Babylon Brought Down

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REVELATION 16:17-21

17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, “It is done!” 18 And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as there had never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake. 19 The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell, and God remembered Babylon the great, to make her drain the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath. 20 And every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found. 21 And great hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, fell from heaven on people; and they cursed God for the plague of the hail, because the plague was so severe.

 
 

The Final Judgment has arrived. And Babylon, which has appeared invincible, is finally brought down.

Don’t be deceived today—God wins. And anything and everything opposed to his Kingdom will fall.

 

The 7 Bowls

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I’m teaching 6 Bible studies on Revelation in Q1 of 2023, and this week is #5! Our topic: Why I Do Not Believe “The Rapture” Is a Biblical Doctrine.

Yeah baby. You know you’re curious. 6:30 PM TOMORROW (3/1), with dinner beforehand. Families, bring your kids! (As always, livestream available.)

 
 
 

REVELATION 16:1-7

1 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”
2 So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and harmful and painful sores came upon the people who bore the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.
3 The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became like the blood of a corpse, and every living thing died that was in the sea.
4 The third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water, and they became blood. 5 And I heard the angel in charge of the waters say,
”Just are you, O Holy One, who is and who was,
for you brought these judgments.
6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink.
It is what they deserve!”
7 And I heard the altar saying,
“Yes, Lord God the Almighty,
true and just are your judgments!”

 
 

There are 3 sets of 7 judgments in Revelation, and each one is a further ex- planation of the one before, though they are each about the same thing: the judgments from God that precede the Second Coming. Each way of talking about the 7 judgments is meant to show a different aspect of God’s judgment.

Today, we read of the beginning of the final series of 7 judgments: the 7 bowls.

Each of these bowls pours out a plague on the earth, just like the plagues of Egypt so many centuries before.

In the previous two series of 7 judgments (the seals and the trumpets) there has been a pause between #6 and #7 in which John tells us about the church.

Here, there is no pause, but just a message from Jesus: “Behold, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed!”

The reason there is no pause is because it’s now time for the end to come. The church has been testifying to the truth, and at this point it’s too late to repent. Look at what happens at the 7th bowl:

“they cursed God for the plague of the hail, because the plague was so severe.”

If these plagues—coupled with the church’s message—won’t cause people to repent, then nothing will.

 

Diversity Is the Means, Not the End in Itself

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I’m teaching 6 Bible studies on Revelation in Q1 of 2023, and this week is #5! Our topic: Why I Do Not Believe “The Rapture” Is a Biblical Doctrine.

Yeah baby. You know you’re curious. 6:30 PM Wednesday (3/1), with dinner beforehand. Families, bring your kids! (As always, livestream available.)

 
 
 

REVELATION 15:1-8

1 Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and amazing, seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for with them the wrath of God is finished. 2 And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire—and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands. 3 And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,
“Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations!
4 Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name?
For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”
5 After this I looked, and the sanctuary of the tent of witness in heaven was opened, 6 and out of the sanctuary came the seven angels with the seven plagues, clothed in pure, bright linen, with golden sashes around their chests. 7 And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever, 8 and the sanctuary was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the sanctuary until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished.

 
 

What is God’s plan for history? How will the Kingdom come?

God gave John his vision so that the Church would know the answer to that question.

The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus defeated evil and launched the Church. The Holy Spirit came to incorporate people of all nations into the Church, and not just the Jews.

As we read through the New Testament, we see the Church made up of believers from—in the language of Revelation—every nation, tribe, people, and language.

That alone is of utmost importance.
But Revelation tells us something electrifying:

Namely that the multi-ethnic church is not the goal—it is the means to the end.

In Revelation 15, John compares the victory of God at the end of history to the victory of God over the Egyptians in the days of the Exodus; in other words, John sees a new and greater Exodus.

2 And I saw what appeared to be a sea of glass mingled with fire—and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands.
3 And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,
“Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty!
Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations!
4 Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name?
For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you,
for your righteous acts have been revealed.”

The new song the people sing is not just the song of Moses (as in Exodus) but also the song of the Lamb, because it is the death of the Lamb (i.e. the death of Jesus) that has won the victory. And what has that victory achieved?

“That all nations will come and worship” the Lord.

Revelation reveals that the reason the Lord created a multi-ethnic church was so that the multi-ethnic church would evangelize the multi-ethnic world.

 

A CHURCH FROM ALL NATIONS FOR ALL NATIONS

Richard Bauckham, as usual, puts it perfectly:
“In 15:2-4 the martyrs celebrate the victory God has won through their death and vindication, not by praising him for their own deliverance, but by celebrating its effect on the nations, in bringing them to worship God. This gives a fresh significance to the earlier use of new exodus imagery with reference to the Lamb’s victory, in which by his death he ransomed a people from all the nations to be a kingdom and priests for God (5:9-10). We now see that this redemption of a special people from all the peoples is not an end in itself, but has a further purpose: to bring all the peoples to acknowledge and worship God. The immediate effect of the Lamb’s own victory was that his bloody sacrifice redeemed a people for God. But the intended ultimate effect is that this people’s participation in his sacrifice, through martyrdom, wins all the peoples for God. This is how God’s universal kingdom comes and the concluding verse of the song of Moses [in Exodus] is fulfilled: ‘The Lord will reign forever and ever’ (Exodus 15:18).”

— Richard Bauckham, The Climax of Prophecy

 

OTHER QUICK POINTS ON REVELATION 15

  • John portrays the conversion of the nations in several different ways: in 11:3-13 it’s the result of the testimony of the two witnesses; in chapter 14 it is through the image of the harvest; here, it’s the image of a new exodus.

  • The sea of glass is mixed with fire as a sign of heavenly judgment.

  • The seven bowls are the final judgment and there is no more delay from this point on because the church has been created and God’s purposes have been realized.

  • In v. 5, heaven is opened so that God’s glory can be seen in the midst of the final judgment.

  • In v. 8, we see that God’s glory in heaven is manifested as wrath on earth, and vice versa.

 

Choose Your Own Adventure

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REVELATION 14:14-20

Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand. 15 And another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, “Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.” 16 So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped.

17 Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. 18 And another angel came out from the altar, the angel who has authority over the fire, and he called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, “Put in your sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, for its grapes are ripe.” 19 So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. 20 And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as a horse’s bridle, for 1,600 stadia.

 
 

Today, we read about the effect the church’s/martyrs’ testimony will have on the nations. There are two possible outcomes to the church’s/ martyrs’ testimony. The first is a positive outcome:

1. The nations will repent and be gathered into the kingdom in a great harvest (14:14-16).

The second possible outcome is negative:

2. The nations will refuse to repent, and will be judged along with the beast in the winepress of the wrath of God (14:17-20).

Which will it be? John doesn't tell us—he just describes the two possibilities.

 

Quick Recap of What We've Read So Far

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REVELATION 14:6-13

6 Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. 7 And he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.”

8 Another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality.”

9 And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10 he also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.”

12 Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus. 13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”

 
 

To recap:

  • Judgments alone do not produce repentance (see Revelation 9:20-21).

  • Jesus creates the church to tell the truth—to bear witness—to the unbelieving nations, and the church’s testimony and truth-telling even unto death actually leads people to repent and give glory to God (see the Parable of the Two Witnesses in Revelation 11:3-13)!

  • The church faces great opposition and persecution from evil (see Revelation chapters 12 and 13)—the battle between the church and evil is THE struggle in history.

 

The Spotless Ones

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REVELATION 14:1-5

Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. 2 And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, 3 and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. 4 It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb, 5 and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless.

 
 

God’s people—the church—are portrayed in John’s vision like a Messianic army. Note the detail about how they refrain from sex—just like David’s army in the Old Testament, they are a holy army. They have spiritual power and are facing off against the beast and his lies.

Here, they are gathered on Mount Zion—the traditional center of God’s power and presence in the Old Testament—as they make their stand against the beast.

They fight by their commitment to the truth; just like the sacrificial lambs in the Old Testament, they are “blameless” (literally, “spotless”).

 

The Mark of the Beast, 666, etc.

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REVELATION 13:11-18

11 Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. 12 It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. 13 It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, 14 and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. 16 Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, 17 so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. 18 This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.

 
 

WHY THE MONSTERS ARE IMPORTANT

The Church—the people of God—has an important role to play in God’s plan to bring the Kingdom from heaven to earth, but the Church will be fighting evil every step of the way.

In his vision, John has spiritual insight into the nature of the evil that the church will be fighting. By knowing these details, we know the nature of the fight and what it means to “conquer".

Some key insights:
• Anything other than God that demands worship or complete allegiance is evil and must be resisted, even to the point of death.

• Evil is cunning and often appears at first just slightly different from Christ, hence the term (found not in Revelation itself, but in the letters of John in the Bible) “antichrist.” The beast, for example, seems to come back from the dead, seems invincible, seems the source of peace. All these things are lies and twistings of the truth.

• Deceit and death are the two weapons of the monsters in Revelation: they lie and they kill. Christians defeat the beast by living by the truth even to the point of death, thereby showing the beast is not actually all-powerful.

MONSTER GLOSSARY

• The dragon/serpent is the source of evil itself, i.e. the devil or Satan;

• The beast (from the sea) is the Roman Empire;

• The second beast (on the land) is the Roman imperial cult, i.e., the system of worshipping the Roman emperor through temples and ceremonies in cities across the empire;

• 666 is a numerical code for Nero Caesar.

THE MARK OF THE BEAST

In Deuteronomy 6, the Lord tells his people the importance of remembering his law and their identity:

6:1 These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan
to possess, 2 so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life. 3 Hear, Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you.

4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

“Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.” In other words, God wants his people to be committed to remembering his instructions.

The mark of the beast is the opposite of this—it’s the sign that you are committed to the beast. Without the mark, you can’t even engage in commerce. In the Roman Empire, unless you were willing to worship through the imperial cult (the second beast), you were often shut out of a city’s commerce. One of the ways the beast exercises control is to make it harder for God’s people to make money unless they publicly renounce their identity as the people of God.

THE NUMBER 666

The Jews practiced something called gematria, whereby a person’s name had a numerical value, based on the numerical value assigned to each letter. 666 is the number you get when you spell out NERO CAESAR in Hebrew letters.

After Nero killed himself in AD 68, there were rumors that he wasn’t really dead but would come back stronger than before. John is playing with these legends to get us to understand the evil that is often at work behind earthly forms of power.

WHO OR WHAT IS THE BEAST TODAY?

The power of John’s images is that they help us see reality from a spiritual perspective. We no longer have to fight against the Roman Empire or Nero Caesar, but the beast is still on the prowl. Any rivals that claim complete control and power are the beast. The Soviet Union was the beast; the Chinese Communist Party is the beast. The mark of the beast? To take a contemporary example, think of the social-credit system that is being developed in China, or the so-called “surveillance capitalism” that is already here.

How do we defeat the beast in our time? In the same way as in John’s vision: by our commitment to the truth about the world and about Jesus, even to the point of death.

Will a final greater beast come before the end? Seems likely. But, we should not be afraid—we know it will be defeated!

 

Who Is The Beast?

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REVELATION 13:1-10

And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. 2 And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. 4 And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?”

5 And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 7 Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, 8 and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain. 9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear:

10 If anyone is to be taken captive,
to captivity he goes;
if anyone is to be slain with the sword,
with the sword must he be slain.
Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.

 
 

Today we read Revelation 13:1-10 and look at “the beast” in detail. As with everything else in this sophisticated book, some of what I’ll point out below only really makes sense when you read the whole thing through more than once.

WHO IS THE BEAST?
13:1 And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. 2 And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear's, and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. 3 One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. 4 And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?”

The beast comes from the sea, the source of chaos and evil in the Jewish imagination.

Allow me to point out the obvious, but by seeing the beast’s origin from the sea, John knows that it is evil, despite its lies.

The strange description of the beast alludes to and is a combination of the four beasts described by the Old Testament prophet Daniel in his vision (Daniel 7).

THE MORTAL WOUND OF THE BEAST=
THE YEAR OF 4 EMPERORS

We’ll see later in this chapter (the famous 666) that the beast represents the Roman Empire, specifically the Emperor Nero. This historical detail is behind the mention of the mortal wound in v. 3

One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast.

This is a reference to what happened in AD 69, the so-called Year of the Four Emperors. After Nero committed suicide in AD 68, there was civil war in the empire and revolt on its borders. For many people, it seemed that the power of Rome was at its end. But, Vespasian (the 4th of the emperors in AD 69) became emperor, consolidated power, and started a new dynasty. Rome seemed stronger than ever.

It looked as if the empire had a “mortal wound” when Nero killed himself, but it actually kept going.

People always worship power, and here is no exception—Rome seemed invincible.

THE BEAST’S PERSECUTION OF THE CHURCH

5 And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. 6 It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 7 Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, 8 and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who was slain. 9 If anyone has an ear, let him hear:
10 If anyone is to be taken captive, to captivity he goes;
if anyone is to be slain with the sword, with the sword must he be slain.
Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.

Catch the breadcrumb John left for us?

Remember that whenever you see the time marker “42 months” or “1,260 days” or “a time, times, and half a time,” those are little bread crumbs that John has left for us to tell us he is talking about the same period each time, i.e., the period of the Church’s opposition and persecution.

So, John sees how the beast is persecuting the Church and demanding allegiance, and he tells the Church: be courageous, and don’t give in.

 

Michael Fights the Dragon

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REVELATION 12:7-17

Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world— he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!”

13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. 15 The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. 16 But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. 17 Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea.

 
 

The point of John’s vision is to baptize your imagination so you can learn to see clearly the events of history and your life from God’s perspective.

So, the wild imagery is meant to wake you up!

John sees the devil defeated in heaven and thrown down to earth. In other words, Jesus has already won the victory, and what remains is its working out here below. In the meantime, the devil is persecuting the church but it’s too late and ineffective anyway, because the church is protected by God.

Remember what Jesus promised to Peter?
“I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it!”

Regardless of how things look, friends, be confident: Jesus has already won, and evil will not last.

 

Who is the Dragon?

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REVELATION 12:1-6

And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. 2 She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. 3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. 4 His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. 5 She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, 6 and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days.

 
 

SOME BACKGROUND

Here are a few key points:

• The time descriptors of “1,260 days” or “42 months” or “a time, times, and half a time” are all key apocalyptic numbers which refer to the same time period: the period of the Church’s persecution and opposition.

• Therefore, any time those terms appear you should understand that John is describing some aspect of the Church’s persecution as it patiently endures until The Second Coming.

• The message of Revelation (as shown in the parable of the two witnesses—Revelation 11:3-13) is that, though it will appear from an earthly perspective that the Church is defeated by the enemies of God, in the heavenly/spiritual perspective the Church is actually conquering through its faithful witness, even to the point of death.

 

THE WOMAN AND THE DRAGON

What was it that led the Wise Men to Bethlehem? Matthew tells us that it was a star (Matthew 2), but he doesn’t give us any other info about exactly what it was that the Wise Men saw. Whatever it was, it was a significant enough movement in the constellations that the pagan magi were able to understand it signified a Jewish king was being born.

In John’s vision, this movement in the constellations is brought alive. Not only is the woman supposed to make us think of Mary, the Mother of Christ, but also Eve from Genesis 3:

14 The Lord God said to the serpent,
“Because you have done this,
cursed are you above all livestock
and above all beasts of the field;
on your belly you shall go,
and dust you shall eat
all the days of your life.
15 I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her offspring;
he shall bruise your head,
and you shall bruise his heel.”

Fortunately, we don’t have to wonder who the dragon is, because in the next passage John tells us that he is “that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world” (Revelation 12:9).

The dragon tries to kill the child, but he is rescued by God—it is a symbol of the resurrection of Jesus.

And the woman becomes the church, protected by God for 1,260 days—the key apocalyptic number.

 

The 7th Trumpet

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BIBLE STUDY TONIGHT (2/15) | 6:30 PM | SANCTUARY LIVESTREAM: asburytulsa.online.church

 

REVELATION 11:15-19

15 Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying,
“The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”
16 And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying,
“We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is and who was, for you have taken your great power and begun to reign.
18 The nations raged,
but your wrath came,
and the time for the dead to be judged,
and for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints,
and those who fear your name,
both small and great,
and for destroying the destroyers of the earth.”
19 Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.

 
 

THE SEVENTH TRUMPET

Just a quick word on the sounding of the seventh trumpet (Revelation 11:15-19). Remember, Revelation revisits the same events over and over, using different imagery to expand on a previous point. The seventh trumpet is The End—the last judgment. We’ve just read about the church fulfilling its purpose and seen the nations repent; now, heaven is coming to earth.

In later chapters we’ll get more details about the last judgment and what happens to those who refuse to repent, but here we just get the simple declaration:

“The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.” [Revelation 11:15.]

Amen.

 

Finally: *THE Point* of Revelation! [LONG post]

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Revelation Bible study #4 coming up TOMORROW, 6:30 pm.

Our topic: “The Mark of the Beast, 666, the Whore of Babylon, etc.”

You know you’re curious!  🐉 Parents, bring your kids!

(As always livestream available.)

 
 
 

REVELATION 11:1-14

Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, 2 but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months. 3 And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”

4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5 And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. 6 They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire. 7 And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, 8 and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified. 9 For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, 10 and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. 11 But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. 12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here!” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them. 13 And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

14 The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe is soon to come.

 
 

In chapter 10, John receives the unrolled scroll that is God’s secret plan to bring heaven to earth—"on earth as it is in heaven." It is the scroll that only the Lamb is able to open. What is the scroll? It is the mystery of God’s plan to redeem history, a plan that even the Old Testament prophets were never able to see. (See the ending of the book of Daniel, 12:8-9, e.g.)

In Revelation 11, John begins to explain the message of that scroll.

 
 

JOHN’S SYMBOLIC PROPHETIC ACTION (11:1-2)

Immediately after John eats the scroll, he is told by the angel:

And I was told, “You must again prophesy about many peoples and nations and languages and kings.” [Revelation 10:11]

And this is what happens next:

11 Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, 2 but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months. [Revelation 11:1-2]

A key principle to interpreting Revelation is to notice that John often tells of the same thing multiple times; each time he revisits that thing he uses different symbolic language and provides different details.

So, 11:1-2 is a brief summary of the scroll; 11:3-14 is a further explanation of the scroll; and as we’ll see, chapters 12-15 again explain the message of the scroll; each time the central point is made with different imagery and detail.

Here, just as with the Old Testament prophet Ezekiel when he receives his prophetic message (Ezekiel 3-4), John is asked to act out a symbolic prophetic action by figuratively measuring the sanctuary of the Temple and not measuring the outer court. The reason, he’s told, is that the interior of the sanctuary is protected, but the exterior court will be “trampled” by the nations.

This little symbolic action is based on an Old Testament passage (Zechariah 2:1-2, 5), which indicates that the “measuring” means that the inner, spiritual reality of God’s temple is protected, even while the outer, visible reality is seemingly defeated by his enemies.

Revelation 11:1-2 means that, though it may seem as if evil is conquering God’s people, in fact they will be kept spiritually safe throughout the period of persecution.

 
 

EXCURSUS: 42 MONTHS/1260 DAYS/A TIME, TIMES, AND HALF A TIME

Numbers are always symbolic in John’s vision. Repeated phrases are also important, as a way of linking passages together. The same period—described in different ways—will be said to be “42 months” or “1,260 days”, or a “time, times, and half a time”

That last phrase comes from the ending of the book of Daniel, when Daniel—in an apocalyptic vision—is confused about what he’s seeing:

5 Then I, Daniel, looked, and behold, two others stood, one on this bank of the stream and one on that bank of the stream. 6 And someone said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream, “How long shall it be till the end of these wonders?” 7 And I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream; he raised his right hand and his left hand toward heaven and swore by him who lives forever that it would be for a time, times, and half a time, and that when the shattering of the power of the holy people comes to an end all these things would be finished. 8 I heard, but I did not understand. Then I said, “O my lord, what shall be the outcome of these things?” 9 He said, “Go your way, Daniel, for the words are shut up and sealed until the time of the end.” [Daniel 12:5-9]

Daniel is told that the period in which God’s people are persecuted and opposed (“the shattering of the power of the holy people”) will be “a time, times, and half a time". The rabbis understood this to mean 3 and 1/2:

• one time+two times+one half a time = three and one half
• to put it another way: 1+2+0.5=3.5

So, 3.5 came to be an important apocalyptic number.

If you take 30 days as the average number of days in a month, then 3.5 years is 1,260 days or 42 months. Each time John uses “42 months” or “a time, times, and half a time” or “1,260 days,” that’s a clue that he’s talking about the same thing, but in a different way.

Please don’t try to interpret the numbers literally—they are symbolic, and tied to Old Testament prophecy. In essence this period of 42 months/1,260 days/a time, times, and half a time are all a shorthand way of saying “the period during which God’s people are persecuted and opposed until the Second Coming.”

 
 

THE PARABLE OF THE TWO WITNESSES (11:3-13)

The next section of Revelation is a prophetic parable that dramatizes the church’s role in God’s secret plan.

Right away, we learn something important:

3 And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth. 4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth.

The two witnesses will prophesy for 1,260 days, which means we’re looking at the same point being made as above in vv. 1-2 with that symbolic prophetic action, but with different imagery.

The two witnesses will be dressed in sackcloth. Sackcloth is the clothing of repentance—in other words, the message of the two witnesses will be about repentance.

Who are the two witnesses? John tells us—they are “lampstands." In Revelation chapter 1, we learn that lampstands are a symbol for the Church. The two witnesses represent the Church.

Why two? Two is the required number in the Old Testament for the bearing of true witness. Just as seven churches in chapter 1 symbolize the Church in its fullness and completeness, here the two witnesses symbolize the Church in its capacity to give true testimony about Jesus.

5 And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. 6 They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire.

The two witnesses are modeled on Moses and Elijah, Old Testament prophets who squared off against God’s enemies. (Elijah shut off rain and Moses called down plagues.) The witnesses are protected so that they can complete their mission. (Remember the sealing of the 144,000 in Revelation 7? John was describing the same idea.)

They are protected spiritually, but not physically (see above at the symbolic prophetic action John undertakes in 11:1-2), because:

7 And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, 8 and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified.

I mentioned above that John continually comes back to the same idea throughout his vision and describes it in different ways or in greater detail. Another way to think of it is as a series of Russian nesting dolls: each detail, when opened, contains other details.

So, the symbolic prophetic action of 11:1-2 is unpacked and explained more in 11:3-13. And, many of the details in vv. 3-13 are unpacked and explained more in chapters 12-15.

So, here we have the first mention of the beast, which John will come back to in greater detail in later chapters, especially chapter 13.

But, here, John tells us that the two witnesses (the church), though spiritually protected for their mission will actually be physically conquered by the beast. They will be martyred, in other words. And then their bodies will lie in the street of the city “symbolically called Sodom and Egypt” (i.e., any city in which the church is persecuted), just as Jesus was martyred in Jerusalem.

9 For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, 10 and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth.

“For three and a half days”—the apocalyptic number again!—the people that persecuted the witnesses will perversely rejoice over their deaths! It’s a scene of complete depravity—the people who killed the martyrs will congratulate themselves on their murderous victory. Why? Because they were tired of being told to repent. The witnesses’ message contradicted the world’s self-satisfied delusions of prideful self-sufficiency.

 

THE VINDICATION OF THE WITNESSES!

But, the witnesses don’t stay dead!

11 But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them.
12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here!” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them.

Just as Jesus was raised to life after 3 days, so the witnesses will be raised to life after “three and a half days” (that number again!). And, it is obvious to everyone who sees it that God made it happen, thereby proving that they were telling the truth all along.

And so look at what happens next:

 

THE CONVERSION OF THE NATIONS!

13 And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

The majority of the city repents and gives glory to God! Previously, John has told us that the judgments do not produce repentance (see 9:20-21, e.g.) But here, the martyrdom of the two witnesses produces the amazing result of the repentant nations. Why? What’s changed?

Allow me to quote the New Testament scholar Richard Bauckham at length:

“The point is...that judgments themselves do not convey God’s gracious willingness to forgive those who repent....[When the two witnesses are] confronted with a world addicted to idolatry and evil (9:20-21), they proclaim the one true God and his coming judgment on evil, but they do so as a call to repentance. Therefore, once their witness is seen, not to be refuted by their death, but vindicated as the truth (11:11-13), all who see this repent.”

—from The Theology of the Book of Revelation, by Richard Bauckham (page 86).

Why does the testimony of the witnesses produce repentance when judgment alone did not? Because the witnesses tell the world that God is ready and willing to welcome them back!

The witnesses are initially hated, persecuted, and killed. But, they stay faithful to Jesus even to the point of death, and their faithful witness to Jesus is vindicated by God. In this way they participate in the Lamb’s victory and even conquer the beast, though he kills them, in the same way that Jesus defeated death by dying.

The faith of the witnesses is protected by God, and through their faithful witness to the world they demonstrate that the beast does not have ultimate power because he cannot make them deny the truth of Jesus. They are willing to die for the truth, and their faithful suffering brings the nations to faith in the true God.

In other words, their faithful suffering has a purpose, and it is to be used by God to bring unbelievers to faith!

 
 

***IN SUMMARY:
THE MESSAGE OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION***

The message of the parable of the two witnesses (Revelation 11:3-13) will be reexplained over and over again through the rest of John’s vision, but allow me to sum up what we have learned so far.

 

The First Half of Revelation Leads Up to the Message of the Scroll

  • John has seen into the heavenly throne room (Revelation 4-5), and he sees that in heaven Jesus is worshipped.

  • Although in heaven all things are perfect, they are emphatically NOT so on earth. And so we pray “thy Kingdom come, on earth as it already is in heaven.”

  • The rest of Revelation will be the explanation of how the Kingdom comes to earth.

  • The Old Testament prophets had foretold of a future day when God’s Kingdom would come (to cite one of many, many examples, see Micah 4:1-4), but the prophets were never told how God’s Kingdom would come.

  • In the heavenly throne room, John sees that only the Lamb
    (i.e. Jesus) can open the scroll that contains God’s secret plan to bring in the Kingdom.

  • Why is Jesus allowed to open the scroll? Because he is the Faithful Witness and through his death and resurrection, he has conquered Death and Evil.

  • As Jesus unrolls the scroll and breaks its seals, judgment comes on the earth. The judgments are NOT the message of the scroll—they PREPARE for the message of the scroll.

  • And what do we learn from the judgments? That judgments alone do not bring about repentance on earth.

  • This fact shouldn’t surprise us, because judgments never worked in the Old Testament either, and, come to think of it, God could OBVIOUSLY destroy the entire cosmos whenever he wanted, so there must be a reason he forebears to bring destructive judgment on creation. And that reason is that judgment alone doesn’t produce repentance!


    The Second Half of Revelation Is About
    What’s Written on the Scroll

  • John receives the scroll from the angel, eats it, and then begins to prophesy.

  • He first enacts the symbolic prophetic action of the measuring of the Temple, which tells us that although the church will be persecuted and conquered by the nations on the outside, its spiritual reality on the inside will not be touched.

  • Then John tells us the parable of the witnesses.

  • These two witnesses represent the true testimony of the church, and it’s a testimony about Jesus and against the lies of the world that the church faithfully tells even unto death.

  • Although the two witnesses are protected for their ministry, they are ultimately conquered by the beast.

  • But, God raises them again, thereby vindicating their message, and as a result, the nations come to true repentance and begin to worship God!

 

God’s secret plan is this:

God sent his son, Jesus. Jesus, through his life, death, and resurrection, conquered death and created the Church, into which he calls people of all nations, races, and peoples (see Revelation 7). Jesus then invites the Church to participate in bringing the Kingdom from heaven to earth by its faithful testimony about Jesus, even to the point of death. Once the nations see that the Church is not afraid of death, they repent and come to faith in God! The rest of Revelation is a retelling of this point, with different emphases and imagery and details.

 

Sweet, but Bitter

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Revelation Bible study #4 coming up this Wednesday (2/15), 6:30 pm.

Our topic: “The Mark of the Beast, 666, the Whore of Babylon, etc.”

You know you’re curious!  🐉

(As always livestream available.)

 
 
 

REVELATION 10:8-11

8 Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me again, saying, “Go, take the scroll that is open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.” 9 So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll. And he said to me, “Take and eat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.” 10 And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it. It was sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it my stomach was made bitter. 11 And I was told, “You must again prophesy about many peoples and nations and languages and kings.”

 
 

After the angel comes to John, he gives him the scroll and tells John to eat it. (The Old Testament prophet Ezekiel began his prophetic ministry in the same way—see Ezekiel 3.)

It’s like he is supposed to internalize the message before sharing it. And when he eats it, John tells us that it was sweet like honey at first, but bitter in his stomach—it’s good, but contains hardship.

And what is the message? It is how the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets. [Revelation 10:7]

The scroll that John has been given is God’s secret plan for history, now being revealed by Jesus, via the angel, to John. The scroll is the point of the book of Revelation.

What does the scroll say?
We’ll have to read on to find out....

 

Do Not Skip This - The Key To Interpreting Revelation!

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REVELATION 10:1-7

10 Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, with a rainbow over his head, and his face was like the sun, and his legs like pillars of fire. 2 He had a little scroll open in his hand. And he set his right foot on the sea, and his left foot on the land, 3 and called out with a loud voice, like a lion roaring. When he called out, the seven thunders sounded. 4 And when the seven thunders had sounded, I was about to write, but I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and do not write it down.” 5 And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven 6 and swore by him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and what is in it, the earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it, that there would be no more delay, 7 but that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.

 
 

I have become convinced that the interpretative key to Revelation is what happens in Revelation 10. I need to make today’s commentary longer than usual so as to explain the AMAZING importance of chapter 10. I’m not writing this for my health, but for you, dear reader, so you better read it!

In the very first sentence of the book, John tells us what we need to know about his vision:

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John.... [Revelation 1:1]

Did you catch that?

It is the apocalypse of Jesus which was given to him by God.

Jesus has made the apocalypse known by sending it via angel to John.

God→Jesus→ angel→John→us.

Chapters 2-3 are short messages from Jesus to seven churches in the Roman province of Asia. They are the equivalent of a scribbled message on the top of the rest of the vision meant to draw the churches’ attention to particular issues of importance to Jesus in their respective contexts.

John’s vision proper begins in chapter 4:

1 After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven! And the first voice, which I had heard speaking to me like a trumpet, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.” 2 At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne stood in heaven, with one seated on the throne. 3 And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald. [Revelation 4:1-3]

John has been taken into the heavenly throne room, and he reports what he sees there: worship.

In the Lord’s prayer we pray, “thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” John sees that God’s will is already perfectly realized in heaven; on earth it is not so.

How will God’s will be done on earth? What’s God’s plan to make it happen?

John notices that the one on the throne (God), has something in his hand:

1 Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals. 2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, “Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?” 3 And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it, 4 and I began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. [Revelation 5:1-4]

The scroll is some secret part of God’s plan for history—the way his Kingdom will come on earth as it already is in heaven. When it looks as if it will remain secret, John begins to sob hysterically because if the scroll isn’t opened, the Kingdom will never come, and wrongs will never be righted.

However, one of the angelic beings tells John not to cry:

5 And one of the elders said to me, “Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.” [Revelation 5:5]

And then John sees something that ought to catch our attention:

6 And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. 7 And he went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. [Revelation 5:6-7]

Did you catch that? God gives the scroll to Jesus to open. Remember Revelation 1:1?

God → Jesus → angel → John → us.

We’re halfway to seeing that chain of transmission of the apocalypse. Now we just need to see an angel give a message to John....

Chapters 6-9 give us important information about what happens when the seals around the scroll are broken. We see how the opening of the seals brings warning judgments on earth. The warning judgments, however, do not cause people to repent:

20 The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of
gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, 21 nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts. [Revelation 9:20-21]

If warning judgments won’t cause people to repent and turn back to God, then what will?

What is God’s secret plan to bring his kingdom to earth as it already is in heaven?

Revelation 10 begins to give us the answer.

After telling us that the inhabitants of the earth have refused to repent (9:20-21), this is what happens next.

Allow me to quote Revelation chapter 10 in its entirety:

10Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, wrapped in a cloud, with a rainbow over his head, and his face was like the sun, and his legs like pillars of fire. 2 He had a little scroll open in his hand. And he set his right foot on the sea, and his left foot on the land, 3 and called out with a loud voice, like a lion roaring. When he called out, the seven thunders sounded. 4 And when the seven thunders had sounded, I was about to write, but I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and do not write it down.” 5 And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven 6 and swore by him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and what is in it, the earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it, that there would be no more delay, 7 but that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.

8 Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me again, saying, “Go, take the scroll that is open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.” 9 So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll. And he said to me, “Take and eat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.” 10 And I took the little scroll from the hand of the angel and ate it. It was sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it my stomach was made bitter. 11 And I was told, “You must again prophesy about many peoples and nations and languages and kings.” [Revelation 10:1-11]

John sees a “mighty angel”—described like no other angel in Revelation—who comes to John with a “little scroll” in his hand. Remember what we learned in the first sentence of the book? John tells us that the document we are about to read is:

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John.... [Revelation 1:1]

God → Jesus → angel → John → us.

In Revelation 10 we finally see John receive THE APOCALYPSE that he told us about. This means that the previous chapters are NOT the point, strictly speaking, but rather they are important information we need to understand the point.

P.S. ABOUT THE 7 THUNDERS....

John hears 7 thunders called from heaven by the angel, but then is told not to write them down. The 7 thunders are yet another series of warning judgments that God chooses not to send. Instead, God’s ultimate plan is about to be revealed.

 

What Will Lead People to Repentance?

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REVELATION 9:13-21

13 Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God, 14 saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.” 15 So the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour, the day, the month, and the year, were released to kill a third of mankind. 16 The number of mounted troops was twice ten thousand times ten thousand; I heard their number. 17 And this is how I saw the horses in my vision and those who rode them: they wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphire and of sulfur, and the heads of the horses were like lions’ heads, and fire and smoke and sulfur came out of their mouths. 18 By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed, by the fire and smoke and sulfur coming out of their mouths. 19 For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails, for their tails are like serpents with heads, and by means of them they wound.

20 The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, 21 nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

 
 

20 The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, 21 nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

The plagues here are meant to also invoke ideas of the Egyptian plagues, and just as with Pharaoh, the people here do not repent even after seeing God’s judgment firsthand.

Terrifying and so obviously true. Warning judgments don’t cause most people to repent.

What will lead people to repentance, then?

Keep reading….

 

Invasion

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REVELATION 9:1-12

9 And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit. 2 He opened the shaft of the bottomless pit, and from the shaft rose smoke like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened with the smoke from the shaft. 3 Then from the smoke came locusts on the earth, and they were given power like the power of scorpions of the earth. 4 They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any green plant or any tree, but only those people who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. 5 They were allowed to torment them for five months, but not to kill them, and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings someone. 6 And in those days people will seek death and will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them.

7 In appearance the locusts were like horses prepared for battle: on their heads were what looked like crowns of gold; their faces were like human faces, 8 their hair like women’s hair, and their teeth like lions’ teeth; 9 they had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the noise of their wings was like the noise of many chariots with horses rushing into battle. 10 They have tails and stings like scorpions, and their power to hurt people for five months is in their tails. 11 They have as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit. His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek he is called Apollyon.

12 The first woe has passed; behold, two woes are still to come.

 
 

Revelation chapter 9 is what most folks think of when they think of the book of Revelation—violent, wild imagery—and it is terrifying.

The Jews thought of the Abyss as the place where the rebellious spiritual beings were kept, and when the fifth angel blows his trumpet, an army of locusts is allowed to invade the earth from the Abyss. Invasion is the key theme of the fifth and sixth trumpets.

Whether the army is meant to be a human army that is exaggerated with demonic features or an actual demonic army with human features is not relevant—the point is that God has permitted violent invasion as a warning judgment on the earth.

The people of the eastern Roman Empire in John’s day feared invasion from the wild and violent Parthians from beyond the Euphrates, and the sixth trumpet plays on this fear, in the same way that Americans in the 80s feared invasion from the Soviets, à la Red Dawn.

The overwhelming picture is one of terror and violence.

And yet look at how the chapter closes….

 

The First Four Trumpets

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REVELATION 8:6-13

6 Now the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to blow them.

7 The first angel blew his trumpet, and there followed hail and fire, mixed with blood, and these were thrown upon the earth. And a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.

8 The second angel blew his trumpet, and something like a great mountain, burning with fire, was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood. 9 A third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.

10 The third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from heaven, blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water. 11 The name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters became wormwood, and many people died from the water, because it had been made bitter.

12 The fourth angel blew his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, and a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of their light might be darkened, and a third of the day might be kept from shining, and likewise a third of the night.

13 Then I looked, and I heard an eagle crying with a loud voice as it flew directly overhead, “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, at the blasts of the other trumpets that the three angels are about to blow!”

 
 

There is a series of 3 sets of 7 judgments in Revelation:

1. 7 seals;
2. 7 trumpets;
3. 7 bowls.

Each series brings judgment on the earth. Most commentators (and I agree) believe that John’s vision is moving in a circle at this point, with each set of 7 telling the same account in a different (and increasingly intense) way.

1st seal=1st trumpet=1st bowl
2nd seal=2nd trumpet=2nd bowl
etc.

Each time John’s vision circles back to the 7 judgments, they are explained in a new way that gives more information about God’s plan to bring heaven to earth.

Here, the 7 trumpets (or at least the first 4 trumpets in the series, which are all that chapter 8 contains) lead to judgments on earth that are modeled on the Egyptian plagues: hail, blood, darkness, etc.

Just as with the seals, the judgments of the trumpets raise an important question:

If these cataclysmic judgments do not cause humanity to repent, then what will cause humanity to repent?

Read on, dear reader.

 

Prayer Changes Things!

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REVELATION 8:1-5

When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. 2 Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them. 3 And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne, 4 and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel. 5 Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth, and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

 
 

Revelation chapter 8 begins with an arresting verse:

8:1 When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.

I think the simplest meaning here is probably the most likely: there is silent awe in heaven at God’s judgment, and at what is going to happen next.

2 Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them. 3 And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne, 4 and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel. 5 Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth, and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

John sees into what is a heavenly temple—the censer and the altar are the key images. The smoke of the incense in heaven are the prayers of God’s people, billowing from the censer the angel holds in its hand. Look what happens next!

5 Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth, and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

The prayers of God’s people—many of them the anguished prayers of the martyrs—result in judgment on earth!

Prayer changes things!

 

The Great Multitude

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REVELATION 7:9-17

9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”

13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” 14 I said to him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

15 “Therefore they are before the throne of God,
and serve him day and night in his temple;
and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.
16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore;
the sun shall not strike them,
nor any scorching heat.
17 For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water,
and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

 
 

9 After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.

John hears about 144,000 from Israel, but he sees an uncountable number from every nation. In Revelation, the contrast between what John hears and sees is important. In 5:5, he hears of the “Lion of Judah”—a Messianic, conquering image; in 5:6, however, he sees “a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain." The same contrast is at work here. What John sees reinterprets what he hears: the Messianic holy army of Israel is actually an uncountable number from every ethnicity.

The white robes and the palm branches are the sign of military victory. (Think of Palm Sunday—the Jewish pilgrims are using a Maccabean sign of victory.)

 

10 And they cried out in a loud voice:
“Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb.”
11 All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying:
“Amen!
Praise and glory
and wisdom and thanks and honor
and power and strength
be to our God for ever and ever.
Amen!”
13 Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”
14 I answered, “Sir, you know.”
And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15Therefore,
“they are before the throne of God
and serve him day and night in his temple;
and he who sits on the throne
will shelter them with his presence.
16 ‘Never again will they hunger;
never again will they thirst.
The sun will not beat down on them,’
nor any scorching heat.
17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne
will be their shepherd;
‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’
‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’”

 

As with 5:13, the future has come into the present, and time has collapsed—John, in heaven, sees the victory of God’s army as complete. This is a victory celebration.

How did they win the victory? The rest of Revelation will explain in greater detail, but here the angel explains it to John:

 

13 Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”
14 I answered, “Sir, you know.”
And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

They have conquered by their faithful witness to Jesus, in whose sacrificial and triumphant death they participate by their faithfulness, even to the point of death.

In other words, God is creating a holy army—the Church—which will win victory not by killing but by martyrdom.

We’ll have to read on to see exactly how this will work.