particle of civil, social, ecclesiastical and financial power. There has never been any limit to its ambitions or pretensions, and there is none now.

12:13. And when the dragon.—The civil powers of the old Roman Empire, under the control of the Papacy.

Saw that he was cast unto the earth.-Deprived of the superstitious reverence now almost wholly absorbed by the Рарасу.

He persecuted.-Not on his own account, but under the orders and instructions and encouragements of the Papacy, and to win Papal approval.

The woman which brought forth the man child.-The true Church. For details of the infamous work of Charles V, Emperor of Germany and King of Spain and the Netherlands, the Duke of Alva, Philip II of Spain, the French kings Francis and Henry, see pages 337-338 of STUDIES IN THE SCRIPTURES, Vol. II. These are but illustrations of what occurred in all parts of the old Roman world, and were all done at the behest of the Papacy.

12:14. And to the woman.-The true Church.

Were given Two Wings.-The Old and New Testaments. Of a great eagle. The eagle is a symbol of wisdom, a fit representative of the Scriptures in which are contained the words of our God. (Rev. 4:7.) "I bare you on eagle's wings, and brought you unto Myself."-Ex. 19:4; Deut. 32:11-12.

That she might fly Into the wilderness.-Separateness from the world; ostracism; represented by Elijah's three and a half years in the wilderness.-Rev. 2:20.

Into her place, where she is nourishea.-By Divinely provided means, of which almost no records have been permitted to survive the ravages of papal persecution.

Both for a time, and times, and half a time.-1260 years from A. D. 539 to 1799.-Rev. 11:2, 3.

From Safe from.

The face of the Serpent.-Satan himself, the real insti gator of all persecutions from the Lord's time even until

now.

And the Serpent.-Satan himself, at the close of the 1260 years of Papacy's power to persecute.

Cast out of his mouth water as a flood.-"The strength of the French revolution, to which reference is here had, lay in the fact that it was instigated by many stern truths, regarding priest-craft and king-craft, and regarding the individual rights and liberties of all. Truths regarding human rights were seen and expressed there which cause us surprise when we consider the ignorance, superstition and servility of that day, under which the masses had so

long rested. Many of the truths which then swept as a flood over France, deluging it with blood, are now very generally accepted among all civilized peoples."-C65.

After the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.-"Satan's design in instigating the French revolution was to create an alarm throughout Europe, especially the influential class, unfavorable to liberty, and to illustrate in France the theory that, were the superstitions of Rome to be overthrown and liberty to be given full sway, all law and order would speedily end." This strategy Satan is now about to repeat-this time with success, but his triumph will be short.-C66. And the earth.-The order-loving people of Europe. Helped the woman.-The true Church.

And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood. "It is a fact of history that the flood of truth which spread over France-arraigning Papacy and its priestcraft, and monarchy and its parasitic aristocracy, as the responsible causes of much of the ignorance, poverty and superstition of the people—was swallowed up, or absorbed by the people of Europe generally (The Roman 'earth'). And when the rulers of Europe formed what was called "The Holy Alliance,' for the suppression of the liberties of the people and the perpetuation of their own thrones, it was too late to fetter the people; for, having drunk up the flood of waters, they would not submit. It was too late to think of re-establishing Papacy, which had been so terribly humiliated and whose anathemas against liberty and the French had so reacted against itself; so the pope was not even invited to join the 'Holy Alliance,' of which before he would have been the recognized head."-C66.

Which the dragon cast out of his mouth.-"This sudden flood of waters (truth) was designed to act as an emetic, to lead to the casting out of the food of liberty, already being received by the people from the Bible, as the result of the Reformation, and thus to force rulers and teachers to oppose the truth through fear of anarchy."-C66.

12:17. And the dragon was wroth with the woman.— The protesting Church of God. This will apply with great force shortly.

And went to make war with the remnant of her seed.— The true saints in the Roman Catholic communion or wherever otherwise found,-always objects of hatred and oppression by ecclesiasticism.-Rev. 13:7.

Which keep the commandments of God.-"The law is fulfilled in us."-Rom. 8:4.

And have the testimony of [Jesus Christ] GOD.-Have HIS word as the man of their counsel.-Rev. 14:12.

REVELATION 13

THE PAPAL AND PROTESTANT BEASTS

13:1. And [1] HE stood upon the sand of the sea.-The sea represents the masses not under religious restraint. It is this symbolic sea that is to overturn and swallow up all kingdoms of earth in the great Time of Trouble. The proper understanding of the vision is located down at the edge of this sea, near the Time of Trouble.

And I saw a beast.-"This character is very forcibly delineated even in the names applied to it by the inspired writers. Paul calls it "That Wicked One,' "The Man of Sin,' "The Mystery of Iniquity,' "The Antichrist,' and 'The Son of Perdition;' the Prophet Daniel calls it "The Abomination that maketh desolate' (Dan. 11:31; 12:11); and our Lord refers to the same character as "The Abomination of Desolation, spoken of by Daniel the Prophet' (Matt. 24:15). This same character was also prefigured by a little horn, or power, out of a terrible beast that Daniel saw in his prophetic vision, which had eyes, and a mouth that spoke great things, and which prospered and made war with the saints, and prevailed against them. (Dan. 7:8, 21.) John also saw and warned the Church against this character, saying, 'Ye have heard that Antichrist shall come.' He then advises how to escape Antichrist's influence. (1 John 2:18-27.) These various appellations and brief descriptions indicate a base, subtle, hypocritical, deceptive, tyrannical and cruel character, developed in the midst of the Christian Church; claiming, to the last, peculiar sanctity and authority and power from God." (B271.) "We need not look long to find a character fitting all the requirements perfectly. But when we state that the one and only system whose history fits these prophecies is Papacy, let no one misunderstand us to mean that every Roman Catholic is a man of sin. Popes, bishops and others are at most only parts or members of the Antichrist system, even as all of the Royal Priests are only members of the true Christ." (B277.) Antichrist now finds its expression in the "Christian" governments of the world founded upon its teachings-Christendom.

Rise up out of the sea.-See Rev. 17:15; Psa. 65:7; 93:3, 4; Isa. 57:20. At the time of papacy's birth the masses of the Roman people had ceased to have reverence for the