The Triumph of the Jews and Christians Who Survive Antichrist

§ 4. On the Great Glory and Great Triumph Which the Jews and Christians Who Survive Antichrist Will Render to God Almighty and to His Son Jesus Christ. Chapter 15, Verses 1–4

I. VERSE 1. And I saw in heaven another sign, great and wonderful: seven angels having the seven last plagues, for in them is filled up the wrath of God. The seven angels with their seven plagues will be spoken of in the following chapter.

II. VERSE 2. And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire; and them that had overcome the beast and his image, and who had not received the character of his name, standing upon this sea of glass mingled with fire, having the harps of God.

Those who will overcome the beast are: first, the remnant of Christians who, by fleeing and hiding during the persecution of Antichrist, will survive him after his fall into hell. Second, by those who will overcome the beast, one also understands the remnant of the Jews who, after having witnessed the judgment and horrible death of the son of perdition, will survive him, will render glory to God the Father and to His Son Jesus Christ, and will be saved. It is of all these that Daniel speaks when he says in chapter 12, verse 12: "Blessed is he that waiteth and cometh unto one thousand three hundred thirty-five days."

The sea of glass signifies Baptism; for Christians who are plunged into the water of Baptism become, as it were, transparent like glass, being sanctified by Jesus Christ. It is added that this sea of glass is mingled with fire. Fire represents the Holy Spirit, vivifying and sanctifying souls in Baptism. Now those who will have overcome the beast are represented as standing upon this sea, burning as it were like glass, because after the death of Antichrist, the remnant of the Jews, and the Christians who will have been deprived of Baptism through fear of the tyranny, will be baptised in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

They will confess the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ as being the true Son of God and the true Messiah. When all these come forth from the sacred bath of Baptism, they will be most firmly established in the grace of God and in the confession of Jesus Christ of Nazareth crucified; and they will glorify above all things the Lord of heaven and earth, who created all. This is why they are represented as having the harps of God. By these harps of God one understands the very great praises which these neophytes will sing in honour of God, when they have witnessed His virtue and His omnipotence, and when the truth has been clearly manifested to them.

Moreover, these harps signify the applause and inexpressible joy which they will make burst forth with transport, when they see the great mercy which God has used toward them, by preserving them from so many dangers and from so great a ruin. It is then that they will bless His goodness and His justice, like thousands of harpists playing upon their harps, of whom mention has been made above.

VERSE 3. And they sang the canticle of Moses, the servant of God, and the canticle of the Lamb, saying: Great and wonderful are thy works, O Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, O King of ages. By the canticle of Moses is signified the confession of the one true God, who created heaven and earth. And by the canticle of the Lamb, the Apostle designates the confession of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Now these are the two truths which the son of perdition will have banished from the earth.

These two canticles are called the canticle of Moses and the canticle of the Lamb because the first contains faith in the one true God, who created heaven and earth and all that they contain; and because the confession of the Jews concerning this truth relates especially to the Old Testament. The faith in Jesus Christ, on the other hand, applies more specially, and as by appropriation, to the New Testament. Now, since in the last days of the world the remnant of the Jews will be united by the bonds of true faith to the remnant of the Christians, Saint John writes with eloquence: And they sang the canticle of Moses, the servant of God, and the canticle of the Lamb, saying: Great and wonderful are thy works, O Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, O King of ages.

VERSE 4. Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and magnify thy name? For thou only art merciful; and all nations shall come and shall adore in thy sight, because thy judgments are manifest. These words contain very great applause which the last Jews and the last Christians will make resound in honour of the divine Majesty, when they see His almighty arm and the judgment which He will have exercised upon the son of perdition and upon his false prophets.

Therefore, first, they will confess the mercy of God manifested in the greatness and wonders of His true works — works which will infinitely surpass and confound the works of Antichrist. For the works of Antichrist will be only impostures, by which the son of perdition will so seduce the Jews and the nations that they will recognise him as the Messiah.

Second, by these words, the last Jews and the last Christians will proclaim God as truly the King of ages, because He alone, by His wisdom, has founded all ages in justice and truth. Now these two great attributes of God, justice and truth, are described in the Old and New Testaments, which these neophytes will then solemnly recognise. The ways of God are truly astonishing and admirable in the manifestation of His works, from the creation of the first man to the last. But these ways of God, however surprising they may appear to us, are founded with admirable wisdom upon His infinite justice and His eternal truth.

This justice and this truth of God are little known to us now, and appear as though veiled before our eyes. They will be still more veiled before the eyes of men who will live in the time of the son of perdition. But after his astonishing death, and especially at the Last Judgment, these two attributes will be manifested in an evident manner. This is why the Jews and the Christians will glorify above all the God of heaven, principally because of the sending of His only Son and of the Holy Spirit upon the earth. And they will say: Thy ways are just and true, O King of ages! And the Jews in particular will praise Him according to the prophecy of Jesus Christ, Matthew 23:39: "For I say to you, you shall not see me henceforth, till you say: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord."

Third, the Christians and the Jews of the last times will glorify the Lord because of His admirable and impenetrable judgments. For the judgments of God, even in His exterior works which concern the creation, preservation, and government of the human race, are abysses which will not be well known except in the last days, and especially at the Last Judgment. And it is from the manifestation of these judgments that there will then result: first, the fear of the Lord expressed by these words: Who shall not fear thee, O Lord? Second, the indescribable glorification of His Name expressed by these other words: And who shall not glorify thy name? Third, the confession of the mercy and fidelity of God: For thou alone art merciful. Fourth, because of this manifestation of the judgments of God, all nations, from the origin of the world, will recognise His infinite justice: And all nations shall come. Fifth, finally, all men, and even the damned, will recognise all these divine mysteries, according to these words: And shall adore in thy sight. The demons themselves believe, according to Saint James 2:19: "Thou believest that there is one God. Thou dost well: the devils also believe and tremble."

Here Ends the Interpretation of the Venerable Servant of God Bartholomew Holzhauser.