Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Book Overview - Revelation

by Robert Hawker

THE REVELATION OF ST. JOHN THE DEVINE

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS

I PRAY for grace, to enter upon this sublime and mysterious Book of God, while proposing my humble observations upon it, with the most profound reverence and godly fear: And as I approach the mercy-seat, to bend the knee of my soul, before the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, that in meditating on this blessed portion of his holy word, which relates so immediately to the Person of Christ and his kingdom, the Lord may give unto me, the spirit of wisdom, and revelation in the knowledge of Him.

Indeed, when first I ventured on this Poor Man's Commentary of the Bible, I fully intended, if it should please the Lord to guide me through it, and bring me to this Book of the Revelation, to have passed over those sacred Chapters, without presuming to offer any observations of mine. I had seen so many erroneous opinions, from great and good men on this part of the word of God, and especially in their calculations of the times, when the several Prophecies, yet remaining to be fulfilled, would be accomplished, that I judged it rather presumptuous than wise, to touch this part of the inspired records. And I still think, that as those great and good men, (for great and good men they certainly were, in their day and generation,) have all been found in error, in limiting the period when those prophecies would certainly be fulfilled, it can neither be decent nor proper in men taught of God to presume to be wise, above what is written, and to offer their conjectures concerning what God hath not been pleased to discover. The words of Jesus to his disciples after he arose from the dead, in answer to the anxious enquiry they put to him, concerning the time of the Lord's restoring the kingdom of Israel, appears decided on this point; It is not for you to know the times, or the seasons which the Father hath put in his own power, Acts 1:6-7. But when I read again and again, what is said in the opening of this precious Book of God; Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the Words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein; I dared not be wholly silent. And I thought moreover, that if God the Holy Ghost (whose guidings in this work I had all along implored, and whose grace in instruction in it I hope I can now, with truth, say I have found,) would still graciously condescend to go before, and follow me, the Lord would keep me from treading in, to that part of the sacred ground, which relates to prophecies yet unfulfilled, by attempting to calculate any time, when I might presume on their accomplishment, but leave it wholly to the Lord; while; under his teaching, I might humbly offer my observations, on such only, as we have seen come to pass. With these limitations I felt encouraged to prosecute my Poor Man's Commentary on this part also of the divine word, deriving advantage, even from the mistakes of those great servants of the Lord, which have gone before, and which in those points act as light-houses at sea, purposely placed there to keep off the mariner, from approaching too near the rocks, and quicksands around them.

And I confess, that under these later views I have taken of the subject, I have felt additional encouragement, to prosecute my feeble labors for the Poor Man's Commentary, on this part of the word of God, from the recollection, that now in the present hour, time hath brought forward many things to view in this scripture, and, through the Lord's teaching, more light hath been thrown upon the predictions here given, than in the day when those great and good men lived, whom I allude to, who for years past have been gathered to their fathers, and have seen corruption. Many of the prophecies have since been accomplished, and more seem to be now accomplishing in the earth. And, indeed, on the supposition that we, who are now entered some years into the nineteenth Century, are they upon whom the ends of the world are come, it must behove the people of God to be on the look-out, like the Prophet on the watch-tower, and in prayer and humble waitings on the Lord, expect those manifestations predicted to be accomplished, concerning his Church. That the interests of Zion, are at the bottom of all God's designs in the earth, and that the putting down of one kingdom, and raising up of another, have no ultimate object, but of bringing on the Lord's purposes, concerning Christ and his Church; is too clear a truth to need the being insisted upon. And fully assured we are, that when all the prophecies which are in this Holy Scripture, yet remaining to be fulfilled, are accomplished, the last sand, in the hour-glass of time, will have run out; and the whole purposes of the Lord concerning this earth, will be completed. And then, that event takes place, which John heard proclaimed by the Angel, he lifted up his hand to heaven, and swore by him that liveth forever and ever, that there should be time no longer. Then, the mystery of God shall be finished. Then, the seventh Angel shall sound, and great voices will be heard in heaven, saying, the kingdoms of this world, are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever, Revelation 10:5-7 and Revelation 11:15.

The great point of error, into which all my predecessors of Commentators, on this blessed Book of God, more or less, have fallen, I shall, through grace, wholly avoid. I shall not knowingly, offer a single attempt, in a way of calculation as to the time many have supposed, in which the prophecies herein contained, yet remaining to be fulfilled, will be accomplished. Here I desire to remain, as much as ever, wholly silent. Indeed, it hath always appeared unto me, to have been along the Lord's design, in relation to the prophecies in general, to throw a veil over them, until they are fulfilled. And then, when they have been brought to pass, so complete an agreement hath discovered itself, between the prediction and the event, that the Lord's people have found cause to stand the more amazed, at their dullness of perception and the Lord's glory. But there is a manifest wisdom of God in the obscurity. It tends to the promotion of greater faith. It calls forth greater dependence upon the Lord. And God speaks in his word, and by his word to his people, during the suspense of accomplishment, as he did to the Prophet of old; Go thy way, Daniel, for the words are closed up, and sealed the time of the end. Thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot, at the end of the days, Daniel 12:8-9; Dan_12:13.

I must not indulge myself with any longer Preface, in an humble work like this, on general points. But I must beg to extend these observations a little further, by way of introduction to the sacred Book of the Revelation, which we are going to enter upon. It will be proper at the threshold, to pause a moment and consider, both the Lord's gracious design, in his gift of it to the Church, and also to pray over it, as we enter upon it, that this blessing of a Covenant God in Christ may be made profitable to our souls.