The demon worshiper: “ The rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues, repented not of the works of their hands--neither repented they of their murders, fornication, sorceries, nor their thefts” --9:20-21. The rest of the men: This referred to the residual number specified to be survivors of this second woe, pronounced on “ the third part of men.” They are described as being guilty of the “ worship of devils,” which covered all the idolatrous objects immediately mentioned--“ which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk,” classified as “ idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood"--all of which declared to be “ the works of their hands.” To include all these categories of idolatry under the blanket indictment of “ the worship of devils” was in keeping with the law of the Jews, which proscribed all idol worship as homage “ unto devils,” and was branded as religious whoredom in the Mosaic law. “ They shall no more offer their sacrifices unto devils, after whom they have gone a whoring. This shall be a statute forever unto them throughout their generations.” (Leviticus 17:7) Again, in the song of Moses it is said: “ They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared (worshiped) not.” (Deuteronomy 32:17) The apostle Paul upholds the Mosaic statute on that point, having himself lived under it as a Jew: “ But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God, and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils.” (1 Corinthians 10:20) Those survivors here designated as “ the rest of the men” were evidently that residue of Jewish people who were classed as adherents of Jezebel, and as holding the doctrine of Balaam in the letters to the seven churches (chapter 2:14; 2:20)--the apostate Israelites “ of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie.” (Chapter 3:9) Reference to the comments on these verses in chapters two and three will spare further discussion of the symbolic names of Jezebel and Balaam here. Because of her determination to exterminate the prophets of Israel and to sabotage the nation of Israel by idolatrous worship, her name stood for infamy among the people of Israel, and was used in the apocalypse of Revelation to symbolize the Judaizers in the churches. The name Balaam carried a similar symbolic connotation, because of that mongrel prophet’ s seductive schemes to destroy the people of Israel by means of heathen practices. Thus the figurative phrases “ the doctrine of Balaam" and “ that woman Jezebel” originated, as representative of that element in the churches “ which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie.” In the present context the phrase “ the rest of the men” apparently referred to that residue classed as adherents of Jezebel, and further identified with “ the doctrine of Balaam” --chapter 2:14--"who taught Balak to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit fornication.” The language of this vision describing those Jew--Israelites as practicers of these prohibited things was largely an adaptation of the language of Isaiah in forecasting an extolling allegiance to the Holy One of Israel amid the idolatries of the nations: “ At that day shall a man look to his maker, and his eyes shall have respect to the Holy One of Israel. And he shall not look to the altars, the works of his hands, neither shall respect that which his fingers have made, either the groves or the images. In that day shall his strong cities be as a forsaken bough, and an uppermost branch, which they left because of the children of Israel: and there shall be desolation. Because thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation.” (Isaiah 17:7-10) These “ men” who avoided the plagues of the second woe were those Jews who were affiliated with those things defined in verse 20, and the parallel passages cited, and “ repented not” of these “ works of their hands” ; but their escape from the tribulations of the woe did not secure immunity from the condemnation of disloyalty to the God who recompensed to all men their evil. Neither repented . . . murders, sorceries, fornication, thefts: The category of evil things were the flagrant crimes of Jezebel, recorded in 1 Kings 21:14-15 and 2 Kings 9:22, and again connects “ the rest of the men” of these verses with the Jezebel apostates. While the idolatries of verse 20 and the crimes of verse 21 were all in violation of both tables of the decalogue, they were not to be applied literally in this vision-their idolatries, murders, sorceries and thefts belonged to the spiritual category for which those sensual things stood. Abandoning Christianity for the praise of princes was as idolatry; deserting Christ to escape malediction was murder of his Cause; turning from the principles of the faith to the arts of magic was a broad definition of sorcery (Acts 13:6; Acts 19:13), of which there seemed to be a rather numerous party. (Colossians 2:18-23) And theft does not consist only in the violation of the eighth commandment--seducing men was spiritual theft. (John 10:8-10; Matthew 15:9; Jeremiah 23:30; 1 Timothy 1:10) That fornication has a figurative as well as physical meaning goes without saying. (Revelation 2:21; Revelation 19:2; 2 Chronicles 21:11; Revelation 17:5) Apostasy is spiritual fornication. Thus “ the rest of the men” is a phrase designating apostate Israelites, guilty of the entire category of spiritual crimes, of which they “ repented not” --verse 20; “ neither repented” --verse 21. This dual emphasis on the impenitence of these apostates was for the four things representative of apostasy both under the decalogue of Moses and the gospel of Christ. First, murder: This crime exists in fact in the malicious act of taking human life (2 Samuel 13:28; 1 Kings 21:19; Mark 15:7; Exodus 22:2-3; Deuteronomy 18:9; Numbers 35:27-31) It exists in principle in seeds of wrath, hate, retaliation, oppression, and all of its evil consequences. (James 4:2; James 5:6; Romans 1:29; 1 John 3:15) It exists in effect in vicarious sufferings, reproaches, and afflictions. (Psalms 44:22; Romans 8:36; 1 Corinthians 15:30-32; 2 Corinthians 6:9; John 8:44; Job 5:2; Job 24:14) It was a flagrant, odious and abominable crime. For intentional murder there was no legal pardon, nor ceremonial remission. (Deuteronomy 19:13; Deuteronomy 21:9; Exodus 21:14; Exodus 21:28-29; Numbers 35:30-34) Figuratively, it represented a spiritual degeneracy of the emotions of love and loyalty which leads to betrayal and destruction of righteous causes and men. It is a fitting characterization here. Second, sorceries or magic: This was a professional part of divination, described in Exodus 7:11; Deuteronomy 18:10; Acts 8:9; and Acts 13:6. It was a system of pseudo-divinity belonging to the dark demon world, as mentioned in Acts 16:16-18. It was an essential element in false religions and was held in opposition to the true religion of the Jews, as in Leviticus 20:27; Deuteronomy 18:9-14; Jeremiah 14:14. It was prevalent among Jews, many of whom believed in it and resorted to it, as stated in Samuel 28:3-20. In whatever form it was regarded or practiced it was reproachful to the Mosaic religion and to Christianity, and was reprobated in both the law and the gospel. The writings of the prophets are full of invectives against Israelites who consulted diviners and of the false prophets seducing the people by means of it, examples of which are Jeremiah 14:14, and Ezekiel 13:6-7. Again, here was a fitting characterization of the Jewish apostasies. Third, fornication: This is a term of frequent occurrence in all the sacred writings to denote acts of lewdness and of incontinency. It is used for the sin of impurity in 1 Corinthians 6:13; 1 Corinthians 7:2 and Jude ‘ 7. It is used for the sin of adultery in Matthew 5:28-32 and 1 Thessalonians 4:3. It is used for the sin of incest in 1 Corinthians 5:1. It is used for spiritual and religious infidelity, apostasy from truth and right in 2 Chronicles 21:11 and Revelation 19:2. In the spiritual sense it denotes the unfaithfulness of the Israelites because the union between God and Israel was set forth as marriage. (Jeremiah 3:9; Ezekiel 23:37; Isaiah 23:17) Jesus upbraided a faithless God-denying and Christ-rejecting age as “ an adulterous generation” in Matthew 12:39. The mingling of error and evil with that which was true and pure in teaching, worship and practice was spiritual adultery. It applied to participation in heathenism or affiliation with any false system or practice. (James 4:4) It was truly an apt use in this present scene. Fourth, theft: The term here referred to the deceptions of any form of stealing. It was applied physically to the unlawful taking of anything that belongs to another, as in Exodus 20:15; Job 30:5 and Luke 10:30. It was applied morally, or ethically, to fraudulence, as in Matthew 21:13. It was applied doctrinally and spiritually to seduction, to seducers of doctrine, as in Jeremiah 7:9; Jeremiah 23:30, Ezekiel 13:10; 1 Timothy 4:1; 2 Timothy 3:13; 1 John 2:26 and Mark 13:22. In this sixth trumpet scene these words are employed figuratively, not literally. It was spiritual murder, in the sense of traitors to the Jewish cause, and betrayers of their brethren. It was spiritual sorcery in the magical influence exercised over the Jewish population. It was spiritual fornication in adulterous affiliation with the false systems of deism, pantheism and paganism. It was spiritual theft in the stealing of the truth from men’ s hearts and God’ s way from their lives. The correctness of the characterization of the “ rest of the men which were not killed by the plagues,” and who “ repented not” of the category of figurative crimes, as the residual number of the Jewish people, is supported by the corresponding Jewish history of the same period. The sins listed in the category of verses 20 and 21 were typical of all Jewish apostasies from the law of Moses promulgated from Mount Sinai and which was preached in all the synagogues. “ Thou camest down upon Mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right judgments and true laws, good statutes and commandments . . . by the hand of Moses thy servant.” (Nehemiah 9:13-14) “ For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.” (Acts 15:21) But the residue of this nation were those to whom John said, “ 0 generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come,” (Matthew 3:7); and whom Jesus called an “ offspring of vipers” (Matthew 23:28-33). These were condemnations of which hypocrisy and iniquity made them deserving. Among them arose a legion of false prophets and seducers to lead them astray, particularly true in the very period of the calamities portrayed in the vision of these trumpet visions and of corresponding description in the records of Matthew, Mark and Luke on the destruction of Jerusalem. “ And there shall arise false prophets and shall show great signs and wonders, insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.” (Matthew 24:24) “ And they shall show signs and wonders to seduce.” (Mark 13:22) “ And ye shall be betrayed . . . and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.” (Luke 21:16) Later, before these things came to pass that were thus foretold to mark the latter part of that period ending with the fall of Jerusalem, inspired apostles were issuing warnings against all such seducers and their doctrines, with all the resulting wickedness. “ Now the spirit speaketh expressly that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.” (2 Timothy 4:1) “ This know also that in the last days perilous times shall come.” (2 Timothy 3:1) These apostolic admonitions correspond with the warnings of the Lord in the discourse on Jerusalem, and are descriptive of the same Jewish apostasies of the residual number in the closing scene of the sixth trumpet vision. The drawing of these parallels was in full accord with the teaching of the passages cited in reference to the times, with the history of that period, and with the purpose of the apocalypse. The voice from the four horns of the altar commanded the angel of the sixth trumpet to “ loose” the four agents which were “ bound” in or at “ the great river Euphrates” (verse 14) was the ominous announcement of encompassing desolation. It is a geographical fact that the Euphrates river formed the boundary of the Roman empire at the time of the Jewish-Roman war, and their army installations and concentrations were there where the legions of this vision were said to be “ bound.” It was therefore in harmony with all the facts, scriptural and historical that the mighty cavalry of the Euphrates portrayed in this trumpet was the immense Roman army which marched against Jerusalem and initiated the terrible siege resulting in all the desolation foretold by Daniel and depicted by the Lord in pointing up the fulfillment. Matthew’ s account reads: “ When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place, (whoso readeth let him understand), then let them which be in Judea flee."-- Matthew 24:15-16. Luke’ s record reads: “ And when ye shall see Jerusalem encompassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. Then let them which are in Jerusalem flee to the mountains."-- Luke 21:20-21. Here Daniel’ s vision, in chapters 9 and 12 of his prophecy, were merged with the signs of the Lord’ s Jerusalem discourse and with the like symbols of John’ s apocalypse. To search the distant future for a fulfillment of these symbolic descriptions, not only reduces both the text and the context of Revelation to confusion, but renders meaningless all of the passages which apply with such clarity and so full of force to that period. The interpretations which remove these events of the symbolic history from the Neroan period of the apostolic century, and assign them to centuries later and yet to come are rank anachronisms. Any attempt to explain these visions by the rise and fall of the successive monarchies, through the centuries from them till now and on to the end of time, would necessarily continue the existence of the armies symbolized in this vision for periods ranging from five to twenty centuries, which not only destroys all practical applications of the symbolic descriptions to the people to whom they were addressed, rendering them impossible to understand, but it furthermore declares an open season for the maneuvering, manipulation and juggling of events of history to fit a manufactured theory. But viewed in the light of the application of the symbols of Revelation to the period of time in which the people lived to whom the visions were addressed, all such anachronisms disappear.