And with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.—Most of these martyrs will doubtless be honored by a place in the Great Company. (See Rev. 7:9.) This Scripture was fulfilled in the Dark Ages, but we are still _in_ the Dark Ages, and will be until this system is destroyed. It takes more than a mere profession of faith to make a Christian. “Jezebel today has daughters—systems termed Protestant—which, nevertheless, copy largely the mother’s spirit. It is through the influence of the daughters that the anti‐typical Elijah may expect future persecutions, instigated by the mother, accomplished through the daughters, as typically represented in the case of John the Baptist, beheaded by Herod at the instance of Salome, but at the instigation of Herodias—Jezebel.”—Z. ’04‐237. And when I saw her.—Discerned her true character. I wondered with great admiration.—“With great wonder” (Diaglott), that the Lord would permit such an institution to exist. 17:7. And the angel.—Volume VII, _Scripture Studies_. Said unto me.—See Revelation, Chapters 4, 5 and 6. Wherefore dost thou marvel.—This is all quite right and necessary. The Papacy was foreseen and permitted as a part of God’s wonderful plan for developing and testing His Church, proving who are worthy to be of the First Resurrection, joint‐heirs with Christ. I will tell thee the mystery of the woman.—The apostate Church of Rome. And of the beast that carrieth her.—Pagan Rome, now represented in earth’s warring governments. Which hath seven heads and ten horns.—See Rev. 12:3; 13:1. The exposition of the remainder of this chapter was greatly assisted by the following letter: “Your request for my version of what I understood Bro. Russell’s expectations to be respecting the fulfillment of the 17th Chapter of Revelation received and after considerable meditation upon the matter I have decided to submit the following: Brother Russell stated that there were three possible fulfillments of this Chapter, and that he did not or would not go on record as to which would be the correct interpretation, for the reason that this Chapter could not be interpreted in a positive way until after its fulfillment. He stated that this Chapter was the key to all of the pictures, or prophecies, of Revelation, which are as yet wrapped in mystery. On various occasions I requested Bro. Russell to give me his idea respecting the three possible fulfillments; but he remained absolutely mum respecting two of the ways, but freely expressed his opinion respecting the third way, which he believed would be the way in which the prophecy would be fulfilled. ‘The beast that thou sawest was, and is not and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit and go into perdition,’ we understand to be the Holy Roman Empire—Church and State, united in power from 799 to 1799. The term ‘Thou sawest’ refers to the thousand‐year reign of the Pope, and the term ‘And is not’ refers to the present non‐existence of the Empire in power, and the term ‘And shall