Revelation 13:5-8 - Joseph Benson’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things This expression seems to be taken from the description of the little horn in Daniel's vision, (Daniel 7:8,) and is explained, Revelation 13:11, by the voice of the great words which the horn spake. It must be observed, however, that it is of the secular empire that this is spoken, which empire is here considered as under the influence of the ecclesiastical power of Rome, and as being merely its agent, and especially the agent of the pope, the speaking image of the beast. And it is well known what blasphemous and extravagant claims of authority and power have been made by him, who has been styled, His Holiness Infallible Sovereign of kings and kingdoms Christ's Vicegerent yea, God upon earth. Power also has been given unto him to continue Greek, ποιησαι, to practise, prevail, and prosper, forty and two months It doth not follow from this that the beast is to continue to exist for no longer a term, but he is to practise, to prosper, and prevail, for that term: as the holy city (chap. Rev 11:2) is to be trodden under foot of the Gentiles forty and two months, which are the twelve hundred and sixty days, or years, of the reign of antichrist. But if by the beast were understood the heathen Roman empire, that empire, instead of subsisting twelve hundred and sixty, did not subsist four hundred years after the date of this prophecy. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy, &c. This newly-erected government of Rome used the authority it had obtained in making and publishing constitutions for the establishment of idolatry, in contempt of God and his true worship, and by all methods of oppression and persecution, forcing the church to comply with them, and yield obedience to them. “Any acts of idolatrous worship,” says Lowman, “may well be expressed by blaspheming God and his name, as they deny to the true God his distinguishing honour, and give it to creatures, whether to images, saints, or angels. The church, as it is called the temple of God, the place of God's presence, is properly also called his tabernacle.” By them that dwell in heaven, Grotius understands all saints, all Christians, whose conversation is in heaven. The Christian Church is called, the Jerusalem which is above, Galatians 4:26; and the governors of it are styled angels, Revelation 1:20. To blaspheme them, therefore, that dwell in heaven, will signify the contempt and injurious manner with which the new government of Rome shall treat the true worshippers of God, as well as God himself and his name. So much for his blasphemies; nor are his exploits less extraordinary. It was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them The power of this new Roman government became so great, by divine permission, that it prevailed against the worshippers of God, either to force them to a compliance with the corruptions established by its authority, or to persecute them for their constancy; and this oppressive power was extended far and wide, even over all, or many, kindreds, and tongues, and nations Even in all the countries of the western Roman empire. And who can make any computation, or even frame any conception of the numbers of pious Christians who have fallen a sacrifice to the bigotry and cruelty of Rome, or this new Roman government? Mede, upon the place, hath observed from good authority, that in the war with the Albigenses and Waldenses, there perished of these poor creatures in France alone a million! From the first institution of the Jesuits to A.D. 1480, that is, in little more than thirty years, nine hundred thousand orthodox Christians were slain. In the Netherlands alone the duke of Alva boasted that within a few years he had despatched to the amount of thirty thousand persons, and those all by the hands of the common executioner. In the space of scarce thirty years, the inquisition destroyed, by various kinds of torture, one hundred and fifty thousand Christians. Sanders himself confesses that an innumerable multitude of Lollards and Sacramentarians were burned throughout all Europe, who yet, he says, were not put to death by the pope and bishops, but by the civil magistrates; which perfectly agrees with this prophecy, for it is of the secular beast that it is said, He shall make war with the saints, and overcome them. No wonder that by these means he should obtain a kind of universal authority over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. Let the Romanists boast, therefore, that theirs is the catholic church, and universal empire: this is so far from being any evidence of the truth, that it is the very brand infixed by the Spirit of prophecy. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him All the inhabitants of the earth, to which this new power shall reach, shall be prevailed upon to receive his idolatrous constitutions, and yield obedience to his tyrannical authority: whose names are not written in the book of life, &c. Except such true and faithful servants of God as are enrolled in the registers of heaven, according to the promises of Christ's gospel, who from the beginning was the true propitiation and mediator of acceptance with God, and of the blessings consequent thereon. It has been justly observed by Mr. Faber, that there is a great inaccuracy in Bishop Newton's exposition of the above paragraph, in that he seems to confound this beast, or the secular empire, in all the ten kingdoms, with the little horn predicted by Daniel, which accords with the second beast afterward mentioned. As the secular power, however, executed the persecuting decree of the ecclesiastical power, and gave its power to that beast, the things represented by Bishop Newton as accomplishing this prophecy did indeed accomplish it, though he has not marked the manner in which this was done.