An Interpretation of the English Bible
REVELATION
by B. H. CARROLL
Late President of Southwestern Baptist
Theological Seminary, Fort Worth, Texas
Edited by
J. B. Cranfill
Grand Rapids, Michigan
New and complete edition
Copyright 1948, Broadman Press
Reprinted by Baker Book House
with permission of
Broadman Press
ISBN: 0-8010-2344-0
First Printing, September 1973
Second Printing, September 1976
PHOTOLITHOPRINTED BY GUSHING - MALLOY INC
ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
1976
I Historical
Introduction
II An
Analysis of the Book
III An
Exposition of the Introductory Passages (Chapter 1)
IV General
Observations on the Second Revelation (Chapters 2-3)
V The
Condition of the Seven Churches in Asia (Chapters 2-3)
VI The
Promises to the Faithful in the Churches (2:7, 11, 17, 26-28; 3:5, 12, 21)
VII The
Throne of Grace (Chapters 4-5)
VIII The Opening
of the Seals (6:1 to 8:1)
IX The
Sounding of the Trumpets (8:2 to 10:1)
X The
Sounding of the Trumpets (Continued) (Chapters 10-11)
XI Prophetic
Forecasts of Church History (Chapter 12)
XII Prophetic
Forecasts of Church History (Continued) (Chapter 13)
XIII Prophetic
Forecasts of Church History (Continued) (Chapter 14)
XIV The Seven
Plagues and the Seven Bowls of Wrath (Chapters 15-16)
XV The War of
Har-Magedon (16:14-21; Chapter 17)
XVI The War of
Har-Magedon (Continued) (18:1 to 19:10)
XVII The
Triumphant Holy War, Introducing the Millennium (19:11 to 20:10)
XVIII The
Millennium (20:4-6)
XIX The
Loosing of Satan for a Little Season and His Final Destruction (20:7-10)
XX The Second
Advent of Our Lord; the General Resurrection of the Dead;
and the General and Final
Judgment (20:11-15)
XXI Our Lord's
Final Advent; the Resurrection of the Dead;
the General Judgment (20:11-15)
XXII The Future
Eternal State of the Righteous and Wicked (21:l to 22:5)
XXIII Epilogue (22:6-21)
Two thoughts strive for mastery in considering Revelation.
The first arises from the character of the book, its position in the sacred
library, and its relative importance. In rank it equals any other New Testament
book, being marvelously great in its doctrines and promises. It is the
inspiring book of the Bible. From its composition to this day it has been a
quickening book in the experience of the people of God – a book of resurrection
power in all seasons of despair. Wherever the light of its doctrines and
promises shines, darkness is dispelled, faith becomes heroic, hope revives, and
the powers of the world come to rest on those who walk in its light. Whoever,
in humble and docile spirit, enters into a prayerful study of its great themes
and lays to heart its great promises will set his soul on fire with zeal and
become transformed in his experience.
Not merely in date of composition, but in fitness of content it closes the
canon of the Scriptures. It finishes. It completes. It perfects. It not only
dispenses with all need of further revelation, but is not susceptible of
subtraction. Ignorance, impiety, or blasphemy alone would undertake to add to
or take from its finality of content. It is the climax of history embodied in
prophecy. We may indeed expect new light to continuously break out of God's
Word, but we may not expect a new word.
The second thought imposing solemnity on your teacher is that it is quite
possible he will never again have the opportunity and honor to teach this book
to a class of preachers. Only once in four years do we come to it – and when
this exposition ends he will be sixty-nine years old. Oliver Wendell Holmes
insists that nature administers the black drop at threescore and ten, and while
here and there exceptions arise in human history of mental vigor and physical
vitality extending to fourscore years, yet since the rule and not the exception
determines probabilities, it is my purpose to teach the book now as if for the
last time.
According to invariable custom in this course, we commence a book with a brief
historical introduction, not assuming to forestall the more critical and
elaborate discussion rightfully belonging to the department of biblical
introduction, but because you need some reliable knowledge on this subject in order
to an understanding of the book itself. If a historical introduction be helpful
in the case of other books, it is indispensable in this book, since here
historical introduction determines the theory of interpretation.
That you may not be altogether dependent on my conclusions, I commend as
helpful, and not greatly misleading, two books on historical introduction so
far as Revelation is concerned. I might give you a hundred, but these two are
among the best. First, the historical introduction in the brief commentary of
Jamieson, Fausset and Brown; second, the historical introduction in the
"American Commentary," volume on Revelation by Dr. Justin A. Smith.
You may not understand me, of course, to endorse all the positions in these
introductions taken by either one, but I mean to say that in the main they are
very helpful and the least misleading. Where I may differ from them will be
sufficiently evident.
I now also commend, out of a great multitude of commentaries, Just two on
Revelation for collateral class reading. You will find more rubbish and
confusion in commentaries on this book than on any other book of the New
Testament, but the two commended are easily accessible, and as you may want to
make this the study of your life on this book, read these commentaries as we
progress: First, the same Dr. Justin A. Smith in the "American
Commentary"; second, a little book, The World Lighted, by
Dr. Edward Smith.
There are two classes of commentaries that I emphatically do not recommend.
First, the class so carried away by premillennial conception that all
interpretations must be stretched out or cut off to fit their procrustean bed.
Second, the class so obsessed with the spirit of the radical criticism that
they follow their presuppositions in minimizing the supernatural, and
particularly strain to eliminate the prophetic element from this book.
While criticism on the Greek text belongs in general to New Testament Greek
rather than to New Testament English, one characteristic of the Greek in Revelation
needs explanation here, to wit: Its unlikeness and inferiority as pure Greek to
the Greek of John's Gospel and of his letters. The relevancy of some notice of
this matter here arises from the fact that this characteristic of the Greek is
pleaded either to disprove the authorship of John, the apostle, or else in
support of an early date of the book, which would very largely affect its
interpretation. The difference between the Greek of Revelation and the Greek of
John's Gospel arises from a difference in the nature of the two books; John's
Gospel is history; this book is not only an apocalypse, but one run in the mold
of ancient Hebrew symbolic imagery – one following the apocalyptic analogues of
Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, and Zechariah. Not only so, but its symbols are not
limited to the apocalypses of ancient prophecy; they are drawn from all the Old
Testament books. It derives its plumage from the paradise and the serpent of
Genesis, the plagues of Exodus, the wilderness of Numbers, the Lion of Judah,
the Holy City of Jerusalem, the Temple of Solomon, the Jezebel of Israel,
Babylon and the Euphrates, just as well as from the apocalyptic Seraphim of
Isaiah, the Cherubim of Ezekiel, the locusts of Joel, the horses and witnesses
of Zechariah, and the beasts of Daniel. More than all the New Testament books,
Revelation is enswathed in Old Testament imagery. While it never quotes
directly from the Old Testament, yet it is throughout reminiscent of it. A
careful computer of its allusions and references to the Old Testament reckons
them at four hundred. So remarkable is this feature of the book that Dr.
Broadus, as I have been informed, was accustomed to devote an entire lecture to
this feature alone whenever he taught Revelation.
Of course this necessitated Hebraistic idioms rather than pure Greek. Compare
the Classic Greek of Luke's Dedication with the Hebraistic Greek of the first
chapters of his Gospel. But with all this external unlikeness in Greek, there
must be taken into account one instance of likeness in the Greek of all John's
writings – great Greek scholars have called their student's attention to it,
that is, that a student of New Testament Greek finds John's Greek, whether in
his Gospel, his letters or Revelation, the easiest Greek to learn.
Another general fact should be noted in connection with the inferiority of the
Greek: It is the tendency of old age to revert to the idioms and dialect of
native speech rather than to become more perfect in the acquired speech of a
foreign tongue. So that the inferiority of the Greek proves nothing against
John's authorship nor in favor of an early date.
We now come to the authorship of this book. "Who wrote it?" On these
grounds John's authorship has been questioned: first, the character of the
Greek, just explained. The second objection arises from doctrinal bias. Early
in the Christian centuries certain men misinterpreted the teaching in this book
on the millennium and went into such extravagances that after a while others
began to inquire: Is Revelation an apostolic book? There is where it commenced.
Just as false interpretations of certain paragraphs in Hebrews 6-7 led men to
question its Pauline authorship, so these interpretations on the premillennium
line made the book of Revelation odious. A better thing is to show the
misconception of the interpretation and hold on to the apostolic authorship.
Evidence on authorship is always of two kinds. First, external, or historical.
That is to say, the testimony of witnesses living near to the times of the
writer who otherwise had opportunities to know who was the author. It is the
traditional or historical evidence of authorship that is regarded as the best
evidence. This historical evidence is overwhelming in favor of John's
authorship. Men who had heard John preach have left on record their testimony.
You will find the details of the testimony in the two commentaries to which I
called your attention a while ago.
The second kind of evidence is internal, that is, what facts does the book
itself furnish as to its author? The internal evidence of John's authorship is
absolutely overwhelming. I might classify the main part of this evidence into
two kinds: First, what the author says of himself. You will find mainly what he
says of himself in the first chapter and the last. In verse I, he calls himself
John, and in verse 2, he identifies the John thus: "Who bare witness of
the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ." Now, that "bare
witness" is in the Greek aorist and signifies completed past action. That
is, the servant John to whom this apocalypse was given is the John who had
borne witness to the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. I know that
some are disposed to evade the natural grammatical force of this aorist by
calling it the epistolary aorist. There is no reason to resort to this
expedient. In his Gospel John had done just what this aorist affirms, so that
verse 2, not only identifies the author as the apostle John but clearly proves
that the gospel preceded Revelation. Moreover, John's method of certifying his
Gospel is the method of certifying Revelation, as you may easily see by
comparing John 19:35 and 21:24, with Revelation 21:8.
But there is a more convincing internal proof of John's authorship: The unique
Christology of the Gospel and letters is the Christology of this book. In the
Gospel Christ is the Logos, and so in Revelation. In the Gospel Christ is the
Light of the World, "the true Light that lighteth every man that cometh
into the world." The whole sweep of the book of Revelation is based upon
Christ as the light of the world. In John's Gospel alone, Christ is the Lamb of
God that taketh away the sin of the world. In the book of Revelation, all
along, Christ is the Lamb that has been slain. In other words, unless a man has
a purpose to serve or is biased by doctrinal prejudice, unless he be a slave to
presuppositions, he must admit that the argument in favor of Johannine
authorship is overwhelming, both external and internal. And I say to you now,
no book of the New Testament is better accredited as apostolic than the book of
Revelation. We may unhesitatingly accept it as the culmination of God's
inspired Word.
Our next question on introduction is "When?" "When did he write
it?" Commentators adopt one of two dates. For obvious reasons, one class
say it was written about A.D. 68 in the reign of Nero. Rationalists generally
adopt this date in order to eliminate the element of prophecy by applying its
statements to the destruction of Jerusalem. The reason that prompts them to
push back the date of Revelation led them to push forward the date of Daniel
and the latter part of Isaiah. As far as possible, they ever seek to eliminate
the supernatural element in prophecy.
My first objection to that theory is that there is no witness in history that
so dates it. I know there are men who conjecture it, but I mean a witness.
There are enough witnesses to the contrary like Irenaeus. "John saw this
revelation just a little while ago at the close of the reign of Domitian."
Any reasonable mind must see that the condition of the seven churches of Asia
described in this book was absolutely impossible A.D. 68. That is the time Paul
wrote the second letter to Timothy, before John had anything on earth to do
with the churches of Asia. It is evident from chapters 2 and 3 that there had
been a long interval of time between Paul's work at Ephesus and his letters to
Timothy, and the time when John wrote this book. Nero's persecution was local;
he never banished anybody to Patmos. Nero's persecution while very bitter, both
Paul and Peter dying in it, was limited to Rome or the nearby parts of Italy.
This persecution which put John in position to write this book is a worldwide
persecution that reaches the very outskirts of the kingdom of God. So, when you
ask me to set the date, I am perfectly confident when I say to you that it was
written A.D. 95 or 96, toward the close of the reign of Domitian, John having
been banished to the isle of Patmos, working in the mines in that island –
banished from Ephesus, where the persecution reached him. That is the date.
Our next question: What was the occasion of the book? Here the answer is not
only easy, but intensely interesting. John was an old man. He stood alone; all
the other apostles had long since passed away. The progress of the gospel,
mighty and triumphant in Paul's day, had been blocked; edicts went forth
proscribing every word of New Testament writing, requiring it to be burned.
Women were dragged before the legal tribunals and commanded to adjure Christ
and worship heathen gods, or be thrown to the lions. The fire burnt throughout
all Christendom at this time. Of course, there was great discouragement.
Now, here comes this book. It is to reawaken faith, hope, love, and courage in God's
people. It is to show them that the clouds will pass away; it is to show them
that, however heavy the hand or the heel of the tyrant, truth will yet prevail,
and that ultimately the whole wide world will be conquered for our Lord Jesus
Christ. That is the occasion of the book. It was to flash on the canvas as the
last scene of Revelation the facts of the future of the churches, of their
triumphs in the struggle in which they were engaged, and of the ultimate
glorious victory, and it met the occasion.
As I have told you, ever since it was written it has made the heart leap and
the soul exult. Since the book of Revelation was written no true Christian has
ever doubted the ultimate outcome of Christianity.
The next thing, what is the book? That being the occasion, what is the book?
Follow me closely: Most of it is declared to be prophecy. It proposes to set
forth the things that shall be. But we must note this modification – it is
apocalypse as well as prophecy. The Greek word "apocalypse" means
revelation, unveiling, and if the future be unveiled in that sense it is the
same as prophecy, but it has this distinction from ordinary prophecy: Ordinary
prophecy is the utterance of the prophet concerning: what God said to the
prophet. Apocalypse is a vision that shows the picture of the thing. For
instance, this is apocalypse: "In the year that Uzziah died," says
Isaiah, "I saw the Heavenly King; I saw his throne lifted up," and
there follows a description of the vision of the throne of God – and that was
revelation – apocalypse – seen in a vision. In the same way Ezekiel saw the
Cherubim and the whole full of eyes, and the faces looking every way. That is
apocalypse. That is prophecy visualized.
In the third place, it is not only prophecy that is apocalypse, but it is
prophecy that is symbolic. What is prophesied is not presented in plain words,
as when Jonah said, "Yet forty days and Nineveh shall be overthrown."
But it is apocalypse presented in symbol. For instance: "I saw a woman
with a rainbow upon her brow, and the moon under her feet." That is a
symbol. "I saw another woman clothed in purple and scarlet, sitting upon a
seven-headed, ten-horned beast." That is a symbol. Now, when you interpret
a symbol, you must not interpret literally, and there is where the most foolish
interpretations of Revelation come in. Where it says, "I saw a woman and
the man-child she bore," etc., some make it mean a real woman, th&
virgin Mary and the man-child Jesus Christ. But a symbolic woman does not mean
a real woman. So Paul in an allegory makes Haar the Jerusalem that now is and
Sarah the Heavenly Jerusalem. And when this book tells of a beast coming up out
of the sea, it does not mean a real beast. You cannot interpret the book of
Revelation unless you keep your eye on the fact that it is symbolic apocalyptic
prophecy.
But we are not yet through with the question, "What is the book?" If
we mean, what is the book in the sense of its theme, the answer is very
different. Its theme is determined by its key passages. The key passages of the
book of Revelation are 1:12-20; 10-7; 11:15; 19:6-9. The first is the vision of
light, the second and third show "the finishing of this mystery of the
kingdom," and the fourth its glorious consummation.
In other words, the book of Revelation is designed to show that the whole world
shall be lighted by the churches, which are the light-bearers reflecting the
original light of their Lord in heaven; that this worldwide illumination shall
be in the Spirit's dispensation and through the gospel.
The theme, then, of Revelation – God help me to impress it upon you, for your
reception or rejection of it will make you a pessimist or an optimist – the
theme of this book is) the evangelization of this world, the salvation of every
man to be saved in. this world, to be brought about by the means of Christ
shining, not personally but as reflected in the candlesticks, or the churches;
that all the kingdoms of this world shall be brought into subjection to Jesus
Christ through the very gospel you. are preaching now, and not by miraculous
powers attending the final advent.
It does not mean that the world will become worse and worse and worse, and that
the gospel will fail and that the Spirit will fail, and that all the original
instrumentalities of salvation will play out, leaving salvation to be
accomplished by the final advent. Revelation does not signify that at all. I
want you to set yourselves afire with that thought of the key passages.
We come now to speak a word on the interpretation of the book. Every man who
proposes to interpret a book must have gone through it very carefully and have
fixed in his own mind some principle of adjustment, the leading, governing
thought as to the book, and we find that all the theories of interpretation are
so based. For example: A commentary on Revelation by a radical critic, a
rationalist (and there are many of them, not only in the German but also in the
English) whose authors do not believe in real prophecy at all, who interpret
the whole book according to their presuppositions, limiting all references in
it to current history of the author's times.
So I will call the first theory of interpretation the Rationalist Theory. It is
not the first in order of time, but I will put it first in discussion,
The second theory is based upon this principle of adjustment: that while the
book is prophecy, all the prophecy refers to the last days, to the culminating
days, the second advent days. That is called the premillennial theory of
interpretation, and they do just that way with Daniel. They do not allow any
Old Testament prophet to prophesy anything concerning the church in the day of
the apostles, nor concerning anything in the development of the church, until
we come to the culmination, the second advent. Take for example, the marvelous
ninth chapter of Daniel: they go on in the ordinary way with all the weeks of
the seventy weeks until they get to the last week and they split it in halves,
applying the last half to the end of the world. This also is called the
futurist theory of interpretation. According to this nothing in the prophetic
part of the book has yet taken place.
The third theory is what is called the historical theory of interpretation.
From John's time, when he was writing, from the time of those seven churches and
their condition, the object of the book is to show the history of the
development of the kingdom of God until the end of the world. Not that
everything in the history of the kingdom of God would be presented, but the
salient points of its future history from John's time on Patmos until the
second advent and general judgment and windup of the world. It is not the
history of nations but the history of the kingdom of God touching-the nations,
just as the Old Testament is not a history of the nations, but is a history of
the development of the kingdom of God among the nations.
I refer again to a point in the interpretative theory. If we adopt the futurist
theory, then we will not believe that there has ever yet been in this world a
kingdom of God, nor will there be, except as an ideal, until Christ comes. A
recent article in the Baptist Standard by a prominent Baptist pastor, one of
the ablest expositors of that theory, and a most lovable Christian brother and
a mighty evangelist preacher, shows that to him the kingdom of God has not yet
been set up. Therefore, this book of Revelation cannot be the history of the
kingdom of God. That has not yet come. He does not believe that the stone
kingdom, the little stone kingdom that Daniel saw, has ever come. They say that
there may be an ideal kingdom now but not a real kingdom, no actual kingdom –
from all of which I profoundly dissent.
Now, on the last theory mentioned there may be this divergence among those who
advocate it: some of them hold that the events under the seals are to be
followed successively and chronologically by what is set forth under the
trumpets, and that what is set forth under the vials come after, in order of
time, what is set forth under the trumpets. In other words, those of them that
hold that view cannot see how anything within the period of time covered by the
seals, and that nothing that is set forth under the vials can take place in the
time set forth under the trumpets, but that one follows the other.
Now, the other wing of the historical interpreters take this view: that the
whole history of the kingdom of God is set forth from one viewpoint under the
seals, that the events under the seals bring us to the end, and then, under the
trumpets, we go back to the beginning and again we find the whole history of
the kingdom of God set forth until we come to the end, under a different
viewpoint, and so on with the rest of the book. In other words, the events
under the seals, the trumpets and the vials; do not follow each other but they
synchronize; they are parallel.
The various titles of this book as found in different manuscripts and versions
are all true enough as they are meant, but are not inspired, because they are
post-apostolic. For example: the Sinaitic and Alexandrian Greek manuscripts have
this head -ing, "The Revelation of John," just as we have it in the
American Standard Revised Version. The Vatican Greek manuscript has this
heading: "The Revelation of John the Theologian and Evangelist". The
Vulgate, or Latin Version, has this heading: "The Revelation of St. John
the Apostle", while the common English version, the King James Version,
has "The Revelation of St. John the Divine". The word
"divine" means exactly the same -as "theologian", and both
of them mean this, John's teaching of the nature of God. Matthew is not called
a theologian in the literal sense of the word, Mark, nor Luke, but when John
commences his Gospel: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was
with God, and the Word was God", he discusses the nature of God, and
therefore he is called the theologian.
The heading is not a part of the book, but was put there after the days of the
apostle. They are post-apostolic and therefore uninspired, and when they say,
"The Revelation of John", they differ from the author who calls it
"The Revelation of Jesus Christ." John did not reveal anything, but
they doubtless mean, The Revelation received and recorded by John.
QUESTIONS
1. What introductions to Revelation are commended?
2. What commentaries on the interpretation of the book
commended and what not commended?
3. What two kinds of evidence determine the author and
date of the book and which is the more trustworthy?
4. On what two internal grounds have the apostolic
origin and inspiration been questioned?
5. On what ground has it been denied that one man
wrote both the Fourth Gospel and Revelation, and what was the reply to the
objection?
6. Give (1) the external evidence that the apostle
John. wrote Revelation, and (2) the internal evidence.
7. Give two theories as to the date of the book and
the reasons for accepting the one and rejecting the other, and show how one of
these predetermines the interpretation.
8. What was the occasion and purpose of the book?
9. What was the key passages of the book showing the
purpose of it?
10. What is the book and what is the distinction
between Revelation, symbolic revelation, and symbolic prophetic revelation?
11. Answer in one sentence: Who wrote the book, when,
where, to whom, why, and in what language?
12. What three leading theories of interpretation,
which do you prefer, and what are your reasons therefore?
13. What is the very remarkable relation of this book to
the Old Testament, how does this relation affect the style of the Greek and
also the interpretation?
14. What is its relation to the New Testament and to
the whole canon of the Scriptures?
15. Adopting the historical theory of interpretation,
do the events of the several visions follow each other chronologically, or do
they synchronize with each other?
16. What are the various uninspired headings, or
titles, of the book?
AN ANALYSIS OF THE BOOK
I present to you in this chapter an analysis of the whole book of Revelation.
The idea underlying this analysis is, that no man ought to attempt to interpret
a book until he has thought through it – all through it – and arranged its
matter in his own mind, correlating its parts and signifying their relative
importance. The analysis proper will be given at the close of the chapter, but
just now I submit some comments on it.
I give you first of all the brief analysis given by our Saviour himself. In
1:19: "Write, therefore, (1) the things which thou sawest; (2) the things
which are; (3) the things which shall come to pass hereafter." The things
which John saw, refers to the vision, (v. 12-16) inclusive: "I turned to see
the voice that spake with me. And having turned I saw seven golden
candlesticks; and in the midst of the candlesticks one like unto a son of man,
clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about at the breasts with a
golden girdle. And his head and his hair were white as white wool, white as
snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; and his feet like unto burnished
brass, as if it had been refined in a furnace; and his voice as the voice of
many waters. And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth
proceeded a sharp two-edged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth
in his strength." That is what he saw.
The second division was "the things that are." "The things that
are" are set forth in chapters 2-5. These are the things that are, and
consist of two subdivisions: First, the state of the churches, not as they seem
to be to themselves, but as God saw them to be. That is the earth scene of the
things that are, and a very discouraging view it is.
In chapters 4-5, among the things that are, is a heavenly scene – it reveals
the throne of grace, with all of its agencies and activities in behalf of the
imperfect churches – and that is an encouraging view.
Then the things that shall be hereafter commence at chapter 6 and extend to the
end of the book. That is the prophetic part of the book.
Now, that is the Saviour's analysis. It is my purpose to give you my own
elaboration of his analysis – not an improvement, you understand, but an
elaboration of it. And even as fully as I give it to you, there will be, when
we come to the interpreting of the book and develop the analysis, a number of
subdivisions that cannot be put down in an outline.
The first part of my own outline is the author's introduction to the book. In a
general sense the whole of the first chapter is devoted to that. It commences
first by giving the title of the book, its origin, its medium of communication,
its nature, how certified, to whom certified, and its value. That is presented
in verse
The second part of the author's introduction is the greetings to the churches,
from verse 4-8. Following the method of nearly all New Testament writers', he
commences with a salutation, or thanksgiving, or invocation.
The third part of the author's introduction commences at verse 9, and tells you
how, when, under what circumstances, he came back to write this book. This
includes the voice that he heard and the vision that he saw, and the effect on
himself of that vision, and the explanation of the vision by Him who gave it.
Now, that is the author's introduction to the book.
The book consists of a series of revelations, each one distinct from every
other one, and the first revelation commences at 1:12, and extends to 1:16.
That vision is a revelation of our Lord in his glory, and in his relation to
the churches and pastors, with an indication of the mission of the churches and
the pastors. That is the first great revelation of the book. The revelation of
our Lord, not in his humiliation, not in the state that he was in before he
came to the earth, not in the state that he was in while on the earth, but in
his glorified humanity. We have before us a vivid picture of Jesus as the one
who was dead, but is alive to die no more. This first revelation is intensely
interesting – a revealing of Jesus as he now is in his glorified state, and in
his relation to the churches and the preachers that are to reflect his light in
the world.
In thinking about Jesus many people use the memory only, as in Baptism and the Lord's
Supper. They think of him as born in Bethlehem, as cradled in a manger, as a
little child in the Temple, as being baptized, and through the Spirit inducted
in his earthly mission, as the teacher of parables and the worker of miracles.
Or they think of him on the cross, or in the grave – all in the past. How
intensely important to us, then, is a vision of Jesus now.
The second revelation – chapters 2-3 – is an earth scene of the state of the
churches just as Jesus sees them – not what they suppose themselves to be, but
what they are in the white light of omniscience and holiness. We call this part
of the book the letters to the seven churches, but these letters simply give to
each church a view of itself as God sees it. For instance: one church had a name
to live, but God saw it to be dead; one church thought it was rich and mighty
and had need of nothing, but God saw it to be miserable and poor and blind and
naked. One church supposed itself to be exceedingly orthodox, and yet God saw
it was compromising with the worst form of idolatry.
You are not to understandù1 beg you not to understand – that these letters to
the churches are prophecies. You must not understand them as seven prophetic
periods, the first period in which Christendom is in the state of the Ephesus
church, and the second in the state of the Smyrna church, and the last period
in the state of the Laodicean church. Some contend that these seven churches
represent seven periods of Christianity – that is a premillennial
misconception. What these seven churches were at that time you will find
churches to be just now. All of them will not be like the Ephesus church but
some of them will. All of them will not be like the Philadelphia church, but
some of them will. All of them will not be like Laodicea, but some of them
will. I say the result of that revelation is exceedingly discouraging when
viewed with the first revelation. The first revelation shows the world lighted
by the churches, the next revelation discounts it by the defective condition of
the churches.
The third revelation, the second of the things that are, is a heaven scene,
chapters 4-5, the throne of grace in heaven, with a vision of a Triune God and
the Cherubim, and all the angelic activities that are to aid the churches to do
their work. I would not throw out chapters 4-5 of Revelation for all the gold
in this world. Every time I get blue over the study of the state of the
churches, I turn these pages over, open to chapters 4-5 and read of the throne
of grace in heaven. That puts hope into the work of the churches.
The fourth revelation commences at 6:1, extending to and including 8:1. That is
prophecy – the opening of the seals. The book that was sealed is the. book of
future events, and now the Lion of the tribe of Judah will break its seals and
let you see the successive future events. What the seals represent, from a
single viewpoint, extends from the time John wrote to the climax of the book,
and the end of time. It is a complete view. It will be explained to you that
the horses that come forth represent the different receptions given to the
gospel as it is preached, and you are to understand that that view is a
complete view, except the climax, which is reserved until you get to the end of
the book. If you want to know, in general terms, the result of preaching the
gospel until the great climax comes, you have it symbolically outlined in the
opening of the seals, from 6:1 to 8:1. That verse is misplaced – it ought to be
the closing verse of chapter 7.
The analysis next presents the fifth revelation – the sounding of the trumpets.
That also is a complete view from the beginning to the end, as were the seals.
It does not follow in its events the seal events, but it goes back to where the
seal events commence, and parallels it – it is a synchronous, not
chronological, view of the gospel of Jesus Christ as it is prayed. The key
passage is 8:4-6. That chapter shows every trumpet sound is a response – not to
a sermon as in the case of the seals – but to a prayer. It is one of the most
instructive parts of the book. It shows that the world's evangelization is not
to be accomplished exclusively by preaching – that praying has a great deal to
do with it. Whenever a trumpet sounds, it is not a reply to a sermon, but it is
a reply, maybe, to some poor widow that prayed while you preached.
The sixth revelation is another complete view from beginning to end,
synchronous with the others, and it represents an institution under the symbol
of a woman, the true church, as opposed to the false church under the symbol of
another woman. The true church and the false church viewed as opposing
institutions, is the biggest part of the book. It extends from 12:1 to 19:10
the true church and the apostate church viewed as institutions. The Bible knows
nothing of a universal time church, whether visible or invisible. There are
churches, and there is a church as an institution. It is always churches in
Revelation, but the church as an institution is symbolized by this woman. She
has the radiance of the sun, crowned with the stars, the moon is under her
feet. But the other woman is dressed in scarlet and purple, and is seated upon
a beast that in his original appearance came up out of the sea. He had seven
heads and ten horns, and the woman sits on him. She is the counterfeit church.
The symbols of the vision are three distinct things – a sea beast, an earth
beast, and a woman. This section includes the seven vials, or bowls, of wrath.
The events including the seven bowls of wrath do not wait until the seal events
are passed away and the trumpet events are passed away, and then follow
successively, but it is a complete view from the beginning – from the time John
wrote until Jesus comes. Here is a view of the true church as an institution
and the counterfeit church as an institution, and the conflict between them.
The seventh revelation commences at 19:11 and extends to 20:10. That ought to
be put into a separate chapter, for it is an' entirely distinct revelation. It
is split up by arbitrary chapter divisions. It, too, goes back to the beginning
and reaches to the end. It is not the true church as an institution and the
apostate church, as in the last case, but in it Christians are presented as
soldiers under the leadership of Jesus Christ in a holy war. And that holy war
is waged against the false prophet, the beast, and Satan. In this war Satan is
bound, the millennium comes, and then the revival of evil after the millennium
and the last great battle. That is the holy war, and the center part of it is
the millennium.
To show you that these events are synchronous, the same white horse that came
forth when the first seal was broken, appears now with the same rider leading
in a conflict between good and evil. It is a war waged between Christ and his
soldiers and the devil and his soldiers, and the war song is Psalm 110. That is
the holy war song: "The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand
until I make thine enemies thy footstool. Rule them with a rod of iron, as thy
word goeth forth from Zion, and from the day that thou leadest out thine
armies, thy young men shall be volunteers, and as multitudinous as the drops of
the dew in the dawn of the morning."
So far, four revelations have been synchronous. Each one came nearly to the
climax and stopped. Now we come to the eighth revelation (20:11-15), the coming
of the Lord and the general judgment. This chapter is not only the climax of
the preceding one, which was the fourth synchronous view, but it is the
suppressed climax of all preceding views. The seventh seal is followed by
silence – the last thing is not told. The seventh trumpet is about to be
sounded, but it does not sound. It only says that when it is sounded the
mystery of the kingdom of God will be finished; and every other view comes
right up, but not quite, to the climax. Now, the climax is the eighth
revelation, or the coming of the Lord and the general judgment.
Let me impress the thought by repetition. All the other views approach this
climax and stop. The seventh seal is followed by silence (8:1). The seventh
trumpet comes to the world conquest and announces the judgment at hand. The
bowls of wrath find an end after the war of Har-Magedon, before the judgment.
The true church is brought within sight of the marriage of the Lamb, which is
an unfinished picture. The climax of all of them is this eighth revelation, or
the coming of the Lord 'and the general judgment.
The ninth revelation is the state of the saints in glory after the judgment
(21:1 to 22:5). This is the grand climax. The coming of the Lord was the
climax, but the final state of the redeemed is the grand climax. The first
climax ends all the four synchronous views, and this grand climax rounds up the
whole book, showing the final estate of the redeemed in glory, and of the
wicked in eternal punishment.
The eleventh item of the outline, the certification of the whole book, with its
closing invitation and warnings (22:6-20). This section tells us three things:
The certification of an entire book, which you will find the most solemn attestation
this earth has ever known, and after the certification is the invitation:
"The Spirit and the bride say, Come, and let him that heareth say, Come.
And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of
life freely." It closes with the warning: "Whosoever shall add to or
take from this book," etc.
The twelfth and last item of my analysis is the closing salutation. This is the
last verse of the book (22:21). I have put this general view of the book before
you at the start: I would not attempt to interpret a book that I had not
thought through, and not be like one beating the bush to flush meanings or
conjectures – that go off at a tangent like birds when flushed. This analysis
enables you to mark down each bird, and bring them all again into one covey.
The theme of the book is the mystery of the kingdom of God. It shows that this
whole world, every continent of it, every foot of it, all the places that are
on it, lost through the first Adam, will be reconciled through the Second Adam,
and the instrumentalities by which the gross darkness that is on the world
through the usurper Satan is finally dispersed, are the churches reflecting
Christ the Sun of Righteousness, and the preachers here on the earth empowered
by the Holy Ghost.
Let no man impress your mind that salvation, at the latter part of the world,
is to be brought about by a different instrumentality from that at the
beginning of the world. God never had but one plan of salvation. Settle it as a
fundamental point of your theology that the plan of salvation has always been
one plan. Every man on earth that has been saved to date, and every man that
will be saved on this earth, will be saved by the blood of Christ preached by
the gospel and applied by the Holy Spirit. Not a soul, not one, will be saved
after Christ comes. In his first advent he came as a sin offering unto
salvation. In his second advent he comes apart from salvation, or apart from a
sin offering to salvation. He comes to wind up the affairs of the world, raise
the dead, and judge the world. He who, in his theory, seeks to point the people
of God to some other way of enlightening the world than by the original plan –
Christ's light reflecting in the churches under the guidance of the Holy Spirit
– is to my mind in his theory (bless God, not often in his practices!) opposed
to the plan of salvation. There is to be no saving dispensation after the Holy
Ghost dispensation, and the Holy Ghost dispensation lasts while Christ is on
the throne up yonder and the Holy Ghost is here on the earth, a vicegerent,
testifying about Christ, testifying through the churches and the preachers, and
the people of God.
If I thought that the gospel trumpet was of some base metal, iron or brass, to
be succeeded by a more precious trumpet of silver, gold or diamonds, under some
other dispensation, should lose my present high respect for the gospel.
Another general remark, when we come to the details of the exposition, I will
stop at certain points in the series of discussions and give a special
discussion on certain special themes. For example, the symbolic numbers of
Revelation, as the seven in the seven churches, the seven Spirits of God, the
seven seals, the seven trumpets, the seven bowls, and other numbers. Then there
will be a special discussion on the antichrists of the Scriptures, and there
have been a number, and the confusion of commentaries is in mixing the
antichrists. Then it will be necessary to have a special discussion on the
millennium. What are its precursors; what is it; what follows it? Then a
discussion of the final advent of our Lord. You may rest assured that the same
Jesus that died, was buried, and was raised again, and who ascended into
heaven, whom the heavens must retain unto the time of the restoration of all
things, will himself finally come to his people here on earth, visibly,
audibly, palpably, personally, and no doubt of it. As his first advent was the
highest peak in the view of the Old Testament, so his final advent is the
highest peak in the view of the New Testament. But, it is to be hoped that you
will not beguile yourself with supposing that every time a coming of the Lord
is referred to it means his final advent. Of this fact I hope to convince you
in these discussions. In a certain sense, and every time in a scriptural sense,
there are many comings of the Lord.
SYNOPSIS OF ANALYSIS
Our Lord's own brief outline (1:19) Write:
1. "The things which thou sawest" (1:12-16). The vision of the glorified
Lord, source of all light, in his relation to the churches and pastors, and
their consequent mission as the light-bearers of the world.
2. "And the things which are": The state of the imperfect churches
and pastors as God sees them, an earth scene tending to discouragement (2-3).
(2) The throne of grace, with all its agencies and activities, helping the
imperfect churches and pastors (4-5), a heaven scene, tending to encouragement.
3. "And the things which shall come to pass hereafter" (6-22), showing
that by the heavenly helps the imperfect lower lights shall ultimately illumine
the whole world.
THE TEACHER'S ELABORATE ANALYSIS
The author's own introduction to the book (1)
The title of the book, its nature, origin, medium, by whom signified, to whom,
for whom its value (1:1).
The human author identified (1:2).
To whom addressed first clause of v. 4, and v. II.
The author's greeting and doxology (1:4-8).
The author's account of how, when, where, and under what circumstances he was
commissioned to write (1:9-20). This includes the voice and the vision, the
effect of the vision on him, and the Lord's explanation of it.
I. The first revelation – what John saw (1:12-16).
Or a revelation of the glorified Lord himself, now shining as the Sun of
Righteousness, source of all spiritual life, in his relation to the churches
and pastors on earth, the lower lights, commissioned to reflect the heavenly
light and so illumine the whole world.
II. The second revelation (2-3).
The state of the churches and pastors, not as they themselves, nor as the world
sees them, but as they really are in God's sight. This is an earth scene of
"the things that are," and, on account of the imperfections of these
agencies for world illumination, tends to discouragement.
Note 1. The real condition of no two churches is the same.
Note 2. The varied provisions for remedying imperfections adapted to each
special need.
Note 3. The various adversaries all directed by one leading adversary.
Note 4. The hope lies in Christ's "walking among the candlesticks" in
constant supervision and continually speaking through the indwelling Spirit.
III. The third revelation (4-5).
This is a heaven scene of "the things that are." It is a revelation
of the throne of grace with all its agencies and activities employed to help
the imperfect churches and pastors illumine the world. This scene tends to
encouragement. It is the sure promise of ultimate triumph.
"The things that shall come to pass hereafter"
(The prophetic part of the book: Chapters 6-22).
IV. The fourth revelation, or the opening of the
seals (6:1 to 8:1).
This section begins the prophetic element which continues to the end of the
book. Its design is to foreshow the various effects of the gospel as preached.
It is a complete view from this angle of vision from John's day to the end of
things, suppressing only the final climax for the time being (see 8:1: which
properly is the last verse of chapter 7), with the temporary silence on the opening
of the seventh seal, which silence will be broken when at the end of the book
the climax is supplied.
V. The fifth revelation (8:2 to 9:19).
The sounding of the trumpets, or the gospel as prayed.
Note 1. The key passage of this section (8:3-6), that every trumpet sounded is
a response to prayer, and not to a sermon. This also is a complete view from
that day to the end of time, hinting at but suppressing the final climax, as
did the seals.
Note 2. That while it is a complete view, like the seals, it is from a
different angle of vision.
Note 3. That its events are not successive to the seal events, but synchronize
with them. The two views are parallel.
Note 4. The remarkable episode (10:1 to 11:14) following the sixth trumpet
which gives a distinct but subordinate revelation, and which includes six of
the seven thunders and two of the three bowls, the little book, the measuring
of the Temple, the death and revival of the two witnesses.
Note 5. Connecting 10:7, with 11:15, we see not only a key to the meaning of
the book but this view is synchronological with the seals.
VI. The sixth revelation (11:1 to 19:10).
The true church as an institution, symbolized as a glorious woman (12:1), and
the later apostate church as an opposing institution symbolized as a harlot
(17:1-6).
This also is a complete view from John's day to the end of time, only from a
new angle of vision, and is parallel with the preceding synchronous views of
the seals and the trumpets, and, like the others, lacks only the final climax.
Note 1. That the one great dominant adversary is Satan (12:3, 9).
Note 2. That his persecutions through world governments drive her into the
wilderness – obscurity – for a long time (12:6).
Note 3. That when he had failed to destroy her by heathen world power, he
causes to rise among the nations a new world power, i.e., a union of church and
state, "spotted like the leopard," which makes war with the saints
(13:1-10). Then develops from this union a papal head (13:11-18), who assumes
all power civil and religious, and from these two develop an institution – the
apostate church (17:1-6).
Note 4. In this symbolism: (a) A woman represents the church, true or apostate,
as an institution, (b) The sea represents the nations, (c) A sea beast, as in
Daniel, represents a world power over the nations, (d) A spotted beast, .a
world power dominated by apostate Christianity, (e) The earth beast, in the
guise of a lamb, but with the voice of the dragon, represents an assumed
earthly head to both church and state.
Note 5. In this section come the seven plagues, or seven bowls of wrath poured
on the apostate church, and the great war of Har-Magedon.
VII. The seventh revelation, or the holy war
between the saints and the emissaries of Satan (19:11 to 20:10).
This is also a complete view from John's day to the end of time, and, like the
three preceding, needs only the climax. It, like the rest, has its own angle of
vision. As Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John present the life of our Lord in four
parallel views, each complete from its angle of vision, so here are four
complete synchronous views of his kingdom, each from its own angle of vision,
to wit: (1) The seals, or the gospel as preached. (2) The trumpets, or the
gospel as prayed. (3) The true church as an institution, opposed by the
apostate church as an institution. (4) The holy war, and the salvation of the
Jews.
Note 1. The progress of the conquest of the western nations, culminating in the
millennium (19:11 to 20:6).
Note 2. The progress of the conquest of the eastern nations, Gog and Magog
(20:7-10).
As this section is a distinct revelation, complete in itself, it should not be
broken by arbitrary chapter divisions, but should make one distinct chapter.
VIII. The eighth revelation (20:11-15).
The final advent of our Lord, the resurrection of all the dead and the one
general, final judgment fixing the eternal destiny of saint and sinner. This
climax caps all the four synchronous views.
IX. The ninth revelation, or grand climax of the
book (21:1 to 22:5).
Paradise regained.
X. The tenth revelation (22:6-21).
The divine and human authentication of the book, with assurance, promises,
threats, invitations, and the author's closing salutation.
QUESTIONS
1. Give our Lord's brief analysis of the book, and
what parts of the book belong to each division.
2. Give the teacher's elaborate analysis.
3. According to this analysis, how many revelations,
and how many synchronous views, giving terminal points of each?
AN EXPOSITION OF THE INTRODUCTORY PASSAGES
Revelation 1
Having clearly in mind the analysis of the entire book already given, we shall
begin with the interpretation of the book of Revelation.
The first word in this book, as in the Old Testament books, gives its name:
Greek, Apocalupsis, Latin, Revelatio, English, Revelation. They all mean
literally an unveiling of that which is hidden.
The source of the revelation, as you see from the text, w God the Father. The
medium of the revelation 'is Jesus Christ. The agent employed in signifying it
is an interpreting angel. The revelation is made to John the apostle for the
people of God. Notice that the word "signify" is appropriately used,
since the revelation is to be made known by signs or symbols. The angel, who
signifies it, is the author of the great voice as of a trumpet in verse 10. We
hear his voice again at the beginning of chapter 4, and he reappears on the
scene in the last chapters of the book. Verse 2 tells us which John received
this revelation in these words: "Who bare witness of the word of God and
of the testimony of Jesus Christ, even of all things that he saw." It is
quite important to know when John bare witness of the word of God. The tense is
the "aorist" and usually, according to grammatical construction,
refers to something in the completed past. Following this sense of the aorist
we are bound to construe verse 2 as identifying the John to whom this
revelation was made and the bearing witness would refer to the witness that he
had already borne in his Gospel. This construction would conclusively establish
the authorship of the book. It would prove that the author of the Gospel is
also the author of this book, and that the Gospel was written first.
The only escape from this conclusion is to make the witness bearing refer to
what John now does concerning this revelation which he is receiving. Many great
scholars insist on making this the meaning, and calling the tense the
epistolary aorist. I see no necessity for adopting this latter construction. By
reference to John's Gospel, and indeed to his first letter, we see that he
there claims to have borne witness to the word of God and the testimony of
Jesus Christ and of all things that be saw and heard.
In verse 3 we have the words: "Blessed is he that readeth and they that
hear the words of this prophecy." We know that in later times the churches
had readers who would read to them any communication received and explain the
communication. The rest of the church would hear. We have already found that
Paul gave directions that his letter to one church should be read to another
church, and the letter to that church be also read to the first church named.
So it is unnecessary to go to a later date to find the origin of a reader to
the churches. The New Testament itself gives the origin.
From verses 4-6 we have John's greeting to the seven churches of Asia to whom
the entire book is addressed. Not only all of chapters 2-3 are specifically
devoted to special messages for the churches named, but at the end of the book,
22:16, we have these words referring back to the whole book, "I, Jesus,
have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things for the churches."
It is important to note in this connection our Lord's use of the word ecclesia.
In Matthew 16, he says: "I will build my church," using the term to
signify the institution. In Matthew 18, he says, "tell it to the
church," referring to whatever particular congregation the decision of the
case of discipline belongs. Many times in the hook of Revelation he uses the
word "church," and in every case the reference is to particular
churches. Our Lord's usage of the word knows nothing of a now existing
universal church, whether visible or invisible. He does not say to the church
of Asia, but the seven churches of Asia. There is nothing in his use of the
word to indicate the existence of church in any provincial, national,
worldwide, or denominational sense. On the contrary, he seems to guard very carefully
against such a use of the term. It is true that in chapter 12, without using
the term "church," he does present the idea of the church as an
institution under the symbol of the woman arrayed with the sun and the moon
under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars, which woman later
becomes, in chapter 19, the bride of Christ or the church in glory.
Carefully note the expression in verse 6: "and he made us to be a kingdom
and to be priests unto his God and Father." Again we have the past tense,
signifying that the kingdom already exists. It would be strange to make one
part of the sentence mean a kingdom to come, and the other part to mean an
existing priesthood. We know from many scriptures that Christians are now
priests offering spiritual sacrifices unto God, and so also they now constitute
a kingdom. The kingdom is now and has been since the God of heaven in the days
of his flesh set it up. It will become the kingdom in glory but it is a kingdom
in actual fact now.
Verse 7 needs very careful interpretation. "Behold, he cometh with the
clouds, and every eye shall see him and they that pierced him, and all the
tribes of the earth shall mourn over him, even so Amen." Alford holds this
verse to be the key passage of the book and so does every premillennialist.
They are sure that it refers to the final advent of our Lord. I do not wish to
startle you, but it is necessary to ask where John obtains this imagery.
Your attention has already been called to the most notable fact in connection
with this book, that while not directly quoting the Old Testament, it teems and
bristles with references to the Old Testament. All of its analogues are taken
from the Old Testament. The paradise of Genesis, the plagues of Exodus, the
visions of God in Isaiah, Daniel, Ezekiel, and the marvelous visions of
Zechariah, furnish the molding of the book.
Where, then, the question recurs, do we find the origin of the phrase used in
verse 7? In Daniel 7, we have "One like unto the Son of man coming in the
clouds to the Ancient of days and receiving the kingdom." This
unquestionably refers to Christ's ascension and exaltation after his
resurrection. In Zechariah 12:10, we have the origin of the piercing of Christ,
as follows: "And they shall look upon him whom they have pierced, and they
shall mourn for him as one mourneth for his only son."
This mourning, after beholding whom they had pierced, is followed by the
opening of a fountain for sin and uncleanness. It is not the mourning of
despair by the lost who shall see Christ at his final advent, but it is the
penitential mourning that follows the pouring out of the Spirit of God upon the
house of David that enables them to see Christ pierced and held up before them
in the gospel and thus find life. John has already, in his Gospel, referred to
this passage in Zechariah, applying it to Christ crucified and not to Christ
coming at his final advent. The language of the Gospel is: "But one of the
soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and
water; and he that saw it bare record, and his record is true, and he knoweth
that he sayeth true, that ye might believe, for these things were done that the
scriptures might be fulfilled: They shall look on him whom they have
pierced."
Since the text "the coming in the clouds" and "piercing"
and "mourning" are all borrowed from the Old Testament and all refer
to Christ crucified and held up before sinners, who, through the pouring out of
the Spirit, are enabled to recognize him and believe in him and thereby be
saved, we are hardly warranted in making this passage the key passage of the
book, and certainly are not warranted in referring it to the final advent of
our Lord. The key passage of the book we will consider directly. It is the
purpose of verse 7 to refer to the spiritually prompted vision of Christ by
faith on the part of all the tribes of the earth.
Bearing on the statement that the kingdom now exists we may consider verse,
where John says, "I, John, your brother and partaker with you in the
tribulation and kingdom and patience which are in Jesus . . ." Here, so
certain as John then partook with them in the tribulation of persecution, and
in the patience that steadfastly endured that persecution, so it is certain
that he, at the time of the writing, was partaker with them in the existing
kingdom.
Verse 10, commences thus: "I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day." It
has been the safe interpretation of the fathers that the Lord's Day here refers
to the first day of the week, the Christian sabbath. We have already noted in
Colossians that the entire system of the Jewish sabbaths, weekly, monthly,
annual, septennial, and the sabbath of the Jubilee, were all nailed to the
cross of Christ, being shadows and finding their substance in Christ they were
abrogated; henceforth the Christian should not be judged for failing to observe
the Jewish sabbatical system. He might observe that system from motives of
expediency that he might gain others, but certainly not on demand and as an
obligation. We have already seen in our discussion of the letter to the Hebrews
the distinction between the sabbath and the seventh day. The sabbath is
perpetual with all its obligations. Hebdome, or seventh day, was not perpetual.
"Another day" is referred to, and as the Father finishing the work of
creation appointed a commemorative sabbath on the seventh day, so Christ,
having finished the greater work of redemption, appointed "another
day," the first day of the week, so that there should remain to the people
of God a sabbath-keeping.
On this, therefore, the Lord's Day, or the Christian sabbath, John was in the
Spirit, and heard the angel voice as of a trumpet instructing him to write in a
book the visions to be received, and send it to these seven churches of Asia.
Woe to the professed Christian, and especially to the preacher, who hears no
voices and sees no visions. We thus hear and see when we are in the Spirit. The
man who has no sabbath-keeping (sabbatismos), who consecrates no Lord's
Day, will not likely be in the Spirit.
We have a remarkable vision which is the key passage to the interpretation of
the whole book of Revelation in verses 12-16. The elements of the vision are,
first, seven golden candlesticks, and in the midst of the candlesticks a vision
of Christ as the Sun of Righteousness. He holds in his right hand seven stars
and out of his mouth proceeds a sharp two-edged sword. This vision he explains
himself: The candlesticks represent the churches; the stars represent the
messengers or pastors of the churches; the two-edged sword represents his word,
or the gospel. The whole vision is one of light. The central light – Christ,
the Sun of Righteousness; the lower lights – the churches and' the preachers;
the instrumentality of dispensing the light – the Word of God.
In the next chapter we see that while Christ is in the midst of the churches,
he is not there in person, but through the other Paraclete, the Holy Spirit,
who is his "alter ego," his vicar here upon earth. John in his Gospel
had previously represented Christ as the light of the world, but since he
ascended into heaven this light is reflected in the churches and preachers
through the Spirit and by the Word. The object of the vision is to show that
the whole world will be illumined by the churches and the preachers in the
dispensation of the gospel, which dispensation is the dispensation of the Holy
Spirit, for when Christ speaks to the churches he says: "If any man hath
ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit sayeth to the churches."
The doctrine of this vision is of incalculable importance. It teaches that the
Spirit dispensation, or Word dispensation through the churches and the
preachers, is to accomplish the whole work of the application of the salvation
achieved by our Lord's vicarious death. We will find in every subsequent
revelation this ruling thought; the world to be illumined by these
light-bearers. There is no hint of any other source or medium or
instrumentality of light. There is no hint that the churches will fail on the
earth and that some other divine interposition must take place to finish the
mystery of the kingdom of God. This is in accord with the Great Commission in
Matthew 28: "Go ye into all the world and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit:
teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo! I
will be with you all the days, even unto the end of the world."
The pessimist who believes that the object of the gospel is simply and only to
be a witness and to take out a few here and there of the lost world and that
light will become feebler and dimmer until the second advent, and then by
marvelous displays of miraculous power, the return of Christ in person to
supersede the Spirit, the world is to be conquered for Christ – this view, I
say, is at war with all the teachings of this book, and of the other New
Testament books. The Spirit, through the churches and the gospel, will
accomplish all the conquests that are to be accomplished and Christ's return is
not as a sin offering unto salvation, but to raise the dead, judge the world,
and wind up the affairs of this kingdom preparatory to turning it over to the
Father.
The final, personal, visible, audible, palpable return of Jesus Christ to the
earth, with whatever displays of divine power, is not for the conversion of any
man. It ends the days of salvation. If we hold in our minds that practically
the gospel will be a failure and that the world will grow worse and worse until
the second advent of Christ, and that we are to look for the great forces of
redemption after he comes back, then we cannot, except with a very limited
faith, press the mission work for the evangelization of the world. It will not
be in our hearts to hope to see missions accomplish the salvation of men. We
may count, therefore, the whole book of Revelation as a vision of
ever-increasing light until by the gospel through the Spirit the whole world is
flooded with light – and indeed this idea is manifest as the governing thought
in every subsequent revelation until the final consummation of eternal light
presented in the twenty-first and twenty-second chapters, the closing chapters
of the book.
In verse 17 we are told that when John saw the glorified Christ he fell at his
feet as one dead. It is the uniform teaching of the Bible that the nearer we
approach to God and the clearer our vision of him, the more sensibly do we feel
our sinfulness. Job had a very good opinion of himself and talked boldly of his
desire to meet the Almighty face to face, but when the Almighty came, and Job
stood in the white light of the holiness of God, though he was the saintliest
man of his day, he cried out: "I have uttered that which I understood not,
but now that mine eyes seeth thee, I abhor myself and repent in dust and
ashes." Isaiah, also, the saintliest man of his day, when he saw the
vision of the Almighty, cried out: "Woe is me, for I am undone, because I
am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips,
for mine eyes have seen the King Jehovah of Hosts." When, therefore, you
hear one making the extravagant boast of his sinlessness, you may know that the
boast argues his distance from God rather than his nearness. If he were indeed
in brighter light, then would he be able to see the spots upon his garments
that are invisible in his state of semidarkness.
This vision represents our Lord, as a royal priest on his throne. The glory of
his exalted state, and of the authority with which he is invested when
understood by faith, dispels fear; though the saint is so imperfect, his voice
comes: "Fear not. I am the first and the last, and the Living One, and I
was dead and behold I am alive for ever more, and I have the keys of death and
of Hades and I have the keys of David, with power to open so that none can
shut, and power to shut so that none can open."
To the despondent Christian, a vision of this exalted Christ is a sure cure of
both his despondency and of his fear. It is a vision not of our Lord in the days
of his humiliation when he had not where to lay his head, when he was emptied
of the glory of his original state in heaven, but it is a vision of the risen,
ascended, and exalted Jesus on the throne of the universe, and as his presence
is felt in the churches. Through the Spirit the word preached by the churches
is the power of God unto salvation.
I cannot refrain from reference to an incident in my own life in the summer of
1905. I was on a train in the Panhandle and greatly distressed in mind as I thought
of the imperfections of the churches and of the preachers. The despondency
increased when I saw in all the Southwest, a territory larger than all the rest
of the South) no provision made for training preachers to be great and
efficient in their ministry. When I saw representatives of some ministerial
training schools coming into Texas and other states of the Southwest with their
minds poisoned on the vital doctrines of the inspiration of the Bible, the
deity of Christ, his vicarious expiation, the transcendent power of the Holy
Spirit, my despondency increased the more. How can we have in the Southwest a
school for the adequate training of our preachers? How can we safeguard it from
heresy when it is established? How can we make it a barrier against the
inflowing tide of semi-infidelity in the pulpit? It was at this very juncture
that I recalled to mind this vision which John saw on the isle of Patmos, and
so vivid was the recollection that it was to me as if I heard Jesus speak
audibly: "Fear not, I am the Living One. I was dead, but am alive to die
no more." Instantly my heart leaped with joy and I half rose from my seat
saying to myself: "Jesus is alive, and if Jesus be alive he can manifest
that life now as well as he manifested his life on earth and even with greater
power. If when alive in the flesh he could still the storm, heal the sick,
raise the dead, reconcile us to God by his vicarious death, then surely after
his resurrection, ascension, and exaltation, with all authority in heaven and
on earth in his hands, he can make it possible to do anything desirable for the
efficiency of his churches and his preachers. It would not, then, be necessary
to rely upon historic monumental evidences, but each of us now could have
sensible demonstration that Jesus is alive and king forever." It made an
epoch in my life. It gave me the faith and courage with which to undertake the
establishment of the seminary of which I am president.
In verse 19 we have our Lord's analysis of the book of Revelation: "Write
therefore the things which thou sawest, and the things which are, and the
things which shall come to pass hereafter." What he saw was this vision.
The things which are, were: First, the revelation of our glorified Lord, in his
relation to the churches and pastors, and their consequent mission as
light-bearers. Second, the state of the imperfect churches here upon earth as
set forth in chapters 2-3. Third, the revelation of the throne of grace in
heaven, as set forth in chapters 4-5. Fourth, the things which shall come to
pass hereafter, are the things presented in all the rest of the book from
chapter 6 to the end.
In this interpretation of the book, while on some details the teaching cannot
be dogmatic, yet the main lines of thought are just as clear as the main lines
of thought in the Four Gospels. A patient study of the book will be of
incalculable advantage to us. As we pray and study and have faith, the
assurance will settle upon our hearts that whatever may be the temporary ebbs
and flows) the outcome will be that all the kingdoms of this world shall become
the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ through the work of the churches and the
preachers, and that earthly imperfections are more than compensated for by the
great power of God from the heavenly throne of our Lord, keeping the lamps
filled with oil and trimmed and burn
1. Analyze verse I, showing the meaning of apocalypse, its source, medium,
instrument, method, to whom, for whom.
2. How may a strictly grammatical construction of the aorist or past tense of
"bare witness" in verse 2 prove that the apostle John wrote both the
Fourth Gospel and Revelation, and that Revelation, was the later book?
3. Judging from the expression in verse 3, "Blessed is he that readeth and
they that hear," and comparing it with 1 Thessalonians 5:27, and
Colossians 4:16, when originated the custom, so well attested in later days, of
having "readers to the churches"? And what modern invention
superseded the necessity for the custom?
4. "The seven churches that are in Asia." Counting the instances in
Matthew and Revelation: (1) how many times in the record of our Lord's own
saying does the Greek word ekklesia occur and (2) in what two senses
alone, and (3) since he says "The churches of Asia," and not
"The church of Asia," and since several times in chapter 2 and 3 he
Bays "Hear what the Spirit saith to the churches," and not "to
the church" – what is the bearing of this usage on the idea of a
provincial, national or universal church?
5. Prove from the use of the word "kingdom" in v. 6 and 9 that
premillennialists are mistaken in contending that there is yet no kingdom
except an ideal one.
6. Compare v. 7 with the Old Testament analogues in Daniel 7:lb 14, and
Zechariah 12:10-14, and 13:1, with John 19:37, and then answer: (1) Is this
"coming with clouds" the final advent of our Lord? (2) Do the tribes
here see him with the natural eye in the glory of his final advent, or with the
eye of faith lifted up on the cross by preaching (as in Acts 2 and 3, by Peter,
and in. Galatians 3:1, by Paul)? And (3) Is the mourning when they see him a
mourning of despair or a mourning of penitence unto salvation?
7. Interpret the key passage of the book 1:12-16, explaining each metaphor, and
then answer particularly: (1) Is Christ present with the churches personally or
through the Spirit? In answering this question consider 2:7, II, 17,29; 3:0,
13,22. (2) Does he, as the Sun of Righteousness, shine directly or reflectively
through the churches and preachers, making them the light of the world, and
through the Word, represented as a sword issuing from his mouth? (3) Trace
through the book the proof that this vision of the world lighted by these
instrumentalities is the key passage (4) And is there anywhere in the book any
proof that the world will otherwise be illumined or men saved?
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE SECOND
REVELATION
Revelation 2-3
This section of the analysis is the second revelation, chapters 2-3, an earth scene
of "the things that are." It consists of the letters to the seven
churches, and is a revelation of their condition in God's sight. Now, upon
these seven letters I wish to make some general observations.
My first is that you should find a map – generally the last map in your Bible –
of the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea. That will show you the province
of Asia – the southwestern part of Asia Minor. And on that map yon must locate
the seven churches. Commence at the southwestern coast of Asia Minor – there
you will find the first church, Ephesus, a seaport, or used to be, situated on
a little river that flows into the-Aegean Sea. Follow the coast line north
until you come to Smyrna, another seaport.' Still going north you come to
Pergamum, or Pergamos (either is correct). That is not a seaport, but is close
to the sea. The first three churches, then, are found by following up the coast
going north. The other four churches are inland, and you will find them by
commencing a little north of where Pergamos is located, and by following a line
south you come to the other churches in the order named: Thyatira, Sardis,
Philadelphia, Laodicea. Now, look a little off that coast from the southwestern
part of Asia Minor, and you will find a little island, barely discernible on
the map, called Patmos. That is where John was. So, my first observation is
that the reader should locate on a map the province of Asia, the seven churches
(noting which are seaports and which are inland) and Patmos.
My next observation is based upon what we considered in the last chapter, that
is, the key passage of the book (1:12-16), representing Christ as the original
light, the Sun of Righteousness, shining as the sun in its full strength,
reflecting his light upon the churches, and through them here on earth his
reflected light is to illuminate the world. The description of this glorified
Christ shows him in the garb of a high priest, and invested with kingly rule, a
royal priest. If that be the key passage, then the whole of this book, up to
20:11, where you strike the climax of the book, the whole of the book up to
that point is what is called the Spirit's dispensation, or the dispensation of
the churches, or the dispensation of the gospel preached. Everything up to
20:11, where Christ comes to raise the dead and judge the world.
Now take that key passage of Christ as the light of the world, and trace its
connection through this section we are studying, chapters 2-3. In order that
you may trace it, open your Bible and read the following verses – the beginning
of each letter to a churchù2:1, 8, 12, 18; 3:1, 7, 14. As you read these verses
introducing what is said to each church, you will see that the titles or
appellatives applying to Christ, through whom this light comes, are all citations
or allusions to the first revelation. So all of this section shows that this
key passage unlocks everything said to the churches. In the same way we may
trace the key passages through the whole of the book unlocking the meaning of
every vision. The connection, therefore, between this section and the first
revelation is evident in these verses.
To impress that on you perhaps you had better read these verses. Begin at
chapter 2 and read only the beginning of each letter to the churches: "To
the angel of the church at Ephesus write, These things saith he that holdeth
the seven stars in his right hand, that walketh in the midst of the seven
golden candlesticks." Now that is a quotation from chapter 1, where the
key passage is given; Christ is seen walking in the midst of the candlesticks;
Christ is holding the seven stars in his right hand.
Verse 8: "And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, These things
saith the first and the last, who was dead and liveth again." By reading
the first chapter you will find these allusions to Christ: "The first and
the last, who was dead but liveth again to die no more."
Verse 12: "To the angel of the church at Pergamos write, These things
saith he that hath the sharp two-edged sword." In that first revelation a
two-edged sword is represented as issuing from his mouth, standing for his word
of judgment.
Verse 18: "To the angel of the church in Thyatira write, These things
saith the Son of God, who hath eyes like a flame of fire and feet like unto
burnished brass." That is the description of his eyes and feet as seen in
the first revelation.
Now 3:1: "And to the angel of the church in Sardis write, These things
saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars."
Evidently that is an allusion to the first revelation.
Verse 7: "And to the. angel of the church in Philadelphia write, These
things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David,
he that openeth and none can shut, and he that shutteth and none can
open." These things are alluded to in the first revelation.
Verse 14: "And to the angel of the church of Laodicea write, These things
saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of
God."
My third general observation is based upon Christ's own uses of the word
"church" as found in Matthew and Revelation. There are twenty-three
instances of Christ's using the Greek word ecclesia – church. In Matthew 24:18,
he says, "I will build my church." In Matthew 18:17, he says, "Tell
it to the church." The references in Revelation where he uses the term
church or churches are the following: 1:4,11,20, and again 20; 2:1, 7-8, 11-12,
17-18, 23, 29; 3:1, 6-7, 13-14, 22; 22:16.
Now here are twenty-three examples of the use of the word ecclesia – church –
as spoken by our Lord Jesus Christ himself; and it is evident from a study of
these twenty-three instances of the use of the word, that Christ never said
anything about an invisible or universal church.' His teaching is to the
contrary; he does not say the church in Asia, but "the churches in
Asia." He does not use the word church in any provincial sense, or state
sense, or national sense, or denominational sense. This is a very convincing
exhibit of the uses of the word, as coming from the lips of our Lord, rebuking
the contention of many people of the present day who talk about a universal
church here on earth, whether visible or invisible, the New Testament does not
know anything about either one. It is true that in 12:1 under the symbol of a
woman, also in 17:3, under the symbol of another woman, he presents first the
church as an institution and then the apostate church as an institution, and it
is equally true that in 19:7-8 he presents the church in glory, under the
symbol of a bride, and in 21:9, under the symbol of the heavenly Jerusalem, a
city. So that we may say that Christ used the word to describe the time church
as an institution, and to name the concrete example of this institution
particular churches, and to foreshadow the coming glory church – something
which does not yet exist.
My fifth general observation is the significance of Christ walking amid the
candlesticks, knowing, revealing, rebuking, threatening, promising. The body of
each letter will show their condition: "I know thy works," or
"where thou dwellest" – and the rest of the terms to the churches
telling the condition of each church. He tells the things favorable and the
things unfavorable, he rebukes, exhorts to amendment, and closes each with a
precious promise. This unseen presence, this exercise of actual omniscience,
this authority to rebuke or remove, this diversity and wealth of promise, tend
to produce extraordinary results: it encourages the faithful that he knows and
will reward; it stimulates the backslidden to revival and amendment; it alarms
the unworthy and terrifies with certain and speedy judgment.
My next general observation is that this presence of Christ in the churches is
not a personal presence – he is up in heaven, but he is present through the
Spirit, his alter ego, the one that came down according to his promise to be
his vicar, his vicegerent here on earth. Now, as proof that this is the
meaning, read 2:7: "Hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches";
verse II: "Hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches"; verse 17:
"Hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches"; verse 29: "Hear
what the Spirit saith unto the churches"; 3:6: "Hear what the Spirit
saith unto the churches"; verse 13: "Hear what the Spirit saith unto
the churches"; verse 22: "Hear what the Spirit saith unto the
churches." So that every time he says anything to any of these churches,
he closed by calling it "what the Spirit saith unto the churches."
That teaches that Christ is present with his people here on earth, not in a
personal sense, but through the Holy Spirit, whom he sent after he ascended
into heaven. So in the Great Commission, "I am with you all the days, even
unto the end of the world." He is not with us in person: we cannot see
him, touch him, feel him, but he is present in the Spirit. That also shows that
this whole book comes in the Spirit dispensation, under the guidance of the
Holy Spirit all through the book, up to 20:11. Christ stays up in heaven until
the time of restoration of all things. While he stays up there the Spirit represents
him down here. When he comes (20:11), the Spirit dispensation is ended, the
gospel dispensation is ended, the gospel preaching is ended.
My seventh general observation is that the condition of no two of these
churches is exactly the same. Look and see that the deficiency of one is not
the deficiency of another. Ephesus is sound in doctrine, but deficient in love.
Smyrna was poor but rich. Laodicea rich but poor. Pergamos was faithful in
persecution, but wanting in discipline. In Ephesus the first works were greater
than the last, while Thyatira the last works were greater than the first, and
in Sardis none of its works, first or last, was perfect in God's sight. Smyrna
was attaining to a crown of life, while Thyatira, having a name to live, was
dead. Philadelphia glowed with fervor while Laodicea was lukewarm. I ask you to
note this diversity of condition in the seven churches, that you may apply it
to any seven churches in Texas. The same examination of the First Church in
Fort Worth, in Dallas, Austin, Houston, San Antonio, Waxahachie, Galveston, or
of the seven leading churches in any one city, would reveal similar diversity
of conditions in God's sight. This application goes to confirm what is evident,
namely, that these are real letters to seven contemporaneous churches, and were
not intended to Be prophetic of seven consecutive periods, the Ephesian first,
the Laodicean last. It is a travesty on sound interpretation to say: "We
are now in the Laodicean period."
My eighth observation, that Christ's titles, and Christ's threats, and Christ's
promises are adapted to meet the specific condition of each church as it comes
up: he does not use the same threats, he does not use the same titles; be does
not offer the same promises, but in every case there is an adaptation to the
need, showing the infinite diversity in Christ so as to suit the diverse needs.
My ninth observation is that you may gather up into one sentence the promises
made to the faithful ones in all of the churches – make one sentence of it. A
special succeeding chapter will expound these promises to you. Let us make up
that sentence now (2:7) : "To him that overcometh will I give to eat of
the tree of life"; verse II (latter part) : "He that overcometh shall
not be hurt of the second death"; verse 17: "To him that overcometh
will I give of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and upon
that stone a new name written which no one knoweth but he that receiveth
it"; verse 26: "To him that overcometh and he that keepeth my works
unto the end, to him will I give authority over the nations, and he shall rule
them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of the potter are broken to shivers; as
I also received of my Father, and I will give him the morning star"; 3:5:
"He that overcometh shall be arrayed in white garments, and I will in no
wise blot his name out of the book of life, and I will confess his name before
my Father and before his angels"; verse 12: "He that over-cometh I
will make a pillar in the temple of my God and he shall go out thence no more;
and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my
God, which is the new Jerusalem which cometh down out of the heaven from my
God, and I will write upon him my new name"; verse 21: "To him that
overcometh I will give to sit down with me in my throne, as I also overcame and
sat down with my Father in his throne."
Only by grouping all of these promises into one great sentence do we understand
the riches of the heavenly reward to the faithful.
My next observation is that a calm survey of the imperfect conditions of the
churches and pastors makes it seem impossible that such instrumentality can
bring about the glorious results set forth in 11:15 – "The kingdom of the
world is become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ." There are,
however, two elements of hope in the picture: Christ is walking in the midst of
the churches, leading to repentance, and the Spirit is directing and enabling.
I know the first time I very carefully studied the condition of the seven churches
in Asia, and then applied the revelation to any seven churches around me, with
their seven pastors, I found no perfect pastor and no perfect church. Every
church had some fault or faults and every pastor had some weakness or faults.
So I said in my heart: "How are preachers like these and churches like
these to capture the world?" and I never got over that discouragement
until I read chapters 4-5, when the heaven scene of the "things that
are" revealed the throne of grace with agencies and activities helping the
churches and preachers on earth.
My next observation is: That the doctrine of this book of Revelation
necessitates the perpetuity of the churches. The doctrine is just this: Christ
will appoint no other instrumentality for the evangelization of the world; the
world is to be lighted through these churches, and that when a candlestick is
removed, another church is raised up, and that in every age of the world there
will be some churches faithful to the Lord. That is the teaching of this book,
and particularly do you find it when you come to that view of the church
presented as an institution under the symbol of a woman, and the apostate
church presented under the symbol of a woman. You will see the woman that
represents the true church driven into the wilderness, where she is in hiding
for a long time; just like Israel led out of Egypt wandered in the wilderness
for thirty-eight years, and as historians would have a hard time tracing every
day's steps of Israel in the wilderness, so a church historian now has a hard
time in putting the surveyor's chain on the trace of the true churches in this
wilderness period. There is no difficulty in tracing the New Testament history.
Nor is there any difficulty from the Reformation period to the present. It is easy
to prove that there are now churches similar in faith, doctrine, ordinances,
officers, and purposes to the New Testament churches. But there is a certain
dark period in history that this book of Revelation will discuss, when the
church is in the wilderness, and one time when the two witnesses – that is, the
churches and the pastors – seemed to be dead; the two witnesses are slain, when
the apostate church rejoices that there is no dissent in the world. But as you
watch a little while you see these witnesses, both of them, rise up and go on
with their testimony. If church historians would write their histories in view
of the forecast given in the book of Revelation, they would be saved from many
a foolish notion.
My next general observation is, that a candlestick be removed – that is, a
particular church organization be dissolved – has no bearing on the
preservation of the true Christians who are members of that church. Sardis, as
a church organizer, was declared to be "dead," but "thou hast a
few names in Sardis that did not defile their garments: and they shall walk
with me in white, for they are worthy." The church was blotted out, but
"I will in no wise blot out their names from the book of life."
My last general observation is this: Since Christ has appointed these churches
for the evangelization and illumination of the world, what is the law on the
preacher or the member that destroys one of these churches? Paul answers that
question for us. He says to the church at Corinth: "Ye are God's building,
ye are the temple of God, and him that destroys the temple of God will I
destroy." And I tell you that is a very solemn thought for a preacher who
so ministers that he destroys a church, or for any deacon, or deacons, who so
act as to blot out a church of our Lord. The candlestick is indeed removed, but
woe to him that causeth its removal. You would do a thousand times less harm to
reach up and blot out the most brilliant planet in the sky than to blot out the
feeblest little church here on earth which is trying to do good. Every pastor
ought to bring this question up in his own heart: Is my ministry of this church
building it or pulling it down; is it strengthening or destroying? What a
solemn responsibility upon anybody who takes charge of a church. You may track
some preachers by a trail of decayed, divided, or dissolved churches. You may
track some other preachers by a trail of growing, illuminating churches – every
one they labor with prospers.
I put my hand on a man's shoulders, once, when he asked me to congratulate him
on being called to a certain church. I said to him: "I will give you just
six months to split it into shivers." He said, "What do you
mean?" I said: "Is not that the result wherever, so far, you have
preached? Go back over your ministry and name a church that you really built
up." To my astonishment that man still thinks a great deal of me, and the
last talk I had with him he promised that if he was ever a pastor again he
would prove by his pastorate that he did not split things.
QUESTIONS
1. Locate on. a map the province of Asia, the seven
churches and the island of Patmos.
2. Show how the key passage of the first revelation,
1:12-16, unlocks the meaning of the second revelation, chapters 2 and 3.
3. Cite from Matthew and Revelation our Lord's own
uses of the word "church" (Greek ekklesia) and their bearing
on some modern misuses of the term "church," particularly "the
church universal" – visible or invisible.
4. Gather up into one sentence all the titles of
Christ in the second revelation, and explain each.
5. Show what the significance and effect of Christ
"walking among the candlesticks."
6. Show that the symbolic description of Christ in the
first and second revelation is that of a priest and king.
7. How is Christ present with the churches?
8. Show the diversity of the conditions of the
churches, no two alike.
9. By application show a similar diversity now.
10. Are these real letters to seven contemporaneous churches,
or a prophecy of seven successive periods of church history?
11. What adaptation do you find in Christ's variant
titles, rebukes, threats, and promises?
12. Gather up into one sentence the series of Christ's
promises, and what does the grouping show?
13. Keeping the outcome in view – chapter 11:15, what
effect on the mind of the imperfect churches and pastors, what two elements of
hope, and where do we find encouragement greater than the discouragement?
14. What is the necessary doctrine of the book on the
perpetuity of the churches, and what is the difficulty of the historical
tracing of this perpetuity, illustrating by Old Testament analogue?
THE CONDITION OF THE SEVEN CHURCHES IN
ASIA
Revelation 2-3
I will begin this chapter with some additional general observations.
My first observation is that in each city of these seven churches there are
three competing religions – heathen, Jewish, Christian. In every part we see
evidence of the conflict.
My second general observation refers to the meaning of the term
"angel" – each letter commences: "to the angel." Some
people have wrongly supposed that each church has a guardian angel. They fail
to tell us how these guardian angels communicated these messages to the
churches. There are quite a number of Greek words like "apostle,"
"deacon," "angel," that have both an etymological meaning
and an official meaning. Officially, the term "angel" refers to these
messengers from God – from the upper world – but the word means messengers or
representatives, and in this book – particularly in the cases of the angel in
the churches – it means pastor who is the representative of the church. If I
were to write a letter to the church at Austin, I would direct it to the pastor
of the church, and through him as the representative it would be communicated
to the church.
My third general observation relates to the doctrine of Balaam, to which
reference is made in the letters to two or three of the churches. You will
remember the analogue in the Old Testament where Balaam was called upon. to
prophesy against Israel, by Balak, the king of the Moabites, and God would not
let him prophesy any evil, but he coveted the big pay that Balak offered him,
and later suggested how Israel could be destroyed – by bringing about the
alienation from God, telling Balak to introduce to the Israelites the most
beautiful of the Moabitish women, and let them seduce the Israelites to partake
of the festivals of the heathen religion as well as of the Jewish religion, and
this open communion with the heathen religion resulted in the worst form of
immorality and idolatry that brought about the alienation between Israel and
Jehovah. Now there were two men and women living in these churches, or in these
cities, who taught that doctrine. They preached open communion between the
Christian religion and the heathen religion: "You come to my festival and
I will go to your festival: I will partake of your Lord's Supper with you if
you will partake of the heathen feast with me." Paul had already said:
"You cannot partake of the cup of the Lord and the cup of the devils; you
cannot eat at the table of the Lord and at the table of devils." That was
the teaching of Balaam as found in these churches – and very hurtful to several
of them, as you will see in the exposition.
My next general observation relates to the meaning of Nicolaitans, at least
twice referred to in our letters to the churches. Some people suppose that
Nicholas, who was ordained one of the seven deacons in the Jerusalem church,
mentioned in Acts 6, afterward founded the doctrine here referred to, and hence
those who adopted the doctrine were called "Nicolaitans." There is no
particle of evidence to connect Nicholas in Acts 6 with these Nicolaitans.
There was a Nicholas, doubtless, who did teach the doctrine that is here
mentioned, but what you want to know is not who started the doctrine, but what
was the doctrine. It was a form of Antinomianism: If election be true, and you
are saved by Christ and not by works, then it does not make any difference what
sin you commit; you are all right. I have seen in Texas a preacher who was a
Nicolaitan, who boldly taught in private that immorality committed by a
Christian cannot possibly result in any harm to him, and based his seduction to
evil upon that theory. But it is the doctrine of the devil, no matter if it be
a preacher who holds it, or somebody else.
My next general observation is to show Paul's connection with these seven
churches of Asia. All of them were established either directly or indirectly by
Paul. You will find the history ] in Acts 19, where he held his great meeting
at Ephesus, in which all of the province of Asia heard the word of God. The
next part of the history is in Acts 20, where Paul delivers his memorable
address to the elders of the church at Ephesus. Then, during his first Roman
imprisonment, he wrote to churches in this section concerning the Gnostic
philosophy. These letters are to the Colossians and the Ephesians. Then to
Philemon, who lived in this section, he wrote concerning Christianity's
attitude toward slavery. Then, still in the first Roman imprisonment, he wrote
to its Christian Jews – the letter to the Hebrews. After he escaped from that
Roman imprisonment he wrote the first letter to Timothy, who had charge under
Paul's direction of the church at Ephesus, and when the second time he was
imprisoned at Rome and had been condemned to death he wrote the second letter
to Timothy, still at Ephesus. So that up to A.D. 68, when Paul was martyred,
all these churches were under his apostolic jurisdiction.
My next general observation is to show John's connection with these seven
churches. You may see from uniform tradition that John moved to Ephesus as a
last surviving apostle and had charge of all these churches at least by A.D.
80. While living at Ephesus he wrote his three letters, which we have
considered. One of the fathers, Clement of Alexandria, expressly says that
after the death of Domitian, John escaped from exile in Patmos, and returned to
the city of Ephesus.
Now we are ready to take up the churches in the order of their condition:
First, Ephesus: this city was the metropolis of proconsular Asia, one of the
greatest cities of ancient times, having in it one of the seven wonders of the
world – the temple of Diana, whose religion, however, was not so much a Greek
religion as Oriental, since the Diana of the Ephesians was represented by a
wooden idol, a monstrous image that set forth the fruitfulness of nature – a
very different Diana from the Diana of the Greeks.
"To the angel of the church at Ephesus." Who was he? Some claim that
Timothy was the pastor at the time that John wrote this letter. There is no evidence
of it, and it is very highly improbable from the fact that Timothy was not a
pastor at all, but an evangelist, an apostolic delegate, and even in the second
letter to him Paul is calling him from Ephesus to come to Rome. It is not at
all probable that Timothy remained at Ephesus as pastor from A.D. 68 to 96,
when this book was written. So we will say we do not know who this pastor was
at Ephesus.
What things were commended in this letter to the church at Ephesus? If I was
teaching the book of Revelation to a class in Greek, I would have much to say
of the shades of meaning in the words employed. But confining myself to the
English, I will say that the things commended are: "Thy works, thy toil of
service, thy adherence to sound doctrine and the motive that prompted the
work." All was done for Christ's sake. Another thing commended was the
attitude of this church to false prophets. "Thou hast tried them that say
they are apostles and are not" – and just here we find an overwhelming argument
in favor of the late date of the book of Revelation. If you turn to John 4:1,
which he wrote from Ephesus, between A.D. 82 and 85, he gives his commandment
to try the spirits, whether they be of God. Now, later, he says that Ephesus
had obeyed that injunction: "Ye have tried them that say they are
prophets, or apostles, and are not, and condemned them." We will find one
of the seven churches that did not try themù1 will tell you which one when we
come to it.
The attitude of that church to the Nicolaitan doctrine we have just discussed
is also commended: "Thou hatest the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which
also I hate." So these are the things commended in that church.
The thing reprobated was just one thing: "Thou hast left thy first
love." That means: "You do not now possess that fervor of love which
filled your hearts when you professed to be Christians, when you were first
converted." Whoever has abated in the love that he had in his heart when
God converted him, that one needs a revival. That is a condition of the Ephesus
church. Sound in doctrine, sound in discipline, but they had not the love which
characterized their conversion.
How would that affect you, brothers and sisters? It hits me sometimes – not all
the time. I can never forget the love in my heart for God and man when God
converted me. At times it has abated, but characteristically it remains with
me, and many a time has even gone beyond what it was when I was first
converted.
Let us look, then, at the exhortation to this church: "Repent and do thy
first works" – that is to say, in the spirit of the love as you did at
first. The threat: "If you do not, I will come and remove thy
candlestick." We do know that the Ephesus candlestick was removed.
The church at Smyrna: Smyrna for more that two thousand years had been a city –
it is a city now, as it has now a population of about 200,000, and
three-fourths of the population today are nominally Christians: whether Greek
Catholics, Roman Catholics, or Protestants. It is the seat of great commerce,
situated as it is with such a splendid harbor on the Aegean Sea.
"And to the angel of the church at Smyrna" – who was that angel? I
can tell you this time. In A.D. 168 a pastor of that church, Polycarp, was
martyred under the rule of Marcus Aurelius, the Roman emperor. As he was about
to be executed he said to the proconsul who governed the province: "I have
been a Christian eighty-six years." Subtract 86 from 168, and you find
that he was converted in A.D. 82. Now we know that he was a pastor in A.D. 108,
for Ignatius in his writings says he visited Polycarp, the pastor at Smyrna,
that year. Tertullian, Ireneus, Eusebius, all say that Polycarp was made pastor
at Smyrna under the administration of the apostle John, and if he was converted
in A.D. 82 he would have been a Christian fourteen years when this letter was
written. That is time enough for him to become pastor of the church. He was one
of John's own converts. John went to Asia about A.D. 80, and in A.D. 82
Polycarp was converted, and when he became a preacher he was installed as
pastor of the church at Smyrna.
Now, what things are commended here? "I know thy tribulations and thy
poverty, but thou art rich", while in this world's goods the members of
the church were poor, in spiritual things they were rich. We will find, when we
come to Laodicea, the exact reverse: they were rich in this world's goods, but
in the sight of God they were miserable, poor, blind, and naked.
We notice in this letter to the church at Smyrna the attitude of the Jewish
religion to Christianity – "the synagogue of Satan" – those who say
they are Jews and are not. That is, they claim to be Jews on account of fleshly
descent from Abraham, but they are not the spiritual descendants of Abraham. So
that the Jewish church existed there as the bitterest enemy of the Christian
church. They are the people who accused Polycarp in A.D. 168, they brought the
wood to burn him at the stake, and helped to pile the fagots on the fire as he
was burning. You will notice that it makes no difference as to the mere form of
organization, whether Christian or Jewish, it is the devil who is the real
author of the evil, and hence it says here that "Satan shall cast many of
you into prison." Satan can work just as well, or maybe a little better,
through one who claims to be religious and is not, than through an outsider.
There is no censure on the church at Smyrna. There is an exhortation to be
faithful unto death. "They will put you to death, but I will give you the
crown of life." As it is expressed in Christ's address to the apostles:
"Fear not them who kill the body but are not able to kill the soul; rather
fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell," and though
they kill you in the body, which is the first death, I assure you, you will not
be hurt by the second death.
Pergamos: This is a city, at the present time, of about 30,000 inhabitants.
One-tenth of them are professing Christians, either Greek Catholics, Roman
Catholics, or Protestants of some kind. The heathen religion in this city was
the dominant force of evil, the patron deity was the demigod Esculapius – that
is, the physician god – but there were also temples in the city to Jupiter,
Minerva, Apollo, Venus, and Bacchus. Hence "I know where thou dwellest,
where Satan's throne is" – that is to say, the heathen religion in the
city of Pergamos was the religion of state, and enforced tests of allegiance on
pain of death.
What is commended here? That they hold fast, notwithstanding the persecuting
test, and do not deny Jesus Christ. Particularly was that so in the case of
their illustrious pastor, Antipas, who is mentioned here. When the heathen
authority demanded of him that he turn loose Christianity and avow the heathen
religion, he held fast and did not deny, and suffered death.
What is reprobated in this church? That it did not exercise gospel discipline;
they retained in their members Balaamites and Nicolaitans. I doubt not that it
was fear that prompted many of them, after the pastor was put to death, to say
this: "I will submit to the government test, at least have open communion
with the heathen; I will partake of their feasts and the things sacrificed to
the idols." Some of them were following the doctrine of Nicholas, saying:
"If you are a Christian it doesn't make any difference what you do."
The exhortation calls on them to repent, or else judgment from the sword that
issues from the mouth of Jesus Christ shall come upon them.
The next church is Thyatira. This inland church is commended for the following
things: love, faith, service, patience, and unlike the church at Ephesus, its
last works were better than its first. In Ephesus the first works were the
best, and the last works not up to the mark on account of having lost their
love.
What things are reprobated? They had not exercised discipline: "Thou hast
that woman Jezebel, who claims to be a prophet." That demand in 1 John 4:1
to try them that say they are prophets and apostles was disregarded. In this
case great trouble came to the church from a woman. When a woman is good she is
better than a man, but when she is bad she is worse than a man. The woman has
much to do with Christianity; she is for or against it, and the man who does
not recognize the might of woman's influence is blind. That is why I rejoice to
co-operate in every good work which the women undertake. I wish to assure you
that Lydia, who is mentioned in Acts 16, as being a woman of Thyatira, is not
the Jezebel who is mentioned here; it is a slander on Lydia. It is every way
improbable that Lydia of A.D. 52 is the Jezebel of A.D. 96. I am more inclined
to think she was the wife of the pastor. I do not know who the pastor was. You
pastors, your wives will be mighty where you work – mighty for good or mighty
for evil. Anyhow, this Jezebel claimed to be a prophetess, and that this
prophetic spirit told her that open communion with heathenism had no harm in
it. Now comes the great text for the preacher: "I gave her space to
repent, and she repented not." As a young preacher, in every revival
meeting I preached on "the space to repent," emphasizing the fact
that beyond that allotted time there was no hope of salvation. This woman
crossed the boundary line, she sinned against the Holy Spirit and her sin,
therefore, had never forgiveness, either in this world or in the next. There is
such a boundary line and then no more space for repentance.
There is reference in this letter to "the depths of Satan." It is a
little difficult to translate the Greek so as to convey the right idea. It is
quite probable that this is the thought: The Gnostic philosophers claimed that
they had a new knowledge, later and better than any revelation, as if to say:
"You know what Paul says, and you know what John said, but we have the
depths of a later and better knowledge." Our Lord admits the depths, but
declares them "the depths of Satan."
Sardis: This city is the capital of Croesus, said to be the richest man in the
world in his day. You read how Cyrus captured him and destroyed his empire.
Sardis, his capital, was always a city of great wealth. There is no
commendation in this letter, except toward the last he says: "There are a
few ill Sardis" – not many – "who have not defiled their
garments," but the church was absorbed in the acquisition of wealth and
swallowed up in worldly-mindedness. It is distinctly stated: "None of thy
works are perfect." We have found heretofore something exceptionally good
to commend – especially in the case of Smyrna. But the church at Sardis had no
excellence in any direction, whether in growth, fellowship, or mission work:
"None of thy works is perfect," hence the exhortation to repent is
accompanied by this sharp threat: "Repent, or I will come like a thief in
the night and visit you with my judgment." This is a coming of the Lord,
but not his final advent. It is like that coming in his other great prophecy,
concerning the evil servant who said in his heart, "My lord
tarrieth," and began to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with
drunken, to whom in an unsuspected hour the lord came, cut him asunder and appointed
a portion with hypocrites (Matt. 24:48-51) ; or like the rich fool who heard
the summons: "This night shall thy soul be required of thee."
The sixth church is Philadelphia. This was the smallest and weakest, and
apparently the most insignificant of the churches. Philadelphia was only a
-village situated on the top of a volcanic range of mountains; earthquakes
destroyed the place two or three times. An open door is set before it. The
persecuting Jews were to fall down before it and know that the Lord loved it.
There is a sweeping promise: "I will keep thee from the hour of trial,
that hour which is to come upon the whole world to try them." It is
difficult, in the light of subsequent history, to define precisely this
"hour of trial." It may refer in part to the great apostasy which
developed into the Roman hierarchy discussed in this book (chapter 17). Or in
part to the rise of Mohammedanism, A.D. 600, and which by A.D. 1392 had
conquered all the territory in which these churches were located. At any rate,
Dr. Justin A. Smith, at this point, quotes from the infidel historian, Edward
Gibbon, Decline arid Fall of the Roman Empire, referring to this
Turkish conquest: "in the loss of Ephesus the Christians deplored the fall
of the first angel, the extinction of the first candlestick of the Revelation;
the desolation is complete) and the Temple of Diana or the church of Mary will
equally elude the search of the curious traveller. The circus and three stately
theaters of Laodicea are now peopled with wolves and foxes; Sardis is reduced
to a miserable village; the god of Mahomet, without a rival or a son, is
invoked in the Mosques of Thyatira and Pergamos, and the populousness of Smyrna
is supported by the foreign trade of the Franks and Armenians. Philadelphia alone
has been saved by prophecy or by courage. At a distance from the sea, forgotten
by the emperors, encompassed on all sides by the Turks, her valiant citizens
defended their religion and freedom above fourscore years, and at length
capitulated with the proudest of the Ottomans. Among the Greek colonies and
churches of Asia, Philadelphia is still erect – a column in the scene of ruins
– a pleasing example that the paths of honor and safety may sometimes be the
same." So this church survived at least thirteen hundred years, long after
the other six had passed away. Indeed, the "pillar" to which Gibbon
refers still stands, as if to' accentuate the promise in verse 12, "I will
make him a pillar in the temple of my God" – what a glorious thing for
that weak church. Paul once wrote about Ephesus: "I will tarry at Ephesus
until the Pentecost, for a great door is opened unto me, and there are many
adversaries," but the Ephesus door had been shut a long time with the
Philadelphia door still open. There on the mountaintop the faithful pastor and
the faithful little village church were leading the people to Christ. The
"open door" connects suitably with the words of our Lord in the first
revelation: "I have the keys of death and Hades," and with the
beginning of this letter: "I have the key of David."
We may also compare Matthew 16:19, "I will give unto you the keys of the
kingdom of heaven." But the "keys" of the three passages are not
the same; the ideas are different:
1. The keys of the kingdom mean apostolic or church authority to declare the
terms of entrance into or rejection from the kingdom of heaven, illustrated by
the latter clause of I Matthew 16:19; 18:18; John 20:23; Acts 2:38; 5:9;
8:20-23;' 10:43; 16:30-31.
2. The keys of death and Hades mean Christ's authority over the death of the
body and to open the state or place of, disembodied souls. As when he says:
"The gates of Hades shall not prevail against the church," i.e., the
death of disciples, sending their souls into the spirit world, shall never so prevail
as to leave no surviving church on earth. Or when it is said:. "Thou wilt
not abandon my soul unto Hades" (Acts 2:27), i.e., my soul will not
continue disembodied, for my body will be raised (Acts 2:31). The same
authority over the dead would not permit Lazarus to return to the earth to warn
the brothers of the rich man, nor permit the prayers of the lost rich man to
relieve his own condition, nor to intervene for his kindred on earth (Luke
16:23-31). This authority exempted Enoch and Elijah from death as it will
exempt living Christians at his final advent (1 Corinthians 15:55-56), brings
back with him the souls of the saints in heaven when he returns (1
Thessalonians 4:14), and causes both the grave to give up its dead bodies and
Hades to give up its disembodied souls at the judgment (Revelation 20:13).
3. The key of David means Christ's authority to confer great opportunities for
saving men, as here in our passage, and in 1 Corinthians 16:8-9, i.e., of admitting
them to the saving presence of the Lord. Compare Isaiah 22:22.
The seventh church is Laodicea. Smyrna was hot – it flamed like fire in its
zeal; its fidelity unto death glowed like an oven. Sardis got as cold as ice.
But Laodicea was lukewarm, neither cold nor hot – it did not come out strong
and openly for anything. It was like the man in the canoe who once had lost his
paddle in the stream, and prayed: "Good Lord, help me – Good devil, help
me." That is the weakest of all characters, and when the strong expression
is here used: "I will spew thee out of my mouth," it is designed to
show that this condition is nauseating to the Lord Jesus Christ. That was the
Laodicean condition. And strange to say, they thought they were rich and needed
nothing; whereas, as God saw them, they were miserable and poor and blind and
naked.
I have heard Laodicean letters read at associations: "Dear Brethren: This
year's letter reports to you that we are at peace. Baptized – none; received by
letter – none; excluded – none; restored – none; given to missions –
nothing." That is the peace of death. I again wish to repeat that in no
age of the world have all of the churches been like Ephesus, or Smyrna, or
Pergamos, or Thyatira, or Sardis, or Philadelphia, or Laodicea. And in every
period of history there have been churches like all these types. What if next
Sunday the recording angel should come down and write on the board of every
church in Fort Worth some one of these seven names: Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos,
Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, or Laodicea? Some of the brethren would stand
out and read the inscription, and their knees would shake like Belshazzar's
when the handwriting of the Lord appeared on the wall.
We cannot in these chapters go into all the details of criticism like a
commentary – the salient points must suffice. But one verse concerning Laodicea
must be noticed somewhat: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock: If any
man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with
him, and he with me." It is a mistake to preach a sermon to sinners from
this text. It is addressed exclusively to delinquent church members. In walking
among the candlesticks our Lord knocks at the hearts of backslidden or
hypocritical .members, demanding admission and promising spiritual
intercommunion to those who admit him. In this way he often rings the spiritual
doorbell at the houses of professing Christians whose ears are quick to hear
the calls of fashion, pleasure, ambition, or business, but so stopped as never
to hear the ringing of him who comes often and patiently stands and keeps
ringing. Sometimes he rings by sickness, sometimes by financial loss, sometimes
by death in the house. The sickness, loss or death are realized, but they do
not recognize them as the calling of the Lord.
QUESTIONS
1. What three competing religions in proconsular Asia?
2. Meaning of the angel of the church?
3. What was the original doctrine of Balaam, and what
was its application to the Asian churches?
4. What was the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, and was
the Nicholas of Acts 6 the founder?
5. What Bible material showing Paul's connection with
the seven churches?
6. What was John's connection?
7. Tell of this city and its religion.
8. Was Timothy the angel of this church – giving
reasons for your answer?
9. What was the condition of this church– good or bad?
10. What strong evidence here of late date for the
book?
11. Tell of this city – past and present.
12. Who probably was angel of the church, giving
argument?
13. Its condition, and with what church contrasted?
14. What of the hostility of Jews to Christianity here
and how evident?
15. Who was the real author of persecution?
16. Tell of this city, its library, and heathen
religion.
17. What is the meaning of "Throne of
Satan"?
18. The things commended and reprobated?
19. Wherein were the conditions here contrasted with
Ephesus?
20. What was the chief cause of trouble here?
21. What evidence that this Jezebel was the Lydia of
Acts 16?
22. In the Old Testament analogue what was the
magnitude of the trouble caused by Jezebel?
23. What of the influence of woman on Christianity –
good or bad?
24. Show what Christian women workers are doing today.
25. What great text for revival sermon in this section
and its doctrine?
26. Meaning of "depths of Satan"?
27. Tell of history of this city and its
characteristics.
28. What was the condition of the church and only
commendation?
29. Explain the coming of the Lord in this account,
and cite similar cases.
30. Tell of the city and relative position of the
church..
31. Probable meaning of the "hour of trial on.
the whole world"?
32. Cite Gibbon’s testimony to the power of our Lord's
promise to keep this church.
33. With what scripture does the "open door"
connect?
34. Explain, in order, the three key passages cited in
chapter, and illustrate by other scriptures.
35. What was the condition of this church in its own
sight and God's?
36. What one word expresses their condition and what
strong term expresses our Lord's nausea at the condition?
37. What text here is misapplied to sinners, and
explain it.
THE PROMISES TO THE FAITHFUL IN THE
CHURCHES
Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 26-28; 3:5, 12, 21
Let us recall again that the Lord adapts his titles, exhortations, threats, and
promises to the varied conditions of the churches. In no two cases are they
alike.
This chapter is devoted to the promises. All these promises are connected with
one word "overcometh" – Greek "nikao." The details of these
promises are given in seven distinguishing series in the second and third
chapters, and the sum of them expressed in 21:7, "He that overcometh shall
inherit all things" – or better, "These things" referring back
to the things enumerated in 21:1-6.
Let us group into one sentence all the detailed and distinguishing promises of
the seven series: "To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree
of life, which is in the Paradise of God" – and "He shall not be hurt
of the second death" – and I will give to him the hidden manna, and I will
give him a white stone, and upon the stone a new name written, which no one
knoweth but he that receiveth it" – and "I will give him authority
over the nations, and he shall rule them with a rod of iron, as the vessels of
the potter are broken to shivers; as I also have received of my Father: and I
will give him the morning star" – and "he shall be arrayed in white
garments, and I will in no wise blot his name out of the book of life, and I
will confess his name before my Father and of my God, and he shall go out
thence no more; and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of
the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my
God, and mine own new name" – and "I will give to him to sit down
with me on my throne, as I also overcame and sat down with my Father on his
throne" (see 2:7, II, 17,26-28; 3:5,12,21).
GENERAL REMARKS ON THE PROMISES
1. They are all clothed in the most sublime imagery.
2. Their character, multitude, and magnitude are overwhelming, outshining any
galaxy in the natural skies. The mind is dazzled by their blended brilliance.
The hand of apprehension looses its grip in trying to grasp them and
comprehension must wait for understanding until the realization of
post-judgment experience.
3. Yet even now unstaggering faith receives them,, and hope lives in their
radiance. They reverse gravitation because they draw upward; they pull toward
heaven and uplift. They stimulate more than wine until one is intoxicated with
the Spirit. They awaken desire, develop strength, and inspire zeal.
4. Laying aside all dogmatism, comparing scripture with scripture in exceeding
humility, praying fervently for spiritual guidance, let us attempt an
interpretation.
Inasmuch as all these promises are to him that "overcometh," our
first concern is to know the meaning and sweep of this word, and just what or
whom must be overcome, and with what means we may overcome.
Evidently the word "overcometh" is not limited to one definite
transaction, but has a continuous meaning, a sweep beyond a single event. What
are its terminals? When does the overcoming commence and where does it end? It
commences with justification and ends at the death of the body with complete
sanctification of the soul. "He that endureth unto the end shall be
saved" – "Be thou faithful unto death, and thou shall receive a crown
of life." John elsewhere supplies the object of the verb. Twice he says: "Ye
have overcome the wicked one" (1 John 2:13-14). Three times he declares
the world as the object to be overcome (1 John 5:4-5). Only those "born of
God overcome the world."
The means of overcoming is "the blood of the Lamb"; the
instrumentality is faith – "and this is the victory that hath overcome the
world, even our faith" (1 John 5:4). Satan, his emissaries and the world
that lieth in him, must be overcome. By faith the child of God goes on from
victory to victory – from grace to grace – from strength to strength – from glory
to glory.
Let us now look separately at the promises themselves:
1. Access to the Tree of Life in the Paradise of God. Here, evidently, there is
allusion to the Genesis story. The purpose of the tree of life in the original
garden was to eliminate the mortality of the body. So that, in unfigurative
terms, this promise is the glorification of the body to be experienced without
death by all Christians living when our Lord comes, and by all Christians who
have died, after their resurrection. We may count the glorification of the
bodies of the two classes as practically simultaneous, since the righteous dead
are raised before the righteous living are changed, and together they are
caught up to the Lord (1 Thess. 4:13-18).
The promise means everything set forth in Paul's words (1 Corinthians 15:42-49,
51-58) : incorruption, glory, power, a spiritual body in the image of the
Second Adam; or in his other words, "Who shall fashion anew the body of
our humiliation, that it may be like the body of his glory, according to the
working whereby he is able even to subject all things unto himself" (Phil.
3:21). Or as John elsewhere puts it: "We know that if he shall be
manifested, we shall be like him" (John 3:2). Hence the psalmist: "I
shall be satisfied when I awake with thy likeness." This title to access
to the tree of life arises from cleansing by the blood of the Lamb, effected in
us when in regeneration and sanctification the Spirit applies the blood. See
later reference in this book (v. 14; 22:14). After Adam's fall he was expelled
from the garden lest he eat of this fruit and live forever in a body of sin
(Gen, 3:22), but a throne of grace and mercy was established at the east of the
garden where the sword flame, or Shekinah, dwelt between the Cherubim to keep open
the way to the tree of life through vicarious sacrifices (Gen. 3:24; 4:4; Heb.
11:4).
2. "Shall not be hurt of the second death." The meaning of the second
death is the casting of both soul and risen body into the lake of fire (Rev.
20: 14-15). It is the final decision of our Lord at the general judgment, and
fixes forever the status of the lost. The lake of fire is a metaphor, of
course, but expresses a reality not less fearful than the figure. Into this
torment the soul of a lost sinner goes immediately after the death of the body
– see the parable of Dives and Lazarus, Luke 16. But from this disembodied
state of torment the soul is called to the general judgment, where it is united
to its risen body – "Death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them"
(Rev. 20:13), i.e., the body came from the grave and the soul from its place in
torment. Then on the sentence of the judge the lost man, soul and body, is cast
into the lake of fire, which is the second death.
While both memory and conscience will afflict the lost forever, the lake of
fire is punitive, and not the remorse of conscience, which is only
consequential. That this final sentence is punitive appears from Matthew 25:41,
46, and 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9. It is further described by our Lord as a destruction
of soul and body in Gehenna, and directly contrasted with the first death, or
the death of the body: "And be not afraid of them that kill the body, but
are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him who is able to destroy both
soul and body in hell" (Greek Gehenna).
This promise was specially precious to the church at Smyrna, at that time
undergoing persecution unto death. The devil, through his agents, might kill
their bodies, the first death, but these martyrs should not be hurt of the second
death.
3. "I will give to him the hidden manna." The "hidden
manna" is an allusion to the memorial pot of manna hidden in the ark of
the covenant. This represented Christ as the bread of life, sent from heaven –
see the great discussion, John 6: 27-59. Whosoever by faith appropriates the
body and blood of Christ has eaten food which nourishes unto eternal life. An
eater of the manna in the desert did not escape death, but the believer in
Jesus Christ, antitype of the memorial manna hidden in the ark of the covenant,
shall never die.
This promise is on a line with the preceding one, and particularly appropriate
to Pergamos, whose heretics were eating the meat offered to idols, following
Balaam, which was a food unto death, but whose faithful ones are promised the
bread of life.
4. "I will give him a white stone and on the stone a new name written
which no one knoweth but he that receiveth it." Observe that this is the
second promise to the church at Pergamos. To the same person is given both
"the hidden manna" and "the stone," whose inscription is
hidden to all but the recipient. There appears to be a connection of thought
between the two promised which may be helpful toward an interpretation of the
white stone. Let us follow up this clue.
Satan's throne was at Pergamos. That is, he completely dominated the municipal
government. This was a Greek city, subject to Greek method of judicial
procedure. A test of loyalty to the government would be a participation in the
idolatrous feasts. We know from Paul's letter to the Greek city of Corinth that
a Christian might not eat at both the Lord's table and the devil's table, nor
drink of both the Lord's cup and the cup of devils. So refraining from the
heathen idol feasts was a test of loyalty to Christ. And so the same Satan who
inspired Balaam to spring this test on the Israelites inspired the later
Balaamites to compromise on this open communion between the two religions) and
inspires the municipal government to demand like compromises of the other
members of the church. Fear may have prompted the tempted to this compromise,
and fear may have inspired the church to refrain from disciplining the
heretical and immoral members, especially after their pastor, Antipas, was
murdered for his fidelity.
A Greek city expressed judgment on persons arraigned by a kind of ballot, using
shells as at Athens, or pebbles here whose significance declared for acquittal
or condemnation – white for acquittal or black for guilty. Following this line
of thought the promise would mean: If the devil-prompted city condemns your
loyalty to Christ by a ballot of black pebbles, he will acquit you by the white
stone of justification. This view gathers force from the title of our Lord when
addressing the church: "These things saith he that hath the sharp
two-edged sword." In the vision, 1:16, this sword issues from his mouth,
and hence represents his word of judgment. It is a judge symbol (Heb. 4:12-13).
Moreover, the inscription on the white stone can be made to harmonize with this
interpretation. It is a "new name" unknown to the heathen judges, but
well known to the recipient. If this be our Lord's own new name as later
revealed in the book (Rev. 19:12-13, 16) it is intensely significant in the
connection: "Word of God," "King of kings and Lord of
lords," i.e., the earthly judgment condemns, the divine judgment acquits,
the condemnation is from earthly lords – the justification from the Lord of
lords. The expression "known only to him who receives it" means the
assurance of divine acceptance, the witness of the Spirit, bearing witness with
his own spirit, which, being entirely a matter of personal experience, cannot
be known to any one except the recipient.
5. "And I will give him authority over nations, and he shall rule them
with a rod of iron, as the vessels of a potter are broken into shivers."
More than any one of the other promises does this one need careful exposition.
Its misinterpretation has been productive of monstrous evils in the Christian
centuries, and the end is not yet. It is quoted to support the Romanist
pretension that all nations are under the absolute jurisdiction of the Papal
hierarchy, in the exercise of which continents have been bestowed upon favorite
monarchs, kings have been dethroned subjects absolved from allegiance, crusades
preached, property confiscated, cruel persecutions waged, marriages annulled
family ties dissolved. The record of these evils constitutes the bloodiest
volumes in the annals of time. Nor has its misuse been limited to the
Romanists. The evils are not less evil when flowing from Protestant or Greek
Catholic misapplication. They have prevailed whenever and wherever religious
sectaries of any name have usurped control over states. "The mad men of
Munster," the Cameronians of Scotland, the Fifth Monarchy men of
Cromwell's day, the Muggletonians and Mormons of this country, all belong to
the same category
In order to correct interpretation we must first understand the terms employed
and their biblical usage.
(a) First of all, the promise, whatever it means, is not to any religious
denomination or ecclesiastical organization, but only to the individual
Christian who overcomes: "To him that overcometh I will give" – it is
not a grant of power to any one of the seven churches, nor to all of them
combined. This is a .capital, fundamental, crucial, vital fact, essential to
correct interpretation.
(b) The promise is not "power" – Greek dunamis – but
"authority" – Greek exousia.
(c) The verb "shall rule" is not basileuo, but poimaino,
which means "to shepherd" – "he shall shepherd them."
(d) "The rod of iron," Greek rabdos – rod of correction – is
the shepherd's rod, iron-tipped at one end, and with a crook at the other end.
See the Septuagint for the Shepherd Psalm: "Thy rod and thy staff they
comfort me." The shepherd does not carry two things, one a rod, and the
other a staff, but the same thing is either rod or staff according to its use.
See the author's sermon on Psalm 23:4.
(e) The "breaking into shivers as a potter's vessel," is not
necessarily for ultimate destruction, but may look to reconstruction (see Jer.
18:4-10). It becomes destructive only when impenitence becomes incorrigible
(Jer. 19:1-11), and even then applies not to all the nation but only to its
hostile elements. In other words, we miss the mark if we construe all this rule
as punitive. The primary intent looks to correction and salvation; as the
shepherd goads the wandering sheep with the iron-tipped end of his staff into a
safer path, or draws him back from a precipice with the crook at the other end,
or sets up the staff as an ensign for rallying the flock together in time of
danger, or with it counts them each morning and evening as they, one by one,
"pass under the rod" in leaving the fold for pasturage or returning
to it for shelter, or in using it as a weapon of offence against the enemies of
the flock.
(f) This rule, or shepherding, so far as exercised mediately in time by him
that overcometh, is not executive, but instructive and declarative. When God,
in time, "hews a nation by a prophet," the prophet simply declares,
but does not execute the divine threat. As Jonah was sent, not to overturn
Nineveh, but merely to declare "Yet forty days and Nineveh shall be
overthrown." And the case of Nineveh will show the merciful intent of
Jeremiah's illustration of the potter's vessel: "At what instant I shall
speak concerning a nation or kingdom to pluck up, and to break down, and to
destroy it, if that nation concerning which I have spoken turn from their evil,
I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them" (Jer. 19: 7-10).
The overcoming Christian, like the ancient prophet, is God's mouthpiece to the
nations: "Behold! I have put my words into thy mouth: see this day I have
put thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down
and to destroy, and to overthrow, to build and to plant." (Jer. 1: 9-10.)
Even in the prototype of our passage (Psalm 2:8-12), where the nations are
given to our ascended Lord for an inheritance, and where it is said: "Thou
shalt break them with an iron rod, and shalt dash them into pieces as a
potter's vessel," the verses which follow show the merciful and
instructive intent of the threat. Which passage naturally leads to our last
thought in this connection:
The authority promised is derivative and limited, and not inherent and
absolute, and arises from the overcoming Christian's unity with Christ and his
representative function of acting mediately for Christ. This is evident from
the modifying clause: "even as I have received from my Father."
Here it is quite important to understand the meritorious ground of Christ's own
authority, how received and to what end, since what he received is that which
he imparts and certainly to the same end, and which so imparted must be
exercised as he himself used it. The authority in question does not rise from
his Sonship in eternity, but from his Sonship in the flesh. It is expressly
said to be derived from the voluntary humiliation and vicarious expiation of
sin in the flesh. See particularly Philippians 2:6-11. Hence, historically, he
was invested with universal sovereignty after his resurrection. The author
insists that you carefully study this proof: Daniel 7: 13-14; Psalm 2:1-12;
110:1; Acts 2:33-36; 4:25-27; Revelation 5:12-14. In times antecedent to his
actual historical sacrifice for sin, when sin is remitted to a penitent
believer or rule exercised over a nation, it is by anticipation of that
sacrifice, God accepting his promise to die for man as if already it had been
done, so that as this book later puts it: "A Lamb slain from the
foundation of the world."
In his exalted and glorified humanity he was made "head over all things to
his church." It is to this he refers as the predicate of his Great
Commission: "All authority in heaven and on earth is given unto me. Go ye,
therefore, disciple all the nations" (Matt. 28:18). And from this passage
we gather both the method and the end of "shepherding the nations."
The method is not a carnal one, by fire and sword, as rule is enforced by
worldly kingdoms, but spiritual. The primary end is not destruction, but
salvation. The exercise of this authority, whether by himself directly, or
mediately through his people, is to promote the interest of his spiritual
kingdom. Hence the proximate result of its exercise is expressed in Daniel
2:44; Psalm 72:5-17; Revelation 11:15, and its ultimate result in Revelation
21:23-27. The capital error of the Jews throughout the ages has been an
expectation of a Messiah who would in a literal earthly sense occupy the throne
of David in Jerusalem and dominate the world. This idea, which he repudiated so
emphatically at his first advent, he will not adopt at his final advent. The
premillennial contention to the contrary is the most notorious anticlimax in
all the vagaries of interpretation.
6. "And I will give him the morning star." This is the second promise
to the faithful in Thyatira. The meaning of this symbolism is obvious. As the
morning star is the herald of the coming day, so to the faithful our Lord will
give a premonition of the final glorious triumph. This, of course, is the
inward assurance by the Spirit realized in personal experience, just as the
white stone symbol of acquittal bears an inscription equal to internal
assurance, known only to the recipient. As Peter expresses it, we have the
surer word of prophecy shining as a lamp in the night: "until the day star
arise in your hearts." Paul (1 Thess. 5:3-4) declares that in the day of
our Lord, which comes as a thief in the night, the destruction of the wicked is
sudden, and adds by way of contrast: "But ye, brethren, are not in
darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief." There is no
question that the final advent of our Lord to raise the dead and judge the
world will be personal, visible, audible, palpable, and that this advent is the
great event of the future, as his first advent was until his incarnation. Nor
is it questioned that this book, as others of the New Testament, clearly
discusses it. But it is equally clear, in this and other New Testament books,
that signal time events, as the coming of the Spirit, and particularly great
judgments – as the destruction of Jerusalem, or the removal of a candlestick,
or death to an individual, are called "a coming of the Lord." In this
sense he is always coming. He is only a tyro in biblical interpretation who
insists that every scriptural reference to a coming of the Lord must be
construed as an allusion to his final advent. The promise of the gift of the
"morning star" applies as much to these time comings as to his final
advent, e.g., he gave to his elect a premonitory sign which enabled them to
escape the wrath of his coming in the destruction of Jerusalem.
7. "He shall be arrayed in white garments." This is the first promise
to the overcoming few in Sardis who "had not defiled their garments."
In order to a correct interpretation of this passage we must collate it with
the following correlative passages: The "wedding garment" of Matthew
22:12; the "white robe" conferred on the souls of the martyrs,
Revelation 7: 9, 13-14; the fine linen or wedding garment of the Bride at the
marriage of the Lamb, Revelation 19:7-8; and the "washed robes" that
entitle to the tree of life, Revelation 22:14.
Once in my early ministry, before preaching a sermon on the "Wedding
Garment" of Matthew 22:12, I read Dr. Broadus' comment on the passage
interpreting the wedding garment to mean righteousness in character and life,
adding: "But to bring in the Pauline conception of imputed righteousness,
and understand the parable to teach that, we must put on the wedding garment of
Christ's imputed righteousness, is altogether out of place." Then, I read
Dr. Gill's comment, taking the opposite position, insisting that we must
interpret the wedding garment to mean the imputed righteousness of Christ.
Whereupon a lawyer of my congregation whispered to another lawyer: "When
Broadus points one way and Gill another way this darky is swine to take to the
woods." The other replied: "Before taking to the woods, let's hear
the pastor."
So I say now, before taking to the woods on this promise, hear the author, for
there is a middle road agreeing in part, with both Broadus and Gill, and
following neither altogether. Both are right in interpreting the wedding
garment to mean righteousness, or holiness, rather, but this holiness is not
limited, as Gill would have it, to justification, nor to character and life as
Broadus has it. But Dr. Broadus is nearer right than Gill in this that the
wedding garment righteousness refers not at all to the salvation done for us –
that is to say, in its legal aspects as accomplished by redemption,
justification, and adoption – but altogether to the salvation wrought in us by
both regeneration and sanctification. Every redeemed, justified, and adopted
man is at the same time internally cleansed from the defilement of sin by the
Spirit's application of Christ's blood. This is the first and an essential part
of regeneration. Regeneration consists of (1) cleansing from the defilement of
sin by the Spirit's application of the blood of Christ, and (2) of renewing.
Both of these integral parts of regeneration come at justification. Then the
work of internal cleansing, begun in regeneration, is carried on through
sanctification, which is completed at the death of the body, so that of these
disembodied saints we may say with Hebrews 12:23, "The spirits of just men
(justified) made perfect," or with Revelation 6:11, "And there was
given them to each one a white robe" – i.e., to the soul of each martyr
underneath the altar, as revealed at the opening of the fifth seal.
The cleansing part of regeneration was typified by the sprinkling with a bunch
of hyssop, of the liquefied ashes of the red heifer, or water of purification
(Ezek. 36:25; Heb. 9: 13-14). This is "the washing of regeneration"
in Titus 3:5, referred to also in 1 Corinthians 6:11, "Such were some of
you, but ye were washed." And, if you are able to bear it, this is the
"born of water" in John 3:5, which Nicodemus, a teacher in Israel,
was rebuked for not understanding, so clearly was it taught in the Old
Testament.
In the same way was the cleansing of sanctification applied to the penitent
backslider David (Psalm 51:2, 7), "Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin; purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash
me, and I shall be whiter than snow." And to the cleansing of both
regeneration and sanctification does Paul refer in Ephesians 5:26-27,
"That he might sanctify it, having cleansed it by the washing of the water
with the word, that he might present the church to himself a glorious church,
not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and
without blemish." The grace of this cleansing, whether in regeneration or
sanctification, appears from its efficient cause, the blood of Christ:
"And one of the elders answered saying unto me: These that are arrayed in
the white robes, who are they, and "whence come they? And I say unto him,
My Lord, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they that come out of great
tribulation, and they washed their robes and made them white in the blood of
the Lamb." "Blessed are they that wash their robes, that they may
have the right to come to the tree of life and may enter in by the gates into
the city."
Now, this internal cleansing, this perfecting in personal holiness, is
symbolized by-the white robe, or wedding garment: And it was given unto the
Lamb's wife that she should array herself in fine linen, bright and pure; for
the fine linen is the righteousnesses of the saints." Note the plural
"righteousnesses," which does not mean as the Revision puts it
"the righteous acts of the saints." This would flatly contradict the
regeneration part of this righteousness (see Titus 3:5). And so it would
contradict the many cleansings of sanctification – "Christ being made unto
us sanctifications," every time as in David's case, the Spirit applies the
same cleansing blood.
It is true enough that the regenerated man, progressing in sanctification,
acquires personal character, exhibited in life and good works. But this is not
what is meant by the wedding garment of Matthew or the white robe of
Revelation, which is the same thing. The white robe means holiness, as God is
holy. The means of the cleansing is Christ's atoning blood. This is applied by
the Spirit and apprehended by faith. The whole of it is God's work and is of
grace from the first cleansing in regeneration to the last cleansing of
sanctification. That it is not character on earth is evident from Revelation
6:2, where it is bestowed after death. So with the teaching of 7:13-14, and
19:7. The glorious result is expressed in Ephesians 5:27 – "that he might
present the church to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or
any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish." It will
also be forever true that the elect are immune from any law charge because
wrapped in the righteousness of Christ imputed to us when by faith we are
espoused to Christ. And also forever true that the white robe of the marriage
is another thing, being personal holiness wrought in us by the Holy Spirit in
regeneration and sanctification. It is therefore respectfully submitted that
Dr. Gill is in error when he expounds the wedding garment to be Christ's
righteousness imputed to us, or anything done for us in the legal acts of
redemption, justification, adoption, and equally so that Dr. Broadus is
mistaken when he interprets it to mean our character or life as the embodiment
of deeds done by us, no matter how much they may have been the fruits of grace.
But it means personal holiness wrought in us by the Holy Spirit:
(1) By the cleansing of regeneration when the blood of Christ is applied by the
Spirit. Ezekiel 36:25; Hebrews 9:14; first clause of 10:22; Titus 3:5, first
clause; 1 Corinthians 6:11, first clause.
(2) By the continued cleansing of sanctification until holiness of spirit is
perfected – as in the cleansing of backslidden David (Psalm 2:2, 7); in the
continual changes into Christ's image (2 Cor. 3:18).
That both the cleansing in regeneration and the subsequent cleansing of
sanctification are meant is evident from that one supreme proof text, Ephesians
5:26, compared with Revelation 6:11, first clause, and 7:13-14; 22:14.
The plural "righteousnesses" in Revelation 19:8, refers therefore not
to acts of the saints but to the Spirit's acts in the saints.
8. "7 will in no wise blot out his name out of the book of life."
This is the second promise to the faithful at Sardis. Two questions are: (1)
What is the book of life, and (2) the exact force of not blotting out the name?
What, then, is the book of life? By its very name it is a register of
immortals. "He that believeth in me shall never die" – shall never
come into condemnation – "but hath eternal life." The nature of this
book may be considered from one of two views:
(1) A list of all his elect as God saw them before the foundation of the world.
This would be the list of the original divine purpose. This view has been
supported largely by an interpretation of Revelation 13:8; 17:8; but this
interpretation is very doubtful, since it makes the phrase "from the
foundation of the world" modify "written in the book" rather
than the "Lamb slain." Your Standard Revision supports this view.
(2) A much safer view is that it is a register of judicial decisions, each name
written when the owner is justified (Isa. 4: 3). It has this meaning in
Revelation 20:15:21:27, and Daniel 12:1. And because this judicial decision is
irrevocable, it explains the ground of joy in our Saviour's words to the
seventy (Luke 10:20), and the fact that no indictment can be drawn against
God's elect, since it is God that justifies (Rom. 8:33). See also Philippians
4:3, and Hebrews 12:23.
On the meaning of this book and its use at the judgment (Rev. 20:15) is written
this hymn: When thou, my righteous judge, shalt come To take thy ransomed
people home, Shall I among them stand? Shall I, who sometimes am afraid to die,
Be found at thy right hand? Oh, can I bear the piercing thought: What if my
name shall be left out?
What then is the exact force of not blotting out the name? In all Greek cities,
and later at Rome, there was an enrolment of citizens as distinguished from the
general population who had no rights of citizenship. Citizenship could be
forfeited during life by adjudged infidelity to the city, decided by a vote of
the unaccused citizens, followed by erasure of the name. Some of the best
citizens were thus, by prejudice, ostracized, as Greek history shows. A
Christian citizen of Sardis might thus lose citizenship on account of loyalty
to Christ. Of course, death ended this earthly citizenship. It is the object of
the promise to contrast the enrolled citizenship in the heavenly Jerusalem with
the enrolled citizenship in Sardis. The point of contrast lies between two
citizenships, the two enrolments, and particularly in the fact that heavenly
citizenship, after once being enrolled, was never forfeited: "I will in no
wise blot his name out of the book of life." Many commentaries miss the
point in supposing that the heavenly enrolment is a probationary list, subject
to erasure, and that this implication inheres in the promise as well as in the
threat of Revelation 22:19. Your author is fully persuaded that this position
is untenable. He not only admits, but contends, that citizenship was
forfeitable not only in Greek cities and in Rome, but also in the Jewish state,
but utterly denies it of the heavenly citizenship, and that this very fact is
the essence of the promise.
9. "I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go out
thence no more; and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of
the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my
God, and my own new name."
Perhaps the most imposing, most ornamental, if not the most useful parts of a
great edifice are its pillars. Only the wealth of a king could supply even one
of the pillars of the temple of Diana at Ephesus. The surviving pillars in the
ruins of ancient temples and cities yet challenge the admiration of the world
as masterpieces of human skill and genius. It marked the prominence and
importance of James, Cephas, and John to be "reputed as pillars" in
the Jerusalem church (Gal. 2:29), and glorified the church when called
"the pillar of the truth" (I Tim. 3:15). To be made, therefore, an
everlasting pillar in the heavenly temple is an expression of the highest
honor. This honor is enhanced by the inscriptions on it by the divine architect
himself – the name of God, the name of the new Jerusalem, the new name of the
architect himself, to wit: "Faithful and True . . .
KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS"
(Rev. 19:11,13,16).
10. "I will give to him to sit down with me in my throne, as I also
overcame and sat down with my Father in his throne." This is not the
throne of ruling, expressed in a previous promise, but the throne of final
judgment. On the last great day, earth's supreme assize, the faithful ones are
placed at the Lord's right hand, i.e., on his judgment throne (Matt. 25:31,
33), and shall participate with him in passing judgment on wicked men and
angels. Jesus had already promised to his apostles that in the world's
regeneration (palingenesia, i.e.) the time of the restoration of all
things), they should sit on the twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of
Israel (Matt. 19: 29). And Paul had said: "Know ye not that the saints
shall judge the world? Know ye not that we shall judge angels?" (1 Cor.
6:23). What a reversal of earth condition when the Sanhedrin that tried Peter
and John shall be judged by them! When Gallic, Festus, Agrippa, and Nero shall
stand before Paul's tribunal. What poetic justice when Job and Peter shall
judge the devil.
Note: The questions on this chapter consist of the meaning of each promise, or
part of a promise.
THE THRONE OF GRACE
Revelation 4-5
In the preceding chapters on Revelation 2-3, we have considered an earth scene
of "the things that are" – a most discouraging view. Now we consider
a heaven scene of "the things that are" – a most encouraging view.
The first thought is "the heavens opened." Many people live and die
without a vision of heaven. To them heaven is vague and far away, exercising no
influence on their lives. Others, by faith, see things invisible. The Old
Testament examples of the vision of heaven are worthy of study. The examples
are many but I cite only three:
Jacob left home for the first time – to be gone many years and never to see his
mother again. Camping one night – all alone – with a stone for his pillow – he
dreamed that he saw a stairway reaching from earth to heaven – on which angels
descended and ascended. According to the New Testament this stairway was our
Lord Jesus Christ restoring communication between heaven and earth. The vision
converted Jacob and revolutionized his life. He called that place "the
house of God and the Gate of Heaven." That one experience of the sensible
presence of God – of heaven's interest in the pilgrims of earth – dissipated
his loneliness and fear and never lost its power.
Again, in the discouraging year when King Uzziah died, Isaiah was cheered by a
vision of the King who never dies. He saw heaven opened and the throne of
eternal mercy – the ministering angels – all aflame with interest in earth's,
affairs. Yet again, Ezekiel, in the more discouraging times of the exile, had a
glorious vision of the throne of grace and its circle of flaming – wide-awake –
ministering angels. In the light of the vision exile changed to restoration and
restoration to the spiritual eternal kingdom of God.
So here, chapters 4-5, the heavens are opened to John, the exile on Patmos, and
in the light of its vision, the discouraging earth view of the imperfect
churches and pastors is swept away forever and in its stead, through panorama
after panorama, he sees the ultimate triumph and universal prevalence of the
kingdom of God.
At the outset let me assure you there is no reason for you to be dismayed at
the symbolism of these chapters. The book is a revelation, not a hiding. It is
not difficult to understand the leading thoughts and central facts underlying
the imagery.
What, then, are the particulars of the vision? First of all he saw a throne. We
know it to be the throne of grace by the rainbow arch above it.
On that throne, whether described by Isaiah, Ezekiel, or John, the Almighty is
presented in an exceedingly reticent way. No man has seen God directly at any
time, nor can see him. He said to Moses: "You saw no image." So here
the Father appears without form or shape – vaguely seen as the brilliance of a
jewel. But the thought is clear "The Lord God omnipotent reigneth – let
the earth rejoice." Before the throne is a sea. In this and other
apocalyptic books – the sea represents the peoples or nations of the earth –
with this difference: As seen on earth Satan appears dominant over the sea of
peoples. It is there storm-tossed (Dan. 7:2-3), one beast (or nation) rising up
after another. But before God in heaven, who overrules, that sea (of nations)
becomes placid as a mirror. To him the nations are but drops of water in a
bucket. He sees a representation of the third person of the Trinity, the Holy
Spirit: "Seven lamps of fire – which are the seven Spirits of God."
Seven is a perfect number meaning any number necessary, but here just seven to
show that the Omnipresent Spirit is with each of the seven churches named in
the preceding chapters. If a hundred churches on earth had been named, the symbolisms
here would have been "one hundred lamps of fire which are the hundred
Spirits of God."
He saw the second person of the Trinity, the Son of God, not as he was before
the creation of the world, but as a Lamb that had been slain now alive to die
no more.
So he saw all the Holy Trinity and each in a way to identify the throne as a
throne of grace – the Father and the rainbow – a Spirit for every church – the
Son as a Lamb once slain but now alive.
He sees the Cherubim or "four living ones." Do not follow the common
version "four beasts" as if the Greek word were "therion"
as in Rev. 13:1, but "zoa," living ones. Now, as there is more
confusion of mind concerning the Cherubim than perhaps any other thing it is my
purpose to give you a clear conception of them gathered from the Scriptures
alone.
1. The Cherubim of Ezekiel 10:1-20, are the same as "living ones" of
Ezekiel 1:5, and Revelation 4:6, (Greek zoa), and the same as the
Seraphim of Isaiah 6:2. Seraphim expresses merely the glowing flames or
luminous quality of the Cherubim. It is human rhetoric or poetic license that
makes them distinct orders of beings.
2. Their number is always and only four (Ezek. 1:5; 10: 10; Rev. 4:6). But as
from an east, west, north, or south angle of vision only two can be seen, so on
the mercy seat – an east view – only two can be made visible. Hence the
directions to Moses to make two (Ex. 25:18).
3. The Cherubim are Angels, but angels of high honor and princely character
always nearest the throne of God, as seen by Isaiah, Ezekiel, and John. That
they are angels is evident from Psalm 104:4, correctly interpreted by Hebrews
1:7. It is more evident from 1 Peter 1:12, referring to the posture of the
Cherubim bending over and gazing down upon the mercy seat: "Which things
angels desire to look into." Hence also Cherubim were placed on a great
veil that shrouded the most holy place as if endeavoring to peep through that
veil and comprehend the mystery of Redemption.
4. They are not angels of wrath but always associated with, the throne of
grace, as you may see by tracing the word through a concordance. Every
manifestation of mercy exhibits them. God, intervening for fallen men, is
always represented as sitting, or dwelling, or appearing, or speaking between
or amonn the Cherubim. As the Shekinah, or sword-flame, he dwelt between the
Cherubim, to keep open the way to the tree of life, when the throne of grace
was established at the east of the district of Eden when man was expelled from
paradise (Gen. 3:24; see rendering in Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown), and there
Abel found him and through atoning sacrifice and faith found his way back to
the tree of life (Gen. 4:4, and Heb. 11:4).
This precise idea of Genesis was embodied by divine directions to Moses in the
construction of the mercy seat of the tabernacle (Ex. 25:18-22; 26:31; 37:8).
Here, between the Cherubim, God's voice was heard (Num. 7:89). Here God dwelt
(I Sam. 1:24; 2 Sam. 6:2; Psalm 80: 1; 99:1; Isa. 37:16; Heb.'9:5). And so in
the Temple of Solomon (I Kings 6:23; 2 Kings 19:15; I Chron. 13:6). And just so
in Ezekiel's ideal temple (Ezek. 41:18).
5. The four Cherubim, combined, constitute the chariot of God, moving on
purposes of mercy (1 Chron. 28:18; Psalm 18:10). In this chariot of fire Elijah
ascended to heaven (2 Kings 2:11). Compare the sarcasm of Isaiah 27:18, on the
death of Shebna. Doubtless also it was this angel chariot that met the beggar
Lazarus at the depot of death and carried him away to banquet with Abraham in
the kingdom of heaven (Luke 16:22). Hence, not without power, and certainly
with instructed piety, the happy camp meeting Negroes of the South are
accustomed to sing, "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot!" If ever that fire
chariot goes on a mission of wrath it is always, like the wrath of the Lamb,
because of mercy despised (Isa. 65:15). The heavenly realities which forecast
these symbols for tabernacle and Temple in the visions of Isaiah, Ezekiel, and
John certainly indicate the angelic interest and activity of the Cherubim in
the plan, method, and work of salvation.
6. Each Cherub is symbolically represented with four faces, fronting east,
south, west, and 'north, to indicate their power to see, and their readiness to
move in any direction without turning around. So, in the description of Ezekiel.
To illustrate, the camp of Israel fronted four ways, three tribes on each of
the four sides. In military maneuvers a battalion may form a hollow square,
facing and fighting in four directions.
7. The different faces expressed the qualities of the Cherubim. The face of the
man indicated intelligence, and sympathy with man; the face of the eagle
indicated great powers of vision and flight; the face of the ox indicated
endurance and strength; the face of the lion indicated courage. Thus, facing
east you see the face of a man, and on one side you see the face of an eagle,
and on the other side the face of an ox, and on the back view the face of a
lion.
8. The highest number of wings actually named as in use at one time is six
(Isa. 6:2; Rev. 4:8), yet there must have been two wings for each face – eight
altogether. The idea conveyed is that they are always ready to fly in the
direction any face fronted without turning around. The number of wings seen at
any time depended on circumstances, particularly on the angle of vision. Seen
over the mercy seat, from an east front, only two faces and four wings are
visible; seen at rest every wing is folded and none is visible (Ezek. 1:25)
9. The wheels represent the means of movement on earth, as the wings represent
the means of movement in the air. There was a wheel for each face (Ezek. 1:15).
Now, as a pair of wings for each face indicated capacity and readiness to fly
in the direction that face fronted, so the same idea is expressed in the earth
motion by "a. wheel within a wheel." To grasp this thought, conceive
of one tire of a wagon wheel pressed into another at right angles. Such a
double wheel would not only stand of itself, but without turning could be
rolled in four directions. With the exercise of a little ingenuity, you can
make a double pasteboard wheel that embodies the idea.That is a wheel within a
wheel. It can roll any one of four ways without turning. The same thought may
be seen in the rollers to the legs of a table that enables you to push or pull
in any direction without turning the table.
Ezekiel repeatedly presents this thought, that whether the Cherubim fly with
wings, or glide on wheels, they never turn around. They always move straight
forward, whether it be one Cherub or four. If the four be together, two faces
and four wings and two wheels front every cardinal point of the compass, being
ever ready to see, fly or glide north, east, south, or west without turning. In
any element, land, sea, or air they are ever ready for sight or movement in four
directions. An auto must turn round for a new direction, but the Cherubim moves
straight forward – the chariot of God never made a turn. Dr. J. R. Graves
borrowed from Ezekiel's Cherubim, i.e., "A wheel within a wheel," his
idea of Methodism, as set forth in his "Great Iron Wheel" – but he
utterly missed Ezekiel's idea of the number of wheels and their relative size
and position. Ezekiel's wheel was double, each of the same size, and
interfitted at right angles. Dr. Graves' idea was one big wheel, a smaller one
in that, and a still smaller in that, all fitted in laterally, and not at right
angles and connected by spokes jointed into a central hub, the hub representing
the bishops, the innermost wheel representing the presiding elders, the next
wheel the preachers in charge and the outer wheel the class leaders – and the
whole wheel rolling over the members.
This symbolical idea of the Cherubim fitted for motion in any element is
embodied somewhat in the airplane – in the air it is a bird, in the water it is
a boat, on land it is a wheeled wagon.
10. The leg of the Cherub had no knee and the foot no joints, to indicate that
movement was purely volitional, no bending of knee or foot, no labored steps,
but a gliding motion, like roller skates or other skates on ice. I have
dreamed, more than once in my life, of possessing this volitional gliding
movement either on the earth or in the air – the will only acted. That is, I
dreamed that Just by willing I could lift myself up and, without exertion or
fatigue, could glide. Doubtless we will all possess this volitional power of
movement in the better world. Our autos must carry an oil supply, and a crank
for ignition, but in Ezekiel's Cherubim "the Spirit" or motor power
resided in the wheel (Ezek. 1:12, 20), the power turned off or on by will, not
mechanism.
11. Their swiftness of movement, whether on the land, or through the air, is
compared to a flash of lightning (Ezek. 1:14). For instance, combined, the four
Cherubim into a chariot which could go east to west and back again just by a
mental movement. They could go forward and back again as quick as a flash of
lightning appears and disappears.
12. The rims, or felloes, of the wheel, Ezekiel says, were very high and
dreadful, and like the wings full of eyes – to indicate vision in every
direction, power of perception incalculably great. No man-made wheel was ever
like this. The Ferris wheel at the Chicago Fair was a toy in comparison.
13. The appearance of the Cherubim in motion was exceedingly luminous – Ezekiel
says like coals of fire, or torches. The fire was exceedingly bright, radiating
flashes of lightning (Ezek. 1:13). They constituted indeed a "chariot of
fire." And he says that the noise of their wings was like the roaring of
an ocean storm – like the voice of the Almighty – or like the tumult of great
armies.
14. Under each wing was the hand of a man (Ezek. 1:3). That is, each Cherub had
two hands for each of the four faces. Hence the hand of one of the Cherubim
touched the lips of Isaiah with a coal from the altar, cleansing and inspiring
him to speak for God. And in the same way a hand of one of the Cherubim
extended to Ezekiel a book of Revelation. These various organs of sight,
motion, and touch expressed in a symbolic way the capacity of the Cherubim for
varied activity, in the highest conception of motion, sight, touch, and light.
Heathen mythology sought to express these extraordinary powers in the hundred
eyes of Argus, the hundred hands of Briareus, the seven heads of the Hydra and
the varied shapes of Proteus and the man-horse Centaur. Parables and symbols
are far more expressive than literal speech.
15. The last thought: In the light of these scriptures concerning these
Cherubim we confront some surprises in the way of interpretation. First, that
art paints a cherub with the winged face of a baby. Second, that even such a
theologian as Dr. Strong should deny any real existence to the Cherubim, making
them only a symbolic representation of glorified humanity. See his article on
the Cherubim in his "Philosophy and Religion." This idea of the
Cherubim representing glorified humanity is based on the doubtful reading in
our lesson, the word "us," Greek hemas, in Revelation 5:9,
which makes the Cherubim sing a song declaring "Thou hast redeemed us with
thy blood," – that is the way the Common Version reads. Of course, if the
Cherubim are redeemed with the blood of Christ they cannot be angels. But the
best manuscript authority leaves out that us – so does your American Standard
Revision of that verse. A still wilder interpretation makes the four Cherubim
stand for animate creation as represented by man, ox, eagle, lion. Yet the
wildest of all makes them mean the four continents – Asia, Africa, Europe, and
America. The Cherubim that John saw in this vision are represented as saying
tirelessly, continuously: "Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty."
John saw twenty-four elders in priestly garb, seated on twenty-four thrones,
each with a crown, a harp, and a bowl of incense (see 4:4. 10: 5:8). The crown
and throne indicate their royalty, the harp signifies their praise and the
incense their prayers. The white robes and the offering of incense represent
their priestly office. The number twenty-four represents the perpetuity of
their service. David divided the priesthood into twenty-four courses, or
reliefs, so that by successive rotation in service, the temple worship should
be perpetual (see reference to Zacharias in Luke 1:8-9, 23). The antitype is
the universal priesthood of all Christians under the New Covenant: "Ye are
to be a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices – a royal
priesthood" (1 Peter 2:5, 9). Or, as John has already expressed it in this
book: "He made us to be a kingdom, to be priests unto God" (1:6).
You must be careful to note that the adoration, praise, and prayers of Christ's
royal, New Testament priests are offered on earth. But John's symbolism here is
to show how these earth offerings reach heaven, and avail there. We know by
experience, the adoring, praising, and praying down here, but we could not know
without revelation the other end of the line, the reception accorded to and the
profit arising from this earth service. The vision means: "I will show you
your song and prayer entering heaven." The adoration of the King-Christian
on earth, when it gets to heaven, casts the crown of earthly royalty before
God's throne of grace and sings: "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive
glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure
they are and were created."
The next thing that he sees is a sealed book, which the Father holds in his
right hand. You are not to think of a book like the printed Bible. The books of
that time were manuscripts of parchment and rolled around a staff. Suppose I
had a long piece of parchment, each end fastened to a staff or roller,
interspaced into seven sections, each section sealed up when rolled around the
staff. Then there would be the other staff to which the last part of the roll
would be attached, and when you read it you unroll it from one staff and roll
it after reading around the other staff. What you have read would keep getting
larger and larger, and what you had to read would keep getting smaller and
smaller, and when you have emptied one staff and the other would be full.
John saw that this roll, or book, was written on both sides, every space
covered, which signified that nothing more is to be added to it. It is
complete. Now, the question is: What does that seven sealed roll mean? The rest
of the book will show you that it is a disclosure of future events concerning
the kingdom of God. God knew its contents, but it was sealed from human and
angelic sight, and when the question was asked: "Who can break the seals
and open this book?" neither man nor angel could respond. John wept at the
thought. Then one of the Cherubim comforted him: "You need not weep, the
Lion of Judah, the root of David, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the
world, Jesus Christ in his glory, can break these seals and open that
roll."
Now, it is the object of the book, from chapter 5 on, to forecast in symbolic
imagery the salient points of our Lord's kingdom. Both sides of the roll were
covered with writing, every space was filled to indicate, as I suppose, the completeness
of the revelation, so that at the end of the book it could be said that no man
should add to it or take from it; it was complete. When it was announced that
this Revelator would unseal that book, both Cherubim and Elders unite in
singing this new song: "Worthy art thou to take the book and open the
seals; for thou wast slain and died to purchase unto God with thy blood [not
"us," but] – men of every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation,
and madest them to be unto our God a kingdom and priests, and they reign upon
the earth." That is, while he reigns in heaven, they reign on earth.
Now, when the twenty-four Elders, representing the perpetual priesthood of
God's people, and the four Cherubim sang that song, then the countless host of
angels took it up. The number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand of
thousands. "Worthy is the Lamb that has been slain to receive the power,
and riches, and wisdom, and might, and honour, and glory." Now, when the
uncountable angels of God sang that song, there came an echo to the song (v.
13), "and every created thing which is in the heaven and on the earth, and
in the earth and on the sea, and all things that are in them, heard I saying:
Unto him that sitteth on the throne, and unto the Lamb, be the blessing and the
honour and the glory and the dominion forever and ever." This must be the
thought of Paul: "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time
are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed to
us-ward. For the earnest expectation of the creation waiteth for the revealing
of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to vanity, and not of its
own will, but by reason of him who subjected it, in hope that\he creation
itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the liberty
of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation
groaneth and travaileth in pain togther until now." Which means that the
earth, man's habitat, cursed when man sinned (Gen. 3:17), shall partake of man's
redemption, so that from the great flood of fire attending our Lord's final
advent, there shall emerge 7 new heaven and a new
earth (2 Peter 3:13; Rev. 21:1).
QUESTIONS
1. What is the first thought of this revelation?
2. Cite Old Testament examples of the thought.
3. To most Christians how does heaven appear, and the
consequent effect on their happiness, usefulness and life?
4. What was the power of hearing heavenly voices and
seeing heavenly visions? Illustrate by Stephen.
5. What throne revealed in this vision, and what
symbol indicates it?
6. In what-way is the Father revealed? – The Spirit? –
The Son?
7. What do the Elders represent – the meaning of the
twenty-four – meaning of "harp" – of "incense" – and is it
a picture of adoration, praise, and prayer as offered on earth, or as reaching
heaven?
8. The difference, if any, between Seraphim and
Cherubim?
9. Prove from Ezekiel 10, that Cherubim and
"living creatures" are the same.
10. Prove that the Cherubim are angels.
11. What was their number always?
12. Explain the symbolism of four faces, eight hands,
eight wings, four wheels.
13. Illustrate a "wheel within a wheel."
14. What use did J. R. Graves make of "a wheel
within a wheel" and how did he misapply the imagery?
15. Meaning of the form of the several faces – man.,
eagle, ox, lion?
16. Cite the passages proving that the four Cherubim
combined constitute the chariot of God, and give instances of use.
17. Where the spirit or motor power, of the chariot,
and compare with auto and airplane?
18. With what are the Cherubim always associated, and
cite proof from the tabernacle – the temple, and Ezekiel's ideal temple?
19. What is the sealed book, and explain how the seven
seals are applied, and how each seal in succession when broken would reveal
only a part of the book?
20. What is the meaning of "sea" in this
book, and explain why this sea seen in heaven is placid, and on earth
disturbed?
21. Who governs the earth sea, and cite proof? (See
Rev. 12:17;13:1).
THE OPENING OF THE SEALS
Revelation 6:1 to 8:1
The theme of this chapter is the opening of the seals, or the gospel as preached
from John's time to the final advent of our Lord. As you observe, this study
concludes with 8:1, separated from its context by artificial chapter division –
it should be 7:17. The study introduces the prophetic element of the book,
which extends to the end. From the standpoint of the writer, it is the first
revelation of "the things which shall come to pass hereafter."
We will consider first the Revelator. In the gospel, our Lord is himself the
revelation of God the Father: here he is the Revelator. He is presented in 5:6
thus: "A Lamb standing as though he had been slain, having seven horns and
seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God." The seven horns indicate
fulness of authority and power in each of the seven churches. The seven eyes,
explained as the seven Spirits of God, indicate his sending of the Holy Spirit,
who on earth is his vicar and bears witness to him alone, and through whom he
is present with and controls the seven churches. His worthiness to be the
Revelator, and to constitute his people a kingdom and priests, and to receive
all power, riches, wisdom, might, honor, glory, blessings, and dominion, is
expressly ascribed to his vicarious expiation of sin as the Lamb slain. This
appears in 5:9-10, 12-13, and his worthiness on this ground is recognized by
the united voices of Cherubim, Elders, all the Holy Angels and by the whole
creation. So qualified, he opens the seals and reveals in sublime imagery the
future of the kingdom of God. And so this revelation is prophecy.
The seven disclosures which follow the opening of the seven seals are divided
into two distinct groups: a group of four and a group of three. The four are
introduced, one after another, by the four Cherubim in succession, and in
response to their "Come," "Come," "Come," appear
horses varying in color. With the group of three the Cherubim appear to have no
direct connection. The fifth seal disclosure reveals the impatient martyr cry
for vengeance, uttered on earth indeed, but here presented as it reaches heaven,
and the sixth seal discloses portents which herald the long delayed vengeance
for which the martyrs prayed. The opening of the seventh seal is followed by
these words: "There was silence in heaven for half an hour." That is
to say, temporarily there is no disclosure of what followed the opening of the
seventh seal – the climax for a while is suppressed. We do not get to what that
seventh seal would have disclosed until we reach the climax in chapter 20, and
in every other synchronous view there is a pause, or a suppression of the
climax which, when it comes, fits all four of the synchronous views. We have
already seen the agency of the Cherubim in giving revelations to Isaiah and
Ezekiel. Now, let us take up this study in order. The First Seal: When our
glorified Lord opened the first seal, one of the Cherubim shouted like thunder:
"Come" – not "come and see" as the King James Version has
it, as if spoken to John; not "come Lord Jesus, in thy final advent"
as the premillennial interpreter would have it. The Cherub says
"Come," and he is not calling either John or Jesus – they are both
there with him. We know what each Cherub called for by what appeared in answer
to the call. There appeared in succession, following the "Come,"
"Come," "Come," "Come," four horses with their
riders. This imagery of different colored horses is borrowed from the book of
Zechariah. In a paragraph of chapter I and in the whole of chapter 6, we have
Zechariah's vision of the different colored horses and the chariots, which are
explained as the four spirits which stand before the throne of God, and go
forth unto all the earth at the bidding of God, and by whom all the earth is
quieted. Here in our lesson we see these horses all going forth at the bidding
of the four living creatures. In Zechariah the result of the going forth is the
crowning of Joshua the high priest, followed by these words: "Behold the
man whose name is the Branch, and he shall grow up out of his place; and he
shall build a temple of Jehovah, and he shall be a priest upon his throne, and
the counsel of peace shall be between them both" – that is, between the
king and the priest – "and the crowns shall be distributed among his
followers."
Here in our study the result is somewhat the same – the crowning of Christ the
royal priest is followed by the crowning of all his followers. In Zechariah we
have the type of the successful issue of the rebuilding of the Temple through
Joshua and Zerubbabel, or high priest and civil government, and that in spite
of all opposition. Here in Revelation, through these opened seals, we see the
antitype, Christ's successful building of his spiritual temple and the crowning
of all his followers. In Zechariah all the chariots, no matter what the color
of horses, contribute an appropriate part toward the glorious result, so here
the work imaged by all these horses, whether apparently good or bad in
individual result, conspired together to one glorious result. We cannot rightly
interpret Revelation without antecedent understanding of these horses and chariots
of Zechariah. But more particularly:
When one of the Cherubim said, "Come," the record states that there
appeared a white horse and a rider who had a crown on his head, and carried a
bow, and he went forth conquering and to conquer. This imagery shows the saving
power of the gospel preached, to those who lovingly receive it, even unto the
end of time. We shall see this same white horse and his rider reappear in the
last synchronous view, (19:11), but in a somewhat different role. The Old
Testament prophecies throw much light on this royal rider and conqueror. In
this connection turn to the Psalm 45:1-8: My heart overfloweth with a goodly
matter; I speak the things which I have made touching the king: My tongue is
the pen of a ready writer. Thou art fairer than the children of men; Grace is
poured into thy lips: Therefore God hath blessed thee for ever. Gird thy sword
upon thy thigh, O mighty One, Thy glory and thy majesty. And in thy majesty
ride on prosperously, Because of truth and meekness and righteousness: And thy
right hand shall teach thee terrible things. Thine arrows are sharp; The
peoples fall under thee; They are in the heart of the king's enemies. Thy
throne, O God, is for ever and ever: A sceptre of equity is the sceptre of thy
kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated wickedness: Therefore God,
thy God, bath anointed thee With the oil of gladness above thy fellows. All thy
garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia; Out of palaces stringed
instruments have made thee glad.
Now, that tribute to the king in Psalm 45, going forth conquering, shooting his
arrows, is very similar in meaning to this rider on the white horse that goes
forth conquering and to conquer. So to interpret our vision, we must conceive
of the risen, ascended, and glorified Christ receiving the kingdom, as it is
set forth in Daniel 7:13-14: "I saw in the night visions, and, behold,
there came with the clouds of heaven one like unto Son of man, and he came even
to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was
given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all the people, nations, and
languages should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which
shall not pass. away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroy-ed."
In v. 18 it says: "But the saints of the Most High shall receive the
kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even for ever and ever."
That passage in chapter 7 tells of Christ's ascension, and of his reception of
the kingly power, and the manner in which he enlarged the kingdom here upon
earth. It is in line with this rider on the white horse, going forth conquering
and to conquer.
Again we have a similar thought in Psalm 2. "Why do the heathen rage, and
the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the
rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against his anointed,
saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast their cords from us. He that
sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision, Yet
have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion," and it concludes by saying:
"Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his
wrath is kindled but a little," and "all the uttermost parts of the
earth are given unto him for his possession." Psalm 2 is in line with
Psalm 45, arid with Daniel 7, and portrays substantially what is accomplished
by the rider on the white horse going forth conquering and to conquer.
Again, in Psalm 110 it is said: "The Lord said unto my Lord, sit thou at
my right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool." That is spoken to
Christ when he ascended into heaven after his resurrection. And then it goes on
to show that from his throne in heaven Christ reigns here on earth, and that in
the day he leads out his armies his young men shall be volunteers – not
conscripts. And they shall go forth in the beauty of holiness and be as
multitudinous as the drops of the dew in the dawn of the morning. Christ in
heaven, having received his kingdom, is dispensing his word on earth through
the Spirit, the churches, and the preachers. So the going forth of the white
horse with its rider, who is the King of kings and Lord of lords, signifies the
gospel preached in its triumph. It brings life and peace to those who receive
it and love it. It is so presented in Matthew 10:13: "When you go into a
city or unto a house, say, Peace be on this house, and if there be in that
house a son of peace, this peace shall rest on him."
This is the signification of the opening of the first seal, and we see the
agency of the Cherubim in bringing it about.
The Second Seal (6:4): "And another horse came forth, a red horse, and to
him that sat thereon it was given to take peace from the earth, that they
should slay one another. And there was given unto him a great sword." That
means, in plain English, this: The divisive effect of the gospel preached to
the end of time, in harmony with these words in Matthew10:34-36: "I came
not to send peace, but a sword, for I came to set a man at variance against his
father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter-in-law against
her mother- in-law, and a man's foes shall be they of his own household."
This red horse shows the same gospel preached, but having a different effect,
according to the words of our Lord, as I have just read them. Now while the
gospel is intended for love and peace, as presented in the imagery of the first
horse and his rider, and while that effect follows when the gospel is lovingly
received, yet on account of its high demands many reject it, and so it becomes
the occasion of bitterness, contention, and strife. You can easily see why this
is true, because the gospel wars against all selfishness, all impiety, all
social evils, all idolatry, and every wicked business. Those following these
evils array themselves against the gospel as its bitterest enemies when its
preaching disturbs them. Take the case presented in Acts 16. Paul in the city
of Philippi finds a poor girl possessed with a demon, 'owned by a syndicate of
men, who count her money value in proportion to her subjection to the demon
that possesses her, and they make their money out of the prostitution of this
woman's soul to Satan. Now the gospel comes there in the mouth of Paul and
casts out that evil spirit. The result is that this syndicate, when they saw
that the hope of their gain was gone, arrested Paul and Silas.
It had precisely this effect at Ephesus. It went forth conquering and to
conquer, like the white horse. After a while it strikes the business of
Demetrius, a silversmith, and other silver-smiths, who were making a big pile
of money out of selling silver shrines representing the goddess Diana, and as
Paul preached that "these be no gods that are made with hands,"
Demetrius said: "This man is breaking up our business," and he raised
a row, with the result that Paul finally left the city. Now, every-where that
the gospel is preached some will receive it lovingly, and some will reject its
high claims and make for division, bitterness, and strife.
If any one of you go to a place and preach, and a mother of a family is
converted, the unconverted father gets mad – or the daughter is converted and
the son gets mad. There the gospel seems to have been the occasion of strife.
The Third Seal: "The third cherub said, Come, and I saw, and behold, a
black horse, and he that sat thereon had a balance [that is, a pair of scales]
in his hands. And I heard, as it were, a voice in the midst of the four living
creatures, saying: A measure of wheat for a shilling; and three measures of
barley for a shilling." What does that imagery represent? It represents
the gospel in the hands of the hireling and apostate church, doling it out in
tiny bits at high famine prices. The Bible is locked up in the Latin Version,
the people are shut out from it only as it is vouchsafed in corrupt fragments,
and a charge is made for every religious service from the cradle to the grave.
The house of God has scales in it, and when the weary soul comes up the
minister weighs out a fragment of consolation for so much. "If I baptize
your baby, so much; if I marry you, so much; if I visit you in sickness, so
much; if I attend your funeral, so much; if I pray for your dead, so much; for
an indulgence, so much." It was Tetzel's sale of indulgences that provoked
the Reformation. Its blessings are beyond the reach of the poor. For example,
in Mexico, as a distinguished Mexican general told me some years ago when I was
in Mexico: "The multitude of our people cannot marry – they cannot pay the
price that our priest charges; hence concubinage all over the land. They cannot
read the Bible; the priest doles out to them such parts as he judges to be good
for them and that must be accepted as the priests interpret it." The
famine as it is represented by this horse, is not of food for the body, but of
food for the soul. As Amos says (8:11): "Behold the day is come, saith the
Lord Jehovah, when I will send a famine on the land, not a famine for bread,
nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of Jehovah." Now, that is
the kind of a famine that this black horse indicates. Through many centuries
since Christ died some ecclesiastics have thus doled out, not only God's word,
but have put a price on every religious favor.
The Fourth Seal (6:7): "And when he opened the fourth seal I heard the
voice of the fourth living creature saying: Come, and I saw, and behold, a pale
horse, and he that sat upon him his name was Death, and Hades followed with
him." Hades is the state of being disembodied. When the body is killed the
spirit goes into the spirit world. "And there was given unto him the
fourth part of the earth to kill with the sword, and famine, and death, and the
wild beasts of the earth." Now, what does that mean? This imagery
represents the lovers of the true gospel as persecuted unto death – sword,
hunger, death, and the wild beasts are all literal. Some Christians are put to
death by the sword, some die of starvation, some put to death by torture or the
martyr's stake, and some cast to the wild beasts. The application is to all
persecutions for conscience' sake at any time, whether Pagan, Papal, or
Protestant. Our Lord foretold that as they went forth to preach they would be
persecuted, and told them to fear not them that killed the body only, but
rather to fear him that was able to destroy both soul and body in hell. It
refers to the persecution then going on in John's time, and to the ten years'
tribulation that followed in Smyrna, the death of their pastor and all the
other persecutions until the apostate church becomes enthroned at Rome. Then
all the Roman Catholic persecutions, the Waldenses, the Albigenses, the
Lollards, Huss, Jerome, Luther, the horrible persecution in Spain and in
Holland and all the Low Country under the Duke of Alva and his soldiers; and it
also refers to the persecution by the Protestants when they were in power, and
the persecution of the Baptists by Luther, the persecution of Servants by John
Calvin, the persecution of the Baptists in England and the United States.
The idea of the four horses is not necessarily successive. In any age all four
results of the gospel preached may appear. That is not the thought, but these
are four different views of the gospel as it is preached. You may find all of
them illustrated in two persons. A sermon may be preached, two men sitting side
by side. One of them receives it and he is at peace; the other, his brother,
hates it, and there is a strife between the two brothers. Finally, the brother
that hates gets so far away from the word of God that in his soul there is a
famine of the word of God. Then his hate becomes so intense that he kills his
brother.
In the parable of our Lord, called "the sower," or the four kinds of
soil, you have a thought very similar. The sower went forth so sow, and the
seed fell in four different places, and what became of the seed as it fell in
these four different places is explained by our Lord in his interpretation of
the parable.
The Fifth Seal (6:9): "And when he opened the fifth seal I saw underneath
the altar the souls of them who had been slain for the word of God, for this
testimony which they held, and they cried with a great voice, saying, How long,
O Master, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that
dwell on the earth? And there was given unto each of them a white robe, and it
was said unto them that they should rest yet a little while that their
fellow-servants also, and their brethren, who should be killed even as they
were, should have fulfilled their course."
In all persecutions under the fourth seal, each impatient martyr, while yet
suffering, was crying out for God's vindication. In effect the complaint
against God's delay of vengeance was an impeachment of divine justice. On earth
these prayers seemed vain. But the object of the disclosure of the fifth seal
is to show you heaven's reception of the martyr cry for vengeance uttered on
earth. The idea is similar in Genesis 4:10-11; God's words to Cain: "The
voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground, which opened its
mouth to receive it." Spurgeon, in glowing imagery, pictures Abel's
spirit, evicted from its clay tenement by murder, rushing into heaven's court
and crying: "Vengeance on my murderer," and happily contrasts it with
Christ's blood, "which speaketh better things for us than the blood of
Abel, even crying: Father, forgive them, they know what they do." A good
exposition of the fifth seal may be found in our Lord's parable (Luke 18:1-8).
The Lord is exhorting men to pray all the time for vindication, and not to
faint, illustrating it by the widow and the unjust judge, and concluding by
saying: "And shall not God avenge his own elect that cry to him day and
night, and yet he is long-suffering over them." Then he adds:
"Nevertheless, when the Son of man cometh shall he find that faith on the
earth?" What faith? The faith that God will untimately avenge the injuries
done to his people. It does not mean, shall he find saving faith on the earth?
There are hundreds of people – thousands of them – who have saving faith, but
yet seem to have little or no faith that God will vindicate all their wrongs.
I want to present that more particularly, as it is very important. In Bulwer's
drama of "Richelieu," the Queen of France – Anne of Austria – said to
the skeptical cardinal, who was her enemy: "The Almighty, my Lord
Cardinal, does not pay every week, but at the last he pays." The things
occurring here in which for the time. being evil triumphs, give the saints
great discouragement, and they cry out because God does not speedily execute
judgment on their oppressors. So the object of the fifth seal is not to show us
the prayers as they are uttered here on earth, but what becomes of them when
they get to heaven. He saw, under the altar, the souls of them that were
beheaded for the testimony of the Lord, and they cried out "how
long?" That cry was uttered on earth, but is here shown as heaven received
it. His reply is: "I will clothe you in white now, but rest a while, wait
until the time of vengeance comes; wait until all other martyrs fulfil their
course, and then all at once God will fully avenge you."
Motley's Rise of the Dutch Republic and his History of the
United Netherlands tell how the Spaniards capture city after city. No mercy
is shown; the men are killed, the women are subjected to shameful indignities;
the children are impaled on spears or their heads cut off and fastened to
spikes, and every conceivable evil and horror is visited upon them, until the
question rises: "Where is God?" We need to recall the words of the
German poet, Von Logau, The mills of God grind slowly, But they grind exceeding
small; Though with patience He stands waiting, With exactness grinds He all.
Law writers tell us that laws restrain crime only as punishment is speedy and
certain. An Old Testament writer anticipated their wisdom: "Because
sentence against an evil deed is not speedily executed, the hearts of
evil-doers are fully set in them to do mischief." Shakespeare, in Hamlet,
makes "the law's delay provocation for suicide. So the lesson of Paul is
hard: "Avenge not yourself – give place to God's wrath; if thine enemy
hunger feed him, if he thirst give him drink, and by doing so heap coals of
fire on his head."
God's delay in avenging is explicable by the facts:
1. No criminal can escape.
2. No bribery, perjury, or technicality can avail.
3. The sufferer is trained in patience by tribulation.
4. No witness can abscond.
5. The punishment will be complete and exactly proportioned to the heinousness
of the offense.
6. God delays to punish that there may be space for repenting. (See Acts 3:14,
19; Rom. 2:4; 2 Peter 3:8, 9, 15)
John Milton quotes our very passage (Rev. 6:10), and applies it to the evils
perpetrated on the Albigenses by the Roman Catholic Church. He says:
"'Avenge, O Lord, Thy slaughter'd saints, whose bones lie scatter'd on the
Alpine mountains cold."
The Sixth Seal: "And I saw when he opened the sixth seal, that there was a
great earthquake of hair, and the whole moon became as blood, and the stars of
heaven fell unto the earth, as a fig tree casteth her unripe figs when she is
shaken by a great wind, and the heaven was removed as a scroll as it is rolled
up, and every mountain and island were moved out of their places, and the kings
of the earth and the princes, and the chief captains, and the rich and the
strong and every bondman and freeman, hid themselves in the caves, and the
rocks of the mountains, and they say to the mountians and to the rocks, Fall on
us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the
wrath of the Lamb; for the great day of his wrath is come, and who is able to
stand?" The opening of this seal reveals the portents that herald God's
final vengeance.
Now, you see that that sixth seal brings you to the end of time. Our Lord also
says in his great prophecy in Matthew 24: "After the tribulation of those
days the sun shall be darkened as by an eclipse, and the moon will not give her
light, and the stars shall fall." It is certain that there comes a time
when God does answer the long-deferred petition of his people for vengeance
upon their oppressors.
Chapter 7 presents this great thought: That God's imminent wrath, just about to
fall, is suspended until all the righteous are sealed and so safeguarded. And
then follows the sealing of the 144,000 of the Jews; a 'symbolic number
representing 12,000 or a complete number from each tribe, and then a great
multitude that no man can number, out of every nation and tribe and tongue and
country. Every one of them must be saved before those terrible convulsions that
attend the advent of our Lord, when the heavens shall be rolled together as a
scroll, when the whole world shall be wrapped in fire. It cannot take place as
long as a righteous man is living on the earth, or a righteous man's dead body
is sleeping in a grave. These must get out of the way first. As when Abraham
said to God: "You are about to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. Shall not the Judge
of all the earth do right? It may be there are fifty good men in that city;
will you destroy them?" He said, "If there be fifty, no" –
perhaps forty – perhaps thirty – perhaps twenty – perhaps ten. And when not ten
could be found, the angel grasped hold of the only righteous man, Lot, and said
to him: "We cannot visit God's wrath upon this place until you get
out," and they dragged him out. So the vengeance that comes with this
advent does not reach this earth until each child of God is secure.
The Seventh Seal: It says that when the seventh seal was opened "there was
a silence in heaven for half an hour." Which means) that there is no
disclosure just yet. The silence will be broken when the climax of all the
synchronous arrives. That climax is Revelation 20:11-15, which agrees with the
climax of our Lord's great prophecy – Matthew 25:31-46, and with Paul's climax,
2 Thessalonians 2:6-11. In the same way and for the same purpose, the
disclosure of the seven thunders is sealed up for awhile. That is, that silence
will be broken after a while, and you will be told what would have happened
right there – it is just a temporary suspension of the climax, which will be
clearly stated when you come to it. Every one of the parallel views before you:
the seals, the trumpets, the two women, the great holy war, every one of them
will stop just before the climax. And then in 20:11 we have the climax that
fits every one of them. He means to say that there must be silence and no
record of what the seventh seal would disclose for awhile; so when the seven
thunders were about to sound, he says: "Do not record that; wait."
QUESTIONS
1. In a word, what do the disclosures following the
opening of the seals represent?
2. What is the symbol of the Revelator, and meaning of
seven horns and seven eyes?
3. On what meritorious ground is all the worthiness of
this Revelator based?
4. Name, and discriminate between, the two groups of
these seven disclosures.
5. State negatively and affirmatively to whom the
Cherubim say "Come"
6. From what Old Testament book is the imagery of the
colored horses borrowed, and what is the meaning and result in this lesson?
7. Describe the first horse and his rider – what is
the meaning and where again in this book do this horse and rider appear?
8. Cite at least four Old Testament prophecies whose
forecast is similar to the meaning here.
9. In a word, what phase of the gospel preached is
expressed in the imagery of the red horse and his rider, and what saying of our
Lord expressed the same thing?
10. Why is this divisive effect of the gospel
preached, and illustrate by two notable instances in the Acts?
11. In a few words explain the imagery of the black
horse and his rider, holding a pair of scales, and illustrate historically,
12. Meaning of the imagery of Death riding the pale
horse, following by Hades?
13. What parable of our Lord exhibits some likeness to
these four horses?
14. Explain the disclosure under the fifth seal,
citing Genesis case and Spurgeon's use of it.
15. What parable of our Lord expounds the fifth seal,
and the meaning of "that faith"?
16. Cite the passage from Bulwer's
"Richelieu." From Von Logau.
17. What things help to explain the delay in God's
vengeance?
18. How does Milton apply the cry of the martyrs in
6:10?
19. What does the opening of the sixth seal reveal?
20. Where in our Lord's great prophecy are they
similarly presented?
21. What is the great thought of the seventh chapter?
22. Explain the silence after the seventh seal.
THE SOUNDING OF THE TRUMPETS
Revelation 8:2 to 10:1
We now take up that section of the book of Revelation that relates to the sounding
of the seven trumpets, which commences at 8:2, and extends to the end of
chapter II. But I shall not be able to expound the entire section in one
chapter; I will try, however, to cover so much of it as extends to 10:8,
leaving for the next study the most of chapter 10 and the whole of II. You will
observe that, as in the seals, here there are two groups, four and three. There
was quite a distinction between the first group of seals and the three that
followed; and so there will be quite a distinction between the group of four
trumpets and the three that follow.
The general meaning of the sounding of the trumpets is the gospel as prayed
from John's time to the second coming of Christ. The seals, you will remember,
were the gospel as preached from John's time to the second advent. Every
sounding of a trumpet comes as a response, not to a sermon, but to a prayer. We
make a great mistake when we limit the power of the gospel to its preaching,
for a very large part of its power is dependent upon its praying. The preaching
is more conspicuous, and oftentimes a preacher takes credit to himself for the
power of his sermons, when perhaps the power came from some obscure member of
the church who prayed while he preached. Realizing this, I made it a habit of my
pastoral life to engage a number of the most spiritually minded members of my
church to enter into a covenant to pray for me every Sunday while I preached.
Even the apostle Paul felt his great dependence upon the prayers of his
brethren and sisters, and earnestly solicited their prayers. Just so I would
count the friends of the seminary who prayed for its endowment as upon the
agents who worked for its endowment. It is an old saying that "Satan
trembles when he sees the weakest saint upon his knees."
The key passage of this section is as follows (8:3-5) : "And another angel
came and stood over the altar" – that means not the brazen altar of
sacrifice, but the golden altar of incense "having a golden censer, and
there was given unto him much incense that he should offer it with the prayers
of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the
smoke of the incense which came with the prayers of the saints ascended up
before God out of the angel's hand. And the angel taketh censer and he filled
it with the fire of the altar and cast it upon the earth: and there followed
thunders and voices and lightnings and an earthquake."
A Bible student should understand the relative positions and distinctive
purposes of the brazen altar and the golden altar. The first was in the outer
court and for sacrifices. The other was in the holy place, and was for prayer
based on the preceding sacrifice. Hence, the prayer "for Christ's
sake" – that is because he died for us. Prayer without expiation has no
foundation.
It is evident from this key passage that what the trumpets will tell us about
comes as a response to prayers offered to God, and when that censer is emptied
upon the earth, then the trumpets begin to sound, each trumpet a response to
prayers.
Let the reader note that this angel standing over the golden altar with the
golden censer, which holds the incense, representing prayers on earth coming up
before God in heaven, is the great high priest Jesus Christ himself, the angel
of the covenant. Throughout the Old Testament the offering of incense before
the mercy seat symbolizes prayers offered in the outer court. David says:
"Let the lifting up of my hands be as the incense." And when the high
priest entered into the holy of holies he carried that golden censer filled
with frankincense, and kindled it with a coal from the brazen altar, and as it
kindled the smoke went up in a fragrant cloud; it represented the prayers
ascending to God. You are to understand that the prayers are uttered on earth,
but this is a picture of their presentation in heaven – the reception accorded
these petitions and the responses given, and you must distinguish between the
martyr cry of the last lesson and these prayers here. That martyr cry was for a
single thing – it came from martyrs only. These are the prayers of all God's
people continually going up.
Now, seven angels stood, each with a trumpet, prepared to sound just as the
high priest, having offered these prayers poured out on the earth coals of fire
from the altar. The first angel sounded (v. 7): "And there followed hail
and fire, mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth, and a third
part of the earth was burned up, and a third part of the trees was burned up,
and all the green grass was burned up." In telling you what I conceive to
be the meaning of these seven trumpets I speak with great diffidence – 1 will
not be as dogmatic about it as I am about some of my interpretations. The
wisest men and the greatest scholars on the earth may well differ in interpreting
some .of the imagery of this wonderful book. I am satisfied in my own mind,
however, that I am giving you the true meaning.
In order, then, to get at the meaning of this first trumpet you are to ask:
What, or who, was the great enemy in John's time oppressing the church? It was
pagan Rome – that fourth great world empire that Daniel saw, and that was
terrible. At this particular time, Rome had commenced a worldwide persecution
of the Christians; John himself was in exile on account of it, and not a church
in the empire was safe from its cruel hands. Now, of course, the Christians
prayed about that; they could not help it. And the first trumpet sounded. I
understand that first trumpet to mean the judgment upon the Roman Empire – the
pagan Roman Empire – that caused its decline. And thus judgment means the
invasion of nations from the North; Scandinavia, Germany, and beyond the Danube
even from the shores of the Baltic – out of their forests came the untamed
Germans and Goths, and across the Danube came the Vandals and Huns. Gibbon, in
his Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, shows how the invasion
of these hordes from the German forests and across the Danube broke over all
the boundaries of the Roman power, and carried their wasting influence with
fire and sword into Italy itself. That is the meaning of the first trumpet.
Verse 8: "And the second angel sounded, and as it were, a great mountain
burning with fire was cast into the sea, and the third part of the sea became
blood, and there died a third part of the creatures that were in the sea, even
them that had life, and a third part of the ships were destroyed." Now, a
mountain in Revelation means a city, and near to the city of Rome was that
great volcano, Vesuvius, whose eruptions, when they poured into the sea have
attracted the attention of the world. Pompeii and Herculaneum, two cities, were
buried under one of these eruptions (A.D. 79). So this second trumpet signifies
the downfall of the state of Rome itself. The first trumpet prepared for it; the
second trumpet strikes at the Roman Empire in its heart and center. Dr. Lyman
Beecher says it took Rome 300 years to die, and Gibbon, as he writes about the
decline, writes also about the fall – the Decline and Fall of the Roman
Empire. I shall not attempt here to give the number or order of the
irruptions of Northern barbarians that first shattered and then completely
wrecked imperial Rome. That empire, according to the prophecy of Daniel,
divided into ten kingdoms. But, anyhow, this great civilization that built
roads that are good today, and walls that stand today, and whose iron
organization held the whole civilized world in its sway, went down at last
because poor women and children and fathers, Christians, prayed.
The third angel sounded, "and there fell from heaven a great star, burning
as a torch, and it fell upon a third part of the rivers and of the fountains of
waters, and the name of the star is called Wormwood; a third part of the waters
became wormwood and many men died of the waters because they were made
bitter." That word "torch" really means a lamp – "There
fell from heaven a great star, burning as a lamp." A lamp in this book
stands for a church, and hence the meaning of this passage is that one of the luminaries
that God intended for enlightening the world became apostate, this is the
symbol of the paganized church, which succeeded pagan Rome, and hence after
that it was called the "Holy Roman Empire." In a later revelation we
will find similar reference (13:3) where, when the pagan head of the empire was
wounded unto death, it was healed by an ecclesiastical head.
You will notice its effect upon the fountains and the rivers, that this
apostasy poisoned the sources of life – the very sources of thought and reason
and life among the people. The imagery of casting wormwood into water which all
must drink is very striking. It reverses the miracle of Moses, who cast a tree
into the bitter waters and made them sweet (Ex. 15:2325). There was great
glorification when Constantine, the Roman emperor, united the church and state,
and gradually the state became subordinate to the church. And when the state
perished, the church survived, claiming that it held both ecclesiastical and
civil swords. The Pope today demands that nations send their ambassadors to
him, because of his claim to be a civil as well as ecclesiastical ruler. For
quite a while there were many papal states – that is, states under the Pope,
who was as much their ruler as the English king is the ruler over England;
Lombardy, Venice, Tuscany, and quite a number of others, and that civil power
was exercised more or less until Garibaldi arose, and until Victor Emmanuel
established a free church in a free state – that is, he separated the civil
from the ecclesiastical power.
The fourth angel sounded, "and a third part of the sun was smitten, and a
third part of the moon, and a third part of the stars, and that a third part of
them should be darkened, and the day should not shine for a third part of it,
and the night in like manner." What does that mean? That following the
establishment of the apostasy of the Romish church, the sources of light were
eclipsed and the dark ages followed. Our book commences with luminaries – sun,
stars, lamps, appointed to lighten the world. But apostate churches and
preachers lose. their shining power. Here he is not referring to the material
sun, moon, and stars, they are symbols. The dark ages, so thoroughly known in
history, followed the establishment of the papacy as a Holy Roman Empire. There
were hundreds and thousands of nominal churches and nominal preachers, but the
preachers did not preach the gospel, and these socalled churches did not shine;
the light that was in them was darkness. The virgin Mary supplanted Christ, and
so the sun of chapter I was darkened. Ordinances were fearfully perverted and
sacraments added. The saddest volumes of the annals of time that I read today
are the volumes that tell about the dark ages following this assumption of
power by the papacy.
I read verse 13: "And I saw and heard an eagle" – or as some
versions, and better ones, have it, an "angel" – flying in
mid-heaven, saying with a great voice: Woe, Woe, Woe" – that is, three
woes – "for them that dwell on the earth by reason of the voice of the
trumpet of the three angels that are yet to sound." This is a prelude to
the second group – a group of three, – distinguished by a "woe" for
each trumpet. It means that when a perverted ecclesiasticism, such as the
papacy was, dominates the world, woes of incalculable horror are sure to
follow. So we note the next (9:1): "And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw
a star from heaven fallen unto earth", now, don't read that: "I saw a
star falling unto the earth," that is not what it says; that star used to
belong to heaven, but it was already fallen when seen here. Satan was once
called Lucifer – that means brightness of the morning, and he is so styled in
the Old Testament before his downfall. He is the fallen star here, and as the
church lights are eclipsed through apostasy, so this apostate angel. He will
get in a subtle, malicious piece of work here, as we will see, "And there
was given to him the key of the pit of the abyss" – you might say the key
to hell itself – "and he opened the pit of the abyss, and there went up
smoke out of the pit as the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun was darkened
by reason of the smoke of the pit. And out of the smoke of the pit came forth
locusts upon the earth, and power was given them as scorpions of the earth have
power, and it was said unto them that they should not hurt the grass of the
earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree, but only [notice whom they
are to hurt] but only such men as have not the seal of God on their foreheads;
and it was given them that they should not kill them, but that they should be
tormented five months." Any one who has studied the history of the locusts
knows that the locust period is five months. But if we follow the numbers of
Revelation we will find that every day represents a year. The five months, therefore,
would represent about 150 years, though the five months are put in here because
they correspond to the locust period. "And their torment was as the
torment of scorpions when it striketh a man. And in these days men would seek
death but should in no wise find it, and they shall desire to die and death
fleeth from them. And the shapes of the locusts were like unto a horse prepared
for war, and upon their heads crowns like unto gold; their faces were as man's
face; they had hair as the hair of a woman; their teeth were as the teeth of
lions; and they had breastplates, as it were, of iron, and the sound of their
wings was as of the sound of chariots of many horses rushing to war, and they
had tails like unto the scorpion and stung, and in their tails was their power
to hurt men five months. They had over them as a king the angel of the abyss;
his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek Apollyon, which means
destroyer" – which also means the devil.
The special points to note here are:
1. This hell smoke darkened the sun and the air. That is, by darkening the
atmosphere, the medium through which sunlight shines on the earth, the sun
could not be seen. See account in Genesis I, where the heavenly luminaries,
though existing, do not appear until the atmosphere is created. As in this
book, the spiritual lights are Christ, the churches, and the pastors. Any smoke
the devil may send will prevent the earth from being illumined by them.
2. That the haze of this smoke generates tormentors, compared to locusts.
3. That those tormented are not the children of light, but the children of
darkness. They hurt not Christians, but torment infidels and atheists.
4. The connection between a corrupt ecclesiasticism and atheism. The latter
follows the former as a natural result.
5. The meaning of the locusts. When we were in the Old Testament, in the
prophecy of Joel, under the imagery of locusts a great evil was symbolically
presented. And in this symbolic language you should not look for real locusts,
but what they symbolize. The devil is their king; they come out of hell itself.
It is not their purpose to kill men, but to torment them. They are not allowed
to torment a Christian, for he has light; but only those who by the smoke are
hindered from seeing the light; those that have not the seal of God on their
foreheads. Whatever these tormentors are, they trouble only infidels and
atheists.
Some interpreters very foolishly construed these locusts to represent the
Saracens or Mohammedans, but when the Saracens struck they killed and the chief
objects of their vengeance were the Christian nations. They did not seek so
much to torment as to kill, and so that interpretation fails to fit the case.
What, then, is the thought symbolically presented in this cloud of locusts that
torment men who were not Christians? My answer is, a corrupt ecclesiasticism,
especially when united with the state, breeds atheism and theism breeds
restlessness and torment. It looses the tiger. The Jews have a proverb: When
the tale of brick is doubled then comes Moses. It is also a proverb: Given the
ecclesiastical corruption in France – then comes Voltaire. Given Voltaire and
then the tiger is loosed. The testimony is abundant that the Romanist hierarchy
became corrupt from Pope to priest. Monasteries and nunneries were as cages of
unclean birds. In the interest of morality nations suppressed them. See the
history of them in England. The priests had no gospel. The churches and
cathedrals were full of idolatry. When men go to church to find Christ and see
only the virgin Mary; when preachers are substituted by priests; the gospel
exchanged for ritualism; there comes in a revulsion of public sentiment from
the Christian religion, embodied in the only form they see it. Infidelity in
France, voiced by Voltaire; rationalism in Germany, or in England led by
Bolingbroke, Hume, and Taylor, in America by Paine and Ingersoll – all of it is
a rebound from corrupt ecclesiasticism. All sacred things become profane; they
are without God and hope in the world.
Now we are coming to the locusts. Take God away from man – power away from
prayer, no church to visit, no sermons to hear, turned away from all
supernaturalism, the ship of life hails from no port and is bound to none,
drifts on uncharted seas without helm or compass, at the mercy of winds and
tides and sunken reefs; when all standards of authority are lost, when no
solution of life's problems can be found in the conflicting vagaries of
philosophy – the mind preys on itself. Restlessness and discontent pervade the
masses. Then swarm those tormenting locusts of atheism. There were certainly in
dark ages, and even later, periods of awful horror. Maniacs filled the forests.
All law was gone. Freebooters, banditti, free companies, roved at their own
will and nowhere were peace and safety. It was a time of torment. The devil
delighted to torment the very people he had beguiled. He agreed with them that
their church was bad, and suggested that they follow him. Such was the first
woe.
The author adds: "Behold, there come yet two woes hereafter," but it
gives only one of them, as the woe of the seventh trumpet is reserved for the
latter part of the book. Verse 13: "And the sixth angel sounded, and I
heard a voice from the horns of the golden altar which is before God, and one
saying to the sixth angel that had the trumpet: Loose the four angels that are
bound at the great river Euphrates. And the four angels were loosed, that had
been prepared for the hour, the day, the month and the year, that they should
kill the third part of men. And the number of the armies of the horsemen was
twice ten thousand times ten thousand: I heard the number of them [that means
two hundred million]. And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and they that
sat on them, having breastplates of fire and hyacinth and of brimstone: and the
heads of the horses are as the heads of lions, and out of their mouths
proceeded fire and smoke and brimstone. By these three plagues was the third
part of man killed, by the fire, and the smoke and the brimstone, which
proceeded out of their mouths. For the power of the horses was in their mouths,
and in their tails, for their tails are like unto serpents and have heads, and
with them they hurt. And the rest of mankind, who were not killed by these
plagues, repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship
demons and idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood,
which can neither see nor hear nor walk; and they repented not of their murders
and their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts."
Now, I have twice in my life changed my own mind as to what is symbolized by
that great army of horsemen, coming from the Euphrates, from over the east. I
once thought that it symbolized the European wars commencing with Napoleon
Bonaparte and lasting to the present time. But I do not now think that is
right. There was a power in history that did come from the East, and it was an
army of cavalry of uncounted numbers, and they did sweep over the fairest part
of the earth, and particularly did they strike hard against apostate churches,
both the Roman and the Greek Catholics. They were the Saracens. Mohammed, who
was the founder of their religion, arose in the sixth century. As it grew in
power it swept over all Asia from the Euphrates to Constantinople, captured the
Holy Land, all Asia Minor, including the territory of these seven churches,
crossed the Bosphorus and the Balkan mountains to thunder at the gate of
Vienna. They captured Greece and the eastern Mediterranean islands, captured
North Africa, crossed the Straits of Gibraltar, and founded a kingdom in Spain,
entered France and would have swept all Europe but for the disastrous defeat at
Tours by Charles Martel. Against their strongholds in the Holy Land the
Crusades of confederated Europe were broken. It is yet a great power, kindling
today its fires of war in the Balkans. God used the Mohammedans to strike the
apostate Greek Catholic and Roman Catholic churches. These, as I think, were
the horses of the sixth trumpet, the second great woe.
QUESTIONS
1. What is the general meaning of the trumpets? And
what is the key passage disclosing this meaning?
2. Where in tabernacle and Temple was the golden altar
and what its relation to the brazen altar of sacrifice, and what did incense
symbolize?
3. Who was the angel with the censer?
4. What great enemy at this time, by cruel and
worldwide persecution, was driving Christians to prayer?
5. What, then, probably, the meaning of the first
trumpet?
6. In this book what does a mountain symbolize?
7. What natural prodigy in Italy probably suggested
the imagery of a volcano overturned in the sea?
8. What is, probably, the meaning of the second
trumpet?
9. What is the meaning of a torch in 8:10?
10. When, a fallen luminary like a burning lamp,
poisons the fountains and rivers, sources of life, making the waters bitter,
and causing the death of many – what probably is meant by the third trumpet?
11. What miracle of Moses reversed the thought here?
12. What probably is the meaning of the fourth
trumpet?
13. What is the meaning of the prelude to the second
group of trumpets (8:13)?
14. Who is the fallen star of 9:1? Cite his Old
Testament name and two names here.
15. What effect on the luminaries by this hell smoke?
And how brought about?
16. What then, probably, the locusts?
17. What is probably the meaning of the sixth trumpet
and second woe?
THE SOUNDING OF THE TRUMPETS (CONTINUED)
Revelation 10-11
We have seen under the first trumpet the decline of the pagan Roman Empire,
brought about by the barbaric nations from the German forests and the lower
Danube. We have seen under the second trumpet the complete overthrow of pagan
Rome as a volcano is erupted, turned over into the sea. We have seen under the
third trumpet the apostasy of the Roman church, resulting in papal Rome
poisoning all the sources of life. We have seen under the fourth trumpet the
dark ages resulting from this apostasy, dimming the light of the luminaries
appointed to lighten the world. This was the first group of trumpets, four in
number.
In the succeeding group of three an emphasis is added – each trumpet is
followed by a woe, the second woe worse than the first, and the third to be
more direful than the second. The fifth trumpet, we have found, introduces the
first woe, which is directly attributed to Satan. Resulting from the apostasy
and its corruption comes a revolt against all sacred things, taking the
direction of infidelity, rationalism, and atheism. Satan's hell smoke increases
the darkness by thickening the atmosphere through which light would shine,
breeding restlessness of spirit and torment of soul in all who are thus without
God and without hope in the world. The torments are compared to locusts with
scorpion stings.
Under the sixth trumpet, sounding the second woe, we have seen the rise and
conquest of Mohammedan power, sweeping with fire and sword from the Euphrates
to Vienna in one direction, and in another direction from northern Africa into
Spain and France. For its idolatries and corruptions we have seen the Greek
Catholic apostasy lose all its territory to the Saracen, including the Holy
Land, Syria, Asia Minor, and Constantinople; and the Roman Catholic apostasy
smitten in the Mediterranean and in southwestern Europe, and all its crusades
buried back as waves repulsed by a mountain coast. The seven thunders are
merely announced, what they mean is sealed up for the present (10:4), but to be
given in a later revelation from a different angle of vision, to wit: the seven
plagues inflicted on the apostate church under the symbol of the harlot woman
in purple and scarlet (chapters 15-16). It is also announced that when the
seventh trumpet does sound then will be finished the mystery of the kingdom of
God (10:7), but before this conclusion is reached the Revelator will answer
certain questions, to wit: in all this record of apostasies, and the consequent
dark ages and persecutions and judgments on the apostasies, what becomes of the
true church and the pure gospel? Does the Spirit dispensation fail? Are all the
candlesticks removed? Do all preachers abandon the gospel and become priests of
heresy?
Chapters 10-11 answer these questions, and bring us to the glorious triumph of
the seventh trumpet, omitting only for the time being the last woe, to be given
in chapter 18, from another synchronous view. We take up, therefore, the
interpretation of these glorious chapters.
"And I saw another angel coming down out of heaven, arrayed with a cloud;
and the rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as the sun, and his feet
were as pillars of fire." This evidently, from the description, is the
angel of the Covenant) our glorified Lord himself. "And he had in his hand
a little open book." This little book is not the sealed book of 5:1. That
was the book of future events concerning the kingdom. This little book, named
again in w. 8-10, signifies the restored gospel, which had been shut up by the
apostasy.
"And he set his right foot upon the sea and his left upon the earth; and
he cried with a great voice, as a lion roareth, and when he cried the seven
thunders uttered their voices, and when the seven thunders uttered their voices
I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying, Seal up the
things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not. And the angel that
I saw standing upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his right hand to
heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created the heavens
and the things that are therein, and the earth and the things that are therein,
and the sea and the things that are therein, that there shall be delay no
longer."
We note first the posture of the angel – one foot on the land and one on the
sea, to signify that all the earth, land' and sea, is under his authority. We
note second the mere announcement now of the seven thunders, not recorded now,
but to be given as the seven vials of wrath in a subsequent vision (chapters
15-16). We note third the oath of the angel (v. 6) "that there shall be
delay no longer" – the King James Version obscures the meaning of this
glorious promise.
The promise directly responds to the martyr cry of the fifth seal: "How long,
O Master, the Holy and True, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them
that dwell on the earth?" (6:10). The answer given them was: "Rest
yet for a little time, until thy fellow-servants also, and thy brethren, who
shall be killed even as ye were, shall have fulfilled their course", but
now the answer is: "There shall be delay no longer."
Verse 7 further assures, what will be stated more particularly at the end of
chapter II, that the mystery of the kingdom of God will be finished when the
seventh trumpet sounds. We find all that in 11:15-19.
We must connect with the reply to the martyr cry in 6:10, and the different
reply here: "There shall be delay no longer," the great lesson in 2
Peter 3:3-13. The "little time" of waiting for vengeance is little in
God's sight, not ours: "But forget not this one thing, beloved, that one
day is with the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. The
Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some count slackness, but is
long-suffering to you-ward, not wishing that any should perish, but that all
should come to repentance."
Thus in w. 3-7, having anticipated for assurance' sake later things, the
Revelator resumes the story of the little open book in w. 8-11. Let us read
them: "And the voice which I heard from heaven, I heard it again speaking
with me and saying: Go, take the book which is open in the hand of the angel
that standeth upon the sea and upon the earth. And I went unto the angel,
saying unto him that he should give me the little book. And be saith unto me:
take it, and eat it up, and it shall make thy belly bitter, but in thy mouth it
shall be sweet as honey. And I took the little book out of the angel's hand and
ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey, and when I had eaten it my
belly was made bitter. And they say unto me: Thou must prophesy again over many
peoples and tongues and nations and kings."
We repeat that this book differs in important particulars from the book of 5:1.
That was sealed – this is open; that was written on both sides – not this one.
This one is expressly called the little book, Greek bibliridion. That book
remained in the Revelator's hands – this one is given to John and eaten by him.
Being eaten it was sweet; after eaten it was bitter. After eating it he should
prophesy again over many peoples and nations and tongues and kings.
Just here I commend again the very able and judicious comments of Dr. Justin A.
Smith on this passage, but I give you briefly my own interpretation:
1. The result of the great apostasy was to pervert and shut up the true gospel,
until the Reformation of the sixteenth century. It was a typical event when
Luther found a chained Bible. An ecclesiasticism combining defunct Old
Testament elements with many pagan superstitions offered as a gospel that which
was another gospel, and contrary to the true gospel.
2. The little open book, therefore, represents the restored gospel of the
Reformation. When Victor Emmanuel entered Rome, breaking down the civil power
of the Pope, he carried at the head of his army an open Bible, that Rome had
not known for centuries.
3. When that restored gospel is eaten, appropriated, and assimilated by faith,
a new era of missions to many new nations would dawn. An open Bible in the
hands of the people scatters the superstitious rubbish of the false
ecclesiasticism and propagation of the recovered gospel extends to earth's
remotest bounds. The idea of 10:11, is thus repeated in a subsequent vision
(14:6): "And I saw another angel flying in mid-heaven, having eternal good
tidings to proclaim to them that dwell on the earth; and unto every nation and
tribe and tongue and people." It is a noticeable fact that missionary
operations commenced with the rescue of the Bible; it was translated into the
tongues of the people, and preachers began to carry it to the ends of the
earth, and ever since that day missions to all nations have taken colossal
strides.
Having thus in chapter 10 seen the restored gospel, we consider in chapter 11
the questions: What about the true church in the dark ages of the apostasy?
Measured by man, the church in the West, that is, in Europe, is the Roman
Catholic apostasy; and the church in the East is the Greek Catholic apostasy,
and man will tell you that within that time there were no other churches. Your
average church historian will tell you that. But we will let God answer that
question (11:1) : "And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and one
said, Rise and measure the temple of God, and the altar and them that worship
therein. And the court which is without the temple leave without and measure it
not; for it hath been given unto the nations) and the holy city shall they
tread under foot forty and two months." Under this unique measurement only
the true temple with its altar of sacrifice and its few worshippers are
counted. The outer court and all the holy city are left out. These are trodden
under foot by the nations forty-two months, which equals one thousand two
hundred and sixty days of the next verse. And in this book a prophetic day
represents a year; as in its Old Testament analogue, Ezekiel. The forty-two
months and their equivalent, 1,260 days, symbolizing 1,260 years, date the dark
ages of the apostasy – beginning in the third century and extending to the
Reformation of the sixteenth century. The true church in this period is an
inner circle determined by divine spiritual measurement. When in Zechariah a
young man attempts to measure the poor little Jerusalem of the restoration, a
voice from heaven says: "Stop that young man," and announces that
Jerusalem shall become immeasurable, overflowing into the villages and country
round about, a forecast of the Jerusalem in Revelation 21:22.
Now let us read again: "And I will give unto my two witnesses and they
shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in
sackcloth. These are the two olive trees and the two candlesticks, standing
before the Lord of the earth." Note that during all this dark period of
1,260 years, two witnesses never cease to testify, though in sackcloth. Their
testimony is costly to them – it is testimony as at a funeral, mourning for the
apostasy of Zion, and for the slain of the true people of God.
Here the important question arises: Who are these witnesses? The Old Testament
analogue, in the third and fourth chapters of Zechariah, suggests the clue to
the right answer. In the dark ages when Israel was restored after exile in
Babylon, there were two anointed witnesses accused of the devil, despised of
men, namely, Joshua, the high priest, and Zerubbabel, the civil ruler. In
themselves was no power. Considering the mountain of difficulty which
obstructed their work they were contemptible agencies of success. But
considering the divine help, it was said: "Who art thou, O great mountain?
Before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the
headstone thereof with shouting: Grace, Grace unto it." Truly in that case
it was "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts."
So in this case, as in that case, are two witnesses, but the question. recurs:
Who are they in this case? My answer is that the key passage of this book,
1:12-16, tells us plainly: "The candlestick and the star are the
light-bearers" – i.e., the church and the preacher; they are the lower
lights to illumine the world. The gates of hell shall not prevail against
Christ's church: the testimony of true ministers shall never cease. It has
always been a surprise to me that commentators should be in doubt about these
two witnesses. The true church and the true minister should testify in
sackcloth for 1,260 years. They should be in mourning for the apostasy, for the
slain of its persecution.
In the next synchronous vision the true church symbolized as a glorious woman
of 12:1, shall be driven into the wilderness, hidden but not lost, for this
precise periodù1,260 years (12:6). The power ascribed to these two witnesses is
set forth under the imagery of verses 5 and 6: "And if any man desire to
hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth and devoureth their enemies; and
if any man desire to hurt them in this manner must he be killed. These have the
power to shut the heaven, that it rain not during the days of their prophecy
and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to smite the
earth with every plague, as often as they shall desire." This imagery
applies to their use of the conquering word of God in denouncing judgment on
their enemies, or else in the power of their prayers, as in the case of Elijah
shutting up the heavens that it rain not.
Again counting a day for a year, we will see in what I soon quote that for
three and a half days (or three and a half years), both of these witnesses
seemed to be dead: "And when they shall have finished their testimony, the
beast that cometh out of the abyss [beast always signifies government, and the
abyss signifies that it is a hell government, and we will find all about it in
chapter 17] shall make war with them, and overcome them and kill them. And
their bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is
called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified. And from among the
peoples and tribes and tongues and nations do men look upon their dead bodies
three days and a half, and suffer not their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb
[not that]. And they that dwell on the earth rejoice over them and make merry;
and they shall send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented
them that dwell on the earth."
That faithful churches – and faithful preachers – would point out their sins,
cry out against their backsliding, was a torment to the apostasy through all
the 1,260 years. "And after the three days and a half the breath of life
from God entered into them and they stood upon their feet, and great fear fell
upon them that beheld them."
We may well ask just here what event of history corresponds to this prophecy.
Here I cannot do better than to cite a remarkable passage from Dr. Justin A.
Smith's commentary.:
No purpose of God, as regards the gospel of man's salvation, fails. He permits
to his gospel a fiery ordeal, extending through many centuries. But at the fit
time he appears again in its behalf, and through chosen instruments causes it
to be once more declared, as here represented in the little book, in primeval
simplicity, and in a ministry that bears it "to all the world." By
what appears in the eleventh chapter, we are given to understand that while the
outer court of the symbolical temple, and the city itself, are trodden under
foot by the enemies of God and truth and righteousness, the inner sanctuary is
kept safe; in. other words, there survives, in the very worst of times, a
faithful remnant by whom an undesecrated altar is preserved, a true worship
offered, and that truth which embodies the substance of ancient types
maintained. These are the witnesses. The voice of a true testimony in God's
behalf does not die out of the world, even when persecution rages most hotly;
nor is it holy ground even when the world's loud tumult is at its worst. These
witnesses do, indeed, testify – "prophesy" – "in sackcloth"
– the garment of distress and mourning. Such of the Lord's true people as
survive in such times are a hunted flock. The truth itself is under reproach,
the deriding voices rave against it. The true church and its ordinances are, in
the world's esteem, placed in humiliating contrast with the shows and
splendours of that apostasy which for the time is supreme, while everything
beautiful and sacred and beneficent in Christianity is as if clad in sackcloth
of humiliation, and lamenting, in the language of the ancient prophet, that
there are none to stand upon the Lord's side. And there comes a time when the
triumph of evil seems complete. It is the deeper gloom that precedes the dawn.
All the powers of darkness triumph. The murderers of the witnesses rejoice over
them and make merry, and send gifts one to another. But the triumph is brief.
Just at this crisis God appears for His truth and His people. The slain
witnesses stand upon their feet. They rise into vigour of life like the glory
that shone in the person and face of the risen Lord. Their enemies behold them
with consternation, and the triumph which now comes to them in turn is like the
Lord's own ascension to heaven in a cloud, receiving all power in heaven and in
earth. Effects follow which show how truly divine is that intervention. The
hostile power shakes, as when earthquakes rock the globe, while the great and
wicked city, in whose streets the slain witnesses have lain, feels the shock.
This is, in general, the picture sketched for us in the striking symbolism of
this chapter. If we have read this symbolism right, there can be, it would
seem, only one answer to the question where the historical counterpart shall be
sought. There is one point of crisis in modern times which fulfils in a
remarkable degree the conditions of an adequate historical parallel to the
Apocalyptic picture here sketched. Not as fulfilments of the prophecy in exact
detail, but as indicating some general aspects of the period as having this
significance, we note the following:
In A.D. 1512-17, a council was held in Rome, called from the place of its
assembly – the Church of St. John Lateran – the Fifth Lateran Council. At the
eighth session of this council, held in December, 1513, a papal bull was
issued, in which was a summons to all dissidents from the papal authority to
appear before the council at its next session, in the following May, and to
show cause for their continued refusal to acknowledge the Pope's supremacy.
When the Council came together in that session, May 5, 1514, no answer appeared
to this summons. Not that there were no longer those in Christendom who refused
allegiance to the usurped authority of Rome, nor because any one could have
imagined that opportunity for a free protest before the Council would have been
allowed; not because, joined with the impossibility of a response under such
conditions, it was a fact that just at that time there actually was no one
ready, like the Wyckliffe and the Huss of a former age, or the Luther who was
soon to appear, to give a voice to the spirit of revolt against Rome, which,
though widely prevalent, was for the most part nursed in secret.
"Throughout the length and breadth of Christendom," says Elliott –
and his words are true in the sense just explained – “Christ’s witnessing
servants were silenced" – they appeared as dead. The orator of the session
ascended the pulpit, and, amidst the applause of the assembled Council, uttered
that memorable exclamation of triumph – an exclamation which, notwithstanding
the long multiplied anti-heretical decrees of popes and councils,
notwithstanding the more multiplied anti-heretical crusade and inquisitorial
fires, was never, I believe, pronounced before, and certainly never since:
"Jam nemoreclamat, nullus obsistit!" – "There is an end of
resistance to the papal rule and religion; opposers exist no morel" And
again, "The whole body of Christendom is now seen to be subjected to its head,
that is, to thee." Three years and a half later, October 31, 1517, Luther
nailed his theses to the Wittenberg church door!
It is undoubtedly true that for some time previous to the meeting of this Fifth
Lateran Council, as described, the murderers of God's people had been especially
active, with results of intimidation and the apparent silencing of dissent and
protest highly gratifying to the hierarchy. The crusaders against the
Albigenses and Waldenses had well-nigh extirpated those troublesome heretics.
The measures of the Inquisition in various parts of Europe had succeeded to the
utmost wish of those by whom they were carried on. A threatening schism in the
papal body itself was healed during the session of this Council. So fully, in
view of all, did the members of the Council sympathize in the exultant
confidence of their orator that upon the final adjournment they celebrated the
triumph which Popery seemed to have achieved in a feast, whose splendour had
never in Rome been equalled. It was like the rejoicing, the merrymaking and the
sending of gifts of which our prophecy speaks. It is also matter of history
that in that same Council there was an emphatic reaffirmation, of the
long-standing papal law that the bodies of heretics should be denied all rights
of Christian burial; so that here, also, we find almost literal fulfilment of
the words: "Do not suffer their bodies to be put in graves." These
conspicuous examples of the application of this law in the exhuming and burning
of the bones of Wickliffe, at an earlier date, by command of the Council of
Constance, and the direction given by the same Council that the ashes of Huss
should be cast into the Lake of Constance, are familiar facts. It may be added
that in like manner the ashes of Savonarola were thrown into the Arno, and that
it was common for the papal bulls to ordain that the heretics against whom they
were fulminated should not only be put to death, but should be denied Christian
burial.
Just three and a half years from that time all Europe was ablaze with the
Reformation, and the Romanist power has never recovered from the shock it
received.
Three things are said in our lesson of the effect of the revival of the
witnesses:
1. "Great fear fell on all those who saw the revival" – which means
that all the Romanist hierarchy trembled when the Reformation fires began to
break out in so many places and among so many peoples of Europe.
2. The Romanist hierarchy heard the voice calling the witnesses up to heaven
(11:12). Heaven here is not the final abode of the blest, but the apocalyptic
heaven, the scene of the vision, and means simply that their enemies witnessed
honor and open exaltation conferred of God on these long despised witnesses.
3. Chapter 11:13, means the convulsions which followed the Reformation in which
Rome lost and Protestantism won most of France, Switzerland, Germany, Holland,
Denmark, Norway, Sweden, England, and Scotland.
We come now to the last of the chapter:
Having thus disposed of the question: What about the true gospel and what about
the true church during the dark ages, the last angel will sound, and will omit
only the last woe, we will get to that in chapter 18, and we will see that woe
as it strikes the Papacy.
"And the seventh angel sounded: and there followed great voices in heaven,
and they said: The kingdom of the world is be-come the kingdom of our Lord, and
of his Christ, and he shall reign for ever and ever. And the four and twenty
elders re-presenting the eternal priesthood of Christ's people], who sat before
God on their throne, fell upon their faces and worshipped God, saying: We give
thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, who art and who wast, because thou hast taken
thy great power and didst reign. And the nations were wroth, and thy wrath
came, and the time of the dead to be judged, and the time to give thy rewards
to thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and to them that fear thy
name, the small and the great, and to destroy them that destroy the earth. And
there was opened the temple of God that is in heaven, and there was seen in
this temple the ark of the covenant, and there followed lightnings and voices
and thunders, and earthquake, and a great hail."
I showed you that the seals gave one panoramic view of the gospel as preached
to the end of time, and that the trumpets gave you another panoramic view
parallel with it, of the gospel as prayed to the end of time, and so this
passage here: "The kingdom of the world is become the kingdom of our Lord,
and of his Christ," shows that the recovered gospel in the Reformation
times will never be silenced any more – Rome will never be able to shut again
that open book! she will never be able to chain that Bible again; she will
never be able to stop the onward march of missions that is today reaching the utmost
parts of the world, and I would very solemnly impress upon you that it is the
Spirit dispensation, and the dispensation of a true church, and the
dispensation of a true ministry that will bring about this glorious
consummation, which will be more fully discussed when we come to the Millennium
in chapter 20 of this book. I want to make this very impressive, because when
you talk missions you must talk in faith of their triumph. It is the open
restored gospel, and under its power you must preach confidently to any nation,
to any king, to any people, and your heart must be assured that by this gospel
preached, will every man be saved that is ever to be saved in this world. I
will .tell you that that is one of the key passages in Revelation: "The
kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord, and of his
Christ." The candlesticks were lighted to illumine the world, and though
when in chapters 2 and 3 we showed the pitiful imperfections of the churches,
we wondered if such instrumentalities could ever enlighten the world, and when
we saw the deficiencies of the preachers, we wondered if by men like these the
kingdom of this world should ever become the kingdom of our Lord and of his
Christ; yet when we saw the heavens opened and what powers were employed there
to help the churches and preachers, we no longer wondered. As they preached
they conquered; as they prayed they conquered; stricken down as if dead, they
revived again and the fire broke out into a greater blaze, and was more widely
spread than before. That is the crowd I belong to.
QUESTIONS
1. Give briefly a review of the seals & trumpets,
and then tell what questions chapter 10 answers, and what other questions
chapter 11 answers.
2. Who is the radiant angel of 10:1?
3. The meaning of his posture – one foot on the sea
and the other on the land?
4. Why the temporary sealing up of the voices of the
seven thunders? When and how do they reappear and find record? Where and for
similar reasons have we found a temporary silence in a preceding section?
5. State the oath of the angel as wrongly rendered in
the common version, and then as better rendered in the Standard Version.
6. (a) To what previous question is the oath a final
answer, and (b) compare it with the answer then given, and (c) with what
parable is it in agreement, and (d) give Peter's reason for the delay, and (e)
why does this delay seem long to us and only "a little while" to God?
7. Discriminate between the book of 5:1, and the book of
10:2, and then (a) tell what this book means, (b) the meaning of eating it, and
(c) explain its application to 10:11.
8. What is measured in 11:1-2, and what does it mean?
9. (a) In the Old Testament are two measurements
somewhat similar to the one in 11:1-2ùwhere are they, and (b) where in this
book is another one? (c) Explain their relation to each other, and (d) what is
the meaning of this one?
10. (a) How long will this small measure last, and (b)
explain the symbolic numbers, forty-two months (11:2), 1,260 days (11:3), and
by comparison of 11:2-3, with 12-6, prove that "temple" in 11:1, and
the woman in 12:1, mean the same thing.
11. (a) What is the Old Testament analogue of 11:3-4,
and (b) the two witnesses there, and (c) who are the two witnesses here?
12. Meaning of "prophesying in sackcloth"?
13. Give the historic fulfilment of the death and
revival of the witnesses and all the attendant circumstances of 11:7-11.
14. What is the meaning of 11:12?
15. What historical correspondence to 11:13, showing
the effect of the revival of the witnesses?
16. Where will we find the third woe named but not
given in 11:14?
17. What glorious consummation follows the seventh
trumpet, and what parallel in the last synchronous view?
PROPHETIC FORECASTS OF CHURCH HISTORY
Revelation 12
This is by far the longest section in the book, extending from 12:1 to 19:10.
Its interpretation will call for several chapters. It will be, or at least has
proved to be, exceedingly difficult of interpretation, and before attempting
the detailed exposition we must first consider the general purpose of the whole
section. The entire section gives a prophetic forecast of the history of two
opposing religious institutions. Each institution is symbolized by a woman who
glides into a city; that is, the symbol changes from a woman to a city. The
idea, as elsewhere throughout the book, comes from the Old Testament imagery,
the general convocation of ancient Israel as represented by the prophets is a
woman betrothed to Jehovah. Marital infidelity, or harlotry, on the part of
this woman is defined to be a turning away from Jehovah to worship idols. That
is, spiritual fornication means idolatry. Paul, in a measure, adopts this
imagery in his letter to the Galatians (4: 21-31), where in the form of an
allegory he makes Hagar and Sarah represent the two covenants: Hagar, the bond
woman, answering to the earthly Jerusalem, and Sarah, the true wife, answering
to the heavenly Jerusalem.
We need not be surprised, therefore, to find in this symbolical, apocalyptic
prophecy two women representing two opposing institutions, nor to find each
woman, by a change of figure, becoming a city. Nor need we to stumble in the
exposition if, bearing in mind the law of interpreting symbols, we be careful
not to construe a symbol literally. A symbolic woman is not a real woman. As
there was a real Hagar and a real Sarah, so there is some historical background
which will be the analogue of every symbol in this book. For example, there was
the historic Jezebel, the wife of Ahab, who led Israel to worship idols, else
there would be no force in calling the temptress Jezebel who led the church at
Thyatira astray in idolatry.
Let us, therefore, look at the two women in this section. The first is thus
described: "And a great sign was seen in heaven, a woman arrayed with the
sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head was a crown of twelve
stars" – heaven here must not be understood as the final abode of the
blest, but is the scene of the vision. The word "sign" (Greek "semeion")
is further proof that the woman is not real. "Woman" symbolizes the
church as an institution. "Arrayed with the sun" means that Christ is
her light. The "moon under her feet" means that the Christ light is
not direct but reflected, as the moon shines when the sun is absent. Note that
her crown is not a symbol of sovereignty. It is a garland given as a reward to
victors – Greek "stephanos," not "diadema," a
diadem worn by sovereigns. The twelve stars probably allude to the twelve
apostles, in a teaching sense the foundation, as the twelve foundations of the
Holy City (21:14), which itself helps to prove that the woman is the church –
she radiating with Christ's light and the light of the apostles. In the second
chapter of Ephesians we have the thought somewhat expressed (20th verse) :
"Being built upon the foundation of the apostles, Jesus Christ himself
being the chief cornerstone, in whom each several building, fitly framed
together, groweth into a holy temple in the Lord." This woman, then,
stands before us as pre-eminently a light-bearer – of the light of Christ, of
the light of the Apostles, and of the New Testament prophets. The fact that she
has a garland on her head rather than a crown shows that when she appears she
has won a victory. The picture reminds us of the description of the woman in
Solomon's Sons (6:10): "Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair
as the moon, clear as the sun, terrible as an army with banners?" That is
the woman.
The second woman is thus described (17:1-6): "And there came one of the
seven angels that had the seven bowls, and spake with me, saying, Come hither,
I will show you the judgment of the great harlot that sitteth upon many waters;
with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and they that dwell in
the earth were made drunken with the wine of her fornication; and he carried me
away in the Spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sitting upon a
scarlet-coloured beast, full of the names of blasphemy, having seven heads and
ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and decked with
gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of
abominations, even the unclean things of her fornication, and upon her forehead
a name written: Mystery, Babylon the Great, the mother of harlots and the
abominations of the earth. And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the
saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus, and when I saw her I
wondered with a great wonder." The explanation of the terms here will be
given when we reach the seventeenth chapter.
Did you ever see two pictures standing over against each other more in contrast
than these two? Now, the question is: who are these women? Is either one of
them a real woman, and when the second one glides into a city called Babylon is
it the real Babylon which in ancient times led Israel into captivity? When the
first one, now only betrothed to Christ, becomes the wife of the Lamb at the
close of this section (19: 7-8), can we, with the Romanists, interpret this
wife of the Lamb to be his mother, the Virgin Mary, and worship her as the
Queen of Heaven? And when later this wife, by a change of figure, becomes a
city, Jerusalem (21:9-12), shall we call it the earthly Jerusalem?
We are safe, therefore, in a general interpretation that the first woman
represents the true church of Christ as an institution, and that the second
woman represents the apostate church as an institution, originated by Satan to
counterfeit the true. In our chapter on Matthew 16 and 18, where Christ says:
"On this rock I will build my church" we have already learned that
the term church may be used abstractly if considered as an institution, or
concretely when applied to a particular congregation, or prospectively when it
is applied to the future church in glory. In chapter 12, under the symbol of a
radiant woman, the church is represented as an institution. I read the second
verse: "And she was with child, and she crieth out travailing in birth and
in pain to be delivered." This spiritual travail is a familiar figure of
speech in both Testaments. For example, Isaiah, foreseeing the regeneration or
new birth of the Jewish nation in one day, says: "Who hath heard of such a
thing – who hath ever seen such a thing? Shall a land be born in one day? Shall
a nation be brought forth at once? For as soon as Zion travailed she brought
forth her children." Now, the church is represented as being in travail to
bring forth children; as when in a revival meeting we say: This church, this
Zion, must travail in order that new converts may be born unto God.
Continuing the quotation (v. 3) : "And there was seen another sign in
heaven, and behold! a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and
upon his heads seven diadems" – not "stephanos," a
garland but diadems, the symbols of authority. What is the meaning of this
great red dragon? A horrible thing as seen in that vision. What does it mean?
Verse 9 tells you exactly: "The old serpent, he that is called the devil,
Satan, the deceiver of the world." That is what that sign represents. What
is meant by "having seven heads"? That refers us to his diverse
sources of vitality, and his persistence in life after it seems you have killed
him – seven being the symbolic number of perfection or fulness. You have heard
that a cat has nine lives; well, the symbolic seven means more than nine –
means any number of heads, any number of seats of intelligences, diverse forms
of intelligence, diverse forms of vitality, diverse capacity of biting and
striking. Just here those of you who have studied the classics will recall the
famous battle between Hercules and Hydra. Hydra was the many-headed snake. You
have little trouble in killing a snake with one head; with stick or stone you
crush that one head. But suppose that when you strike at one head, the one you
see, the other six in ambush strike at you.
The devil struck with three heads of temptation at Christ in the wilderness – and
each in succession was crushed. But the record says the devil left him for a
little while; he came back again – he had another way to try him; he came back
at him in another form. He will the same way approach you. You need not think,
because you have overcome the evil one in one form, that you have won a final
victory. He takes as many shapes as Proteus, he has as many heads as Hydra, as
many hands as Briareus, as many eyes as Argus, and he always falls on his feet.
What is meant by diadem? It means that it is unlike that woman's garland who
had no sovereignty. The woman is not sovereign, for Christ is the Sovereign.
But the devil is a real king; he is the king of the pit; he was the king of
that swarm of locusts we talked about; he is the king of all the fallen angels;
he is the prince of the world. As Paul says, "We wrestle not against flesh
and blood, but against principalities and powers"; he is the prince of
this world.
What is meant by his ten horns? Always in this book a horn is a symbol of power,
and ten is one of the prophetic numbers to represent any number of powers. The
unicorn mentioned in the Bible, which I suppose is the one-horned rhinoceros,
has only one horn, and if you can get away from that one horn, you are all
right for awhile; if a wild bull comes after you he can gore you with only two
horns; but the devil can hook you in any direction. The ten horns represent the
diversity and multitude of his powers.
We will read again (v. 4): "And his tail draweth a third part of the stars
of heaven and did cast them to the earth." The tail here is but carrying
out the idea of a dragon. Every serpent has a tail, and many of the crocodile
class have their greatest power in their tails. If you are walking along a
Louisiana bayou, thinking you are passing an old rotten log, which is an
alligator, he will knock you into the water with his tail and then go in after
you and devour you. Now, while the tail is an essential part of a reptile, it
symbolizes here the pagan power he will use against the church. The stars drawn
by the tail represent the pastors he leads astray by fear of persecution, by
immorality, or by heresy. Note the tense "draweth," not "has
drawn," which by anticipation shows how in the conflict with the woman he
will try to destroy her by corrupting her ministry. The "third part"
signifies that in this particular conflict he will only partially succeed in
corrupting the ministry. The majority will remain faithful. It is an outrage on
interpretation to make the stars here refer to the fallen angels who were
seduced by Satan before Adam was created. That is indeed the historic
background which furnishes the imagery of this future event – see Jude 6 and 2
Peter 2:4.
I therefore repeat the question: Who are the stars? In this book they are preachers,
and it means that in the coming persecution a relatively large number of
preachers will fall. Walking carelessly along the bayou of sin they have been
knocked by the tail of this alligator into its mouth. Henceforward they become
preachers of the devil rather than of Jesus Christ. I once saw a preacher as
drunk as a fool; a bystander said: "He is so drunk he could not hit the
ground with his hat." A friend also standing by me, who was a student of
this book, said: "The alligator's tail has drawn down that star – he has
that preacher." What an awful thing when one commissioned of heaven to
outshine the real stars shall fall from his high estate and become a servant of
the devil rather than a leader of the hosts of the true God. Whenever a preacher
tells lies, whenever he is two-faced and double-tongued, whenever he is a
strife-maker and not a peacemaker, the devil's tail has hit him.
We continue to read: "And the dragon sitteth before the woman that is
about to be delivered, that when she is delivered he may devour her child. And
she was delivered of a son, a man-child, who is to rule the nations with a rod
of iron, and the child was caught up to God unto his throne." The devil
got that child's body; when you see the woman a little later the child is not
with her. But the devil did not get the soul – that was caught up to heaven.
But he did destroy the body of that child and thought he was winning &
great fight. Now, the question is: Who is that man-child? In the verse I have
just read it states that he is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, and
here the child was caught up unto his throne. On that statement Alford and
nearly all commentators say that the child was Jesus Christ, and that it could
not possibly apply to anybody else. If that be true, I would like to ask Mr.
Alford who then is this woman, the mother of the child. Some commentators try
to get out of that difficulty by saying that the woman is indeed the church,
but that the church here is an Old Testament church, continued in the New
Testament, and about equivalent to the kingdom. I fail to see how the kingdom
gives birth to its founder, and totally dissent from such a mixed
interpretation of the word "church." When Jesus said, "I will
build my church . . ." He had before him the Old Testament Jewish church,
the convocation of national Israel, and he had before him the Greek church, the
civil body governing in every city, yet in contradistinction to both of them he
says, "I will build my church," and if this woman represents the church,
she represents the New Testament church, not a mixed Old Testament and New
Testament church. Moreover, this whole vision is a part of the things
"that shall come to pass hereafter," and we are now in that section
of Revelation. We have seen the things that John "saw," we have seen
the things "that are" in the seven churches on earth and the things
"that are" in heaven, but ever since that we have been in the things
that shall take place hereafter. Whoever this man-child is, he was not born
before or in John's time, and the fact that he is to be caught up to the throne
of God and rule the nations with a rod of iron cannot necessarily prove that it
was Jesus Christ, for in this very book, and in the parts we have gone over,
Christ said: "To him that overcometh will I give to sit down on my throne,
and I will give him authority over nations, and he shall rule them with a rod
of iron." Therefore, it is not at all necessary to violate the symbolism
by making this child to mean Jesus Christ, born away back yonder in the past
from John's time, nor to make this woman represent something that existed away
back yonder in the Old Testament. In John's time the church as an institution
seems beaten by her adversaries. John is cheered by a vision of this apparently
beaten institution, crowned with a garland of victory and radiant with light.
When John writes he is under the persecution of Domitian, a very discouraging
time, and the church as an institution does not seem to be in a prosperous
condition. But he sees in the future ahead of him this glorious church about to
be marvelously prosperous. She wears the garland of victory. The church goes on
conquering and to conquer up to the time of the Emperor Decius, A.D. 248, when,
according to Gibbon, the greatest persecution ever known to history, or that
paganism ever waged against the church, was in his administration. The church,
from John's time, wears the garland wreath of victory on her brow up to the
time of the Decian persecution. The dragon in that persecution devours her
converts and drives her into the wilderness. It is true that the history in
Matthew 2:13-16, when the devil through Herod seeks the life of the child
Jesus, is the historic background suggesting the imagery of this vision of a
future event. And it is true that after his crucifixion our Lord ascended to a
heavenly throne.
Who, then, is the man-child? My answer is that one is taken to represent a
class, that is, the man-child represents the martyrs that are to be put to
death in this coming persecution. They are converts just as you are.
Verse 17 says: "And the dragon waxed wroth with the woman, and went away
to make war with the rest of her seed that keep the commandments of God and
hold the testimony of Jesus Christ." He did not succeed with that first
seed, but purposes to assail the rest of them and by a new kind of power – he
will use different means, as we will see in the next lesson. The head he is
using right now in devouring the converts is the pagan persecution of Decius.
Now, as a further proof that I am right in saying this manchild represents a
whole class, later on in the chapter (v. 11), he is spoken of as plural:
"And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb, and because of
the word of their testimony, and they loved not their lives unto death."
Now all of verses 7-11, are parenthetical and epexegetical of the killing of
the man-child. It is a parenthesis. For instance, in John 3 we have:
"Except a man be born from above he cannot see the kingdom of God,"
and further down in the chapter we have: "Except a man be born of water
and Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of heaven." That second statement
is epexegetical of the first one. That is, it elaborates by giving the
constituent elements of the new birth – cleansing by application of Christ's
blood and renewing of mind by the Holy Spirit.
I want you to reflect most solemnly upon my position, taken by no commentary in
the world, and on the correctness of which I will risk my reputation; that from
verse 7-11 the whole paragraph is parenthetical, and is simply explanatory of
the devouring of the man-child. As soon as that parenthesis is interposed, you
go right on about the woman in the wilder ness; you resume the story that was
interrupted by the parenthesis.
How, then, does the devil propose to destroy the converts of the church? In
this verse you see a class represented by a man-child – the class of the
martyrs that you saw in the fifth seal of the preceding lecture – how does he
propose to devour that man-child? By using a pagan government to kill them in
various ways: cut their heads off, burn them at the stake, destroy them root
and branch. He lost the fight, though he thought he had won it. He lost the
fight because the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. Wickliffe's
ashes were cast into the river Severn after his body was burned. They cast his
ashes into the river, but the river carried them to the sea, and the sea
carried them around the shores of the world, and so Wickliffe's soul goes
marching on. You will see in the next chapter how the devil will employ a more
formidable means of persecution. You cannot understand the next lesson unless
you note this change: his first means to destroy the churches was to put their
members to death by persecution of pagan Rome. His next expedient will be papal
Rome.
Let us now expound that parenthesis. I have told you that verses 7-11 is a
parenthesis explanatory of the devouring of that child. There was war in heaven
(whenever the devil seeks to destroy the saints, that always means war).
Michael and his angels go forth to war with the dragon and his angels, and they
prevail not. The man-child was killed, but Satan prevailed not – the martyr
testimony makes other seed. The old serpent was cast down to the earth, and his
angels were cast down with him.
"And I heard a great voice in heaven saying: Now is come the salvation and
the power and the kingdom of God, and the authority of his Christ; for the
accuser of our brethren is cast down, who accuses them before God day and
night, and they [see the plural of that man-child] overcame him because of the
blood of the Lamb, and because of the word of their testimony, and they loved
not their life even unto death." John Milton takes "the heaven"
here to mean the home of God and not the scene of this symbolic vision, and,
forgetting that this imagery foretells a thing to occur in the future, made
this war in heaven take place before the world was created – a real fight
between the good and the bad angels. The finest part of his Paradise Lost
is his description of the war between the angels. Just what means were
employed in expelling the fallen angels originally I do not know, but Michael
here is our Lord Jesus Christ himself; his angels are the angels we saw in
chapter 4ù ten thousand times ten thousand of thousands, and they are helping
the church here on earth. The devil is trying to destroy the church, and he has
the power to kill their bodies, but not their souls, and God's angels from
heaven help the saints in their fight to stand firm and shout and sing and pray
as they die, so that their martyr testimony will be more powerful in making new
converts to God than if they had not been martyred. Now, as I said, the devil
got the bodies of the martyrs, but not their souls, and he lost the fight.
Let us see what becomes of the woman. Verse 6 says that the woman fled into the
wilderness, where she had a place prepared of God, where she remained a
thousand two hundred and threescore days, each day a year. That is the same as
forty-two symbolic months. Note again particularly that w. 13-17 are
epexegetical of v. 6. It says that she was given the two wings of a great eagle
that she might fly into the wilderness. The great eagle here is one of the
Cherubim. We know that every Cherub had one eagle face. This statement recalls
two Old Testament passages: God says to Moses: "Ye have seen what I did
unto the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto
myself." And again we have these glorious words: "Hast thou not
known? Hast thou not heard? The everlasting God, Jehovah, the Creator of the
ends of the earth, fainteth not; neither is weary; there is no searching of his
understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to him that hath no might he
increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young
men shall utterly fail; but they that wait for Jehovah shall renew their
strength; they mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint" (Isa. 40: 28-31). Cherubim, eagle-faced,
bore the woman into the wilderness, where she was nourished for twelve hundred
and sixty years.
Verse 15: "And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a river, that he
might cause her to be carried away with the stream." That is a familiar Old
Testament image, where great wrath is compared to a flushed river, an
overflowing torrent. The record says the earth helped the woman by swallowing
up the water. Imagine what would become of a river turned loose in a desert. It
would soon vanish. But what it means by the earth helping the woman is that
secular governments sometimes intervene to protect the rights of the saints and
of the churches. For instance, in the Catholic part of Germany it was easy to
destroy a martyr, but they could not get to him over in the Protestant part of
Germany. The earth over there helped the woman. The Savoy king would say:
"You cannot persecute here." Like the grim old Black Douglas, when he
started to the borders of England and Scotland to defend the frontier, and the
Catholic Church was just starting a persecution, said: "I go, but the
smell of one burning fagot on the way will bring me back from the
borders." That is the earth helping the woman. "And the dragon waxed
wroth with the woman, and he went away to make war with the rest of her seed,
those that keep the commandments of God and the testimony of Jesus."
QUESTIONS
1. What is the extent of this section?
2. What part of it is our present lesson?
3. What is the general purpose of the whole section?
4. Whence is the imagery?
5. Cite Paul's use of similar imagery.
6. What is the first law of interpreting symbols?
Illustrate.
7. What is the description of the first woman?
8. Explain separately the words: "sign,"
"heaven," "woman," "arrayed with the sun,"
"the moon under her feet," "crown," "twelve
stars."
9. What Old Testament passage does this vision recall?
10. Where and what is the description of the second
woman?
11. What does she represent, who established, and why?
12. What uses of the word "church" were
given in the lecture on Matthew 16:18?
13. Explain 12:2 – "the woman in travail,"
and cite illustration from Isaiah.
14. Verse 3: (a) Who is the dragon; (b) meaning of
seven heads, and cite classic allusion; (c) meaning of "diadem" – Greek
"diadema" – and distinguish between it and the woman's crown
"stephanos," and prove his real sovereignty; (d) meaning of
ten horns?
15. Verse 4: (a) Meaning of tail; (b) illustrate the
power and use of the tail of a certain class of reptiles; (c) the symbolic
meaning of tail in this connection; (d) meaning of stars here; (e) prove that
the drawing down of these stars is not a past event.
16. Verse 5: (a) What is the historic analogue which
suggests the imagery of this future event; (b) what part of the verse led
Alford and most other commentators to make this man-child our Lord himself; (c)
what preceding passages in this book disprove the necessity of confining the
application to our Lord; (d) what is the difficulty of referring the passage to
our Lord; (e) how do some commentators seek to evade this difficulty, and your
reply to them; (f) who is the man-child and the proof?
17. What great poet misinterpreted the war of v. 7?
18. What was this war? And wherein does Satan fail?
19. What verses of the chapter are epexegetical of v.
6?
20. What is the Old Testament analogue of the church
in wilderness?
21. Who bore the woman in the wilderness, and what two
Old Testament passages are recalled?
22. To what are the outgoings of Satan's wrath against
the woman compared?
23. Literally, what becomes of a river in the desert?
24. Symbolically, what is meant by "the earth
helped the woman," and illustrate?
PROPHETIC FORECASTS OF CHURCH HISTORY
(CONTINUED)
In the preceding chapter, commencing the exposition of this section, we
considered only chapter 12. A brief review of the leading lines of thought on that
chapter will help us now to see clearly its connection with our present study,
chapter 13.
We found the radiant woman of 12:1, to be the true church established by our
Lord, in the sense of an institution, appointed to enlighten the world. We
found the adversary of this institution to be the devil, de facto (not de jure)
king of this world and prince of all powers of darkness. We found that the war
he waged against the church consisted of three distinct campaigns:
1. An assault on the pastors, in which "his tail draweth down a third part
of the stars" – i.e., a great proportion of the pastors were led astray
into either heresy or a corrupt life, Satan counting that as are the pastors so
will be the churches. In this campaign, Satan is defeated because he could not
corrupt all the preachers; the majority remained faithful to the Lord.
2. An assault by persecution unto death on the progeny of the church, i.e., her
true spiritual children (12:5), the manchild ..meaning not a particular person,
but standing for the martyr class in that greatest of all Pagan persecutions in
the first half of the third century; a class and not a single person being
evident from the more elaborate statement in verse 11, "And they overcame
him because of the blood of the Lamb, and because of the word of their
testimony, and they loved not their life, even unto death." In this
terrible conflict the heavenly powers, Christ and his holy angels, assisted the
martyrs against Satan and his demons assisted the persecutor pagan Rome (12:7).
In this campaign Satan was defeated, for he could kill the body only but not
the soul (latter clause of verse 5), and because "the blood of the martyrs
became the seed of the church."
3. His attempt to destroy the church is an institution worldwide prescriptive
legislation, making its assembling a capital penal offense – notably by the
Roman Emperor Decius and his successor in first half of third century. In this
campaign he was also defeated because, although the church was driven into the
obscurity of the wilderness, even there she was divinely kept alive and
nourished (v. 6, 13-14), and children of faith were born unto her there. Even
some secular powers defended the persecuted institutions against the swollen
river of his wrath, "the earth helped the woman" (v. 15-16), and so
always when the enemy comes in like a flood the Spirit of the Lord shall lift
up a standard against him. (See Isa. 59:19.)
Failing to destroy the church by a partial corruption of the ministry, failing
to destroy it by martyring its children of faith, since the martyrs' dying
testimony made other believers, failing to destroy the church as an institution
by making its assemblies a penal offense under imperial pagan law, the wrath of
Satan was exceedingly great and his purpose confirmed to wage war against her
other seed, i.e., wilderness seed, but by employing a different expedient, just
what, this lesson, chapter 13 will disclose.
To further clarify this brief review of chapter 12 these additional
observations are submitted, though but repetitions:
1. While conceding and even insisting that there was a fall of the angels, led
by Satan, before man was created (Jude 6; 2 Peter 2:4), this interpretation of
"things to come to pass hereafter," i.e., after John's time, A.D. 96,
has no other allusion to that ancient event than this, that all of his visions
of the future are clothed in the imagery of past historical events. Hence these
"stars" drawn down by the dragon's tail (v. 4) mean not the fallen
angels seduced by him before Adam was created, but mean fallen pastors seduced
by him in this conflict with the church, following our interpretation of the
first chapter of this book. And so the war in 12:7, was not, as Milton
interpreted it in his Paradise Lost, the war which resulted in casting down
Satan and his demons before Adam's creation, as v. II of that context shows.
But as there is a historical background which furnishes the drapery of every
vision of the future, poetic license may extenuate, if not justify, Milton's
misinterpretation. Just so, when the seventy returned with joy, saying
"Lord, even the demons are subject unto us through thy name," and the
Lord replies, "I beheld Satan fallen as lightning from heaven" (Luke
10:17-18). He does not refer to Satan's original fall, but to his fall through
the testimony of the seventy. So here he falls from his usurped place-by the
testimony of the martyrs (v. 11). You have only to compare the great lesson in
Matthew 12:28-29, where our Lord casts out Satan and spoils him of his goods, referring
not to Satan's original overthrow, but to his overthrow from his place of
usurpation.
2. Similarly we have not followed Alford and most commentators in making the
man-child (v. 5) mean our Lord himself. We can see how Romanists would enjoy
this, since it would make the radiant woman of 12:1, to be the virgin Mary and
queen of heaven. The way Satan sought to destroy our Lord when a child, through
Herod's massacre at Bethlehem, is indeed the historic analogue which suggests
the imagery of this vision of a future event. The authority given to the
"manchild" in latter clause of v. 5, need not stagger us when we
consider the promises already expounded at 2:26-27; 3:21, and many later
passages in this book. Nor have we accepted the weak evasions of other
commentators, who, to avoid a difficulty, make the woman of 12:1, mean the
church, but a blended Old and New Testament church, so as to permit our Lord to
be born of the church. There is no such church. And our Lord is the founder and
head of the church, not its son.
3. Our interpretation makes 7-12 epexegetical of the war on the man-child,
latter clause of v. 4 and v. 5; and vv. 13-17 epexegetical of v. 6.
4. Our interpretation makes the numbers "forty-two months" in 11:2,
and 13:5, and the 1,260 days of 11:3, 12:6, and the "time, times and
half-time" of 12:14, all mean the same thing – i.e., 1,260 years, which
delimits the wilderness period of the church, commencing about A.D. 250, and
extending to A.D. 1510.
With this clarifying view of chapter 12, we are now prepared to undertake the
exposition of chapter 13, and particularly to see the connection between them.
Chapter 12 left the church in the wilderness, A.D. 250, to remain there 1,260
years bearing "other seed," and left Satan exceedingly angry at his
failure to destroy it by the persecution of pagan Rome, and devising in his
wrath some other method of continuing the war. This chapter, our present
lesson, gives his new device, which, in a few words, is the establishment of a
counterfeit church. This counterfeit church, while changing the names of its
objects of worship, will have more of them than heathen polytheism ever
assembled on Mount Olympus, and whose images are more numerous than all ever
placed in a heathen pantheon. It will have more persecuting powers than pagan
Rome, and the power this time will extend beyond the grave. Out of the ruins of
the pagan Roman Empire it will construct a more formidable "Holy Roman
Empire," whose boundaries will be pushed far beyond the limits of pagan
Roman territory. While the Caesar head of pagan Rome was wounded unto death,
the wound will be healed by a papal head. There were only twelve Caesars –
there will be a multitude of Popes, among them a Pope and his son Caesar Borgia
worse than Nero. By using pagan Rome as his tail the great red dragon was able
to draw down to earth only a third of the stars, i.e., to corrupt only
one-third of the ministry, but with papal Rome as his tail this scriptural
crocodile will sweep down into his Nile for devouring the overwhelming majority
of the ministry.
This device of Satan, in its ultimate proportions, will not be a mushroom
product, nor an Aladdin palace springing up in a night, but a steady
development of the centuries, a ceaseless evolution by accretion of the ages. All
the seven wonders of the classic world will pale into insignificance before
this prodigy – Satan's great masterpiece. The statue of its Pope will cast a
longer shadow than Jupiter's on Mount Olympus; its temple will surpass Diana's
at Ephesus. This colossus will outstraddle the bronze pigmy at Rhodes. Its
pyramid will exceed that of Cheops on the Nile, and its Sphinx will not be
dumb; the lighthouse at Pharos, near Alexandria, revealed a port of entry to
storm-tossed little Mediterranean ships – but this in the name of a lighthouse,
will diffuse darkness on a thousand rock-bound ocean shores, that mighty liners
may grind their keels and ribs of steel into the fine powder of total
shipwreck. In the days of Pericles classic art embellished the Acropolis at
Athens, but this acropolis will exhaust for centuries the skill of subservient
architects, painters, and sculptors. The Mausoleum at Halicarnassus held the
dust of only one honored king; this mausoleum will hold the dust of many
dishonored kings and statesmen.
But, let us turn from rhetoric to detailed exposition:
13:1 – the Common Version reads: "And I stood upon the sand of the
sea." Our revision corrects the misleading pronoun: "And he stood
upon the sands of the sea" – he, the dragon of the preceding verse, mad at
his failure in employing pagan persecution. Why stood he at the sea?
"Sea" in this book means the peoples, or confluent materials of
nations (17:15). Satan is contemplating the heterogeneous national material
disintegrated by the fall of pagan Rome, and calculating a reconstruction more
efficient for his purpose than pagan Rome. He is the usurping de facto king of
the nations. He recalls a temptation once offered to our Lord: "All the
kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, will I give thee if thou wilt
fall dawn and worship me." (Matt. 4:8-10.) Our Lord rejected it. Satan
knew also that the radiant woman of 12:1, the true church, would reject it,
even to escape the wilderness. But he argues: Why not I establish a counterfeit
church that will accept it on my conditions? And so John the seer is enabled to
witness the method of his work.
"And I saw a beast coming up out of the sea." "Beast" in
this book, as in Daniel 7:1-8 (which see), means a king or government. And
follows a description of this sea beast, which wars against the saints and has
authority for 1,260 years – all the wilderness period of the church, i.e., up
to the Reformation, when its power wanes until reanimated by the earth beast
(vv. 11-12). We may not attempt to interpret this vision except in the light of
Daniel 7:19-25, and Revelation 17:7-18. The whole passage seems to teach the
transition from a pagan Roman Empire to a so-called "Holy Roman
Empire." That is, commencing with the Emperor Constantine, there came
about first a union of church and state, with the state at first on top,
followed later by the church on top. Constantine might claim that he was the
head of the church, but gradually the Pope became the head of both state and
church. In the order of history the spotted beast – church and state – would
precede the earth beast, looking like a lamb, but having the voice of a dragon,
representing the papacy. The idea of the Pope's universal supremacy would be a
gradual development, which in all its fulness was not attained until the
Vatican Council in 1870. A universal visible church, united with the state and
dominant over the state, naturally receives its consummation in an earthly,
visible, and infallible head. So the leopard sea beast would represent a
politicalreligious world empire, and the earth beast of v. II would represent
the papal head of this empire, galvanizing it into at least a semblance of life
after its political life was broken, by his infallible ipse dixit.
In a union of church and state two results always follow: A. quarrel concerning
ultimate authority: shall the state dominate the church, or the church dominate
the state? No matter which dominates, there is sure to be persecution of those
who claim liberty to worship God according to the dictates of the individual.
Where a church claims to be universal, with ultimate jurisdiction over all
states, there will certainly be a revolt of states against the church.
Chapter 13; first clause of verse 1: "And I saw a beast coming up out of
the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns ten diadems, and
upon his heads names of blasphemy." If you turn to the description of the
dragon in your last lesson, you will see both a likeness and an unlikeness:
"I saw a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his
heads seven diadems." Here the diadems on this beast are on his horns. The
likeness arises from the fact that the government created by the dragon will
resemble the dragon; and the unlikeness will arise from the fact that the
horns, signifying power, will be different because the first was wholly
spiritual, and the second will be secular.
What do the seven heads mean? "I saw a beast come up out of the sea,
having ten horns and seven heads" – suppose you turn with me to chapter
17, it will give us God's explanation. Verse 9: "The seven heads are seven
mountains on which the woman sitteth" – that looks like it means the seven
hills on which Rome was built, to which there may be a remote allusion; but let
us go on and read a little further: "And they are [that is, they
represent] seven kings [or better, seven kingdoms], five are fallen, one is,
and the other is yet to come, and when he cometh he must continue a little
while." Now, when we take Daniel and Revelation together, we understand
these seven world empires – the kingdoms that oppose the kingdom of God in
every age. First, the Egyptians; they wanted to destroy Israel or keep it in
bondage. The second was Assyria, with its capital at Nineveh, that destroyed
the ten tribes. These two had passed away before Daniel wrote, and hence he
does not discuss them. When John comes to write five are fallen, so we must add
three more to the two that had fallen when Daniel wrote. These three were
Babylon, which captured Judah; Persia, which, at Haman's suggestion, was about
to destroy the Jewish exiles; and Greece, which, particularly under Antiochus
Epiphanes, sought to destroy utterly the religion of the Jews. Daniel saw four:
Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome. Now, when John wrote, five of these world
empires had passed away, and the sixth, the Roman Empire, is the one which will
destroy Jerusalem and is now persecuting under Domitian. When John wrote it was
still in great power. The seventh would be this spotted beast that this lesson
is discussing – the Holy Roman Empire, and hence we can understand how the
eighth (13:11) is not a nation, but is of the seventh. The eighth is the
papacy, not a nation, but is of the seventh and has the power of the seventh.
Now, do you get that point clear? That there is a likeness in every great world
empire that wars against the kingdom of God – persecuting likeness and a
blaspheming likeness. Every one of these assumed divine as well as human power,
from Egypt to Rome. The emperor claimed to be Pontifex Maximus – that is, high
priest of the religion of the nation, and also claimed to be God, demanding to
be worshiped. The image of Caesar was put up on their standards, and when the
legions would wake up in the morning the first thing to do would be to bow down
and worship the image of Caesar on the standard.
Now, this last beast is represented as having seven heads. That is, it blends
all the evils of the six preceding world powers, and itself will be the
seventh. What are the ten horns? "And the ten horns that thou seest are
the ten kings that have received no kingdoms yet" (17:12). That is, the
ten kingdoms that were to be built up out of pagan Rome were not yet
established; he is looking into the future and sees them, but they are not yet.
I ask you particularly to notice these ten horns and the ten kingdoms. They
support the woman in purple and scarlet (17:13) and these ten kingdoms give
their power and authority unto the beast – every one of the ten kingdoms that
were established out of the ruins of the pagan Roman Empire and constitute the
Holy Roman Empire championed the Roman Catholic religion.
But look at verse 16: "And the ten horns which thou seest on the beast,
these shall hate the harlot and make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her
flesh and burn her with fire." That means that in later history these ten
governments in succession would become the oppressors of the Roman Catholic
Church, as France threw off its allegiance, and as did Germany, and later Holland,
Switzerland, all Scandinavia – i.e., Denmark, Norway, Sweden – and England,
Scotland, and Wales, and turned their powers against this great whore that
represents the Roman Catholic Church, and finally Italy itself, when Victor
Emmanuel led his army into Rome and destroyed the temporal power of the Pope,
and carried an open Bible at the head of his entrance column. You thus see what
the ten kings, or ten horns, mean.
We now come to the description of this beast (v. 2): "And the beast that I
saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his
mouth was as the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his
throne and great authority." If you turn back to that seventh chapter of
Daniel, you will notice that this beast combines the elements of the four
beasts of his vision. The predominating quality here is the leopard; i.e., the
beast had the leopard's form. Which means it was a spotted government, a mixed
government, it was a politico-religious government. That is the reason the
leopard predominates – it is a spotted beast. Verse 3: "And I saw one of
his heads as though it had been smitten unto death" – that is, the pagan
Roman head, yet further when John writes – "and I saw that one head was
smitten to death and his death stroke was healed." In other words,
succeeding pagan Rome came papal Rome. The center of authority is still in the
city of Rome, the governing power still goes out from that center, but the
Caesar head dies in the destruction of pagan Rome, and the Pope head comes in
the place of it.
Last of verse 3: "And the whole earth wondered after the beast" –
well, it was a prodigy; there had never been anything just like it. It was not
like pagan Rome in this, that there were ten kingdoms united on their religion,
but divided in their civil authority, until the Pope usurped the civil as well
as the religious authority. So it was the strangest beast ever seen. "And
they worshipped the dragon because he gave his authority unto the beast, and
they worshipped the beast, saying: Who is like unto the beast, who is able to
war with him?" For many centuries of the 1,260 years no nation in Europe
was able to war with the power represented by the Pope.
"And there was given to him a mouth, speaking great things and
blasphemies, and there was given to him authority to continue forty-two
months" (rather, to do his work; the Greek word shows not so much the idea
of continuance as ability to do his work. He continued after the 1,260 years,
but without ability to do as before). He still claims the same authority, but
he cannot do his work like he did up to that time. "And he opened his
mouth for blasphemies against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle
[that is, his church], even they that dwell in heaven [that is, the true saints],
and it was given to him to make war with the saints to overcome them. And it
was given him authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation [he
was permitted to make such claim], and all that dwell on the earth shall
worship him [not the exception], every one whose name hath not been written on
the Lamb's book of life." These, the true people of God, did not worship
him – all over Europe there were people who refused to submit, even unto death.
They were true candlesticks, but shining in the wilderness. Human history does
not take much notice of them. There were true preachers, though by using this
new kind of tail the dragon swept down the most of the stars.
Verse 10, last clause: "Here is the patience and faith of the
saints." In 14:12, we have this language repeated in another sense:
"Here is the patience of the saints," Here it means the patience of
the saints in enduring the trials by faith. The next time it means the fruition
of patience: I will call your attention to it again in a subsequent chapter.
We now come to a description which shows that the papacy does not come out of
the sea – that is, it is not a nation: "And I saw another beast coming up
out of the earth, and it had two horns like a lamb but spoke as a dragon."
It claimed to be a lamb but it was a dragon. Now, when you turn to Daniel 7, he
says: "I saw a little horn come up that destroyed three of the other
horns" – so the Pope usurped the civil jurisdiction of several of the
states) and claimed them as papal states and was king over them. That little
horn in Daniel's fourth beast and this two-horned beast here that has the voice
of the dragon and that claimed to be a lamb, and the false prophet in chapter
19 as being cast into the abyss with the beast, all mean the same thing; the
little horn, the lamb-dragon beast, and the false prophet all mean the papacy:
Pope comes from "papa," or father, hence papacy. It is not a nation
and hence is represented as coming up out of the earth, and yet he is the
eighth government, rising out of the seven governments, or beasts. We see that
he is the one that heals the death stroke of the sixth head; when the Caesar
head dies, the Pope head succeeds. There is attributed to him, in the rest of
this lesson, great miracle-working power. John does not affirm that these were
real miracles – he reports as he sees; he saw a vision of the Pope giving the
beast the power of miracles of different kinds. It is characteristic of Roman
Catholicism that from the beginning of its history down to the present time it
is brimful of so-called miracles; its images are made to speak, or weep, or
bleed.
Verse 16: "And he causeth all, the small and the great, and the rich and
the poor, the free and the bond, that they be given a mark on their right hand,
and upon their forehead." Many have tried to explain what is the mark of
the beast given by this Pope. One old Baptist preacher insists that it was
infant baptism, followed by a sign of the cross made on the forehead. Your
lesson tells you (v. 17) that "the mark is the name of the beast or the
number of his name." And adds: "Here is wisdom. He that hath
understanding let him count the number of the beast; for it is the number of a
man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six." Whoever can interpret
this knows what is "the mark." No better explanation of this passage
has been given than that of Irenaeus. The first Roman ruler was Latinus. His
name spelled in Greek is Lateinos. Greek letters are numerals, each
letter standing for a certain number. Thus: L-a-t-e-i-n-o-s. I give you English
letters corresponding to the Greek because some of you do not know Greek. L
(Greek, Lamda) == 30 n (Greek, Nu) == 50 o (Greek, Alpha)
== I o (Greek, Omikron) = 70 t (Greek, Tau) == 300 s (Greek, Sigma)
== 200 e (Greek, Epsilon) == 5 i (Greek, lota) = 10
Total........... ......666
These Greek letters when used as numerals are equal to the numbers opposite and
their added total is 666. Here, then, is the number of the beast and it is the
number of a man, and it is 666.
The mark of the beast then is the word "Latin." On which Alford
observes: "The Latin Empire, the Latin church, Latin Christianity, have
ever been its commonly current appellations; its language, civil and
ecclesiastical, has ever been Latin; its public services, in defiance of the
most obvious requisite for public worship, have ever been throughout the world
conducted in Latin; there is no other one word which could so completely
describe its character, and at the same time unite the ancient and modern
attributes of the two beasts." [Alford might have added: No version of the
scriptures considered authoritative except the Latin Version and that only as
interpreted by the Latin Church. Irenaeus had in mind the pagan Latin Empire,
Alford more wisely its transition into the papal Latin Empire. – Editor]
QUESTIONS
1. State the three distinct assaults of Satan in
trying to destroy the church as an institution, and wherein he failed in each
case.
2. Was there a real fall of Satan and his angels
before the fall of Adam? If so, prove it scripturally and then show the
relation of that ancient history to the imagery of the future events in chapter
12.
3. Show the relation of Satan's assaults on the infant
Jesus to the imagery of the man-child in chapter 12.
4. Show what verses of chapter 12 are epexegetical of
other verses.
5. What symbolical numbers of II, 12, 13 are equal to
each other?
6. About what date did the church enter the
wilderness, on account of what persecution, and about what date did it emerge?
7. Verse I: meaning "He stood on the sand and the
sea"?
8. In a few words, tell what the new device of Satan
as an instrument of war against the church.
9. Show how this new device will have more idolatry
than pagan Rome, more persecuting power, a more formidable head than the Caesar
of Rome, and corrupt more preachers.
10. Show how it will be more wonderful than each of
the seven wonders of the classical world.
11. What passage of Scripture enables us to interpret
the leopard of 13:1; the lamb dragon beast of 13:11, and the harlot woman of
17:1-6?
12. In the light of these scriptures what the leopard
beast? And the nature of it?
13. What is the lamb dragon beast?
14. What is the harlot?
15. What is the expression in Daniel 7, and what other
expression in chapter 19 of this book, mean the same thing as the lamb dragon.
beast?
16. What two results always follow a union of church
and state?
17. Explain in verse 2 the wounding of one head unto
death, and healing of the wound.
18. What is the real meaning of the Greek word
rendered "continue" in verse 5?
19. (a) What is the difference between Common Version
and the Revised Version rendering of verse 8? (b) if Common Version is right,
What is the meaning? (c) if Revised Version is right? Which do you prefer?
20. What is the meaning of v. 17?
21. What is "the mark of the beast," v. 16,
as explained in v. 18, and the exposition thereof by Irenaeus and Alford?
PROPHETIC FORECASTS OF CHURCH HISTORY
(CONTINUED)
Revelation 14
The preceding chapter will be reviewed only this much:
1. Satan, considering the chaotic and disintegrated national material of the fallen
pagan Roman Empire, reconstructed another Roman Empire, composed of many
states, each with its own national government, but united in its religion. This
was a union of church and state – sometimes the state exercising jurisdiction
over the church, demanding universal conformity in religion as the ruler of the
state understood it; and sometimes the church dominating the state with a
tendency toward absolute church supremacy in both civil and ecclesiastical
matters. Until the church pressed the state too far in local state affairs,
they gave their power and authority to the church; but when the pressure became
intolerable the state would rend the church.
As the states succeeded in their revolt against the assumption of the church
authority over state matters, their maxim would yet be: "Whose is the
government his is the religion" – i.e., the head of each state will become
the head of the church in his own domain, proscribing all dissent from his own
religion. This maxim was later maintained by Protestant states as well as by
papal states; by Geneva and Henry VIII, as well as by Philip of Spain and Louis
XIV of France.
2. This strange empire, called later "The Holy Roman Empire," is
symbolized by the leopard beast of 13:1-2.
3. The ecclesiastical head, which ultimately assumed absolute Jurisdiction over
all states and all religions – in other words, the papacy or succession of
Popes – is symbolized by the earth beast that looked like a lamb but had the
voice of the dragon (13:11).
4. The counterfeit church as an institution of which the Pope was the head is
symbolized by the harlot sitting on or riding the leopard beast (17:6).
5. The scriptural passages governing this interpretation are Daniel 7:7-25, and
Revelation 17:7-18.
6. This interpretation identifies the papal beast of 17:11, with "the
little horn" of Daniel 7:8, and with the false prophet of Revelation
19:20.
7. The reader must understand that the transition from pagan Rome to "The
Holy Roman Empire" was gradual, marked by successive changes, and that the
papacy developed. from small beginnings to its culmination at the Vatican
Council in 1870 in the declaration of papal infallibility. And that the Roman
Catholic hierarchy, imagined by the harlot of 17: 1-6, was also a development
of the centuries.
Having thus considered Satan's new device for destroying Christ's luminous
institution, and for corrupting the ministry, and for perverting the gospel, we
will in chapter 14 consider the spiritual forces aligned on the other side.
Chapter 14 is divided into four parts:
Part I – The Lamb, his true church, the holy angels and his people – (14:1-5).
Part II – The proclamation of the three angels – (14:6-13).
Part III – The harvest of the good – (14:14-16).
Part IV – The vintage of the evil – (14:17-20).
The chief purpose of chapter 14 is to give a summary of Christ's victory over
Satan, and of the final and complete victory of the true church over the
counterfeit. I say a summary – a bare outline – whose methods and details are
set forth elaborately in all the rest of the section – i.e., from 15:1, to
19:10.
Then from another viewpoint other details of chapter 14 outline will be given
in the last synchronous view from 19:11 to 20:6, though in this case the view
extends somewhat beyond anything clearly suggested in this outline. It is
important to note this relation of chapter 14 to subsequent chapters – a
relation of outline to details.
(14:1-5) "And I saw, and behold, the Lamb standing on Mount Zion and with
him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his name and the name of his
Father written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, as the
voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder; and the voice which
I heard was as the voice of harpers harping on their harps: And they sing as it
were a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the
elders, and no man could learn the song save the hundred and forty and four
thousand, even they that had been purchased out of the earth. These are they
that were not defiled of women; for they are virgins. These are they that
follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were purchased from among men, to
be the firstfruits unto God and unto the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no
lie; they were without blemish."
As chapter 13 gave us a view of Satan, his beasts, his seat of empire the
counterfeit church, his counterfeit gospel, his worshipers and the character of
their worship, this vision opens with a view of our Lord, as the
"Lamb," his seat of power "Mount Zion" – i.e., the true
church – his worshipers, their secure redemption, their character, and the
nature of their worship.
It is of great importance that we interpret these symbols not literally, but according
-to the law of symbols, what they represent. "The Lamb" is not a real
sheep, but symbolizes our Lord as the expiating sacrifice for sin. Without
expiation and atonement for sin Satan's power over sinners cannot be broken,
nor can these sinners otherwise be redeemed or made secure in their redemption,
nor appear clean in God's sight. "Mount Zion" here is not the real
mountain in Jerusalem, nor the heavenly Jerusalem of chapters 21-22, but the
militant Mount Zion – that is, the true church on earth considered as an
institution – in other words, the radiant woman of 12:1. So the hundred and
forty-four thousand numbers his people symbolically, not literally, but
representatively. It is a perfect multiple of the sacred 12, many times
appearing in this book – twelve tribes, twelve stars, twelve apostles, twelve
foundations, twenty-four elders – i.e., twice twelve. There is, however, this
difference between the application of the hundred and forty-four thousand here
(14:1) and its appearance in 17: 4-8. Here it represents the spiritual Israel
without regard to nationality; there it represents the elect Jews as
contradistinguished from the saved of other nations, as the context shows.
As Satan's followers bore on their forehead and hand a symbolic brand, so here
on the forehead of Christ's people are symbolically written the names of the
Lamb and of his Father. In both cases the marks are symbols not of character,
as many commentators would have it, but of ownership. One class the devil owns
– the other class belongs to God. West Texans will understand, for they, in
riding the range, recognize that the different brands on cattle do not refer to
the quality of the cattle – i.e., whether Longhorns, Shorthorns, Durhams,
Jerseys, Holsteins, or Herefords – but indicate the owner.
The singers and harpers of the new song, in verses 2-3 seem to be the ten
thousand times ten thousand and thousands of thousands of holy angels of 5:11.
They are in that chapter, and here, distinguished from the throne, the
Cherubim, and the Elders, because they sing before them, and they are
distinguished from the saints on earth, for the saints learn the song after
these sing it. The idea is that high up and far away, around the throne of God,
the angels, with harp and voice, are praising the Lamb for his work of
redemption, as in 5:12 – "Worthy is the Lamb that hath been slain to
receive the power, and riches, and wisdom, and might, and honor, and glory, and
blessing." You read a similar song at the birth of our Lord by the same
singers, in Luke 2:13-14 – "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth
peace among men in whom he is well pleased." Had it been a hymn of
creation or providence, as when all these angelic "sons shouted for
joy," or as Psalm 104, it would not have been a new song. But as it
relates to the Redeemer and to redemption only, it is new.
Again, had it been a song of creation, any deist like Tom Paine, admiring
Addison's paraphrase of Psalm 19, or any admirer of Pope's "Universal
Prayer" addressed to "Jehovah, Jove, or Lord," might learn it.
But, being a song of redemption, only the redeemed on earth – blood-washed –
would have their hearts attuned to its harmony. They could learn it.
Again, the idea is that praise, all the time, in loudest melody is filling the
courts of heaven and echoing through the universe, but on earth only those
whose spiritual ears have been opened can hear the music, and only hearts
purified by the cleansing blood can take up the response, and thus constitute a
grand antiphony – earthly choirs responding to heavenly choirs in one blended
sublime symphony. Bunyan's man with the muckrake, eyes downcast, never saw or
heard the angel above him offering an eternal crown.
We need particularly to understand the characteristics of the hundred and
forty-four thousand in verses 4-5:
1. "They were not defiled with women; for they are virgins." The word
"virgins" is common gender, i.e., may apply, and does here apply, to
both sexes. But it is a gross perversion of the interpretation of symbolic
language to make this characteristic apply to celibacy and thereby commend
monks and nuns. Spiritual incontinence was the worship of idols. The symbolic
"virgins" here means that these saints had not worshiped Satan, nor
his leopard beast, nor his lamb dragon beast, nor the image of the beast.
2. "They follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth." This is the
characteristic of obedience. As our Lord had said: "If any man would be my
disciple, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me,"
and when he said: "If ye love me, keep my commandments," and yet
again: "Ye are my friends if ye do whatsoever I command you." The
emphasis on the "withersoever" implies that we should not merely
follow in the days of loaves and fishes, nor merely as the "hosanna"
crowd on his entrance into Jerusalem, but follow him to the cross. His
leadership should be paramount even when to follow means prisons, chains,
confiscation or death.
3. They were "purchased" men, bought with his own precious blood of
redemption, and hence a property "peculiar" to him. His ownership was
absolute.
4. "Firstfruits" – The idea again is one of ownership. Under the law
firstfruits were not for common use, but belonged to God only and must be
offered to him alone. This applies to the first-born of families and all
cattle. The thought differs from ownership by purchase. It affirms an original
ownership, as the first-born son or the first-born male of cattle or other
stock, and the firstfruits of all harvests belonged to God. This is the thought
in Hebrews 12:23ù"Church of the firstborn."
5. "In their mouth was found no lie." Here again the veracity
commended was a spiritual quality, meaning that they neither preached, taught,
nor testified to a doctrinal lie. Theirs was no dragon, no beast message; but
the real gospel of Jesus Christ. They perverted not his ordinances; they
deluded not by pointing to a false hope. There is no reference to lying in
general. Of course, Christianity condemns that.
6. "They are without blemish." Here again the reference is not to a
freedom from faults or infirmities, physical or mental, and I say not even – or
at least not exclusively – to a freedom from immorality in the ordinary sense.
A comparison of all the parallel passages shows: (a) There is no blemish in
their external righteousness before the law, for it is in Christ's perfect
imputed righteousness, (b) There is no blemish on their internal righteousness,
for it is a holiness commenced in regeneration and carried on and consummated
in sanctification. (See Ephesians 5:27.)
The logical, not the chronological order of these six characteristics expressed
in plain English is this:
1. They are Christ's because he created them.
2. They are Christ's because when sold into bondage to Satan through sin he
bought them back with his own precious blood.
3. They are not idolaters – not guilty of spiritual fornication.
4. They obey Christ, not Satan nor his beasts, nor the harlot, nor the world.
5. They preach and teach the gospel, not the "doctrines of demons."
6. They are without blemish because justified, regenerated, sanctified. These
are the righteousnesses which are spotless.
Having now considered part one of our chapter, describing our Lord, his church,
his holy angels, his people, we turn to –
PART II
The proclamations of the three angels: (v. 6-13).
First angel: "And I saw another angel flying in midheaven, having eternal
good tidings to proclaim unto them that dwell on the earth, and unto every
nation, and tribe, and tongue, and people; and he saith with a great voice:
Fear God and give him glory, for the hour of his judgment is come; and worship
him that made the heaven and the earth and the sea and fountains of
waters."
Under the imagery of this flying angel is set forth the means by which the saints
on earth win their victory over Satan, his "Holy Roman Empire," its
papal head and counterfeit church. That means the worldwide diffusion of the
true gospel. Wheresoever that gospel is preached in its purity and accepted by
faith, there God is feared and not the Pope: there the glory is given to the
Lamb and not to the virgin Mary. Kings and secular governments, offended at
papal usurpation, may and do resort to carnal means for the suppression of this
unholy power. They may and do, by legal enactment, abolish monasteries and
nunneries, banish the Jesuits, sever the connection between their state
religions and the papal. They may and do both prescribe and proscribe by way of
restraint. But as the kingdom of our Lord is not of this world, his servants fight
with different weapons. Their offensive weapon is the Word of God – the Sword
of the Spirit. They preach the Word; placard the skies with it; fill the earth
with it; translate it into every tongue, tell its saving story by preacher and
layman to all nations, relying on the Spirit's convicting, regenerating, and
sanctifying power.
It is verse 6 that gave rise to the missionary hymn "Fly Abroad, Thou
Mighty Gospel." It is called an everlasting because it will never become
obsolete. An atheistic president of a great university may vainly try to
supersede it with "a new religion." It is everlasting and confers
life everlasting upon its loving recipients. What a pity when Christians lay
aside this tempered, two-edged, sharp-pointed New Jerusalem blade for a carnal
weapon.
Second angel: "And another, a second angel, followed, saying: Fallen,
fallen is Babylon the great, that hath made all the nations to drink of the
wine of the wrath of her fornication."
This is God's preannouncement of the doom of the counterfeit church, with the
indictment that she had made all nations participate in her spiritual
fornication – that is, substitution of worship of the creature for the worship
of the Creator and Redeemer. The verdict of history sustains the indictment.
They have made a man the head of the church instead of our Lord, and called him
"My Lord God the Pope." They have vested him with infallibility, when
speaking "ex-cathedra." They have made him Christ's vicar instead of
the Holy Spirit, and have vested him with the two keys and the two swords,
usurping Christ's authority to open and shut, both ecclesiastical and secular
authority to punish the whole world. They have made a woman "the queen of
heaven," declared her "the fountain of all grace," and
interposed her as mediator between the saint and his Saviour – the only
mediator between God and man. This is not Mariology, but Mariolatry. They
confer on the consecrating priest the authority to "create God," and
when the wafer is consecrated it is worshiped as God, thus multiplying the
passion of our Lord, who "suffered once for all." They have caused
the world to adore images and relics, attributing to them many lying miracles.
They have claimed jurisdiction over the Spirit world, and lengthened probation
beyond the grave. In imitation of the heathen demigods, they have filled the
calendar with saints whose help is invoked in prayer. They have changed
ordinances, added to them, and attributed to them saving power. No wonder this
device of Satan is said to be "full of the names of blasphemies" and
her cup "full of fornications."
Third angel: "And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a
great voice: If any man worshippeth the beast and his image, and receiveth a
mark on his forehead or upon his hand, he also shall drink of the wine of the
wrath of God, which is prepared unmixed [that is, undiluted] in the cup of his
anger; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in t he presence of
the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb, and the smoke of their torment
goeth up for ever and ever and they have no rest day and night, they that
worship the beast and his image, and whoso receiveth the mark of his
name."
The simple meaning of this paragraph is that those who incorrigibly persist in
drinking from the harlot's cup of mixed abominations, shall be made to drink of
the cup of God's unmixed wrath, i.e., undiluted wrath. As a later detail (18:4)
distinctly shows, it does not mean that God has no real children among the
papists. It would be an outrage on common sense and history to make such a
sweeping accusation.
This part two closes with two verses somewhat difficult to expound with
confidence: "Here is the patience of the saints, they that keep the
commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. And I heard a voice from heaven
saying, Write, Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from henceforth: yea,
saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; for their works follow
with them." I give you my best judgment of the meaning both negatively and
positively: Your attention has already been called to the difference in meaning
between "Here is the patience of the saints" as expressed in 13:10,
and as expressed here 14:12. You notice in 13:10, the phrase is modified by
"and the faith," but not so modified here, which as I think means
that in the first case the saints in their endurance are consoled only by faith
that God will ultimately vindicate them. In the latter case the fruition of
faith is at hand. They are vindicated; there is no delay any longer, which
suggests the clue to the meaning of verse 13. Which does not mean that those
who die at another time are not blessed. But it does mean that there is a sense
in which those dying in the Lord after the fall of the papal Rome are blessed,
which martyrs who died in the Lord in the hour of papal triumph did not share.
And the precise sense is defined in the concluding clause: "For their
works do follow them." It was a long time before the works of the martyrs
followed them into glory, i.e., until the wisdom and righteousness of their
course was demonstrated. In the eyes of their companions their bloody death
seemed to be a failure. But now, when the persecuting power is destroyed and
popular sentiment is with the saints, his death is not regarded as a tragedy
but a glorious consummation of a happy life. Paul, in a measure, expresses the
thought when he charges Timothy not to be hasty in ordaining men, because while
in some men their character is evident at first sight, in others it is not
evident. As he expresses it: "Lay hands hastily on no man, neither be
partaker of other men's sins . . . Some men's sins are evident, going before
unto judgment; and some men also they follow after. In like manner also there
are good works that are evident; and such as are cannot be hid."
Now that the persecuting power is destroyed, Write: "Blessed are the dead
who die in the Lord henceforth, for their works do follow them."
PART III The Great Harvest
Verse 14: "And I saw, and behold, a white cloud, and on the cloud I saw one
sitting, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And
another angel came out of the temple crying with great voice to him that sat on
the cloud: Send forth thy sickle and reap; for the hour to reap is come, for
the harvest of the earth is ripe. And he that sat on the cloud cast his sickle
on the earth and the earth was reaped."
Now, that is the harvest of the good.
PART IV The Great Vintage
Verse 17: "And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he
also having a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, he that
hath power over fire; and he called with a great voice to him that had the
sharp sickle, saying: Send forth thy sharp sickle and gather the clusters of
the vines of the earth, for her grapes are fully ripe. And the angel cast his
sickle into the earth and gathered the vintage of the earth, and cast it into
the winepress, the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was
without the city, and there came out blood from the winepress, even unto the
bridle of the horses, as far as a thousand and six hundred furlongs."
That is the harvest of the bad. The director of both the harvest and the
vintage is our Lord himself. The agents employed are the angels. The general
import of these two parts of the chapter is much the same as that of the
parable of the tares as expounded by our Lord himself: "He that soweth the
good seed is the Son of man; and the field is the world; and the good seed,
these are the sons of the kingdom, and the tares are the sons of the evil one
and the enemy that sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the
world, and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares are gathered up
and burned with fire; so shall it be in the end of the world. The Son of man
shall send forth his angels and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things
that cause stumbling and them that do iniquity and shall cast them into the
flames of fire; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then shall the
righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He that hath
ears, let him hear." And much the same is that of the parable of the
dragnet: "And again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net that was
cast into the sea and gathered every kind; which when it was filled they drew
up on the beach, and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but the
bad they cast away. So shall it be in the end of the world; the angels shall
come forth and sever the wicked from among the righteous and shall cast them
into the furnace of fire: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
The only difference in the exact import lies in this: That the parables of the
tares and dragnet represent the final judgment scene, whereas the harvest and
the vintage here represent that era of judgments which precedes even the
millennium and introduces it. There is a triumph of the true church, more
elaborately set forth later, and the downfall of the counterfeit church, also
set forth later with elaborate details. There is a complete reversal of the
relative positions of the two institutions. In 12:6, the true church is in the
obscurity of the wilderness for 1,260 years. In 17:3, the counterfeit church is
in the wilderness, about to receive her final doom. Particularly the vintage
will reappear in the great war of Harmageddon (16:16) and in the winepress of
the wrath (19:15), as it had already been forecast by Isaiah (63:1-6).
QUESTIONS REVIEW of PRECEDING CHAPTER
1. What is the symbol of the "Holy Roman
Empire" which succeeded to pagan Rome?
2. What is the symbol of its ecclesiastical head?
3. What is the symbol of the counterfeit church? 4,
What are the scriptures which govern the interpretation?
5. With what expression in Daniel, and a later one in
this book, is the lamb dragon beast identified?
6. Were the "Holy Roman Empire," and the
papacy, and the Romanish hierarchy instantaneous products, or all gradual
developments from email beginnings?
7. What are the four parts of this chapter?
8. What is its general purpose and relation to
succeeding chapters?
9. What caution in. interpreting the symbolism of this
chapter? Part One – 14:1-5
10. Under what symbol does our Lord appear, and its
meaning?
11. Under what symbol does the church appear, and its
meaning negatively and positively?
12. Who are symbolized by the 144,000, and what
distinction in meaning between that symbolic number here and in 17:4-8?
13. Illustrate in a way familiar to West Texans that the
Satan brand on forehead and hand, and the divine inscription on the foreheads
of the saints, do not represent character or quality, but ownership.
14. Who were the singers and harpers of v. 2?
15. Explain the "new song" they sing, and
cite two similar preceding songs.
16. Cite instances of an "Old Song," and who
could learn to sing that; and why only the redeemed can learn the new song.
17. Explain negatively where necessary, and
positively, each one of the six characteristics of the saints.
18. Repeat in logical order, and without symbols,
these six characteristics.
19. State briefly the meaning of the "flying
angel."
20. Distinguish between the means of victory over the
counterfeit church employed by the saints and by secular governments, and why?
21. Why is this gospel called "everlasting,"
and how does it rebuke a certain president emeritus of a great university?
22. What hymn suggested by this verse?
23. What is the meaning of the second proclamation;
and what is the indictment of the counterfeit church?
24. Show how history sustains the indictment.
25. Meaning of the third angelic proclamation. Prove
from subsequent passage that this destruction does not overtake all Romanists.
26. What is the difference between the "patience
of the saints" in 13:10, and 14:12?
27. Explain the "henceforth" in 14:13.
28. In general terms what is the meaning of the
harvest and what is the vintage of 14:14-20?
29. In general terms wherein is this paragraph like
two parables of our Lord, but wherein does it differ from those parables?
30. In what subsequent passages of this book does the
vintage reappear in more details, and what prophet forecasts this vintage?
THE SEVEN PLAGUES AND THE SEVEN BOWLS OF
WRATH
Revelation 15-16
We shall consider in this study the seven plagues and the seven bowls of wrath,
or the divine judgment on the leopard beast, and the harlot woman, and the
consequent triumph of the true church through the gospel. Chapters 17-19 will
continue the same theme. Preliminary Observations
1. 15:1: by anticipation, presents the plagues as if inflicted, though the
details of the infliction are given in chapter 16.
2. 15:2-4: in like manner – i.e., by anticipation – presents the triumph of the
saints when the plagues shall have been inflicted, and is given in more detail
in 19:1-10, in its proper historical connection.
3. 15:5-8, also by anticipation, gives the agencies through which the plagues
in chapter 16 will be inflicted and the triumph achieved.
4. The Old Testament analogue which constitutes most of the imagery of chapters
15-16 is Exodus 1-15. We cannot successfully interpret this lesson without an
understanding of the ancient history which suggests its imagery.
5. Another historical analogue, Babylon, and the Euphrates which constituted
both its defense and its weakness, suggests the imagery in 16:12. Here our
historical background is Xenophon's account of the capture of Babylon by the
armies of Cyrus, through diversion of the waters of the Euphrates, and
consequent drying up of its channel in the city, confirmed both by the prophecy
of Jeremiah (50:38) and by this passage in Revelation. The Babylon downfall as
foretold by the ancient prophets, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel, will suggest
much of the imagery of chapters 17-18, which will be more particularly
considered in the exposition of those chapters.
6. Our interpretation will make the "seven thunders" of 10: 4,
uttered then but temporarily sealed up, i.e., not written, and "the seven
plagues" of chapter 15, and "the seven bowls of wrath" of
chapter 16, substantially the same, though the logical order would be this: The
seven thunders called, the seven bowls of wrath responded to the call, and the
seven bowls of wrath when outpoured constitute the seven plagues.
These six preliminary observations underlie the exegesis now given in detail.
Chapter 15…
"And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels
having seven plagues, which are the last, for in them is finished the wrath of
God."
The reader must note that when these plagues are called "the last,"
for in them is finished the "wrath of God," the import of the term
"last" and "finished" must not be stretched beyond their
connection. It is a relative "last" and "finished." It is
the last of the divine judgment on the organized apostasy in its triple form of
a "Holy Roman Empire," a papal head and an idolatrous and persecuting
counterfeit church, but it cannot refer to the wrath exercised after the
millennium in 20:7-10, nor the wrath of the final judgment (20:11-15). Note
next on this first verse the "seven plagues" repeated in w. 6, 8 and
named in 16:8-21. Their number "seven" indicates their completeness,
as will appear when the bowls of wrath which produce them are poured out in
succession on the earth, the sea, the rivers and fountains, the sun, the
Euphrates and the air. When the lightning strikes in all these places, it
touches the whole circumference of environment. There is no escape from such
diverse wrath. It is done. It is finished. The measure is filled up to
overflowing.
We now look back to the historical analogue. We have in Exodus 1-15 the great
war between Jehovah and the gods of Egypt for the redemption of his national
Israel, or between Moses, the mouthpiece of God,, and Pharaoh, king of Egypt,
or between the miracles wrought by Moses and the lying wonders of the
magicians, Jannes and Jambres. Jehovah speaks, Moses acts, the ten plagues
follow, just as here the seven thunders are God's voices, the bowls of wrath
respond and the plagues are the result. Whoever has studied the ten plagues of
Egypt will see their completeness touching all the environment and degrading
every god in Egypt, and all their ministers, whether king, magician, or priest.
All these discriminated between Israel and Egypt; on one they fell, the other
was exempt. The very form of some of these plagues is repeated here, as will
appear in our exegesis of chapter 16. The conflict terminated with the complete
overthrow of Pharaoh and his hosts in the Red Sea, and "Thus Jehovah saved
Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians
dead upon the sea shore, and Israel saw the great work which Jehovah did upon
the Egyptians; and the people feared Jehovah; and they believed in Jehovah and
in his servant Moses" (Ex. 14:30-31).
"And I saw, as it were, a sea of glass mingled with fire; and them that
came off victorious from the beast, and from his image and from the number of
his name, standing by the sea of glass, having harps of God. And they sing the
song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying: Great and
marvellous are thy works, O Lord God Almighty; righteous and true are thy ways,
thou king of the ages. Who shall not fear, O Lord, and glorify thy name? For
thou only art holy; for all the nations shall come and worship before thee, for
thy righteous acts have been made manifest."
This is almost an exact parallel of the analogue at Exodus 14:19-22, and the
triumph song at Exodus 15:1-18, and Miriam's response at Exodus 15:20-21. The
Old Testament analogue alone enables us to explain "the sea of glass
mingled with fire" which so unnecessarily perplexed commentators. You need
only to conceive of the Red Sea divided standing up in walls on either side,
and as Exodus 15:8, expresses it: "The floods stood upright as an heap;
the deeps were congealed in the heart of the sea," then conceive Israel
marching in triumph between and the pillar of fire between them and Pharaoh,
shining on those ice walls which, as mirrors, reflected its light, it indeed
seemed a "sea of glass mingled with fire," and so "they were
baptized in the cloud [pillar of cloud overshadowing] and in the sea" (her
walls on two sides encompassing them). Hence it might be called a baptism, so
overwhelmed and enwrapped were they, but it was a baptism in light. So here, after
the plagues have overthrown their long-time enemies with a complete overthrow,
the saints, bathed in radiance, sing their song of triumph which, on account of
the analogue, is called "The song of Moses, the servant of God, and of the
Lamb."
The study is profitable to compare the Moses song (Ex. 15) with the song here
(Rev. 15), and its more elaborate form (Rev. 19).
On the closing paragraph of 15:5-8, it is necessary now to note only the
following points:
1. "The temple of the tabernacle of testimony," or the sanctuary of
the tent, means here the church as an institution, through which as an agent
the plagues are to be inflicted.
2. The priestly garb of the angels carrying the plague also indicates human
agency.
3. The "smoke" in temple or sanctuary indicates the Divine Presence,
as in Exodus 40:34; Numbers 9:15; 1 Kings 8:10-11; Isaiah 6:4. While Moses nor
the priests of Solomon could for a while enter the holy house, filled by the
cloud, there seems to be an additional idea in the Isaiah case that as God entered
for fully ripened judgments there could be no intercession allowed while the
judgments were being inflicted, since probation was ended and the space for
repentance was withdrawn. Such also appears to be the idea here, as we
repeatedly note in chapter 16 that no repentance followed these plagues. (See
16:9-11.) The plagues, therefore, were not chastisements designed to lead to
repentance, but altogether punitive. Chapter 16
The Bowls of Wrath, and the Consequent Plagues
General Observations:
1. I restate the general idea of interpretation already suggested by the Old
Testament analogue (Ex. 1-15). Before Pharaoh and his people could be induced
to liberate God's ancient Israel, all the supports of their power must be swept
away by successive divine judgments. These judgments were like the flood in the
days of Noah: "The windows of heaven were opened; the fountains of the
deep were broken up; the waters increased; the waters prevailed and increased
mightily; the waters prevailed mightily, mightily upon the earth, and all the
high mountains that are under the whole heavens were covered. Fifteen cubits
did the waters prevail; and the mountains were covered." As the waters of
the flood wiped off from the face of the earth every living being, so the ten plagues
swept away all the props of Egypt, and just so here, by successive judgments,
God completely sweeps away all the props of Satan's usurped kingdom. Whatever
the meaning of the symbols, "the earth, sea, rivers and fountains, sun,
the throne of the beast, the great river Euphrates, the air," on which in
succession the bowls of wrath were poured, they represent exhaustively the
whole resources of Satan's kingdom under its apostate forms of a Holy Roman
Empire, its papal head, and its harlot counterfeit church. While we may not be
dogmatic in the interpretation of these symbols, the meanings given are the
expression of sincere and thoughtful judgment.
2. Any student must be struck with the correspondence, in part, between the
events under the trumpets and under the bowls of wrath, particularly where the
apostasy poisoned the fountains and dimmed the sun. So in just the same place
here the lightning will strike.
3. "Har-Magedon" (v. 16). Literally, this compound word means
"the hill of Megiddo."
Geographically, it overlooks the great plain of Esdraelon, near the middle of
the Mediterranean coast of Palestine.
Historically, on account of its strategic position, it has been the decisive
battleground of the ages for the fate of that country. Here Joshua conquered.
Here, in the times of the Judges, Barak, and Deborah won their decisive victory
over Sisera (Judges 4-5), and Gideon his signal triumph over the Midianites
(Judges 7). Here Saul lost his life and kingdom (1 Sam. 31:8), and here good
Josiah lost his life in battle with the Egyptians, which called forth an
ordinance for lamentation by Jeremiah and the people (2 Chron. 35:24-25). And
this great mourning for Josiah suggested to Zechariah the greater penitential
mourning of the Jewish people which will lead to their salvation in a later day
(Zech. 12:10 to 13:1). This same valley was the battlefield of the Ptolemies of
Egypt and Seleucids of Antioch for the supremacy of the Holy Land, and for
Saracen and Crusader after their day, and the scene of many struggles since.
Prophetically, in the Old Testament is it equivalent to Joel's great battle in
the valley of Jehoshaphat: "Multitudes, multitudes, in the valley of
decision" (Joel 3:1-17), and Zechariah's great war for the recovery of
Spiritual Jerusalem (Zech. 14: 2-15), and Daniel's great battlefield (Dan.
11:45 to 12:1), and Isaiah's blood-stained hero (Isa. 63:1-6)?
Prophetically in this book are the parallel passages, the greatvintage
(14:17-20), the war of Har-Magedon (16:14-16), and the great victory preceding
and introducing the millennium (19:10-21)? With the literal, geographical and
historical backgrounds we have no concern except to find the symbolic imagery.
The prophetic meaning from the symbols we must gather from the four Old Testament
passages and the three New Testament passages, cited. For the answers to these
last two questions see chapters 15 and 17 respectively. Exegesis of Chapter 16
"And I heard a great voice out of the temple, saying to the seven angels,
Go ye and pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of God into the earth. And the
first went and poured out his bowl into the earth; and it became a noisome and
grievous sore upon the men that had the mark of the beast and that worshipped
his image."
Note first that this judgment finds its symbol in the sixth plague on Egypt,
the plague of the boils and ulcers. And also note that, as here, the wrath was
poured on the "earth," and the victims are those who worshiped the
beast and wore his mark. So from 13:11-17, we have learned that the earth beast
with the voice of a dragon caused men to worship the image of the leopard beast
and to receive his mark. In the Egyptian plague, the body was afflicted, but
what means it here? Here it must mean some ulceration of mind and soul, a spiritual
inflammation causing exquisite torment. One may not define too confidently just
what state of mind fulfils this prophecy. But we will not be far afield if we
refer it to that mental disquietude and spiritual unrest which come to all
idolaters when their delusions are scattered by exposure of the false objects
of worship, and the torments of remorse when seeing that they have been blinded
and enslaved in turning away from the service and worship of the true God.
Intense despair of spirit follows such disenchantment when the mind at last
beholds the entire system of counterfeit religion to be earthly, sensual
devilish. The best illustration I know is the ruined Zelica's shriek of despair
when Mokanna lifted his veil and let her see what a foul, hideous demon he was.
"And the second poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became blood as
of a dead man; and every living soul died, even the things that were in the
sea."
Out of the "sea" came the leopard beast (13:2). "The many
waters" upon which the harlot sat are defined as "peoples,
multitudes, nations, and tongues" (17:1-15). Wrath poured on the sea then
must mean God's judgment on a politico-religious government, a union of church
and state whose ecclesiastical head dominates the many subject nations. That
kind of a government is Satan's masterpiece. It .is essential to the prevalence
of the papal power. It is the water of life in the papal garden; turn it into
blood and the garden becomes a desert. If this line of thought be correct, the
interpretation may be applied to the action of all nations that finally repel
the supremacy of the Romanist hierarchy over either their national or
ecclesiastical affairs. For example, one emperor of Germany went, on Papal
demand, to Canossa and put his neck under the foot of the Pope, but Bismarck,
referring to William III, said, "This emperor will not go to
Canossa." Or, it would apply to the weakening of the nations strictly
Romanist, as Spain is and France was, compared with the increase in power and
influence of non-Romanist nations.
In other words, as expressed in 17:13, 16, the ten kingdoms which at first had
"one mind," to give their power and authority unto the beast,
"to make war on the Lamb," these later "shall hate the harlot
and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her
with fire."
John Bunyan, in Pilgrim's Progress, represents his pilgrims as passing by the
mouth of a cave from which two old, decrepit giants, "Pagan and
Pope," glared at them in impotent rage, saying, "You will never stop
this going on a pilgrimage until more of you be burned," but their powers
to burn bad passed away. The nations now refused to be the executors of
ecclesiastical anathemas.
As in the analogue the turning of the Nile – the very life of Egypt – into
blood broke for the time being the power of Pharaoh, so when this unholy
alliance of church and state becomes as a dead man's blood, blood that would no
longer flow, governmental persecution for conscience' sake received a shock
from which it has never fully recovered. The ecclesiastical disposition to burn
"heretics" still remains, but the states are no longer subservient.
So far as the principle is involved, this applies to all persecuting states,
whether Pagan, Papal, Greek, Protestant, or Mohammedan. The divine judgment is
on the whole business, no matter under what name. The class will note the power
of the expression, "the blood of a dead man"; the outward form
remains, but the inward arterial current has congealed."
And the third poured out his bowl into the rivers and the fountains of the
waters, and it became blood. And I heard the angel of the waters saying:
Righteous art thou who art and who wert, thou Holy One, because thou didst thus
judge; for they poured out the blood of saints and prophets, and blood thou
hast given them to drink: they are worthy. And I heard the altar saying: Yea, O
Lord God, the Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments."
Here we must recall, from 8:10-11, that the second effect of the apostasy,
under the symbol of a star called wormwood, representing an apostate clergy,
yet burning as a lamp, representing an apostate church, was the poisoning of a
third part of the rivers and fountains, which was there interpreted to mean the
sources of thought and life. The judgment now follows the poison. The imagery
again comes, but in a different direction, from the first plague on Egypt. That
miracle worked in two directions: (1) The Nile, worshiped as a god, became
corrupt and death-breeding through conversion to blood; (2) All drinking water
in the canals, reservoirs and house vessels became unusable.
The thought of this bowl of wrath, following the second direction of the
miracle, is that as by corruption of religious thought, the minds of men have
been turned to persecutions, then by so much as they have shed blood shall they
be made to drink blood. The punishment comes in kind.
"And the fourth poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given unto it
to scorch men with fire. And men were scorched with great heat, and they blasphemed
the name of God who hath the power over these plagues, and they repented not to
give him glory."
Recalling the fourth trumpet (8:12) we there found the third effect of the
apostasy was to dim the sources of light, particularly the third part of the
sun. We there interpreted the sun to be the symbol of Christ, and the dimming
of the light to be a substitution for Christ in his expiation (by the mass) and
in his mediation (by the virgin Mary), and in his vicar (by the Pope). Now
again the judgment follows the form of the apostasy. God in Christ is
salvation. God out of Christ is a consuming fire. If his light be rejected, his
heat scorches. Moses very vividly presents the thought in his farewell address
to Israel. If you turn away from Jehovah, everything intended for a blessing
will become a curse: "Jehovah will smite thee with consumption and with
fever and with inflammation and with fiery heat and with the sword, and with
blasting, and with mildew: and they shall pursue thee until thou perish. And
thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under
thee shall be iron. Jehovah shall make the rain of thy land powder and dust;
from heaven shall it come down upon thee, until thou be destroyed. . . And thy
life shall hang in doubt before thee; and thou shalt fear night and day and
shalt have no assurance of thy life. In the morning thou shalt say, Would it
were even, and at even thou shalt say it, Would it were morning; for the fear
of thy heart which thou shalt fear, and for the sight of thine eyes which thou
shalt see." (Deut. 28:22-24, 66-67.) Indeed, all of that great chapter of
Deuteronomy from v. 15 to the end makes good collateral reading for this
sixteenth chapter.
"And the fifth poured out his bowl upon the throne of the beast, and his
kingdom was darkened, and they gnawed their tongues for pain and blasphemed the
God of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they repented not of
their works."
As Christ reigns from Mount Zion symbolic of the true church, so Satan reigns
from Babylon, symbolic of the counterfeit church. We see in the next chapter
the harlot woman riding the beast, and her mystic name is Babylon. The judgment
here falls on the hierarchy resting on a union of church and state. Its ancient
power is stripped away; confidence in its holiness is lost; the world marvels
that it was once so glorified and its blasphemous pretensions recognized.
"And the sixth poured out his bowl upon the great river, the river
Euphrates, and the water thereof was dried up, that the way might be made ready
for the kings that come from the sunrise."
Here we must recall the historical background which suggests imagery. There was
a real Babylon, ancient foe to national Israel. It was situated on both sides
of the Euphrates, which constituted its reliance for defense. Your attention
has been called in the preliminary observations to the method employed by the
armies of Cyrus in diverting the waters through canals reaching around the city
on both sides, so that through its empty channel they might enter the city and
capture it. Both Jeremiah and Revelation confirm the disputed account of
Xenophon. But our concern just now is to interpret the mystic Euphrates.
The author believes it to signify all that mighty conflux of sentiment,
superstition and false doctrine erected to support the Romanist pretensions.
Through many centuries by schools, monasteries, nunneries, diplomacies, and
other means, this sentiment had been created and had supported the mystic city.
It was the counter-teaching, culminating in the Reformation, which dried up
this Euphrates.
"And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of
the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet three unclean spirits, as it
were frogs; for they are spirits of demons, working signs; which go forth to
the kings of the whole world, to gather them together unto the war of the great
day of God the Almighty."
If we have been correct in our interpretation in the drying up of the Euphrates
by the Reformation teaching, then those symbolic frogs represent in some way
the expedients adopted by the Romanist hierarchy to counteract the Reformation
and enable it once more to make a world fight for the supremacy. From history
we will know what these expedients have been.
There was first of all the pretended ecumenical Council of Trent for a definite
statement of the Romanist faith. Ecumenical and Catholic mean literally about
the same thing, that is, universal as opposed to local. This council was not
ecumenical in fact or in spirit. The vast Greek ecclesiasticism, nor Protestant
denominations, nor any of the age-long dissidents from the Romanist idea of the
church, were represented. Over those actually present and participating, the Italian
representatives of the Pope completely dominated. This Tridentine confession of
faith, while divisive in some respects, was yet consolidating in another
direction. It drew a distinct line of cleaveage and set up a definite standard
around which its followers might rally, and did, with its attendant catechism,
erect a strong barrier against further Protestant conquest. This was followed
up later by papal encyclicals, resulting in a complete system of Mariolatry,
and in 1870 by the Vatican Council declaring the absolute supremacy and
infallibility of the Pope.
Now, we might fairly identify as the three frogs: (1) The declaration of the
Council of Trent; (2) the declarations of the Vatican Council; (3) the papal
encyclicals and syllabuses, particularly those completing the system of
Mariolatry. To those doctrinal declarations we may add as enforcers of the
decrees two mighty factors:
1. The Inquisition, which long preceded the Reformation as a heresy court,
tending to prevent the very spirit of the Reformation, became afterward in some
countries, particularly Belgium and Holland, the bloodiest tribunal known in
the annals of history. The tools of the Inquisition have become rusty now.
2. But by far the most persistent and aggressive factor of Romanism, defined
above, was the organization, under Papal sanction, of the Jesuits, founded by
Ignatius Loyola. This compact, secret, iron organization, obeying only the Pope
and its general, followed the outbreak of the Reformation, and has not only
proved to be the strongest buttress of Romanism, but its most potential
propagandist. Its greatest fields of operation have been: (1) missions; (2)
diplomacy; (3) tutoring the children of the great. I repeat that modern
Romanism, defined in three particulars above, and led by the Jesuits, has
aligned its forces for a worldwide conflict, here symbolically called the
"war of Har-Magedon," the consideration of which must be left to a
subsequent chapter.
QUESTIONS ON THE PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS
1. How does 15:1, present the plagues, and 15:2-4,
present the triumph of the saints; and 15:5-8, present the agencies employed?
2. What Old Testament analogue suggests most of the
imagery in 15 and 16?
3. What Old Testament analogue of 16:12, and what
historian gives the account of using the Euphrates for conquests of Babylon?
And what Old Testament prophecy had forecast the history?
4. What is the relation between the "seven
thunders" (10:4); the "seven plagues" of chapter 15, and the
"seven bowls of wrath" of 15:7, and 16?
5. At 15:1, in what sense are these plagues "the
last," and in them "the wrath of God finished"?
6. Give briefly the Old Testament history which
furnishes the symbols of these plagues.
7. Explain from Old Testament history the imagery of
the "sea of glass mingled with fire," at 15:2.
8. As this triumph of the saints, at 15:2-4, is here
given by anticipation, where does it appear in detail?
9. Explain the collection of the Song of Moses with
the Song of the Lamb at 15:3, What the resemblance between the Song of Moses,
Exodus 15, the song here and the later song in chapter 19?
10. At 15:5, explain the words "temple" and
"testimony," and then tell what they symbolize and what the relation
to the seven plagues.
11. How does it appear that angels carrying the
plagues and bowls of wrath indicate human agency?
12. Explain the "smoke" that filled the
sanctuary, and why in this particular case none might enter the sanctuary until
the plagues were finished, and prove this from the next chapter, and thereby
show the plagues are punitive and not chastisements.
13. Repeat the general idea of interpretation
suggested by the analogue Exodus 1:15.
14. Show how a great preceding judgment is like in its
completeness to the Egyptian plagues, and apply both to the case in hand.
15. What symbolic words in 16 show that these plagues
strike the whole circle of environment?
16. What correspondence, in part, do you find between the
trumpets of chapter 8 and the bowls of wrath in 16, and why?
17. The Har-Magedon of 16:16ùexplain it literally,
geographically, historically, and prophetically.
18. With what part of this have we present concern?
(N. B. – The exegesis of the war of Har-Magedon reserved till next lecture.)
19. Verses 1-2, what plague of Egypt the symbol here?
20. Explain pouring this bowl of wrath on the earth.
21. The Egyptian plague afflicted the body: give the
meaning here and illustrate from Tom Moore's "Lalla Rookh,"
22. Verse 3: Explain at some length the pouring of
this bowl of wrath on the sea: apply and illustrate the interpretation.
23. Quote and show application of passage from John
Bunyan.
24. What Egyptian plague the analogue here? Apply the
meaning broadly and explain the significance of "the blood of a dead
man."
25. What the first effect of the apostasy smitten by
this plague?
26. Verses 4-7: What the second effect on the apostasy
given in 8:10-11, and show how the judgment here corresponds.
27. In what two directions did the first Egyptian
plague work, and which one considered here in the meaning of the symbol?
28. Verses 8-9: Recalling the fourth trumpet (8:10),
what the third effect of the apostasy, the meaning of the symbol there, and the
nature and fitness of the corresponding judgment here?
29. Illustrate from farewell address of Moses.
30. Verses 10-11: Explain the throne of the beast.
31. Verse 12: What is the historic background
furnishing this symbolism, and what is the meaning of the Euphrates here, and
how brought about, and how long unshaken, and then by what dried up?
32. Verses 13-14: In general terms the meaning of the
three frogs? And the purpose?
33. In specific terms?
34. What two factors greatly helped to enforce these
decrees?
36. In what ways have the Jesuits most helped Rome?
THE WAR OF HAR-MAGEDON
Revelation 16:14-21, with a Brief Survey
of Chapter 17
Ordinarily it would be out of proportion to devote a whole chapter to a few
verses, but occasionally we find a single paragraph so pregnant with meaning
that it cannot be unfolded in a few words. Particularly is there a call for
careful and extended treatment when the imagery of the paragraph makes such an
appeal to the imagination that the ignorant and unwary, without helm, chart, or
compass, drift away into seas of fanciful interpretation, losing all practical
benefit in the sonorous roll of words, or in the highly wrought figures of
speech. Many a preacher, beguiled by the sound of words, has made shipwreck of
a sermon and bewildered his congregation by attempting to expound, without
understanding them, texts like these: "Garments rolled in blood,"
"Blood up to the bridles of the horses," "War of the great day
of the Almighty God at Har-Magedon," "Multitudes, multitudes in the
Valley of Decision," and certain people like to hear sermons on these blood
and thunder texts. I am quite sure that none of Creasy's Decisive Battles of
the World, nor all of them put together, have taken such a hold upon the
imagination of the people as the battle at Har-Magedon. Even Theodore
Roosevelt, in a presidential campaign, insisted that he was fighting the battle
of Har-Magedon.
2. My second observation is that, whatever the passage means, the context
limits the application to the final struggle between the true church and the
counterfeit church. It has no other application.
3. Whatever the passage means, it must precede the millennium, and prepare the
way for it, and consequently it has no reference to Satan's last struggle for
supremacy as set forth after the millennium in Revelation 20:7-10. Nor is it a
reference to the great judgment day described in Revelation 20:1115.
4. Particularly I would have you know that this gathering of the nations
together in the war of the great day of God the Almighty, at the place called
Har-Magedon, results, as expressly stated, from the three unclean spirits that
went forth out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast,
and out of the mouth of the false prophet. It is a gathering under their
influence; another gathering under some other influence is not to be considered.
5. You must know, if there be any truth in the interpretation given in a
preceding chapter, that the general purpose of sending forth of these three
unclean spirits was to rally and solidify the Romanist hosts after they were
shattered by the outbreak of the Reformation, and to establish a bar to the
further progress of that Reformation, and to supply means of war with which to
regain for Rome absolute supremacy over all states and all religions. That was
the purpose. It is not, indeed, the last battle between Satan's kingdom and the
kingdom of our Lord, as we shall see later, but it is the last war between the
true church and the counterfeit church. So stated and limited, it is a fight to
the finish. And when this war is over, never more will the woman in purple and
scarlet reappear in the history of mankind. Satan will come again in two more
wars, but that harlot, drunk with the blood of the saints, will disappear
forever.
6. The next observation is that while the imagery of war supplies the symbols,
we must be careful not to interpret the symbol literally. It is a spiritual
conflict, figuratively set forth in the terms of war and blood, as when Paul
uses the terms of the Isthmian games and conflicts in the arenas of the Greek
and Roman amphitheaters to set forth spiritual conflicts. No sane expositor
would interpret Paul's language literally.
The interpretation of the preceding chapters give us the wilderness period of
the church, from A.D. 250 to 1510, and that the outbreak of the Reformation commencing
early in the sixteenth century gave a severe and lasting shock to the papal
hierarchy. And the sending out of these three unclean spirits now is to recover
from that shock of the Reformation. If the nations are to be gathered together
for that purpose, and if you lose sight of the end in view, you fail to
interpret the three unclean spirits. We found in that chapter that three
expedients were adopted by the Romanists to rally and solidify their own
people, to bar the further progress of the Reformation and to re-establish
their former claims to absolute supremacy over civil governments and all
religions, and when we look in history to find some fulfilment of the work done
by these unclean spirits, we find just three things; I confess I am able to find
no other things as the result of their work.
First, the declaration of the Council of Trent, with its attendant profession
of faith drawn up by the Pope, and its catechism on the doctrines, drawn up
under his direction. That is the first thing they did to bar the further
progress of Protestantism that broke out earlier in the century. Now in 1563
the first unclean spirit, the first frog, brought out his work.
Second, the dogmatic decrees of the Vatican Council, held in A.D. 1870, setting
forth the infallibility of the Pope.
Third, the ex-cathedra utterances of the so-called infallible Pope,
particularly in the various utterances concerning the virgin Mary, who is
declared to be free from the taint of original sin, and second, from actual
sin; third, her assumption in heaven; and fourth, her being made the Queen of
Heaven. As the Pope expressed in one of his encyclical letters: "Mary is
the fountain of all grace, and the only hope of salvation."
Fourth, another one of these documents, issued by the Pope in 1863, entitled
the "Syllabus of Errors," that which he called errors in the teaching
of science) errors in statesmanship, errors in doctrines, enumerating them and
denouncing them with anathemas. Then, again in 1885, he sent out another encylical
letter concerning the Christian constitution of states, making all states and
all governments subordinate to the Pope. Then another encyclical letter in
1888, in which he expressly condemns what he calls "modern
Liberties": liberty of worshiping according to the dictates of the
conscience, liberty of speech, liberty of the press, the liberty of teaching by
the states – for instance, having a free school system – the liberty of
conscience – that your conscience must be put under the guidance of the Pope
and the confessors. These are the distinguishing characteristics of modern
Romanism, commencing in that Council of Trent held in 1563 and culminating in
1888, I say, that make modern Romanism, to wit: Papal infallibility,
Mariolatry, supremacy over nations.
Fifth, the worship of Mary, making her, instead of the Holy Spirit, the
mediator between the sinner and the Saviour. They have drawn pictures of Christ
in the background, angry, with Mary standing between him and the sinner, and
softening his wrath toward the sinner. I repeat: The decrees of the Council of
Trent, the dogmatic decrees of the Vatican Council, and the various papal
encyclical letters whose authority rests on his own declared infallibility,
these did rally the Roman forces; they did bar, in certain states, the progress
of the Reformation; they did make the battle line upon which Rome seeks to
regain absolute supremacy over all states, religions, and all consciences.
We have seen in a previous chapter that for quite a while the Inquisition, established
long before this time, was a mighty factor in enforcing these decisions. And we
have found that the Society of Jesus, or the Jesuits, was the next mightiest
factor in the propagandism of this new declineation of doctrines. Now, I say
that the object of all these expedients was to gather the nations in hostile
array against what has been set forth as the true church and the pure gospel,
and the result is a conflict, not a single battle, but a war. The Greek word is
not "battle," but is "war," called here the war of the
great day of God the Almighty, at the place called in Hebrew Har-Magedon.
The interposition of God is said here in our lesson to be a coming of the Lord:
"Behold, I come as a thief in the night" (v. 15). It is not his final
advent, but it is his coming in judgment upon this counterfeit church. Now,
your lesson shows that the expression of his judgment in this outpouring of
this seventh bowl of wrath, and the symbols which set forth the decree of the
wrath are various: Lightnings, voices, and thunders, a great earthquake such as
was not since there were men upon the earth; a great hail, every hailstone
weighing about a talent (a hundred pounds). Maybe some of you think that is too
big for a hailstone, but I will tell you that hailstones have fallen as big as
a small house) weighing many tons. Hailstones fell near Lisbon, one of which
would sink a ship in the harbor. So you need not get scared at a hundred pound
hailstone.
Now, the results of the wrath are said to be:
First, the utter overthrow of the mystic city of Babylon the Great. When the
Reformation broke out it received a shock, that was the earthquake, and a tenth
part of the city was destroyed. But here ah the parts fell away from each
other; that is total destruction.
Second, the downfall of the cities of the states of the supporting nations.
Third, the falling away of every island and mountain stronghold.
I am just giving you the symbols here. The completeness of the overthrow is
expressed in a voice from the throne: "It is done." "He said:
Let there be light, and there was light." Or they recall the words of
Christ on the cross: "It is finished"; the expiation is finished;
nothing more to be done to it throughout eternity. So, when this last bowl of
wrath is poured out on this mystic city of Babylon, it is done; that lightning
never has to strike again. Our paragraph puts into compact sentence the
downfall of the mystic city of Babylon, but both of the following chapters,
17-18, are employed to identify this great city, what it is, and then to give
the detail of its destruction. We may look to the exposition of these chapters
for many things omitted here, and content ourselves for the present with this
observation:
First, the lightning, the thunders, the earthquake, the hail, are all natural
phenomena used figuratively to express the overpowering spiritual forces.
Second, the weapons of warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the
pulling down of the strongholds.
Third, the blood and carnage are symbols of spiritual results; it is a war of
light against darkness, of truth against error, of a pure gospel against a
false gospel.
Fourth, the inner meaning of the whole paragraph is that no millennial triumph
can ever come to this earth until that great apostasy, in its persecuting union
of church and state, in its persecuting idolatrous hierarchy) in its
blasphemous assumption, has passed away.
The confusion among the commentators in their interpretation of the war of the
great day of God the Almighty, arises largely from a disregard of the context.
Our interpretation puts into one section everything from 12:1 to 19:10, and the
theme of that entire section is the conflict between the true church of our
Lord, regarded as an institution, and Satan's counterfeit church, regarded as
an institution. This conflict does not last until the end of the world, but its
culmination does prepare the way for the introduction of the millennium. The
wrath of God poured out on the apostate church, while complete in itself, is
not the wrath which falls on Satan and his followers after the millennium
(20:7-10), nor is it the final wrath of the general judgment (20:11-15).
In general terms this book discusses four wars conducted by Satan against the
kingdom of God. First, he uses the pagan Roman Empire by its persecutions to
drive the true church into the wilderness, culminating about A.D. 250; and he
was defeated because, as you will recall, the pagan Roman Empire like a burning
volcano was turned over into the sea. His second war was from the same center,
the city of Rome. He constructs a so-called Holy Roman Empire, a
politicoreligious persecuting empire, with a Pope instead of a Caesar as the
head, and with the woman in purple and scarlet as the counterfeit church.
Now, we followed that war in the first campaign, up to the Reformation in the
beginning of the sixteenth century, and the second campaign commences with our
lesson here with the sending forth of the three unclean spirits to break the
force of the Reformation and to gather together the nations against the true
church. By looking into history as I have told you, we are unable to find but
three expedients that those three unclean spirits or demons could have devised
for that purpose. These three I have described to you as the so-called
ecumenical Council of Trent, the dogmatic decrees of the so-called ecumenical
Vatican Council, and the several papal utterances whose authority rested on the
claimed papal infallibility. These are the three things in history that
constitute modern Romanism; nothing else in history can be found to fulfil
16:13-14 about the three unclean spirits going forth.
What, then, is the war of the great day of God the Almighty culminating at
"the place called in Hebrew Har-Magedon"? Laying aside all figures of
speech, it is the war against the declarations of the Council of Trent, against
the dogmatic decrees of the Vatican Council, against the various papal
utterances embodied in various encyclial letters, and in the Syllabus of
Errors.
In Schaff's "Creeds of Christendom," partly in Vol. I, but mainly in
Vol. II, you may find both the history, the exposition, and the text of all
these documents, and they do define modern Romanism. They draw the line of
cleavage, and statesmen of Europe and America recognize them today &a the
hardest problems of statecraft. Bismarck found it so; Gladstone found it so,
and wrote one of the most remarkable books of the age, to wit:
"Vaticanism." Our presidents find it so, and in my opinion our last
two presidents tripped right on that point, as I think I could prove. These
United States, with all their territorial possessions, are today at the place
"called in Hebrew Har-Magedon."
The war is now on, in the press, in the schools, in the municipal, county,
state, and national elections, in the pulpits, in the Congress and before the
courts. There can be, I repeat, no millennium until the war, on these definite
lines drawn by Romanism, is fought to a finish. The preacher, the politician,
the statesman, who has not these books that I have named should sell his coat,
if need be, and buy them, and when he has bought them should study them
profoundly, should study Vol. I of Schaff's "Creeds of Christendom"
from page 83 to 191, and Vol. II from page 96 to 271, and then from page 555 to
602. It would take up twenty chapters to go over and give you the details of
it, and you will never understand HarMagedon, you will not even know the nature
of the war, you will not know the chief obstruction in the way of the coming of
the millennium, unless you study them.
The issue of that war closes up the second war of Satan. I told you that our
book treated of four wars; that is the close of the second war. The third one
will be found to commence with 19:11, and going on through that chapter. And in
that war there will be fulfilled the remarkable prophecy of Isaiah 63: 1-6;
Ezekiel 36-37; Daniel 11:45 to 12:1; Joel 3:1-21; Zechariah 12:1 to 13:1;
Romans 11:11-31. And we must have a chapter on that because in it is involved
the conversation of the whole Jewish nation in one day, which must come before
the millennium.
Now, the fourth and last war of Satan in this book is the one described in
20:7-10. Will you keep those wars distinct in your mind? First, the war using
pagan Rome as a persecutor; second, the war using papal Rome as a persecutor;
third, the war culminating in the salvation of the Jews; fourth, the war after
the millennium. They are all in this book.
As the whole of the following chapter simply identifies and defines the scarlet
woman, and the next chapter gives the details of the downfall, I will put the
questions:
1. Who is the woman in purple and scarlet riding upon the beast in this
chapter? That is the Roman hierarchy, the counterfeit church as an institution.
2. What is meant by the many waters upon which she sits? The last of the
chapter tells you that the waters mean many nations, tongues, kindred, and
people.
3. What is the meaning of this woman being found in the wilderness? We found
that radiant woman in the wilderness several chapters back, and this woman was
not in the wilderness. It is the scarlet woman that is in the wilderness now.
That means that her power is taken away, and she is ready to receive her doom.
4. What is meant by being full of the names of blasphemy? In a previous chapter
I described them: It is blasphemy for a man to assume to be infallible; it is
blasphemy for a man to claim to be the head of the church; it is blasphemy for
a man to claim to be Christ's vicar on earth; it is blasphemy to say that the
prayers and manipulations of the officiating priest actually create God in
changing the bread and wine into the real flesh and blood of our Lord Jesus
Christ; it is blasphemy to worship the wafer as it is carried along in a
procession, called the "Procession of the Host"; it is blasphemy to
address a woman as the "fountain of all grace and the only hope of
salvation," and so I could go on for hours telling you the blasphemies.
5. What is meant by the cup of abomination, the unclean things of her
fornication? I have told you that fornication, spiritual fornication or
adultery, means idolatry. It was idolatry for the national Israel, claiming to
be the wife of Jehovah, to worship idols. Now this woman mixes in her cup
various abominations, and she makes the kings of the earth drink out of this
cup.
6. What is the mystic name of this woman? "Mystery, Babylon the Great, the
mother of the harlots and the abominations of the earth." As there was a
historic Babylon on the Euphrates, here this woman in the last verse of the chapter
is expressly declared to be a city. There is a mystic Babylon, this woman in
purple and scarlet, who is also a city.
7. What is meant by her being drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood
of the martyrs? It means that from the constitution of that hierarchy to the
present time she has used the thumbscrew, the rack, the dungeon, and the ax,
and other forms of torture in putting to death the people who worship God
according to the dictates of their consciences. The bloodiest pages in the annals
of time record the martyrdoms done under the directions of this church. When on
St. Bartholomew's Eve, Admiral Coligny of France and so many thousands of other
Huguenots were put to death in the city of Paris, as soon as the news got to
Rome the bells of the Cathedral were set to ringing, and the whole city was
full of the chimes because the streets of Paris were reeking with red blood of
the martyrs. They sang a "Te Deum Laudamus" to celebrate this
atrocious wholesale murder.
8. What is the beast upon which she sits? I told you that beast was the new
government that Satan caused to rise up to take the place of Pagan Rome, the
Holy Empire. That is the beast.
9. What is meant by saying that the beast had seven heads? The explanation is
this, as you will see lower down, that five of these heads have fallen, one is,
and another is to be, and the eighth will be of the seventh. Now, what are
these seven heads? I have already given them to you, Egypt and Assyria, that
had passed away before Daniel's time, and then four, Babylon, Persia, Greece
and Rome. As he saw them, that makes six. Five of them had passed away, but in
John's time the sixth had not passed away. When it did soon pass away came the
seventh, the union of church and state in the Holy Roman Empire, and the eighth
was of the seventh, that was the papal head, which was part of the seventh.
10. What is meant by the ten horns? The chapter tells you that the ten horns
are ten kingdoms that had not yet risen in John's time. Pagan Rome was not yet
disintegrated, but it will be disintegrated in a few centuries, and out of its
ruins will come up the ten kingdoms. And these kingdoms for quite a while will
support the woman in purple and scarlet and then these kingdoms will turn and
rend the woman in purple and scarlet.
All the latter half of this chapter tells exactly what the first half means and
in the next discussion we will take up the details of the fall of Babylon.
QUESTIONS
1. Why devote a chapter to the paragraph 16:14-217
2. Does the paragraph describe a war or a battle?
3. What is the name of the war?
4. What was the cause of the war? (Read vv. 13-14.)
5. What was the date and occasion of the beginning of
the war?
6. What the expedients devised by the three unclean spirits
to restore Romanist supremacy, and in what books do you find the history,
exposition, and text of these documents, giving volume and pages?
7. What, then, is this war?
8. How do you account for the confusion of
commentators in interpreting the paragraph?
9. What the symbolic name of the place of the
conflict, and why that name chosen as a symbol?
10. Is it on in this country, and if so in what
arenas?
12. What, then, the real place of conflict symbolized
by Har-Magedon? Answer: Anywhere in the world where the battle rages.
13. Are the weapons carnal or spiritual?
14. Between what two institutions the war, and to what
must the interpretation of the paragraph, whatever its meaning, be strictly
limited?
15. How is the divine interposition represented, and
does that refer to our Lord's final advent? (See v. 15.)
16. What symbol represents the divine wrath?
17. What is meant by "the air" on which the
wrath is poured? Answer: The air represents general public opinion and thought
concerning the expedients devised by the unclean spirits, and implies that the
judgment of the world condemns and rejects them.
18. What symbols express results of pouring out the
bowl of wrath on the air? Answer: (1) Lightnings, voices and thunders; (2) a great
earthquake such as the men of earth never saw before; (3) a great hail-storm.
19. What one symbol expresses the wrath on the mystic
Babylon, or counterfeit church? Answer: "The cup of the wine of God's
wrath."
20. In the first campaign of the war between the two
ecclesiastical institutions, what the result of the earthquake to the
counterfeit church occasioned by the Reformation, and the result of this
earthquake? Answer: (For answer compare 11:13 and 14:13, first clause 14:20.)
21. Concerning the hailstones, how much avoirdupois
weight each hailstone?
22. What the largest hailstones known to history?
23. Where the true church when the counterfeit church
commences the war on it, and where the counterfeit church at the close of the
war, just before the final judgment falls? And what does this imply? (For
answer consult 12:6 and 17:3, which imply a complete reversal of public opinion
concerning the two institutions.)
24. Describe the counterfeit church. Answer: A great
harlot (17:1 and all of 17:4-6).
25. What the meaning of the symbol "a
harlot"? Answer: One claiming to be the spouse of the Lamb, who turns to
the worship of idols.
26. What the meaning of "mother of harlots"?
Answer: Her children also worship idols.
27. What the meaning of "abominations"?
Answer: Another name for the perversions of the true worship of God.
28. What the meaning of the "golden cup in her
hand"?
29. What the meaning of her gorgeous array in 17:4? Answer:
This implies the great wealth occurred from the world, by Peter's pence, gifts
of the states, bequests of the dying, sale of indulgences, charges exacted for
services at birth, marriage, death, and purgatorial intercession, etc., and her
pompous state and imposing ritual.
30. Relate a pertinent and illustrative incident.
Answer: It is related that one of the popes, after exhibiting his treasures to
a friend, remarked: "Great change this from Peter's day, who said, 'Silver
and gold have I none' "; to whom the friend replied: "We have the
gold which Peter had not, but have we Peter's power to make the lame
walk?" (See Acts 3:6-7.)
31. What the meaning of "many waters" on
which the harlot of 17:1, sitteth? (For answer see 17:15.)
32. What the meaning of the beast on which the woman
rides in 17:3? Answer: The governmental union of church and state, with the
church on top.
33. Cite historical proof of the blasphemies of the
names of which this beast (17:3) is full.
34. Explain the historical seven heads of the beast
(17:3), why Daniel mentions only four, how five had fallen before John's time,
what the seventh and what the eighth, and how the eighth is one of the seventh.
35. Explain the first clause of 17:8. Answer: Pagan
Rome, the sixth, was but will soon cease with its Caesar head, but will
re-appear as the Holy Roman Empire with a Papal head, and it too will go into
perdition.
36. Explain the "ten horns," 17:3. (See
17:12.) Answer: These are the ten kingdoms formed out of the disintegrated elements
of Pagan Rome, but all united in. supporting the union of church and state.
37. How do you account for the change of attitude in
these kingdoms toward the counterfeit church as set forth in 17:3, 13, 16?
Answer: Kings are willing to support the beast, i.e., the union of church and
state with the king on top as head of church and state in his own realm, but
will resist a Papal head of state and church in his realm.
38. What the mystic name of the harlot?
39. What the real meaning of the woman? (See 17:18.)
40. What classic authors refer to Rome as the
"seven-hilled city"?
41. These historic seven hills on which Rome is built
symbolize, according to the interpretation, seven world-empires: Egypt, Assyria,
Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Pagan Rome, Papal Rome. Why connect so far back
in interpretation? Answer: Because all fought the kingdom of God and the
underlying principles were the same in every case; because our lesson tells us
that in John's time five had fallen.
THE WAR OF HAR-MAGEDON (CONTINUED)
Revelation 18:1 to 19:10
This chapter closes up the longest section in the book, the war between the true
church and the counterfeit church. In the preceding study I gave you but a
little exposition of chapter 17, because that chapter only identifies the woman
in purple and scarlet, and because it is self-explanatory. The latter half
tells the meaning of the first half.
We now consider, with more detail, the effect of the outpouring of the last
bowl of wrath upon the woman in purple and scarlet, that is the final
destruction of Romanism as the counterfeit church. Note carefully the change
from a woman to a city. "I saw another angel coming down out of heaven,
having great authority, and the earth was lightened with his glory, and he
cried with a mighty voice, saying: Fallen, fallen, is Babylon the great, and is
become the habitation of demons, a prison of every unclean spirit, and a cage
of every unclean and hateful bird." That is the announcement sent from
heaven, in the brilliance of glory and the highest extent of authority, of the
doom of the mystic Babylon. The imagery of this chapter is borrowed, even to
the very words, from the following prophecies of the Old Testament: Isaiah
13:19-22, which describes the downfall of the historic Babylon on the
Euphrates. Then in Isaiah 34:9-15, is described the utter destruction of Sodom
and Gomorrah. Then Jeremiah, (50-51) describes the destruction of the historic
Babylon. Zephaniah, (2:13ff) describes the destruction of Nineveh. Ezekiel,
(26-28) describes the destruction of Tyre, and from these prophecies we get the
very word employed in this chapter, as imagery transferred to the mystic
Babylon. I have the space to recall to you but one of them, the first one
cited:
And Babylon, the glory of the kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldean's pride,
shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It shall never be inhabited,
neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation, neither shall the
Arabian pitch tent there. But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there, and
their houses shall be full of doleful creatures, and ostriches shall dwell
there; and wild goats [or demons] shall dance there. And wolves shall cry in.
their castles, and jackals in the pleasant palaces; and her time is near to
come, and her days shall not be prolonged.
– ISAIAH 13:19.
The same language is employed by the other prophets to whom I refer, and
exactly corresponding to the language which I have Just read, "is become a
habitation of demons, and the hold of every unclean spirit, and the hold of
every unclean and hateful bird." That simply means, that as the ancient
Babylon, after its destruction, was never more inhabited, and wild beasts
whelped in its palaces, so when God smites the mystic Babylon, the counterfeit
church of Romanism, it will be wiped off the face of the earth.
Read again, now from verse 3: "For by the wine of the wrath of her
fornication all the nations are fallen, and the kings of the earth committed
fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth waxed rich by the power of
her wantonness." That is the cause or reason of the destruction of the
mystic Babylon; that her influence was so corrupt with the nations of the earth
that she caused its kings to join in her idolatries and blasphemies, and
through the merchandise of her wantonness, that is, all that part of the
commerce which relates to the things employed in her service, on that account
it is to be swept away.
Read verse 4: "And I heard another voice from heaven saying, Come forth,
my people, out of her, that you have no fellowship with her sins, and that ye
receive not of her plagues." That is to me a very precious verse. It shows
that God never destroys the righteous'; that if the righteous have been
associating with the evil, before the judgment falls on the evil the righteous
are called out. We saw that in the case of Sodom: the angels took hold of Lot and
dragged him out of the city, saying, "We cannot destroy this city while
you are in it." We saw the same thing when Korah and his family were about
to be swallowed up by an earthquake on account of great sin. Everybody was
required to move away from him, to get away from the dangerous place where they
stood, because the ground on which their feet rested would yawn, crack open,
and they would be engulfed. We find precisely these words addressed to the old
Babylon. Jeremiah uses the words precisely. A great many of the Israelites and
people of Judah were in captivity in Babylon, and the prophet says: "Come
forth out of her, my people, that ye receive not her plagues."
We see the same language when Jerusalem was destroyed. Jesus said to his
disciples: "When you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the
prophet Daniel, then you flee to the mountains, and share not in the doom that
is coming upon Jerusalem," through the armies of Titus. You still see the
same thing, on a much grander scale, at the end of the world. The earth cannot
be destroyed by fire while any Christian is on it; their bodies are raised,
they are caught up in the clouds, and when no living Christian and the dust of
no dead Christian is left on the earth, then the earth will be wrapped in fire.
Another pertinent paragraph is found in 2 Corinthians:
Be not unequally yoked with unbelievers, for what fellowship hath righteousness
and iniquity? or what communion hath light with darkness? and what concord hath
Christ with Belial? or what portion hath a believer with an unbeliever? and
what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for we are "ft temple of
the living God; even as God said: I dwell in them and walk in them; and I will
be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore, come ye out from among
them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; and I
will receive you, and will be to you a father, and you shall be to me sons and
daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. – 2 CORINTHIANS 6:14-18.
Notwithstanding the evil of the system of Romanism, notwithstanding the heresy
of its doctrines, there are multitudes of truly converted children of God on
its church rolls. Some of the finest religious hymns, some of the sweetest and
most precious expressions of the love of Christ, have come from the pens of
individual Roman Catholics; they are God's children. Now, before this
destruction falls on that counterfeit church, God will call out from it all of
his true children. Every now and then there are secessions. Millions went out
in the days of the Reformation; great multitudes of the old-fashioned Catholics
went out after the Council of Trent; they could not accept those decrees. All
through history they have been going out. Some never were in, and I think we
belong to that crowd. But I am speaking of those who were in, and I am glad
when any of them come out.
In verse 5 we read the reasons of this final sweeping judgment: "For her
sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities."
The language of the Bible on that point is very impressive. God does not strike
until the measure of iniquity is full; but when it is full he strikes. The sins
of the Canaanites got so rank that they smelt unto heaven, then God destroyed them
root and branch; when Sodom's sin cried unto heaven, God swept it away without
pity and without mercy. We get impatient, oftentimes, at God's patience, his
long-suffering with evil, and we say: Why doesn't he hurl his lightning; why
doesn't he strike down the wicked? God says: "Wait, I am giving everybody
an opportunity for repentance. At the right time I will strike, and when I
strike there will be no need to strike again. It will be complete."
Whenever that time comes, God remembereth iniquities.
I preached a sermon once on this text: "When he maketh inquisition for
sin, he remembereth." Men do evil because judgment is not speedily
executed. But after a while God will make inquisition, that means a search like
a sheriff with a search warrant The day I preached that sermon I described
God's coming to the sinner and entering into his heart and shining with the
light of his truth into the most secret chambers of his soul, and unmasking,
and revealing, and bringing out into the white light of infinite holiness every
foul thing that man ever did: "When he maketh inquisition for sin, be
remembereth." That great sermon of Jonathan Edwards that started a series
of meetings in which a quarter of a million people were converted,
"Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," from the text: "Their
feet shall slide in due time," applied this thought.
Verse 6: "Render unto her even as she rendered, and double unto her the
double according to her works; in the cup which she mingled, mingle unto her
double." Now, I do not think the "double" there means twice as
much. It is according to the old law of retaliation: "Like for like: an
eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth; as ye judge ye shall be judged; as ye
measured to others it shall be measured unto you." The punishment shall correspond
to the sin. And now, as that iniquitous counterfeit church was drunk with the
blood of the saints; as she filled her cup with idolatries, God gives her a cup
to drink with his undiluted wrath. The punishment shall correspond to the sin.
The same principle of righteousness is expressed in the next two verses.
"How much soever she glorified herself and waxed wanton, so much give her
of torment and mourning; for she saith in her heart: I sit a queen and am not a
widow, and shall in no wise see mourning. Therefore, in one day shall her
plagues come, death and mourning and famine, and she shall be utterly burned
with fire; for strong is the Lord God who judged her." In other words, as
led by her pride, she took the high seat and spoke great swelling words of
blasphemy, and put her foot on the neck of kings and oppressed the saints, and
relied upon her infallibility, saying: "I am a queen, I am not subject to
the law, and no mourning shall come to me," so shall be the depth of her
fall. It shall be as deep as her presumption was high.
Verses 9-10: "And the kings of the earth who committed fornication and
lived wantonly with her, when they look upon the smoke of her burning, standing
afar off for the fear of her torment, saying: Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon,
the strong city I For in one hour is thy judgment come." This is copied
directly from the prophets; in fact, nearly every word in this chapter is.
They had an agreement, the kings and the Romanist church: "You buttress me
in my kingly authority, and I will buttress you in your papal chair."
There was a trade, a very convenient arrangement. Just like a municipal sin is
committed by a grafter who offers? to support a certain man for mayor or
alderman, or chief of police, or some other civil office, on the condition:
"You let me put my finger into the pie and take out my plum, and I don't
care how many plums you take out." And the merchants of the earth weep and
mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any more; [and this is her merchandise]
merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious atones, and pearls, and fine
linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet; and all thyine wood [or sweet scented
wood], and every vessel of ivory, and every vessel made of most precious wood,
and of brass, and iron, and marble; and cinnamon, and spice, and incense, and
ointment, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and
cattle, and sheep and merchandise of horses and chariots and slaves; and the
souls of men. – REVELATION 18:11-13.
Ezekiel 26-28, foretelling the downfall of Tyre, represents all who lived by
her merchandise as bewailing her. Understand that this merchandise here is not
to be considered as merchandise in general, but is that part of the merchandise
past for so much; then there were fees for officiating at birth, which was used
up in supporting this counterfeit church, or in its ceremonies, or vestments;
there would be "Peter's pence" enough to build a cathedral; there
would be the profit from the sale of indulgences, as when Tetzel traveled over
Germany and sold the privilege of sins in the future as well as in the marriage
fees, and the fees to get your father or mother out of purgatory, fees for
everything. Then there were the great donations given by the conscience-stricken
dying, donations of lands, and large sums of money. It is related that on one
occasion a Pope led a visiting friend into the treasure house of the Vatican,
and showed him the silks and purple and laces and fine linen, opened the
coffers and showed him the jewels diamonds, pearls and rubies, the gold and
silver; and said: "There has been a great change since the first Pope,
Peter, for he said: 'Silver and gold have I none,"' and the friend re
marked: "We have what Peter had not, and we have not what Peter had, for
he could make the lame man walk without the silver and gold, and we
cannot."
Of course, the commercial spirit will always "hurrah" for anything
that makes trade. They will if it be whiskey; they will if it be prostitution;
they will if it be idolatry, if you can only sell the images of the great
goddess Diana and make a big pile of money by it. But when all that is broken
up they will stand off and wail: "Alas, Babylon is fallen, and all of our
trade is broken up."
But look at that last item, will you? "And merchandise in the bodies and
in the souls of men." What was Luther when he went to Rome, and on bended
knees climbed the stairway to find expiation of sin, but a slave? Slaves and
the souls of men! And how joyously he leaped to his feet when he saw that man
is justified in the sight of God by faith and not by works from condemnation
forever, without dependence on any priest's "I absolve thee"; God
does the absolving. Slaves and the souls of men! Millions and millions have
been slaves, slaves to the blindest superstitions, treasuring up the cut-off
toe nails of some so-called saint, or put-ting in a vial or bottle the tears of
some other saint, or preserving an image that seems to wink the eye. You might
as well imitate the Negro, who puts a rabbit's foot in his pocket for luck, or
nails up a horseshoe to keep off the witches; it is the same principle,
exactly. It is slavery, the worst form of slavery. Mental slavery is much worse
than body slavery.
Verse 14: "And the fruits which thy soul lusted after are gone from thee,
and all things that were dainty and sumptuous are perished from thee, and men
shall find them no more at all." Now, when a man works hard and lives
hard, it does not hurt if occasionally he eats short rations, but if one be
pampered, feeding at a banquet every day, having every luxury in the world,
then if God sweeps all of it away, and turns out that glutton barefooted and
bankrupt, oh, how he feels ill Whenever that is the prop you lean on, and it
breaks, then you are in a hard case. But if the spirit of happiness be in you,
and not in the things about you, and you rest in the eternal joy of hope and
peace and love, then the devil cannot bankrupt you; no money panic can make you
a pauper. But notice the crowd that is weeping over the downfall, those who had
shared in the profits of the idolatrous business.
Then look at verse 20, and see who rejoice: "Rejoice over her, thou heaven
and ye saints, and ye apostles, and ye prophets; for God hath judged your
judgment on her." She has passed her judgment on you, she imprisoned you,
burnt you at the stake; through flames your soul took its exodus to heaven.
Now, up in heaven, look down and see your judgment, that they put on you, see
it put on her. That is the crowd that rejoices every time an evil power is put
down. The good people are glad; it is the evil people who are sad. Every nation
that doeth righteousness maketh the righteous glad.
Verse 21: "And a strong angel took up a stone, as it were a great
millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with a mighty fall shall
Babylon, the great city, be cast down, and shall be found no more at all."
Now, that is borrowed outright from Jeremiah. When he pronounced the doom on
the ancient Babylon, he wrote it and said to one of his friends: "Go to
Babylon and tie this writing to a great stone, and hurl it into the Euphrates.
and as it sinks out of sight you say: Thus shall Babylon disappear
forever." It is a very significant correspondence.
And the voice of harpers and minstrels and flute players and trumpeters shall
be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft, shall
be found any more in thee; and the voice of a mill shall be heard no more at
all in thee; and the light of a lamp shall shine no more at all in thee; and
the voice of the bridegroom and the bride shall be heard no more at all in
thee. – REVELATION 18:22-23.
What a description of ruin! If you were to walk amidst the ruins of Palmyra or
Karnac, or stand in the ruins of Nineveh or ancient Babylon, never hearing the
laughter of a child, never seeing a friendly light shine in a window, never
hearing a strain of music) but all desolation, and the only voice the voice of
a wild beast, or the hoot of an owl, you would get a conception of the judgment
that God sends upon that counterfeit church.
Last verse of the chapter, v. 24: "And in her was found the blood of the
prophets, and of saints, and of all that have been slain upon the earth."
That used to puzzle me, just like it puzzled me in Matthew 23 when Jerusalem
was destroyed: "That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on the
earth from Abel the righteous, unto the blood of Zachariah, son of Barachiah,
whom ye slew between the sanctuary and the altar." Now, that apostate
church did not kill all the people of the Old Testament days, for it did not
exist. Then, what is meant by saying that upon it shall come all the righteous
blood? The idea is this: That the principle of persecution is the same, and
that you may pursue that principle until you have identified yourself with
every persecution that ever has been, you get in you the spirit of all past
persecutions. It is the solidarity of sin.
After these things I heard, as it were, a great voice of a great multitude in
heaven. [We have heard the earth voices, howling and complaining now, let us
listen to heaven] "Hallelujah; salvation and glory and power belong to our
God; for true and righteous are his judgments; for be has judged the great
harlot, her that corrupted the earth with her fornication, and he hath avenged
the blood of his servants at her hand. – REVELATION 19:1-2.
Think about that, will you? To which song is your soul attuned? Will you weep
with the wicked, or rejoice with the saints? In the book of the Psalms there is
a division called the "Hallelujah Psalms," and on Passover occasions
what is called the "Great Hallel" is sung; Jesus and his apostles
sang it at the observance of the Lord's Supper. That is one of the most
striking portions of the Psalms; it denotes the highest expression of joy and
praise.
"And a second time they say, Hallelujah." Notice right after that:
"And her smoke goeth up for ever and for ever." Hallelujah up yonder,
smoke down here; the burning of the counterfeit church and the glory of the
saints in heaven over its disappearance as a persecuting agency.
Notice who participate in the Hallel: "And the four and twenty
elders," those who represent the continuous priesthood of God's people on
earth. "And the four living creatures," that is, the four Cherubim
that constitute the chariot of God on his messages of mercy. "They fell
down and worshiped God, saying, Hallelujah, amen." That is not all of it:
"And a voice came forth from the throne, saying: Give praise to our God,
all ye his servants, ye that fear him, the small and the great," not only
the Cherubim and the elders, but Jet everybody rejoice. Now, let us see what
response was made to that:
And I heard it as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of
mighty thunders, saying: Hallelujah; for the Lord, our God, the Almighty,
reigneth. Let us rejoice and be exceedingly glad, and let us give the glory
unto him; for the marriage of the lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself
ready, and it was given unto her that she should array herself in fine linen
bright and pure; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
Back in chapter 12, we saw that radiant woman driven into the wilderness, the
world despised her, pagan power persecuted her, papal power persecuted her. Here
we have seen the purple woman go down in smoke. I told you that this whole
section was a war between these two women. The radiant woman not only comes out
of the wilderness, but arrays herself for marriage to the Lamb. There are two
pertinent parables in Matthew: (1) the parable Of the marriage of the King's
Son, which relates to the time of the espousal (Matt. 22); (2) the wise and
foolish virgins which relates to the consummation of the espousal:
"Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him" (Matt. 25).
The church, conceived of as an institution, a time institution, now becomes the
glory church, wedded to the Lamb in heaven. I have explained what the
righteousnesses of the saints mean, in the chapter on the promises, and I will
not discuss it now.
Verse 9: "And he saith unto me: Write, Blessed are they that are bidden to
the marriage supper of the Lamb." Blessed are they, I give you a general
question: What are the beatitudes of the book of Revelation? Everything that
commences with "Blessed" is a beatitude. Compare them with the
beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount. I will call them off to you: The first
beatitude is chapter 1:3, then 14:13, then 20:6, then 22:7. You write out all
of these, take each one of them into your heart, and you will see that our Lord
did not get through speaking beatitudes when he delivered his Sermon on the
Mount.
And he said unto me [that is, the interpreting angel]: These are the true words
of God; and J fell down before his feet to worship him. And he said unto me:
See thou do it not; I am a fellow servant with thee and with thy brethren that
hold the testimony of Jesus: Worship God, for the testimony of Jesus is the
spirit of prophecy.
What a glorious thing the fellowship of the different servants of God I We do
not worship the church, we do not worship any one of these ten thousand times
ten thousand and thousands of thousands of shining angels of God; they are
servants of God; you are a servant of God. "See thou do, it not."
They are working for the same cause for which you are working. Their lot, for
the present, is higher than yours, but don't forget that it is only for a
little season, and then you will be higher than they. So do not worship any one
that one day you will be above. The biggest preacher in the world ought to be
glad to join in the fellowship of worship with the poorest ragged little street
urchin that ever found peace in believing in Jesus Christ. They stand together
on a plane of equality before an impartial God. And, brethren, it has been one
of the joys of my life that I have not despised any one of the little ones that
believe on Jesus Christ. I would not turn on my heel for the difference between
the poor dying beggar that loved Jesus Christ, and the fellowship of John D.
Rockefeller. They stand exactly even, the rich and the poor, for in Christ
Jesus there are no rich and no poor. We are all one, and we are all one with
the angels in service.
QUESTIONS
1. From what Old Testament prophecies is the imagery
of Rev. 18 borrowed?
2. What is the chief sin of the counterfeit church,
causing her downfall?
3. Are there true children of God among the Romanists?
4. How do they escape her doom?
5. Give historic instances of God's people leaving the
counterfeit church.
6. Show from both Old Testament and New Testament
analogues that God does not destroy the righteous with the wicked.
7. Cite Paul's pertinent exhortation to the
Corinthians,
8. What is the meaning in verse 6 of "rendering
double"?
9. Cite some of the merchandise of the counterfeit
church.
10. Who will bewail the downfall of the counterfeit
church? And who rejoice?
11. How do you account for the expression in the last
verse of the chapter that "in her was found the blood of all that had been
slain upon the earth," and what parallel expression in Matthew concerning
Jerusalem?
12. What distinction do you make between the parable
of the marriage of the king's son in Matthew 22 and the parable of the wise and
foolish virgins in Matthew 25, and on what Jewish custom are both founded?
13. Which of these parables is parallel with
Revelation 19:6-9?
14. What the beatitudes in Revelation?
15. Why is angelolatry a sin?
THE TRIUMPHANT HOLY WAR, INTRODUCING THE
MILLENNIUM
Revelation 19:11 to 20:10
This is the last synchronous view in this book. The first one was from chapter
6:1 to 8:1, the gospel as preached to the end of time; the second one was from 8:2
to 11:19, the gospel as prayed to the end of time; the third one was from 12:1
to 19: 10, the conflict between the true church and the counterfeit church.
Now, we have the fourth and last synchronous view; that is to say, the
triumphant holy war that introduces the millennium. I am going to put this
study in the form of a catechism.
1. Who is the hero of this war?
ANSWER. – Our Lord himself, as the chief captain of our salvation. Your lesson
says: "And I saw the heavens open, and behold! a white horse; and he that
sat thereon called Faithful and True; and in righteousness he doth judge and
make war." The other references to him we will note later.
2. What are his titles?
ANSWER. – With reference to his covenant-keeping with his people he is called
Faithful and True. Whatever he says to his people is true, and to whatever
promise he makes he is faithful: Faithful and True is his name, that refers to
his people. With reference to the Father, his name is "Logos," or the
word of God (see v. 13 of your lesson). With reference to the nations he is
"King of kings and Lord of lords" (see v. 16 of your lesson). With
reference to the angels he is Michael, the Prince. (See Revelation 12:7.) Now
these are his titles in four directions: with reference to his people; with
reference to the Father; with reference to the nations; with reference to the
angels.
3. In the exercise of what office is he here represented?
ANSWER. – In his kingly office as a royal conqueror, judging and making war, on
his head many crowns.
4. What is the distinction between his appearance on the white horse here, and
his appearance on the white horse in chapter 6:2; both times there comes forth
a white horse and rider?
ANSWER. – There, on the white horse (chapter 6), his weapon was a bow, shooting
arrows of conviction into individual hearts, as the gospel was preached, and
that record says that a crown was given him. But here, on his head are many
crowns, and his weapon is a sword of judgment, smiting nations and governments,
not individuals. There the bow was used for the salvation of the hearer of the
gospel. Here the sword is to make all nations bow to his supremacy as Lord.
5. Who constitute his armies, and how are they described?
ANSWER. – His armies are the saints, and they are described as clothed in fine
linen, pure and white. I will ask you to recall that great war song, Psalm 110:
The Lord saith unto my Lord, sit thou at my right hand until I make thine
enemies thy footstool; the law shall go forth from Zion, and in the day that thou
leadest forth thine armies, thy young men shall be volunteers, going forth in
the beauties of holiness and as multitudinous as the drops of the dew at the
dawn of morning. – PSALM 110.
How aptly that applies here. I do not mean to say that Christ, in his body, is
present on earth in this war; he is conducting the campaign from heaven, and
his armies are to wage war here on this earth. I call your attention again to
another pertinent Psalm: "The kings of the earth set themselves and take
counsel together against the Lord and his anointed! Yet have I set my king upon
my holy hill of Zion" (Psalm 2:2, 6), and Just exactly what he does here
is ascribed to him in Psalm
2. The fine linen, pure and white, as I have explained to you in the lecture on
the promises, expresses the righteousnesses of the saints, which they receive
in justification, regeneration, and sanctification.
Now, here comes an important question: His people had a very active part in the
overthrow of the counterfeit church, but
6. What part has his people in this war of judgment that we are now reading
about?
ANSWER. – They have no executive part. We notice they carry no weapons; they
have no part except declarative, and to be witnesses of his might.
7. How does this appear?
ANSWER. – From the Old Testament analogues and prototypes; for example: Israel
bore no active part in the plagues of judgment sent upon Egypt; no part in the
overthrow of Pharaoh's host at the Red Sea. They were witnesses and the Lord
fought the battle. They had no part in the overthrow of Sennacherib as set
forth in 2 Kings 19:35. Now, in order that you may understand this war, and
what part God's people have in it, I will read you a description by George Noel
Gordon, Lord Byron: The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold, And his
cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold; And the sheen of their spears was
like stars on the sea, When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Galilee.
Like the leaves of the forest when the Summer is green, That host with their
banners at sunset was seen: Like leaves of the forest when Autumn hath blown,
That host on the morrow lay withered and strown.
For the angel of death spread his wings on the blast, And breathed in the face
of the foe as he passed; And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and forever grew still.
And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide, But through it there roli'd
not the breath of his pride: And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf,
And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf.
And there lay the rider distorted and pale, With the dew on his brow and the
rust on his mail; And the tents were all silent, the banners alone, The lances
unlifted, the trumpets unblown.
And the widows of Ashur are loud in their wail And the idols are broke in the
temple of Baal; And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword, Hath melted
like snow in the glance of the Lord I
– BYRON, "The Destruction of
Sennacherib"
We are now studying one of the most important lessons in the book, a day in
which God himself intervenes by extraordinary judgment. It appears also from
the description of this very battle given in Isaiah 63; listen at this:
Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from. Bozrah? this that
is glorious in his apparel, marching in the greatness of his strength? I that
speak in righteousness. Mighty to save. Wherefore art thou red .in thine
apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winevat? I have trodden
the winepress alone; and of the peoples there was no man with me; yea, I trod
them in mine anger, and trampled them in my wrath, and their lifeblood is
sprinkled upon my garments, and I have stained all my raiment. For the days of
vengeance was in my heart, and the year of my redeemed is come. And I looked,
and there was none to help. And I wondered that there was none to uphold;
therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me; and my wrath it upheld me.
And I trod down the peoples in mine anger, and made them drunk in my wrath, and
I poured out their lifeblood upon the earth. – ISAIAH 63:1-6.
Now, this is an exact prophetic description of the hero in this war as set
forth in this chapter; the references are to precisely the same event. We
notice that he is just as much alone in the sending of the judgment in this
terrible war as he was alone when he sent the angel of death to pass over the
hosts of Sennacherib, the king of Assyria.
8. What, then, the supreme lesson of our passage?
ANSWER. – God's government of the nations and judgments on them to enforce
their acknowledgment of his supremacy.
9. How did he once enforce this lesson on Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar?
ANSWER. – 1 think I had better quote that for you; it is an old lesson that he
is giving. I will quote from Daniel 5 (Daniel is interpreting to Belshazzar the
handwriting on the wall) :
O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar, thy father, the kingdom and
greatness and glory and majesty; and because of the greatness that he gave him,
all the peoples, nations and languages trembled and feared before him; whom he
slew, and whom he would he kept alive; whom he would he raised up, and whom he
would he put down. But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit was hardened
so that he dealt proudly, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and they took
his glory from him; and he wag driven from the sons of men, and his heart was
made like the beast, and his dwelling was with the wild asses; he was fed with
grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven; until he knew
that the most high God ruleth in the kingdom of men, and that he setteth up
over it whomsoever he will, and thou, Belshazzar, hast seen that lesson and
hast not regarded it, and thou hast despised the God of heaven and of law. This
handwriting comes out over thy wall: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN. It means that
thy kingdom is divided; it is measured to the Medes and Persians; thou art
weighed in the balance and found wanting. – DANIEL 5:18-27.
Now, what he did in that case to Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar he is about to
assert in this great battle of the nations.
10. Under whose leadership have human governments denied the supremacy of God?
ANSWER. – Under the leadership of the devil, who usurped the kingdom of this
world, and who shapes the policies of worldly governments and municipalities.
11. Since the preceding chapter disposes of the counterfeit church forever, why
do the beast and the false prophet appear in this lesson? This is a very
important question.
ANSWER. – The beast is that upon which the counterfeit church rode, and it was
the false prophet that made the people worship the image of the beast. Now, as
the counterfeit church is disposed of before this event here, how is it that
the beast and the false prophet appear here, and are taken and are cast into
the lake of fire?
My answer is that, as was explained to you repeatedly, the beast is a
politico-religious government, a union of church and state, and as such was not
confined to Romanism; many Protestant kingdoms are just that way. Germany is
that way now, Austria is that way now, England is that way now. There is a
union of church and state, and that is the beast here. The woman in purple and
scarlet is not riding him, but some other ecclesiasticism is riding him. Now,
the one thing that goes down in this war, that never re-appears again in human
history, is the union of church and state, and the consequent persecution of
the saints. That kind of government God does not favor, unless it is his own
theocracy, with him as the king, and the sole judge of what is religion.
It is impossible for me to make you understand, in so brief a space, what a
tremendous impediment to the progress of the kingdom of Jesus Christ has been
the union of church and state. We had it even here in this country in Colonial
times. Within a few miles of where the battle of Lexington was fought, and near
the time of that battle, the sheriff came and sold the choice acres out of the
garden, or the fields of the Baptists in that community, put it up at auction
at forced sale, in order to obtain funds to build a church for another
denomination, that had few members in the community. And even John Adams said
to Isaac Backus, the great Baptist historian, when he went to him and asked him
to urge Massachusetts to allow freedom of conscience: "You might as well
expect to see the sun rise in the west and set in the east, as to expect
Massachusetts to tolerate anything but state religion."
We had it in Virginia: Some of the most distinguished Baptists were imprisoned,
their property confiscated, and Patrick Henry, when defending one of them, read
the indictment: "Indicted for preaching the glorious gospel of the blessed
God." The way he said that shook the union of church and state in
Virginia.
Now, in this war, the war that we are now studying, that beast of the union of
church and state is taken and cast into hell forever never to reappear. In the
same way the false prophet is taken, and false prophets are not limited to
Papacy. The Archbishop of Canterbury may be a false prophet just as well as the
Pope. When he was over here some months ago, visiting the United States, a
number of distinguished ladies and gentlemen called upon him and asked him when
he got back home to let the people alone to worship God according to the
dictates of their own consciences; he gave slight heed to their petitions. The
Greek church, in Russia and the Balkan States, is also a national religion.
They fill the world with protest against the Turk for oppressing their
religion, but show no toleration to people more evangelical than themselves.
Now, that is why the beast and the false prophet appear here.
12. What is the occasion of this gathering of the nations to battle with the
Lamb, and distinguish between this conflict and the war of Har-Magedon, which
we have recently diseased?
ANSWER. – In the war of Har-Magedon the Romanist church, as an institution, was
destroyed, many kings and governments assisting in her destruction; but the
prelude of this war is the return of the Jews into the Holy Land from every
nation where they have been dispersed, and the nations are just as jealous of
their restoration to and possession of that land, as they were jealous of the
Romanist supremacy, and they gather their armies together for the destruction
of the Jews and the retaking of the Holy Land.
That man is blind who cannot see the march of modern events: the railroad that
Germany is building into the Holy Land; the eye of England and every other nation
is fixed upon that most strategic position in all the East, to wit: The eastern
coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Those thundering Bulgarian guns that are today
shaking the foundations of Constantinople are but a step toward Jerusalem, and
the time will come when God's many ancient prophecies will be fulfilled: He
will gather his people out of all the nations whither they have been dispersed;
he will assemble them in their own land; and when assembled there, with their
unprecedented wealth, holding the strategical position of the East, the nations
will remember their enmity to the Jews. This is the only country in the world
that has not persecuted the Jew, this United States. And there will be a
gathering of the powers to destroy the Jew and recapture that land. The Jews
are unable to withstand the armies of the nations, then comes the rider on the
white horse. Then comes Jehovah where these nations are assembled in the valley
of Jehoshaphat, and by divine interposition two things happen: The Jews are converted
in one day, the whole nation is born in a day, and the judgment of God, just as
it fell upon the hosts of Sennacherib, falls upon the gathered armies of the
nations, and destroys them.
13. Why, in a previous chapter, were certain Old Testament and New Testament
prophecies grouped with the HarMagedon war, and here applied differently?
ANSWER. – I thought some of you understood me by this time; frequently I put in
a catch question. I designedly mixed up the grouping of those passages to
provoke independent investigation. You have only to turn back to chapter 14 for
that mixed grouping of Har-Magedon. I wanted you to see for yourselves the
difference on the issues between the conflict of the counterfeit church with
the true church at Har-Magedon, and this great battle for the salvation of the
Jews.
14. What passages, then, in both Testaments, are now grouped as belonging to
the holy war of this lesson?
ANSWER. – There is no catch in the question this time. I will give you the
passages that bear upon your lesson: Isaiah 63:1-6: "Who is this that
cometh out of Edom with dyed garments?" etc. I will quote the other
passage from Isaiah, a continuation of the same subject all through the rest of
the book of Isaiah. I quote from Isaiah 66, following that war (I preached on
this at the Convention in Houston): "Whoever heard of such a thing; who
hath ever seen such a thing: shall a land be born in one day? shall a nation be
brought forth at once? for as soon as Zion travailed she brought forth her
children." That connects with this battle, in which the hero has the dyed
garments sprinkled with blood.
Then, in Ezekiel 36:22-25; 37, I will quote, substantially, the pertinent part:
Not for your sakes will I do this, but for my own name sake will I do it, which
name you have profaned among nations where you have been dispersed; I will
gather you out of all the nations where you have profaned my name, into your
own land, and then I will sprinkle the water of purification upon you, and you
shall be clean, from all your idols and all your filthiness will I cleanse you;
and I will take away your stony heart and give you a heart of flesh, I will put
my spirit within you, and then you will keep my commandments and do them.
Ezekiel 37 shows a great valley full of dry bones, representing all the
dispersed fragments of Israel, and the question is propounded: "Can these
dry bones live?" And the prophet says: "Thou knowest"; and God
says: "Prophecy over these dry bones." "What shall I prophesy?"
"Prophesy this: Come, Oh Spirit, from the four ends of the earth, and
breathe upon. these slain," and the Spirit came, and they lived and stood
up, a mighty army. And this, says the prophet, is the restoration of the whole
house of Israel.
All of Joel 3 refers to this war. He says:
I will gather all the nations together against you, when I have assembled you
in my own land, I will gather them in the valley of Jehoshaphat; multitudes,
multitudes in the valley of decision. And I will say: Put in the sickle and
reap the vintage; and fill up the winevat, and I will tread out the winevat
until all my garments are stained with blood.
Then in Zechariah 12 it is said:
I will gather my people in the last day out of all the nations, and in that day
I will pour out upon them the spirit of grace and supplication, and they shall
look upon him whom they pierced, and they shall mourn for him as one mourneth
for his firstborn son; it shall be a great mourning, every family apart. And in
that day a fountain shall be opened for sin, and for uncleanness, in Jerusalem.
And then in chapter 14 he goes on to describe the battle of the nations
gathered against the Jews restored and converted, and all at once the lights go
out. "Never was there such a day," says the prophet. "The sun is
darkened, the moon is darkened, but at even time there shall be light, and
there shall be an earthquake such as the earth never felt before, and Mount
Olivet shall split wide open, and half shall go to the west and half to the
east," and then he goes on to describe the millennium that follows.
And then (Rom. 11) Paul says that the Jews did not stumble that they might fall
forever. You Gentiles were saved by their fall. Their coming back will be as
the life from the dead, and so all Israel shall be saved when they look to
their Saviour.
15. Now comes this question: Why are the vintage of Revelation 14:19, and the
war of Revelation 19 classed with the prophecies promising the restoration of
the Jews to their land, the war of the nations on them and the conversion of
the Jews in one day?
ANSWER. – Because the prophet Joel predicts in express words that very vintage
that we described in chapter 14 of this book. And the prophet Isaiah draws the
very picture of this hero conquering with his garments stained with blood, and
commences it with the battle against the nations and tells of the salvation of
the Jews; and because Peter says, speaking to the Jews: "Repent ye, so
that your sins may be blotted out, and so that refreshings may come from his
presence, and so that he may send Jesus whom the heavens must receive until the
time of the restitution of all things." That shows that Peter makes the
repentance and conversion of the Jews a condition precedent to the final advent
of our Lord and his restoration of all things. I told you that there never
could be a millennium until the Romanist church had passed away; and I now tell
you that there never can be a millennium until the Jews are converted, and it
will be the quickest, widest entrance into the gate of salvation that this
world has ever seen, a whole nation in a day. Three thousand on the day of
Pentecost were converted; that was only the offering of the first sheaf, the
firstfruits, and if three thousand be one sheaf, what will the harvest be?
Therefore, I say that the Christian ought not to long for Pentecostal times;
keep your back turned on Pentecost, and look to the harvest ten thousand times
bigger than Pentecost that is ahead of you.
16. What is meant by the binding of Satan?
ANSWER. – God's power is exercised over this usurper that has held the earth
six thousand years, or nearly all of that time, and he is determined that the
earth shall have a sabbath, a thousand-year sabbath. As Satan has held it six
thousand years, there shall be a thousand years of peace and salvation; the
devil shall not cast a shadow over any man's soul, nor press his cloven foot on
any breaking heart, nor come with terrors to any dying man or woman, and shall
not weave his spells of enchantment, and shall not beguile the nations, but he
shall be chained and cast into the pit, and a rock placed over the mouth and
sealed up for a thousand years. I will be glad when it comes. I want to tell
you about the millennium; I want you to understand; you will be able to
understand a great many strange scriptures when you comprehend the millennium.
What, then, is this war? It is a war of Jesus Christ against human governments,
based on Satan's power. Governments coming to thwart the promises of God by the
destruction of the Jewish nation, in which the beast government goes down
forever, and the false prophet forever, and Satan is bound for a thousand
years, and all the kingdoms of this world become the kingdom of our Lord and
his Christ. And it is not so very far off. The world was four thousand years
old when Christ came, and it is nearly two thousand years since he came. The
devil's time is nearly out; events are moving rapidly, ocean and air are
navigated, telegraph wires long rusted with commercial and political lies shall
shine with the transmission of messages of mercy and salvation.
The questions on this chapter are embodied in the text, as it was prepared in
the form of a catechism.
THE MILLENNIUM
Revelation 20:4-6
This particular study contains just three verses, Revelation 20:4-6. The theme
is the millennium, but before defining it let us consider its precursors, the
things that precede it and bring it about.
The first one we have found to be the downfall of the Romanist counterfeit
church, symbolized first by the woman in purple and scarlet and second by the
mystic Babylon. We found that, instrumentally, the downfall of this Romanist
church was brought about by two agencies: First, the governments of the earth "shall
hate the harlot and make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh and
burn her with fire" (Rev. 17:16). The second agency: The saints, by
preaching, teaching, and publishing the pure gospel, shall expose all of her
heresies and idolatries (Rev. 12:11), and by their prayers they shall bring on
her the judgment of God (Rev. 6:10; 8:3-5). That is the first precursor – the
forerunner – of the millennium.
The second precursor: "The days of the Gentiles being fulfilled" (see
Luke 22 and 24), the Jews shall be gathered together out of all the nations
where they have been dispersed, into their own land, and the nations shall
gather together to make war on them, and then shall come the Jewish harvest of
which Pentecost is only the firstfruits; the whole nation to be converted in
one day. This conversion of the Jews occurs in the dispensation of the Holy
Spirit, of the gospel, and is accomplished through their conviction,
repentance, faith, and regeneration, just exactly as our conversion was brought
about, and if you have any doubt about it read carefully Ezekiel 36:22-27;
37:1-14, and you will see that the Jews are to be regenerated; that is, their
souls cleansed by the application of the blood of Christ, and their spirits
renewed within them just as yours are. And by reading Zechariah 12:9 to 13:1,
you will see that the Spirit was poured out on them – the spirit of grace and
supplication. They have mourning, or godly sorrow, they have their repentance,
their faith in the one they pierced, and the fountain of cleansing is opened to
them for sin and uncleanness, just as in your case. And then, if you will read
Romans 11:15-31, you will see that the conversion of the Jews is brought about
just like your own conversion. Let it be clear in your minds that when the Jews
look upon him whom they have pierced, they see him not by sight in his final
advent, but by faith on the cross as lifted up in preaching (see John 3:14-15;
12:32; 19:37). And being saved, they become the greatest of all missionaries.
What the Gentiles are doing for the spread of the gospel is nothing to what the
Jews will do when they turn to the Lord. As Paul says, if their falling caused
the Gentiles to be saved, their salvation will be as life from death. In Romans
11 he goes into ecstasy – sublime ecstasy – over the result of the conversion
of the Jews.
Now, in the conversion of the Jews, we see no coming of the Messiah. On the
contrary, Peter, in preaching to the Jews (Acts 3), says to them: "Repent
and turn away [first] so that your sins may be blotted out; [second] so that
refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; [third] so that he may send
Jesus, whom the heavens must receive until the time of the restoration of all
things." In other words, the salvation of the Jews must take place before
Christ can come – that is one of the antecedent things – and as the salvation
of the Jews was the last thing he discussed, bringing us up to the millennium,
I am sure that we had not come to any final advent of our Lord.
Following their conversion, we saw that Jehovah smote the nations that had
gathered to destroy them, and in his judgment on the nations the beast and the
false prophet perished, and all governments contrary to God perished – swept
away from the face of the earth. I do not very well see how the millennium
could come with human governments constituted and run as they now are, I mean
municipal governments like Fort Worth, New York City, New Orleans, San Antonio,
Galveston, Houston, state governments, national governments, I do not see how
it could come under such governments. Then there is a persecuting union of
church and state in nearly all the governments of the world at the present
time. Now, all these opposing elements to the kingdom of God must be broken
down before the millennium can come; so that the kingdoms of the world become
the kingdom of God (Rev. 11:15), and as Daniel puts it: "The stone that
Nebuchadnezzar saw come out of the mountain without hands" (and that was
the fifth great world-empire) "and that stone [says Daniel] became a great
mountain and filled the whole earth." Now, in this great war, in the
conquest of the world from Satan, you are not to understand that our Lord on
the white horse, the hero of the war, has come in his final advent, personally,
visibly, palpably, tangibly, audibly. You may just as well say that when he
first appeared on the white horse in Revelation 6 that that was his final
advent. He is reigning in heaven, but his armies are fighting on the earth, as
Psalm 110 explains to you.
We saw, as the last precursor of the millennium, the chaining and shutting up
of Satan. You understand that this is a book of symbols. What is the symbolic
meaning of the chaining of Satan? I do not suppose that a literal angel will
put a literal chain on Satan, who is a spirit. But he is chained when all of
his agencies are swept away. The church, and the faithful ministers in the
preaching of this book, are to illuminate the world, and when the churches are
faithful and multiply and fill the earth, and when the ministers preach only
the true gospel, until, as Isaiah says, "the whole earth is filled with
the knowledge of the Lord," the very prevalence of light dispels the
darkness. So we have something to do in the chaining of Satan. As Paul says in
Romans 16, "The God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet
shortly," according to the first promise in Genesis 3:15, that the seed of
the woman should bruise the serpent's head. His people must triumph over Satan;
"they must [says Paul] put on the whole armour of God, that they may
resist and overcome the devil" – the helmet of salvation, the breastplate
of righteousness, the girdle of truth, their feet shod with the preparation of
the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the sword of the Spirit which is the
Word of God – and thus they bruise Satan under their feet. Or, as Peter puts it
in his letter (1 Peter 8:10) : "Be sober, be vigilant, your adversary the
devil goeth about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour, whom resist
steadfast in the faith." I repeat that Christ's victory over Satan is
empty unless we share it. The earth was made for man, the dominion was given to
man (Gen. 1:26-28), but Satan, through man's sin, usurped the sovereignty of
the world and made it his kingdom, and now it must be rescued from him.
"The saints [says Daniel] must possess the kingdom." The fulness of
the Gentiles and the conversion of the Jews accomplish this object.
Keeping in mind these precursors to the millennium, we will now consider the
millennium itself.
What, then, is the millennium? It is a Latin word which means a period of a
thousand years, employed first to delimit the period of time that Satan is
chained and sealed up so that he cannot come out to deceive the nations. That
is, the saints shall possess the earth just as long as Satan is bound and shut
up. It is a victory of the Spirit dispensation through the churches, the
ministers and the gospel. It means that Satan has usurped the kingdom of the
world for six millenniums, and that the earth shall have in time, and through
the gospel, her sabbath millennium – that is, the seventh one – her thousand
years of peace and rest and joy and gospel triumph, with no devil to tempt,
seduce, beguile. He has been the author of every evil human government, whether
municipal, state, or national. He is the author of every evil religion, all
idolatries, all lying, all prostitution, all necromancy and witchcraft, all
evil philosophies, all evil theories of life, all immoralities of conduct and
life. From him have come strifes, wars, famines, pestilences, slavery of bodies
and souls, disease, and death. From him all the monopolies and grinding of the
poor for selfish greed. Now, imagine, if you can, what will be the increased
population of the world in a thousand years under such conditions – no wars to
kill off the people and eat up their substance; no pestilences like cholera,
smallpox, the bubonic plague, no grinding poverty, and the churches all
shining, and the preachers all shining, not a false note in their preaching;
the whole earth subdued, the obstacles of nature overcome, every part of the
earth brought under the dominion of man until one may live as comfortably at
the North Pole as in the temperate zone or the tropics, with the air subdued so
one may navigate it as safely as the seas below it – of course I mean by human
inventions.
Under such conditions, with every latent force of nature developed and paying
tribute, Texas alone could support a population of 250 millions easily. All the
earth swept with revival power from continent to continent, many fold more
people would be converted in that thousand years than ever lived on the earth,
in the preceding six thousand years. Indeed, so great will be the majority of
the saved over the lost, when you come to make up the totals, that the relative
proportion of the lost will be about as those now in the jails and
penitentiaries when compared to the outside population. Do not ever deceive
yourself with the fear that the devil will get the majority of the human race.
And all of this world illumination will be through the Holy Spirit, through the
churches, the ministers, and the gospels, while Jesus reigns in heaven, and
before his final advent. If you ever supposed that the Holy Spirit, Christ's
vicar on earth, would fail, then give up that supposition. If you ever
entertained the notion that the gates of hell would prevail against the church
which Jesus Christ established, give that up. If you ever supposed that a true
ministry would altogether perish, and a pure gospel cease in the land, then
give that up. This book of Revelation was given to teach one great truth – as
shown in the first revelation in the book – that the whole world is to be
lighted by the candlesticks and the stars, and Christ in walking among the
candlesticks does not walk among them in person, but every time he speaks he
says: "Hear ye what the Spirit says unto the churches." It is a
ministration of the Spirit that accomplishes all these things. There will be a
final, personal, glorious advent of our Lord – only let us wait until we get to
it. We will come to it very soon now, but we must not look for it in connection
with the millennium. There are just three verses on the millennium in the whole
Bible, and not one of those three verses says a solitary word about the advent
of Christ or about the resurrection of the body – not a syllable. If you think
so, let us test you on it as we take it up.
Revelation 20:4, first clause. We want to find out about the living Christians,
and that first clause gives it to us: "And I saw thrones, and they sat
upon them, and judgment was given unto them." Who sat upon thrones? What
is the antecedent of that pronoun "they"? If you will look back to
chapter 19, you will find who it is. It is that crowd of saints, in fine linen
pure and white, who followed the Lord in his great campaign. What is the
meaning of "they sat on these thrones"? It means that the good people
are on top in every kind of government during the millennium – they are the
mayors, the police, the sheriffs, the judges: they are the presidents, and if
there are any kings, they are the kings. The rule has passed into the hands of
the saints. The testimony of the prophets on that subject is express. I do not
know anything more sublime, or more beautiful, than the testimony of the
prophets to the sway in public matters of the saints in that time. I quote just
two or three of these in order to show you what conditions prevail. Isaiah II
has one of the finest passages in the Bible on the millennium. The whole
chapter is devoted to our Lord:
And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb; and the leopard shall lie down with the
goat; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little
child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones
shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the oxen. And the
sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put
his hand on the adder's den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in my holy
mountain, for the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of Jehovah as the
waters cover the sea. – ISAIAH 11 :6-9.
Following the conversion of the Jews in one day in Isaiah 65 this language is
used:
But ye be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create, for behold I create
Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem,
and joy in my people, and there shall be heard in her no more the voice of
weeping and the voice of crying. There shall be no more thence an infant of
days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days; for the child shall die a
hundred years old, and the sinner being a hundred years old shall be accursed.
And they shall build houses and inhabit them ; and they shall plant vineyards
and eat the fruits of them, not build for somebody else to inhabit, or plant
for somebody else to eat, for as the days of a tree shall be the days of my
people, and my chosen, shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall
long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labour in vain, nor bring
forth to calamity, for they are the seed of the blessed of Jehovah. – ISAIAH
65:18-23.
Then notice v. 24: "And it shall come to pass that before they call I will
answer, and while they are yet speaking I will hear." And he closes the
book with: "And it shall come to pass that from one new moon to another,
and from one sabbath to another, all flesh shall come to worship before me,
saith Jehovah, and they shall go forth and look upon the dead bodies of the men
that have transgressed against me" – they shall contemplate the passing
away of the destroying things.
Now you see that in this earth condition – an earth condition under a very
favorable environment – life is prolonged. He takes away the diseases that come
from the devil and that result through evil government, and the infant shall
live to be a hundred years old, when no man shall cease to fill out his days;
the sanitary conditions during the millennium will be such as this world has
never before witnessed. They marry, they give in marriage; they do die – through
that thousand years, the people are not immortal – but the conditions of life
are very widely different. And the main thing is that the saints are on top –
they are filling the offices; the earth is under their jurisdiction.
Now read the other half of that verse, and see the condition of the dead during
the millennium. That is the next thing we want to find out. "And I saw the
souls" – mark you, not the bodies, as some people would have it – "of
them that had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God
[that is, the martyrs], and such as worshiped not the beast, neither the image
of the beast, and received not the mark upon their foreheads nor upon their
hands" – that is, I saw the souls of the righteous dead, and "they lived
and reigned with Christ a thousand years." Where is Christ? He is in
heaven reigning, and these souls of the righteous dead live with him and reign
with him. That has been promised all through the book.
We find out about the wicked dead directly, but just now we are on the
righteous dead. What is their condition during the millennium days? Their state
is called the first resurrection: "Blessed and holy is he that hath part
in the first resurrection."
Why is that changed condition of the righteous dead called a resurrection? Let
me make one thing very plain to you: the word "resurrection" is not
limited to the body. In Ezekiel 37, the conversion of the Jews, their
regeneration, is set forth in the imagery of a physical resurrection, and yet
it is a conversion that is discussed. But the symbolism is as if the bones of
the dead were coming together, but the meaning of it is, as expressly given,
the salvation of the Jews, as we have just discussed.
Now (in 2:1) Paul uses the same symbolism. He says that their very conversation
is brought about by the same power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead:
"you hath he quickened," – to quicken means to make alive, and yet
that making alive does not refer to the body; it refers to our conversion. In
John 5, 25-29, our Lord speaks of two resurrections: one spiritual, meaning
regeneration; and one physical, referring to the body. Spurgeon has a great
sermon on the spiritual resurrection. Indeed, so common was the idea of
counting regeneration a resurrection that certain heretics at Corinth and
Ephesus maintained that it was the only resurrection, denying altogether the
resurrection of the body (see 1 Cor. 15:12; 2 Tim. 2:18).
I am simply proving to you from these examples that there may be a resurrection
that is spiritual, and not physical. But what is here called the "first
resurrection" is not regeneration. While spiritual, it is another kind.
Now, it is my business and duty to show you the meaning of the first
resurrection in this passage – whatever it means, it has no reference to the
body – and I know exactly how to do it. The correct interpretation of the two
passages in this book will clarify the whole matter. Both refer to the souls of
the saints; the second presents such a happy change from the condition of the
first it may well be called a resurrection. The first passage is:
And when he opened the fifth seal I saw underneath the altar the souls of them
that had been slain for the word of God, and the testimony which they held, and
they cried with a great voice, saying: How long, O Master, the holy and true,
dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And
there was given them to each one a white robe; and it was said unto them that
they should rest yet for a little time, and their fellow-servants also and
their brethren, who should be killed even as they were, should have fulfilled
their course.– REVELATION 6:9-11.
My contention is that in this state of the righteous dead they are, in a figurative
sense, not living. That is, (1) their martyrdom seems to be a failure. Their
lives go out in darkness, and the enemy triumphs over the tragedy. (2) Their
works do not follow them. It is not apparent and demonstrable that they have
won a victory, because they are not avenged. God's justice seems to be
sleeping. The victorious malice of their enemies seems to be accepted by the
world as the will of God. They pass into history as convicted and executed
felons.
Now consider the next passage (14:8-13). Here the mystic Babylon, the Romanist
counterfeit church, which put them to death, is judged. She drinks the cup of
God's undiluted wrath; the martyrs are avenged and vindicated. The reproach is
lifted from the tragic ending of their lives. They become the heroes instead of
the felons of history. Hence v. 13: "And I heard a voice from heaven
saying, Write, Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from henceforth: yea,
saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; for their works follow
with them." That is, when God has avenged them and their enemies are
fallen, there is a great change in public opinion, in the historic judgment, as
to their place in the house of fame. To die in the Lord now is not to pass
under a cloud – it is a triumphant ascension into glory and light. The change
is so great it is called a resurrection. "They live and reign with Christ
a thousand years." The principles for which they died are now triumphant.
Judgment upon those who put them to death is to them as life from the dead; it
is represented as a resurrection, and this is the only place in the Bible where
the term "first resurrection" is used, and it is expressly declared
to be a resurrection of souls and not of the body. The principles that they
advocated are triumphant – they have swept over the world.
"The rest of the dead" – the rest of the dead means the wicked dead.
They do not so live in that time. They are under no such favorable conditions;
their works do not follow them in the millennium. Their day is now. The wicked
man is yet on top; it looks like he has accomplished his purposes, the
righteous are trampled under foot; the methods of the wicked seem to be wise
now because they prevail. But not so in the millennium. The millennium time
must pass away before the rest of the dead shall be alive. If, then, "the
first resurrection" is this triumphant vindication of God, what is
"the second resurrection"? It must be in kind like the first. It
comes at the end of the millennium, when the thousand years are finished and
Satan is loosed. The wicked dead now live and reign with Satan. During his
"little season" of triumph, they appear to come from under the cloud
of adverse judgment. It is a common figure of speech. We speak of the dark ages
of ignorance, and the subsequent revival of letters, arts) and the sciences.
This revival is called "Renaissance" or new birth, or revival of
anything which has long been in decay or desuetude. So in millennium times the
souls of the righteous have their Renaissance, but when Satan is loosed again
the wicked dead have their Renaissance.
Evidently, then, the second resurrection is when the rest of the dead live –
referring to their souls and not their bodies, and it is distinctly stated that
they will live just as soon as this thousand years ends, and they do live just
as soon as Satan is loosed and goes forth to deceive the nations again. Now,
you see there are two resurrections – both of them souls – one a resurrection
of the souls of the righteous dead, and the other of the souls of the wicked.
Alford, in his commentary, refers to the passage "This is the first
resurrection," and classifies it with the resurrection of bodies in
20:12-13, and adds in a triumphant way, that we cannot by any sound rules of
interpretation make the first spiritual and the second physical. His error is
in classification. The resurrection in 20:12-13, is not the correspondent to
the "first resurrection" in 20:6. The correspondent to the first
resurrection must come immediately after the thousand years are finished, when
Satan is loosed. That, like the first, will be a spiritual resurrection. The
resurrection of bodies in 20:12-13, comes not when Satan is loosed, but after
his last war campaign is ended. His logic would be good if he did not make a
mix-up in his premises. I am willing to risk whatever reputation I have on the
soundness of my interpretation of this difficult passage. I say to Mr. Alford
that neither the first nor the second resurrection is of the body – they are
both of souls. There is not a word in these three verses about the millennium
that tells about the coming of Christ, or about the bodily resurrection of
anybody.
Commencing at least in the latter part of the second century, and particularly
in the third century, there were a number of people called Chiliasts – that
means the same in Greek that millennium means in Latin – thousand-year people.
These Chiliasts taught that the first resurrection here was a physical
resurrection, and that Christ came to bring about the millennium in his final
advent, and that the millennium was to be Christ's kingdom on earth, with
Christ personally and visibly reigning over the Jews in Jerusalem, and through
the Jews ruling the entire Gentile world. Christ rejected that view in his
lifetime. The Jews would have made him king at that time joyfully, and so
triumphed over the Romans and the rest of the world. He refused that view:
"My kingdom is not of this world."
It would be a tremendous anticlimax, if the view of the kingdom that Christ
rejected in his lifetime as unworthy, be accepted as the culmination, renewing
all the old temple worship and the old types of ceremonies that were nailed to
the cross of Christ and taken out of the way. On account of this teaching of
the Chiliasts in the latter part of the second century and in the third
century, a great many people began to reject the book of Revelation. And even
now, if you accept that view, people will reject the book. Some of the best men
living in the third and fourth centuries rejected the book because of the view
the Chiliasts had put upon the millennium.
And what was their view? Their view was that Christ had no kingdom at all on
the earth until the millennium came, and then he would come and set up his
kingdom here upon this earth. They virtually taught that the Spirit
dispensation would fail – the churches would fail – the gospel would fail – and
the world would get worse and worse, until there would be just a handful living
when Christ came, and that he would by his coming in the millennium convert the
most of the people that are to be converted in this world, and by a different
instrumentality.
Now, you may rest assured that whenever he does come the vicarship of the Holy
Spirit ceases; you may rest assured that when he does come the administration of
the churches ceases; you may rest assured that when he does leave heaven,
intercession ceases. Whenever the High Priest comes out of the holy of holies,
never to return again, there can be no more intercession for man. In other
words, not a man, woman, or child can be converted after Christ's return. The
only people ever saved will be converted during the dispensation of the Spirit,
the administration of the churches and the preaching of the glorious gospel –
and these instrumentalities of salvation will never be changed. The plan of
salvation is one plan and not two or three plans – not a few people saved
through the churches and the Holy Spirit, and then a great body of people saved
through some other instrumentality after Christ comes. When we come to the
final advent, I will submit to your judgment the scriptures that support my
view as to why he comes, when he comes, what he is to do when he comes – but we
have not come to that yet. We know that he has not come yet because the man of
sin, that Paul speaks about, is to be destroyed by his advent. We have not come
to that man of sin yet, but we will get to him in the next chapter.
QUESTIONS
1. What the precursors to the millennium?
2. What the meaning of the word?
3. How much space does the Bible give to the
millennium?
4. Is this small account in literal or symbolic
language?
5. In interpreting these three verses of symbolism,
should they dominate the general trend of a plain literal teaching concerning
our Lord's advent, or should the trend of literal teaching interpret them?
6. What the meaning of the first clause of 20:4,
particularly the "they"?
7. Cite three passages from Isaiah bearing on this
time.
8. Is this result brought about ill the dispensation of
the Holy Spirit, while our Lord is yet in heaven, and through the churches,
ministry, and gospel?
9. Will the saints in millennial times be marrying and
producing children?
10. Will these children be subject to inherited
depravity, and needing regeneration?
11. What the advantages to children born in millennial
times?
12. What distinction is drawn between righteous dead
and the wicked dead during the millennial period?
13. Is there any reference in these three verses to
Christ's final advent, or to a resurrection of bodies?
14. If "the first resurrection" denotes a
change in the status of the souls of the righteous dead, show from this book
what the change is.
15. Illustrate from history how this change may be
called a revival or resurrection.
16. When, according to these three verses, comes the
"second resurrection," or the revival of the souls of the wicked, and
what does that mean?
17. What capital mistake does Alford make in
interpreting this passage?
18. According to this book of Revelation, does the
ministry of the Holy Spirit fail, the churches fail, the gospel fail, and the
world get worse and worse till Christ's final advent?
19. How, probably, will the millennium affect the
world population and the relative number of the saved and lost?
THE LOOSING OF SATAN FOR A LITTLE SEASON
AND HIS FINAL DESTRUCTION
Revelation 20:7-10
The text we are to study is as follows:
And when the thousand years are finished, Satan shall be loosed out of his
prison and shall come forth to deceive the nations which are in the four
corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war: the
number of whom is as the sands of the sea. And they went up over the breadth of
the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city,
and fire came down out of heaven and devoured them. And the devil that deceived
them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where are also the beast and
the false prophet, and they shall be tormented day and night forever.
1. What is the loosing of Satan? We have seen the part in the binding of Satan
borne by the saints, which suggests something of the meaning of the loosing of
Satan. We are not denying the overruling divine power in the binding or
loosing, but God works through agencies. If the churches and the ministers by
their evangelical preaching be the agencies to restrict and shut up Satan, it
is certain that carelessness, deterioration in piety, abating of revival power,
will tend to loose him again. Toward the end of the thousand years the
Christians may become slack in their exercise of power, may take things for
granted, the workers and the evangelists grow cold, which gives Satan his long
sought opportunity to renew the war.
2. After the thousand years of supremacy, the earth full of knowledge of the
Lord, how does Satan find material on which to work?
ANSWER. – This question would not need to be answered if everybody understood
just what the millennium is. It is not a period of absolute sinlessness, there
is no cessation of the power of inherited depravity in the millennium period;
all people are not converted, but the Christian spirit is dominant, they are on
the throne. Moreover, generation is not regeneration, nor is piety hereditary.
If every adult in the world were converted at one time, their children would
not thereby be regenerated, and so in twenty years, half the population of the
world would not be converted. Yet again, while the saints had the power and
influence, evil would not dare to lift its head, yet it might hold itself in
readiness for revolt. It is the outside rows of corn, next to the woods, that
are squirrel-eaten. Our lesson tells that it is in four distant corners of the
world that Satan begins his work after he is loosed. The advantage of the
millennium consists largely in freedom from external solicitation to evil,
temptation from Satan. In the last chapter I called your attention to what he
had done from the outside to seduce unto evil, that is removed. The unrenewed
nature of the unconverted is there, every child born during the millennium is
born in sin. A man being a Christian does not make his children children of
grace, but the environment will increase the probabilities of conversion.
Suppose, for instance, every civil officer in Fort Worth a Christian, and every
officer's duties performed with a view to the glory of God, and there were no
saloons, no gambling houses, no houses of ill-fame, it certainly would be a
much more favor-able condition in which to lead souls to Christ than it is now.
3. What the historical meaning of Gog and Magog?
ANSWER. – We find in Genesis 10 that Magog was a descendant of Japhet, and from
Ezekiel that Gog of the land of Magog settled in Central Asia, and his people
lived around the Caspian Sea. They became known to history as Scythians,
Tartars, or Parthians, the most turbulent of all the nations. In Ezekiel 38-39
it is predicted at length that, after the conversion of the Jews described in
chapters 31-37, Gog, from the land of Magog, will lead a countless host against
Jerusalem, the Christian camp. Two whole chapters are devoted to it, and that
he shall be overthrown by the power of God. It is this Ezekiel prophecy which
furnishes the symbolism of our lesson.
In their inaccessible territory, the people of the land of Magog would be the
last to come under the influence of the millennial power, and they would be
tlie first to revolt against that power. Europe and America would most feel the
millennial power; certain interior Oriental nations, most remote from travel,
traffic, and from the power of civilization and the centers of Christian
influence, if we adhere to the strict terms here, will furnish Satan with the
material for his last revolt. There has always been hanging over Europe and its
civilization a yellow peril. Tamerlane once came very near destroying European
civilization. He captured the Sultan of Turkey, who sought to withstand him,
and asked him: "What would you have done with me if you had captured
me?" The Sultan said: "I would have put you in a cage and exhibited
you alive." "Then that is what I will do with you," said
Tamerlane. But as Ezekiel and Revelation prophetically refer to the same event,
using symbolic language, it may well be that both use the terms "Gog and
Magog" to image the character of the last human opponents to the kingdom
of God without intent to fix geographical boundaries. The real Babylon of
ancient history was on the Euphrates) but the mystic Babylon was on the Tiber.
So historically "Gog and Magog" were in Central Asia, but the
mystical Gog and Magog may come from some other locality.
4. What takes place among the dead at the loosening of Satan?
ANSWER. – As when the Christian was supreme, and all persecutions were avenged,
the righteous dead were, in a figure, said to be made alive, and to live and
reign with Christ during that thousand years, and as this revival is called a
resurrection, so when Satan returns to power the rest of the dead, that is, the
wicked dead, in the same figurative sense, shall live and reign with Satan
until his final overthrow, and this is the second spiritual resurrection of the
lesson, and this will follow immediately after the close of the thousand years;
the rest of the dead shall not live until the thousand years are over.
5. What, probably, the last device of Satan for the conquest of the world?
ANSWER. – He has tried heathen persecution by a counterfeit church; he has
tried to destroy national Israel ever since to them were given the covenants
and promises, but God has preserved them throughout history, and he has now
converted them and merged them into a spiritual Israel. Satan has tried to palm
off on the people, the Jewish people, false Christs in the place of the true
Christ who was born at Bethlehem. Our Saviour, in his great prophecy recorded
in Matthew 24-25, tells about these false Christs. Now, there remains only one
more possible impostor. He will admit that Jesus was the historical Messiah and
that he ascended into heaven, but he will find a person, incarnate himself in
that person, and claim that this person is the long-expected Messiah, who
ascended unto heaven and promised to return, and for whose final advent the
whole world is looking. He will accredit this impostor with many lying signs
and wonders, and in the name of the returning Messiah he will make his last
effort to destroy the people of the Messiah. Our Lord himself foretold that
many false Christs would appear to divert attention from his first coming in
the flesh, but it is Paul who clearly foretold this last impostor claiming to
be the returning Messiah in his last advent. Read what Paul says:
Now, we beseech you, brethren, touching the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and our gathering together unto him; to the end that ye be not quickly shaken
from your mind, nor yet be troubled either by spirit or by word, or by epistle
as from us [purporting to come from us] as that the day of the Lord is just at
hand; let no man beguile you in any wise; for it will not be except the falling
away come first, and the man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; he that
opposeth and exalteth himself against all that is called God or that is
worshipped; so that he sitteth in the temple of God, setting himself forth as
God. Remember ye not that when I was yet with you I told you these things? And
now ye know that which restraineth, to the end that he may be revealed in his
own season. For the mystery of lawlessness doth already work; only there is one
that restraineth now, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall be
revealed the Jawless one, whom the Lord Jesus shall slay with the breath of his
mouth and bring to naught by the manifestation of his coming [this man of sin
will be alive and on the field when Jesus comes], even he whose coming is
according to the working of Satan with all powers of signs and lying wonders,
and with all deceit and unrighteousness for them that perish; because they
received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this
cause God sendeth them a working of error, that they should believe a lie; that
they all might be judged who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in
unrighteousness, – 2 THESSALONIAUS 2:1-12.
It is impossible to locate that man of sin in any period that does not touch
the last coming of Christ; nobody else in history fills that picture. There may
have been many antichrists, but this man of sin is the last; he will be on the
field with false miracles and delusions when our Lord himself returns and
destroys him. You are to understand that in the millennial atmosphere no other
impostor could have a following; he could not go among those Oriental nations
and try to revive Confucianism or Mohamme-danism, for the earth will be full of
the knowledge of the Lord. He could not put on them any imposition that does
not seem to be what they are looking for. He comes in the church "and
sitteth in the temple of God," which is the church; he claims to be God,
and seeks to be worshiped as God himself. That is an incarnation of the devil,
claiming to be God, not only God the incarnate, as Christ was at his first
advent, but God in glory in his second advent. It is only among professing
Christians, professing, but not possessing, that he can do this work. The whole
world at this time professes Christianity; the whole world is waiting and
praying and expecting the return of the Lord, and it is upon that expectation
that he relies for the acceptance of his imposture. The readiness of the
Oriental mind to accept such imposture is immortalized in Tom Moore's Veiled
Prophet of the Korassan and illustrated in the various Mahdis which
appear as the one defeated by Kitchener at Kartourn when he went to avenge the
death of Gordon.
Satan's defeat is final; his impostor is slain even while he is working his
false miracles, every kind of lying sign and wonder; suddenly a great cry is
heard: "Behold the bridegroom! Go ye out to meet him," and the real
returning Lord appears on the scene, and that impostor shrivels up like a piece
of parchment exposed to a seven times heated furnace.
One more humiliation awaits Satan, however, which will be considered in the
next chapter. I will close this chapter with the promised discussion on the
historical antichrists.
In John 2:22, he says: "Who is the liar but he that denieth that Jesus is
the Christ? that is the antichrist, even he that denieth the father and the
Son." In 4:2-3 he adds: "Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: every
spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God; and
every spirit that confesseth not Jesus is not of God; and this is the spirit of
the antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it cometh, and now it is in the
world already." Those two passages from John show you the general meaning
of the word "antichrist." An "antilocaloptionist" is one
who opposes local option, and in this book we have found that seven great world
empires have had the antichrist spirit. Moses accepted the reproach of Christ,
but Jannes and Jambres, the magicians of Pharaoh, withstood him. Egypt was the
first world power to oppose teaching concerning the coming Messiah, who was to
bruise the serpent's head. Following Egypt came Assyria, through whose kings
the ten tribes were led into bondage and much harm done to Judah. The next was
Babylon, whose king destroyed Jerusalem and led her people into captivity. Next
to Babylon came Persia, and it was while Xerxes the Great, the husband of
Esther, was ruling, that an effort was made under the leadership of Haman to
entirely destroy the Jewish people, but it was defeated by the providence of
God and the instrumentality of Mordecai and Esther herself. After the Persians
came the Greek power. And while Alexander himself was very kind in his dealings
with the Jews, after his death came the division of his empire into four
separate states. Two of these separate governments, the Ptolemies of Egypt and
the Seleucids in Antioch, continually fought over the Holy Land lying between
them, and one of them particularly, Antiochus Epiphanes, sought to blot out the
religion of the Jews. Then came the Pagan Roman Empire, the Caesars were its
antichrist heads, and some of the Caesars throughout Christian history are
particularly called antichrists : Nero was one of them. He is the man who,
after he had burned Rome, charged the arson upon the Christians, and had a long
avenue fitted up on each side with stakes, and to each stake a Christian was
tied and inflammable material poured over him and then set on fire. And Nero,
in his chariot, drove down that path of fire, lighted by burning Christians.
Hence all the early fathers referred to Nero as the antichrist. But Domitian, a
younger brother of Titus, the son of Vespasian, was a worse persecutor than Nero;
that is, his persecution was more widely spread, and a later emperor, Decius,
led the conflict which drove the church into the wilderness. His persecution
was the worst of all.
Now, it was the custom among the Christians where the antichrist spirit embodied
itself in a person to refer to him as the antichrist. So when the Roman power
passed away, and out of the disintegrated elements of that heathen empire was
constructed what is called the Holy Roman Empire, that Holy Roman Empire had a
head which in this book is called the earth beast) which looked like a lamb,
but had the mouth of a dragon, and we have identified him as the papacy, and so
the papacy, like the Caesars, becomes an antichrist worse than all others. As
some Caesars were worse than others, so some popes were worse than others, but
the papacy as a succession of popes became the embodiment of antichrist to
Christian people, whom they persecuted. Ask the dying Waldenses, or Albigenses,
or ask Huss while he was burning, or Jerome of Prague, who is the antichrist,
and they say: "The Pope of Rome is the antichrist." Daniel foretells
three antichrists: (1) The "little horn" (Dan. 8:9), which all
interpreters of note recognize as Antiochus Epiphanes. (2) The Pagan Roman
Empire (Dan. 7:7), passing into the Holy Roman Empire. (3) The "little
horn" which is the papacy (Dan. 7:8; 7:19-27).
But our lesson in this chapter gives the last antichrist, Paul's man of sin,
the most stupendous impostor that Satan ever sought to palm off on the gullible
nations. He is a person; Satan takes possession of him just as demons took
possession of people in the days of Christ; Satan speaks through him; Satan
gives him the power to work lying signs and wonders. In effect he says: “O thou
Christian world, looking for your Messiah to return, I am the Messiah
returning." Now, in Daniel 8, in describing the conflict between the
Grecian and Persian power, he sees a ram with two horns (that is Medo-Persia),
and he sees a goat with one horn come up (that is the Grecian Empire, Alexander
the Great), that one horn breaking off and the four horns coming up, the
division of his power into four governments. And he says there came up a little
horn on that goat, and a great part of the book of Daniel is devoted to the
discussion of that little horn on the goat. That was Antiochus Epiphanes, one
of the vilest men that ever lived. He enacted it as a decree that no offering
should be presented to the God of the Jews. He himself had a hog, which the
Jews despise, brought in and sacrificed on the brazen altar. He demanded that
all the Old Testament Scriptures be surrendered and burnt publicly; he put
anybody to death that circumcised a child; he established heathen altars in the
very center of Jerusalem. If you ask the Jew who was the antichrist, he will
say: "Antiochus Epiphanes." And if you want to read the most
thrilling account of him that I know anything about, read the book of Maccabees
on Antiochus Epiphanes. You will find an account in Josephus, but it is more
thrilling in the book of Maccabees.
Daniel 7, after describing the four world empires, Rome, the last which divided
into the ten kingdoms, and was reconstructed into an empire with one religion
but ten political heads, from the reconstruction came a "little
horn," the papacy, which absorbed three of the other horns, and it spoke
great swelling words of blasphemy, and made war against the saints. We have
identified in this discussion that antichrist. with the papacy, that is the
little horn that overthrew three of the kingdoms into which the Roman Empire
was divided, papal states, of which he was the political head, as well as the
ecclesiastical head, and held the power over them until the days of Victor
Emmanuel; we have seen him as the antichrist. I give you this general discussion
of antichrists in order that you may see that the term expresses either the
principle of opposition to the Messiah, or its embodiment in a person or
succession of persons, as the Caesars or the popes.
"Who is the liar," says John – the "boss liar" – "but
he that denieth that God was manifest in the flesh?" – he is the
antichrist, and he says there are many antichrists. I repeat, then, that
antichrist may represent a principle, and it may be embodied in a person as it
was embodied in Antiochus Epiphanes and in Nero and in Domitian and Decius, in
the papacy, and last and most important is this man of sin. I want to say to
the reader that I was thirty years in disposing of Paul's man of sin. All the
Protestant commentaries say that the pope is the man of sin but I have already
shown you that the Romanist counterfeit church passes away before the coming of
Christ, and that the beast – the politico-religious government, the union of
church and state – passes away, and that the false prophet passes away. But Paul's
man of sin is the most blasphemous of all the incarnations of evil that ever
took place on the earth. And the part that bothered me is that he is living and
holding the fort following the millennium. He is coming, with lying wonders and
signs, and with unabashed front sits in the temple (that is, in the churches),
claiming to be God, up to the very time that the cry is heard: "Behold,
the bridegroom cometh." You cannot put him anywhere else but after the
millennium period, nor can you conceive of any other kind of impostor, filled
by Satan, that would fit into the period. I once said that the devil had very
few original ideas, but he has many suits of clothes for each side. He is a
past master on reproducing an idea in a different costume and fooling you with
a change of clothes. Mark Twain's Innocents Abroad tells of an American
traveler in Europe going into an inn and calling for a special brand of very
rare wine, of which only a few thousand bottles are made each crop. When they
brought the wine, the traveler protested that is was not the kind ordered, as
evident from the label and taste. The head waiter looked at it and said,
"I see, it has the wrong label." And he reached into a drawer and got
another label which he put on it and then handed it to him as the right kind.
It was merely a change of label. There had been no change in the wine. So the
devil is a past master in labels and costumes, but scant in original ideas. The
idea is the same, the principle the same, whether Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia,
Greece, Pagan Rome, or papal Rome; whether the Pharaohs, the Seleucids, or the
popes are the leaders.
Now, so far as the wars coming from the devil are concerned, we are done with
them in this book. We have his man of sin on the scene, in the arena, telling
his lies, working his miracles, who is to be stricken down by the second coming
of Christ.
The questions on this chapter are embodied in the text itself, as it was
prepared in the form of a catechism.
THE SECOND ADVENT OF OUR LORD; THE GENERAL
RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD; AND THE GENERAL AND FINAL JUDGMENT
Revelation 20:11-15
The passages we will study are as follows:
And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat upon it, from whose face the
earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I
saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne; and the
books were opened; and another book was opened which is the book of life; and
the dead were judged out of the things which were written in the books,
according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead that were in it; and
death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them; and they were judged every
man according to their works. And death and Hades were cast into the lake of
fire. This is the second death, even the lake of fire. And if any man was not
found written in the book of life, he was cast into the lake. – REVELATION 20:11-15.
I will reserve the seriatim and verbatim explanation of this passage, sentence
by sentence, for the next chapter. The object of the present study is to lead
up to it in a way that you will never again misunderstand, for the theme of
this lesson is the second advent of our Lord, the general resurrection of the
dead, and the general and final judgment. I will put this chapter before you in
a catechetical form:
1. Why was the first advent necessary?
ANSWER. – (1) To set up a visible kingdom here upon the earth, which would
absorb all other kingdoms, and to appoint the executive bodies, the churches,
in that kingdom, with ministers and ordinances. (2) To make expiation for the
sin of the world, to come as the Lamb of God to take away the sin of the world.
(3) To destroy the works of the devil. Now, those are the three great reasons
of his first advent; you could put in a number of others, but I ask you to
notice particularly the object to set up here on this earth a visible kingdom.
2. What the sign of that first advent?
ANSWER. – The angels who announced to the shepherds that a Prince and Saviour
was born unto Israel, said unto them: "This shall be a sign unto you, you
will find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, and lying in a manger." He
prepared that lowly sign for his first coming because he stooped to come,
emptied himself of his glory, and took upon him the form of a servant. The sign
of his first advent was to be a baby in a horse trough.
3. When was that first advent? was the date of it fixed?
ANSWER. – Paul says, in Galatians 4:4, that in the fulness of time God sent
forth his own Son, made of a woman. The time had to be ripe. That was four
thousand years since the devil usurped the kingdom of this world by the fall of
man, and how many people wore out their eyes watching for that coming! Eve
thought when Cain was born that the promise was fulfilled. She said: "I
have gotten the man from Jehovah" – i.e., the promised seed. And every
mother in Israel had the hope that she would be the one through whom the
promise would be fulfilled; and as the ages passed away in waiting, prophecies
became clearer, more definite, until, the world being prepared, Christ came.
4. How long did he remain?
ANSWER. – About thirty-three years.
5. What office did he complete in that time?
ANSWER. – The office of sacrifice. His offices are Prophet, Sacrifice, Priest,
King, and Judge. But while he was on earth the first time, he absolutely and
forever fulfilled and completed the office of sacrifice, as we will learn in
Hebrews 9-10, that he made one offering for sin, once for all, never to be
repeated. That office work was finished.
6. What office work was partly completed? The office of prophet. As prophet he
is the teacher, the revelator, and a great part of his teaching is revelation
given in his lifetime.
7. What part of his high-priest office was completed between his death and his
resurrection? Just as soon as his body died his spirit went to the Father:
"Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit." According to Leviticus
16 on the great day of atonement, it was necessary for the high priest to take
the sacrificial blood, while it was fresh and hot and smoking, and carry it
into the most holy place, and offer it at the mercy seat, and on the basis of
it to make atonement. There could be no delay. Now, we learn from Hebrews 9-10,
that he did, through the veil of his flesh, the rent veil of his flesh, pass up
into the true holy of holies, and by the sprinkling of his blood sanctified
that pattern of earth's most holy place.
8. Where, when, and why does his soul return to earth? Hebrews I tells us that
his soul that had made the offering in the most holy of holies, returned for
his body, "when he again bringeth in the firstborn into the world,"
referring to his resurrection as the reason.
9. Where is he now?
ANSWER. – I will not quote all the passages, but I want you to have a
.scriptural foundation for every thought. Acts 1:2: "Until the day in
which he was received up, after that he had given commandment through the Holy
Spirit unto the apostles whom he had chosen"; and again in v. II: "Ye
men of Galilee, why stand ye here looking into the heavens? This Jesus who was
received up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as ye have seen
him going into heaven." And as Paul, in Timothy 3:16, gives a summary of
the truth as follows: "First, God was manifest in the flesh, and so
manifested he was justified by the Spirit; so manifested, he was recognized by
the angels; so manifested, he was preached unto the nations; he was believed on
where preached; and finally, he was received up into glory." So one of the
fundamental articles of the truth is that our Lord Jesus Christ, having
finished the work of his first advent, has now been received into glory. I want
to give you some Old Testament passages on it, on his reception into heaven. I
read from Psalm 24: "Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lifted up,
ye everlasting doors, and the King of glory will come in. Who is the King of
glory? Jehovah, strong and mighty; Jehovah, mighty in battle." Notice this
passage from Daniel 7; Daniel tells us (Dan. 2) that in the days of the Roman
kings God himself would set up a visible kingdom which would become a mountain
and fill the world. He tells where he went after setting up his kingdom, and
when:
And I saw in the night visions; and behold, there came with the clouds of
heaven, one like unto the Son of man, and he came even to the Ancient of days,
and they brought him near before them, and there was given him dominion, and
glory, and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations and languages should serve him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion which shall not pass away, and his
kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. – DANIEL 7:13-14.
You see there one of the objects of his being received up into glory when he
had established his earthly kingdom, for enthronement and coronation.
I now quote a part of Psalm 2, which Peter quotes in direct connection:
Why do the heathen nations rage, and the peoples meditate a vain thing? The
kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel against Jehovah,
and against his anointed, saying: Let us break their bonds asunder, and cast
away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the heavens will laugh; the Lord
will have them in derision. Then will he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex
them in his sore displeasure: Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.
I say, Peter quotes that very message, showing how Pontius Pilate and Herod conspired
together; but that God set Jesus upon the throne of Zion, and gave to him all
the uttermost parts of the earth for a possession.
Now, Acts 7:55: "But Stephen, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked up
steadfastly into the heavens and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the
right hand of God, and he said: Behold, I see the heavens opened and the Son of
man standing on the right hand of God.
10. For what purpose is he so received into glory?
ANSWER. – If you do not know that, you stand little chance to become a
theologian. (1) He went up there to be crowned king over the kingdom he had set
up here upon earth, and indeed to be the King of kings and the Lord of lords.
In Acts 2:36, Peter, on the day of Pentecost, says' to the Jews: "You
killed the Prince of life, but God hath made him both Lord and Christ." In
Acts 5:31, he repeats again that the one whom they rejected and betrayed, God
had made king. In Philippians 2:9-11, Paul tells us what the meritorious ground
of his being made king. He said: "Because he had emptied himself of his
glory, and taken upon himself the form of a servant, therefore God had rightly
exalted him and had given him a name which is above every other name, that
before him every knee should bow and every tongue confess him." So that is
one reason he is there: he is there to reign, using all authority in heaven and
on earth to spread the kingdom which he established, to aid the churches and
the preachers, and through the Holy Spirit to empower them to make the kingdoms
of this world become the kingdom of our Lord. That is one reason he is there.
To this end, when he was made king, he sent down the other Paraclete, his
vicar, his vicegerent, his alter ego, the Holy Spirit, to be with his church
and in his church, and to accredit that church. And so, on the day of
Pentecost, the church was baptized in the Holy Spirit and in power.
(2) He is there to complete the office of prophet. After he ascended to heaven
he called Paul and gave him his gospel, and here in this book that we are
studying, Revelation, he completes his prophetic office. There will not be
anything more of his prophetic work; you cannot add to what he has taught; you
cannot take anything from it. When he comes back next time, he does not come in
a teaching capacity.
Last, he is there to complete the high priest office. I told you that one part
of his priestly office was completed between his death and resurrection. The
other part of it is to ever live to make intercession for his people. So Jesus
is there reigning, making all things work together for good to them that love
God, using every power of heaven and earth to help the churches that are
carrying out his missions here on earth. He is there to intercede and offering
the prayers that earth sends up. When he comes away the high priest office is
ended, because he vacates the holy of holies. And concerning the New Jerusalem
of the next chapter it is said: "I saw no temple therein," that is,
no place to offer sacrifices, no place for priestly manifestations. That work
is ended.
11. How long will he remain up there? We know that some people insist that from
the day he left he might come back any minute; that his second coming is always
imminent. Imminent means liable to happen any moment. Now, we come to the question:
How long will he remain up there? I give you some scriptures on it: First, the
testimony of David, which Christ himself quoted and applied to himself, Psalm
110: "The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand until I make
thine enemies thy footstool"; he must stay there in heaven until his
enemies have been conquered. Taking Paul as a witness (Cor. 15:26) : "He
must reign until all of his enemies are put under his feet." We do not see
everything put under his feet, says Paul, but his reign must last until this is
accomplished. Now, take Peter as a witness (Acts 3): "Repent ye and turn,
so that your sins may be blotted out, and so that refreshing may come from the
presence of the Lord, and so that he may send Jesus whom the heavens must receive
until the time of the restoration of all things." You cannot get the force
of that unless you understand "the restoration of all things"; he
says: "which all of the prophets from the beginning of the world have
spoken," not a thing in any Old Testament prophecy foretold as preceding
his advent but must be fulfilled before he comes, and particularly is that true
of the restoration of the Jews. Now, when we come to the New Testament
prophecies we will find the same thing, whom the heavens must receive until every
antecedent thing the New Testament prophecies have foretold is fulfilled. I
want to get that idea of imminency out of your mind. The first witness is the
Lord himself, and I quote from his great prophecy. There the question is
propounded to Jesus: "When will Jerusalem be destroyed, and what is the
sign of it, and what is the sign of thy coming and of the end of the
world?" – these are the questions he is answering. Now, listen at him talk
on that: "Take heed that no man lead you astray; many shall come in my
name, saying, I am the Christ, and shall lead many astray. Ye shall hear of
wars and rumors of wars; see that ye be not troubled, for these things must
come to pass, but the end is not yet. Nations shall rise against nations and
kingdoms against kingdoms, and there shall be famines and earthquakes in divers
places." Then he goes on to state: "Jerusalem shall be trodden under
foot until the time of the Gentiles shall be fulfilled, and that after the long
Jewish tribulation has ended by their salvation, then will appear the sign of
the Son of man in heaven." I heard one man say that he looked for him
every day. I heard a premillennialist say that when he got up every morning he
looked out of the window to see his Lord coming. I asked him what right he had
to expect that; if the times of the Gentiles had been fulfilled; if he saw
indication that the fulness of the Gentiles had come. They are yet sweeping the
earth with the power of the gospel, and the Jew's salvation has not come yet.
Kingdoms have fallen, pestilences have come, but this is not the sign:
"the end is not yet."
Now suppose we take Paul as a witness (2 Thess. 2): "Do not be deceived;
do not let any man lead you astray, either as reporting what I have said, or as
quoting a letter purporting to come from me to the effect that the day of the
Lord is at hand. That day cannot come until there first be the great apostasy;
it cannot come until the man of sin be revealed"; and he will be living
when Christ comes. Suppose we take Peter as a witness: In 2 Peter 3 he tells us
that "The delay in the coming of the Lord will be so great that men will
be saying: Where is the promise of his coming? Ever since the fathers fell
asleep everything continues just as it was since the days of our Lord." That
is the testimony of Peter.
12. What is the testimony of John?
ANSWER. – We have just been over it in this book. He shows you four synchronous
views of things that must happen before the final advent, whom the heavens must
receive until everything spoken of by the ancient prophets has been fulfilled:
until everything spoken by the New Testament prophets has been fulfilled. I
once asked a man this question: "Do you suppose Peter expected the Lord
Jesus Christ to come in his lifetime?" He says: "Certainly he
did." "Why, then, did he write that the Lord had shown him how he was
to die?" He knew he would not live until the coming of the Lord Jesus
Christ, and that is why Christ, and Paul, and Peter, and John, all hedge so
carefully, take so many pains, to prevent a delusion upon this subject.
13. Will it be a long time till he comes?
ANSWER. – 1 will read you what he himself says; it is at the beginning of the
parable of the talents, as given in Matthew 25: "As when a man going into
another country, calls in his servants and delivers unto them his goods. Now,
after a long time, the lord of these servants cometh and reckoning with
them" – after a long time. Why, then, is it said He is "coming
quickly"? "Behold, I come quickly." In God's sight a thousand
years are as a day, or a watch in the night, but to man it will not be too
quickly, not to the human race.
14. Then, is it liable to happen at any moment?
ANSWER. – Nineteen hundred years have passed away, and in the march of events
some of the prophesied things have taken place: The Roman Empire has passed
away; the Holy Roman Empire has passed away, and the counterfeit church is
badly shattered, though on its feet yet. But you know it is not liable to
happen just at any moment
15. Why, then, does our Lord say, "Because ye know not the hour when he
cometh, and as he cometh like a thief in the night, watch, be ye ready: what I
say unto you I say unto all, Watch, be ready"? How do you explain that?
ANSWER. – 1 can make it so plain to you that a Sunday school child can see it.
There is NOT a long time between YOU as an individual and the second coming of
Christ. The only time between YOU and the second coming of Christ is the time
between the present and your death. I mean to say that just as soon as you die
you strike eternity; you are out of time, and your only time to watch and make
yourself ready is while you are living. John's time to get ready was while he
was living; when he died he went into eternity, and in eternity there is no
measurement of time. We have to prepare for that advent while we are still
living. If we put it off until the historical event of the advent, then we
never will be ready.
16. What construction, then, do we put on the long time between his ascension
into heaven and his second coming?
ANSWER. – Peter explains it in 2 Peter 3: "We must construe that the
long-suffering of God meaneth salvation"; "not wishing that any
should perish," but that all should come to the knowledge of the truth and
be repentant. Look at that. "Lord, why do you stay away so long?"
"Because I want everybody to repent."
17. What doctrine is involved in that?
ANSWER. – That after he comes nobody can repent. Let me prove it to you; I will
let him prove it to you: Here in substance is Matthew 25:1-14: "Then shall
the kingdom of heaven be like unto ten virgins: five wise and five foolish; and
while they wait for the bridegroom they slept. Five of them had oil in their
lamps, and five did not." At last the cry is heard: "Behold the
bridegroom; come ye forth to meet him." And the five foolish ones said,
"Give us of your oil – let me borrow." You cannot borrow. "And
while they were gone off to get it, he came. And they came up and knocked and
said, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he said, Depart from me, I never knew
you," as our song has it: "Too late! Too late I You cannot enter
now." No one who awaits until Christ comes can make any preparation. He
comes as a thief in the night, and as suddenly as the flood came in the days of
Noah, and while they were eating and drinking and giving in marriage, like a
clap of thunder from a cloudless sky, the Messiah is come, and those who are
ready go in, and those who are not ready stay out forever.
18. Now, why is that true?
ANSWER. – Because the High Priest has left the place of intercession; because
the kingly government is at an end. (1 Cor. 15:25.) When he comes he comes to
turn over the kingdom to the Father, and that is the end; and some people who
are looking for him to establish his kingdom after he comes, will Just see him
giving up the kingdom, for the kingdom will be over.
The Spirit dispensation is over. The Spirit is his vicar while he is absent;
when Christ comes back the Spirit work stops, tiie church work stops, and the time
institution is become the bride in glory, and the bride, the elect, is
complete; there is no more to be added. The memorial of the church ends.
"Ye show forth his death until he comes; ye memorialize his burial and
resurrection in baptism until he comes," but when he comes those
ordinances stop; every office of Jesus Christ ends, but one, and I will tell
you what that is in a minute.
19. Now, then, what are the purposes of his final coming? What does he come
for? Why did he come the first time? And after ascending, why does he stay up
yonder, and when he comes back, what is he to do?
ANSWER. – First, in general terms, to wind up the affairs of time and this
world, to raise the dead, and to render his final judgment. Not another thing
has he before him when he comes; the Lord who has gone into another country for
a long time comes back to reckon with his servants.
20. Is that day fixed?
ANSWER. – Some people who want it to happen any minute would have it a sliding
scale, maybe today, maybe tomorrow, maybe next week. Let us ask Paul (Acts
17:31): God "hath appointed a day in which he will judge the world in
righteousness by the man whom he hath ordained: wherefore he hath given
assurance unto all men) in that he hath raised him from the dead." It is
as unalterably fixed as was the day of his first advent. I do not know the day
nor the hour, nor do you, but God does; the day is appointed.
21. What the sign of this second advent?
ANSWER. – Now, I told you the sign of his first advent: "You shall see a
babe in swaddling clothes lying in a manger"; that is, Christ comes in his
humiliation. Now, the next time, he is to come in his glory, and you must
expect a sign just as far away from the manger as possible. What is that sign?
He says: "When the Son of man shall come in his glory, he shall sit upon
the throne of his glory." "And I saw a great white throne":
there is the sign. At the first coming I saw a babe in a manger; at the second
coming, from the manger to the throne, "I saw a great white throne and him
that sat on it," and the sign will be visible in the deepest darkness that
ever fell upon the earth. He says so himself. He says that after the
tribulation of the Jews and their salvation, the sun shall lose its light
immediately, not immediately after the tribulation, but lose it suddenly,
instantly, and the moon shall lose her light, and the stars their light, and
every light in the world goes out, and against that background of total pitch
darkness we see a white throne coming, the white against the blackness. Nobody
will make a mistake in that; I tell you, whoever enters into that darkness and
whoever sees that white throne coming, a throne, not of a king. but of a judge,
the throne of final judgment, he will not make any mistake about Christ's
coming.
Now, to make it clearer to you, Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 4: "He will
come with a great sound of the trumpet." The earth never heard that
trumpet sound but once before, when the law was given on Mount Sinai. Then
there was heard the sound of a trumpet that waxed louder and louder, until the
people were terrified for their very lives. Do not adopt Negro theology, which
says that this is the trumpet of Gabriel to wake the dead. It is the trumpet of
Michael to summon the angels when the son of man shall come in his glory and
all the holy angels with him. That trumpet blast in that blackness, heralding
that white throne, will be the loudest thing the earth ever heard; ten thousand
times ten thousand claps of thunder will not equal the roll and reverberation of
that last trumpet sound. To keep you from being mistaken further, be says that
"he will come with a great shout," and we know exactly what the shout
is, for he tells us; we know the very words of it: "Behold the bridegroom,
come ye forth to meet him." Can you mistake that?
Now, notice, please, what I tell you about anybody being saved after his second
advent: "Two men shall be working in the field, and one shall be taken and
the other left; two women shall be grinding at the mill, one shall be taken and
the other left. Two groups of virgins, five in each, shall be waiting, one
group shall be taken and the other left." Just imagine those men out in
the field plowing, and all at once darkness hides the horses and the plow
handles, and then that white throne comes, and then that trumpet sounds, and
then that great shout, and in a moment an angel swoops down and grabs one of
the men plowing and takes him home; the other is left.
The questions are embodied in the text of this chapter.
OUR LORD'S FINAL ADVENT CONTINUED;
THE RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD; THE GENERAL
JUDGMENT
Revelation 20:11-15
We present this study in the form of a catechism:
1. Cite two distinct promises of the second advent.
ANSWER. – In Matthew 16:27, our Saviour says: "The Son of man shall come
in the glory of his father with his angels, and then shall he render to every
man according to his deeds." You see that is not only the promise, but it
expresses the purpose. The second promise is in Acts 1:11: "As they were
looking steadfastly into heaven as he went up, behold two men stood by them in
white apparel, who also said: Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye looking into
heaven? This Jesus who was received up from you into heaven shall so come in
like manner as ye beheld him going into heaven."
2. Cite three general passages on the resurrection.
ANSWER. – Daniel 12:2: "Many of them that slept in the dust of the earth
shall awake, some to eternal life, and some to shame and everlasting
contempt." Daniel puts the resurrection of both classes together. Next,
John 5:28-29, which I quote: "Marvel not at this, for the hour cometh
which all that are in the tombs shall hear his voice, and shall come forth;
they that have done good unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done
evil, unto the resurrection of judgment." And you see John puts them
together. The third passage is in Acts 24:15: "Having hope toward God,
which these also themselves look for, that there shall be a resurrection both
of the-just and the unjust." The third passage also puts them .together.
3. Now comes an exceedingly important question: Cite three striking passages
apart from our present lesson to show that the resurrection and the judgment of
both the righteous and the wicked are simultaneous, and not a thousand years
apart.
ANSWER. – (1) Matthew 12:41-42:
The men of Nineveh shall stand up in the judgment with this generation, and
shall condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold a
greater than Jonah is here. The queen of the south shall rise up in the
judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the ends
of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, a greater than Solomon
is here.
The men of Nineveh repented and were saved. It is distinctly declared that they
shall rise up, there's their resurrection, at the judgment, showing that the
resurrection and the judgment come together; they shall rise up at the judgment
with this generation, the wicked people, the impenitent people, whom Christ was
addressing, are to stand, there's their resurrection from the dead, in the
judgment with those ancient people of Nineveh and the queen of the south; there
you have the two clashes, the penitent and the impenitent, the resurrection,
the judgment, the general judgment.
(2) Matthew 25:31-46, and as you read I want you to ask yourselves these
questions: Are these crowds together? Are their resurrection and judgment
simultaneous, or is there a great interval of time between them?
But when the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the angels with him,
then shall he sit on the throne of his glory, and before him shall be gathered
all the nations; and he shall separate them one from another, as the shepherd
separated the sheep from the goats; and he shall set the sheep on his right
hand, but the goats on the left. Then. shall the King say unto them on his
right hand, Come, ye blessed of my father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you
from the foundation of the world. . . . Then shall he say also to them on the
left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared
for the devil and his angels. . . . And these shall go away into eternal life.
I once asked a premillennialist what he did with that passage, and he said,
"That is simply the judgment of the nations." No, sir I think that is
an individual judgment, and nations, as nations, are not sent into eternal
fire, only individuals are.
(3) The other general passage, which is more conclusive than these others, is 2
Thessalonians 1:6-10:
If so be that it is a righteous thing with God to recompense affliction to them
that afflict you, and to you that are afflicted rest with us, at the revelation
of the Lord Jesus from heaven with the angels of his power in flaming fire,
rendering vengeance to them that know not God, and to them that obey not the
gospel of our Lord Jesus: who shall suffer punishment, even eternal destruction
from the face of the Lord, and from the glory of his might.
When are these wicked punished with everlasting destruction? The next verse
tells us: "When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be
marvelled at in all them that believe [because our testimony among you was
believed] in that day."
I sat on the train once with a premillennialist and read that passage to him,
and asked him if he would hold the book and answer questions according to the
testimony. He said he would. I said: "According to that passage, when does
Jesus recompense affliction to those who have afflicted his people?" He
had to read: "At the time he recompenses his rest to those who were
afflicted." I then asked him when the wicked would be punished with
everlasting destruction; and he had to read: "When he comes to be
glorified in his saints." Now, these are literal passages. I could cite a
great many more, but these are absolutely conclusive that the resurrection and
the judgment of both the good and the bad will be simultaneous.
4. Cite three parables from our Lord to the same effect.
ANSWER. – (1) The parable of the tares, found in Matthew 13:24-30, and
expounded by our Lord in 13:36-42. Let us read it and see:
The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man that sowed good seed in his field:
but while men slept his enemy came and sowed tares also among the wheat, and
went away. But when the blade sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared
the tares also. And the servants of the household came and said unto him: Sir,
didst thou not sow good seed in thy field? Whence then hath it tares? And he
said unto them, An enemy hath done this. And the servants say unto him: Wilt
thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said: Nay, lest haply while ye
gather up the tares ye root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until
the harvest: and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, gather
up first the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat
into my barn.
The disciples wanted that expounded to them, and here is the exposition:
Explain unto us the parable of the tares of the field. He answered and said
unto them, he that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; the field is the
world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom, but the tares are the
children of the wicked one; the enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest
is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. As therefore the tares
are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be at the end of the world.
The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his
kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them
into a furnace of fire; there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then
shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their father.
Now, that expresses the fact that the good and the evil people are to grow up
together in this world until the end of the world, and then when the end of the
world comes, the angels will separate the good from the bad.
(2) The parable of the dragnet, Matthew 13:47-50:
Again the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net that was cast into the sea, and
gathered of every kind: which, when it was full, they drew to the shore, and
sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. So it shall
be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth and sever the wicked
from among the just, and shall .cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall
be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
(3) The parable of the talents, Matthew 25:14-30:
For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man traveling in a far country, who
called his own servants and delivered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave
five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his
several ability, and straightway took his journey. . . . After a long time the
lord of these servants cometh, and reckoneth with them . . . [and then he goes
on with the reckoning until he gets to the one with only one talent] . . . His
lord said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knowest I reap where
I sowed not, and gather where I have not strewed: thou oughtest, therefore,
have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming J would have
received mine own. with usury. Take, therefore, the talent from him, and give
it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be
given, and he shall have abundance; but from him that hath not shall be taken
away, even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into the
outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Now, there are the three great parables. I could mention others, but these
three are sufficient to put beside the three passages which show the
simultaneousness of the resurrection of the dead and the separation of the
righteous from the wicked, and the final judgment.
5. Cite and expound two great passages on the resurrection of the righteous
dead, and the glorification of the righteous living.
ANSWER. – In 1 Corinthians 15:42-55, is described the meaning of the
resurrection of the righteous dead: "It was sown in weakness, it is raised
in strength; it was sown in dishonour, it is raised in honour; it was sown a
mortal body and raised an immortal body; it was sown a mortal body and raised a
spiritual body." Then in the same connections he tells of the change that
takes place in the righteous who are living at the time when Christ comes:
"I show you a mystery: we shall not all sleep." That is, we shall not
all die; some men will be living when Christ comes, and then in a moment, in the
twinkling of an eye, they shall be changed without ever dying, and
glorification takes place. That is the meaning of all those words I quoted you
a while ago about honor, dishonor, etc.
Now, the second passage is in 1 Thessalonians 4, the closing paragraph:
Brethren, I would not have you ignorant concerning them who are asleep, that ye
sorrow now, even as the rest, who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus
died and rose again, even so them also that have fallen asleep in Jesus will God
bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we that
are alive, that are left unto the coming of the Lord, shall in no wise precede
them that are fallen asleep. . . . And the dead in Christ shall rise first,
then we that are alive, that are left, shall together with them be caught up
into the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the
Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
6. What erroneous views were held concerning the resurrection of the body, and
the objections thereto?
First, the Sadducees, who were materialists, and denied all future life,
whether of the soul or the body, and of course denied the resurrection of the
body. In Matthew 22; Mark 12; Luke 20, we have an account of the Sadducees
coming to the Lord with the question: Where a man married and died, and
according to the Mosaic law his brother took his widow; and he died, and the
second brother took her, and so on until seven brothers had her. Now who will
be the husband of this woman in the resurrection, for they all had her? They
thought they had sprung an insuperable difficulty in the way of the
resurrection of the dead. He replied to them: "In the state of the
resurrection of the dead there is no marrying, nor giving in marriage, but all
are as the angels of heaven," that is, the multiplying and replenishing of
the earth which so dominated men here on the earth, does not apply in heaven.
In Corinth some church members denied the resurrection of the body, and based
their objections on scientific deductions. In 1 Corinthians 15:12-35, he says:
"How say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead, and you
ask: With what bodies shall they rise?" – presenting that as an
insuperable difficulty, and all of that chapter is devoted to a discussion of
the certainty of the resurrection of the body. There were certain heretics at
Ephesus who held that regeneration was the resurrection, and hence it was past
already. Paul mentions the names of two of these heretics, Hymeneus and
Philetus, in 2 Timothy 2:17-18. They held that the resurrection took place when
a man was converted; that it was past already. Paul counts them heretics, and
says that their teaching is exceedingly hurtful to many.
Then there are people (though I do not find this in the Bible, but in history)
who hold that the resurrection is simply the escape of the soul from the
limitations of the body at death, and they compare it with the emergence of the
butterfly from the chrysalis state, never having any more use for that empty
shell, and living in another element, or air instead of upon the ground. A
great many people believe that; it is different from the Sadducees. The
Sadducees did not believe in any future life, nor in angels, nor in spirits of
any kind, as you learn from Acts 23:8; they were utter materialists; they
believed that this life is all; that when a man dies, all of him dies, that he
has no dual life now, and that there is no such thing as a spiritual existence,
good or bad.
7. If the righteous who are living when Christ comes are changed without death,
what becomes of the living wicked?
ANSWER. – My answer is that they perish, or die, in the great worldwide fire
that accompanies the coming of the Lord. Malachi gives a glowing description of
it in Malachi 4:1-3:
For behold, the day cometh, it burneth like a furnace, and all the proud and
all that work wickedness, shall be stubble, and the day that cometh shall burn
them up, saith Jehovah of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor
branch. But unto you that fear my name shall the sun of righteousness arise
with healings in its wings; and ye shall go forth and gambol as calves of the
stall. And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the
soles of your feet in the day that I make, saith Jehovah of hosts.
Now read a passage from Peter:
And in the last days men will say: Where is the promise of his coming? for
since the fathers fell asleep all things continue as they were from the
beginning of creation. For this they wilfully forget, that there were heavens
from of old, and an earth compacted out of water and amidst water, by the word
of God, by which means the world that then was, being overflowed with water,
perished; but the heavens that now are, and the earth, by the same word, have
been stored up for fire, being reserved against the day of judgment and
destruction of ungodly men'. . . . But the day of the Lord will come as a
thief, in the which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the
elements shall be dissolved with a fervent heat, and the earth and the works
therein shall be burned up. Seeing that these things are all thus to be
dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy living and
godliness, looking for and earnestly desiring the coming of the day of God, by
reason of which the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements
shall melt with a fervent heat?
No wicked man can escape physical death; there never has been one that escaped.
Elijah and Enoch did; they were good men. And all the saints living at the
coming of Christ will, but the wicked living when Christ comes will burn up in
the fire, just as now when one living in a house which catches on fire is
burned up before he can escape. That world fire will be as quick as a lightning
flash; there is no element of time in it; in one moment the atmosphere shall
become an ocean of fire, and the ocean itself, by one elemental change, shall
become an ocean of fire, and the fire will sweep from mountain to mountain, and
from continent to continent, until the whole world is afire. And in that fire
every living wicked person dies, and it happens in a moment, and their
resurrection immediately follows. They are so close together that one may call
them simultaneous.
8. What the ground of their resurrection? Why should the wicked be raised at
all?
ANSWER. – The normal man, as God created him, was a dual being – soul and body.
The death of the body, or rather the separation of the soul from the body, is
the result of sin. The soul in a disembodied state is unclothed, and hence
Hades, as a state, gains a victory so long as it holds a disembodied spirit.
But when God raises the bodies of the dead, good and bad, then shall be brought
to pass the saying: O death, where is thy sting; O Hades, where is thy victory?
You had a victory so long as you could hold one soul in a disembodied state.
Hence this book (6:8) says that Hades followed after death. Death came, and the
soul went into a disembodied state. Moreover, the only deeds of which the final
judgment takes cognizance are the deeds done in the body. A man who died when
Christ died, in eternity ever since, will never be judged for anything that he
does in eternity; the judgment takes cognizance of only the deeds done in the
body. Therefore, the whole man, soul and body, must be present at the judgment,
and if condemned must be punished in both body and soul.
It is not enough that the rich man, at his death, should be tormented as to his
soul. "He lifted up his eyes in hell [or Hades], being in torment."
That is not enough. But, as our Lord says, "Be ye not afraid of them which
kill the body but cannot kill the soul, but rather fear him who is able to
destroy both soul and body in hell [Gehenna]."
9. In what capacity, or office, did our Lord appear in his first advent, and
contrast it with his office in his second advent?
ANSWER. – Paul says in the letter to the Hebrews: "Inasmuch as it is
appointed unto men once to die, and after this cometh judgment; so Christ also,
having been once offered to bear the sins of many, shall appear a second time,
apart from a sin offering, to them that wait for him, unto salvation"
(Heb. 9:27-28). Which means that his second advent is not to offer a sacrifice
– that is all ended – but as judge, to bring his people into the fruition of
salvation, and the salvation of fruition, which, as Peter says, is ready to be
revealed at the last time (1 Peter 1:4-5).
Now we will take up the study word by word:
10. "And I saw a great white throne" (Rev. 20:11). What is the
distinction between this throne and the one in Revelation 4:2-7?
ANSWER. – That was the throne of grace, the mediatorial throne, Christ reigning
as king and interceding as priest. This is the white throne of final judgment.
That throne at 4:2, might be approached by prayer, as we learned in Hebrews
4:16: "Let us therefore draw near with boldness unto the throne of grace,
that we may receive mercy, and find grace to help us in time of need." And
as we learned in chapter 8 of this book: the prayers of the saints, mingled
with incense, came up to that throne. But no prayers are offered at this white
throne; praying days are over forever. This our Lord himself describes in his
great prophecy, which I quote: (24: 29-31):
The sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars
shall fall from heavens, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken, and
then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven, and then shall all the
tribes of the earth mourn and they shall see the Son of man coming on the
clouds of heaven with power and great glory. – MATTHEW 24:29-31.
Our Lord said at the conclusion of that prophecy: "But when the Son of man
shall come in his glory, and all the angels with him, then shall he sit on the
throne of his glory" (Matt. 25:31). Or, as this book expresses it, when he
came to the sixth seal:
And I saw when he opened the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake, and
the sun became black as sackcloth of hair and the whole moon became as blood,
and the stars of heaven fell unto the earth as a fig tree casteth her unripe
figs, and the heaven was removed as a scroll when rolled up, and every mountain
and island removed out of their place, and the kings of the earth, and the
princes, and the chief captains, and the rich and strong, and every bondman and
freeman, hid themselves in the caves and the rocks of the mountains; and they
say to the mountains and to the rocks: Fall on us and hide us from the face of
him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; for the great
day of their wrath is come, and who is able to stand? – REVELATION 6:12-17.
11. Who is the judge, and what is his suitableness?
ANSWER. – In John 5:22-27, it is said: "The Father hath given all judgment
unto the Son . . ." and he goes on to say that he is given this judgment
because he is also the Son of man. He is suitable, for he is God, and knows all
the holiness of God's law; he is suitable because he is man, and as man was
tempted as we are, and with an infinite knowledge of our infirmities, and our
failings, and our environment. Even for the devil, he is the best judge.
12. We read on in Revelation: "And I saw a great white throne and him that
sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away, and there was
found no place for them." What does it mean by the disappearance of the
heaven and the earth?
ANSWER. – Annihilation is not meant; the flood that swept the earth did not
annihilate it; neither does this fire, but it purges it. Peter describes it (2
Peter 3:7, 10-12). That fire will come, and in that fire heaven and earth
scenes will disappear, but he says that we will have a new heaven and a new
earth.
13. We read again in the study: "And I saw the dead, the great and the
small, standing before the throne. . . . And the sea gave up the dead that were
in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them." What is
meant by the sea and death giving up the dead in them?
ANSWER. – It means the resurrection of the bodies of all the dead, whether
buried on land or in the sea, just as our Lord said: "The hour cometh when
all that are in the tomb shall hear his voice and shall come forth," or as
Daniel put it: "They that sleep in the dust of the earth, some to eternal
life and some to shame and everlasting contempt."
14. What is meant by Hades giving up the dead that are in it?
ANSWER. – It means the coming forth of all the disembodied souls, reunited to
their raised bodies. "Hades" means the spirit world. David, inspired
by the Holy Spirit, said: "Moreover, my flesh shall rest in hope, for thou
wilt not leave my soul in Hades." The flesh is raised when the time is
come for Hades to give up its dead, and the soul and body shall be reunited.
15. While Hades, as a state of being disembodied, applies equally to all souls,
is there not some distinction of place and condition?
ANSWER. – Yes, the souls of both the rich man and Lazarus went into Hades, but
between the places in Hades where they were is a great gulf fixed, so that one
may not cross to the other. Lazarus, starved on earth, is feasting at the
banquet of God with Abraham, while the rich man, faring sumptuously on earth,
is starving and parching with the thirst in the flames. The Greeks held that in
Hades there were two widely separate compartments, one of joy and one of woe,
the first called "paradise," and the second called
"Tartarus," and New Testament writers accept this distinction. Jesus
said to the dying robber on the cross: "Today thou shalt be with me in
paradise." The man left his body behind, but his soul went with the soul
of Jesus into paradise. Paul says: "I was caught up into the third heaven,
into the paradise of God." Peter says: "God spared not the angels
when they sinned, but cast them down to Tartarus, and committed them to a pit
of darkness to be reserved unto the judgment" (2 Peter 2:4). In some
respects the Greek word hades is like the Hebrew word sheol, the underworld or
abode of disembodied spirits. The souls of both good and bad went into Sheol,
but not the same place or condition of Sheol. Isaiah, in his own sublime
imagery, compares the king of Babylon to Lucifer, cast down to Sheol, the
torment part of the pit, and represents all Sheol, from underneath, as moved to
meet him at his coming; it stirs up its dead for him. The soul of the king of
Babylon is entering Sheol, the part where the wicked are, and here is what they
say to him: "Art thou also become weak as we? Art thou become like us? . .
. Is this the man that made the earth tremble, that did shake kingdoms; that made
the world a wilderness, and overthrew the cities thereof; that let not loose
his prisoners to their homes?" (Isa. 14:9-17). This is a sublime
conception of the greeting to the lost soul on entering Tartarus. Just imagine
that rich man in hell, who said: "Tell Lazarus to go and tell my brothers
who live in yonder world not to come here where I am," but when he sees
his brothers coming he will say: "Are you become as weak as I am?"
The paradise part of Hades is just the same as heaven itself, as appears from Hebrews
12:22-24, where "the spirits of the just made perfect are with the Father,
with Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, with the angels on the heavenly
Mount Zion, in the heavenly Jerusalem." And it also appears from what Paul
says to the Corinthians (2 Cor. 5:1-2; 12:2-3) : "For we know that if the
earthly house of our tabernacle be dissolved [this body], we have a building
from God, a house not made with hands, eternal, in the heavens," and goes
on to say that as long as I am in this body I am absent from the Lord, and when
I am out of this body I am present with the Lord.
In 1 Thessalonians 4:14, it is said: "For if we believe that Jesus died
and rose again, even so them also that are fallen asleep in Jesus will God
bring with him." Now, in the same way, Tartarus is equal to what we call
hell, the place of eternal fire and torment, the only difference being the
absence of the body until the resurrection. Tartarus is hell now, just the same
hell it will be when a lake of fire, but the body is not in it yet. When the
saint's body is raised, the whole man, soul and body, goes back to paradise,
where his soul has been since death (see Rev. 22:1-2, 14) ; they re-enter the
paradise of God. When the wicked man's body is raised, the whole man, soul and
body, goes back into the same Tartarus where his soul had been. It is now
called Gehenna, or in this lesson it is called a lake of fire.
16. If paradise be heaven) and Tartarus be hell, except for the absence of the
body, why are the righteous, in their souls, already enjoying heaven, to which
they went at death, and why are the wicked, already tormented in the flames of
hell, to which their souls went at death, brought from those conditions to be
judged, seeing that they are already enjoying or suffering the final verdict or
sentence?
ANSWER. – (1) The day of judgment is not so much a day of actual trial, but as
Paul describes it, it is a day of the revelation of the righteous judgments of
God, judgments already rendered. The unbeliever is already condemned, says
John; he does not wait to come to the judgment to be condemned; he is already
condemned for not believing on Jesus Christ. The book of life, which determines
the case of both classes, is not a docket for trial that day, but it is a
register of judicial decisions already rendered. The object of the general
judgment is to make all who have been previously condemned or acquitted, see,
understand, and approve the past verdict which acquits or condemns. The
acquitted up to that day never fully understood the grounds of their acquittal
(see Matt. 25: 37-40) : "Lord, when did we see thee naked and clothed
thee, or sick and visited thee, or a stranger and entertained thee?" They
do not understand, and the same chapter shows that the wicked do not understand.
The rich man in hell did not understand, but when the revelation of the
judgment which put him there comes in white light and illumines, he will then
understand and confess the righteousness of the judgment of God that sent him
to that place of torment. Now, when the records of past judgments are opened,
both classes comprehend and recognize the righteousness of the past judgment
which sent the soul of one to heaven and the soul of the other to hell. They
now approve and acquiesce in God's judgment, though it had gone against them.
"Therefore," says Paul, "before Jesus, the Judge, every knee
shall bow, and every tongue shall confess his name" – the lost as well as
the saved.
(2) Not only does each man at the judgment see the justice of the verdict in
his own case, but also in the cases of the others. He will be as much surprised
and enlightened on this point as any other: some will be first that he counted
last, and some will be last that he counted first.
17. Is it largely on this account that all angels, good and bad, and the human
race, are all brought together in one great assembly?
ANSWER. – Yes; the contrast of the cases constitutes much of the light. The
penitent men of Nineveh, saved by hearing only one sermon, and the
vision-seeking queen of Sheba, at the judgment will throw their brilliant cross
light on the wicked generation of Christ's day, who had much more light and did
not act on it. "Sodom and Gomorrah," says our Lord, "Tyre and
Sidon, shall suffer a more tolerable judgment than the cities of Chorazin and
Bethsaida," and this cross light will furnish abundant lessons.
18. Why could not this light have been given sooner to the sinner?
ANSWER. – The revelation is put off until the last day because the influence of
human thought, desire, and deeds does not cease until they strike the shores of
eternity. The influence of Tom Paine's Age of Reason and Ingersoll's speeches
will go on until the final harvest, and it will not be known how much evil each
one has done until we come to the end of the influence. And so Abel, though
dead, yet speaketh. All our lives will throw light or shadows on the pathway of
others until the end of the world. John Bunyan's Pilgrim will go marching on
till Jesus comes; Keith's great hymn, "How Firm a Foundation," and
Cowper's sweet hymn, "There Is a Fountain Filled with Blood," have
not yet reached their final harvest. Edgar Allan Poe brings out the thought in
his flight with an angel, who shows him a volcanic island, barren and desolate,
and said: "That is an idle, evil word, spoken once and then forgot; but it
went on sounding until the end of time, and God crystallized it into the
volcanic island." Again the angel showed him another island of springs and
fountains, green with the verdure of grass and the foliage of fruit-bearing
trees, in whose boughs a choir of singing birds were praising God.
"This," said the angel, "is a good word you spoke once, and
forgot, but it went on in power until it struck the shores of eternity, and God
crystallized it into this blessed island."
19. What are the books out of which men are judged?
ANSWER. – We may not name them all, but these are some of them:
(1) The book of remembrance; you will find the account of it in Malachi
3:16-18. In a time of great spiritual tribulations some of the good people will
get together and deplore the absence of a revival, and God will command the
Recording Angel to put down in the book of remembrance what they said.
(2) The book of curses:
"Then again I lifted up mine eyes and saw, and behold a flying roll, and
he said unto me. What seeth thou? and I answered: I see a flying roll, the
length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth ten cubits. Then he said unto
me: This is the curse that goeth forth over the whole land, for every one that
stealeth shall be cut off on the one side according to it and every one that
sweareth shall be cut off on the other side according to it. I will cause it to
go forth, saith Jehovah of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the
thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by name, and it shall
abide in the midst of his house, and shall consume the timber thereof and the
stones thereof. – ZECHARIAH 5:1-2.
(3) Then there is a book of tears: "Put thou my tears into thy bottle; are
they not in thy book?" (Psalm 61:8) I tell you that will be a marvelous
book at the judgment; when on the judgment throne a book is opened, with
nothing but splotches on it where tears fell: Who made the widow weep? who made
the orphan cry? who brought sorrow into the house of the sick? I tell you that
God keeps every tear that falls from a sufferer's eye, and at the judgment that
book will be opened. There will be the tears that Jesus wept over Jerusalem. It
will be an awful book.
(4) Then there is the book of the covenant. You remember when the covenant was
made with Moses, the book was put in the ark, to be held as an everlasting
witness. At the day of judgment the Lord will say: "I need not judge you;
Moses will judge you. Just bring out that covenant and read it to him. Did you
abide by it?"
(5) Finally, there is the book of life: "Another book was opened, which is
the book of life."
20. What is this book of life?
ANSWER. – It is a register of judicial decisions. Whenever a man is converted,
justified, or acquitted, his name is written in that book. It holds the record
of all the saved from the beginning to the end of time.
21. Which is the decisive book?
ANSWER. – That book of life, because this lesson shows that whosoever is not
found written in that book shall be cast into the lake of fire. You remember
that Baptist song: "When thou my righteous judge shall come to take thy
ransomed people home, shall I among them stand; shall I, who sometimes am
afraid to die, be found at thy right hand? O can I bear the piercing thought:
what if my name should be left out?" Whosoever is not found written in
that book – well, that is all you need.
I will suppose there is a man – Mr. A – , say – in Fort Worth, County of
Tarrant, State of Texas, United States of America, living in such a period;
open the book of life to that name. Do you see his name there? No. That is
sufficient; pass him into the lake of fire. Do you see his name on the book of
remembrance? No. Do you see his name in the book of curses? Yes.
22. What is the great principle of this judgment?
ANSWER. – Each man is judged according to his light, privileges, opportunities,
and environment.
23. What is the only thing of which this judgment takes cognizance?
ANSWER. – One's attitude toward Christ in his gospel, his cause and his people.
The bad angels will have to say: We opposed; the good angels will say: We
ministered unto the heirs of salvation. The wicked will say: Salvation came
right to my door, the stream of life lapped against my doorsill, and I said no,
no.
24. Apply this to good angels, and show what advantage it is to them.
ANSWER. – They did not sin before, and now they have stood for Christ's cause
and his people, and they will become confirmed, for after the judgment no angel
can ever fall.
25. What proof have we that on that day the acquitted participate with Christ
in judging the world and the angels?
ANSWER. – "Ye who have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of
man shall sit on the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve
thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel" (Matt. 14:28). "Know ye
not that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world is judged by you,
are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that the saints
shall judge the angels?" It will be fine poetic justice when Job and Peter
pass judgment on the devil, who tried them so much; it will be a great sight to
see Agrippa, Festus, and Nero judged by Paul; they judged him on earth; he will
judge them in eternity. It will be a fine thing to see those who are despised
in this world, sit with Christ on his throne, passing judgment upon demons and
the wicked lost.
26. On what score are the saints judged that day, and the proof, and the
reasons?
ANSWER. – The saints are not put on trial for their lives that day; all that
was ended when they were justified: they will not have to come into the
judgment on that score; they have passed out of death into eternal life, and
none can bring a charge against God's elect, but they are judged on their
fidelity, on their lives as Christians, and shall receive the last reward. The
salvation of all the saved is the same, but the rewards of the saints are
different. They all get into salvation alike, through one door, Christ; but
their rank and position in heaven is determined by their Christian fidelty.
27. Are there also degrees in hell? Jesus said: "It shall be more
tolerable in the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than the cities of Chorazin
and Bethsaida."
28. What do you understand by the lake of fire?
ANSWER. – First, it is a place; all finite things must be posited. Second, it
is a prepared place, originally prepared for the devil and his demons, but
there is room enough in it for those who follow the devil. It is a prison;
Peter says: "The spirits in prison"; Jude says: "The demons cast
down in chains and bondage." It is a place of torment, weeping, wailing,
and gnashing of teeth. It is a place of companionship without friendship: you
will have the company of liars, thieves, murderers, idolaters; you will have
the company of the devil and his demons, but it will not be a happy crowd. It
is a place of conscience, memory, and despair; the mind does not quit thinking,
the conscience does not quit aching, but hope never comes. It is eternal:
"These shall go away into everlasting fire" – that is the same word
used when it says everlasting life – thus when you shorten hell you shorten
heaven; the same word applies to both. Pollok, in the "Course of
Time," vainly tried to describe hell. He says: "Wide was the place,
and deep as wide, and ruinous as deep, while overhead and all around winds war
with winds, and thunders roll, and lightnings, forked lightnings, flash." God
pity the man who dares come into the pulpit and preach against his eternal
judgment.
The questions are embodied in the text of this chapter, it being presented in
the form of a catechism.
THE FUTURE ETERNAL STATE OF THE RIGHTEOUS
AND WICKED
Revelation 21:l to 22:5
I want to say, as impressively as I know how to say it, that the reason
Christian people are no happier than they are, the reason they have so little
power, is that they have such a misty conception of heaven, of the world to
come. And whatever is misty, is painful. It is only those who, with a clear
understanding of God's word as to the outcome of human life, those who by faith
see eternal things, and feel the powers of the world to come, who can make any
lasting impression for good in this world. I do not care how much learning a
preacher may have, if he has not a clear conception of heaven and its eternity,
of hell and its eternity, he cannot be a man of spiritual power. I wish I could
make everybody feel on this subject as I feel, and not occasionally only, but
all the time. So far as I am concerned, the question of the death of the body
does not concern me in the least, and it has not for a great many years. All
the time before me is the glorious light and the blessed state of the world to
come. I have never gotten away from the influence of my first apprehension of
it.
With reference to the world to come, you understand that heaven is a place)
"I go to prepare a place for you," and hell is a place. All finite
beings must be posited; they must have locality. Only the Infinite One can be
everywhere, but all finite beings must always be somewhere. I want you to get
clearly in your mind the idea of a place, then of the condition of that place,
then of the companionship of that place, then of the eternity of that
condition, place, and companionship.
1. What is meant by a new heaven and a new earth?
ANSWER. – Before answering this question we must determine the meaning of
certain words and statements. First, the word "new." There are two
Greek words that may be rendered into the English "new": one neos,
which simply means new in appearance ; the other is kainos, and that means new
in kind. It is kainos, or new in kind, that is employed here, and that you may
get the true conception of the word, I will quote it as it is elsewhere used in
some of the passages of the New Testament. For instance, our Lord said:
"The instructed scribe shall bring forth out of his treasure things new
and old"; there is the new contrasted with the old (Matt. 13:52). The Lord
said: "This cup is the new covenant in my blood." (Luke 22: 20.)
There is not only a difference between the old and new covenant in appearance,
but there is a difference in kind. Jesus was buried in a new tomb (kainos), as
distinguished from an old sepulchre, which had been used for a place of burial.
The next word that we need to understand is the word "regeneration."
When it is applied to conversion it means a new birth. You were once born
according to the flesh, but now you are born according to the spirit. This word
"regeneration" (Greek palingenesia) applied to the spiritual birth in
Titus 3:5, is thus used in Matthew: "You who have followed me, shall in
the regeneration sit on twelve thrones judging the twelve tribes of
Israel." This regeneration does not refer to man, but to the earth. This
regeneration of the earth is accomplished by the worldwide fire, as the new
earth occupied by Noah was accomplished by the worldwide flood. It is to this
event that Paul refers in Romans 8:
The creation was made subject to vanity, not of its own will, but by reason of
him who subjected it, in hope that creation itself also shall be delivered from
the bondage of corruption into the liberty of glory of the children of God. For
we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain until now. And
not only so, but ourselves also, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even
we ourselves, groan within ourselves, waiting for our adoption, to wit, the
redemption of our body. – ROMANS 8:20-23.
Now, at the resurrection of the dead there will be a new birth of the earth – a
birth that comes by fire.
The next word is apokatastaseos, and it means "restoration."
Peter says to the Jews: "Repent that your sins may be blotted out, and so
that the times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and so
that he may send Jesus, whom the heavens must receive until the time of apokatastaseos,
the restoration of all things." Whatever, then, this word kainos
(new), and this word palingenesia (regeneration), and this word apokatastaseos
(restoration) mean, they describe the earth and the heaven after the
resurrection.
It will be recalled that in bringing the earth material out of chaos, the
firmament, or atmosphere, was created – that is, the heavens in the ordinary
sense; the sky above us – and that atmosphere by its specific gravity, its
weight, separated the waters above from the waters below. That is, the waters
converted into vapours until lighter than air would go up, but when in clouds
it became heavier than air, it would be precipitated to the earth again in fog,
rain, hail, or snow. It is the atmosphere and its weight that brings about that
separation. Hence when the earth was about to be destroyed by the flood, God
reversed that process, "and the windows of heaven were opened"; the
atmosphere was broken open; it lost its specific gravity; the fountains of the
deep were broken up, and that division of the waters above from the waters
below, and the land from the sea, was all done away with in the flood. But
after a while that flood subsides, and coming out of it there is a new
atmosphere – new heaven, new firmament, new earth – which Noah occupies.
Tremendous changes were wrought in the physical surface of the earth by the
flood – the evidences of it are to be found in the highest mountain ranges, and
you need not pay attention to those who tell you that a universal flood was
impossible. It was as universal as the fire will be.
Now, that flood did not annihilate the earth, but it changed it so that it is
called a new earth. So that fire, which leaps out at the resurrection of the
dead, will not annihilate the earth, but will change it, and out of that flood
of fire a new earth appears. That is the meaning of those terms.
We will also recall that when man sinned, that earth which God had pronounced
good when he made it, was cursed – it was made subject to vanity, but subjected
in the hope of restoration in the redemption of our bodies in resurrection. So
we may conclude that that destruction by fire does not annihilate, but changes,
and as God pronounced the creation good until marred by sin, so the removal of
sin and all evil agencies will bring restoration. At any rate, our next chapter
shows that paradise is regained – the paradise in which Adam and Eve lived is
regained in all its spiritual power. This new creation will be here for
occupation – and occupation by man – but occupation under new conditions
adapted to his glorified body, which brings us to the next question:
2. What is the meaning of "And the sea is no more"?
ANSWER. – 1 am not sure that I can satisfy myself, much less you, as to what
that means. It may be literally true that after the fire there will be no more
ocean. In the convulsions of that great upheaval the bottom of the sea may
upheave. As it now stands, three-fourths of the earth's surface is covered by
water. I say we may consider it that way, because we have construed the earth
literally, and the firmament literally, and if so, why not consider the sea
literally? Or it may mean that there is no more sea in the sense of a barrier
between nations. Under present conditions it is a barrier. For many centuries
the Atlantic Ocean barred the approach to this Western continent; we had to
wait nearly fifteen centuries after Christ to discover this continent. The sea
was in the way. by laboured action, but by volition. He wills to move, and so
But, under the new conditions of spiritual bodies, we would not need any ships,
because the glorified man does not move moves, through the air easier than a
bird can fly, and more swiftly than a flash of lightning. He will be as the
angels of heaven. While Daniel was yet praying, an angel swooped and touched
him; who can measure the swiftness of his flight? There will be no barrier
between the nations, because nationality will have perished; there is a unity
of race into one great family of God. There are no longer linguistic barriers,
as Babel when tongues were confused so that they could not understand each
other. And as at Pentecost, tongues were given that they might understand each
other, this was a forecast of that heavenly condition when every man and woman
and child in glory not only can understand each other's speech, but also the
tongues of angels: "Now we know in part; then we shall know even as we are
known."
3. What is the meaning of the Holy City, the New Jerusalem? Your lesson goes on
to say: "And I saw the Holy City, the New Jerusalem." What is the
meaning of that?
ANSWER. – As there was an earthly capital of earthly Israel, called Jerusalem,
so there shall be a heavenly capital of spiritual Israel. Paul, to the
Galatians, says: "Jerusalem that is above is free," and to the
Hebrews he says: "Ye are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the
living God, the heavenly Jerusalem." One of the promises of this book,
already considered, says: "I will write upon him the name of the city of
my God, the New Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God."
Our Lord himself has stated: "Let not your hearts be troubled. . . . In my
Father's house are many mansions. . . . I go to prepare a place for you, and if
I go to prepare a place for you I will come again and receive you unto myself,
that where I am there ye may be also" (John 14:1). Of Abraham it is said
that the reason he was a sojourner on earth, was that "he looked for the
city that hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God." And of the
other pilgrims on earth it is said, in Hebrews 11: "They desire a better
country that is a heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed of them to be called
their God, for he hath prepared for them a city."
Now, let us note the measure of that city: the passage measures it for you. You
will recall that when Jerusalem of the restoration after the captivity was
about to be measured, and a young man with tapeline started out to measure it,
an angel said: Stop that young man; do not let him put that measurement on
Jerusalem; for Jerusalem will extend into the country, and take in the villages
and the whole outlying territory. What a pity that we cannot speak to all the
young men who go out with their narrow and restricted tapelines to measure the
city and government of God!
4. What are the dimensions of the city?
ANSWER. – Now, the text says the circuit of this city was 12,000 furlongs – 1
am giving you the symbolical numbers; that would be 1,500 miles, and as it was
square, that means that each side was 375 miles. Suppose we take 375 miles as
the side of a square city: 375 times 375 miles is 140,625 square miles. That
gives you its surface area. But the city is as high as it is long or broad, so
we have to go up 375 miles, and make a cube, or hexagon, with six sides. Now,
multiply your 140,625 by the 375 miles high, and you get over fifty-two million
cubic miles. Suppose you put it into stories, each story a mile high and with
140,625 square miles surface, and then another story on top of that, and so on
up. Talk about your modern skyscrapers! Elevators? You won't need any elevators!
If you are down on the street of that city, and you want to go to the top
story, you will to be there, and there you are. You do not need any machinery
to pull you up in your glorified body.
5. How does it compare with ancient Jerusalem, and what is the meaning of these
symbolic numbers?
ANSWER. – Just think of the circuit of ancient Jerusalem – four miles. You
could ride around ancient Jerusalem in an hour – all around it. Whatever these
symbolic numbers mean, they certainly mean that there will be a great many
people saved to occupy so great a city – and that is only the capital. Multiply
the square miles in London or New York a thousand fold, and it would not even
approximate the dimensions of this New Jerusalem: "In my Father's house
are many mansions."
6. Describe its wall and give its boundaries; what symbols show the richness of
the city?
ANSWER. – Now, in addition to the size of the city thus expressed, there is a
wall that enclosed the city, how close to it the record does not say – it may
be the boundaries of the earth. That wall, if you use the sacred cubit of 22
inches as a measure, is 260 feet high; if you use the 18-inch cubit measure, it
is 216 feet high. It is a higher wall than this earth ever saw – higher by far
than the walls of ancient Babylon. The great Chinese wall, built as a barrier
to Tartar invasion, may start you on the idea. This wall goes all around the
city, and the twelve foundations of the wall have on them the names of the
twelve apostles of the Lamb. The city is four-sided, just as the ancient court
around the tabernacle, looking north, south, east, and west, around which the
twelve tribes camped, three on each side. The richness of the city cannot be
conceived: the streets are of gold, and every one of the twelve gates is solid
pearl. That is symbolical language, but the idea of the symbolism is to convey
to you a richness that passes beyond the realization of any man having
knowledge of only such things as we see here. "Oh when, thou city of my
God, shall I thy courts ascend?" Those gates, however, are never shut –
they are always open, because there is no evil to shut out. The devil and his
demons and every evil man is in prison forever in the lake of fire, and as your
lesson says, all the nations of the saved pour through the gates of that city
to worship God.
7. What are not found there and what things are abiding?
ANSWER. – The light of the city is God himself – nothing that the mind of man
has ever conceived of in the way of brilliancy can even approximate the white light
and eternal radiance of that God who is light, and in whom there is no
darkness. He is the light of it; the black wing of night never flaps over it;
there is no night there. There is no pain there; there is no weeping and
mourning for the dead, for none die; there is no death there; tongues have
ceased and prophecies have ceased, but abiding forever are hope, love, faith –
these three. There is only love to God, and love to the fellow man, a high and
holy love, and faith and hope; those are the conditions. It is an eternal
condition of inexpressible felicity and joy. No wonder Dr. Chalmers, in the
greatest sermon he ever preached on the expulsive power of a new affection,
used somewhat this language: "Oh, if some island of the blessed could be loosed
from its heavenly moorings and glide down the stream of time and pass by in our
sight just one time, so that we might see the unflecked serenity of its skies,
and inhale the fragrance of its flowers, and be ravished by the melodious
strains of its music, and catch just one time the sheen of the apparel of its
inhabitants – never again would we be satisfied with this world." I was
once literally swept off my feet by hearing four thousand Methodists in a tent
meeting sing that song,
Have you heard, have you heard of that sun-bright clime, Undimmed by sorrow and
unhurt by time; Where age hath no power o'er fadeless frame: Where the eye is
fire, and the heart is flame; Have you heard of that sun-bright clime?
When the thoughts of heaven sweep down on us, when the glory of that heavenly
city comes into the mind, I tell you, we have a revival – power rests on the
feeblest saint.
8. What three figures are used in presenting this heavenly place?
ANSWER. – You are to understand that this heavenly city is presented in three
figures: First, this city; second, the Lamb's wife; third, by Paradise. Right
in the center of the city is the throne of God, and bubbling up from under that
throne is a water system that branches into four heads, as an ancient paradise,
running in four directions – the water of life, flowing freely. And on either
side of it is the tree of life, bearing twelve manner of fruits, and yielding
its fruit every month – the flowers never cease to bloom, the fruit never
ceases to ripen, the stream never hushes its music as it outflows, and every
ripple of it says, "Life, life, eternal life."
9. What, then) the object of the book?
ANSWER. – So, whether we consider heaven as a glorious city, or the city as an
image of the church in glory, or as paradise regained, we see "the
restoration of all things." God knew, when he made this world, how he
wanted it, but the devil thought to thwart him; he did take possession of it
for a time. The object of this great book of the New Testament, this closing book,
this last flash of revelation, is to show you preachers, you women workers,
that all of this earth shall be redeemed from the power of the devil, and that
the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ will "never lose its power till all
the ransomed church of God be saved to sin no more," and you ought to live
on that thought. You may stumble occasionally ; you may fall occasionally, but
always get up facing heaven. I always said, when I was a wicked sinner, that if
I was ever converted the first thing I would do after being converted would be
to read Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, or the sojourner's travel to the heavenly
city. And when I got back home, lying down, happy in my conversion, my hands
over my face, my mother came and pulled my hands away, and said: "My son,
you have found the Saviour." That night I sat by her bedside and read John
Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress. And I tell you, when I got to that part of the
book where Beulah Land is described, or where, from the mountains delectable,
one might see the glory of the heavenly city, with only the river of death
between, and the shining ones coming down to the river and beckoning you to
come over and waiting to receive you when you crossed, I got my great
conception of heaven right then, and have never lost it since.
There was a lady schoolmate of mine, a brilliant girl and a very dear friend.
We went different ways when we left school. One day I received a note written
on the margin of a newspaper, saying: "If you are my old schoolmate, as I
think you are, come to see me before I die, and bring your church choir with
you." I went, and found her heartbroken and dying. When I entered the room
she said: "I did not send for you to tell me how to die: I know, I know.
But I tell you what I wish you would do; get your singers to sing a hymn. I
want to be upborne on the wings of melody as I ascend to heaven." I asked:
"What do you want us to sing?" "Sing this song: 'Oh, sing to me
of heaven when I am called to die; sing songs of holy ecstasy to waft my soul
on high.' " We sang it, in tears, and when we got through, in the
sweetest, faintest voice, she repeated the last verse and ended with a sigh.
She was dead. So music cheered her last breath on earth, and greeted her first
taste of heaven.
It may sound fanciful, but I sometimes am carried away with the thought that if
I could get together the preachers and the working forces of the churches, and
keep them studying for a few days on the Bible teachings of heaven, until the
clearness, and certainty, and eternity of heaven and hell got hold on them,
they would know how to work.
10. Who are the inhabitants of this city?
ANSWER. – You have learned in our study about heaven as a place, heaven as a
state, and now I close with a reference to its companionship. Paul says:
"But ye are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the
heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable hosts of angels, to the general assembly
and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the Judge of
all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to Jesus, the Mediator of
a new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaketh better than that
of Abel" (Heb. 12:22-24). That is companionship divine, angelic, and
human. But the greatest of all the joys will be when we come to Jesus and,
taking off the crowns his gracious hands placed on our brows, lay them down at
his pierced feet, and say: "Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us; but unto thy
name be honour and power and glory and dominion for ever." Yes, we are
coming to Jesus; we are coming to the innumerable host of angels, ten thousand
times ten thousands of thousands and thousands of the shining ones we have
heard so much about in this book; we are coming to the general assembly, the
church of the firstborn who are written in heaven, and who, standing on the
walls of everlasting deliverance, and looking down toward the earth once ruled
by the devil, all of its mountainsides scarred with battle, all of its valleys
crimson with blood, all of its caves filled with the bones of the murdered, all
of its seas filled with the wrecks of those who perished in battle and storm,
we shall look down on it, and we will see all of it washed whiter than snow. I
do not say that we shall be limited to the earth in the world to come; I do not
suppose there will be any barrier to our going to any part of the universe. But
God intended that man should have dominion over the earth.
11. Who are forbidden to enter this city?
ANSWER. – Before we leave the subject I ought to say this sad thing: "On
the outside are the fearful," those who lacked moral courage, those who
were ashamed to say: "I am for Christ," that were ashamed to stand by
him, ashamed to confess him in public. "On the outside are all liars, and
all whoremongers, and all idolaters." That is the crowd that is on the
outside forever. They, too, have a place, prepared for the devil and his
angels; they, too, have companionship: but what a crowd! What a crowd! Who
wants to be with them forever? If it chill your heart to be associated now with
one unclean, foul, slimy soul, what will it be to company with all the lost
forever?
The questions are in the body of the text, it being presented ill the form of a
catechism.
EPILOGUE
Revelation 22:6-21
The exposition of this marvelous and delightful book closes with this chapter.
As the first chapter is the prologue of the book, this study of Revelation
22:6-21 is the epilogue of the book. Most of the terms of the first chapter are
here repeated to show that the purpose of the revelation there announced is
here consummated. No other Bible book has more striking marks of unity. The
first sentence: "These words are faithful and true," authenticates
the whole book. The second sentence connects it in unity and authority with all
the preceding books of the sacred history. That sentence: "The Lord, the
God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show unto his servants
the things which must shortly come to pass," means that the Lord who
bestowed upon each of the Old Testament prophets, and on each of the preceding
New Testament prophets, that measure of the gift of the Holy Spirit to qualify
him to write his part of the sacred canon, inspired this closing book also,
making it the capstone and the climax of all revelation. It follows that the
whole library has one author, all the parts are correlated into one complete
system of revelation. In every case, from Moses to John, "The testimony of
Jesus is the spirit of prophecy." Paul had said collectively of the Old
Testament Scriptures: "They are the sacred scriptures,"
distinguishing them from all secular and profane writings; and then said of
them distributively, pasgraphe theopneustos, "every one of the
writings is God-inspired."
This second sentence of our study not only virtually affirms the same thing of
the New Testament books, but links both Testaments into one inspired unity.
Read the next two verses: "And I, John, am he who heard and saw these
things, and when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the
angel that showed me these things. And he saith unto me, See thou do it not: I
am a fellow servant with thee and with thy brethren the prophets, and with them
that keep the words of this book: worship God."
Here are two great lessons: First, that angels are not to be adored: Worship
God. So Paul wrote to the Colossians: "Let no man rob you of your prize by
a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels . . . which had indeed a show of
will worship." That kind of worship, which the human will has devised, has
cursed all Christendom as well as heathendom, worshiping the creature rather
than the Creator. Huge ecclesiasticisms, particularly the Romanist and Greek
churches, claiming to be the highest expressions of Christianity, are in the
main elaborate systems of idolatry, angelolatry, Mariolatry, adoration of the
mass, the images, saints, relics, and a thousand other superstitions.
The second lesson: Not only do the words of the angel show a fraternity of Old
and New Testament prophets, but a fellowservice of both with the angels:
"I am a fellow servant with thee and with the prophets, and with those who
keep the words of this book." You see that sentence blends into one great
family of God the saints of all ages and the angels who have been the
ministering spirits to the heirs of salvation.
Read the next verse: "He saith unto me: Seal not up the words of the
prophecy of this book; for the time is at hand." Here, again, we gather
two important lessons. First, while more than once in this book we have seen
the temporary sealing up, or suppression of the outcome of the synchronous
views until the crowning climax of all of them arrives (see 8:1; 10:4), and yet
at the end, the whole book is opened forever; no man can ever seal up any part
of this book. It is a revelation; it is meant to be understood. A benediction
is pronounced on the hearer, the reader, and the keeper of the words of the
book, but if we do not understand the book, we cannot keep its words.
The second lesson: In one respect there is a sharp contrast between the
prophecies of the two dispensations. For example, the book of Daniel, which is
the great prototype of this book. To Daniel, at the close of his apocalypse,
greatly troubled because he did not understand his own visions, God said (and
you will notice the contrast): "But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and
seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro and
knowledge shall be increased. . . . And I heard but I understood not; then said
1:. O my Lord, what shall be the issue of these things? And he said: Go thy
way, Daniel, for the words are shut up and sealed till the time of the end.
Many shall purify and make themselves white, and be refined, but the wicked
shall do wickedly, and none of the wicked shall understand, but they that are
wise shall understand. . . . But go thou thy way till the end be; for thou
shalt rest and stand in thy lot, at the end of the days."
Daniel is commanded to seal up his book; our verse says: "Seal not up the
words of this prophecy." Speaking concerning all the Old Testament
prophecies, and also concerning the angels, Peter uses this language:
"Concerning which salvation the prophets searched and sought diligently,
who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you; searching what time, or
what manner of time the spirit of Christ which was in them did point to, when
it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glories that should
follow them. To whom it was revealed that not unto themselves, but unto you did
they minister these things, which now have been announced unto you through them
that preached the gospel unto you by the Holy Spirit sent forth from heaven.
Which things angels desire to look into." It is the church, in her victories,
that instructs the angels in the manifold wisdom of God. As Paul says to the
Ephesians: "The manifold wisdom of God shall be made known to
principalities and powers in heavenly places by the church." The old
dispensation, clouded in type and shadow, left many things sealed up. The New
Testament sweeps all the mists away.
Read now two other verges of the lesson: "He that is unrighteous, let him
do unrighteousness still; and he that is filthy, let him be made filthy still;
and he that is righteous let him do righteousness still; and he that is holy
let him be made holy still. Behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with me,
to render to each man according as his work is." Your author does not
understand verse II to refer to the fixity of the final state after the
judgment, to wit: that one then righteous will be righteous forever. That is
true, but it is not taught here. This epilogue is not now considering the
results of the judgment and the future state; they have been disposed of in
another connection; this epilogue is not a vision, it is not a part of the
apocalypse. It simply tells of the application of all the lessons of the book
to the present. A similar mode of expression appears in Ezekiel 12:11 and
Daniel 12:10. The meaning is that, having now unveiled the future with it in
reward and punishment, the choice is left to man to be righteous or
unrighteous, holy or filthy; God will not coerce. Just so, some of the exiles
would not hear Ezekiel, and some who heard him would not practice what he preached.
He said: "I am to you merely as the sound of a pleasant instrument; you
sit before me just as if you were the people of the Lord, but you go out after
hearing me and continue to do your abominations."
It reminds me of the romantic legend of St. Anthony, who, having no people to
preach to, went and preached to the fishes, and the record states that they
were much edified. But the eels went on eeling, and the stock fish went on
stealing, each one living in the same old way.
Notwithstanding Daniel's visions, the wicked, as God said to him, would
continue to do wickedly. And so, notwithstanding this book of Revelation, those
who love unholiness will be allowed to follow their bent, and those who prefer
being filthy will go on being made filthy. He is permitted to follow his
choice, but is warned that whatever each man chooses in time will be his
destiny in eternity, as the last clause of the verse tells us: "Behold, I
come quickly, and my reward is with me, to render to every man according to his
works."
Read verses 14-15: "Blessed are they that wash their robes that they may
have the right to come to the tree of life and may enter in by the gates of the
city. Without are the dogs, and the sorcerers, and the idolaters, and the
fornicators, and the murderers, and every one that loveth and maketh a
lie." The reader will note the difference in the text of verse 14 between
the Common Version and the Revised, from which I quote. The King James Version
reads this way: "Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may
have the right to the tree of life," and this version reads: "Blessed
are they that have washed their robes, that they may have the right to the tree
of life." That makes a marked difference in doctrine. The King James
translators had not before them any one of the three oldest manuscripts of the
New Testament: the Alexandrian manuscript, now in the British Museum, was
presented to Charles I, son of James. The Sinaitic manuscript was discovered long
after that translation by Tischendorf, and it is now in the museum at St.
Petersburg. The Vatican manuscript is in the Vatican Library at Rome. All these
oldest and best manuscripts read: "Blessed are they that have washed their
robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life." I have
facsimiles of all these oldest manuscripts in my library. You may accept it
without question that in the best texts the reading is "Blessed are they
who have washed their robes." This harmonizes expressly with the parallel
passage in 7:9-14, where those arrayed in white robes are declared to be those
who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the lamb, and
harmonizes with the vital and fundamental truth that the blood of Christ
cleanses from all sin. The right to the tree of life comes by blood, not by
works; by faith, not by doing. The thought of the passage follows strictly the
preceding one. God will not coerce; the choice is with men; if they by faith
will accept the Saviour and are cleansed in his blood, they have a right to the
tree of life, and to enter into the Holy City, the New Jerusalem. But if they
prefer to be dogs, sorcerers, fornicators, murderers, idolaters, and liars,
then their destiny is on the outside.
Read verse 16: "I, Jesus, have sent mine angel to testify unto you these
things for the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright,
the morning star." How often have I told you, since we commenced this
book, that the God appointed agency for lighting the world is the churches. The
whole of this book, as a sacred deposit of revealed truth, is given to the
churches. That is why the church is said to be the "pillar and ground of
the truth."
Here, again, the connection is close: This book of Revelation is from the Lord.
He sent his testimony by his angel. The message is fully authenticated; it is a
message for the churches. They receive the deposit of truth for communication
of all the world.
Read verse 17: "And the Spirit and the bride say, Come; and he that heareth,
let him say, Come; and he that is athirst, let him come; and he that will, let
him take of the water of life freely." The revelation of the way of life
completed, and the revelation of destiny at the judgment, and this revelation
as a sacred deposit having been given to the churches, what shall they do with
it? What are their duties in view of the fact that they are the custodians of
the truth? Verse 17, which I have just read, answers that question.
But what does it mean? You are invited to come) and to come to what? The
premillennialists insist that all the "comes" in this book refer to,
or are spoken to, Jesus: "Come, Lord Jesus." I pointed out their
error where the four Cherubim say, "Come," "Come," "Come,"
"Come." They are speaking not to the Lord Jesus, but are speaking to
those horses that appear at their command to come, and I now say to you that
the Spirit does not say to Jesus, "Come," nor does the bride or the
church, in this connection at least, say to Jesus, "Come"; and the
one that hears does not say to Jesus, "Come." The rest of the verse
will not make sense with such interpretation: "Let him that is athirst
come, and such as will, let him partake of the water of life freely." To
put that premillennial interpretation on the passage destroys the meaning of
the greatest text in the Bible.
The revelation of the way of life and the judgment and eternal destiny being
made clear and complete and authenticated, and that way of life shown to be by
grace, through faith, in the cleansing of the blood of Christ; and the choice
of the decision being left to man, and the complete revelation being deposited
with the churches, we come to our verse: The Holy Spirit, Christ's vicar on
earth, abiding in the church till the judgment day, in order to complete the
cleansing by blood, says to all men, "Come." As if pointing to that
picture of heaven, described in the last chapter, with the throne of God, with
the water of life bubbling from under that throne and outflowing through the
city, the Holy Spirit says to every sinner, to every lost man in the world:
"Come to this water of life." What the Spirit says the church says:
the Spirit and the church united give the invitation, and the Spirit gives the
power to the invitation: "Come to the water of life." Not only is
that an official invitation, but any man that hears the Spirit or the church
give that invitation is authorized to repeat it. As you hear, you may turn at
once to your nearest neighbor, your dearest friend, the members of your family,
and say, "Come." Not only that, but whether you hear the Spirit or
the church consciously, if you are athirst, if there be a craving in your soul,
that very thirst in you is your authority to come. As Jesus said:
"Whosoever that drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never
thirst."
What a glorious thing it is that there is so little red tape in the invitation
of the gospel. You may be by yourself, you may not be in reach of any church;
you may just have a longing in your soul for salvation: then come. Don't wait
for anybody or anything. The thought even goes a step beyond. You may not even
have that thirst, your only conviction may be that you cannot feel, yet if you
are willing to come: "Whosoever will, let him come," without money
and without price. How it falls into line with all Bible invitations;
particularly with Isaiah 55. That chapter was my mother's favorite. When I was
a little bit of a fellow wearing dresses, I had to kneel down before her and
repeat:
Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters; and he that hath no money,
come ye, buy and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without
price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? And your labour
for that which satisfieth not? Hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that
which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Incline your ear
and come unto me; hear, and your soul shall live: And I will make an
everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. . . . Seek ye
Jehovah while he may be found; call ye upon him while he is near; let the
wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him
return unto Jehovah and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he
will abundantly pardon. – ISAIAH 4:1-3, 6-7.
Mark the glorious results: "For ye shall go out with joy and be led forth
with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into
singing; and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the
thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the
myrtle tree; and it shall be to Jehovah for a name, for an everlasting sign
that shall not be cut off." That is to say, in the joy of your heart you
interpret differently all external nature, the sunlight is sweeter, the trees
are more beautiful, the earth takes on a new dignity and nature, and you see
everything through the rose colour of your faith.
I say, then, that while the choice is left to each man to be righteous or
unrighteous, no choice is left to the church or to the Christian: you must
invite. If he die, his blood must not be on you; you must say to him,
"Come."
Read verse 18: "I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the
prophecy of this book, if any man shall add unto them, God shall add unto him the
plagues that are written in this book; and if any man shall take away from the
words of this prophecy, God shall take away his part of the tree of life and
out of the Holy City which are written in this book." What a tremendous
sentence! And in view of it, hear the ex-president of Harvard University say:
"We need a new religion." He wants to add to what this book says.
Hear the former professor of theology in the Divinity School of the University
of Chicago say only a little part of the Christian religion will be final; you
remember his book, The Finality of the Christian Religion, which goes on
whittling away on God's revelation until what is left, in his estimation, would
rest without falling off on the point of a cambric needle. And they promoted
him from a chair in the Divinity School to the University Chair of Comparative
Religions. At which I wondered in this fashion: Since even he admits that the
Christian religion is the best of all extant religions, but since only an
infinitesimal part of that will abide, why waste money to pay a man to
institute comparisons between them?
I, for one, think that verses 18-19 are not exclusively limited to the book of
Revelation. For, if I have correctly interpreted the foregoing passages,
showing that this book is bound up with all the other prophecies into one
unity, and as in this book Christ's prophetic office is closed henceforth, so
then there will never be another revelation, nor need for another, and as this
book is the climax revealing paradise regained to meet the paradise lost of
Genesis, then the warning applies to all the inseparable library. Since this
book makes known the way of life to the lost, since the only way to the tree of
life and the holy New Jerusalem of God and the blessed society that is described
in the preceding chapter, since through the blood of Jesus Christ is the only
way to obtain the right to enter, how heinous must be the offense of taking
away a part of this book, or adding a part!
There has always been in the sinner's heart a prurient desire to find some way
to the secrets of the hereafter, and hence they have resorted to magic and
sorcery, fortune telling, soothsaying, necromancy, and ten thousand other ways.
Even in hell the rich man had that desire: "Father Abraham, send Lazarus
back to yonder world to tell my brothers not to come here." Abraham said:
"They have Moses and the prophets; they have the light." He said:
"No, Father Abraham, if one would go unto them from the dead they will
repent." Abraham said: "If they would not repent under Moses and the
prophets, they would not repent under one that came from the dead."
Whoever is not willing to be saved by this revelation, a stored up, a precious
treasure of life, deposited with the churches, then how can he be saved? That
is why I told you, and probably shocked some of you by saying, that whoever is
not saved through the shining of the candlesticks and stars, through the
ministry of the light of the churches and the preachers, cannot be saved.
Therefore no man can be saved after Christ comes; all of the saving light is
deposited with the churches. That is why I prefer to take my conception of the
churches from Jesus Christ rather than from man's idea of what is the church.
He established the church as an institution; he calls the concrete expression
of the institution, "the churches": He says, "These are the
candlesticks and the stars that are to illumine the world." I count being
a church member a very great honor. Others prefer to run over the range as
mavericks – Texas cattlemen know what that means – wild stock with no brand or
mark on them. And there are quite a lot of preachers who prefer to be
"free lances," independent of the churches. Paul says that Jesus set
the apostles, prophets, evangelists, and teachers in the church: that is where
he put them; they are not turned out loose in the world like wandering stars:
they must have anchorage; they must hail from some port and must be going to
some port.
QUESTIONS
1. What part of this book the prologue, and what part
the epilogue?
2. In what words is the whole book authenticated?
3. In what words is it connected in unity and
authority with all pre ceding books of the sacred library?
4. What the meaning of "The Lord, the God of
Spirits, sent his angel to show unto his servants the things" of this
book?
5. What follows from this meaning?
6. How does Paul speak of the Old Testament book,
first collectively, then distributively?
7. What the two great lessons from verses 8-9?
8. What the two lessons from verse 10?
9. What the meaning of verse 11, negatively and
positively?
10. Wherein does the rendering of the Common Version
of verse 14 differ from the Revision, and why?
11. Expound verse 17.
12. Why may you not restrict the words of verses 18-19
to this book alone?