XII. ON THE APOCALYPSE CHAPTER I.

COMMENTARY BOOK I. XIII.

Testimony of Zechariah.

John, last chapter.

Zechariah 12.

This Apostle and Evangelist, who drew wisdom from the breast of the Lord, spoke with testimony. He was a Hebrew of Hebrews, whom the Savior loved most of all. For in the book of Zechariah, the person of this Prince of the kings of the earth speaks in this way: "And they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him with a mourning as if for an only son: and they shall grieve over him, as one is accustomed to grieve at the death of a firstborn." This same John recited only this part of the prophetic testimony, "and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced," in his own Gospel
John 19.

after first stating that they did not break his legs, but one of the soldiers opened the side of the Lord with a spear.
Exodus 12.

He added this so that the scripture might be fulfilled: "You shall not break a bone of him."
Zechariah 12.

And again: "Another scripture says, They shall look on him whom they have pierced." However, here he adds what he omitted there, namely the following part: "and they shall mourn for him with a mourning as if for an only son." He adds it in this manner: "and
All the tribes of the earth shall mourn.

all the tribes of the earth shall mourn over him." Regarding what he says here, "all the tribes of the earth," you find the same in that prophet, where it is written immediately afterward: "And the land shall mourn, families and families apart. The families of the house of David apart, and their women, their wives, apart. The families of the house of Nathan apart, and their women apart. The families of the house of Levi apart, and their women apart. The families of Shimei apart, and their women apart. All the remaining families, families and families apart, and their women apart." For "families," the Septuagint the seventy translators of the Greek Old Testament used "tribes." John followed this usage in other places as well, since he was writing in the Greek language, in which language the scriptures had been translated by those same seventy translators. Therefore, when he now says, "all the tribes of the earth," he speaks with the testimony of that same prophet. For then the tribe of the house of David, and the tribe of the house of Nathan, and the tribe of the house of Levi, and the tribe of the house of Shimei, shall be separated from their wives: that is, they will deprive themselves of all their
Matthew 27. Four tribes formerly existing in dignity.

pleasures so that they may mourn the only-begotten and firstborn Lord Jesus Christ. Concerning him, they had said, "His blood be upon us and upon our children." In "David," the royal tribe is understood, which is Judah. In "Nathan," the prophetic order is described. "Levi" refers to the priests, from whom the priesthood arose. In "Shimei," the teachers are understood, for from this tribe the ranks of masters sprouted. He was silent regarding the remaining tribes, which do not have any privilege of dignity. However, in saying "every remaining tribe, tribe and tribe apart, and their wives apart," he includes all of them without naming them. Indeed, a mourning of this kind was once
† typical

typicus symbolic or acting as a precursor when the just king Josiah was wounded by Pharaoh, surnamed Necho. Jeremiah wrote the lamentations over him, which
2 Chronicles 35. Symbolic lamentations over Josiah.

are read in the church, and the book of Chronicles testifies that they were written. For what is written there, namely in the Lamentations, "The breath of our mouth, Christ the Lord, was taken in our sins, to whom we said, under your shadow we shall live among the nations," far exceeds the person of Josiah. It is as
Lamentations 4.

already stated: that wounded king was a type of the Savior who was to be crucified. For just as at that time, after the sinful kings, all the hope of the people was in Josiah, and a great mourning was stirred in the city when he was killed: so on account of the crucified Savior, mourning will then be renewed for all the tribes of the earth. These are the lovers of the earth who killed him, speaking and thinking deceits (as the Psalmist says) in the anger of the earth: that is, they were angry on account of the earth, which they pretended would be taken from them because of him. "If," they said, "we let him go thus, all will believe in him: and the Romans will come and take away
Against the Jews who killed this only-begotten son.

both our place and our nation." It must be noted, and indeed it is wonderful, that he said: "and they shall mourn him as if over an only son: and they shall grieve over him as one is accustomed to grieve at the death of a firstborn." Concerning this, I remember saying in a certain work: O Jews, Christ the Son of God did not please you because he was such a man, because he came in such a way, because he worked and spoke in such a manner. He did not please you at all, he did not suit your mind, you want another, you wait for another. But he, namely God the Father, who sent this Son, has no other. This Son is the firstborn and only-begotten to him. I say he has no other. This one is the first and the last to him, he will not send another. What then will you do in your desolation? Truly, as he now says, you shall look upon him whom you pierced. As his Spirit now says with heavy truth and true gravity, you shall mourn over him as if over an only son: and you shall grieve over him as one is accustomed to grieve at the death of a firstborn. Because to you this firstborn is dead, because for yourselves you have killed the only-begotten. Hereafter you shall have neither this Savior nor another:
Why John doubles the 'amen'.

because this one alone is, he is the firstborn, he is the only-begotten. Intending to strengthen all these things with a vehement affirmation, because they will undoubtedly come to pass, he says: "Even so, Amen." This is the same as if he said what he is accustomed to write in his Gospel, where the Lord says, "Amen, amen." For while in the other Evangelists "Amen" is written only once in individual places—for example, as
Luke 21.

it is in Luke: "Amen I say to you, heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not

pass away"—in this Evangelist, this same "Amen" is always doubled. This is because this Evangelist has a more divine mouth, and the Lord Jesus speaks greater things through him. Therefore, so that the weight of the matters may be felt, the manner or weight of the speech is also doubled for the sake of vehement confirmation. "Amen, amen I say to you." What indeed can be said that is greater or more terrible than what he has said in the present passage? Correcty, therefore, in the present passage he doubles the affirmation, saying, "Even so, Amen," so that everyone who hears may wake up to believe. It follows: "I am Alpha and
Against heretics denying the divinity of Christ.

Omega, the beginning and the ending, says the Lord God, who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty." All that he has said so far concerning the person of the Son was not enough for the salvation of the believer or the one confessing. For what would offend Cerinthus, Ebion, or Arius, or any other heretical enemy of Christ's divinity in those statements: that the Lord Jesus is a faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead (that is, the first to rise from the dead), and the prince of the kings of the earth, and that he loved us and washed us from our sins in his blood, and is coming with the clouds to judge the living and the dead? Any heretic of that sort would concede and confess these things. But that he is the same God, co-equal to God the Father without beginning with the Father, or remaining in the Father, he would not confess. Therefore, not content with having said those things, he adds this which is the highest point, in which the Christian faith stands as if on the highest step. He thinks loftily of Christ's divinity, equal to the Father, as is worthy, and speaks in his person so that the talkative frogs who contradict him may be crushed by a greater thunder. "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, says the Lord God, who is, and who was, and
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.

who is to come, the Almighty." For by saying these things, or introducing him saying them, he makes him equal to the Father, of whom he had said above, "who is, and who was, and who is to come." What he meant or what he wants to be understood by Alpha and Omega, he immediately explains by saying: "the beginning and the ending." For these are two letters of the Greeks, to the churches of which language he wrote this book. These two letters of that language, I say, are the first and the last: Alpha α and Omega ω. So that there may be no doubt as to what kind or of what thing he is the beginning or the end, being reminded by Alpha, which
Genesis 1.

is the first letter of the Greek alphabet, let us look back to the start of Holy Scripture, where it is written: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." And being reminded by Omega, which is the last, let us look to
Matthew, last chapter.

the end of the same Scripture in the volume of the Gospel, where it is written: "And behold, I am with you all days even to the consummation of the age." Thus we may truly believe and confess that he is both the beginning, in which all things were made, and the end or consummation, by which all things are
Mystery of the number in Alpha and Omega.

restored and perfected. Furthermore, it should also be known that Alpha signifies one, while Omega among the Greeks signifies eight hundred. For all letters among the Greeks compose words and also make numbers. Just as they are later in order, so they signify larger numbers by their characters. The first letter, as has been said, Alpha, signifies one; Omega signifies eight hundred. In this there is a great and delightful beauty of a mystery. For he who in the beginning was one, the only Son, or only-begotten, will in the end of the ages have sons of God with him—not those born of nature, but those adopted—as if numbering eight hundred. That is, they are innumerable, rewarded through different mansions by the eight beatitudes,
John 8. Isaiah 43.

being distributed by the reward. Where else besides this place does the Lord God say this? Not only in his Gospel where he says to the Jews, "I am the beginning, who also speaks to you," but also in Isaiah, the person of the Savior speaks. "Before me there was no God formed, and after me there shall be none. I am the Lord: and
Christ will terrify the impious Jews saying: I am Alpha and Omega. Psalm 40. Matthew 13. Luke 4. Isaiah 43.

there is no savior beside me." Moreover, when (as was said before) he comes with the clouds, when every eye shall see him, and they who pierced him and spoke evil against him, thinking that his name would die and perish—those piercers or transfixers who wanted to bring it about that he should not exist at all, so that his memory might be entirely taken from the earth—then this Lord God will appropriately speak. Then, I say, he will cry out and shout: and he will be strengthened against those enemies of his. He will say to them: "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end." It is as if he were to say: I am not, as you reproached me, the son of a carpenter, nor did I begin to be from that carpenter Joseph. It is not as you wished, that I should perish, for I have not perished or ceased to be. Instead, I am Alpha before Joseph, and Omega before all, and after me none shall be. For even in the
Christ, God Almighty.

prophet I said to you: that before me no God was formed, and after me there shall be none. What follows confirms the same statement: "Who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty." This is the voice of believers, of John and of all of us who believe and confess that this Lord God testifies truly concerning himself. He is not a recent God or Lord. Instead, he is the one from whom, or with whom, the coming and sent prophets once said, "Thus says the Lord God." He is the same Almighty who was before Abraham.