The Revelation of Jesus Christ - The Herald

he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the
sight of men."--Ver. 13.
This has always been a characteristic of the Papal Antichrist, and many, in fact all of its
supporters have been deceived by these so-called miracles or signs. In the case of the twohorned
beast, the symbol in the verse quoted that is designed to picture this is drawn from
a literal fact of Old Testament history. The special instance referred to is recorded in 1
Kings 18:19-39, where a scene is described in which Elijah proved the Divine authority of
his call as a prophet of Israel, in contradistinction to the Baal prophets who claimed
miraculous powers from their god, Baal. Concerning which was the true God (Jehovah or
Baal) was to be demonstrated by fire coming down from heaven in the sight of the people,
and lighting the wood under the altar upon which a sacrifice had been placed as a burnt
offering. The miracle was wrought in answer to Elijah's prayer; but failed in the case of the
prophets of Baal.
The thought evidently designed to be conveyed by this symbol is that the power
symbolized by the two-horned beast would seek to prove its so-called Divine authority by
signs or evidences. It is stated that this two-horned beast exercised the same authority as
the first beast, Papacy. It is a well known fact that the performance of miracles was a
characteristic claim of Papacy. The most preposterous, indeed, blasphemous claim of
Papacy is that of authority to delegate to its priests the power to change the bread and
wine of the Memorial Supper into the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. It has been
this, more than anything else that has blinded the people, and hindered their
understanding God's Plan of Salvation in Christ. In this connection, as applied to the
Church of England, hear again the historian:
"The overthrow of Papal supremacy was indeed effected by Henry VIII; but that Monarch
rather hindered than favored the reformation of doctrine [justification through faith in
Christ as the sin-bearer]."
"As regards the relations of the English people to the Catholic Church, all that had been
done thus far (by Henry VIII) was to declare that the Pope had no jurisdiction in England.
There was no thought of secession from the unity of the Catholic faith, and this fact
Parliament in 1534 took pains to declare. . . . Hitherto, though professing independence of
the Church of Rome, Henry still maintained and enforced by bloody laws most of its
doctrines."
Concerning Henry's persecution of those who refused to acknowledge him as the Supreme
Head of the Church, and give assent to the doctrines of the same, the following is to the
point: