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The Book of Revelation

An Introduction to the Book of Revelation: A Dispensationalist Premillennial Perspective

The Book of Revelation serves as a profound reminder of the cost for ignoring humanity’s ongoing struggle with sin and rebellion against God, culminating in the "Day of the Lord." This apocalyptic text unveils the hidden influence of both benevolent and malevolent supernatural forces. As Proverbs 29:18 notes, "Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction." For followers of Jesus Christ, Revelation provides a call to action and a warning: to stand against evil, overcome selfish desires, and resist false teachings. It ultimately affirms that Jesus will complete his redemptive work, fulfilling God the Father's plan.

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The Purpose of Jesus' First Coming

Jesus' first coming was to serve as the singular means of salvation from sin and eternal death. His sacrifice—the "blood of the Lamb"—is the only acceptable offering to establish peace with God the Father for those who believe in Him (John 3:16-17). After his crucifixion and resurrection, Jesus ascended to the Third Heaven, returning to God the Father (Mark 16:19, Luke 24:50-51; Acts 1:9).

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The "Last Days" and the Church Age

According to this theological framework, we are currently living in the "Last Days," a period that began with the ascension of Jesus Christ and will conclude with His bodily return as King and Judge. This era includes the Pentecost, the Church Age, the Rapture, and the Tribulation Period. There are scholars who interpret the "last days" to include the First Coming of the Messiah using references following scriptures taken out of context:

 

  • Acts 2:16–17 / Joel 2:28-32 “This is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people...’”

    • Context: Peter interprets the outpouring of the Spirit at Pentecost as the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy concerning the “last days,” showing they begin after Jesus’ ascension, not during His earthly ministry.

  • Hebrews 1:1–2 “In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets... but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son...”

    • Context: Though Jesus is the Word, the truth of his speaking is made known verbally to his Disciples and now to believers through the Holy Spirit (cf. John 14:26; 1 Corinthians 2:10–13) after His ascension, which is the context in which the author of Hebrews is writing. It is through this written word that Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit, will speak to believers. Remember, most people including the Disciples did not understand the things Jesus was teaching.

      • Luke 9:43-45 "43 And they were all amazed at the greatness of God. While everyone was marveling at all that Jesus did, he said to his disciples, 44 “Listen carefully to what I am about to tell you: The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men.” 45 But they did not understand what this meant. It was hidden from them, so that they did not grasp it, and they were afraid to ask him about it."

      • Luke 18:31-34 "31 Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. 32 He will be delivered over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him and spit on him; 33 they will flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again.” 34 The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about."

      • John 16:16-25 "16 Jesus went on to say, “In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me.” 17 At this, some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying, ‘In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me,’ and ‘Because I am going to the Father’?” 18 They kept asking, “What does he mean by ‘a little while’? We don’t understand what he is saying.” 19 Jesus saw that they wanted to ask him about this, so he said to them, “Are you asking one another what I meant when I said, ‘In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me’? 20 Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. 21 A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. 22 So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy. 23 In that day you will no longer ask me anything. Very truly I tell you, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. 24 Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete. 25 “Though I have been speaking figuratively, a time is coming when I will no longer use this kind of language but will tell you plainly about my Father."

  • 1 Peter 1:20 “He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.”

    • Context: This shows that the revelation of Christ is recognized in the present era (after His resurrection and ascension) as part of the “last times.”

  • These is also Artificial Intelligence platforms that repeat this scholarly out of context view as evident in this ChatGPT link regarding "the last days"

 

The Ascension of Jesus paved the way for the birth of the Church Age on the Day of Pentecost (Luke 24:50-51, Acts 1:6-2:4). On this day, 50 days after Jesus' crucifixion on a High Sabbath day, the Holy Spirit descended and indwelled all gathered believers.

  • The Greek word Pentecost means "fiftieth."

  • In the Old Testament, this day is known as the Feast of Weeks (Shavuot), celebrating the beginning of the wheat harvest and the giving of the Ten Commandments to Israel at Mount Sinai. (Isaiah 2)

 

The Current Ministry of Jesus Christ

The Bible teaches that Jesus is currently in Heaven for several key purposes:

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The Future Actions of Jesus Christ

The future events outlined in Revelation, from this perspective, include:

  • The Rapture: Jesus will take His Church (Old Testament and Church Age saints) to heaven before the ribulation begins (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).

  • The Tribulation Harvest: He will gather Tribulation saints (those who become believers after the Rapture) before the final judgments (Matthew 24:30-35, Mark 13:26-31, Luke 21:27-28, Revelation 14:14-16).

  • The Second Coming: Jesus will return to Earth to defeat Satan, the Antichrist, and their armies (Zechariah 14:4, Acts 1:11, Revelation 19:11-16).

  • The Millennial Reign: He will rule on Earth from Jerusalem for 1,000 years (Revelation 20:4-6).

  • Final Judgments: Jesus will judge Satan and the unbelieving dead at the Great White Throne (Revelation 20:11-15).

  • Eternal Reign: He will reign eternally from the New Jerusalem on a New Earth (Revelation 21:1-8).

 

 

The Structure of Revelation

The Greek word for Revelation, "Apocalypsis," means "to unveil or to reveal something that was hidden." The book's prophecy, as stated in 2 Peter 1:20-21, does not originate from human will but from the Holy Spirit. John's writings unveil God's judgment and the establishment of His eternal kingdom. Like the other prophets in the Holy Bible, John is speaking to those who will listen, a message given directly through the Holy Spirit and by Jesus Christ.  Prophecy is a witness to God through faith before events happen and through fulfillment after events occur. (John 14:28-29)

 

The Dispensationalist view

Dispensationalism is a theological framework that interprets biblical history as divided into distinct eras or "dispensations," where God interacts with humanity in different ways. A core tenet is the belief in a strong distinction between the nation of Israel and the Church, with Israel having a unique role and future, including the rebuilding of a literal temple, in the end times. Salvation includes both Jew and Gentile, and in no way does it diminish the unique covenant relationship between God the Father and the Jewish nation (Romans 11). In addition, a Premillennial view teaches that Christ will return before a thousand-year period of His reign on earth.  From a dispensationalist viewpoint, the Book of Revelation is organized into four main divisions of time:

  1. The Church Age (Chapters 1–3): This section focuses on the letters to the seven churches, representing the Church Age. The word "ekklesia" (church) is mentioned 19 times in these chapters.

  2. The Tribulation (Chapters 4–13): This period, beginning with the Rapture in Chapter 4, describes the judgments upon the Earth. Notably, the word "ekklesia" is not mentioned in this section.

  3. The Second Coming and Millennial Reign (Chapters 14–20): This section details the return of Christ and the establishment of His 1,000-year reign.

  4. The New Heaven, New Earth, and New Jerusalem (Chapters 21–22): The final section describes the eternal state and God's new creation.

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This website is divided into the following sections:

 

  1. Greetings (1:1-8)

  2. Letters to the Seven Churches (1:9-3:22)

  3. End of the Church Age / Rapture (4:1)

  4. Throne of Heaven (4:2-6)

  5. The Four Living Creatures (4:7-11)

  6. The Lamb who is worthy (5:1-5:14)

  7. Six Seals #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 (6:1-17)

  8. The Seventh Seal (8:1-5)

  9. Six Trumpets #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 (8:6-9:21)

  10. The Angel and Little Scroll (10:1-11)

  11. The Two Witnesses (11:1-14)

  12. The Seventh Trumpet (11:15-19) 

  13. The Red Dragon cast down (12:1-17)

  14. The Anti-Christ is revealed (13:1-10)

  15. The False Prophet is revealed (13:11-18)

  16. The Tribulation Harvest (7,1-8, 14:1-17)

  17. The Grapes of Wrath (14:17-20)

  18. The Seventh Trumpet (14:15-1) 

  19. The Heavenly Tabernacle (15:1-8)

  20. Seven Bowls #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 #7 (16:1-21)

  21. Babylon the Wicked (Zechariah 5:5-15)

  22. Babylon the Great (17:1-6)

  23. Babylon the Betrayed (17:7-18)

  24. Babylon the Fallen (18:1-18:24)

  25. Wedding Supper of the Lamb (19:1-10)

  26. The Day of the Lord (19:11-16)

  27. The Anti-Christ is defeated (19:17-21)

  28. The Red Dragon is bound (20:1-3)

  29. Millennial Reign of Jesus Christ (7:9-17, 20:4-6)

  30. The Final Rebellion (20:7-10)

  31. The Great White Throne (21:11-15)

  32. A New Beginning (21:1-8

  33. The Holy City (21:9-21)

  34. The Holy Light (21:22-27)

  35. The River of Life (22:1-22:6)

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Great-Tribulation-timeline-1500x664
Eschatology Timeline, Spivey v5

SECTION - GREETINGS

 

Revelation 1:1-3

Revelation1:1 "The revelation from Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John," 

  • "revelation" - the Second Coming of Jesus Christ; The Transfiguration hinted at the glory of Jesus in Matthew 17:2; Jesus Christ is the subject and the source of revelation

  • "servant" - Greek "doúlos" means "a bond servant" as in one who serves by their own free will due to their love for their master.

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Revelation1:2 "who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. "

 

Revelation1:3 "Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near."

 

"Be assured, my brethren, the more real Jesus Christ is to us the more power there will be in our religion."

C. H. Spurgeon

 

John was called the "apostle whom Jesus loved" meaning there was a deep relationship.  He was the only Apostle to not be martyred, although some would say that this exile was a close second.  His writing unveiled a mystery long hidden, and its subject and source is Jesus Christ.  There is no revelation without Jesus Christ. Often referred to as end-time prophecy, it outlines the Second Coming of Jesus Christ as King/Judge, what happens at the End-of-Days regarding this Earth's history and it explains the events that occur during the period known as the Tribulation [God's wrath and judgment against sin is poured out upon those remaining on the Earth]. Verse 1 says these things must soon take place. In Greek, "tachos" means "with speed" or "suddenly" and describes the pace of events, not a time span. Verse 2 emphasizes the two most important things, "the word of God" and "the testimony of Jesus Christ" in his own testimony through this letter. Verse 3 states that the reader will be blessed ["mararios" meaning an extended benefit or provision], and urges believers to heed these words ["tereo" means to observe, guard, watch over and preserve so that they do not escape] because the time [sequence of events for Messiah] is near [in both an immediate and futuristic sense]. Time does not apply to God in the same way it applies to humans (Psalm 90:4 - "A thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night.")

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Revelation 1:4-8

v4-6 - The Apostle Paul founded these seven churches that were in close proximity to Patmos. John may have addressed Revelation to the churches, but he dedicated the communication to Jesus in v. 5 ("To him who loves us ... freed us ... ).

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John references the Trinity (see Triune God section):

  • God / Lord God / Father (see God the Father section)

    • Revelation reveals His sovereignty

    • "him who is, and who was, and who is to come"

    • "[he who sits on] his throne"

    • "the Alpha and Omega"

    • "the Almighty"

  • Holy Spirit (see God the Holy Spirit section)

    • Revelation reveals His supernatural activity

    • "the seven spirits before the throne"

  • Jesus Christ (see God the Son section)

    • Reveals His greatness and worthiness:

      • "the faithful witness [his testimony and life while on earth]"

      • "the firstborn of the dead [his resurrection], and" - the first to exhibit the new life to believers will experience

      • "ruler of the kings of the earth [his second coming]"

    • Reveals His actions toward his followers:

      • "loves us" - us = "believers in Christ"

      • "freed us from our sin by his blood"

      • "made us a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father

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v5-6 - Why does Jesus deserve our reverence and worship? "5 ...To him [this letter is dedicated to Jesus] who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, 6 and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever!

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v7 - "Look, he is coming with the clouds", (Daniel 7:13, Matthew 24:30, Acts 1:10-11, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)
  and "every eye will see him, (Matthew 6:22-23)

even those who pierced him;

   and all peoples on earth will mourn because of him." (Zechariah 12:10, John 19:34-37)
So shall it be! Amen.

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v8 - “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”  Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters in the Greek Alphabet. It reflects all knowledge and that Jesus is "the Logos" or first cause, the ultimate concept of truth. (John 1:1)  Plato taught that "the Word" was unreachable and unknowable; it was the source of all rational thought.  Jesus spoke the first words of creation and He will speak the final words of the new creation. Isaiah 44:6 states "“This is what the LORD [Yahweh] says — Israel’s King [this is the pre-incarnate Jesus Christ] and Redeemer [as in Kinsman-Redeemer that takes back a claim] , the LORD Almighty ['Yahweh Tzeva-ot' means the Lord of Hosts or Commander of the Lord's army, see Joshua 5:13-15, Psalm 33:13-16]: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me [one of three parts to identify the Triune God] there is no God [Elohim]." (Deuteronomy 6:3-4)

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The use of the name LORD God [Yahweh Elohim] implies that John is identifying Jesus as God [the Son]

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Jesus was accused of blasphemy [desecration of God's name] by the Sanhedrin for claiming He was the Son of God. (Matthew 26:63-66, John 5:16-18, John 10:22-33)

  • Leviticus 24:15-16 - "15 Say to the Israelites: ‘Anyone who curses their God [Elohim] will be held responsible; 16 anyone who blasphemes the name of the LORD [YHWH] is to be put to death. The entire assembly must stone them. Whether foreigner or native-born, when they blaspheme the Name they are to be put to death.

  • Exodus 22:28 - "Do not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people."

 

Son of God
Alpha and Omega

SECTION - LETTERS TO THE SEVEN CHURCHES

 

​Revelation 1:9-11

v9 - In 95 AD, John the Apostle was told by Jesus to write this letter to seven churches in Asia Minor while John was exiled on the Island of Patmos by the Roman government for preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. These letters are not just addressing the churches at that time, but also address and apply to the hearts of all who read these letters in Revelation.

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v10

  • "On the Lord's Day" - In the context of Revelation as apocalyptic prophecy, I would interpret this as the same meaning as "the Day of the Lord" or the Second Coming of Jesus Christ referenced in Isaiah 13:6, Joel 2:1 and Amos 5:18. Interestingly, this term were prophesied around 730 BC, 830 BC and 760 BC respectively. There is no specific reference to Sunday, such as "the first day of the week" in John 20:1 nor at such as early stage of the Church, that Sunday was exclusively their day of worship and many Jews could still be using their "Sabbath" [Thursday evening to Friday afternoon].

  • "In the Spirit" - a state of elevated consciousness or being that can transcends physical location and time (Isaiah 6:1-7, Ezekiel 37:1-14, Daniel 10:7-8, 2 Corinthians 12:2-4, Revelation 17:3). Through the Holy Spirit, two of it's spirits are the spirit of wisdom and the spirit of revelation [or understanding]. (Ephesians 1:17-21, Isaiah 11: 1-2)​

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Revelation 1:12-19

Imagery of John's vision:

 

v12-13

  • golden lampstands = v19 represents the seven churches identified in v. 11 (Exodus 25:31-40, Exodus 27:20-21) and their purpose is the hold-up and support the light source. Also, the church is its people, not the building. (1 Peter 2:1-10)

    • Ephesus - founded by Paul with christian Jews fleeing persecution in Israel, devoted and active church; persecuted by synagogues and trade unions. Paul authored a Epistle and Timothy became their chief pastor.

    • Smyrna

    • Pergamum

    • Thyatira

    • Sardis

    • Philadelphia

    • Laodicea - Paul wrote of Archippus

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v13

  • Someone like a son of man walking among the seven lampstands (Matthew 18:19-20)

    • "like a son of man" means in human form or appearance, a human being

    • The seven lampstands are not one menorah.  They are seven distinct and separate lampstands. One could only walk around one menorah, but could walk "among" the many lampstands.

    • v17-18 identify this as the resurrected Jesus Christ

    • John knew Jesus very well. He was one of the Jesus' first disciples, having served under John the Baptist with Andrew, brother Simon [Peter] (John 1:35-41).  Afterward, he lived and was mentored by Jesus for 3 years. Jesus walked the earth as the Lamb of God and the Light of the World; he did not come at that time to judge the world, but to save it. (John 1:6-9, John 3:17, John 12:44-50)

    • In addition, he is know as the "one whom Jesus' loved" (John 13:21-27) and was directed by Jesus to take care of his mother (John 19:25-27). 

    • Also, John first saw a glimpse of the glory and majesty of Jesus during the Transfiguration event (Matthew 17:1-13, Mark 9:2-13, Luke 9:28-36).  The descriptions of Jesus were "the appearance of his face changed ... his face shone like the sun, ... his clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them,  as bright as a flash of lightning."

    • Other prophets have described Jesus in his heavenly gloried body (Daniel 3:25, 7:13-14, 10:4-6; Ezekiel 1:25-28,

    • Jesus knows what is going on in the church because he is walking in their midst, observing and noting their deeds. (John 1:47-51, John 4:15-18)

  • He wore a robe down to his feet = one element of the Priestly Garments (Exodus 28:31-32)

  • He wore a golden sash around his chest = another element of the Priestly Garments; they wore a sash of many colors for glory and for beauty, but Jesus wore a golden sash, not needing to be spiritually clean and expressing Himself as the priest among priests (Exodus 28:39); Also a sign of royalty / kingship (Isaiah 22:20-21). His golden sash shows that He is King of Kings; Also, the prophets of old wore a leather sash.  How much more is Jesus "the Prophet" as he wears a golden sash of highest authority and that His words are the truest words from God the Father. (Deuteronomy 18:14-22)

  • Since Jesus fulfills a priestly role and walks among the seven lampstands, like the High Priest, he also maintains the lampstands in a similar manner as the High Priests to trim the wicks or refill the oil. In other words, Jesus will exert his authority on the churches, which includes removing the light (Holy Spirit).

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v14

  • His head and hair were white as wool/snow = Jesus as the physical manifestation of God the Father (the Ancient of Days on His holy throne (Daniel 7:9)

  • His eyes were blazing fire = A degree of animation and character that displays someone with power and authority to unleash righteous judgment and refining purification in the direction of its gaze of recognition for righteousness and unrighteousness. Unlike human eyes, which are a lamp to the body and take in what can be see, the Lord's eyes project out His holiness and authority (Job 40:6-11, Psalm 33:18, Psalm 34:12-16, Proverbs 3:7-8, Matthew 6:22, 1 Peter 3:1)​

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v15

  • His feet glowed like bronze in a furnace = a furnace is a symbol of judgment and refinement. Bronze is an alloy of copper with tin that is harder than iron.  When inactive, corrosion starts to turn it from reddish to black and green.  Glowing bronze shows movement and power. Bronze is a symbol of sin and judgment i.e. the bronze snake lifted up, the bronze altar [for sacrifices] and basin ["the Sea" for ritual cleansing] outside the Temple where sacrifices were performed. (Exodus 38:1-8, 29-31, Numbers 21:4-9, 1 Kings 7:13-47)

  • His voice was like rushing water = the emphasis is not on water, but on the consuming loudness that cannot be ignored. This is not gentle instruction among friends, but power that comes from the warning of impending correction, judgment and wrath. (Job 40:6-14, Psalm 18:6-15)

  • His face was brilliant like the shining sun =

    • 100% of His glory. No one with sin can look upon the face of the Lord and live. (Exodus 33:12-23)

    • The face of Moses glowed from His glory / goodness of the Lord passing by while he stood, covered  by the Lord's hand, in the cleft of the rock on Mt. Horeb [Al Lawz Jebel in Saudi Arabia] (Exodus 34:29-35).

 

v16

  • The right hand of the Son of Man with seven stars

  • The the words from the mouth of the Son of Man was a sharp two-edged sword

    • word of the Lord = His words deliver justice and witness and testimony are the weapon, (Isaiah 11:4, Hebrews 4:12)

    • mouth = the sword is not in his hand, but from his mouth.  The battle or war will not be fought by normal means. (2 Thessalonians 2:8, Revelation 19:21)

    • sharp, two-edged = It is designed to penetrate deep, not slice-off. The tip is very sharp and intended to wound, not deliver a death-blow. Also, the Greek word for double-edged (distomos) = "two mouthed".  The mouth of God and the mouth of the messenger. It also can cut or devours both the one receiving the thrust and the one delivering the thrust. (Proverbs 5:1-5, Isaiah 1:20, Jeremiah 22:22) It is a metaphor for spiritual and moral cutting.

    • sword = symbol of warrior / king / ruler [Offensive weapon used against the enemy] (Ephesians 6:17)

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v17

  • identity of the resurrected Jesus Christ; His holy presence is so overwhelming that the mind and body can only respond by shutting down. Our response is on bended knees. (Philippians 2:9-11) Jesus had to intervene so that John's mind and body could function again.

  • Do not be afraid = Familiar phrase spoken when he walked on water (Matthew 14:27, John 6:20)

  • the First and and Last = (Isaiah 44:6 - He is God and there is no other; Hebrews 12:1-3 - He is the author and perfecter of our faith, 1 Corinthians 15:45 - First Adam)

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v 18

  • The Living one; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever = (1 Corinthians 15 - God accepted His sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins and God gives eternal life to those who accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior)

  • keys = symbol of authority; dominion over; possession and power over something; to gain access, to open and to shut; a metaphor for government or rule.  Keys were hung by the sash as a sign of authority. (Isaiah 22:20-22)

  • death ("thanatos" in Greek) = physical death

  • Hades (Greek) or Sheol (Hebrew) = spiritual death / grave / underworld [Genesis 37:35, Psalm 139:7-8, Luke 16:19-26] (see Afterlife Slideshow)

    • conscious afterlife of man's soul and spirit; Sheol is a place of the dead in Jewish thought; both good and bad; both Hades and Paradise (Genesis 37:35, 1 Samuel 28:13–14, Psalm 31:17)

    • Like a city; has bars and gates: (Job 17:16, Isaiah 38:10)

    • Place of shadow, silence and forgetfulness; a pit (Psalm 6:5, Psalm 88:10-12, Psalm 115:17; Isaiah 14:9, Isaiah 26:14, Isaiah 38:18)

    • Hades will exist until the event of the Great White Throne of Judgment in Revelation 20:11-15

    • Is it located in the center of the earth?

      • Numbers 16:30–33 "30 But if the Lord brings about something totally new, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them, with everything that belongs to them, and they go down alive into the realm of the dead [Sheol], then you will know that these men have treated the Lord with contempt.” 31 As soon as he finished saying all this, the ground under them split apart 32 and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households, and all those associated with Korah, together with their possessions. 33 They went down alive into the realm of the dead [Sheol], with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they perished and were gone from the community.

      • Isaiah 7:10-11 "10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, 11 “Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths [Sheol] or in the highest heights [hag·beh·ah le·ma·'e·lah - the exalted above.” "

      • Matthew 12:40 "For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth."

      • Ephesians 4:8-10 "8 This is why it says: “When he [Jesus] ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.” [Psalm 68:18] 9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions [or depths of the earth]? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.)"

      • I Peter 3:18-22 "18 For Christ died for sin once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. 19 After being made alive, through whom also he went and preached [announced or proclamation] to the imprisoned spirits— 20 to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, 21 and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God [Hebrews 10:22]. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him."

      • Revelation 5:2-3 "2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?” 3 But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth [Sheol or Hades] could open the scroll or even look inside it."

      • Revelation 9:1-2

    • Psalm 139:7-8 "Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I go up to the heavens [mayim], you are there [not location or temporal, but the fullness of His presence]; if I make my bed in the depths [Sheol], you are there [ditto]." meaning death cannot separate.

    • not the "grave" or a "tomb" ("qeber" in Hebrew) (Isaiah 14:19)

    • not Paradise or third heaven or Abraham's [side] (Luke 16:19-26)

      • It was in close proximity to Hades prior to Jesus ascension (Luke 16:23)

      • Jesus told the repentant thief on the cross that he would be in Paradise (Luke 23:42-43)

      • Jesus had not gone to the Father prior to his ascension in Act 1:9-11 (John 20:17)

      • Paul indicates that Paradise was re-located from Sheol to the 3rd Heaven after Jesus' ascension (2 Corinthians 12:1-4)

      • Paradise is currently where the Tree of Life is located (Revelation 2:7); also the Tree of Life is currently located in the 3rd Heaven (Ezekiel 47:12, Revelation 22:1-2)

    • not Heaven

      • Nehemiah 9:6 "You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens [2nd - hashamayim], even the highest heavens [3rd - shemei hashamayim], and all their starry host [armies/angels], the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them [1st - sky with water]. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven [another term for "hosts" - see Psalm 103:20, 148:2] worship you."

      • Psalms 148:1-6 "1 ... Praise the Lord from the heavens [2nd - hashamayim]; praise him in the heights above [high lands or mountains]. 2 Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his heavenly hosts. 3 Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all you shining stars [2nd - hashamayim]. 4 Praise him, you highest heavens [3rd - shemei hashamayim] and you waters above the skies [1st - sky with water]. 5 Let them praise the name of the Lord, for at his command they were created, 6 and he established them for ever and ever—he issued a decree that will never pass away."

      • First Heaven [sky within Earth's atmosphere where water is located]

        • Genesis 1:6-8 "And God said, “Let there be an expanse [vault or arched firmament known as the atmosphere] between the waters to separate water from water.” 7 So God made the vault and separated the water [liquid water] under the expanse from the water [clouds and vapor] above it. And it was so. 8 God called the expanse “sky.” [1st - sha·ma·yim] And there was evening, and there was morning—the second day.

        • God has perfectly balanced the vacuum of space, with the energy from the Sun, molecules movements and gases in the Earth's atmosphere, with the Earth at just the correct size in order to create an open-system where a state of entropy is held in a sort of equilibrium.  Some say that this equilibrium violates the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics, while other say that because this environment is not a closed-system, it does not violate the 2nd Law.

      • Second Heaven [the vacuum of space and it's universe]

      • Third Heaven [the place where God dwells on His throne]

        • "shamayim" in Hebrew means "the heights" or "ouranos" in Greek means "“that which is elevated” or “that which is lifted up” (Mark 13:32, Revelation 3:12)

    • not Hell or the Lake of Fire after the Great White Throne of Judgment in Revelation 20:11-15 ("gehenna" in Greek and "ge-hinnom" in Hebrew, but this was literally the valley, south of Jerusalem, where they burned trash and refuse); there is not concept of Hell in the Old Testament except possibly Deuteronomy 32:22. (see Jewish perspective on Hell); it is introduced in the New Testament from the teachings of Jesus and afterward. (Matthew 5:22, Mark 9:43)

  • Article on Hell, Sheol, Hades, Paradise, and the Grave by W. Edward Bedore, Th.D.

  • Article on Heaven, Paradise, Sheol, Hell, Hades, Abyss, & Lake of Fire

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double-edged sword
bronze feet
eyes of fire
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7 lampstands
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First and Last
Dead and Alive
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​v19

  • write = John's purpose (why) for his suffering

  • He told John that there was a present day message and there is future message for all believers

    • "what you have seen" = v 12-16 is the vision of Jesus among the churches

    • "what is now" [forth-telling] of events in the current time in the churches in Chapters 2 and 3

    • "what will take place later" [fore-telling] after the rapture of the Church Age saints

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7 churches

THE SEVEN CHURCHES (Revelation 2:1-3:22)

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At a time set in the future, it is God the Father's will and purpose that there will be a man who will unite all nations (including Israel), religions and commerce under a false sense of peace by the power and control of Satan (See Beast of of the Sea Section). Until the day comes when this false messiah or "Anti-Christ" is revealed, there is already in the world today, a "spirit of the anti-christ" influencing people through the supernatural activity of Satan.  1 John 4:1-3 says "1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world."

Spiritual battles occur everyday and there are expectations to the Christian walk. Christians, who have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit providing revelation and counseling in the truth and will of God, are called to be alert and on the defense regarding the attacks of the evil one.

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  • 1 Peter 1:13-16 "13 Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. 14 As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” 

  • Romans 13:11-14 "11 And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. 12 The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. 14 Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh."

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The church is not a building nor are all its members.  Only those with a genuine faith in Jesus Christ belong to Him and are a part of His church. (Matthew 13:1-42) The children of Israel were warned multiple times by God, the pre-incarnate Jesus and the prophets, regarding obedience and their call to holiness and separation from the practices of the pagan nations. Jesus is likewise reminding the Gentiles churches in the Church Age through these letters. All is open and exposed before an all-seeing Jesus, who searches the seen and unseen.

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Jesus had overcome the world [John 16:33], but each of the seven churches were given a promise by the Spirit to those who overcome ("nikōnti" in Greek means to win, conquer; the word "nike" or "victory in a struggle" is derived from it). 1 John 5:1-5 tells us "1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God [salvation], and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. 2 This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. 3 In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, 4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God." Believers overcome the accuser [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb [Jesus] and the word of their testimony [eternal life is in the Son of God] (Revelation 12:10-12).

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When Jesus say "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches," he implies that there is no option; it is a command and a blessing to hear what Jesus has in mind to share.  What is bread unless it is physically ingested?  What is God's Word unless it is spiritually consumed? (Matthew 4:1-4)  We consume the Word by hearing. (Isaiah 55:10-11, Luke 8:4-15, John 8:47) To truly hear, is to listen and heed by application to one's life. (James 1:22-25)

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Also, Jesus states that what He is relaying, is what the Spirit says.  The Triune God speaks in one accord.

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These seven churches were located along the "Roman Road" in Asia Minor (Turkey). Asia Minor was absorbed into the Roman Empire in 129 BC. The governor, Manius Aquillius began to expand this road system into his province for military and commercial purposes.  The list of churches are in order of closest to Patmos and moving in a clockwise rotation.

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EPHESUS: (Revelation 2:1-7) - TRUE REPENTANCE IS POSSIBLE DURING THE TRIBULATION

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City: The name "Ephesos" in Greek does not have a meaning, but sounds similar to the Greek words "arestos" (desirable) and "epitrepo" (permitted). Located in the ancient land of the Hittites, many Scholars believer it was the ancient city called "Apasa". Over the years and with many conquests from several nations, the Ionian Greeks captured it from the Persians.  It was originally a harbor village, but over the years silt buildup at the mouth of the Cayster River due to deforestation of the surrounding land required additional engineering to utilize the port, which eventually became unusable.  It also held the temple to Artemis/Diana (one of the famous “Seven Wonders of the Ancient World”). It is estimated that it had a population of 250,000 and was the most important city in the region as a cultural/tourist hub.  Acts 19:23-41 gives background on the silversmith riot (around 55 BC) due to the conflict between "the Way" (Christianity) and the worship of Artemis. Today, the city and evidence of its church lies in ruin.

 

Characteristics of Jesus:

 

Church: Enduring faith and works.  The church was founded by Paul with christian Jews fleeing persecution in Israel; devoted and active church; persecuted by synagogues and trade unions. Paul authored a Epistle and Timothy became their chief pastor.

 

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Good: good deeds, hard work, perseverance, intolerant of wick men

Rebuke: "You have forsaken your first love" - Like an sturdy oak tree that starts to hollow on the inside, how can the Spirit move if there is no love? Unlike the Thessalonians, who were praised by Paul in 1 Thessalonians 1:7-10, the Ephesians lost sight of his encouragement in Ephesians 5:1-2 "Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God."  Isaiah 63:7-14, Hosea 14, Jeremiah 3 are similar rebukes of spiritual adultery. We are reminded that the greatest commandment, as outlined in Matthew 22:34-40, is "to love the Lord your God will all your heart, soul and mind" and the second greatest commandment is "to love your neighbor as yourself."  Jesus also said in John 14:15-31 "If you love me, 'keep my commandments' and 'obey my teachings'. "  Jesus is warning that they have great deeds, hard work and perseverance, but no love.  1 Corinthians 13 says, "If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing."  There was a need for less intellect and more heart.

Message: "Be faithful [return] to your first love."

  • "first love" - The Ephesian church was known for its love for all the saints (Ephesians 1:15-23). They were steadfast on truth, but neglected their love and devotion to God that is the basis of that truth and so it diminish. The first love for Believer's is the love we have primarily for God and secondarily for others [as Christ has loved] (Matthew 22:36-40, John 13:34-35).

    • heart = center of morality, wisdom and choice

    • soul = our consciousness, cognition of sin and our personality

    • mind = knowledge, understanding and attitude. The brain is not the mind.

    • Believers are called to love God with all three.

  • "Consider how far you have fallen!" - Jesus tells us to remember, a retrospect that thinks back to a time where love was fresh and new and compared with the now. (Matthew 13:44-46, Hebrews 10:19-35)

  • "Repent!" - ["metanoeó" in Greek means to change within and think differently after] Retrace and get back to the path where love of Jesus Christ spurs pursuit. (Luke 22:60-62) To acknowledge our sin is to agree with God. (Psalm 51:10-12) The Prodigal Son parable (Luke 15:11-24)

  • "Do the things you did at first" - get back to the basics, refocus, sanctify your physical and spiritual eyes and ears, control your tongue, earnestly seek the Lord (Jeremiah 3:12)

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Spirit's message to those [believers] who overcome [complacency or neglect in your relationship with Christ]: "I will give [removed the barrier] the right [as an adopted child of God - John 1:12-13] to eat from the tree of life [an actual tree producing fruit that supernaturally imparts eternal life by sustaining the physical body when continually consumed] (Genesis 2:8-9, 2:15-17, 3:1-24, Revelation 22:1-2), which is in the paradise of God [in the immediate or current place called Heaven]."  While these Christians could not lose their salvation, what about "the lost" or "the harvest" that need to know about Christ, but who would end up emulating their loveless faith; theirs would be a simulated faith with no access to the right of an adopted child of God based on their own works.

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SMYRNA: (Revelation 2:8-11) - SATANIC FORCES ARE AT WORK NOW AND IN THE TRIBULATION TO PERSECUTE AND KILL BELIEVERS

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City: The root words for Smyrna is "myrrh", the spice used to prepare bodies for burial after death. It can also mean "bitter". It was 40 miles north of Ephesus with a seaport at the mouth of the Hermus River. Unfortunately, it was a center for emperor worship. During Domitian's reign, every Roman citizen was required to worship him under penalty of death. Polycarp, the church bishop, was martyred for not worshiping Caesar.

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Characteristics of Jesus:

 

Church: Afflicted and oppression by Jews and demonic forces produced poverty.

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Good: poor in spirit, endure persecution for the sake of Christ, spiritual rich. Typical poverty is the lack of resources that restrict ones ability to achieve basic living conditions expected by the world.  An even worse poverty is having the ability to achieve self-sufficiency, but outside oppression prevents achieving what is possible. In the case of believers in Smyrna, they were oppressed by evil forces that influenced the Jewish Community to persecute and inflict economic sanctions on believers in Jesus Christ. Through their suffering, believers accumulate "the riches of God's grace and in heaven".  In a similar manner, Christ had the ability [and perhaps was even tempted] to take the throne of David that would meet the expectations of the Jewish nation, but for the sake of Jews and Gentiles, Jesus rejected their vision and pursued obedience to the will of His God and Father, so that all who believed may be saved through Him. (Matthew 5:3-12, 6:19-20, Romans 2:29, 12:12,  2 Corinthians 8:9) 

Rebuke: none, but warned that some will suffer, even die for their faith. (Matthew 16:24-25, Luke 9:24)

Message: "Be faithful [steadfast and persevere] in your suffering"

  • "crown of life" - in ancient times, victorious athletes and soldiers received crowns. the second death has no victory over believers.

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Spirit's message to those [believers] who overcome [endures suffering, even unto the first death (biological) for your faith in Jesus Christ]: [You will endure the physical and emotional pain of suffering while on Earth for my Name's sake, but,] You will not be hurt at all by the second death [Revelations 2:11, 20:6, 20:14, 21:8 means eternal separation from God for rejecting the gift of Jesus Christ, and bearing the due punishment and wrath of God in Hell or the lake that burns with sulfur and fire]."

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PERGAMUM: (Revelation 2:12-17) - TRIBULATION SAINTS MUST BE FAITHFUL TO CHRIST IN THE MIDST OF THE FALSE god (THE BEAST)

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City: In Greek, the name means "height or elevation, citadel" and was situated at the top of a hill. Located 65 miles north of Smyrna. It was the center of religion and also had civic decrees requiring emperor worship, boasting three temples to the practice and such worship was compulsory. There were temples to Dionysus and Athena, along with a Temple and great altar to Zeus. Also people in need of healing and medical treatment would go to an Asclepion, named after the Greek god Aesculapius, who was said to have healing and resurrection powers by using the blood of Medusa. Mud bathes and snakes were used in the worship/healing process.  The snake is still used today as a medical symbol. The city also boasted of a library second only slightly by the one in Alexandria, Egypt.

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Characteristics of Jesus:

 

Church: Existed in the midst of much paganism and occult practices

 

Good: holding fast to your faith in the midst of Satan's domain / throne. (James 1:1-18) The Greek word for Satan is "satana", which is based on the Hebrew word "hassatan" meaning "the Adversary".  Unlike this word for the personification of the Evil One, the word "satan" in Hebrew can also generally describe someone who is "an adversary, stands opposed, or an accuser". Jesus is similarly described in Numbers 22:22 as "lesatan" because God was angry with Balaam for going with Balak and the angel of the Lord (pre-incarnate Jesus) "stood in the way of", or "opposed" the path waving a sword to stop his progress and only his donkey could see it. Since Jesus has designated this city as the center for hostility toward Christians and the Gospel of Jesus Christ, how much more did they need the power of the Holy Spirit to sustain them? God's chosen are sometimes placed to be a light in the middle of unfriendly areas.  Noah, Abraham, Lot, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Samson, Daniel, Isaiah, Nehemiah, Jesus and the Apostles.

Rebuke:

  • Some of you hold to the teaching of Balaam (Numbers 22-25, 31:1-24, Joshua 13:22, 2 Peter 2:15-16, Jude 11) whereby wealth or being able to just earn a living was gained by adopting the pagans worship practices, such as eating food sacrificed to idols and sexual immorality. There is a difference between greater rewards and eternal rewards. Balaam knew God's blessing covered the Israelites. The riches offered by Balak, King of Moab, prompted Balaam to inquire with God.  Balaam was told by God the 1st time not to go with Balak (Numbers 22:12).  God sees the heart so when Balaam inquires the 2nd time, he tells him to go, but it was a test (Numbers 22:20).  God was angry with Balaam for going (Numbers 22:22) . Ultimately, Balaam did not curse the Israelites, but he did provide a method of temptation to Balak by suggesting the Moabite women to seduce the men of Israel to sin.

  • Some hold to teachings of the Nicolaitans (Acts 6:5), which blurred the lines of occult, pagan worship and Christianity. No teachings are deeper than the Word of God.

Message: "Be faithful [true] in your witness. Stop compromising with pagan practices in you worship of the one True God or I will also be against the you." (John 12:48)

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Spirit's message to those [believers] who overcome [the pagan practices and stays true to Jesus' name]: I will give some of the hidden [in a golden jar, in the Ark of the Covenant, in the Holy of Holies, behind the veil, inside the tabernacle/temple, now in Heaven (Revelation 11:19), but spiritually it is Jesus, hidden in Heaven, but accessible through salvation in Him (John 6:30-51)] manna [white flakes ground into bread that sustained the Israelites in the wilderness but did not give eternal life (Genesis 14:18-20, Exodus 16:31, Numbers 11:7-8, Psalm 31:19-20, Psalm 105:40)]. Look to eat the manna, not food dedicated to pagan idols. Hidden manna will sustain, but hidden sin will destroy.  I will also give them a white stone [if accused of a crime, a white stone meant innocent and black stone meant guilty; also, it was used as a sign of victory to athletes or reward for conquering] with a new name (Isaiah 62:1-2, Isaiah 65:15, 2 Corinthians 5:17) written on it, known only to the one who receives it." Another interpretation gives reverence to the Urim, believed to be a diamond stone with YHWH's name written on it that was placed underneath the breastplate of the ephod near the heart of the high priest [Aaron], and was used to received an oracle from God [or "light" to illuminate the message from God]. (Exodus 28:15-30)

 

THYATIRA: (Revelation 2:18-29) - TRIBULATION SAINTS MUST BE CAREFUL TO NOT FOLLOW FALSE RELIGION (THE FALSE PROPHET)

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City: May be related to the word "thygater" meaning "daughter.  The city was known to have many trade guilds which incorporated many pagan rituals and celebrations into their guild meetings, including that every guild doubled as social or religious clubs with their own god. It was 42 miles inland on a flat plain and conducive to trade. It had a Temple for Apollo (music, arts, Sun), twin brother of Artemis, with similar pagan practices. The apostle Paul met a merchant named Lydia in Phillipi who was from Thyatira and traded in fabric with purple dye. The bronze-smith guild in the city was the largest manufacturer of bronze helmets for the Roman army.

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Characteristics of Jesus:

 

Church: increasing in faith and service

 

Good: good deeds, love and faith, service and perseverance, doing more than at first. His acknowledgement is an encouragement to continue. (Hebrews 5:12-14, 2 Peter 1:5-8)

Rebuke: Tolerate sin - Jezebel's (a false prophetess) teachings of sexual immorality and eating food sacrificed to idols. learning occult deep secrets. Those that follow these practices will be destroyed. She was a type of Jezebel, wife of the King Ahab (1 Kings 16:29-34)

Message: "Be faithful [remain] in service and to my will." (Matthew 28:18-20, John 14:23)

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Spirit's message to those [believers] who overcome [the words of false teachers and prophets who seek to lead them astray]: I will give authority over nations. (Psalm 49:14, Daniel 7:18, 27, 1 Corinthians 6:2-3, Revelation 20:4-6)  I will also give the [only] morning star. - A new beginning in Jesus Christ at his second coming, who rose again on the 3rd morning in power and glory. (Psalm 30:5, Luke 24:1-8, Revelation 22:16)

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SARDIS: (Revelation 3:1-6) - THE HOLY SPIRIT GIVES LIFE AND POWER TO THE CHURCH AGE SAINTS AND TRIBULATION SAINTS

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City: Sardis is named after the Sardius stone, a reddish-orange natural stone that was used to represent the Tribe of Reuben on the Ephod breastplate of the the Jewish High Priest. The city was the capital of the Lydia nation. It was rich from gold deposits nearby and in John's day, it was a center for the wool industry. Because Sardis is located in a strategically high location, it was thought that it was safe from invaders and needed little safeguarding.  Twice in its history, the lack of guards keeping watch and actually falling asleep allowed the city to be sacked by both the Persians and the Greeks. Archeological evidence shows Jewish and Christian were able avoid persecution for not participating in emperor worship, which may have stemmed from the vast amount of wealth and a less-than-fervent effort to be sacred or set apart from the pagan practices.

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Characteristics of Jesus:

  • He holds the seven spirits of God. (Isaiah 11:1-2) The seven spirits are the Holy Spirit, which gives everything needed to do and accomplish God's will.  Since Jesus is God the Son, the Holy Spirit is imparted by Jesus. He does not hold the Holy Spirit based on its works, for it is worthy by itself.

  • He holds the seven stars.​ The focus is still on Jesus and His ability to select and continue "holding" the stars (ministers) or let them go based on their effectiveness and works [deeds].  There is no independence for Christ for those who are called to lead. The harvest of the lost is plentiful, but the workers who will reap are few. (Matthew 9:35-38)

 

Church:

 

Good: none, except a reputation for being alive; only a few are worthy. Everyone has worth [to be loved and saved], but not everyone is worthy [to do what is required in order to receive what is deemed precious by the Giver]. (Proverbs 14:12, Ecclesiastes 10:1, Matthew 7:21-23, 2 Timothy 3:1-9)

Rebuke: You are a dead church (Ephesians 2:1-10, Ephesians 5:13-15, James 2:14-26).  There is a cost to being alive in Jesus that perhaps most members of this church were not willing to pay. (Luke 9:57-62) Good works bring glory to God. (Matthew 5:14-16) The Lord can bring the "dead" back to life. (Ezekiel 37:1-14) There is a connection to the use of the words "wake up" and "dead".  To the Jewish mind, sleep and death are similar. John 11:11 shows that Jesus used this word association in reference to Lazarus when he told his disciples "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.” (Genesis 47:30, Psalm 13:3; 90:5, Daniel 12:2, Job 7:21; 20:11; 21:26) The Holy Spirit gives life and makes resurrection possible, so likewise a church body without the Holy Spirit is dead. (Ezekiel 37:1-14, Romans 8:5-13)

Message: "Be faithful [produce fruit] with the power of the Holy Spirit or be cut off" Those that are not connected to Jesus through the Holy Spirit and produce fruit will be removed (Matthew 7:15-20, John 15:1-8)

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Spirit's message to those [believers] who overcome [their quenching of the Holy Spirit]: (1 Thessalonians 5:12-22, 2 Timothy 1:6-10) The Holy Spirit will be active during the Tribulation and there will be Tribulation Saints. (John 3:5, 2 Thessalonians 2, Revelation 7:9-14) They will be dressed in white [holy and worthy, perfection, purity] (Ephesians 4:1-6, Colossians 1:9-14). The few that were worthy demonstrated faith that pleased the Lord. Outward and ceremonial cleanliness was very important in their culture, but Jesus calls us to be clean on the inside. (Isaiah 1:18, Matthew 5:21–30, 23:25-26, Mark 7:14–23)  I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life (Exodus 32:32-33, Psalm 56:8, Psalm 69:19-28, Psalm 139:16, Daniel 12:1, Revelation 20:11-14), but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels. (Matthew 10:32-33, Mark 8:34-38, 2 Timothy 2:11-13)

 

PHILADELPHIA: (Revelation 3:7-13) - TO ENDURE PERSECUTION WITH AN AUTHENTIC AND HOLY RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST LEADS TO EVERLASTING LIFE FOR TRIBULATION SAINTS

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City: City was founded by King Attalus. Its Greek name means "love or loyalty to his brother" and serves as a reminder that he would not betray his brother to Rome.  The area is subject to earthquakes since it was built on a fault line.  It had many temples dedicated to Greek gods.  Dionysus (The god of wine) was very prominent. Believing Jews were locked out of the synagogue in their persecution.

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Characteristics of Jesus:

  • He who is holy and true.

    • To be holy ['hosios" in Greek"] is to have an intrinsic or divine character based on divine truth and law. It is a person "who showed their own loyalty to the covenant.  They did the right things – living according to the stipulations of the Law – for the right reason: their deep relationship to the covenant God." (1 Thessalonians 2:10, Hebrews 7:26) 

    • To be true ["alēthinō" in Greek"] is to be authentic/real on the inside and outside, to who you are and what you represent. (1 John 5:20)

  • He who holds the Key to David. (Isaiah 22:20-25, Matthew 16:19, Act 15:15-18) - Keys are a sign of authority. The key to David is the authority to rule from the throne of Israel and as stated in Acts, rule over both Jews and Gentiles. I believe this letter must be viewed in conjunction with the Isaiah verse to understand the message.   The Isaiah verses discuss the following:

    • (v 1-4) - Instead of seeking God in the valley where God delivers his revelation or prophecy, the people are unconcerned and content to watch from on-high in Jerusalem while their leaders leave them to a future destruction from a far-off enemy. [Assyria]

    • (v 5-14) - Jerusalem's defenses are not ready nor prepared for its destruction. Instead of crying out to God, they act as if all is well and plentiful. [The Northern Kingdom in Samaria has already fallen to the Assyrians so they are aware of the imminent danger of invasion.]

    • (v 15-24) - addressed to Shebna, a chief official to King Hezekiah, who served as Secretary, which is basically second-in-charge only to the king, like Joseph as chief-vizier to Pharaoh. (Genesis 41:37-40, 2 Kings 18:17-19:7, Isaiah 36:1-37:7) According to De Vaux, Roland (1997) "Royal Secretary" Ancient Israel: its life and institutions, the role of Secretary was "... both the duties of private secretary to the king and secretary of state [worked with outside governments]. In addition, the royal secretary exercised some fiscal duties [treasurer]." This role also include his stewardship of the palace.  A palace in ancient times represented civil authority while a temple represented spiritual authority.  The Lord verbally undressed Shebna for not doing his civil duty to preparing the King and the people for Assyrian's aggression.  In due time, he will be stripped of his authority and it will be given to Eliakim, the palace administrator. [Eliakim is a type of Jesus Christ at end-times, where all authority [civil and spiritual] will be given to Him to protect Israel from the armies of the Anti-Christ.]

    • (25) - Eventually, the peg [Eliakim] driven into a firm place [the throne of David - Judah] (Jeremiah 33:17, Isaiah 9:6-7) will fulfill his duties, but the load hanging on the peg [Jerusalem and the Southern Kingdom] will fall.  In contract to this, Jesus [the real "peg"] is also driven into the holy place [king and high priest] and its load will never fall (Ezra 9:8 "“But now, for a brief moment, the Lord our God has been gracious [or shown grace] in leaving us a[n escaped] remnant and giving us a firm place ["ya·ted" is "peg" in Hebrew] in his sanctuary [holy place], and so our God gives light [enlightenment] to our eyes and a little relief in our bondage.)

  • He who opens what no one can shut and who shuts what no one can open. (Job 12:14, Isaiah 22:22)

    • Ultimate, this person decides who has access to the king.  Keys control access and authority.  Jesus, not the Mosaic Law nor circumcision nor ancestry, is our "key" to directly access God. (Romans 5:1-11, Hebrews 7:25)

 

Church:

 

Good: Because you have little strength, kept my word and not denied my name, Jesus [the key] has left the door open. (Matthew 7:7-8, John 10:7-10) Also, v10 states that they "kept the word of My perseverance." This refers to God the Father's appointed time for Jesus to act as judge for the wickedness of sin.  Rather than trying to address this false holiness of their community in their weakness, they endure with patience for judgment. Those identified will be justified by the lips of these false Jews at a future time and they will be kept from the hour of trial [the entire period of time known as the Tribulation or 7-weeks of Daniel]. (Luke 17:20-37, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)

Rebuke: There were probably many Jews professing Christ in the church that continued to hold to Judaism's definition of a Jew. Paul, in Romans 2:17-29 identifies the characteristics of a real Jew.  Dependence on Rabbinical law and circumcision does not define a Jew.  A true Jew involves circumcision of the heart, by the Holy Spirit.  In this sense, Gentiles can also be true Jews who believe in the Messiah. By dismissing Gentile believers, they have caused God's name to be blasphemed among unbelieving Gentiles. (Isaiah 52:5, Ezekiel 36:22) Jew who profess Christ are true Jews.  Those who do not are "liars" and false Jews who rely on the Old Testament covenant and Mosaic Laws for righteousness. (John 8:31-47) Access to the line of David [ruler, promised Messiah from the line of David] requires everyone to go to the one with the key [Jesus]. The false Jews cannot shut the door that Jesus has opened, but neither can they access the door until they become true Jews.  The city may have had a large portion of its church filled with false Jews and only a remnant of true Jews.

Message: "Be faithful [true circumcision of the heart] to the covenant relationship with God"

 

Spirit's message to those [believers] who overcome [false holiness and relationship]:

  • "I will make a pillar [have a permanent relationship] in the temple of my God [in His presence]. Never again will they leave it." (Revelation 7:15 states "... they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple ["naō" in Hebrew means "the place of divine manifestation", which is not a physical temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence [or "skēnōsei" meaning "to spread His tabernacle or dwelling in intimate communion.  John, in Revelation 22:22, clearly states "22 [in the New Jerusalem] I did not see a temple ["naon"] in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple ["naos"].")  Also, this pillar will be made of people, not stone, and will not be subject to the earthquakes you experience in the city.

  • "I will write on them [as a piller has writing on it] the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name." There will be a new heaven, new earth, new city, and believers will have new sinless bodies.

    • Name of my God: Denotes ownership and adoption. (Romans 8:14-16, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, 7:21-24, Galatians 4:1-7, Revelation 1:1

    • Name of the city of my God: Denotes access and citizenship (Matthew 5:17-20, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, Philippians 3:20-21)

    • My new name:  Denotes a shift from earthly ministry of salvation and heaven's door to that of judge/ruler with all authority given to him by God. Jesus will have a new name that no one knows (Revelation 19:12)

 

LAODICEA: (Revelation 3:14-22) - TO BE A TRIBULATION SAINT, ONE MUST CHOOSE JESUS CHRIST

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City: In Greek, the name mean “the people” and “justice," or “the people ruling.” It was a center for all trades, financial, medical, artistic, education and religious activity [they had an industry for refining gold].  Because of their vast wealth, after an earthquake in 60 AD, the city refused financial assistance from Rome to rebuild. It lacked a consistent source of water and because if its close proximity (Colossians 4:13-16) had aqueducts to supply cold river water from Colosse and hot springs water from Hierapolis. By the time the water arrived, it was "lukewarm".  Additionally, the high mineral content of the water, if consumed directly, would induce "vomiting".

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Characteristics of Jesus:

  • The Amen - Used as "Verily" or "Truly" (see Psalm 41:13) and also means "so be it". Also, the Hebrew word "amén" implies both "true" and "faithful" so that his title as a witness is complete. Jesus was perfectly obedient and is the entire and exact fulfillment of God's promises, purposes and judgment in scripture.  He is asserting and confirming the will of God by serving as God's AMEN statement at the end of all things old and the beginning of what will be made new. (Isaiah 65:16 - God of truth ["be·lo·hei a·men"], 2 Corinthians 1:19-20)

  • The faithful and true witness. A witness is defined as someone who testifies based on knowledge from personal observation or experience. To be a witness in a legal sense, it required 2-3 witnesses to testify in a dispute. A false witness is doomed to the same punishment that the falsely accused would have received. (Deuteronomy 19:15-20, John 8:17-18, 1 John 5:6-11) Jesus' ministry and earthly life pulled back the veil of God's character, purposes and thoughts for his creation. God testified about Jesus in the Old Testament as Jesus fulfilled all prophecies of the Messiah. Jesus testified about what His Father / God has said and the new covenant for Jews and Gentiles through Jesus Christ. (Isaiah 43:9-12)

  • The ruler of God's creation. The Greek word for ruler is "arché" meaning "beginning of all things, the initial starting point, the origin, the active cause of, first or supreme". All authority was given to the Son of God and His words are final. (Daniel 7:13-14, Matthew 28:18-20, John 1:1-3 & 5:19, Philippians 2:9-10, Colossians 1:16-18, Colossians 2:15, Hebrews 1:2-3)

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Church:

 

Good: none

Rebuke:

  • You are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold. In the context of this passage, a liquid that would be placed in the mouth at a certain temperature represents levels of expectation and satisfaction. A hot or cold drink has with it different levels of expectation as a refreshment or quenching of thirst.  To drink a lukewarm liquid would neither meet expectations nor satisfy. This group of people in the church were lacking the spiritual expectations for a professing faith in Jesus. They were a false witness to be rejected. (Matthew 24:1-2)

  • Revelation 3:17 says "You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked."

    • wretched ["talaipóros" - means significant hardship]; spiritually anxious; without joy and comfort (Galatians 5:22-23, Philippians 4:4-7)

    • pitiful ["eleeinos" - means in great need of mercy]; spiritually without humility (Exodus 34:6-7, Deuteronomy 7:9, Psalm 25:10, Proverbs 28:13, Micah 6:8, 7:18-19, Matthew 12:7, James 2:13, 3:17)

    • poor ["ptóchos" - means to crouch like a beggar]; spiritually bankrupt; no salvation (Ezekiel 36:26, 1 Timothy 2:6; Mark 10:45, Romans 6:23, 10:9, Colossians 2:13-14)

    • blind ["tuphlos" - means to darken like smoke]; spiritually without light (Psalm 119:105, Matthew 6:22-23, John 1:6-13, Ephesians 5:11-14)

    • naked ["gumnos" - means poorly clothed]; spiritual exposure of guilt and sin (Isaiah 61:10, Romans 13:14, Ephesians 4:22-24)

    • They boasted of satisfaction and self-sufficiency in their [lukewarm] wealth, but could not self-reflect on their great need for salvation. They refused to acknowledge their iniquity and were warned that they will receive their just due. (Hosea 12, Proverbs 3:5-6)

      • Hosea 12:8,14:  "8 Ephraim boasts, “I am very rich; I have become wealthy. With all my wealth they will not find in me any iniquity or sin ... 14 But Ephraim has aroused his bitter anger; his Lord will leave on him the guilt of his bloodshed and will repay him for his contempt."

Message: "Be faithful ["zéloó" means zealous  / warmth] to the truth of my salvation witness." Jesus asked them to figuratively buy [focus on] commodities of spiritual gold [cannot be tarnished] and white garments [righteousness that is a gift of grace], not what can be bought with money. (Isaiah 1:18, 61:10, 1 Corinthians 15:53-64, 1 Peter 1:3-7)

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Spirit's message to those [believers] who overcome [self-sufficiency and self-deception in the flesh]:

  • "I will give the right to sit with me on my throne" To sit on a throne is to be a ruler. If they thought they had riches before, now they see in the coming age how rich they are in his grace. (Luke 22:28-30, Romans 8:5-17, Ephesians 2:1-10)

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faithful and true

SECTION - END OF THE CHURCH AGE (Revelation 4:1-2)

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"After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice [Jesus Christ] I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this. At once, I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it.”

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  • The beginning of the Church Age is reflected in Acts 2:37

  • "After this" = the end of the Church Age by the removal of universal church or body of believers (Church-Age saints) through the Rapture.

  • "a door standing open in heaven" - The door of access to God for which only Jesus Christ can grant access. It is Jesus Christ that comes to take the Church Age saints with him in the clouds at the Rapture.  Heaven was opened once again for His Second Coming in Revelation 19:11.

  • At once, I was in the Spirit ... "pneuma" ​​

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THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)

Jesus Christ never directly stated or defined the term "rapture" in the Holy Bible, but His teachings to the Apostles did allude to the event as separate from His Second Coming.  In a similar fashion, the term "Trinity" is not stated directly in the Holy Bible as well. The term "rapture" comes from 1 Thessalonians 4:17 ("harpazó" in Greek can mean a) to carry off by force, b) to claim for oneself eagerly, c) to snatch away speedily, or d) to rescue from the danger of destruction). In Latin, the term "rapiemur" from the word "rapio", is translated into "rapture". It refers to the removal of the Church-Age saints before the Tribulation period. Mark Hitchcock, in his book THE END, states seven instances where a person experiences a "rapture" of their physical body, but I believe there are two other instances from Ezekiel and John the Apostle:

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  • Enoch was taken by God; he did not die

    • ... for God took him ... - "laqach" means to take (Genesis 5:21-24)

    • ... his being taken up ... - "metatithémi" means to be taken (Hebrews 11:5)

  • Elijah was caught up to heaven in a fiery chariot (2 Kings 2:1-11)

    • ... the Lord was about to take up Elijah by whirlwind to heaven - "alah" means to go up, ascend, climb; describes movement towards something (2 Kings 2:1)

    • And Elijah went up by a whirlwind to heaven - "alah" (2 Kings 2:11)

  • Isaiah has a vision (Isaiah 6:1-3)

    • There are no words that describe this event as a movement from one place to another

  • Philip vanished in front of the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8:26-40)

    • ... the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away - "harpazó" (Acts 8:39)

  • Paul has a vision (2 Corinthians 12:1-6)

  • Jesus ascended to heaven (Acts 1:9-11)

    • He was lifted up ... "epairó" means lifted or raised (Acts 1:9)

    • This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven ... "analambanó" means to assertively take up or raise (Acts 1:11)

    • ... and her [Israel] child [Jesus] was caught up to God and to His throne - "harpazó" (Revelation 12:5)

  • Ezekiel is lifted up in a couple of visions (Ezekiel 3:12-15; 8:1-4)

    • Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a loud rumbling sound as the glory of the Lord rose from the place where it was standing [throne room of heaven] - "nasah" means to lift (Ezekiel 3:12)

    • The Spirit then lifted me up and took me away ... I came to the exiles who lived at Tel Aviv near the Kebar River. And there, where they were living, I sat among them for seven days—deeply distressed. - "nasah" means to lift; - "laqach" means to take (Ezekiel 3:14-15)

    • The Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven and in visions of God he took me to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the north gate of the inner court ... - "nasah" means to lift (Ezekiel 8:3)

  • John the Apostle is carried away in the Spirit (Revelation 1:9-10; 4:1-2; 17:3; 21:10)

    • On the Lord's Day, I was in the Spirit ... "pneuma" (Revelation 1:10)

    • At once, I was in the Spirit and there before me was a throne in heaven ... "pneuma" (Revelation 4:2)

    • Then an angel carried me away in the Spirit into a desert ... "apēnenken [to carry off] pneuma" (Revelation 17:3)

    • And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain ... "apēnenken pneuma" (Revelation 21:10)

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Characteristics of the Rapture:

  • Jesus speaks about the Rapture (Matthew 24:27-44, Mark 13:26-27, Luke 21:27-28,)

    • It will be as quick as lightning (v. 27). He is there and gone, unlike the Second Coming where Jesus stays

    • The sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven (v. 30)

    • He will be in the clouds with power and great glory (v. 31)

    • A loud trumpet call (v. 32)

    • Gather his elect or believers [the Church] from the four winds (v. 33)

    • No one knows the day or hour (v. 36, 42-44)

    • Like Noah and the Ark, people will be unaware (v. 37-39)

    • People will disappear (v. 40)

  • Like a thief in the night

    • 2 Peter 3:10 "But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare."

    • 1 Thessalonians 5:1-9 "1 Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 4 But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. 5 You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. 6 So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. 9 For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ."

  • Jesus prepares a place and will come back to take believers with him (John 14:3)

    • I will come back and take you with me [Jesus at Second Coming stays on earth for Millennium rule) 

  • Paul describes a mystery [of the Rapture] (1 Corinthians 15:51-57)

    • we [the Church] will be changed [given glorified bodies] (v. 51)

    • in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye (v. 52)

    • at the trumpet sound (v. 52)

    • the dead (believers in Christ) will rise and be changed (v.52, also v. 23 "But each in turn: Christ, the first-fruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him [the Church].​

  • Paul describes Jesus' return for his saints [in the Rapture] (1 Thessalonians 1:10, 4:13-18, 5:9)

    • Jesus will rescue us [the Church] from the coming wrath (1:10)

    • sleep in death and fallen asleep means physical death of the body (4:13-14)

    • "brothers and sisters [in Christ]" means it applied to believers only (4:13)

    • dead in Christ will rise first, then believers [the Church] who are alive (4:14-17)

    • Lord himself will come down from heaven (4:16)

    • a loud command from the archangel (4:16)

    • a trumpet call (4:16)

    • caught up in the clouds with the Lord (4:17)

    • God did not appoint us [the Church] to suffer wrath (5:9)

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There are four views of the Rapture (that are presented as mutually exclusive):

  • Pre-Tribulation - believers will escape God's wrath completely

    • 1 Thessalonians 1:10 "... and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath."

    • 1 Thessalonians 5:9 "For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ."

    • Revelation 3:10 "Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth."

  • Mid-Tribulation - believers will go through half of the Tribulation (before 7th trumpet)

  • Pre-Wrath - believers will go through Tribulation, but the Rapture occurs 3/4ths into 7 years and then the Great Tribulation.

  • Post-Tribulation - the Second Coming is the Rapture​

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AFTER PRE-TRIBULATION RAPTURE - "PEACE" IN ISRAEL

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There will be a future time in Israel's history where several things will happen prior to the Battle of Gog and Magog.  These events are outlined in Ezekiel 38:8-13 " 8 After many days you [Gog] will be called to arms. In future years you [Gog] will invade a land [Israel] that has recovered from war, whose people were gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate. They had been brought out from the nations, and now all of them live in safety. 9 You and all your troops and the many nations with you will go up, advancing like a storm; you will be like a cloud covering the land. 10 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On that day thoughts will come into your mind and you will devise an evil scheme. 11 You will say, “I [Gog] will invade a land of unwalled villages; I [Gog] will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people—all of them living without walls and without gates and bars. 12 I [Gog] will plunder and loot and turn my hand against the resettled ruins and the people gathered from the nations, rich in livestock and goods, living at the center of the land.” 13 Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish and all her villages will say to you, “Have you come to plunder? Have you gathered your hordes to loot, to carry off silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods and to seize much plunder?”’
 

  • Why Pre-Tribulation / Post Rapture?

    • Not Pre-Rapture because these events would give evidence to Rapture and that time is unknowable

    • Not Pre-Great Tribulation because there would be 3.5 years of false peace brokered by the Anti-Christ

    • Not Pre-Millennium because the Battle of Armageddon is a conflict against a global alliance, not a northern alliance

    • Not Post-Millennium because the final rebellion is all nations, not a northern alliance.

  • They will have come out of a war 

    • It is assumed that this war results in removal of the people currently called the "Palestinians", and Israel may have full control of all areas, including Gaza, the West Bank, the Golan Heights and all of Jerusalem with the Temple Mount, which allows for the rebuilding of the Temple.  Such actions would not be acceptable to certain nations.  

      • Ezekiel 36 speaks to the treatment of Israel by the nations and the Lord's zeal for his land and people, possibly resulting in the war from which they are recovering.

        • Ezekiel 36:3-7 "3 Therefore prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because they ravaged and crushed you from every side so that you became the possession of the rest of the nations and the object of people’s malicious talk and slander, 4 therefore, mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Sovereign Lord: This is what the Sovereign Lord says to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys, to the desolate ruins and the deserted towns that have been plundered and ridiculed by the rest of the nations around you— 5 this is what the Sovereign Lord says: In my burning zeal I have spoken against the rest of the nations, and against all Edom, for with glee and with malice in their hearts they made my land their own possession so that they might plunder its pastureland.’ 6 Therefore prophesy concerning the land of Israel and say to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I speak in my jealous wrath because you have suffered the scorn of the nations. 7 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I swear with uplifted hand that the nations around you will also suffer scorn."

        • The Battle of Gog and Magog is for the purpose to invade and plunder.  The Battle of Armageddon is to destroy [Daniel 9:26 "... The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed."]

  • Jews will be gathered from other nations

    • They will need this area to house all the returning Jews from the nations. Ezekiel 36 speaks of the return to Israel.

      • Ezekiel 36:10-11 "10 and I will cause many people to live on you—yes, all of Israel. The towns will be inhabited and the ruins rebuilt. 11 I will increase the number of people and animals living on you, and they will be fruitful and become numerous. I will settle people on you as in the past and will make you prosper more than before. Then you will know that I am the Lord."

      • Ezekiel 36:24 “‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land."

      • Ezekiel 36:28 "Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God."

      • Ezekiel 36:33-36, 38 "33 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On the day I cleanse you from all your sins, I will resettle your towns, and the ruins will be rebuilt. 34 The desolate land will be cultivated instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass through it. 35 They will say, “This land that was laid waste has become like the garden of Eden; the cities that were lying in ruins, desolate and destroyed, are now fortified and inhabited.” 36 Then the nations around you that remain will know that I the Lord have rebuilt what was destroyed and have replanted what was desolate. I the Lord have spoken, and I will do it.’ 38 ... So will the ruined cities be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

  • Israel will live in safety and peace / no walls

    • This safety and peace are through the successful efforts of Israel in battle. No walls may mean that the walls surrounding Gaza and the West Bank are no longer needed and the Israelites have reclaimed the land from the "Palestinians".

      • Zechariah 2:4-5 "4 and said to him: “Run, tell that young man, ‘Jerusalem will be a city without walls because of the great number of people and animals in it. 5 And I myself will be a wall of fire around it,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will be its glory within.’" (This is the hope Israel has, but this time has not come because Jehovah does not dwell there again yet)

      • Ezekiel 38:14 "“Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say to Gog: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: In that day, when my people Israel are living in safety, will you not take notice of it?"

  • Israel will be blessed with abundance

    • This may be part of the enticement for the Battle of Gog and Magog to attack Israel.  This blessing will be from the Lord, not science and technology. Ezekiel 36 speaks to this abundance:

      • Ezekiel 36:9-12 " 9 I am concerned for you and will look on you with favor; you will be plowed and sown, 10 and I will cause many people to live on you—yes, all of Israel. The towns will be inhabited and the ruins rebuilt. 11 I will increase the number of people and animals living on you, and they will be fruitful and become numerous. I will settle people on you as in the past and will make you prosper more than before. Then you will know that I am the Lord. 12 I will cause people, my people Israel, to live on you. They will possess you, and you will be their inheritance; you will never again deprive them of their children."

      • Ezekiel 36:29-30 "29 I will save you from all your uncleanness. I will call for the grain and make it plentiful and will not bring famine upon you. 30 I will increase the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field, so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famine."

      • Ezekiel 36:34-38 " 34 The desolate land will be cultivated instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass through it. 35 They will say, “This land that was laid waste has become like the garden of Eden; the cities that were lying in ruins, desolate and destroyed, are now fortified and inhabited.” 36 Then the nations around you that remain will know that I the Lord have rebuilt what was destroyed and have replanted what was desolate. I the Lord have spoken, and I will do it.’ 37 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Once again I will yield to Israel’s plea and do this for them: I will make their people as numerous as sheep, 38 as numerous as the flocks for offerings at Jerusalem during her appointed festivals. So will the ruined cities be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

  • Who are Sheba, Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish and all her villages?

    • References in Ezekiel 27:12-23 speaking a lament to Tyre in Phoenicia, "12 “‘Tarshish did business with you because of your great wealth of goods; they exchanged silver, iron, tin and lead for your merchandise. 13 “‘Greece, Tubal and Meshech did business with you; they traded human beings and articles of bronze for your wares. 14 “‘Men of Beth Togarmah exchanged chariot horses, cavalry horses and mules for your merchandise. 15 “‘The men of Rhodes traded with you, and many coastlands were your customers; they paid you with ivory tusks and ebony. 16 “‘Aram [Edom] did business with you because of your many products; they exchanged turquoise, purple fabric, embroidered work, fine linen, coral and rubies for your merchandise. 17 “‘Judah and Israel traded with you; they exchanged wheat from Minnith and confections, honey, olive oil and balm for your wares. 18 “‘Damascus [Syria] did business with you because of your many products and great wealth of goods. They offered wine from Helbon, wool from Zahar 19 and casks of wine from Izal in exchange for your wares: wrought iron, cassia and calamus. 20 “‘Dedan traded in saddle blankets with you. 21 “‘Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your customers; they did business with you in lambs, rams and goats. 22 “‘The merchants of Sheba and Raamah traded with you; for your merchandise they exchanged the finest of all kinds of spices and precious stones, and gold. 23 “‘Harran, Kanneh and Eden and merchants of Sheba, Ashur and Kilmad traded with you."

      • Sheba may be Yemen on the southern horn of Arabian Peninsula at the mouth of the Red Sea. When the Queen of Sheba visited King Solomon, 1 Kings 10:10 says "And she gave the king 120 talents of gold, large quantities of spices, and precious stones. Never again were so many spices brought in as those the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon."

      • Dedan is Saudi Arabia, known for its Arabian horse domestication and breeding. Saddle blankets would support this industry.

      • Tarshish may be the Tarta at the mouth of the Tartis River in the Tartessian Gulf on the Mediterranean Sea in Southern, Spain. It was known as a Phoenician mining colony.  It is the location where Jonah tried to flee from God in Jonah 1:1-3 "1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord."

    • These people groups seem to be bystanders watching, but not participating nor supporting in the invasion.


 

PRE-TRIBULATION ATTACK ON ISRAEL

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The Battle of Gog and Magog (Ezekiel 38-39)

  • Location:  The mountains of Israel 

  • Spiritual Driving Force: God the Father

    • Ezekiel 38:3-4 "3 and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, Gog, chief prince of Meshek and Tubal. 4 I will turn you around, put hooks in your jaws and bring you out with your whole army—your horses, your horsemen fully armed, and a great horde with large and small shields, all of them brandishing their swords."

    • Ezekiel 39:1-3 "1 “Son of man, prophesy against Gog and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, Gog, chief prince of Meshek and Tubal. 2 I will turn you around and drag you along. I will bring you from the far north and send you against the mountains of Israel. 3 Then I will strike your bow from your left hand and make your arrows drop from your right hand."

    • Zechariah 6:1-8 "I looked up again, and there before me were four chariots coming out from between [the] two mountains—mountains of bronze. 2 The first chariot had red horses, the second black, 3 the third white, and the fourth dappled—all of them powerful. 4 I asked the angel who was speaking to me, “What are these, my lord?” 5 The angel answered me, “These are the four spirits of heaven, going out from standing in the presence of the Lord of the whole world. 6 The one with the black horses is going toward the north country, the one with the white horses after them [to the north, not west], and the one with the dappled [pale] horses toward the south.” 7 When the powerful horses went out, they were straining to go throughout the earth. And he said, “Go throughout the earth!” So they went throughout the earth. 8 Then he called to me, “Look, those going toward the north country have given my Spirit rest in the land of the north."

      • the two mountains are:

        • Mt. Zion to the east; also the open Arabian desert is to the east

        • Mt. of Olives to the west; also the Mediterranean Sea is to the west

        • Kidron Valley (or valley of Jehoshaphat meaning "Jehovah judges") in the middle is the location of the four chariots (Joel 3:2; Zechariah 14:4-5)

        • bronze is a symbol of judgment

      • These four chariots are also known as the Four Winds or the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

      • Black and white horses go north (Russia, Syria and Turkey)

        • black is economic hardship

          • v8 - "given my Spirit rest in the land of the north" means to appease God's wrath so that his judgment on the north country will be complete.

        • white is false victory / false peace

      • Pale horse goes south (Libya and Sudan)

        • pale is the four judgments of God by death through war, famine, plagues and wild beasts

      • Red horses did not leave the valley

        • red is anarchy from loss of law and order

  • Leader:  Gog of Magog - Russia will lead a number of eastern European and Muslim nations against Israel in an attack from the north.

  • Context: After Israel has recovered from a future war, God had gathered Jews from other nations to live in abundance and peace without wall in the land of Israel. Russia is in the middle of economic hardship and

  • Why pre-tribulation?

    • There is a reference to the seven years of the Tribulation.

      • Ezekiel 39:9-10 "9 “‘Then those who live in the towns of Israel will go out and use the weapons for fuel and burn them up—the small and large shields, the bows and arrows, the war clubs and spears. For seven years [the Tribulation period] they will use them for fuel. 10 They will not need to gather wood from the fields or cut it from the forests, because they will use the weapons for fuel. And they will plunder those who plundered them and loot those who looted them, declares the Sovereign Lord."

    • ​There are references to merchants who are active. At the beginning of the Tribulation Period, the Black Horse of the Apocalypse will release an economic crisis. Toward the end of the Great Tribulation, Babylon the Great [City], who controls all commerce, will be destroyed and all the merchants will lament. 

      • Revelation 6:5-6 "5 When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. 6 Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, “Two pounds of wheat for a day’s wages, and six pounds of barley for a day’s wages,[d] and do not damage the oil and the wine!”

      • Revelation 18:11-13 "11 “The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her [Babylon the Great] because no one buys their cargoes anymore— 12 cargoes of gold, silver, precious stones and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet cloth; every sort of citron wood, and articles of every kind made of ivory, costly wood, bronze, iron and marble; 13 cargoes of cinnamon and spice, of incense, myrrh and frankincense, of wine and olive oil, of fine flour and wheat; cattle and sheep; horses and carriages; and human beings sold as slaves."

    • There are reference to several specific nations or regions rising against Israel from the north, but the Battle of Armageddon will be a gathering of all nations, starting with the sixth bowl of wrath poured out.

      • Revelation 16:12-16 "12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East. 13 Then I saw three impure spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14 They are demonic spirits that perform signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty. 15 “Look, I come like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and remains clothed, so as not to go naked and be shamefully exposed.” 16 Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon."

    • If the Anti-Christ is released at the breaking of the 1st Seal as the rider on the white horse with a bow (and no arrows), which marks the beginning of the Tribulation Period then Gog in the north is not the same since God makes both his bow and arrows useless.

      • Ezekiel 39:3 "Then I [God] will strike your [Gog] bow from your left hand and make your arrows drop from your right hand."

      • Revelation 6:2 "I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider [Anti-Christ] held a bow, and he was given a crown [not royal], and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest."

    • Gog and his army are killed on the mountains of Israel, but the Anti-Christ is captured and thrown into the Lake of Fire while his army dies on the Plains of Megiddo.

      • Ezekiel 39:4, 11 "On the mountains of Israel you [Gog] will fall, you and all your troops and the nations with you. I will give you as food to all kinds of carrion birds and to the wild animals. ... 11 ‘On that day I will give Gog a burial place in Israel, in the valley of those who travel east of the Sea. It will block the way of travelers, because Gog and all his hordes will be buried there. So it will be called the Valley of Hamon Gog."

      • Revelation 16:16 "Then they [demons] gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon."

      • Revelation 19:19-21 "19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and his army. 20 But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed the signs on its behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 21 The rest were killed with the sword coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh."

  • How is the Battle won? 

    • Judgments using natural forces and elements, along with supernatural forces.

      • Ezekiel 38:18-22 "18 This is what will happen in that day: When Gog attacks the land of Israel, my hot anger will be aroused, declares the Sovereign Lord. 19 In my zeal and fiery wrath I declare that at that time there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. 20 The fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the beasts of the field, every creature that moves along the ground, and all the people on the face of the earth will tremble at my presence. The mountains will be overturned, the cliffs will crumble and every wall will fall to the ground. 21 I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign Lord. Every man’s sword will be against his brother. 22 I will execute judgment on him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him."

      • Joel 2:18-20 "Then the Lord was jealous for his land and took pity on his people. 19 The Lord replied to them: “I am sending you grain, new wine and olive oil, enough to satisfy you fully; never again will I make you an object of scorn to the nations. 20 “I will drive the northern horde far from you, pushing it into a parched and barren land; its eastern ranks will drown in the Dead Sea and its western ranks in the Mediterranean Sea. And its stench will go up; its smell will rise.” Surely he has done great things! "

  • This Battle may serve as the pretext to a seven-year treaty brokered by the Anti-Christ and his 10-nation confederacy of the new Roman empire that establishes peace in Israel for 3.5 years.

    • Daniel 9:27 "He [Anti-Christ] will confirm a [satanic] covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him."

    • Revelation 12:6, 14 "6 The woman [Israel] fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days. ... 14 The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s [Satan's] reach."

    • This "peace" treaty will allow the building of the Third Temple. In order to obey all the sacrificial requirements and purify the Third Temple, a red heifer (Number 19:1-10) is required. Jewish Tradition says that only nine times has a red heifer been sacrificed. There was a Jewish sage named Maimonides who believed that the tenth animal would only be found and sacrificed when King Messiah was ready to appear.

the four chariots

THE THRONE ROOM OF HEAVEN (Revelation 4:2-3, 5-6)

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This section is the start of a pivotal moment in time; for the time has come for God's judgment against sin.  Judgment is issued from God's Throne in the heavenly sanctuary. Psalm 89:24 "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you."

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throne room chart

v2 "... was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it" - a singular form that was shaped like someone sitting in a place of royalty and authority as He rules over the universe. John does not identify this entity specifically at God the Father (4:2-3 and 5:1), but in light of the knowledge of the Trinity and the later identity of the Holy Spirit (v5-6) and Jesus Christ (5:5-13), this can only be God the Father. (Psalm 103:19, Isaiah 6:1)

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v3 - "And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian." Both stones are a variety of chalcedony stone, meaning they have a waxy luster, and may be semitransparent or translucent due to their high content of minute crystalline structures with silica and quartz.

  • Jasper - Also called Bloodstone. It is a translucent stone of many different colors, but mainly a medium to dark green with specks of red. In Hebrew, it is called "yashpheh" and it was translated into Greek as "iaspis". On the the Ephod of the High Priest, it was the last stone of the last row that represented the Tribe of Benjamin, the last born. The Hebrew name "Ben-yamin" means 'the son of my right hand' or 'the son of my power.' (Genesis 35:18, Exodus 28:20, 39:13; Job 28:18; Ezekiel 28:13; Revelation 21:11, 21:18-19)

  • Carnelian - Also called Sardius or Odem. It was reddish-orange in color. On the the Ephod of the High Priest, it was the first stone of the first row that represented the Tribe of Reuben, the first born. The Hebrew name "Reuben" means “behold a son”. It was often been used for ring stones and wax seals. (Genesis 29:32, Exodus 28:19, 39:10; Matthew 3:17, Revelation 21:20)

  • Together, both colors could mean "See my only begotten son at my right hand", pointing to the Lamb that was worthy in Chapter 5.

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"A rainbow, resembling an emerald, encircled the throne" - The rainbow was a symbol of a promise / covenant to not destroy the earth with a flood (Genesis 9:12-17). It is unclear if this emerald rainbow is a symbol of a new promise. Rainbows are typically created by the refraction of light through a prism (water, crystal, etc.). Green is radiation with wavelengths between 500 and 600 nanometers and it has the highest luminous efficiency, meaning it appears brighter than any other color.  Unlike the primary colors used for paint pigments (Red, Blue, Yellow), green replaces yellow as a primary wavelength for light. The human vision system is trichromatic, meaning our complex eyes perceive wavelengths of light in the RGB or Red Green Blue spectrum, not colors.

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v5-6 - From the throne:

  • "flashes of lightning"

  • "rumbling and peals of thunder"

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    - Before the throne:

  • "seven blazing lamps" - The seven spirits of God (or the Holy Spirit)

  • "looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal" - This is the river of life referenced in Revelation 22:1-2.

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THE 24 ELDERS (Revelation 4:4, 10-11; 7:11-14)

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v4 - 24 Elders

  • Each were seated in their own throne surrounding God's the Father's throne.

  • Each were "dressed in white"

  • Each wore a "crown of gold"

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Unlike the Seraphim, their worship was directed toward the throne.

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If the tabernacle was a earthly copy of the heavenly temple then the Ark of the Covenant is an earthly copy of God's throne.

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Who are the 24 elders?  I do not know who they are, but we see their characteristics

  • They were venerable

  • They are human (not creatures nor angels)

  • They speak and have conversation

  • They give reverence to God

  • They could be revered representatives of old and new testament period saints (12 tribes of Israel and 12 apostles)

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THE FOUR LIVING CREATURES (Revelation 4:7-9)

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v6-8 " 6 ... In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back. 7 The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle. 8 Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings. Day and night they never stop saying: “ ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,’ who was, and is, and is to come.' "

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  • Purpose:​​​ They make proclamations about God the Father through perpetual verbal worship rooted in the supreme holiness of God the Father, and as lead through the wisdom, influence and counsel of the Holy Spirit (eyes). Their proclamation proceeds outward from the throne.

  • Called "Seraphim"

  • covered with eyes in front and back (Holy Spirit)

  • six wings

  • four different faces

    • Lion - majestic hunter, courageous, protective, not a scavenger

    • Ox - beast of burden, strength, content,

    • Man - highest form of creation

    • Eagle - high flying, tenacious, fearless, excellent vision, not a scavenger

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Isaiah 6:1-3 "1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.”

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Ezekiel 1:3-14 " 3 the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, by the Kebar River in the land of the Babylonians. There the hand of the Lord was on him. 4 I looked, and I saw a windstorm coming out of the north—an immense cloud with flashing lightning and surrounded by brilliant light. The center of the fire looked like glowing metal, 5 and in the fire was what looked like four living creatures. In appearance their form was human, 6 but each of them had four faces and four wings. 7 Their legs were straight; their feet were like those of a calf and gleamed like burnished bronze. 8 Under their wings on their four sides they had human hands. All four of them had faces and wings, 9 and the wings of one touched the wings of another. Each one went straight ahead; they did not turn as they moved. 10 Their faces looked like this: Each of the four had the face of a human being, and on the right side each had the face of a lion, and on the left the face of an ox; each also had the face of an eagle. 11 Such were their faces. They each had two wings spreading out upward, each wing touching that of the creature on either side; and each had two other wings covering its body. 12 Each one went straight ahead. Wherever the spirit would go, they would go, without turning as they went. 13 The appearance of the living creatures was like burning coals of fire or like torches. Fire moved back and forth among the creatures; it was bright, and lightning flashed out of it. 14 The creatures sped back and forth like flashes of lightning."

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THE LAMB OF GOD IS WORTHY (Revelation 5:1- 5:14)

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The time has come for God's judgment against sin.  Judgment is issued from God's Throne in the heavenly sanctuary. Psalm 89:24 "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; love and faithfulness go before you."

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​v1 "... right hand of him [God the Father] who sat on the throne [of God] a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven [number of completeness] seals."

  • " a scroll" - a parchment of paper or animal skin that would be rolled up.  Twine was wrapped around the scroll and hot wax poured over the twine so that a signet seal could be pressed into the wax.  The more seals on the scroll, the more important the document. Roman law required seven seals for a will to be legal.

    • Some believe this is the deed or title to the land of Israel (Jeremiah 32:6-15).  This may be supported by the rule or dominion over creation given to Adam and Eve (Genesis 1:26-27, Psalm 8:3-8) being transferred to the authority of Satan after their disobedience and fall (Luke 4:6-7, 2 Corinthians 4:4). Furthermore, God the Father glorified the Son by seating him at His right hand with all authority (1 Corinthians 15:24-28, Ephesians 1:20-23, Hebrews 2:5-9). There was no document required when the the Trinity discussed giving rule over the creation to man so why would there be one now.

    • Some believe this is the Book of Life that was sealed until the end of days (Daniel 12:1-4, Revelation 20:12,15).  Since the Holy Spirit is a "seal" or mark that identifies believers in Christ, the names would not be a secret and need to be sealed so that no one would know.

    • I believe the scroll may have a two-fold purpose:

      • God's final judgment and restoration of Israel.

      • God's judgment lien against the sin of the world and its opening initiates the proclamation and processes of His judgment (Psalm 82, Daniel 7:25-27). The Book of Revelation may provide many details about the judgment and wrath to come in the Tribulation written on the scroll.

  • God is patient in our disobedience and the timing of God giving or releasing the scroll to Jesus is within the sovereignty of God alone (Exodus 34:6-7, Matthew 24:36-37, 2 Peter 3:8-9).

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v3 "But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it."

  • "no one ... could open the scroll" - In the law according to earthly government, it was a capital offense to open a sealed document other that the person to whom it was directed to. In God's economy, only Jesus was worthy, who first died for all sin, so that everyone might gain eternal life.

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v6 "Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits[a] of God sent out into all the earth."

  • The Lamb = Jesus Christ is called this term in John 1:29 "The next day John [the Baptist] saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"

    • "lamb" - more specifically, the PASSOVER LAMB, slaughtered prior to the Exodus always pointed to, and is the reference to, Jesus the Messiah.

      • Requirements for the sacrifice - Exodus 12:5-7 "5 The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect [perfect, without sin], and you may take them from the sheep or the goats. 6 Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month, when all the members of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight. 7 Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the door frames of the houses where they eat the lambs."

      • Purpose of the blood - Exodus 12:12-13 "12 “On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn of both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord. 13 The blood [sacrifice] will be a sign [evidence of sacrifice] for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over [give mercy and salvation] you. No destructive plague [wrath or judgment against sin] will touch you when I strike Egypt [symbol of sinful world]. "

      • Jesus conquered death and the grave as a lamb, through sacrificial love (agape). He will later conquer as a lion at his Second Coming.

  • "looking as if it had been slain" = treatment since his arrest, including beating, flogging and crucifixion

    • the Messiah was supposed to suffer - Isaiah 53:7 "He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth."

  • "in the center of the throne" = place of honor and authority

  • "seven horns" = complete or righteous king or ruler in power

  • "seven eyes" = Holy Spirit

  • v9 "... with your [Jesus] blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation."

    • the Messiah is not only for the Jews, but for the Gentiles

      • Isaiah 42:5-7 "This is what God the Lord says—the Creator of the heavens, who stretches them out,
        who spreads out the earth with all that springs from it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it: 6 “I, the Lord, have called you [the Messiah] in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a [new] covenant [of restoration and salvation] for the people [Jews] and a light [revelation of salvation and grafting into the Jewish branch] for the Gentiles, 7 to open eyes that are [spiritually] blind, to free captives from prison [in the bonds of sin] and to release from the dungeon [the world system / flesh] those who sit in darkness [without a relationship with the creator, God the Father]."

      • Isaiah 49:6 "he says: “It is too small a thing for you to be my [suffering] servant [or Messiah] to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.”

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THE TRIBULATION PERIOD (1 Thessalonians 5:1-9)
Eschatology is the study of the end times or the doctrine of the last things

The Seventieth Week of Daniel (Dan 9:24-27)

  • Time period: the full 7-years or the 70th week of Daniel 9:27

 

The End of the Age - Jesus will use his angels to purge that which causes sin and does evil.

  • Matthew 13:27-30, 37-41 "27 “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’ 28 “‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. “The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ 29 “‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’ ... 37 He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. 40 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. ”

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The "End-of-Days"

  • "acharit ha-yamim" in Hebrew.

  • "eschatais ēmerais" in Greek means "the uttermost end of days".

  • It also means "the Last Days" or the "Tribulation Period"

    • Isaiah 2:2-22 (1st half Tribulation) "2 In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. 3 Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the temple of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.” The law will go out from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 4 He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore. 5 Come, descendants of Jacob, let us walk in the light of the Lord. 6 You, Lord, have abandoned your people, the descendants of Jacob. They are full of superstitions from the East; they practice divination like the Philistines and embrace pagan customs. 7 Their land is full of silver and gold; there is no end to their treasures. Their land is full of horses; there is no end to their chariots. 8 Their land is full of idols: they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their fingers have made. 9 So people will be brought low and everyone humbled—do not forgive them. 10 Go into the rocks, hide in the ground from the fearful presence of the Lord and the splendor of his majesty! 11 The eyes of the arrogant will be humbled and human pride brought low; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day. 12 The Lord Almighty has a day in store for all the proud and lofty, for all that is exalted (and they will be humbled), 13 for all the cedars of Lebanon, tall and lofty, and all the oaks of Bashan, 14 for all the towering mountains and all the high hills, 15 
      for every lofty tower  and every fortified wall, 16 for every trading ship and every stately vessel. 17 The arrogance of man will be brought low and human pride humbled; the Lord alone will be exalted in that day, 18 and the idols will totally disappear. 19 People will flee to caves in the rocks and to holes in the ground from the fearful presence of the Lord and the splendor of his majesty, when he rises to shake the earth. 20 In that day people will throw away to the moles and bats their idols of silver and idols of gold,
      which they made to worship. 21 They will flee to caverns in the rocks and to the overhanging crags from the fearful presence of the Lord and the splendor of his majesty, when he rises to shake the earth. 22 Stop trusting in mere humans, who have but a breath in their nostrils. Why hold them in esteem?

    • Isaiah 24:1-23 "1 See, the Lord is going to lay waste the earth and devastate it; he will ruin its face and scatter its inhabitants— 2 it will be the same for priest as for people, for the master as for his servant, for the mistress as for her servant, for seller as for buyer, for borrower as for lender, for debtor as for creditor. 3 The earth will be completely laid waste and totally plundered. The Lord has spoken this word.
      4 The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers, the heavens languish with the earth. 5 The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant. 6 Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earth’s inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left. 7 The new wine dries up and the vine withers; all the merrymakers groan. 8 The joyful timbrels are stilled, the noise of the revelers has stopped, the joyful harp is silent. 9 No longer do they drink wine with a song; the beer is bitter to its drinkers. 10 The ruined city lies desolate; the entrance to every house is barred. 11 In the streets they cry out for wine; all joy turns to gloom, all joyful sounds are banished from the earth. 12 The city is left in ruins, its gate is battered to pieces. 13 So will it be on the earth and among the nations, as when an olive tree is beaten,  or as when gleanings are left after the grape harvest. 14 They raise their voices, they shout for joy; from the west they acclaim the Lord’s majesty. 15 Therefore in the east give glory to the Lord; exalt the name of the Lord, the God of Israel, in the islands of the sea. 16 From the ends of the earth we hear singing: “Glory to the Righteous One.” But I said, “I waste away, I waste away! Woe to me! The treacherous betray! With treachery the treacherous betray!” 17 Terror and pit and snare await you, people of the earth. 18 Whoever flees at the sound of terror will fall into a pit; whoever climbs out of the pit will be caught in a snare. The floodgates of the heavens are opened, the foundations of the earth shake. 19 The earth is broken up, the earth is split asunder, the earth is violently shaken. 20 The earth reels like a drunkard, it sways like a hut in the wind; so heavy upon it is the guilt of its rebellion that it falls—never to rise again. 21 In that day the Lord will punish the powers in the heavens above and the kings on the earth below. 22 
      They will be herded together like prisoners bound in a dungeon; they will be shut up in prison and be punished[a] after many days. 23 The moon will be dismayed, the sun ashamed; for the Lord Almighty will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before its elders—with great glory."

    • Joel 2:28-32 (1st half Tribulation) "28 “And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. 29 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days. 30 I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. 31 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. 32 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the Lord has said, even among the survivors whom the Lord calls."

    • 1 Timothy 4:1-2 (later times) "1 The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. 2 Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron."

    • 2 Timothy 3:1-5 "1 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. 2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people."

    • 2 Peters 3:3-9 (1st half Tribulation) "3 Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4 They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” 5 But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. 6 By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. 7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. 8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."

    • Matthew 24:4-8 "4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. 6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains."

    • Mark 13:5-11 "5 Jesus said to them: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 6 Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and will deceive many. 7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 8 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains. 9 “You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. 10 And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. 11 Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit."

    • Luke 21:8-11 "8 He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. 9 When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.” 10 Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven."

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WHEN DOES JUDGMENT BEGIN?
When Jesus, the Messiah, came physically (First Advent) into this world as both human and God the Son, He did not come as a Judge, but as a Savior to bring salvation to both Jew and Gentile. (John 3:17, Luke 19:10) When Jesus returns to rule (Second Advent or Coming), He will bring final judgment to the world, meaning the second death will be appointed to those who reject Jesus as the Messiah. (John 5:22, Acts 17:31, 2 Corinthians 5:10) Although the appointed time when the fullness of sin in the world has come for judgment is only known by God, the book of Revelation does outline the events that lead to God's judgment and wrath. God's proclamation of holy wrath is bound to the scroll in His right hand as he sits on His throne in heaven (Revelation 4:2; 5:1).

The Lamb [Jesus Christ] begins to deliver God's wrath by breaking the 1st Seal in Revelation 6:1 [The start of the Tribulation]. We see upon the breaking of the 6th Seal in Revelation 6:12-17 that all people will have some knowledge and understanding by their proclamation that "the great day of their wrath has come" from God and the Lamb . This is the beginning of God's judgment, while God's wrath begins prior to the sounding of the 7th Trumpet per Revelation 10:7. Just as the Holy Spirit was poured out in the upper room, so it will be with pouring out of God's wrath.​

THE FIRST SIX SEALS (Revelation 6:1-17)

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Only the Lamb (Jesus) is worthy to take the scroll and break its seals. As Jesus breaks the first fours seals, each of the four living creatures invites John to come and see.  This invitation shows their influence over the events happening.

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The four horsemen of the Apocalypse. - Symbols of war horses that await to unleash God's judgment on his creation. These are not literal men, but the four spirits (or winds or angels) of heaven. The first three (3) release a malaise (general feeling or sense of dysfunction that permeates and is not easily identified) that amplifies the coming 4th Seal, while the fourth releases mechanisms of judgment that can be identified.

  • Zechariah 1:8-11 "8 During the night I had a vision, and there before me was a man mounted on a red horse. He was standing among the myrtle trees in a ravine. Behind him were red, brown and white horses. 9 I asked, “What are these, my lord?” The angel who was talking with me answered, “I will show you what they are.” 10 Then the man standing among the myrtle trees explained, “They are the ones the Lord has sent to go throughout the earth.” 11 And they reported to the angel of the Lord who was standing among the myrtle trees, “We have gone throughout the earth and found the whole world at rest and in peace.”

  • Zechariah 6:1-8 (See the Four Chariots, the Four Winds)

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Breaking the First Seal

  • ​Revelation 6:1-2 "1 I watched as the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. Then I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, “Come!” 2 I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.

    • ​"white horse" - a symbol of peace, purity, holiness, righteousness, but this is a spirit of deception. I do not believe this is the Anti-Christ because he is already in the world and given power through Satan as God will's and His judgment allows, but the Anti-Christ will be a part of facilitating a false peace. Injustice of morality.

    • "bow" - symbol of war, a war on truth; no arrows show ​the threat of force; non-military approach such  as politics, technology, culture, religion and commerce.

    • "given" - (Greek "edothē" means to grant or bestow) not inherited or of royal lineage; in this case, it was not earned through achievement of the wearer, but by the one who gave it.

    • "crown" - (Greek "stephanos" is a victor's trophy or general symbol of honor) does not imply authority of position, only achievement. Evil will be allowed to fully obscure discernment. Victory was per-ordained to prevail.

    • "as a conqueror bent on conquest" - Imitation peace that will appear true. The evil plans and purposes of Satan will be calculated and focused on achieving its proposed goal.

    • Matthew 24:4-5 "4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many."

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Breaking the Second Seal

  • Revelation 6:3-4 "3 When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” 4 Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make people kill each other. To him was given a large sword."

    • "red horse" - a spirit of discord; increase in wickedness; anarchy is the breakdown of law and order in society. "Red" is symbolic, resulting in the death of innocent people in violence and murder. Injustice will abound in criminal matters.

      • 1 John 3:4 "Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness."

    • "given power" - (Greek "edothē" means to grant or bestow) power or authority is assumed, but not written in greek.

    • "take peace" - in a personal sense; the magnification of each individual anxiety is reflected in their society and overwhelms it.

    • "large sword" - (Greek "megalē" means great and "machaira" means dagger or short sword) I believe this refers to the ceremonial knife used for the slaughter of animals for Jewish sacrifice and that it is great refers that its use is widespread, perhaps even global. In context, it would be an assassin or murderer's weapon no different than a person indiscriminately stabbing innocent people in public.

      • Jesus said in Matthew 10:34 "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword ("machairan")." Paraphrase: I came not to rule, but to become a sacrifice.

      • Same word in Hebrew when Abraham took Isaac to the mountain in Genesis 22:6, 10 "6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, ... 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son."

    • Matthew 24:6-7, 12 "6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. ... 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold,"

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Breaking the Third Seal

  • Revelation 6:5-6 "5 When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. 6 Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, “Two pounds of wheat for a day’s wages, and six pounds of barley for a day’s wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!”

    • "black horse" - a spirit of deprivation; an honest days work does not have the buying power of the past. "Black" is an absence of light, which is essential to life and growth.

    • "holding a pair of scales" - small hand-held scales were used by bankers and money-changers in association with money and commerce. The rider has power to negatively affect the economy or marketplace. This could be an injustice in pricing, through lack of supply, tariffs, war, high taxes, inflation, bad trade policies or greed.

    • minimum allowances for one man, but not enough to properly feed a family.

      • "Two pounds of wheat" - less quantity but higher nutrition.

      • "six pounds of barley" - higher quantity but less nutrition.

      • Lack of abundance blessing shows God's judgment

        • grain - symbol of provision from the Lord and tithe through sacrificial offering

          • Matthew 6:11 "Give us this day our daily bread." (the Lord's model prayer)

          • Leviticus 2:1-2 "1 When anyone brings a grain offering to the Lord, their offering is to be of the finest flour. They are to pour olive oil on it, put incense on it 2 and take it to Aaron’s sons the priests. The priest shall take a handful of the flour and oil, together with all the incense, and burn this as a memorial portion on the altar, a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord." (Grain offering as first fruits; regardless of quantity it must be the best)

    • "do not damage [to be unjust with] the oil and the wine" - the rider's power is limited and does not extend to luxury items. There may be a spiritual context whereby the bread represents the lack of spiritual food or the word of God in society, but the oil of the Holy Spirit and wine of Jesus' sacrifice is still available in abundance for salvation.

      • Genesis 27:28 "26 Then his father Isaac said to him, “Come here, my son, and kiss me.” 27 So he went to him and kissed him. When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes, he blessed him and said, “Ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed. 28 May God give you heaven’s dew and earth’s richness—an abundance of grain and new wine."

      • Deuteronomy 11:13-14 "13 So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today—to love the Lord your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul— 14 then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and olive oil.

        • Faithfulness to God the Father brings blessing, abundance and evidence of favor.

        • Jesus is symbolic in these items

          • Matthew 26:26-30 "26 While they were eating, Jesus took bread [grain], and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” 27 Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29 I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine [wine] from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.” 30 When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives [place where olive are grown and crushed]."

            • Bread - his body broke; flour comes from crushed grain

            • Wine - his blood poured out; new wine comes from crushed grapes

            • Oil - the coming Holy Spirit; oil comes from crushed olives

      • Joel 2:19 "The Lord replied to them: “I am sending you grain, new [fresh] wine and olive oil, enough to satisfy you fully; never again will I make you an object of scorn to the nations."

        • "I am sending" - as compensation for the plague of locusts who consumed what you worked for

        • oil - Holy Spirit; Old covenant God would withhold or poured out and it would be upon the person; New covenant is the Holy Spirit inside believers. (see Seal on the Forehead)

        • wine - covenant; old v. new

      • Hosea 2:21-22 "21 “In that day I will respond,” declares the Lord—“I will respond to the skies, and they will respond to the earth; 22 and the earth will respond to the grain, the new wine and the olive oil,  and they will respond to Jezreel [means "God plants]."

      • Luke 5:37-39 " 37 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. 38 No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. 39 And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for they say, ‘The old is better.’”

        • wineskin - a person

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Breaking the Fourth Seal

  • Revelation 6:7-8 "7 When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” 8 I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth."

    • ​"pale horse" - a spirit of judgment; pale = Greek "chlōros" means ashen, greenish or pale green as in gangrene that results from a lack of blood or infection in flesh.

    • "named Death" (see Afterlife Slideshow)

    • "Hades was following" (see Hades or Sheol)​​

    • "power over 1/4 of the earth to kill by ..." - unlike the malaise delivered by the first three (3) Seals, these are God's four types or mechanism of delivering His wrath:

      • Punishments for disobedience in the wilderness in Leviticus 26:17-25:

        • sword: 17 I will set my face against you so that you will be defeated by your enemies; those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee even when no one is pursuing you.”; 

        • famine: 20 Your strength will be spent in vain, because your soil will not yield its crops, nor will the trees of your land yield their fruit; 

        • wild beasts: 22 I will send wild animals against you, and they will rob you of your children, destroy your cattle and make you so few in number that your roads will be deserted; 

        • plague: 16 … I will bring on you sudden terror, wasting diseases and fever that will destroy your sight and sap your strength; 25 … I will send a plague among you, and you will be given into enemy hands.

      • Judgments on Jerusalem in Ezekiel 14:21 “For this is what the Lord God [Adonai Yehovah] says: How much worse will it be when I send against Jerusalem my four dreadful judgments—sword and famine and wild beasts and plague—to kill its men and their animals!”

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Breaking the Fifth Seal 

  • Revelation 6:9-11 "9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. 10 They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” 11 Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters, were killed just as they had been [for being Jewish]."

    • ​"under the altar" - this is the golden altar of incense in the 3rd heaven, inside God's temple, from which the temporary tabernacle and all versions of the physical Jewish Temples were modeled with their own altar.

      • Exodus 30:6 "Put the altar [of incense] in front of the curtain that shields the ark of the covenant law—before the atonement cover that is over the tablets of the covenant law—where I will meet with you [in the tabernacle]."

        • The altar of incense represents the prayers and intercession of people, ascending to God as a sweet-smelling offering to the Throne Room of God in the 3rd Heaven

      • 1 Kings 7:48 "Solomon also made all the furnishings that were in the Lord’s temple: the golden altar;"

      • Revelation 11:19 "​Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm."

    • "souls" - who are these souls?

      • only the soul and spirit of someone counted righteous before God under the altar in heaven

      • Church Age Saints who confess Jesus as Messiah would already be in the 3rd Heaven with their resurrection bodies at the Rapture.

      • These "souls" are Jews who:

        • Do not have a resurrection body

        • Have not confessed Jesus as Messiah because God hardened their hearts

        • Continued to believe in a coming Messiah​

    • "slain" - for being Jewish and keeping the law; this will last until the Anti-Christ stops the sacrificial system at the Temple and the Jewish hearts are no longer hardened by God so that they can recognize Jesus as the Messiah

      • "the word of God" - Mosaic Law in Torah

      • "testimony" - identity as Jews and hope for a coming Messiah; this does not say the "testimony of Jesus" like in Revelation 20:4

    • "call out" - they are under the altar of incense so their calling out is mixed with prayers and supplications.  Typically, this call would be for intercessory blessing, but these are calls for revenge for injustice.

    • "How long ... judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?" - ​Jews referring to Gentile injustice against God's people over the centuries.

    • "given a white robe" - white robe is righteousness; given means that God's will cleanse them (God has mercy on who he will have mercy). Unlike Revelation 7:14 "... they [tribulation saints] have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb", these robes are already white.

      • Zechariah 3:3 “The angel [of the LORD] said to those who were standing before him, “Take off his filthy clothes.” Then he said to Joshua [Jewish High Priest], “See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put fine garments on you.”

      • Zephaniah 3:9-11 "9 “Then I will purify the lips of the peoples, that all of them may call on the name of the Lord and serve him shoulder to shoulder. 10 From beyond the rivers of Cush my worshipers, my scattered people, will bring me offerings. 11 On that day you, Jerusalem, will not be put to shame
        for all the wrongs you have done to me        , because I will remove from you your arrogant boasters.
        Never again will you be haughty on my holy hill."

    • "wait a little longer" - they must wait for the 1st Resurrection

    • "until the full number of their fellow servants are killed" - the Jews during the Tribulation will have to wait until the end of the Great Tribulation period.​

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*** MANY PEOPLE DO NOT COMPREHEND THAT THE BOOK OF REVELATION IS NOT JUST ABOUT THE END TIMES; IT IS ABOUT THE LAND AND JEWISH PEOPLE (ISRAEL) RETURNING TO GOD, NOT THE CHURCH (POST-RAPTURE) ***

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  • What about Israel? Are they forgotten by God? - NO!

    • Deuteronomy 7:6 "For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.“

    • 1 Samuel 12:22 "For the sake of his great name the Lord will not reject his people, because the Lord was pleased to make you his own."

    • Psalm 94:14 "For the Lord will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance.“

    • Daniel 9:27 "He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him."

      • God promises Israel 70 years of weeks, 69 having passed; one (1) is yet to come and Israel will be prominent through the Tribulation Period of seven (7) years.

      • The Temple is only in reference to Israel.

    • Matthew 24:34 "Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened."

      • – "this generation" (Greek “genea” means people-group or Israel, not a measure of time)

  • Israel was warned and given a promise

    • Deuteronomy 4:25-31 "25 After you have had children and grandchildren and have lived in the land a long time—if you then become corrupt and make any kind of idol, doing evil in the eyes of the Lord your God and arousing his anger, 26 I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you this day that you will quickly perish from the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You will not live there long but will certainly be destroyed. 27 The Lord will scatter you among the peoples, and only a few of you will survive among the nations to which the Lord will drive you. 28 There you will worship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell. 29 But if from there you seek the Lord your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul. 30 When you are in distress and all these things have happened to you, then in later days you will return to the Lord your God and obey him. 31 For the Lord your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your ancestors, which he confirmed to them by oath.

  • What is the hardening of the Jewish heart and why?

    • God hardened their hearts to the Messiah:

      • Isaiah 29:10-13 "10 The Lord has brought over you a deep sleep: He has sealed your eyes (the prophets); he has covered your heads (the seers). 11 For you this whole vision is nothing but words sealed in a scroll. And if you give the scroll to someone who can read, and say, “Read this, please,” they will answer, “I can’t; it is sealed.” 12 Or if you give the scroll to someone who cannot read, and say, “Read this, please,” they will answer, “I don’t know how to read.” 13 The Lord says: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is based on merely human rules they have been taught."

      • Romans 9:17-18 "17 For Scripture says to Pharaoh: “I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” 18 Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.“

      • Romans 11:25-26 "25 I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, 26 and in this way all Israel will be saved."

      • 2 Corinthians 3:12-14 "12 Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. 13 We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to prevent the Israelites from seeing the end of what was passing away. 14 But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away.”

    • God did this so that Gentiles may be saved through the grace of the gift of Jesus Christ.

      • Romans 11:17-24 "17 If some of the branches [Jews] have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot [Gentiles], have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap [Holy Spirit] from the olive root [Jesus the Messiah], 18 do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you. 19 You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in.” 20 Granted. But they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but tremble. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either. 22 Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. 23 And if they do not persist in unbelief [in the Messiah], they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them [Jews] in again. 24 After all, if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild [the sinful world] by nature, and contrary to nature were grafted into a cultivated [called to holiness] olive tree, how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree!

      • Ephesians 3:6 “This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus."

  • Will Israel be restored? - YES!

    • Deuteronomy 4:30-31 "30 When you are in distress [tribulation] and all these things have happened to you, then in [the] later days you will return to the Lord your God and obey him. 31 For the Lord your God is a merciful God; he will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your ancestors, which he confirmed to them by oath."

    • Ezekiel 11:19 “I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh.”

    • Ezekiel 37:12-14 " 12 Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. 13 Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. 14 I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.’”

    • Ezekiel 39:25-29 “25 “Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will now restore the fortunes of Jacob and will have compassion on all the people of Israel … 29 I will no longer hide my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit on the people of Israel, declares the Sovereign Lord.”

    • Daniel 12: 1-2 “1 At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people [Israel], will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered. 2 Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.

    • Hosea 6:10-11 "10 I have seen a horrible thing in Israel: There Ephraim is given to prostitution, Israel is defiled. 11 “Also for you, Judah, a harvest is appointed. “Whenever I would restore the fortunes of my people,"

    • Zechariah 12:1-3:9 ““And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me [Jesus], the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son. ... On that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and impurity. “

    • Joel 2:28-32 "28 “And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. 29 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days. 30 I will show wonders in the heavens
      and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. 31 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. 32 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the Lord has said, even among the survivors whom the Lord calls."

    • Joel 3:17 "“Then you will know that I, the Lord your God, dwell in Zion, my holy hill. Jerusalem will be holy; never again will foreigners invade her."

    • God will send Jewish ministers to Israel at the beginning of the Tribulation Period:

      • 144,000 Jewish evangelist - Revelation 7:1-8

      • 2 Witnesses - Revelation 11:1-3

  • What is the Full Number of the Gentiles v. Time of the Gentiles?

    • The Full Number of Gentiles is the start of the Great Tribulation when the Anti-Christ is revealed:

      • Daniel 8:23 ““In the latter part of their reign, when the transgressors [Gentiles] have become completely [to the full] wicked, a fierce-looking king, a master of intrigue, will arise.”

      • Romans 11:25-26 "25 I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, 26 and in this way all Israel will be saved.

    • The total Time of Gentiles started with the Babylonian capture of Jerusalem and will end when Christ returns:

      • 2 Kings 25:8-9 "8 On the seventh day of the fifth month, in the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard, an official of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. 9 He set fire to the temple of the Lord, the royal palace and all the houses of Jerusalem. Every important building he burned down."

      • Ezekiel 20:32-44 "36 As I judged your ancestors in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will judge you, declares the Sovereign Lord. 37 I will take note of you as you pass under my rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant. ... 42 Then you will know that I am the Lord, when I bring you into the land of Israel, the land I had sworn with uplifted hand to give to your ancestors. 43 There you will remember your conduct and all the actions by which you have defiled yourselves, and you will loathe yourselves for all the evil you have done."

      • Luke 21:24 “They [Jews] will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem [the holy city] will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

      • Revelation 11:2 “But exclude the outer court [of the Temple]; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months.”
        ​

Breaking the Sixth Seal

  • ​Revelation 6:12-17 "12 I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, 13 and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind. 14 The heavens receded like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place. 15 Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and everyone else, both slave and free, hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. 16 They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17 For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can withstand it?” "​

    • Calamities in heavens and on earth - beginning signs that manifest creation's reaction to God's wrath​ and reflect how powerless humanity is to stop them.

    • "Called to the mountains and rocks" - prophecy

      • Hosea 10:8 "The high places of wickedness [idol worship] will be destroyed—it is the sin of Israel.
        Thorns and thistles will grow up and cover their altars. Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!” and to the hills, “Fall on us!”

      • Luke 23:28-31 " 28 Jesus turned and said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children. 29 For the time will come when you will say, ‘Blessed are the childless women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’ 30 Then “‘they will say to the mountains, “Fall on us!” and to the hills, “Cover us!” 31 For if people do these things [crucify their Messiah] when the tree is green [times of God's blessing], what will happen when it is dry? [distress at the end of days]”

    • ​"him who sits on the throne" - God the Father

    • "the wrath of the Lamb" - God the Son in Jesus Christ who is acting in the will of God the Father as His agent of judgment.

    • "great day of their wrath"
      • Many preachers and scholars point to this verse to suggest that this statement is evidence that this is the beginning of the Great Tribulation, but I believe the start of the Great Tribulation begins with the announcement by the mighty angel in chapter 10 and concludes at the end of Chapter 18 in accordance with chapter 15.
        • Revelation 10:7 "But in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.”
        • Revelation 15:1 "I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues—last, because with them God’s wrath is completed."

​​

4 horsemen of apocalypse
souls under the altar
full number of Gentiles
Time of the Gentiles
What about Israel
1ST Seal
2ND Seal
3RD Seal
4TH Seal
5TH Seal
6TH Seal

144,000 WITH THE SEAL OF GOD (Revelation 7:1-8)

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v1 "After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth to prevent any wind from blowing on the land or on the sea or on any tree."

​

  • "After this" = the first six (6) seals are broken and judgment has begun, but not before the 7th seal is broken.  This period is a pause or interlude in God's judgment in order to accomplish something.

  • "four angels" = possibly tied to four angels in Revelation 9:14-16

    • destructive agents as opposed to the Holy Spirit, which is a restraining agent (2 Thessalonians 2:6–7 "6 And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. 7 For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way.)

  • "four corners of the earth" = the global directions of entire earth (North, East, South, West)

  • "four winds of the earth" = wind also refers to "God's spirit" or "breath of God"

    • Jeremiah 49:36 "I will bring against Elam the four winds from the four quarters of heaven; I will scatter them to the four winds, and there will not be a nation where Elam’s exiles do not go."

      • Elam's archers may have aided in the capture of Jerusalem by the Babylonians

    • Ezekiel 37:9-10 "9 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” 10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army."

    • Matthew 24:30-31 "30 “Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. 31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other."

    • Daniel 7:2 "Daniel said: “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea."

    • Daniel 8:8 "The goat became very great, but at the height of its power the large horn was broken off, and in its place four prominent horns grew up toward the four winds of heaven."

    • Daniel 11:4 "After he has arisen, his empire will be broken up and parceled out toward the four winds of heaven. It will not go to his descendants, nor will it have the power he exercised, because his empire will be uprooted and given to others."

    • Zechariah 2:6 "“Come! Come! Flee from the land of the north,” declares the Lord, “for I have scattered you to the four winds of heaven,” declares the Lord."

    • Mark 13:27 "And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens."

    • Zechariah 6:1-8 (the Four Chariots are the four winds)

      • North (black horses)

      • In valley (red horses)

      • North (white horses)

      • South (dappled horses)

    • Revelation 6:2-8 (the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are the four winds)

      • 1st Seal (white horse) - false victory / false peace

      • 2nd Seal (red horse) - anarchy

      • 3rd Seal (black horse) - economic hardship

      • 4th Seal (pale/greenish horse) - the 4 judgments of God

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​v2 "Then I saw another angel coming up from the east, having the seal of the living God. He called out in a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm the land and the sea:"

  • "coming up" - Greek "anabainonta" means "having ascended"

  • Directional meanings

    • Can describe movement or progress

      • "from the east" - Greek "anatolēs" means "from the rising", and "ēliou" means "of the sun"; in ancient times, the east was the default direction much like north is not in current times since we have compasses. 

      • Job 23:8 "8 “But if I go to the forward [Hebrew "kedem" - east], he is not there;
           if I go to the backward [Hebrew "achowr" - west], I do not find him.
        9 When he is at work on the left [Hebrew "smo'wl" - in the north], I do not see him;
           when he turns on the right [Hebrew "yamin" - to the south], I catch no glimpse of him.

    • Can describe direction

      • Deuteronomy 3:27 "Go up to the top of Pisgah and look west [Hebrew "yam" - west to the Mediterranean Sea] and north [Hebrew "tsaphown" - hidden in the dark"] and south [Hebrew "teyman" - opposite of north] and east [Hebrew "mizrach" - toward sunrise]. Look at the land with your own eyes, since you are not going to cross this Jordan."

    • Can describe entering or leaving (the Temple faced east)

      • Psalms 75:6 "No one from the east [Hebrew "mowtsa" means "to go forth, exit, sunrise] or the west [Hebrew "ma`arab" means "a sense of shade, enter, sunset"] or from the desert can exalt themselves."

​

v3 "“Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.” In other words, the First Trumpet will not sound until all 144,000 have been marked.

  • "land" - earth (see First Trumpet)

  • "sea" - waters, including lakes (see Second Trumpet and Third Trumpet)

  • "trees" - (see First Trumpet)

  • "seal on the foreheads" - Holy Spirit within these Jews

    • Greek "sphragizó" means spiritual marking with a legal guaranteeing of a promise

    • the Holy Spirit is the seal of God

      • Ezekiel 9:4–6 “4 and said to him, “Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it.” 5 As I listened, he said to the others, “Follow him through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion. 6 Slaughter the old men, the young men and women, the mothers and children, but do not touch anyone who has the mark.”

      • Ephesians 1:13-14 “13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.”

      • Ephesians 4:30 “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”

      • John 6:27 “Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him [Jesus Christ] God the Father has placed his seal of approval [Holy Spirit].

    • the Holy Spirit is the anointing of God

      • 1 John 2:20-27 "20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. 21 I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth. 22 Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. 24 As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. 25 And this is what he promised us—eternal life. 26 I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. 27 As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.

        • Greek "chrisma" means "ointment, like an oil"; anointing" is the source of our understanding (the Holy Spirit); it is also the ritual act of pouring aromatic oil over a person’s head or entire body.

      • 1 Samuel 16:13 "So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David. Samuel then went to Ramah."

      • Luke 4:18 "“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor [not by title, but by purpose and empowerment]. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, " (quote from Isaiah's prophecy regarding the Messiah as read by Jesus in proclamation of his arrival at the Nazareth synagogue)

      • John 14:25-26 "25 “All this I have spoken while still with you. 26 But the Advocate [or Counselor], the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you."

    • God used a mark [Hebrew "owth" means "sign or mark"] in the Old Testament

      • Genesis 4:15 "But the Lord said to him, “Not so; anyone who kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over.” Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him.

      • Genesis 12:13 "The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt."

      • Revelation 14:1 "Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.

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v4-8 "4 Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel.

5 From the tribe of Judah [4th born, lineage of Messiah] 12,000 were sealed,
from the tribe of Reuben [1st born] 12,000,
from the tribe of Gad [7th born] 12,000,
6 from the tribe of Asher [8th born] 12,000,
from the tribe of Naphtali [6th born] 12,000,
from the tribe of Manasseh [2nd born of Joseph] 12,000,
7 from the tribe of Simeon [2nd born] 12,000,
from the tribe of Levi [3rd born, but had no land] 12,000,
from the tribe of Issachar [9th born] 12,000,
8 from the tribe of Zebulun [10th born] 12,000,
from the tribe of Joseph [11th born] 12,000,
from the tribe of Benjamin 12th born] 12,000.

  • these are actual 12 groups of Israelites

  • the sealing is based on God's sovereignty and consistent with God's use of a remnant

  • both the tribe Dan [5th born] and tribe of Ephraim [1st born of Joseph] were excluded because both tribes tolerated idolatry in the Northern Kingdom of Israel under Jeroboam:

    • 1 Kings 12:25-33 "25 Then Jeroboam fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. From there he went out and built up Peniel. 26 Jeroboam thought to himself, “The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David. 27 If these people go up to offer sacrifices at the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem, they will again give their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah. They will kill me and return to King Rehoboam.” 28 After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves. He said to the people, “It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” 29 One he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan. 30 And this thing became a sin; the people came to worship the one at Bethel and went as far as Dan to worship the other. 31 Jeroboam built shrines on high places and appointed priests from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites. 32 He instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the festival held in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves he had made. And at Bethel he also installed priests at the high places he had made. 33 On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a month of his own choosing, he offered sacrifices on the altar he had built at Bethel. So he instituted the festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to make offerings. 

      • Judges 1:22-26 "22 Now the tribes of Joseph attacked Bethel, and the Lord was with them. 23 When they sent men to spy out Bethel (formerly called Luz), 24 the spies saw a man coming out of the city and they said to him, “Show us how to get into the city and we will see that you are treated well.” 25 So he showed them, and they put the city to the sword but spared the man and his whole family. 26 He then went to the land of the Hittites, where he built a city and called it Luz, which is its name to this day." (land was given to tribe of Benjamin, but it was captured/controlled by tribe of Ephraim)

    • Judges 18:30 "​There the Danites set up for themselves the idol, and Jonathan son of Gershom, the son of Moses, and his sons were priests for the tribe of Dan until the time of the captivity of the land."​

    • Isaiah 11:13 "Ephraim’s jealousy will vanish, and Judah’s enemies[a] will be destroyed; Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah, nor Judah hostile toward Ephraim."

​​​​

4 winds
seal on the forehead

SEVENTH SEAL AND GOLDEN CENSER (Revelation 8:1-5)

​​

​v1 "When he [the Lamb] opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour."

​

  • "silence" - since this final seal opens the judgment scroll, perhaps this time is required to read what is written on both sides of the scroll and to set things in motion for redemption / protection of the Jews. What breaks the silence is the sound of the trumpets.

    • Revelation 5:1 "Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals."

​

v2 "And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them."

  • Numbers 10:9 "When you go into battle in your own land against an enemy who is oppressing you, sound a blast on the trumpets ["chatsotsrah" are silver trumpets]. Then you will be remembered by the Lord your God and rescued from your enemies."

  • Joshua 6:4-5 "4 Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns [shofar] in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. 5 When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have the whole army give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the army will go up, everyone straight in.”

  • Psalms 89:15 "Blessed are those who ["know the joyful sound"; Hebrew "truw`ah" means "alarm, blowing of the trumpets"], who walk in the light of your presence, Lord."

  • These trumpets are not instruments of music, but signals of warning and alarm for those who remain on the earth.

  • Gabriel is one such angel who stands before God.

    • Luke 1:19 "The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news."

​​

v 3-5 "3 Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar [of incense]. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all God’s people, on the golden altar in front of the throne. 4 The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of God’s people, went up before God from the angel’s hand. 5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire [live coals] from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.

  • "censer" used for the igniting and burning of incense.  The smoke and smell of incense is symbolic of the prayers, supplications and thanksgiving of the saints or Jews as a pleasing aroma to God the Father.

    • Psalms 141:1-2 "1 I call to you, Lord, come quickly to me; hear me when I call to you. 2 May my prayer be set before you like incense; may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice."

  • "golden altar" where the souls under the alter are located (see Souls under the Altar)

    • Exodus 30:1-10 "“Make an altar of acacia wood for burning incense. 2 It is to be square, a cubit long and a cubit wide, and two cubits high—its horns of one piece with it. 3 Overlay the top and all the sides and the horns with pure gold, and make a gold molding around it. 4 Make two gold rings for the altar below the molding—two on each of the opposite sides—to hold the poles used to carry it. 5 Make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. 6 Put the altar in front of the curtain that shields the ark of the covenant law—before the atonement cover that is over the tablets of the covenant law—where I will meet with you. 7 “Aaron must burn fragrant incense on the altar every morning when he tends the lamps. 8 He must burn incense again when he lights the lamps at twilight so incense will burn regularly before the Lord for the generations to come. 9 Do not offer on this altar any other incense or any burnt offering or grain offering, and do not pour a drink offering on it. 10 Once a year Aaron shall make atonement on its horns. This annual atonement must be made with the blood of the atoning sin offering for the generations to come. It is most holy to the Lord.”

  • "fire" is live hot coals that can atone / substitute for our sin or bring judgment

    • Leviticus 16:12-13 " 12 He is to take a censer full of burning coals from the golden altar [of incense] before the Lord and two handfuls of finely ground fragrant incense and take them behind the curtain. 13 He is to put the incense on the fire before the Lord, and the smoke of the incense will conceal the atonement cover above the tablets of the covenant law, so that he will not die.” (Atonement ordinance once a year for all sins of the Israelites)

    • Ezekiel 10:2, 6-7 "2 The Lord said to the man clothed in linen, “Go in among the wheels beneath the cherubim. Fill your hands with burning coals from among the cherubim and scatter [to toss or throw] them over the city.” And as I watched, he went in. ... 6 When the Lord commanded the man in linen, “Take fire from among the wheels, from among the cherubim,” the man went in and stood beside a wheel. 7 Then one of the cherubim reached out his hand to the fire that was among them. He took up some of it and put it into the hands of the man in linen, who took it and went out."

    • Numbers 16:41-50 "41 The next day the whole Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. “You have killed the Lord’s people,” they said. 42 But when the assembly gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron and turned toward the tent of meeting, suddenly the cloud covered it and the glory of the Lord appeared. 43 Then Moses and Aaron went to the front of the tent of meeting, 44 and the Lord said to Moses, 45 “Get away from this assembly so I can put an end to them at once.” And they fell facedown. 
      46 Then Moses said to Aaron, “Take your censer and put incense in it, along with burning coals from the altar, and hurry to the assembly to make atonement for them. Wrath has come out from the Lord; the plague has started.” 47 So Aaron did as Moses said, and ran into the midst of the assembly. The plague had already started among the people, but Aaron offered the incense and made atonement for them. 48 He stood between the living and the dead, and the plague stopped. 49 But 14,700 people died from the plague, in addition to those who had died because of Korah. 50 Then Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance to the tent of meeting, for the plague had stopped."

  • "hurled it on the earth"

    • the action - God heard the prayers calling for justice and He answered.

      • Revelation 7:10 "They [souls under the altar] called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?”

    • the result - To throw the hot coals is to pronounce judgment; to include incense, which was poured on top of the hot coals was to seek intercede. Combined, the action prompted judgment, but for a limited time.

      • Mark 13:20 "​“If the Lord had not cut short those days [Great Tribulation], no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, whom he has chosen, he has shortened them."

  • "peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning" - same power from the throne in 3rd Heaven.

    • Revelation 4:5 "From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. In front of the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God."

  • There is Jewish commentary explaining that at the evening sacrifice the lamb was placed upon the altar of burnt offering, and the blood was poured out at the base of the altar. An appointed priest took the golden censer inside the temple and offered incense on the golden altar in the Holy Place. As part of their ritual not commanded by God in 1 AD, when the priest came out, he threw the censer down on the pavement, producing a loud noise. At that point, seven priests blew their trumpets, marking the end of the temple services for that day and ending his intercessory ministry. (The source for this information was Marvin Moore, author and editor of the Sign of the Times magazine.  Marvin Moore had heard this from a Adventist Theology professor at Andrews University who had a graduate student in theology who did the research on this subject.)​

THE FIRST TRUMPET

  • Revelation 8:6-7 "The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down on the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up."

    • "hail and fire"

      • Hebrew "pur" means "fire or lightning"

      • Genesis 19:24-25, 28 "24 Then the Lord rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the Lord out of the heavens. 25 Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, destroying all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land... 28 He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace."

        • "burning sulfur" Hebrew "gaferit va'esh" means "brimstone and fire"

      • Exodus 9:23-24 "23 When Moses stretched out his staff toward the sky, the Lord sent thunder and hail, and lightning flashed down to the ground. So the Lord rained hail on the land of Egypt; 24 hail fell and lightning flashed back and forth. It was the worst storm in all the land of Egypt since it had become a nation." (corresponds to the 7th Egyptian plague)

    • "mixed with blood" - symbolic of the blood shed by the souls under the altar.

      • Revelation 6:10 "They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?”

    • "a third" - It is possible that this correlates to Revelation 12:4 and 12:7-9 regarding Satan and his demons whereby they lose access to the 3rd heaven at the time of the revealing of the Anti-Christ and the increase in demonic activity that inflicts suffering on humanity. It may also reflect restraint.

      • Revelation 12:4 "Its [the Dragon's] tail swept a third of the stars [demon followers] out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born.

        • "give birth" could possibly elude to an exodus of Jews from the land of Israel fleeing to the sanctuary that God provided in Revelation 12:6 "The woman [Israel] fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days."

      • Revelation 12:7-9 "7 Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8 But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him."

    • land accounts for 21% of the Earth's surface

      • grasslands account for 41% of land surface

      • trees/forests account for approximately 30% of land surface

      • greater impact on economic pressures and food shortages

​​

THE SECOND TRUMPET

  • Revelation 8:8-9​ "8 The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood, 9 a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed."

    • Exodus 7:20-21 "20 Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord had commanded. He raised his staff in the presence of Pharaoh and his officials and struck the water of the Nile, and all the water was changed into blood. 21 The fish in the Nile died, and the river smelled so bad that the Egyptians could not drink its water. Blood was everywhere in Egypt." (corresponds to the 1st Egyptian plague)

    • salt water accounts for 76% of the Earth's surface

    • in 2023, there were 118,928 merchant ships in the world

​

THE THIRD TRUMPET

  • Revelation 8:10-11 "10 The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water— 11 the name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter."

    • "Wormwood" - Greek "apsinthos" means "intensely bitter" or "to bring bad results". It is a very bitter herb that contains the chemical compound "thujone" which can produce muscle spasms, convulsions or be lethal if consumed in high quantities. The word "absinthe" is used today to describe certain alcoholic spirits derived from certain bitter herbs and their seeds. 

      • Proverbs 5:3-4 "3 For the lips of the adulterous woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil; 4 but in the end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double-edged sword."

        • "she is bitter as gall" Hebrew "marah challa'anah" means "she is bitter as wormwood"

      • Jeremiah 23:15 "Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says concerning the prophets: “I will make them eat bitter food and drink poisoned water, because from the prophets of Jerusalem     ungodliness has spread throughout the land.”

        • "eat bitter food" Hebrew "ma'achil la'anah" means "to feed them wormwood"

    • According to the World Bank, it is estimated that only 2.5-2.75% of the water on the planet is fresh water and fit for consumption.

​

THE FOURTH TRUMPET

  • Revelation 8:12 "The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night."​​

​

A TALKING EAGLE

  • Revelation 8:13 "As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out in a loud voice: “Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!"

    • "eagle"

      • as an animal, its ecosystem has been severely impacted by the judgments

      • as a predator and opportunistic scavenger, its food sources are either burnt, poisoned or rotting

      • with great vision, it sees the broad extent of destruction from its vantage point in the sky

    • "in a loud voice: Woe! Woe! Woe"

      • Not only did the Lord spoke through this bird in a similar manner as the donkey of Balaam, but the three Woes are similar to the three times the donkey stopped so that Balaam would not be destroyed:

        • Numbers 22:28-33 "28 Then the Lord opened the donkey’s mouth, and it said to Balaam, “What have I done to you to make you beat me these three times?” 29 Balaam answered the donkey, “You have made a fool of me! If only I had a sword in my hand, I would kill you right now.” 30 The donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your own donkey, which you have always ridden, to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?” “No,” he said. 31 Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell face-down. 32 The angel of the Lord asked him, “Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me. 33 The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If it had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by now, but I would have spared it.”

      • 1st Woe = Fifth Trumpet / Locust Demons torment for 5 months

      • 2nd Woe = Sixth Trumpet / The Four Angels released 200,000,000 evil troops

      • 3rd Woe =  Seventh Trumpet / Satan cast down to earth

    • "inhabitants of the earth" - the recipients of the message

THE FIFTH TRUMPET

  • Revelation 9:1-11 "The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss. 2 When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were darkened by the smoke from the Abyss. 3 And out of the smoke locusts came down on the earth and were given power like that of scorpions of the earth. 4 They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. 5 They were not allowed to kill them but only to torture them for five months. And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion when it strikes. 6 During those days people will seek death but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them. 7 The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. On their heads they wore something like crowns of gold, and their faces resembled human faces. 8 Their hair was like women’s hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth. 9 They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the thundering of many horses and chariots rushing into battle. 10 They had tails with stingers, like scorpions, and in their tails they had power to torment people for five months. 11 They had as king over them the angel of the Abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon and in Greek is Apollyon (that is, Destroyer)."

    • "star" - an angel based in heaven who will later bind Satan in chains

      • Revelation 20:1-2 "And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. 2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years."

    • "key to the shaft of the Abyss (see Afterlife Slideshow) or (see Revelation 1:18 Hades or Sheol)

      • While Jesus has the keys [plural] to Death and Hades], that "star" was given one key [singular] to the Abyss that is located in Hades.

    • "when he opened the Abyss" - alludes to a previous closure

      • who comes from the Abyss

    • "locust" - demons

      • Joel 1:1-12

        • v4 "swarm of locusts" - even though the allusion describe the impact of literal insects, the introduction and effect of this judgment under the permission of God the Father has correlations with the 5th Seal of Revelation

        • v6 "teeth of a lion and fangs of a lioness"

        • v9 and 13 "grain offerings and drink offerings  are cut off from the house of the Lord" from the takeover of the Anti-Christ and the desecration of the Temple​

    • the "Destroyer" - (see Afterlife Slideshow)

  • Revelation 9:12 "The first woe is past; two other woes are yet to come."

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THE SIXTH TRUMPET (9:13-21)

  • Revelation 9:13 "​The sixth angel sounded his trumpet, and I heard a voice coming from the four horns of the golden altar that is before God. 14 It said to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.”

    • ​"bound" Greek root word "deó" means "to bind, to tie, or imprison" showing God's power to hold in check until the appointed time.

      • Same as Revelation 20:2 "He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.

      • Angels that are "bound" typically refer to demonic forces:

        • Jude 1:6 "And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day."

        • 2 Peter 2:4 "For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to Tartarus putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment;"

    • the "great river Euphrates" - typically a reference to the enemies of Israel or spiritual Babylon

      • 2 Kings 24:7 "The king of Egypt did not march out from his own country again, because the king of Babylon had taken all his territory, from the Wadi of Egypt to the Euphrates River."

      • Jeremiah 46:2 "Concerning Egypt: This is the message against the army of Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt, which was defeated at Carchemish on the Euphrates River by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah:"

  • Revelation 9:15-19 "And the four angels who had been kept ready for this very hour and day and month and year were released to kill a third of mankind. 16 The number of the mounted troops was twice ten thousand times ten thousand. I heard their number. 17 The horses and riders I saw in my vision looked like this: Their breastplates were fiery red, dark blue, and yellow as sulfur. The heads of the horses resembled the heads of lions, and out of their mouths came fire, smoke and sulfur. 18 A third of mankind was killed by the three plagues of fire, smoke and sulfur that came out of their mouths. 19 The power of the horses was in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails were like snakes, having heads with which they inflict injury."

    • "a third of mankind" - partial judgment that allows the remaining 2/3 to repent. Also, the previous 1/3 in Trumpets 1-4 could have been a foreshadowing of the 1/3 destruction of mankind.

    • "troops" - they were not directed by the angels, but released to do what they intent to do in their hearts

      • could be demonic forces like the 5th Trumpet

      • could be actual military forces with an evil leader and evil intent

      • could be a combination of military forces under demonic influence 

  • Revelation 9:20-21 "The rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the work of their hands; they did not stop worshiping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood—idols that cannot see or hear or walk. 21 Nor did they repent of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts."

    • Like Israel, the Gentile nations will not listen to God's message

      • Ezekiel 3:5-7 "5 You are not being sent to a people of obscure speech and strange language [Gentiles], but to the people of Israel— 6 not to many peoples of obscure speech and strange language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely if I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you. 7 But the people of Israel are not willing to listen to you because they are not willing to listen to me, for all the Israelites are hardened and obstinate."

      • 1 Timothy 4:1-2 "1 The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. 2 Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron."

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THE ANGEL AND THE LITTLE SCROLL

Revelation 10:1 "Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven. He was robed in a cloud, with a rainbow above his head; his face was like the sun, and his legs were like fiery pillars."

  • "another mighty angel" - this angel has the specific purpose to declare the mystery of God accomplished

    • "allos" Greek means "another of the same kind" meaning it was not one of the seven trumpet angels but it was a angel of a similar kind. This is not Jesus Christ.  John knew him personally and gave specific names to his such as "the Word", "the Lamb", and someone "like a son of man".

    • This could be the "mighty angel" referenced in Revelation 5:2 "And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?”

  • four indications that this angel came from God's holy presence and glory

    • "cloud"
      • Exodus 33:9 "As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the entrance, while the Lord spoke with Moses.
    • "rainbow"
      • Ezekiel 1:27-28 "27 I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he [four living creatures] looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him. 28 Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. When I saw it, I fell face down, and I heard the voice of one speaking."
    • "sun"
      • Exodus 34:29, 33-35 "29 When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord... 33 When Moses finished speaking to them, he put a veil over his face. 34 But whenever he entered the Lord’s presence to speak with him, he removed the veil until he came out. And when he came out and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, 35 they saw that his face was radiant. Then Moses would put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with the Lord."
      • Matthew 17:2 "There he [Jesus] was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light.
    • "fiery pillars"
      • Exodus 13:21 "By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night."

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Revelation 10:2-4 "2 He was holding a little scroll, which lay open in his hand. He planted his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land, 3 and he gave a loud shout like the roar of a lion. When he shouted, the voices of the seven thunders spoke. 4 And when the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven say, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said and do not write it down.”

  • "little scroll"

    • it was not sealed.  The judgments were open to be read and understood. This may be the scroll with the seven broke seals of Revelation 5.

    • it was small so that John could eat it and relay to contents to the reader.


Revelation 10:5-7 "5 Then the angel I had seen standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven. 6 And he swore by him who lives for ever and ever, who created the heavens and all that is in them, the earth and all that is in it, and the sea and all that is in it, and said, “There will be no more delay! 7 But in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.”

  • "standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven" is the gesture to demonstrate that the proclamation is for all of creation.

  • "in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet"

  • "mystery of God" - His wrath of God and the rule of His Messiah in the kingdom of heaven?

    • ANSWER - Revelation 11:15 "The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever."

    • Amos 3:7 "6 When a trumpet sounds in a city, do not the people tremble? When disaster comes to a city, has not the Lord caused it? 7 Surely the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets. 8 The lion has roared—who will not fear? The Sovereign Lord has spoken—who can but prophesy?"

    • Matthew 13:47-50 "47 “Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48 When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. 49 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50 and throw them into the blazing furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

    • Ephesians 1:9-10 "9 he [God the Father] made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ."

    • Revelation 15:3-4 "and sang the song of God’s servant Moses and of the Lamb: “Great and marvelous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the nations. Who will not fear you, Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts [of judgment to bring the kingdom of heaven] have been revealed.”

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  • "announced to his servants the prophets"

    • List of the OT prophets
      • Abraham (Genesis 12:2-3, Genesis 22:15-18)
      • Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15-18, 
      • Samuel
      • David (Psalm 110)
      • Nathan (2 Samuel 7:12-16)
      • Joel     835–796 BC
      • Amos     760–750 BC
      • Jonah     760 BC
      • Hosea     755–710 BC (Hosea 2:18-22)
      • Micah     742–687 BC
      • Isaiah (740–700 BC)
      • Zephaniah     640–621 BC
      • Jeremiah (627–580 BC)
      • Nahum     612 BC
      • Habakkuk     612–588 BC
      • Daniel (605–530 BC)
      • Ezekiel (593–571 BC)
      • Obadiah     586 BC
      • Haggai     520 BC
      • Zechariah     520–480 BC
      • Malachi     430 BC

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Revelation 10:8-11 "8 Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me once more: “Go, take the scroll that lies open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.” 9 So I went to the angel and asked him to give me the little scroll. He said to me, “Take it and eat it. It will turn your stomach sour, but ‘in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.’ ” 10 I took the little scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. It tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour. 11 Then I was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages and kings.”

  • ​Ezekiel 3:1-3 "And he said to me, “Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the people of Israel.” 2 So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat. 3 Then he said to me, “Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it.” So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth."

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THE GREAT TRIBULATION

​This is not the full seven years of the Tribulation, but the last 3 1/2 years whereby the Anti-Christ will be revealed, having control of all government, commerce and religion on a global scale. Other names it is known by include:

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The Time of Jacob's Trouble:

  • Jeremiah 30:7 "How awful that day will be! No other will be like it. It will be a time of trouble for Jacob, The "day of the Lord" but he will be saved out of it.

    • Jacob = "Israel" will be persecuted

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The Middle of the Sevens:

  • Daniel 9:26-27 "26 After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary . The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant [false peace treaty] with many for one ‘seven.’ [seven years] In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.”

    • "people of the ruler who will come" - Gentiles from Rome II confederacy led by the Anti-Christ

    • "destroy the city and sanctuary" - by his desecration, not literally

    • "covenant with many for one sevens" - Israel will be under a false, seven-year "peace" treaty brokered by the Anti-Christ

    • "in the middle of the sevens he will" - The Anti-Christ will be fully revealed 3 1/2 years into the false peace treaty, breaking the treaty and persecute the Jews.

    • "abomination that causes desolation" - The Anti-Christ will set himself up to be worshiped in the Third Temple as a god.

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The Time of Distress

  • Daniel 12:1 "“At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered.

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The Book of Joel

  • I believe that Joel Chapters 1-3 speak of events that happen within the Great Tribulation but before the Day of the Lord in a chronological order

    • Chapter 1 - the 5th Trumpet

    • Chapter 2 - the 6th Trumpet and the pouring out of God's Spirit on His people​

    • Chapter 3 - the Battle of Armageddon

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The Great Tribulation

2 Thessalonians 2:8-12 (Anti-Christ)

​Matthew 24:9-26

Mark 13:12-25

Luke 21:12-26

Isaiah 11:14-16 (Israel will flee to safety in the Desert)

Daniel 7:8, 11-12, 20-25

Daniel 8:23-25

Daniel 9:26-27

Daniel 11:31-45

Daniel 12:1-13

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THE TWO WITNESSES - BEGINNING OF TRIBULATION 

  • Revelation 11:1-2 "I was given a reed like a measuring rod and was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, with its worshipers. 2 But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months." I believe the two witnesses will appear at the beginning of the Tribulation and will be killed at the start of the Great Tribulation.

    • "exclude the outer court" - this is known as the Courtyard of the Gentiles and it surrounded the Temple Complex, much like the nations surround Israel.  This shows a distinction between Jew and Gentile and the foretells that God will remain with Israel when the Anti-Christ seizes Jerusalem.

    • "They will trample on the holy city" is prophetic regarding the Anti-Christ taking over Jerusalem.

    • "for 42 months" - 42 x 30 (days) = 1,260 days (or the 2nd half of the Tribulation / the Great Tribulation)

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Herod's Temple layout v2

  • Revelation 11:3 "And I will grant authority my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”

    • "two witnesses" - legal requirement for death sentence in Mosaic Law.  Those that want to harm them will die by fire from their mouths.

      • Deuteronomy 17:6 "On the testimony of two or three witnesses a person is to be put to death, but no one is to be put to death on the testimony of only one witness."

      • The two witnesses are Moses and Elijah by the prophecy of Malachi:

        • Malachi 4:1-6 “1 Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the Lord Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them. 2 But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its rays. And you will go out and frolic like well-fed calves. 3 Then you will trample on the wicked; they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I act,” says the Lord Almighty. 4 “Remember the law of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel. 5 “See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes. 6 He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction.”
      • The two witnesses are Moses and Elijah from the Mount of Transfiguration:
        • Matthew 17:1-4 "1 After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. 2 There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. 3 Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus. 4 Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

        • Mark 9:2-5 "2 After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. 3 His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone in the world could bleach them. 4 And there appeared before them Elijah and Moses, who were talking with Jesus. 5 Peter said to Jesus, “Rabbi, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 6 (He did not know what to say, they were so frightened.)"

        • Luke 9:28-33 "28 About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. 29 As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30 Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. 31 They spoke about his departure,[a] which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. 32 Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. 33 As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, “Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” (He did not know what he was saying.)"
      • Moses was to instrument of God to Egypt that brought plagues of judgment upon Egypt
        •  Exodus 7:1-5 "1 Then the Lord said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet. 2 You are to say everything I command you, and your brother Aaron is to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go out of his country. 3 But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and though I multiply my signs and wonders in Egypt, 4 he will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment I will bring out my divisions, my people the Israelites."
        • Every kind of plague - Exodus 7-11
          • Water to Blood
          • Frogs
          • Gnats
          • Flies
          • Death of Livestock
          • Boils
          • Hail
          • Locusts
          • Darkness
          • Death of First born
      • Elijah - fire from heaven and drought
        • 1 Kings 17:1 "Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.”
        • 2 Kings 1:9-13 " 9 Then he sent to Elijah a captain with his company of fifty men. The captain went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, “Man of God, the king says, ‘Come down!’” 10 Elijah answered the captain, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men!” Then fire fell from heaven and consumed the captain and his men. 11 At this the king sent to Elijah another captain with his fifty men. The captain said to him, “Man of God, this is what the king says, ‘Come down at once!’” 12 “If I am a man of God,” Elijah replied, “may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men!” Then the fire of God fell from heaven and consumed him and his fifty men. 13 So the king sent a third captain with his fifty men. This third captain went up and fell on his knees before Elijah. “Man of God,” he begged, “please have respect for my life and the lives of these fifty men, your servants! "

  • "1,260 days" - as as 42 months and 3.5 years.  I believe this period is the 1st half of the Tribulation because the beast does not consolidate power until the second half and his revealing brings him power to kill the Two Witnesses at the beginning of his reign.  It does not make sense for them to die in the second half during the Great Tribulation since i) the seven bowls of wrath will be poured out and the world would not be focused on them since those left will be totally rejecting God, ii) Jews will be protected after they flee into the wilderness and iii) there is a point of no return whereby once the bowls of wrath are poured out, no one will repent so the prophesies of these witnesses at that time would be useless.

  • "clothed in sackcloth" - sackcloth is reserved for mourning and is typically made out of goat or camel hair.  It was worn by prophets such as Elijah and John the Baptizer.

    • 2 Kings 1:8 "They replied, “He had a garment of hair and had a leather belt around his waist.” The king said, “That was Elijah the Tishbite.”

    • Jonah 3:8 "But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence."

    • Zechariah 13:4 "“On that day every prophet will be ashamed of their prophetic vision. They will not put on a prophet’s garment of hair in order to deceive."

    • Mark 1:3 "6 John wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey."

    • Hebrews 11:32-40 "32 And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets, 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35 Women received back their dead, raised to life again. There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection. 36 Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. 37 They were put to death by stoning;[e] they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— 38 the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground. 39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, 40 since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.

    • Revelation 6:12 "12 I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red,"

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two-olive-trees-zehcariah-4_11-14
two-olive-trees-zehcariah-4_11-14
two-olive-trees-zehcariah

  • Revelation 11:4-7 "4 They are “the two olive trees” and the two lampstands, and “they stand before the Lord of the earth.”

    • Zechariah 4:1-14 "1 Then the angel who talked with me returned and woke me up, like someone awakened from sleep. 2 He asked me, “What do you see?” I answered, “I see a solid gold lampstand with a bowl at the top and seven lamps on it, with seven channels to the lamps. 3 Also there are two olive trees by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.” 4 I asked the angel who talked with me, “What are these, my lord?” 5 He answered, “Do you not know what these are?” “No, my lord,” I replied. 6 So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty. 7 “What are you, mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become level ground. Then he will bring out the capstone to shouts of ‘God bless it! God bless it!’” 8 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 9 “The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this temple; his hands will also complete it. Then you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you. 10 “Who dares despise the day of small things, since the seven eyes of the Lord that range throughout the earth will rejoice when they see the chosen capstone in the hand of Zerubbabel?” 11 Then I asked the angel, “What are these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?” 12 Again I asked him, “What are these two olive branches beside the two gold pipes that pour out golden oil?” 13 He replied, “Do you not know what these are?” “No, my lord,” I said. 14 So he said, “These are the two who are anointed to serve the Lord of all the earth.”

      • two lampstands - two witnesses as the light in as much as the "church" was the light of the world after Jesus' ascension. Israel will be the light of Christ to the world again sincek the "church" was taken in the Rapture event.

        • Matthew 5:14-16 "14 “You [believers in Christ] are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."
        • Romans 3:1-2 "1 What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? 2 Much in every way! First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God."

      • oil - Holy Spirit

      • two olive trees - two witnesses as the conduit (prophets) of the Holy Spirit; the olive trees bear fruit; olive tree also represents the source of the olive oil so they are direct sources of the Holy Spirit on behalf of God the Father.

  • Revelation 11:5 "If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies. This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die."

    • "fire comes from their mouths"

      • Psalm 18:8 "Smoke rose from his [the Lord] nostrils; consuming fire came from his mouth, burning coals blazed out of it."

      • Psalm 97:3 "Fire goes before him and consumes his foes on every side."

      • Jeremiah 5:11-14 "11 The people of Israel and the people of Judah have been utterly unfaithful to me,” declares the Lord. 12 They have lied about the Lord; they said, “He will do nothing! No harm will come to us; we will never see sword or famine. 13 The prophets are but wind and the word is not in them; so let what they say be done to them.”Therefore this is what the Lord God Almighty says: “Because the people have spoken these words, I will make my words in your mouth a fire and these people the wood it consumes."

      • James 3:5-6 "5 Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. 6 The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell."

  • Revelation 11:6 "They have power to shut up the heavens so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying; and they have power to turn the waters into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want. (See Moses and Elijah above)​

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Red Dragon
3rd Woe

THE WOMAN AND THE DRAGON  (Revelation 12:1-17)

v1-5 is historic review that ended with the ascension of Jesus Christ in Acts 1:9-11

v7-12 is the 3rd woe and start of the Great Tribulation

v6, 13-17 are the events of leading to global control by the Anti-Christ​

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HISTORIC REVIEW OF SATAN'S PLAN TO STOP THE MESSIAH​

Verse 1 - "A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head."

  • "great sign" - dream of Joseph as a boy

    • Genesis 37:9-11 "9 Then he had another dream, and he told it to his brothers. “Listen,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” 10 When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, “What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?” 11 His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind."

  • "woman" - Israel, the adulterous wife from Ezekiel 16

    • Ezekiel 16: 14-16 " 14 And your fame spread among the nations on account of your beauty, because the splendor I had given you made your beauty perfect, declares the Sovereign Lord. 15 “‘But you trusted in your beauty and used your fame to become a prostitute. You lavished your favors on anyone who passed by and your beauty became his. 16 You took some of your garments to make gaudy high places, where you carried on your prostitution. You went to him, and he possessed your beauty."

    • Ezekiel 16:32-34 "32 “‘You adulterous wife! You prefer strangers to your own husband! 33 All prostitutes receive gifts, but you give gifts to all your lovers, bribing them to come to you from everywhere for your illicit favors. 34 So in your prostitution you are the opposite of others; no one runs after you for your favors. You are the very opposite, for you give payment and none is given to you."

    • Jeremiah 3:8 "I gave faithless Israel her certificate of divorce and sent her away because of all her adulteries. Yet I saw that her unfaithful sister Judah had no fear; she also went out and committed adultery."

  • "clothed with the sun" - lineage of Jacob

    • Genesis 32:28 "Then the man [pre-incarnate Jesus] said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”

  • "the moon under her feet" - lineage of Rachel

    • Terah, father of Abraham, came from the City of Ur, known as the center of worship of the moon god, Sin. It is associated with the number "30" for the lunar calendar. It was worshiped by those who were herders of cattle and sheep, and prayers are recorded by childless worshipers for the blessing of fertility.

    • Terah's name means "moon"

    • Terah moved his family, including Abraham and Sarah, to Haran and he died there. Haran was known for its strong influence for the worship for Sin. 

    • Terah was the great grandfather of Rebekah, wife of Issac, son of Abraham and Sarah

    • Rebekah was the sister to Laban (son of Bethuel, son of Nahor, son of Terah) and she told Isaac to flee to her brother in Haran

    • Rachel was the daughter of Laban and she married Jacob. Her womb was barren and after many years, God granted her prayers.  She bore Joseph and Benjamin.

    • When Jacob fled from Laban with this family and possessions, Rachel stole one of her fathers household idols (Genesis 31:19, 34-35).  These idols most likely were the image of Sin.

    • Jacob and his family got rid of all idols when they arrived in Bethel (Genesis 35:2-4).

  • "crown" - "stephanos" means victory / honor

  • "twelve stars on her head" - 12 Tribes of Israel (Genesis 35:22-26)

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Verse 2 - "She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth."

"pregnant" - birth of the Messiah

  • Numbers 24:17 "“I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel. He will crush the foreheads of Moab, the skulls of all the people of Sheth."

  • Isaiah 9:6-7 "6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this."

  • Isaiah 42:1,4: “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations . . . He will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth…”

  • Micah 5:2 "“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”

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"cried out in pain" - grief through disobedience to God and God's corrective judgment on Israel.

  • Isaiah 26:16-19 "16 Lord, they (children of Israel) came to you in their distress; when you disciplined them, they could barely whisper a prayer. 17 As a pregnant woman about to give birth writhes and cries out in her pain, so were we in your presence, Lord. 18 We were with child, we writhed in labor, but we gave birth to wind (lack of achievement for God the Father). We have not brought salvation to the earth, and the people of the world have not come to life. 19 But your dead will live (the resurrection of Jesus Christ), Lord; their bodies will rise—let those who dwell in the dust wake up and shout for joy—your dew is like the dew of the morning; the earth will give birth to her dead (the dead in Christ will rise - 1 Thessalonians 4:16)."

  • ​Micah 4:9–10 "9 Why do you now cry aloud— have you no king? Has your ruler perished, that pain seizes you like that of a woman in labor? 10 Writhe in agony, Daughter Zion, like a woman in labor, for now you must leave the city to camp in the open field. You will go to Babylon; there you will be rescued. There the Lord will redeem you out of the hand of your enemies."

  • Joel 2:12-13 "12 “Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” 13 Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity."

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THE RED DRAGON (SATAN)

 

Verse 3 - "Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads."

  • ​"red dragon" means Satan; red = the removal of peace and warring armies; dragon = ancient serpent

    • Genesis 3:1 "Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

    • Psalm 74:14 "It was you who crushed the heads of Leviathan and gave it as food to the creatures of the desert."

    • Isaiah 27:1 "In that day, the Lord will punish with his sword—his fierce, great and powerful sword—Leviathan the gliding serpent, Leviathan the coiling serpent; he will slay the monster of the sea."

    • Ezekiel 28:12-19 "12 ... ‘You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. 13 
      You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone adorned you: carnelian, chrysolite and emerald, topaz, onyx and jasper, lapis lazuli, turquoise and beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold; on the day you were created they were prepared. 14 You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for so I ordained you. You were on the holy mount of God; you walked among the fiery stones. 15 You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created till wickedness was found in you. 16 Through your widespread trade you were filled with violence, and you sinned. So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, and I expelled you, guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones. 17 Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. So I threw you to the earth; I made a spectacle of you before kings. 18 By your many sins and dishonest trade  you have desecrated your sanctuaries. So I made a fire come out from you, and it consumed you, and I reduced you to ashes on the ground in the sight of all who were watching. 19 All the nations who knew you are appalled at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more.’ ”

  • "seven heads" heads = Rome - the city on seven hills; seat of power; iron mixed with clay

    • Daniel 2:40 "40 Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom [Roman Empire], strong as iron—for iron breaks and smashes everything—and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others."

    • Revelation 17:9 “... The seven heads are seven hills [Rome] on which the woman [The Harlot on the Beast] sits."

  • "ten horns" horns = Gentile kings / leaders; ten = number of rulers he will empower through the Anti-Christ

    • Daniel 2:41-43 "41 Just as you saw that the feet and [10] toes [like horns] were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. 42 As the [10] toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay."

    • Daniel 7:24 "The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this [4th Beast with ten horns] kingdom."

    • Revelation 17:12-13 "12 “The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast. 13 They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast.”

  • "seven diadems on his heads" NOT CROWNS, BUT DIADEMS; "diademata" = delegated authority that is under authority of Satan​

    • John 8:44 "You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer [sin brought death to humanity] from the beginning [Garden of Eden], not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies."

    • John 12:31 "Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world [Satan] will be driven out.​

    • 2 Corinthians 4:4 "The god of this age [Satan] has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God."

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Verse 4 - "Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born."

  • "swept 1/3 of stars out of the sky" refers to the original rebellion by Satan and 1/3 of the angels that were cast out of heaven.

    • Isaiah 14:12-14 "12 How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! 13 You said in your heart, “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon. 14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.”

    • Jude 6 " And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day."

    • Luke 10:18-19 "18 He replied, “18 I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions [found in the wilderness] and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you."

  • "devour her child the moment he was born" = Satan, through King Herod I, trying to prevent a woman giving birth to the boy who will grow into the Messiah.

    • Genesis 3:14-15 "14 So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, “Cursed are you above all livestock  and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel."

    • Matthew 2:16 "When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi."

 

Verse 5​ - "She gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.” And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne."​

 

The Roman Empire would control Judea, Samaria and Galilee through King Herod I.  Satan would utilize the persecution by King Herod I and sentence by Pontius Pilate as a type of pursuit of the woman and child [from his birth to his crucifixion].

 

  • "male child" = Jesus Christ / Messiah

    • Isaiah 7:14 "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel."

    • Matthew 1:20-23 "20 But after he [Joseph] had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” which means “God with us”)."

    • Luke 2:8-12 "8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

  • "rule all nations" = Greek "poimaino" is not rule, but means "to shepherd or tend his flock"

    • Numbers 24:17,19: “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel . . . a ruler will come out of Jacob . . .”

    • Psalm 2:2, 7-9: “2 The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the LORD and against his Anointed One ... 7 ... You are my Son, today I have become your Father. 8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance; the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You will rule them with an iron scepter, you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”

  • "with iron scepter [or rod]": iron = unbreakable strength; absolute and unchanging, swift justice; scepter = symbol of authority and rule

    • Genesis 49:10 "The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his."

    • Psalm 60:7: “Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine; Ephraim is my helmet, Judah my scepter.”

  • "snatched up to God and to his throne" = Jesus ascension and sitting at the right hand of God the Father. It is a place that Satan thought that he could ascend higher.

    • Psalm 110:1 "The Lord says to my lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”

    • Isaiah 14:12-14 "12 How you [Satan] have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! 13 You said in your heart, “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon. 14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.”

    • Acts 1:9-11 "9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. 10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

    • 1 Peter 3:21-22 "21 ... It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand—with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him."

    • Revelation 3:21 "To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne."

    • Revelation 5:6 "Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth."

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THE 3RD WOE AND THE BEGINNING OF THE GREAT TRIBULATION

War broke out in heaven before the start of the Great Tribulation. Satan and his demons were not longer able to access the third heaven in order to accuse believers before God and were restricted to the earth and the sea and the first heaven. The Book of Revelation does not specifically identify the "third woe", but verse 12 does announce a woe to the earth and the sea.  I believe the "3rd woe" is the isolation of Satan to earth and this event takes place prior to the sound of the 7th Trumpet.  In this case, God begins to address the injustice of sin and evil by removing Satan from the 3rd Heaven and restricting his authority to the physical realm for those things which God will use for judgment and justice during the Great Tribulation.

  • Job 1:6-12 " 6 One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them. 7 The Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.” 8 Then the Lord said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.” 9 “Does Job fear God for nothing?” Satan replied. 10 “Have you not put a hedge around him and his household and everything he has? You have blessed the work of his hands, so that his flocks and herds are spread throughout the land. 11 But now stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.” 12 The Lord said to Satan, “Very well, then, everything he has is in your power, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.” Then Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

  • Zechariah 3:1-2 "1 Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. 2 The Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?”

  • Luke 22:31-32 "31 “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”

  • 1 Peter 5:8-9 "8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9 Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings."
    ​

Verses 7​ - "​Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back."

  • "war broke out" - humanity cannot detect the spiritual battles that are always fought.

    • Daniel 10:13,20-21 "13 But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia... 20 So he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? Soon I will return to fight against the prince of Persia, and when I go, the prince of Greece will come; 21 but first I will tell you what is written in the Book of Truth. (No one supports me against them except Michael, your prince."

  • "Michael" - one of the chief princes of the angel armies; He is assigned to protect Israel. At the time prior to the Battle of Armageddon when the Anti-Christ and his army have pitched their tents in Jerusalem, he will arise for battle.

    • Daniel 12:1 "At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered."

    • Jude 1:9 "But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not himself dare to condemn him for slander but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”"

    • 1 Thessalonians 4:16 "For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel [Michael, Gabriel or some other archangel] and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first."

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Verses 8-9​ - "8 ​But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. 9 The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him."

  • Nothing is greater than God's power and authority

    • Deuteronomy 32:39 “See now that I myself am he! There is no god besides me. I put to death and I bring to life, I have wounded and I will heal, and no one can deliver out of my hand."

    • Romans 13:1 "Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God."

    • Philippians 4:13 "I can do all this through him who gives me strength."

  • Adam and Eve did not resist temptation and disobeyed in their flesh, but Jesus as a man was strong enough to overcame and remain in God's will.

    • Genesis 3:6-8 "6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. 8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden."

    • Matthew 26:39-41 "39 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” 40 Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Couldn’t you men keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter. 41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

    • Luke 4:5-8 "5 The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6 And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor; it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. 7 If you worship me, it will all be yours.” 8 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’”

    • John 6:38 "For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me."

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Verses 10-11​ - "10 ​Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. 11 ​They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death."

  • "Now have come the salvation" - Since the subject matter is the pursuit of the nation/people of Israel by Satan and his evil forces, perhaps this statement is the key evidence for the "Full Time of the Gentiles" whereby God will no longer hardened the heart of Israel and allow them to truly recognize their Messiah.

    • I believe that at the end of their evangelism God will no longer harden the hearts of Israel for it is at the midpoint of the Tribulation that the full number of the Gentiles is complete and the Anti-Christ takes center stage for the start of the Great Tribulation period. (See What about Israel, Full Number of the Gentiles, The Two Witnesses)​

      • Ezekiel 39:29 "I will no longer hide my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit on the people of Israel, declares the Sovereign Lord.”

      • Joel 2:28-32 "28 “And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. 29 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days. 30 I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. [TRUMPET 1, 2, 3, 5] 31 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood [TRUMPET 4] before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. 32 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the Lord has said, even among the survivors whom the Lord calls."

        • "and afterward" - if Joel 1 refers to the 5th Trumpet and Joel 2:1-27 refers to the 6th Trumpet then the pouring out should follow"

        • "show wonders" - these wonders take place when after the 7th Trumpet

      • Romans 11:25-26 "25 I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, 26 and in this way all Israel will be saved."

      • Revelation 11:1-2 "I was given a reed like a measuring rod and was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, with its worshipers. 2 But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months."

        • Gentiles trampling the outer courts is the 2nd Half of the Tribulation

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Verses 12​ - "​Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.”

  • "woe to the earth and the sea" - evidence of the 3rd Woe.

    • Revelation 11:14 "The second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon."

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GOD WILL PROTECT THE JEWS FROM THE ANTI-CHRIST​

Verses 6​, 13-14 "​6 The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days... 13 When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach.

  • ​"woman fled" - Israel is persecuted by the Anti-Christ

  • "given the two wings of a great eagle" - wings are a symbol of God's supernatural protection, rejuvenation and speed. God's protection from the impacts and influence of the Anti-Christ and Gentile nations under his influence.

    • Exodus 19:4 "You [Israelites] yourselves have seen what I [the Lord] did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself."

    • 2 Samuel 1:23 "Saul and Jonathan—in life they were loved and admired, and in death they were not parted. They were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions."

    • Isaiah 40:31 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

    • Deuteronomy 32:9-12 "9 For the Lord’s portion is his people, Jacob his allotted inheritance. 10 In a desert land he found him, in a barren and howling waste. He shielded him and cared for him; he guarded him as the apple of his eye, 11 like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them aloft. 12 The Lord alone led him; no foreign god was with him."

  • "he pursued"

    • "pursued" - Hebrew "diókó" implies a chase or hunt that persecutes.  The "peace" treaty is broken and the fury of Satan will be directed at the Jews. The Anti-Christ will be able to take the land and the Temple"

      • Luke 21:20-24 "20 “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city. 22 For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written. 23 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. 24 They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled." (The destruction of the Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 AD by the Romans was a type of this persecution.)

  • "in the wilderness" - just as the Hebrews were lead into the wilderness during the Exodus, the Israelites will be led by God through the wilderness areas to their prepared place.

    • Exodus 14:10-11 "10 As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. 11 They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt?"

  • "a place prepared " - It seems that lands of Edom, Moab and Ammon will be a safe haven for the people of Israel during the Great Tribulation. 

    • Isaiah 11:14-16 "14 They will swoop down on the slopes of Philistia to the west; together they will plunder the people to the east. They will subdue Edom and Moab, and the Ammonites will be subject to them. 15 The Lord will dry up the gulf of the Egyptian sea; with a scorching wind he will sweep his hand over the Euphrates River.He will break it up into seven streams so that anyone can cross over in sandals. 16 There will be a highway for the remnant of his people that is left from Assyria, as there was for Israel when they came up from Egypt."

    • Isaiah 63:1 "Who is this coming from Edom, from Bozrah [Petra], with his garments stained crimson? Who is this, robed in splendor, striding forward in the greatness of his strength? “It is I, proclaiming victory, mighty to save.”

    • Daniel 11:41 "He [Anti-Christ] will also invade the Beautiful Land [Israel]. Many countries will fall, but Edom [location of Petra], Moab and the leaders of Ammon will be delivered from his hand."

  • "be taken care of" - provision; Israel will know that God has done this great thing.

    • Isaiah 35:3-7 "Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way; 4 say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you.” 5 Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. 6 Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert. 7 The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs. In the haunts where jackals once lay,grass and reeds and papyrus will grow."

    • Hosea 2:14-15 "14 “Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her. 15 There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor [means "trouble"] a door of hope. There she will respond [sing] as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt."

  • "a time, times and half a time" - the 2nd half of the Tribulation or the Great Tribulation

    • 1,260 days = 42 months = 3.5 years = time, times and half a time (1+2+0.5=3.5)

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Verse 15 - "Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent."

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  • "spewed water like a river" - water is a metaphor for an unknown force that will be sent under the direction of Satan through the Anti-Christ to attack the Jews in the desert; possibly false testimony?; possibly army coming to invade?

    • Psalms 124:2-5 "2 if the Lord had not been on our side when people attacked us, 3 they would have swallowed us alive when their anger flared against us; 4 the flood would have engulfed us, the torrent would have swept over us, 5 the raging waters would have swept us away."

    • Proverbs 18:4 "The words of the mouth are deep waters, but the fountain of wisdom is a rushing stream."

    • Isaiah 8:7 "therefore the Lord is about to bring against them the mighty floodwaters of the Euphrates—the king of Assyria with all his pomp. It will overflow all its channels, run over all its banks."

    • Jeremiah 47:2 "This is what the Lord says: “See how the waters are rising in the north; they will become an overflowing torrent. They will overflow the land and everything in it, the towns and those who live in them. The people will cry out; all who dwell in the land will wail"

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Verse 16 - "But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth."

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  • "opening its mouth and swallowing the river" - either literally the earth opens up like an earthquake or some other mechanism consumes the unknown forces; this may reflect the great earthquake that happens when the Two Witnesses are resurrected and raptured to heaven

    • Exodus 14:27-28 "26 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.” 27 Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were fleeing toward[c] it, and the Lord swept them into the sea. 28 The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived."

    • Exodus 15:4, 5, 12 "4 Pharaoh’s chariots and his army he has hurled into the sea. The best of Pharaoh’s officers are drowned in the Red Sea. 5 The deep waters have covered them; they sank to the depths like a stone. ... 12 “You stretch out your right hand, and the earth swallows your enemies."

    • Numbers 16:31-34 "31 As soon as he finished saying all this, the ground under them split apart 32 and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households, and all those associated with Korah, together with their possessions. 33 They went down alive into the realm of the dead, with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they perished and were gone from the community. 34 At their cries, all the Israelites around them fled, shouting, “The earth is going to swallow us too!”​

    • Psalm 124:1-5 "1 If the Lord had not been on our side—let Israel say—2 if the Lord had not been on our side when people attacked us, 3 they would have swallowed us alive when their anger flared against us; 4 the flood would have engulfed us, the torrent would have swept over us, 5 the raging waters would have swept us away."

    • Revelation 11:13 "At that very hour there was a severe earthquake and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven."

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Verse 17 - "Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus."

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  • "the rest of her offspring" - there is now a link between the woman [Israel] and the testimony of Jesus [recognition of the Messiah]. Jewish and Gentile believers who come to faith during the Tribulation, including the 144,000. Satan will begin to exact his fury on the earth; even though the Jews will be protected by God in the specific place in the desert, all other Tribulation saints will persecuted.​

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woman as israel

THE ANTI-CHRIST REVEALED

 

THE BEAST OUT OF THE SEA  (Revelation 13:1-10)

Verse 1 - Revelation 13:1​ "The dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name."

  • "dragon" - Satan (Revelation 12:9)

  • "shore of the sea" - waves of wicked nations will crash against the shoreline where the sea is the Gentile nations.

    • Psalm 65:5-7 "5 You answer us with awesome and righteous deeds, God our Savior, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas, 6 who formed the mountains by your power, having armed yourself with strength, 7 who stilled the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, and the turmoil of the nations."

    • Isaiah 17:12 "Woe to the many nations that rage—they rage like the raging sea! Woe to the peoples who roar—they roar like the roaring of great waters!"

    • Isaiah 57:20 "But the wicked are like the tossing sea, which cannot rest, whose waves cast up mire and mud."

    • Isaiah 60:5 "Then you will look and be radiant, your heart will throb and swell with joy; the wealth on the seas will be brought to you, to you the riches of the nations will come."

    • Ezekiel 26:3 "... therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, Tyre, and I will bring many nations against you, like the sea casting up its waves."

    • Matthew 4:12-15 "12 When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali— 14 to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah: 15 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—"

  • "And I saw a beast"

    • "saw" in Greek is "apokaluptó" meaning "the revealing of". The Holy Spirit no longer holds back the spirit of the anti-christ for its appointed time has come.

      • Proverbs 29:18 "Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction."

      • 2 Thessalonians 2:6-8 "6 And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. 7 For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming."

    • ​"a beast" = the Anti-Christ or False Messiah; Satan is a counterfeiter. He takes what God creates and in his lack of originality, distorts it.  He has does this with the Holy Trinity (God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit) my mimicking it with his Anti-Trinity of Satan, the Anti-Christ and the False Prophet.

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WHAT DOES ANTI-CHRIST MEAN?

  • Greek "antichristou" or "pseudochristos"

    • "anti" means "the opposite, in place of or the opponent of"; "christos" means "the Messiah".

    • "pseudo" means "deceitful, wicked, false, liar" 

    • Knowledge of this comes by understanding i) its perspective (spirit) denies Jesus Christ as the Messiah, ii) there has had many people (types) over human history with this spirit and iii) it will have a final manifestation as a male ruler (the Anti-Christ) in the future who will require all to worship him.

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WHAT IS THE SPIRIT OF THE ANTI-CHRIST?

  • That which denies Jesus Christ as the Messiah (including religion):

    • 1 John 4:1-6​ "1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world. 4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5 They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit of truth and the spirit of falsehood."

  • To deny Jesus Christ [the "Son of God" and the "Word"] is to deny the Holy Bible [Word of God].

    • Proverbs 29:18 "Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who keeps the law [scripture]."

    • John 1:1-14 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."

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WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF ANTI-CHRIST?

  • People who persuade others in the spirit of the anti-christ but have no power as evidence that they are the Messiah:

    • Matthew 24:4-5, 23-24 "4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many... 23 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. 24 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect." 

    • 1 John 2:18-27 "18 Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us. 20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. 21 I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth. 22 Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also. 24 As for you, see that what you have heard from the beginning remains in you. If it does, you also will remain in the Son and in the Father. 25 And this is what he promised us—eternal life. 26 I am writing these things to you about those who are trying to lead you astray. 27 As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him."

    • 2 John 1:7 "I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist."

    • Revelation 17:8 "The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss and go to its destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast, because it once was, now is not, and yet will come.

      • "once was, now is not, and yet will come"

        • this could refer to Antiochus Epiphanies, who was a type of anti-christ that modeled the final Anti-Christ to come.

          • Daniel 11:31-32 "31 “His armed forces [Antiochus Epiphanies IV in 168 BC] will rise up to desecrate the temple fortress and will abolish the daily sacrifice. Then they will set up the abomination that causes desolation [statue of Zeus with Antiochus' face on it]. 32 With flattery he will corrupt those who have violated the covenant, but the people who know their God will firmly resist him."

        • this could also refer to the false resurrection

          • Revelation 13:3 "One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast."

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WHO WILL BE "THE ANTI-CHRIST" IN THE FUTURE?

  • This future person who is currently restrained by the Holy Spirit until their appoint time, will wear the title "The Anti-Christ" coming in peace by deception, will be given power by Satan to perform many great signs and wonders, will rebel / blasphemy against God the Father and will force all people to worship him as a god during the Tribulation Period:

    • 1 John 2:18 "18 Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist [final] is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour."

    • 2 Thessalonians 2:3-8 "3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God [the spirit of the antichrist]. 5 Don’t you remember that when I was with you I used to tell you these things? 6 And now you know what is holding him back [the Holy Spirit], so that he may be revealed at the proper time. 7 For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth [Revelation 19:15] and destroy by the splendor of his coming."

    • Revelation 6:2 "I looked, and there before me was a white horse [false peace - imitation of Jesus in Revelation 19:11]! Its rider held a bow [symbol of war], and he was given [by the Red Dragon] a crown ["stephanos" meaning victory award], and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest [in appearance only].

  • This man will lead a confederation of 10 kings in the image of a second Roman Republic that will eventually be taken over by the Anti-Christ.

    • Daniel 2:33, 41-43 "33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. ... 41 Just as you saw that the feet and [10] toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron [Rome], so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. 42 As the [10] toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay."

    • Daniel 4:7-8, 19-26 "7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns. 8 “While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully ... 19 “Then I wanted to know the meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others and most terrifying, with its iron teeth and bronze claws—the beast that crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. 20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up, before which three of them fell—the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully. 21 As I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the holy people of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom. 23 “He gave me this explanation: ‘The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings. 25 He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set times and the laws. The holy people will be delivered into his hands for a time, times and half a time [3.5 years]

  • This confederacy will enter into a peace treaty with Israel and other nations for seven years, but break the treaty halfway through.

    • Daniel 9:27 "He [the Anti-Christ] will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him."

      • confirm a covenant - treaty or alliance with Israel and other nations for peace in order to rebuild the Temple and restart sacrifice and offering system. Imitation of peace in Ezekiel 37:26

      • one seven - seven years

      • in the middle of the sevens - 3.5 years or midpoint of the Tribulation will be the start of the Great Tribulation.

      • end of sacrifice and offering - alludes to restoration of OT mechanism for atonement of sin

      • at the temple - the 3rd Temple will be built

      • abomination that causes desolation - Anti-Christ will set up statute of himself in the Temple for people to worship him

        • Daniel 11:31-32 "31 “His armed forces [Antiochus Epiphanies IV in 168 BC] will rise up to desecrate the temple fortress and will abolish the daily sacrifice. Then they will set up the abomination that causes desolation [statue of Zeus with Antiochus' face on it]. 32 With flattery he will corrupt those who have violated the covenant, but the people who know their God will firmly resist him."

        • Daniel 12:11-12 "11 “From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. 12 Blessed is the one who waits for and reaches the end of the 1,335 days."

        • Matthew 24:15 "So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—"

        • 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 "3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day [the day of the Lord] will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God."

      • until the end - Battle of Armageddon

  • ​​​He will set himself up as ruler of the entire world​

    • Daniel 11:36-45 "36 “The king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will say unheard-of things against the God of gods. He will be successful until the time of wrath is completed (Revelation 15:1), for what has been determined must take place. 37 He will show no regard for the gods of his ancestors or for the one desired by women, nor will he regard any god, but will exalt himself above them all. 38 Instead of them, he will honor a god of fortresses; a god unknown to his ancestors he will honor with gold and silver, with precious stones and costly gifts. 39 He will attack the mightiest fortresses with the help of a foreign god and will greatly honor those who acknowledge him. He will make them rulers over many people and will distribute the land at a price. 40 “At the time of the end the king of the South will engage him in battle, and the king of the North will storm out against him with chariots and cavalry and a great fleet of ships. He will invade many countries and sweep through them like a flood. 41 He will also invade the Beautiful Land. Many countries will fall, but Edom, Moab and the leaders of Ammon will be delivered from his hand. 42 He will extend his power over many countries; Egypt will not escape. 43 He will gain control of the treasures of gold and silver and all the riches of Egypt, with the Libyans and Cushites in submission. 44 But reports from the east and the north will alarm him, and he will set out in a great rage to destroy and annihilate many. 45 He will pitch his royal tents between the seas at the beautiful holy mountain. Yet he will come to his end, and no one will help him.

      • "king" - It will be a man, who will deceitfully lead a grand rebellion with the purpose of destroying the Jews and proclaiming himself the most high.

        • "little horn" - Daniel 7:8 "“While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it..."

        • Daniel 8:23-25 "23 “In the latter part of their reign, when rebels have become completely wicked, a fierce-looking king, a master of intrigue, will arise. 24 He will become very strong, but not by his own power. He will cause astounding devastation and will succeed in whatever he does. He will destroy those who are mighty, the holy people. 25 He will cause deceit to prosper, and he will consider himself superior. When they feel secure, he will destroy many and take his stand against the Prince of princes. Yet he will be destroyed, but not by human power.

        • Daniel 9:26 "...The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed."

        • 2 Thessalonians 2:3 "... for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed..."

      • "say unheard-of things against the God of gods" - he is a blasphemer

        • Daniel 7:11 "Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking..."

        • Daniel 7:25 "He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set times and the laws..."

      • until the time of wrath is completed - God has ordained suffering for a limited time

        • Daniel 7:25 "... The holy people will be delivered into his hands for a time, times and half a time [3.5 yrs]."

      • "gods of his ancestors" - ???

      • "one desired by women" - he will not be heterosexual or have any natural desire to attract women as a husband/wife relationship in perversion to God the Father's intent for creation. (Genesis 3:16 "... Your [Eve or all women] desire [or longing] will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.” In other words, if Adam had not participated in the original disobedience that brought sin into the world, the wisdom and love of a husband in the created hierarchy within God's marriage would have always been beneficial and satisfying, but Eve acted outside the hierarchy and exerted control. So not only will the woman seek to be in control, but Adam's sin now corrupted men as to not value and honor women as God intended so that the woman's harmonious submission would be hard to obtain and the husband's "rule" can be perverted into the subjugation and oppression of not just his wife, but any woman.  Cain was warned in Genesis 4:7 "If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.".  The sin in us must be ruled over.)

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  • out of the sea: sea = Mediterranean Sea; the wicked Gentile nations; the Anti-Christ will be a Gentile, who have historically persecuted the Jews.

    • Revelation 17:15 "Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages."

  • ten horns / seven heads = same as the Red Dragon infers his powers / influence come from Satan​.

  • ten diadems (not crowns) on his horns = Greek "diadēmata" as a symbol of delegated authority like a prince, not a ruler or victory crown; each ruler will be under the Anti-Christ's influence and authority.

  • each head a blasphemous name = type of mark of the beast; unholy 

    • Daniel 7:25 "He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set times and the laws. The holy people will be delivered into his hands for a time, times and half a time."

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Verse 2

  • resembled leopard, feet of bear, mouth of lion: There is a literal fulfillment and a future apocalyptic fulfillment.

    • Daniel 7:1-8 "2 Daniel said: “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. 3 Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea. 4 “The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a human being, and the mind of a human was given to it. 5 “And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’ 6 “After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule. 7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns. 8 “While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully."

      • "the great sea":  Mediterranean Sea, but also an allusion to the Gentile nations

      • "Four great beasts":  Reference to Daniel 2:31-43

        • 1st beast = lion with eagle wings with human mind is Babylon.  The "lamassu" is a lion body with eagle wings and a man's head.

        • 2nd beast = bear raised on one side with 3 ribs in teeth is Medo-Persian. The three ribs are conquered kingdoms.  The bear is a solitary and slow, but fierce animal.

          • Cyrus I conquered the Assyrian Kingdom

          • Cyrus the Great conquered the Babylonian Kingdom

          • Cyrus the Great subjugated its co-rulers, the Medes, after a coup attempt

        • 3rd beast = four-headed leopard with bird wings is Greek Empire conquered by Macedonians. The leopard body represents Alexander the Great and the speed of his conquests. The four heads are military leaders that divided his empire after death:

          • Cassander

          • Lysimachus

          • Ptolemy I [Soter]

          • Seleucus I Nicator

        • 4th beast = terrible, frightening and very powerful with large iron teeth to crush and trample. This describes the Roman armies.

        • "ten horns" = the 1st ten emperors of Rome that culminated in the total destruction of Jerusalem.

          • Julius

          • Augustus

          • Tiberius

          • Claudius

          • Caligula

          • Nero

          • Galba

          • Otho

          • Vitellius

          • Vespasian = General Titus conquered Judea and razed Jerusalem in 70 AD

      • "another little horn" = the final Anti-Christ rising out of the remnants of the old Roman Empire or possibly from a form of republic, such as the United States???

      • "growing and uprooting three of the horns" = he will start small and grow in power, perhaps overthrowing three in his rise.

      • "eyes and mouth" = human being

      • Satan is the source of the Anti-Christ's power, throne and authority

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Verse 3 - "One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was filled with wonder and followed the beast."

  • ​"seem to have a fatal wound" - He received a wound from a conflict that should have killed him.  It is unknown if this wound was received from a rebellion against the existing governmental entities to take over global control or an internal power struggle between the ten horns (kings).

    • Daniel 7:8, 20, 23-24 "“While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it... 20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up, before which three of them fell—the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully... 23 “He gave me this explanation: ‘The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings."

    • 2 Thessalonians 2:3 "... for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed..."

    • Revelation 13:14 "... It [the False Prophet] ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast [Anti-Christ] who was wounded by the sword and yet lived."

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Verse 4 - "People worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, “Who is like the beast? Who can wage war against it?"

  • "People worshiped the dragon" - Satan's greatest desire is to be worships as God

    • Matthew 4:8-10 "8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.” 10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”

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Verse 5-6 - "The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise its authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in heaven."

  • "exercise its authority" - in the form of religion (worship), politics (government and treaties) and economics (commerce)

    • Daniel 7:8 "...This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully."

    • Daniel 7:25 "He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set times and the laws. "

    • Daniel 11"36 “The king will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every god and will say unheard-of things against the God of gods."

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Verse 7 - "It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation."

  • "God's holy people" - Since Jews will be protected through the Great Tribulation in the special place in the desert, these "holy people" are anyone who is a tribulation saint outside God's protection.

    • Revelation 12:6, 14 "6 The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days... 14 The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach."

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Verse 8 - "All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.

  • "worship the beast"

    • 2 Thessalonians 2:4, 9-12 "He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God... 9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie, 10 and all the ways that wickedness deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie 12 and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness."

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Verse 9-10 - "9 Whoever has ears, let them hear. 10 “If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity they will go. If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword they will be killed.” This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of God’s people."

  • The Holy Spirit is not taken out of the world as there are also tribulation saints and how can the saints be marked for salvation without the Holy Spirit as their mark

    • Ezekiel 9:4-6 " 4 and said to him, “Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it.” 5 As I listened, he said to the others, “Follow him through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion. 6 Slaughter the old men, the young men and women, the mothers and children, but do not touch anyone who has the mark. Begin at my sanctuary.” So they began with the old men who were in front of the temple."

    • Joel 2:32 "And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the Lord has said, even among the survivors whom the Lord calls."

    • John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

    • 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 "21 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, 22 set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come."

    • 2 Corinthians 5:5 "Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come."

    • Ephesians 1:13-14 "13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory."

    • Ephesians 4:30 "And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption."

    • 2 Peter 3:9 "The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."

    • Revelation 7:3 "“Do not harm the land or the sea or the trees until we put a seal on the foreheads of the servants of our God.”

  • The fate of the tribulation saint under persecution is part of the consequence for not accepting Jesus Christ prior to the rapture and will required extreme faith and endurance.

    • Jeremiah 15:1-2 "Then the Lord said to me: “Even if Moses and Samuel were to stand before me, my heart would not go out to this people. Send them away from my presence! Let them go! 2 And if they ask you, ‘Where shall we go?’ tell them, ‘This is what the Lord says: “‘Those destined for death, to death; those for the sword, to the sword; those for starvation, to starvation; those for captivity, to captivity.’

    • Daniel 4:25 "25 He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set times and the laws. The holy people will be delivered into his hands for a time, times and half a time."

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THE MINISTRY OF THE FALSE PROPHET

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THE BEAST OUT OF THE EARTH (Revelation 13:11-18)

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Verse 11 - "Then I saw a second beast, coming out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb, but it spoke like a dragon."

  • "out of the earth"

  • "two horns like a lamb" - the False Prophet; an imitator of the Lamb of God that does not direct others to God the Father, but to the Anti-Christ and the Dragon

  • "spoke like a dragon" - blasphemer; liar; a singular, worldwide religion [the "Woman riding the Scarlett Beast"] will worship the beast and the dragon.

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Verse 12 - "It exercised all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed."

  • ​King Nebuchadnezzar was a type of Anti-Christ:

    • Daniel 3:1-6 "King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, sixty cubits high and six cubits wide,[a] and set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. 2 He then summoned the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials to come to the dedication of the image he had set up. 3 So the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials assembled for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up, and they stood before it. 4 Then the herald loudly proclaimed, “Nations and peoples of every language, this is what you are commanded to do: 5 As soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. 6 Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.”

Verse 13-14 - "And it performed great signs, even causing fire to come down from heaven to the earth in full view of the people. 14 Because of the signs it was given power to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived the inhabitants of the earth. It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived."

  • "given power" - by the dragon; its power will be bound to religion; Religion that takes its origin from the Tower of Babel whereby humanity lifts itself above its creator in rebellion and disobedience to God the Father:

    • Genesis 11:3-4 "3 They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. 4 Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”

    • 2 Corinthians 11:12-15 "12 And I [Paul the Apostle] will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. 13 For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve."

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Verse 15 - "The second beast was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed."

  • Daniel 3:4-6 "4 Then the herald loudly proclaimed, “Nations and peoples of every language, this is what you are commanded to do: 5 As soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. 6 Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.”

  • Examples of religion enforcement of orthodoxy or forced conversion:

  1. Roman Imperial Cult (27BC-467AD)

  2. The Saxon Wars (772-804AD)

  3. Spanish Inquisition (1478-1834AD)

  4. The Salem witch trials (1692-1693AD)

  5. Establishment of a global Islamic state (caliphate) through jihad to implement Sharia laws.

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Verse 16-17 - "16 It also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, 17 so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name."

  • "could not buy or sell" - His religion will be enforced through commerce [Babylon the Great City].

    • Matthew 10:7-8 "7 As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give."

    • Luke 16:13 "“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

    • John 2:13-16 "13 When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. 15 So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. 16 To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!”

  • "mark" - Greek "charagma" means a physical brand or tattoo; denotes ownership

  • "on their right hands or on their foreheads"

    • Exodus 13:9 "This observance [of Passover] will be for you like a sign on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that this law of the Lord is to be on your lips. For the Lord brought you out of Egypt with his mighty hand."

    • "right hand" - hand of authority; all work you have the power to do is for your master

      • Isaiah 44:5 "Some will say, ‘I belong to the Lord’; others will call themselves by the name of Jacob; still others will write on their hand, ‘The Lord’s,’ and will take the name Israel."

    • "forehead" - all that you think and set your mind to do is for your master

      • Exodus 28:36-38 "36 “Make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it as on a seal: holy to the Lord. 37 Fasten a blue cord to it to attach it to the turban; it is to be on the front of the turban. 38 It will be on Aaron’s forehead, and he will bear the guilt involved in the sacred gifts the Israelites consecrate, whatever their gifts may be. It will be on Aaron’s forehead continually so that they will be acceptable to the Lord."

      • Ezekiel 9:1-6 "1 Then I heard him call out in a loud voice, “Bring near those who are appointed to execute judgment on the city, each with a weapon in his hand.” 2 And I saw six men coming from the direction of the upper gate, which faces north, each with a deadly weapon in his hand. With them was a man clothed in linen who had a writing kit at his side. They came in and stood beside the bronze altar. 3 Now the glory of the God of Israel went up from above the cherubim, where it had been, and moved to the threshold of the temple. Then the Lord called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his side 4 and said to him, “Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it.” 5 As I listened, he said to the others, “Follow him through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion. 6 Slaughter the old men, the young men and women, the mothers and children, but do not touch anyone who has the mark. Begin at my sanctuary.” So they began with the old men who were in front of the temple.

      • Revelation 17:4-5 "4 The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. 5 The name written on her forehead was a mystery..."

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Verse 18 - "This calls for wisdom. Let the person who has insight calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. That number is 666."

  • ​"666" - Anti-type of the Holy Spirit; Mankind was created on the sixth day.

    • In Hebrew, the number "6" is represented by the letter "Vav" or "u" in English. It's literal meaning is "nail" or  "tent peg" or "hook" and it looks like "ו".  Three nails held Jesus on the cross. Three nails were hammered by men. Three nails brought death in the crucifixion process. 

    •  

      Jesus at the tent peg or nail:

      • Zechariah 10:4 "From Judah will come the cornerstone, from him the tent peg, from him the battle bow, from him every ruler."

         

      • Isaiah 22:23-25 " 23 I will drive him like a peg into a firm place; he will become a seat of honor for the house of his father. 24 All the glory of his family will hang on him: its offspring and offshoots—all its lesser vessels, from the bowls to all the jars. 25 “In that day,” declares the Lord Almighty, “the peg driven into the firm place will give way; it will be sheared off and will fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut down.” The Lord has spoken."

 

THE TRIBULATION HARVEST

 

144,000 SERVICE COMPLETED

After deeper study, I believe that the "harvest of the earth" is the harvest of the 144,000, not a "pre-wrath" rapture of Church Age and Tribulation saints that would occur prior to the sounding of the Seventh Trumpet.

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A.  The 144,000

We know that the 144,000 are Jewish evangelist who will minister to Israel, with the assumption that God has removed the hardening of their hearts to the Messiah.  There is no set time frame for their ministry, but this reference has an indication of their location and that they were a part of the "harvest" of believers prior to the seventh trumpet sounding.

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  • Revelation 14:1 "Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads."

    • "the Lamb" - Jesus, the Messiah, in the heavenly tabernacle of the 3rd Heaven.

    • "standing on Mount Zion" - this is the heavenly Mt. Zion, not the one on earth

      • Hebrews 12:22 "But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly,"

    • "with him 144,000" - they are no longer on earth, but in the 3rd heaven with the Lamb. They were either killed during the Great Tribulation or they were "harvested" in the 1st Resurrection.

  • Revelation 14:2 "And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps."

    • "a sound from heaven" - another clue that the 144,000 are in the 3rd Heaven

  • Revelation 14:3 "And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been purchased from the earth.

    • "before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders" another clue that the 144,000 were in the 3rd Heaven.

    • "No one could learn the song except the 144,000" - another clue that the 144,000 were in the 3rd Heaven.

    • "purchased from the earth" - they are not on earth. This is the fullness of the Gentiles.

      • PURCHASED = Greek "ēgorasmenoi" from "agorazó" means "purchased or bought", not redeemed. Implies ownership through payment.

        • With regards to Israel, the Lord Almighty gave the land and the people over to captivity, but will purchase and restore Israel in the future.

          • Jeremiah 32:42-44 "42 “This is what the Lord says: As I have brought all this great calamity on this people, so I will give them all the prosperity I have promised them. 43 Once more fields will be bought in this land of which you say, ‘It is a desolate waste, without people or animals, for it has been given into the hands of the Babylonians.’ 44 Fields will be bought for silver, and deeds will be signed, sealed and witnessed in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah and in the towns of the hill country, of the western foothills and of the Negev, because I will restore their fortunes, declares the Lord.”

        • With regard to all things that have been "purchased" by the blood of the Lamb:

          • Matthew 13:44-46 "44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. 45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it."

          • Hebrews 2:5-9 "5 It is not to angels that he [God] has subjected the world to come, about which we are speaking. 6 But there is a place where someone has testified: “What is mankind that you are mindful of them, a son of man that you care for him? 7 You made them [humanity] a little lower than the angels; you crowned them with glory and honor 8 and put everything under their feet.” In putting everything under them, God left nothing that is not subject to them [Genesis 1:26-30]. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to them. 9 But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels [as a human] for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone."

          • 1 Corinthians 15:25-28 "25 For he [Jesus] must reign [the Millennium] until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 27 For he “has put everything under his feet.” Now when it says that “everything” has been put under him, it is clear that this does not include God himself, who put everything under Christ. 28 When he [God] has done this, then the Son himself will be made subject to him who put everything under him, so that God may be all in all."

          • Ephesians 1:22-23 "22 And God placed all things under his [Jesus] feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way."

          • Revelation 5:9 "And they [4 living creatures and 24 elders] sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation."

      • REDEEMED (NOT USED HERE) = Greek "apolutrōsin" from "apolutrósis", a compound of "apo" meaning "off or separation" and "lutron" meaning "paying a ransom price"; in other words, "to repurchase what was lost".

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  • Revelation 14:4-5 "4 These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they remained virgins. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among mankind and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. 5 No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless."

    • "purchased from among mankind" - redeemed by the the blood of the Lamb after the removal of the hardening of their hearts.

    • "offered as firstfruits" - the firstfruits (Hebrew "bikkurim" means “promise to come") were a sacrifice, and an indication of obedience and reverence. No other crops could be harvested until the firstfruits were brought to the priests. This may be an indication that they were killed as they evangelized their fellow Jews. Those who try to take God's firstfruits will be destroyed.

      • Fruits are harvested or gathered from hard work

        • Deuteronomy 26:1-2 "1 When you have entered the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance and have taken possession of it and settled in it, 2 take some of the firstfruits of all that you produce from the soil of the land the Lord your God is giving you..."

      • Sacred to God as his possession

        • Jeremiah 2:2-3 "... ‘I remember the devotion of your youth, how as a bride you loved me and followed me through the wilderness, through a land not sown. 3 Israel was holy to the Lord, the firstfruits of his harvest; all who devoured her were held guilty, and disaster overtook them,' declares the Lord."

      • The best and first of the harvest

        • Leviticus 23:10 "“Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the land I am going to give you and you reap its harvest, bring to the priest a sheaf of the first grain you harvest."

        • Proverbs 3:9 "Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops"

        • Ezekiel 44:30 "The best of all the firstfruits and of all your special gifts will belong to the priests. You are to give them the first portion of your ground meal so that a blessing may rest on your household."

      • It is an indication of the rest of the harvest

        • Romans 11:16 " If the part of the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; if the root is holy, so are the branches."

        • James 1:18 "He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created."

        • 1 Corinthians 15:23 "But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him."

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B.  THE LAST CALLS OF THE GOSPEL

This is the time prior to the sounding of the seventh trumpet near the end of the Great Tribulation period referenced in Revelation 10:7.

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  • Revelation 14:6-7 "6 Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth—to every nation, tribe, language and people. 7 He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.”

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  • Revelation 14:8 "8 A second angel followed and said, “‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great,’ which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries.”

    • "Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great"

      • Prophetic warning that comes true in Revelation 18

      • Isaiah 21:9 "Look, here comes a man in a chariot with a team of horses. And he gives back the answer: ‘Babylon has fallen, has fallen! All the images of its gods lie shattered on the ground!’”

    • "All the nations" - does not include Israel

      • Isaiah 51:22 "This is what your Sovereign Lord says, your God, who defends his people: “See, I have taken out of your hand the cup that made you stagger; from that cup, the goblet of my wrath, you will never drink again."

    • "Drink the maddening wine"

      • Psalm 75:8

      • Isaiah 51:17 "Awake, awake! Rise up, Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath, you who have drained to its dregs the goblet that makes people stagger."

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  • Revelation 14:9-11"9 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on their forehead or on their hand, 10 they, too, will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.”

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  • Revelation 14:12-13 "12 This calls for patient endurance on the part of the people of God who keep his commands and remain faithful to Jesus. 13 Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.”

    • "Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord" - I believe this statement has its context within verses 6-12. When taken or applied together, they reflect revelation that evil will be judged and those who receive the mark of the beast will enter into the same judgment.  Revelation 22:7 states "Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book." In this case, there is a blessing for those who decide the fear God, who reject the bastion of evil called Babylon the Great and who do not receive the mark of the beast, for when they die, they will be with the Lord.

    • "from now on" - I believe the blessing starts at the time a person reads and applies the previous verses to their life. I do not believe that it just refers to a time during the Tribulation period, but for those who read and apply at that time, it will.  There is not different about dying in faithfulness to the Lord now versus the Tribulation notwithstanding the tremendous persecution and suffering that will occur during that time.

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C.  THE HARVEST OF THE FAITHFUL

This appears to include Tribulation Saints and the 144,000 Jewish Evangelists.

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  • Revelation 14:14 "I looked, and there before me was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one like a son of man with a crown of gold on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand." 

    • "crown of gold" - not a crown of thorns in salvation, but gold in dominion and authority.

      • Psalm 21:1-3 "1 The king rejoices in your strength, Lord. How great is his joy in the victories you give! 2 You have granted him his heart’s desire and have not withheld the request of his lips. 3 You came to greet him with rich blessings and placed a crown of pure gold on his head."

    • "son of man" - Jesus is harvesting, not his angel(s)

      • Daniel 7:13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence."

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  • Revelation 14:15 "Then another angel came out of the temple and called in a loud voice to him who was sitting on the cloud, “Take your sickle and reap, because the time to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe.”

    • "harvest"

      • Deuteronomy 16:9 "Count off seven weeks from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain."

      • Matthew 13:27-30 "27 “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’ 28 “‘An enemy did this,’ he replied. “The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ 29 “‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’ ”

      • Galatians 6:7-9 "7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up."

 

  • Revelation 14:16 "So he who was seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested."

    • Matthew 24:30-31 "30 “Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. 31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other."

    • Mark 13:26-27 "26 “At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens."

    • Luke 21:27-28 "27 At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

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GRAPES OF WRATH

The Hebrews were deeply rooted in the processing and consumption of wine.  Noah created a vineyard after the Flood Event and became drunk on its wine (Genesis 9:20).​​​​

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  • Revelation 14:17 "17 Another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle.

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  • Revelation 14:18 "Still another angel, who had charge of the fire, came from the altar and called in a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, “Take your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the earth’s vine, because its grapes are ripe.”

    • "fire" - a symbol of God's holy presence

      • Exodus 3:2-5 " 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.” 4 When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses!” And Moses said, “Here I am.” 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”

      • Deuteronomy 4:24 "For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God."

      • Hebrews 12:28-28 "28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, 29 for our “God is a consuming fire.”

    • "angel, who had charge of the fire" - same angel who had the golden censer and hurled the fire at the earth to begin the seven trumpets.

      • Revelation 8:3-5 "3 Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all God’s people, on the golden altar in front of the throne. 4 The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of God’s people, went up before God from the angel’s hand. 5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake."

    • "sickle" - a symbol of divine judgment and reckoning.

      • Joel 3:13 "Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, trample the grapes, for the winepress is full  and the vats overflow—so great is their wickedness!”

      • Jeremiah 50:16 "Cut off from Babylon the sower, and the reaper with his sickle at harvest. Because of the sword of the oppressor let everyone return to their own people, let everyone flee to their own land."

      • Jeremiah 51:33 "33 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Daughter Babylon is like a threshing floor at the time it is trampled; the time to harvest her will soon come.”

    • "the earth’s vine"

      • The earth is the world; the flesh; those who have the mark of the beast at the end of the 42 months of the Great Tribulation. This vine had branches [wicked people] that produced bad fruit that resulted in death.
        • Psalm 1:1-3 "1 Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, 2 but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. 3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither—whatever they do prospers."
        • Proverbs 6:16-19 "16 There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17 haughty eyes [exalt oneself above others], a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, 18 a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, 19 a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community."
        • Isaiah 24:5-6 "5 The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant. 6 Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earth’s inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left."
        • Matthew 7:15-20 "15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn-bushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them."
        • Matthew 12:33-37 "33 “Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. 34 You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. 35 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. 36 But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. 37 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
        • John 3:31 "The one who comes from above is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all."
        • Galatians 5:19-23 "19 The acts [fruit] of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."
        • 2 Corinthians 4:4 "The god of this age [Satan] has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God."
      • This is the opposite to the vine of Jesus Christ; the things of the 3rd Heaven; the Spirit

        • John 15:1-8 "1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples."

    • "cluster of grapes" - symbol of potential blessings from God; these people reject God and his blessings.

      • Numbers 13:17-27 "17 When Moses sent them to explore Canaan, he said, “Go up through the Negev and on into the hill country. 18 See what the land is like and whether the people who live there are strong or weak, few or many. 19 What kind of land do they live in? Is it good or bad? What kind of towns do they live in? Are they unwalled or fortified? 20 How is the soil? Is it fertile or poor? Are there trees in it or not? Do your best to bring back some of the fruit of the land.” (It was the season for the first ripe grapes.) 21 So they went up and explored the land from the Desert of Zin as far as Rehob, toward Lebo Hamath. 22 They went up through the Negev and came to Hebron, where Ahiman, Sheshai and Talmai, the descendants of Anak, lived. (Hebron had been built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) 23 When they reached the Valley of Eshkol, they cut off a branch bearing a single cluster of grapes. Two of them carried it on a pole between them, along with some pomegranates and figs. 24 That place was called the Valley of Eshkol because of the cluster of grapes the Israelites cut off there. 25 At the end of forty days they returned from exploring the land. 26 They came back to Moses and Aaron and the whole Israelite community at Kadesh in the Desert of Paran. There they reported to them and to the whole assembly and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 They gave Moses this account: “We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit."

    • "its grapes are ripe" - Greek "ēkmasan" means "to be at the prime, fully ripe"; God have give them plenty of time to mature.

      • 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 "​9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie, 10 and all the ways that wickedness deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie 12 and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness."

      • 2 Peter 3:8-9 "8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. 9 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."

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  • Revelation 14:19 "The angel swung his sickle on the earth, gathered its grapes and threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. "

    • "the angel" - unlike the previous harvest, this is not Jesus, but an angel.

    • "great winepress" - symbolic of crushing judgment on a large scale.

      • Revelation 14:9-11 "9 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on their forehead or on their hand, 10 they, too, will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.”

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  • Revelation 14:20 "They were trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed out of the press, rising as high as the horses’ bridles for a distance of 1,600 stadia."

    • "outside the city" - the Gentile nations

    • "blood" - instead of wine being produced to bring sustenance and joy to the drinker, blood overflows meaning judgment and physical death. The blood is poured out as during the sacrificial system, but in this case, God rejects the blood of wicked people who do not meet the standard of righteousness and atonement for sin. Only the blood of Jesus Christ is acceptable. No quantity of blood have the redemptive power of the singular sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.

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THE SEVENTH TRUMPET

There is praise in the 3rd Heaven for the pending completion of God's judgment and wrath to make things right. It is the beginning of the end.

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  • ​The 24 Elders give praise:

    • Revelation 11:15-18 "15 The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah, and he will reign for ever and ever.” 16 And the twenty-four elders, who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying: “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign. 18 The nations were angry, and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your people who revere your name, both great and small—and for destroying those who destroy the earth.”

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  • The Tribulation Saints who were harvested give praise:

    • Revelation 15:1-4 "I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues—last, because with them God’s wrath is completed. 2 And I saw what looked like a sea of glass glowing with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and its image and over the number of its name. They held harps given them by God 3 and sang the song of God’s servant Moses and of the Lamb: “Great and marvelous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the nations. 4 Who will not fear you, Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed."

HEAVENLY TABERNACLE IS OPEN

God the Father has declared his judgment and the way of salvation is shut to those who remain on the earth for they have been given over to their wickedness.​​​

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  • ​Revelation 11:19 "19 Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm."

    • Exodus 19:9, 16-19 "9 The Lord said to Moses, “I am going to come to you in a dense cloud, so that the people will hear me speaking with you and will always put their trust in you.” Then Moses told the Lord what the people had said... 16 On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled. 17 Then Moses led the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. 18 Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the Lord descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled violently. 19 As the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and the voice of God answered him."

    • Exodus 40:35-36 "35 Moses could not enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 36 In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, they would set out;"

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  • Revelation 15:5-8 "5 After this I looked, and I saw in heaven the temple—that is, the tabernacle of the covenant law—and it was opened. 6 Out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven plagues. They were dressed in clean, shining linen and wore golden sashes around their chests. 7 Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls filled with the wrath of God, who lives for ever and ever. 8 And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed."

    • Genesis 7:13-16 "13 On that very day Noah and his sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth, together with his wife and the wives of his three sons, entered the ark. 14 They had with them every wild animal according to its kind, all livestock according to their kinds, every creature that moves along the ground according to its kind and every bird according to its kind, everything with wings. 15 Pairs of all creatures that have the breath of life in them came to Noah and entered the ark. 16 The animals going in were male and female of every living thing, as God had commanded Noah. Then the Lord shut him in ... 22 Everything on dry land that had the breath of life in its nostrils died. 23 Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out; people and animals and the creatures that move along the ground and the birds were wiped from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark."

    • Ezekiel 44:1-3 "1 Then the man brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary, the one facing east, and it was shut. 2 The Lord said to me, “This gate is to remain shut. It must not be opened; no one may enter through it. It is to remain shut because the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered through it. 3 The prince himself is the only one who may sit inside the gateway to eat in the presence of the Lord. He is to enter by way of the portico of the gateway and go out the same way.”

    • 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 "​9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie, 10 and all the ways that wickedness deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie 12 and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness."

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  • Revelation 16:1 " Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, “Go, pour out the seven bowls of God’s wrath on the earth.”

    • "bowls" - the blood was not holy or sacred, but wicked. Also, this was not a sacrifice of atonement or appeasement. Typically, offerings would be given toward God, but in this case, they are a curse from God. They will drink and get drunk on the wrath of their wickedness.

      • Exodus 25:29 "And make its plates and dishes of pure gold, as well as its pitchers and bowls for the pouring out of offerings."

      • Isaiah 51:17, 20-21 "17 Awake, awake! Rise up, Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of the Lord the cup of his wrath, you who have drained to its dregs the goblet that makes people stagger. 20 Your children have fainted; they lie at every street corner, like antelope caught in a net. They are filled with the wrath of the Lord, with the rebuke of your God. 21 Therefore hear this, you afflicted one, made drunk, but not with wine."

      • Psalms 75:7-8 "7 It is God who judges: He brings one down, he exalts another. 8 In the hand of the Lord is a cup full of foaming wine mixed with spices; he pours it out, and all the wicked of the earth drink it down to its very dregs."

      • Matthew 26:39 "Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup [of God's wrath] be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

    • "God's wrath" - Death is the penalty for sin and it is death that satisfies the justice required by law.

      • Proverbs 8:35-36 "35 For those who find me find life and receive favor from the Lord. 36 But those who fail to find me harm themselves; all who hate me love death.”
      • Jeremiah 25:15-16, 28-29 "15 This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from my hand this cup filled with the wine of my wrath and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it. 16 When they drink it, they will stagger and go mad because of the sword I will send among them... 27 “Then tell them, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Drink, get drunk and vomit, and fall to rise no more because of the sword I will send among you.’ 28 But if they refuse to take the cup from your hand and drink, tell them, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: You must drink it! 29 See, I am beginning to bring disaster on the city that bears my Name, and will you indeed go unpunished? You will not go unpunished, for I am calling down a sword on all who live on the earth, declares the Lord Almighty.’ "
      • Romans 5:12 "Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—"
      • Romans 7:9 "Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died."
      • Romans 7:24 "What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?"
      • 1 Corinthians 15:56 "The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law."

1ST BOWL OF GOD'S WRATH

The signs and wonders of the beast cannot heal the curse poured upon those with his mark on their bodies.  They are no longer eligible for blessings from God. They are no longer "very good". Boils and tumors are a rebellion of the cells against the body and reflect the rebellion of creation against its creator. The 1st Trumpet had elements of the 1st Bowl.

  • both dealt with the land

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  • Revelation 16:2 "The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the land, and ugly, festering sores broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image."

    • The Plague of Boils on Egypt

      • Exodus 9:8-11 "8 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from a furnace and have Moses toss it into the air in the presence of Pharaoh. 9 It will become fine dust over the whole land of Egypt, and festering boils will break out on people and animals throughout the land.” 10 So they took soot from a furnace and stood before Pharaoh. Moses tossed it into the air, and festering boils broke out on people and animals. 11 The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils that were on them and on all the Egyptians.

    • Curse for disobedience
      • Deuteronomy 28:15, 27, 35 "15 However, if you do not obey the Lord your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come on you and overtake you: ... 27 The Lord will afflict you with the boils of Egypt and with tumors, festering sores and the itch, from which you cannot be cured... 35 The Lord will afflict your knees and legs with painful boils that cannot be cured, spreading from the soles of your feet to the top of your head."
    • Tumors on the Philistines
      • 1 Samuel 5:1, 6-9 "1 After the Philistines had captured the ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. 6 The Lord’s hand was heavy on the people of Ashdod and its vicinity; he brought devastation on them and afflicted them with tumors. 7 When the people of Ashdod saw what was happening, they said, “The ark of the god of Israel must not stay here with us, because his hand is heavy on us and on Dagon our god.” 8 So they called together all the rulers of the Philistines and asked them, “What shall we do with the ark of the god of Israel?” They answered, “Have the ark of the god of Israel moved to Gath.” So they moved the ark of the God of Israel. 9 But after they had moved it, the Lord’s hand was against that city, throwing it into a great panic. He afflicted the people of the city, both young and old, with an outbreak of tumors. 10 So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. As the ark of God was entering Ekron, the people of Ekron cried out, “They have brought the ark of the god of Israel around to us to kill us and our people.” 11 So they called together all the rulers of the Philistines and said, “Send the ark of the god of Israel away; let it go back to its own place, or it will kill us and our people.” For death had filled the city with panic; God’s hand was very heavy on it. 12 Those who did not die were afflicted with tumors, and the outcry of the city went up to heaven."
    • Rebellion does not share in the blessings of God
      • 1 Corinthians 12:12-27 "12 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14 Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many. 15 Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body. 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. 27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it."

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2ND BOWL OF GOD'S WRATH

​​​​​The ocean waters are a major source of food, method of commerce transportation. creates a majority of inhaled oxygen, stabilizes weather patterns and moderates temperature by absorbing heat. This curse is a reminder that God created the earth and He is sovereign over all life. The 2nd Trumpet was a foreshadow of the 2nd Bowl.

  • both dealt with the seas

  • 1/3 of seas turned to blood v. all the seas turned to blood

  • 1/3 of living creatures died v. all living creatures died

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  • Revelation 16:3 "The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned into blood like that of a dead person, and every living thing in the sea died."

    • The Plague of Blood on Egypt

      • Exodus 7:17-21 "17 This is what the Lord says: By this you will know that I am the Lord: With the staff that is in my hand I will strike the water of the Nile, and it will be changed into blood. 18 The fish in the Nile will die, and the river will stink; the Egyptians will not be able to drink its water.’” 19 The Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt—over the streams and canals, over the ponds and all the reservoirs—and they will turn to blood.’ Blood will be everywhere in Egypt, even in vessels of wood and stone.” 20 Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord had commanded. He raised his staff in the presence of Pharaoh and his officials and struck the water of the Nile, and all the water was changed into blood. 21 The fish in the Nile died, and the river smelled so bad that the Egyptians could not drink its water. Blood was everywhere in Egypt."

    • God is creator of the water

      • 2 Peter 3:3-5 "3 Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. 4 They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” 5 But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water."

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3RD BOWL OF GOD'S WRATH

Unlike the Exodus plagues where the Egyptians were able to dig wells outside of the Nile River for fresh water, all fresh water is turned to blood as a consequence for the blood of martyrs spilled by the beast and his followers. The 3rd Trumpet was a foreshadow of the 3rd Bowl.

  • 1/3 of drinking water turned bitter v. all drinking water turned to blood​​​​

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  • Revelation 16:4:7 "4 The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood. 5 Then I heard the angel in charge of the waters say: “You are just in these judgments, O Holy One, you who are and who were: 6 for they have shed the blood of your holy people and your prophets, and you have given them blood to drink as they deserve.” 7 And I heard the altar respond: “Yes, Lord God Almighty, true and just are your judgments.”

    • Egyptians oppressed, but did not openly kill Hebrews so their punishment was not as severe.
      • Exodus 7:24 "And all the Egyptians dug along the Nile to get drinking water, because they could not drink the water of the river."
    • "drink as they deserve" - murder of believers brings severe consequences.
      • Jeremiah 25:15-16, 28-29 "15 This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from my hand this cup filled with the wine of my wrath and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it. 16 When they drink it, they will stagger and go mad because of the sword I will send among them... 27 “Then tell them, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Drink, get drunk and vomit, and fall to rise no more because of the sword I will send among you.’ 28 But if they refuse to take the cup from your hand and drink, tell them, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: You must drink it! 29 See, I am beginning to bring disaster on the city that bears my Name, and will you indeed go unpunished? You will not go unpunished, for I am calling down a sword on all who live on the earth, declares the Lord Almighty.’ "

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4TH BOWL OF GOD'S WRATH

​​​​God promised to never destroy humanity by water again, but fire will be the element of destruction for the next purging of sin. The 4th Trumpet had elements of the 4th Bowl.

  • both dealt with the 2nd heaven

  • both impacted the sun​

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  • Revelation 16:8-9 "8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun was allowed to scorch people with fire. 9 They were seared by the intense heat and they cursed the name of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him."

    • "intense heat" - associated with God's displeasure
      • 2 Kings 23:26 "26 Nevertheless, the Lord did not turn away from the heat of his fierce anger, which burned against Judah because of all that Manasseh had done to arouse his anger."
      • 2 Chronicles 29:10 "10 Now I intend to make a covenant with the Lord, the God of Israel, so that his burning anger will turn away from us."
    • "scorch people with fire"
      • Deuteronomy 32:22 "For a fire will be kindled by my wrath, one that burns down to the realm of the dead below. It will devour the earth and its harvests and set afire the foundations of the mountains."
      • Malachi 4:1 "Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the Lord Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them."
      • 2 Peter 3:11-12 "11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat."
    • "God, who had control over these plagues"
      • Isaiah 45:7-9 ""7 I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, do all these things. 8 “You heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness flourish with it; I, the Lord, have created it. 9 “Woe to those who quarrel with their Maker, those who are nothing but potsherds  among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘The potter has no hands’?"

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5TH BOWL OF GOD'S WRATH

God is targeting the kingdom built by the Anti-Christ.  The 5th Trumpet was a foreshadow of the 5th Bowl.

  • the sun and sky were darkened v. plunged into darkness

  • the Abyss v. throne and kingdom of the Anti-Christ

  • agony and torture from sting v. pain and sores

  • only people suffering were those with the mark of the beast

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  • Revelation 16:10-11 "10 The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness. People gnawed their tongues in agony 11 and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, but they refused to repent of what they had done."

    • "on the throne of the beast and its kingdom" - its kingdom is a global government partitioned into 10 sub-units; I do not believe this is a literal throne.
      • Daniel 2:40-43 "40 Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron—for iron breaks and smashes everything—and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others. 41 Just as you saw that the feet and [10] toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. 42 As the [10] toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay.
      • Daniel 7:23-24 "23 “He gave me this explanation: ‘The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings."
      • Revelation 17:12-13 "12 “The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast. 13 They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast."
    • "plunged into darkness" - sun did scorch, but now it give no heat or light. Cold can "burn" just as much as fire.
      • Mark 13:24 "24 “But in those days, following that distress, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light;."
    • "gnaw their tongues" - effect of 2nd and 3rd Bowls or they did not want to acknowledge God's power.
    • "pains and sores" - effect of 1st and 4th Bowls

6TH BOWL OF GOD'S WRATH

The 6th Trumpet was a foreshadow of the 6th Bowl

  • included the great river Euphrates

  • a releasing of demonic forces

  • involves an army and battle

  • 3 plagues of fire, smoke and sulfur v. 3 impure spirits​​​​​

​

  • Revelation 16:12-16 "12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East. 13 Then I saw three impure spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14 They are demonic spirits that perform signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty. 15 “Look, I come like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and remains clothed, so as not to go naked and be shamefully exposed.” 16 Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon."

    • "Armageddon" - the Greek "Ἁρμαγεδών" has been transliterated from Hebrew "Har-Magedon" and it is interpreted as "mount of Megiddo", but there is no mountain in this location.

      • There is an apostrophe in front of the "A". The " ' " in front of "A" is the Greek form of "h" since there is not "h" in the Greek alphabet.

      • "A" is the "a"

      • "ρ" is the "r" 

      • Together "Ἁρ" means "Har", not "Ar"

        • "har" in Hebrew means "mountain" or "mount". "הַר" is the "h" and "r"

      • "μα" - Greek "mu" or "m" and stands for ""ma".

        • the Hebrew for "m" is "mem" or "מ" and has the value of "40".

      • "γε" - Greek "gamma" or "g" and stands for "ge"

        • the Hebrew for "g" is either "ג" as "gimel" or a transliteration of "ע" for "ghayn", which is not an original Hebrew letter, but an Arabic letter used in older Hebrew that produces a different "ghe" sound. This transliteration is used in the words "Gomorrah" and "Gaza". Current Hebrew uses "ע" as"ayin". It has the value of "3"

      • "δών" - Greek "delta" or "d" and stands for "don"

        • the Hebrew for "d" is "dalet" or "ד" and has the value of "4".

      • Together "μαγεδών" means "magedon"; "mgd" was assigned to the city of "megiddo" since it is fairly close to Jerusalem and sounds similar. Megiddo is a plain with a "Tel" or "city" built up, not a geographic feature.

        • Joshua 12:21 "21 the king of Taanach ... one; the king of Megiddo ... one"

          • "Megiddo" in Hebrew "מְגִדֹּ֖ו" or "megiddov" is from the Hebrew "גָּדַד" or "gadad" means "to assemble, to gather, to press into or cut, to penetrate"

      • An alternative to "מעד" or "mgd" in Hebrew is "מוֹעֵד" which means "assembly".  Is there a mount of assembly?  "har-mo'ed" or "הַר־מוֹעֵד" is "mount of assembly" or "Jerusalem" or Mount Zion where the Temple was built and the Hebrews assembled to worship God the Father.

        • Deuteronomy 5:22 "These are the commandments the Lord proclaimed in a loud voice to your whole assembly there on the mountain from out of the fire, the cloud and the deep darkness; and he added nothing more. Then he wrote them on two stone tablets and gave them to me.

        • Isaiah 14:13 "You said in your heart, “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain [or of the north, or Mount Zaphon."

        • Psalm 82:1 "God presides in the great assembly; he renders judgment among the “gods”:"

        • Hebrews 12:18-25 "18 You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; 19 to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, 20 because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.” 21 The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.” 22 But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23 to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. 25 See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven?

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  • Satan, through the Anti-Christ. will seek to rule the world from the place were God's seat of power would be, but Jesus Christ will rule from Jerusalem.

    • Psalm 2:2-6 "2 The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, 3 “Let us break their chains and throw off their shackles.” 4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. 5 He rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, 6 “I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.”

    • Isaiah 2:2-4 "In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. 3 Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the temple of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.” The law will go out from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. 4 He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples..."

    • Ezekiel 40:2-5 "2 In visions of God he took me to the land of Israel and set me on a very high mountain, on whose south side were some buildings that looked like a city. 3 He took me there, and I saw a man whose appearance was like bronze; he was standing in the gateway with a linen cord and a measuring rod in his hand. 4 The man said to me, “Son of man, look carefully and listen closely and pay attention to everything I am going to show you, for that is why you have been brought here. Tell the people of Israel everything you see.” 5 I saw a wall completely surrounding the temple area..."

    • Micah 4:7 "I will make the lame my remnant, those driven away a strong nation. The Lord will rule over them in Mount Zion from that day and forever."

  • The spiritual battle and physical battle will be fought over Jerusalem when Jesus descends from the 3rd Heaven. The Temple Mount will be raised up high.

    • Acts 1:10-11 "10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

    • Zechariah 14:1-11 "A day of the Lord is coming, Jerusalem, when your possessions will be plundered and divided up within your very walls. 2 I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city. 3 Then the Lord will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights on a day of battle. 4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. 5 You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him. 6 On that day there will be neither sunlight nor cold, frosty darkness. 7 It will be a unique day—a day known only to the Lord—with no distinction between day and night. When evening comes, there will be light. 8 On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half of it east to the Dead Sea and half of it west to the Mediterranean Sea, in summer and in winter. 9 The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name. 10 The whole land, from Geba to Rimmon, south of Jerusalem, will become like the Arabah. But Jerusalem will be raised up high from the Benjamin Gate to the site of the First Gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the royal winepresses, and will remain in its place. 11 It will be inhabited; never again will it be destroyed. Jerusalem will be secure."

    • ​

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7TH BOWL OF GOD'S WRATH​​​

  • Revelation 16:17-18 "17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, “It is done!” 18 Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred since mankind has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake. 

    • "poured out his bowl into the air" - curse on the spiritual kingdom of Satan influencing the kingdom of the Anti-Christ on earth

      • Ephesians 2:1-2 "1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient."

      • Ephesians 6:12 "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."

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BABYLON THE WICKED

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​The beginnings of Babylon start with Nimrod, a descendant from Cush, son of Ham, son of Noah.

  • Genesis 10:1, 6-10 "1 This is the account of Shem, Ham and Japheth, Noah’s sons, who themselves had sons after the flood... 6 The sons of Ham: Cush, Egypt, Put and Canaan. 7 The sons of Cush: Seba, Havilah, Sabtah, Raamah and Sabteka. The sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan. 8 Cush was the father of Nimrod, who became a mighty warrior on the earth. 9 He was a mighty hunter before the Lord; that is why it is said, “Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the Lord.” 10 The first centers of his kingdom were Babylon, Uruk, Akkad and Kalneh, in Shinar. 11 From that land he went to Assyria, where he built Nineveh, Rehoboth Ir, Calah 12 and Resen, which is between Nineveh and Calah—which is the great city."

  • "father" - Hebrew "yalad" can mean "from the lineage or descendant of" since Nimrod is listed as one the direct sons of Cush in verse 6.

  • "Nimrod" Hebrew "marad" means "to rebel" and he was a type of Satan in his rebellion against God.  Adding "n" in from of "m" would make the meaning of his name "The Rebel".

  • "mighty warrior" Hebrew root word "gabar" also means "act irreverently or conduct with arrogance"

  • "might hunter" Hebrew root word "tsud" also means "to lie in waiting, hunt down the afflicted or slaughter"

    • Some suggest the Nimrod is Sargon I or Sargon the Great or Sargon the Akkadian

      • both began their rule in Babylonia

      • both conquered land in Assyria

      • ​both lived around 100 years after the flood event in 2458 BC

        • Pelag, the great-great-great-great grandson of Noah, whose name means "division" is thought to have lived during the Tower of Babel event, lived between 2357-2118 BC.

          • Genesis 10:25 "Two sons were born to Eber: One was named Peleg, because in his time the earth was divided; his brother was named Joktan."

        • Sargon I, King of Akkadian Empire, who ruled from 2334-2279 BC.

  • "before the Lord" - Hebrew "lifnei" root word "panah" can mean "against or confronting"

  • "Babylon" was his first city and "flagship" of his territory Babylonia (a.k.a. the plains of Shinar)

    • Babylonia in Greek means "land between rivers", as in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.

    • Shinar is thought to be a non-Hebrew word, but could be drawn from the Hebrew "nahar" meaning "river"

      • Genesis 24:10 "Then the servant left, taking with him ten of his master’s camels loaded with all kinds of good things from his master. He set out for Aram Naharaim [Aram of the two rivers] and made his way to the town of Nahor."

      • Psalm 137:1 "By the rivers ["naharovt"] of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion."

  • "From that land he went to Assyria" - Nimrod conquered lands in the neighboring territory of Assyria.

  • "great city" is referencing Nineveh.  Nineveh was the precursor to Babylon

    • Jonah 1:1-3 "1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me. 3 But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.”

    • Jonah 3:2-3 " 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.” 3 Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it."

    • God gave the people of Nineveh the opportunity to repent. They did repent with the message of Jonah [est. 730 BC] but fell into decline and their sins, like Sodom and Gomorrah, were a stench to God. It fell in 612 BC.

      • Nahum 1:6-11 " The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him, 8 but with an overwhelming flood he will make an end of Nineveh; he will pursue his foes into the realm of darkness. 9 Whatever they plot against the Lord he will bring to an end; trouble will not come a second time. 10 They will be entangled among thorns and drunk from their wine; they will be consumed like dry stubble. 11 From you, Nineveh, has one come forth who plots evil against the Lord and devises wicked plans."

  • "Shinar" is the location of the Tower of Babel (considered to be called "Etemenanki, the 'House of the foundation of heaven on earth'", a ziggurat dedicated to the god Marduk in Babylon).

    • ​Genesis 11:1 "Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. 2 As people moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there."

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Nimrod territory 1887 map
ziggurat pyramid
lion gate babylon

Babylon once had the blessing of God; but her wickedness would not stop.

  • Daniel 2:37-38 "37 Your Majesty, you are the king of kings [Nebuchadnezzar]. The God of heaven has given you dominion and power and might and glory; 38 in your hands he has placed all mankind and the beasts of the field and the birds in the sky. Wherever they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of gold."

  • Jeremiah 51:7 "Babylon was a gold cup in the Lord’s hand; she made the whole earth drunk. The nations drank her wine; therefore they have now gone mad."​

  • ​Revelation 17:4 "... She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries.

 

The wickedness and rebellion at work was supernaturally suppressed according to God's purposes.

  • Zechariah 5:5-15 "5 Then the angel who was speaking to me came forward and said to me, “Look up and see what is appearing.” 6 I asked, “What is it?” He replied, “It is a basket.” And he added, “This is the iniquity of the people throughout the land.” 7 Then the cover of lead was raised, and there in the basket sat a woman! 8 He said, “This is wickedness,” and he pushed her back into the basket and pushed its lead cover down on it. 9 Then I looked up—and there before me were two women, with the wind in their wings! They had wings like those of a stork, and they lifted up the basket between heaven and earth. 10 “Where are they taking the basket?” I asked the angel who was speaking to me. 11 He replied, “To the country of Babylonia to build a house for it. When the house is ready, the basket will be set there in its place.”

    • ​​​"woman in the basket" - same woman that is grew into and is depicted as Babylon the Great

      • Revelation 17:4 "​The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries."

      • Revelation 18:5 "for her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her crimes."

    • "basket" - Hebrew "ephah" is used for measurement in commerce and religion.  Commerce will be intermingled with religion and government during the Great Tribulation and how Babylon the Great will become influential and powerful while working with the Anti-Christ.

      • Ezekiel 45:9-17 "9 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: You have gone far enough, princes of Israel! Give up your violence and oppression and do what is just and right. Stop dispossessing my people, declares the Sovereign Lord. 10 You are to use accurate scales, an accurate ephah and an accurate bath. 11 The ephah and the bath are to be the same size, the bath containing a tenth of a homer and the ephah a tenth of a homer; the homer is to be the standard measure for both. 12 The shekel is to consist of twenty gerahs. Twenty shekels plus twenty-five shekels plus fifteen shekels equal one mina.13 “‘This is the special gift you are to offer: a sixth of an ephah from each homer of wheat and a sixth of an ephah from each homer of barley.

      • Revelation 18:2-3 " 2 With a mighty voice he shouted: “‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!’ She has become a dwelling for demons and a haunt for every impure spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and detestable animal. 3 For all the nations have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries. The kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries.”

        • "committed adultery" - apostate religion; rejection of God; persecution of saints; mark of the beast.

        • "excessive luxuries" - commerce; love of money; mark of the beast to buy or sell

    • "lead cover" - suppressed by the Holy Spirit until the appointed time.

      • 2 Thessalonians 2:6-7 "6 And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. 7 For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way."

    • "When the house is ready" - Babylon the Great City

      • Revelation 17:18 "The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth.”

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BABYLON THE GREAT ​​

  • Revelation 17:1 "One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits by many waters.

    • "great prostitute" - opposite of the bride of Christ who is faithful

      • 2 Corinthians 11:2 "I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him."

      • Ephesians 5:25-27 "25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless."

      • Revelation 19:7-8 "7 Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. 8 Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people.)"

    • "sits by" - to associate or participate those who agree with them

      • Psalm 1:1 "Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers,"

      • Proverbs 9:7-8 "7 Whoever corrects a mocker invites insults; whoever rebukes the wicked incurs abuse. 8 Do not rebuke mockers or they will hate you; rebuke the wise and they will love you."

    • "many waters" - the nations of the world

      • Revelation 17:15 "Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages."

​

  • Revelation 17:2 With her the kings of the earth committed adultery, and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.”

    • "kings" and "inhabitants" - global influence

    • "intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries" - religious doctrine and wicked influence are consumed in excess because God will give them over to their desires

      • Genesis 3:6 "When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.

      • Romans 1:28 "Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done."

      • Romans 8:5-8 "5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God."

      • 2 Thessalonians 2:7-11 "7 For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie, 10 and all the ways that wickedness deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie."

      • 1 John 2:16 "For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world."

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  • Revelation 17:3 Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns.

    • "woman" - Great City of apostate religion and commerce

    • "sitting on" - a position of importance and influence over global governments; appears to be in control or steering the beast, but can only go as far the the beast will allow her.

      • Revelation 17:16 "The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire."

    • "scarlet beast" - the Anti-Christ (beast out of the sea); control of global governments

      • Revelation 13:1 "The dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name."

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  • Revelation 17:4 The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries.

    • "dressed" - her ways will appeal to those who live in the flesh, but her heart is full of murder and lies.

      • 1 Peter 3:3-4 "3 Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. 4 Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight."

    • "golden cup in her hand" - the outside of the cup looks the part of important and sacred, but the contents of the cup reflect the truth of her deception.

      • Matthew 23:25-29 " 25 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. 27 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. 28 In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness. 29 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous."

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  • Revelation 17:5 The name written on her forehead : "MYSTERY - BABYLON THE GREAT - THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH" 

    • "mystery" - revelation of something previously unknown

    • "Babylon the Great" - subject of the mystery; it is a global, apostolic religion of the gentile nations that will persecute the saints and be embedded / enforced by a global government

    • "mother of prostitutes" - like false prophets turn the wicked away from God, all those who reject God are her children and unfaithful to God.

      • Judges 2:17 "Yet they [Israelites] would not listen to their judges but prostituted themselves to other gods and worshiped them. They quickly turned from the ways of their ancestors, who had been obedient to the Lord’s commands."

      • Isaiah 47:1 "Go down, sit in the dust, Virgin Daughter Babylon; sit on the ground without a throne, queen city of the Babylonians. No more will you be called tender or delicate."

      • Jeremiah 3:8-9 "8 I gave faithless Israel [Northern 10 tribes] her certificate of divorce and sent her away because of all her adulteries. Yet I saw that her unfaithful sister Judah [Southern 2 tribes] had no fear; she also went out and committed adultery. 9 Because Israel’s immorality mattered so little to her, she defiled the land and committed adultery with stone and wood."

    • "mother of the abominations of the earth" - the detestable idols and practices of her worshipers are the worst in history; she is the birther and nurturer of all wickedness the spreads.

      • Deuteronomy 7:25-26 "25 The images of their gods you are to burn in the fire. Do not covet the silver and gold on them, and do not take it for yourselves, or you will be ensnared by it, for it is detestable to the Lord your God. 26 Do not bring a detestable thing into your house or you, like it, will be set apart for destruction. Regard it as vile and utterly detest it, for it is set apart for destruction.

      • Proverbs 6:16-19 "16 There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, 18 a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, 19 a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community."

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  • Revelation 17:6 I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus. When I saw her, I was greatly astonished."

    • "drunk with the blood" - a blood lust to kill the saints; an overabundance of blood will be spilled.

      • Deuteronomy 32:42 "I will make my arrows drunk with blood, while my sword devours flesh: the blood of the slain and the captives, the heads of the enemy leaders.”

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BABYLON THE BETRAYED​​​

  • Revelation 17:16-18 "16 The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire. 17 For God has put it into their hearts to accomplish his purpose by agreeing to hand over to the beast their royal authority, until God’s words are fulfilled. 18 The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth.” 

    • "bring her to ruin and leave her naked" - expose the "queen" as a "harlot"; the religious system no longer drives and sustains its worshipers within the economic and governmental systems; it is disposable since the ten kings have established their rule over their areas. Religion competed for their authority and ultimately the authority of the Anti-Christ.

      • Isaiah 47:2-3 "2 Take millstones and grind flour; take off your veil. Lift up your skirts, bare your legs, and wade through the streams. 3 Your nakedness will be exposed and your shame uncovered. I will take vengeance; I will spare no one.”

    • "eat her flesh and burn her with fire" - destroy the religious system that the global government does not need since all followers have the mark of the beast.

    • "it into their hearts" = the idea for the 10 kings to "hand over to the beast their royal authority"

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BABYLON THE FALLEN

​​The Anti-Christ and the ten kings have have destroyed she system of religion, but God physically destroys the city and its commerce along with it.

 

  • Revelation 16:19 "The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath. 20 Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found. 21 From the sky huge hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds, fell on people. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible."

    • "great city split" - by a great earthquake from the pouring out of the 7th Bowl.

      • Hebrews 12:25-27 "25 See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” 27 The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain."

      • Haggai 2:6-7 "6 “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land. 7 I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory,’ says the Lord Almighty."

      • Isaiah 13:9-13 "9 See, the day of the Lord is coming—a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger—to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it. 10 The stars of heaven and their constellations will not show their light. The rising sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light. 11 I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless. 12 I will make people scarcer than pure gold, more rare than the gold of Ophir. 13 Therefore I will make the heavens tremble; and the earth will shake from its place at the wrath of the Lord Almighty, in the day of his burning anger."

      • Isaiah 47:10-12 " 10 You have trusted in your wickedness and have said, ‘No one sees me.’ Your wisdom and knowledge mislead you when you say to yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me.’
        11 Disaster will come upon you, and you will not know how to conjure it away. A calamity will fall upon you that you cannot ward off with a ransom; a catastrophe you cannot foresee will suddenly come upon you. 12 “Keep on, then, with your magic spells and with your many sorceries, which you have labored at since childhood. Perhaps you will succeed, perhaps you will cause terror."

    • "cities of the nations collapsed" - may refer to economic collapse since all financial and commercial transactions would be controlled.

      • Revelation 13:16-17 "16 He [the False Prophet] also forced all people, great and small, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, 17 so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name."

    • "God remembered Babylon the Great" - the stench of her wickedness had reached up to the 3rd Heaven.

      • Revelation 18:4-5 "4 Then I heard another voice from heaven say: “‘Come out of her, my people,’ so that you will not share in her sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues; 5 for her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her crimes."

    • "with the wine" - wrath is represented by blood or death

      • Jeremiah 25:15-16 "15 This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take from my hand this cup filled with the wine of my wrath and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it. 16 When they drink it, they will stagger and go mad because of the sword I will send among them.”

      • John 6:53-56 "53 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. 55 For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. 56 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them."

      • 1 Corinthians 11:23-25 "23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

      • there are five main steps in the wine-making process:

        1. Harvest - collecting the grapes when the harvest is ripe

          • Revelation 14:17-18 "17 Another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. 18 Still another angel, who had charge of the fire, came from the altar and called in a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, “Take your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the earth’s vine, because its grapes are ripe.”

        2. Crushing/Pressing - extracting the juice

          • Revelation 14:19-20 "19 The angel swung his sickle on the earth, gathered its grapes and threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. 20 They were trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed out of the press, rising as high as the horses’ bridles for a distance of 1,600 stadia."

        3. Fermentation - adding yeast to convert alcohol

          • 1 Corinthians 5:6-8 "6 Your boasting is not good. Don’t you know that a little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough? 7 Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened batch—as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 8 Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with the old bread leavened with malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth."

          • Revelation 17:4 "The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries.

        4. Clarifying - filtering out the dregs with particles and solids (not removed - tastes bitter)

          • Psalm 75:8 "In the hand of the Lord is a cup full of foaming wine mixed with spices; he pours it out, and all the wicked of the earth drink it down to its very dregs."

          • Romans 1:28-32 "28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them."

          • 1 Thessalonians 5:6-8 "6 So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet."

        5. Bottling / Consume - the pouring out of the wine

          • Revelation 16:17 "The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, 'It is done!'. "

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  • Revelation 18:1-3 "1 After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven. He had great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his splendor. 2 With a mighty voice he shouted: “‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!’ She has become a dwelling for demons and a haunt for every impure spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and detestable animal. 3 For all the nations have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries. The kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries.”

    • "another angel" - archangel, like Michael

      • Daniel 10:5-6, 12-13, 20 "5 I looked up and there before me was a man dressed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist. 6 His body was like topaz, his face like lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and his voice like the sound of a multitude... 12 Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them. 13 But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia... 20 So he said, “Do you know why I have come to you? Soon I will return to fight against the prince of Persia, and when I go, the prince of Greece will come;"

    • "Fallen, Fallen"

      • Isaiah 21:9 "Look, here comes a man in a chariot with a team of horses. And he gives back the answer: ‘Babylon has fallen, has fallen! All the images of its gods lie shattered on the ground!’”

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  • Revelation 18:4-8 "Then I heard another voice from heaven say: “‘Come out of her, my people,’ so that you will not share in her sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues;​ 5 for her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her crimes. 6 Give back to her as she has given; pay her back double for what she has done. Pour her a double portion from her own cup. 7 Give her as much torment and grief as the glory and luxury she gave herself. In her heart she boasts, ‘I sit enthroned as queen. I am not a widow; I will never mourn.’ 8 Therefore in one day her plagues will overtake her: death, mourning and famine. She will be consumed by fire, for mighty is the Lord God who judges her."

    • "my people" - the voice claims ownership; this must be the voice of either God the Father or Jesus Christ.

      • John 10:27-28 "27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand."

    • "pay her back double" - old testament restitution principle

      • Exodus 22:4,7 "4 If the stolen animal is found alive in their possession—whether ox or donkey or sheep—they must pay back double... 7 “If anyone gives a neighbor silver or goods for safekeeping and they are stolen from the neighbor’s house, the thief, if caught, must pay back double."

      • Jeremiah 16:18 "I will repay them double for their wickedness and their sin, because they have defiled my land with the lifeless forms of their vile images and have filled my inheritance with their detestable idols.”

      • Jeremiah 17:18 "Let my persecutors be put to shame, but keep me from shame; let them be terrified,
        but keep me from terror. Bring on them the day of disaster; destroy them with double destruction."

    • "she boasts" - empty words with no power; ten kings were already in place by the authority of the Anti-Christ.  The Anti-Christ did not give her the title "queen".

      • "queen" - her pride rested in the temporary power she had over the 10 kings.  The ten kings would not share one queen and the ten kings will only endured the overreach of her power and influence until the appointed time that their loyalty to the Anti-Christ calls them to relinquish their authority to him.

        • Isaiah 47:5-9 "5 “Sit in silence, go into darkness, queen city of the Babylonians; no more will you be called queen of kingdoms. 6 I was angry with my people and desecrated my inheritance; I gave them into your hand, and you showed them no mercy. Even on the aged you laid a very heavy yoke. 7 You said, ‘I am forever—the eternal queen!’ But you did not consider these things or reflect on what might happen. 8 “Now then, listen, you lover of pleasure, lounging in your security and saying to yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me. I will never be a widow or suffer the loss of children.’ 9 Both of these will overtake you in a moment, on a single day: loss of children and widowhood. They will come upon you in full measure, in spite of your many sorceries and all your potent spells."

      • "not a widow; I will never mourn" - power not transfer from any of the 10 kings by marriage, death or otherwise. She does not understand that her children are her worshippers.

    • ​"sins are piled up to heaven"

      • Genesis 6:5 "The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time."

      • Genesis 11:4 "Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.”

      • Genesis 18:20-21"20 Then the Lord said, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous 21 that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.”

      • Jeremiah 51:52-53 "52 “But days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will punish her idols, and throughout her land the wounded will groan. 53 Even if Babylon ascends to the heavens and fortifies her lofty stronghold, I will send destroyers against her,” declares the Lord."

      • Jonah 1:1-2 "The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: 2 “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”

    • "consumed by fire"

      • Isaiah 47:13-15 "13 All the counsel you have received has only worn you out! Let your astrologers come forward, those stargazers who make predictions month by month, let them save you from what is coming upon you. 14 Surely they are like stubble; the fire will burn them up. They cannot even save themselves from the power of the flame. These are not coals for warmth; this is not a fire to sit by. 15 
        That is all they are to you—these you have dealt with and labored with since childhood. All of them go on in their error; there is not one that can save you."

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  • Revelation 18:9-10 “When the kings of the earth who committed adultery with her and shared her luxury see the smoke of her burning, they will weep and mourn over her. 10 Terrified at her torment, they will stand far off and cry: “‘Woe! Woe to you, great city, you mighty city of Babylon! In one hour your doom has come!’ "

    • "kings" - there were only ten kings at this time under the control of the Anti-Christ. They destroyed its religious system, but weep and mourn the understanding of their future fate.  If God disapproved of Babylon's wickedness then God cannot approve of their wickedness.

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  • Revelation 18:11-19 “The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over her because no one buys their cargoes anymore— 12 cargoes of gold, silver, precious stones and pearls; fine linen, purple, silk and scarlet cloth; every sort of citron wood, and articles of every kind made of ivory, costly wood, bronze, iron and marble; 13 cargoes of cinnamon and spice, of incense, myrrh and frankincense, of wine and olive oil, of fine flour and wheat; cattle and sheep; horses and carriages; and human beings sold as slaves. 14 They will say, ‘The fruit you longed for is gone from you. All your luxury and splendor have vanished, never to be recovered.’ 15 The merchants who sold these things and gained their wealth from her will stand far off, terrified at her torment. They will weep and mourn 16 "and cry out: “‘Woe! Woe to you, great city, dressed in fine linen, purple and scarlet, and glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls!"

    • "merchants" - sole focus was the love of money. First, the global apostate religion was destroyed, but now the system of commerce is destroyed.  They do not mourn for the Babylon, but for what they stand to lose. They would have had great status and pride in their position.

      • Jeremiah 51:13 "You who live by many waters and are rich in treasures, your end has come, the time for you to be destroyed."

      • Revelation 18:23 "...Your merchants were the world’s important people."

    • "cargoes" - many of the cargoes today are in high demand in the UAE and Saudi Arabia.  Perhaps Babylon the Great is located in this area. (particularly cinnamon and citrus wood)

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  • Revelation 18:17-19 "17 In one hour such great wealth has been brought to ruin!’ “Every sea captain, and all who travel by ship, the sailors, and all who earn their living from the sea, will stand far off. 18 When they see the smoke of her burning, they will exclaim, ‘Was there ever a city like this great city?’ 19 They will throw dust on their heads, and with weeping and mourning cry out: “‘Woe! Woe to you, great city, where all who had ships on the sea became rich through her wealth! In one hour she has been brought to ruin!’ ”

    • "sea captains / sailors" - the transport of cargo by water is still the predominate way to haul freight.  The cargoes listed are going most applicable to ports in located in the UAE or Saudi Arabia.​

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  • Revelation 18:20-24 "20 Rejoice over her, you heavens! Rejoice, you people of God! Rejoice, apostles and prophets! For God has judged her with the judgment she imposed on you. 21 Then a mighty angel picked up a boulder the size of a large millstone and threw it into the sea, and said: “With such violence the great city of Babylon will be thrown down, never to be found again. 22 The music of harpists and musicians, pipers and trumpeters, will never be heard in you again. No worker of any trade will ever be found in you again. The sound of a millstone will never be heard in you again. 23 The light of a lamp will never shine in you again. The voice of bridegroom and bride will never be heard in you again. Your merchants were the world’s important people. By your magic spell all the nations were led astray. 24 In her was found the blood of prophets and of God’s holy people, of all who have been slaughtered on the earth.”

    • "rejoice" - a call for praise and worship in the 3rd Heaven

    • "a boulder"

      • Jeremiah 51:59-64 "59 This is the message Jeremiah the prophet gave to the staff officer Seraiah son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went to Babylon with Zedekiah king of Judah in the fourth year of his reign. 60 Jeremiah had written on a scroll about all the disasters that would come upon Babylon—all that had been recorded concerning Babylon. 61 He said to Seraiah, “When you get to Babylon, see that you read all these words aloud. 62 Then say, ‘Lord, you have said you will destroy this place, so that neither people nor animals will live in it; it will be desolate forever.’ 63 When you finish reading this scroll, tie a stone to it and throw it into the Euphrates. 64 Then say, ‘So will Babylon sink to rise no more because of the disaster I will bring on her. And her people will fall.’”

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WEDDING SUPPER OF THE LAMB​​

  • Revelation 19:1-10 "1 After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting: “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, 2 for true and just are his judgments. He has condemned the great prostitute who corrupted the earth by her adulteries. He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.” 3 And again they shouted: “Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up for ever and ever.” 4 The twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God, who was seated on the throne. And they cried: “Amen, Hallelujah!”

    • "after this" - the destruction of religion, commercial and governmental systems of the Anti-Christ, but his military power is yet to be destroyed

    • "great multitude" - all saints as the bride of Christ; the raptured church, the tribulation saints, the Messianic Jews, the Jews who faithfully believed in a future Messiah and the angels.

    • "Hallelujah" - two words from Hebrew - celebration that so much has been accomplished.

      • "hallu" - "הַֽלְלוּ־" means "to praise"

      • "Yah" - "יָהּ" is the short form of "Yhovah" or "YHVH" or "Yehovah"; the divine name of God

        • or "LORD" - referring to God the Father

      • The word "Psalms" in Hebrew is "tehillim" means "praises"

    • "avenged" - justice has been served

    • "Amen" - "אָמֵֽן׃" means "so be it" or "verily" or "truly" and implies a faith resulting in the act of faithfulness by the one giving praise.

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  • 5 Then a voice came from the throne, saying: “Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, both great and small!”

    • "our God" - only God the Father and Jesus the Son are on the throne; Jesus must be the voice.

      • John 20:17 "Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

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  • 6 Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: “Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. 7 Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. 8 Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people.)

    • "wedding"

      • Isaiah 25:6-8 "6 On this mountain the Lord Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine—the best of meats and the finest of wines. 7 On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; 8 he will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove his people’s disgrace from all the earth. The Lord has spoken."

      • Matthew 22:1-14 "1 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: 2 “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. 3 He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come. 4 “Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited [Jews] that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’ 5 “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. 6 The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. 7 The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. 8 “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come [Gentiles]. 9 So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ 10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes [Christians that bear fruit]. 12 He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless. 13 “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside [Christians in name only, not fruit], into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 14 “For many are invited, but few are chosen.”

    • "bride" - Israel and the universal church or body of believers (not land, a building or an organization).

      • Isaiah 54:5 "For your Maker is your husband—the Lord Almighty is his name—the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth."

      • Jeremiah 2:2 "“Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem: “This is what the Lord says: “‘I remember the devotion of your youth, how as a bride you loved me and followed me through the wilderness, through a land not sown."

      • Ephesians 5:22-33 " 22 Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body. 31 “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” 32 This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33 However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

    • "righteous acts of God's people"

      • Isaiah 26:7-8 "The path of the righteous is level; you, the Upright One, make the way of the righteous smooth. 8 Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you; your name and renown are the desire of our hearts."

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  • 9 Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.” 10 At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.”

    • "invited" - everyone is invited, but not all answer the call and go.

      • For those that go, not all bear fruit of the spirit or "wear" the righteousness that Jesus provides through the Holy Spirit.

        • Isaiah 64:6 "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away."

        • Romans 13:14 "Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh."

        • Galatians 3:27 "for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ."

        • Colossians 3:10-14 " 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11 Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all. 12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity."

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THE DAY OF THE LORD

In the past, Jesus the Son of God, was born of flesh. He was 100% man and 100% God, yet he was without sin. His First Coming was rejected by the Jewish rabbinical leadership​​​ and the people since he came as a redemptive Messiah and not as a conquering Messiah yet.  As a redemptive Messiah, he established a new covenant that addressed sin so that Jew and Gentile could come into relationship with God the Father.  He left the Apostles to return to God the Father in victory and obedience, but said that he would come back for his own. When Jesus returns again, not only will he be the conquering Messiah, but he will be King and Judge. His Second Coming is known as "THE DAY OF THE LORD". If 2 Peter 3:8 says "But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.", could it be that the Day of the Lord also includes his 1,000 year reign, not just his second coming?

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  • Revelation 19:11 "I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war."

    • "heaven standing open" - it was closed until the final judgments

      • Isaiah 26:20-21 "Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until his wrath has passed by. 21 See, the Lord is coming out of his dwelling to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will disclose the blood shed on it; the earth will conceal its slain no longer."

      • Acts 1:11 "“Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

    • "white horse" - white is purity, holiness, righteousness

      • Ecclesiastes 9:8: "Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil."   

      • Isaiah 1:18: “Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson,they shall be like wool.”

      • Daniel 7:9: "As I looked, thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool."

      • Revelation 2:17: Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it.

    • "Faithful and True" - see Faithful and True Witness Section

      • Regather his people from the nations

        • Isaiah 11:10-13 "10 In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious. 11 In that day the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the surviving remnant of his people from Assyria, from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt, from Cush, from Elam, from Babylonia, from Hamath and from the islands of the Mediterranean. 12 He will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiles of Israel; he will assemble the scattered people of Judah from the four quarters of the earth. 13 Ephraim’s jealousy will vanish, and Judah’s enemies will be destroyed; Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah, nor Judah hostile toward Ephraim."

        • Zechariah 12:1-14 "1 A prophecy: The word of the Lord concerning Israel. The Lord, who stretches out the heavens, who lays the foundation of the earth, and who forms the human spirit within a person, declares: 2 “I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling. Judah will be besieged as well as Jerusalem. 3 On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves. 4 On that day I will strike every horse with panic and its rider with madness,” declares the Lord. “I will keep a watchful eye over Judah, but I will blind all the horses of the nations. 5 Then the clans of Judah will say in their hearts, ‘The people of Jerusalem are strong, because the Lord Almighty is their God.’ 6 “On that day I will make the clans of Judah like a firepot in a woodpile, like a flaming torch among sheaves. They will consume all the surrounding peoples right and left, but Jerusalem will remain intact in her place. 7 “The Lord will save the dwellings of Judah first, so that the honor of the house of David and of Jerusalem’s inhabitants may not be greater than that of Judah. 8 On that day the Lord will shield those who live in Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the Lord going before them. 9 On that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that attack Jerusalem. 10 “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son. 11 On that day the weeping in Jerusalem will be as great as the weeping of Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. 12 The land will mourn, each clan by itself, with their wives by themselves: the clan of the house of David and their wives, the clan of the house of Nathan and their wives, 13 the clan of the house of Levi and their wives, the clan of Shimei and their wives, 14 and all the rest of the clans and their wives."

        • Jeremiah 3:14-18 "14 “Return, faithless people,” declares the Lord, “for I am your husband. I will choose you—one from a town and two from a clan—and bring you to Zion. 15 Then I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will lead you with knowledge and understanding. 16 In those days, when your numbers have increased greatly in the land,” declares the Lord, “people will no longer say, ‘The ark of the covenant of the Lord.’ It will never enter their minds or be remembered; it will not be missed, nor will another one be made. 17 At that time they will call Jerusalem The Throne of the Lord, and all nations will gather in Jerusalem to honor the name of the Lord. No longer will they follow the stubbornness of their evil hearts. 18 In those days the people of Judah will join the people of Israel, and together they will come from a northern land to the land I gave your ancestors as an inheritance."

        • Jeremiah 23:1-8 "Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!” declares the Lord. 2 Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done,” declares the Lord. 3 “I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number. 4 I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the Lord. 5 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. 6 In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our Righteous Savior. 7 “So then, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when people will no longer say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the Israelites up out of Egypt,’ 8 but they will say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the descendants of Israel up out of the land of the north and out of all the countries where he had banished them.’ Then they will live in their own land.​

        • Daniel 7:13-14 "13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed."

    • "he judges"

      • Psalm 98:9 "let them sing before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples with impartiality."

      • Isaiah 11:3-4 "He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; 4 but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked."

      • Jude 1:14-15 "14 Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them: “See, the LORD is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones 15 to judge everyone, and to convict all of them of all the ungodly acts they have committed in their ungodliness, and of all the defiant words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”2 Timothy 4:8 "Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing."

      • Revelation 14:7 "He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.”

    • "wages war"

      • 1 Samuel 2:10 "those who oppose the LORD [Yehovah - God] will be broken. The Most High [God] will thunder from heaven; the LORD will judge the ends of the earth. “He will give strength to His king [Jesus the Lord] and exalt the horn of His anointed [Jesus the Messiah].”

      • Daniel 2:31-35, 44-45 "31 “Your Majesty looked, and there before you stood a large statue—an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance. 32 The head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of baked clay. 34 While you were watching, a rock [kingdom of heaven] was cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were all broken to pieces and became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth.... 44 “In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. 45 This is the meaning of the vision of the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands—a rock that broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to pieces."

      • Zechariah 14:1-21 "A day of the Lord is coming, Jerusalem, when your possessions will be plundered and divided up within your very walls. 2 I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city. 3 Then the Lord will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights on a day of battle. 4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south. 5 You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him. 6 On that day there will be neither sunlight nor cold, frosty darkness. 7 It will be a unique day—a day known only to the Lord—with no distinction between day and night. When evening comes, there will be light. 8 On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half of it east to the Dead Sea and half of it west to the Mediterranean Sea, in summer and in winter. 9 The Lord will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one Lord, and his name the only name. 10 The whole land, from Geba to Rimmon, south of Jerusalem, will become like the Arabah. But Jerusalem will be raised up high from the Benjamin Gate to the site of the First Gate, to the Corner Gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the royal winepresses, and will remain in its place. 11 It will be inhabited; never again will it be destroyed. Jerusalem will be secure. 12 This is the plague with which the Lord will strike all the nations that fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths. 13 On that day people will be stricken by the Lord with great panic. They will seize each other by the hand and attack one another. 14 Judah too will fight at Jerusalem. The wealth of all the surrounding nations will be collected—great quantities of gold and silver and clothing. 15 A similar plague will strike the horses and mules, the camels and donkeys, and all the animals in those camps. 16 Then the survivors from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, and to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles. 17 If any of the peoples of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, they will have no rain. 18 If the Egyptian people do not go up and take part, they will have no rain. The Lord will bring on them the plague he inflicts on the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles. 19 This will be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not go up to celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles. 20 On that day holy to the Lord will be inscribed on the bells of the horses, and the cooking pots in the Lord’s house will be like the sacred bowls in front of the altar. 21 Every pot in Jerusalem and Judah will be holy to the Lord Almighty, and all who come to sacrifice will take some of the pots and cook in them. And on that day there will no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the Lord Almighty."

      • 1 John 3:8 "he one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work."

      • Revelation 6:17 "For the great day of his wrath has come, and who can withstand it?”

      • Revelation 17:14 "They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”

 

  • Revelation 19:12 "His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself."

    • "eyes are like blazing fire" see Eyes of Blazing Fire

    • "many crowns" - "diadems" - royalty

      • John 19:2 "The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe"

      • Hebrews 2:9 "But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone."

      • 1 Peter 5:4 "And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away."

      • James 1:12 "Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him."

      • Revelation 4:10–11 "10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say: 11 “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”

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  • Revelation 19:13 "He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God."

    • "robe dipped in blood"

      • Isaiah 63:1-6 "Who is this coming from Edom, from Bozrah, with his garments stained crimson? Who is this, robed in splendor, striding forward in the greatness of his strength? “It is I, proclaiming victory, mighty to save.” 2 Why are your garments red, like those of one treading the winepress? 3 "I have trodden the winepress alone; from the nations no one was with me. I trampled them in my anger and trod them down in my wrath; their blood spattered my garments, and I stained all my clothing. 4 It was for me the day of vengeance; the year for me to redeem had come. 5 I looked, but there was no one to help, I was appalled that no one gave support; so my own arm achieved salvation for me, and my own wrath sustained me. 6 I trampled the nations in my anger; in my wrath I made them drunk and poured their blood on the ground.”

    • "his name is the Word of God"

      • John 1:1-3,14 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made... 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."​

      • Hebrews 1:1-3 "In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. 3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven."

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  • Revelation 19:14 "The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean."

    • "armies of heaven"

      • the Bride of Christ - includes the Church Age Saints, the Tribulation Saints, Messianic Jews and those Jews whose hearts were hardened by God but still looked forward to the Messiah and understand their sin condition. It does not include any Jew that rejects a Messiah.

        • Isaiah 59:19-21 "19 From the west, people will fear the name of the Lord, and from the rising of the sun, they will revere his glory. For he will come like a pent-up flood that the breath of the Lord drives along. 20 “The Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who repent of their sins,” declares the Lord. 21 “As for me, this is my covenant with them,” says the Lord. “My Spirit, who is on you, will not depart from you, and my words that I have put in your mouth will always be on your lips, on the lips of your children and on the lips of their descendants—from this time on and forever,” says the Lord."

        • Zechariah 14:5 "You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him."

        • Jude 14 "Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about them: “See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones"

        • Romans 9:6 "It is not as though God’s word had failed. For not all who are descended from Israel are Israel."

        • Romans 11:25-26 "25 I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers and sisters, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in, 26 and in this way all Israel will be saved. As it is written: “The deliverer will come from Zion; he will turn godlessness away from Jacob."

        • Galatians 3:28 "There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."

        • Ephesians 5:25–27 "25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless."

        • Revelation 17:14 "They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”

        • Revelation 19:7-8 "Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. 8 Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people.)"

      • the Angelic Hosts

        • Matthew 25:31 "“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne."

        • 2 Thessalonians 1:7 "... This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels."

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  • Revelation 19:15 "Coming out of his mouth is a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. “He will rule them with an iron scepter.” He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty."

    • "mouth is a sharp sword"

      • Ephesians 6:17 "Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."

      • Revelation 1:16 "In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance."

    • "iron scepter" - rod = scepter: symbol of authority and discipline in love; Jesus is from the line of Judah, the son of Jacob.

      • Genesis 49:10 "The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
        until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his."

      • Numbers 24:17 "“I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel. He will crush the foreheads of Moab, the skulls of all the people of Sheth."

      • Psalm 2:9 "You will break them with a rod of iron; you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”

    • "winepress"

      • Isaiah 63:2-3 "Why are your garments red, like those of one treading the winepress? 3 "I have trodden the winepress alone; from the nations no one was with me. I trampled them in my anger and trod them down in my wrath; their blood spattered my garments, and I stained all my clothing."

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  • Revelation 19:16 "On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS."

    • "robe" - someone with a station of royalty would wear a robe as identification; Jesus was mocked with a purple robe.

      • Psalm 45:3 "Gird your sword on your side, you mighty one; clothe yourself with splendor and majesty."

      • Isaiah 6:1 "In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple."

      • Luke 23:11 "Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate."

      • Revelation 1:13 "and among the lampstands was someone like a son of man, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest."

    • "thigh" - placing a hand on the thigh was a gesture used in swearing an oath, symbolizing binding covenant and authority. 

      • Genesis 24:2–3 "2 He said to the senior servant in his household, the one in charge of all that he had, “Put your hand under my thigh. 3 I want you to swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I am living,"

      • Genesis 47:29 "When the time drew near for Israel to die, he called for his son Joseph and said to him, “If I have found favor in your eyes, put your hand under my thigh and promise that you will show me kindness and faithfulness. Do not bury me in Egypt,"

    • "KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS"

      • Psalm 2:6–8 "6 “I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.” 7 I will proclaim the Lord’s decree: He said to me, “You are my son; today I have become your father. 8 Ask me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession."

      • Daniel 7:13–14 "13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed."

      • Philippians 2:9–11 "9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

      • 1 Timothy 6:14–15 "14 to keep this command without spot or blame until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 which God will bring about in his own time—God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords,"

      • Revelation 17:14 "They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”

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THE ANTI-CHRIST IS DEFEATED

Battle of Har-Megedon (Armageddon): While this battle can be viewed as the Anti-Christ coming against Jerusalem for battle, inversely it is God summoning the Anti-Christ and his followers to Jerusalem for judgment.

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  • Revelation 19:17 "And I saw an angel standing in the sun, who cried in a loud voice to all the birds flying in midair, “Come, gather together for the great supper of God, 18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings, generals, and the mighty, of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, great and small.” 

    • "great" - size, not joyful.  This will be many people dying for their choice to have the mark of the beast.

    • "supper of God" - not the Wedding Supper of the Lamb in Revelation 19:9 as this is an act of judgment. The birds are invited, not people and they are most likely carrion birds that primarily feed on the carcasses of dead animals.

      • Isaiah 35:11 "The desert owl and screech owl will possess it; the great owl and the raven will nest there."

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  • Revelation 19:19 "Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and his army." 

    • Psalm 2:1-8 "1 Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? 2 The kings of the earth rise up
      and the rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, 3 “Let us break their chains and throw off their shackles. 4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. 5 He rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, 6 “I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.” 7 I will proclaim the Lord’s decree: He said to me, “You are my son; today I have become your father. 8 Ask me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession."

    • Daniel 7:26-27 "26 “‘But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever. 27 Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.’ "

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  • Revelation 19:20 "But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed the signs on its behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. "

    • "beast" - see the Anti-Christ Revealed

    • "false prophet" - see the Ministry of the False Prophet

    • "fiery lake of burning sulfur" - (see Hades or Sheol, see Afterlife Slideshow)

      • Daniel 7:9-12 "9 “As I looked, “thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze. 10 A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before him. Thousands upon thousands attended him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The court was seated, and the books were opened. 11 “Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. 12 (The other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.)

        • "Ancient of Days" - God the Father directly gave judgment to the Anti-Christ and the False Prophet

        • "other beasts" - God allowed the red dragon (Satan) and the other component rulers of the Anti-Christ to "live" but without authority of power through the Millennial Reign in preparation for their judgment at the Final Rebellion.

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  • Revelation 19:21 "The rest were killed with the sword coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh."

    • Joel 3:2-3, 12-14 "2 I will gather all nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat [Kidron Valley - see below]. There I will put them on trial for what they did to my inheritance, my people Israel, because they scattered my people among the nations and divided up my land. 3 They cast lots for my people and traded boys for prostitutes; they sold girls for wine to drink... 12 “Let the nations be roused; let them advance into the Valley of Jehoshaphat, for there I will sit to judge all the nations on every side. 13 Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, trample the grapes, for the winepress is full and the vats overflow—so great is their wickedness!” 14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision."

    • Isaiah 34:2 "The Lord is angry with all nations; his wrath is on all their armies. He will totally destroy them, he will give them over to slaughter."

    • Isaiah 34:8 "For the Lord has a day of vengeance, a year of retribution, to uphold Zion’s cause."

    • Hebrews 4:12 "For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."

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Kidron Valley
Kidron Valley

RED DRAGON IS BOUND

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  • Revelation 20:1 "And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain."

    • Same angel that opened the Abyss at the 5th Trumpet

      • Isaiah 22:20-22 "20 “In that day I will summon my servant, Eliakim son of Hilkiah. 21 I will clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash around him and hand your authority over to him. He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the people of Judah. 22 I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open."

      • Revelation 9:1 "The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss."

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  • Revelation 20:2 He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years." 

    • "bound" - Satan and his demonic forces understand being bound for judgment

      • Jude 1:6 "And the angels who did not keep their positions of authority but abandoned their proper dwelling—these he has kept in darkness, bound with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day."

      • Matthew 12:22-29 "22 Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. 23 All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?” 24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.” 25 Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. 26 If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? 27 And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. 28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29 “Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house."

      • 2 Peter 2:4 "For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to [Tartarus - section of Hades] putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment;"

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  • Revelation 20:3 He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time."

    • "the Abyss" - not only was he "thrown" into the Abyss, but he was "chained"

    • the shaft was "locked" - to keep anything in the Abyss from getting out

    • the lock was "sealed" - to warn anyone to not try to enter the Abyss from the outside

      • Daniel 6:17 "A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the rings of his nobles, so that Daniel’s situation might not be changed."

      • Matthew 27:62-66 "62 The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. 63 “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.” 65 “Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard."

      • Colossians 1:13 "For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,"

    • "keep him from deceiving"

      • John 8:44 "44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies."

      • 2 Corinthians 4:4 "The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God."

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MILLENNIAL REIGN

The perspective of the this website is "Premillennialism" meaning Christ will return prior to the 1,000 years and the world will experience the worst time in history prior to his return. It requires all Old Testament prophecies to be read literally. This point in time means that the Kingdom of God or Kingdom of Heaven has come.​​​​ 

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THE GREAT MULTITUDE IN WHITE ROBES

This was a shift from earth to the heavenly throne room. It is a glimpse forward in time to after the Tribulation (this is not linear to the previous verses). 

 

  • Revelation 7:9-10 "9 After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”

    • "great multitude" - saints (Jews and Gentiles) that came out of the the Tribulation

      • Zechariah 2:11 “Many nations will be joined with the Lord in that day and will become my people. I will live among you and you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you."

      • Revelation 20:4 "I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years."

    • "before the throne" - in the 3rd Heaven

    • "white robes" - clothed in the righteousness of Jesus in Revelation 7:14.

    • "palm branches" - celebration; used in the feast of Tabernacles

      • Leviticus 23:39-43 "39 “‘So beginning with the fifteenth day of the seventh month, after you have gathered the crops of the land, celebrate the festival to the Lord for seven days; the first day is a day of sabbath rest, and the eighth day also is a day of sabbath rest. 40 On the first day you are to take branches from luxuriant trees—from palms, willows and other leafy trees—and rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. 41 Celebrate this as a festival to the Lord for seven days each year. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come; celebrate it in the seventh month. 42 Live in temporary shelters for seven days: All native-born Israelites are to live in such shelters 43 so your descendants will know that I had the Israelites live in temporary shelters when I brought them out of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.’”

      • John 12:13 "They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna! ["save"]” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Blessed is the king of Israel!”

    • "salvation belongs" - 

      • Jonah 2:9 "But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the Lord.’”

      • Psalm 62:1 "Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him."

      • Isaiah 12:2 "Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation.”

      • Acts 4:12 "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name [Jesus] under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

      • Ephesians 2:8–9 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast."

      • Titus 3:5 "he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit,"

 

  • Revelation 7:11-12 "All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying: “Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!”

    • Parable of the Lost Sheep

      • Luke 15:5-7 "5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent."

    • Parable of the Lost Coin

      • Luke 15:10 "10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

    • Parable of the Prodigal Son

      • Luke 15:28-32 "28 “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’ 31 “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’”

 

  • Revelation 7:13-14 "Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?” 14 I answered, “Sir, you know.” And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb."

    • Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool."

    • Isaiah 61:10 "I delight greatly in the Lord; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

    • Romans 5:9 "Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!"

    • Hebrews 9:14 "How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!"

    • Revelation 3:5 "The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels."

 

  • Revelation 7:15-17 "Therefore, “they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. 16 ‘Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them,’ nor any scorching heat. 17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; ‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’ ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’ ”

    • Matthew 19:28 "Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel."

    • Acts 3:19-21 "Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, 20 and that he may send the Messiah, who has been appointed for you—even Jesus. 21 Heaven must receive him until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets."

    • Romans 14:17 "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit,"

    • Ephesians 1:10 "to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ."

    • Colossians 1:13 "For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,"

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FIRST RESURRECTION

​The Tribulation saints are resurrected.

​

  • Revelation 20:4 "I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. "

    • "seated those ... to judge"

      • 1 Corinthians 6:2 "Or do you not know that the Lord’s people will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases?"

    • "beheaded" - martyred for belief in Jesus Christ

      • 2 Timothy 2:12 "if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us;"

    • "reigned with Christ"

      • Genesis 49:10 "The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his.

      • Daniel 7:27 "Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.’ "

      • Jeremiah 23:5-6 "“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. 6 In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our Righteous Savior."

      • Romans 8:17 "Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory."

​​

  • Revelation 20:5 "(The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. "

    • "the rest of the dead" - those who were dead without Christ at any time prior, including Jews who rejected a Messiah before their hardening or after the hardening was removed. 

      • John 5:28–29 "28 “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice 29 and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned."

      • Acts 24:15 "15 and I have the same hope in God as these men themselves have, that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked."

      • Revelation 20:12-13 "12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done."

    • "first resurrection"

      • Daniel 12:2 "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt."

      • Luke 14:14 "and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

      • John 5:28–29 "28 “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice 29 and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned."

      • John 6:39 "And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day."

      • Philippians 3:10–11 "10 I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead."

      • 1 Thessalonians 4:16–17 "16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever."

​

  • Revelation 20:6 "Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years."

    • "second death" - see Afterlife Slideshow

    • "priests of God and of Christ"

      • 1 Peter 2:9 "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."

      • Revelation 1:6 "and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen."

      • Revelation 5:10 "You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God,
           and they will reign on the earth.”

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THE FINAL REBELLION

Main Theological Theme - In Revelation, God ends human rebellion and judges Satan permanently; In Ezekiel, God defends His people and sanctifies His name.

​

  • Revelation 20:7-8 "7 When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison 8 and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth—Gog and Magog—and to gather them for battle. In number they are like the sand on the seashore." 

    • "the thousand years" - a theory that the 1,000 years may pertain to rest

      • Assumption #1 - The land shall have a sabbath rest every 7 years

        • Leviticus 25:2–4 "...When you come into the land that I give you, the land shall keep a sabbath to the Lord. For six years you shall sow your field... but in the seventh year there shall be a sabbath of solemn rest for the land..."

        • Leviticus 26:14-16, 33–35 "14 ‘But if you will not listen to me and carry out all these commands, 15 and if you reject my decrees and abhor my laws and fail to carry out all my commands and so violate my covenant, 16 then ... 33 And I will scatter you among the nations... Then the land shall enjoy its Sabbaths as long as it lies desolate... It shall have the rest that it did not have on your Sabbaths when you were dwelling in it."

        • 1406 BC - 586 BC = 490 years; 490 year / 7 years = 70 years

      • Assumption #2 - The 70 years of Jewish exile from the land was punishment and to let the land rest

        • 2 Chronicles 36:20–21 "20 He carried into exile to Babylon the remnant, who escaped from the sword, and they became servants to him and his successors until the kingdom of Persia came to power. 21 The land enjoyed its sabbath rests; all the time of its desolation it rested, until the seventy years were completed in fulfillment of the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah."

          • 586 BC - 70 years = 516 BC

      • Assumption #3 - The Tribulation period is prophetically 1 week

        • Daniel 9:24-27 "24 “Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place. 25 “Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. 26 After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed. 27 He will confirm a covenant with many for one ‘seven.’ In the middle of the ‘seven’ he will put an end to sacrifice and offering. And at the temple he will set up an abomination that causes desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him.

          • 70 "7's" = 70 x 7 = 490 years similar to Parameters #1 & #2.

          • 1 "7" = 7 years for the covenant that is broken by the Anti-Christ.

      • Assumption #4 - God is not constraint by time

        • 2 Peter 3:8 "But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day."

          • 1,000 years is like 1 day

      • Conclusion = The Tribulation is one "7" or 7 years. The Millennial Reign period may be a period of sabbath rest from the Tribulation Period since there was no rest after the "6th day" or "6th year".

    • "four corners of the earth" - global

    • "Gog and Magog" - a reference to Ezekiel 38-39, but not the same event. The differences include:

      • Time-frame - Revelation is after the 1,000-year reign of Christ

        • Ezekiel is before the Rapture event

          • Ezekiel 38:8 – “In future years you will invade a land that has recovered from war...”

          • Ezekiel 38:16 – “In days to come you will invade my land...”

      • Gog's Identity - Revelation is symbolic of global rebellion—no individual person named; represent all nations, not individuals.

        • Ezekiel is a human leader

          • Ezekiel 38:2 “Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal…”

      • Magog's Identity - Revelation are nations from the “four corners of the earth”—universal in scope

        • Ezekiel is a land or people allied with Gog

          • Ezekiel 38:2 “Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog…”

      • Source of the Attack - Revelation is Satan, released after the Millennium, deceiving the nations

        • Ezekiel is the earthly nations led by Gog

          • Ezekiel 38:6 – “...with all your troops and the many nations with you.”

          • Ezekiel 38:15 – “You will come from your place in the far north—you and many nations with you...”

      • Follow-up Event - Revelation is the Great White Throne Judgment and New Heaven/New Earth

 

  • Revelation 20:9 "They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them."

    • Additional differences from Ezekiel reference:

      • Attack Target - Revelation is the City of Jerusalem ("the camp of God's people, the city he loves")

        • Psalm 87:2 "The Lord loves the gates of Zion more than all the other dwellings of Jacob."
        • Psalm 132:13-14 "13 For the Lord has chosen Zion, he has desired it for his dwelling, saying, 14 “This is my resting place for ever and ever; here I will sit enthroned, for I have desired it."
        • Isaiah 62:1 "For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet, till her vindication shines out like the dawn, her salvation like a blazing torch."
        • Joel 3:17 "“Then you will know that I, the Lord your God, dwell in Zion, my holy hill. Jerusalem will be holy; never again will foreigners invade her."

        • Ezekiel is in the country of Israel, living in “peace and safety

          • Ezekiel 38:11 “You will say, ‘I will invade a land of unwalled villages; I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people…’”

      • Divine Response - Revelation is fire from heaven devours the attackers; Satan is cast into the lake of fire

        • Ezekiel is earthquake, hail, fire, pestilence, confusion; Gog is defeated by God

          • Ezekiel 38:19–22 “19 In my zeal and fiery wrath I declare that at that time there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. 20 The fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the beasts of the field, every creature that moves along the ground, and all the people on the face of the earth will tremble at my presence. The mountains will be overturned, the cliffs will crumble and every wall will fall to the ground. 21 I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign Lord. Every man’s sword will be against his brother. 22 I will execute judgment on him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him.”

      • Role of God - Revelation allows Satan’s final test before ending evil permanently

        • Ezekiel brings Gog against Israel to display His holiness and power

          • Ezekiel 38:16 “I will bring you against my land, so that the nations may know me...”

          • Ezekiel 38:23 “And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known…”

  • Revelation 20:10 "And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever."

    • Additional differences from Ezekiel reference:

      • Outcome for Enemy - Revelation is his enemies destroyed; Satan judged eternally

        • Ezekiel is Gog defeated; nations humbled; Israel restored

          • Ezekiel 39:4 “You will fall on the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops...”

          • Ezekiel 39:25–29 "25 “Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will now restore the fortunes of Jacob and will have compassion on all the people of Israel, and I will be zealous for my holy name. 26 They will forget their shame and all the unfaithfulness they showed toward me when they lived in safety in their land with no one to make them afraid. 27 When I have brought them back from the nations and have gathered them from the countries of their enemies, I will be proved holy through them in the sight of many nations. 28 Then they will know that I am the Lord their God, for though I sent them into exile among the nations, I will gather them to their own land, not leaving any behind. 29 I will no longer hide my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit on the people of Israel, declares the Sovereign Lord.

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GREAT WHITE THRONE OF JUDGMENT

​​​

  • Revelation 20:11-15 "11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them."

    • "great white throne" - not the same throne as the judgment [Bēma] seat of Christ in 2 Corinthians, which is reserved toward Believers; this throne is reserved for the wicked.

      • Matthew 13:49 "49 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous"

      • Bēma seat - focused on reward of Believers

        • Romans 8:1 "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,"

        • Romans 14:10–12 "10 You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister [Believers]? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. 11 It is written: “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’” 12 So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God."

        • 1 Corinthians 3:11–15 "11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13 their [Believers] work will be shown for what it is, because the [Judgment] Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. 14 If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. 15 If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames."

        • 2 Corinthians 5:10 "For we [Believers] must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad."

    • "him who was seated on it" - although Jesus and God the Father are one, God delegated judgment to Jesus.

      • Matthew 25:31–32 – "31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep (righteous) from the goats (wicked)."

      • John 5:22 – “Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son.”

      • John 5:27 – “And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.”

      • Acts 10:42 – "He [Jesus] commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead."

    • "earth and heaven fled from his presence"

      • Psalm 114:3–7 "3 The sea looked and fled, the Jordan turned back; 4 the mountains leaped like rams,
        the hills like lambs. 5 Why was it, sea, that you fled? Why, Jordan, did you turn back? 6 Why, mountains, did you leap like rams, you hills, like lambs? 7 Tremble, earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob,"

      • Nahum 1:5–6 "5 The mountains quake before him and the hills melt away. The earth trembles at his presence, the world and all who live in it. 6 Who can withstand his indignation? Who can endure his fierce anger? His wrath is poured out like fire; the rocks are shattered before him."

      • Revelation 6:14 "The heavens receded like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place."

​

  • Revelation 20:12 "And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, c. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books."

    • "the dead" - those who were not part of the First Resurrection, the unredeemed

      • Revelation 20:5 "(The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. "

    • "and books were opened" - these are books of deed recorded; the works, thoughts, actions while a sinner with the blood of Christ as an atonement.

      • Ecclesiastes 12:14 “For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”

      • Matthew 12:36 "But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken."

      • Romans 2:6 “God ‘will give to each person according to what he has done.’ "

    • "the book of life" - known as the Lamb's Book of Life, all who accept Jesus Christ as the Messiah will have the mark of the Holy Spirit and will be written in it.

      • Luke 10:20 “However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

      • Philippians 4:3 “Yes, and I ask you, my true companion, help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.”

​

  • Revelation 20:13 "The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done."

    • "the sea" - it seem odd that scripture would only reference the sea and not the earth where many are buried. I believe that the sea is a metaphoric reference to the unredeemed world or the nations.

      • Psalm 65:7 "who stilled the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, and the turmoil of the nations."

      • Isaiah 17:12-13 "12 Woe to the many nations that rage—they rage like the raging sea! Woe to the peoples who roar—they roar like the roaring of great waters! 13 Although the peoples roar like the roar of surging waters, when he rebukes them they flee far away, driven before the wind like chaff on the hills, like tumbleweed before a gale."

      • Daniel 7:2-3 "Daniel said: “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. 3 Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea."

      • Revelation 13:1 "The dragon stood on the shore of the sea. And I saw a beast coming out of the sea. It had ten horns and seven heads, with ten crowns on its horns, and on each head a blasphemous name."

      • Revelation 17:15 "Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages."

    • "death and Hades" see Afterlife Slideshow, see Hades or Sheol

    • "​according to what they had done" - in the books of deeds

​

  • Revelation 20:14 "Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death."

​

  • Revelation 20:15 "Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire."

    • "thrown into the lake of fire"

      • Matthew 13:40,49 “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age... 49 This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous"

​​​​

A NEW BEGINNING

Every physical thing in the entire universal will be destroyed or remade, and replaced in full and without the corruption of sin. ​​​

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  • Revelation 21:1-8 "1 Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea."

    • "new" - in Greek "kainos" means "newness of kind". The Greek word "neos" is "newness in time". In other words, "kainos" is a new that is different than before, transformed or not a replacement with the same thing.

      • Luke 22:20 "In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new [kainos] covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
      • John 13:34 "A new [kainos] command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
      • Ephesians 4:24 "and to put on the new [kainos] self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness."

      • why new?

        • Job 15:15 "If God places no trust in his holy ones, if even the heavens are not pure in his eyes,"

        • Isaiah 24:5 "The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes
          and broken the everlasting covenant."

        • Psalm 102:25-26 "25 In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. 26 They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. Like clothing you will change them and they will be discarded."

    • "heaven" = see Heaven

    • "sea" - literally any body of water in the land of Israel until the River of Life flows from the throne of God

    • "new heaven and new earth" - entire created environment

      • Isaiah 65:17 “See, I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind."

      • Isaiah 66:22 “As the new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me,” declares the Lord, “so will your name and descendants endure."

      • Ephesians 1:10 "8 ... With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.

      • 2 Peter 3:10-13 "10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare. 11 Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives 12 as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. 13 But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells."

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  • Revelation 21:2 "I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband."

    • "the Holy City" - see the Holy City​

    • "bride"

      • Commentary from John MacArthur (The New Heaven and the New Earth, Part 1 dated 01/08/1995)

        • "Now in Jewish terms there were three parts to a wedding. First was betrothal. And what happened – that’s like an engagement, only it was real serious – families got together and they pledged the two young people to one another, and it was a binding contract, and it was signed and it was settled. And there was a period when the couple did not come together physically at all during the betrothal. It was followed by a period or event called the presentation. Presentation was when the bride was brought out and presented, the groom was brought out; and there was usually a week of feasting. The end of the week there was the ceremony. So you had the betrothal, the presentation, the ceremony; and after the ceremony was over you had the consummation."

        • "It is that magnificent imagery that you see here. The betrothal took place in eternity past, when God wrote the names of His own beloved in the Lamb’s Book of Life from before the foundation of the world. The betrothal took place in eternity past, when God the Father pledged to give to the Son a redeemed humanity that He would choose. The presentation? The presentation occurred at the rapture of the church, when the bride was taken to be with the bridegroom. And for seven years there would be a wonderful feasting."

        • "At the end of that period the ceremony takes place. You could liken the ceremony to the millennial kingdom – the great celebration, the final great feast as the bride and the groom are joined together. And it’s followed by the consummation, which would be like the eternal state."

        • "So he says, “I saw the New Jerusalem coming down, and it’s made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. It’s time for the consummation.” Why does he describe the city that way? Because the city contained the bride, and so he sees it as the bride’s city."

  • Revelation 21:3 "And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God."

    • "God's dwelling place" - in Greek "skēnē theou) means "tabernacle of God"

      • Acts 15:16 "“‘After this I will return and rebuild David’s fallen tent. Its ruins I will rebuild, and I will restore it,"

    • "he will dwell with them" - in Greek "skéné" means "dwelling, tabernacle or tent". In Hebrew "shakan" means “to dwell, abide” and the workd "mishkan" is derived from it to mean "tabernacle". It is the evidence of God's presence and is associated with the Holy Spirit.  Any reference to the 

      • Leviticus 26:11-12 "11 I will put my dwelling place among you, and I will not abhor you. 12 I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be my people."

      • Psalm 73:25-28 "25 Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. 26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. 27 Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. 28 But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds."

      • Psalm 102:25-28 "25 In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. 26 They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. Like clothing you will change them and they will be discarded. 27 But you remain the same, and your years will never end. 28 The children of your servants will live in your presence; their descendants will be established before you.”

      • John 14:1-4 "“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.”

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  • Revelation 21:4-5 " ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” 

    • "tears from their eyes"

      • Isaiah 65:18-19 "17 "18 But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy. 19 I will rejoice over Jerusalem and take delight in my people; the sound of weeping and of crying will be heard in it no more."

    • "no more death" - sin is a disgrace; the removal of sin will remove death

      • Ecclesiastes 3:19–20 ”Surely the fate of human beings is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; humans have no advantage over animals. Everything is meaningless. 20 All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return."

      • Isaiah 25:8 "he will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove his people’s disgrace from all the earth. The Lord has spoken."

    • "old order of things has passed away"

      • 1 John 2:17 "The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever."

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  • Revelation 21:6 "He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life."

    • "It is done" - stated at the end of redemption and judgment
      • Genesis 2:1–2 "Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. 2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work."
      • John 19:30 "When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit."
      • Revelation 16:17 "The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, “It is done!” "
    • "Alpha and Omega" - see Alpha and Omega
    • "Beginning and the End" - see First and Last

      • Ecclesiastes 3:11 "He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end."

    • "spring of the living water" - the Holy Spirit

      • Jeremiah 2:13 "“My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water."

      • John 4:10-14 "10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” 11 “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?” 13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

      • John 7:37-39 "37 On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” 39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified."

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  • Revelation 21:7 "Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children."

    • "inherit all this"

      • new heaven

      • new earth

      • new Jerusalem

      • relationship with God

      • no more death

      • no mourning

      • no crying

      • no pain

      • water of life

    • "I will be there God" 

      • 2 Samuel 7:8-16 "8 “Now then, tell my servant David, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people Israel. 9 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men on earth. 10 And I will provide a place for my people Israel and will plant them so that they can have a home of their own and no longer be disturbed. Wicked people will not oppress them anymore, as they did at the beginning 11 and have done ever since the time I appointed leaders over my people Israel. I will also give you rest from all your enemies. “‘The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you: 12 When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will punish him with a rod wielded by men, with floggings inflicted by human hands. 15 But my love will never be taken away from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.’ ”

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  • Revelation 21:8 "But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”

    • "cowardly" - in Greek "deilois" means a fear rooted in unbelief with no perseverance

      • Joshua 1:9 "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

      • Matthew 10:28 "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell."

      • Mark 4:40 "He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

      • Hebrews 10:38–39 "38 And, “But my righteous[a] one will live by faith. And I take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back.” 39 But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved"

      • Revelation 2:10 (Church of Smyrna) "Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown."

    • "the unbelieving" in Greek "apistois" means faithless or "a" = without, "pistis" = faith

      • Mark 9:19 "“You unbelieving generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.”

      • John 20:27 "Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”

    • "the vile" in Greek "ebdelugmenois" means to be disgusted by, to loathe like a stench because of their moral uncleanness; abominable

      • Proverbs 6:16–19 "16 There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, 18 a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, 19 a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community."

      • Matthew 24:15 "“So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—"

      • Luke 16:15 "He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight."

      • Revelation 17:4–5 "The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. 5 The name written on her forehead was a mystery: Babylon the great the mother of prostitutes, and of the abominations of the earth."

    • "the murderers" - in Greek "phoneusin" means unjustified, intentional homicide

      • Exodus 20:13 "“You shall not murder."

      • John 8:44 "You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies."

      • Romans 13:9 "The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

      • 1 John 3:15 "Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him."

      • Revelation 6:3-4 "3 When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” 4 Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make people kill each other. To him was given a large sword."

    • "the sexually immoral" - in Greek "pornois" means fornicators, immoral people

      • 1 Corinthians 6:13-20 " 13 You say, “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both.” The body, however, is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. 14 By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. 15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! 16 Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.” 17 But whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit. 18 Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. 19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.

      • 1 Thessalonians 4:3 "It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality;"

    • "those who practice magic arts" - in Greek "pharmakois" means sorcerers, poisoner, pharmacist (drugs), occult and witchcraft.

      • Deuteronomy 18:10–12 "10 Let no one be found among you who sacrifices their son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, 11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. 12 Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord; because of these same detestable practices the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you."

      • Galatians 5:19-21 "19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God."

      • Revelation 9:21 "Nor did they repent of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts."

      • Revelation 18:23 "The light of a lamp will never shine in you again. The voice of bridegroom and bride will never be heard in you again. Your merchants were the world’s important people. By your magic spell all the nations were led astray."

    • "the idolaters" - in Greek "eidōlolatrais" means image worshipers. people who worship idols or false gods

      • Exodus 20:3–5 "3 “You shall have no other gods before me. 4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,"

      • Deuteronomy 27:15 "“Cursed is anyone who makes an idol—a thing detestable to the Lord, the work of skilled hands—and sets it up in secret.”

      • Isaiah 44:9–11,20 "9 All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind; they are ignorant, to their own shame. 10 Who shapes a god and casts an idol, which can profit nothing? 11 People who do that will be put to shame; such craftsmen are only human beings. Let them all come together and take their stand; they will be brought down to terror and shame.... 20 Such a person feeds on ashes; a deluded heart misleads him; he cannot save himself, or say, “Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?”

      • Psalm 115:4–8 "4 But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands. 5 They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see. 6 They have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell. 7 They have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk, nor can they utter a sound with their throats. 8 Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them."

      • Ephesians 5:5 "For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God."

    • "liars" - in Greek "pseudesin" means false, not true, wicked

      • Exodus 20:16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor."

      • Deuteronomy 19:15 "One witness is not enough to convict anyone accused of any crime or offense they may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses."

      • John 8:44 "You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

      • Acts 6:13 "They produced false witnesses, who testified, “This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law."

      • 2 Corinthians 4:2-6 "2 Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ."

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new-jerusalem-cube

THE HOLY CITY

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  • Revelation 21:9-11 "One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 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. 11 It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal."

    • "bride" - all of the redeem

      • Ephesians 5:25-30 "25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body."

    • "the Holy City, Jerusalem"

      • Isaiah 52:1 "Awake, awake, Zion, clothe yourself with strength! Put on your garments of splendor, Jerusalem, the holy city. The uncircumcised and defiled will not enter you again."

      • Nehemiah 11:1 "Now the leaders of the people settled in Jerusalem. The rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of every ten of them to live in Jerusalem, the holy city, while the remaining nine were to stay in their own towns."

      • Daniel 9:24 “Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place."

      • Ezekiel 40–48

      • Matthew 4:5 "Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple."

      • Matthew 27:53 "They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people."

      • Hebrews 11:10 "For he [Abraham[ was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

      • Hebrews 12:22-24 "22 But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23 to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel."

      • Hebrews 13:14 "For here [current Jerusalem] we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come."

      • Revelation 3:12 "The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name."

      • Revelation 11:2 "But exclude the outer court; do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will trample on the holy city for 42 months."

    • "glory of God" - see The Light

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measure compare

Note: There does not seem to be a consensus on the exact measurements for a cubit (between 18 to 12 inches).  The measurement of 19.712 correlates to the measurement for "stadia" for the wall length at a 1000:1 ratio to match the Ezekiel passage with Revelation.  Regarding the wall thickness, the measurements correlate at a 24:1 ratio.  Without the knowledge of weight distribution and material strength needed for the engineering and architectural sciences, these numbers present a good representation of the correlation between both biblical passages.

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  • Revelation 21:12-14 "It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. 13 There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. 14 The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb."

    • Ezekiel 48:30-35 "30 “These will be the exits of the city: Beginning on the north side, which is 4,500 cubits long, 31 the gates of the city will be named after the tribes of Israel. The three gates on the north side will be the gate of Reuben, the gate of Judah and the gate of Levi. 32 “On the east side, which is 4,500 cubits long, will be three gates: the gate of Joseph, the gate of Benjamin and the gate of Dan. 33 “On the south side, which measures 4,500 cubits, will be three gates: the gate of Simeon, the gate of Issachar and the gate of Zebulun. 34 “On the west side, which is 4,500 cubits long, will be three gates: the gate of Gad, the gate of Asher and the gate of Naphtali. 35 “The distance all around will be 18,000 cubits. “And the name of the city from that time on will be: 'the LORD is there.' ”

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  • Revelation 21:15-17 "The angel who talked with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city, its gates and its walls. The city was laid out like a square, as long as it was wide. He measured the city with the rod and found it to be 12,000 stadia in length, and as wide and high as it is long. 17 The angel measured the wall using human measurement, and it was 144 cubits thick."

    • Since the new Jerusalem is made by God and not man, it must be measured by angels.

      • Isaiah 54:11-12 "11 “Afflicted city, lashed by storms and not comforted, I will rebuild you with stones of turquoise, your foundations with lapis lazuli. 12 I will make your battlements of rubies, your gates of sparkling jewels, and all your walls of precious stones."

      • Hebrews 11:8-10 "8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God."

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  • Revelation 21:18 "The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. 19 The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth ruby, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth turquoise, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. 21 The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl. The great street of the city was of gold, as pure as transparent glass."

    • "transparent" - so as to not inhibit the light from God for illumination; privacy (due to shame of nakedness) is not needed.

      • Cross Polarized Light - a technique using two polarizing filters oriented perpendicularly to each other in order to effectively blocks most light.  This produces "pure light" which means it is light that cannot be further broken down into different hues. Shining pure light upon certain materials can produce certain results.

        • Isotropic material - materials, when exposed to pure light, do not allow any colors to be seen. In essence, only black is seen.

        • Anisotropic material - materials that can double refract light so that when exposed to pure light, all the colors of the visible spectrum are seen.

          • THE 12 FOUNDATION STONES ARE ANISOTROPIC. (see image below)

      • Video - Pastor David Pawson

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12stonesrev21gems

THE LIGHT OF GOD'S GLORY

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  • Revelation 21:22-27 "22 I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. 23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. 24 The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. 25 On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. 26 The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. 27 Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life."

    • "for the glory of God gives it light" - It is the evidence of God's presence and is associated with the Holy Spirit.  Any reference to in Hebrew "kabad YHWH" or the "glory of the Lord" denoting a sense of heavy Holiness to His presence that can overwhelm or consume those whose sin is not atoned for in some manner. Some rabbinical text call it the Shekinah glory (not mentioned by this name in biblical text).

      • Exodus 40:35 "Moses could not enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle."

      • 2 Chronicles 7:1 "When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple."

      • Psalm 104:2 "The Lord wraps himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent."

      • Isaiah 60:19 "The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you, for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory."

      • Matthew 17:5 "While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

      • John 1:14 "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."

      • 1 Timothy 6:15-16 "15 which God will bring about in his own time—God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, 16 who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen."

      • 2 Peter 1:17 "He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”

      • 1 John 1:5-7 "5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin."

    • "the Lamb is its lamp"

      • Numbers 8:2-3 "2 “Speak to Aaron and say to him, ‘When you set up the lamps, see that all seven light up the area in front of the lampstand.’” 3 Aaron did so; he set up the lamps so that they faced forward on the lampstand, just as the Lord commanded Moses."

        • seven lamps - seven spirits of the Holy Spirit

          • John 16:7 "But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor [Holy Spivey] will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you."

      • Psalm 119:105 "Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path."

      • Matthew 5:14-16 "14 “You [Believers with Christ in them] are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."

      • John 1:1-9 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world."

    • Great reference materials from:

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THE RIVER OF LIFE

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  • Revelation 22:1-6 "1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever. 6 The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God who inspires the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”

    • Connections - people eating fruit from tree of life => Connected to tree of life => Connected to water of life => Connected to Throne of God => Connected to God / the Lamb

    • Paradise - The beginning of Genesis has the Garden of Eden having the river and tree of life was lost, but the end of Revelation has the Holy City at the throne of God has the river and trees of life was it restored. Paradise is made new.

    • "the river of the water of life" - a spring from the Throne of God is its source.

      • Genesis 2:10 "A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters."

      • Psalm 46:4–5 "4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. 5 God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day."

      • Jeremiah 2:13 “My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water."

      • Jeremiah 17:13 "Lord, you are the hope of Israel; all who forsake you will be put to shame. Those who turn away from you will be written in the dust because they have forsaken the Lord, the spring of living water."

      • Ezekiel 47:1-5 "1 The man brought me back to the entrance to the temple, and I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. 2 He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was trickling from the south side. 3 As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. 4 He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. 5 He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross."

      • John 7:37-39 "37 On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” 39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified."

    • "tree of life"

      • Genesis 2:9 "The Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil."

      • Genesis 3:22–24 "22 And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” 23 So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. 24 After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life."

      • Ezekiel 47:6-12 "6 He asked me, “Son of man, do you see this?” Then he led me back to the bank of the river. 7 When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. 8 He said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, where it enters the Dead Sea. When it empties into the sea, the salty water there becomes fresh. 9 Swarms of living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will be large numbers of fish, because this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh; so where the river flows everything will live. 10 Fishermen will stand along the shore; from En Gedi to En Eglaim there will be places for spreading nets. The fish will be of many kinds—like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea. 11 But the swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt. 12 Fruit trees of all kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every month they will bear fruit, because the water from the sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food and their leaves for healing.”

      • Revelation 2:7 "Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God."

    • "no more curse"

      • Genesis 2:25 "15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16 And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17 but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”

      • Genesis 3:17–19 "17 To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’ “Cursed is the ground because of you;
        through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. 18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.”

      • Deuteronomy 30:19 "This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live

      • Romans 8:20–21 "20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God."

      • Galatians 3:13 "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us...”

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