CONTENTS.

INTRODUCTION.

The Deity of Christ proved to contemporaries by miracles, to us by pro-

phecy-Real prediction of the remote future the test of Deity—

Dr. Kuenen's view of the Hebrew prophets-His mode of explain-

ing fulfilled predictions-Four ways of explaining the fulfilment of

a prophecy-The extent of the foreknowledge given to the pro-

phets-The double sense-The prophecy of Caiaphas--The double

sense of our Saviour's prophecy-No double sense in the Apoca-

lypse-St. John a seer not a foreseer-II is visions have been real-

ised—The differences of opinion among commentators—The causes

of their differences-Their general agreement about the principal

symbols-The early date of the prophecy

PAGE

1

32

A GENERAL HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ROMAN CHRIS-

TENDOM, FROM THE AGE OF ST. JOHN TO THE

PRESENT DAY.

Extent of the Roman world-Rome's place in history-The first period 33

of Roman Christendom extends to the conversion of Constantine-

The influence of the Pagan Empire upon the constitution of the

Christian Church—The second period of Roman Christendom, from

the conversion of Constantine to the coronation of Charlemagne-

Extinction for three centuries of the Western Empire-The con-

quests of Islam in Eastern Christendom-The fall of Jerusalem-

The victory of Charles Martel at Tours-Coronation of Charles the

Great-The third period of Roman Christendom, from the corona-

tion of Charlemagne to the Reformation-The consolidation of the

hierarchy of Roman Christendom-The darkness and light of the

PAGE

Middle Ages-The origin, the character, and the influence of the 42

Holy Roman Empire-It was a resurrection to life of the dead Em-

pire of the West-The three elements of Roman Christendom were

the body of Christian kingdoms, the Holy Roman Empire, and the

Papacy-The Donation of Constantine-The Roman Hierarchy, a

mixture of good and evil-The state of Eastern Christendom-The fall

of Constantinople-The fourth period of Roman Christendom, from

the Reformation to the French Revolution-The causes of the Re-

formation and of its schisms-Its influence on the connection of

Church and State-The beginning of the disintegration of the

Hierarchy-The intense faith but intolerance of the age of the

Reformation-Macaulay's view of the losses, gains, and prospects of

Romanism―The Hierarchy continues under altered circumstances—

The fifth or contemporary period of Roman Christendom begins

with the French Revolution-The differences between the moving

forces of the Reformation and of the Revolution were wide and

radical-The object of the Revolutionists to destroy all religious

faith-The state of the Church in England shows how the whole

Church might have been reformed without being dismembered -

Guizot's view of the altered relation of the Church and the world

since the Revolution-The special dangers of an age of free

thought-The advantages, the freedom, the tolerance, the enlighten-

ment, the trials, the witness, the great future of the Anglican

Church-The evidences of natural and revealed religion cannot be

affected by modern knowledge-The fulfilment of its predictions

proves the Divine inspiration of Holy Scripture

. 58

GENERAL SCHEME OF INTERPRETATION.

Summary of previous historical sketch-Historical phenomena of Roman 59

Christendom-Prospects of the Papacy according to Bryce and

Renan-It should be easy in these days to compose an allegory

describing the known phenomena of the past history of Christen-

dom-The Apocalypse is such an allegory, a symbolic picture of

that which was known only to God, impressed upon the imagination

of the seer—The fitness of these pictures appears, when we imagine

ourselves attempting in these days to compose an Apocalypse, as a

spurious after-prophecy-We might represent the Messiah, the Hero

of our allegory, as a rider on a White Horse going forth with His

PAGE

Church to victory-The Church still conquering, but by the aid of 66

Cæsar, might be a Red Horse, to whose rider a great sword is given—

The Church becoming covetous might be a Black Horse, whose rider

holds a pair of scales and sells man's food at a famine price-The

Church supreme in the Roman world and killing her reformers

might be a Pale Horse, whose rider is attended by Death and

Hades-We might exhibit the martyrs resting in the intermediate

state-We might predict the Last Judgment under the image of

an earthquake-By a deep silence in heaven we might prefigure the

beginning of eternal peace-The history of the fall of Jericho sug-

gests the introduction of seven trumpets to announce the judgment

of God upon the opponents and corrupters of His Church-The

destruction of Jerusalem; the fall of ancient Rome; the devastations

of Mahomet; the darkness of the Middle Ages; the opening of the

abyss-The era of revolutions; the great apostacy, ending in the revela-

tion of Antichrist, and the final victory of Christ and His saints-We

can find many symbols for the Church as a great Hierarchy-It is the

Holy City, trodden under foot by the Gentiles; the Great City,

Sodom, Egypt, Babylon-It contains all the Saints, whom we repre-

sent as those worshipping in God's Temple, as witnesses in sackcloth,

as those with the seal of God on their foreheads—A serpent represents

Satan-For the great power of this world we may adopt Daniel's

symbol of a wild beast, who receives his throne and power from

the serpent-Imitating the Hebrew prophets, we call the Church a

woman-When pure she is the Bride of the Lamb-When cor-

rupted by the world she is the harlot of the wild beast, the Lamb's

rival-For the Pope, who is a temporal sovereign, the Vicar of

Christ, and the restorer of the Western Empire, we form a mixed

symbol, a wild beast with lamb's horns and a serpent's voice, who

makes men erect an image of the fallen empire and commands them

to worship it-The establishment of the Church in the Roman

world may be represented as a place of refuge for the woman from

the open violence of the serpent-The Church supported by the

World-power is a harlot riding upon the wild beast who receives his

throne from the serpent, and acts for him during his absence from

the scene and imprisonment-The popular support of the Church is

the river Euphrates, beside whose many waters the harlot sitteth-

The drying up of these waters symbolises the withdrawal of popular

support from the Church-The disestablishment of the Church in

Roman Christendom, is the casting off of the harlot by the wild

PAGE

Middle Ages-The origin, the character, and the influence of the 42

Holy Roman Empire-It was a resurrection to life of the dead Em-

pire of the West-The three elements of Roman Christendom were

the body of Christian kingdoms, the Holy Roman Empire, and the

Papacy-The Donation of Constantine-The Roman Hierarchy, a

mixture of good and evil-The state of Eastern Christendom-The fall

of Constantinople-The fourth period of Roman Christendom, from

the Reformation to the French Revolution-The causes of the Re-

formation and of its schisms-Its influence on the connection of

Church and State-The beginning of the disintegration of the

Hierarchy-The intense faith but intolerance of the age of the

Reformation-Macaulay's view of the losses, gains, and prospects of

Romanism―The Hierarchy continues under altered circumstances—

The fifth or contemporary period of Roman Christendom begins

with the French Revolution-The differences between the moving

forces of the Reformation and of the Revolution were wide and

radical-The object of the Revolutionists to destroy all religious

faith-The state of the Church in England shows how the whole

Church might have been reformed without being dismembered—

Guizot's view of the altered relation of the Church and the world

since the Revolution-The special dangers of an age of free

thought-The advantages, the freedom, the tolerance, the enlighten-

ment, the trials, the witness, the great future of the Anglican

Church-The evidences of natural and revealed religion cannot be

affected by modern knowledge-The fulfilment of its predictions

proves the Divine inspiration of Holy Scripture

58

GENERAL SCHEME OF INTERPRETATION.

Summary of previous historical sketch-Historical phenomena of Roman 59

Christendom-Prospects of the Papacy according to Bryce and

Renan-It should be easy in these days to compose an allegory

describing the known phenomena of the past history of Christen-

dom-The Apocalypse is such an allegory, a symbolic picture of

that which was known only to God, impressed upon the imagination

of the seer-The fitness of these pictures appears, when we imagine

ourselves attempting in these days to compose an Apocalypse, as a

spurious after-prophecy-We might represent the Messiah, the Hero.

of our allegory, as a rider on a White Horse going forth with His

xiii

PAGE

Church to victory-The Church still conquering, but by the aid of 66

Cæsar, might be a Red Horse, to whose rider a great sword is given—

The Church becoming covetous might be a Black Horse, whose rider

holds a pair of scales and sells man's food at a famine price—The

Church supreme in the Roman world and killing her reformers

might be a Pale Horse, whose rider is attended by Death and

Hades-We might exhibit the martyrs resting in the intermediate

state-We might predict the Last Judgment under the image of

an earthquake-By a deep silence in heaven we might prefigure the

beginning of eternal peace-The history of the fall of Jericho sug-

gests the introduction of seven trumpets to announce the judgment

of God upon the opponents and corrupters of His Church-The

destruction of Jerusalem; the fall of ancient Rome; the devastations

of Mahomet; the darkness of the Middle Ages; the opening of the

abyss-The era of revolutions; the great apostacy, ending in the revela-

tion of Antichrist, and the final victory of Christ and His saints-We

can find many symbols for the Church as a great Hierarchy-It is the

Holy City, trodden under foot by the Gentiles; the Great City,

Sodom, Egypt, Babylon-It contains all the Saints, whom we repre-

sent as those worshipping in God's Temple, as witnesses in sackcloth,

as those with the seal of God on their foreheads-A serpent represents

Satan-For the great power of this world we may adopt Daniel's

symbol of a wild beast, who receives his throne and power from

the serpent—Imitating the Hebrew prophets, we call the Church a

woman- -When pure she is the Bride of the Lamb-When cor-

rupted by the world she is the harlot of the wild beast, the Lamb's

rival-For the Pope, who is a temporal sovereign, the Vicar of

Christ, and the restorer of the Western Empire, we form a mixed

symbol, a wild beast with lamb's horns and a serpent's voice, who

makes men erect an image of the fallen empire and commands them

to worship it-The establishment of the Church in the Roman

world may be represented as a place of refuge for the woman from

the open violence of the serpent-The Church supported by the

World-power is a harlot riding upon the wild beast who receives his

throne from the serpent, and acts for him during his absence from

the scene and imprisonment-The popular support of the Church is

the river Euphrates, beside whose many waters the harlot sitteth-

The drying up of these waters symbolises the withdrawal of popular

support from the Church-The disestablishment of the Church in

Roman Christendom, is the casting off of the harlot by the wild