REVELATION 21

The Bible begins in Genesis 1:1 with the expression, "In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth." Verse 1 here could read, "In the end, God recreated the new heaven and the new earth." A new heaven and a new earth is necessary, because sin has existed in the old earth, and even in the old heaven, as Ephesians 6:12 and Revelation 12:7-8 tell us. No evidence of sin or conflict will exist in the new heaven or on the new earth.

It seems odd that verse 1 tells us the sea will no longer exist. I justify my frequent craving for seafood by telling my wife we won't always be able to get any. Note also that there is no sea, even though the twelve gates described later are each made of a single pearl. God doesn't have to rely on a race of super oysters to create pearls for the pearly gates. The absence of the sea probably means more than just the physical absence of oceans. Remember the beast in Revelation 13:1 comes out of the sea, probably meaning out of the sea of humanity, the sea of humanity which is in the process of choosing (or fulfilling, based on God's election) their individual eternal fates. Everyone's destiny has now been realized, so the sea of humanity which represents the current age no longer exists.

Actually, the sea is one of seven things which are gone. The others are death, mourning, crying, pain, mentioned in verse 4, and there will no longer be any curse (Revelation 22:3) or night (Revelation 22:5). Death and pain are certainly physical distresses, but death, mourning, crying and pain, most of all, are the emotional ailments of man. No one who reigns with Christ will have anything to be sad about for all eternity, because God himself will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

1 Corinthians 1:22 says that we have been given God's Spirit as a pledge, a guarantee or a security deposit. During the present age, the Holy Spirit comforts and counsels us, dwells within us and reveals the things of Christ to us (John 14:16-26). It is hard to imagine a greater blessing than that, unless God physically dwells with us in a world free from death, mourning, crying and pain, which is what this chapter foretells.

Verse 5 says, "Behold, I am making all things new." I am almost amused sometimes by how much Christians want things to be new, including this old book, the Bible. It seems impossible for anyone to publish a version of scripture, without insisting it's new. We have the New American Bible, the New American Standard Bible, the New International Version, the New King James Bible, the New Life Bible, the New Living Translation, the New Revised Standard Version, etc. Christians love new things, and everything in God's kingdom will be brand new, eternally new, a sort of new world order in a new world.

Verse 6 echoes both Revelation 1:8 (NASB) which says,

8 "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."

as well as John 4:14 (NASB), which says,

14 "but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life."

Verse 7 reminds us of the promises to those from the seven churches who overcome, found in Revelation 2 and 3. Though these are addressed in those chapters to specific churches, they probably apply universally to everyone who overcomes by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, so they are worth reviewing here. The following are all take from the NASB translation.

Rev 2:7 "To him who overcomes, I will grant to eat of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God."

Rev 2:11 "He who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death."

Rev 2:17 "To him who overcomes, to him I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and a new name written on the stone which no one knows but he who receives it."

Rev 2:26 "He who overcomes, and he who keeps My deeds until the end, TO HIM I WILL GIVE AUTHORITY OVER THE NATIONS;

27 AND HE SHALL RULE THEM WITH A ROD OF IRON, AS THE VESSELS OF THE POTTER ARE BROKEN TO PIECES, as I also have received authority from My Father;

28 and I will give him the morning star."

Rev 3:5 "He who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels."

Rev 3:12 "He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; and I will write on him the name of My God,
and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and My new name."

Rev 3:21 "He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne."

Those blessings are in stark contrast to the warning in verse 8.

8 "But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."

It seems odd that the word cowardly is first on this list, but it reminds me of a contrasting passage in Joshua 1:6-9 (NASB), which says:

6 "Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.

7 "Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go.

8 "This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.

9 "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."

Joshua is commanded three times here, and again in verse 18, to be strong and courageous. If the Lord is with us, as he was with Joshua, the same command applies to us regarding whatever God calls us to do.

I won't comment on the other disqualifications from the kingdom found in verse 8, because the reasons God is displeased with such things seem fairly obvious.

However, it does seem worth pausing to briefly discuss the second death, which has been mentioned previously in Revelation 2:11, 20:6 and 20:14. We think of death as the final moment of our physical life on earth. Whether someone dies in their sleep or they die violently, it is over in a moment, and the spirit is released from the body. This is apparently not the case with the second death.

Revelation 20:14 (NASB) "Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire This is the second death, the lake of fire."

Matthew 18:8 (NASB) "If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter life crippled or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be cast into the eternal fire."

According to Revelation 14:10-11, the second death is an eternally painful experience, an experience so grim and terrifying that it may constantly be like the last moments of those who jumped from the upper floors of the World Trade Center on the day it was destroyed. Their moment of terror, however excruciating, was brief, but the second death is not.

I mention this, not to frighten anyone, but because it should give us a sense of urgency about praying for the lost, as well as boldness about sharing Christ with them when an appropriate opportunity arises.

One of the main purposes of Revelation is to show that God will judge all sin, first inside the church and then outside of it, and he will put an end to sin forever. So what becomes of the sins of Christians?

Matthew 3:11 (NASB): "As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."

We usually ignore the part about being baptized with fire, or we assume it has something to do with the tongues of fire described on the day of Pentecost in Acts chapter 2. It is true that the second death will not harm believers, but our works will be tested by fire, as Paul indicates in 1 Corinthians 3:15 (NASB):

11 "For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

12 Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw,

13 each man's work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work.

14 If any man's work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward.

15 If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire."

I mention this here, only so I can support what I believe is the real significance of this chapter. Verse 2 says John saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, like a bride beautified and adorned for her husband. At first, this seems confusing. Why would anyone, let alone Jesus, marry a city, even a beautiful one? We are told in various places that the bride of Christ is the church itself, as follows:

2 Corinthians 11:2 (NASB): "For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you to one husband, so that to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin."

Ephesians 5:22-30 (NASB): "Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.

23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body.

24 But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.

25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her,

26 so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,

27 that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.

28 So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself;

29 for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church,

30 because we are members of His body."

I believe there will be a new heaven, a new earth and a new Jerusalem, with all of the radiance this chapter describes. But the deeper meaning of this chapter is that once our sins and faults have been dealt with, Jesus will see us in the same way we imagine and will see the city which is called the new Jerusalem. This is truly a stunning possibility, given our individual imperfections and failures. But Christ will see the church, men and women from every tribe, tongue, people and nation, as we see jasper, saphire, agate, emerald, onyx, carnelian, chrysolite, beryl, topaz, chrysoprase, jacinth and amethyst. Each of us will be like one of those precious stones. How awful it is that Judas gave this up for thirty pieces of silver. I don't know much about making jewelry, but most jewelry goes through a purification process involving intense heat which separates the dross from the precious metals. That is the purpose of the baptism by fire, not to judge us, but to determine which of our works will be rewarded.

Of course, the reference to the church here is really all-encompassing, including the saints from the beginning to the end of time, which is why the names of the twelve tribes of Israel are on the gates and the names of the twelve apostles are on the foundations of the walls of the city.

I have never been to a very early wedding. Probably the earliest wedding I have ever attended started at 11 a.m., and most of the weddings I've attended, including my own, were in mid-afternoon or later in the evening. The reason is so the bride can feel fully prepared and look beautiful, not only for the bridegroom, but also for the guests. Bridegrooms don't need that kind of preparation. They would gladly take their brides at 7 a.m., if they were ready. When the new Jerusalem descends out of heaven, the bride will be ready.

The purpose of these last two chapters is to give us a picture of the great love Christ has for us, an eternal love which none of us deserve, but all of us can be grateful for.

REVELATION 20

Before diving into a discussion of this chapter, I think it's helpful to compare two other passages. I will use the NIV translation here. First consider Matthew 16:18-19, which says:

16:18 "And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.
16:19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."

Compare this passage with Revelation 13:7, which says:

13:7 "He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them."

Or compare it with Daniel 7:21, which says:

7:21 "As I watched, this horn was waging war against the saints and defeating them."

Can all of these passages be true, or do the last two contradict the first one? The answer is that they are all true. Anyone who reads Daniel 7:22 or Revelation 13:8 knows that the conditions described by the two verses above only point to a temporary Satanic victory, and there will still be an opportunity to resist the devil (not to mention the necessity for doing so) during these times. In Matthew 16, Jesus is taking a longer view of the conflict between Satan and his church, but Daniel and John define some temporary limitations on what he says.

I mention these passages in order to give a simple example of how seemingly contradictory prophetic passages can still be true, particularly if our understanding of the sequence of events or the period of time they encompass is inaccurate. End time prophecy is a puzzle whose pieces many have attempted to fit together in various ways, and it's quite possible that none of us are completely correct. Though it only contains 15 verses, Revelation 20 can be understood in a variety of different ways. Most controversies about scripture are disputes between the saved and the unsaved, where there is a clear and unequivocal Christian position. This chapter, however, is controversial between Christians, and it requires us to humbly hold our positions (if we have one), while continuing to respect those who disagree with us.

I should say from the outset that my discussion of this chapter will not be exhaustive. To completely cover the various beliefs about this chapter, I would need to write hundreds of pages, which I don't intend to do, I would need to do years of research, and I would need a deeper understanding of everyone's position than I have. So accept what follows as a thumbnail sketch, a small peek into a shop window.

Though there are many variations on the three major beliefs which I cannot cover here, we are dealing primarily with premillennial, amillennial and postmillennial positions. I have always thought of myself as a premillennialist, but there are strengths and weaknesses to each camp's arguments, and I hope to be as fair here as I can, because there is a great deal which we simply do not know.

THE PREMILLENNIAL VIEW

Premillennialists believe the events of Revelation 20 happen sequentially after the events of Revelation 1-19. In other words, they believe that after the seal, trumpet and bowl judgments, Babylon will be judged, the beast and the false prophet will be thrown into the lake of fire, those who worship the beast and receive its mark will be killed, Christ will return to the earth and conquer his enemies, followed by the armies of heaven, which include the redeemed, dressed in clean white linen. After all of these things take place, the devil will be bound for a literal thousand years and Christ will reign with the saints for a literal thousand years, after which the devil will be released from the abyss temporarily to organize one last rebellion among the nations, which will again fail, after which the devil will be thrown permanently into the lake of fire with the beast, the false prophet and all of their followers and the unrighteous dead of all generations. Premillennialists may differ with regard to the rapture spoken of by Paul in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, some placing it before the tribulation, in the middle of the tribulation or after the tribulation, but they all expect a literal straightforward fulfillment of the events in chapter 20 after everything else in the previous chapters has taken place.

Premillennialists generally believe in two resurrections, the resurrection of the just, called the first resurrection in Revelation 20:6, and a second resurrection of the unjust who appear before the white throne to be judged and condemned to the lake of fire. They account for the fact that verse 4 identifies those who take part in the first resurrection as martyrs by saying that the Greek word for martyr really means witness and does not necessarily refer to violent death, though clearly this passage indicates that some have been killed for their faith. No blessing is pronounced on anyone who is resurrected after the thousand years are over, which causes most premillennialists to believe the second resurrection applies only to the unjust. This is certainly a plausible interpretation, but it's worth pointing out that verses 12-15 do not indicate specifically that everyone who takes part in the second resurrection is lost, and verse 4 specifically describes the beheading of martyrs. However, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 says the dead in Christ will rise first, before those who are still alive, and it implies all the dead in Christ, without dividing them into groups. There is no scriptural reason to believe in multiple resurrections of the just at different times, and the only resurrection chapter 20 speaks of which certainly involves the just is the first one in verse 6.

A thousand year reign of Christ is not spoken of anywhere else in the New Testament, but there are some Old Testament passages which may be allusions to such a period, such as Isaiah 2:2-4, Isaiah 11:2-10, Isaiah 65:20-25, Jeremiah 23:5-8, Micah 4:2-8, Zechariah 8:20-23 and Zechariah 14.

But a thousand year reign of Christ, with the devil bound in the abyss, raises a lot of questions which premillennialists may not be able to answer well. What is the purpose for the thousand year reign, and more importantly, who are Christ's enemies during Satan's final rebellion? The answer which is generally given is that God wants to prove that men are not just sinful because sin surrounds them, and they are influenced by the sins of others, by poverty, disease, hunger, thirst, natural disasters, etc. Jesus comes and produces a utopian environment, yet an environment in which some men do not personally accept his lordship. It is presumed that the final rebellion is not a rebellion among resurrected saints, but a rebellion of people who have been born during the thousand years. Jesus teaches in Luke 20:34-36 that those who are worthy of the new age do not marry, so, presumably, they would not have children. So whose descendants would rebel? The answer would have to be descendants of some left on earth who are unsaved, yet do not gather for battle against Christ in chapter 19. Revelation 13:7 says the beast was given authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation, and Revelation 13:16-17 says the beast compells all to receive its mark and does not allow anyone to buy or sell without the mark of the beast. These passages seem to indicate that everyone is forced during the tribulation to choose between Christ and Satan, so it's reasonable to wonder how many people could be left on earth after chapter 19 who are not Christians, or alternatively, why the redeemed would continue to have children for a thousand years.

As a self-confessed premillennialist, my biggest concern with the premillennial position stems from the passage in Matthew 25:31-46. I quote here the amplified version, which is as follows:

31 "When the Son of Man comes in His glory (His majesty and splendor), and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.

32 All nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them [the people] from one another as a shepherd separates his sheep from the goats;

33 And He will cause the sheep to stand at His right hand, but the goats at His left.

34 Then the King will say to those at His right hand, Come, you blessed of My Father [you favored of God and appointed to eternal salvation], inherit (receive as your own) the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

35 For I was hungry and you gave Me food, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you brought Me together with yourselves and welcomed and entertained and lodged Me,

36 I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you visited Me with help and ministering care, I was in prison and you came to see Me.

37 Then the just and upright will answer Him, Lord, when did we see You hungry and gave You food, or thirsty and gave You something to drink?

38 And when did we see You a stranger and welcomed and entertained You, or naked and clothed You?

39 And when did we see You sick or in prison and came to visit You?

40 And the King will reply to them, Truly I tell you, in so far as you did it for one of the least [in the estimation of men] of these My brethren, you did it for Me.

41 Then He will say to those at His left hand, Begone from Me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels!

42 For I was hungry and you gave Me no food, I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink,

43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome Me and entertain Me, I was naked and you did not clothe Me, I was sick and in prison and you did not visit Me with help and ministering care.

44 Then they also [in their turn] will answer, Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?

45 And He will reply to them, Solemnly I declare to you, in so far as you failed to do it for the least [in the estimation of men] of these, you failed to do it for Me.

46 Then they will go away into eternal punishment, but those who are just and upright and in right standing with God into eternal life."

Note two things about the passage above. This story seems to describe one event. Both the righteous and the unrighteous seem to be surprised by what Jesus says to them. The righteous seem surprised they complied with Christ's wishes, and the unrighteous seem surprised they did not. If the rest of the dead do not come to life until the thousand years are over, and the righteous have reigned with Christ for a thousand years, how could they seem surprised? There does not seem to be a gap of a thousand years between verse 41 and verse 42. I will justify my premillennial position later by explaining the greater problems I have with the amillennial and postmillennial positions, yet I'm perplexed even by what I claim to believe about this chapter. This is one of the reasons why Revelation is so often ignored by pastors. "I don't know" is an honest answer to some of my own questions, but it doesn't make a very good sermon.

Before I write about the amillennialist view of Revelation 20, I want to pause for a couple of miscellaneous observations. Consider the following passages. Revelation 6:9 (NASB) says:

9 "When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained."

Revelation 20:4 (NASB) says:

4 "Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years."

In both of these passages, John says he saw souls of those who had given testimony about Jesus. How can one see a soul, or even a disembodied spirit, for that matter? Perhaps he says "I saw" because he has been made aware of souls spiritually, and there isn't a convenient verb to express how he became aware of them. But some use verse 4 of chapter 20 to argue that the saints reign with Christ in heaven, not on earth, pointing out that the earth is not mentioned in this passage. However, Revelation 5:9-10 (amp) says:

9 "And [now] they sing a new song, saying, You are worthy to take the scroll and to break the seals that are on it, for You were slain (sacrificed), and with Your blood You purchased men unto God from every tribe and language and people and nation.

10 And You have made them a kingdom (royal race) and priests to our God, and they shall reign [as kings] over the earth!

The other thing I want to mention is that we do not even see life and death issues in the same way God sees them, and that may contribute to some of our confusion about what prophetic passages are trying to tell us. Recall, for instance, that in John 11:11 Jesus says Lazarus has fallen asleep (refering to his death), and he is going to wake Lazarus out of sleep. Also, when Jesus debates the Sadducees about the doctrine of resurrection, he makes the following observation in Luke 20:37-38 (NASB):

37 "But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about the burning bush, where he calls the Lord THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, AND THE GOD OF ISAAC, AND THE GOD OF JACOB.

38 "Now He is not the God of the dead but of the living; for all live to Him."

From a human perspective, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are dead, and they have been dead for thousands of years. Though they have not yet been raised from the dead, God's relationship with them continues, and he knows them as living persons. This is an important point, because, as we shall see, amillennialists view the two resurrections in Revelation 20 in a very different way, and they have a basis for arguing their position is wholely consistent with scripture.

As I have said before, some view the book of Revelation from an entirely symbolic view, as a sort of encouraging poem which actually means very little. This frees them from having to harmonize the details of John's vision with other portions of scripture, or even from our own knowledge and experience. The genius of Revelation is that even this interpretation leaves the fundamental elements of the book intact, God's right to be worshiped, the need for the saints to persevere, and God's judgment of all sin, both inside and outside of the church.

Those who view Revelation symbolically are amillennialists, but most amillennialists are much more precise about how they believe Revelation will be fulfilled, and it is their view I will concentrate on.

THE AMILLENNIAL VIEW

The amillennial view of Revelation, and Revelation 20 in particular, is different from the premillennial view in two fundamental ways:

First, they do not take the numbers in Revelation literally. They view numbers like 144,000 and 1,000 as numbers implying completeness, not as cardinal numbers. Their strongest argument for this comes from the following two passages, Psalm 90:4, 1 Peter 3:8-10 (NASB).

Psalm 90:4 "For a thousand years in Your sight Are like yesterday when it passes by,
Or as a watch in the night."

2 Peter 3:8 "But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.

9 The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up."

They argue that a thousand years is not a definite period of time, and they also contend that if the day of the Lord comes like a thief, it will happen suddenly, not over the period of a thousand years. They tend to view Revelation as a description of the entire church age, not from a futurist point of view. In other words, they don't care much about Daniel's seventieth week, the last half of the tribulation, when the rapture will take place, etc.

The other major difference between premillennialists and amillennialists is with regard to the two resurrections mentioned in Revelation 20. Amillennialists believe we participate in the first resurrection (Christ's resurrection) by being born again and by being baptized into his resurrection. Again, I'll quote the NASB in the following examples:

Romans 6:3 "Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death?

4 Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life."

Ephesians 2:4 "But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

5even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),

6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

7so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus."

Colossians 3:1 "Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.

3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

4 When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory."

So their argument is that the two resurrections in Revelation 20 are first a spiritual resurrection, and then a bodily resurrection. As I said earlier, though we may not feel at all resurrected at the present time, God has his own perspective about that, and several passages of scripture tend to support the view that he regards us as having been resurrected already, even though we still live in an earthly body, not in the glorified body Paul promises believers will someday have in 1 Corinthians 15:51-53.

Amillennialists also believe the battle described in Revelation 20:8-10 is probably the same battle which was described in Revelation 14 and 19. They don't view Satan's being hurled into the lake of fire as a separate event from the beast and the false prophet being hurled into the lake of fire or even the destruction of Babylon.

Their view of the two resurrections seems quite plausible, and it resolves the dilemma I have about the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25. Those who share spiritually in the resurrection of Christ will not be hurt by the second death, because the first spiritual resurrection determines their eternal destiny. The great white throne judgment will then actually be a general resurrection of all mankind, both the saved and the unsaved, each of whom will be assigned their proper place in eternity.

Of course, if only the second resurrection is physical and it occurs after the thousand years, there is no literal thousand year reign with Christ. We will reign together spiritually during this age for an indefinite period of time. In that case, one wonders what purpose this chapter serves at all, except to tell us Satan will wind up in the lake of fire and to tell us about the second death.

Unfortunately, though, I have a bigger problem with the amillennialist view than with the premillennialist view for the following reasons.

Their view is that the thousand year reign of Christ is actually an indefinite period of time during the present age when Christ is reigning from heaven and Satan is bound. It is true that in Matthew 28:18 Jesus says all authority has been given to him in heaven and on earth. We all agree Christ has been given all authority, but we do not presently see him exercising all of his authority.

Amillennialists believe the gospel's advance during the present age is because Satan is bound. But that is contrary, both with our experience as we watch western civilization drift further and further away from Christianity, and to scripture itself.

If Satan is bound, for instance, why does Jesus warn us about false Christs and false prophets in Matthew 24? Even though Jesus says in Luke 10:18 he saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven, Revelation 12 says Satan has been driven out of heaven, but he has come to earth with great fury because he knows his time is short.

If Satan is bound, why did he fill the heart of Ananias and cause him to lie to the Holy Spirit in Acts 5:3? Why does 1 Peter 5:8 warn us that the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour? Of course, the other side of that story can be found in Matthew 16:19, where Jesus says whatever we bind on earth will be bound in heaven, or Romans 16:20 where Paul says, "God will soon crush Satan under your feet." James 4:7 says, "Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." But nothing in the New Testament and nothing in our daily experience suggests to us that Satan is presently bound in the abyss with a chain, as Revelation 20:3 says he will be.

On the contrary, consider the following passages, which suggest an increasing amount of Satanic activity during our time (NASB):

1 Timothy 4:1 "But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,
2 by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron,

3 men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth."

2 Timothy 4:3 "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires,

4 and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths."

Matthew 24:12 (NKJV): "And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold."

2 Peter 3:3 "To begin with, you must know and understand this, that scoffers (mockers) will come in the last days with scoffing, [people who] walk after their own fleshly desires

4 And say, Where is the promise of His coming? For since the forefathers fell asleep, all things have continued exactly as they did from the beginning of creation (amp).

There are many similar passages in the New Testament, and the premillennial view allows for the continuing activity of Satan and the folly of human nature until the return of Christ, while the amillennial view sees the gospel's progress, but doesn't account for the activity of Satan or explain why it would be so prevalent if Satan were chained in the abyss.

From an amillennial perspective, their view regarding the thousand year reign and the two resurrections is supported by the rest of the New Testament. It is certainly appropriate to use one scripture to aid in the interpretation of another. Premillennialists would argue that the amillennial position essentially nullifies and erases Revelation 20, making it quite unnecessary and meaningless.

THE POSTMILLENNIAL VIEW

I haven't read extensively about postmillennialists, but my understanding is that their view of Revelation is essentially amillennial, except that they believe it is the church's responsibility to evangelize the earth, and Christ will not return until that job has been completed. No one argues that Jesus gave us the great commission, but premillennialists allow for a degree of failure by the church, as we saw in Revelation 2 and 3, whereas postmillennialists emphasize passages such as the following:

Romans 5:17 "For if by the one man’s offense death reigned through the one, much more those who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ." (NKJV)

Matthew 16:18 "And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.

19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

In other words, the church has all the authority it needs, and it is responsible for subduing the earth. Christ will not return until the job is done. This is sometimes referred to as kingdom theology. Israel was given a vast area of land to possess in the Old Testament, much of which they never occupied. Postmillennialists somehow manage to ignore many scriptures which explicitly state things are not peachy at the time of the second coming.

I have had the experience of attending an avidly postmillennial church. It is somewhat odd, in that instead of looking around at the mess the world is in and saying Christ must return soon, they look around at the mess the world is in and say that Christ cannot return soon, though he says he is coming soon in Revelation 22. I tried unsuccessfully to get them to explain how they would interpret Matthew 24:38-39, which says:

38 "For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark,

39 and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be."

Many passages, like the one above, seem to clash with their theology. But I was less uncomfortable with their theology than I was with their absolute insistence on it, their unwillingness to consider alternate views, and their tendency to call other Christians escapists who just want to bail out and be raptured without doing the hard work of fulfilling the great commission and bringing the kingdom of God to earth. Even though their point that some Christians are too eager to be rescued from this age, instead of fighting the good fight of faith has some validity, they felt as much conflict with the rest of the church as they did with the world, which seems inappropriate to me.

Let me close by cheerfully acknowledging that I do not have all of the answers. I am a premillennialist, but not without some questions and reservations. If anyone reads this and has additional insight, or if they feel I have misunderstood, misrepresented or misapplied their views regarding this chapter, or the book of Revelation in general, please let me know, and I will prayerfully consider what you have to say.

REVELATION 19

One of the three main themes of the book of Revelation is the constant worship of God. In Revelation 4:8-11, after John saw an open door in heaven, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders worshiped God the Father. In Revelation 5:9-14, after the Lamb took the scroll with the seven seals from the Father, the angels join the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders in worshiping the Son. In Revelation 7:9-12, the multitude from every nation which came out of the great tribulation and the angels worshiped the Father and the Son. In Revelation 11:16-18, after the seventh trumpet, the twenty-four elders again worshiped God. The 144,000 who were sealed in chapter 7 sing a new song to God in Revelation 14:2-3, a song no one else can learn and whose contents we do not know. In Revelation 15:2-4, those who conquered the beast sang the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb. To these six passages of worship, we now add a seventh, the worship of all of the redeemed, along with the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures.

It is Jesus Christ's wedding day, and the church is his bride. The excitement of the bride is explicitly stated here in verses 1-9, and it is reasonable to assume Christ the bridegroom is also very pleased with this day. It is time for the marriage supper of the Lamb, which Jesus spoke about in Luke 14:16-24. Unlike the last supper, which we commemorate as communion, Jesus does not plan to be absent after suffering for our redemption, nor does the church have to hope for his return. All of the redeemed can now have fellowship with God, face to face, as Adam and Eve did in the garden before they sinned. Yet now there is much more to be thankful for, for he who loves us has freed us from our sins, as Revelation 1:5 says.

One thing which occurs to me as I read this chapter is that the redeemed consist of people from every tribe and tongue and people and nation, as Revelation 5:9 says, yet John understands them all. Since they are worshiping together, it seems that they understand each other. Perhaps this means that God has reunited the human race into one language, which the Lord confused so the tower of Babel could not be completed (Genesis 11:1-9).

God's people rejoice over the fall of Babylon and over the fact that the smoke of its burning will go up forever, as will the smoke of those who worshiped the beast, according to Revelation 14:11.

The bride of Christ is allowed to dress in fine linen, radiant, dazzling and white. Verse 8 tells us that the fine linen represents the righteous deeds of the saints, yet as Philippians 1:6 says, those deeds originated in Christ, "he who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ" (NASB).

Recall that the garments Jesus wore became dazzling white on the mount of transfiguration, described in Matthew 17:1-9, Mark 9:2-9 and Luke 9:28-36. Remember also that Jesus said in Revelation 3:4 (NASB), "You have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments. They will walk with me in white, for they are worthy."

Seven blessings are pronounced in Revelation. Revelation 1:3 says, "Blessed are those who read aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear and keep themselves true to the things which are written in it." Revelation 14:13 says, "Blessed are those 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." Revelation 16:15 says, "I am coming like a thief! Blessed is he who is awake, keeping his garments that he may not go naked and be seen exposed!" Revelation 19:9 says, "Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb." Revelation 20:6 says, "Blessed and holy is he who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and they shall reign with him a thousand years." Revelation 22:7 says, "Blessed is he who (abides by and) keeps the words of the prophecy of this book." Revelation 22:14 says, "Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city (the new Jerusalem) by the gates." It is the fourth of these seven blessings which concerns us here, but I wish every Christian were as familiar with these seven blessings as they are with the ten commandments.

In verse 10, John falls down to worship the angel. It is not clear whether he is confused about the identity of who is speaking to him or whether he is simply overwhelmed by what he is seeing. The angel's reply is similar to Peter's reply to Cornelius in Acts 10:25-26. He forbids John to worship him, says he is a fellow servant and he tells John to worship God and that the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. With regard to the testimony of Jesus, Romans 10:9 (NASB) says, "if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." 1 John 5:7-12 (Amp) says:

7 "So there are three witnesses in heaven: the Father, the Word and the Holy Spirit, and these three are One;

8 and there are three witnesses on the earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree [are in unison; their testimony coincides].

9 If we accept [as we do] the testimony of men [if we are willing to take human authority], the testimony of God is greater (of stronger authority),
for this is the testimony of God, even the witness which He has borne regarding His Son.

10 He who believes in the Son of God [who adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Him] has the testimony [possesses this divine attestation] within himself.
He who does not believe God [in this way] has made Him out to be and represented Him as a liar, because he has not believed (put his faith in, adhered
to, and relied on) the evidence (the testimony) that God has borne regarding His Son.

11 And this is that testimony (that evidence): God gave us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.

12 He who possesses the Son has that life; he who does not possess the Son of God does not have that life."

Revelation 12:11 (Amp) says:

11 "And they have overcome (conquered) him by means of the blood of the Lamb and by the utterance of their testimony, for they did not love and cling
to life even when faced with death [holding their lives cheap till they had to die for their witnessing]."

In Revelation 4:1, John saw an open door in heaven. In Revelation 11:19, after the seventh trumpet, the sanctuary of God in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen inside the sanctuary. In Revelation 15:5, before the seven angels emerge with the seven bowls, the sanctuary of the tent of the testimony in heaven was opened. Though I don't completely understand the significance of this series of events, they seem to progressively lead to Revelation 19:11 where John sees heaven itself opened, and a rider on a white horse, Jesus himself, emerges. In the next chapter, books will be opened, including the book of life.

In John 6:15, after he fed five thousand with five barley loaves and two small fish, the crowd wanted to make him king, but Jesus withdrew from them. Now he will take the authority which is rightfully his. Verse 11 tells us that Jesus is faithful and true and that he wages war in righteousness. We are told throughout Revelation, and particularly in the rest of this chapter, that Jesus values righteousness and justice, even when conflict is necessary to achieve them. This contrasts with the world's view that peace at any price is worthwhile. This reminds me of Luke 12:49-51 (NASB), which says:

49 "I have come to cast fire upon the earth; and how I wish it were already kindled!

50 "But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished!

51 "Do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth? I tell you, no, but rather division."

Riding on a white horse, Jesus is about to wage war against his enemies who are still on earth. He will do so, as King of kings and Lord of lords and as the Word of God, not with bombs, missiles, guns or knives, but with the sharp sword which comes from his mouth, the sword of his word. Jesus appears to destroy his enemies by simply speaking their destruction. Verse 14 says the armies of heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, follow him on white horses. Because of the reference to fine linen, it is reasonable to assume that the saints return to earth to fight this battle with him, but it's likely that the only purpose for their return is to show the world that God has judged their conflict with the beast in their favor. In Revelation 13:7 the beast was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them, but now Christ will make war on the beast and conquer it. The result of this battle has probably already been described to us in Revelation 14:20, and perhaps also in Zechariah 14:1-5 and 14:12-13.

In verse 17, an angel invites birds to the great supper of God, a supper in which they will consume the flesh of kings, commanders, mighty men, horses and their riders, free men and slaves, the small and the great, all who have worshiped the beast. This is a very different supper from the marriage supper of the Lamb, the saddest meal of all time for its victims, men who share Jezebel's fate because they are idolators and they have shed the blood of saints and prophets. As is frequently the case throughout Revelation, it is hard not to feel grieved that this is the outcome of their lives. Yet feeling sorry for these worshipers of the beast who have murdered saints and prophets is somewhat like feeling sorry for Judas Iscariot, who followed Jesus for three years, saw the miracles he performed and the lives he transformed, yet still betrayed him for thirty pieces of silver. Aside from coveting the money, I suspect Judas believed the Jews would turn against Jesus, and he would be regarded as a hero for turning him in to the Pharisees. Something afterwords caused him to realize that not even the Pharisees regarded him highly, and he returned the money, but he did so, seeking the approval of men, not of God. My point is that many who receive the mark of the beast may be partially motivated by their desire to please men and their desire for the temporal security Babylon offers. By contrast, God's elect strive to please him and realize that real security is found in Christ alone, being willing even to die for their faith, if necessary.

The beast and the false prophet have also gathered their army, as we saw in Revelation 16:13-14, but to no avail. The beast and its followers are probably deceived by their recent victory over Babylon into thinking this will be just another victory, but the beast and the false prophet are captured and thrown into the lake of fire, and their followers are killed.

Note that the lake of fire is different from the abyss, from which the locusts in Revelation 9 came. The abyss, where Satan will soon be bound for a thousand years, is a place of confinement, but not the ultimate place of torment. Jesus says in Matthew 25:41 that this is the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. It was never intended for men.

There is much dispute about when the events described in Ezekiel 38 and 39 occur. One possibility is that it occurs here, because of the comparison between the events described in Revelation 19 and Ezekiel 39:17-20 (NASB) which says:

17 "As for you, son of man, thus says the Lord GOD, 'Speak to every kind of bird and to every beast of the field, "Assemble and come, gather from every
side to My sacrifice which I am going to sacrifice for you, as a great sacrifice on the mountains of Israel, that you may eat flesh and drink blood.

18 "You will eat the flesh of mighty men and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, as though they were rams, lambs, goats and bulls, all of them
fatlings of Bashan.

19 "So you will eat fat until you are glutted, and drink blood until you are drunk, from My sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you.

20 "You will be glutted at My table with horses and charioteers, with mighty men and all the men of war," declares the Lord GOD."

Another possibility is that these events do not take place until after the thousand year reign of Christ, since Gog and Magog are only mentioned in Revelation 20:8 and in Ezekiel 38 and 39. I tend to favor this latter view, but either one, or another alternative, is quite possible.

REVELATION 18

This chapter can be divided into three sections, as follows:

O Announcement of Babylon's destruction, verses 1-8

O Lamentation over Babylon, verses 9-19

O Celebration and permanence of destruction, verses 20-24

At the beginning of the chapter, an angel descends from heaven, and the earth is radiant from his splendor, which probably means this angel is usually in the presence of God. He announces that Babylon has fallen and it has become a dwelling place for demons and for every loathsome and detestable bird. I'm not sure which birds are loathsome and detestable, but this reminds me of being taken to a drive-in to see Alfred Hitchcock's movie "The Birds", and the concept here is that demons and Alfred Hitchcock's birds are dwelling in Babylon, as if it were a dungeon, which means they are no longer free to torment mankind. This may apply to the three loathsome spirits spoken of earlier in Revelation 16:13-14. The angel says this is due to Babylon's influence over nations and her passionate unchastity, fornication or idolatry, wantonness and excessive luxury. Throughout Revelation, the language of sexual sin and idolatry are interchangeable, they stem from the same spiritual deficiency, and each causes the other. It is reasonable to say, therefore, that the key to overcoming sexual temptation and living in holiness is one's relationship and reverence for the Lord. Revelation 17:14 says Christ's disciples are called, chosen and faithful, contrasted with the unfaithfulness and unchastity of Babylon. The church is described as the bride of Christ, whereas Babylon is referred to as a prostitute.

Then John hears another voice from heaven, saying, "Come out of her, my people, so you do not share in her sins or her plagues." This is an appeal to Christians for holiness, sanctification, a renewed mind, spiritual and in this case, even physical separation from the world. Just as God refused to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah until Lot left (Genesis 19:1-29), he wants Christians to leave Babylon so he can judge it without being concerned for their welfare.

Verse 6 seems puzzling at first, because it asks Christians to repay Babylon double for the misery she has caused. At first, one may ask how this can be a valid request from God, in light of many passages in scripture which ask us not to take revenge on others, such as Matthew 5:38-48 and Romans 12:14-21. I believe the significance of this passage is a request for Christians to be twice as disgusted with Babylon's sins as Babylon is indulgent in them, not that this is actually a call for revenge.

Verse 7 speaks about Babylon's attitude toward itself, and God's response toward that attitude. Babylon glorified herself, reveled in her wantonness and boasted she was not a widow and would never see suffering. Note the similarity to the attitude of the Laodicean church in Revelation 3:17, "I am rich, I have prospered and grown wealthy, and I am in need of nothing." Yet Jesus calls the Laodiceans wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked.

Verse 8 says this allegorical Babylon will be destroyed suddenly, just as Babylon's empire was conquered suddenly by Persia.

Verses 9-19 tell us that many men are grieved by Babylon's destruction, kings in verses 9-10, merchants in verses 11-16 and sea captains in verses 17-19.

Some interesting things emerge from these laments. First of all, note how the grief is expressed. The rulers beat their breasts and stood at a safe distance in verse 9, an act of despair which ironically reminds us of Luke 23:48, when many in the crowd who witnessed Christ's crucifixion returned home beating their breasts, not realizing the plan and foreknowledge of God. Verses 11, 15 and 19 tell us the merchants and sea captains wept over Babylon, in contrast to the celebration of the saints which is described in Revelation 18:20-19:9.

Babylon's merchandise can be divided into seven groups:

Treasure - gold, silver, precious stones and pearls.

Fabrics - fine linen, silk, purple and scarlet material.

Building materials - scented wood, ivory, bronze, iron and marble.

Spices - cinamon, incense, ointment, perfume or myrrh and frankincense.

Food - wine, olive oil, fine flour and wheat.

Livestock - cattle, sheep, horses.

Men - the bodies and souls of men.

This list includes gold, frankincense and myrrh (some translations say perfume, instead of myrrh), the gifts offered to Jesus by the wise men, who brought them to worship Christ. Even the reference to souls has a parallel in the gospels, in that Jesus told Peter "henceforth, you will be catching men" (Luke 5:4-10). It is not the merchandise, but the misuse of people and the love for money, hording and self-indulgence, rather than God, which creates the idolatry which causes Babylon's destruction.

When verse 13 lists souls among Babylon's merchandise, it probably refers to slavery, and it also implies that much of Babylon's wealth was generated by slave labor or at least people who were unfairly and insufficiently compensated for their labor. Child labor in China and multi-million dollar pay and bonus packages for corporate executives, economic systems where many are working for the wealth of very few, in our world are indicative of the same ethic and practice in the world today.

Reading the laments in verses 9-19 closely, one is struck by the grief and terror of the rulers, merchants and sea captains, yet it doesn't seem they are at all grieved for Babylon itself, but only for their loss of wealth and the lost opportunity to obtain wealth. They are clearly frightened by the suddenness and the severity of the disaster which has befallen Babylon, standing far off in terror, as verses 8, 10, 15, 17 and 19 indicate. They missed God, because they did not put him first in their lives, they relied on created things rather than the Creator of all things, and they have lost the security and the wealth which Babylon and its commercial and political system provided. It is easy for us as Christians to rely on the jobs we have to sustain us, rather than relying on God , as Matthew 6:19-34 instructs us to do.

Recalling Revelation 17:1-6, as well as Revelation 18:3 and 18:24, we know that Babylon has mocked God and has become drunk on the blood of the saints. We've all heard stories of Romans feeding Christians to the lions in the first century, and we are familiar with the holocaust of World War II. One can only assume that Babylon has refined and expanded on these cruelties. So the saints rejoice over her fall in verse 20, and in the first nine verses of chapter 19. God's judgment has been on their behalf, perhaps in response to the prayer of the souls under the altar in Revelation 6:9-11.

Verses 21-24 tell us God's destruction of Babylon is permanent. Each of the synoptic gospels (Matthew 18:2-6, Mark 9:42 and Luke 17:2) tell us that it would be better to have a millstone tied around one's neck and to be thrown into the sea than to cause a child to sin. In verse 21, an angel throws a millstone into the sea, symbolizing Babylon's destruction. We live in a culture which increasingly tempts even children to sin, and it seems reasonable to suspect a similar fate awaits much of our entertainment industry and many of our celebrities.

The harp, the flute, the trumpet and singing will not be heard in Babylon anymore. Yet there is still music among the saints, as in Revelation 14:2-3 and Revelation 15:2-4. No craftsman shall be found in Babylon anymore, no lamp will shine in it and the voice of brides and bridegrooms shall not be heard there again.

In chapter 19, we will discuss the marriage supper of the Lamb and the great supper of God.

REVELATION 17

The first mention of Babylon in Revelation was in chapter 14. In verses 6-8 John saw two angels, the first with an eternal gospel to proclaim, telling men to worship and honor God, the Creator of all things, and the second angel announcing that Babylon, the source of unchastity and idolatry, has fallen. Revelation 14:8 says Babylon has forced all nations to drink the wine of her immorality.

Part of the judgment of the seventh bowl in Revelation 16 is directed toward the destruction of Babylon. Verse 19 says God remembered to force Babylon to drink the cup of his fierce anger. Revelation 17:16 says the beast will come to hate Babylon and will strip it naked and burn it with fire. As is generally the case throughout scripture, God's judgment is poetic, punishing the disobedient with the essence of their misdeeds. So Babylon's punishment is described in the same terms as its sins, drinking the cup of God's wrath and being stripped naked.

Until now Babylon has only been mentioned twice in passing in Revelation, but now it takes center stage for the next two chapters. The language describing its misdeeds refers to sex and drunkenness. It reminds me of a segment of Bette Midler's movie, "The Rose", in which Bette Midler, playing a part which is based loosely on the life of Janis Joplin, gets her audience to chant, "sex, drugs, rock n' roll, sex, drugs, rock n' roll." Of course, rock n' roll is not mentioned in Revelation. But consider for a moment the lyrics of the songs, "we built this city on rock n' roll" and "we will, we will rock you", and remember that the seventh bowl in chapter 16 included a massive earthquake, the most severe earthquake in human history, the ultimate rocker. Perhaps God will use this earthquake to tear down the cities which have been built on rock n' roll. I don't want to stray too far from the written text, but this is worth considering.

Babylon is described here symbolically as a woman who is greedy for the most carnal of experiences and the most temporal of pleasures, focused not on eternity, but on how much passion she can experience for the next few minutes, focused on wealth, extravagance and luxury, but never thankful to the Creator of wealth. It is described as a prostitute, and the church is described as the bride of Christ. Marriage is supposed to be a lifelong commitment to someone else, whereas prostitution is a momentary commitment to one's own desires. Babylon comes into conflict with the saints, persecutes them, and ultimately murders so many of them that verse 6 says she is drunk on their blood.

Many commentators refer to Babylon as the apostate church, and it is true that Babylon in the Old Testament was known for its idols and its creation of astrology, which is contrary to scripture. Yet most of the language in chapters 17 and 18 refers to wealth and commerce, not to religion. Particularly during the time of the reformation, the prevailing theory was that Babylon referred to the Roman Catholic church, but I don't think that would adequately explain the mourning of the kings, merchants and sea captains described in chapter 18, most of whom would have very little interest in the papacy.

If we think back to the four horsemen and the first four seals of chapter 6, we will recall that the first rider was on a white horse, which went out to conquer. The second horseman was permitted to take peace from the earth, the third horseman brought famine and the fourth horseman brought death by sword, plagues and wild beasts. While there is some dispute about the identity of the first horseman, it appears to have some religious significance. Chapters 6 through 19 of Revelation deal frequently with religion, war and economic disasters. In chapter 13, the first beast had political authority, the second beast was described as the false prophet, and chapter 18 will tell us that Babylon is a great commercial center, and many will be grieved by its destruction.

So what commercial center is Babylon? There are several theories about that. Some have speculated that it is a literally rebuilt city of Babylon, and it has been said that Saddam Hussein wanted to rebuild Babylon on its original site. The problem with that theory, from a scriptural point of view, is that Isaiah 13 predicts that Babylon will be conquered by Persia, and Isaiah 13:20 says Babylon will never be inhabited again from generation to generation. So Babylon here cannot literally be the Old Testament city of Babylon, in my opinion.

Some claim Babylon is symbolic of present-day Jerusalem. They base that theory on Revelation 11:8 which describes Jerusalem as the great city and calls it Sodom and Egypt, two names which would indicate judgment. They note that Revelation 16:19 refers to the great city and Babylon in the same verse, and Revelation 17:18 says the woman here described as Babylon is the great city which reigns over the kingdoms of the earth.

Though the phrase "the great city" has also been used to describe Jerusalem, Jerusalem was described as the great city where the Lord was crucified, and Babylon is described as the great city whose kings reign over the earth. Since Jerusalem has never been the center of an empire which dominated the earth, the Jerusalem theory seems unlikely to me. The best clue we have is found in Revelation 17:9 which says the woman sits on seven hills. I'm not familiar with the geography of Rome, but Romans spoke of Rome in that way at the time John wrote down this vision.

Though Rome makes the most sense to me as an interpretation, I should mention two other theories. One is that Babylon is not a particular literal place, but only a symbolic reference to the world in general and to its ungodliness. Another theory I have heard is that although Rome was both a military and financial center in John's day, its modern equivalent would be the United States. During my lifetime, New York, not Rome, has been the world's financial center. We are familiar with the destruction of the World Trade Center, and New York is considered the prime target for terrorists. As an American, it is easy for me to dismiss this casually and to say that America is not the great Satan, but this is at least an interesting thought, given the nature of our entertainment industry and the fact that the dollar has been the major currency in the world during our lifetime.

However, the United States lacks the city on seven hills, and so far it also lacks the brutality of the Roman persecution of the church. We have all heard about Christians being fed to lions in the Roman colosseum, and I have read that there were ten distinct periods of persecution of the church in Rome. So if Babylon is a literal place, it probably refers to Rome as the capital of a reunited Europe.

If the reference to Babylon is allegorical, not literal, as I believe it is, we should be able to draw some inferences about the nature of anything referred to as Babylon from the rest of scripture. Fortunately for us, there are nearly 350 references to Babylon in the Old Testament, and taken together, they tell us the following three things.

The first references to Babylon go all the way back to Genesis chapters 10 and 11, where the Bible indicates men attempted to build a tower to heaven, the tower of Babel, and one city with a common language which would dominate the earth. From a human perspective, Babylon always represents the creation of an empire where men attempt to determine their destiny, apart from and contrary to the will of God.

The second thing we learn about Babylon is its pagan nature. There are many references to Babylonian idols and to astrology. Ezekiel 8:14 comes to mind here as an example.

The final reason Babylon of the Old Testament is related to the Babylon in Revelation is because of its sudden destruction by God. Daniel 5 tells us that King Belshazzar was feasting with his officials, drinking wine from vessels which had been taken from the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, when a hand wrote on the wall saying his kingdom would be brought to an end. Note that Belshazzar was profaning the Lord's name and praising his own gods until the writing appeared on the wall. Babylon is still probably unique historically, with regard to the suddenness of its downfall. The same sudden destruction is predicted in Revelation 17 and 18. Perhaps the best Old Testament passage to read for addition insight into Babylon is Isaiah 47, which predicts many of the same things found in Revelation.

When John saw Babylon, he wondered or marveled at what he saw. Perhaps he saw modern times and modern technology, which would be a marvel to anyone from the first century, or perhaps he simply marveled at Babylon's wealth and luxury. There is a brief moment where John himself seems to be enticed by Babylon, until the angel reminds him of the city's spiritual nature.

The seven heads and the ten horns referred to in verses 7-13 appear to be the same seven heads and ten horns referred to in Revelation 13:1. The passage here indicates that the seven kings are successive kings of the same nation over time, five have fallen, one reigns, and one will reign for a short time. The ten horns are ten nations and ten kings of those nations, who all reign simultaneously for a period of time described in chapter 17 as an hour, which may also be the 42 months referred to in Revelation 13:5. Though many think of this as a reconstituted Roman empire, European in nature, it is possible that the United States or other non-European powers could be included.

Note also the comparison between Revelation 13:5-6 and Revelation 17:3. Revelation 13:5-6 says the beast was given a mouth speaking arrogant words and blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and those who dwell in heaven. Revelation 17:3 says the beast the woman is riding on is full of blasphemous names. Since we don't use the word blasphemy frequently in conversation, it might be helpful to define it here. The American Heritage dictionary defines blasphemy as "a contemptuous or profane act, utterance or writing concerning God or a sacred entity", or "the act of claiming for oneself the attributes and rights of God". Both definitions are probably appropriate here, but the second one is particularly interesting, because Revelation 13 tells us that the purpose of the second beast is to cause men to worship the first beast and to make an image of it.

One of the questions I cannot answer about this chapter is why the beast comes to hate the woman, or why it decides of its own accord to destroy Babylon. It is interesting though that Babylon faces not only God's fierce anger, as we are told in Revelation 16:19, but also the wrath of the beast itself. Verse 17 says God has put it into the heart of the beast to execute his purpose. Also, this is the first indication that the forces of evil are not always monolithic, and they are even willing to destroy each other. It is also worth noting that the fourth beast described in Daniel 7 has ten horns, and Daniel 7:8 speaks of a little horn which pulls up three of the ten horns by their roots. I suspect the little horn in Daniel 7:8 is also referred to here in Revelation 17:11, and that he may depose (and probably kill) three of the kings represented by the ten horns. My point is that even apart from God's judgment, the beast and its followers are inherently self-destructive, not content with each other or themselves.

After all of this bad news, I want to close with some reflection about verse 14, which says that although the beasts will make war on the Lamb, the Lamb will conquer them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who serve him are called and chosen and faithful. It is interesting to me that faithful is the last of the three adjectives here. It is not that God found faithful people and he decided to call and choose them. Instead, all of the initiative is on his part, he calls, he chooses, and he alone makes men faithful. Verse 8 says their names have been written in the book of life since before the foundation of the world, so their call, their chosenness and their faithfulness originated with God long before any of us made any decisions about our lives.

REVELATION 16

As we will see, there are some parallels between the seven bowl judgments described in this chapter and some of the plagues in Egypt described in Exodus. There are even more striking similarities between these seven bowls and the seven trumpets described earlier in Revelation, yet there are also differences, and the bowl judgments are far more extensive and severe than anything else in the history of mankind.

The first angel pours the contents of the first bowl on the earth. After the first trumpet, hail and fire mixed with blood caused a third of the land, a third of the trees and green grass to be burned (Revelation 8:7). Human casualties would seem obvious, but we're not given any indication of how many there may be after the first trumpet. The first bowl, therefore, seems more comparable to the sixth plague in Egypt (Exodus 9:8-11) in which boils broke out on man and beast. Perhaps the ugly and painful sores which break out on those who worship the image of the beast may also be similar to the boils Job suffered (Job 2:7), though Job was innocent and the sores are not described as boils. It is possible that the worshipers of the beast may attribute these sores to some sort of natural phenomena, rather than to divine retribution. For instance, if the first trumpet (hail and fire mixed with blood) indicates a nuclear exchange, they may believe the sores are the result of exposure to radiation. As the bowls continue, however, it becomes obvious to them that these are judgments from God, though they still refuse to repent.

The second bowl turns the sea into something like the blood of a dead man. This is similar to the second trumpet, where a large burning mountain is hurled into the sea, causing a third of the sea to turn into blood, killing a third of the creatures in the sea and wrecking a third of the ships. If the results of the second trumpet were regional, the results of the second bowl are not. It is possible that no one has yet received the mark of the beast at the time of the second trumpet. In any case, the second bowl is much more severe than the second trumpet. This would not be a good time for a surfing safari or a new beach party movie.

Similarly, the third trumpet caused a star like a torch to fall on fresh water and a third of the rivers on earth turned to blood. Note again that the third bowl is similar, but it includes all fresh water sources. This is also similar, though much more extensive, than the first plague in Egypt (Exodus 7:20-21) which caused the water of the Nile to become blood. It is worth noting that the trumpet and bowl judgments are administered by angels, not by mortal and sinful men such as Moses and Aaron.

Both the angel and the altar remind us in verses 5-7 that these are not arbitrary or capricious judgments, but they are God's response to the murder of his people. It is always important to remember that the plagues and calamities in Revelation are brought about by the unjust suffering of the saints, and they are proportional to the deliberate disobedience of God.

The fourth bowl has no parallels I'm aware of. It is the opposite of the fourth trumpet, which causes a third of the sun, a third of the moon and a third of the stars to become dark. As the sun scorches earth's inhabitants, they are now fully aware that this is God's judgment, rather than a problem with greenhouse gases, and they curse and blaspheme God, rather than repenting. It seems likely to me that they no longer have the capacity to repent, having received the mark of the beast, but scripture doesn't make that absolutely clear. It's probably not an important distinction, since no repentance takes place.

The fifth bowl has no parallel among the trumpets, though it may remind us of the ninth Egyptian plague (Exodus 10:21-23. It may be that as a response to those who curse and blaspheme God when the sun scorches them during the fourth bowl judgment, God strikes the throne of the beast with darkness instead. It would be natural to assume that this darkness both immobilizes and frightens them, making it impossible for people to go about their lives normally. Their response is to gnaw their tongues and again to curse God, but not to repent. As I read this, I suspect people are in such agony due to their sores, the lack of fresh water and the darkness that they may feel somewhat nostalgic for the "good old days" of the locusts following the fifth trumpet, when they wanted to die, but were not able to do so.

The sixth bowl causes the Euphrates to be dried up, and it causes three demons to be released by the dragon, the beast and the false prophet, in order to gather their followers for what has long been called the battle of Armageddon. It is unclear what they believe they are gathering to do. Are the nations planning to go to war against each other, each hoping to capture the lion's share of the earth's diminishing resources, such as oil or fresh water? That would certainly seem to be apossibility, but it may also be that this is the fulfillment of the rebellion we read about in Psalm 2, which says that the nations plot and conspire against the Lord in vain, and the Lord will give the nations to his Son as his heritage.

Then we come to verse 15, which seems oddly out of place in this chapter.

Revelation 16:15 "Behold, I am going to come like a thief! Blessed (happy, to be envied) is he who stays awake (alert) and who guards his clothes, so that he may not
be naked and [have the shame of being] seen exposed!" (Amplified Bible).

The idea that Jesus will come at an hour which we may not expect is not new to students of scripture. Passages in Matthew 24:36-44 and 1 Thessalonians 5:1-4 amplify the meaning of Revelation 16:15. Yet why is this verse here, in the midst of so many signs we can assume immediately precede Christ's return? One possibility is that this verse is written for Christians of all generations, not particularly for anyone living during the time of the bowl judgments. We are to watch for the signs of Christ's return, but never to think we are so smart and can assume it won't happen yet, because events X, Y and Z, which we are counting on have not yet taken place. As much as Revelation reveals to us, it also conceals the answers to many questions we may have.

One of the questions this verse brings up is whether or not Christians are still on earth during the time of these plagues. Has the church been completely exterminated during the tribulation, or did it not go through the tribulation at all? Because of the global nature of the bowl judgments (the sun, darkness, and the need for drinking water affect everyone), it seems unlikely to me that Christians are still on earth at this time. On one hand, the severity of the seals, the trumpets and the bowls, as well as the apparent need for the church age to end for Daniel's seventieth week to take place, all argue for a pre-tribulation rapture. God was unwilling to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah if he could find even ten righteous persons there, and the Hebrews were separated geographically from the Egyptians during the time of the exodus, so they were unaffected when God punished Phaaraoh and the Egyptians. Furthermore, the text of Revelation itself includes a warning at the end that the plagues in this book will be added to anyone who adds to the vision, which by implication would seem to indicate that God either removes or finds a way to exempt his people from these catastrophies.

Yet the book of Revelation frequently asks Christ's followers to be faithful until death or to the end (Revelation 2:10, 2:26, 13:10). The beast makes war on the saints and conquers them in chapter 13, so the beast clearly has people to conquer. Of course, pre-tribulation believers argue that the saints they conquer are only those who become Christians during the tribulation period. Perhaps, but the logic of having some going through the tribulation while others are removed from it does seem a bit weak, particularly because Matthew 13:30 and the passage in Matthew 24:36-44 seem to indicate that judgment of the wicked happens before rewards for the just. Basically, the prophetic puzzle consists of many pieces which we do not entirely know how to fit together, just as many Jews failed to understand the prophecies about Christ's coming. To what extent are God's people protected from the apocalyptic events in Revelation? I can't answer that question with certainty, and smarter people than me have debated that question for two thousand years. The only answer I can really give is found in 1 John 1:7, which tells us to walk in the light, as He is in the light. That's probably also the best way to have one's questions answered too.

Another of this chapter's mysteries involves the reference to Armageddon, which means Mountain of Megiddo in Hebrew. The problem is that Megiddo is in a valley, not on a mountain, which has caused some to speculate that Armageddon is not a real place, there will be no battle of Armageddon, and much of the language Revelation uses is symbolic.

Here I would suggest an alternate explanation. Mountain of Megiddo is probably not simply a geographic location, but a play on words, indicating there will be a battle in the valley of Megiddo which will produce a mountainful of casualties. I believe what will happen at Armageddon has already been described to us in chapter 14, verses 18-20, where the angel swung his sickle, and blood flowed as high as a horse's bridle for two hundred miles. Some additional history regarding the valley of Megiddo can be found in Judges 5, 2 Kings 9 and 2 Chronicles 35, but none of it is particularly relevant here.

Now we come to the seventh and final bowl, which produces lightning flashes, peals of thunder, the largest earthquake in the history of mankind, and extremely heavy hail. The earthquake here is so severe that it causes mountains and islands to disappear. Verse 19 says "the great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell." Which great city isn't specified, and we have to search through verses 9 and 18 of the next chapter in order to identify it as Rome. Revelation 17:18 also speaks of "the great city" and identifies it as the same city in Revelation 17:9, a city which sits on seven hills, which was a common poetic description of Rome in John's day.

The hail described here would almost certainly destroy anything in its path, and even being indoors wouldn't be helpful if the hailstones ranged from fifty to one hundred pounds, as indicated by various translations. This would probably be more severe than the seventh plague in Egypt, which is described in Exodus 9:18-26.

This is the fifth and final reference to earthquakes in Revelation. For the seismically inclined among us, here is a brief earthquake recap:

Earthquake 1: After the opening of the sixth seal (Revelation 6:12-17).

Earthquake 2: After the opening of the seventh seal and immediately prior to the first trumpet (Revelation 8:5).

Earthquake 3: Between the sixth and seventh trumpets, after the two prophets ascended into heaven (Revelation 11:12-14).

Earthquake 4: After the seventh trumpet (Revelation 11:15-19).

Earthquake 5: After the seventh bowl (Revelation 16:17-21).

It is possible, though far from certain, that the earthquake described after the seventh trumpet and the earthquake described after the seventh bowl are the same one, but I suspect they are different events.

Some other interesting possibilities about this earthquake and what is happening at this point in time are found in Zechariah 14:2-4 and Zechariah 14:12-15, where the NIV translation says:

Zechariah 14:2 "I will gather all the nations to Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city
will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city.

3 Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations, as he fights in the day of battle. 4 On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives,
east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half
moving south."

Zechariah 14:12 "This is the plague with which the LORD will strike all the nations that fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they are still standing
on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths. 13 On that day men will be stricken by the LORD with great
panic. Each man will seize the hand of another, and they will attack each other. 14 Judah too will fight at Jerusalem. The wealth of all the surrounding
nations will be collected—great quantities of gold and silver and clothing. 15 A similar plague will strike the horses and mules, the camels and donkeys,
and all the animals in those camps."

Revelation 16:19 also mentions that the seventh bowl is also a plague on Babylon, but we will devote plenty of time to Babylon during the next two chapters.

REVELATION 15

This is the shortest chapter in the New Testament. For reasons which will become more clear in subsequent chapters, I believe chapters 15-18 will actually take place prior to the events in chapter 14. This chapter is part of God's response to the ominous events of chapter 13, as he rewards the saints for their faithfulness and expresses his wrath toward the unrepentent.

John sees another sign in heaven, which should remind us of chapter 12, where he saw two signs, one of a woman who was to give birth to Christ, and another of a great red dragon, who was driven out of heaven and thrown down to the earth, where he expresses his anger toward mankind.

This sign is seven angels, who bring seven bowls containing the last plagues for mankind, and John notes its significance and says it is wonderful. From a human perspective, this sounds very much like a father who disciplines his son, except that the scope and severity are much greater and the discipline for those who are actually sons of the devil is eternal. But for the sons of God, both their offenses and God's discipline will soon be forgotten, replaced by a completely restored relationship.

Verse 2 says the saints have conquered the beast, its image and the number corresponding to its name. Perhaps the reason for specifying all three of these will only become apparent with time. Perhaps this is yet another indication of a counterfeit Satanic trinity.

Verses 3 and 4 tell us those who conquer the beast sing the song of Moses (Exodus 15:1-19), though only a variation of it is found here. Unlike the exodus passage, where the Hebrews have left Egypt, the Red Sea has been parted, and the plagues of Egypt have ended, the song here is a prelude to the coming bowl judgments, and the bowl judgments appear to be due to the appearance on earth that the beast has conquered the saints and made an end of them.

The seven angels come out of the sanctuary of God in heaven, which also appeared to be open in Revelation 11:19, immediately after an angel blew the seventh trumpet. I am not sure whether or not that means that the seven bowl judgments follow immediately after the seven trumpet judgments. It is possible that the sanctuary really only opens once, though John describes seeing it twice.

One of the four living creatures gives the seven bowls to the seven angels, and John sees the radiance and glory of the Lord in the sanctuary, though he says nothing about seeing the Lord himself, similar to the vision Isaiah saw in Isaiah chapter 6.

I am reminded here of the passage in Luke 12:49-51 (English Standard Version), where Jesus says:

49"I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled!
50I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until
it is accomplished!
51Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division."

The separation of the wheat from the chaff described in Matthew 13 is now nearing completion.

One question I cannot answer here is whether the purpose of the bowl judgments is purely an expression of God's wrath toward those who have received the mark of the beast and have committed themselves to Satan so completely that it is impossible for any among them to repent, or whether this is one last appeal from God to them to acknowledge his lordship and to serve and glorify him. I tend to believe the former, because no repentance follows any of the bowl judgments. The unsaved appear to have joined themselves completely to Satan, to his anger, his rebellion and his destruction.

REVELATION 14

This chapter begins with the greatest contrast possible to the suffering in chapter 13. For the first time in Revelation, we see Jesus back on earth, and with him, the 144,000 who were sealed with God's seal on their foreheads in Revelation 7:4. Taken at face value, this appears to be a picture of a Jewish Messiah returning with Jewish people to a Jewish nation. Recall that in chapter 7, these 144,000 were identified by specific tribes, and I can't think of any reason why Gentile Christians would be identified with a specific tribe of Israel.

That raises a question about where other Christians are at this time. Have they been raptured prior to the tribulation, as proponents of a pre-tribulation rapture believe? Is it possible, on the other hand, that Jesus does not just appear with the 144,000, that Jesus returns with all of his disciples throughout the ages, or at least with a multitude who were saved during the great tribulation, but only these 144,000 are specifically mentioned here because of their role as witnesses during that time? Were the 144,000 martyred during the great tribulation, and are they mentioned here as resurrected and returned to the earth in order to symbolize the defeat of the beast and the false prophet in chapter 13? Is the number 144,000 purely symbollic, thus making them equivalent to the multitude no one could count in Revelation 7:9?

I don't have an answer for these questions, though I am inclined to believe the multitude in Revelation 7:9 results from the witness and ministry of a literal 144,000 in Revelation 7:4-8. Revelation 14:4 says the 144,000 are first fruits for God and the Lamb. However one interprets this passage, the key point is that Jesus will return to the earth at the end of a great period of stress, as both the synoptic gospels and the epistles of Paul teach. Even so, Jesus makes it clear in Matthew 24:36-44 that many will be caught off guard and surprised when he returns, and this may include some professing Christians.

In any case, we are told three things about the 144,000. First, we learn about their worship of God before his throne. They are given a song of worship, unique to themselves, which no one else can learn.

Then we are told that these 144,000 have not defiled themselves with women, and they are pure. Modern translations tend to suggest that this means they are chaste, in that they followed God's rules regarding sex, which does not necessarily mean they are virgins, but older translations explicitly say they are virgins. In the latter case, it would be quite clear that they are a subset of the church, not representative of all of it. In the former case, it would emphasize how serious scripture is about prohibiting sex outside of marriage, homosexuality, etc. In either case, their service to God is rewarded because they are allowed to follow the Lamb wherever he goes. Actually, they would be a subset of the church in either case, because not having defiled themselves with women in scripture requires them to be men, and we know Jesus did not die for just one gender. Recall that women were at his tomb first.

Finally, we find that no lie was found on their lips, and they are blameless before the throne of God. Certainly no human being can be blameless before God apart from the blood of Christ, so some may argue that these have been forgiven whatever falsehoods they may have told on earth. But I believe they are honest people, who by God's grace never desired to deceive anyone.

Verses 6-13 tell us that John then saw three angels. The first proclaimed the gospel to mankind and asked men to worship, revere and adore God, their Creator. The second angel declares that Babylon has fallen, which is discussed in greater detail in chapters 17 and 18. The third angel says that those who worship the beast will drink the wine of God's wrath, they will be tormented by fire and brimstone in the presence of the Lamb and the holy angels, and the smoke of their torment is both constant and eternal.

Therefore, verses 12 and 13 call for the faith and endurance of the saints, blessing those who die in the Lord from now on, and saying their good deeds will follow them into eternity.

The final section of this chapter in verses 14-20 tell of the harvesting of the earth. It is not entirely clear whether the figure in verse 14 is an angel or Christ himself, and perhaps it doesn't matter, since we're not told explicitly. Verses 15 and 16 seem to tell of one harvest, and we are not being told what is being harvested. Verses 17-20 definitely refer to a harvest of the grapes of God's wrath, whose blood is shed in verse 20. If these are two distinct harvests, perhaps the first harvest is of the very last human beings to experience salvation before eternity.

Verse 20 has always been especially interesting to me. It is not clear whether this is an entirely supernatural event, or whether this is a military engagement from a human perspective. Many believe the nations of the earth have gathered at this point to do battle with each other, but God intervenes and destroys all of them. But the point I want to make here is that a battle so bloody that blood would run as high as a horse's bridle for two hundred miles would have been impossible, and even unimaginable, in the first century. Scripture doesn't tell us whether these men are killed supernaturally or by human military weapons. But no matter how efficient Roman soldiers were, they could never have created a battlefield like this. Only in modern times would this have become militarily possible. John the apostle would not and could not have made this up, because it would have been nearly impossible to imagine during his lifetime. This verse, gruesome though it is, is one of the reasons I am a Christian today. It convinced me of the reality of this vision. It's unfortunate that this is rarely quoted or taught in churches.

Another thought about how this chapter ends is with regard to the sequence of events. One would think that the moment Jesus steps onto Mount Zion, everyone would put down their swords. Yet it appears in this chapter and in chapter 19 that this beast-worshiping generation has so hardened itself against God that they will continue to fight Christ when he is physically present among them. After all of the seals, the trumpets, the bowls and the plagues they've been through, I find this really astonishing, and it gives us some sense as to why the smoke of their torment will go up forever.

Finally, chapter 14 encapsulates the three major messages of the book of Revelation. First, God the Father and Christ are to be worshiped, revered and adored, and our love for God is to be pre-eminent in our lives. Second, we are to hang in there and persevere during tough times, knowing that Jesus knows our condition and that he will reward our faithfulness and our witness for him. Finally, Revelation makes it clear that all sin will be dealt with by God, first sin in the church and then sin in the world.

Matthew 5:48 "Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." (NASB)