Revelation 13:1-5

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Revelation 13:4

And they worshipped the dragon - Worshipping the dragon here evidently means the voluntary religious subjection of the members of the Latin Church to the revived western empire, because of the eminent part it has taken in the support of their faith. And they worshipped the beast - Not only the dragon or revived western empire was worshipped; the beast, the whole Latin empire, is a partaker in the adoration. The manner in which it is worshipped consists in the subjects of it: - Saying,... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Revelation 13:5

And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things - That is, There was given to the rulers of the Latin empire, who are the mouth of the beast, (and particularly the Roman emperors of Germany), power to assume great and pompous titles, indicative of their mighty sway over many subjugated countries, (see the imperial instruments of the middle centuries in the Corps Diplomatique), and also to utter against their opponents the most terrible edicts. And blasphemies - The system of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Revelation 13:1

And I stood upon the sand of the sea. The Revised Version, agreeing with א , A, C, Vulgate, Syriac, AE thiopic, Armenian, Victorinus, reads ἐστάθη , "he stood." The Authorized Version follows the reading ἐστάθην , "I stood," which is found in B, P, Coptic, Andreas, Arethas. Fortunately, the point is not important. Whether St. John or the dragon stood on the edge of the sea is not material, since we are distinctly told that the ten-horned beast rose from the sea.... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Revelation 13:1

Seaside lessons. "I stood upon the sand of the sea."—S. C. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Revelation 13:1-10

Safety in times of worldly oppression. The twelfth chapter, with which the thirteenth is to be connected, closes with an assertion of the wrath of "the dragon" towards "the woman." The Church of God is ever the object of Satanic wrath. In these two chapters the enmity that the Church has to contend with is represented by three beasts. Much ingenuity has been expended already on the exposition of these dark words, and much more will be until in the light of history we see clearly what, in... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Revelation 13:1-18

The foes of God and of his Church: the two beasts. The evil one is responsible for much of the mischief in the world, but his responsibility for it is not an unshared one. Two other enemies are here portrayed as the emissaries and agents of the first ( Revelation 13:2 ). The thought underlying the chapter is that of the predominance of brute force over moral power; or, in other words, of might over right. Here are two beasts. The first, described in Revelation 13:1-10 , is seen... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Revelation 13:1-18

The two wild beasts; or, the world and its wisdom. There are few chapters in the Bible which have been entirely passed over by. Christian preachers as containing nothing that would edify and instruct men living m circumstances like our own. But this chapter seems to have been so dealt with. We have searched the lists of thousands of printed sermons, and not one, or rather but one, have we found which seeks to show that this portion of God's Word has anything to do with us today. The vast... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Revelation 13:1-18

The domain of antichrist. "And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy," etc. £ Fanciful interpretations of this chapter, as well as other portions of this book, are abundant. The last seems to us not less unfounded and absurd than those that have gone before. Most of such interpretations assume that the comparatively few people who lived in Rome... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Revelation 13:2

And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion. The similarity to the vision of Daniel 7:1-28 . is very evident; the resemblance extending even to the language, which is here very like the LXX . version of Daniel. Cf. especially the form ἄρκος (found in all the best manuscripts) with that of the LXX . of Daniel 7:5 . In the vision of Daniel four beasts are seen rising from the sea. The first was... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Revelation 13:3

And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed; and one of his heads as though it had been slain unto death; and his death stroke was healed. The writer wishes to express the coexistence of two mutually antagonistic qualities. The head had received a fatal wound, and yet the beast continued to exist and exert his power. There may be a contrast and a comparison intended between the Lamb, as it had been slain, worshipped by his adoring followers, and... read more

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