 Chapter 3 of Observations upon the Apocalypse of Saint John by Sir Isaac Newton. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain, recording by Adam Bielka, of the relation which the prophecy of John hath to those of Daniel, and of the subject of the prophecy. The whole scene of sacred prophecy is composed of three principal parts. The regions beyond Euphrates, represented by the two first beasts of Daniel. The empire of the Greeks on this side of Euphrates, represented by the Leopard and by the Higote. And the empire of the Latins on this side of Greece, represented by the beast with ten horns. And to these three parts, the phrases of the third part of the earth, sea, rivers, trees, ships, stars, sun, and moon, were late. I place the body of the fourth beast on this side of Greece, because the first three of the four beasts had their lives prolonged after their dominion was taken away, and therefore belonged not to the body of the fourth, he only stamped them with his feet. By the earth, the Jews understood the great continent of all Asia and Africa, to which they had access by land. And by the isles of the sea, they understood the places to which they sailed by sea, particularly all Europe. And hence, in this prophecy, the earth and sea are put for the nations of the Greek and Latin empires. The third and fourth beasts of Daniel are the same with the dragon and ten horned beasts of John. But with this difference, John puts the dragon for the whole Roman empire while it continued entire, because it was entire when that prophecy was given, and the beast he considers not till the empire became divided, and then he puts the dragon for the empire of the Greeks, and the beast for the empire of the Latins. Hence, it is that the dragon and beast have common heads and common horns. But the dragon hath crowns only upon his heads, and the beast only upon his horns. Because the beast and his horns reigned not before they were divided from the dragon. And when the dragon gave the beast his throne, the ten horns received power as kings, the same hour with the beast. The heads are seven successive kings. Four of them were the four horsemen, which appeared at the opening of the first four seals. In the latter end of the sixth head, or seal, considered as present in the visions, it is said, five of the seven kings are fallen, and one is, and another is not yet come, and the beast that was, and is not, being wounded to death with a sword. He is the eighth, and of the seven. He was therefore a collateral part of the seventh. The horns are the same with those of Daniel's fourth beast, described above. The four horsemen, which appear at the opening of the first four seals, have been well explained by Mr. Mead, accepting that I had rather continued the third, to the end of the reign of the three Gordians, and Philip the Arabian. Those being kings from the south, and begin the fourth with the reign of Giseous, and continue until the reign of Diocletian. For the fourth horseman sat upon a pale horse, and his name was Death, and hell followed with him, and power was given them to kill unto the fourth part of the earth, with the sword, and with famine, and with the plague, and with the beasts of the earth. Therefore armies of invaders and rebels, and as such, were the times during all this interval. Here too the Roman Empire continued in an undivided monarchial form, except rebellions, and such it is represented by the four horsemen, but Diocletian divided it between himself and Maximus, AC 285, and it continued in that divided state till the victory of Constantine the Great, over Licinius, AC 323, which put an end to the heathen persecutions set on foot by Diocletian and Maximus, and described the opening of the fifth seal. But this division of the Empire was imperfect, the whole being still under one and the same Senate. The same victory of Constantine over Licinius, a heathen persecutor, began the fall of the heathen Empire, described at the opening of the sixth seal, and the visions of the seal continue till after the reign of Julian the Apostate, he being a heathen emperor, and reigning over the whole Roman Empire. The affairs of the church began to be considered at the opening of the fifth seal, as was said above. Then she is represented by a woman in the temple of heaven, clothed with the sun of righteousness, and the moon of Jewish ceremonies under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars, relating to the twelve apostles and to the twelve tribes of Israel. When she fled from the temple into the wilderness, she left in the temple a remnant of her seed, who kept the commandments of God, and had the testimony of Jesus Christ. And therefore, before her flight, she represented the true, primitive church of God. Though, afterwards, she degenerated like Ahola and Ahloba. In Diocletian's persecution, she cried, traveling in birth, and pained to be delivered. And in the end of that persecution, by the victory of Constantine over Maxentius, AC 312, she brought forth a man-child, such a child as was to rule all nations with a rod of iron, a Christian empire. And her child, by the victory of Constantine over Lysentius, AC 323, was caught up unto God and to his throne. And the woman, by the division of the Roman Empire into Greek and Latin empires, fled the first temple into the wilderness, or spiritually barren empire of the Latins, where she is found afterwards, sitting upon the beast and upon seven mountains, and is called the great city which reigneth over the kings of the earth, that is, over the ten kings who give their kingdom to her beast. But before her flight, there was war in heaven between Michael and the dragon, the Christian and the heathen religions, and the dragon, that old serpent, called the devil, and Satan, who deceived that the whole world was cast out to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. And John heard a voice in heaven saying, Now is come salvation and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ, for the accuser of our brethren, is cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and they loved not their lives unto death, therefore rejoice ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them, woe be to the inhabitors of the earth and sea, or people of the Greek and Latin empires, for the devil is come down amongst you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time. And when the dragon saw that he was cast down from the Roman throne, and the manchild caught up there, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the manchild, and to her, by the division of the Roman Empire, between the cities of Rome and Constantinople, AC 330, were given two wings of a great eagle, the symbol of the Roman Empire, that she might flee from the first temple into the wilderness of Arabia to her place at Babylon, mystically so called, and the serpent by the division of the same empire, between the sons of Constantin the Great, AC 337, cast out of his mouth water as a flood, the Western Empire, after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood, and the earth, or Greek empire, helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood by the victory of Constantius over Magnentius, AC 353, and thus the beast was wounded to death with a sword, and the dragon was wroth with the woman, in the reign of Julian the Apostate, AC 361, and between Valentinian and Valens, AC 364, went from her into the Eastern Empire to make war with the remnant of her seed, which she left behind her when she fled, and thus the beast revived. By the next division of the empire, which was between Gratian and Theodosius, AC 379, the beast with ten horns rose out of the sea, and the beast with two horns out of the earth, and by the last division thereof, which was between the sons of Theodosius, AC 395, the dragon gave the beast his power and throne, and great authority, and the ten horns received power as kings, the same hour with the beast. At length the woman arrived at her place of temporal, as well as spiritual dominion, upon the back of the beast, where she is nourished a time and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. Not in his kingdom, but at a distance from him, she is nourished by the merchants of the earth, three times, or years, and and half, or forty-two months, or twelve hundred and sixty days, and in these prophecies days are put for years. During all this time the beast acted, and she set upon him, that is, reigned over him, and over the ten kings who gave their power and strength, that is, their kingdom to the beast, and she was drunken with the blood of the saints. By all these circumstances she is the eleventh horn of Daniel's fourth beast, who reigned with a look more stout than his fellows, and was a different kind from the rest, and had eyes and a mouth like the woman, and made war with the saints, and prevailed against them, and wore them out, and though to change times and laws, and had given into his hand until a time, and times, and half a time. These characters of the woman, and little horn of the beast, agree perfectly. In respect of her temporal dominion she was a horn of the beast. In respect of her spiritual dominion she rode upon him in the form of a woman, and was his church, and committed fornication with the ten kings. The second beast, which rose up out of the earth, was the church of the Greek Empire, for it had two horns like those of the Lamb, and therefore was a church, and it spake as the dragon, and therefore was of his religion, and it came up out of the earth, and by consequence in his kingdom. It is called also the false prophet, who wrought miracles before the first beast, by which he deceived them that received his mark, and worshiped his image. When the dragon went from the woman to make war with a remnant of her seed, this beast arising out of the earth assisted in that war, and caused the earth, and them which dwell therein, to worship the authority of the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed, and to make an image to him, that is to assemble a body of men like him in point of religion. He had also power to give life, and authority to the image, so that it could both speak, and by dictating, cause that all religious bodies of men, who would not worship the authority of that image, should be mystically killed. And he causeth all men to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their forehead, and that no man might buy or sell, save he that hath the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. All the rest being excommunicated by the beast with two horns. His mark is exe, exe, exe, and his name, Latinos, and the number of his name, six, six, six. Thus the beast, after he was wounded to death with a sword and revived, was deified, as the heathens used to deify their kings after death, and had an image erected to him, and his worshipers were initiated in this new religion by receiving the mark, or name of this new God, or the number of his name. By killing all that will not worship him, and his image, the first temple illuminated by the lamps of the seven churches, is demolished, and a new temple built for them, who will not worship him. And the outward court of this new temple, or outward form of a church, is given to the Gentiles, who worship the beast and his image, while they who will not worship him are sealed with the name of God in their foreheads, and retire into the inward court of this new temple. These are the 144,000 sealed out of all the 12 tribes of Israel, and called the two witnesses, as being derived from the two wings of the woman, while she was flying into the wilderness, and represented by two of the seven candlesticks. These appear to John in the inward court of the second temple, standing on Mount Zion with the lamb, and as it were on the sea of glass. These are the saints of the Most High, and the host of heaven, and the holy people, spoken of by Daniel, as worn out and trampled under foot, and destroyed in the latter times by the little horns of his fourth beast, and he goat. While the Gentiles tread the holy city under foot, God gives power to his two witnesses, and they prophesy a thousand, two hundred, and three score days clothed in sackcloth. They are called the two olive trees, with relation to the two olive trees, which in Zechariah's vision, Chapter 4, stand on either side of the golden candlestick, to supply the lamps with oil, and olive trees, according to the apostle Paul, represent churches, Romans, Chapter 11. They supply the lamps with oil by maintaining teachers. They are also called the two candlesticks, which in this prophecy signified churches, the seven churches of Asia, being represented by seven candlesticks. Five of these churches were found faulty, and threatened if they did not repent. The other two were without fault, and so their candlesticks were fit to be placed in the second temple. These were the churches in Smyrna and Philadelphia. They were in a state of tribulation and persecution, and the only two of the seven in such a state, and so their candlesticks were fit to represent the churches in affliction in the times of the second temple, and the only two of the seven that were fit. The two witnesses are not new churches, they are the posterity of the primitive church, the posterity of the two wings of the woman, and so are fitly represented by two of the primitive candlesticks. We may conceive, therefore, that when the first temple was destroyed, and a new one built for them who worship in the inward court, two of the seven candlesticks were placed in this new temple. The affairs of the church are not considered during the opening of the first four seals. They begin to be considered at the opening of the fifth seal, as was said above, and are further considered at the opening of the sixth seal, and the seventh seal contains the times of the great apostasy, and therefore I refer the epistles to the seven churches unto the times of the fifth and sixth seals, for they relate to the church when she began to decline and contain admonitions against the great apostasy then approaching. When Eusebius had brought down his ecclesiastical history to the reign of Diocletian, he thus describes the state of the church. Noscherte pro merito explacare no possumos argumento eso passit imperatorum benignitos erganostrus cuibus regandus etium prwincia scomi tabent omnisafracandi metu euse liberantes ob singularum qua in religionum nostrum affecti errant benevolentium and a little after jam vero quiis innumerabilium hominum cotidie ad fidium cristi confugientium turbum quiis numerum ecclis orum in singularus orbidus quiis ilustros popularum concorsus in adibus sacris cumulate posit describiae core factum est ut priscis adeleficius jam non contente in singularus orbidus spatiosis ab ipsis fundamentis extruriant ecclesias attue hai progressi tempores et cotidie in maius e melus proviscentia nec livor ullis eterere nec malignetis demunus fesionere nec hominum incidie prohebere un quom putrerent quom giu omnipotentes dit extra popularum sum ut puttali dunium prasidium texet atque costudit sed quom ex nimia libertate in niglientiam ac decidiam prolapsi eusemus cumulter alteri invedere etque obracectere caipiset quom internos quasi vela intestia gererumus verbis tecum armis pribustam haestike nosmuto vulnerantes com antistis adversus antistis populi in populis colisii julgia a tumultus agitaren teniki quom fraus et simulatio ad sumum malitia quulman ardolivisa tum devina altio levii brachio ut solet intugro ad hook egriesia statu et fedeliam turbus liberae convientibus sensum ac materete in noscaipet anima vetere orsa primum persecutione ab isqui militava quom vero sensu omni destituti de placando de numenei cogetermus quidam quin patsies sin star impioriam coradum corundum resiumanis nulla providencia gubernari rati alia cotidi criminia lis agiseremus compastorez nostri spreita religionis regila mutu is in tursei contestanti ebus ditch air terran nil alud quom yurgia minus emulationu adia ac mutu is in ami citias amplificare students frenchu patum quasi teranidum quandum contentis sime cibi vindicantis tung tumum juxta dictum ireme abscuravet dominus in ira suophilium zion et diated di kylo gloriam israel per ecclesiarium shilecet subversionum etc this was the state of the church just before the subversion of the churches in the beginning of diocletian's persecution and to this state of the church agrees the first of the seven epistles to the angel of the seven churches that to the church in fss i have something against thee saith christ to the angel of that church because thou hast left thy first love remember therefore from whence thou are fallen and repent and do the first works or else i will come on to thee quickly and will remove thy candlestick out of its place except thou repent but this thou hast that thou hatest the deeds of the nicolations which i also hate the nicolations are the continuanza above described who placed religion in abstinence from marriage abandoning their wives if they had any they are here called nicolations from nicolas one of the seven deacons of the primitive church of jerusalem who having a beautiful wife and being taxed with exoriasness abandoned her and permitted her to marry whom she pleased saying that we must disuse the flesh and thence forward lived a single life in constancy as his children also the continuanza afterwards embraced the doctrine of ions and ghosts male and female and were avoided by the churches till the fourth century and the church of Ephesus is here commended for hating their deeds the persecution of diacletian began in the year of christ 302 and lasted 10 years in the eastern empire and two years in the western to this state of the church the second epistle to the church of smirna agrees i know sayeth christ thy works and tribulation and poverty but thou art rich and i know the blasphemy of them which say they are jews and or not but are the synagogue of satan fear none of those things which thou shall suffer behold the devil shall call some of you into prison that ye may be tried and ye shall have tribulation 10 days be thou faithful unto death and i will give thee a crown of life the tribulation of 10 days can agree with no other persecution than that of diacletian it being the only persecution which lasted 10 years by the blasphemy of them which say they are jews and or not but are the synagogue of satan i understand the idolatry of the nicolations who falsely said they were christians the nicolations are complained of also in the third epistle as men that held the doctrine of baelum who taught balak to cast a stumbling block before the children of israel to eat things sacrifice to idols and to commit spiritual fornication for baelum taught the moabites and the midianites to tempt and invite israel by their women to commit fornication and to feast with them at the sacrifices of their gods the dragon therefore began now to come down among the inhabitants of the earth and sea the nicolations are also complained of in the fourth epistle under the name of the woman jezebel who calleth herself a prophetess to teach and to seduce the servants of christ to commit fornication and to eat things sacrifice to idols the woman therefore began now to fly into the wilderness the reign of constantine the great from the time of his conquering lycinius was monarchial over the whole roman empire then the empire became divided between the sons of constantine and afterwards it was again united under constantius by his victory over magnetius to the affairs of the church in these three successive periods of time the third fourth and fifth epistles that is those to the angels of the churches of pergamas thyracia and sardis seemed to relate the next emperor was julian the apostate in the sixth epistle to the angel of the church in philadelphia christ seeth because in the reign of the heathen emperor julian thou hast kept the word of my patience i also will keep thee from the hour of temptation which by the women's flying into the wilderness and the dragons making war with the remnant of her seed and the killing of all who will not worship the image of the beast shall come upon all the world to try them the dwell upon the earth and to distinguish them by sealing the one with the name of god in their foreheads and marking the other with the mark of the beast him that overcomeeth i will make a pillar in the temple of my god and he shall go no more out of it and i will write upon him the name of my god in his forehead so the christians of the church of philadelphia as many of them as overcome are sealed with the seal of god and placed in the second temple and go no more out the same is to be understood of the church in smirna which also kept the word of god's patience and was without fault these two churches with their posterity are therefore the two pillars and the two candlesticks and two witnesses in the second temple after the reign of emperor julian and his successor jovian who reigned but five months the empire became again divided between valentinean and valens then the church catholic in the epistle to the angel of the church of leodicea is reprehended as lukewarm and threatened to be spewed out of christ's mouth she said that she was rich and increased with goods and had need of nothing being an outward prosperity and knew not that she was inwardly wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked she is therefore spewed out of christ's mouth at the opening of the seventh seal and this puts an end to the times of the first temple about one half of the roman empire turned christians in the time of constantine the great and his sons after julian had opened the temples and restored the worship of the heathens the emperor's valentinean and valens tolerated it all their reign and therefore the prophecy of the sixth seal was not fully accomplished before the reign of their successor gracion it was the custom of the heathen priests in the beginning of the reign of every sovereign emperor to offer him the dignity and habit of the pontifex maximus this dignity all emperors had hereto accepted but gracion rejected it threw down the idols interdicted the sacrifices and took away their revenues with the salaries and authority of the priests theodosius the great followed his example and heathenism afterwards recovered itself no more but decreased so fast that prudentius about ten years after the death of theodosius called the heathens thexpauca ingenia et pars hominum rara rissima once the affairs of the sixth seal ended with the reign of valens or rather with the beginning of the reign of theodosius when he like his predecessor gracion rejected the dignity of pontifex maximus for the romans were very much infested by the invasions of foreign nations in the reign of valentinean and valens octampore se amianus valut per universeum orbum romanum bellicum canetibus pucines exeate gantes civisimei nimitis cibi proximus persuitabla galeas ratiasque simul elemani popilabantu samartai panonias ecuade pictai seksonis et scoti et atacoti ritenos arumis vexivere continuei austoriani morecu aliagante africanum solito acruis acrius incursaba thrashes dirpiepa predatory globi golf thorum perserum rex manus arminis injectaba and wilf the emperors were busy in repelling these enemies the huns and alans and goths came over the danube in two bodies overcame and slew valens and made so great a slaughter of the roman army the amianus seeth mecula analogus pretor caninsum uta ad internitonium resa the gtor jester these wars were not fully stopped on all sides till the beginning of the reign of the adotius ac 379 and 380 but thence forward the empire remained quiet from foreign armies till his death ac 395 so long the four winds were held and so long there was silence in heaven and the seventh seal was opened when this silence began mr mead hath explained the prophecy of the first six trumpets not much amiss but if he had observed that the prophecy of pouring out the vials of wrath is synchronal to that of sounding the trumpets his explanation would have been yet more complete the name of woes is given to the wars to which the last three trumpets sound to distinguish them from the wars of the first four the sacrifices on the first four days of the feast of tabernacles at which the first four trumpets sound and the first four vials of wrath are poured out are slaughters in four great wars and these wars are represented by four winds from the four corners of the earth the first was an east wind the second a west wind the third a south wind and the fourth a north wind with respect to the city of Rome the metropolis of the old roman empire these four plagues fell upon the third part of the earth sea rivers sun moon and stars that is upon the earth sea rivers sun moon and stars of the third part of the whole scene of these prophecies of daniel and john the plague of the eastern wind at the sounding of the first trumpet was to fall upon the earth that is upon the nations of the greek empire accordingly after the death of theodosius the great the goths sarmatians huns nissarians and historian moors invaded and miserably wasted Greece thrace asia minor armenia syria egypt libya and ilicarum for 10 or 12 years together the plague of the western wind at the sounding of the second trumpet was to fall upon the sea or western empire by means of a great mountain burning with fire cast into it and turning it to blood accordingly in the year 407 that empire began to be invaded by the visigoths vandals alans suave burgundians ostrogoths heruli quadi geppades and by these wars it was broken into 10 kingdoms and miserably wasted and roam itself the burning mountain was besieged and taken by the ostrogoths in the beginning of these miseries the plague of the southern wind at the sounding of the third trumpet was to cause a great star burning as it were a lamp to fall from heaven upon the rivers and fountains of waters the western empire now divided into many kingdoms and to turn them to wormwood and blood and make them bitter accordingly genseric the king of the vandals and alans in spain ac 427 entered africa with an army of 80 000 men where he invaded the moors and made war upon the romans both there and on the sea coasts of europe for 50 years together almost without intermission taking hippo ac 431 and carthage the capital of africa ac 439 in ac 455 with a numerous fleet and an army of 300 000 vandals and moors he invaded italy took and plundered rome naples capua and many other cities carrying vents their wealth with the flower of the people into africa and the next year ac 456 he rent all africa from the empire totally expelling the romans then the vandals invaded and took the islands of the mediterranean sicily sardinia corusca abusas majorca menorca etc and richimer besieged emperor and timus in rome took the city and gave his soldiers the plunder ac 472 the visigoths about the same time drove the romans out of spain and now the western emperor the great star which fell from heaven burning as it were a lamp having by all these wars gradually lost almost all his dominions was invaded and conquered in one year by odocher king of the heruli ac 476 after this the moors revolted ac 477 and weakened the vandals by several wars and took marantania from them these wars continued till the vandals were conquered by balisarius ac 534 and by all these wars africa was almost depopulated according to procopius who reckons that above five millions of men perished in them when the vandals first invaded africa that country was very populace consisting of about 700 bishoprics more than were in all france spain and italy together but by the wars between the vandals romans and wars it was depopulated to that degree that procopius tells us it was next to a miracle for a traveler to see a man in pouring out the third vial it is said thou art righteous o lord because thou has judged us for they have shed the blood of thy saints and prophets and thou hast given them blood to drink for they are worthy how they shed the blood of saints may be understood by the following edict of the emperor hornorius procured by four bishops sent to him by a council of african bishops who met at carthage 14th of june ac 410 se poena at proscriptionis at sanguinis see ultra convienere per publikum excranda scalaris sui temeritate temptiverin datum octo calendar septembrus wallano consulate ac 410 which edict was five years after fortified by the following imperatorus honorus et theodosius augustuduo hierarchliano africano schiant cunti ki ad ritu suos heresis superstitiano bus obrepsorant sacrosancte legis inimici pletendos se poena at proscriptionis at sanguinis si ultra convienere per publikum excersende scalaris sui temeritate temptiverin necovera divenec reverentia contenauni temerator datum octo calendar septembrus honoria detrum et theodosia sex augustuduo consulis ac 415 these edicts being directed to the governor of africa extended only to the africans before these there were many severe ones against the donatis but they did not extend to blood these two were the first which made their meetings and the meetings of all dissenters capital for by heretics in these edicts are meant all dissenters as is manifest by the following against uracius a luciferan bishop imperatoris arcadius et honorius augustiduo a luiano for consulis africai hereticorum vocabulo continente et latis adversus ios sentio nibus divan succumbere ti vel livai argumento e judicio catalice religionis et frammati detecti frente deviare idiocchi esperiencia tua urusium hereticium es cognoscat datum trivus novum septemboris constantinople allibrio et probino consuls ac 395 the greek emperor zeno adopted theodoric king of the ostrogoths to be his son made him master of the horse and patricus and consul of constantinople and recommending him to the roman people and senate gave him the western empire and sent him into italy against odicar king of the heruli theodoric theropon led his nation into italy conquered odicar and reigned over italy sicily reitia noracium dalmessia miburnia istria and part of suavia panonia and gallia whence anodias said in a panageric to theodoric add limitum sum romana renia remiasi theodoric reigned with great prudence moderation and felicity treated the romans with singular benevolence govern them by their own laws and restored their government under the senate and consuls he himself supplying the place of emperor without assuming the title seeth procopulis et vera impetori conviennes decos nulum ebsi a bese gestitie manus e cultus legium diligence castoria teras e vicinis barbarus servavit intactus etc whence i do not reckon the reign of this king amongst the plagues of the four winds the plague of the northern wind at the sounding of the fourth trumpet was to cause the sun moon and stars that is the king kingdom and princes of the western empire to be darkened and to continue some time in darkness accordingly bellisarius having conquered the vandals invaded italy ac 535 and made war upon the ostrogoths in dalmatia libernia venetia lombardy tuscany and other regions northward from rome 20 years together in this war many cities were taken and retaken in retaking malon from the romans the ostrogoths slew all the males young and old amounting as procopius reckons to 300 000 and sent the women captives to their allies their bergenkians rome itself was taken and retaken several times and thereby the people were thinned the old government by a senate ceased the nobles were ruined and all the glory of the city was extinguished and ac 552 after a war of 17 years the kingdom of the ostrogoths fell yet the remainder of the ostrogoths and an army of germans called into their assistance continued the war three or four years longer then ensued the war of the heruli who as anastasius tells us heran ben cumptom etallium slew all italy this was followed by the war of the lombards fierce of all the barbarians which began ac 568 and lasted for 38 years together ending at last the papacy of sebenian ac 605 by a piece then made by the lombards three years before the war ended Gregory the great then bishop of rome thus spoke of it in one of his sermons to the people he thus expresses the great consumption of the romans by these wars in another sermon he thus describes the desolations farve generis humani reliqui ad hoc cotidi et sin cestioni feruntur et finum non hobbont flagella colestis justiste ipsa attum qua aliquando monti domina isi vidibatur qualis remonsent roma conspicumus innumeris the loribus multipli cittir attrita defilocione civium impressini costium frecuencia runerum etia jam di ila omnus who just faikli potons ableti sunt etia papile defi serrunt ubi annem sanantas ubi jam populus contuberunt osa consompta sunt carnes omnis annium secularium dignitaritum orto extinctus est ettemun ipsos vos pacos chi romansinus ad hoc cotidi glady ad hoc cotidi innumera tribulations premut vacua jam ardent roma quid otum istati omnibus dicimus cum ruinis crebre scentibus ipsa coque destre aideficia vedemus postacam defi serrunt hominus etiam parites candunt jam etia deseletta etia contrita etia gamitibus oppressa est etc all this was spoken by gregory to the people of rome who were witnesses of the truth of it thus by the plagues of the four winds the empire of the greeks was shaken and the empire of the latins fell and rome remained nothing more than the capital of a poor dukedom subordinate to revena the seat of the exarchs the fifth trumpet sounded to the wars which the king of the south as he is called by daniel made in the time of the end in pushing at the king who did according to his will this plague began with the opening of the bottomless pit which denotes the letting out of a false religion the smoke which came out of the pit signifying the multitude which embraced that religion and the locust which came out of the smoke the armies which came out of that multitude this pit was opened to let out smoke and locusts into the regions of the four monarchies or some of them the king of these locusts was the angel of the bottomless pit being chief governor as well as in religious as civil affairs such as was the caliph of the serisans swarms of locusts often arise in arabia phylox and from thence infest the neighboring nations and so are a very fit type of the numerous armies of arabians invading the romans they began to invade them ac 634 and to reign a damascus ac 637 they built bagdad ac 766 and reigned over persia syria arabia egypt africa and spain they afterwards lost africa to mahades ac 910 media herkenia chorison and all persia to the dalemites between the years 927 and 935 mesopotamia and meriferican to nesira dallas ac 930 syria and egypt to aches jid ac 935 and now being in great distress the caliph of bagdad ac 936 surrendered all the rest of his temporal power to muhammad the son of rajici king of wasit in caldea and made him emperor of emperors but muhammad within two years lost bagdad to the turks and thence forward bagdad was sometimes in the hands of the turks and sometimes in the hands of the serisans till togro bay called also togra dogrisa tengor leal picks and sedoc conquered chorison and persia and ac 1055 added bagdad to his empire making it the seat thereof his successors alubar flaun and malisha conquered the regions upon euphrates and these conquests after the death of malisha break into the kingdoms of armenia mesopotamia syria and capedoshah the whole time that the caliphs of the serisans reigned with a temporal dominion at damascus and bagdad together was 300 years the deliset from the year 637 to the year 936 inclusive now locusts live but five months and therefore for the decorum of the type these locusts are said to hurt men five and five months as if they lived about five months at damascus and again about five months at bagdad in all ten months or 300 prophetic days which are years the sixth trumpet sounded to the wars which daniel's king of the north made against the king above mentioned who did according to his will in these wars the king of the north according to daniel conquered the empire of the greeks and also judaea egypt libya and ethiopia and by these conquests the empire of the turks was set up as may be known by the extent thereof these wars commenced ac 1258 when the four kingdoms of the turks ceded upon you fradies that of armenia major ceded at mea theracan megarchan or martyropolis that of mesopotamia ceded at mosul that of all syria ceded at aleppo and that of capidosha ceded at iconium were invaded by the tartars under hulaku and driven into the western parts of asia minor where they made war upon the greeks and began to erect the present empire of the turks upon the sounding of the sixth trumpet john heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before god saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet loose the four angels which are bound at the great river your fradies and the four angels were loosed which were prepared for an hour and a day and a month and a year for to slay the third part of men by the four horns of the golden altar is signified the situation of the head cities of the said four kingdoms mea theracan mosul aleppo and iconium which were in a quadrangle they slew the third part of men when they conquered the greek empire and took constantanople ac 453 and they began to be prepared for this purpose when olub arslan began to conquer the nations upon fradies ac 1063 the interval is called an hour and a day and a month and a year or 391 prophetic days which are years in the first 30 years olub arslan and melasia conquered the nations upon your fradies and reigned over the whole melasia died ac 1092 and was succeeded by a little child and then this kingdom broke into the four kingdoms above mentioned end of chapter three section four of observations upon the apocalypse of saint john this is a libervox recording all libervox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit libervox.org recording by adam bielka observations upon the apocalypse of saint john by sir isaac newton section four the last pages of these observations having been differently drawn up by the author in another copy of his work they are here inserted as they follow in that copy after the 22nd line of the 261st page foregoing and none was found worthy to open the book till the lamb of god appeared the great high priest represented by a lamb slain at the foot of the altar in the morning sacrifice and he came and took the book out of the hand of him that sat upon the throne for the high priest in the feast of the seventh month went into the most holy place and took the book of the law out of the right side of the ark to read it to the people and in order to read it well he studied it seven days that is upon the fourth fifth sixth seventh eighth ninth and tenth days being attended by some of the priests to hear him perform these seven days are alluded to by the lamb's opening the seven seals successively upon the 10th day of the month a young bullock was offered for sin offering and the other goat was called a zazzle the scapegoat the high priest in his linen garments took a sensor full of burning coals of fire from the altar his hand being full of sweet incense beaten small and went into and went into the most holy place within the veil and put the incense upon the fire and sprinkled the blood of the bullock with his finger upon the mercy seat and before the mercy seat seven times and then he killed the goat which fell to god slot for a sin offering for the people and brought his blood within the veil and sprinkled it also seven times upon the mercy seat and before the mercy seat then he went out to the altar and sprinkled it also seven times with the blood of the bullock and is often with the blood of the goat after this he laid both his hands upon the head of the live goat and confessed over him all in the iniquities of the children of israel and all their transgressions in all their sins putting them upon the head of the goat and sent him away into the wilderness by the hands of a fit man and the goat bore upon him all their iniquities into a land not inhabited lividicus chapter four and chapter sixteen while the high priest was doing these things in the most holy place and at the altar the people continued at their devotion quietly and in silence then the high priest went into the holy place put off his linen garments and put on other garments then came out and sent the bullock and the goat of the sin offering to be burnt without the camp with fire taken in a censor from the altar and as the people returned home from the temple they said to one another god seal you to a good new year in allusion to all this when he had opened the seventh seal there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour and an angel stood at the altar having a golden censor and there was given unto him much incense that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne and the smoke of the incense with the prayers of the saints ascended up before god out of the angel's hand and the angel took the censor and filled it with the fire of the altar and cast it to the earth and synchronal to these things was the ceiling of the 144,000 out of all the 12 tribes of the children of israel with the seal of god in their foreheads while the rest of the 12 tribes received the mark of the beast and the woman fled the temple into the wilderness to her place upon this beast for this ceiling and marking was represented by casting lots upon the two goats sacrificing god's lot on mount zion and sending the scapegoat into the wilderness loaded with the sins of the people upon the 15th day of the month and the six following days there were very great sacrifices seven trumpets are sounded and seven thunders utter their voices and seven vials of wrath are poured out wherefore the sounding of the seven trumpets the voices of the seven thunders and the pouring out of the seven vials of wrath are synchronal and relate to one and the same division of the time of the seventh seal following the silence into seven successive parts the seven days of this feast were called the feast of tavernacles and during these seven days the children of israel dwelt in booths and rejoiced with palm branches in their hands to this alludes the multitude with palms in their hands which appeared after the ceiling of the 144 000 and came out of the great tribulation with triumph at the battle of the great day to which the seventh trumpet sounds the visions therefore of the 144 000 and of the palm bearing multitude extend to the sounding of the seventh trumpet and therefore are synchronal to the times of the seventh seal when the 144 000 are sealed out of all the twelve tribes of israel and the rest receive the mark of the beast and thereby the first temple is destroyed john is bitten to measure the temple and altar that is their courts and them that worship therein that is the 144 000 standing on mount zion and on the sea of glass but the court that is without the temple that is the people's court to leave out and measure it not because it is given to the Gentiles those who receive the mark of the beast and the holy city they shall tread under foot 40 and two months that is all the time that the beast acts under the woman Babylon and the two witnesses prophesy 1260 days that is all the same time clothed in sackcloth these have power like Elijah to shut heaven that it rain not at the sounding of the first trumpet and like moses to turn the waters into blood at the sounding of the second and to smite the earth with all plagues those of the trumpets as often as they will these prophesy at the building of the second temple like Haggai and Zechariah these are the two olive trees or churches which supplied the lamps with oil Zechariah four these are the two candlesticks or churches standing before the god of the earth five of the seven churches of asia those in prosperity are found fault with and exhorted to repent and threatened to be removed out of their places or spewed out of christ's mouth or punished with the sword of christ's mouth except they repent the other two the churches of smirna and philadelphia which were under persecution remain in a state of persecution to illuminate the second temple when the primitive church catholic represented by the woman in heaven apostasized and became divided into two corrupt churches represented by the whore of Babylon and the two horned beast the 144 000 who were sealed out of all the 12 tribes became the two witnesses in opposition to those two false churches and the name of two witnesses once imposed remains to the true church of god in all times and places to the end of the prophecy in the interpretation of this prophecy the woman in heaven is clothed with the sun before she flies into the wilderness represents the primitive church catholic illuminated with the seven lamps in the seven golden candlesticks which are the seven churches of asia the dragon signifies the same empire with daniel's he goat in the reign of his last horn that is the whole roman empire until it became divided into the greek and latin empires and all the time of that division it signifies the greek empire alone and the beast is daniel's fourth beast that is the empire of the latins before the division of the roman empire into the greek and latin empires the beast is included in the body of the dragon and from the time of that division the beast is the latin empire only hence the dragon and beast have the same heads and horns but the heads are crowned upon the dragon and the horns upon the beast the horns are ten kingdoms into which the beast becomes divided presently after his separation from the dragon as has been described above the heads are seven success of dynasties or parts into which the roman empire becomes divided by the opening of the seventh seals before the woman fled into the wilderness she being with child of a christian empire cried traveling the delisette in the ten years of persecution of diacletian and pained to be delivered and the dragon the heathen roman empire stood before her to devour her child as soon as it was born and she brought forth a man child who at length was to rule all nations with a rod of iron and her child was caught up unto god and to his throne in the temple by the victory of constantine the great over maxentius and the woman fled from the temple into the wilderness of arabia to babalon where she hath a place of riches and honor and dominion upon the back of the beast prepared of god that they should feed her there 1260 days and there was war in heaven between the heathens under maximinus and the new christian empire and the great dragon was cast out that old serpent which deceiveth the whole world the spirit of heathen idolatry he was cast out of the throne into the earth and they overcame him by the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony and they loved not their lives unto death and when the dragon saw that he was cast onto the earth he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child stirring up a new persecution against her in the reign of lycinius and to the woman by the building of constantinople and equalling it to rome were given two wings of a great eagle that she might flee into the wilderness into her place upon the back of her beast where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time from the face of the serpent and the serpent upon the death of constantin the great cast out of his mouth water as a flood the delisette the western empire under constantin jr and constance after the woman that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood and the earth the nations of asia now under constantinople helped the woman and by conquering the western empire now under magnantius swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth and the dragon was wroth with the woman and went to make war with the remnant of her seed which keep the commandments of god and have the testimony of jesus christ which in that war were sealed out of all the twelve tribes of israel and remained upon mount zion with the lamb being in number 144 000 and having their father's name written in their foreheads when the earth had swallowed up the flood and the dragon was gone to make war with the remnant of the woman's seed john stood upon the sea of sand and saw a beast rise out of the sea having seven heads and ten horns and the beast was like unto a leopard and his feet were the feet of a bear and its mouth as the mouth of a lion john here names daniel's four beasts in order putting his beast in the room of daniel's fourth beast to shoo that they are the same and the dragon gave this beast his power and his seat and great authority by relinquishing the western empire to him and one of his heads the sixth was as it were wounded to death by delisette by the sword of the earth which swallowed up the waters cast out of the mouth of the dragon and his deadly wound was healed by a new division of the empire between valentinean and valence ac 364 john saw the beast rise out of the sea at the division thereof between ration and theodosian ac 379 the dragon gave the beast his power and his seat and great authority at the death of theodosius when theodosius gave the western empire to his son hornarius after which the two empires were no more united but the western empire became presently divided into 10 kingdoms as above and these kingdoms at length united in religion under the woman and reign with her 40 and two months and i beheld saith john another beast coming up out of the earth when the woman fled from the dragon into the kingdom of the beast and became his church this other beast rose up out of the earth to represent the church of the dragon for he had two horns like the lamb such as were the bishoprics of alexandria and antioch and he spake as the dragon in matters of religion and he caused the earth or nations of the dragon's kingdom to worship the first beast whose deadly wound was healed that is to be of his religion and he doth great wonders so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men that is he excommunicate if those who differ from him in point of religion for in pronouncing their excommunications they used to swing down a lighted torch from above and he said to them that dwell on the earth that they should make an image to the beast which had the wound by a sword and did live that is that they should call a council of men of the religion of this beast and he had power to give life unto the image of the beast that the image of the beast should both speak and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed but delisette mystically by dissolving their churches and he causeth all both small and great rich and poor free and bond to receive a mark in their right hand or in their foreheads and that no man might spy or sell save that he had the mark or the name of the beast or the number of his name that is the mark exe or the name latinos or the number thereof heeks six six six all others were excommunicated when the seven angels had poured out the seven vials of wrath and john had described them all in the present time he is called up from the time of the seventh vial to the time of the sixth seal to take a view of the woman and her beast who were to reign in the times of the seventh seal in respect of the latter part of the time of the sixth seal then considered as present the angel tells john the beast that thou sauced was and is not and shall ascend out of the abyss and go into perdition that is he was in the reign of constants and magnantius until constantius conquered magnantius and reunited the western empire to the eastern he is not during the reunion and he shall ascend out of the abyss or sea at a following division of the empire the angel tells him further here is the mind which hath wisdom the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman siteth rome being built upon seven hills and then it's called the seven hilled city also there are seven kings five are fallen and one is and the other is not yet come and when he cometh he must continue a short space and the beast that was and is not even he is the eighth and is of the seven and goeth into perdition five are fallen the times of the first five seals being passed and one is the time of the sixth seal being considered as present and another is not yet come and when he cometh which will be at the opening of the seventh seal he must continue a short space and the beast that was and is not even he is the eighth by means of the division of the roman empire into two collateral empires and is of the seven being one half of the seventh and shall go into perdition the words five are fallen and one is and the other is not yet come are usually referred by interpreters to the time of john the apostle when the prophecy was given but it is to be considered that in this prophecy many things are spoken of as present which were not present when the prophecy was given but which would be present with respect to some future time considered as present in the visions thus where it is said upon pouring out the seventh vial of wrath the great Babylon came in remembrance before God to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath this relates not to the time of john the apostle but to the time of the pouring out of the seventh vial of wrath so where it is said Babylon is fallen is fallen and thrust in thy sickle and reap for the time is come for thee to reap and the time of the dead is come that they should be judged and again I saw the dead small and great stand before God these sayings relate not to the days of john the apostle but to the latter time considered as present in the visions in like manner the words five are fallen and one is and the other is not yet come and the beast that was and is not he is the eighth are not to be referred to the age of the john the apostle but relate to the time when the beast was to be wounded to death with a sword and sure that this wound was to be given him in his sixth head and without this reference we are not told in what head the beast was wounded and the ten horns which thou sawths are ten kings which have received no kingdom as yet but receive power as kings one hour with the beast these have one mind being all of the whores religion and shall give their power and strength unto the beast these shall make war with the lamb at the sounding of the seventh trumpet and the lamb shall overcome them for he is lord of lords and king of kings and they that are with him are called and chosen and faithful and he saith unto me the waters which thou saws'd where the whore sitteth are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues composing her beast and the ten horns which thou saws'd upon the beast these shall hate the whore and shall make her desolate and naked and shall eat her flesh and burn her with fire at the end of the twelve hundred and sixty days for god hath put in their hearts to fulfill his will and to agree and give their kingdom unto the beast until the words of god shall be fulfilled and the woman which thou saws'd is that great city which reigneth over the kings of the earth or the great city of the latins with reigneth over the ten kings till the end of those days end of section four recording by adam bielka end of observations upon the apocalypse of saint john by sir isaac newton