The Revelation of Jesus Christ - The Herald

details being, as is divinely implied in statements in the opening and closing chapters of
the Apocalypse, the history of God's servants in their relation to the world government of
Rome, in its undivided, but more especially in its divided state. This divided state is
symbolized by the ten horns on the head of the fourth beast of Daniel's vision (Daniel 7),
and on the head of the beast of the Apocalypse.--Revelation 12, 13, and 17.
How then, we ask, can it be successfully disproved that all the visions of the Apocalypse
belong to this outline, as given in Daniel? and how can they be properly understood until
they are fitted into this general outline, as part of a great symbolic revelation concerning
the course and succession of events of this Gospel Age? We have already shown that
earnest Christians who lived contemporaneous with St. John, as well as others who
succeeded him in the early centuries, interpreted the "ten-horns" on the fourth beast as
having reference to the governments into which the Western Roman Empire was divided
in connection with the overthrow of the imperial power, ruling in the seven-hilled City;
furthermore, that the "little horn" of Daniel 7, that came up among the "ten," represented
the political aspect of Antichrist; and still further, that the beast of Revelation 13 and 17,
under one of its heads, was identical with the same "little horn" of Daniel 7, and the "man
of sin" of 2 Thess. 2.
Evidence adduced from vision of Christ dwelling among the candlesticks
This very apparent connection between the visions of the Roman Empire in Daniel and in
the Apocalypse furnishes evidence of the correctness of the Historical interpretation, and
the incorrectness of the Futurist. We have, however, that which is more important and
convincing than even this. We have a Divine explanation of two of the chief visions of the
Apocalypse that makes it absolutely necessary that we apply these visions to events which
began long centuries ago, and which cover the whole course of history from St. John's day
to the complete end of this Gospel Age. The first of these is the explanation by Christ
Himself of the vision of the one like a Son of Man walking amidst the candlesticks. Certain
statements made in the messages sent by Him to the seven Churches contain the same
thought. The second of these is the explanation of the revealing angel in chapter 17,
involving five distinct matters that inseparably link the vision of the ten-horned, sevenheaded
beast and the harlot woman seated thereon, with five of the most prominent
features of the past history of the Church. We will examine these in the order mentioned
above.
The interpreter of this vision of chapter one is evidently our Lord Jesus Himself. He says:
"The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in My right hand, and the seven golden
candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven Churches: and the seven
candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven Churches." It is to be observed that this
divinely given interpretation binds its application to the Christian Church, and that the
seven messages recorded also do the same. And that which is even more convincing is the
fact that some matters presented in these messages are so intimately and profoundly
connected with the prophetic visions seen subsequently by St. John, recorded in chapters
six to twenty-two, that this of itself imparts a Christian character to those visions also, and