"The earth" signifies the Roman empire, or that portion of the earth made the subject of apocalyptic vision. That this application of the word _earth_ is correct, is shown by various Scriptures. "And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Cæsar Augustus that _all the world_ should be taxed." Luke 2:1. "The queen of the South ... came from the _uttermost parts of the earth_ [southern Arabia] to hear the wisdom of Solomon." Mat. 12:42. "Ye shall be witnesses ... unto the _uttermost part of the earth_." Acts 1:8. The apostles carried the gospel personally, only throughout the territory of the then-known civilized world--the Roman empire. Upon this earth there descended in the vision before us a fierce storm of hail and fire, mingled with blood. Its being mingled with blood would indicate its destructive effects. One characteristic of this symbol particularly is worthy of notice. Hail and fire cast upon the earth would become absorbed speedily or pass into new combinations with the surrounding elements, thus not remaining in any permanent form except in its effects. In this particular it is wholly unlike the symbol of the next trumpet, which is that of a burning mountain cast into the sea, for such a body would naturally remain permanently where it fell; whereas a storm of hail and fire would soon disappear. Also, the statement that this storm was cast upon the earth would indicate that it was a calamity descending from without upon the empire. Where, now, do we find the object that fully meets the requirements of this symbol--destructive agents descending upon the Roman empire like a furious storm of hail and fire, accomplishing the first important step toward the subverting of the empire? We find it in the irruption of the fierce Gothic tribes of the North, who, under Alaric, burst like a tornado upon the empire about the beginning of the fifth century, spreading destruction and desolation upon every side.