Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.
21. sorceries ] Fitly mentioned between “murders” and “fornication,” and in connexion with “idolatry;” cf. Gal 5:20, and note on Rev 21:8.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Verse 21. Neither repented they of their murders] Their cruelties towards the genuine followers of God, the Albigenses, and Waldenses, and others, against whom they published crusades, and hunted them down, and butchered them in the most shocking manner. The innumerable murders by the horrible inquisition need not be mentioned.
Their sorceries] Those who apply this also to the Romish Church understand by it the various tricks, sleights of hand, or legerdemain, by which they impose on the common people in causing images of Christ to bleed, and the various pretended miracles wrought at the tombs, &c., of pretended saints, holy wells, and such like.
Fornication] Giving that honour to various creatures which is due only to the Creator.
Their thefts.] Their exactions and impositions on men for indulgences, pardons, &c. These things may be intended, but it is going too far to say that this is the true interpretation. And yet to express any doubt on this subject is with some little else than heresy. If such men can see these things so clearly in such obscure prophecies, let them be thankful for their sight, and indulgent to those who still sit in darkness.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Neither repented they of their murders; of their murdering the saints of God, but go on in that practice;
nor of their fornication, which is publicly allowed amongst them;
nor of their theft and sacrilege, and other wickedness, but are as infamous for their debaucheries as for their superstition and idolatry. How long this great judgment of the Turk shall continue upon Christians we cannot tell; it is Mr. Brightmans opinion that it shall determine in the year 1696; but of that the Scripture hath not informed us, and guessing is a vanity, where we have no sure foundation; and so many have appeared to have been mistaken in such particular determinations, that he lightly exposeth his reputation that will adventure further upon such rocks.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
21. sorcerieswitchcrafts bymeans of drugs (so the Greek). One of the fruits of theunrenewed flesh: the sin of the heathen: about to be repeated byapostate Christians in the last days, Re22:15, “sorcerers.” The heathen who shall have rejectedthe proffered Gospel and clung to their fleshly lusts, and apostateChristians who shall have relapsed into the same shall share the sameterrible judgments. The worship of images was established in the Eastin A.D. 842.
fornicationsingular:whereas the other sins are in the plural. Other sins are perpetratedat intervals: those lacking purity of heart indulge in oneperpetual fornication [BENGEL].
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Neither repented they of their murders,…. Of the saints and martyrs of Jesus, with whose blood the western antichrist is made drunk, and which will be found in her, and for which she is answerable. Now, though the western parts of the empire escaped the scourge of the Turks, yet this did not bring them to repent of their murderous practices, but they went on to take away the lives of godly men; witness the persecutions of the Waldenses and Albigenses, the murders of John Huss and Jerom of Prague, the burning of the martyrs here in Queen Mary’s days, and the massacres in Paris and in Ireland, and their butcheries elsewhere; and which they have continued unto this day, where the Inquisition obtains:
nor of their sorceries; Jezebel the whore of Rome has been famous for, by which she has deceived all nations; many of the popes of Rome have been necromancers, given to the magic art, and have entered into covenant, and have had familiarity with the devil; and one part of the Romish service lies in exorcisms, conjurations, and enchantments, and which they still continue:
nor of their fornication; all sorts of uncleanness; not only simple fornication, but adultery, incest, sodomy, and all unnatural lusts; brothel houses have been set up and licensed by authority, which have yielded to the popes a yearly revenue of forty thousand ducats; the Romish clergy, popes, cardinals, priests, monks, and friars, have been dreadfully guilty of all manner of uncleanness, and still are; whence Rome is called Sodom, Re 11:8;
nor of their thefts; who under pretence of granting indulgences and pardons, and praying souls out of purgatory, with other tricks, cheat men of their money, pillage and plunder their estates, and devour widows’ houses; rob men of their substance, and make merchandise of their souls: now all these iniquities the Papists in the eastern empire were guilty of, for which the Turks as a scourge were let in upon it, and destroyed it; and yet the western papacy, who did not suffer in these calamities, took no warning by them, did not repent of their sins, and reform their practices; but went on, and still go on in the same wicked way, and by their hardness and impenitence treasure up wrath against the day of wrath.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Of their murders ( ). Heads the list, but “sorceries” ( ) comes next. was originally enchantment, as also in Re 21:8, then drug. For see Rev 18:34; Gal 5:20. The two other items are fornication () and thefts (, old word from , here alone in N.T.), all four characteristic of demonic worship and idolatry. See other lists of vices in Mark 7:21; Gal 5:20; Rev 21:8; Rev 22:15. Our word “pharmacy” as applied to drugs and medicine has certainly come a long way out of a bad environment, but there is still a bad odour about “patent medicines.”
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Sorceries [] . Only here, ch. 18 23; and Gal 5:20, where farmakeia sorceries, A. V., witchcraft is enumerated among the “works of the flesh.” Used in the Septuagint of the Egyptian sorceries (Exo 7:22. Of Babylon, Isa 47:9, 12). From farmakon a drug, and thence a poison, an enchantment. Plato says : “There are two kinds of poisons used among men which cannot clearly be distinguished. There is one kind of poison which injures bodies by the use of other bodies according to a natural law… but there is another kind which injures by sorceries and incantations and magic bonds, as they are termed, and induces one class of men to injure another as far as they can, and persuades others that they, above all persons, are liable to be injured by the powers of the magicians. Now it is not easy to know the nature of all these things; nor if a man do know can he readily persuade others of his belief. And when men are disturbed at the sight of waxen images, fixed either at the doors, or in a place where three ways meet, or in the sepulchers of parents, there is no use of trying to persuade them that they should despise all such things, because they have no certain knowledge about them. But we must have a law in two parts concerning poisoning, in whichever of the two ways the attempt is made; and we must entreat and exhort and advise men not to have recourse to such practices, by which they scare the multitude out of their wits, as if they were children, compelling the legislator and the judge to heal the fears which the sorcerer arouses, and to tell them, in the first place, that he who attempts to poison or enchant others knows not what he is doing, either as regards the body (unless he have a knowledge of medicine) or as regards his enchantments, unless he happens to be a prophet or diviner” (” Laws, ” 11, 933).
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “Neither repented they,” (kai ou metenoesan) “And they turned not, or repented not;” To repent not or repent too late is to perish, Luk 13:3; Luk 13:5; Act 17:30-31; Luk 16:19; Luk 16:31. This verse details man’s sins against his fellow man, as the previous verse does against God.
2) “Of their murders,” (ek ton phonon auton) “out of their guilt of murders,” they repented or turned not with remorse from their murders till too late, Isa 1:18; Rom 10:21.
3) “Nor of their sorceries,” (oute ek ton pharmakeion auton) “Nor out of (from) their sorceries; they repented not, nor turned away from them. God will not be mocked, have his spirit’s call resisted forever, Heb 4:7; Rev 21:27.
4) “Nor of their fornication,” (oute ek porneias auton) “Not even from (out of) their fornication,” illicit, immoral sex relations between the unmarried did they repent or turn away, Rev 22:15; 1Co 5:9; 1Co 6:8.
5) “Nor of their thefts,” (oute ek ton klemmaton auton) “Nor out of their guilt or practices of thievery, theft,” did they repent or turn away, 1Co 6:10. Their immoral, degenerate passions of selfishness and obstinacy against the word of God, and call of his spirit and grace, had been deferred, ignored, resisted, and spurned too long; hence the seventh and final trumpet judgment is being justifiably prepared to be poured out upon them; Rom 2:4-10; Pro 29:1.
TOO LATE
Too late t’will be, for you to cry,
When mercies day, has past you by,
Too late, too late, to be made whole,
To late, too late, too late.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
21. Four classes of crime are named as specimens. They are crimes, not of pagan alone, but of virtual pagans, even in Christian lands.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
NOTES BY THE AMERICAN EDITOR
LXII. Rev 9:21 . , . . .
Luthardt: “These are the chief sins of heathenism. Such moral corruption will occur at the end, in spite of advanced culture; for culture of itself does not promote morality, but, as history teaches, may be employed as well in the service of ungodliness and immorality.” Calov., in harmony with his scheme of interpretation, refers all these crimes to the Papal antichrist.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
REFLECTIONS
READER! behold how the Lord’s judgments rise higher and higher, in the scale of punishment! The four first trumpets were bringing forward very awful visitations in the earth, but those two of the woe trumpets, how far have they already exceeded in affliction! And who shall say what yet remains to be unfolded, before the period of the sixth trumpet is finished! Let you and I pause, as we contemplate the subject. Let us behold and look behold over the long space of so many centuries which have run out, since at the voice of the sixth trumpet sounding, the Lord Christ gave command, to loose the four angels at the river Euphrates. Contemplate what ravages have been made! what slaughters followed. And yet no reform, no repentance, no one effect of contrition produced, by the chastisement! Let us next look at home. Doth not the question arise, nationally considered, what then are we better than they! No, in no wise. What, though the worship of images is not by law established, and prayers to images and saints we are not commanded to do, yet, is the Lord Jesus Christ more honored than before? Is his Godhead, and his blood and righteousness, considered by all ranks of our people, as the very foundation of the faith once delivered to the saints? Alas! how greatly the reverse in this Christ-despising day and generation! And while like a flood, the awful heresy of denying his Godhead is running through the land, and threatens to carry all before it, there are no laws of restraint to stop the pulpit or the press, from saying or doing as their corrupt nature unsubdued by grace may tempt them, against the glorious Person and finished salvation of the Lord Our Righteousness. And what may we suppose will follow such daring ungodliness. Surely, if we calculate from what is past, what is probable to follow, before the sixth woe trumpet hath finished his period, very desolating consequences may be looked for. The ear of faith may hear that voice which was once heard and again and again repeated; and never more suited than now. Shall I not visit for these things, saith the Lord, shall not my soul be avenged of such a nation as this.
One sweet thought will comfort the Lord’s faithful ones, under all. Jesus is as the helm. All plagues, whether locusts or men, whether fire or sword, have their power from him. The Church of God is still the Church of God, and everyone is sealed by him. Oh! the precious assurance. Here then Reader, every child of God may safely say with the Prophet, Lord! in the way of thy judgments have we waited for thee.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
21 Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.
Ver. 21. Neither repented ] Being stupefied, as those asses in Etruria that feed upon hemlock. (Matthiol. in Dioscoria.) They that make them are like unto them. See Isa 44:17 .
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Neither = And . . . not (App-105).
sorceries. Greek. pharmakeia. Occurs: Rev 18:23. See Gal 1:5, Gal 1:20 (witchcraft).
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
their murders: Rev 11:7-9, Rev 13:7, Rev 13:15, Rev 16:6, Rev 18:24, Dan 7:21-25, Dan 11:33
their sorceries: Rev 13:13, Rev 18:23, Rev 21:8, Rev 22:15, Isa 47:9, Isa 47:12, Isa 57:3, Mal 3:5
nor of their fornication: Rev 14:8, Rev 17:2, Rev 17:5, Rev 18:3, Rev 19:2, Mat 15:19, 2Co 12:21
Reciprocal: Isa 8:21 – curse Jer 2:30 – In vain Jer 27:9 – hearken Dan 5:4 – praised Dan 12:10 – but the wicked Hos 6:5 – I have Amo 4:6 – yet Hag 2:17 – yet Mat 11:20 – because Eph 5:3 – fornication Rev 2:5 – and repent Rev 2:21 – space Rev 9:20 – yet
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
These unresponsive people will also continue in their moral sins: murders, sorceries, immorality, and stealing (cf. Rev 21:8; Rev 22:15). Idolatry violates the first and second commandments, and these sins are violations of the sixth, seventh, and eighth commandments. The Greek word translated "sorceries" (pharmakon) implies the use of drugs. The English word "pharmacy" comes from it. The Greek word can refer to poisons, amulets, charms, magic spells, witchcraft, or any other object or practice that makes someone susceptible to sin (cf. Exo 22:18; Lev 20:27; Deu 18:10-12; 1Sa 28:7; Act 8:9; Act 13:8; Act 19:13-15).
These trumpet judgments, as the seals, will grow more intense as they proceed. Most people living on the earth during these days will be so hard of heart that they will not turn to God in repentance. Nevertheless some will become believers in Jesus Christ (ch. 7). Perhaps the salvation of most of them will take place in the earlier part of the Tribulation before these more severe judgments fall.