Revelation Chapter 12
Verses 15 and 16 continued, “So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. But the earth helped the woman and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.”
“Satan’s design in instigating the French revolution was to create an alarm throughout Europe, especially among the influential class, unfavorable to liberty and to illustrate in France the theory that, were the superstitions of Rome to be overthrown and liberty to be given full sway, all law and order would speedily end. This was a masterstroke of policy, worthy of its author, and designed, as the prophet shows, to overwhelm the ‘woman’ (the reformed Church), and to drive all conservatives and peace-lovers—rulers and ruled—back to union and harmony with Papacy. The failure of the scheme was not due to lack of craftiness in its designer, but to the overruling power of God, whereby he is able to cause all things to work together for good.
“In this case God’s plan, for the protection of the ‘woman’ (Church) from Satan’s wiles and for causing the intended ill to work out good, may be clearly traced, in exact fulfillment of the prediction made seventeen hundred years before, viz: ‘And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.’ The ‘earth,’ in symbol, as already explained, represents society—order-loving people; and it is a fact of history that the flood of truth which spread over France—arraigning Papacy and its priest-craft, and monarchy and its parasitic aristocracy, as the responsible causes of much of the ignorance, poverty and superstition of the people—was swallowed up, or absorbed by the people of Europe generally (the Roman ‘earth’). To such an extent was the case, that though Papacy and royal aristocracy were thoroughly alarmed, they were also thoroughly separated, by the fall of Papal influence as well as by Napoleon’s armies.
And when the ‘man of destiny’ was finally crushed, and the rulers of Europe formed what was called ‘The Holy Alliance,’ for the suppression of the liberties of the people and the perpetuation of their own thrones, it was too late to fetter the people; for, having drunk up the flood waters, they would not submit. It was also too late to think of reestablishing Papacy, which had been so terribly humiliated and whose anathemas against liberty and the French had so reacted against itself; so the pope was not even invited to join the ‘Holy Alliance,’ of which before he would have been the recognized head. Thus the ‘woman,’ the reformed and progressing Church of God, was helped, spared from being overwhelmed, and liberty and truth stepped out to prominence before men; and from that time forward the spirit of liberty and God’s Word have led all who were willing to follow, into more and more light and truth.
“Here, then, was the ‘flood’ which marked both the end of [the long period of] Papal power (the 1260 years), and the beginning of the Lord’s ‘Day of Preparation’ (Nahum 2:3) or ‘Time of the End’ (Dan 12:9).
How, then, did “the earth” help the woman (Verse 16)? What is meant by the expression “the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth”? In a nutshell, as a result of the French Revolution, the people in other lands, as well as in France, received greater liberty in politics, religion, conscience, etc., and Bible societies sprang up. No longer did truths come out of the dragon’s mouth in Latin, for the Bible was thenceforth published in all languages and the people could investigate the Scriptures for themselves.”
"Then shall that wicked [system] be revealed." (2 Thess 2:8)
“The Greek word here translated "revealed" is apo-calupto and signifies to uncover, to remove a disguise. Papacy had deceived the whole world into the belief that it was the kingdom of God; and the counterfeit was so perfect that only the few in the wilderness knew its real (Anti-Christ) character: but bye and bye the Lord raised up Luther and others of his time, who pulled off the mask --uncovered--"revealed" Papacy in its true light as The Anti-Christ-- the "Man of Sin" a base counterfeit of the real kingdom and reign of the true Christ. This was the point and edge of Luther's and in fact of all the preaching of the Reformation times, and resulted in the "taking away of his [Papacy's] dominion to consume and to destroy it unto the end."(Dan 7:25-27) R 307
We will finish up with our last verse, Verse 17 when we continue with our next post.
Verses 15 and 16 continued, “So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. But the earth helped the woman and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.”
“Satan’s design in instigating the French revolution was to create an alarm throughout Europe, especially among the influential class, unfavorable to liberty and to illustrate in France the theory that, were the superstitions of Rome to be overthrown and liberty to be given full sway, all law and order would speedily end. This was a masterstroke of policy, worthy of its author, and designed, as the prophet shows, to overwhelm the ‘woman’ (the reformed Church), and to drive all conservatives and peace-lovers—rulers and ruled—back to union and harmony with Papacy. The failure of the scheme was not due to lack of craftiness in its designer, but to the overruling power of God, whereby he is able to cause all things to work together for good.
“In this case God’s plan, for the protection of the ‘woman’ (Church) from Satan’s wiles and for causing the intended ill to work out good, may be clearly traced, in exact fulfillment of the prediction made seventeen hundred years before, viz: ‘And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.’ The ‘earth,’ in symbol, as already explained, represents society—order-loving people; and it is a fact of history that the flood of truth which spread over France—arraigning Papacy and its priest-craft, and monarchy and its parasitic aristocracy, as the responsible causes of much of the ignorance, poverty and superstition of the people—was swallowed up, or absorbed by the people of Europe generally (the Roman ‘earth’). To such an extent was the case, that though Papacy and royal aristocracy were thoroughly alarmed, they were also thoroughly separated, by the fall of Papal influence as well as by Napoleon’s armies.
And when the ‘man of destiny’ was finally crushed, and the rulers of Europe formed what was called ‘The Holy Alliance,’ for the suppression of the liberties of the people and the perpetuation of their own thrones, it was too late to fetter the people; for, having drunk up the flood waters, they would not submit. It was also too late to think of reestablishing Papacy, which had been so terribly humiliated and whose anathemas against liberty and the French had so reacted against itself; so the pope was not even invited to join the ‘Holy Alliance,’ of which before he would have been the recognized head. Thus the ‘woman,’ the reformed and progressing Church of God, was helped, spared from being overwhelmed, and liberty and truth stepped out to prominence before men; and from that time forward the spirit of liberty and God’s Word have led all who were willing to follow, into more and more light and truth.
“Here, then, was the ‘flood’ which marked both the end of [the long period of] Papal power (the 1260 years), and the beginning of the Lord’s ‘Day of Preparation’ (Nahum 2:3) or ‘Time of the End’ (Dan 12:9).
How, then, did “the earth” help the woman (Verse 16)? What is meant by the expression “the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth”? In a nutshell, as a result of the French Revolution, the people in other lands, as well as in France, received greater liberty in politics, religion, conscience, etc., and Bible societies sprang up. No longer did truths come out of the dragon’s mouth in Latin, for the Bible was thenceforth published in all languages and the people could investigate the Scriptures for themselves.”
"Then shall that wicked [system] be revealed." (2 Thess 2:8)
“The Greek word here translated "revealed" is apo-calupto and signifies to uncover, to remove a disguise. Papacy had deceived the whole world into the belief that it was the kingdom of God; and the counterfeit was so perfect that only the few in the wilderness knew its real (Anti-Christ) character: but bye and bye the Lord raised up Luther and others of his time, who pulled off the mask --uncovered--"revealed" Papacy in its true light as The Anti-Christ-- the "Man of Sin" a base counterfeit of the real kingdom and reign of the true Christ. This was the point and edge of Luther's and in fact of all the preaching of the Reformation times, and resulted in the "taking away of his [Papacy's] dominion to consume and to destroy it unto the end."(Dan 7:25-27) R 307
We will finish up with our last verse, Verse 17 when we continue with our next post.
