Endtime Insights

The Life-Giving Spirit

2023-06-18T10:55:00.001-07:00

Jesus declared that “the Spirit makes alive [‘quickens’]. The flesh profits nothing. The words which I have spoken to you are spirit, and they are life.” His words echo the scriptural principle that life and the “Spirit of God” are inextricably linked. The “flesh” is not inherently evil, but it has no life without the Spirit that God gives.

And the gift of the Spirit is associated with the prophesied New Covenant and the dawning of the “last days,” the era of the Messiah and Fulfillment. The Spirit’s presence among God’s people characterizes the messianic age and is a foretaste of the resurrection life to come when Jesus arrives at the end of the age.

[Photo by Andrey Andreyev on Unsplash]

Thus, when the Spirit was poured out on the Day of Pentecost, it was in fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy - “IN THE LAST DAYS, says the Lord, I will pour out my Spirit on your sons and daughters” - (Joel 2:28, Acts 2:17).

In John 6:63, the Greek word rendered “makes alive” or “quicken” is zôopoieô; literally, “to make alive” (Strong’s – #G2227), a combination of the noun zôon - a “living being” - and the verb poieô - “to make.” Thus, the sense is to “cause to live, quicken, vitalize.”

And the “words” spoken by Jesus are “spirit” because they originate from the “Father of spirits,” God Himself. And above all, his words are the source of “everlasting life” – (Hebrews 12:9).

“For I speak not from myself; but the Father that sent me, he has given me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. And I know that his commandment is life everlasting; the things, therefore, which I speak, even as the Father has said to me, so I speak” – (John 12:49).

The Apostle Paul uses the same verb, zôopoieô, to make a similar point to the Corinthians, namely, that the “spirit makes alive” - for the letter kills, but the spirit quickens” - (2 Corinthians 3:6).

The “letter of the law” condemns mortal men to death for sin. And only the Spirit of God can impart life with or without the Mosaic law and write the law of God on the hearts of His children - (Jeremiah 31:31-34).

COVENANT AND RESURRECTION

The Spirit of God is the vital element that establishes, characterizes, and sustains the “New Covenant.” Without it, there is no life and no everlasting covenant, and God’s sons and daughters will remain powerless to fulfill the “righteous requirements of the Law.” Paul makes a similar point in his epistle to the churches of Rome:

(Romans 8:10-11) – “And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he that raised up Christ Jesus from the dead will quicken also to your mortal bodies through his Spirit that dwells in you.”

By this, he means especially the gift of the Spirit received by every true believer. Just as God’s Spirit raised Jesus from the dead and gave him an immortal body, so the same Spirit will “quicken” our mortal bodies with everlasting life at the future resurrection.

And because bodily resurrection is an act of new creation - we will receive a new immortal body - the Spirit is intimately involved in “quickening our mortal bodies” – (1 Corinthians 15:51-57).

The Spirit of God is His creative and life-sustaining power, and this idea is not unique to the New Testament. Paul is building on the firm foundation already laid in the Hebrew Bible. For example, the claim that God’s spoken word creates life, and the connection of His words to the Spirit, appear in the Psalms - “By the word of Yahweh, the heavens were made, and by the spirit of his mouth, all their host” - (Psalm 33:6).

The entire universe was created by His Spirit, and man is dependent on the Spirit for sustaining and renewing life.

CREATION

And the Psalmist expands on what was written centuries earlier in the first passages of the Book of Genesis when the Spirit of Yahweh created the Cosmos and all that followed - “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was waste and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep: and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light” - (Genesis 1:1-3).

In the Genesis account, before God created anything, His Spirit was “brooding” over the face of the waters. This translates the Hebrew verb râkhaph (Strong’s #H7363), and it suggests the image of a female bird “brooding” over her nest and hatchlings - (compare Deuteronomy 32:9-11).

The presence of the Spirit at the creation indicates just how pivotal God’s Spirit is to the creation and the continuance of life. That the Spirit is seen as “brooding” suggests more than just caring for the universe. It anticipates the creation of His crowning achievement, Adam.

“And Yahweh formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul” – (Genesis 2:7).

In the preceding passage, “breathed” translates the Hebrew term naphach from a root verb with the sense “puff, to blow” (Strong’s #H5301). “Living soul” represents the noun nephesh from the same root, meaning a “breathing creature” (Strong’s #H5315).

Thus, the stress is on breath, the act of breathing. As Job wrote, the “Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life,” connecting the “Spirit of God” to His “breath of life” – (Job 33:4),

THE LAST ADAM

The same passage in the Book of Genesis is cited by Paul in his letter to the Corinthians when explaining the resurrection body:

(1 Corinthians 15:42-45) – “So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So also it is written, The first man Adam became a living soul; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit.”

The Apostle contrasts the body of Adam, the “first man,” with the resurrection bodies of believers. The first man’s body was corruptible, weak, natural, and, in the end, subject to death. In contrast, the resurrection body will not decay or die, it will be raised in power,” it will be a “spiritual body,” that is, an embodied existence dominated by the Spirit.

Jesus is the “last Adam,” the forerunner of all resurrected saints. But he differs in one key regard. Because of his resurrection, he is also the “life-giving spirit.” From now on, he alone has the authority to impart life through the Spirit of God. As Paul clarifies, the future resurrection of the righteous is based on his past resurrection.

It is the Spirit that regenerates the hearts of sinners and empowers them to conform to the image of God’s Son in the present evil age, and the same Spirit will impart immortality to the saints at the end of this ag when Jesus “arrives” from heaven.

In the Bible, the Spirit of God is the source of all life, including the future immortal bodies of resurrected saints. And in Scripture, the “Spirit” speaks of God as the creative source of all things, especially of His power to create, sustain, renew, and, when necessary, restore life. Without His Spirit, there is no life, either now, “in these last days,” or in the coming “new heavens and new earth.”

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Heirs of the Promise

2023-06-15T15:26:00.000-07:00

The “promise of the Father” is the gift of the Holy Spirit, and the Apostle Paul links it to the Abrahamic covenant. Its promises find their fulfillment in the New Covenant inaugurated by Jesus. The bestowal of the Spirit marked the commencement of the “last days,” the time of fulfillment. Moreover, Paul equates the “promise of the Spirit” with the “blessings of Abraham.”

The original covenant always envisioned the inclusion of the Gentiles, a point Paul uses when contending in Galatia for the acceptance of Gentile believers in the covenant community, without requiring their circumcision.

[Photo by Preston Browning on Unsplash]

All men and women who belong to Jesus are now “Abraham’s seed, heirs according to promise,” and “in Christ,” the old divisions between “Jew and Gentile” no longer apply. In fact, they are wholly inappropriate.

CHILDREN OF ABRAHAM

The inclusion of the Gentiles in the covenant was not an afterthought but was always integral to the original promise. And the gift of the Spirit is received from faith. It is not based on circumcision, or the other rituals required by the Torah - (Galatians 3:1-4, 3:14).

(Ephesians 1:13-14) – “In whom, you also are hearing the word of the truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom also believing, were sealed with the Spirit of the promise, which is an earnest of our inheritance, for the redemption of the acquisition; for his glorious praise.”

The Spirit is the “earnest,” the “down payment” that guarantees our future participation in the full inheritance, and the references in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians to the “inheritance” and “acquisition” allude to the original promise of land made to Abraham. Thus, Paul connects the gift of the Spirit to the covenant with Abraham, including its promise of a homeland - (Genesis 17:8).

Likewise, Jesus called the gift of the Spirit the “promise of the Father.” And before his ascension, he commanded his disciples to wait in Jerusalem until they received the Spirit, then they would become his “witnesses to the uttermost parts of the earth” - (Luke 24:49, Acts 1:4).

PROPHECY FULFILLED

In his sermon delivered on the Day of Pentecost, Peter declares that the outpouring of the Spirit is according to the prophecy in the book of Joel - “IN THE LAST DAYS, God will pour out His Spirit on all flesh” - (Genesis 17:7-10, Joel 2:28-32, Acts 2:38-39).

The presence of the Spirit in the church demonstrates that the “last days” are underway, the era of fulfillment that will continue until the return of Jesus.

The gift of the Spirit is how men and women receive the “blessings of Abraham,” or at least, the first installment. By the Spirit, men from every nation find themselves blessed with faithful Abraham – heirs of the promises and members of the covenant community.

The actualization of the promises began with the outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. Since then, every man and woman who receives the gift becomes a “child of Abraham,” and therefore, the old boundary lines that previously divided Jew from Gentile have no place in the community formed by Jesus Christ - (Galatians 3:27-29).

CIRCUMCISION OF THE HEART

The Mosaic legislation itself anticipated the need for something beyond the Law. The Torah cannot complete what God began with Abraham, and inevitably, Israel violated the covenant.

However, as Moses warned, after chastisement and repentance, the nation would “return to Yahweh and obey His voice,” and God would gather His people from all nations and “circumcise their hearts to love Him” - (Deuteronomy 30:1-6).

The themes of renewal and circumcision of the heart are taken up by the prophet Jeremiah. God “will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah,” but not like the covenant that He made at Sinai.

With the outpouring of the Spirit, God is writing His laws on the hearts of His people, and the promised circumcision of the heart is being realized in the body of Christ - (Jeremiah 31:31-34, Hebrews 8:6-13).

The Book of Ezekiel adds the aspect of the Spirit to the “New Covenant.” When Yahweh gathers the children of Israel, He will put “a new spirit” in them, and thereby, He will “cause them to walk in His statutes.”

Ezekiel combines the promises of Spirit, circumcised heart, and New Covenant. Thus, the covenant promises are linked to and dependent on the receipt of the Spirit by God’s people - (Ezekiel 36:16-28, 37:25-28, 2 Corinthians 3:1-6).

Consistently, the New Testament applies the promises made to Abraham to the gift of the Spirit that is now granted freely to Jewish and Gentile followers of Jesus who constitute the “body of Christ,” the church.

And that gift is called the “promise of the Father” and the “blessing of Abraham.” It is the identifying sign of the people of God, and the Spirit provides believers with the power to walk in the New Covenant and thereby fulfill the “righteous requirements of the Law.”

[Download PDF copy from Google Drive]

Spirit and Inheritance

2023-06-15T14:04:00.000-07:00

The history of Israel includes national sins that resulted in her expulsion from the promised land. But God foresaw her failures and determined beforehand to institute a new covenant that would be energized and characterized by His Spirit, and one that would include the Gentiles. And the promised New Covenant would culminate in the resurrection from the dead and the “new heavens and the new earth.”

With the death and resurrection of Jesus, a new era dawned - the “last days,” the age of fulfillment. In him, all God’s covenant promises began to find their intended fulfillment.

[Photo by Jachan DeVol on Unsplash]

And this included the promised New Covenant with the gift of the Spirit. As promised in the Hebrew scriptures, when Israel repented wholeheartedly, the God of Abraham would gather her “from among all the peoples where Yahweh your God has scattered you,” He would “multiply you beyond your fathers, and “circumcise your heart to love Him with all your heart and with all your soul that you may live” - (Deuteronomy 30:3-6).

Two things in the passage from Deuteronomy are noteworthy. First, God planned to “multiply Israel beyond her forebears.” “Multiply” translates the same Hebrew verb found in the call to Adam to be “fruitful and multiply,” and in God’s promise to multiply Abraham’s seed - (Genesis 1:28, 17:2).

Second, the restoration would occur when God “circumcised Israel’s heart” and inscribed His laws on it, an internal change promised in the Scriptures and actualized by His Spirit under the “new covenant” - (Jeremiah 31:31-34, Ezekiel 11:19-20).

IN JESUS

Thus, the promised restoration was far more expansive and glorious than anything the ancient nation of Israel ever imagined. In the end, it will be a new creative act that impacts all the nations of the earth, indeed, the creation itself - (Isaiah 65:17-18, Romans 8:20-23, Revelation 21:1-3).

In the New Testament, His promises are fulfilled in Jesus of Nazareth as God implements His new covenant, and this includes the promised “circumcised heart” and the gift of the “Spirit.”

Jesus came to fulfill the “Law and the Prophets.” The Jews who saw him experienced something “greater than Jonah,” “greater than Solomon,” “greater than David,” and greater than the Temple. In him, God’s kingdom was inaugurated and began its inexorable march across the earth - (Matthew 5:17-21, 12:6, 12:28, 12:41-42).

Having established the “New Covenant,” Jesus commenced building his community based on the “new covenant in his blood.” But in this new messianic age, his covenant community would be formed around and centered on him, not the land of Canaan or the Temple in Jerusalem - (Acts 3:24-26, Acts 10:42-43, 13:18-33).

To the Apostle Paul, “All the promises of God find their ‘Yea’ and ‘Amen’ in Jesus.” He ascended on high “that he might fulfill all things.” The jurisdiction of the Torah was only for a limited time - “until Christ came,” the true seed of Abraham - and in him, all those who have faith in the word of God as the Patriarch did become the “children of Abraham” - (2 Corinthians 1:20, Galatians 3:24, Romans 10:4).

THE GENTILES

Jesus became the Suffering Servant portrayed in the Book of Isaiah who “confirms the promises to the fathers so that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy.” Thus, the promised “blessing for the nations” is fulfilled in him. He has expanded the covenant far beyond the limited boundaries of the land of Canaan - (Romans 15:8-9).

Prior to his death, the Gentiles were “separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.” However, “those who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” The promises to regather God’s people are fulfilled as both Jews and Gentiles respond in faith to the gospel.

From the beginning, God’s purpose was “to sum up all things in Christ in the fullness of the times,” and that includes the redemption of the nations, indeed of the creation itself - (Ephesians 1:10, 2:11-13).

When referring to the promised land, the Hebrew Bible employs the terms “inheritance,” “inherit,” “heir,” and “promise.” In the New Testament, the same terms are applied to what God is accomplishing in His Son and the new covenant community organized around him. He is the heir of all things, and in him, his “brethren” become his “coheirs” - (Matthew 21:38, 28:18, John 13:3, Colossians 1:12-13, 1 Peter 1:3-5).

The gift of the Spirit confirms the status of believers. They are the “children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ.” Anyone who has received the Spirit becomes part of his covenant community regardless of ethnicity, nationality, or gender. The salvation provided by Jesus is a universal offer of life to all men, women, and children.

HEIRS

Christ is Abraham’s true “seed,” and as partners with him, disciples also become “heirs according to promise.” Moreover, the Spirit is the “earnest of our inheritance for the redemption of the possession” - (Romans 8:16-17, Galatians 3:29, Ephesians 1:13-14).

He is “the mediator of the new covenant, that a death having taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first covenant, they that have been called may receive the promise of the everlasting inheritance.”

He implemented the New Covenant by becoming the heir of Abraham. Consequently, all who are “in Christ” are coheirs with him and destined to receive the same inheritance. Everyone who belongs to him already participates in the blessings of the “age to come” - (Romans 8:1-23, 2 Corinthians 3:4-6, Hebrews 8:6-13, 9:15).

The bodily resurrection of Jesus was an act of new creation. God did not resuscitate a corpse but gave him a glorious new body that is no longer subject to death and decay. And that means his resurrection inaugurated the New Creation, although there is an overlap between the existing age and the coming one - (1 Corinthians 15:42-50, 2 Corinthians 5:17).

And the arrival of the new creation means the redefinition of the boundaries of the land promised to Abraham. As Paul wrote to the church in Rome, Abraham will “inherit the world,” and not just a tiny strip of land in the Middle East - (Romans 4:13).

Moreover, his disciples are also his coheirs. Their final hope will be realized in the bodily resurrection at the end of the age when Jesus returns. At present, the creation itself “sighs and travails in birth pangs” as it “ardently awaits the revelation of the sons of God.”

Both humanity and the entire universe are subject to decay and death due to Adam’s “transgression.” But God will reverse the curse when His sons receive the redemption of their bodies at the arrival of Jesus in glory. In the interim, they have the Spirit as the “first fruits” of and the down payment on the final redemption - (Romans 8:17-23).

The New Creation is the ultimate inheritance of believers. According to his promise, “we look for the new heavens and the new earth wherein dwells righteousness,” and in it, “God will tabernacle with men, and they will be his people.”

When that day arrives, He will wipe away every tear and death will cease forevermore - “Behold, I make all things new!” - (2 Peter 3:13, Revelation 21:1-7).

Thus, the promised “New Covenant” and “New Creation” both began with the death and resurrection of Jesus, and humanity entered the “last days,” a process that is underway and one that will culminate in the resurrection of the righteous dead and the implementation of the “new heavens and the new earth” when Jesus returns.

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Call His Name 'Jesus'

2023-06-11T09:16:00.002-07:00

An angel appeared to Joseph informing him that Mary was with child “begotten of the Holy Spirit.” He was instructed to name the child ‘Jesus.’ As the angel declared, call his name Jesus for “he will save his people from their sins.” His name links him to the saving act accomplished by God for His people as promised in the Hebrew Bible.

[Jesus - Photo by Eran Menashri on Unsplash]

When his name is spelled ‘Jesus,’ it is an anglicized form of the Aramaic name ‘Joshua’ or ‘Yeshua,’ a name that is the shortened and popular form of the older Hebrew name ‘Ye-hoshua.’

(Matthew 1:20-21) - “Now, when he had pondered these things, behold, by a dream, an angel of the Lord appeared to him, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David! Fear not to take unto you Mary your wife, for that in her has been begotten is of the Holy Spirit. Moreover, she will bring forth a son, and YOU WILL CALL HIS NAME JESUS, FOR HE WILL SAVE HIS PEOPLE FROM THEIR SINS.”

‘JOSHUA’

The very first verse of Matthew identifies Jesus as the “son of Abraham.” This is more than one name among many in a genealogy. Not only is he the biological descendant of Abraham, but he also came to fulfill the promises made to the Patriarch, and Matthew’s gospel demonstrates this in several ways.

For example, the announcement to Joseph is conceptually parallel to the prediction made to Abraham about his firstborn son by Sarah. That occurred when he was ninety-nine years old, and Sarah was ninety. Though not a virgin, she was well beyond childbearing age, making her pregnancy miraculous.

And like the angel’s announcement to Joseph, Abraham received his son’s name by divine appointment:

(Genesis 17:19) – “And God said, Nay, but Sarah your wife will bear you a son; and YOU WILL CALL HIS NAME ISAAC, and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his seed after him.”

Just as the angel announced his name to Joseph - “Jesus” - the one who “saves his people from sin,” so God commanded Abraham to name his son “Isaac” since through him He established His covenant “for his seed after him.”

In the Old Testament, the name ‘Jesus’ or ‘Joshua’ appears first in the book of Exodus - “And Moses said to JOSHUA, choose for us men and go out, fight with Amalek.” That man’s original name was ‘Hoshea,’ the “son of Nun,” one of the twelve men sent by Moses to investigate the land of Canaan. Later, Moses changed it from ‘Hoshea’ to ‘Joshua,’ or more correctly, ‘Yehoshua’ - (Numbers 13:1-8, Exodus 17:9).

The name ‘Hoshea’ means “salvation, deliverance, help.” It is derived from the Hebrew verb for “save, help, deliver”; that is, yasha (Strong’s - #H3467). For example:

(Exodus 14:30) - “Thus Yahweh SAVED Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians.”

(Deuteronomy 20:4) - “For Yahweh your God is the one who goes with you …TO SAVE you.”

By prefixing the first syllable from the Hebrew name of God or Yahweh to Hoshea, the name became Ye-hoshua. In several of the later books of the Hebrew Bible, the second syllable is dropped, and the name is contracted to Yeshua. The change reflects growing Aramaic influences on the Jewish people as a result of the Babylonian Captivity - (Nehemiah 8:17, Ezra 2:2).

‘YAHWEH SAVES’

Thus, the name ‘Jesus’ means more than simply “savior.” It is a combination of the name Yahweh and the Hebrew word for “save” or “salvation.”

His name means “Yahweh saves” or “salvation of Yahweh.” And so, the PROMISED SALVATION OF THE ONE GOD OF ISRAEL CAME TO FRUITION IN HIS MESSIAH – Jesus of Nazareth.

And the angel’s announcement that “he will save his people from their sins” echoes key themes from the so-called ‘Servant’s Song’ in the book of Isaiah, and deliberately so:

(Isaiah 53:5) – “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our sins; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and WITH HIS STRIPES, WE ARE HEALED.”

(Isaiah 53:10-11) – “Yet it pleased Yahweh to bruise him; he has put him to grief: when you will make his soul an offering for sin, he will see his seed, he will prolong his days, and the pleasure of Yahweh will prosper in his hand. He will see of the travail of his soul and be satisfied; by the knowledge of himself WILL MY RIGHTEOUS SERVANT JUSTIFY MANY, AND HE WILL CARRY THEIR SINS.”

The genealogy of Jesus presented in the Gospel of Matthew begins with Abraham, the Great Patriarch and progenitor of Israel. Jesus, the Messiah of Israel, is the “son of Abraham,” the promised “seed” who brings the covenant promises to fulfillment.

Likewise, he is the “son of David,” the prophesied “son” and Davidic king who rules from Zion. The Nazarene is the one who establishes the “salvation of Yahweh,” ushers in the long-awaited kingdom of God, and the era of salvation for humanity.

He is the Greater Joshua, the national leader who delivers the saints from bondage to Satan and leads them to the true and greater ‘Promised Land’ in the kingdom of God. And so, in the truest sense, Jesus is the one who “saves his people from their sins.”

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End-Time People

2023-06-09T10:49:00.003-07:00

The book of Revelation is addressed to seven first-century churches in Asia, and it deals with their real-life situations and trials. In the process, it presents messages relevant to all churches throughout the present age. Their daily struggles are a microcosm of the great cosmic battle being waged between Jesus and the Devil.

Every man and woman who heeds the book’s message is pronounced “blessed,” especially since the “season is at hand.” This clause alludes to the passage in Daniel where the prophet is commanded “to seal the scroll until the season of the end.”

In contrast, John is commanded NOT to seal the book since “the season is at hand.” What for Daniel was in a remote future is now a reality for the “seven churches” – (Daniel 12:4, Revelation 1:3, 22:10).

THE LAST DAYS

All this reflects the consistent New Testament message that history’s final era, the “last days,” began following the death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. Satan, sin, and death, all were defeated decisively on the cross of Calvary.

And following his resurrection, Jesus was exalted to reign “at the right hand of God,” and consequently, he poured out the Holy Spirit, empowering his church to proclaim his sovereignty throughout the earth. The bestowal of the Spirit was and is irrefutable evidence that the “last days” are underway – (Acts 2:17-21, Hebrews 1:1-3).

In Revelation, the followers of Jesus are labeled “saints,” the “servants of God,” the “seed of the woman,” the “kingdom of priests,” “brethren,” and the people who “have the testimony of Jesus,” “keep the faith of Jesus,” and have “washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb.”

What determines membership in this end-time company is one’s identification with the “slain Lamb” - our allegiance to and emulation of the Nazarene.

The book is addressed to the “servants of God,” and they are identified as members of the “seven churches of Asia.” They have been “loosed from their sins” by the blood of Jesus and thereby constituted a “kingdom of priests.”

The latter phrase is found in the book of Exodus where Yahweh summons Israel to the same mission. However, that nation failed in this task, and it has now fallen to the churches of the “Lamb” to execute it - (Exodus 19:4-6).

When the “nationality” of God’s saints is revealed, they are identified as the men who have been redeemed by Christ’s lifeblood from “every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation” - (Revelation 5:8-10, 7:9-17).

DRAGON AND BEAST

The Great Adversary of the “Lamb” and his people is the “Great Red Dragon,” that “Ancient Serpent” who is called the “Devil and Satan,” the one who is “deceiving the inhabitants of the earth.”

Having failed to destroy the “son,” he is expelled from the heavenly courtroom. Subsequently, through his earthly vassals, he has been “waging war” against Jesus by persecuting his last days' people on the earth. Thus, the Devil’s war against the “woman’s seed” plays out on the earth as the “beast” is granted authority to “make war against the saints” - (Revelation 12:8-17, 13:7).

And in Revelation, martyrdom is not unexpected, and neither does it constitute a defeat for the saints. Satanic forces can only attack them when authorized to do so since the “Lamb” that “sits on the throne” remains in firm control of events on the earth.

And the “saints” are identified as those “that keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.” It is their identification with the “slain Lamb” – with Jesus - that enrages the “Dragon” - (Revelation 12:17, 13:6-10, 14:12).

In the end, the “Beast” and the “Kings of the Earth” unite to wage a final “war” against the “Lamb.” In describing that battle, John uses language from Ezekiel’s vision of “Gog and Magog.”

However, in Revelation, the attacking force consists of the nations from the “four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog…and they ascended over the breadth of the earth and encompassed the camp of the saints.” This describes the final worldwide assault against the church, Satan’s last-ditch effort to annihilate the “saints” – (Revelation 16:2-16, 17:14, 19:11-21, 20:7-10).

These cosmic battles portrayed so graphically manifest in the daily struggles of the churches. The evidence for this is found in the letters to the “seven churches of Asia.”

For example, the church at Pergamos lives in the shadow of “Satan’s throne.” The saints in Smyrna are under assault from members of the “synagogue of Satan.” Though local magistrates throw some members “into prison,” Jesus lays the blame for this squarely on Satan (“The devil is about to cast some of you into prison”). Members of the church in Thyatira are being deceived by “Jezebel,” a surrogate and agent for the “Great Harlot, Babylon” who is teaching the “deep things of Satan.”

In the province of Asia, the churches are battling “false apostles,” compromise, apathy, the “Nicolaitans,” the adherents of the “teachings of Balaam,” persecution, and so on, all attempts by the “Dragon” to deceive and derail believers. Satan’s war is with the “Lamb.” However, he cannot attack Jesus directly, so he seeks to destroy his people through his surrogates on earth.

SUFFERING FOR THE KING

None of this means the visions of Revelation amount to allegories intended to teach Christians how to live. The temptations, sufferings, and persecutions endured by the “churches of Asia” are all too real, just as has been the case with the church throughout the present age.

The attacks by the “Dragon” are deadly serious and have eternal consequences. And the war between the “Ancient Serpent” and the “Lamb” does consummate with the final assault against God’s people and the judgment of the wicked before the “Great White Throne of Judgment.”

But when we focus only or primarily on the end of the book, we lose sight of its relevance for every disciple of Jesus throughout the existence of the church. Nor does Revelation picture believers as mere pawns stuck between two great warring powers.

It is the “Lamb” who redeemed them “by his blood,” and the same sacrificial “Lamb” who will vindicate them in the end. Already they have been “loosed from their sins”; already they are a “kingdom of priests” and are “reigning with him on the earth.” Our final victory over sin, Satan, and death is a foregone conclusion.

In the interim, Jesus summons us to “overcome,” and thereby we qualify to reign with him and partake of the glories of “New Jerusalem.” And we do this through “perseverance,” faithful “testimony,” by recognizing and rejecting the lies of the Devil, understanding the true nature of our struggle, and emulating the self-sacrificial service of the “slain Lamb.”

As Revelation puts it, the “brethren overcame the Dragon by the blood of the Lamb, the word of their testimony, and because they loved not their lives unto death.” And by recognizing just “WHO” and “WHEN” we are – the people of the last days - we learn how we must live in the present - “in these last days.”

Already, the present age and its institutions are “passing away.” They will not endure forever, and we must live accordingly. Both individually and corporately, we are “caught between the ages,” still living in the old fallen age, but at the same time, citizens of the “New Jerusalem” that even now is “descending from heaven.”

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The Ends of the Ages

2023-06-09T08:48:00.004-07:00

The Apostle Paul links the start of the “last days” with the death and resurrection of the Son of God. The time of fulfillment has arrived, and all God’s promises now find their “yea and amen” in the risen Nazarene. “In these last days,” God has “spoken” His definitive “word” in His Son who now reigns from His “right hand.”

And Paul declares that the church consists of those men and women upon whom the “ends of the ages have come.” While the term “last days” is not frequent in his letters, he does demonstrate his understanding that History’s final era has commenced with the death and resurrection of Jesus; therefore, nothing will ever be the same again.

ENDS OF THE AGES

To the Greek-speaking congregation in Corinth, he identifies key events from the Hebrew Bible as “types,” examples for the followers of Jesus, the very ones “upon whom the ends of the ages have arrived.”

In the wilderness, God provided Israel with “spiritual drink” from the “spiritual rock,” and it prefigured Jesus (for “the rock was Christ”). Such pivotal events provide examples and patterns for Christians so they will no longer live after the ways and dictates of this fallen age - (1 Corinthians 10:11).

And, in the Greek sentence, Paul uses the plural forms of “ages” and “ends.” The term telos or “end” may signify the termination of something, but also its “goal.” And in his letter, both senses are in view - termination and goal.

Jesus expresses the same thought in his parable of the Wheat and Tares that are “gathered at the consummation of the age.” “Consummation” translates a compound Greek word built on telos - sunteleia.

Similarly, the book of Hebrews declares that Jesus “once, in the consummation (sunteleia) of the ages, has appeared to put away sin by his sacrifice” - (Matthew 13:36-44, Hebrews 9:26).

Thus, In Christ, one era reached its endpoint while another commenced. That transition was due to Jesus - his death, resurrection, and exaltation. And so, the “ends of the ages” have come upon the disciples of Jesus.

To the churches in Rome, the Apostle writes that the arrival of Jesus signifies the “end (telos) of the Law for righteousness to everyone who believes.” The literary context is clear - By “law,” Paul means the legislation given at Mount Sinai. Whether he means its termination or goal, his statement indicates a fundamental change in status and era - (Romans 10:1-4).

CUSTODIANSHIP OF THE LAW

To the churches in Galatia, Paul answers the question – “Why, then, the law?” Noteworthy is how he places its jurisdiction within a finite period.

The law was “added because of transgressions until the seed should come to whom the promise was made.” The law was given over four hundred years after the promise was confirmed to Abraham. The promise takes precedence over the law - (Galatians 3:19-25).

The law served as the “custodian” of God’s people “until the faith that should afterward be revealed.” Since that faith has arrived, God’s people are no longer under the custodian with its divisions between Jews and Gentiles:

Therefore, “all are sons of God through faith, in Christ Jesus; there cannot be Jew nor Greek, bond nor free, male and female…you are Abraham’s heirs according to promise” – (Galatians 3:19-29).

FULLNESS OF TIME

And in the “fullness of time,” God sent his Son “to redeem them under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons, and because we are sons God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts” – (Galatians 4:1-6).

And so, Paul links the “promise of Abraham,” the inheritance, redemption, and the “fullness of time” to the arrival of Jesus, along with the “adoption” of God’s children and the gift of the Spirit. His arrival in history signified a fundamental change in the law and the status of the one people of God – (Galatians 3:1-4).

His first arrival marks the commencement of the “fullness of time,” the point when the saints cease to be minors under the custodianship of the law and instead become heirs of the promises to Abraham. To now return to the “elemental things” of the old order is nothing less than regression - (Galatians 4:9-11).

And all this means a radical change in the era and in the status of God’s people took place due to his death and resurrection. Paul uses similar language when describing what Christ accomplished for his people when writing to the church in Ephesus:

(Ephesians 1:9-11) - “Making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him, for an administration of the fullness of the seasons, to reunite for himself, under one head, all things in the Messiah, the things upon the heavens and the things upon the earth, in him. In whom also we were taken as an inheritance, according to the purpose of him who energizes all things according to the counsel of his will.”

Here, he uses the more pregnant term “seasons” rather than “time,” and in the plural number to stress how Jesus was and is the goal of God’s plans in all eras - past, present, and future.

PRESENT AGE FADING

Paul addresses marital relationships in 1 Corinthians. Should Christians continue in such relationships considering the “present distress?” The short answer is - “yes.” Husbands and wives must fulfill their mutual obligations, and the unmarried are free to marry, but only “in the Lord.”

Nevertheless, he places the institution of marriage in its proper place. Disciples must keep their priorities straight, for since the advent of Christ the “time is shortened, therefore, let those that have wives may be as though they had none, and let those that buy as though they possessed not… the fashion of this world is passing away” - (1 Corinthians 7:29-31).

The present tense verb rendered “passing away” stresses ongoing action. Even now, the world and its institutions are in the process of dissolution because of this change in eras. Similarly, in his second letter to the Corinthians, Paul writes:

(2 Corinthians 5:15-17) - “Having judged this, that one in behalf of all died, hence, they all died; and in behalf of all died he, in order that, they who live, no longer for themselves should live, but for him who, in their behalf, died and rose again. So that we, henceforth, know no one after the flesh: if we have even been gaining after the flesh a knowledge of Christ. On the contrary, now, no longer are we gaining it. So that, if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation! the old things have passed away. Behold, they have become new!”

Thus, Jesus inaugurated the promised new creation, and its implementation has already begun.

The “old” order is passing away and the “new” one is dawning, initially in the church. There is both continuity and discontinuity between the old and new eras. Certain things that were required under the old system have lost their relevance. For example, circumcision is no longer here nor there - (Galatians 6:15).

And in Galatians, Paul points to Jesus and his sacrificial death that “delivered us from this present evil age.” He does not refer to our removal from the physical universe, but to our deliverance from the present era under the dominion of sin and death - (Galatians 1:4).

Likewise, in Colossians, he thanks God “who delivered us out of the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of His beloved Son.” Disciples now belong to a different age and a different political order - (Colossians 1:12-13).

The “mysteries” that were hidden have now been unveiled in Jesus. The promises communicated through the prophets of Israel find their fulfillment in him. He is the “mystery which has been kept in silence through past ages but now is made manifest” - (Colossians 1:26, 2 Timothy 1:10).

THE LAST DAYS

In the New Testament, the term “last days” is not a chronological marker, nor does it refer simply to the final few years of history. Instead, it refers to the fundamental change in the nature and status of everything that has occurred due to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.

He achieved final victory over sin, death, and Satan (“having achieved the purification of sins”), and since his resurrection and exaltation (“and he sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high”), the final era of human history has been underway as the present order winds down to its inevitable conclusion.

Calvary means far more than the forgiveness of sins. Jesus inaugurated the Kingdom of God, the New Covenant, and the New Creation. And the latter is not waiting for its commencement – it began with his resurrection from the dead, and it will consummate with our own bodily resurrection at his “arrival” or Parousia – (1 Corinthians 15:20-28).

His death put into motion the final phase of the redemptive plan of God for the entire creation; therefore, all human relationships are radically altered, whether marital, societal, or political.

That is why the New Testament consistently portrays the “last days” as having begun with the death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. The age of fulfillment has been upon us ever since he was raised from the dead by his God and Father, an event that marked the arrival of the “fullness of time.”

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Final Season?

2023-06-06T08:59:00.006-07:00

Because the timing of the end is known only to God, the disciple of Jesus must be prepared every moment for his sudden arrival. Moreover, Jesus did not command his followers to know the timing of his return and the “end of the age,” nor did he provide them with keys and “signs” by which they can decipher the time of his “arrival” or ‘parousia.’ Instead, he exhorted them to be prepared every day since his return will come just “like a thief in the night.” Only his Father possesses this knowledge.

Between his ascension and return, many deceivers will come and “deceive many,” false prophets that show “signs and wonders” intended to fool even the very “elect,” charlatans who propagate false information about the future, including erroneous ideas about the timing of the end and the “signs” that will signal its proximity.

FALSE CLAIMS

(Matthew 24:23-27) – “Then if any man shall say to you, Lo, here is the Christ, or Here; believe it not.For there shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.Behold, I have told you beforehand.If, therefore, they say to you, Behold, he is in the wilderness; go not forth: Behold, he is in the inner chambers; believe it not.For as the lightning flashes from the east, and is seen even to the west; so, also, shall be the coming of the Son of man.”

Since Jesus gave his warning on the Mount of Olives, the world has heard of many “wars and rumors of wars,” and experienced earthquakes, famines, and many other catastrophes, both natural and manmade. As Jesus declared, such things will and must come to pass, but the “END IS NOT YET.”

At most, catastrophic events of this sort are harbingers of the eventual destruction of the existing world order, evidence that it will end sooner or later. However, they are not “signs” by which anyone can calculate that day’s timing or nearness.

The stress in Christ’s warning is on what his disciples will “hear” from deceivers, the rumors and claims that they will propagate to raise false expectations among the gullible and ignorant about the imminence of the end.

GOD ALONE

What Jesus did say about the timing of that final day is crystal clear - “No one, not the angels of heaven or the Son knows the day or the hour of the coming of the Son of Man, EXCEPT THE FATHER ALONE.”

Only God knows the timing of his return. Nonetheless, ever since Jesus gave this warning, false teachers and prophets have worked tirelessly to find and create loopholes in his words so they can claim to know the “signs and seasons” and thus, apparently, to possess the knowledge necessary to calculate the end.

Jesus repeated this warning while on the Mount of Olives. For example, the lesson he drew from his comparison with the “days of Noah” was that the men of that day “knew not until the flood came and took them all away, so shall be the coming of the Son of man… Watch, therefore, for you know not on what day your Lord is coming.”

If the homeowner knew when the “thief” would strike, he would be prepared to catch him in the act.

NOT FOR YOU

No one knows the “day or hour” of his “coming,” and nowhere in the scriptural record does Jesus state that we can ascertain its general “season” by observing “signs.” Later, he reiterated this warning when the disciples asked about the timing of the kingdom’s restoration:

(Acts 1:6-8) – “They, therefore, when they came together, asked him, saying, Lord, do you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?And he said to them: IT IS NOT FOR YOU TO KNOW TIMES AND SEASONS, which the Father has set within his own authority.But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea and Samaria, and to the uttermost part of the earth.”

Instead of providing chronological specifics and “signs,” he commanded his followers to wait until they received the Spirit. Afterward, they were to preach the gospel from Jerusalem to the “uttermost parts of the earth.”

Moreover, in his ‘Olivet Discourse,’ he pointed to the completion of that gospel mission as the defining event that will trigger the “end” and the “coming of the Son of Man on the clouds.”

The point of his repeated warning is that disciples must ALWAYS be prepared for his sudden arrival precisely BECAUSE they do not and cannot know its timing. Its appearance will be unexpected, and on that day, it will be too late for the prepared, and any knowledge of “signs” and chronologies will become superfluous. In the meantime, his followers must take the good news about the kingdom of God to all nations.

And because his disciples cannot decipher the timing of the end, for them, that day is always imminent. The church has been living in the “last days” since the day Jesus departed for heaven.

What is certain is that Jesus will return in “power and glory,” and he and bring the present age to an end. On that day, he will vindicate the righteous and gather them to himself. However, like weeds collected into bundles by the farmer for disposal, the unrighteous will be gathered to be “burned,” and the Son of Man will send them into “outer darkness.”

Thus, the future “arrival” of Jesus will prove pivotal for both the “elect” and the lost. What determines one’s fate on that day is how he or she responds to Jesus in the present. What is critical is not possessing insider knowledge about end-time chronologies, but instead, exercising faith in Christ and following him “wherever he goes.”

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Normalcy or Chaos?

2023-06-06T04:26:00.007-07:00

Jesus compared the final years before his return to the period leading up to the Great Flood of Noah. “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be” when the “Son of Man” returns. Some commentators take this saying as a prediction of the return of the same conditions that existed in Noah’s day; that is, a repetition of the moral anarchy and violence that prompted God to send the floodwaters in the first place.

Certainly, all periods of human history have featured chaos, immorality, and catastrophes, but this popular interpretation ignores the literary context and the point of the analogy of Christ’s words.

The fuller version of his saying is recorded in the Gospel of Luke which compares this final period to both the “days of Noah” and the “days of Lot,” and in both instances, stressing the same point - (Luke 17:26-30).

ALWAYS PREPARED

Since no one except God alone knows the timing of that day, Christ’s disciples remain ever vigilant and prepared for its sudden arrival. The comparison with the “days of Noah” illustrates the point. Jesus said nothing about the return of gross sin, violence, or terrestrial upheaval - whether such things will occur in history’s final years is not HIS point.

Instead, just as before the Flood, men will go about their daily routines, “eating, drinking, marrying, planting, building, buying and selling.” This describes everyday life, NOT chaos or egregious sin. They will go about their daily business as if nothing unexpected and disastrous will ever occur despite the testimony of preachers of righteousness and the lessons of history - (2 Peter 2:5, “If God did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness…).

Just before the Flood, the problem was the failure of humanity to heed the call for repentance issued by Noah. Men lived as if the judgment would never come until the very moment when destruction fell.

The analogy stresses man’s indifference to such warnings of inevitable judgment and NOT the wickedness of that generation. Only Noah and his family believed God “about things not yet seen,” and therefore, Noah prepared the ark, and his family was saved - (Hebrews 11:7).

WITHOUT OBVIOUS “SIGNS”

For the rest of humanity, the Flood arrived without warning, as if Noah had failed to alert his neighbors about what was coming. They did not listen and consciously closed their ears to his voice.

And so, likewise, the sudden arrival of the “Son of Man” will catch many off their guard. The conditions described by Jesus portray normalcy, not chaos.

In the account provided in Luke, Jesus states that the kingdom will not come “with observable signs” (paratérésis). This translates a Greek word used by medical practitioners for diagnosing diseases from observable symptoms, and for making careful astronomical observations.

The timing of his arrival cannot be calculated by discerning the significance of cosmic signs and world events. When he does come, it will be like “lightning flashing out of the one part under heaven and flashing into the other part under heaven” - sudden, unmistakable, and visible to all.

Jesus added an illustration from the “days of Lot.” Before the “Son of Man” arrives, people will conduct their regular affairs, “eating, drinking, marrying, being given in marriage, buying, selling, planting and building.” But in Lot’s time, fire fell suddenly from heaven and destroyed the city of Sodom, and so “will it be on the day the Son of Man is revealed.”

In his Olivet Discourse, Jesus also warned against becoming too comfortable in this life. Disciples must take heed “lest at any time your hearts are overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness and the cares of this life, and so that day comes upon (ephistémi) you unexpected (aiphnidios). For just as a snare shall it come upon all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch, therefore, and pray always to be accounted worthy to escape (ekpheugō) all these things.” – (Luke 21:34-36).

The Apostle Paul uses this same saying of Jesus in his letter to the Thessalonians when making a similar point:

(1 Thessalonians 5:2-3) - “For yourselves know accurately that the day of the Lord is coming thus as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, ‘Peace and safety,’ then unexpected (aiphnidios) destruction comes upon (ephistémi) them as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape (ekpheugō).”

The Greek term rendered “unexpected” (aiphnidios) occurs nowhere else in the New Testament except in these two passages.

WHEN LEAST EXPECTED

And according to Paul, the “Day of the Lord” will arrive when it is least expected, “just like a thief in the night.” And humanity’s claim cited by Paul in the passage to have established “peace and safety” points to times of normalcy, not chaos, upheaval, or violence. Likewise, Peter warns of the coming time when:

“Scoffers walking after their own lusts who will scoff; Where is the promise of his coming, for since the fathers fell asleep all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation!” - (2 Peter 3:2-4).

In times of global catastrophes, even atheists tend to believe something “apocalyptic” is imminent. But during periods of peace and prosperity, the human tendency is to assume that life will continue as usual.

Thus, Jesus paints a picture of normalcy for the period leading up to his return, not one characterized by cosmic catastrophes, unrestrained violence, and moral anarchy. The unprepared will be overtaken by his sudden and unexpected “arrival.” And therefore, his disciples must always be prepared for that day.

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The King's Great Image

2023-05-30T13:11:00.005-07:00

The King invested great effort to make his dream into reality. First, he “set up” an enormous image covered in gold to represent his majesty and the irresistible power of the Empire. Then, he commanded all the “peoples and nations and tongues” of his realm to pay homage to his image or face a horrific and certain death in the “burning fiery furnace.”

The story is the sequel to the dream and interpretation recorded in Chapter 2, and this is borne out by the several verbal and conceptual links between them, and by the omission of any chronological reference at the start of Chapter 3:

(Daniel 3:1-2) – “Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, its height sixty cubits, its width thereof six cubits. And he set it up in the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. And Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather the satraps, the nobles and the pashas, the chief judges, the treasurers, the judges, the lawyers, and all the rulers of the province to come to the dedication of the image, which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.”

The image with the “head of gold” from the king’s dream has set the stage for what now follows as Nebuchadnezzar arrogantly implements the image revealed to him by “the God of heaven” but in his own self-serving way.

And the Babylonian ruler does this by setting up an enormous image covered entirely with gold to symbolize his glorious realm and absolute power, an act of conceit and state idolatry.

IN THE PLAIN

The king “set up” the image in the “plain of Dura.” Its location remains uncertain. “Dura” means “wall” or “rampart,” which suggests a site within one of the series of great outer walls that surrounded the city.

“Plain” points to a broad and level area able to accommodate large numbers of people, which is how the translators of the Greek Septuagint understood the clause by translating it as the “plain of the wall” - (en pediō tou peribolou).

More importantly, the “plain” echoes the story of the Tower of Babel when humanity settled in Mesopotamia, all men spoke “one tongue,” and they journeyed east to find a “PLAIN in the land of Shinar and dwelt there.”

So, also, Nebuchadnezzar intends for his empire to speak the “tongue” of Babylon, and now he will gather representatives of all “peoples” to this vast “plain” in Babylon to bow before the great image that he has “set up”- (Genesis 11:1-9, Daniel 1:2).

HE SET UP

(Daniel 3:3-7) – “Then the satraps, the deputies, and the governors, the judges, the treasurers, the counselors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces were gathered to the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the KING HAD SET UP; and they stood before the image that NEBUCHADNEZZAR HAD SET UP. Then the herald cried aloud, To you it is commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, that at what time you hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of music, you fall down and render homage to the golden image that NEBUCHADNEZZAR THE KING HAS SET UP; and whoever falls not down to render homage will the same hour be CAST INTO THE BURNING FIERY FURNACE. Therefore, at that time, when all the peoples heard the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and all kinds of music, all the peoples, the nations, and the tongues fell down and worshipped the golden image that NEBUCHADNEZZAR THE KING HAD SET UP. ”

There is a deliberate contrast with the preceding story. In chapter 3, the king “SETS UP” his image, but in chapter 2, Daniel declared that it is Yahweh who “SETS UP kings and removes kings.”

The image that Nebuchadnezzar “SETS UP” is sixty cubits high by six cubits wide, approximately ninety feet by nine feet. The dimensions reflect the Babylonian sexagesimal or 60-base number system, further evidence that the author of Daniel is familiar with the culture of Ancient Babylon.

Nothing is said about the shape of the image, though the dimensions suggest an obelisk. The passage does not identify what god or human was represented by it.

Nebuchadnezzar is famous for restoring the temples of Babylon that were dedicated to her many gods. The addition of another image inside a temple would not have been unusual, but the placement of an idol in an open space for all men and women to see and venerate is unique.

In the interpretation of the king’s dream, the “stone” that destroyed the four kingdoms represented by the “great image” was “cut without hands.”

In contrast, Nebuchadnezzar “SETS UP” his image, a rendering of the Aramaic verb qum, which is repeated nine times in the story to stress the point. It is Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, who “SETS UP” his image - (Daniel 3:1, 3:2, 3:3 [twice], 3:5, 3:7, 3:12, 3:14, 3:18).

But the God of Heaven “SETS UP” (qum) kings, just as He “set up” the image with the golden head in the king’s dream, and the everlasting kingdom “cut without hands” that will destroy all the empires that precede it, including Nebuchadnezzar’s own domain - (Daniel 2:21-31, 2:44).

The king then orders all the “satraps, nobles, pashas, chief judges, treasurers, judges, lawyers and governors to assemble to the dedication of his image.” Anyone who refuses to do so will be summarily executed.

The officials that he summons represent all the “peoples, races, and tongues” under his dominion. By proxy, therefore, all nations are gathered to pay homage to his great golden image - (Daniel 3:2-6).

The image represents the absolute power of the king. He does not demand worship for himself, but instead, requires homage to his image, a show of total allegiance to the Empire. Wittingly or not, by this act, he defies the sovereignty of the “God of Heaven” - (Daniel 2:20-22).

IN REVELATION

Language and imagery from this passage are used in the portrait of the “Beast from the earth,” the “false prophet” who causes all the “inhabitants of the earth” to render homage to the image of the “Beast from the sea.”

All men who refuse to bow before the idolatrous image are killed, whether “the small and the great, the rich and the poor, or the free and the bond.” And all segments of society receive its “number” or “name.”

The “number of the Beast” is ‘666,’ which echoes the dimensions of Nebuchadnezzar’s image - sixty cubits by six cubits; only the book of Revelation adds six hundred to the number to produce the fuller “number of the Beast.”

The passages in Daniel and Revelation both concern the pressure placed on men to participate in the idolatrous worship of the World Empire, but especially on the saints of God who will pay a heavy price for their refusal to do so.

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From this Evil Age

2023-05-30T12:52:00.001-07:00

In his letter to the Galatians, Paul states that he was commissioned as an apostle to the Gentiles by the same God that raised Jesus from the dead and “delivered us FROM THIS EVIL AGE.” This statement anticipates his response to certain Jewish believers who were operating in Galatia as if the old era was still in effect.

In the first two chapters, Paul details how he received his gospel for the Gentiles by revelation, and this was confirmed by the leaders of the Jerusalem church. And he recounts that during an earlier controversy at Antioch “false brethren slinked in to spy out our freedom which we have in Christ Jesus” - (Galatians 2:4-5).

Certain men “from Jerusalem” disrupted the church in Antioch, claiming it was improper for Jewish Christians to have table fellowship with uncircumcised Gentiles. But a church divided along ethnic lines is the inevitable result of this practice as is returning to the rituals required by the Levitical regulations.

FALSE TEACHERS

(Galatians 1:1-5) - “Paul, an apostle, not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ, and God the Father who raised him from among the dead, and all the brethren with me; to the assemblies of Galatia; Grace to you and peace from God our Father and Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us out of the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory unto the ages of ages: Amen!”

Customarily, Paul begins his letters with salutations and gracious words of thanksgiving, but in Galatians, his statements are noteworthy for their brevity and lack of praise.

And instead of praise, he launches into a stinging rebuke, indicating the depth of his concern and the level of his agitation (“I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in grace!”).

He defines his apostleship by first using a double negative in the Greek sentence (“neither from men nor through man”) followed by a positive affirmation (“but through Jesus Christ”). In this way, he introduces a key issue that he will address in the next few paragraphs - his divine appointment to the apostolic office - (Galatians 1:10–2:10).

His Jewish opponents do not dispute his office but claim his apostleship is derived from human authorities, presumably, the church leadership in Jerusalem.

Paul denies that his commission is dependent on any human authority, whether the mother church in Jerusalem or the church at Antioch. Instead, he affirms that he received it directly from Jesus - (1 Corinthians 9:1, Acts 9:4-6, 22:7, 26:16).

HIS COMMISSION

And from its beginning, his ministry has focused on proclaiming the gospel to the Gentiles without requiring them to conform to the regulations of the Torah, especially circumcision- (Acts 9:15, 13:46-48, 22:21, Ephesians 3:1-8).

Unlike his opponents, he was commissioned by the risen Jesus. He also links his gospel to the “Father…who raised Jesus from the dead.” The fatherhood of God plays an important role in the letter since he stresses that believers have become children of one God and Father by “adoption” - (Galatians 3:7, 3:26, 4:2-7, 4:22-31).

The resurrection of Jesus was an apocalyptic event that signaled the commencement of the messianic age. In his death and resurrection, the “powers and principalities” that enslaved humanity were defeated decisively.

The resurrection marked the inauguration of an entirely new era and the final stage in God’s redemptive plan. Ever since, nothing can be the same again - (1 Corinthians 2:5-8, Ephesians 1:17-23, Colossians 2:15, 1 Peter 3:22).

Paul writes from this apocalyptic perspective as he exhorts the Galatians not to subject themselves again to the “elementary spirits of this world.” They will do so if they submit to circumcision and place themselves under the calendrical rituals of the Torah. With the coming of the Son, the jurisdiction of the old order has reached its end - (Galatians 4:3-11).

By reminding them that the God who commissioned him is the same one who raised Jesus from the dead, Paul prepares his readers for the description of how he received his gospel by direct revelation - (Galatians 1:11-16).

HIS DEATH AND RESURRECTION

Jesus is the one who “gave himself ON ACCOUNT OF our sins.” His death was necessary because of the sins of humanity that alienated men from God. The same idea is implicit in two declarations by Paul - (Galatians 2:20, 3:13):

“The life I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself ON ACCOUNT OF (huper) me.”

“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse ON ACCOUNT OF (huper) us.”

Christ’s death was “according to the will of our God and Father.” This emphasizes the magnitude of what God did. If the Galatians place themselves under the Law, they risk the loss of His “grace and peace.”

And by means of his death, God “rescued us from the present evil age.” In Jesus, the messianic age dawned, and in the middle of the present age. Thus, his death inaugurated the age of fulfillment.

In the Hebrew Bible, history is divided into two ages - the present evil age and the age to come. The law belongs to the “present age.” It is part of the old order that began to pass away with the resurrection of Jesus.

By emphasizing his death and resurrection, Paul highlights the all-sufficiency of Christ’s death for the forgiveness of sins and our deliverance from this “present evil age.” In him, God acted decisively, impacting human history, forevermore.

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The Great Earthquake

2023-04-25T03:25:00.002-07:00

In four separate passages, Revelation refers to a coming “GREAT EARTHQUAKE,” each time locating it on the day of “wrath.” Chaos in the heavens and unimaginable seismic shifts on the earth will mark the arrival of the “Day of the Lord,” the Great Dénouement when God vindicates His people and punishes His enemies.

When John is summoned to heaven, he observes the “throne” at the center of the universe surrounded by twenty-four smaller thrones occupied by “four and twenty elders.” A series of visual and audible phenomena proceed from the “throne… flashes of lightning, loud voices, and claps of thunder” – (Revelation 4:1-5).

Later, when the “Lamb” opens the “sixth seal,” the “GREAT EARTHQUAKE” shakes the earth, accompanied by celestial upheaval. The entire Cosmos is rocked to its foundations:

“The sun became black as sackcloth, and the whole moon became as blood. The stars of the heaven fell to the earth… And the heaven was removed as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island were moved out of their places” – (Revelation 6:12-17).

The description of cosmic chaos echoes Old Testament passages about the “Day of Yahweh,” the dreadful time of His judgment - (Joel 2:30-31, 3:15, Isaiah 13:9-11).

DAY OF THE LORD

Likewise, when the “sixth seal” is opened, it is the time for the “wrath of the Lamb” and that of the “One who sits on the throne,” the “great day of their wrath” and the judgment of the “kings of the earth, the princes, the chief captains, the rich, the strong, and every bondman and freeman.” On that day, “Who will be able to stand.” No one will escape.

The “GREAT EARTHQUAKE” and the celestial events unleashed by the “sixth seal” do not portend the imminence of the end or prepare for it. Instead, they accompany the arrival of that day as the entire creation reacts to its approach. Mountains are laid low, and “every island flees” before the presence of the “Lamb.”

At the close of the “seven seals,” an angel fills his “censer with the fire from the altar” and casts it onto the earth. This produces “claps of thunder, loud voices, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake,” the same phenomena that were seen around the “throne,” only now, the “earthquake” is added to the mix - (Revelation 8:5).

After the Spirit of God raises the “Two Witnesses” from the dead, a “GREAT EARTHQUAKE” overthrows a “tenth of the city,” called the “great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.” Elsewhere, the “great city” is identified as “Babylon, the Great Harlot.”

Just as God shook the city of Jerusalem following the death of Jesus, so He will shake the “great city” of end-time Babylon after the death of the “Witnesses” – (Matthew 27:51, Revelation 16:19, 17:18).

The ascension of the “Witnesses” is followed by the sounding of the “seventh trumpet,” which produces the victory of the kingdom of God, the time of “wrath” on the nations, the judgment of the dead, the punishment of the wicked, and the vindication of the righteous.

The “seventh trumpet” then concludes with “flashes of thunder, loud voices, claps of thunder, and an earthquake,” but also “great hail” is added to the series – (Revelation 11:15-19).

When the seventh angel empties the final “bowl of wrath,” a great voice declares, “It is finished!” The “seven bowls of wrath” complete the “wrath of God.” The declaration is followed by “flashes of lightning, loud voices, claps of thunder, and the GREAT EARTHQUAKE.”

The earthquake is so massive that “every island fled away, and the mountains were not found,” the same terrestrial upheavals caused by the “sixth seal.” The parallel descriptions are not coincidental; the same final event is in view in both passages.

BABYLON FALLS

Once again, the “great city” suffers. It is “divided into three parts,” signifying the fall of the “cities of the nations,” and the time for “Babylon the great” to drain the “cup of the wine of the fierceness of God’s wrath.”

This judgment was anticipated in chapter 14 when the angel declared the fall of “Babylon the great” because she made “all the nations to drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” So, here, with her fall, the “great city” drank the full “fierceness of the wrath of God” – (Revelation 14:8).

The same fall of “Babylon” is presented in greater detail in chapter 18 as the day of her judgment arrives:

“For her sins have reached even to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities… Therefore, in one day shall her plagues come, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire; for strong is the Lord God who judges her.”

The “kings of the earth” who committed fornication with her stand afar off, crying, “Woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city, for in one hour is her judgment come!” Likewise, the merchants and mariners of the earth enriched by her wailed:

“Woe, woe, the great city…for in one hour so great riches is made desolate… and they cried out as they looked upon the smoke of her burning, saying: What city is like the great city?... Woe, woe, the great city, for in one hour is she made desolate.”

What is described is nothing less than the final overthrow and destruction of “Babylon.” As the chapter concludes, “Thus with a mighty fall shall Babylon, the great city, be cast down, and she shall be found no more at all.”

All three sevenfold series conclude with the same phenomena - “flashes of lightning, great voices, claps of thunder” - along with the “GREAT EARTHQUAKE” and “hail.”

Not coincidentally, the last two items intensify as the final series completes the “wrath of God.” So much so, that the final seismic event is greater than any in human memory as is the “great hail” that tormented humanity, “for the plague thereof was exceeding great.”

The verbal links between the final events of each sevenfold series are deliberate. Each one reaches the same endpoint, the “Day of the Lord” and the time of “wrath.” With the arrival of that day, the entire Cosmos is shaken to its core. Stars fall, the earth shakes, and mountains and islands flee.

Whether the “GREAT EARTHQUAKE” is literal or figurative, it is final. It is NOT a harbinger of things to come, but one of the unprecedented events that will characterize the arrival of THE final day. For the wicked, there will be no escape. For the righteous, however, it will be the day of resurrection, vindication, and victory as the reign of God is consummated throughout the Cosmos.

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Seventh Trumpet

2023-04-24T12:47:00.002-07:00

When the seventh seal was opened, a half-hour of “silence” ensued before the seven angels began to sound their “trumpets.” During that interlude, the prayers of the “saints” were heard ascending to the throne of God. Now, when the “seventh trumpet” sounds, “loud voices” declare the triumph of the kingdom and the possession of the nations by the “Lamb” as promised in the second Psalm.

The “seventh trumpet” is the “third woe” that was pronounced on the “inhabitants of the earth.” When the angel blows this horn, it means vindication and glory for the “saints,” but also judgment and condemnation for the unrepentant.

(Revelation 11:15-16) – “And the seventh angel sounded, and there came to be loud voices in heaven, saying: The kingdom of the world has become that of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for the ages of ages. And the twenty-four elders who before God do sit upon their thrones fell down upon their faces and rendered homage to God, saying: We give thanks to you, O Lord God, the Almighty, Who is and Who was; because you have taken your great power and become king.”

DAY OF THE LORD

The description of the one “who is and who was” uses the same phrase found in the prologue of Revelation and the vision of the Throne. But here, the third stanza is dropped. It no longer refers to “He who is coming,” but only to “who is and who was.”

Because the “Day of the Lord” has arrived, the coming of God is no longer anticipated. We have reached the end of the age, the consummation of the victory of the “Lamb.”

(Revelation 11:17-19) – “And the nations were angered, and your wrath came, and the fit time of the dead to be judged, and to give their reward to your servants the prophets and to the saints, and to them who revere your name, the small and the great, and to despoil them who were despoiling the earth. And the sanctuary of God which is in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant in his sanctuary appeared, and there came to be flashes of lightning and voices and claps of thunder and an earthquake, and great hail.”

The time has arrived for the dead to be judged, and for “those who are destroying the earth” to be destroyed. This last phrase alludes to the dirge from the book of Jeremiah issued against Ancient Babylon, a passage used previously when the second angel blew his trumpet:

(Jeremiah 51:25) - “I am against you, O destroying mountain, THAT DESTROYED ALL THE EARTH; I will stretch out my hand upon you, roll you down from the rocks and make you a burnt mountain” - (Revelation 8:8-9).

In addition, the declaration that follows the blowing of the “seventh trumpet” echoes words found in the prophecy of Daniel:

(Daniel 7:26-27) - “But the JUDGMENT SHALL BE SET, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and TO DESTROY IT TILL THE END. And the kingdom and the dominion, and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most-High. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.”

SANCTUARY AND JUDGMENT

“The sanctuary of God…and the ark of his covenant.” In the Tabernacle, the lid of the ark constitutes the “mercy seat” from which Yahweh reigns over Israel - “between the two cherubim that are upon the ark of the testimony.”

The ark symbolizes His covenant faithfulness and loving-kindness. And in the Tabernacle, the mercy seat was the point of contact between heaven and earth, the place where His presence was found - (Exodus 25:21-22).

But in John’s vision, the sanctuary is now open, and the ark is in plain sight. This anticipates the reality in the vision of “New Jerusalem” where there is no “sanctuary” - “The Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its sanctuary, and the nations walk amidst its light and the kings of the earth bring their glory into it” - (Revelation 21:22-24).

The “seventh trumpet” signals the time of the judgment - “Your wrath came, and the dead were judged,” and thus, the series of trumpets ends with the “wrath of God” completed.

Before the “seven angels” began to blow their trumpets, another angel hurled fire from the “golden altar” onto the earth, which was followed by “claps of thunder and voices, and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.”

The same phenomena repeat at the close of the “seven trumpets,” only with the addition of “great hail.” They also occurred in the vision of the Throne and will be seen again at the end of the series of “seven bowls of wrath.” Each time these phenomena are seen and heard, a new element is added - an “earthquake,” “hail,” “a great earthquake,” and “great hail” - (Revelation 4:5, 8:5, 11:19, 16:17-18).

VERBAL PARALLELS

There are verbal links between the “seventh bowl of wrath” and the “seventh trumpet.” When the seventh bowl is emptied, a great voice from the sanctuary declares, “It is done!” Likewise, when the “seventh trumpet” sounds, “great voices” declare the victory of God over the kingdoms of the world.

The “seventh bowl” produces a “great earthquake” that divides the “great city.” Likewise, prior to the “seventh trumpet” blast, a “great earthquake” causes a tenth part of the “great city” to fall.

The final trumpet signals the time for the “dead to be judged, and to reward your servants the prophets, the saints, and them that fear your name, the small and the great.” This echoes the “Great White Throne of Judgment” when the dead, the “great, and the small” are seen standing to be judged. The clause, “great and small” links the two passages.

Likewise, when the seventh trumpet is heard, the wicked are condemned just as they are before the “Great White Throne of Judgment.” Thus, both visions include the final judgment of the dead.

The wicked are condemned, and the overcoming saints receive their “reward.” The same final events are described in both visions, though from different perspectives - (Revelation 11:5-19, 20:11-15).

The “third woe” brings the series of “seven trumpets” to their intended conclusion at the end of the age. The “Lamb” reigns uncontested over the nations, all those who were “destroying the earth” have themselves have been destroyed, and the righteous have been vindicated and inherited all that was promised to “him who overcomes.”

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The Forty-Two Months

2023-04-23T04:40:00.005-07:00

The period when the saints endure persecution is presented in three different but equivalent forms – “forty-two months,” “1,260 days,” and the “season, seasons, and half a season.” These variations do not point to three separate periods. Instead, they link several visions that describe specific aspects of the persecution that takes place during this period.

In Chapter 12, the source of the formula is clear. The “woman clothed with the sun” was nourished in the “wilderness” for a “season, seasons, and half a season from the face of the serpent.”

IN DANIEL

The passage in chapter 12 alludes to the “little horn” in Daniel that “wore out the saints of the Most-High” for “a time and times and half a time.” And in Revelation, the same period is also enumerated as “1,260 days,” which confirms the two figures refer to the SAME “short time” - (Daniel 7:21-25, Revelation 12:6, 12:14-17).

Chapter 12 concludes with the enraged “Dragon” waging war with the rest of the “woman’s seed…they who have the testimony of Jesus,” another allusion to the passage in Daniel when the “little horn waged war against the saints.”

The “1,260 days” period is mentioned first in the vision of the “Two Witnesses.” They “prophesy” for the period “clothed in sackcloth.” When they complete their “testimony,” the “Beast” ascends from the “Abyss to make war with them…and to kill them,” alluding once again to the same passage in chapter 7 of Daniel - (Daniel 7:21, Revelation 11:3-7).

The “1,260 days” connects the “Two Witnesses” to the “woman” who was protected in the “wilderness.” Likewise, the “Witnesses” are protected from “harm” until the completion of their “testimony.” They are identified as the “two lampstands,” and elsewhere in the book, “lampstands” represent churches - (Revelation 1:20).

After John “measures” the sanctuary, the altar, and the company serving in it, the “holy city” is handed over to the nations and “trampled underfoot for FORTY-TWO MONTHS,” and forty-two months is the equivalent of 1,260 days.

The clause, “trampled underfoot,” alludes to the “little horn” of the “fourth beast” in Daniel that “trampled and broke in pieces,” the one who challenged the “host of heaven and the stars, and cast them down to the ground, and trampled upon them.”

LITERARY PARALLELS

The literary links demonstrate that the “forty months” and the “1,260 days” refer to the same period, a time when the saints endured severe persecution by the “Beast” – (Daniel 7:21-25, 8:9-14).

In chapter 11 of Revelation, what is “handed over to the nations” and “trampled” is the “holy city” that contains the “sanctuary,” the “altar,” and the priests that were “rendering divine service” in the “sanctuary.”

This was not old Jerusalem since it is called “holy,” whereas, the old city is described as “spiritually called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified,” and the very place where the “two witnesses” were slain – (Revelation 1:4-6, 5:9-11, 11:8).

Moreover, the imagery and language applied to the “sanctuary” are derived from the ancient Tabernacle that accompanied Israel during its sojourn in the wilderness, and not from the later Temple complex in Jerusalem. Moreover, the structure is identified as the “Tabernacle” in chapter 13 - (Revelation 13:6).

The “forty-two months” is mentioned again when John sees the “Beast” ascending from the sea, which is the equivalent of its “ascent from the Abyss.” Just as the “Beast from the Abyss” waged “war” against the “Two Witnesses…and overcame them,” so the “Beast from the Sea” wages “war on the saints and overcomes them.”

And just as the “holy city” and its “sanctuary” are handed over to be “trampled underfoot,” so the “Beast from the sea” attacks the “tabernacle, those who are tabernacling in heaven.”

WAR AGAINST THE SAINTS

The same “war against the saints” is in view in each passage, though seen from different aspects. Likewise, whether delimited as “forty-two months,” “1,260 days,” or the “season, seasons, half a season,” the same prophetic period is in view.

The citation of the “season, seasons, half a season” makes the connection to the passage in Daniel clear. The two different formulas are not for stylistic purposes. While they do refer to the same period, the “forty-two months” links the visions of the “measured sanctuary” and the “Beast from the Sea” more closely, and likewise, the “1,260 days” connects the visions of the “Two Witnesses” and the “woman” preserved from harm for “1,260-days.”

Whether the figure is literal or symbolic, it evokes the story of the “little horn” and its persecution of the “saints” for a “time, times, and half a time.” A specific but limited period is in view.

However long this period lasts, it will come to an end. In each case in Revelation, it is the time when the saints are persecuted severely by the “Beast.” Each vision emphasizes specific aspects of this final assault by the “Dragon” against the people of God.

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The Abyss

2023-04-19T07:54:00.004-07:00

When it is first introduced, “smoke” and locust-like creatures ascend from the “Abyss” to torment the “inhabitants of the earth.” In Revelation, it is the deep pit from which satanic agencies ascend to wreak havoc and wage war against the “saints.” It is also the “prison” where demonic forces are imprisoned until their appointed time to execute their malevolent plans.

In John’s first vision, the one “like a son of man” is declared the “First and the Last, and the Living One and I became dead, and behold, living am I unto the ages of ages!” He has absolute authority, including the “keys of death and of hades.”

And while “Hades” may be an unclean and ominous place, it is not beyond his authority - (Revelation 1:9-20).

DEEP THINGS OF SATAN

In Thyatira, Jesus chastises the church’s “angel” for tolerating the prophetess “Jezebel.” Like the “Great Harlot, Babylon,” she is teaching the saints “to fornicate and eat food offered to idols.”

The Prophetess Jezebel claims it is permissible to “know the deep things of Satan.” In her mind, she teaches the “deep things of God,” apparently, deeper spiritual insight and practices.

Jesus exposes her doctrine for what it is - the “DEEP THINGS” or BATHOS of Satan, and bathos is a conceptual link to the “Abyss,” the deep pit from which demonic forces ascend to attack the witnesses of the “Lamb”- (Revelation 2:18-29, 9:1-2, 11:7, 13:1, 17:8, 20:1-3).

ABYSS OPENED

When the fifth trumpet sounds, a “star” falls to the earth with the “key” to open the “Abyss.” Likewise, at the commencement of the “thousand years,” an “angel” descends with the “key of the Abyss” to imprison Satan.

At the end of that period, the Devil is released and gathers the nations to the war against the “camp of the saints.” Elsewhere in the book, “stars” represent “angels” or “messengers” - (Revelation 1:20, 9:1-12, 20:1-10).

The opening of the “Abyss” in chapter 9 unleashes a horde of “locusts upon the earth.” They are compared to “horses prepared for battle.” They are ruled by the “angel of the abyss, whose name, in Hebrew, is ‘Destruction’, also in the Greek text, ‘Destroyer’.” Most likely, this refers to the Devil, the “Dragon.”

The “sixth trumpet” releases the “four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates,” and it corresponds to the “Abyss” from the “fifth trumpet.”

The fifth and sixth trumpets together parallel the fifth and sixth “bowls of wrath.” Like the “fifth trumpet,” the “fifth bowl of wrath” causes the “darkening” of the kingdom of the “Beast,” as well as the tormenting of the men who have its mark.

And like the “sixth trumpet,” the “sixth bowl of wrath” dries up the waters of the “Euphrates” to “prepare the way of the kings from the rising of the sun.”

Demons are dispatched to gather the “kings of the whole habitable earth to the war of the great day of God the Almighty,” the battle at “Armageddon” - (Revelation 16:10-16).

BEAST FROM THE ABYSS/SEA

The “Two Witnesses” or “two lampstands” prophesy for a “thousand, two hundred and sixty days.” In Revelation, “lampstands” represent churches. At the end of their “testimony,” the “Beast that ascends from the Abyss” attacks the “Two Witnesses” and “slays them” - (Revelation 1:20, 11:3-7).

That same “Beast” appears again when John sees it “ascending from the sea.” The “sea” represents the same “depth” or reality as the “Abyss.” In both instances, the “Beast ascends” to prosecute its war against the “saints/witnesses.” Thus, in chapter 13, it is authorized to “wage war on the saints, and to overcome and slay them.”

Both visions borrow and apply the same language from Daniel’s vision of the “fourth beast” and its “little horn” - “The same horn made war with the saints and prevailed against them.”

Thus, the “Two Witnesses” represent the same group called the “saints” in chapter 13. In both passages, the “Beast” ascends from a deep place to attack the church, the “Abyss” and the “sea,” respectively - (Daniel 7:21, Revelation 13:1-10).

SATAN IMPRISONED

In chapter 20, an angel “descends out of heaven with the key of the Abyss.” He uses it to bind the Devil, not to release him. This locates his imprisonment in the “Abyss” BEFORE the events detailed in chapter 9 when the “star” from heaven arrived with the “key” and released demonic forces from the “Abyss” - (Revelation 20:1-3).

“The Dragon, the Ancient Serpent, he who is the Devil and Satan.” These four names applied to Satan in chapter 20 link the image to chapter 12 where we read:

“The great red DRAGON who was cast down, the ANCIENT SERPENT, he that is called the DEVIL AND SATAN, and he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast down with him.”

So, also, in chapter 20, Satan is “cast” (ballō) into the “Abyss” BEFORE the commencement of the “thousand years.” With the victory of the “Lamb,” he has lost his prosecutorial powers - (Revelation 12:9-13).

The Devil is “bound” to prevent him from “deceiving the nations until the thousand years end,” and this clause is a further link to chapter 12 where the “Dragon” is called “THE DECEIVER OF THE WHOLE HABITABLE EARTH.” He is not prevented from engaging in all activities, but only from “deceiving the nations.”

In chapter 12, the voice pronounces “woe” to the “inhabitants of the earth” for the Devil is now “cast to the earth,” and he knows he has only “a short time.” However, he is still able to unleash destructive forces against humanity, including the “saints.”

Thus, though imprisoned, Satan is the “angel of the Abyss” and the “Destroyer” bent on annihilating the saints and witnesses of the “Lamb” - (Revelation 9:1-12, 12:12).

SATAN RELEASED

Satan is freed from the “Abyss” at the “end of the thousand years” and allowed once more to “deceive the nations.” He gathers them for his final assault against the “saints.” As he does so, the nations “ASCEND” over the earth to attack the “camp of the saints.”

Once more, the theme of evil “ascending” from the “Abyss” is repeated. The “Dragon” does not escape from the pit - he is “released,” presumably by the “Lamb,” but not until, and only for, the appointed “short time” at the end of the “thousand years” - (Revelation 20:7-9).

Note the parallels. In Thyatira, the “prophetess Jezebel” attempts to deceive believers to commit idolatry.

Likewise, the “Beast that ASCENDS FROM THE EARTH,” the “false prophet,” deceives the “inhabitants of the earth” so they give their allegiance to the “Beast from the sea” and its image.

So, also, “Babylon” employs her “sorceries” to “deceive all the nations.” And at the end of the “thousand years,” Satan is released to “deceive the nations” into making one last attempt to destroy the “saints” - (Revelation 2:20, 13:14, 18:23, 20:8-10).

Thus, the book portrays the defeat and imprisonment of Satan by the “Lamb” until his release at the appointed time - the “short season.” Following the resurrection of Jesus, the Devil is down but not completely “out.” He is unable to “deceive the nations” until he is loosed from the “Abyss,” then he leads them in his final assault on the “saints.” Yet he remains deadly even as he is bound in the “Abyss,” though his power to destroy God’s people is curtailed until the appointed time.

And so, throughout the present age, the “Lamb” remains in firm control of events on the earth and sovereign over all things, including “Hades” and the “Abyss.” The “Dragon” is unleashed from the “Abyss” near the end of the age for one final assault against the church.

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Slaying of the Two Witnesses

2023-04-19T07:03:00.004-07:00

The “second woe” does not end until the “Two Witnesses” have completed their “testimony” and their “corpse,” singular, lies on the streets of “Babylon.” Only then will the final trumpet be heard as its ushers in the hour of the judgment. The martyrdom of the “Two Witnesses” puts the end into motion and seals the doom of the “Dragon.”

God vindicates their “testimony” by raising them from the dead, just as he promised to do for the martyrs seen “underneath the altar” when the “fifth seal” was opened - (Revelation 6:9-11).

(Revelation 11:8-10) - “And their corpse lies on the broad-way of the great city, the which is called spiritually Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord also was crucified. And some of the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations see their corpses three days and a half and their corpses do they not suffer to be put into a tomb. And the inhabitants of the earth rejoice over them and make merry and send gifts to one another because these two prophets tormented them the inhabitants of the earth.”

THE GREAT CITY

The “corpse” of the “Witnesses” was left lying on the main street or “broad way” of the city, its very heart and center of its political, economic, and social activities.

In the first instance, the Greek term rendered “corpse” is singular and serves to stress the unity of the “Two Witnesses.” They symbolize the “saints” as one group engaged in “testimony” to the city and its “inhabitants.”

The “Great City” is the place called “Sodom and Egypt, spiritually.” Neither the language nor the geographical location is literal.

The term “spiritually” signifies either a metaphorical or allegorical interpretation. For that matter, “Egypt” is a nation, not a city, and the identification with “Sodom” and “Egypt” provides scriptural background. First, from Israel’s exodus from Egypt, which is the same backstory for the “seven trumpets.” And second, from the destruction of “Sodom” for its egregious sins.

Elsewhere, the “Great City” is none other than the “Great Harlot, Babylon.” In the present passage, she is contrasted with the “holy city” that is “trampled underfoot by the nations” – (Revelation 11:2, 14:8, 14:20, 16:19, 17:18, 18:16-21).

The city was the place “where the Lord was crucified.” Jesus was killed outside the walls of Jerusalem, and in Revelation, all the shed blood of the prophets and saints is found in “Babylon,” where also the “inhabitants of the earth” dwell. Thus, in the vision, the place of his crucifixion is the world city, Babylon - (Revelation 18:24).

MARTYRDOM

Their bodies lay unburied for “three days and a half.” This echoes the three days and nights that Jesus spent in the grave before his resurrection. Thus, the life and death of the “Two Witnesses” emulate the life and death of the “slain Lamb.”

After John “measured” the “sanctuary” and the “altar,” the “holy city” was delivered to the “nations” to be “trampled underfoot” for “forty-two months.” Likewise, the “Two Witnesses” endure opposition that culminates in their martyrdom for “twelve-hundred and sixty days,” the functional equivalent of the “forty-two months.”

Thus, the “war” against them by the “inhabitants of the earth” and the “Beast” portrays the “holy city” being “trampled.” The “Two Witnesses” are the “holy city,” and persecution is how they are “trampled underfoot.”

The residents of the “Great City” rejoice over their deaths because they “tormented the inhabitants of the earth.” The same verb for “torment” was used when the “fifth trumpet” was heard, unleashing the locust-like horde to “torment the inhabitants of the earth.”

So also, the words of the “Two Witnesses” proceeded like “fire devouring their enemies,” and had the “power to turn water into blood,” and to “smite the earth with every plague.” It is their “testimony” that “torments” men - (Revelation 9:5, 11:5-6).

The “Witnesses” are “prophets” sent to “prophesy” to the “inhabitants of the earth” until they “finish their testimony.” This fulfills the words given to John when he received the “little scroll” - “In the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he begins to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, just he declared to his prophets” (Revelation 10:7).

“And the inhabitants of the earth made merry.” The same idea occurred at the end of the “sixth trumpet” when the “rest of men not killed by the plagues” refused to repent. Instead of repenting, the impenitent “inhabitants of the earth” rejoice over the deaths of God’s prophets.

(Revelation 11:11-13) - “And after the three days and a half, a spirit of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and great fear fell upon them who were beholding them. And they heard a loud voice out of heaven, saying to them: Come up here! And they ascended to heaven in the cloud, and their enemies beheld them. And in that hour, there came to be a great earthquake; and a tenth of the city fell, and there were slain in the earthquake names of men seven thousand. And the rest became greatly afraid and gave glory to the God of heaven.”

OLD TESTAMENT PARLLELS

The vision now pulls together the threads from the stories of Egypt, Elijah, and the entry of Israel into Canaan, but in an ironic fashion. The tenth plague of Egypt killed the firstborn throughout the land, but now, it is the “corpses” of the “Two Witnesses” that lie dead in the “Great City” - (Exodus 11:1-10).

Before Israel left Egypt, the Egyptians gave them gifts of gold and jewels; now, in “Babylon,” residents exchange gifts and rejoice over the deaths of the “Witnesses.” When he complained about his isolation, Yahweh told Elijah that He had reserved “seven thousand men who had not bowed the knee to Baal.” Now, when a tenth of the “Great City” falls, seven thousand men are killed, but the rest become fearful and give glory to God.

Elisha witnessed Elijah taken up into the heavens and cried out, but when the “inhabitants of the earth” see the “Two Witnesses” rise to heaven, they give glory to God.

The description of their “ascent… in a cloud” also parallels the ascent of Jesus, who was “taken up and received by a cloud.” As the deaths of the “Two Witnesses” emulated the death of Jesus, so does their vindication - (1 Kings 19:18, 2 Kings 2:11, Acts 1:9).

Israel’s conquest of Jericho is behind the image of the city’s fall, and this is indicated by the series of “seven trumpets.” Israel was commanded to march around the city once each day for six days. On the seventh day, she marched around Jericho seven times, the priests blew their horns, the people shouted, and the “wall of the city fell down flat” - (Joshua 6:1-10).

The term rendered “great earthquake” is a verbal link to the “sixth seal” and the “seventh bowl of wrath.” When the former was opened, the “day of the wrath of the Lamb” was accompanied by the “great earthquake” that shook the entire creation. Likewise, the last “bowl of wrath” caused the “great earthquake” that divided the “Great City, Babylon” into three parts - (Revelation 6:12-17, 16:17-21).

The “second woe” has reached its conclusion. The stage is set for the final trumpet blast, the “third woe” and the day of judgment. The series of “seven trumpets” will end at the same point as the “seven seals.” Just as the “sixth seal” opening announced the time of the Lamb’s “wrath,” so the “seventh trumpet” ushers in the final judgment when God vindicates the righteous and condemns the wicked.

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Beast from the Abyss

2023-04-17T12:47:00.003-07:00

The “Abyss” was introduced when the “fifth trumpet” sounded and demonic hordes “ascended” from it. It is referred to next after the “Two Witnesses” complete their “testimony.” On cue, the “Beast ascends from the Abyss” to attack and slay them, but only after they finish their prophetic mission.

The pattern of satanic forces “ascending” from the “Abyss” and waging war against the “saints” repeats in Revelation. And the “saints” are identified as those who have the “testimony” and “faith” of Jesus.

What distinguishes them from the “inhabitants of the earth” is their faithfulness to follow the “Lamb wherever he does.” Members of the latter group are branded with the “mark of the Beast,” but those of the former have the name of the “Lamb… inscribed on their foreheads.”

ASCENT OF THE BEAST

(Revelation 11:7) – “And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that ascends from the abyss will make war with them and overcome them and kill them.”

After the “Witnesses” complete their “testimony,” John sees the “Beast ascend from the Abyss” to wage “WAR ON THEM, AND TO SLAY THEM.” This clause echoes Daniel’s vision of the “four beasts from the sea” when the malevolent “little horn” of the “fourth beast” persecuted the “saints of the Most-High”:

(Daniel 7:21) – “I beheld, and the same horn MADE WAR WITH THE SAINTS, AND PREVAILED AGAINST THEM.”

In Revelation, each time something evil is said to “ASCEND” from a dark place, the English term translates the Greek verb anabainô, and this is NOT coincidental. For example, in chapter 13, John describes the same “Beast ascending from the Sea.” And at the end of the “thousand years,” Satan is released from the “Abyss” and leads the nations to “ascend over the earth” and attack the “camp of the saints” – (Revelation 9:1, 11:7, 13:1, 17:8, 20:8-9).

NOT UNTIL THE APPOINTED TIME

But the “Beast” cannot kill the “Witnesses” UNTIL they FINISH their “testimony.” Thus, the “Beast” is unable to overcome them until it is authorized to do so by an external power. Just as the word of the “Two Witnesses” unleashes the trumpet “plagues” on the “inhabitants of the earth,” so the “Beast” cannot slay them until they complete their prophetic “testimony.”

The Greek term rendered “finish” or teleō links the passage to several verses that describe events reaching their intended conclusion. For example:

(Revelation 17:17) – “For God put in their hearts to fulfill his will, and to agree and give their kingdom to the Beast, until the words of God are FINISHED.”

(Revelation 20:3) – “And cast him into the Abyss and shut him up…until the thousand years should BE FINISHED, then he must be loosed a little season… And when the thousand years ARE FINISHED Satan shall be loosed out of his prison.”

Thus, the “second woe” or “sixth trumpet” does not end or the “third woe” begin until the “Two Witnesses” complete their mission and become martyrs, just as John was told when he received the “little scroll”:

(Revelation 10:6-7) – “And he swore by him that lives forever… that there shall be delay no longer, but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then is FINISHED the mystery of God, according to the good tidings which he declared to his servants the prophets.”

None of the preceding remarks mean that the “Two Witnesses” do not suffer persecution, only that they cannot be killed before the appointed time. As the passage states, previous attempts were made by the “inhabitants of the earth” to kill them, but they all failed (“If anyone desires to hurt them, fire proceeds out of their mouth and devours their enemies”).

CHURCHES PERSECUTED

And again, the “Two Witnesses” represent churches. This understanding is confirmed in the next vision when the same “Beast” ascends from the “sea” to “wage war and overcome the saints”:

“And it was given to it TO MAKE WAR WITH THE SAINTS AND TO OVERCOME THEM. And there was given to it authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation” - (Daniel 7:21, Revelation 13:7).

After the “Beast” kills the “Witnesses,” the “peoples and tribes and tongues and nations” refuse to bury their corpse, and the “inhabitants of the earth” rejoice over their deaths.

Likewise, after the “Beast from the sea” kills the “saints,” it is granted authority over “every tribe and people and tongue and nation,” and all the “inhabitants of the earth” render homage to it - (Revelation 13:8).

Thus, the “Beast from the Abyss” and the “Beast from the sea” are one and the same, and the “war” against the "Two Witnesses" represents the same reality as the “war” by the “Beast from the Sea” against the “saints.”

In either case, the “Beast” is unable to prosecute its war until authorized to do so (“it was given to it…”).

Both the “Abyss” and the “Sea” represent the same dark reality from which Satan’s forces “ascend” to attack the people of the “Lamb.”

But first, the “Two Witnesses” must be killed for their “testimony.” Despite the great “plagues” inflicted on the “inhabitants of the earth,” they do not heed the “testimony” of the “Witnesses.” Instead, the “Beast ascends from the Abyss” and kills them.

However, the “slain Lamb” will turn their death into victory, and the “testimony” of the martyred “Witnesses” will be vindicated when the “seventh trumpet” is heard.

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The Two Witnesses

2023-04-15T03:41:00.002-07:00

In its task of prophesying before “nations and kings,” the church is symbolized by “Two Witnesses” that “testify” before the “Inhabitants of the Earth.” Their work continues for the entire “twelve hundred and sixty days” or “forty-two months” until they “finish” their prophetic ministry. Afterward, they are “slain by the Beast from the Abyss.”

Two things link the “Witnesses” and the commissioning of John to “prophesy to nations and kings,” and to the “measuring of the sanctuary” - (Revelation 10:11, 11:1-2).

First, the “Witnesses” are sent “to prophesy.” Second, the “twelve hundred and sixty days” is mathematically equivalent to the “forty-two months” during which the “holy city” is trampled by the “nations.”

(Revelation 11:3-6) – “ And I will give to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy a thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth. These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands standing before the Lord of the Earth. And if any man desires to harm them, fire proceeds out of their mouth and devours their enemies; and if any man desires to harm them, in this manner must he be killed. These have the power to shut the heaven, that it rain not during the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to smite the earth with every plague, as often as they desire.”

PROPHESY TO THE NATIONS

The commission to John to “prophesy against peoples, nations, and tongues, and many kings” plays out on the earth in the work of the “Two Witnesses.” Though they are not killed until the end of the “twelve hundred and sixty days,” the “Witnesses” endure persecution for the entire period, and this s why they prophesy wearing “sackcloth.”

Persecution is the “bitterness” that John tasted when he ate the “little scroll.” And this persecution corresponds to the “holy city” being “trampled underfoot” for “forty-two months.”

As they give “testimony,” the “Two Witnesses” inflict the “plagues” of the “seven trumpets” on the “inhabitants of the earth.” Their “word” causes “fire” and other catastrophes as described in the first six trumpet blasts, including turning “water into blood.”

The book now weaves imagery from the prophetic careers of Elijah and Moses into its portrait. At the word of Elijah, fire fell from heaven and consumed his persecutors. When he prayed, it did not rain for three and one-half years. And before Pharaoh, Moses turned the waters of the Nile into blood - (1 Kings 17:1, 2 Kings 1:10-12, James 5:17).

Likewise, the “Two Witnesses” have “the power to shut the heaven, so that it does not rain during the days of their prophesying.” Like Moses in Egypt, they have the authority to turn the waters into blood and “smite the earth with every plague.”

ONE MINISTRY

The two speak with one voice. The fire unleashed by their “WORD,” singular, issues from their “MOUTH,” also singular. When they are killed, their single “BODY” lies in the street of the “great city.” The same “plagues” issue from both “Witnesses,” and both stop the rain and turn water into blood.

Verse 4 alludes to a passage in the book of Zechariah when the prophet saw a “golden lampstand” holding seven lamps with “two olive trees,” one each on either side. A voice declared, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, says Yahweh of hosts.”

The two “olive trees” provided oil to the lamps and represented the “two anointed ones” – Joshua the high priest and Zerubbabel from the royal line of David – (Zechariah 4:2-14).

In Revelation, “lampstands” symbolize churches. Possibly, the “Witnesses” represent the priestly and kingly aspects of the church, the “kingdom of priests.” Elsewhere, this is a combined reality – a priestly kingdom – and not distinct ministries, individuals, or groups in the church (e.g., Revelation 1:20).

By their “word,” fire falls, and “waters turn into blood.” Likewise, the second trumpet produced the “great mountain burning with fire” that was cast into the sea, turning “the third part into blood.”

They “smite the earth with every plague.” Likewise, at the end of the sixth trumpet, the men who were not killed by the plagues “repented not of their work.” Thus, the plagues unleashed by the trumpet blasts are connected to the “testimony” of the “Two Witnesses” - (Revelation 8:7-9:20).

When any man attempts “to harm” (adikeō) them, fire issues (ekporeuomai) from their “mouth” and devours him. Similarly, the locust-like creatures from the “Abyss” were not “to harm” (adikeō) any man with “the seal of God on his forehead.” When the sixth trumpet sounded, out of the mouths of the horses “issued” (ekporeuomai) fire, smoke, and brimstone by which a third of humanity was killed - (Revelation 9:1-18).

Thus, the “word” of the “Two Witnesses” unleashes the judgments of the “seven trumpets.” Their “testimony” coincides with the period when the first six trumpet blasts are heard. The things described in chapter 11 do not follow the first six trumpet plagues chronologically. Rather, they provide further insight into the whole series of seven trumpets.

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The Beast goes to War

2023-04-09T15:52:00.000-07:00

The book of Revelation uses “war” and related terms to illustrate Satan’s attacks against the followers of the “Lamb.” The book shows no interest in conventional or nuclear warfare between nation-states. Instead, the “Dragon” strives mightily to annihilate the church before his allotted time expires, and to do so, he employs deception, compromise, and outright persecution.

References to a coming “war,” singular, employ the Greek verb polemeō and its noun form, polemos. Both are applied to the cosmic battle in chapter 12 when “WAR (polemos) arose in heaven” between the “Dragon and his angels” and “Michael and his angels.”

Expelled from heaven, Satan began to wage brutal combat against those who have the “testimony of Jesus.” The “battles” were fought between Satan and the “Lamb” through their respective earthly followers – (Revelation 12:1-17).

This war between Jesus and the “Dragon” manifests in the daily lives of believers as they struggle against deceivers within the church, and additionally, they often endure persecution. Moreover, the day is coming when the Devil will assemble all his forces in one last-ditch effort to destroy the people of God.

THE BEAST FROM THE ABYSS

The “beast” first appears in chapter 11 as he “ascends from the Abyss” to destroy the “Two Witnesses.” The Greek verb rendered “overcome” or nikaō in the passage means to “conquer, overcome.” It is the same verb found in the letters to the seven churches in the several exhortations summoning believers “to overcome” - (Revelation 11:7).

The Beast’s ascent results in its “victory” over the “Two Witnesses.” However, it will not be unleashed to kill them until they have “completed” their prophetic “testimony.”

The “Witnesses” are not two individuals, but “two lampstands,” and in Revelation, “lampstands” symbolize churches. The “war” against them represents the persecution of the church by the “Beast.”

Although the Beast “overcomes” and kills the “Witnesses,” it will be a hollow victory, one that is quickly overturned by the intervention of God when the seventh trumpet sounds - (Revelation 1:20, 11:15-19).

THE DRAGON

In chapter 12, Satan is defeated and cast out of heaven. Enraged, he descends to the earth to “make war” with “those who are keeping the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus.”

The same reality is in view that is portrayed in chapter 11, but from a different perspective.

As before, the forces of Satan wage “war” on the followers of the “Lamb,” namely, “those who have the testimony of Jesus”), and not against other nation-states - (Revelation 12:12-17).

BEAST FROM THE SEA

Next, in chapter 13, John sees the “Beast ascending from the Sea,” an image parallel to that of the “Beast ascending from the Abyss.” Once again, the same events are in view.

Rather than resist the “Beast,” the “inhabitants of the earth” are awed by its irresistible power - “Who is like the Beast and who can make war with it?” No resistance or revolt is raised against it by the nations of the earth - (Revelation 13:1-4).

After receiving the authority of the “Dragon,” the “Beast” launches its campaign against the “saints.” And it “overcomes (nikésai) them,” meaning, it kills the “saints.” However, it can only do so when and within the limits authorized by the “Lamb” – (“It was given to the Beast” - Revelation 13:7).

The same term for “war” in the singular number found in chapters 11 and 12 is employed in chapter 13 when the “beast wages WAR on the saints.” All three passages allude to the same verse in the book of Daniel that describes the attack on the saints by the “little horn”:

(Daniel 7:21) - “I continued looking when this horn made war with the holy ones and prevailed against them: until that the Ancient of Days came, and justice was granted to the holy ones of the Highest, and the time arrived that the holy ones should possess the kingdom.”

Just as the “Beast from the Abyss” attacked the “Two Witnesses,” so the “Beast from the Sea” makes war on “the saints.” Elsewhere, the term “saints” refers to men who follow the “Lamb wherever he goes” - (Revelation 5:8, 8:3-4, 11:18, 13:7-10, 14:12, 16:6, 17:6, 18:20-24, 19:8, 20:6-9).

This “war” results in the “captivity” and death of the “saints.” The violent assault is described as the “perseverance and the faith of the saints” - (Compare - Revelation 1:9, 2:2-3, 2:19, 3:10, 14:12).

SUMMARY

The battle scenes in Revelation are not literal descriptions of military conflicts between nation-states, but assaults by Satan and his servants against the people of the “Lamb.”

The cosmic battles in the heavens manifest in the daily lives of Christians as they struggle with false teachers, false prophets, deception, and persecution.

From its inception, persecution and deceivers have been common in the life of the church. The visions of Revelation expose the true source of persecution and provide insight into the opposition experienced in the daily lives of the “saints.”

The book does foresee a final assault by Satan against the church prior to the final judgment, a “war” it portrays in several ways with language from the book of Daniel. That assault will cause the “Lamb” to intervene directly by destroying his enemies and delivering his people into the coming New Creation, the city of “New Jerusalem.”

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A Singular Event

2023-03-27T08:45:00.000-07:00

The New Testament promises that Jesus will return to the earth at the “end” of the present age. His glorious “arrival…on the clouds” will result in the judgment of the ungodly, the resurrection and vindication of the righteous, the arrival of the New Creation, and the termination of death. Thus, it will be an event of great finality.

In his parable of the wheat and the tares, Jesus portrayed the “Son of Man” arriving at the “end of the age” when he will divide humanity into two groups - The just and the unjust. The “wheat” will be gathered in the “barn,” while the “tares” will be tied into bundles and burned.

HUMANITY DIVIDED

In the parable, the wheat represents the “sons of the kingdom,” the tares symbolize the “sons of the evil one,” and the “harvest” of both groups will occur at the “end of the age” - (Matthew 13:24-30).

Likewise, the parable of the sheep and goats pictures all nations gathered before Jesus for judgment. “Then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory.” The “sheep” will inherit the “kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world,” but the “goats” are cast into "everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”

Thus, the first group receives everlasting life, and the second suffers “everlasting punishment” - (Matthew 25:31-46).

In his ‘Olivet Discourse,’ he taught that when the “Son of Man comes” he will be accompanied by his angels. All nations will mourn at his arrival, and he will send his angels to “gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” - (Matthew 24:29-31).

In his first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul states that at his “arrival,” dead Christians will be resurrected and gathered along with those believers who are still alive to “meet him in the air” as he descends from heaven.

His “arrival” will be heralded by “the voice of an archangel and the trumpet of God,” and from that point forward, believers will be with him “forevermore.”

VINDICATION AND WRATH

Instead of “wrath,” God has appointed believers to attain salvation through Jesus. In contrast, the “day of the Lord will arrive with sudden destruction” upon the unprepared, and “they shall in no way escape.” The same day will bring salvation to the faithful but destruction to unbelievers - (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, 5:1-7).

In his second letter to the Thessalonians, the Apostle writes that the righteous will be vindicated when Jesus is “revealed from heaven with his angels,” but their persecutors and all “who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” will pay the ultimate penalty - “Everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord.”

On that same day, Jesus will be “glorified in his saints.” Once again, at his return, the righteous are vindicated and the wicked are condemned - (2 Thessalonians 1:5-10).

Paul labels this one event the “arrival” or parousia of Jesus, the “day of the Lord,” and the “revelation of Jesus from heaven.” Regardless of which term he applies, on that day Jesus will gather his saints and judge their persecutors, including the “man of lawlessness” - (2 Thessalonians 2:1-9).

In 1 Corinthians, Paul writes that at Christ’s “arrival,” the righteous dead will be resurrected, the kingdom of God consummated, and the “last enemy, death” will be terminated. All this he categorizes under the term “the end,” singular (“then comes the end”). Furthermore, on that day, the saints will inherit the kingdom and receive “immortality” - (1 Corinthians 15:20-57).

Peter links the judgment of the wicked, the dissolution of the existing creation, and the arrival of the New Creation to the “arrival” of Jesus, all events that will occur on the “day of God” - (2 Peter 3:3-13).

The book of Revelation also connects the judgment of the wicked to the coming of Jesus. On that day, “every eye will see him” and “all the tribes of the earth will wail because of him.”

The “day of the Lord” will be the day of His “wrath” against the wicked. It will be characterized by great celestial and terrestrial upheaval, and the victory of the “Lamb” will culminate in the New Heavens and New Earth – (Revelation 1:7, 6:12-17, 11:15-19, 16:12-21, 19:17-21).

The New Testament tells a consistent story. The one and final “arrival” of Jesus will mean the final judgment, the resurrection of the dead, both terrestrial and celestial upheaval, the consummation of God’s kingdom, the cessation of death, the final overthrow of all God’s enemies, and the New Creation wherein righteousness prevails forevermore. And thus, that day will arrive with a grand note of finality.

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The Last Hour

2023-03-23T05:28:00.000-07:00

In his first epistle, John declares it is the last hour, a period elsewhere called the “last days.” As evidence of this, he points to the false teachers that are disrupting his churches. They are products of the “spirit of antichrist” that is active already in the world. And these deceivers are forerunners of the final “Antichrist.”

The idea that the church is in the “last days” occurs multiple times in the New Testament. This period is the final stage of history that began following the death, resurrection, and exaltation of Jesus of Nazareth.

(1 John 2:18-22) – “Little children! It is the last hour. And just as you heard that an antichrist is coming, even now, many antichrists have come, whereby we perceive that it is the last hour… Who is the false one, save he that denies that Jesus is the Christ? The same is the Antichrist, he that denies the Father and the Son.”

MANY DECEIVERS

To substantiate his claim, John points to the very deceivers that are active in his congregations. Jesus himself warned his followers that “many deceivers” and “false prophets” would come and “deceive many,” including the “very elect.”

Thus, the activity of false teachers in the church is irrefutable evidence that the final period of this fallen age is underway. And it will end inevitably with the return of the “Son of Man on the clouds,” and in the destruction of all his enemies - (Matthew 24:4-5, Mark 13:5-6, Luke 21:8, 1 Timothy 4:1, 2 Timothy 3:1).

John labels these deceivers “antichrists,” using the plural number. They are not proponents of pagan religious ideas from outside the church, but false teachers propagating false doctrines in it (“They went out from among us”). And, in this case, they are identifiable by their denial “that Jesus is the Christ.”

In his letter, John does not directly connect the activities of these false teachers with any expected final events or signs. His immediate concern is the present damage being inflicted on his congregations, though the very presence of such deceivers and false prophets demonstrates that the “last days” have arrived - (1 John 4:1-3).

His second epistle is more personal and quite brief. It does not discuss the return of Jesus, but its key concern is the dissension in the church caused by false teachers, especially their denial of Christ’s genuine humanity.

And once again, the activities of deceivers in the church show that the “last days” are underway - (2 John 7-8).

ABIDE IN JESUS

And, as before, John links these deceivers to the coming “Antichrist.” His reference to “many deceivers” echoes the words of Jesus in his discourse on the Mount of Olives, especially the warning about coming deceivers:

(Matthew 24:4-5, 11-13, 23-25) – “And answering, Jesus said to them: Beware lest anyone deceive you; for many will come upon my name, saying: I am the Christ, and will deceive many… And many false prophets will arise and deceive many… For there will arise false Christs and false prophets, and they will show great signs and wonders; to deceive, if possible, even the elect.”

Considering the present conflicts in the church, as well as what is coming, believers must “abide” in Jesus so that “when Jesus is manifested, we may have boldness and not be shamed away from him at his arrival.”

(1 John 2:28–3:3) - “And now, dear children, abide in him, in order that if he is made manifest, we may have boldness and not be shamed away from him by his arrival… We know that if it should be made manifest, shall we be like him, because we shall see him just as he is. And whosoever has this hope is purifying himself, just as He is pure.”

The call to “abide in him” is a summons to holy living – “purifying oneself” - especially considering the future arrival of Jesus and the rewards that he will bring with him.

By “abiding” in him, the disciple prepares for the final day and immunizes himself from the wiles of the Devil and his earthly agents, in this case, the false teachers - the many “antichrists” already running rampant in the church.

And in the passage, the Greek term rendered “manifested” translates the verb phaneroō - “manifest, appear, make known, become visible.” The Apostle Peter applies the same verb to the coming of Jesus in his first letter, as does Paul when writing to the Colossians - (1 Peter 5:2-4, Colossians 3:4).

HIS ARRIVAL

“Arrival” in verse 28 translates the Greek noun ‘parousia’. It denotes the actual arrival of someone. This is the only instance in his letters where John uses the term. It occurs in Matthew’s version of the ‘Olivet Discourse’ when Jesus applies it to his future “arrival” - (Matthew 24:3, 24:27, 24:37-39).

The world does not understand Jesus, and therefore, it does not understand those who belong to him. For now, his disciples look no different than other human beings, though their conduct may strike many as nonconformist, even antisocial.

But despite appearances, believers are the “children of God.” And when Jesus is “manifested,” they will be transformed and become “like him,” and they will see him “just as he is.” Those with this hope “purify themselves” in preparation for that day - (1 John 3:1, Hebrews 9:28).

Believers must “abide in Jesus” so they will be able to stand in “boldness” on that day. Since they are the “children of God,” they constitute a people distinct from the rest of the world.

Regardless of how far along we are “in the last days,” the return of Jesus is certain. The apostle’s concern is with how believers live in the interim between the present and the return of Jesus. And the very fact that “many antichrists” are present means that sooner or later the ultimate and final Antichrist will appear before the termination of the “last hour.”

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Wrath Revealed

2023-03-16T10:00:00.002-07:00

In Romans, Paul details the gospel, and declares it is the “power of God for salvation.” Due to humanity’s sin, two forces are at work - righteousness and wrath. In his Son, God has provided the solution to mankind’s desperate plight, one that is available to all men through the “faith of Jesus Christ.”

And in the gospel, these two forces are revealed as the good news of Jesus Christ is proclaimed on the earth. Moreover, each man and woman will experience one or the other - righteousness or wrath - depending on how he or she responds to it.

(Romans 1:16-19) – “For I am not ashamed of the good news, for it is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, both to Jew first, and to Greek. For in it, the righteousness of God is being revealed from faith for faith; even as it is written: But the righteous man from faith will live. For there is being revealed the wrath of God from heaven upon all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who in unrighteousness possess the truth.”

In the clause, the “righteousness of God is being revealed from faith for faith,” the Greek verb translated “being revealed” is in the present tense verb, signifying an ongoing process.

RIGHTEOUSNESS AND WRATH

Thus, whenever, and wherever the gospel is declared, the “righteousness of God” is unveiled. This becomes especially evident when Jews and Gentiles respond to it in faith. Thus, there is a PRESENT ASPECT to the “righteousness of God.”

At the same time, “wrath” also is “revealed”; only, against all “who possess the truth in unrighteousness.” Thus, these two processes occur whenever the gospel is proclaimed, and they affect Jews and Gentiles alike, and both in the same manner. Ethnicity does not determine which final result an individual will receive.

The “wrath upon ungodliness” is the negative counterpart to the righteousness of God. Anyone who embraces the gospel, whether Jew or Gentile, is empowered to receive salvation. But “wrath” falls on everyone who rejects it, whether Jew or Gentile.

Elsewhere in his letters, Paul links this “wrath” to the final judgment, but here, he describes its PRESENT ASPECT. The very sins practiced by and delighted in by those who reject the gospel prove that they are under “wrath.” The very trespasses they commit are part of the “wrath from heaven” - (Romans 1:22-25).

SIN

God delivers rebellious humanity to the very sins for which it lusts, even though sinners “acknowledge the righteous sentence of God, that they who practice such things are worthy of death.” Ignorance is no excuse - men and women know full well that they violate the righteous demands of God.

Humanity wallows in its idolatrous sins because of the “wrath of God,” sins that demonstrate humanity is under “wrath.” This is the plight of all men, both Jews and Gentiles, and this reality is demonstrated especially in mankind’s embrace of idolatry, worshipping anything and everything except the one God who created all things.

This unhappy condition is not due to Divine “predestination,” nor does it violate human free will. God gives sinful men exactly what they want, though every man and woman is free to choose a different way.

And sin is the Great Leveler. Jews and Gentiles alike fall short of righteousness, and therefore, both stand under the just “sentence of God.” Everyone is “inexcusable” because of sin. Jews and Gentiles stand or fall before God on the same basis.

FUTURE WRATH

Without divine intervention, and regardless of race, everyone stands condemned, whether “within the law” or “apart from the law.” Without exception, every rebellious man and woman will experience condemnation on the coming “day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God.” But that will be the culmination of a process already underway.

And this must be so since “there is no respect of persons with God.” His righteousness demands equal treatment before the law for Jews and Gentiles alike.

On that day, God “will render to each one according to his works.” Now, Paul stresses the FUTURE ASPECT of “wrath,” and elsewhere, he links the “wrath” to the day when Jesus arrives “from heaven” - (Romans 2:16, 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10).

Since believers have been “declared righteous through his blood,” they also “will be saved through him from the wrath.” Although they have been “set right,” “salvation” is actualized in the future.

And so, likewise, sinners who refuse the offer of salvation will suffer the everlasting and final consequences of their decision on the “day of wrath.”

“Death” for all men is the universal consequence of sin, whether “saved” or not. This is the common and desperate plight of every man. However, for all those who believe the gospel, condemnation for sin becomes a thing in the past, and right standing before God is a present reality. Though death still awaits them, they will be saved from “wrath,” and they will not endure the “day of wrath.”

But for all those who continue to “possess the truth in unrighteousness,” not only must they face death, but afterward, the “wrath of God” on the ominous final day of His wrath.

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God's Wrath

2023-03-05T09:22:00.001-08:00

The “wrath of God” is NOT synonymous with “tribulation,” and it is identical with the “plagues” unleashed by the three series of “seals,” “trumpets,” and “bowls of fury.” And despite the devastation of these plagues, impenitent men do not repent. “Wrath” refers to the judicial sentence of God on His enemies.

The term “wrath” or orgé occurs six times in the book, and always in reference to God’s final judgment.

The calamities unleashed by the “seals,” “trumpets,” and "bowls of fury" are never labeled “wrath,” although “wrath” is manifested at the end of each of the sevenfold series.

For example, after the “seventh trumpet” is sounded, the “wrath came, the time for the dead to be judged” - (Revelation 6:16-17, 11:15-19).

The effect of His “wrath” is everlasting, not temporary. Its ultimate expression is the “lake of fire, the second death” that rebellious men experience at the “Great White Throne of Judgment.” On that day, there will be no escape or reprieve.

In contrast, the righteous receive everlasting life in the city of “New Jerusalem.” What determines whether one receives “wrath” or life is how he or she responds to the “Lamb” - (Revelation 7:9-17, 22:15).

THE SIXTH SEAL

The “fifth seal” reveals the souls of martyrs “underneath the altar.” They cry for vindication against their persecutors, the “inhabitants of the earth.”

The “sixth seal” is the divine response to their plea. It unleashes the final “wrath” on the “inhabitants of the earth,” the “day of the wrath of the Lamb and of Him who sits on the Throne” - (Revelation 6:9-17).

The “sixth seal” is nothing less than the “day of the Lord,” and it is accompanied by terrestrial and celestial upheaval, and there is no escape from the “wrath” of God and the “Lamb” (“Who shall be able TO STAND?”).

SEVENTH TRUMPET

The sounding of the “seventh trumpet” causes the overthrow of the “kingdom of the world.” All powers hostile to the "Lamb" are defeated, the kingdom of God is consummated, and the faithful from every rank of society receive their rewards - (Revelation 11:15-19).

This final “trumpet” means the arrival of the day of the “wrath” of God - His orgé - the time to “destroy them who were destroying the earth.”

It is also when He rewards His saints. Both the righteous and the unrighteous receive their just desserts on that day. Thus, the “day of the Lord” means the vindication of the righteous and the everlasting destruction of the unrighteous.

EVERLASTING GOSPEL

“And a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice: If anyone renders homage to the beast and his image, and receives the mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is prepared unmixed in the cup of his anger” – (Revelation 14:6-11).

In this passage, the angel announces the time for the final judgment of God - for His “wrath.” Everlasting condemnation is declared on every man and woman who gives allegiance to the “Beast.”

Every man and woman who takes the mark of the “Beast” and swears allegiance to its image will partake of the undiluted “wrath,” and His sentence is everlasting in its effects.

Condemned men will “have no rest day or night.” What the angel describes is the "lake of fire," the “second death,” and from it there is no escape - (Revelation 20:11-15).

Another angel then announces that the time has come for “Babylon” to drink of the “cup of the wine of the fury of God’s wrath.” Just as the men and women who take the "mark of the Beast" drink of this cup, so "Babylon" must drink of His “wrath” - (Revelation 14:10).

SEVENTH BOWL OF FURY

The seven “bowls of fury” are also called the “seven last plagues.” When unleashed, the “fury of God is made complete.”

The bowls are “full of the fury (thumos) of God.” “Fury” translates the Greek noun thumos, a different Greek word than the noun orgé used elsewhere for “wrath.” In the Greek text, these are the seven bowls of “fury” or thumos, not the seven bowls of wrath - (Revelation 15:1-8, 16:17-21).

The seventh and last “bowl” produces “flashes of lightning, and voices, and claps of thunder, and a great earthquake...and great hail as talents” - The same phenomena that accompany the sounding of the “seventh trumpet.”

The verbal parallels are deliberate and demonstrate that the same final event is in view - the time of God’s “wrath” unleashed on the “day of the Lord” - (Revelation 11:19).

And “every island fled, and mountains were not found.” This clause parallels the “day of the Lord” unveiled by the “sixth seal” when “every mountain and island was shaken out of its place.” Again, the same final event is in view in both passages.

FINAL BATTLE

“And he is treading the winepress of the wrath of the fury of God the Almighty” - (Revelation 19:15-16).

In chapter 19, the "rider on a white horse" arrives to judge the nations and to “tread the winepress of the wrath of God.” This is the same “winepress” seen previously when the angel announced the “everlasting gospel” - (Revelation 19:15-21).

In chapter 14, the “winepress” is “trodden outside the city,” and “trodden” translates the Greek verb pateō, the same one now applied to the “rider on a white horse” who “treads” the “winepress of the wrath of God.”

This figure does not unleash another in a series of plagues, but instead, he ushers in the final “war” between the "Lamb" and the “Beast,” and it is followed by the judgment and “wrath of God.” And this is substantiated by the fact that the “Beast” and the “False Prophet” are cast alive into the “lake of fire” at the end of the battle.

Thus, in Revelation, “wrath” does not refer to punitive and temporary judgments and plagues. It points to nothing less than the final judgment and punishment of the enemies of God.

Consistently, God’s judicial sentence issued on the “day of the Lord” is called “wrath,” not the plagues and catastrophes that precede it.

The "saints" are present before the "Lamb" on that day, but they do not “drink” from this “cup.” Instead, they are vindicated and rewarded for their faithfulness with everlasting life in “New Jerusalem.”

But all men who render homage to the “Beast” are not only excluded from life in the holy city, but they also will reap the “wrath” of God when they are judged and “cast into the lake of fire.”

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Kingdom of Priests

2023-02-15T07:42:00.005-08:00

Christ’s present reign is based on his past death and resurrection, and his disciples participate in his rule. And like him, their position is paradoxical since it is characterized by self-sacrificial service. The shedding of his lifeblood is what consecrated them as “priests” for God.

Priestly service IS what it means to reign with Christ, and this is in fulfillment of the mission given by Yahweh to Israel at Sinai - “You will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”

That role has now fallen to the followers of the “slain Lamb,” and this theme is especially prominent in the book of Revelation - (Exodus 19:6).

(Revelation 1:5-6) – “Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. Unto him who loves us and loosed us from our sins by his blood; and he made us a kingdom, priests for his God and Father.”

PRIESTLY SERVICE

In the Greek text of the sentence, “kingdom” is in apposition to “priests” - the latter term defines the former. It is a priestly kingdom, therefore, its members execute their royal duties AS “priests.” There is one group in view, not two; “priestly kings,” not “priests” and “kings.”

In the book’s opening vision, Jesus is the glorious “Son of Man,” a priestly figure who serves in the sanctuary and walks among the “seven golden lampstands.” This reflects the ancient Tabernacle that featured a seven-branched lampstand. And he is clothed with the full-length linen robe of the high priest that is held together by a “golden girdle.”

In the sanctuary, Jesus tends the seven “lampstands,” trimming their wicks and replenishing oil as needed. The “golden lampstands” represent the “seven churches of Asia” overseen by him from the heavenly Tabernacle – (Revelation 1:12-20).

To the saint who “overcomes,” this same Son of Man promises to “grant him to sit down with me in my throne, just as I also overcame and sat down with my Father in his throne.”

But to rise to such a high honor, the disciple must “overcome” in the same manner that he did, the one who became the “faithful witness” who loved us and “loosed us from our sins by his blood.”

Disciples do not attain regal status by conquering their persecutors or enslaving other men, but by overcoming sin, Satan, perseverance, and bearing faithful testimony to the surrounding community – (Revelation 3:21).

THE REIGNING LAMB

In the vision of the throne, only the “slain Lamb” is declared “worthy” to open the “sealed scroll.” Though he is the “lion of the tribe of Judah,” the Messiah destined to “rule the nations of the earth with a rod of iron,” he fulfills that role as the sacrificial “Lamb” - (Revelation 5:9-12).

The call of ancient Israel is applied to the men redeemed by the “Lamb,” who are constituted “by his blood” as a “kingdom and priests.” Therefore, “they are reigning on the earth,” present tense. And as priests, they mediate his light on the earth.

In the vision of the “innumerable multitude,” John sees men “clothed in white robes” coming out of the “Great Tribulation.” They have washed their priestly robes and made them white “in the blood of the Lamb.” They are standing before the “Lamb” in the sanctuary, and “He that sits on the throne shall spread his tabernacle over them.”

The “white robes” worn by the saints are based on the ones worn by Aaron and his sons when they were installed as priests. Thus, overcoming saints are pictured as priests at worship in the Tabernacle – (Leviticus 8:6-7, Revelation 7:9-17).

This priestly company is “rendering divine service” before the “throne.” This translates the Greek verb latreuô, the same one applied to the service of the Levitical priests in the ancient Greek version of Leviticus, the Septuagint. And present-tense verbs are used - “they ARE SERVING him day and night” in the sanctuary.

The priestly role of the saints becomes clearer when John “measures” the “sanctuary,” the “altar,” and “those who were rendering divine service” in it (latreuô). That is, the priests conduct their duties before the “altar.” After he “measures” the “sanctuary,” the entire “holy city” is handed over to the nations and “trampled underfoot forty-two months” – (Revelation 11:1-2).

This same reality is portrayed in the vision of the “Beast ascending from the sea.” It is given a “mouth speaking great things” with which it “slanders the tabernacle, those that dwell in the heaven.”

In the Greek clause, there is no conjunction between “tabernacle” and “they who tabernacle.” The two terms are in apposition and the latter identifies the former. This understanding is confirmed by the next verse - “it was given to it to make war with the saints, and to overcome them.”

The “Beast” wages war on the priestly company that is “rendering divine service” (latreuô) before the “Lamb.” This is in deliberate contrast to the “inhabitants of the earth” who are “rendering homage” (proskeneô) to the image of the “Beast” – (Revelation 13:4-7).

KINGS AND PRIESTS

The “kingdom of priests” is presented once more at the start of the “thousand years.” After Satan is banished to the “Abyss,” judgment is given FOR the martyrs who die for the “testimony of Jesus and the word of God, and such as did not render homage to the beast.”

They “lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years… Over these, the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and reign with him a thousand years.” Thus, they qualify to reign with him because they willingly give their lives in service to him.

In Revelation, Jesus is a priestly figure. His sacrifice redeems men, and he now reigns as their high priest. In turn, his lifeblood consecrates his saints as “priests” who rule with him, and they do so in the same manner that he does – self-sacrificial priestly service.

The “priests of God” overcome their enemies by the “blood of the Lamb, the word of their testimony, and because they love not their life unto death” – through service on behalf of their high priest.

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Rosh Means Head

2023-02-11T14:38:00.000-08:00

The Hebrew term ‘ROSH’ in the book of Ezekiel is not a proper name, but the common Hebrew noun for “head.”

Certain interpretative schools claim the Hebrew word ‘rosh’ in the 38^th chapter of Ezekiel refers to Rus, the name of the medieval kingdom of Kievan Rus. From this, it is argued, Ezekiel’s prophecy refers to modern Russia. However, in the Hebrew Bible ‘rosh’ consistently means “head,” including in Ezekiel 38.

This interpretation is based on the perceived similarities in sound and spelling between the Hebrew term ‘rosh’ and ‘Rus.’

The noun “rosh” occurs over six hundred times in the Hebrew Bible and most often means “head.” Derivative meanings include “chief,” “top,” “sum,” “first,” “foremost,” and “principal.” Each derived meaning is based on the literal sense of the term or “head” - (rô'sh – Strong’s - #H7218).

OLD TESTAMENT USAGE

In the Hebrew Bible, “rosh” is not a proper name, with the one possible exception of Genesis 46:21 (“Rosh,” a son of Benjamin). Nowhere does the Old Testament mention any nation, people, territory, or city named “rosh.”

It is the same noun used for the commencement of the Hebrew new year, rosh ha-shanah, namely, the “head of the year.” Likewise, it is applied to the start of the new month or rosh chodesh.

Other examples include the “chief” of a tribe, the “chief priest,” and the “chief prince.” In one verse, Ezekiel also refers to the “head” or ‘rosh’ of the new year - (Deuteronomy 1:15, 5:23, 2 Kings 25:18, 1 Chronicles 7:40, Ezekiel 40:1).

In Ezekiel, “rosh” occurs thirty-eight times, always with the sense “head.” For example, the “heads” of the living creatures. On one occasion, the prophet was commanded to shave his “head.” In chapter 17, “rosh” refers to the “top” of a branch. In chapter 27, we find the “rosh” or “chief of all spices.” And so on - (Ezekiel 1:22, 5:1, 17:4, 17:22, 27:22).

The King James Version renders the opening clause from Ezekiel’s vision as, “set your face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.” Here, the A.V. has translated ‘rosh’ as “chief,” and correctly so.

CHIEF PRINCE

In the Hebrew clause in Ezekiel 38:2, “rosh” or “chief” follows the Hebrew noun for “prince” or nasi, the normal word order for a Hebrew clause where one substantive modifies another (the so-called ‘construct state’). In this case, “chief” modifies “prince.” The most natural sense is “chief prince.”

As for any similarity in spelling or pronunciation with ‘rus,’ this may be apparent in English translations but is not real.

“Rosh” (ראשׁ) is written with the three Hebrew consonants Resh (ר), Aleph (א), and Shin (ש). In earlier times, it was written only with Resh and Shin (רשׁ). The letter Aleph was added later to mark the long vowel sound or ‘ô’. The single-letter Shin (ש) provides the ‘sh’ sound in ‘rosh.’

Since the ninth century A.D., ‘rus’ has been transliterated into Hebrew as רוס, using the consonants Resh (ר), Vav (ו) and Samech (ס), NOT Resh (ר), Aleph (א) and Shin (ש). And the letter Vav marks the long vowel sound ‘ū.’ Samech is a different Hebrew letter than Shin and, in English, is more akin to the ‘s’ than the ‘sh’ sound. The only sound and letter in common between ‘rosh’ and ‘rus’ are the initial ‘r’ sound from the first letter Resh (ר).

IN REVELATION

As for “Gog and Magog,” what is decisive in determining its identity is how the book of Revelation interprets Ezekiel’s prophecy - (Revelation 19:10-21, 20:7-10).

It applies the term “Gog and Magog” to the final global effort by all nations to annihilate the “saints.” Rather than being led by the “prince of Rosh,” this force is gathered by Satan “from the four corners of the earth.”

And rather than invade Palestine from the north, it “ascends” over the entire earth, and the attacking force includes the “kings of the earth” and their armies.

Thus, Ezekiel’s vision is used to portray the Devil’s final effort to destroy the church. When it fails, the final judgment before the “Great White Throne” comes next.

[Download PDF copy from Google Drive]

Gog and Magog

2023-02-11T14:24:00.003-08:00

Revelation identifies Gog and Magog as the nations from the four corners of the Earth that attack the saints. The prophet Ezekiel received a vision of an invading army composed of regional nations that attacked Israel from the north. The force was led by “Gog of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal” - (KJV). But before it succeeded, this army was destroyed by Yahweh “on the mountains of Israel.”

Ezekiel’s vision identifies several of the nations that attacked Israel, including ones known from history, but also several whose identities remain uncertain, possibly including “Rosh” - (Translated as “chief” in the King James Version) - (Ezekiel 38:1-9).

Several interpretations identify this ‘rosh’ with modern Russia because of the perceived similarity in pronunciation. Regardless, the book of Revelation identifies “Gog and Magog” as the “nations” from the “four corners of the Earth” - (Revelation 20:7-10).

TABLE OF NATIONS

The nations listed in Ezekiel are derived from the “Table of Nations” from the tenth chapter of Genesis, the descendants of Noah’s three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth - (Genesis 10:1-32).

The geographic ranges of the nations listed in Ezekiel are from the north as far as the Caucasus Mountains, south to the Arabian Peninsula, east to the Iranian plateau, and west to the Aegean Sea and possibly Spain (Tarshish).

Genesis places Japheth’s descendants in the regions to the north and west of Palestine (Asia Minor, Aegean), the offspring of Ham in Africa, Mesopotamia, and Arabia, and the descendants of Shem in northern Mesopotamia, Syria, and Arabia. The “Table of Nations” includes seventy nations to symbolize the totality of human civilization.

In Ezekiel, the invading force is composed of people descended from Japheth and Ham. This includes nations from the north (Magog, Gomer), east (Persia), and south (Libya, Ethiopia), as well as groups from the “ends” of the earth. The geographic directions are from the perspective of Israel. To the west, Palestine is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea. The nations listed were known to Israel.

The entity called “Gog” is the leader of this force, not a separate nation. He is from the “land of Magog” and the “chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.” The first-century Jewish historian, Josephus, identifies “Magog” with the Scythians located north of the Black Sea - (Antiquities, I.vi.1).

The name “Gog” resembles the name of the most famous king of Lydia, Gyges or Gugu. If this is correct, “Magog” may refer to the kingdom of Lydia in western Asia Minor.

While “Magog” has not been identified with certainty, “Meshech” and “Tubal” are known to historians from ancient Assyrian literature, the tribes of Mushki and Tabal from central and eastern Anatolia near the headwaters of the Tigris River.

“THE UTTERMOST PARTS OF THE NORTH”

Historically, attacking armies invaded Israel from the north due to the geographic and climatic conditions of the region, especially along the “Fertile Crescent,” an arc of arable land extending from Palestine north to the southern boundaries of the Taurus Mountains, then east along the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, and finally ending in Mesopotamia.

On the east, Palestine was bordered by an arid region that blended into the vast Arabian Desert and could not support any attempt to cross it by a large force. Both traders and invaders traveled to and from Palestine along the Fertile Crescent with its ready supply of food and water. Regardless of their place of origin, armies and trade goods arrived in Palestine from the north.

The frequent connection in the Hebrew Bible of the northerly direction with invading forces reflects the direction from which they arrived in Israel, not necessarily their point of origin. Babylon and Persia lay to the east, yet both attacked by marching northwestward along the Euphrates River, then southward along the Mediterranean coast.

It does not follow from the reference to the “uttermost parts of the north” that “Gog” is Russia simply because it is north of Palestine. The phrase refers to the furthest reaches of the north from the perspective of Israel.

The books of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel all describe Babylon as a nation from the “north,” from the “uttermost parts of the north,” and from the “uttermost parts of the earth,” though it lay to the east of Israel - (Isaiah 14:13, Jeremiah 1:15, 6:22, 25:32, 31:8, 50:41, Ezekiel 26:7).

“Gomer” and “Togarmah” were north of Israel, and “Gog” is said to be “from the uttermost parts of the north.” However, the military coalition in Ezekiel also includes nations from the east (Persia) and south - (Cush, Put - Ezekiel 38:6, 38:15, 39:1-2).

In Ezekiel, the stress is not on the direction of the attack, but on how the invading force completely encompasses the land of Israel from all directions - (Ezekiel 38:9, 38:15-16).

IS ROSH RUSSIA?

The identification of “Rosh” with ‘Rus’ or Russia is based on perceived similarities in pronunciation and spelling. However, the similarities are superficial and do not reflect the Old Testament usage of the Hebrew word rô'sh (Strong’s - #H7218).

Other than for the grandson of Benjamin, rô'sh is not a proper name, and it is not one of the nations listed in Genesis - (Genesis 46:21).

“Rô'sh” occurs approximately 600 times in the Bible, and almost always with the basic sense of “head.” From this are derived metaphorical meanings including “chief, top, beginning, sum, first.” It is the same term used in the Old Testament for the “chief priest” and the “head or first of the year.”

In the relevant passage in Ezekiel, the text reads, “Gog of the land of Gog, CHIEF prince of Meshech and Tubal,” not “Prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal.” It refers to a rank, not to a nation - (Exodus 12:1-3, 1 Chronicles 27:5, 2 Chronicles 19:11).

“Rô'sh” occurs 38 times in Ezekiel, always with the sense of “head.” The book never uses it as a proper name, whether of a person, place, or thing, and the Hebrew noun is spelled differently than the modern Hebrew word for Rus. The two words have only the initial ‘r’ sound in common.

“GOG AND MAGOG”

In chapter 20 of Revelation, “Gog and Magog” are named and identified explicitly, and the attacking force is gathered to “the war,” singular. The passage uses language from Ezekiel chapter 38:

(Revelation 20:7-10) – “And when the thousand years are finished, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison and shall come forth to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth, GOG AND MAGOG, TO GATHER THEM TOGETHER to the war: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And THEY CAME UP OVER THE BREADTH OF THE EARTH, AND COMPASSED the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and FIRE CAME DOWN OUT OF HEAVEN and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of FIRE AND BRIMSTONE, where are also the beast and the false prophet; and they shall be tormented day and night forever and ever” - (Ezekiel 38:2, 9, 16, 22).

Thus, the army of “Gog and Magog” is identical to the “nations from the four corners of the earth.” This force ascends over the “breadth of the earth to encompass the camp of the saints.” All nations unite to annihilate the “saints.” But God destroys this attacking force with “fire and brimstone,” and Satan is cast into the “lake of fire.”

The term “Gog and Magog” does not refer to a specific country from the north of Israel, but to the gathering of all “nations” to destroy the church.

The verbal allusions to Ezekiel’s prophecy are numerous and clear, and chapter 20 of Revelation identifies this army by the name - “Gog and Magog.”

Revelation presents an all-encompassing vision that divides humanity into two opposing groups - Those who follow the “Lamb” and those who render homage to the “Beast.” The existing world order unites in its rebellion against the “Lamb” and its determination to eradicate his people.

And this attacking for is identical to the “kings of the whole habitable earth and their armies,” the group allied with the “Beast” to oppose Jesus. Before the end of the age, “Gog and Magog” will wage a final “war” of annihilation against the “saints.”

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