Charles Ellicott Commentary Revelation 17:12

"And the ten horns that thou sawest are ten kings, who have received no kingdom as yet; but they receive authority as kings, with the beast, for one hour." — Revelation 17:12 (ASV)

And the ten horns . . . — This is the explanation of the ten horns. They are the kings—not necessarily personal kings, as we have seen, but rather kingdoms or nationalities—who had not yet received a kingdom. Since they are on the seventh head, the hour of their power has not yet come, but it arrives with the fall of the sixth head. Then they receive power for one hour. (Compare with the “short time” in Revelation 17:10.)

But though these are separate powers, they are united in their subjection to the wild beast. They have one mind or judgment, and they give their power and authority to the wild beast. The idea of a universal empire may disappear, but the spirit and principle of mere earthliness will remain; no vast power like Rome is needed to illustrate its spirit. The ten horns are united in one mind; they move as the wild beast directs. The work and tendency of their power are hostile to Christ. They shall make war with the Lamb; and the Lamb shall conquer them because He is Lord of lords, and King of kings.

When do these powers make war with the Lamb? The answer is: they make war when the direction of their policy and morals is in favor of oppression, wrong, and worldliness. Whenever nations or peoples allow the secular spirit to permeate everything they do, they are not with Christ; they are against Him. There are hints that some “special outbreak” of hostility may take place on the eve of the full manifestation of the righteous King and His kingdom (Revelation 19:16–19). Busy evil spirits, lawless utterances, unbrotherly federations, unspiritual conceptions may pave the way for such an outbreak. The great crisis will then come, when the issue will be secularity versus spirituality.

It is not necessary to define the ten kings; the number does not need to be taken literally, for in Hebrew, “when a whole was to be divided into parts, ten was the number commonly adopted” (Bähr, quoted by Dr. Currey). The war of the ten kings against the Lamb is brought out more fully in Revelation 19:0. There the King of kings is seen victorious; in His victory those who are with Him, the called, and chosen, and faithful, shall share. This threefold description is a brief summary of the Christian life. This is the only place where St. John employs the word translated “called.” (Compare with Matthew 20:16.)