The Revelation of Jesus Christ - The Herald

territory peculiar to Rome, and which never had formed part either of the Grecian, Medo-
Persian, or Babylonian Empires."
"As to the time, it seems to me that the list of kingdoms should be made with reference to
some period subsequent (only not long subsequent) to the completion of the number ten
on the platform of the Western Empire: and, in regard at least to Daniel's vision, prior of
course to that eradication of three of them predicted by him. [Dan. 7:8,20,24,25.] . . . Thus,
in fine, there existed at the epoch of AD 532 the following ten kingdoms on the platform of
the Western Roman Empire; viz., the Anglo-Saxons, the Franks of Central, Alleman-Franks
of Eastern, and Burgundic-Franks of Southeastern France, the Visigoths, the Suevi, the
Vandals, the Ostrogoths in Italy, the Bavarians, and the Lombards; ten in
all."
When the Dragon gave the Beast his power
The year following this, in 533, one of the most significant events in connection with the
rise of the Papal Antichrist occurred. It was in this year that Justinian, the Eastern Roman
emperor, issued a decree constituting the bishop of Rome the head of the Church on earth.
Thus do we have the fulfillment of the expression, "and the dragon gave him his power,
and his seat, and great authority." For some time previous to this there had been a rivalry-indeed,
a dispute, between the bishop of Rome, and other ambitious, aspiring bishops of
other cities, concerning which of them could, as they expressed it, rightly claim the honor
of Apostolic succession, etc. This decree of Justinian settled the matter in favor of the
bishop of Rome. The decree was not enforced, however, until the armies of Eastern Rome
under Belisarius overthrew the Ostrogothic power, that under Theodoric ruled in Italy.
This was in 538 or 539 AD, and without doubt, marked the beginning of the period of the
twelve hundred and sixty years, when the saints were delivered into Papacy's hand. (Dan.
7:25.) It was the beginning of the Papal Antichrist; also the time when the ten kings began
to give their power and strength unto the beast, as represented in its Papal head. In regard
to the number ten being used to designate these kingdoms, we quote several authors of
note. Sir Isaac Newton, with reference to this matter, said:
"Whatever was their number afterwards, as some of those kingdoms at length fell, and
new ones arose, they are still (in the prophecy) called the ten kings from their first
number."
Mr. Elliott comments on these words of Mr. Newton:
"Indeed it is to be observed that not only did a thus divided form continue for ages
afterward to characterize the great commonwealth (if we may so call it) of Western
Christendom, but the decuple number of kingdoms seemed to continue in a manner their
standard numeral type. At certain long subsequent epochs of note, notwithstanding many
intervening revolutions and changes in Western Europe, the number ten will be found to
have been observed on from time to time as that of the Western Roman or Papal
Kingdoms. So Gibbon, with reference to the twelfth century, speaking of Roger, first king