shall be no subsequent delay, but that the Mystery of God, which He had preached as a Gospel† to His servants the Prophets, shall be fulfilled in the days of the Seventh Angel, when he shall sound the Seventh Trumpet.

The Voice from heaven then commands St. John to take THE OPENED ROLL. St. John asks the Angel for it, Who gives it to him, saying, Take, and eat it; it will embitter thy belly, but it will be sweet in thy mouth. And so it was. And the Angel says,-Thou must prophesy again before many Peoples, and Nations, and Tongues, and Kings.

What now, it may be asked, is this Opened Roll, which is given to St. John?

It has been generally regarded by modern Expositors, as a part of St. John's own prophecy; and as containing the predictions which follow, and so as constituting a portion, or sequel, of the sealed Book, which was in the hand of the Lamb ‡.

This opinion seems liable to grave objections. The Little Book here mentioned is opened, and not sealed, and therefore does not refer to the future, but to the past; and it is wholly distinct from the Sealed Book, in form, and in time of delivery.

To be brief: There is one fact which ought never to be absent from the mind of the reader and

* Χρόνος οὐκ ἔσται ἔτι. Here χρόνος is delay. See Lightfoot ad loc. and Vitringa, p. 434.

+ εὐηγγέλισε.

Rev. vi. 1. Vitringa, p. 426.

expositor of the Apocalypse. It is this. That St. John was specially appointed by Christ to close the Canon of the New Testament. Here we have a clue to the right interpretation of many passages, which would otherwise be obscure; and among them to the present.

The true meaning of the little opened Book is, I believe, to be ascertained by reference to St. John's office in completing the Canon of Holy Scripture; and this Vision is intended to give Divine sanction to that important act, and to assure the Church that the New Testament*, as completed and sealed by St. John, comes from the hand of the great Angel of the Covenant, Whose countenance is as the Sunt, Whose head is arched-over by the Rainbow, the emblem of Mercy and Justice, and Who is clothed in the cloud of heavenly Majesty, Who treads all Earthly things under His feet, and walks on the Waves, and rides on the Storms of this World; to Whom All Power in Heaven and Earth is given §JESUS CHRIST.

In confirmation of this opinion, we may observe that the Book is not sealed as a prophetic book, but opened, that he may run that reads it ||-opened in the hand of Christ, Who said to His Apostles, Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every

* Primasius ad loc. In hoc libro aperto Novi Testamenti revelata claruisse videtur gratia.

+ Rev. i. 16.

§ Matth. xxviii. 18.

Rev. x. 1. xiv. 14.

|| Hab. ii. 2.

creature *. Thus the Book of the Gospel was opened.

Besides, the Gospel is opened in another sense; because what was hidden in the Old Testament is revealed in the Newt. St. John himself, in another passage of the Apocalypse, represents the Gospel as opened to the eyes of all. I saw an Angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach to every nation ‡.

Let us observe, also, the opened Book is in the hand of Christ; and it is called Bißλapidwv. And the first word of the first Gospel is Bißloç, "THE BOOK of the generation of Jesus Christ:" and the New Testament is a ßßlapídiov, or Lesser Book, as compared with the Bißiov, Bible, or Book; the name with which the Old Testament was designated by the Jews §, as the whole Scripture is by us.

When Christ, Who is the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Divine Ariel, has uttered His Voice,

* Mark xvi. 15.

Some of the older Interpreters, though not referring to St. John's office in sealing the New Testament Canon, yet expound the Opened Book as Scripture. Thus Aquinas, p. 299: Librum Apertum; id est Scripturam, librum in quo legitur quicquid est salutis ; et est Liber apertus, quia Ipse Dominus prædicando populo manifestavit secreta mysteria Scripturæ suis documentis aperuit Discipulis Scripturam, et per Eos aliis.

Rev. xiv. 6.

§ a Roll. See Hottinger, Thesaurus, p. 99.

Rev. v. 5.

then, we read, the Seven Thunders uttered their Voices; that is, their Voices are here represented as derived from Christ, Who is the WORD of GOD.

As the Prophet Amos says, The Lion hath roared, who will not fear? the Lord God hath spoken, who can but prophesy * ?

Here it is not to be forgotten that Our Blessed Lord, Who is represented in the Apocalypse as a Lambt, is also described as a Lion ‡. That is, He is not only innocent and gentle, but He is also strong and terrible. It is much to be feared that many among us are apt to forget this. Many dwell on the promises, but overlook the terrors, of the Gospel. They cheer themselves with the sunshine of Christ's mercy, but will not hear the thunders of His judgment. They rejoice in His amazing Love, but tremble not at His awful Majesty. Hence they are betrayed into irreverent and profane familiarity with His Holy Name. They presume on the gentleness of the Lamb. Let them fear the wrath of the Lion. This is one important warning to be derived from this Divine Vision. To return,

It may now be asked, What are the Seven Thunders? How do they find a place here, in

*Chap. iii. 8. See also Hosea xi. 10, and Pococke's notes on that passage, Works, ii. p. 543: "Christ's roaring as a Lion, what is it, but the preaching of the Gospel?"

† Rev. v. 6. 8. 12, 13. vi. 1. 16. vii. 9; and in twenty-one other places of the Revelation.

Rev. v. 5. x. 3.

connexion with the Open Book of the New Testament?

Observe here, the thunders speak*: they articulate; and the word Thunder, or the Voice of God †, is, in the Apocalypse, a symbol of Evangelic and Apostolic Teaching, derived from God Himself. Our Lord Himself gave this interpretation of the Word, when He called the Apostle and Evangelist St. John, a Son of Thunder‡. I conceive, therefore, that the Seven Thunders here represent the Seven Apostolic and Evangelical Writers of the New Testament; St. John's predecessors in writing; namely, St. Matthew, St. Mark, St. Luke, St. Paul, St. James, St. Peter, and St. Jude §.

These seven derive their Voice from Christ; they

* Rev. x. 3, 4. ἐλάλησαν φωνάς.

+ Hebraicum ip Vox, sæpe est Tonitru. Rosenmüller ad Rev. iv. 5. Out of the Throne of God proceeded Thunders, and Lightnings, and Voices.

Mark iii. 17. See Lampe in Joann. i. p. 24.

This interpretation is quite consistent with what will be said. below (Lect. IX.) concerning the number Seven, as employed in the Apocalypse. Seven is used indefinitely, with respect to the future, but not to the present or past. It is definite, historically; indefinite, prophetically. The reason of this is obvious. For example, it was very necessary that the Church should know that the Canon of the Scripture of the New Testament is composed of the writings of seven persons, and sealed by the eighth; here, then, Seven is definite. But it was not necessary for her to know many Churches would constitute the Catholic Church; there, then, Seven is indefinite.

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