405 



APLANATIC LENS. 



APOCALYPSE. 



406 



' Pantheon,' Apis), or of the earth and fertility, as the cow also wag in 

 the Egyptian, and still is in the Hindoo mythology. The god Sivas, 

 in the Indian mythology, has his sacred bulls, which are characterised 

 l>y certain marks, and a colossal bull of stone is often an ornament 

 of his temples. The bull (but not the cow) is still an object of worship 

 in India. Colossal human-headed bulls, it will be remembered, are 

 very prominent in Assyrian sculpture. 



In Egyptian art Apis is represented aa a pied bull, wealing on his 

 head the solar disc. There are several representation* of him in the 

 British Museum : see vases 628, &c., in the Egyptian Gallery ; 6gurea 

 in Cases 8 and 9 in the First Egyptian Room, &c. The tendency of 

 the Israelites to fall into the idolatrous worship of the bull or cow is 

 seen from the history in Exodus, xxxii. ; and at a later period, Jero- 

 boam, who had spent some time in Egypt, set up two calves, one at 

 Dan and the other at Bethel, and established temples and priests, 

 ily in honour of Apia and Mueuis respectively. ( 1 Kings xii. ; 

 i miiare Hosea, chap, x.) 



APLANATIC LEXS from the Greek o, vitlumt, and irAxivij, devia- 

 tion or aberration) is one which should be capable of BO refracting all 

 the rays which, diverging from or converging to one point in the axis, 

 are incident upon it, that after being transmitted through it they may 

 converge to or diverge from one other point in the same axis. 



; igle lens bounded by parallel surfaces cannot be rendered apla- 

 natic. But for the sake of correcting another defect, that of chromatic 

 aberration, the object-glasses of telescopes are made compound, con- 

 sisting of a lens of crown and one of flint glass, and such a combination 

 besides being achromatic, can be rendered at the game time aplanatic 

 for parallel rays. [OPTICS.] 



APOCALYPSE. The word apocalypse (iaroxi^u^a) signifies lite- 

 rally uncwtriiirf, unreiliii'/, and is used iu the New Testament to 

 express especially an extraordinary revelation of the will of God. In 

 this sense the apostle Paul speaks of big "preaching Christ acwnlini; 

 to the rertlatiiin (Kara iaroicd\v<f/u' IJLIHTT.), of the mystery, which was 

 kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest, by the 

 i mdment of the everlasting God made known to all nations for the 

 obedience of faith." Rom. xri. 25, 26. Compare also 1 Cor. xiv. 6, 

 where we find that when the Christians assembled, every one had a 

 . a doctrine, a tongue, a revelation (apocalypse), or en inter- 

 "ii. In these and similar passages the gift of teaching, of 

 interpreting, and of announcing future events is distinguished DOM 

 !if revelation (apocalypic) of the council of God to the spirit of the 

 receiver. 



But the word apocalypsis is used in a still more confined sense, to 

 express especially the prophetical revelation nf the future development 

 of the Messiah's kingdom. Works which describe future conflicts 

 between the power of the Messiah and the opposing powers of Satan, 

 unbelief and superstition, form the apocalyptical literature. The reve- 

 lations in these works communicate visions in symbolical language. 

 The a//w'i////v/>/ is a branch of the jmphttical literature. Every 

 ! ,./,t:,;i/ book is prophetical, but every prophetical book is not 

 apocalyptical. 



A|xx;alyptic writings develops that future kingdom of the Messiah 

 which constitutes an essential part of the Biblical doctrine in the Old 

 as well as in the New Testament. Apocalyptic, as well as profane, 

 literature, has its epochs and periods of flourishing and of decay ; and 

 it is divided into canonical and apocryphal branches. 



The first epoch is the Jewish. The book of Daniel is the prototype 

 of all subsequent apocalypses. The fundamental idea of Jewish 

 npocalyptics is the first advent of the Messiah in order to lay the 

 foundation of his kingdom. In the Jewish apocalyptics, everything 

 concerning the Messiah is future. 



The second, or the Christian, epoch, of apocalyptic literature begins 

 after the development of Christ's kingdom ; consequently, the Christian 

 apocalyptics are clearer than the Jewish. The Jewish ajmcalypticH 

 still continued after the first advent, as long as the ideas about the 

 Messiah retained great vigour among the Jews ; but they degenerated 

 into apocryphal imitations of earlier apocalypses. These apocryphal 

 apocalypses of later Jews were often interpolated by Christians. 

 The decay of the Jewish apocalyptics after the first advent was neces- 

 sary ; because Christianity is the only true continuation of Biblical 

 Judaism. The stream of Jewish apocalyptics is lost in the sands of 

 the Talmud. Some account of Jewish apocryphal apocalypses have 

 been given under the articles ENOCH, EZRA, ISAIAH, in the BIOGRA- 

 PHICAL DIVISION of the ENGLISH CYCLOPAEDIA, and a further account 

 will be given under PATRIARCHS, in the present Division. 



In the history of the Ajwcalypse, we have to consider who was the 

 author of the work who calls himself at the commencement of the first 

 chapter : " Johannes a servant of the Lord." Some critics have asserted 

 that this description which the author gives of himself is a proof that 

 the Apocalypse was not written by the apostle St. John, but by 

 another servant of the Lord, who would not assume any apostolic 

 dignity ; and, further, that in the usual title of the book ( Airoit(AmJ<is 

 laavmo rov ito\6yov) he is not called St. John the apostle, but only 

 John tin- ilii'ini-, up tin- tin '.loglan. But most critics suppose that the 

 present title to the Revelations can only refer to that apostle who 

 wrote more explicitly about the divine loynt (9tov \4yot) than any 

 other of the evangelists. Whoever compares the phraseology, imagery, 

 and doctrine of the Apocalypse with that of the gospel and the epistles 



of St. John, will, indeed, find a great difference. The Greek style of 

 >he Apocalypse is strongly tinctured with Hebraisms, and its imagery 

 is bold. The style of the gospel and the epistles approaches more 

 nearly to the classic Greek, and is almost without imagery. 



Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, a successor of one of those pastors to 

 whom the seven apocalytical letters in chap. ii. and iii. were addressed, 

 was a disciple and friend of St. John the apostle : and Papias, bishop 

 of Hierapolis near Laodicea, was, according to the statement of Irenteus 



Adv. Hser.' v. 33), "a hearer of John and a friend of Polycarp." 

 Polycarp and Papias were highly esteemed authors. Polycarp's letter 

 M the Philippians is still extant, but of the writings of Papias some 

 fragments only have been preserved. In Polycarp's letter to the 

 PhUippians the Apocalypse is not mentioned ; but his disciple Irenanis 

 acknowledges its authenticity, and appeals to the testimony of those 

 who had seen the face of St. John. 



\Ve have the testimony of the two Cappadocian bishops, Andreas 

 and Arethas of Cresarea, who lived in the last quarter of the 5th 

 century, that Papias recognised the inspiration and authenticity of the 

 Apocalypse. Andreas says, at the conclusion of his introduction to 

 tiis commentary on the Apocalypse, " It is unnecessary to make many 

 words about the inspiration of the Apocalypse, since those blessed men, 

 I mean Gregory the theologian and Cyril, and besides these the more 

 ancient also, Papias, IrenEcus, Methodius, and Hippolitus, testify to its 

 credibility." Arethas being later, repeats nearly the same statement 

 in the preface to his own commentary. Papias died, according to the 

 Alexandrine Chronicle, A.D. 163 ; therefore he must have been very 

 young when he heard St. John, who died about A.D. 98. 



Justinus Martyr, who flourished between A.D. 130-160 ,and was nearly 

 contemporary with Polycarp and Papias, was born in Palestine, and 

 acquainted with Alexandria, Rome, and Asia Minor. At Ephesus he 

 held his famous dialogue with Trypho the Jew, which is still extant. 

 Justinus Martyr quotes in this dialogue Jer. Ixv. 17, &c.; Gen. ii. 17; 

 Ps. Ixxxix. 4, to support his doctrines about the millennium, and adds, 

 that John the apostle, in the Apocalypse, likewise prophesied, that 

 the believers hi Christ should dwell in Jerusalem 1000 years before the 

 general resurrection and final judgment should take place. 



Melito, bishop of Sardes, to which town one of the apocalyptical 

 letters is directed, belonged to the Biblical critics of the 2nd century, 

 and wrote, according to Eusebius, " on-the devil and the Apocalypse of 

 John." Jerome says, in effect, the same. 



Probably at the conclusion of the 2nd century, Theophilus, bishop 

 of Antioch, wrote against the heresy of Hermogenes. This work 

 is lost, but Eusebius, who read it, testifies that Theophilus took 

 some proofs (puiprvpiat) from the apocalypse. Theophilus seems also 

 to use apocalyptical language in his work (' Ad Autolycum,' ii. 28) ; 

 " the demon (devil) is also called dragon (Spdnuf)." Hence we infer 

 that the Apocalypse was known in the second century, and influenced 

 the language of the Christian!. 



Eusebius mentions likewise that Apollonins (who was, according to 

 the book ' Prscdestinatus,' which was written in the 5th century, bishop 

 at Ephesus in the 2nd century) quoted the Apocalypse against the 

 Montanists themselves, although these heretics derived their errors 

 especially from this part of the New Testament. 



But the most important testimony in favour of the Apocalypse is 

 that of Irenwus, who died bishop of Lyons, A.D. 202. Irenseus, in his 

 work against heretics, quotes long passages from the Apocalypse of 

 John, whom he calls expressly the " disciple of Jesus " and " the 

 recipient of the revelation." This presupposes that its canonical cha- 

 racter was then generally recognised. Irenoms defends the apocalyp- 

 tical number 666 against the spurious 616, by stating that all warranted 

 old manuscripts contained 666, which number was also supported by the 

 testimony of those who saw the face of John. Irenicus modestly con- 

 fesses his own inability to explain this number, and says : " If the 

 name of antichrist were to have been openly proclaimed in our days, 

 it would have been declared by him who saw the revelation, for it 

 was seen not a very long time ago, but almost in our own age, namely, 

 at the conclusion of Domitian's reign." This testimony is important, 

 because Irenanis was born in Asia Minor, where the Apocalypse was 

 published; and he grew up in friendly intercourse with Polycarp of 

 Smyrna. Irenanis knew the friendly circle of St. John, and the 

 accounts which were in vogue among his disciples. Irenceus had a 

 very extensive acquaintance with the most distinguished Christians iu 

 the east and west, and took a lively interest in the religious differences 

 and theological debates of the second century ; consequently, we have 

 reason to say, that Irenseus was a qualified witness. There can be no 

 doubt that he believed the Apocalypse was written by John. Irenoms 

 mentions that the authenticity of St. John's gospel was attacked by 

 some, but he mentions no opposition to the Apocalypse. 



The letter by which the Christian congregations at Vienne and Lyon 

 report to those in Asia and Phrygia the persecutions suffered under 

 Marcus Aurelius, A.D. 177, proves likewise that the Apocalypse was 

 then much read and generally recognised in Gaul and Asia. Irentcus 

 was presbyter at Lyon when this letter (see Eusebii ' Hist. Eccles.' 

 v. 1 3) was written, and, perhaps, it was drawn up by him or under 

 his direction. The numerous Greeks who migrated from Asia Minor 

 into Gatil probably took with them the Apocalypse. 



The third century is the most interesting in the history of the 

 Apocalypse. The disputes against the Montanists raised, among othr 



