Revelation Chapter 17
Note: As we continue with this study, we will be following the outline of the second view mentioned in our previous posts.
VERSE 8 “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and will ascend out of the bottomless pit and go to perdition. And those who dwell on the earth will marvel, whose names are not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.”
THE BEAST: -- that is its body, the people
THAT YOU SAW: -- in Verses 3-5. We “saw” it historically during the “wilderness period” of 539-1799 A.D.
WAS: -- that is to say this particular aberration of the beast only occurred during the French Revolution, at that time the body of the beast (the people) rose up against its leaders (head, horns, harlot.)
AND IS NOT:
It (the body of the beast) “was not” during the days when this angel (the Seventh) was alive in the flesh explaining Babylon’s fall to the saints.
Remember what we had learned from our previous post, this beast IS (Verse 10) and IS NOT (Verse 8) AT THE SAME TIME! (that is to say some characteristic, some form or aberration or peculiarity) of the beast USED TO EXIST (during the French Revolution), but it does not (now) CURRENTLY exist (at the time the Seventh Angel was still with us, and even yet presently) -- EVEN THOUGH THE BEAST AS A WHOLE DOES CURRENTLY EXIST.
However it…
IS ABOUT TO COME UP: -- to show itself again: another uprising or revolution of the people against their rulers as was in the French Revolution when 1/10th of the “city” (Great Babylon) fell is about to take place, however the 9/10ths of the future will be much more severe than was the first 1/10th.
OUT OF THE ABYSS: -- out of a condition in which power is not exercised.
AND GO TO DESTRUCTION (Anarchy): -- This will be history’s final revolution.
AN IMPORTANT NOTE:
Was the contents of this verse not what Brother Russell taught?
It was distinctly his point that the French Revolution was a prototype of the final trouble which would destroy Babylon. He said in the plainest of terms: The Trouble began in France. It now is abated. But it will come back and do the final work of destroying the other 9/10ths of the city. That which WAS, and IS NOT, presently WILL COME AGAIN. These difficult words have been a clear part of the harvest message for over a century.
AND THOSE WHO DWELL ON THE EARTH: -- those with a vested interest in the current order of things (this is not in reference to the masses of mankind, the sea-class, but rather to a specific element which has, as stated a vested interest in things as they are, in maintaining the present order.)
WILL WONDER: What a wonderful contrast to Verses 6 and 7, the tables are now turned! Now the saints are not the ones who will wonder; but rather the astonishment, the wonder will be on the part of the establishment, the world.
WHOSE NAME HAS NOT BEEN WRITTEN IN THE BOOK OF LIFE FROM THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD: Only the spirit-begotten will comprehend what is happening.
This phrase clearly excludes “those who dwell on earth” from spirit-begettal.
WHEN THEY SEE THE BEAST: -- the partial beast; the uprising of the people (the body of the beast). This will not be a pleasant experience for those trying to sustain the old order -- although they will cooperate with this partial beast hoping to preserve their interests.
THAT HE WAS: People KNOW about the French Revolution, but they try to suppress its meaning from their minds. It is just fine with them in their memories to consign this “beast” to history -- to the “WAS” condition.
AND IS NOT: -- as the angel explains the matter, the beast is yet in his “NOT” condition.
AND WILL COME: The Greek is “AND IS PRESENT.” The thought is that “those who dwell on earth” will wonder when the beast is present again -- in their midst.
We continue with Verse 9 in our next post.
