the papal beast made an image), "whose deadly wound was healed;" "which had the wound by the sword, and did live;" which passages have led some incautiously to imagine that the secular beast alluded to is here represented as actually alive, in the time of the papal beast; and that hence the papal power must be himself this beast raised to life. But the text says no such thing. And the figure in the text can admit of no such thing, as has been shown. Two beasts cannot exist at the same time in the same place. The text no more says the secular beast was already alive from this deadly wound in his head, while the papal beast lived, than it says he was thus alive while John was writing the passages. The two passages are simple references to the figure of the first beast presented to the eye of John. In this, it is found that the secular beast, at some time between his rise and his final ruin, dies by a wound in the head, and yet afterward lives again; this deadly wound being healed. And now, in describing this beast, as distinct from the papal beast and all others; this part of the description is taken, as being singularly prominent among his features; but not to decide any thing as to the time, when the healing of his head takes place; whether in the days of papal predominance; or in the revolution in France, in 1789. It could not take place in the former, and yet popery be a beast. But it could in the latter; and thus destroy the papal beast, and take his place as a supreme power; as was the fact. The making of an image by the papal beast to the first, the pagan, implies that the pagan beast was not himself on the ground, but lay dead. In verse 14, the papal miracles are said to take place, "in sight of the beast," probably meaning the pagan beast. This also at first view seems to indicate that the pagan beast was then alive. But for the reasons which have been stated, this cannot have been the fact. John beheld in vision the two beasts standing in his view together. Of course what was done by the papal, was done (as it might seem to him) in sight of the pagan. But this was not designed to teach that the two beasts were actually to exist on earth at the same time. It has been shown that such could not have been the case. The miracles being "in sight of the beast," means also, that when this image was made, the old pagan beast was in clear historic sight, and therefore the

papal beast must make an image to it; as it follows the words, "saying to them that dwell on the earth that they should make an image to the beast,"-the pagan beast. This is given as explanatory of his working miracles in the sight of the beast: hence says Pool, "in sight of the beast, i. e. to his honour and to gain him reputation." If this were not the real design in the mind of the pope, but to gain his own reputation; yet it operated as a gaining of reputation to paganism, as it is itself no better than paganism. The fact was, paganism in the revolution under Constantine died. Popery afterward rose, and reigned long over the kings of the Roman earth. It supported a system of false religion, by false miracles, and by persecution, no better in reality than paganism. This it did in the full sight of the history of the abominations and cruelties of the antecedent paganism; and it continued thus to do, till the pope lost his supremacy in the revolution occasioned by the bursting into power of the system of the Voltaire infidelity in 1789.

The papal beast in our text causes his subjects to receive a mark in their foreheads, or in their hands, which was essential to their title to civil or social rights. In various passages this fact is noted. (See Rev. xiv. 9–11, and xv. 2, and xx. 4.) This mark is expressed in allusion to an ancient custom of masters affixing a mark, at their pleasure, on their servants, in their forehead, or hand, or where they pleased. The papal beast placed no such literal mark on his subjects, but did what is well thus denoted. The mark in the text was such as follows -the sign of the cross must be received-all devotions were performed in Latin, a language unknown to most of the common people. They must be kept in ignorance of their Bibles; being taught that "ignorance is the mother of devotion." In the Catholic church, every thing used to be performed in Latin,-mass, prayers, hymns, litanies, canons, decretals, papal bulls, results of councils, reading the Bible (by the few who could read), and preaching; all formerly must be done in a language unknown to common people. Yet all the people must attend, and hear this trumpery of hypocrisy and ignorance. All were watched, and if any allowed themselves to neglect these papal duties, they were denied the privilege of citizens, and were persecuted as heretics. We learn here, thus far, what

was the mark of the beast in those former ages. In subsequent ages, it might vary according to times and circumstances. These things, with all the abominations of popery, the true witnesses refused, and hence were persecuted.

Among the marks of the beast, we have his number, and that of his name; which number is 666. This, as the number of his name, is thus explained. The letters, which in Greek (the language in which the New Testament was written) form the name Lateinos, the founder of Rome (real or fictitious), make 666; and thus assure us that Rome is the seat of the papal beast. And the letters which form the name of Rome in Hebrew (in which the Old Testament was written) make 666. We have here a double divine attestation that the seat of this second beast is Rome. These letters, used numerically (a well known custom of expressing numbers), give this number thus.

The people, then, who glory in the distinctive names and features of this religion, belong to the beast in our text. The mark of the beast may be viewed as varying, to meet their case. When the Jesuits arose with a powerful code of regulations for the support of the sinking papacy, their distinctive marks, whatever they were, were the marks of the beast. And when the illuminees in after days arose to propagate infidelity, their peculiar marks of distinction were marks of the beast. If the same diabolical system is now in operation (as no doubt it is, in latent caverns, having been strongly planted in twelve different nations at least), its distinguishing marks

(whether open or concealed), are the marks of the beast, either papal or infidel.

We find both the number of the beast, and the number of his name. The sense of the latter has been exhibited. The following remarks may give the sense of this number as the number of the beast, in distinction from that of his name. This number 666 seems to have been designed to apply in different ways, as the words "number of the beast" and "number of his name" imply. Its sense, as the number of the name has been given.

It is also the number of the beast, which may apply in a still different sense. We have the express number 1260, repeatedly given, as the number of the years of the depression of the church under the tyranny of the papal beast, and extending to the battle of the great day. In Dan. xii. we have two express additional numbers,—30, and 45,-relative to the close of the latter of which Daniel says, "Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh;" meaning, no doubt, that this gives the sunrise of the Millennium. But to what purpose are these express numbers given, unless a fourth number be somewhere furnished to inform of the commencement of the noted 1260 years? for men would never agree when these should commence. But if such a fourth number be given, it might be expected to attend the description of the papal beast, whose rise commences the 1260 years. And here such a number is in fact found, and is called the number of the beast, as well as the number of his name. It is then as though God should kindly say to man, so gradual was the rise of the papal beast, that you, short-sighted man, can never tell when to date his rise, and to commence your noted 1260 years. Take, then, the commencement of A. D. 666, as the number of the papal beast, and the time of his driving the church into the wilderness, which commences the 1260 years, and add to these sums the 30 and 45, in Dan. xii., and you have the beginning of 2001 as the sunrise of the millennial day, to which time "blessed is he that waiteth and cometh !"--666+1260+30+45 =2001.

And this is the period in which the best writers have agreed as the commencement of the Millennium, the beginning of 2001, or close of 2000; finding 2000 years before Abraham; 2000 from him to Christ, and 2000

from his day to his millenial kingdom. And with this accords the analogy of the natural week,-six days for labour and the seventh for rest, and one day here being as a thousand years.

Behold the exhibition made of human depravity by the papal see! a beast of abomination! Blessed be God for the sure denunciation, "Babylon is fallen, is fallen." May the knowledge and improvement of the event soon bless the world. And may our religion never be a mere image of paganism, nor a mere image of true religion, but may it be the reality—the life of true religion in the soul, to the glory of God, and our own eternal salvation.

LECTURE XIX.

REVELATION XIV.

The outlines of the great leading events of the first fifteen centuries of the Christian era, have been given in the two antecedent chapters. In this chapter, events com

mence with the sixteenth century, giving the Reformation, and a variety of succeeding events, till it closes in the battle of the great day, under the double figure of the harvest and the vintage.

Ver. 1. And I looked, and lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads.

We have here a notable appearance of Christ in his church, the true mount Zion, which had long seemed, to a distressing degree, forsaken of God. The power of popery had long appeared to maintain an impious triumph; and had seemed continually to repeat the blasphemous taunt, "God hath forsaken him; persecute and take him ;