LECTURE TENTH.

THE VISION INTRODUCTORY TO THE SEALS.

REVELATION, Chap. iv.-"After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will show thee things which must be hereafter. 2. And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. 3. And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald. 4. And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold. 5. And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God. 6. And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind. 7. And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle. 8. And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty,

which was, and is, and is to come. 9. And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever, 10. The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, 11. Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are, and were created."

THE Book of the Revelation (it has been already observed) consists of two great parts, as is intimated in chap.i. 19, when the Lord Jesus Christ, in commissioning the Evangelist to write the whole of the vision, says, "Write the things which thou hast seen; and (or

both") the things which are, and the things which "shall be hereafter." These constitute the two great subdivisions of this book, and accordingly the first three chapters treat of things at the time; they contain addresses to the then existing Churches of Asia, thus relating to "the things which are :"-while now the call to the Apostle is, "Come up hither, and I will shew thee things that must be hereafter." With this chapter, then, the second great division of this prophetical book opens; and, as the first part-that respecting the Churches -was introduced with a suitable vision exhibiting the Lord Jesus Christ in his office of Head of the Church, and with attributes peculiarly suited to that office, so this second part of the book is introduced also by a vision suitable to the matter about to be revealed, with which the chapter now read is occupied.

"After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened

"in Heaven, and the first voice which I heard was as a trumpet talking with me" (or, as it should be," and "the voice-the first one which I heard, as it were of a "trumpet talking with me,"-alluding to chap. i. 10), "which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter." Observe the scene of the vision is changed. The first vision was seen on

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earth, as we find on referring to chap. i., where the Apostle, having mentioned that he was "in the Isle "called Patmos for the word of God and the testimony "of Jesus Christ" at the time, says (verse 10), “I

I was in the spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice as of a trumpet," and then (verse 12), "I turned to see the voice that spake with me," and 'being turned I saw," &c. The matter that he was about then to reveal concerned the Church of Christ on earth in different states, and accordingly the Head of the Church presents Himself to him superintending the Churches, acting as their Head, and Overseer, and Bishop, "walking in the midst of them," though invisible :- -But now the scene is changed, 66 a door is opened in Heaven," and the voice that addresses the Apostle calls to him-" Come up hither." I do not see any necessity for a figurative interpretation of the word "Heaven" in this place, though, on the supposition that the whole book is figurative, it is the opinion of most expositors that "Heaven" in the Apocalypse uniformly denotes the Christian Church. That there is much of symbol in the book is indeed admitted: but it does not

therefore follow that the whole is an allegory, which is so far from being the case that, on the contrary, it may be confidently asserted that, as in other books of Scripture, so in this, all is literal, except where the emblem or figure is obvious to the ordinary reader. I conceive, therefore, that when there is here seen by the Apostle "a door opened in Heaven," and that he hears a voice, saying, "Come up hither," he was translated in the spirit into Heaven; and that the throne set there, and the whole of the vision that follows, is heavenlyappertains properly to heaven and not to earth.

To proceed then to the vision itself:-"And immediately I was in the spirit, and behold, a throne was "set in heaven, and one sat on the throne, and he that "sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone." Here a question of some importance arises-namely, as to the Person here seen sitting on the throne. The throne is evidently the throne of God, but the question is whether it is the Father, or Christ sitting on the throne of the Father (as the last chapter has told us he now does), that is here presented to the Apostle's view. In favour of the latter opinion it is urged that, though not expressed, it is implied that the Enthroned Being is seen in human form; first, from "the book being represented as in the right hand of him that sat on the throne," ch. v. 1, 7; and, second, from a likeness in this vision to that seen by Ezekiel, ch. i. where it is expressly said that "upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it," ver. 26;

added to which we are told that "No man hath seen God at any time," and that he is "revealed" only in Christ.*

On the other hand, in support of the former opinion it is urged, and I think satisfactorily,

First, that it is God as CREATOR is seen in this chapter is evident from the address of ver. 11, "Thou art

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worthy, O Lord, to receive, glory, and honour, and "power; for thou hast created all things, and for thy "pleasure they are and were created:" for though we are told that by the Son, as THE WORD who was in "the beginning with God and was God, all things were "made, and without him was not anything made that

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was made," yet is CREATOR the proper title of God the Father Almighty (as it is correctly stated in our Creeds) "who," as the Apostle says,-uniting and at the same time distinguishing both truths," created all things BY Jesus Christ," (Ephes. iii. 9.) Compare also ver. 8, "Which was, and is, and is to come," with ch. i. 4, where it is the Father that is so designated.

Second, when the Lamb is introduced, "a new song" is sung by this same company in which the sitter on the Throne and the Lamb are evidently distinguished. "And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy "to take the book and to open the seals thereof; for "thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy "blood, out of every kindred, and tongue, and people,

* This view of the Vision was that given in the former Editions; but I have been since led to reconsider it by a highly esteemed friend whose reasons in substance here follow. (Note to Fourth Edition..)