This woman is "clothed with the sun." She has "put on the Lord Jesus Christ." (Rom. xiii. 14.) He is "the Lord her righteousness." (Jer. xxiii. 6.) The "moon under her feet," may represent the "beggarly elements" of the Mosaic ritual, sublunary things, or the ordinances which derive all their light from the "Sun of righteousness." The "twelve stars" are the doctrine of the apostles, or rather the apostles' legitimate successors; their _legitimacy_ tested by their doctrine and order in opposition to the _imaginary historical line_ of papistical and prelatic succession. A faithful gospel ministry are ever her stars and her crown, (ch. i. 20.) The true apostolic church, thus scripturally constituted, (ch. xi. 1,) becomes the joyful mother of a holy seed. (Ps. cxiii. 9; Gal. iv. 26, 27.) 3. And there appeared another wonder in heaven, and, behold, a great red dragon, having seven heads, and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. 4. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born. 5. And she brought forth a man-child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne. 6. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days. Vs. 3-6.--The next "sign in heaven," exciting the apostle's admiration, was "a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns,"--The dragon is fully described, v. 9, leaving no place, or even _pretence_ for conjecture. He is known from the day that he "beguiled Eve" in the garden of Eden. "That old serpent" still intrudes among the saints, in the garden of the Lord. (Job i. 6; John vi. 70; xiii. 27.) As the devil possessed the serpent to deceive the mother of mankind, so, with the same malevolent design, he possessed himself of the whole political and ecclesiastical power of the Roman empire, thereby to deceive and destroy the "seed of the woman," all true believers. His color is _red_, denoting his character as cruel and blood-thirsty. Sir Isaac Newton considers the dragon as symbolical of the Greek Christian empire of Constantinople. Scott thinks this symbol represents the pagan Roman empire; while others suppose the British government to answer the symbol, because of the scarlet costume of her officers and soldiers! Thus, inspired symbols may mean any thing suggested to the imaginations of men, not by the text or context, but by their respective and conflicting political prejudices. Surely, if the red color signify any thing besides _cruelty_, it may be discerned with equal clearness in the scarlet cloaks of _Pope_ and _Cardinals_. As "heaven" is to be taken in an ecclesiastical sense, so are the "stars," (ch. i. 20,--) "the angels