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LET’S STUDY REVELATION #33

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REVELON BOOK
CHAPTER ELEVEN
The Mighty Angel and The Two Witnesses

 

 

 

 

 

 

Revelation 10:1 through 11:14 is another parenthetical section and is inserted between the sixth and seventh trumpet, just as the first parenthetical section of chapter 7 is inserted between the sixth and seventh seal. This section also loops back to the three and one-half year mid-point of the tribulation.

 

 “And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:  And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth,  And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.  And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.”  (Revelation 10:1-4).

 

Some hold that this mighty angel is not the Lord Jesus Christ, but some other angel sent to serve and represent Him. They argue He comes down from heaven, and that Christ does not return until the end of the Tribulation. Furthermore, thunders spoke for him and they say Christ would speak for Himself. He also swore by heaven and Him who sat on the throne, whereas, Christ would have sworn by Himself.

 

We believe these arguments to be weak and unconvincing. Dake gives the following for his proof that the angel is Jesus Christ.

 

1.   The description of Him in Rev. 10:1 proves He is Christ (cp. Rev. 1:12-16; Daniel 10:5-6).

2.   The book open in His hand proves it.  In Rev. 5:5-7 Christ takes the sealed book out of the right hand of God.  In Rev. 6:1-8:1 He breaks the seals that bind it.  Here the same little book is open so that the contents of the things written within might be revealed

(Rev. 10:2,8-11).

3.   Christ is the one giving John the Revelation

(Rev. 1:1; Rev. 10:4,8-11).

4.   His voice as a lion roaring (Rev. 10:3) identifies Him with the lion of Judah (Rev. 5:5; cp. Isaiah 31:4-5; Jeremiah 25:29-36; Hosea 11:10-11; Joel 3:16; Amos 3:8).  In these passages the Lord is spoken of as a lion roaring in the Day of the Lord.

5.   The swearing of the angel (Rev. 10:6) proves Him to be a divine person, for not one time in Scripture does an ordinary angel make an oath to God or man.  In 50 scriptures it is stated that God swore or made oaths.  In 31 other passages man swears to God and man (cp. Daniel 12:7).

6.   Christ directs John concerning what to write and what not to write (cp. Rev. 1:11,19; Rev. 2:1,8,12,18; Rev. 3:1,7,12,14; Rev. 10:4; Rev. 14:13-14; Rev. 19:9; Rev. 21:5).

7.   In Rev. 11:3 we have definite proof that the angel is Christ, for He says, “I will give power unto my two witnesses.”  This proves Him to be a divine person.

No doubt this angel is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is called the angel of the Lord in the Old Testament. His clothing, the rainbow, and the face that shown as the sun certainly imply this is deity. Feet, as pillars of fire, are similar to those of the Son of Man walking amid the candlesticks. He stands with one foot on the sea and the other on earth, showing ownership and dominion.

Jesus also took the book in His right hand from Him who sat on the throne, in chapter 5, and that book concerns God’s judgment on Satan’s kingdom in order for Christ to reclaim His created and purchased position. There is no reason to doubt that this book is not the same one. Here, a small portion of it remains to be fulfilled. It is logical that Christ, the Creator and Redeemer, would be the One standing with one foot on land and one on the sea with the remaining judgments and the title deed in His hand.

 

The fact that He set his right foot upon the sea, and His left foot on the earth, shows determination and dominion. “The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land” (Psalm 95:5). It is His by creation and redemption, and now He is reclaiming it by proclamation.

 

The loud voice, as that of a lions roar, also speaks of conquest and dominion. That is exactly what the Lion of the tribe of Judah is doing here. It is a roar of triumph over the prey!

 

Seven thunders uttered their voices when the lion roared. To some it sounded like thunder, perhaps to those on earth, but in heaven their voices were clear. This is illustrated in John 12:29, “The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him.”John heard clearly what the thunders said and was about to write it when he was told not to, but to seal up the book. What John heard, we are not told.

 

LET’S STUDY REVELATION # 32

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Revelation
Revelation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This study gives a brief review of the first eight chapters.

 

The following two “woes” compose the contents of the sixth and seventh trumpets.*

 

“One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter. And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,  Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.  And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.  And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them.  And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone.  By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths. For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt.  And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.”  (Revelation 9:12-21).

 

The detailed description of these creatures has a symbolic significance, as does that of the Son of Man who stands amid the seven candlesticks. Read again verses 17-19 for that description. We have not found any commentator to give the significance of these details.

CHAPTER TEN

A Review of Revelation Chapter 1-8:6

 

I.          Introduction- Chapters 1. John gives the preliminaries to the Revelation. In it we discover that John was physically on the isle of Patmos. We see how he was carried forward into the Day of the Lord, and we see the Son of Man in the midst of the seven churches.

 

II.         Vision on Earth-Chapters 2-3. In these chapters we see the seven churches. In them, the churches receive letters of rebuke, letters of warning, letters of admonition, letters of encouragement to overcome, and letters of commendation.

 

III.       Vision in Heaven-Chapters 4-5. Here we see the rainbow-circled throne, the seventy elders, the four living creatures, the seven-sealed book, and the Lamb that was slain who was the only one worthy to open the book.

 

IV.       Vision on Earth- Chapters 6:1-7:8. Here we have the opening of the six seals and the sealing of the 144,000. These six seals take the reader completely through the Day of the Lord. The sealing of the 144,000 takes the reader back just prior to the opening of the first seal.

 

V.        Vision in Heaven-Chapters 7:9-8:6. These chapters consist of the great multitude and the seventh seal. The great multitude consists of converts saved during the Great Tribulation. They stand before God’s throne and serve in His temple in the new heaven and new earth.

THE STONE THAT BECAME A MOUNTAIN

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By Ken Blue

“Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. 35 Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.” Daniel 2:34-35.

Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, was shown a great image in a vision. Daniel explains that God was showing the king the course of Gentile history, and that God would establish His own kingdom in His on time and own way. The book of Revelation gives added details.

We have written articles on the ten toes and ten horns. Each of these represents ten Gentile nations in an alliance surrounding Israel. You will notice that the stone cut out without hands, hits the gentile image in the feet. This assures us that the Second Advent of Christ will not happen until these ten nations are in place and ruled by Antichrist. These events will be the end of Gentile dominion over the nation of Israel. “And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.” Luke 21:24.

Kingdoms, many times are referred to as a mountain. The context is always the key. Not only are the Gentile powers reduced to chaff; they are blown away. Never again will they harass Israel. The stone evolves into a great mountain that eventually fills the whole earth.

This event is not the end of the world, but it is the end of this age. A new age begins with Christ’s Kingdom. It begins in Israel, and will be preached to the whole world, that Jesus the King, is ruling in Jerusalem. This will be the message of the, so called, great commission.

How far away is that event? No one knows. We do know that the ten nations must be allied first, and that the Antichrist comes from one of them, (Syria.) Also, there must be seven years of tribulation before the Stone strikes the Gentile powers. How long? No one knows. Also, that will not be the end of the earth, but is will end this age, and a new age begins. Between these events, the rapture of the  saved takes place. Are you saved and ready for that great event?

 

LET’S STUDY REVELATION # 31

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LOCUST FROM HELL

“And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit. And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.  And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man.  And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.” (Revelation 9:2-6).

 

These cannot be literal locusts (vs.-3) for locust, as we know them, have an aversion to fire and smoke. However, these live in that inferno which darkens the sun. These are unlike any locusts this world has ever seen. They have power in their tails to sting as scorpions and they have no interest in the green grass or the trees. They overlook those with the seal of God in their foreheads and torment only those men without it.

No doubt there is a connection to Ezekiel 9:4-6 concerning these seals, “And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof. And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.”

 

The assignment of the locust is to torment men and women for five months. Their torment is described as the sting of a scorpion. Anyone who has ever been stung by a scorpion can imagine the agony these must endure day and night for five months. The pain will drive men mad.  Those who are stung will seek death and will not find it. Satan said of Job, “all that a man hath will he give for his life.” Here, all that a man hath, he would be willing to give for death.

There will be other believers on the earth at this time besides the 144,000. The question is will they suffer these torments along with the wicked. Will these torments be local within the kingdom of the beast or are they universal? It is my belief that it will be within the kingdom of the Beast. It will be known in their day. It is also possible there is another seal of God besides the one on the 144,000

 

 “And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men. And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions. And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle. And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months.  And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.”  (Revelation 9:7-11).

 

These verses give additional details of these demonic mutations. Their shape is as that of horses prepared for battle. They have counterfeit crowns, as and like gold. Their faces are as men (hardened) and hair as women (long). They have sharp teeth as lions. Their breastplates are of iron. The sound of their wings as chariot horses running to battle. They are an imitation of the living creatures in chapters 4 and 5.

 

They have a king over them, which makes them unlike the locusts of the earth. Proverbs 30:27 says the locusts of this earth, “…have no king, yet go they forth all of them by bands.” This king is called the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon. His name means a destroyer. We are told the name of this king, and that his domain is the bottomless pit. If he is not the Devil himself, he is his servant and leads this mighty army. He may be that spirit-beast which enters the Antichrist, who comes from the pit at the three and one-half year point of the Tribulation.

 

The following two “woes” compose the contents of the sixth and seventh trumpets.

SPURTS AND EXPERTS

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By Ken Blue

 

Dr. Tom Malone was my pastor and professor while I was in College. I remember him saying that an “Expert is just any little spurt away from home.” I have met many of these in my journey, and on occasion, I have been mistaken for one. What I have learned is that the real experts are those who agree with me. How about you?

 

One thing I do know for sure is that no one is an expert in Bible hermeneutics until they learn to apply the following command of Paul in his Pastoral Epistles. “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” 2 Timothy 2:15. For those of you who want to play word gymnastics, the Greek word is. ὀρθοτομέω which means to “…make a straight cut, i.e. (figurative) to dissect (expound) correctly (the divine message) :- rightly divide.” Strongs.

 

We must know how to rightly divide the different ages, dispensations, times, seasons, customs, idioms, Jews, Gentiles, the covenants, the testaments, churches, times past, present time, times to come, Israel’s last days of prophecy, the last days of this church dispensation, kingdom of heaven, kingdom of God, Peters apostleship, Paul’s apostleship, why God saved and commissioned Paul, the doctrinal section of Scripture, the practical section of Scripture, who is speaking, who is being addressed, the sign on the door, and the difference between interpretation and application.

 

The above is a good place to start. One can be saved and get “a blessing,” without knowing these, but no one is an “expert” in handling the Word of God until he can dissect these correctly. If you cannot identify the historical books of the New Testament, from the church epistles and the Jewish epistles, and from within these, find the three transitional books therein, you are not equipped for serious Bible teaching.

 

Now, I have said all this, in order to say the following. Those who fail to see that the ministry of Jesus Christ was to the Jews only, can’t possibility give a correct interpretation of Scripture. “Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers:” (Romans 15:8). To argue that the four Gospels describe the birth of the body of Christ, and that the rapture of the body of Christ is taught therein, is a colossal failure to rightly divide the Word of God.

 

Christmas is just a few days away. I am sure you could use some spending money. I will give $100.00 to the first person who can prove that the rapture of the church, revealed to Paul, is taught in the Gospels. Don’t get self-righteous on me. Just show us, and collect.