408 
according to Chryfoftom, the Chriftians 
formed a majority. He was employed by 
the Koman Emperor Antoninus II. to 
win trophies from the Parthians, of which 
Lucius Verus, for amufing himfelf in 
Daphne, was to reap the praife. By the 
capture of Seleucia, or Babylon, he en- 
riched himfelf and his officers enormoufly ; 
and feon after, he undertook to fet up an 
independent Eaftern empire over Syria, 
Afia Mmor, and Egypt, of which Chrif- 
tianity was, no doubt, to have been the 
eftablifhed religion; he punifhed with harfh- 
nefs, had fits of fanaticifm, and was pu- 
ritanic in his morals—zonnumquam trux, 
fepe religiofus, caffitatis amator, {ays his 
biographer Vulcatius Gallicanus. He was 
a@ fkiltul general, and affected republican- 
ifm. ,With fuch qualities and fuch views 
he was adapted to conciliate the protetion 
of the fuperintendant of the church’of An- 
tioch, and deferved to intereft the zeal and 
talent of the author of the Apocalypfe. 
Accordingly a moft opportune, if not the 
moft early, declaration in behalf of the au- 
thenticity of this holy vifion proceeded 
from Theophilus (Eufebius, LV. 24.) Bi- 
thop of Antioch ac the time of the death 
of Lucius Verus. 
After the affaffination of Avidius Caf- 
fius, his bad qualitics, as is the lot of 
unfaccefsful rebels, were caricatured ; and 
his name comes handed down to usas that 
of a man atrocionfly cruel and fevere. 
The philofophic mildnefs of the imperial 
neceflarian punifhed very few of his ad- 
herents. Can the martyr Juftin have been 
one of them? For Chriftianity,* as fuch, 
was lefs perfecuted under the Antonines 
than that {pirit of infurre€tion which ani- 
mated the Oriental Jews and Chritftians, 
and which Jed them to fupport each fuc- 
ceffive Barcochebas, who undertook to re- 
fift the idolatrous fovereign. 
If the Apocalyfe was compofed with a 
view of rendering to Avidius Caffius the 
fame fervices as the book of Daniel had 
rendered to Judas Maccabeus; if it was 
intended to ferve in the churches as a text- 
book of fedition for thefe preachers who 
wifhed to fecure f{ubmiffion to his fway, alle- 
giance to his perfon,and recruits to his ar- 
mies; it muft have been drawn up fhortly 
after this general’s return from Babylon 
(that is about the year 167) and betore the 
event was known ot bisunfucce(fsful (truggle 
for the independence cf the Eaft. With this 
furmife the phenomena correfpond: for 
the churches of Afia Minor, and the ex- 
* Nec Chriftianis infenfus fuit (Antoninus) 
quos vehementer cbfervavit et coluit. Dicu 
Caffius, p. 804, edit. 1592. 
2 



On the Apocalypfe. 
[Dec. x 
pedition againft Babylon, are defcribed 
with all the precifion of hiftory ; but the 
fubfequent events with all the obfcurity, 
not to fay fallacy, of vaticination. Of 
this a fhort analyfis will furnifh prefump- 
tive proof. 
The Apocalpfe naturally feparates into 
three diftinét vifions, or fyftems of hiero- 
glyph: the one introdudory, extending to 
the end of the third chapter; the next 
hifforical, to the end of the nineteenth 
chapter ; and the laf prophetical, to the 
end of the book. 
The introduétory train of mythic pomp 
ferves merely to furround the tiring-room 
of the author, while he is invefting the 
coftume and affuming the charaéter of 
the prophet of Patmos. It is chiefly re- 
markable by the minute local knowledge 
it difplays of the ftate of different churches 
in Afia Minor, about the time of Papias. 
An acquaintance extending to a faétious 
but authoritative interpofition in perfonal 
feuds feems to indicate the hand of an iti- 
nerant inf{pector, or travelling bifhop. In- 
cidentally various paffages occur (II. 11, 
17, 26, 29.) in which are brought for- 
ward ideas of victory and conqueft—of 
authority over the nations, who are to be 
broken in pieces, and ruled with a rod of 
‘iron; and a promife is made to the con- 
queror of the morning ftar, the glory of 
the eaft, the city of Babylon. This con- 
gueror is to be (IIL. 12.) a pillar in the 
temple of the God of John, which he is to 
forfake no more, that is, an efablifher of 
Chriftianity ; and he is to found a new Je- 
rufalem (the old Jerufalem had been dif- 
peopled of Jews by an efpecial edi& of 
Hadrian), that is, to favour the fettlement 
of Jews in his new metropolis. 
The hiftorical portion demands clofer 
attention: but as the greater part obvioufly 
coincides exclufively with the foregoing 
theory, it will only be neceffary to attempt 
fubduing the more refraétory imagery. 
Ch. IV. defcribes the plan of the pro- 
jected hierarchy. Round about the throne 
of Cailius were to be four-and-twenty 
other thrones for the bifhops or elders of 
the Chriftian church. Before the throne 
is a fea, his empire is to be bounded by 
the Mediterranean; and by it are four 
living creatures full of eyes, four vigilant 
legions of Jew and Chriftian foldiers. 
Kircher in his Oedipus fays,»that each of 
_the tribes of H{rael uled a fign of the zo- 
diac for their ftandard, and that Judah 
adepted the lien, Ephraim the calf, Reu- 
ben the man, and Dan the eagle. Thele 
four regiments therefore were in the in- 
terefis of Cafflus, had accompanied him 
probably te Babylon, and were difpofed 
to 
