Page:Lives of the apostles of Jesus Christ (1836).djvu/364

 "Every burning word he spoke, Full of rage, and full of grief.

"Rome shall perish; write that word In the blood that she has spilt. Rome shall perish,—fall abhorred,— Deep in ruin as in guilt."

In respect to the learning displayed in the Apocalypse, some most remarkable facts are observable. Apart from the very copious matters borrowed from the canonical writings of the Old Testament, from Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and other prophets, from which, as any reader can see, some of the most splendid imagery has been taken almost verbatim,—it is undeniable, that John has drawn very largely from a famous apocryphal Hebrew writing, called the, which Jude has also quoted in his epistle; and in his life it will be more fully described. The vision of seven stars, explained to be angels,—of the pair of balances in the hand of the horseman, after the opening of the third seal,—the river and tree of life,—the souls under the altar, crying for vengeance,—the angel measuring the city,—the thousand years of peace and holiness,—are all found vividly expressed in that ancient book, and had manifestly been made familiar to John by reading. In other ancient apocryphal books, are noticed some other striking and literal coincidences with the Apocalypse. The early Rabbinical writings are also rich in such parallel passages. The name of the Conqueror, "which no one knows but himself,"—the rainbow stretched around the throne of God,—the fiery scepter,—the seven angels,—the sapphire throne,—the cherubic four beasts, six-winged, and crying Holy, Holy, Lord God of hosts,—the crowns of gold on the heads of the saints, which they cast before the throne,—the book with seven seals,—the souls under the altar,—the silence in heaven,—the Abaddon,—the child caught up to God,—Satan, as the accuser of the saints, day and night before God,—the angel of the waters,—the hail of great weight,—the second death,—the new heaven and earth,—the twelve-gated city of precious stones,—and Rome, under the name of "Great Babylon,"—are all found in the old Jewish writings, in such distinctness as to make it palpable that John was deeply learned in Hebrew literature, both sacred and traditional.

Yet all these are but the forms of expression, not of thought. The apostle used them, because long, constant familiarity with the writings in which such imagery abounded, made these sentences the most natural and ready vehicles of inspired emotions. The tame and often tedious details of those old human inventions, had