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Ib. In the space between heaven and earth.] The μ appears to have been one of the cardinal points in the Chaldean astronomy, opposed to the hypogeum*: but in this passage, it seems simply to mean the intermediate space between heaven and earth, as they appeared in this vision; the one extended above, the other below f

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Ib. Woe! woe! woe!] The Divine messenger, at the command of God, leaving heaven, and hovering over the earth, proclaims three woes, or dreadful calamities, to happen to its inhabitants, under the three remaining Trumpets. No greater calamity can happen to the sons of inen, than the corruption, the rejection, the loss of true Religion. Under the four preceding Trumpets, an hostile invasion of the whole Christian Church, in its fourfold division, had taken place; but the view of its effects had been hitherto general, and representative of few particulars. The warfare s now exhibited more plainly and openly; and Antichrist will soon stand confessed. In the apostolic times, in the times when this vision was exhibited (and the four first Trumpets seem to have their date from those times, ch. i.), Antichrist already was said to be come; the mystery of iniquity did then work §," and waxed

worse and worse." So, under the four first Trumpets, the storm seems increasing; but the calamity is as yet described only in general terms, previous to a more particular exhibition. Now it advances to its maturity, and most desolating effects, by three distinct and particular explosions, under the three last Trumpets.

bsti Brucker, Hist, Crit. Philos. i. 139.

1 John ii. 18, 22. iv. 3. 2 John 7.

+ See note, ch vii. 1. § 2 Thess. ii. 7.1

2 Tim. iii. 13. What is thus expressed by the Sacred writers, has always been understood to signify the beginnings of Antichristian

power.

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PART

PART III.

SECTION IV.

The fifth Trumpet, and first IVoc.

1 Kalo win ay γελῶ ἐσάλπισε, και εἶδον ἀγέρα ἐκ το ἐξανᾶ πεπιωκότα Bis the yùr ỳ idóθη αὐτῷ ἡ κλεῖς τὸ Τρίαλος τῆς ἀβύσσα. 9 Καὶ ἄνοιξε τὸ φρέας

τῆς ἀβύσσε καὶ ἀνέβη καπνὸς ἐκ τῶ φείαις, ὡς καπνὸς καμίνε μεγάλης κα ἐσκολίσθη ὁ ἥλιος και ὁ αὴς ἐκ τῆ καπνό 3 re qgiaros. Kai ἐκ τῶ καπνᾶ ἐξῆλθον ακρίδες εἰς τὴν γῆν, καὶ ἐδόθη αὐταῖς ἐξασία, ὡς ἔχεσιν ἐξεσίαν οἱ σκορπίοι

4 Tus yus. Kai ippτῆς γῆς.

θη αὐταῖς, ἵνα μὴ ἀδικήσωσι τὸν χόςTOV Tus yus, ¿dê πᾶν χλωρίν, ἐδὲ πᾶν δένδρον εἰ μὴ τὰς ἀνθρώπες, οἵ τινες ἐκ ἔχεσι τὴν σφραγίδα το Θε ἐπὶ τῶν μετώπων Καὶ ἐδό

5 αὐτῶν.

CHAP. ix. VER. 1-12.

1 And the fifth angel sounded and I saw a star from heaven fall to the earth: and to him was given the key of the pit of the bot2 tomless deep. And he opened the pit of the bottomless deep. And there arose smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace. And the sun was darkened,

and the air, by the 3 smoke of the pit. And out of the smoke came forth locusts upon the earth.

And to them

was given power, as the scorpions of the 4 earth have power. And

it was commanded them, that they should not injure the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree; but only the men whosoever have not the seal of God upon 5 their foreheads. And it was given them not

1 And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. 2 And he opened the

bottomless pit, and

there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened, by reason of the smoke 3 of the pit. And there

came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth; and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth 4 have power. And it

was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their 5 foreheads. And to them it was given that

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to kill them, but that

they should be tor-
mented five months:
and the torment of
them is as the torment
of a scorpion, when it

μὸς σκορπίς, ὅταν | 6 striketh a man. And

παίσῃ ἄνθρωπον

6 Καὶ ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις ζητήσωσιν οἱ ἄνθρωποι τὸν θάνα

τον, καὶ ἐ μὴ εὐρή.

σεσιν αὐτόν· καὶ ἐπιθυμήσεσιν ἀποθα νεῖν, καὶ φεύξεται ὁ θάναλος ἀπ' αὐτῶν· 7 Καὶ τὰ ὁμοιώματα τῶν ἀκρίδων ὅμοια ἵπποις ήτοιμασμέ τοις εἰς πόλεμον και ἐπὶ τὰς κεφαλὰς αὐτῶν ὡς σέφανοι χρυσοῖ, καὶ τὰ πρό σωπα αὐτῶν ὡς

πρόσωπα ανθρώπ

8 πων.

Καὶ εἶχον τρίχας ὡς τρίχας γυναικῶν, καὶ ὀδόνες αὐτῶν ὡς λεόνων ή

9 σαν. Καὶ εἶχον θε ρακας σιδηρᾶς· καὶ ἡ φωνὴ τῶν πλεούγων αὐτῶν ὡς φωνὴ ἁρμάτων, ἵππων πολλῶν τρεχόντων 10 εἰς πόλεμον. Καὶ ἔχεσιν ἐρὰς ὁμοίας σκορπίοις, και κέντρα ἦν ἐν ταῖς ἐξαῖς αὐτ τῶν· καὶ ἡ ἐξεσία αὐτῶν ἀδικῆσαι τὰς

7

8

in those days shall the |
men seek death, and
shall not find it; and
shall desire to die, and
death shall flee from
them. And the ap-
pearances of the lo-
custs were like horses
prepared for battle:
and upon their heads,

as it were, crowns of
gold; and their faces.
as the faces of men:

And they had hair, as
it were, the hair of
women; and their teeth
9 were as of lions. And
they had breast-plates,
as it were, breast-
plates of iron. And
the sound of their
wings as the sound of
chariots, of many horses
10 rushing to battle. And
they have tails like to |
scorpious; and stings
were in their tails. And
their power was to
injure the men five
11 months. They have

over them a king, the
angel of the bottomless
deep; his name in He-

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they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh а

6 man. And in those

days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death

shall flce from them. 7 And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the 8 faces of men. And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the 9 teeth of lions. And

they had breast-plates, as it were breast-plates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses 10 running to battle. And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five 11 months. And they had a king over them, which is the angel of

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Verses 1-11. And the fifth angel sounded; &c.] In these eleven verses is contained a very particular description (and indeed the first particular description occurring in the Apocalypse) of the prevalence of Anti-Christianity. For, the prophecies of the six Seals do not descend to any minute delineation; and those of the four first Trumpets are, each of them, comprized in a very narrow compass; in one, or at the most, two short verses. Now the prospect enlarges into a more exact display of the warfare.

Upon the blast of this Trumpet, which is woeful to the inhabitants of the earth, a star is seen to fall, or just to complete its fall, from heaven to earth: for, such seems to be the sense of ETTWXOTα t. The descent of such a star was seen under the third Trumpet; this leader of iniquity had begun his evil ministry by embittering, by corrupting the Waters of Life. This corruption, in which we have seen him

* Ch. viii. 13.

↑ Præsens-perfectum. Annot. S. Clarke, S. T. P. in Hom. Iliad. lib. i. lin. 37.

Ch. viii. 10. consult the note.

successfully

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successfully employed, produced those beginnings of darkness, ignorance, and superstition, which were disclosed under the fourth Trumpet. Upon the blast of the fifth Trumpet, this evil increases. To these beginnings of darkness, he is permitted to add the smoke and machinations of hell. It is by permission, that he opens this source of infinite mischief; for, the keys of death, and of hell, belong to another power, even to the Lord of Life †. But "the Spirit of God will "not always strive with man‡. The wilful and reprobate are at length given up to the just consequences of their wilfulness. The key of the great infernal deep, (whence are the ẞaй T calava, the depths of Satan §, those black corruptive doctrines, which destroy the purity and splendour of the Church,) is given to the fallen star, to the fallen angel; to "the prince of the power of the air; the power of dark"ness; that spirit which worketh in the children of "disobedience [." He is an angel, for so he is expressly called, (v. 11.) "the angel of the bottomless deep," and surely an evil angel: and in this description, as also in his fall from heaven, his evil character will be found to correspond with that of the chief of our infernal enemies, called Satan in the twelfth chapter: who, under the symbol of a fiery dragon, is there described as having fallen from heaven. There can be little or no doubt therefore, but that the Prince of Darkness, Satan, or, which

66

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* For abuccos is certainly used to signify that part of 'Adns, or hell, which is to be the place of punishment to the wicked. Compare ch. xx. 1-3. and 2 Pet. ii. 4.

+ Ch. i. 18.

Gen vi. 3.

§ See note, ch. ii. 24.

|| Eph. ii. 2. Luke xxii. 53. Col. ii. 15. See also John xii. 31. 46. xiv. 30. Acts xxvi. 18. Eph. vi. 12. Heb. ii. 14.

will

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