of the beast that he does this. It is not the horns he makes them worship, but the beast, whose deadly wound (of one of his heads) was healed. Such is his character: lamb-like as he may be in the form of his own power. he wields the power of the first beast before him; that is one point: another, he makes the earth and dwellers on it—carnal-minded nominalists—worship the first, whose wound was healed: these were distinct points; for the whole character is here given. As to his own doing, there is the open exhibition of judicial power as of God: it was not (like the witnesses) “fire out of their mouth,” a testimony made good in judgment, but “fire down from heaven” in the sight of men—the apparent exercise of God’s judgments (as Elijah did) outwardly. All this, remark, is an ecclesiastical power—a power ostensibly connected with Divine things falsely, for it is evil—but ostensibly, and verified to the eyes of men by the exhibitions of power.
Moreover, he does miracles on the earth, by which he deceives those that dwell on it, whose character we have so often seen, and leads them to set up a resemblance of the beast whose deadly wound was healed—this great corporate system, with a formal headship,—and to vivify this image to exercise con- trolling authority—not to kill, but to cause to be
