he seven heads and ten horns--the seven forms of government, and
the ten kingdoms out of which grew the eleventh horn which Daniel saw, or
the beast which John saw. Thus we have the beast with its seven heads and
ten horns.

Ver. 2. "And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet
were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the
dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority."

Sins and worldliness are termed spots by the Bible. The leopard is a
spotted beast, so no other animal could better represent the Romish sect
with its dark spots of sin and crime. The bear makes use of the foot to
deal the deadly blow upon an enemy. The papacy with its tyrannical feet
has trodden down all that would dare rise against it. Great thunderings
and loud roarings proceed out of the mouth of the lion in his strength and
glory. So this beast fitly represents the Catholic church in her boasted
strength, power, and authority.

The dragon that gave this ecclesiastical beast its authority and seat was
the Roman state. In connection with this we will consider the first three
verses of the twelfth chapter of Revelation. "And there appeared a great
wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her
feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars." Ver. 1. The woman is the
church. By believing or standing upon the Word a soul is brought into the
church by the Spirit. Thus the church stands upon the moon (the Word of
God), clothed by the sun (the Spirit). This is no disagreement with a
former use we have made of the sun and moon as symbols. An object may be
used to symbolize different things in different prophecies.

"And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red
dragon, having seven heads and ten horns." Ver. 3. This dragon is the same
as the dragon that gave power to the beast of Rev. 13:2; namely, the Roman
state. The Roman empire, pagan as it was, endeavored to devour the church
as is said of the dragon in Rev. 12:4.

We will now return to Rev. 13:3: "And I saw one of his heads as it were
wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world
wondered after the beast."

As we have before observed, the seven original heads were the seven
principalities, or forms of government, which gave rise to the Roman
empire. A head or an ecclesiastical form of government in Romanism
received a wound. The world wondered after the beast. This b