“And I was standing on the sand of the sea, and saw a wild beast ascending out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns ten diadems, and on his heads names of reviling. And the wild beast, which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his throne, and great authority. And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world admired and followed the beast. And they worshipped the dragon, for he gave power to the wild beast: and they worshipped the wild beast, saying, Who is like the wild beast, and who is able to make war with him?”—Rev. 18:1-4.
The sea, from which this beast emerged, is evidently the turbulent state of anarchy, to which the people of the fourth kingdom had been reduced, on its subversion. And the beast which came up out of the sea, represents the forms of government which then arose.
Its heads and horns synchronize with those of the dragonic monster, which had preceded it, and disappeared from the view of the revelator. And they doubtless symbolize the same forms of government. See pp. [145-148].
The ten crowns encircling its horns, indicate that an era is foreshadowed, when the sovereignty of the kingdom shall have been transferred from the forms of government symbolized by the heads,—which had before been encircled by the crowns,—to that represented by the horns. There is great unanimity among Protestant writers, in regarding these as the first ten kingdoms which existed in the western empire arising during the period of its decline, viz:
1. The Huns in Hungary, from A. D. 356.
2. The Ostrogoths in Mysia, from A. D. 377. They invaded Italy, and conquered the Heruli in 493; and were defeated in 538 by Justinian, when the Pope was placed in quiet possession of the capital of Rome.
3. The Visigoths in Pannonia, from A. D. 378 to 408, when they removed to the south of France till 585. They then removed to, and subjugated Spain.
4. The Franks in France, from A. D. 407.
5. The Vandals in Spain, from A. D. 407 till 427, when they removed to Africa, and continued an independent kingdom till subjugated by Justinian in 533.
6. The Suevi and Alans in Gascoigne and Spain, from 407 till 585.