49. By the beast, then, coming up out of the earth, he means the kingdom of Antichrist; and by the two horns he means him and the false prophet after him.109    The text is simply καὶ τὸν μετ᾽ αὐτόν = the false prophet after him. Gudius and Combefisius propose as above, καὶ αὐτόν τε καὶ τὸν μετ᾽ αὐτόν, or μετ᾽ αὐτοῦ = him and the false prophet with him. And in speaking of “the horns being like a lamb,” he means that he will make himself like the Son of God, and set himself forward as king. And the terms, “he spake like a dragon,” mean that he is a deceiver, and not truthful. And the words, “he exercised all the power of the first beast before him, and caused the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed,” signify that, after the manner of the law of Augustus, by whom the empire of Rome was established, he too will rule and govern, sanctioning everything by it, and taking greater glory to himself. For this is the fourth beast, whose head was wounded and healed again, in its being broken up or even dishonoured, and partitioned into four crowns; and he then (Antichrist) shall with knavish skill heal it, as it were, and restore it. For this is what is meant by the prophet when he says, “He will give life unto the image, and the image of the beast will speak.” For he will act with vigour again, and prove strong by reason of the laws established by him; and he will cause all those who will not worship the image of the beast to be put to death. Here the faith and the patience of the saints will appear, for he says: “And he will cause all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand or in their forehead; that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, the name of the beast, or the number of his name.” For, being full of guile, and exalting himself against the servants of God, with the wish to afflict them and persecute them out of the world, because they give not glory to him, he will order incense-pans110    πυρεῖα = censers, incense-pans, or sacrificial tripods. This offering of incense was a test very commonly proposed by the pagans to those whose religion they suspected. to be set up by all everywhere, that no man among the saints may be able to buy or sell without first sacrificing; for this is what is meant by the mark received upon the right hand. And the word—“in their forehead”—indicates that all are crowned, and put on a crown of fire, and not of life, but of death. For in this wise, too, did Antiochus Epiphanes the king of Syria, the descendant of Alexander of Macedon, devise measures against the Jews. He, too, in the exaltation of his heart, issued a decree in those times, that “all should set up shrines before their doors, and sacrifice, and that they should march in procession to the honour of Dionysus, waving chaplets of ivy;” and that those who refused obedience should be put to death by strangulation and torture. But he also met his due recompense at the hand of the Lord, the righteous Judge and all-searching God; for he died eaten up of worms. And if one desires to inquire into that more accurately, he will find it recorded in the books of the Maccabees.111    [Not referred to as Scripture, but as authentic history.]

[49] τὸ μὲν οὖν ”θηρίον τὸ ἀναβαῖνον ἐκ τῆς γῆς” τὴν βασιλείαν τὴν τοῦ ἀντιχρίστου ἐσομένην λέγει, τὰ δὲ δύο κέρατα αὐτὸν καὶ τὸν μετ' αὐτοῦ ψευδοπροφήτην. τὸ δὲ εἰπεῖν „τὰ δύο κέρατα αὐτοῦ ὅμοια ἀρνίῳ„, ὅτι ἐξομοιοῦσθαι θέλει τῷ υἱῷ τοῦ θεοῦ, καὶ αὐτὸς ἑαυτὸν βασιλέα ἐπιδεικνύων. τὸ δὲ εἰπεῖν ”ἐλάλει ὡς δράκων”, ὅτι πλάνος ἐστὶ καὶ οὐκ ἀληθής. τὸ δὲ „καὶ τὴν ἐξουσίαν τοῦ πρώτου θηρίου πᾶσαν ἐποίει καὶ ποιεῖ τὴν γῆν καὶ τοὺς ἐν αὐτῇ κατοικοῦντας, ἵνα προσκυνήσωσι τὸ θηρίον τὸ πρῶτον, οὗ ἐθεραπεύθη ἡ πληγὴ τοῦ θανάτου αὐτοῦ„ τοῦτο σημαίνει, ὅτι κατὰ τὸν Αὐγούστου νόμον, ἀφ' οὗ καὶ ἡ βασιλεία Ῥωμαίων συνέστη, οὕτω καὶ αὐτὸς κελεύσει καὶ διατάξει, κυρῶν ἅπαντα, διὰ τούτου δόξαν ἑαυτῷ πλείονα περιποιούμενος. τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ θηρίον τὸ τέταρτον, οὗ ἐπλήγη ἡ κεφαλὴ καὶ πάλιν ἐθεραπεύθη διὰ τὸ καταλυθῆναι αὐτὴν καὶ ἀτιμασθῆναι καὶ εἰς δέκα διαδήματα ἀναλυθῆναι, ὥστε πανοῦργος ὢν ὡς περιθεραπεύσειν αὐτὴν καὶ ἀνανεώσειν. τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ εἰρημένον ὑπὸ τοῦ προφήτου, ὅτι ”δώσει πνεῦμα τῇ εἰκόνι καὶ λαλήσει ἡ εἰκὼν τοῦ θηρίου”: ἐνεργήσει γὰρ καὶ ἰσχύσει πάλιν διὰ τῶν ὑπ' αὐτοῦ ὁριζομένων νόμων, καὶ ποιήσει ὅσοι ἂν μὴ προσκυνήσωσι τῇ εἰκόνι τοῦ θηρίου ἀποκτανθῶσιν. „ὧδε ἡ πίστις καὶ ἡ ὑπομονὴ τῶν ἁγίων„ φανήσεται. φησὶ γὰρ ”καὶ ποιεῖ πάντας, τοὺς μικροὺς καὶ τοὺς μεγάλους καὶ τοὺς πλουσίους καὶ τοὺς πτωχοὺς καὶ τοὺς ἐλευθέρους καὶ τοὺς δούλους, ἵνα δῶσιν αὐτοῖς χάραγμα ἐπὶ τῆς χειρὸς αὐτῶν τῆς δεξιᾶς ἢ ἐπὶ τὸ μέτωπον, ἵνα μή τις δύναται ἀγοράσαι μήτε πωλῆσαι εἰ μὴ ὁ ἔχων τὸ χάραγμα ἢ τὸν ἀριθμὸν τοῦ ὀνόματος αὐτοῦ.” δόλιος γὰρ ὢν καὶ ἐπαιρόμενος κατὰ τῶν δούλων τοῦ θεοῦ, βουλόμενος ἐκθλίβειν καὶ ἐκδιώκειν αὐτοὺς ἐκ τοῦ κόσμου διὰ τὸ μὴ διδόναι αὐτοὺς αὐτῷ δόξαν, κελεύει πάντας πανταχοῦ θυμιατήρια τιθέναι, ἵνα μή τις δύνηται τῶν ἁγίων μήτε ἀγοράσαι μήτε πωλῆσαι, ἐὰν μὴ πρῶτον ἐπιθύσῃ. τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι „τὸ χάραγμα τὸ ἐπὶ τῆς χειρὸς τῆς δεξιᾶς„ διδόμενον. τὸ δὲ ”ἐπὶ τὸ μέτωπον” εἰπεῖν, ἵνα πάντες ὦσιν ἐστεφανωμένοι, πύρινον καὶ οὐ ζωῆς ἀλλὰ θανάτου στέφανον μεθ' ἑαυτῶν περιφέροντες. οὕτω γὰρ ἐτεχνάσατο κατὰ τῶν Ἰουδαίων καὶ Ἀντίοχος ὁ Ἐπιφανὴς ὁ τῆς Συρίας γενόμενος βασιλεύς, ὢν ἐκ γένους Ἀλεξάνδρου τοῦ Μακεδόνος. καὶ γὰρ αὐτὸς τοῖς τότε καιροῖς ἐπαρθεὶς τῇ καρδίᾳ ἔγραψε ψήφισμα βωμοὺς πρὸ τῶν θυρῶν τιθέντας ἅπαντας ἐπιθύειν, καὶ κισσοὺς ἐστεφανωμένους πομπεύειν τῷ Διονύσῳ, τοὺς δὲ μὴ βουλομένους ὑποτάσσεσθαι, τούτους μετὰ σπλαγχνισμῶν καὶ ἑτασμῶν καὶ βασάνων ἀναιρεῖσθαι. ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸς τὴν ἀνταξίαν παρὰ τοῦ κυρίου καὶ δικαιοκρίτου καὶ παντεπόπτου θεοῦ ἔλαβεν, ὁμοίως βάσανον: γενόμενος γὰρ σκωληκόβρωτος μετήλλαξε τὸν βίον. καὶ ταῦτα μὲν εἴ τις βούλοιτο λεπτομερῶς ἐνιστορῆσαι, σεσήμανται ἐν τοῖς μακκαβαίοις.