The Apocalypse of St. John by Rev. E. Sylvester Berry [1921]

[Stone]

Part II.  A PREPARATORY VISION

CHAPTER X

1 . And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud, and a rainbow was on his head, and his face was as the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire.

2. And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot upon the earth.

3. And he cried with a loud voice as when a lion roareth. And when he had cried seven thunders uttered heir voices.

4. And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying to me: Seal up the things which the seven thunders have spoken, and write them not.

5. And the angel whom I saw standing upon the sea and upon the earth, lifted up his hand to heaven.

6. And swore by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things which are therein; and the earth, and the things which are in it; and the sea, and the things which are therein; That time shall be no longer.

7. But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound the trumpet, the mystery of God shall be finished, as he hath declared by his servants, the prophets.



1. An angel coming in clouds of grace and glory brings to St. John a book of further prophecies. The rainbow about his head symbolizes mercy,1 while the brightness of his countenance expresses the power of his teachings to enlighten souls. The feet as of tire indicate that he shall lead the Church in the ways of truth and justice as the pillar of fire guided the Israelites in the wilderness.2

2. The book is open to signify that the prophecies therein revealed to St. John are intelligible and shall be understood in due time according to the needs of the Church. The angel places one foot upon the sea, the other upon the land to express God s supreme dominion over all things.

3. 4. The voice like the roar of a lion is the voice of the Gospel which shall penetrate to the very ends of the earth teaching divine truth, condemning error, and threatening persecutors with the vengeance of God. Here, as elsewhere, the thunders may symbolize the anathemas of the Church against all wickedness and error; but it would be useless to comment on their exact meaning since St. John was commanded to seal up their words. In like manner Daniel was ordered to seal up the words of his prophecies until the time appointed by God for their publication. The words of the seven thunders may also have been such as St. Paul heard "secret words which it is not granted to man to utter.3

5, 6. Lifting his hand to heaven the angel calls upon the God of all creation to witness the truth of his words that time shall be no more. This does not mean that the end of the world is at hand, but that the time for judgment against obstinate sinners and persecutors has arrived.

7. This judgment shall be the great persecution of Antichrist and its attendant evils. Then shall be accomplished the "mystery of God" which has been announced (evangelized) by the prophets of old. To evangelize is to announce good tidings, hence this "mystery of God" is probably the plenitude of the Redemption applied to all nations of earth. After the destruction of Antichrist and his kingdom all peoples shall accept the Gospel and the Church of Christ shall reign peacefully over all nations.4


(1) See above, page 58.
(2) Exodus xiii, 21.
(3) Daniel xii, 4.
(4) II Corinthians xii, 4.




8. And I heard a voice from heaven again speaking to me, and saying: Go, and take the book that is open, from the hand of the angel who standeth upon the sea, and upon the earth,

9. And I went to the angel, saying unto him, that he should give me the book And he said to me: Take the book, and eat it up: and it shall make thy belly bitter but in thy mouth it shall be sweet as honey.

10. And I took the book from the hand of the angel, and ate it up: and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and when I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

11. And he said to me: Thou must prophecy again to many nations, and peoples, and tongues, and kings.



8-10. Eating the book symbolizes an intimate union with the Holy Ghost by which the mind of the Apostle is illuminated with the spirit of prophecy. St. John finds the book sweet to the taste because it announces mercy to the elect and the final triumph of the Church. It is bitter in so far as it predicts dire persecution for the Church and terrible punishment for the wicked.

11. The angel commands St. John to announce to all the prophecy communicated to him concerning the reign of Antichrist, the subsequent triumph of the Church, and the final persecution under Gog and Magog.