Albert Barnes · 10 of 75
Analysis of the Book of Revelation of St. John
SHOWING THE DESIGN AND ARGUMENT OF THE BOOK
The white horse.—Peace, prosperity, and triumph, fulfilled in the state of the Roman empire from the death of Domitian, A.D. 96, to the accession of Commodus, A.D. 180.
The red horse.—Bloodshed, discord, civil strife; fulfilled in the state of the Roman empire from the death of Commodus, A.D. 193, and onward.
The black horse.—Calamity, distress, want, trouble; fulfilled in the Roman empire, in the scarcity of food that prevailed; the excessive taxation; the special order not to destroy the olive-yards and vine-yards; the sources of revenue, in the time of Caracalla, A.D. 211, and onward.
The pale horse.—The reign of death, in the form of famine, pestilence, disease; fulfilled in the Roman empire in the bloodshed, famine, and pestilence that prevailed in the time of Decius, Gallus, Æmilianus, Valerian, and Gallianus, A.D. 243‒268.
The martyrs.—Fulfilled in the Roman empire in the persecutions, particularly in the time of Diocletian, A.D. 284‒304; the last of the efforts in the Pagan world to extinguish the Christian name.
Consternation and alarm as if the world was coming to an end; fulfilled in the Roman empire in the threatening invasions of the Goths in the neighbourhood of the Danube, pressed on by the Huns, and producing universal alarm and consternation, A.D. 365, and onwards.
Intermediate vision between the opening of the sixth and seventh seals. A view of the persecution of the church, and the glory of the in heaven, designed to sustain the mind in the midst of so much gloom, and to furnish the that innumerable multitudes of men would be brought to glory, chap. vii.
(a) The impending storm of wrath that seemed to threaten universal destruction is suspended in order that the servants of God might be sealed, chap. vii. 1‒3.
(b) The sealing process, indicating the preservation of the church in these times of danger, and the influences that would designate and save the true people of God in all time to come, chap. vii. 4‒8.
(c) A vision of an immense host before the throne, gathered out of all people and all lands, chap. vii. 9‒12.
(d) A view of the martyrs who would be saved; a view designed to give comfort in the trials that would come upon the people of God in this world, chap. vii. 13, 14.
(e) A view of the happiness of heaven, where all suffering will cease, and all tears be wiped away, chap. vii. 15‒17.
Seven trumpets given to seven angels to sound, and the preparatory arrangements for sounding, chap. viii. 1‒6.
Two series of events referring to the West and the East in the downfall of the Roman empire:—
(1) The first trumpet sounded, chap. viii. 7.
The invasion of the Roman empire by Alaric, king of the Goths, A.D. 395‒410.
(2) The second trumpet sounded, chap. viii. 8, 9.
The invasion of the Roman empire by Genseric, king of the Vandals, A.D. 428‒468.
(3) The third trumpet sounded, chap. viii. 10, 11.
The invasion of the Roman empire by Attila, king of the Huns, the “Scourge of God,” A.D. 433‒453.
(4) The fourth trumpet sounded, chap. viii. 12, 13.
The final conquest of Rome and the Western empire by Odoacer, king of the Heruli, A.D. 476‒490.
(5) The fifth trumpet sounded, chap. ix. 1‒12.
The Mahometans, or Saracens.
(6) The sixth trumpet sounded, chap. ix. 13‒19.
The Turkish power.
The interval between the fall of the Eastern empire and the sounding of the seventh trumpet, chap. ix. 20; xi. 13:—
(a) The result of these judgments, chap. ix. 20, 21.
They produce no change in the moral condition of the world; fulfilled in the state of the Papal world after the conquest of Constantinople, and before the Reformation.
(b) An angel is seen descending from heaven with emblems of majesty, joy, and peace, chap. x.; fulfilled in the Reformation:—
(α) The angel with the rainbow on his head, and his face like the sun, a proper symbol of the Reformation as a work of peace, and accompanied with light and knowledge, chap. x. 1.
(β) The little book in his hand, a symbol of the principal agent in the Reformation—a book—the Bible, chap. x. 2.
(γ) His crying with a loud voice, symbolical of the Reformation as arresting the attention of the nations, chap. x. 3.
(δ) The seven thunders—the anathemas of Papal Rome—the thunder of the seven-hilled city, chap. x. 3.
(ε) The purpose of John to record what the seven thunders had uttered, and the command not to write; the mistake which the Reformers were in danger of making, by regarding the doctrine of the Papacy as the truth of God, chap. x. 4.
(ζ) The solemn oath of the angel that the time predicted would not then occur, but would occur in the time when the seventh angel should sound, chap. x. 5‒7; fulfilled in the anticipations of the Reformers that the world was about to come to an end, and the reign of Christ about to commence, and the of the angel that this would not then occur, but that a long and important interval must take place.
(η) The command given to John to go and take the little book from the hand of the angel, chap. x. 8; fulfilled in the delivery of the Bible again to the church.
(θ) The command to eat it, and the consequences—sweet in the mouth, and bitter to the belly, chap. x. 9, 10; the effect of the pure word of God on the soul indicated by the one; the bitter consequences, in persecution and opposition, that would result from the attempt to make the truth known to the world, indicated by the other.
(ι) The that he would yet prophesy before many people, and nations, and tongues, and kings, chap. x. 10; fulfilled in the restoration of preaching in the church, founded on the Bible, and in the immediate and ultimate influence of the Bible in making the gospel known to the world.
(c) The measuring of the holy city, chap. xi. 1, 2; the determining of what constituted the true church at the time of the Reformation.
(d) The two witnesses, chap. xi. 3‒13. Those who bore faithful testimony to the truth in all the corruptions of the church; their trials and their triumph; fulfilled in the succession of true and sincere Christians whom God raised up from time to time to testify to the truth. They would be persecuted, and many of them would be put to death; they would seem to be finally silenced, and would be treated with great indignity, as if their dead bodies should remain unburied; they would, however, come to life again, that is, at the time of the Reformation they would rise and testify against the corruptions of the Papacy, and would triumph as if they ascended visibly and gloriously to heaven.
(7) The sounding of the seventh trumpet. The final triumph of the church, and the establishment of the kingdom of God in the overthrow of all its enemies, chap. xi. 14‒18. This ends the first series of visions; and this expresses in general terms what is drawn out more in detail in the next series of visions, Part V., embracing more particularly the rise and progress of Antichrist.
(a) The church would be driven into obscurity, like a woman fleeing into a desert—representing the condition of the church while the Papacy should have the ascendency, ver. 14.
(b) The church would still be preserved, though in obscurity—represented by the woman nourished by some unseen power, ver. 14.
(c) Satan would still rage against the church—represented by the dragon pouring forth a flood of waters to overwhelm the woman, ver. 15.
(d) The church would be protected, as if the earth should open its mouth to swallow up the water—representing the interpositions from an unexpected quarter in delivering the church from its perils, ver. 16.
(e) The wrath of Satan against the remnant—representing the attempts of the Papacy to cut off individuals when open and general persecution no longer raged, ver. 17.
(a) The great harvest of the world by the Son of God—the gathering in of the righteous, ver. 14‒16.
(b) The final overthrow and destruction of the wicked, ver. 17‒20.
(a) The angel promises to explain it, ver. 7.
(b) A symbolical representation of the design of the vision, ver. 8‒14.
(c) A more literal statement of what is meant, ver. 15‒18. The whole designed to characterize Papal Rome, and to describe the manner of its rise and the means of its ultimate destruction.
(a) By kings, that had lived delicately with her, ver. 9, 10.
(b) By merchants that had been enriched by her, ver. 11‒17.
(c) By mariners that had trafficked with her, ver. 17‒19.
(a) A voice of many people in heaven, shouting Hallelujah, ver. 1, 2.
(b) The sound echoed and repeated as the smoke of her torment ascends, ver. 3.
(c) The four and twenty elders, and the four living creatures unite in the song, ver. 4.
(d) A voice heard commanding them to praise God, ver. 5.
(e) The mighty shout of Hallelujah echoed and repeated from unnumbered hosts, ver. 6, 7.
(a) A description of the conqueror—the Son of God—as he goes forth to victory, attended by the armies of heaven, ver. 11‒16.
(b) An angel is seen standing in the sun, calling on all the fowls of heaven to come to the great feast prepared for them in the destruction of the enemies of God, ver. 17, 18.
(c) The final war, ver. 19‒21. The beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gather together for the battle; the beast and the false prophet taken, and cast into the lake that burns with fire and brimstone; the remainder of the enemies of the church slain. The last enemy of the church on earth is destroyed, and the way is prepared for its universal triumph.