Commentary on Revelation, Lecture 2
LECTURE II.
Vers. 3.
So he carried me away in the spirit into the wildernesse: and I saw … woman …it upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads, and ten horns.
4.
And the woman was arayed in purple, and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stone and pearls, having a golden cap in her hand, full of abominations and filthinesse of her fornication.
5.
And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS, AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
6.
And I saw the woman drunken with the bloud of the Saints, and with the bloud of the Martyrs of Iesus:—
THe vision it self followeth to the 7. vers. and there are two circumstances premitted, vers. 3. before it be represented to Iohn, as contributing for the disposing and fitting of Iohn, for the beholding of it. 1. He is carried in the Spirit: which holdeth forth the frame of his mind; he was not in body transported, but by the Spirit; his soul was withdrawn from its ordinary way of making use of bodily organs to another more immediate and sublime way of receiving impressions of what was represented, such as was spoken of Chap. 1.10. signifying that it is needfull to be spirituall before one be capable of the visions of God; a spirituall man and a spirituall frame, is the best discerner of these, 1 Corinth. 2. 2. He is taken to the wildernesse: by that ecstasie he is removed from ordinary commerce to a wildernesse, where that whore is represented to him, though it be not her dwelling. By this is implyed, 1. That spiritualnesse of frame and abstractednesse and retirednesse go often together; one in the Spirit, will be one often apart in private, as our blessed Lord was. 2. That an abstracted, retired frame of heart, is fittest for discerning what is right and what is wrong. It is not at Court where folks come soonest to discern the whore, the glistering of that shew keepeth men from the right up-taking of her: But when men soberly retire to think of things in the most abstracted manner, then what seemeth gold to others, is often found but to be guilded to them, as here, vers. 4.
When Iohn is thus qualifyed and composed, then is the vision represented: an uncouth sight, a woman described in four or five properties or markes, 1. by the beast which supporteth her, vers. 3. which beast is in four characters set out. For understaning of which, beside what is said, Observe That by woman is understood here the whore formerly mentioned, to wit, a whorish Church, or, a faithfull city turned to be an harlot, Isai. 1. Consider then this woman two wayes, 1. simply as a woman, so it is the city Rome that then was. 2. as a whore, so it is the apostatized Church of Rome which though in Iohns time it was not come, yet was in vision represented to him as come. By beast in generall, some wicked Dominion or Empire (as Dan. 7.) must be understood.
More particularly, We may take the beast in a fourfold consideration, 1. complexly with its seven heads, as in any form of its Governments; so it pointeth out the Roman Empire indefinitly, as it was before Iohns time under the five heads who were fallen, as it was in his time under the sixth, and was to be afterward under the seventh: There is but one beast in all, thus considered. 2. We may consider the beast (to speak so) as a body, or the beast without relation to any head; so it holdeth forth the Empire, Dominions, or Countries, which made up a Monarchy under any of these sorts of Governments or heads. It is a body, upon the matter the same, however its Governments changed. This seemeth in the exposition to be called the Peoples, Tongues, and Languages, vers. 15. on which the woman sitteth, and is expressed by many waters, in the preface, vers. 1. on which the whore sitteth, as she doth here on the beast. 3. We may consider the heads as distinct from the beast, and so they are the formes of Governments which successively guided that beast and supported that city. And thus the last head, which succeedeth the Caesars, which did reign in Iohns time, will be the Pope (or Papacy) who now hath headed that Empire for many years. By the former heads, the woman, as a city, is supported, by the last as she is a whore. 4. We may consider the beast, as under, and acted by the last head the Pope, so by it, is represented the Roman sea, (or se…es Romana) which by Religion, under pretext of Christs Headship, ruleth as broadly as ever any of her former states did, as appeareth by what was said, Chap. 13. In this respect, it is of an Ecclesiastick nature, to hold out a twofold respect in this beast beside any of the former; so this fourth consideration taketh up the beast as the Authority ruling, and the whore as the city where he ruleth: for (Chap. 19.) he as a Beast or Governour, hath a being when the whore is destroyed in the 18.
If it be asked here, Under what notion the beast is considered in this place? Ans. 1. Under the last, as it is headed with the Pope, and under pretense of Religion domineereth. Reason 1. It is the same beast, Chap. 13. but that looketh to the last head of this beast or state of this Empire, as is said. 2. Because only the last state of this beast contemporateth with this cities becoming a whore to be supported by it. 3. It is the state of the beast which then was to come, and the sixth was then in being: therefore it is the last, for it is to go to perdition. 4. It is the beast which all wonder at, that Kings give their power willingly unto, which is expresly called the beast, vers. 8. which should ascend, &c. and the beast to which the Kings shall give their power, vers. 13. and with whom they receive power, vers. 12. which only are true under the last state of the beast, it being not so with any of the former Governments, where heads were crowned and not the horns, Chap. 12. here, the horns were crowned, Chap. 13. and are Kings in respect of temporall jurisdictions; yet these same Kings, under pretence of spirituall power, are as much keeped under the beast with the seventh head, as ever under any of the former.
If it be further asked, how the woman sitteth on that beast? It is clear two wayes, 1. she sitteth on it, as having her principall seat in the chief seat of that Roman Empire; she sitteth on that Dominion, and hath the city Rome for her nest. Hence (vers. 9.) in the exposition it is thus cleared, she sitteth on the beast, i. e. on the seven hills, which is the center of the beasts Dominion; and on many waters, that is, that same Empire. 2. It is expounded in that word, the beast that carrieth her, vers. 7. that is, supporteth her by its authority and keepeth that city (which otherwise had been desolate) in some grandour by her, as in Chap. 15. even as she was made famous by being the seat and residence of these who formerly managed the authority of that Dominion.
This then is the first thing whereby this whore is described, the power or Empire wherein she dwelleth, and whereby she is supported, to wit, Rome, or the Roman sea, which they call the rock on which their Babylon standeth as an unerring and an infallible foundation, at least so far as to discover her to be this whore.
This beast or Empire getteth four marks in the Text, 1. Her colour is scarlet, pointing out, 1. her grandour. 2. her cruelty, as the Dragon was coloured, Chap. 12. 2. This beast is full of names of blasphemy, Chap. 13. every head had blasphemies on it, that is, was blasphemous and idolatrous; but this, under the last head, is now all full of them, superstitions, idolatries, arrogant titles, and usurpations were never claimed so much by any of the former as by this: whereby appeareth, that it holdeth forth no Christian Empire, or Rome as Christian, except under its defection.
The other two parts of the description, to wit, heads and horns, are so particularly interpreted by the Angel afterwards, that we shall forbear till we come to it; which is the last part of the Chapter.
The second thing whereby the whore is described, is her pompe and outward gloriousnesse, vers. 4. Whereby is set out, 1. their pride in being so arrogant. 2. their wealth and riches. 3. her carriage to allure to her superstition with poisoned cups and such deckings as whores set themselves out by. 4. Yet her deckings are but carnal and counterfeit, decked, that is, guilded, in the original, it is not gold, but guilded external pompe only, whereby the world is taken more than with that simplicity wherewith the woman is adorned, Chap. 12. So this pompe appeareth yet more, 1. in the nature of her worship, in Churches, altars, holy dayes, ceremonies and garments. 2. In the nature of her officers, great Cardinals, stately Princes are her Ministers. 3. Their carriage is not needlesly observed, that their great men delight in purple and scarlet, is not by chance, but by providence. Baronius (as cited, Chap. 13,) saith it was, that Christs Priests should be in their pompe equall to the heathenish Pontifex Maximus.
The third property of this woman, is her name in her forehead, vers. 5. which is not, that this whore will own such a name as mother of harlots, but rather disown it: but (alluding to the manner of impudent whores, who set their badges and names to be known over their doores and on their heads) he would shew two things in the antichristian Church, 1. Great impudency in owning and maintaining these things, which are indeed great abominations, their publick Images and bowing to them, their disputes for and defences of their grossest superstitions, so that her whoredoms need not be sought out by secret search, they do it before the Sun. 2. Great evidence of guilt, so that by trying her and comparing her way with the Word, it will be found clearly that she is Babylon, &c. as if these titles and superscriptions were written on her, as her name: which name is to be gathered, not out of letters and words (as neither that of Chap. 13. ult.) but out of doctrines, practices and others her properties, by spirituall wisdom making the application of these descriptions, both Chap. 13.18. and here, vers. 9. for, none, owning the Revelation to be Gods Word, will willingly take that name which will make them passe for Antichrist or his Church: and if this name be not literally taken, why should the number be, Chap. 13?
The name is in three, 1. MYSTERY: which sheweth there is both great iniquity here, and that it is so put together, that it looketh like a mystery, either to conceive it or to discover by it such a party to be the whore. (For which it is called (2 Thess. 2.) the mystery of iniquity, in opposition to the mystery of godlinesse,) In all which, Antichrist imitateth Christ, lest he should be discovered. Or, it may be mystically Babylon, as spiritually Sodom, Chap. 11. Babylon, not really, (which none can plead) but in a mysterie. The second part of the name, is, BABYLON THE GREAT: of which we have spoken, and applied it to Rome. It is called BABYLON, first, for its headship during the fourth Empire, as Babylon was in the second. And, secondly, for its idolatry in it self, and in its cruelty, in bringing and keeping at under Gods people. And, thirdly, because Babylons curse followeth it for Babylons sin. Of this more was said, Chap. 14.
The third word, is, MOTHER OF HARLOTS, AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH: which setteth out a superiority and precedency in this Rome, in polluting the world actively with her pollutions, and that the superstitious way of the rest of the world is derived from her; she is as the mother and fountain that bringeth forth all superstitions. 2. A sort of precedency and priority of a Mother-Church, (as she calleth her self) she shall claim not only to be the first Church, but to be over all, as the rule and example to them. And indeed in respect of the corrupt part of the Church, as it is antichristian, she is so. It holdeth forth eminently high defection, which must have its birth from Rome, and over which Rome shall especially preside. Which titles cannot agree to heathenish Rome, that never propagated error to others, but rather civilly, and left still an foreign of Laws and Religion to the Nations they conquered. But they agree well to Rome now in its splendid titles, as Peters Chaire, the infallible Church that cannot err, the Church that cannot be obscured or ruined, Catholick supream Judge of all, &c. and so hath given the rise to all the idolatries and superstitions that have come into the Church from it; and like a kindly mother, hath alway taken the defence of these, and fostered them as her own brood through all the world.
The last two properties of this whores description, to wit, the fourth and fifth, we put together, as holding out her practice: whereby her inclination and guilt appeareth in these, 1. An entising of others to that sin of fornication spiritually, by that cup which she holdeth forth to them, with her abominations, that she may entise them with these, vers. 4. he alludeth to what is written of the filthiest whores, to which he compareth this harlor. 2. An humour and inclination to persecution, vers. 6. which is three wayes set out, 1. In respect of the parties persecuted; they are, 1. Saints, for alleaged crimes, persecuted, and wrongs falsly imputed to them. 2. Martyrs, such are not only Saints unjustly wronged, but persecuted on the account of Christs Truth, or for opposing her way, and witnessing against it. 2. This persecution is set forth by her contented manner of going about that work, she thirsted for their bloud, and drinketh it, as with delight and satisfaction. 3. In the degree, it came to so much, that she was drunk with bloud, having thus drunk so much, that she was loathsome under it, senselesse of it, and overflowing with the guilt of it, as drunkards are with drink beyond measure. How well this agreeth to Rome, look Chap. 13. That by blasphemy, is holden forth Idolatry, and by whoredom, defection to Idolatry, appeareth also, 1. It is one sort of blasphemy which is common to this seventh head with all the rest of the heads, and theirs was Idolatry. 2. By the common phrase of Scripture, that when Israel is charged with whordom or breaking wedlock, Ezek. 16. and blaspheming God, Chap. 20.27. It is expounded in the verse following, to be their Idolatry and whoring after Idol-worship on every high hill. See Ezek. 23.7. and 30.