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vial as being the ultimate period of the seventh trumpet. Accordingly, by a regular descent from genus to species and from species to sub-species, as Achan was detected of old, first by the lot falling upon his tribe, next by the lot falling upon his family included within his tribe, and lastly by the lot falling upon the particular household of his father included within his family at large1: so that mighty earthquake, by which Babylon is at length overthrown, is first determined to belong to the period of the seventh seal, next to the period of the seventh trumpet included within the seventh seal, and lastly to the period of the seventh vial included within the seventh trumpet 2.

'Josh. vii. 16-18.

* Rev. viii. 5. xi. 19. xvi. 18.

CHAPTER V.

RESPECTING THE APOCALYPTIC THIRD PART.

WITH the septenary of the trumpets commences the frequent use of a phrase, not hitherto employed in the Apocalypse. It will be necessary, therefore, to ascertain its import, ere we can satisfactorily proceed in the labour of exposition.

The phrase, to which I allude, is THE THIRD PART'. Thus, under the first trumpet, we read of the third part of the earth and the trees; under the second trumpet, of the third part of the sea and the fishes; under the third trumpet, of the third part of the rivers and fountains ; under the fourth trumpet, of the third part of the heavenly bodies; and, under the sixth trumpet, of the third part of men: while again, in the vision of the mystic woman and her child, the dragon is said to draw down from heaven the third part of the stars.

I. For the right understanding of this phrase we must observe, that, throughout the Apocalypse, the Roman Ecumenè or World or Empire is symbolised by the natural world. Hence it is furnished with its earth or its geographical platform, with its sea or its inhabitants viewed as thrown into a state of

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war and revolution, with its rivers or its component kingdoms, and with its heavenly luminaries or governing powers'.

If, then, the world be the Roman Empire, a third part of the world must denote a third part of the Roman Empire. The fractional expression, however, of a third part, implies a triple division of the Roman World. We have to inquire, therefore, what are those three portions of the Empire, to which the phrase in question alludes".

1. Commentators are very generally and very reasonably agreed, that at least the three first trumpets relate to the subversion of the Roman Imperial Dignity in the Western or Latin Empire, the proper seat of which is the European continent.

1 See above book i. chap. 1. § II. 1. (1.)

It is worthy of remark, that, as the Roman Empire, after the absorption of its three predecessors, becomes the entire prophetic universe, and in that capacity admits of a division into three parts: so, when viewed with immediate reference to the three preceding Empires, it is considered only as a fourth part of the earth, and is accordingly so described by the apocalyptic prophet himself. Rev. vi. 8. See above book iv. chap. ii. § II. 4. The idea I take to be precisely the same, as that which pervades the arrangement of the great metallic image. Under one aspect, the Roman Empire is geographically equivalent to the entire image under another aspect, it is only one fourth part of it. A similar remark applies to the seven-headed wild-beast of the Apocalypse. It unites in one symbol all the four beasts of Daniel's vision: whence, in its composition, it is analogous to the metallic image. Such being the case, the Roman Empire is either the whole wild-beast or only a fourth part of him, according to the aspect under which it is viewed.

Hence the third part of the Roman world, which is affected by the three first trumpets, must be the Latin Empire of the West.

2. If, then, the Latin Empire be one third part of the entire Roman World, the Greek or Eastern Empire will obviously be viewed as another third part.

Accordingly, in the oracle of the fourth trumpet, the ruling powers of the Greek Empire (for the Imperial Dignity had now been overturned in the West) are described, as being the third part of the heavenly bodies : and again, in the oracle of the sixth trumpet, under which the Greek Monarchy is overturned by the agency of the Euphratèan horse men, the political death of that Monarchy is styled the slaughter of the third part of men.

3. We have now only to ascertain the remaining third part: and this, since the Western Latin Empire and the Eastern Greek Empire are each a third part of the entire Roman World, must plainly be composed of the Southern Provinces which were situated in the continent of Africa.

The last third part, though necessary to complete arithmetically the integral number, was never the seat of government; but was always dependent upon the two others : hence, as such, it is never specially mentioned in the Apocalypse. But the Empire of the West and the Empire of the East, having each become an independent sovereignty, were, in that capacity, fit subjects for prophetic notice.

II. This phrase of THE THIRD PART is never used in the Apocalypse, until we reach the period of the first trumpet. We may be sure, therefore, from the very reason of the thing, that some event occurred immediately before the sounding of that trumpet, which rendered the frequent subsequent use of the phrase both necessary and proper.

Nor shall we find ourselves mistaken in this persuasion. The circumstance in question was the death of the great Theodosius. To speak in the words of a celebrated historian, the genius of Rome expired with Theodosius, the last of the successors of Augustus and Constantine, who appeared in the field at the head of their armies, and whose authority was universally acknowledged throughout the whole extent of the Empire', On the death of this warlike prince, the Roman World was finally and permanently divided into the two independent Empires of the East and the West, while the Southern Provinces of Africa remained subject either to the one or to the other of them. Henceforth, therefore, a new phraseology became necessary. Hitherto, the whole Empire had been the general stage of action: but now the prophet has to describe separately the fortunes of two independent portions of it. From this cause originated the expression of THE THIRD PART, which hereafter so frequently occurs in the Apocalypse.

'Hist, of the Decline, vol. v. p. 137.

VOL. II.

A a

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