THE REVELATION: An Overview Part Four

Chapter 14

   In chapter 14 we still are part of the parentheses that began in chapter 12. Every time we have one of these parentheses it is for added information regarding either events on earth or events in heaven. It’s a “time out” from the progressing 70^th Week of Daniel for a closer look at the events as they have unfolded. In chapters 12 and 13 we got a brief look at the characters included. I should mention once more, for repetition purposes, that after chapter four the Revelation becomes especially Jewish in character. The Church has been translated to Heaven, and the 70^th week of Daniel’s prophecy of the 70 Weeks is resumed. So the individuals who are seen as the martyrs coming out of the tribulation period are mostly Jews though other peoples are mentioned as well.

   We begin our journey, still in the parenthesis, with a view of the Lamb standing on Mt. Zion with the 144,000 from chapter 7. John hears the Lord’s voice and the harpers and a new song, sung by the 144,000 who were redeemed from the earth as the first-fruits “unto God and the Lamb” (v.4) , in fulfillment of the promises that all Israel shall be saved (Romans 11:26). We also see a series of “angels”:

 

1. The Angel with the Everlasting Gospel- this is

    the gospel that would be preached to every nation,

    kindred, tongue, and people.

2. The Angel with the Announcement About the

    Fall of Babylon- (v.8) Some believe the actual 

    city of Babylon will be rebuilt. Others believe this 

    is a reference to Rome. It’s more likely that it’s a 

    reference to the world apostasy and the 

    worldliness that forsakes God.

3. The Angel with the Warning Regarding the Mark of the Beast- Herein is the

    final verdict on those who receive the mark; they have made their choice and are
    doomed. The text says they will drink of the wine “of the wrath of God” (v.10)
    and there is no turning back, no repentance. True believes will be revealed.

 The Voice

   Again, the voice sounds with a message of hope to the faithful. Many will die for the Lord but it will not be in vain (v.13)

The Vision

   In Verses 14-20 the vision given to John, picturing the Son of Man (Our Lord) and His sickle is found. Several angels are in attendance to Him as the time has come “to gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.” (v.18) The Winepress is of the wrath of God (v.20) Here then is a vision of Armageddon. More details will follow.

 Chapter 15

    This chapter is a prelude to the Vials of God’s wrath and we find another “sign” which follows those of Chapter 12:1,2. These three “signs” give us three elements of the prophetic picture: 1. The woman (Israel); 2. The Dragon (the Devil and the world system under him including the Beasts); 3. God’s judgment upon the entire world. These are called the last plagues and they bring the judgments of God to a conclusion for the 70 weeks of Daniel’s prophecy.

The Sea of Glass

  Here we find the saints that have been victorious over the Beast standing on this sea of glass before the throne of God. They sing the Song of Moses and a Song of the Lamb, praising God who is Just and True.

The Seven Angels

   Now John sees seven angels, clothed in pure white and girded with golden girdles who are given seven golden vials by the Four Living Creatures. The text tells us he Temple (the Heavenly Temple?) was filled with smoke from the Glory of God and that no one was allowed to enter until the plagues were fulfilled.

 Chapter 16

  Now begins the last of God’s judgments for this seven year period. They are called vials or bowls. The KJB text reads, “And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.” (v.1) The same things were affected under the trumpets.

     

           

1. The First Vial- It brings “noisome and grievous sores” upon those who took the   

    mark of the Beast and who worshipped his image. Scholars tell us these are
    malignant ulcers which cause pain and death. Remember, we are not now
    dealing with the wrath of the Beast, but the wrath of God. It is well into the last
    3 ½ years of the tribulation. Men have chosen whom they will serve.

2. The Second Vial- this vial is emptied on the sea and causes everything in the

     sea to die. You may remember that with the trumpet judgments only 1/3 of the
    sea was affected. Here all of it is. This probably affects all salt water bodies.

3. The Third Vial- this like the trumpet judgment affects fresh water supplies

    including rivers, springs, wells, etc. They are turned to blood. Remember these
     judgments are upon the vilest of human beings who hate the Lord Jesus and
    have spilled the blood of the saints. They are reaping what they have sown! (vs.
    5.-7)

4. The Fourth Vial- The fourth vial affects the sun. Scientifically how this is

    accomplished I don’t know. It could be that God makes the sun to burn hotter or
    perhaps he slows the earth’s rotation a bit. God can do what He wants to do. In
    any case, men are scorched because of the heat of the sun. Again, though the
    text does not say so here, these judgments are on those who worship the beast.
     We are sure that God somehow protects believers.

5. The Fifth Vial- this vial is aimed directly at the “seat of the beast”, the throne of

    his power and all of his kingdom will suffer. Darkness is over the land and, as
    you may have experienced yourself, darkness tends to make everything more
     painful and so the accumulation of afflictions will seem multiplied as God’s
     wrath is felt. Yet there is still no repentance from any of these.

6. The Sixth Vial- the sixth vial is upon the Euphrates which is dried up for the

    kings of the east to cross over. This will be an oriental army, 200 million
    strong, with their vehicles and weapons of war. Under the sixth trumpet 1/3 of
     men died. The Euphrates was the eastern boundary of the Roman Empire as
     well as the eastern boundary of the land God promised Abraham. It also is a
     natural obstacle for the armies of the east until it is dried up.

 

Evil Spirits vs. the Word of God

    “And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.” (16:13, 14) Keep in mind that these are pure evil and everything they say and do is a lie. Some suppose that they convince the armies of the world to gather for some reason other than to war against the Lord but that is, in fact, why they gather. But Christ gives the warning: “Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon” (vs.15, 16) Really, this is a warning that should be heeded now, while it is called “Today”.

7. The Seventh Vial- The angel pours his vial out “into the air” and all of mankind is affected. Everyone breathes air and no one will escape this judgment. When Jesus Christ died on the cross He cried out “It is finished!” and the judgment of sin for all believers was done. Now, this cry, “it is done” signifies that the judgments of the wrath of God upon the kingdoms of this world and this world system, is concluded as well for this age.

         As with the seventh seal, and the seventh trumpet, there are voices, thunder, lightning, and an earthquake. This earthquake is so great that the city (Jerusalem?) is divided into three parts. We know that topographical changes will occur around the time of Christ’s return and we are chronologically at that time under this last vial.

       Another issue is the great hail stones that fall, each weighing about a talent (depending on who you might read it can be anywhere from 50-125 lbs.). Some think the weight of the talent to be insignificant saying that it just reveals the intensity of God’s judgment.

NOTE

   We have seen the seals which cover the entire seven years; the trumpets which start about the middle of the seven years, and the vials, which take place from within the second half and take place fairly rapidly. All of these end up at or near the time of Christ’s second coming. Since the vials come out of the 7^th Trumpet, things happen quickly and all of these judgments are upon the Beasts and the world system, we know the 144,000 are protected and we assume the same for all believers during this time.

   Another thing I want to add here is that, contrary to what the series, "Left Behind" concludes, the Bible tells us that those who refuse the Lord, and who are willing to believe a lie, will be deluded by the Lord (2 Thessalonians 2:11,12) and will not suddenly seek the Lord. Perhaps if they live through the first 31/2 years and come under the preaching of the 144,000 they will repent but the text seems to indicate otherwise. Why do I say this? Because this is NOT the time to put salvation on back burner! Today is the day of Salvation! If you do not seek the Lord today, you will not seek Him when the Rapture of the Church happens.

  If we were to jump ahead chronologically we would go to 19:11 but the Holy Spirit wants to fill us in on more details. See you then!

 

 

THE REVELATION: An Overview Part Three

   We left off at the end of chapter 1l. In that chapter we saw that John was given a reed with which he was to measure the Temple, the altar, and the people but that he was not to measure the court of the gentiles. We also saw the two witnesses who will testify of Jesus the Messiah who the Anti-Christ will murder and leave lying in the streets of Jerusalem but whom the Lord will bring back to life and bring to Heaven. Then there was an earthquake, the result of the second woe.

Chapter 12

Chapters 12 -14 are parenthetical as well but cover a greater time span than just what is happening on earth during the tribulation period, though the tribulation period is included. In fact, as we shall see, we are going back in History a very long way. There are several personages that are pictured here, and through which this history is reviewed. We begin with:

1. The Woman- A “great wonder” (sign) appeared to John as a woman “clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:” (v.1) This is reminiscent of Genesis 37:9 which says, “And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me.” As spoken by Joseph to his brothers. The reference here is clearly to the family of Joseph, Israel. The woman is Israel, who will deliver the child (v.2).

 

 

2. The Dragon- This is another wonder (sign) that appears and this Dragon has seven heads and ten horns. He also has 7 crowns upon his 7 heads. He is said to have brought a third part of heaven to earth and he is in pursuit of the woman. In verse 9 we find a further description as this Dragon is also known as “that old serpent”, the Devil, and Satan who deceives the world and who was cast to earth out of heaven along with his “angels”. These are fallen angels, of course.

                                                                                                   

NOTE

   We will see this reference to Seven Heads, Seven Crowns, and Ten Horns come up several times in the next couple of chapters. Here 12: 3 referring to Satan, the Dragon; in 13:1 referring to the Beast that rises up out of the sea; in 17:3,7,9 referring to Mystery Babylon. I don’t want to get ahead of myself here, but most of these seven heads with seven crowns refer to the historical empires: Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome and the Revived Roman Empire which will be represented by the 10 horns. We’ll, hopefully, get into this in more detail as we move through the chapters.

 

3. The Child- It’s not difficult to identify this man-child as the text says, “And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.” (v.5) But then suddenly we’re jolted forward in the vicinity of two thousand years, the seventieth week of Daniel and the woman (Israel) flees to a place of protection by God for 1260 days, or the last half of the tribulation period. The child will yet rule with a rod of iron but first things first!

4. Michael- This is Michael the Arch-angel who is the overseer of Israel (Daniel 12:1) There is war between Michael and the Heavenly angels and Satan and his fallen angels and this explains how Satan and his angels were cast to earth. Verses 10-12 inform us that this event occurs in the middle of the tribulation period. The “accuser of our brethren” will have no more access to God at this point. You see, Satan was kicked out of Heaven long ago, along with his demon legions, but he still had access to God for the purpose of accusing the brethren but his time for that is finished at this point. You see, those who take the mark of the beast (13:16) are clearly manifest but so are those who have refused the mark of the beast. The Lord knows those who are His! At this juncture there will be no more accusations made; no charges brought! Verses 10-12 also shout the warning of Satan’s wrath!

 

Satan’s Persecution of Israel

 

12:13-17 tell us that since Satan only has 3 ½ years to continue his murder and mayhem he pursues Israel out of sheer madness! She flees and is protected and nourished by God for the 3 ½ years and though Satan attempts annihilation of Israel his plan is thwarted by God which angers him even more! He sets out to make further war with the “remnant”.

 

Chapter 13

The First Beast

   This chapter introduces us to two of the central figures of the Revelation; they are the Anti-Christ and the False Prophet. They are both called beasts but are distinguished from one another by the words “another” and “first” (vs.11,12)

The First Beast- Verses 1-10 tell us a few things about this Beast:

·       He is seen as coming out of the sea. This could be either the Mediterranean area or it could mean the sea of people. In either case it distinguishes him from the 2^nd beast. (v.10

·       He is pictured as having seven heads, ten horns (powers), and ten crowns. Notice the difference in the number of crowns from the description of the Dragon. (v.1)

·       The likeness of a leopard, the feet of a bear, the mouth of a lion, and his power by the Dragon remind us of Daniel’s prophecy of Daniel 7 where they are representative of Babylon (the lion), Persia (the Bear) and Greece (the Leopard) so the beast will incorporate elements of these empires with the added feature that he receives his power from Satan, the Dragon. (v.2)

·                 One of his heads was wounded. Without going into great detail I will only       

           say that this probably refers to Rome as the last of the great empires. Rome  
           was not destroyed from without, but from within, yet elements of the
           Roman Empire still exist today, even in our American political system. But
           the Roman Empire will be revived in the last days so the wound was not
           fatal.

             People will worship the Dragon and the Beast for forty-two months, the

           last 3 ½ years. The Beast will speak great blasphemies against God and
           pollute the Temple. He will make war with the saints. Remember, this is
           after the sealing of 144,000 Jewish evangelists and the evangelizing of the
           remnant of Israel from the middle of the 70^th week of Daniel to some point
           during that last three and a half years. Daniel speaks of the abomination that
           makes desolate and our Lord mentions it as well in Matthew 24:15. The

              Apostle Paul writes of him, “Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all

           that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the
           temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” (2 Thessalonians 2:4)

·       All of the lost will worship him! “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” (Rev. 13:8) Here is the first of two references to people names NOT being in the Lamb’s Book of Life. In 17:8 we will find that their names never were written in the Book of Life.

 

The Seven Heads Revisited

 

Some see the seven heads as Rome because in 17:9 where the Scripture says, “And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.” Since Rome is known as the city of seven hills many believe the Whore as Rome. BUT, verse 10 says, “And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space.” So while there may be a double meaning here, it is the Revived Roman Empire we are speaking of here. At the time of John’s writing there had been five Empires: Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, and Greece. Rome was the Empire in John’s day, the writing of the Revelation. That makes six and the seventh is yet to come and after that the eighth, as we shall learn later. In the Revived Roman Empire, which is to come, there will be ten horns (powers) from which one will rise to become the anti-Christ personified. But the heads themselves are these Empires.

 

The Second Beast

 

   The second beast, called “another”(another of the same kind), comes out of the earth. He is often called the “False Prophet” because he exalts the first beast. I don’t believe we can define exactly what “out of the earth” means as opposed to “out of the sea” for the first Beast. One might guess that he comes from a place in the Mediterranean area. Some actually believe he is Jewish which is plausible but it could be he is someone who is a “friend” to the Jews.

·       He is like a lamb but speaks as a dragon. Satan is the source of his speech.

·       As the Holy Spirit exalts Jesus Christ, this False Prophet exalts the anti-Christ causing people to worship the first beast.

·       He works great wonders and miracles. These are similar to those of the two witnesses and are meant to deceive.

·       He orders an image be made of the 1^st beast and causes the image to speak.

·       He orders that any who will not worship the beast should be killed. He forces men to receive a mark in their right hand or forehead symbolizing the beast and by which they can buy and sell. The mark is “the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.” (13:17) The number is 666.

 

The Number

   There has been a lot of guessing over the centuries as to whom the Beast is and exactly what the numbers means and I’m not sure we have a satisfying answer. I believe that since the number 7 is God’s number of completion and perfection, the number 6 is mans number and comes short of completion or perfection. Just as the triune God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) would have the number 777 so the impostors (Satan, Anti-Christ, and False Prophet) would have the number 666.

 

   No doubt there will be human personages related to these two beasts, it seems likely that we are talking about this world’s system in both Socio/economic terms and Religious terms, though there is most certainly an overlap with them. During the Tribulation period, especially the last 3 ½ years, 42 months, 1260 days, there will be a clear division between believers and non-believers. Non-believers will accept the mark of the beast and the saved will already been sealed by God. But among the worldlings there will still be plenty of “religious” people. They will be fooled by the two beasts and will worship the first beast.

 

NOTE

 

   It is my opinion that there is a sort of preliminary worship of the beast going on even in the time in which we live. We can see the divide in our country as we breathe. Some are born again believers who seek after God and some are determined to be anything but. Other’s are in the middle, playing with their religion. The world is collapsing economically with superficial fixes and morality has degraded. We are ripe for the appearance of the beast and the only thing holding his appearance back is the Holy Spirit. The Church is indwelt by the Spirit of God and when the Church is translated from earth to Heaven, the Holy Spirit, in His present ministry, will be caught up as well. Who is the Anti-Christ? Well I don’t know who the human personage is, or will be, but it’s clear that the Beast is the Revived Roman Empire and that the “little horn” of Daniel’s prophecy, the Anti-Christ, will most likely come from one of the 10 horns or powers under the Revived Roman Empire.

 

Keep watch for Part Four…

 

 

 

 

THE REVELATION: An Overview Part Two

     We left off with covering chapter seven and now we continue. In chapter eight we will find that the seventh seal opens the seven trumpets. As I said in the first part of our study the seals, trumpets and vials are not consecutive as the trumpets are the seventh seal. Chapter eight records four of these trumpets.

   First though we are told that when he (the Lamb) opened the seventh seal there was silence in Heaven for a time (v.1), probably denoting a major event, then we read that seven angels were given trumpets (v.2) and yet another angel attending an altar with incense representing the prayers of God’s people through the ages but especially those recorded in chapter six. This reminds us of the altar of incense that was part of the furnishings of the Tabernacle in the Wilderness, just outside the veil. It signified the prayers of God’s people then as well and is representative of Jesus Christ as our High Priest through Whom all prayer must pass. Then we note the trumpets sound.

The First Trumpet- this judgment destroys 1/3 part of the trees and grasses. Of course when vegetation is destroyed the entire atmosphere is affected so oxygen levels would be stressed.

The Second Trumpet- here 1/3 of sea life is destroyed, including ships that are in the sea. This is caused by a “great mountain”, a burning mountain, which was cast into the sea. The text tells us the sea became blood!

The Third Trumpet- A great star fell from Heaven and affect 1/3 of inland waters which, of course will affect drinking water as well and men will die from drinking it. One can imagine that bathing and anything done with water is affected as well.

The Fourth Trumpet- Here the first and second Heavens are affected as 1/3 of the light is reduced so that darkness is upon the land, probably representative of the spiritual darkness already on earth. Who knows exactly how this will actually happen? But the effect is that the light of day will be reduced to a third.

   The chapter ends with an angel pronouncing more woes to follow as the remainder of the trumpets have yet to sound.

Chapter Nine

The Fifth Trumpet- This covers 11 verses and begins with another angel blowing another trumpet and another star falling (fallen) from Heaven. The Third Trumpet included a star as well and that one seems to be a literal heavenly body while this star has a personality. I won’t get into the theories of who this star might be except to say that the ideas range from him being an angel of God all the way to being Satan himself. You, the reader, can search that out for yourself. The important thing is that he, the star, is given the key to the bottomless pit which tells us he did not have it before.  As he opens the pit smoke arises to the point of hindering what light is left. Verses 3-10 give us the description of some kind of beings that arise out of the pit. The description is difficult to digest and is probably highly symbolic though we would never want to go so far as to say the description is not literal in any sense. I have read lots of opinions about these beings but the most we can be sure of is that they are demonic, to say the least and that they were kept in the abyss for a long time. They are not allowed to harm the plant life, quite unlike actual locusts, and are only allowed to harm, not kill “only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.” (v.4) This torment will last five months.

                                                            

   We also learn from verse 11 that they have a general over them whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon and in Greek is Apollyon, both meaning “destruction”. Now there remain two more judgments in the Trumpets.

NOTE

   One might ask at this point, why would Satan harm those who have rejected and rebelled against God and two things stand out to me: First, Satan is hateful towards all men; He is evil to the core and only fools follow him; Second, and more importantly remember that we are now in the Great Tribulation which is characterized by the judgments of God…not Satan.. and not the Anti-Christ.

The Sixth Trumpet- As the sixth trumpet is sounded we are told that four angels who have been bound in the Euphrates are unleashed. This allows for an army of 200 million from the east with their kings (Rev.16:12 the Sixth Vial). In Rev.16:12 we are told that the Euphrates was dried up to allow passage of the armies of the east.

   The remainder of the chapter is colorfully descriptive of this army and the warfare that will take place. I can imagine that it would have been difficult for John to describe what he saw in terms the readers of his day could relate to. No doubt he is describing modern warfare though. We also find in this passage that another 1/3 of mankind is killed which means the earth has been depopulated greatly by this time. Remember that under the Pale Horse and rider ¼ of the people were murdered by the Anti-Christ, then 1/3 by judgment and now another 1/3. There were others who died in rebellion against the Anti-Christ under the Red Horse and rider. The people of earth are reaping what they have sown yet, we are told they still will not repent! They made their choice and now they must suffer the consequences!

Chapter 10

   Chapter 10, and through 11:14 is another parentheses between the unfolding events of the Trumpets and leading into the Vials. This chapter is a little difficult to put into summary form but we see an angel descending to John. He is a very unique angel in his description. Some think this is Christ but it is more likely he is just a unique angel with a specific duty or message. He held a “little book”. This is not the same book of chapter five as it is not said to be have seals. When the angel descends he has one foot on land and one foot on the sea. He cries with a loud voice and John hears seven thunders but as John was about to write what he heard from the seven thunders a voice told him not to write them. So while much is revealed there are still some things which are secret with God.

As John ceases to write he hears the angel swear by “Him that liveth for ever and ever” (v.6) that there should be “time no longer” (no further waiting). Things progress quickly now as God keeps His word that He spoke through His prophets. Then John is told to eat the “little book” which was sweet to his mouth but bitter in his stomach. This may remind the reader of both Jeremiah and Ezekiel who were required to eat the word of God.  

Chapter 11

   This chapter, at least the first fourteen verses, is still parenthetical. In the first two verses we find that John is given a measuring rod. Most scholars tell us this is about 10’ long. And John is to measure the Temple, the Altar, and the worshippers.

We are not told why God wants these things measured but it is clear that there is some special reason for it and that it is distinct from the court of the Temple which is not to be measured and which “is given unto the Gentiles” for forty-two months which is equal to 3 ½ years.

   This is important because there is no Temple in the Holy City today so one will have to be erected, probably in the first 3 ½ years of Anti-Christ’s reign. The Temple that will be erected will most likely fall far short of the glory and beauty of Solomon’s Temple. The reference to the court is probably telling us that under the Man of Sin, the Beast, the Anti-Christ there will be an even greater ecumenical movement so that the lines of religion will be blurred even more than they are now. Of course we shall see that the Beast out of the sea will set himself up as God and he will sit in the Temple proclaiming such.

                                                                                                

 

The Two Witnesses

   Now we are introduced to the “Two Witnesses” who preach 1,260 days, again 3 ½ years. So with this we know that these two witnesses began their ministry about the same time as the 144,000 were sealed. The witnesses are protected by God so that no harm can come to them until their ministry be ended. They are given power to work miracles as authentication of their ministry. When their ministry is finished the Beast has them killed and their dead bodies will lie in the streets for 3 ½ days while the world celebrates and makes merry, even sending gifts to one another in celebration! But after the three and a half days they come back to life and are caught up to Heaven. Who are they? Well there are lots of ideas and we don’t really know. I am not venturing a guess but there are only two men in the history of the world who never died. One is Elijah and the other is Enoch (Gen.6). That does not mean that the two witnesses are they, it’s just an observation.

The Earthquake

   The Bibles says that at the same hour as the two witnesses were called up to Heaven a great earthquake hit the city of Jerusalem and seven thousand me perish in the quake. Fear overwhelms those left in the city, so much so, that they, being in awe of the power of God, “gave glory to the God of heaven”. (v.14) This should not be understood to mean that they repented of their sin but that they were forced to acknowledge the power of God!

The Seventh Trumpet- Here we once again reach the end of the Great Tribulation when God has the victory and “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign forever and ever.” (v.15) so herein is included more information regarding wrath, judgment, resurrection, and reward.

    In Review, we saw that the Seven Seals covered the entire Seven years of Daniel’s Seventieth Week. The Seven Trumpets which came out of the Seventh Seal seem to refer to the last 31/2 years or the Great Tribulation. We will find that the Vials do likewise.

   From this point and over the next four chapters we will be filled in even further of the events on earth before we see the Seven Vials open up in Chapter 16. We will learn more about the Harlot and about the Beast and False Prophet. So with the next study, Part Three, we will get further into the personages revealed.

 

THE REVELATION: An Overview Part One

   As promised I am going to attempt to give an overview of the Revelation for those who want to know but don’t have the time or inclination to get into long and laborious studies. Before we begin I want to tell you that I have been in the ministry for well over thirty years and have taught the Book of Revelation just a handful of times during that time. As a pastor I am required to teach the whole counsel of God so I want you to understand that I do not consider myself an expert on the Revelation and I am sure there are lots of things I don’t know. So, my intent here is to share with you what I do know, assuming that those who read this know even less than I do. And since the Book of Revelation is twenty-two chapters there is no way I can give an in depth look, so this will be an overview only. Also, I will concentrate mostly on the prophetic portions but I will not be going into the Old Testament books of Daniel, or Ezekiel, or Joel, or Zachariah, or any others, except possibly a brief mention. Also, somewhere along the line I may make mention of Matthew 24 and 25. Let’s begin:

Chapters 1-3

   As the Book opens we find John, this is the Apostle John, the same writer of the Gospel of John and the three letters found in the general epistles. He is banished to the Isle of Patmos where he received the Revelation. There he received visions from the Lord and instructions about what he was to write, which were, “Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;” (1:19) and he was told to write letters to the seven churches named in chapters two and three. These churches were Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea. There was a specific message to each of these churches that are representative of the conditions of the churches down through the centuries. Some people see these as consecutive conditions of the church, which to my mind would require time, which in itself would contradict the doctrine of imminence. We just don’t know when the Lord will return. So here, John shares the things he has seen and the things with are.

Chapter 4

   Beginning in chapter four John is, in the spirit,  caught up to Heaven where he sees the wonderful glories  of Heaven including the beauties of the Throne, the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures, each  different in character (probably as representative of the four gospels), and each praising the LORD and worshipping Him.

Chapter 5

                                                            

 
Chapter five introduces us to a Book that is sealed with seven seals and the fact that no one could be found who was worthy to open the Book until “a Lamb as it had been slain,” (5:6) arrives on the scene and takes the Book, at which time all of Heaven, including the Elders, the Creatures, and a multitude of Angels, and souls of men rings out in praise for the One who is Worthy to open the Book. Regarding the Book, it is sealed with seven seals and we are not told what the contents are until the seals are broken but it seems to be true that the hidden counsels of God are bound therein and will be revealed as the seals are broken. Keep in mind, dear reader, that this is a revelation, nothing is hidden, it is revealed. And John is now sharing the "things which shall be hereafter"

The 70^th Week of Daniel

   Let me make note of something here. We’ve seen that our Lord has appeared to John and He gave John the commandment to write unto the seven churches. After chapter three we do not see the Church again until chapter 19 when the Marriage of the Lamb is mentioned. There is a reason for this. You see we are in what is often called the “Church Age” or “the Age of Grace” and so forth. But there is a well known prophecy by Daniel (chapter nine) which is referred to as the Seventy Weeks of Daniel. Sixty-nine of these weeks have been fulfilled and were finalized the very day our Lord rode into Jerusalem while people were shouting Hosannas to Him. Only a few days later they would be calling for His crucifixion.

                                                                         

  
 The point is that we are awaiting the fulfillment of the 70^th week, which is also called by many “the time of Jacob’s trouble” (Jeremiah 30:7) and the “Tribulation” period. So think of the "Church Age" as a sort of parentheses in time. Just prior to Daniel’s Seventieth Week Beginning, the Church will be caught up to Heaven and the present ministry of the Holy Spirit is removed from earth. This is often called “The Rapture” or “The Translation” of the Church. So as the Church is caught up to Heaven, the 70^th Week of Daniel begins. It is a week of seven years. The first 3 ½ years are generally called “The Tribulation” and the second 3 ½ years is called “The Great Tribulation”. The wrath of anti-Christ will characterize the first 3 ½ years and the Wrath of God will characterize the second 3 ½ years. It is the removal of the Church and the present ministry of the Holy Spirit, indwelling the Temple, that is preventing the beginning of Daniel's Seventieth Week (2 Thessalonians 2:7)

Matthew 24

    Another point I would like to make here is that Matthew 24 is related to the 70^th Week of Daniel, not our present age! I know it’s often quoted as applicable to our day but wrongly so. It has to do with the Tribulation time mostly. When we get into the next chapter of Revelation I will attempt to show, at least in part, how these relate.

The Seals, the Trumpets, and the Vials.

   Think of a telescope that is opened in sections. This chapter opens looking through the telescope without pulling it out. The Seals cover the entire seven year period, the seventh seal introduces the seven trumpets, which backs up a bit and gives us more detail of events unfolding, then the seventh trumpet opens the seven vials (bowls) which backs up some again and gives us an even closer look at the events unfolding until we see the tribulation unfolded for us in a clear and understandable way.

Chapter 6

     As we look at chapter six it would do us well to note that it is an overview of the entire seven years. Here we are introduced to the four horsemen, which are really only one horseman but four consecutive scenarios. Notice in verse one it is the Lamb who opens the seals. I am going to try here, to parallel some of Matthew 24 with what we will read here.

                                                                             

First Seal: The White Horse and His Rider- This is not Christ, this is the

Imposter, the False Christ. He comes offering peace but his desire is to conquer.
This Coincides with Matthew 24:3,4.

 Second Seal: The Red Horse and His Rider- Since there will be those who do

not accept his leadership and those who rebel, war will come and men will kill
one another. This coincides with Matthew 24:6,7a.

Third Seal: The Black Horse and His Rider- Because of war and economic  

strain it will be difficult to afford even food to eat. A day’s wages will only buy
enough food for that day. Anytime there is war devastation follows and it does
here as well. Famine and inflation will be the rule of that day. Again, this coincides
with Matthew 24:7b  3^rd Seal

Fourth Seal: The Pale Horse and His Rider- Under this event we enter into the second 3 ½  years of the Tribulation Period, which is now the Great Tribulation. It will begin with the terrors of anti-Christ but it will finish with the terrors of God!. It  is at this time, we shall learn, that God pours out His Spirit on 144, 000 Jewish

evangelists from the 12 tribes of Israel, who will evangelize the remaining Jewish population but drawing the wrath of the Beast, the Abomination, the Man of Sin, the Anti-Christ and ¼ of the world’s population will be murdered for rebellion and refusal to worship him. Matthew 24:9 parallels this event.

 V. The Fifth Seal: The fifth seal shifts us to Heaven where we find the souls of those who are martyred during the Beast’s reign of terror. They are awaiting God’s vengeance on the forces of evil and they are assured that it will come shortly.

VI. The Sixth Seal: As the sixth seal is opened we shift back to earth where men of all kinds cower in fear at the coming of the Lamb who will recompense them for their evil.

VII. The Seventh Seal: The Seventh Seal will open up the Seven Trumpets beginning in 8:1 but before we get there Chapter 7 will scope us in and fill in some blanks beginning with the Fifth Seal.

Chapter Seven

 

    This chapter begins with the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy (Joel 2:28) about God pouring out his Spirit and here we find 144,000 Jewish evangelists, sealed by God who evangelize Jews in fulfillment of Romans 11:26 where it says “all Israel shall be saved”.

     As a result of this great ministry we are introduced again to the souls of multitudes who have come out of the Great Tribulation, and who have been washed in the blood of the Lamb and clothed in white robes. Once again we see angels, the twenty-four elders, the four living Creatures and the Lamb of God. All created things offer praise to our Lord, who is worthy.

 

   This will conclude Part One of our Overview of the Revelation. Remember, this is only an overview and I have intentionally left out a lot of information. I am working out of my King James Text, my own written Study of Romans, and occasionally I take a peek at Herbert Lockyer’s chapters of the Revelation.

 

One Added Note

 

  Many times I hear people refer to the Revelation as “revelations” or “The Book of Revelations”. NO! NO! NO! It is the Revelation!