THE PAPAL BEAST

John says, “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; and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.” This beast has been understood by most of commentators to symbolize the union of church and state in the Roman kingdom, called in other words the Papal Roman kingdom. Wm. Miller gives the following interesting comments on Revelation 13:1, 2:TBUS 9.2

“The Roman kingdom John saw, was like the Grecian in conquering the world; and his march, or power to tread under foot, was equal to that of the Medo-Persian kingdom. His laws and commands were as lion-like as Babylon, and as imperious as Nebuchadnezzar’s decree. The Emperor of Rome, who had obtained power by means of the arch-deceiver of mankind, the Devil, [Revelation 12:9,] having received his august, supreme power over all nations, and exercised the ecclesiastical power of Paganism over the people of the earth-he, the Emperor, called the ‘dragon’ in the text, would destroy or take Paganism out of the way, [2 Thessalonians 2:6, 8,] and would give the saints into the power of the Bishop of Rome. Daniel 7:25. Thus the Emperor Justinian did give the Pope of Rome power over all the Christian churches, Eastern and Western, and gave him ‘his seat,’ the city of Rome, in the West; he also gave him great or supreme authority in his pandect or code of laws. This was in the year A. D. 538; from which time the Pope exercised his supreme power over the saints and kings of the earth until A. D. 1798-during 1260 years of Papal supremacy.”-Remarks on Revelation 8,p,6, published Sept. 1844.TBUS 10.1

These facts stated by Bro. Miller, show us the fulfillment of the specifications in regard to the establishing of the seven-headed and ten-horned beast. The facts in the case are as stated above, that Justinian, Greek Emperor of the Pagan Roman kingdom, gave the Papal church his seat, and authority over his kingdom, and thus fulfilled the specification, “the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.”TBUS 10.2

The seven-headed and ten-horned beast received a deadly wound which was healed. An attempt is made by some to blend the dragon and Papal beast together by this specification. It is claimed that Paganism fell A. D. 508, which was a deadly wound: in A. D. 538, the Papacy was established, which healed the wound. But I should conclude the healing of a wound would place the part affected in its former condition. If Paganism (or the dragon) is wounded and healed, when healed, it must be Paganism still. Papacy is not Paganism.TBUS 11.1

In Revelation 13, the work of the Papal beast is twice described. His career ends in the first description with the statement, “I saw one of its heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed.” These seven heads represent seven forms of government to which the people of this kingdom had been subject. The seventh head or form, was Papal. After our attention is carried down to the point where a deadly wound is inflicted, we are next taken to the time where the dragon gave the beast his power, etc. Verse 4 “And they worshiped the dragon which gave power unto the beast.” This must have been at the time the power was given, and from this we conclude that what follows is a second description of this power which made war on the saints of God for forty-two months, (1260 years,) and put to death between 50 and 100 millions of God’s people. The second time the description of the Papal power is closed, it ends with, “He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity.” Then this going into captivity, is the same as the deadly wound.TBUS 11.2

Instead of claiming that the wound was inflicted on Paganism, and when healed was the Papacy, the position is much more clear that Papacy received its deadly wound in 1798, about which time the temporal sovereignty of the Pope was declared to be wholly at an end. And, as the healing of a wound is a gradual work, so Papacy a little after that time commenced to rise, while the world beheld wondering. The power that led into captivity the saints of God for 1260 years, did go into captivity in 1798. A long standing quarrel, had existed between the Pope and Bonaparte, which reached its crisis about that time.TBUS 12.1

“On the 10th of February, 1798, the French army under Berthier, entered Rome, took possession of the city, and made the Pope and the cardinal prisoners. Within a week Pius VI, was deposed; Rome was declared a Republic; the tree of liberty was planted, and the city and the states were delivered up to a long series of the deepest insults, requisitions, military murders, and the general injury and degradation of the feelings and property of all classes of the people. Pius VI, died in captivity. Pius VII, was dragged across the Alps to crown Napoleon and held in duress, and was finally restored only on the fall of the French Empire. The Papal independence was abolished by France, and the son of Napoleon was declared King of Rome.”-Croley on the Apocalypse. Also Their’s French Revolution, Vol. IV, p.246.TBUS 12.2

By tracing briefly the specifications of this prophecy thus far we have found the time of the commencement, and close of the dragon’s work, also the commencement and overthrow of the first beast of Revelation 13. Applying the same principle of interpretation we have thus far followed, in continuing this investigation, we shall expect to find the period distinctly marked for the rise ofTBUS 12.3