Rev. 19:6-21

Triumph of Christ and His Church

John has a special invitation to go to the wedding of the Lamb.  An angle tells him, “Write: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!”  He saw in heaven a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True and who had “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” written on his robe and his thigh.  Another name was written on him that only he knows. “He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God.”  Could this be another image of Jesus?  The rider and his army made war against the beast.  The two of them were thrown into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.  Everyone else was killed and birds ate their flesh. 

Rev. 20:1-15

As for the great dragon himself, an angel threw him back into the Abyss, closed it over and locked him in for 1,000 years.  “After that, he must be set free for a short time.”  What will happen then?  John saw all who had remained faithful to the Lord and had not received the mark of the beast seated on thrones.  They had come to live and reigned with Christ 1,000 years, the first resurrection.  When the 1,000 years are over there will come a second resurrection for everyone who did not reign with Christ, and Satan will be set loose from the Abyss.  He will gather his army again and surround God’s camp, but fire will come down from heaven and devour them.  The devil, will be thrown into the lake of burning sulfur where the beast and false prophet were thrown, and all three of them “will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.”   Then finally, all those who have died will come before the throne, where the book of life is opened and if anyone’s name is not found in it, they too will be thrown into the lake of fire, along with death and Hades (also thrown into the lake of fire).   

Rev. 21:1-8

All has been destroyed, and God is ready to make everything new again.  He will even make a new heaven and a new earth, and he will live with and among his people.  There will be no more tears, death, mourning, crying or pain, “for the old order of things has passed away.”  Those who overcome will inherit all of it and they will be sons of God.  “But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur.   This is the second death.”

Rev. 21:9-22:5

Glory and Grandeur of Heaven

John is given a clear view of the new heaven and earth.  An angel takes him to see the new Holy City of Jerusalem, God’s bride.  It is huge and magnificent.  No sun or moon or lamps are needed because God’s glory gives it light and Jesus is its lamp.  There is no temple because God and Lamb are the temple.  Flowing down the main street of the city is the river of life, and on each side of it stands the tree of life with healing leaves.  “The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him.”

Rev. 22:6-21

Epilogue

When the vision of all these things is over John falls down at the feet of the angel who has shown him everything, but the angel tells him to stand up, he is only a servant, only God is to be worshiped.  John gives his oath that everything he has written is true.  The Alpha and the Omega verifies that these things are true, and that if anyone adds to these words they will experience the plagues written in this book, and if anyone takes away from these words their inheritance will be taken away from them.

This is serious business. Whose name is written on your forehead? 

Last post I left off after the opening of all seven seals of the scroll which God held in his hand and only the slaughtered lamb (Jesus) could open.  God made a promise to Noah that the earth would never be destroyed again with water, but with fire, we are about to read what this promise fulfilled will look like. It starts with each of seven angels blowing their trumpet in turn.

Rev. 8:7-13

The Beginning of the End

1^st Trumpet: bloody hail and fire hurled to the earth.  1/3 of the earth, trees, and all green grass burned up. 

2^nd Trumpet: a blazing mountain thrown into the sea.  1/3 of the sea turns to blod, 1/3 of sea animals killed and 1/3 of ships destroyed

3^rd Trumpet: a blazing star (named Wormwood, meaning Bitterness) falls on 1/3 of the rivers and springs.  1/3 of waters turn bitter and many people die from drinking it.

4^th Trumpet: 1/3 of sun, moon and stars struck and turned dark.  1/3 of night and day without light.

A flying eagle calls out, “Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!”

Rev. 9:1-21

5^th Trumpet: A star falls from the sky and is given a key with which he opens the Abyss.  When it opens it releases so much smoke that the sun and sky are darkened and from the smoke come locust of no earthly nature, they feed not on grass, but on torturing humans, stinging them with their tails.  They may not kill anyone, but they torture for five months any person who does not have the seal of God on their foreheads.  Their agony is so great that they will wish for death.  An angel of the Abyss named Apollyon (meaning Destroyer) is king over the locust.

6^th Trumpet: Four angels, bound at the Euphrates river until their time has come for this very day, are released to do their job of killing 1/3 of all mankind.  These four angels use an army of 200 million mounted riders armed with fire, smoke and sulfur, they send these as plagues throughout the land.  The horses had heads like lions and tails like venomous snakes. 

Those of mankind that survive do not stop worshiping demons and idols, or repent of their murder, magic arts, sexual immorality or thefts.   

Rev. 10:1-11

After this an angel comes to the earth with one foot in the sea and the other on land and he held a little scroll in one hand.  With his loud shout came voices of seven thunders and the spoke, but John was told he could not write down what they said.  Of all these mystifying things revealed to us, something these thundering voices said we could not know.  The angel swore by God, the earth, the sea and everything in them that when the 7^th Trumpet sounds, “The mystery of God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.”  John was then instructed to eat the scroll (which still has not yet been read from aloud), which tasted sweet but turned sour in his stomach, and he was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages and kings.”

Rev. 11:1-14

John was given a reed to measure the temple and count it’s worshipers, excluding the Gentiles, who would trample the holy city for 42 months.  And God will have two witnesses on the earth whom will prophesy for 1,260 days and he will give them great power to kill those who try to harm them and to shut up the sky while they prophesy.  But when they have finished the job a beast from the Abyss will kill them and no one will remove their bodies from the street.  People will gloat and celebrate their death, but after 3 ½ days God will breath life into them again and all will be astonished.  God will call them to heaven on a cloud and after they depart, a severe earthquake will come and 7,000 people will be killed by it. 

Remember what the eagle said about the last three trumpets? “Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!”  The first woe was the locusts, the second was the earthquake, there is one more woe to come.

Rev. 11:15-19

The Glory of God and of Christ

7^th Trumpet: Voices in heaven shout that the kingdom of God has come to the world.  The 24 elders that surround God’s throne fall to the faces, worshiping God and declaring that the time for judgment has come.  God’s heavenly temple is opened to reveal the ark of his covenant.  “And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a great hailstorm.”

Rev. 12:1-13:1

Satan thrown to earth

What we read here I believe is a recounting not of what has yet to happen, but what already has.  It speaks of the beginnings of Satan’s rule on the earth.  A heavenly woman gives birth to a son, “who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.”  A red dragon intends to eat him as soon as he is born, but God rescues the boy and takes him to his throne and God sends the woman to a desert where she will be protected for 1,260 days (the number of days God’s two witnesses will prophecy).  A war in heaven ensues between the dragon and his angels and Michael and his army of angels.  Michael wins and the great dragon called Satan, “was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.”  Note: Satan is not in hell, he was sent to the earth, and here he stays…and pretty ticked off about it.  All in heaven rejoice, but they fear for the earth. 

The woman fled to her safety in the desert for a time, times and half a time (see Daniel 12).  “Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to make war against the rest of her offspring—those who obey God’s commandments and hold to the testimony of Jesus.”  This woman gives birth to Jesus and to all those who obey God’s commandments, she must be the Holy Spirit, or one of God’s seven spirits? 

Rev. 13:2-18

From the sea comes a beast with seven heads like lions and ten horns, each with a crown (the crowned horns most likely symbolize rulers).  “One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed.”  Those who do not belong to the Lord worship the beast who has survived a near fatal injury, or perhaps seems to have come back to life.  The beast makes war against the saints of the world and conquer them. 

Then a second beast comes from the earth, it has two horns like a lamb and speaks like a dragon.  He makes the inhabitants of the earth worship the first beast and he performs great miracles which gains him power and influence.  He has the people worship an image of the first beast or be killed and caused all to receive on their right hand or forehead, the name or the number of the name of the beast.  Without it, no one can buy or sell.  The number of the name of the beast is 666. 

Rev. 1:1-8

This is a revelation of Jesus Christ, given to John who was directed to write down everything he saw and send it to the churches.  It is a testimony of what is to come.  “’I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”

Rev. 1:9-20

Origin and Purpose of Revelation

John was on the island of Patmos because God had sent him there.  While there he was “in the Spirit,” when he heard a voice from behind say to him, “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.”  John turned to see Jesus standing there in a white robe, gleaming and brilliant.  We can guess that it was Jesus because of what he says to John, “Do not be afraid.  I am the First and the Last.  I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever!  And I hold the keys of death and Hades.”  He explains that the seven churches are represented by seven golden lampstands that surrounded the figure and each church has it’s own angel, represented by seven stars in his right hand.  Out of his mouth came a double edged sword, this will be explained later. 

Rev. 2:1-3:22

Letters to the Seven Churches

EPHESUS: God recognizes their hard work and perseverance and how they have hated evil and tested false apostles, endured hardships in Jesus’ name and not grown weary.  But God brings one charge against them: “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.”  If they do not repent, their lampstand will be removed.

SMYRNA: God knows these people are strong, and he warns them that Satan is about to attach them, he will throw some in prison and some will suffer persecution for ten days.  “Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.”

PERGAMUM: God sees that they have been true to his name and have not renounced the faith, but he brings one charge against them: they have people living among them who live according to the false teachings of Balaam (see Num. 22), they eat food sacrificed to idols and are sexual immoral. They must repent and rid themselves of these sins.

THYATIRA: “I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first.”  But God brings one charge against them: “You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess.”  (see 1 Kings 18,19,21 and 2 Kings 9) God says that he has given her time to repent but she refuses, and he will punish her, her children, and anyone who commits adultery with her. 

SARDIS: They have a reputation of being alive, but they are dead.  God tells them to wake up, and remember what they’ve heard and obey it, repent.  Those who walk with Jesus will be robed in white and their names will not be blotted out of the book of life.

PHILADELPHIA: God has seen their good deeds, they have little strength but continue to keep his word and have not denied his name. 

LAODICEA: These people are neither cold not hot, they are lukewarm and God is about to spit them out.  He calls them to be earnest and repent, God is knocking at the door and he will enter to whomever opens it and will eat with them. 

Each address to the church opens with a description of Jesus and closes with what will be given to those who overcome.

EPHESUS: “These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands.”  “To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.”

SMYRNA: “These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again.”  “He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death.”

PERGAMUM: “These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword.”  “To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna.  I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it.”

THYATIRA: “These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze.” “To him who overcome and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations...I will also give him the morning star.”

SARDIS: “These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.”  “He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white.  I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels.”

PHILADELPHIA: “These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David.”  “Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God….I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem…and I will also write on him my new name.”

LAODICEA: “These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation.”  “To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.”

“He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”