Faithful Over A Little.

October 6, 2018January 16, 2020 / kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

¹⁴“For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. ¹⁵To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. ¹⁶He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. ¹⁷So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. ¹⁸But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. ¹⁹Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. ²⁰And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ ²¹His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ ²²And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ ²³His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ ²⁴He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, ²⁵so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’ ²⁶But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? ²⁷Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. ²⁸So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. ²⁹For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. ³⁰And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ ” – Matthew 25:14-30 ESV

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Jesus has been stressing the need for His disciples to have a long-term perspective regarding the Kingdom of Heaven. Rather than expecting it to show up in their lifetimes and according to their preconceived and self-centered perspectives, they were going to have to come to understand it as future-oriented. Jesus was not going to set up His kingdom on earth at that time. He was not going to rule and reign from Jerusalem as the Messiah while they were still alive. His kingdom was to come. So, in the meantime, the disciples were to live in a state of readiness. In fact, in His previous parable, Jesus emphasized the need for preparedness.

Jesus continued to address the future aspect of the coming Kingdom by telling yet another parable. Again, He would stress the unexpected delay associated with His Kingdom. Yes, He was the Messiah and the rightful heir to David’s throne. But His ascension to that throne, while inevitable, was not going to be immediate.

So, Jesus began His parable by describing a man preparing to go on a journey. This man was obviously well-to-do, having land, material wealth, and servants. In preparation for his departure, the man called his servants together and “entrusted to them his property” (Matthew 25:14 ESV). The Greek word Jesus used was paradidōmi and it means “to deliver to one something to keep, use, take care of, manage” (Online Bible).

The man took what was his and gave it to his servants so they might manage it in his absence. In other words, he placed them in charge of all that he owned – “his property.” All three men were given responsibility for their master’s possessions, which would have included his land, house, livestock, and any other personal property.

It seems that, when we read this parable, we place all the emphasis on the talents given to the three men. It is as if the talents are the point of the story. They represent the “property” handed over by the master. But on closer inspection, it would appear that the talents represent the master’s payment to each of the three servants for their care of his property in his absence.

The text reads: “To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability” (Matthew 25:15 ESV). It’s interesting to note that the word translated “ability” is the Greek word dynamis. It is the same word from which we get our English word, dynamite. It refers to power or physical strength. This man knew his servants well and compensated them according to what he believed would be their level of work. He was not giving them gifts to use or invest. In fact, there is no indication from the text that the master told any of the servants to invest what he had given them. The talents were intended as payment for the service they were expected to render on his behalf and in his absence.

But what makes the story so interesting is that two of the servants took their “salary” and invested it. They recognized that the money given to them was not really theirs, but it belonged to their master. It was part of his property and they viewed their possession of it as temporary in nature. It was a loan. So, they traded or invested what they had. We’re not told the nature of their investment strategy, because that doesn’t seem to be the point of the parable. The emphasis in the parable is that each of them doubled the value of what they had been given. And when their master returned, he recognized them as having been good and faithful servants.

There is an interesting choice of words in this parable. In the first place, when the two faithful servants address their master upon his return, they both said, “Master, you delivered to me _______ talents.” They use the same word, paradidōmi, which means “to deliver to one something to keep, use, take care of, manage.” The two men acknowledged that their master had given them the talents and that he expected them to use their resources wisely. But Jesus described the first man as “he who had received the five talents” (Matthew 25:20 ESV). The Greek word translated as “received” is lambanō and it can mean “to take what is one’s own, or to receive what is rightfully yours.”

Jesus seems to describe the men as receiving their talents as payment from their master. But two of the men never lost sight of the fact that the talents were really just another extension of their master’s property. What he had given them really belonged to him and they treated it that way. They showed him respect and deference by wisely investing what they had been given and returning to him any profit they had received. Their gain would have been impossible without the master’s trust and generosity.

But there is a third servant. His actions are meant to stand out like a sore thumb. Unlike his two fellow servants, this man took what he had been given and buried it in a hole. It’s important to notice that this man’s address to his master is radically different than the other two. He stated: “Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours” (Matthew 25:24-25 ESV).

Surprisingly, he addressed the one who had given him his talent as a demanding and a difficult task-master. He had a different outlook on the master and was motivated by fear. And remember, the one talent this man had received had been based on his ability or power to deliver. It’s fairly clear from the story that he had been properly compensated. He got what he deserved. And while this servant rightfully acknowledged that what he had been given by the master belonged to the master, he displayed a complete lack of initiative and no sense of stewardship. He did nothing with what he had been given.

So, what’s the point? What is Jesus trying to tell His disciples and, by extension, us? Once again, the emphasis is on the Kingdom of Heaven, and the period of time about which Jesus seems to be speaking is the Great Tribulation. In the parable, Jesus mentions that the master returned “after a long time.” There was a long delay. The return of the master is meant to represent the return of Jesus at His second coming. That momentous event will take place at the end of the seven years of tribulation.

During the period of the tribulation, the presence and power of God will be seen and felt as He brings repeated judgments upon the world. He will redeem 144,000 Jews who will become witnesses to the nations. He will graciously offer opportunities for men and women to repent even during the darkest days of the tribulation, and many will. In fact, there will be countless other Jews who come to faith in Jesus during those dark days. They will receive salvation through faith alone in Jesus alone. He will offer them what is rightfully His, His own righteousness, and He will expect them to use it wisely as they wait for His return. What they do with their newfound faith will be essential.

The point of the parable is found in the words of Jesus found in verse 29: “For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”

And in the very next verses, we will see how Jesus applies this statement. Whether it is believers in the church age waiting for the return of Christ and the rapture, or tribulation saints waiting for His second coming, they are to live faithfully as they wait. They are to steward well what they have been given by God. Those who are in Christ have graciously received from the abundance of His wealth and riches. We are to use what we have been given wisely and well. We are to recognize that all we have belongs to Him and to treat it with care. The two faithful servants did not make the talents their focus. They didn’t place all their emphasis on what they had been given, but on what they could do to honor their master. And we should long to hear the very same words Jesus spoke to them:

“Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.” – Matthew 25:23 ESV

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message

I Do Not Know You.

October 5, 2018November 23, 2019 / kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

^{” 1}“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. ²Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. ³For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, ⁴but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. ⁵As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. ⁶But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ ⁷Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. ⁸And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ ⁹But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ ¹⁰And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. ¹¹Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ ¹²But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ ¹³Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” – Matthew 25:1-12 ESV

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Jesus has been trying to get His disciples to think of the Kingdom of Heaven with a long-term perstpective. While He was the Messiah, the one whom the people of Israel had long expected, He was not going to be establishing His kingdom at that moment. He has already told them that He was going to have to go to Jerusalem, be betrayed, falsely accused, tried, beaten and eventually crucified. But He would also rise again. His mission on this, His first coming to earth, was to serve as the sacrificial offering for the sins of mankind. But there was a day coming when He would return to earth a second time. But there was much that would have to take place before His return. And He told the disciples, “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only” (Matthew 24:36 ESV).

And He had warned them, “Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (Matthew 24:44 ESV). The point Jesus seemed to be making had to do with preparedness. He wanted His disciples to live with a sense of eager expectation and anticipation that His return could happen at any moment. And this led Jesus to tell a few parables to drive home His point.

The first had to do with a wedding. It involved ten virgins who were anticipating the arrival of the bridegroom. The question that must asked is, “Who are these ten virgins and what do they represent?” Based on the immediate context, it seems clear that Jesus has been addressing His second coming, which will take at the end of the 7-year period of tribulation. Since the church is to be raptured before the tribulation begins, these ten virgins cannot act as representatives of the church. It makes much more sense to see them as Jews who will be alive during the period of the tribulation. And, as the text will reveal, the ten virgins break down into two groups. Five of them are prepared, while five are not. This would seem to indicate that the first five represent Jews who will come to faith during the days of the tribulation, which the book of Revelation tells us will take place. John was given a vision in which “a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands” (Revelation 7:9 ESV). Then John was told their identity. “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 7:14 ESV). There will be many who come to faith during the period of the tribulation, including Jews and people from every tribe, nation, and tongue.

But the second group of five virgins represents all those Jews who will remain unrepentant and unbelieving during the tribulation, all the way up to the point of Jesus’ return.

In the story, all ten virgins share a common expectation of the bridegroom’s arrival. They are eagerly anticipating his coming. This is why the ten virgins appear to indicate Jews, because they alone would have anticipated the arrival of the Messiah. During the days of the tribulation, Jews living at that time will long for the arrival of the Messiah. For believing Jews, they will understand it to be His second coming. For unbelieving Jews, they will view it as His first coming. But all will greatly desire His arrival

But again, the issue is one of preparedness. There is a delay. The bridegroom has not shown up as expected. But, as part of the welcoming party, they were to have been ready, because, as Jesus had said, the groom was “coming at an hour you do not expect.”

Sadly, the story reveals that half the group were foolish, failing to take oil for their lamps. They were unprepared. They thought they would have plenty of time. But when news of the groom’s arrival was made known, they had lamps, but no oil. They begged the first group to share their oil with them, but were refused and told, “Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves” (Matthew 25:9 ESV). They were on their own. It’s likely that the reference to oil in the story was meant to be a symbol for the Holy Spirit. The believing Jews had the Spirit of God within them. The unbelieving Jews did not.

And when the groom arrived, the wedding feast began. But by the time the second group of foolish, unprepared virgins showed up, it was too late. The door was shut. They were left on the outside. And the wedding feast would seem to represent that Marriage Supper of the Lamb, revealed in chapter 19 of Revelation.

⁷ Let us rejoice and exult
    and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
    and his Bride has made herself ready;
⁸it was granted her to clothe herself
    with fine linen, bright and pure”—

for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. – Revelation 19:7-8 ESV

One of the things that will happen at the end of the tribulation will be that Christ, the bridegroom, will hold a feast for His bride, the church. And John was told, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb” (Revelation 19:9 ESV). Those who come to faith during the tribulation will be participants in this great celebration. But those who fail to accept Jesus will be left on the outside, looking in. And as Jesus indicated, their destination will be “that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 24:51 ESV).

One of the saddest statements in the Scriptures is found in this parable. It is the words of the bridegroom, spoken to those virgins who showed up late and without oil for their lamps. He told them, “Truly, I say to you, I do not know you” (Matthew 25:12 ESV). They had been invited. They even had lamps. But they without oil. They did not have what was necessary to respond when news of the groom’s arrival was announced.

The apostle Paul would later tell the Ephesian believers: “In him [Jesus] you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:13-14 ESV). Those who lack the Holy Spirit will find themselves outside the feast. And, as Paul makes clear, the receipt of the Spirit is based on belief in the Son.

Again, the point of the parable is preparedness. How are the Jews living during the tribulation to prepare for the arrival of the Messiah? By placing their faith in Him as their Savior. He alone could save them from the persecution of the Antichrist and the judgments of God. He alone could preserve and protect them. Carrying a lamp with no oil is similar to placing your faith in your church attendance or good behavior. It is not enough. Your good works cannot save you. Your membership in a local church does not guarantee you a place in the Kingdom of God. Without the oil of God’s Spirit, you will find yourself on the outside looking in, and hearing these sad and sobering words from Jesus: “Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.”

It’s impossible to read this parable and not reflect on the words of Jesus spoken years earlier in His sermon on the mount.

“On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you.’” – Matthew 7:22-23 NLT

The Message

Behold, I Am Coming Soon.

October 4, 2018January 14, 2020 / kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

³²“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. ³³So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. ³⁴Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. ³⁵Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

³⁶“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. ³⁷For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. ³⁸For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, ³⁹and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. ⁴⁰Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. ⁴¹Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. ⁴²Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. ⁴³But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁴Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

⁴⁵“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? ⁴⁶Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. ⁴⁷Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. ⁴⁸But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ ⁴⁹and begins to beat his fellow servants and eats and drinks with drunkards, ⁵⁰the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know ⁵¹and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. – Matthew 24:32-51 ESV

Jesus is attempting to open the eyes of His disciples and help them develop a long-term perspective regarding His Kingdom. They were focused on the here-and-now, and having trouble understanding that the talk of His coming death in Jerusalem was anything but bad news or something to be avoided at all costs. This entire chapter contains the surprising and difficult-to-comprehend words of Jesus as He reveals the bigger picture regarding God’s plan of redemption. Jesus’ death on the cross would be just the beginning of the much larger, comprehensive plan of God. It would also include His resurrection as well as His return to His Father’s side. But, even more importantly, it would require His eventual return to earth as the conquering King.

And while Jesus knew that there would be a long delay before His return would take place, He wanted His disciples to live with a sense of eager anticipation. If they expected it to happen and kept their eyes open, looking for the signs of its approach, they would be able to endure the struggles that were coming their way.

Jesus used the visual lesson of a fig tree in order to help the disciples understand that there would be visible, recognizable signs associated with His coming. The budding of a fig tree is a natural indication that summer is near. It is unmistakable and irrefutable. In the same way, Jesus stated that the signs of His return will be undeniable. He even assures His disciples that “this generation will not pass away until all these things take place” (Matthew 24:34 ESV).

But what does that mean? Was He saying that the events associated with the end times would take place during the lifetimes of His disciples? The answer would seem to be no. But while they were alive, they would begin to see the early signs of His return. The budding of a fig tree provides a premonition or portent of something to come. The buds do not mean summer has arrived, but that it is coming. In the same way, the disciples would live to see signs that would point to Jesus’ coming. They would be alive when He returned, but they would be given clear indications that it was going to happen.

Each generation of believers has been given signs that His coming is imminent and inevitable. These signs act as assurances of God’s faithfulness and are meant to encourage us to continue to wait eagerly and hopefully.

The earth would continue to go through all kinds of struggles, including earthquakes, famines, floods, disasters, and even wars. The apostle Paul reminded the believers in Corinth: “Those who use the things of the world should not become attached to them. For this world as we know it will soon pass away” (1 Corinthians 7:31 NLT). The apostle John wrote, “this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave” (1 John 2:17 NLT). Even Jesus, earlier in this very same discourse, warned His disciples:

“…you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic. Yes, these things must take place, but the end won’t follow immediately. Nation will go to war against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in many parts of the world. But all this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.” – Matthew 24:6-8 NLT

But while there will be clear signs along the way, the actual day and date of the Lord’s return will remain a mystery. We will be given assurances of its coming, but we will not know the exact time. Jesus indicated that even He did not know the day or the hour. God the Father alone has access to that information.

The second coming of Jesus will be a surprise. And it will catch the majority of people living on earth at the time completely off-guard and unprepared. Jesus used the days of Noah as an apt point of comparison. In a way, Noah’s building of the ark was a clear sign that something was coming. And Peter seems to indicate that Noah warned his neighbors of God’s coming judgment and the availability of salvation made possible by the ark.

[God] did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness… – 2 Peter 2:5 ESV

The New Living Translation reads: “Noah warned the world of God’s righteous judgment.” But the people in Noah’s day ignored the signs and refused the message of Noah. Instead, they busied themselves, “eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark” (Matthew 24:38 ESV).

They went on with their lives, oblivious to the warning signs and ignorant of what was about to happen, until “the flood came and swept them all away” (Matthew 24:39 ESV). And Jesus made it clear to His disciples that the same thing was going to happen when He finally returned. It would catch the world unprepared and completely off-guard.

The next few verses have created a great deal of controversy over the ages. Some have attempted to use them as proof for the eventual rapture of the church. But it is important that we keep them within their context. Jesus has been talking about His second coming, not the rapture. And so the context is one of judgment, not salvation. When Christ returns the second time, He will be coming as a righteous judge to deal, once and for all, with sinful mankind. His coming will take place at the end of the Great Tribulation. During that time, there will be those who come to faith in Christ and endure intense persecution at the hands of the Antichrist. But when Christ returns, He will defeat the Antichrist and his ungodly followers, and He will cast Satan, Antichrist, and the false prophet into the lake of fire or hell.

Then the devil, who had deceived them, was thrown into the fiery lake of burning sulfur, joining the beast and the false prophet. There they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. – Revelation 20:10 NLT

And all those who are living on the earth at that time will be judged as well, with their ultimate destination being hell.

It would seem that, based on the context of the second coming, that those whom Jesus describes as being “taken” are those who remain unbelievers. They will be judged and condemned, then sent to the destination God has prepared for them. And any who are “left” are meant to symbolize those who came to faith in Christ during the Great Tribulation.

Jesus appears to be stressing the need to remain prepared and fully expectant. This is why He said, “stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming” (Matthew 24:42 ESV). He added, “you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (Matthew 24:44 ESV).

We are to live our lives with a sense of eager expectation and conduct ourselves as if it could be today. The waiting is difficult. The delay can easily cause us to lose hope and take our eyes off the prize. And Jesus provided His disciples with a warning in the form of yet another parable.

A faithful and wise servant will stay vigilant and diligent while his master is away, conducting himself as if the master could walk in the door at any minute. But the wicked servant will use the delay as an excuse to sow his wild oats. His true, sin-prone, self-centered nature will manifest itself. And Jesus warns that the servant’s master, like the Messiah, will return when everyone least expects it. And when he does, he will bring just judgment on the wicked servant.

Again, Jesus was trying to get His disciples to understand that there was much more to the Kingdom than they ever imagined. His first coming was just the beginning. And His eventual departure would not be the end. He was coming again. He had promised to do so, and they needed to live their lives as if it could and would happen. They were to stay diligent and vigilant. They were to remain faithful and wise. Unlike the wicked, followers of Christ are to stay alert and awake, fully prepared for His return.

“Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.

“Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” – Revelation 22:11-13 NLT

The Message

Faithful and True.

May 5, 2018May 22, 2018 / kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

¹¹Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. ¹²His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. ¹³He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. ¹⁴And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. ¹⁵From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. ¹⁶On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords. – Revelation 19:11-16 ESV

revelationofjesuschristpic For most Christians, the second coming of Christ is the penultimate climax to all things. It is what we long and hope for. In fact, one of the most oft-quoted verses in the entire Bible is found just a few chapters later in the book of Revelation. John hears the words of Jesus, promising that He will indeed return and accomplish all that John has seen in the book of Revelation: “Surely I am coming soon.” And John responds to this promise with the words, “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20 ESV) We all long for the Lord’s return. And the entire book of Revelation is a preface to that very day. But, interestingly enough, when He does return, it will not be the end. In fact, it will just the beginning of the end, because there are at least six more things that take place after His return. This includes the capture and imprisonment of Satan, the setting up of Christ’s Millennial Kingdom on earth, the release of Satan and his final confinement to the Lake of Fire, the last judgment, and the creation of the new heavens and earth, including the New Jerusalem. With His return, Jesus will set off a chain of events that will mark the last phase of God’s plan.

And John describes seeing the heavens open revealing a rider on a white horse. He is called “Faithful and True” – a reference to His trustworthiness and the reality of His essence. Unlike the false prophet, this individual is true. He is the genuine article. He is not the Antichrist, a false messiah and pseudo-savior, but the one-and-only King of kings and Lord of lords. And the name by which He is called is “the Word of God.” This designation must have struck a chord with John, because it is reminiscent of the manner in which he described Jesus in the opening lines of his gospel.

¹ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ²He was in the beginning with God. ³All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. ⁴In him was life, and the life was the light of men. ⁵The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. – John 1:1-5 ESV

The logos, the Word of God is coming again. He is the light of the world and He will break forth in glorious brightness, illuminating the darkness of the fallen world, which will have been dominated by the forces of Satan and virtually devoid of any righteousness during the dark days of the tribulation. And John says, that “in righteousness he judges and makes war” (Revelation 19:11 ESV). One of the things we must recognize is that Jesus is making His second entry into the world and, this time, He is not coming as a helpless, innocent infant, but as a conquering King. And this aspect of Jesus’ mission is absolutely necessary for the full scope of God’s redemptive plan to be completed. With His first coming, Jesus took on human flesh, lived a sinless life, and died a sacrificial death as payment for the sins of mankind. And His resurrection was proof that His sacrifice had been acceptable to God. It satisfied the just demands of God’s holiness and justice. And then Jesus returned to His Father’s side, where He has been waiting for the very moment John is describing in this chapter: His long-awaited return, to finish what He started.

There is a day coming when Jesus will return for His bride, the church. And when He takes His bride to be with Him in heaven, one of the results of our departure from this earth will be that the Holy Spirit will leave with us, because He indwells the church. The apostle Paul tells us what happens as a consequence.

⁷For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. ⁸And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. ⁹The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, ¹⁰and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. ¹¹Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, ¹²in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. – 2 Thessalonians 2:7-12 ESV

In this passage, Paul refers to the Spirit as “he who now restrains.” With the church gone, the world will discover what it is like to have the presence of God’s Spirit no longer available to hold back the forces of evil. And the book of Revelation has given us a disturbing preview of just how bad things will get. The seven years of the tribulation reveal what will happen when the Spirit is removed and Satan is given free rein to rule unconstrained and unrestricted.

But Jesus returns. That is the beauty of this chapter. He shows back up on the scene, but this time as a King, leading behind Him an army of heavenly hosts. And Jesus will come with “a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron” (Revelation 19:15 ESV). And that sword is described as coming from His mouth. That presents us with a rather bizarre and disturbing image, but it reflects the sovereign power of the Son of God. Not only is He the Word of God, His words carry the power of God. He simply speaks and things happen. And from the way John describes the arrival of Jesus, it would appear that all the fighting that will take place upon His return is to be done by Him. Yes, Jesus is accompanied by “the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure” (Revelation 19:14 ESV), but they are not carrying any weapons. It is with His sword that Jesus will strike down the nations. He will rule over them with a rod of iron. He will “tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty” (Revelation 19:15 ESV). What takes place after His second coming will be completely up to Him. It is likely that those who accompany Him back to earth and who make up part of that heavenly army will be the church. They are described as wearing “fine linen, white and pure.” They are riding on white horses, symbols of victory and righteousness. But they will not be fighting alongside Christ. They will simply watch as He accomplishes the final phase of God’s judgment on the earth.

Jesus spoke of this very day. He told His disciples that He would return and what would transpire when He did.

Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. – Matthew 24:30 ESV

What a contrast between His second coming and His first incarnation as a helpless infant. The first time Jesus came to earth, He did so with little fanfare. Except for a few lowly shepherds and some visiting travelers from a distant land, there was no one who even realized that God had come to earth. But that will not be the case when He returns the second time. It will be an epic occasion that will instigate a series of events like none the world has ever seen. The King of kings and Lord of lords will show up and everyone on earth will know it. And the full and final wrath of God will be released upon the inhabitants of world and on Satan and his minions. Their days will be numbered. Their fates have been sealed. And He who is faithful and true will see that righteousness reins and justice is done.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Mighty Is the Lord God.

May 1, 2018May 18, 2018 / kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

¹After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was made bright with his glory. ²And he called out with a mighty voice,

“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!
    She has become a dwelling place for demons,
a haunt for every unclean spirit,
    a haunt for every unclean bird,
    a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast.
³For all nations have drunk
    the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality,
and the kings of the earth have committed immorality with her,
    and the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxurious living.”

⁴Then I heard another voice from heaven saying,

“Come out of her, my people,
    lest you take part in her sins,
lest you share in her plagues;
⁵for her sins are heaped high as heaven,
    and God has remembered her iniquities.
⁶Pay her back as she herself has paid back others,
    and repay her double for her deeds;
    mix a double portion for her in the cup she mixed.
⁷As she glorified herself and lived in luxury,
    so give her a like measure of torment and mourning,
since in her heart she says,
    ‘I sit as a queen,
I am no widow,
    and mourning I shall never see.’
⁸For this reason her plagues will come in a single day,
    death and mourning and famine,
and she will be burned up with fire;
    for mighty is the Lord God who has judged her. – Revelation 18:1-8 ESV

detail-of-a-lion-found-along-the-processional-way-from-ishtar-gate-into-the-city-of-babylon-the-ishtar-gate-was-constructed-around-575-bc-by-king-nebuchadnezzar-ii In this chapter, John records yet more specific information regarding the fall of Babylon. In the previous chapter, he provided us with a description of the false religious system associated with the city and its government. While some commentators choose to see all references to Babylon in these two chapters as symbolic only, it seems clear that the geographic location of the former city of Babylon is in view as well. The Scriptures appear to indicate that the city will yet again become a center of power from which the Antichrist operates during the days of the tribulation. It will become the political, religious and economic focal point of the world during that time, with the Antichrist operating his government from within its borders.

In chapter 17, John was shown the destruction of the false religious system, also referred to as Babylon or the great prostitute. Now, in chapter 18, he is given a vision of the destruction of Babylon’s financial system. If you recall, one of the things the false prophet did, along with establishing the apostate church built around the worship of Antichrist, was to institute the requirement of the mark of the beast. This visible symbol or mark was required to be affixed to the right hand or forehead of every individual on earth.

¹⁶Also it [the false prophet] causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, ¹⁷so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. – Revelation 13:16-17 ESV

The mark was a non-negotiable requirement that became the means by which anyone could participate in the economy set up by the Antichrist and his world-wide government. The monopoly created by this kind of manipulative control would greatly influence the Antichrist’s power and fill the treasuries of his government. And John is given just a glimpse into the outcome of this kind of economic control.

…the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxurious living. – Revelation 18:3 ESV

There appear to be two falls of Babylon described in these two chapters. The first involves the fall of the false religious system that was set up by the false prophet. Chapter 17 describes its fall, which takes place at the midway point of the 7 years of tribulation. But chapter 18 describes the fall of Babylon in its political and commercial form, which will take place at the end of the great tribulation, 3-1/2 years later. John was given a partial view of Babylon’s ultimate destruction back in chapter 16.

¹⁷The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, “It is done!” ¹⁸And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings,^[c] peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as there had never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake. ¹⁹The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell, and God remembered Babylon the great, to make her drain the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath. – Revelation 16:17-19 ESV

It seems clear that this is referring to an actual city, the city of Babylon. And the result of this event will be that the city falls, literally and physically, resulting in its location becoming desolate and abandoned by mankind. The angel describes it as becoming, “a dwelling place for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast” (Revelation 18:2 ESV). This formerly great city will become the abode of the demonic, an apt description of what it had really been all along. This geographic location on the planet has had a long history of immoral and unrighteous behavior associated with it, stretching all the way back to the tower of Babel, when mankind attempted to disobey the will of God.

“Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” – Genesis 11:4 ESV

In this account, we see that, from day one, the territory known as Babylon, was associated with the sins of self-sufficiency, self-determinism, and self-glorification. Rather than obey God, men attempted to control their own fate and set themselves up as gods. And Babylon would become an ever-lasting symbol of man’s endless pursuit of autonomy and self-idolatry. But John is shown the final outcome God has in store for this great city. It will fall. And its fall will be great. All those nations that “have drunk the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality” will fall along with her. And notice what the second angel says about the city:

As she glorified herself and lived in luxury,
so give her a like measure of torment and mourning. – Revelation 18:7 ESV

During the tribulation, Babylon will yet again become a prosperous and highly influential city. It will be restored to its former glory, replicating its glory days under King Nebuchadnezzar. But as great as Babylon will become, it will prove no match for Almighty God. As powerful, wealthy and influential as it will be during the waning days of the tribulation, it will experience a devastating fall – at the hands of God. The city’s pride, self-sufficiency, and love affair with immorality will come to an end. And so, a voice from heaven calls all believers living at that time to remove themselves from the city. They are to flee from her borders, distancing themselves from her immorality and rebellion against God. Like Lot running from Sodom and Gomorrah, the tribulation saints are to vacate the premises of Babylon, in anticipation of God’s judgment against her.

It is payback time. The voice from heaven that John hears describes the sins of Babylon being heaped up as high as heaven, an obvious comparison to the bricks heaped up by the people living in Babel. The sins of Babylon are obvious to God, and He will pay her back double for all that she has done. Like all those who stand opposed to God and who set themselves up as their own gods, Babylon and its inhabitants saw themselves as invulnerable and untouchable.

“I sit as a queen,
I am no widow,
and mourning I shall never see.” – Revelation 18:7 ESV

But as the proverb says, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18 ESV). And in a single day, judgment would come against Babylon. God will bring about the fall of this once-great city, “for mighty is the Lord God who has judged her” (Revelation 18:8 ESV)

The ultimate fall of Babylon will be real, but also symbolic. It represents the defeat of any and all who stand against God. Mankind has long opposed the will of God, refusing to accept Him as God and choosing to turn to man-made religions, making gods out of wealth, materialism, politics, government, and prosperity. Babylon will become a real-life representation of all these things, an actual city where godlessness reigns and rebellion against the God of the universe emanates. But Babylon will prove no match for God. The Antichrist will be exposed as a lousy stand-in for the real Savior of the world: Jesus Christ. And it is the one-and-only Christ who will return to the earth and set up the one true kingdom where righteousness will reign. The false kingdom of the Antichrist will be destroyed, to be replaced with the true kingdom of God on earth.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Until the Words of God Are Fulfilled.

April 30, 2018 / kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

⁷But the angel said to me, “Why do you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. ⁸The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to rise from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come. ⁹This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; ¹⁰they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain only a little while. ¹¹As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction. ¹²And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. ¹³These are of one mind, and they hand over their power and authority to the beast. ¹⁴They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”

¹⁵And the angel said to me, “The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages. ¹⁶And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the prostitute. They will make her desolate and naked, and devour her flesh and burn her up with fire, ¹⁷for God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. ¹⁸And the woman that you saw is the great city that has dominion over the kings of the earth.” – Revelation 17:7-18 ESV

mapromeempireatheight It’s fascinating that John is somewhat chided by the angel for having found all the talk about the great prostitute a bit difficult to understand. The angel promises to make the mystery clear and yet, this has become one of the most disputed passages in all of the book of Revelation. It seems apparent that the great prostitute introduced in the first six verses is a representation of the apostate church that comes to power in the world during the tribulation. Led by the false prophet, this false religion will promote the worship of the Antichrist. And it will lead the charge in the persecution of both orthodox Jews and tribulation saints. Countless believers in Christ, who come to faith during the seven-year period of the tribulation, will be put to death for refusing to accept the mark of the beast and for their unwillingness to worship the Antichrist.

But the angel promises to give John further insight into the identity of the woman and the beast. Back in verse three, John describes seeing the woman “sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns.” Now, in verse eight, the angel provides John with a bit more information regarding the identity of the beast:

The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to rise from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. – Revelation 17:8 ESV

The somewhat cryptic phrase, “it was and is not and is to come” shows up again later on in this same passage. But what does it mean? One of the things that makes it so difficult to determine just exactly who the angel is referring to in this passage is his use of the term, “beast.” Throughout the book of Revelation, that name is used to refer to Satan himself, the world ruler and the political government he sets up on earth. And because the three entities are so closely linked, it can become confusing as to which one is being talked about at any given time. In these verses, it seems that Satan, the Antichrist and his one-world government are all included in the angel’s description. The beast that was and is not and is about to rise from the bottomless pit seems to be a reference to the government or political system of the Antichrist. It will be a former world power that faded from the scene, but that will appear once again and become a the dominant political force on the planet – all because of the influence of Satan himself. The reference to the beast coming out of the abyss can only refer to Satan. The abyss or bottomless pit is his domain. It is from there that his power comes, and it is his power that makes possible this former world government to essentially resurrect and regain its former glory. And while Satan will be the invisible force behind this nation’s rise to former glory, the visible force will be Antichrist. And the people of the earth, those whose names are not written in the book of life, will marvel at his accomplishment. The unbelieving world will see the Antichrist as a political miracle worker and his kingdom as a sign of his divinity.

As always, when studying the book of Revelation, one must keep in mind other passages found in the book that can shed light on the seeming mysteries of John’s visions. Back in chapter 13, John was given another vision of the beast that coincides with what he is describing here.

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

What is important to note is that the dragon, or Satan, is the one who gives his power to the the beast. And, just as in chapter 17, this beast is described as having seven heads and ten horns – a point that the angel tells John “calls for a mind with wisdom” (Revelation 17:9 ESV). This is going to be difficult to understand. It is going to require wisdom and discernment. And, as if the imagery is not already confusing enough, the angel informs John that the seven heads are actually seven mountains, on which the woman sits. And they represent seven kings. So, which is it? First of all, we need to notice the use of the number seven. As usual, it is a reference to completeness or wholeness. These seven kings or nations will represent seven empires that will form a comprehensive picture of mankind’s power and authority. The angel describes these seven kings or kingdoms as, “five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come” (Revelation 17:10 ESV). They would appear to be progressive or sequential in nature, with five of these kingdoms having existed at one time, but having faded from prominence. The one that “is” refers to the Roman empire that ruled the world when John penned the book of Revelation. And the one that “has not yet come” refers to the kingdom of the Antichrist, which will rise to power and prominence during the tribulation. It seems most likely that the five former kingdoms referred to by the angel include Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, and Greece. If you add Rome and then the kingdom that was yet to come and would remain a little while, you have the seven heads, mountains of kingdoms portrayed by the vision. And what do all of these kingdoms share in common? They have all persecuted or will persecute the people of God. Each has a less-then-ideal track record with the people of Israel and this will continue into the tribulation.

But what about the eighth nation mentioned in verse 11? To what could this be referring? Once again, the seven kings or mountains represent seven separate and successive kingdoms that will rule on earth. The first six include Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece and the Roman empire of John’s day. But the Roman empire has since faded from view. The world is made up of a conglomeration of various nations and world powers, many of whom are remnants of the former Roman empire. A look at a map of the Roman empire at its zenith reveals that its domain was primarily located around the Mediterranean Sea and encompassed all of the land of Israel and extended all the way East into the former land of Babylon and Assyria. It seems that this empire will be revived in some form or fashion not long after the rapture of the church. That resurrected or restored Roman empire will form the seventh kingdom. And during the period of the tribulation, the Antichrist will come to power, setting up what is essentially an eighth kingdom. His rise to prominence will be accomplished by robbing power from a confederation of ten kings who will jointly rule the restored Roman empire. The angel makes it clear that the ten horns represent these ten kings, who will “receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast” (Revelation 17:12 ESV). Their joint rule will be brief in duration, ending with the Antichrist taking over as the supreme ruler over all the earth. As the angel states, these kings will “hand over their power and authority to the beast” (Revelation 17:14 ESV) or the Antichrist. He will have sole authority and power over all the nations of the earth, overseeing his one-world government from the restored city of Babylon. And one of Antichrist’s primary objectives will be to make war on the Lamb. He will stand opposed to Jesus Christ, but He will lose in his effort to overthrow Christ’s rightful position as King of kings and Lord of lords. The rest of the book of Revelation will present this epic struggle between the forces of Antichrist and Jesus Christ. It will culminate in a final battle and with the removal from power of Antichrist, Satan, and the false prophet. But more on that later.

This chapter ends with the angel providing John with an understanding of the symbolism behind the waters described in the first six verses. They are “peoples and multitudes and nations and languages” (Revelation 17:15 ESV). The great prostitute or false religion set up by the false prophet will have an overwhelming influence over the people of the earth. But Antichrist is not going to share his power and influence with anyone. So, under the divine instigation of God, Antichrist and his forces will turn on the apostate church, and destroy it. And the angel makes it clear that “God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled” (Revelation 17:17 ESV). God is going to cause Satan’s kingdom to divide and turn against itself. Even at the zenith of his power and influence over the world, Satan will not be able to resist the greater power of God. During the final days of the tribulation, there will be a religious and political form to the Antichrist’s rule. There will be an apostate church and an all-powerful government, but Antichrist will ultimately eliminate any and all competition to his rule, consolidating all power under him alone. Even the false church will fall, yielding all its power, influence and wealth to his cause. But John is given good news.

“…the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.” – Revelation 17:14 ESV

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Unholy Trinity.

April 22, 2018May 9, 2018 / kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

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

John sees yet another beast. But this time, the beast is rising up out of the earth, not the sea. Yet, John describes it as “another” using the Greek phrase, allo therion, which means “one of the same kind.” These beasts are similar in nature, but distinctively different. This one has two horns like a lamb, and yet speaks like the dragon. He is not described with the same scary imagery as the first beast, but in spite of his less-formidable appearance, he is under the influence of the dragon, or Satan himself. While the first beast was described as having the features of a leopard, a lion and a bear, three ferocious and predatory animals, the second beast appears as a lamb, seemingly innocent and harmless. He has two horns, perhaps symbolizing his power, but it is limited in scope and authority. No one fears the horns of a lamb. But because of his association with the first beast and the influence of Satan on his life, this individual will prove dangerous.

He will operate as a second-lieutenant to the first beast, the Antichrist, and will exercise “all the authority of the first beast in its presence” (Revelation 13:12 ESV). He will use his power and influence to cause the people of the earth to worship Antichrist. During the first 3-1/2 years of the tribulation, there will arise an apostate church, a false church that will set itself up as the replacement for the true church that has been raptured. This false church is described by John in Revelation 17.

³ I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. ⁴The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. ⁵And on her forehead was written a name of mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.” ⁶And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. – Revelation 17:3-6 ESV

During the first half of the tribulation period, the Antichrist will allow this apostate church to exist, but at the midway point, he will turn against, demanding that all worship be directed at him alone. Antichrist will use his power and his military might to destroy the false church.

¹⁶ They will make her desolate and naked, and devour her flesh and burn her up with fire, ¹⁷for God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. – Revelation 17:16-17 ESV

We know from the book of Daniel, that the Antichrist will come to power in the first half of the tribulation period. He will make a peace treaty with the people of Israel, allowing them to rebuild the temple and reinstitute the sacrificial system. But at the midway point, he will turn against them, breaking his agreement with them and putting an end to the sacrifices.

“And he shall make a strong covenant with many for one week, and for half of the week he shall put an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall come one who makes desolate, until the decreed end is poured out on the desolator.” – Daniel 9:27 ESV

Jesus refers to this as the “abomination of desolation,” a phrase he picks up from Daniel.

¹⁵“So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), ¹⁶then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ¹⁷Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, ¹⁸and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. ¹⁹And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! ²⁰Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. ²¹For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be.” – Matthew 24:15-21 ESV

This will mark the beginning of the “great tribulation” or second half of the tribulation period. And as Jesus makes clear, it will be a difficult time for all living on earth. And Daniel lets us know that it will last for 1,290 days or 3-1/2 years.

And from the time that the regular burnt offering is taken away and the abomination that makes desolate is set up, there shall be 1,290 days. – Daniel 12:11 ESV

This second beast is going to act as a kind of prophet for the Antichrist. He will be a religious figure, replacing the leadership of the apostate church and guiding the people of earth to worship Antichrist. Verse 14 seems to indicate that the abomination that takes place in the temple will be the erection of an idol to the Antichrist. This false prophet will cause the people to worship this idol, using powers provided by Satan to convince them. He will have the ability to call down fire. With his seemingly miraculous powers, he will be able to convince the people to make an idol, set it up in the temple, and worship the Antichrist. And it seems that he will have the power to cause this idol to come to life and even speak. It will all be a deception, because Satan is the father of lies and can only imitate, not replicate, what God can do.

There is much debate as to the meaning of verse 14. John refers to the first beast as having died and come back to life. Verse 12 states that the first beast receives a mortal, death-inducing wound, but that he somehow comes back to life. He dies, but is resuscitated. There are those who say this is simply an indication that the first beast represents a resuscitated world power, the once-fallen Rome. But it would seem that all Satan is doing in these days is meant to replicate and mimic the work of God. Satan is setting himself up as the god of this world. And Antichrist becomes his stand-in for Jesus, the Messiah. Like Jesus, who is worshiped because He died and came back to life, the Antichrist will be worshiped for the same reason. John describes him as having been “wounded by the sword and yet lived” (Revelation 13:14 ESV). There are those who argue that this is impossible, because only God can give life. They reject that idea that Satan could resurrect a dead body, having no power to do so. But all that happens in these days will be under the direct supervision of God. Perhaps He will allow Satan to have the power to give life to the Antichrist, all so that the nations will show their true colors and fall down in worship of this false messiah. Or perhaps, Satan will only imitate the power of resurrection, deceiving the people into believing a lie.

Whatever happens, the second beast, or false prophet, will cause the people to worship Antichrist. And, according to Daniel 3:11, all those who refuse to worship himwill be put to death. He will take that worship a step further, demanding that all people be marked with the symbol of the Antichrist.

¹⁶Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, ¹⁷so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. – Revelation 13:16-17 ESV

This mark will be a sign of ownership. Back in chapter 7, John was given a glimpse of the 144,000, the servants of God who had been chosen out of the people of Israel. These Jewish believers were given a mark on their forehead that designated them as belonging to God (see Revelation 7:3). And here in the second half of the tribulation, the false prophet will demand that all those who worship the Antichrist bear a sign of their allegiance to him. But all those who take the mark of the beast will do so willingly. It will allow them to buy and sell goods, providing them with certain rights and privileges that will be denied to all those without the mark. And we know from the next chapter, that there will be those who refuse to take the mark. But bearing the mark of God will prove to be dangerous and, ultimately, deadly. Many believers will be persecuted and die as a result of refusing to bear the mark of the beast and to bow down before him.

In this unholy trinity of Satan, the Antichrist and the false prophet, you have Satan’s attempt to replicate the persons and power of the holy trinity. Satan is making a futile attempt to set himself up as God, with the Antichrist serving as his false messiah or savior, and the false prophet acting as the Holy Spirit, influencing people to worship the resurrected Antichrist. But it is all a lie, a pathetic replication of the real thing. And God will allow it to happen, revealing man’s ongoing susceptibility to the lies of the enemy. Millions of people will willingly take on the mark of the beast. And John warns “This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666” (Revelation 13:18 ESV). He is not telling us that we can somehow figure out who the Antichrist is or will be by carefully deducing the meaning of this number. It would appear that John is saying that no one will be able to discover the identity of the Antichrist until he appears. But those believers who are alive when the end times take place, will be able to discover this individual’s identity. Early on in the tribulation period, they will be given the ability to determine who this man is so that they might avoid his deceptions and escape his wrath.

But as bad as all this sounds and as difficult as these days are described to be, we must not lose sight of the fact that God the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and the Holy Spirit will all three be in full control of all that is going to happen in those days. Satan’s power, while formidable, is not comparable to that of God. Antichrist’s ability to provide for the needs of mankind, while significant, cannot compete with that of Jesus. And the false prophet, while highly influential, cannot begin to replicate the life-changing, Christ-honoring influence of the Holy Spirit. Satan and his forces will fail in their attempt to supplant God. All that he and his companions accomplish will take place only because God allows it to happen. They will be on a short leash, operating under the sovereign hand of God Almighty. And their power and influence will end when He deems it so.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

A Call For Endurance and Faith.

April 21, 2018May 8, 2018 / kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

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

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

¹⁰If anyone is to be taken captive,
to captivity he goes;
if anyone is to be slain with the sword,
with the sword must he be slain.

Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints. – Revelation 13:1-10 ESV

In this section of John’s narrative, we are being introduced to a variety of characters who are going to play significant roles in the final days before Christ’s return. In chapter 12, we were given an introduction to Satan himself, the one who will be the force behind all the rebellion against God in those days. His hatred for God will be intensified because of his defeat at the hands of Michael and the heavenly forces, and because of his having been cast out of heaven to earth. He will increase his efforts to destroy both the people of Israel and any and all who have come to faith in Christ during the first half of the tribulation period, including the 144,000 witnesses. But chapter 12 ended with Satan standing on the sand of the sea, and with the opening of chapter 13, we are shown the significance of this location, because out of the sea arises a beast. He is described as having “ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads” (Revelation 13:1 ESV) At first glance, it would seem that John is describing what appears to be the representation of a kingdom or earthly power. It is very similar to what the prophet Zechariah described more than five centuries earlier.

²⁴“As for the ten horns,
out of this kingdom ten kings shall arise,
    and another shall arise after them;
he shall be different from the former ones,
    and shall put down three kings.
²⁵He shall speak words against the Most High,
    and shall wear out the saints of the Most High,
    and shall think to change the times and the law;
and they shall be given into his hand
    for a time, times, and half a time.” – Daniel 7:24-25 ESV

It would appear that John is being given a glimpse of a particular world leader who will rise to power, having followed in the path of other kings and kingdoms of that time. The fact that the beast is seen coming out of the sea is an indication that these powers are foreign in nature. In other words, they come from some place other than the land of Israel. To understand what John is seeing, we must take into account a dream given to Daniel, in which he saw four beasts, each representing four different kingdoms or world powers that would arise in succession. The first was a lion, representing Babylon. It was followed by a bear, representing Medo-Persia, which defeated the Babylonians and took over as the dominant world power. Next Daniel saw a leopard, representing Greece. With its speed, power and agility, Greece would eventually defeat the Medo-Persians and assume world dominance. And finally, there would arise the fourth beast, which is believed to be a representation of the Roman Empire. In this case, the beast is not described by using a comparative earthly animal. It is simply said to be “terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong” (Daniel 7:7 ESV). Daniel describes it as being “different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns” (Daniel 7:7 ESV). While the Roman empire eventually came to an end, it did not fall like the kingdoms of Babylon, Medo-Persia and Greece. It slowly faded from existence over a long period of time. And it was never replaced by any super-power that could claim world dominance or supreme power on earth. If anything, the time since the demise of Roman rule has been marked by a conglomeration of powers, all vying for superiority, and virtually all of them have arisen out of what used to be the domain of Rome.

This beast that John sees, coming out of the sea, has ten horns, representing ten different kings. These ten kings represent some form of a confederation that will mark the ends times. This will be an alliance of ten different nations that will represent the revival of the Roman empire. Notice that John describes this beast as having the characteristics of three different animals: a lion, a bear and a leopard. These are the same three animals Daniel saw in his vision. It would appear that this new kingdom or confederation of kingdoms, will represent all of the greatest kingdoms of the earth, including Babylon, Medo-Persia and Greece. It will be a multi-national confederation. But make no mistake, this alliance will have one source of power: Satan.

“to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority… – Revelation 13:3 ESV

And it will have one ultimate ruler: Antichrist.

And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast… – Revelation 13:4 ESV

The imagery in this chapter can be quite confusing. John sees a beast with seven heads and ten horns. And one of the heads receives a mortal wound, but is then revived or resurrected back to life. What do these seven heads represent? And what about the ten horns. Well, John is given a clear explanation of the ten horns later on the book of Revelation.

And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. – Revelation 17:12 ESV

The ten horns would appear to be a ten-nation confederation, each sharing power and ruling over the earth together. They receive authority, from Satan, to rule for a specific period of time: one hour. Not a literal hour, but for a relatively short period of time. And the beast will rule alongside them.

It would seem that the seven heads are meant to represent seven different kings or world rulers who will reign in succession. This is deduced from the description provided to John later on in the book.

…the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain only a little while. – Revelation 17:9-10 ESV

The seven heads are seven kings or kingdoms that will rise and fall. But they will be followed by the confederation of kings, one of whom will be the Antichrist. And John is told that this beast “was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months” (Revelation 13:5 ESV). This confederation of kingdoms will be anti-God and anti-Christ. It will stand against the people of God and against all those who come to faith in Christ during the tribulation, especially during the second half of the tribulation, a period of 42 months or 3-1/2 years. These nations, led by the Antichrist, will blaspheme God, make war on the saints and conquer them, and be given authority over “every tribe and people and language and nation” (Revelation 13:7 ESV).

The book of Daniel tells us, “this horn made war with the saints and prevailed over them” (Daniel 7:21 ESV) “and it shall devour the whole earth, and trample it down, and break it to pieces” (Daniel 7:23 ESV). The second half of the tribulation will be a difficult time. The Antichrist will be given supreme power over the earth and its inhabitants. He will dominate all those who live, demanding worship of himself, and controlling all commerce on the earth. He will appear to be unstoppable, taking captive whoever he wants to and putting to death any he so chooses. And John ends this section with the sobering words: “Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints” (Revelation 13:10 ESV). There will be believers on the earth during those days. The 144,000 witnesses will be alive during the reign of the Antichrist and he will direct much of his anger against them. We know from earlier visions given to John, that there will be many who are martyred for their faith during the second half of the tribulation. Believing and unbelieving Jews will be put to death. Gentiles who have come to Christ during these last days will also die for their faith. And John states that the darkness of these days will require endurance and faith. It will be a bleak time. It will difficult to see the hand of God in the midst of all the suffering and death. But God is not done. It will appear as if Satan is winning the war, but this is not the final battle.

The words of William Cowper, written in 1774, are appropriate here:

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy and shall break
In blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Satan’s Last Gasp.

April 20, 2018May 8, 2018 / kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

⁷Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, ⁸but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. ⁹And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. ¹⁰And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. ¹¹And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. ¹²Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!”

¹³And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. ¹⁴But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. ¹⁵The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. ¹⁶But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. ¹⁷Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea. – Revelation 12:7-17 ESV

There is a common misconception regarding Satan, that when he rebelled against God, he was cast out of heaven and relegated to earth. From there, he no longer had access into God’s presence. And yet, as these verses make clear, one of Satan’s titles is “the accuser of the brethren.” The name, Devil, literally means “accuser.” And we know from Scripture, that Satan has had and continues to have, access to God’s presence, where he hurls false accusations against God’s people. The prophet, Zechariah, was given a vision of just such a scene.

Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord, for he has roused himself from his holy dwelling. Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. – Zechariah 2:13-3:1 ESV

The book of Job records a time when Satan was called to appear before God with all the other angels.

Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. The Lord said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.” – Job 1:6-7 ESV

It was at that time, Satan raised doubts before God concerning the righteousness of Job.

Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? ¹⁰Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. ¹¹But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.” – Job 1:9-11 ESV

Then the author of Job says quite plainly, “So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord” (Job 1:12 ESV). And, after having taken all of Job’s property and killedll of his children, Satan was allowed to come back into God’s presence, where he leveled additional charges against Job.

This is an important detail regarding Satan and his character, if we are going to understand what we read in this chapter. It will explain how a battle could take place between Satan, the demonic forces under his control and the forces of heaven. And that is exactly what John sees in this portion of his vision. He is given a never-before-seen look at an as-yet-to-happen event. Near the end of the great tribulation, the last 3-1/2 years of the period of tribulation, an epic battle will take place in heaven, between the heavenly forces of God and the forces of Satan. This will be the final battle in the long-standing war that has been taking place in the heavenly realm. The apostle Paul describes the nature of this war in no uncertain terms.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. – Ephesians 6:12 ESV

There has been a battle waging in the heavenly realms ever since the fall. But the day is coming when Satan and his forces will be defeated once and for all, then cast out of heaven for good. Jesus Himself spoke of this very day.

The time for judging this world has come, when Satan, the ruler of this world, will be cast out. – John 12:31 NLT

And that is the very scene John is allowed to witness. And accompanying Satan’s defeat and his expulsion from heaven, was the announcement: “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God” (Revelation 12:10 ESV). This event signals the second coming of Christ and moves the battle from the heavenly realm to earth. That is where the final defeat of Satan will take place. This will be a time for rejoicing in heaven, but on earth, the news of Satan’s fall will not be good news. In fact, John hears a voice from heaven, saying, “woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!” (Revelation 12:12 ESV). Satan will see his fall as the beginning of the end. His name, Satan, means “adversary” and he will retain that role to the bitter end. He will never stop opposing God and attempting to overthrow the rule and reign of God.

And one of the first things Satan will do as a result of his defeat and fall will be to intensify his attack on the people of God, the nation of Israel.

…he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. – Revelation 12:13 ESV

But John is told that Israel will be protected by God, “for a time, and times, and half a time.” This formula works out to be a year + 2 years + 1/2 year for a total of 3-1/2 years. This is a reference to the second half of the tribulation period, when Israel will be hidden by God and provided with a place of safety, protecting them from the attacks of Satan and his forces, both heavenly and earthly. The intensity of Satan’s vengeance against Israel will be great. And Jesus warned His disciples about this day:

¹⁶then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ¹⁷Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, ¹⁸and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. ¹⁹And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! ²⁰Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. ²¹For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. – Matthew 24:16-21 ESV

Some will flee to the mountains where they will find shelter. But many will remain in Jerusalem. The prophet Zechariah makes this clear.

²For I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken and the houses plundered and the women raped. Half of the city shall go out into exile, but the rest of the people shall not be cut off from the city. – Zechariah 14:2 ESV

God is going to preserve a remnant of His people, because He has plans for them. He will preserve and protect them, keeping them safe from the attacks of Satan and his forces.

⁸In the whole land, declares the Lord,
    two thirds shall be cut off and perish,
    and one third shall be left alive.
⁹And I will put this third into the fire,
    and refine them as one refines silver,
    and test them as gold is tested.
They will call upon my name,
    and I will answer them.
I will say, ‘They are my people’;
    and they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’” – Zechariah 13:8-9 ESV

In order for the return of Christ to take place, there must be a remnant of the people of God still alive on the earth, who will call out for Him for deliverance. But before they reach the point where they will call out to Jesus in desperation and despair, they will feel the full weight of Satan’s wrath. He is described as pouring “water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood” (Revelation 12:15 ESV). Whether this is a literal flood or figurative language describing a torrent of evil acts disseminated upon the people of Israel, we do not know. But whatever it is, it will fail. God will use the earth itself to protect his people, and Satan’s inability to destroy this remnant will leave him furious and force him to focus his wrath on “the rest of her offspring.” And we are given an explanation as to just who this group is: “those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus” (Revelation 12:17 ESV). These are Jews who come to faith during the tribulation, which includes the 144,000 first mentioned in Revelation 7. There will be additional Jews who become believers during the second half of the tribulation, and it is against these individuals that Satan will turn his attention and focus his wrath.

The chapter ends with an image of Satan standing on the sand of the sea. We know this is a reference to Satan, because the very first verse in the very next chapter opens up by stating: “And I saw a beast rising out of the sea” (Revelation 13:1 ESV). Satan is pictured as standing poised on the edge of the sea, awaiting the arrival of the beast. And we will discover more details about this individual as John’s vision continues in chapter 13.

But this chapter sets up all that is to come. Satan, still adamantly and stubbornly defiant, will exhaust all his energies and resources in his attempt to thwart God’s plans. In spite of his defeat at the hands of Michael and the heavenly forces, Satan will continue his ill-fated efforts to prevent the return of Christ and to destroy the people of God. He will not give up. And as the days of the great tribulation come to a close, his efforts will only intensify. Like a trapped animal, he will lash out with greater fury and anger. But his days are numbered. His fate is sealed. His full and final defeat is certain. God is in complete control of the circumstances.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Great Day of Their Wrath.

April 8, 2018April 25, 2018 / kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

⁹When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. ¹⁰They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” ¹¹Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.

¹²When he opened the sixth seal, I looked, and behold, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth, the full moon became like blood, ¹³and the stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale. ¹⁴The sky vanished like a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place. ¹⁵Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, ¹⁶calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, ¹⁷for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?” – Revelation 6:9-17 ESV

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With the opening of the fifth seal there is a change in the pattern established by the first four seals. There are no more horses and riders to be called forth and revealed. The last horse carried Death, and close behind them came Hades. Since Hades is a place and not a person, it would seem that this vision is indicating that, with the arrival of the fourth and final horse and rider, there would be a great many deaths on earth. In fact, John indicates that a fourth of the earth’s population will be killed “with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the earth” (Revelation 6:8 ESV). And the reference to Hades lets us know that the souls of a great many of these individuals will end up in Hades, the abode of the dead. There they will stay until the Great White Throne judgment. But with the opening of the fifth seal, John is shown a scene taking place in heaven, where he sees “under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne” (Revelation 6:9 ESV). It would appear that this represents all those individuals who will come to faith in Christ during the tribulation and face martyrdom because of their witness. We will see in the very next chapter that, during the seven year period of the tribulation, 144,000 Jews will become followers of Christ and witnesses to the nations. And as a result of their testimony, many will believe in Christ.

…a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages. – Revelation 7:9 ES.

While the 144,000 Jews will be preserved and protected throughout the period of the tribulation, all those who come to faith as a result of their witness will face martyrdom for their faith. They will be persecuted and put to death by the Antichrist and, at this point in his vision, John sees the souls of these martyrs beneath the altar in the heavenly temple. Notice that John mentions only their souls and not their bodies. This is a clear indication that he is not seeing martyred believers from the church age, because those individuals would have received their resurrected bodies at the time of the rapture of the church. In keeping with the fourth seal, John is being given a glimpse of what happens to those who come to faith during the tribulation and who die as a result of their faith. Their souls go to be with the Lord, but their bodies will not be resurrected until the end of the tribulation as revealed in Revelation 20.

Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. – Revelation 20:4 ESV

John sees the souls of these martyred saints under the altar and they are crying out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” (Revelation 6:10 ESV). This is in keeping with the imagery of sacrifice as practiced in the earthly temple. A portion of the blood of a sacrificed animal was poured out at the base of the altar. And the presence of these saints under the altar represents their lives poured out on behalf of the gospel. And they seek to know when God is going to bring judgment against those who killed them. But God informs them that there are more yet to be martyred. The time for Christ’s return has not yet come and there will be many more who come to faith in Christ and suffer martyrdom until the days of the tribulation come to an end. The number of martyred saints will continue to increase until that time.

With the opening of the sixth seal, John’s attention is refocused on the earth where he sees a series of cataclysmic events taking place. There is a massive earthquake accompanied by unprecedented cosmic disturbances. John mentions stars falling from the sky, the darkening of the sun and the moon turning blood red. There is no reason for failing to take these events as literal physical disturbances. While they may sound far-fetched and difficult to comprehend, they represent God’s intervention into the judgment of mankind. Up until this point, all of the judgments have come at the hands of men. The wars that take the lives of countless individuals are clearly the work of men. And the famine and pestilence that follow are the result of the deaths caused by war. Now, with the opening of the sixth seal, God makes it clear that He is the one behind all that is happening. These events are divinely produced, not man-made. And all that John sees is in keeping with what had already been revealed in the Old Testament Scriptures, thousands of years earlier.

The earth quakes before them;
the heavens tremble.
The sun and the moon are darkened,
and the stars withdraw their shining. – Joel 2:10 ESV

All the host of heaven shall rot away,
    and the skies roll up like a scroll.
All their host shall fall,
    as leaves fall from the vine,
    like leaves falling from the fig tree. – Isaiah 34:4 ESV

Enter into the rock
and hide in the dust
from before the terror of the Lord,
and from the splendor of his majesty. – Isaiah 2:10 ESV

The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel,
    shall be destroyed.
Thorn and thistle shall grow up
    on their altars,
and they shall say to the mountains, “Cover us,”
    and to the hills, “Fall on us.” – Hosea 10:8 ESV

And this is exactly what John sees. As a result of these divinely-induced judgments, the people living on earth will run for their lives, in an attempt to escape the wrath of God. And John clearly indicates that all will feel the anger of God, including “the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free” (Revelation 6:15 ESV). And they will know that it is God who is behind all that is happening. There will be no other explanation. The sheer scale and scope of all that is happening around them and to them will clearly prove that God Almighty is the cause, and it will force them to cry out to the rocks of the mountains, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb” (Revelation 6:16 ESV). They will prefer death to continued existence under the wrath of God. But notice that there is no repentance. No one begs for forgiveness. And rather than cry out to God for mercy, they call out to the rocks to destroy them. The great day of God’s wrath has come and no one can stand before it. But sadly, no one seems to repent as a result of it. Their hearts are so hardened by sin that they refuse to acknowledge their guilt and beg for God’s forgiveness.

This is the beginning of the end. The judgment of God will increase exponentially and the prophet Jeremiah explains that it will be a day like no other in human history.

Alas! That day is so great
there is none like it;
it is a time of distress for Jacob;
yet he shall be saved out of it. – Jeremiah 30:7 ESV

Here, Jeremiah reminds the people of Israel that there will be a remnant of them preserved from the judgment that is falling on all the earth. it is important to remember that these judgments are, in part, a fulfillment of God’s covenant that He made with Israel generations earlier. He had made them His own people and set them apart for His own glory. He had promised to bless them if they remained obedient and faithful to Him. But He had also promised to curse them if they failed to do so. And those curses are carefully and painfully outlined in the book of Deuteronomy.

⁵⁸“If you are not careful to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name, the Lord your God, ⁵⁹then the Lord will bring on you and your offspring extraordinary afflictions, afflictions severe and lasting, and sicknesses grievous and lasting. ⁶⁰And he will bring upon you again all the diseases of Egypt, of which you were afraid, and they shall cling to you. ⁶¹Every sickness also and every affliction that is not recorded in the book of this law, the Lord will bring upon you, until you are destroyed. ⁶²Whereas you were as numerous as the stars of heaven, you shall be left few in number, because you did not obey the voice of the Lord your God. ⁶³And as the Lord took delight in doing you good and multiplying you, so the Lord will take delight in bringing ruin upon you and destroying you. And you shall be plucked off the land that you are entering to take possession of it. – Deuteronomy 28:58-63 ESV

While many of these curses were partially fulfilled by the fall of Israel to the Assyrians and Judah to the Babylonians, they will be fully fulfilled in the tribulation. As the rest of the book of Revelation unfolds, we will see God dealing with His people, Israel. They will become the focus of Antichrist’s wrath. This powerful world ruler, under the direct control of Satan himself, will make it his primary objective to eliminate the people of God from the face of the earth. He knows that part of God’s plan is to send His Son to redeem a remnant from Israel. So, if he can eliminate them, he believes he can thwart the plan of God and stall the return of Christ to earth. But as Jeremiah clearly indicates, God will redeem a remnant of Israel and His Son will return to the earth. All that John is witnessing is the preordained will of God. And His will will be done.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Devotionary

The Bible Made Accessible and Applicable

tribulation

Faithful Over A Little.

I Do Not Know You.

Behold, I Am Coming Soon.

Faithful and True.

Mighty Is the Lord God.

Until the Words of God Are Fulfilled.

The Unholy Trinity.

A Call For Endurance and Faith.

Satan’s Last Gasp.

The Great Day of Their Wrath.