surround the throne, who represent the bishops and prelates of the churches, and answer in place and order to the Levites and priests in the camp of Israel, and their number twenty-four corresponds with the daily courses of the priests and Levites, or, what comes to the same result, with the chiefs of the daily courses. Whence beside that they are next to God, they have likewise their thrones there: Moreover, they wear crowns, which are marks of dignity and power bestowed by God.

3. At a proper distance behind the elders, where lines drawn through the middle of the throne bisect its sides on every part of the circumference, towards the four cardinal points of heaven, four living creatures were seen; the first in the figure of a lion, the second of an ox, (for μóoxos is an ox with the Hellenists,) the third in the likeness of a man, the fourth of a flying eagle, representing doubtless the Christian churches towards the four parts of the world, and answering to the four Israelitish camps, which bore standards of the same animals. For what is called in the Apocalyptic text, a little obscurely," in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne," may be explained by the figure v dia dvoiv; i. e. one through two; familiar to the Hebrews, as if it had been said, in the midst of the circuit or circumference of

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the throne; and in this sense, if you were to draw round the throne, as a square, a quadrangular parallel figure at a proper distance from the throne, and the elders surrounding it, in the midst, or at the middle of every one of the sides of the quadrangle, (for iv uéaw, in the midst, is to be taken distributively,) the four animals exhibited themselves, namely, one in the middle of each side.

Moreover, those animals are described as "full of eyes before and behind," having six wings around them, and those full of eyes within. So many eyes denote a multitude of very wellsighted persons, and full of the knowledge of the mysteries of God, of which kind there are many in the animals, that is, in the churches which the animals represent. The wings denote agility and alacrity in executing the commands of God. Wings with eyes denote zeal combined with knowledge and faith. Lastly, six wings around

them, denote that they are ready to fly every way, that is, fully prepared to fulfil the commands of God universally and entirely. In addition we are told, lastly, what was the nature of their duty, as well that of the living creatures, as of the elders around the throne, namely, of this kind, that "as often as those animated beings were about to give glory, and honour, and thanks to Him that sat on the throne;" i. e. as often as the churches formed their holy congregations, so often "the four-and-twenty elders, in right of their office preceding the animated beings, are accustomed to "fall down before God," saying, "Worthy art Thou, O Lord, to receive glory, and honour, and power; for Thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created." This interpretation being admitted, the diction of John, which many pretend to be a solecism, as improperly using the futures, δώσουσι, πεσοῦνται, προσKuvσovo, instead of the preterites, will easily be defended; since, according to the Hebrews, (whose ideas the apostle every where adopts,) the future is used to denote an act of custom or duty, so that John is by no means to be supposed to relate what was there done in the vision, by the animated beings and elders, but what was to be done as occasion, should arise, and what he himself saw done by them afterwards, in the

progress of the visions when an opportunity occurred of celebrating God.

And therefore (that I may at length come to a conclusion) I think I have clearly shown, that the throne in this august session answers to the tabernacle or temple; the elders answer to the Levites; the four animals to the four Israelitish camps; that is, that the whole assemblage is the image of that ancient castrametation in the wilderness. Which subject has indeed been more diffusively treated of by me, because I have observed that the reason of many types in the Apocalypse depends chiefly on the knowledge of this, which I doubt not but every one who has thoroughly investigated the matter, will perceive as well as myself.

The theatre being thus prepared, He who sat on the throne stretches forth a book in his right hand, written upon, both in the inside and the out, and fastened with seven seals, and an angel at the same time coming forth on the scene, proclaims, with a loud voice, that if to any one were given the power of opening it, so that the things which were written therein might be seen and read, he should take it into his hands and apply himself to the task; and in so doing, would perform an office very acceptable to all who were ardent in the study of mysteries.

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And the book was in truth most worthy of the effort; in the unsealing of which, any one would exert all the powers of his understanding and industry, inasmuch as the volume was predictive of the counsels of God, in which was interwoven the series and order of events, to be transacted up to the second and glorious advent of Christ.

For, of this nature evidently appears to be the double prophecy of the future, which the volume contained. Which is the reason, unless I am mistaken, why John, when he was preparing to expound the visions, prefixed to the beginning of his history the descriptive outline of his glorious advent, as the boundary of the Apocalyptic "Behold (says he) he cometh with clouds, and every eye shall see him, and they also that pierced him, and all the tribes of the earth shall lament because of him." As much as to say, this is the scope, this the boundary of the visions which I shall relate.

course.

But when no one of those who were in heaven, or in the earth, or under the earth, was able to unseal the book," and the object seemed to be given up for lost, so that John, overcome with grief, burst into tears, lo, "a Lamb in appearance, as if it had been slain,” that is, bearing the marks and wounds of one that had undergone death, arose in the midst of the elders and animated beings, and took the book, for the purpose

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