Ticonius — Commentary on Scripture

Revelation 8:7 · 3 passages

The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.

By the fire and blood he signifies the wrath of God, which devours the multitude of the impious.

The “trees” and the “earth” represent people who are the internal enemies of the church and whom [God] shall punish by a future judgment to everlasting punishment. The “grass” represents the flesh, which is fattened through the vices of sins and whose strength and beauty have dried through the heat of the sun. To be sure, the third part which it said was destroyed by being burned up refers to the heretics. For anyone who is found outside of the true church shall be condemned to perpetual torments, along with the devil, who is the author of such division. And so through Zechariah the Lord promised to strike the false shepherds and to free his sheep from their difficulties and to separate the third part, which he says is like the nations and “Sodom,” from the midst of his sheep, that is, from the midst of the pious. “Awake, O sword,” it says, “against the shepherds and those who are next to me, says the Lord Almighty. Strike the shepherds and scatter the sheep,” that is, my people. “And I shall test it as gold is tested. It will call me and I will answer it and say, ‘You are my people…

The “trees” and the “earth” represent people who are the internal enemies of the church and whom [God] shall punish by a future judgment to everlasting punishment. The “grass” represents the flesh, which is fattened through the vices of sins and whose strength and beauty have dried through the heat of the sun. To be sure, the third part which it said was destroyed by being burned up refers to the heretics. For anyone who is found outside of the true church shall be condemned to perpetual torments, along with the devil, who is the author of such division. And so through Zechariah the Lord promised to strike the false shepherds and to free his sheep from their difficulties and to separate the third part, which he says is like the nations and “Sodom,” from the midst of his sheep, that is, from the midst of the pious. “Awake, O sword,” it says, “against the shepherds and those who are next to me, says the Lord Almighty. Strike the shepherds and scatter the sheep,” that is, my people. “And I shall test it as gold is tested. It will call me and I will answer it and say, ‘You are my people,’ and it will say ‘You are my God.’ ” Before this separation occurs, all are regarded as the people of God. However, after the separation has happened, then it will become apparent who are the people of God and who are of the devil.

A third of the earth and the trees and all the grass is said to be burned up. The “earth” represents everything terrestrial, while persons who wave about through unfaithfulness are depicted as “trees.” For those blown about by “every wind of doctrine” are mentioned by the apostle Jude, “fruitless trees in late autumn, uprooted, twice dead.” The green grass represents flesh fattened with luxury, for “all flesh is grass.” Although in an earlier passage three fourths were set against one, that is, the church, this passage confines those opposed to the church to two thirds. One third consists of the false brothers who are mixed in among the good within the church, and another third that is separated by the error of the Gentiles or by heretical depravity or by open schism. And so the church (namely, the one third) must struggle against a double evil, as though it were simplicity resisting duplicity. It is as we read in the Gospel that a king with ten thousand went out to war against twenty thousand. And God did make a promise concerning this through Zechariah, saying, “In the whole land…

A third of the earth and the trees and all the grass is said to be burned up. The “earth” represents everything terrestrial, while persons who wave about through unfaithfulness are depicted as “trees.” For those blown about by “every wind of doctrine” are mentioned by the apostle Jude, “fruitless trees in late autumn, uprooted, twice dead.” The green grass represents flesh fattened with luxury, for “all flesh is grass.” Although in an earlier passage three fourths were set against one, that is, the church, this passage confines those opposed to the church to two thirds. One third consists of the false brothers who are mixed in among the good within the church, and another third that is separated by the error of the Gentiles or by heretical depravity or by open schism. And so the church (namely, the one third) must struggle against a double evil, as though it were simplicity resisting duplicity. It is as we read in the Gospel that a king with ten thousand went out to war against twenty thousand. And God did make a promise concerning this through Zechariah, saying, “In the whole land, says the Lord, two thirds shall be dispersed and perish, and one third shall remain in it; and I shall lead the third part through fire, and I shall refine them as one refines silver, and I shall test them as gold is tested. It shall call my name, and I will answer them and say, ‘You are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’ ”

Revelation 8:8

And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;

He speaks of the devil as a burning mountain, for he consumed those near to him as though he were a fire. He is called “great” because he is one angel among others and is himself a creature.… He calls the world a “sea,” in which he saw the devil who had been cast down from heaven as a burning fire.

Revelation 8:9 · 2 passages

And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.

Another edition has the reading “[a third of] those who have souls” and shows thereby that they have died a spiritual death, similar to that which the apostle said about the widow, “She who is self-indulgent is dead.” And so the passage suggests that one third has killed another third by a poisonous tradition and by imitation of a useless teaching.

When he speaks customarily of the part that has a soul, he refers to persons who are spiritually dead and separated from the kingdom of God. “And a third of the birds fell to the ground.” Therefore, that third that died in the sea destroyed by its own death another third. He is describing the devil and those who are of one mind with the devil, who after the manner of birds fly around and deceive or wish to deceive all by their trickery.

Revelation 8:10

And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;

The “great star” is the devil, of whom the Lord spoke in the Gospel, “I saw Satan fall from heaven as fire or lightning.” It is possible that this passage also refers to ecclesiastical people, who living the spiritual life in the church, have become forgetful of themselves and like animals bend down to the things of the earth and fall from their positions of authority. We read what has been written of such persons: “Although he is in honor, he does not understand; he is compared to the senseless cattle and has become like them.”

Revelation 8:11

And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.

The rivers and fountains of waters signify the teachers of the divine Scriptures who instruct others but turn themselves away from the way of truth. Indeed, the name Wormwood indicates either the bitterness or the sweetness of sins, which give a present sweetness to those who desire them but afterwards change themselves into bitterness.

Revelation 8:12

And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.

The sun, moon and stars represent the church, a third part of which is struck. This third is a designation, not a quantity. For there are two peoples within the church, that part of God, which is compared with the light, and that part of the devil, which is surrounded by the darkness of shadows, as the Scripture says, “I have compared your mother to the night.” And this part was struck so that it might become apparent who is of God and who of the devil. It has been given over to its own sins and desires, so that their faults that have remained hidden and unknown to all might be revealed.

Revelation 8:13

And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!

The eagle that he saw flying in mid-heaven is the Word of God, which has free course in the middle of the church and announces openly and publicly the plagues of the last time.

Revelation 9:1

And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit.

In this star he speaks of the body of those many persons who have fallen from heaven through agreement [with the devil].… We ought to understand the key to the pit to be false teachings that confine those within it in such a way that they are not able to look upon the light of truth. And so the devil fell from heaven and received the key to the pit, and [he] opened his mouth in blasphemy and taught his followers not to do the will of God but to do their own will.

Revelation 9:2

And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.

“He opened the shaft of the pit” means that he revealed his own heart and taught people to sin without any fear or shame. “And smoke arose from the pit,” that is, from the heart of a blasphemous people which also persecutes the church. “And the sun and air were darkened by the smoke of the pit.” The sins that people constantly commit through the world obscure among them the sun of faith and of righteousness and in some produce a blindness so that they do not see the light of truth. “As smoke from a great furnace.” This smoke that precedes the fire of the furnace generally refers to the last persecution, for the earlier persecution burns against the church, and then the crowd of hypocrites and unbelievers will be manifested. And outside [the church] the insanity of many caused by this smoke is already advanced.

Revelation 9:3

And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.

In the locusts he signifies spiritual and adversarial powers that we see flying around in the air in the manner of locusts for the purpose of harming humankind.

Revelation 9:6

And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.

They say that death is a rest. And so, they seek death, not that they may die but that they might have rest from evil things while the evil vices die away. They desired to die, that is, that they might die to the world and, as the apostle says, live again to God. “They seek death but will not find it,” it says. They desire to be changed to better things, so that they might have rest after the labor of sins.… Therefore, “death will flee” while life is close by and we are truly dying while we are being freed from the chains of sins.

Revelation 9:7-8

And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men.

In the image of the horses he shows the suddenness of persecution that runs around so that it might oppress the innocent and obstruct [their path] to the celestial kingdom.… We recall that it was written that upon the heads of the twenty-four elders, who were a figure of the church, there were crowns of gold. However, these [locusts] do not present a true figure of the church but one only by way of pretense, and so they are not said to have crowns of true gold but crowns similar to gold.… Likewise, they are not perfect human beings but like human beings.… And by the hair he speaks not only of the effeminacy and laxity of women, but he speaks of those from either sex who are given to wantonness and are stained by every baseness.… [By the teeth like lions’ teeth] they daily devour the church.

Revelation 9:9-10

And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.

By the “tails” he speaks of the leaders who have fallen away from the Head of the church, that is, from the Lord, and so those who were the first have become the last. This is as God thought it worthy to say through Isaiah, “The elders who are honored and admired are the head; and the prophet who teaches iniquity is the tail.” Therefore, the “power” of the locusts refers to the character of the false prophets who never desist from attacking the true church by their lying and venomous doctrines.

Revelation 9:11

And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.

[The angel of the bottomless pit] is the devil, who possesses his great power among the kings of the world.

Revelation 9:13

And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,

When it says that the first woe has passed and the trumpet of the sixth angel has sounded, it announces the final preaching, that of the sixth age.

Revelation 9:14

Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.

In these four angels that are bound at the Euphrates River we understand those adversaries that God will command to be loosed for the testing of his church. To be sure, this passage shows that the winds and the angels are the same thing, for it said that the winds were held back by the angels and now that the angels are to be loosed by an angel. “Loose,” it says, “the four angels at the great river Euphrates.” Those whom above it said were at the “four corners of the earth” it now says are bound “at the river Euphrates.” The river Euphrates indicates a people that persecutes [the church]. In this people, Satan and his will are bound, lest he should accomplish whatsoever he desires before it is time. The Euphrates is in the land of Babylon, of which the prophet Jeremiah testifies as follows, “This says the Lord” concerning this Euphrates, “This is the day of the Lord God of hosts, so that he might avenge himself on his foes, and the sword shall devour and be sated and drink its fill of their blood. For the sacrifice to the Lord of hosts is in the north country by the river Euphrates.”…

In these four angels that are bound at the Euphrates River we understand those adversaries that God will command to be loosed for the testing of his church. To be sure, this passage shows that the winds and the angels are the same thing, for it said that the winds were held back by the angels and now that the angels are to be loosed by an angel. “Loose,” it says, “the four angels at the great river Euphrates.” Those whom above it said were at the “four corners of the earth” it now says are bound “at the river Euphrates.” The river Euphrates indicates a people that persecutes [the church]. In this people, Satan and his will are bound, lest he should accomplish whatsoever he desires before it is time. The Euphrates is in the land of Babylon, of which the prophet Jeremiah testifies as follows, “This says the Lord” concerning this Euphrates, “This is the day of the Lord God of hosts, so that he might avenge himself on his foes, and the sword shall devour and be sated and drink its fill of their blood. For the sacrifice to the Lord of hosts is in the north country by the river Euphrates.” He speaks of sacrifice, but that of strangled animals, not of praise. And Isaiah said, “The sword of the Lord is sated on blood, it is gorged with the fat of goats and rams, for the sacrifice of the Lord is in Bosor and a great slaughter in Idumea.” Bosor and Idumea are cities of Esau, who by persecution forced his brother, Jacob, to flee from his father’s lands.

Revelation 10:1

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

In this angel the person of our Savior is indicated. On his body he wears the church as though she were a cloud. For the church was constituted in the body of Christ and is often described in diverse manners. At times we read of her as a cloud, as a robe, as the sun, as the moon and as clothes white as snow. And even the saints are compared with clouds, as we read in the prophet Isaiah, “These are they who will fly as the clouds.” To be sure, the cloud with which he is clothed is his body, which was conceived by the Holy Spirit. The “rainbow over his head” indicates the promise and the perseverance of his church. “His face was like the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire.” There is here a great and marvelous plan, so that at the beginning of this book he might show the fire of the last persecution and afterward might indicate the future brightness of the saints as a fire. For at first he spoke of “his feet as refined in a furnace,” and afterward he describes his face “as the shining in full strength.” That he might show how great is the brightness of the church, he now mentions the…

In this angel the person of our Savior is indicated. On his body he wears the church as though she were a cloud. For the church was constituted in the body of Christ and is often described in diverse manners. At times we read of her as a cloud, as a robe, as the sun, as the moon and as clothes white as snow. And even the saints are compared with clouds, as we read in the prophet Isaiah, “These are they who will fly as the clouds.” To be sure, the cloud with which he is clothed is his body, which was conceived by the Holy Spirit. The “rainbow over his head” indicates the promise and the perseverance of his church. “His face was like the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire.” There is here a great and marvelous plan, so that at the beginning of this book he might show the fire of the last persecution and afterward might indicate the future brightness of the saints as a fire. For at first he spoke of “his feet as refined in a furnace,” and afterward he describes his face “as the shining in full strength.” That he might show how great is the brightness of the church, he now mentions the face before the feet, which are refined, and afterward compares his feet with pillars of fire.