The "number of the beast" – 666, or, according to another version, 616 – has always been the greatest mystery in the interpretation of the Apocalypse, from the second century to the present day. This very method of encoding proper names through the sum of the digits corresponding to the letters, the so-called gematria, was generally widespread not only among the Jews, but also among the Greeks and Romans of that era. [54] However, it is clear that one and the same sum could be obtained from different terms (moreover, depending on the language). Therefore, the exact deciphering of the "animal number" is in any case not indisputable. Obviously, a special key is needed for this, which presupposes a special "wisdom" of the initiates. There is some hint here of the existence of such a secret order, but known to John. Starting from antiquity, various interpretations of the animal number have been proposed: some attributed it to paganism altogether: τειτάν or εθυανας (in St. Irenaeus) or λατεινος (in Hippolytus and Eusebius), others see here the name of the Roman emperors, first of all, of course, Nero, but also Caligula (for 616). Here it is possible to assume the motives of political conspiracy due to the fact that it was not always safe to directly call a spade a spade. However, such a motif does not fit in with the heroic and confessing spirit that permeates Revelation. As for the character of the number 666 = 2 ́ 333 itself, it belongs to the category of apocalyptic figures, expressing, on the one hand, a higher power and quality, three times, but doubled, so to speak, in a double aspect, expressing ambiguity and falsehood. In comparison with the sacred number 7, it also expresses a certain incompleteness and inferiority: 6 = 7 – 1, some kind of shadow lies on it. In general, to this day, only fortune-telling remains for the interpretation of this number. [55]

If we admit here the mystery of the revelation about this number of the beast, which was accessible to contemporaries, then for us it has long ceased to be accessible, or rather, from the very beginning, and only vainly disturbs the thought with its mystery. As far as the Lord wills, the mystery of this name will be fully revealed in the fullness of time, but for the time being it remains for us to pass by the incomprehensible, and to that extent it has already become dumb for us because of the incomprehensibility of the cipher. If our attention is attracted by a mystery, then a mystery no longer beckons. Meanwhile, the "number of the beast" has become a riddle for us, and the effort to solve it stems more from irritated curiosity than from piety. It is only necessary to say one thing: of all the features of Revelation belonging to the language and literary manner of the epoch, this one bears its greatest imprint, which is now alien to us and already distant. In this character, inherent in the literary style of the epoch and finding a parallel for itself in the works of the Apocrypha, Revelation differs from all New Testament writing, as well as from the other writings of the Apostle John, i.e. the fourth Gospel and the Epistles. Although it is possible and necessary to find in them individual features that compel us to recognize the unity of their compiler, or, in any case, confirm it, we must admit that they nevertheless represent, as it were, two completely different worlds, and we cannot at all imagine the "beast number" on the pages of the Fourth Gospel, as well as the entire New and Old Testament in general (not excluding even the book of Archpriest Daniel). The symbolism of Revelation, and especially its "gematria," remain a phenomenon entirely sui generis. In this way it stands out from the rest of the composition of divine revelation, perhaps as an object of deliberate mystery, it is separated from it by the closeness of these images, their inaccessibility to understanding, but to the extent that for us now it is actually empty. To intensify in deciphering this cipher now becomes mystically, spiritually and theologically unhealthy for us. In this there is a tendency of a certain occultism, which is not theology, but may even be hostile to it.

Thus, leaving aside historical and literary-critical exegesis, which has its relative scientific value, we must admit our impotence for a theological interpretation of the symbol of the "beast number." What is needed here is a new revelation, which is not extorted by conjectures and subterfuges until it is given from above. And what is accessible to us now refers to the literary style of the era, is said in the language of the 1st-2nd centuries AD and no longer sounds for the 20th. Therefore, it remains for us to grasp only the general meaning of this symbolism, since it refers in general to the sinister demonic character of man-worship, which, however, arises and is revealed within the limits of humanity, albeit poisoned by it. All these manifestations of the bestial principle in man, no matter how blasphemously pretentious they may be, are only human rebellion, the titanism of Luciferism and totalitarianism, which represents, in various senses, the hyperbole of humanity, its rising wave, which has to subside and crumble into infamy... And "wisdom" here refers precisely to this comprehension: "He who has understanding, let him count the number of the beast, for it is the number of man," but only the number of man. Everything else, as if exceeding it, is only a pose, a pretension and a counterfeit, and it is precisely the fullness of divine godliness that is lacking in manhood...

CHAPTER XIV

According to the inner and outer rhythm of Revelation, chapter fourteen in its contemplations is the exact opposite of the previous one, as one of the most difficult and gloomy in it. "And I looked, and behold, the Lamb stood on Mount Zion" (1). What does this place mean here? Is it a heavenly or earthly vision? It is in any case heavenly, since it refers to the Lamb, as well as to the whole environment and other features of the vision (see below). But at the same time, the place of this appearance of the Lamb "on Mount Zion" is indicated. Is it necessary to understand this expression precisely topographically, referring it to Jerusalem, which was already destroyed at the time of the writing of Revelation, or should we see here a general, rather spiritual reference to the stronghold and fortress of the Church, taking the name Zion in prophetic usage? [56] However, it can also be applied to the Zion of the coming Jerusalem as the place of Christ's appearance on earth. This vision is not accompanied by the designation of one's own time, on the contrary, it must be seen as one of the images of apocalyptic accomplishments that rise above the boundaries of space and time, or in any case cannot be confined to them. However, the entire significance of this indication remains valid: the main feature of Revelation is that human history, like the Kingdom of God, takes place not only in heaven, through the sitting of the Son of God at the right hand of the Father, but also on earth, on which He reigns. Therefore, it should be said of this manifestation of His that it is heavenly-earthly. It is the appearance in heaven of the glorified Lamb on earth, even before the transfiguration in glory, that is, before the Parousia. "And with Him are a hundred and four thousand, who have His Father's Name written on their foreheads" (1). In contrast to the seal of the beast and its mark on the hand or forehead, which was spoken of in the previous chapter (XIII, 16), here the elect of God are sealed with the Name of His Father on the forehead. The number 144,000, 12,000 x 12, is the number of the fullness of the Church of the Old and New Testament, which is already known to us. We met with him in VII, 4-8, where it is said that those who were sealed from all the tribes of Israel also received seals on their foreheads (3). Does this identical number of those sealed refer to the same chosen ones spoken of in these two, VII and XIV chapters, so that the difference does not refer to persons, but to the different stages of their spiritual path and the trials they have passed? Or are they quite different pluralities: the first are the twelve tribes of Israel, whether we understand the natural or the spiritual, and the second virgins (see below, 4), or should we identify them? We do not find a direct answer in the book itself, so it remains possible to identify them. In the first seal nothing is said about the attributes on which it is based, so that it is itself an election and, as it were, the will of God, while in the second it is connected with the special feat of the virginity of God's chosen ones, which, however, is not excluded as a possibility for the former. It is important that in the midst of the general spiritual flood this spiritual ark of salvation of the righteous is built by the special guidance of God, in which their chosenness is expressed. In both cases, a certain number, completeness, and multiplicity are characteristic. Then follows a majestic and stunning description of heavenly singing: "And I heard a voice from heaven, as [57] a noise from a multitude of waters, and as [57] the sound of mighty thunder; And he heard the voice of as if [57] harp players playing their harp. They sing as if [57] a new song before the throne, and before the four animals, and before the elders." We already know this from Chapter V, 8-9, as well as from Chapter 19, 6, with some variations, but with the main difference, that the song of the fifth chapter, which is heard in heaven before the face of the Lamb, the glorified Christ, "as it were slain" and "conquered," belongs to the four animals and the twenty-four elders, i.e., predominantly to the heavenly order, while the canto of the fourteenth chapter (as well as the nineteenth chapter) belongs to the 144,000 saints of the human race. and therefore it is sung before the throne and before the four animals and elders, i.e. before the heavenly world (a new confirmation of the heavenly-earthly divine-human character of this appearance of the Lamb: "And no one could learn this song, except these 144 thousand redeemed from the earth" (3) the chosen ones of God. as those who have realized for themselves the power of redemption by the feat of their holiness. Of them it is said: "They were redeemed from men (as) firstfruits [58] (firstborn) to God and to the Lamb (απαρχη τω θεω και τω αρνίω). This expresses their exclusive election in their sacrificial following of God and the Lamb, and in this sense their primacy in the Church. They are also defined as follows: "These are those who are not defiled with women, for they are virgins" (παρθένος) (4). Here one can see ascetics of the monastic order, which has happened in the history of exegesis, but it is also possible to understand the marital state, "marriage is honorable, and the bed is undefiled" (Heb. XIII, 4), as was characteristic primarily of the apostles themselves, except for Ap. John. In general, the purity of married or extramarital life is understood here. Further, παρθένος — virgins — can refer to both sexes, both men and women (which corresponds to the feminine gender — η παρθένος in the New 3avet, however, the same word is used for the masculine gender). The difficulty of the text refers only to the words: "they were not defiled with women," as if forcing him to be attributed to the male sex and excluding (at least partially) the female, and in general forcing him to understand here male, monastic celibacy. Others (Charles I. pp. II, 8-9) see here a later interpolation. Of course, this or that understanding is not of decisive importance for the general thought of the text, although, indeed, the mention of defilement with women, i.e. this inclination towards the monastic ideal, moreover, only male, is somewhat unexpected, and above all as if excluding from the "beginning" of the myrrh-bearing women, martyrs, and female ascetics. The second definition of God's chosen ones is: "They are those who follow the Lamb wherever He goes" (4). "And there is no guile in their mouths, they are blameless before the throne of God" (5). This faithfulness and devotion to Christ is characteristic of the "firstborn" of Christianity.

Now arises the fundamental and difficult dogmatic question in the comprehension of this chapter, namely, concerning the appearance of the Lamb in the midst of His elect. How should it be understood? If we bring it closer to the vision of the fifth chapter, where the slain Lamb takes a book from God the Father who sits on the throne, then it must be interpreted as having a place in heaven, i.e. as a heavenly revelation, similar to the Theophany of the Old Testament (the appearance of the glory of God to Moses and Ezekiel in the Theophany of Isaiah), as well as to the New Testament: the heavenly appearance of Christ to the first martyr Stephen, the Apostle Paul and Christian saints in general. The vision of Christ here is His Manifestation of God in glory, "sitting at the right hand of the Father" – this is how it can be expressed in a general dogmatic definition. This is not a new coming of Christ into the world in any sense, but only His heavenly appearance: it is given to man in a state of mystical ecstasy, of which St. Paul relates. Paul (2 Corinthians, XII), in the "rapture to the third heaven", "I do not know whether in the body or out of the body, the Lord knows" (3), mystical transcendence. A similar or analogous vision of the Father sitting first on the throne (ch. 4) and then of the Son (ch. 5) is described in Revelation as transcendental to earthly existence, although it refers to it (book). There is no earthly humanity here, but only the angelic world, glorifying the Lamb. The only difficulty in this interpretation of the vision is that in this doxology participates "every creature that is in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and in the sea, and everything that is in them, I have heard and spoken" (V, 13). This last addition has to be understood here "prolepticly," as a prophetic anticipation not of what already is, but of what is to be, which is why it is especially confirmed in heaven: "And the four beasts said, Amen" (14).

Thus, chapters IV and V, according to the general plan of Revelation, are a prelude to earthly events in heaven. But what is Chapter XIV in relation to them, which opens with the appearance of the Lamb on Mount Zion, that is, in Jerusalem, in this world and on this earth? And how to understand the state of the 144,000 chosen ones in this regard? Do they belong to this earthly life, just as the 144,000 sealed of the 2 tribes of Israel (VII, 3-8) also belonged? Or they, too, have already crossed the gates of death and entered the other world; what is to be inferred from the continuation of this vision in Chapter VII? The latter speaks of "a great multitude of people from all nations and tribes and peoples and tongues who stood before the throne and before the Lamb" and "came out of great tribulation", and "the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will feed them and lead them to the fountains of living waters, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes" (14-18). This last picture undoubtedly refers to the state after death, and it describes the afterlife of the dead in communion with the Lamb, filled with the bliss of this communion with the abolition of all sorrow ("God will wipe away every tear from their eyes"). However, the very comparison of the imprinted 12 tribes of Israel with those in the afterlife allows us to admit such a connection between the two worlds, this world and the otherworldly, in which such a communion of life is possible, and in any case its parallelism or synchronicity. Otherwise, one can only assume that the sealing of the 12 tribes of Israel takes place during the transition from the life of this world to the afterlife, and therefore must be understood as referring, at least in terms of the power of its realization, also to the world beyond the grave. In short, this whole chapter fourteen is a revelation of the afterlife of those who have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb and follow Him wherever He goes. Here we must first of all admit that here is given such a revelation about the afterlife of the righteous even before the resurrection, about which our school dogmatics knows and says nothing. She walks past him, as if not noticing him. The meaning and power of this revelation refers to the fact that the righteous in the afterlife already have a special bliss of communion with Christ. Christ in them already and through them prepares His enthronement in this world before His Parousia.

Now the question arises, whither, to what realm of existence should this appearance of the Lamb be attributed in Chapter XIV? And to what world do the 144,000 elect who stand with him on Mount Zion belong? This question contains a difficult and entirely new dogmatic problem, namely, that of Christ's approach to the world and His abiding in it before the Parousia. It is clear that those who sing "as it were a new song before the throne and before the four animals and elders" have already passed into the next world. They remain in the afterlife in communion with the heavenly world, but before their resurrection, while still in a state of death, in the separation of the soul from the body. Their singing is described as "a voice from heaven." But at the same time they dwell with the Lamb, who does not appear in heaven, on the throne, but "stands on Mount Zion," i.e., in this earthly world, and this is not yet His second coming. Thus, it is here testified that the Lord's dwelling in heaven and His sitting at the right hand of the Father, during which He promises His disciples to prepare a place "to take you to Himself, that you also may be where I am" (Jn. XIV, 3), is also connected with a certain coming of His, or sojourn, or at least a manifestation in the world. The latter is equally different from the Second Coming, after which "so shall we always be with the Lord" (1 Thess. IV, 17), and from the Eucharistic, mysterious non-separation from the world through "remembrance", in the communion of the Body and Blood, since we see the Lamb "standing on the mountain". At this time, the 144,000 sealed who belong to the world of the departed are also seen with Him. How can we understand dogmatically this union of the Lamb's presence in the world in unity with those who are and remain in the world beyond the grave? In answering this question, some interpreters compare this chapter with Chapter XX, which speaks of the "first resurrection" of those who "lived and reigned with Christ" for 1000 years. Here they see a "proleppel", a preliminary, proleptic narration about the same thing. However, the idea that one can see here the prolepology of the 1000th anniversary is not in itself sufficient to clarify the special meaning of this vision of the Lamb on Mount Zion as the interconnection of chapters VII, XIV and XX, as is clear from the following comparisons. In the first place, what is the proportion of the 144,000 of the 12 tribes of Israel (carnal or spiritual) of chapter VII sealed by an angel to the 144,000 of those who have "the name of the Lamb and His Father written on their foreheads" (which is also a kind of sealing) in chapter XIV? Does this number refer to identical or different chosen ones? We have no direct grounds for a decisive answer to this question: the same number speaks for identification, but it alone is not enough for this, especially since 144,000 can be understood not only as a numeral, but also as a common noun used for an expression that can be characteristic of different bearers of it. If the first seal is understood as referring only to Israel, then the second, referring to Christian ascetics or ascetics, is different from the first. However, there is no obstacle to including in the number of Christian virgins in the general sense of purity and chastity not only those who live in celibacy, as well as in marriage. Nor is there any reason not to include the sealed sons of Israel, especially those understood in an expanded sense that is not only carnal but also spiritual. However, the final solution of the question of the identity or difference of 144,000 in both cases is not in itself of decisive importance. It is much more important to know here that there are chosen ones who are bound together by closeness to Christ, whether by virtue of personal sealing or by virtue of a special feat, ascetic or heroic, expressed in special faithfulness to the Lamb, "who follow Him wherever He goes" (XIV, 4). More significant in relation to the meaning of XIV, 1-5 is the question of that fellowship with the Lamb in which there are 144,000 "standing with Him" on Mount Zion. This last one, indeed, makes us think that the Lamb on earth, in His return to the world even before the Parousia, is in special communion with the elect from the other world; through the same they also take part in the earthly building of the Church, through the enthronement of the Lamb. We encountered this general idea even earlier, in Chapter VI, 10-11, where it is said that after the opening of the fifth seal, the souls of those who were killed for the word of God (which is also a special kind of calling or sealing) cry out to God for vengeance, and they are given "rest" for a short time along with white clothes. And that prayerful cry, as well as the answer to it, in its hearing, also testifies to the participation of the departed in earthly history beyond the grave, but here it is limited only by the power of prayerful appeal to God in the afterlife. But the same text has a connection with XIV, 1-5, since in the latter the same idea is expressed more concretely: it is here that we are talking about a certain union with Christ on Mount Zion of the souls of these chosen ones in their state beyond the gates of death. Here is testified to a certain mystery of revelation, which is still inaccessible to us, namely, the coming of Christ into the world before the Parousia, as well as this afterlife participation in it of the elect 144,000. If we continue the revelation of this thought even further, before the "first resurrection," then it will turn out to be in a really proleptic relation to it, as a kind of prelude to it. However, this comparison or propleple in itself does not give much for the understanding of the corresponding chapters, each in its own content, so that its exegetical significance should not be exaggerated. But what is really especially important here is the idea that Christ at certain times in the history of the world came to earth to reign on it, and the beginning of these comings is marked precisely in Chapter XIV, and "Mount Zion" is the place of His new, but still pre-parusian appearance in the world. Moreover, it is not said whether He is really visible on earth in His coming, or whether He remains invisible, being accessible only to knowledge in the afterlife. We will have to meet with this question in the following exposition.

The special rhythm characteristic of Revelation is expressed in a kind of harmony of dissonances, in which there is an alternation of visions and testimonies of an opposite nature. What happens on earth does not coincide at all with what is revealed in heaven, and the condensation of earthly darkness is accompanied by heavenly triumph. Thus, in chapter XI, after the great earthquake and the "second woe" in heaven, the coming of the Kingdom of Christ is proclaimed (15-16, 19). Likewise, here the appearance of the Lamb on Mount Zion marks a new and special turn in history toward the more decisive end times. This is expressed in the second half of the fourteenth chapter in the solemn proclamation through the angels, as well as in their actions. A series of visions of the angels opens with "another [59] angel flying in the middle of heaven" (16), his solemn worldwide appearance. He "had the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth, and to every nation and kindred, and tongue, and people" (6). This Gospel is proclaimed universally and throughout the Church, apart from or above the confessional and national divisions of the Church. This is the preaching of evangelical, universal Christianity, in which confessions and nationalities merge or are overcome. It must be remembered that in general the very origin of Revelation, as well as of the Gospel, so to speak, is pre-confessional, it does not know the "division of the churches," and this preaching of the eternal Gospel obviously refers to the time before their very origin. Here, however, it presupposes that they have already been overcome, freedom from their limitations. It contains, therefore, the silent preaching of the "union of the churches," which must take place before the end of the world. [60] The question naturally arises: what is this eternal Gospel and how does it relate to the Four Gospels given to the Church? Is there a new revelation that complements or reveals the latter? It is difficult to answer this question with definitive certainty. We can only say that the Four Gospels are irrevocable, for it contains the image of Christ and His teaching not made by hands. However, its very perception is not contained in immobility, but, on the contrary, it is revealed in a new way at all times of history, together with the life of mankind in Christ. It is not a letter, but a spirit. It is given not only to time, but to all times, it is super-temporal and in this sense eternal. Moreover, it belongs to the life not only of this age, but also of the age to come. However, to understand the Gospel only as a book, even if it is a book of books, but still one of the books, to which other, further books, even the New Testament, even the Apocalypse, can be added, in a certain sense is hardly correct. Would it not be more correct to assimilate to the Gospel in a certain sense the uniqueness and absoluteness, and even to consider the entire New Testament together with the Old as an interpretation of the Gospel? The latter, moreover, is not even limited to the written word, but also includes the entire new tradition and understanding of the Church, the entire life of the Church in Christ and with Christ. And in any case, it would mean to belittle the Holy Four Gospels, if next to it and in addition to it we admit some new Gospel (fifth?), hitherto unknown. This would mean admitting that the Four Gospels are insufficient, which is impossible. But this eternal Gospel is always read anew and in a new way in the life of both the individual and the whole Church. It seems that this is precisely what the words of the angel about the eternal Gospel, perceived in the spirit of prophecy, not deadening, but life-giving, signify here.

However, this new revelation of the Holy Gospel in the eternity of its truth refers to its perception connected with the approach of the end and the impending judgment, and it will be produced on the basis of the Gospel. The angel calls out to all mankind, both those who are able to hear this gospel and those who are not able to do so: "Fear God and give Him glory, for the hour of His judgment has come, and worship Him who created the heavens and the earth and the sea and the fountains of waters" (7). The coming of judgment will be unexpected, for "as the lightning proceeds from the east, and is seen even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of man be" (Matt. XXIV, 27) in its suddenness, when "He will send His angels with a loud trumpet, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from the end of the heavens to their extremity" (31). How then can we reconcile this suddenness of the coming of Christ's judgment with those anticipations of it which are spoken of in Revelation? Obviously, there is no contradiction here, since both refer to different planes of existence or to different ages, to the present and to the future, which are connected and correlative, but are not enclosed in the unity of times and seasons. Mankind is once again called to the fear of God and repentance before the end. It is much more difficult to answer here another question, which is also the general question of the entire Apocalypse: how will the precedence of the Angel who reveals the eternal Gospel take place and be perceived in the general context of history, in the life of the world? One may ask oneself how he will notice this appearance of the angel, how will he hear his voice, deafened by his own voices, crackles, noises, and his own thunders? How will its immanence, when opened, give place to the transcendence of the messenger of heaven? To this we have no other answer than faith: it will be, whether it will appear as a new spiritual self-consciousness, which, having arisen in some, will spread to others, chosen to become universal, to embrace the whole Christian world. Or it will be a new prophetic revelation, we do not know. But in any case, it will be a spiritual event, which has not yet come, but its coming is a tea. Without it, the world cannot mature to its end, and it will be at the same time the action of the Spirit of God, the power of Christ in the world, and at the same time the reciprocal comprehension of humanity, "synergism." At the same time, it is important to emphasize, in accordance with the spirit of the Apocalypse, that it will take place in both worlds, the earthly and the afterlife. In other words, the "union of the churches" on the basis of their new evangelization will take place not only in earthly history, but also in heavenly metahistory, in the world beyond the grave. The saints are spoken of in Chapter XIV, at the beginning, but they are also remembered now in connection with the harbingers of the end. It speaks of "the patience of the saints" and their blessed end (12) (see below). Such is the sign of the approach of the end through the maturation of historical Christianity, according to the Revelation of John. This will be the worship of the Creator of heaven and earth, of the sea and the fountains of waters, combined with reverence and fear of God, as well as praise of Him in the approach of "the hour of His judgment" (7).

The first angel, the evangelist of the eternal Gospel, is followed by two other heralds of God's thunderstorm, judgment on the sinful world. The first of them announces the fall of "Babylon": "Babylon is fallen, the great city is fallen, because she has drunk all the nations with the fierce wine of her fornication" (8). Here we have in mind another, black universality, the Babylonian fornication, the fornication of the "great city." For the time being, this is spoken of proleptically (more on this in chapters XVII and XVIII). It is obvious that the great city of Babylon is generally synonymous with human fornication, which is generally connected with urban civilization (the closest image of Rome). Here is announced the internal, already predetermined in heaven, but not yet manifested externally, fall of Babylon in the general judgment of the world, the hour of which has "come."

These two are followed by a third angel, who announces the heavenly judgment on those who worship the beast and his image and accept his mark (we already know the meaning of these symbols). "He shall drink the wine of the wrath of God, the whole wine prepared in the cup of his wrath, and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone before the holy angels and before the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment shall ascend forever and ever, and shall have no rest day or night" (10-11). This text is, of course, proleptic: it also speaks of the heavenly predetermination of the lot of animal worshippers. First of all, it is necessary to correlate this with the Gospel and other prophecies about the Last Judgment and thereby determine, so to speak, its specific gravity. First of all, it is impossible not to notice that Revelation expresses this idea of the judgment and judgment of the beast-worshippers in its own language, moreover, different from that of the Gospel; in particular, in the Lesser Apocalypse of the Synoptics (Matt. XXV, with parallels), as well as other New Testament texts of similar content, nothing is said about the worship of the beast at all,

In Revelation there is also a special thought. First of all, it may be asked whether Babylon and the Beast Worshippers coincide with each other. In the case of Babylon, the collapse of the false beginnings of her life is testified, then in the case of the beast-worshippers it is said about their personal destiny, and not about bestiality as such. If it is possible for him to find a certain parallel between the teaching of St. Paul. In the Epistle to the Thessalonians about the Antichrist (and even in the First Epistle of John), there still remains a certain difference between the Antichrist and the beast, with all the inner connection. In any case, apart from Revelation, there is no longer any direct mention of the judgment of the beast-worshippers. Further, the question is whether this threat is addressed and conveyed to them, or whether it is a heavenly voice that foretells the future as a testimony to God's truth, as a prophecy. Moreover, if we take the general context of the same question in the previous and subsequent chapters, this is done here in a praleptic way, and we shall meet with it again, and more than once.