John's revelation describes the events that will precede Jesus' second appearance on earth, the appearance of the messiah, and life after the Second Coming. It was the description of the events before the Second Coming, and in particular various cataclysms, that led to the modern use of the word APOCALYPSE to mean the end of the world.
Authorship, time and place of writing of the Apocalypse.
In the text the author calls himself John. There are two versions of authorship. The most popular of them (traditional) attributes the authorship of Revelation to John the Theologian. The following facts support the idea that the author was John the Theologian:
- Four times in the text the author calls himself John;
- From apostolic history it is known that John the Theologian was imprisoned on the island of Patmos;
- The similarity of some characteristic expressions with the Gospel of John.
- Patristic research confirms the authorship of John the Theologian.
Many modern researchers, however, dispute the traditional version, citing the following arguments:
- The difference between the language and style of the Apocalypse and the language and style of the Gospel written by John the Theologian;
- The difference between the problems of the Apocalypse and
The difference in language can be explained by the fact that, although John spoke Greek, but, being in captivity, far from the living spoken Greek language, naturally, being a natural Jew, he wrote under the influence of the Hebrew language.
It should be said that, while refuting the traditional authorship, these researchers do not offer any reasoned alternative opinion. The difficulty is that there were several Johns in the apostolic circle, and which of them the Revelation was written does not yet seem possible. When the author himself mentions in the text the fact that he received a vision on the island of Patmos, the author of the Apocalypse is sometimes called John of Patmos. The Roman presbyter Caius believed that the Revelation was created by the heretic Cerinthos.
As for the date of writing the Revelation of John the Theologian, the fact that Papias of Hierapolis was familiar with the text indicates that the Apocalypse was written no later than the 2nd century. Most modern researchers consider the time of writing to be 81–96. Revelation 11 talks about a certain “dimension” of the temple. This fact leads researchers to an earlier dating - 60 years. However, most believe that these lines are not factual, but symbolic in nature and date the writing to the end of the reign of Domitian (81 - 96). This version is supported by the fact that Revelation came to the author on the island of Patmos, and it was there that Domitian exiled people he disliked. Moreover, the end of Domitian’s reign is characterized as a difficult time of persecution of Christians; most likely, it was in such a situation that the Apocalypse was written. Saint John himself points out the purpose of writing Revelation - “to show what must soon happen.” The author shows and predicts the triumph of the Church and Faith. It was precisely at the moment of sorrow and difficult trials that such a work was needed as support and consolation in the struggle for the truth of the Christian faith.
When and how did the Apocalypse of John the Theologian enter the canon of the New Testament?
As we said earlier, the first mention of the Revelation of John the Theologian occurs in the second century. The Apocalypse is mentioned in the works of Tertullian, Irenaeus, Eusebius, Clement of Alexandria and others. However, the text of Revelation remained uncanonized for a long time. Cyril of Jerusalem and Saint Gregory the Theologian opposed the canonization of the Apocalypse of John. The Apocalypse was not included in the canon of the Bible, approved by the Council of Laodicea in 364. Only at the end of the 4th century, thanks to the authority of the opinion of Athanasius the Great, who insisted on the canonization of the Revelation of John, the Apocalypse entered the New Testament canon by the decision of the Council of Hippo in 383. This decision was confirmed and enshrined at the Council of Carthage in 419.
Ancient manuscripts of the Apocalypse.
Chester Beatty's Third Papyrus The oldest version of the manuscript of the Revelation of John dates from the mid-third century. This is the so-called third papyrus Chester Beatty or papyrus P47. Third papyrus Chester Beatty contains 10 of the 32 leaves of the Revelation of John.
The text of the Revelation of John the Theologian is also contained in the Codex Sinaiticus. In total, about 300 manuscripts of the Apocalypse are known today. Not all of them contain the full version of Revelation. The Apocalypse is the least attested book of the Old Testament in manuscripts.
How is the Revelation of John the Evangelist used in worship?
Due to the fact that the Revelation of John was included into the canon relatively late, it was practically not used in the services of the Eastern Church. This is one of the reasons for the small number of manuscripts of the Apocalypse that have reached us, mentioned earlier in the article.
According to the Jerusalem Charter (Typicon), which establishes the order Orthodox divine services, the reading of Revelation is prescribed at the “great readings” at all-night vigils. IN Catholicism The Apocalypse is read during the Easter period at Sunday masses. Songs from revelation are also included in the "Liturgy of the Hours"
However, it should be noted that in real life the Apocalypse almost never not used at worship services.
Revelation of John the Theologian - interpretation
In the text of the Apocalypse, John the Theologian describes the revelation he received in visions. The visions describe the birth of the Antichrist, the Second Coming of Christ, the end of the world and the Last Judgment. The figurative side of the text is rich and varied. Images of the Apocalypse have become very popular in world culture. In the Revelation of John the Theologian, the number of the beast is mentioned - 666. Many images were borrowed by the author from Old Testament prophecies. Thus, the author emphasizes the continuity of the Old and New Testaments. The apocalypse ends with a prophecy about the victory of God over the Devil.
The Apocalypse of John the Theologian gave rise to a huge number of points of view and attempts at interpretation and explanation. So, for example, there is an attempt to explain Revelation from the point of view of astronomy in the book by N.A. Morozov “Revelation in a Thunderstorm and a Storm.” Attempts to interpret Revelation multiply in terrible times for humanity - in times of upheaval, disasters and wars.
The sequence of visions and their interpretation.
The mysterious nature of the Revelation of John the Theologian, on the one hand, complicates its understanding and interpretation, and, on the other hand, attracts inquisitive minds trying to decipher the mysterious visions.
Vision 1 (Chapter 1). The Son of Man with seven stars in his hands, located in the middle of the seven lamps.
Interpretation. The loud trumpet voice that John heard belonged to the Son of God. He calls himself Alpha and Omega in Greek. This naming emphasizes that the Son, like the Father, contains within himself all that exists. He stood in the middle of seven lamps, which represented the seven churches. The Revelation of John the Theologian is given to the seven churches that at that time constituted the Ephesian Metropolis. The number seven in those days had a special mystical meaning, meaning completeness. Thus, we can say that Revelation was given to all Churches.
The Son of Man was dressed in a robe and girded with a golden belt. The podir symbolizes high priestly dignity, and the golden belt symbolizes royal dignity. His white hair represents wisdom and old age, thereby indicating his unity with God the Father. The fiery flame in the eyes says that nothing is hidden from His sight. His legs made of chalcolivan show the union of the human and the divine in Him. Halkolivan is an alloy in which halk (presumably copper) signifies the human principle, and livan - the divine.
The Son of Man held seven stars in his hands. The seven stars symbolized the seven bishops of the seven churches that constituted the Metropolis of Ephesus at that time. The vision means that Jesus holds the Church and the shepherds in his hands. Christ appears in the form of a King, and a Priest, and a Judge - this is how he will be at the time of His Second Coming.
The appeared Son of Man commands John to write down everything that appears in visions, as it should be.
The Appearance of the Son of Man to John Vision 2(Chapters 4 - 5). John's Ascension to the Heavenly Throne. Vision of Him sitting on a throne surrounded by 24 elders and 4 living creatures.
Interpretation. Entering the door of heaven, John sees God the Father on the throne. Its appearance is similar to precious stones - green (the personification of life), yellow-red (the personification of purity and holiness, as well as God's wrath towards sinners). The combination of colors indicates that God punishes sinners, but forgives and gives life to those who repent. The combination of these colors predicts the Last Judgment as destruction and renewal.
24 elders in white robes and golden crowns are representatives of humanity who pleased the Lord. These are probably 12 representatives of Old Testament history and 12 of Christ’s apostles. The white color of clothing represents purity and purity. Golden crowns symbolize victory over demons.
Around the throne the “seven candlesticks” burn. These are the seven angels or the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. The sea in front of the throne - quiet and clean - symbolizes the souls of the righteous living by the gifts of God's grace.
The four animals represent the four elements over which the Lord rules - earth, heaven, sea and underworld. According to another version, these are angelic forces.
Vision 3(Chapters 6 - 7). The opening of the seven seals from the sealed book by the Lamb slain.
Interpretation: The Lord, sitting on the throne, held in his hand a Book sealed with seven seals. This book symbolizes God's wisdom and God's providence. The seals represent man's inability to comprehend all the plans of the Lord. According to another understanding, the Book is prophecies that were partially fulfilled in the Gospel, and the rest will be fulfilled in the last days.
One of the Angels calls for someone to open the book, removing the seals. However, there is no one worthy “neither in heaven, nor on earth, nor under the earth” who could open the seals. One of the elders said that “The Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, ... can open this book and open its seven seals.” These lines are about Jesus, who appeared in the form of a lamb with seven horns and eyes. Only he, who sacrificed himself for humanity, was worthy to know the wisdom of God. The seven eyes symbolize the seven spirits of God, as well as the omniscience of God. The Lamb stood next to God, where the son of God should have stood.
When the lamb picked up the book, 24 elders in white robes and 4 animals sang a hitherto unheard song, in which they glorified the coming of the new Kingdom of the Son of God, in which He reigned as the God-man.
Let's talk now about the seven seals and their meaning.
- Removing the first seal. The first seal is a white horse with a victorious rider holding a bow in his hands. The white horse symbolizes the activity of the holy apostles, who directed their forces (bow) against demons in the form of Gospel sermons.
- Removing the second seal. The second seal is a red horse with a rider who took peace from the earth. This seal represents the revolt of the infidels against the believers.
- Removing the third seal. The third seal is a black horse with a rider. This is the personification of unsteady faith and rejection of Christ. According to another version, the black horse symbolizes hunger.
- Opening of the fourth seal. The fourth seal is a pale horse with a rider named “death.” The seal personifies the manifestation of the wrath of God, including the prediction of future disasters.
The horsemen who appeared after the opening of the seals - Opening of the fifth seal. Fifth seal - those killed for the Word of God are clothed in white robes. The souls of the injured righteous are under the altar of the Heavenly Temple. The prayer of the righteous sounds as a harbinger of retribution for everyone’s sins. The white robes worn by the righteous symbolize virtue and purity of faith.
- Opening of the sixth seal. The Sixth Seal is the day of wrath, natural disasters and horrors before the end of the world.
- Opening of the seventh seal. After the seventh seal was opened, complete silence reigned in heaven for half an hour.
Vision 4(Chapters 8 - 11). Seven Angels with Seven Trumpets.
Interpretation. After the opening of the seventh seal, a silence reigned in heaven, which was the calm before the storm. Soon seven angels appeared with seven trumpets. These angels are the punishers of the human race. The angels sounded their trumpets and brought down seven great disasters on humanity.
- The first angel - hail with fire falls on the Earth, as a result of which a third of the trees disappear, all the grass burns, including all the grain.
- The second angel, a mountain blazing with fire, was thrown into the sea; as a result of this disaster, a third of the sea turned to blood, a third of the ships and a third of the sea creatures perished.
- The third angel is a star falling from the sky. A third of the rivers and water sources are poisoned and many will die from drinking this water.
- The fourth angel - the third part of the sun, moon and stars went out (eclipsed). The day was shortened by a third, leading to crop failures and famine.
- The fifth angel is the fall of a star from the sky and the appearance of locusts. For five months the locusts tormented the people without the seal of God. This locust looks like a person, has woman's hair and lion's teeth. According to many interpretations of the Revelation of John, these locusts symbolize the sinfulness of human passions.
- The sixth angel is the appearance of four angels bound at the Euphrates River. Angels destroy a third of people. After which a mounted army appears, the horses of which have the heads of a lion and the tails of snakes. Four Angels are evil demons.
- The seventh angel, most likely Christ himself, descends from heaven to earth. A rainbow is above his head, and in his hands is an open book, which was recently sealed with seven seals. The angel stands with one foot on the earth, the other on the sea. The angel speaks of the end of time and the reign of eternity.
And I saw seven angels who stood before God; and seven trumpets were given to them. Vision 5(Chapter 12). The red serpent pursues the wife clothed in the sun. The war between Michael and the beast in heaven.
Interpretation. By a woman clothed in the sun, some interpreters of the Apocalypse of John the Theologian understand the Most Holy Theotokos, but most see in this image the Church clothed in the radiance of the Word of God.
The moon under the wife's feet is a symbol of constancy. The crown of twelve stars on the wife’s head is a sign that she was originally gathered from the 12 tribes of Israel, and subsequently led by the 12 Apostles. The wife experiences the pangs of birth - that is, those difficulties in confirming God's will.
A great red serpent with seven heads and ten horns appears. It's the devil himself. Seven heads mean great ferocity, ten horns mean anger against the 10 commandments, and red color means bloodthirstiness. The crown on each of the heads indicates that before us is the ruler of a dark kingdom. According to some interpretations of the Apocalypse, the seven crowns symbolize the seven rulers who rebelled against the Church. The tail of the serpent swept away a third of all the stars from the sky - that is, it led sinners to spiritual fall.
The red serpent pursues the wife clothed in the sun. The serpent wants to steal the child that is about to be born to the wife. A wife gives birth to a son, just as the Church daily gives birth to Christ for believers. The child goes to heaven with God, and the wife runs into the desert. In this prophecy, many see a description of the flight of Christians from Jerusalem, besieged by the Romans, into the Trans-Jordanian desert.
What follows is a description of the battle between Michael and his angels and the serpent. Under the image of this battle, many see the confrontation between Christianity and paganism. The serpent was defeated, but not destroyed. He stayed on the ground and pursued his wife. The wife was given two wings - the Old and New Testaments, with the help of which she is transported to the desert, which probably means the desert of the spirit. The serpent releases a river from his mouth, wanting to drown his wife. But the earth opened up and swallowed the river. The river here symbolizes the temptations that believers must resist. According to another version, these are terrible persecutions of the Christian Church, characteristic of the time of writing the Apocalypse of John the Theologian.
The angry serpent brought down his fury on the woman's seeds. This is a symbol of Christianity's endless struggle against sinfulness.
Vision 6(Chapter 13). A beast with seven heads and ten horns emerges from the sea. The appearance of a beast with lamb horns. Number of the beast.
Interpretation. The beast coming out of the sea is the Antichrist coming out of the sea of life. It follows from this that the Antichrist is a product of the human race, he is a man. Therefore, one should not confuse the devil and the Antichrist; these are different concepts. The Antichrist, like the devil, has seven heads. Ten heads with crowns indicate that the Antichrist will have power on earth, which he will receive with the help of the devil. Humanity will try to rebel against the Antichrist, but then he will reign over the world. The power of the Antichrist will last 42 months.
Another beast described in the Revelation of John the Theologian is a beast with lamb horns. This is a symbolic representation of false prophetic activity. This beast emerges from the ground. The beast will show false miracles to humanity, using deception.
The beast with seven heads and ten horns and the beast with lamb horns. Anyone who worships the Antichrist will have the name of the Antichrist written on their face or right hand. The name of the Antichrist and the “number of his name” give rise to many disputes and interpretations. His number is 666. His name is unknown, but in different eras interpreters attributed his name to various historical figures, trying to connect the name and number of the beast.
Vision 7(Chapter 14). Appearance of the Lamb on Mount Zion. Appearance of angels.
Interpretation. After a vision of the Antichrist's reign on earth, John looks up to heaven and sees a lamb standing on Mount Sinai surrounded by 144,000 of God's chosen ones from all nations. The name of God is written on their face. They are joined by a host of harp players playing a “new song” about redemption and renewal.
Next, John sees three angels soaring in the sky. The first Angel proclaimed to people the “eternal Gospel”, the second - heralds the fall of Babylon (this is a symbol of the kingdom of sin), the third - threatens those who serve the Antichrist with eternal torment.
Looking up at heaven, John sees the Son of God wearing a golden crown and holding a sickle in his hand. Angels announce the beginning of the harvest. The Son of God throws the sickle onto the ground and the harvest begins - it also symbolizes the end of the world. An angel reaps bunches of grapes. By bunches of grapes we mean the most dangerous enemies of the Church. Wine flowed from the grapes and rivers of grapes reached the horse's bridles.
Harvest Vision 8 ( Chapters 15 - 19). Seven bowls of wrath.
Interpretation. After the harvest, John in his Revelation describes a vision of a sea of glass mixed with fire. The glass sea represents the pure souls of those saved after the harvest. Fire can be understood as the grace of the Life-giving Spirit. John hears the “song of Moses” and the “song of the Lamb.”
After this, the gates of the heavenly temple opened and seven angels in white robes came out and received from 4 animals seven golden bowls filled with the wrath of the Lord. The angels are instructed by God to pour out the seven vials before the final judgment of the living and the dead.
The Seven Bowls of Wrath are reminiscent of the Plagues of Egypt, which were a prototype of the reprisal against the false Christian kingdom.
- The first angel poured out the cup - and an epidemic of disgusting plagues began.
- The second Angel poured the cup into the sea - and the water became like the blood of a dead man. Every living thing died in the sea.
- The third Angel poured the cup into the rivers and springs of water - and all the water turned into blood.
- The fourth Angel poured the cup into the sun - and the sun burned the people. By this solar heat, interpreters of the Revelation of John the Theologian understand the heat of temptations and temptations.
- The fifth Angel poured the cup onto the throne of the beast - and his kingdom became dark. The followers of the Antichrist bit their tongues from suffering, but did not repent.
- The sixth Angel poured the bowl into the Euphrates - and the water in the river dried up. The Euphrates River has always been the natural defense of the Roman Empire from the attacks of the peoples of the East. The drying up of the Euphrates symbolizes the emergence of a path for the soldiers of the Lord.
- With the pouring out of the last bowl the kingdom of the beast will be completely defeated. John describes the fall of Babylon - the great Harlot
Angels pour out the seven bowls of the Lord's wrath Vision 9. The Last Judgment (Chapter 20)
In this chapter, John describes a vision related to the history of the Church. He talks about the general resurrection and the Last Judgment.
Vision 10(Chapters 21-22). New Jerusalem.
John was shown the greatness of the new Jerusalem - the Kingdom of Christ, which will reign after the victory over the devil. There will be no sea in the new kingdom - for the sea is a symbol of impermanence. In the new world there will be no hunger, no disease, no tears.
Only those who win the confrontation with demons will enter the new Kingdom; others will be condemned to eternal torment.
The church appeared before John in the form of a beautiful city descending from the heavens of Jerusalem. There is no visible temple in the city, since the city itself is a temple. The heavenly city does not need consecration also because God lives in it.
and he showed me the great city, holy Jerusalem, which came down from heaven from God. The Apocalypse of St. John the Theologian is the logical conclusion of the New Testament cycle. From the historical books of the New Testament, believers can gain knowledge about the founding and development of the Church. From the books of the law - a guide for life in Christ. The Apocalypse prophesies about the future of the Church and the world.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE APOCALYPSE AND THE INTEREST IN IT
The Apocalypse, or translated from Greek the Revelation of St. John the Theologian, is the only prophetic book of the New Testament. It is the natural completion of the entire circle of New Testament holy books. In legal, historical and educational books, a Christian obtains knowledge about the foundation and historical growth of the life of the Church of Christ and guidance for his personal life; in the Apocalypse, the believing mind and heart are given mysterious prophetic instructions about the future fate of the Church and the whole world. The Apocalypse is a mysterious book, very difficult to correctly understand and interpret, as a result of which the church charter does not allow readings from it during Divine services. But at the same time, it is precisely this mysterious character of this book that attracts the attention of both believing Christians and simply inquisitive thinkers, who throughout the entire New Testament history of mankind have been trying to unravel the meaning and significance of the mysterious visions described in it. There is a huge literature about the Apocalypse, among which there are many nonsense works concerning the origin and content of this mysterious book. As one of such works of recent times, it is necessary to point out the book by N.A. Morozov “Revelation in a Thunderstorm and Storm”. Based on the preconceived idea that the visions described in the Apocalypse depict with the accuracy of an astronomer-observer the state of the starry sky at any particular moment in time, N.A. Morozov makes an astronomical calculation and comes to the conclusion that this was the starry sky on September 30, 395. Replacing the faces, actions and pictures of the Apocalypse with planets, stars and constellations, N.A. Morozov widely uses the vague outlines of clouds, replacing with them the missing names of stars, planets and constellations to depict the complete picture of the sky in accordance with the data of the Apocalypse. If the clouds do not help, despite all the softness and pliability of this material in skillful hands, then N.A. Morozov reworks the text of the Apocalypse in the sense he needs. N.A. Morozov justifies his free handling of the text of the sacred book either by the clerical error and ignorance of the copyists of the Apocalypse, “who did not understand the astronomical meaning of the picture,” or even by the consideration that the writer of the Apocalypse himself, “thanks to a preconceived idea,” made exaggerations in the description of the picture starry sky. Using the same “scientific” method, N.A. Morozov determines that the writer of the Apocalypse was St. John Chrysostom (b. 347, d. 407), Archbishop of Constantinople. N.A. Morozov does not pay any attention to the complete historical inconsistency of his conclusions. (Prot. Nik. Alexandrov.) In our time - the period of the First World War and the Russian Revolution, and then the even more terrible Second World War, when humanity experienced so many terrible shocks and disasters - attempts to interpret the Apocalypse in relation to the events being experienced have multiplied even more. more or less successful. At the same time, one thing is important and necessary to remember: when interpreting the Apocalypse, as in general with any interpretation of this or that book of Holy Scripture, it is necessary to use the data of other sacred books that are part of our Bible, and the interpretive works of St. Fathers and teachers of the Church. Of the special patristic works on the interpretation of the Apocalypse, the “Interpretation of the Apocalypse” by St. Andrew, Archbishop of Caesarea, which represents the sum of the entire understanding of the Apocalypse in the pre-Nicene period (before the 1st Ecumenical Council). The Apology for the Apocalypse of St. is also very valuable. Hippolytus of Rome (c. 230). In modern times, so many interpretative works on the Apocalypse have appeared that their number had already reached 90 by the end of the 19th century. Of the Russian works, the most valuable are: 1) A. Zhdanova - “The Revelation of the Lord about the Seven Asian Churches” (an experience in explaining the first three chapters of the Apocalypse) ; 2) Bishop Peter - “Explanation of the Apocalypse of St. Apostle John the Theologian”; 3) N. A. Nikolsky - “The Apocalypse and the false prophecy it exposes”; 4) N. Vinogradova – “On the final destinies of the world and man” and 5) M. Barsova – “Collection of articles on the interpretative and edifying reading of the Apocalypse.”
ABOUT THE WRITER OF THE APOCALYPSE
The writer of the Apocalypse himself calls himself “John” (1:1, 4, 9). According to the general belief of the Church, it was St. The Apostle John, the beloved disciple of Christ, received the distinctive title of “Theologian” for the height of his teaching about God the Word, to whose inspired pen belongs the 4th canonical Gospel and 3 conciliar epistles. This belief of the Church is justified both by the data indicated in the Apocalypse itself and by various internal and external signs. 1) The writer of the Apocalypse calls himself “John” at the very beginning, saying that he was given the “Revelation of Jesus Christ” (1:1). Further greeting the seven churches of Asia Minor, he again calls himself “John” (1:4). He goes on to say about himself, again calling himself “John,” that he was “on the island called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ” (1:9). From Apostolic history it is known that it was St. John the Theologian was imprisoned on Fr. Patmos. And finally, ending the Apocalypse, the writer again calls himself “John” (22:8). In verse 2 of chapter 1, he calls himself a witness of Jesus Christ (cf. 1 John 1-3). The opinion that the Apocalypse was written by some “presbyter John” is completely untenable. The very identity of this “Presbyter John” as a person separate from the Apostle John is rather doubtful. The only evidence that gives reason to talk about “presbyter John” is a passage from the work of Papias, preserved by the historian Eusebius. It is extremely vague and gives room only to guesses and assumptions that contradict one another. The opinion that attributed the writing of the Apocalypse to John-Mark, that is, to the Evangelist Mark, is not based on anything. Even more absurd is the opinion of the Roman presbyter Caius (III century) that the Apocalypse was written by the heretic Cerinthos. 2) The second proof that the Apocalypse belongs to the Apostle John the Theologian is its similarity with the Gospel and the Epistles of John, not only in spirit, but also in style, and especially in some characteristic expressions. So, for example, apostolic preaching is called here “testimony” (Apoc. 1:2-9; 20:4 cf. John 1:7, 3:11, 21:24; 1 John 5:9-11). The Lord Jesus Christ is called “the Word” (Rev. 19:13 cf. John 1:1-14 and 1 John 1:1) and “Lamb” (Rev. 5:6 and 17:14 cf. John 1: 36). The prophetic words of Zechariah: “And they will see Him who has broken the blood” (12:10) both in the Gospel and in the Apocalypse are given equally according to the translation of the 70 (Apoc. 1:7 and John 19:37). Some found that the language of the Apocalypse differs from the language of other writings of St. Apostle John. This difference is easily explained both by the difference in content and by the circumstances of the origin of the writings of St. Apostle. St. John, although he spoke Greek, but, being in captivity, far from the living spoken Greek language, naturally put the stamp of the strong influence of the Hebrew language on the Apocalypse, as a natural Jew. For the unprejudiced reader of the Apocalypse, there is no doubt that its entire content bears the stamp of the great spirit of the Apostle of love and contemplation. 3) All ancient and later patristic testimonies recognize the author of the Apocalypse as St. John the Theologian. His disciple St. Papias of Hierapolis calls “Elder John” the writer of the Apocalypse, by which name St. himself calls himself. The Apostle in his epistles (1 John 1 and 3 John 1). The testimony of St. Justin Martyr, who even before his conversion to Christianity lived for a long time in Ephesus, the city where the great Apostle lived and rested for a long time. Many St. the fathers cite passages from the Apocalypse, as from a divinely inspired book belonging to St. John the Theologian. These are: St. Irenaeus of Lyons, disciple of St. Polycarp of Smyrna, disciple of St. John the Evangelist, St. Hippolytus, Pope, disciple of Irenaeus, who even wrote an apology for the Apocalypse. Clement of Alexandria, Tertullian and Origen also recognize St. Apostle John, writer of the Apocalypse. The Monk Ephraim the Syrian, Epiphanius, Basil the Great, Hilary, Athanasius the Great, Gregory the Theologian, Didymus, Ambrose, Augustine, and Jerome are equally convinced of this. Rule 33 of the Council of Carthage, attributing the Apocalypse to St. John the Theologian, places it among other canonical books. The absence of the Apocalypse in Pescito's translation is explained solely by the fact that this translation was made for liturgical reading, and the Apocalypse was not read during the divine service. In canon 60 of the Council of Laodicea, the Apocalypse is not mentioned, since the mysterious content of the book did not allow anyone to recommend a book that could give rise to false interpretations.
TIME AND PLACE OF WRITING THE APOCALYPSE
We do not have exact data about the time of writing of the Apocalypse. An ancient tradition indicates the end of the 1st century for this. Yes, St. Irenaeus writes: “The Apocalypse appeared shortly before this and almost in our time, at the end of the reign of Domitian” (“Against Heresies” 5:30). The church historian Eusebius reports that contemporary pagan writers also mention the exile of St. Apostle John to Patmos for his testimony about the Divine Word and refer this event to the 15th year of the reign of Domitian (95-96 AD). The same is stated by Clement of Alexandria, Origen and Blessed Jerome. The church writers of the first three centuries also agree in indicating the place where the Apocalypse was written, which they recognize as the island of Patmos, mentioned by the Apostle himself as the place where he received revelations (1:9-10). But after the discovery of the Syriac translation of the Apocalypse of the 6th century ("Pokoke"), where in the inscription Nero is named instead of Domitian, many began to attribute the writing of the Apocalypse to the time of Nero (to the 60s A.D.). St. Hippolytus of Rome also attributes the exile to St. John on Fr. Patmos to Nero. They also find that it is impossible to attribute the time of writing the Apocalypse to the reign of Domitian because, judging by verses 1-2 of the 11th chapter of the Apocalypse, the Jerusalem temple was not yet destroyed, since in these verses they see a prediction about the future destruction of the temple, which under Domitian it was already accomplished. References to Roman emperors, which some see in the 10th art. Chapter 17, comes closest to the successors of Nero. They also find that the number of the beast (13:18) can be found in the name of Nero: “Nero Caesar” - 666. The very language of the Apocalypse, full of Hebraisms, also, according to some, indicates its earlier date in comparison with the 4th Gospel and the Epistles St. John's origin. Nero's full name was: "Claudius Nero Domitius", as a result of which it was possible to confuse him with the emperor who reigned later. Domitian. According to this opinion, the Apocalypse was written two years before the destruction of Jerusalem, that is, in 68 AD. But it is objected to that the state of Christian life, as it appears in the Apocalypse, speaks for a later date. Each of the seven churches in Asia Minor to which St. John, already has its own history and one way or another determined direction of religious life: Christianity in them is no longer in the first stage of purity and truth - false Christianity is trying to take a place in them along with the true one. All this suggests that the activities of St. The Apostle Paul, who preached for a long time in Ephesus, was a thing of the long past. This point of view, based on the testimony of St. Irenaeus and Eusebius, dates the time of writing the Apocalypse to 95-96. according to R. X. It is very difficult to accept the opinion of St. Epiphanius, who says that St. John returned from Patmos under the emperor Claudius (4154). Under Claudius there was no general persecution of Christians in the provinces, but only the expulsion of Jews from Rome, among whom there could have been Christians. It is also incredible that the Apocalypse was written at an even later time, under the Emperor Trajan (98-108), when St. John died. Regarding the place where the Apocalypse was written, there is also an opinion that it was written in Ephesus, after the Apostle returned there from exile, although the first opinion is much more natural that the message to the churches of Asia Minor contained in the Apocalypse was sent precisely from Patmos. It is also difficult to imagine that St. The apostle would not have fulfilled the command to write everything he saw immediately (1:10-11).
THE MAIN SUBJECT AND PURPOSE OF WRITING THE APOCALYPSE
Beginning the Apocalypse, St. John himself points out the main subject and purpose of his writing - “to show what must soon be” (1:1). Thus, the main subject of the Apocalypse is a mysterious image of the future fate of the Church of Christ and the whole world. From the very beginning of its existence, the Church of Christ had to enter into a difficult struggle against the errors of Judaism and paganism in order to bring triumph to the Divine Truth brought to earth by the incarnate Son of God, and through this to grant man bliss and eternal life. The purpose of the Apocalypse is to depict this struggle of the Church and Her triumph over all enemies; to clearly show the death of the enemies of the Church and the glorification of Her faithful children. This was especially important and necessary for believers in those times when the terrible bloody persecution of Christians began, in order to give them comfort and encouragement in the sorrows and ordeals that befell them. This visual picture of the battle between the dark kingdom of Satan and the Church and the final victory of the Church over the “ancient serpent” (12:9) is needed for believers of all times, all with the same purpose of consoling and strengthening them in the struggle for the truth of Christ’s faith, which they constantly have to wage with the servants of the dark forces of hell, seeking in their blind malice to destroy the Church.
THE CHURCH'S VIEW ON THE CONTENT OF THE APOCALYPSE
All the ancient Fathers of the Church, who interpreted the sacred books of the New Testament, unanimously view the Apocalypse as a prophetic picture of the last times of the world and the events that are about to take place before the Second Coming of Christ to earth and at the opening of the Kingdom of Glory, prepared for all true believers Christians. Despite the darkness under which the mysterious meaning of this book is hidden and as a result of which many unbelievers tried in every possible way to discredit it, the deeply enlightened fathers and God-wise teachers of the Church have always treated it with great reverence. Yes, St. Dionysius of Alexandria writes: “The darkness of this book does not prevent me from being amazed at it. And if I do not understand everything in it, it is only because of my inability. I cannot be a judge of the truths contained in it, and measure them by the poverty of my mind; guided more by faith, than by reason, I find them only beyond my understanding." Blessed Jerome speaks in the same way about the Apocalypse: “There are as many mysteries in it as there are words. But what am I saying? Any praise of this book will be beneath its dignity.” Many believe that Caius, the presbyter of Rome, does not consider the Apocalypse to be the creation of the heretic Cerinthos, as some infer from his words, for Caius is not talking about a book called “Revelation,” but about “revelations.” Eusebius himself, who quotes these words from Caius, does not say a word about Cerinthus being the author of the book of the Apocalypse. Blessed Jerome and other fathers, who knew this place in the work of Kai and recognized the authenticity of the Apocalypse, would not have left it without objection if they considered the words of Kai to relate to the Apocalypse of St. John the Theologian. But the Apocalypse was not and is not read during the Divine Service: it must be assumed that in ancient times the reading of the Holy Scriptures during the Divine Service was always accompanied by its interpretation, and the Apocalypse is too difficult to interpret. This also explains its absence in the Syriac translation of Peshito, which was intended specifically for liturgical use. As proven by researchers, the Apocalypse was originally on the Peshito list and was removed from there after the time of Ephraim the Syrian, for St. Ephraim the Syrian cites the Apocalypse in his writings as the canonical book of the New Testament and widely uses it in his inspired teachings.
RULES FOR INTERPRETING THE APOCALYPSE
As the book of God's destinies about the world and the Church, the Apocalypse has always attracted the attention of Christians, and especially at a time when external persecution and internal temptations began to confuse believers with particular force, threatening all sorts of dangers on all sides. During such periods, believers naturally turned to this book for consolation and encouragement and tried to unravel from it the meaning and significance of the events taking place. Meanwhile, the imagery and mystery of this book makes it very difficult to understand, and therefore for careless interpreters there is always the risk of being carried away beyond the boundaries of truth and giving rise to unrealistic hopes and beliefs. So, for example, a literalistic understanding of the images in this book gave rise and now continues to give rise to the false teaching about the so-called “chiliasm” - the thousand-year reign of Christ on earth. The horrors of persecution experienced by Christians in the first century and interpreted in the light of the Apocalypse gave reason for some to believe in the onset of the “last times” and the imminent Second Coming of Christ, even then, in the first century. Over the past 19 centuries, many interpretations of the Apocalypse of the most diverse nature have appeared. All these interpreters can be divided into four categories. Some of them attribute all the visions and symbols of the Apocalypse to the “end times” - the end of the world, the appearance of the Antichrist and the Second Coming of Christ, others - give the Apocalypse a purely historical meaning, attributing all the visions to the historical events of the first century - to the times of persecution brought against the Church by pagans emperors. Still others try to find the fulfillment of apocalyptic predictions in historical events of later times. In their opinion, for example, the Pope is the Antichrist, and all apocalyptic disasters are announced specifically for the Roman Church, etc. Still others, finally, see in the Apocalypse only an allegory, believing that the visions described in it have not so much a prophetic as a moral meaning , the allegory is introduced only to enhance the impression in order to capture the imagination of readers. The more correct interpretation must be that which unites all these directions, and one should not lose sight of the fact that, as the ancient interpreters and Fathers of the Church clearly taught about this, the content of the Apocalypse is ultimately directed towards the final destinies of the world. There can be no doubt, however, that throughout past Christian history many of the predictions of St. John the Seer about the future destinies of the Church and the world, but great caution is needed in applying apocalyptic content to historical events, and this should not be overused. One interpreter’s remark is fair that the content of the Apocalypse will only gradually become clear as events occur and the prophecies predicted in it are fulfilled. The correct understanding of the Apocalypse, of course, is most hindered by people’s departure from faith and true Christian life, which always leads to dulling, or even complete loss of spiritual vision, necessary for a correct understanding and spiritual assessment of the events taking place in the world. This complete devotion of modern man to sinful passions, depriving him of purity of heart, and therefore of spiritual vision (Matthew 5:8), is the reason that some modern interpreters of the Apocalypse want to see in it only an allegory and even teach the Second Coming of Christ to be understood allegorically . Historical events and persons of the time we are now experiencing, which, in all fairness, many already call apocalyptic, convince us that to see only an allegory in the book of the Apocalypse truly means to be spiritually blind, so everything that is happening in the world now resembles terrible images and visions Apocalypse.
The Apocalypse contains only twenty-two chapters. According to its content, it can be divided into the following sections:
1) Introductory picture of the Son of Man appearing to John, commanding John to write to the seven churches of Asia Minor - chapter 1.
2) Instructions to the seven churches of Asia Minor: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamon, Thyatira, Sardis. Philadelphian and Laodicean - chapters 2 and 3.
3) Vision of God Seated on the Throne and the Lamb - chapters 4 and 5.
4) Opening by the Lamb of the seven seals of the mysterious book - chapters 6 and 7.
5) The voices of the seven angelic trumpets, which announced various disasters to those living on earth at the opening of the seventh seal - chapters 8, 9, 10 and 11.
6) The Church of Christ under the image of a woman clothed with the sun, who was in birth pain - chapter 12.
7) The Beast Antichrist and his accomplice the false prophet – chapter 13.
8) Preparatory events before the general resurrection and the Last Judgment - chapters 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19. a) Song of praise of 144,000 righteous people and angels announcing the destinies of the world - chapter 14; b) Seven angels having the seven last plagues - chapter 15. c) Seven angels pouring out the seven bowls of the wrath of God - chapter 16. d) The judgment of the great harlot who sat on many waters and sat on a scarlet beast - chapter 17. e) The fall of Babylon - the great harlot - chapter 18. f) The warfare of the Word of God with the beast and his army and the destruction of the latter - chapter 19.
9) General Resurrection and the Last Judgment - chapter 20.
10) Opening of a new heaven and a new earth; the new Jerusalem and the bliss of its inhabitants - chapters 21 and 22 to the 5th verse.
11) Conclusion: certification of the truth of everything said and a testament to keep the commandments of God. Teaching the Blessing - Chapter 22:6-21.
EXEGETICAL ANALYSIS OF THE APOCALYPSE
Chapter first. THE PURPOSE OF THE APOCALYPSE AND THE METHOD OF GIVING IT TO JOHN
“The Apocalypse of Jesus Christ, which God has given Him to show by His servant, which it is fitting to be soon” - these words clearly define the nature and purpose of the Apocalypse as a Prophetic book. In this way, the Apocalypse differs significantly from the rest of the books of the New Testament, the content of which is primarily religious and moral. The importance of the Apocalypse is visible here from the fact that its writing was the result of a direct revelation and direct order given by St. To the Apostle by the Head of the Church Himself - the Lord Jesus Christ. The expression “soon” indicates that the prophecies of the Apocalypse began to be fulfilled immediately after its writing, and also that in the eyes of God “a thousand years are like one day” (Peter 2:3-8). The expression of the Apocalypse about the revelation of Jesus Christ, that “it was given to Him from God,” must be understood as referring to Christ according to humanity, for He Himself, during His earthly life, spoke of Himself as not omniscient (Mark 13:32) and receiving revelations from the Father (John 5:20).
“Blessed is he that is honourable, and heareth the words of prophecy, and keepeth that which is written therein: for the time is near” (v. 3). The book of the Apocalypse, therefore, has not only prophetic, but also moral significance. The meaning of these words is this: blessed is he who, by reading this book, will prepare himself for eternity with his life and deeds of piety, for the transition to eternity is close for each of us.
“John to the seventh churches which are in Asia” - the number seven is usually taken to express completeness. St. John addresses here only the seven churches with which he, as one who lived in Ephesus, had especially close and frequent relations, but in the person of these seven he also addresses the entire Christian Church as a whole. “From the seven spirits who are before His throne” - by these “seven spirits” it is most natural to understand the seven main Angels, which are spoken of in Tov. 12:15. St. Andrew of Caesarea, however, understands by them the angels who govern the seven churches. Many interpreters understand by this expression the Holy Spirit Himself, manifesting Himself in seven main gifts: the spirit of the fear of God, the spirit of knowledge, the spirit of power, the spirit of light, the spirit of understanding, the spirit of wisdom, the spirit of the Lord, or the gift of piety and inspiration to the highest degree (See Isaiah 11:1-3). The Lord Jesus Christ is called here “the faithful witness” in the sense that He testified before people His Divinity and the truth of His teaching by His death on the cross (in Greek “martis”). “He made us kings and priests to God and His Father” - not in the proper sense, of course, but in the sense in which God promised this to the chosen people through the prophets (Exodus 19:6), that is, he made us, true believers, better , the most holy people, which for other peoples is the same as a priest and a king in relation to other people.
“Behold, he is coming from the clouds, and every eye will see Him, and those who are like Him will give birth, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn for Him” - here the Second Glorious Coming of Christ is depicted in full agreement with the depiction of this coming in the Gospels (cf. Matt. 24:30 and 25:31; Mark 13:26; Luke 21:27 cf. John 19:37). After the greeting in this verse to St. The Apostle immediately speaks of the Second Coming of Christ and the Last Judgment in order to identify the main theme of his book, in order to prepare readers for the perception of the great and terrible revelations he received about this (v. 7). To confirm the immutability and inevitability of the Second Coming and the Last Judgment of God, St. The Apostle says on his own behalf: “Hey, Amen,” and then testifies to the truth of this by pointing to the One who is Alpha and Omega, the Firstfruits and the End of all things: The Lord Jesus Christ is the only beginningless and endless author of all that exists, He is eternal, He is the end and goal toward which all things tend (v. 8).
As for the method of giving revelations to him, St. John names first of all the place where he was deemed worthy to receive them. This is the island of Patmos - one of the Sporades islands in the Aegean Sea, deserted and rocky, with a circumference of 56 miles, between the island of Ikaria and the Miletus Cape, sparsely populated due to lack of water, unhealthy climate and infertile land. Now it is called "Palmosa". In a cave on one mountain they now show the place where John received revelations. There is a small Greek monastery there called "Apocalypse" (v. 9). The same verse also speaks about the time of receiving St. John of the Apocalypse. This was when St. John was imprisoned on Fr. Patmos, in his own words, “for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ,” that is, for the zealous apostolic preaching about Jesus Christ. The most severe persecution of Christians in the 1st century was under Emperor Nero. Tradition says that St. John was first thrown into a cauldron of boiling oil, from which he emerged unharmed with renewed and strengthened strength. The expression “in sorrow,” in the sense of the original Greek expression, here means “suffering,” which comes from persecution and torment, the same as “martyrdom.” In the next, 10th verse of St. John also designates the very day on which he received revelations. It was a “weekly day”, in Greek “kyriaki imera” - “day of the Lord”. This was the first day of the week, which the Jews called “mia savaton,” that is, “the first day of Saturday,” but Christians called it “the day of the Lord” in honor of the risen Lord. The very existence of such a name already indicates that Christians celebrated this day instead of the Old Testament Saturday. Having designated the place and time, St. John also indicates his state in which he was granted apocalyptic visions. “I was in the spirit on Sunday,” he says. In the language of the prophets, “to be in the spirit” means to be in such a spiritual state when a person sees, hears and feels not with his bodily organs, but with his entire inner being. This is not a dream, for this state also occurs during wakefulness. In such an extraordinary state of his spirit, St. John heard a loud voice, as if blowing a trumpet, which said: “I am Alpha and Omega. The First and the Last; write what you see in a book and send it to the churches that are in Asia: to Ephesus, and to Smyrna, and to Pergamum, and to Thyatira, and to Sardis, and to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea" (vv. 10-11). Next, four visions are described, according to which many usually divide the content of the Apocalypse into 4 main parts: the 1st vision is set out in chapters 1: 1-4; 2nd vision - in chapters 4-11; The 3rd vision is in chapters 12-14 and the 4th vision is in chapters 15-22. The first vision is the appearance of St. John of Someone "Like the Son of Man." The loud voice, like a trumpet, that John heard behind him belonged to Him. He called himself not in Hebrew, but in Greek: Alpha and Omega, First and Last. To the Jews in the Old Testament He revealed Himself under the name "Jehovah", which means: "From the beginning Existing", or "Existing", and here He signifies Himself by the initial and last letters of the Greek alphabet, indicating that He contains in Himself, like the Father , everything that exists in all phenomena of existence from beginning to end. It is characteristic that He declares Himself here as if under a new and, moreover, Greek name, “Alpha and Omega,” as if wanting to show that He is the Messiah for all the peoples who then spoke the Greek language everywhere and used Greek writing. The Revelation is given to the seven churches that make up the Metropolitanate of Ephesus, which was then ruled by St. John the Theologian, as being constantly in Ephesus, but, of course, it was given to the whole Church in the person of these seven churches. The number seven, in addition, has a mysterious meaning, meaning completeness, and therefore can be placed here as an emblem of the universal Church, to which the Apocalypse is addressed as a whole. Verses 12-16 describe the appearance of the man who appeared to John, “like the Son of Man.” He stood in the middle of seven lamps, symbolizing the seven churches, and was clothed in the “podir” - the long robe of the Jewish high priests, and, like kings, was girded across the chest with a golden belt. These features indicate the high priestly and royal dignity of the One who appeared (vv. 12-13). His head and hair were white, like white wool, like snow, and His eyes were like a flame of fire. White hair is usually a sign of old age. This sign testifies that the appeared Son of Man is one with the Father, that He is one with the “Ancient of Days,” whom St. beheld in a mysterious vision. Prophet Daniel (7:13) that He is the same Eternal God as God the Father. His eyes were like a flame of fire, which means His Divine zeal for the salvation of the human race, that before His gaze there is nothing hidden or dark, and that He burns with anger at all iniquity (v. 14). His feet were like halkolivan, as if heated in a furnace. "Halkolivan" is a precious metal alloy with a fiery red or golden yellow luster. According to some interpretations, halq is copper and symbolizes the human nature in Jesus Christ, and Lebanon, like fragrant incense, symbolizes the Divine nature. “And His voice is like the sound of many waters,” that is, His voice is like the voice of a terrible judge, striking with trembling the troubled souls of judged people (v. 15). “He held in His right hand seven stars” - according to the following explanation (v. 20) of Himself who appeared to John, these seven stars designated the seven heads of the churches, or bishops, called here “Angels of the churches.” This instills in us that the Lord Jesus Christ holds the church shepherds in His right hand. “And out of His mouth came a sword sharp on both sides” - this symbolizes the all-pervading power of the word coming from the mouth of God (cf. Heb. 4:12). “And His face was like the sun, shining in its power” - this is an image of that ineffable glory of God with which the Lord shone in His time and on Tabor (v. 16). All these features present to us a holistic image of the Terrible Judge, High Priest and King, as the Lord Jesus Christ will once appear on earth at His Second Coming, in order to judge the living and the dead. In great fear, John fell at His feet as if dead. From this we can conclude that the beloved disciple, who once reclined on the breasts of Jesus, did not recognize a single familiar feature in the One who appeared, and this is not surprising, for if the disciples did not easily recognize their Lord after the resurrection in His glorified body on earth, then it is even more difficult to recognize Him in radiant heavenly glory. The Lord Himself had to reassure the Apostle, placing His right hand on him with the words: “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and alive, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forever and ever, Amen: and the Imam is the key of hell and death” ( vv. 17-18) - from these words of St. John had to understand that the One who appeared was none other than the Lord Jesus Christ, and that His appearance for the Apostle could not be fatal, but, on the contrary, life-giving. To have the keys to something meant for the Jews to gain power over something. Thus, the “keys of hell and death” mean power over physical and mental death. In conclusion, the One who appeared commands John to write what he sees and what should be, explaining that the seven stars are Angels, or the leaders of the seven churches, and the seven lamps represent these very churches.
Chapter two. INSTRUCTIONS TO THE ASIA MINOR CHURCHES: EPHESIS, SMYRNA, PERGAM AND THYATIRA
The second, as well as the next, third chapter, sets out the revelations received by St. John about each of the seven churches of Asia Minor, and the corresponding instructions to them. These revelations contain praises of their Christian life and faith, rebukes of their shortcomings, exhortations and consolations, threats and promises. The content of these revelations and instructions are closely related to the state of church life in the churches of Asia Minor at the end of the first century, but at the same time they apply to the entire Church in general throughout its existence on earth. Some even see here an indication of seven periods in the life of the entire Christian Church from the apostolic time to the end of the world and the Second Coming of Christ.
First of all, the Lord commands us to write to the Angel of the Ephesian Church. The Ephesian Church is praised for its first deeds - for its labors, patience and resistance to false teachers, but at the same time it is condemned for abandoning its first love and hears a terrible threat that its lamp will be removed from its place if it does not repent. However, the good thing about the Ephesians is that they hate “the works of the Nicolaitans.” The Lord promises to reward those who overcome temptations and passions with eating the fruits of the tree of life. Ephesus is the oldest trading city on the shores of the Aegean Sea, famous for its wealth and huge population. St. preached there for more than two years. The Apostle Paul, who finally appointed his beloved disciple Timothy bishop of Ephesus, St. lived there for a long time and died. Apostle John the Theologian. Subsequently, the Third Ecumenical Council was held in Ephesus, which confessed the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Mother of God. The threat to remove the lampstand over the Ephesian church came true. From the great center of the world, Ephesus soon turned into nothingness: all that remained of the former magnificent city was a pile of ruins and a small Muslim village. The great lamp of primitive Christianity went out completely. The Nicolaitans mentioned here were heretics, representing a branch of the Gnostics and distinguished by debauchery. They are also denounced in their conciliar epistles by St. Apostles Peter and Jude (2 Pet. 2:1; Jude 4). This heresy was started by the Antiochian proselyte Nicholas, who was one of the seven first deacons of Jerusalem (Acts 6:5), who fell away from the true faith. The reward for the winners among the Ephesian Christians is the eating of the heavenly tree of life. By this we must generally understand the benefits of the future blessed life of the righteous, the prototype of which was the tree of life in the primeval paradise where our first parents lived (vv. 1-7).
The Smyrna church, which consisted of poor people but spiritually rich, is predicted to suffer tribulation and persecution from the Jews, whom the Lord calls “the synagogue of Satan.” The prediction of sorrows is accompanied by a command to endure these sorrows, which will last “until ten days,” to the end, and a promise of deliverance is given “from the second death.” Smyrna is also one of the most ancient cities of Asia Minor, enlightened and glorious in pagan antiquity. Smyrna was no less remarkable in the history of the first times of Christianity, as a city that was very early illuminated by the light of Christianity and that, amid persecution, retained the pledge of faith and piety. The Church of Smyrna, according to legend, was founded by St. Apostle John the Theologian, and the latter’s disciple St. Polycarp, who was its bishop, glorified her with his martyrdom. According to the church historian Eusebius, almost immediately after the apocalyptic prediction, a fierce persecution of Christians arose in Asia Minor, during which St. suffered. Polycarp of Smyrna. According to some interpretations, “ten days” means the short duration of the persecution; according to others, on the contrary, for a certain long period, for the Lord commands the Smyrians to stock up on “faithfulness until death,” that is, for some long period. Some mean by this the persecution that took place under Domitian and lasted ten years. Others see this as a prediction of all ten persecutions that Christians suffered from pagan emperors during the first three centuries. By the “second death,” which is expected to occur for unbelievers after physical death, is meant their condemnation to eternal torment (see Rev. 21:8). The one who overcomes, that is, the one who has endured all persecution, is promised a “crown of life” or an inheritance of eternal blessings. Smyrna to this day remains a significant city and has the dignity of an Orthodox Christian metropolis (vv. 8-11).
The Pergamon Church boasts of the Lord for containing His Name and not rejecting faith in Him, although it was planted in the midst of a city extremely corrupted by paganism, which means the figurative expression: “you live where the throne of Satan is,” and was subjected to severe persecution, during which "Antipas, the faithful witness of the Lord, was put to death." Although many tried to understand the name “Antipas” symbolically, it is known from the martyrologies that have come down to us that Antipas was the bishop of Pergamum and for his zealous confession of the faith of Christ he was burned in the entrails of a red-hot copper bull. But then the Lord also points to negative phenomena in the life of the Pergamum Church, namely to the fact that the Nicolaitans appeared there too, legalizing the eating of things sacrificed to idols and all sorts of adulterous lewdness, to which the Israelis were driven at one time by Balaam. Pergamum is located north of Smyrna, and in ancient times it competed with Smyrna and Ephesus, it had a temple to the pagan deity Aesculapius, the patron saint of doctors. Its priests practiced medicine and put up strong resistance to the preachers of Christianity. Pergamon, called Bergamo, and the Christian church in it have survived to the present day, although in great poverty, since nothing remains of its former splendor except the huge ruins of the once beautiful temple in honor of St. John the Theologian, built by Emperor Theodosius. “To him who overcomes I will give food from the hidden manna, and I gave him a white stone, and on the stone a new name is written, which no one knows, except take it” - the image is taken from the Old Testament manna, which was a prototype of “the Bread of heaven that came down from heaven,” that is, the Lord Himself Jesus Christ. By this manna we must understand living communication in the future blissful life with the Lord. The metaphorical expression about the “white stone” has its basis in the custom of antiquity, according to which winners at public games and competitions were given white stone tablets, which they then presented to receive the awards awarded to them. It was the custom of Roman judges to collect votes with white and black stones. White meant approval, black meant condemnation. In the mouth of the Seer, the white stone symbolically denotes the purity and innocence of Christians, for which they receive a reward in the next century. Giving names to new members of the kingdom is characteristic of kings and rulers. And the Heavenly King will give all the chosen sons of His Kingdom new names, which will signify their internal properties and their purpose and service in the Kingdom of Glory. But since no one “message is from man even in man, even the spirit of man living in him” (1 Cor. 2:11), then the new name given to man by the Omniscient Master will be known only to the one receiving this name (vv. 12-17).
The Thyatira Church is praised for its faith, love and patience, but at the same time it is reproached for allowing in its depths a certain false prophetess Jezebel to commit lawlessness and corrupt people. The Lord predicts great sorrow for her and those who commit adultery with her if they do not repent, and death for her children; good and faithful Christians of the Thyatira church must only keep their faith and keep the commandments of God to the end. The Lord promises to give the winner strong power over the pagans and the morning star. Thyatira is a small town in Lydia, which has not marked itself in history, but is known in the history of Christianity for the fact that Lydia came from it, which was enlightened by the light of the Christian faith by St. Apostle Paul during his 2nd evangelistic journey to Philippi (Acts 16:14, 15, 40). Probably, this contributed to the rapid establishment of Christianity in Thyatira, and, as can be seen from the words “your last deeds are greater than your first,” all the previously mentioned good Christian qualities of the inhabitants of Thyatira developed and strengthened more and more over time. The name Jezebel is used here, apparently, in the same figurative sense as the name of Balaam above. It is known that Jezebel, the daughter of the king of Sidon, having entered into marriage with Ahab, the king of Israel, attracted him to the worship of all the abominations of Sidon and Tyre and was the reason for the fall of the Israelites into idolatry. It can be assumed that the name of “Jezebel” here refers to the same fornicating and idolatrous trend of the Nicolaitans. The teaching of the Nicolaitans, as the forerunners of the Gnostics, who called their false teaching “the depths of God,” is called here “the depths of Satan.” Paganism fell as a result of the fight against Christianity. In this sense, the Lord promises the conqueror “power over the pagans.” “And I will give him the morning star” - there is a double interpretation of these words. The prophet Isaiah calls Satan, who fell from heaven, “the morning star” (Daystar) (Is. 14:12). Then these words signify the dominion of the Christian believer over Satan (see Luke 10:18-19). On the other hand, St. The Apostle Peter in his 2nd epistle (1:19) calls the Lord Jesus Christ the “morning star” that shines in human hearts. In this sense, the true Christian is promised the enlightenment of his soul by the light of Christ and participation in the future heavenly glory (vv. 18-29).
Chapter three. INSTRUCTIONS TO THE ASIA MINOR CHURCHES: SARDIA, PHILADELPHIA AND LAODICEA
The Lord commands the Angel of the Sardinian Church to write something more reproachful than consoling: this Church contains only the name of a living faith, but in fact is spiritually dead. The Lord threatens the Sardinian Christians with sudden disaster if they do not repent. There are, however, very few among them “who did not defile their garments.” The Lord promises to clothe the winners (over the passions) in white robes, their names will not be blotted out from the book of life and will be confessed by the Lord before His Heavenly Father.
Sardis in ancient times was a large and rich city, the capital of the Lydian region, and now it is the poor Turkish village of Sardis. There are few Christians there, and they do not have their own temple. Under Julian the Apostate, the spiritual deadness of this city was clearly revealed: it quickly returned to idolatry, for which the punishment of God befell it: it was destroyed to the ground. Under the “defiled clothes” here, spiritual defilements are metaphorically depicted, and therefore those who have not defiled their clothes are those whose minds have remained uninvolved in heretical false teachings, and whose life is not stained by passions and vices. By “white robes” we mean the wedding garments in which the guests will be clothed at the wedding feast of the royal son, under whose image the Lord presented in the parable the future bliss of the righteous in His Heavenly Kingdom (Matthew 22:11-12). These are clothes that will be like the clothes of the Savior during the Transfiguration, becoming white as light (Matt. 17:2). God's determinations about the destinies of people are symbolically depicted under the image of a book in which the Lord, as an omniscient and omnirighteous Judge, writes down all the deeds of people. This symbolic image is often used in the Holy Scriptures (Ps. 68:29, Ps. 139:16, Isaiah 4:3; Dan. 7:10, Malach. 3:16; Exod. 32:32-33; Luke 10: 20; Phil. 4:3). In accordance with this idea, the one who lives worthy of the highest purpose is, as it were, written into the book of life, and the one who lives unworthily is, as it were, erased from this book, thereby depriving himself of the right to eternal life. Therefore, a promise to one who overcomes sin not to blot out his name from the book of life is equivalent to a promise not to deprive him of the heavenly blessings prepared for the righteous in the future life. “And I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels” - this is the same thing that the Lord promised during His life on earth to His true followers (Matthew 10:32), that is, I recognize and proclaim him My faithful disciple (v. 1-6). The Lord commands the Angel of the Philadelphian Church to write many comforting and praiseworthy things. Despite its weakness (probably meaning small number), this Church did not renounce the name of Jesus in the face of the satanic gathering of Jewish persecutors. For this, the Lord will make sure that they come and bow before her, and in the difficult time of temptation for the entire universe, she will find protection and protection from the Lord Himself. Therefore, the task of the Philadelphians is to keep only what they have, so that no one takes their crown. The Lord promises to make the winner a pillar in the temple and write on him the Name of God and the name of the city of God - the new Jerusalem, and the new name of Jesus. Philadelphia is the second large city in Lydia, named after its founder Attalus Philadelphus, king of Pergamon. This city, one of all the cities in Asia Minor, did not surrender to the Turks for a long time. It is remarkable that even today Christianity is in the most flourishing state in Philadelphia, surpassing all other cities of Asia Minor: a large Christian population has survived here, with its own bishop and 25 churches. Residents are distinguished by great hospitality and kindness. The Turks call Philadelphia “Allah-Sher,” that is, “God’s city,” and this name involuntarily recalls the promise of the Lord: “I will write on him who overcomes the name of My God and the name of the city of My God” (v. 12). “Thus says the true Holy One, you have the key of David” - the Son of God calls Himself having the key of David in the sense of having supreme power in the house of David, for the key is a symbol of power. The House of David, or the Kingdom of David, means the same as the Kingdom of God, of which it was a prototype in the Old Testament. It further says that if the Lord deigns someone to open the doors of this Kingdom, then no one can prevent him from doing so, and vice versa. This is a figurative indication of the firm faith of the Philadelphians, which the Judaizing false teachers could not break. The latter will come and bow before the feet of the Philadelphians, that is, apparently, they will recognize themselves as defeated. By the “time of temptation,” during which the Lord promises to preserve the Philadelphians faithful to Him, some understand the terrible persecution of Christians by the pagan Roman emperors, which covered “the whole universe,” as the Roman Empire was then called (cf. Luke 2:1); others suggest that by Philadelphia one must understand one of the Christian Churches or the entire Christian Church in general in the last times before the end of the world and the Second Coming of Christ. In this latter sense, the broadcast is especially clear: “Behold, I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, lest anyone take your crown.” Then the danger of losing faith from many temptations will increase, but the reward for fidelity will be, so to speak, at hand, and therefore one must be especially vigilant so that, through frivolity, one does not lose the opportunity of salvation, as, for example, Lot’s wife lost it. Being placed as a “pillar” in the Church of Christ, insurmountable by the gates of hell, figuratively represented in the form of a house, shows the inviolable belonging of the winner in temptations to the Church of Christ, that is, the most secure position in the Kingdom of Heaven. A high reward for such a person will also be to have a triple name written on it: the name of a child of God, as inseparably belonging to God, the name of a citizen of the new or heavenly Jerusalem, and the name of a Christian, as a true member of the Body of Christ. The New Jerusalem is undoubtedly a heavenly, triumphant Church, which is called “descending from heaven” because the very origin of the Church from the Son of God, who came down from heaven, is heavenly, it gives heavenly gifts to people and raises them to heaven (vv. 7-13 ).
The Angel of Laodicea, the last, seventh Church, is commanded to write a lot of accusations. The Lord does not speak a single word of approval about her. He reproaches her for being neither cold nor hot, and therefore threatens to spew her out of His mouth, like warm water that induces nausea, despite the Laodiceans’ self-important confidence in their moral perfections, the Lord calls them unhappy, pitiful, poor, blind and naked, urging them to take care of covering their nakedness and healing their blindness. At the same time, He calls for repentance, saying that He stands with love at the door of the heart of every repentant and is ready to come to him with His mercies and forgiveness. The Lord promises to seat the winner over his pride and, in general, over his moral ailments, with Him on His throne. Laodicea, now called by the Turks "Eski-Gissar", that is, the Old Fortress, is located in Phrygia, near the Lyka River and near the city of Colossae. In ancient times it was famous for its trade, soil fertility and cattle breeding; its population was very numerous and rich, as evidenced by excavations, during which many precious pieces of sculpting art, fragments of luxurious marble decorations, cornices, pedestals, etc. are found. It can be assumed that wealth made the Laodiceans so lukewarm in relation to the Christian faith , for which their city was subjected to God's punishment - complete destruction and devastation by the Turks. “Thus says... The firstfruits of the creation of God” - the Lord is named so, of course, not in the sense that He is the first creation of God, but in the fact that “all things came into being, and without Him nothing came into existence that was made” (John 1:3), and also in the fact that He is the author of the restoration of fallen humanity (Gal. 6:15 and Colossians 3:10). “...Oh, if only you were cold or hot” - a cold person who has not known faith is more likely to believe and become an ardent believer than a Christian who has grown cold and has become indifferent to faith. Even an obvious sinner is better than a lukewarm Pharisee, satisfied with his moral state. Therefore, the Lord Jesus Christ condemned the Pharisees, preferring to them repentant tax collectors and harlots. Obvious and open sinners can more easily come to the consciousness of their sinfulness and sincere repentance than people with a lukewarm conscience who are not aware of their moral ailments. “Gold refined by fire, a white robe and eye ointment (collurium),” which the Lord advises the Laodiceans to buy from Him, means the love and favor of God acquired by repentance, good deeds, pure and blameless behavior and the highest heavenly wisdom that gives spiritual vision. It can also be assumed that the Laodiceans really relied excessively on their wealth, trying to combine service to God and Mammon. Some believe that here we are talking about shepherds who strive to enrich themselves with earthly riches and imagine that through wealth they are called to dominate the inheritance of God, impressing with their wealth. The Lord advises such to buy from Him, that is, not only to ask and not receive for nothing, but to buy, that is, to acquire from Christ Himself at the cost of labor and repentance, “gold refined by fire,” that is, true spiritual wealth, grace-filled, which for the shepherd consists , by the way, and in the teaching word, dissolved with salt, “white clothes,” that is, the gift of charity to others, and “colluria,” or the virtue of non-covetousness, which opens the eyes to the vanity and vanity of all the riches of this perishable world. “To the one who overcomes” a promise is given to seat him on the throne of God, by which is meant the highest dignity of the heir to the Kingdom of Heaven, co-reign with Christ Himself, the Conqueror of the devil.
There is an opinion that the seven churches mean seven periods in the life of the entire Church of Christ from its foundation to the end of the world: 1) The Church of Ephesus designates the first period - the Apostolic Church, which worked and did not faint, fought against the first heresies - the "Nicolaitans", but soon abandoned the good custom charity – “community of property” (“first love”); 2) The Smyrna Church denotes the second period - the period of persecution of the Church, of which there were only ten; 3) The Pergamon Church denotes the third period - the era of the Ecumenical Councils and the fight against heresies with the sword of the word of God; 4) Thyatira Church - 4th period, or the period of the heyday of Christianity among the new peoples of Europe; 5) Sardinian Church - the era of humanism and materialism of the 16th-18th centuries; 6) The Philadelphia Church - the penultimate period of the life of Christ's Church - our modern era, when the Church really has “little strength” in modern humanity, and persecution will begin again when patience is needed; 7) The Laodicean church is the last, most terrible era before the end of the world, characterized by indifference to faith and external well-being.
Chapter Four. SECOND VISION: THE VISION OF GOD SITTING ON THE THRONE AND THE LAMB
The fourth chapter contains the beginning of a new - second vision. An image of a new majestic spectacle that opened before the eyes of St. John, begins by commanding him to go up to the open door of heaven to see “what must be done from now on.” Opening the door means revealing the hidden secrets of the Spirit. With the words “come up here,” the listener is commanded to completely renounce earthly thoughts and turn to heavenly ones. “And abiye was in dus,” that is, again in a state of admiration, St. John saw, this time, God the Father Himself sitting on the throne. Its appearance was similar to the precious stones "iaspis" ("green stone, like emerald") and "sardinovi" (sardis, or serdonik, yellow-fiery color). The first of these colors is green, according to the interpretation of St. Andrew of Caesarea, meant that the Divine nature is ever-flowering, life-giving and food-giving, and the second - yellow-red-fiery - purity and holiness, eternally abiding in God, and His terrible anger towards those who violate His will. The combination of these two colors indicates that God punishes sinners, but at the same time is always ready to forgive those who sincerely repent. The appearance of the One sitting on the throne was surrounded by an “arc” (rainbow), like emerald, a green stone, which meant, like the rainbow that appeared after the flood, God’s eternal mercy to humanity. The very sitting on the throne meant the opening of the Judgment of God, which was about to open in the last times. This is not yet the last Last Judgment, but a preliminary judgment, similar to those judgments of God that were carried out repeatedly in the history of mankind over sinned people (the Flood, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the destruction of Jerusalem and many others). The precious stones jasper and carnelian, as well as the rainbow around the throne, which is a symbol of the cessation of God’s wrath and the renewal of the world, mean that God’s judgment on the world, that is, its fiery destruction, will end with its renewal. This is especially indicated by the property of jasper to heal ulcers and wounds received from the sword (vv. 1-3).
Around the throne, on 24 other thrones, sat 24 elders, dressed in white robes, with golden crowns on their heads. There are many different opinions and assumptions about who should be understood by these elders. One thing is certain, that these are representatives of humanity who have pleased the Lord. Many believe, based on the promise given to St. To the Apostles: “You also will sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Matthew 19:28), that by these 24 elders we must mean 12 representatives of the Old Testament humanity - St. Patriarchs and Prophets, and 12 representatives of New Testament humanity, which can rightfully be revered as the 12 Apostles of Christ. White robes are a symbol of purity and eternal celebration, and golden crowns are a sign of victory over demons. From the throne “lightning and thunder and voice came forth” - this indicates how terrible and terrible God is for unrepentant sinners, unworthy of his mercy and forgiveness. “And the seven fiery candlesticks burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God” - by these “seven spirits” we must understand either the seven main Angels, as St. explains. Irina, or the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, listed by St. the prophet Isaiah (11:2). “And before the throne the sea was glass, like crystal” - a crystal sea, as motionless and quiet, in contrast to the stormy sea seen later by St. John (13:1), should mean, according to many interpreters, “a multitude of holy powers of heaven, pure and immortal” (St. Andrew of Caesarea), these are the souls of people who were not disturbed by the storms of the worldly sea, but, like a crystal, reflecting the seven rainbow colors, imbued with the seven gifts of grace of the Holy Spirit. “And in the middle of the throne and around the throne there were four living creatures full of hair in front and behind” - some think that these animals mean the four elements and God’s control and preservation of them, or God’s dominion over the heavenly, earthly, sea and underworld. But, as is clear from the further description of the species of these animals, these are, without a doubt, the same angelic forces that in the mysterious vision of St. The prophet Ezekiel (1:28) on the river Chebar was supported by a mysterious chariot, on which the Lord God sat as a king. These four animals served as emblems of the four Evangelists. Their many eyes mean Divine omniscience, knowledge of everything past, present and future. These are the highest and closest angelic beings to God, constantly praising God.
Chapter five. CONTINUATION OF THE SECOND VISION: THE SEALED BOOK AND THE LAMB AS WELL AS SABLED
The Lord Almighty, whom St. saw. John, sitting on the throne, held in His right hand a Book written on the outside and inside and sealed with seven seals. Books in ancient times consisted of pieces of parchment rolled into a tube or wound onto a round stick. A cord was threaded inside such a scroll, which was tied from the outside and attached with a seal. Sometimes the book consisted of a piece of parchment, which was folded into a fan shape and was tied over the top with a cord, stamped with seals on each fold or fold of the book. In this case, opening one seal made it possible to open and read only one part of the book. Writing was usually done only on one, the inner side of the parchment, but in rare cases they wrote on both sides. According to the explanation of St. Andrew of Caesarea and others under the book seen by St. John, one should understand the “wise memory of God,” in which everything is inscribed, as well as the depth of Divine destinies. Consequently, all the mysterious definitions of God’s wise providence regarding the salvation of people were inscribed in this book. The seven seals mean either the perfect and unknown affirmation of the book, or the economy of the probing depths of the Divine Spirit, which none of the created beings can resolve. The book also refers to prophecies, about which Christ Himself said that they were partially fulfilled in the Gospel (Luke 24:44), but that the rest will be fulfilled in the last days. One of the powerful Angels cried out in a loud voice for someone to open this book, opening its seven seals, but no one was found worthy “neither in heaven, nor on earth, nor under the earth” who would dare to do this. This means that none of the created beings has access to knowledge of the secrets of God. This inaccessibility is further strengthened by the expression “lower to see,” that is, even “to look into it” (vv. 1-3). The seer grieved a lot about this, but was consoled by one of the elders, who said: “Do not cry: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has won and can open this book and open its seven seals.” "Lion" here means "strong", "hero". This points to the prophecy of Patriarch Jacob about the “Lion of the tribe of Judah,” which meant the Messiah – Christ (Gen. 49:9-10). Looking, the Seer of Mysteries saw “a Lamb, as if slain, having seven horns and seven eyes.” This Lamb, who bore the marks of having been sacrificed, is, of course, “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29), that is, our Lord Jesus Christ. He alone turned out to be worthy to open the book of God’s destinies, for He, as having sacrificed Himself for the sins of people, Himself appeared to be the executor of God’s decrees regarding the salvation of the human race. His further opening of the seven seals of the book signifies the very fulfillment of the Divine definitions by the Only Begotten Son of God as the Savior of mankind. The seven horns are symbols of His strength (Ps. 74:11), and the seven eyes mean, as is immediately explained, “the seven spirits of God sent into all the earth,” that is, the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, resting in Christ as the Anointed of God , what St. spoke about. Prophet Isaiah (11:2) and St. Prophet Zechariah (4 chapters). The seven eyes symbolize at the same time the omniscience of God. The Lamb stood “in the middle of the throne,” that is, where the Son of God should have been - at the right hand of God the Father (vv. 4-6). The Lamb took the book from the hand of the One sitting on the throne, and immediately the four animals - Seraphim, and 24 elders, falling on their faces, offered Him Divine worship. The harp that they had in their hands signifies the harmonious and euphonious Divine praise, the sonorous singing of their souls; golden bowls, as is immediately explained, filled with incense, the prayers of saints. And they sang to the Son of God, the Redeemer of mankind, a truly “new song,” not heard since the creation of the world, which was predicted by the psalmist King David (Ps. 97:1). This song glorifies the new Kingdom of the Son of God, in which He reigned as the God-man, having purchased this Kingdom at the high price of His Blood. The redemption of humanity, although it actually related only to humanity, it was so amazing, so majestic, touching and sacred that it aroused the liveliest participation in the entire heavenly assembly, so that everyone together, both Angels and people, glorified God for this work "and worshiping Him who lives forever and ever" (vv. 7-14).
Chapter six. THE OPENING OF THE SEALS OF THE MYSTERIOUS BOOK BY THE LAMB: THE FIRST – SIXTH SEALS
The sixth chapter tells about the opening of the first six seals of the mysterious book by the Lamb one by one and about what signs this was accompanied by. By the very opening of the seals one should understand the fulfillment of Divine decrees by the Son of God, who gave Himself up as a Lamb to the slaughter. According to the explanation of St. Andrew of Caesarea, the opening of the first seal is the embassy of St. The apostles, who, like a bow, directed the Gospel sermon against the demons, brought the wounded to Christ with saving arrows and received a crown for defeating the ruler of darkness with the truth - this is what is symbolized by the “white horse” and “he who sits on it” with a bow in his hands ( Art. 1-2). The opening of the second seal and the appearance of a red horse, sitting on which “it was given to take peace from the earth,” signifies the incitement of the infidels against the believers, when the peace was broken by the Gospel preaching in fulfillment of the words of Christ: “I did not come to bring peace, but a sword” (Matthew 10 :34), and when the blood of confessors and martyrs for Christ abundantly filled the earth. The “red horse” is a sign of either the shedding of blood, or the heartfelt jealousy of those who suffered for Christ (vv. 3-4). The opening of the third seal and the subsequent appearance of a black horse with a rider who had “the measure in his hand” signifies the falling away from Christ of those who do not have firm faith in Him. The black color of the horse symbolizes “crying for those who have fallen from faith in Christ due to the severity of their torment.” “A measure of wheat for a dinar” means those who labored legally and carefully preserved the Divine image given to them; “three measures of barley” are those who, like cattle, due to lack of courage, submitted to the persecutors out of fear, but then repented and washed the desecrated image with tears; “Do not harm oil or wine” means that one should not, out of fear, reject Christ’s healing, leave without it the wounded and those who have “fallen” into thieves, but bring them “wine of consolation” and “oil of compassion.” Many understand by a black horse the disasters of famine (vv. 5-6).
The opening of the fourth seal and the appearance of a pale horse with a rider whose name is death means the manifestation of the wrath of God in vengeance for sinners - these are various disasters of the last times predicted by Christ the Savior (Matt. 24:6-7) (vv. 7-8).
The opening of the fifth seal is the prayer of the holy martyrs at the throne of God for the acceleration of the end of the world and the onset of the Last Judgment. St. John sees "under the altar the souls of those who were beaten for the word of God and for the testimony that they had. And he cried out with a great voice, saying: How long, O Lord, Holy and True, do not judge and avenge our blood from those living on the earth." The souls of the righteous who suffered for Christ, as can be seen from this, are under the altar of the heavenly temple, just as on earth, since the times of the martyrs, it has become a custom to place particles of the relics of St. in the foundation of Christian churches and altars. martyrs. The prayer of the righteous is explained, of course, not by the desire for their personal revenge, but by the acceleration of the triumph of God’s truth on earth and that reward to each according to his deeds, which should happen at the Last Judgment and make them partakers of eternal bliss, as those who gave their lives for Christ and His Divine teaching . They were given white vestments - a symbol of their virtue - and they were told to endure “still a little time” until their colleagues and brothers who would be killed like them would complete the number, so that together they would all receive a worthy reward from God (v. 9 -eleven).
The opening of the sixth seal symbolizes the natural disasters and horrors that will occur on earth in the last period of its existence immediately before the end of the world, the Second Coming of Christ and the Last Judgment. These will be the same signs that the Lord Jesus Christ Himself predicted shortly before His suffering on the cross (Matthew 24:29; Luke 21:25-26): “The great coward was, and the sun was dark like sackcloth, and the moon was Like blood, the stars of heaven fell to the earth." These signs will cause mortal fear and horror in people of all conditions who will then live on earth, starting from kings, nobles and commanders and ending with slaves. Everyone will tremble at the coming of the day of His great wrath and will pray to the mountains and stones: “Cover us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.” The murderers of Christ experienced similar horrors during the destruction of Jerusalem. Such horrors will befall all of humanity on an even greater scale before the end of the world.
Chapter seven. APPEARANCE AFTER THE OPENING OF THE SIXTH SEAL: 144,000 SEALED ON EARTH AND CLOTHED IN WHITE ROBES IN HEAVEN
Following this, St. The Seer sees four Angels “standing at the four corners of the earth,” “to whom it is given to harm the earth and the sea.” They appeared, obviously, as the executors of God’s punishment over the universe. One of the tasks set by him: “holding back the winds.” As St. explains Andrew of Caesarea, this “clearly testifies to the destruction of the subordination of creation and the inevitability of evil, because everything that grows on earth vegetates and is fed by the winds; with their assistance they also float on the sea.” But then “another Angel” appeared, who had the “seal of the living God” in order to put this seal on the foreheads of God’s servants and thereby deliver them from the coming executions of God. This is something similar to what was once discovered by St. to the prophet Ezekiel about a man clothed in a subir, that is, in a long linen robe, and who puts a seal “on the faces of those who groan” (Ezek. 9:4), so as not to destroy the righteous with the unrighteous (for even the Angels do not know the hidden virtues of the Saints). This Angel commanded the first four not to do any harm “neither the earth, nor the sea, nor the trees” until he put seals on the foreheads of God’s servants. We don’t know what this seal consists of, and there’s no need to look for it. Perhaps this will be the sign of the Honorable Cross of the Lord, by which it will be easy to distinguish believers from unbelievers and apostates; perhaps this will be the seal of martyrdom for Christ. This imprinting will begin with the Israelis, who, before the end of the world, will turn to Christ, as St. Apostle Paul (Rom. 9:27, also chapters 10 and 11). In each of the 12 tribes there will be 12,000 sealed, and a total of 144,000. Among these tribes, the tribe of Dan is not mentioned, because, according to legend, the Antichrist will come from it. Instead of the tribe of Dan, the priestly tribe of Levi is mentioned, which was not previously among the 12 tribes. Such a limited number is exhibited, perhaps, in order to show how few the saved sons of Israel are in comparison with the innumerable multitude of those who loved the Lord Jesus Christ from all the other nations of the earth who were pagans (vv. 1-8).
Following this, St. John is presented with another wondrous sight: “Many people, which no one can destroy, from every tongue and tribe and people and nations, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes and fins in their hands. And they cried out with a great voice, saying: salvation our God and the Lamb sitting on the throne" - according to St. Andrew of Caesarea, “these are those” about whom David says: “I will count them, and they will multiply more than the sand” (Ps. 139:18), - who previously suffered as martyrs for Christ and from every tribe and nation having in recent times with the courage to accept suffering. By shedding their blood for Christ, some of them made them white, while others made the garments of their deeds whiter. They hold palm branches in their hands - signs of victory over the devil. Their destiny is eternal rejoicing before the throne of God. One of the heavenly elders explained to St. John that these are “these who came out of great tribulation, and washed (washed) their garments, and made their garments white in the blood of the Lamb.” All these signs clearly point to them as martyrs for Christ, and the expression that they “came out of the great tribulation” leads some interpreters to assume that these are Christians who will be beaten by the Antichrist in the last period of the world. For Christ the Savior Himself announced this tribulation, saying: “Then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, nor will be” (Matthew 24:21). This will be the addition to the number of martyrs mentioned in (Apoc. 6:11). The highest reward that they will receive is that they will remain before the throne of God, serving God “day and night,” which figuratively indicates the continuity of this service, for, as St. Andrew, “there will be no night there, but one day, illuminated not by the sensual sun, but by the spirit-bearing Sun of Truth.” The features of the bliss of these righteous people are expressed in the words: “They will not hunger for that, they will not thirst, the sun will not fall on them, below all heat,” that is, they will no longer endure any disasters. The “Lamb” himself will “shepherd them,” that is, guide them, they will be honored with an abundant outpouring of the Holy Spirit (“animal sources of water”), “and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes” (vv. 9-17).
Chapter eight. THE OPENING OF THE SEVENTH SEAL AND THE VOICE OF THE TRUMPET OF ANGELS: FIRST – FOURTH
When the Lamb opened the last, seventh seal, “there was silence in heaven for half an hour” - this also happens in the physical world: the onset of a storm is often preceded by deep silence. This silence in heaven meant the concentration of reverent attention of the Angels and men standing before the throne of God, in anticipation of the terrible signs of the wrath of God before the end of this age and the appearance of the Kingdom of Christ. Seven Angels appeared, to whom seven trumpets were given, and another Angel stood before the altar with a golden censer. “And much incense was given to him, so that he might give to the prayers of the saints all on the altar of gold that is before the throne.” Before the first seven Angels, as punishers of the lost human race, begin their work, the saints, with the Angel of Prayer at their head, appear before God for the people. St. Andrew of Caesarea says that the Saints will beg God so that “due to the disasters that strike at the world’s end, the torment of the wicked and lawless people in the next century will be weakened and that He will reward those who have labored with His coming.” At the same time, the saints will again and again pray to God, as they prayed when the fifth seal was opened (Apoc. 6:9-11), that God would show His justice over the lawless and persecutors of the Christian faith and stop the ferocity of the tormentors. The subsequent executions described were undoubtedly the result of this prayer. The Lord shows here that He does not ignore the prayers of His faithful servants. And this is how powerful this prayer turned out to be: “And the incense smoke came out with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the Angel before God. And the Angel took the censer, and filled it with fire on the altars, and laid it on the ground. And there was a voice and thunder and brilliance and cowardice, and the seventh angel, who had seven trumpets, was prepared to sound them." All this signifies the horrors that will occur at the end of the world.
Following this, the trumpet sounds of all seven Angels follow one after another, which are accompanied each time by great disasters - plagues for the earth and its inhabitants (vv. 1-6).
“And when the first angel sounded the trumpet, there came hail and fire, mixed with blood, and fell to the ground: and the third part of the tree was burned, and every green grass was burned” - the punishments of God follow gradually, which indicates the mercy and long-suffering of God, calling sinners to repentance. First, God's punishment strikes a third of the trees and all the grass. They burn on the roots of bread and other herbs necessary for the nutrition of people and livestock. By “hail falling on the ground” and destructive “fire mixed with blood,” many interpreters understood a war of extermination. Is this not aerial bombardment with its destructive and incendiary bombs (v. 7)?
“And the second angel sounded, and like a great mountain with fire it was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea was bloody, and the third part of the creatures that were in the sea, having souls, died, and the third part of the ships perished” - it can be assumed that at the bottom of one a volcano will open from the oceans, the fiery lava of which will fill a third of the water basins of the earth, bringing death to all living things. Others believe that this refers to terrible bloody sea battles with the help of newly invented killing weapons (vv. 8-9).
“And the third angel sounded, and a great star fell from heaven, burning like a light, and fell on the third part of the rivers, and on the springs of water. And the name of the star was Apsinthos (which means wormwood): and the third part of the waters became like wormwood: and many people died from the waters, for they are bitter" - some think that this meteor will fall to the ground and poison the water sources on earth, which will become poisonous. Or maybe this is also one of the newly invented methods of a future terrible war (vv. 10-11).
“And the fourth angel sounded, and a third part of the sun was cut off, and a third part of the moon, and a third part of the stars, and a third part of them was darkened, and a third part of the day did not shine, and the same night” - it is now impossible for us to understand this; one thing is clear, that this will have to be accompanied by various disasters for people - crop failures, famine, etc. “The third part” indicates the moderation of all disasters. “Woe, woe, woe to those who live on earth” - this voice of the Angel indicates the philanthropy and compassion of the Divine Angels, who regret the unrepentant people subjected to such disasters. By Angels with trumpets, some understand Christian preachers calling for admonition and repentance.
Chapter Nine. VOICES OF THE FIFTH AND SIXTH TRUMPET OF ANGELS: LOCUSTS AND HORSE ARMY
At the sound of the trumpet of the fifth Angel, a star fell from the sky, and “the key to the well of the deep was given to it. She opened the well of the deep, and smoke came out of the well, like smoke from a great furnace: and the sun and the air were darkened from the smoke from the well. And from the smoke locusts came out onto the earth..." These locusts, like scorpions, were ordered to torment people who did not have the seal of God on themselves for "five months." St. Andrew of Caesarea understands by this star an Angel sent to punish people, by the “pit of the abyss” - Gehenna, “pruzi”, or locusts, these, in his opinion, are worms, about which the prophet said: “Their worm will not die” ( Isaiah 66:24); the darkening of the sun and air indicates the spiritual blindness of people, “five months” means the short duration of this execution, since “unless these days had ceased, all flesh would not have been saved” (Matthew 24:22); One can also see here a correspondence to the five external senses, through which sin enters the human soul. And that these locusts “do not harm the grass of the earth, but only men,” this is because all creation will be freed from corruption, for our sakes to which it now slaves." Description of this monstrous locust, which from the head resembles a man, wears crowns of fake gold , female hair, has lion teeth, a body covered with iron scales, like armor, wings that make noise and crackling, as if from many chariots rushing to war, and, finally, a tail armed with a sting, like a scorpion - all this leads some interpreters to believe that these locusts are nothing more than an allegorical depiction of human passions. Each of these passions, having reached a certain limit, has all the signs of this monstrous locust (see interpretation by F. Yakovlev). "Five months" indicate on the short duration of vicious pleasures compared to the eternity of torment that will then follow.Describing the approach of the day of the Lord, the Holy Prophet Joel also describes the appearance of destroyers before him, partly reminiscent of these locusts. Modern interpreters, not without some justice, find similarities between these locusts and airplane bombers. The horrors to which people will then be subjected will be such that they will seek death, but will not find it; “They will desire to die, and death will flee from them.” This indicates the torment of suffering that befalls people. Under the king of these locusts, who bears the name of the angel of the abyss - “Abbadon”, or in Greek “Apollyon”, interpreters understand the devil (vv. 1-12).
When the trumpet of the sixth Angel sounded, he was ordered to release the four Angels bound at the Euphrates River to defeat the third part of the people. But so that this defeat does not happen suddenly and in one go. Angels are destined to act at a certain hour, day, month and summer. Following this, a large cavalry army appeared. The horsemen wore armor of fire, hyacinth (violet or dark crimson in color) and brimstone (flaming sulphur); Their horses had lion heads, emitting fire, smoke and brimstone from their jaws; the tails of the horses were like snakes that bit. St. Andrew understands these four Angels as “evil demons” who are freed from bonds to punish people. By “horses” he means misogynistic and bestial people; under the “horsemen” – those who control them, under the “fiery armor” – the devouring activity of crafty spirits, whose murderousness and brutality is described under the guise of “lion heads”. “The fire coming out of their mouths with smoke and brimstone,” by which a third of the people will be destroyed, means either sins that burn the fruits of the heart through the poisonousness of suggestions, teachings and temptations, or, by God’s permission, the devastation of cities and bloodshed by barbarians. Their “tails” are like snakes with heads, for the end of demonic sowings is poisonous sin and spiritual death. Other interpreters understand this image as an allegorical representation of a terrible bloody war, monstrous, merciless. The Second World War we recently experienced was truly rare in its horrors and mercilessness. That’s why some see tanks spewing fire under this terrible cavalry army. It is also very characteristic to note that the people who survived these horrors, “not repenting from the works of their hands... and not repenting from their murders, nor from their sorceries, nor from their fornication, nor from their thefts” - this will be the case before the end of the world general bitterness and petrified insensibility. This is already observed now.
Chapter ten. ABOUT THE ANGEL CLOTHED IN A CLOUD AND A RAINBOW, FORENGING THE DEATH
This phenomenon has the appearance of an introductory legend. It stops the continuation of prophetic allegories, but does not interrupt them. - Before the last, seventh trumpet sound of St. John saw a majestic Angel descending from heaven, surrounded by a cloud, with a rainbow above his head, with a face shining like the sun; his fiery feet became one on the sea, the other on the earth; in his hand was an open book. Some think that this Angel is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself or the Holy Spirit, but St. John called him "Angel", and St. Andrew of Caesarea believes that this is precisely an Angel, perhaps one of the Seraphim, adorned with the glory of the Lord. His standing on the sea and on land means dominion over the elements of the earthly world, according to the interpretation of St. Andrew - “Fear and punishment inflicted by the Angel on the wicked, robbers on land and sea.” The book he held in his hand, according to the interpretation of St. Andrew, contained “the names and deeds of those of the most crafty ones who rob or otherwise commit outrages on earth and kill at sea,” according to other interpretations, it generally contained prophecies about the future destinies of the world and humanity. The angel exclaimed in a loud voice: “Seven thunders spoke their voices” - but when St. John wished to write down these thunderous words, but he was forbidden to do so. St. Andrew of Caesarea believes that these are “seven thunders” or “seven voices” of one threatening Angel, or seven other Angels foretelling the future. What they said “is now unknown, but will later be explained by experience itself and the course of things.” The final knowledge and explanation of what they proclaimed belongs to the last times. Some believe that these are seven periods in the history of mankind: 1) The triumph of Christianity over paganism, 2) The Great Migration of Nations and the collapse of the Roman Empire, in the place of which new Christian states emerged, 3) The emergence of Mohammedanism and the collapse of the Byzantine Empire, 4) The Age of the Crusades campaigns, 5) The fall of piety in Byzantium, conquered by Islam, and in Ancient Rome, where the spirit of papism prevailed, which resulted in apostasy from the Church in the form of the Reformation, 6) Revolutions and the establishment of social anarchy everywhere, from which the “son of perdition” must emerge - Antichrist and 7) restoration of the Roman, that is, worldwide, empire with the Antichrist at its head and the end of the world. There was no need to depict all these events forward, for they unfold in time (10:1-4). But after that, the Angel, raising his hand, swore to those living forever and ever that “there will be no more time,” that is, the usual circulation of the elemental world will cease, and there will be no time measured by the sun, but eternity will come. It is important here that the Angel swore by “he who lives forever and ever,” that is, by God Himself. Consequently, the sectarians are wrong if they believe that any oath is generally unacceptable (vv. 5-6). “But in the days of the voice of the seventh Angel, when the trumpet is to sound, then the mystery of God will end, as the servants the prophets preached His gospel,” that is, the last, seventh era of the existence of the world will soon come, when the seventh Angel will sound, and then the “mystery of God” predicted by the prophets will be fulfilled , that is, the end of the world will come, and everything that must happen in connection with it (v. 7).
Following this, St. John, at the command of a voice from heaven, approached the Angel, and the Angel gave him to swallow the little book that he held open in his hand. “And it was in my mouth as sweet as honey: and when I had eaten it, there was bitterness in my belly.” This indicates that St. John accepted the prophetic gift, just as the Old Testament prophets, for example St. the prophet Ezekiel, who was also commanded to eat a book scroll before he was sent by the Lord to preach to the House of Israel (Ezek. 2:8-10; 3:1-4). Sweetness and bitterness, according to St. Andrew, mean the following: “Sweet for you, he says, is the knowledge of the future, but at the same time it is bitter for the belly, that is, the heart - the receptacle of verbal food, because of compassion for those who must endure the punishments sent down by Divine determination.” Another meaning of this is: “Since the St. Evangelist did not experience bad deeds by devouring a book containing the deeds of the wicked, it is shown to him that at the beginning of sin there is sweetness, and after completion there is bitterness, due to vengeance and retribution.” The compassionate heart of the Apostle could not help but feel all the bitterness of sorrow that awaited sinful humanity. In conclusion, St. John is commanded to prophesy (vv. 8-11).
Chapter Eleven. PROPHECIES ABOUT THE TEMPLE, ABOUT ENOCH AND ELIJAH, THE VOICE OF THE TRUMPET OF THE SEVENTH ANGEL
After this, the Apostle was given “a reed like a rod, and it was said: Arise and measure the temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it, but exclude the outer court of the temple and do not measure it, for it was given to the pagans: they will trample the holy city for forty-two months.” ". According to the interpretation of St. Andrew, “the temple of the Living God is the Church in which we make verbal sacrifices. The outer court is a society of unbelievers and Jews unworthy of the angelic dimension (that is, determining the degree of their moral perfection and corresponding bliss) for their wickedness.” The trampling of the holy city of Jerusalem or the Universal Church for 42 months means that at the coming of the Antichrist the faithful will be persecuted for three and a half years. Some interpreters suggest that this dimension of the temple means the soon-to-be-imminent destruction of the Old Testament Temple of Jerusalem, in the place of which the New Testament Christian Church will be erected, just as a similar dimension of the temple with a reed in the vision of the prophet Ezekiel (chapters 40-45) signified the restoration of the destroyed temple. Others believe that the inner courtyard, which was measured by the Apostle, signifies the “Church of the firstborn in heaven (Heb. 12:23)”, the heavenly sanctuary, and the outer courtyard, left without measurement, is the Church of Christ on earth, which must endure persecution first from the pagans, and then in the last times - from the Antichrist. The disastrous state of the earthly Church is limited, however, to a period of 42 months. Some interpreters saw the fulfillment of the prediction of 42 months in the persecution of Diocletian, which was distinguished by the greatest cruelty and lasted from February 23, 305 to July 25, 308, that is, just about three and a half years. The persecution will affect only the outer court, that is, the external side of the life of Christians, whose property will be taken away and they will be subjected to torture; the inner sanctuary of their souls will remain inviolable (vv. 1-2).
During this same time, or 1260 days, “two witnesses of God,” under whom all the saints, will preach repentance to people and turn them away from the deception of the Antichrist. The fathers and teachers of the Church, almost unanimously, understood that the Old Testament righteous Enoch and Elijah were taken to heaven alive. During their preaching activities, possessing power and authority over the elements to punish and admonish the wicked, they themselves will be invulnerable. And only at the end of their mission, after three and a half years, “the beast coming out of the abyss,” that is, the Antichrist, will be allowed by God to kill the preachers, and their corpses will be thrown on the streets of the great city, “which is spiritually called Sodom and Egypt, where our Lord was crucified,” that is, apparently, the city of Jerusalem, where the Antichrist will establish his kingdom, posing as the Messiah predicted by the prophets. Seduced by the false miracles of the Antichrist, who, with the assistance of the devil, will be the most glorious of all sorcerers and seducers, they will not allow the bodies of St. prophets and will rejoice at their deaths. “Because these two prophets tormented those living on the earth,” awakening their conscience. The gloating of the wicked will not last. Three and a half days later, St. the prophets will be revived by God and raptured into heaven. In this case, a great earthquake will occur, a tenth of the city will be destroyed and seven thousand people will die, and the rest, overcome with fear, will give glory to the God of heaven. Thus, the work of the Antichrist will be dealt a decisive blow (vv. 3-13).
Following this, the seventh Angel sounded his trumpet, and joyful exclamations were heard in heaven: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ, and he will reign forever and ever,” and the twenty-four elders, falling on their faces, worshiped God, giving Him thanks and praise for the beginning of His righteous judgment over the human race. “And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple; and there came lightning, and voices, and thunder, and an earthquake, and great hail” - through this, according to the interpretation of St. Andrew, points to the revelation of the blessings prepared for the Saints, which, according to the Apostle, “are all hidden in Christ, in whom dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily” (Col. 2:3, 9). They will be revealed when terrible voices, lightning, thunder and hail are sent against the lawless and wicked, bringing the torment of Gehenna by changing the present in an earthquake.”
Chapter twelve. THIRD VISION: THE STRUGGLE OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD WITH THE HOSTILE FORCES OF THE ANTICHRIST. THE CHURCH OF CHRIST UNDER THE IMAGE OF A WIFE IN BIRTH DISEASES
“And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman was clothed with the sun, and the moon was under her feet, and on her head was a crown of twelve stars.” Some interpreters saw in this mysterious woman the Most Holy Theotokos, but such outstanding interpreters of the Apocalypse as St. Hippolytus, St. Methodius and St. Andrew of Caesarea, they find that this is “the Church clothed in the Word of the Father, shining more than the sun.” This solar brilliance also means that she has true knowledge of God, His laws and contains His revelations. The moon under her feet is a sign that she is above all changeable things. St. Methodius “allegorically considers faith to be the moon, a bath for those who are cleansed from corruption, since the moist nature depends on the moon.” On its head is a crown of 12 stars as a sign that, having originally been gathered from the 12 tribes of Israel, it was subsequently led by 12 Apostles, who constituted its luminous glory. “And in the womb, the sick and suffering cry out to give birth” - this is what shows that it is wrong to see the Most Holy Theotokos in this wife, for the birth of the Son of God from Her was painless. These birth pangs signify the difficulties that the Church of Christ had to overcome when establishing it in the world (martyrdom, the spread of heresies). At the same time, this means, according to the explanation of St. Andrew, that “the Church pains for each of those reborn by water and spirit,” until, as the Divine Apostle said, “Christ is imagined in them.” “The Church hurts,” says St. Methodius, “regenerating the spiritual into the spiritual and transforming them in appearance and manner in the likeness of Christ” (vv. 1-2).
“And another sign appeared in heaven, and behold, a great serpent, black (red), having seven heads and ten horns: and on his heads was a seventh crown” - in this image of the serpent one cannot help but see the “ancient serpent”, called “the devil and Satan” ", which is discussed below (v. 9). The red-purple color means his bloodthirsty ferocity, the seven heads indicate his extreme cunning and cunning (as opposed to the “seven spirits” of God or the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit); 10 horns - his evil power and strength, directed against the 10 commandments of the Law of God; the crowns on his heads signify the royal power of the devil in his dark kingdom. When applied to the history of the Church, some see in these 7 crowns seven kings who rebelled against the Church, and in 10 horns - 10 persecutions of the Church (v. 3).
“And its trunk (in Russian: tail) tore away a third of the stars of heaven, and I laid it in the ground” - by these stars, which the devil carried away with him to the fall, interpreters understand fallen angels or demons. They also mean the leaders of churches and teachers, seduced by satanic power... “And the serpent stood before the woman who wanted to give birth, so that when she gave birth, he would bear her child” - “the devil always arms himself against the Church, strenuously trying to make those regenerated his food” (St. Andrey) (v. 4).
“And give birth to a son, a man, who shall have all tongues fall with a rod of iron” is an image of Jesus Christ, for, as St. Andrew, “in the persons of those who are baptized, the Church continually gives birth to Christ,” as according to the Apostle, “he is portrayed in them even to the full stature of Christ” (Eph. 4:13). And St. Hippolytus also says that “the Church will not cease to give birth from the heart to the Word, which is persecuted in the world by the infidels” - the Church always gives birth to people Christ, Whom from the very beginning, in the person of Herod, Satan sought to devour (v. 5).
“And her child was caught up to God and to His throne” - so the Lord Jesus Christ was caught up into heaven on the day of His glorious Ascension and sat down on the throne of His Father, at His right hand; so all the saints, in whom Christ is imagined, admire themselves to God, so as not to be overcome by temptations that exceed their strength; so all Christians of the last times will be caught up “to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Sol. 4:17) (v. 5).
“And the woman fled into the desert, where there was a place prepared for her by God, and there she had food for one thousand two hundred and sixty days” - under this flight of the wife into the desert, many see the flight of Christians from Jerusalem besieged by the Romans during the great Jewish war of 66-70. to the city of Pella and the Trans-Jordanian desert. This war actually lasted three and a half years. Under this desert one can see both the desert where the first Christians escaped from persecutors, and the desert in which the venerable ascetics were saved from the wiles of the devil (v. 6).
“And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels made war with the serpent, and the serpent was braced and his angels... and it was not possible... and the great serpent, the ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, was put in, flattering the entire universe.. . to the earth, and his angels were cast down with him" - according to the interpretation of St. Andrew, these words can be attributed to the first devil’s overthrow from the rank of Angels for pride and envy, as well as his defeat by the Lord’s cross, when, says the Lord, “the prince of this world was condemned” and expelled from his former dominion (John 12:31 ). Under the image of this battle they also see the victory of Christianity over paganism, since the devil and his demons with all their might excited and armed the pagans to fight against the Church of Christ. In this victory over the devil, the Christians themselves took an active part, who “conquered him with the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony: and did not love their souls even to death,” which were the saints. martyrs. Defeated in two battles - with Michael the Archangel and his heavenly armies in heaven and with the martyrs of Christ on earth - Satan still retained some semblance of power on earth, crawling across it like a serpent. Living out his last days on earth, Satan is plotting his final and decisive battle with God and believing Christians with the help of the Antichrist and his accomplice, the false prophet (vv. 7-12).
“And when the serpent saw that he was cast down to the earth, chasing a woman... and the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, so that he soared into the desert to his place where he was nourished... the devil will not cease to persecute the Church, but the Church, having two eagle wings - the Old and New Testaments - will hide from the devil in the desert, by which we can understand both the spiritual and sensual desert, into which true ascetic Christians hid and are hiding (vv. 13-14).
And let the serpent send out water from his mouth after his wife, like a river, so that he may drown her in the river. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth, and devoured the river that brought the serpent out of its mouth” - by this “water” St. Andrew understands “a multitude of either evil demons, or various temptations,” and by the earth that swallowed this water , - “the humility of the saints, who, speaking from the heart” “I am earth and ashes (Gen. 18:27)”, thereby dissolve all the devil’s networks, for, as the Angel revealed to the Divine Anthony, nothing stops and crushes the power the devil, as humility. Some understand by this the terrible persecution of the Church from pagan emperors, and the rivers of Christian blood that flowed at that time. Like a river spilling over the earth and being absorbed by it, all the evil efforts of Satan collapsed and disappeared without a trace when Christianity triumphed over paganism under Emperor Constantine the Great (Art. 16).
“And the serpent was angry with the woman, and went to make war on her remaining seed, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ” - this is the continuous and centuries-old struggle that the devil led against all the true sons of the Church after the establishment of Christianity on earth and which he will lead everything in an increasing degree until the end of the world, until his efforts are exhausted and end in the face of the Antichrist (v. 17).
Chapter thirteen. THE BEAST-ANTICHRIST AND HIS ACCEPTANCE-FALSE PROPHET
By this “beast emerging from the sea,” almost all interpreters understand the Antichrist emerging from the “sea of life,” that is, from the midst of the human race, which is agitated like the sea. From here it is clear that the Antichrist will not be some kind of spirit or demon, but a pernicious fiend of the human race, not the incarnate devil, as some thought, but a man. Some understood this “beast” to be a God-fighting state, which was the Roman Empire in the days of early Christianity, and in recent times will be the worldwide kingdom of the Antichrist. St. draws gloomy features. The Seer is the image of this last enemy of the Church of Christ. This is an animal that looks like a leopard, with legs like a bear and the mouth of a lion. Thus, the personality of the Antichrist will combine the properties and qualities of the most ferocious animals. He has seven heads, just like the devil-dragon himself, and these heads are dotted with blasphemous names to visually depict his inner wickedness and contempt for everything holy. His ten horns are crowned with diadems as a sign that he will use his God-fighting power with the power of a king on earth. He will receive this power with the help of the dragon, or the devil, who will give him his throne (vv. 1-2).
The seer noticed that one of the heads of the beast seemed to be mortally wounded, but this mortal wound was healed, and this surprised the entire land that was watching the beast, and forced the frightened people to submit, both to the dragon that gave power to the beast, and to the beast itself. They all bowed down to him, saying, “Who is like this beast, and who can fight with him?” All this means that it will not be easy for the Antichrist to gain power over all of humanity, that at first he will have to wage cruel wars and even experience a strong defeat, but then his amazing victories and reign over the world will follow. The reigning Antichrist will be given a mouth that speaks proudly and blasphemously, and the power to act for forty-two months. Thus, his power will not last long, since otherwise, according to the word of the Savior, no flesh would be saved (Matthew 24:22). In (v. 6-10) the mode of action of the Antichrist is indicated: he will be distinguished by blasphemy, violence against people who do not submit to him, and “it will be given to him to wage war with the saints and defeat them,” that is, by force to force them to submit to themselves, of course, purely externally, for only those whose names are not written in the Lamb’s book of life will worship the Antichrist. The saints will defend themselves from the Antichrist by patience and faith alone, and the Seer of Mysteries consoles them with the assurance that “he who kills with the sword must himself be killed with the sword,” that is, that righteous retribution awaits the Antichrist (vv. 1-10).
Further in (vv. 11-17) the Seer speaks about the accomplice of the Antichrist - the false prophet and his activities. This is also a “beast” (in Greek “Firion”, which means a beast in which its brutal nature is especially clearly manifested, as, for example, in wild animals: hyena, jackal, tiger), but it is depicted not emerging from the sea, as first, but “from the earth.” This means that all his feelings and thoughts will be of a completely earthly, sensual nature. He has “two horns like a lamb,” according to St. Andrew, in order “to cover up the murderousness of the hidden wolf with the skin of a sheep, and because at first he will try to have an image of piety. St. Irenaeus says that this is “the armor bearer of the Antichrist and the false prophet. He was given the power of signs and wonders, so that, preceding the Antichrist, he could prepare his destructive path. The healing of an animal ulcer, we say, is either an apparent unification for a short time of a divided kingdom, or a transient restoration by the Antichrist of the rule of Satan, destroyed by the cross of the Lord, or an imaginary resurrection of someone who died close to him. He will speak like a serpent, for he will do and say what is characteristic of the leader of evil - the devil." Imitating the Lord Jesus Christ, he will also use two forces to establish the power of the Antichrist: the power of words and the power of miracles. But he will speak "like dragon", that is, blasphemous, and the fruit of his speeches will be godlessness and extreme wickedness. For the sake of seducing people, he will create “great signs”, so that he can bring down fire from heaven, and what is especially noteworthy, “he will be given the power to put spirit into the image beast, that is, the Antichrist, so that the image of the beast speaks and acts." But these will not be true miracles, which only God works, but "false miracles" (2 Thess. 2:9). They will consist of dexterity, deception of the senses and in the use of natural but secret forces of nature, with the help of the devil, within the limits of the power of his devilish powers. All who worshiped the Antichrist will receive “a mark on their right hand or on their forehead,” just as in ancient times slaves once wore burnt marks on their foreheads , and the warriors are in their arms. The dominion of the Antichrist will be so despotic that “no one will be able to buy or sell except those who have the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.” Extreme mystery is associated with the name of the Antichrist and the “number of his name.” The Apocalypse speaks about this this way: “Here is wisdom. He who has intelligence, count the number of the beast, for this is the number of a man; his number is six hundred and sixty-six.” Much effort has been spent, since ancient times, in order to unravel the meaning and meaning of these words, but they did not lead to anything positive. Most often, attempts were made to find the name of the Antichrist from the addition of letters of different numerical values. For example, according to the guess of St. Irenea, the animal number 666 is formed from the addition of the digital value of the letters, the name "Lateinos" or "Teitan". Some found an animal number in the name of Julian the Apostate; later - in the title of the Pope - “Vicarius Fili Dei” (“Vicar of the Son of God”), in the name of Napoleon, etc. Our schismatics tried to derive the number 666 from the name of Patriarch Nikon. Discussing the name of the Antichrist, St. Andrew says: “If there had been a need to know his name, the Seer of Mysteries would have revealed it, but the grace of God did not deign that this destructive name should be written in the Divine Book.” If you examine the words, then, according to St. Hippolytus, you can find many names, both proper and common nouns, corresponding to this number (v. 18).
Chapter fourteen. PREPARATORY EVENTS BEFORE THE GENERAL RESURRECTION AND THE DASTY JUDGMENT; SONG OF PRAISE OF 144,000 RIGHTEOUS AND ANGELS ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE DESTINY OF THE WORLD
Having depicted the highest stage of the triumph of the devil through his servant - the Antichrist on earth, St. John turns his gaze to heaven and sees: “Behold the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him an hundred and fourty and four thousand, having the name of His Father written on their foreheads.” These are they "who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins; these are they who follow the Lamb wherever He goes." This vision depicts the Church, the pure bride of Christ, at a time when the empire of the beast is flourishing. The number 144,000 here apparently has the same meaning as in the 7th chapter. Art. 2-8. These are God's chosen ones from all the nations of the earth, represented figuratively in the form of the 12 tribes of Israel. The fact that the name of the Father of the Lamb is written on their foreheads signifies the distinctive qualities of their inner disposition - their moral character and way of life, their complete dedication to serving God. They are joined by a host of people playing the harp, “like a new song.” This is a song about God’s new creation, a song about the redemption and renewal of humanity through the blood of the Lamb of God. Only the redeemed part of humanity sings this song, and therefore “no one could learn this song except these one hundred and forty-four thousand redeemed from the earth” (vv. 1-5). Some interpreters by “virgins” here do not mean virgins in the literal sense of the word, but those who were saved from the mire of paganism and idolatry, since in the Holy Scriptures of the Old Testament idolatry is often called fornication.
Following this, St. The seer had a second vision: three Angels soaring in the sky. One proclaimed to people the “eternal Gospel” and seemed to say: “Fear God and do not be afraid of the Antichrist, who cannot destroy your body and soul, and resist him with boldness, for judgment and retribution are near, and he has power only for a short time "(St. Andrew of Caesarea). Some understand this “Angel” as preachers of the Gospel in general. Another Angel announced the fall of Babylon, which is usually understood as the kingdom of evil and sin in the world. Some interpreters understood this “Babylon” as ancient pagan Rome, which made all nations drunk with the “wine of fornication,” or idolatry. Others see under this symbol a false Christian Empire, and under the “wine of fornication” a false teaching of religion (cf. Jeremiah 51:7). The Third Angel threatened with eternal torment all those who serve the beast and worship him and his image, and will receive his mark on their forehead or hand. By “the wine of God’s wrath” we must understand the grave judgments of God, which drive people into a frenzy and, like drunken people, disturb the spirit. In Palestine, wine is never consumed whole, not dissolved in water. Therefore, the wrath of God, in its strong effect, is likened here to undissolved wine. The wicked will suffer eternal torment, but the Saints will be saved by their patience. At the same time, St. The apostle heard a voice from heaven saying: “Write: “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. To her, says the Spirit, they will rest from their labors, and their deeds will follow them.” “The heavenly voice,” St. Andrew explains, “does not please everyone, but only those who, having killed themselves for the world, die in the Lord , carry the deadness of Jesus in their body and have compassion with Christ. For these, the departure from the body, truly, is peace from labor." Here we also find even more evidence of the importance of good deeds for salvation, denied by Protestants (vv. 6-13).
Looking up at the sky, St. The Apostle saw the Son of God sitting on a cloud wearing a golden crown and holding a sickle in his hand. The angels told Him that the harvest was ready and the grapes were already ripe. Then “He who sat on the cloud cast His sickle into the earth, and the earth was reaped.” By this “harvest” we must understand the end of the world (cf. Matt. 13:39). At the same time, the Angel cast his sickle to the ground and cut off the grapes “and threw them into the great winepress of the wrath of God.” By “the winepress of God’s wrath” we mean the place of punishment prepared for the devil and his angels. Because of the multitude of those who are tormented in it, it is called “great.” By “grapes” we mean the enemies of the Church, whose iniquities have increased to the extreme (“the berries have ripened on them”), so that the measure of their crimes has overflowed (vv. 14-20).
“And the winepress was worn out outside the city, and blood came out from the winepress even to the horse’s bridles, from a thousand and six hundred furlongs” - in Russian: “and the berries were trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress even to the horse’s bridles, on one thousand six hundred furlongs." This alludes to the city of Jerusalem, outside of which - on the Mount of Olives there were many winepresses in which olives and grapes were pressed (cf. Joel 3:13). The abundance of the grape harvest was determined by the fact that wine flowed onto the ground in such abundance that it reached up to horse bridles Used here St. The hyperbolic expression of the seer shows that the defeat of the enemies of God will be the most terrible, so that their blood will flow as if in rivers. 1600 stages is a definite number, taken instead of an indefinite one, and generally means a vast battlefield (v. 20).
Chapter fifteen. FOURTH VISION: SEVEN ANGELS HAVING THE SEVEN LAST PLAZES
This chapter begins the last, fourth vision, which embraces the last eight chapters of the Apocalypse (chap. 15-22). St. John saw “as if a sea of glass mixed with fire; and those who had conquered the beast and his image, and his mark, and the number of his name, stood on this sea of glass,” and to the accompaniment of the harp glorified the Lord “with the song of Moses the servant of God and song of the Lamb." "Glass Sea", according to St. Andrew of Caesarea, means the multitude of those being saved, the purity of the future rest and the lordship of the Saints, with the virtuous rays of which they will “be illuminated like the sun” (Matthew 13:43). And that there is fire mixed there, this can be understood from what the Apostle wrote: “Everyone’s work will be tempted by fire” (1 Cor. 3:13). It does not harm the pure and undefiled at all, because, according to the Psalm saying (Psalm 28:7), it has two properties: one – scorching sinners, the other, as Basil the Great understood, enlightening the righteous. It is also plausible if by fire we mean the Divine knowledge and grace of the Life-giving Spirit, for in the fire God revealed himself to Moses, and in the form of tongues of fire the Holy Spirit descended on the Apostles. The fact that the righteous sing the “song of Moses” and the “song of the Lamb” obviously points to “those justified before grace under the law” and to “those who lived righteously after the coming of Christ.” The song of Moses is also sung as a song of victory: “those who are triumphant in the last most important victory over the enemy, it is fitting to recall the first successes of their struggle, which in the history of the chosen people of God was the victory of Moses over Pharaoh. It is his song that the Christian victors now sing.” This song sounds very solemn: “We sing to the Lord, gloriously we will be glorified” - and in this case it is quite appropriate (vv. 2-4).
“Gusli” means the harmony of virtues in the well-ordered spiritual life of the righteous, or the agreement that they observe between the word of truth and the deed of righteousness. The righteous in their song glorify God for the revelation of His judgments: “For Thy justification has appeared.”
After this, “the temple of the tabernacle of testimony was opened in heaven,” in the image of which God commanded Moses in the Old Testament to build the earthly tabernacle, and “the seven angels went out from the temple, who had the seven plagues.” The Seer of Mysteries says that they were clothed in clean and light linen clothes, as a sign of the purity and lordship of their virtue, and girded around their chests with gold belts as a sign of power, the purity of their being, honesty and unlimited service (St. Andrew of Caesarea). From one of the four “living creatures,” that is, the senior Angels, they received “seven golden phials,” or seven golden bowls, “full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever.” These “animals” are Cherubim or Seraphim, the supreme zealots of the glory of God, filled with the deepest knowledge of the destinies of God, both past and future, as indicated by the very appearance of these blessed creatures, filled with eyes in front and behind. They will receive God’s command to authorize the other seven Angels to pour out the seven bowls of God’s wrath on the earth before the end of the world and the final judgment of the living and the dead. “And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power” - through this smoke, says St. Andrew, “we learn that the wrath of God is terrible, terrible and painful, which, having filled the temple, on the day of judgment visits those worthy of it and, first of all, those who submitted to the Antichrist and committed acts of apostasy.” This is confirmed by what follows, for he says: “And no one can come into the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels will end” - “first the plagues must end,” that is, the punishment of sinners, “and then the Saints will be given dwelling in the highest city” ( St. Andrew) (vv. 5-8).
Chapter sixteen. SEVEN ANGELS POOURING OUT THE SEVEN BOWLERS OF GOD'S WRATH ON THE EARTH
This chapter depicts the judgment of God over the enemies of the Church under the emblem of seven vials, or seven bowls of the wrath of God, poured out by seven Angels. The emblem of these plagues is taken from the plagues that afflicted ancient Egypt, the defeat of which was a prototype of the defeat of the false Christian kingdom, which above (11:8) is called Egypt, and then Babylon.
When the first Angel poured out the cup, “cruel and disgusting festering wounds appeared on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped his image.” This emblem was apparently taken from the sixth plague that struck Egypt. According to the explanation of some, here we must understand a bodily epidemic. According to the interpretation of St. Andrew of Caesarea, purulent wounds are “sorrow occurring in the hearts of apostates, tormenting them like heart suppuration, for those punished by God will not receive any relief from the Antichrist they idolize.”
When the second Angel poured out his cup into the sea, the water in the sea became like the blood of a dead man, and everything alive died in the sea. This refers to bloody international and civil wars (vv. 1-3).
When the third Angel poured out his cup into the rivers and springs of water, the water in them turned to blood. “And I heard,” says the Seer of Mysteries, “the angel of the waters, who said: You are righteous, O Lord, who art and was, and holy, because you have judged thus; because they shed the blood of saints and prophets. You gave them blood to drink : They deserve it." “From here it is clear,” says St. Andrew, “that Angels are placed above the elements.” Here we are also talking about the terrible bloodshed that will occur before the end of the world during the time of the Antichrist (vv. 4-7).
When the fourth Angel poured out his cup on the sun, the sun was given the power to burn people with intense heat, so that they, not understanding this execution, blasphemed God in despair. St. Andrew says that this execution can be understood either literally, or by this heat we must understand “the heat of temptation, so that people, through the trial of sorrows, will hate their culprit - sin.” Distraught people, however, in their bitterness will no longer be capable of repentance (vv. 8-9).
The fifth angel poured out his cup on the throne of the beast: and his kingdom became dark, and they bit their tongues from suffering and blasphemed the God of Heaven from their sufferings and their wounds, and did not repent of their deeds. This is reminiscent of the ninth plague of Egypt (Ex. 10:21). By this execution we must understand a significant decrease in the greatness and power of the Antichrist, the brilliance of which had hitherto amazed people, and at the same time the stubborn unrepentance of the admirers of the Antichrist (vv. 10-11).
The sixth angel poured out his cup into the great river Euphrates: and the water in it dried up, so that the way for the kings would be ready from the rising of the sun. Here the Euphrates is presented as a stronghold that prevented the kings with their troops from going to carry out the judgments of God over the kingdom of the Antichrist. This emblem is taken from the position of the Ancient Roman Empire, for which the Euphrates served as a stronghold against attacks by eastern peoples. Thereupon out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet came three unclean spirits like frogs; these are demonic spirits performing signs; they go out to the kings of the earth throughout the universe to gather them for battle on that great day of God Almighty. By these “demonic spirits” we mean false teachers, talkative, obsessive, gluttonous, shameless and inflated, who will attract people to themselves with false miracles. The Great Day of God Almighty is the time when God will manifest His glory in punishing the enemies of the Church. “Behold, I come like a thief”... Here we are talking about the suddenness of the Second Coming of Christ (cf. Matt. 24:43-44). “And he gathered them to the place called in Hebrew Armageddon” - this word means “cutting” or “killing.” “In that place, we believe,” says St. Andrew, “the nations gathered and led by the devil will be slain, for he takes comfort in human blood.” The name is taken from the valley of Mageddo, where King Josiah fell in battle with Pharaoh Necho (2 Chron. 35:22). The outpouring of the seventh bowl will finally defeat the kingdom of the beast. As a result of a terrible earthquake, “the great city fell into three parts and the pagan cities fell.” Under this "great city" St. Andrew understands the capital of the Antichrist kingdom, which will be Jerusalem. “And every island fled, and the mountains were not found” - “from Divine Scripture,” explains St. Andrew, “we have been taught to understand by ‘islands’ the holy churches, and by ‘mountains’ the rulers in them. And that they will flee when everything that was foretold comes, we heard about this from the Lord, who said: “those in the east will flee to the west, and those who are in the west - to the east. Then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, lower will be" (Matthew 24:21). If we take these words in the literal sense, then this will be a picture of the terrible destruction that in our time, when atomic and hydrogen bombs, it’s not difficult to imagine. Further in the 21st article it is said that hail fell from the sky on people “the size of a talent”... “and men blasphemed God with the plague of hail, for great was his plague.” Not bombs Should we mean by this murderous hail? And in our time we often observe such hardening of hearts when people are not admonished by anything, but only blaspheme God (19-21).
Chapter seventeen. THE JUDGMENT OF THE GREAT HARLOTS SITTING ON MANY WATERS
One of the seven Angels suggested to St. John to show him the judgment of the great harlot who sat on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and with the wine of fornication, with which those who dwell on the earth were drunk. The angel led St. John in the spirit into the wilderness, and he saw “a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of names of blasphemy, which had seven heads and ten horns.” Some took this harlot for ancient Rome, as located on seven hills. The seven heads of the beast that carried it were considered the seven most wicked of all the kings who, from Domitian to Diocletian, persecuted the Church. St. Andrew, citing this opinion, further says: “We, guided and in accordance with the sequence of what is happening, think that the earthly kingdom in general is called a harlot, as if represented in one body, or a city that has to reign even until the coming of the Antichrist.” Some interpreters see in this harlot a church unfaithful to Christ, who worshiped the Antichrist, or an apostate society - that part of Christian humanity that will enter into close communication with the sinful world, will serve it and rely entirely on its brute strength - the power of the beast-antichrist, why is this wife and she was shown to the Seer of Mysteries sitting on a scarlet beast. “And the woman was clothed in purple and scarlet”... all these are symbols of her royal power and dominion; “having a cup of gold in your hand is full of abomination and the filth of its fornication” - “the cup shows the sweetness of evil deeds before tasting them, and their gold is their preciousness” (St. Andrew). Members of this Church, unfaithful to Christ, or apostate society, will be carnal people, devoted to sensuality. As one commentator says, “full of outward piety and at the same time not alien to feelings of crude ambition and vain love of glory, members of the infidel church will love luxury and comfort, and will begin to arrange magnificent ceremonies for the powerful of the world (17:2; 18:3, 9 ), to achieve holy goals through sinful means, they will preach exclusively with sword and gold" (17:4) (N. Vinogradov). “And on her forehead is written the name: mystery, Babylon the great, mother of fornicators and abominations of the earth” - “the mark on her forehead shows the shamelessness of unrighteousness, the fullness of sins and heartfelt confusion; she is a mother, for in the lower cities she leads spiritual fornication, thereby giving birth to those who are abominable before God lawlessness" (St. Andrew). A more general interpretation is inclined to see in this harlot, bearing the name of Babylon, the entire basely sensual and anti-Christian culture of humanity in recent times, which awaits a terrible worldwide catastrophe at the end of the world and the Second Coming of Christ. The fall of this “Babylon” is presented in the Apocalypse as the first act of victory in the world struggle of the Church of Christ with the sinful kingdom of the devil (vv. 1-5). “And I saw a woman drunk with the blood of the saints” - here we mean all the martyrs for Christ who suffered throughout world history, especially during the time of the Antichrist (v. 6). Next, the Angel showed St. John the harlot, gives him an explanation of the whole vision. “The beast, which I saw, is, and is, and has the power to rise from the abyss, and will go to destruction” - St. Andrew says that this beast “Satan, who was killed by the Cross of Christ, will again, it is said, come to life at his death and through false signs and wonders will act through the Antichrist to reject Christ. Therefore, he was and acted before the cross, and he is not, because of the saving passion weakened and deprived of the power that he had over the nations through idolatry." At the end of the world, Satan “will come again, in the manner indicated by us, coming out of the abyss or from where he was condemned and where the demons cast out by Christ asked Him not to send them, but to pigs; or he will come out of real life, which is called “the abyss” allegorically for the reason sinful depths of life, overwhelmed and agitated by the winds of passions. From here, Satan, the Antichrist, who has within himself, will come out to destroy people, so that he will soon receive destruction in the next century" (vv. 7-8).
“There are seven chapters, the mountains are seven, where the woman sits on them, and the kings are seven” - St. Andrew of Caesarea in these seven chapters and seven mountains sees seven kingdoms that were distinguished by their special global significance and power. These are: 1) Assyrian, 2) Median, 3) Babylonian, 4) Persian, 5) Macedonian, 6) Roman in its two periods - the period of the republic and the period of the empire, or the Ancient Roman period and the New Roman period from Emperor Constantine. “By the name of the “five kings” who fell, St. Hippolytus understands five past centuries, the sixth is the one in which the Apostle had a vision, and the seventh, which has not yet come, but which will not last long (vv. 9-10). “And here, which was and is not, and the 8th is”... this beast is the Antichrist; he is called the “eighth” because “after the seven kingdoms he will rise to deceive and devastate the earth”; “from the seven” he, as if he appeared from one of these kingdoms. “And the ten horns, even as you saw, are ten kings, whose kingdoms have not yet received, but the region that the kings will receive for one hour with the beast” - here all sorts of fortune-telling and assumptions cannot lead to anything . Some wanted to see in all these kings, as in the beast, Roman emperors, but all this is undoubtedly a stretch. We are talking here about the last times, of course. All these kings, like-minded with the beast, that is, the Antichrist, will wage war with the Lamb, that is, with Christ, and will be overcome (vv. 11-14).
It is noteworthy that the adulterous wife, bearing the name of Babylon, about whom St. Seer in the 18th century. directly says that this is “a great city reigning over the kings of the earth,” and that the “waters” on which it sits, “the essence of people and peoples, tribes and languages,” will be punished and destroyed by the very beast Antichrist, whose ten horns “They will hate her and destroy her and strip her naked, and eat her flesh and burn her with fire” (vv. 15-18).
Chapter Eighteen. THE FALL OF BABYLON – THE GREAT HARLOT
This chapter extremely vividly and figuratively depicts the death of Babylon - the great harlot, which was accompanied, on the one hand, by the crying of the kings of the earth who committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth who sold her all sorts of precious goods, and on the other, joy in heaven over what was just. judgment of God. Some modern interpreters believe that this Babylon will really be some kind of huge city, a world center, the capital of the kingdom of the Antichrist, which will be distinguished by its wealth and at the same time extreme depravity of morals, which has always distinguished large and rich cities. The last verses of this chapter (21-23) indicate the suddenness of God's punishment that will befall this city. Its death will happen as quickly as a millstone sinks into the sea, and this death will be so amazing that not the slightest trace will remain of the city, as figuratively indicated in the words: “and the voices of those playing the harp and singing and playing the pipes and trumpets trumpets will no longer be heard in you,” etc. In the last, 24th verse, it is also indicated as the reason for the death of Babylon that “the blood of prophets and saints and all those killed on earth was found in it.”
Chapter nineteen. THE WAR OF THE WORD OF GOD WITH THE BEAST AND HIS ARMY AND THE DESTRUCTION OF THE LAST
The first 10 verses of this chapter also extremely figuratively describe the rejoicing in heaven among numerous hosts of saints over the destruction of the hostile kingdom of Antichrist and the advent of the kingdom of Christ. The latter is depicted under the guise of the “marriage of the Lamb” and the participation of the righteous in the “marriage supper of the Lamb” (cf. Matt. 22:1-14; also Luke 14:16-24). The seer heard in heaven “a loud voice as if of a large people, which said: “Alleluia: salvation and glory, and honor and strength to our Lord” ... and the twenty and four elders and the four living creatures fell, and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying : Amen, alleluia" - "Alleluia", according to the explanation of St. Andrew of Caesarea, “means Divine glorification”; "Amen" - truly, let it be. This says that the angelic forces, together with equal angelic people, are sung to God “three times”, because of the Trinity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the One God, who noted the blood of His servants from the hand of Babylon, blessed its inhabitants with punishment and stopped sin. "Alleluia" from the Hebrew "Hallemu Yag" literally means: "praise God." “And her smoke ascended forever and ever” - this means that the punishment that befell Babylon the harlot will continue forever. “We rejoice and be glad and give glory to Him: for the marriage of the Lamb has come” - the subject of rejoicing is that the time is coming to celebrate the marriage of the Lamb. By “marriage” or “wedding feast” we generally mean the state of spiritual joy of the Church. By the bridegroom of the Church we mean the Lamb - the Lord Jesus Christ, the Head of His mystical Body; by the bride and wife of the Lamb we mean the Church (see Eph. 5:25). Marriage itself means the close union of the Lord Jesus Christ with His Church, sealed by fidelity, confirmed on both sides by covenant, as if by a mutual agreement (cf. Hosea 2:18-20). The wedding feast means enjoying the fullness of God’s grace, which, by the power of Christ’s redemptive merits, will be abundantly given to all true members of the Church of Christ, delighting and cheering them with indescribable blessings. “And His wife prepared food for herself, and it was given to her, she was clothed in fine linen, clean and bright” - “that the Church is dressed in fine linen, this means her lightness in virtues, subtlety in understanding and her height in meditation and contemplation, for from these they consist Divine justifications" (St. Andrew of Caesarea). “The Blessed Calling at the Supper of the Marriage of the Lamb” - “The Supper of Christ,” as St. explains. Andrew, “there is the triumph of those who are saved and their concordant joy, which the blessed will receive when they enter the eternal palace with the Holy Bridegroom of pure souls: “For the one who promised is not false.” Just as there are many blessings of the future age, surpassing all thought, so varied are the names by which they are called. They are sometimes called the Kingdom of Heaven because of its glory and honesty, sometimes - paradise because of the abundance of the table of pleasures, sometimes the bosom of Abraham because of the peace of the departed in it, and sometimes - a palace and a marriage, not only because of endless joy, but also for the sake of pure, true and ineffable union God with His servants - a connection that is so superior to bodily communication with each other, as light is distinguished from darkness and myrrh from the stench. Jesus; Worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy" - the meaning of these words is: do not bow down to me, for I am only your fellow servant. The same Holy Spirit who speaks and acts through the Apostles, in particular through St. John, preaching the testimony of Jesus , speaks through the Angels, as through the same messengers of God: “Your dignity is the same as mine,” as if the Angel were saying: “You, endowed with the gifts of the Holy Spirit, testify to the words and deeds of Jesus Christ; and I, having received a revelation of future events from the same Holy Spirit, communicate it to you and the Church. In other words, the Spirit of the testimony of Christ is the Spirit of prophecy, that is, of the same dignity." St. Andrew of Caesarea notes here the humility of the angels, "who do not appropriate to themselves, like evil demons, Divine glory, but attribute it to the Master" (v. 1- 10).
The next part of the chapter (vv. 11-12) depicts the appearance of the Divine Bridegroom Himself - the Word of God - His battle with the beast and His army and the final victory over him. St. John saw an open sky, from where the Lord Jesus Christ descended in the form of a rider on a white horse, followed by the heavenly armies also on white horses. "White horse", according to St. Andrew, “means the lordship of the saints, sitting on whom He will judge the nations, emitting from His ardent and fiery eyes, that is, from His all-seeing power, a fiery flame, the righteous, however, not scorching, but enlightening, and sinners, on the contrary, devouring, but not enlightening." He appears as a King with many diadems on his head, which means that He has been given all authority in heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18) and over all the kingdoms of the world. “His name is written, no one knows except He Himself” - the unknown of the name indicates the incomprehensibility of His Divine Being. Further, in v. 13, this name is called: the Word of God. This name is truly incomprehensible to people, for it refers to the essence and origin of the Divine nature of Jesus Christ, which no mortal can comprehend. That is why in the Old Testament Scripture it is called wonderful (Judges 13:18; Isa. 9:6; Proverbs 30:4). “And clothed in a robe of scarlet blood” - “The robe of God the Word,” says St. Andrew, “His most pure and incorruptible flesh was stained with His blood during free suffering.” “And the hosts of heaven follow Him on white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and pure” - “these are heavenly powers, distinguished by the subtlety of nature, the height of understanding and the lightness of virtues and honored by the indissolubility of a strong and close union with Christ” (St. Andrew). “From His mouth came a sharp weapon, so that He might pierce the tongues: and He will shepherd Him with a rod of iron: and He will crush the wine of the wrath and wrath of God Almighty” - this is the sword of Christ, in this case not so much as a teacher (cf. 1:16) , but rather as a King who executes His judgments as a weapon to punish the wicked (Isa. 11:4). They will be shepherded with a rod of iron - this expression is taken from (Ps. 2:9; Isa. 63:4-5), and explained in (Apoc. 2:27; 12:5). “And to have on His robe and quilt His name is written: King by king and Lord by lord” - this name, testifying to the Divine dignity of its wearer, was written on the thigh, that is, on the royal cloak, near that part of the body at which, according to the custom of the Eastern nations, a sword hung on his belt (vv. 11-16).
Further St. The seer saw an Angel standing in the sun, who, calling on everyone to rejoice in the punishment of sinners and the suppression of sin, cried out: “Come and gather together for the great supper of God... that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of mighty men” - this is the Angel’s appeal to birds of prey symbolically means that the defeat of the enemies of God is the most terrible, as in a bloody battle, when the bodies of the killed, due to their multitude, remain unburied, and birds devour them. “And there was a beast and with him a lying prophet, who performed signs before him, in the image of deception, who received the mark of the beast, and worshiped his icon; they were both thrown alive into the lake of fire, burning with a bogey” - this is the result of the battle that took place. “Perhaps,” says St. Andrew, “that they will not undergo general death, but those killed in the twinkling of an eye will be condemned to a second death in the lake of fire. How will those about whom the Apostle said that they, being alive, suddenly, in the twinkling of an eye, be changed (1 Cor. 15:52), so, on the contrary, these two opponents of God will go not to judgment, but to condemnation. Based on the words of the Apostle that “the Antichrist will be killed by the spirit of the Divine mouth” (2 Thess. 2:8), and on the legend some teacher that there will be living ones even after the killing of the Antichrist, some interpret this, but we affirm that the living are those blessed by David and that these two, after God has stopped their power, in incorruptible bodies will be cast into the fire of Gehenna, which will constitute death for them and killing by the Divine command of Christ." Just as the blessed life begins in this life, so the hell of those who are hardened and tormented by an evil conscience begins in this life, continues and intensifies to the highest degree in the future life. "And the rest slew him with the weapon of him that sat on the horse, which proceeded from his mouth: and all the birds were filled with their flesh." “There are two deaths,” explains St. Andrew, “one is the separation of the soul from the body, the other is being cast into Gehenna. Applying this to those who are militant along with the Antichrist, it is not without reason that we assume that by the sword or by the command of God the first death will be inflicted on them - physical, and will be followed by a second; and this is correct. If this is not so, then they, together with those who deceived them, will be participants in the second death - eternal torment" (vv. 17-21).
Chapter twenty. GENERAL RESURRECTION AND THE DASTY JUDGMENT
Following the defeat of the Antichrist, St. John saw an angel descending from heaven, who had the key of the abyss and a large chain in his hand. This angel “is the serpent, the ancient serpent, like the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and shut him into the abyss, and imprison him... until the thousand years are finished: and to this day it is fitting for him to be set aside for a little time.” - as St. interprets Andrew of Caesarea, by this “thousand years” we must understand all the time from the incarnation of Christ to the coming of the Antichrist. With the coming of the Incarnate Son of God to earth, and especially since the moment of His redemption of humanity by His death on the Cross, Satan was bound, paganism was overthrown, and the thousand-year Kingdom of Christ began on earth. This thousand-year Kingdom of Christ on earth means the victory of Christianity over paganism and the establishment of the Church of Christ on earth. The number 1000 - definite - is taken here instead of indefinite, meaning generally a long period of time before the Second Coming of Christ. “And I saw thrones, and those sitting on them, and judgment was given to them,” and so on - this picture symbolically depicts the coming kingdom of the Christian faith, after the overthrow of paganism. Those who received judgment and sat on thrones are all Christians who have achieved salvation, for all of them have been given the promise of the kingdom and glory of Christ (1 Thessaloniki 2:12). In this face of St. The Seer especially singles out “those who were beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the Word of God,” that is, the holy martyrs. “And videkh,” we say to the saint. John, “the souls of the hewn” - from here it is clearly seen that these saints, participating in the 1000-year Kingdom of Christ, reign with Christ and “execute judgment” not on earth, but in heaven, for here we are talking only about their souls, not yet united with bodies. From these words it is clear that the Saints take part in the governance of the Church of Christ on earth, and therefore it is natural and correct to turn to them with prayers, asking them for intercession before Christ, with whom they co-reign. “And she came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years” - the revival here is, of course, moral and spiritual. The Holy Seer of Mysteries calls this the “first resurrection” (v. 5), and he speaks further about the second, bodily resurrection. This co-kingship of the Saints with Christ will continue until the final victory over the dark forces of wickedness under the Antichrist, when the resurrection of bodies occurs and the final Last Judgment occurs. Then the souls of the saints will be united with their bodies and will reign with Christ forever. “The rest of the dead did not live, until a thousand years passed away; behold the first resurrection” - this expression “not living” expresses the gloomy and painful state after the bodily death of the souls of ungodly sinners. It will continue “until the end of a thousand years” - as in many other places of Holy Scripture, this particle “dondezh” (in Greek “eos”) does not mean the continuation of the action to a certain limit, but, on the contrary, a complete negation of it (e.g. Matthew 1:25). These words therefore mean the denial of a blessed life forever for the dead wicked. “Blessed and holy are those who have the first share in the resurrection, but the second death has no share in them” - this is how the saint explains this. Andrew of Caesarea: “From Divine Scripture we know that there are two lives and two mortifications, that is, deaths: the first life is for the transgression of the commandments, temporary and carnal, the second is for keeping the Divine commandments, the eternal life promised to the Saints. Accordingly, there are two kind of death: one is carnal and temporary, and the other is sent in the future as punishment for sins, eternal, that is, fiery Gehenna. Therefore, the meaning of these words is as follows: there is nothing to fear the second death, that is, fiery Gehenna, for those who are still here on earth lived in Christ Jesus and was blessed by Him and with ardent faith in Him appeared before Him after the first, that is, physical death (vv. 1-6).
These first 6 verses of the 20th chapter of the Apocalypse gave rise to the false teaching about the “thousand-year Kingdom of Christ on earth,” which received the name “chiliasm.” The essence of this teaching is this: long before the end of the world, Christ the Savior will come to earth again, defeat the Antichrist, resurrect only the righteous and establish a new kingdom on earth, in which the righteous, as a reward for their exploits and sufferings, will reign with Him for a thousand years , enjoying all the benefits of temporary life. Then will follow the second, general resurrection of the dead, general judgment and general eternal retribution. This teaching was known in two forms. Some said that Christ would restore Jerusalem in all its glory, reintroduce the ritual law of Moses with all sacrifices, and that the bliss of the righteous would consist in all kinds of sensual pleasures. This is what the heretic Cerinthus and other Judaizing heretics taught in the first century: the Ebionites, Montanists, and in the fourth century Apollinaris. Others, on the contrary, argued that this bliss would consist of purely spiritual pleasures. In this latter form, thoughts about chiliasm were first expressed by Papias of Hierapolis; They then meet at St. the martyr Justin, Irenaeus, Hippolytus, Methodius and Lactantius; in later times it was renewed, with some peculiarities, by the Anabaptists, the followers of Swedenborg, the Illuminati mystics and the Adventists. It must, however, be seen that neither in the first nor in the second form the doctrine of chiliasm can be accepted by an Orthodox Christian, and here’s why:
1) According to the teachings of the Chiliasts, there will be a two-fold resurrection of the dead: the first a thousand years before the end of the world, when only the righteous will rise, the second - just before the end of the world, when sinners will also rise. Meanwhile, Christ the Savior clearly taught only about one general resurrection of the dead, when both the righteous and sinners will be resurrected and everyone will receive the final reward (John 6:39, 40; Matt. 13:37-43).
2) The Word of God speaks only of two comings of Christ into the world: the first, in humiliation, when He came to redeem us, and the second, in glory, when He appears to judge the living and the dead. Chiliasm introduces one more thing - the third coming of Christ a thousand years before the end of the world, which the Word of God does not know.
3) The Word of God teaches only about two kingdoms of Christ: the Kingdom of grace, which will continue until the end of the world (1 Cor. 15:23-26), and the Kingdom of glory, which will begin after the Last Judgment and will have no end (Luke 1: 33; 2 Peter 1:11); Chiliasm allows for some kind of middle, third Kingdom of Christ, which will last only 1000 years.
4) The teaching about the sensual Kingdom of Christ is clearly contrary to the Word of God, according to which the Kingdom of God is not “meat and drink” (Rom. 14:17), on the resurrection of the dead they do not marry and do not encroach (Matthew 22:30); the ritual law of Moses had only a transformative meaning and was forever abolished by the most perfect New Testament law (Acts 15:23-30; Rom. 6:14; Gal. 5:6; Heb. 10:1).
5) Some ancient teachers of the Church, like Justin, Irenaeus and Methodius, held chiliasm only as a private opinion. At the same time, others resolutely rebelled against him, such as: Caius, Presbyter of Rome, St. Dionysius of Alexandria, Origen, Eusebius of Caesarea, St. Basil the Great, St. Gregory the Theologian, St. Epiphanius, blessed Jerome, blessed Augustine. Since the time when the Church, at the Second Ecumenical Council in 381, condemned the teaching of the heretic Apollinaris about the millennium of Christ and, for this purpose, introduced into the creed the words “His Kingdom will have no end,” holding on to chiliasm, even as a private opinion, has become inadmissible.
You must also know that the Apocalypse is a deeply mysterious book, and therefore to understand and interpret literally the prophecies contained in it, especially if this literal understanding clearly contradicts other places of Holy Scripture, is completely contrary to the rules of sacred hermeneutics. In such cases, it is correct to look for the allegorical, allegorical meaning of puzzling passages.
“And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison, and will come out to deceive the tongues of those who are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, gathering them together to battle, their number like the sand of the sea” - by “Satan’s release from his prison” we mean the appearance before the end of the world of the Antichrist. The liberated Satan will try, in the person of the Antichrist, to deceive all the nations of the earth and will raise Gog and Magog to war against the Christian Church. “Some people think,” says St. Andrew of Caesarea, “that Gog and Magog are the midnight and most distant Scythian peoples, or, as we call them, the Huns, the most warlike and numerous of all earthly peoples. Only by the Divine right hand are they held back until the liberation of the devil from taking possession of the entire universe. Others, translating from Hebrew , they say that Gog denotes the gatherer or assembly, and Magog - the exalted or exaltation. So, these names denote either the assembly of peoples, or their exaltation. "We must assume that these names are used in a metaphorical sense to designate those fierce hordes that will arm themselves before the end of the world against the Church of Christ under the leadership of the Antichrist. “And he ascended into the breadth of the earth, and went through the holy camps and the beloved city” - this means that the enemies of Christ will spread throughout the entire earth and the persecution of Christianity will begin everywhere. “And fire came down from God from heaven, and I was eaten” - in the same terms he depicted the defeat of the ferocious hordes of Gog and St. prophet Ezekiel (38:18-22; 39:1-6). This is an image of the wrath of God, which will be poured out on the enemies of God at the Second Coming of Christ. “And the devil, who flatters them, will be cast into the lake of fire and bogey, where the beast and the lying prophet are: and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever” - such will be the eternal fate of the devil and his servants, the Antichrist and the false prophet: they will be doomed to endless hellish torment (vv. 7-20).
This final victory over the devil will be followed by the general resurrection of the dead and the Last Judgment.
“And I saw the throne great and white, and Him who sat on it” - this is a picture of God’s general judgment over the human race. The whiteness of the throne on which the Supreme Judge of the universe sits means the holiness and truth of this Judge... “From his face (that is, from the face of the Lord Judge) heaven and earth fled, and no place was found for him” - this depicts the great and terrible revolutions in universe, which will take place before the final Last Judgment (cf. 2 Peter 3:10). “And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and the books were broken down, and another book was opened, even the living: and the dead received judgment from them that were written in the books, according to their deeds” - the unfolded books symbolically denote the omniscience of God, who knows all things of people. There is only one book of life, as a sign of the small number of God’s chosen ones who will inherit salvation. “Open books,” says St. Andrew, “mean the deeds and conscience of everyone. One of them, he says, is the “book of life” in which the names of the Saints are written” - “And the sea gave its dead, and death and hell gave its dead: and judgment was accepted according to its deeds” - the idea here is that all people, without any exception, will be resurrected and appear at the Judgment of God. “And death and hell were quickly cast into the lake of fire: and behold, there is the second death. hell, nor death: for them, death and hell will cease to exist forever. By the “lake of fire” and the “second death” we mean the eternal damnation of sinners whose names were not written in the Lord’s book of life (vv. 11-15).
Chapter twenty one. DISCOVERY OF NEW HEAVEN AND NEW EARTH – NEW JERUSALEM
Following this, St. John was shown the spiritual beauty and greatness of the new Jerusalem, that is, the Kingdom of Christ, which will open in all its glory at the Second Coming of Christ after the victory over the devil.
“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: first, for heaven and earth had passed away, and there was no sea” - this does not speak of the non-existence of creation, but of a change for the better, as the Apostle testifies: “creation itself will be freed from the work of decay into the freedom of the glory of children of God (Rom. 8:21). And the Divine Songsinger says: “I have taken off like a garment, and they will be changed” (Psalm 101:27). Renewing the obsolete does not mean blotting out and destroying, but eliminating obsolescence and wrinkles (St. Andrew of Caesarea) ". This newness of heaven and earth will consist in their transformation by fire and in the newness of forms and qualities, but not in a change in the essence itself. The sea as a fickle and turbulent element will disappear. "And I John saw the holy city of Jerusalem, a new one descending from God from heaven, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband" - under the image of this "New Jerusalem" the triumphant Church of Christ is represented here, adorned, as it were, the bride of the Lord, with the purity and virtues of the Saints. "This city," says St. Andrew, "having Christ as its cornerstone, is made up of the Saints , about which it is written: “stones of holy stone are cast upon their lands” (Zech. 9:16). “And I heard a great voice from heaven, saying: Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and will dwell with them: and these His people shall be, and God Himself will be with them, their God. And God will take away every tear from their eyes. And there shall be no death for any: there will be no crying, no crying, no sickness for anyone: like the first mimoidosha" - the Old Testament tabernacle was only a prototype of God’s dwelling with people, which will begin in the future eternal blissful life and will be a source of bliss for people freed from all the sorrows of the present earthly life (v. .1-4). “And He who sat on the throne said: I am creating all things anew... And I said: It is finished,” that is, I am creating a new life, completely different from the previous one; everything that was promised was fulfilled. “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end,” that is, everything that I promise is already, as it were, fulfilled, for before my eyes the future and the present constitute one and the same inseparable moment. “I will give to the thirsty the living tuna of the fountain of water,” that is, the grace of the Holy Spirit, figuratively represented in the Holy Scriptures under the image of living water (cf. John 4:10-14, 7:37-39). “He who overcomes will inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he will be my Son,” that is, he who overcomes the battle against invisible demons will receive all these benefits and become the son of God. “But the fearful and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and those who commit fornication, and those who perform enchantments, idolaters and all those who lie, some of them are in the lake that burns with fire and the bogeyman, which is the second death” - sinners who are fearful and do not have the courage to fight the devil , given over to passions and vices, will be condemned to the “second death,” that is, to eternal hellish torment (v. 1-8).
After this, one of the seven Angels, “having the seven phials, filled with the seven last plagues,” came to John, “saying: Come, I will show you the wife of the Lamb.” The “Bride” and “wife of the Lamb” is called here, as can be seen from what follows, the Church of Christ. “He calls it correctly,” says St. Andrew, “the bride of the Lamb as a wife,” for when Christ was slain as a Lamb, he then took her to Himself with His blood. Just as a wife was created for Adam during his sleep by taking a rib, so the Church, formed by the outpouring of blood from the ribs of Christ during His free resting on the cross in the sleep of death, was united with the one who was wounded for our sake." "And he guides me by the spirit," says St. John, “upon a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, holy Jerusalem, descending from heaven from God, having the glory of God” - the bride of the Lamb, or the Holy Church, appeared before the spiritual gaze of the Holy Seer of Mysteries in the form of a beautiful great city, Jerusalem descending from heaven. The rest of the chapter is devoted to a detailed description of this wondrous city. Shining with precious stones, this city had 12 gates with the names of the 12 tribes of Israel and 12 foundations with the names of the 12 Apostles. A characteristic feature of the city is that “it shone like a stone dear, like crystal-shaped jasper stone." - “The luminary of the Church,” says St. Andrew, “is Christ, called “jasper,” as always growing, blooming, life-giving and pure.” A high wall surrounds the city as a sign that he cannot no one unworthy can enter there; This thought is expressed by the fact that the 12 gates are guarded by the Angels of God. The gates bear the names of the 12 tribes of Israel, for just as on earth these tribes formed the society of the chosen people of God, so their names are also adopted by the chosen ones of heaven - the new Israel. On the 12 wall foundations are written the names of the 12 Apostles of the Lamb, of course, as a sign that the Apostles are the foundations on which the Church is established, as the founders of the Christian faith among all the peoples of the earth. Here one cannot help but see a refutation of the false dogma of the Latins, that the Church of Christ was founded on one Apostle Peter (vv. 9-14).
The city is measured by an Angel before the eyes of St. The Seer, with the help of a golden cane. "Golden cane," says St. Andrew, “shows the honesty of the measuring Angel, whom he saw in human form, as well as the honesty of the city being measured, by the “wall” of which we mean Christ.” The city has the appearance of a regular quadrangle, and the uniformity of its height, longitude and latitude, 12,000 stadia each, indicates the shape of a cube, which signifies its hardness and strength. The height of the city wall is 144 cubits. All these digital expressions are used, presumably, to denote the perfection, solidity and amazing symmetry of the integral building of the Church of God. The city wall is built from jasper, symbolizing the Divine glory (see v. 11) and the always blooming and unfading life of the Saints. The city itself was made of pure gold, like pure glass, as a sign of the honesty and lordship of its inhabitants. The foundations of the city wall are decorated with all kinds of precious stones; in fact, each of the 12 bases was a solid gemstone. As St. Andrew, of these 12 expensive stones, eight were worn on the amice of the ancient high priest, and the other four were to show the agreement of the New Testament with the Old and the advantage of those who shone in it. And it is true, for the Apostles, signified by precious stones, were adorned with every virtue. According to the interpretation of St. Andrew, the meaning of these 12 stones is as follows: The first foundation - Jaspis - a greenish stone, means the Supreme Apostle Peter, who bore the death of Christ in his body and showed a blooming and unfading love for Him; the second - sapphire - from which azure is also made, denotes blessed Paul, raptured even to the third heaven; the third - chalcedon - apparently the same as the anerax, which was in the high priest's amice, means blessed Andrew the Apostle, like a coal, kindled by the Spirit; fourth - emerald - having a green color, feeding on oil and receiving shine and beauty from it, means St. Evangelist John, with the Divine oil that softens the regret and despondency that occurs in us from sins and with the precious gift of Theology, which gives us never-failing faith; fifth - sardonyx, a stone the color of a shiny human nail, signifies Jacob, who, before others, suffered bodily mortification for Christ; sixth - sardium - orange in color and shiny this stone, healing for tumors and ulcers from iron, denotes the beauty of the virtues of blessed Philip, enlightened by the fire of the Divine Spirit and healing the spiritual ulcers of the seduced; seventh - chrysolith - shining like gold, perhaps signifying Bartholomew, shining with valuable virtues and Divine preaching; the eighth - virill - having the color of sea and air, denotes Thomas, who made a long journey to save the Indians; ninth - topazium - a black stone, which, as they say, exudes a milky juice, healing for those suffering from eye diseases, denotes Blessed Matthew, who heals the blind at heart with the Gospel and gives milk to newborns in the faith; tenth - chrysopras - surpassing in brilliance gold itself, denotes blessed Thaddeus, who to Abgar, the king of Edessa, preached the Kingdom of Christ signified by gold and the death in it, signified by pras; the first ten - jacinth - azure or sky-shaped hyacinth, plausibly designates Simon as a zealot of Christ's gifts, having heavenly wisdom; the second ten - amefist - a scarlet-colored stone, denotes Matthias, who was awarded the Divine fire during the division of languages and for his fiery desire to please the Chosen One, replacing the place of the fallen (v. 15-20).
The twelve gates of the city were made of 12 solid pearls. "Twelve gates," says St. Andrey, obviously the essence of the 12 disciples of Christ, through whom we learned the door and the path of life. They are also 12 beads, as having received enlightenment and shine from the only valuable beads - Christ. The city street is pure gold, like transparent glass. All these details express the same idea that in the heavenly Church of God everything is holy, pure, beautiful and stable, everything is majestic, spiritual and precious (v. 21).
The following describes the internal life of the inhabitants of this wonderful heavenly city. Firstly, there is no visible temple in it, for “the Lord God Almighty is his temple, and the Lamb” - the Lord God will be given direct worship there, and therefore there will be no need for either a material temple or any rituals and sacred rites ; secondly, this heavenly city will not need any lighting, “for the glory of God enlighten it, and the Lamb is its lamp.” The common internal feature that distinguishes this heavenly Church from the earthly one is that while in the earthly Church good coexists with evil and the tares grow along with the wheat, in the heavenly Church only the good, pure and holy will be gathered from all the peoples of the earth. However, all the evil, nasty and unclean things that have accumulated throughout the history of the world will be separated from here and merged, as it were, into one stinking reservoir, the uncleanness of which will in no way touch this wondrous abode of only blessed beings” (vv. 22-27).
Chapter twenty two. FINAL FEATURES OF THE IMAGE OF THE NEW JERUSALEM. CERTIFICATION OF THE TRUTH OF ALL THAT WAS SAID, COVENANT TO KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD AND EXPECT THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST, WHICH WILL BE SOON
The continuity of blessedness of the members of the heavenly Church is depicted in a number of symbols. The first symbol is “a clear, crystal-clear river of the water of life. This river, continuously flowing from the throne of God and the Lamb, symbolically depicts the grace of the Life-giving Spirit, which fills the hundreds of the Holy City, that is, the entire multitude of its inhabitants, “increased” according to the Psalmist, “more than sand" (Ps. 139:18). This is the grace and mercy of God, which will always be poured out inexhaustibly on the inhabitants of the heavenly city, filling their hearts with inexpressible bliss (cf. Isaiah 35:9-10). The second symbol - this is the “tree of life”, in the likeness of the one that once existed in the earthly paradise, before the fall of our ancestors. “The tree of life in heavenly Jerusalem will have special, excellent qualities: it will bear fruit twelve times a year, and its leaves will serve for healing peoples St. Andrew believes that “the tree of life signifies Christ, understood in the Spirit and about the Holy Spirit: for in Him is the Spirit, and He is worshiped in the Spirit and is the giver of the Spirit. Through Him, the twelve fruits of the Apostolic Face give us the unfading fruit of God-mind. The leaves of the tree of life, that is, Christ, signify the subtlest and highest and most luminous understanding of Divine destinies, and its fruits are the most perfect knowledge revealed in the next century. These leaves will be for healing, that is, the purification of the ignorance of peoples inferior to others in the performance of virtues. Because “and another is the glory of the sun, and another is the glory of the moon, and another is the glory of the stars” (1 Cor. 15:41), and “many are the mansions of the Father” (John 14:2), in order to honor one less by the nature of his deeds, and the other - greater lordship." “And all anathema shall not be given to anyone” - every curse will forever be lifted from the inhabitants of this heavenly city, “and the throne of God and the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will serve Him, and they will see His face, and His name on their foreheads” - those worthy become the inhabitants of this city, they will see God face to face, “not in fortune-telling, but, as the great Dionysius testifies, in the very form in which he was seen by the holy Apostles on Mount Holy. Instead of the golden shield worn by the ancient high priest (Ex. 28: 36), will have the mark of the name of God, and not only on their foreheads, but also in their hearts, that is, firm, immutable and bold love for Him. For the mark on the forehead means the adornment of boldness" (St. Andrew). “And the night will not be there and will not require light from a lamp, nor the light of the sun, for the Lord God enlightens me, and they will reign forever and ever” - all these features indicate the continuous and most complete communication of the members of the heavenly Church with their Master, united even with seeing Him. This will be for them a source of inexhaustible bliss (cf. Ezek. 47:12) (vv. 1-5).
In the final verses of the Apocalypse (vv. 6-21) St. The Apostle John certifies the truth and accuracy of everything that has been said and speaks of the nearness of the fulfillment of everything that was shown to him, as well as the nearness of the Second Coming of Christ and with it retribution for everyone according to his deeds. “Behold, I am coming soon” - these words, according to the explanation of St. Andrew, show either the short duration of the present life in comparison with the future, or the suddenness or speed of each person’s death, since death from here is the end for everyone. And since he does not know “at what hour the thief comes,” we are commanded to “keep awake and have our loins girded and our lamps burning” (Luke 12:35). We must remember that for our God there is no time, that “one day is like a thousand years before Him, and a thousand years like one day” (2 Peter 3:8). He is coming quickly because He is coming surely—nothing will stop His coming, just as nothing will stop or destroy His immutable decrees and promises. Man counts days, months and years, but the Lord does not count time, but the truths and untruths of men, and by the measure of His chosen ones determines the measure of the approach of that great and enlightened day when “there will be no more time,” and the non-evening day of His Kingdom begins. The Spirit and the bride, that is, the Church of Christ, call everyone to come and draw the water of life freely, in order to be worthy of becoming citizens of heavenly Jerusalem. Finishes St. John of the Apocalypse appeases those who fulfill God’s commandments and sternly warns them not to distort the words of prophecy, under the threat of imposing the plagues “written in this book.” In conclusion, St. John expresses the wish for the speedy coming of Christ in the words: “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus,” and teaches the usual Apostolic blessing, from which it is clear that the Apocalypse was originally intended as a message to the churches of Asia Minor (v. 1:11).
It's over and thank God
All Christian believers read the Bible without fail and try to follow all its instructions. However, there is one book in the Holy Scriptures that is very difficult to understand and filled with symbolism. We are talking about the book of the Apocalypse, or the Revelation of John the Theologian. What does this most mysterious part of the Bible tell us?
Meet the Apocalypse
The entire Bible is a spiritual book filled with symbols and similes. But most of all allegories, examples and images are hidden in the Revelation of John the Theologian. The Apocalypse cannot be read and interpreted on its own, in isolation from all Christian teaching as a whole.
Important! It is advisable for ordinary believers to begin reading the Apocalypse only after they have thoroughly studied the Old and New Testaments, as well as the Tradition of the Holy Fathers.
The great value of this book is that you can find answers to global questions about Christianity in it. The Apocalypse tells us that the Lord came to this world to save all mankind. In addition, the book presents an image of Heavenly Jerusalem - the place of the future life of all believers.
Vision of John the Evangelist
An important place in the narrative is occupied by the description of the earthly Church and the various troubles and executions that befall this world. On the one hand, these misfortunes are the background for the holiness of the Church of Christ to be visible. On the other hand, it is a way to call people to repentance.
The Apocalypse warns Christians against the dangers of life in a world ruled by paganism. A true Christian must neglect the comforts of the world for the sake of Christ, despite the many dangers. At all times, Christians have been persecuted, if not officially, then ideologically. In the time of John the Theologian, refusal to bow to the pagan Roman emperor could result in execution, and many early Christians suffered a similar martyrdom.
Stories of martyrs:
Another danger is to begin to adapt to a changing world and lose faith in Christ in it. A large number of temptations can lead to a person getting tired of fighting for his faith and wanting to live like everyone else - with comfort and wealth. Thus, Revelation tells us that times will come when the faithful children of Christ will not be able to buy or sell anything, i.e. lead a normal daily life like everyone else.
In this context, we see the image of the Whore of Babylon, which is identified with the city of Babylon itself. Parallels are also drawn with the modern world - large cities where all possible joys and pleasures are available, which easily leads a Christian astray. And so the Apocalypse in chapter 18 shows us the result of such a life - the trial of the harlot and her execution. This is exactly what awaits the sinful world if people do not repent.
Antichrist and the end of the world
Perhaps the most mysterious image that we see in this book is the Antichrist. He appears in the form of two animals. The first of them comes out of the sea and acts rudely, with direct persecution. The other comes out of the ground and causes harm more subtly, through seduction and cunning.
The Antichrist will come at the end of time to compete with Christ for the eternal fate of human souls
The eschatological approach is expressed in drawing parallels between the Roman Empire and the sinful world. Rome begins to literally eat itself, choking in the streams of sin and sinful pleasures. John the Theologian warns through his book that such a death awaits the whole world as a whole.
Image of the Church of Christ in Revelation
John the Theologian builds the image of the Church of Christ in contrast to the image of the Whore of Babylon. The church is shown as a place of salvation for the souls of Christian believers, where they can come to know God and the fullness of communion with Him.
The Apocalypse shows us an ancient church tradition about the possible paths of human life. The first path that most unbelievers follow is the path of short temporary enjoyment of the pleasures of earthly life, followed by eternal death and darkness. The other path that the faithful children of Christ choose is the path of salvation, joy and Eternal life with God in paradise. At the same time, these people will have sorrows on earth, but they are incomparable with the bliss that awaits them in Eternity.
Interesting! The image of the Church is described in great detail in the book, with a large number of examples, allegories, and parables.
At first glance, it is very difficult to understand these texts, but in the end it all comes down to the fact that the Church of Christ appears in greatness, beauty and holiness, and the sinful world disappears into the abyss forever. This is exactly the end of the world that will happen after the Second Coming of Christ.
Christ and the Bride Church
It is these positive images of the Church and Heavenly Jerusalem that should instill faith that a person follows the path of Christ for a reason, that at the end of his earthly life he will find eternal bliss with the Lord as a result of a righteous life. It is very important to use such positive examples from the Apocalypse to strengthen sermons and convince believers. In this case, this book will not look so gloomy and will no longer be perceived solely as a guide to the end of the world.
About the symbolism of numbers
A large number of symbols gives the book a special mystery and allows you to take a generalized look at events in the world. For example, John the Theologian says that eyes mean seeing something, and a large number of eyes means absolute vision. Jerusalem and all of Israel are associated with the Church of Christ. White color is a symbol of innocence, purity and holiness.
Great importance is also attached to numbers. So, the number three means the Holy Trinity, four - the worldly order. Seven is the blessed number of harmony. Twelve - Church.
The number 666 deserves special attention, which is considered the magical “number of the beast” and sometimes scares even experienced Christians. The unambiguous interpretation of this number is still unclear and remains unsolved. Apparently, its exact meaning will come when suitable conditions arise for this.
There is a theory according to which 666 is a decrease from 777. Three sevens symbolize God's grace, while its decrease means the devil's darkness. In any case, the number 666 remains the “number of the beast” and the time will come when humanity will definitely know its meaning.
Many Christians are afraid of drawing this number on themselves, as a symbol of rejection from God. Indeed, the Apocalypse tells us that times will come when the mark of the beast will be placed on the forehead or hand, and then such a person will lose salvation and eternal life.
Many Christians Fear the Mark of the Beast from the Book of Revelation
However, we cannot take these lines literally. Not a single mark by itself can deprive a person of faith in God. Therefore, you need to understand this place in a figurative sense - that a time will come when every person will be faced with a choice. The kingdom of the Antichrist will spread everywhere throughout the entire earth, and people will have to choose - live in the comfort of earthly life and lose the salvation of the eternal soul, or endure oppression now, but taste eternal bliss.
Important! Actually, this is the main and main meaning of the book of the Apocalypse - to show a person two ways of life, worldly and spiritual.
John the Theologian makes it clear that the fate of people who chose the path of a rich and comfortable, but godless, life on earth is unenviable. And, on the contrary, those people who endure to the end all the hardships and oppressions that have befallen Christians in large numbers in recent times will receive a great reward for their long-suffering.
Before each of the horsemen appears, God's Angel removes one of the seven seals from the Book of Life. Each of these seals symbolizes a certain era of the struggle between evil and good, which can be traced both on the scale of the entire Church and on the scale of the life of an individual person. The opening of the last seal was marked by the vision of God's Angels - the next image of the Apocalypse.
To herald various disasters and persecutions, the Angels of God blow one of the seven trumpets. The sound of each of them means some kind of trouble. First, part of the plant world dies, then fish and animals, then the rivers and all the water are poisoned. Thus, the coming of the Antichrist will be preceded by a catastrophe of the ecology of the entire Earth. People will forget about God so much that they will stop appreciating and preserving the world He created.
After foretelling the disasters, Revelation tells us about the vision of the seven bowls, which detail the general moral decline and the rise of vice. This part of the book tells of God's future Judgment over the persecutors of the Church of Christ.
The next image that this book paints is two prophets of the Apocalypse. They will appear shortly before the end of the world to announce to all humanity about the coming coming of the Antichrist and the subsequent Second Coming of Christ. These prophets will be killed by the beast, but the Lord will resurrect his faithful servants.
The greatest and final attack on Christ's Church is shown in the image of the Woman clothed with the sun. Radiance means the light of truth, and torment means pain for every person who, by his sins, has removed himself from God.
Important! Thus, all the symbolism of the Apocalypse shows us a certain path that both the Church as a whole and each person personally travels. This is the path of beginning and end, birth and death, development and decline. A person cannot help but go along this path, but he is free to choose exactly how to go through it and what his eternal fate will be as a result.
Despite the fact that the entire Revelation consists entirely of images and comparisons, we cannot fully understand their meaning. Many meanings of this book are revealed as the events described in it occur. Therefore, you should not try to interpret everything that is written - the right time for this will come.
Revelation of Saint John the Theologian
And Jesus says in the Gospel: “It is not your business to know the times and seasons which the Father has appointed in His power.”(Acts 1:7) - but He Himself adds: “Take heed that that day does not come upon you suddenly: for it will come like a snare on all those who live on all the face of the earth” (Luke 21:34, 35) . Jesus' fears are understandable, since the Bible does not allow us to predict the times and timing of the onset of the kingdom of Antichrist. The Revelation of John is given to fill this gap in Christian eschatology. The beloved disciple of Jesus, the Holy Apostle John the Theologian, was imprisoned on the island of Patmos during the persecution of Christians under the Emperor Domitian in 96, where he received the Revelation about the destinies of the world and the end of world history.
Revelation begins with the Epistles to the seven churches: “Write therefore in a book what you have seen, and what is, and what will happen after this... and send it to the churches that are in Asia: to Ephesus and to Smyrna, and to Pergamum and to Thyatira, and to Sardis, and to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea” (Rev. 1:19, 11). From the interpretation it will become clear that the Epistles to the Seven Churches mean seven periods or eras in the history of the Church from its foundation to "end of the century" and at present the Church is in the last "Laodicean" stage.
Comparison of the words of Jesus Christ about signs "end of the world" in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 24, with the text of the Apocalypse, suggests that these signs mean two world wars and the persecution of the Church in the USSR during the years of Soviet power. From the interpretation it will become clear that in the vision of the “four horsemen” of the 6th chapter of Revelation, the history of Russia in the 20th century is presented symbolically as six seals Apocalypse, and the revolution in Russia in 1917 should be considered as a “rehearsal for the Apocalypse,” which precedes the coming of the Antichrist to the world. From the interpretation it will become clear that we are currently living under the sign of the fourth seal.
Removing the first six seals in the 6th chapter of Revelation ends with a vision of the Judgment of God and the Second Glorious Coming to Earth of the Lord Jesus Christ: “For the great day of His wrath has come, and who can stand?”(Rev. 6:17). Therefore, the opening of the seventh seal in the 8th chapter of Revelation must be seen as a recapitulation or repetition of the contents of the 6th chapter of Revelation, but from a different perspective and angle. Trumpets of the Seven Angels Once again they warn humanity, mired in sins, about the approaching kingdom of the Antichrist.
Revelation talks about two prophets Apocalypse (Rev. Chapter 11). Their role is to warn humanity about the coming of the kingdom of the Antichrist and about the imminent Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Sermon two witnesses will fulfill the prediction of the Apostle Paul (Rom. ch. 9-11) about the conversion of Jews to the Christian faith at the end of world history. Sermon two witnesses will end with their death and resurrection “in the streets of the great city, which is spiritually called Sodom and Egypt, where our Lord was crucified”(Rev. 11:7-11). Evidence for the whole world of the fulfillment of the prophecies of the Apocalypse will be the destruction of this "great city" which in the 18th chapter of Revelation is allegorically called "Babylon". From the interpretation it will become clear that Moscow was meant here.
The identity of the Antichrist allows us to determine the vision of the “great harlot sitting on the scarlet beast” in the 17th chapter of Revelation, where the kingdom of the Antichrist is depicted as "the beast having seven heads"(Rev. 17:3), and the Antichrist himself is depicted as "eighth king" And "one of the seven kings." This is also stated in the 13th chapter of Revelation: “And authority was given to him over every tribe and people and tongue and nation, and all who dwell on the earth will worship him” (Rev. 13: 7-8). The establishment of the kingdom of the Antichrist, as well as the coming unrest: the global economic crisis and the third world war must put an end to modern civilization.
The second woe of the Apocalypse will be the war in the Middle East against Iran. "by the great river Euphrates"(Rev. 9:14). This war is predicted in the vision of a "horse army".
Andrey Mazurkevich
Loading...
