as also those of Marcus Antoninus to that of its conclusion; the magnificent column of Trajan as well as that of Antoninus still bearing their silent but eloquent testimony to the estimation of their services to the Empire by the Roman people.

The rider to whom the crown was given, we have fully illustrated by the Emperors promoting the internal peace and happiness by their wise and virtuous government, as well as adding to the glory of the Empire by their successful

wars.

Gibbon here does not

The bow has yet to be illustrated. help us. So buried in mystery has this symbol been found, that many, otherwise approving the fitness of the horse and other symbols to be connected with the Roman Empire, have rejected the conclusions therefrom, on the ground that if the Roman Empire had been intended to be signified, a sword or javelin would have been placed in the rider's hand. This has been already noticed, as also of the solution of the difficulty being due to Mr. Elliott. So deep under the surface as to have escaped the notice of many earnest seekers, like other hidden treasures of the Bible as well as nature, when discovered, it proved to be of more than ordinary value.

As

Crete, one of the provinces. of the Roman Empire, was celebrated for the use and manufacture of bows. The demonstration of the connection of the bow with the Cretans is as perfect as that of the horse with the Romans. History, sculpture, medals, and legends alike lend their aid to mark it, and this conclusively. A medal can now be seen in the British Museum of a Cretan bow-maker, as also a coin in the Vienna Imperial collection with the Cretan Apollo and his bow. The bow, too, was a national device on Cretan medals. with the horse so with the bow, proof upon proof might be added, to support the conclusion that a bow in the hand of a rider was a Cretan badge; one more, however, will suffice— A Greek epigram or epitaph is still in existence, with emblems sculptured on the tomb stone, of a magpie, a cup, wool, and a bow, underneath which is explained-The magpie to denote the loquacity of the person whose epitaph it was, the cup her proneness to drink, the wool her diligence in work, and the bow that she was a Cretan. And when you learn on undis

puted testimony, testimony repeated by many of our best modern historians of the earlier Emperors of Rome, that Nerva, the first of the Emperors introducing the "golden age," was in respect of family extraction a Cretan, and the first Emperor, too, of foreign extraction, and consider the important bearing of this testimony generally, and the absolute fixity of the commencing date of the Apocalypse, you will not be disposed to withhold your acquiescence in Mr. Elliott's view, with which he concludes his valuable explanation of this emblem, "How admirable beyond what the most learned of human artists or scholars would have devised, appears now the point and comprehensiveness of this device. of the Divine Spirit." And we may say, almost equally admirable the paucity of the words in the combined symbolic representation, in contrast with their force and comprehensiveness. For mark "had a bow"--Nerva's Cretan origin belonged to him when placed on the throne. "A crown was given to him"-Nerva did not succeed to the throne-He was placed on it by the assassins of Domitian, and was the first of a new line of princes, and of foreign extraction. The historian Aurelius Victor says, "Hitherto, men of Roman or Italian origin ruled the Empire; from this time, foreigners in extraction."

The word translated crown in the original is "stephanos." This too plays a part in this concentration of proofs, for the stephanos, or laurel crown, was about two centuries later superseded by the diadem; stephanos" therefore confines the date to a period anterior to A.D. 300; and it may be interesting here to notice that on arriving at the prefigured history of that and later dates, in the Apocalypse, diadema or diadem, and not stephanos, is always used when imperial authority is denoted.

And if we consider that those of Trajan were the only aggressive wars prosecuted by the Emperors since the republic (with the exception, already noted, of the subjugation of Britain); that history can point to no other period of prosperity and happiness enjoyed by the Roman or any other people, deserving the title, by not one only but all historians, of "a golden age; " that no other Roman Emperors than

Nerva and his four successors were of Cretan origin, the Roman law of adoption constituting them as of the same family; the minute and important character of this Cretan badge; the sceptic's testimony; the "stephanos;" "had a bow;" "was given a crown;" the words of the combined figure almost less in number than the proofs they furnish; altogether make up an indestructible pillar of evidence, not only justifying the opening statements that the correspondence between the event and the prophecy was too complete to be unrecognised; but also placing the inspiration and date of the Apocalypse beyond doubt; as also, that the things shown to John as the things that must shortly come to pass, did there and then, immediately after the death of Domitian, who banished him to Patmos, begin to come to pass.

Thus the commencing figurations being found fitly to have represented the events following immediately the visions being seen, in the succeeding lectures, we shall only have to supply the accumulated evidence, which it was stated, would accrue from an equally successful illustration of seal after seal, trumpet after trumpet, and vial after vial, consecutively in their recorded order, by events occurring chronologically in the same order in the world.

Our task will not in one respect be then so agreeable, inasmuch as in the place of happiness and prosperity, we shall have, as denoted by the change of the horse's color to red, to record scenes of civil war, bloodshed, and calamities rapidly succeeding each other, resulting in the triumph of Christianity over Paganism, and ultimately in the downfall of the Roman Empire.

I have only now to ask you, on the conclusion of the first lecture, to retain its introductory remarks, that we may not have to resume our subject without the aid they are calculated to afford us during our examination of the subsequent figurations.

31

LECTURE II.

THE SECOND SEAL.

Rev. vi. 3, 4. A.D. 180-248.

THE correspondence between the figurations of the first seal and the events occurring immediately after John's seeing the Apocalyptic visions in Patmos, commencing A.D. 98, and continuing to A.D. 180, having been demonstrated in our former lecture, by a convergence of evidence so striking as to be only referable to divine wisdom, we have now to see if the events immediately succeeding, continue the correspondence by satisfying the conditions of the second seal, which on being opened by the Lamb, John is invited by a second of the four living creatures to come and see.

"And there went out another horse that was red, and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace (the peace in the original) from the earth, and that they should kill one another, and there was given unto him a great sword."

The white horse having denoted, as we have seen, a period of happiness and prosperity to the Roman empire, the red horse now on the scène naturally suggests a period of war and bloodshed. And as the rider on the white horse was found to signify the agents by whose power the predicted happiness and prosperity would be promoted, so the rider on the red horse may be considered to represent the agents by whose power the change to scenes of carnage would be promoted, and as signified by the notification of his being given power to take the peace from the earth not only promoted, but originated. The rider's badge of distinction is his being given a great sword. The notification "that they should kill one another" at once suggests that the scenes of carnage introduced and maintained by him would be the result of civil wars, internal commotions and assassinations The conditions of the seal then are simple and clear. That a

period of war and bloodshed should about the year 180 be found to succeed the "golden age" preceding it; that such wars should not be foreign as under the first seal, and bringing glory to the empire, but civil wars staining it with its own blood, and that the agents by whom the same would be brought about and maintained, should be capable of identification with the rider who is distinguished by the presentation of a great sword. And on reference to history our task is easy, and these conditions more than satisfied. We find the period succeeding the accession of Commodus up to the reign of Diocletian, A.D. 284, to have been one of general calamity to the Roman empire, that from 192 to 248 being essentially marked by an unparalleled succession of seditions, murders, and civil wars, the principal instigators and supporters being the Prætorian Prefects in Rome, and military lieutenants in command of the provinces. A glance at Gibbon's table of contents of his Chapters IV. to VII., embracing the period, 180 to 248 will demonstrate sufficiently for our purpose the truth of this its asserted character. The details would of course demonstrate with greater force, but time not permitting, and necessity not requiring, they can be perused at leisure, if wished. These then are extracts from his table of contents, 180 to 248-"The cruelties and follies of Commodus-Murder of Commoduschoice of Pertinax for Emperor-He is acknowledged by the Prætorian guards-Murder of Pertinax by the Prætorians-Public sale of the empire to Didius Julianus by the Prætorian guards- Clodius Albinus in Britain, Niger in Syria, and Septimius Severus in Pannonia, declare against the murderers of Pertinax-Conduct of the civil wars-Event of the civil wars Cruel consequences of the civil warsRelaxation of military discipline-New establishment of the Prætorian guards by Severus-Death of Severus-Murder of Geta-Tyrrany of Caracalla-Discontent of the armyUsurpation of Macrinus -Defeat and death of MacrinusFollies of Elagabalus-Discontents of the army-Seditions of the guards and murder of Elagabalus-Virtue of Alexander Severus Severus attempts to reform the army-Licentiousness of the army-Sedition of the Prætorian guards and