Revelation 10

6. liveth for ever and ever--Greek, "liveth unto the ages of the ages" (compare Daniel 12:7 ).
created heaven . . . earth . . . sea, &c.--This detailed designation of God as the Creator, is appropriate to the subject of the angel's oath, namely, the consummating of the mystery of God ( Revelation 10:7 ), which can surely be brought to pass by the same Almighty power that created all things, and by none else.
that there should be time no longer--Greek, "that time (that is, an interval of time) no longer shall be." The martyrs shall have no longer a time to wait for the accomplishment of their prayers for the purgation of the earth by the judgments which shall remove their and God's foes from it ( Revelation 6:11 ). The appointed season or time of delay is at an end (the same Greek is here as in Revelation 6:11 , chronus). Not as English Version implies, Time shall end and eternity begin.

7. But--connected with Revelation 10:6 . "There shall be no longer time (that is, delay), but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to (so the Greek) sound his trumpet (so the Greek), then (literally, 'also'; which conjunction often introduces the consequent member of a sentence) the mystery of God is finished," literally, "has been finished"; the prophet regarding the future as certain as if it were past. A, C, Aleph, and Coptic read the past tense (Greek, "etelesthee"). B reads, as English Version, the future tense (Greek, "telesthee"). "should be finished" (compare Revelation 11:15-18 ). Sweet consolation to the waiting saints! The seventh trumpet shall be sounded without further delay.
the mystery of God--the theme of the "little book," and so of the remainder of the Apocalypse. What a grand contrast to the "mystery of iniquity Babylon!" The mystery of God's scheme of redemption, once hidden in God's secret counsel and dimly shadowed forth in types and prophecies, but now more and more clearly revealed according as the Gospel kingdom develops itself, up to its fullest consummation at the end. Then finally His servants shall praise Him most fully, for the glorious consummation of the mystery in having taken to Himself and His saints the kingdom so long usurped by Satan and the ungodly. Thus this verse is an anticipation of Revelation 11:15-18 .
declared to--Greek, "declared the glad tidings to." "The mystery of God" is the Gospel glad tidings. The office of the prophets is to receive the glad tidings from God, in order to declare them to others. The final consummation is the great theme of the Gospel announced to, and by, the prophets (compare Galatians 3:8 ).

8. spake . . . and said--So Syriac and Coptic read. But A, B, C, "(I heard) again speaking with me, and saying" (Greek, "lalousan . . . legousan").
little book--So Aleph and B read. But A and C, "the book."

9. I went--Greek, "I went away." John here leaves heaven, his standing-point of observation heretofore, to be near the angel standing on the earth and sea.
Give--A, B, C, and Vulgate read the infinitive, "Telling him to give."
eat it up--appropriate its contents so entirely as to be assimilated with (as food), and become part of thyself, so as to impart them the more vividly to others. His finding the roll sweet to the taste at first, is because it was the Lord's will he was doing, and because, divesting himself of carnal feeling, he regarded God's will as always agreeable, however bitter might be the message of judgment to be announced. Compare Psalms 40:8 , Margin, as to Christ's inner complete appropriation of God's word.
thy belly bitter--parallel to Ezekiel 2:10 , "There was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe."
as honey--( Psalms 19:10 , 119:103 ). Honey, sweet to the mouth, sometimes turns into bile in the stomach. The thought that God would be glorified ( Revelation 11:3-6 Revelation 11:11-18 ) gave him the sweetest pleasure. Yet, afterwards the belly, or carnal natural feeling, was embittered with grief at the prophecy of the coming bitter persecutions of the Church ( Revelation 11:7-10 ); compare John 16:1 John 16:2 . The revelation of the secrets of futurity is sweet to one at first, but bitter and distasteful to our natural man, when we learn the cross which is to be borne before the crown shall be won. John was grieved at the coming apostasy and the sufferings of the Church at the hands of Antichrist.

10. the little book--So A and C, but B, Aleph, and Vulgate, "the book."
was bitter--Greek, "was embittered."

11. he said--A, B, and Vulgate read, "they say unto me"; an indefinite expression for "it was said unto me."
Thou must--The obligation lies upon thee, as the servant of God, to prophesy at His command.
again--as thou didst already in the previous part of this book of Revelation.
before, &c.--rather as Greek (epilaois), "concerning many peoples," &c., namely, in their relation to the Church. The eating of the book, as in Ezekiel's case, marks John's inauguration to his prophetical office--here to a fresh stage in it, namely, the revealing of the things which befall the holy city and the Church of God--the subject of the rest of the book.