The Beast from the Sea. Chap. 13 Revelation 13:1-10 1. _And I stood_ We should probably read " AND HE [the Dragon] STOOD " the clause being connected with the preceding chapter. _and_[_I saw … out of the sea_ Daniel 7:3. _seven heads and ten horns_ Read, TEN HORNS AND SEVEN HEADS. The ten horns ar... [ Continue Reading ]
_like unto a leopard … bear … lion_ The fourth beast in Daniel 7 is not described as like any ordinary animal: here he is described as combining the likeness of the other three. We may draw the inference mentioned on Revelation 13:1, that this beast is not the fourth, but a combination of all four:... [ Continue Reading ]
_I saw_ Should be omitted from the Greek text, but of course must be supplied in sense. _one of his heads_ Comparing Revelation 17:10-11, it has been thought that this indicates the _death of Nero_, and his expected reappearance as Antichrist. See notes on ch. 17 and Introduction pp. 47, 49. _his... [ Continue Reading ]
_which gave power_ Rather, BECAUSE HE GAVE HIS AUTHORITY. _Who is like unto the beast?_ A sort of blasphemous parody of sayings like Exodus 15:11; Psalms 35:10; Psalms 71:19; Psalms 89:8, or of the name Michael, which is by interpretation "Who is like God?... [ Continue Reading ]
_a mouth_&c. Daniel 7:8. _to continue_ Literally, TO MAKE or DO. This may mean "to spend," so that the text will give the right sense: but perhaps rather, as in Daniel 8:24; Daniel 11:28; Daniel 11:30; Daniel 11:32, "do" is used absolutely for "do exploits." _forty and two months_ See on Revelatio... [ Continue Reading ]
_and them that dwell_ "And" should apparently be omitted, so that "them that tabernacle in Heaven" is in apposition with the "tabernacle" of God itself.... [ Continue Reading ]
_And it was given unto him … to overcome them_ There is considerable authority for the omission of this clause: but the omission is no doubt merely accidental it was left out in one or more very early copies, because scribes passed from one clause beginning "and there was given unto him" to another.... [ Continue Reading ]
_whose names_ Read, WHOSE NAME, the pronoun as well as the noun being singular. _the book of life of the Lamb_ Revelation 21:27: see note on Revelation 5:1. _from the foundation of the world_ Perhaps in Greek, as in English, it is most natural to connect these words with "slain:" and 1 Peter 1:19-... [ Continue Reading ]
_If any man_&c. See on Revelation 2:7.... [ Continue Reading ]
_He that leadeth into captivity_ Decidedly the best attested reading is, "If any into captivity, into captivity he goeth:" and there being no verb expressed in the first clause, it is a question what verb is to be supplied. This will depend on the sense given to the rest of the sentence, and this on... [ Continue Reading ]
The Beast from the Land, Revelation 13:11-16 11. _another beast_ Afterwards called the False Prophet, Revelation 16:13; Revelation 19:20; Revelation 20:10. Some think that it is he, rather than the first Beast, who is to be identified with St Paul's "Man of Sin," the personal Antichrist the first B... [ Continue Reading ]
_exerciseth_ Lit. DOETH: the sense is, he does all that the Dragon has given the Beast power or authority to do. _before him_ The relation of the False Prophet to the Beast is nearly the same as that of Aaron to Moses, Exodus 4:16; Exodus 7:9 sqq., or even of a true Prophet to God, 1 Kings 17:1.... [ Continue Reading ]
_he doeth great wonders_ St Matthew 24:24; 2 Thessalonians 2:9. _maketh fire to come down_ The similarity to 2 Kings 1; 2 Kings 1, is best explained by St Luke 12:55. To reproduce the acts of Elijah _now_shews the spirit, not of the true Christ, but of the false.... [ Continue Reading ]
_deceiveth_ Revelation 19:20. There is still a reminiscence of St Matthew 24:24. _an image_ We cannot tell how, or how literally, this prophecy will be fulfilled in the last days: but it is certainly relevant to remember how the refusal of worship to the Emperor's image was made the test of Christia... [ Continue Reading ]
_he had power_ Lit. IT WAS GIVEN TO HIM. _life_ Lit. BREATH or SPIRIT.... [ Continue Reading ]
_to receive_ Lit. THAT THEY GIVE THEM. _a mark_ The word for "mark" is not the same as in Galatians 6:17, but the image is, as there, that of the brand put upon slaves to identify them; pagan devotees sometimes received such a brand, marking them as the property of their god. In the so-called Third... [ Continue Reading ]
The Number of the Name of the Beast, Revelation 13:17-18 17. _and that_ "And" should not improbably be omitted, the construction then, being, he causeth all … that they give them a mark, … that no man may …" _no man might buy or sell_ Such disabilities seem to have been actually imposed, at least... [ Continue Reading ]
_Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding_&c. "The terms of the challenge serve at once to shew that the feat proposed is possible, and that it is difficult." (Alford.) _the number of a man_ Comparing Revelation 21:17, it appears that these words mean "is reckoned simply, by an ordinary huma... [ Continue Reading ]