What Are You Talking About

So, what are the last words you say when you are leaving others? I find myself often ending a phone conversation with family members by saying, “Goodbye, I love you.” Those words are not just meaningless words, but are intended to remind those who are so precious to me that I cherish them.

Thinking about this led me to wonder what parting words were used by the writers of the epistles. I actually was amazed when I took time to look into this matter. Some of them ended their letters by sending greetings or expressing expectations to see others soon, but there is one phrase used consistently by Paul in his writings. Before reading more about the answer to this question, what phrase or phrases did Paul use as he ended his letters?

Paul’s parting words in his epistles. To the Corinthians, he said, “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. My love be with you all in Christ Jesus” and “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ . . . be with you all” (1 Cor. 16:23-24; 2 Cor. 13:14). As he finished his letter to the churches of Galatia, he said, “Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit” (Gal. 6:18). He had preached in Ephesus for three years and ended the epistle to them by saying, “Grace be with all of those who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity” (Eph. 6:24). To the Colossians, he said, “Grace be with you” (Col. 4:18). The apostle to the Gentiles ended both letters to the Thessalonians with “the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you” (1 Thess. 5:28; 2 Thess. 3:18). He used the same words in the three epistles to younger preachers, “Grace be with you” (1 Tim. 6:21; 2 Tim. 4:22; Tit. 3:15). He finished that very personal letter to Philemon by saying, “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.” The same idea is found in the last verse of Hebrews, “Grace be with you all.”

Paul’s emphasis on grace. Should there be any wonder as to why Paul magnified grace in his letters? He constantly had to deal with Judaizing teachers who tried to bind the law on Gentiles. Even more overwhelming was Paul’s realization that he, the chief of sinners, had received grace from God. The remembrance of His grace is the prime motivation for spiritual maturity (2 Pet. 1:8-9). He never wanted those around him to lose sight of the grace of God.

The emphasis of your words. What words, not just the parting ones, do people hear you mentioning most often? Do they ever hear a spiritual emphasis, or is it always on secular matters? One could not be around Paul without hearing about grace. What do those around you hear from you?

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The Little Book and the Unutterable Thunders (Revelation 10)

 The Little Book and the Unutterable Thunders (Revelation 10)

Between the opening of the sixth and seventh seals there was a pause to reveal four significant visions which would give assurances to the oppressed saints.  In the first of these two visions the servants of God were sealed before the winds of God’s retribution were let loose upon the earth.  In the second vision we saw a multitude of the victorious saints who had faithfully endured the tribulation and were standing before the throne, praising god and rejoicing in their victory.  By these two visions, the Christians still living are assured that they will not be forgotten and will join their victorious brothers and sisters around the throne if they remain faithful to the end.  

After this first pause we see the opening of the seventh seal which has been going on now since the first trumpet announcement beginning in chapter 8.  The first four trumpets announced God’s use of various natural disasters to punish the Roman Empire in an effort to bring them to repentance.  Horrific natural disasters often remind people of just how helpless they really are and sometimes causes them to seek answers in places they may not have formerly looked.  It is a pretty humbling experience when one beholds the death of countless thousands of people and the destruction wrought by these disasters and wonders why it has to be.  And this humble attitude of heart is precisely the one anyone should have when approaching God on His throne.  These natural disasters were God’s way of telling His enemies that He is the one in charge and He is the one they should be seeking.

Then the fifth and sixth trumpets sounded and the enemies of righteousness faced woes that were a lot more direct and specific.  Disease from their decadent lifestyle and then direct attacks from their worldly enemies.  In the face of earthquakes, famine, weather, plagues and incessant attacks from one’s enemies, it should be easy to conclude that something is amiss.  History records that some of the Romans did indeed seek answers to their problems.  But they sought them in the wrong places.  They thought their pagan gods were angry with them for tolerating the Christians and set out to destroy them all the more.  They failed to recognize that no matter what they did, the Christians were still there.  No matter how hard they tried to stamp Christianity out, it persevered.  They tried to appease their false lifeless gods of wood and stone by persecuting and trying to destroy the children of the one true and living God.  The God they should have been seeking all along.

Now we are approaching the seventh and final announcement which is God’s final and complete judgment against the enemies of the Christians.  When this judgment has been concluded, it will be finished and those who live in the Roman Empire and are the enemies of righteousness will have no more opportunity to repent.  we will see in this interlude between the 6th and 7th announcement that there comes a time when God no longer warns the unrighteous.  He has said all he is going to say, has given all the warnings He’s going to give and has given them up to their vile lifestyles and going to let them suffer the consequences of their choices.  We see this attitude in God on a personal level directed at individuals in Romans 1:18-32 but now it is seen on a much larger scale as the entire Roman Empire is given over to suffer the consequences of their unrighteousness. 

In this interlude between the sixth and seventh trumpets, we will see four main things in John’s vision.

  1. The unutterable thunders, Revelation 10:1-7
  2. The little book, Revelation 10:8-11
  3. The measuring of the Temple, Revelation 11:1-2
  4. The two witnesses, Revelation 11:3-13

Revelation 10:1
“And I saw another strong angel coming down out of heaven, arrayed with a cloud; and the rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire”
This word cloud or clouds occurs in the New Testament twenty seven times in the KJV.  In all but a few usages, it is used in some relation to deity or of a divine appearance, often in judgment. Being arrayed in a cloud means this messenger is coming on a divine mission relating to judgment.  This angel shares some of the attributes given to Jesus with his face as the sun and feet as pillars of fire.  This angel being thus described is indicative of strength and the importance of his mission.  Clouds and fire are symbols of judgment and the sun is the symbol of light which represents righteousness.  This angel is of a similar rank as the angel seen earlier in Revelation 5:2 where we read of the strong angel asking who was worthy to open the book and loose the seven seals.  Inspiration does not tell us whether this is the same angel seen earlier or by what name he is identified.  All we know is that he is strong enough to make the declaration that is forthcoming. 

The rainbow is symbolic of God’s everlasting covenant taken from the rainbow seen in the clouds after the great flood.  The bearer of this message from heaven is wearing God’s covenant with mankind upon his head, meaning that it is at the head or forefront of all messengers from the throne.  What is getting ready to come when the seventh trumpet sounds is terrible indeed but the righteous see that God’s covenant is there in a prominent place where it can be seen by all. 

Revelation 10:2
“and he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left upon the earth”
In this part of the vision, the strong angel was holding a “little book” in his hand.  The Greek word for these two words is “biblaridion“, a diminutive of “biblion“.  This word could be translated as the single word “booklet” and be perfectly accurate.  Books have been established in this series of visions as the figurative means which God used to express Himself.  Certainly we know that these are not literal books with binding, paper and ink.  In the first century this would likely have been a scroll.  This little book or scroll is figurative for a message and with the book being open, it is obviously a message which was intended to be revealed to John.  This is a continuation of the vision where Jesus Christ unsealed the scroll containing the ultimate fate of the enemies of Christianity.  This little book is a part of the message already unsealed by the Son of God. 

This angel with his right foot upon the sea and his left foot upon the earth simply means the whole earth.  The message contained within the little book is therefore directed at the inhabitants of the all the earth. 

Revelation 10:3
“and he cried with a great voice, as a lion roareth: and when he cried, the seven thunders uttered their voices.”
Lions represents great strength, boldness and bravery.  The voice of this angel was powerful, bold and was accompanied by the voices of the seven thunders.  The number seven represents the totality or completeness associated with God’s authority on the earth.  Thunder signifies authority, power and volume and often is associated with a message from the divine.  This voice thundering with the voice of the angel can only mean a direct response from the throne of God.  All the messages to man originate from the throne but this one is given special notice in order to signify the authority and importance of it.

Revelation 10:4
“And when the seven thunders uttered (their voices), I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying, Seal up the things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.”
John heard what the voices of thunder revealed but was commanded to refrain from recording this message.  Scripture teaches that there comes a time when sinners are given over to suffer the consequences for their actions.  Hymaneaeus and Alexander were disfellowshipped by Paul in order that they repent.  Paul instructed the Christians in Corinth to do the same with the man who was in sexual sin with his father’s wife.  The objective in both cases was so that they would repent.  They were given over to their sin in order to suffer the full consequences of it in their lives.  There are no more warnings, there are no more exhortations.  The sinners were withdrawn from and left to face the ravages of sin alone. 

I remember as a young spirited boy growing up the times when my misbehavior pushed my father over the limit.  The time was not appropriate for punishment but I could tell from his stony silence that his mind was made up and at his earliest convenience, I was going to receive correction.  The warnings which were few to begin with utterly stopped and when I looked at him I was met with a ice cold stony silent glare that boded ill for me.  It was at these times when contemplating my forthcoming immediate fate that I considered my actions and my predicament.  The thunder of my father’s anger was apparent in his silence.  There is something about a father’s grim irresolute silence that is quite disturbing to a child.  As long as the child is being corrected, he feels somewhat secure in the knowledge that Dad is still working with him.  But when that stops and nothing but silence is forthcoming then an attentive child knows he has gone too far.  It was during these times that I tried the hardest to be on my best behavior.  I knew that my only remaining chance to avoid disaster was immediate and total surrender and impeccable obedience. 

The Roman Empire had gone too far.  God sent earthquakes, famines, diseases, violent weather and vicious enemies in an effort to get them to repent from their unrighteousness.  They rebelled against God’s authority, insisted on worshipping their own gods and persecuted His children until He had enough.  Everything God had done had not produced any change in their behavior and He was done talking to them about it.  There was plenty more He could say, but like an earthly father who has put up with all he’s going to, it will be communicated in the actions soon to come.  What a horrible thought it should be to an erring Christian to think that God had given up on him.   It is no different for an unbeliever.  When God gives up on them, talking is over, the last opportunity to repent is at hand and they better avail themselves of it.  The wrath of our God is far worse and much longer lasting the wrath of an earthly father.  The judgment is final and the punishment is eternal. 

John knew what the thunders revealed but was commanded to keep it to himself.  The utterances of the thunders were carried unwritten to John’s grave.  We will never know this side of heaven exactly what those thunders said, but we can be assured it was serious indeed.  The implication of receiving no more warnings from God is serious enough in and of itself to speak volumes to anyone left who might listen.  Sometimes it’s the things not said that speak the loudest.

Revelation 10:5
“And the angel that I saw standing upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his right hand to heaven,”
It is one’s right hand that mankind today raises to swear oaths such as to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth in a court of law.

Revelation 10:6
“and sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created the heaven and the things that are therein, and the earth and the things that are therein, and the sea and the things that are therein, that there shall be delay no longer”
The angel seen standing on the earth with his right hand lifted in a solemn display swears an oath by Jesus Christ, the one who lives for ever and ever (Hebrews 7:24-25), who created the heaven and the things that are therein, and the earth and the things that are therein, and the sea and the things that are therein (Ephesians 3:9, Colossians 1:16). The swearing of oaths was a big thing in old testament times.  The swearing of an oath was the invoking of a curse upon one’s self if one has not spoken the truth (Matthew 26:74), or if one fails to keep a promise (1 Samuel 19:6; 20:17; 2 Samuel 15:21; 19:23). It played a very important part, not only in lawsuits (Exodus 22:11; Leviticus 6:3,5) and state affairs, but also in the dealings of everyday life (Genesis 24:37; 50:5; Judges 21:5; 1 Kings 18:10; Ezra 10:5).  In new testament times, the swearing of oaths by man is prohibited by divine commandment, “Again, ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths: but I say unto you, swear not at all; neither by the heaven, for it is the throne of God nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, for thou canst not make one hair white or black” (Matthew 5:33-36).  A literal angel did not stand on the earth with one foot in the seas and one foot on land and lift his right hand and swear and oath on the name of Jesus Christ.  The image here is to illustrate the solemn seriousness of the next phrase.

“that there shall be delay no longer”
Time was up.  Judgment which had been partial and scattered over the Roman Empire at different periods of time was now going to be total.  The Roman Empire was reduced to a mere shadow of what she once was and was about to be utterly destroyed and would never ever again rise to power.   Today there are no more Caesars or crested Roman soldiers.  There are no more temples built to worship the Roman Emperors and the other various pagan gods so prevalent in their culture.  The shining magnificent cities are lay in ruins, the powerful legions of soldiers only march in the pages of history now.  This is a grim testament to the utter and total finality of God’s judgment.  The Roman Empire did fall and they had no one to blame but themselves. 

Revelation 10:7
“but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then is finished the mystery of God, according to the good tidings which he declared to his servants the prophets.”
The seventh angel with the trumpet has not yet sounded but when he does, the mystery of God will be finished.  The Romans had no idea why their empire was crumbling about them.  The workings of God in opposition to their unrighteousness was a complete mystery to them because they refused to repent and turn to righteousness.  The Christians knew what was going on.  They had the good news of the gospel given to them.  The mystery of God was the plan of redemption and the promise of eternal life for the faithful (Colossians 1:26-27), once delivered to his apostles and servants (Jude 3), now is almost finished and will be completed when the seventh angel sounds.  This reference to the good tidings being completed is linked to the Book sealed with the seven perfect seals, the book that contained the coming of righteousness, followed by the influence of Satan and the steps progressing up to the rise of the great persecution and now with the little book at the end, we see the final chapter about to close on this greatest earthly enemy the Christians had ever known. 

The good tidings in the view of the oppressed Christians is of course the victory they will achieve from their perseverance in Christ.  This was good tidings indeed for them, especially in view of what is about to come chapter 11.  The oppressed Christians are going to need all the reassurance they can get because the persecution was yet to get so bad that the enemies of righteousness thought they had successfully stamped out Christianity forever.  The battle is almost over but the worst was yet to come. 

Revelation 10:8
“And the voice which I heard from heaven, (I heard it) again speaking with me, and saying, Go, take the book which is open in the hand of the angel that standeth upon the sea and upon the earth.”
The final chapter in the mystery of the good tidings is laying open in the hands of the angel.  John is instructed to go take that book.

Revelation 10:9
“And I went unto the angel, saying unto him that he should give me the little book. And he saith unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but in thy mouth it shall be sweet as honey.”
This is the second time John was instructed to take the book.  It was not handed to him even after he asked for it.  The meaning here is that God’s will is never forced on anyone.  We must reach out and take it of our own free choice through a conscious act on our part. 

The imagery of eating the book is taken directly from Ezekiel’s vision where he was similarly instructed to take the open roll of a book and eat it (Ezekiel 2:8-3:3).  John was to take the message contained within this book and and ingest it into his being.  He was to take this message into his bowels and make it a part of his life.  This message of the hope of the victorious will be sweet as honey in his mouth but the message of the fate of the enemies of righteousness will be bitter and hard to deal with.  The Psalmist wrote, “Horror hath taken hold upon me because of the wicked that forsake thy law” (Psalms 119:53).  The good tidings of this final message for the righteous was honey in his mouth but the horrors it contained for the unrighteous was bitter and would make him sick.  The application for us today is that while the good news of the gospel message is wondrous for us, it contains a very different message for the unrighteous.  The horrors that will be the eternal fate of the enemies of the cross should make us sick to our souls.  God was willing to sacrifice the life of His only Son in order to give people an opportunity to escape this horrible fate.  What should we today be willing to sacrifice in order to help fulfill this great purpose?

Revelation 10:10
“And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and when I had eaten it, my belly was made bitter.”
John took the book and did as instructed which resulted in the bittersweet taste promised him.  The reception and comprehension of God’s word is indeed sweet to the ears of the saints but fraught with bitterness of spirit in its condemnation of sinners and the declaration of the consequences awaiting the disobedient. 

Revelation 10:11
“And they say unto me, Thou must prophesy again over many peoples and nations and tongues and kings.”
While the fate of the enemies of Christianity is impending, John’s job is not yet complete.  He is going to prophecy much more and over many nations and people of the earth.  Being only half way through the Revelation it is easy to see what is being said here.  Following the seventh trumpet announcement, John immediately starts over with the radiant woman which was the nation of Israel bringing forth the Messiah.  The whole saga we are now nearing the conclusion of, repeats itself, but with different visions and a lot more detail.  In Homer Hailey’s commentary, it is stated that the rest of the Revelation from chapters 11 thru 20 is the message within the little book.  I see no reason why this cannot be the case. 

Summary Paraphrase:

Revelation 10
Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, robed in a cloud, with God’s covenant with man over his head like a rainbow.  His face was bright and shining like the sun, and his feet carried the judgment of God like pillars of fire.  He carried a message in a small open book in his hand for me to see.  He set his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land and stood over the whole earth.  Then he shouted with a loud voice like the roaring of a lion; and when he had finished, the seven thunders gave voice and uttered their message in distinct words.  And when the seven thunders had spoken, I was going to write down what they said, but then I heard a voice from heaven saying, “do not reveal what the seven thunders have said!  Do not write it down!”

Then the mighty angel whom I had seen stationed on sea and land raised his right hand to the sky and swore in the name of  Him Who lives forever and ever, Who created the heavens and all they contain, and the earth and all that it contains, and the sea and all that it contains.  He vowed that no more time would pass and there would be no more delay.  But when the days come when the trumpet call of the seventh angel is about to be sounded,  God’s secret design and hidden purpose as He had announced in the gospel to His servants the prophets, shall be completed and accomplished.

Then the voice that I heard from heaven spoke to me again, saying, Go and take the little book containing the last message which is open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.  So I went up to the angel and asked him to give me the little book. And he said to me, Take it and consume its message into your very being.  It will be as sweet as honey in your mouth but in your bowels it will be bitter.  So I took the message in the little book from the angel’s hand and consumed it and made it part of my life and its message was as sweet as honey in my mouth, but deep down inside it sickened me to my soul.

Then it was said to me, You are to make a fresh prophecy concerning these many peoples and races and nations and languages and kings.

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The Spirit and the Bride say “Come” (Revelation 22)

The Spirit and the Bride say “Come” (Revelation 22)

Chapter 22 continues with John’s vision of Heaven which was the primary subject of chapter 21. When the scripture was written, it was done so without the chapter and verse divisions we have today. According to history, the first English translation of the Bible to contain both chapter and verse divisions was the Geneva translation of the Bible published in 1560. For some reason unknown to this Bible student, a division was placed within John’s vision of Heaven. The first five verses of Revelation 22 complete John’s vision of Heaven, the home of the soul.

Revelation 22:1
“And he showed me a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb”

This is still the angel mentioned in Revelation 21:9 who carried John to a high mountain to see the holy city Jerusalem. This vision is still of the same city. John is shown the water of life flowing like a river. There is plenty of it available and it is in continuous supply coming from the throne of God. All life comes from the throne of God. This is the source from where everything good comes.

Notice here that we again see the lamb occupying the throne of God. There is one throne mentioned here and this throne is the seat of God and the lamb. The Holy Spirit is a part of this throne by necessary inference even though He is not directly mentioned here. Once again we see an incredible unity of the Godhead displayed in this vision as we see God and Jesus pictured as ruling from one throne.

Revelation 22:2
“in the midst of the street thereof. And on this side of the river and on that was the tree of life, bearing twelve (manner of) fruits, yielding its fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.”

The tree of life is pictured here as being in three places. On this side of the river, in the midst and on the other side of the river. The number three is a symbol of the perfect divine. This tree of life, like the river coming from the throne is of divine origin.

This is a figure of the tree of life that was in the garden of Eden from which Adam and Eve were barred because of their transgression. In this part of the vision, John takes us all the way back to the beginning when mankind sinned and was separated from the tree of life (Genesis 3:22-24). When mankind was separated from the tree of life, he lost his physical immortality. If sin had never come into the world, death would not have come and mankind could have lived forever on earth.

Revelation 22:3
“And there shall be no curse any more: and the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be therein: and his servants shall serve him”

When Adam and Eve sinned, God placed a curse on mankind that has endured since that time and will continue to endure for as long as earth remains. Woman’s pain at childbirth was increased, and her husband would rule over her from that time on. We see this arrangement in the church today where men are to be the head of their wives who is to be in subjection to them (Ephesians 5:23). In heaven, this is not how it will be at all. Jesus taught that in the resurrection we will all have spiritual bodies like the angels and will never more be married nor given in marriage (Matthew 22:30-32, Luke 20:35-36). Eve sinned and a curse was placed on women (Genesis 3:16). In heaven, this curse is no more.

Adam received a curse too. Genesis 3:17-19, “And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in toil shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; in the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread.”

Man has to work for a living. Before man sinned God provided every need in a physical paradise. Man’s curse was that from henceforth he would work to provide the basic needs of himself and his family. In heaven, this curse will be no more. God will again provide all that is needed.

And then the final curse on all mankind was that they would die. Genesis 3:19, “till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” Man was driven from the paradise of Eden where was found the tree of life. Being no longer able to eat of its fruit, mankind would then begin to age and would eventually die a physical death. Our physical deaths are part of the curse of sin on earth. In heaven, all sin and darkness will be gone, there will be no more curse and we will live forever and serve God on His throne in a paradise once again.

Revelation 22:4
“and they shall see his face; and his name (shall be) on their foreheads.”

On earth we walk by faith and not by sight, (2 Corinthians 5:7), no man has ever seen the face of God (John 1:18). In heaven, no longer will we walk by faith and not by sight for we will see the face of God Himself. The separation between God and His children will be gone and they will be in his actual presence.

Revelation 22:5
“And there shall be night no more; and they need no light of lamp, neither light of sun; for the Lord God shall give them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever.”

This is a restatement of Revelation 21:23. In heaven there will be no night, no darkness of any kind. The glory of the Lord will lighten our lives from that point forward and into eternity without end.

This completes John’s vision of heaven. On earth the church is called the Kingdom of God and sometimes the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 16:18-19) but this is not the same as the heaven the saved look forward to after the resurrection. In the kingdom we live in now, there is pain, sorrow, tears and suffering. Night falls and there is death to face. And we are still living with the curse, the consequences, of sin all around us.

In heaven, all of this is gone. Heaven is opposite of Hell and is the final, glorious triumphant separation of mankind from sin and complete and total reconciliation with God. No more tears, no more pain, sorrow and death, no more do we live under the curse of sin. No longer will we suffer because of the sins of others. No more will we live with the temptation of sin. No more will we be separated from God, being reunited with Him in person where we shall live and reign with Him and in service to Him forever and ever and ever.

What a beautiful picture John portrays of the hope all Christians have. This vision of heaven is for all Christians who ever lived, suffered and died on earth. All Christians can look at this blessed vision and find hope and encouragement to persevere, to stay the course, to fight the fight and to patiently endure to the end.

Revelation 14:12
“Here is the patience of the saints, they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.”

1 Peter 1:7-9
“that the proof of your faith, (being) more precious than gold that perisheth though it is proved by fire, may be found unto praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ: whom not having seen ye love; on whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice greatly with joy unspeakable and full of glory: receiving the end of your faith, (even) the salvation of (your) souls.”

How beautiful and wonderful heaven must be.

And now we come to the final farewell and closing admonitions of this last inspired book of the holy record. What a fitting conclusion to the new testament of God. The gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John reveal Christ. The book of Acts teaches the believer how to get “into Christ”. The general epistles teach the Christians how to live “in Christ”. Revelation teaches Christians how to die in Christ and ends up with a glorious vision of the reward given to the patient and the faithful. Revelation 21:7 sums it up, “He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.”

Revelation 22:6
“And he said unto me, These words are faithful and true: and the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angels to show unto his servants the things which must shortly come to pass.”

The angel showing John the vision of Heaven now proclaims that the things he has been shown are faithful and true. This means the Christians of the Roman persecution and all Christians thereafter can depend on them. Christians can commit themselves to these words with confidence and assurance. Christians can know beyond any doubt that they can base their hopes and their destinies in the hands of Christ and be victorious in the end no matter what.

These visions were introduced in the first sentence of Revelation as shortly coming to pass. And indeed they were. Many of the natural disasters which God used to punish the Roman Empire were already in progress. At the writing of the Revelation, the Christians were already living under great persecution and a number of the things which we saw in the opening of the seals and the bowls of wrath were already well in progress. People today with little understanding of Revelation see some of the natural disasters or perhaps the heinous acts of some individual and instantly associate them with the disasters or the evil characters illustrated within the Revelation. How much more so would the people to whom the Revelation was written associate it with their circumstances? The first readers of the book knew it was written to them in the first sentence and then throughout the book they saw vision after vision of the very circumstances under which they lived and their evil enemies who were bent upon their destruction.

The only elements of the visions in Revelation that have anything to do with future events are the ones which speak of the coming day of the Lord, the final casting of the unrighteous into the lake of fire and the receiving of the eternal home of the Christians. The beast, the false prophet, the harlot and the dragon were all characters being dealt with by the people to whom the book was addressed in their time period. Two millennia or more after the letter was written is under no circumstances to be understood as “shortly coming to pass”. Not only was it going to happen relatively soon, it was already in progress.

Revelation 22:7
“And behold, I come quickly. Blessed is he that keepeth the words of the prophecy of this book.”

Jesus is coming with blessings for the ones who keep the word of God. Jesus says “Behold” or “look now”. “I come quickly” signifies an action being executed speedily or swiftly. Call to mind that Jesus used these same words to the church in Philadelphia. He is coming speedily and surely to the aid of the first readers of the book.

“Blessed is he that keepeth the words of the prophecy of this book”. The sixth beatitude of the Revelation and is a reinforcement of the first one found in the third verse of chapter 1. Jesus is restating a number of the things here in the closing remarks of the Revelation that were introduced in the opening statements of the book. the readers are being reminded of key elements which they must not lose sight of. This is no different than a parent repeating things of great importance to their children in order to make sure they understand. The entire theme of the Revelation has been to persevere and overcome and remain faithful to God even unto death. The Revelation is bookended front and back with similar opening and closing statements. Inspiration is stressing the importance of keeping the words of this book by repeating it for the readers.

Revelation 22:8-9
“And I John am he that heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel that showed me these things. And he saith unto me, See thou do it not: I am a fellow-servant with thee and with thy brethren the prophets, and with them that keep the words of this book: worship God.”

As in the beginning of the Revelation, John affirms to the readership that these visions are indeed coming through him. He is the one who is writing them down by inspiration. The last living eyewitness to the ministry, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ back into Heaven. There can be no greater assurance in the minds of the recipients of a letter than the knowledge that their author walked, talked, ate with, companied with and shared in the afflictions of Jesus Christ. The readers were given this assurance in the opening of the visions and received it again in the end.

And with this assurance of who penned the inspired letter, we are reminded of another extremely important factor upon which the entire book of Revelation hinges. John is so overwhelmed with the visions that he falls down at the angel’s feet to worship him. In Revelation 19:10 John fell down at the feet of an angel and was forbidden to do it and was told to worship God. Now again, John is reminded that he must not worship anyone but God. Worship of false gods and idols was the crux of the problem upon which everything that happened to the Roman Empire revolved. They worshipped all kinds of gods, they worshipped men on earth as gods, men on earth tried to force worship of other men on earth as gods. The refusal of the Christians to bow down to false worship is what sparked the great persecution. All the persecution of the Christians, the suffering of the non-believers, the bowls of wrath, the natural disasters, the plagues everything bad that caused so much death and misery were the result of the worshipping of false gods. The Roman Empire was destroyed because of idol worship and their refusal to repent of it and for their persecution of the righteous.

The readers are given yet another reinforcement of something vitally important. Worship God and only God. Do not even worship an angel that comes in the name of God showing heavenly visions. John had to be reminded of that. Christians to whom the Revelation was addressed need to heed it’s warning. Christians of all ages must recognize the importance of this. There are religious organizations to this day who fail to recognize this great truth. In the name of Jesus Christ, they set up manmade images of Mary and of various saints and they offer prayers to these “fellow servants” of Christ. In Revelation 4 we are given a scene of worship before the throne of God. Even the 24 elders removed their crowns, cast them at the feet of the throne and bowed to God. When God is worshipped, all eyes are on God and God alone. And those who claim Christ as saviour must give heed to this. Worship is to be offered only to the occupant of the throne of God. Jesus is pictured as occupying the throne with the Father. Revelation 4:5 places the Holy Spirit there as well and in a place of prominence before the throne. All three are God and are unified as God and must be worshipped as one. when we offer our worship to God, all three members of the Godhead are glorified. Worship God.

Revelation 22:10
“And he saith unto me, Seal not up the words of the prophecy of this book; for the time is at hand.”

This prophecy does not need to be kept shut up. It needs to be distributed far and wide for the time of its fulfillment is now. Once again the reader is given the idea that now is the time for the events in the book to be transpiring. Christians are suffering now. Christians need comfort, reassurance and hope now. Christians are being killed for their faith now. Christians need to overcome now, for the time is at hand.

The application for us today is that Christians are still suffering for their faith in many areas of the world and this persecution is getting worse, not better. The time for perseverance is still at hand and will remain so until the vision of the great city descending from above is realized. Then and only then will the evil influences of Satan be forever cast down and the faithful who overcame will live without sin and temptation in the presence of God the Father, the Lamb and the Spirit for all eternity in complete safety and security. We are again reminded of this great truth in the closing statements yet to come. How beautiful Heaven must be.

Revelation 22:11
“He that is unrighteous, let him do unrighteousness still: and he that is filthy, let him be made filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him do righteousness still: and he that is holy, let him be made holy still.”

Here we see two classifications of people, the unrighteous and the filthy and the righteous and the holy. This is one of the most powerful statements supporting the free will choice of man to choose his destiny in all of scripture, second only to the one yet to come in verse 17. God gave man free will in the garden of Eden and has not revoked that privilege since. to those who persecuted the Christians, let them be unrighteous and filthy. Let them do their unrighteousness. Let them be what they choose to be.

Unfortunately, the unrighteous, in their freedom to be unrighteous can afflict the righteous. Christians throughout the ages have suffered horrendous hardship, persecution and death at the hands of the unrighteous. This consequence is by no means confined to the Roman Empire. This summation in verse 11 is one of the main primary messages taught in Revelation. There are going to be unrighteous people who will not turn from their evil ways. Let them be unrighteous. The goal of the righteous is to be righteous and holy regardless of the actions of others. How fitting are the words here of Paul writing to the Christians who lived in Rome:

Romans 12:19-21
“Avenge not yourselves, beloved, but give place unto the wrath (of God): for it is written, Vengeance belongeth unto me; I will recompense, saith the Lord. But if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him to drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.”

Revelation 22:12-13
“Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to render to each man according as his work is. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”

Jesus speaks here and states again that he is coming surely and speedily. Jesus is looking ahead now to the final judgment of all the earth as the vision draws to a close. Jesus is the beginning and the end of the creation. At the end, each individual person will be given the rewards for their works, be they either the consequences of unrighteousness and filthiness or the rewards of righteousness and holiness. Let those who persist in evil and filthiness receive the recompense of their works.

Revelation 22:14
“Blessed are they that wash their robes, that they may have the right (to come) to the tree of life, and may enter in by the gates into the city.”

Let those who persevere, overcome and persist in righteousness, who wash their robes and keep them unspotted from the world receive their reward. How are their robes washed? Revelation 7:14, “These are they that come of the great tribulation, and they washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” Only those who have washed their robes are granted the right to enter in by one of the twelve gates in the city of heaven and can enjoy the blessing of eternal life. This is the reward that Jesus said He carried with Him that will be rendered to each man according to his works. This reward is the right to enter through the pearl gates into the city of life.

This reward is in no way earned or merited in any way. The gift of eternal life cannot be payed for with money or good works. God the Father was under no obligation to send His Son to earth to die for the sins of the world and God’s Son was under no obligation to offer His life as a freewill ransom for the souls of man. No amount of works on the part of man could ever repay that act of incredible love and sacrifice. This reward of eternal life is by the grace of God through faith. It can neither be earned nor deserved but this fact does not negate the Christians obligations to overcome and persevere to the end. The fact that one’s obedience to the will of God can never pay for their salvation does not in any way alleviate them from their responsibilities to God. Jesus is the author of salvation unto all who obey Him. Obedience to the will of God is a work of righteousness upon which our eternal destinies ride. Jesus said in Matthew 7:21 that “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven.”

Revelation 22:15
“Without are the dogs, and the sorcerers, and the fornicators, and the murderers, and the idolaters, and every one that loveth and maketh a lie.”

The reward for the Christian life faithfully lived to the end is entrance into the holy city where is the throne of God and the tree of life. And the reward for those who insist on being unrighteous is denial into the great city. No one who practices unrighteousness will be allowed into the holy city. No one who hurts, or causes pain, or suffering will ever set foot inside. They are on the outside and will never pass through those gates of pearl and will never harm anyone righteous again.

Revelation 22:16
“I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things for the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright, the morning star.”

This is another restatement of what we read in Revelation 1:1. These visions John saw were shown to him by an angel who was sent by Jesus Christ. The visions were directed to the churches of the first century and thereafter who were under the influence of the evil Roman Empire.

We have all seen that last bright start in the morning before the sun comes up. Shining in the heavens, this star is the final herald of the day before the sun bursts forth from beneath the horizon. Jesus Christ claims to be that bright morning star which ushers in the glorious and bright holy city when it’s glory bursts forth for all to see. Those on earth who are faithful can keep their eyes on that morning star, watch it and follow it and they will see the glory of that great city burst forth like the rays of the sun in the morning. What a beautiful mental image this paints on one’s imagination. How glorious heaven must be.

Revelation 22:17
“And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And he that heareth, let him say, Come. And he that is athirst, let him come: he that will, let him take the water of life freely.”

The Holy Spirit says come. The redeemed say come. This is the invitation extended to all mankind. The word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit is calling to the lost. The church on earth is calling to the lost. The call to God is extended to all mankind on earth. None are denied who freely seek Him. Peter wrote that God is “longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). Paul wrote that God would “have all men to be saved, and come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4). Eternal life is something offered freely and indiscriminately to all. No one who truly seeks it will be turned away. No one ever need think for a moment that they are not good enough or that God wouldn’t save them. No one ever think that God is a respecter of persons because He claims He is not (Romans 2:11, Colossians 3:23-25).

The water of life pictured here runs in a river from the throne of God, (V1) and is big enough for all and is available to all. “He that is righteous, let him do righteousness still: and he that is holy, let him be made holy still” (V 11). In the end there will be only two groups of people. The saved and the lost. Jesus taught as recorded in Matthew 25:31-32, “the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the angels with him, then shall he sit on the throne of his glory: and before him shall be gathered all the nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as the shepherd separateth the sheep from the goats”. And the unrighteous “shall go away into eternal punishment: but the righteous into eternal life” (V 46).

Revelation 22:18
“I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add unto them, God shall add unto him the plagues which are written in this book: and if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the tree of life, and out of the holy city, which are written in this book.”

These are some of the strongest and most sobering words in all of scripture. Given the diversity of opinions on what the Revelation is and how it should be interpreted, it can be easily seen that many many people are falling into the category of those who will fall into condemnation. It is with great care, caution and diligence that a student of the Bible should approach this volume. For those who add to the prophecies, they will suffer the plagues which are written in the book. There are many plagues mentioned in the Revelation, up to including being thrown into the lake of fire, and this inspired verse embraces them all indiscriminately.

For those who would diminish the words of the prophecy in this book, their fate is singular and severe. They will have their right to the tree of life revoked and lose their citizenship in the holy city, which is heaven. In short, those who lessen, or trivialize, or change, or deny any of the words in the Revelation lose their salvation. Who was the Revelation written to? Christians. Who does it pertain to? Christians. Who will therefore lose their right to the tree of life and their place in heaven if they tamper with the prophecies in Revelation? Christians.

One cannot have their part in the tree of life removed unless they first had a part in it. Likewise one cannot have their part in the holy city taken away unless they first had one to begin with. This is not a picture of people who have never come to righteousness. This is a illustration of those who first had a part in the tree of life and the holy city and by their actions with the prophecies in the Revelation, forfeited it. There cannot be a more serious and sobering verse of scripture with which to end this wondrous book. We must beware the consequences of error and diligently strive for the truth.

This attitude of God’s the handling of His holy word is by no means unique. A similar command and warning was given concerning the law of Moses in Deuteronomy 4:2 and 12:32. In the New Testament Paul pronounced the curse of God upon those who would teach another gospel than the one which was received (Galatians 1:6-9). Paul also wrote in 1 Corinthians 4:6 not to go beyond what was written. John had something to say about going beyond what was written to. He wrote that “Whosoever goeth onward and abideth not in the teaching of Christ, hath not God” (2 John 9). This means to go further than is right or proper and to transgress the limits of God’s word.

It has been noted time and again that the key to unraveling the visions of the Revelation is found within and throughout God’s holy word and this has indeed proven to be the fact. One cannot tamper with the prophecies of Revelation without adding to, or taking away from, or going beyond what is written elsewhere in scripture. The Revelation is inseparably connected with the rest of inspired scripture and as such cannot be added to or taken away from without altering the word of God elsewhere.

For example, Revelation makes the consistent claim throughout that the faithful Christian must overcome and remain faithful to the end or suffer eternal damnation. If one diminishes this, then they have done violence to verses of scripture such as Matthew 10:22 where Jesus told his twelve disciples named in Matthew 10:2-4 to go forth and preach the gospel to Israel and he gave this admonition, “And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved.” James wrote this admonition in his epistle, “My brethren, if any among you err from the truth, and one convert him; let him know, that he who converteth a sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall cover a multitude of sins” (James 5:19-20). If one tampers with the consequences of sin in Revelation, they have tampered with them in the rest of scripture and therefore fall under the condemnation of going beyond, or not abiding in the doctrine of Christ. The only conclusion that can be reached is that God’s commands regarding adding to or taking away from the prophecies of Revelation have an application to the rest of the word of God as well.

Revelation 22:20
“He who testifieth these things saith, Yea: I come quickly. Amen: come, Lord Jesus.”

Jesus is the one who testifies the visions in Revelation. John was merely the man who wrote the testimony down under the direct supervision of the Holy Spirit who inspired all the scriptures. Jesus for the third time in this vision declared “I come quickly”. When the time is right for His last coming, He will come and gather His saints unto Himself and then deliver the kingdom to the Father where all the saved will be united eternally with God Himself in the holy city. John responds with a hearty Amen and echoes the hope and cry of every saint that ever lived on the earth in a final prayer to God:

Revelation 22:20-21
“Amen: come, Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with the saints. Amen.”

This is a final plea for God to come and alleviate the sufferings of the Christians of the time and of His final coming at the end. This is the hope expressed by all Christians who live faithful and righteous life. This is what all Christians strive and persevere for. And so the final curtain drops on the Revelation and as it settles into our memories we are left with the answers to many of mankind’s questions.

Why am I here?
What is my purpose in life?
What is my destiny?

Heaven is a prepared place for a prepared people. We were placed on this earth to prepare ourselves for eternal life with God. His purpose in all of this is to separate the wheat from the chaff by giving mankind his will and then granting him the right of free choice and letting him decide his own destiny. God really loves mankind and when someone really loves somebody, they give them freewill to choose and see what their choices are. It is unfortunate but necessary that Christians live amongst the ungodly, for how else could their true feelings and desires be manifested.

God already knows without playing this drama out who will be saved and who will be lost. This has been made abundantly clear throughout scripture. But our God is a fair and just God. And nobody who suffers the damnation of Hell will ever be able to say they didn’t have their chance. This life on earth is something we must all do in order for God to be the true, righteous, just, faithful and Holy God that He is. We have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, therefore we have no recourse but to endure this life. Nothing we could ever possibly suffer on earth could be as bad as the torment of Hell which is everlasting and eternal.

Our purpose in life is to overcome evil through a life of faithful service. Working, striving, teaching, calling the lost, living by example, ever reaching for the goal, endeavoring to transform ourselves into the image of Christ, persevering and overcoming all opposition no matter what it is or where it comes from.

Our destinies are one of two possible. Jesus said it best:

John 5:28-29
“Marvel not at this: for the hour cometh, in which all that are in the tombs shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of judgment.”

As we bring this study of Revelation to a close, we learn from this study that those who triumph over evil, overcome and endure to the end receive eternal life with God in Heaven and those who do not receive eternal loss and separation from God. The circumstances under which Christians live have no bearing on righteousness. God’s expectations are uniform and absolute. In the end, the good guys win and the bad guys lose. The good guys are the ones who lived their lives in obedient service to God, faithful unto death, even if it cost them their lives. The bad guys either never came to the knowledge of God or did and then succumbed to temptation and lost it all.

Revelation was written to the Christians living under the Roman persecution and directly applies to them. However the application we take from their trials, triumphs and suffering are timeless. Christians today, just like the Christians of the Revelation must overcome. The rewards are worth whatever the cost.

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.”

Revelation 22 paraphrase

And the angel showed me a pure river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing continuously from the throne of God and of Jesus Christ. In the middle of it and on either side of it was the tree of life, which bore twelve varieties of fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing and restoration of the nations.

And the curse of sin from the beginning will be lifted. And the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in the midst of the city and His servants shall serve Him forever and ever. They shall be in His presence and see His face, and His name shall be seen on them forever. There shall be no more night there. They need no lamp nor light of the sun for the Lord God gives them light. And they shall reign with Him forever and ever.

Then the angel said to me, “These words are faithful and true.” And the Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show His servants the things which must shortly take place.

“Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.

Now I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these visions. Then he said to me, “See that you do not do that. For I am a fellow servant along with you and your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep and obey the words of this book. Worship only God.”

And then he said to me, “Do not withhold the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand. He who insists on being unjust, let him continue to be unjust; he who insists on being filthy, let him continue to be filthy. And he who is righteous, let him continue to be righteous; he who is holy, let him continue to be holy.”

“And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.” Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to eat of the tree of life, and may enter through the pearl gates into Heaven. For outside the walls are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices lies. I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.”

The Spirit of God and the redeemed say, Come! And let him who is listening say, Come! And let everyone come who earnestly thirsts for righteousness. Any who will, let them drink freely of the water of life.

Now I solemnly proclaim to all who listen to the prophecy of this book, that they shall add anything to it, God will lay upon him the afflictions and calamities that are described in these visions. And if anyone diminishes or takes away from the statements in the visions of this prophecy, God will take away from him his right to the tree of life and from Heaven. And He Who gives this warning and affirms and testifies to these things says, “This is the truth”. Surely I am coming swiftly and suddenly.

Amen! Yes, come, Lord Jesus! May the grace, blessings and favor of the Lord Jesus Christ be with all of God’s people. Amen, so let it be!

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Heaven, Home of the Soul (Revelation 21)

Heaven, Home of the Soul (Revelation 21)

The visions of the little book which John was told to take and eat began in chapter 11 where we saw a vision of the church in great distress.  In chapter 12 the scene jumped abruptly back in time to the birth of Jesus Christ.  Then we saw the efforts of the dragon to destroy Jesus and the thwarting of those plans.  Then in chapter 13 we see the beast and his false prophet rise up and try to destroy the church.  Then we see the various ways God used to try and bring the persecuting powers to repentance and then ultimately the great war between evil and good.  We then saw the destruction of the harlot city, the beast and the false prophet and then the final destruction of Satan, the judgment of mankind and then the punishment of the wicked.  What is left now is a vision of the reward for perseverance.

Throughout the Revelation, the faithful are exhorted to overcome the forces of evil.  Do not give in, do not partake with them, do not bow down to the images set up by the false prophet, do not worship the beast and do not give up.  We have seen the consequences for failure and we have seen the warnings and the visions of the punishment that awaits the wicked.  Now it’s time to see the prize.  Now it’s time to get a glimpse of the reward that awaits the stedfast souls who overcame and remained faithful despite the odds.

To Christians, chapter 21 and part of chapter 22 is portrayal of the glorious home of the faithful soul beyond the final judgment.  Throughout the Christian age this vision has comforted the hearts of countless Christians during the times of trial, persecution, tragedy and the deaths of loved ones.  Chapter 21 is a vision of what all Christians strive for.  Christians are described in scripture as being pilgrims in a foreign land with their citizenship in heaven.   Here is the reward that awaits the diligent and the faithful.  Here is their nation, their country, their destination, their hope and their home.  Revelation 21 is a vision of the Christian’s spiritual home described in terms we can identify with.  As beautiful as it is described and as glorious a place as John describes it, there is no better word for it than the word, “home”.  This is something the faithful Christian has never really had.  This is what the faithful Christian has looked ahead to and yearned for all their lives.  This is what the faithful Christian has been promised and hopes for; the final destination, the goal, the prize, the reward for a life of faith faithfully lived.  This is heaven, the home of the soul.

Revelation 21:1
“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth are passed away; and the sea is no more.”

Here we have the stage set for this vision in the very first line.  The earth has passed away, the sea is no more.  Isaiah wrote in 65:17, “For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.” In 2 Peter 3:13, it is written, “But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.”  The idea of a new heaven and new earth is given in scripture in numerous places.  This denotes a new place to live.  A home for the soul which is better than the old one and permanent.  The old has passed away to be replaced by the new.  Some teach that this is speaking of a new physical earth.  This is not the case because Peter wrote that the earth nor the heavens we are familiar with will no longer exist (2 Peter 3:10-12).

The Hebrew writer taught that only once more will He who speaks from heaven shake the earth and the skies above and when He does, all the things which are made, meaning the creation, will be removed, leaving only what cannot be shaken in its place.  He then goes on to say that what cannot be shaken and will not be removed is the Kingdom of God.  His spiritual kingdom which is not physical (Hebrews 12:25-28).

What is left after the first earth and first heaven passes is the spiritual realm.  The text of the verse affirms this with the words “and the sea is no more“.  Proponents of the new physical earth belief are going to have to explain how this new physical earth is going to exist without the oceans which are said to be no more.  The new heaven the new earth are not physical by any means.  They are going to be the spiritual home of the soul for the overcomers.

“and the sea is no more”
The King James Version renders this “and there was no more sea“.  In Revelation 4 we read of John’s vision of the four great beasts before the throne of God.  These four great beasts represented God’s people from all over the earth.  The four great beasts were a figure for the church which in scripture is the spiritual kingdom of God.  The crystal sea, mentioned in Revelation 15:2 was a figure for the barrier between God and His people.  Christians on earth walk by faith, and not by site.  While scripture teaches that we have fellowship with God (1 Corinthians 1:9, 1 John 1:6), but this fellowship is maintained through a barrier.  Christians on earth are not allowed direct access to God the Father.  But in heaven, the home of the soul, Christians will no longer have a barrier between them and God.  The figure of “no more sea” is representative of a place where all the redeemed shall have direct access and face to face fellowship with God.  The sea being gone is the absence of the barrier between God and His people which exists in the church on earth.

Another thing to consider is that the greater beast of chapter 13 came from the sea.  With the absence of the sea, there will be no more source for danger to come from.  This is a place of absolute eternal safety and security.

“And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven of God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband.”

The old order of things had its holy city, so also does the coming one.  The old Jerusalem has long since passed and was a physical place of not only the righteous children of God, but also of tears, mourning of death.  In the new Jerusalem, there will be no more death or tears of any kind.  Coming down out of heaven means that it is of divine origin. And so it is, Jesus in John 14:2-3 was quoted as saying “I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I come again, and will receive you unto myself; that where I am, (there) ye may be also.”  This is a vision, described in earthly terms, of the place Jesus went to prepare for His saints.

The imagery of the bride adorned for her husband is familiar terminology from Ephesians 5:27, “that he might present the church to himself a glorious (church), not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.”  This is a picture of the presenting of the body of the saved to the Lord by Himself, having previously given Himself to it similar to a groom giving himself for his bride.  There is a dual imagery here of both the church on earth and of Heaven, but the primary focus is on heaven as will be seen in verse 3 where God Himself is said to dwell with his people.  The vision here is of the church, including all the saved who lived before the cross, in her final glory beyond the judgment in her eternal home with God

Revelation 21:3
“And I heard a great voice out of the throne saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he shall dwell with them, and they shall be his peoples, and God himself shall be with them, (and be) their God”

No more is God with His people in Spirit as He was before.   No more do we walk by faith and not by sight.  No longer is God invisible.  In this new Jerusalem, God Himself, in totality, will be with the saved.  This is a place where the redeemed come into the actual presence of God Himself forever.  This is Heaven, the home of the Soul.

Revelation 21:4
“and he shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more; neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more: the first things are passed away.”

On earth, the righteous shed tears of grief, they die, they mourn and they hurt.  In the Heaven there will be no more tears, no more death, no more mourning and no more pain of any kind.  All these things have passed away and are gone forever.  The Christians who first received the Revelation were enduring horrendous hardship and persecution.  What a beautiful picture of what awaited the victorious this must have represented to them.  What a beautiful picture that awaits the victorious of all ages this is.  The Roman Empire has long since fallen but there are still plenty of enemies of Christians on earth.  There are places on earth today where the proclamation of one’s faith in Jesus Christ results in one’s immediate execution.  This vision of heaven was written for Christians living under the great persecution of the Roman Empire but it applies to every Christian that ever lived past, present and future.  “Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee the crown of life. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith to the churches. He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death” (Revelation 2:10-11).  The crown of life is worn in heaven, the home of the soul.

Revelation 21:5
“And he that sitteth on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he saith, Write: for these words are faithful and true.”

From the throne of God, it is announced that the old physical existence with the pain, suffering, sorrow and death are to be replaced with something new where none of these things exist anymore.  And the readers are assured from the throne that these words are true and that they can be trusted.  People who are hurting, mourning and suffering can put their trust in these words and in Jesus Christ and find their way home.  He is telling the truth.  There is a place better than the one they are living in.  There is a home where sorrow and pain do not exist.  There is a home where there are no more tears and we can trust His word on that.  These words apply to every Christian that ever cried a tear of grief or suffered a loss.

Revelation 21:6
“And he said unto me, They are come to pass. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.”

As is often the case in Revelation, future happenings are described in past tense terms.  So sure and inevitable are these events that they are described as already having been accomplished.  The occupant of the throne identifies Himself for us with words familiar from His introduction of Himself in the first of the Revelation.  In the beginning, Jesus Christ identified Himself as the “Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending” (Revelation 1:8).  Jesus Christ is speaking from the throne of God.  We have here a wondrous image of the unity of God.  So united are the Father, the Son and the Spirit that from the throne, they speak as one.

Eternal life in heaven with God is offered to all mankind.  This opportunity is given freely to any who would respond to the call.  There are teachings among those who claim Christ as their savior that teach God selectively gives salvation to whosoever He will.  This is not true, salvation is offered to whosoever thirsts for it.  We see this offer repeated even more strongly at the close of the book, “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And he that heareth, let him say, Come. And he that is athirst, let him come: he that will, let him take the water of life freely.” (Revelation 22:17).

Jesus claimed to be the beginning and the end.  Scripture supports this as being a literal statement about Himself.  Numerous places credit Jesus Christ as the active agent directing the creation of all things.  One of the most notable is found in Colossians 1:16-17, “For by him [Jesus], were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.”  Also in John’s gospel when he was introducing Jesus in the first chapter, he made this statement in verse 10, “He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not” (KJV). Paul wrote to the Ephesians, he taught that God “created all things by Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 3:9).  It is easy to conclude that Jesus was indeed the beginning of it all.

Jesus will also be the last.  He will be the last of all creation when He returns at the end. 2 Peter 3:10, “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are therein shall be burned up.”  And when Jesus does come, it will be “from heaven with the angels of his power in flaming fire, rendering vengeance to them that know not God, and to them that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus: who shall suffer punishment, (even) eternal destruction from the face of the Lord and from the glory of his might” (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9). Jesus Himself said, “Marvel not at this: for the hour cometh, in which all that are in the tombs shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of judgment” (John 5:28-29).  Jesus is indeed both the beginning and the end.  And when He does end things here on earth, all things will be made new and we will have another beginning which shall never end.

Revelation 21:7
“He that overcometh shall inherit these things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.”

The overcomers who are faithful unto death will inherit this place of no more sorrow, no more pain, no more tears.  Christians in the church today are the sons of God (1 John 3:2), but there is sorrow in the church with tears, physical death and loss.  This is not so in the place the overcomers shall inherit.  While we are the children of God now, in heaven we will be in the presence of God almighty in a way never before known.  He will be the God we can see.  We will be His children in His literal presence.  God is not saying here that we are not His children until we inherit the home of no more tears.  He’s telling the overcomers that when this place of sorrow they are enduring has passed, they are going to come into a place of protection in the Home of God where there will be no more pain.  This place we are going to inherit is going to be better than anything we have ever known and the relationship we will have with God will be unlike anything we have ever experienced.

Revelation 21:8
“But for the fearful, and unbelieving, and abominable, and murderers, and fornicators, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, their part (shall be) in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone; which is the second death.”

And here again is the fate of those who never come to righteousness or who did not remain faithful unto death.  Here is the opposite destination of those who do not inherit the eternal life in the home of the soul.  Revelation is a letter written to oppressed Christians as a message of hope and perseverance.  Christians are told time after time they must overcome.  The fate of those Christians who do not overcome is the primary focus of this admonition.  Time and again throughout the Revelation Christians are cautioned to persevere and warned against succumbing to temptation no matter what form it comes in.  And now after a vision of the reward for faithfulness has been given, Christians are again admonished to overcome and remain faithful.  If it were not possible for the Christian to fall and lose their inheritance in heaven, there would be no warnings to avoid it.

We have seen the second death mentioned earlier in Revelation.  It was first mentioned in the letter to Smyrna.  Following the warning to remain faithful unto death in Revelation 2:10, we see the fate of those who do not in these words, “He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death” (V11).

The second death is mentioned again in Revelation 20:6 in the context of the first resurrection.  The second death has no power over all those who have a part in the first resurrection.  As is often times the case, Revelation explains itself and this is yet another example of this.  The second death is defined in 20:14 as the “lake of fire” and again here as “the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone“.  We understand this to be Hell, which is the opposite destination of those who overcome, remain faithful unto death and find their way to the city of no more tears.

The second death awaits those who are “fearful, and unbelieving, and abominable, and murderers, and fornicators, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars”.  This list of the unrighteous includes all mankind, both Christians and non-Christians.  Paul gave instruction to the Corinthian church concerning a Christian who was guilty of fornication, (1 Corinthians 5:1).  This guilty Christian was required to repent or face the second death.  In Acts 8 we read the account of a man named Simon who was a sorcerer in his past.  He heard the gospel and converted and when he saw the miracles being performed he wanted to buy the ability to pass them on.  He wanted to go back to his old tricks of sorcery.  he was told to repent or face the second death.  In Hebrews 3:12 we read of those Christians who were guilty of unbelief in departing from the living God.  Christians can be all of the things listed in Revelation 21:8 and face the second death.  Or they can overcome and inherit a home in the city of no more tears.  The application for us today is that all must come to Christ and all Christians must persevere and overcome temptation or face the lake of fire; the second death.

Revelation 21:1-8 can be summed up as “heaven, the perfect place of fellowship”.  The crystal sea that was present in Revelation 4:6 is not seen in this vision (V1).  In this place of no more tears, this barrier has been removed so that mankind has perfect access to and fellowship with the person of God almighty.  In the spiritual kingdom of God on earth, we have fellowship with God in a spiritual way, but there is a barrier between us.  In the place of no more tears, this barrier has been removed and Christians stand in the actual presence of God almighty.

Revelation 21:9
“And there came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls, who were laden with the seven last plagues; and he spake with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the wife of the Lamb.”

In Revelation 17 an angel holding one of the seven vials instructed John to “come hither” and see the judgments of the great whore that sitteth on many waters.  The destruction of the Roman Empire was absolute.  Never again will the Roman Empire rise to power like it did in those times.  The judgment of the Empire is over, the beast and the false prophet have been put down and thrown into eternal torment.  Satan, the ringleader has been put down and now what’s left is a vision of what awaits those who overcame.

The saved of all time, washed clean by the blood of the lamb and because of their perseverance and faithfulness gained the victory over Satan.  As clean and pure as a virgin, fit to be the wife of the king.  What a connection the saved will have with God.  There is no closer bond.  There is no greater relationship than that of bride and groom.  As children of God on earth, Christians similarly are known as the bride of Christ.  But in heaven, the bride will get to see her groom and be in His presence.

Revelation 21:10
“And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God”

One would expect to see a glorious vision of a bride after reading that the angel was going to show John the wife of the lamb.  This is not the case.  The wife of the lamb is introduced as the holy city Jerusalem.  Let us recall that the great harlot was symbolized as the city that reigned over the kings of the earth.  As the harlot was symbolized by a great city, so also is the wife of the lamb symbolized as a city, but this city is holy.  In Ezekiel 40:2 we read of this great prophet being shown the frame of a city from a very high mountain.  This city that Ezekiel saw was a vision of the church which was to come.  In John’s vision, he sees the church in its final glory at home with God and with Jesus.

Revelation 21:11
“having the glory of God: her light was like unto a stone most precious, as it were a jasper stone, clear as crystal”

In Revelation 4:3 Jasper and Sardius stone were used to illustrate He who sat on the throne.  The Sardius stone was the color of blood which symbolized God’s Judgment.  Here there is no judgment for in heaven all that has passed.  Now there is only the perfect diamond, flawless in its beauty which represents the glorious illumination of the bride of the lamb; that holy city; the saved of all the ages.

Revelation 21:12
“having a wall great and high; having twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels; and names written thereon, which are (the names) of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel”

Cities in those times had walls built around them for safety.  The walls here represent safety and security for the inhabitants.  The three uses of the number 12 represents perfect divine organized religion. All the saved of all ages are called the children of Israel.

Revelation 21:13
“on the east were three gates; and on the north three gates; and on the south three gates; and on the west three gates.”

There is a lot of numerical symbolism being used here.  The number 3 which represents the perfect divine is used four times.  Four represents the world.  Revelation 21 started with a vision of the new earth.  The vision John is describing here is of the new earth here represented as the holy city.  We have here the figure for the perfect divine new earth.  Perfect divine access to the holy city on all four corners for the saved of all ages is in view here.

Revelation 21:14
“And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”

The twelve apostles and twelve tribes of Israel mentioned in V12 make up the complete picture of all the saved of all time.  The foundation was built by the apostles, (Acts 2:42) with Jesus Christ as the head of the corner, (1 Peter 2:7).  There were more than 12 apostles, the number representing all of them.

Revelation 21:15
“And he that spake with me had for a measure a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.”

Interestingly, John was charged with the duty of measuring the temple of God in Revelation 11:1 which was a figure for the church.  An angel is measuring the holy city while John watched.  John’s measuring stick was just a plain rod, the angel’s measuring stick was described as golden.  This image of the city is one of ultimate glory.  The bride here which is a figure for the faithful children of God are no longer in an earthly assembly.  This assembly is in heaven.

Revelation 21:16
“And the city lieth foursquare, and the length thereof is as great as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs: the length and the breadth and the height thereof are equal.”

There is no way this could be a literal city.  The literal size of it is staggering.  A furlong is an eighth of a mile therefore the city in the vision is about 1500 miles length by width with buildings 1500 miles tall.  Jesus said “In my Father’s house are many mansions” (John 14:2).  The sheer dimensions given by John in his vision certainly allows for plenty of space for these mansions.

The numbers are figurative, the number 12 which is a perfect religious number multiplied by 1000 which is a perfect or complete number multiplied by itself three times which is a symbol of the perfect divine.  What is in view here is that the city is spacious and is utterly complete and of divine origin in it’s makeup from front to back, side to side and bottom to top.  When we consider the description of John’s vision as a whole, we see a picture of a strong, spacious, perfect and beautiful city where God’s people will dwell with Him in perfect security and peace.

In looking at these descriptions of the city in John’s vision we must keep in mind that John had to describe what he saw in earthly terms which man could understand.  Man is a physical being and only relates to things of a physical nature.  No man has ever seen heaven or anything like it so cannot really comprehend the beauty, peace and tranquility that will be found there.  One thing we need to keep in mind is that heaven is the complete opposite of hell.  To the extent that hell is horrible, heaven is wondrous and vice versa.  The lost are really missing out on something wonderful.

Revelation 21:17
“And he measured the wall thereof, a hundred and forty and four cubits, (according to) the measure of a man, that is, of an angel.”

The walls around this great city are a hundred and forty cubits high, or roughly 200 feet high if you use the measure of a normal man.  A cubit was the length of man’s forearm and differed somewhat from individual to individual.  The cubit here is according to “the measure of a man, that is, of an angel“.  This is a purposefully ambiguous figure.  The walls were not any specific measured height.  They were 144 cubits, or 12 times 12 which is the perfect religious number.  The walls were the perfect height.

Revelation 21:18
“And the building of the wall thereof was jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto pure glass.”

Jasper is believed to be diamond.  The walls were made of diamonds, perfect, flawless and shining bright light in every direction.  The city was pure gold as shiny as glass.  These are physical descriptions of a heavenly non physical place.  It is necessary to describe such a vision in earthly physical terms.  These cannot be the descriptions of a literal place, yet there are some who try to literalize it.  In rough dimensions John visualized a city that would span a literal territory from the Atlantic Ocean to Denver, Colorado and from the southern tip of Texas to the Canadian border and of such a height that the tops of the buildings would be roughly 5 times higher than the edge of earth’s atmosphere.  It should be immediately evident to the reader of any age that this is not a literal city.  We are being given images of magnificence and splendor in terms we can identify with.

Revelation 21:19-20
“The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, topaz; the tenth, chrysoprase; the eleventh, jacinth; the twelfth, amethyst.”

Of significance here is not so much the identify of the precious gems in the vision but the number of them.  There are twelve different varieties of stones which again symbolizes a perfect religious number.  every dimension given; every characteristic of the holy city is expressed in numbers which have religious significance to the first readers of the Revelation.

It is not certain what the exact identify of all of these precious gems are.  Following is a list of them and what they are according to the scholarship of today.

1. Jasper was diamond
2. Sapphire was the same as a sapphire today and were various shades of blue.
3. Chalcedony was a green carbonate of copper.
4. Emeralds were the same green gems of our day.
5. Sardonyx was a white gem accentuated by layers of red and brown.
6. Sardius – a ruby red stone
7. Chrysolyte – uncertain, maybe a gold-colored jasper.
8. Beryl was a gem the color of the sea.
9. Topaz was a yellowish gem.
10. Chrysoprase – a pale green gem.
11. Jacinth -a rich blue color.
12. Amethyst – a purplish red crystal common today.

Revelation 21:21
“And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the several gates was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.”

There were twelve ways into the city, each gate constructed of a single pearl.  Pearls were highly sought after in New Testament times.  In the parable of the pearl of great price, Jesus compared the kingdom of God to a wonderful pearl found by one who was diligently searching for it.  Once found, it was a highly treasured possession.

The streets were of gold so brilliant and shiny that it appeared to be transparent glass.  Only the purest, shiniest, most magnificent gold would symbolize what John was seeing.  A gold like no other.

Revelation 21:22
“And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God the Almighty, and the Lamb, are the temple thereof.”

In the church on earth, the individual members are the temple where God dwells, (1 Corinthians 3:16).  In this beautiful home of the soul, God does not just dwell in the temple, He is the temple.  He is the protection, the sanctuary, the security and the home of the righteous.

Revelation 21:23
“And the city hath no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine upon it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the lamp thereof (is) the Lamb.”

There is no need for created light in heaven.  The glory of God is all the light that is needed.  When God visited Moses on Mt Sinai he had to tuck Moses into a crack in the rock and shield him from a direct view of his face as he walked by.  The brightness of God in his pure glory is something no physical man can even look upon and live to tell of (Exodus 33:20-23).  The account goes on to reveal that the glory of God was so bright that even Moses skin glowed from being in its presence.  There will be no need for created light in heaven.  The glory of God shines brightly enough for that purpose.

Revelation 21:9-23 can be summarized as the beauty, magnificence, security and glory of Heaven and living in the presence of God Himself.  What a wonderful place Heaven must be.

Revelation 21:24
“And the nations shall walk amidst the light thereof: and the kings of the earth bring their glory into it.”

Salvation was offered to all nations on earth and they shall walk in the light of God’s glory.  The kings of the earth, which is a figure for all Christians, (Revelation 5:10), will bring their glory into heaven with them.

Revelation 21:25
“And the gates thereof shall in no wise be shut by day (for there shall be no night there)”

In heaven there is the absolute absence of darkness.  The gates will not need to be shut because there will be no evil anywhere to threaten the holy city.  No bars or locks on windows and doors, no security measures will need to be in place.  There will be no evil in Heaven whatsoever.  Shutting the gates will be unnecessary.  The doors into Heaven stand open for all eternity.

Revelation 21:26
“and they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it”

The redeemed out of every nation are in view here.  All of the glory sought or achieved out them will be brought into the city.  The next verse explains what will never been seen or allowed into the holy city.

Revelation 21:27
“and there shall in no wise enter into it anything unclean, or he that maketh an abomination and a lie: but only they that are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”

The gates into the city shall never be shut.  The walls are high, the city is great and secure and peaceful.  The only citizens will be the unified Godhead on the throne and those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.  The eternal spiritual register which contains the names of all the redeemed out of the earth.

Satan brought sin and death into the garden of Eden and from that came everything unclean, that made abominations and lies.  Satan has been defeated now and can never defile anything again.  At this point he he is suffering eternal punishment for all the pain and suffering inflicted upon the inhabitants of the earth since the beginning.  He is never going to be able to influence or tempt anybody in the holy city again.  The citizens of this city are safe from all those things which were part of the world before.  This is heaven.  Eternal security, rest and peace.  The never ending home of the soul.

Chapter Twenty one Paraphrase

Now I saw a new spiritual heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first physical earth have passed away. Also there was no more barrier between God and His people. Then I, John, saw the new earth, that holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is now with men, and He will dwell with them in person, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former physical things have passed away.”

Then Jesus, who sat on the throne with the Father said,” Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” And He said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts for righteousness. He who overcomes Satan’s temptations shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with eternal fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls filled with the seven last plagues came to me and talked with me, saying, “Come, I will show you the bride, the Lamb’s wife.” And then he carried me away in Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me a vision of the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, and having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as a diamond. Also she had a great and high wall with twelve gates, and twelve angels at the gates, and names written on them, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel: three gates on the east, three gates on the north, three gates on the south, and three gates on the west.

Now the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. And the angel who talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, its gates, and its wall. The city was laid out as a square; its length is as great as its breadth. And he measured the city with the reed: twelve thousand furlongs. Its length, breadth, and height were equal. Then he measured its wall: one hundred and forty-four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of an angel. The construction of its wall was of jasper; and the city was pure gold that shined like clear glass.  The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with all kinds of precious stones: the first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls: each individual gate was of one pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold that shined like transparent glass.

But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.  The holy city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light.  And those who are redeemed out of the nations shall walk in its light, and the saints and kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it.  Its gates shall not be shut at all by day and there shall be no night there. And the redeemed from out of the earth shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it. But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

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The Fall of Satan (Revelation 20)

The Fall of Satan (Revelation 20)

The Beast from the sea (Roman Emperors), the beast from the earth (Concilia) and the enemies of the Christians have fallen.  But there remains the grand instigator of the whole evil axis of power that persecuted the Christians so intensely.  The pain and suffering that Satan caused is beyond belief.  It is true the Romans were acting of their own free will in persecuting the Christians but Satan was the author of the diabolical plan that sought to exterminate Christianity from the face of the earth.  The entire chapter of Revelation 20 is a vision of the ultimate fall and destruction of Satan, the ringleader of the evil forces against Christianity.

It should be noted that Revelation 20 is one of the most misunderstood and misused chapters in all of scripture.  This is where we see a lot of the Premillennial doctrines coming from.  So many people try and literalize the thousand year time span found in Revelation 20.  Briefly, if the thousand year binding of Satan is literal then we would have an angel, carrying a figurative key and a figurative chain that he will use to bind Satan and throw him into a figurative bottomless pit for a literal thousand years.  When one obviously has a whole paragraph full of figurative objects, it is at best unwise to literalize any of the components found within the context if there is not supporting scripture for it elsewhere.

Those who advocate Premillennialism believe that Jesus will return to earth someday and rule from Jerusalem for a thousand years.   There are a host of excellent reasons why Premillennialism cannot be true.  Paul taught that Jesus would never be “known again” after the flesh. (2 Corinthians 5:16).  In old testament times, God swore that no descendant of king Jeconiah would ever sit on the throne of David ruling in Judah again, (Jeremiah 22:30).  Jesus was a direct descendant of Jeconiah through both Joseph and Mary.

Premillennialists believe there will be two resurrections from the dead, the first of the righteous only, the second of the wicked, many years later. But, biblically, there are not two future separate resurrections: there will be “a resurrection both of the just and of the unjust” (Acts 24:15), but the just will not come out of their graves 1000 years before the unjust. Instead, the just will come out of their graves on “the last day” (John 6:39,40,44,54). There can be no days after “the last day”, much less 1000 years.  Not only did Jesus specify “the last day”, but even “the hour” in that “last day” in which, not the just only, but “all those in the graves will hear his voice, and will come out: those who have done good to a resurrection of life; but those who have done evil things to a resurrection of condemnation” (John 5:28-29).

Premillennialists teach the rapture “in the clouds” with the Lord “in the air” separates them from the wicked down on the earth. But Jesus taught that there is no separation between the “wheat” and the “tares”, between “the good” fish and “the bad” fish until “the end of the world” (Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43, 47-50).  Also, Jesus taught that the “sheep” and the “goats” will not be separated until they go into “life eternal” or “everlasting punishment” (Matthew 25:31-46).

Premillennialists teach that there will be a period of time for the earth to exist after the next coming of Christ, however scripture teaches that “the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up” (2 Peter 3:10). There is only one day of the Lord left to come and when He does, the earth will be burned up.  There will be no time period for earth after He returns.

Premillennialism is in no way supported by the total body of scripture. The only way one can arrive at this contrived doctrine is to selectively pick various passages from scripture and manufacture it without regard to the teachings of the entire body of scripture pertaining to the topic of the resurrection. The Premillennialist view of Revelation 20 results in numerous contradictions with other clear Biblical teachings.  Premillennialists are taking apocalyptic symbolic language and literalizing it in contradiction with clear and concise scriptural teachings elsewhere.  This type of Biblical interpretation creates confusion which God claims to not be the author of.

A more reasonable way of looking at Revelation chapter 20 is to look at it through the eyes of who it was written to.  Let us consider the circumstances under which they lived at the time of the writing.  Let us apply Revelation 20 the way the first readers would have applied it to their situations.

It was written to the early Christians and has been all about them from the beginning.  All of the earthly foes of the Christians in the Revelation have now been overthrown.  Only one remains.  It only stands to reason that the last enemy of the Christians be dealt with permanently.  Even after all the earthly enemies have been destroyed, there still remains the one who masterminded their suffering in the first place.  The story would be incomplete and offer no real hope to the oppressed Christians if the greatest enemy of all were left unscathed and in power.  Christians reading the Revelation hundreds of years later and making applications of the teachings to their lives need to know that Satan will be ultimately destroyed.  We all need to know this.  Without this information, their sufferings and the sufferings of all the Christians who lived afterward would never be completely avenged.  The wrongs which originated with Satan and trickled down through his evil agents would never be completely settled.

All of the bloodshed and needless slaughter, pain and suffering which have existed on earth since the creation is the fault of Satan.  When God created the earth, it was all good.  Everything bad throughout history had its origination in Satan.  The Revelation was written directly to the first Christians but it has within the fall of Satan elements that speak to every Christian that will ever live.  We can all read Revelation 20 and relate the overthrow and destruction of Satan with the final judgment of all the earth, however, the immediate context is of the plight of the first Christians and it is to that time period it must primarily speak and it is up to us to make the right application beyond that.  Satan is overthrown and sent to an everlasting punishment in Revelation 20.  It is obvious that we who read it today can look ahead to the final judgment of all the earth and apply that destruction finally to the greatest enemy mankind has ever known.  We see in Revelation 20 the destiny of the originator of all the pain and suffering of all mankind, of all ages since Adam and Eve tended the garden of Eden.

It is vitally important to keep in mind that the events pictured in Revelation do not always follow a linear chronological timeline. The visions of John have painted a story of victory over persecution since the beginning.  These visions have been laid out in a non-chronological fashion all along.  The opening of the seven seals and the bowls of wrath were not in chronological order.  Many of the natural disasters and events God used were overlapping and running contemporary with one another.  It should not come as any surprise to anyone at this time that the events in Revelation 20 are not laid out in Chronological fashion.  By now the reader should be well aware of this fact and should recognize immediately that there is a grand overall picture being illustrated in this vision.  Any attempt to interpret Revelation 20 in a systematic sequential fashion is immediately frustrating and should be dismissed outright.  The reader should step back and take a broad view of the vision and consider it in light of the whole story of Satan, his fall and ultimate total destruction in eternal punishment.  Focusing on the elements which we know and can identify and then harmonizing the rest into one grand vision.  Revelation 20 is a big picture of the ultimate falling of Satan and the forces of evil which draw on events from before the coming of Christ all the way to the end of the Christian age and to the final judgment.

Revelation 20:1-2
“And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand.  And he laid hold on the dragon, the old serpent, which is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years”

And we now jump backwards in time to an event that took place before the coming of Jesus Christ on earth.  This is a figurative picture of Satan being bound after what He did in the garden of Eden.  Satan had restrictions placed upon his activities since that transgression.  He had to get divine permission from God in order to afflict Job and Satan followed the directives given him by God to the letter.  Satan operated only within the parameters God gave him concerning Job.  Satan was not nor has ever been unbound on the earth to do as he would without restriction.  As soon as Satan demonstrated his rebellious nature, he had restrictions placed upon him.  This is the binding we see in John’s vision here.

Here we see the first usage of the thousand year time period.  Satan was obviously bound for a much longer period of time than a thousand years so what then does this time period represent?  The number 10 symbolized completeness.  The number 3 symbolized the perfect divine.  Multiples of numbers represented in the minds of the early Christians the same things on a larger scale.  Completeness multiplied by itself 3 times which symbolized the perfect divine would therefore mean a complete period of time sufficient to accomplish God’s purpose.  The thousand years that Satan’s activities were restricted is therefore a figurative symbol for a period of time from the initial binding of Satan until the period of time where he was loosed for a short period.

Revelation 20:3
“and cast him into the abyss, and shut (it), and sealed (it) over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years should be finished: after this he must be loosed for a little time.”

Peter taught in 2 Peter 2:4 that “God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment”  Satan was an angel that sinned.  The fact that he was the first angel that sinned and that he led all the others to sin does not in any way make him less of an angel that sinned.  Satan, along with all the other angels who sinned were bound in chains of darkness and reserved for the final judgment.  We understand this place of torment to be an area in the Hadean realm that Peter referred to as Tartarus in verse 4.  This word is typically translated as “hell”.

Is Satan literally loosed out of his prison and set to do as he pleased with the earth with no restrictions?  Certainly not.  If this were the case the earth would be immediately destroyed.  Consider the plight of Job on a worldwide scale.  Satan had to get permission from God in order to afflict Job in the manner he did.  Were Satan to be unleashed without restriction upon the earth at any time, the results would be immediate worldwide devastation, destruction and Chaos the likes of which we could not even imagine.

After this perfect period of time, Satan is allowed to operate in a more direct fashion on the earth than previously.  Not without restriction by any means.  During the temptation of Jesus by Satan, he made a statement to Jesus which has a direct bearing on this.  “And the devil said unto him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it” (Luke 4:6).  Satan was able to come face to face and tempt Jesus Christ directly.   Satan does not do that now.  And there is no record of him ever tempting anyone face to face beyond the garden of Eden.  Satan had to get special permission from God to afflict Job in the way he did and there is no indication that Job ever met Satan face to face.  In fact, it is evident from Job’s complaints that neither he nor his companions knew that Satan was directly involved in the matter.  There is no indication that Job ever knew of the meeting between God and Satan concerning him.

Evil spirits were also allowed to possess people during this period of time.  The scriptures contain many examples of evil spirits being cast from people.  This is not something that we see throughout Biblical times.  There was a period of time Biblically where the forces of evil were allowed to operate directly on mankind.  The restrictions on Satan and his allies were relaxed to a degree but only within strict parameters.  It is significant to note that when Jesus confronted the evil spirits, they obeyed him implicitly and when the disciples were given the power to cast them out of possessed people in the name of Jesus Christ, these spirits had to submit to this ability.

Satan does not normally walk around on the earth and manifest himself directly to mankind.  In order for Satan to manifest himself directly to Jesus, face to face, there had to be some kind of arrangement made to permit him to do so.  It is during this time that Satan was loosed from his prison to the extent that he could go forth and deceive the nations of the earth.  This and the presence of the evil spirits was a temporary arrangement and happened in the years directly before and after Christ’s life on earth.  The loosing of Satan has been done.  This event is in our past and has been fulfilled and today the degree of freedom that Satan and his evil followers enjoyed for a period of time is over.  Satan and the forces of evil are still in operation on earth today but not in the way they were during the time of Christ on earth.  In Zechariah 13:1-2 we read of a prophecy that explicitly states that the evil spirits, among other things will pass from the land in the days of Christ’s sacrifice on earth.  This prophecy has been fulfilled.  Satan and the evil spirits have been returned to their former state of bondage in chains of darkness awaiting the final judgment.

Revelation 20:4
“And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and (I saw) the souls of them that had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God, and such as worshipped not the beast, neither his image, and received not the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand; and they lived, and reigned with Christ a thousand years.”

Now we see some of the direct results of Satan being loosed for a “little time”.  Satan wasted no time in trying to exterminate Christ’s church from the earth by force.  Many Christians died for the testimony of Jesus Christ.  Mention is made of those who received not the mark of the beast.  This is a picture of those who overcame Satan while his restrictions were loosed for a little time.  These are the martyrs spoken of under the alter in Revelation 6:9 and then pictured again in Revelation 19, rejoicing that God’s judgment had at last come.

Who is this that sat upon the thrones and given judgment?  Paul answers this question in his letter to the Christians in Corinth, “Or know ye not that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world is judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more, things that pertain to this life?” (1 Corinthians 6:2-3).

Revelation 20:5
“The rest of the dead lived not until the thousand years should be finished. This is the first resurrection.”

The first resurrection is the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  Several people were raised from the dead during the Biblical times but Jesus Christ is the first one resurrected who would live forever, never again to die.  There are only two resurrections mentioned in scripture which will do this.  The first one has already come to pass.  The second one is yet to come (John 5:28-29).

Notice that the first resurrection is tied directly with those who were before dead until the thousand years should be finished.  Again, one cannot look at this series of visions in a systematic chronological order.  The thousand years is nothing more than a period of time sufficient for God to accomplish a purpose.

Satan was cast into a bottomless pit and then loosed for a little while after a period of time represented figuratively as a thousand years.  Revelation 20:5 pinpoints this time of the loosing with the first resurrection. Satan was loosed at the time of the first resurrection.  Verse 6 gives us further insight into this first resurrection which helps us to positively identify what it is.

Revelation 20:6
“Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: over these the second death hath no power; but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.”

Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Over these the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ.  Those who participate in the resurrection of Jesus Christ are priests of God and of Christ. How do we participate in the resurrection of Jesus Christ?  “having been buried with him in baptism, wherein ye were also raised with him through faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead” (Colossians 2:12).  When we are baptized we are buried in a symbolic way with Jesus Christ when He was buried.  In Romans 6:4 Paul wrote that we are buried with Him through baptism into His death and then he goes on to say, “that like as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life. For if we have become united with (him) in the likeness of his death, we shall be also (in the likeness) of his resurrection” (Romans 6:4-5).

Christians have a participatory part in the resurrection of Jesus Christ at baptism.  And upon these, the second death hath no power.  What is the second death?  “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27).  The second death is the judgment of the unrighteous who will die the spiritual death which is eternal separation from God in everlasting punishment.  This death has no power over faithful Christians who have participated in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Peter wrote of Christians being priests in 1 Peter 2:5, “ye also, as living stones, are built up a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” and then again in verse 9, “But ye are a elect race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for (God’s) own possession, that ye may show forth the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light”

John writes by inspiration that these Christians will reign with Jesus Christ for a thousand years. Well, if this were a literal time period then how do we explain that it has been about 2000 years since this letter was written?  Earth is still here.  There are still Christians on earth and there have been considerably more than a thousand years pass since the first resurrection.  So then what does this time period represented as a thousand years really mean?  The number 10 symbolized completeness.  The number 3 symbolized the perfect divine.  Multiples of numbers represented in the minds of the early Christians the same things on a larger scale.  Completeness multiplied by itself 3 times which symbolized the perfect divine would therefore mean a complete period of time sufficient to accomplish God’s purpose.

Revelation 20:7
“And when the thousand years are finished, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison”

It cannot be stated enough that to try and interpret John’s visions in Revelation in a linear step by step chronological  fashion will result in some pretty confusing results.  This is by no means the only time in the apocalypse that John’s visions revert back to an earlier period of time.  There are two periods of time represented as a thousand years.  There is the time period that Satan was bound before he is loosed and there is another time period that the priests of God who participated in the first resurrection reign with Christ.  These two are not the same time period yet both are represented as a thousand years.

We have two time periods here to deal with.  So the question now is, which one is it?  Verse 8 helps us answer this question.

Revelation 20:8
“and shall come forth to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to the war: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.”

Of great significance in understanding this is in the words, “the war”.  What war?  This the age old war between good and evil that the Christians of the time were engaged in.  To them this war was an ongoing struggle that built up to the battle that was introduced in chapter 16, and that was fought in chapter 19.  Revelation was written to the first century Christians and applies directly to their plight and we must never lose sight of that fact if we are to make sense of it in any way.  But we also must recognize that it was written to them with an application for all Christians.   The war that the Christians were engaged in at the time is still going on today.  The Roman Empire has fallen and the immediate persecutors of the Christians to whom the Revelation was written have long since joined the demons in chains of darkness awaiting the final judgment.  The plight of the condemned rich man as told by Jesus and recorded by inspiration in Luke 16:24 makes it clear that this incarceration is by no means a pleasant one.

The immediate context of verse 8 speaks to Satan’s deception of the nations of the first century and soon thereafter and the rising of them all in opposition to Christianity.  All of this came to head in the battle of Armageddon which saw the destruction of their earthly enemies.  But Satan has not been completely destroyed.  He and his evil forces lost that battle and Christianity prevailed, but they are still fighting the war.   The broader application is that we must recognize that while Satan’s plans to exterminate the church in the early years of its existence failed, he is still at work today.

The battle in Revelation for the first century has been fought.  The Roman Empire fell.  The war which all Christians are engaged in with the forces of evil still rages today and will continue for as long as earth remains. John’s vision here has a dual purpose.  It provides comfort for the afflicted Christians who first read it and lived during the described events and it also provides a prophetic picture of the ultimate downfall and destruction of Satan yet to come and will happen at the end of the second time period represented in this context as a thousand years.

In the Old Testament, Gog was the prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal (Ezekiel 38:2; 39:1-16). His territory was known as the land of Magog, and he was the chief of those northern hordes who were to make a final onslaught upon Israel.  According to Ezekiel’s account Gog’s army included in its numbers Persia, Cush, Put, Gomer or the Cimmerians, and Togarmah, from the extreme North. They are represented as a vast mixed horde from the far-off parts of the North, the limits of the horizon, completely armed and equipped for war. They were to come upon the mountains of Israel and cover the land like a cloud. Their purpose is plunder, for the people of Israel are rich and dwell in towns and villages without walls. Gog’s coming, which had been prophesied by the prophets of Israel, shall be accompanied by a manifestation of the person of God and great convulsions in Nature. A panic shall seize the hosts of Gog, rain, hailstones, pestilence, fire and brimstone shall consume them. Their bodies shall be food for the birds (Ezekiel 39:4), their weapons shall serve as firewood for seven years (Ezekiel 39:9), and their bones shall be buried East of the sea in a place called Hamon-gog and thus not defile the holy land with their corpses (Ezekiel 39:11-12).

The fulfillment of this prophecy can be seen in the language of the Revelation concerning the downfall of the enemies of the Christians.  Israel in the prophecy of Ezekiel can be correlated with the church which is spiritual Israel after Christ’s resurrection.  The war that Gog was said to be amassing against Israel is very similar in nature to the war against the Christians perpetuated by Satan and carried out by the enemies of Christianity in the Roman Empire.

In Revelation 20:7 Satan is loosed in some fashion and goes to the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to muster his hosts for the final struggle against God and the Christians. In Ezekiel the invasion of Gog occurs during the Messianic age which fits perfectly with the account in Revelation.  In Ezekiel, Gog and Magog are gathered under the direction of God for their destruction while in Revelation they are gathered by Satan whose abilities and actions are governed by God.  In both cases the number is vast, the destruction is by divine direction, and is complete and final. I see the prophecy of Gog and Magog as realizing it’s fulfillment in the destruction of the enemies of Christianity in Revelation.  If not, there are certainly enough similarities that the Christians living under the persecution of the Roman Empire would recognize in the language the prophecy of Ezekiel and make the application to themselves.

Another thing of great significance here is that the prophecy surrounding Gog and Magog finding its fulfillment in Revelation tie the loosing of Satan inseparably with the Messianic age.  Of this there can be no question.  The advocates of Premillennial doctrine are here dealt a death blow to their beliefs.

Revelation 20:9-10
“And they went up over the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where are also the beast and the false prophet; and they shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.”

The beast and the false prophet are directly mentioned here.  This vision is primarily focused on the Christians living during the great persecution of Rome.  But notice that the beast and false prophet were already in torment and Satan was cast into the lake with them.  That is where Satan and the beast and the false prophet are to this day.  And they are being tormented day and night and this torment is never going to end.  It will go on for ever and ever.

Satan and his earthly allies covered the breadth of the earth and had the saints, and the beloved city completely surrounded.  It looked like there was no hope for them when God intervened. Divine fire did not literally come down from heaven and devour Satan and his allies.  The vision here is one of a swift and terrible overthrow of the enemies of righteousness.  The enemies of the Christians were directly overthrown by other conquering nations as they destroyed and plundered the Roman Empire, but God makes it plain here that this was all done under His supervision and by His intervention under His authority.

The camp of the saints and the beloved city mentioned in the vision is Christ’s people who collectively make up His church.  There are many congregations of the Lord’s church as evidenced in His address to seven of them in the beginning of the Revelation.  But collectively there is only one camp, one city.  This vision speaks to the unity of God’s people in Christ.  There are many groups of Christians but only one body; one camp; one city.  Today, we call this one body, this one camp, this one city the church of Christ.  It may bear other similar names on the surface but this does not change the fact that it is the body which belongs to Christ; the church of Christ and there is only one, (Ephesians 4:4).

Revelation 20:11
“And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat upon it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.”

They can run but they cannot hide.  When God’s judgment comes, nobody who rejected Him in life will be able to flee.  There will be no place left for them to hide.  The earth and all that is in it will be destroyed.

Revelation 20:12
“And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne; and books were opened: and another book was opened, which is (the book) of life: and the dead were judged out of the things which were written in the books, according to their works.”

And now John’s vision takes yet another leap in the timeline to great day of the Lord and the end of all things and the final judgment.  The doors of Hades, also known as the realm of the dead shall be opened up and all the dead shall come forth to the final judgment.  Everyone who dies, like the rich man and Lazarus are judged in some fashion at that time.  There is a separation in the Hadean realm between the saved and the lost.  Those who are in the Hadean realm know what their eternal destiny is going to be.  The great day of the Lord where the final judgment will take place is to be a time of universal recognition of the glory and majesty of God by all who lived at one time.  The saved will be separated from the lost and the lost will receive their final sentence while the saved will be take their place at the right hand of Jesus on High and will be glorified in the sight of all along with God in His throne.  The lost will then be cast into the eternal punishment of Hell and the redeemed shall go to their reward in Heaven with God the Father.

Revelation 20:13
“And the sea gave up the dead that were in it; and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.”

Everyone who has died and are in Hades will be at the judgment.  The first resurrection was mentioned earlier and represented the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  This is the second and final resurrection of all the rest, both the just and the unjust mentioned in Acts 24:15.  And everyone of them shall be judged according to their works.  This is reminiscent of Jesus’ words in John 5:28-29 where he taught, “Marvel not at this: for the hour cometh, in which all that are in the tombs shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of judgment.”

Revelation 20:14
“And death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death, (even) the lake of fire.”

Earlier, those who were said to have a part in the first resurrection would not suffer from the second death.  Here the second death is identified for the readers.  It is the death which results in the total and eternal separation from God into torment and punishment which will never end.  The second death is the permanent one for which there will be no relief, no resurrection and no end.  Those who would inherit eternal life must be a participant in the first resurrection in order to be protected from the horrors of the second death.

The lake of fire here is representative of Hell, the final and eternal destination of all the unjust.

Revelation 20:15
“And if any was not found written in the book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire.”

The book of life mentioned here was mentioned previously in verse 12.  This is a book of great significance in the coming judgment.  Those who are not written in this book of life will suffer the lake of fire.  This book directly mentioned eight times in the King James Version of the New Testament with seven of them being in Revelation alone.  In the Old Testament God said to Moses that whosever sinned against Him would be blotted out of His book (Exodus 32:32).  Paul mentioned the book of life directly in his letter to the Philippians when he said that his “fellowlaborers” were written therein, (Philippians 4:3).

We should not look at this as a literal book that God keeps in His possession.  Let us recall that God lives in a spiritual realm where nothing of the physical as we perceive it exists.  The figure of this book is merely a way for us to realize that there is a means of record keeping in place of which we are all a part of.  Either we are found within the register of life or we are not.  There are no in betweens or degrees of inclusion or exclusion from this spiritual register.  One is either included or they are not.  Those who are included will have life, those who are not will be cast into the lake of fire.

Christians can have our names blotted out of this book, (Exodus 32:32, Revelation 3:5), and God told Moses who would be blotted out in Exodus 32:33, “Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book.” and Jesus in Revelation 3:5 is quoted as saying that those who overcome the persecution of the Roman Empire will not be blotted out of the book of Life.  The inference here is that those Christians who do not overcome will be blotted from this book.  And Revelation 20:15 gives us the fate of those who find their names blotted from this spiritual register represented as a “book”.

In the closing statements of the book of Revelation we see the final image of the book of life in scripture:

Revelation 22:19
“And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.”
KJV

The warnings here are grim and the consequences of failure are severe.  We must keep in mind that not only is Revelation a book of comfort for the oppressed Christians of the time with application for all Christians of all times, it is also a reminder of the consequences of sin and of failing to overcome whatever temptation may be set before us in life.  It has been said in a summary of the New Testament that the gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John reveal Jesus Christ.  The book of Acts teaches us how to get “into Christ” and the general epistles teach us how to live “in Christ”.  Revelation is a book of instruction on how to overcome and die “in Christ”.  Revelation chapter 20 closes with a pretty sobering picture of those who fail to overcome.  This is necessary in order for the complete picture to be painted.  We must know the whole council of God and one of the primary purposes of the book of Revelation was to teach Christians how to overcome and not have their names blotted out of God’s book of life.  Revelation was not written to lost people.  It was written to Christians living under the Roman persecution and we must realize that if any Christians ever had to overcome and remain faithful, then all Christians do for all the remaining time left on earth.  God is no respect of persons.

Revelation 20 is a vision of the ultimate fall of Satan.  Now all of the enemies of the Christians have been dealt with and we are given a vision of the end where Satan who is still at work influencing and deceiving will be finally put down forever and will receive the just punishment for his massive crimes against God and against humanity.  Those who do not wish to share in his fate are given a word of warning in the closing elements of the vision.  We do not want to spend our eternity in the lake of fire with Satan and sharing in his punishment.  While the readers are given this grim picture, it is not for long because chapter 21 is a picture of the rewards for those who do overcome.  It is a vision of hope for those who’s names are written in the book of life and have not been blotted out.

In closing, I would like to state that interpretations of this chapter are diverse among the able scholars.  In my efforts to arrive at a comprehensive understanding of this chapter, I disagreed with some of the views of the scholars I have depended the most on for the duration of this study.  It is not my intention to take away from their scholarship in any way.  I fully realize that this vision of Revelation is difficult and that I in no way can assume that my understanding of this vision can be the only right one.  My approach has been to look at this through the eyes of the first readers and to identify those elements of the vision which have a direct correlation with things taught elsewhere in scripture and how they would relate to and apply to their circumstances.

As for the order of the scenes, I have taken a non-chronological view of this vision, choosing to look at it as if John were describing a whole picture, like a painting, to his readers without regard to the order in which the various elements of this painting were placed in the picture by the artist.  One does not describe a painting to an individual in the order that everything within it was painted.  I have taken those elements of the picture which I feel are positively identified and molded the rest of the picture around those events to complete the overall vision.

I would like to call attention to the fact that I am not a Bible scholar, rather I am but an humble servant of Christ who desires to understand his will and obey it however I am able.  Readers of this study are encouraged to review all of the works of the recognized scholars and arrive at their own conclusions in regards to Revelation.  My understanding of this book and in particular Revelation 20 is my best guess based on a study of history and the works of other scholars and my template for this is to look at it through the eyes of the first readers, applying it to their lives and circumstances, and to let scripture be it’s own best commentary in every instance where it can be applied.

Revelation 20 Paraphrase

And I saw an angel come down from heaven and his hands was a key to the abyss and he had a great chain in his hand.  And he captured the dragon, that old serpent, who is the Devil, who is also called Satan and bound him for a period of time according to God’s purpose.  And then he threw Satan alive into the abyss and shut him in and put a seal on him so that he could not deceive the nations until God’s purpose for man required it and then Satan was loosed for a short period of time.

And looking back, I saw thrones, and the ones who sat upon them, and I saw that judgment was given unto them.  And I also saw the souls of them that were slain for their witnessing of Jesus Christ, and for their proclaiming of the word of God.  These are they who had not worshipped the beast, neither his  graven images and had not received his mark upon their foreheads, or held it in their hands.  And they lived and reigned with Jesus Christ for all of time.

Those who lived on the earth but were unsaved were condemned already and had no hope for life without the resurrection of Jesus Christ.   Blessed and holy are they who have participated in the resurrection of Jesus Christ for the condemnation of the lost has no power over them.  They are the priests of God and rule with Christ according to God’s eternal purpose.

But according to God’s purpose, Satan was permitted a measure of freedom for a period of time.  And he went out to deceive all the nations of the earth and gather his innumerable host of allies together in opposition of the righteous.  And Satan and his allies went the breadth of the earth and surrounded the saints of God and the church to destroy them but God overthrew and defeated them.  And Satan who deceived the whole earth was taken and thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are and he will be punished continually for ever and ever.

And then I saw in my vision a great white throne and He who sat upon it.  And all who the unrighteous in league with Satan on earth and in heaven were unable to escape could find no place of refuge.  And then I saw all of the dead who ever lived standing before God and his books were opened and revealed.  And with them was the book of life and all were judged out of the things recorded in those books according to their righteous deeds.  Everybody who had ever lived and died from the sea and to the four corners of the earth were resurrected from Hades and they were judged according to their deeds.  Those who were found dead outside Christ were cast into the lake of fire which is the second and final death.  Whosever was not written in God’s book of life were cast into the lake of fire forever.

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