not be obtained fo much by temporal force as by a faith in Jefus Chrift, or the power of the truth and word of God: "And they (the reformers) overcame him "(Satan, or his temporal inftrument, the Pope).. "by the blood of the Lamb;" that is, by their faith in the death, refurrection, and afcenfion of the immaculate Son of God; and by their " teftimony," or by the eternal truths of the word of God, to which, in their doctrines, they bore witnefs. "And they loved not their lives unto the "death;" evidently alluding to thofe dreadful martyrdoms which were fuffered by the first reformers; it applying not to those pious Chriftians who were lately moft barbaroufly murdered, because they would not abjure Chrift, and deny the exiftence of a God. 66 Ver. 12. Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell therein. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth, and of the fea for the devil is come down upon you, having great 1 wrath, because he knoweth he hath but a "Short time." + 1. and Here I prefume the prophet forefees, that in the beginning of their Reformation, the reformers would not be unanimous in their interpretation of the word of God, but divide into different churches; for it is not unworthy of remark, that, in every instance before that event, he defcribes the church by the word "heaven," in the fingular number, but here he makes ufe of the plural, rejoice ye heavens;" and yet he makes no diftinction between thofe who, incited by the love and fear of God, and faith in Chrift, oppofed and fled from Papal fuperftition and oppreffion. But as it will not admit of a doubt, I doubt, that those who excel in the right interpret-? ation of the word of God, and act accordingly," are the beft reformifts, and the beft Chriftians; and as, in all probability, the church of Chrift must become unanimous in its faith, and form one righteous body, before the can be fully reformed, before the can be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white, "which is the righteousness of faints *;" or before fhe fhall have "made herfelf ready" for the 66 marriage of the Lamb," or the kingdom of Christ is it not much to be lamented, that the: reformed churches fhould be in perpetual quarrel and variance with one another refpecting the moft plain, and intelligible, and perfect fyftem of theology and righteoufnels? and, inftead of adopting fome mea fures to reconcile the different fubjects of their controverfy (which have little to do with the effential principles of the Gospel), they are continually. widening the breach? Should one of the churches, perceiving the advantage given to the infidel,› and the impediments to a perfect reformation, occafioned by thofe different opinions in matters of Chriftian faith, come forward with a plan for afcertaining and fettling the plain and effential truths of the Gofpel of Chrift, and thereby unite the feve ral churches into one body, what energy would it not give to the Reformation, and what honour and glory would be derived from the accomplishment of it! But perhaps the time is not yet come and it is certainly the duty of every Chriftian to fay always, and upon every occafion, "O God! thy holy will be done!" i But to return to the text. The prophet, having foretold the beginning of the Reformation, proceeds to the events which were to follow it; in which he *Rev. xix, 8, + Ibid. ver. 7: L 2 gives gives the churches reafon to believe, that they should be fuch as to afford them abundant caufe of joy: "Rejoice ye heavens (ye churches), and them that "dwell therein:" and then he denounces this woe upon their enemies and former oppreffors: "Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the fea.". Here an important queftion prefents itself. What nation or people did the prophet allude to by "the "inhabiters of the earth and of the fea?" I find the word earth figuratively used to denote the wicked in general*; wicked and ungodly oppreffors; the nation of the Jews in its wicked and abandoned ftate, by Jeremiah and Chrift himself; and the beaft of the earth, to denote atheistical France, by the prophet in this book§. And I have fhown before, that the earth, being an opake body, having no light of its own, and incapa-ble of receiving light when caft upon it, is a beautiful fymbol of an atheistical power. And further, a "beaft rifing up out of the fea," is the type of the church of Rome. In the laft fentiment all Proteftant commentators agree. Hence. I am led to conclude, that the prophet, by the inhabiters of the earth, describes REVOLUTIONARY and ATHEISTICAL FRANCE; and by thofe of the fea, the CHURCH of ROME, and all who adhere to her fuperftitious idolatry, whether in France, Germany, or Italy. Recent events fully justify this conftruction, and clearly fulfil the meaning of the prophet thus explained. We have lately feen these countries afflicted with woes, which no language can defcribe: we have feen, as the text expreffes it, "the devil come down "unto them;" and, through his terrible inftrument and agent, the atheistical power of France, overwhelming them with mifery and defolation. This political monster, foretold by Daniel, under the type * Ifaiah, xi. 4. Pf. x. 18. xlvi. 6. § Chap. xiii. 11, of of the little horn *; by the prophet, under that of a "beaft afcending out of the bottomlefs pit," and that of the beaft of the earth; and by St. Paul, under that of the man of fin §;" we have feen, I fay, this "fon of perdition" reared by the devil out of infurrection, treason, and rebellion, and supported by deception, rapine, maffacres, and legalized murders, until he has made France the theatre of horror and blood; until he has made war upon Germany, Spain, Portugal, Italy, and every Roman Catholic country, carrying, havoc and deftruction wherever he trod. And what is yet more dreadful, because more injurious to mankind, and therefore a favourite point in the diabolical project, until he has fcattered the firebrands of atheism and anarchy over thofe devoted countries. And he has done all this, in ftrict verification of the text, "in great wrath," or with many threats and indications of vengeance, "knowing that he hath but a fhort time" allowed, by a God of infinite mercy, to perfect his meditated mifchief. Ver. 13" And when the dragon faw that he was caft out into the earth, he perfecuted the woman, which brought forth the man "child." And when Satan found that all his former schemes had failed, and nothing was left but to lead mankind to believe that there was no God, or into athe ifm, he induftrioufly fet about it. But knowing that the church, or fhofe that believed in God and his Chrift (of which defcription of people, there can be no doubt, there were many Roman Catholics, as well as Proteftants, in France, who, rejecting the idola |