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the glory of the Father, to preside at the general judgment*.

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They who have pierced him," are not only the Jews, who demanded his crucifixion of Pilate, but likewise all those who wound him by their transgressions, who crucify to themselves the Son of God "afresh, and put him to open shamet."

"

Ver. 8. In the same spirit of exultation he continues to set forth the supreme dignity of the Son of God, ascribing to him, as our Lord had done to himself in the vision, those sublime attributes of the Father by which he fills all eternity, and exercises all powers. This application of the attributes of the Father to the Son, pervades all the sacred writings of the New Testament, and is represented to be by communication, or inheritance. "As the Father has life in himself, "so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself. "I and my Father are one. I am in the Father and "the Father in me. All things that the Father hath

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are mine. Whatsoever things the Father doeth, "these also doeth the Son likewise. The Father judg"eth no man, but hath committed all judgment to "the Son." These are our Lord's words, as recorded by Saint John, according to whom he was in the

*See Dan. vii. 13. Mat. xxiv. 30. Mar. xiii. 26. xiv. 62. but more particularly Zech. xii. 10. where these images occur.

Heb. vi. 6.In confirmation of the received opinion, that St. John the Evangelist was the author of the Apocalypse, we may observe, that xav is the very word used by that Apostle in his Gospel, (xix. 37,) and is a word used by no other writer of the New Testament.

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beginning," and "from the beginning with God*.” The apostle to the Hebrews enforces the same notion of our Lord's eternity, when he calls him "Jesus "Christ, the same yesterday, to-day, and for evert.” He is Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the original Creator, and the final Judge, of the world; to whose illustrious advent, and final triumph over his enemies (as being the grand catastrophe of the Apocalypse) the prophet, who had already seen it exhibited in vision, exultingly adverts, even before he begins his narration. This was natural, in one who had seen such a vision, but it would not easily have occurred in a work of mere imagination and art.

* John i. 1. 13. v. 26. 19. 22. xiv. 11. xvi. 15, also Col. i, 16. 17. Heb. i. 2, 3, 8. 1 John v. 20.

+ Heb, xiii. 8.

PART I

SECTION III.

The Appearance of the Lord Jesus with the Symbols of his Power; and the Commission given by him to Saint John to write what he beholds.

9 'Eyw 'Iwárns, ἀδελφὸς ὑμῶν, καὶ συγκοινωνὸς ἐν τῇ θλίψει καὶ βασιλείᾳ καὶ ὑπομονῃ Ἰησᾶ Χρισᾶ, ἐγενόμην ἐν τῇ νήσῳ τῇ καλο

CHAP. I. VER. 9-to the end.

91 John, your brother, 9 I John, who also am

and fellow-sharer in
the tribulation and
kingdom and patience
of Jesus Christ, was in
the Island called Pat-
mos, for the word of

your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of JesusChrist, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the

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ξίαν Ἰησᾶ [Χρις8]. 10 Εγενόμην ἐν πνεύ μαλι ἐν τῇ κυριακῇ ἡμέρᾳ· καὶ ἤκεσα ὀπίσω με φωνὴν μεγάλην ὡς σαλ11 πιγω, λεγέσης

Ο βλέπεις, γρά Τον εἰς βιβλίον, καὶ πέμψον ταῖς ἐπῖα ἐκκλησίαις, εἰς Ἔφεσον, καὶ εἰς Σμύρναν, καὶ εἰς Πέραμον, καὶ εἰς Θυάτειρα, καὶ εἰς Σάρδεις, καὶ εἰς Φι λαδέλφειαν, καὶ εἰς 12 Λαοδίκειαν. Καὶ ἐπέσρεψα βλέπειν τὴν φωνὴν, ἥτις ἐλάλησε με ἐμε καὶ ἐπιτρέψας εἶδον επία λυχνίας χρυ 13 σᾶς, Καὶ ἐν μέσῳ τῶν ἁπλὰ λυχνιῶν ὅμοιον ὑιῷ ἀνθρώπε, ἐνδεδυμένον ποδήρη,

καὶ περιεζωσμένον

πυξὺς τοῖς μαςοῖς

Spirit on the Lord's

day; and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trum11 pet, Saying, "That

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"which thou seest "write in a book, « and send unto the seven churches; to "Ephesus; and to “Smyrna; and to "Pergamos; and to “Thyatira; and to “Sardis; and to Phi"ladelphia; and to 12" Laodicea." And I

turned to see what the voice was which spake with me; and being turned, I saw seven golden lamp13 bearers; And in the midst of the seven lamp-bearers one like the Son of man, clothed with a long garment down to the feet, and girt about the breasts with a

14 ζώνην χρυσῆν· Η 14 golden girdle; His

δὲ κεφαλὴ αὐτῷ

καὶ αἱ τρίχες λευκαὶ, ὡσεὶ ἔξιον λευκόν, ὡς χιών καὶ οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ αὐ τῇ ὡς φλόξ πυρός, 15 Καὶ οἱ πόδες αὐτῆ ὅμοιοι χαλκολιβά

head and his hair white, as white wool, as snow; and his eyes

as a flame of fire; 15 And his feet like smelting brass, as if burned brightly in a furnace; and his

word of God, and for

the testimony of Je10 sus Christ. I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day,and heard behind me a great

voice, as of a trum11 pet, Saying, I am

Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven Churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Perga. mos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Lao12 dicea. And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw

seven golden candle13 sticks; And in the

midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, cloathed with a gar ment down to the

foot, and girt about

the paps with a golden 14 girdle. His head and

his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of 15 fire; And his feet like unto fine brass,

νω, ὡς ἐν καμένω πεπυρωμένοι καὶ ἡ φωνὴ αὐτῷ ὡς φωνὴ ὑδάτων πολ 16 λῶν. Καὶ ἔχων ἐν τῇ δεξιᾷ αὐτῇ χειρὶ ατέρας ἁπλά· καὶ ἐκ το ςόματος αυτο ῥομφαία δίδυμος ἐξεῖα ἐκπορευομένη καὶ ἡ ὄψις αὐτο, ὡς ὁ ἥλιος φαίνε ἐν τῇ δυνάμει αὑτῶ, 17 Καὶ ὅτε εἶδον αὐτὸν,

ἔπεσα πρὸς τὰς πόδας αὐτῆ ὡς νεκρός καὶ ἐπέθηκε τὴν δεξιὰν αὐτῆ ἐπ' ἐμὲ, λέγων [μοι]· Μὴ φοβε ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ πρῶτος καὶ ὁ ἴσχαλος, 18 Καὶ ὁ ζῶν· καὶ ἐγενόμην νεκρὸς, καὶ ἰδώ ζῶν εἰμι εἰς τὰς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων καὶ ἔχω τὰς κλεις το θανάτε καὶ τὸ 19 άδε. Γράψον ἐν ἃ εἶδες, και ἃ εἶσι, καὶ ἃ μέλλει γίνεσ και μετὰ ταῦτα, 20 Το μυςήριον τῶν ἁπλὰ ἀτέρων, ὧν εἶδες ἐπὶ τῆς δεξιᾶς μα, καὶ τὰς ἁπλὰ λυχνίας τὰς χρυ σᾶς· οἱ ἑπτὰ ἀσέρες, ἄγγελοι τῶν ἁπλὰ ἐκκλησιῶν εἰσι καὶ αἱ ἑπτὰ λυχνίαι, ἁπλὰ ἐκκλησίαι εἰσί,

voice as the voice of 16 many waters; And

having in his right

hand seven stars, and
from his mouth a two-
edged sharp sword
coming forth; and his
Countenance as the
Sun shineth in his

17 power. And when I

saw him, I fell at his feet, as dead; and he laid his right hand upon me, saying [to 18 me]"Fear not; I am

19

σε the first and the
"last, and he who
"liveth; and I was
"dead, and behold I
"am alive for ever
"and ever; and I
"have the keys of
"Death and of hell.
" Write therefore
"those things which
« thou seest, even
" the things which
« are present, and
"which are about to
20" be after these: The
"mystery of the
"seven stars which
« thou seest in my
"right hand, and
the seven golden
"lamp-bearers. The
"seven stars are the
"angels of the seven
"churches; and the
"seven lamp-bearers
the

"are
"Churches."

seven

as if they burned in a furnace: and his voice as the sound of 16 many waters. And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword, and his countenance was as the sun shineth in 17 his strength. And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead; and he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me,

Fear not; I am the 18 first and the last : I am he that liveth, and was dead; and behold, I am alive for evermore, Amnen; and have the keys of

hell and of death, 19 Write the things

which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things

which shall be here20 after, The mystery

of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.

Ver. 9. I John, &c.] Who this John was, and why, and whither banished, may be seen in note, c. i. 1. His dignity, as an apostle, and as a prophet favoured with this vision, and honoured with this commission, was at all events considerable; but, in the spirit of the Gospel, he calls himself only a brother, as his Lord had called himself before him, and a fellowsharer in the afflictions which the faithful were then suffering, under the persecution of Domitian. But to partake the sufferings of Christ, is to partake also his kingdom, which are here therefore emphatically united.

For the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus.] The sense of this expression becomes clear, by comparing it with chap. vi. 9, where the Martyrs are represented as having suffered δια τον λόγον τ8 Θεό και δια μαρτυριαν ἦν ειχον, "for the word of God, and for the

testimony which they bare." John was, like them, a persecuted sufferer and confessor, in the Island of Patmos, to which he was banished for his adherence to the faith, and where he was favoured with this vision.

Ver. 10. I was in the Spirit.] It is in vain to inquire the exact manner in which these sacred visions were communicated. The Jewish writers have said much upon the subject, but nothing which can satisfy a rational and sober mind. So far however is plain from Ezek. ii. 2. iii. 24. 2 Cor. xii. 2. and other passages of Scripture, that the prophet commonly perceived the impulse of the Spirit acting upon him in a sudden and extraordinary manner; yet so mysteriously, that

* John xx. 17.

Euseb. Eccl. Ilist. lib. iii. cap. 18.

+ 2 Tim. ii. 12.

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